A clash between two groups of “refugees” at a German asylum center left fourteen migrants injured. It is thought that the trouble may have started with tensions between Albanian and Pakistani residents. Meanwhile, 97% of the residents of a small town in Slovakia voted against the settlement of any immigrants in their town.
In other news, in the wake of the victory by separatists in the Catalonian elections, the leader of the Basque Nationalist Party PNV says that his region deserves independence from Spain, too.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to C. Cantoni, Fjordman, Insubria, JD, Jerry Gordon, Nick, 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.
China’s Latest Refusal to Fix Its State-Owned Companies is Bad News for the Global Economy
China’s biggest economic woe isn’t its stock market, the yuan’s value, or the size of its foreign reserves. It’s simply that Chinese companies are making way more stuff than anyone wants.
This industrial bloat wastes labor and bank credit, spurs indebtedness, and stifles innovation. It makes “rebalancing” toward a sustainable consumption-focused economic model near-impossible. By pushing down prices both in China and beyond, Chinese state capitalism drives businesses everywhere out of business.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Swiss Regulators Probe Possible Metals Price Fixing
Swiss competition authorities have said they’ve opened an investigation into whether a number of banks had been involved in the illegal fixing of precious metals prices. Deutsche Bank is among the scrutinized lenders.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
The “Hard-Landing” Has Arrived: Chinese Coal Company Fires 100,000
The global commodity collapse is finally starting to take its toll on what China truly cares about: the employment of the tens of millions of currently employed and soon to be unemployed workers.
On Friday, in a move that would make even Hewlett-Packard’s Meg Whitman blush, Harbin-based Heilongjiang Longmay Mining Holding Group, or Longmay Group, the biggest met coal miner in northeast China which has been struggling to reduce massive losses in recent months as a result of the commodity collapse, just confirmed China’s “hard-landing” has arrived when it announced on its website it would cut 100,000 jobs or 40% of its entire 240,000-strong labor force.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
A Theory of How American Politics is Changing
Most weeks in American politics bring few surprises. But recent weeks have brought four.
First, Scott Walker, who looked to be the conservative establishment’s pick for the GOP nomination, dropped out of the race. Then John Boehner unexpectedly resigned from Congress because his job — which he recently compared to being a garbageman surrounded by “bad garbage” — had become impossible. Then an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll was released showing Bernie Sanders merely 7 points behind Hillary Clinton; that’s down from the 60-point deficit between the two candidates in June. The same poll showed that Donald Trump, Ben Carson, and Carly Fiorina — the GOP’s true outsider candidates — have reached a combined 52 percent in the polls, while Jeb Bush, the GOP’s top insider candidate, has plummeted from 23 percent to 7 percent.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Mitch McConnell Pushed to Resign as Senate Majority Leader
With John Boehner now departing as House speaker, an influential Republican Party official is now seeking the ouster of another GOP leader who has frustrated conservatives: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“McConnell needs to resign!!” Louisiana GOP Chairman Roger Villere wrote in a Facebook posting.
Mr. Villere isn’t just any Republican. He’s the longest-serving state GOP chairman in the nation, with 12 years on the job, and is the vice chairman of the Republican National Committee, the GOP’s national governing body. He also serves on the RNC’s executive committee that makes decisions alongside Chairman Reince Priebus.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
PhD Says Monsanto Has Been Lying About Safety of Cry Proteins in GM Bt Crops
In a recent interview on Food Sleuth Radio, Dr. Hansen exposes Monsanto’s latest contrivance — that Bt toxic corn is ‘safe’ to eat. Dr. Hansen provides ‘clean’ science through Consumer Reports that has no private backing, and certainly none by the GM industry.
Hansen states that biotechnology allows you to move genetic traits from any possible source — viruses, bacteria, animals, humans, etc. and put them into plants. This is what allowed scientists to make Bt corn and other Bt crops, and then patent them.
Bt crops are created by inserting a gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringienesis into a plant, thereby creating a pesticide that lives within the plant from roots to stems. The plant itself, in fact, becomes a pesticide, and when insect pests eat them, their guts are altered, and the insect dies.
The first Bt corn variety made by Monsanto, MON 810 (which was submitted to the FDA with research only done by Monsanto itself), is promoted by the company as being safe; however, the FDA has never declared that BT crops were safe, and in fact, no solid safety testing has been done on Bt toxins.
Conversely, eating Bt toxins can “turn your gut into a living pesticide.” The FDA, like other agencies, has turned a blind eye to Monsanto’s shenanigans, but never made a statement that GM crops were safe, only that based on studies supplied by the industry, they seem to be equivalent to their non-GM counterparts.
Hansen explains that Cry proteins (the Bt toxins inserted into GM corn, sugar beets, etc.) are likely allergenic. A Dutch study conservatively states that they “found sequence homology between inserted proteins in GE products that are on the market and known human allergens,” but Hansen thinks this is shying away from the truth.
How Cry-Proteins in GMOs are Human Allergens, and Health-Damaging
To counteract this study (and other industry studies which show no correlation to Bt toxins and allergies at all) and to show that there is suggestive evidence that the Cry proteins (but especially Cry1Ab/Cry1Ac) associated with the Bt crops may be human allergens and may have adverse effects on the human gut, Hansen argues:
“In 1999, an EPA-funded study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives and titled “Immune responses in farm workers after exposure to Bacillus thuringiensis pesticides,” pointed out that “In 1992 the use of Bt in an Asian gypsy moth control program was associated with classical allergic rhinitis symptoms, exacerbations of asthma, and skin reactions among exposed individuals reporting possible health effects after the spraying operation (7).
Unfortunately, there was no follow-up to determine whether these events were Bt-induced hypersensitivity or toxic reaction or merely due to common aeroallergens coincidental to the season during which the spraying occurred (8). Similar findings occurred during another Bt spraying in the spring of 1994 (8)” (Bernstein et al., 1999: pg. 575). Since there was no follow-up, how can one say that Cry proteins weren’t the source of the allergic reactions? This clearly looks like an example of “don’t look, don’t find.”
The Institute for Responsible Technology explains that pesticide-producing crops (Bt) contaminate nearby streams, possibly affecting aquatic life. The bt toxin produced by these GM crops are far stronger than any found in nature, and are produced throughout the plant.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Pope Says He Didn’t Invite Rome Mayor to Philadelphia
Francis says Marino went to family event of own accord
(ANSA) — Papal Flight, September 28 — Pope Francis told reporters on the papal flight back from the United States that he did not invite Rome Mayor Ignazio Marino to Sunday’s World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia. “I didn’t invite Mayor Marino,” the pope said when asked about the fact that Marino said he had been invited to the event by the pontiff. “I asked the organizers and they didn’t invite him either… He says he’s Catholic. He came of his own accord”.
Marino’s trip to the United States, a month after he had a vacation in the Caribbean and the U.S., stirred controversy in the capital.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Regulated Out of Existence: Off-Gridders Forced Back on the Grid, Camping on Own Land Illegal
It’s something we’ve reported on many times in the past — government agencies trying to regulate Off-Grid living out of existence. Throughout the country, local zoning officials have made it impossible for people to go off the grid, in many cases even threatening them with jail time for not hooking into local utilities.
