Jugoslav Vidic, pictured in this undated official photo, is what the USIC describes as a PIFWC (Person Indicted for War Crimes). (Image: 24 SATA News)
Jugoslav Vidic (56) of Parma Heights, OH, was sentenced to three years in prison for possessing a green card he illegally obtained by concealing that he had been charged with a war crime in Croatia in 1994 prior to immigrating to the US. A Croatian court convicted Vidic in absentia in 1998.
The depravity of the Republika Srpska Army (VRS) is captured perfectly here. For the amusement of his comrades, a Serb fighter points a firearm at the head of a laughing boy on the outskirts of Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, circa 1992-95. (Public domain imagery)
Authorities revealed that during an attack by ethnic Serb forces in Petrinja, Croatia, on 16 Sep 1991, Vidic, a soldier in the Serb Army of Krajina, cut off the arm of civilian Stjepan Komes, who died afterward. Vidic admitted that he knew about the Croatian charges when he immigrated to the US as a refugee in 1999 and when he applied to become a lawful permanent resident in 2000. He lied during his interview with US immigration officials and he received his green card in 2005.
As part of the plea agreement, Vidic agreed to the entry of a judicial order of removal from the US.
In this undated photo, a Yugoslavian man is pleading for his life from paramilitary fighters circa 1991-1995. The man’s whereabouts or fate are unknown.
Members of the American public who have information about human rights violators or immigration fraud are urged to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or through the FBI online tip form, or HSI at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or through the ICE online tip form. All are staffed around the clock, and tips may be provided anonymously. In Canada, you can provide anonymous and secure tips by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), texting TIP202 + your message to “CRIMES” (274637) or by Secure Web Tips.
Sources:
Bosnian War- A Brief Overview | Remembering Srebrenica
Iran’s Border Security Forces Allegedly Massacre ‘Dozens’ of Afghan Migrants
Map: Courtesy of BBC
Taliban authorities are looking into allegations that dozens of Afghan civilians were killed and injured by Iranian border forces while illegally trying to enter that country from Pakistan.
The Taliban probe was announced after an Iranian rights group, known as Halvash, initially reported the alleged Afghan casualties, saying they occurred Sunday in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchistan border province.
The organization quoted survivors as saying that about 300 Afghan migrants were attempting to enter Iran unlawfully when they were assaulted by Iranian border guards, resulting in deaths and injuries.
An Iranian envoy stated that responding “legally” to the “illegal entry of unauthorized nationals” was “the legitimate right of countries, and the border guards of any country are obliged to prevent the entry of illegal nationals.” He reiterated that Tehran is determined to return undocumented asylum-seekers and deal sternly with illegal border crossers.
Residents in the Pakistani border district of Washuk also reported the alleged Iranian assault on Afghan migrants, but they could not provide specific casualty details, citing the remoteness of the border area.
Iran and Pakistan together host millions of documented and undocumented Afghan refugees. Both countries have deported hundreds of thousands of undocumented individuals back to Afghanistan since the Taliban seized power three years ago.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the deportations continue daily, and almost 100,000 Afghans returned home from Pakistan and Iran in Sep 2024 alone.
Saravan is a volatile area and the site of a slaughter of nine Pakistani migrants on 27 Jan 2024. Pakistan’s Sunni Balochs promote an anti-Punjabi agenda against Islamabad; Iran’s Sunni Balochs are clamoring for more rights (if not outright separation) from Shia-dominated Tehran. Afghan migrants, of various ethnicities, become caught up in reprisals and hostility at the borders. Afghan Hazaras are Shias and should be welcome in Iran, but the ethnicities of the Afghan victims are not known.
Sources:
Iran’s border security forces allegedly massacre ‘dozens’ of Afghan migrants (voanews.com)
2024 Saravan killings – Wikipedia
Police Brutality: Former Louisiana Sheriff’s Deputy Sentenced for Civil Rights Violation for Using Excessive Force Against Detainee
Javarrea Pouncy (31), a former sergeant with the DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office (DPSO), was sentenced to 37 months in prison for assaulting Jarius Brown while he was being booked. Pouncy admitted that in Sep 2019, he and another DPSO deputy conducted a strip search of Jarius Brown and the deputies repeatedly punched the victim in his head, face, and body, even though the detainee did not pose a threat to either officer. As a result of the assault, the detainee was hospitalized and sustained a broken eye socket and broken nose, among other injuries. The other deputy involved in the assault, DeMarkes Grant, previously pleaded guilty to one count of obstructing justice sentenced to ten months in prison.
