tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10570559011925581132024-03-29T15:05:02.279+05:30SATISH SHARMA - not just Rotigraphy. If anything, I see myself as a “witness.” I’d also be pleased, if you’d call me an “interpreter.”
WIM WENDERSSatish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.comBlogger87226125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-87920731796936778802024-03-29T13:19:00.002+05:302024-03-29T13:19:27.529+05:30Assange’s ‘Reprieve’ Is Another Lie, Hiding the Real Goal of Keeping Him Endlessly Locked Up<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The US has had years to clarify its intention to give Assange a fair trial but refuses to do so. The UK court’s latest ruling is yet more collusion in his show trial</span></span></h1><div><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></div></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="byline" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline;"><b><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;"></span>by <a class="author url fn" href="https://original.antiwar.com/author/cook/" rel="author" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Posts by Jonathan Cook">Jonathan Cook</a></b></span> </span><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Posted on</span></span><a href="https://original.antiwar.com/cook/2024/03/28/assanges-reprieve-is-another-lie-hiding-the-real-goal-of-keeping-him-endlessly-locked-up/" rel="bookmark" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2024-03-28T21:00:51-07:00" style="box-sizing: inherit;">March 29, 2024</time></a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="background-color: white; border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><div class="post_content" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The interminable and abhorrent saga of Julian Assange’s incarceration for the crime of journalism continues. And once again, the headline news is a lie, one designed both to buy our passivity and to buy more time for the British and US establishments to keep the Wikileaks founder permanently disappeared from view.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">The Guardian</em> – which has a mammoth, undeclared conflict of interest in its coverage of the extradition proceedings against Assange (you can read about that <a href="https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/2020-09-22/guardian-silent-assange-trial/" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">here</a> and <a href="https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/2020-09-26/guardian-assange-denial-deceptions/" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">here</a>) –<b> headlined the ruling by the UK High Court as a “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/mar/26/julian-assange-granted-permission-to-appeal-against-extradition-to-us" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">temporary reprieve</a>” for Assange. Nothing could be further from the truth.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-5923 alignleft" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" height="456" sizes="(max-width: 520px) 100vw, 520px" src="https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Screenshot-2024-03-26-at-20.53.32.jpg" srcset="https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Screenshot-2024-03-26-at-20.53.32.jpg 520w, https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Screenshot-2024-03-26-at-20.53.32-300x263.jpg 300w" style="border: none; box-sizing: inherit; float: left; height: auto; margin-right: 25px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" width="520" /><b>Five years on, Assange is still caged in Belmarsh high-security prison, convicted of absolutely nothing.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Five years on, he still faces a trial in the US on ludicrous charges under a century-old, draconian piece of legislation called the Espionage Act. Assange is not a US citizen and none of the charges relate to anything he did in the US.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Five years on, the English judiciary is still rubber-stamping his show trial – a warning to others not to expose state crimes, as Assange did in publishing details of British and US war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Five years on, judges in London are still turning a blind eye to Assange’s sustained psychological torture, as the former United Nations legal expert Nils Melzer has documented.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The word “reprieve” is there – just as the judges’ headline ruling that some of the grounds of his appeal have been “granted” – to conceal the fact that he is prisoner to an endless legal charade every bit as much as he is a prisoner in a Belmarsh cell.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>In fact, the ruling is yet further evidence that Assange is being denied due process and <a href="https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/2019-05-27/abuses-show-assange-case-was-never-about-law/" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">his most basic legal rights</a> – as he has been for a decade or more.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>In the ruling, the court strips him of any substantive grounds of appeal, precisely so there will be no hearing in which the public gets to learn more about the various British and US crimes he exposed, for which he is being kept in jail. He is thereby denied a public-interest defence against extradition. Or in the court’s terminology, his “application to adduce fresh evidence is refused”.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Even more significantly, Assange is specifically stripped of the right to appeal on the very legal grounds that should guarantee him an appeal, and should have ensured he was never subjected to a show trial in the first place. His extradition would clearly violate the prohibition in the Extradition Treaty between the UK and the US against extradition on political grounds.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">Nonetheless, <b>in their wisdom, the judges rule that Washington’s vendetta against Assange for exposing its crimes is not driven by political considerations. Nor apparently was there a political factor to the CIA’s efforts to <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/kidnapping-assassination-and-a-london-shoot-out-inside-the-ci-as-secret-war-plans-against-wiki-leaks-090057786.html" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">kidnap and assassinate</a> him after he was granted political asylum by Ecuador, precisely to protect him from the US administration’s wrath.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>What the court “grants” instead are three technical grounds of appeal – although in the small print, that “granted” is actually subverted to “adjourned”. The “reprieve” celebrated by the media – supposedly a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/26/british-judges-julian-assange-us-press-freedom" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">victory for British justice</a> – actually pulls the legal rug from under Assange.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Each of those grounds of appeal can be reversed – that is, rejected – if Washington submits “assurances” to the court, however worthless they may end up being in practice. In which case, Assange is on a flight to the US and effectively disappeared into one of its domestic black sites.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">Those three pending grounds of appeal on which the court seeks reassurance are that extradition will not:</p><ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em 1.3em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 1.3em;"><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>deny Assange his basic free speech rights;</b></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>discriminate against him on the basis of his nationality, as a non-US citizen;</b></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>or place him under threat of the death penalty in the US penal system.</b></li></ul><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The judiciary’s latest bending over backwards to accommodate Washington’s intention to keep Assange permanently locked out of view follows years of perverse legal proceedings in which the US has repeatedly been allowed to change the charges it is leveling against Assange at short notice to wrong-foot his legal team. It also follows years in which the US has had a chance to make clear its intention to provide Assange with a fair trial but has refused to do so.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Washington’s true intentions are already more than clear: the US <a href="https://thegrayzone.com/2020/09/29/spanish-judge-sheldon-adelson-assange-spying/" rel="" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">spied on Assange’s every move</a> while he was under the protection of the Ecuadorian embassy, violating his lawyer-client privilege; and the CIA plotted to kidnap and assassinate him.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Both are grounds that alone should have seen the case thrown out.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>But there is nothing normal – or legal – about the proceedings against Assange. The case has always been about buying time. To disappear Assange from public view. To vilify him. To smash the revolutionary publishing platform he founded to help whistleblowers expose state crimes. To send a message to other journalists that the US can reach them wherever they live should they try to hold Washington to account for its criminality.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>And worst of all, to provide a final solution for the nuisance Assange had become for the global superpower by trapping him in an endless process of incarceration and trial that, if it is allowed to drag on long enough, will most likely kill him.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The ruling is most certainly not a “reprieve”. It is simply another stage in a protracted, faux-legal process designed to provide constant justifications for keeping Assange behind bars, and never-ending postponements of judgment day, when either Assange is set free or the British and US justice systems are exposed as hand servants of brutish, naked power.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><i style="box-sizing: inherit;"><b>Jonathan Cook</b> </i><i style="box-sizing: inherit;">is the author of three books on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and a winner of the Martha Gellhorn Special Prize for Journalism. His website and blog can be found at <a href="http://www.jonathan-cook.net/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">www.jonathan-cook.net</a>. This originally appeared at <a href="https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/2024-03-26/assange-reprieve-lie/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">Jonathan Cook’s Blog</a>.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 15px;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b><i>https://original.antiwar.com/cook/2024/03/28/assanges-reprieve-is-another-lie-hiding-the-real-goal-of-keeping-him-endlessly-locked-up/</i></b></span></span></p></div></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-57898193905977808062024-03-29T13:11:00.003+05:302024-03-29T13:11:50.348+05:30US to Palestinians: ‘Tighten Your Belts, Our Food Pier Is Still 2 Months Away’<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><br />by Walt Zlotow<span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span></h1></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Posted on</span><a href="https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/28/us-to-palestinians-tighten-your-belts-our-food-pier-is-still-2-months-away/" rel="bookmark" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;"><time class="entry-date published updated" datetime="2024-03-28T16:33:42-08:00" style="box-sizing: inherit;">March 28, 2024</time></a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="background-color: white; border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">US ships heading toward Gaza to build America’s food delivering pier are sputtering along at 10 to 15 knots.<b> The USVA Gen. Frank Besson Jr. has been refueling in the Azores since Friday. Once underway it still has 5,000 miles to traverse before reaching destination. All other ships are behind the Besson, with 2 not having left the US yet.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>With starvation rampant in Gaza, thanks to US enabling the Israeli genocide there, Uncle Sam sure is taking his sweet time creating infrastructure to deliver food aid. It won’t do much good even if completed since Israel blocks most aid in entering Gaza. Might be that our benevolent Uncle is giving Israel time to complete their genocidal ethnic cleansing so we can just pack up and go home.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b><span id="more-46832" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></span></b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>If the US treated the Berliners being starved by the Russians in 1948 like they’re treating the Palestinians being starved by Israelis in Gaza, Berlin would have fallen to the Russkies pretty damn quick.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><i style="box-sizing: inherit;"><b>Walt Zlotow </b>became involved in antiwar activities upon entering University of Chicago in 1963. He is current president of the West Suburban Peace Coalition based in the Chicago western suburbs. He blogs daily on antiwar and other issues at <a href="http://www.heartlandprogressive.blogspot.com/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">www.heartlandprogressive.blogspot.com</a>.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 15px;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b><i>https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/28/us-to-palestinians-tighten-your-belts-our-food-pier-is-still-2-months-away/</i></b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-3964062923510046702024-03-29T11:36:00.007+05:302024-03-29T11:36:56.436+05:30War on Gaza: Israel's lethal charade hides its real goals in plain sight<p> <a about="/users/ammiel-alcalay" datatype="" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/users/ammiel-alcalay" lang="" property="schema:name" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #01b2a9; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 32px; font-weight: 600; text-decoration-line: none;" title="View user profile." typeof="schema:Person">Ammiel Alcalay</a></p><div class="submitted-date" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid black; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; left: 125px; margin-bottom: 12px; padding-bottom: 8px; position: relative; top: -3px; width: calc(100% - 125px);">26 March 2024 11:45 GMT <span class="date-separator" style="box-sizing: border-box;">| </span><span class="date-updated" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600;">Last update:</span> <span data-timeago="1711458014" id="date-updatedago" style="box-sizing: border-box;">2 days 15 hours </span>ago</div><div class="field field-field-subhead" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 26px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-left: 123px; max-width: 1000px;">Forget Israel’s stated goals about destroying Hamas. Its real, undeclared goal has always been to make Gaza uninhabitable and destroy as many traces of Palestinian life as possible</div><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">A friend</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/topics/gaza-under-attack" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">in Gaza</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">recently wrote: <b>"The undeclared goals of</b></span><b><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/topics/israel-palestine-war" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">the war</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">: kill as many people as possible, destroy as many homes and buildings as possible, shrink the surface of the Strip and divide it. Control the gas resources. Prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state; Hamas, hostages are marginal issues."</span></b></p><div class="field field-body clearfix" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 18px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The accuracy of these "undeclared goals" gets clearer by the minute, as the charade of official blather continues, despite the latest UN resolution <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/un-passes-gaza-ceasefire-resolution-us-abstaining" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">demanding a ceasefire</a> in Gaza.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">After the grotesque ice-cream cone declaration by <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/us" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">US</a> President Joe Biden, mumbling about being assured of a "ceasefire" in Gaza by Ramadan, and that “my national security adviser tells me… we’re close… My hope is by next Monday we’ll have a ceasefire", that Monday and many more came and went, but the mumbo-jumbo continued. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">And the platitudes continued, too: <b>White House spokesperson John Kirby droned on about "<a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/israel" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Israel</a> having the right to defend itself", that the "US is doing more than anyone to bring in humanitarian aid", and, of course, "it all started 7 October". </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>If anyone could possibly be more smug and odious, the efforts of State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller are noteworthy, with teary-eyed Secretary of State Antony Blinken nodding off just behind, method-acting his way through a role riddled with the angst of "moral consciousness" on full public display. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>As if all this weren’t nauseating enough, top virtue signaller Vice President Kamala Harris struggled to put a few coherent sentences together as the alarm clock on the 2024 campaign apparently woke her out of deep slumber.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The docile press corps raised its voice an octave or two but no one asked precise questions, such as “Why are the Israelis both blocking aid and shooting people trying to reach a bag of flour?”, or “Why isn’t the US telling their ally to open land crossings?”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>But they all back off obediently, so they’ll be called on again at the next exercise in the charade.</b></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">'Astonishing asymmetry'</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">But as it continues, others have taken the stage.<b> Last month, US Air Force <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aaron-bushnell-air-man-who-shouted-free-palestine-lighting-himself-fire" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">serviceman Aaron Bushnell</a> set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington DC, shouting “Free Palestine”. He died later that evening.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Other veterans publicly <a href="https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/03/01/veterans-burn-uniforms-solidarity-airman-who-died-after-setting-himself-fire-protest-gaza-war.html" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">burned their uniforms</a> in protest of the US role in Gaza. Protesters continue to shut down public speakers and politicians. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>People all over the world are aware, outraged, and active: an <a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/02/21/1231331719/gaza-palestinian-ireland-street-art#:~:text=Climate-,How%20street%20art%20connected%20an%20Irish%20artist%20and%20a%20grieving,Palestinian%20woman%20in%20the%20image." style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Irish artist in Dublin</a> painting murals about Gaza finds herself in touch with the mother of a child killed by the Israelis; millions <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/photos-tens-thousands-rally-yemens-capital-solidarity-gaza" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">demonstrate weekly in Yemen</a>. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Holding a “ceasefire now” sign in Washington, DC, recently retired 17-year US Army <a href="https://twitter.com/realstewpeters/status/1765048433134456882" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">veteran Josephine Guilbeau</a>, speaking over an Israeli drone video, said: “We have technology that we can see exactly who is in these locations… they’re targeting and bombing homes knowing who and how many children were actually inside… this is not self-defence. The civilian casualties are catastrophic… The elite that sit in Capitol Hill… lie over and over and over… one of the biggest awakenings… I’ve had… is just how corrupt our government is and that anyone that’s in the military is simply just one chess piece that they use at their leisure for their own internal gain to protect their own internal assets and money.”</b></p><div class="mee-readmore mee-readmore-article-opinion mee-readmore-type-image align-right" style="background-color: #f9f7f5; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; margin-bottom: 26px; margin-left: 14px; padding: 0px; width: 328px;"><a class="mee-readmore-img-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/if-gaza-gone-there-will-be-no-palestine" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; height: 205px; text-decoration-line: none; width: 328px;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="mee-readmore-image" height="250" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/read_more/public/images-story/People%20react%20upon%20seeing%20the%20corpses%20of%20relatives%20killed%20in%20Israeli%20bombardment%20in%20Al-Zahra%20in%20the%20central%20Gaza%20Strip%2C%20on%20March%2021%2C%202024-afp.jpg.webp?itok=q8L283Dr" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="400" /></a><div class="mee-readmore-description" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 25px; margin: 18px 10px 0px;">If Gaza is gone, there will be no Palestine</div><a class="mee-readmore-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/if-gaza-gone-there-will-be-no-palestine" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #51336f; display: inline-block; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; margin: 12px 0px 12px 10px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Read More »</a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>With widgets for the US arms industry manufactured in practically every congressional district in the country, the revolving door between lobbyists and government officials just keeps on turning, and the bloated “defence budget” keeps growing. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>And as for what began this deadly charade, we need to look as far back as the 1917 <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/big-story/britain-palestine-balfour-declaration-fatal-mistake" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Balfour Declaration</a>. The <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-41765892" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">67-word text</a> is a blueprint for the political and juridical state of exception <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/palestine" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Palestinians</a> still find themselves in, and which imperial powers, international conferences, Arab puppet regimes, and various other players on the stage still find themselves dancing around or bombing to the tune of. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>As <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/lebanon" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Lebanese</a> economist Georges Corm wrote, it is, “a text notable for its esoteric racism in which the whole Palestinian drama has been inscribed… there is not one word… about the political rights of… the Palestinian people, whom they refuse to name, just as any possibility of their collective existence is eliminated by depriving them of any and all political rights.”<span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> </span></b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Noting its “astonishing asymmetry”, he called it: “A futurist text… the declaration is inscribed in the Arab memory as a monument to perversion.”</b></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">Extraordinarily cynical move</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>All the major issues this “futurist” text mobilised are fully laid out: asymmetry, political rights and demography - but, also, the tip of the imperial spear.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The “outpost of civilisation against barbarism”, as David Ben-Gurion put it, or, as then-Senator Biden <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HZs-v0PR44&ab_channel=MiddleEastEye" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">forcefully declaimed</a> in 1986: “It’s about time we stop… apologising for our support for Israel… It is the best $3bn investment we make. Were there not an Israel, the United States of America would have to invent an Israel to protect her interests in the region.” </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" data-gtm-yt-inspected-13169537_51="true" frameborder="0" height="718" id="949732645" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2HZs-v0PR44?enablejsapi=1&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.middleeasteye.net" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; text-align: center;" title="US President Joe Biden: “If there were not an Israel, we’d have to invent one.”" width="1276"></iframe></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>It seems not at all incongruous for Biden to now be the one overseeing the present genocide. Even as a thought experiment, it is well worth contemplating how the liberal establishment might have reacted to the situation in Gaza had it taken place under a Donald Trump presidency.</b></p><blockquote style="background-color: #f9f7f5; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 5px 0px 5px 14px; padding: 10px 20px; width: 446px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #2a2524; font-size: 30px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 35px; margin: 14px 0px; padding: 0px;">It is well worth contemplating how the liberal establishment might have reacted to the situation in Gaza had it taken place under a Donald Trump presidency</p></blockquote><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>One can only imagine media pundits, politicians, Hollywood and academia, all ranting in unison about white rage, the arrival of fascism, the end of democracy, and all the rest of it.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>As for asymmetry, it is the air we breathe, the fuel energising the propaganda machine producing the relentless drumbeat of cognitive dissonance. The same airspace Gazans look up to in terror with nothing to shield them from the constant Israeli surveillance drones and aerial bombardment is now a source of outdated non-halal meals parachuted in by the US, who also deliver the weapons. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>In an extraordinarily cynical move, the US is <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/biden-order-us-military-construct-port-gaza-aid-distribution" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">adding a new port</a> to the mix, using the rubble of destroyed Palestinian homes and institutions.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Maybe parts of hospitals or universities will find themselves submerged with the remains of decomposed bodies never recovered from under the rubble. Whether this becomes a military base or an exit port for mass expulsion is yet to be seen but, as the American phrase has it, “you can’t make this stuff up”. </b></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">Law of ever-greater destruction</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>As all this genocidal, geopolitical and mental shrapnel resounds through what is left of our rational faculties - along with Israeli snipers and artillery aiming at Palestinians <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/war-gaza-israel-humanity-food-queue-slaughter-unpunished" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">desperately seeking food</a> - the global populace is subjected to things that make absolutely no sense.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>US spokespersons claim there can be no place for Hamas in the political process referring to declarations long superseded, while the US tramples on treaties it is still a signatory to. </b></p><figure class="media-block" role="group" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><div class="group-inner" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: table;"><div alt="Medics carry an injured Palestinian on a stretcher after an air strike on al-Ahli hospital, 17 October 2023 (Reuters)" class="embedded-entity" data-embed-button="file_browser" data-entity-embed-display-settings="{"image_style":"","image_link":"","image_loading":{"attribute":"lazy"}}" data-entity-embed-display="image:image" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a027736f-1be0-4522-ae01-327482e8a2dc" data-langcode="en" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><img alt="Medics carry an injured Palestinian on a stretcher after an air strike on al-Ahli hospital, 17 October 2023 (Reuters)" height="899" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/2023-10/gaza-palestine-al-ahli-arab-hospital-strike-stretcher-17-10-2023-Reuters.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="1600" /></div><figcaption style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(145, 145, 145); box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; display: table-caption; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 19px; padding: 8px 0px 6px;">A medic treats an injured Palestinian man on a stretcher after an air strike on al-Ahli Arab hospital, 17 October 2023 (Reuters)</figcaption></div></figure><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span>Throughout, Israel operates by the law of ever-greater destruction as a way of both sweeping earlier destruction under the carpet and creating the illusion that there are “two sides” and not one overpowering force hell-bent on the suffocation of all forms of resistance, autonomy and independence.