Ukraine announced today that it used a barrage of drones to destroy at least six military aircraft at an airfield in Russia’s Rostov region. Meanwhile, fighting-age Ukrainian men are exploiting a loophole in the country’s martial law by marrying disabled women to avoid being sent to the front line.
In other news, a magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck the East Coast of the United States this morning, with its epicenter near Lebanon, New Jersey.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Dean, JW, LP, McN, MM, 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. I 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.
Gold Hovers Around All-Time High as Central Bank Actions Drive Up Demand
China and the Fed’s rate cut plans are driving up demand for gold.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Grocery Prices Nearing 40 Percent Higher Than in 2019, Analysis Finds
Grocery prices today are now nearing 40 percent higher than they were in 2019, a new analysis has found.
A $100 grocery haul in 2019 costs almost $140 today, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of NielsenIQ data.
The hike represents nearly 40 percent more for the same common items, causing consumers to “become creative to cope” with crippling inflation.
According to the analysis of the prices of everyday foods such as meat, vegetables, starches, and snacks, Americans are facing a dramatic increase across all categories.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Key Economic Indicator Shows Consumer Prices Up 2.5% in February, Compared to 12 Months Earlier
A key U.S. economy report released Friday shows the cost of consumer goods in the country continues to increase.
The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index was up 2.5% at the end of February, compared to the same time last year. That compares the January 2024 rise in prices of 2.4%.
The Commerce Department index is the preferred inflation gauge for the Federal Reserve, which sets interest rates in an effort to slow inflation, while trying to avoid going too far and bringing on a recession. The Fed’s goal is 2% inflation.
Driving the increase in the annual inflation rate was a 2.3% jump last month in energy prices, according to CNN.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Nolte: Biden’s High Gas Prices Force Him to Cancel Strategic Petroleum Reserve Refill
The Biden White House looked at Biden’s gas prices and canceled a scheduled refill of our Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
US Economy Added 303,000 Jobs in March, Largest Monthly Increase Since May 2023
The U.S. economy added 303,000 jobs in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.
The number was higher than forecasted and represents the largest one-month boost in payrolls since May 2023, according to NBC News.
Economists forecasted roughly 200,000 jobs having been added last month.
The gains follow 270,000 jobs added in February and the 256,000 in January.
The bureau, a division of the Labor Department, also reported last month’s unemployment rate was 3.8%, compared to 3.9% in February.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“Oh Man, This is Huge”: Video Revealed by Jan. 6 Defendant Raises Questions About Undercover Agents
Authored by Joseph M. Hanneman via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours)
Recently released Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol Police security video shows a suspected FBI special agent clapping and cheering as crowds surged up steps to the Columbus Doors and another meeting with an FBI tactical team just before it entered the Capitol after the fatal shooting of Ashli Babbitt.
The videos were first identified by defendant William Pope of Topeka, Kansas, in court filings in his own Jan. 6 criminal case. Exhibits Mr. Pope originally filed under seal have become public since the release of thousands of hours of Jan. 6 security video by the Committee on House Administration Subcommittee on Oversight.
Two possible FBI special agents and a third unknown colleague were with John D. Guandolo, the FBI’s former liaison with U.S. Capitol Police, at the Women for a Great America event on the East Front of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to Mr. Pope.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
4.0 Magnitude Aftershock Hits New Jersey After 4.8 Earthquake Rocks Northeast
An earthquake rattled the Northeastern United States on Friday morning — and a strong aftershock struck in the early evening, around eight hours later.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the initial 4.8 magnitude quake was centered 7 kilometers north of Whitehouse Station, N.J., about 50 miles west of New York City, at a depth of 4.7 kilometers. It could be felt as far as south as Washington, D.C., and as far north as Boston.
The USGS reported the aftershock, felt just after 6 p.m. ET, was 4.0 magnitude and centered near Gladstone, N.J.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden-Appointed Judge Eviscerates DOJ Over Non-Compliance With House Subpoenas
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes on Friday sharply criticized the Department of Justice for instructing its personnel not to comply with subpoenas from the House Judiciary Committee while pursuing charges against former Trump officials who defied congressional subpoenas.
Reyes, an appointee of President Joe Biden, oversaw a hearing in a legal dispute between the DOJ and Judiciary Committee over subpoenas the panel issued to Mark Daly and Jack Morgan, two attorneys with the DOJ, to testify in their ongoing impeachment inquiry, Politico reported.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden’s DOJ Seeks to Transfer Wrongful Death Suit for Ashli Babbit to Washington DC From California
The Department of Justice has filed to change the venue of Ashley Babbitt’s wrongful death lawsuit from California to Washington D.C. A hearing on the request is scheduled for April 8 in San Diego. US District Judge Cynthia Bashant, an Obama-appointing, is overseeing the case. Babbitt was shot to death by Capitol Police on January 6, 2021 as she was attempting to enter the Capitol Building. She was unarmed.
Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California on behalf of Babbitt’s family, seeking justice for the tragic death of the veteran, who was shot and killed by Capitol Police Leiuetentat Michael Byrd on January 6 in the U.S. Capitol.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Four Columbia students were suspended and evicted from university housing after their alleged involvement in an unauthorized speaking event featuring a member of Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which has been designated as a terrorist organization by the US.
On March 24, a “Resistance 101” event featured Khaled Barakat who is a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The organization has been designated as a foreign terrorist group since 1997.
The event was announced by the Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine on March 22 in coordination with the Barnard Center for Research on Women.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Creep in ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Hoodie Randomly Punches NYC Woman in Another Unprovoked Attack: Cops
A creep spotted in a “Lilo & Stitch” sweatshirt is wanted for randomly punching a stranger in the face near Union Square — part of a wave of unprovoked attacks on women, mostly in Lower Manhattan.
Stephanie Weng, 33, was walking on Union Square East near East 16th Street around 4:30 p.m. March 20 when police say the menace approached her from behind and socked her in the face.
“I really want this person found because I just feel super unsafe,” Weng, a Financial District resident, told The Post on Friday, describing the attack as “super unprompted” and “traumatizing.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
She’s the best they can find?
The village of Dolton, Illinois, is considering hiring former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot to investigate its own scandal-ridden leader, “dictator” Tiffany Henyard, as residents demand her resignation.
Lightfoot, who lost her reelection bid in a landslide last year, would be tasked with probing numerous allegations against the self-proclaimed “Super Mayor” — including misusing taxpayer funds for lavish trips and sexual assault accusations, Fox 32 reported.
Four Dolton Board of Trustees members have proposed appointing Lightfoot — for $400 per hour, according to the outlet — as additional legislative counsel because she is both a former mayor and former federal prosecutor.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Earthquake Shakes U.S. East Coast
An earthquake struck the East Coast of the United States on Friday morning, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, causing buildings to shake and rattling nerves from Maryland to Maine.
The USGS measured the quake as a 4.8 temblor with its epicenter near Lebanon, New Jersey. It struck a little before 10:30 a.m. ET. An aftershock of magnitude-4.0 hit right around 6 p.m. ET.
The morning earthquake was the strongest recorded in the Northeast in more than a decade, according to USGS records.
There were no immediate reports of major destruction or any fatalities. Local and regional officials from cities in the earthquake zone said inspections had been launched to ensure that buildings, bridges and other infrastructure were not damaged.
| — Hat tip: MM | [Return to headlines] |
Elon Musk called the jury decision to convict Rebecca Lavrenz “not right” after the Colorado grandmother was found guilty of misdemeanor charges stemming from her attendance at the Capitol Building on January 6, 2021.
The 71-year-old great-grandmother owns a bed and breakfast in Colorado Springs and has no criminal record guilty. She drove across the country to attend the Stop the Steal rally in Washington, DC on that day and was caught up with a group of people entering the Capitol. This came after she had spent time outside the building praying with a group of other rally goers.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Jack Smith May Seek to Remove Trump-Appointed Judge Aileen Cannon From Mar-a-Lago Seized Docs Case
Special counsel Jack Smith may seek the recusal of the Trump-appointed judge presiding over the case regarding classified documents.
