Austria has set up new elite units called “Cobra teams” to patrol the streets and prevent terrorist attacks. Meanwhile, in a meeting with Austrian Chancellor Sebastian “Boy” Kurz, European Council President Donald Tusk criticized Austrian migration policies, and said that Mr. Kurz must accept the EU’s migrant quotas.
In other news, Martin Schulz, the leader of the Social Democrats in Germany, resigned his position, possibly putting the new coalition agreement in jeopardy.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to C. Cantoni, Fjordman, Insubria, Reader from Chicago, SS, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. We check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
Italy: Risk of Supplementary Budget — UPB
To stay in line with EU limuts
(ANSA) — Rome, February 13 — The parliamentary budget office (UPB) said Tuesday there was a risk of Italy having to implement a supplementary budget to stay in line with EU parameters. The UPB said there was a difference between the government’s structural adjustment forecasts and the those of the European Commission. This posed the risk of the EC asking for supplementary measures, it said.
“The respect for the rules of the preventive branch is again at risk of significant deviation,” the UPB said.
“As happened last year, within the framework of European surveillance a request for corrective measures could emerge to bring the budget back to a level that is consistent with respecting the rules”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Boston Police Apologize for Honoring White Man During Black History Month
The Boston Police Department is apologizing Monday morning after it faced scathing backlash for honoring Red Auerbach, a white man, in a tweet Sunday night. The tweet posted to the Boston Police Department Twitter account, began by saying, “In honor of #BlackHistoryMonth,” but goes on to celebrate the accomplishments of Auerbach, who was white.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Chelsea Bomber Gets Multiple Life Prison Sentences for New York Blast That Injured 30
The convicted terrorist who planted two pressure-cooker bombs on New York City streets — including one that injured 30 people with a rain of shrapnel when it detonated — was sentenced Tuesday to multiple life terms in prison.
Ahmad Khan Rahimi, 29, was convicted in October of planting pressure-cooker bombs in New York and New Jersey on Sept. 17, 2016.
Rahimi, an Afghanistan-born man inspired by ISIS and Al Qaeda in 2012, began attempting to radicalize other inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center late last year.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Chicago Police Commander Gunned Down in Loop Pursuing a Suspect
A Chicago police commander who had complained about the difficulty of keeping violent criminals off the streets was fatally shot Tuesday while pursuing a suspect in the Loop in a rare outburst of daytime gun violence downtown.
Cmdr. Paul Bauer, 53, was shot to death at the Thompson Center after chasing a man fleeing from tactical officers who tried to stop him, police officials said. Bauer, a 31-year-veteran who had been in the area for training and had a meeting with aldermen scheduled later, confronted the man, according to police officials and other sources. He opened fire, hitting the commander multiple times, police said.
Officers apprehended a suspect who multiple sources identified as a 44-year-old four-time felon and former prison inmate with an arrest record dating back to at least 1994. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison in a 1998 for robbery. The Tribune is not identifying him because he had not been charged as of Tuesday evening.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Duluth Schools Remove ‘Huckleberry Finn’ And ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ From Curriculum
Students in Duluth will no longer automatically get schooled in “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” or the trials of Atticus Finch in “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
Stephan Witherspoon, president of the Duluth chapter of the NAACP, called the move “long overdue.” The literature has “oppressive language for our kids” Witherspoon said, and school should be an environment where children of color are learning equally. There are other novels with similar messages that can be taught, he said.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
FBI Surveillance of Carter Page Might Have Picked up Bannon
The former Trump campaign adviser says he spoke to Trump aide Steve Bannon about Russia in January 2017, at a time when the FBI had a controversial warrant to monitor Page’s communications.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistani Man Extradited From Quebec to Face Child Sexual Assault Charges in Texas
HOUSTON — Harris County prosecutors say a 41-year-old Pakistani man who fled Texas where he’s charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl is being returned to Houston after he was arrested and unsuccessfully sought asylum in Canada.
Authorities say Aamir Khan was being extradited Thursday from Quebec.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Proud’ ISIS Terrorist Sentenced to Life in Prison for New York Bombings
A New York judge handed down multiple life sentences to an Islamic State terrorist Tuesday for carrying out multiple bombings across the state in 2016.
Ahmad Khan Rahimi injured 30 people when he detonated a pressure cooker bomb in Manhattan in September 2016. He placed several other explosives nearby in New Jersey, but one failed to detonate and the other was a small pipe bomb that caused no injuries, the Justice Department announced. Rahimi claimed at his sentencing that he “doesn’t harbor hate for anyone,” but prosecutors claimed he was proud of his actions and had already tried to radicalize people in prison.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
87-Year-Old Belgian Man Almost Kicked to Death for Criticising Islam
A man with a ‘migrant background’, attacked the 87-year-old Hendrik Keuleers and left him for dead last year. Since the elderly man started criticising Islam he is no longer safe in his own house.
Keuleers, who lives in the Belgian city of Ghent, is known for his window posters that criticise bull fights, Spain’s prime minister and Islam.
It wasn’t the first incident for the old man. Belgian media say his house has been terrorised for years after he started criticising Islam with self-made window posters.
His flower pots were destroyed, his windows were smashed, and last year it resulted in the latest attack, during which he was kicked off his bicycle.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Austria Now Needs Elite Unit to Patrol the Streets and Neutralise Terrorists
A special elite unit is now patrolling the streets of Austria. So called “Cobra teams” are on patrol in regular civilian vehicles to stay unnoticed.
Cobra Director Bernhard Treibenreif says: “The test in the West of Austria is going very well. If anything happens we mustn’t be too late at the scene.”
