Ukraine Continues to Bedevil Russia With Espionage, Audacity, Tenacity and Surprise

Described as ‘Russia’s Pearl Harbor,’ more than 100 drones were smuggled deep into Russia by Ukrainian spies and hidden in the rooftops of specially constructed wooden cabins. These roofs then opened remotely at the moment of attack, with the drones swarming out and striking more than 40 bomber jets parked at Russian airfields across the country. One of the targets, the Belaya airfield in Siberia, is 3,500 miles from Ukraine. The Russian intelligence services were completely caught off-guard.

In the span of a few hours, nearly a third of Moscow’s strategic bomber fleet was destroyed or damaged with cheaply made drones sneaked into Russian territory. Operation Spiderweb involved more than 18 months of painstaking planning and great risk and was personally overseen by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

This “Pearl Harbor” for Russia was made by possible by extraordinary Ukrainian military OPSEC and their effective espionage network behind enemy lines. Also note that Ukraine was careful to avoid civilian casualties and a nuclear disaster with these strategic bombers, unlike Russian forces who have disregarded civilian lives and the safety of Chernobyl during their invasion.

The armed Palestinian groups that seized 251 Israeli hostages on 7 Oct 2023 similarly exercised great OPSEC in their extensive planning and preparation before the raid, catching everyone by surprise in Jerusalem, Tehran, Wash DC, and Moscow. Only the Egyptian mukhabarat has an inkling of something afoot in the neighboring Gaza Strip. This type of discipline from the Ukrainians and the Palestinians demonstrates an uncommon resolve to resist a powerful, brutal enemy seeking their destruction.

As you learned here on Coriolanus, the Ukrainian intelligence services are first-rate and Kiev did not disclose the operation to the US or any allies to prevent leaks. That means President Zelensky had this card to play when he met with Dotard Trumpf months ago, and when he went to Istanbul in good faith to negotiate with Vladimir Putin who skipped the peace talks anyway. The ex-KGB officer promised revenge for this humiliating and expensive defeat, which cost the Ukrainians far less than the Russians.

Ukraine’s Effective Sabotage Campaign Continues

Kerch Bridge Damaged

Ukraine detonated a massive underwater blast targeting the key road and rail bridge connecting the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula to Russia, damaging its underwater supports. Kiev’s SBU security service claimed responsibility for this embarrassing and costly blow to Vladimir Putin.

Ukraine Hacks Russian Aircraft Manufacturer Tupolev

In 1961, the Tu-95V bomber dropped the biggest nuclear weapon ever made before and since – the Tsar Bomb, or “Big Ivan.”

Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) hacked into Russia’s strategic aircraft manufacturer Tupolev.  HUR’s cyber corps accessed over 4.4 gigabytes (GB) of internal data, including official correspondence, personnel files, home addresses, resumes, purchase records, and closed meeting minutes.

“The significance of the data obtained cannot be overestimated. There is nothing secret left in Tupolev’s activities for Ukrainian intelligence.”

The intelligence includes detailed information about engineers and staff responsible for maintaining Russia’s strategic bombers, such as the Tu-95 and Tu-160, which form a key part of Russia’s nuclear triad.

“In particular, we have obtained comprehensive information about individuals directly involved in servicing Russian strategic aviation,” the source added. “The result will obviously be noticeable both on the ground and in the sky.”

Below, Ukrainian cyber operatives replaced the Tupolev website’s homepage with the symbol of their organization, an owl clutching a Russian aircraft.

The Tupolev hack is perfectly timed with the surprise attack against Russia’s strategic bomber fleet and is a bonanza for NATO. The HUR will share this treasure trove of information with the UK, Germany, France, and Canada, leaving out the US. Recall that last year Canada donated 10,500 effective Browning Hi-Power 9mm pistols to Ukraine. Engineers and critical staff at Tupolev should be concerned about a potential 9mm lead shampoo treatment in the future.

Sabotage Against Infrastructure Continues Inside Russia

An explosion on a rail line in Russia’s Voronezh Oblast caused damage to the track and disrupted train travel along the line. No one was injured in the explosion that immediately disrupted the travel of at least 19 passenger and commercial trains. The explosions were allegedly caused by an IED.

A fire broke out at the Avtodizel motor plant in Yaroslavl (174 miles northeast of Moscow), one of Russia’s largest producers of diesel engines and a supplier to the Russian military. The blaze engulfed a 400-square-meter workshop where 12-cylinder engines are manufactured. Firefighters needed more than 90 minutes to extinguish the open flames.  

No casualties were reported and the cause of the fire has not been disclosed.

This is the second major fire at a Russian engine plant in two days. On 2 Jun, a blast and fire tore through a workshop at the Zavolzhsky Motor Plant in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.

Russia May Suffer One Million Casualties in 2025

Russian conscripts line up at the local recruitment center in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on 20 Oct. 2024 (Photo: Sergey Pivovarov / Sputnik via AP)

The Russian military will likely surpass one million casualties in its war on Ukraine this summer, according to one of the world’s leading think tanks.

Approximately 250,000 of these Russian soldiers have died, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) reported. The idiotic use of World War One-style “human wave” attacks have taken a tremendous toll on the Russian military. Vladimir Putin and his callous disregard for human life– Russian or Ukrainian– is reponsible.

The Ukrainian military has also suffered heavy losses, with 400,000 casualties, including 60,000 to 100,000 soldiers killed, according to CSIS estimates.

Demand for Cardboard Coffins Soaring in Russia

In Russia, dying has never been more affordable—or more humiliating.

Cardboard coffins, once reserved for unclaimed bodies and stray dogs, are now flying off the shelves. According to funeral directors, up to 50% of all burials in some regions now use cardboard boxes instead of traditional wooden caskets.

“We never used to offer them unless someone specifically asked,” admitted one undertaker. “Now people come in and ask for cardboard first. It’s practical.” Another explained the coffin’s appeal bluntly: “It’s lighter. Easier to carry. Cheaper. And no one’s embarrassed anymore.”

The Russians meeting the one million-mark this summer is sooner than many calculations, including your author. Coriolanus had calculated the Israelis would kill 50,000 Palestinian in Gaza by the end of 2024, but was slightly off as the count was 45,541 as of 31 Dec 2024. Your author’s wife suggested including the 4,047 Lebanese people killed by the IDF in 2024.

45,541 Palestinians + 4,047 Lebanese = 49,588 dead Arabs.

Between Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Pol Pots of today, the pile of bodies just keep getting larger and larger. Here’s how the Palestinians in Gaza have been forced to do without coffins:

Mass grave for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

An international arrest warrant for war crimes issued by the ICC remains active for Vladimir Putin. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of a law.

Sources:

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/surprise-drone-attack-airfields-russia-encapsulates-ukraines-wartime-122413545

https://kyivindependent.com/tag/war/

https://www.csis.org/analysis/russias-battlefield-woes-ukraine

Lenta.ru

DIA Global Threat Assessment

  China is deepening selective cooperation with Russia, aiming to avoid actions that could harm its global standing.

  Russia is sourcing military aid from Iran and North Korea, including artillery, UAVs, and personnel.

  Moscow is transferring sensitive technologies (space, nuclear, missile) to bolster Tehran’s and Pyongyang’s capabilities.

  Iran and North Korea leverage these ties to mitigate sanctions and international isolation.

  Despite this, cooperation largely remains bilateral and transactional rather than a fully integrated alliance. The assessment also includes migration to the US as a threat and describes Russia, Iran, China, and North Korea as an ‘Axis of Upheaval’.

More Analyses

US Army General David Petraeus with Paula Broadwell, the authoress of his biography and downfall in an undated photo. This was a modern day Samson and Goliath melodrama. One of Coriolanus’ commanders was a friend and admirer of General Petraeus.

The 48-year-old man, who hasn’t been identified, was arrested at Stansted Airport near London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life. No one was injured in the fires that occurred between 8 and 12 May at a house owned by Starmer, a building where he once lived, and a car that he had owned.

To no one’s surprise, three men already charged in connection with the fires seem to be connected to Ukraine or Russia: Ukrainians Petro Pochynok (34) and Roman Lavrynovych (21), and Ukrainian-born Romanian national Stanislav Carpiuc (26).

Vladimir Putin’s operatives continue their sabotage campaign against EU and NATO targets. Destroying the houses and car of the UK PM is quite an audacious move and investigators will determine if such a dastardly operation was personally sanctioned by Putin.

The ‘Axis of Upheaval’

Nota Bene: Coriolanus proudly completed several successful tours at DIA. Be that as it may, the real ‘Axis of Upheaval’ blighting the world are these greedy, land-stealing ethnic cleansing oligarchs who have no regard for human life or decency.  Also note this 2025 assessment was publicly released by dishonored Congressman Ronny “Dr Feelgood” Jackson (R-TX), who falsely represented himself as a USN Rear Admiral (Ret.) after he had been demoted to Captain for various blasphemies.

International arrest warrants issued by the ICC for war crimes remain active for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu. An indictment is merely an allegation. Both defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty at an international tribunal to be held at the Hague.

Sources: 

Link One

Link Two

https://www.lbc.co.uk/world-news/cia-boss-reveals-putin-invasion-russia/

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62v63gl8rvo

US Again Stymies UN Security Council Efforts to Restrain the Israeli Death Forces (IDF)

UN Security Council members voting in favor of the draft resolution. (UN Photo / Eskinder Debebe)

One Pariah State Defends Another Pariah State at the UN

The US has vetoed the UN Security Council’s draft resolution calling for an “unconditional and permanent” ceasefire in Gaza. The other 14 members voted in favor of the document, which also demanded the release of all hostages and the lifting of humanitarian aid restrictions. The dishonorable US Ambassador to the UN, Dorothy Shea, said the resolution would “undermine diplomatic efforts” to reach a ceasefire, adding that the UN has not labelled Hamas as a terrorist organization as demanded by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) AKA the American Islamophobia Propaganda Action Center.

If the Jews in Auschwitz asked for a ceasefire, would the SS have granted it?

Wounded Palestinians arrive to al-Shifa hospital, following Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, 16 Oct 2023. (Photo: Abd Khaled / AP).

Since October 2023, the IDF has killed at least 54,677 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring or maiming 125,530 others. Moreover, at least 10,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip. IDF attacks has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

UN: 50,000 Pregnant Women in Danger of Losing Their Child

So, while AIPAC and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu gloat over the US veto, 50,000 pregnant Palestinian mothers-to-be are in danger of losing their children because of malnutrition in the Gaza Strip.

“The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat,” said UN relief chief Tom Fletcher.

Fadi Al-Zanat (6) is treated at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza on 10 Mar. He was suffering from severe malnutrition and dehydration, according to the health ministry in Gaza. (Photo: Mousa Salem / Anadolu Agency / Getty Images)

Palestinians wait to receive food at a refugee camp in Rafah on 27 Jan. (Photo: Saher Alghorra / Middle East Images / AFP / Getty Images)

Through AIPAC, both American political parties have continuously hampered UN efforts at restraining the murderous land-grabbing Israelis for decades and are complicit in this ethnic cleansing. The so-called Two-State solution palaver was just a chimera to keep inducing billions of dollars of US aid to Israel every year from hard-working American taxpayers.

Why The Democratic Party Lost 6,265,888 Voters in 2024 They Once Had in 2020:

Coriolanus estimates a six to eight million permanent loss of supporters for the Democratic Party as antiwar progressives have become sick and tired of funding the brutal ethnic cleansing of defenseless Palestinians, despite an opportunity for them to vote out Republicans in the upcoming 2026 mid-term and 2028 presidential elections. Your author supported Kamala Harris in 2024 with the hope that she would divorce herself from the Biden policy of unqualified support for Israel and of course defeat Dotard Trumpf. Recall that in Sep 2024, the late Pope Francis said that choosing between the Democrats and the Republicans was choosing for the “lesser of two evils.”

Sisters Hanan (3) and Misk (18 months) suffered severe injuries in an Israeli air strike. (Photo: BBC)

Diya al-Adini (15) was a young and enthusiastic photographer before he lost his arms in an Israeli strike. (Photo: BBC)

An international arrest warrant issued by the ICC for war crimes remain active for Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Sources:

https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/06/1164056

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/259283/pope-francis-in-flight-press-conference-us-presidential-elections-harris-trump-catholic-vote

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g60p1xgdlo

https://www.unfpa.org/occupied-palestinian-territory

Murder-Death-Kill Plagues Innocent Mexicans

The late Mexican band Grupo Fugitivo.

Police in Mexico detained a suspect known as M-47 who may have ordered the mass murder of the music band Grupo Fugitivo in Tamaulipas state.

Relatives of the band members received ransom demands after the men’s disappearance, but four days later their bodies were discovered. 12 suspects have been arrested in connection with the murder. The Gulf Cartel has its stronghold in Tamaulipas state and engages in the smuggling of drugs and migrants across the US-Mexico border, as well as kidnapping for ransom. Unclear is why the members of Grupo Fugitivo were targeted.

A fire killed 12 and injured three people who were reportedly locked up inside a drug rehab center in the violence-plagued Mexican state of Guanajuato  Mexico’s privately run drug rehabilitation centers are often abusive, clandestine, unregulated, and underfunded. They have been the targets of similar attacks in the past.

Murdering harmless musicians requires a special kind of depravity. Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum has her hands full trying to uplift her people from poverty, dealing with a water shortage and imminent drought, defanging the drug cartels, and protecting the sovereignty of her country from the Dotard Trumpf junta.

The competent and capable President of Mexico.

Note that Mexican servicemembers died fighting alongside Americans as allies in WWII. The Aztec Eagles are the only Mexican military unit to ever deploy outside their country. ZERO Israeli soldiers fought alongside or served with the US over the past 77 years (e.g. Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo, Grenada, Panama).

Sources:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clygr1v6z2mo

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mexico-fire-drug-rehab-center-deaths-guanajuato/

https://www.foreignassistance.gov/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/201st_Fighter_Squadron

Michigan: Two Chinese Nationals Smuggle Pathogen into US

Yunqing Jian (Undated photo)

Yunqing Jian (33) and Zunyong Liu (34), citizens of the People’s Republic of China, were charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the US, false statements, and visa fraud.

The FBI arrested Jian for allegedly smuggling into the US a fungus called Fusarium graminearum, a potential agroterrorism weapon. This noxious fungus causes “head blight,” a disease of wheat, barley, maize, and rice, and is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year. Fusarium graminearum’s toxins cause vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock.

Jian received Chinese government funding to research this pathogen. Jian’s boyfriend, Liu, works at a Chinese university where he conducts research on the same fungus. He allegedly smuggled Fusarium graminearum into the US so that he could conduct research on it with Jian at the University of Michigan.

Note the phraseology in the AUSA press release: A complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Trial cannot be held on felony charges in a complaint. When the investigation is completed, a determination will be made whether to seek a felony indictment.

The University of Michigan issued the following statement:

3 June 2025

As one of the world’s leading public research institutions, the University of Michigan is dedicated to advancing knowledge, solving challenging problems and improving nearly every facet of the human experience. Our research enterprise across all three campuses is united in this commitment to serving the people of Michigan and the world. 

We strongly condemn any actions that seek to cause harm, threaten national security or undermine the university’s critical public mission. It is important to note that the university has received no funding from the Chinese government in relation to research conducted by the accused individuals. We have and will continue to cooperate with federal law enforcement in its ongoing investigation and prosecution.

Please direct media inquiries to the FBI by emailing DE_Media@fbi.gov or calling (313) 965-5749.

A complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Trial cannot be held on felony charges in a complaint. When the investigation is completed, a determination will be made whether to seek a felony indictment.

Sources:

https://www.justice.gov/usao-edmi/pr/chinese-nationals-charged-conspiracy-and-smuggling-dangerous-biological-pathogen-us

https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article277949468.html

US: Romanian National Pleads Guilty to Epidemic of ‘Swatting’ Calls

Thomasz Szabo (26) of Romania, pleaded guilty to being the leader of a years-long conspiracy that targeted victims across the US with “swatting” and bomb threats. Szabo and his co-conspirators falsely reported ongoing violent emergencies at government buildings, houses of worship, and private residences, including the homes of senior government officials.

One of those subordinates bragged to Szabo:

“I did 25+ swattings today and created massive havoc in America; $500,000+ in taxpayers wasted in just two days.”

Szabo was extradited from Romania in November 2024. He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of threats and false information regarding explosives and will be sentenced on 23 Oct 2025.

This lunatic and his gang of misfits enjoyed taking advantage of the American police state and knew full well about the waste of money this cost taxpayers. There is no reporting of any injuries or fatalities Thomasz Szabo caused, but police may have responded to one of his hoaxes which may have allowed a suspect to commit and flee a real crime. Thomasz Szabo and his followers will certainly be enjoying the company of genuine US federal law-enforcement personnel for several years.

