[ToloNews] The Islamic Emirate has confirmed the exchange of an Afghan prisoner for two American detainees.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Afghan prisoner released by the US, identified as Khan Mohammad, had been held in jug in Caliphornia, an impregnable bastion of the Democratic Party,.
While the Islamic Emirate has not disclosed the identities of the released American citizens, US media reports suggest they are Ryan Corbett and William McKinty. The exchange took place in the final hours of Joe The Big Guy Biden ...46th president of the U.S. Old, boring, a plagiarist, fond of hair sniffing and grabbing the protruding parts of women, and not whatcha call brilliant.... 's presidency.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the exchange was facilitated by Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... , and the Islamic Emirate views any US initiatives aimed at normalizing relations positively.
Zia Ahmad Takal, head of public relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said: "The Islamic Emirate welcomes steps by the United States that help normalize and expand relations between the two countries."
US media reported that Ryan Corbett's family has expressed gratitude to Qatar for its efforts in securing his release.
CNN ...formerly the Cable News Network, now who know what it might stand for... said: "The Taliban ...mindless ferocity in a turban... agreed to swap two Americans being held in Afghanistan for one Taliban member serving a life sentence in a US prison. But there was an unexpected delay (at least in part due to bad weather in Washington and Kabul) and Donald Trump ...The cad! Twice caught beating wimmin!... was officially back in the White House when Americans Ryan Corbett and William McKenty were handed over and on their way home early Tuesday, exchanged for Afghan Taliban member Khan Mohammed who was convicted in 2008 on narco-terrorism charges."
Zalmai Afghan Yar, a military analyst, said: "The prisoner exchange, based on diplomatic dialogues, is considered a positive step. Solutions can be found for all conflicts through negotiations. We hope that continued talks will help Afghanistan emerge from isolation."
Previously, the US State Department identified three American citizens—Ryan Corbett, George Gelsman, and Mahmood Habibi—in the custody of the Islamic Emirate, citing the issue as a major obstacle to US engagement with Afghanistan's interim government.
Sayed Qaribullah Sadat, a political analyst, expressed hope that, "Through mutual understanding, the issue of prisoners and other existing challenges between Afghanistan and the U.S. can be resolved. This process could help eliminate misunderstandings."
According to the US Department of Justice, Khan Mohammad was arrested in Nangarhar The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country.. province on October 29, 2006, on drug-related charges and was transferred to the US in November 2007. In 2008, he was sentenced to two life terms.
[ToloNews] Khan Mohammad, an Afghan prisoner released by the United States in exchange for two American detainees, has spoken about his years of imprisonment.
He was arrested by US forces in Jalalabad in 2006 on charges of drug trafficking and plotting attacks against foreign troops. He was later sentenced to life imprisonment in a prison in California.
The 55-year-old, a resident of Chaparhar district in Nangarhar province, was freed following efforts by Afghanistan’s interim government and has now reunited with his family in Nangarhar.
Recalling his ordeal, Khan Mohammad, a former Guantanamo detainee, said: “I was accused of selling drugs and financing the Islamic Emirate. They also claimed I was involved in a major plot to attack Nangarhar airport to kill US forces. Based on these allegations, I was sentenced to two life terms.”
His son, Rafiullah, expressed relief upon hearing his father’s voice after years of separation. However, he insists that his father was innocent and demands compensation from the US government.
“No crime was ever proven against him. He spent twenty years in prison unjustly. Our demand is that the US government compensate us for the long years my father was wrongfully imprisoned,” said Rafiullah.
Meanwhile, local authorities have said that the interim government continues to work towards securing the release of other Afghan prisoners held abroad.
Azizullah Mustafa, the deputy governor of Nangarhar, said: “The Islamic Emirate is making efforts to secure the release of another detainee, Haji Mohammad Rahim, and reunite him with his family.”
Khan Mohammad’s release from a California prison comes as another Afghan, Rahimullah, remains detained at Guantanamo Bay. The interim government is actively pursuing his release as well.
[ShabelleMedia] The family of Abdullahi Issa Ibrahim, a Kenyan soldier believed to have been held by Al-Shabaab for nine years, has appealed to the Kenyan government for assistance in securing his release.
Ibrahim was captured during the Al-Shabaab attack on the Kenyan military base in El Adde on January 15, 2016, where he was presumed dead.
