Gates of Vienna News Feed 1/23/2018

The London borough of Tower Hamlets has banned Donald Trump from entering its territory, alleging that the president is a “bigot”. The borough has the largest percentage of Muslims in the United Kingdom.

In other news, Bosnian judicial authorities say that Sweden is the single largest market for illicit weapons originating in the Balkans.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to Charles Low, Dean, Dora, 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.

USA
» Kentucky School Shooting Leaves at Least One Dead and Multiple Wounded, Officials Say
» Lake Wales Mall: Eagle Ridge Composite Sketch
» Man Pleads Guilty to Providing Support for ISIS
 
Canada
» Trudeau Government Reviewing Bringing Back Hate Speech Law
» Two Accused Terrorists Hired as “Anti-Radicalism Consultants”
 
Europe and the EU
» Climate Scientists Buried in Snow
» EasyJet Interested in ‘Some Parts’ of Alitalia
» Germany School Attack: Pupil ‘Killed by Classmate’ Near Dortmund
» In Washington, Foreign Minister Szijjártó Claims a “New Phase” In US-Hungary Relations Has Arrived
» ISIS Bomb Plot Foiled in France
» Italy: Anti-Trust Fines WhatsApp 50,000 Euros
» Italy: Orsi, Spagnolini Cleared in Finmeccanica Algeria Case
» Italy: Salvini Contradicts Berlusconi on 3% Deficit Limit
» Italy: Berlusconi Rules Out Grand Coalition
» ‘More Europe? Its Like Giving Whiskey to an Alcoholic’ Warns Matteo Salvini
» Norway: Oslo Building Evacuated After Grenade-Like Device Discovered
» Padoan Mocks Berlusconi’s Flat Tax Proposal
» Racism in Switzerland: ‘People of Colour Are Automatically Perceived as Foreigners’
» UK: London: Muslim Enclave Votes to Ban Trump
» UK: Primary School Intimidated Into Dropping Hijab Ban
 
Balkans
» Bosnia: Sweden is Largest Market for Illegal Balkan Weapons
» Serbia: Survey: 52% in Favour of EU Membership
 
North Africa
» Tunisia Removed From Tax-Haven Blacklist by EU
 
Middle East
» Iranian Researcher Death Sentence Lifted — Piedmont Uni
» Syria: Qatar Expresses Support for Turkey in Afrin Offensive
 
South Asia
» Tommy Robinson and Tapan Ghosh: Islam’s War Against Hinduism in India
 
Far East
» North Korea Mocks the US: ‘Americans Are Trembling With Fear’
 
Australia — Pacific
» ‘A Targeted Attack’: Street Locked Down After a ‘Lawyer’ is Shot Dead Execution Style in Front of Terrified Shoppers at a Cafe on a Busy Western Sydney Shopping Strip With the Gunman on the Loose
» African Apex Teen, 17, Who ‘Delights in Violence and Humiliating Victims’ And Has Committed More Than 100 Crimes Set to be Deported After Prison Release
» ‘Don’t Steal My Tools, I Need Them to Pay for Your Benefits’: Tradesman’s Hilarious Sign on the Back of His Trailer to Deter Criminals
» Exclusive: ‘We’re Living in Fear Every Day’: Inside the Squalid Housing Commission Block in Melbourne Where Residents Are Confronted With Blood-Splattered Lifts, Used Syringes and Violent Drug Addicts
» ‘It Does Not Make Me Racist to Ask You a Question!’ Tense Moment Broadcaster Neil Mitchell Clashes With ‘Invasion Day’ Protester Live on Air
» Police on the Hunt for Group of Women Who ‘Bashed Another Female’, 24, As She Tried to Leave an Elevator Inside Her Melbourne Apartment Block
» ‘They’re Getting a Soft Touch Because They Aren’t Citizens’: Peter Dutton Claims Courts Are Handing Foreigners Light Sentences to Avoid Deporting Them
» Well-Dressed Federal Government Worker, 40, Arrested in Sydney’s West Accused of Sending $30,000 to ISIS Terrorists
» ‘You’re Looking in the Wrong Direction’: Victoria’s Top Cop Says it’s Not the Job of Police to Fix Melbourne’s African Gang Problem and Says the Violence is a ‘Social Issue’
 
Latin America
» Julian Assange Impasse ‘More Than a Nuisance’ for Ecuador, Says Country’s President
 