Source:

https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/pr/romanian-citizen-pleads-guilty-swatting-numerous-members-congress-churches-and-former-0

EUROPOL: 200,000 Euro Reward for Dutch Fugitive

Joseph Johannes Leudekkers (34) is brown eyed and 182cm tall.

Leijdekkers is also involved in serious cases of excessive violence, torture, and murder.

Above, convicted cocaine smuggler Jos Leijdekkers attends a church service in Tihun, Sierra Leone, 1 Jan 2025, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video.  West Africa has become a major drug transit hub, so no surprise that Jos Leijdekkers would be spotted there.

Sources:

https://eumostwanted.eu/leijdekkers-joseph-johannes-jos

Anxiety: Elderly Americans Applying for Social Security at Record Rates

Older Americans are filing for Social Security benefits at a record rate this year, a surge that could reflect growing anxiety about the stability of the retirement system amid cutbacks under the Trumpf junta. 

The number of people claiming Social Security jumped 17% to 1.8 million this year through May compared with the same period a year ago. New filings are on track to reach four million, up 15% from the prior fiscal year. Claiming Social Security early reduces a person’s monthly benefit and can result in lower lifetime benefits for some retirees, as well as their spouses and dependent children.

Americans are becoming traumatized by the Trumpf junta, according to the American Psychological Association (APA) and hence the early applications for SSA benefits. But the oligarchy is doing just fine as they will amass more fortunes for themselves while working class and poor Americans struggle to make ends meet amid cuts to Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP to pay for the unneeded tax breaks for the fabulously wealthy oligarchs.

What the Republicans and the ruling elite are doing to poor and working class Americans is called “social murder.”

Sources:

https://www.ssa.gov/data/retirement-insurance-online-apps-2012-onward.html

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/pregnancyparenting/america-is-becoming-traumatized-under-trump-increasing-environmental-crises/ar-AA1xTK4l

Coriolanus is Monitoring the Felon Musk-Dotard Trumpf Feud

Two of the four worst persons in the world may be having a divorce.

Followers of the Watch, both of these peccable oligarchs can inflict enormous damage on each other, so Coriolanus will be analyzing the strategic implications of this so-called ‘feud” and how long it lasts.

Update: US Salmonella Outbreak

The Florida-originated cucumber salmonella outbreak now includes passengers on six cruise ships. Total stricken nationally: 449 in 31 states and DC. 125 have been hospitalized, but no deaths. The Trumpf junta reduced or eliminated food surveillance on cruise ships this year.

Who needs ISIS or al-Qaida when we have America’s Godzilla destroying our health, economy, and national security? And Trumpf’s his own properties have health violation issues, as you will read below.

Sources:

www.miamiherald.com

www.mcclatchydc.com

Trumpf’s New Jersey Westminster Club Cited for Numerous Health Violations

Trumpf’s opulent private golf club in Bedminster, NJ.

Dotard Trumpf’s private golf club in Bedminster, NJ was hit with a remarkable 18 health code violations, nine of them considered “critical,” according to a recent report by the Somerset County Department of Health.

Source:

Harper’s Magazine Weekly Summary

Our immense gratitude to Becky Zhang for her superb summation of events. This month Harper’s Magazine is celebrating 175 years of excellent writing.

Explosions caused two bridges bordering Ukraine in western Russia to collapse. The Israel Defense Forces fired into a crowd of Palestinians who were en route to a US- and Israeli-backed aid station in Gaza, killing at least thirty-one and injuring more than a hundred; Israeli military command announced that it had killed one of Hamas’s leaders, the brother of the former Hamas chief who architected the 7 Oct attacks; a US diplomat called Hamas’s amendments to the latest ceasefire proposal “totally unacceptable”; and at a Colorado gathering in support of Israeli hostages, an Egyptian man who had overstayed his tourist visa attacked the crowd with a makeshift flamethrower and Molotov cocktails, injuring eight people. Explosions caused two bridges bordering Ukraine in western Russia to collapse, Ukraine deployed large-scale drone attacks on Russian air bases, and representatives for the two countries convened in Istanbul for a second round of peace negotiations. A cholera outbreak in Sudan killed more than 170 people last week, and flooding in north-central Nigeria killed more than 150. Two were killed and hundreds arrested in French celebrations of the Paris Saint-Germain football club’s victory over Inter Milan in the Champions League final, and footage surfaced of the French First Lady shoving her husband in the face as they prepared to disembark a plane to commence a tour of southeast Asia. “We are squabbling and, rather, joking with my wife,” said the French president of the incident.

The State Department announced that it would “aggressively” terminate the visas of select Chinese students, after pausing the scheduling of further student visa appointments and threatening to revoke the capacity of Harvard University to enroll foreign students. “Humanity rises and falls as one,” said a Chinese graduate in Harvard Square as a man pinned another to the ground behind her. “This is a time where we can use a little bit more moral imagination and imagine ourselves being connected with one another.” The Supreme Court ruled to allow the Trumpf junta to expedite the deportation of 530,000 migrants hailing from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela; and ICE detained a Massachusetts high schooler on his way to volleyball practice. The US president pardoned a reality TV couple convicted of defrauding community banks of at least $30 million, and several government officials received fraudulent phone calls and text messages impersonating the president’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles. “There’s only one Susie,” said the president. In Iowa, a Republican senator defended potential cuts to Medicaid eligibility, reasoning, “Well, we are all going to die”; and in California, Minnesota’s governor warned that the Democratic Party was becoming “roadkill.” Felon Musk criticized the US president’s tax bill in an interview with CBS; bade farewell to the White House the following day, sporting a black eye he attributed to his five-year-old son; denied a report by the New York Times alleging his bladder-destabilizing ketamine use; and vowed to do better after a third SpaceX rocket disintegrated mid-flight.

Turkiye approved a circular allowing cabin crew to fine passengers who prematurely leave their seats upon landing; and archaeologists revealed a loaf of 5,000-year-old bread that was excavated in central Turkiye. The remains of a freelance writer were found in a container in downtown Las Vegas, but the primary suspect for the murder had already died the week before in a high-speed car chase with Utah’s Highway Patrol. A tractor trailer spilled soybean powder across a New York highway in what the local police department called “the biggest protein spill bust in WSPD [West Seneca Police Department] history”; and a truck overturned near the US–Canada border, releasing 14 million honeybees. A man jumped into a pit of ancient terracotta warriors in Xi’an, China; and an ultramarathoner in Wales breastfed thrice en route to placing first in the race’s female division. Brazilian nuns beatboxed on a Catholic television program to viral fame, and a London beauty consultant specializing in Brazilian butt lifts was prohibited from performing cosmetic procedures after testimony from nearly 40 women in a civil trial for what an attorney likened to a “serious knife crime.” “He butchered me,” said one plaintiff. “There is no other word for it.”

Source:

Poor Bear Caged for Four Years Makes First Friend

Israeli Death Forces Murder American Teenager in West Bank, Wound Two Others; Admits Killing 15 Medics

One ethnic cleanser helping another ethnic cleanser into his seat.

Israeli soldiers killed a 14-year-old Palestinian-American teenager and wounded two others in the occupied West Bank. Two other Palestinian-American boys, ages 14 and 15, were injured in the incident. The IDF said its soldiers opened fire during a ‘counterterrorism operation’ in Turmusaya when they saw three “terrorists who hurled rocks toward the highway, thus endangering civilians driving.” This week ICC-indicted war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu met with Dotard Trumpf and presumably AIPAC mega-donors. There was no indication of an apology from Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu or an inquiry from President Dotard Trumpf.

Palestinians carry the body of a Palestinian-American boy who was killed by Israeli forces in the village of Turmusaya, near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on 6 April 2025.  (Photo: Mohamad Torokman / Reuters)

IDF Murders 15 Palestinian Medics

Relatives mourn during the funeral procession for members of the Palestine Red Crescent Society and other emergency services who were killed a week earlier by Israeli forces, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, 31 March 2025. (Photo: AFP / Eyad Baba)

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has said it is “outraged” at the deaths of their medics killed on duty in Rafah in southern Gaza. The nine-person ambulance team came under heavy fire in al-Hashashin on 23 March. Troops then bulldozed over the bodies along with their mangled vehicles, burying them in a mass grave. Their bodies were finally retrieved one week later after the IDF granted access. At least one of the Palestinians had their legs bound, another was decapitated, and a third was topless.

Attacking medical personnel and desecrating the bodies of the enemy are war crimes under the Geneva Convention.

ICC-indicted War criminal Benjamin Netanyahu resumed the genocide in Gaza on 18 March after US Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) capitulated on the appalling GOP budget, ensuring US economic and military aid to Israel remained uninterrupted. The IDF has killed over 900 people, including children, with US-provided weapons and funds since re-starting the Nakba on 18 March.

Warning: Some Followers of the Watch may find this murder scene disturbing.

The Israeli military backtracked on its account of the killing of 15 Palestinian medics by its forces after the phone video you saw above contradicted their lies that the vehicles did not have emergency signals on when troops opened fire on them in the Gaza Strip. The military initially said it opened fire because the vehicles were “advancing suspiciously” on nearby troops without headlights or emergency signals. An Israeli military official, speaking condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said that account was “mistaken.”

How many other times has the world heard these excuses from the IDF? The State of Israel should just announce they want to be an ethnically pure state and be done with it. Savlanut, young lady, the IDF is killing the Palestinians as fast it can.

ICC-indicted war criminal Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu once again visited Dotard Trumpf at the White House this week. What could they possibly discussing again? War against Iran, of course.

The US and Iran are once again on a collision course over the Iranian nuclear program.

In a letter dated early March, Trumpf urged Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to negotiate a new deal. The new deal would replace the defunct nuclear agreement negotiated in 2015 between the US, Iran and five other global powers.

Trumpf withdrew from that agreement, called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), during his first term. Trumpf gave Tehran a two-month deadline to reach a new nuclear deal. If they don’t, the US will bomb the country. Since the Republican budget passed, the US military has been bombing the Shia Houthis in Yemen who are proxies of Iran. Netanyahu resume his Nakba against the Palestinians, and US B-2 bombers have amassed on the island of Diego Garcia in a show of force. In response, Tehran has agreed only to indirect negotiations. It has ruled out any direct talks while under a US policy of “maximum pressure”.

Open source satellite imagery shows the build up of the US strategic bomber taskforce on Diego Garcia, possibly one-third of the B2 fleet. (Photo: X)

Trumpf claimed that the Houthis in Yemen have been “decimated by the relentless strikes” he ordered on 15 Mar. But Pentagon officials are privately offering a more restrained assessment. In recent closed briefings, they acknowledged limited success in destroying the Houthis’ vast, mostly underground stockpiles of missiles, drones, and launchers. In just three weeks, the strikes have cost $200 million in munitions, not including the high operational and personnel expenses of deploying two aircraft carriers, B-2 bombers, fighter jets, and advanced air defenses to the region. So many precision munitions — especially advanced long-range ones — are being used that some Pentagon planners are increasingly concerned about the strain on Navy stockpiles. The depletion is raising alarms about the US military’s readiness in the event of a major conflict, such as a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan.

The total cost of the campaign could exceed $1 billion by next week, and the Pentagon may soon need to request supplemental funding from Congress.

The Hill Times newspaper in Canada refers to Netanyahu as “Israel’s curse” (5 Sep 2024).

Sources:

Sources:

https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/06/middleeast/palestinian-american-teen-killed-israel-intl-hnk/index.html

Gaza medics killed by Israel found handcuffed and shot in mass grave | Middle East Eye

Ukraine Update

Russia Continues to Press Gang Civilians for Ukraine Meatgrinder

A police raid in Russia ended with immigrants being rounded up and taken to a military recruitment office. The raid — one of several across Russia in recent weeks ” was the latest evidence of how authorities are seeking new soldiers for Ukraine, where Russia’s all-out invasion is now its fourth year. This coincided with the annual springtime draft of conscripts, who are by law barred from combat duties or foreign deployment. Taken together, the moves show how Russia’s military is seeking to increase the overall size of its armed forces while at the same time making sure it has the manpower to continue grinding down Ukrainian troops. The young Russian soldier above saying goodbye to his wife in Sep 2022 may have already been killed or maimed on behalf of ICC-indicted war criminal Vladimir Putin.

US Neo-Nazis Call for Targeted Attacks Against Ukraine

White supremacist Rinaldo Nazarro (AKA “”Norman Spear,” “Roman Wolf”) in undated photos. (Public domain imagery)

The US neo-Nazi terrorist group called “The Base,” led by Rinaldo Nazarro (AKA “”Norman Spear,” “Roman Wolf”), is calling for targeted assassinations and sabotage attacks on the critical infrastructure of Ukraine in an effort to destabilize Kiev. Nizarro has been leading “The Base” out of Saint Petersburg, Russia (which means “Al Qaida” in Arabic). No longer the focus of intense FBI counter-terrorism investigations after the Trumpf junta assumed power, Rinaldo Nazzaro is trying to flex the muscles of his terrorist group. An American defector, this NJ native claims to have worked with US Special Forces during the GWOT.

No doubt that white supremacist oligarch Felon Musk and the Kremlin are pulling the strings. The worst man in the world is backing the rightwing in Germany and called for the release of violent Islamophobe gang leader Tommy Robinson in the UK. Robinson has visited Russia on several occasions.

DHS Mistakenly Informs Ukrainian Refugees to Leave US

The Trumpf junta said it accidentally told some Ukrainian refugees they needed to leave the US immediately because their legal status was being revoked. The following message was sent by mistake: “DHS is now exercising its discretion to terminate your parole,” the 3 April notice said, referring to the temporary legal status that the Biden administration granted to hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians. “Unless it expires sooner, your parole will terminate 7 days from the date of this notice. Again, DHS is terminating your parole. Do not attempt to remain in the United States ” the federal government will find you,” the notice warned. “Please depart the United States immediately.” Roughly 240,000 Ukrainians are safe in the US under a policy known as Uniting for Ukraine (U4U). DHS retracted the email without apology or explanation.

Russians Celebrated Ukrainian Drone Strikes on Moscow

Phone conversations intercepted by Ukrainian military intelligence reveal that many Russians welcomed the news of drone attacks on Moscow. Russian comments follow: “So we can be f**king bombed, but Moscow Oblast is not? Let the bastards shut up and stay put!” “They live their lives without fear, without knowing anything. Let them be at least a little bit afraid,” the person she was speaking to responded. “They should have targeted Moscow right away to make them take action,” she said, adding: “Otherwise, poor people are suffering, and Moscow is dancing and singing.” “Well, (there were) 50 drones, as I read today. Let them bomb the Kremlin,” one of the men said. “To hell with them. Let them (bomb),” the other replied.

The Russian masses see the oligarchs on TV shows enjoying themselves, keeping their children safe from Ukrainian attack or serving in the Russian Army. They are sick of Vladimir Putin’s inhuman invasion of Ukraine which has cost them hundreds of thousands casualties and a greatly diminished quality of life. During the Second World War, public dissent against the Emperor or the State was ruthlessly quashed by the Kempai Tai (Thought Police) in Imperial Japan. The result was slanderous graffiti throughout the washrooms of Japan’s factories, fisheries, offices, and farms, safely denouncing the unpopular war which brought them tragedy and devastation.

Modern day version of the ridicule secretly heaped on the elites in the washrooms of Japan during the Second World War.

Ukrainian Forces Capture Two Chinese Nationals Fighting for Russia

PLA soldier in newest camouflage uniform and equipment.

Ukrainian forces have captured two Chinese nationals who were fighting for the Russian army in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region. Intelligence suggests the number of Chinese soldiers in Russia’s army is much higher. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Chinese troops fighting on Ukrainian territory “puts into question China’s declared stance for peace” and added that their envoy in Kiev was summoned for an explanation.

This is the first official allegation from Ukraine that China is supplying Russia with manpower. There has been no immediate response to the claims from Moscow or Beijing. In a statement on social media platform X, President Zelensky said the soldiers were captured in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region with identification documents, including bank cards which had “personal data” on them. Ukraine’s forces fought six Chinese soldiers and took two of them prisoner, he said.

Beijing’s PLA has global peacekeeping and border skirmish experience fighting Indian forces in the Himalayas, but the last major war fought by China was against Vietnam in 1979. Like North Korea, China may be testing the mettle of their untried soldiers in real combat in the event the PLA invade Taiwan. China is a massive police surveillance state and can not deny knowledge of their presence in Russia. The white racist soldiers in the Russian Army didn’t give a damn about the North Korean soldiers and the same would have applied to these Asian troops.

