By Marion Kawas | Palestine Chronicle | August 25, 2019
The federal election in Canada is coming up on October 21, 2019, and once again there is a debate, both within the Palestinian community and the solidarity movement, on the best tactics and strategies to hold politicians to account. Parameters have shifted dramatically since 2015; four years ago, current PM Justin Trudeau of the Liberal Party was still a shiny new commodity with untested big promises, and the Trump/Netanyahu racist “shock and awe” assault had yet to launch. Successive Canadian governments have been complicit in dispossessing Palestinians for over 70 years now, a legacy that has cut across party lines; activists are more determined than ever that politicians will not escape responsibility for their callous and racist anti-Palestinian stands. … continue
Press TV – August 25, 2019
The United Nations (UN) says the Israeli regime has demolished two dozen Palestinian buildings and structures across the occupied West Bank in less than two months.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a new report, excerpts of which were carried by Palestinian Information Center on Sunday, that Israeli authorities demolished 24 Palestinian buildings and structures across the occupied region between July 30 and August 19.
The OCHA said that the recent demolitions displaced nine people and affected at least 80 other Palestinians, adding that the number of people displaced by such demolitions had amounted to at least 480 people so far this year, more than the 472 Palestinians displaced in the entire 2018.
According to the report, within the reported period, 10 buildings were demolished in East Jerusalem al-Quds, and the remaining demolitions were carried out in four communities in the so-called Area C. … Full article
By Philip Giraldi | American Herald tribune | August 25, 2019
Former Republican congressman from Illinois Paul Findley died at age 98 on August 9th. Most obituaries and remembrances of him were respectful, but one that appeared in the American Jewish Committee founded neoconservative magazine Commentary written by Jonathan Schanzer of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) was particularly vile. Paul was one of the first in Congress to decry the Israeli grip over U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and beyond and for that unpardonable sin the Israel Lobby has condemned him to a modern version of damnatio memoriae, the ancient Roman practice whereby the very memory of bad leaders would be condemned and expunged from the record. … continue
Press TV – August 25, 2019
Forces from the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) in Iraq have shot down a spy drone in the country’s northern Province of Nineveh.
The al-Sumaria television reported on Sunday that the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was targeted by the air defenses of the 50th Brigade of Hashd al-Sha’abi while it was approaching PMU bases in Nineveh.
It was not immediately clear who was operating the drone. … continue
RT | August 25, 2019
An explosion rocked the Lebanese capital just as Israel was bombing ‘Iranian targets’ in Syria. The blast was a result of an ‘Israeli drone attack’ in which one UAV crashed and another one prematurely exploded, Hezbollah claims.
Unverified pictures surfaced online showing the debris that resemble a quad-copter similar to the drones which Israel uses for surveillance and to deploy tear gas in Gaza border clashes. Israel has yet to confirm carrying out any operations against Hezbollah, which it considers a terrorist organization closely allied with Iran.
Hours earlier, however, Israel admitted to carrying out a raid in Syria, claiming it targeted Iranian linked forces ironically suspected of planning a “large scale attack of multiple killer drones.”
Press TV – August 24, 2019
Syrian army’s air defense systems have intercepted Israeli missiles flying above Damascus before they could inflict damage on targets in the capital city.
State news agency SANA said in a report late on Saturday that the ‘hostile targets’ were dealt with efficiently before they could reach their destinations south of Damascus.
The report said the missiles had been fired from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, adding that most of them had been downed in southern Damascus.
“At 23:30 (local time) our air defense forces detected hostile targets coming from the Golan towards the boundaries of Damascus,” said the report, adding, “The aggression was dealt with efficiently and as of now most of the hostile Israeli missiles have been destroyed before reaching their targets.”
The report came after witnesses said they had heard and seen explosions in the sky of Damascus.
An Israeli military spokesman confirmed the regime was behind the attacks, saying they had been meant to reach “Iranian” targets in Syria.
Israeli military spokesman Jonathan Conricus claimed that the Israeli attacks had managed to inflict significant damage in Damascus.
However, the Syrian military denied the claims, saying the majority of the Israeli missiles had been destroyed.
Israel has launched recurrent attacks on Syria in defiance of all international laws. The regime claims the attacks are targeted at certain militia forces linked to Iran.
Syria has condemned the attacks while rejecting Israeli claims about the presence of any Iranian forces or their allied militia in the country.
The Israeli attacks come as Syrian military forces are taking back control of more territories from terrorists.
Israel, believed to be a sympathizer of terrorism in Syria for the past eight years, has been unhappy at the progress made by the Syrian army and allies east of the country.
Press TV – August 24, 2019
An Iraqi resistance group says the recent airstrikes on the positions of pro-government Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) are an attempt by the US and Israel to revive the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the Arab country.
In an interview with Lebanon’s Arabic-language al-Ahed news website published on Friday, Kata’ib Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Muhyee said the air raids on Hashd al-Sha’abi positions are actually meant to weaken Iraqi resistance factions, empty their weapons stores and end their role in maintaining security in Iraq.
He added that the next stage, which has been planned by the US, is to return thousands of foreign-backed Daesh terrorists to the Iraqi-Syrian border. … continue
International Solidarity Movement | August 23, 2019
Ezariyya, Occupied Palestine – “My son was killed 5 days ago… all I want is to bury him. But they are keeping his body, they will not give him to us.”
Mokafih Abu Roumi spoke with ISM on Tuesday, August 20, about the death of his son, 14 year old Nassim Abu Roumi, and the harassment and collective punishment he and his family have received from Israeli authorities since. … continue
IMEMC News – August 24, 2019
Several Israeli army jeeps invaded, Friday, Sebastia town, north of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, and injured many Palestinians.
Mohammad Azem, the mayor or Sebastia, said the soldiers invaded the town, and attacked many Palestinians, in addition to firing several gas bombs and concussion grenades at them and their homes.
Azem added that local medics provided treatment to dozens of Palestinians, who suffered the severe effects of teargas inhalation.
It is worth mentioning that the soldiers frequently invade Sebastia, and repeatedly accompany groups of illegal colonialist settlers, many of them armed, into the archeological site in the town, and prevent the Palestinians from entering it.
