bbcuk--2019-07-01--Fifa Womens World Cup England face favourites USA with place in final at stake

Fifa Women's World Cup: England face favourites USA with place in final at stake

England manager Phil Neville says he has been planning for a crucial Women's World Cup meeting with the United States since the day he took the job.  Neville's side face the holders in Lyon in the last four on Tuesday, aiming to reach the final for the first time.  Victory would make the Lionesses the first senior England team to reach a major global final since 1966.  "We've planned for it, we've played against them and we know how we're going to play," Neville told BBC Sport.  "When it was France or USA in the semi-final every one of my players said: 'Let's hope it's USA.'  "When I got the job [in January 2018], the first three games I looked at were the USA. I was sitting in my house in Valencia and watched three games in one afternoon because I thought: 'How can we win the World Cup?'  "You have to beat the best, and the USA are the best. They've proven it.  "But we're ready for them. Sometimes, before these games, you can have fear and trepidation - but I can smell nothing but freedom, happiness and excitement."  The Lionesses have reached the last four for the second World Cup - and a third major tournament - in a row and have a fully fit squad.  They beat Norway 3-0 in the quarter-finals, with a record-breaking UK television audience of 7.6 million cheering them on.  Favourites and three-time champions the USA - who have never failed to make the semi-finals of the World Cup - beat hosts France.  Both sides have been preparing for the game amid a heatwave across France, but temperatures are expected to be slightly fresher by Tuesday's 20:00 BST kick-off. A crowd of close to the Stade de Lyon's tournament capacity of 57,900 is expected.  European champions the Netherlands face Sweden in Wednesday's other semi-final, with the winners from the two matches meeting in the final in Lyon on Sunday. The losers will play in Saturday's third-place play-off in Nice.  The United States, who are top of the world rankings, go into the match as favourites against third-ranked England and have won 10 of the teams' 16 meetings.  But legendary USA keeper Hope Solo told BBC Sport the Lionesses have the tactical edge and that "they will have a better chance to beat the USA in a World Cup match than ever before".  Both sides have won every game so far at these finals but England's Lyon defender Lucy Bronze, who will be playing at her home stadium, believes her side have a clear advantage over all the other semi-finalists.  "We have more hunger than the other teams because we have never reached a final," said Bronze, who has never lost a game at the Stade de Lyon.  "You look at the four teams left and we're the only team that hasn't reached a final. The Olympics, the World Cup, the Euros, these other three teams have all reached finals in recent years.  "It definitely takes more to reach a final - but who better to know that it takes more than a team that has been knocked out of two consecutive semi-finals?"  After beating Norway to reach the semi-finals, Neville said his team's mantra is that they want to be "badass women".  In the United States, they come up against a group of players who are established stars - striker Alex Morgan was the only footballer apart from Liverpool's Mohamed Salah to feature in Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people of 2019 - and they are involved in a fight with US Soccer for pay equality with the men's team.  But England forward Nikita Parris insists the Lionesses, who drew with the USA 2-2 in their last meeting en route to winning the SheBelieves Cup on American soil in March, will not be overawed.  "Why shouldn't we think we can be badder than them when we went to the SheBelieves and we won it?" said Parris, who will be playing at her new club ground after moving from Manchester City to Lyon this summer.  "We went toe to toe with them. We beat them under [previous manager] Mark Sampson's reign. Why shouldn't we think we can beat them? Why do we have to come to this tournament semi-final and think 'oh, it's America'?  "Nobody fears America. Nobody fears Germany. What's the point in coming to a World Cup if you're not prepared to dream? These are the moments you live for."  USA winger and co-captain Megan Rapinoe has scored two goals in both of their knockout games to give them back-to-back 2-1 victories.  The 33-year-old's match-winning doubles came either side of her being criticised by president Donald Trump for snubbing a potential post-tournament visit to the White House.  On Tuesday, she is set to go head to head with England right-back Bronze, who Neville has said is the "best player in the world" and "deserves to win the Ballon d'Or" award.  England's Lyon midfielder Izzy Christiansen - who missed the tournament after being injured in March - told the BBC: "Her [Megan Rapinoe] up against Lucy [Bronze] is going to be one heck of a battle.  "It is one which could potentially win or lose the game, given both their form."  Three of the players set to be involved on Tuesday are tied on five goals at the top of the tournament standings, along with Australia's Sam Kerr, although the Matildas were eliminated in the last 16.  Manchester City and England striker Ellen White's tap-in against Norway was her fifth goal of the campaign, putting her alongside Kerr and the USA duo of Rapinoe and Morgan.  "It's a shootout maybe between Ellen and Alex Morgan for the top scorer," Neville said. "There are going to be brilliant players on this football pitch."  According to Gracenote Sports, which captures and curates sports data, the USA have the highest chance of lifting the trophy on 7 July, with a 41% probability, according to simulations.  England, who have never knocked a higher-ranked side out of the tournament, are said to have a 38% chance of reaching the final.  The USA against the Netherlands is deemed to be the most likely final, with the Lionesses and the Oranje both said to have a 22% chance of becoming champions.  An England v Sweden final is statistically the least likely, with the Swedes said to have only a 16% chance of glory on Sunday.  BBC Sport has launched #ChangeTheGame this summer to showcase female athletes in a way they never have been before. Through more live women's sport available to watch across the BBC this summer, complemented by our journalism, we are aiming to turn up the volume on women's sport and alter perceptions. Find out more here.


eveningstandard--2019-03-15--Club World Cup Fifa ignores Europe to approve new 24-team tournament starting in 2021

Club World Cup: Fifa ignores Europe to approve new 24-team tournament starting in 2021

World football's governing body Fifa has ignored European opposition to its plan to revamp the Club World Cup by voting to approve a new 24-team tournament starting in June 2021.  Describing himself as a "very happy man", Fifa president Gianni Infantino announced the decision after a meeting of the ruling council in Miami on Friday.  But the move to scrap the current seven-team tournament, which takes place every winter but is largely ignored by European fans, and replace it with a larger, more lucrative contest every fourth summer, would appear to set Fifa on collision course with Europe's elite.  Infantino wants Europe to provide eight of the 24 teams, with six coming from South America, three each from Africa, Asia and North and Central America and one from Oceania, and it is suggested that each club could earn £50million for taking part.  But the European Club Association, which represents 232 of the continent's leading sides, Europe's governing body Uefa and the world players' union FIFPro are unhappy with what they claim is a lack of consultation in regards to the congested global calendar and Infantino's financial plans for the new tournament.  In a letter that was leaked on Friday, the ECA's executive board, including the bosses of Barcelona, Juve, Manchester United and Real Madrid, said they would not take part in any new competition until 2024 at the earliest and would even consider suing Fifa if it ignored their 2015 deal on the international match calendar.  Speaking to reporters in Miami, Infantino admitted there have been "differences of opinion" since he first floated the idea last year and referred to "constructive dialogue" with Europe that he hoped to build on.  For him, though, the decision to approve his plan was a "milestone in Fifa's history", saying that "the world will now see a real Club World Cup where fans will see the best teams in the world compete to be crowned the real world champions".  He said club football was "evolving at a different pace in different parts of the world" and it was Fifa's duty to put on an "exciting, prestigious and inclusive competition, and we'll have that with this Club World Cup, starting in 2021".  Asked if he was concerned about the prospect of Fifa staging a new events without its biggest stars, Infantino said: "We hope that all the best teams will participate and we've had some very positive discussions with (European football's governing body) Uefa.  "But today it was our responsibility to take a decision because we have to deal with the organisational matters - it is only two years away."  In its letter, the ECA, which represents 232 of Europe's best teams, strongly criticised Infantino for failing to reveal more details about who is providing the financial backing for the new competition and ignoring its concerns about the impact on players.  His original plan was to revamp the Club World Cup and start a Global Nationals League, with the two competitions worth a guaranteed £18.8billion over 12 years from a group of investors led by Japan's technology fund SoftBank.  The Global Nations League has been quietly dropped and Infantino has still not provided any further details on his mystery backers for the new Club World Cup.  But he dismissed the idea that Fifa was increasing the strain on players, saying the new Club World Cup was replacing two unloved competitions: the annual Club World Cup and World Cup warm-up event, the Confederations Cup.  "We are the only organisation reducing the number of tournaments and games - this will not have a neutral impact on the calendar, it will be positive," he said.  "Of the 24 teams, two thirds of them will play only two games and the finalists will play five. Five games in four years. I don't think anyone can that is an large additional burden."  No venue was mentioned for the inaugural new and improved tournament in 2021, but it is scheduled to take the slot currently reserved for the Confederations Cup, June 17 to July 4.


eveningstandard--2019-06-19--England vs Japan LIVE Fifa Womenaposs World Cup 2019 commentary stream latest score TV and line

England vs Japan LIVE: Fifa Women's World Cup 2019 commentary stream, latest score, TV and lineups

Ellen White scored a brilliant double as England beat Japan 2-0 to finish top of Group D and set-up a last-16 clash against one of the best third-place sides.  White followed her winner against Scotland with two first-time finishes from superb passes by Georgia Stanway and Karen Carney either side of half-time but England were fortunate to keep another clean sheet, as the 2011 winners missed a host of second-half chances.  Phil Neville's side will now play Chile, Cameroon, China, New Zealand or Thailand in Valenciennes on Sunday afternoon.  This was a very different test to the fiery, physical battle with Argentina last week but the first two-thirds of the game followed a similar script, as Phil Neville's team controlled possession but found an opposition goalkeeper determined to keep the score respectable in Ayaka Yamashita.  Her string of fine saves ensured Japan, like Scotland and Argentina before them, entered the last half an hour with real hope of a point and England were lucky that substitute Yuika Sugasawa was not wearing her shooting boots.  She missed a string of chances to level the score before White struck five minutes from time. Neville had called on his players to top the group with a statement victory and strike fear into the hearts of France and the USA, one of which will surely lie in wait if England reach the semi-final.  Another unconvincing performance will not leave the hosts or holders concerned, however, and the way England faded in the second half, just as they did here against Scotland, will surely be a cause for concern for Neville.  Ultimately, the Lionesses did the job and earned a measure of revenge for their semi-final defeat to Japan in Canada four years ago.  Neville had promised to play his best team but, characteristically, he wrung the chances – eight from Argentina in total – with Fran Kirby, Nikita Parris, Beth Mead and Alex Greenwood among those to drop to the bench.  The biggest surprise was the inclusion of 20-year-old midfielder Georgia Stanway, still a rookie at this level, but her encouraging first half performance suggested she could be a useful impact player in the knockouts.  After an error-strewn opening 10 minutes for England, during which Karen Bardsley was forced to spectacularly tip Kumi Yokoyama's 25-yard free-kick onto the crossbar, Stanway took the game to Japan. The Man City player, who was the most advanced of Neville's midfield three, twice hit hopeful efforts towards goal, as if to remind her teammates where it was.  Moments later, she made the breakthrough, turning slickly in midfield, holding off Hina Sugita and playing the perfect through ball for White, who followed her goal here against Scotland with another cute, first-time finish on 14 minutes.  The goal brought England to life and Yamashita was forced to deny Jill Scott and Stanway in the space of two minutes, the latter a fine one-handed save from Stanway's half-volley.  As the half wore on, England looked capable of racking up the "three- or four-nil win" Neville had demanded and Rachel Daly, who was full of purposeful running and clever cut-backs on the right wing, forced enough smart save from Yamashita after bulldozing her way onto a Mille Bright pass. Toni Duggan, who looked rusty after missing the opening two games with a thigh problem, dragged England's final chance of the half wide.  England faded badly in the second half of the win over Scotland in the Nice humidity and Neville would have wanted to see another dominant 45 minutes. The early signs were encouraging, as Duggan forced another save from Yamashita after impressive link-up from Daley and Lucy Bronze down the right flank.  That was about as good as it got for England in the second half, until White finished a fine move, involving Jill Scott and substitute Carney with a trademark strike off the near post.  If Japan had a centre-forward half as lethal as White, they would surely have punished England long before, however. Sugasawa, who was introduced on the hour for Yokoyama, made an impact but she squandered no fewer than four fine openings, once forcing a brilliant last-ditch tackle from Steph Houghton before losing her footing at the crucial moment when clean through and then toeing a fine cross wide. The chances did not stop coming at 2-0, as she extended Bardsley.  Neville gathered his players into another huddle on the pitch at full-time, where his message seemed less emotion and more stern than after Argentina.  England got the job done but it was not convincing, and they will need to improve as the tournament progresses.


eveningstandard--2019-06-24--Spain 1-2 USA Fifa Womenaposs World Cup 2019 Megan Rapinoe penalty double sets up France vs USWN

Spain 1-2 USA, Fifa Women's World Cup 2019: Megan Rapinoe penalty double sets up France vs USWNT quarter-final

The United States needed two Megan Rapinoe penalties, one of them controversial, to beat Spain 2-1 on Monday and set up a quarter-final clash with hosts France at the women's World Cup.  The winning spot-kick was subject to much debate, but Rapinoe converted it with 15 minutes left after her opening penalty had been cancelled out by Jennifer Hermoso early in the first half.  After breezing through the group phase, the USWNT lacked inspiration and conceded their first goal of the tournament as Spain rose to the occasion in searing heat at the Stade Auguste-Delaune.  France, who the U.S. will meet in Paris on Friday for a place in the last four, scraped through the last 16 with a 2-1 win against Brazil after extra time on Sunday.  Can't see the Spain vs USA, Fifa Women's World Cup 2019 LIVE blog? Click here for the desktop version.  Anybody with a valid TV licence can watch the match for free on BBC Two with coverage starting at 4:45pm.  The same applies for online, with the match available to be streamed via BBC iPlayer.


eveningstandard--2019-06-27--France vs USA Fifa Womenaposs World Cup 2019 prediction LIVE stream how to watch on TVonline

France vs USA, Fifa Women's World Cup 2019 prediction: LIVE stream, how to watch on TV/online, lineups, odds

World Cup holders USA take on hosts France in what is set to be a heated quarter-final clash in Paris on Friday night.  Dubbed 'the final before the final', Friday's last-eight clash could end up being the defining match of the tournament with the two favourites meeting at Parc des Princes.  Temperatures are expected to soar in the French capital with all-time temperature records for June being broken across Europe as the continent feels the effects of the 'Saharan' heat bubble.  With such extreme conditions expected, Friday's knockout game could well come down to game management and keeping a cool head under pressure.  Follow all the action with Standard Sport's LIVE blog!  France coach Corinne Diacre feels that Eugenie Le Sommer can still deliver despite playing at "80 per cent" so far in the tournament.  USWNT coach Jill Ellis has no fresh injury concerns to worry about.  France have won all four of their games at the tournament and knocked Brazil out with a 2-1 win to lay down a marker for the rest of the competition.  Predictably, the USA were in fearsome form in the group stages as they put 13 past Thailand, qualifying with three wins and no goals conceded.  Spain gave the USWNT a real scare at the last-16 stage, but two Megan Rapinoe penalties saw them progress with a 2-1 victory.  While France will fancy their chances after watching some careless defending from the holders, Ellis' side have the experience at this stage and should have enough about them to reach the semi-finals. Expect a tense first half, with the US to likely score a winner in the final third of the match.  BBC Sport has live coverage of every match on television, via the red button and through the BBC Sport website.  France vs USA will be broadcast live on BBC One with live coverage beginning from 7:30pm, and streamed online via the BBC iPlayer.


eveningstandard--2019-06-27--Norway vs England 2019 Fifa Womenaposs World Cup quarter-final prediction TV LIVE stream lineups

Norway vs England 2019 Fifa Women's World Cup quarter-final prediction: TV LIVE stream, lineups, odds, tickets

England will play France or the USA in the World Cup semi-final after the brilliant Lucy Bronze inspired them to a 3-0 win over Norway here in Le Havre.  The Lyon right-back was a class apart on the Normandy coast, creating England's first two goals for Jill Scott and Ellen White before scoring with a thunderous goal-of-the-tournament contender.  A second consecutive World Cup semi-final leaves England well-placed to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, and they will watch Friday night's meeting between France and the US in Paris with interest.  Phil Neville's Lionesses should have nothing to fear from the hosts or the holders, however, after their most fluid performance of the tournament. But Nikita Parris late penalty miss, her second in France, was a worry, while England must improve defensively after goalkeeper Karen Bardsley made a string of second-half saves to stretch their run of clean sheets to four games.  For many of Neville's team, this was the biggest night of their careers but the manager had promised his side would rise to the occasion and relish the pressure. Sure enough, they outclassed Norway, who were missing Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg but still boasted plenty of talent.  Bronze was the difference in front of a huge crowd of 21,111 but Parris, Scott and White also impressed, with the latter looking a fine bet to win the Golden Boot.  The experienced Bronze helped banish any nerves inside two minutes, surging forward from right-back and breezing past Ingrid Engen on the way to the byline.  Whether White was responsible for one of the finest dummies in World Cup history or a wild air-kick from Bronze's cutback is up for debate, but it didn't matter, with Scott lying in wait to finish cooly off the far post.  It was England's fastest-ever World Cup goal and richly deserved for Scott, who has been among their outstanding performers in France.  Her midfield partner Kiera Walsh looked less assured, however, and the Man City youngster was too loose in possession as Norway's leading light Caroline Graham Hansen and her support cast began to find space with alarming regularity.  England's threat on the counter remained, however, and Parris should have made it 2-0 after 20 minutes when she ran onto Scott's pass, stepped inside her marker but blazed wildly over with her wrong foot.  When White crashed a volley off the post from a fine position, you began to wonder if Neville's side would pay for their missed chances, particularly when Guro Reiten found herself in too much space and saw a shot blocked by Demi Stokes.  Norway appealed for handball, but the strike had ricocheted off Stokes' body and was therefore not a penalty under the current laws. Moments later, Bardsley almost made a costly mistake when playing out from the back.  When England stepped-up a gear again, it was no surprise that it came down the right flank, where Bronze was simply too good for her pursuers. Her pass released Parris who kept cool to present White with the simplest of tap-ins. It was her fifth goal at the finals, taking her level in the scoring charts with Australia's already-eliminated Sam Kerr and the US' Alex Morgan.  If England thought the game was won, they were given a warning within two minutes of the restart when Millie Bright was forced into a last-ditch clearance after a fine Norway build-up.  Bronze, clearly determined not to allow Norway back into the game, made sure of the win by running onto substitute Beth Mead's clever free-kick and smashing past Norway's Ingrid Hjelmseth first-time. It was right down the goalkeeper's throat but she had no chance.  England thereafter switched off, as they have tended to do for periods of the second half in France, and Norway should really have scored at least once through substitute Lisa-Marie Utland.  Steph Houghton cleared off the line from Utland following a mix-up between Bright and Bardsley and the goalkeeper made amends with a sharp stop from the forward before the she flicked a third opportunity wide from Maria Thorisdottir's long-range effort.  England looked to have weathered the storm when Houghton was clattered by Hjelmseth at a freekick and the referee pointed to the spot – England's third penalty in France.  The only significant negative of the match was then to come in Parris' penalty miss, which was far too straight and a nice height for Hjelmseth.  Neville may have to consider a new taker after the winger also saw an effort saved against Argentina but he will not have too many other concerns as his Lionesses marched onwards to Lyon on Tuesday.


21stcenturywire--2019-03-16--Christchurch Terrorist Attack Many Unanswered Questions Remain

Christchurch Terrorist Attack: Many Unanswered Questions Remain

On Friday March 15, a suspected perpetrator of a massacre taking place at two mosques in Christchurch New Zealand is said to have killed 50 people in what is being regarded as one of the biggest mass shootings involving Muslim victims taking place in a western country. However, in the wake of New Zealand’s worst-ever domestic terror attack, a number of important unanswered questions still remain.  As of Saturday, some 39 people remain hospitalized, 11 of who are still in critical condition in intensive care. A four-year-old child is also said to be in a critical condition and was flown to the children’s Starship hospital in Auckland. According to Christchurch hospital’s chief of surgery, Dr Greg Robertson, many of the victims may require multiple surgeries afterwards.  The primary suspect in this anti-Muslim terrorist attack is said to 28 year old Brenton Harrison Tarrant (image, left), an Australian citizen from New South Wales.  Tarrant has since been charged with murder and remanded in custody to appear again on April 5. According to news reports – he did not enter a plea.  As of Saturday, Police have said they cannot confirm for certain that Tarrant was working alone, but they will likely have some definitive statement on this aspect of the case in the coming days.  According to multiple reports, the main perpetrator of the massacre is said to have “teased on Twitter,” and ‘announced’ his attack on the message board 8chan (see image below).  Brenton Tarrant is said to have authored a 74 page ‘Manifesto’ which seems to be mix of right-wing rhetoric, anti-immigrant polemics and some self-contradictory commentary about left vs right politics in the US, as well as an ode to various online ‘Alt-Right’ internet personalities like Candace Owens (he states, in his manifesto, that she had influenced him “above all”). Most western mainstream media outlets have already classifying his manifesto as a document for “white nationalism,” and “meant to troll” his political opposition.  The shooter has also triggered a potential crisis for Silicon Valley when he livestreamed his attack on Facebook (see some clips from his livestream in Nine News clip below), where he shot and killed dozens worshipers during Friday prayer at two mosques.  Predictably, this spectacle aspect of the event has prompted calls for increased regulations of video livestreaming on social media, and pressure on companies like Facebook to ‘do more to stop extremism’ and censor political content. On Friday, Facebook Inc shares plunged 5% to their lowest in nearly three months – at the very same time as a surprise departure by their Chief Product Officer Chris Cox.  The Washington Post reported that there was in fact a second and third man allegedly involved with the attack, 18-year-old Daniel John Burrough, who was scheduled to appear in court Saturday and charged with “inciting racial hostility or ill-will.”  This same report also states that a third accomplice remained unidentified as of Friday evening, Eastern Time.  However, according to a report by The Guardian, PM Ardern has said the investigation was ongoing but authorities believed there was only “one primary perpetrator”.  CNN’s reporting on March 15 also clearly indicated there were multiple shooters:  “One of the shooters appears to have livestreamed the attack on Facebook (FB). The disturbing video, which has not been verified by CNN, ran for nearly 17 minutes and purportedly shows the gunman walking into a mosque and opening fire.”  Why did CNN report multiple shooters so early in the coverage of this event? If this was not the case, and there is only one shooter, then how could a news agency at large and well-resourced as CNN (or any other large outlet for that matter) misreport a detail so crucial to what is clearly the world’s biggest story?  Not just guns in the shooter’s car, but also IED’s as well, one of which was deactivated by police and which was said to be attached to the “suspects” (plural – according to Washington Post) vehicle.  “New Zealand police said they arrested three people in connection with the shootings. Authorities consider Brenton Harrison Tarrant, an Australian national, the primary suspect.”  UPDATE: According to Police, 2 other suspects arrested, one man and one woman, appear to not have been involved in the shooting. The female has been released, but the male suspect remains in custody and a possible unrelated charge for unlawful possessing of a firearm. A fourth armed suspected was arrested whilst helping school children to safety. Police do not believe that either of these additional 3 suspects were involved in the incident.  Watch the following report by Nine News Australia which shows some brief clips from the shooter’s infamous Facebook live stream of his rampage:  Multiple guns are said to have been used in this attack, including two semi-automatic weapons and two shotguns, totally some five different firearms altogether.  In her statement to the press, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stated that the suspect was “the offender was in possession of a gun license. I can tell you one thing right now – our gun laws will change.”  Not long after, it was announced that New Zealand will ban semi-automatic weapons. See the full details of New Zealand’s new gun control proposal here.  Parkland Student Flown in from US to Help Agitate for Gun Control  As part of the political reaction to the Christchurch Attack,the gun control issue has been elevated again.  In July 2018, student activists from the US were deployed to New Zealand to help generate media coverage for gun control issue. Reports state that some 28 students from Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, USA, spent a week with New Zealand’s “Student Volunteer Army,” which was set up following the Christchurch earthquake in 2011. According to reports, Parkland survivors are coming “to share their experiences of living through a tragedy.” Student Volunteer Army president Josh Blackmore, told Morning Report that the high school students ‘were inspiring’ and that they were looking forward to welcoming them.  This part of a global effort: “More than 800 protests were planned throughout the United States and abroad, with solidarity events taking place in Edinburgh, London, Geneva, Sydney and Tokyo.”  Why was New Zealand chosen as a venue for the 2018 Parkland campaign?  The Parkland School Shooting took place approximately one year ago in February 2018, with numerous students killed and injured in that attack. But the tragedy quickly descended into a media-driven political campaign with accusations of astroturfing as critics accusing Democratic Party operatives and media outlets like CNN and MSNBC of using the students not only to gain political leverage by using the gun issue in such an emotive setting – but also as a platform to help register Democratic Party voters for the upcoming 2018 Midterm Elections in the US.  In addition to the confusion about multiple arrests, there are also competing narratives in the media about which extremist camp which protagonist Tarrant belongs to. Most media outlets are framing Tarrant as a “White Supremacist” due to the symbolism which has appeared in a loose collection of extremist writings, internet ranting, free association comments, and images – in what the media are calling a “manifesto”.  Predictably, CNN’s Don Lemon and Max Boot were pinning the blame on Donald Trump.  His weapon was scrawled with neo-Nazi symbols and the names of white right-wing extremists who had killed others because of their ethnicity or faith. A manifesto released online laid his motivations out to bare: to kill Muslim immigrants. Seven other people were killed at another mosque nearby, bringing the toll of the two attacks to 49 people, a brutal act of terrorism that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called “one of New Zealand’s darkest days.”  However, a closer look into the symbolism in his paraphernalia reveals a real possibility of connections to right-wing fascist militant groups based in Ukraine – part of the same NeoNazi and fascist movement which was given political and material backing by the Obama Administration and John McCain in order to help carry out Washington’s violent coup in Kiev in February 2014. In this scenario, it’s possible that Tarrant could have been radicalized overseas and also online.  .   Apparently, Tarrant also made the reference “For Rotherham” on his ammunition clips (pictured above), a nod to the UK town of which was the sight of the ‘Rotherham Asian Grooming‘ sex abuse scandal, one of the stories championed by infamous British right-wing political actor Tommy Robinson (real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon). Other references to right-wing criminal folklore were also made.  Top ranked US talk radio host Rush Limbaugh has attempted to flip this theory, claiming that Tarrant is a leftist agitator trying to discredit the right:  “There’s an ongoing theory that the shooter himself may in fact be a leftist who writes the manifesto and then goes out and performs the deed purposely to smear his political enemies, knowing he’s going to get shot in the process.”  More than any other single mass shooting or terrorist event in recent years, the Christchurch event closely resembles the 2011 Norway Massacre carried out by right-wing Mason, Templar and Christian Zionist, Anders Breivik (Note: Breivik was also linked to Tommy Robinson, see here and here) were he massacred 77 members of Norway’s Young Labour Party at a Workers’ Youth League (AUF) summer camp (Note that Young Labor were dedicated supporters of Palestinian at that time and opposed the Israeli occupation).  Just like Breivik’s 2012 Norway Attack,  Tarrant’s Christchurch event also featured two separate venues on the same day.  In addition, both men are said to have prepared a manifesto before their operations. In Tarrant’s 74-page document posted online, he claims to want to create “an atmosphere of fear” which would incite Muslims and trigger a right-wing counter-reactions, but then turns to say “CONSERVATISM IS DEAD, THANK GOD.” This is just one of the many nonsensical twists and turns in this seemingly incoherent ‘manifesto.’  The document also pays homage to American Dylann Roof and other mass shooters, and seemed to infer that Tarrant himself had had received Breivik’s “blessing” for this latest mass shooting and terrorist attack in Christchurch.  As 21WIRE reported back in 2011, the Norway Massacre was a catalyst for extremist right-wing fascism and  terrorism, and that future extremists like Tarrant would indeed be inspired by the bravado of Breivik.  It should be noted also that in the case of Breivik, his initial processing and police interview was held in secret and not recorded, and therefore no public record of what was said can be analyzed. Similarly with the Christchurch Shooting, hearings on the Saturday were held in closed session with Judge Paul Keller denying any open, public access, supposedly “in the interest of safety” — an unusual move for New Zealand courts.  Many of the high-profile mass shootings and terror attacks in recent years have featured a leading actor who was a “known wolf” – some one who was already ‘on the radar’ of the security services as a known extremist or informant, as opposed to a merely a lone wolf. This does not appear to be the case in Christchurch. According to reports, authorities in both Australia and New Zealand did not have Tarrant listed on any counter-terrorism watch list, despite the currently theory that he was planning the attack for several years.


21stcenturywire--2019-05-04--Israels IDF Bombs Over 70 Terrorist Targets in New Raid on Gaza

Israel’s IDF Bombs Over 70 ‘Terrorist Targets’ in New Raid on Gaza

Earlier, the Israeli Defence Forces said that its tanks and aircraft had targeted 30 areas inside the Gaza Strip in response to 200 rocket launches from the territory on settlements in southern Israel earlier in the day.  Israeli Air Force fighters are “continuing to strike at terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip,” carrying out attacks on “about 70” targets in the territory, the Israeli military has said in a communique released Saturday evening.  According to the IDF, warplanes destroyed a 20-meter deep ‘attack tunnel’ created by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad organisation, which had been dug under the Gaza-Israel border into Israeli territory and was intended to allow militants to carry out attacks.  The IDF reportedly surveiled the elaborately built tunnel, which included several entrances and exits, before its destruction Saturday.  An IDF spokesman accused the PIJ of working to destabilise the Gaza Strip in recent weeks, noting that “in practice, we see that Hamas is not succeeding in enforcing its rule on the PIJ.”  The IDF reported intercepting dozens of rockets launched from the Gaza Strip earlier Saturday with its Iron Dome defence network, saying that several of the rockets made it through, with rocket fire hitting at least one house.  The Israeli military response included targeting multiple launch sites, military compounds, and locations allegedly used to train militants and for the manufacture of weapons, with the strikes targeting Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, and its PIJ ally.  Two Israeli civilians were reported injured in the rocket attack, with one Palestinian killed and four others wounded in Gaza, according to the Health Ministry.  The escalation of tensions between Israel and Hamas follows violent confrontations Friday along the border area in which four Palestinians were killed and 51 wounded, with two Israeli troops also receiving injuries.


bbc--2019-08-11--Norway mosque shooting probed as terror act

A shooting at a mosque in Norway is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, police say.  A gunman opened fire on the Al-Noor Islamic Centre, on the outskirts of the capital Oslo, on Saturday.  One person in the mosque managed to overpower the gunman and was injured in the process. The suspect was arrested after the attack.  Police also charged the suspect with murder after his 17-year-old stepsister was found dead in a separate location.  The suspect has not yet been named, but police have described him as a white Norwegian citizen of "around 20 years old".  He was said to be "from the area" where the mosque attack took place, in the town of Baerum.  Rune Skjold, the acting chief of the police operation, said the suspect had been known to police before the incident but could not be described as someone with a "criminal background".  Mr Skjold said the man appeared to hold "far-right" and "anti-immigrant" views and had expressed sympathy for Vidkun Quisling, the leader of Norway's collaborationist government during the Nazi occupation.  Norwegian media reported that the suspect was believed to have posted on an online forum hours before the attack. The post seemingly praised the gunman who killed 51 people in mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, earlier this year.  The post also made references to a "race war", the reports said.  Officials say the suspect appears to have acted on his own. He did not want to "give an explanation to police".  The suspect has been charged with attempted murder over the shooting.  Only three people were inside the Al-Noor Islamic Centre at the time of the attack, preparing for the Muslim holiday of Eid-al-Adha the following day, a spokesman said.  Mosque director Irfan Mushtaq told local television network TV2 the suspect entered the building wearing a helmet and body armour, and armed with "two shotgun-like weapons and a pistol".  The gunman then opened fire before being overpowered by 65-year-old congregation member Mohammad Rafiq, who suffered minor injuries in the process.  "I suddenly heard shooting from outside. He started to fire towards the two other men," Mr Rafiq, a retired Pakistani Air Force officer, told Reuters news agency.  Mr Rafiq said he grabbed the attacker, held him down and wrestled the weapons from him.  The mosque had previously implemented extra security measures after the New Zealand attacks in March.  Norway tightly controls the purchase, possession and use of firearms. Permission to acquire a gun has to be obtained from the local police chief and is only given to those of "sober habits" who have reasonable grounds to need a weapon, according to the US Library of Congress.  Fully automatic weapons, some semi-automatic weapons and firearms disguised as other objects are banned, it says.  The Small Arms Survey estimates that there are 1,537,000 firearms in civilian possession in Norway.  Following the attack on Saturday, police said they had discovered the body of a young woman related to the suspect at a house in Baerum.  They confirmed on Sunday that the woman was the suspect's 17-year-old stepsister.  Officials are treating her death as suspicious and have opened an investigation. The alleged mosque attacker has been charged with murder in the case.  The shooting has prompted debate over whether enough was being done to protect Norway's Muslim population.  Mosque director Mr Mushtaq said the government needed to take action.  "For so many years, the secret police says the Muslims are the biggest risk for this country, but if you look at those last two major incidents of terrorist activities, it's not Muslims who have done this," he said.  Muslim organisation Islamic Council Norway described the attack as "the result of a long-lasting hate of Muslims that has been allowed to spread in Norway".  It said authorities had not "taken this development seriously".  Prime Minister Erna Solberg said on Twitter that Norway must fight hatred and anti-Muslim attitudes.  In separate comments, she said security had been ramped up for Sunday's Eid celebrations and that tackling hate speech was a priority.  "We are trying to combat this, but it's a challenge. I think it's a world-wide challenge in a sense," she said.  Official estimates from 2016 said some 200,000 Muslims lived in Norway, which has a population of about 5 million.


bbc--2019-10-08--German lorry attack in Limburg seen as 'act of terrorism'

An attack on motorists in the western town of Limburg is being investigated as terrorism, security sources have told German media.  On Monday, a man hijacked a lorry and ploughed into eight vehicles waiting at a traffic light, injuring eight people. Seven were treated in hospital.  Originally from Syria, the man has been living in Germany since 2015, local reports say.  Public broadcaster ZDF quoted sources as saying the incident was being treated by investigators as having a "terrorist background", although Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said on Tuesday he could not yet say how the incident was being classified.  Police searched a flat in Langen, south of Frankfurt, early on Tuesday and said it was linked to what had happened in Limburg, local reports said.  Prosecutors are also investigating whether the attacker had any mental health concerns.  The suspect was due to appear before a judge on Tuesday, reports the Frankfurter Neue Presse (FNP) newspaper.  The owner of the stolen lorry told FNP that he had been dragged from his vehicle by the man, who had forced the door open.  "What do you want from me?" the driver said he asked the man. "He didn't say a word. I asked him a again and then he dragged me out of the lorry."  Another witness, Bettina Yeisley, described talking to the hijacker afterwards without realising he had driven the lorry.  "I spoke to him. He was bleeding from his nose, his hands were bloody and his trousers torn. He said 'my whole body hurts.' I asked his name and he told me his name was Mohammed," she told the newspaper. Other German reports gave his name as Omar.  Marius Hahn, the mayor of Limburg, said his thoughts were with the injured and their families. • Germany attacks: What is going on?  Germany has been on high alert following several jihadist attacks in recent years.  The most deadly was in December 2016 when a man drove a lorry into a crowded Christmas market in Berlin, killing 12 people.  Anis Amri, the Tunisian behind the attack, was shot and killed in Italy four days later.


bbcuk--2019-02-24--Man arrested in Leeds on suspicion of terrorist acts

Counter-terrorism police in Leeds have arrested a man on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of terrorist acts.  The 33-year-old was arrested on Saturday and is being held as part of a pre-planned operation into suspected extreme right-wing activity, West Yorkshire Police said.  The force added that a property in Leeds was being searched by officers.  Supt Chris Bowen said public safety was their "top priority".  He added: "If you see or hear something that could be terrorist related, act on your instincts by reporting your concerns."


bbcuk--2019-09-10--Vincent Fuller White supremacist car park stabbing terrorist act

Vincent Fuller: White supremacist car park stabbing 'terrorist act'

A white supremacist who stabbed a teenager in what a judge described as a "terrorist act" has been jailed for more than 18 years.  Vincent Fuller, 50, attacked Bulgarian Dimitar Mihaylov, 19, in Stanwell, Surrey, a day after a gunman attacked mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.  Kingston Crown Court heard Fuller, who admitted attempted murder, had set out to kill Muslims.  On the night of 16 March, the court heard, Fuller "roamed the streets" in a violent rage "looking for a target".  He initially armed himself with a Chelsea FC-branded baseball bat and went on the rampage.  During the spree he tried to force his way into a house, swung the bat at cars and was heard shouting racist abuse.  After the bat broke in half, Fuller returned home and armed himself with a knife.  He then approached Mr Mihaylov, who was parked outside a branch of Tesco with his friend, and stabbed him through the open window.  The court heard Fuller had twice shouted "You're going to die" and plunged a large kitchen knife towards his victim's neck.  Mr Mihaylov suffered defensive wounds to his hands, and the knife clipped his neck, the court heard.  "It was only by chance he was not killed," said judge Lodder, sentencing.  Several witnesses heard Fuller screaming abuse during his "rampage", including one who reported him saying: "All Muslims should die. White supremacists rule. I'm going to murder a Muslim."  In a Facebook post just before the spree, Fuller praised Christchurch gunman Brenton Tarrant, adding: "I am English, no matter what the government say kill all the non-English and get them all out of our of England."  Judge Lodder told Fuller he was "motivated by the cause of white supremacy, and his personal anti-Muslim sentiments".  "I find that it was your purpose to strike fear into the heart of people you described as non-English, in particular Muslims," he said.  The judge added: "It is immaterial that there is no evidence that you were a member of, or subscribed to, to any particular group or organization.  "In my judgement a terrorist-related offence may be committed by a person acting alone, on his own initiative, and without any significant planning.  In a police interview, Fuller, who has a British bulldog tattoo, denied being racist and said he could not remember what he had done.  After the attack he tested positive for cannabis and alcohol and told detectives he had drunk a large bottle of cider and three cans of strong Special Brew lager.  Fuller, of Viola Avenue, carried out his attack the day after the murder of 51 Muslim worshippers in New Zealand by a white supremacist, who livestreamed most of the shootings online.  A video excerpt of the Christchurch massacre was found on Fuller's mobile phone, the court heard.  Fuller had previously admitted further charges of carrying a weapon, affray and racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress.  He was jailed for 18 years and nine months at Kingston Crown Court on Tuesday, with an additional five-year extended sentence.


birminghammail--2019-10-11--Manchester Arndale terror suspect detained under Mental Health Act after shoppers stabbed

A terror suspect arrested after three people were stabbed at Manchester's Arndale shopping centre has been detained under the Mental Health Act.  A man armed with a large knife walked into the Exchange Court area of the building at 11.15am on Friday and began lunging at shoppers.  A man in his 50s, a 19-year-old woman and another woman were rushed to hospital with stab wounds.  None of the injuries were thought to be life-threatening and both women were said to be stable, while two more women were also treated by medics.  Two unarmed police community support officers attempted to confront the assailant who chased them as they called for urgent assistance.  Witnesses described a scene of horror as shoppers sought refuge in stores.  Within five minutes, the knifeman was challenged and detained by armed officers in nearby Corporation Street at the side of Marks & Spencer.  A 40-year-old man from the Manchester area was arrested on suspicion of assault and then re-arrested on suspicion of commission, preparation and instigation of an act of terrorism.  Police later said he was detained under the Mental Health Act following an assessment by specialist doctors.    Assistant chief constable Russ Jackson, of Greater Manchester Police, said: "We do not know the motivation for this terrible attack. It appears random, is certainly brutal and of course extremely frightening for anyone who witnessed it.  "At this time we do not believe that there is anyone else involved in this attack but we will be constantly keeping this under review.  "We have specially trained officers supporting those injured from the attack. We'll have increased patrols, including armed patrols, in the city centre this weekend."  He appealed for anyone who was in the Arndale at the time to send any images or footage taken from the scene via the force's website.  One shop worker, who gave his name only as Jordan, 23, told the PA news agency: "A man was running around with a knife lunging at multiple people, one of which came into my store visibly shaken with a small graze.  "Soon after, security staff told all retail staff to close their doors and move the public to the back of the stores."  Freddie Houlder, 22, from Market Drayton, was in the centre when he heard "a load of screams just outside" the shop he was in.  He said a woman then came into the shop and told others "a guy just ran past the shop and tried to stab me".  Mr Houlder added: "Luckily she had quite a thick jacket - she thought originally it was a fake knife because of how easily it grazed off but police came in and said it was a real knife and she burst in to tears."  The shopping centre is just a few hundred yards from the Manchester Arena where 22 people were killed in May 2017 when Salman Abedi detonated a suicide bomb following an Ariana Grande concert.  Last New Year's Eve, three people including a police officer were seriously injured after a 25-year-old man launched a knife attack on passers-by.  He was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and will face trial in November.  In 1996, the Arndale was damaged in a major bomb attack by the IRA in which a 1,500-kilograms device loaded on a lorry was detonated on Corporation Street.  More than 200 people were injured in the explosion, although there were no fatalities.


breitbart--2019-11-15--Reports: Leftists Committing 'Acts of Terror' to Force Bolivians to Riot

Residents of poor communities in El Alto, Bolivia, are facing threats of violence or “fines” they cannot afford if they do not join socialist riots against the interim conservative government that replaced ex-President Evo Morales, local media reported on Friday.  The Bolivian newspaper Página Siete republished an anonymous message from the poor communities in the outskirts of El Alto, a socialist stronghold, in which locals complained that their neighbors were threatening to burn down entire neighborhoods. Another Bolivian newspaper, El Deber, reported that criminal gangs were going door-to-door demanding “fines” from families that did not take the streets to loot and ransack homes and businesses.  Morales, of the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) party, resigned on Sunday following the publication of evidence compiled by the Organization of American States (OAS) of fraud in the October 20 presidential election. Morales vied for an unconstitutional fourth term and won after the servers counting the votes shut down and diverted the count to an unknown private server, the OAS found.  Morales resigned voluntarily, then fled to Mexico, where he claimed to be the victim of a right-wing “coup.”  Jeanine Áñez, a conservative senator, replaced Morales as president following the abandonment of dozens of MAS politicians, including those above Áñez in the chain of command, of the country.  In response, thousands of allegedly indigenous socialists have staged violent riots, many marching from El Alto to nearby La Paz, the executive seat of government, this week. El Deber found evidence that the mob burned down and looted at least five police stations on their march to La Paz.  Police first began to counter the claim that these protesters were indigenous, organic supporters of Morales with a series of arrests of Cubans, Venezuelans, and others paying off protesters and building explosives. Now, Bolivian media are hearing from the victims of these socialist operatives, who say they do not want to participate in the riots but have no choice.  “Friends, I can’t anymore with this situation. Here in El Alto, we are suffering too much under threats from our own El Alto brothers because we don’t support ‘the struggle’ that is supposedly for all of us,” a Whatsapp neighbor group text message published by Página Siete reads. “With the excuse of the Wiphala they want to invade our neighborhood … we are having a truly bad time.”  The Wiphala is a legal flag of the country of Bolivia that represents its 36 indigenous communities. A video circulated on social media this week showing unidentified people burning it, which many considered an act of racism. Members of the socialist groups marching on La Paz told reporters that they are doing so to avenge the Wiphala.  Página Siete reported that rioters are committing “acts of terror” with the help of “foreign operatives” to intimidate the poor of El Alto into joining the riots. Among the “acts of terror” committed in La Paz, the newspaper reported, was the burning of multiple private homes of local opposition officials and the destruction of a third of the public bus service’s fleet.  MAS supporters also reportedly attempted to destroy the headquarters of various public utilities and broadcast networks. In the latter case, rioters attempted to break the satellite towards at the cable stations to interrupt broadcasts, the newspaper reported.  Página Siete also cited a security expert who said the socialists “hired Peruvian peasants to train the Bolivians” in how to cause destruction, though he did not elaborate on that claim.  The Bolivian newspaper El Deber reported that some MAS sympathizers did not threaten El Alto’s poor with violence, but with even more poverty, imposing “fines” on families who did not join the protests. According to the newspaper, officials threatened to make it more difficult for families to procure food and other basic goods and threatened them with a 100-150 bolivianos ($14.46-$21.69) fine.  El Deber cites conversations with eight El Alto locals who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals from socialists who, they say, are using the Federation of Neighborhood Councils-El Alto to trickle down orders block by block to get people protesting.  “In [the neighborhood of] Ventilla, for example, they were told that there are three areas where the government built public housing. To the families living there, they said that, since the government built the houses, the new government will take their homes and leave them with nothing,” the newspaper reported. This is reportedly why the residents of those buildings marched.  In another lower-class neighborhood, local officials supportive of Morales refused to offer basic infrastructure services like water and claimed that, since Morales had resigned, there would be no more services. Yet another report indicated that the rioters were attempting to shut down all access to gasoline.  Police warned on Friday that MAS leaders are heavily armed and possessing tear gas and a host of firearms used by trained snipers in Yapacaní.  Authorities in Bolivia have arrested nearly ten foreigners organizing violent riots in the country. Among the first identified was Facundo Molares Schoenfeld, an Argentine member of the communist terrorist group the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Police officials told reporters that they had reason to believe Schoenfeld was hired by socialists within the country to arm and train local Bolivians to commit acts of terror. Schoenfeld had been missing since 2017 following the “peace deal” between the FARC and the government of Colombia.  Bolivian officials have also revealed the arrests of four Cuban nationals carrying thousands of dollars in cash, arrested after neighborhood watch groups told police that they were handing out money to people in exchange for committing acts of violence. Several of those arrested claimed they had the money to pay slave doctors operating in the Cuban medical system in Bolivia.  On Thursday, Bolivia’s new foreign minister announced that, after a conversation with her Cuban counterpart, the communist regime would withdraw over 700 agents working within the country.  Ten people have died in clashes since protests began following the October 20 election.


channel4uk--2019-03-17--New Zealand terror suspect acting alone police say

New Zealand terror suspect ‘acting alone’, police say

The bodies of some of the 50 Christchurch victims are due to be released to their families soon.  Police say they now believe the man charged with murder, 28 year old Brenton Tarrant, was acting alone.  But as New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern repeated her vow to ban the kind of weapons he used, Channel 4 News has found gun retailers doing a brisk trade.


infowars--2019-12-06--Rep. Matt Gaetz: Pensacola Shooting Was an “Act of Terrorism”

Rep. Matt Gaetz has confirmed that the shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola, carried out by Saudi national Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, was an “act of terrorism.”  According to authorities, the gunman killed three people and injured eleven others after opening fire this morning.  Alshamrani was training at the base as an aviation student. It is yet to be confirmed whether he was a member of the Saudi military.  According to Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, the shooting is clearly an act of terrorism.  “If this were a murder, it would typically be investigated by NCIS…but this was not a murder,” Gaetz told ABC News.  “This was an act of terrorism and as we speak the investigation is being handed over from the NCIS to the FBI – that is the signal that this will now be treated by our government as an act of terrorism, not murder,” he added.  My voice is being silenced by free speech-hating Silicon Valley behemoths who want me disappeared forever. It is CRUCIAL that you support me.  Please sign up for the free newsletter here. Donate to me on SubscribeStar here.  Support my sponsor – Turbo Force – a supercharged boost of clean energy without the comedown.


21stcenturywire--2019-01-16--REPORTS US Soldiers Killed in Apparent ISIS Bombing in Manbij Syria

REPORTS: US Soldiers Killed in Apparent ‘ISIS Bombing’ in Manbij, Syria

A bomb blast has struck near a US-led coalition patrol killing and injuring and killing civilian and US-led coaltion military personnel in Syria’s northern city of Manbij today, according to multiple witnesses.  According to reports, casualties are believed to include at least 16 people, including at least 2 US soldiers. The death of US soldiers was also confirmed by CBS News.     Image from video supplied by Hawar News, for Kurdish ANHA news agency, showing aftermath of restaurant bombing in Manbij, Syria, Jan. 16, 2019.  Initial photos and videos were provided by a local Kurdish news site to the western mainstream media, but only showed two mutilated bodies, and bodies on the ground with people gathered around them, as well as damage to a building and vehicles, and blood smears on a pillar.  According to Reuters, two witnesses described the blast as follows, “An explosion hit near a restaurant, targeting the Americans, and there were some forces for the Manbij Military Council with them.”  RELATED: Convenient Timing for ‘ISIS Attack’ on US Servicemen in Syria  Oddly, rather than wait for official conformations, a US coalition spokesperson cited “open-source reports” (aka internet chatter) of the incident.  The timing of this event is uncanny, as only a few days earlier, sweeping proclamations were being made regarding ‘the final defeat of ISIS, with U.S.-backed forces in Syria announcing to the mainstream media about how Islamic State is in its ‘final moments.’ That signal of victory against the terrorist group in Syria was meant to dovetail with the imminent US withdrawal of troops from Washington’s Operation Inherent Resolve – an illegal military occupation of northeastern Syria.  However, today’s event will almost certainly trigger calls in the US for a reversal of President Trump decision to pull-out of Syria – as war hawks and CIA pundits will be lined-up on the various panels across in the US media, all heralding in unison how today’s ‘US sacrifice’ should be regarded as proof that ISIS is not defeated in Syria which therefore justifies not only a continued illegal US occupation in Syria, but an expand its footprint and air patrol activities in the elusive “fight against ISIS” which Washington claims to have been doing since placing military assets on the ground there in 2016.  SEE ALSO: ‘What about the Kurds?!’ Getting a Proper Grip on Turks, Americans & Kurds in Syria  Today’s events are even more timely considering how it was revealed yesterday that President Donald Trump had reassured Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a phone conversation that the U.S. was in the process of pulling its troops out of Syria, this after a raucous Tweet storm between the two leaders just hours earlier. Washington is insisting that ‘the Kurds,’ namely US-backed SDF proxy militias and YPG militias, are to be protected following any US withdrawal, but after today’s high-profile ISIS attack, the withdrawal may be delayed indefinitely.  According to White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders, President Trump has been briefed on the today’s bombing.  “The president has been fully briefed and we will continue to monitor the ongoing situation in Syria,” said Sanders in a statement, referring any further questions to the US Department of Defense.


21stcenturywire--2019-04-26--Intl Monitors US Coalition Killed Over 1600 Civilians During Bombing of Raqqa Syria

Int’l Monitors: US Coalition Killed Over 1,600 Civilians During Bombing of Raqqa, Syria

According to a new report issued by an independent conflict monitoring group, the US-led bombing campaign waged in 2017 to ‘liberate’ the Syrian city of Raqqa from the Islamic State (ISIS), ended up killing more than 1,600 civilians – a figure that is 10 times as high as the number of dead claimed by the US-led coalition.    These numbers are according to reports submitted by Amnesty International, and Airwars, a London-based conflict monitoring group formed in 2014 to study the impact of the US-led air campaigns against target nations. After 18 months of researching civilian deaths, including two months on the ground in Raqqa, the group have finally released their findings, and are urging that the US-led coalition “end almost two years of denial” about the true death tolls resulting from their bombing runs in Syria, and Iraq.  “Our conclusive finding after all this is that the US-led coalition’s military offensive [US, UK and French forces] directly caused more than 1,600 civilian deaths in Raqqa,” said researchers.  Previously, US officials downplayed, and were likely lying – about having taken “great care to avoid civilian casualties” and also made the erroneous claims that they investigate any accusations regarding their lack of precision when seeking out their alleged “ISIS targets.”  Back in 2017, a spokesperson for U.S. CENTCOM told UK newspaper The Independent, “The Coalition takes all allegations of civilian casualties seriously and assesses all credible allegations of possible civilian casualties. Coalition forces work diligently and deliberately to be precise in our airstrikes.”  They added, “Coalition forces comply with the law of armed conflict and take all reasonable precautions during the planning and execution of airstrikes to reduce the risk of harm to civilians.”  “The Coalition respects human life and is assisting partner forces in their effort to liberate their land from Isis while safeguarding civilians. Our goal is always for zero civilian casualties.”  Those statements now appear to be patently false, based on the review of the new data and a lack of any visible due diligence by the Pentagon. More crucially, for the last 2 years, the western mainstream media never seriously challenged any of the US military’s spotty claims, nor were the media interested in mounting any investigation into what now appears to be bona fide international war crimes.  Since 2014, an international coalition led by the US has been giving military support to both the Iraqi government and their own illegal paramilitary creation a Syrian, a Kurdish-led confab called the “Syrian Democratic Forces” (SDF), who managed to re-captured Raqqa in late 2017 after a five-month air bombing campaign led by the US.  It was known by Amnesty last year that evidence existed that the US-led coalition’s air and artillery strikes in Raqqa had violated international law by killing civilians in large numbers, but no major estimate was given until now.


crooksandliars--2019-05-15--Its All So Familiar US Building Up To Armed Conflict With Iran

It's All So Familiar: U.S. Building Up To Armed Conflict With Iran

Why, it's as if I'd fallen asleep and woke up back in 2002!  U.S. Military Says It's on 'High Level of Alert' with Iran, Contradicting Its Own Coalition  Skeptical U.S. Allies Resist Trump’s New Claims of Threats From Iran  British General Contradicts U.S. Claim of Increased Threat From Iran-Backed Militias  Key Commander in ISIS Fight Sees No Increased Threat from Iran-Backed Troops  Remember when George Tenet, head of the CIA, did his National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, and Congress used it as the basis for supporting the war?  And then, after the war was underway, the Senate Intelligence Committee found the key findings were either exaggerated or unsupported by the actual evidence?  The only thing that will stop this is a massive public outcry. Pick up the phone today and call your elected officials. Tell their staffers you are absolutely opposed to a replay of the disastrous Iraq war and you will be certain to vote against anyone who accepts this flimsy rationale for another war.


therealnews--2019-12-11--The Washington Post’s ‘Afghanistan Papers’ Examines the Root Failures of the Longest Armed Conflict

The Washington Post’s ‘Afghanistan Papers’ Examines the Root Failures of the Longest Armed Conflict in US History

Reporting from the Washington Post confirms what many have known for years: Much of what top officials told the public about the United States’ 18-year war in Afghanistan was false, wildly exaggerated to portray success, and concealed a very different reality than what Afghan civilians and U.S. troops experienced on the ground.  The multi-part report is titled “The Afghanistan Papers,” and was written by Craig Whitlock. