Two Florida “Proud Boys” Plead Guilty to Felony Charges for Attacking Capitol on 6 Jan

Trump supporters sprayed tear gas and trampled police officers when they stormed the US Capitol in Washington, DC on 6 Jan 2021. (Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)

Tom Vournas (63) of Bradenton, FL, pleaded guilty to a felony charge of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers using a dangerous weapon and inflicting bodily injury. Leonard Lobianco (53) of North Port, FL, pleaded guilty on 23 Sep 2024 to a single felony charge of civil disorder.

The Honorable US District Judge Royce C. Lamberth will sentence Vournas on 17 Jan 2025 and Lobianco on 28 Jan 2025.

On 6 Jan 2021, Vournas and Lobianco, members of the “Zone 5” Proud Boys joined in an attack against a police barricade. Members of this mob violently trampled the metal barriers, moved the barriers aside, and surged past officers to advance toward the Capitol. For the next hour, police struggled to contain the mob, while certain members of the Proud Boys assaulted and engaged with police. Vournas sprayed pepper gel, a dangerous weapon, twice toward a line of police officers, hitting a USCP officer in the face and causing bodily injury. After penetrating police lines, Vournas and Lobianco blithely took pictures together in the “Crypt” before leaving through the Senate Wing Door at approximately 2:25 PM.

The FBI arrested the two men on 4 Jan 2024 in Florida.

Leonard Lobianco (L), Tom Vournas (R). These two runamoks represent America’s Fedayeen Saddam (FS), white supremacist dead-enders clinging on to the last vestiges of white privilege in the US.

MAGA supporters and white supremacists heeded the call of Donald Trump, but the Proud Boys have since turned on him. “Trump will go down as a total failure,” one member of the Proud Boys said in a chat on Telegram; another called Trump a “shill.” Imagery: SITE Intelligence Group

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.

Sources:

District of Columbia | Two Florida “Proud Boys” Plead Guilty to Felony Charges for Actions During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

Proud Boys turn on Donald Trump calling him a ‘total failure’ | news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

Two Russian Nationals Charged in Connection with Operating Billion Dollar Money Laundering Services

The US imposed sanctions on an alleged Russian money-laundering operation that caters to cybercriminals around the world and unsealed indictments against two Russian nationals for their alleged involvement in the operation.

The US and the Netherlands shut down the “prolific” money-laundering operation known as Cryptex and recovered millions of dollars in cryptocurrency.

The two Russians named in the indictment, Sergei Ivanov and Timur Shakhmametov, remain at large. They are charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, money laundering using stolen credit and debit card information, and other charges. The State Department announced rewards of up to $10 million each for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Ivanov or Shakhmametov.

Ivanov’s services have been used by cybercrime marketplaces, ransomware groups, and hackers responsible for significant data breaches of major US companies.

Cryptex advertises its virtual currency services in Russian and has received over $51.2 million in funds derived from ransomware attacks.

Ivanov also allegedly created and operated Russian payment and exchange services UAPS, PinPays, and PM2BTC, which provided money-transfer and -laundering services directly to criminals.

For nearly two decades, Ivanov operated as a professional cyber-money-launderer, advertising his services to other cybercriminals on exclusive Russian-speaking criminal forums.

The Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Ivanov and Cryptex, which is based in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines but operates in Russia.

The Treasury Department also identified PM2BTC as a “primary money-laundering concern” in connection with Russian illicit finance. PM2BTC has long-standing ties to Russian or Russian-affiliated financial institutions that are under U.S. sanctions or other restrictions.

Individuals visiting the sites now see a message indicating that the site has been seized by the federal government. The seizure prevents the owners and third parties from using the sites for money laundering.

Law enforcement authorities in the Netherlands seized the servers hosting PM2BTC and Cryptex. Those servers have been taken offline, and the Dutch have seized cryptocurrency from those servers worth more than $7 million.

The State Department is also offering rewards of up to $1 million each for information identifying the leaders of PM2BTC and stolen credit-card marketplaces PinPays and Joker’s Stash.

Sources:

Office of Public Affairs | Two Russian Nationals Charged in Connection with Operating Billion Dollar Money Laundering Services | United States Department of Justice

Imposition of Special Measure Prohibiting the Transmittal of Funds Involving PM2BTC | FinCEN.gov

U.S. Moves To Break Up Cyber-Money-Laundering Operation Allegedly Run By Russians (rferl.org)

US Offers $20M for Details About Iranian Allegedly Behind Plot to Kill John Bolton

The US State Department announced a $20 million reward for information leading to the arrest of the alleged Iranian mastermind behind a plot to assassinate former Republican White House official John Bolton.

In Aug 2022, US officials uncovered a plot by Shahram Poursafi, a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), to kill Bolton, who served as national security adviser to former President Donald Trump. The announcement came as Donald Trump (78) claimed there were “big threats” on his life by Iran.

Bolton, considered a foreign policy hawk, is a fierce critic of Iran and advocated that Trump unilaterally and recklessly withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018.

Poursafi allegedly offered an unidentified person inside the US $300,000 to kill Bolton in the capital area. The plan was likely set in motion after the US killing of top IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani in Iraq on 3 Jan 2020 by a US drone strike outside Baghdad Int’l Airport (BIAP). But the reprisal plot never made headway because the ostensible assassin became an informant of the FBI. Iranian authorities have dismissed the allegations as “fiction.”

General Qasem Soleimani was a popular figure and hero in Iran, as well as an effective combat leader against ISIS in Syria and Iraq. When the US invaded Afghanistan in Oct 2001 after the 11 Sep 2001 attacks, General Soleimani’s Quds Force collaborated with the US and led the 2001 uprising in Herat against the Taliban. Ethnic Hazaras, the Northern Alliance, and the Quds Force liberated the city before US forces entered. Undated image: Wikimedia

The United States designated the entire IRGC a “foreign terrorist organization” in 2019, after previously designating its external operation wing, the Quds Force.

On 4 Dec 1981, President Ronald Reagan signed Executive Order 12333. Part 2.11 of E.O. 12333 reiterates a proscription on US intelligence agencies sponsoring or carrying out an assassination. It reads:

No person employed by or acting on behalf of the United States Government shall engage in, or conspire to engage in, assassination.

Sources:

Rewards for Justice – Reward Offer for Information on Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Member Shahram Poursafi – United States Department of State

US offers $20M for details about Iranian allegedly behind plot to kill official (voanews.com)

Iranian Special Forces Reportedly Fight Alongside US in Battle for Herat – SpongoBongo Blog (wordpress.com)

Federal Register :: Executive Order

Bashkirs, Tatars Bear Brunt of Putin’s War Against Ukraine

Tatarstan soldier Ruslan Sadykov was killed near Ukraine’s Mariupol in 2022.

According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, more soldiers from the central Russian regions of Tatarstan and Bashkortostan have died than any other region in the country. The burden of the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine is disproportionately falling on more distant regions of Russia, further away from the wealthy population centers of Moscow and St. Petersburg. The reason for the recent increase in minority casualties is unclear, but it comes two years after President Vladimir Putin stunned the country by announcing a “partial” mobilization that called up some 300,000 men to fight.

Overall, Russian casualties — killed or wounded in action — are believed to exceed 500,000 according to Western estimates, with more men killed over the past 30 months than in an entire decade of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the 1980s.

The last official casualty announcement from the Kremlin came in September 2022, with 5,937 Russian soldiers reported killed. At the time, Ukraine was reporting Russian losses at nearly ten times that figure. Analysis reveals that nonethnic Russians, like Bashkirs and Tatars, have been disproportionately represented among the country’s military casualties.

Bashkortostan, a mid-Volga republic with a population a little over four million, had 3,026 confirmed deaths as of 26 Sep according to open-source analysis. In Tatarstan, which has a similar population, 2,740 deaths were registered.

Recent analysis by BBC Russian/Mediazona, which used a similar methodology, listed 2,705 confirmed deaths in Bashkortostan and 2,259 in Tatarstan.

Russia’s Bashkortostan region has borne more fatalities in the Ukraine invasion than any other region of Russia.

In Jan 2024, Bashkortostan saw a wave of nonviolent protests over the sentencing of Fail Alsynov, a popular activist longtime advocate for minority rights and the Bashkir language and culture, to four years in prison for purportedly stoking interethnic enmity. The protests were fueled in part by simmering discontent about the costs of the Ukraine war for the region. Map: kickassfacts.com

In addition to mobilized soldiers sent to fight in Ukraine, other fighters include prison inmates and private military company mercenaries, as well as “kontraktniki”— men who voluntarily sign contracts to fight, induced by extraordinarily high wages and veterans benefits for widows and survivors. Among kontraktniki, Bashkortostan leads Russia in the number of confirmed deaths: 965, according to the RFE/RL tally. Tatarstan ranked second, with 557 volunteer deaths.

By comparison, only 135 volunteers from Moscow — with an official population of more than 13 million — have been confirmed killed. Over the last four weeks, RFE/RL’s Tatar-Bashkir Service has added 575 names to its list of dead soldiers from the two regions, nearly 20 per day.

The confirmed figures are assumed to be a major undercount given the difficulty in identifying deaths amid official secrecy. The exact number of men, kontraktniki, prison inmates, or mobilized troops sent from Bashkortostan and Tatarstan to fight in Ukraine is unclear.

Moscow is paying “special attention” to the Volga region, Tatar political analyst Ruslan Aysin said, as part of what he said was a deliberate Kremlin attempt to “confuse the political status” of the so-called ethnic republics, as the regions of Russia with large nonethnic-Russian populations are called.

Putin’s government, he said, is trying to bolster support for the war — or at least temper discontent — among ethnic Russians in large cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg by minimizing their casualty burden.

Aysin said that for the Russian authorities, each military death is “just a statistic. But for the republic, for the ethnic group, for the individual family, this is a great tragedy. There is a big gap between the leadership and the average citizen.”

Bashkortostan region head Radiy Khabirov (L) meets with volunteer soldiers near the front line in Ukraine earlier this month. In July 2022, Khabirov was sanctioned by the British government for openly supporting the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. He is a member of the ruling United Russia party.

As pro-Ukraine Chechens have been fighting against pro-Kremlin Chechens (Kadyrovtsies), Kazan Tatars have been battling pro-Ukrainian Crimean Tatars. During the American Civil War, approximately 7,000 Jewish soldiers fought for the Union and 3,000 for the Confederacy; some 600 of them were killed in combat. Irishmen fought for both the Union (150,000) and the Confederacy (30-40,000; including six rebel generals). They fought each other fiercely during the day, but at night argued with each other across the picket lines about whose cause was right. The Northern Irish contended the Southern Irish were betraying the country that adopted them. The Southern Irish countered the Confederacy was like Ireland, seeking independence from an oppressor (Great Britain). You wonder what discussions today’s combatants would have with each other if circumstances allowed.

Our immense gratitude to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, designated by the Kremlin as an ‘Undesirable Organization” in Feb 2024, for their comprehensive analysis.

Source:

RFE/RL Reveals Spike In War Deaths From Russia’s Ethnic Regions (rferl.org)

Military history of Jewish Americans – Wikipedia

‘The Violence is Getting Out of Hand’: Crime Grips Cuba’s Streets

19-year-old Jan Franco (L) was stabbed to death in Havana. “So many young people have been killed this year… The violence is getting out of hand,” said his sister, Samantha Gonzalez.

Few could deny that Cuba’s streets have traditionally been among the safest in the Americas. But this is changing. Samantha González will be the first to tell you. Her younger brother, an aspiring music producer named Jan Franco, was murdered two months ago in an apparent gang-related dispute. From the low-income Havana neighborhood of Cayo Hueso and just 19 years old when he was killed, Jan Franco was stabbed twice in the chest outside a recording studio. He was caught in the middle of an argument when someone pulled a knife. Cuba has a growing drug and gang problem where disputes are settled with knives, machetes, or sometimes guns.

The situation has been worsened by a new drug in Cuba called “quimico” – a cheap chemical high with a cannabis base. Samantha says that it’s increasingly popular among Cuban youth in the parks and on the streets.

The Cuban authorities have always been fiercely protective of their island’s reputation as crime-free and quick to point out that the streets are demonstrably safer than those of most cities in the US. Anything that highlights Cuba’s social problems is generally painted as biased criticism of their socialist system or as anti-revolutionary fabrications originating from Miami or Washington.

In August, an edition of nightly talk program Mesa Redonda – in which Communist Party officials are invited on air to deliver the party line – was titled Cuba Against Drugs. During the broadcast, Colonel Juan Carlos Poey Guerra, the head of the interior ministry’s anti-drug unit, acknowledged the existence, production, and distribution of the new drug, químico, and its impact on Cuba’s youth. He insisted the authorities were tackling the issue.

“Quimico” is allegedly prepared with epilepsy pills, formaldehyde, and animal anesthesia, and smoked in cigarettes like marijuana. Michael Fischer /Pexels/ Getty Images

For its part, the government largely blames the old enemy, the US, for both the existence of synthetic opioids in Cuba and for the decades-long US economic embargo on the island which they say is the reason some Cubans have resorted to crime.

According to http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com, 82 people died in Cuba from drug use in 2020. By contrast, drug use killed 3,686 people in Canada.

Sources:

Cuba’s crime rate soars, fuelled by gang crime and drugs (bbc.com)

Drug Use in Cuba (worldlifeexpectancy.com)

People Exposed to Pigs at Minnesota State Fair Contract Variant Flu Strain

A pig is guided through a showing during the closing weekend of the Minnesota State Fair. Nicole Neri for MPR News 2024

The Minnesota Department of Health has reported two human cases of H3N2v, a strain of influenza A, after people were exposed to pigs at the State Fair. The CDC said the two fairgoers are under the age of 18 and sought health care in early September.

One patient is said to have had direct contact with pigs while the other had indirect contact. Neither of them had been in contact with one another at the fair.

The Minnesota Department of Health does not anticipate further spread. A spokesman said that “typically, humans don’t pass it to another human in the way that they would a normal human flu strain.” She added infection can occur in cases where people who are not typically exposed to pigs come in close contact and are exposed to respiratory droplets, but it does not always happen.

“It’s not a very severe illness in humans, it’s like the regular flu. It can be mild to severe, but it’s not symptomatically, or in terms of severity, all that different from human flu.”

The Minnesota Department of Health encourage people to wash their hands after visiting agricultural farms or events and to maintain distance from the animals.

Both fairgoers have recovered from their symptoms and were not hospitalized.

The CDC reported that nine other variants of influenza have been reported during the 2023-2024 season.

Sources:

People exposed to pigs at the Minnesota State Fair contract variant flu strain | MPR News

ROK Intelligence: North Korea May Conduct Nuclear Test After US Election

Getty Images / STR / Contributor; iStock / KREMLL

North Korea may conduct its seventh nuclear test after the US presidential vote in November, according to the NIS (formerly known as KCIA).

This would be North Korea’s first nuclear test since 2017. North Korea conducted its first nuclear test in 2006. All six have been underground.

The NIS also reported that the North possesses about 70 kgs of plutonium and a significant amount of highly enriched uranium (HEU), enough to build dozens of nuclear weapons.

Regarding the North’s disclosure of an HEU facility for the first time this month, the NIS said Pyongyang appeared to have the US election in mind, but it could be also trying to “instill confidence” in the domestic audience struggling with a crippled economy and food insecurity.

North Korea unveiled details of its uranium enrichment facility for the first time this month, with leader Kim Jong Un calling for increasing the number of centrifuges for uranium enrichment so it can build up its nuclear arsenal for self-defense.

The South Korean intelligence agency said the North’s test launch of new tactical ballistic missiles on 18 Sept was aimed at verifying its precision strike capability.

Calling it a “slight improvement from the past,” the NIS said one of the two missiles fired successfully reached the target, adding that the agency recognized it as a “grave threat” to South Korean security.

The NIS also said that North Korea-Russia relations were “improving and strengthening considerably and continuously” and that it was “watching closely with concerns about Russia’s economic support to North Korea, including the supply of refined oil and technical cooperation such as reconnaissance satellites, as a compensation for North Korea’s weapons supply.”

On Sino-North Korea relations, the NIS reported that they had “deteriorated over the crackdown on North Korean foreign currency earners operating in China.”

This undated photo released from North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency via KNS on 13 Sep 2024 shows North Korean supremo Kim Jong Un inspecting the Nuclear Weapons Institute and the production base of weapon-grade nuclear materials, at an undisclosed location in North Korea. STR/KCNA via KNS/AFP

North Korean supremo Kim Jong-Un keeps holding his neighbors hostage with his growing nuclear prowess while his people starve. The US, South Korea, and Japan will continue their policy to contain and deter North Korea, as the alternatives are grim, including catastrophic radioactive fallout. Beijing disapproves of Pyongyang’s nuclear progress, but is also concerned about the massive instability if North Korea collapses.

Sources:

North Korea may conduct nuclear test after US election: South’s spy agency — Radio Free Asia (rfa.org)

National Intelligence Service (nis.go.kr)

https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2017/08/contain-deter-transform-a-winning-strategy-on-north.html

Bear Charges at British Columbia Man Inside His Garage

A British Columbia man came face-to-face with a bear inside his garage and the startling encounter was caught on camera.

Coquitlam resident Alex Gold posted a security camera footage to Instagram showing what happened when he was recently unloading groceries from his vehicle in front of his garage.

The video shows Gold’s extremely close encounter with a bear that wandered in through the open garage door.

“I came back to my car and I bumped into the bear,” Gold told CTV News. “She was kind of hissing.”

The video shows the bear charging at Gold multiple times as he claps his hands, makes loud sounds and slowly backs away.

Gold was able to get back into his SUV and honk the horn, which finally scared the mother bear — and her nearby cub — away from his property.

Lisa Lopez of the non-profit WildSafeBC praised Gold’s behavior during the tense encounter.

“The important thing to always remember is to not run,” Lopez said. “Because then it could become a predator-prey kind of situation.”

