Russian President Vladimir Putin said that if the West lets Ukraine use long-range precision weapons to strike targets deep inside Russian territory, it means NATO is entering the war. Meanwhile, three staff members for the International Red Cross were killed during a Russian missile attack on Ukraine.
In other news, a convicted rapist from Guadeloupe was given a 20-year prison sentence for the attempted rape of a 102-year-old resident of a nursing home in the French city of Rouen.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Daniel Greenfield, Dean, DV, JW, LP, Reader from Chicago, SS, Upananda Brahmachari, 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.
Chicago Inflation is Second-Worst in the Nation: Study
CHICAGO — A new report on how inflation is affecting major cities across the U.S. finds that Chicago has the second-biggest inflation problem out of any metro area.
The WalletHub study published Wednesday finds that the Chicago area saw one of the largest consumer price index changes; 0.9 percent in the past two months, second only to the Twin Cities area, which had a two-month increase of 1.3 percent.
Chicago’s consumer price index change from a year ago sits at 3.8 percent.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Lagarde: Draghi Report ‘Formidable’ But ECB Won’t Change Policy to Boost EU Competitiveness
European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde praised Mario Draghi’s “formidable” report on Thursday (12 September) but said that the responsibility for boosting Europe’s lagging competitiveness ultimately lies with EU governments rather than monetary policymakers.
Lagarde’s remarks, which follow the publication earlier this week of Draghi’s hotly anticipated 400-page analysis of Europe’s economic malaise, came as the ECB cut its GDP forecasts for the eurozone for the next three years by 0.1 percentage point on Thursday. Growth is now expected to reach just 0.8% in 2024.
In addition, the bank cut its key interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to 3.5% — the second rate reduction this year and in line with analysts’ expectations.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
46% of Americans Didn’t Read a Book in 2023
September 6 was National Read a Book Day in the United States.
But, as Statista’s Anna Fleck details below, the promotion appears not to be working as nearly half of all U.S. adults said that they had not read a book in 2023, according to a YouGov survey conducted between December 16-18.
You will find more infographics at Statista
Of the 1,500 polled adults, 46 percent said they had not listened to or read a book in the past year, while 27 percent said that they had read between 1-5 books and nine percent said they had read 6-10.
Eleven percent of Americans are particularly voracious readers, having read 20 books or more in that time frame.
[Comment: The comments on the Zero Hedge article I found funny.]
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Arizona, Nevada Governors Sound Alarm on California Governor’s Gasoline Proposal
(The Center Square) The Democratic governor of Arizona and Republican governor of Nevada signed a bipartisan letter warning against California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s gasoline refinery proposal they say could result in gasoline supply shortages and raise gasoline prices.
“It is evident that increased regulatory burdens on refiners and forced supply shortages will result in higher costs for consumers in all of our states,” wrote Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo in their letter to Newsom. “With both of our states reliant on California pipelines for significant amounts of our fuel, these looming cost increases and supply shortages are of tremendous concern to Arizona and Nevada.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A Seattle jury has found Washington state not negligent in the death of Summer Taylor, a leftist activist who was struck and killed by a driver while illegally protesting on I-5 in 2020. Taylor was marching alongside Black Lives Matter and Antifa during an anti-police protest near downtown Seattle when she was killed.
The family of Summer Taylor filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the state, seeking $24 million in damages. After a nearly three-week trial, the jury returned a verdict on Thursday, finding the state not liable for the activist’s death.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has penned a letter to major social media and “AI” companies. And Bonta’s not urging them to “do better” on innovation, competition, and the like.
No — the letter is all about “election misinformation.”
It’s becoming almost pathological at this point, but the entire ruling apparatus in the US (and that includes not only officials but also politically and ideologically affiliated media outlets) is hammering in the message of that being an actual “threat to democracy.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
DOJ Releases 2023 Crime Statistics, Trump Campaign Fact Checks ABC
Following the release of new crime statistics from the Justice Department, former President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign on Thursday released a blistering statement, slamming ABC’s David Muir, who was one of the moderators of Tuesday’s presidential debate.
Trump commented during the debate that crime rates, especially those caused by illegal immigrants, have drastically risen during the Biden-Harris administration. But Muir shot back: “As you know, the FBI says overall violent crime is coming down in this country.”
The Trump campaign highlighted the figures in the Justice Department’s “National Crime Victimization Survey,” which was released on Thursday. The survey found that violent crime was up 37% from 2020 to 2023, rape is up 42%, robbery is up 63%, and stranger violence is up 61%.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Driven by Ads: Ford’s Patent Paves the Way for Eavesdropping on the Road
Ford has filed a patent that is supposed to provide what the car manufacturer calls “in-vehicle advertising.” The solution is to eavesdrop on what’s being said in the vehicle, correlate that with location and other data, and serve “bespoke” ads.
The patent reveals systems and methods that would achieve the goal of targeting ads to car occupants, using their conversations.
Cars have long since become yet another common place where people’s privacy is being slowly eroded — but some observers are now wondering if the latest idea out of Ford may be “crossing the line.”
Whether or not Ford’s patent, which takes intrusive advertising practices to another level, would face any type of backlash from buyers of their machines remains to be seen; but even some advertising professionals are worried things may be getting out of hand at this point.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
The couple who filmed Marine Daniel Penny in a Manhattan subway car as he subdued a violent homeless man, Jordan Neely, who died after the incident, have refused to testify at the upcoming trial and refused to hand over video they took of the incident.
In a transcript obtained by the New York Post, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley on Monday revealed that two European eyewitnesses have declined bids to get them to return to the city for Penny’s October trial and hand over the footage to prosecutors.
During the lawyers-only conference, Wiley said the husband and wife “apparently took a video of the incident, and since that time have declined to testify in the Grand Jury, and have gone back to their home, which apparently is in Europe someplace.” He added, “They have so far refused to share the video that they took. They refused to share it with the DA, or with anyone else, and they are so far refusing to come back to testify.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
FBI Says it is Still Looking for Former Bin Laden Associate Over Alleged Role in 9/11 Terror Attacks
The FBI on Thursday reminded the public that it was still searching for a known former associate of terrorist Osama bin Laden, over the man’s alleged role in the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
Hamza Al Ghamdi, who is connected to the terrorist organization al-Qaeda, served on bin Laden’s security detail prior to 9/11. He is not the same Hamza Al Ghamdi that crashed United Airlines Flight 175 into the World Trade Center.
The State Department is offering a $5 million reward for Al Ghamdi’s location. He has also gone by Salih Saeed Albitaih Alghamdi, Hamza Salih Bin Sa’id Al-Ghamdi and Hamza Al Ghamidi.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Fearless Fund Settles With DEI Foes, Ends Grant Program for Black Women
The Fearless Fund will shutter its grant program for Black women to end a lawsuit with affirmative action opponents, marking a major retreat by diversity advocates grappling with a legal environment in which race-specific programs are proving nearly indefensible in certain jurisdictions.
Both parties said the Atlanta-based venture capital firm, which invests in early-stage companies owned by women of color, agreed to close the Fearless Strivers grant contest reserved for Black female-owned businesses. In June, a three-judge panel of U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit temporarily enjoined the Fearless Fund from closing its application window and awarding the $20,000 grants, finding that doing so would probably discriminate on the basis of race.
“Race-exclusive programs like the one the Fearless Fund promoted are divisive and illegal,” said Edward Blum, the conservative activist behind the Fearless Fund lawsuit and architect of a broad campaign to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Former Top Clinton Adviser Calls on ABC to Launch Internal Probe Into Whether Debate Was Rigged
Mark Penn, a former top adviser to Bill and Hillary Clinton, called Thursday for ABC to launch a formal internal investigation into its news division’s planning and execution of this week’s presidential debate to determine if there was some effort at “rigging the outcome of this debate.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Four People Have Been Charged With $178 Million COVID Fraud
(The Center Square) — An Arizona man and three associates have been charged in a scheme to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration of at least $178 million in loans meant to help small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Eric Karnezis, 43, from Sedona, Arizona, has been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering in a 23-count indictment. His co-defendants are Lynisha Wells, 47, and Nikkia Bennett, 43, both from Chula Vista, California, and Fredrico Williams, 48, from San Diego.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Georgia Judge Tosses Two Criminal Counts Against Trump in Fani Willis Case
Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee on Thursday dismissed two counts against former President Donald Trump in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’s election case.
