[Washington Examiner] President Trump blindsided the international community and many of his own diplomats last week when he endorsed a Libyan military strongman whose forces are threatening the capital Tripoli.
But for years Gen. Khalifa Haftar, 75, was an American intelligence asset, plotting to overthrow Col. Moammar Gadhafi first from neighboring Chad and later from suburban Virginia with the support of the CIA. The Awan bros. had a used car lot in Falls Church. I wonder what Haftar drove ?
The twists and turns in his career reflect the complexities of Libyan politics and the shifting patterns of influence since the 2011 uprising and the fall of Gadhafi.
#3
Deep State Diplomats: "That's just not how it's done, my good fellow vulgarian!"
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/23/2019 8:43 Comments ||
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#4
The twists and turns in his career reflect the complexities of Libyan politics and the shifting patterns of influence since the 2011 uprising and the fall of Gadhafi.
Twists and turns of Libyan politics seemed to have paralleled our twists and turns in politics. Let's see, circa 2011, that was on Hillary's (and Obean's too) watch of 2009-2013. There was a lot of strange stuff going on then.
#7
Not that I give a fig, but I thought Haftar was Putin's boy. Whoever backs him, I'd be happy if he could put the kibosh on all the human trafficking from Libya to Europe. But then, maybe that's why the UN backs the current Tripoli crowd.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
04/23/2019 14:39 Comments ||
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#8
So was Haftar the chosen end result of the Hillary, Obama coup?
My guess is that those crap weasels were shooting for a MoBro takeover like Egypt not this.
I suspect they thought they'd be able to get the whole unified Libyan military available to exploit the chaos in Egypt and make the Brotherhood's hold on the country permanent.
BTW, where's the old "Miss Me Yet" image? I thought I had an old one, but I don't know where I put it.
[DW] Britannia's Border Force and coastguard intercepted three small boats carrying 36 migrants colonists in the English Channel between La Belle France and Britannia on Monday.
The border agency said it responded to three separate incidents of vessels crossing the world's busiest shipping lane to reach the British coast.
The first involved 11 men who said they were Iranian ‐ along with an Iraqi ‐ whose craft was intercepted in the early hours of the morning. The men were taken to the English port town of Dover for medical care and to be interviewed.
By EU law, they ought to have been returned directly to France, and from there back to wherever they entered the EU, there to have their applications processed — and mostly rejected.
Later in the day, 15 Iraqi men, women and kiddies were found aboard a second boat which was intercepted by a coastguard vessel before being taken to Dungeness, where the migrants colonists were transferred to immigration officials.
Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it’s enemy action.
The third involved nine men and one woman from Iran, who were taken to Dover.
And yet they keep bringing them ashore.
Over the past six months, Britannia has seen a spike in the number of migrants colonists attempting to cross the English Channel. Almost 500 people, including dozens of children, have made the journey in small boats since early November.
#Breaking The New IRA has admitted responsibility for the murder of journalist Lyra McKee in Londonderry, offering “full and sincere apologies” to her family and friends in a statement to The Irish News pic.twitter.com/M8h2TvvKZp
[DW] The armed republican group known as the New IRA on Tuesday admitted to the killing of journalist Lyra McKee in the city of Londonderry/Derry last week.
The group made the admission in astatement to The Irish News newspaper.
McKee was rubbed out during a riot as dissident republicans clashed with police last Thursday in the city's Creggan district.
"In the course of attacking the enemy, Lyra McKee was tragically killed while standing beside enemy forces," the statement ‐ which was verified using a recognized codeword ‐ said.
"The IRA offer our full and sincere apologies to the partner, family and friends of Lyra McKee for her death," it added.
The New IRA, which formed in 2012, accused police of provoking rioting that preceded the gun attack in which McKee died. The group rejects the Good Friday agreement of 1998, which brought to an end three decades of a sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland that claimed more than 3,600 lives.
The admission and apology came after far-left republican political group Saoradh, which is associated with the New IRA, called for the organization to apologize.
Saoradh cancelled a dissident republican Easter march on Monday "as a mark of respect."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/23/2019 00:00 ||
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[AnNahar] Abdullah Ahmadi, an Afghan living with his wife and five children in an apartment in the Athens suburbs allocated by the UN refugee agency, is about to lose his home for the past three years.
"In two months I have to leave. I have been looking for work in Greece and have only found random jobs that are not enough to support my family," says Ahmadi, who spent a year on the island of Lesbos before being able to reach the Greek capital.
"I do not know how I'm going to get along, and I'm scared that I will end up on the street with my family," he says, distraught.
Thousands of refugees like Ahmadi are facing possible eviction from EU-paid homes in Greece this year as more await to take their place to manage a slow but steady flow of new arrivals from The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor.... , support groups have warned.
Nearly 6,800 people currently hosted in rooms and flats around the country under a programme funded by the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... and run by UNHCR in cooperation with local non-governmental groups could be affected.