The elite team is present in urban areas because of the existing terror threat in the country. Like the British Special Air Service (SAS), its goal is to neutralise terrorists and monitor vulnerable areas.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Czech PM Loses Legal Battle Over Secret Police Ties
Andrej Babis will not be able to erase his links to the communist-era Czechoslovak secret police following a ruling by a court in Bratislava. Babis has been accused of collaborating in order to enrich himself.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Dutch Schools Avoid Trips to Cities That Are Targets for Terrorism
A quarter of Dutch school trips abroad no longer include destinations that have been hit by terrorist attacks, a new poll says. Educational research bureau DUO polled 200 secondary schools and over two thirds of the respondents expressed doubts about the safety of such trips. Many schools have scrapped London, Paris and Berlin as destinations and are favouring smaller cities, like Valencia or Glasgow. Some schools are avoiding all European capitals.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns After Lying About Putin Meeting
The Netherlands’ foreign minister has stepped down after admitting he lied about attending a meeting hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The announcement came before he was due to be grilled in parliament.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
EU United Front Disintegrates as Austria Warns Brussels to Cut Spending After Brexit
Funding for the bloc’s flagship projects should be cut instead of expecting remaining member states to make up the difference, Austria’s finance chief insisted as chinks in the EU’s united front appear.
The EU27 have repeatedly followed the bloc’s lead as Brexit negotiations continue, but the issue of the budget shortfall once Britain leaves has highlighted division.
Gernot Blümel, Austria’s finance chief, said: “It can not be that the EU is smaller and that the budget is greater.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU’s New Defense Union Must Not Undermine NATO, Warns Stoltenberg
The US fears the EU could undermine NATO if it uses its military cooperation pact to protect the bloc’s defense industry. NATO’s chief warns there is “no way” the EU’s armed forces pact could replace the alliance.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Expert: Sweden Has Become a ‘Base’ For International Radical Islamic Extremist Networks
Swedish researcher Peder Hyllengren of the Swedish Defence College has claimed that Sweden has become a hub of international Islamic extremism and that hundreds of Swedish residents have built up a vast network of jihadi contacts.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: ‘It’s Unacceptable’: 11 Homeless People Die on Paris Streets in Just Six Weeks
Nearly a dozen people sleeping rough on the streets of the French capital have died since January 1st, according to new figures as Paris announces plans to count the number of homeless in the city.
Between January 1st and February 12th, 11 people living on the Paris streets have died.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: 30 Per Cent of Young Girls in Paris’s Troubled Suburbs Face FGM Threat
The threat of female genital mutilation (FGM) in the heavily migrant-populated Seine-Saint-Denis area in the suburbs of Paris could affect as many as 30 per cent of the children in the area, according to a French sociologist.
French sociologist and director of the Group for the Abolition of Sexual Mutilation (GAMS), Isabelle Gillette-Faye has claimed that the prevalence of FGM in the suburbs of Paris, often referred to as no-go areas, in the Île-de-France region are concerning.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Martin Schulz Steps Down as SPD Head
Embattled former European Parliament President Martin Schulz has resigned as the head of Germany’s Social Democrats. Andrea Nahles has been nominated to take his place, but she still faces a party vote in April.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Halal Certification for Italian Products in Arab Marketplace
Meeting in Cagliari on 15/2 for promoting Italian businesses
(ANSAmed) — CAGLIARI, FEBRUARY 13 — Italian businesses wishing to sell their goods in the Arab world can learn more about how to obtain halal certification for their products at a meeting to be held in Lazzaretto di Cagliari at 9:30 a.m. on February 15, organized by the Italian-Arab Chamber of Cooperation and the ARAFORM training agency.
The seminar in Sardinia will provide attendees with information about the risks, opportunities and growth outlook in the sector.
“Through a seminar on the production chain, aimed at raising awareness among the island’s businesses on the topic, training will be developed for workers in the sector, towards the ‘halal economy’ markets and the creation of specialised businesses in the sector,” event organisers said.
They said the meeting will “contribute to the growth of Sardinian businesses in the sectors of farming and food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and tourism, developing innovative production and marketing processes for a local and international market that is increasingly paying more attention to halal certification”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Hungary Unveils Tougher Proposed ‘Stop Soros’ Laws
The Hungarian government unveiled a tougher version of its package of planned laws targeting NGOs funded by the American billionaire George Soros on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government accuses Soros of encouraging illegal immigration into Europe.
As in the original version of the law drafted last month, a tax of 25 percent would be levied on foreign funding given to organisations considered to be “supporting” illegal immigration.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Berlusconi Must Say Who Premier Candidate is — Meloni
‘Act of clarity needed’
(ANSA) — Rome, February 12 — Centre-right Forza Italia (FI) leader Silvio Berlusconi must say who his premier candidate is for the March 4 general election, Brothers of Italy (FdI) leader Giorgia Meloni told a Facebook-ANSA live forum Monday.
Berlusconi is barred from standing himself by a six-year tax-dodge-related office ban that runs till next year. He has mooted several names without settling on a definitive candidate for premier. “I would consider it a act of clarity from FI to say before the vote who the premier candidate is, I’ll reiterate that to Berlusconi in the coming days, as soon as I hear from him, I think it would be right to know the names, not the names; I’m i favour of the utmost clarity,” she said. She repeated that the party that gets the most votes — FI, the League, or FdI — would get to pick the final centre-right premier candidate.
European Parliament President Antonio Tajani is among the figures Berlusconi has touted.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Meloni Hit by Plastic Bottle During Livorno Campaign Event
Right-wing FdL leader told to ‘get out of’ anti-fascist city
(ANSA) — Livorno, February 13 — Giorgia Meloni, leader of the small right-wing Brothers of Italy (FdI) party, was spat at and hit by a plastic bottle thrown by an opponent in Livorno on Tuesday.