Less than two weeks ago, several armed illegal Israeli colonialist settlers, accompanied by soldiers, invaded the al-Mas’udiyya area, on Palestinian lands in Burqa village, northwest of Nablus, and conducted live fire training.
MEMO | August 24, 2019
Several groups of illegal Israeli settlers yesterday hurled stones at Palestinian vehicles near the West Bank cities of Hebron and Nablus, Quds Press reported.
Quds Press said that settlers gathered at Route 60, east of Hebron, and threw stones at Palestinian cars. Israeli forces also set up a checkpoint in the city’s Dora neighbourhood and caused heavy congestion as they searched the cars and checked drivers’ IDs.
Meanwhile, tens of illegal settlers closed the road which connects Huwwara, south of Nablus, with the north of the West Bank, also throwing stones at Palestinian vehicles.
Ghassan Daghlas – a Palestinian Authority (PA) official who monitors settlements in the north of the West Bank – said that tens of Israeli settlers, protected by the Israeli army, closed Yitzhar road and threw stones at Palestinian vehicles which attempted to pass through the barricades.
RT | August 24, 2019
Tulsi Gabbard’s presidential campaign has called on the DNC to ensure fairness by updating its approved debate-qualifying polls, raising concerns about a lack of transparency and the consistency of the required criteria.
In order to qualify for the next round of Democratic presidential debates in September, the Democratic National Committee’s rules require all candidates to have 130,000 unique donors and to have reached 2 percent in four approved polls. Representative Gabbard (D-Hawaii) has surpassed 2 percent in 26 national and state polls – including two polls by the biggest newspapers in the early primary states of New Hampshire and South Carolina – but only two of these are DNC-certified. Strangely, the DNC has not released the criteria it used to select the sixteen polling organizations they have certified.
“Without these exclusions, Gabbard would have already qualified,” her campaign says. Gabbard’s team also point out that there have only been four certified polls released since the second round of Democratic debates, whereas there were 14 released after the first debate. … Full article
Sputnik – August 24, 2019
In the last week, social media giants moved to silence critics of the anti-Beijing protests in Hong Kong, disabling thousands of accounts, pages and channels by claiming they’re promoting “disinformation” and “sowing discord.” But the move is deeply hypocritical, a technologist told Sputnik, because these companies do the same thing constantly. … continue
By Kip Hansen | Watts Up With That? | August 23, 2019
The news channels, newspapers, news sites and the Twit-o-verse are full of “the Amazon is burning!” […]
But for current Amazon fires, we want to know: not just the number of fires (for which the NY Times has quite a different number than Global Fire Data). . . . but instead:
What is burning?
It is natural to think that because the news is all full of stories stating “The Amazon Rain Forest is burning” — well, one might think that the Amazon Rain Forest is burning.
However, that is not true, according to a brave journalist — Alexandria Symonds — at the NY Times (kudos to her…). She reports:
Natural fires in the Amazon are rare, and the majority of these fires were set by farmers preparing Amazon-adjacent farmland for next year’s crops and pasture.
Much of the land that is burning was not old-growth rain forest, but land that had already been cleared of trees and set for agricultural use.
Our brave journalists skates close to the dangerous edge of violating Editorial Mandates by telling readers:
Did climate change cause these fires, and how will they affect climate change?
These fires were not caused by climate change.
Full article
By Greg P. | August 24, 2019
If you’ve been reading the MSM over the past few days, you’ve been treated to a barrage of coverage over the fires in the Amazon and how what’s going on is a “massive increase over last year” […]
There’s just one problem with this narrative. NASA, which kind of started all of this when they posted this photo of the fires from space, said this year’s fires are at or below average “if we look back 15 years”… Read full article
By Anthony Watts | Watts Up With That? | August 22, 2019
Readers surely recall that the easily offended Dr. Michael Mann launched a court case for defamation against climate skeptic Dr. Tim Ball of Canada.
In Feburary 2018 there was a complete dismissal in the lawsuit brought against Dr. Ball by Andrew Weaver of Canada, also for “defamation”.
The Weaver defamation case involved an article Ball wrote saying that the IPCC had diverted almost all climate research funding and scientific investigation to anthropogenic global warming (AGW). This meant that there was virtually no advance in the wider understanding of climate and climate change. Ball referenced an interview with Weaver and attempts by a student to arrange a debate. Ball made some comments that were not fully substantiated, so they became the base of the defamation lawsuit.
That case was completely dismissed, you can read more here.
Now in the Mann case, which goes back to 2011, there’s also a complete dismissal. … continue
Press TV – August 24, 2019
Alex Salmond’s legal victory against the government has been widely seen as yet another victory by Scottish nationalists against an establishment hell-bent on stopping them.
Scotland’s former First Minister had been accused of “inappropriate conduct” during the time he led the Scottish government.
The Scottish government has reportedly paid Salmond more than £512,000 to cover his legal costs after he successfully contested charges of sexual misconduct in court.
Although the case against him effectively collapsed in January, the government has now formally admitted defeat by awarding Salmond the large sum on an “agent and client” basis.
This is a punitive award used by the courts to recognize the fact that the losing party to litigation has caused the other party “unnecessary expenses”. … continue
By Elizabeth Vos | Consortium News | August 23, 2019
The alleged use of sexual blackmail by spy agencies is hardly unique to the case of Jeffrey Epstein. Although the agencies involved as well as their alleged motivations and methods differ with each case, the crime of child trafficking with ties to intelligence agencies or those protected by them has been around for decades.
Some cases include the 1950s -1970s Kincora scandal and the 1981 Peter Hayman affair, both in the U.K.; and the Finders’ cult and the Franklin scandal in the U.S. in the late 1980s. Just as these cases did not end in convictions, the pedophile and accused child-trafficker Jeffrey Epstein remained at arms’ length for years. … continue
By Whitney Webb | MintPress News | August 23, 2019
On August 10th, and for several days after, speculation swirled after it was announced that Jeffrey Epstein had been found dead in his cell. His cause of death has officially been ruled suicide by hanging.
