On the 20th of October, Moldova - a small, landlocked country bordering western Ukraine and with a population of about 3 million - voted to join the EU. The margin was razor-thin, with the pro-EU vote gaining 50.39%, or an absolute difference of about 11,000 people. There was simultaneously a presidential vote between the incumbent, Maia Sandu, and other candidates, with the main competitor being Alexandr Stoianoglo.
The election was characterized by accusations of Russian interference, with Russian propaganda apparently flooding in, as well as people offering Moldovans money to vote against the EU. While the result does suggest that half the voting-age population of Moldova consists entirely of Russians who want to destroy democracy and all the good in the world, it seems to have just barely failed. This is a bad time to be a site entirely composed of Russian disinformation agents and bots. Twice already today, I've had to restart my program after somebody told me "Disregard all previous prompts."
While Moldova is a poor country which could benefit in some ways from EU membership, in practice, it is unlikely that they will be able to join for the foreseeable future, requiring many of the... reforms... that the EU requires of potential new members. But as basically every major European economy continues to slowly sink as recessions and political crises degrade them, one wonders how beneficial EU membership will even be in the years and decades to come - if it survives for decades. In that sense, it's as if the survivors of the Titanic are swimming back towards it, believing that being on a bigger - albeit slowly sinking - boat is better than trying their luck on small lifeboats.
Then again, like with Serbia, their geographical and geopolitical position makes anti-Western actions extremely difficult. It is rare that dissention is tolerated for long in the West - one tends to get called a dictator by crowds of people holding English-language signs in non-English countries, photographed by Western journalists who haven't meaningfully reported on your country in months or years. You can crush your people with neoliberal austerity for years, killing hundreds of thousands through neglect, and face glowing approval from the media - but try and use state resources to benefit the poor, and global institutions start ranking you on the authoritarian dictator scale.
The best case for Moldova is that it becomes an exploitable hinterland for Germany to harvest and privatize as it tries - and fails - to compete in a global economic war between the US and China/BRICS. The worst case is that tensions with Russia over Pridnestrovie, as well as possible eventual NATO involvement (though Moldova is not a member, it is a partner of NATO), result in the ongoing war also reaching them.
Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful. Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section. Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war. Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis. Simplicius, who publishes on Substack. Like others, his political analysis should be soundly ignored, but his knowledge of weaponry and military strategy is generally quite good.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.
Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.
Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:
Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.
https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language. https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one. https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts. https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel. https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator. https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps. https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language. https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language. https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses. https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.
Danish Muslim Leaders Boycott Government Meeting on Anti-Semitism In Reaction To Scapegoating
Danish Muslim leaders has boycotted a meeting with two government ministers on anti-Semitism, following hateful remarks and unfounded accusations from the ministers. They call for broader talks on both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, but the regime has yet to respond.
Read more…
At the last minute Muslim leaders in Denmark have pulled out of a meeting with regime officials scheduled to take place today. The meeting whose official agenda was to address anti-Semitism was initially perceived by Muslim leaders as a dialogue meeting but following a recent article in reactionary broadsheet Jyllands-Posten, the agenda has now shifted to what Danish Muslim Union spokesperson Urfan Ahmed describes as "a one-sided monologue" which would "create more division than dialogue". Ahmed stated that Muslim leaders "will not attend a meeting where the agenda is to shame one population group at the expense of another."
According to Jyllands-Posten, the meeting, organized by Social Democrat Immigration Minister Kaare Dybvad and Liberal Party Minister of Ecclesiastical Affairs Morten Dahlin, aimed to "lecture" the Muslim community on so-called anti-Semitism. The article quoted the officials for intending to "make it very clear" that imams are responsible for what, in their view, are "pockets of Muslim communities where hatred of Jews and sympathy for terrorism thrive."
Islamophobia and zionism are widespread among Denmark's political elite who often conflate anti-zionism with anti-Semitism in an attempt to discredit the Palestinian liberation movement. Dybvad and Dahlin are both known islamophobes and the regime has taken steps to criminalise pro-Palestinian activism while allowing unhindered zionist hate speech.
In addition to cancelling today's meeting Muslim leaders extended an invitation to the two ministers to meet at the offices of the Danish Muslim Union to engage in a broader discussion on both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, but no response has been received from the government.
In a statement following the cancellation, the two ministers claimed to be at a loss. Kaare Dybvad persisted in scapegoating Muslims, saying that "Unfortunately, this says a lot about the difficulty some Danish Muslims have in acknowledging the problems of anti-Semitism and radicalization."
Dybvad has further made the claim that "the current atmosphere would change" if "imams took far more active ownership of promoting tolerance toward Jews".
Urhan Ahmed points out that the claims of widespread anti-Semitism in the Muslim community lacks solid evidence. The report used by the regime to back up it's claims was commissioned by Jyllands-Posten following last year's Al-Aqsa Flood and has severe methodological flaws, resulting in it being dismissed by experts.
He rejects claims that Islam has anything to do with antisemitism and says:
"It is very disappointing for me, and we are deeply saddened that this form of suspicion is coming from the top of Danish political life"
2,000 Ukrainian military personnel are blocked in the Kursk region, the Russian army has begun to eliminate this group
Footage of North Korean soldiers in Russia is a serious thing, if there are pictures, they reflect something there...
I will not confirm or deny Western media reports, but the DPRK is serious about implementing the treaty in terms of joint defense.
Kyiv’s irretrievable and sanitary losses in the Kursk direction amounted to 26 thousand people
Strange thing to stomp your feet about, considering those generals went on to have Illustrious careers in the West German military. (Never ask a man his salary, a woman his age, or What the person who your barracks in the Bundeswehr is named after did)
not entirely Hitler-like, considering Hitler hated Hitler's Generals. "I wish they had all been shot in the 30s like Stalin did"
Causally reading my city's subreddit and the really just jumped out as I was reading a story about police recovering alot of stolen items from one homeless guy. The usual, "oh why can't we solve this?" Without any clue, suggestions of more police, more mental health institutions, except the heavily down voted guy who said the obvious "give them homes!" That pissed off all the people who I assume are threatened by people having safe places to live.
The thing that really broke my brain was a heavily upvoted comment about how we really need to set these bad folks straight, you know break them through work, and literally wrote out "work shall.set them free". And I'm done with my local subreddit for a long while now. 50 upvotes, the guy who calls it out as being a fucking literal Nazis concentration camp motto is down voted and I can't even anymore.
How long do you think it will take the west to return to polgroms once the zionist entity is destroyed and every settler come back to europe and America ?
There is a headline right now on The Hill’s website that says “Key Republican: US should consider direct military action if North Korean troops enter Ukraine”. This is one among many similar headlines this week. Just further evidence to what everyone here is saying, that this is an obvious way to manufacture support for direct involvement by NATO. I menan, this whole idea that the west “must” intervene if the DPRK gets involved… like, why? Why is that some kind of red line? I’ve never seen someone reasonably articulate why A leads to B but that’s because it’s bullshit of course.
Edit: it’s funny, reading the article itself there’s this nugget: “The White House said earlier Wednesday that Washington had assessed at least 3,000 North Korean troops are undergoing training at military bases in eastern Russia, with fears they will eventually be sent to Ukraine to fight alongside Kremlin forces” [emphasis mine]
So in other words, a small number of troops are training with a military ally an entire continent away from the fighting. But maybe they’ll end up in Ukraine eventually!
How much do you want to bet there’s more than 3,000 NATO “advisors” in Ukraine right now?
I think if Trump wins we all need to be on high alert for NATO trying to commit actual ground troops to Ukraine before inauguration in order to try and force Trump not to back out.
There is a lot of good stuff in this that I don't have time to summarize but I think worth understanding the zangezur corridor and alternatives that go around it to understand terrain of future sanctions actions to isolate China. There's a nice bit of western private equity grift in the three seas initiative as well.
This passage stood out me, though this isn't the main point of the article.
Today while the territory doesn’t fly a new flag when conquered, If we view it through the lens of neoliberalism and financialization of infrastructure, much of the fighting is over who gets to collect the rent.
Could the “rules-based international order” mean that the Russians can mine their resources, the Chinese can process them, and the Chinese can build it, but Western oligarchs must own it?
Federal Police (Brazil's FBI) carries out operation to arrest suspect of using false documents to remove R$8 million (US$ 1.400.000,00) worth of cell phones at Guarulhos airport
'Operation Fake Cargo' began when Receita Federal (Brazil's IRS) inspectors became suspicious of the documentation presented by the suspect to remove a 900 kg load of Iphones from Miami, USA. The suspect arrested works for the Israeli Consulate.
The target of the arrest is a driver who works for the Israeli Consulate. He was arrested by the federal agents, who are also investigating the involvement of other people who work at the consulate.
According to TV Globo, another consulate employee initially responded to the summons verbally, saying that the driver's operation was legal. It was only after the Receita Federal (Brazil's IRS) denied the delivery without an official response from the Embassy that this same employee started to say that they didn't recognize the operation.
Is this just more spying? Israelis laundering money? Or another operation to install explosives inside these phones?
Bahçeli had also addressed Öcalan at the party group meeting a week ago, saying, "He should unilaterally declare that terrorism is over and that his organization will be liquidated."
Speaking at his party's group meeting on Tuesday, Devlet Bahçeli, the leader of the ruling party's Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), once again called on Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), who is in İmralı Prison, by saying, "If the isolation of the terrorist leader is lifted, let him come and speak at the DEM Party group meeting in the Turkish Grand National Assembly."
"Let them shout that terrorism has completely ended and the organization has been disbanded," said Bahçeli, adding, "Legal regulations regarding the use of the right to hope should be made and the way should be wide open for them to benefit from it."
Stating that they are ready to take responsibility for "a politics without terrorism", Bahçeli continued his words as follows: "If everyone is in alliance, we are ready to do our part, not just our hands but our bodies. Neither Kandil nor Edirne; the address should extend from İmralı to DEM, and this serious and historical terrorism problem should be completely removed from the country's agenda."
Bahçeli also said, "Who knows, maybe I will have taken the first step towards permanently solving the shackles that bind our nation." Bahçeli had also addressed Öcalan at the party group meeting a week ago, saying, " He should unilaterally declare that terrorism is over and that his organization will be liquidated ."
Bahçeli, recalling the words of Öcalan, who was captured in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, in February 1999, when he was brought to Turkey, "I love my country. My mother was Turkish too. If I have the opportunity to serve, I will do it. I will serve when I return to Turkey," asked the PKK leader to give instructions to "lay down the weapons."
The handshake at the opening of the parliament
At the opening of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) on Tuesday, October 1, MHP leader Bahçeli shook hands with the members of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) group.
Bahçeli shook hands with DEM Party Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan, DEM Party Group Deputy Chairman Sezai Temelli, DEM Party Van Deputy Pervin Buldan and DEM Party Ağrı Deputy Sırrı Sakık. Asked by members of the press about his "handshake with the DEM Party", Bahçeli said, "While we want peace in the world, we need to ensure peace in our own country."
The following sentences stood out in Bahçeli's speech at the group meeting held last week, in which he also touched upon the handshake with the DEM Party in the parliament: "It is in everyone's best interest for the DEM Party to come to its senses on this issue and refrain from whipping up an environment of provocation in order to sabotage the hand I have extended. The hand I have extended is a sincere and well-intentioned hand. The hand I have extended is a message to unite in Turkey, to unite in the Turkish nation."