Sources:

https://www.dw.com/en/is-elon-musk-aiding-a-british-right-wing-extremist/a-71440001

 www.counterextremism.com

https://www.njohsp.gov/Home/Components/News/News/1400/2

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/05/the-base-neo-nazi-russia-ukraine

https://www.rferl.org/a/33372664.html

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2vg1x7g32o

https://kyivindependent.com/some-russians-celebrated-ukrainian-drone-strikes-on-moscow-intercepted-calls-suggest/

UK: Russian Spy Sensors Found Hidden in Waters

One of Britain’s four Vanguard nuclear submarines, HMS Vigilant, at a naval base in Scotland. (Credit: James Glossop / AFP)

The British military discovered the sensors after a number of them washed ashore. Moscow is trying to collect intelligence on the UK’s four Vanguard submarines, which carry nuclear missiles. At least one of the submarines is at sea as part of Britain’s continuous at-sea deterrent. The Kremlin has a fleet of specialist submarines which are reported to be better equipped than Britain and NATO in terms of both seabed warfare and espionage. Russia has been stepping up surveillance and sabotage of underwater internet connections, energy pipelines, and military cables, which are key to the West. In 15 months, there have been at least 11 internet cables that have suffered damage in the Baltic Sea, partly because anchors have been dragged across the seabed by ships.

Despite the appalling losses to the Russian army, ICC-indicted war criminal Vladimir Putin has maintained the budget and manpower of his naval forces, particularly for sabotage and espionage missions.

Sources:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/04/06/russian-spy-sensors-hidden-uk-waters/

Trumpf Junta Continues Stalinist Purges of US Military

America’s disgrace in the East Room of the White House (Photo: Doug Mills / The New York Times)

Gen. Timothy Haugh, former director of the NSA at a House Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill 26 Mar. (Photo: Demetrius Freeman / The Washington Post)

Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield, the US military representative to the NATO Military Committee, has been fired. No reason was given for her removal. Chatfield served as the US representative to the NATO Military Committee, the alliance’s group of top uniformed officials. The committee provides advice to NATO’s top military leaders and helps guide long-term strategy. Several other top military officers have been removed from their posts during Trumpf’s Stalinist purges: USAF Air Force Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, the former CJCS;; USN Adm. Lisa Franchetti, CNO; and the commandant of the USCG Coast Guard, Adm. Linda Fagan. Look how happy Admiral Chatfield looks in her official photo below.

USN Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield has a PhD in Education (Official photo).

 

Followers of the Watch, make no mistake. The Trumpf junta is filling the ranks with pro-Kremlin, pro-Likud white male officers loyal to the regime regardless of competency or experience, like Josef Stalin did in the USSR in the 1930s.

Sources:

https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2025-04-07/nato-vice-admiral-fired-17401394.html

America’s Brutal Police State

Photo courtesy of the US Holocaust Memorial and Museum.

The Islamophobic Police State

Defense attorney Amir Makled. (Photo: Hall Makled Law Firm)

Dearborn Michigan attorney Amir Makled, who is representing a pro-Palestinian demonstrator arrested at the University of Michigan in 2024, was detained at Detroit Metro Airport by federal agents who questioned him about his clients and tried to get him to surrender his cellphone. Mr. Makled stood his ground and didn’t give up his phone.

“I’m an American citizen. I’m not worried about being deported,” Makled said he recalled thinking to himself in the airport interrogation room. “So, I tell them, ‘I know you can take my phone. I’m not going to give you my phone, however … 90% of my work is on my phone. You’re not getting unfettered access to (it).’ “

What followed was a 90-minute, back-and-forth verbal tussle between Makled and two federal agents, who ultimately released him without taking his phone, but looked at his contacts list instead.

In 2024, the Honorable Nina R. Morrison, a federal judge in New York ruled that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) can’t search travelers’ phones without a warrant. The ruling theoretically applies to land borders, seaports, and airports — but in practice, it only applies to New York’s Eastern District. EDNY includes John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens, the sixth-busiest airport in the country. Nationwide, CBP has conducted more than 230,000 searches of electronic devices between the 2018 and 2023 fiscal years at land borders, seaports, and airports.

The Honorable Judge Nina R. Morrison, a heroine for America’s brutal times.

Under the Trumpf regime, this will only worsen. The junta is suppressing any pro-Palestinian support in the US on behalf of Likudnik war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu. Palestinian-Americans make up 1% of the entire Arab-American population; Lebanese-Americans are the largest group, making up 25% of Arab-Americans.

The Xenophobic Police State

Rebecca Burke near her parents’ home in south Wales. (Photo: Francesca Jones / The Guardian)

Rebecca Burke, a UK citizen, was shackled and transported to an ICE detention center where she was locked up for 19 days, even though she had the money to pay for a flight home and was desperate to leave the US. Now back home in the UK, Ms. Burke tells others thinking of going to Trumpf’s America: Don’t do it.

Indian Students Targeted for Deportation

VPOTUS JD Vance and his Indian-born wife Usha.

Indian students facing minor criminal offences, including traffic violations in the US, are now being targeted by the country’s authorities. The US has revoked visas of international students including dozens of Indian students who received related mails from their designated school officials. The students were informed that their F-1 student visas were no longer valid and were asked to leave the country at once. The e-mails cited past criminal offences by the students like shifting lanes while driving, drunk driving, shoplifting, etc. as reasons for their deportation. In the past few weeks, hundreds of international students in the US received e-mails informing them about their visa being revoked and asking them to self-deport.

Here’s what the letter said:

“The termination of your Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), which is a legal document which stores data of an immigrant and proves their legal status, record means that you no longer have valid F-1 non-immigrant status. This means you are no longer lawfully allowed to stay in the US. Restated, your Form I-20 is no longer valid. Your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) is no longer valid, and you no longer have authorization to work. “If your visa has been revoked, this means that the F-1 visa in your passport is no longer valid. If you are in the US, you may need to make plans for immediate departure.”

Though each offence can lead to deportation according to the Department of Homeland Security, US immigration attorneys opined that in the past such offences seldom led to deportation. This will have exponential effects for US colleges and universities which make millions of dollars in tuition from international students. You wonder what Usha Vance, the Second Lady of the United States, or India PM Nahendra Modi think about this?

Photo capturing the American police state by Bill Hudson (NYT / AP).

Sources:

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/wayne/2025/04/07/lawyer-for-u-m-protester-held-at-airport-refused-to-give-feds-his-phone/82978891007/

https://www.theverge.com/2024/7/29/24209130/customs-border-protection-unlock-phone-warrant-new-york-jfk

https://www.deccanherald.com/world/drunk-driving-shoplifting-speeding-indian-students-in-us-told-to-self-deport-over-minor-offences-3483448

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/05/i-was-a-british-tourist-trying-to-leave-america-then-i-was-detained-shackled-and-sent-to-an-immigration-detention-centre

CIA Reviewing Lethal Options Against Mexican Drug Cartels

CIA is reviewing its authorities to use lethal force against drug cartels in Mexico after the Trumpf junta made the cartels a major priority for the intelligence agency. Trump designated a number of cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO). The review does not indicate the Dotard has ordered CIA to take direct action against the cartels, but CIA is already flying surveillance drones over Mexico like the MQ-9 Reaper drone below: 

An MQ-9 Reaper drone at an undisclosed location border. The Houthis in Yemen have shot down at least three of these expensive aircraft.

In 1981, President Ronald Reagan signed Executive Order 12333: “No person employed by or acting on behalf of the United States Government shall engage in, or conspire to engage in, assassination.”

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum recently met in Mexico City. (Social media)

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum posted on social media that she and other Mexican officials including Foreign Affairs Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente had “a fruitful meeting” with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem “for the benefit of Mexico and the United States.”

“Our countries maintain a good relationship within the framework of respect for our sovereignties,” she wrote.

President Claudia Sheinbaum already broke Mexico’s constitution by extraditing several cartel members to the US in an effort to placate the Trumpf junta. CIA covert action in Mexico will undermine her country’s sovereignty and possibly destabilize her country. In 2023 Mexico suffered 22,355 gun deaths, mostly from cartel violence. American demand for illegal drugs provides the cartels a lucrative business. In turn, the cartel operators purchase smuggled weapons from American gunrunners and the cycle remains unbroken.

Sources:

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/07/politics/cia-reviewing-lethal-force-drug-cartels/index.html

EUROPOL Smashes Child Sexploitation Ring

Kidflix, one of the largest pedophile platforms in the world, has been shut down in an international operation against child sexual exploitation. Over 35 countries worldwide participated in the operation. 1,393 suspects were identified, 79 suspects were arrested, over 3,000 electronic devices were seized, and 39 children were protected.  A total of 1.8 million users worldwide logged on to the platform between April 2022 and March 2025. Authorities seized the server which contained around 72,000 videos.

Source:

https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/global-crackdown-kidflix-major-child-sexual-exploitation-platform-almost-two-million-users

Bio-Tech Firm Claims They Cloned Extinct Ice Age ‘Dire Wolves’ Thru DNA Manipulation

  • Colossal Biosciences says it created three wolf pups with the genes of ancient, extinct dire wolves.
  • The startup’s scientists call this “de-extinction,” but other experts say these aren’t dire wolves.
  • What is certain is that these three wolf pups are the first of their kind.

The beginnings of a real-life “Jurassic Park” are playing out in a high-security, undisclosed location where three unusually large, fluffy, white wolf pups are growing up.

The gene-editing startup Colossal Biosciences, which recently raised $400 million for its de-extinction and conservation missions, announced the pups’ existence on Monday, saying they are the first living dire wolves since the species went extinct some 12,500 years ago.

Brothers Romulus and Remus were born in Oct 2024, followed by female pup Khaleesi in January — all delivered by Caesarean section from their hound-dog surrogate moms to avoid complications from their large size.

Romulus and Remus were born in October. Colossal Biosciences

Wolf pups Romulus and Remus.

If true, the late pioneering novelist Michael Crichton would have been pleased with this news. Coriolanus has read several of his books, some of which became mega blockbuster movies.

Source:

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/07/science/dire-wolf-de-extinction-cloning-colossal/index.html

American Police State Terrorizing Citizens, Foreigners, Dissidents

For those Followers of the Watch residing outside the US, you would be wise to refrain from visiting the once “Land of the free, home of the brave.”

Watch the US police state in action as ICE detains Rumeysa Ozturk (30), a Turkish PhD student at Tufts University:

The ICE agents are using a standard FLETC academy arrest technique where one agent distracts the individual with a “PSST!” or “Pardon me” while another agent gets behind the poor girl.

Protesting the Israeli genocide in Gaza or Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine sent these poor young women to the American gulag. Ms. Petrova also faces other dangers should she be deported to Russia and the tender mercies of Vladimir Putin’s police state.

American citizens have been brutalized by the police for years. The advent of social media exposed the long-standing and pervasive practice which led to the Black Lives Matter movement and the meme ACAB (“All cops are bastards”). Watch three Arizona police officers pummel and tase Tyron McAlpin, a defenseless, deaf black man suffering from cerebral palsy for no reason.

Warning: Followers of the Watch may find this video disturbing.

The white officers received minimal disciplinary action from the Phoenix Police Department. Below is the how the Phoenix Police Department presents itself on its website, reminiscent of a Potemkin Village:

https://www.phoenix.gov/administration/departments/police.html

The reality is that unlike the police departments found all over the world, America inherited the brutal, racist legacy of the antebellum Slave Patrol, which has continued into the 21st century.

White Americans are not immune to police brutality. Grandfather Michael Burch (69) slowly suffocated to death in a rural Colorado jail after a Huerfano County deputy broke his ribs in an altercation and then allowed him to languish in a cell for one week without medical care.

Michael Burch with one of his daughters holding a grandchild. 
(Undated family photo / AP)

Michael Burch’s 2023 death was ruled a homicide. But prosecutors declined to bring criminal charges against the deputy who used a Taser on Burch and wrestled with him in a Huerfano County jail cell. An autopsy found six of Burch’s right ribs had broken and his right lung collapsed. He wasn’t taken to a hospital but instead was transferred to another cell where he was found dead seven days later. The lawsuit alleges Burch suffered excruciating pain and that he constructed a “death bed” for himself as his broken ribs caused him to slowly asphyxiate.

Warning: Followers of the Watch may find this video disturbing.

Here is another reason why American policing requires a complete overhaul.

North Bergen Police Chief Robert Farley.

A police chief in Hudson County, New Jersey, is being accused of assaulting and harassing his officers in a lengthy list of complaints that includes defecating on floors, exposing himself, attempting to drug coworkers, and sticking a hypodermic needle into an officer’s penis. Chief Robert Farley, who was appointed chief of the North Bergen Police Department in February 2024, is also accused of retaliating against an officer who attempted to report him to the New Jersey Attorney General. Five police officers in North Bergen said they plan to sue over Farley’s alleged behavior, which also includes claims of retaliation, discrimination, sexual misconduct, and harassment.

Ilya Kukhar (26) was arrested for impersonating an immigration agent, after allegedly stalking a Ukrainian market with fake “ICE” decals on his car in Fife, Washington. Kukhar, who is “not employed by any federal law enforcement agency,” has been charged with one count of Criminal Impersonation in the Second Degree. He is currently not in police custody and his initial arraignment is scheduled for 11 Apr.

Countries had previously issued travel advisories to their citizens because of US firearm violence and measles. Now nations are advising their citizens to take precautions when visiting America because of ICE. The Trumpf junta is crushing dissent and causing a brain drain from the US, as well as an economic boycott. Canadians didn’t require such an advisory as thousands and thousands of them have voluntarily cancelled their travel plans to the US. Many began selling their vacation homes in Florida and other areas. Trumpf has turned America’s already over-policed country into the Fourth Reich.

Sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/27/russian-scientist-harvard-medical-school-ice-detention

https://newjersey.news12.com/lawsuit-claims-north-bergen-police-chief-defecated-on-floors-tried-to-drug-coworkers

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/03/27/us/colorado-jail-death-lawsuit-hnk/index.html

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/3-phoenix-officers-disciplined-violent-arrest-of-deaf-man-with-disabilities-tyron-mcalpin/

Israeli Settlers Attempt to Torture and Lynch Oscar-Winning Filmmaker

Hamdan Ballal receives treatment at a hospital in Hebron, in a photo shared on Instagram by Basel Adra. 
(Courtesy Nassr Nawaja)


The Palestinian co-director of Oscar-winning film “No Other Land” Hamdan Ballal was beaten up by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, taken away by IDF soldiers and detained overnight. Following his release from detention, Ballal had been “arbitrarily” held in police detention in Kiryat Arba’a and was beaten in custody by IDF soldiers. Following his release, he was moved to a hospital in Hebron, where he was treated for his injuries.

Despite suffering from dehydration and bruising, Ballal left the hospital returned home to his family in Susya in the occupied West Bank.  

These heinous attacks by the Settlers and the IDF should come as no surprise to the Followers of the Watch. Israel is an ethnic-cleansing police state, supported 100% by the US. Besides the ICC issuing an international arrest warrant for war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague condemned the State of Israel for committing genocide in Gaza and enforcing apartheid on Palestinians, all paid for by the hardworking American taxpayer. Accounting for inflation, US aid to Israel from 1951 to 2022 totaled $317.9 billion, making it the largest recipient of American foreign aid since World War II.

Israeli Settlers attacked IDF General Avi Bluth’s entourage in Nov 2024. The Rule of Law only exists for Israeli Jews in the apartheid state, as IDF and police officers are complicit in these crimes.

Sources:

https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/24/middleeast/ballal-oscar-palestinian-beaten-israeli-settlers-intl-latam/index.html

https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/07/19/world-court-finds-israel-responsible-apartheid

https://usafacts.org/articles/how-much-military-aid-does-the-us-give-to-israel/

https://www.icj-cij.org/case/192

https://www.icj-cij.org/case/186

Taliban Frees Fourth American Citizen Since Jan 2025

US citizen Faye Hall speaking on the phone after being released by the Taliban on 29 Mar 2025. (Photo: © Diplomatic source in Kabul, AFP)

US national Faye Hall was released by the Taliban after having been detained in Afghanistan in Feb 2025. Hall is the fourth American released from Afghanistan since Jan 2025. Hall, two Britons, and their Afghan translator were detained earlier this year. Hall may have been detained for using a drone without authorization. In Jan 2025 Ryan Corbett and William McKenty were freed in exchange for an Afghan fighter, Khan Mohammed, who was convicted of narco-terrorism in the US. George Glezmann was freed after more than two years of detention in a deal brokered by Qatar. The US had lifted bounties on three senior Taliban figures, including the interior minister, who also heads the powerful Haqqani Network (HQN) blamed for attacks against Afghanistan’s former Western-backed government.