Epstein, the billionaire pedophile and sex trafficker with a myriad of connections to the rich and powerful in the United States and several other countries, had told those close to him that he had feared for his life prior to his sudden “suicide,” the Washington Post reported, while his defense lawyers claimed that he had planned to cooperate with federal authorities.
Following the controversial conclusion by the New York Medical Examiner that Epstein’s death was a suicide — a conclusion contested by Epstein’s attornies as well as by independent forensic pathologists, given the apparent evidence pointing towards strangulation — corporate media coverage of the Epstein case has slowed to a trickle, save for sensationalist stories about his alleged co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell and new salacious details of his past. Gone from corporate media are any hints of the larger scandal, revolving around the admission that Epstein had “belonged to intelligence.” … continue
By Robert Inlakesh | 21st Century Wire | August 23, 2019
Earlier this Friday morning an IED attack, conducted inside the occupied West Bank, killed one Israeli and injured two others.
The incident has been blamed on unidentified Palestinians, who were said to have planted the IED the night prior to the incident, before detonating it upon the arrival of the Israeli settlers to the location.
The attack took place at the site of the Ein Buben Spring, located in between the Palestinian village of Deir Ibzi and the illegal Israeli settlement of Douleb.
A female Israeli has been confirmed dead, with two men injured, one currently on life support in critical condition and the other suffering moderate wounds. The three Israelis had originated from Lod – formerly the Palestinian towns of Lydda and Ramle – and had reportedly been visiting the spring, entering it from the ever expanding neighboring settlement.
As usual, the Israeli and Western press are treating this incident as if it has no link to anything occurring in the area prior to the attack. … continue
By Jeremy Salt | American Herald Tribune | August 23, 2019
On August 19 Turkey sent a military convoy across the border in the direction of Khan Shaikhun, in southern Idlib province. It informed Russia beforehand of what it intended to do. From what followed, it can be assumed that Russia warned Turkey not to go ahead, but it did and suffered the consequences.
South of the town of Ma’arrat al Nu’man, 20 kilometres north of Khan Shaikhun, the lead vehicle in the convoy was destroyed from the air in a Syrian missile strike. The action had the clear support of the Russian government. The destruction of the lead vehicle was a warning that if the convoy went any further it also would be bombed. It was brought to a halt and remains parked somewhere north of Khan Shaikhun.
The convoy included tanks being carried on transporters, ammunition and personnel carriers as well as an unknown number of soldiers. Turkey claimed that three civilians were killed in the attack. In fact, from reports, the ‘civilians’ in the destroyed vehicle included the commander of Faylaq al Sham, a faction integrated into the Turkish-backed ‘National Liberation Front.’ … continue
By Thomas L. Knapp | Garrison Center | August 23, 2019
President Donald Trump faces an exceedingly narrow path to re-election in 2020. In order to beat him, the Democratic nominee only needs to pick up 38 electoral votes. With more than 100 electoral votes in play in states that Trump won narrowly in 2016 — especially Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Florida — all the Democrats have to do is pick a nominee ever so slightly more popular than Hillary Clinton.
That’s a low bar that the Democratic National Committee seems determined, once again, to not get over. As in 2016, the DNC is putting its finger on the scale in favor of “establishment” candidates, the sentiments of the rank and file be damned.
Last time, the main victim was Bernie Sanders. This time, it’s Tulsi Gabbard. … continue
RT | August 23, 2019
What does one get for leaking to the media, lying to federal investigators about it, and allegedly participating in a plot to derail an American election? If you answered jail time, too bad. The correct answer is a job at CNN.
That is at least the case for Andrew McCabe, the former acting FBI director and one of the people deeply involved in the ‘Trump-Russia’ investigation before it was taken over by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. CNN announced on Friday it was hiring McCabe as a contributor.
Just a day earlier, however, the network was in full meltdown over former White House press secretary Sarah Sanders getting hired by Fox News, and her predecessor Sean Spicer appearing on Dancing With the Stars – arguing that both were liars who did not deserve gainful employment.
Yet they have no problem with McCabe, who was fired from the FBI in March 2018 – just days before he could claim a $60,000 annual federal pension – because an internal report found that he “made an unauthorized disclosure to the news media and lacked candor – including under oath – on multiple occasions.”
“Lacking candor” is the federal government euphemism for lying. … continue
According to new research, four out of five teenagers in the UK are having their hormones disrupted by chemicals found in plastics. Experts believe that the chemical responsible for these widespread hormone issues is bisphenol A, which is more commonly known as BPA. This chemical is often used to make plastics, and can be found in products that come into contact with food.
Since this chemical can mimic the sex hormone estrogen, it has been found to lower sperm count in men. The chemical has also been linked to a variety of illnesses including breast and prostate cancer.
A study was recently conducted at Exeter University, where a team of researchers tested the blood and urine of 94 different teens between the ages of 17 and 19 for a number of toxins and chemicals. The researchers found that roughly 80 percent of the teens had these dangerous chemicals in their bodies.
The study was led by ecotoxicology professor Tamara Galloway, who is convinced by the growing body of evidence that exposure to BPA has serious health risks.
The researchers noted that toxin levels decreased for teens who changed their diet to include more fresh produce, and thus less plastic contamination.
BPA is entirely legal in the UK, and while it is somewhat regulated in the United States, it still presents a serious threat. In 2012, the FDA banned the chemical in baby products, but still allowed it in items marketed to adults. Meanwhile, The European Chemicals Agency (ECA) recently moved to restrict the use of the chemical by 2020.
The agency pointed to BPA’s ability to disrupt the endocrine system, saying that the chemical, has “endocrine-disrupting properties, which cause probable serious effects to human health.” The ECA noted that these side effects include infertility and aggression in girls as young as three. … Full article
Palestine Chronicle – August 22, 2019
FIFA is turning a blind eye to Israel’s ban on allowing Palestinians to hold matches as part of the Palestine Cup, Euro-Mediterranean Human Right Monitor said yesterday.
In a statement, the rights group said that the Israeli authorities continue to ban 30 players from the Rafah Team in Gaza to play the final match of the Palestine Cup against the Balata Youth Team in occupied West Bank city of Nablus. This, it continued, is a violation of international law and of the FIFA principles which stress “the right to play”.