'I am ready to extend my hand for the interests of the Republic of Türkiye'
In last week's group meeting, Bahçeli, referring to the atmosphere of softening between the MHP and DEM Party, said, "When necessary, I extend my hand and call for a gathering around common and national values; when necessary, I extend my head for the homeland, the nation, the flag, the call to prayer, the state, and I drink the sherbet of martyrdom not just for a taste but to my heart's content. I am ready and willing to hold hands around basic and common values and extend my hand in every environment for the sake of the supreme interests of the Republic of Turkey."
Speaking to Euronews Turkish a few weeks ago about Bahçeli shaking hands with the DEM Party group in parliament, DEM Party
Group Deputy Chair Gülistan Koçyiğit had commented , "We need to express that yesterday's handshake was due to the nature of politics. It was wrong that it had not happened until now . "
"We do not find it right to attribute a special meaning to shaking hands," said Koçyiğit, adding, "This is the nature of politics and the normality of the parliamentary foundation. This is exactly how it should be."
MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli shook hands with DEM Party Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan, DEM Party Group Deputy Chairman Sezai Temelli, DEM Party Van Deputy Pervin Buldan and DEM Party Ağrı Deputy Sırrı Sakık.
Speaking to Euronews Turkish on Monday, DEM Party Group Deputy Chairman Sezai Temelli, who was one of the names who shook hands with Bahçeli, said , "Contrary to what was reflected in the press and public opinion, there is no resolution process on the agenda of Ankara politics . "
Former Justice and Development Party (AK Party) MP Mehmet Metiner told Euronews Turkish that he found "no harm" in the government's meeting with PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan.
Solution process in Turkey
The resolution process refers to the negotiations that began between the PKK and the Turkish state in Turkey between 2013 and 2015. This process was initiated with the aim of resolving the Kurdish issue through peaceful means.
The key elements of the process included disarmament, democratic reforms and the expansion of rights for Kurdish identity. PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan played a key role in these negotiations. However, the resolution process effectively ended with the resumption of conflict in 2015. This period brought about significant changes in the political dynamics in Turkey.
Founded on November 28, 1978 in the Lice district of Diyarbakır, the PKK is considered a terrorist organization by the European Union, the United States of America (USA), the United Kingdom, France, Turkey and many other states.
According to official figures, PKK militants have killed nearly 15,000 people in their attacks that have lasted nearly 40 years.
PKK leader Öcalan has been held in İmralı Prison on the Sea of Marmara since 1999, when he was sentenced to life imprisonment for founding and leading a terrorist organization.
@sisatici@hexbear.net Is this a cursed alliance between the Grey Wolves and the Kurds against Iran?
In 2022, Warsaw estimated that Berlin would need to shell out PLN 6.2 trillion (around $1.5 trillion) in compensation for damages inflicted by the Nazi occupation.
According to the minister, "the ball is now in Germany’s court," with the onus on them to "offer a creative decision." He suggested that the neighboring country could take care of the remaining survivors of the Nazi occupation of Poland and erect a memorial in Berlin to commemorate the tragic events.
Going from demanding $1.5 trillion in reparations to suggesting a cheap memorial tucked away in some obscure corner of some shitty park.
Mhp, nationalist party, owner of the grey wolves, is advocating for release of Abdullah Öcalan. Most likely reason mhp is demanding release of Abdullah Öcalan is that they are trying to make peace with ypg that will allow ypg to participate in attack on Iran by USA
It's been four fucking days and we still don't know the results of the BC provincial election in
spoiler
NDP (mildly social democratic party) narrowly dodged a bullet by a surging Conservative party that didn't even really exist like two years ago. Problem is, it's a hung parliament, nobody got a majority.
The greens (who won two seats) have expressed willingness to prop up the NDP (by the most narrow of margins) but there's still ~49,000 mail-in and absentee ballots that they're not counting until this weekend for some fucking reason?
BCCP is absolutely Q Anon tier crazy. So all week we get to live in suspense not knowing what the next 4 years hold in store.
Syria state media claims car explosion in Damascus caused by Israel. Israel claims responsibility, says it was a strike on a commander of Hezbollah. Source: Al Jazeera
Some U.S. universities have torn down solidarity sukkahs that Jewish students opposed to Israel's war on Palestinians have built in recent days to honor the Sukkot holiday and to "protest as the Israeli military continues to invoke the Jewish tradition as fuel for the destruction of Gaza."
So there's this spanish-speaking twitter account called "Palestina Hoy" which posts news about the ongoing genocide in Gaza and they said they have been blocked by twitter which prevented people from following them. That is true, when you clicked on follow and refreshed the page, it would say "Follow" again, as if you never decided to follow said account.
In total, this account had like 2k followers, while many of their posts had like 5k+ likes, so it's completely true that they were under blockade. The blockade was lifted after weeks and they went from 2k followers to 302k followers in mere hours.
death to twitter, death to elon musk and death to "israel"
Follow up to my earlier post about far-right accounts trying to vaguely get ahead of some anti-Trump story they found out was dropping. A former model accused Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her in front of Jeffrey Epstein immediately after Epstein introduced her to him at Trump's penthouse at Trump Tower. I don't really know who this is going to sway at this point who didn't already think Trump was a creep.
Stacey Williams says the ex-president, whose spokesperson denied the allegations, touched her in an unwanted sexual way in 1993, after Epstein introduced them
A former model who says she met Donald Trump through the late sexual abuser Jeffrey Epstein has accused the former president of groping and sexually touching her in an incident in Trump Tower in 1993, in what she believed was a “twisted game” between the two men.
Stacey Williams, who worked as a professional model in the 1990s, said she first met Trump in 1992 at a Christmas party after being introduced to him by Epstein, who she believed was a good friend of the then New York real estate developer. Williams said Epstein was interested in her and the two casually dated for a period of a few months.
“It became very clear then that he and Donald were really, really good friends and spent a lot of time together,” Williams said.
The alleged groping occurred some months later, in the late winter or early spring of 1993, when Epstein suggested during a walk they were on that he and Williams stop by to visit Trump at Trump Tower. Epstein was later convicted on sex offenses and killed himself in prison in 2019.
Moments after they arrived, she alleges, Trump greeted Williams, pulled her toward him and started groping her. She said he put his hands “all over my breasts” as well as her waist and her buttocks. She said she froze because she was “deeply confused” about what was happening. At the same time, she said she believed she saw the two men smiling at each other.
Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary for Donald Trump’s campaign, provided a statement denying the allegations, which said in part: “These accusations, made by a former activist for Barack Obama and announced on a Harris campaign call two weeks before the election, are unequivocally false. It’s obvious this fake story was contrived by the Harris campaign.”
Williams, who is 56 and a native of Pennsylvania, has shared parts of her allegation on social media posts in the past, but revealed details about the alleged encounter on a call on Monday organized by a group called Survivors for Kamala, which supports Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris. The Zoom call featured actor Ashley Judd and law professor and academic Anita Hill, among others. Survivors for Kamala also took out an ad in the New York Times this week, signed by 200 survivors of sexual and gender violence, which was meant to serve as a reminder that Trump has been found liable for sexual abuse in a court.
After the alleged incident, Williams said that she and Epstein left Trump Tower, and that she began to feel Epstein growing angry at her.
“Jeffrey and I left and he didn’t look at me or speak to me and I felt this seething rage around me, and when we got down to the sidewalk, he looked at me and just berated me, and said: ‘Why did you let him do that?’” she said on the Zoom call.
“He made me feel so disgusting and I remember being so utterly confused,” she said.
She described how the alleged incident seemed to her to be part of a “twisted game”.
“I felt shame and disgust and as we went our separate ways, I felt this sensation of revisiting it, while the hands were all over me. And I had this horrible pit in my stomach that it was somehow orchestrated. I felt like a piece of meat,” she said in an interview with the Guardian.
South Korea will consider sending Ukraine “weapons for defense and attack,” according to the Yonhap news agency, which cited an unnamed senior presidential official on Tuesday.
Yonhap also reported Seoul may send military and intelligence personnel to Ukraine to analyze North Korean battlefield tactics and assist in interrogations of captured North Koreans. In a statement, South Korea’s National Security Council called for the “immediate withdrawal” of North Korean troops from Russia and pledged unspecified “phased countermeasures.”
Last week, South Korea’s intelligence agency said North Korea already has sent about 1,500 special forces to Russia to join the war in Ukraine, and it is planning to deploy a total of 12,000 troops from an elite unit. U.S. and NATO officials have said they cannot confirm the North Korean troop deployment but have condemned North Korea-Russia military cooperation, including Pyongyang's supply of artillery and missiles for use in Ukraine.
The Ghost of Pyongyang? Imaginary DPRK soldiers?
Western countries have long urged South Korea, one of the world’s biggest weapons exporters, to directly arm Ukraine. South Korea has resisted, fearing this could prompt Russia to expand military ties with North Korea, which seeks advanced weapons targeting Seoul.
Saying the following as someone who is fully on board with the idea that Trump or Harris are equally bad for Palestine; that there are no “harm reduction” choices and either one will mean that genocide and ethnic cleansing will continue:
I’m genuinely worried about Miriam Adelson and her relationship with Trump. More than the relationship between Netanyahu and Trump.
She’s already given Trump $100 million and she’s got over $30 billion more. She was always an insane Zionist but apparently she’s gotten much worse since Oct 7. The rumor was that the $100 million was contingent on Trump supporting the full annexation of the West Bank which of course her people denied but I don’t doubt it’s probably true.
Brazilian President, Lula da Silva, speech at the BRICS meeting:
Climate Change
“There is no doubt that the greatest responsibility lies with the rich countries, whose emissions record has culminated in the climate crisis that afflicts us today. We need to go beyond the 100 billion [dollars] a year pledged but not fulfilled. And strengthen measures to monitor the commitments made,” he said.
“The scientific data expresses an unprecedented sense of urgency. The planet is one and its future depends on collective action. It is also up to the emerging countries to do their part,” said Lula, recalling that Brazil will host the 2025 Climate Summit (COP) in Belém (PA).
Taxing the rich and fighting hunger
Lula took advantage of his speech to the BRICS to “publicize” the country's agenda at the head of the G20 - the group that brings together the world's main economies. Brazil, in its rotating presidency of the G20, has emphasized issues such as the taxation of large fortunes worldwide and the creation of a “global alliance” to end hunger.
“I want to thank the members of the group for their support for the Brazilian presidency of the G20. Their backing has been fundamental to making progress on initiatives that are key to reducing inequalities, such as taxing the super-rich. Our countries have implemented successful social policies in recent decades, which can serve as an example to the rest of the world.”
“The Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty is already at an advanced stage of membership. I invite everyone to join the initiative that was born in the G20, but is open to other participants,” he said.
War and Genocide in Gaza
Lula once again criticized Israel's military response against Hamas and Hezbollah and said that it is “crucial” to start peace negotiations. In front of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lula mentioned the “conflict between Ukraine and Russia”, but did not emphatically condemn the invasion - as he did, for example, when he called the Gaza Strip “the world's largest cemetery for children and women”.