Because of zoning laws that target the off-grid lifestyle, many off-gridders have moved to areas in the Southwestern United States to escape overzealous zoning officials. But this week, off- gridders were dealt another blow in an area of the country that has become a magnet for people looking to live a more self-reliant lifestyle.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
What a 1917 School Lesson Can Teach America
Contractors at a high school in Oklahoma got more than they bargained for when they unearthed lessons on a chalkboard dating back to 1917.
The lessons are a poignant reminder of a bygone era, before anti-American activists sought to remove all semblance of God, a love for America, and accurate history from schools. Over time, Americans — perhaps weary of the radical left or ignorant of their own rights — have let down their guard and sadly allowed this usurpation to take place.
In the last 100 years, a deliberate and sustained indoctrination effort has been successfully made by card-carrying communists such as Howard Zinn, likely communist members such as Curtis D. MacDougall, or prominent Ku Klux Klan members and their allies such as FDR-appointed Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black to name a few.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Why Hunting for Life in Martian Water Will be a Tricky Task
The risk of microbial contamination could prevent humans and even robots from visiting the most promising parts of the red planet.
NASA scientists announced today the best evidence yet that Mars, once thought dry, sterile and dead, may yet have life in it: Liquid water still flows on at least some parts of the red planet, seeping from slopes to accumulate in what might be life-nurturing pools at the bases of equatorial hills and craters. These remarkable sites on Mars may be the best locations in the Solar System to search for extant extraterrestrial life — but doing so will be far from easy.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Basque Country Head Also Wants Referendum on Ties to Spain
The head of Spain’s Basque Country said Sunday he wants to a hold a “legal consultation” on the northern region’s future within Spain, as Catalonia voted in a regional election centred on independence.
“I believe in the possibility of a legal and negotiated consultation,” Basque Country premier Inigo Urkullu told a rally of his Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) in the town of Foronda.
“We need a new political statute for Euskadi,” he added, using the Basque name for the hilly region of just over two million people bordering France.
“We are a nation, we are the Basque people, we are European citizens, with freedoms and historical rights, we have a language, a culture.”…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
British Body-in-Bag Spy ‘Was Murdered After Defying Russian Blackmail Attempt’
A British spy who was found dead in a holdall bag in his London home was murdered after defying a Russian blackmail attempt, it has been reported.
The remains of MI6 agent Gareth Williams sparked a real-life mystery when they were discovered padlocked in a bag in the bath of his home in August 2010.
But now a former KGB chief has sensationally claimed that Mr Williams was murdered because he knew the identity of a Russian mole who had infiltrated Britain’s top secret GCHQ base.
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Catalonia: Mas Wins But Independence Uphill
Difficult talks ahead with radical secessionists Cup
MADRID — After the victory yesterday of pro-independent parties at regional elections at which they conquered the absolute majority of seats, 72 out of 137, with 47.8% of the vote for outgoing president Artur Mas, the upcoming weeks are likely to be difficult. Mas has promised independence by 2017.
Mas’ list, Junts Pel Si with 62 seats out of 135 did not obtain an absolute majority in the Catalan Parliament and needs to negotiate with the leftist Cup, which garnered 10 lawmakers.
The negotiations, that must end by the beginning of November when the election of the new Catalan president is scheduled, promise to be difficult. The anti-system radicals of Antonio Banos have said so far they don’t want to support the centrist Mas and that they prefer a left-wing candidate from its list like former Green European MP Raul Junqueras.
Then the real match will start for Catalan separatists against the government of Spanish Premier Mariano Rajoy — whose Partido Popular was sharply defeated in the Catalan vote. Rajoy has slammed as illegal the perspective of secession and is ready to place the region under compulsory administration.
Meanwhile newspapers in Madrid and Barcelona are divided in reading the election’s results, which were won by separatists though they failed to reach 50% of the vote. El Pais ran a headline saying that pro-independence parties won the election but failed to obtain a landslide victory. “The majority of Catalans says no to independence”, wrote El Mundo. “Catalonia does not want to go away”, said Abs and La Razon stated that “Mas does not reach his objectives”. Madrid-based papers sided with the Spanish political establishment against independence. In Barcelona, the front-page headline of La Vanguardia was that the yes had won while Punt Avui wrote — “Listen Europe!”.
The head of the Podemos-Green list Lluis Rabell asked today not to count his 10% with 11 seats either in favor of the ‘yes’ or ‘no’, recalling that his list is made of independents and not pro-independence lawmakers.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Confindustria Chief Calls for ‘Home-Grown Big Banks’
Squinzi says moderately confident on pace of recovery
(ANSA) — Vicenza, September 28 — Italy needs large banks but they should be rooted in the country and its population, Confindustria industrialists’ association president Giorgio Squinzi said Monday.
“In general we need big banks that, however, are linked to the territory,” Squinzi said.
“Regional banks were fundamental in Italy’s growth process in the post-war period, from popular banks to savings banks”.
Squinzi said he is moderately optimistic about the pace of the economy’s recovery after the latest consumer data.
“There is certainly a bit more confidence determined by the positive numbers that have come out after 13 months of negative GDP,” he said.
“After two positive quarters I think there will be others and obviously this creates confidence”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
How Rosetta Comet Got Its Shape
Two comets collided at low speed in the early Solar System to give rise to the distinctive ‘rubber duck’ shape of Comet 67P/Churyumov—Gerasimenko, say Rosetta scientists.
The origin of the comet’s double-lobed form has been a key question since Rosetta first revealed its surprising shape in July 2014.
Two leading ideas emerged: did two comets merge or did localised erosion of a single object form the ‘neck’?
Now, scientists have an unambiguous answer to the conundrum. By using high-resolution images taken between 6 August 2014 and 17 March 2015 to study the layers of material seen all over the nucleus, they have shown that the shape arose from a low-speed collision between two fully fledged, separately formed comets.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Italian Left Mourns Pietro Ingrao, Dead at 100
Resistance fighter, Communist, politician
(ANSA) — Rome, September 28 — The Italian left was in mourning Monday for politician, journalist and former Resistance fighter Pietro Ingrao, who died at the weekend, aged 100.
Ingrao was for many years a senior figure in the former Italian Communist Party (PCI).
“We will miss his passion, his sobriety, his gaze, his restlessness, which made him one of the most lucid and inconvenient witness of the 20th century, of the Left, of our country,” said Premier Matteo Renzi.
“His political passion will remain a part of the national heritage, his interior liberty an example to younger generations,” said President Sergio Mattarella.
The CGIL trade union federation saluted “the friend of the labor movement”.
“Thank you Pietro Ingrao,” said FIOM metalworkers leader Maurizio Landini.