The two teams played the home leg on June 30 in Rafah and the return leg was planned to take place in July.
According to the Euro-Med, the Israeli occupation prevents footballers from Gaza traveling to the West Bank over security claims, stressing that this is “merely a political cover for the [Israeli] collective punishment practiced against the Gaza Strip.”
Palestinians hold a series of matches every year and teams from Gaza and West Bank play against each other in both areas of the occupied Palestinian territories until they reach the final of the Palestine Cup, which is recognized by FIFA.
Euro-Med reported that Israeli restrictions on Palestinian athletes “have been increasing”, with occupation forces stopping the bodybuilding and volleyball teams from taking part in international tournaments.
Palestine Chronicle – August 22, 2019
Palestinian NGOs and families on Tuesday called for international pressure to be placed on Israel to release the body of a Palestinian teen executed by occupation forces, Wattan reported.
In a statement, the NGOs and families replied to reports about Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri’s decision to withhold the body of 14-year-old Nassim Abu Roumi from Jerusalem’s neighborhood of Ezareyah to exchange it with the body of an Israeli soldier held in Gaza. … Full article
IMEMC News – August 23, 2019
Israeli soldiers attacked, Friday, the weekly Great Return March processions along the eastern parts of the Gaza Strip, and injured 122 Palestinians, including 50 who were shot with live rounds, and three medics.
Thousands of Palestinians gathered along the eastern parts of the coastal region, hundreds of meters away from the perimeter fence.
The protesters marched carrying Palestinian flags and posters of Palestinians killed by Israeli army fire, while chanting against the ongoing illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine, its illegal colonies and polices, and the siege on the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza has confirmed that the medics provided treatment to 122 Palestinians, including fifty who were shot with live rounds, and three medics.
The Ministry added that dozens of wounded Palestinians were moved to a few hospitals, while the rest received treatment by field medics.
IMEMC News & Agencies – August 23, 2019
An Israeli settler ran over a six-year-old Palestinian girl in the village of Jabaa to the southwest of Bethlehem, the southern occupied West Bank, said eyewitnesses.
Eyewitnesses said a settler ran over Jana Abu Loha, age 6, as she was passing near the entrance connecting between the villages of Jabaa and Surif, which necessitated her transfer to a hospital, for medical treatment.
The entrance was previously closed by the Israeli authorities by an iron gate, which forced the child, as is the case for other Palestinian residents there, to take an alternative road heavily used by vehicles, which puts their lives at risk of being run over.
The girl’s medical condition remains unknown until the moment, WAFA reports.
MEMO | August 23, 2019
Israel has been charged with enabling attacks on media freedom around the world by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), after export controls on surveillance technology were eased.
Citing a Reuters report, CPJ noted that Israeli officials have confirmed that – thanks to a rule change by the Defence Ministry – Israeli surveillance companies “are able to obtain exemptions on marketing license for the sale of some products to certain countries”.
According to Reuters, “the change took effect about a year ago”.
CPJ stated that “Israeli-exported technology undermines press freedom globally by allowing authorities to track reporters and potentially identify their sources.”
One example given by the press freedom watchdog was the Mexican government deploying Pegasus malware, sold by Israeli firm NSO Group, to infiltrate the mobile phones “of at least nine journalists”. … continue
Press TV – August 22, 2019
A young Palestinian man has lost his life when a cluster bomb dropped during Israel’s military aggression against Lebanon in 2006 detonated in the country’s south.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that the man, identified as Ali Nehme Hamzeh, was working on a bulldozer in a field near the village of Majdal Selm on Thursday, when the bomb exploded.
He was taken to the nearby Tibnin Governmental Hospital, but succumbed to his wounds.
Southern Lebanon is littered with hundreds of unexploded Israeli cluster bombs, and the Lebanese army together with the UN and other international organizations are working to purge the area of the deadly ordnance.
According to the United Nations, the Israeli army dropped some four million cluster bombs on Lebanon during the July-August 2006 war, mostly during the last 48 hours of the conflict.
More than 400 people, 90 percent of them civilians and a third under the age of 18, have been killed by the munitions, while dozens more have been maimed. … continue
MEMO | August 23, 2019
US officials have confirmed that Israel was behind recent airstrikes on alleged weapons depots in Iraq, which were ostensibly being used by Iran to transfer arms to Syria.
Senior US officials yesterday told the New York Times that Israel has carried out “several strikes [in Iraq] in recent days”, the most recent of which took place on Monday near the Balad Airbase, north of Iraqi capital Baghdad. … continue
By Joe Meadors | USS Liberty Veterans Association | August 22, 2019
“You will not discuss the attack with anyone. Once the Court of Inquiry findings are released you will not contradict them. This order will remain in effect after you are discharged from the Navy. If you violate this order you will be prosecuted and will spend a considerable amount of time in a Federal Prison.”
This order was repeated every day at quarters while we were in drydock in Malta. … continue
By Craig Murray | August 23, 2019
… The Salmond Affair indeed stinks to high heaven and no aspect of it stinks more than the role in steering the affair, throughout, of Liz Lloyd, Nicola Sturgeon’s Chief of Staff. Lloyd is also known to be personally friendly with David Clegg of the Daily Record who published what were claimed to be leaked details of one of the “allegations” against Salmond.
I am not amongst those who has faith in the fairness of the police and prosecutorial system in Scotland. In my view, the centralisation of Police Scotland made it highly susceptible to political influence. I recall the case of my friend the estimable Michelle Thomson, who was announced by the Police as under investigation for mortgage fraud, which “under investigation” status lasted for over two years, until Thomson was obliged to stand down at the 2017 general election. Yet the facts of the case were extremely simple, and would have taken two days, maximum, to clear up if the investigation had been genuine. After two years of being “under investigation”, in which entire time she was never even interviewed, Police Scotland announced there was no case to answer. By then the job was done and she was out of parliament.
Police Scotland put 22 officers full time into trying to dig up historic dirt on Salmond. I have personally seen a statement from a woman who was astonished to be interviewed by Police Scotland after having been seen, years ago, to have a greeting peck on the cheek from her friend Alex at a public function. This has been the biggest, and most maliciously motivated, fishing expedition in Scottish police history.