Immigration
» Director of Controversial Chios Refugee Hot Spot Resigns
» Nine in Ten ‘Underage’ Moroccans in Sweden Caught Lying About Their Age
 
Culture Wars
» France: Masked Alt-Left Extremists Surround Catholic Campaign Bus, Throwing Smoke Bombs at Pro-Life Marchers
 
General
» Soros: $10 Million Lobbying in 3 Months
 

Kentucky School Shooting Leaves at Least One Dead and Multiple Wounded, Officials Say

A shooting at Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky., has left at least one dead and multiple others wounded, officials said. (Google Earth images)

At least one person was killed and several others were injured when a shooter opened fire at Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky., officials said.

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin tweeted the shooter was in custody. Officials told Fox News the threat to the school was over. Kentucky State Police confirmed a Marshall County Deputy “apprehended the shooter…

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

Lake Wales Mall: Eagle Ridge Composite Sketch

LAKE WALES, Fla.- Investigators with the Lake Wales Police Department have released a composite image of one of the persons of interest who could be connected to igniting two marine flares at the Eagle Ridge Mall.

The incident happened around 5:20 p.m. Sunday at the entrance of the J.C. Penny store.

Firefighters initially said that an improvised explosive device had been detonated in a corridor next to the store entrance.

The FBI later determined that there was no explosion and no pipe bombs were discovered. It also said that the incident doesn’t appear to be terrorism related.

Police released surveillance video of a man walking through J.C. Penney and an image of another man.

Police said the composite image is of a second person of interest.

The mall was evacuated. No one was injured, but a ceiling and a wall were damaged by the flares, officials said.

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

Man Pleads Guilty to Providing Support for ISIS

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A New York man who traveled to Turkey in an attempt to join the Islamic State group has pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization.

Arafat Nagi (NAH’-gee) entered the plea in federal court in Buffalo on Monday. The 47-year-old Lackawanna (lak-ah-WAH’-nah) man faces up to 15 years in prison when he’s sentenced in May.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Trudeau Government Reviewing Bringing Back Hate Speech Law

The Canadian government is looking at restoring a polarizing hate speech law that was repealed in 2013.

According to a letter from Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, the Trudeau Liberals are actively considering reinstating the the internet legislation, which is currently “under review.”

As first reported by the Langley Times, the minister was responding to correspondence from hate speech activist Cran Campbell, who was urging the government to bring back the law.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Two Accused Terrorists Hired as “Anti-Radicalism Consultants”

Shocking news from Quebec:

“Sabrine Djermane and El Mahdi Jamali, two Montrealers acquitted of terrorism after three months of trial and over two years incarceration, will be consultants for the Center for Prevention of Radicalization Leading to Violence (CPRMV), learned La Presse.”

Now, it’s technically true that these two men were “acquitted of terrorism” — just last month, actually.

But one was convicted of having explosives, and both are banned from a number of terrorist-oriented activities.

And just last week, the crown appealed, so they might yet be convicted.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Climate Scientists Buried in Snow

Scientists have once again set up a mock Arctic base camp to educate world leaders about man-made global warming at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Climate scientists hope their mock camp illustrates how global warming could impact the Arctic, but the “Gore effect” may make it harder to get the message across. Davos has seen frigid temperatures along with about six feet of snow in the last six days.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

EasyJet Interested in ‘Some Parts’ of Alitalia

CEO Lundgren says negotiations ongoing

(ANSA) — Rome, January 23 — EasyJet CEO Johan Lundgren has said that the British low-cost carrier in interested in buying “some parts” of Alitalia, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

Lundgren was quoted as saying that “negotiations are taking place with the (Alitalia) commissioners”.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Germany School Attack: Pupil ‘Killed by Classmate’ Near Dortmund

A pupil at secondary school near the German city of Dortmund has been killed by a fellow classmate, according to police.

Reports say a 15-year-old student stabbed a 14-year-old boy.

The attack happened at around 08:00 local time (07:00 GMT) at the Käthe Kollwitz comprehensive school in the town of Lünen.

One teenager has been arrested on suspicion of murder. Pastors are at the school to support pupils and parents.

Police say they are investigating and have not released any further details.