Hope was reignited for his family when a video showed Ibrahim alive, pleading for the Kenyan government’s intervention to free and reunite him with his family.
The viral video contradicted the official death certificate issued in December 2020.
Living in Maline Estate, Eldoret, the family’s hope was sparked when Kathra, Ibrahim’s daughter, received a call from someone claiming to be her father in Somalia.
She demanded visual proof, which eventually confirmed her father’s survival.
However, the family is now anxious about his physical and mental health, having been held captive for nearly a decade.
Alongside Ibrahim’s video, another Kenyan soldier from Trans-Nzoia also appeared in an Al-Shabaab video, pleading for government assistance in securing his freedom.
[Garowe] Æthiopia has started the process of reducing the presence of the Æthiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) in various parts of the country, a strategy meant to increase its presence in its borders amid rising security challenges within the Horn of Africa.
For decades, the country has invested in the deployment of the military to handle local security challenges, including the recent interference in the Tigray region which sparked sharp differences with regional authorities, leading to deadly festivities.
Typically, there are ENDF soldiers in all states, almost assuming the role of the police, who are mandated to take care of law and order. There are also thousands of local militias, thus affecting the chain of command in terms of execution.
Lieutenant General Alemshet Degife, Military Advisor to the Chief of Staff of the Æthiopian National Defense Force and Chief of the Fire Command, announced plans to reduce the military’s involvement in policing and transfer these responsibilities to regional police forces and local militias.
Speaking in a two-part interview with ENDF Media, he emphasized, "It is not sustainable for the national defense force to be deployed in every village, woreda, kebele, and city."
General Alemshet reflected on the challenges posed by prolonged military deployments over the past five to six years, particularly in the Tigray, Oromia, and Amhara regions. He outlined a strategy to withdraw troops to their camps and prioritize training, a move geared towards resolving internal conflicts.
"We are planning to return the military to its camp and focus on training. In this regard, we believe we will succeed, and our forces will get the necessary rest."
Æthiopia is facing security challenges, with the fallout with Egypt also being on the radar. The two countries have failed to agree on filling the Grand Renaissance Dam along the Blue Nile, with Egypt saying Æthiopia's actions risk the reduction of water supplies downstream.
Also, Æthiopia had sharp differences with Somalia after signing an illegal agreement over access to the Red Sea with Somaliland ...Republic of Somaliland is an unrecognised sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, recognised internationally as a de jure part of Somalia. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden with approximately 5.7 million residents as of 2021. The capital and largest city is Hargeisa. The government regards itself as the successor state to British Somaliland, which united from 1960 to 1991 with the Trust Territory of Somaliland (the former Italian Somaliland) to form the Somali Republic. Under the Siad Barre regime, Somaliadestroyed ninety percent of Hargeisa Per international law, once you're in, you gotta stay in, no matter how bad it smells.... . However,
there's more than one way to stuff a chicken... The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire... has since mediated the conflict between Addis Ababa and Mogadishu leading to the resumption of talks.
[IsraelTimes] Operations at a Red Sea port in Yemen used for aid imports have fallen to about a quarter of its capacity, a UN official said on Tuesday, adding it was not certain that a Gaza ceasefire would end attacks between the Iran-backed Houthis and Israel.
Houthis have launched attacks on international shipping near Yemen since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. This has prompted Israel to strike port and energy facilities, including the Red Sea port of Hodeidah.
“[The] impact of airstrikes on Hodeidah Harbour, particularly in the last weeks, is very important,” Julien Harneis, UN resident and humanitarian coordinator in Yemen tells a UN meeting in Geneva via videolink.
Four of the port’s five tugboats needed to escort the large ships bringing imports had sunk, while the fifth was damaged, he says, without attributing blame.
“The civilian crews who man them are obviously very hesitant. The capacity of the harbor is down to about a quarter,” he adds, saying the port was used to transit a significant portion of imported aid.
Since a Gaza ceasefire agreement last week, Yemen’s Houthis have said they will limit their attacks on commercial vessels to Israel-linked ships, provided the Gaza ceasefire is fully implemented.
“We are hopeful that sanity will prevail and people will be focused on solutions and peace, but we are nonetheless prepared as a humanitarian community for various degradations,” says Harneis, adding that the agency had contingency plans.
The Iran-aligned Houthis have controlled most of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, since seizing power during 2014 and early 2015.