The incidents occurred while Meloni was in the Tuscan port city on the campaign trail for upcoming elections on March 4. She was said to have been unhurt by the flying bottle. Earlier she was greeted by opponents singing the popular anti-fascist song Bella Ciao and a placard bearing the slogan ‘Livorno doesn’t want fascists. Meloni get out of here!’ FdI is running as part of a centre-right coalition including ex premier Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia and the anti-immigrant and Eurosceptic League led by Matteo Salvini.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: 11 Piacenza Probed Including Carabiniere Attackers
Five more as well as 3 organisers
(ANSA) — Piacenza, February 13 — Eleven people have been placed under investigation for clashes between police and anti-Fascist protesters in which a Carabiniere was hurt in Piacenza Saturday, sources said Tuesday. They include those who attacked and broke the officer’s shoulder, sources said.
As well as the two organisers, who are accused of instigation to commit crimes and breaking a public-safety law, there are nine young people, from various Italian cities and none of them resident in the Emilian city, who are accused of robbery, grievous bodily harm, resisting arrest, threats and violence against a public officer, police said. Carabiniere officer Luca Belvedere was surrouned and attacked on the ground in an assault that left him with a compound fracture of the shoulder.
The anticapitalist and anarchist squatters from so-called ‘social centres’ were protesting the opening in Piacenza of a chapter of neo-Fascist group CasaPound.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Will Talk to Whoever Comes to Power — CEI
Bassetti after Vatican-Italy bilateral on Lateran anniversary
(ANSA) — Rome, February 13 — The Italian Bishops Conference (CEI) said Tuesday it would talk to whoever comes to power after the March 4 general election in Italy. “We will talk to whoever comes to power after the elections,” said CEI President Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti after the Italy-Vatican bilateral on the anniversary of the Lateran Pacts.
The cardinal was answering a question on the uncertainty of the general election outcome. Polls predict the vote will produce a hung parliament. This will lead, experts say, to possibly prolonged coalition talks or possibly another election.
Premier Paolo gentiloni, with several members of his cabinet, held a summit Tuesday with senior Vatican officials to mark the 89th anniversary of the Lateran Pacts.
The pacts, signed in February 1929 and amended in 1984, govern relations between the Italian State and the Holy See and also established the sovereign state of Vatican City.
In 1984, after 15 years of complicated negotiations, the 1929 concordat was changed, so that Roman Catholicism would no longer be the official State religion.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Doctor Gets 5 Yrs for Molesting Male Patient
In Bologna
(ANSA) — Bologna, February 13 — A doctor got five years in jail Tuesday for sexually assaulting a 28-year-old male patient during a home visit.
The man, who is of Iranian origin, was an out-of-hours medic in Bologna when the offence happened.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Woman Raped in Rome Street, Suspect Arrested
Victim is homeless, alleged attacker is from Senegal
(ANSA) — Rome, February 13 — A 43-year-old woman was raped late on Monday in the street in Rome’s Piazza Vittorio, a square in a central area of the city with a strong multiethnic composition, sources said Tuesday.
Carabinieri police have arrested a suspect, a 31-year-old Senegalese national, the sources said. The victim is a homeless woman originally from Germany, according to the sources.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Lent Survey: More Than Half of Germans Think Fasting ‘Makes Sense’
As carnival celebrations wind down, a survey has identified the items Germans are willing to give up for Lent. The study found people were happier to give up sweets or alcohol than cigarettes, their phones or their cars.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Macron Vows to Reform Islam in France
by Soeren Kern
The plan, as currently conceived, is vague and short on details, but appears to involve three broad pillars: determining who will represent Muslims in France; delineating how Islam in France will be financed; and defining how imams in France will be trained.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
More Jobs for Ukrainians in Poland’s Service Sector: Report
Demand has grown in Poland’s service sector for workers from Ukraine, public broadcaster Polish Radio has reported.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
SPD Leader Martin Schulz Quits in Blow to Angela Merkel Coalition Plot
GERMAN Social Democrat leader Martin Schulz has resigned with immediate effect and has called an extraordinary party congress for April 22 in a blow to Angela Merkel’s grand coalition plot. Sources said Hamburg Mayor Olaf Scholz would take over as acting leader of a deeply divided party.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden: Woman Admits Lying About Malmö Rape
Police have dropped an investigation into alleged rape in Malmö after the woman admitted she did not tell the truth.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden: ‘The Lives of a Large Number of People Were Put in Danger’
Rakhmat Akilov pleaded guilty to terrorism charges for the Stockholm truck attack that killed five people.
Rakhmat Akilov appeared handcuffed in Stockholm’s special high-security courtroom, wearing green prison clothes and with a shaved head and a beard, accompanied by his lawyer Johan Eriksson.
Akilov, whose Swedish asylum application had been rejected in 2016, had sworn allegiance to Isis on the eve of his assault in one of Europe’s safest cities, though the jihadist group never claimed responsibility.
On the afternoon of Friday, April 7th, Akilov stole a beer delivery truck and barrelled down a bustling pedestrian shopping street, swerving wildly to hit as many people as possible.
Three Swedes were killed, including an 11-year-old girl, as well as a 41-year-old British man and a 31-year-old Belgian woman. Ten others were physically injured.
Rakhmat “Akilov took the truck … and drove it … He killed five people and physically injured ten,” his lawyer Johan Eriksson told the court adding: “The lives of a large number of people were put in danger.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
The Netherlands is Spreading Anti-Russian Sentiment, The Hague Embassy Says
The Russian embassy in The Hague has condemned the way perceptions of Russia are being twisted in Dutch public opinion, in its first comment on foreign minister Halbe Zijlstra’s admission that he lied about a meeting with president Vladimir Putin. Zijlstra has been under fire since admitting on Monday that he lied about overhearing Putin define ‘Greater Russia’ as ‘Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and the Baltic states,’ then adding that ‘Kazakhstan was nice to have’.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
TRAPPIST-1 Exoplanets Could Harbour Significant Amounts of Water
The chances that several exoplanets in the TRAPPIST-1 system could be habitable have been boosted by new measurements that push the envelope of what exoplanet science can do with today’s telescopes.