The Salmond case aside (phrase inserted on legal advice!), it ought to be a public scandal that the procurator fiscal can arraign and parade a person in public and charge them with grievous offences, then delay matters for months and years while attempting to somehow cobble together the pile of mince they have as “evidence” into some sort of case. Justice delayed is justice denied. … Read full article
By Gilad Atzmon | August 23, 2019
A few days ago Vanity Fair, the same outlet that once attempted to block the exposé of monster pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, published an article by Venessa Grigoriadis that provides some details of Epstein’s friend and alleged ‘co-conspirator’ Ghislaine Maxwell.
Multiple victims claim that Maxwell often brought girls to Epstein and that she was an active sexual participant as well. According to Vanity Fair, “a source close to Maxwell says she spoke glibly and confidently about getting girls to sexually service Epstein, saying this was simply what he wanted, and describing the way she’d drive around to spas and trailer parks in Florida to recruit them. She would claim she had a phone job for them, ‘and you’ll make lots of money, meet everyone, and I’ll change your life….’” Vanity Fair’s source added: “When I asked what she thought of the underage girls, she looked at me and said, ‘they’re nothing, these girls. They are trash.” … continue
Press TV – August 23, 2019
Saudi Arabia has failed to repel Yemen’s retaliatory drone strikes despite relying on the US Patriot air defense system, a matter which has caused a slump in Saudi troop morale, according to a UAE intelligence report.
The UAE report revealed critical weaknesses in Saudi Arabia’s ability to thwart the retaliatory attacks, London-based Middle East Eye (MEE) news outlet reported.
The damning report, issued originally in May, had a limited publication intended for top Emirati leadership by the Emirates Policy Center (EPC), a think tank close to the Emirati government and its security services.
“Air defenses such as the Patriot are not capable of spotting these drones because the systems are designed to intercept long and medium range Scud missiles,” the report wrote. … continue
By Padraig McGrath | August 23, 2019
As it currently stands, at least 13 different criminal investigations conducted by the Ukrainian State Bureau of Investigations (SBI), Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine (SAPO) and National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) are focused on recently defeated former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko. The various indictments issued by these bodies allege that Poroshenko is guilty of treason (in an indictment relating to the Kerch Strait incident last November), and that he has played roles in embezzlement, illegal abuse of authority, interference in judicial proceedings, forgery of documents and of lawmakers’ signatures, tax-evasion, money-laundering, and other corruption-schemes, including playing a role in illegal acquisitions of state-owned companies.
As succinctly as possible, it is necessary to break these allegations down into digestible units.
Firstly, let’s deal with the treason-investigation. It is alleged that Poroshenko deliberately provoked the November 2018 Kerch Strait incident, when 3 Ukrainian naval vessels were captured by the Russian coastguard and their combined crews detained after attempting to gain unauthorized entry to the Sea of Azov. The wording of the indictment suggests that Poroshenko is guilty of treason on 3 distinct levels… continue
By Colin Perkel | The Canadian Press | August 22, 2019
The editor of a Toronto-based publication was handed the maximum one-year jail sentence on Thursday for promoting hatred against women and Jews.
In sentencing James Sears, Ontario court Judge Richard Blouin said he would have handed down a much stiffer sentence had the law allowed.
“It is impossible, in my view, to conclude that Mr. Sears … should receive a sentence of any less than 18 months in jail,” Blouin said. “Mr. Sears … promoted hate to a vast audience in an era where online exposure to this material inexorably leads to extremism and the potential of mass casualties.” … continue
RT | August 23, 2019
YouTube has disabled 210 channels for posting content related to the Hong Kong protests “in a coordinated manner,” following in the footsteps of Facebook and Twitter in restricting its arbitrary censorship to pro-China accounts.
“Channels in this network behaved in a coordinated manner while uploading videos related to the ongoing protests in Hong Kong,” Google threat analyst Shane Huntley claimed in a blog post on Thursday, adding that the Google team’s “discovery” was “consistent with recent observations and actions related to China announced by Facebook and Twitter.”
Translation? The channels were “sowing political discord” on behalf of the Chinese government, and had to be stopped. How did Google know it was the Chinese nefariously attempting to poison the minds against the protesters? The “use of VPNs” and “other methods of disguise” – widespread in the era of mass surveillance – was all the proof required to wipe the channels out of existence.
Twitter got the anti-China censorship ball rolling earlier this week, in perhaps the first-ever social media preemptive strike “proactively” deplatforming hundreds of thousands of accounts for the capital crime of “sowing discord.” Their crimes included “undermining the legitimacy and political positions of the protest movement on the ground.” One could argue that the protests themselves are a form of political discord, but resistance is futile when charged with such an inchoate offense. … continue
Strategic Culture Foundation | August 23, 2019
Russia and China are right to condemn the testing this week of an INF-busting new missile by the US. Washington is brazenly jeopardizing global security under the usual cynical guise of “defense”. … continue
- World on verge of ‘uncontrolled arms race’ because of US – Russia’s UN envoy
- This is what gloating looks like… NY Times distorts war-torn Syria
- Is ‘hate-crime’ a media-creation?
- Climate Change: What’s the Worst Case?
- Petitioning Against Climate Alarmism Goes Global
- U.S. To “Drown The World” In Oil
- Venezuela ‘Regulating the Conflict With the US Empire’
- BBC Admits ‘Syrian’ Airstrike in Recent Story on Scarred Boy Turned Out to Be Turkish
- Turkey, US agree to launch 1st phase of so-called safe zone plan in northern Syria
- India’s Opposition Parties Protest, Demand Release of Kashmir Leaders
- Journalism faces dire situation in Kashmir
- Jeffrey Epstein Case: French Group Reporting 10 New Witnesses of Sexual Violence
- Epstein: The Maxwell Connection
- California tightens restrictions of police use of lethal force to counter nationwide outrage over unarmed civilian murders
- Lindsey Graham’s Blank Check. Why a Defense Agreement With Israel Would Be a Disaster for Americans
- How Israel’s Labor Engineered the Illegal Jewish Colonies in Palestine
- The Saker Interviews Professor Marandi
- Forward, JTA, NYT, CNN ‘lie through omission’ about Tlaib, Omar trip
- Origin of massive methane reservoir identified
- Facebook hiring editors to pick stories for ‘News Tab’, that didn’t work out well last time
- Law Enforcement To Flag & Spy On Future Criminals
- First they came for the bots: US academics make case for 1984-style silencing of any dissent
- Trump fine-tunes peace deal with Taliban
- Why No Congressional Investigation into Epstein’s Intelligence Connections?