Sources:

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250329-us-woman-released-by-taliban-in-afghanistan

Ukraine Update

Five Children Returned From Russian Occupied Areas

Ukrainian children return home after being abducted by Russian authorities. (Photo: Ombudsman of Ukraine)

Five children have been reunited with their families and returned from Russian occupied Ukrainian territories thanks to Qatari mediation, the head of the Ukrainian President’s office said. The children, aged between 11 and 16 years old, were returned from Russian-occupied Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia, under the Bring Kids Back UA initiative in coordination with the Ukrainian Ombudsman’s office.

The initial charges levied against Russian President Vladimir Putin by the ICC was for abducting Ukrainian children, a war crime.

First-Ever Military Mosque Opens in Ukraine

Director of Military Intelligence Kyrylo Budanov (L) and who appears to be Minister of Defense Rustem Enverovych Umyerov (R) (Photo: Government of Ukraine)

“On the initiative of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, in whose ranks many Muslim soldiers are fighting, the first military mosque As-Salam has appeared in our country,” said a spokesperson.

The solemn opening, as tradition dictates, began with the reading of the Quran, a holy book for Muslims, and a collective prayer. The event was attended by Muslim Defense Intelligence of Ukraine fighters, as well as the head of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov.

Budanov thanked the soldiers who profess Islam for their courage in battles with the Russian occupiers and presented the mosque with collections of prayers and commemorations of Allah for a Muslim warrior, arranged by the Military Chaplaincy Service of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine.

Intelligence Director Budanov is a sharp leader who knows that Muslims are fighting and dying for Ukraine. If these Muslims are in the intelligence services, many of them are undertaking risky espionage missions behind enemy lines or recruiting fellow Muslims to turn against Putin. Giving the Ukrainian Muslims a mosque is a gesture demonstrating that they aren’t second class citizens in a Christian-majority nation. Moreover, Ukraine Minister of Defense Rustem Enverovych Umyerov is a Crimean Tatar and therefore a Sunni Muslim who probably endorsed this idea.

Three Chechen soldiers fighting for Ukraine (Undated photo: Sky News)

Remarkable, while Trumpf and Netanyahu are making life absolutely miserable for Muslims, Ukraine President Volodomir Zelensky, who is Jewish, is doing the exact opposite.

New Powerful Re-Usable Ukrainian Drone Has 1,200 Mile Range

The Aeroprakt A-22 is a $90,000 sport plane (Photo: Leighnor Aircraft)

Ukraine’s latest unmanned aerial vehicle can fly 1,200 miles, drop a 550-pound bomb and return to base, making it potentially the most powerful reusable drone in the Russia-Ukraine war. In making its longest-range drones reusable, the drone branch could multiply the number and pace of deep strikes it conducts against targets inside Russia, which have lately included bomber bases and oil facilities. The strikes have raised the cost of Russian bomber sorties targeting Ukrainian cities, and depressed oil production in a country that utterly relies on energy exports for state revenue.

One of Vladimir Putin’s Limousines Explodes Near FSB HQ

A luxury limousine reportedly from Russian President Vladimir Putin's official fleet exploded in Moscow close to the FSB headquarters. The cause of the explosion remains under investigation, and it is unclear whether anyone was inside the vehicle at the time or if Putin was the intended target.

Olga Nesterova (@onestpress.bsky.social) 2025-03-29T22:32:29.302Z

Coriolanus is monitoring this incident and information is limited. Vladimir Putin is deeply paranoid about his personal security and employs layered security, so this is a curious affair. Below, loyal FSB officers ensure Putin’s Honor Guard are carrying unloaded weapons. In 1981, the late Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat was killed by his own soldiers while reviewing a parade.

Two Storks Finally Reunite After Winter Migration and War

One of the more unlikely celebrities in Ukraine is a stork named Hrytsko who returned to his home nest on 22 March in the village of Lelyaki, Poltava Oblast, to await the arrival of his girlfriend, Odarka. Ten minutes after his arrival, he started to clean up the place. Shortly after Hrystko arrived, he visited one of his neighbors, a beekeeper, to see how things were going.

Hrytsko has been nesting in Lelyaki since 2019. Villagers there are fond of him, coming to visit and feeding him from time to time. In Ukraine, a stork is considered to be a symbol of prosperity, family, happiness, well-being, and of the country itself. A livestream set up by a researcher in 2023 had made the couple a viral sensation in Ukraine.

Hrytsko spent 22 and 23 Mar alone in the nest but with hundreds of people watching him. One user even wrote that watching how Hrytsko is part of her “morning routine.”

For most of 24 Mar, Hrytsko was still solo, bracing himself against the wind and occasionally flying off to run errands. Finally, to the great relief of Ukrainians, Odarka finally showed up unharmed in the evening, re-uniting the happy couple.

Sources:

www.bringkidsback.org.ua

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2025/01/31/ukraines-new-drone-bomber-flies-1200-miles-with-a-550-pound-bomb-and-returns-to-base/

https://www.kyivpost.com/post/49845

https://kyivindependent.com/a-lonely-ukrainian-stork-is-waiting-for-his-girlfriend-and-1000s-of-people-are-watching-live/

Utah is First State in America to Ban Fluoride in Public Water

Idiotic Governor Spencer Cox happily signing this lunacy into law which will ruin the teeth of young Utahans. (Photo: Getty Images)

Madman RFK Jr during a Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing in Jan 2025, where many of the questions focused on his controversial views on vaccines and Covid. (Photo: Allison Bailey /NurPhoto /Rex / Shutterstock)

Sources:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gmggp2y99o

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/03/health/rfk-jr-fluoride-science/index.html

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/29/top-us-vaccine-official-resigns-over-rfk-jrs-misinformation-and-lies-dr-peter-marks

Lead Poisoning Pervasive in Milwaukee, WI Schools

Nigerian infant suffering from the effects of lead poisoning. (Undated photo: BBC)

The Milwaukee Department of Health informs:

“At least one student has tested positive for lead poisoning after exposure at Golda Meir School Lower Campus. Lead hazards were widespread in the building, found on the ground in the boy’s bathroom, cafeteria, a hallway, the teacher’s lounge, kitchen areas and multiple rooms. Three other students at Trowbridge Street School of Great Lakes Studies, Maryland Avenue Montessori and Albert E. Kagel Dual Language School may have been lead-poisoned due to lead hazards from chipping lead-based paint and lead dust. Trowbridge Street School of Great Lakes Studies became the first MPS building to close due to its high lead levels, followed by Starms Early Childhood Center, Fernwood Montessori, and Lafollette School.”

The WHO reports that exposure to lead can affect multiple body systems. Lead exposure was attributed to more than 1.5 million deaths globally in 2021, primarily due to cardiovascular effects. The harmful impacts on health from lead exposure are entirely preventable. There is no level of exposure to lead that is known to be without harmful effects.

The people of Flint, Michigan underwent a public health crisis from 2014 to 2019 when their drinking water was found to contain lead and possibly Legionella bacteria. In April 2014, during a financial crisis, state-appointed emergency manager Darnell Earley changed Flint’s water source from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (sourced from Lake Huron and the Detroit River) to the Flint River. Residents complained about the taste, smell, and appearance of the water. Officials failed to apply corrosion inhibitors to the water, which resulted in lead from aging pipes leaching into the water supply, exposing around 100,000 residents to elevated lead levels. (Source: Wikipedia)

.

The people of Milwaukee should not expect sympathy or help from the callous Trumpf junta which lives to serve the interests of the oligarchs and not the masses. Some Followers of the Watch may recall that in the famous 1970s TV comedy show “Happy Days” the teenagers attended the fictional Jefferson High School in Milwaukee. But students in that city are not enjoying any happy days right now in this environmental calamity.

Sources:

https://city.milwaukee.gov/Health/Services-and-Programs/HomeEnvironmentalHealth/Ongoing-Lead-Hazard-Investigations-With-MPS

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flint_water_crisis

Brazil Supreme Court: Jair Bolsonaro to Stand Trial Over Alleged Coup Attempt

Two criminal oligarchs. One may face justice, the other may not. (Undated photo from social media)

Brazil’s Supreme Court has accepted charges against former President Jair Bolsonaro over an alleged attempted coup to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat. The 8 Jan 2023 coup attempt in Brasilia was similar to the Trumpf-led 6 Jan 2021 insurrectionist attack on the US Capitol.

The five justices voted unanimously in favor of putting Bolsonaro and seven other accomplices on trial on five counts, including involvement in an armed criminal organization and attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law.

The populist Bolsonaro, who swept to power after a shock win at the 2018 election, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and says he’s being politically persecuted. Under Brazilian law, a coup conviction alone carries a sentence of up to 12 years. When combined with the other charges, it could potentially see enemy of the environment and the masses Jair Bolsonaro spend decades behind bars. Gut arbet.

Brazil, which is also standing up to Israel’s murderous campaign against the Palestinians, has demonstrated more respect for the Rule of Law than the US. Former President Joe Biden, VPOTUS Kamala Harris, and USAG Merrick Garland must be sitting around bewildered at this concept, when their administration had four years to deal with Trumpf one way or another.

An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Source:

https://www.euronews.com/2025/03/26/brazils-supreme-court-says-jair-bolsonaro-should-stand-trial-over-alleged-coup-attempt

China Unveils Powerful Diamond-Bladed Undersea Cable Cutter

Concept art of a severed undersea iInternet cable. (Image: X Screengrab)

China has developed a compact deep-sea device capable of cutting armored undersea cables at depths of 4,000 meters — twice the operational depth of existing subsea communication infrastructure. The tool, featuring a 150-mm diamond-coated grinding wheel spinning at 1,600 rpm, was designed for integration with China’s advanced submersibles. The development has raised concerns over the security of global undersea infrastructure, as such cables carry 95% of global data transmission and support critical military and civilian operations.

As you have read here on Coriolanus, Beijing has reportedly already cut cables to Taiwan and is constructing large ‘D-Day’ type amphibious landing craft for a potential invasion of the island republic.

There is no mystery that Beijing wishes to assimilate Taiwan one day. But China is keeping a wary eye on North Korea, who has been getting too cozy to Beijing’s dismay. The Kremlin as been increasing the number, power, and accuracy of North Korea’s WMDs. So, at one point, the Chinese CCP is going to tire of the lunatic Kim Jong-un dynasty at their border with an ever-increasing nuclear stockpile. China is much more interwoven into the capitalist global economy than unstable Russia and North Korea. Coriolanus would be surprised if Beijing did NOT have a contingency plan to one day overwhelm North Korea and defang the nefarious Kim Jong-un once and for all. The “Inchon-style” amphibious landing craft would come in handy for a three-pronged attack from north, east and west.

Sources:

https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/china-deep-sea-cable-cutter-threat-global-security-new-weapon-13874403.html

https://www.yahoo.com/news/five-signs-china-preparing-invade-200000510.html

Cat Keeps Jumping Onto Couple’s Boat For Playdates

Post-Election Democratic Party Dismay and Discourse: “Ready! Aim! Fire!!!”

Democratic Party voters and strategists are still conducting their post-mortem analysis of the 2024 catastrophe. Kamala Harris energetically filled rallies, selected a sound, competent, popular running mate in Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, set records in fund-raising, and trounced Donald Trump in their one nationally televised debate.

Yet, Kamala Harris lost both the Electoral College and the popular vote. 2004 was the last time the Democrats lost the popular vote (former US Navy Seal John Kerry: 48.3%; George “Dubya” Bush: 50.7%).

Post-COVID inflation, Latino male support shifting to the GOP, Kamala Harris not appearing on a podcast (racist blue-collar Joe Rogan), insufficient campaign time, or America was not ready for a woman of color to be POTUS, were factors that contributed to the Kamala Harris defeat in one way or another.  

Not all, but some Democrats have reached their own infallible, unshakeable conclusion as to why Kamala Harris lost in 2024. A small but vocal portion of the Democratic Party blame the 3,500,000 Arab-Americans that did not vote for Kamala Harris on Election Day, particularly the community in swing-state Michigan.

Kamala Harris won a miserable 20% of the vote in Michigan while Donald Trump barely eked out a 1% edge over her (21% supported the Republican). Green Party candidate Jill Stein won the lion’s share with 59% of their vote. Had Dr. Stein selected a Palestinian-American VPOTUS running mate, she might have won even more votes in the Wolverine State. Kamala’s dismal numbers shouldn’t have surprised political strategists. TV commentator Mehdi Hasan said not only did Harris not court the Muslim and Arab America vote, Harris “actively spurned it.” Worse, US arms shipments to Israel continued unabated throughout the campaign season.

In the blogosphere, some Democrats claim that thanks to these spurned Arab-American Michiganders, “things will get worse for Palestinians” in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank under Donald Trump: “So there!”

One furious blogger sounded like a war-hawk Likudnik by suggesting the US “carpet-bomb Dearborn, MI,” like the USAF did over the skies of North Vietnam in the 1960s and early 1970s. These words came from a Democrat.

44,500 Palestinians have been killed, over 105,000 wounded or maimed, and 2.3 million Gazans have been displaced. The UN warns of an imminent famine this winter in Gaza. So, how much worse could it get for Palestinians who are being slaughtered at an average rate of 3,000 per month since 7 Oct 2023, with a sitting Democrat in the White House?

The ones who have been hurling venomous vituperation at Arab-Americans– “hijab-wearers”— sound like Donald Trump with his tropes about “the enemy within.” We can almost hear them think: “Wouldn’t it be better without all these goddamned Arabs?” Basically, these angry Democrats made Arab-Americans a convenient but illogical scapegoat responsible for Kamala Harris’ cataclysmic loss.

Wiser would be for Democrats to look at the enormous anti-war segment of the American population for why they lost in November 2024 and not blame the “hijab wearers” or “Hamas lovers.”

Demonstrators protest outside the UN during a resolution to demand the cease-fire in Gaza on 12 Dec 2023 in NYC. (Photo by Kena Betancur / VIEWpress)

In early 2024, 67% of Americans of all political affiliations wanted the Biden/Harris Administration to join the international call for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. US vetoes at the UN Security Council frustrated peacemakers. After being sidelined at the 2024 DNC Convention in Chicago, anti-war Democrats and Americans simply did not turn out nationally on 5 Nov for Kamala Harris. This explains the huge difference in numbers between 2020 Biden/Harris and 2024 Harris/Walz presidential elections.

In 2024 to protest the brutality of the Likud regime, USAF Airman Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire in front of the Israeli Embassy in Wash DC. (Photo: Social media)

To protest the brutality of the Saigon regime in 1963, Buddhist monk Thích Quảng Duc set himself on fire. (Photo: Public domain)

As history taught us, after anti-war Democrats were sidelined in 1968, they too did not turn out nationally for Hubert Humphrey, ushering in the corrupt Richard Nixon era. You may read the exact numbers for both elections in my 20 Nov post about the striking parallels between 1968 and 2024.

Being anti-war in 1968 did not make one a “Viet Cong lover”; being anti-war in 2002 did not make one a “jihadi lover;” being anti-war in 2024 did not make one a “Hamas lover.”

Indicted war criminal Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s unrelentless Nakba against the Palestinians and his incalcitrant lack of cooperation with the Biden Administration in reaching a ceasefire to free the hostages sealed the fate for the Democrats in 2024. In the US, the number of anti-war Americans far, far outnumber 3,500,000 Arab-Americans (who are not all eligible to vote by age). VPOTUS Kamala Harris may have been better served paying attention to the powerful antiwar sentiment reverberating throughout the American people as evidenced by the thousands of protests on US college campuses in 2024.

Sources:

How Kamala Harris Thumbed Her Nose at Arab American and Muslim Voters – CounterPunch.org

3.5 Million Reported Middle Eastern and North African Descent in 2020

Most Michigan Muslims voted for Jill Stein, followed by Trump, exit poll suggests

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1035521/popular-votes-republican-democratic-parties-since-1828/

Thích Quảng Duc: The Burning Monk | Barbara O’Brien

Aaron Bushnell: Aaron Bushnell: Candlelight Vigil Planned Outside Israeli Embassy In Washington DC For US Airman Who Set Himself On Fire | US News News, Times Now

Campus protests over Gaza are spreading: See our map

Two-Thirds of US Voters Across Political Spectrum Support Permanent Gaza Cease-Fire | Common Dreams

FBI Arrests NYC Woman Over FSB Contacts

Nomma Zarubina (Social media)

The US charged a Russian woman who engaged with anti-war opposition activists over false statements about her ties with Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).

