ukraine

Florida Man Sentenced to Prison for Felonious Actions During 6 Jan Capitol Attack

Richard Cook (38) of Boca Raton, FL, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution. He was convicted on 10 May 2024 of felony and misdemeanor offenses related to his conduct during the 6 Jan 2021 breach of the US Capitol.

Cook joined a mob that relentlessly attacked USCP officers in one of the most violent areas of the Capitol riot – the Lower West Terrace Tunnel. The defendant entered the Tunnel on two occasions to join a collective push against police officers as the seditionists tried to gain access to the Capitol building. While Richard Cook joined in collective pushes, one USCP officer screamed in pain as the weight of the rioters’ pushes pinned him between a shield and a door. The FBI arrested Cook on 9 March 2023 in Florida.

USCP officers might be upset with this fairly light sentence as there has been an unevenness across the US judiciary towards the punishments of these insurrection defendants. Part of the problem lies in what charges were initially specified against the suspects, what the Justice Dept could prove in court, and plea agreements. Also, some defendants may have cooperated against fellow conspirators, reducing their sentence.  

In the 43 months since 6 Jan 2021, more than 1,488 seditionists have been charged in nearly all 50 states for attacking the US Capitol, including nearly 550 suspects charged with feloniously assaulting or impeding law enforcement personnel. The FBI investigation remains ongoing.

Source:

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

https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-capitol-riot-obstruction-2cdba47baa5cea8177d651de751760a6

CIA: Plot to Attack Taylor Swift’s Vienna Concerts Intended to Kill Thousands

Undated image of Taylor Swift.

The suspects in the foiled plot to attack Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna earlier this month sought to kill “tens of thousands” of fans before the CIA discovered intelligence that disrupted the planning and led to arrests. The CIA notified Austrian authorities of the plot, which allegedly included links to the Islamic State (IS).

A 19-year-old Austrian man, inspired by the Islamic State, allegedly planned to attack outside the stadium, where over 30,000 fans were expected to gather, with knives or homemade explosives. Another 65,000 fans were likely to be inside the venue. Investigators discovered chemical substances and technical devices during a raid of the suspect’s home. The intelligence and subsequent arrests ultimately led to the cancellation of three sold-out Eras Tour shows. Three suspects are in custody whose names have not been released because of Austrian privacy rules.

CIA Deputy Director David Cohen publicly addressed the failed plot during the annual Intelligence and National Security Summit this week in Maryland.

The Vienna plot drew comparisons to a 2017 attack by a suicide bomber at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, that killed 22 people. The bomb detonated at the end of Grande’s concert as thousands of young fans were leaving, becoming the deadliest extremist attack in the UK in recent years.

Source:

Plot to attack Taylor Swift’s Vienna shows was intended to kill thousands, CIA official says (voanews.com)


Reports: F-16 Crashed in Ukraine

Ukrainian Air Force F-16 fighter jets fly in an undisclosed location over Ukraine. A single Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jet costs approximately $63 million, while the cost of training a basic qualified F-16 fighter pilot could be as high as $5.6 million.

A Ukrainian F-16 fighter jet was reportedly destroyed in a crash on 26 Aug, according to a US official quoted by The Wall Street Journal. The incident occurred during a massive Russian missile barrage across the country. But initial reports indicate the jet wasn’t shot down by enemy fire, but the jet likely went down as a result of pilot error. The Ukrainian Air Force wouldn’t confirm the crash or the status of the pilot. The crash occurred just weeks after the first F-16s arrived in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said F-16s were recently used for the first time in combat to shoot down Russian missiles.

Meanwhile, Ukraine used domestically-manufactured drones to strike both deep and near Russian targets. A strategic oil facility 900 miles inside Russia was struck, as well as field artillery infrastructure 35 miles from the Ukrainian border. The Ukrainian military is conducting damage assessments.

Sources:

Reports: F-16 Crashed In Ukraine Earlier This Week (rferl.org)

Top 10 most expensive fighter jets in 2024 (aerotime.aero)

Ukraine launches drone strikes targeting Russia’s strategic oil infrastructure – UPI.com

Six More Deaths Reported in Multistate Listeria Outbreak Linked to Boar’s Head Deli Meat


The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported six additional deaths in connection with a multistate listeria outbreak traced to Boar’s Head deli meat. This brings the total number of fatalities to nine, with over a dozen others sickened.

Since the outbreak began, 57 people have been hospitalized across 18 states, making it the largest listeriosis outbreak since 2011, when more than 30 people died from contaminated cantaloupe. On 25 July, Boar’s Head issued a recall of its Strassburger Brand Liverwurst, produced at its Jarratt, VA facility, after concerns arose about contamination with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. The recall was later expanded to include seven million pounds of meat—every item produced at the facility.

The deaths have been reported in Florida, Tennessee, New Mexico, South Carolina, Illinois, New Jersey, and Virginia. The affected victims range in age from 32 to 94, with a median age of 77.

Listeria is a hardy germ that can remain on surfaces, like meat slicers, and foods, even at refrigerated temperatures. It can also take up to 10 weeks for some people to have symptoms of listeriosis. Do not eat recalled deli meats. Some of the products have sell by dates into October 2024.

Source:

Listeria Outbreak Linked to Meats Sliced at Delis | Listeria Infection | CDC

Russian Agitprop Stoking Right-Wing Canadians; South Asians and Sikhs Targeted with Anti-Immigrant Hate

These proud and somber Sikhs represent several branches of the Canadian Armed Forces, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP); one of them seems to be entitled to wear the kilt. (Undated public domain imagery taken at a memorial service).

Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced new sanctions against Russia as a counter to the Kremlin’s disinformation activities aimed at Canada.

Ukraine and the West have long been a target of the Kremlin’s disinformation campaigns. Since the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Russia has used a variety of information warfare tactics to destabilize the Ukrainian government and undermine the legitimacy of democratic governments around the world.

Canada’s Communications Security Establishment (CSE) has raised concerns about Russian online state-sponsored disinformation campaigns aimed at distorting Canada’s effort to help Ukraine defend itself. The most prevalent claim was “Ukrainian nationalism is a neo-Nazi movement,” a false narrative that has long been debunked by numerous fact-checkers. The Kremlin also actively spread the unsubstantiated claim that chemical and biological weapons are being covertly developed in Ukraine.

These Kremlin agitprop tactics are also incubating hatred towards South Asian and Sikh communities. Far-right Canadian influencers like Jeremy Mackenzie or Tommy Robinson have ramped up attacks against Canadians of South Asian origin – particularly Sikhs – telling them to “go back to their country,” while blaming immigrants for societal ills, like unemployment or lack of affordable housing. The Canadian Anti-Hate Network reports there has been a visible increase in content targeting of South Asians in Canada.

A hate crime was reported to police in Peterborough, Ontario on 26 July 26 after a Sikh man alleged he was spat on and “had his turban knocked off and stepped on.” Other incidents were recently outlined by the World Sikh Organization (WSO) in a press release, including another victim who was allegedly attacked had his turban removed and stolen in Scarborough, Ontario, and another man in Sudbury, Ontario, who was attacked and threatened to be run over for wearing a kirpan, a Sikh article of faith.

The WSO stated they are “deeply troubled by recent hate attacks on Sikhs” and an “alarming rise in online harassment of Sikhs across Canada” in recent months.

White supremacist group Diagolon, led by Jeremy Mackenzie, shared a post calling for “first world countries…to quarantine India,” otherwise Indians will “colonize every first world country” and called for the “deportation of all Indians.”

 “They have to go back” is a phrase which advocates for the deportation of Indian immigrants en masse from Canada, is reminiscent of a trend gaining popularity in Europe called “remigration,” which argues for ethnically cleansing the continent of non-Europeans through forced deportations.

Growing anti-immigrant sentiments and racism took a violent turn in the UK this summer with rioters carrying out mayhem and attacks targeting immigrants and asylum seekers after far-right figures in the UK spread false information about the race of a suspect in an attack in northern England.

Sources:

Russian propaganda is making inroads with right-wing Canadians (theconversation.com)

Canada’s Far-Right is Targeting South Asian and Sikh Canadians to Incite Anti-Immigrant Hate (pressprogress.ca)

‘She Can Go to Hell!’ JD Vance Lashes Out at Kamala Harris Amid Trump Arlington Cemetery Scandal

The Trump campaign continues to stumble from one pratfall to another. Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), who publicly bragged that he yelled at his seven-year-old son to “Shut the hell up about Pokemon!” has now viciously lashed out at Vice President Kamala Harris during a Wednesday rally speech in response to media scrutiny over the Trump campaign’s possibly unlawful photo event at Arlington National Cemetery. This scandal may also damage House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) who allegedly intervened to allow Trump to attend the private Gold Star family commemoration.

In particular, JD Vance sought to blame Kamala Harris for the deaths of soldiers during the 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan. This comes after Vance, himself a Marine veteran who served as a military correspondent, already tried to deflect to that topic, and accidentally mixed up “Abbey Gate”, the location where a suicide bomber killed US personnel at Kabul Airport, with “Abbey Road”, a London street popularized by the Beatles half a century ago.

“The other thing our veterans care a lot more about is that three years ago, 13 brave, innocent Americans died, and they died because Kamala Harris refused to do her job, and there hasn’t been a single investigation, or a single firing,” the junior Senator from Ohio said.

“Look, sometimes mistakes happen, that’s just the nature of government, the nature of military service. But to have those 13 Americans lose their lives, and not fire a single person is disgraceful. Kamala Harris is disgraceful. You want to tell a story about those 13 Americans who lost their lives, it’s that Kamala Harris is so asleep at the wheel that she won’t even do an investigation into what happened, and she wants to yell at Donald Trump because he showed up? She can go to hell!” Vance ranted.

Sadly for Senator JD Vance, a Yale Law School graduate, a DoD investigation into the attack was completed under the Biden Administration while Kamala Harris was Vice-President. See link below.

This crass and baseless innuendo comes after Vance had an awkward month on the campaign trail, ranging from an ill-advised bakery photo-op to the emergence of more comments he made attacking childless women.

Watch the video below or at the link here.

