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Katz vows to destroy Gaza City unless Hamas frees hostages, lays down arms
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 2: WoT Background
5 16:51 Rambler [141] 
6 14:07 Anguper Hupomosing9418 [161] 
1 23:49 Skidmark [91] 
3 10:26 DooDahMan [133] 
5 18:41 Regular joe [135] 
1 01:27 Besoeker [59] 
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2 07:22 MikeKozlowski [130] 
3 09:31 Procopius2k [119] 
2 09:39 Skidmark [66] 
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1 09:57 Muggsy and Company2746 [57] 
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1 00:36 Skidmark [70] 
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Page 1: WoT Operations
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Page 3: Non-WoT
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3 14:37 Abu Uluque [86]
3 13:37 swksvolFF [75]
8 21:25 Woodrow [173]
2 21:12 Lord Garth [93]
10 16:52 Elmomoter Mussolini9149 [145]
3 13:50 Anguper Hupomosing9418 [153]
1 06:41 Jairong+Scourge+of+the+Gepids2435 [53]
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1 21:03 Gritch Throlumble3163 [120]
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Page 4: Opinion
5 18:06 Cloting Clusose2637 [119]
8 14:15 Abu Uluque [142]
2 09:37 Procopius2k [87]
6 09:40 Procopius2k [139]
1 01:35 Besoeker [96]
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Page 6: Politix
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1 02:51 Grom the Affective [76]
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-Land of the Free
National Guard mobilizing in 19 states amid immigration, crime crackdown
[FoxNews] Documents obtained by FOX News show planning for activations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wyoming – with status effective from August through mid-November. Texas is projected to host the most significant Guard presence.
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 00:27 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [161 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Not really a 'civil war' per se, until the other side starts shooting or do I have it wrong ?
Posted by: Besoeker || 08/23/2025 7:21 Comments || Top||

#2  Illinois missing from a list that includes Indiana and Iowa. Hmm ...
Posted by: ChicagoNorth || 08/23/2025 8:15 Comments || Top||

#3  CA as well. They'd rather resist for politics
Posted by: Frank G || 08/23/2025 9:34 Comments || Top||

#4  It is a civil war as conceived by theater students. Lots of noise and smoke, a touch of violence, but at the end of the day, it is all performance. Like monkeys howling in the trees.
Posted by: SteveS || 08/23/2025 9:47 Comments || Top||

#5  There is war between the states, and then there is the 4th generation civil war which has already produced a number of casualties.
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 08/23/2025 11:29 Comments || Top||

#6  12 Aug 2025: NM governor issues a 'state of emergency' for multiple areas due to out of control crime.
See here: https://www.governor.state.nm.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Executive-Order-2025-358.pdf
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 08/23/2025 14:07 Comments || Top||


Hundreds of DoD civilians accept call of duty in southern border mission under Trump's order
[FoxNews] Assignments last up to 6 months, providing skills ranging from intelligence analysis to detention support.

"DOD civilians — who have already undergone rigorous vetting and demonstrated their commitment to serving this nation — are invited to volunteer for temporary ICE assignments to help make America safe again and remove national security threats—including gang members and terrorists from our country,” a DoD spokesperson said to Fox News Digital.
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 00:22 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [91 views] Top|| File under: Migrants/Illegal Immigrants

#1  Being TDY during downsizing is a good job retention strategy.
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 23:49 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
Pakistan Urges U.S. to Buy Back Abandoned Weapons in Afghanistan
Translation: “Make it rain dollars again, O America! The drought has lasted far too long.”
[KhaamaPress] Pakistain has urged the U.S. to buy back abandoned weapons in Afghanistan, warning they fuel krazed killers. The $7 billion arsenal now threatens regional security and Pakistain’s stability.
So we should give a hellacious sum to the Taliban, because they’re the ones who took control of the equipment when the Biden Politburo pulled us precipitously out of the country. The fact that they’ve already sold off everything they didn’t want, so they already got billions, can be conveniently ignored.
military has called on the United States to buy back weapons left behind in Afghanistan after the U.S. withdrawal, warning that these arms are flooding black markets and empowering hard boy groups. Army spokesperson Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said the uncontrolled sale of American weapons poses a direct threat to Pakistain’s security.

The abandoned arsenal, valued by the Pentagon at more than $7 billion, includes armored vehicles, advanced rifles, biometric devices, and other sensitive technologies. Reports suggest that many of these weapons have been acquired by the Pak Taliban
...mindless ferocity in a turban...
and are now being used in attacks against Pakistain’s army.

Prices for U.S.-made rifles have surged as supplies have dwindled. In Afghanistan markets such as Khost and Paktika
...which coincidentally borders North Wazoo and Kurram Agency...
, an M4 rifle sells for more than $4,200, while an M16 is priced at about $1,400. Chinese-made rifles are cheaper but remain less desirable to holy warriors compared with American models.

Western outlets including The Washington Post and UnHerd have reported that up to 400,000 NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and structure....
-supplied weapons are now under Taliban control. Insurgent groups across Pakistain, from Islamist fighters in the north to Baloch separatists in the southwest, are said to be using these arms.