Undated photo of Jarius Brown courtesy of AP. In 2019, Pouncy and Grant beat Brown so brutally in that they broke his nose and left eye socket.
Desoto Parish and Louisiana law-enforcement agencies have a terrible reputation for incidents of excessive force against civilians. The ACLU has opened up its 22nd lawsuit in what they call the “Justice Lab” to fight police brutality through the legal system.
Sources:
Lawsuit: Deputies broke man’s nose, eye socket while booking him into jail | wwltv.com
Videos raise questions whether DeSoto Parish deputies used excessive force (ksla.com)
‘Justice Lab’ aims to expose, litigate claims of police bias | AP NewsJarius Brown’s | Legal Battle | for Police Brutality Justice (whitcomblawpc.com)
Food Safety: Listeria Recall Grows to 5.4 Million Kgs of Meat and Poultry
Getty/Lorenz Huter/Allrecipes
A nationwide recall of meat and poultry products potentially contaminated with listeria has expanded to nearly 15.4 million kilograms (12 million pounds) and now includes ready-to-eat meals sent to US schools, restaurants, and major retailers.
The updated recall includes prepared salads, burritos and other foods sold at stores including Costco, Trader Joe’s, Target, Walmart, and Kroger. The meat used in those products was processed at a Durant, Oklahoma, manufacturing plant operated by BrucePac. The Woodburn, Oregon-based company sells precooked meat and poultry to industrial, foodservice, and retail companies across the US.
Routine testing found potentially dangerous listeria bacteria in samples of BrucePac chicken, said the USDA. No illnesses have been confirmed in connection with the recall and the CDC has not launched an outbreak investigation.
The recall, issued on 9 Oct, includes foods produced between 31 May and 8 Oct. The USDA has posted a 342-page list of hundreds of potentially affected foods, including chicken wraps sold at Trader Joe’s, chicken burritos sold at Costco and many types of salads sold at stores such as Target and Walmart. The foods were also sent to school districts and restaurants across the US.
The recalled foods can be identified by establishment numbers “51205 or P-51205” inside or under the USDA mark of inspection. Consumers can search on the USDA recall site to find potentially affected products. Such foods should be thrown away or returned to stores for refunds.
Eating foods contaminated with listeria can cause potentially serious illness. About 1,600 people are infected with listeria bacteria each year in the US, killing 260 victims.
Listeria infections typically cause fever, muscle aches and tiredness and may cause stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions. Symptoms can occur quickly or to up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food. The infections are especially dangerous for older people, those with weakened immune systems or who are pregnant.
The same type of bacteria is responsible for an outbreak tied to Boar’s Head deli meat that has killed at least ten people since May. That plant was reportedly shuttered.
Sources:
Listeria recall grows to 5.4 million kilograms of meat and poultry (voanews.com)
China’s Technological Advances Include Sound and Neurological Weapons
India denied that its soldiers were “microwaved” by Chinese forces atop the Himalayans on Nov 2020, but a professor in Beijing said that’s exactly how Chinese troops won the skirmish. The Indian soldiers were reported to be dizzy, nauseous, and vomiting, unable to withstand the invisible pulse attack after 15 minutes.
China’s military is developing high-technology arms, including sound weapons that can incapacitate enemy forces by disrupting the neurological functions of human targets without causing visible injury.
Modern warfare is rapidly evolving beyond physical combat through these weapons capable of disrupting brain and body functions with sound. A review of Chinese military writings revealed the military has developed two types of sophisticated sound technologies: “neurotype” sound weapons that affect brain activity and “organotype” models that can damage internal organs through various frequencies.
“These weapons, which operate at frequencies undetectable by the human ear, have the capability to cause both neurological and physiological disruption, making them an essential tool in [China’s] arsenal for incapacitating adversaries without inflicting overt physical harm,” the report said.
The weapons offer strategic advantages in waging asymmetric warfare with minimal physical evidence.
Neurostrike employs advanced non-lethal directed energy and infrasound weapons to incapacitate individuals physically and cognitively. The sound weapons can disrupt internal brain frequencies and internal organs, resulting in cognitive dysfunction, disorientation, and physical harm.
The weapons can induce confusion, emotional distress and a loss of consciousness, according to two Chinese military researchers who wrote a 2024 report, and can directly impair cognitive abilities vital in warfare.
Sound weapons designed to affect organs affect human tissue using frequencies ranging from 3 hertz to 17 hertz, causing a range of physical effects from nausea and dizziness to, in extreme cases, organ damage. The Chinese navy apparently has a high-powered infrasound generator for use against military divers.