The Trump Campaign strategy of demonizing and smearing their opponents with slander may appeal to their hardcore base, but will not convince critical undecided voters this November. Women have already been turned off by JD Vance’s misogynist hillbilly rhetoric.

All the Republicans seem to offer the American voter is hate and vitriol. The GOP campaign seems to have no platform to help hard-working Americans improve their lives. Neither ex-President Trump nor JD Vance seem willing to discuss the Heritage Foundation brainchild, Project 2025, a plan the Washington Post described will “infuse Christian nationalism into every facet of government policy;” put another way, a Christian Talibanization of America. After the radically-right SCOTUS overturned Roe v. Wade, why would Americans want more such extremist measures foisted upon them?

Sources:

‘She can go to hell!’ J.D. Vance lashes out at Kamala Harris amid Arlington Cemetery furor – Raw Story

Watch: J.D. Vance flubs name of location where U.S. soldiers died in Afghanistan – Raw Story

Arlington tried preventing Trump from attending ceremony: Report (americanmilitarynews.com)

Project 2025 – Wikipedia

https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3741245/kabul-airport-attack-review-reaffirms-initial-findings-identifies-attacker/

FAA Grounds SpaceX Falcon 9 After First-Stage Booster Incident

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket returns to Landing Zone 1 after launching the Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft for NASA at the Kennedy Space Center, FL, on Sunday, August 4, 2024. The FAA grounded the Falcon 9 rockets after a stage 1 booster crashed into a barge while returning to Earth. Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo

The Federal Aviation Administration FAA grounded SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9 rockets as it investigates why one of its first-stage boosters crashed onto a landing barge in the Atlantic Ocean, bringing a screeching halt to the company’s robust launch schedule.

The return of the first-stage booster safely to Earth went awry Wednesday morning after separating from the second stage. A second SpaceX flight scheduled to liftoff from California was paused after the incident. So was the expected launching of the all-civilian Polaris Dawn. The delay postponed what was expected to be the first civilian spacewalk.

No one was hurt in the incident and the second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket delivered the satellites into orbit as expected. According to the FAA, SpaceX could be cleared to fly again with an ongoing investigation under certain conditions.

Sources:

FAA grounds SpaceX after Falcon 9 booster topples on landing : NPR

https://www.fly.faa.gov/adv/advAdvisoryForm.jsp

Orange Lobster Returned to Sea After Arrival at Long Island, NY Store

An ultra-rare orange lobster that arrived in a shipment at a store on New York’s Long Island was released back into the Long Island Sound. Photo courtesy of Humane Long Island/Facebook

FTA: An extremely rare orange lobster that arrived in a shipment at a New York store was released back into the wild by an animal advocacy group.

Humane Long Island said on social media that workers at Southampton Stop & Shop found the orange lobster among the standard brown lobsters that arrived in a recent shipment. The store offered the crustacean to the Long Island Aquarium, but the facility declined.

The Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation learned about Pinky’s situation and contacted Humane Long Island, which reached out to management at Stop & Shop. The lobster, now named Clementine, underwent rehabilitation under the supervision of a veterinarian before being released back into the Long Island Sound.

Orange coloration is believed to occur in only one out of every 30 million lobsters. Peaches, an orange lobster being studied by researchers at the University of New England, recently hatched a clutch of 100 eggs, and some of the babies share their mother’s unusual pigment.

Source:

https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2024/08/29/orange-lobster-Humane-Long-Island/3841724963291/

US Sanctions Hundreds to Cripple Kremlin’s Military Production

Shahed-136 drones (AKA Geran-2), is an Iranian-designed loitering munition. Image Credit: Screenshot.

The US sanctioned nearly 400 individuals and entities to disrupt Russia’s international supply chains, metal procurement, and financial services that support its war effort in Ukraine. The move builds on sanctions already imposed on Russia in response to its full-scale war in Ukraine and were aimed at distinct networks, individuals, and entities whose products and services enable Russia to sustain the war and evade sanctions.

The list includes numerous transnational networks that procure ammunition and military materiel, entities that facilitate Russian oligarchal sanctions evasions, gold launderers, and procurers of sensitive and critical items such as advanced machinery tools and electronic components.

The sweeping action targets networks, individuals, and entities across 16 jurisdictions, including in China, Switzerland, Turkey, and the UAE. The measures against companies in China alone are aimed at 190 targets. Also targeted are entities and individuals involved in Russia’s future energy, metals, and mining production, subsidiaries of Russia’s state atomic energy corporation Rosatom and “malign actors involved in the attempted, forcible ‘re-education’ of Ukraine’s children.”

The US government also added 123 entities to the Commerce Department Entity List that forces suppliers to obtain licenses before shipping to targeted companies (63 Russian, 42 Chinese, 18 other).  The US is attempting to impede the production of Russian Shahed-136 drones used against Ukraine.

This move comes from Washington comes just as Kiev recently launched its largest drone attack on Moscow, its intelligence services hacked Russian TV (embarrassing Vladimir Putin), and the Ukrainians celebrated their Independence Day (24 August 1991).

Sources:

U.S. Sanctions Hundreds Of Targets In Effort To Cripple Kremlin’s Military Production (rferl.org)

Sanctions List Search (treas.gov)

https://www.bis.gov/entity-list

IDF Kills Dozens in Airstrikes as Ceasefire Talks Inch Forward

Palestinians walk next to sewage in the streets of Khan Younis, Gaza, 4 July 2024. Health authorities and aid agencies are racing to prevent an outbreak of polio in the Gaza Strip after the virus was detected in the territory’s wastewater. The UN confirmed the first cases of polio in the Gaza Strip in 25 years. (Photo: Jehad Alshrafi / AP)

At least three dozen Palestinians were killed in multiple Israeli strikes in the southern Gaza Strip, even as preparations moved ahead for high-level cease-fire talks in Egypt. Among the dead were 11 members of the same family, including two children, when an Israeli airstrike hit their home in the city of Khan Younis. Nasser Hospital received a total of 33 dead who were killed in three separate strikes in and around Khan Younis. The city’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said it received three bodies.

Seventeen others were killed when a strike hit a road south of Khan Younis, including the passengers on a tuk-tuk and passers-by. Another strike hit a tuk-tuk east of Khan Younis, killing at least five people. Palestinian first responders also recovered the bodies of 10 people from a residential block west of Khan Younis. The circumstances of their deaths were not immediately clear and this area was repeatedly bombed by the Israeli military over the past week. An Associated Press journalist at the hospital counted the bodies and filmed the funeral service in the hospital’s courtyard.

President Biden called Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to stress the urgency of reaching a cease-fire and hostage release deal. Israel’s retaliatory offensive since October 2023 has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians and caused widespread destruction, forcing 2.3 million Gazans to flee their homes. The New York Times reported the IDF onslaught against Gaza has created an estimated 19,000 Palestinian orphans, several with amputated limbs (see previous post by Coriolanus).

The American taxpayer has given Israel more than $260 billion in combined military and economic aid since World War II, plus about $10 billion more in contributions for missile defense systems like the Iron Dome. Meanwhile, Israeli cabinet members have publicly called for a “nabka” and you wonder how much Palestinian population reduction will eventually satisfy them.  

Sources:

Dozens killed in strikes in Gaza as preparations for cease-fire talks move forward (voanews.com)

‘We’re Rolling Out Nakba 2023,’ Israeli Minister Says on Northern Gaza Strip Evacuation – Israel News – Haaretz.com

Israeli Minister Admits Military Is Carrying Out ‘Nakba’ Against Gaza’s Palestinians (msn.com)

Why Israel’s leaders call for ‘Second Nakba’ | Middle East Eye

How Much Aid Does the U.S. Give to Israel? | Best Countries | U.S. News (usnews.com)

Maryland Police Officer Justin Lee Guilty of Attacking US Capitol on 6 Jan 2021

A Rockville, MD man was convicted today of forcibly obstructing law enforcement and other charges for attacking the US Capitol on 6 Jan 2021. Justin Lee (25) was found guilty of two felony offenses, including assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and civil disorder. In addition to the felonies, Lee is guilty of misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building.

Lee was present at the “Tunnel”, the site of the heaviest close-quarters-combat between seditionists and USCP officers, where amongst other actions, the defendant deployed a smoke grenade. After the 6 January attack, Justin Lee astonishingly joined the Montgomery County Police Department where he was subsequently involved in a shooting incident which was being investigated by authorities. Justin Lee will be sentenced on 22 Nov 2024.

In the 43 months since 6 Jan 2021, more than 1,488 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to attacking the US Capitol, including nearly 550 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The FBI investigation remains ongoing.

Sources:

District of Columbia | Maryland Man Convicted of Forcibly Obstructing Law Enforcement and Other Charges During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

Montgomery Co. officer charged with assaulting police on Jan. 6 | fox43.com

Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Act as Agent of PRC Government

Ping Li (59) of Wesley Chapel, FL pleaded guilty to conspiring to act as an agent of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) without notification to the Attorney General. The former Verizon employee spied for the PRC’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) for twelve years as a “cooperative contact.”

LI, a US citizen, admitted that he provided the MSS information concerning Chinese dissidents and pro-democracy advocates, members of the Falun Gong religious movement, and US-based non-governmental organizations. Li also provided the MSS with information he obtained from his employers. The defendant used a variety of anonymous online accounts for the purpose of communicating with the MSS, traveling to China to meet with his handlers as well.

If convicted, Li faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Sources:

Office of Public Affairs | Florida Telecommunications and Information Technology Worker Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Act as Agent of PRC Government | United States Department of Justice

https://www.pcmag.com/news/former-verizon-employee-accused-of-spying-for-china

Cat Ran Away 11 Years Ago; Found by Microchip

The cat looks a bit scrawny, but quite happy indeed. Image: Charleston County Animal Control  and AP

After Sam Sam the Kittycat Man disappeared 11 years ago, Jennifer Ravenel couldn’t hold another cat in her lap. Her heart never could overcome the loss of that feral kitten she had rescued from the crook of a tree on her South Carolina farm. But Sam is now back in Ravenel’s lap, thanks to her decision to have a microchip put in him.