At the same time, Pakistain has stepped up its cooperation with the U.S. against Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
Khorasan Province (ISKP). Islamabad has captured and extradited several ISKP leaders, actions praised by President Donald Trump
...The cad! Twice caught beating wimmin!...
, which earned Army Chief Asim Munir a rare invitation to the White House.

Despite this, Pakistain views its most pressing threats as coming from the Pak Taliban and Baloch separatists. Attacks by these groups rose by more than 45 percent in 2024. Islamabad is seeking American support in the form of intelligence, counterinsurgency equipment, and renewed military aid.

The call to buy back U.S. weapons left in Afghanistan reflects Pakistain’s attempt to address an urgent regional security crisis. The uncontrolled trade of advanced arms continues to destabilize border areas.

While cooperation between Islamabad and Washington is slowly reviving, mistrust remains deep. Without stronger safeguards, abandoned weapons could continue to fuel insurgency and violence across South Asia.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [130 views] Top|| File under:

#1  regional security and Pakistain’s stability

Eh?
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 0:09 Comments || Top||

#2  I can see the pitch meeting now:

1: The Americans buy back the stuff.
2: The gunnies split the money with us.
3: Profit!
Posted by: MikeKozlowski || 08/23/2025 7:22 Comments || Top||


Iran Warns of Syrian Fighters Moving to Afghanistan, Echoing UN Concerns
[KhaamaPress] Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
has warned that Syrian fighters may move to Afghanistan, echoing UN concerns that such relocations could destabilize the region and strengthen terrorist networks.

Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations
...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks...
, Amir Saeid Iravani, has expressed alarm over the potential transfer of Syrian holy warriors to Afghanistan, warning that such movements could destabilize the region.

Speaking at the UN on August 21, Iravani highlighted the presence of terrorist groups including ISIS and al-Qaeda in Syria, cautioning that their relocation to Afghanistan would threaten wider regional security. He emphasized that any process in Syria must guarantee the legitimate rights of its people while upholding the country’s illusory sovereignty, independence, and national institutions.

His remarks came shortly after UN Secretary-General António Guterres released his 2025 counterterrorism report, which warned of the same danger. The report estimates that around 2,000 ISIS fighters remain in Syria and could be redeployed to Afghanistan.

Pakistain’s envoy to the UN also raised concerns, stating that groups operating under Taliban
...the once and current oppressors of Afghanistan...
rule in Afghanistan pose a direct threat to Islamabad’s security.

The Taliban, however, continue to deny the presence of foreign terrorist groups on Afghanistan soil despite mounting international warnings and regional reports of cross-border krazed killer activity.

These parallel concerns from Iran, Pakistain, and the United Nations underscore growing fears that Afghanistan could once again serve as a sanctuary for global jihadist networks.

Analysts say preventing the transfer of battle-hardened holy warriors from Syria to Afghanistan will require stronger intelligence cooperation, regional dialogue, and a united international strategy to counter terrorism.

UN Warns Syrian Fighters Could Relocate to Afghanistan, Raising Regional Security Risks

[KhaamaPress]The UN warns Syrian fighters may relocate to Afghanistan, boosting ISKP and TTP threats. Regional states fear renewed instability, while the Taliban deny harboring foreign militants.

The United Nations has warned that Syrian fighters involved in conflicts during 2024 may relocate to Afghanistan, creating new security risks for the country and the wider region.

The warning came in UN Secretary-General António Guterres’s annual counterterrorism report, presented to the Security Council on August 21, 2025. The report highlights concerns that militants with battlefield experience in Syria could destabilize Afghanistan and its neighbors if they regroup there.

According to the findings, Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) remains the most serious threat in Afghanistan, with an estimated 2,000 fighters operating across the country. The report also noted that around 3,000 ISIS members remain active in Syria, some of whom may be transferred to Afghanistan soil.

During the Security Council meeting, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, described the situation in Afghanistan as “deeply unstable.” He emphasized that ISKP poses a direct threat to Pakistan’s security and highlighted the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as the largest UN-designated terrorist group operating from Afghanistan.

While international observers stress the growing risk, the Taliban authorities continue to deny the presence of foreign terrorist groups on Afghanistan territory. However, regional governments remain unconvinced, citing persistent cross-border violence and terrorist activity.

The UN report reflects broader global concerns that Afghanistan could once again become a safe haven for international jihadist networks. If Syrian fighters relocate, analysts warn the security environment could deteriorate sharply, heightening instability across South and Central Asia.

For neighboring states such as Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, the threat of foreign militant relocation is particularly serious. The report underscores the urgent need for greater regional cooperation, intelligence sharing, and coordinated counterterrorism strategies to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a hub of transnational extremism.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [66 views] Top|| File under: Islamic State

#1  Thankfully, there is a country between Syria and Afghanistan that could stop the flow of fighters.
Posted by: Super Hose || 08/23/2025 9:13 Comments || Top||

#2  Perhaps they are going to secure the abandoned weapons.
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 9:39 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
Pentagon, DEA, Mexican forces hold intel training aimed at 'putting an end to the godless cartels'
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 01:42 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [141 views] Top|| File under: Narcos

#1  Setting cookie
Posted by: Mercutio || 08/23/2025 8:56 Comments || Top||

#2  Actually the worship of Santa Muerte is common among the cartels
Posted by: Gloluns Turkeyneck4904 || 08/23/2025 12:05 Comments || Top||

#3  Trusting Mexican forces with intel sounds like risky business.
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 08/23/2025 13:24 Comments || Top||

#4  Trusting Mexican forces with intel sounds like risky business.