“A Communist, a partisan, at the service of the labor movement, always with a free and critical way of thinking, to transform and change the society of the commercialization of labor and people and to raise the banners of liberty, of civil rights, of the development of the democratic regime”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Cimoli Among Four Convicted Over Alitalia Bankruptcy
Case regards 2001-2007 management of airline
(ANSAmed) — ROME, SEPTEMBER 28 — Four people were convicted on Monday in relation to the bankruptcy of the old Alitalia, which was liquidated in 2008 for the carrier to be reborn in a new form. Those convicted included Giancarlo Cimoli, who was Alitalia president and CEO from May 2004 and February 2007 and received a prison term of eight years, eight months. A Rome court also ordered payment of millions of euros in damages in the case related to management of the airline from 2001 to 2007.
Three people who were on trial were acquitted.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Majority of Brits Back Brexit for First Time — Poll
LONDON — Public opinion is warming to the idea of a Brexit, pollsters claim, as a survey reveals that a majority of Britons would rather leave the European Union than remain.
The survey, which was conducted by YouGov for The Times, shows 40 percent of those polled backing a Brexit, while only 38 percent say Britain should remain a member of the EU.
The survey marks a positive milestone for Britain’s “leave” campaign, which last lead the polls in November 2014.
The opposing “stay” campaign enjoyed a ten point lead in June, but observers say its backing has plummeted after the intensification of Europe’s refugee crisis.
Many Tories want the prime minister to head the “leave” campaign or remain neutral on the issue. However, Cameron has ruled out giving Conservative Party cash or information to pro-European campaigners.
Like the Conservative Party, Labour is split over Britain’s in/out referendum. Due to be held before the close of 2017, the referendum has been the focus of much controversy in recent months.
Labour’s shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn and the party’s deputy leader Tom Watson have demonstrated a less neutral position on the referendum than their Conservative Party rivals.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and shadow chancellor John McDonnell have also said that workers’ rights are a condition of the party’s endorsement of the EU.
On Sunday, a speech Corbyn was planning on delivering on the European Union was leaked to ex-Europe minister Denis MacShane. The Labour leader sharply criticized the European project, but called for the British government to reform rather than abandon it.
“I want a different Europe but unlike David Cameron and Nigel Farage I am not prepared to take a risk with our participation in Europe from the EU to the European Court of Human Rights just to pander to those dreaming of the old Europe of populist nationalisms,” Corbyn said.
“I want to work with progressive and socialist parties and thinkers in Europe in and out of government for a program for relaunching European wide growth based on social justice and productive investment.”
Cameron has promised to renegotiate Britain’s relationship with the EU prior to the in/out referendum. He says he wants Britain to stay in a reformed EU, but has ruled nothing out if he is unsuccessful in achieving the reforms he is pursuing.
YouGov’s findings were contradicted by a Survation poll, which found slightly more of those polled would like to see Britain remain in the EU. While 43 percent of respondents said they wanted to stay in Europe, 40 percent backed leaving.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Muslim Father Strangled Daughter, 19, To Death in ‘Honour Killing’ In Germany
Asadullah Khan and his wife Shazia, originally from Pakistan, are on trial for the murder of their daughter Lareeb at the State Court in Darmstadt.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: MPs Want Answers on Refugee Child Brides as 20 Head for Ter Apel
MPs said on Monday they are concerned about reports that a group of young teenage girls who have gone through arranged marriages are reporting to the Ter Apel refugee registration centre to be reunited with their partners.
Local broadcaster RTV-Noord said on Monday some 20 teenage Syrian girls had made the journey to the Netherlands. The broadcaster bases its claims on IND documents.
Two of the girls are 13 and two others 14. One is 15 and married to a man of 38, the documents show. Labour MPs have now called on junior justice minister Klaas Dijkhoff to clarify the situation.
Unacceptable
MP Antje Kuiken is quoted as saying by broadcaster Nos that the situation is unacceptable. ‘I don’t believe this is voluntary,’ she said. ‘I think these are forced marriages.’ Kuiken said the girls now arriving in the Netherlands should be placed with foster families.
Last year 34 teenagers in arranged marriages came to the Netherlands as refugees, most of whom are no longer minors.
The Netherlands recognises marriages involving young teenagers as long as they are officially registered in the country of origin. However, campaigners criticise this position. ‘These girls need help,’ one social worker told RTV-Noord.
Legislation which will limit the recognition of marriages to people aged 18 and over is currently waiting for approval in the senate. The vote is not expected before November.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Secular Activist Banned From Speaking at UK University in Case She Offends Muslims
A prominent human rights activist has been banned from speaking at a British university in case she offends Muslims.
Maryam Namazie, who campaigns against Sharia law, was invited to make a speech to the Warwick Atheists, Secularists and Humanist Society.
She is renowned for her work with refugees and as a secular activist since she fled Iran with her family in the 1980s after the country’s revolution.
Namazie told the Independent: “They’re basically labelling me a racist and an extremist for speaking out against Islam and Islamism.
“If people like me who fled an Islamist regime can’t speak out about my opposition to the far-right Islamic movement, if I can’t criticise Islam, that leaves very [few] options for me as a dissenter because the only thing I have is my freedom of expression.
“If anyone is inciting hatred, it’s the Islamists who are threatening people like me just for deciding we want to be atheist, just because we don’t want to toe the line.”
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Shift Taxes From Labour, EU Report Tells Italy
Recommendation to increase consumption, property taxes
(ANSA) — Brussels, September 28 — A European Union report on Monday suggested Italy shift taxes from labour to consumer spending, property and the environment. The report said that, like other EU States, Italy has “a relatively high tax burden on labour” adding that there is space to “more the fiscal burden to less distorting taxes, like those on consumption, on recurrent taxes on property and those on the environment”.
The report added that, while taxes on sales of property were high in Italy, annual taxes on property ownership were relatively low.
Italy’s high labour taxes have been blamed for contributing to relatively low net salaries and high unemployment.
Premier Matteo Renzi’s government, however, has pledged to abolish the IMU property tax and the TASI local-services tax. The report recommended that Italy reduces exemptions as part of efforts to reduce a high VAT gap — the difference between the amount of VAT collected and the VAT Total Tax Liability. It said that Italy had a “VAT gap significantly higher than the EU average”. The report added that there is room to “improve the efficiency of the VAT system by limiting the use of lower tax rates and non-obligatory exemptions”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Anti-ISIS Artwork Banned From ‘Free Speech’ Event After Outcry From London Police
Anti-ISIS artwork set to appear at a free speech event in London was banned this week after police demanded £36,000 to protect the “potentially inflammatory content.”
Initially chosen to be featured by “The Passion for Freedom” exhibition at the Mall Galleries, the display, an assortment of light box tableaux entitled “Isis Threaten Sylvania,” tells the story of the terrorist group “MICE-IS.”
“Far away, in the land of Sylvania, rabbits, foxes, hedgehogs, mice and all woodland animals have overcome their differences to live in harmonious peace and tranquility. Until Now,” London-based artist Mimsy describes. “MICE-IS, a fundamentalist Islamic terror group, are threatening to dominate Sylvania, and annihilate every species that does not submit to their hardline version of sharia law.”
According to The Guardian, event representatives had no choice but to pull the artwork after Westminster Police raised “a number of serious concerns regarding the potentially inflammatory content of Mimsy’s work.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
A father-of-one was left scarred for life and partially blinded after a man hurled acid in his face in a ‘revenge attack’ — but had targeted the wrong victim in a case of mistaken identity.