Charleston County Animal Control found Sam this month, skinny and feeding off scraps from a feral colony less than a mile from Ravenel’s home. His microchip was scanned, and Ravenel got a nearly unbelievable phone call. Once everyone was sure Sam was OK, Ravenel got to hold her lap kitty again. She squeezed him, telling him that he was her boy and remarking how skinny he was.

“I haven’t held a cat since he left — 11 years — because it broke my heart. To feel his little heartbeat in there, oh, gosh, it’s the craziest thing that has ever happened to me,” Ravenel said in a video provided by the Animal Society.

Source:

Sam Sam the Kittycat Man ran away. He was found close by — 11 years later | AP News

CIA Director Makes Stop in Kosovo as Part of Unannounced Visit to Balkan Region

CIA Director William Burns enters the building of the Kosovar presidency on 22 August.

CIA Director William Burns arrived in Kosovo after stops earlier this week in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia on an unannounced trip amid concerns about US relations with Kosovo and Russian influence in the Balkans.

Burns traveled from Sarajevo to Belgrade, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia before arriving in Kosovo. According to the flight-tracking website Flightradar24, a US military plane believed to be used to fly the CIA chief made stops in those countries. On 22 August, the aircraft was seen parked at the VIP gate at Pristina’s international airport.

D/CIA Burns’ visit to Kosovo follows concerns about the partnership between the US and Kosovo, especially regarding the government’s handling of issues related to the country’s Serb minority.

Since 2001, the US has provided Kosovo with $97,830,378 in foreign assistance.

Sources:

CIA Chief Makes Stop In Kosovo As Part Of Unannounced Visit To Balkan Region (rferl.org)

U.S. Foreign Assistance by Country

Mass Bomb Threat E-Mailed to Dozens of Jewish Institutions Across Canada

Canada’s oldest synagogue Temple Emmanu-el, c1900 (Photo: Courtesy of Congregation Emanu-El, Victoria, BC)

Multiple synagogues, Jewish community centers, and hospitals in Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa were targeted with an emailed bomb threat early Wednesday morning. In response to the threat, Toronto Police evacuated buildings near an intersection in a heavily Jewish neighborhood.

A Jewish organization reported the threat was not credible, though it is still being investigated by Toronto, Montreal, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). This incident comes just a few months after shots were fired at a Chabad-Lubavitch girls’ school in Toronto. Soon afterward, a synagogue in Vancouver was attacked. In November, shots were fired at two Orthodox Jewish day schools in Montreal. No injuries were reported in any of the attacks.

A representative from the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs stated “all indications point to these threats being nuisance emails designed to disrupt lives. There is no imminent threat.”

Likud Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, a man indicted as a war criminal by the International Criminal Court (ICC), and his policies towards the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is stoking antisemitism worldwide. Nearly 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed since October 2023. The US Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reported that 190 of the 312 antisemitic incidents from 7 Oct 2023 to 23 Oct 2023 were directly linked to the war in Israel and Gaza.

Sources:

Mass bomb threat sent to dozens of Jewish institutions across Canada – Jewish Telegraphic Agency (jta.org)

How the Gaza crisis is stoking antisemitism across the U.S. (nbcnews.com)

ICC statement on arrest warrants of Israeli and Hamas leaders (bbc.com)

Counting the dead in Gaza: difficult but essential – The Lancet

More Americans Unwilling to Die for Other Countries

“It is time to end the forever war,” President Biden said in 2021, when he ordered the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan.

A July poll shows that a majority of the American public does not support sending US soldiers to defend Taiwan or Ukraine, suggesting that Americans appear to be warming to restraint and non-interventionism in international affairs.

Another poll found that a majority of Americans (56%) do not believe that the US should pick a side in Israel’s war on Gaza. Another recent survey found that just 4 in 10 support the US sending soldiers to defend Israel if attacked by its neighbors.

Notably, the US recently deployed two aircraft carrier groups and a nuclear-powered submarine armed with 154 Tomahawk missiles to the Middle East. Israel is expecting an Iranian counterattack for its continuous airstrikes on Shia targets in Lebanon and Syria, as well as the 31 July assassination of Palestinian resistance leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

After the 11 Sep attacks against the US in 2001, the media helped to normalize the idea of deposing Saddam Hussein. By January 2002, 73% of the American public supported the use of force in Iraq, believing the Bush administration falsehoods about WMDs in Saddam’s hands. After years of hindsight, only 32% of Americans considered the Iraq War the right thing to do according to a 2024 survey.

Sources:

More Americans Unwilling to Die for Other Countries – Truthdig

https://www.yenisafak.com/en/news/2-us-carrier-strike-groups-in-middle-east-send-very-powerful-deterrence-message-to-iran-pentagon-3689711

American Drug Firms Accused of Unethical Clinical Trials in Uyghur Region of China

Since 2017, the Chinese government has been operating a vast detention and “sinicization” program, focused on eliminating Uyghur life and culture.

American pharmaceutical companies are carrying out drug trials in China’s far-western Xinjiang region, where the US says a genocide of the Uyghur population is taking place. In a letter to the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), the two top lawmakers on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party requested an explanation of the practice, which they said is recorded in “hundreds” of entries on the FDA website “clinicaltrials.gov.”

In the letter, Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) questioned “the ethics of conducting these trials in Xinjiang,” where they said Chinese officials “force ethnic minorities … to participate in gruesome medical procedures, which likely overlap with FDA-approved research.”

Given that China does not allow independent evaluators to examine facilities in Xinjiang for rights violations, there was reason to query if Uyghurs were being forced to undergo medical testing. The involvement of China’s People’s Liberation Army, they added, also raised “serious concerns” that the intellectual property of U.S.-based companies had been compromised and “co-opted” by Chinese firms.

Even precious metals have not been untouched, with a report last year accusing US brands of links to gold being mined through slavery.

In 2021, the US government declared that a genocide was taking place against the mostly Muslim Uyghur minority in China, after years of mounting evidence about mass internment camps, torture, forced labor and forced sterilization taking place in Xinjiang.

Sources:

American drug firms accused of clinical trials in Uyghur region — Radio Free Asia (rfa.org)

Home | ClinicalTrials.gov

https://www.glanlaw.org/copy-of-uyghur-forced-labour

INTERVIEW: ‘There’s exposure across Wall Street’

Report: US brands linked to Uyghur-mined gold

US imported cars tied to Uyghur slave labor, Senate report says

Vladimir Putin Humiliated as Hackers Take Over Russian State TV

Getty/X

Hackers from Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) broke into servers of several Russian television channels and broadcasted “objective videos about the war in Ukraine.” HUR‘s footage was displayed three times on prime-time TV channels: Pervouralsk TV, Eurasia 360, Eurasia Pervyi Kanal, and others.

The targeted channels further reportedly included Lugansk 24, Pervyi Respublikanskyi, SpB, Oplot, TV-3, and Pervyi Rosiyskyi. Some of the channels belong to Russian oligarch Andrey Komarov. The nine channels had to suspend their broadcasting as a result of the hack.

The TV company Pervouralsk issued an apology on the VKontakte social network, saying that unspecified “attackers gained access to the live broadcast and launched unauthorized video materials that contradict the TV channel’s policy.”

This comes on the heels of Ukraine’s successful offensive into Russia and the largest drone attack against Moscow to date.

Source:

Ukrainian hackers show war footage on Russian TV, source says (kyivindependent.com)

Haiti: Suspect in Killings of US Missionary Couple and Nonprofit Director Arrested

A funeral procession for mission director Judes Montis, killed by gangs alongside two of his US missionary members, makes its way to the cemetery in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 28 May 2024. (Imagery: Odelyn Joseph / AP)

Police in Haiti have arrested a suspect in the fatal shooting of a US missionary couple and a Haitian man who headed a nonprofit organization in May. The 23 May murders of missionaries Davy Lloyd and his wife, Natalie Lloyd, and Jude Montis, the country’s director for Missions in Haiti Inc., was blamed on gangs rampaging across Haiti’s capital and beyond.

A video posted on social media late Wednesday by Haiti’s National Police shows a 52-year-old man in handcuffs, accused of being involved in the killings of the Lloyds and Montis. Police allege the suspect’s phone was used to make calls after the killings, but the man rejected that accusation.

The young couple — Davy was 23 and Natalie just 21 — were supposed to celebrate their two-year wedding anniversary in June.

From January to May, more than 3,200 killings were reported across Haiti, with gang violence leaving more than half a million people homeless. In February, gangs launched coordinated attacks on key government infrastructure, raided police stations and opened fire at the main international airport, forcing it to shut down for nearly three months. Gunmen also stormed into Haiti’s two biggest prisons, freeing thousands of inmates.

A U.N.-backed police force from Kenya arrived in June to lead a multinational mission, nearly two years after Haiti’s government requested urgent deployment of a foreign force.

Source:

Suspect in killings of U.S. missionary couple and nonprofit chief arrested in Haiti – CBS News

Deadly Floods Leave Millions Stranded in Bangladesh

The Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) reports with the rains continuing, water levels could rise further, raising concerns about additional flooding and displacement. [Munir Uz Zaman/AFP]

At least 13 people have been killed and 4.5 million affected by floods triggered by heavy rains in eastern Bangladesh. Water-borne diseases such as diarrhea, dysentery, fever, skin infections, and other waterborne diseases are increasing amongst the displaced. An estimated 100,000 Bangladeshis already suffer from cholera which will no doubt increase with these floods.

Floods triggered by torrential rains have swamped swaths of low-lying Bangladesh and rescuers are scrambling to evacuate flooded communities. Nearly 190,000 people were taken to emergency relief shelters and 11 of the country’s 64 districts were affected by the flooding.

The South Asian nation of 170 million people, crisscrossed by hundreds of rivers, has seen frequent floods in recent decades and is among the countries most vulnerable to disasters and climate change.

Sources:

https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2024/8/23/deadly-floods-leave-millions-stranded-in-bangladesh

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/health-concerns-emerge-bangladesh-flood-waters-recede-2022-06-23/

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-33576-3

Ukraine Targets Moscow in ‘One of Largest Ever’ Drone Attacks

Moscow’s air defenses are still holding firm for the moment. Photo: Julius Silver,Pexels.com

Ukraine launched one of its largest drone attacks on Moscow, as it presses on with a major incursion into Russia’s Kursk region. Russian air defence forces shot down 11 drones over Moscow and its surrounding region. No damage or casualties were reported. Drone attacks on Moscow are rare. Ukraine’s latest attempt to target the Russian capital appeared to be larger than an attack in May 2023, when at least eight drones were intercepted.