Willis indicted Trump and 18 co-defendants in August of last year on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) charges. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
McAfee specifically dropped charges related to the alleged filing of false documents in federal court, finding that prosecutors did not have the authority to bring them, Reuters reported.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Harris-Trump ABC Debate Draws 67.1 Million Viewers, Beating Biden-Trump CNN Debate
Nielson ratings show 67.14 million people watched the ABC News prime-time presidential debate Tuesday night between GOP nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, beating the CNN presidential debate between Trump and President Joe Biden.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hunt for Kentucky Freeway Shooting Suspect Enters 6th Day as Victims Released From the Hospital
As the hunt for the suspected gunman in an eastern Kentucky interstate shooting that left five people injured entered its sixth day, Gov. Andy Beshear said law enforcement officers will be posted at high school football games and stationed along school bus routes in an attempt to ease fear in nearby communities.
Beshear on Thursday said four of the victims shot in Saturday’s sniper-like attack on Interstate 75 near London, Kentucky, have been released from hospitals and that the fifth victim is also expected to survive.
The governor said he is confident that law enforcement teams with the help of agents from the FBI, the U.S. Marshal’s Service and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives will catch suspect Joseph Couch and bring him to justice.
| — Hat tip: LP | [Return to headlines] |
Idaho Supreme Court Issues Decision on Venue Change for Bryan Kohberger Murder Trial
The Idaho Supreme Court issued its decision Thursday on where the murder trial of Bryan Kohberger will be held, and also assigned a new judge to the case.
Kohberger’s trial, and all further proceedings, will be held at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise and presided over by 4th District Judge Steven Hippler, the justices said. The trial is set to take place next year, between June 2 and Aug. 29. It’s unclear whether the new changes will delay that further.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A duck rescuer who has spent nearly a decade saving and rehoming wild geese in Ohio has been inundated with calls from concerned Springfield residents amid allegations migrants are eating wild birds.
Lisa Montgomery was shocked when she discovered the ‘unusual’ amount of birds which have disappeared in the region, and now has ‘serious concerns’ that they’re being ‘murdered for food.’
Speaking to DailyMail.com, Lisa said the sheer number of birds disappearing of late has far exceeded past summers in the region.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate,” a terrorist declares on the Flight 93 cockpit recording. That’s followed by the sounds of the terrorists assaulting a passenger.
“Please don’t hurt me,” he pleads. “Oh God.”
As the passengers rush the cabin, a Muslim terrorist proclaims, “In the name of Allah.”
As New York firefighters struggle up the South Tower with 100 pounds of equipment on their backs trying to save lives until the very last moment, the Flight 93 passengers push toward the cockpit. The Islamic hijackers call out, “Allahu Akbar.”
Mohammed Atta had advised his fellow terrorists that when the fighting begins, “Shout, ‘Allahu Akbar,’ because this strikes fear in the hearts of the non-believers.” He quoted the Koran’s command that Muslim holy warriors terrorize non-believers by beheading them and urged them to follow Mohammed’s approach, “Take prisoners and kill them.”
The 9/11 ringleader quoted the Koran again. “No prophet should have prisoners until he has soaked the land with blood.”
On Flight 93, the fighting goes on. “Oh Allah. Oh the most Gracious,” the Islamic terrorists cry out. “Trust in Allah,” they reassure. And then there are only the chants of, “Allahu Akbar” as the plane goes down in a Pennsylvania field leaving behind another blood-soaked territory in the Islamic invasion of America.
Today that field is marked by the “Crescent of Embrace” memorial.
| — Hat tip: Daniel Greenfield | [Return to headlines] |
A company that makes bluetooth earrings that resemble Kamala Harris’ debate jewelry has offered their wares to Donald Trump as well, with one caveat.
Harris, who has previously suggested that Bluetooth headphones pose a ‘security risk’, was accused of wearing earphones disguised as pearl earrings to aide her during the 90-minute contest against Republican rival Donald Trump on Tuesday.
Critics have baselessly alleged the gold pearl loops — which Harris, 59, has worn before and are believed to be from Tiffany’s — are actually a pair of smart audio earrings engineered by German start-up company NOVA. The only similarity between the two sets of earrings appears to be that they both feature a pearl.
Malte Iversen, the managing director of the NOVA-manufacturing Icebach Sound, says he can neither confirm nor deny if they are his earrings.
‘We do not know whether Mrs. Harris wore one of our products. The resemblance is striking and while our product was not specifically developed for the use at presidential debates, it is nonetheless suited for it,’ Iversen said in a statement.
He then poked a little fun at Harris’ opponent, while offering him an opportunity to make things even.
‘To ensure a level playing field for both candidates, we are currently developing a male version and will soon be able to offer it to the Trump campaign. The choice of colour is a bit challenging though as orange does not go well with a lot of colours,’ Iversen told Just the News.
| — Hat tip: SS | [Return to headlines] |
New Hampshire Residents Will Need to Show Proof of Citizenship Before Voting in Future Elections
New Hampshire’s Republican Gov. Chris Sununu on Thursday made the Granite State the first in the country to require voters to provide proof of United States citizenship in order to participate in elections.
The bill mirrors the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act that has been proposed by House Republicans, which would force voters to show proof of citizenship in the U.S. in order to vote in federal elections. The SAVE Act previously passed the House, but did not advance in the Senate.
The new state law, which was passed by New Hampshire’s legislation in May, will go into effect in 60 days, which puts it past the November election.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
On 9-11 Anniversary, a Tale of Two Suspected Terrorists Raises Concerns About Double Standard
Just two months apart, the FBI stopped two Pakistani men near the border. Both were on the terrorist watchlist. Both are now charged with plotting heinous crimes. But one was stopped in Canada before he crossed the border, while the other was allowed to enter for weeks despite concerns he was working with Iran to assassinate Donald Trump.
The vastly different treatment of Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, now charged with plotting to shoot up a Jewish center in New York, and Asif Raza Merchant, charged in the Trump assassination plot, has perplexed security experts, confounded members of Congress and even left a former top FBI G-man without explanation on this 23rd anniverary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistani National With Iran Ties Indicted in Alleged ‘Murder for Hire’ Plot on US Politicians
The Justice Department has announced an indictment against a Pakistani national with ties to Iran in connection with an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate a U.S. politician or government official.
The department has identified the person as Asif Merchant, also known as Asif Raza Merchant, and said he is now in federal custody.
He was indicted Tuesday with attempting to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries and murder-for-hire as part of a scheme to assassinate a U.S. politician or government official on American soil, the department said Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
RNC Sues Michigan Secretary of State Over Absentee Ballot Policies
The Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Michigan Republican Party have filed a lawsuit against Jocelyn Benson, the state’s Democratic Secretary of State, over her election certification processes for absentee ballots, claiming there is “incomplete” guidance for election workers to verify the ballots.
The complaint filed in state court on Tuesday seeks to prevent Benson from enacting her ballot-processing guidance, which she issued in Feb. 2024. It also prevents Benson from issuing new guidelines ahead of November’s presidential election. The city and township clerks must adhere to the ballot-counting procedures prescribed in Michigan law, the plaintiffs said. Additionally, the suit claimed that the proposed guidance doesn’t include signature verification, which is ripe for election discrepancies.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Rumble Dominates Debate Night as Alternative Media Streaming Surges
Rumble, the rising Big Tech alternative and cloud services platform, made waves as it swept through multiple records during this week’s presidential debate. On that Tuesday night, former President Donald Trump went head-to-head with Vice President Kamala Harris and it was a big night for alternatives to mainstream media.