[IsraelTimes] Documentary ‘A Letter to David’ by director Tom Shoval recalls his friendship with Hamas captive David Cunio; organizers say Arab filmmakers have sought free speech assurances
The Berlin Film Festival is set to screen a documentary about an Israeli actor taken hostage by Hamas, organizers said Tuesday, as it looks to move on from a row about alleged antisemitism at last year’s edition.
The documentary called “A Letter to David” by Israeli director Tom Shoval recalls his friendship and work with David Cunio who was abducted from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, during the devastating attack on Israel led by the Palestinian terror group Hamas. The assault killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and 251 people were abducted to the Gaza Strip as hostages.
The film is a “tender and deeply personal lament” from Shoval, programming co-director Michael Stutz told reporters at a press conference ahead of the February 13-23 festival.
Cunio’s fate remains unknown, with hopes raised by a recent ceasefire agreement that will see Hamas return captives and Israel release Palestinian prisoners from jails.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 46,000 people in the Strip have been killed or are presumed dead in the fighting so far,
…100% of whom are either jihadis or human shields, some of whom were willing…
though the toll cannot be verified and does not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israel says it has killed some 18,000 combatants in battle as of November and another 1,000 terrorists inside Israel on October 7.
Israel has said it seeks to minimize civilian fatalities and stresses that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields, fighting from civilian areas including homes, hospitals, schools, and mosques.
The Berlin awards ceremony last year saw several filmmakers criticize Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. US filmmaker Ben Russell, wearing a Palestinian scarf, accused Israel of committing “genocide” with its bombardment of the densely populated territory. Palestinian filmmaker Basel Adra said the local population was being “massacred” by Israel, to applause from the audience.
A spokeswoman for the German government, a staunch ally of Israel, said it was “unacceptable” that the Hamas attack on Israel which triggered the war had not been mentioned at the ceremony. She said that officials would investigate the incident and that Chancellor Olaf Scholz “agrees that such a one-sided stance cannot be allowed to stand.”
Amid the widespread anger at the comments at the award ceremony, Israel’s ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, said on social media: “Once again, the German cultural scene showcases its bias by rolling out the red carpet exclusively for artists who promote the delegitimization of Israel.”
Felix Klein, the government’s commissioner for the fight against antisemitism, told the Funke media group at the time that the “one-sided, anti-Israel statements” show “how widespread antisemitism is not only in the arts and culture scenes, but also in the film industry.”
Berlin’s mayor Kai Wegner called the remarks “unacceptable” and said that there was “no place for anti-Semitism in Berlin.”
Wegner also said that he expected new festival director Tricia Tuttle to “ensure such incidents do not happen again.”
‘OPEN DIALOGUE’
Tuttle said last month that the furor had put some film directors off the festival because of free speech concerns.
“Lots of filmmakers from Arab countries have approached us as well over the last weeks, just to make sure the festival is a space for open dialogue and discourse,” she added on Tuesday.
“Where we can, we like to have individual conversations, and we’d encourage filmmakers to come to us to talk to us about this.”
[IsraelTimes] Turkish Foreign Economic Relations Board says Ankara may end ban it started last year when demanding greater humanitarian aid supplies during war against Hamas.
I wouldn’t bother — they’ve done this several times before, then shut Israel down again when President Erdogan has his next Muslim Brotherhooder temper tantrum about uppity Jews who refuse to understand their place in Allah’s plan. An economic hudna, if you will.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
01/22/2025 00:00 ||
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#1
Certainly nothing to get your hopes up over long-term, but short term, trade means stuff and people are moving around. Hey, who wants to buy some cheap pagers?
[KhaamaPress] U.S. President Donald Trump ...dictatorial for repealing some (but not all) of the diktats of his predecessor, misogynistic because he likes pretty girls, homophobic because he doesn't think gender bending should be mandatory, truly a man for all seasons... has issued an executive order suspending the country’s refugee admission program for at least three months. The White House stated that resumption depends on aligning refugee admissions with U.S. interests.
This decision is expected to impact thousands of Afghan migrants colonists. According to the White House on Monday, January 20, the suspension is necessary to ensure that the program does not strain resources or compromise national security.
The order, effective January 27, 2025, highlights concerns about public and national security and states that the U.S. cannot currently accommodate and integrate large numbers of refugees effectively.
Exceptions to the suspension are allowed, with the Secretary of State and Homeland Security authorized to admit individuals on a case-by-case basis if deemed beneficial to U.S. national interests.