Source:

Watch: Bear charges at British Columbia man inside his garage – UPI.com

Putin Widens Scope of Russia’s Nuclear Doctrine

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on 25 Sep that a conventional attack on Russia by any country that is supported by a nuclear power will be considered a joint attack.

Putin made the statement as he outlined revisions to Russia’s nuclear doctrine at a meeting of Russia’s Security Council in Moscow.

Russia’s current nuclear doctrine says Russia may use nuclear weapons in case of a nuclear attack by an enemy or a conventional attack that threatens the existence of the state.

The revised version of the document says that Russia could use nuclear weapons in response to a conventional attack posing a “critical threat to our sovereignty.”

“It is proposed that aggression against Russia by any nonnuclear state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear state, be considered as their joint attack on the Russian Federation,” Putin said.

The conditions for Russia’s transition to the use of nuclear weapons are also clearly fixed,” Putin said, adding that Moscow would consider such a move if it gets reliable information about the start of a mass cross-border attack by air from strategic and tactical aviation, cruise missiles, drones, and hypersonic weapons.

Putin also said the list of states and military alliances subject to nuclear deterrence should be expanded but did not mention which countries would be added.

A top Ukrainian government official denounced the revisions, saying they proved Moscow had nothing left but nuclear blackmail to intimidate the world.

“Russia no longer has any instruments to intimidate the world apart from nuclear blackmail,” Andriy Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian president’s office, said on 25 Sep on Telegram. “These instruments will not work.”

Since Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022, he and others in the Kremlin have threatened the West with Russia’s nuclear arsenal to discourage it from ramping up support for Kiev.

The revisions come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy seeks permission from his allies in the US and Europe to use the longer-range weapons to strike deep inside Russian territory.

The change follows Putin’s warning to the US and other NATO allies that allowing Ukraine to use Western-supplied longer-range weapons to hit Russian territory would mean that Russia and NATO are at war. Putin said the revisions were carefully calibrated and commensurate with the modern military threats facing Russia.

This is dangerous nuclear saber-rattling and shows how desperate Putin is. He makes this announcement while the UN General Assembly is convening in NYC, a clear snub at the international body. As the recent Russian attack on the civilian cargo ship carrying grain in the Black Sea demonstrated, Putin will attack vulnerable economic targets to discourage the US and NATO from allowing Ukraine to use long-range weapons against Russia. A war in the Middle East benefits Putin as this could cause oil prices to rise, sparking inflation in the US and the West.

Such a revision to Russian nuclear doctrine may have required consultation with key allies, Beijing and Pyongyang. The more rational, profit-oriented Xi Jinping probably disapproved of this change. He already has concerns about a nuclear mishap on his eastern border with North Korea and wouldn’t want to expose China to nuclear fallout from the west. Also, Beijing profits from a long, conventional war so China, “the world’s factory,” could continue making money selling everything from A-to Z to Russia. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is also studying tactics, weapons, communications systems, and techniques used in the Russo-Ukrainian War in order to see what would work in a potential conflict with Taiwan and the US. Kim Jong-Un probably approved of this change, having recently become formal allies with Putin and himself rattling his nuclear saber to maintain his grip on the Hermit Kingdom and his starving people.

Source:

Putin Widens Scope Of Russia’s Nuclear Doctrine (rferl.org)

Maryland Female White Supremacist Sentenced for Conspiring to Destroy Baltimore Region Power Grid

A woman believed to be Sarah Beth Clendaniel is shown wearing tactical gear containing a swastika, holding a rifle and with a pistol in a drop holster on her left leg. (Photo: FBI)

Sarah Beth Clendaniel (36) of Catonsville, MD, was sentenced to 18 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release for conspiring to damage or destroy electrical facilities in Maryland and a concurrent sentence of 15 years in prison and three years of supervised release for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The defendant will be 54 years old when she is released from prison.

In 2018, Clendaniel became acquainted with Brandon C. Russell, a Florida resident, who is currently charged with conspiracy to damage or destroy electrical facilities in Maryland and is awaiting trial. Clendaniel and Russell espouse a white supremacist ideology and advocate a concept known as “accelerationism.” To “accelerate” or to support “accelerationism” is based on a white supremacist belief that the current system is irreparable and without an apparent political solution, and therefore violent action is necessary to precipitate societal and government collapse.

From Dec 2022 through Feb 2023, Clendaniel conspired with Russell to damage energy facilities involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity and to cause a significant interruption and impairment of the Baltimore regional power grid. The intended monetary loss associated with the planned attacks would have exceeded $75 million.

As set forth in her plea agreement, Clendaniel admitted that she communicated and planned over encrypted communication applications (ECA) to carry out attacks against energy facilities. Russell and Clendaniel communicated their plans to commit an attack on the Baltimore region power grid to a confidential human source (CHS-1).

On 3 Feb 2023, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at Clendaniel’s residence in Catonsville, MD. Law enforcement agents recovered various firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. Federal law prohibits Clendaniel from possessing these items because she is a convicted felon, including convictions in Cecil County, MD, for robbery in 2006 and robbery and attempted robbery in 2016.

Brandon Russell mugshot from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office via AP.

Brandon Clint Russell is a Bahamian and American Neo-Nazi leader, terrorist, and founder of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division. He studied nuclear physics at the University of South Florida (USF) as an undergraduate and became a Florida Army National Guardsman.

These two are incredibly dangerous miscreants with histories of violence and hatred. The sooner his trial concludes and he is incarcerated for decades, if not life, the better. Where all of this hatred comes from in white Americans can be attributed to hate messages propagating on right wing radio stations and cable programs, as well as social media, like ‘X.” The next article discusses hate crimes catalogued by the FBI.

Brandon Clint Russell is innocent of all charges until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Sources:

Office of Public Affairs | Maryland Woman Sentenced for Conspiring to Destroy the Baltimore Region Power Grid | United States Department of Justice

Atomwaffen Division | Southern Poverty Law Center (splcenter.org)

FBI: Hate Crimes, Particularly Against LGBTQ Community, On the Rise

Hate crimes motivated by gender-identity and sexual orientation rose from 2022 to 2023, according to FBI data, sparking concern among LGBTQ advocates about the potential impact of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and legislation.

Though violent crime is down about 3% overall from 2022 to 2023, hate crimes are up across the US, according to the FBI’s statistics. Sexual orientation and gender identity were the third and fourth most prevalent bias motivation in 2023, behind race/ethnicity and religion.

The FBI counted 2,936 incidents related to sexual-orientation and gender-identity bias in 2023 – up roughly 8.6% from about 2,700 in 2022.

Sexual orientation, excluding heterosexuality, was the motivation for 2,389 incidents in 2023 – up from about 2,188 in 2022, and about 1,300 in 2021, according to FBI data report.

The FBI report also shows gender identity-based incidents have been on the rise for several years, from 307 offenses in 2021, to 515 in 2022, to 547 in 2023.

In June 2023, Human Rights Campaign declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people in the US, which is still in effect, citing an increasingly hostile environment and the record-breaking wave of legislation negatively impacting the LGBTQ community.

Sources:

Hate crimes, particularly against LGBTQ community, on the rise: FBI data – ABC News (go.com)

CDE (cjis.gov)

Canadian Auto-Theft Plague: 78 Stolen Vehicles Seized in Montreal Port in One Month as Numbers Continue to Skyrocket

This stolen Lexus was recovered in a storage container at the Port of Montreal in 2019. It was one of 97 high-end vehicles recovered by police during Project Shildon. Police say the Lexus and other stolen vehicles were destined for Africa. Photo: Ontario Provincial Police

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) seized 78 stolen vehicles valued at nearly $6 million and transferred them to the local police. The CBSA seized 348 vehicles in Quebec in the entire year in 2018.

In 2023, the CBSA reported that 1,204 vehicles were seized, topping the 1,050 vehicles seized in 2022.

With just over three months to go in the year, 1,061 vehicles have so far been seized in Quebec.

The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) reported that the cost of insurance claims for replacing stolen vehicles skyrocketed in 2023 to $1.5 billion, and 2024 is likely to be similar.

The IBC said that between 2018 and 2021, auto theft claims averaged $556 million.

“Canada’s auto theft crisis is also placing pressure on drivers’ insurance premiums – as auto theft continues to increase, so do the associated costs,” said IBC vice president Liam McGuinty. “Auto theft is not a victimless crime.”

From 2018 to 2023, claims have increased by 56 per cent and the cost of those claims increased 254 per cent.

The destinations of these stolen cars include China, West Africa, and the Middle East, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

Source:

78 stolen vehicles seized in Montreal, Quebec numbers skyrocketing | CTV News

Wagner Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) Update

Unidentified Wagner fighter. On 26 Jan 2023, the US Treasury sanctioned the Wagner Group as a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) and the UK designated them as a terrorist entity in Sep 2023. (Undated photo / TASS)

Wagner’s late leader and founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said in late June 2023 that 32,000 former inmates recruited by his group from prison had returned home after being granted clemency as part of their remuneration for fighting in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin said those fighting in Ukraine must become “Russia’s new elite” and allowed to occupy state posts. So now more than 300 soldiers who fought Ukraine have become elected officials, the majority of them from Putin’s ruling United Russia party.

Former Wagner mercenary Mikhail Ostryansky who fought in Ukraine has been elected speaker of a local parliament in the Perm region. Ostryansky, a 65-year-old former police officer, now holds the highest position by a returning soldier since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

But the reintegration of prison recruits has been a disaster for Russia over the past two years. Hundreds of cases of violent crimes, including murders and sexual attacks, have been committed by former Wagner mercenaries and other returning soldiers, some of it reported here on Coriolanus.

Russian courts tend to hand mitigated sentences to such perpetrators, citing their “patriotism” and “contributions” they made to Russia’s war against Ukraine.

In October 2023, Putin urged state-run media outlets to refrain from covering crimes committed by returning soldiers. In January, because of the crime wave committed by these veterans, Putin ended the practice of exonerating prison recruits. These convicts were officially granted “a release on parole,” maintaining their criminal records.

According to a new report by the US-based Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS), JPMorgan and HSBC unknowingly processed payments for companies controlled by Wagner.

Wagner established an early foothold in Africa during the mid-2010s thanks to access it had to an international “network of financial services and transportation networks to move supplies and generate revenue. Intermediary banks and shipping companies formed crucial linkages between PMC Wagner’s early mining activities and the wider international economic system,” C4ADS said.

For example, Prigozhin’s Sudanese mining firm, Meroe Gold, purchased industrial equipment, diesel generators, and spare parts from China in 2017. The payments, made from a local bank account, were processed through JPMorgan Chase and HSBC Group’s Hang Seng Bank as intermediaries. The Financial Times, which first reported on the C4ADS findings, wrote that neither JPMorgan nor HSBC were found to have knowingly handled transactions for Wagner’s front companies.

Footnote: In July 2012, the US Senate Sub-Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs accused HSBC of exposing the US financial system to money laundering, drug, and terrorist financing risks. See official findings linked below.

Following Prigozhin’s death in August 2023, Russia’s Defense Ministry absorbed Wagner’s operations across Africa. The group is estimated to have approximately 5,000 mercenaries operating in Africa, many of whom were former Russian soldiers and convicts. Three of them were recently detained in Chad for unspecified reasons. The Russian foreign ministry identified them as Maxim Shugaley, Samer Sueifan and E. Tsaryov.

The state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported that Shugaley and Sueifan are “sociologists” that had been held at the airport of Chad’s capital since 19 Sep. The pair were reportedly detained without explanation.

Shugaley heads the Moscow-based NGO “Foundation for the Defense of National Values”, which is part of a media group the US claims is linked to the late Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. He is under EU sanctions, listed as working directly under Prigozhin’s supervision as the “public relations arm of the Wagner Group,” and spreading “propaganda and disinformation.”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said a Belarusian citizen had also been detained along with the three Russian men in Chad, identifying him as A. Denisevich.

Undated photo of Wagnerites Samer Sueifan and Maxim Shugaley, who were described as “sociologists.” In May 2019, both Shugaley and Sueifan were arrested in Libya and accused of election interference on behalf of Russia. They were freed after 18 months of captivity.

Sources:

Treasury Sanctions Russian Proxy Wagner Group as a Transnational Criminal Organization | U.S. Department of the Treasury

Unearthed-C4ADS.pdf

JPMorgan, HSBC Handled Payments for Wagner’s Africa Operations – Report – The Moscow Times

HSBC Exposed U.S. Financial System to Money Laundering, Drug, Terrorist Financing Risks – Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs (senate.gov)

3 Russian Men Arrested in Chad, Foreign Ministry Says – The Moscow Times

News – RFE/RL (rferl.org)

NYS Announces Statewide Action After Man Dies of Mosquito-Borne Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE)

After an Ulster County man died of EEE, NYS issued a Declaration of Imminent Threat to Public Health and urged New Yorkers to follow recommendations to reduce risks of mosquito-borne illnesses.

State measures Include mosquito spraying, more insect repellent for visitors at state parks and campgrounds, and greater outreach to residents.

State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald:

“Eastern equine encephalitis is different this year. While we normally see these mosquitoes in two to three counties each year, this year they have been in 15 counties so far, and scattered all over New York State. This life-threatening mosquito-borne disease has no commercially available human vaccine and must be taken seriously. Mosquitoes, once a nuisance, are now a threat. I urge all New Yorkers to prevent mosquito bites by using insect repellents, wearing long-sleeved clothing, and removing free-standing water near their homes. Fall is officially here, but mosquitoes will be around until we see multiple nights of below freezing temperatures.”

Massachusetts, Vermont, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, and New Hampshire, have also reported human EEE cases this year. Eighteen cases of EEE have been in identified in horses across 12 counties in New York State this year.

Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) is a rare but severe viral disease spread by infected mosquitoes that can affect people and horses. People of all ages are susceptible to infection, but people over 50 and younger than 15 are at a high risk of acquiring the virus.

While most people bitten by an infected mosquito will not develop symptoms, severe cases may begin with the sudden onset of headache, high fever, chills and vomiting. The illness may then progress into disorientation, seizures, encephalitis and coma. Approximately a third of patients who develop EEE die, while many patients who survive EEE experience neurologic impairment.

There is no commercially available human vaccine for EEE and the best protection is to prevent mosquito bites.

This is a direct consequence of global warming. As the planet warms and climate change lengthens the mosquito season, the world’s deadliest creature will expand its geographical range to new regions and re-emerge in areas where mosquito numbers had subsided for decades.

Sources:

Governor Hochul Announces Statewide Action Following Confirmed Case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis | Governor Kathy Hochul (ny.gov)

2024-09_eee_declaration.pdf (ny.gov)

Donald Trump Bashes Catholics Voting for Harris: ‘Should Have Their Head Examined’

The Trump Crime Family (TCF) met with the first Jesuit pope in 2017. This photo reminded the author of the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein. In most of the photos of this 2017 visit, only Trump is seen smiling. Compare with the image below when Pope Francis met President Biden.

Vatican Media Handout via REUTERS

Former President Donald Trump criticized American Catholics who plan on voting for Vice President Kamala Harris, saying that they need a brain exam of some kind. Last week, the ex-president has said the same thing – repeatedly – about Jews who vote for Democrats, stating they should also have their heads examined. He upped the ante by claiming that if he loses, Jews will be largely to blame.

On Monday, he tried a different tack by going after Catholics who will vote for the Democratic nominee.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump announced he will attend the Al Smith Dinner in New York, as is custom for the two major party nominees in an election year, though Harris is not attending. Smith, a Democrat, was governor of New York in the 1920s and was the first Catholic to be nominated for president by a major party. He lost the 1928 election at a time when anti-Catholic sentiment was a substantial factor in US electoral politics.

At the 2020 Al Smith Dinner, which was held virtually because of the COVID pandemic, Trump slammed the Democratic Party as “anti-Catholic.”

Here’s what the ex-President recently posted:

“We know the Spirit of Al Smith, the first Catholic Nominee of a Major Party, and John F. Kennedy, the FIRST Catholic President, will be in the room with us that night. It was a virtual event in 2020, and I was delighted to speak to our Catholic friends that day and, of course, it was a HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL evening in 2016 when we were there in person with Crooked Hillary Clinton. The reviews of my remarks were TREMENDOUS. It’s sad, but not surprising, that Kamala has decided not to attend. I don’t know what she has against our Catholic friends, but it must be a lot, because she certainly hasn’t been very nice to them, in fact, Catholics are literally being persecuted by this Administration. Any Catholic that votes for Comrade Kamala Harris should have their head examined….

Trump expressed similar frustration toward Catholics in July when he said, “I don’t know how a Catholic can vote for the Democrats.”

This is absolutely breath-taking that an irreligious WASP can dictate to Jews and Catholics who they should vote for. With this type of trajectory, we can see the ex-President criticizing blacks or Buddhists for supporting Kamala Harris.

But more importantly, despite his being a presidential candidate, Donald Trump was convicted in a NYS court on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Donald Trump was also impeached by Congress for attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. So why are the organizers of the Al Smith Dinner validating this impeached felon by even inviting him? Custom? Tradition? Would Benedict Arnold, Jefferson Davis, or Richard Nixon been invited to the Al Smith Dinner if they were alive?

Source:

Trump Bashes Catholics Voting for Harris: ‘Should Have Their Head Examined’ (msn.com)

New Ghost Shark Species with Unusually Long Nose Discovered in Deep Seas off New Zealand

The new species of ghost shark was discovered in the Chathams Rise, roughly 750km east of New Zealand’s coast. Photograph: NIWA

A new species of ghost shark, with an unusually long nose and a whip-like tail, has been discovered in the inky depths of New Zealand waters.

Scientists at New Zealand’s National Institute for Water and Atmospherics (Niwa) initially believed the creature was part of an existing species found around the world, but further investigation revealed it was new, genetically distinct, species. The newly described Australasian narrow-nosed spookfish is only found in New Zealand and Australian waters.