Analytics provided by Streams Charts shows the significant surge in Rumble’s concurrent live viewers, a pioneering achievement for the platform. Additionally, the platform has set unprecedented records in terms of live concurrent creator streams and peak bandwidth usage.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
SPLC Staff Denounce CEO Over ‘Inhumane’ Treatment
Workers at the leftist activist Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) gave their CEO a vote of non-confidence after Margaret Huang started to lay off staff last June. The staff have equated this with the union busting tactics they usually associate with conservatives.
The SPLC union announced a 92 percent vote of non-confidence in Huang, The Guardian reported. With that response in hand, the union is now calling for Huang to resign or to be removed and replaced with a new CEO — and to reverse the layoffs that have cut staff levels by 25 percent. The union is also appealing directly to the public with a petition to encourage people to support its demands.
Lisa Wright, the chairwoman of the union’s bargaining committee, worked for the SPLC for 23 years before being laid-off. “Shock, horror, confusion. It’s been sloppy, dispassionate, inhumane. It has been the absolute opposite of what the organization says they stand for and absolute chaos since then,” Wright told The Guardian.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘There Will be No Third Debate’: Trump Ends Talk of Rematch With Harris
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump confirmed on Thursday that he would not debate Vice President Kamala Harris again.
“KAMALA SHOULD FOCUS ON WHAT SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE DURING THE LAST ALMOST FOUR YEAR PERIOD. THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!” Trump wrote in a lengthy TRUTH Social post.
On Tuesday, Trump and Harris participated in a debate on ABC News that saw Trump feud with the moderators as much as with Harris.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Pledges to Eliminate Taxes on Overtime
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday pledged to eliminate taxes on overtime wages if he is elected back to the White House in November.
Trump has previously promised to eliminate taxes on tips, and social security benefits. All three proposals appear to be part of an effort to woo working-class and senior voters, groups that could be crucial in November’s election.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump is a ‘De Facto Russian Asset’ Says Former FBI Deputy Director
Andrew McCabe, the former FBI Deputy Director who Donald Trump fired in 2018, said on a podcast that the former president was a “de Facto Russian asset.”
When Sir Richard Dearlove, a former head of MI6, the British intelligence service, and co-host of the “One Decision” podcast, asked him if he thought Trump was a Russian asset, McCabe responded, I do, I do.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Trump Campaign Blasts Garland Over DOJ ‘Witch Hunt’ as He Defends Agency
The Trump campaign on Thursday excoriated Attorney General Merrick Garland in the wake of a speech he gave defending the impartiality of the Department of Justice.
Garland on Thursday insisted that “public servants of the Department of Justice do not bend to politics” and vowed to protect the DOJ from efforts to co-opt it for political purposes.
“Comrade Kamala Harris has weaponized the DOJ to target her political opponent, President Trump, in an unconstitutional and unprecedented Witch Hunt,” Trump Campaign Communications Director Steven Cheung said in a statement. “The disgraceful conduct of Attorney General Merrick Garland has done tremendous damage to a once great institution.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
What Apalachee High School Shooting Suspect Colt Gray Did Before Shots Fired
WINDER, Ga. — New information from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has revealed what happened before the deadly shooting at Apalachee High School.
In a FAQ posted by the GBI on Thursday, investigators say that 14-year-old Colt Gray brought the “black semi-automatic AR-15 style rifle” to school with him on Sept. 4 in his backpack. While the weapon could not be broken down, officials say the teen was able to hide it in his bag.
Once on campus, authorities say Colt Gray kept the gun hidden until second period. At that time, the GBI reports that Gray “asked a teacher if he could go to the front office and speak to someone.”
After getting permission, the GBI reports that the teen took his bag with him and went to the restroom to hide from teachers.
“Later, he took out his rifle, and began shooting,” the GBI reports.
| — Hat tip: DV | [Return to headlines] |
Ontario Woman Charged With ‘Assault With a Weapon’ After Allegedly Spraying Water Gun at Neighbor
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) have arrested a Simcoe County, Ontario woman, charging her with assault with a weapon after she allegedly sprayed her neighbor with a water gun. “I’ve cried myself to sleep many nights,” Wendy Washik told CTV News.
Washik, 58, works as an educational assistant and explained that it all happened when she was having some fun with the neighborhood children while having a barbecue in her backyard on Sept. 1. “Because I love kids and work with kids, I asked [one] if he had any water guns and he said: ‘Yeah,’“ she said.
The woman began playfully pursuing one child from the backyard to the front and when she mistakenly sprayed a neighbor as Washik experimented with the water gun to see if it was working. “I was trying to figure out how the water gun was working. It’s not like I play with water guns at my age,” she explained on Tuesday. “I was going through the gate and it accidentally hit the neighbor that was maybe three feet away, [who was] cutting his grass.” Washik said she offered her apologies to the individual.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
“Silent Coup”: How the EU Hijacks Crises to Erode National Sovereignty
Many of us on the Right are aware of the war being waged on European Union member states’ sovereignty behind the scenes, but far fewer can account for exactly how it is happening. Why do capitals seem increasingly weak at defending their interests every year, despite the lack of obvious structural reforms being implemented that would explain this encroachment?
That’s why the renowned conservative think tank MCC Brussels has published a new reportentitled “The Silent Coup: the European Commission’s power grab.” It was written by British journalist Thomas Fazi, the author of such books as The Battle for Europe: How an Elite Hijacked a Continent—and How We Can Take It Back (2014), and The Covid Consensus: The Global Assault on Democracy and the Poor—A Critique from the Left (2023).
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Austria Security Services Raids 72 Islamic Extremists
VIENNA (AP) — Austrian security forces carried out raids against 72 alleged Islamic extremists this week ahead of the 23th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the United States, citing the potential for copycat violence on the date of the plane hijackings that killed nearly 3,000 people.
The raids occurred across the European country on Tuesday, before Wednesday’s anniversary, because the 2001 tragedy remains symbolic for extremists and has inspired copycat attempts, the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence said Thursday in a statement.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Polish media is abuzz with news that big changes are coming to Law and Justice (PiS) this September, with the party’s congress set to take place this September 28.
Changes in leadership are expected as well as a merger with the nationalist, Catholic party Sovereign Poland, with negotiations on the latter being led by Patryk Jaki.
“I invite you to the second session of the 6th Law and Justice Congress, which will be held on Sept. 28 this year (Saturday), at 12:00 at the L. Skowyra School Complex No. 2 in Przysucha,” was the message PiS politicians received on Thursday morning.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
‘Do the Job You’re Paid to Do’ — Politics Gets Nasty in Poland, and One Judge Has Had Enough
Tensions are boiling over in Poland, with continued mudslinging over differing interpretations of legal protocols regarding everything from media shutdowns to dismissed judges.
Most of the focus — and outrage — has been on the current left-liberal ruling coalition, led by Brussels darling Prime Minister Donald Tusk, taking what is seen as extreme liberties with its democratic mandate, primarily in terms of actions considered constitutionally questionable.
For their part, Tusk and his toadies contend that the constitutional revisions made by the former conservative Law and Justice (PiS) government, along with numerous appointments to the judiciary, were questionable to start.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
EU Could Cut Funding to German State of Thuringia if AfD Forms Government
The EU could hit the German state of Thuringia with €1.5 billion in funding cuts if it exercises democracy and installs the wrong government led by the Alternative for Germany (AfD).
The proposal to cut funding to the entire German state comes from the influential Jacques Delors Centre (JDC), a think tank at the Hertie School in Berlin, with a former EU commission advisor, Luise Quaritsch, suggesting cutting EU funding if the AfD comes to power.