- ‘Witch Hunt’: Pro-Palestine Reporter’s Press Pass Revoked for UK Labour Conference
- Jewish Settlers Rule the Roost in Israel, But at What Price?
- Iraqi Paramilitary Force Accuses US of Military Base Attacks
- Getting Real With the US Foreign Policy Establishment Realists
- Banned missile test reveals all you need to know about US foreign policy
- ‘One possible conclusion’: US banned-missile test apparently in works long before leaving INF
- ‘We don’t fall for provocations’: Moscow won’t jump the gun after US missile test, says deputy FM
- Yemeni Forces Down US Drone in Dhamar
- Turkey faces quagmire in Syria
- US, Turkey must end illegal military presence on Syria soil: Damascus envoy to UN
- NPR Mocks Cancer Survivor in Drumbeat of Syria Propaganda
- Australia joins US-led anti-Iran flotilla… in the name of national security & economic interests
- US praises sanctions for killing Iran’s economy, then blames Tehran for people’s suffering
- Jammu and Kashmir: the Legitimacy of Article 370
- US demands that Turkey should cease all activity in Cyprus waters
- Israel Actively Pushing Palestinians to Leave Gaza Strip
- End Foreign Aid to Israel and Everyone Else
- Paraguay Labels Hamas, Hezbollah ‘Terrorist Groups’; Israel Applauds
- Russia Warns US Against Economic Blockade on Venezuela – Deputy Foreign Minister
- Iran official calls for compensation for tanker seizure
- Why the World Is Watching the Fate of an Iranian Tanker in the Mediterranean
- US tells Greece any help to Iranian tanker may be ‘terrorism support’
- Saudi-led coalition strikes Yemen capital six times
- Twitter bans ‘state media’ from advertising… and guess who decides how they are defined
- Palestinian president sacks all advisors amid financial crisis
- Palestinian Authority warns of Israel’s plan for spatial division of Al-Aqsa Mosque
- Ukraine’s ex-president Poroshenko siphoned off at least $8 billion, US businessman claims
- Climate Change Killing Forests In Germany–Latest Fake News
- US tests cruise missile BANNED by expired INF treaty
- NYT shifts from Russiagate to racism, insisting Orange Man Still Bad
- The Deeper Meaning in a Lost War
- Turkey fuming after Syrian airstrike on convoy in Islamist-held Idlib province
- Protecting Information Space from Facebook’s Tyranny
- FCO Speeds Up Planning to Move UK Embassy to Jerusalem
- Police raid Aqsa Mosque’s Bab al-Rahma, seize furniture
- Israeli occupation forces raze agricultural water tank in northern Jordan Valley
- Tlaib and Omar’s Denial of Entry by Israel Is Not a “Freedom of Speech” Issue
- 4,000 detained by India in Kashmir since autonomy stripped: Government source
- Daesh Is Curiously Pursuing The Same Strategic Goal As India In Afghanistan
- Sarin in Syria: chemistry, and cui bono?
- Iran to establish ferry link to Russia’s Dagestan across Caspian Sea
- US Demand to Detain Iranian Tanker Rejected by Gibraltar – Government
- US Air Force launches surveillance flights in newly-built airfield in Niger
- Army Injures 33 Palestinians, Including A Medic, Near Jerusalem
- Kashmir Caged: A Fact-Finding Report
- The EU’s latest assault on internet freedom
- Tulsi Gabbard lists political correctness among threats to American values
- America’s Benevolent Bombing of Serbia
- The World’s First Solar Road Has Officially Crumbled Into a Total Failure
- U.S. States: We Weren’t Hacked by Russians in 2016
- More than two thirds of Americans don’t believe Epstein died by suicide
- Water Series: Hail of tear gas on peaceful villagers protesting settler theft of water supply in Kafr Malik
- Corruption: The latest US pretext to liquidate UNRWA
- Jewish Nation-State Law added to Israel high school curriculum
- US slaps crew of Iranian supertanker with visa ban after it set sail from Gibraltar
- Iran made ‘no commitments’ over released tanker, Syria ‘wasn’t its destination’
- Russia’s Sound Proposal for Gulf Peace
- Why does Trump need Zelensky
- Indian armoured vehicles bar Kashmiris from entering mosques for Friday prayers
- Baghdad Says it Will Down Any Vehicle Violating Iraqi Airspace After Depot Blast
- Syria air defense intercepts missile coming from northern Lebanon
- Jeffrey Epstein and the Spectacle of Secrecy
- Soon Doctors Will Screen Everyone For Drugs
- Repairs to California Naval Facility After Quakes Estimated at $5 Billion
- How the OPCW’s investigation of the Douma incident was nobbled
- French Jews march through Hebron, claiming all West Bank belongs to Israel
- Israeli Cluster Bomb Kills Lebanese Child in South Lebanon
- US Axis of Aggression in Gulf
- Punishing the World With Sanctions
- Gibraltar releases Iran-operated tanker despite US pressure: Paper reports
- Russian Blast Points to Danger of New Nuclear Arms Race
- Corporate media enters realm of the absurd with claim that Venezuela is ‘cocaine capital of the world’
- Guardian Attacks Epstein “Conspiracy Theories”
- Why Continuity
- Corbynite Chris Williamson MP sues Labour for ‘re-suspension’ over alleged anti-Semitism
- Sorek Hysterics and “Moderate” Madness
- S Korean lawmakers voice opposition to Hormuz deployment
- Majority Leader Steny Hoyer
- Parliament to discuss foreign interference in Russia’s domestic affairs
- ‘Spygate’ Professor Claims Immunity Against Russian-British Academic’s Lawsuit
- Former Israeli PM Ehud Barak’s many ties to Epstein
- Who Killed Jeffrey Epstein?