Following the assault on Moscow, temporary restrictions were imposed overnight at Moscow’s Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Zhukovsky airports, but all three later returned to normal operations.

Source:

Ukraine targets Moscow in ‘one of largest ever’ drone attacks | Russia-Ukraine war News | Al Jazeera

Latvian National Extradited for Illegally Exporting Advanced US-Origin Aircraft Technology to Russia

Upgraded Tu-160M strategic bomber. (Photo: TASS)

Oleg Chistyakov AKA Olegs Čitsjakovs (55) was extradited from Latvia to a federal court in Kansas City, KS. Chistyakov allegedly conspired with US citizens Cyril Gregory Buyanovsky (61) and Douglas Edward Robertson (56) to facilitate the sale, repair and shipment of US-origin avionics equipment to customers in Russia and other countries that operate Russian-built aircraft. Buyanovksy and Robertson were charged and arrested in March 2023 and have both pleaded guilty. Buyanovsky is scheduled to be sentenced on 14 Nov; Robertson on 3 Oct.

Chistyakov is charged with conspiracy, Export Control Reform Act violations, smuggling, and money laundering. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and up to a $1 million fine.

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

Source:

Office of Public Affairs | Latvian National Extradited for Scheme to Illegally Export Advanced U.S.-Origin Aircraft Technology to Russia | United States Department of Justice

The War in Gaza Is Creating Thousands of Orphans as Polio Outbreak Looms

UN experts estimate that at least 19,000 children are now surviving with extended families, hospital staff, volunteers, or managing by themselves. Many of Gaza’s newly orphaned children are injured, traumatized, and haunted by memories of their parents. Medical staff say children are left to roam hospital hallways and fend for themselves. Hospitals label them “wounded child, no surviving family.” Neonatal units are caring for unclaimed babies and surgeons have amputated limbs from many orphans who said “they had no one to hold their hands or comfort them.”

Nearly all of the territory’s 2.4 million people have been displaced at least once during the war. On top of all this abject misery, the UN reports an outbreak of the polio virus which was polio-free for 25 years. A supply chain of refrigeration units and unfettered access to the Gaza Strip would be necessary to contain this virus.

Abdullah Akeila (LF) and his brother Ahmed (R) in Gaza. The boys are aching to see their parents again and are convinced it will happen as soon as they can go home. (Photo: Bilal Shbair for the New York Times).

Sources:

War-battered Gaza Faces Uphill Battle Against Polio | IBTimes

The War in Gaza Is Making Thousands of Orphans – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Police Brutality in US Continues: South Carolina Deputy Charged with Killing Unarmed Man, Letting Police Dog Maul Another Innocent Man

Former deputy Treyvon Jonathan Sellers in an undated photo.

A deputy in South Carolina has been charged with voluntary manslaughter and assault after he shot an unarmed suspect five times, killing him, while letting his police dog maul a different, innocent person.

State agents arrested former Florence County deputy Treyvon Jonathan Sellers (29). He was on leave after the 26 May shooting and was fired in July after an arrest in an unrelated domestic violence case. Sellers was chasing 43-year-old William Dwayne Rankin when Rankin crashed into a tree and ran into a nearby home. Sellers went into the home through the back door unannounced with his unleashed police dog. The ex-deputy then ordered the dog to attack anyone in the house. The dog bit Johnny Cooper, the owner of the home, who wasn’t involved in the chase and didn’t know Sellers. While the dog attacked Mr. Cooper, Sellers shot Rankin five times as he lay on a couch.

Sellers failed to give the dog the right commands to stop attacking and the homeowner was mauled for approximately 87 seconds, suffering permanent injuries to his left arm and shoulder. Sellers was charged with voluntary manslaughter in Rankin’s death and faces two to 30 years in prison if convicted. He was also charged with assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature in the dog’s attack and faces up to 20 years if convicted. The fate of the police dog is not yet known.

Source:

South Carolina deputy charged with killing unarmed man, letting police dog maul someone else – CBS News

Mexico to Charge Drug Lord for Delivering Another Drug Lord to US

A plane believed to have carried Mexican drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez is seen on the tarmac of the Dona Ana County private airport, in Santa Teresa, NM, 25 July 2024.

The strange saga of how two Mexican drug lords were detained after landing in a plane in the US in July just got stranger. The Mexican government is bringing charges against Joaquín Guzmán López, the leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel founded by his father, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, because he kidnapped Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada — an older drug boss from a rival faction of the cartel — forcing him onto the plane and flying to an airport near El Paso, TX.

The younger Guzmán apparently intended to turn himself in to US authorities, but may have brought Zambada along as a prize to sweeten any plea deal. Zambada had trusted Guzmán and accompanied him to a meeting to help iron out a fierce rivalry between two Mexican politicians.

Zambada was known for eluding capture for decades because of his incredibly tight, loyal, and sophisticated personal security apparatus. Joaquin Guzman Lopez may be charged with treason. According to Mexico’s criminal code, treason is committed “by those who illegally abduct a person in Mexico in order to hand them over to authorities of another country.”

These Mexican drug cartels smuggle millions of doses of the deadly opioid fentanyl into the US, causing about 70,000 overdose deaths each year.

Source:

Mexico to charge drug lord for delivering another drug lord to US (voanews.com)

ACLU Sues Medford, Oregon for Spying on Activists

0n 1 Jun 2020 Chris Luz, the mayor of the neighboring town of Phoenix, drove through a crowd of BLM protesters in Medford, OR. He was accused of intentionally hitting at least one woman with his car. Neither he nor the protestor were charged. (Imagery: The UK Daily Mail)

The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon has sued the city of Medford, accusing the Police Department of “illegally spying” on “progressive political activists.”

The ACLU filed the lawsuit claiming the department “illegally collected information on individuals and groups engaged in racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive justice, housing justice, harm reduction, decriminalization, government transparency and environmental advocacy, when no crime had been committed. Police surveillance of protected political activities is not only unlawful; it is incompatible with life in a free society.”

The complaint, filed on behalf of Rogue Valley Pepper Shakers, Stabbin Wagon and Melissa Jones, claims police collected intelligence from social media accounts on progressive groups and events, including a Juneteenth drive-in movie at the YMCA and in 2022 before the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and federal abortion rights.

Oregon state law bans police from “collecting or maintaining information about the political, religious, or social views and associations or activities of people who are not reasonably suspected of criminal activity.”

This unwarranted police surveillance is right out of Belarussian Supremo Alexander Lukashenko’s playbook or J. Edgar Hoover’s notorious COINTELPRO and has no place whatsoever in American society.

Sources:

https://www.aclu-or.org/

ACLU sues Medford, Ore.; accuses police of ‘spying’ on activists – UPI.com

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8440541/Driver-drove-crowd-Oregon-protesters-allegedly-neighboring-towns-MAYOR.html

https://ktvl.com/news/local/da-clears-phoenix-mayor-of-wrongdoing-in-incident-at-protest-protester-also-not-charged

City of Medford Names New Police Chief City of Medford (medfordoregon.gov)

New York Man Arrested for Operating as an Illegal Agent of the Chinese Government in the US

Yuanjun Tang (67), a naturalized citizen of the US and resident of Queens, NY, was charged with being an unregistered agent of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and making materially false statements to the FBI.

Tang is a former PRC citizen who was imprisoned in China for his activities as a dissident opposing the one-party authoritarian political system controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). On or about 2002, Tang defected to Taiwan and was subsequently granted political asylum in the US and moved to NYC. Tang regularly participated in events with fellow PRC dissidents and lead a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting democracy in China. But Tang was secretly reporting to the Ministry of State Security (MSS) on these dissidents and had at least three face-to-face meetings with his handlers. The FBI recovered photographs, videos, and documents that Tang collected or created for transmission to the MSS from numerous electronic devices and computer accounts.

Yuanjun Tang is charged with several counts and faces between five to 20 years incarceration if he is convicted.

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

Source:

Office of Public Affairs | New York Man Arrested for Operating as an Illegal Agent of the Chinese Government in the United States | United States Department of Justice

Draconian Security Services Impacting US and German Interests in China

This girl is one of 15,000 people the Chinese authorities arrested in 2015 for “jeopardizing Internet security.” (Undated imagery).

Intelligence and security services are causing difficulties for the US and Germany. American diplomatic efforts to conduct people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges are being stifled. German commercial interests in the pharmaceutical industry are also being hampered in China.

The US State Department has been arranging for Chinese students to study in the US. In 2023, 105,000 student visas were issued and approximately 300,000 Chinese students are expected to be studying at American universities by the end of 2024. But the Chinese Communist Party’s security services, including agents of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), have been discouraging these students from going. Their tactics include interrogation, intimidation, and threats of expulsion from Chinese institutions. In some cases, parents of the students have been threatened by security personnel to dissuade their children from studying abroad.

In addition, the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) shut down American-sponsored educational exchange programs in Shenyang, Wuhan, Guangzhou, and Shanghai. The security services have also blocked the US Embassy in Beijing from hiring a single Chinese national for the past three years, impeding basic American diplomatic operations.

China’s emboldened police state affects Germany as well. The German pharmaceutical industry warns of possible drug shortages from China as four out of Germany’s 16 states have suspended trips by their quality-control inspectors over tightened espionage laws. The states say they can no longer guarantee the safety of their inspectors on visits to Chinese pharmaceutical factories.

Germany imports almost 90 percent of its antibiotics from China. Europe also imports a high number of active pharmaceutical ingredients and antibiotics from China, which is one of the world’s largest suppliers.

With the emergence of new diseases thanks to global climate change, a drug shortage would be catastrophic. Moreover, unscrupulous actors would take advantage of a shortfall by producing and marketing counterfeit and ineffective drugs in the West.