According to NBC News, Smith recently criticized Judge Aileen Cannon’s handling of Trump’s “fundamentally flawed” claims regarding official and personal records when she asked the prosecution and the defense to bring forward competing versions of instructions for jurors in the case. Smith went on to indicate that if Cannon ruled against federal prosecutors, he could appeal to have her removed from the case.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a pair of alleged squatters who sued the owners of a $930,000 Queens home after cops escorted them off the property last month.
“The case is over,” the couple’s attorney Rizpah Morrow told reporters outside Queens Civil Court Friday, shortly after Judge Vijay Kitson discontinued the case with prejudice, meaning the claim cannot be refiled.
“The landlords, the owners, own the house, they have possession. The people who said they were locked out have walked away from the situation. They are no longer requesting to be restored to possession and we still have their stuff,” she said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Liberals Urge Justice Sotomayor to Retire From Supreme Court Before November
Justice Sonia Sotomayor has come under increasing pressure from the Left to retire from the Supreme Court to allow Democrat President Joe Biden to appoint a replacement before the critical November election.
Former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan is among several prominent leftists calling on Sotomayor to step down.
Hasan initially made the comments on April 1, but he wasn’t trying to fool anyone.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A $9 million lawsuit has been filed against Portland Public Schools after a then-third-grade female student was allegedly raped by two male students in a school bathroom.
The suit, filed in March in Multnomah County Circuit Court, alleged that the school as well as a non-profit after-school program had failed to protect the girl, who was 9 years old at the time, after a series of sexual assault incidents, according to KATU 2.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Portland Mayor Supports Rolling Back the City’s Restrictions on Homeless Camping
In a policy reversal on homeless camps in Portland, Oregon, Mayor Ted Wheeler proposed new regulations Thursday to end the city’s ban on “homeless daytime camping,” per local reports.
Wheeler’s proposal would reduce “criminal sanctions” for camping, according to KOIN 6.
“The City Attorney’s Office believes these new proposed regulations would survive a legal challenge while providing the City the tools to change the status quo in Portland,” City Attorney Robert Taylor said in a press statement.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pro-Hamas Protesters Block Attendees, Harass Speaker at Mercer University TPUSA Event
On Thursday night, pro-Hamas protestors descended upon Mercer University in Georgia, attempting to prevent people from attending the sold-out Turning Point USA event featuring Atlas Society CEO Jennifer Grossman.
While attendees did manage to get inside the building, so too did protestors, with one confronting Grossman and allegedly assaulting her in front of the packed crowd. Two of the demonstrators were eventually arrested.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A series of mysterious giant skeletons up to 10 feet tall reportedly discovered in and around Nevada caves last century — dubbed the “Giants of Lovelock” — are still baffling scientists decades later.
The claims about supersized humans who roamed the area around Lovelock, a remote town 90 miles northeast of Reno, thousands of years ago are rooted in Native America lore, which tells of fierce, redheaded, pale-skinned giants who arrived from Central America by boat and attacked local tribes.
After years of war, the foreign invaders were chased into a cave and slaughtered en masse, according to stories passed down by the indigenous Paiute people.
Experts believe the tale of the giant warriors’ violent extermination is likely a legend, but reports of discoveries made in the area of Lovelock decades ago have continued to raise many unanswered questions.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Bikes Around Miami Beach, Appearing Carefree Days After Federal Raids
Embattled hip-hop mogul and pop culture icon Sean “Diddy” Combs stretched his wings Thursday, striking out on a bike from his home in the exclusive Star Island community of Miami.
The Bad Boy Records founder was seen in all black, except for bright orange earbuds, as he took a spin on a sunny afternoon.
Combs, 54, spent about 45 minutes cycling through the waterfront city before he returned home.
At one point, video shows he pulled over on the side of the road to pose with fans, who cheered him on before he peddled away and high-fived the next set of onlookers.
Last week, Homeland Security Investigations led two raids on his mansions in Los Angeles and Miami, in what law enforcement sources told Fox News was part of a federal human trafficking probe.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Former Bodyguard Claims Music Mogul Had Tapes of “Politicians” and “Princes”
Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via Modernity.news,
The former bodyguard of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ claims the music mogul had blackmail tapes of politicians, princes and other prominent individuals who were involved in his sex parties.
Combs, who has been hit with a barrage of physical abuse, rape and sexual trafficking allegations, had his homes in Miami and Los Angeles raided by the Department of Homeland Security last month, during which federal agents seized computers and other electronic devices.
Gene Deal, who was present the night when Notorious B.I.G. was fatally shot in 1997, made the sensational comments during an interview with ‘The Art of Dialogue’ YouTube channel.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Second Earthquake Rocks New Jersey at Magnitude 4.0
Asecond earthquake has rocked New Jersey and the surrounding area on Friday, following an earlier tremor that was felt as far away as Delaware.
The second quake occurred at 5:59 p.m. at a magnitude of 4.0 on the Richter scale, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was centered just southwest of Gladstone, N.J.
The first quake occurred around 10:23 a.m. and was a magnitude 4.8 centered on Whitehouse Station, N.J.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Squatters Burned New York Home While Wreaking Havoc on ‘Hardworking Families, ‘ Officials Say
New York City politicians are pushing for revised laws after a crew of squatters punctuated a months-long terror campaign against their neighbors by burning a house to the ground last November.
“It was a very quiet neighborhood before and then suddenly when it happened, those people break into the house,” Ming Zhu, who lives two houses down from the razed Brooklyn home, said at a Thursday press conference.
Residents say the cadre of squatters took up residence in the Dyker Heights neighborhood over the summer and quickly made themselves known by stealing security cameras and other goods from surrounding houses — and directly threatening neighbors.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Judge Strikes Down Biden’s New Green Agenda Highway Rule
A federal judge has just struck down Democrat President Joe Biden’s new green agenda rule for “greenhouse gas emissions standards” on American highways.
The new rule was blocked by Judge Benjamin Beaton, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, the Daily Caller reported.
Some believe the new standards were an effort to push Americans toward electric vehicles.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Woke NJ Senate Candidate Says Earthquake is Evidence ‘The Climate Crisis is Real’
Woke Green Party Senate candidate from New Jersey Christina Khalil posted that the “climate crisis is real” in response to Friday’s earthquake in the state.
Khalil posted online, “I experienced my first earthquake in NJ. We never get earthquakes. The climate crisis is real. The weirdest experience ever.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Your Nation Has Your Back’: Biden in Baltimore to See Efforts to Clear Collapsed Key Bridge
DUNDALK, Md. (WBAL & AP) — President Joe Biden got a firsthand look Friday at efforts to clear away the “mangled mess” of remains of the hulking remains of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, as cranes, ships and diving crews work to reopen one of the nation’s main shipping lanes.
Aboard Marine One, circling the warped metal remains and the mass of construction and salvage equipment trying to clear the wreckage of last week’s collapse, Biden got his first up-close view of the devastation. On the ground, he received a briefing from local officials, the U.S. Coast Guard and Army Corps of Engineers on the situation in the water and its impacts on the region.
Biden greeted police officers who helped block traffic to the bridge in the moments before it was hit by the ship, which helped avert an even larger loss of life.
“I’m here to say your nation has your back and I mean it,” Biden said from the shoreline overlooking the collapsed bridge. “Your nation has your back.”
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Doctor Amputates Man’s Healthy Fingers to Relieve ‘Body Integrity Dysphoria’ in Quebec
A Quebec man who felt that he should not have fourth and fifth fingers on his left hand successfully petitioned a doctor to remove them.
A surgeon went ahead and removed the man’s healthy fingers in a case of “digits amputation,” believed to be the first of its kind to relieve so-called body integrity dysphoria.
The ambidextrous 20-year-old man had apparently tried therapy and pharmaceutical drugs to relieve the feeling that he had two fingers that should not be there, but the National Post reports that this only “increased his distress.”
[Comment: We are living in what Robert Heinlein called “the crazy years”.]