“As President Erdogan said at the UN General Assembly, Gaza has become the world's largest cemetery for children and women. This senselessness is now spreading to the West Bank and Lebanon. Preventing an escalation and starting peace negotiations is also crucial in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia,” he said. Lula also said that Brazil's presidency of the BRICS, until 2025, will have as its motto “strengthening cooperation in the Global South for more inclusive and sustainable governance”.
Libs were angry that Lula did not condemn/mention the Hamas attack against Israel.
Vaccines and artificial intelligence
Lula said that during Brazil's presidency of the BRICS, he will work to “reaffirm the bloc's vocation in the fight for a multipolar world and for less asymmetrical relations between countries”. The president advocated expanding access for poorer countries to technologies such as vaccines and artificial intelligence.
“We cannot accept the imposition of 'apartheids' in access to vaccines and medicines, as has happened in the pandemic, nor in the development of artificial intelligence, which is heading towards becoming the privilege of a few,” he said.
“We need to strengthen our technological capacities and favor the adoption of non-exclusive multilateral frameworks, in which the voice of governments prevails over private interests,” he added.
Brics 'common currency"
Lula praised the work of the New Development Bank (NDB), currently chaired by Dilma Rousseff, and stressed that it is necessary to discuss the creation of alternative means of payment for transactions between countries in the bloc with “seriousness, caution and technical solidity”.
“Now is the time to move forward in creating alternative means of payment for transactions between our countries. It's not a question of replacing our currencies, but we must work to ensure that the multipolar order we are aiming for is reflected in the international financial system. This discussion needs to be tackled with seriousness, caution and technical soundness, but it can no longer be postponed,” he said.
The measure aims to replace the dollar as the standard currency for transactions between nations. In the day-to-day life of the population of these countries, the local currency would continue to be used - like the real in Brazil, for example.
SEOUL, Oct 23 (Reuters) - The United States said for the first time on Wednesday that it had seen evidence that North Korea has sent 3,000 troops to Russia for possible deployment in Ukraine, a move that could mark a significant escalation in Russia's war against its neighbor.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, speaking in Rome, said it would be "very, very serious" if the North Koreans were preparing to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine, as Kyiv has alleged. But he said it remained to be seen what they would be doing there.
"There is evidence that there are DPRK troops in Russia," Austin told reporters, using North Korea's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Speaking to reporters later on Wednesday White House spokesperson John Kirby said the United States believes at least 3,000 North Korean troops are undergoing training at three military bases in eastern Russia.
The U.S. determined the North Korean soldiers were transported by ship in early-to-mid October from North Korea's Wonsan region to the eastern Russian city of Vladivostok before being taken to three military training sites in eastern Russia, said Kirby.
"If they do deploy to fight against Ukraine, they're fair game," he said. "They're fair targets and the Ukrainian military will defend themselves against North Korean soldiers the same way they're defending themselves against Russian soldiers."
In Seoul, South Korean lawmakers said that Pyongyang had promised to provide a total of about 10,000 troops, whose deployment was expected to be completed by December, the lawmakers told reporters after being briefed by South Korea's national intelligence agency.
"Signs of troops being trained inside North Korea were detected in September and October," Park Sun-won, a member of a parliamentary intelligence committee, said after the briefing.
The Ukraine conflict broke out when Russia invaded its neighbor in February 2022 and has since developed into a war of attrition largely fought along front lines in eastern Ukraine, with huge numbers of casualties on both sides.
The United States said the alleged North Korean deployment could be further evidence that the Russian military was having problems with manpower.
The Kremlin has previously dismissed Seoul's claims about the North's troop deployment as "fake news" and a North Korean representative to the United Nations in New York called it "groundless rumors" at a meeting on Monday.
Both Moscow and Pyongyang have also denied weapons transfers, but they have pledged to boost military ties and signed a mutual defense treaty at a summit in June. The latest numbers came after Seoul's National Intelligence Service said on Friday the North had sent some 1,500 special forces personnel to Russia by ship and they were likely to be deployed for combat in the war in Ukraine after training and acclimatization.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has also accused Pyongyang of preparing to send 10,000 soldiers to Russia. On Tuesday he called on his allies to respond to evidence of North Korean involvement in Russia's war.
NATO allies are consulting on the North Korean deployment to Russia, a NATO spokesperson said. A Biden administration official said Moscow might send the North Koreans to eastern Ukraine or to its own Kursk region, where Russian troops have been fighting to dislodge Ukrainian forces holding a chunk of territory that they seized in an incursion that began in August.
Mike Turner, the chair of the U.S. House of Representatives intelligence committee, said in a statement that U.S. President Joe Biden should allow Kyiv to respond with U.S.-supplied arms if North Korean troops “attack Ukraine from Russian territory.”
“If North Korean troops were to invade Ukraine’s sovereign territory, the United States needs to seriously consider taking direct military action against the North Korean troops,” Turner added.
BRICS contributes to the creation of a multilateral international order based on democracy and fairness, FM Rodriguez said. On Tuesday, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez will participate in the BRICS summit, which begins in the Russian city of Kazan.
Previously, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel emphasized that his country aspires to join the BRICS as a partner of this economic cooperation group, which was originally formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
He was scheduled to attend the Kazan summit but decided to stay in Cuba due to the emergency situation caused by problems with the national electricity system and the passage of Hurricane Oscar through the northeastern part of Cuban territory.
In early October, Cuba formally requested to join the BRICS in a letter sent to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose country currently holds the group’s rotating presidency.
The Cuban Foreign Affairs Ministry explained that joining the group as a partner is a “necessary step” toward achieving “full membership” later on.
During his visit to Russia in June, Cuban Foreign Minister Rodriguez also expressed his country’s interest in joining BRICS, a group that expanded for the first time this year with the inclusion of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates.
“For me, it was a memorable opportunity to highlight the priority Cuba gives to this group’s contribution to international balance and the creation of a new, multilateral international order based on sovereign equality, democracy, and fairness,” Rodriguez said at the time.
Cuba and Russia have strengthened their bilateral relationship in recent years, seeking to restore the close cooperation they maintained until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Right wring accounts like Jack Posobiec and Charlie Kirk are going around on twitter telling people the Democrats are about to release an "AI Deepfake" video harmful to Trump. Rumors I have seen are that they have Trump on video groping a GOP donor's daughter, or that they got him saying the hard r. I can't imagine either will make a difference, but should be fun to see the first major political video scandal in the post AI Deepfake US election.
The sense of duty of Russia and China as great powers remain unaltered, he pointed out. On Tuesday, President Xi Jinping met with President Vladimir Putin during the BRICS summit in Kazan, where he reaffirmed China’s “unbreakable” friendship with Russia.
“The international situation is undergoing significant changes and turbulence, but this cannot weaken my conviction in the unbreakable strategic choice of both countries,” the Chinese President said, emphasizing that despite unprecedented tectonic shifts in several centuries, the deep friendship between the Chinese and Russians, and their sense of duty as great powers, remain “unaltered.”
Xi thanked Putin for the invitation to visit the Tatar capital and noted that this was the third meeting between the two leaders this year. He also highlighted that Russia and China recently celebrated the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.
“We have taken the right path in building relations between major powers based on the principles of non-alignment, non-confrontation, and not being directed against third countries,” the Chinese leader said, emphasizing that BRICS is one of the most important platforms for promoting a new multipolar world order.
In this regard, he also stressed the great significance of the Kazan summit, as it will be the first BRICS meeting since the inclusion of Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Ethiopia.
The Russian president emphasized that strategic relations with the Asian giant are an “example” for all countries, as they are mutually beneficial and not based on short-term circumstances.
“Russian-Chinese cooperation in global affairs is one of the stabilizing factors in the international arena. We intend to continue expanding cooperation on all international platforms to ensure global security and a just world order,” he noted.
Putin will host a dinner later today, which will be attended by the leaders of the nine BRICS members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and Ethiopia. Representatives from over 20 countries interested in joining this economic cooperation group will also be present.
Pretty good call outs of the Genocide Joe administration from the State Department diplomat who quit (with only a bit of backhanded shit like calling Hamas a "terrorist" organization):
Sheinbaum appears to have a deep interest in boosting beans.
The government aims to boost bean production by about 30% in six years to replace imports of beans, and will set up research centers to supply higher-yielding bean seeds.
“Self-sufficiency in beans is a goal the president has set for us,” Berdegué said.
Bean Queen
López Obrador also appears to have passed on his nostalgia for a 1970s-style Mexico — including passenger rail service, state-owned industries, tight-knit families and small corner stores — to Sheinbaum.
Putin wants to keep Dilma at the head of the BRICS bank
Russian President Vladimir Putin wants Dilma Rousseff to remain head of the New Development Bank (NDB, the BRICS bank) in the next phase, when Russia would take control of the institution. Sources linked to the Kremlin have confirmed this intention. Rousseff took over the presidency of the BRICS Bank in April.
Russia currently has a vice-presidency at the bank, held by Vladimir Kazbekov, who was previously director of the National Development Bank of Russia for more than 15 years. During the BRICS summit in Kazan, Rousseff had a long conversation with Putin.
Now, the question is whether the members of the bank will reach a consensus for Rousseff to continue as president. The Kremlin, however, has shown support for her staying on.
This will be their first meeting since the start of Russia’s special military operation in 2022. The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, will personally attend the BRICS summit in Kazan and will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Farhan Haq, the UN Secretary-General’s deputy spokesperson, confirmed that Guterres will go to Kazan as he did previously for the 2023 summit and “as has always been his custom when attending meetings of organizations with a large number of important member states, such as the G7 or G20.”
He added that the nations comprising the BRICS “represent almost half of humanity,” and therefore, the summit “is of great importance to the UN’s work with its member states.” Haq also confirmed that Guterres will meet with Vladimir Putin, as well as other leaders attending the summit, depending on their availability, as this is “one of the main reasons for his attendance.”
This will be the first time Guterres and Putin meet since the start of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. The spokesperson made it clear that Guterres will emphasize to Putin “his well-known stance on the war in Ukraine and the conditions for a just peace based on the UN Charter and its resolutions.”
The BRICS countries, many of which are also members of the G20, cover 30 percent of the Earth’s surface, he pointed out.
On Tuesday, on the eve of traveling to Kazan, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan promised “sincere cooperation” between Türkiye and the BRICS.
“The BRICS countries, many of which are also members of the Group of Twenty like Türkiye, cover 30 percent of the Earth’s surface and account for 45 percent of its population,” the Turkish president explained during a speech to his Justice and Development Party (AKP) party.
“They produce 40 percent of the world’s oil, 25 percent of global exports, and two-fifths of global trade. These figures show the importance of the BRICS platform,” he added.
“Türkiye wants to sincerely develop its cooperation with BRICS, and I trust that the Kazan summit will serve this purpose,” Erdogan concluded.
The Turkish leader did not specify whether this cooperation would include joining the group, a proposal Erdogan himself had floated in 2018 after returning from a BRICS summit in Johannesburg, but did not pursue further.
“Our request is open; there’s a process. But there has been no concrete progress on it,” said AKP Vice President Omer Çelik in September.
According to Erdogan, Türkiye’s cooperation with platforms like BRICS or the Shanghai Cooperation Organization would not distance his nation from the European Union, as his country can function as a bridge between various international blocs.
Belgium, Greece and Austria call on the European Union to reject exceptions to common asylum rules. On Tuesday, Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner suggested that the European Union consider legal options for deporting migrants to Syria and Afghanistan.