Property developer Andreas Christopheros, 29, suffered a permanent loss of vision and horrific burns when David Phillips threw the corrosive material in his face.
Phillips, 48, today admitted attacking Mr Christopheros on his doorstep in Truro, Cornwall, after travelling more than 300 miles from his own home in Hastings, East Sussex.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Jeremy Corbyn Says ‘Teach Children About the Evils of the British Empire’
The new Labour leader said it was right that ‘the wars and all that’ are included in history lessons, but demanded children learn more about Britain’s ‘incredible socialist tradition’.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Man Angered After Ordering a Mild Curry and Getting a Receipt Marked ‘White Ppl’
Stuart Lynn spent nearly £30 in his local Indian restaurant, and asked for his venison curry to be served very mild.
This is quite a normal request, so he was shocked when his curry order came with a receipt marked ‘VERY MILD, WHITE PPL’.
The 44-year-old believes the note was a slur, suggesting that white people can’t handle curries that are not mild.
He has complained to the curry house in Southall, west London.
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Sombreros Given Out by Mexican Restaurant Have Been Banned by University for Being Racist
KILLJOY student chiefs slapped a ban on free giveaway sombreros from a Mexican restaurant after ruling they are racist.
Officials from the University of Norwich students’ union claim the hats breach their rules on “discriminatory or stereotypical language.”
They pounced after local Tex-Mex cantina Pedros handed out the headgear to attract customers at a marketing day for the university’s new arrivals.
The union ordered the restaurant to stop giving them away and told students caught wearing them to take them off immediately.
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Zuckerberg Reassures Merkel on Hate Speech
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg told Chancellor Angela Merkel at the weekend that the social network would do more to fight racist comments.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
The building, which was under renovation, suffered serious damages. The Palestinian Authority had allocated 100,000 dollars for the project. For Maronite official, the incident was an act of vandalism by Muslim radicals. Now local Christians are afraid. Still, life “must go on”.
Bethlehem (AsiaNews) — Sobhy Makhoul, the chancellor of the Maronite Patriarchate in Jerusalem, told AsiaNews that the fire that broke out over the weekend at St Charbel Maronite Monastery (pictured) in Bethlehem was deliberately set. “It was an act of arson, not a fire caused by an electrical problem, an act of sectarian vandalism by radical Muslims.”
The fire caused no casualties or injuries because the building is currently unoccupied and under renovation, but the damage is evident and the local Christian community is now fearful of further violence.
The arsonists “got inside a room that had a lot of stuff, including furniture,” said Sobhy Makhoul, because the building is undergoing restoration work. “The fire reached it and spread quickly throughout the structure.”
Police sources said that Muslim extremist groups have been active in the area and the culprits are already knows and should “be soon apprehended.”
For the chancellor of the Maronite Patriarchate, “The attack is sectarian in nature. It is anti-Christian, like many other incidents across the Middle East. Extremist groups operate in the area, including some Hamas cells. There are also some loose cannons that give vent to their ideology.”
The St Charbel Maronite Convent is located in Wadi Maali, a predominantly Muslim neighbourhood in Bethlehem. The building includes several rooms and a small chapel for prayer. The fire started in the basement and then spread to other parts of the building.
“Last month, the Palestinian Authority donated US$ 100,000 for some repairs to the convent,” Sobhy Makhoul said. “This was a gesture of gratitude towards the patriarch and a show of support for the institution’s restoration.”
Now the Christian community is concerned, he added, but “we must go on. We belong to this land. Our existence comes with tense situations. We have to absorb what happens, not just endure it.”
Of course, like in the case of the Church of the Multiplication in Tabgha, on the Sea of Galilee, it is necessary for the Palestinian Authority to “prosecute those responsible so that justice is done. Every form of extremism by Jews and Muslims must be stopped,” he said.
“As a Church, we condemn such acts of violence,” the Maronite official said. “In this regard, a lot of work has to be done to change the way preaching is done in mosques because far too often they provoke people and foments hatred. Anti-Christian hatred and violence should stop. (DS)
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Chinese Troops to Join Russian Marines in Syria Soon, Says Report
After the Russians and Iranians, Chinese troops reportedly are teaming up with the Syrian regime forces in what is being termed as thedeal that will allow President Bashar al-Assad to stay in power.
A report claims that a Chinese naval vessel carrying dozens of “military advisers” is on its way to Syria and the Chinese troops will then join with the “hundreds” of Russian soldiers…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
French Strikes in Syria to Reap Political, But Not Military Gains
French air strikes launched against Islamic State jihadists in Syria on Sunday may win Paris political capital, but are unlikely to yield serious military gains or stop terrorist attacks, analysts say.
The strikes were announced on the eve of the UN General Assembly in New York where Syria is back in the diplomatic limelight after four years of grinding war that has sent tens of thousands of refugees fleeing to Europe.
France, which has been the target of a series of jihadist attacks, has explained its change in strategy by saying it was acting in self-defence.
However analysts say that by sending fighter jets to Syria, France is mainly seeking to ease domestic political pressure, and remain relevant abroad in the latest scramble for a diplomatic solution to the conflict…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Muslims of Bangladesh Want Saudi Arabia to Pay for Hajj Disaster
During the crush September 24 that killed 769 people in Mina, at least 11 Bangladeshi nationals died and 80 were injured. Harsh criticism of civil society: “Saudi Arabia makes money with the pilgrimage but does not guarantee safety. Why are world leaders silent? “. Islamic leader: “Lack of organization is the cause of the accident. We must punish the guilty. “
Dhaka (AsiaNews) — Religious leaders and families of Bangladeshi victims strongly condemn the Saudi management of the recent Hajj disaster on September 24, which killed at least 769 people and injured a thousand others.
According to data of the Bangladeshi agencies for the Hajj (HABB), 11 pilgrims from Bangladesh are among the dead and 80 others were injured in a stampede occurred at Mina, a few kilometers from Mecca.
Fazlul Bari, well-known journalist, wrote on his Facebook profile: “Saudi Arabia is making businesses and profit due to the Hajj pilgrimage, but cannot provide security to the people. The competent authorities should be condemned for the ruinous stampede. We must raise our voices against this crime. “
A hundred pilgrims from Bangladesh are still missing since the accident, perhaps caused by a trivial “increase flow” to direct people to the “Bridge of Jamarat,” structure by which, on the last night of the pilgrimage, the pilgrims carry out the ritual of the “stoning of the devil”.
Bahar Ibrahim, president of the Haab, states that “of the 80 injured, 30 have returned to their camps after receiving treatment, but the conditions of others are critical.” The man added that the identity of the 11 deceased is still unknown, because the Saudi authorities have not given permission to access hospitals where the bodies are being kept.
According to sources of the Bangladeshi consulate in Jeddah, Riyadh has published photos of 650 pilgrims who died in the accident. Among them, two people from Bangladesh have been recognized.