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>As we see pictures of children starved to death, who remembers fake news of a rocket, falsely attributed to the Islamic Jihad, that killed dozens of people at<a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-war-gaza-hospital-blast-horrifying-surreal-scenes" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"> al-Ahli Arab hospital</a>?</b></p><blockquote style="background-color: #f9f7f5; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 5px 0px 5px 14px; padding: 10px 20px; width: 446px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #2a2524; font-size: 30px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 35px; margin: 14px 0px; padding: 0px;">Despite its enormous might, Israel has failed to meet the minimum of its stated objectives. It has not repatriated its hostages, and Hamas forces continue to resist</p></blockquote><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>As widespread famine and disease masterminded by Israel kill more and more people, who remembers the controlled demolition of universities and the targeted assassination of academics and journalists? If Palestinians in Gaza are forced over the border en masse, who will remember Deir Yassin and the <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/nakba-palestine-catastrophe-explained" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Nakba</a>?</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Despite its enormous might, Israel has failed to meet the minimum of its stated objectives. It has not repatriated its hostages, and Hamas forces continue to resist. Amid the chaos of airdrops and the "flour massacre", Gaza police struggled to regain control, distributing leaflets barring people from the deadly roundabouts.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">On 17 March, met by cheering crowds, over a dozen aid trucks - <b>the first food convoys to reach the north of Gaza without incident in four months - arrived to orderly lines of people assembled at the Unrwa warehouse in Jabalia. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>But the latest attack on al-Shifa hospital, and the targeted <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-kills-police-officer-charge-securing-aid-convoys-report" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">assassination of Faiq Mabhouh</a>, operations director of the Gaza police, on the same day, tells you everything you need to know about Israel’s aims, as reported in an <a href="https://mondoweiss.net/2024/03/the-real-reason-israel-stormed-al-shifa-hospital-yet-again/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">essential Mondoweiss piece</a>. Other police officers, with their families, were assassinated, along with dozens of aid workers. Any order not dictated and imposed by Israel must be obliterated.</b></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">Unprecedented cruelty</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The obvious conclusion can only be that Israel’s stated goals are not its real goals, as my friend in Gaza wrote. Israel’s real goals are what is now underway: making Gaza uninhabitable, and destroying as many traces of Palestinian life as possible, both present and past. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>But in order to accomplish that, the occupation machine must introduce new forms of collaboration, something that Hamas, often with severity, put an end to in Gaza. This is at the root of Israel’s policy of unprecedented cruelty as they continue the onslaught.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>And Israel does this most effectively by perpetrating its biggest lie, by enacting asymmetry in every single attack, whether a bombing campaign, a house demolition, a land grab or a mass round-up, making every single act of resistance a potential capital crime. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>A nuclear power that has never signed the non-proliferation treaty or allowed its facilities in Dimona to be inspected - with the most sophisticated weaponry and technology in the world available at its disposal, with an air force, navy, and a total of some 635,000 troops - continues to promote the charade that a coalition of 30,000 guerilla fighters with no tanks, no anti-aircraft artillery, no air force and no navy, is right on the verge of destroying the "Jewish state".</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>And all while at the time criminalising and utterly obliterating any and all forms of civilian resistance to the decades-long state of siege they have been under.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>If that makes any sense at all, keep reading - I’ve got more than a few bridges to sell you.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><i style="box-sizing: border-box;">The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.</i></p></div><div class="author-bio" style="background-color: #f2f0ee; box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 23px; padding: 37px;"><div class="author-bio-title" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; padding-bottom: 11px;"></div><div class="author-bio-content" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><b>Ammiel Alcalay </b>is a poet, novelist, translator, essayist, critic, and a scholar. He is author of more than 20 books including After Jews and Arabs, Memories of Our Future and the forthcoming CONTROLLED DEMOLITION: a work in four books. He is Distinguished Professor at Queens College, CUNY, and the CUNY Graduate Center in New York.</div><div class="author-bio-content" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 16px;"><b>https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/gaza-israel-lethal-charade-hides-real-goals-war</b></span></span></div></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-60034496310311518282024-03-29T11:14:00.007+05:302024-03-29T11:14:58.882+05:30Israel may cut off Palestinian banks from global banking system next week<p> <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 24px;">The decision by Israel's finance minister to isolate PA banks would paralyse Palestinian economy</span></p><div class="field field-field-main-image" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box;"><source height="877" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/Mahmoud-abbad-ankara-march-24-afp.jpg.webp?itok=PsxAwe0R 1x" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/webp" width="1400"></source><source height="877" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/Mahmoud-abbad-ankara-march-24-afp.jpg?itok=PsxAwe0R 1x" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/jpeg" width="1400"></source><img alt="Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas pictured in Ankara, Turkey, on 5 March 2024 (AFP)" height="877" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/max_2600x2600/public/images-story/Mahmoud-abbad-ankara-march-24-afp.jpg?itok=QRmQV7b9" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/Mahmoud-abbad-ankara-march-24-afp.jpg?itok=PsxAwe0R 1x" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="1400" /></picture></div><div class="field field-field-cutline" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(145, 145, 145); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; padding: 14px 0px 8px;">Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, pictured in Ankara, Turkey, on 5 March 2024 (AFP)</div><div class="author-field author-info author-location" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #512f70; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 600;">By <a class="author-name" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/users/mee-staff" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #512f70; display: inline-block; line-height: 40px; text-decoration-line: none;" title="View user profile.">MEE staff</a></div><div class="submitted-date" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><span class="date-created" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-weight: 600;">Published date:</span> 28 March 2024 14:35 GMT <span class="date-separator" style="box-sizing: border-box;">| </span><span class="date-updated" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600;">Last update:</span> <span data-timeago="1711636540" id="date-updatedago" style="box-sizing: border-box;">15 hours 6 mins </span>ago</div><div class="region region-content" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="scrollmagic-pin-spacer" data-scrollmagic-pin-spacer="" style="box-sizing: content-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; height: 78px; inset: auto; margin: 0px; min-height: 78px; position: relative;"><section class="block block-mee-social-share block-mee-social-share-block clearfix" id="block-meesocialshare" style="box-sizing: border-box; inset: 0px auto auto 115.942px; margin: auto; position: fixed; width: 613px; z-index: 100;"><div class="mee-social-share-block" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons st-center st-inline-share-buttons st-animated" id="st-1" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; opacity: 1; padding: 15px 0px; transition: o 0.2s ease-in 0s, p 0.2s ease-in 0s, a 0.2s ease-in 0s, c 0.2s ease-in 0s, i 0.2s ease-in 0s, t 0.2s ease-in 0s, y 0.2s ease-in 0s; z-index: 94034;"><div class="st-total " style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #555555; display: inline-block; line-height: 18px; margin-right: 0px; max-width: 80px; padding: 4px 8px; text-align: center;"><span class="st-label" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 24px; line-height: 26px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></div></div></div></section></div><article about="/news/israel-may-cut-off-palestinian-banks-global-banking-system-next-week" class="story full article-type clearfix" data-history-node-id="352761" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="field field-body clearfix" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 3px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b><a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/palestine" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Palestinian</a> banks could be cut off from the <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/israel" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Israeli</a> banking system starting next week following a decision by Israel’s finance minister to cease dealings between the two financial institutions, according to a report on Thursday by Israeli newspaper <a href="https://www.haaretz.co.il/news/2024-03-28/ty-article/.premium/0000018e-8100-d49b-a3bf-f51f14170000?utm_source=App_Share&utm_medium=iOS_Native" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Haaretz</a>.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has two days to convene a cabinet meeting to discuss reversing plans by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to isolate Palestinian banks from both the Israeli and international banking systems.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The Palestinian economy is based on the Israeli currency, the shekel, making it reliant on ties to Israel and its financial dealings with the rest of the world must go through the Bank of Israel and Israeli banks.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Earlier this month, the far-right minister Smotrich threatened to paralyse the Palestinian Authority's economy in response to the <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/us" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">United States</a> imposing sanctions on four West Bank extremist settlers accused of violence against Palestinians. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Israeli banks have heeded the sanctions despite calls by Smotrich not to comply.</b></p><div style="align-items: center; background-color: transparent; border-radius: 20px; border: 4px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; display: flex; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; justify-content: center; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 20px 0px 23px;"><div style="box-sizing: border-box; flex: 1 1 0%; text-align: center;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-family: Calluna, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: calc(14px + 1vw); line-height: 1.1; margin: 0px; padding-top: 10px;"><br /></h2></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">Two Israeli banks, Israel Discount Bank and Bank Hapoalim, currently maintain the connections of Palestinian banks with the banking system in Israel and globally. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">To protect them from lawsuits involving the Palestinian Authority for “transfering funds to terror groups”, the Israeli government has been issuing a waiver of protection for the two banks on an annual basis, signed by the finance minister. </p><div class="mee-readmore mee-readmore-article-story mee-readmore-type-image align-right" style="background-color: #f9f7f5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; float: right; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin-bottom: 26px; margin-left: 14px; padding: 0px; width: 328px;"><a class="mee-readmore-img-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/rights-groups-israel-smotrich-us-visa-ban-history" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; height: 205px; text-decoration-line: none; width: 328px;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="mee-readmore-image" height="250" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/read_more/public/images-story/israel-smotrich-2021-afp_0.jpg.webp?itok=Z-9C07fD" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="400" /></a><div class="mee-readmore-description" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 25px; margin: 18px 10px 0px;">Activists cite long history of US visa bans to deny Smotrich entry</div><a class="mee-readmore-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/rights-groups-israel-smotrich-us-visa-ban-history" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #51336f; display: inline-block; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; margin: 12px 0px 12px 10px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Read More »</a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Smotrich is now refusing to renew the arrangement, which has been in place for years. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Without this protection, the PA will be stripped of immunity and the Israeli banks will be exposed to lawsuits and are expected to cut ties with Palestinian banks.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The consequences of isolating the PA from the financial world and Israel’s economy would significantly paralyse the Palestinian economy. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Any Israeli company that has business relations with the PA will no longer be able to deposit Palestinian cheques or receive payments from Palestinian banks, according to Haaretz. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Even Palestinian workers, who must only receive their wages in a bank deposit according to a 2022 agreement between Palestinian and Israeli authorities, will not be able to continue receiving wages in Israel, unless they are made in cash.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Other areas that would be affected by Smotrich’s move include Palestinian export and import operations, which go through Israeli ports, and Palestinian tax funds, which are collected by Israel.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-may-cut-off-palestinian-banks-global-banking-system-next-week</b></span></span></p></div></article></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-62985764342796004152024-03-29T11:12:00.001+05:302024-03-29T11:12:06.420+05:30World Court Orders Israel to Ease Grip on Gaza Aid<p> </p><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_title et_pb_post_title_1_tb_body et_pb_bg_layout_light et_pb_text_align_center" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(154, 0, 0); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 14px !important; position: relative; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="et_pb_title_container" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; z-index: 98;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(255, 255, 255) !important; font-size: 26px; letter-spacing: 2px; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px;">by</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span class="author vcard" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://libertarianinstitute.org/author/will-porter/" rel="author" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(255, 255, 255) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Posts by Will Porter">Will Porter</a></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px;">|</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span class="published" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Mar 28, 2024</span></h1></div></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_image et_pb_image_0_tb_body et_pb_image_sticky" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; display: inherit; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 0; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 707.917px;"><span class="et_pb_image_wrap " style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 707.917px;"><img alt="Palestinians Gaza food aid" class="entered lazyloaded" data-lazy-src="https://sfo3.digitaloceanspaces.com/offload-wp-files/2024/03/asdfasdfadsfacdsadfgadfasdadsfdsfasdfasdfasdffgasdfsdfadffdadsfasdfffdadsfasdfadsfdfsgfasdfasdfdadf.jpg" data-ll-status="loaded" decoding="async" src="https://sfo3.digitaloceanspaces.com/offload-wp-files/2024/03/asdfasdfadsfacdsadfgadfasdadsfdsfasdfasdfasdffgasdfsdfadffdadsfasdfffdadsfasdfadsfdfsgfasdfasdfdadf.jpg" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: 398.016px; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 707.917px;" title="" /></span></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_0_tb_body et_pb_text_align_center et_pb_bg_layout_light" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 26.4385px; outline: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="et_pb_text_inner" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><p class="custom_caption" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">FILE PHOTO: Palestinians receive food aid at a distribution site in central Gaza, February 29, 2024. (Credit: Anadolu Agency / Ali Jadallah)</p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></p></div></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_content et_pb_post_content_0_tb_body" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px 0px 26.4385px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ordered Israel to relax its blockade on aid shipments into Gaza, saying Tel Aviv must stop interfering with deliveries as Palestinians face dire food and medicine shortages.</b></span></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">In a </span><a href="https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240328-ord-01-00-en.pdf" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(154, 0, 0) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">ruling</span></a><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"> issued on Thursday, the ICJ pointed to “the spread of famine and starvation” in the Gaza Strip, observing that the crisis was the result of Israel’s “extensive restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid and commercial goods.”</span></b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The court ordered Tel Aviv to allow supplies into the territory “unhindered” and “in full cooperation with the United Nations,” prohibiting “any action” that would obstruct aid deliveries.</b></span></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The ruling also stressed an “urgent need to increase the capacity and number of open land crossing points into Gaza and to maintain them open,” as there is “no substitute for land routes and entry points from Israel into Gaza to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of food, water, medical and humanitarian assistance.”</b></span></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The latest ruling came at the request of South Africa, which filed a case with the ICJ last year arguing that Israel’s assault on Gaza had violated the Genocide Convention.<b> Though the court issued a preliminary ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to take all steps to prevent a genocide, Pretoria later </b></span><b><a href="https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240306-wri-01-00-en.pdf" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(154, 0, 0) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">asked</span></a><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"> the body to clarify and strengthen its decision in light of rapidly deteriorating conditions in Gaza.</span></b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Noting that at least 15 Palestinian children had already died of starvation in the first week of March, South Africa proposed an immediate end to all Israeli restrictions on aid. The ICJ accepted that the worsening crisis warranted a modified order, but did not adopt the stronger language used by Pretoria.</b></span></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">In addition to its tight blockade on humanitarian assistance, Israeli forces have been accused of deliberately targeting aid shipments – including an attack last month that </span><a href="https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/un-experts-condemn-israel-for-aid-convoy-massacre/" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(154, 0, 0) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">killed more than 100 Palestinians</span></a><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"> lining up for supplies. In another incident in February, a convoy of food trucks bearing UN insignia was forced to turn back after an Israeli naval vessel </span><a href="https://twitter.com/TomWhiteGaza/status/1754444582433996857" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(154, 0, 0) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">shelled one of the vehicles</span></a><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">, scoring a direct hit which destroyed much of its cargo.</span></b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Israeli tanks and bulldozers have also devastated vast tracts of Palestinian farmland, reportedly destroying around </span><a href="https://observers.france24.com/en/middle-east/20231212-in-gaza-an-estimated-22-of-agricultural-land-has-been-destroyed-since-the-start-of-the-conflict" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(154, 0, 0) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">one-fourth of Gaza’s arable land</span></a><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"> between October and December 2023. Greenhouses, olive groves and other agricultural facilities have also been repeatedly targeted throughout the conflict, with UN human rights chief Volker Turk suggesting Israel’s actions </span><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-68679482" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(154, 0, 0) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">may amount to war crimes</span></a><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">.</span></b></p><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_content et_pb_post_content_0_tb_body" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 50% center; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px 0px 26.4385px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><iframe class="wp-embedded-content entered lazyloaded" data-lazy-src="https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/israel-bars-unrwa-aid-shipment-to-northern-gaza-as-region-nears-famine/embed/#?secret=mFD1mCk7Ha" data-ll-status="loaded" data-rocket-lazyload="fitvidscompatible" data-secret="mFD1mCk7Ha" frameborder="0" height="400" loading="lazy" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" sandbox="allow-scripts" scrolling="no" src="https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/israel-bars-unrwa-aid-shipment-to-northern-gaza-as-region-nears-famine/embed/#?secret=mFD1mCk7Ha" style="background: transparent; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="“Israel Bars UNRWA Aid Shipment to Northern Gaza as Region Nears Famine” — The Libertarian Institute" width="600"></iframe></p></div></div><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></p><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_blurb et_pb_blurb_0_tb_body et_pb_section_video_on_hover et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_blurb_position_left et_pb_bg_layout_light et_pb_blurb_position_top_phone" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(237, 237, 237); border-radius: 12px; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1f1f1f; font-family: "Open Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 27px !important; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="et_pb_blurb_content" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 980px; outline: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 653.929px;"><div class="et_pb_main_blurb_image" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table-cell; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 0px 30px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 215.794px;"><span class="et_pb_image_wrap et_pb_only_image_mode_wrap" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: auto; max-width: 60%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" class="et-waypoint et_pb_animation_top et_pb_animation_top_tablet et_pb_animation_top_phone entered lazyloaded et-animated" data-lazy-src="https://sfo3.digitaloceanspaces.com/offload-wp-files/2020/02/Me9-137x150.png" data-ll-status="loaded" decoding="async" src="https://sfo3.digitaloceanspaces.com/offload-wp-files/2020/02/Me9-137x150.png" style="animation: 1s cubic-bezier(0.77, 0, 0.175, 1) 0s 1 normal none running fadeTop; background: transparent; border-radius: inherit; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: inherit;" /></span></div><div class="et_pb_blurb_container" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: table-cell; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: top;"><h4 class="et_pb_module_header" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 500; letter-spacing: 2px; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">About <a href="https://libertarianinstitute.org/author/will-porter/" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_self">Will Porter</a></span></h4><div class="et_pb_blurb_description" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Will Porter is assistant news editor at the Libertarian Institute. Find more of his work at Antiwar.com, Consortium News and ZeroHedge.</div></div></div></div><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.8em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding-bottom: 17px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 1px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Open Sans, Arial, sans-serif;"><b>https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/world-court-orders-israel-to-ease-grip-on-gaza-aid/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-74329252454714685442024-03-29T10:54:00.006+05:302024-03-29T10:54:46.545+05:30Pentagon in Early Talks on Funding Gaza ‘Peacekeeping’ Force<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">US officials told</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"> </span><i style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">POLITICO</i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"> </span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">that the proposal wouldn't involve US boots on the ground, but the force could be 'multinational'</span></h1><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><br /></h1><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><a class="url fn n" href="https://news.antiwar.com/author/dave_decamp/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">by Dave DeCamp</a><span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;">March 28, 2024 at 6:05 pm ET</span><span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span></h1></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span class="cat-links" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Categories</span><a href="https://news.antiwar.com/category/news/" rel="category tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">News</a></span><span class="tags-links" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Tags</span><a href="https://news.antiwar.com/tag/gaza/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">Gaza</a>, <a href="https://news.antiwar.com/tag/israel/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">Israel</a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="background-color: white; border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">US officials are in preliminary talks about ways to stabilize a post-war Gaza, <b>including a proposal for the Pentagon to fund a “peacekeeping” force</b>, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2024/03/28/dod-in-early-talks-to-fund-a-peacekeeping-force-in-gaza-00149547" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">POLITICO</em> reported on Thursday.</a></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>US officials told the outlet that the proposal doesn’t involve US boots on the ground but could be a multinational force or Palestinian-led. Officials said it could be weeks or months before any plan is approved, but it might be even longer since there’s no end to the Israeli siege in sight.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The report said any regional countries that might be involved in the multinational force want Israel to commit to a two-state solution before seriously discussing plans for a post-war Gaza. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his government, and the Israeli Knesset have also <a href="https://news.antiwar.com/2024/02/21/israeli-knesset-overwhelmingly-backs-netanyahus-rejection-of-a-palestinian-state/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">expressed strong opposition to a Palestinian state.</a></b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Netanyahu has also unveiled a plan for a post-war Gaza that includes Israel <a href="https://news.antiwar.com/2024/02/23/netanyahus-post-war-plans-for-gaza-call-for-military-occupation-without-time-limit/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">maintaining the freedom to operate in the Strip</a> without a time limit, which requires a long-term military occupation. The US claims it opposes an Israeli occupation but continues to back the Israeli military as it is carrying out a plan to create a “buffer zone” along the border <a href="https://news.antiwar.com/2024/03/18/israel-will-steal-16-of-gazas-land-by-establishing-buffer-zone/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">that will take 16% of Gaza’s land.