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Families of Oct 7 Victims Suing Trudeau Government for Resuming Funding for UNRWA
On Thursday, Canadian families who lost loved ones in the Oct 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks filed a Federal Court application for judicial review of the Government of Canada’s decision to resume funding for the embattled United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), claiming that the decision was patently unreasonable because it violates Canadian law.
The advocacy group, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), is representing the families against UNRWA, which has been accused of supporting terrorism and having employees who were members of Hamas. Earlier this year, it was alleged that 12 UNRWA staffers were involved in the October 7 massacre against Israel.
It was later revealed that approximately 10 percent of Palestinian staffers in UNRWA had ties to Hamas and Islamist militant groups.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Biden Administration Issues Statement ‘Supporting’ EU Digital Services Act
US President Joe Biden’s administration has been accused of issuing a statement “supporting” the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), despite repeated warnings from civil society organisations that the regulation could hamper freedom of speech online.
Speaking to Brussels Signal, one such group, Free Speech Ireland, expressed concern regarding a joint statement published by the European Commission and the Biden administration in the wake of the April meeting of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC).
The meeting was spearheaded on the US side by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, while the EU was represented by European Commission officials Margrethe Vestager, Valdis Dombrovskis and Thierry Breton.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Christmas Terror Arrests Lead Police to Suspected Hamas Weapons Cache in Bulgaria
German police has found a weapons cache in Southern Bulgaria during an investigation into four suspected Hamas terrorists who allegedly plotted terror attacks over the Christmas period.
According to investigators, the armaments were to be used to hit Jewish targets in Europe.
Initially, the police suspected the weapons were hidden in Poland but it turned out they were in Bulgaria.
On December 14 last year, Dutch and German police arrested four suspected members of Hamas, three from Berlin and one from Rotterdam.
According to German magazine Der Spiegel, the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) discovered photos of pistols, magazines of bullets and other weapons parts on the mobile phone of one of the four men.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Conservative Law and Justice Party Leads in Latest Local Election Poll
In a poll published three days before the local government elections, Law and Justice (PiS) has taken the lead among voters’ preferences for the regional assemblies.
The survey, conducted by Ipsos for OKO.press and TOK FM, places PiS ahead with a four-point lead over its closest rival, the Civic Coalition, just days before voters cast their ballots.
The polling data indicates a clear preference among the electorate for PiS, which garnered a 29 percent support rate among respondents. The Civic Coalition trails at 25 percent, while other political groups vie for the third spot in a tight race.
Notably, the Third Way alliance secured 11 percent of the voter preference, with the right-wing Confederation party and Non-Partisan Local Government Activists each drawing 10 percent. The Left attracted 7 percent of the electorate, and other committees collectively held 2 percent of the vote. The undecided voters make up 9 percent of the respondents.
An interesting aspect of the poll is the high level of electoral engagement it reveals, with half of the respondents affirming their definite intention to vote. An additional 11 percent are likely to participate in the elections, reflecting a robust interest in the regional assembly elections across the board.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Ex-Macron Advisor Warns of Revolt in France Over Green Agenda That Will Dwarf the Yellow Vests
A former advisor to President Emmanuel Macron has warned that if France continues down the same path with the green agenda, the country will likely face a “social revolt” far greater than the Yellow Vest movement or the recent bout of farmer protests.
“It’s going to end very badly,” warned David Djaïz in an interview this week with the Paris-based conservative news magazine Le Point.
The left-wing public intellectual and Emmanuel Macron’s former rapporteur for the government’s National Council for Refoundation (CNR) accused the government and political elites in France of being “content to manage the decline”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Finland’s Eastern Border to Remain Closed Indefinitely
Finland extended its closing of border crossings with Russia on Thursday after enacting an emergency law temporarily overriding the constitution on the basis of a threat to national security. The current closure was set to end on April 14th, but will now continue indefinitely.
The country started closing most entry point last fall, accusing Russia of weaponizing migration by sending migrants—specifically from African and Arab countries—to Finland. In addition to border crossings on land, five ports will now bar any entry from Russia.
Migri, the Finnish migration authorities, said it received over 1,300 asylum applications at the eastern border between August and December of 2023—1,200 of them in the last two months of the year.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Four in Ten Repeat Knife Crime Offenders Spared Jail Time by Lax British Judiciary
The lax British judicial system is sparing more repeat knife crime offenders from prison than at any time since the government introduced a so-called two-strike system in 2015.
According to an analysis of Ministry of Justice statistics conducted by the Independent website, almost four in ten of the over 4,000 repeat knife crime offenders did not face prison time in the year leading up to September of 2023 in England and Wales.
The report found that 38 per cent of repeat knife criminals avoided immediate jail terms, an increase from 35 per cent the year prior and the low of 28 per cent in 2019.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France Prepares Contingency Plan for Olympics Opening Ceremony Amid Rising Terror Threat
The organizers of the Paris Olympics have a “Plan B” in case terror threats jeopardize the event’s opening ceremony.
The original proposal was to open this year’s Games with 300,000 spectators, but after the terrorist attacks in Moscow, organizers had to devise a contingency plan.
Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, the minister for Sport and the Olympics, said in a television interview that they would be able to change the original idea if they were forced to, but did not divulge much regarding the alternative idea.
The organizers have leaked information that the venue would not be changed, but that the volume of the parade would be reduced, for example by not allowing athletes to board boats taking them along the river Seine to the stadium, reserving these for entertainers participating in the opening ceremony.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France to Allow Farmers More Pesticide to Protect Sugar Output
French sugar beet farmers will be allowed to use more pesticide this year due to a high risk of attacks from an insect carrying a disease that ravaged crops in 2020, France’s deputy agriculture minister said on Friday.
Environment group Greenpeace voiced its opposition to the use of more potentially toxic pesticide while beet growers said the move was not enough and called for other products to be approved.
Beet growers will be allowed five applications of Spirotetramat, developed by Bayer CropScience BAYE.NS under the brand Movento, up from two currently, with three applications allowed initially and two more if needed, Deputy Agriculture Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher told France Bleu Nord radio.
This is in addition to ISK Bioscience’s flonicamid-based pesticide Teppeki, which has been in use for years, the farm ministry said separately.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Fury After Germany Starts Advertising Citizenship in Arabic
Politicians on the German Right have expressed their fury after it was revealed their country’s foreign ministry has started advertising citizenship opportunities in Arabic.
The outrage centres on the state-run Germany @ Arab World X account, which posted a thread in late March publicly announcing recent changes made to German citizenship law.
“Many have waited years and decades for this, and now it is finally in law,” the post said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German Teachers Should Warn Students of ‘Anti-Constitutional’ AfD, Head of Teachers’ Union Says
Teachers in Germany should instruct their students about the “anti-constitutional tendencies” of the populist Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party, the head of the country’s teachers’ union has said.
Teachers in the country have an obligation to warn their pupils about the AfD in order to defend democracy, said Maike Finnern, who chairs the Education and Science Union (GEW).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Maximilian Krah MEP, German AfD party list leader for the European Parliament elections in June, wants the Czech intelligence service (BIS) to provide proof regarding accusations that Petr Bystron MP, second on the AfD list, has taken Russian bribe money.
An intelligence service in Czechia is alleging that a Russian influence operation succeeded in bribing European politicians including Bystron.
Krah said he can’t know whether Bystron is guilty or innocent without any real proof. “You always have to consider, is there something true in it-a core of misbehaviour, or is it a complete fake?”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Hundreds’ of German Police Under Investigation for Alleged ‘Extremism’
“Hundreds” of police officers in Germany are said to be under investigation for alleged “extremism”, according to German media.
As part of an investigation into right-wing political elements in Germany such as the so-called “Reichsbürger movement”, news outlets Stern and RTL submitted a number of inquiries to federal states across the country regarding the possible presence of extremism within their police forces.
Reporting on the responses given by local officials, the publications claimed there were at least 400 officers in Germany suspected of being “right-wing extremists” or of belonging to a “conspiracy ideology”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hungarian FM: NATO Ukraine Funding Proposal Would Draw Alliance Closer to War
NATO member states are wary of backing a plan that would provide Ukraine with €100 billion in long-term military aid and increase the military alliance’s involvement in the war. Moscow has warned Western states that they are already on the brink of direct confrontation with Russia.