The criticism of the civil society on the Saudi management of the flow of pilgrims continues. Kazai Rashad complains: “The leaders of many countries have expressed their condolences but did not condemn the incident. Heads of State from around the world have sharply criticized Bangladesh following the Rana Plaza disaster, which killed 1,000 people. But now they are silent and I do not understand why. “
Similar convictions are expressed by an authority of the Muslim world. Mufti Mizanur Rahman, the mosque of Baytul Mukarrom, says: “We need adequate investigation and the Saudi government must take the side of the families of those killed and injured. Obviously — adds the Islamic leader — the accident happened due to lack of organization of the pilgrimage, so those responsible must be held to account”.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Obama Frees 20th 9/11 Hijacker
The Obama administration quietly shipped Osama bin Laden’s bodyguard back to the Wahhabist Kingdom of Saudi Arabia last week despite warnings that the Muslim terrorist remains a serious threat to the United States.
The newly released terrorist detainee is Abdul Shalabi, 39, who trained to be the 20th hijacker for the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Shalabi was set free even though military officials deemed him too dangerous to be unleashed on the world and too valuable as an intelligence asset to be released from U.S. custody.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said last week that the liberation of Shalabi, whom he referred to as a “dangerous detainee,” is “another example of President Obama playing politics with national security and putting campaign promises ahead of U.S. national security interests.” Shuttering the terrorist detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba has long been a goal of President Obama, going back at least to the campaign trail in 2008…
Some commentators accused the Obama administration of releasing Shalabi suddenly and without warning on Sept. 22 while the public and the media were distracted by the first-ever visit of Pope Francis to the United States.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Opening of UN General Assembly Reveals Russia’s Great Game in the Middle East
It was a bizarre turn of events at the opening of the UN General Assembly in New York on the 70th Anniversary of the world body. President Obama gave a speech lambasting Putin’s Russia over its seizure of Crimea and invasion of eastern Ukraine violating the country’s sovereignty. However, he paid court to Russia and China for supporting the Iran nuclear pact unanimous approved by the UN Security Council poised to release tens of billions in sequestered funds as of December 15, 2015. He questioned Russia’s sudden military presence in western Syria building a military complex to bolster the Assad regime. A regime that rained barrel bombs causing the deaths of 250,000. A regime ethnically cleansing the country’s Sunni population sending millions to displaced persons camps in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon and hundreds of thousands in flight to the EU. The President got warm applause over his rapprochement with Cuba.
Putin, when he had his turn at the rostrum accused the US , without naming it ,of causing the rise of the Islamic State through its invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, ultimately creating a Sunni supremacist Caliphate. Following Putin Iranian President Rouhani had his turn at the rostrum in the Assembly hall. He made the astounding proposal that an international alliance including Russia, Iran, Syria and Iraq combat terrorism in the Middle East. A proposal that Rouhani said should be confirmed in another Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action akin to the Iran nuclear pact. He noted the nuclear pact was concluded “without the impediment of the Zionist enterprise”, meaning Israel. Witness the cheek of President Rouhani of Iran suggesting a new Shia alliance in the Middle East, plus Russia welcoming the US to join in fighting Sunni Supremacist Islamic State…
| — Hat tip: Jerry Gordon | [Return to headlines] |
Putin Goes to War Against ISIS: Stop Dithering and Fight, Russian Leader Tells West
VLADIMIR Putin has stepped up Russia’s military presence in Syria and told the west it must back its leader Bashar al-Assad in order to tackle the growing threat of the Islamic State (ISIS).
The superpower has brought in 28 fighter aircraft and thousands of soldiers to the war-torn Middle East country to support the Assad regime.
That puts Russia in direct opposition to a US-led coalition which has brought military action against the Syrian government.
The US has accused Syria of a series of atrocities against its own people.
But Putin said backing Assad was the only way to defeat the terrorism rapidly growing in the area.
In a televised interview Putin said action against Assad’s government would “create a situation” seen in countries such as Libya “where all the state institutions are disintegrated”.
He added: “There is no other solution to the Syrian crisis than strengthening the effective government structures and rendering them help in fighting terrorism.”
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Russia and Iran Throw Weight Behind Assad at UN Meet
Russia and Iran announced a new coalition to defend Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad and defeat the Islamic State on Sunday, handing him a dramatic victory ahead of the UN General Assembly.
Assad was not among the dozens of leaders gathered in New York for the annual UN meeting, but will have been heartened by his allies’ demand that the world focus on defeating the jihadist threat.
“I think today everyone has accepted that President Assad must remain so that we can combat the terrorists,” Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said, in an interview with CNN.
That may be overstating the case: The United States and its allies continue to hold Assad responsible for a civil war that has left 240,000 Syrians dead and created the conditions for extremism to thrive…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
‘Self Defense’? Moscow Questions Legality of France’s Anti-ISIL Strikes
On Saturday, France launched a campaign of airstrikes against the Islamic State in Syria. Commenting on the effort, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova pondered what kind of conception of ‘self-defense’ would drive one country to carry out an operation to bomb another without that country’s explicit permission.
Earlier, Prime Minister Manuel Valls was cited by French media as saying that Paris’s bombing campaign constitutes self-defense. “We are acting in self-defense,” Valls noted, according to Reuters.
In a post on her Facebook page, Zakharova pondered that “it would be nice to know more about this concept of self-defense, in the form of air strikes [on the territory of Syria,] a state which did not attack anyone, and without its consent, and about this concept’s compliance with international law.”
[Comment: Banksters and their political puppets seeking to trigger WWIII.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Time to Work With Russia? David Cameron Will Drop Demand to Oust Assad to Defeat ISIS
David Cameron was last night preparing to drop his call for Syria’s President Bashar al Assad to step down in an attempt to form a coalition with Russia to defeat the Islamic State.
In a dramatic about turn, the Prime Minister was expected to tell the United Nations General Assembly that Mr Assad could remain in power during a transitional government.
Mr Cameron hopes the new approach will end the four-year war in Syria and focus attention on the terrorists, who are recruiting hundreds of fighters from Britain every year.
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Meet the Man Who Prevented World War III
You may have never heard of Vasili Arkhipov. And yet life as we know it on this planet could have ended if it were not for his crucial intervention during the Cuban Missile Crisis…
Arkhipov was appointed deputy commander of the K-19 in its maiden voyage in July 1961, under the command of Captain Nikolai Zateyev. After a few days conducting exercises off the coast of Greenland, the submarine developed a major leak in its reactor coolant system, leading to the failure of the cooling pumps. Radio communications were affected and the crew was unable to contact Moscow.
With no backup system, Zateyev ordered the seven members of the engineering crew to come up with a solution and avoid a nuclear meltdown. This required the men to work in high radiation for extended periods. Sacrificing their own lives, they bootstrapped a secondary coolant system and kept the reactor from a meltdown.