She writes: “Right-wing populist and extreme parties are gaining support across Europe,” and the consequences of this can be seen “in Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: At Least Three Attacks ‘Foiled’ During Paris Olympics
French security services have reported they prevented several terrorist attacks during the Paris Olympics and Paralympics Games.
Olivier Christen, the senior leader of France’s anti-terrorism unit, said the planned attacks were set to take place in the French capital and Saint-Étienne.
Five indictments have been reported, including one for a minor.
Alleged targets included Israeli institutions and representatives of Israel in Paris and two people from the Gironde region.
The first planned attack, according to law enforcement authorities, targeted the football events in Saint-Étienne, in “bar-type establishments, around the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium”, the anti-terrorist prosecutor told Franceinfo.
An 18-year-old man of Chechen origin was indicted and placed in pre-trial detention in May in relation to the allegations.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France’s National Rally ‘Willing to Give PM Barnier a Chance,’ MEP Says
Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) is willing to give France’s new Prime Minister Michel Barnier a chance, an MEP for the party has said.
Fabrice Leggeri, who also previously served as the head of the European Union’s Frontex border agency, insisted that RN would not work to sabotage the new PM as long as he did not violate what he called any “red lines”.
Speaking in the Brussels Signal studio, Leggeri insisted that RN did not want to needlessly “block” France by opposing Barnier and so would gauge his performance before acting against him.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Antifa Vandalises Conservative School of Political Science in Lyon
A school of political science founded in Lyon by Marion Maréchal MEP has been vandalised by Antifa-style militants, protesting the visit of Transmania author Marguerite Stern, who was scheduled to give a lecture on transgender ideology.
The Institute of Social, Economic and Political Sciences (Institut de Sciences Sociales, Economiques et Politiques, or ISSEP) set itself the goal of training a new elite of committed people who are off the beaten track of ‘woke’ correctness—allowing Maréchal to continue her political struggle by other means. It boasts a teaching team keen to host personalities who speak a different political language.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Leftist New Popular Front Vows to ‘Do Everything to Take Down Barnier Government
The new government in France is already besieged as leaders of far-left parties are refusing to meet with Prime Minister Michel Barnier and the leftist New Popular Front coalition is vowing to “do everything” to take down the government.
Less than one week after being installed in the Hôtel Matignon by President Macron, Prime Minister Barnier, a centre-right member of the establishment Les Republicans party and former Eurocrat Brexit negotiator, is already facing attempts to remove him from office.
“We will do everything to try to bring down this government,” vowed Benjamin Lucas, a lawmaker from the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance comprised of communist, socialist, social democrat, and green parties.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Fully Rearming Germany ‘Will Take 100 Years’, Report Finds
Fully rearming Germany could take up to a century if the country continues with its current rate of military production, a report has found.
Researchers at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (ifw-Kiel) found it may take until the 2120s before the country’s armed forces could be considered at a similar or better level than in 2004.
According to a report published on September 10, many of the issues surrounded what it called Germany’s slow acquisition of artillery, with the research predicting it would not be until 2121 that the Bundeswehr would have the same level of equipment as 20 years ago.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
German CDU Turns to Radical Left Rather Than AfD
Plans for negotiations are shaping up in Germany’s eastern state of Thuringia to determine who gets to participate in the next government. It may come as no surprise to the citizens of Germany that despite the anti-immigration Alternative für Deutschland (AfD)’s victory in the elections on September 1st, where they received a third of all votes, the party will be excluded from the talks as the other parties impose their ‘firewall’—or cordon sanitaire.
German media reported that the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which came second with 24%, is even negotiating with the ideologically distant radical Left Die Linke party, the successor of the East German communist party, just so it doesn’t have to govern with the AfD.
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German State Near Berlin Bans Islamic Centre, Citing Hamas Ties
Brandenburg’s Interior Minister Michael Stübgen (CDU) has banned an Islamic association outside of Berlin, saying it is associated with the Muslim Brotherhood and the terrorist organization Hamas and promotes anti-Semitism.
Stübgen, in a statement released on Thursday, also said the Islamic Centre Fürstenwalde al-Salam opposes the constitutional order.
The Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist movement founded in 1928 in Egypt, is banned there.
Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist militia group which started the current Gaza war after it invaded Israel on October 7, is the Brotherhood’s branch in Gaza.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Hungary Ready to Sue European Commission
Hungary is prepared to launch a lawsuit against the European Commission to force Brussels to pay for costs related to the defence of Hungary’s southern border, which is also the EU’s external border.
“The government will demand the reimbursement of the border policing costs from the Commission,” Gergely Gulyas, the Minister of the Prime Minister’s Office said at a press conference on Thursday, September 12th, adding that his government may even file a lawsuit against the Commission to enforce the reimbursement legally.
This is not the first time the conservative government of Hungary has called for Brussels to pay the costs of border protection. Budapest says it has spent €2 billion on the defence of its border since 2015, including erecting a fence to keep out illegal migrants.
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Laptops, Money Seized During Raid on Banned Islamic Centre in Germany
German police have seized laptops and money during raids targeting a newly banned Islamic association based outside Berlin.
The interior minister of the state of Brandenburg, Michael Stübgen, said “a considerable amount of cash” had been seized.
Stübgen announced on Thursday that he has banned the Islamic Centre in Fürstenwalde in eastern Brandenburg, saying it has links to the Muslim Brotherhood and Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas. The centre has also been promoting anti-Semitism on social media, authorities said.
In a statement released on Thursday, Stübgen said, “We cannot tolerate associations that oppose the constitutional order or the notion of harmony among nations.”
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New German Police Video Aims to Track Down Terrorist Survivors
Long-sought members of the Red Army Faction (RAF) left-wing group that posed a terrorist threat to Germany over decades are now thought to have committed further robberies, prosecutors said on Wednesday.
A new video, photographs and fresh information on the former terrorists Burkhard Garweg and Ernst-Volker Staub is being used to track them down.
The two men are alleged to have mounted attacks on cash transports and supermarkets between 1999 and 2016, along with Daniela Klette, who was arrested in Berlin at the start of the year.
They are now linked to a further three robberies, taking the number to 13 crimes, with total damage put at €2.7 million ($3.0 million). The money was used to finance their lives in the underground.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Orban Headed to Strasbourg Amid Veto Attempt by Opposing MEPs
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is scheduled to address the European Parliament in Strasbourg next week amid attempts by opponents to prevent him coming.
Orban, head of the EU’s rotating Presidency, is due to outline the bloc’s work schedule on September 18 at the Parliament’s French headquarters, a source close to the prime minister has confirmed.
His appearance, which has not yet been announced by the Parliament or Hungarian diplomats in Brussels, follows attempts led by Green MEPs to veto his speech.
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Police Strike Set to Aid Extinction Rebellion Motorway Protest in the Netherlands
The Dutch chapter of Extinction Rebellion (XR) is planning to block the A12 motorway in The Hague on September 14, a date that coincidentally coincides with a police strike.
Law enforcement officers have previously removed demonstrators, but the upcoming protest is set to get more leeway after the police announced they would not to intervene.
Some Dutch media reported that the climate activists aimed to take advantage of the strike to maximise the effects of their actions but an organisation’s spokeswoman told Brussels Signal that was not the case.
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Polish PM Boasts of His Right to Break the Law
The law doesn’t apply to liberals, only conservatives—at least that is what liberal Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is insinuating.
Speaking at a conference on Tuesday, September 11th, Tusk said that his government’s actions to “restore” the “constitutional order” following eight years of conservative rule may not be “fully compliant with the provisions of the law.”
The prime minister was referring to a recent decision of his that constitutional law experts and the opposition conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party called unlawful.
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Poll: Seven in 10 Czechs Would Vote for Harris Instead of Trump
The majority of people in Czechia say they favor American presidential candidate Kamala Harris over rival Donald Trump, according to a recent poll by the NMS Market Research agency. The survey, taken this month, showed that around seven in 10 people — 69 percent — would vote for the Democratic Party nominee.