</a></b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">The <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">POLITICO</em> report said that<b> Israel is “reluctant” to have conversations about the future situation in Gaza as it continues its military operations, which have killed over 32,000 Palestinians, including over 13,000 children. Both numbers are considered low estimates as thousands more are buried under the rubble.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><b>https://news.antiwar.com/2024/03/28/pentagon-in-early-talks-on-funding-gaza-peacekeeping-force/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-25864998807217425742024-03-29T10:45:00.004+05:302024-03-29T10:45:57.796+05:30Israel Thinks Only 60-70 Out of 134 Hostages in Gaza Are Still Alive<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">Israeli officials working on the negotiating team say Netanyahu has been purposely stalling hostage deal negotiations</span></h1><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><br /></h1><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><a class="url fn n" href="https://news.antiwar.com/author/dave_decamp/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">by Dave DeCamp</a><span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;">March 28, 2024 at 8:13 pm ET</span><span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span></h1></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span class="cat-links" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Categories</span><a href="https://news.antiwar.com/category/news/" rel="category tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">News</a></span><span class="tags-links" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Tags</span><a href="https://news.antiwar.com/tag/gaza/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">Gaza</a>, <a href="https://news.antiwar.com/tag/israel/" rel="tag" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;">Israel</a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="background-color: white; border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Israel believes only 60 to 70 Israeli hostages in Gaza are alive out of the 134 people and bodies that are being held in the Strip as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is sabotaging chances for a hostage deal with Hamas, <a href="https://archive.fo/Rj3Qt" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Haaretz</em> reported on Thursday.</a></b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The Israeli military previously confirmed at least 36 of the hostages had been killed, including some who died on October 7. A source told <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Haaretz</em> that now, only 60 or 70 are still alive and warned the number may be lower.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>“I hope I’m mistaken, but the number may even be lower,” the source said. The circumstances of their deaths are unclear, but it’s likely they were killed by the Israeli bombing campaign or died due to starvation and disease caused by the siege.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Some freed Israeli hostages have said<a href="https://www.972mag.com/israel-bombing-endangered-hostages-gaza/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;"> their primary fear</a> while being held in Gaza was being killed by Israel’s relentless bombing campaign. In December, Israeli troops gunned down three Israeli hostages who were shirtless and waving a white flag in Gaza City.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The mother of an Israeli who died in Gaza has alleged her son <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/editorial/2024-01-22/ty-article-opinion/.premium/this-mothers-questions-about-the-death-of-her-soldier-son-in-gaza-must-be-answered/0000018d-2dc8-daf5-a1bf-add85e850000" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">was killed by poison gas</a> Israel pumped into the tunnels underneath the Strip, citing a toxicology report. Israeli media has reported that Israel’s military is aware that bombing the tunnels could create toxic gases, such as carbon monoxide, which risks killing captive Israelis.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">The news of the estimate that only 60 or 70 hostages remain alive comes as family members of Israelis being held in Gaza are increasing the pressure on Netanyahu to reach a deal.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>“Prime Minister Netanyahu, the responsibility to bring our sons home is yours. At the request of the state and the security forces we stayed silent until today. They scared us,” one family member said ahead of a meeting with Netanyahu, <a href="https://thecradle.co/articles/israeli-prisoners-families-lose-patience-as-officials-say-pm-sabotaging-talks" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">according to <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">The Cradle</em></a>. “Today, we understand that as the number of days of silence grows, the number of boys who return home alive decreases.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Senior Israeli officers working for Maj. Gen. Nitzan Alon, one of Israel’s negotiators, told <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Haaretz</em> that Netanyahu has been purposely stalling negotiations with Hamas. “There are increasing signs that he’s doing almost everything possible to postpone, delay and ruin the chance of a deal to release the hostages in exchange for terrorists,” one source said.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">One example of Netanyahu’s obstruction of a deal is his talk of killing senior Hamas officials, including the group’s leader, Yahya Sinwar. I<b>sraeli officials believe that if Sinwar is taken out, Israel may find itself without anyone capable of negotiating for Hamas.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><b>https://news.antiwar.com/2024/03/28/israel-thinks-only-60-70-out-of-134-hostages-in-gaza-are-still-alive/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-79431913385532555022024-03-29T06:29:00.026+05:302024-03-29T10:42:55.029+05:30World court unanimously orders Israel to facilitate entry of food aid into Gaza<div class="field field-field-subhead" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 26px; margin-bottom: 6px; max-width: 1000px;">The decision runs contrary to Israel's claim that it does not block aid deliveries to Gaza</div><div class="field field-field-main-image" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box;"><source height="788" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/000_34MQ6QD.jpg.webp?itok=dsndrW-x 1x" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/webp" width="1400"></source><source height="788" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/000_34MQ6QD.jpg?itok=dsndrW-x 1x" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/jpeg" width="1400"></source><img alt="" height="788" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/max_2600x2600/public/images-story/000_34MQ6QD.jpg?itok=onDb1tib" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/000_34MQ6QD.jpg?itok=dsndrW-x 1x" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="1400" /></picture></div><div class="field field-field-cutline" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(145, 145, 145); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; padding: 14px 0px 8px;">A boy pushes a young girl in a wheelchair past a destroyed building in Gaza City, on 28 March 2024 (AFP)</div><div class="author-field author-info author-location" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #512f70; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 600;">By <a class="author-name" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/users/mee-staff" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #512f70; display: inline-block; line-height: 40px; text-decoration-line: none;" title="View user profile.">MEE staff</a></div><div class="submitted-date" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><span class="date-created" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-weight: 600;">Published date:</span> 28 March 2024 19:35 GMT <span class="date-separator" style="box-sizing: border-box;">| </span><span class="date-updated" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600;">Last update:</span> <span data-timeago="1711654517" id="date-updatedago" style="box-sizing: border-box;">9 hours 4 mins </span>ago</div><div class="region region-content" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="scrollmagic-pin-spacer" data-scrollmagic-pin-spacer="" style="box-sizing: content-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; height: 78px; inset: auto; margin: 0px; min-height: 78px; position: relative;"><section class="block block-mee-social-share block-mee-social-share-block clearfix" id="block-meesocialshare" style="box-sizing: border-box; inset: 0px auto auto 115.942px; margin: auto; position: fixed; width: 613px; z-index: 100;"><div class="mee-social-share-block" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons st-center st-inline-share-buttons st-animated" id="st-1" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; opacity: 1; padding: 15px 0px; transition: o 0.2s ease-in 0s, p 0.2s ease-in 0s, a 0.2s ease-in 0s, c 0.2s ease-in 0s, i 0.2s ease-in 0s, t 0.2s ease-in 0s, y 0.2s ease-in 0s; z-index: 94034;"><div class="st-total " style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #555555; display: inline-block; line-height: 18px; margin-right: 0px; max-width: 80px; padding: 4px 8px; text-align: center;"><span class="st-label" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 24px; line-height: 26px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></div></div></div></section></div><article about="/news/international-court-orders-israel-facilitate-entry-food-gaza" class="story full article-type clearfix" data-history-node-id="352846" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="field field-body clearfix" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 3px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>On Thursday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) announced additional provisional measures, unanimously mandating Israel to "ensure, without delay" that humanitarian aid is provided to Gaza, encompassing essentials such as food, water, electricity, and other fundamental necessities. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The court said Israel must take "all necessary and effective measures to ensure, without delay, in full cooperation with the United Nations, the unhindered provision at scale by all concerned of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance”. </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">The decision runs contrary to Israel's claim that it is not blocking aid deliveries to Gaza and orders Israel to do so by increasing the number of land crossings into Gaza and keeping them open for "as long as necessary". </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>In the <a href="https://twitter.com/CIJ_ICJ/status/1773376361362489490" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">letter</a> from 28 March, the court said that since 26 January “the catastrophic living conditions of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have deteriorated further, in particular in view of the prolonged and widespread deprivation of food and other basic necessities to which the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been subjected".</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The letter says that Palestinians in Gaza are no longer facing only a risk of famine, "but that famine is setting in".</b></p><div style="align-items: center; background-color: transparent; border-radius: 20px; border: 4px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; display: flex; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; justify-content: center; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 20px 0px 23px;"><div style="box-sizing: border-box; flex: 1 1 0%; text-align: center;"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-family: Calluna, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: calc(14px + 1vw); line-height: 1.1; margin: 0px; padding-top: 10px;"><br /></h2></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The court issued the provisional measures which include Israel taking all steps to provide basic humanitarian aid to Gaza, and ensuring with "immediate effect that its military does not commit acts which constitute a violation of any of the rights of the Palestinians in Gaza as a protected group under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide."</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">The court also added that Israel must submit a report on all measures taken to give effect to this order, within one month from the date of the order.</p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">'Man-made starvation'</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>This comes just two weeks after South Africa requested that the ICJ issue additional provisional measures against Israel in light of reports of widespread starvation.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>According to the document from South Africa on 6 March, the country wants the court to indicate further provisional measures and/or to modify its provisional measures to “ensure the safety and security of 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, including over a million children”.</b></p><div class="mee-readmore mee-readmore-article-story mee-readmore-type-image align-right" style="background-color: #f9f7f5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; float: right; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin-bottom: 26px; margin-left: 14px; padding: 0px; width: 328px;"><a class="mee-readmore-img-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/icj-hearing-israel-occupation-palestine-advisory-opinion" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; height: 205px; text-decoration-line: none; width: 328px;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="mee-readmore-image" height="250" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/read_more/public/images-story/ICJ_PALESTINE_2024_AFP.jpg.webp?itok=KkxxJTdC" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="400" /></a><div class="mee-readmore-description" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 25px; margin: 18px 10px 0px;">Explained: ICJ begins historic hearings on Israel's occupation of Palestine</div><a class="mee-readmore-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/icj-hearing-israel-occupation-palestine-advisory-opinion" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #51336f; display: inline-block; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; margin: 12px 0px 12px 10px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Read More »</a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“Palestinians in Gaza are no longer at ‘immediate risk of death by starvation.’ At least 15 Palestinian children - including babies - in Gaza have already died of starvation in the past week alone, with the actual numbers believed to be much higher,” South Africa wrote.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The country added that Palestinian children are starving to death as a direct result of the “deliberate acts and omissions of Israel - in violation of the Genocide Convention and of the Court’s Order”.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“This includes Israel’s deliberate attempts to cripple the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (‘Unrwa’), on whom the vast majority of besieged, displaced and starving Palestinian men, women, children and babies depend for their survival."</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Last week, a coalition of aid groups warned that famine is imminent in Gaza, in what Unrwa <a href="https://twitter.com/unlazzarini/status/1769711761136009310?t=ccWRJzS530FIzJwwxUAeMg" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">described</a> as "man-made starvation".</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The latest <a href="https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipcinfo-website/alerts-archive/issue-97/en/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">food security report</a> by a UN-backed initiative found that the entire population of Gaza, estimated to be around 2.3 million, is enduring "acute" food insecurity while half the population suffers from a greater level of food insecurity classified as "catastrophic".</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (<a href="https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipcinfo-website/ipc-overview-and-classification-system/en/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">IPC</a>), a multi-partner initiative, concluded that the hunger level in Gaza is the "highest share of people facing high levels of acute food insecurity that the IPC initiative has ever classified for any given area or country".</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The UN and other aid agencies have warned that Gaza is on the brink of famine due to <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/israel" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Israel</a>'s prevention of the entry of life-saving aid through the enclave's land crossings.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/international-court-orders-israel-facilitate-entry-food-gaza</b></span></span></p></div></article></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-62341160397908966562024-03-29T06:29:00.003+05:302024-03-29T06:29:15.677+05:30In a West Bank settlement, Israelis tend red cows and plan the Third Temple<p> <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 24px;">Radical plans to slaughter the heifers have raised concern across the Arab world - and were even linked by Hamas to the 7 October attack</span></p><div class="field field-field-main-image" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box;"><source height="788" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/red%20heifer%20israel%202.jpg.webp?itok=MvttZ1bk 1x" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/webp" width="1400"></source><source height="788" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/red%20heifer%20israel%202.jpg?itok=MvttZ1bk 1x" style="box-sizing: border-box;" type="image/jpeg" width="1400"></source><img alt="The red heifers are kept in a pen in an archaeological park in a West Bank settlement (MEE/Daniel Hilton)" height="788" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/max_2600x2600/public/images-story/red%20heifer%20israel%202.jpg?itok=p6wn0VeD" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/red%20heifer%20israel%202.jpg?itok=MvttZ1bk 1x" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="1400" /></picture></div><div class="field field-field-cutline" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(145, 145, 145); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; padding: 14px 0px 8px;">The red heifers are kept in a pen in an archaeological park in a West Bank settlement (MEE/Daniel Hilton)</div><div class="author-field author-info author-location" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #512f70; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 600;">By <a class="author-name" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/users/daniel-hilton" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #512f70; display: inline-block; line-height: 40px; text-decoration-line: none;" title="View user profile.">Daniel Hilton</a> in Shilo, occupied Palestine</div><div class="submitted-date" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><span class="date-created" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-weight: 600;">Published date:</span> 28 March 2024 14:58 GMT <span class="date-separator" style="box-sizing: border-box;">| </span><span class="date-updated" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600;">Last update:</span> <span data-timeago="1711641208" id="date-updatedago" style="box-sizing: border-box;">8 hours 59 mins </span>ago</div><div class="region region-content" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="scrollmagic-pin-spacer" data-scrollmagic-pin-spacer="" style="box-sizing: content-box; color: #333333; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; height: 78px; inset: auto; margin: 0px; min-height: 78px; position: relative;"><section class="block block-mee-social-share block-mee-social-share-block clearfix" id="block-meesocialshare" style="box-sizing: border-box; inset: 0px auto auto 115.942px; margin: auto; position: fixed; width: 613px; z-index: 100;"><div class="mee-social-share-block" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons st-center st-inline-share-buttons st-animated" id="st-1" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; opacity: 1; padding: 15px 0px; transition: o 0.2s ease-in 0s, p 0.2s ease-in 0s, a 0.2s ease-in 0s, c 0.2s ease-in 0s, i 0.2s ease-in 0s, t 0.2s ease-in 0s, y 0.2s ease-in 0s; z-index: 94034;"><div class="st-total " style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #555555; display: inline-block; line-height: 18px; margin-right: 0px; max-width: 80px; padding: 4px 8px; text-align: center;"><span class="st-label" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 24px; line-height: 26px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></div></div></div></section></div><article about="/news/israel-palestine-west-bank-settlers-red-cows-third-temple" class="story full article-type clearfix" data-history-node-id="352756" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="field field-body clearfix" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 3px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px 16px;"><b>On the crest of a hill in the occupied West Bank, five Red Angus cows chomp sombrely on some straw. Around them, a group of <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/israel" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Israelis</a> look on in anticipation.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>If all goes to plan, these cows could herald the end of the world as we know it.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>According to <a href="https://forward.com/culture/560201/red-heifer-third-temple-jerusalem/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Jewish tradition</a>, the ashes of a perfectly red heifer cow are needed for the ritual purification that would allow a Third Temple to be built in Jerusalem.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>That temple, say radical Jewish groups, must be constructed on the raised plateau in Jerusalem’s Old City known as the Temple Mount, where Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock shrine stand today. Some believe this will herald the arrival of the messiah.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">On Wednesday, a few dozen Israelis gathered at a conference on the outskirts of Shilo, an illegal Israeli settlement near the <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/countries/palestine" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Palestinian</a> city of Nablus, to discuss the religious importance and imperative of the cows, and catch a glimpse of them too.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“This is a new moment for Jewish history,” Chaim, a 38-year-old Israeli settler, told Middle East Eye as he prepared to take his seat.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>For years, members of the Third Temple community, led by the Jerusalem-based Temple Institute, which organised the conference, have been searching for a red heifer that fits the description of those used for purification in the Torah.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Perfect cows must not have a single blemish, not a stray white or black hair. They can never be placed under a yoke or put to work.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“These cows were brought all the way from Texas and were reared in special conditions to maintain their purity,” said Yahuda Singer, a 71-year-old from the Mitzpe Yericho settlement and the translator of a pamphlet on red heifers.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“The cows can’t even have someone lean on them,” said Singer’s wife Edna, 69. “You can make them impure by just placing your jacket on their back.”</b></p><figure class="media-block" role="group" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><div class="group-inner" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: table;"><div alt="The cattle are observed in Shilo (MEE/Daniel Hilton)" class="embedded-entity" data-embed-button="file_browser" data-entity-embed-display-settings="{"image_style":"","image_link":"","image_loading":{"attribute":"lazy"}}" data-entity-embed-display="image:image" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="ff25fcf8-51c4-4a62-b933-a586f17d9fb2" data-langcode="en" style="box-sizing: border-box;" title="The cattle are observed in Shilo (MEE/Daniel Hilton)"><img alt="The cattle are observed in Shilo (MEE/Daniel Hilton)" height="1080" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/red%20heifer%20israelis.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="The cattle are observed in Shilo (MEE/Daniel Hilton)" typeof="foaf:Image" width="1920" /></div><figcaption style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(145, 145, 145); box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; display: table-caption; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 19px; padding: 8px 0px 6px;">The cattle are observed in Shilo (MEE/Daniel Hilton)</figcaption></div></figure><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span>The perfect cow hasn’t been seen for 2,000 years. Not since the Romans destroyed the Second Jewish Temple - which is believed to have stood at the top of the Temple Mount - in AD 70 has the perfect red heifer been glimpsed.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>So some Jewish activists, alongside US evangelical Christians who believe the construction of the Third Temple will prompt the second coming of Jesus and <a href="https://free.messianicbible.com/feature/the-red-heifer-and-the-third-temple-in-end-time-prophecy/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Armageddon</a>, decided to breed their own.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>In 2022, five of these promising young cows, blessed with glossy ochre hides, <a href="https://www.jpost.com/judaism/article-717650" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">arrived in Israel</a> from a Texas ranch with much fanfare. Now you can find them in an archaeological park, separated from biblical ruins and flowering lavender bushes by a high steel pen.</b></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">'Hezbollah found out about this event'</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">In many ways, the red heifer conference was like any other. Rabbis and religious scholars delved into the details of the Torah. A couple of people in the crowd gently nodded off under the dimmed lights.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">In other ways, it was unique. <b>The first two speakers stood at the lectern with assault rifles slung around their shoulders.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“<a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/topics/hezbollah" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hezbollah</a> found out about this event and have been talking about it on Telegram,” Kobi Mamo, head of the ancient Shiloh archaeological site, said in his opening remarks.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>MEE was unable to unearth any of this kind of talk from the Lebanese armed movement, which fired a barrage of rockets into northern Israel earlier that day, but the conference nonetheless attracted a lot of attention on Arabic social media.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">One person in Libya joked that the red heifer found on the front of packets of Laughing Cow revealed that the spreadable cheese triangles are a Zionist conspiracy. “Have you ever asked yourself why the laughing cow is red!!??” <a href="https://facebook.com/100088373490100/posts/379113491711098/?mibextid=WC7FNe&rdid=uoZUMVeTsfDF9SHr" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">he asked</a>.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Others more seriously suggested that there were plans to <a href="https://twitter.com/abdallahmarouf/status/1772573574781358567?s=46&t=KKTS78RZvAtbMEiz73977g" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">imminently slaughter</a> a heifer on Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives, where land was bought up by Third Temple activists for this purpose.</b></p><figure class="media-block" role="group" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><div class="group-inner" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: table;"><div alt="An illustration depicting the slaughter of a red heifer on the Mount of Olives (social media)" class="embedded-entity" data-embed-button="file_browser" data-entity-embed-display-settings="{"image_style":"","image_link":"","image_loading":{"attribute":"lazy"}}" data-entity-embed-display="image:image" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="1b7ac42c-2e10-43e2-8032-46ae69299b96" data-langcode="en" style="box-sizing: border-box;" title="An illustration depicting the slaughter of a red heifer on the Mount of Olives (social media)"><img alt="An illustration depicting the slaughter of a red heifer on the Mount of Olives (social media)" height="767" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/red%20heifer%20burnt%20mount%20olives.jpeg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="An illustration depicting the slaughter of a red heifer on the Mount of Olives (social media)" typeof="foaf:Image" width="1024" /></div><figcaption style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(145, 145, 145); box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; display: table-caption; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 19px; padding: 8px 0px 6px;">An illustration depicting the slaughter of a red heifer on the Mount of Olives (social media)</figcaption></div></figure><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="background: url("https://www.middleeasteye.net/modules/contrib/ckeditor/vendor/plugins/widget/images/handle.png") rgba(220, 220, 220, 0.5); box-sizing: border-box; left: 0px; top: -15px;"></span>Rabbi Yitzchak Mamo, from the Third Temple group Uvne Jerusalem, previously told the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uzUf4oKmeo" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Christian Broadcasting Network</a> that a ceremony was planned for Passover this year, which comes in late April.