Sources:

Inside the Ring: Chinese security services are blocking America’s diplomatic efforts – Washington Times

German pharmaceutical industry warns of possible drug shortages from China | Euronews

https://www.csoonline.com/article/552509/china-arrests-15-000-for-internet-related-crimes.html

Belarus President: “One-Third of Army Deployed to Ukrainian Border”

Belarus has deployed nearly one-third of its troops to the border with Ukraine, the country’s authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenka told Russia’s state-run Rossia-1 television channel on 18 August. He said the decision was made in response to Ukraine allegedly maintaining 120,000 soldiers near the border with Belarus and amassing more forces. Lukashenka also insisted that Kyiv had raised the stakes by launching a surprise offensive in Russia’s Kursk region.

According to the Global Firepower Index (GFI), the Belarussian Army has 263,000 troops and in terms of readiness: 336 tanks, 14 attack helicopters, and nearly 50 attack/fighter jets.  GFI ranked Belarussian military strength 64 out 145 countries surveyed in 2024. The longest standing ruler in Europe, the deeply unpopular Lukashenko maintains a 55,000 paramilitary force and never changed the name of the Belarussian KGB after the USSR imploded in 1991.

The majority of the Belarussian population oppose the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as the cruel and despotic Aleksandr Lukashenko. His statement on Russian TV was a political maneuver to demonstrate his loyalty to Vladimir Putin and a means of putting pressure on Ukraine. But nothing would destabilize the Lukashenko regime more than Ukrainian rockets and drones smashing into the pristinely kept city of Minsk.  

Sources:

Belarusian Leader Says One-Third Of Army Deployed To Ukraine Border (rferl.org)

2024 Belarus Military Strength (globalfirepower.com)

Belarusians are facing discrimination and blame for Russia’s war in Ukraine (theconversation.com)

Mother and Six Children Killed by IDF Airstrike as Secretary of State Blinken Arrives for Truce Talks

After the Israeli attack, the children’s grandfather, Muhammad Awad Khattab, asked a CNN reporter:

“They were taken by surprise when a missile hit them and completely destroyed their apartment. What did they do to deserve this? What resistance did they have?”

This latest IDF effrontery comes one day after a strike killed at least 18 people, all from the same family in central Gaza. Nine children were among those killed and the IDF claimed responsibility for the attack. The IDF killed ten people in southern Lebanon the preceding day (please see yesterday’s Coriolanus post).

Secretary Blinken landed in Tel Aviv on Sunday night, his ninth trip to Israel since 7 Oct 2023. President Biden expressed optimism with Secretary of State Blinken’s efforts at reaching a truce and releasing the hostages. The US administration seems more concerned about the Israeli hostages than the Likud cabinet.

“It’s still underway, we’re not giving up, [it’s] still possible,” Biden said.

But the honorable Mr. Blinken must deal with a man dubbed by Israelis as the “Crime Minister.” Indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes, Mr. Netanyahu has also been on trial for corruption and bribery charges in a Jerusalem court.

Israeli PM Netanyahu has turned the Gaza Strip, once described as the “world’s largest open-air prison,” into an immense abattoir. Since October 2023, 40,000 Gazans have been killed (and over 500 Palestinians have been murdered in the West Bank). ICC prosecutors at the Hague have been seeking an international arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu for several months now.

Marek Edelman, the last surviving commander of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising poignantly remarked:

“To be a Jew means always being with the oppressed, never with the oppressors.”

Source:

6 children, mother killed by Israeli airstrike as Blinken arrives for truce efforts – UPI.com

ICC statement on arrest warrants of Israeli and Hamas leaders (bbc.com)

Donald Trump Campaign in Shambles as Former President Searches for Scapegoat Amidst Falling Poll Numbers and Internal Dissent from MAGA Supporters

Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign is increasingly mired in disarray as the former president grapples with internal conflicts and sinking poll numbers. Staffers and advisors are scrambling to regain control of a campaign that up until mid-summer appeared to be on a steady course. However, Biden’s unexpected exit from the race has left Team Trump unable to adjust to the new political landscape. The former president, known for his reluctance to accept responsibility, is now reportedly searching for someone to blame as his campaign falters.

Moreover, influential far-right figures are turning against former president Donald Trump’s campaign. Some have threatened a digital “war” against the Republican candidate’s aides and allies that could complicate the party’s calls for unity in the final weeks of the presidential race. Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist and podcaster who dined with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., in 2022, said on X that Trump’s campaign was “blowing it” by not positioning itself more to the right and was “headed for a catastrophic loss,” in a post that had been viewed 2.6 million times.

The former president’s tendency to lash out at those around him, rather than reflect on his own actions, suggests that a major shake-up may be on the horizon. Whether this will be enough to turn the tide in Trump’s favor remains to be seen as the 2024 election draws closer.

Sources:

Donald Trump Campaign in Disarray as Former President Searches for Scapegoat Amidst Falling Poll Numbers – EconoTimes

Far-right influencers turn against Trump campaign (msn.com)

US Food Recall: Over 167,000 Pounds of Purdue Frozen Chicken

All recalled Purdue products are marked with the same P-33944 establishment number on the back which can be used to identify them.

Perdue Foods is recalling more than 167,000 pounds of frozen chicken products over fears of contamination. The frozen, ready-to-eat chicken breast nugget and tender items could contain foreign material, specifically metal, the USDA FSIS warned. Perdue said it has received multiple complaints from customers about metal wire embedded in the product, leading it to notify the FSIS.

“There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider,” FSIS advised.

“FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers’ freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.”

The products in question were manufactured on 23 March 2024, and were shipped to retail locations across the US while also being sold online directly to consumers. The recalled products include chicken breast tenders and nuggets in different sizes as well as nuggets under the Butcherbox brands.

Source:

Perdue Foods LLC, Recalls Frozen, Ready-To-Eat Chicken Breast Nugget and Tender Products Due to Possible Foreign Matter Contamination | Food Safety and Inspection Service (usda.gov)

US Police Brutality: Two Alaska State Troopers Charged After Violent Assault on Wrong Man

A still photo from video footage of Alaska State Troopers brutally assaulting an innocent man in Soldotna, AK on 24 May 2024. Photo: @kylehopkinsak/X

Alaska State Troopers Sgt. Joseph Miller and K-9 handler Jason Woodruff were charged with fourth-degree misdemeanor assault following a case of mistaken identity when they pepper-sprayed, tased, and unleashed a police dog on an innocent man on 24 May. The Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Public Safety said he was “totally sickened” by what he saw on the troopers’ body cameras.

Troopers Miller and Woodruff responded to a report of an illegally parked car. The vehicle was registered to a man whose name was linked to an active misdemeanor warrant. The troopers ordered the driver out of the vehicle, but broke the car’s windows and dragged him out when he refused, protesting there was no warrant against him.

The troopers then pepper-sprayed and tased him. Woodruff then sicced his police dog on the driver and ordered the animal to “bite the man.” Miller then placed his foot on the man’s head, “pushing it into the ground covered in broken glass,” causing his “face or head” to start bleeding. After the man was taken to a local hospital for treatment, the troopers realized they had actually arrested the cousin of the man with the warrant.

Miller and Woodruff have since been placed on administrative leave and the dog is no longer in service. The troopers next court appearance is on 10 September. The Alaskan government can expect a tremendous civil lawsuit from the grievously injured man and will probably offer the victim a healthy out-of-court settlement.

Incidents of police brutality continue unabated in the US. Episodes like this gave rise to the Black Lives Matter (BLM) and De-Fund the Police movements, and who can blame them?

Source:

Alaska state troopers charged after violent assault of wrong man (hngn.com)

https://time.com/5936408/defund-the-police-definition-movement/

US State Department clears $5B Sale of Patriot Missiles to Germany

The US State Department has approved the sale of the latest variant of Patriot missiles to Germany in a deal that could be worth an estimated $5 billion. The Foreign Military Sale to Germany would involve 600 of the Lockheed Martin-manufactured Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) missiles, which includes 10 fly-to-buy missiles.

Germany has invested heavily in its Patriot air and missile defense capabilities this year as it sends both Patriot batteries and interceptors to Ukraine to support the country’s years-long fight against Russia’s invasion. Patriot’s dominance in Ukraine has attracted fresh attention and potential customers from around the world. Germany is a longtime user of Patriot which serves as the air defense for 19 countries, with 15 of those countries using PAC-3 MSE in its missile inventory.

President Vladimir Putin’s attempt to weaken and de-stabilize NATO have backfired. Neutral Finland and Sweden recently joined NATO and last year Poland made a record-breaking deal for 96 AH-64E Apache Guardian Helicopters. The Apache is probably the most lethal attack helicopter in the world.

Sources:

US State Department clears $5B sale of Patriot missiles to Germany (defensenews.com)

Record-Breaking Deal for 96 AH-64E Apache Guardian Helicopters for Poland – MILMAG

Why the AH-64 Apache is the World’s Best Attack Helicopter | The National Interest

NATO – Homepage

Right-Wing Extremist Tied to Threats Against Raw Story Reporter Arrested on Gun Charges

Six neo-Nazis — holding burning flares and raising their arms in Nazi salutes — demonstrated in front of author Jordan Green’s home on 10 Feb 2024. One held a sign threatening “consequences.” (Image courtesy of rawstory.com)

Kai Liam Nix, a 20-year-old Army soldier based at Fort Liberty, NC and tied to white supremacist groups, was arrested on 15 August. He is being detained in a North Carolina jail on a “federal hold.” Nix was linked to a demonstration by neo-Nazis in February outside the Greensboro, NC home of Raw Story reporter Jordan Green. Nix photographed four men wearing skull masks holding burning flares in Hitler salutes while flanking a fifth man, who held a sign warning of “consequences” for Green’s reporting on neo-Nazi youth gang 2119, AKA the Blood and Soil Crew.

The man holding the sign, Sean Kauffmann, along with two of the men making Hitler salutes — Jarrett William Smith and David Fair — had been the subject of Green’s previous reporting.

The US Army has been working for years trying to identify and purge itself of right-wing extremists who enlisted in order to gain expertise in weapons and tactics and then establish networks with other dangerous fellow white nationalists.

In an average year, 1,388 people die and 3,407 are wounded by firearms in North Carolina. The Tar Heel State has the 17th-highest rate of gun violence in the US.