German media say both the victim and the suspect are German citizens, while the latter also has a Kazakh passport…

           — Hat tip: Dean [Return to headlines]
 

In Washington, Foreign Minister Szijjártó Claims a “New Phase” In US-Hungary Relations Has Arrived

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, starting an official visit to Washington, DC, has claimed that a new phase in Hungary-US ties has arrived. The minister argued that significant changes were afoot at the State Department.

He cited as an example the appointment of Wess Mitchell (who was chosen last fall) as the official responsible for the central European region, which he said presaged a new chapter in the Hungarian-American political relationship. He said economic ties and cooperation in defence were “excellent”, and he underlined Hungary’s unswerving commitment to NATO and the fight against terrorism.

Political ties, however, have not functioned properly, he said. “We had to face many unfair criticisms, and in several cases we experienced a lack of understanding when it came to America’s assessment of Hungarian measures,” Szijjártó said, adding that now a new chapter could begin with Mitchell’s appointment. “Taking into account the last few years, now is our best chance for political relations to develop to the level of our ties in the economy and defence.” “Over the past seven years, Hungary has been brought back from the edge of the abyss … and today it is one of the dominant countries of the central European growth engine; and this is recognised here in America,” he said.

Szijjártó claimed that US-Hungary ties have started to see a revival recently. He argued that one sign of this was that in November, a US congressional delegation visited Budapest, while another will come in late January, and plans are underway for American politicians to visit Budapest in March as well. “The current American administration represents a similar position to the Hungarian government’s on a number of important international issues,” the minister said. […]

           — Hat tip: Dora [Return to headlines]
 

ISIS Bomb Plot Foiled in France

FRENCH authorities have charged a 33-year-old man who police believe was plotting a terror attack after pledging allegiance to ISIS, sources say.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Anti-Trust Fines WhatsApp 50,000 Euros

‘For failing to publish sentence on Messenger terms of use’

(ANSA) — Rome, January 23 — Italy’s anti-trust authority on Tuesday fined WhatsApp 50,000 euros for allegedly failing to publish a sentence on the terms of use of its WhatsApp Messenger service.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Orsi, Spagnolini Cleared in Finmeccanica Algeria Case

No tax fraud says judge

(ANSA) — Busto Arsizio, January 23 — A judge in the northern city of Busto Arsizio on Tuesday acquitted former Finmeccanica CEO and president Giuseppe Orsi and former AgustaWestland chief Bruno Spagnolini of charges of tax fraud related to the supply of helicopters to the Algeria government. The decision follows recent acquittals related to alleged bribes paid to land contracts with the Indian government for helicopters from the Italian defence and aerospace giant, which has renamed itself Leonardo.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Salvini Contradicts Berlusconi on 3% Deficit Limit

League leader says several EU regulations damage households

(ANSA) — Rome, January 23 — League leader Matteo Salvini said Tuesday that Italy should not feel obliged to respect the European Union’s 3% deficit-to-GDP-ratio limit if it is not in its interests. “The little number three doesn’t exist for us if it damages Italian companies and families,” Salvini said regarding the deficit limit.

“There are EU regulations that damage Italian families and for a Salvini government they do not exist, such as the Bolkestein and the banks directive”.

Ex-premier and Forza Italia leader Silvio Berlusconi, Salvini’s coalition partner, told the European People’s Party (EPP) on Monday that Italy would respect the 3% deficit limit if the centre right wins the March 4 general election.

Luigi Di Maio, the premier candidate of the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S), has also mooted the idea of breaking the deficit threshold.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Berlusconi Rules Out Grand Coalition

Ex-premier says centre right will have majority in parliament

(ANSA) — Brussels, January 23 — Ex-premier and Forza Italia (FI) leader Silvio Berlusconi on Tuesday ruled out the hypothesis that a grand coalition will govern Italy after the March 4 general election, saying it will not be necessary as the centre right will win. “I exclude the possibility of a grand coalition,” the media billionaire told a press conference at the offices of the European People’s Party (EPP) in Brussels. “There is no chance of it happening. We’ll have a majority in the Lower House and the Senate”.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

‘More Europe? Its Like Giving Whiskey to an Alcoholic’ Warns Matteo Salvini

MATTEO Salvini has warned any increase in the influence of the European Union would be like giving “whisky to an alcoholic” as the Italian eurosceptic of the anti-migrant, anti-EU Lega Nord today hit out at Brussels in a stinging attack.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Norway: Oslo Building Evacuated After Grenade-Like Device Discovered

90 people were evacuated on Tuesday morning after a device resembling a bomb was found in a commercial building in Oslo.