Ahmadi took part in a demonstration last week by refugees in central Athens to protest against the evictions, supported by far-left activists, NGO workers, and students.
Following a controversial EU deal with Turkey in 2016 the flow of migrants colonists and refugees to Greece has slowed to a few dozen daily.
But even these numbers are enough to overwhelm limited facilities on several Aegean islands opposite Turkey, which are already crammed many times over their nominal capacity.
With nearly 9,000 arrivals since the beginning of this year, the situation on the islands is explosive -- especially on Lesbos and Samos -- and the ministry of migration is desperate to remove as many people from the camps as possible.
As of March 31, the first 160 refugees who were granted asylum before August 2017 had to give up their homes on the mainland to other asylum seekers, with another round of evictions expected in the next two months.
- FREE UP SPACE -
"(This) will free up spaces for those in Lesbos and Samos who live in difficult conditions," immigration minister Dimitris Vitzas told Radio News 247 last month.
According to UNHCR spokesperson in Greece Boris Cheshirkov, the Estia programme designed to help asylum-seekers "will continue to operate with three components: financial assistance, accommodation and administrative support."
But he adds that "after securing asylum, they would theoretically have to leave the dwellings in the next six months, but so far the Greek government had not applied this principle."
The immigration ministry notes that recognised refugees can now draw on state benefits normally allocated to poverty-stricken Greeks, such as rent subsidies.
In addition, for three months after leaving Estia homes, "the refugees will retain the economic aid they receive, and will be helped to obtain a tax number, open a bank account, register at jobs centres," a migration ministry official said.
They are also to receive vocational training.
- 'NEVER HEARD OF THIS' -
Ahmadi, however, seems to be completely unaware of the procedure for obtaining benefits: "I have never heard of this!", he sighs.
NGO worker Christina Svana, who was part of the Athens protest, says the decision to evict was "taken hastily".
"The first expulsions took place a few days ago and the next will take place on June 30. The movement will accelerate and we are afraid that among the evicted people, a large majority cannot fend for themselves and find an apartment," she warns.
"There are no realistic solutions for refugees who will leave their homes or lose their economic aid," medical charity Doctors Without Borders said in a statement last month.
"Theoretically, it is good to say that refugees must integrate and no longer depend on aid provided by the associations and the UNHCR, but for that it was necessary to plan an integration programme," adds Svana.
Over 22,000 people were accommodated thanks to the Estia programme last year.
Greece currently hosts over 70,000 refugees, including nearly 15,000 in overcrowded Aegean island camps.
[DAWN] The five suspects killed in last week's Hayatabad operation were not only planning future attacks but had also already been involved in various terrorism incidents, including an attack on a judge, officials of Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. police said on Monday.
A week after a 17-hour standoff in Peshawar saw the suspects killed, Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) of Peshawar Qazi Jamil and Counter-Terrorism Department's (CTD) Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Abdul Ghafoor Afridi gave a briefing to the media.
"It was a gang, a network, that was operating here," CCPO Jamil said. "There were six of them, five of which were killed and one placed in durance vile ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... injured.
"[One of the dead's] name is Amjad and he was a resident of Khyber district. He was involved in all major incidents. He had been to Afghanistan five times, and also went to Dubai and Greece, from where he was deported.
"Such individuals previously used to sneak in from Afghanistan but now they are using passports. To detect them is difficult and that is exactly what happened here."
The CCPO said that two security officials had been martyred in the operation, identifying them as ASI Qamar alam and Lance Naik Zafar Iqbal.
The official said that the sole surviving suspect from the operation is a man named Saeed, who "is injured and in the CTD's remand".
The CCPO said that weapons seized in the Hayatabad incident were the same ones used in the attack on Peshawar High Court (PHC) judge Justice Ayub Khan's car earlier this year.
He said that the house targetted during the operation last week was booby-trapped till the basement, whereas a cycle of violence on the property had been rigged with a bomb.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/23/2019 00:00 ||
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Pakistan has reportedly lodged a protest with Iran over recent massacre in Balochistan. Pakistani security officials believe the militants who carried out the attack are hiding in Iran near Pak-Iran border. 👇 https://t.co/wEC9gej47q
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) An Iraqi parliamentarian has warned the government of rising activity by ISIS (Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're 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 the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... ) gunnies in the west of Nineveh province, north of the country, raising alert of a possible resurgence of the krazed killer group.
Nineveh MP Ahmed Madloul al-Jarba, in a letter to Prime Minister Adel Abdel-Mahdi, published by Alsumaria News, said "the situation in western Nineveh has become unfavorable, with ISIS kidnapping people and targeting villages in al-Baaj region, which forced locals to migrate", pointing to "an intense activity by the group over the past days, which he attributed to "the absence of military troops in the region".
Addressing the prime minister, al-Jarba said "if your excellency does not directed for sending troops to the aforementioned regions, a scenario similar to that of 2014 is likely".