“We strongly believe that support to Ukraine should be less dependent on short-term, voluntary offers and more dependent on long-term NATO commitments,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday, before the start of the alliance’s foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels. Stoltenberg proposed creating a €100 billion five-year fund to support Ukraine, an idea that has drawn mixed responses from member states.
Hungary—which has refused to send any military aid to Ukraine—has rejected the idea outright: Foreign Minister Péter Szijjartó said such a proposal would draw the alliance “closer to this war than it has ever been before.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hungary Ramps Up Defense Capabilities With Construction of New Ammunition Plant
Hungary is continuing to increase its defense capabilities with the foundation layer of a large-caliber ammunition factory in Varpalota being laid.
Production of medium-caliber 30 mm ammunition is expected to start in the last quarter of this year, while production of large-caliber 155 mm ammunition will begin in the last quarter of 2025.
“Europe’s most modern artillery ammunition production plant is being built in the eastern part of Varpalota,” said Laszló Palkovics, CEO of N7 Holding National Defense Industrial Innovation Ltd., at the groundbreaking ceremony of the 155 mm artillery ammunition production building of the Varpalota Defense Industrial Complex on Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Internal Report Finds Dutch Left-Liberal D66 Party ‘Too Pedantic’ and ‘Too Woke’
In the Dutch elections in November last year, the left-liberal D66 got hammered and lost most of its seats in Parliament.
Now, an internal report on the defeat comes to some painful conclusions about D66’s standpoints and machinations.
The evaluation report of the botched election campaign concludes that the party is “too pedantic”, “too woke”, “lacks a political profile”, has “too many integrity issues”,” and criticises it for “not having lived up to its promises of new leadership”.
The damning verdict on the reasons for D66’s downfall was handed down by the party’s research bureau, the Hans van Mierlo Foundation.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Israeli Ambassador is Harming Polish-Israeli Relations, Warns President Duda
Polish President Andrzej Duda has slammed Israel’s ambassador to Poland, Yacov Livne, for the diplomat’s stance over the killing of seven humanitarian workers, including one Pole, in Gaza, calling the ambassador “the biggest current problem in Polish-Israeli relations.”
Commenting on the controversy surrounding the death of the aid workers at the hands of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Polish President Andrzej Duda called Livne’s response to the killings “outrageous.”
On Wednesday evening, Livne gave several interviews to the Polish press about the Israeli attack on the convoy carrying volunteers from the World Central Kitchen. He labeled it “a tragic accident and a mistake that can happen in wartime conditions.” He promised that the matter would be investigated, but did not see any prospect of Polish or other nations’ participation in the investigation.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Kurds and Turks Battle in the Streets of Belgium as Ethnic Tensions Flare
Kurds and Turks have been fighting in the streets of Belgium streets in recent days, causing strained relations between both communities to sour further.
Sources told media that, on the evening of March 24 as a group of ethnic Kurds were returning to their homes in the Leuven city municipalities of Heusden-Zolder and Houthalen-Helchteren in East Belgium after Persian New Year celebrations, events descended into violence with hundreds of people fighting in the streets.
It is said that vehicles were damaged and windows smashed with clubs. A police helicopter was called in, as well as officers from outside the area.
The affected Turks claim when the Kurds were approaching their homes, they were waving Kurdish flags and showing pictures of Abdullah Öcalan, a political prisoner in Turkey and founding member of the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). They were also loudly chanting “PKK”, it was claimed.
The PKK is a separatist organisation, in conflict with Turkey. The Turkish authorities, the US and the European Union all officially label it a terrorist organisation.
Outraged Turks and Belgians of Turkish descent saw Sunday’s events as provocation and challenged the Kurds, forcing them to flee.
Reportedly, both Turkish and Kurdish community members then started to riot, calling for support from within their social circles. As a result of the Sunday riots, six people had sustained injuries and the police had made several arrests.
[Comment: Article dated March 27, 2024.]
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Major Poll Shows “Need for Change” in Brussels
The majority (63%) of European voters either view the work of the European Commission negatively or have no opinion.
That is according to a damning new poll by Ipsos for Euronews. The news outlet noted that support for the Commission was “alarmingly low” in some states—especially in France, where just 18% of those questioned responded positively.
The European Commission, EU’s executive branch, consists of 27 members, one from each member state, and is solely responsible for proposing laws for consideration by the European Parliament. The Commission president—currently, Ursula von der Leyen—decides on areas of responsibility for each commissioner and also sets the Commission’s policy agenda.
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Majority of Flemish Say Separatist Vlaams Belang Should be Given a Chance to Govern
A majority in Flanders in the country’s North would like to see the right-wing populist Vlaams Belang party leading the government, according to a newly released poll.
Over the weekend of March 23, De Grote Peiling or Major Poll, as published by leading media outlets in the country, indicated the mood in Belgium is shifting to the Right.
Asked if Vlaams Belang should be part of a future government, 47 per cent of respondents in Flanders said “yes” while 46 per cent thought the opposite.
When asked what should happen if Vlaams Belang became the biggest party, 55 per cent said it should be given the chance to form a government.
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NATO is currently in a state of war psychosis, which poses a serious risk of escalation, and must change its strategy as soon as possible, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjartó warned in Brussels on Thursday.
At a press conference following the NATO-Ukraine Council meeting, Szijjartó said that everything discussed at the meeting confirmed the need for peace as soon as possible, as the situation on the battlefield clearly shows that without a quick diplomatic solution, the number of dead and the destruction will increase dramatically.
“It is clear that hostilities are becoming more active and their consequences more serious, and that to save lives and prevent destruction, all efforts should now be focused on peacemaking,” he warned.
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Not Fit for Duty: Almost 50 Per Cent of Belgian Soldiers Overweight
While Europe scrambles to rebuild and strengthen its defence forces, Belgium’s troops pose a hefty problem; some 46 per cent of soldiers are overweight, according to newspaper La Dernière Heure. Just 47 per cent are deemed to be of a “normal” weight.
Of Belgium’s professional army, 37 per cent are overweight and 9 per cent are obese. On the other hand, 7 per cent are deemed underweight.
The bloated figures cover last year and have been confirmed by the Ministry of Defence.
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Paris Headmaster Resigns After Death Threats for Asking Student to Remove Her Veil
A Paris headmaster resigned on March 26, after receiving death threats for asking a student to remove her veil before taking an exam.
On March 1, staff at Maurice-Ravel High School asked a 19-year-old student to remove a veil she had put on in the courtyard, in line with school regulations.
French law has prohibited students or teachers from wearing ‘ostentatious’ religious symbols in schools, since 2004.
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Pro-Palestinian Protesters Block NATO General From Speaking at Dutch University
Hard-left activists prevented the chair of NATO’s military committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, from speaking at an event at the University of Amsterdam March 26.
The activists, who described themselves as “Students against NATO”, hung up a banner which read “Imperialism = Terrorism”.
Half the banner was covered in painted red hands, with the words “blood on your hands” written on it.
Another banner read “75 years of Nato terror.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Russia Trying to Sabotage European Railways,’ Says Czech Transport Minister
Czech Republic transport minister Martin Kupka said Russia was trying to sabotage European railways by hacking into their signalling systems.
According to Kupka, thousands of attempts to interfere with rail networks and signals have occurred in a campaign designed to destabilise the European Union and disrupt critical infrastructure.
Speaking to the Financial Times, he said his country’s railway operator has been repeatedly targeted by the Russian hacking campaign.
Previous cyberattacks have impacted ticketing systems and sparked worries of signal interference possibly leading to catastrophic accidents.
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Slovakia Sits on the Fence Over New NATO Leader
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis’ candidacy for NATO is legitimate, Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar said in Brussels on Thursday, but did not extend his remarks to a direct endorsement of the Romanian president’s candidacy.
Instead, he stated his intention to wait and see how the two lead candidates, Iohannis and former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, intended to protect the security interests of Central and Eastern European countries.