NYC resident Nomma Zarubina (34) was accused of concealing her 2020 recruitment by an FSB agent under the code name “Alyssa,” according to the Russian America for Democracy in Russia (RADR).

“[Zarubina] aimed to build a network of US contacts among journalists, military personnel, think tank researchers and Russia experts to influence their perspectives,” RADR said.

Zarubina faces up to five years in prison if found guilty of making false statements to law enforcement agencies. She was released on $25,000 bail and banned from traveling outside New York. A judge scheduled a preliminary hearing in her case 30 days from 21 Nov. 

On 19 Nov, the defendant spoke in Canada’s Parliament Hill at a conference on Russia’s future where she mingled with MPs, academics, and policy makers.

Zarubina has engaged with its community organizers across various cities, attended discussion panels hosted by US think tanks and posed for photos with notable Russian opposition figures since 2023. Zarubina recently began appearing as an expert at conferences held by the Free Nations of PostRussia Forum, a Poland-based platform that advocates for Russia’s decolonization and fragmentation into 41 independent states. 

Russia last year labeled the Free Nations of PostRussia Forum an “undesirable organization,” and on  22 Nov designated 172 of what it called its “subdivisions” as terrorist organizations.

Zarubina advocated for a “United States of Siberia” at the forum’s joint panel with the Jamestown Foundation in April, according to the Russian civil activist news outlet activatica.org. Zarubina actively supported President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea on social media, according to an analysis by the investigative news website Agentstvo.

Zarubina wrote on Facebook that media reports about her arrest amount to “rumors, opinions and blackmail.”

Zarubina told the Sibir.Realii news outlet that she had been summoned by the Russian special services in late 2020 but denied receiving any instructions from them. She then claimed to voluntarily report those and other contacts with Russians to the FBI in April 2021.

“I’ve since been in touch with the Americans around once every six months,” the US-funded outlet quoted Zarubina as saying.

“I’ve known the people who arrested me for four years. I thought we had a very good relationship, I was kind of helping them,” she added.

Zarubina voiced fears that she may now become the target of Russia’s security services, which she said were unaware of her contacts with the FBI despite claiming to have her under surveillance in NY.

“This is no longer the level of false statements, but of treason. And it’s not safe for me to be in New York either.”

There is more to this story than meets the eye. As a covert influencer for the Kremlin, through a penny-ante 18 USC 1001 violation, Nomma Zarubina has been rendered ineffective by the FBI Counterintelligence Division. But there may be an undisclosed reason for her arrest and public exposure. If Nomma Zarubina attempted to walk the tight-rope as a double agent, then she failed both the FBI and the FSB. We shall see what fate has in store for our modern day Mata Hari.

Sources:

U.S. Charges Russian Woman Over FSB Contacts – Reports – The Moscow Times

Russian Woman Arrested in U.S. For Alleged Ties To Russian Intelligence

Russian consultant accused of spying for Moscow spoke at Parliament Hill forum two days before arrest by FBI – The Globe and Mail

Russian America for Democracy in Russia Inc – GuideStar Profile

Israel: Nakba Remorselessly Continues as Gaza Pummeled Again

A rescuer sifts through charred debris after an Israeli strike hit a makeshift camp for displaced Palestinians, in Mawasi Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on 4 Dec 2024. (Photo: AFP)

Israel launched more attacks on targets in Gaza. One IDF strike that hit a tent camp housing displaced people killed at least 21 and wounded 28 in southern Gaza. The IDF said its aircraft struck senior Hamas militants “involved in terrorist activities” in the area.

At least 15 bodies were brought to the hospital, but reaching a precise number of dead was difficult because many were dismembered, some without heads or badly burned. The strike hit the Mawasi area, a sprawling coastal camp housing hundreds of thousands of displaced people.

Earlier strikes elsewhere in Gaza killed eight people, including four children.

A wounded Palestinian child is carried on a stretcher at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al-Balah, following an Israeli bombardment in Nuseirat, central Gaza, 4 Dec 2024. (Photo: AP)

UN officials say there are no safe areas left in Gaza and that most of its 2.3 million people have been displaced multiple times.

Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee the northern part of Gaza, amid an IDF operation in the northern Gaza Strip, 4 Dec 2024. (Photo: Reuters)

Further north, another Israeli airstrike hit three houses in Gaza City, killing at least ten people and wounding many others. Many victims were still trapped under the rubble with rescue operations under way.

11 people were killed in three airstrikes on areas in central Gaza, including six children and a medic. Five of the dead had been lining up outside a bakery.

A further nine Palestinians were killed by tank fire in Rafah, near the border with Egypt.

Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 44,500 Palestinians, more than half of the verified deaths women and children, according to the Gaza health ministry. Israel says that the death toll includes thousands of militants it has killed.

As you read in the previous post, at one point more IDF soldiers are going to have pangs of guilt over their conduct in this horrible Nakba. Leaked videos of IDF personnel abusing Palestinian prisoners were a sign of discontent within the ranks of the Israeli military. PTSD, depression, alcohol/drug addiction, and suicides will take their toll on Israeli society as it did on America following all of her wars. In the meantime, more Palestinians will be killed and wounded; they too will be suffering from irrevocable PTSD.    

This US Vietnam War veteran is homeless like millions of Palestinians and may be suffering from PTSD like them and Israelis (Photo: Courtesy of endhomelessness.org)

Source:

Dozens killed in new Israeli attacks in Gaza, Palestinian officials say

Norway: Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Alfalfa Sprouts Stricken 23

Norwegian officials are investigating a national outbreak of Salmonella that may be linked to alfalfa sprouts. 23 people had fallen in nine regions.

Patients have been reported since mid-October. They range in age from 18 to 79 with a median of 48 years old and 16 of them are women. Eight people have been hospitalized. Bacteria with a similar genetic profile have been detected in all patients, which suggests a common source of infection.

“Several of the infected people in the outbreak reported eating sprouts. Earlier this year, FHI also saw an increase in cases of Salmonella infection where sprouts have been suspected as the cause of disease,” said Umaer Naseer from FHI.

Consumers are advised to throw away sprouts purchased in recent weeks. This also applies to products where alfalfa sprouts are an ingredient, such as sandwiches, baguettes, salads, and wraps.

The suspicion is based on patient interviews, epidemiological data, patients’ purchasing information and product distribution patterns.

Norske Spirer has recalled products containing organic alfalfa sprouts from the market.

Norway recorded 757 Salmonella cases in 2023, with 37 percent infected in the country and 63 percent infected abroad. Three Salmonella outbreaks affected 14 people. 

Swedish update

Meanwhile, in Sweden there has been a recall as authorities continue to investigate a different Salmonella outbreak also linked to sprouts.

The Public Health Agency of Sweden said 92 people from 18 regions have been infected with one of 12 genetically closely related Salmonella Typhimurium sequence type (ST) 36 variants.

Authorities made a connection between illness and consumption of alfalfa sprouts germinated from a certain seed batch. SydGrönt and Munkagrodden issued a recall and stopped germination from the seed lot.

Source:

Norway links Salmonella outbreak to sprouts | Food Safety News

Update: FBI Arrests Alleged Sex Predator John Doe 49

Thanks to all of you who identified the distinctive tattoos from a previous post, the FBI arrested alleged child abuser John Doe 49 AKA Christopher Lynn Driskill (48) of Texas. We knew John Doe 49 would be found with maximum public exposure, and he was. If convicted, this sexual deviant faces up to 30 years in federal prison.

If you are experiencing or witness child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911.

The National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline — 800.656.HOPE (4673) — provides free, 24/7 support for those in need.

Anyone with tips may call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Mr. Driskill is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Source:

Northern District of Texas | Alleged Child Molester Identified by His Distinctive Tattoos | United States Department of Justice

American Warzone: Three Dead, Five Wounded in Chicago’s Gage Park Neighborhood

Eight people were shot, including three fatally, Monday afternoon at a social gathering in Chicago’s Gage Park neighborhood.

The shooting was reported to police around 2:10 p.m. CST in the 3500 block of West 59th Street, Chicago Police Chief of Patrol Jon Hein told reporters in a press conference.

Hein said investigators were still conducting interviews. He described the victims as being four men and four women between the ages of 20 and 35. All were Hispanic. Six of the victims were located at the scene and were transported by ambulance to the hospital. The other two victims self-transported.

Asked if any of the victims were migrants, Hein retorted that their immigration status “is irrelevant at this time.”

“We have eight victims, and we’re going to solve this crime and find the individuals responsible for this heinous, terrible incident,” he said, calling on members of the public with information about the shooting to contact the authorities.

He added that police have previously received calls at the residence where the shooting took place. The circumstances leading up to the shooting were unclear, but Hein said the victims had been attending an unspecified social gathering.

The Windy City has been re-dubbed “Chiraq” because of the endemic shootings plaguing the metropolis. According to The Gun Violence Archive, a non-advocacy group that tallies gun violence across the US, there have been at least 473 mass shootings with four or more victims so far this year.

Per the CDC, in 2022 there were more than 48,000 firearm-related deaths in the US. That’s approximately 132 people dying from a firearm-related injury each day. These are war-time casualty numbers without an enemy invasion.

US Army medics treating the wounded during a Field Training Exercise (FTX). (Photo: US Army)

Sources:

8 shot, 3 fatally, in Chicago’s Gage Park neighborhood – UPI.com

Fast Facts: Firearm Injury and Death | Firearm Injury and Death Prevention | CDC

The Arctic Could Be Ice-Free by Summer 2027: What it Means for Weather, Shipping and Polar Bears

While most projections of the Arctic’s sea ice have focused on month-by-month conditions, a new study has revealed possible predictions down to the day.

Previous expectations had the Arctic Sea loss predicted around 2030, but these results reveal that an ice-free day could occur as early as late summer 2027. 

Nine other simulations, while less likely, predict that it could occur within the next three to six years.

Scientists, from the study published in Nature Communications, say the Arctic’s first ice-free day is now inevitable and irreversible, regardless of how humans alter greenhouse gas emissions.

Source: Mappery.com

The Arctic Ocean covers a vast area of more than 16 million square kilometres, and for thousands of years, it has witnessed a natural seasonal event: layers of frozen seawater dramatically build up over the winter months into a thick ice cap that peaks in March before it melts in September. 

In recent decades, however, this dramatic event has been less prevalent. 

Sea ice has declined by more than 12 per cent every decade since 1978, when satellite imagery – the Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer or ‘SMMR’ – started recording Arctic sea ice growth and retreat.

That’s 80,000 square kilometers every year – roughly the same size as Austria or the Czech Republic

Scientists define ‘ice-free’ as the sea ice area dropping to less than one million square kilometers in a short time, which is considered a climate tipping point. 

A team of international researchers used over 300 computer models to predict the first ice-free day. These showed an accelerated timeline compared to what was previously projected

Rapid ice loss events are typically associated with intense winters and spring warming. 

Long-term, if the Arctic Ocean is regularly declared ice-free, this could significantly impact the fragile ecosystem of the northernmost sea, including everything from the ‘emblematic polar bear to the crucial zooplankton,’ the study reveals. 

Polar bear Gerda (six) cuddles up with her cub at Novosibirsk Zoo in Russia. Zoos may be the safest places for these poor creatures. (Photo: Vera Salnitskaya)

The day the Arctic shows ice-free conditions is symbolically significant. It will visually highlight how humans have changed one of our planet’s defining natural features: from a white to a blue Arctic Ocean.

The sun never sets in the Arctic during summer, so without the reflective ice reflecting sunlight into space, the ocean will absorb and distribute a substantial amount of heat around the Earth. 

International waters do not have any jurisdiction, so commercial industries could exploit opportunities found in the warmer Arctic waters. They could fish and deep-mine previously inaccessible marine and mineral populations, while freight companies could take a quicker shipping route across the Northwest Passage.

The warming could also lead to more erratic and extreme weather events through changing wind and ocean current patterns. 

Warmer years have already occurred: in March 2022, some of the Arctic was 50F/10C warmer than the average, which caused areas around the North Pole to almost melt.

The study’s authors say there is still a chance to delay the timeline for the sea ice melt in the near future. 

“Any reductions in emissions would help preserve sea ice,” added Jahn.

Arctic-oriented military installations; mostly Russian.

The Kremlin is ready to exploit the untold wealth under the Arctic Sea and have military plans and resources specifically for that purpose, so the Kremlin welcomes the melting sea ice. Earlier this year, NORAD intercepted the first Chinese bombers flying near the ADIZ, accompanied by Russian planes. Beijing has eyes on the untapped resources in the Arctic as well.

In 2007, a Russian deep-sea submersible planted a flag on the Arctic seabed claiming the continental shelf.  The area is estimated to hold 258 billion tons of fuel equivalent.  

Sources:

The Arctic could be ice-free by summer 2027: What it means for weather, shipping and polar bears | Euronews

Russia in the Arctic – Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik

Speculation Swirling about President Biden Pardoning President-elect Donald J. Trump

President Gerald R. Ford pardoning Richard M. Nixon on national TV, 8 Sep 1974.

Democratic Congressman James Clyburn supports President Joe Biden pardoning Donald Trump, agreeing with Senator Joe Manchin (I-WVA) after Special Counsel Jack Smith filed to dismiss the two federal cases against the president-elect.

Speculation is rife and causing dismay among Democrats that such a sacrilege could even be entertained. The judicial system, including the Supreme Court, has– and will– blatantly shield Donald Trump from any legal jeopardy. State prosecutors have been stymied as well.

Either way, Trump has made a mockery of justice and will continue to do so after he leaves office, clearly demonstrating that wealthy oligarchs are above the law in the US.

President Biden may as well as get the last word in before he retires. So, here is the pardon that Joe Biden should read live soberly and somberly on his teleprompter in the Oval Office to a rapt, international audience like Gerald Ford exactly 50 years ago:

“Now, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN, President of the United States, pursuant to the pardon power conferred upon me by Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, have granted and by these presents do grant a full, free, and absolute pardon unto Donald J. Trump for all offenses against the United States such as inciting insurrection, vile treachery, business fraud, racial discrimination, cowardly draft evasion, being an unregistered agent of the Russian government, tax avoidance, Mammon-like graft, voter suppression, plundering classified information, slander, libel, sexual misconduct, and manifest deception against the American people, which he, Donald J. Trump, has heinously committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from June 14, 1946 through January 19, 2025.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand and twenty-four.”

JOSEPH R. BIDEN

This way, the message is heard far and wide and will last forever. Plus, Joe Biden gets in the last word about Donald J. Trump on international TV.

And kick for that matter. “Here’s a pardon for you, Donald!”

Source:

Donald Trump Pardon Supported by Top Democrat – Newsweek

Affectionate Cats

International Arrest Warrants Finally Issued for Benjamin Netanyahu

The Israeli government did its utmost to fight the indictment and issuance of the arrest warrant but failed to stop justice at the Hague. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued the following statement:


“The Chamber issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest.”

“The arrest warrants are classified as ‘secret’, in order to protect witnesses and to safeguard the conduct of the investigations.”

Any nation that is a signatory to the ICC has an obligation to execute these arrest warrants.

The US, India, Indonesia, and China are not state parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court which founded the ICC in 2002. The US has observer status at the ICC where Special Counsel Jack Smith completed an assignment prosecuting PIFWCs (Persons Indicted For War Crimes) before investigating Donald Trump.


An arrest warrant was also issued for Palestinian resistance leader Mohammed Deif who the IDF killed without trial and Yoav Gallant, the ex-Defense Minister. The Israeli PIFWCs can therefore safely travel to those four countries without fear of being detained.


This was a long time coming and a national black eye for Israel. Moreover, at the nearby International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague, several countries have charged the State of Israel with committing genocide. See official charging document at link below. But none of these actions dissuaded Netanyahu from continuing his Murder-Death-Kill campaign against Arabs. At time of publication, the IDF killed 133 victims in AKZ-L, AKZ-G, and AKZ-S.

Palestinian residents and civil defence teams launch a search and rescue operation following an Israeli attack on the Remal Clinic on al-Wehda Street in Gaza City (Photo: Dawoud Abo Alkas / Anadolu Agency)

The Israeli Death Forces pounded northern Gaza, killing 88 Palestinians in two waves of attacks on Beit Lahiya and the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City (AKZ-G). The IDF also killed nine in Tyre (AKZ-L) and 36 in Palmyra (AKZ-S).

The Likud Party and the IDF have killed at least 43,985 Palestinians and wounded 104,092 since 7 Oct 2023. An estimated 1,139 Israelis were killed during the attack to seize hostages for a prisoner swap; more than 200 were taken alive.