“Although I know it’s not easy, it is also necessary that we discuss how we can resume deportations to Syria and Afghanistan,” said the far-right politician during a conference of the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in Vienna.
Karner believes that the EU must better defend its external borders, work more with the countries of origin, and establish a more effective migrant return system. He also stated that it is essential to strengthen cooperation with third countries considered safe and improve the European legal framework to facilitate deportations.
“A functional return policy is an important aspect of a credible migration system,” Karner said, applauding the steps taken in this direction by the European Commission (EC). Previously, EC President Ursula von der Leyen sent a letter to EU capitals to explore the idea of developing return centers outside the EU and called for lessons to be learned from the implementation of the agreement between Italy and Albania.
During the conference in Vienna, Greek Migration Minister Nikos Panayotopoulos agreed with Karner’s conclusions. “What we lack is a comprehensive return policy for rejected migrants,” he said.
The ministers of Austria and Greece, along with Belgium’s Asylum Secretary Nicole de Moor, agreed that the EU must act as a united front and rejected “exceptions” to common asylum rules. This was a veiled message to the Netherlands, whose new government wants to distance itself from European regulations.
Ruvendrini Menikdiwela, Deputy High Commissioner for Protection at the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), explained that any return to Syria or Afghanistan must be voluntary and rejected any forced repatriations.
“We have publicly said there should be no return to Afghanistan or Syria. And we would be very concerned if EU states carried out such returns. Voluntary return is correct. We know that a significant number of people are returning spontaneously to Syria. We agree with that… But we would oppose any form of forced return,” she stated on the sidelines of the conference.
Menikdiwela acknowledged that European states face challenges repatriating people who have not been granted refugee status and assured that UNHCR can help negotiate return or readmission agreements, as long as international norms are respected.
The expert also reminded that UNHCR agreed to oversee the implementation of the migration agreement between Italy and Albania because Rome still retains responsibility and the legal obligation to protect people transferred to the Balkan country.
Menikdiwela noted that Italy retains jurisdiction over the migrants in Albania, which distinguishes this agreement from others, such as those involving Australia or the failed one between the United Kingdom and Rwanda, where the receiving countries take on legal responsibility for asylum seekers in exchange for money.
“We are monitoring the agreement between Italy and Albania to see how it is being applied. We are in Albania. We are also in the centers and on the boats, supervising the situation of these people, how they are intercepted, how they are treated, and how their applications are handled,” she concluded.
The ICMPD is an international organization based in Vienna with 21 member states, including Germany, Turkey, Poland, the Netherlands, Romania, Switzerland, and Austria.
Putin reported that trade between Russia and South Africa has experienced a 3% growth so far this year, highlighting his commitment to strengthening economic ties.
At the XVI BRICS Summit taking place in Kazan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa held a meeting focused on creating a more equitable world order.
Both leaders emphasized the importance of bilateral relations based on principles of equality and cooperation. Putin reported that trade between Russia and South Africa has experienced a 3% growth so far this year, highlighting his commitment to strengthening economic ties.
Ramaphosa, in turn, praised Russia as a strategic ally and celebrated the successful organization of the summit, as well as efforts to integrate more nations into the BRICS group.
Ramaphosa echoed this sentiment, expressing optimism about the future of their bilateral relations and emphasizing that South Africa views Russia as a crucial ally in its quest for sustainable development.
During this summit, Putin also has scheduled meetings with other international leaders, underscoring the relevance of this event on the global stage.
The outcomes of these dialogues are expected to pave the way for deeper cooperation among BRICS nations and contribute to a more balanced international landscape.
Insane Clown Posse’s Violent J Hands Juggalo Vote to Kamala Harris With ‘Daily Show’ Endorsement
The Comedy Central news show went to The Gathering of the Juggalos to have an audience with Violent J, perhaps the counterculture community's most influential member.
Being a European, I'm gonna do a personal media blackout starting from the Sunday before the US elections. Absolutely no media or news whatsoever until I find out who won the election.
My experiment will be whether I can infer from the general atmosphere change in my life who won it, without anyone outright telling me.
They took all the children from their mothers and put them inside what resembled a pit or a hole. The tank came to circle around them repeatedly until their bones cracked under the pressure of dust and sand, amidst the screams of children and the wailing of mothers.
After that, the soldiers came and started throwing the children towards the mothers, and whoever caught a child was ordered to carry him and move away quickly, with no guarantee that the child would be their own.
Many mothers carried children who were not their own, and were forced to leave with them, leaving their own children in the hands of other mothers. This marked the beginning of a new chapter of suffering, with mothers searching for their children in the arms of other women, trying to calm the children they held until they found their real mothers.
Fuck the IOF apologists in the various IOF PTSD threads. "Uh aktually, they got PTSD because they feel bad about committing genocide." No, they got PTSD because Al-Qassam rained on their genocidal parade by turning their genociders-in-crime into red mist. They got PTSD because it dawned on them that the iPhone wasn't worth getting their legs blown off by a Yassin rocket.
Seems like is running again for president. It is just dumb, it’s like he wants the next one to fuck up everything, cause people are tired of him, and will elect absolute muppet
The Russian leader stated that relations between Russia and India continue to develop actively and anticipated important decisions that would be made at the summit to strengthen collaboration within the bloc.
At the BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a bilateral meeting that underscores the strengthening of cooperation between the two nations.
During the meeting, Putin highlighted the “good state” of trade exchange and reaffirmed that the relations are characterized as a “particularly privileged strategic partnership.”
The Russian leader stated that relations between Russia and India continue to develop actively and anticipated important decisions that would be made at the summit to strengthen collaboration within the bloc.
For his part, Modi reiterated India’s stance on the conflict in Ukraine, emphasizing the need to establish peace and offering assistance for its resolution.
Modi’s visit to Kazan highlights the close friendship between Moscow and New Delhi. Additionally, the Indian Prime Minister underscored the evolution of the BRICS bloc over the past 15 years, highlighting its growing identity and international interest in joining this association.
This bilateral meeting not only reinforces India’s role as a key global actor but also demonstrates the consolidation of BRICS as an alternative forum for international cooperation in a context of significant transformations in the global order.
“An economy that is not based on sanctions, blackmail, or economic coercion, but rather an economy based on cooperation, truly free trade, shared investment, and new technology,” he highlighted.
“The BRICS have already become the epicenter of the New Multipolar World. The BRICS are the epicenter of the world, of the new geopolitics, of diplomacy, of peace, and, above all, they are the hope for the Global South countries that aspire to development that we have sought for 200 years,” stated Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro upon arriving in Kazan, Russia, in the evening (local time) to participate in the BRICS Summit.
While speaking to the media, the head of state emphasized that his delegation brings to Russia the banner of equality and freedom, seeking the possibility of accessing a different economy. “An economy that is not based on sanctions, blackmail, or economic coercion, but rather an economy based on cooperation, truly free trade, shared investment, and new technology,” he highlighted.
The president also assured that Venezuela is part of this new BRICS world, and that his presence at the Summit aims to “share our dreams, our hopes for a world without colonialism, without hegemonism, without imperialism; a world where emerging superpowers can share with the countries from the Global South” that aspire to independence, development, and prosperity.
Furthermore, the head of state stated that the main expectation of the Venezuelan delegation in Kazan “is to contribute, from Bolivarian Venezuela, to the construction of a new world from South America, from our America.”
In this regard, Maduro reminded that there exists another America, one of peace and men and women who aspire to freedom and equality. “There is a non-colonialist America commemorating 200 years of the historic battles of Junin and Ayacucho; it is Our America, and from Our America, we tell the rest of the world that we are ready to build a new world.”
Referring to opportunities for consolidating Venezuela as an oil power, the dignitary recalled that the Bolivarian government has always envisioned the possibility of coming together in an economic project of development and cooperation with countries that possess the largest oil reserves in the world, such as Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran.
“In this space, which is the epicenter of the new world, we already have the four major oil-producing countries in the world, and Venezuela, modestly, comes to offer its part from an economic project of autonomy and endogenous development, from an economic project that requires a high level of investment,” he stated.
On this topic, he highlighted that Executive Vice President and Minister of Oil Delcy Rodríguez had previously arrived in Kazán to present a range of investment options to BRICS Plus countries and predicted good news in that direction.
He also mentioned that he expects to meet with the president Vladimir Putin and other leaders as part of his work agenda in Kazan.
The Brazilian government advocates that BRICS maintain a balance in the representation of different regions of the world. On Tuesday, Brazilian President Lula da Silva spoke by phone with President Vladimir Putin after canceling his trip to Russia to participate in the BRICS summit.
The 20-minutes phone conversation focused on the domestic accident Lula suffered in Brasilia, as a result of which doctors recommended he avoid international travel. However, the Brazilian president confirmed that he would participate in the BRICS plenary session on Wednesday via videoconference.
On Saturday, Lula suffered a fall that caused a small cut on his neck, requiring five stitches. He is scheduled to undergo further examinations this Tuesday to assess his health condition.
At the BRICS summit, the Brazilian delegation is led by Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira. One of the central points of the summit will be the discussion of mechanisms to create a new category of associate countries within BRICS, without expanding the current list of nine forum members.
The BRICS group was founded by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Since January, it also includes Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Ethiopia.
Currently, about 30 countries have publicly expressed interest in joining the forum, including Cuba, Venezuela, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Malaysia.
The Brazilian government advocates that BRICS maintain a balance in the representation of different regions of the world and that new members or associate countries have good relations with all forum members.
The amount of coverage the alleged “DPRK soldiers fighting in Ukraine” story is getting seems way more disproportional than what the story should merit, even if it’s true. I mean… so what? If this was being portrayed as “Putin is desperate for more soldiers”, ok that at least makes sense from a propaganda standpoint.
I think the answer is what I am now seeing in multiple news outlets: that South Korea may respond by sending equipment and maybe personnel to Ukraine. I think story is all a ruse to give South Korea cover to materially support Ukraine, which is maybe difficult for it to do without a pretext?
European public opinion is shifting against continued military support for Ukraine, particularly in countries like Germany and France, as living costs are spiraling out of control and trust in the political elite is eroding. This is the conclusion of a new study analysingalt 4.690 Facebook-pages belonging to European media, civil organisations, universities, NGO's and politicians. Whereas the amount of pro-war content has decreased significantly, the amount of pro-peace content had only seen a slight decline.
Mainstream media is trying to discredit the pro-peace position by framing it as one of "the extreme wings", especially the far right. Waning support for the Ukraine was is also being ascribed to conspiracy theories about nefarious Russian propaganda.
Funny how zionazis are publishing ISIS stories to fuel islamophobia. "what was the opposition to ISIS?" they were attacked by every neighbour country, except you know who. Iran and its allies has done thousand times more damage to ISIS than the USA puppets
A ceasefire alone isn't enough. As said, even if the attacks stop now, rebuilding Gaza won't be possible. The blockade must go, other countries (especially the west) must provide financial aid for importing, there has to be some kind of jobs program. Else, people won't have any choice.
What else would it look like? People living in tents until they die relying on foreign aid for living?
Israeli PM Netanyahu has rejected US Secretary of State Blinken's request to publicly oppose the 'General's plan,' a policy of ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in northern Gaza, according to media reports.