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Spanish PM Plans to Expel Monks From Valley of the Fallen
Within two years, Spain’s socialist government plans to close the Benedictine monastery at the Civil War monument the Valley of the Fallen—and turn the site, with basilica and monastery, into an ‘interpretive center.’
The move comes, El Debate reports, as Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez faces several major crises for his government—not least a corruption case touching on four government ministries and including additional accusations against his wife Begoña Gomez. To date, his government has made no official announcement on the issue of the monastery.
With important regional elections in both April and May, followed by EU elections in June, Spain is in the middle of a significant electoral campaign.
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If demographic replacement is undisputedly taking place somewhere in the EU, that place is Cyprus. The once predominantly Greek island and former British colony in the Eastern Mediterranean entered the EU as a European country. Soon, it may no longer be one.
In the last weeks, Cyprus has been receiving hundreds of illegal immigrants, mainly from Syria through Lebanon, on a daily basis. But this is only the tip of the iceberg. Illegal immigration has plagued Cyprus since 2016 and — together with the demographic changes in the north — is now threatening its very identity.
“We have exceeded our limit,” the Cypriot government spokesman said after an emergency National Security Council meeting a few days ago. Indeed, things are now out of control — and the government in Nicosia is as responsible as the Brussels establishment.
With an official population of less than 925,000 the Republic of Cyprus has the highest migrant to indigenous population ratio and the highest proportion of asylum applicants relative to its population in the EU. The total population of the island is estimated by the UN at more than 1.3 million.
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Two Thirds of Poles Oppose Adoption of the Euro, Poll Shows
According to a survey released over the Easter weekend an overwhelming majority of Poles oppose entry into the common-currency Eurozone, preferring to keep the Polish zloty.
A poll conducted by the United Surveys agency for news portal Wirtualna Polska (WP) found that 67 per cent of respondents were against any attempt to replace the zloty with the euro, with 27 per cent backing the idea.
Adoption of the common currency was opposed by 52 per cent of voters who, at the last elections, supported parties that now form the Government led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Just 37 per cent of pro-Government voters were willing to consider ditching the zloty.
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‘We Can Afford a Drawn-Out War!’ Polish Foreign Minister Announces NATO Mission to Ukraine
NATO member states have decided to establish a joint mission in Ukraine, not as a means of entering the war, but to use the alliance’s coordination, planning, and training capabilities to support the wartorn country more effectively, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has announced.
Sikorski insisted that NATO was planning several years ahead and warned Russia not to underestimate the alliance’s determination to see Ukraine being able to defend itself.
“As the North Atlantic Alliance, we are 20 times richer than Russia and can afford a drawn-out conflict, if necessary,” Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski warned during a press conference in Brussels, after a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting. “It would be important for Putin to understand that we are planning, if necessary, for a few years, and that he is not able to win this war within a few months or even a year, or two,” he added.
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Bettany says that you should get to Albania fast ‘while the welcome is sweet and authentic, and a feast for four costs little more than a round in a UK pub’.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Israel Dismisses 2 Officers Over Deadly Drone Strikes on Gaza Aid Workers
The Israeli military said today that it dismissed two officers and reprimanded three others for their roles in drone strikes in Gaza that killed seven aid workers on a food-delivery mission, saying they had mishandled critical information and violated the army’s rules of engagement.
The findings of a retired general’s investigation into the Monday killings marked an embarrassing admission by Israel, which faces growing accusations from key allies, including the United States, of not doing enough to protect Gaza’s civilians from its war with the militant Hamas group.
The findings are likely to bolster widespread scepticism over the Israeli military’s decision-making. Palestinians, aid groups and human rights organisations have repeatedly accused Israeli forces of firing recklessly at civilians throughout the conflict — a charge Israel denies.
“It’s a tragedy,” the military’s spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, told reporters. “It’s a serious event that we are responsible for and it shouldn’t have happened and we will make sure that it won’t happen again.”
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
Top Study: 27% of Vaxxed Have Heart Damage
A top study conducted by a team of renowned microbiologists and immunologists has found that 27 percent of people vaccinated with Covid mRNA shots have damaged hearts.
The scientists found that many patients suffered major cardiac-related complications up to and over a year after receiving a Covid injection.
The study was led by microbiologist and immunologist Muazzam M. Sheriff and colleagues at Saudi Arabia’s Ibn Sina National College for Medical Studies and King Faisal General Hospital.
The results of the peer-reviewed study were published in the world-renowned Cureus medical journal.
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US Intelligence is ‘Convinced’ Major Iranian Response Against Israel Imminent
US intelligence is ‘convinced’ that Iran is readying a retaliation response against Israel for the Monday attack on the Iranian embassy complex in Syria, US officials have told CBS News, and that an attack could be imminent.
The officials say that the US “has picked up intelligence that Iran is planning a retaliatory attack that would include a swarm of Shaheed loitering drones and cruise missiles. Officials say the timing and target are unknown, but a proportional response to the Damascus attack would be to hit an Israeli diplomatic facility.”
As for possible timing they believe it will come between now and the end of Ramadan next week. Israel has already issued firm warnings that any direct attack from Iranian soil will be met with a “stronger” response, taking the conflict to the next level.
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Dionis Cenusa is an associate expert at EESC (Eastern European Studies Centre) and a researcher and Ph.D. student at the Institute of Political Science at Justus Lybig University in Giessen, Germany. An author of numerous studies on European integration, EU-Russia interaction, good governance, and energy security in Eastern Europe, he is also an associate expert at the Moldovan think tank Expert-Grup, where he has been coordinating a project on Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine since 2015.
The Parliament of the Moldovan separatist region of Transnistria asked Moscow for help because of “increased pressures” from Chisinau. What is the situation between Moldova and Transnistria at the moment? Is this request an attempt to provoke a casus belli?
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Thousands of fighting-age Ukrainian men are exploiting a loophole in the country’s martial law and marrying disabled women to avoid being sent to the frontline — and intermediaries are making big money by facilitating sham marriages.
An investigation by Ukrainian outlet NGL Media dug deep into the practice that is becoming increasingly more common across the wartorn country as men continue to find elaborative methods to evade mobilization and flee the country.
The platform, which describes itself as an independent anticorruption center, immersed itself in the world of Facebook and Telegram groups where men post marriage proposals, disabled women offer marriage for a price, and intermediaries seek to connect couples for a cut.
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Moldovan Court Strikes Down Law Barring Pro-Russian Party From Polls
Moldova’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday struck down legislation aimed at barring from elections a banned party linked to a fugitive business magnate who supports opponents of the pro-European government.
The court ruled unconstitutional an amendment to the former Soviet state’s electoral law barring individuals linked to parties deemed illegal or unconstitutional from running for office for three years.
The measure, passed last year, was part of a concerted drive by authorities against pro-Russian businessman Ilan Shor.
[Comment: Article dated March 27, 2024.]
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Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev launched a scathing verbal attack against the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Thursday, calling for a bounty on any Western troops that enter Ukraine.
“There can only be one rule for these overseas lice, who, unlike the unfortunate Ukrainians, were not forced to go to war: no prisoners taken!” Medvedev, who’s now the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, wrote in a post on X.
“And for each NATO fighter killed, blown-up, or burned, there must be a maximum reward,” he added.
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Ukraine’s Ambassador to US: ‘We Need to Win,’ But Need Ammunition Now
[…]
The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
VOA: Madam Ambassador, since the very beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, you’ve been advocating for more help from the American partners. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy once reportedly said, “I need ammunition, not a ride.” And today, as Russians are gathering their troops and may be getting ready for another offensive, what does Ukraine need to stand strong?
Oksana Markarova, Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S.: Well, nothing has changed, and it will not change until we win. So, from President Zelenskyy to defenders on the front line to everyone, including myself here in Washington, we have only one message: We need to win. And for that, we need more weapons, more ammunition, more support for Ukraine and more sanctions, isolation and bringing Russia to justice.