In AKZ-W, the IDF continued ethnic cleansing operations, arresting four Palestinians arrested near West Bank’s Hebron, Nablus. Israeli forces stormed the nearby village of Qabalan and tore down a barracks.

In Lebanon (AKZ-L), at least 3,558 people have been killed and 15,123 wounded in IDF since Oct 2023. UNICEF stated that increased Israeli violence is the ‘horrific new normal’ for children in Lebanon.

The Likud Party and the IDF are robbing the happiness, health, and future of Arab children within arm’s length of their US-provided weapons.

Members of a family rest in a tent after fleeing their home in Lebanon. (Photo: UNICEF/Fouad Choufany)

Meanwhile the US Senate voted overwhelmingly against three resolutions sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that would have blocked the sale of certain US weapons to Israel. Even this token measure failed.

And, of course, the US cast the single veto against a Gaza ceasefire resolution at the UN Security Council supported by 14 of the 15 UNSC members. US representative Ambassador Robert Wood said that the US could not support an unconditional ceasefire unless it was tied to releasing the Israeli hostages being held in Gaza by resistance fighters. This statement mirrors Likud Party policies.

Tor Wennesland, the out-going Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the Secretary-General stated bluntly without naming the US: ‘We are at the point where diplomacy has failed.’

To no one’s surprise, US President Joe Biden called the ICC war crimes arrest warrant for Netanyahu “outrageous” and vetoed a ceasefire initiative at the UNSC. Biden and the Democrats will be out of office in two months, just like in 1968 when Hubert Humphrey and his coterie were ingloriously kicked out over the Democrat’s failed policies on Vietnam. “Crime Minister” Benjamin Netanyahu will maintain his firm grip on power while receiving enormous amounts of lethal aid from the hard-working American taxpayer. The IDF will continues its vindictive Nakba across several Arab Killing Zones (AKZ). Over 50,000 Arabs will be killed by 1 Jan 2025. While the Cold Warrior got it right dealing with the Kremlin these past three years, Joe Biden just didn’t get it at all dealing with Israel. We trust President Biden enjoys his retirement next year.   

Sources:

LIVE: Israel kills dozens in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria; US defends UNSC veto | Israel-Palestine conflict News | Al Jazeera

United States vetoes Gaza ceasefire resolution at Security Council | UN News

https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/situation-state-palestine-icc-pre-trial-chamber-i-rejects-state-israels-challenges

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_and_the_International_Criminal_Court

Bolivia files a declaration of intervention in the proceedings under Article 63 of the Statute

Dozens of Palestinian detainees abused, Israeli rights groups say – Ya Libnan

The Ukrainian military destroyed a location where North Korean generals could have been present alongside senior Russian military leaders.

According to Ukrainian outlet Defense Express, the use of multiple Storm Shadow missiles indicates the likely presence of high-ranking military personnel in the area or High-Value Targets (HVTs).

Debris analysis confirmed the use of UK-provided Storm Shadow missiles rather than French SCALPs.

(Credit: Will Stewart)

Defence Express highlighted the use of these cruise missiles on similar high-value military targets in the past, including a reserve command post of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

The attack underscores the strategic importance of targeting such facilities, noting the implications of Ukraine’s authorization to use Storm Shadow missiles within Russian territory.

Hours later, the Defense Secretary announced the Armed Forces will be hit by £500 million worth of cuts, The Telegraph reports.

The announcement came after the US gave Kiev permission to use ATACMS long-range missiles against Russian targets. Britain initially allowed Storm Shadows to target Russian-occupied areas in Ukraine, but it now appears Kiev has permission to use them against targets inside Russia.

The £800,000 missiles are highly effective, designed to evade air defenses and hit targets with GPS-guided precision at speeds of up to 600mph. With a range of 180 miles, these weapons can strike deep into Russian territory.

As pointed out in a previous post, the Ukrainians must “strike firstest with the mostest” against North Korean military interlopers sent to help Russia. Eliminating the North Korean High Command in Russian territory will de-moralize the troops and ruin their command and control. Kiev and NATO have two months to maximize their offensive before the next US presidential administration takes over and cuts military, intelligence, and economic aid to Ukraine.

Source:

Fiery moment ‘British Storm Shadow missiles explode inside Russia targeting underground control room’ | The US Sun

Danish Military Keeps Watch on Chinese Ship Suspected of Baltic Undersea Cable Sabotage

(Photo of the Yi Peng 3 by Mikkel Berg Pedersen / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP via Getty Images)

The Danish Defense Command is monitoring the Chinese cargo ship Yi Peng 3, which is anchored off the coast of Denmark and suspected of being involved in recent damage to fiber-optic communications cables in the Baltic Sea.

Suspicions have been growing in Western capitals that damage to two key Baltic Sea cables was likely the result of deliberate actions.

The Chinese ship, reportedly captained by a Russian naval officer, was sailing from the Russian port of Ust-Luga. The Yi Peng 3 is suspected of having traveled over the area in the Baltic Sea where the cables connecting Sweden and Lithuania are located.


European governments and Washington have not tied Moscow directly to the damage, but they have accused Russia of orchestrating “hybrid attacks” on Western infrastructure to punish European countries for their assistance and support for Ukraine’s military as it tries to repel invading Russian forces.

Some analysts say the ship may have damaged the cables when dragging its anchor. Ukraine’s allies pointed to past incidents of alleged sabotage by Moscow, especially following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which recently hit the 1,000-day mark amid devastating losses on both sides.

Authorities in states bordering the Baltic Sea are investigating the cutting of the cables — the second connects Finland to Germany — following similar suspicious occurrences in the sea in recent years. Denmark and Germany are already NATO allies and share critical intelligence with Washington.

A year ago, Finland said it couldn’t exclude that a “state actor” was responsible for damage to the Balticconnector gas pipeline and a telecommunications cable in the Baltic Sea. The pipeline was damaged by an anchor dropped from the deck of the Chinese container ship Newnew Polar Bear. The ship was not detained and sailed away. Neutral Finland joined NATO on 4 Apr 2023 out of concern of Russian aggression, as did Sweden on 7 Mar 2024.

Moscow has said such allegations are being fabricated by the West to discredit Russia. Chinese officials have not commented on the situation surrounding the Yi Peng 3.

This is a troubling sign that China seems to be working with Russia to conduct sabotage against NATO and the EU. Beijing and Moscow have been increasing their military cooperation. Chinese and Russian jets were intercepted near the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) this past 24 July 2024.

(24 Jul 2024 Photo: NORAD)

Any future Chinese military invasion against the island republic would involve severing such communications cables to isolate Taiwan. Taipei would then be forced to communicate in a less secure digital environment vulnerable to MSS interception and hacking. Two Taiwanese undersea cables were sabotaged in 2023.

(Illustration: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

The Chinese and Russians don’t have to rely on frog-men or spy subs to sabotage these cables. The Russians have a special naval sabotage unit called the GUGI. But why deploy them when Russia and China have access to hundreds of commercial ships?

Once vulnerable telecommunication or energy cables/pipes are located, the Russians or the Chinese can sever or break them cheaply with tremendous anchors like above from ships like the Yi Peng 3. The ship captain can claim ignorance if he is boarded by NATO naval personnel.

This recent maritime sabotage incident in the Baltic Sea may be a Chinese rehearsal on behalf of the Kremlin. Sabotage against gas/power lines during winter would bring hardship to energy-dependent European countries while punishing them for supporting Ukraine.


Sources:

https://www.rferl.org/a/danish-defense-chinese-ship-yi-peng-baltic-sea-cable-damage/33209361.html

https://www.norad.mil/Newsroom/Press-Releases/Article/3849184/norad-detects-tracks-and-intercepts-russian-and-prc-aircraft-operating-in-the-a/

https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_213448.htm

https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_223446.htm

The Future Will Look Like the Past: Texas Offers Trump 1,402 Acres for Mass Deportation Camps

Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham is offering the incoming Trump administration 1,402 acres the state purchased along the Texas-Mexico border to be used in a mass deportation operation. The Extermination Camp Auschwitz-Birkenau reportedly covered 500 acres and it was the largest camp in the Third Reich.

In a letter to President-elect Donald Trump, Buckingham said she’s offering the land “to be used to construct deportation facilities.”

So, Madame Commissioner, here is what America will look like thanks to Donald Trump and people just like you.


Jews in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Oswiecim, Poland, in Jan 1945. (Photo: EPA)


Bosnian Muslims in Serbian concentration camp circa 1995. (Photo: ICTY)

DHS camp for Hispanic migrants of separated children during Trump’s first reign of terror.


Palestinian children crammed in Israeli prison cell circa 2016. (Photo: AP)


Sub-Saharan migrants in detention center in Zawiyah, Libya, in Jun 2017. (Photo: Taha Jawashi / AFP/ Getty Images)



Loyal Japanese-Americans dining in their mess facility in an internment camp (photo circa 1942).

Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham is a true humanitarian, isn’t she?

Source:

https://abcnews.go.com/US/texas-land-commissioner-offers-acres-trump-deportation/story?id=116048937

Nationwide Food Recall: Wolverine Packing Co. Recalls 167,000 Pounds of Ground Beef Products Due to Possible E. Coli

Wolverine Packing Co. in Detroit, MI is recalling approximately 167,277 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the USDA Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

The fresh products have a “use by” date of 11/14/2024 and the frozen products are labeled with production date 10/22/24.

Please check these links: View full product listView labels.

The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 2574B” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to restaurant locations nationwide. 

The problem was discovered when FSIS was notified by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture of a group of 15 patients who had reported that they consumed ground beef prior to their illness.

Anyone concerned about an illness should contact a healthcare provider. E. coli O157:H7 is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause dehydration, bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps 2–8 days (3–4 days, on average) after exposure the organism. While most people recover within a week, some develop a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). This condition can occur among persons of any age but is most common in children under 5-years old and older adults. It is marked by easy bruising, pallor, and decreased urine output. Persons who experience these symptoms should seek emergency medical care immediately.

FSIS is concerned that some product may be in restaurant refrigerators or freezers. Restaurants are urged not to serve these products. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.

Consumers and members of the media with questions about the recall can contact Don Tanner, company representative at (248) 762-1533.

Consumers with food safety questions can call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 888-MPHotline (888-674-6854) or send a question via email to MPHotline@usda.gov.

For consumers that need to report a problem with a meat, poultry, or egg product, the online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can be accessed 24 hours a day at https://foodcomplaint.fsis.usda.gov/eCCF/.

Sources:

Wolverine Packing Co. Recalls Ground Beef Products Due to Possible E. Coli O157:H7 Contamination | Food Safety and Inspection Service

Wolverine Packing Co. | Your Complete Protein Solution

French Defense Minister Calls on Arab Gulf States to Aid Lebanese Forces

Lebanese children wave French flags as they stand in front of a Lebanon’s national flag, at a ceremony to open a French-built bridge by the coastal town of Naameh, south of Beirut, on 18 Sep 2006. (Photo: Petros Karadjias / AP)

“I have reiterated to each counterpart that we need them to support the Lebanese armed forces,” French DM Sébastien Lecornu said after visits to Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Lecornu’s appeal came following talks with President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed of the UAE in Abu Dhabi.

“To secure the border between Israel and Lebanon, and to reinforce Lebanon’s sovereignty, the armed forces must be properly armed,” he added.

Israel expanded the focus of its lethal operations from Gaza to Lebanon in Sep 2024, making southern Lebanon inhospitable to Shias while devastating the country’s medical infrastructure. More than 3,510 people in Lebanon have been killed, with most fatalities recorded since late September.

Last month, a conference in Paris raised $200 million to support the Lebanese armed forces, on top of $800 million in humanitarian aid for the country.

The Lebanese military, which plays a crucial role in maintaining stability in the deeply divided country, struggles to meet the basic needs of its 80,000 soldiers. The Lebanese Army previously received financial assistance from Qatar and the US to pay salaries.

Lebanese Army Soldiers at double time. The IDF has killed at least 41 of them over the past few weeks. (Undated photo: Getty Images).

Next month French President Emmanuel Macron travels to Saudi Arabia. His visit is expected to focus on defense contracts and investment in new technologies. Perhaps he can persuade Crown Prince Muhammad Bin-Salman (MBS) to withdraw the hideous blockade on Shia Yemenis which has caused them a man-made famine. The Sunni Saudi alliance with Sunni Yemenis is what drove the Shia Houthis right into the Shia Crescent led by Tehran. This is why the Houthis fire drones at Western or Israeli shipping in the Red Sea or Gulf of Aden: Gratitude and loyalty to their Shia benefactors in Lebanon and Iran.

There was a time when France was seen as Lebanon’s big brother and protector. An estimated 23,000 French citizens live in Lebanon and more than 300,000 Lebanese reside in France.

But now Paris has become a schnorrer asking other countries to step in.

Quite simply, France has lost its political clout in Lebanon: “In 10 years French influence has collapsed,” said a political scientist. Another French diplomat noted the dramatic drop in the use of French.  

“Years ago, if you went to bars where middle-class youth gathered, you’d hear Arabic or French. If you go there now, you’ll hear Arabic and English – people under the age of 30 don’t speak French.”

Cuts in the French diplomatic corps did not help. A former senior French official describing Paris’ diplomacy as “disoriented.” Moreover, France miscalculated by supporting Sunni rebels against Syrian President Bashir al-Assad. Germany paid the price of absorbing thousands of Syrian refugees. Berlin then put a stop to France’s policy of using EU funds to favor its foreign policy, notably in Lebanon.

France “no longer has a say” in Beirut: the foreign powers that matter are Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the US.

David Schenker, once in charge of Near East affairs at the US State Department, told the Lebanese on a visit to Beirut: “‘Don’t forget! It’s the Americans and the Saudis who sign the cheques.'”

Sources:

France’s defence minister calls on Gulf states to aid Lebanese forces

Macron promises €100m for Lebanon at aid conference in Paris

From protector to onlooker: how France lost its influence in Lebanon

Laos: Methanol-Tainted Alcohol Kills Several Tourists; Dozen Stricken

Laos has a population of nearly eight million people. Real GDP per capita is $8,400 (2023 est.)

Several Western tourists died after drinking tainted alcohol in the tourist town of Vang Vieng in Laos. So far, two Danish, one unidentified American, and a British citizen have been reported dead and at least ten have been stricken. The numbers could be more.

The late lawyer Simone White (28) from the UK was travelling South East Asia. (Image: Facebook)

The parents of two 19-year-olds from Melbourne are at their bedsides in separate Thai hospitals — one in Bangkok and the other in Udon Than.

Bianca Jones (L, 19) and Holly Bowles (R, 19) below were staying at a backpacker hostel in Vang Vieng, a popular party town north of Vientiane. Their parents from Melbourne are at their bedsides in separate Thai hospitals — one in Bangkok and the other in Udon Than. Sadly, a late report indicated that Ms. Holly Bowles (R) succumbed to the poison.

(Undated images: Social media)

Vang Vieng is a popular destination for backpackers travelling in Laos. (Photo: Basile Morin via Wikimedia Commons)

Duong Duc Toan, the manager of Nana Backpack hostel displays a bottle of vodka, in the bar of the hostel in Vang Vieng, Laos, Tuesday, 19 Nov 2024. (Photo: AP / Anupam Nath)

Methanol is a clear liquid chemical that is often illegally added to alcoholic beverages as a cheaper alternative to ethanol. Consuming even a small amount can be fatal.

Westerners seeking inexpensive vacations in exotic locations should take heed of this cautionary tale. Drink cocktails from a Western-owned hotel or stick to bottled or canned beer that should be opened in one’s presence (like bottled water).

Sources:


https://apnews.com/article/australian-laos-thailand-alcohol-poisoning-a5a4035fff9ac6e0960c0ffa4a2ef576

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2024/11/22/laos-methanol-poisoning/5591732171277/


https://www.pedestrian.tv/news/fifth-person-died-methanol-laos/

CIA

Canada Fears Trump’s Mass Deportations Will Push Migrants North

RCMP officers confront migrants arriving at the Roxham Road border crossing in Quebec from New York State in 2023. (Photo: Nasuna Stuart-Ulin for The New York Times)

Story written by Matina Stevis-Gridneff and Hamed Aleaziz and extracted from the New York Times.

Canadian authorities fear that Mr. Trump’s promised mass deportations will push migrants north, while Republicans have raised alarms over a recent spike in undocumented migrants crossing from Canada to the US.

Canadian officials are planning to add patrols, buy new vehicles and set up emergency reception facilities at the border between New York State and the province of Quebec in preparation for a surge of undocumented migrants following Donald Trump’s promised mass deportation program.

The new border czar, Tom Homan, who is a native of a NY town near the US-Canadian border, called the northern border a “huge national security issue.”