The TRAPPIST-1 system is just 39.6 light-years away and comprises seven small worlds that orbit a lone red dwarf star. The inner three worlds were discovered in 2016 by astronomers using the Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope (TRAPPIST) at the European Southern Observatory in Chile. The outer four planets were spotted a year later and it is it is possible that all seven worlds could potentially be habitable.
Now, new results have narrowed down the masses of the planets, confirming that they are all likely to be rocky, without the extended atmospheres that miniature versions of Uranus and Neptune would have. Furthermore, all seven planets have densities that suggest a significant amount of water, which is vital for life as we know it.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK Unveils Extremism Blocking Tool
The UK government has unveiled a tool it says can accurately detect jihadist content and block it from being viewed.
Home Secretary Amber Rudd told the BBC she would not rule out forcing technology companies to use it by law.
Ms Rudd is visiting the US to meet tech companies to discuss the idea, as well as other efforts to tackle extremism.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: ‘Prisoners Forced to Convert to Islam for Protection’ Claims Christian Pastor
A chaplain who was allegedly dismissed from his role at HMP Brixton Prison for having “extreme” Christian views has said that some prisoners are being forced to convert to Islam in exchange for protection from gangs.
Pastor Paul Song, who has 20 years’ experience rehabilitating inmates, told the Sunday Express: “If someone is secular and in prison and they want to lead a peaceful life in prison they need to become Muslim. That way they are protected.
“Some people have been forced to convert with violence. How do I know? Because three or four people come up to me and tell me. This is a very sensitive issue.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Julian Assange: Warrant for His Arrest Upheld by Court
An arrest warrant for the Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been upheld by Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
The warrant was issued in 2012 when Mr Assange, 46, breached bail conditions by seeking political refuge at the Ecuadorean embassy.
On Tuesday, the judge said he needed to face justice for breaching bail and therefore the warrant should remain.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Police Respond to ‘Suspicious Package’ Of White Powder Inside Houses of Parliament
Police officers responded to a “suspicious” envelope containing white powder delivered to Britain’s Houses of Parliament in Westminster, London Tuesday afternoon.
A spokesman for the Commons said of the investigation: “The Police are currently investigating an incident on the Parliamentary Estate.”
While the investigation was originally reported to involve a “suspicious package”, a police statement later clarified that it was an envelope containing white powder.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Row Over Proposed Enoch Powell Blue Plaque, 50 Years After ‘Rivers of Blood’ Speech
Thousands of people have backed a proposal to commemorate the late, controversial Member of Parliament Enoch Powell with a blue plaque in his former constituency city of Wolverhampton.
This coming April will mark the 50th anniversary of Mr. Powell’s 1968 ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech, in which he warned of the negative effects of mass migration.
Ahead of the anniversary, Wolverhampton Civic and Historical Society received an application for a plaque commemorating the man, who was an MP in the city for 24 years.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Scoutmaster Fired for Calling Niqab “Darth Vader Tent”
A SCOUT master was expelled after comparing a fully-veiled Muslim leader to Darth Vader.
Brian Walker, an assistant Explorer Scout leader, complained to Scouting magazine after the keen canoeist was featured wearing a niqab, The Sunday Times reports.
The 63-year-old said: “Canoeists don’t dress like this; they need all-round unobstructed vision so they protect the group. They will most likely drown wearing that Darth Vader tent”.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Scout Leader Fired for Criticising Promotion of Islamic Face Veil
A senior scout leader who was expelled from his job after criticising other leaders wearing the full face Islamic veil in front of children has launched a lawsuit against the Scout Association.
Brian Walker compared the Muslim garment to the costume of Star Wars character Darth Vader, and suggested it could hider communication and even frighten young children, the Bristol Post reports.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘We Are Not Visitors’: Muslims in Sweden Demand Mosque Call to Prayer
Muslims in Sweden have applied for permission to broadcast the call to prayer, claiming the move would boost community self-esteem and assist with integration.
The Växjö Muslim Foundation submitted an application to the police requesting permission to send out a three-minute Islamic call to prayer each Friday from a loudspeaker attached to the front of a mosque in the city’s Araby district.
“We are just wanting Sweden to allow Muslims in Växjö to feel even more at home. The Islamic community should be proud of their culture, and not feel like they have to hide,” said Imam Ismail Abu Helal.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
‘We Need to Wake Up to Who He is!’ Farage Slams George Soros’ Attempt to Stop Brexit
Ukip former leader Nigel Farage has called for a formal inquiry into billionaire George Soros after he donated a total of £500,000 to anti-Brexit group Best for Britain.
Speaking on Fox News, Mr Farage claimed the media should concentrate on Mr Soros’ Foundation Open Society rather than Russian collusion in western world politics.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Israeli Police Recommend Indicting Netanyahu on Corruption Charges, Reports Say
Israeli media are reporting that police have recommended indicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a pair of corruption cases.
The reported recommendations Tuesday night do not immediately threaten Netanyahu, but they are deeply embarrassing and could fuel calls for him to step aside.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Athens Accuses Ankara of Fueling Tension in the Region
Greek government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos has accused Turkey of not contributing to stability in the region in the wake of further tension between Athens and Ankara.
The official’s comments on Tuesday came a few hours after a Turkish coast guard vessel rammed a Greek patrol boat off the Imia islets in the Aegean. No injuries were reported.
The incident occurred late on Monday night, soon after Turkish warships stopped a drillship belonging to Italian energy giant ENI from exploring for gas in Block 3 of Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Don’t Underestimate Turkey Says Erdogan Amid ENI Rig Block
Turkish navy continues to stop rig from drilling
(ANSA) — Istanbul, February 13 — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking in Ankara to a parliamentary group of his AKP party, said efforts to search for gas off Cyprus and “opportunistic initiatives” on the cliffs of the Aegean Sea “don’t escape our attention”.