           — Hat tip: Charles Low [Return to headlines]
 

Padoan Mocks Berlusconi’s Flat Tax Proposal

Need financial coverage to lower taxes, says economy minister

(ANSA) — Brussels, January 23 — Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan on Tuesday mocked Forza Italia leader Silvio Berlusconi’s proposal to introduce a flat tax for households and businesses if the centre right wins the March 4 general election. “When you lower a tax you need (financial) coverage and so you have to put that on the table,” Padoan said at the end of a ECOFIN meeting. “It is one of the proposals that need a magic wand or a fairy because they are miraculous, often fun to listen to”.

Padoan is set to stand for the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) led by ex-premier Matteo Renzi in the March 4 general election.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Racism in Switzerland: ‘People of Colour Are Automatically Perceived as Foreigners’

The Local contributor Alyssa James shares the experiences of people of colour in Switzerland and investigates how racism and xenophobia intersect in Swiss society.

           — Hat tip: Charles Low [Return to headlines]
 

UK: London: Muslim Enclave Votes to Ban Trump

London borough — which has the highest percentage of Muslims in the UK — has voted to ban U.S. President Donald J. Trump for the area, declaring him a “bigot”.

The council has been at the centre of serious corruption scandals, including the removal of an Islamist mayor who was found guilty of bribing Muslim groups and wielding “undue spiritual influence” on Muslim voters.

The anti-Trump motion, proposed by Councillor Ohid Ahmed and Councillor Oliur Rahman, passed by a majority vote this week.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

UK: Primary School Intimidated Into Dropping Hijab Ban

Police have been called in after a top-rated primary school was ‘intimidated’ into dropping a ban on Muslim girls wearing hijabs.

St Stephen’s in Newham, East London, was bombarded with thousands of emails — many allegedly abusive or threatening violence against staff — after it ruled that girls aged under eight should not wear headscarves.

In the face of the protests, the chairman of the governors, Arif Qawi, announced his resignation on Friday and the school said it had reversed its ban after ‘speaking to the school community’.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Bosnia: Sweden is Largest Market for Illegal Balkan Weapons

Bosnian prosecutor Goran Glamocanin has claimed that Sweden is the number one market in Europe for illegal weapons from the Balkan region after yet another explosion occurred in Malmö over the weekend.

The Bosnian prosecutor, who is currently involved with the prosecution of 20 people who are alleged to have attempted to traffick illegal military grade arms out of the country, said almost all of the weapons were headed to Sweden, Aftonbladet reports.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Serbia: Survey: 52% in Favour of EU Membership

Minister Jadranka Joksimovic expressed satisfaction

(ANSA) — BELGRADE, JAN 23 — 52% of Serbs are in favour of their country’s accession to the European Union, according to a latest survey conducted by the Ministry for European Integration.

Minister Jadranka Joksimovic said that he was satisfied with the outcome, since in previous surveys — which the ministry carries out every six months — those in favour of Serbia’s European integration were 47% and 49%. “After a long time, we have now exceeded the 50% threshold, and I am very satisfied”, she said.

The minister added that, according to the survey, 65% of the respondents said they were supporting the reform process under way in the country regardless of the accession negotiations that Serbia is pursuing with Brussels. And this indicates, he underlined, that a more modern and efficient country is desired.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Tunisia Removed From Tax-Haven Blacklist by EU

With UAE, now in grey list

(ANSAmed) — TUNIS, JANUARY 23 — Tunisia has expressed great satisfaction over the decision of the Economic and Financial Affair Council (ECOFIN) to remove the country from a list of non-cooperative fiscal jurisdictions.

EU finance ministers on Tuesday removed eight countries from the list of fiscal havens approved in December because they agreed to cooperate. The countries are: Barbados, Grenada, South Korea, Macao, Mongolia, Panama, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. They will be moved to a ‘grey list’ of countries that are closely monitored on the engagements they have taken.

A Tunisian foreign ministry statement said the measure “awards intense efforts made by Tunisian authorities at a political and diplomatic level to push EU institutions to reconsider ECOFIN’s decision on December 5, 2017 that had placed Tunisia in the black list of fiscal havens”.