The program’s resumption depends on a joint review by the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security, with a report due within 90 days to determine if refugee admissions align with U.S. priorities.
Since its inception in 1980, the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has resettled millions, including nearly 180,000 Afghan citizens since August 15, 2021. Many Afghans remain in limbo, waiting for relocation in countries like Pakistain, Germany, and The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund... Trump’s suspension could worsen the plight of Afghan refugees, especially those in Pakistain, who are already under pressure from the Pak government. This adds to the uncertainty for thousands awaiting resettlement.
Trump also terminated programs initiated by the Biden administration, including plans to strengthen refugee resettlement and address climate-induced migration, potentially affecting future policy responses to global crises.
Afghanistan’s dire situation has left many refugees facing increasing challenges. The suspension of the refugee program intensifies their struggle, particularly amid harsh conditions and limited resources in transit countries.
International efforts and policy reviews are urgently needed to address the growing humanitarian crisis. Without intervention, thousands of vulnerable refugees will remain trapped in limbo, with limited access to safety or stability.
[ToloNews] Nearly 1,660 Afghans cleared by the US government to resettle in the US, including family members of active-duty US military personnel, are having their flights canceled under President Donald Trump's order suspending US refugee programs, a US official and a leading refugee resettlement advocate said on Monday.
According to Reuters, this group includes unaccompanied minors awaiting reunification with their families in the US, said Shawn VanDiver, head of the AfghanEvac coalition of US veterans and advocacy groups and the US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"Afghans and advocates are panicking," said VanDiver. "I've had to recharge my phone four times already today because so many are calling me."
The US decision also leaves in limbo thousands of other Afghans who have been approved for resettlement as refugees in the US but have not yet been assigned flights from Afghanistan or from neighboring Pakistan.
"We warned them that this was going to happen, but they did it anyway. We hope they will reconsider," he said of contacts with Trump's transition team.
The White House and the State Department, which oversees US refugee programs, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Nearly 200,000 Afghans have been brought to the US by former President Joe Biden's administration since the chaotic US troop withdrawal from Kabul.
One of the dozens of executive orders Trump was expected to sign after being sworn in suspended US refugee programs for at least four months.
[IsraelTimes] The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says 897 aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, the third day of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
OCHA cites information received from Israeli authorities and the guarantors for the ceasefire agreement – the United States, Egypt and Qatar.
The hostage deal terms stipulate that at least 600 aid trucks will enter Gaza each day.
[IsraelTimes] IDF says displaced Palestinians can return to north Gaza next week if Hamas upholds truce; Mossad, Shin Bet chiefs in Cairo for talks with Egyptian intel chief
A Hamas ..the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,... official confirmed Tuesday that four Israeli female hostages would be freed on Saturday as part of the ceasefire deal that will also see Paleostinian security prisoners released.
Taher al-Nunu said Hamas would release "four Israeli female detainees in exchange" for a second group of Paleostinian inmates.
He did not name the four women who will be released after over 470 days in captivity. The hostage and ceasefire deal states that Hamas is required to provide the names of the hostages at least 24 hours ahead of their release, though the terror group failed to meet that condition for the first three women who were freed on Sunday.
Nunu’s statement came after a spokesperson for the terror group’s prisoners’ office claimed on Monday that the next hostage release would happen on Sunday, a day later than agreed, which was followed by a Hamas statement that the release would take place on Saturday after all.
There are seven female hostages remaining from the original list of 33 to be released in the first phase of the hostage ceasefire deal. Two of them are civilians: Arbel Yehud, 29, and Shiri Silberman Bibas, 33.
There are also five female soldiers in captivity: Liri Albag, 19, Karina Ariev, 20, Agam Berger, 21, Danielle Gilboa, 20, Naama Levy, 20.
Bibas’s two young sons Ariel and Kfir, now aged 5 and 2, are also held and are on the list, as is her husband, Yarden Bibas.
For each of the female soldiers, Israel will release 50 Paleostinian prisoners, 30 of them convicted bully boyz who are serving life sentences. Early Monday, Israel released 30 prisoners for each of the three civilian female hostages — Romi Gonen, Emily Damari, and Doron Steinbrecher — Hamas set free the previous afternoon.
Meanwhile,
...back at the barn, a little lightbulb figuratively appeared over Bossy's head... Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov said Tuesday that Russian-Israeli hostage Sasha Trufanov will be released from 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... in the next few weeks and that he is "not entirely healthy," but stable.