The incident irradiated the entire crew, including Arkhipov. All members of the engineering crew and their divisional officer died of radiation exposure within a month. Fifteen more sailors died from the aftereffects of radiation exposure over the following two years. This incident was immortalized in the 2002 Hollywood movie “K-19: The Widowmaker”, starring Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson (both featuring terrible Russian accents)…
Arkhipov was second-in-command in the nuclear-armed Foxtrot-class submarine B-59, part of a flotilla of four submarines protecting Soviet ships on their way to Cuba. On October 27, as they approached the US imposed quarantine line, US Navy ships in pursuit started dropping depth charges to force the B-59 to surface for identification — completely unaware that it was carrying nuclear weapons.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Afghanistan: Taliban Attack Kunduz, at Least 34 Dead
Control of key buildings taken by insurgents- reports
(ANSA) — Kabul, September 28 — At least 34 people are dead after the Taliban launched an attack on the northern Afghan city of Kunduz, local media reported on Monday. The Taliban now control parts of the city and several key buildings, according to the reports.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Indonesia Prays for Islamic Banking Boom
Indonesian teacher Nina Ramadhaniah hopes for “blessings from Allah” by opening a sharia bank account — the sort of pious customer the world’s most-populous Muslim-majority country is praying for as it launches an Islamic finance drive.
Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s biggest economy, has a Muslim population of around 225 million but this huge number of faithful has not translated into success for sharia banks, institutions required to do business in line with Islamic principles.
Now regulators have launched a plan aimed at growing the sector, which currently accounts for less than five percent of banking assets, compared to a quarter in neighbouring, more developed Muslim-majority Malaysia and around half in Saudi Arabia…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Australian Government Warns That Alternative Rock, Teenage Rebellion Could Lead to Radicalization
The 32-page booklet starts with a long definition of radlicalization, hedged by warnings that not every diversion from the mainstream will result in violence. Then it heads into a series of “case studies” that indicate every deviation from societal norms is a warning sign of impending unlawfulness.
The case studies are the best kind of hilarious: inadvertent.
“Erin” joined a “hate group” and committed crimes against Muslims. After a stay in jail and laying off the booze, “Erin” turned her life around. Not completely, but it’s a start.
It is now a number of years since she left the group and Erin has sought treatment for her depression, reconciled with her family, is studying and has made some new friends. However, it was a difficult and slow process. She has moderated her beliefs significantly and makes a point of educating herself on issues rather than just accepting what others tell her. She does not entirely trust the government or police yet — it takes a long time to change some habits of thinking.
If nothing else, this fabricated tale shows the government to be overly-concerned about its place in the world. “Erin” is still partly broken because she doesn’t “entirely” trust the government or police. What a shame. But it is hoped “Erin” will be made whole in the near future — full of trust in the government and prone to only tempered beliefs.
But that’s not the worst of it. Much like the Homeland Security Advisor’s ridiculous claim that teens acting like teens pose a threat to national security, the Australian government’s concerns about future radicalization are also tied to the hallmarks of adolescence.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Hundreds of British Troops Head to East Africa to Stop Terrorism at Core of Migrant Crisis
British troops are being sent to besieged East Africa as part of the ongoing bid to tackle Islamic extremism which has made thousands flee for Europe.
David Cameron announced last night 70 armed forces personnel will go to Somalia, where forces are fighting jihadists from al-Qaeda splinter group al-Shabaab.
Another 300 troops are due to go to neighbouring South Sudan to bring peace to the world’s newest independent nation where a civil war as been going on for two years.
Somalians, along with those from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Eritrea, make up about two thirds of migrants making perilous journeys across the Mediterranean to reach Europe.
Mr Cameron said the move would help to bring “security and stability” to East Africa, which would end up making Britain safer, and would help reduce the number of people from the region becoming migrants.
He said: “Britain will take very great care to ensure the security and safety of our troops.
“What happens in the outcome in Somalia, if it’s a good outcome, that’s good for Britain — it means less migration, less piracy and ditto South Sudan.”
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Thousands Protest Against Revising Congo Constitution
(AGI) Brazzaville, Sept 28 — More than 300,000 people have taken to the streets of Brazzaville in protest against a referendum on constitutional reform. The protest was organised by the leaders of the two main opposition parties, the Congo Democracy Initiative and the Republic Front for the Respect of the Constitutional Order and Democratic Transition. The protestors carried placards saying “It’s enough” and “32 years in power is too many”, and Congo Republic President Denis Sassou Nguesso has been described as “a danger to democracy”.
The opposition parities say the referendum is a “simple manoeuvre by Nguesso to gain a third mandate, in violation of the current constitution, which provides for only two mandates”. They are calling for “a democratic rotation with new people”, and say that if the president “persists in organising this referendum, we will call everybody out onto the streets.
The Congolese people are not happy, they have been sacrificed on the altar of egotism.” They urged their supporters not to take part in the revision of electoral rolls. “We believe in respect for the constitution, we want the people to have freedom of choice over their president, so that Congo can have a president other than Nguesso, 32 years in power are too many.” they said. The protest was peaceful and the police did not intervene.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Los Abandonados: Argentina’s Dead Prosecutor and Why Deals With Iran Never Work
As Americans reflect on months at the negotiating table with Ali Khamenei, the new film Los Abandonados (“The Abandoned”) demands a deeper look at another Iran deal: the one Argentina made to absolve the perpetrators of the largest terrorist attack in their history.
Part historical account and part spy novel, Los Abandonados tells the story of the death of Alberto Nisman, an Argentine prosecutor who was found dead of a gunshot to the head the day before he was to testify to Congress. He was to accuse President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of making a secret deal with the Iranian government to protect Hezbollah-linked terrorists. The terrorists in question are the orchestrators of the 1994 bombing of the Argentine-Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA), the worst terror attack in Argentina’s history and the worst attack on the Western Hemisphere prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Nisman was found dead on January 18, and his death remains unsolved. Nearly half a million Argentines took to the streets of Buenos Aires in February and March demanding justice, many believing that Nisman was right, and Iran was operating within their borders. Some held signs reading “Islamic Fundamentalists Killed Nisman.”
The Nisman shooting made only marginal headlines in the United States, but the beauty of Los Abandonados is that director Matthew Taylor does not expect you to know who Alberto Nisman is, much less have a vivid memory of the AMIA bombing. If you are surprised— and alarmed— to hear that Hezbollah is actively operating in Latin America, then this is the film for you.
[Comment: sounds like the director tries to tell the truth… will keep an out out to see this movie.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
500 Migrants Rescued in Mediterranean
Some 500 migrants were rescued in seven operations launched over the weekend in the Mediterranean, the Italian coastguard said.
The migrants mainly came from the west African countries of Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Sierra Leone and left Libya three days earlier. They were rescue about 80 kilometres off the Libyan coast.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
A Small Slovakian Town Held a Vote on Accepting Refugees; 97 Percent Said No.
GABCIKOVO, Slovakia — The next act of the European refugee crisis will unfold in little towns like this one, where hundreds of Syrian war refugees are coming to live in a village that just voted by overwhelming numbers to oppose their stay.
Over the past few days, the first of 500 Syrian asylum seekers arrived to take up three-month residency at a state-run dormitory in the center of town.
Last month, as locals watched the news of streams of migrants winding their way through Europe, the village held a special referendum: 97 percent voted to oppose reopening the Slovakian government’s refugee facility.