Ghost sharks – also known as chimaeras and spookfish – are a group of cartilaginous fish closely related to sharks and rays. They have smooth skin, beak-like teeth, and feed off crustaceans such as shrimp and molluscs. They are sometimes referred to as the ocean’s butterflies for the way they glide through the water with their large pectoral fins.

The mysterious fish are typically found at great ocean depths – up to 2,600 metres – and little is known about their biology or the threats they face.

The new ghost shark was found in the Chathams Rise, roughly 750km east of New Zealand’s coast. It is distinctive for its very elongated snout that can make up half of its entire body length and has likely evolved to aid its hunt for prey. The chocolate-brown fish can grow up to a meter long, has large milky-coloured eyes, and a serrated dorsal fin to deter predators.

Roughly 55 species of ghost shark have been discovered globally, with about 12 of those found in New Zealand and South Pacific waters.

Source:

New ghost shark species with unusually long nose discovered in deep seas off New Zealand | New Zealand | The Guardian

“Age of Impunity”: Israel Bombards Lebanon for Second Day; 558 Killed Including 50 Children, 94 Women; 1,835 Injured

Israel bombarded 1,500 Hezbollah militant targets in Lebanon again on Tuesday, with the death toll from airstrikes since Monday mounting to 558, along with another 1,835 injured.50 children had been killed in the barrage, along with at least 94 women.

Israel said one of its strikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs killed Ibrahim Muhammad Qubaisi, identified as a senior Hezbollah military commander who oversaw Hezbollah’s missile systems.

The UN refugee agency said it was “outraged and deeply saddened” by other Israeli attacks that killed two of its staff members. Thousands of Lebanese have fled southern Lebanon in search of safety from the Israeli attacks, clogging roads north to Beirut. But Israel has also targeted sites in the capital, with one attack hitting a six-story building, killing six and injuring 15.

Vehicles wait in traffic in the town of Damour, south of the capital Beirut, as people flee southern Lebanon, 24 Sep 2024.

The Israeli military warned residents of the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon’s east to stay away from Hezbollah’s armament supply depots. The IDF has dropped leaflets in eastern Lebanon. Hezbollah urged Lebanese to discard those leaflets, warning against scanning barcodes that could compromise their personal data.

“The enemy is dropping leaflets with barcodes in the Bekaa region and may drop them elsewhere. Please do not open or circulate the barcode. You must destroy it immediately,” the statement said, warning the code could “take all your information.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a stark warning at the General Assembly on Tuesday that the world has entered an “age of impunity” as Israel’s onslaught in Gaza — and now, escalation against Lebanon — continues without consequence, despite the clear ability of world powers to stop the atrocities.

In his address at the opening of this year’s session of the United Nations General Assembly, Guterres said the widespread abuses of international humanitarian law that the world has witnessed over the past year are now threatening the basis of the UN charter and international order.

Immunity for such abuses is now the norm, he said, as world powers have refused to stop the “non-stop nightmare” in Gaza and Israel’s aggression that has put Lebanon “at the brink” of becoming “another Gaza.” He also raised atrocities being committed against Ukraine and the people of Sudan, where a famine and civil war rage on.

The US and some Arab countries support a ceasefire in the Mideast, but Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing Likud government are opposed. Cease-fire talks have been stalemated for months. With fighting on two fronts, Netanyahu warned Israelis that they are headed into “complicated days.”

Meanwhile, the US Navy reported that a replenishment ship operating in the Middle East sustained damage in an incident which is under investigation. The damage to the USNS Big Horn comes after the oiler had supplied the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group. All crew members were reported safe and the vessel was being supported by private tugboats.

The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier shown here in the Arabian Sea (DOD: 1 Jun 2019). US military personnel in CENTCOM AOR are vulnerable to reprisal attacks by Lebanese Hezbollah allies, such as the Shia Houthis along the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden or pro-Iranian Shia militias in Iraq.

Israel’s recent massive pager and walkie-talkie attack, described as ‘a war crime’ by the UN head of human rights, followed by this onslaught in Lebanon, coincided with the opening of the UN General Assembly in NYC and Pres. Biden’s final address to the international body. This brazen offensive demonstrates Benjamin Netanyahu’s contempt for the UN and the sitting US president. The Biden Administration has been working feverishly to reach a ceasefire to release the 100 Israeli hostages and Netanyahu seems to be the impediment. A ceasefire and hostage release would give Pres. Biden a small diplomatic victory before he retires, something which Netanyahu seems determined to deny him.

The Israeli attack also risks widening the conflict in the Middle East which benefits Moscow, Beijing, and Pyongyang. Any discord and instability in the Middle East distracts and diverts Washington’s resources and attention. The US supplies both Ukraine and Israel with arms and foreign aid, but is also the main military ally of Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. A Chinese aircraft carrier recently approached Japanese maritime waters and a Russian military aircraft violated Japanese airspace. Last week North Korea test-fired ballistic missiles and publicly displayed one of its uranium-enrichment facilities.

A wider war in the Middle East could also lead to a rise in oil prices and re-kindling inflation in the US. While sanctions have constrained Iranian oil output in recent years, Tehran remains an oil producer and asserts control over the passage of tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, a trading route that facilitates the transport of about 15% of global oil supply.

“If Iran got involved in this war, then it would disrupt oil supply worldwide,” said a professor at the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

As long as Benjamin Netanyahu and the Likud Party remain in power, the chances for a lasting peace in the Middle East or a Two-State Solution are zero. And these ongoing hostilities delay Netanyahu’s bribery and corruption trial in Jerusalem. Already indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague, Netanyahu also faces a potential probe regarding the 7 Oct 2023 surprise attack by Palestinian armed groups and whether he deliberately ignored any intelligence warnings.

Sources:

Israel bombards Lebanon for second day as death toll reaches 558 (voanews.com)

Hezbollah warns Lebanese over dropped Israeli leaflets — Naharnet

US Navy ship operating in Mideast damaged in incident, officials say (voanews.com)

Japan says Russian patrol aircraft violated its airspace | Fox News

Wider Middle East war could spike oil prices and rekindle US inflation, experts say – ABC News (go.com)

UN Chief: World Has Entered “Age of Impunity” as Israel’s Aggression Spreads | Truthout

Exploding pagers and radios: A terrifying violation of international law, say UN experts | OHCHR

Illinois Man Pleads Guilty to Felony Destruction of Property During 6 Jan Attack on Capitol

Justin LaGesse (red circle) and Theodore Middendorf (yellow circle) march through the US Capitol on 6 Jan 2021. Image: FBI

Justin LaGesse (37) of McLeansboro, IL, pleaded guilty to a felony charge of destruction of government property during the 6 Jan 2021 breach of the US Capitol.

Additionally charged in this matter as a co-defendant is Theodore Middendorf (36) also of McLeansboro. This matter is ongoing.

On 6 Jan 2021, the two miscreants arrived in Washington, D.C., carrying with them an American and Gadsden flag. At approximately 2:51 PM, LaGesse entered into the US Capitol by climbing through a broken window next to the Senate Wing Door. He then turned around and helped Middendorf through the window. After spending some time in the lobby, LaGesse and Middendorf continued to traverse through the Capitol before exiting the building. LaGesse partially pulled down his neck gaiter and began to harass several police officers who were protecting the Capitol. Among other things, LaGesse called the officers “f— traitors” and “f— communist scum.”

By approximately 4:09 PM, the two seditionists had moved to the north side of the Capitol where a large group of rioters were attempting to breach the building via the North Door. Police officers defended the door and blocked the rioters’ entry. As the officers held back the attackers, LaGesse and Middendorf approached the nearby exterior window of a room inside the Capitol and struck the glass window several times with the bases of their flagpoles. The Architect of the Capitol determined that the total cost of the damage to the window was $41,315.25.

In the 43 months since 6 Jan 2021, more than 1,488 suspects have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to attacking the US Capitol, including nearly 550 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.

Justin LaGesse’s name is associated with the above right-wing website. He and Theodore Middendorf represent America’s Fedayeen Saddam (FS), white supremacist dead-enders desperately trying to clutch onto the last vestiges of white privilege in the US. Whatever sort of life Justin LaGesse had before 6 Jan 2021, he threw it away with his hatred and this federal felony conviction.

Sources:

District of Columbia | Illinois Man Pleads Guilty to Felony Destruction of Property During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

Russia Increases Intelligence Footprint in Mexico

CIA Director William Burns said the US government is “sharply focused” on Russia’s expanding footprint in Mexico, which he said was partly the result of Russian spies being expelled from foreign capitals after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. (Image: UK Daily Mail)

Russian intelligence services are building up their presence in Mexico for spy operations targeting the US. The Kremlin has added dozens of personnel to its embassy staff in Mexico City in the past few years, even though Moscow has only limited trade ties with the country. US officials say the trend is concerning and believe the extensive buildup is aimed at bolstering the Kremlin’s intelligence operations targeting the US, as well as its propaganda efforts aimed at undermining Washington and Ukraine.

In Marc 2022, USAF Gen. Glen Van Herck, head of US NORTHCOM, testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee that Russia’s GRU military intelligence service had a massive presence in Mexico.

“I would point out that the largest portion of GRU members in the world is in Mexico right now. Those are Russian intelligence personnel, and they keep an eye very closely on their opportunities to have influence on the US or gain access,” Van Herck said.

Even though Mexico has extensive trade ties with the US, it has traditionally tried to steer away from fully aligning itself with Washington’s foreign policy and has maintained friendly relations with Russia and Cuba.

John Sipher, who worked in the CIA’s clandestine service for 28 years, said Russia has always told Americans offering to spy for Moscow to head to Mexico.

Last month, an electrical engineer with dual US and Turkish citizenship was arrested and charged with mishandling classified documents while working for the US DoD.

FBI agents arrested Gokhan Gun and accused him of printing more than 250 documents while working at the Defense Department. Many of the documents are labeled “classified.” The defendant was about to go on a fishing trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. In the 1970s, Christopher Boyce and his high school friend Andrew Daulton Lee were found guilty of providing US satellite secrets to the Soviets. Over two years, Lee traveled to Mexico City to deliver classified information to agents at the Soviet Embassy and collect money for him and Boyce. Their case became the subject of a book and a major Hollywood film, “The Falcon and the Snowman.”

US Marshals escort captured fugitive Christopher Boyce in manacles from Seattle in 1981. Note the cigarette in the deputy’s right hand. Bettmann Archive via Getty Images.

Harold “Jim” Nicholson, a high-ranking CIA officer convicted in 1997 of passing secrets to Moscow, was serving his sentence for espionage when he tried to use his son to collect his “pension” payments from Russian agents in Mexico. His son was eventually arrested and convicted in 2010, and his father was convicted for a second time.

Two years ago, a prominent Mexican scientist, Hector Cabrera Fuentes, pleaded guilty to being co-opted by Russian agents into surveilling a US government informant living in Miami. Fuentes was leading a double life with two families on two continents, and Russian spies used that to coerce Fuentes into cooperating.

Unlike the US, where Russian intelligence is under intense scrutiny from the FBI and consulates have been shuttered, Mexico offers a convenient, lower-risk setting for Moscow to oversee agents in the US and stage other operations.

The Russians would likely want to use Mexico’s proximity but relative safety beyond US law enforcement’s reach to support both American agents and Russian officers operating under “deep cover” in the US. An American source working for Russian intelligence could travel back and forth across the US-Mexico border and meet up with Russian handlers to get paid, debriefed, resupplied and receive training on communication methods or other tradecraft.

Russian intelligence could conceivably also take advantage of Mexico’s proximity to target Putin’s political enemies inside the US.

The Russians likely would have little interest in having operatives try to cross the southern border illegally with migrants. But Russian intelligence agencies would have the option to work with cross-border criminal networks if it suited a particular mission, and if they were ready to tolerate a much higher risk. Part of the mandate of the GRU is to prepare possible sabotage operations in the event of a war with the US, and Mexico would be a practical base for such contingency plans.

Russia can manipulate the information landscape in Mexico to undercut international support for Ukraine but also to sow social divisions. Russia has expanded its state-funded media outlet RT in Mexico and runs a large advertising campaign for the channel. In April, the Russian ambassador to Mexico posted a false report by Russian state media claiming that the US was recruiting members of drug cartels from Mexico and Colombia to send them to fight in Ukraine. The baseless account was picked up by some Mexican news organizations.

On 1 Oct, Mexico inaugurates its first ever female president in Mexico City and Vladimir Putin was invited. Ukraine requested Mexico, an International Criminal Court (ICC) signatory, to arrest him on an active international warrant when he arrives. The Mexican government responded that it had no intention of arresting him. The Kremlin later announced that a representative for Putin would attend President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum’s inauguration. In other news south of the US border, this week the US instituted sanctions against Mexican businesses for drug trafficking (please see next article).

Sources:

Back to the Cold War: Russia uses Mexico as a hub for spying on the U.S. (nbcnews.com)

Dual citizen of U.S., Turkey accused of printing classified documents – UPI.com

Mexico rejects Ukraine’s request to arrest Russia’s Putin during visit | Reuters

US Sanctions Mexican Businesses, Colombian Nationals for ‘Significant’ Drug Trafficking Network

Map courtesy of Stratfor and the BBC.

The US Treasury announced a series of new political sanctions on businesses in Mexico and citizens of Colombia allegedly tied to a “significant” flow of illicit drugs into the US and human trafficking: the leadership of Colombia’s Clan Del Golfo and businesses owned in Mexico by alleged fentanyl traffickers known as the Sinaloa Cartel.

Clan del Golfo, also known as Los Urabeños, is one of America’s largest drug trafficking organizations and “a key contributor” to human smuggling.

The Sinaloa Cartel fentanyl traffickers are described as “one of the most notorious and pervasive” drug-trafficking organizations in the world allegedly responsible for “a significant portion” of illicit fentanyl and other deadly drugs trafficked into the US.

The US Treasury Dept coordinated with the DEA, the Colombian National Police, and Mexico’s Unidad de Inteligencia Financiera. Treasury has sanctioned more than 350 targets over the last two years for alleged involvement in drug trafficking activities at all supply chain stages — from major cartel leaders to “under-the-radar labs, transportation network, and chemical suppliers.”

Sources:

Counter Narcotics Designations; Issuance of New Russia-related Frequently Asked Questions | Office of Foreign Assets Control (treasury.gov)

Colombian nationals, Mexican businesses target of Treasury sanctions for ‘significant’ fentanyl trafficking – UPI.com

West India Faces Health Crisis: Over 6,000 Cases of Dengue and Chikungunya Reported

A new variant of Chikungunya, identified by the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune, is spreading rapidly with increased severity. Hospitals in Nagpur are filling up with patients suffering from both dengue and chikungunya, two mosquito-borne illnesses transmitted primarily by Aedes mosquitoes. Patients in this vicinity were already suffering from Zika virus, as reported here on Coriolanus (15 Sep).

Since Jan 2024, Nagpur has recorded 2,873 cases of dengue and 3,556 cases of chikungunya. While dengue cases have been rising steadily throughout the year, chikungunya cases began to spike in June, with 82 initial cases. Experts believe many more cases remain unreported, indicating the actual numbers could be higher.

Pune is located southeast of Mumbai in the state of Maharashtra. The city covers an area of about 7,290 sq km with a population of 3,124,458 people.

The disease is causing severe joint pain similar to arthritis, with some patients also experiencing heart issues. In certain cases, platelet counts have dropped dangerously low. Chikungunya has also led to encephalitis, a condition where the brain swells due to inflammation, making the illness even more dangerous.

This year’s chikungunya outbreak is far worse than previous years. Patients are suffering from prolonged joint pain that can last over a month, and the daytime-biting mosquitoes are causing widespread distress. Authorities are urging residents to take extra precautions against mosquito bites as efforts to control the outbreak continue.

This outbreak is a consequence of global climate change. As the planet warms and climate change lengthens the mosquito season, the world’s deadliest creature will expand its geographical range to new regions and re-emerge in areas where mosquito numbers had subsided for decades.

Droughts, heatwaves, floods, and rainfall are increasing in severity and regularity across the globe. These provide favourable conditions for mosquitoes to breed and could help spread their viruses to higher latitudes and altitudes. Climate change also increases mosquito-borne disease risk in less obvious ways, says Dr Katie Anders from the World Mosquito Program (WMP).

“When households store water in response to drought, this can increase local mosquito breeding sites and disease risk. Land use changes can also drive migration to cities, increasing the population at risk of explosive outbreaks of dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases.”

Each year mosquito-borne diseases kill more than one million people and infect up to 700 million.

Sources:

Nagpur Faces Health Crisis: Over 6,000 Cases of Dengue and Chikungunya Recorded (nagpurtrends.com)

Explainer: How climate change is amplifying mosquito-borne diseases | World Mosquito Program

Russia Surveys 42-Year-Sunken Nuclear Submarine K-27 in Kara Sea

The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations announced that its diving specialists are inspecting the K-27 nuclear submarine, which sank in the Kara Sea over four decades ago. The submarine, found in Stepovoy Bay, is classified as a radiation-hazardous facility. The K-27, a notorious relic from the era of the Soviet Union, has long been a concern due to the radiation threat it poses to the surrounding environment. The divers will evaluate the condition of the K-27 as part of Russia’s broader initiative to monitor and mitigate potential threats from its aging fleet of nuclear-powered vessels.

Undated image from Reddit.

Known as the “Zolotaya Rybka” [Little Golden Fish] for its high costs and crew luxuries, the K-27 represented the pinnacle of Soviet naval technology. Its elite crew enjoyed rare perks for the time, such as citrus fruits like lemons and oranges, which were uncommon for most Soviet citizens.

On 24 May 1968, a nuclear reactor malfunctioned. By the time the crew managed to surface the submarine and return to their base at Gremikha on Russia’s Kola Peninsula, all 144 crew members had been exposed to radiation. Sadly, nine of them succumbed to radiation poisoning in the months that followed. The K-27 was permanently taken out of active service in June 1968 and eventually decommissioned in 1979.