Harris garnered support across all age and education groups, with the highest backing from university graduates and those aged 35 to 44. She also had an edge among both men and women. Over eight in 10 women — 81 percent — would vote for Harris.
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Puigdemont Set for Long-Term Exile After Spanish Court Ruling
The former president of Spain’s Catalonia region and former MEP Carles Puigdemont is set to remain in exile indefinitely after the Spanish Supreme Court ruled the controversial amnesty law for Catalan secessionists did not apply to him.
Under the ruling, Puigdemont’s arrest warrant will remain in place, rendering his return to Spanish territory unlikely.
Justice Pablo Llarena, the lead judge in Puigdemont’s case, dismissed his appeal to reconsider the court’s July 1 decision that deemed the amnesty law not applicable to the crimes the Catalan is accused of, including embezzlement.
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UK Govt Crime Minister’s Purse Stolen While at Crime Conference
Fiction could not be stranger: Minister of State for Crime Prevention has her purse stolen at a conference for senior police officers on preventing theft and shoplifting.
Minister of State for Policing, Fire and Crime Prevention Diana Johnson, a member of Britain’s new left-wing government, delivered comments at a conference for the Police Superintendents’ Association this week, where her purse was stolen.
A 56-year-old man has been arrested — and released on bail — on suspicion of burglary connected to an alleged theft of a purse at a hotel in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, police say. The Guardian newspaper states the Home Office, Britain’s interior ministry, confirmed the theft of Johnson’s bag had indeed taken place.
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UK Likely to Legalise Assisted Suicide Next Year, Ignoring Lingering Concerns
MPs will likely be given a vote on legalising assisted suicide—or ‘assisted dying,’ as its supporters prefer to call it—as early as next year. When this happens, it seems certain that this Parliament—even more liberal than the last—will pass it.
That’s despite Labour health secretary Wes Streeting’s admission just last week that the horrific state of end-of-life care in Britain means the health service is not ready for the practice, which campaigners previously told The European Conservative would for many see the “so-called right to die” become “the duty to die.”
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UK: ‘Heckle All You Want!’ Establishment Rages as Farage Blasts ‘Two-Tier’ Justice in Parliament
Furore broke out in the House of Commons Wednesday as Reform UK leader Nigel Farage accused Prime Minister Starmer of enacting “two-tier” justice in which criminals are set free as people who say “unpleasant” things online are jailed in Britain.
Nigel Farage once again drew heckles from other lawmakers as he raised widespread concerns over some 1,700 criminals being released early from prison this week to make room in British prisons.
The Reform MP said during Prime Minister’s Questions: “Yesterday we witnessed some extraordinary celebratory scenes outside Britain’s prisons, where in some cases serious career criminals were released. This to make way for, yes, rioters, but equally those who have said unpleasant things on Facebook and elsewhere on social media.
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UK: Starmer Outlines “10-Year Plan” to Fix the National Health Service
In perhaps his most important speech as prime minister yet, Sir Keir Starmer today said the National Health Service (NHS) won’t be thrown any more money unless it agrees to reforms.
This pledge is a welcome recognition of the conclusion of a new report, that hospitals are doing less work for their patients despite record levels of funding. Among the findings of Lord Ara Darzi’s investigation, published today, was that emergency departments are in such “an awful state” that thousands of people die each year because they are not seen quickly enough.
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Von Der Leyen Has Trouble Assembling New European Commission
The new European Commission could not be assembled and presented to the public by Wednesday, as previously announced, with President Ursula von der Leyen forced to postpone the presentation of the EU executive’s new composition until Sept. 17.
The delayed parliamentary confirmation of a Slovenian candidate was cited as a pretext in Brussels. “I think the Commission is using the Slovenian parliamentary procedure to buy another week to fine-tune the allocation of posts,” said a European Parliament official quoted by Politico.
The excuse for the delay is that Slovenia has not yet made a final decision on its candidate. Following the withdrawal of Tomaz Vesel, the Slovenian Parliament must now confirm the sending of former diplomat and presidential candidate Marta Kos to Brussels.
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Wagenknecht Party and Fico’s Smer Tease Alliance, But ‘Too Soon’ for New EP Group
Germany’s Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) and Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico’s Smer have confirmed a new attempt to strengthen ‘left-conservative’ ties in the European Parliament, but said a new group is still some way off.
The BSW, a new breakaway party from the far-left party Die Linke, has quickly become a major force in German politics. It has so far failed, however, to spearhead a new group in the European Parliament after the election as it had originally planned.
But a lawmaker from the Czech left-wing alliance Stacilo!, who have 2 MEPs, suggested this week that BSW could form a new group with Stacilo! and Smer within one year, as first reported by Euractiv.cz. A first coordination meeting between the two groups was scheduled for Wednesday.
BSW’s leader in the Parliament, Fabio De Masi, suggested on Thursday that his party would be open to linking up.
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Why Did So Many Greeks Sit Out the European Elections? an Interview With Kostas A. Lavdas
On June 9, Greeks elected the country’s 21 representatives in the European Parliament. The ruling, center-right New Democracy (ND) secured 28.31% of the vote and seven seats in the European Parliament.
Leftist SYRIZA (The Coalition of the Radical Left—Progressive Alliance) followed with 14.92% and four seats, PASOK (The Panhellenic Socialist Movement) with 12.79% and three seats, the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) with 9.25% and two seats, and the conservative Elliniki Lysi (Greek Solution) with 9.30% and two seats. Other Greek conservative parties have also entered the EP. Niki (Victory) received 4.37% of the votes, electing one MEP, and Foni Logikis (Voice of Reason) with 3.04% and one seat. The left-wing Plefsi Eleftherias (Course of Freedom) received 3.40% of the votes and one seat.
The European Conservative interviewed Professor Kostas A. Lavdas about the EP elections, the changing political landscape in Greece, and threats Turkey poses to Greece and Cyprus.
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What Bombs Did Israel Use Against the Al-Mawasi ‘Safe Zone’ in Gaza?
The three bombs dropped by Israeli warplanes on displaced people’s tents in southern Gaza left three enormous craters and myriad questions about the use of such big munitions on such a densely populated space.
In the early hours of Tuesday, Israel’s bombing of al-Mawasi killed at least 19 people and wounded many more.
At least 22 people are reported missing, assumed to have been vaporised by the intensity of the blast.
Israel claimed the strikes targeted Hamas militants, while Palestinians and aid groups condemned the attack as a war crime?.
[…]
Al Jazeera’s verification agency Sanad concluded that US-made MK-84 bombs may have been used by Israel against the encampment of displaced families.
It based this on analysing the size of craters and footage of bomb fragments from the camp.
The MK-84 is 2,000lb ordnance, and one of the heaviest pieces provided to Israel by the US.
| — Hat tip: JW | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey’s Erdogan Demands Russia Must Return Crimea to Ukraine
While some people think Turkey is an ally to Russia, the reality is that this “friendship” is more often shaky and could perhaps even be seen as a facade ready to collapse at any moment.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday reminded the world that his country firmly reflects NATO’s view of the Ukraine war. He said in video message to 4th Crimea Platform happening in Kiev, a Ukrainian government sponsored event, that the return of Crimea to Ukraine is “a requirement of international law.”
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Putin: Lifting Ukraine Arms Restrictions Means NATO Involved in War
Russian President Vladimir Putin says if the West lets Ukraine use long-range precision weapons to strike targets deep in Russian territory, this means NATO is entering the war.
Putin warned that he would see such a move as meaning NATO countries, including the US and European nations, are fighting with Russia, which would change the nature of the war.
“We will make appropriate decisions based on the threats we will be exposed to,” he said in response to a question from a journalist in St Petersburg, without providing further details.