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Hamas, the Palestinian movement fighting <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/topics/israel-palestine-war" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Israel in Gaza</a>, has raised concerns about the cattle.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>In November, a senior Palestinian source in contact with Hamas’ leadership <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-war-how-hamas-sees-gaza-conflict-unfolding" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">told MEE</a> that the group had been closely monitoring efforts to secure a permanent Jewish presence in Al-Aqsa Mosque.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“The only thing left is the slaughtering of the red heifers, which they imported from the US. If they did that, it’s the signal to rebuild the Third Temple,” said the source.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">In January, Abu Obaida, spokesperson for Hamas’ military wing, made a speech marking 100 days since the group’s 7 October attack on Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>In it, he made a direct link between Hamas’ decision to attack Israel and Third Temple activists importing the cattle, which <a href="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/resistance-strikes-will-increase-in-coming-days-abu-obeidas-speech-on-the-100th-day-of-war/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">he said</a> was an “aggression against the feelings of an entire nation”.</b></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 30px; line-height: 1.1; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 20px;">'All we want is a small altar'</h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">Yaakov, a 19-year-old yeshiva student from Los Angeles who wished to be identified only by his first name, came to Shilo for the chance to see the cows for himself.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“I’ve heard about red heifers and the First and Second Temple all my life, so I’m really excited about the opportunity to see one today,” he told MEE.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Yaakov understands that the prospect of building a Third Temple on the site of Al-Aqsa is controversial, “but I don’t think it should be”.</b></p><blockquote style="background-color: #f9f7f5; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; float: right; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 5px 0px 5px 14px; padding: 10px 20px; width: 446px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #2a2524; font-size: 30px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 35px; margin: 14px 0px; padding: 0px;">'These cows were brought all the way from Texas and were reared in special conditions to maintain their purity'</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #2a2524; font-size: 30px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 35px; margin: 14px 0px; padding: 0px;">- <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Yahuda Singer, Israeli settler</em></p></blockquote><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">“There was once a church there, then a mosque. It was originally a Jewish temple, so it should be again,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be violent.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">Boruch Fishman, a longstanding member of the Third Temple movement, told MEE there is a long way to go between slaughtering a red heifer and building a Third Temple. </p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>He has identified 13 problems that need to be solved before construction can begin - including getting Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, to legalise such a plan. “That’s where I can help on the political side,” he said.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Since Israel conquered and occupied East Jerusalem in 1967, the Israeli government has maintained strict Ottoman-era <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aqsa-mosque-jewish-worship-controversial-why-explained" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">restrictions over Jewish prayer</a> and presence in Al-Aqsa Mosque's courtyards.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Entry to Al-Aqsa has also been banned by the Chief Rabbinate of Jerusalem since 1921, with an <a href="https://www.jpost.com/jewish-world/jewish-news/chief-rabbis-reimpose-ban-on-jews-visiting-temple-mount-333741" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">edict</a> ruling that Jews are forbidden to enter the site unless “ritually clean”, which is impossible without the ashes of a red heifer.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Yet as Israeli politics and society has shifted towards the religious right, allowances have been made for some Jewish Israelis - almost always settlers - to regularly visit the site under armed guard.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>The Third Temple community hope the slaughter of Shilo’s red cows will allow Jewish people to be purified so they can perform rites and worship in the mosque’s courtyards. Research by a professor at Bar Ilan University <a href="https://twitter.com/omrimaniv/status/1685375052634619904" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">estimated</a> that the ashes of one cow could be made into enough cleansing water for 660 billion purifications.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“One of the main issues is the Waqf,” says Fishman, referencing the Jordanian-run Islamic endowment that manages Al-Aqsa. “The Waqf gets a lot of money from Jordan and I don’t think they want to give that up.”</b></p><div class="mee-readmore mee-readmore-article-story mee-readmore-type-image align-right" style="background-color: #f9f7f5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; float: right; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin-bottom: 26px; margin-left: 14px; padding: 0px; width: 328px;"><a class="mee-readmore-img-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aqsa-mosque-jewish-worship-controversial-why-explained" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; height: 205px; text-decoration-line: none; width: 328px;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="mee-readmore-image" height="250" loading="lazy" src="https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/read_more/public/images-story/image%20%281%29_0.png.webp?itok=A2FiBzWC" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="400" /></a><div class="mee-readmore-description" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 600; line-height: 25px; margin: 18px 10px 0px;">Explained: Why Jewish worship at Al-Aqsa Mosque is controversial</div><a class="mee-readmore-link" href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aqsa-mosque-jewish-worship-controversial-why-explained" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #51336f; display: inline-block; font-family: OpenSans, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; margin: 12px 0px 12px 10px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Read More »</a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;">According to Fishman, <b>small steps need to be taken to secure a Jewish presence on the Temple Mount. “The Muslim community is hurting a lot right now, and we need to be sensitive,” he said. “All we want is a small altar.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>Some Third Temple activists and rabbis have previously sought to<a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aqsa-israel-passover-settlers-push-government-allow-animal-sacrifice" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0076af; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"> perform ritual sacrifices</a> in Al-Aqsa’s courtyards at Passover, only to be turned away by Israeli soldiers.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“Perhaps the Waqf could be persuaded to help collect offerings and raise money that way,” Fishman said.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“Of course, not everyone could come with something to sacrifice, it would be a bloodbath. But I believe there is a difference between what the Waqf says in public and private, and it could be convinced.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px 16px;">In response, Waqf spokesperson Firas al-Debs told MEE: <b>“Let them say whatever they want in their conferences. The Waqf always emphasises in its statements its decisive opinion that Al-Aqsa Mosque is for Muslims only and that it doesn’t accept partnership or division.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><b>“There is no value in what is discussed in these conferences as long as they are not official," he added.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin: 26px 0px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Calluna, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-west-bank-settlers-red-cows-third-temple</b></span></span></p></div></article></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-61780857373315591772024-03-29T06:16:00.003+05:302024-03-29T06:16:47.925+05:30Who’s Running the EU? Big Global Corporations Which Aren’t Even European!<p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: #d5d5d5; color: #b22a39; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-weight: 700;">Martin </span><span style="background-color: #d5d5d5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-weight: 700; text-transform: uppercase;">JAY</span></span><span style="background-color: #d5d5d5; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">is an award-winning British journalist based in Morocco where he is a correspondent for The Daily Mail (UK) who previously reported on the Arab Spring there for CNN, as well as Euronews. From 2012 to 2019 he was based in Beirut where he worked for a number of international media titles including BBC, Al Jazeera, RT, DW, as well as reporting on a freelance basis for the UK’s Daily Mail, The Sunday Times plus TRT World. His career has led him to work in almost 50 countries in Africa, The Middle East and Europe for a host of major media titles. He has lived and worked in Morocco, Belgium, Kenya and Lebanon.</span></span></p><div class="dk-article__related" style="background-color: #d5d5d5; border-bottom: 2px solid rgb(255, 255, 255); border-top: 2px solid rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 15px;"></div><p><em style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bolder; text-align: justify;">When Borrell speaks of “our own interest” he literally means his own interest and a few of his cronies on the elitist payroll.</em></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red; line-height: 1.6 !important;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">❗️</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">Join us on </span></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;"><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Telegram</a></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;"><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone wp-image-875659" height="25" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" width="25" /></a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Twitter</a></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;"><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone wp-image-875661" height="25" loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" width="25" /></a><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red; line-height: 1.6 !important;"> , and </span><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">VK</a></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;"><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone wp-image-875662" height="25" loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" width="25" /></a>.</span></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red; line-height: 1.6 !important;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">Contact us: </span></span><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;"><u style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">info@strategic-culture.su</span></u></a></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>If you can get your head around the Moscow attacks or the British foreign minister’s recent video monologue where he explains how the UK is sanctioning a number of Chinese officials, have a thought about the European Union, a Rubik’s Cube which has all its faces painted one colour as its real identity is so opaque.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">With just weeks away from its own elections –<b> yes, the most undemocratic organisation in the world even organises elections for its own fake parliament – the EU itself is about to redefine itself. Already there are signs that even EU leaders are growing tired of its foibles and delusional dreams about its identity on the international circuit as a geopolitical contender, but people, humble voters, will soon deliver a message to the elites which run the EU soon: <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">reform or crumble.</em></b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Just recently, EU nerds in Brussels noticed that <b>when all of the EU’s leaders descend on the grey, depressing Belgian capital – a city many associate with industrial scale paedophilia, graft, chocolate and a pissing urchin – that they show anyone who’s paying attention who ultimately runs the EU: member states.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Or at least that’s the theory. <b>In the last few days EU leaders attended a meeting at the European Council of Ministers building and voted to “condemn” illegal West Bank settlers in Israel. Most editors of UK newspapers didn’t even understand what was happening. It was reported as “EU slams Israel’s West bank settlers” or “EU mulls sanctions against violent settlers” in a number of exclusive, European high-brow journals but completely unreported in the UK or US.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Perhaps the British press didn’t understand the significance of EU leaders – rather than the European Commission or the parliament – taking this initiative?</p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>EU leaders themselves, in theory, have the power. They hold the aces. And when they decide on a line or a certain policy, the European Commission has no choice but to go along with it – affirming the old hacks’ dinner party circuit rambling that “the EU Council of Ministers is the most powerful institution in Brussels”. Perhaps it is. Or was. But what were EU leaders really trying to say with the stunt?</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Simply that they object to Ursula von der Leyen’s repulsive, uncompromising support for the genocide in Gaza and send a signal that Jewish settlers’ violence when they steal Palestinians’ land is unacceptable.<em style="box-sizing: border-box;"> Just keep on stealing and looting as much as you can, but please do it peacefully</em>, seems to be the message.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>This in itself is a clear message who really runs the so-called EU “foreign policy” rather than the Spanish gimp in Brussels otherwise known as Josep Borrell. EU member states own this domain and every now and again need to remind the elite in Brussels that they, member states, humour the EU hierarchy with this fantasy of being a geopolitical dick swinger with its own hegemony.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">But even being the guardian of such a dossier, where does it get the EU or its “members” when both are so impotent, hesitant and ultimately cowardly on the international stage? <b>Ultimately, all the EU can do is make statements. That’s it. It has proven over and over again that it is powerless against anything that Israel does, regardless of that old chestnut often known as “international law”.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>And the call from EU leaders for violence in the West Bank to stop is also an indicator to who are the super elites around the world who really control David Cameron or pay for Boris Johnson to fly out to Kiev recently and bang on the “let’s never give peace a chance” drum: Jewish money and power.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>And that Jewish money – American Jewish money – which controls the UN banking system, the federal exchange, World Bank, IMF, Hollywood, both houses in U.S. politics and most of big business in America is worried about anti-Semitism growing in the West. And so they inform their servants to go to the garden and find the lost jewels of the lady in the house while the rest of the world burns. Priorities.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">EU leaders didn’t meet in Brussels to thrash out a peace plan as they don’t have the instructions to do so. <b>Hatred towards Jews in the West is the most important issue as it could be the thin end of the wedge which removes power from the elites who own Sunak, Scholz, Macron et al not to mention the European Union project which serves their global interests most admirably.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>And you can always tell when these powerful hidden elites are fretting over their power base being slightly shaken. Their surfs start whining. </b>Just listen to Josep Borrell recently talk about the Ukraine war and Russia.</p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>“We cannot afford for Russia to win this war. Otherwise the U.S. and European interests will be very damaged” he gushed. “It is not a matter of generosity alone … of supporting Ukraine because we love Ukrainian people. It is in our own interest”. </b>Of course,<b> when he spoke of “our own interest” he literally meant <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">his</em> own interest and a few of his cronies on the elitist payroll which you might be fooled into thinking was the EU itself. Oh you thought he was talking about the West in general and its population? Is it April 1<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 13.5px; line-height: 0; position: relative; top: -0.5em; vertical-align: baseline;">st</span> yet?</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://strategic-culture.su/news/2024/03/28/whos-running-the-eu-big-global-corporations-which-arent-even-european/</b></span></span></p>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-53153178856390092882024-03-29T05:02:00.001+05:302024-03-29T05:02:16.572+05:30At The UN It Is A Rogue U.S. Against The Rest Of The World<p> </p><h3 style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">moon of alabama</h3><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Ted Snider asks:</p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; padding-left: 40px;"><a href="https://original.antiwar.com/ted_snider/2024/03/27/is-america-a-rogue-superpower/" style="color: #993300;"><b>Is America a Rogue Superpower?</b></a></p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>“Unipolar” used to mean that the United States was, at least in theory, alone in leading the world. Now “unipolar” means that the United States is alone and isolated in opposition to the world.</b></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>Snider refers to the recent <a href="https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/n24/080/81/pdf/n2408081.pdf?token=llzqQMa86fB8Nbr9zG&fe=true" style="color: #993300;">UN Security Council resolution 2728</a> which "demands" a ceasefire in Gaza and "demands" a release of hostages and "demands" the unhindered supply of food and other items to Gaza.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>The U.S. <a href="https://pro.twitter.com/ShaykhSulaiman/status/1772389118439252045/video/1" style="color: #993300;">has claimed</a>, <a href="https://www.moonofalabama.org/2024/03/new-york-times-misreports-gaza-unsc-resolution.html" style="color: #993300;">falsely</a>, that the resolution is not binding.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">As Snider <a href="https://original.antiwar.com/ted_snider/2024/03/27/is-america-a-rogue-superpower/" style="color: #993300;">writes</a>:</p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><p class="p1"><b>On March 25, the U.S. went one step further and took a step toward becoming a rogue state who has supplanted international law with its rules-based order. International law is grounded in the charter system and the United Nations and is universally applicable. <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/leiden-journal-of-international-law/article/choice-before-us-international-law-or-a-rulesbased-international-order/7BEDE2312FDF9D6225E16988FD18BAF0" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">The rules-based order</span></a> is composed of unwritten laws whose source, consent, and legitimacy are unknown. To the global majority, those unwritten laws have the appearance of being invoked when they benefit the U.S. and its partners and not being invoked when they don’t.</b></p><p class="p1"><b>On March 25, the Security Council <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/03/1147931" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">passed a resolution</span></a> demanding “an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan respected by all parties leading to a lasting sustainable ceasefire.” The resolution was able to pass because the U.S. stood aside and let the other fourteen Security Council members pass it by abstaining instead of vetoing.</b></p><p class="p1">But in her explanation of the American abstention after the resolution passed, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield <b>“<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/25/the-security-council-vote-is-a-significant-moment-but-the-us-says-its-gaza-policy-is-unchanged" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">surprisingly</span></a>” <a href="https://usun.usmission.gov/explanation-of-vote-delivered-by-ambassador-linda-thomas-greenfield-following-the-adoption-of-a-unsc-resolution-on-the-situation-in-the-middle-east/" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">said</span></a> that “we fully support some of the critical objectives in this nonbinding resolution.”</b></p><p class="p1"><b>Her claim that the Security Council resolution was nonbinding was not an off script, impromptu comment. It is the strategy of a country that enforces, not international law, but the U.S. led rules-based order.</b></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Arnaud Bertrand <a href="https://twitter.com/RnaudBertrand/status/1772818294363521429" style="color: #993300;">has added a similar thought</a>:</p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>Since the beginning, it's been obvious that Gaza was in many ways a fight between International Law and the US's "rules-based order".</b><p><b>This whole episode around the UN resolution is a perfect illustration of this. There is no debate amongst international law scholars that resolutions by the UN Security Council that "demand" certain actions are binding (good explanation by a legal scholar <a href="https://verfassungsblog.de/why-todays-un-security-council-resolution-demanding-an-immediate-ceasefire-is-legally-binding/" style="color: #993300;">here</a>). In fact resolutions by the council ARE international law, article 25 of the UN Charter clearly states: "The Members of the United Nations agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the Security Council in accordance with the present Charter."</b></p><p><b>Yet the US now argues that the "rule" is in fact different: "It's a non-binding resolution, so there's no impact at all on Israel".</b></p><p><b>Where is this rule written, that somehow when the UNSC "demands an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan respected by all parties leading to a lasting sustainable ceasefire", it's non-binding and "there's no impact at all" on the warring party?</b></p><p><b>Nowhere, that's the beauty of the rules-based order: the rules are made-up in the moment to fit the interests of the U.S. and its henchmen, depending on the circumstances.</b></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>The big issue here is that the whole world, literally, disagrees with the U.S. claims.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Snider <a href="https://original.antiwar.com/ted_snider/2024/03/27/is-america-a-rogue-superpower/" style="color: #993300;">again</a>:</p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><p class="p1"><b>All UN Security Council resolutions are <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/international/4553980-un-security-council-gaza-ceasefire-resolution-us-abstains/" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">legally binding</span></a> and have the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/25/world/middleeast/un-security-council-gaza-ceasefire.html" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">status of international law</span></a>. That is why UN Secretary General António Guterres <a href="https://twitter.com/antonioguterres/status/1772271978293948899" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">said</span></a>, “This resolution must be implemented. Failure would be unforgivable.” UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/un-member-states-dispute-us-claim-that-gaza-cease-fire-resolution-is-non-binding/3174790" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">explained</span></a> that, “All the resolutions of the Security Council are international law. They are as binding as international laws.”</b></p><p class="p1"><b><span class="s1"><a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/un-member-states-dispute-us-claim-that-gaza-cease-fire-resolution-is-non-binding/3174790" style="color: #993300;">Others responded the same way</a></span> to the U.S. claim. On behalf of the ten elected members of the Security Council who drafted the resolution, Pedro Comissario, Mozambique’s envoy to the United Nations, said, “All United Nations Security Council resolutions are binding and mandatory.” He then added, “It is the hope of the 10 that the resolution adopted today will be implemented in good faith by all parties.”</b></p><p class="p1"><b>The United Kingdom also did “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/25/the-security-council-vote-is-a-significant-moment-but-the-us-says-its-gaza-policy-is-unchanged" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">not share</span></a>” the U.S. claim, prompting their envoy to the UN to <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/un-member-states-dispute-us-claim-that-gaza-cease-fire-resolution-is-non-binding/3174790" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">say</span></a>, “we expect all Council resolutions to be implemented. This one is not any different. The demands in the resolution are absolutely clear.” China, too, did not share the U.S. evaluation. “China’s U.N. Ambassador Zhang Jun <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/un-security-council-demands-immediate-ceasefire-gaza-2024-03-25/" style="color: #993300;"><span class="s1">said</span></a> Security Council resolutions are binding.”</b></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>France too <a href="https://twitter.com/RnaudBertrand/status/1773366323491262746" style="color: #993300;">rejects</a> the U.S. claim and insists that UNSC Res 2728 is absolutely binding and especially binding for Israel:</b></p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>"A United Nation Security Council resolution is binding under international law. All concerned parties MUST implement it, especially Israel, to whom it is incumbent to apply this resolution."</b></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Russia has <a href="https://www.yenisafak.com/en/world/russia-says-un-resolution-on-gaza-binding-for-all-sides-3680142" style="color: #993300;">said similar</a>:</p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">Russia's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that<b> UN Security Council Resolution 2728 on Gaza, which calls for an immediate cease-fire and access for humanitarian aid, is binding for all sides, including Israel.<br />...<br />"The Russian side expects that the binding UN Security Council Resolution 2728 will contribute to de-escalating violence in Gaza, including preventing the Israeli operation in Rafah, freeing hostages, (and) increasing humanitarian assistance to civilians in the sector," it said.</b></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><strong>Four of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - including two major U.S. allies -, all of its non-permanent members and the UN Secretary General have explicitly said that UNSC Res 2728 is binding.</strong></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><strong>The U.S. </strong>(plus maybe a few of its minor proxies)<strong> is the only state which publicly disputes that.</strong></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Bertrand <a href="https://twitter.com/RnaudBertrand/status/1772818294363521429" style="color: #993300;">points out</a> that this will have huge consequences:</p><a id="more" style="color: #993300; font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; text-decoration-line: underline;"></a><span style="background-color: #dee3e9; font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"></span><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">There's no overstating how consequential this is for the integrity of international relations. By doing so,<strong> the US effectively destroys the world order it largely created after WW2</strong> because it effectively tells everyone that the set of institutions, rules and norms that underpin it are meaningless. We're effectively now in a world system where everyone realizes the police, the government, the basic set of beliefs, have become completely corrupted. This changes everything.<p>What comes next? I<b> think there's no coming back for the U.S. And I think they know this, maybe unconsciously, otherwise they would at least pretend to act for the better good of all. The fact they don't shows they've effectively abdicated ambitions to restore their hegemony: they're now nakedly in it to milk the system for themselves, universal pretentions have gone.</b></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>This UN Security Council is not the only institution which the U.S. tries to destroys after having largely created it.