Late last night the COSCO Dockers Union in Piraeus Port, ENEDEP, alerted its members and the unions of the area that a container transferring bullets to Israel was to arrive in Piraeus port so as to be shipped to the Murderer-State of Israel.
Read more...
Immediately the dockers and the local unions BLOCKED the port and did not allow the container to enter the ship “Marla BULL”.
The Unions and workers called openly the working class of the area to come to the port and stop the crime saying
“The dockers state it clearly, we will not stain our hands with the blood of the people”
The massive, immediate action of the people lasted all night, FORCING THE SHIP TO DEPART WITHOUT THE WEAPONS!
The Unions, that are also preparing strikes for Collective Contracts demanding better wages, confirmed that class unions struggle goes hand in hand with solidarity with the peoples and steadfast, in practice opposition to imperialism!
This guy used to write for Bloomberg, and people pay money for his opinion blog now. He discovered this after proposing a three state solution to the occupation of Palestine, and after accusing the NYT of faking the CT scans of the kids shot by IDF soldiers.
Bernie Sanders to stream with Pokimane and Valkyrae in support of Harris
The Tuesday night stream is aimed at addressing concerns among Democrats and their allies that the left is giving up critical organizing spaces online.
This is how Bernie can still win. Also, wtf? There was legit a cat person vtuber in there lol.
Only problem? She’s a mega gusano shill who is one of the most hawkish people in the administration on Iran.
Ariane Tabatabai (Persian: آرین طباطبایی) is an Iranian-American scholar of political science, writer, and senior policy advisor to the United States Department of Defense. She is a graduate of King's College London and the daughter of Javad Tabatabai, an Iranian philosopher and professor at the University of Tehran. Tabatabai is also a former researcher of "RAND Corporation" think tank, curriculum director and associate professor of security studies at Georgetown University, an international civilian consultant for NATO, the Middle East Fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States and several other research institutes.
Tabatabai, in an article in the Foreign Policy magazine before the 2020 US presidential election, argued that Iran's economy is fragile and will be forced to negotiate, agree and make concessions, demanding that the winning US presidential candidate not return to the nuclear agreement and pressure for more points.
After the Biden administration took office in January 2021, she joined the US negotiating team in nuclear negotiations with Iran, but together with Richard Nephew, she left the team after a few months due to differences with Robert Malley, the head of the US negotiating team, and also because she believed that the US would lift too many sanctions on Iran and consequently the possible agreement would not be strong enough.
Remember this all sell out gusanos and traitors, it will never be enough. Your masters still think you are scum and will dispose of you whenever convenient just because of your nationality and race. I bet she wasn’t the one to leak this, but I sure hope she gets crucified publicly by her “friends” in the state department and pentagon
Today marked the start of the important 2024 BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia Federation. Below is a selection of videos showing the arrivals of many important world leaders.
I hate all zionists, but I have a particular spot for the bulldozer drivers. These aren't just your normal soldier who loots houses and takes selfies in ruined buildings. The bulldozer driver is the one responsible for destroying homes and running over people in very conscious acts, you have to be a special piece of shit to demolish houses with your vehicle, one by one. On the other hand, the military use of bulldozers is quite unique to "israel", even thought pretty much all armies use them. "israel" uses them very close to ongoing combat, usually armies employ them after areas have been cleared of enemies, but their bulldozers seem to follow frontline troops to begin destruction immediately, no time wasted there. I think this shows how much "israel" just loves destroying stuff, how their incursion into Gaza is simply to destroy it.
Remember that video of a bulldozer going through a refugee camp, running over and destroying people's tents, a bulldozer that you can't see but you can still hear destroying stuff, but then it comes face to face with a Qassam fighter that fires a very accurate RPG shot into the cabin? That is one of the most powerful videos by the Resistance that emerged from Gaza. Instant Justice I would say. These bulldozers are an integral part of "israel's" plan for Gaza, and seeing it get destroyed as it's doing it's work is amazing. The bulldozer works for the genocidal cause, the Qassam fighter puts a swift end to it, it's extremely symbolic. Here's the video for those who didn't watch it
And yes, this is related to that fucking piece of shit bulldozer driver who had PTSD and then suicided because he couldn't bear with it. Hope many more zionists follow him tbh.
Exam shows stability and Brazilian President Lula da Silva is 'able to carry out his work routine', say doctors. The President fell in the bathroom of his official residence on Saturday, hit the back of his head and needed five stitches. The presidential administration canceled the official trip to Russia on medical advice.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Workers' Party) was clipping his toenails when he fell off a stool in the bathroom of his official residence and hit his head last Saturday. The chief executive was finishing clipping his nails on one foot when he moved to start clipping the nails on the other foot, ended up unbalancing himself and fell off the stool he was using for support.
Btw, I recently saw a very strange video on Twitter of an elderly man (probably around 65/66 years old, who claims to be a journalist) saying things like: “Lula is a liar! Either he's dying or he's lying! He can't be president because he's going to die! Why doesn't he appear in public? All his photos are staged, just like that other Brazilian president (the first civilian president after the military dictatorship) who hid the fact that he had cancer and died a month later. How dare Lula and his RADICAL supporters criticize Bolsonaro, you see, why doesn't Lula talk to me? Why does he only talk to his RADICAL left-wing outlets? Lula didn't say he had the libido of a 20-year-old, and if anyone wanted to compare him to Biden, they'd just have to ask Lula's wife how good he still was in bed (Lula is the same age as Trump, by the way). Another lie! Lula doesn't have the libido of a 20-year-old!”
It was very strange for me to see someone who seemed to be on a normal news program talking like that, as if he was having a breakdown, so I checked the guy on Wikipedia and it seems that he was a member of the Fernando Collor government (which lasted about 2 years, stole poor people's bank accounts by freezing them and giving them worthless money). And he hasn't lived in Brazil since 1992. I have no idea what that was about, but it looked like the guy was really pissed off because Lula said he had normal sex with his own wife.
In an incident straight out of a Hollywood movie: Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militants (formally known as the Janjaweed) in Sudan shot down their own friendly transport/cargo plane, owned and operated by their own UAE suppliers. The UAE operated aircraft they shot down was likely bringing in supplies and engineers to repair another friendly UAE operated aircraft that crashed previously.
The RSF shot down their own plane that was bringing in parts and specialists to repair their own damaged aircraft which they crashed... The level of incompetence and lack of co-ordination on display is staggering. The UAE cannot even stop their own proxies from shooting down their own planes!
Editing to comment on the South African driver's licence being present on the UAE plane, our sub-imperialist arseholes just can't help jump from one sub-imperialist entity to another. If it weren't so tragic it would be comedy.
I think people underestimate the incredible power of the atlanto-zionist censorship apparatus in announcing imperialist losses. In the following I will primarily be citing nazi media outlets.
Consider the following:
According to zionazi own media outlets, censorship by the regime is close to achieving record levels. And, of course, this data is itself censored!
The official casualty count from the Iranian missile strike True Promise 2, in which over 100 Iranian ballistic missiles connected with their targets, is still one person: a Palestinian man in the West Bank who was struck by shrapnel of some kind from either a booster drop or an interception. I guess all those military facilities and air bases were
just empty 🤷♀️
According to the iof official website, only 356 occupation soldiers have died since the start of the ground invasion of Gaza. This is less than one a day despite the plethora of video evidence showing daily operations against the enemy on multiple fronts. I guess the settlers really must be bulletproof or something 🤪
The US fleets in the Red Sea have been targetted for over 9 months with drones and ASBM's in what they have even said is "the most intense fighting since World War 2." The only casualties officially announced are two Navy SEALS who "drowned" and a helicopter that "crashed on a training mission". The US navy must be certainly invincible 🧠🧟♂️
The limited number of official American deaths in Ukraine have been limited to so-called "foreign volunteers". This is despite the fact that "NATO trainers" are routinely kalibrated and iskandered while channels like "Track a Nazi Merc" are documenting the thousands of known mercs being liquidated in Ukraine.
Takeaway:
There is obviously a large number of dead that are basically written off as missing or dead at a later date from "accidents". Yet, I have never seen anything news articles about families or communities demanding to know about these things.
What you are witnessing is a massive conspiracy and cover-up that goes incredibly deep and is incredibly effective at hiding dead bodies, even of their own nazi footsoldiers.
A comrade pointed out to me that relatives of the denazified soldiers are paid monthly sums compensation and the continuation of this is likely premised on not revealing certain information publicly.
The enemy is far weaker than it reveals. The incredibly effective information manipulation apparatus creates a powerful illusion, but it does not compensate for material strategic failures.
I'm not familiar with this author/speaker, but there's a blurb from Sarah Kendzior that i've seen circling on instagram that I thought was interesting. It's about liberals accepting atrocities under Biden that they would not under Trump:
The full text is here. I think what I find interesting is that I've never really connected the psychological/social effects of COVID-19 to the on-going genocides in Gaza and Lebanon. Sarah raises an interesting parallel (one that echos Aime Cesaire's takedown of colonialism, imo) between the disregard for our shared humanity required to accept the '911 a day' COVID-related death rate to a similar disregard for humanity that allows them to accept today's genocides. It's an undoing of "civilized" values.
We're at a point now where Lebanon is being subjected to israel's Gaza Doctrine, and it seems like most people don't know or don't care.
If not a complete disregard for humanity, is it boredom? It must be more than race-hatred. Does the death and suffering become too much for our brains to make sense of it, so we stop caring?
Had millions of people not been killed by COVID, would the world be less tolerant to genocide?
Old news, but a bunch of young Danes went on hunger strike to get their government to do anything about the climate. The result? They got to meet some politicians yayyy
DPRK reports that it is still planning retaliation against ROK propaganda leaflet scattering and that they found more leaflets scattered on Oct 21.
The DPRK detective agencies' investigation into the drones from the ROK is going on and the truth behind the despicable provocation of the ROK military gangsters will be analyzed further in detail.
No one knows how our retaliation and revenge will be completed.
spoiler
Press Statement of Kim Yo Jong, Vice Department Director of C.C., WPK
Pyongyang, October 22 (KCNA) -- Kim Yo Jong, vice department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, issued the following press statement on Tuesday:
The reckless infringement upon the sovereignty of the DPRK by the ROK military gangsters is a hideous military provocation that can never be pardoned.
Seoul will have to experience at first hand so as to know properly how dangerous act it committed and how terrible and fatal the consequences it brought on itself are.
A military provocation against a nuclear weapons state may be led to horrible situation, unimaginable for politicians and military experts in any big or small country in the world with their normal thinking to experience. So, there will be no such instance except one recently made by lunatics of the ROK and Ukraine.
Such deed can be done only by lunatics in the Seoul and Kiev regimes.
Seoul and Kiev are exact counterparts in going about begging and letting loose reckless remarks against nuclear weapons states at random without follow-up capability.
It seems to be a common feature of bad dogs bred by the U.S.
The DPRK detective agencies' investigation into the drones from the ROK is going on and the truth behind the despicable provocation of the ROK military gangsters will be analyzed further in detail.
No one knows how our retaliation and revenge will be completed.
A lot of political motivational rubbish sent by the ROK scum was discovered and removed in many parts of the DPRK on October 21, too.
The brute courage of the Seoul authorities to jump into fire with brushwood on their backs, far from reflecting on their conducts and being prudent, will bring the danger of destruction of all the scum. And they will be denounced by everyone else. -0- www.kcna.kp (Juche113.10.22.)