“We’re not haters,”said Zoltan Jakus, one of the organizers of the vote. “But I think this will end badly.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
British Authors Donate Book Profits to Syrian Refugee Campaign
Britain’s best-selling authors, including Jacqueline Wilson, Ian Rankin, David Nicholls and Marian Keyes, are backing a campaign to raise £1 million for Syrian refugees through sales of their most popular books.
From Thursday, the full retail price from selected books sold at Waterstones will go to Oxfam’s Syria Crisis Appeal.
All major UK publishers are involved, donating books by dozens of authors.
Writers lending their support to the cause include Prof Mary Beard, Alan Bennett, William Boyd, Bill Bryson, Tracy Chevalier, Lee Child, Julia Donaldson, Neil Gaiman, Mark Haddon, Matt Haig, Robert Harris, Khaled Hosseini, Max Hastings, Victoria Hislop, Marian Keyes, Lynda La Plante, Andrea Levy, Peter May, Alexander McCall Smith, Caitlin Moran, Michael Morpurgo, JoJo Moyes, Philip Pullman, Ian Rankin, Tom Rob Smith, Salman Rushdie, Ali Smith and Jacqueline Wilson.
The books will be grouped together in stores with ‘Buy Books for Syria’ identifying them as part of the campaign.
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Clashes at Migrants’ Camp in Germany Leave 14 Injured: Report
Clashes at a migrants’ camp near the central German city of Kassel on Sunday left 14 people injured, the DPA news agency reported.
The clashes erupted in the suburbs of the city, at a camp made up of tents which house around 1,500 migrants hailing from around 20 different countries, and lasted “several hours”, DPA quoted the police as saying.
Three policemen were among the injured, the German news agency said.
A fight first broke out at around mid-day during mealtime between two refugees, and later involved two large groups of Albanian and Pakistani migrants, according to DPA…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Europe: Seizing Homes to House Muslim Migrants
Never let a crisis go to waste is the theme of the left. Every crisis must be used to seize power, money and property for the agendas of the left. The Muslim migrant crisis in Europe is no different……(more)
Swedes’ homes may be confiscated to accommodate asylum seekers using obscure legislation from 1992, the “Threat and Risk Assessment Commission” established that the Swedish government should have the option to seize property, especially summer homes, from the Swedish people in a time of crisis.
It was monstrous that Nazi concentration camps like Buchenwald and Dachau, hallowed ground, have been used for this. Now they are seizing people’s homes.
And now this:
“German nurse shocked after being forced out of flat to make way for refugees,” RT, 26 Sep, 2015
Having lived in the same flat for 16 years, a German woman is being forced to move out to make way for refugees, because building a new shelter is too expensive. The 51 year-old nurse, who has helped asylum seekers in the past, was shocked by the news.
Bettina Halbey, who lives alone in the small town of Nieheim, received a letter from her landlord and the local municipality at the start of September, Die Welt newspaper reported on Thursday. “I was completely shocked and I can’t even begin to find the words to describe how the city has treated me,” Halbey told the German publication. “I have had to go through a lot of difficulties recently, and then I get this notice. It was like a kick in the teeth.” Halbey will have until May 2016 to find a new place to live, along with her dog and her cat. […]
Mayor Vidal slammed Halbey for going public with her complaints and added that she had been given ample time to find new accommodation.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: ‘Refugees Don’t Leave Their Conflicts Behind’
Following reports of aggressive incidents in German refugee shelters, authorities are looking for ways to calm the situation. Suggestions include separate housing for Muslim and Christian asylum-seekers.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Pope Says Anti-Migrant Walls Will Fall
Barriers are not the solution, Francis says in flight to Rome
(ANSA) — Papal Flight, September 28 — Pope Francis told reporters on the papal flight back to Rome on Monday that migrant barriers like those erected by Hungary on its border with Serbia will not last. “You know how walls finish up,” Francis said. “All walls collapse — today, tomorrow or after 100 years. Walls are not the solution. The problem remains, but with more hate”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Renzi Says Hungary Bigger Problem for EU Than Russia
Premier says would be mistake to envisage Europe without Moscow
(ANSA) — New York, September 28 — Premier Matteo Renzi has said that European Union member State Hungary today presents a bigger problem to the bloc than Russia does. “Today the real risk for Europe is not Russia, but Hungary, which has built as new wall,” he said referring to Budapest’s fence on its border with Serbia, erected as part of a hard line on the refugee crisis. “It would be a tragic error to think of Europe without Russia,” he added late on Sunday speaking at the Clinton Global Initiative, along with former U.S. President Bill Clinton and financier George Soros.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Some 25,000 Refugees Reached the Netherlands So Far This Year
So far this year, 25,000 asylum seekers have come to the Netherlands, of whom 8,000 were family members joining people already settled, the national statistics office CBS said on Monday.
In most cases, adult men are joined later by their wives and children, the CBS said.
Most people — 7,000 — arrived in August, of whom around 50% came from Syria.
In 2014 as a whole, almost 24,000 people came to the Netherlands as refugees, a rise of 66% on 2013. Most of them also came from Syria, with Eritrea in second place.
Despite the rise in numbers, there is still a long way to go to reach 1994’s peak of 53,000 asylum requests, the CBS points out. Most of those refugees came from the former Yugoslavia, which had been torn apart by civil war.
Arranged marriages
Meanwhile, local broadcaster RTV-Noord reports that some 20 teenage Syrian girls who were in arranged marriages have recently arrived at the Ter Apel refugee registration centre.
The broadcaster bases its claims on IND documents. Two of the girls are 13 and two others 14. One is 15 and married to a man of 38, the documents show.
Last year 34 teenagers in arranged marriages came to the Netherlands as refugees, most of whom are no longer minors.
The Netherlands recognises marriages involving young teenagers as long as they are officially registered in the country of origin. However, campaigners criticise this position. ‘These girls need help,’ one social worker told RTV Noord.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Why Migrants Are Going to Great Lengths to Avoid Cyprus
Nine months after Fadi, a refugee from Homs, Syria, landed in Cyprus on a boat carrying some 340 smuggled refugees, he still had not applied for asylum. He chose instead to attempt to reach mainland Europe by any means possible.
Fadi’s reluctance to plant roots in Cyprus, the European Union country closest to Syria, stems from Cyprus’ policy preventing most of those granted asylum from bringing their family members to join them.
For Fadi, who made the journey to Cyprus without his wife and 3-year-old son, the “right to family reunification” was important enough that he continued via “illegal ways,” he said, to Sweden, where he was granted refugee status in August.
Of the more than 487,000 refugees and migrants who have reached Europe by sea so far this year, just over half are Syrian. But fewer than 3,000 have come to Cyprus, an island nation of just 1 million people located 60 miles west of Syria.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Marines Under Fire for ‘God Bless’ Sign
An atheist-minded activist has launched a legal threat against a Marine Corps base in Hawaii, saying the commander needs to tear down a decade-old sign that says “ God bless the military” or else face the fury of his organization.