Economic operators also expressed satisfaction.

Premier Youssef Chahed until last December had worked for a positive solution to the issue sending Secretary of State Hichem Ben Ahmed to Brussels.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Iranian Researcher Death Sentence Lifted — Piedmont Uni

Ahmadreza Djalali arrested in 2016 on spying charge

(ANSA) — Turin, January 23 — A death sentence for Iranian researcher and alleged spy Ahmadreza Djalali has been suspended, the university of eastern Piedmont said Tuesday. Djalali, who was arrested in 2016, worked for the Italian university for several years. Djalali was due to be executed last Friday, but the Iranian supreme court is reviewing the sentence and has asked a prosecutor to express his opinion next month, the university said.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Syria: Qatar Expresses Support for Turkey in Afrin Offensive

Ankara backed Doha in dispute with Saudi front

(ANSAmed) — BEIRUT, JANUARY 23 — Qatar on Tuesday expressed full support for Turkey’s offensive in the Kurdish enclave of Afrin in Syria, stating that it is part of “Ankara’s efforts to safeguard its national security”.

Turkey has a military base in Qatar and has politically and economically supported Doha, also by providing food, after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt imposed a diplomatic and commercial blockade on the emirate, accusing it of supporting extremist groups and terrorists and of having warm relations with Iran.

Qatari foreign ministry spokeswoman, Lolwah al Khater, told national news agency Qna that the ‘Olive Branch’ operation launched last Saturday by the Turkish army was motivated by “legitimate concerns” and the need to “secure its borders, as well as protect the territorial integrity of Syria from separatist dangers”. Turkey, the spokesperson added, “has always been a stabilizing factor in the region and Qatar has confidence in its work to preserve the security of civilians and territorial integrity of Syria”.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Tommy Robinson and Tapan Ghosh: Islam’s War Against Hinduism in India

Last year, a well-known Indian activist by the name of Tapan Ghosh gave a speech in the Houses of Parliament. He told the truth about Islam and the Qur’an. He warned his audience about how, in Islam, there cannot be fraternity with non-Muslims. This is the first time I’ve ever heard the truth being told in our own Parliament!

Ghosh is the head of Hindu Samhati, an organisation in West Bengal that was set up to protect Hindus. His team of over 100,000 activists regularly protect women who are victims of “Love Jihad”, a practice whereby Muslim men pretend to be Hindu, entrap young women, and force them into marrying into Islam.

I met him earlier today to talk about his speech, and to find out more about the situation in India. He told me that his people have been under threat for 1400 years, how the media tell the same lies as our Western press, and how alternative media like The Rebel will be key for stopping the threat of Jihad and fake news propaganda.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

North Korea Mocks the US: ‘Americans Are Trembling With Fear’

North Korea has pushed tensions to a new high in their recent mocking of the United States over the false missile alert accidentally issued by Hawaii. The tyrannical regime claims that Americans are “trembling with fear” in the wake of Hawaii’s mistake.

           — Hat tip: Charles Low [Return to headlines]
 

‘A Targeted Attack’: Street Locked Down After a ‘Lawyer’ is Shot Dead Execution Style in Front of Terrified Shoppers at a Cafe on a Busy Western Sydney Shopping Strip With the Gunman on the Loose

A lawyer has been shot dead and a gunman is on the loose after a shooting inside a busy shopping strip in Sydney’s west.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

African Apex Teen, 17, Who ‘Delights in Violence and Humiliating Victims’ And Has Committed More Than 100 Crimes Set to be Deported After Prison Release

The African thug, 17, has been in youth detention for most of the past two years after committing more than 100 offences on the streets of Melbourne.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

‘Don’t Steal My Tools, I Need Them to Pay for Your Benefits’: Tradesman’s Hilarious Sign on the Back of His Trailer to Deter Criminals

The sticker was spotted on the back of a black trailer hitched to the back of a white 4WD stopped at a Melbourne intersection, and is one of many variants of to pop up around the world.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Exclusive: ‘We’re Living in Fear Every Day’: Inside the Squalid Housing Commission Block in Melbourne Where Residents Are Confronted With Blood-Splattered Lifts, Used Syringes and Violent Drug Addicts

Eddy and Dave, who have lived in the Park Towers high-rise in South Melbourne for two years, say their time in the housing commission building has been a living nightmare.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