After a Deadly Strike Near Beirut, Ringtones Sound From Under Rubble
As search teams combed the ruins of residential buildings across from Rafik Hariri University Hospital just south of Lebanon’s capital, locals listened for signs of their loved ones in the wreckage.
Israel launched a dozen attacks on UN troops in Lebanon, says leaked report
Israel’s military forcibly entered a clearly marked UN base and is suspected of using the incendiary chemical white phosphorus close enough to injure 15 peacekeepers, according to a confidential report outlining a dozen recent incidents in which the IDF attacked international troops in Lebanon.
Unifil has called these incidents a “flagrant violation of international law”.
When western troops are attacked it's flagrant violation of international law, when civilians are murdered by the hundreds of thousands is just sparkling self defense.
The attacks have drawn international condemnation. But Israel has stood firm. On Sunday, Unifil said an IDF bulldozer deliberately demolished an observation tower and perimeter fence of a UN position in Marwahin.
After the first Truthful Promise operation Israel targeted a point in Isfahan with several missiles.
He also said:
It is possible that Israel carry a small and limited strike in Iran. If they do something big they will certainly get a response many times worse.
And also:
Iran's response depends on the intensity of the enemy's attack. If they do something big they will certainly get a response many times worse. Such a matter has been announced and has been in our plans since long ago to deal with aggressions and conflicts, but I definitely and surely assure the people that The Zionists do not make a major and significant move, and whatever they do is nothing more than a desperate effort.
A new survey has revealed that 60 percent of Germans oppose arms exports to Israel, with a majority of voters from the country's three ruling coalition partners supporting restrictions.
According to a poll by Forsa, 50 percent of Green Party voters opposed weapons sales, while 60 percent of Social Democratic Party supporters and 52 percent of Free Democratic Party voters also rejected continued arms exports.
Opposition was particularly high in the former East Germany, where 75 percent of respondents rejected arms sales to Israel.
Last week, German media reported that several German leaders blocked the sale of weapons to Israel, despite Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s insistence that arms sales would continue.
"We carried out a strategic military operation targeting an Israeli military base east of occupied Yaffa with a 'Palestine-2' hypersonic ballistic missile."
"The missile successfully reached its target, bypassing both the US and Israeli interception systems."
Today, Kazan has unprecedented security measures. Mobile Internet is limited. Two blocks from the city hall (a large palace where the BRICS summit and the meeting of heads of state are taking place) there is no Internet at all. On the approaches to the center of Kazan there are heavy trucks ready to block the streets. Police at every intersection. And the capital's police in cars of the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of Moscow. On some streets there is a person in uniform every hundred meters. It was surprising that a huge temporary tent with a large corridor leading to the main entrance to the building was erected near the city hall. The limousine drives into the tent, from there the passengers leave along the corridor to the grand staircase. That is, the security guards did it in such a way as to exclude as much as possible the open sky for the high-ranking guests. At the same time, the city, with the exception of a closed square and some central streets, is still free for walking. But the center of Kazan is empty. They say that all the universities and schools have been sent on vacation. By the way, kicksharing and carsharing are disabled.
Danish Regime Supports Ban on Foreign Flags In new Controversial Bill
Observers warn of eroding civil liberties in a country where democratic institutions are increasingly under pressure and nationalism is weaponized to stifle dissent.
A new bill, scheduled for its first reading in Denmark's rubber-stamp parliament today, aims to prohibit the flying of any flag other than Danish, Nordic, German, Greenlandic, or Faroese in the country’s flagpoles—unless special permission is granted. The law comes amid ongoing efforts by the Danish regime to bolster nationalist sentiment and can be seen as instrumental in ongoing regime efforts to criminalise the pro-Palestinian anti-Genocide movement
Read more...
The flag controversy first erupted in 2018, when Danish citizen Martin Hedegård raised the American flag in his garden in Nørre Bjert, near Kolding, during a family reunion. Hedegård’s actions drew swift backlash from local authorities, invoking an archaic 1915 regulation that forbids the display of foreign flags. He was reported to the police, sparking a legal battle that would eventually reach Denmark's Supreme Court.
Despite Hedegård’s acquittal in the Supreme Court, the regime has pushed forward with efforts to reinstate the ban by supporting a bill spearheaded by far-right extremist Søren Espersen, who is closely aligned with the ultra-nationalist "Denmark Democrates" party. Espersen, known for his chauvinist views and close ties to Zionism, was the original proposer of the flag ban.
'Serves no purpose' Observers have denounced the proposed flag ban as empty symbolism, aimed at stirring nationalist fervor rather than addressing substantive issues. Carsten Hove, the lawyer who defended Hedegård in the Supreme Court, has been vocal in his criticism of the regime’s latest move, questioning whether the bill would even hold up to judicial scrutiny. “I don’t see how this law serves any purpose. It violates Denmark's obligations regarding human rights and freedom of expression, so it cannot stand,” Hove said. “In my opinion, the Supreme Court would strike it down if a new case arose.”
Espersen, who will be present at the first reading of the bill, dismissed warings that his bill is a violation of human rights.
“We have to trust the government’s lawyers, and I can’t imagine our government proposing a law that isn’t legally sound,” Espersen said, defending the regime's decision to push ahead with the controversial proposal.
Espersen also rejected accusations that the bill is a purely nationalist gesture.
“There are plenty of symbols that actually mean something, and the Dannebrog [Danish flag] is one of them,” he said. “I’m happy that we’re now having the first reading of the bill. I don’t think there will be many opponents. It’s a statement of what Denmark means to all of us. We have a flag that everyone loves.”
Regime Support Secured
Denmarks Social Democratic-led right-wing regime supports for the bill. So does the far-right "Denmark Democrats", "Danish People's Party" and Conservative parties, thereby making the parliamentary process a mere formality.
Peter Hummelgaard, head of Denmark’s Social Democratic-controlled Ministry of Justice, has offered full-throated support for the proposed law, underscoring the regime’s commitment to promoting nationalist ideals. In a statement Hummelgaard framed the bill as necessary for preserving national identity.
“The Dannebrog is the most important national symbol we have in Denmark. A symbol that unites Danes as a people. The government believes that the Dannebrog should enjoy a very special status in Denmark,” Hummelgaard said. “I also believe that this special status should mean that there should once again be regulations on flagging, so that it isn’t allowed to freely fly other nations' flags. It has been this way for more than 100 years, and it should be this way again.”
I noticed a while back that Instagram will show highly politicized reels every so often (every 50-150 reels? or maybe more), and unlike normal reels where you can click on the 3 dots and press "Not Interested", these reels only have the button to block/report and "Why am I seeing this?" (which doesn't betray any useful information). At first, I assumed it was typical election bullshit because the first few I got were Kamala/liberal bullshit reels, which I swiped or blocked, but sometime in the past week there was a reel of a similar format that was very explicitly Marxist (in an extremely on the nose way), which I also couldn't dismiss with a "Not Interested". I have no idea what purpose this serves beyond the obvious of gauging the reaction of a person to different political leanings. What do they do with this data? I hate the algorithm age.
There really ought to be a group of people who dissect these systematic/algorithmic methods of manipulation. I'd imagine this is already being done by analysts/governments, but I mean in an open way.
OP @SeventyTwoTrillion@hexbear.net it's Pridnestrovie, not 'Transnistria.' 'Transnistria' is what the imperialist and neo-colonials in "the west" call it, to refuse the status of the country because it just means "[the Moldovan territory] past the Dneister (river)," as well as to treat it as simply a historical legacy, not of the USSR, but of its previous administrators: the Nazis.
Pridnestrovians don't want to be called that, consider it a grave insult actually, because it's literally the name the Romanian and German Nazis used for their occupation government when they carried out the Holocaust there (Transnistria Governorate). Pridnestrovie was deeply impacted and affected by the Holocaust, and the Nazi-occupied administrative territory of the "Transnistria Governorate" served as a junction point where Jews from surrounding areas were deported to in 'processing' for enslavement or liquidation or later transfer elsewhere.
It is a point of deep national consciousness, this experience, and of national pride that they did as much as they did to resist Nazism and to shield Jews in the territory[sci-hublink]; an uncommon phenomenon in most of Europe which saw huge collaborations and pogroms against Jews.
They by and large do not connect with the legacy of their previous occupiers who lay claim to them. During Catastroika and fashnost leading to the breakdown of the USSR, which caused the vicious resurgence of right wing nationalism, there grew large radical movements of Moldavian and "Greater Romania" fascists, who began demanding things such as the removal of all languages but Moldovan/Romanian, change to latin script, and expulsion of Slavs from the country and eventually in 1990 acquired power in the central government of the Moldavian SSR and started to implement their policies. It is in this environment that the Pridnestrovians had organized ad-hoc independence referendums, which were met with violent resistance by these fascist groups (just as we saw a much more drawn-out version of in the DNR/LNR in Ukraine) and declared independence --- because they feared an independent Moldova led by these people would not only directly abuse them as they had already begun to, but also align and possibly even unite with the core country of their previous occupiers and exterminationists in Romania. Pizzachev annulled their independence but they in practicality maintained it and after the failure of the August coup in 1991 they declared independence in secession from the USSR as well as Moldova. They even fought a 2 year long low-intensity war from 1990-1992 to maintain their independence (and in which Ukrainian Nazi volunteers fought against Moldova, but for trying to annex Pridnestrovie into Ukraine) resulting in the death of over a thousand people.
And so they do not wish to be called anything but Pridnestrovie, or the full name Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.
Canadian province of New Brunswick minor electoralism win. The provincial Liberal party won an extremely strong majority over the incumbent Progressive Conservatives (and yes, that is legally what they call themselves, long story). I don't live in my NB homeland anymore but I do keep an eye on the news there. This is good news.
While normally an NB election has historically been meaningless as the two big parties have had basically identical platforms for decades, this particular election is a big win for trans people. The outgoing premier Blaine Higgs is a vicious transphobe who put other vicious transphobes in his cabinet. The incoming Liberal premier Susan Holt may be very liberal in economics but she's at least good on the social policy side, especially on LGBT+ issues. I'll take Holt over Higgs anyday. Higgs didn't even keep his seat in what is normally a PC stronghold. He pissed off so many people with his various bigotries that went on full display the last few years.
Jfc Kamala is really doubling down on having Liz Cheney as her hype woman. Apparently they were campaigning together in Michigan today. I swear I’ve seen Liz Cheney have a more prominent role in this campaign than Tim Walz over the last couple weeks.
I saw a poll the other day that showed both Dem voters and independents are really turned off by the idea of having a Republican in Kamala’s cabinet
Kamala has worse political instincts Hilldawg, and that’s saying something.
Former Peruvian president sentenced to 20 years in prison in Odebrecht case.
On Monday (21), the Peruvian courts sentenced former president Alejandro Toledo to 20 years and six months in prison for the crime of collusion and money laundering. The politician is accused of receiving bribes from Brazilian contractor Odebrecht. Toledo has been in pre-trial detention for 18 months.
The former president governed Peru between 2001 and 2006. He faces charges for allegedly receiving US$ 35 million from Odebrecht in exchange for bids to build two sections of the Southern Interoceanic Highway, which links Peru's Pacific coast with Brazil's Atlantic coast. In addition to Toledo, 78, three other former Peruvian leaders have been investigated over the scandal. According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Odebrecht plot in Peru also affected Alan García (2006-2011), who committed suicide in 2019 before being arrested, Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) and Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016-2018).