The Military Religious Freedom Foundation contacted Col. Sean Kileen to demand the sign’ s removal, Fox News. The message, which has stood in plain view on base property since shortly after September 11, 2001, reads: “ God bless the military, their families and the civilians who work with them.”…
Weinstein also said if the base let that sign stand, it would have to also allow to stand signs that read: “ There is no God to bless our military, their families and the civilians who work with them.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Obama Warns Christians: Gay Rights More Important Than Religious Freedom
Obama proudly told the audience that he would not back down in his efforts to make progress for the LGBT community, and called for all of them to remain vigilant to hold the line on important legal gains in the country.
“What makes America special is, is that though sometimes we zig and zag, eventually hope wins out,” he said. “But it only wins out because folks like you put your shoulder behind the wheel and push it in that direction.”
[Comment: You can trust a communist to act like a communist.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
State Using Taxpayer Funds to Implant 10-Year-Olds With Birth Control
Taxpayers in the State of Washington are funding the disturbing practice of fitting extremely young public school girls with implantable long-lasting birth control devices, according to documents received by conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch.
Girls as young as 10 attending public schools in Seattle have been implanted with intrauterine devices (IUDs), the documents show, and as exposed by Life News in July, the children do not need to obtain parents’ permission before the procedure is performed.
While data is still incomplete for 2015, the documents, provided by the Washington Health Care Authority, reveal children as young as 10 and teens from all age groups received implants throughout 2013 and 2014.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Drafting the Pope Into Global Warming and One World Government Battles a Failure
The world we live in is not one populated by global citizens because the reality of every day life ensures we are still parents hoping for the best for our children and grandchildren; we are not global citizens but still flesh and blood people doing all that is necessary to provide for our families in a world becoming increasingly unstable by the people we installed in public office, the same ones who routinely kill off jobs, remove our borders and give way to the terrorists of Islam.
In short, the masses last week who were supposed to be transformed into global citizens are doing what they do best, surviving the technicolor dreams of their government leaders, largely because they have little choice but to carry on with whatever means they have left.
Obama and the UN will never own up to the failure of the big lead balloon they let up into the air over America. That’s mostly because they had laughably convinced themselves that man-made global warming, and the UN’s Agenda 21 revised into Agenda 2030 would create humanity’s first One World Government, now that they had the Pope’s public blessing.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
In New York, Pope Francis Embraced Chrislam and Laid a Foundation for a One World Religion
Remarks made by Pope Francis at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan have sparked a firestorm of criticism from those that do not believe that Christians and Muslims worship the same God.
Many have taken the Pope’s remarks as a major step in the direction of a one world religion, and the truth is that the Pope has made other such statements in the past. In recent years, the theory that Christianity and Islam are just two distinct paths to God among many others has rapidly gained traction all over the planet. Some religious leaders have even gone so far as to try to merge Islamic and Christian practices, and the term “Chrislam” is now often used to describe this ecumenical movement. If all this sounds incredibly strange to you, just keep reading, because this is just the tip of the iceberg.
What Pope Francis had to say at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan has received very little coverage by the mainstream media, but it was exceedingly significant. The following is how he began his address…
I would like to express two sentiments for my Muslim brothers and sisters: Firstly, my greetings as they celebrate the feast of sacrifice. I would have wished my greeting to be warmer. My sentiments of closeness, my sentiments of closeness in the face of tragedy. The tragedy that they suffered in Mecca.
In this moment, I give assurances of my prayers. I unite myself with you all. A prayer to almighty god, all merciful.
He did not choose those words by accident. In Islam, Allah is known as “the all-merciful one”. If you doubt this, just do a Google search.
And this is not the first time Pope Francis has used such language. For instance, the following comes from remarks that he made during his very first ecumenical meeting as Pope…
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Paul Craig Roberts Warns “The Entire World May Go Down the Tubes Together”
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin will meet with Obama next week at the UN meeting in New York. It is a meeting that seems destined to go nowhere. Putin wants to offer Obama Russian help in defeating ISIS, but Obama wants to use ISIS to overthrow Syrian President Assad, install a puppet government, and throw Russia out of its only Mediterranean seaport at Tartus, Syria. Obama wants to press Putin to hand over Russian Crimea and the break-away republics that refuse to submit to the Russophobic government that Washington has installed in Kiev…
Meanwhile, the real basis of US power—its economy—continues to crumble. Middle class jobs have disappeared by the millions. US infrastructure is crumbling. Young American women, overwhelmed with student debts, rent, and transportation costs, and nothing but lowly-paid part-time jobs, post on Internet sites their pleas to be made mistresses of men with sufficient means to help them with their bills. This is the image of a Third World country.
In 2004 I predicted in a nationally televised conference in Washington, DC, that the US would be a Third World country in 20 years.
[Comment: Bankster stooge obama was placed in the WH to accelerate the economic downfall of America.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Study Adds to Evidence That Viruses May be Alive
A new analysis supports the hypothesis that viruses are living entities that share a long evolutionary history with cells, researchers report. The study offers the first reliable method for tracing viral evolution back to a time when neither viruses nor cells existed in the forms recognized today, the researchers say.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
With Pope’s Help, U.N. Bypasses Congress on Global Socialism
Pope Francis didn’t make the list of “Eminent Persons” assembled by the U.N. Secretary General to plan the “global development framework” for the world beyond 2015 and culminating in 2030. But the pope didn’t need to be on the list. After all, the Vatican hasendorsed the anti-capitalist “sustainable development” agenda that is being voted on by the nations of the world at the U.N.
However, the American people, through their elected representatives, have had absolutely no input in developing this new global agenda which President Obama will implement without the input or approval of Congress.
John Podesta, the chairman of the 2016 Hillary Clinton presidential campaign who previously served as counselor to Obama, was picked by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to be a member of the “high-level panel” of “eminent persons” planning the future of the globe.
The world body’s sustainable development goals promise the end of poverty, education, clean water, justice, good health and well-being, jobs for all, decent shelter, and a life of personal dignity. “These are lofty goals,” says Patrick Wood, a commentator on global issues, “but are they for real? Or do they sound like a bait-and-switch scheme that contains a potentially dangerous payload?”
Wood, who has covered global institutions for decades, argues that Pope Francis, the most visible religious figure in the world, has been called upon by the global community to deliver a U.N. address on September 25 “to minimize any possible resistance” to plan that constitutes nothing less than the overthrow of global capitalism and the destruction of the American way of life.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Your TV Habit Might be Killing You
The sheer time spent sitting to watch TV can explain a lot of its effect, Rockette-Wagner says. But there may be something, or some things, especially bad about TV sitting, Hu says.
“There is some evidence that the resting metabolic rate is actually lower when you watch TV, compared to some other sedentary behaviors like reading or driving,” he says.
Translation: You might burn fewer calories draped on the sofa watching TV than you do turning pages or working the gas pedal. “You have more than 100 channels on a remote control, you are just sitting there and you don’t need to move your feet at all,” Hu says.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
For French speakers:
Des combattants de l’EI parmi les réfugiés entrant en Europe, selon un expert autrichien
http://french.xinhuanet.com/2015-09/26/c_134660912.htm
Sacre bleu! 50 millions que je pense?