Sources:

Right-wing extremist tied to threats against Raw Story reporter arrested on gun charges – Raw Story

Inside the neo-Nazi hate network grooming children for a race war

Florida teens tied to ‘2119’ neo-Nazi gang to plead guilty for antisemitic attacks

The Violent Far-Right Terrorist Threat to the U.S. Military | Council on Foreign Relations (cfr.org)

Gun-Violence-in-North-Carolina-2.9.2021.pdf (everystat.org)

Ten-Year-Old Girl Discovers Dinosaur Footprints On Beach in Wales, UK

“We were just out looking to see what we could find, we didn’t think we’d find anything,” says Tegan, on the beach where the discovery was made. (Undated imagery courtesy of the BBC.)

10-year-old schoolgirl Tegan went for a summer holiday beach stroll with her mother in south Wales and spotted five enormous footprints that dinosaur experts believe are the mark of a camelotia that lived over 200 million years ago.

Efforts are underway to get them verified. Little is known about camelotias but it is thought they walked on their front feet and their hind limbs, were herbivorous and lived during the late Triassic period. The National Museum Wales paleontology curator states that she is “fairly certain they are genuine dinosaur prints.”

Source:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c049pe7gx6do

IDF Kills Ten in Southern Lebanon Preceding US Secretary of State Blinken Visit to Israel and Start of America’s DNC Convention

Israel Defense Forces killed at least ten people during an overnight strike in southern Lebanon, including a mother and her two children. This was the deadliest Israeli strike in southern Lebanon since October 2023. Hezbollah retaliated by firing 55 rockets into northern Israel, causing some fires but no casualties.

This was a calculated move by war crimes-indicted Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to cause a counterattack from the Shia Crescent during critical negotiations with Hamas to reach a cease-fire and release the remaining Israeli hostages (which includes eight AMCITs).

Moreover, the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC) gets underway shortly in Chicago. Any reprisal attack from the Shia Crescent during the convention would demonstrate to Democrats the dangers that Israelis must endure (ignoring the fact that the perils are caused by none other then the bellicose Likud Party).

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III, D/CIA William Burns, and D/DIA Director Lt Gen Jeffrey A. Kruse, as well as the hardworking American taxpayer, must be wondering how and why Benjamin Netanyahu keeps insulting their intelligence with his lethal provocations and brutal policies.

More than 40,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza and over 500 Palestinians have been murdered in the West Bank since October 2023. The Likud Party should simply change its name to the Tsaba (War) Party.

Sources:

Israel kills 10 in southern Lebanon strike ahead of Antony Blinken’s visit – UPI.com

240520-panel-report-eng.pdf (icc-cpi.int)

GOP Presidential Candidate Donald Trump Unravelling and Getting Ridiculed

Former President Donald Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania which was reported to have empty seats and video shows supporters trickling out during one of his rambling speeches. The oldest man to ever run for President also shouted out “North Carolina!” forgetting that he was conducting his rally in Pennsylvania. And with less than 90 days before Election Day, the frustrated 45th President has been unable to stick Kamala Harris with a famous nickname, a shtick to attack enemies he may have learned years ago at the fabled Friar’s Club in NYC .

While Trump historically came up with effective epithets such as “crooked Hillary,” “sleepy Joe,” “Sloppy Steve” (Bannon), or “Lyin’ Ted” (Cruz), the ex-president has yet to come up with nicknames for Harris or Minnesota Governor Tim Walz that have stuck. Trump’s attempts at branding Kamala Harris with “Laffin’ Kamala,” “Lyin’ Kamala,” or “Crazy Kamala” have been ineffective on his Truth Social platform.

Responding to a Republican commentator who remarked Kamala Harris is “beautiful,” Donald Trump replied:

“I say that I am much better looking than her. I’m a better-looking person than Kamala.”

A Democratic strategist responded: “This guy has lost his f—— marbles” and Team Kamala weighed in: “Trump melts down over Kamala Harris being on the cover of TIME Magazine.”

Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party have effectively commandeered the media narrative since President Biden exited the race on 21 July. And after the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the two candidates should see a two to four-point boost in polls. Meanwhile, as Trump prepares for his televised debate with Kamala Harris on 10 Sep, he must also be distracted by his imminent sentencing date on 18 Sep for his 34-count felony conviction in NYS.

Watch below or click here.

Watch below or click here.

‘More empty seats’: Reporter shows people ‘trickling out of’ Trump’s rally as he’s talking – Raw Story

Trump likely in state of ‘panic’ due to ‘ineffective’ nicknames for Kamala Harris: report – Raw Story

‘Lost his marbles’: Trump ridiculed for claiming to be ‘better looking’ than Kamala Harris – Raw Story

USAF Security Personnel Exchange Gunfire With Unknown Assailants

USAF security personnel exchanged gunfire with an unknown shooter in a passing vehicle who twice within two hours opened fire on an entrance to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, early Saturday morning. There were no casualties and the San Antonio Police are investigating.

The motive, number of assailants, or how many rounds were fired are still being determined. The entrance was closed for several hours and the base was not locked down. US and NATO bases in Europe have been on high alert after several attempts by Kremlin-linked saboteurs and infiltrators were thwarted.   

In an average year, 4,122 people die and 7,726 are wounded by firearms in Texas. The Lone Star State has the 29th highest rate of gun violence in the US. Texas firearms licenses in 2021: 1,006,555. 45.7% of Texans say they live in homes with guns.

Sources:

Guards at San Antonio Air Force base exchange fire with unknown shooters – UPI.com

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/07/09/politics/intelligence-russian-sabotage-threat-us-bases-europe/index.html

Gun-Violence-in-Texas-2024-05.pdf (everystat.org)

Lockouts at Canada’s Two Largest Railroads May Disrupt US Supply Chain

Canada’s two largest railroads are starting to shut down their shipping networks as a labor dispute with the Teamsters Union threatens to cause lockouts or strikes that would disrupt cross-border trade with the US. The union represents 10,000 workers at both railroads and they seek cite crew scheduling, rail safety, and worker fatigue has their main sticking points.

Both the Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) and Canadian National (CN) railroads, which haul millions of tons of freight across the border, have stopped taking certain shipments of hazardous materials and refrigerated products. They are threatening to lock out Teamsters Canada workers starting Thursday if deals are not reached. On Tuesday, CPKC will stop all shipments that start in Canada and all shipments originating in the US that are headed for Canada. CN barred container imports from US partner railroads.

The two railroads handle about 40,000 carloads of freight each day, worth about $1 billion. Shipments of fully built automobiles and auto parts, chemicals, forestry products and agricultural goods would be hit hard, especially with harvest season looming.

Analysts expect work stoppages to last only a few days, but if they continue, there could be significant supply chain disruptions. Both railroads have extensive networks in the US, and CPKC also serves Mexico. Those operations will keep running even if there is a work stoppage.

Sources:

Lockouts at Canada’s 2 largest railroads may disrupt US supply chain (voanews.com)

Nearly 68M People Suffering from Drought in Southern Africa

About 68 million people, 17% of the population in Southern Africa, are suffering the effects of an El Nino-induced drought that has wiped out crops across the region. The drought, which started in early 2024, has hit crop and livestock production, causing food shortages and damaging the wider economies.

This is southern Africa’s worst drought in years, owing to a combination of naturally occurring El Nino — when an abnormal warming of the waters in the eastern Pacific changes world weather patterns — and higher average temperatures produced by greenhouse gas emissions.

Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Malawi have already declared the hunger crisis a state of disaster, while Lesotho and Namibia have called for humanitarian support. Heads of state from the 16-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC) were meeting in Zimbabwe’s capital Harare to discuss regional issues including food security.

Sources:

Nearly 68M suffer from drought in Southern Africa, SADC says (voanews.com)

Kiev Opens Investigation into Alleged Beheading of Dead Soldier

Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska speaks at a Russian war crimes exhibition in London (Undated image: James Manning/AP/REX/Shutterstock)

Ukraine’s Prosecutor-General’s Office is investigating an allegation that a Ukrainian soldier participating in the recent Russia incursion was beheaded. A video circulating on social media on 16 August showed a Russian soldier beside a pole with a severed head.

The Telegram channel DeepState identified the Russian soldier in the video as a member of the 155th Marine Brigade, which is deployed near the Kolotilovka checkpoint in the Belgorod region. Ukrainian forces were fighting in that area on 12 August.

Authorities in Kiev are also investigating a 18 June report that Russian troops beheaded a Ukrainian soldier in the eastern Donetsk region.

The desecration of soldiers’ bodies, including mutilation and beheadings, is a war crime.

Sources:

Kyiv Opens Investigation Into Alleged Beheading Of Dead Soldier (rferl.org)

Ukrainian Prosecutor Says Russian Troops Beheaded Ukrainian Soldier (rferl.org)

Melting Arctic Permafrost Could Release Mercury into Waters as Temperature Rise

Flowing across Alaska to the Bering Sea, the Yukon River erodes the permafrost along its banks and carries with it sediment downstream.

As our planet warms, permafrost which contains large amounts of accumulated mercury, is eroding faster and releasing this highly toxic metal into the environment.  Though the mercury released from melting permafrost doesn’t pose a toxic threat today, its impact will grow over time. Mercury gradually accumulates in the food chain, beginning with plants, fish, and animals that humans eventually consume.

Natural atmospheric circulation causes pollutants to move towards higher latitudes. This results in mercury accumulating in the Arctic where it is absorbed by plants which then die and become part of the soil. This freezes in the permafrost – where the ground stays frozen all year round – and over thousands of years, mercury concentrations build up in the soil. In this form, mercury isn’t particularly dangerous. But this toxic metal is released when the soil thaws, and the Arctic is warming four times faster than the global average. This poses a major environmental and health threat to the five million people living in the Arctic and more than three million people who live in areas where the permafrost is expected to disappear completely by 2050.

Unless mankind does something soon, the earth as we know it today won’t be the same for future generations.