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Russian Hawk Pushes Case for Putin to Strike West With Nuclear Weapons
Russia should clearly state its willingness to use nuclear weapons against countries that “support NATO aggression in Ukraine”, according to an influential foreign policy hawk who is pressing President Vladimir Putin to adopt a more assertive nuclear posture towards the West.
Sergei Karaganov told Kommersant newspaper in an interview that Moscow could launch a limited nuclear strike on a NATO country without triggering all-out nuclear war.
The United States, he added, was lying when it said that it guaranteed nuclear protection to its allies.
The main goal of Russia’s nuclear doctrine, Karaganov said, “should be to ensure that all current and future enemies are sure that Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons”.
In comments published weeks after Ukraine captured a part of Russia’s Kursk region, from which Moscow’s forces are still fighting to eject it, he said:
“It is time to declare that we have the right to respond to any massive strikes on our territory with a nuclear strike. This also applies to any seizure of our territory.”
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Russia claims to have recaptured 10 settlements in Kursk, in a move that suggests a counteroffensive is in the works, according to multiple reports.
Major General Apty Alaudinov, the commander of the Akhmat special forces unit that has been fighting in Kursk, said that Russian forces had repelled four Ukranian attacks and had destroyed clusters of soldiers and hardware in more than a dozen locations in the region, Russian state-controlled news outlet TASS reported on Wednesday.
Alaudinov added that Ukrainian forces, suffering heavy losses, were starting to realize that the move into Kursk will not be easy, the outlet reported.
Influential pro-Russian military bloggers Two Majors and Rybar also said a major counteroffensive was underway, Reuters reported.
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Russia Now Using Thermite-Spewing ‘Dragon Drones’ to Torch Ukrainian Positions
Russia has entered the ‘dragon drone’ fray, launching its own thermite-spewing aerial weapons over Ukrainian troops. The development comes about a week after videos first emerged on social media showing Ukraine’s use of these adapted unmanned aerial vehicles over Russian troops ensconced in treelines and trenches.
Thermite, which has primarily been used in grenades and artillery shells, among other applications, is a combination of oxidized iron and aluminum that burns at about 4,440 degrees Fahrenheit. The drones attack by dispersing the compound over treelines and other foliage under which an enemy seeks cover, as well as into trenches. Burning growth away reduces where the enemy can hide, increasing their exposure. By deploying it where troops are hiding, including in trenches, thermite can kill anything exposed. It can also choke off oxygen to and burn those not directly in contact with it.
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Three Red Cross Staff Members Killed in Russian Missile Attack on Ukraine
A RUSSIAN STRIKE on International Red Cross vehicles in eastern Ukraine killed three of the organisation’s workers, the country’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
Two other staff members were wounded in the attack, which happened in the village of Virolyubivka, a dozen of kilometres away from the frontline in Donetsk.
The toll was the largest among staff at the Geneva-based humanitarian organisation since a bomb blast killed three at the Aden airport in Yemen in 2020.
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
Azaan, Namaz never paused. But, Bangladesh Interim Govt Seeks Pause in Durga Puja During Muslim Prayer Times.
Upendra Bharti | HENB | New Delhi | Sept 12, 2024:: Under the visible influence of the Islamist groups, the interim government of Bangladesh has ‘forced’ the Hindu community in a pretence of ‘request’ to temporarily suspend their Durga Puja-related activities, particularly playing musical instruments, five minutes before the azaan (call to prayer) and during namaaz (prayer). ‘These activities must cease during namaaz and the pause must be observed from five minutes before the azaan,’ said Lt. Gen (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Home Affairs Adviser, on Tuesday, ahead of Durga Puja, the largest religious festival of the Hindu community.
However, in recent times, Bangladesh has not experienced any situations where the beats of drums in temples or the sounds of sankirtan have been allowed to coincide with Azaan or Namaz, in order to promote interfaith harmony. Instead, Hindus have often been restricted from performing their religious activities during Muslim prayer times, highlighting an imbalance in the accommodation of religious practices in the country.
The imposition of restrictions during Durga Puja is not a recent development, but rather a continuation of a disturbing trend. Hindus in Bangladesh have been facing discrimination and erosion of their religious rights since 2019, with successive years witnessing increasing curbs on their freedom to practice their faith.
According to the Home Affairs Adviser, puja committees have been requested to silence musical instruments and sound systems during azaan and namaz, and they have agreed to comply. This year, a total of 32,666 puja mandaps (pandals) (765 less than last year) will be set up across the country, with 157 in Dhaka South City Corporation and 88 in Dhaka North City Corporation. Although the number of puja mandaps was 33,431 last year, the Puja Celebration Parishad aims to surpass that number this year, according to Chowdhury. He also mentioned that discussions have been held on providing round-the-clock security at puja mandaps. Measures will be taken to ensure a smooth and uninterrupted celebration of puja, while also preventing any potential mischievous activities,” he added.
In a press conference, Jahangir Alam Chowdhury claimed that the Hindu representatives agreed to the government’s proposal. According to the administration, the decision is being made unnecessarily.
It was also decided in the meeting that volunteers will be deployed in the puja mandap. They will take turns guarding the pavilion. Many people in the Hindu society of Bangladesh do not consider this decision to be correct.
They fear that they are trying to use this opportunity to deploy Madrasa and Jamaat people, who do not believe in idol worship. As a result, there is a danger of unrest. Until now, only the people of the puja committee performed the duties of volunteers. A member of the police or any other security force was with him.
After the decision of the meeting became known, many members of the Hindu society of Bangladesh expressed their dissatisfaction with the decision regarding the recruitment of volunteers. It is known that President Vasudev Dhar and General Secretary Santosh Sharma were present on behalf of the Bangladesh Puja Celebration Council in the meeting with the Home Affairs Advisor. Both of them are journalists by profession. On the other hand, President Jayant Kumar Deb and General Secretary Tapashchandra Pal were present on behalf of the Dhaka Metropolitan Public Puja Committee.
In his address to the nation on Wednesday evening, Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus emphasized, ‘We are a nation built on communal harmony, and no one should engage in any act that disrupts this harmony.’ He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to establishing a democratic Bangladesh, free from the grip of dictatorship. Yunus also warned, ‘No individual should take the law into their own hands. If anyone does so and creates chaos in society, we will undoubtedly bring them to justice.’
However, these claims made by the interim Chief Advisor of Bangladesh are baseless, as he is allegedly running a deep state in collusion with Hefazat and Jamaat elements, depriving Hindu minorities of their religious rights. The recent imposition of a ban on puja activities during azaan and namaz times is a stark example of the erosion of minority rights in the country.
Previously, Hindus in Bangladesh were granted four days of government holidays during Durga Puja. In contrast, Muslims in Bangladesh now enjoy eight days of public holidays, with four days each for Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha. However, Hindus are only allocated one day of holiday for Durga Puja. Despite repeated demands from various Hindu organizations for a three-day government holiday during Durga Puja, their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. This disparity is a clear denial of the religious rights of minority Hindus in the country
Bangladesh witnessed havoc attacks on Durgapuja celebrations in 2021 and Hindus for which the then or present Bangladesh Govt failed to bring any justice for the victims.
| — Hat tip: Upananda Brahmachari | [Return to headlines] |
China Uses LinkedIn to Recruit Academics for Espionage, Czech Intelligence Warns
China poses a fundamental threat to Euro-Atlantic civilisation and is using various channels, including LinkedIn, to establish contacts and gain influence and know-how, the Czech Security Information Service (BIS) has warned.
In the latest BIS report, the Czech intelligence service found that China targets academics in the country.
Through LinkedIn, Chinese intelligence services use “cover profiles of employees from fictitious consulting or headhunting companies, most commonly based in Singapore or Hong Kong,” to approach Czech academics, the report warns.
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Australia’s Latest Censorship Bill Threatens Big Fines Over Online “Misinformation”
Australia on Thursday introduced a new version of the upcoming legislation — slated to become law by the end of the year — targeting tech companies that are not tackling what the authorities decide to consider misinformation and disinformation.