The report urges the US government to take steps to deal with the growing threat posed by infrasound and neurostrike weapons, arguing that the military should invest in counter-sound weapon technology that can detect, block, and neutralize infrasound waves. Sound and neurostrike weapons should also be included in international arms control negotiations.
Several years ago, USIC personnel were victimized by the mysterious “Havana Syndrome” which caused similar types of non-kinetic symptoms addressed here. Culpability seemed to have lied with the Russian GRU in those “health attacks.” Both Russia and China seem to have these technologies. The US military has non-lethal directed energy weapons in its arsenal as well. The Active Denial System (ADS) is a painful heat-generating weapon; the Long-Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) is a powerful sonic cannon. Some police departments, like the NYPD, employ a smaller version of the LRAD for riot control.
The ADS is a painful heat-generating weapon. (Photo: USMC / Lance Cpl. Andrew M. Huff)
Sailor aims an LRAD at an incoming small craft during a naval exercise in Apr 2015. USN Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Huey D. Younger Jr./Released
Sources:
Inside the Ring: China cognitive warfare advances – Washington Times
China uses ‘microwave’ weapons to topple Indian troops in border dispute: Professor | Toronto Sun
Canadian Child Dies from Rabies After Bat Found in Bedroom
Eight species of these nocturnal creatures live in Ontario: the hoary bat, the eastern red bat, the silver-haired bat, the big brown bat, the tricolored bat, the little brown myotis bat, the northern long-eared myotis, the eastern small-footed myotis (pictured above).
A child in the Canadian province of Ontario has died from rabies after being exposed to an unspecified bat in their bedroom. The victim was exposed to the virus in an area north of Sudbury. The parents did not see signs of a bite or scratches and did not get the child a rabies vaccine as a result.
This marks the first domestically-acquired case of human rabies in Ontario since 1967.
The child, whose age was not shared by officials, was taken to hospital after the incident in early September and later died.
Rabies is a rare but deadly viral disease that can be spread to humans from an infected animal – such as bats, coyotes, foxes, or raccoons – most commonly through its saliva.
The disease, which can cause severe damage to the brain and the spinal cord, nearly always causes death once symptoms have appeared, according to the World Health Organization. The percentage of bats with rabies in the southern Ontario region has increased from less than 10% to 16% in recent years.
According to Health Canada, cases of rabies among humans in the country are rare.
Since reporting began in 1924, there have been 28 cases of rabies across six provinces, all of which were fatal. Nearly all human cases of rabies in Canada are a result of exposure to bats, or due to exposure to rabies while in another country.
In the US, fewer than ten people die from rabies each year, according to the CDC, a dramatic decline from the 1960s driven largely by prevention efforts.
There were 25 cases of human rabies documented in the US from 2009 to 2018, seven of which were contracted outside of the country. Like Canada, humans in the US are more commonly exposed to rabies through rabid bats, which are found in all US states except Hawaii.
Sources:
Canadian child dies from rabies after bat found in bedroom (bbc.com)
Ontario Bat Guide – Learn About Local Species – Ontario Nature
Cat Leads People to Her Kittens the Night Before Hurricane Milton and ‘Thanks’ Them in Most Heartwarming Way
The night before Hurricane Milton made landfall, Nikki, the VP of A Better Life-Pet Rescue, received a call about a mother cat and her kittens desperately needing help.
The cat reportedly had been left behind for weeks after her family moved away, and she had recently given birth on the porch. With the hurricane barreling towards the area, Nikki and her team knew they had to act fast to save the feline family.
“When I arrived at the location, I got out of the truck and started walking towards the house. She came running from down the street to me, meowing,” Nikki said.
She led the rescuers to her kittens. Photo: Nikki at A Better Life-Pet Rescue
The family of eight taken to safety. Hurry! Hurricane Milton is fast approaching. Photo: Nikki at A Better Life-Pet Rescue
Photo: Nikki at A Better Life-Pet Rescue
The feline family of eight was rescued just in time. Through the long night of howling winds, torrential rain, and power outages, they lay safe and dry indoors with warm beds and full bellies.
“Those kittens would not have survived the hurricane. We sheltered over 30 animals in our home during the storm.”
The mother is so happy to be indoors and trusts everyone to help her kittens. Photo: Nikki at A Better Life-Pet Rescue
Thanks to Nikki at A Better Life-Pet Rescue, all’s well that ends well.
Source:
Coriolanus 