“We are warning those who have crossed the limits in Cyprus and in the Aegean Sea to not miscalculate,” Erdogan said.
Since last Friday, the Turkish Navy has blocked drilling on Italian energy giant ENI’s Saipem 12000 rig off Cyprus.
“We are advising foreign companies operating off Cyprus to not trust the Greek side and not be tools of initiatives that go beyond their strengths,” Erdogan said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Erdogan’s Turkey: Making Trouble Everywhere
Since the failed coup in August 2016, the government says, it has purged more than 107,000 government employees for alleged links to the coup attempt. Worse, according to a Supreme Court justice, the Turkish government is investigating a total of 6.9 million citizens, or about 8.6% of all Turks.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has warned international companies drilling for oil and gas off Cyprus that these hydrocarbons are within Turkey’s continental shelf. Cavusoglu said that Turkey “is prepared to take all necessary measures” to protect its rights, and those of the Turkish Cypriots, in the eastern Mediterranean.
Erdogan’s Turkey apparently has an ideological incompatibility with the word “peace.” This outright bullying can target any nation at any time. Optimists who think it might fade away will be proven wrong once again.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Hundreds of Young Turkish Children Jailed Alongside Their Moms as Part of a Post-Coup Crackdown
Based on monitoring government decrees and other reports from official sources, by the end of August 2017, advocacy groups had highlighted some 668 cases of children under the age of 6 being held in jails with their mothers. And 23 percent of those youngsters were infants less than a year old. porters.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Italy to Halve Iraq Contingent This Year
Defence ministry confirms
(ANSA) — Rome, February 13 — Italy is to halve its 1,500-strong military contingent in Iraq this year, the defence ministry confirmed Tuesday. Italy will “guarantee its commitment in Iraq inside the Coalition, reducing by about a half its military deployment on the basis of developments in the security situation and the Iraqi needs and on the basis of future common objectives agreed during an anti-ISIS ministerial meeting which took place in Rome today,” it said.
In Iraq, the ministry said, “Italy has contributed in a substantive way to the defeat of Daesh (ISIS) through the reconstruction of the Iraqi security forces, including the Kurdish component.
“The current scenario enables Italy to start a significant reduction of the national contingent (currently composed of around 1,500 soldiers) which can be roughly halved”.
During the course of the anti-ISI country ministers’ meeting, “Iraq thanked the coalition and especially Italy for the important contribution given to the fight against terrorism and the training of soldiers and police forces at Baghdad, Erbil and Mosul”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy Sends Frigate to Cyprus’s EEZ
Italy will send a frigate to the area off Cyprus island where Turkish military has been obstructing a vessel exploring for natural gas, according to a report in Italy’s Republica online edition.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Jordan Lifts Visa Restrictions on India to Attract Business
Two days after visit by Prime Minister Modi in Amman
(ANSAmed) — AMMAN, FEBRUARY 13 — Jordan has lifted visa restrictions on Indian nationals in a bid to attract businessmen and tourists from the world’s second largest populated country, officials said today.
The move was initiated by Jordan Investment Commission (JIC) two days after the arrival of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi who discussed with king Abudllah means of boosting economic cooperation between the two countries, Petra news agency said.
The eased restrictions will facilitate the entry of Indian businesspeople and boost the tourism movement, in addition to increasing Indian investment volume and saving effort and time of investors, according to JIC.
With India being the third biggest economic partner of the Kingdom after the US and China, Jordan is keen to build on this relation, and provide gateway for Indian investors to access the Gulf countries, Syria and Iraq. The subcontinent imports large amounts of potash, fertilisers and phosphoric acid from the Kingdom, while it exports frozen meat, tea, coffee, sugar, rice, garment, tobacco, electrical devices and chemicals, among others.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
King Says Jordanians ‘Let Down” by International Community
Jordan’s King Abdullah II says that “life for Jordanians today is very, very tough” as a result of a large refugee influx and that he feels the international community has “let down our people.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Syria Warns Israel of ‘More Surprises’ As Tensions Boil Over Following Iranian Drone Incident
Israel warned Syrian President Bashar Assad to stop letting his war-torn country be used by Iran as a launching pad for attacks, and tensions in the region remained high Tuesday following a weekend skirmish and a new Syrian threat of “more surprises.”
The warning from Syria’s Assistant Foreign Minister Ayman Sussan came after an Israeli fighter jet was shot down inside Syrian territory Saturday as it was flying home from a blitz that reportedly wiped out around half of Syria’s anti-aircraft batteries. The raid was directed at a site Jerusalem believes Iran used to launch a drone that was destroyed in Israel earlier in the day.
“God willing, they will see more surprises whenever they try to attack Syria,” Sussan was quoted by Reuters as saying during a news conference in Damascus.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Western spies used lizards which can ‘attract atomic waves’ to spy on Iran’s nuclear programme, the former chief-of-staff of the nation’s armed forces has claimed.
Hassan Firuzabadi, senior military advisor to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he did not know the details of the cases, but that the West had often used tourists, scientists and environmentalists to spy on Iran.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey: Greek Cyprus Should Not ‘Overstep Mark’ In Eastern Mediterranean
Ankara has denied Greek Cyprus’s recent complaint to the European Union that the Turkish military has obstructed natural gas prospecting off the coast of the divided island, calling on both Greece and Greek Cyprus not to use Turkey’s ongoing military operations in northern Syria as an opportunity for gas exploration.
“It should not be thought that some opportunist attempts over the islets in Aegean and gas exploration activities are not to our attention. We are warning those who overstep the mark in Cyprus and Aegean,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the ruling Justice and Dvelopment Party (AKP) lawmakers in parliament on Feb. 13.