We obtained a copy of the bill for you here.
While the government explains the new bill as necessary to “crackdown on misinformation” — opponents see it as just the latest example of the government scheming to crack down on online speech.
The ruling Labor party is tabling this latest draft as a way to address previous criticism of the bill. It would give the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) the right to monitor online platforms and enforce new codes or standards on the industry — in case their actions are seen as inadequate under the “self-regulating voluntary” rules.
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Dozens Arrested After Clashes at Melbourne Anti-War Protest
Dozens of people have been arrested after clashing with police at an anti-war demonstration in Melbourne.
Police said they were “appalled” by the actions of some demonstrators targeting a military hardware sales show in Australia’s most populous city, accusing them of pelting officers with rocks, manure and bottles filled with acid.
By contrast, protestors said officers were heavy-handed and responded with flashbang grenades and irritant sprays to control the hostile crowd.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the violence, saying Australians had a right to protest — but had to do so in a peaceful manner.
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Musk Brands Australia ‘Fascists’ After Move to Fine Tech Giants
Tech mogul Elon Musk has likened the Australian government to “fascists”, attacking proposed laws that would fine social media giants for failing to stem the spread of misinformation.
Australia introduced a “combating misinformation” bill on Thursday, which includes sweeping powers to fine tech giants up to five percent of their yearly turnover for breaching online safety obligations.
“Fascists,” posted Musk in a one-word reply on social platform X, formerly known as Twitter, which he owns.
Musk’s salvo threatened to rekindle his long-running spat with the Australian government.
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Biden Admin Probed for Alleged Role in Brazil’s Social Media Crackdown
America First Legal (AFL) initiated an investigative probe on September 12, 2024, into potential complicity between the Biden-Harris Administration and the Brazilian government in censoring speech on social media. This scrutiny targets the involvement of the US Department of State, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), and the US Department of Commerce, marking a significant escalation in efforts to defend digital expression rights.
This investigation is partly propelled by concerns that arose after the Biden-Harris White House introduced the National Strategy for Countering Domestic Terrorism in June 2021. The strategy vowed to combat “disinformation,” particularly narratives suggesting electoral fraud in the 2020 US elections. It also outlined plans for international cooperation with governments, tech firms, and NGOs to eliminate terrorist content online.
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Mexico Will Amend Its Constitution This Weekend to Require All Judges to be Elected
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico is poised to amend its constitution this weekend to require all judges to be elected as part of a judicial overhaul championed by the outgoing president but slammed by critics as a blow to the country’s rule of law.
The amendment passed Mexico’s Congress on Wednesday, and by Thursday it already had been ratified by the required majority of the country’s 32 state legislatures. President Andre’s Manuel López Obrador said he would sign and publish the constitutional change on Sunday.
Legal experts and international observers have said the move could endanger Mexico’s democracy by stacking courts with judges loyal to the ruling Morena party, which has a strong grip on both Congress and the presidency after big electoral wins in June.
López Obrador says the overhaul would crack down on corruption in a system that most Mexicans agree is broken. But critics believe the move will deal a blow to checks and balances and make it easier for cartels and criminals to influence the courts.
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Venezuela’s Plight by the Numbers…
Tensions remain high in Venezuela following a disputed presidential election on July 28.
According to Human Rights Watch, at least 24 people have been killed, including protesters and bystanders, as well as a member of the Bolivarian National Guard. The post-election turmoil hits hard in a country already suffering from a weak economy.
In recent years, Venezuela has faced runaway inflation, political upheavals and falling oil prices, creating an extremely difficult environment for businesses and workers. The Venezuelan economy has suffered a prolonged collapse, with triple-digit inflation and massive migration in search of better prospects.
“Venezuela has experienced a recession unprecedented for a Latin American country or globally for a country without war. The economic contraction between 2014 and 2021 exceeded 70 percent and reached its lowest point,” says Asdrúbal Oliveros, director of the consulting firm Ecoanalitica, in an interview with CNN.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Anthony Albanese’s promise to slash immigration in half is looking shallow with the big overseas influx continuing.
In the year to July, 432,150 migrants on a net basis moved to Australia.
This was despite the May Budget forecasting a fall in net overseas migration to 260,000 by the end of this financial year, 2024-25, compared with 528,000 in 2022-23.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Breaking: Haitian Voter Fraud Uncovered in Springfield, Ohio
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose warned election boards to be extra vigilant in the weeks before the November election after an investigation uncovered illegal voter registration forms circulating in Clark County.
In a media advisory, the secretary of state’s office noted, “The office’s Election Integrity Unit recently concluded an investigation into the origins of an illegal voter registration form translated into the Haitian Creole language. The Clark County Board of Elections reported this form to our office after rejecting its submission by a local applicant.”
In a memo to election officials, Hun Yi, director of investigations for the Secretary of State’s Public Integrity Division, said, “The Board confirmed they’ve only received one of these unauthorized forms, but they rightly recognized it as illegal and worked with my team to track down its source with the help of a county government assistance office.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
California Considering Plan to Subsidize Phone Bills for Illegal Immigrants
The California government is considering a plan to subsidize home and cell phone bills for illegal immigrants.
The proposal would eliminate requiring social security numbers for the California LifeLine program, which provides phone bill discounts for low-income residents.
The California Public Utilities Commission reportedly was going to get rid of that requirement a decade ago but did not follow through.
The proposal is scheduled for a formal agency vote Sept. 26.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A convicted rapist from Guadeloupe has been handed a 20-year prison sentence for the attempted rape of a 102-year-old resident of a nursing home in the French city of Rouen.
On Wednesday, the Seine-Maritime Assize Court found 39-year-old Laury Jean-Baptiste guilty of the offense, which occurred on Feb. 17, 2023 in the Sapins district of the city.
The court heard how the elderly victim had been found in an adjacent room to her own in the early hours of the morning in shock and with scratches on her forearms, face, and lower abdomen.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: 7 Suspects Arrested for Gang Raping 18-Year-Old Girl, Iraqis and Syrians Among Suspects
Seven suspects were allegedly involved in gang-raping an 18-year-old woman in the city of Herford in the German state of North Rheine-Westphalia, according to a public prosecutor in Bielefeld. The woman is said to have been drugged with knock-out drops and raped multiple times in a parking lot.
There are two Iraqi nationals involved, one German-Syrian, and four others who have German citizenship. The German citizens may have a migration background but Germany does not release such data. One of the suspects is said to be a girl as well. The seven suspects range between 18 and 21 years old.
The two Iraqis are considered the main suspects in the attacks and are currently in custody, according to German newspaper NW. The incident occurred on Aug. 24 inside the parking lot of a fast food restaurant, with the suspects allegedly raping the knocked-out girl inside a parked vehicle.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany’s Anti-Deportation Advice Guidebook for Migrants Was EU-Funded
A controversial online handbook for avoiding deportation is nearly completely funded by the European Union, it has been revealed. Initially, the instructions provoked concern that they were being paid for by the German government. Under pressure from questions in the Bundestag, officials conceded they did partially fund it, but that 90% of the project funding comes from the EU’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF).
Junge Freiheit reports that Reem Alabali-Radovan (SPD)—federal Commissioner for Integration and for Anti-racism—joined forces with the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees and the International Rescue Committee to secure and supply the remaining tenth of co-financing for the project.
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The European Commission’s home affairs tsar Ylva Johansson is closer to pro-mass migration NGOs than to the Member States she is meant to serve, the former head of the European Union’s Frontex border agency has claimed.
Fabrice Leggeri, who resigned his position as the head of the organisation in 2022 only to later become an MEP for Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN), told Brussels Signal that the EC led by President Ursula von der Leyen has been soft on migration and has viewed Frontex as an organisation tasked with helping migrants rather than protecting Europe’s borders.