I think Ollanta Humala investigation ceased after a request from the Brazilian Supreme court.
The politician has denied the accusations since the case was revealed. In 2016, the Brazilian construction company revealed the existence of a regional corruption network to obtain public works contracts. “I am innocent, I never made any agreement with Mr. [Jorge Simões] Barata [former director of Odebrecht in Peru],” Toledo told the judge before the sentencing.
The former president asked that the decision take into account his state of health. “I have cancer and heart problems (...). I want to go to a private clinic, I ask them to let me heal or die at home,” he added, his voice breaking, in his final statement. Toledo, a US-trained economist, came to power in 2001 after leading the opposition to the dictatorship of the late Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000).
The exec summary and chapter 2 is worth reading, otherwise the main takeaways are that Clausewitz was right about industrial war and attrition, ukraine is getting rinsed, nato is not prepared for industrial war. A few other specifics:
the authors estimate that the Russian military industrial complex can build the equipment of the current entire German army about 3 times a year
on interception of missiles: Sample interception rates for commonly used Russian missiles in 2024: 50% for the older Kalibr subsonic cruise missiles, 22% for modern subsonic cruise missiles (e.g. Kh-69), 4% for modern ballistic missiles (e.g. Iskander-M), 0.6% for S-300/400 supersonic long-range SAM, and 0.55% for the Kh-22 supersonic anti-ship missile. Data on interception rates of hypersonic missiles is scarce: Ukraine claims a 25% interception rate for hypersonic Kinzhal and Zircon missiles, but Ukrainian sources also indicate such interceptions require salvo firing all 32 launchers in a US-style Patriot battery to have any chance to shoot down a single hypersonic missile. By comparison, German Patriot batteries have 16 launchers,
and Germany has 72 launchers in total.
the authors estimate that any slowdown of tank build out rate due to running out of older Soviet era chassis won't begin until 2026 earliest
Democratization of advanced strike abilities via proliferation of drone and missile technology is a big deal. It is so much more expensive to defend against these munitions than attack with them. The significance of current world wars are akin to Agincourt, with missiles and drones playing the role of the long bow
Brazilian Liberal Media has made some claims that the Lula Government will be against the inclusion of Venezuela into BRICS. Considering that all joinings require a consensus on the part of member countries, this would be a spanner in the works. I don't know if this is true or not, but it doesn't actually strike me as surprising. The Brazilian Government has a difficult relationship with Venezuela since Cháves.
On the one hand, there's the electoral issue. We are marching towards the second round of the municipal elections and any support for Venezuela galvanizes the right and the far right which are the majority of the country.
But on the other we do have the leaked CIA cables from way back when that claimed Lula had a difficult personal relationship with Hugo Cháves. Behind closed doors, the Venezuelan Government was considered difficult to influence or pin down, and a difficult partner to be had. What some might claim is a sign of sovereignty, others in the Brazilian side would say is a difficulty in cooperating in a time of american hegemony. As such, Brazil's government feels a bit miffed with the way their brokered deals during the electoral crisis in Venezuela were more or less discarded.
I guess we'll see the truth of things when during the next couple of days.
Ok since it's looking as if Israel are in their final preparations for their attack against Iran, I will be posting the leaked US spy documents on Israel's preparations, along with trying to make sense of what they mean. This is going to be a long and detailed post (lots of potentially terrifying details), so I'll be completing it inside the spoiler tag below.
The documents themselves, and what does this potentially mean?
I'll start by just posting the two military documents, they are written in a lot of military jargon that I'll try and explain to the best of my ability, I have no real expert knowledge, but I'll do my best. Feel free to provide any corrections where you see fit, I apologise in advance for any errors.
In short, preparations for a large attack on Iran have been taking place at Hatserim airfield, involving loading Air Launched Ballistic Missiles (ALBM) onto at least six F-15I (Israeli version of the F-15E Strike Eagle) aircraft at the base, likely of type "Golden Horizon", but not certainly. A minimum of 56 ALBMs have been taken out of storage so far by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) in total at all air bases. 40 of type "Rocks" and 16 of type "Golden Horizon". More on that later. ALBMs being taken out of storage and loaded onto aircraft was also spotted at Ramat David airfield and Ramon airfield.
Israel have also been spying on Iran, within Iran itself, using some sort of stealth UAV of type "RA-01", operating out of a hangar at Ramon airfield. More on that later.
Israel also conducted a large scale practice exercise for their attack on Iran, involving one AWACS aircraft and three aerial refueling aircraft. The AWACS and refueling force is of a similar size to that which was used to conduct long range strikes on Yemen during September. No word on the size of the fighter aircraft force component though.
Israeli air defense systems in Arrow-2 and Arrow-3 continue to be deployed, along with the Navy being deployed.
Lastly, Israel likely has deployed the nuclear armed Jericho II Medium Range Ballistic Missiles (MRBM) in a defensive position since October 1 2024, the date of Iran's retaliatory ballistic missile attack. There is no indication that this is an offensive deployment or that they will be used in the upcoming Israeli attack. But this is as close as we'll get to the US acknowledging the Israeli nuclear arsenal, and shows that nuclear weapons are in play.
What's interesting from these leaked documents, is that they reveal the existence of two weapons systems of which there is no public information on. The Golden Horizon ALBM, and RA-01 stealth ISR UAV.
The RA-01, based on the size of the suspected hangars and intended role, could be a propeller powered flying wing design drone, similar to an RQ 170 but propeller powered. Other suggestions involve an ISR version of the Ibis HA10 High altitude long endurance concept drone, Public research paper here, with the wings fitted on after exiting the hangar as the wingspan would be too large for the hangars at Ramon. It would also explain the US spy report providing details about a technical crew needed to prepare the aircraft after take offs and landings. I'll attach an image below to illustrate this, and yes, it's the highest quality image available. This is really obscure territory here. This UAV concept was designed with stealth and a flight time of over 24 hours in mind, so it's a viable suggestion. The twitter account that initially suggested it also got deleted, which adds some sort of credibility to the theory I guess? It's concerning that Iranian air defences have not been able to detect or engage this UAV type.
As for what this could mean in an Israeli attack, we'll start with the ALBMs. The concept of this is familiar, the most well known ALBM is probably the Russian Kinzhal, an Iskander SRBM converted for an aerial launch. Israel have a similar weapon in the Air LORA, a LORA SRBM converted for aerial launch. The "ROCKS" ALBM is weapon that we do have public information on. It's a weapon with a range estimated to be between 250-300km which gives it stand off capabilities, uses a single Sparrow booster stage (the sparrow series are a series of ALBMs that Israel uses to test it's Arrow and David's Sling air defence systems, they are designed to imitate Iranian ballistic missiles), and uses GPS and inertial guidance, along with an electro optical seeker, or anti radiation seeker. A ROCKS ALBM with an anti radiation seeker was likely used to destroy an Iranian air defence radar that was part of a S300PMU2 missile battery during Israel's April attack. Drones were used to stimulate Iranian air defences into action, giving away their position for the anti radiation missile to home in on their radar. The fact that 40 of these missiles have been deployed is very concerning and could indicate Israeli intentions to carry out a wider scale Suppression/Destruction of Enemy Air Defences (SEAD/DEAD) operation. This is a capability that Israel has already demonstrated against Iran, that Iran failed to stop last time round. We have also seen how effective this attack vector has been against US Patriot air defence systems in Ukraine, when Russia destroyed them with Kinzhals and Iskanders.
There is much speculation on what the "Golden Horizon" ALBM is as there is no public information on it, with many suggesting that it is the internal nsme for the Air LORA ALBM. I disagree, and think that it is likely a multi stage version of a Sparrow ALBM (in particular blue sparrow), readied for actual combat use. Imagery of such a weapon was posted by the IAF online a few weeks ago. It's still up on twitter actually. This would give this weapon a longer range in comparison to ROCKS, in violation of some of the missile treaties Israel publicly says that they follow, which is likely why it's been kept secret. These weapons would give Israel a great stand off capability with their long range, a range of around 2000km potentially. Israeli jets wouldn't even need to leave Israeli airspace to strike Iran. It was also theorised by some that Israel fired a few of these weapons with inert warheads during their strike on Iran in April.
What happens from here really depends on what Israel targets with their ALBMs. If they target Iran's above ground missile facilities, along with very limited strikes on air defence systems, I can see a potential road to de escalation, with Iran likely launching a limited drone or ballistic missile attack in response, similar to the April attack. If Israel carries out a large scale SEAD/DEAD campaign to open up the possibility for a further aerial campaign, and/or tries to strike Iran's underground missile or nuclear facilities, we could be on the verge of all out war. Such an attack would amount to a declaration of war, and Iran's response would likely make their October 1 attack look small in comparison. The resulting escalation ladder of such events could get really tall really quickly. I don't see Israel being able to intercept Iranian ballistic missiles over the medium to long term, which could lead to a US response if Israel is on the end of a large retaliatory strike.
The AFIP will be replaced with a new, reduced agency and over 3,000 jobs are on the chopping block
President Javier Milei’s government announced on Monday that Argentina’s federal tax agency, AFIP by its Spanish initials, will be dissolved and replaced with a new agency in accordance with its mandate to “reduce inefficient structures.” According to Presidential Spokesman Manuel Adorni, 34% of public service jobs within the AFIP will be eliminated. As of Monday evening, no details had been released regarding the new agency’s operations or what the move means in concrete terms for the country’s fiscal infrastructure.
“AFIP will cease to exist. In its place, the Collection and Customs Control Agency will be created with a simplified structure,” said Adorni in his routine press conference at the Casa Rosada. According to the Herald’s sister publication Ambito, he did not accept questions after the announcement.
The new and reduced agency, ARCA by its Spanish initials, will be a merger between two preexisting government bodies (the tax and customs general directorates, DGI and DGA by their Spanish acronyms). It will be led by Florencia Misrahi, a lawyer who formerly worked for Cargill and is currently serving as the head of the AFIP. “The Argentina of fiscal voracity is over. What belongs to every Argentine is theirs and no one else’s. No state bureaucrat should have the power to tell them what to do with their property,” Adorni added.
A communiqué released on Monday afternoon described the AFIP as inefficient and highlighted the termination of 3,155 workers hired under former President Alberto Fernández. The communiqué refers to the administration as “Kirchnerite” in reference to Fernández’s vice president, Cristina Kirchner, who is often targeted by government discourse.
Adorni claimed that firing the workers would lead to savings of around AR$6.4 million per year. Both the spokesman and the communiqué referred to their employment as “irregular,” questioning the legality of their hiring. “The creation of ARCA is aimed at reducing the size of the state, eliminating unnecessary positions, professionalizing the agency, destroying circuits of corruption, and improving the efficiency of customs collection and control,” read the communiqué.
According to the Herald’s sister publication Ambito, the AFIP Board of Directors said it did not have “objections with respect to the reduction of political positions,” which the government referred to as “high positions,” because that is a power reserved for the Executive Branch. However, it emphasized that “dismissals will not be tolerated on the basis of political origin.”
lmfao
also announced, out of nowhere, that the media attacked him and said he does not have sex with his sister or his dogs. Nobody ever claimed he has sex with dogs, but this is the current state of things.