Right now, we’re at a pivotal moment in this fight. During the past two years, we have been able to liberate 50% of the territories. Last year, we literally liberated the Black Sea. We’re conducting very successful strikes against the Russian military, but we are not yet at the point where we can claim victory, and that is solely due to the availability of weapons and support. So, we must stay the course. We have to continue doing what has worked before. And we must do more.
| — Hat tip: McN | [Return to headlines] |
Ukraine Claims it Destroyed Russian Warplanes in One of Its Biggest Drone Attacks of the War
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian officials claimed Friday they used a barrage of drones to destroy at least six military aircraft and badly damage eight others at an airfield in Russia’s Rostov region. Russian defense officials, however, claimed they intercepted 44 Ukrainian drones and that only a power substation was damaged in the attack.
The Associated Press could not independently verify either side’s claims.
The assault appeared to be one of Kyiv’s biggest air attacks in the war, coming as its forces stepped up their assaults on Russian soil. Russia has also escalated attacks on civilian infrastructure, including Ukraine’s power plants, in recent weeks, signaling a new and potentially dangerous phase in the conflict as both sides struggle to achieve significant advances on the ground.
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Ukraine War: Six Russian Planes Destroyed by Drones, Says Kyiv
Ukraine has carried out a drone attack against targets in southern Russia and claims to have destroyed six Russian planes at an airbase in Rostov region.
Security sources told BBC Ukrainian eight more aircraft were badly damaged, while 20 service personnel could have been killed or injured.
The Morozovsk base houses Su-27 and Su-34 aircraft used on the front line in Ukraine, the sources said.
There has been no word from Russia on reports of an airfield attack.
The BBC has been unable to independently verify the reports.
However, Russian officials said that more than 40 drones had been aimed at the region, which borders Ukraine.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
EU Leaders, Blinken Pledge Continued Support for Armenia Amid Regional Tensions
The United States and European Union will continue to support Armenia and ethnic Armenians from the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, leaders from both sides of the Atlantic pledged as they were meeting with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Friday.
Azerbaijan took control of the former breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023, prompting a mass exodus of its ethnic Armenian population.
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First it Was Australia Day, Now it’s ANZAC Day — the New Woke Battleground Warning for the Nation
Referencing a series of distateful remarks made in recent years, Advance warned supporters that ‘elites and activists… want to make it a political football or kill it with silence’.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
The country has witnessed a sharp spike in abuse of the drug, kush, forcing police officers to guard cemeteries in the capital of Freetown, to stop young men from digging up skeletons to get high.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Lirdi Ruta, 19, collided with another car and ran several red lights as he tried to evade officers for 33 miles during the chase through Bournemouth.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Are the Chinese Building a Bridge in Central America to Fuel America’s Migrant Crisis?
Huge structure ‘big enough for a column of tanks’ springs up in Panama… but no-one is sure who is funding it
A huge bridge said to be big enough for a column of tanks to cross is set to spring up in Panama in one of the most dangerous migrant crossing points in the world.
According to reports, the structure is being built in Yaviza which sits on the Rio Chuconaco — the separation point between Central and South America and one of the most southerly points reachable by roads from North America.
Until now, the Pan-American highway — which weaves through central America towards South America — has ended in Yaviza, which sits on the edge of the 100-mile Darien Gap — a dense, lawless jungle between Panama and Colombia.
Millions of migrants brave the Darien Gap every year but are forced to mostly undertake the journey on foot, facing perilous river crossings, wild animals and even violent criminal gangs that extort, kidnap and abuse them.
According to a report by the US-based Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), that could be about to change with the construction of the new bridge across the Rio Chuconaco that could see the highway extended further south.
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Chicago Mayor Urges Biden to Grant Work Permits to Half Million Illegal Immigrants
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Thursday urged President Biden to grant work permits to nearly 500,000 illegal migrants living in the state. Johnson also said the city, which has roughly 2.7 million people, can “conservatively” welcome another 400,000 to 700,000 illegal migrants.
“We need the president to extend the same economic opportunities long term for our undocumented brothers and sisters, so they can build a better life here in the city of Chicago or wherever else they decide to live,” Johnson said during a roundtable with urban business leaders.
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Gun-Toting Bronx Migrant Squatter — and Suspected Member of Tren De Aragua Gang — Busted by ICE
One of the alleged gun-toting Bronx migrant squatters — a suspected member of Venezuela’s Tren De Aragua gang — was taken into the custody of federal immigration authorities on Friday, officials said.
Yerbin Benjamin Lozada Munoz was one of five suspects released without bail by Bronx judges after they were busted by the NYPD in March inside a borough apartment with a cache of guns and drugs, according to authorities.
On Monday, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Lozada was busted in Nassau County, Long Island, on felony charges of grand larceny in the fourth degree.
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Haitian Illegal Immigrant Stabs His Roommates Right Before Deportation Hearing in New York
An illegal immigrant from Haiti has been arrested after allegedly stabbing his two roommates to death at their apartment in Middletown, a small town in the Hudson Valley about 75 miles northwest of New York City.
Kenol Baptiste, 30, was subsequently charged with felonies of second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter, as well as fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, which is a misdemeanor.
According to the Times Herald-Record, the incident took place on Monday afternoon at an apartment complex on Ruth Court. When police arrived on scene, they discovered the two victims suffering from numerous stab wounds, one of whom was already dead. The other had managed to escape from the building and was laying on the sidewalk, still barely alive.
He was rushed to Garnet Health Medical Center in town, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
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Illegal Immigrant Charged in ‘Horrific’ Child Sex Crime Arrested by ICE After Police Let Him Go
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) says it has arrested a Colombian illegal immigrant charged with the rape of a minor in Massachusetts. The suspect was arrested but later released by local authorities despite ICE’s request to hold him.
The unnamed Colombian national was stopped entering the U.S. illegally in July 2022 and then released into the U.S. with a notice to appear in court by Border Patrol. He was also enrolled into the Alternatives to Detention (ATD) program.
ICE said he was arrested in Lynn, Massachusetts, in January for the alleged rape, indecent assault and battery of a minor over 14 and arraigned in court on Jan 29. Immediately, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) lodged an immigration detainer with Lynn District Court.
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It has been revealed that multiple non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are facilitating the passage of illegal immigrants into the US through San Antonio, Texas.
Coverage from Tenet Media revealed the inside of a “Migrant Support Services” center in San Antonio that is being operated by multiple NGOs and the City of San Antonio to aid illegal immigrants.
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Japan to Embark on an Era of “Mass Foreign Immigration”
Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via Modernity.news
Japan appears to be transitioning from a homogenous society to embrace ‘diversity and inclusivity’ by ushering in “an era of mass foreign immigration.”
It’s set to be a massive change for a country that was still up until recently 97.5% ethnic Japanese, according to the CIA World Factbook.
A Bloomberg report details how rapidly declining native birth rates, an aging society and a chronic labor shortage is fueling the importation of millions of foreigners who “are changing the face of Japan.”
The number of foreign workers in Japan has now exceeded 2 million, a 12.4% increase on 2022. The East Asian country needs at least 647,000 working-age immigrants per year to meet its 11 million worker shortage by 2040.
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New Mexico Middle School Placed on Lockdown as Illegal Immigrants Are Arrested Just Off Campus
A middle school in southern New Mexico was placed on lockdown after illegal migrants were apprehended just outside the school, a Border Patrol spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
On March 27, around 8:42 a.m., agents assigned to the Santa Teresa Station were notified by Sunland Park Police Department regarding a group of six individuals outside Santa Teresa Middle School.
Border Patrol officials said the agents responded and apprehended the individuals, who were determined to be undocumented migrants.
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Over 330 Migrants Land on Lampedusa Overnight
Awave of arrivals to Lampedusa continued overnight with 333 people landing on Italy’s southernmost island on seven migrant boats.
On Thursday 670 migrants arrived on 16 boats.
As a result, there were 1.263 people at Lampedusa’s migrant hotspot early on Friday despite constant transfers to other parts of Italy.
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Squatting laws have become a frequent target of exploitation by savvy criminals who fraudulently move into vacant homes across the nation. Experts warn that the problem could be compounded by the ongoing immigration crisis, with migrants catching wind of the laws and taking advantage of them.