“Officially, the European Union and the Commission say that they want to protect the borders against illegal migration,” he told Head of News Justin Stares in a video interview.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Germany is introducing border controls, and an association of German cities and towns is calling for more measures against illegal immigration and a task force to deport migrants. So, what happened?
Germans have now come to the point where they realize that the migration crisis threatens Europe’s stability. It seems that the Germans have had enough of migrants.
“Welcome to the club!” Prime Minister Viktor Orban said to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz after the news broke on the tightening border measures.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Migration Crisis: German Minister Warns Drastic Migration Reforms Are Required
German interior minister Nancy Faeser has told the European Commission in a letter that her country cannot handle the migration situation any more and drastic reforms on a European scale are needed.
After announcing a new border-control crackdown, Faeser — a member of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) — sounded the alarm on immigration to Germany.
She proposed a change in the Dublin Regulation, the European rules that determine which European Union Member State is responsible for examining an asylum-seeker’s application.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Migrant Population in Charleroi, Pennsylvania Explodes 2,000% as Crisis Unfolds
Americans are quickly realizing that the Biden-Harris administration’s disastrous open southern border policies that flooded the nation with millions of unvetted illegal aliens from third-world countries are quickly overwhelming towns and local municipalities nationwide.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Poland’s Exclusion Zone on Border With Belarus ‘Leads to 64 Per Cent Drop in Illegal Crossings’
Poland’s interior ministry has reported a 64 per cent drop in the number of attempted illegal crossings by migrants from the country’s border with Belarus since the introduction of an exclusion zone on June 13.
As a result, the Polish Government on September 11 announced it would extend the period of operation of the exclusion zone by another 90 days.
Interior minister Tomasz Siemoniak said: “The exclusion zone has brought good, concrete results,” adding it was “primarily aimed at people smugglers who pick up individuals being trafficked across the border”.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
It is wrong for the European Union to condemn Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban for opposing Brussels’ migration policy, while the introduction of German border controls is condoned by EU bodies, Polish MEP Bartlomiej Sienkiewicz said on Wednesday.
The left-liberal MEP, who represents the Civic Platform in the Polish government coalition, stressed that the EU cannot be allowed to “condemn Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban for protesting against the EU’s migration policy and threatening to send buses full of migrants to Brussels,” while at the same time “turning a blind eye to the closure of the borders of one of the largest member states of the EU.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Brussels’ Gender Blackmail Leads to Deadlock in Forming New Commission
Who would have guessed that EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s embarrassing (and frankly, undemocratic) obsession with reaching the desired gender balance in her new cabinet would backfire so spectacularly that it might even cripple the entire formation process? Well, nearly everyone but her, apparently. Coupled with von der Leyen’s biggest weakness, transparency—or the lack thereof—the political storm she stirred up in Slovenia perfectly encapsulates everything that’s wrong with her rule.
As we explained in several articles before, von der Leyen began forming her second Commission by pleading with member states to nominate both male and female candidates for her to choose from, even though the treaties say that should be none of her business. When she inevitably got “a middle finger” from countries instead, as one diplomat put it, she began pressuring smaller and politically weaker member states to change their picks to women by dangling more influential portfolios in front of them if they did.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
France: Two Women Guilty of Slandering Brigitte Macron
Two French women who falsely claimed that the country’s First Lady, Brigitte Macron, was transgender have been found guilty of slander.
In December 2021, Natacha Rey and Amandine Roy broadcast unsubstantiated rumours online that Brigitte had never existed, and that her brother Jean-Michel Trogneux had changed gender and started using that name.
The defendants were ordered to pay €8,000 (£6,750; $8,859) in damages to Mrs Macron, and €5,000 to her brother.
Mrs Macron had filed a complaint against the women after their claim went viral, sparking conspiracy theories among the far-right.
The pair — Roy an internet fortune-teller, Rey a self-styled independent journalist — discussed at length in a YouTube video the baseless rumour that Brigitte Macron had at some point undergone gender reassignment.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A high school girls’ field hockey team in Massachusetts has forfeited a match to avoid playing against a team that has a biological male. This comes after the team from Dighton-Rehoboth Regional high school played against a team in 2023 with a male player in their ranks, resulting in a female player getting her teeth knocked out on the field.
In a press release, Bill Runey, the superintendent of schools at Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District, revealed that coaches and captains made the decision to forfeit over safety concerns, the Daily Mail reported.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Rep. Banks Slams Department of Defense for Calling Pro-Life Groups Terrorist Organizations
Congressman Jim Banks, R-Ind. slammed the Department of Defense over a military training session that labelled pro-life organizations as terrorists.
According to Banks and Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., an anti-terrorism brief was held on Fort Liberty where certain pro-life groups were labeled as “terrorist groups.”
The organizations in question included National Right to Life and Operation Rescue, according to a press release.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Happy Gates of Vienna day – 341 years.
Poll: Seven in 10 Czechs Would Vote for Harris Instead of Trump
…this is actually probably true. The problem the Czechs have is that they are under the spell of Government Owned Television and Radio, and when I speak with my friends who would vote for Kamala it is the same old same old:
– Trump is a criminal who evades justice
– Trump organized the attack on capitol
– Trump is a narcissist
– Trump is Hitler
One could call it “Trump Derangement Syndrome” caused by the media monopoly of the government owned media that we have, in the Czech Republic.
The whole Czech Republic is deranged, IMHO, average Czech seems to be totally ill informed about the global stuff.
Prediction: By Halloween, I believe three things’ll become crystal clear: 1) the US economy’s in serious trouble and, once again, the fed’s cutting rates into a spiraling crash in demand (think: throwing gas on a fire!); 2) Ukraine’s been under the control of a military dictator since 20 May when Zelinskyy’s presidential term ended, he declared marshal law and suspended elections; and 3) the Russians’ve annihilated the remainder of Ukraine’s reserve forces and taken control of most of their supply and communication lines. The war that Prince Aricept precipitated but could never win has been lost. What’s next? (hint: if you know your history and’ve been paying attention, you already know; otherwise….order the Happy Meal and keep taking the pills)
“Gates’s vindication may please Republicans on a partisan level. But there are real consequences for this level of hubris — and Biden’s continual insistence that his way is the right way, all else be damned. His irritation at the Gates comment and the rumors that Barack Obama is actually running his foreign policy show now seem a reflection of his earliest famed lie-filled outburst at suggestions he wasn’t sharp enough for the job of the presidency. JOE KNOWS THE CRITICS ARE WRONG. HE CAN HANDLE THINGS. HE’S SMART, NOT LIKE EVERYBODY SAYS…..HE’S SMART AND WANTS RESPECT.” —Spectator (Sep 2024)
https://thespectator.com/topic/joe-biden-failure-robert-gates-vindication-foreign-policy/
You are writing it incorrectly. You should write not Russian president, but Russian usurper or Gauleiter.
Elena, I sympathize with your dislike of Putin, but tell me: would you rather have the western disaster of LGBTQ child mutilation, porn taking over your streets for a month every year, destructive “green” policies crashing the economy, creepy radicals ruining everything everywhere including looting and burning things down with impunity, and homeless people/drug addicts taking over cities?
“Europe runs the risk of turning black from illegal immigration…it could turn into Africa.” —Former Libyan leader Muammar Ghaddafi
“Since the United States and NATO helped overthrow Ghaddafi in 2011, millions of migrants from Africa and the Middle East have poured into Europe.” —International Man (13 Sep 2024)
https://internationalman.com/articles/the-biggest-migration-since-the-barbarian-invasions-of-rome/
“Leaked email by H.Clinton reveales NATO’s aim to destroy Libya, says it was to prevent Gaddafi from unifying Africa” —Azernews (13 Sep 2024)
https://www.azernews.az/region/212351.html
“How many commie-toddlers does it take to fix a problem? Who knows. ‘Toddlers’ve never fixed anything.” —posted to fb (Jun 2018)