Sources:

Melting Arctic permafrost could release a ‘mercury bomb’ as temperatures rise | Euronews

Ex-US Green Beret Linked to Attempted 2020 Venezuelan Coup

Venezuelan forces captured several mercenaries after the failed 2020 coup [Getty Images]

Jordan Goudreau, a decorated former US Green Beret, is being prosecuted for allegedly smuggling automatic weapons from Florida to South America as part of a failed 2020 coup attempt against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. His DNA was found on some of 60 recovered weapons, linking him to illegal arms trafficking that facilitated an amphibious raid against the Maduro government in Venezuela.  

Several fighters were killed and two of Goudreau’s former US Special Forces colleagues were imprisoned in Venezuela. Goudreau allegedly spent $90,000 on a yacht he used to transport ammunition, body armor plates and magazines for AR-15 rifles. Some of the weapons never made it because the yacht sank in the middle of the Caribbean. Goudreau and an unnamed associate had to be rescued by a passing natural gas tanker.

The 2020 anti-Maduro incursion was carried out by a ragtag group of Venezuelan army deserters whom Goudreau allegedly helped arm and train in neighboring Colombia. Goudreau later claimed responsibility for the putsch, but said he was acting in concert with the Venezuelan opposition to protect democracy. The defendant stated he was in touch with then-President Donald Trump’s administration, which made no secret of its desire to see Maduro gone, even though there’s no evidence US officials approved the invasion.

The 48-year-old has no criminal record and was a three-time Bronze Star recipient in Iraq and Afghanistan, but prosecutors argued he was both a danger to the public and a flight risk because of his firearms expertise, access to a sailboat at a USAF base in Tampa and an astonishing $10,000-a-month in military retirement disability income. If convicted, Goudreau faces between 10 and 20 years in prison.

Sources:

Middle District of Florida | Former Green Beret and Venezuelan National Charged with Violating Export and Firearms Laws | United States Department of Justice

US arrests a former Green Beret over the failed 2020 raid into Venezuela to remove Maduro | AP News

DNA on weapons implicates ex-U.S. Green Beret in attempted Venezuelan coup, federal officials say | AP News

FBI Arrests DoD Contractor with Scores of Classified Documents

Gokhan Gun, an electrical engineer and DoD contractor, was arrested by the FBI following a court-ordered search warrant of his home in Falls Church, VA. Investigators became aware that while working for the USAF in Washington, Mr. Gun had printed thousands of documents since starting his job in mid-2023. Many documents were unclassified, but some were marked Top Secret. Mr. Gun printed 256 documents, totaling approximately 3,400 pages. He then printed more than 406 pages of documents, which included 82 with Top Secret headings. Mr. Gun is charged with illegally obtaining and retaining national defense secrets.

Investigators are still trying to determine why Mr. Gun, who became an American citizen in 2021, hoarded so many documents. He nonchalantly carried them out of his office in rolled-up wads in plastic shopping bags. Mr. Gun frequently travels overseas and owns homes in Virginia, Texas and Florida. The FBI arrested the suspect early in the morning at his house while Mr. Gun was preparing to leave for what he described as a “fishing trip” with friends in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The counterintelligence investigation is continuing.

Source:

Defense Dept. Contractor Arrested With Dozens of Classified Documents – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Fire at Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant in Occupied Ukraine, but Officials Say Safety Not Compromised

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said radiation indicators appeared normal for the plant.

The brutal Russian invasion of Ukraine established a new precedent. For the first time in history, a nuclear power plant has been occupied by a hostile foreign power. Russian forces took over the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant early during Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” against Ukraine. Worldwide concerns skyrocketed about potential radiation leaks or fallout from any mishap at the atomic plant.

A fire broke out on 11 August at a cooling tower at this nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine following what Russian officials allege was Ukrainian shelling, which Kiev denied. Plant management reported the fire was still blazing but that it was not endangering the safe operation of the facility. Ukrainian officials disclosed there was unofficial information or rumors that Russian forces had set fire to a large number of automobile tires in the cooling towers.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has access to the site and reported no impact on nuclear safety. Along with the EU Joint Research Center, they are monitoring radiation levels in a potentially catastrophic situation for Europe, Ukraine, and Russia.

Sources:

Zelenskiy / Official – Telegram

Update 241 – IAEA Director General Statement on Situation in Ukraine | IAEA

Radiological Maps – European Commission (europa.eu)Fire Hits Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant, But Officials Say Safety Not Compromised (rferl.org)

Ex-POTUS Donald J. Trump Losing Support from Within: ‘You’re gonna lose this!’

Mr. David McAfee at Raw Story reports that Donald Trump is getting pushback on his latest conspiracy theory from his own MAGA supporters. The former president claimed that VPOTUS Kamala Harris was faking her huge crowd sizes by using AI. The claim was ranked as “just false” by CNN, and one lawmaker said this comment made Trump unfit to be president. When Trump posted this absurd claim on Truth Social, some of his own supporters encouraged the GOP presidential nominee to back off.

Raw Story catalogued the following MAGA criticisms:

@Trumpbobo: “You realized that there is a video right that so otherwise shows.”

@Gobbyrocks: “It’s not fake, Trump. Please fire your disastrous advisors immediately before we lose this election!”

@Magahlahgo: “Are you ever going to talk about what you plan on doing if you win? Nobody cares about her crowds.”

@Cordlopez: “Please shut the f— up and get focused.”

@Witness023: “No. Consult with a good expert on this. They are going to make us look dumb.”

@Deplorable59: “STFU about the crowd size. She’s getting bigger crowds now face that fact. You’re gonna lose this! Stop with this bulls— – get out on the road. Talk to the people-don’t talk about her personally. Talk about the issues and what you will do to change things. You’re our only hope – you gotta stop screwing it up!”

Karlyn Borysenko: “I want you to win but you have got to start hinging back into reality and stop listening to anyone who lies to you about Kamala’s campaign. This is a video that aired live of the event. It is real. The photos are being generated from a parody account.”

Conservative influencer Ian Miles Cheong: “Kamala’s crowd at the airport was in fact real,” he wrote. “You can claim they’re paid actors or that they were just there for a concert but they are definitely not AI.”

Our deepest appreciation to Mr. David McAfee at Raw Story for monitoring Truth Social and presenting his findings.

Source:

‘You’re gonna lose this!’ Trump fans rebel against him over ‘A.I.’ Harris rally claim – Raw Story

Five Suspects Arrested for Rocket Attack on al-Asad Air Base in Iraq

Iraqi security personnel detained five individuals in connection with a rocket attack on al-Asad Air Base in western Iraq that wounded four US servicemembers and a defense contractor. Three rockets were launched by an Iranian-backed militia, two of which impacted the base, while the third rocket was intercepted. US CENTCOM is investigating how the rockets penetrated defense measures. See map at bottom.

The attack is the latest targeting al-Asad Air Base in recent weeks. On 25 July, two rockets were launched but did not strike the base. On 16 July, the base came under attack by two drones, one of which struck the base but caused minimal damage. The second drone launched in the same attack was shot down. No casualties were reported following either attack.

US bases in the region are prone to retaliatory strikes by pro-Iranian Shia militias whenever Israel attacks Iranian sovereign territory with rockets or drones or conducts extra-judicial killings (XJK) in Iran, Syria, or Lebanon. Shia Houthis on the Arabian Peninsula in support of their co-religionists in Iran similarly retaliate against maritime Western targets that may be allied or associated with Israel.

This last rocket attack followed an order by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to move additional warships and a fighter squadron to the Middle East to bolster Israel’s defense. The decision to move US forces came ahead of an anticipated Iranian counterattack in response to the Israeli assassination of Palestinian resistance leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

Source:

5 arrested for rocket attack on base in Iraq that injured 4 service members, 1 contractor | Stars and Stripes

“Absolute loyalty’: Xi Jinping Focuses Anti-Corruption Campaign on China’s Military

Xi Jinping has unleashed a new campaign to enforce party discipline and root out corruption in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), in a sign that the Chinese leader’s decade-long push to exert tight personal control over the armed forces has fallen short.

The Central Military Commission, China’s top military leadership organ which Xi chairs, called for the establishment of an “early warning mechanism for integrity risks in the military” and announced a probe into corruption in equipment procurement going back almost six years.

The renewed campaign to root out corruption comes as several top officers of the PLA’s Rocket Force, which oversees the country’s nuclear and conventional missile arsenals, have disappeared from public view — often a signal of an investigation. China’s former foreign minister Qin Gang was absent from public commitments for a month before he was replaced by his predecessor.

According to Cercius, a Canada-based consultancy tracking elite Chinese politics, the status of about 10 current and former Rocket Force officials is unclear. Rod Lee, a leading expert on the PLA Rocket Force at the USAF Academy suggested the possibility that some, if not all, of these individuals were “rolled up for discipline or corruption.”

In an unprecedented move in 2022, China extradited Yanjun Xu, a senior operative in the Ministry of State Security (MSS) to the US. He is the first Chinese intelligence officer ever to be extradited to America to stand trial. Xu targeted US aviation companies, recruited employees to travel to China, and solicited their proprietary information, stealing advanced technology on behalf of Beijing.

The 42-year-old veteran spy was eventually convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Yanjun Xu (USM #77877-061) is incarcerated at Otisville FCI New York, and scheduled to be released 16 April 2035.

Sources:

‘Absolute loyalty’: Xi Jinping turns anti-corruption focus to China’s military (ft.com)

Office of Public Affairs | Chinese Government Intelligence Officer Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Espionage Crimes, Attempting to Steal Trade Secrets From Cincinnati Company | United States Department of Justice

Approximately 320 US military personnel are assigned to al-Asad Airbase alongside 9,000 or so Iraqi airmen and soldiers. Denmark and Norway maintain a combined contingency of 190 personnel.

Maniac who Attacked US Capitol Police on 6 Jan 2021 Sentenced to 20 Years

US Justice Dept image shows David Dempsey stomping on police officers in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel at the US Capitol on 6 Jan 2021.

David Dempsey (37) of Santa Ana, CA, was sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to assaulting law enforcement with a dangerous weapon during the 6 Jan 2021 attack on the US Capitol. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the US Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

Senior US District Judge Royce C. Lamberth, a President Ronald Reagan nomination, confined David Dempsey to 240 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered him to pay $2,000 in restitution.