In 1982, the K-27 was towed to the Arctic Novaya Zemlya nuclear testing range and deliberately sunk in the Kara Sea at a depth of 108 feet. Soviet authorities filled the submarine with asphalt to seal its fuel-filled reactors and drilled a hole in its aft ballast tank to ensure it would remain submerged.

Vyacheslav Mazurenko, a 22-year-old warrant officer at the time, later recalled the chilling instant they realized the gravity of their predicament: “We had a radiation detector, but it was turned off. When our radiation supervisor switched it on, it went off the scale.”

Source:

Russia explores the 42-year-sunken nuclear sub K-27 in the Kara Sea (bulgarianmilitary.com)

Donald Trump and JD Vance Face Criminal Charges over Springfield Pet-Eating Hoax

Photo: AFP

An Ohio law allowing citizens to file criminal charges is being used to target former President Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) over their vile comments about Haitians in Springfield.

The Haitian Bridge Alliance filed criminal charges against the two Republican candidates at Clark County Municipal Court on Tuesday. A copy of the six-page complaint is linked below.

“The criminal charges stem from the devastating harm of Trump’s and Vance’s baseless fearmongering that legal Haitian immigrants to the Ohio town are eating their neighbor’s pets,” Chandra Law Firm said.

Alliance’s cofounder Guerline Jozef sought the “immediate arrest” of Trump and Vance for disrupting public service, making false alarms, committing telecommunications harassment, committing aggravated menacing, and violating the prohibition against complicity.

“The Haitian community is suffering in fear because of Trump and Vance’s relentless, irresponsible, false alarms, and public services have been disrupted,” lead counsel Subodh Chandra said in a statement. “Trump and Vance must be held accountable to the rule of law. Anyone else who wreaked havoc the way they did would have been arrested by now.”

“There’s nothing special about Trump and Vance that entitles them to get away with what they’ve done and are doing,” the attorney added. “They think they’re above the law. They’re not.”

Sheriff Deborah K. Burchett is tasked with the responsibility of preserving the peace of the public, overseeing the enforcement of court orders, providing courthouse security, and jail operations within Clark County, Ohio, where the criminal complaint was filed. If an Ohio judge issues an arrest warrant based on the complaint, Sheriff Burchett or the Ohio State Highway Patrol would have the responsibility of arresting Donald J. Trump and JD Vance.

Source:

2024-09-22 Guerline Jozef affidavit re Trump, Vance, and Springfield FINAL (chandralaw.com)

Criminal charges filed against Trump and Vance for Springfield, Ohio conduct; arrests sought | Chandra Law Firm | 216-578-1700 | Cleveland, Ohio

Trump and Vance face criminal charges over Springfield hoax – Raw Story

Sheriff | Clark County, OH – Official Website (clarkcountyohio.gov)

Curious Old Grizzly Bear Makes Himself Home in Crawlspace Under California House

A California couple’s home has become a makeshift duplex after a new neighbor moved into their crawlspace: a grizzly bear.

Bob Nesler and Susan Nesler said the bear, which they named Junior, leaves late at night to forage for food and returns to their crawlspace in the early morning.

“That’s his den right now. We gotta get him out of there because, you know, I think we’d be held responsible if anybody got hurt, but he hasn’t bothered us in any way.”

he Neslers said they do not want to see Junior harmed.

“They’re not dangerous creatures at all, unless you’re a trash can,” Bob Nesler said.

They said Junior has thus far been an ideal neighbor — aside from one issue.

“He does leave piles of scat,” Bob Nesler told KNBC-TV. “That’s about my biggest complaint.”

Kevin Howells from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said officials are attempting to encourage Junior to leave by setting up a sprinkler.

“Easiest option here is to let it leave on its own, stress free and get that space boarded up,” Howells said.

Source:

Watch: Bear moves into California couple’s crawlspace (yahoo.com)

Israel on Warpath: 22 Killed in Gaza, 37 in Beirut; Two Lebanese Hezbollah Commanders Dead

Palestinians inspect a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza city after it was hit by an Israeli strike. Reuters

An Israeli air strike on a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza city’s Al Zeitoun neighbourhood has killed at least 22 people as strikes across the enclave intensified.

Israel’s strikes on Gaza have killed at least 119 people in the past 72 hours, the enclave’s Health Ministry said on Saturday, excluding the latest toll from the attack on the school.

A separate strike hit Al Falah school in the same area, injuring a number of people. The Israeli military claimed it was targeting Hamas operatives in the school. The Israeli military often accuses Hamas militants of hiding in schools where thousands of displaced Palestinians have sought shelter. The group has repeatedly denied this claim.

The death toll in the enclave since 7 Oct 2023 has risen to 41,391, while 95,760 have been wounded. Over the past three days, 209 people were injured.

Beirut after IDF airstrike. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the attack showed Israel “gives no weight to any humanitarian, legal, or moral considerations”.

The latest Israeli attack killed senior Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Aqil along with at least 37 people on Friday. The strike, which destroyed a residential building in Beirut’s southern suburb of Dahiyeh, also wounded 68 people.

Calls for blood donations for the victims were multiplying on social media. People searching for their loved ones also took to social media to ask for help, sharing pictures of their missing relatives, including children. Lebanon’s medical infrastructure, already under strain from the massive pager and walkie-talkie sabotage attack, was taxed again. UN human rights chief Volker Turk denounced the rigged device attacks carried out in Lebanon, saying they constitute a breach of international human rights law and could amount to a war crime.

Volker Turk advised the UN Security Council that using devices disguised as “apparently harmless portable objects” is an act of violence aimed at spreading “terror among civilians”. The human rights chief called for an independent, thorough, and transparent investigation, and for those who ordered and carried out the attacks to be held to account.

Lebanese Hezbollah counterattacked with rocket launches into Israel; four casualties were reported.

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is making conditions for a ceasefire or eventual peace in the Middle East impossible. IDF attacks are not only enraging the Arab population, but adding to deep-seeded resentments with every loss or maiming of a family member. The Lebanese people (and the Iraqis) already rank as the world’s angriest population for manifold reasons; the next generation of anti-Israeli enemies has been spawned. Meanwhile, the Biden Administration has been attempting in good faith some sort of cease-fire or deal to release the remaining hostages being held by armed Palestinian groups. At one point, Washington must restrain the bellicose Likud Party or the US will be needlessly sucked into a war of Netanyahu’s making.

Sources:

Israel rules out political solution as strike on Beirut kills Hezbollah commanders | The National (thenationalnews.com)

Booby-trapped device attacks in Lebanon breach international law, says UN rights chief | The National (thenationalnews.com)

Israeli strike on Gaza school-turned-shelter kills at least 22 people | The National (thenationalnews.com)

Lebanese, Iraqis among world’s angriest populations: report (newarab.com)

Ohio “Man of God” Sentenced for Organizing and Rallying 6 Jan Attackers

(Images: US Dept of Justice)

Pastor William Dunfee (59) of Frazeysburg, OH, was sentenced to 30 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $2,000 in restitution for one felony offense of civil disorder and a misdemeanor offense of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds on 6 Jan 2021. He rallied seditionists to storm the US Capitol to disrupt the peaceful transition of Presidential power.

As the seditionists attacked and threatened the lives of members of Congress after a Donald Trump speech urging them to “fight like hell”, Dunfee used a bullhorn to egg them on, falsely proclaiming the lie that the 2020 election was stolen.

A pastor of the New Beginnings Ministry Warsaw in Ohio, Dunfee pushed a metal barricade against officers with the US Capitol Police who were attempting to hold the line and then entered the Capitol building without authorization.

During sentencing the Honorable Judge Reggie Walton asked Dunfee, “What kind of man of God would do that, Sir?”

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

Source:

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

American Warzone: Four KIA, 20 WIA in Late Night Shooting in Alabama

US Army medics treating wounded soldiers in Vietnam on 2 Apr 1967. In the US, 44,341 people die by firearms in an average year, a rate of 13.3 deaths per 100,000 people. Americans suffer from wartime casualty amounts every year without going to war. Image: http://www.flickr.com

Four people were killed and more than 20 wounded following a shooting in a nightlife area in Birmingham, AL. Just after 11 PM, “multiple shooters fired multiple shots on a group of people” in the Five Points South area.

Two men and a woman were found dead at the scene; a fourth victim died at a hospital. Other victims were transported to hospitals in private vehicles. The University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital was treating 11 victims and their conditions have not been released.

The victims were all located on the sidewalk or the streets and detectives are trying to determine if the shooters walked up to the victims or drove by a vehicle.

The Five Points South area of Birmingham has numerous entertainment venues, restaurants, and bars and is often crowded on Saturday nights. Police said there were no immediate arrests.

In an average year, 1,175 people die by guns in Alabama. With a rate of 23.9 deaths per 100,000 people, the Cotton State has the fourth-highest rate of gun deaths in the US.

Alabama Firearms Licenses in 2021: 194,920

An estimated 55.5% of adults in Alabama have guns at home.

Sources:

At least four killed, multiple injured in late night shooting in Alabama (archive.md)

EveryStat – EveryStat.org

10. Alabama – Gun map: Ownership by state – statistics and rates (cbsnews.com)

Ukraine Destroys 71 of 80 Russian Drones Overnight

A Ukrainian police officer stands next to a destroyed car following a Russian missile attack in Kharkiv late on 21 Sep. At least 12 people were injured. Photo: AFP

The Ukrainian Air Force reported that air-defense systems shot down 71 of 80 Russian attack drones launched overnight. It said six more drones were neutralized by electronic warfare. The air force also said Russia had launched two guided missiles from occupied parts of Ukraine’s Luhansk region. It did not say what happened to the missiles. Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said air-defense units had destroyed 15 drones that Ukraine launched overnight. Late on 21 Sep, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said explosions rang out in Kharkiv — Ukraine’s second-largest city — with a guided bomb hitting a residential high-rise, injuring at least 12.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to kick off his US visit on 22 Sep with a stop at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant, a Pennsylvania factory producing key munitions for his country’s fight against Russia. Scranton is Pres. Biden’s birthplace. This ammunition plant manufactures 155 mm artillery shells used in howitzer systems that can strike targets from up to 32 kms away. The US has so far provided Kiev with more than three million of the shells and Ukraine fires up to 8,000 of them daily.

An employee handles 155 mm shells at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant on 16 Apr. Photo: Charly Triballeau / AFP.

Pres. Zelensky addresses the UN General Assembly in NY on 24 Sep and will meet separately at the White House with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on 26 Sep. Pres. Zelensky will reportedly meet with GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump as well at an undisclosed time.

Sources:

Ukraine Says It Destroyed 71 Of 80 Drones Fired By Russia Overnight (rferl.org)

Ukraine’s Zelenskiy To Begin U.S. Trip With Visit To Pennsylvania Munitions Factory (rferl.org)

Possible Widespread Labor Action by Longshoreman’s Union at East Coast Ports on 1 Oct

ILA’s Dennis A. Daggett says union will be on the “right side of history” if it must strike on 1 Oct 2024. “Corporate greed must end,” he emphasized.

A major strike is on the horizon for thousands of maritime workers, posing a threat to East Coast ports responsible for offloading billions of dollars of goods.

The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), the largest union of maritime workers in North America, has vocalized plans to go on strike at all of its Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports 1 Oct if a new contract agreement can’t be reached with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX). The union is arguing for better wages and continued protections against automation and new technology in its terminals.

“A sleeping giant is ready to roar on Tuesday, 1 Oct 2024, if a new Master Contract Agreement is not in place,” ILA President Harold J. Daggett said in a statement Monday. “My members have been preparing for over a year for that possibility of a strike.”

According to a statement from USMX, negotiations with the ILA began in the last week of May. Now, the union’s current six-year contract is less than two weeks away from expiring.

The Port Authority of NY and NJ is “closely monitoring developments and remain hopeful. For the over 600,000 regional jobs our port supports and the $240 billion in goods moved through here each year, we urge both sides to find common ground and keep the cargo flowing for the good of the national economy,” said a spokesperson for the Port Authority.

The ILA has argued that the USMX is denying workers fair contracts with adequate wage raises and proper benefits.

“USMX claims to offer industry-leading wages, however, their interpretation of ‘leading wages’ is polar opposite to ours,” a statement from the ILA on Monday said.

“Our members are struggling to pay their mortgages and rent, car payments, groceries, utility bills, taxes, and in some cases, their children’s education. USMX’s corporate greed has made them delusional — profits over people. They have taken advantage of a low entry-wage and a tiered progression system for thirty years,” the statement continued.

The union said its rank-and-file members will no longer accept contracts that include small wage increases of a dollar or less. It argued further that for more than three decades, ILA workers only saw annual wage increases of 2.02% per year on average — with some years having wage raise percentages of zero, according to the ILA statement.

The ILA is the largest union of maritime workers in North America, representing upwards of 85,000 longshoremen on the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, Great Lakes, major U.S. rivers, Puerto Rico and Eastern Canada, and the Bahamas. The longshoremen of the ILA kept cargo moving non-stop during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sources:

ILA Union

Layout 1 (usmx.com)

Major maritime strike could threaten ports across the East Coast (nbcnews.com)

Possible widespread strike on East Coast ports poses a serious risk – Internewscast Journal

Taiwan: Pesticide Found in Food Poisoning Victims

Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) confirmed that eight people who fell ill due to suspected food poisoning had terbufos, a hazardous chemical compound found in some pesticides, in their systems.

Terbufos, which can potentially kill humans, is used on various crops, including bananas, beans, citrus, coffee, groundnuts, sorghum, and maize as soil cover to combat wireworms, mossy beetles, beet flies, and the black bean louse.

Four of the eight sampled patients were all found to have reduced acetylcholinesterase, reflecting organophosphorus poisoning. The suspected food poisoning happened last week when an 83-year-old woman died after eating millet dumplings she prepared. Several relatives and friends who came to mourn her death ate the leftover dumplings and exhibited symptoms such as vomiting and convulsions.

A sample of the millet dumplings known as “Abai,” a traditional cuisine of some of Taiwan’s Indigenous peoples at the center of the food poisoning incident. CNA photo 18 Sep 2024.

Even at low levels of exposure, terbufos can lead to serious negative health effects, including neurological harm. Terbufos is used in 19 American states.

Sources:

Terbufos found in suspected food poisoning victims’ systems: CDC – Focus Taiwan

Terbufos in the United States: Harmful Health Effects and Widespread Use – Earthjustice

North Koreans Are Getting Sick of Propaganda Song “Friendly Father”

North Korean military choir members sing on the eve of the 70th anniversary of North Korea’s founding day in Pyongyang, DPRK, 8 Sep 2018.

North Koreans are growing weary of being bombarded by “Friendly Father,” an upbeat propaganda song praising leader Kim Jong Un that has been blanketing the country for months now.

People are forced to sing it before every public event and a loudspeaker car drives through cities blaring it.

“He is holding his 10 million children in his arms and taking care of us with all his heart,” go the lyrics.

“The love you give me is like the sea. The trust you give me is like the sky,” says verse two. “You are always by our side, and make all our wishes come true.”

“Every factory, company, school, work unit, and neighborhood-watch unit in the province has both children and adults sing this song whenever the opportunity arises,” according to an anonymous informant.

North Korean students sing in music class at the Pyongyang Orphans’ Secondary School in Pyongyang, DPRK, 1 Sep 2016. (Jon Chol Jin/AP)

The government created a high-quality music video for the song depicting people from all walks of life enthusiastically singing along to it.

Friendly Father was inspired by an earlier propaganda song called “Friendly Name” that sung the praises of Kim’s father and predecessor Kim Jong Il. The melody is different but many of the lyrics in “Friendly Father” are callbacks to the earlier song, which most North Koreans know by heart.

The order to promote the song comes from the Central Party of the ruling Korean Workers’ Party.

It’s gotten to the point where people actively avoid places where the song is played publicly if they can help it. For example, in the city of Hyesan, on the border with China, there is a park where retired people gather to spend their free time by talking, singing, dancing, playing games, or exercising.

But when the park turned off their music and began playing “Friendly Father” over the park’s public address system, the senior citizens went home. The park, which used to teem with old folks from sunrise to sunset, is now empty almost every day.

Another problem with the song stems from Korea’s Confucian culture. Often complete strangers are expected to grant older people a certain amount of respect simply because they are older, with the promise that they will receive the same respect from the young when they reach the same age.

However, “people in their 70s and 80s are being forced to call Kim Jong Un, who is only in his 40s and is about the same age as their sons, their ‘friendly father.’”

North Koreans sing at a picnic gathering at a park in Pyongyang, 18 Apr 2012, a national holiday celebrating the birthday period of the late leader Kim Il Sung. (Vincent Yu/AP)

People scoff at the notion that Kim Jong Un could be their “friendly father,” because they do not trust his leadership abilities, the second resident said.

“They have no hope in their leader, but they are forced to familiarize their eyes, ears, and mouths with the image of him as their friendly father through the song.” Propaganda efforts are getting bigger and louder as people’s dissatisfaction with society and food insecurity increases.

Source:

North Koreans are getting sick of propaganda song “Friendly Father” — Radio Free Asia (rfa.org)

Iceland Locals Save Baby Puffins by Tossing Them Out to Sea

Imagery and Story: Kyana Sue Powers, Megan Cook, Andy Witchge

People in Iceland patrol the streets at nights with flashlights and boxes. They are rescuing baby puffins, also known as pufflings. If found, they would be rounded up and gently tossed off the cliffside in the morning. At six weeks old — when their fluffy down matures and their beaks are still black — a puffling is ready to fly the nest. Once they head out to sea, they will spend three to four years of their life flying abroad, before returning to the cliff sides to start a family of their own.

However, each year (in late August or September) pufflings come crashing down on streets and residential homes, as their internal compass ushers them to the moon… and the “moon” turns out to be the electronic lights of the city. In the same way that baby sea turtles can be disoriented — and misdirected — by city lights in coastal towns, pufflings will often fall for the allure of artificial lights.