True. But a devious person might take advantage of that.
Posted by: SteveS || 08/23/2025 14:39 Comments || Top||

#5  If the intel we share is of the variety "Where are the cartels hiding right now?" it might be ok. I definitely would not share the "We are planning to attack at this point at this time" sort of intel. We should always assume that whatever we tell them will be leaked.
Posted by: Rambler || 08/23/2025 16:51 Comments || Top||


New Cuban Missile Crisis: Trump Sends Fleet to Sea, Maduro Announces Mobilization
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
by Ol'ga Kuznetsova

[REGNUM] A few days ago, the Pentagon — through a network of affiliated media — sent more than four thousand Marines, along with regular sailors, to the waters of Latin America and the Caribbean.

The operation will be part of stepped-up efforts to combat Latin American cartels, most of which the White House has already designated as terrorist organizations.

At the same time, the American defense departments made it clear that the transfer is only part of a large-scale redeployment of military resources in favor of the Southern Command of the US Armed Forces. It is planned to be carried out within three weeks, and this entire company will spend at least several months in Caribbean waters.

Thus, as part of the mission, the Southern Command will additionally be sent a nuclear attack submarine, P8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft, several destroyers and a missile cruiser.

Representatives of American structures do not forget to add that the militarization of the Caribbean Sea is, first and foremost, a “show of force,” as well as the creation of an opportunity for the president and military command to have the broadest range of actions—in the event that Donald Trump decides to declare the start of military action.

Some officials, however, said that the involvement of the Marine Corps in such an event caused some commotion in the Pentagon.

It turns out that most of the personnel assigned to Southern Command have no prior experience in countering drug trafficking, so much of the work will have to fall back to the Coast Guard, as always.

CARACAS REACTION
Venezuela did not remain silent in response to what was happening in the Caribbean. President Nicolas Maduro almost immediately declared that “no empire will touch the sacred land of Venezuela or South America.”

Also, with his characteristic pathos, the Bolivarian leader said that “the seas, the sky and the lands of the region must be defended by the peoples themselves,” recalling that “ never again should any empire set foot on the land liberated by Simón Bolívar.”

After casually criticizing the humiliating presence of American military bases in Colombia, Maduro began to retaliate.

The Guacamaya plan, created to directly counter a possible foreign invasion of the Bolivarian Republic, was put into action.

Four and a half million armed militiamen have been called up to defend the country, and the authorities have declared their readiness to distribute rifles to anyone who wants to participate in defending the Motherland.

Already on August 22, Maduro announced that he had called all militia members to military headquarters, military units, central squares and popular defense centers for the coming Saturday and Sunday for national registration in the Bolivarian National Militia.

MEXICAN PASSIONS
At the same time, the situation in Mexico, which has recently received increased attention from US law enforcement agencies, is heating up.

The country's leadership effectively condemned the US interventionist games in the Caribbean and also began to deny cooperation with the new program of the US Drug Enforcement Administration.

At the same time, the military presence in the state of Sinaloa, where American agents have been spotted on numerous occasions, has been strengthened. One hundred patrol cars are planned to be deployed there, and the state police are allowed to use weapons exclusively in the interests of the army.

These measures are aimed against the Sinaloa drug cartel, with which the White House accuses the entire leadership of the Bolivarian Republic of collaborating.

According to Trump's team, the Maduro government is producing cocaine, and the Sinaloa cartel is delivering it to the United States.

Interestingly, a trial against one of the captured leaders of this cartel, El Mayo, is expected in New York soon. The main intrigue of the hearing, scheduled for August 25, is whether or not there is an agreement between El Mayo and the American authorities, who are promising all sorts of concessions for just a trifle - testimony against the President of Venezuela.

Considering that El Mayo could well be blackmailed with possible criminal prosecution of his relatives, extracting testimony of this kind from anyone would hardly be difficult.

NEW CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS?
At the moment, in the American information segment, individual congressmen are spreading news that American destroyers have almost reached the shores of Venezuela.

It is casually mentioned that the units participating in the operation in the Caribbean were in the eastern Mediterranean for several months – and this was during the tensions between Israel, Hamas and Iran.

The very fact of such an agenda is already escalating the situation, and some experts are directly hinting that they want to do with the Bolivarian Republic “the same thing as with Iran.”

"Bolivarian Crimea": Will Maduro Open a New Front in Latin America
However, for now, most of the events – both on the part of Washington and on the part of Caracas – are of a demonstrative nature and do not go beyond “saber rattling.”

Certain provocations from the Southern Command can be expected - and this coming weekend, but a war in the classical sense that Washington usually arranges is unlikely to happen.

The acceleration of the necessary narratives has not yet reached its peak, no serious ultimatums have been presented to Caracas - the local opposition's messages that "Maduro's days are numbered" can be ignored.