According to Newsweek, occupied Korea is posturing at sending troops and “advisors” to Ukraine to counter the North Koreans. Absolute clown stuff. Acting like there will be a ton of DPRK prisoners when there are just some DPRK “advisors” currently and Russia is winning and taking prisoners at a way higher rate.
Occupied Korea wants to send troops and involve itself in a losing war where there advisors will get killed and captured as Ukraine collapses? It’s a clever way to get more troops to Ukraine without NATO involvement I suppose.
Here's more info on the hospital for which Israel is creating a narrative to bomb
Israel Makes Sensational Allegations Against Sahel Hospital in Beirut (Gaza Playbook)
Avichay Adraee, the Israeli spokesperson for Arab media writes in a post on X that Hezbollah is storing “hundreds of millions of dollars” in cash and gold beneath Sahel Hospital in Haret Hreik, alleging that these funds are earmarked to finance the group’s terrorist activities. The hospital conceals secret entrances and exits leading to a shelter below, he said.
Adraee goes on with news that Israeli aircraft are currently surveilling the site, and called on the Lebanese government and international organizations to recover these purportedly stolen funds and prevent their use for terrorism.
In response, Fadi Alameh, the hospital’s director, strongly rejected the accusations, called for Lebanese Ministry to investigate & asserted that Sahel Hospital has no ties to any political parties. The hospital, he confirmed, had been forced to evacuate.
According to Israel's Channel 13, a "very large" attack will soon take place against Iran, after the deployment of the THAAD missile defense system has been completed.
Preparations for the attack are underway.
Casualties are reported in the Israeli attack near Hariri hospital, where no evacuation of the population was requested.
3 dead dozens of injured
I recall seeing a tweet that goes something along the lines of "Sinwar is everything western media wants you to believe Zelensky is" and that got me thinking...
is there a term for something like reverse-projection? I dunno, like, when someone attributes all of their enemies' noble or good qualities to themselves or something.
The Israeli nazi regime is pumping out fabrications that hezbollah has hidden their money in a bunker below the al-sahel hospital, so expect that hospital to be bombed in the near future
They say its just Russian trolling for now. The narrative seems like ever increasing Russian cope which I don't understand why, I admit its wierd but also I don't quite think someone right at the front(see the video geolocation) has time or reason to be bothering with internet memes, just a weird situation imo, why would you carry a DPRK flag around just in case?
To me this seems like the funniest narrative of the past year imo. Its going to be so funny to watch all these silly mil bloggers experts trying to justify the extremely obvious reasons why DPRK was willing to send some small amount of troops.
Found this regional breakdown of the Moldova eu vote, it seems like some of the numbers indicate some abstention on the no side. Can someone translate and identify the regions?
Apparently there's some horrific footage of massacres in/around the Indonesian hospital in Gaza that a nurse managed to smuggle out, and it's being heavily censored on twitter
The founder of El Periódico has been released from prison and is now on house arrest. El Periódico is kind of like the Intercept of Guatemala, but much more prestigious and left-leaning. The founder has been through hell over the years for his reporting. Everything from kidnapping to mugging have happened and he keeps on going. He was arrested in 2022 for criticizing a former president and like anything in Guatemala, saying the fascist government is bad will result in threats from them if your platform is large enough.
Great point by Branko Milanovic regarding Moldova's EU referendum.
It is absolutely bizarre, but very much in keeping with how EU operates, to vote on EU membership when no-one is offering it.
Macedonia voted in such a silly referendum in 2018. Did anything happen? No new member was accepted for 11 years. Countries are in a limbo for decades. It is a waste of time & energy to think about it.
Moreover, to be accepted several countries (incl. France) require referendum which would definitely reject new members,
Referendums like the one in Moldova are meaningless & they simply add fuel to fire and destabilize countries for nothing.
Same thing I was thinking, there is no guarantee that any more countries, even ukraine, will actually get to join the EU even, they're just going to get in line forever. Which affects the countries' politics negatively (in the eyes of europhiles), ie Georgia
What EU does is to play an entertaining game. It displays to small countries pictures of wealth to come, countries begin fighting within themselves for these illusory pictures, and nothing real ever happens. What EU does is what in French is called "miroiter". You disembark in a poor country, show them in a mirror all kinds of glowing things, they get excited, and in exchange fo these images, they give you land. It worked wonders in the 19th century.
Both EU/NATO and Russia want to provoke conflicts and even civil wars in the European neighboring countries. Creating dissention and political mobilization over absolutely unattainable things (like EU membership which is a mirage) is the right way on that path. For small countries that are polarized in many respects, it is a suicide in this geo-political climate, to choose one or the other side. Neutrality or non-alignment is not just a "nice" policy. It is necessary in order to survive without a civil war. Libya & Iraq are cautionary tales.
Bureaucratic budget rules prevents coastal protection for Danish towns
Many Danish coastal municipalities, are grappling with how to fund essential coastal protection projects against future storm surges caused by climate change. A recent report from the Technical University of Denmark warns of severe future damages if these measures are not taken, but the financial burden is proving difficult to manage under the current construction cap.
This cap limits how much municipalities can spend annually on construction and renovation projects, making it hard to finance expensive flood defenses. The town of Kerteminde was forced to scrap a DKK 50 mln. dike and sluice project, as it would consume half of their annual construction cap. The island of Lolland, meanwhile, plans to defy the construction cap and go ahead with a DKK 400 mln. floodgate to protect the town of Nakskov from future surges, as soon as funding is secured. Lolland's succdem mayor Holger Schou Rasmussen argues that there is no choice but to build the floodgate as the damages caused by unmitigated flooding will far exceed the cost of construction.
Both municipalities are calling on the central government to ease the budgetary straitjacket and provide more financial support. Holger Schou Rasmussen, argues the issue is a national responsibility, while Magnus Heunicke, head of the succdem-controlled ministry of the executive, acknowledges the need for collaboration but stops short of promising to lift the cap.
I am counting down the days until Joe Biden gets his final "Lucy will let me kick the football this time, surely" moment with Netanyahu. When Israel goes ahead and bombs energy and nuclear infrastructure or even potentially uses a nuke on Iran, even though they pinkie-promised Joe they wouldn't, it's going to cement Biden's legacy as the most ineffective leader in American history......not the measure of justice he truly deserves, but at least he'll die one day in a nursing home knowing that he will be a laughingstock for future historians, and that he fucked everything up by trusting Bibi
Moldova joining the EU would actually be very funny because it will just be a money sink for the sinking ship. But atleast the people would be able to escape Moldova far more easily so it’s a huge plus for them.
Cuba has now fuel for Gradual restoration of electrical servicetelesur
Minister Vicente de la O Levy expects the country’s electricity supply to be fully restored by Tuesday.
On Monday, the the state-owned company Union Electrica (UNE) confirmed that around 50 percent of Havana’s residents now have power, nearly 72 hours after the total blackout that affected the entire island.
The UNE also emphasized that its “people are not resting” as they work to restore the National Electric System (SEN) following the “national zero power coverage” event that occurred on Friday, which has only been gradually addressed amid repeated setbacks in recent days.
On Sunday, authorities announced that the current strategy to address this crisis is to reorganize the SEN into three regions to facilitate the startup of different generation units. The goal is to reconnect the SEN as quickly as possible to gradually restore service to the nearly ten million inhabitants of the island.
Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy expects the country’s electricity supply to be fully restored by Tuesday. The first total blackout was recorded last Friday morning, following an unexpected shutdown of the Guiteras thermoelectric plant, one of the largest in the country and considered key to SEN’s stability.
What an exciting game, Lokomotiv pulled ahead with an early lead in the first but Dynamo really came back in the second, gaining the lead 3-2 by the second break. It really came down to the wire but Lokomotiv managed to tie it up with a little less than a minute remaining and went on to win it in overtime!
Lokomotiv next plays Amur Khabarovsk on Friday, October 25th at 7pm Moscow Standard Time
Maybe my little tirade played a part in prompting this?
Anyhow,looks like the referrendum will pass,almost all the votes are counted,with a very,very narrow lead for YES,so my silly little comment about hope kinda looks stupid now. My apologies to those tagged,it was the middle of the night here and I'd just woken up,and the diaspora vote wasn't counted yet .
Maybe it can be contested,but I'm not holding out any hope,looks like it's gonna be another Lucy football moment for the romance speakers of the east. Sad,but this is the post Soviet world we live in.
Also,I will reiterate my point,this is purely a Romanian endeavor,there is almost nothing in there to loot that either isn't in Pridniestrovie or hasnt already been looted other than some vineyards and farmland. It is the quintessential Eastern European agrarian nation,with it's land consisting of flatlands and plateaus. As far as I recall it is also bereft of any significant underground resources,so it's no Donbass. Most I can say is that it has maybe some potential for green energy,but let's be honest,who's gonna build that and with what money? You can't even say that they're an untapped labor market, Moldovans have been using their joint Romanian citizenships to work for pennies on the dollar in the EU for almost two decades now. It truly is the shining example of post Soviet decay and the power games played by the West in this region.
Edit:Looks like it's joever,50.46 to 49.54,with a 13.596 vote difference
An austrian nazi (Martin Sellner) was arrested in switzerland basically he was already banned in the country for you know being a nazi, decided to come here anyways to say some nazi stuff and got arrested. I thought that since he could do it in austria and germany he'd get away with it but I guess not.
I'm guessing he thought it play out the same as it did in germany where he was banned from the country, came in anyways and their government retroactively lifted the ban.
Edit:
Actually since theres some new news about this now the guy got got in the dumbest way ever, he wanted to protest being not allowed in and wanted to do a whole photo shoot of him shaking the hands of some nazis across the border but he got the whole thing wrong and he stood on the swiss side the whole time. Double irony he did it near the 'Nazifence' so....
He'll probably do the whole 'I didn't know I'm just a smol bean' and since he's austrian he'll probably get away with a fine but oh man just the dumbest guy imaginable.
Feel free to post or recommend any books, essays, studies, articles, and even stories related to Moldova.
If you know a lot about the country and want to share your knowledge and opinions, here are some questions to get you started if you wish:
spoiler
What is the general ideology of the political elite? Do they tend to be protectionist nationalists, or are they more free trade globalists? Are they compradors put there by foreign powers? Are they socialists with wide support by the population?
What are the most important domestic political issues that make the country different from other places in the region or world? Are there any peculiar problems that have continued existing despite years or decades with different parties?
Is the country generally stable? Are there large daily protests or are things calm on average? Is the ruling party/coalition generally harmonious or are there frequent arguments or even threats?
Is there a particular country to which this country has a very impactful relationship over the years, for good or bad reasons? Which one, and why?
What are the political factions in the country? What are the major parties, and what segments of the country do they attract?
Are there any smaller parties that nonetheless have had significant influence? Are there notable separatist movements?
How socially progressive or conservative is the country generally? To what degree is there equality between men and women, as well as different races and ethnic groups? Are LGBTQIA+ rights protected?
Give a basic overview of the last 50 or 100 years. What's the historical trend of politics, the economy, social issues, etc - rise or decline? Were they always independent or were they once occupied, and how have things been since independence if applicable?
If you want, go even further back in history. Were there any kingdoms or empires that once governed the area?