Tensions have escalated in the eastern Mediterranean after Greek Cyprus launched a new gas drilling effort in block three off the island and made a contract with the Italian energy firm ENI. There were reports that ENI’s vessel, the drillship Saipem 12000 was stopped on Feb. 9 by Turkish military ships and told not to continue because there would be military activities in the destination area.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Turkish Warships Block Drilling Rig Near Cyprus
Turkish ships continued to block a drilling rig from reaching an area in southeastern Cyprus where it planned to drill for natural gas. European Council President Donald Tusk warned Turkey against provocative behavior.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
In Search of Surrogates, Foreign Couples Descend on Ukraine
Ukraine, one of Europe’s poorest nations, is fast becoming the place to go for people desperate to find a surrogate to have their baby. The money on offer is drawing in many young women, but there are fears they could be exploited.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Moscow Archbishop Accuses U.S. of ‘Direct Interference’ in Russian Elections
In a curious role reversal, a leading prelate of the Russian Orthodox Church has accused the United States of “direct interference” in Russia’s elections by circulating the so-called “Kremlin list” prepared by the U.S. Treasury Department.
“Surely, it is direct interference in the electoral process,” said the chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate department for External Church Relations, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, on Russian television. “Surely, it is direct pressure on Russian authorities and a wish to undermine the authorities.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A Russian SWAT team has killed two alleged ISIS terrorists wearing SUICIDE BELTS amid gruesome scenes in a shootout caught on video.
Russian security officers filmed the sound of gunfire followed by the dead bodies of the heavily-armed men lying in snow-covered woodland in the Republic of Ingushetia in Russia.
They were armed with assault rifles, ammunition, grenades and suicide belts — and had been hiding in a derelict outbuilding.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Indonesia: Buddhist Monk Threatened by Islamists (Video)
Jakarta (AsiaNews) — In the village of Kebon Baru (Banten province), an unknown radical Islamic group forced the Buddhist monk Mulyanto Nurhalim to sign an agreement, in which the religious committed himself to abandon his home following accusations of proselytism . The episode happened last February 4, but was unearthed only six days after an online video that portrays the monk reading and signing the document went viral.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistan: Valentine’s Day: A Ban for Muslims, Divisions Among Christians
Media regulators ban Valentine Day promotion on all channels. Pauline Books and Media are not selling Valentine Day-related greeting cards, which have been replaced by digital cards. The “Catholic Church will not celebrate the day because this year it falls Ash Wednesday.”
Lahore (AsiaNews) — The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has banned TV channels from promoting Valentine’s Day-related activities, which falls tomorrow.
For most practising Muslims, the event known all over the world as the festival of romantic love is contrary to Islamic doctrine. Speaking to AsiaNews, Church leaders expressed conflicting opinions on the matter.
According to Rev Irfan Jamil, Anglican bishop of Lahore, the anniversary has no connection to Christianity. “The ban doesn’t matter. Love should not be celebrated one day a year only.”
Fr Nasir Williams, director of the Social Communications Commission of the diocese of Islamabad-Rawalpindi, has other ideas. “The ban is the ultimate [form of] of ignorance. Freedom of thought is already limited in our country.”
“What is next?” he wonders, “Confiscating mobile phones or banning TV dramas based on love stories? Nobody is forcing people to buy these gifts. The attempts to control people or blackout one part of media will make no difference,” he said.
Valentine’s Day is named after a Christian martyr of the 3rd century. The celebration has proven divisive among Muslims. Every year, groups of Islamic radicals organise protests and hand out leaflets urging people not to celebrate the day.
This is the second year of a ban imposed on social media as well as online and print media. Last year, the Islamabad High Court ruled that “No event shall be held at official level and at any public place.”
PEMRA General Manager Operations Muhammad Tahir PEMRA said that all broadcast media and distribution services must “desist from promoting Valentine’s Day through their respective channels and networks.”
Yet, despite the ban, it is still very common to find stands in malls and shops selling heart-shaped stuffed toys and teddy bears, balloons and other red-coloured gadgets (pictured, the Emporium Mall in Lahore).
This year, the Pauline Books and Media communications centre in Lahore is not selling Valentine’s Day greeting cards. “The tradition of exchanging cards is dead,” said Sister Irshad Maqsood. “Usually we order stock, but now people have turned to digital media.”
For Fr William, the ban is useless. “The Catholic Church will not celebrate the day because this year it falls Ash Wednesday”, the first day of Lent.
What is more, “We do not encourage illicit relations,” he explained. “People need to be educated and learn the spirituality of love.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistan Gang ‘Stole Spinal Fluid From Women’
Pakistani police have arrested four people accused of stealing spinal fluid from women.
The suspects told women they had to provide blood samples to qualify for financial assistance from the Punjab government, police told BBC Urdu.
However, they extracted spinal fluid instead, and attempted to sell it on the black market, police added.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Pope Francis is doubtless on his way to Yogyakarta now, to explain to these Muslims that, as he has written, “authentic Islam and the proper understanding of the Koran reject every form of violence.” They just misunderstand their own religion, you see. If the great imam Francis can explain it to the poor dears, all will be well.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Intel Chiefs: Don’t be Fooled by North Korea’s ‘Smile Campaign’
Top U.S. intelligence officials warned lawmakers Tuesday not to be fooled by North Korea’s diplomatic outreach at the Olympic Games, reminding Congress at a high-profile hearing that the dictatorship still represents an “existential threat” to the U.S.
The appearance of Kim Jong Un’s sister Kim Yo Jong at the Olympics has led to gushing coverage from some American media outlets, with stories suggesting Pyongyang’s delegation is diplomatically outflanking the U.S.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
New Fighter Jets Will be Used in ‘More Regular’ Patrols Over South China Sea
The deployment of the J-20 stealth fighter for combat service and Su-35 jets for drills over the South China Sea shows the air force has “significantly boosted” its capacity to handle security threats from the sky, according to the People’s Liberation Army.