The Pentagon and White House have publicly focused on other regional hotspots, with Southern Command leadership holding a series of events in Argentina.

It is highly likely that everything that is happening is just a large-scale provocation by Washington, aimed at promoting Donald Trump's anti-drug policy. Whether this is true or not will become clear in the next couple of weeks.

Posted by: badanov || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [119 views] Top|| File under: Commies

#1  An invasion of Chicago seems more likely.
Posted by: Super Hose || 08/23/2025 9:11 Comments || Top||


#3  Mobilization? You really trust your own general population with guns?
Posted by: Procopius2k || 08/23/2025 9:31 Comments || Top||


China condemns US military buildup off Venezuela coast as foreign interference in regional affairs
[FoxNews] A foreign ministry spokesperson criticized the American deployment of guided-missile destroyers as part of an anti-cartel mission

China on Thursday condemned an American military buildup off the coast of Venezuela amid the Trump administration's effort to combat drug cartels, accusing Washington of engaging in foreign interference.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning was speaking with reporters when she was asked about the naval deployment.

"China opposes any move that violates the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter and a country’s sovereignty and security," Ning said. "We oppose the use or threat of force in international relations and the interference of external forces in Venezuela’s internal affairs under any pretext."

"We hope that the United States will do more things conducive to peace and security in Latin America and the Caribbean region," she added.

At least three Aegis guided-missile destroyers — the USS Gravely and USS Jason Dunham among them — are part of the mission that includes thousands of Marines.

"On day one of the Trump Administration, the president published an executive order designating drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, clearly identifying them as a direct threat to the national security of the United States," Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said Tuesday.

"These cartels have engaged in historic violence and terror throughout our Hemisphere — and around the globe — that has destabilized economies and internal security of countries but also flooded the United States with deadly drugs, violent criminals and vicious gangs."

In response to "outlandish threats" by the U.S., Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said he would deploy 4.5 million militia members.
“Yeah, that’s the ticket!”
The show of military force comes as the Trump administration continues to demand that Maduro be held accountable for drugs being smuggled into the U.S.

The administration has labeled Maduro's regime as a "narco-terror cartel." Earlier this month, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a $50 million reward for information leading to the arrest of the South American leader.

Meanwhile, the Justice Department said it has seized more than $700 million in assets tied to the embattled dictator, including two private jets and nine luxury vehicles.

Maduro, indicted in New York in 2020 on narco-terrorism and cocaine importation conspiracy charges, has clung to power with military backing and allegedly with support from Russia, China and Cuba.
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [161 views] Top|| File under: Commies

#1  Wait'll we shut the canal.
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 1:25 Comments || Top||

#2 

Seem to remember Headlines of the CCP, taking control of the Venezuela Chevron Oil fields, a while back.

Plus the CCP grooming Dictator Hugo Chávez and his administration (1999-2013) and the United Socialist Party of Venezuela

Also.
Isn't the CCP supplying the Venezuela Drug Cartels with fentanyl and other drugs, which are then being smuggled into the USA?
Posted by: NN2N1 || 08/23/2025 6:42 Comments || Top||

#3  This is totally unlike China deploying throughout the Pacific and Indian oceans, or their building facilities in Venezuela and Peru.
Posted by: ed in texas || 08/23/2025 8:34 Comments || Top||

#4  China: "Hey! That's cultural appropriation!"
Posted by: Mercutio || 08/23/2025 8:43 Comments || Top||

#5  Projection is still strong with China I see.
Posted by: DarthVader || 08/23/2025 11:39 Comments || Top||

#6  It’s our region.
Posted by: Super Hose || 08/23/2025 14:04 Comments || Top||


Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
SOMB: Ukrainian special services supply weapons to Africa through embassies
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] Ukrainian special services are using their country's embassies to transfer military equipment and instructors to terrorists in Africa. This was reported on August 22 by the director of the Commonwealth of Officers for International Security (COInS) Alexander Ivanov.

“The Ukrainians are conducting their work in Africa covertly, including through the channels of the Ukrainian embassy in Mauritania,” he said in a conversation with TASS.
Unlike Russia, which openly uses whatever the Wagner Group mercenaries call themselves nowadays…
According to the head of the SMM, equipment and fighters from Ukraine are being transported through poorly guarded sections of the border with Mauritania and further into Malian territory.

Ivanov noted that Ukraine uses similar schemes in other countries. For example, the supply of instructors and drones to Islamist militants in the Democratic Republic of Congo is carried out through the Ukrainian embassy in Kinshasa.

“It has also recently become known that Ukrainian diplomatic staff in Algeria are overseeing the supply of UAVs to Africa,” he explained.

The director of the SOMB clarified that with the help of such actions the Kiev regime wants to create new zones of instability and put pressure on African countries that have declared their independence from the West.

“For African countries, especially those like Mali and Burkina Faso, which have only recently gained true sovereignty, such pernicious Ukrainian interference threatens another round of instability,” Ivanov added.

Ukrainian Special Representative for the Middle East and Africa Maksym Subha said on June 25 that Kiev wants to increase its military presence in Mauritania, where its instructors trained terrorists for subsequent actions in Mali. He also said that the Ukrainian side had already provided similar services to Mauritania before the start of the Russian special operation in 2022.