Mr. Homan said “special interest aliens” — a term used for migrants with possible criminal links, including to terrorism — might use the northern border because there are “a lot less, fewer officers here.”

Concerns over the northern border highlight a key shift in Canada’s view of migration between the first and second Trump administrations. During the first, PM Justin Trudeau made clear that asylum seekers were welcome in Canada just as Mr. Trump was tightening asylum rules and introducing policies like family separation at the US southern border.

Today, the mood in Canada is very different. Many Canadians believe the arrival of more legal migrants since the end of the COVID pandemic has strained resources such as affordable housing and access to medical care. Many blamed Mr. Trudeau’s government, which is now taking steps to significantly limit legal immigration.

The Canadian authorities also intend to wield a key agreement between the two countries to send back people crossing into Canada to seek asylum. The agreement designates Canada and the US as “safe third countries” in which to make asylum claims, so when asylum seekers travel from one country to the other, they can be sent back, with few exceptions.

Provincial leaders in Quebec are also anxious about the need to harden its border with New York and have already raised complaints about the growing number of legal immigrants and refugees who have settled there in recent years.

From Oct 2023 to Sep 2024, more than 19,300 undocumented migrants were apprehended by US authorities at the border between Quebec and Vermont, NYS, and New Hampshire, a 300-percent jump from the 6,925 apprehended during the same period the previous year. The figure for Oct 2020 to Sep 2021 was just 365 people.

More than 12,000 of the 19,300 people detained were Indian nationals, underscoring a booming migrant smuggling route from India to the US via Canada.

Some of this smuggling is encouraged online. Videos circulate on TikTok from “travel agencies’’ marketing smooth transport to the US in exchange for thousands of dollars.

One TikTok ad shows a group of men with US flag emojis hiding their faces advertising a “100% safe route.” The provider says it can take travelers from Brampton, a city outside Toronto with a large South Asian population, to New York, by taxi.

Six Indian nationals, aged 19-21 years, were arrested by the US border authorities after they were apprehended on a sinking boat during a failed attempt to be smuggled into America from Canada.  They were charged with “Improper Entry by Alien.” (Undated photo: Reuters)

Despite the immigration agreement between the US and Canada, the process to turn back people claiming asylum can take weeks at a time as migrants try to find a lawyer and gather evidence to try to make a case to avoid being sent back to Canada.

With minimal resources at the northern border, few people were being sent back to Canada earlier this year. Instead, migrants were being released from custody with notices to appear in US immigration courts, which face an enormous backlog.

But starting this summer, US officials deployed more federal officials to the northern border to help process people and transferred more people into detention.

They also made a key change to make the process to return migrants to Canada easier: Starting in Aug 2024, migrants who had been detained had only four hours to find a lawyer and collect evidence for their case. Before, migrants were given at least a day to do both.

Since then, the numbers of crossings have dropped dramatically — from roughly 3,600 crossings in June to around 1,800 in September — while the number of migrants returned to Canada has increased. More than 400 people were returned to Canada between Aug and Oct 2024.

Migrants who had crossed the border from Canada, many of them from India, talking to taxi drivers in Plattsburgh, NY, who were offering rides to NYC. (Credit: Anna Watts for The New York Times)

Elise Stefanik, a Republican congresswoman from upstate NY who has been chosen by Mr. Trump to serve as UN Ambassador, called the increase in arrivals an “invasion” in a social media post.

Still, Canadian officials say they are fortifying the border and will deport migrants who attempt to enter Canada to escape Mr. Trump’s crackdown.

Xenophobia is tragically affecting both sides of the world’s largest undefended border, whose G-7 economies grew thanks to the blood, sweat, and tears of millions of immigrants toiling in the farms, factories, mines, fisheries, and slaughterhouses for two hundred years in the US and Canada. Every year thousands of migrants sacrifice their life savings or indeed their very lives trying to make their way to places such as the US, Canada, the EU, or Australia just to merely survive.

 

At least 8,565 people died on migration routes worldwide in 2023 according to the International Office of Migration (IOM). Undated photo above of migrants courtesy of the Vatican News Service.

Sources:

Canada Prepares for Immigration Surge After Trump Vows Mass Deportation – The New York Times

Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement – Canada.ca

Mysterious Chemical By-Product in US Tap Water Finally Identified

Scientists discover formula and structure of chlorine-related molecule and urge tests for possible toxicity.

A mysterious byproduct of a chemical used to disinfect the tap water of about one-third of Americans has finally been identified, and the international research team behind the discovery is advocating rapid assessment of its potential toxicity.

The research, reported in the journal Science, does not claim the byproduct is unsafe to drink or that the finding represents any kind of emergency. All water, including bottled water, contains contaminants.

But the discovery of a new and previously unknown chemical, called chloronitramide anion, could have implications for municipal water systems that use a class of chlorine-based disinfectants called chloramines. For decades these disinfectants, derived from the mixture of chlorine and ammonia, have been added to many municipal water supplies to kill bacteria and prevent waterborne illnesses.

“We need to investigate it. We don’t know the toxicity,” said environmental engineer Julian Fairey, an associate professor at the University of Arkansas and lead author of the paper. “This work was 40 years in the making in terms of trying to identify the compound, and now that we have identified it, we can delve into how toxic is this thing.”

Cigarettes like the ones advertised above were once touted as a cure for asthma, wheezing, or coughing. Medical quackery like the above example has killed countless victims over the centuries.

Now the US is on the verge of official government medical quackery with the potential Trump nominations of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to lead HHS and Dr. Mehmet Oz to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Therefore, the FDA, USDA, HHS, EPA, CDC, have two months to solve this issue before it’s swept under the carpet in 2025. Anti-Vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr can use a case like this to ban fluoride from American drinking water or come up with other wacky solutions.

Blue States will have to step up their Air Quality Index (AQI), food, health, workplace, and environmental inspections over the next four years to protect their citizens. Red State governors and their constituencies don’t seem to mind if they are killed by firearms violence, sickened by spoiled food, work in dangerous work sites, breathe polluted air, or drink unsafe water.

Sources:

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adk6749

https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2024/11/21/tap-water-byproduct-chloronitramide-anion/

Minnesota Authorities Restore EagleCam to Delight of Viewers Worldwide

Watch eagle emerge from snow-covered nest after storm.

Nuclear Security Chief in Ukraine’s Russian-Occupied Zaporizhzhya Killed in Car Bombing

Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR) posted a video of the explosion.

Ukrainian Military Intelligence (GUR) assassinated the head of security at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in Ukraine with a car bomb on 4 Oct. Andrei Korotky died after a homemade explosive device planted under his car detonated. Korotky was also the former head of the Moscow-installed local council of deputies in the city of Enerhodar, where the blast occurred. Ukrainian intelligence accused him of war crimes and organizing pro-Russian events during the occupation, basically a “quisling.” Russia’s Investigative Committee has opened a probe into the deadly bombing.

As posted previously on Coriolanus, high-value Russian targets have been killed by IEDs hidden in their cars, most likely by Ukrainian espionage and sabotage agents.

Source:

Nuclear Security Chief in Ukraine’s Russian-Occupied Zaporizhzhya Killed In Car Bombing (rferl.org)

Two Seditionists Sentenced for 6 Jan 2021 Attack on US Capitol

Allan Jennings used medical scissors to shatter glass on a Capitol door. (Photo: FBI)

Allan Jennings (57) of Hillsboro, TN, was sentenced to 12 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $3,825 in restitution and fines by the Honorable US District Judge Reggie B. Walton. Jennings previously pleaded guilty to a felony offense of civil disorder and a misdemeanor offense of destruction of government property during the 6 Jan 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

The “Stop the Steal” mob’s initial attack against law enforcement officers caused the police to withdraw. Jennings was among the first few rioters to pursue retreating police officers into the Tunnel. The police had closed the doors to keep the mob from further advance. Jennings then deployed a pair of medical scissors and shattered the door’s glass, costing $825 to repair. Jennings made his way toward the front of the advancing mob, where he put his hands on a police officer’s shield, before returning to the middle of the mob and escaping. The FBI arrested Jennings on 12 Sep 2023 in Tennessee.

Chemical irritant didn’t dissuade James Weeks from continuing his rampage outside the Tunnel. (Photo: FBI)

James Weeks (55) of Sodus, NY, was sentenced to 27 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,774.00 in restitution and a $5,000 fine by the Honorable US District Judge Beryl A. Howell. Weeks previously pleaded guilty to a single felony offense of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers.

On 6 Jan, Weeks and the “Stop the Steal” mob entered the Tunnel and violently fought the police. Weeks attempted to grab a police officer, yelling “Shove it up your a—! You fat f—! I’m gonna shove that up your a—!” and “We’re gonna f— you up!” The defendant then struck an MPD officer using his hands and body. Shortly after, another rioter sprayed chemical irritant in the Tunnel, causing Weeks to exit.

Outside Weeks cheered on rioters who were vandalizing the US Capitol building. He then approached a window, waved a black can of OC spray through one of the broken panes of glass, then broke the window with a wooden stick.

The FBI arrested James Weeks on 1 Feb 2024, in Albany, NY.

In the 44 months since 6 Jan 2021, more than 1,504 suspects have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to attacking the US Capitol, including more than 560 seditionists charged with feloniously assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The FBI investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

These two middle-aged lunatics represent America’s Fedayeen Saddam, dead-enders that think their white privilege is coming to an end and that minorities and Democrats unfairly stole the 2020 Presidential election. They heeded Donald Trump’s idiotic call to arms and are now paying the price.

Sources:

District of Columbia | Tennessee Man Sentenced to Prison on Felony and Misdemeanor Charges for Actions During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

District of Columbia | New York Man Sentenced to Prison for Assaulting Law Enforcement During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

Bird Flu Outbreak Kills Dozens of Tigers in Vietnam Zoos

Forty-seven tigers, three lions and a panther have died in zoos in south Vietnam due to the H5N1 bird flu virus. Photograph: Pardofelis / Alamy

Forty-seven tigers, three lions and a panther have died in zoos in south Vietnam due to the H5N1 type A bird flu virus. The deaths occurred this summer at the private My Quynh safari park in Long An province and the Vuon Xoai zoo in Dong Nai, near Ho Chi Minh City.

No zoo staff members in close contact with the animals had experienced respiratory symptoms.

A total of 385 tigers live in captivity in Vietnam. About 310 are kept at 16 privately owned farms and zoos, while the rest are in state-owned facilities.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says that since 2022, there have been increasing reports of deadly outbreaks among mammals caused by influenza viruses, including H5N1. These infections can range from mild to severe in humans, and in some cases can even be fatal. Vietnam notified the WHO about a human fatality from the virus in March.

In 2004, dozens of tigers died from bird flu or were culled at the world’s largest breeding farm in Thailand.

Tigers are on the brink of extinction. Global populations have plummeted alarmingly by 96%, for all six-remaining subspecies. Three are now extinct. A combination of poaching, illegal captivity, and habitat destruction have contributed to their dwindling numbers, and it shows no signs of slowing down. WHO, the government of Vietnam, NGOS, and all of us, must do more to save these magnificent felines.  

Sources:

Bird flu outbreak kills dozens of tigers in Vietnam zoos | Bird flu | The Guardian

WWF – Endangered Species Conservation | World Wildlife Fund

Adopt A Tiger from £3 a month | Hand-knitted Tiger toy included | David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation

Former UK PM Boris Johnson: “Netanyahu Bugged My Bathroom”

The pair met in 2017 when Boris Johnson was Britain’s foreign secretary. | Pool photo by Darren Staples/WPA/Getty Images

Boris Johnson claimed he found a listening device in his personal bathroom at the British Foreign Office after Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu used it.

The former prime minister alleged that his security team found bugging devices in the toilets after Netanyahu had used the facilities. The pair met in 2017 when Johnson was Britain’s foreign secretary.

The claim comes in Johnson’s memoir “Unleashed” which is released on 10 Oct. Extracts were shared with the Daily Telegraph newspaper.

“Thither Bibi repaired for a while, and it may or may not be a coincidence but I am told that later, when they were doing a regular sweep for bugs, they found a listening device in the thunderbox,” Johnson writes as he recalls a meeting.

The Telegraph pressed the ex-PM on whether he could disclose more details about what happened, although Johnson told them: “I think everything you need to know about that episode is in the book.”

POLITICO reported in 2019 that the US government believed Israel was responsible for planting cellphone surveillance devices near the White House and other sensitive locations around Washington, D.C. The devices were designed to fool cellphones into giving them their locations and identity information.

Johnson’s memoir has raised eyebrows in London even before its release.

The ex-prime minister, who was ousted from office by his own party in 2022, has disclosed details about Queen Elizabeth II’s health in her final year and accused French President Emmanuel Macron of trying to give the UK a “punishment beating” for leaving the EU.

Years ago, Lebanese Army G-2 found and dismantled an Israeli spying device disguised as a rock in southern Lebanon which took and transmitted photographs.

CIA considers Israel its No. 1 counterintelligence threat in the agency’s Near East Division, the group that oversees spying across the Middle East, according to current and former officials. Counterintelligence is the art of protecting national secrets from spies. This means the CIA believes that US national secrets are safer from other Middle Eastern governments than from Israel.

Sources:

Netanyahu bugged my bathroom, Boris Johnson suggests – POLITICO

Lebanese Army dismantles more Israeli spying devices – Ya LibnanIs Israel the CIA’s top counterintelligence threat in the Near East? | The Times of Israel

Greenpeace Warns of Flooding Risks at France’s Biggest Nuclear Plant

Gravelines nuclear power station on the English Channel coast is already the most powerful in Western Europe. © Raimond Spekking / CC BY-SA 4.0

With six 900MW reactors, the Gravelines nuclear power plant on the English Channel coast is already the most powerful in Western Europe. EDF’s proposal to build two additional new generation pressurised water reactors (EPR2) of 1600 MW each is part of President Emmanuel Macron’s nuclear revival programme.

The new reactors are currently the subject of public debate. If they pass safety criteria laid down by France’s nuclear safety authority (ASN), construction would begin in 2031 and they could be on stream by 2040. While they would be built on a 11-metre-high platform, Greenpeace claims there is a significant safety risk.

“The entire power plant site could find itself – during high tides and when there is a 100-year surge – below sea level” by 2100, it warned in a report published Thursday. EDF refutes their calculations.

“The height of the platform chosen for the EPR2 reactors at Gravelines provides protection against “extreme” flooding, taking into account the effects of IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] scenarios, which are among the most penalising with regard to sea-level rise”, EDF replied.

Greenpeace argues that EDF’s calculations are outdated and do not fully account for the realities of global warming. The NGO based its projection on the IPCC’s most pessimistic scenario, which assumes that no action will be taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2100.

Nuclear power accounts for most of France’s electricity, and the Nuclear Energy Society (Sfen) defends it as a low-carbon energy source.

While Greenpeace’s report centers on Gravelines, climate change threatens other nuclear plants, with risks tied to rising temperatures and extreme weather events like storms. Also, potential conflicts could arise over access to river water needed to cool reactors. Russia is occupying the Ukrainian nuclear plant at Zaporizhzhya.

The French nuclear industry has an atrocious reputation. Leaked documents reveal that their companies maintain discreet links to Rosatom, Russia’s state nuclear power corporation, despite Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. French commercial uranium mining despoiled water and vegetation in Pan-Sahel Africa, creating “grievance guerillas” amongst the Tuaregs and other angry disenfranchised locals, some who join “Al Qaida in the Maghreb” (AQIM). One company (Orano) left 20 million tons of radioactive waste in Niger. Strong desert winds carry its radon and radioactive dust which is inhaled by the surrounding population. The soil and underground water have also been contaminated. The 100,000 people living in the area have no alternative but to keep on drinking that water.

Sources:

Greenpeace warns of flooding risks at France’s biggest nuclear plant (rfi.fr)

French electricity company discovers deep crack in nuclear plant cooling system

Why the nuclear option is still an explosive subject at climate talks

French nuclear industry maintains links with Russian giant Rosatom (lemonde.fr)

French uranium mine leaves 20 million tons of radioactive waste in Niger (rfi.fr)

Ireland: Beef to China and South Korea Stopped After Atypical BSE Case

This poor cow is suffering from BSE. (Undated public domain image)

Ireland temporarily halted shipments of beef products to China and South Korea after an atypical case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was discovered in a cow. After a fallen animal was tested in mid-September, authorities in China and South Korea were informed and exports of beef halted, in line with the agreements in place with both countries. The animal did not enter the food or feed chain and there were no public health risks associated with this occurrence.

Atypical BSE is a rare spontaneous event which may occur in any bovine population and not related to feed contamination. Coincidentally at the same time, a delegation of veterinary officials from the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine was travelling to China, and used that opportunity to reassure authorities there of Ireland’s control measures for BSE.