The announcement came two days after Beijing said the Su-35 fighter jets it bought from Russia had taken part in a combat patrol over the contested South China Sea.
The Su-35 is powered by two turbofan engines, giving it a range of about 3,500km on internal fuel, making it one of the most advanced multi-role fighters.
China is involved in bitter territorial disputes with its Southeast Asian neighbours over the South China Sea, and the United States has conducted freedom of navigation operations in the disputed waters.
China is pushing ahead with a massive modernisation programme of the military, with the focus on combat readiness and training. Inspecting troops in southwestern Sichuan province on Tuesday, President Xi Jinping called for measures to strengthen combat power and aerospace development to build a world-class army.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
The ‘Globalisation’ of China’s Military Power
China’s modernisation of its armed forces is proceeding faster than many analysts expected.
Now, according to experts at the International Institute for Strategic Studies — the IISS — in London, it is China and no longer Russia, that increasingly provides the benchmark against which Washington judges the capability requirements for its own armed forces.
This is especially true in terms of air and naval forces — the focus of China’s modernisation effort.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Four Kiwi thugs are facing deportation from Australia for the horrific coward punch and brutal bashing of a defenceless young father outside a Melbourne bar after a case of mistaken identity.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
On Tuesday, Susan Carland was heavily criticised after sharing an Instagram snap of a bunch of flowers she’d purchased for herself.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
New Zealand Has More Gangsters Than Soldiers
For a sleepy country, New Zealand has a peculiar problem with gangs. Police count over 5,300 members or “prospects” lining up to join one of its 25 listed groups, which together makes them a bigger force than the army. Unlike counterparts in other countries, they thrive in rural areas as well as cities. Almost a quarter of people living in the shabby bungalows of Flaxmere, a suburb in Hawkes Bay, are said to be linked to Black Power.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Asmaul Husna, the sister of a Bangladeshi woman who allegedly stabbed her Melbourne home-stay host in an ‘ISIS -inspired’ attack on Friday, has been accused of attacking a police officer.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
AP Explains: South Africa’s Leader is Told to Go. What Now?
The leadership of South Africa’s ruling party says it wants President Jacob Zuma to resign promptly and bring an end to political uncertainty and months of anger over multiple scandals. The African National Congress expects Zuma to respond on Wednesday to its decision, taken after lengthy private talks between the president and his likely successor, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa. But what if the president continues to resist the calls to step down?
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Ibrahim, 13, is just one of millions of Nigerians displaced by the savage nine-year insurgency, which has claimed over 20,000 lives, triggered malnutrition and disease, and forced entire communities to flee their homes.
Now there is a growing fear that the African terror organisation — parts of which are affiliated to ISIS — is threatening to spill into Europe along migrant routes.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Frontex, Italy Appear to Disagree on Migrant Arrivals
Border agency says up before clarifying, int min says 50% down
(ANSA) — Rome, February 13 — The EU border agency Frontex and the Italian interior ministry appeared to disagree on Tuesday over the trend in migrant arrivals in Italy in early 2018 — though Frontex later spoke to ANSA and cleared up the discrepancy.
Frontex said that numbers were up in January compared to the previous month and comparable to the same month last year. “The number of migrants arriving in Italy via the Central Mediterranean route in January rose to more than 4,800, double the figure from the previous month, when smuggling activities were affected by fighting near the departure areas and poor weather,” the agency said. “The monthly total was roughly in line with January of last year,” the EU agency added. Conversely, the interior ministry said migrant arrivals had dropped by 50% over the same period in 2017 to 4,731 so far this year.
The drop was sharper from Libya: 3,534 in 2018, compared to 9,007 in 2017, a drop of 61%, the ministry added. Of the arrivals so far this year, 621 were unaccompanied minors.
But speaking to ANSA later, Frontex said “there is no indication of a change in the general trend of falling” migrant arrivals “which started in summer of 2017”. “The number of irregular migrants who arrived in Italy in December 2017 was the lowest in three years. The numbers rose slightly in January, remaining however in line with the January 2017 figures”. After the slight rise in January, it said, “the number plunged to 249 in the first 12 days of February, 95% lower than the the same period in 2017”. Frontex and the Italian interior ministry appeared to agree on trends in nationality of the migrants arriving in Italy. “According to preliminary data, Eritreans were the largest group of migrants detected on this route, followed by nationals of Pakistan and Tunisia,” Frontex said. Likewise, the ministry said Eritreans topped the nationalities arriving at 1,312, followed by Tunisians (763), Pakistanis (279) and Nigerians (252). Frontex also noted an increase in the number of Libyans making their way across the Mediterranean in recent months.
Asylum seekers transferred to other European countries according to relocation agreements were 11,934, the Italian interior ministry added. Overall, the number of migrants arriving in Europe via the four principal sea routes fell by 7% in January over the same month in 2017, Frontex said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Greek Migrant Camps Becoming ‘No-Go Areas’ For Children and Women at Night
A new report from the United Nations refugee agency, the UNHCR, has claimed that conditions in the Greek island migrant camps have become incredibly dangerous for women and children who face the threat of sexual violence.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Hungary’s Border Fence Shows That Tough Borders Work and Protect Communities
The Hungarian prime minister’s state secretary, Csaba Domotor, visited the country’s border crossing at the town of Tompa on Monday.
According to Domotor, “The Tompa border fence guarantees Hungary’s security and stands as a symbol of the fight against illegal migration”. The fence also shows that “it is possible to protect our communities and our culture,” Domotor said.