Posted by: badanov || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [44 views] Top|| File under:


Trump delivered strategic blow to Iran regime with bold Azerbaijan-Armenia pact
[FoxNews] Trump delivered strategic blow to Iran regime with bold Azerbaijan-Armenia pact

President Donald Trump’s new deal in the South Caucasus has ended a decades-long conflict and handed Washington a rare strategic foothold on Iran’s northern border, experts say.

The agreement, signed earlier this month between Armenia and Azerbaijan, grants the U.S. a 99-year lease over the Zangezur Corridor - a narrow strip of land that will serve as a critical trade and energy route to Europe, bypassing Tehran entirely. Iranian American journalist and dissident Banafsheh Zand told Fox News Digital the move is "a wonderful gain for the U.S." that also delivers a "slap in the face" to the regime in Tehran.

The corridor has long been at the center of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which displaced tens of thousands and fueled three decades of instability. Trump’s intervention brought both sides to the table and created what observers say is a new trade and security lifeline linking the Caspian Basin to Europe, bypassing Iran entirely.

Known as the Trump Route for Peace & Prosperity (TRIPP), economically, the agreement secures Washington a direct role in overseeing the flow of Caspian hydrocarbons to Europe. The U.S. will manage rail and road infrastructure, telecom networks and energy pipelines running through the corridor, giving American companies a dominant position in regional transit for oil, gas and goods. By controlling this artery, the U.S. not only generates billions in future trade and investment but also locks Europe into alternative supply routes that reduce reliance on both Russia and Iran.

For allies, the corridor offers cheaper and safer access to Caspian energy. For Tehran, it represents lost revenue, lost leverage, and the end of its ability to act as a mandatory gatekeeper for east-west commerce.

Zand said the deal is not only historic but also a direct win for Washington. "It’s a wonderful gain for the U.S.," she said. "American contractors will be supervising oil and gas from the Caspian Basin, routed through Zangezur and Turkey to Europe. The profit margins are great, and it all happens under NATO’s blessing."

Zand said the potential goes even further. "Nobody’s talking about it yet, but I don’t think it’s out of the question to see U.S. bases there," she said. "If that happens, then checkmate the Khamenei regime and Russia."
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [70 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran Proxies

#1  This was so good I wanted to post it again!
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 0:36 Comments || Top||


Europe
Germany says recognition of Palestinian state ‘counterproductive’ at this stage
I’m getting whiplash.
[IsraelTimes] A German government spokesman says that Berlin has no current plans to recognize a Palestinian state because that would undermine any efforts to reach a negotiated two-state solution with Israel.

“A negotiated two-state solution remains our goal, even if it seems a long way off today. … The recognition of Palestine is more likely to come at the end of such a process and such decisions would now be rather counterproductive,” the spokesperson says during a press conference.

Countries including Australia, United Kingdom, France and Canada have recently said they will recognize a Palestinian state under varying conditions.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [59 views] Top|| File under: Palestinian Authority

#1  "Counterproductive" at any stage.
Posted by: Besoeker || 08/23/2025 1:27 Comments || Top||


Monomaniacal idiots: Dutch FM resigns after failing to secure cabinet support for new sanctions on Israel
This is not how a serious government behaves.
[IsraelTimes] Caspar Veldkamp, a former ambassador to Israel, leaves caretaker government after proposing ban on imports from Israeli settlements as response to planned Gaza City offensive

Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp resigned Friday evening, after he failed to secure new sanctions against Israel over the war with Hamas
..a regional Iranian catspaw,...
in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
Veldkamp had informed the country’s parliament he intended to bring in new measures in response to Israel’s planned offensive in Gaza City and other heavily populated areas but was unable to secure the support of his coalition partners.

The 61-year-old former ambassador to Israel
…so he really should know better…
told news hounds he felt he was unable "to implement policy myself and chart the course I deem necessary."

Following Veldkamp’s resignation, the remaining cabinet members of his center-right New Social Contract party also quit, leaving the Dutch government in disarray.

"In short we are done with it," party leader Eddy Van Hijum said, calling the Israeli government’s actions "diametrically opposed to international treaties."
Not true. But so nice of you to be concerned.
The Dutch government already collapsed in June when anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders pulled out of the country’s four-party coalition over a fight about immigration.

The three remaining parties stayed on in a caretaker government until elections could be held in October.

Prime Minister Dick Schoof addressed parliament later Friday evening over the crisis, saying that he regretted the resignation of Veldkamp and the withdrawal of his party.

Schoof said events in Gaza were "worsening" and "dramatic." "Everyone is aware of that," he told deputies.

The UN’s hunger monitor said earlier on Friday the Gaza Strip’s largest city is gripped by famine, and that it’s likely to spread across the territory without a ceasefire and an end to restrictions on humanitarian aid. Israel vehemently denied the reports as "lies" and "modern blood libel," while the United States appeared to dismiss the famine declaration as part of a "false narrative of deliberate mass starvation" from Hamas, which started the ongoing war with its October 7, 2023, terror onslaught in southern Israel.