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>In 2019 the World Trade Organization <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/wto-judge-blockage-could-prove-the-beginning-of-the-end/a-51613082" style="color: #993300;">lost its appeal court</a>:</b></p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>The appellate body of the World Trade Organization (WTO), considered the supreme court for international trade, lost its ability to rule on new dispute cases at midnight Tuesday.</b><p><b>The panel, whose decisions affect billions of dollars in global trade, is supposed to have seven judges. But their ranks have dwindled because the United States — under the past three presidents — has blocked replacements to protest the way the WTO does business.</b></p><p><b>A minimum of three judges is needed to issue rulings and the terms of two of the last three judges ended at midnight Tuesday.</b></p><p><b>This will deal a major blow to the global trading system, critics say, arguing that the situation risked creating a system of trade relations based on power rather than binding international rules.</b></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>The U.S. is now using protectionism, subsidies and tariffs, which are clearly illegal under WTO rules it had previously agreed to. But as it has managed, <a href="https://www.iisd.org/articles/united-states-must-propose-solutions-end-wto-dispute-settlement-crisis" style="color: #993300;">without having any serious argument</a>, to destroy the WTO's court their is no longer a direct way it can get penalized for it.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>But trade is only one field of international relations and other WTO members have found ways to solve disputes even without its court.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>The stakes are much higher when it comes to matters of peace and of wars waged with the intent of genocide.</b></p><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Bertrand <a href="https://twitter.com/RnaudBertrand/status/1772818294363521429" style="color: #993300;">concludes</a>:</p><blockquote style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><p><b>Most countries however don't want to live in an "eat or get eaten"/"might makes right" world, without rules or norms. So in time a new system will arise.</b></p><p><b>The biggest unknowns being: can it arise without a major global war, who will lead the construction of its foundations and how can it be set up so that this time around it is fair for all and respected by all?</b></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">I'll leave it to you to ponder those questions.</p><p class="posted" style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;">Posted by b on March 28, 2024 at 16:43 UTC | <a href="https://www.moonofalabama.org/2024/03/at-the-un-it-is-a-rogue-us-against-the-rest-of-the-world.html" style="color: #993300;">Permalink</a></p><p class="posted"><span style="font-family: georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><b>https://www.moonofalabama.org/2024/03/at-the-un-it-is-a-rogue-us-against-the-rest-of-the-world.html#more</b></span></p>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-6671732145986976752024-03-29T03:53:00.002+05:302024-03-29T03:53:42.254+05:30US state media defends ‘compassionate’ terrorist suspect<p> </p><h1 class="article__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 46px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #6e6e6e; font-size: 27px;">An American propaganda outlet deemed one of the accused over the Crocus City Hall massacre to have been a “happy young man”</span></h1><div class="article__cover article__cover-left" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 12.5013px; margin: 0px 20px 30px 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="US state media defends ‘compassionate’ terrorist suspect" class="media__item lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66047f86203027691b507942.jpg" sizes="457px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66047f86203027691b507942.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 456.756px;" /></picture></div><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.28571em; margin: 10px 0px 0.714286em; padding: 0px;"><span data-role="title" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Muhammadsobir Fayzov appears before Basmanny District Court in Moscow, Russia, March 24, 2024 </span><span data-role="copyright-symbol" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">© </span><span data-role="copyright" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> AP / Alexander Zemlianichenko</span></div></div></div><div class="article__text text " style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>A US government-funded news outlet has come to the defense of one of the alleged perpetrators of last week’s concert hall massacre near Moscow. The man, who is accused of taking part in the killing of 140 people, has been described in a Radio Free Europe article as <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“very compassionate.”</em> </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Muhammadsobir Fayzov was caught by Russian security forces near the Ukrainian border on Friday and formally arrested at a Moscow court on Sunday. Along with three other Tajik nationals,<b> Fayzov is accused of carrying out a mass shooting at the Crocus City Hall, a concert venue northwest of Moscow, on Friday. As of Wednesday, the attack has claimed at least 143 lives.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Although Fayzov was allegedly responsible for the deadliest terror attack on Russian soil in two decades, he has been <a href="https://www.ozodi.org/a/32878105.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background: 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0a6aa6; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">portrayed</a> by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Taijik branch as a kind and caring young man.</b></p><div class="read-more read-more__right" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: right; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 0px 20px 3em; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/russia/595002-isis-ukraine-terrorist-attack-moscow-crocus/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Ukrainian ‘Caliphate’: What the West prefers not to notice when blaming ISIS for the terrorist attack in Moscow" class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66040c132030277ff03608c7.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66040c132030277ff03608c7.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><span class="read-more__footer_small" style="background: linear-gradient(0deg, rgb(0, 0, 0), transparent); bottom: 10px; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; padding: 10px; position: absolute;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">READ MORE: </span>Ukrainian ‘Caliphate’: What the West prefers not to notice when blaming ISIS for the terrorist attack in Moscow</span></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“He was the best kid in the family. He was very compassionate,”</em> Fayzov’s mother told RFE/RL. <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“He loved his cousins. He loved his friends’ weddings. He danced with the boys at parties. He was a funny boy, but no one complained at school. He actively participated in school activities.”</em></b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“He was afraid of hurting someone, and someone probably set him up,”</em> </b>his mother claimed.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Based on a glance at Fayzov’s social media accounts, RFE/RL determined that the accused murderer <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“seems to be a happy young man and a good worker.”</em> The news outlet also spoke to Fayzov’s employer, who described him as a skilled worker.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>RFE/RL has run similar stories on Fayzov’s accomplices, interviewing relatives who <a href="https://www.ozodi.org/a/32876588.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background: 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0a6aa6; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">described</a> alleged gunman Faridun Shamsiddin as <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“very timid,”</em> and Saidakrami Rachabalizod – who pleaded guilty to his role in the attack – as <a href="https://www.ozodi.org/a/32878395.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background: 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0a6aa6; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">someone</a> who <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“could not kill a chicken.”</em></b></p><div class="read-more" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 3em 20px 0px; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/russia/594845-russia-haters-crocus-response/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><b><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source></b><img alt="‘The Moscow terror attack was an inside job!’ The strange and twisted world of the West’s political and media Russia haters" class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66019da5203027106f74310f.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66019da5203027106f74310f.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><span class="read-more__footer_small" style="background: linear-gradient(0deg, rgb(0, 0, 0), transparent); bottom: 10px; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; padding: 10px; position: absolute;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">READ MORE: </span>‘The Moscow terror attack was an inside job!’ The strange and twisted world of the West’s political and media Russia haters</span></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">A terrorist group calling itself Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) claimed responsibility for the massacre. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday that while the attack <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“was carried out by radical Islamists,”</em> further investigation is needed to determine <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“who ordered it.”</em> Putin and Federal Security Service (FSB) Director Aleksandr Bortnikov have both suggested that Ukrainian agents or officials may have been involved.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">The US and EU have insisted that ISIS-K was solely to blame, denying that Ukraine had anything to do with the act of terrorism.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Originally founded as a CIA cut-out after World War 2, RFE/RL – which is funded by the US Congress – spearheaded Washington’s Cold War-era anti-communism propaganda efforts in the Soviet Union and Eastern bloc. RFE/RL has been considered a <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“foreign agent”</em> by the Russian authorities since 2020. In 2022, it was blocked in the country for spreading <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“fake news”</em> about the conflict in Ukraine.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Archivo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.rt.com/russia/595029-us-media-defends-moscow-terrorist/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-78387059009914210022024-03-29T03:48:00.002+05:302024-03-29T03:48:40.526+05:30Draft UN Report Finds Israel Has Met Threshold for Genocide<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif;"> </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;">"Israel's genocide on the Palestinians in Gaza is an escalatory stage of a long-standing settler-colonial process of erasure."</span></span></h1><div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></span></div></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span class="byline" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;"></span><span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a class="url fn n" href="https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/27/draft-un-report-finds-israel-has-met-threshold-for-genocide/Author" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;"></a></span><b><span style="font-size: medium;">by Brett Wilkins</span></b></span><span style="font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 0.8125rem;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Posted on</span><a href="https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/27/draft-un-report-finds-israel-has-met-threshold-for-genocide/" rel="bookmark" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;"><time class="entry-date published updated" datetime="2024-03-27T07:30:39-08:00" style="box-sizing: inherit;">March 27, 2024</time></a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>The United Nations Human Rights Council on Monday published a draft report that found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Israel is committing genocide in <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/tag/gaza" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">Gaza</a>, a move that came on the same day as the U.N. Security Council <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/u-n-cease-fire-resolution" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">passed</a> a resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in the ongoing war.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;">The advance unedited version of the report – entitled<b> <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session55/advance-versions/a-hrc-55-73-auv.pdf" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Anatomy of a Genocide</em></a> – concludes that Israel’s far-right government and military “have intentionally distorted<a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.icrc.org/en/document/what-are-jus-ad-bellum-and-jus-bello-0%EF%BB%BF" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"> jus in bello</a> principles, subverting their protective functions, in an attempt to legitimize genocidal violence against the Palestinian people.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span id="more-46802" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></span></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>“The overwhelming nature and scale of Israel’s assault on Gaza and the destructive conditions of life it has inflicted reveal an intent to physically destroy Palestinians as a group,”</b> the draft report states, <b>enumerating Israeli actions that violate <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/documents/atrocity-crimes/Doc.1_Convention%20on%20the%20Prevention%20and%20Punishment%20of%20the%20Crime%20of%20Genocide.pdf" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Article II</a> of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide: “Killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to group members; and deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>“Israel has de facto treated an entire protected group and its life-sustaining infrastructure as ‘terrorist’ or ‘terrorist-supporting,’ thus transforming everything and everyone into either a target or collateral damage, hence killable or destroyable,” </b>the paper continues.<b> “In this way, no Palestinian in Gaza is safe by definition. This has had devastating, intentional effects, costing the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinians, destroying the fabric of life in Gaza, and causing irreparable harm to its entire population.”</b></p><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; max-width: 550px; width: 550px;"><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" class="" data-tweet-id="1772282485088375139" frameborder="0" id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=true&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1772282485088375139&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.antiwar.com%2Fblog%2F2024%2F03%2F27%2Fdraft-un-report-finds-israel-has-met-threshold-for-genocide%2F&sessionId=46a1f628ae65cc6f7daad06bf00556b4432450ae&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: block; flex-grow: 1; height: 897px; margin-bottom: 1.75em; max-width: 100%; position: static; vertical-align: middle; visibility: visible; width: 550px;" title="X Post"></iframe></div><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;">Israel <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.barrons.com/news/un-expert-accuses-israel-of-several-acts-of-genocide-in-gaza-ba3ae5a4" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">rejected</a> the report as “an obscene inversion of reality.”</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>According to Palestinian and international humanitarian officials, Israel’s 171-day Gaza onslaught has killed at least 32,333 Palestinians, most of them women and children, while wounding nearly 75,000 others and displacing around 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people. Thousands more Palestinians are missing and believed to be dead and buried beneath the rubble of bombed buildings. <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/disease-hunger-gaza" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Disease</a> and deadly <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/children-starving-in-gaza" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">starvation</a> caused and exacerbated by Israel’s<a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-unrwa-northern-gaza" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"> siege and blockade</a> of Gaza are spreading rapidly.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>“Israel’s genocide on the Palestinians in Gaza is an escalatory stage of a long-standing settler-colonial process of erasure,” the draft report asserts. “For over seven decades this process has suffocated the Palestinian people as a group – demographically, culturally, economically, and politically – seeking to displace it and expropriate and control its land and resources.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>Referring to the <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://imeu.org/article/quick-facts-the-palestinian-nakba" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">flight and ethnic cleansing</a> of more than 750,000 Arabs from <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/tag/palestine" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">Palestine</a> during the foundation of the modern state of Israel in 1948, the paper contends that “the ongoing Nakba must be stopped and remedied once and for all. This is an imperative owed to the victims of this highly preventable tragedy, and to future generations in that land.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>The draft report urges U.N. member states to “enforce the prohibition of genocide in accordance with their… obligations” under international law. In January, the U.N.’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/watch-live-international-court-of-justice-delivers-ruling-in-israel-genocide-case" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">found</a> that Israel was “plausibly” perpetrating genocide in Gaza and ordered the country’s government to “take all measures within its power” to prevent genocidal acts. Human rights defenders <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-violating-icj-order" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">say</a> Israel has ignored the order.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>“Israel and those states that have been complicit in what can be reasonably concluded to constitute genocide must be held accountable and deliver reparations commensurate with the destruction, death, and harm inflicted on the Palestinian people,” the publication argues.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;">The draft report recommends measures including:</p><ul class="ee-ul" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em 1.3em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 1.3em;"><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>Immediate implementation of an arms embargo on Israel, as it appears to have failed to comply with the binding measures ordered by the ICJ;</b></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>Immediate referral of the situation in Palestine to the International Criminal Court in support of its <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/victims/state-palestine" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">ongoing investigation</a>;</b></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>Ensuring that Israel, as well as states who have been complicit in the Gaza genocide, acknowledge the colossal harm done, commit to nonrepetition, with measures for prevention and full reparations, including the full cost of the reconstruction of Gaza;</b></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>Deploying an international protective presence to constrain the violence routinely used against Palestinians in the occupied territories; and</b></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;"><b>Ensuring that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is properly funded to enable it to meet the increased needs of Palestinians in Gaza.</b></li></ul><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b>Israel on Monday <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/03/1147916" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">informed</a> the U.N. that it will no longer allow UNRWA convoys carrying food aid into northern Gaza, even as the Palestinians are starving to death, a move that one humanitarian campaigner <a class="rm-stats-tracked" href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-unrwa-northern-gaza" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">called</a> a “death sentence.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><i style="box-sizing: inherit;"><b>Brett Wilkins </b>is is staff writer for <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">Common Dreams</a>. Based in San Francisco, his work covers issues of social justice, human rights and war and peace. This originally appeared at <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">CommonDreams</a> and is reprinted with the author’s permission.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><i style="box-sizing: inherit;"><br /></i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b><i>https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/27/draft-un-report-finds-israel-has-met-threshold-for-genocide</i></b></span></span></p><div class="addtoany_share_save_container addtoany_content addtoany_content_bottom" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; margin: 16px auto 0px;"><div class="a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list" data-a2a-title="Draft UN Report Finds Israel Has Met Threshold for Genocide" data-a2a-url="https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/27/draft-un-report-finds-israel-has-met-threshold-for-genocide/" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline; line-height: 32px; outline: 0px; touch-action: manipulation;"><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.antiwar.com/#reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" style="border: 0px; box-shadow: none; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-size: 32px; padding: 0px 4px; text-decoration-line: none; transition: none 0s ease 0s; vertical-align: middle;" target="_blank" title="Reddit"><span class="a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_reddit" style="background-color: orangered; background-repeat: repeat; border-radius: 4px; box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; float: none; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; height: 32px; line-height: 32px; opacity: 1; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; pointer-events: none; width: 32px;"><svg aria-hidden="true" focusable="false" viewbox="0 0 32 32" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M28.543 15.774a2.953 2.953 0 0 0-2.951-2.949 2.882 2.882 0 0 0-1.9.713 14.075 14.075 0 0 0-6.85-2.044l1.38-4.349 3.768.884a2.452 2.452 0 1 0 .24-1.176l-4.274-1a.6.6 0 0 0-.709.4l-1.659 5.224a14.314 14.314 0 0 0-7.316 2.029 2.908 2.908 0 0 0-1.872-.681 2.942 2.942 0 0 0-1.618 5.4 5.109 5.109 0 0 0-.062.765c0 4.158 5.037 7.541 11.229 7.541s11.22-3.383 11.22-7.541a5.2 5.2 0 0 0-.053-.706 2.963 2.963 0 0 0 1.427-2.51zm-18.008 1.88a1.753 1.753 0 0 1 1.73-1.74 1.73 1.73 0 0 1 1.709 1.74 1.709 1.709 0 0 1-1.709 1.711 1.733 1.733 0 0 1-1.73-1.711zm9.565 4.968a5.573 5.573 0 0 1-4.081 1.272h-.032a5.576 5.576 0 0 1-4.087-1.272.6.6 0 0 1 .844-.854 4.5 4.5 0 0 0 3.238.927h.032a4.5 4.5 0 0 0 3.237-.927.6.6 0 1 1 .844.854zm-.331-3.256a1.726 1.726 0 1 1 1.709-1.712 1.717 1.717 0 0 1-1.712 1.712z" fill="#fff"></path></svg></span></a></div></div></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-91271691079748971952024-03-29T03:41:00.001+05:302024-03-29T03:41:24.749+05:30Terror Attack in Moscow Is U.S./NATO’s Revenge for Losing its Proxy War Against Russia in Ukraine<p> <span style="background-color: #d5d5d5; color: #b22a39; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold;">Finian</span><span style="background-color: #d5d5d5; color: #b22a39; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; text-transform: uppercase;">CUNNINGHAM</span></p><div class="dk-article__author-text" style="background-color: #d5d5d5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Former editor and writer for major news media organizations. He has written extensively on international affairs, with articles published in several languages</div><p><em style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bolder; text-align: justify;">Not defeating Russia on the Ukrainian battlefield is forcing the Western imperialists to resort to terrorism and other dirty tricks which they know all too well.</em></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red; line-height: 1.6 !important;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">❗️</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">Join us on </span></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;"><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; 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font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red; line-height: 1.6 !important;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">Contact us: </span></span><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;"><u style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">info@strategic-culture.su</span></u></a></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="375" loading="lazy" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mKX2qYD5ONU?feature=oembed" style="box-sizing: border-box;" title="Terror Attack in Moscow is US/NATO's Revenge for Losing its Proxy War Against Russia in Ukraine" width="500"></iframe></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">The terrorist attack near Moscow on March 22 in which 140 people were killed by four gunmen was claimed by a radical Islamist group.<b> But the bigger picture indicates the assault was organized by the United States and its NATO allies.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">For a start,<b> the suspects were caught while fleeing to Ukraine, which implicates the Ukrainian regime and its NATO sponsors as the masterminds behind the atrocity.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The Western governments and media have been quick (one might add, too quick) to lay the blame entirely on the Islamic State network based in Afghanistan. The shooters may have professed allegiance to this network. But that is a charade to divert attention from the real culprits – the United States, NATO, and the Ukrainian fascist regime.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">I<b>n this interview, Bruce Gagnon discusses the long and sordid history of Western states deploying terror groups claiming Islamist tendencies as a proxy for their regime-change operations and other dirty wars. This is despite Western declared aims of “fighting terrorism”.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Gagnon says the terror attack near Moscow was motivated by revenge of the United States and its NATO allies against Russia over the loss of the proxy war in Ukraine. It cannot be overstated how disastrous that defeat is for the NATO axis.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>He points out that the proxy war in Ukraine against Russia is only one part of a bigger, global confrontation by the U.S. for Western hegemony. Ukraine is the most immediate site of struggle. But it is only a battlefield on a global scale. What is going on is an existential struggle for the survival of the Western neocolonialist empire of U.S.-led capitalism against the emergence of a fairer, multipolar world order.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Defeating Russia in Ukraine is vital for the Western imperialists. Not defeating Russia on this battlefield is forcing the Western imperialists to resort to terrorism and other dirty tricks which they know all too well.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Gagnon notes that the building of a new NATO base in Romania on the Black Sea which will be the biggest base in Europe as well as the increasing U.S. militarization of the Korean Peninsula are important fronts in a global project of aggression and war by the United States and its imperialist partners towards Russia, China and any other perceived rival.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The increasing war footing by the United States and its Western partners is consistent with a fascist control of Western states, says Gagnon.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Bruce Gagnon is the coordinator for the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space. He writes frequent updates on international politics on his site, Organizing Notes.</p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://strategic-culture.su/news/2024/03/27/terror-attack-in-moscow-is-us-nato-revenge-for-losing-proxy-war-against-russia-in-ukraine/</b></span></span></p>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-56404192786183313392024-03-29T03:23:00.003+05:302024-03-29T03:23:34.822+05:30The Nuland – Budanov – Tajik – Crocus connection<div class="dk-article__author-title" style="background-color: #d5d5d5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Pepe <span style="box-sizing: border-box; text-transform: uppercase;">ESCOBAR </span></span><span style="color: #272727; font-size: 14px;">Independent geopolitical analyst, writer and journalist</span></div><div class="dk-article__author-text" style="background-color: #d5d5d5; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></div><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">The Russian population has handed to the Kremlin total carte blanche to exercise brutal, maximum punishment – whatever and wherever it takes.