‘It Does Not Make Me Racist to Ask You a Question!’ Tense Moment Broadcaster Neil Mitchell Clashes With ‘Invasion Day’ Protester Live on Air

Invasion Day protester Tarnee Onus-Williams has accused broadcaster Neil Mitchell of being a racist during an awkward interview on live radio on Tuesday, ahead of Australia Day protests.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Police on the Hunt for Group of Women Who ‘Bashed Another Female’, 24, As She Tried to Leave an Elevator Inside Her Melbourne Apartment Block

Police have released video and images of a group of women who attacked the 24-year-old victim in a lift in Southbank, Melbourne, on January 1 and may have attacked two more people the next day.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

‘They’re Getting a Soft Touch Because They Aren’t Citizens’: Peter Dutton Claims Courts Are Handing Foreigners Light Sentences to Avoid Deporting Them

The Home Affairs Minister said ‘soft pedaling’ was becoming an all too familiar theme in foreign-born criminal sentencing, with judges opting to dish out lighter penalties to avoid deporting people.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Well-Dressed Federal Government Worker, 40, Arrested in Sydney’s West Accused of Sending $30,000 to ISIS Terrorists

A 40-year-old woman accused of electronically wiring $30,000 to ISIS jihadis overseas was arrested by the NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team in Sydney around 7.30am on Tuesday morning.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

‘You’re Looking in the Wrong Direction’: Victoria’s Top Cop Says it’s Not the Job of Police to Fix Melbourne’s African Gang Problem and Says the Violence is a ‘Social Issue’

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton spoke out about the state’s African gang crisis, after returning to the top job this month. He said offending was not limited to just one ethnicity.

           — Hat tip: SS [Return to headlines]
 

Julian Assange Impasse ‘More Than a Nuisance’ for Ecuador, Says Country’s President

Nearly six years since seeking asylum inside its London embassy, WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange has made “more than a nuisance” for the current government of Ecuador, according to President Lenin Moreno.

Mr. Moreno, Ecuador’s leader since May, made the remark during an interview with television networks over the weekend while describing the ongoing, international impasse involving Mr. Assange, Agence France-Presse reported Monday.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Director of Controversial Chios Refugee Hot Spot Resigns

Official steps down amid pressure from locals to close Vial camp

ATHENS — The director of the controversial Vial refugee and migrant camp on the island of Chios has resigned, Greece’s Migration Policy Ministry said on Tuesday, amid mounting pressure from locals to close it down. Theofilos Tsingalakis, the man tasked with running the hugely overcrowded Vial camp where living conditions have been heavily criticized by human rights groups, cited mounting pressure from “local proponents” as his reason for quitting, without elaborating further.

Vial has been the subject of a blockade by local residents who oppose to the government’s efforts to expand the facility in order to cope with the continuing influx of refugees and migrants on boats from Turkey.

There have been protests, led by local residents, to close the camp down, but Greece’s Migration Minister Yiannis Mouzalas has insisted that this cannot and will not happen until the number of people staying there are reduced significantly.

Chios, along with Lesvos and Samos, has borne the brunt of the ongoing refugee crisis and locals are angry with big delays in the transfer of thousands of the migrant population staying at Vial to Athens, and only lifted their week-long blockade on Monday. According to the latest figures, there are just over 1,600 migrants living at the state-run camp, which was built to hold a capacity of just 800. Many people, including families and vulnerable groups such as unaccompanied minors and women, are forced to sleep outside in tents due to a lack of space. Human rights watchdog Human Rights Watch have heavily criticized the Greek authorities in its annual review for 2018, for what they describe as “failure to properly identify vulnerable asylum seekers for transfer to the mainland,” while also claiming that Greece has “impeded their access to proper care and services.” HRW also stated that the EU-Turkey agreement made in March 2016 to try and stem the flow of migrants into Greece and the EU in general has simply lead to “thousands being trapped in Greece in overcrowded and abysmal conditions, while denying most access to adequate asylum procedures or refugee protection.” Over 50,000 refugees and migrants remain stranded in Greece, with delays in asylum applications causing a huge backlog due to the sheer number of people that the authorities have to register and process.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Nine in Ten ‘Underage’ Moroccans in Sweden Caught Lying About Their Age

A new cooperation agreement between Sweden and Morocco to share their fingerprint databases has revealed that 90 per cent of “underage” Moroccan asylum seekers are really adults.