Prosecutors described this runamok as one of the most violent members of Donald Trump supporters that attacked the Capitol as lawmakers met to certify Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory. David Dempsey represents America’s “Fedayeen Saddam,” a white supremacist dead-ender who stomped on heads, swung poles and a metal crutch, and attacked police officers with pepper spray and broken pieces of furniture.

US Justice Dept image shows David Dempsey throwing a pole at a police officer in the Lower West Terrace at the US Capitol on 6 Jan 2021.

Unless presidentially pardoned, this miscreant will grace the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) with his departure when he is 57 years of age. After two decades of incarceration, Davis Dempsey will not have contributed much towards his Social Security retirement and he will have to find adequate employment just to sustain him plus save money for his imminent golden years.

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 the attack on the US Capitol, including nearly 550 seditionists charged with feloniously assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The FBI investigation remains ongoing.

Sources:

District of Columbia | California Man Sentenced for Assaulting Law Enforcement with a Dangerous Weapon During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach | United States Department of Justice

https://www.rawstory.com/capitol-riot-arrests-2654807458

Ukrainian SBU Uses Double Agent to Apprehend Senior Russian GRU Agent in Kiev

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) arrested a senior agent of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU) through the use of their own double agent. A Russian operator was organizing a sabotage cell in Kiev to target select vehicles with arson. An individual previously caught by the SBU became a double agent for them and documented the subversive activities of the female Russian military intelligence officer. This is called “turning in place.”

She recruited and coordinated the arsonists and helped them organize other subversive activities in Kiev. The woman gave instruction in the manufacture of homemade ignition devices, which were to be used to destroy military vehicles. The GRU operative arranged to film the arson attack to be committed by the SBU double agent and was caught in the act.

The captured operative will be charged with acts of treason committed under martial law for which she faces life imprisonment with confiscation of property. She may be used in a future prisoner swap for a high value Ukrainian operative held by the Kremlin.

The SBU also reported the detention of a 32-year-old fitness trainer from Odessa who set fire to the cars of the Armed Forces in Kyiv, Dnipro and Odessa on the orders of the FSB. The Odessa man, who was looking for quick money on the Internet, set fire to an АFU van in Kiev after having traveled to the capital, where he rented an apartment for one day. At night, he set fire to the parked military vehicle, capturing the result on his phone which Russia wanted to “prove” the existence of a pro-Russian underground in Kyiv. He intended to carry out similar actions in other Ukrainian cities.

The Ukrainian intelligence services continue to improve, neutralizing threats within their border and maintaining a clandestine network within Russia. Overall Operational Security (OPSEC) is also excellent, as the Russian military seems to have been caught unawares of Ukraine’s recent surprise offensive into Kursk. Either that, or the Kremlin ignored intelligence of the imminent AFU attack. President Putin appeared displeased at a recent emergency session of his national security council.

Sources:

SBU Uses Double Agent to Apprehend a Senior GRU Agent in Kyiv (kyivpost.com)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/23/ukraine-cia-shadow-war-russia/

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/08/09/putin-seethes-as-ukraines-shock-incursion-catches-leadership-by-surprise-a85970

Wildfires Rage Across North America

The US Forest Service is at “the highest level of wildfire response possible,” as forests grapple with record-breaking dry timber conditions. Last year, more than 1,600,000 hectares of land in Canada were scorched, setting a new record. In the US, NOAA reported that 55,571 fires burned 2,633,636 acres of land. North America could see similar or more damage this year. Drier conditions caused by global climate change are the root cause.

The first link below is an interactive real-time NASA map to show you the extent of the current conflagration.

Unless mankind can turn things around PDQ, Mother Nature will have a difficult time to recuperating from these grievous environmental wounds which impacts oxygen levels in the atmosphere and our delicate food cycle. The same can be said about our oceans. Warming waters are creating more “dead zones” and “algae blooms,” killing off the flora and fauna of the Seven Seas. One such oxygen-depriving “dead zone” the size of New Jersey is lurking in the Gulf of Mexico. The time to act is now to save our environment for future generations.

Sources:

https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/usfs/map/#d:24hrs;@-100.0,40.0,4.0z

https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/wildfires-tracker-canada

https://www.nbcnews.com/western-wildfires

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/01/dead-zones-in-our-oceans-have-increased-dramatically-since-1950-and-we-re-to-blame/

https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/phytoplankton-blooms-grow-climate-change-1.6764789

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/weather/topstories/a-dead-zone-about-the-size-of-new-jersey-lurks-in-the-gulf-of-mexico/ar-BB1r2LAt

Canadian North Korea UN Expert Detained in Switzerland for Espionage

Swiss authorities took the rare and unusual move to detain an unnamed Canadian in spring 2024 on suspicions of spying, most likely for China. Craig LNU is a resident of Geneva and a former UN expert on North Korea. He first attracted the attention of the Swiss Federal Intelligence Service when he met with a suspected Chinese spy and appeared to accept cash in return for providing information.

The suspect sought to capitalize on his knowledge of North Korean diplomats with whom he had cultivated relationships over many years. This investigation is an effort by Switzerland to root out Chinese espionage operations in Geneva, home to multiple UN organizations, and the arrest is highly unusual in a country that typically asks spies to quietly leave. The Chinese military intelligence agent, accredited to Beijing’s permanent mission to Geneva, has since left Switzerland. 

“It is very rare for the Swiss authorities to make arrests on spying charges, let alone bringing such a matter eventually to court,” advised an expert on Chinese operations at the University of Basel. The last major case in which Switzerland is known to have detained a foreign national for espionage dates back to 1998, when authorities arrested a Mossad agent in Bern targeting the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

“If [the Swiss authorities prosecute a suspect], one must assume that they have a solid case,” he said, suggesting that external pressure may have played a role in Bern’s actions. If charged and convicted of gathering military, economic and political intelligence for a foreign government, Craig LNU could face up to three years in a Swiss prison.

Nota Bene: Swiss and Western intelligence agencies must intensively debrief Craig LNU for damage assessment, which is probably being discreetly conducted . If the suspect shared sensitive information about former UN colleagues or North Korean diplomats, he may have put them in grave peril when they travel to China or North Korea, both of which have a have a history of detaining foreigners on allegations of espionage, subversion and other trumped-up charges.

Source:

North Korea expert, missing for months, detained in Switzerland for espionage | NK News

GOP Nominee to Run North Carolina Schools Advocated pro-Trump Military Coup in 6 January 2021 Video and Deaths of Presidents Obama and Biden

Michele Morrow, who supported a putsch against the US government on 6 Jan 2021, as well as advocated the public executions of Presidents Obama and Biden, is seeking a position where her estimated annual salary could be as high as $172,318. 

Michele Morrow, the Republican nominee to run the K-12 public education system in North Carolina, filmed a video while attending the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol urging then-President Donald Trump to put “the Constitution to the side” and use the US military to stay in power. This same person who has been nominated to run North Carolina’s $11 billion budget for K-12 public schools and set education priorities and the curriculum, also called for violence against Democrats, including executing Presidents Obama and Biden.

Morrow was at the US Capitol as the 6 January 2021 attack occurred, according to public videos reviewed by CNN that show her in a restricted area on the northwest side of the Capitol. CNN has seen no evidence that Morrow entered the Capitol building that day or that she engaged in violence, and she was not charged with any crimes.

In the March 2024 Republican primary, Morrow defeated the incumbent North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction. That same month, CNN’s KFile reported Morrow had previously called for the public execution of Barack Obama and the death of Joe Biden and other prominent Democrats in comments on a since-deleted X account. The candidate has purged past extremist posts since running for office.

Remarkable that North Carolina is an election away from giving a handsome annual salary of potentially $172,318 to a neo-Confederate to manage its $11bn K-12 public school system. If the normal people of the Tar Heel State allow this Trump supporter to win the election, they will have to hold their noses for four years as their hard-earned tax dollars provide Michele Morrow with a robust salary as she oversees the curriculum being taught to 1,459,852 public school (and possibly 77,791 charter school) students.

Sources:

https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2024/03/21/north-carolina-gop-public-schools-nominee-sot-ac360-vpx.cnn

https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/14/politics/kfile-gop-nominee-north-carolina-public-schools-michele-morrow-executing-democrats

https://www.dpi.nc.gov/documents/fbs/resources/fy25webschedulesupdated7-12-24pdf/download?attachment

Israeli airstrike on Gaza school used as shelter kills at least 80, Palestinian officials report

An Israeli airstrike hit a school-turned-shelter in Gaza early Saturday, killing at least 80 people and wounding nearly 50 others, Palestinian health authorities reported. This was one of the deadliest IDF attacks over the past ten months. A witness said the munitions struck during prayers at a mosque in the building.

This attack was the latest of what a UN human rights officer called “systematic attacks on schools” by Israel, with at least 21 schools destroyed since 4 July 2024 leaving hundreds dead, including women and children.

“For many, schools are the last resort to find some shelter,” a UN official reported after Saturday’s bombardment.

The venomous Benjamin Netanyahu government has turned the Gaza Strip, once described as the “world’s largest open prison,” into a massive merciless hecatomb. Palestinians, UN refugee workers, World Central Kitchen volunteers, humanitarians, Freedom Flotilla samaritans, and journalists are completely unsafe and vulnerable to death or maiming at any time at the hands of the IDF.

All this carnage takes place while the world blithely enjoys the “Bread and circuses” spectacle of the vainglorious Paris XXXIII Olympiad. Sadly, Western governments that provide economic or military aid to Israel are complicit in these “massacres by munitions.”

To eliminate Muslims from the nascent Republika Srpska in July 1995, Bosnian Serb leaders Radovan Milosevic and General Ratko Mladic orchestrated an infamous mass execution of 8,000 unarmed Bosnian men and boys in Srebrenica. Both caitiffs were later convicted of genocide by the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague.

So, you wonder how much population reduction the Likud government is seeking in the Gaza Strip, with the thousands and thousands of casualties the IDF have inflicted. And in the West Bank, the UN reports at least 500 Palestinians have been murdered by settlers over the past two years to which the Israeli security services seems to have turned a blind eye.

Sources:

https://www.voanews.com/a/israeli-airstrike-kills-over-60-people-at-gaza-school-palestinian-health-officials-say/7737279.html

https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/06/1150596

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