The Netherlands’ parliament had repeatedly delayed a debate on sanctions against Israel, a discussion that was already postponed from Thursday, as the Friday afternoon cabinet meeting dragged on.

"There’s a famine, ethnic cleansing, and genocide going on," Kati Piri of the merged Green Left/Labor parties told Parliament, "And our cabinet has been deliberating for hours about whether to take any action at all. Shameful."

Veldkamp had proposed a ban on imports from Israeli settlements in response to the planned military offensive.

Opposition politicians had called for a no-confidence vote for the minister, frustrated at what they saw as a lack of action against Israel.

Last month the Netherlands declared far-right Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich persona non grata. It was also among 21 countries that signed a joint declaration on Thursday condemning Israel’s approval of a major West Bank settlement project as "unacceptable and contrary to international law."

Posted by: trailing wife || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [86 views] Top|| File under: Hamas


Islamic Sharia Law Legally Valid in Austrian Civil Disputes, Vienna Court Rules
[Breitbart] A court in Vienna ruled this week that Islamic Sharia law can be legally upheld in Austria in civil disputes, sparking accusations that the nation’s Christian values are being undermined by multiculturalism.

The Vienna Regional Court for Civil Law Matters has upheld the findings of a Sharia arbitration tribunal concerning a civil dispute between two men in Austria, with the group of informal Islamic mediators ruling that one owed the other €320,000 ($372,000).

The man appealed to the Vienna court, arguing that Sharia diktats have no standing in Austria and that the Islamic code violated the constitutional rights of the European country.

Yet, according to Kronen Zeitung, Vienna judges found that it was permissible for private individuals to settle civil disputes through the manner they saw fit, and that Sharia arbitration did not violate the basic law of Austria.

However, the court noted that this would only apply to civil matters and that Sharia is not applicable in criminal cases. Nevertheless, critics warned that the ruling demonstrated an erosion of the Western liberties and Christian ethics upon which Austria was founded.

Upper Austrian deputy governor Manfred Haimbuchner of the populist Freedom Party said that “Sharia is incompatible with our core values,” and added that the case was “another example of how our legal system and our constitutional state have nothing to counter the gradual appropriation of Islam.”

Variously called Sharia courts, tribunals, and councils, the arbitration bodies have established a presence in many European countries with a Islamic migrant population, including in the United Kingdom where they have been operating at least since the 1980s. A 2018 report found the UK government doesn’t know how many so-called Sharia courts operate in the UK and identified women’s safety concerns.

The Austria case comes in the wake of a bombshell report from the French government earlier this year, which found that the radical Muslim Brotherhood network has spent decades engaging in a “Western conquest strategy” with the ultimate aim of instituting Sharia in European nations.

Austria was explicitly cited in the report as a central region of operation for the Muslim Brotherhood, given its history as one of the “first lands of establishment of the movement” in Europe.

The French intelligence found that the effective fifth column operations engaged in by the Islamist group specifically aimed to use Western liberal values to further their aims, infiltrating EU and other government institutions to push concepts such as “Islamophobia” — a term coined by the Muslim Brotherhood.

This week, Brussels attempted to defend its decision to hand out more than €17 million ($20m) for Islamic-related projects, including research into Sharia and the supposed rise of Islamophobia in Europe through grants from the European Research Council (ERC).

This included €2.5 million ($2.9m) given to the French National Centre for Scientific Research to study the supposed evolution of Sharia and €2.3 million ($2.7m) provided to Bilgi University in Istanbul, Turkey, to track rising populist sentiment and Islamophobia in European countries, according to Euronews.

Italian MEP Silvia Sardone and French MEP Jean-Paul Garraud, both of the populist-right Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament, accused the Commission of wasting public funds and of demonstrating bias in favour of Islamic narratives.

EU Commissioner for research, Ekaterina Zaharieva, of the neo-liberal European People’s Party, defended the grants, claiming that they funded “world-class scholarly undertakings that advance the frontiers of knowledge” and said that the “sole criterion for funding is the scientific excellence of the proposal.”
Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [52 views] Top|| File under: Moslem Colonists


Home Front: Politix
Hegseth fires Defense Intelligence Agency chief, other senior Pentagon officials
[FoxNews] Defense Secretary dismisses Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse, Vice Adm. Nancy Lacore and Rear Adm. Milton Sands.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired the head of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), which issued an assessment on U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, as well as other senior military officials.

Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse will no longer serve as head of the DIA, a senior defense official told Fox News Digital on Friday.

The firing came months after DIA details of the preliminary assessment of Operation Midnight Hammer were leaked to the news media. The assessment questioned the effectiveness of the strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

In addition to Kruse, Hegseth removed Vice Adm. Nancy Lacore, the chief of the Navy Reserve, and Rear Adm. Milton Sands, a Navy SEAL officer who oversees Naval Special Warfare Command.

"Effective immediately, Rear Admiral Milton ‘Jamie’ Sands III will no longer serve as Commander, Naval Special Warfare Command," a Navy official said. "Effective immediately, Vice Admiral Nancy Lacore will no longer serve as the Chief of Navy Reserve."