</em></span></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red; line-height: 1.6 !important;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; 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box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/inf174_terror-01.jpg" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone" height="2127" loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/inf174_terror-01.jpg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: middle;" width="1241" /></a></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Let’s start with the possible chain of events that may have led to the Crocus terror attack. <b>This is as explosive as it gets. Intel sources in Moscow discreetly confirm this is one of the FSB’s prime lines of investigation.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">December 4, 2023.</em> Former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen Mark Milley,</b> only 3 months after his retirement, tells CIA mouthpiece The Washington Post:<b> “There should be no Russian who goes to sleep without wondering if they’re going to get their throat slit in the middle of the night (…) You gotta get back there and create a campaign behind the lines.”</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">January 4, 2024:</em> I</b>n an interview with ABC News, <b>“spy chief” Kyrylo Budanov lays down the road map: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcvLEtSBG84" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">strikes “deeper and deeper” into Russia.</a></b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">January 31:</em> Victoria Nuland travels to Kiev and meets Budanov. Then, in a dodgy press conference at night in the middle of an empty street, she promises “nasty surprises” to Putin: code for asymmetric war.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">February 22:</em> Nuland shows up at a Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) event and doubles down on the “nasty surprises” and asymmetric war. That may be interpreted as the definitive signal for Budanov to start deploying dirty ops.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">February 25:</em> The New York Times publishes a story about CIA cells in Ukraine: nothing that Russian intel does not already know.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Then, a lull until March 5 –<b> when crucial shadow play may have been in effect. Privileged scenario: Nuland was a key dirty ops plotter alongside the CIA and the Ukrainian GUR (Budanov). Rival Deep State factions got hold of it and maneuvered to “terminate” her one way or another – because Russian intel would have inevitably connected the dots.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Yet Nuland, in fact, is not “retired” yet; she’s still presented as Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs and showed up recently in Rome for a G7-related meeting, although her new job, in theory, seems to be at Columbia University (a Hillary Clinton maneuver).</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Meanwhile, the assets for a major “nasty surprise” are already in place, in the dark, and totally off radar. The op cannot be called off.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">March 5:</em> Little Blinken formally announces Nuland’s “retirement”.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">March 7:</em> At least one Tajik among the four-member terror commando visits the Crocus venue and has his photo taken.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">March 7-8 at night:</em> U.S. and British embassies simultaneously announce a possible terror attack on Moscow, telling their nationals to avoid “concerts” and gatherings within the next two days.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">March 9:</em> Massively popular Russian patriotic singer Shaman performs at Crocus. That may have been the carefully chosen occasion targeted for the “nasty surprise” – as it falls only a few days before the presidential elections, from March 15 to 17. But security at Crocus was massive, so the op is postponed.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">March 22:</em> The Crocus City Hall terror attack.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">ISIS-K: the ultimate can of worms</span></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The Budanov connection is betrayed by the modus operandi – similar to previous Ukraine intel terror attacks against Daria Dugina and Vladimir Tatarsky: close reconnaissance for days, even weeks; the hit; and then a dash for the border.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">And that brings us to the Tajik connection.</p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>There seem to be holes aplenty in the narrative concocted by the ragged bunch turned mass killers: following an Islamist preacher on Telegram; offered what was later established as a puny 500 thousand rubles (roughly $4,500) for the four of them to shoot random people in a concert hall; sent half of the funds via Telegram; directed to a weapons cache where they find AK-12s and hand grenades.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The videos show that they used the machine guns like pros; shots were accurate, short bursts or single fire; no panic whatsoever; effective use of hand grenades; fleeing the scene in a flash, just melting away, almost in time to catch the “window” that would take them across the border to Ukraine.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>All that takes training. And that also applies to facing nasty counter-interrogation. Still, the FSB seems to have broken them all – quite literally.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">A potential handler has surfaced, named Abdullo Buriyev. <b>Turkish intel had earlier identified him as a handler for ISIS-K, or Wilayat Khorasan in Afghanistan. One of the members of the Crocus commando told the FSB their “acquaintance” Abdullo helped them to buy the car for the op.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">And that leads us to the massive can of worms to end them all:<b> ISIS-K.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The alleged emir of ISIS-K, since 2020, is an Afghan Tajik, Sanaullah Ghafari. He was not killed in Afghanistan in June 2023, as the Americans were spinning: he may be currently holed up in Balochistan in Pakistan.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Yet the real person of interest here is not Tajik Ghafari but Chechen Abdul Hakim al-Shishani, the former leader of the jihadi outfit Ajnad al-Kavkaz (“Soldiers of the Caucasus”), who was fighting against the government in Damascus in Idlib and then escaped to Ukraine because of a crackdown by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) – in another one of those classic inter-jihadi squabbles.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Shishani was spotted on the border near Belgorod during the recent attack concocted by Ukrainian intel inside Russia. Call it another vector of the “nasty surprises”.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Shishani had been in Ukraine for over two years and has acquired citizenship. He is in fact the sterling connection between the nasty motley crue Idlib gangs in Syria and GUR in Kiev – as his Chechens worked closely with Jabhat al-Nusra, which was virtually indistinguishable from ISIS.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Shishani, fiercely anti-Assad, anti-Putin and anti-Kadyrov, is the classic “moderate rebel” advertised for years as a “freedom fighter” by the CIA and the Pentagon.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Some of the four hapless Tajiks seem to have followed ideological/religious indoctrination on the internet dispensed by Wilayat Khorasan, or ISIS-K, in a chat room called Rahnamo ba Khuroson.</p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The indoctrination game happened to be supervised by a Tajik, Salmon Khurosoni. He’s the guy who made the first move to recruit the commando. Khurosoni is arguably a messenger between ISIS-K and the CIA.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The problem is the ISIS-K modus operandi for any attack never features a fistful of dollars: the promise is Paradise via martyrdom. Yet in this case it seems it’s Khurosoni himself who has approved the 500 thousand ruble reward.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>After handler Buriyev relayed the instructions, the commando sent the <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">bayat</em> – the ISIS pledge of allegiance – to Khurosoni. Ukraine may not have been their final destination. Another foreign intel connection – not identified by FSB sources – would have sent them to Turkey, and then Afghanistan.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>That’s exactly where Khurosoni is to be found. Khurosoni may have been the ideological mastermind of Crocus. But, crucially, he’s not the client.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: center;">T<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bolder;">he Ukrainian love affair with terror gangs</span></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Ukrainian intel, SBU and GUR, have been using the “Islamic” terror galaxy as they please since the first Chechnya war in the mid-1990s. Milley and Nuland of course knew it, as there were serious rifts in the past, for instance, between GUR and the CIA.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Following the symbiosis of any Ukrainian government post-1991 with assorted terror/jihadi outfits, Kiev post-Maidan turbo-charged these connections especially with Idlib gangs, as well as north Caucasus outfits, from the Chechen Shishani to ISIS in Syria and then ISIS-K. GUR routinely aims to recruit ISIS and ISIS-K denizens via online chat rooms. Exactly the modus operandi that led to Crocus.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">One “Azan” association, founded in 2017 by Anvar Derkach, a member of the Hizb ut-Tahrir, <b>actually facilitates terrorist life in Ukraine, Tatars from Crimea included – from lodging to juridical assistance.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The FSB investigation is establishing a trail: Crocus was planned by pros – and certainly not by a bunch of low-IQ Tajik dregs. Not by ISIS-K, but by GUR. A classic false flag, with the clueless Tajiks under the impression that they were working for ISIS-K.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The FSB investigation is also unveiling the standard modus operandi of online terror, everywhere. A recruiter focuses on a specific profile; adapts himself to the candidate, especially his – low – IQ; provides him with the minimum necessary for a job; then the candidate/executor become disposable.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Everyone in Russia remembers that during the first attack on the Crimea bridge, the driver of the kamikaze truck was blissfully unaware of what he was carrying,</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>As for ISIS, everyone seriously following West Asia knows that’s a gigantic diversionist scam, complete with the Americans transferring ISIS operatives from the Al-Tanf base to the eastern Euphrates, and then to Afghanistan after the Hegemon’s humiliating “withdrawal”. Project ISIS-K actually started in 2021, after it became pointless to use ISIS goons imported from Syria to block the relentless progress of the Taliban.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">Ace Russian war correspondent Marat Khairullin has added another juicy morsel to this funky salad:<b> he convincingly <a href="https://www.moonofalabama.org/2024/03/the-moa-week-in-review-ot-2024-087.html#comment-6a00d8341c640e53ef02c8d3aeae93200d" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #b22a39; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">unveils the MI6 angle</a> in the Crocus City Hall terror attack (in English here, in two parts, posted by “S”).</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The FSB is right in the middle of the painstaking process of cracking most, if not all ISIS-K-CIA/MI6 connections. Once it’s all established, there will be hell to pay.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;">But that won’t be the end of the story.<b> Countless terror networks are not controlled by Western intel – although they will work with Western intel via middlemen, usually Salafist “preachers” who deal with Saudi/Gulf intel agencies.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>The case of the CIA flying “black” helicopters to extract jihadists from Syria and drop them in Afghanistan is more like an exception – in terms of direct contact – than the norm. So the FSB and the Kremlin will be very careful when it comes to directly accusing the CIA and MI6 of managing these networks.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>But even with plausible deniability, the Crocus investigation seems to be leading exactly to where Moscow wants it: uncovering the crucial middleman. And everything seems to be pointing to Budanov and his goons.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>Ramzan Kadyrov dropped an extra clue. He said the Crocus “curators” chose on purpose to instrumentalize elements of an ethnic minority – Tajiks – who barely speak Russian to open up new wounds in a multinational nation where dozens of ethnicities live side by side for centuries.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><b>In the end, it didn’t work. The Russian population has handed to the Kremlin total carte blanche to exercise brutal, maximum punishment – whatever and wherever it takes.</b></p><p style="background-color: #f2f2f2; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 25px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #272727; font-family: PTSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://strategic-culture.su/news/2024/03/26/the-nuland-budanov-tajik-crocus-connection/</b></span></span></p>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-7570842346921311172024-03-29T02:53:00.000+05:302024-03-29T02:53:32.437+05:30Ukraine’s Survival Hangs in the Balance <p> </p><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_title et_pb_post_title_1_tb_body et_pb_bg_layout_light et_pb_text_align_left" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 9px 9px 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 27px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px !important; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="et_pb_title_container" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; z-index: 98;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(0, 0, 0) !important; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif;">by</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif;"> </span><span class="author vcard" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://ronpaulinstitute.org/author/melkulangara-bhadrakumar/" itemprop="author" itemscope="itemscope" itemtype="https://schema.org/Person" rel="author" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(27, 54, 100) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Posts by Melkulangara Bhadrakumar">Melkulangara Bhadrakumar</a></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;">|</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;"> </span><span class="published" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Mar 28, 2024</span></h1></div></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_image et_pb_image_0_tb_body" id="featured-image-fix" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; line-height: 0; margin: 0px auto 9.79167px 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="et_pb_image_wrap " style="background: transparent; border: 0px solid rgb(51, 51, 51); box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-24571 entered lazyloaded" data-lazy-sizes="(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) 768px, 100vw" data-lazy-src="https://37adff4a.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Moscow-crocus-city-hall.jpg" data-lazy-srcset="https://37adff4a.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Moscow-crocus-city-hall.jpg 768w, https://37adff4a.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Moscow-crocus-city-hall-480x323.jpg 480w" data-ll-status="loaded" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" height="516" sizes="(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) 768px, 100vw" src="https://37adff4a.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Moscow-crocus-city-hall.jpg" srcset="https://37adff4a.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Moscow-crocus-city-hall.jpg 768w, https://37adff4a.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Moscow-crocus-city-hall-480x323.jpg 480w" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Moscow crocus city hall" width="768" /></span></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_content et_pb_post_content_0_tb_body" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 0px !important; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 9.79167px; outline: 0px; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">A controversy arose needlessly over the advisory issued by the American embassy in Moscow on March 7 to the effect that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts” and warning US citizens to “avoid large gatherings.” It took the form of a diplomatic spat and momentarily at least, the American claim that they shared the ‘information’ with the Russians hinted at the ineptness of the security agencies in Moscow while the latter hit back saying there was nothing specific or actionable that the Americans conveyed. </p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Clearly, Washington was in possession of some information which was at the very least credible enough in terms of its source but was not specific enough for Moscow. Interestingly, the UK embassy in Moscow also issued a similar advisory cautioning British citizens against visiting shopping centres. The US and British intelligence agencies work in tandem. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>However, in a strange pre-emptive move, as it were, the State Department also scrambled within two hours of the horrific attack on the mall in Moscow’s Crocus City Hall on March 22 with a statement declaring that Ukraine was not responsible for the attack. The US’s European allies also began parroting the same line. As can be expected, the Americans got a head start in the propaganda war and that in turn enabled them to craft a narrative — also in real time — naming the Islamic State as the culprit in the horrific crime. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Yet, the very next day, President Vladimir Putin went on to reveal in his address to the nation that what happened was “a premeditated and organised mass murder of peaceful, defenceless people,” harking back to the Nazis “to stage a demonstrative execution, a bloody act of intimidation.”</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Importantly,<b> Putin disclosed that the perpetrators “attempted to escape and were heading towards Ukraine, where, according to preliminary information, a window was prepared for them on the Ukrainian side to cross the state border.” But he stopped short of finger-pointing as the investigation was a work in progress. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">That is to say,<b> from Putin’s disclosure, it appears that the perpetrators’ mentors / handlers gave them instructions to exit Russian territory after their mission by using a particular route for border crossing into Ukraine where they were expected by people on the Ukrainian side of the border. What now remains in the realm of the ‘known unknown’ is really about the chain of command. This is the first thing.</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Second, <b>a storyline has been propagated by Washington that this was an ISIS attack. Indeed, it has been effectively propagated by the western media and was intended as a red herring to confuse dumb-witted folks abroad. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">However, <b>in reality, the perpetrators did not behave like ISIS killers on suicide missions who would have sought martyrdom but in this case behaved like fugitives on the run. Nor were they answering the call of ‘jihad’. They were reportedly ethnic Tajiks who admitted that they were hirelings lured by the money in it. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The expert opinion from released videos is also that their movements inside the mall did not show battle skills attributed to well-trained fighters, and they had ‘poor muzzle discipline’, which means they had only minimal rifle training. In sum, theirs was quintessentially an act of motiveless malignity — that is, except the money part. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">That said, <b>the US military has been ‘retooling’ erstwhile ISIS fighters lately. Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) alleged in a statement on February 13 that the US was recruiting the jihadist fighters to carry out terrorist attacks on the territory of Russia and the CIS countries.</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The statement said,<b> “Sixty such terrorists with combat experience in the Middle East were selected this year in January… they are undergoing a fast-track training course at the US base in Syria’s Al-Tanf, where they are being taught how to make and use improvised explosive devices, as well as subversive methods. Particular emphasis is paid to planning attacks on heavily guarded facilities, including foreign diplomatic missions… In the near future, there are plans to deploy militants in small groups to the territory of Russia and the CIS countries.”</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">The SVR also noted that “<b>special attention was paid to the involvement of natives of the Russian North Caucasus and Central Asia.”</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Significantly,<b> on March 26, Alexander Bortnikov, Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) said in an interview with Rossiya TV channel that from the interrogation of the detainees so far, there is a political background to the incident. He said radical Islamists alone could not prepare such an action on their own, they were assisted from the outside.</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Bortnikov stated: “<b>The primary data that we received from the detainees confirm this. Therefore, we will continue to refine the information that should show us whether the participation of the Ukrainian side is real or not. But in any case, so far there is every reason to say that this is exactly the case. Since the bandits themselves intended to go abroad, it was to the territory of Ukraine, according to our preliminary operational information, they were waiting there.” </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Bortnikov added that <b>the terrorist attack had the support of not only the special services of Ukraine, but countries such as Britain and the United States are also behind the massacre. According to him, the prime mover of the incident has not yet been identified, and the threat of a terrorist act in Russia still persists. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Bortnikov’s remarks hint at a classic predicament: Russia possesses evidence of Ukrainian involvement but no ‘proof’ remains inadequate as yet. This is a predicament that countries often face in countering the cross-border terrorism, especially when it happens to be state-sponsored terrorism. Of course, no amount of evidence will be accepted as proof by the adversary ultimately — while in Ukraine’s case, often there is an eagerness to claim credit for bleeding Russia by staging operations on its soil, such as assassinations. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>As for the US or the UK, Russians assess that without intelligence inputs, satellite imagery, and even logistical backing by the western powers, Ukraine does not have the capability to undertake operations deep inside Russia or the sort of complex attacks targeting Russian war ships of the Black Sea Fleet. But the western powers are invariably in a denial mode when confronted with such accusations by Russia. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>There is no question that the Crocus City Hall attack will have profound geopolitical consequences and will impact the trajectory of the Ukraine war. The incident has rallied world sympathy massively for Russia. It is a huge challenge of statecraft now for Putin to act decisively, as the Russian public will expect, to completely uproot the dark forces entrenched next-door. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Conceivably, that may involve Moscow shaking up the very foundations of the house that Washington built in Kiev after the 2014 coup. The New York Times recently disclosed that the CIA keeps a string of intelligence outposts all along the Ukraine-Russia border regions. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Make no mistake, the US is determined to hold on to the extensive infrastructure it created in Ukraine to mount covert operations and destabilise Russia, no matter what it takes. The bottom line in the western strategy is to weaken Russia and prevent it from playing an adversarial role on the global stage. </b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">TS Eliot’s lines from the play Murder in the Cathedral come to mind<b>: ‘What peace can be found / To grow between the hammer and the anvil?’</b> The war is slated to escalate dramatically <b>and it is a matter of time before western combat deployment takes place in Ukraine to salvage that country’s residual potential as a frontline state for NATO in the proxy war against Russia. On their part, Russia may have no alternative but to seek a total military victory. The multi-layered Russian reaction will unfold depending on the outcome of the ongoing investigation.</b></p><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Reprinted with permission from <a data-id="https://www.indianpunchline.com/ukraines-survival-hangs-in-the-balance/" data-type="link" href="https://www.indianpunchline.com/ukraines-survival-hangs-in-the-balance/" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Indian Punchline</a>.</em></p><div class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-wrapper pp-multiple-authors-wrapper pp-multiple-authors-layout-boxed multiple-authors-target-the-content box-post-id-20020 box-instance-id-1 ppma_boxes_20020" data-additional_class="pp-multiple-authors-layout-boxed.multiple-authors-target-the-content" data-instance_id="1" data-original_class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-wrapper pp-multiple-authors-wrapper box-post-id-20020 box-instance-id-1" data-post_id="20020" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 27px 0px 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><h2 class="widget-title box-header-title" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Author</h2><span style="color: #212121; font-family: Open Sans, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif;"><span class="ppma-layout-prefix" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-style: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span><div class="ppma-author-category-wrap" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="ppma-category-group ppma-category-group-" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><ul class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-ul" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 23px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-li author_index_0 author_melkulangara-bhadrakumar has-avatar" style="background: transparent; border-color: rgb(153, 153, 153); border-image: initial; border-style: solid !important; border-width: 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(60, 67, 74) !important; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 1em; min-height: 120px; outline: 0px; padding: 1.5em; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="pp-author-boxes-avatar" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; flex: 0 0 110px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="Melkulangara Bhadrakumar" class="avatar avatar-80 photo entered lazyloaded" data-lazy-src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1acea8d13a47882823e3ac58fb1bf47f?s=80&d=mm&r=g" data-lazy-srcset="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1acea8d13a47882823e3ac58fb1bf47f?s=160&d=mm&r=g 2x" data-ll-status="loaded" height="80" src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1acea8d13a47882823e3ac58fb1bf47f?s=80&d=mm&r=g" srcset="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/1acea8d13a47882823e3ac58fb1bf47f?s=160&d=mm&r=g 2x" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-radius: 50% !important; border-style: none !important; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: 80px !important; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 80px !important;" width="80" /></div><div class="pp-author-boxes-avatar-details" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; flex: 1 1 0%; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="pp-author-boxes-name multiple-authors-name" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="author url fn" href="https://ronpaulinstitute.org/author/melkulangara-bhadrakumar/" rel="author" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; font-size: 1.2em; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Melkulangara Bhadrakumar">Melkulangara Bhadrakumar</a></div><p class="pp-author-boxes-description multiple-authors-description" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 10px 0px 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Former career diplomat in the Indian Foreign Service. Devoted much of his 3-decade long career to the Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran desks in the Ministry of External Affairs and in assignments on the territory of the former Soviet Union. After leaving the diplomatic service, took to writing and contribute to The Asia Times, The Hindu and Deccan Herald. Lives in New Delhi.</p></div></li><li class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-li author_index_0 author_melkulangara-bhadrakumar has-avatar" style="background: transparent; border-color: rgb(153, 153, 153); border-image: initial; border-style: solid !important; border-width: 1px; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 1em; min-height: 120px; outline: 0px; padding: 1.5em; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p class="pp-author-boxes-description multiple-authors-description" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 10px 0px 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #3c434a; font-family: Open Sans, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><b>https://ronpaulinstitute.org/ukraines-survival-hangs-in-the-balance/</b></span></span></p></li></ul></span></div></div></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-89121432252245036612024-03-29T02:30:00.005+05:302024-03-29T02:30:53.116+05:30‘Hell No, We Won’t Go!’ – Most Americans Would Not Serve If War Broke Out<p> </p><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_title et_pb_post_title_1_tb_body et_pb_bg_layout_light et_pb_text_align_left" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 9px 9px 0px 0px; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 27px !important; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px !important; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="et_pb_title_container" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; z-index: 98;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(0, 0, 0) !important; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 22px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;">by</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;"> </span><span class="author vcard" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://ronpaulinstitute.org/author/daniel-mcadams/" itemprop="author" itemscope="itemscope" itemtype="https://schema.org/Person" rel="author" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(27, 54, 100) !important; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Posts by Daniel McAdams">Daniel McAdams</a></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;">|</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px;"> </span><span class="published" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Mar 28, 2024</span></h1></div></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_image et_pb_image_0_tb_body" id="featured-image-fix" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; line-height: 0; margin: 0px auto 9.79167px 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="et_pb_image_wrap " style="background: transparent; border: 0px solid rgb(51, 51, 51); box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></div><div class="et_pb_module et_pb_post_content et_pb_post_content_0_tb_body" style="animation-duration: 0.2s; animation-timing-function: linear; background: 50% center / cover no-repeat rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 0px !important; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 9.79167px; outline: 0px; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">According to a new YouGov poll, the majority of Americans of military age would refuse to fight if a major global conflagration broke out including the United States. What does this say about our foreign policy and US future? Also today: Rep. Massie exposes cattle-tagging tyranny. Finally: Texas Governor declares war…on the First Amendment!</p><div id="rumble_v4jhefw" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div allowfullscreen="" class="rumble_v4jhefw-Rumble-cls" id="vid_v4jhefw" style="background: rgb(0, 0, 0); border: none; box-sizing: content-box; clear: both; color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; height: 360px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; opacity: 1; outline: none; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-size-adjust: auto; vertical-align: baseline; 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border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 27px 0px 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><h2 class="widget-title box-header-title" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #212121; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Author</h2><span style="color: #212121; font-family: Open Sans, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif;"><span class="ppma-layout-prefix" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-style: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 17px; margin: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span><div class="ppma-author-category-wrap" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="ppma-category-group ppma-category-group-" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><ul class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-ul" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 23px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-li author_index_0 author_daniel-mcadams has-avatar" style="background: transparent; border-color: rgb(153, 153, 153); border-image: initial; border-style: solid !important; border-width: 1px; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(60, 67, 74) !important; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 1em; min-height: 120px; outline: 0px; padding: 1.5em; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="pp-author-boxes-avatar" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; flex: 0 0 110px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="Daniel McAdams" class="avatar avatar-80 photo entered lazyloaded" data-lazy-src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/aa3194f5476240ac89439744ec768ded?s=80&d=mm&r=g" data-lazy-srcset="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/aa3194f5476240ac89439744ec768ded?s=160&d=mm&r=g 2x" data-ll-status="loaded" height="80" src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/aa3194f5476240ac89439744ec768ded?s=80&d=mm&r=g" srcset="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/aa3194f5476240ac89439744ec768ded?s=160&d=mm&r=g 2x" style="background: transparent; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-radius: 50% !important; border-style: none !important; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; height: 80px !important; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 80px !important;" width="80" /></div><div class="pp-author-boxes-avatar-details" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; flex: 1 1 0%; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="pp-author-boxes-name multiple-authors-name" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="author url fn" href="https://ronpaulinstitute.org/author/daniel-mcadams/" rel="author" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1b3664; font-size: 1.2em; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Daniel McAdams">Daniel McAdams</a></div><p class="pp-author-boxes-description multiple-authors-description" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 10px 0px 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;">Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity and co-Producer/co-Host, Ron Paul Liberty Report. Daniel served as the foreign affairs, civil liberties, and defense/intel policy advisor to U.S. Congressman Ron Paul, MD (R-Texas) from 2001 until Dr. Paul’s retirement at the end of 2012. From 1993-1999 he worked as a journalist based in Budapest, Hungary, and traveled through the former communist bloc as a human rights monitor and election observer.</p></div></li><li class="pp-multiple-authors-boxes-li author_index_0 author_daniel-mcadams has-avatar" style="background: transparent; border-color: rgb(153, 153, 153); border-image: initial; border-style: solid !important; border-width: 1px; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 1em; min-height: 120px; outline: 0px; padding: 1.5em; position: relative; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><p class="pp-author-boxes-description multiple-authors-description" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 10px 0px 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 1em; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #3c434a; font-family: Open Sans, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><b>https://ronpaulinstitute.org/hell-no-we-wont-go-most-americans-would-not-serve-if-war-broke-out/</b></span></span></p></li></ul></span></div></div></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-49013074669489242302024-03-29T02:10:00.005+05:302024-03-29T02:10:49.926+05:30Connor Freeman with Judge Napolitano on Gaza, Moscow, and Kiev’s Neo Nazi Partners<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><br />by Eric Garris<span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span></h1></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Posted on</span><a href="https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/28/connor-freeman-with-judge-napolitano-on-gaza-moscow-and-kievs-neo-nazi-partners/" rel="bookmark" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;"><time class="entry-date published updated" datetime="2024-03-28T06:01:50-08:00" style="box-sizing: inherit;">March 28, 2024</time></a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="background-color: white; border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">In his second interview with Judge Andrew Napolitano, Libertarian Institute and Antiwar.com assistant editor Connor Freeman discusses the Israelis’ genocide in Gaza, the recent terror attack on the concert hall in Moscow, and Kiev’s Neo Nazi partners attacking Russian civilians.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3wkO-kunM4M?si=DeHaKFriDNsD5roi" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><b>https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2024/03/28/connor-freeman-with-judge-napolitano-on-gaza-moscow-and-kievs-neo-nazi-partners/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-23999912449640689212024-03-29T02:08:00.004+05:302024-03-29T02:08:40.786+05:30Russia ‘unaware’ US hid details of Moscow terror plot – Kremlin<p> </p><h1 class="article__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 46px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #6e6e6e; font-size: 27px;">The New York Times reported that the lack of trust between the two countries prevented the latter from disclosing information on a possible attack in Russia</span></h1><div class="article__cover article__cover-left" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 12.5013px; margin: 0px 20px 30px 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Russia ‘unaware’ US hid details of Moscow terror plot – Kremlin" class="media__item lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66059355203027557f5f565a.jpg" sizes="457px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66059355203027557f5f565a.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 456.756px;" /></picture></div><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.28571em; margin: 10px 0px 0.714286em; padding: 0px;"><span data-role="title" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">A view shows the burnt-out Crocus City Hall following a deadly attack on the concert venue outside Moscow, Russia. </span><span data-role="copyright-symbol" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">© </span><span data-role="copyright" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Sputnik / Kirill Kallinikov</span></div></div></div><div class="article__text text " style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The Russian authorities know nothing about Washington’s alleged failure to share information on the threat of a terrorist attack in Moscow, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at a press briefing on Thursday.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Peskov’s statement came in response to an article by The New York Times, which, citing anonymous sources, claimed that the <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“adversarial relationship”</em> between Washington and Moscow prevented US officials from sharing full intelligence about the terror plot.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Earlier in March, the US embassy in Moscow sent a warning to US citizens living in Russia that an attack was possible, while also sending a non-public message with a similar warning to Russian security officials.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">On March 22, four gunmen stormed Crocus City Hall concert venue just outside Moscow. <b>The attack and the ensuing fire killed over 140 people.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Asked whether the Russian authorities were aware that the US did not disclose full information on the incident beforehand, Peskov said <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“no, we are not aware of that”</em> and suggested that reports citing unconfirmed sources, as in the case with the NYT, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“must be treated with great caution.”</em></b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">The gunmen responsible for the massacre were apprehended hours after the attack in a Russian region bordering Ukraine. They had allegedly been recruited through an online chat operated on behalf of ISIS-K, an Afghanistan-based offshoot of the terrorist organization Islamic State.</p><div class="read-more read-more__right" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: right; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 0px 20px 3em; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/news/595059-us-intelligence-crocus-nyt/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="US didn’t share full intelligence on Moscow terror attack – NYT" class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/660565fe85f54021a56d305e.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/660565fe85f54021a56d305e.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><span class="read-more__footer_small" style="background: linear-gradient(0deg, rgb(0, 0, 0), transparent); bottom: 10px; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; padding: 10px; position: absolute;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">READ MORE: </span>US didn’t share full intelligence on Moscow terror attack – NYT</span></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Shortly after the incident, the US claimed that the group was responsible. However, the investigation is still ongoing, and Russian officials have been arguing that another party, such as Kiev, may have been behind the plot.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Speaking to the Russian news outlet Izvestia earlier this week, <b>Peskov called Washington’s insistence that Ukraine had nothing to do with the attack and that ISIS-K was the sole culprit <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“strange,”</em> especially as these claims were voiced before Moscow had outlined an official version of events.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“This suggests at the very least that they are trying to shift attention away from something,”</em> Peskov noted.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Archivo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.rt.com/russia/595061-russia-us-terror-plot-details/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-91954796556412966052024-03-29T02:06:00.006+05:302024-03-29T02:06:53.311+05:30Investigators establish link between Moscow terrorist attack suspects and Ukrainian nationalists<p> </p><h1 class="article__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 46px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #6e6e6e; font-size: 27px;">Large sums of money were transferred to the Crocus City Hall attackers from Ukraine, the Russian Investigative Committee has said</span></h1><div class="article__cover article__cover-left" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 12.5013px; margin: 0px 20px 30px 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Investigators establish link between Moscow terrorist attack suspects and Ukrainian nationalists" class="media__item lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66058b1985f54023fe02e789.jpg" sizes="457px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66058b1985f54023fe02e789.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 456.756px;" /></picture></div><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.28571em; margin: 10px 0px 0.714286em; padding: 0px;"><span data-role="copyright-symbol" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">© </span><span data-role="copyright" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Social media</span></div></div></div><div class="article__text text " style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The suspects in last week’s Moscow terrorist attack were linked to Ukrainian nationalists, the Russian Investigative Committee stated on Thursday, citing preliminary findings. The perpetrators had received <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“significant sums of money”</em> from Ukraine, the law enforcement agency said.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Investigators have obtained <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“substantiated evidence”</em> that the suspected assailants received funding from Ukraine in the form of cryptocurrency, which was then used to prepare the terrorist attack, the statement read.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Law enforcement officers have also identified and detained another suspect who was allegedly involved in financing the attack, the Investigative Committee said, without identifying the individual.</p><div class="read-more large read-more__right" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: right; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 0px 20px 3em; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/russia/595065-terrorist-attack-drugs-fear/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Moscow terror attack suspects were on drugs – media" class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/6605756585f54023fe02e752.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/6605756585f54023fe02e752.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><div class="read-more__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="read-more__title" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-weight: 700; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Read more</div> <span class="read-more__footer" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Moscow terror attack suspects were on drugs – media</span></div></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Earlier, the head of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), Aleksandr Bortnikov, told reporters tha<b>t the US, UK and Ukraine may have been behind the attack. The Ukrainians may have been preparing a <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“window”</em> for them to cross back over the border, the official said. <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“On the other side, they were to be welcomed as heroes,”</em> he added.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">The four suspected perpetrators had previously been identified as radical Islamists, recruited through an online chat apparently operated by the Afghanistan-based offshoot of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS).<b> However, the investigators said at that time that, despite the group’s claim of responsibility for the terrorist act, another party, such as a Ukrainian intelligence agency, may have been involved in the plot.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Last Friday, a group of men armed with assault rifles stormed the Crocus City Hall music venue in the Moscow suburb of Krasnogorsk, just before a concert by the rock band Picnic. The attack and a subsequent blaze started by the perpetrators claimed the lives of 140 people and injured some 200 others.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">The assailants were apprehended hours after the attack in Russia’s Bryansk Region, which borders Ukraine.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Archivo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.rt.com/russia/595075-moscow-crocus-attack-money-ukraine/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-243866385356073402024-03-29T02:00:00.004+05:302024-03-29T02:00:41.281+05:30Ukraine needs air defense to boost birth rate – Zelensky<p> </p><h1 class="article__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 46px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #6e6e6e; font-size: 27px;">More missiles and bomb shelters might motivate Ukrainians to have babies, the president has claimed</span></h1><div class="article__cover article__cover-left" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 12.5013px; margin: 0px 20px 30px 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Ukraine needs air defense to boost birth rate – Zelensky" class="media__item lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/660592e385f5402fd2744fd1.jpg" sizes="457px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/660592e385f5402fd2744fd1.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 456.756px;" /></picture></div><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.28571em; margin: 10px 0px 0.714286em; padding: 0px;"><span data-role="title" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky visits Sumy State University, March 28, 2024. </span><span data-role="copyright-symbol" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">© </span><span data-role="copyright" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Office of the President of Ukraine</span></div></div></div><div class="article__text text " style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Kiev needs more air defense systems to help Ukrainians have more children, President Vladimir Zelensky said on Thursday. Ukraine currently has the lowest fertility rate in the world.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span>The issue of demographics came up during Zelensky’s meeting with students in Sumy, a city near the border with Russia, when someone asked him if there were plans to financially support new parents.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“We need not only financial incentives, because in my opinion, finances help, but they do not stimulate birth itself during war,”</em> Zelensky said. <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“Help, yes. But as for births, it seems to me that it’s mainly a matter of security.”</em> </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The government should put air-raid shelters in schools and kindergartens, he added, as well as getting <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“the latest technologies when it comes to air defense”</em> from foreign partners, manufacture them domestically, and <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“inform the society about this.”</em> </b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span>Zelensky further argued that there would be a <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“baby boom”</em> after the conflict is over and millions of Ukrainians who left the country return from abroad <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“confident in a better tomorrow and the future of Ukraine.”</em></b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><a href="https://www.rt.com/russia/594691-russia-ukraine-energy-attack/" style="background: 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0a6aa6; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"></a></b></p><div class="read-more large read-more__right" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: right; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 0px 20px 3em; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/russia/594691-russia-ukraine-energy-attack/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><b><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source></b><img alt="Devastating Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure: What we know so far" class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/65fd99e720302730092e20b9.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/65fd99e720302730092e20b9.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><div class="read-more__text" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="read-more__title" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; font-weight: 700; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Read more</div> <span class="read-more__footer" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: black; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Devastating Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure: What we know so far</span></div></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Ukraine’s total fertility rate – the average number of babies per woman of child-bearing age – is currently 0.7, the lowest in the world. The country’s <a href="https://www.rt.com/russia/577546-ukraine-population-shrink-half/" style="background: 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0a6aa6; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;">demographics</a> have been further affected by a mass exodus to the West and significant casualties on the battlefield, to the point where the very survival of the nation is in question, a government-funded think tank told The Times earlier this year.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“Male life expectancy has decreased from 66-67 before the war to 57-58,”</em> said Ella Libanova, head of the Institute for Demography and Social Studies at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Only four African countries – Chad, Nigeria, Lesotho and the Central African Republic – have lower life expectancies.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span>Last June, the Ukrainian Institute for the Future (UIF) estimated that <b>only 29 million people remained in the country – down from 52 million in 1991</b>, when Ukraine declared independence. <b>These estimates also included residents of the regions that joined Russia. The number of Ukrainian refugees abroad has been estimated by the government at over six million. While Kiev has been hopeful that most of them would come back eventually, the UIF estimated that the majority had no interest in returning.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Archivo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.rt.com/russia/595077-zelensky-air-defense-babies/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-51279097411302502282024-03-28T15:41:00.002+05:302024-03-28T15:41:22.929+05:30Grim ‘diagnosis’ for German economy issued<p> </p><h1 class="article__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 46px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #6e6e6e; font-size: 27px;">GDP is now expected to grow by just 0.1% this year, leading economic think tanks say</span></h1><div class="article__cover article__cover-left" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 12.5013px; margin: 0px 20px 30px 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Grim ‘diagnosis’ for German economy issued" class="media__item lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66041b192030275dc656ef62.jpg" sizes="457px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/66041b192030275dc656ef62.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 456.756px;" /></picture></div><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.28571em; margin: 10px 0px 0.714286em; padding: 0px;"><span data-role="title" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">FILE PHOTO. </span><span data-role="copyright-symbol" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">© </span><span data-role="copyright" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Getty Images / JuergenBosse</span></div></div></div><div class="article__text text " style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>A group of leading German economic institutes have slashed growth forecasts for the EU’s top economy in 2024 to 0.1% from an earlier projection of 1.3%.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>In a <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“Joint Diagnosis”</em> report published on Wednesday, the think tanks attributed the downgrade to high interest rates, weak global demand, and political uncertainty, saying these factors had dented hopes of a stronger recovery.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">German economic output was barely higher than before the Covid-19 pandemic, as productivity has been at a standstill since then, the institutes said.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“Although a recovery is likely to set in from the spring, the overall momentum will not be too strong,”</em> said Stefan Kooths, head of economic research at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW).</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The economists now expect Germany’s gross domestic product (GDP) to increase by 1.4% in 2025, down from the 1.5% previously forecast.</b></p><div class="Read-more-text-only" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; float: right; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 700; margin: 10px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 761.27px;"><a href="https://www.rt.com/business/592440-german-economy-growth-slashed/" style="background: 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0a6aa6; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">READ MORE: </span>German growth forecast to be slashed – economy minister</a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“There have recently been more headwinds than tailwinds in the domestic and foreign economies,”</em> the report said.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Germany was the only G7 economy to contract last year as it struggled with the fallout from the energy crisis<b>. Official data shows the economy shrank by 0.3% year-on-year in 2023 under pressure from soaring inflation and higher interest rates, as well as general weakness in the global economy.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The latest data reveals that German exports had declined despite rising global economic activity, largely due to lower demand for capital and intermediate goods, which are important for Germany. Price competitiveness for energy-intensive goods has also suffered due to high electricity prices and the outsourcing of some production, the economists said.