“I have thought about invading a house in the United States,” migrant Leonel Moreno said in Spanish in a TikTok video that went viral last month. “I found out that there is a law that says that if a house is not inhabited, we can seize it.”
Moreno, dubbed the “migrant influencer,” is a Venezuelan national who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement last week after bolting from a border patrol program. He is being detained in Ohio. But prior to his capture, he managed to draw a million followers on TikTok and claimed he was pulling in $1,000 a day as an influencer on the app on top of receiving $350 a month in government handouts.
His TikTok account is now inactive, but his messages urging fellow migrants to take over homes continue circulating online.
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These 75 foreign men (and two women) have made a mockery of British hospitality. Hailing from a multitude of nations, they have been convicted in the UK of deplorable crimes including paedophilia, rape, knife attacks and murder.
Many of those listed here, all of whom claimed asylum, have slipped into the country illegally by boat or by hiding in a lorry before claiming refuge on our shores. Almost all will probably still be here, either serving time in prison or remaining at large.
The map compiled by the Mail shows that asylum offenders have spread around the country, with bigger cities and towns feeling the brunt of their criminal behaviour.
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Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday vowed that he would continue to bus migrants out of the Lone Star State “until we get a new president.”
Abbott, 66, explained the origins of the busing program and why he decided to send more than 40,000 migrants to New York City — which he claimed wasn’t initially part of the plan — in a speech at the New York Republican Party’s annual gala in Manhattan.
The governor said he decided to start busing migrants out of Texas after local officials expressed concern with the number of migrants that were being apprehended at the border only to be dropped off in their communities by federal authorities.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
More than 74,000 migrants would struggle to find somewhere to live based on the latest building approval numbers. A campaigner for lower immigration has a warning for every young Aussie.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
An elderly couple had just moved into their home when they received a letter they took as a threat to give up their property for migrants, the British residents told the Daily Mail.
A letter from the North Northamptonshire Council was left on Jose and Ted Saunders’ door mat in January, referring to their Rushden home as “derelict” and “empty” and indicating that if they didn’t take action, they’d be forced to, according to the Daily Mail, which obtained the letter. The council later apologized and said the letter was a mistake.
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New York Can Take Legal Action Against County’s Ban on Female Transgender Athletes, Judge Says
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) — New York state officials may continue to take legal action against a county outside New York City that has banned transgender players from women’s and girls teams, a judge ruled Thursday.
U.S. District Court Judge Nusrat Choudhury denied Nassau County’s request for a temporary restraining order against state Attorney General Letitia James, saying the Long Island county “falls far short of meeting the high bar for securing the extraordinary relief.”
Among other things, Choudhury said the county failed to “demonstrate irreparable harm,” which she said was a “critical prerequisite” for such an order.
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Polish Government Proposes Prison for LGBT Defamation
The Polish Government has published a draft bill which, if it becomes law, would make comments about LGBT people that are found offensive punishable by up to three years in prison.
The proposed legislation has been piloted by deputy justice minister Krzysztof Smiszek of the Left party, which is part of the coalition Government with Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s Civic Coalition and the Third Way alliance.
The planned move was declared a priority by activists who said LGBT people have insufficient legal protection against so-called “hate speech”.
The draft published by the government information centre (CIR) widens the catalogue of discriminatory criteria to include disability, age, sexual orientation and gender identification.
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Politician Behind Scotland’s Hate Speech Law Says JK Rowling’s Rhetoric ‘Offensive’ But Allowed
Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf blasted Harry Potter author and gender ideology critic J.K. Rowling for her scorching thread challenging the country’s new hate speech law.
Scotland’s new Hate Crime and Public Order Act was activated on April 1. The text of the bill, originally introduced years before, warns against acts that “stir up hatred” against various groups based on various identities, such as being transgender. While what it means to “stir up hatred” is murky, the maximum penalty for violating this new law is a seven-year jail sentence.
Rowling, who lives in Scotland, began a social media thread Monday by criticizing the identity of many transgender people, some of whom were criminals. Rowling listed multiple biologically male criminals who claimed to be transgender just prior to being sentenced for various horrific crimes, expressing mock relief their avowed gender identities were being respected. She then revealed this to be an April Fool’s joke, declaring “people mentioned in the above tweets aren’t women at all, but men” and dared Scottish police to arrest her under the new law.
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A new study from the Mayo Clinic has revealed that the use of puberty blockers on biological male children can result in mild to severe atrophy of the testes.
The preprint study, which has yet to be peer-reviewed, looked at samples from the Mayo Clinic’s Pediatric Testicular Biobank for Fertility Preservation, which has been recruiting patients since 2015.
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A gender clinic in Texas dubbed ‘Frankenstein’s lab’ has performed hundreds of unconventional genital surgeries that many experts describe as ‘dangerous.’
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
Trans Wrestler Gabbi Tuft Moves Towards Comeback After Meeting With AEW CEO Tony Khan
Trans-identified male professional wrestler Gabbi Tuft is reportedly moving toward a return to the ring.
According to the Daily Mail, Tuft had a “great conversation” with Tony Khan, the All Elite Wrestling (AEW) CEO, on Valentine’s Day. AEW is the second largest American professional wrestling company behind the WWE.
Tuft told the outlet, “he’s a hell of a guy, and I can tell you very, very clearly, mother is coming.” Tuft added that the wrestler could not comment on whether there have been talks on the matter since then.
If signed, Tuft would become the first person to compete in a major North American wrestling promotion before and after a gender transition.
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“Maximilian Krah MEP, German AfD party list leader for the European Parliament elections in June, wants the Czech intelligence service (BIS) to provide proof regarding accusations that Petr Bystron MP, second on the AfD list, has taken Russian bribe money”
…Let me explain what’s going on with all these accusations from “the Czechs” about “Russian Agents” in politics or “russian agents” sabotaging “our european railways”… ETC ad absurdum.
The Czech Republic is a former communist, former NAZI, Former “Austro Hungarian Police state”, former “Counter Reformation”, former “Reformation”… ETC. kind of country, and the result is that we have a strong “Secret Agentry Class”.
This Secret Agentry Class is one of the most disgusting kinds of people on the planet. For half a piece of silver they will report anyone for anything. They make “secret lists of enemies”, they like to think they work for “counter intelligence services”
They live in “mythological state of mind” – or what’s that called in Psychology…
Anyhow: This Disgusting “Czech Secret Agentry Class” – it’s kind of small town monkey see, monkey do…
All they know from their old days in Communist Secret Services is to cook up “scandalous accusations” to “socially assasinate their political enemies”…
…And that’s what we are witnessing, IMHO. Childrens game of James Bond 007.
It is especially stupid when performed by “The Czechs”, because Czechs don’t know how to do these things. We know only how to make fun of it.
_________________________________________________________
October 7 Was An Inside Job –
documentary (2024)
by John Hankey #RealHistoryChannel
Hamas is run by Israeli Secret Intelligence, the Mossad. The fact that the Mossad supplied Hamas with billions of dollars in cash is NOT in dispute. ALL sources say that the Israeli military stood down (was completely absent) for 6 hours.
The best evidence indicates that 94% of the civilians were killed by the military, to justify the genocide in Gaza. Israeli veterans say so.
50 minutes.
https://rumble.com/v4l4oqw-october-7-was-an-inside-job-documentary-2024.html
9/11 was an inside job
The Holocaust was an inside job
The sacking of Constantinople was an inside job
January 6th was an inside job
The Loma Prieta quake was an inside job
[Epithets] like you are inside jobs
“9/11 was an inside job
The Holocaust was an inside job
The sacking of Constantinople was an inside job
January 6th was an inside job
The Loma Prieta quake was an inside job
[Epithets] like you are inside jobs”
Ditto.
Gold. I did some research and gold prices do increase when an interest rate cut is expected because there is less opportunity cost when interest rates are lower. However, the reason for gold prices really being high is high demand from China, public and government, and other central banks buying strongly. There is a net transfer of gold from west to east as westerners are net sellers. Buying gold can be viewed as part of dedollarisation; governments are holding gold instead of US dollars. It’s also linked to BRICS.