"Simple mathematics suggests, unfortunately, that we are not talking about the next waves of hostage releases, but within 3-4 weeks, judging by the schedule, he will be released," Viktorov said on the Russia 24 TV station, according to the state-run TASS wire agency.
Trufanov, 28, was kidnapped on October 7, 2023, from Kibbutz Nir Oz, alongside his mother, grandmother and girlfriend, while his father was murdered. The rest of his family was released in November 2023, and Trufanov has since been seen in two propaganda videos released by the Paleostinian Islamic Jihad ...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah... terror group.
Viktorov said that "unfortunately, there is information that [Trufanov] was injured and his state of health is not entirely satisfactory. We hope that for the remaining few days, his health will not deteriorate."
The ambassador suggested that Trufanov was maimed during his abduction, but said that Hamas has made a "firm promise" to Moscow that he will be returned "alive and healthy" to Israel.
The dual Russian-Israeli citizen is on the list of the 33 hostages slated to be freed during the six-week first stage of the ceasefire, which includes those considered in the "humanitarian" category — women, children, men over the age of 50 and the sick and maimed. The expectation is that the women and elderly will be freed in the earlier stages, and the final 14 hostages will be freed only on the 42nd day.
After the four hostages set to be released this coming Saturday, three hostages will be released each Saturday over the following four weeks, until the final group of 14 on day 42 of the first phase of the ceasefire.
Israel has not been told how many of the 33 are alive, but under the agreement is expected to receive a full status report on all those on the list on Saturday.
In the second phase of the deal — if Israel and Hamas reach agreements preventing the resumption of the war — the terror group would release the remaining living captives, men under the age of 50. In the third phase, the bodies of all remaining hostages would be returned.
As the ceasefire held for a third day, the military said Tuesday that displaced Paleostinians would soon be able to return to northern Gaza from the Strip’s south after being displaced at the beginning of the war, if Hamas upholds the ceasefire deal.
"If Hamas adheres to all details of the agreement, starting next week, residents of the Gaza Strip will be able to return to the northern Gaza Strip and instructions will be issued in this regard," Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language front man, said on X.
Under the agreement, on the seventh day of the ceasefire, unarmed Gazooks will be allowed to return on foot to north Gaza without any inspection, via the coastal road. Vehicles returning to north Gaza will be required to undergo an inspection by a private company to be determined by the mediators and Israel.
On day 22, displaced unarmed Paleostinians will be allowed to return to north Gaza on foot via Salah a-Din road, also without inspection, meaning that the IDF will be gradually withdrawing from the Netzarim Corridor in the Strip’s center.
Adraee also warned Gazooks against approaching areas where troops are still deployed in Gaza, including the buffer zone along the entire border, the Netzarim Corridor, the Philadelphi Corridor on the Egypt-Gaza border, and the shore.
Meanwhile,
...back at the barn, a little lightbulb figuratively appeared over Bossy's head... Mosssd ...... chief David Barnea and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar were in Cairo for meetings with Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad, the Prime Minister’s Office said, confirming reports in several Hebrew media outlets.
According to Ynet, the talks are focused on security arrangements for the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border and the continued implementation of the ceasefire agreement.
#2
Hamas is trying to appear as the one in control, in order to deflect from the fact that it had its A$$ overwhelmingly handed to it by the IDF.
They will draw out and milk the hostage releases for all they can get with the sympathetic Main Stream Liberal Media helping.
As the number of remaining hostages gets around < 10, and/or the media see less viewers and gets bored. Hamas will pull a media stunt. Or halt the releases, claiming Israel violated this or that. Then demand MORE concessions.
[IsraelTimes] The European Union announces a 60 million euro ($62 million) support package for Lebanon’s armed forces, as the crisis-hit country seeks to implement a fragile truce between Israel and Hezbollah.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says the aid came “at a critical juncture for the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel.”
The Lebanese armed forces “are essential to regional and domestic stability, and deserve all our support in performing their critical mission,” she says.
Under the ceasefire deal Israel must withdraw from the south of the country by January 26, with the Lebanese military then set to deploy alongside UN peacekeepers.
At the same time, Hezbollah is required to dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south and pull its forces back north of the Litani River, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border.