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/23/2019 00:00 ||
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[IsraelTimes] After failing to issue permits to Paleostinian Christians in the Gazoo Strip to celebrate Easter in Jerusalem on Sunday, Israeli authorities have decided to allow some 300 of them to travel to Jerusalem and the West Bank to mark Orthodox Easter, a high-ranking Paleostinian Authority official said on Monday. The permits will allow the Christian Gazooks to cross the border starting on Tuesday.
Although many Christian sects marked Easter on Sunday, Orthodox Christian communities observe the holiday on April 28. Many Christians in Gazoo belong to the Greek Orthodox community and will mark the holiday on the latter date.
According to a February 2018 report issued by the Paleostinian Authority Central Bureau of Statistics, 1,138 Paleostinian Christians live in Gazoo. Almost all of them live in Gazoo City and many of them have family members in the West Bank.
[IsraelTimes] The Trump administration is offering rewards of up to $10 million each for information that disrupts the finances of Leb’s Hezbollah terror organization.
The US State and Treasury Departments say the money will be paid to people who provide information such as the names of Hezbollah donors and financiers, bank records, customs receipts, or evidence of real estate transactions.
The payments will be made by the State Department’s "Rewards for Justice" program that usually offers cash for information leading to the whereabouts of wanted terrorists. This is the first time the program has been used to target a financial network.
Since it began in 1984, Rewards for Justice has paid more than $150 million to more than 100 people who have provided information about bandidosDeath Eaters or prevented terrorism attacks.
#1
We should look at how much money we are sending to Lebanon and the Palestinian Authority and then shut it off. IMHO, we inadvertently finance Hezbollah and Hamas. Better also check and see how much money we give to the UN that gets funneled to Hezbollah and Hamas via Lebanon and the PA.
See who screams the loudest. Use the money to complete the wall on the Mexican border.
#2
The US should actually pay out the money for once and someone may help. And I'm talking about reward money pay outs.
Posted by: chris ||
04/23/2019 14:48 Comments ||
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#3
I hope the "rewards" are wired only after successful rendition or prosecution of targets. Because otherwise it would only be another State dept. gravy train.
The Trump administration said Monday it would no longer exempt any countries from US sanctions if they continue to buy Iranian oil, primarily affecting the five remaining major importers: China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Turkey.
[IsraelTimes] US says blocking access to key oil route would be unacceptable; The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire.... blasts Washington decision as one that’ll harm Iranian people.
A top Iranian naval commander threatened on Monday to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz, in response to the US decision to end sanction waivers on Iranian oil imports, as Tehran fumed over the "illegal" move.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/23/2019 00:00 ||
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Kayhan often operates on a different plane of reality. Really overestimates Tehran's ability to shut down Saudi oil exports, via either the Red Sea or Hormuz, and at the same time acknowledges the strong effects of US sanctions. https://t.co/azUl0D5xT7
[WASHINGTONEXAMINER] In a rare double-up deployment close to Iran, the U.S. Navy currently has two carrier strike groups in the Mediterranean Sea. Just a few days sail from the Arabian Sea, the Stennis and Lincoln carrier strike groups conducted joint exercises last week.
The Navy's current posture gives President Trump significantly added means of deterrence and action against Iran. It's a relevant concern in that U.S.-Iran tensions are escalating quickly.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday ended U.S. sanctions waivers on nations which import Iranian oil. Threatening the already fragile Iranian economy, that action makes the Iranian hardliners likely to escalate against America. Indeed, they're saying as much. Responding to Pompeo, the head of the revolutionary guard corps navy threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, which controls the Persian Gulf's vital energy supply highway to the world. Also evincing Iran's increasing fury, a new hardliner commanding officer of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was appointed over the weekend.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/23/2019 00:00 ||
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#1
I guess Iran will have to learn the hard way why it may not be such a good idea...
#3
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday ended U.S. sanctions waivers on nations which import Iranian oil. Threatening the already fragile Iranian economy, that action makes the Iranian hardliners likely to escalate against America. Indeed
How will we know when the fragile Iranian economy collapses? Are the Mad Mulluhs still living high on the hog with the money Obean sent to them or are they running out of U.S. currency?
Important point for those who don't understand the status of Golan Heights: Golan was captured from Syria. Syria is now controlled by Iran and there's no possibility of talks with Israel from Syrian side.
[AlAhram] Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vowed Monday that the United States will keep fighting "radical Islamic terror" after devastating attacks in Sri Lanka that targeted churches on Easter and hotels.
"Radical Islamic terror remains a threat. We are continuing to do real work against these evil human beings," Pompeo told news hounds.
"This is America's fight, too," added Pompeo, who said he had spoken by telephone with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Asked if the threat showed the continued risks from the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're 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 the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group, Pompeo said the United States had succeeded in destroying the movement's self-styled caliphate in Syria but needed to "remain active and vigilant" around the world.
"Sadly, this evil exists in the world," he said.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/23/2019 00:00 ||
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#1
Huge difference between old money and fake new money !
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.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire.