Per Löwenberg, Group Head of the Swedish National Border Policy Division, commented on the new agreement, saying: “We have been given permission to work very well with Moroccan authorities, and have a working routine that we are very pleased with,” Sveriges Radio reports.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

France: Masked Alt-Left Extremists Surround Catholic Campaign Bus, Throwing Smoke Bombs at Pro-Life Marchers

Around 50 French masked alt-left extremists surrounded the bus of Catholic pro-life demonstrators who were heading to a March for Life event in Paris and attempted to set several of the bus occupants on fire.

The attack occurred in the city of Rennes in Northwest France at around 7:45 am on Sunday and saw the bus, which was rented by a Catholic association, surrounded by masked extremists, Le Télégramme reports.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

Soros: $10 Million Lobbying in 3 Months

Left-wing mega-donor George Soros spent $10 million on lobbying in the last three months of 2017 alone, according to newly filed lobbying disclosures.

The Open Society Policy Center, the lobbying arm of Soros’s massive left-wing network, spent $10.3 million lobbying on 11 issues (all dealing with foreign policy) between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, the report shows.

           — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago [Return to headlines]
 

9 thoughts on “Gates of Vienna News Feed 1/23/2018

  1. “Racism in Switzerland: ‘People of colour are automatically perceived as foreigners’”

    Interesting article: One black Canadian woman was shown how to open windows, and considered it a clear sign of being perceived a foreigner in Switzerland! Due to racism, of course.

    Another one encountered a group of men shouting “Nigga”.

    And the rest of the article is a sum up of black guys investigating Swiss racism and claiming “Switzerland was a colonial power, though without colonies!”

    I don’t know about you, but this article seems to me a precious example of a thing called “cooking with water only”. There is absolutely no essence in it, except for black on Swiss racism.

    …And – I just love when foreigners come to some place and the first thing they do is to critisize and sue and complain and make scandalous claims. We had similar cases in the Czech Republic also: Bangladeshi wannabe nurses refusing to take hijab down before entering the surgery, then suing for remedies – literally two months after acquiring refugee status.

    • “One black Canadian woman” – so she actually *was* a foreigner.
      Maybe it’s not (just?) the colour that makes it obvious? Accent, etc.

      Here in Canada, I can usually tell foreigners (and recent and late-life arrivals) apart from locals even without hearing them. I can tell a “local” black person from an African black person. The body language is different. Likewise with Chinese and Indians. Likewise, a “white” person from Europe can often be picked out of a crowd for slightly different behaviour (dress style, body language, etc).

      In fact, in Montreal, I can often figure out whether to address someone in English or French, just by looking at them and analysing things like this.

      I’m also on the receiving end of such *erroneous* assumptions myself, regularly. I’m (originally) francophone (though obviously, I speak English), but I really don’t *look* francophone. I look “anglo/immigrant average”. Before there were many French-speaking “different-looking” immigrants in Montreal, francophones regularly addressed me in English. If anything, I find it funny.

      Obviously, I’m a racist.

      • If it looks like a thug, walks like a thug, and talks like a thug, then chances are it’s an aspiring brain surgeon or aerospace engineer.

        • Mr Moon,
          You pierce the balloon of nonsense with the sharp arrow of wit. Keep your quiver full, it amuses an English lady.

  2. “The London borough of Tower Hamlets has banned Donald Trump from entering its territory”

    “Its”

    That’s the key word here.

    • Just let me get this clear, this is the same Tower Hamlets that has been investigated for voting fraud, correct? He who lives in a glass house, ought to take care to whom he lobs his stone.

  3. I have to laugh at the hypocrisy of these people. They don’t like Trump suggesting that some people might not be allowed on the territory he is legally obliged to protect. They say it’s just not right to prevent people from entering your territory. So they say they want to prevent him from entering their territory. What hypocrites! Right wing extremists! Hitler-worshippers! Racists!

    • Um, just one flaw, it is not their territory. London and all its constituent areas is part of England, which in turn is subject to English law. Not Pakistani/Afghanistan/Somali (chose your favourite Islamic septic tank here) law. Why do we put up with this?????

    • Their terminology is that of colonists, not immigrants, I hold hope that one day the masses will realise this and stop funding these parasites, even get rid of them, because they’re not even paying their own way.

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