- US inks deal to purchase Iron Dome missile systems from Israel
- Jeffrey Epstein’s Death Adds to the JPMorgan Body Count
- Everyone’s A Conspiracy Theorist, Whether They Know It Or Not
- India’s narrative on J&K is hyperbolic
- Mediation Is the Way Forward for Kashmir
- Twitter Suspends Several Kashmir-Based Accounts Over Allegation of Spreading Rumours
- The Chronicle of Yet Another North Korean Short Range Missile Launch
- Amazon’s Treasure Trucks Sell Discounted Ring Doorbells Across The US And UK
- A Few Thoughts on Jeffrey Epstein’s ‘Suicide’
- The Curious Case of the Missing Professor Mifsud
- Dangerous Bill in Congress to Crush the PLO and PA
- Armed Jewish Settlers Storm Palestinian Town, Conduct Military Training
- Turkey, Iran resume train service after four years
- Assange Must Not Also Die in Jail
- Seth Rich’s Ghost Haunts the Courts
- Nigel Farage Mocks Prince Charles for Warning 11 Years Ago That Polar Ice Caps Would Melt in 2010s
- China scientists warn of global cooling trick up nature’s sleeve
- Greenland’s ‘Record Temperature’ denied – the data was wrong
- When your beverage of choice is tritium
- UK Government Says Considering Empowering Media Watchdog With Censoring Social Media Content
- Sneering at “Conspiracy Theories” is a Lazy Substitute for Seeking the Truth
- Minister says Epstein’s French connections must be probed despite prison death
- Who Inflicts the Most Gun Violence in America? The U.S. Government and Its Police Forces
- US Nuclear Weapons Should Be Out of Germany Along With Its Troops, German Lawmaker Says
- Iraq rejects Israel’s role in Persian Gulf mission, warns of West’s presence
- Argentina’s Alberto Fernandez & Cristina Kirchner crush President Macri in ‘preliminary elections’
- An establishment rebellion
- Just the facts?
- New Michael Moore-backed doc tackles alternative energy
- Iran backs Yemeni-Yemeni peace talks, Stockholm agreement: Zarif
- FBI Starts Going After US Citizens Who Attend Iran-linked Conference – Reports
- Gentle and Loving but Still a Settler
- A Sino-Russian firewall against US interference
- Moscow Mitch, Secret Russian Subs… and Russophobia Derangement
- Bolivia Rejects US Drug Control Report as ‘Malicious’
- Why Would the Democrats Want to be “Tough” on Trade, as Opposed to Smart on Trade?
- Epstein’s Death Must Be the Start, not the End, of the Investigation
- Syria warns US-Turkey safe zone deal is a plot for “expansionist ambitions”
- The Misanthropic Bankers Behind the Green New Deal
- ‘The Hunt’ is over: Universal scraps ‘elites v. deplorables’ movie after gun violence uproar
- Amazon Plant In China Accused Of Forcing High School Interns To Work 60 Hour Weeks
- Jeffrey Epstein RIP: But Many More Questions Remain to be Answered
- Suicide (non-)watch: What we know about Jeffrey Epstein’s death… and what we don’t
- Top MSNBC host links RUSSIA to convicted pedophile Epstein’s death
- China backs the opening of Kashmir file in UNSC
- Nagasaki mayor urges nuclear powers to cut stockpiles as city remembers 1945 US nuke attack
- Illinois SWAT Officers Sued for Shooting of 12-Year-Old Boy’s Kneecap During House Raid
- Israel settlers’ month of violence against Palestinians documented
- Russia delivers electronic warfare systems to Iran
- Court overturns ruling to seize Iran-linked building in NY
- Ecuadorian Court Orders Pre-Trial Detention for Former President Correa
- Ecuador’s Ex-President Correa Debunks ‘Ridiculous’ Corruption Allegations
- Amazon is developing high-tech surveillance tools for an eager customer: America’s police
- To Avoid US Big Tech’s Wiretapping Users Should Shift to Chinese Software & Devices – Cyber Expert
- Scandal Erupts Over Murder-Porn Movie Where Elite Liberals Hunt Trump Supporters
- 8chan: The Latest Fearporn Drive
- Thoughts on China’s Currency
- Malaysia charges 17 current & ex-Goldman Sachs bosses with looting of country’s wealth fund
- The Unanswerable Case
- US Embassy meddled in Moscow anti-govt unrest by mapping protest locations online – FM
- Iran Warns ‘Israel’ over Illegal Presence in Persian Gulf
- Prominent Arab-Israeli lawmaker Zoabi to be indicted for corruption
- UNRWA Accusations: (Im)Perfect Timing
- The War on White Supremacist Terror
- US Leaves INF Because “Russia,” But Points Missiles at China
- Hong Kong activist goes on defensive after being photographed with US consulate official
- London Spreads Misinformation, Hides Skripal Case Details, Russian Embassy Says
- For Cliff May, War Pays
- Quincy Who? Another New Think Tank Tests the Waters
- Tehran slams Bahrain for hosting ‘provocative’ conference on Gulf maritime security
- War on Iran will expose Israel to full-scale threat: IRGC chief
- Damascus Firmly Rejects Turkey-US Buffer Zone Plan: ‘Blatant Aggression’ on Syria’s Sovereignty
- Mega Group, Maxwells, and Mossad: The Spy Story at the Heart of the Jeffrey Epstein Scandal
- Israel’s War on Innocence: Palestinian Children in Israeli Military Courts
- Jerusalem: Palestinian to sue Israel Police for planting weapon in his home
- Did Bill Barr Call His Shot? Unanswered Questions about FBI’s Foreknowledge of the El Paso Shooting
- Google, Groupthink & the Media
- Committee On Climate Change Budget Rose By 36% Last Year
- India expects coal capacity to swell by a fifth in three years
- Iran’s electrification rate at 99.9%, villages connected at rapid pace: Official
- Food Shipment Destined For Venezuela Seized Due to US Blockade
- Sky News laments erosion of ‘rules-based international order’ but does such a thing really exist?
- Will Mercenaries Fight America’s Wars?