The EU aid is the latest from the West aimed at bolstering Lebanon’s military, with the US last week saying it would donate more than $117 million in security assistance.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The contract for the expansion and modernization of the port of Tartus, concluded by the Syrian authorities with a Russian company in 2019, was cancelled by the new Syrian authorities. This was reported on January 21 by the Director of Tartus Customs, Riyad Judi, to the Syrian publication Al-Watan.
"The agreement on investments in the port of Tartus signed with the Russian company has been cancelled. All revenues from the port's activities will be used for the benefit of the Syrian state. The port workers will return to restoring the worn-out equipment that the company used without upgrading it as stipulated in the agreement," Judy said.
As the official explained, the new Syrian government is working on restructuring the port in order to restore its operations. Today, the port is practically paralyzed due to high fees and the cost of logistics services. The new Syrian authorities have decided to reduce customs duties on a number of categories of goods by 60%.
The Syrian authorities signed an investment contract with Russia in 2019 for 49 years. It was assumed that the Russian side would allocate $500 million over four years to expand the port of Tartus, while receiving management of the seaport.
Earlier, Regnum News Agency reported that the new Syrian authorities banned the import of goods from Russia, Iran and Israel. Goods imported into the republic in defiance of the ban will be confiscated.
On December 8, Bashar al-Assad resigned as president and left Syria, ordering a peaceful transfer of power. He and his family arrived in Russia, where they were granted asylum.
Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Mikhail Bogdanov said on December 12 that Russia expects to maintain military bases in Syria because they play an important role in the fight against international terrorism. The diplomat said that Moscow has established contacts in Syria with the political committee of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group (a terrorist organization whose activities are banned in the Russian Federation).
On December 29, the leader of the new Syrian government, Ahmed al-Sharaa, said that Syria has strategic interests related to Russia. He emphasized that Damascus does not want Moscow to leave Syria to the detriment of relations between the two countries.
In January, Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya stated that after the change of power in Syria, Moscow intends to continue to provide Damascus with various types of assistance, including the supply of humanitarian aid.
The task force will operate globally and in South Africa and is overseen by global authorities on terrorism
To counter the perceived threat of terror from Iran and jihadi groups, South Africa’s chief rabbi is setting up a specialist task force.
That was unexpected.
Chief Rabbi Dr. Warren Goldstein was spurred into creating the group after a bomb attack at a Jewish center in Cape Town last month. An improvised explosive device was thrown at the Samson Community Center but failed to detonate. The center is home to several South African Jewish organizations.
The "Counter-Terror Task Force" will make recommendations to protect places of worship, schools and community centers.
"South Africa's Jewish community, like other Jewish communities globally, faces heightened risk of terror attacks," Goldstein told Fox News Digital. "The Iranian regime is the world’s chief exponent of state-sponsored terror, and have made it their strategy to target Jewish communities worldwide. With this in mind, the findings of the task force will be applied not just in South Africa, but globally."
He added, "In addition, Africa has over the past decade become a hub for global jihadi terror, with the threat indices dramatically increasing as groups such as al-Shabab, Boko Haram and ISIS operate throughout the continent."
The task force comprises global authorities on terror: Admiral Mike Hewitt, former deputy director for Global Operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the U.S. Defense Department, Dean Haydon, former senior national coordinator for counter-terrorism in the United Kingdom, Major General David Tsur, former commander of the counter-terrorism unit in the Israeli Police, and Andre Pienaar, co-founder of South Africa’s Directorate of Special Operations, also known as the Scorpions.
The chief rabbi added, "They will be marshalling additional resources and personnel as and when needed."
Goldstein said the force’s immediate objective "is to secure the South African Jewish community against attacks. The broader objective is to better ensure the safety of all South Africans, and citizens of countries around the world."
He continued, "Across Africa, especially, it is Christians far more than Jews who suffer the consequences of Jihadist terror. Each year, Jihadists murder thousands of Christians for their faith."
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.
...Republic of Somaliland is an unrecognised sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, recognised internationally as a de jure part of Somalia. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden with approximately 5.7 million residents as of 2021. The capital and largest city is Hargeisa. The government regards itself as the successor state to British Somaliland, which united from 1960 to 1991 with the Trust Territory of Somaliland (the former Italian Somaliland) to form the Somali Republic. Under the Siad Barre regime, Somaliadestroyed ninety percent of Hargeisa Per international law, once you're in, you gotta stay in, no matter how bad it smells....
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund...
......