Thankfully, the residents of Vestmannaeyjar know to keep an eye out for wandering pufflings, and they take the volunteer position seriously. Residents can find between four to ten pufflings in a single night during puffling season. Before they release pufflings, locals are encouraged to record the weight of each puffling on an official “Puffin Patrol” website.

Image via Andy Witchge / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

The baby puffins are gently picked up and placed in a box and brought to the south side of Iceland where they are released. Typically, instinct takes over and the pufflings are able to fly toward the ocean without issue.

Volunteer work is critical to keeping puffin populations up. Globally the Atlantic puffin is considered vulnerable, but in Europe, it’s on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species. And in Iceland, specifically, they are critically endangered.

This is due in part to declining fish populations, rising sea temperatures, and oil spills.

For puffin patrollers, caring for the wayward baby birds is akin to helping little, lost friends. In fact, the scientific name for the Atlantic puffin subspecies, Fratercula arctica, literally translates to “little brother of the North.”

Sources:

Inspired by Iceland

Beautiful Puffin and Shore View

Why Icelanders are tossing baby puffins off of cliffs (goodgoodgood.co)

Oregon Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Law Enforcement During 6 Jan Attack on Capitol

Andy Steven Oliva-Lopez (27) from Oregon man pleaded guilty to a felony charge of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers during the 6 Jan 2021 attack on the US Capitol. He will be sentenced on 17 Jan 2025.

Oliva-Lopez drove from his home in Oregon with a friend to attend the 6 Jan 2021, “Stop the Steal” rally scheduled to take place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. After attending the rally, Oliva-Lopez walked toward the Capitol and made his way to the West Plaza, which was, by that time overrun with rioters. At that location, US Capitol Police and MPD officers attempted to maintain lines of defense and were struggling to prevent rioters from advancing further to the building.

At about 2:04 PM, Oliva-Lopez, wearing a full-face respirator mask, sprayed streams of orange-colored bear spray at the faces and heads of police officers on the West Plaza. Over the course of several minutes, Oliva-Lopez did this on three distinct occasions. Police officers blinded by the bear spray testified that the intense pain levels were either eight or nine on a scale of ten.

Thanks to online sleuths, the FBI arrested Oliva-Lopez on 23 Jan 2024.

Oliva-Lopez’s plea agreement states his estimated sentencing guidelines range is 51 to 63 months in federal prison. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) officials will read his dossier and the pain Oliva-Lopez inflicted on the police officers defending the Capitol when he repeatedly sprayed them with bear repellant.

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

Sources:

gov.uscourts.dcd.271080.28.0.pdf (courtlistener.com)

District of Columbia | Oregon Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Law Enforcement During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

Israel Launches Intense Strikes on Lebanon

Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese village of Khiam near the border, 19 Sep 2024.

Israeli forces carried out their most intense strike on southern Lebanon in nearly one year of war, increasing tensions between the two countries despite international calls for calm. IDF jets struck about 100 multiple-rocket launchers in more than 52 strikes. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The UK called for a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, and the US is “afraid and concerned about potential escalation,” White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.

Lebanese Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah acknowledged that this week’s deadly explosive attacks in Lebanon on the militant group’s communications devices were a “severe blow,” while contending that Israel had crossed a “red line” in carrying out the operation that killed at least 32 people and wounded another 3,000. Unsuspecting Hezbollah operatives and civilians answered messages on their pagers and tried to carry on conversations on their walkie-talkies, only to have them explode in their hands.

Because of the lethal devastation from the attacks, Lebanon has banned passengers flying from Beirut’s international airport from carrying pagers or walkie-talkies on board their flights. The ban applies to both checked and carry-on luggage, as well as cargo.

The longer Israel remains in a state of war, the longer Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delays his bribery and corruption trial in Jerusalem, and the approximate 100 Israelis remain hostage and vulnerable. The West should expect reprisal attacks from Lebanese Hezbollah or their allies against Israeli targets overseas.

Background Information:

In 1978, Israel invaded Lebanon to neutralize PLO fighters conducting cross-border raids. After a ceasefire was brokered, UNIFIL kept the peace. With Democratic President Jimmy Carter out of the White House in 1981, Israeli war-hawks found a friend in Republican Ronald Reagan. In 1982, Israel re-attacked Lebanon to stamp out remaining PLO fighters who were observing the ceasefire. Israel used the 1982 Abu Nidal assassination attempt on the Israeli Ambassador in London as a casus belli, or pretext, for the invasion. Yasser Arafat and the PLO had disavowed Abu Nidal, who was a rival to the PLO Chairman.

During the invasion, the IDF used a Lebanese Christian militia, the Phalange, as one of their proxies, resulting in the Sabra and Shatila massacre. Hezbollah was established by Lebanese clerics primarily to fight this 1982 Israeli invasion. Lebanese Hezbollah would receive aid from their fellow Shiites in the newly formed Islamic Republic of Iran. After a 22-year military presence, the IDF would finally leave Lebanon on 24 May 2000, under UN Security Council Resolution 425.

Now decades later, the battle is joined once again.

The Sabra and Shatila massacre was the 16–18 Sep 1982 mass killing of between 1,300 and 3,500 civilians—mostly Palestinians and Lebanese Shias—in the city of Beirut during the Lebanese Civil War. The mass murder was perpetrated by the Lebanese Forces, one of the main Christian militias in Lebanon, and supported by the IDF that had surrounded Beirut’s Sabra neighborhood and the adjacent Shatila refugee camp.

Many of the bodies found had been severely mutilated. Young men had been castrated, some were scalped, and some had the Christian cross carved into their bodies.

Sources:

Israel launches intense strikes on Lebanon (voanews.com)

Sabra and Shatila massacre – Wikipedia

US Treasury Targets Key Actors in Sanctions Evasion Scheme to Support Russia and North Korea

The US imposed sanctions on a network of five entities and Dmitry Yuryevich Nikulin for allegedly enabling payments between Russia and North Korea.

The entities and Dmitry Nikulin are based in Russia and the Georgian region of South Ossetia. They are accused of actions that “supported ongoing efforts to establish illicit payment mechanisms” between Russia and the North Korea.

Western powers have accused cash-strapped North Korea of selling ammunition to Russia in defiance of sanctions over the more than 30-month-old war in Ukraine, and North Korea has recently bolstered military ties with Russia. President Vladimir Putin made a rare visit to Pyongyang in June and signed a “comprehensive strategic partnership” that calls for mutual assistance in the event of an attack by a third country.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who met with Putin, said the agreement opened a new era of cooperation. Kim made further pledges to deepen ties with Russia after meeting last week with visiting Russian security chief Sergei Shoigu.

The new sanctions expose how the Kremlin uses illegal financial schemes to help North Korea access the international banking system in violation of UN Security Council sanctions.

The US has previously sanctioned many of the entities and individuals providing assistance to North Korea’s ballistic missile program. International sanctions against North Korea over Pyongyang’s nuclear program were imposed after its first nuclear test in 2006.

Sources:

Treasury Targets Key Actors in Sanctions Evasion Scheme to Support Russia and North Korea | U.S. Department of the Treasury

Sanctions List Search (treas.gov)

U.S. Hits Network Allegedly Facilitating Russia-North Korea Sanctions Evasion (rferl.org)

Earth Will Have Second ‘Tiny Moon’ for Two Months

Earth will have a second moon when a small asteroid begins to orbit the planet later this month, space researchers have announced.

The celestial visitor, dubbed 2024 PT5, is from the Arjuna asteroid belt, according to researchers at the NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, or ATLAS, an asteroid monitoring system in South Africa. Researchers say Earth’s gravity will pull the tiny moon toward our planet and act a lot like the regular moon, orbiting the Earth in a horseshoe shape, but for just shy of two months, from 29 Sep to 25 Nov.

Other so-called non-Earth objects have entered the planet’s orbit in the past, but typically have not completed full revolutions, meaning they do not act like a typical “moon.”

When they do enter Earth’s orbit, like 2024 PT5, they are dubbed “mini-moons.” This particular asteroid is scheduled to return in 2055. 2024 PT5 won’t be visible to the naked eye or even with a consumer-grade, backyard telescope.

2024 PT5 will reach a distance of about 2.8 million miles away from Earth and slow to a speed of about 2,200 mph, allowing it to be affected by Earth’s pull, even if only temporarily.

Sources:

Earth will have a second ‘tiny moon’ for two months – UPI.com

‘Dangerous Antisemitism’: Donald Trump Condemned for Scapegoating Jews If He Loses Election

Dr. Anthony Fauci has a moment as President Trump speaks during a COVID-19 briefing at the White House on 20 March 2020. Photo: NBC News

Social media critics roundly denounced former President Donald Trump suggestion Thursday that if he loses the 2024 election to Vice President Kamala Harris, Jewish people would have a “lot to do with” it.

Trump made the comment at a summit about combating antisemitism in the country, which was hosted by Jewish philanthropist Miriam Adelson.

“In my opinion, the Jewish people would have a lot to do with a loss,” Trump said. “If I’m at 40%, think of it, that means 60% are voting for Kamala, who in particular is a bad Democrat. Democrats are bad to Israel. Very bad. They’ll never change because they have a section of their party now which has become amazingly, quickly very powerful vote-wise.”

Trump then repeated a campaign attack against Senate Majority Chuck Schumer (D-NY), calling him a “Palestinian.”

“Who would’ve thought that was going to happen? What the hell happened to him?” attacked Trump. “I saw him the other day. He was dressed in one of their robes. That’ll be next.”

“It’s only because of the Democrat hold, or curse, on you,” added Trump.

At the summit, Trump seemingly used Israel and American Jews interchangeably.

“Israel, I believe, has to defeat her,” Trump said of Harris on Thursday. “More than any people on earth, Israel has to defeat her.”

Trump’s remark earned widespread derision on social media, calling it “dangerous antisemitism” and could lead to violence against Jews. One critic called Trump’s language something that might be said before an imminent “pogrom.”

Source:

‘Dangerous antisemitism’: Trump slammed for saying Jews will have a ‘lot to do with’ loss – Raw Story

France Probes Online Threats Against Afghan Taekwondo Fighter Marzieh Hamidi

Marzieh Hamidi (C) chants slogans with the Paris crowd, including the “women, life, freedom” holding an Afghan flag, in support of Iranian and Afghan women, 8 Mar 2023. © Hans Lucas / Amandine Lauriol

Marzieh Hamidi, an Afghan taekwondo fighter and refugee, had suffered “cyber-harassment including death, rape, and other threats via social media,” Paris prosecutors allege. A special online hate unit was investigating the case.

“I want the terrorists threatening me with death to be identified and tried in court, so that I can live freely without fear and in full safety,” Hamidi said in a statement sent to France’s AFP news agency.

The martial artist is under police protection until the perpetrators are identified and prosecuted.

Hamadi did not qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics in her under-57 kg category, but she has been in the media spotlight in France for “speaking out publicly about women’s rights and the Taliban regime.” according to the complaint she filed on 3 Sep.

The current wave of threats followed her denunciation on social media of an August Taliban law barring women’s voices from being heard in public. Hamidi reiterated her opposition to the law in a press interview and launched the social media hashtag #letusexist.

Since 1 Sep, “a vast wave of hatred smashed down on her Afghan Whatsapp phone number which was shared; she received hundreds of calls and thousands of messages in the space of just a few hours,” the prosecutor’s complaint read.

Afghan taekwondo athlete Marzieh Hamidi, pictured at a Paris training center on 29 June 2023. Although under police protection, Hamidi feels like she lost her freedom and safety: “I don’t feel safe any more in Paris.” © AFP – JOEL SAGET

Hamidi’s complaint specifies the offences of sharing private information, malicious phone calls, death or rape threats, online harassment, and online sexual harassment. She told RFI she had been flooded with threatening messages since posting a video on social media at the end of August denouncing “gender apartheid” in her homeland.

Sources:

France probes online threats against Afghan taekwondo fighter Marzieh Hamidi (rfi.fr)

France and allies condemn Taliban decision to ban women from universities

Report: US Health System Worst Overall Compared to Other High-Income Countries

The Commonwealth Fund, a private research and advocacy foundation, analyzed different countries’ healthcare systems and ranked the US worst among ten nations surveyed.

The report compared Australia, Canada, France, Germany, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. Australia ranked the top overall. The US was at the bottom for access to care and health outcomes.

The report was based on data that included international population and physician surveys from 2021, 2022, and 2023; plus the World Health Organization, Our World in Data, national data registries and published research.

The US came in second to last in rankings of equal care and how efficient the administrative process is.

Experts say one issue with the US health care system is the complexity of insurance. There’s a variety of insurance plans with different requirements, which impacts how providers get paid and how the patient’s bill is paid for.

“That leads to denials of service. It leads to the bargaining that goes on between doctors and hospitals and insurance companies and between patients and insurance companies. It leads to prior authorization and disapproval of ordered services,” said Dr. David Blumenthal, former Commonwealth Fund president. “The US lags both in having +20 million Americans still uninsured. 70% of the population, though a historic low, still very high by international standards. And it also lacks in terms of the ability of lower income people to get access to basic services.”

The US did rank high in some metrics, coming in second for care processes. That includes things like preventive care and patient engagement.

The term “medical bankruptcy” is not known in most of the world, except the US. Medical bills are reported to be the number-one cause of US bankruptcies. One study has claimed that 62.1% of bankruptcies were caused by medical issues. Another report suggests that over two million Americans are adversely affected by their medical expenses.

In 2011, Debt.org reported that people aged 55 and older account for 20% of total bankruptcy filings. Even with assistance from Medicare, the average 65-year-old American couple faces $275,000 in medical bills throughout retirement. Debts and unaffordable housing contribute to America’s homelessness problem.

Sources:

Mirror, Mirror 2024: An International Comparison of Health Systems | Commonwealth Fund

US health system worst overall compared to other high income countries (scrippsnews.com)

Medical Bankruptcy Statistics (thebalancemoney.com)

Study: Many Toxic Chemicals Enter Body Via Food Packaging

Plastic wrap around food is not benign. Photo by Adobe Stock/HealthDay News

A new study shows that more than 3,600 chemicals leach into food during the packaging process.

Of that number, 79 chemicals are known to cause cancer, genetic mutations, and endocrine and reproductive issues, a team of international researchers reported in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology.

While food packaging materials may comply with government regulations, the study shows these chemicals may not be completely safe.

One well-known and ubiquitous chemical the study detected in both food and the human body was bisphenol A (BPA), which was used in baby bottles, sippy cups and infant formula containers until parents boycotted those products more than a decade ago.

BPA has been linked to fetal abnormalities, low birth weight and brain and behavior disorders in infants and children, while it is linked to diabetes, heart disease, erectile dysfunction, cancer and a higher risk of early death in adults.

Then there were perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which are present in the blood of an estimated 98% of Americans, according to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Another chemical the researchers discovered in human bodies was phthalates, which have been linked with genital malformations and undescended testes in baby boys and lower sperm counts and testosterone levels in adult males. Other studies have linked phthalates to childhood obesity, asthma, cardiovascular issues, cancer and premature death.

The US Department of Health and Human Services has more information on food safety.

Source:

Study: Many toxic chemicals enter body via food packaging – UPI.com

Homeowner Finally Relents to Stubborn Cat

Stella (circa Sep 2024)

L.P., a sane and sober contributor to a progressive website, related this story in the blogosphere. A persistent young feline kept coming around the back door of L.P.’s house who paid it little mind. But after repeated visits, L.P. finally relented and admitted the stubborn cat. Now named Stella, this affectionate five or six-month-old kitten soon adopted L.P.

L.P. advises that Stella will be taken to the vet for shots/fleas/worms protocols (and eventual spaying) before she eventually takes full command over L.P.’s home.

Ukraine Intelligence Chief: North Korean Aid to Russia Poses Biggest Threat to Kiev

North Korea has recently bolstered military ties with Russia, with President Vladimir Putin making a rare visit to Pyongyang in Jun 2024, where he signed a mutual defense agreement with Kim Jong-Un.

North Korean military aid to Russia is the most damaging for Ukraine, intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said on 14 Sep. “Our biggest problem from all these allies of Russia is from North Korea. Because with the volume of military products that they supply, they actually affect the intensity of the fighting.” His remarks came as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pledged to deepen ties with Russia. Kyiv has been monitoring arms deliveries from Pyongyang to Moscow and feels their effect on the battlefield. “There is a direct correlation. They are supplying huge volumes of artillery ammunition, which is critical,” Budanov said.

Western powers have accused cash-strapped North Korea of selling ammunition to Russia in defiance of sanctions over the more than 30-month war in Ukraine.

North Korean state media showed leader Kim Jong Un (R) meeting with Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu (L) at an undisclosed location (Image: AFP)

Russian security chief Sergei Shoigu held talks with Kim Jong-Un this weekend at an undisclosed location in North Korea. Experts suspect it was the Kumsusan Guest Palace in Pyongyang, which has hosted both Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Shoigu heads Russia’s Security Council after stepping down as defence minister in May. He last met with Kim in July 2023, during a celebration in Pyongyang for the 70th anniversary of the 1953 Korean War armistice. Their latest meeting comes two days after North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles into waters east of the Korean peninsula. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the testing spree was possibly of weapons meant “for export to Russia.”

Using debris analysis, a recent Conflict Armament Research report indicated “that missiles produced this year in North Korea are being used in Ukraine.”

An Ilyushin IL-76 transport aircraft belonging to North Korean air carrier Air Koryo takes off from Beijing airport after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un left Beijing, China, on 20 Jun. Photo by Wu Hong/EPA

Observers of North Korea detected increased air travel between the two pariah states after the Jun 2024 meeting between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-Un. Five North Korean flights flew to Vladivostok, a trip unusually involving cargo planes.

Three cargo planes and two passenger flights of the North Korean national carrier Air Koryo traveled to Russia’s far-eastern port city. The trip involved three unusual cargo flights of the model used to transport personal armored vehicles of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in his overseas trips, including his visit to China in June. The IL-76 cargo aircraft hasn’t made a trip to Vladivostok since 2010 and the cargo is unknown.