Since building its border fence, illegal migration in Hungary has dropped 99.7%. Hungary is free of Islamic terrorism and no-go zones. The country’s border fence is a clear example of how borders can protect nations and their citizens.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Man Gets 10 Yrs for Raping Woman, Robbing Her Boyfriend
27-year-old irregular Moroccan migrant in Genoa
(ANSA) — Genoa, February 13 — A 27-year-old irregular Moroccan migrant got 10 years in jail Tuesday for raping a 24-yearold woman and robbing her boyfriend in Genoa last year.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Poland Helps Refugees in the Region: PM Pledges $10m in Aid to Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
Poland’s prime minister has visited a school and clinic for Syrian refugees in northern Lebanon, reiterating his country’s position that aiding those uprooted by the war should take place closer to their home.
In a statement Tuesday, Mateusz Morawiecki’s office said he has declared $10 million to help Lebanon build housing for 1,000 refugees from Syria.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden: Stockholm Attack Terror Trial of Uzbek Migrant Who Killed Five With Truck Opens
STOCKHOLM (AP) — The trial of an Uzbek man who has confessed to ramming a stolen truck into a crowd in downtown Stockholm last year, killing five and injuring 14, started Tuesday under heavy security.
Rakhmat Akilov appeared before the Stockholm District Court where he is charged with terror-related murder and attempted murder. The prosecution has requested that he gets a life sentence and is extradited from Sweden.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Toddler Dies After Drunk Driving Illegal Immigrant Smashes Into Ambulance
A 3-year-old boy has died after the ambulance he was riding in was struck by a drunken illegal immigrant in North Carolina, police said Monday.
Jose Duran Romero, 27, allegedly crashed his Honda Accord into the side of a Lifecare Ambulance in Winston Salem, N.C. early Sunday morning, reports the Charlotte News & Observer. A breathalyzer test administered two hours after the crash revealed Romero’s blood-alcohol content was 0.19 — more than twice the legal limit — according to Winston Salem police.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Tusk Accuses Austria of Fuelling Populism as He Tells Kurz He Must Accept Migrant Quotas
DONALD Tusk has hit out at new Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz following the pair’s first official meeting in Vienna — with the Europhile implying the Austrian’s opposition to migrant quotas is fuelling populism and dividing the EU.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Somali Migrant Plotted to Kill Queen and Jewish Londoners, Court Hears
A Somali migrant and Dutch national living in the UK discussed killing Her Majesty The Queen with a fellow Islamic State jihadist supporter, a court has heard.
Aweys Shikhey also allegedly fanaticised about shooting Jewish people near his home in London and attacking Tottenham Hotspur football club with Kenya-based Somalian Abdirahman Idrissa Hassan in conversations dating back to May 31st, 2016.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The Education Department Says it Won’t Act on Transgender Student Bathroom Access
Do transgender boys or girls have the right to use the restroom at school that corresponds with their gender identity? The U.S. Education Department said Monday that it won’t hear complaints about or take action on this question.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
The long-running battle between Hannah Mouncey (pictured) and the AFL reached its conclusion on Tuesday after the game’s board finally made a ruling on her eligibility.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
There is an old German TV show, called Cobra 11. I hope they did not get the name from there. Main hero is a Turk, who gets into big firefight with his German buddy, but they never, ever can hit anything…
“Russia Today” is a channel where there is not a single Russian person. The head of the channel is an Armenian woman Margarita Simonyan
The channel broadcasts exclusively in English, apparently the Russians do not deserve it. It is enough that they pay for it. There is only an Internet version where this news is published:
https://russian.rt.com/world/video/481031-simonyan-prokommentirovala-podpisanie-memoranduma-o-sotrudnichestve-rt-i-gosteleradio-pale
“Margarita Simonyan commented on the signing of a memorandum on cooperation between RT and the State Television and Radio of Palestine” (!)
Editor-in-chief of RT Margarita Simonyan and general curator of the official information bodies of Palestine, Minister Ahmad Assaf signed a memorandum on cooperation, which provides for interaction and exchange of content
Strange, but this news is not in the English version.
But in the Russian version there was no interview with Gert Wilders (with Georgian journalist), there were no articles that “tell the truth” about the Islamization of the West.
(!) it is strange that the Muslim issue is very painful for Armenians. They with Azerbaijanis are also intolerant to each other as Jews and Iranians
No Armenian I know feels good about this situation. Are you sure she represents a lot of Armenians? I don’t appreciate generalisations like that, especially things about a very sane nation that might be in serious danger one more time.
To be honest, I don’t know. Russian “multi-nationals” is a very special phenomenon. Do you know that Lavrov is the son of an Armenian named Kalantaryan? Nationality of the mother no one knows, but Lavrov himself considered Russian. The Kremlin’s gray cardinal Vladislav Surkov is a Jew by mother, a Chechen by father.
Simonyan was a member of the Commission, when two Russian historians-professors tried to condemn under article 282 (incitement of hatred).
These two historians described in their textbook the role of Chechens in World war II – mass desertion and betrayal. Chechen cooperation with the Nazis is a well – known fact, that is what Stalin deported them to Kazakhstan. But now the Chechens Kadyrov-the power support of the regime and therefore history is rewritten in their favor.
https://golos.io/ru–zhiznx/@fadeevnovelty/posadit-li-putin-kadyrova
Yes. A similar alliance between Hitler and Muslims where I live. A less known part of the history. I will try to collect more details and post it, but that will not be easy since not much can be found on the Internet. Thanks for the info, Elena.
It is a great pity that you do not understand her words. She says: “It is an honor and a great joy for us to sign this agreement, and also to have such close relations”
A top shelf meme from our friends at Vox Popoli:
http://voxday.blogspot.com/2018/02/daily-meme-wars.html
Wow, tons of stuff to comment on, all over the place…
Bravo to Russian SWAT for wiping out the would be suicide bombers.
Sad to see Indonesia heading down the wrong path…could be a real problem later. Go see and enjoy Bali before it is too late!
Very savvy move by Poland to pledge aid for refugees in MENA….totally cripples the Marxist EUs ability to claim the moral high ground and exposes their real agenda.