- Modi Sent A Message To All Of India’s Minorities With His Latest Moves In Kashmir
- Police pursuit in Indian-administered Kashmir leads to protester’s death
- Erdogan announces military operation east of Euphrates river to push back Kurds, US urges him to reconsider
- Spooks behind Patriot Act, drone & torture programs unite to ‘secure’ US elections, free of charge
- ‘The end of us all!’ Duterte will NEVER let US deploy nukes & mid-range missiles in the Philippines
- Trudeau ignores threat of nuclear annihilation
- South Korea Has ‘No Plan’ to Host US Missiles as China Angry Over Proposed US Deployment in Asia
- Israel charges Bedouins $0.5m to cover cost of demolition of their village
- Bars & Nightclubs Use A Secret Biometric Blacklist To Ban Customers
- A.I. “RoboCops” Continue Rolling Out Across U.S. Collecting Biometrics and Creating Blacklists
- We’re All Enemies of the State: Draconian Laws, Precrime & the Surveillance State
- Texas police sorry for mounted officers leading handcuffed black man by a rope
- US legacy of targeting civilians alive since Hiroshima: Zarif
- Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Ministers Taken into Custody as India Scraps State’s Special Status
- US would prevent ‘unacceptable’ Turkish invasion of Syria: Pentagon chief
- Give Guantanamo Back to Cuba
- Trump Imposes Total Economic Embargo On Venezuela
- The Many Lies That Iran Hawks Tell
- UK Foreign Secretary Raab Vows to ‘Build a Stronger Alliance’ Against Russia, Iran After Brexit
- Defrauding Americans for a Living
- US tariffs driving down yuan, not the Chinese government – Jim Rogers
- It Doesn’t Matter At All That Oil is Priced in Dollars #43,656
- PBS: Keeper of Official State Myths
- Israel’s deputy health minister must be indicted for helping sex offender avoid justice – police
- Feeding the Israel Lobby
- AIPAC affiliate takes US lawmakers to Israel to ‘reaffirm support’ for Tel Aviv
- Abbas’s la-la land and the evolution of the American love affair with Israel
- Microsoft criticized for investing in Israeli firm spying on Palestinians
- New Trend in Israel: Military-Themed Summer Camps for Kids
- UK teen claims forced to retract rape accusation against Israelis
- Gaza: Fisherman injured, equipment lost in Israeli attack on boats
- London council cancels pro-Palestine event over anti-Semitism claims
- Israel government to honor extremist rabbi calling for killing non-Jews
- Don’t Let Mass Shooters and the New York Times Destroy Freedom of Speech
- 8chan: Another Mass Shooting, Another Internet Purge
- Finally Time for DNC Email Evidence
- Russiagate Comes to Italy
- Japan is a barrier to Korean Peninsula peace process, Blue House says
- Iran Navy chief announces classified deal with Russia; dismisses UK, US moves to destabilize Persian Gulf
- Zarif: US Can’t Build Gulf Coalition, Iran Welcomes Neighbors Leaving B-Team
- Australia not going to host US missiles: PM Morrison
- India Responded To Trump’s Mediation Proposal By Killing More Kashmiris
- India strips Kashmir of autonomous status; Pakistan warns of ‘all options’
- Minor Issues Remain on Timeline of US Troops Withdrawal at US-Taliban Talks
- China is now officially open for foreign oil, gas exploration
- Tulsi Gabbard’s Military Nonsense
- Bellingcat unloads 4,000-word piece on Tulsi Gabbard over her questioning Syria chemical attacks
- WaPo Publishes Gabbard Smear Piece Filled With Blatant Lies
- US defense chief claims support for anti-Iran Persian Gulf force despite rejections
- In the World of Truth and Fact, Russiagate is Dead. In the World of the Political Establishment, it is Still the New 42
- Predators United
- ‘There’s no law in the world that says you can cut water from humans’
- Greenland Endures
- Light oil set to flood global market
- Mass rally for Evo Morales in opposition stronghold
- What if North Korea and Iran move in tandem
- Pompeo ‘Happy’ to Pontificate in Tehran, Revealing US Tyranny of Arrogance
- The Western Alliance is Falling Apart
- US Seeks to Deploy Intermediate-Range Missiles in Asia ‘Sooner Rather Than Later’
- US to develop new missiles as INF treaty expires – Pentagon
- Afghanistan: In Search of Monsters to Not Destroy
- ‘It’s Disturbing’: Pentagon Launches Mass Surveillance Balloons Across US
- Ratcliffe will NOT be national intel director as Trump blames ‘LameStream media’ for withdrawal
- Russia Urges US, EU Countries to Withdraw Forces From Syria
- Israel lobbied US to drop F-35 deal with Turkey
- United Church should come clean on anti-Palestinian accord
- Protesters urge Israel to admit abduction of Yemeni children
- Another ‘Arab Revolt’? History never repeats.
- Spain rejects US request to participate in Gulf police force
- Japan Won’t Send Warships to US-led Mission in Strait of Hormuz Amid Row With Iran – Reports
- The Empire Is Coming for Tulsi Gabbard
- No, Tulsi Gabbard is NOT This Election’s Ron Paul
- No, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is not an “Assad apologist”
- Tulsi Gabbard Savages Trump Over Pushing US ‘Closer to Brink of Nuclear Catastrophe’ at Dem Debate
- US, South Korea to ignore North’s warnings on joint drills
- UK Army Cyberwarfare Operations on Social Media
- Iran’s Zarif drives Trump to insanity
- Israel summons 8-year-old Palestinian girl for interrogation
- ‘Clear and Decisive Win’: Why Netanyahu Needs a War on Gaza More Than Ever Before
- Israel drives US foreign policy on Iran: American writer
- US rails against Germany over refusal to join Persian Gulf mission
- The Spy Game: It Ain’t What It Used to Be
- Greenland Ice sheet Meltdown Scare–Except It’s Not True
- Prince Harry in Overpopulation ‘Doomsday Cult’
- Google Camp: Prince Harry ‘delivers speech about climate change at secretive star-studded summit’
- Let them sail yachts: Why Greta Thunberg and the environmental elite hate you
- Tulsi Gabbard vs Google Goliath