As you said, Democrats may let Trump win so he can be blamed when the US economy collapses.
Japan will import migrants and it will destroy them.
“Japan will import migrants and it will destroy them.”
What’s your source for this?
When the Two State Solution Sought is Michigan and Minnesota, and not Israel and Palestine https://tinyurl.com/2kcsw27j
Neo-Racism in The Twenty-First Century https://shorturl.at/adJNS
“When the Two State Solution Sought is Michigan and Minnesota, and not Israel and Palestine https://tinyurl.com/2kcsw27j”
There seems little purpose behind two ‘toddler-run [Obamerican] states—MI and MN— seceding from Obamerica. I think it far more likely that one or more of the American states’ll be forced to “Escape from New York”; as it’s becoming increasingly costly for non-hyphenated American citizens to remain in a land mass without political borders and the “law” doled-out by coloured monsters and their guilty white female (and genetically-male) counterparts. And this should come as a surprise to no one who’s been paying attention since PAA’s election in ’08.
“History’s shown that it generally takes a decade of demonization of an “enemy” to incite war. By my reckoning, it’s been just about a decade since ‘Affirmative Action’s first election, which inspired and released his comrades of violent, anti-American Muslim-leaning hyphenated-infantile Bolshevism upon the United States of America. Eventually, as is always the case, there was gonna be an equal and opposite reaction—whether real or feigned—to the violence and demonization. It’s human nature. We’re now at that crossroads.
As’s been said before: ASSIMILATE, SEPARATE (peaceful “Two-State Solution”) or ASSASSINATE (War)—those’re the options. Hopefully, in the long-run, cooler heads’ll prevail and we’ll [peacefully] choose one of the first two before the third option’s foisted upon us by events. But once large numbers of Americans’re unable to work—either due to widespread protests/riots, financial calamity or political chaos—I fear that the collectivists’ cheese’ll slide off the constitutional cracker.” —posted to fb (Oct 2018)
War, is inevitable Fred. Once it goes kinetic, nothing will stop the avalanche.
“War, is inevitable Fred. Once it goes kinetic, nothing will stop the avalanche.”
Well, IF/when a domestic [civil or revolutionary] war becomes kinetic, I think you’d be proven correct—it’d likely snowball into an avalanche. The question is: What/where’s the push that becomes the shove that actually gets the snowball off its couch and rolling….in the right direction?
If it was gonna happen, it’d make sense for it to begin whilst we—non-hyphenated American citizens—were still a majority within Obamerica. I think that ship sailed in ’08—with PAA’s election. The s-hole we now find ourselves in suggests that we’ve become a [declining and physically impotent] minority.
American citizens do alotta prognosticating; American politicians do alotta speech-making; and American military does alotta curtseying. The most potent amongst even went as far as to throw a riotous party at the US Capital with moose antlers and cargo pants; many of that gang now reside in a DC jail.
Inevitable?? Kinetic?? All I see are [frog] legs flailing ’round in a pot o’ ganga haze and halftime entertainment. Ugh.
“Britain has a ‘BOUTIQUE’ military with ‘no depth’, a former head of the Armed Forces has said.” —Daily Mail (2 Apr 2024)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13265279/Britains-boutique-military-no-depth-former-head-Armed-Forces-claims-amid-calls-increased-defence-spending.html
“Pondering: As The Prince’s debacle in Ukraine continues to deteriorate, it becomes increasingly likely that a number of European nations will be forced to institute conscription as a means to pad the ranks of their currently “boutique” militaries. And, as history’s shown, once you place serious time/effort/money on your military, the “need” to use it becomes inevitable. Meanwhile, Russia’s military’s grown far larger and more potent than at any time since WWII; and its forces would outnumber—and I reckon likely outperform!—the entirety of EU nations on a Ukrainian battlefield. So, what’s The Prince and The Party to do when NATO’s forced to retreat back to their individual nation states and Russia’s forced to chase them?” —posted to fb (6 Apr 2024)
Meanwhile, The Party’s propaganda campaign appears to be 100% effective on their cult members. Here’s a little snippet taken from a recent debate between myself and an old friend—an upper-level civilian Navy contractor who self-describes as “a socialist” (i.e., what I affectionately describe as a commie-toddler). I think it salient that he, like all Party members, gets most of the facts more or less correct, but someone appears to’ve reversed the names on his script:
“The fact that what Russia expected was at most a month long conquest of the entirety of Ukraine has become a 2+ year conflict centering on the eastern provinces says a lot about Russian military ‘might’. What’s been exposed is not just ineptitude, but the corruption within the Russian military; maintenance of equipment (tanks, trucks, etc.) is crucial for military operations on the ground – and it’s evidently been lacking. Why? The funding for maintenance was ‘diverted’, probably to someone’s pocket. Aircraft capability must keep up with developments in opposition – the fact that drones supplied to the Ukrainian military have brought down numerous ‘advanced’ aircraft says they’re not keeping up. On another note, the fact that literally thousands of military age males have left Russia to avoid conscription says a lot, let alone massive protests against the war (in Russia, in spite of attempts at removing protestors). The fact that the Russian military has resorted to ‘conscripting’ prison inmates…well, that says a lot. Finally, we get to Vlad’s threats of nuclear weapons – the last resort.
Are we (your ‘collective west’) about promoting democracy, or are we to surrender to dictatorship? Vlad has made it pretty clear that his goal is ‘restoration’ of the Soviet Union – with Poland one of the obvious targets next on the list. Do you want that?”
“Take me back, way back home
Not by myself, not alone
I ain’t askin’ for much
I said, Lord, take me downtown
I’m just lookin’ for some tush” —ZZ Top, “Tush”
The Russians will not let Ukraine join NATO, for NATO has violated Minsk I and they are not about to trust NATO for their treachery, so NATO has been caught with their pants down with no militaries to speak of and very few aircraft. A recipe for a perfect disaster.
“The Russians will not let Ukraine join NATO, for NATO has violated Minsk I and they are not about to trust NATO for their treachery, so NATO has been caught with their pants down with no militaries to speak of and very few aircraft. A recipe for a perfect disaster.”
The $64,000 question (and today’s rhetorical question): Does The Prince and The Party have the sense to realize the corner they’ve painted themselves into and FOLD. Or will they bury their [collectivist] heads further into the ground, DUMP more of the tax-payers’ money into a lost game and HOPE—which is NOT a plan—that SOMEONE(??) will DO SOMETHING (to save ’em)!!
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13280649/Britain-failed-prepare-war-nation-endeavour-ex-defence-ministers-warn-Putins-invasion-Ukraine-sparks-fears-conflict-Russia.html
The Conservative MP said not enough figures within Government were considering these preparations.
I am astonished that all of our defense ministers just went from defense of the home country to “Our country will bedefended in Afghanistan” and destroyed the home part of the armed forces.
Did nobody think ahead?
Or were they paid / blackmailed into doing so?
And now they proclaim to be totally baffled.
I recently found an sick / morbid / insane youtube channel called “On the edge”. There a torture sommelier enacts justice against criminals.
WARNING: Very graphic even though it is just a comic.
I would really like to know what our politicians would be punished with?
“These U.S. Threats are Designed to Intentionally Harm and Weaken the Jewish State or Worse.” —Zionist Organization of America (4 Apr 2024)
https://zoa.org/2024/04/10450196-bidenprohamas/
Just figured that out, huh?
“It is a great irony lost on most American Jews that only Republican administrations can be counted upon to take aggressive action in support of Israel; the latent “progressivism” of the Democrats requires them to actually secretly support the non-European/Western/Caucasian party (read general history, and Jimmy Carter’s memoirs in particular, if you doubt this).” —”Terrorism Isn’t Rocket Science” (July 2002)
http://www.triumphpc.com/psst!/jul02/rocket1.shtml
“US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warns that Israel risks becoming indistinguishable from Hamas if it continues to fail to protect civilians amid the Gaza war.” —Times of Israel (4 Apr 2024)
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/blinken-warns-israel-risks-becoming-indistinguishable-from-hamas-if-it-doesnt-protect-gaza-civilians/