Lacore led around 59,000 reserve component personnel in the Navy and the Marine Corps. As a Naval aviator, she has 1,300 flight hours in military aircraft and was commanding officer of the U.S. base in Djibouti before becoming Chief of the Navy Reserve. The reason she was fired is unknown.

Sands was a Navy SEAL who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He was the Chief of Staff for U.S. Special Operations Command, Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command Africa, and Commander of Naval Service Training Command. The reason he was fired is unknown.

Trump has fired other military officials in recent months, including Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as the Navy’s top officer, the Air Force’s second highest-ranking officer, and the top lawyers for three military service branches.


Posted by: Skidmark || 08/23/2025 00:18 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [133 views] Top|| File under:

#1  ...In all honesty, if they were appointed during the Biden Administration, they should be shown the door.

Mike
Posted by: MikeKozlowski || 08/23/2025 7:17 Comments || Top||

#2  I remember going to a restaurant in Brazil where they gave me a coaster with alternate red and green sides so that I could indicate to my server whether I wanted more of certain kinds of entrees. I am currently displaying the green side of my imaginary coaster.
Posted by: Super Hose || 08/23/2025 9:08 Comments || Top||

#3  I remember when Clapper ran DIA. Just sayin'....
Posted by: DooDahMan || 08/23/2025 10:26 Comments || Top||


US defense secretary fires general whose agency contradicted Trump on effectiveness of US strikes on Iran
Get it right or get out.
[IsraelTimes] US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired a general whose agency’s initial intelligence assessment of damage to Iranian nuclear sites from US strikes angered US President Donald Trump, according to two people familiar with the decision and a White House official.

Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse will no longer serve as head of the US Defense Intelligence Agency, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.

The firing, first reported by The Washington Post, is the latest upheaval in military leadership and in the country’s intelligence agencies, and comes a few months after details of the preliminary assessment leaked to the media.

The assessment found that Iran’s nuclear program has been set back only a few months by the bombings, contradicting assertions from Trump and from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel had on June 13 launched a bombing campaign against Iran’s nuclear program, missile production and military leadership, saying the operation was necessary to prevent the Islamic Republic from realizing its avowed plan to destroy the Jewish state. During the ensuing 12-day war, the US struck three key Iranian nuclear sites.

In a news conference following the US strikes, Hegseth slammed media reports indicating that the strikes were not as successful as Trump had said, and lambasted the press for what the defense secretary described as an anti-military bias. However, Hegseth did not offer any direct evidence of the destruction of Iranian nuclear production facilities.

Earlier this week, the Pentagon announced that the US Air Force’s top uniformed officer, Gen. David Allvin, planned to retire two years early. And the Office of the Director of National Intelligence — which is responsible for coordinating the work of 18 intelligence agencies, including DIA — announced that it would slash its staff and budget.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/23/2025 2025-08-23 00:08 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [135 views] Top|| File under:


#2  The firing of the DIA chief culminates a week of broad Trump administration changes to the intelligence community and shake-ups to the military leadership.

Mike Flynn could always be brought back to run the Silver Bullet until someone else is appointed. Let the clean-up proceed.

Posted by: Besoeker || 08/23/2025 1:17 Comments || Top||

#3  ...I would have bet the house payment that DIA would have downplayed any damage to the nuclear sites.

Mike
Posted by: MikeKozlowski || 08/23/2025 7:19 Comments || Top||

#4  Political leak of classified reports = fired. Keep the equation going.
Posted by: Super Hose || 08/23/2025 9:10 Comments || Top||

#5  Flush them all. And don't forget the security clearances
Posted by: Regular joe || 08/23/2025 18:41 Comments || Top||


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
UN declares Gaza Strip in catastrophic famine for first time, but it’s a lie
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.

As if on cue...

[Regnum] A state of catastrophic famine has been declared in the Gaza Strip for the first time. This was reported on Friday, August 22, by the United Nations (UN).

“The FRC (Famine Review Committee - Ed.) considers the current classification proposed by the analysis group (Famine Phase 5 of the Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) with sound evidence) to be plausible,” the UN agencies and humanitarian organization said in a statement.

In this classification, the fifth phase involves catastrophic famine.

Experts estimate that by the end of September, over 640,000 people in the Gaza Strip will face catastrophic levels of food shortages. Another 1.14 million people in the Palestinian enclave will find themselves in a state of emergency and another 396,000 in a state of crisis.

More from regnum.ru
Israel Accuses UN of Fabricating Gaza Famine Report
The Israeli Foreign Ministry called the United Nations report on the famine in the Gaza Strip, presented to the UN earlier on August 22, fabricated.

"The IPC has just published a 'custom-made' fabricated report to suit the Hamas fake campaign," the agency's website says.

The Israeli ministry claims that since the beginning of the military conflict, more than 100,000 trucks with humanitarian aid have entered Gaza and that food prices have fallen sharply in the region due to the massive influx of humanitarian aid. The predictions regarding Gaza during the war turned out to be false, the Jewish state's Foreign Ministry said.