Atypical BSE occurs sporadically in all cattle populations at a very low rate and is not considered a public health risk, unlike classical BSE, or mad-cow disease, which arises from contaminated animal feed.

This is the third time that Irish beef exports to China have been stopped due to a case of atypical BSE.

Most recently, exports of beef products to China were halted between Nov 2023 and Jan 2024 for this reason. Prior to that, exports to China were also halted for a particularly extended period of time, from May 2020 to Jan 2023, almost three years.

In 2019 – the only full year in which Ireland had uninterrupted access to the Chines market for frozen boneless beef – Irish processors sent around €40 million worth of exports to the Asian country.

Market access for Irish beef to South Korea was secured in May 2024.

Source:

Beef to China and Korea stopped after atypical BSE case (agriland.ie)

Five Chinese Nationals Charged with Covering Up Midnight Visit to Michigan Military Site

The FBI has charged five Chinese nationals who studied at the University of Michigan with espionage related charges. The five individuals are accused of taking photos of military equipment at Camp Grayling, MI in Aug 2023. While the students were taking photos, the Michigan Army National Guard was hosting training for the Taiwanese military.

The FBI noted that there have been other instances of college students from China taking photos of vital defense sites in the US. The FBI said all five men graduated last spring from the University of Michigan. They were part of a joint program between the university and the Shanghai Jiao Tong University in Shanghai, China. The five remain at large.  


In 2020, two Chinese nationals who were pursuing master’s degrees at the University of Michigan were sentenced to prison for illegally photographing sites at a naval air station in Key West, FL.


China and Russia remain serious foreign intelligence threats to the US, and as noted above, Israel poses the greatest counterintelligence threat to the USIC. The five students here are part of the “thousand grains of sand” strategy, where every little bit of data is obtained for thousands of analysts in China to create an intelligence mosaic. Chinese intelligence, the MSS, has the manpower and budget for this type of collection.  

Aerial view of Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center in Grayling, MI, 19 July 2014. (AP Photo/John L. Russell)


Sources:


FBI Charges Chinese Nationals with Spying at Camp Grayling | Congressman John Moolenaar (house.gov)

5 Chinese nationals charged with covering up midnight visit to Michigan military site | AP News

Kitten Turns Corner Just 24 Hours After Moving from Shelter into Comfy Home

Watch this orphan kitten evolve from frightened, scrawny rescue animal to “I’m-the-queen-of-the-castle,” thanks to Best Friends Animal Society in Los Angeles, CA. All photos of Apple taken by Frankie.

Nervous, Apple had flea dirt on her which was gently brushed off.

After being cleaned up, Apple wrapped up in a blanket and finally purred.

After eating and resting peacefully, Apple woke up refreshed with renewed energy.

Now when Apple gets tired from eating, playing, and romping, she purrs herself to sleep.

And all this took place in 24 hours.

Source:

Kitten Turns a Corner Just 24 Hours After Moving from Shelter into Comfy Home – Love Meow

65 Million Americans Watched Kamala Harris Humiliate Donald Trump During Live Presidential Debate

WaPO/CNN poll showed Kamala Harris winning the debate 63 percent to 37 percent among debate-watchers. Time magazine cover by Tim O’Brien.

An estimated 65 million viewers tuned in to watch the debate between former President Trump and Vice President Harris, preliminary overnight television ratings revealed Wednesday. Ratings were high in battleground Pennsylvania, with the nation’s highest rating coming in Pittsburgh at 44.2. The No. 2 market was Philadelphia, where it drew a 43.4 rating. New York clocked in at a healthy 36.7, putting it at No. 7 among top markets.

Trump began to unravel at the debate after VPOTUS Harris said to the former NBC TV star of The Apprentice: “Your rallies are boring.”

The split-screen said it all: Trump glowered and grimaced, spewing old grievances and strange new attacks while Harris smiled and appeared amused. The former President repeated a baseless Internet rumor that migrant invaders were killing and eating pet dogs and cats in Springfield, OH, and claimed that Harris “wants to do transgender operations on illegal aliens in prison.” 

Vice President Kamala Harris flummoxed Trump when she responded to his accusation that she wants to confiscate firearms.

“Tim Walz and I are both gun owners. We’re not taking anybody’s guns away.”

Immediately following the debate, Trump stamped away without shaking hands with VPOTUS Harris. Soon after, megastar Taylor Swift announced via social platform that she was endorsing Kamala Harris. Over 330,000 young people immediately flocked to a voter registration website.

In the aftermath of Trump’s debacle, both candidates found themselves the next day at the Flight 93 memorial ceremony in Pennsylvania honoring the victims of the 9/11 attacks on America.

During this solemn ceremony, Donald Trump is caught winking at a female photographer.

Sources:

Time Magazine

IDF Kills 18 in Gaza School Sheltering Displaced Persons; Six UN Workers KIA

Palestinians search for missing people under the rubble of a destroyed UNRWA-run school, after an IDF strike on the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. (Photo: Mohammed Saber/EPA)

An Israeli airstrike on a central Gaza school being used as a shelter for displaced Palestinians has killed 18 people, six were UN officials. The attack was the highest death toll among UNRWA staff in a single incident. Two airstrikes hit the school and its surroundings.

Earlier, Israel’s military said its air force had “conducted a precise strike on terrorists who were operating inside a Hamas command-and-control centre” on the school grounds, without elaborating on the outcome or the identities of those targeted.

Approximately 5,000 displaced people were sheltering at the school when it was bombed. According to UNRWA, “this school has been hit five times since the war began. It is home to about 12,000 displaced people, mainly women and children.”

Israeli forces have struck several such schools in recent months, saying Palestinian militants were operating and hiding among displaced persons.

At least 220 UNRWA staff have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war. Philippe Lazzarini, the head of UNRWA reported that “humanitarian staff, premises and operations have been blatantly and unabatedly disregarded since the beginning of the war.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres: “What’s happening in Gaza is totally unacceptable.” The UN General Assembly recently convened in NYC and the world is waiting for action.

Palestinians mourn as the civil defence teams and civilians carry out search and rescue operations from the rubble after an Israeli attack on Nuseirat Refugee Camp. (Photo: Anadolu/Getty Images)

Earlier on Wednesday, the IDF struck a home near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, killing 11 people, including six brothers and sisters ranging from 21 months to 21 years old, according to a European hospital which received the casualties.

The war in Gaza is now into its 11th month, with more than 41,000 Palestinians killed. The International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague indicted Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes, but inexplicably his arrest warrant has yet to be issued. In contrast, the ICC both indicted AND issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes against Ukrainians on 17 Mar 2023 (St Patrick’s Day).

Sources:

Six Unrwa workers among estimated 18 killed in Israeli strike on Gaza school sheltering displaced | Israel-Gaza war | The Guardian

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx88l499vero

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64992727

https://www.icc-cpi.int/

Canada’s Conservative Leader Plans No-Confidence Motion Against Trudeau’s Government

Canadian PM Justin Trudeau (L), Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre (C), NDP leader Jagmeet Singh (R)

Canadian Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre said his party plans to put forward a no-confidence motion “at the earliest possible opportunity” in hopes of bringing down Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government.

Poilievre called on New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh to support the motion and trigger an election. Singh refused to say if his party would support the Conservatives. Last week the NDP withdrew from a supply-and-confidence agreement with Trudeau’s minority Liberal government that helped keep it in power. The deal, reached in 2022, meant the NDP would support the federal government on no-confidence votes in exchange for progress on shared priorities.

The next Canadian federal election is scheduled for October 2025. The Liberals currently have 154 seats in the 338 Canadian House of Commons. The Conservates hold 119 and the NDP 24. The Bloc Québécois, a party based only in Quebec and is devoted to Quebec sovereignty, has 32 seats.

Canada’s Parliament resumes next Monday. Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet has said his party is willing to support the government if the Liberals agree on issues like increased support for seniors and granting Quebec more powers in immigration matters.

Most polls show the Conservatives well ahead of the Liberals with the NDP sitting third. Trudeau said his government will continue to introduce programs that help Canadians like dental care for seniors and childcare.

In June, the Liberals suffered a major upset in a byelection losing a seat in Toronto the party had held for three decades. Two more byelections will be held Monday in Montreal and Winnipeg.

Poilievre also attacked Trudeau for appointing Mark Carney, a former governor of both the Bank of England and Bank of Canada, to act as chair on a task force on economic growth. Poilievre called Carney an unelected “phantom finance minister.”

Source:

Canada’s Conservative leader says his party plans no-confidence motion against Trudeau’s government – ABC News

US Police Brutality: Former Michigan Police Officer Sentenced for Civil Rights Violation for Violently Assaulting Arrestee

Matthew Rodriguez (49), a former Warren, MI, police officer was sentenced in federal court to one year and one day in prison for using excessive force against an arrestee while fingerprinting and photographing him at a local detention facility.

Warning: Some readers might find the below evidence disturbing.

Note the other two police officers do not restrain Rodriguez, the attacker, but help restrain J.S., the victim. There is no information whether these two officers faced disciplinary action.

On 13 June 2023, then-officer Rodriguez was fingerprinting and photographing an arrestee, J.S., who had recently been brought to the Warren Police Department’s jail for processing. During fingerprinting, Rodriguez and J.S. got into a verbal argument and began trading insults. In retaliation for one of J.S.’ remarks, Rodriguez struck J.S. multiple times and slammed J.S.’ head against the fingerprint room floor.

In connection with his plea, Rodriguez admitted to writing a report in which he made false statements.

Former police officer Matthew Rodriguez (Image: CBS Detroit/WWMT)

Sources:

Office of Public Affairs | Former Michigan Police Officer Sentenced for Civil Rights Violation for Violently Assaulting Arrestee | United States Department of Justice

New Workplace Assault Case Emerges as CIA Shields Sexual Misconduct in Ranks

CIA officer trainee Ashkan Bayatpour (seated left) in Fairfax, VA. 23 Aug 2023. The judge found Bayatpour guilty of attacking a fellow CIA trainee with a scarf in the stairwell of CIA HQ at Langley, VA. (Dana Verkouteren via AP). This previous case was one of several plaguing CIA.

At an impromptu party in the office to celebrate his 50th birthday, veteran CIA officer Donal Asquith got drunk, reached up a colleague’s skirt, and forcibly kissed her in front of stunned co-workers, prosecutors alleged in the latest case of sexual misconduct to spill from the spy agency into a public court.

A recent 648-page internal watchdog report that found systemic shortcomings in the CIA’s handling of such complaints was classified as “secret,” shielded as a potential threat to national security. … “It is inconceivable that sexual misconduct could be considered a state secret,” said Kevin Carroll, an attorney who represents several women in the agency who have made complaints. The watchdog report followed an earlier AP investigation that found at least two dozen women in the CIA came forward to authorities and Congress with accounts of sexual assaults, unwanted touching and what they described as a campaign to silence them. The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSIC) released a redacted report of their testimony last April (linked below).

Many women were emboldened by a CIA officer trainee who went to the police in 2022 after the agency failed to take action against a colleague she accused of assaulting her with a scarf in a stairwell at CIA headquarters. Some of those women now say they have faced retaliation, including the victim of the stairwell attack, who was terminated less than six months after suing the agency.

CIA invests a lot of time, money, and resources investigating, vetting, recruiting, and training these elite personnel who are also polygraphed. Incidents like this are costly to the American taxpayer, CIA, as well as to national security. And remarkable that this story would emerge nationally on 9/11, one of CIA’s darkest days.

Sources:

New CIA workplace assault case emerges as spy agency shields extent of sexual misconduct in ranks – WTOP News

addressing_how_the_central_intelligence_agency_is_responding_to_sexual_assault_and_harassment.pdf (house.gov)

The Associated Press

North Korea Fires Ballistic Missile Toward Sea

After the smoke cleared from the US presidential debate, like a baby wanting a bottle, North Korean supremo Kim Jong-Un ordered the launch of a ballistic missile toward the sea Thursday morning, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff reported. The launch came days after Kim Jong Un vowed to put his nuclear force fully ready for battle with its rivals. The launch took place off North Korea’s eastern coast but the ROK high command offered no details, such as how far the weapon traveled. Japan’s prime minister’s office also alerted on its X account that North Korea had launched a suspected ballistic missile, but it did not provide details.

The launch was North Korea’s first public weapons firing in more than two months. On 1 July, Pyongyang claimed to have tested a new tactical weapon capable of delivering a “super-large” 4.5 ton-class warhead.

In a speech Monday, Kim said he would redouble efforts to make his nuclear force fully ready for combat with the US and its allies. He said North Korea faced “a grave threat” because of what he called “the reckless expansion” of a US-led regional military bloc that is now developing into a nuclear-based one.

Kim has made similar vows numerous times, but his latest threat came as outside experts believe North Korea will perform a nuclear test explosion or long-range missile test-launches ahead of the US presidential election in November.

As posted on Coriolanus last week, North Korea also resumed launches of trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea.

Since 2022, North Korea has significantly accelerated its weapons testing in a bid to perfect its capabilities to launch strikes on the US and South Korea. The US and South Korea have responded by expanding military drills that North Korea calls invasion rehearsals.

Last month, Kim had held off from missile tests or other provocative military demonstrations as the US and South Korea conducted large-scale summertime military exercises. North Korea issued statements berating the allies for raising tensions.

Source:

North Korea fires ballistic missile toward sea, South Korea says (voanews.com)

Federal Authorities Seize Over 350 Website Domains Used to Import Illegal Switches and Silencers from China

US authorities seized more than 350 websites selling gun silencers and parts from China used to covert semiautomatic pistols into fully automatic machine guns.

Law enforcement conducted undercover purchases from those websites of gun-related items. The shipments from China falsely described their contents as “necklaces” or “toys.” In fact, the packages contained machine gun conversion devices known as “switches” and silencers that are prohibited from being imported under the federal National Firearms Act (NFA). Switches are parts designed to convert semiautomatic pistols into fully automatic machineguns and silencers are devices used to suppress the sound of a firearm when discharged.

Many of the websites sold counterfeit goods and misused gun manufacturer Glock Inc’s trademark to suggest the switches were produced by the company when they were not. Glock reportedly cooperated with the investigation.

The results of this investigation have resulted in the seizure of over 700 devices which would covert a firearm into a machine gun, 87 illegal suppressors, 59 handguns, 36 long guns, as well as the seizure of 355 websites which were used to facilitate the trafficking of these items.

According to the CDC, in 2022 there were more than 48,000 firearm-related deaths in the US. That’s about 132 people dying from a firearm-related injury each day and wartime casualty rates.

Source:

District of Massachusetts | Federal Authorities Seize Over 350 Website Domains Used to Import Illegal Switches and Silencers from China | United States Department of Justice

https://www.cdc.gov/firearm-violence/data-research/facts-stats/index.html

A Runaway Penguin Spent Two Weeks Missing at Sea in Japan. A Typhoon May Have Saved Her.

Pen, who was born and raised in captivity, survived two weeks lost at sea in Japan during a typhoon. Photo: Gekidan Penters

A runaway penguin has been found safe in Japan nearly two weeks after she first went missing, having paddled 28 miles during a typhoon in a survival story her keeper called “miraculous.”

The six-year-old Cape penguin, who goes by the name “Pen” and was born and raised in captivity, was swimming with staff from the traveling Gekidan Penters zoo at a beach on central Japan’s Himakajima Island on 25 August when she escaped.

African penguins can swim up to 40 kilometers (25 miles) a day, but in captivity, their muscle mass decreases. Pen had never swum in the sea before visiting that beach.

A powerful typhoon called Shanshan brought torrential wind and rain to the country at the end of August, killing at least six people, displacing millions, knocking out power and disrupting air travel.

But, amid the destruction, the typhoon was a boon for little Pen. With no boats at sea, Pen avoided collisions and getting caught in fishing nets. The record rainfall provided a reliable source of hydration and cooling.

“She survived because of the typhoon,” her owner said. “It was almost miraculous timing.”

Because of the typhoon, Gekidan Penters wasn’t initially able to send out rescue boats to search for Pen, so it was even more surprising when someone spotted her swimming near a beach about eight miles away from where she first went missing.

Pen had no injuries and was in good physical shape. She also passed “substantial droppings,” which means she must’ve found something to snack on during her journey – likely fish or crab, though Pen had never eaten live fish before.

Her owner said Pen was “sleeping very comfortably next to me.”

Pen (L) stands alongside her partner, Gan. Photo: Gekidan Penters

Source:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/12/asia/escapee-penguin-japan-typhoon-hnk-intl/index.html