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Archivo, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>https://www.rt.com/business/595007-germany-economic-growth-downgrade/</b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-11827037897965315982024-03-28T15:30:00.003+05:302024-03-28T15:30:10.602+05:30Complicit in Genocide: Where Israel Gets Its Weapons From<p> </p><h1 class="headline" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; 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--tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; display: inline-block; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; line-height: 1.2em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 20px;"><a href="https://www.counterpunch.org/author/ramzy-baroud/" rel="nofollow" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; margin: 0px 0px 0px 1px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-transform: uppercase;">RAMZY BAROUD</a></span></span></h1><br /><div class="post_content" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 16.2711px; margin: 0px; max-width: 680px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;"><img alt="" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-317301" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" height="383" sizes="(max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px" src="https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-680x383.jpg" srcset="https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-680x383.jpg 680w, https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-1120x630.jpg 1120w, https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-768x432.jpg 768w, https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-500x281.jpg 500w, https://www.counterpunch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ph-m-nh-t-vJ4t5I67Ww4-unsplash-600x338.jpg 600w" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; border: 0px; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;" width="680" /><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Over 9,000 Palestinian women have been <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israel-has-killed-nearly-9-000-women-in-gaza-health-ministry/3158637" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">killed</a> since the start of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip. Mothers have been the largest share of Israeli killings, at an <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/mothers-day-overshadowed-by-tragedy-as-mothers-in-gaza-struggle-amid-war-fear/3171351#:~:text=Earlier%20on%20Thursday%2C%20the%20Palestinian,over%20the%20past%2017%20years." style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">average</a> of 37 mothers per day since October 7.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">The numbers above, from the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza and the Red Crescent Society respectively,<b> only convey part of the suffering experienced by 2.3 million Palestinians in the Strip.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>There is not a single section in Palestinian society that has not paid a heavy price for the war, although women and children are the ones who have suffered most, constituting over 70 percent of all victims of the ongoing Israeli genocide.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>True, these women and their children are killed at the hands of Israeli soldiers, but they are murdered with US-western <a href="https://thecradle.co/articles-id/24024" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">supplied</a> weapons.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Now, however, we are told that the world is finally turning against Israel, and that the west’s nod of approval to Tel Aviv to carry on with its daily massacres may soon turn into a collective snub.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">This claim was expressed best in the March 23 <a href="https://www.economist.com/weeklyedition/2024-03-23" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">cover</a> of the Economist magazine.<b> It showed a tattered Israeli flag, attached to a stick, and planted in an arid, dusty land. It was accompanied by the headline “Israel Alone”.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>The image, undoubtedly expressive, was meant to serve as a sign of the times. Its profundity becomes even more obvious if compared to another cover, from the same publication soon after the Israeli military conquered massive Arab territories in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Six-Day-War" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">war</a> of June 1967. “They did it,” the <a href="https://www.thetower.org/3454-they-did-it-how-the-economist-reported-israels-1967-victory/" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">headline</a>, back then, read. In the background, an Israeli military tank was pictured, illustrating the west-funded Israeli triumph.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">Between the two headlines much, in the world and in the Middle East, has changed<b>. But to claim that Israel now stands alone is not entirely accurate, at least not yet.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Though many of Israel’s traditional allies in the west are openly disowning its behavior in Gaza, weapons from various western and non-western countries <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/18/the-west-is-giving-israel-weapons-while-discussing-delivering-aid-to-gaza" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">continue</a> to flow, feeding the war machine as it, in turn, continues to harvest more Palestinian lives.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">This compels the question: <b>Does Israel truly stand alone when its airports and seaports are busier than ever receiving massive shipments of weapons coming from all directions? Not in the least.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Almost every time a western country announces that it has suspended arms exports to Israel, a news headline appears shortly afterwards, indicating the opposite. Indeed, this has happened repeatedly.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">Last year, Rome had declared that it was blocking all arms sales to Israel, giving false hope that some western countries are finally experiencing some kind of moral awakening.</p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Alas, on March 14, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/italy-arms-exports-israel-continued-despite-block-minister-says-2024-03-14/#:~:text=ROME%2C%20March%2014%20(Reuters),invasion%20of%20the%20Gaza%20Strip." style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">quoted</a> the Italian Defense Minister, Guido Crosetto as saying that shipments of weapons to Israel are continuing, based on the flimsy logic that previously signed deals would have to be ‘honored’.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Another country that is also ‘honoring’ its previous commitments is Canada, which announced on May 19, following a parliamentary motion that it had <a href="https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/americas/artc-canada-announces-cease-in-arms-exports-to-israel-after-parliamentary-motion" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">suspended</a> arms exports.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>The celebration among those advocating an end to the genocide in Gaza were just getting started when, a day later, Ottawa practically reversed the decision by <a href="https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel-at-war/artc-canada-to-honor-existing-military-contracts-to-israel#:~:text=Canada%20to%20honor%20existing%20military%20contracts%20to%20Israel%20%2D%20report,-Ottowa%20earlier%20passed&text=Canadian%20Foreign%20Minister%20M%C3%A9lanie%20Joly,exports%20of%20arms%20to%20Israel." style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">announcing</a> that it, too, will honor previous commitments.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>This illustrates that some western countries, which continue to impart their unsolicited wisdom about human rights, women’s rights and democracy on the rest of the world, have no genuine respect for any of these values.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">Canada and Italy are not the largest military supporters of Israel. <b>The US and Germany are.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute<b>, in the decade between 2013 and 2022, Israel has <a href="https://www.sipri.org/databases/armstransfers" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">received</a> 68 percent of its weapons from the US and 28 percent from Germany.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>The Germans remain unperturbed, even though five percent of the total population of Gaza has been killed, wounded or are missing due to the Israeli war.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Yet, the American support for Israel is far greater, although the Biden Administration is still sending messages to its constituency – majority of whom <a href="https://responsiblestatecraft.org/gaza-ceasefire/" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">want</a> the war to stop – that the president is doing his best to pressure Israel to end the war.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Though only two approved military sales to Israel have been announced publicly since October 7, the two shipments represent only 2 percent from the total US arms sent to Israel.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">The news was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/03/06/us-weapons-israel-gaza/" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">revealed</a> by the Washington Post on March 6. It was published at a time when US media was reporting on a widening rift between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.</p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>“That’s an extraordinary number of sales over the course of a pretty short amount of time,” a former senior Biden Administration official told the Post. Jeremy Konyndyk reached the obvious conclusion that the “Israeli campaign would not be sustainable without this level of U.S. support”.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>For decades, the US military support to Israel has been the <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/history-us-support-israel-runs-deep-growing-chorus/story?id=104957109" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">highest</a> anywhere in the world. Starting 2016, this unconditional support exponentially increased during the Obama Administration to reach $3.8 billion per year.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;">Immediately after October 7, however,<b> the weapons shipments to Israel reached unprecedented levels. They included a 2,000-pound bomb known as 5,000 MK-84 munitions. Israel has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/21/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-bomb-investigation.html" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">used</a> this bomb to kill hundreds of innocent Palestinians.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>Though Washington frequently alleges to be looking into Israel’s use of its weapons, it turned out, according to the Washington Post, that Biden <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/18/biden-israel-gaza-rafah-palestinians/#:~:text=On%20Oct.%2027%2C%20three%20weeks,they%20were%20legitimate%20military%20targets." style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #333333; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">knew</a> too well that “Israel was regularly bombing buildings without solid intelligence that they were legitimate military targets”.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>In some ways, Israel ‘stands alone’, but only because its behavior is rejected by most countries and peoples around the world. However, it is hardly alone when its war crimes are being executed with western support and arms.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b>For the Israeli genocide in Gaza to end, those who continue to sustain the ongoing bloodbath must also be held accountable.</b></p><p style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><br /></p></div><div style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 16.2711px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;"><p class="author_description" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-family: SSit; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; max-width: 680px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><em style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;"><b>Ramzy Baroud </b>is a journalist and the Editor of The Palestine Chronicle. He is the author of five books. His latest is “</em><a href="https://www.amazon.com/These-Chains-Will-Broken-Palestinian/dp/1949762092" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #dd0000; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"><em style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">These Chains Will Be Broken</em></a><em style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">: Palestinian Stories of Struggle and Defiance in Israeli Prisons” (Clarity Press, Atlanta). Dr. Baroud is a Non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs (CIGA), Istanbul Zaim University (IZU). His website is </em><a href="http://www.ramzybaroud.net/" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #dd0000; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;"><em style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px;">www.ramzybaroud.net</em></a> </p><p class="author_description" style="--tw-border-spacing-x: 0; --tw-border-spacing-y: 0; --tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: #111111; font-family: SSit; font-size: 1.125em; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px; max-width: 680px; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px 0px 1em;"><b> https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/03/28/complicit-in-genocide-where-israel-gets-its-weapons-from/</b></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-45823901714200623452024-03-28T15:00:00.002+05:302024-03-28T15:00:23.571+05:30No ‘unfriendly nations’ for Russia, only ‘unfriendly elites’ – Putin<p> </p><p><br /></p><h1 class="article__heading" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 46px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #6e6e6e; font-size: 27px;">Unlike the West, Moscow will never “cancel” any foreign culture</span></h1><div class="article__cover article__cover-left" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 12.5013px; margin: 0px 20px 30px 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="No ‘unfriendly nations’ for Russia, only ‘unfriendly elites’ – Putin" class="media__item lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/660476df85f54022e7777ace.jpg" sizes="457px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2024.03/xxs/660476df85f54022e7777ace.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 456.756px;" /></picture></div><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 456.756px;"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.28571em; margin: 10px 0px 0.714286em; padding: 0px;"><span data-role="title" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Russian President Vladimir Putin meets artists in Tver Region, Russia, March 27, 2024. </span><span data-role="copyright-symbol" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">© </span><span data-role="copyright" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Sputnik / Mikhail Mettsel</span></div></div></div><div class="article__text text " style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; padding: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Russia has no intention of canceling any country’s culture, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday during a working trip to Tver Region. Moscow understands the difference between the people and the elites, and respects every nation’s culture, and also considers its own to be part of the world’s heritage, he explained.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The president was talking to regional artists when the issue of attempts to <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“cancel”</em> Russian culture by some Western nations was raised. According to Putin, Moscow has no plans to respond in kind.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b><em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“We do not have any unfriendly nations, we have unfriendly elites in those nations,”</em> the president said, adding that the Russian government <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“has never tried to cancel”</em> any foreign artists or cultural performances. <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“On the contrary, we believe Russian culture to be a part of the global culture and we take pride [in this].”</em></b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The Russian authorities seek to take the global cultural context into account and <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“exclude nothing,”</em> he continued. Those seeking to abolish the culture of a nation inhabited by 190 million people are <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“not wise,”</em> the president said, referring to Western steps during the Ukraine conflict.</b></p><div class="read-more read-more__right" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: right; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 0px 20px 3em; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/pop-culture/575117-italian-president-russian-culture/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="Canceling Russian culture is a mistake – Italian president" class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.04/xxs/6442606585f5403ac47b1424.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.04/xxs/6442606585f5403ac47b1424.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><span class="read-more__footer_small" style="background: linear-gradient(0deg, rgb(0, 0, 0), transparent); bottom: 10px; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; padding: 10px; position: absolute;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">READ MORE: </span>Canceling Russian culture is a mistake – Italian president</span></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Western nations have repeatedly sought to ban performances by Russian artists and musicians, as well as those deemed supportive of Moscow. Most recently, renowned Italian singer Enzo Ghinazzi, best known as Pupo, had an upcoming performance in Lithuania canceled over a concert he gave at the Kremlin in March.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">Pupo arrived in Russia to <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“convey the message that peace will return to the world,”</em> he told TASS at the time. He also argued against<b> an <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“embargo of any people’s culture,”</em> calling this stance <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“wrong.”</em> The Lithuanian venue set to host his performance subsequently announced that it was being canceled, calling it <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“good news”</em> for those opposed to Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Earlier the same month, South Korea canceled a series of performances by Svetlana Zakharova, a renowned ballerina from Russia’s Bolshoi Theatre, after Ukraine expressed anger over the planned events.</b></p><div class="read-more" data-has-alias="" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; float: left; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 0.666667em; margin: 10px 3em 20px 0px; max-width: 330px; min-width: 280px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 304.504px;"><a class="read-more__link" href="https://www.rt.com/news/581823-scholz-russian-artists-ban/" style="background: 0px 0px; border: none !important; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 18px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><picture style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><source data-srcset="
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" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></source><img alt="No need to ban Russian artists – Scholz " class="read-more__cover lazyautosizes lazyloaded" data-sizes="auto" data-src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.08/xxs/64e8ac0985f54035256351b5.jpg" sizes="305px" src="https://mf.b37mrtl.ru/files/2023.08/xxs/64e8ac0985f54035256351b5.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1; padding: 0px; transition: opacity 300ms ease 0s; width: 304.504px;" /></picture><span class="read-more__footer_small" style="background: linear-gradient(0deg, rgb(0, 0, 0), transparent); bottom: 10px; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; padding: 10px; position: absolute;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">READ MORE: </span>No need to ban Russian artists – Scholz </span></a></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>Many Western cultural institutions have sought to completely remove Russian-linked works from their galleries and theaters after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine broke out in February 2022.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><b>The Cardiff Philharmonic Orchestra in Wales dropped the music of composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky from a concert, Britain’s Royal Opera House canceled a tour by the Bolshoi Ballet, and New York’s Carnegie Hall and Metropolitan Opera have stopped allowing most Russian musicians and organizations to perform.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Archivo, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;">The campaign has reached such a fever pitch that it has drawn criticism from some Western leaders. I<b>n April 2023, Italian President Sergio Mattarella called it a <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“mistaken gesture.”</em> In August of the same year, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz argued against such moves, calling Russian culture part of <em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“our common European history.”</em></b></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Archivo, sans-serif;"><b><i>https://www.rt.com/russia/595028-no-unfriendly-nations-russia/</i></b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1057055901192558113.post-59629108825680182592024-03-28T14:41:00.002+05:302024-03-28T14:41:25.861+05:30Gaza War Is Pushing Support for Israel to Historic Lows<p> </p><header class="entry-header" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.7em; hyphens: none; line-height: 1.27273; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><br />by <a class="author url fn" href="https://original.antiwar.com/author/rep-john-j-duncan-jr/" rel="author" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Posts by Rep. John J. Duncan, Jr.">Rep. John J. Duncan, Jr.</a><span style="color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem;"> </span></h1></header><footer class="entry-footer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; font-family: Montserrat, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; line-height: 1.61538; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><span class="posted-on" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute !important; width: 1px;">Posted on</span><a href="https://original.antiwar.com/rep-john-j-duncan-jr/2024/03/27/gaza-war-is-pushing-support-for-israel-to-historic-lows/" rel="bookmark" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #686868; text-decoration-line: none;"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2024-03-27T21:00:26-07:00" style="box-sizing: inherit;">March 28, 2024</time></a></span></footer><div class="entry-content" style="background-color: white; border-color: rgb(209, 209, 209); box-sizing: inherit; counter-reset: footnotes 0; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>On March 14, Sen. Charles Schumer, the majority leader in the U.S. Senate, gave a major speech on the Senate floor saying the Israeli government under the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been “too willing to tolerate the civilian toll in Gaza, which is pushing support for Israel worldwide to historic lows.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Schumer is the highest-ranking Jewish official in U.S. history. He added that “Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah,” clearly believing this war is doing just that.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>He urged that Israel hold new elections now at a time when all the major polls show that this would lead to Netanyahu’s removal as prime minister.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">In another speech given in the Senate on Nov. 29, <b>Schumer gave a beautiful and emotional history about his family, his love for Israel, the scourge of antisemitism, and the relation of all that to Israel’s response to the horrible things Hamas did on Oct. 7.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Schumer was clearly defending Israel in both speeches, although some were shocked and upset by his limited criticism in the March 14 speech.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Clearly, almost all the Republicans in Congress, all of who I hope will be re-elected, are scared to death of money from the Israel Lobby being used against them. They are seemingly afraid to say the word “Israel” without first saying the words “our ally.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">However, Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, longtime chief of staff to General and Secretary of State Colin Powell, said recently on Judge Andrew Napolitano’s podcast:<b> “Israel is a significant strategic liability for the U.S.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>I have nothing against Israel. I have been there twice and have been treated very well both times, and had the privilege of meeting with Netanyahu, Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres, and several other current and former Israeli leaders.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>My hope for Israel and all countries is for peace and prosperity, but my first obligation is to my own country, and our one-sided attachment to Israel has made us enemies with, or at least created great resentment from, almost all the other countries in the Middle East.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">Most people throughout the world have been sickened by the deaths of so many thousands of little children and are horrified by the photos of little children being starved to death during this war.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">Sen. Schumer said in his pro-Israel Nov. 29th speech mentioned above tha<b>t “this speech is not an attempt to label most criticism of Israel and the Israeli government as antisemitic. I (Schumer) don’t believe that criticism is.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">On March 18, Bloomberg News reported, <b>“The possibility of famine looms over northern Gaza as half the population of the area already faces ‘crisis levels of food security or worse’ the United Nations warned.” The World Food Program said half the population “have completely exhausted their food supplies and coping capabilities and are struggling with catastrophic hunger.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">It is ridiculous to compare what Israel is doing to what the U.S. did in World War II. The U.S. was fighting against entire countries that had air forces, navies, huge weapons, and millions of soldiers. Hamas had none of these assets and only about 40,000 members when the war started.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The Palestinians had been living for many years in what has frequently been described as an “open air prison camp.” Israel has limited and controlled their food, water and medicine, and has almost completely restricted anything that could be turned into weapons.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">I have great sympathy for the Palestinian peopl<b>e, about 95% of whom were not in Hamas, and I especially feel sorry for the little children who have been killed and who are being starved to death even now.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">I have no sympathy for Hamas, and what they did on Oct. 7 was horrible.<b> But this war is so lopsided, it is about like an NFL football team taking on a Peewee team.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Israel, with its great intelligence operation, could have gotten most Hamas members without killing so many innocent women and children. It has far exceeded what could be considered as a just war under today’s legal concepts.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">George Washington, in his farewell address that is still read every year in the U.S. Senate, wrote: <b>“The nation which indulges toward another an habitual hatred or an habitual fondness is in some degree a slave.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;">He added: “<b>A passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation, facilitating the illusion of an imaginary common interest in cases where no real common interest exists and infusing into one the enmities of the other, betrays the former into a participation in the quarrels and wars of the latter, without adequate inducement or justification.”</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>The U.S. has provided mega-billions in military and economic aid to Israel since 1948. During most of those years, and especially now, Israel has been and is in much better fiscal shape than the U.S.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>There will never be peace in the Middle East unless and until the U.S. adopts a more even-handed neutral policy in that part of the world. Israel is by far the strongest nation there and the only nuclear power with an estimated 300 nuclear bombs.</b></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>We should treat Israel as a friendly nation but give it its independence. As John Quincy Adams said many years ago, the U.S. should not go “abroad in search of monsters to destroy” but be the “well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all.” He added that we should be “the champion and vindicator only of (our) own.”</b></p><div class="pp-author-boxes-avatar-details" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><p class="pp-author-boxes-description multiple-authors-description" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;"><b>John James Duncan Jr</b>. is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Tennessee’s 2nd congressional district from 1988 to 2019. A lawyer, former judge, and former long serving member of the Army National Guard, he is a member of the Republican Party.</em></p></div><p style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Reprinted with author’s permission from <a data-id="https://www.knoxfocus.com/columnist/sen-schumer-gaza-war-is-pushing-support-for-israel-to-historic-lows/" data-type="link" href="https://www.knoxfocus.com/columnist/sen-schumer-gaza-war-is-pushing-support-for-israel-to-historic-lows/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #990000; text-decoration-line: none;">The Knoxville Focus</a>.</em></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 15px;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><b><i>https://original.antiwar.com/rep-john-j-duncan-jr./2024/03/27/gaza-war-is-pushing-support-for-israel-to-historic-lows/</i></b></span></span></p></div>Satish Sharmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08171603187577006652noreply@blogger.com0