On August 20, Adviser to the President of Palestine Mahmoud Al-Habash stated that Russia provides the Palestinian people with various types of assistance, including in saving lives. The Adviser cited one of Russia's key humanitarian initiatives as an example, recalling the transfer of 30,000 tons of wheat to Palestine, which was sent by order of President Mahmoud Abbas for the needs of the Gaza Strip in the context of ongoing famine and the increasing number of victims due to food shortages. Al-Habash noted that this is just one example of Russia's constant and consistent support for the Palestinian people.

From yesterday's 'Burg:

Facebook Watch:




America agrees with Israel:
White House appears to dismiss UN declaration of famine in Gaza

[IsraelTimes] The White House appears to dismiss the findings of a UN-backed global hunger monitor after the latter issued a report concluding that famine had struck Gaza for the first time.

“We are looking into credible reports that the IPC recently changed its definition for what constitutes a famine,” reads a statement from a US State Department spokesperson.

The statement appears to be referring to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification’s (IPC) decision to utilize a different system to measure malnutrition in Gaza than it has used in other conflict zones.

To track hunger in Gaza, IPC used the Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) measurement, as opposed to the weight-for-height Z-score (WHZ).

Under MUAC, 15% of people measured need to be identified as acutely malnourished in order for a famine to be declared, whereas the threshold for WHZ is 30%. Israel has accused IPC of lowering its own criteria in order to conclude that there is famine in Gaza. In its report, the UN agency explained that it used the MUAC measurement instead of WHZ because the former is easier and cheaper to track amid the challenging wartime conditions.

The US appears to reject the approach and the conclusions reached in the report, with the State Department spokesperson saying that addressing the “challenging issues of getting aid to Gazans means honestly addressing problems for the sake of Gazans, who deserve better, not engaging in semantics.”

The spokesperson clarifies that the US still thinks the humanitarian situation in Gaza is a “serious concern” and that Washington is working to find ways to deliver aid to Gazan civilians in an active war zone where the Hamas terror group is trying to remain in power.

“Hamas is systematically promoting a false narrative of deliberate mass starvation to put political pressure on Israel,” the spokesperson asserts.

The US statement points out UN figures that show the vast majority of its trucks coming into Gaza over the past two months have been looted, arguing that food is going into the Strip but is not reaching those who need it most. Notably, the figures cited are from May 19, when Israel lifted its aid blockade over Gaza after 78 days.

Aid organizations say that the blockade helped spur the current hunger crisis and that the 22 months of war have led to a collapse of the humanitarian response in Gaza that was necessary to ensure that food continued reaching vulnerable populations at earlier stages of the war.

The State Department spokesperson says the US is focused on “getting aid to the people in need while implementing safeguards to prevent Hamas from stealing and looting the assistance.”
Posted by: badanov || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [60 views] Top|| File under: Hamas



Syria-Lebanon-Iran
BBC reports that Iran’s latest large-scale maneuvers were intended to showcase its military strength
Posted by: badanov || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [57 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  We already know there is no safe place in Iran for the mullahs.
Posted by: Muggsy and Company2746 || 08/23/2025 9:57 Comments || Top||


Armenian group "Martyr Nubar Ozanyan Battalion" (part of SDF in Syria) preparing to deploy to DeirEzZor.
Posted by: badanov || 08/23/2025 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [47 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Darwin's Tips for Living to Reproduce #234:

"Never join an organization with the word Martyr in it's name.
Posted by: Mercutio || 08/23/2025 8:42 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
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1Lawfare
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1Narcos
1Nut Jobs
1Palestinian Authority
1Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
1Govt of Iran Proxies
1[untagged]
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.

Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.

Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has dominated Mexico for six years.
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Two weeks of WOT
Sat 2025-08-23
  Katz vows to destroy Gaza City unless Hamas frees hostages, lays down arms
Fri 2025-08-22
  Hamas Launches ‘Stones Of David’ Counter-Offensive In Gaza City
Thu 2025-08-21
  Israel announces start of offensive on Gaza
Wed 2025-08-20
  Nassau cops cuff nearly 40 MS-13 members accused of terrorizing Long Island
Tue 2025-08-19
  Thousands of Palestinians flee Gaza City, fearing planned Israeli invasion
Mon 2025-08-18
  IRGC in Chaos this morning
Sun 2025-08-17
  US sends extra forces to Caribbean to deter drug cartels
Sat 2025-08-16
  IDF orders residents to leave Zeitoun
Fri 2025-08-15
  US deploys spy planes, a warship and submarine in escalating response to massive threat in Southern Caribbean Sea
Thu 2025-08-14
  Footage shows a platoon of UAE-hired Colombian mercenaries clashing with Sudanese Army forces near a mosque in Al Fashir.
Wed 2025-08-13
  Terrorists killed posing as World Central Kitchen staff in Gaza: IDF
Tue 2025-08-12
  Terror group leader pleads guilty to recruiting hit men in plots to murder federal officials
Mon 2025-08-11
  Video shows Syrian forces executing medical worker inside Al-Suweida Hospital
Sun 2025-08-10
  US shifts focus to Puntland and Somaliland after halting Danab and AUSSOM support
Sat 2025-08-09
  Following the Lebanese government’s unanimous vote to disarm Hezbollah, Islamists have taken to the streets

Better than the average link...



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