Two passenger flights make regular round-trips between Pyongyang and Vladivostok on Monday and Friday. And extra passenger flights were spotted flying during weekdays. One report cited an anonymous source saying the extra cargo flights were sent to bring back North Korean workers in the Russian city as their work permit expires soon.

As posted here on Coriolanus.page, North Korea recently released images of its uranium enrichment facility for the first time, and Kim stressed “the need to further augment the number of centrifuges in order to exponentially increase the nuclear weapons for self-defense”.

Russia, a historical ally of North Korea, is one of a handful of nations with which Pyongyang maintains friendly relations. Ties have warmed since the 2022 start of the Ukraine war ruptured Russia’s relations with the West.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the country’s military to increase its number of troops by 180,000 to a total of 1.5 million, as Moscow’s brutal invasion of Ukraine drags on for more than 2 ½ years.

Sources:

North Korean Aid To Russia Poses Biggest Threat To Ukraine, Intelligence Chief Says (rferl.org)

North Korean cargo flights fly to Russia in unusual trip – UPI.com

N. Korea Pledges Deeper Ties With Russia As Security Chief Visits | IBTimes

Putin orders military to boost troop numbers by 180,000 to 1.5 million as Ukraine fighting continues – ABC News (go.com)

IDF: ‘High Probability’ Three Hostages Mistakenly Killed in Airstrike in Nov 2023

People hold cut outs of yellow ribbons at a protest calling for a hostage deal outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in Jerusalem after six hostage bodies were recovered by the IDF from a tunnel in Rafah in Gaza, on 1 Sep. File photo by Debbie Hill/ UPI | License Photo

Israel’s military on Sunday concluded in an investigation there is “high probability” three Israeli hostages were killed during an airstrike in Nov 2023 intended to take out a Hamas northern Gaza brigade chief. The IDF informed the families last week that a comprehensive inquiry revealed they died by IDF actions. IDF officials and hostage families started to leak the results of the investigation.

On 14 Dec, three bodies were recovered from a tunnel in Jabaliya. The tunnel included a large elevator, large rooms, and split into side rooms, such as command centers, medical stations, prayer rooms, and rooms for manufacturing weapons. The three were abducted on 7 Oct.

Evidence included where bodies were found and their condition; a pathological report and one by the state’s forensic institute; and operations research into the battlefield situation and activities. Initially, the families were initially told the hostages had been killed by Hamas captors. In January, the IDF rejected Hamas’ assertions that they were killed in an Israeli airstrike.

In a video released by Hamas, the three hostages were seen holding up pieces of paper with their names and personal information. In a statement posted alongside the video, Hamas claimed that “they tried to keep them alive – but Netanyahu insisted on killing them.”

The airstrike on 10 Nov was intended to take out Ahmed Ghandour, who was taking cover in a tunnel.

“At the time of the strike, the IDF did not have information about the presence of hostages in the targeted compound,” the military said. “Furthermore, there was information suggesting that they were located elsewhere, and thus the area was not designated as one with suspected presence of hostages.”

In December, the IDF revealed finding five hostage bodies, three of whom were the ones later confirmed likely killed by IDF. In the same month, the Israeli military said its troops killed three hostages in Gaza after mistakenly identifying them as a threat.

Six to seven thousand Palestinians were being held in detention for alleged security violations, the majority who have never been convicted of a crime. 2,000 of the incarcerated Palestinians are being held in administrative detention, in which the Israeli military holds a person without charge or trial. Such detention can be renewed indefinitely based on secret information, which the detainee is not allowed to see. Administrative detainees are held on the presumption that they might commit an offense at some point in the future. Israeli authorities have held children, human rights defenders, Palestinian political activists, and healthcare workers, in administrative detention, often for prolonged periods.

Palestinian armed groups conducted a surprise attack on Israel on 7 Oct 2023 and seized hundreds of valuable Israeli hostages presumably for a prisoner swap. An estimated 101 Israelis remain hostage. Keeping them alive gives Palestinians a bargaining chip to release some of the thousands being held in Israeli prisons.

Sources:

Israel’s military: ‘High probability’ 3 hostages mistakenly killed in airstrike in November – UPI.com

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2023/12/15/IDF-Gaza-hostages-remains/6761702640286/

Dozens killed, injured in Gaza humanitarian zone as Israeli warplanes target Hamas

Hundreds of thousands march across Israel to demand return of hostages

Why Does Israel Have So Many Palestinians in Detention and Available to Swap? | Human Rights Watch (hrw.org)

Donald Trump Unharmed After Assassination Attempt at Florida Golf Resort

This screengrab taken from AFPTV on 16 Sep 2024 shows Ryan Wesley Routh speaking during an interview at a rally calling for humanitarian corridors for the evacuation of civilians and Ukrainian servicemen from Mariupol in central Kiev, Ukraine, on 27 Apr 2022.

Former US President Donald Trump was unharmed late Sunday, after what the FBI said was an apparent assassination attempt at his golf club in West Palm Beach, FL. The incident, in which Trump was not hurt, came two months after he was grazed in the ear during a campaign event in Butler, PA.

Members of Trump’s security detail were securing areas of the golf course ahead of where Trump was playing Sunday when they spotted a gunman in the bushes. Secret Service agents fired at the suspect, who fled the area and was later arrested.

The local sheriff said the suspect left behind an “AK-47-style rifle” with a scope, a GoPro camera and two backpacks.

US President Joe Biden said in a Sunday evening statement that he was relieved Trump was unharmed. Vice President Kamala Harris said she was “deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump.”

Various national media sources cited unnamed law enforcement officials who identified the suspect as Ryan Wesley Routh (58) of Hawaii. Social media posts show Routh backing Trump’s 2020 election campaign, but more recent posts expressing support for Biden and Harris. Routh also repeatedly discussed the war in Ukraine and appeared to try to recruit soldiers to aid in Ukraine’s war effort.

Trump has not announced any changes to his schedule and is set to speak live on X on Monday night from his Mar-a-Lago resort to launch his sons’ crypto platform.

Meanwhile, the leaders of a congressional bipartisan task force investigating the 13 Jul assassination attempt on Trump said they have requested a briefing by the USSS. The previous director the USSS resigned after the 13 Jul assassination attempt in Butler, PA, and several agents from the Pittsburgh Field Office were re-assigned.

Source:

Trump unharmed after second assassination attempt, authorities say (voanews.com)

Canada and Australia Sanction Iran

An Iranian walks next to a wall painting of Iran’s national flag at a street in Tehran, Iran, on 2 Jun 2022. Canada on Sunday expanded its list of Iranian government officials who are not admissible to the country. File Photo by Abedin Tahereknareh/EPA-EFE

Canada and Australia are banning more Iranian officials over the Middle Eastern country’s involvement in human rights violations and alleged terrorism on the second anniversary of the jailing and death of Mahsa Jina Amini. The 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman was arrested in Sep 2022 for ‘improperly’ wearing her hijab.

In Nov 2022 Public Safety Canada designated Iran as a terrorist regime under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Iranians who have served as senior officials since 15 Nov have been barred from entering the North American country. Canada changed the inadmissibility date to 23 Jun 2003 — the day when Iranian authorities detained Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi. She was detained while working as a journalist outside Iran’s infamous Evin prison. She was reportedly beaten and died from her injuries on 10 Jul 2003.

Any senior official who served in the Iranian government at any time since 23 June 2003, is now inadmissible to Canada. The move also opens those with temporary or permanent resident status to undefined “enforcement action” that could include removal from the country. Accord to statistics from the Canada Border Services Agency, some 17,800 applications were reviewed under the inadmissible rule as of 26 Aug, resulting in 82 visas cancelled.

Fifteen people were also reported inadmissible under the rule, with two issued deportation orders, adding that another person was removed from the country and five cases were pending. Canada’s Iranian diaspora community has a population of more than 200,000, according to government statistics.

Australia is also imposing more sanctions on Iranian officials on the second anniversary of the jailing and death of Mahsa Jina Amini. The 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman was arrested in September 2022 for ‘improperly’ wearing her hijab.

Australia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said that Australia stood in solidarity “with Iranian women and girls in their struggle for equality and empowerment.”

Wong announced financial sanctions and travel bans on senior security and law enforcement officials who have allegedly been involved in the ‘violent repression’ of protests in Iran. Female activists continue to be detained and handed death sentences. She said that abuses by Iranian authorities have continued since the death of Amini two years ago.

“We have sanctioned five Iranian security and law enforcement officials who have been involved in these law enforcement so-called activities, which are ultimately a repression – a violent repression – of the Iranian people,” Wong said.

Australia has now imposed sanctions on almost 200 individuals and organizations with links to Iran, including those associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Sources:

Canada expands entry ban on Iranian officials – UPI.com

Australia imposes more sanctions on Iran over human rights concerns (bignewsnetwork.com)

Zimbabwe Orders Cull of 200 Elephants Amid Food Shortages from Drought

Elephants and giraffes near a watering hole in Zimbabwe which is home to an estimated 100,000 elephants – the second-biggest population in the world after Botswana. Photograph: Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters

Zimbabwe will cull 200 elephants as it faces an unprecedented drought that has led to food shortages, a move that tackle a ballooning population of the animals, the country’s wildlife authority has said. Zimbabwe had “more elephants than it needed”, the environment minister said in parliament, adding that the government had instructed the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority (ZimParks) to begin the culling process.

The 200 elephants would be hunted in areas where they had clashed with humans, including Hwange, home of Zimbabwe’s largest natural reserve. Due to conservation efforts, Hwange is home to 65,000 of the animals, more than four times its capacity, according to ZimParks. Zimbabwe last culled elephants in 1988.

Neighbouring Namibia said this month that it had already killed 160 wildlife animals in a planned cull of more than 700, including 83 elephants, to cope with its worst drought in decades.

Zimbabwe and Namibia are among a swathe of countries in southern Africa that have declared a state of emergency because of drought. About 42% of Zimbabweans live in poverty, according to UN estimates, and authorities say about six million will require food assistance during the November to March lean season, when food is scarcest.

The move to hunt the elephants for food was criticized by some, not least because the animals are a major draw for tourists. Namibia’s cull of elephants has been condemned by conservationists and the animal rights group Peta as shortsighted, cruel and ineffective.

But the government said the 83 to be culled would be only a small fraction of the estimated 20,000 elephants in the arid country, and would relieve pressure on grazing and water supplies.

Source:

Zimbabwe orders cull of 200 elephants amid food shortages from drought | Zimbabwe | The Guardian

281 Inmates Escape After Floods Bring Down Prison’s Walls in Northeast Nigeria

Nigerian authorities said 281 inmates escaped after devastating floods brought down a prison’s walls in the country’s northeast. Security personnel were able to recapture seven of the inmates and an operation is still ongoing to locate the rest.

A major dam collapsed on 10 Sep, unleashing severe flooding that left 30 people dead and over one million people displaced, prompting evacuations across the state of Borno.

Map: Researchgate.net

The collapse caused some of the state’s worst flooding since the same dam collapsed 30 years ago. The state government said the dam was at capacity due to unusually high rains. Two years ago, heavy flooding in Nigeria killed more than 600 people across the country. West Africa has experienced some of the heaviest flooding in decades this year, affecting over 2.3 million people, a threefold increase from 2023, according to the UN.

This summer Africa experienced two other prison breaks. Thirteen inmates escaped a police station in Nairobi, Kenya, including a suspect who police say confessed to the murders of 42 women and was being detained over the discovery of dismembered bodies.

An attempted jailbreak in Congo’s main prison left 129 people dead, including some who were shot and others who died in a stampede at the overcrowded facility. A provisional assessment showed that 24 inmates were fatally shot by “warning” shots fired by guards as they tried to escape from the Makala Central Prison in the capital of Kinshasa. There were 59 injuries including some cases of rape.

The main prison holds both male and female inmates and it was not known if all 129 fatalities were inmates. Also, it wasn’t immediately clear how the stampede occurred as details of the jailbreak remained sparse. Makala, Congo’s largest penitentiary with a capacity for 1,500 people, holds over 12,000 inmates, most of whom are awaiting trial, Amnesty International said in its latest country report.

Sources:

281 inmates escape after floods brought down prison’s walls in northeast Nigeria – ABC News (go.com)

Mass Prison Break Includes Man Who Confessed to Killing 42 Women – Newsweek

Jailbreak attempt at Congo prison kills 129 people as chaos erupts with a stampede and gunshots (nbcnews.com)

Over 30 Killed in Mexico Cartel Stronghold After Sinaloa Leaders Detained in US

A Mexican Army soldier stands guard after an armed attack against a business selling new and pre-owned cars in Culiacan, Sinaloa State, Mexico, on 12 Sep 2024. The US issued a security alert because of “reports of car thefts, gunfire, security forces operations, roadblocks, burning vehicles, and closed roadways” in the vicinity.

Eleven more people have been killed in a wave of violence in a Mexican cartel heartland shaken by gang infighting. The latest fatalities included five men whose bodies were found on a highway south of the city of Culiacan.

More than 30 people have been reported dead in a week of bloodshed in Sinaloa, although authorities did not specify how many were believed to be linked to the cartel infighting.

The clashes follow the dramatic arrest on US soil on 25 July of Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, who claimed he had been kidnapped in Mexico and delivered into US custody against his will. Zambada pleaded not guilty last week in New York in a drug trafficking case that accuses him of engaging in murder plots and ordering torture.

Zambada (76) was detained along with Joaquin Guzman Lopez, a son of El Chapo, who is serving a life sentence in the US. The violence is believed to pit gang members loyal to El Chapo and his sons against others aligned with Zambada, who pleaded not guilty to a raft of charges in a New York court.

Schools were closed Thursday and Friday due to the violence and the governor said Sunday’s Independence Day festivities had been canceled.

In an unexpected twist, last month Mexican prosecutors said they were bringing charges against Guzmán for apparently kidnapping Zambada — but it also cited another charge under an article of Mexico’s criminal code that defines what he did as treason.

Nowhere in the statement does it mention that the younger Guzmán was a member of the Chapitos — “little Chapos” — faction of the Sinaloa cartel, made up of Chapo’s sons, that smuggles millions of doses of the deadly opioid fentanyl into the US, causing about 70,000 overdose deaths each year. According to a 2023 indictment by the US Justice Department, the Chapitos and their cartel associates used corkscrews, electrocution, and hot chiles to torture their rivals while some of their victims were “fed dead or alive to tigers.”

El Chapo, the Sinaloa cartel’s founder, is serving a life sentence in a maximum security prison in Colorado after being convicted in 2019 on charges including drug trafficking, money laundering and weapons-related offenses. Last year, El Chapo sent an “SOS” message to Mexico’s president, alleging that he has been subjected to “psychological torment” in prison.

This year Mexico elected its first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo. Vladimir Putin was invited to attend the 1 Oct inauguration in Mexico City.

Source:

Over 30 killed in Mexico cartel stronghold as violence rages after Sinaloa leaders detained in U.S. – CBS News

A Cat Named Drifter is Safe After Being Trapped in Sewer for Nearly Eight Weeks

A cat aptly named Drifter is safe at home after sneaking outside and getting trapped in a sewer for nearly eight weeks.

The 3-year-old tabby — an indoor feline who had aspirations of being an outdoor cat — went missing from the home of Clifton Nesseth and Ashley Comstock in the northeastern Minnesota city of Duluth on 18 Jul. His owners presume that he went to check out the construction underway in their neighborhood at some point.

The family, including their 12-year-old daughter, April Dressel, hung up posters and searched across the city without luck. They were beginning to plan a small memorial service for Drifter on Tuesday when neighbor kids came over and said they heard meowing coming from a storm drain at the construction site. The family also heard him meowing as they started digging through the dirt and cutting through the landscape fabric.

“A little paw shot out of a tear in the fabric,” Nesseth said. “It was a tabby cat paw. We tore the fabric more and then his head popped through.”

A neighbor, Dahlia Boberg (16) captured the reunion on video.

“Drifter!” Nesseth is seen exclaiming as he lifts the cat high, while neighbors who are gathered around laugh with delight and amazement. “He’s been under there the whole time! He’s really skinny.”

Source:

A cat named Drifter is safe after sneaking out and getting trapped in a sewer for nearly 8 weeks | AP News

IDF Airstrikes Kill 14 in Gaza Strip as American Activist is Buried in Turkiye

Palestinians gather amid the rubble near a fuel tank damaged in IDF bombing in Gaza City on 14 Sep 2024.

Israeli airstrikes hit central and southern Gaza overnight into Saturday, killing at least 14 people as friends and family members of a Turkish-American activist killed by an Israeli soldier honored her in a funeral in Turkiye.

The airstrikes in Gaza City hit one home housing 11 people, including three women and four children, and another strike hit a tent in Khan Younis with displaced Palestinians. The attacks followed airstrikes earlier this week that hit a tent camp on Tuesday and a UN school sheltering displaced people on Wednesday.

A campaign to inoculate children in Gaza against polio slowed down. The WHO reported that about 559,000 people under the age of 10 — seven out of every eight children the campaign aimed to vaccinate — have recovered from their first dose. The second doses are expected to begin later this month.

Relatives, officials, and others look at the coffin of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi (26) during her funeral ceremony at a mosque in Aydin Province, Turkiye, on 14 Sep 2024. She was shot and killed by the IDF in the occupied West Bank.

The war has caused vast destruction and displaced roughly 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, often multiple times, and plunged the territory into a severe humanitarian crisis. Gaza’s Health Ministry reports over 41,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, adding women and children make up just over half of the dead.

Source:

Israel strikes Gaza as American activist killed by Israeli fire is buried (voanews.com)

Russia’s Medvedev Threatens Nuclear Strike Would Turn Kiev into ‘Gray Spot’ on the Map

Former Russian President and current Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev has hiked Moscow’s threat of the nuclear option. Vladimir Putin controls about 5,977 nuclear warheads, according to the Federation of American Scientists.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, recently warned that Kiev could be turned into a “gray melted spot” if restrictions against Ukraine’s use of Western weapons were loosened.

Russian officials have threatened that a possible decision by the West to allow Kiev to use donated weapons to strike deeper into Russian territory would result in a major escalation of its war against Ukraine that could include the use of nuclear weapons.

Kiev has repeatedly said it needs to be able to conduct longer-range strikes into Russian territory to defend itself against invading Russian forces.

In an apparent reference to a recent US-UK summit, Medvedev wrote that “the Anglo-Saxon imbeciles” do not want to admit that there is an end to Russia’s “patience” and that experts who have suggested Russia could resort to using nuclear weapons against Ukraine would be proven correct if that patience is exhausted.

“What do Western leaders and their political establishments, playing at war, think our country’s reaction to probable missile strikes ‘deep into the territory [of Russia]’ would be?” wrote Medvedev, who has frequently used his position to voice threats against Kiev and the West since Russia’s unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Medvedev said a nuclear conflict is a “very bad story with a very difficult outcome,” claiming that is why Russia has not decided to use “nonstrategic or strategic” nuclear weapons so far. However, he said, if it came to that there would be a “giant gray melted spot” on the site of Kiev, which he called the “mother city of Russia.”

Recent media reports claim Russia received Fath-360 missile systems from Iran. These missiles have an effective range of 19-75 miles and can carry a 330-lb warhead filled with high explosives.

Source:

Russia’s Medvedev Threatens Nuke Strike Would Turn Kyiv Into ‘Gray Spot’ On The Map (rferl.org)

Venezuela Arrests US and Spanish Citizens Over Alleged ‘Plot’

Three US citizens, two Spaniards and one Czech citizen were arrested in Venezuela for allegedly plotting to destabilize the country. Reportedly, hundreds of weapons had been seized and the detainees were plotting to assassinate Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other top officials. The Spaniards were detained in Puerto Ayacucho, south of the capital Caracas.

The arrests come two days after Washington sanctioned 16 Venezuelan officials who are closely aligned with President Maduro, following his disputed election victory in July.

The Venezuelan government alleged the detained Spaniards are linked to Madrid’s National Intelligence Centre (CNI). However, Spanish government sources denied the two belong to the intelligence organization.

Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello alleged “the CIA is leading this operation, and that does not surprise us but they, the National Intelligence Centre of Spain, have always maintained a low profile knowing that the CIA operates in this area. These two detainees even tell us about a group of mercenaries they are looking for to bring to Venezuela with very clear objectives to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, myself, and another group of comrades who are leading our party and our revolution.”

The US has rejected the accusations.

Nicolas Maduro was declared the winner of July’s presidential election by Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE), which is closely aligned with the government. But the CNE has not published any detailed voting tallies supporting a Maduro victory. Data published by the opposition suggests its candidate, Edmundo González, won instead.

Sources:

Venezuela arrests US and Spanish citizens over ‘plot’ (bbc.com)

Former CIA Employee Sentenced Ten Years in Prison for Spying for China

A screenshot from a video by an FBI undercover agent taken of Alexander Yuk Ching Ma in Jan 2019 during a meeting. (Photo: AP)

Alexander Yuk Ching Ma (71) of Honolulu, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee, was sentenced to ten years confinement and five years of supervised release for conspiring to gather and deliver national defense information to the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

Ma was arrested in August 2020, after admitting to an undercover FBI agent that he had facilitated the provision of classified information to intelligence officers employed by the PRC’s Shanghai State Security Bureau (SSSB).

Ma worked for the CIA from 1982 until 1989. His brother, who is now deceased, also worked for the CIA from 1967 until 1983. As CIA employees, both men held Top Secret security clearances that granted them access to sensitive and classified information, and both signed nondisclosure agreements.

After Ma and his brother were recruited by the SSSB, they provided Chinese intelligence officers with a “large volume of classified and sensitive information.” They were paid $50,000 in cash; an hourlong video showed Ma counting the money. Two years later, Ma applied for a job as a contract linguist in the FBI’s Honolulu field office. By then, US intelligence knew he was collaborating with Chinese intelligence officers, and they hired him in 2004 so they could keep an eye on his espionage activities.

Over the next six years, Ma regularly copied, photographed, and stole classified documents. He often took them on trips to China, returning with thousands of dollars in cash and expensive gifts, including a new set of golf clubs.

At one point in 2006, his handlers at the Shanghai state security bureau asked Ma to get his brother to help identify four people in photographs, and the brother did identify two of them. The fate of those he identified are not known.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Ma confessed that he knowingly and willfully conspired with SSSB intelligence officers to communicate and transmit information that he knew would be used to injure the US or to advantage the PRC. Further, Ma must cooperate with the US and undergo polygraph tests for the rest of his life, as well as submit to debriefings by the USIC. Prosecutors told the court that Ma has been cooperative and has taken part in multiple interview sessions with government investigators.

Alexander Yuk Ching Ma (USMS# 12272-122) is incarcerated at FDC Honolulu, an administrative security federal detention center in Hawaii.

Sources:

Office of Public Affairs | Former CIA Officer Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Conspiracy to Commit Espionage | United States Department of Justice

Former CIA officer sentenced to 10 years in prison for spying for China | Espionage | The Guardian

‘Catastrophe’ as Central Europe Deals with Deadly Floods

Flooding overwhelmed Slobozia Conachi, Romania (Photo: BBC)

In Glucholazy, southern Poland, firefighters built sandbag barriers to protect residents near the river. (Photo: BBC)

The flooded village of Krosnowice, southern Poland. (Photo: BBC)

Emergency services are shoring up flood defenses in central and eastern Europe after torrential rainfall caused by Storm Boris swelled rivers and damaged thousands of homes. Four people were killed in eastern Romania. In the Czech Republic, 51,000 households in the country’s northern areas were evacuated. Flood barriers have gone up in the capital Prague. Poland evacuated people from Glucholazy, a town near the Czech border, after a river burst its banks.

Extreme precipitation is becoming more likely in Europe, as across much of the world, due to climate change. A warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture, which can lead to heavier rainfall.

“We are again facing the effects of climate change, which are increasingly present on the European continent, with dramatic consequences,” Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said.

These flood victims face another peril. Floods greatly increase the risk of diarrheal disease along with other waterborne, water-related, and communicable diseases. Diarrheal pathogens—cholera, E. coli, Shigella, rotavirus, norovirus, Cryptosporidium, and others—can spread through direct contact with floodwater itself or through compromised water sources.

Standing water left by flooding can become a breeding ground for mosquitos that carry pathogens. Communicable diseases can spread like wildfire through refugee and evacuation shelters.

Sources:

Central Europe floods: Rush to shore up flood defences amid deaths and evacuations (bbc.com)

After the floods: Diarrheal disease threats lurk behind natural disasters (defeatdd.org)

Zika Cases in Pune, India, Reach 100, Five Deaths Reported

Pune continues to grapple with an increasing number of Zika virus cases, as the total number of patients in the city has now reached 100. The most affected area in Pune is Dahanukar Colony, which has recorded 20 cases, followed by Erandwane with 16. The five Zika-related deaths involved elderly individuals with pre-existing health conditions.

The virus is transmitted by daytime flying Aedes, or “tiger mosquitos.” An invasive species, Aedes is now found on all continents except Antarctica.

Alarmingly, 45 of these patients are pregnant women. Zika can cause birth defects in newborn babies.

Dr. Rajesh Dighe, Assistant Health Officer at Pune Municipal Corporation, provided updates on the situation, noting that efforts to control the spread of the Zika virus are ongoing. This recent spike in Zika cases follows a series of warnings from health authorities, who had anticipated a possible outbreak. The city is now facing increased pressure to manage the outbreak, particularly as the number of pregnant women affected by the virus grows.

On top of this, medical staff in Pune hospitals are dealing with an acute blood shortage.

Sources:

Zika Cases in Pune Reach 100, Five Deaths Reported | The Bridge Chronicle

Blood Shortage Hits Pune Amid Rising Zika, Dengue, Chikungunya Cases | The Bridge Chronicle

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

Donald Trump Confuses Nicky Jam for a Woman Ahead of Latin Star’s Endorsement Speech in Las Vegas

Former president Donald Trump held a campaign rally at the World Market Center in downtown Las Vegas, where Nicky Jam, a 43-year-old male reggaetón veteran took the stage to show his support for the GOP candidate. But in an inter-galactically embarrassing faux pas, the ex-POTUS mistakenly referred to Nicky as a ‘she‘ when introducing him to the crowd.

“Do you know Nicky? She’s hot. Where’s Nicky. As the male singer approaches the stage, Trump then says, “Oh, look, I’m glad he came up.”

Nicky Jam, wearing a black sweatshirt and a red ‘Make America Great Again’ baseball cap, then took the stage to deliver a brief statement.

Artist Art Candee wrote, “Guess Donald Trump doesn’t know what a woman is…” and Team Kamala mocked the former president by posting a video of the flub on social media:

“Trump: Latin music superstar Nicky Jam. Do you know Nicky? She’s hot (Nicky Jam is a man),” the campaign wrote.

This is just one of a series of imbecilic comments and gaffes that Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance have made during the 2024 campaign. Political analysts, as well as his niece Mary Trump (a professional psychologist), have been raising alarms about the mental fitness of this elderly man who could be Commander-in-Chief of the world’s most powerful, and nuclear-armed, military.

Source:

Donald Trump Confuses Nicky Jam for Woman at Las Vegas Rally (billboard.com)

Endangered Cotton-Top Tamarin Triplets Born at Disney World

Three infant cotton-top tamarins are perched atop the back of one of their parents Saturday shortly after their birth at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom. They are the second set of the critically endangered tamarins to be born at the resort this year. (Photo courtesy Walt Disney World)

The second set of critically endangered cotton-top tamarin triplets to be born this year at Walt Disney World have arrived.

The three tiny primates were born at Animal Kingdom’s Discovery Island on Saturday and are bonding with their parents and siblings. An earlier batch of the small-but-powerful monkeys were born there in January.

Weighing only one pound in adulthood, the cotton-top tamarin is found in the rain forests of northwestern Colombia. They are known for their sophisticated social behaviors and have demonstrated evidence of simple grammatical capabilities.

Despite their small stature, their athletic capabilities are impressive — they can leap 15 feet from a stationary branch — while their appearance is highlighted by a wild mane of bright-white hair atop their heads.

The male and female parents of newborn tamarins share infant care equally, carrying their young on their backs until approximately 14 weeks of age.

An estimated 6,000 cotton-top tamarins remain in the wild, making them one of the rarest primates in the world. Disney World says it is working with organizations such as Proyecto Titi in Colombia to help protect the species through its Disney Conservation Fund.

Source:

New set of endangered cotton-top tamarin triplets born at Disney World – UPI.com

Ukraine Update: 49 Ukrainians Freed in Prisoner Swap; Son of Prominent Kiev Rabbi KIA

49 Ukrainians were released from Russian custody and returned home as part of another prisoner swap. “[Representatives] of the Ukrainian armed forces, National Guard, State Border Guard Service, and civilians are among those released,” Zelenskiy said on Telegram. Leniye Umerova, who was arrested in Crimea after she came to visit her sick father, soldiers who defended the Azovstal metallurgic plant in Mariupol, and noted military physician and Hero of Ukraine laureate Viktor Ivchuk were among the prisoners returning. Russia has yet to provide details of the swap.

Anton Samborskiy (AKA Matityahu) was killed in combat on Ukraine’s front lines. Samborskiy was the adopted son of Moshe Reuven Azman, one of the country’s most prominent rabbis. At his funeral, Israel’s ambassador to Ukraine said Samborskiy’s death shows that Jews and other minorities are willing “to pay with their lives for Ukraine’s right to remain a free country.”

To the south, the US State Department approved the sale of 32 F-35A fighter jets to Ukraine’s neighbor, Romania, a NATO ally, in a deal worth $7.2 billion. Ukrainian pilots began training this week at a special center in Romania on US-made F-16 fighter jets.

Sources:

49 Ukrainians Freed In Latest Prisoner Swap With Russia (rferl.org)

Kyiv’s Jewish Community Mourns Top Rabbi’s Son Who Died In Combat (rferl.org)

U.S. Approves $7.2 Billion Sale Of F-35 Jets To NATO Ally Romania (rferl.org)

British Diplomats Ousted from Moscow for ‘Espionage’

The Kremlin is expelling six British diplomats for suspected espionage and “threatening Russia’s security” and “numerous unfriendly acts.”

The expulsions announcement came as UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrived in Washington for talks with US President Joe Biden on allowing Ukraine to attack military targets deep inside Russia.

The FSB, a successor of the KGB, said the diplomats’ accreditation had been revoked on the basis of documentary evidence they were involved in “intelligence gathering and subversive activities” under the orders of a branch of the Foreign Office, “a special service whose main task is to inflict a strategic defeat on our country.”

Sky News had reported the six had returned to Britain prior to Friday’s announcement, citing a source in Whitehall who played down any link to Britain’s backing for Ukraine.

“They are already out,” said the source who categorically denied the diplomats were engaged in spying or other activities incompatible with their status.

Russia’s action, the source claimed, was more likely a fresh round of tit-for-tat ejections dating back to a 2018 nerve agent attack on British soil targeting former Russian agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia that London blames on Moscow.

Source:

British diplomats ousted from Moscow for ‘espionage’ as tensions mount over arming Ukraine – UPI.com

Kentucky Man Sentenced to Prison for Assaulting Law Enforcement During 6 Jan Attack on Capitol

Luke Hoffman (40) from Dover, KY was sentenced to 20 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution after he previously pleaded guilty to assaulting law enforcement during the 6 Jan 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

From 1:25PM to 4:05PM Hoffman was one of the most dangerous attackers on 6 Jan. Amongst other things, he assaulted several police officers, attempted to steal a baton from another officer who was screaming, sprayed tear gas, and rallied other seditionists to continue rampaging.

Luke Hoffman’s wife was instrumental in his conviction by posting her husband’s actions on social media.

The FBI arrested Hoffman on 12 July 2023, in Dover, KY. This miscreant represents America’s “Fedayeen Saddam,” dead-enders desperately trying to hold on to a mythic belief of white Christian supremacy and that the country has been taken over by non-whites, liberals, LBGTQ activists, and immigrants.

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

Source:

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

Salmonella Outbreak Sickens 27 in Sweden

Smörgåsbord is a combination of two words: smörgås, an open sandwich, and bord, a table. The term refers to any all-you-can-eat buffet with self-service and a variety of pan-global food. Popular in Sweden since the 18th century, smörgåsbord hosts a display of colorful, complex, and lavish foods and dishes such as herring, salmon, sliced cold cuts of meat, vegetables, breads, cheeses, wild berries, pastries, and jams. The dishes can be hot or cold and may range from appetizers to desserts.

Swedish health officials are searching for the source of a Salmonella outbreak that has affected almost 30 people. Whole genome sequencing has shown that 27 people have the same type of Salmonella Typhimurium. They are suspected of having been infected by a common food. The patients fell ill between 9 and 24 Aug and ranged in age from 4 to 89 with a median of 45 years old.

The majority of those sick are women, and cases are spread across 11 different regions in the country. In 2023, 1,316 Salmonella infections were reported in Sweden.

Food contaminated with Salmonella bacteria does not usually look, smell, or taste spoiled. However, anyone can become sick with a Salmonella infection. According to the US CDC, infants, children, seniors, and people with weakened immune systems are at higher risk of serious illness because their immune systems are fragile.

Symptoms of Salmonella infection can include diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and fever within 12 to 72 hours after eating contaminated food. Otherwise, healthy adults are usually sick for four to seven days. In some cases, however, diarrhea may be so severe that patients require hospitalization.

Sweden is also dealing with high levels of domestic Campylobacter infections, which causes a diarrheal disease in people. Approximately 200 cases per week were recorded this summer.

According to data from the National Veterinary Institute (SVA), the rise in human infections coincides with a previously increased occurrence of Campylobacter in broiler flocks.

Source:

Swedish Salmonella outbreak sickens 27 | Food Safety News

Congo Military Court Sentences Three Americans, 34 Others to Death on Coup Charges

AMCITs Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun (L), Marcel Malanga (C), and Tyler Thompson, attend a court verdict in Congo, Kinshasa, 13 Sep 2024. They were sentenced for taking part in a coup attempt in May 2024. (AP Photo/Samy Ntumba Shambuyi)

A military court in Congo handed down death sentences to 37 people, including three Americans, after convicting them on charges of participating in a coup attempt.

The defendants, most of them Congolese but also including a Briton, Belgian, and Canadian, have five days to appeal the verdict on charges that include attempted coup, terrorism, and criminal association. Fourteen people were acquitted in the trial.

Six people were killed during the botched coup attempt led by the little-known opposition figure Christian Malanga in May that targeted the presidential palace and a close ally of President Felix Tshisekedi. Malanga was fatally shot while resisting arrest soon after live-streaming the attack on social media.

Malanga’s 21-year-old son Marcel Malanga and two other Americans were convicted in the coup attempt. He told the court that his father had forced him and his high school friend to take part in the attack.

“Dad had threatened to kill us if we did not follow his orders,” Marcel Malanga testified.

Other members of the ragtag militia recounted similar threats from the elder Malanga, and some described being duped into believing they were working for a volunteer organization.

The other Americans are Tyler Thompson Jr. (21) who flew to Africa from Utah with the younger Malanga for what his family believed was a free vacation, and Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun (36), who is reported to have known Christian Malanga through a gold mining company in Mozambique.

Thompson had been invited on an Africa trip by the younger Malanga, his former high school football teammate in a Salt Lake City suburb. Teammates alleged that Marcel had offered up to $100,000 to join him on a “security job” in Congo, and they said he seemed desperate to bring along an American friend.

Congo recently lifted a more than two-decade-old moratorium on the death penalty as authorities struggle to curb violence in the country. The US State Department has not declared the three Americans wrongfully detained, making it unlikely that US officials would try to negotiate their return.

Sources:

Congo court sentences 3 Americans, 34 others to death on coup charges – Washington Times

https://web.archive.org/web/20240331012857/https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/congo-reinstates-death-penalty-after-20-years-struggles-108156667

Serbia’s First Sex-Trafficking Case Involving Chinese Citizens Set for Trial

Chinese leader Xi Jinping (L) and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic (R) exchange agreements during a signing ceremony 8 May in Belgrade.

A Serbian court opened proceedings this week in the country’s first publicly documented case of sex trafficking involving Chinese nationals. Two Chinese women were trafficked to Serbia, had their passports taken away, given only one meal per day, and forced under the threat of death to provide sexual services to men.

The two women were trafficked by a male Chinese citizen who “misled the victims” by promising to “find them a job as a masseuse” in Serbia and “provide housing and food” for them. He then forced them to have sex with men shortly after arriving in the Balkan country by threatening “to kill them” and warning “that he is powerful and can do anything to make them disappear.”

“After a few hours upon their arrival, he organized their sexual exploitation by” Chinese men in Serbia “under the threat that they… owed him money for the purchased [plane] tickets and that they needed to earn money to obtain work permits.”

The Chinese man, who has not been identified, was arrested in March by Serbian police in the eastern city of Bor and is set to begin his closed-door preliminary hearing after being charged with human trafficking by a court in the nearby city of Zajecar.

The Center for the Protection of Victims of Human Trafficking, a Serbian state-run organization that provides support to trafficking victims, reports 35 documented cases of human trafficking in Serbia so far in 2024.

The legal case involving Chinese nationals is likely to test the increasingly friendly relations between China and Serbia. China has become a major investor and trade partner with Serbia, and the two countries provide visa-free travel for each other’s citizens.

Sources:

Serbia – United States Department of State

Serbia’s First Sex-Trafficking Case Involving Chinese Citizens Set For Court (rferl.org)

Serbian Deals With China On Extradition, Media Cooperation Could Have Lasting Impact

Pope Francis May Have Subtly ‘Thumbed His Nose’ at Donald Trump Again

Pope Francis sternly lectures US President Donald Trump at the Vatican about global climate change and the environment on 24 May 2017.

When Pope Francis said US voters must choose between the “lesser of two evils,” he didn’t outwardly make a judgment between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. The Republican rejection of immigrants and Democratic support of abortion rights equally weighted them both down.

But put in context, the statement represented a bigger swipe at Trump, argued Nayyera Haq, former President Barack Obama’s senior director of cabinet affairs.

Popes rarely discuss American politics, although Pope Francis has taken veiled shots at Trump in the past, saying in 2016 that “a person who only thinks about building walls and not bridges is not Christian,” and earlier this year calling the panic against migrants at the US border “madness.”

“This pope has thumbed his nose in somewhat diplomatic ways at Donald Trump before,” Haq reported. The first Jesuit pontiff gave Trump an encyclical entirely about environmental stewardship and climate change when they met in May 2017. Unlike the LGBTQ-hating GOP, the pope has been “rather generous, given the churches history, when it comes to tolerance of gay and lesbian individuals as well.”

“So in that sense, the Catholics who wished for a more conservative Catholic pope may not be swayed by this, but he certainly does speak to that broader sense of Christianity, social justice, and I think just faith-based social justice that the least among us, taking care of those, that is an immediate reference to refugees and immigrants,” said Haq.

Watch the video below or at the link here.

Source:

https://www.rawstory.com/pope-francis-trump/

Jack Russell Terrier Puppy Rescued from Highway Near Newark Int’l Airport, NJ

A Jack Russell terrier puppy who was found running on the highways around Newark Airport has been rescued and is slowly healing at the Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge (RBARI) where he will await his fur-ever home. For weeks, reports came in of the Jack Russell terrier pup, since named Monkey, running around the busy and dangerous highways near the airport.

Last week the frightened puppy was finally caught by a professional trapper with Buddha Dog Rescue and Recovery and was taken in by RBARI.

“It is a true miracle that Monkey survived. Surprisingly, Monkey is not the first Jack Russell terrier dumped in the area in recent months,” said RBARI in a post on Facebook. “And, even more unexpectedly, it only took minutes for this adorable dog to warm up to human touch, despite evading rescuers for so long.”

Upon rescue, Monkey was treated for fleas, ticks and parasites. He received a thorough examination and vaccinations.

Source:

Jack Russell terrier Monkey rescued from highway near Newark Airport (northjersey.com)

US Army Soldier from Hawaii Arrested for Assaulting Law Enforcement with Weapon and Other Charges During 6 Jan Attack on US Capitol

Alexander Cain Poplin (31), an active duty servicemember of the US Army, was arrested in Hawaii for allegedly assaulting law enforcement and other charges related to his conduct during the 6 Jan 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

In addition to the felonies of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers with a dangerous weapon and civil disorder, Poplin is charged with three misdemeanor offenses, including entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, and engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds.

On the morning of 6 Jan 2021, Poplin attended a rally held by the former President at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Poplin was observed wearing a black Columbia jacket, a black beanie, and an Army ACU camouflage backpack. Throughout the day, he was seen holding various flags.

At approximately 2:30 p.m., Poplin was at the Lower West Plaza of the US Capitol Building and within the restricted perimeter. He was holding an “Area Closed” sign in his left hand and a flagpole with a blue flag in his right. Poplin allegedly repeatedly struck a Metropolitan Police Department officer with the blue flagpole. Video footage from open-source media and body-worn cameras captured the assault. Poplin’s alleged actions at the Lower West Plaza contributed to the chaos as rioters confronted law enforcement officers who were defending the Capitol. After the attack, Poplin reportedly posted on Facebook “we beat their fucking ass and stood for something” and “we took our house back.”

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

A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Civilian Cargo Ship Carrying Ukrainian Grain Attacked by Russian Jets in Black Sea

Ukraine accused Russia of using strategic bombers to fire missiles at a civilian ship carrying Ukrainian grain in the Black Sea.

The ship was in the maritime economic zone of Romania, a NATO member, when it was hit. The vessel was transporting the grain from Chernomorsk, Ukraine, to Istanbul when it was attacked. The ship’s cargo was bound for Egypt. Russia deployed Tupolev Tu-22 bombers to fire the missiles at around 11 PM local time on 11 Sep.

Tupolev Tu-22M-3 (Image courtesy of airliners.net).

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said the strike was “a brazen attack on freedom of navigation and global food security.”

The attack was confirmed by the Romanian Coast Guard, which said the vessel had a crew of 22 people on board. No one was injured and the ship headed to Constanta for damage assessment.

The ship was 55 kilometers from the town of Sfantu Gheorghe in the exclusive economic zone of Romania when the attack took place. The exclusive economic zone is the maritime area adjacent to a country’s territorial waters and can extend up to a maximum of 200 nautical miles.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said earlier that a cargo ship carrying wheat was hit by a Russian missile strike in the Black Sea as it was headed for Egypt.

“Today’s strike in the Black Sea was against an ordinary civilian vessel immediately after leaving Ukrainian territorial waters. According to preliminary data, fortunately, there were no casualties,” he said. “Ukraine is one of the key global donors of food security. The internal stability and life of dozens of countries in different parts of the world depends on the normal and smooth operation of our export food corridor.”

Ukraine, one of the world’s leading grain producers and exporters, has been shipping about four million tons of grain each month through the Black Sea corridor, which was set up through a deal mediated by Turkey and the UN.

The US recently signalled that it may allow Ukraine to fire missiles more deeply into Russia. Aircraft like the TU-22M-3 could have easily sunk this unarmed cargo ship. This move by the Kremlin is probably a warning that if Ukraine is permitted to strike deep targets in Russia with Western hi-tech weapons, the Kremlin will retaliate with economic attacks like this.

Sources:

Civilian Cargo Ship Carrying Ukrainian Grain Hit By Russian Strike In Black Sea (rferl.org)

US reconsidering Ukraine missile restrictions on firing into Russia (voanews.com)

NYPD Commissioner to Resign After FBI Seized His Phone

Edward Caban (L) being sworn in as NYPD Police Commissioner on 17 July 2023. Mayor Eric Adams is on the right.

NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said he would resign Thursday, one week after it emerged that his phone was seized as part of a federal investigation that touched several members of Mayor Eric Adams’ inner circle.

Edward Caban (57) had been in charge of the nation’s largest police department for about 15 months. Of Puerto Rican heritage, he was the first Latino to lead the 179-year-old NYPD and oversee its annual budget of over $5 billion. There are approximately 36,000 sworn officers in New York’s Finest.

Caban was one of several high-ranking city officials whose electronic devices were seized recently by federal investigators. The subject of the investigation, which is being led by the SDNY US Attorney, remains unclear. Federal authorities are also investigating Caban’s twin brother, James Caban, who runs a nightclub security business.

Other NYC officials whose devices were recently seized include First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright; Philip Banks, the deputy mayor for public safety; his brother David Banks, the Board of Education chancellor; and Timothy Pearson, a mayoral adviser and former high-ranking NYPD official.

Mayor Adams, a first-term Democrat, was subpoenaed in July, eight months after federal agents seized his cell phones and an iPad while he was leaving an event in Manhattan. Federal authorities haven’t publicly accused him or any officials of any crimes and Adams has denied any wrongdoing. The SDNY investigation may have to do with campaign fundraising.

Under Commissioner Caban, from 1 Jan 2024 to 1 Sep 2024, the NYPD tallied 243 murders, compared with 279 in the same period last year. Burglary, grand larceny, and auto thefts were also down. At the same time, there was a 17.8% spike in reported hate crimes, 11.1% jump in rapes and smaller increases in some other categories.

Caban was criticized for his handling of officer discipline. The NYPD has stifled more than 400 cases of alleged misconduct this year which an oversight board had investigated and substantiated. Two examples follow.

In April, Caban declined to take disciplinary action against two officers involved in the fatal 2019 shooting of Kawaski Trawick inside his Bronx apartment. Caban said the officers “acted within the law” and that the city’s police watchdog agency waited too long to bring administrative charges.

In August, Caban upheld a department administrative trial judge’s recommendation to drop a disciplinary case against Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey, who was accused of ordering officers to void the November 2021 arrest of a retired officer who previously worked for him. The trial judge, Rosemarie Maldonado, said the watchdog agency didn’t have jurisdiction to investigate the case.

Mayor Adams named retired FBI Special Agent Thomas Donlon interim police commissioner. The timing of Caban’s resignation is astonishing with the UN General Assembly (UNGA) convening in NYC. Several weeks ago, the director of the US Secret Service resigned in the middle of the 2024 presidential campaign.

Sources:

New York City police commissioner to resign after his phone was seized in federal investigation (voanews.com)

FBI seized phones, iPad of NYC mayor amid campaign fundraising probe | CBC News

https://www.propublica.org/article/nypd-tossed-out-police-misconduct-discipline-cases-edward-caban

Bomb Threats Reported in Springfield, Ohio, Amid False Malignant Claims Targeting Haitian Migrants

Donald Trump pandering to the Haitian vote during a 2016 visit to Little Haiti, Miami. Now Haitians have becoming a convenient scapegoat for him. Photo courtesy of Michael Bennett via miamitimesonline.com.

Local and federal law enforcement agencies responded Thursday to a bomb threat made against multiple facilities in the Ohio city of Springfield. City Hall, a driver’s exam station, an Ohio BMV facility, the Springfield Academy of Excellence, and Fulton Elementary School were all evacuated and cleared by explosive-detecting K9s.

The threat comes days after Donald Trump repeated baseless and dehumanizing claims made online that Haitian immigrants in Springfield were eating residents’ pets. He made the comments during his Tuesday debate against Vice President Kamala Harris which were echoed by his running mate, JD Vance.

The city of some 58,000 people has pushed back against the claims, with City Manager Bryan Heck explaining in a recorded statement “it is disappointing that some of the narratives surrounding our city has been skewed by misinformation circulating on social media and further amplified by political rhetoric in the current highly charged presidential election cycle.”

The city manager added Springfield is experiencing challenges due to the rapid growth of its immigrant population, those challenges “are primarily due to the pace of the growth rather than the rumors.”

Sources:

Bomb threats reported in Springfield amid false claims targeting migrants – UPI.com

Trump, missing-in-action with Haitians, still draws handful of supporters – The Haitian Times

North Korea Releases Rare Images of Uranium Enrichment Site

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits a uranium enrichment facility, which produces weapon-grade nuclear materials. The photos were published by North Korean state media on Friday, 13 Sep 2024. No located or date were released for the photos and certain faces in the pictures had been blurred before their release. (Courtesy: KCNA / Rodong Sinmun)

New pictures of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un touring what state media described is a uranium enrichment facility have given an extremely rare glimpse inside the isolated nation’s closely guarded nuclear weapons program.

According to a report from Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim visited the facility – a bright, sterile warehouse filled with long rows of cylindrical machinery – which is used to produce weapons-grade nuclear material for the North’s growing arsenal. The report comes as North Korea continues to ramp up its illegal nuclear weapons program and strengthens relations with Russia, deepening widespread concern in the West over the isolated nation’s direction under Kim.

The location and exact date of Kim’s visit to the site were not disclosed in the report, but the purpose of his inspection was clear, according to KCNA: to lay out a “long-term plan for increasing the production of weapon-grade nuclear materials.”

Experts say the images – which show Kim flanked by men in military uniforms and crisp white lab shirts – underscore North Korea’s growing confidence in its position as a nuclear power.

In a speech celebrating the 76th anniversary of North Korea’s founding on Monday, Kim pledged to “exponentially” expand the regime’s nuclear arsenal, reiterating bellicose rhetoric he has used in the past.

As reported here on Coriolanus, the North Korean supremo ordered the launch of a ballistic missile into the sea when the dust settled after the US presidential debate. For years the West kept “kicking the can down the road” regarding North Korea and the dynastic family which has been producing WMDs while starving their own people. Neighboring South Korea, Japan, and China, must be wondering how this dangerous dynasty will one day end and what type of fallout will ensue.

Sources:

North Korea releases images of Kim Jong Un visiting a uranium enrichment site | CNN

Four Black Rights Activists Convicted Over Nefarious Russian Links

Protesters gathered outside the US Embassy in London to support Omali Yeshitela (Imagery: BBC, circa Sep 2024)

Four activists for black rights have been convicted of federal charges of conspiring to act as unregistered Russian agents.

Omali Yeshitela (82), Penny Hess (78), Jesse Nevel (34), and Augustus Romain (38), face maximum sentences of five years in prison. A jury in Tampa, FL, found them not guilty of the more serious charge of acting as agents of a foreign government. A date has not yet been set for sentencing.

Yeshitela is the founder of the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP) and Uhuru Movement. Hess and Nevel are white allies of the groups. Romain is the leader of a Georgia-based spinoff known as Black Hammer. The four carried out a number of actions in the US between 2015 and 2022 on behalf of the Russian government and received money and support from Aleksandr Ionov, the president of the Moscow-based group Anti-Globalization Movement of Russia.

Mr. Ionov used the APSP, Uhuru Movement, and Black Hammer to promote Russian views on politics, the Ukraine war, and other issues. The US State Dept is offering a reward up to $10 million for information that would lead to his arrest.

Sources:

Office of Public Affairs | U.S. Citizens Convicted of Conspiring to Act as Illegal Agents of the Russian Government | United States Department of Justice

Aleksandr Viktorovich Ionov – Rewards For Justice

US black-rights activists convicted over Russian links (bbc.com)

Usutu Virus Threatens Blackbirds in Germany

The blackbird is one of the most common birds in Germany, but the spread of Usutu virus is threatening their population. Numerous cases have been identified in the Rendsburg and Eckernförde areas of Germany (see map). Infested birds become disoriented, begin to stagger, and often die within a few days.

The Usutu virus, which originated in South Africa, was first detected in Germany in 2011. Since the disease mostly affects blackbirds, the Usutu epidemic is also known as “blackbird death”. The virus is generally transmitted by mosquitoes. Humans can become infected with the virus – but serious illness is rare. Most recently, the pathogen caused a severe bird mortality in Germany in 2018.

Source:

Dead blackbirds: Usutu virus reaches the Rendsburg area | SHZ

Trump Tower Declared ‘Public Nuisance’ After Killing Thousands of Fish in Chicago

Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago. Locals have long derided the building as an aesthetical and architectural eyesore which doesn’t blend in with the Windy City’s marvelous architecture. (Courtesy Ghornephoto / Getty Images).

An Illinois Cook County judge has ruled that Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago has been conducting operations that violate state and federal environmental law, operates without a legitimate state environmental permit, and has killed thousands of fish over the years.

Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thaddeus L. Wilson on Monday found that Trump International Hotel & Tower “committed a continuing public nuisance through a series of failures to comply with state and federal law dating back to 2008.”

This ruling has taken years of litigation to achieve, with Friends of the Chicago River, the Sierra Club, and the Illinois Attorney General having filed the lawsuit in 2018.

Sources:

Trump Tower Declared ‘Public Nuisance’ After Killing Thousands of Fish | IBTimes

News Detail Page (illinoisattorneygeneral.gov)

Dog Rushes into Burning Ukraine Home to Save Helpless Kitten

A few years ago, an explosion occurred in a defense industry building near Donetsk City, Ukraine. Fire and smoke spread to nearby areas. As people rushed out of burning buildings and homes, they made sure that family members were with them, but some pets got left behind in the chaos. One dog re-entered a burning house to the surprise of the owner and neighbors. After a while, the dog emerged from the house fire with a tiny fluff ball in his jaws. The dog had gently picked up a kitten from the burning home and carried him to safety.

The lucky kitten has eight lives left.

Source:

Dog Rushes Into Burning Ukraine Home To Save Helpless Kitten (iheartdogs.com)

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.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1833870872341340407

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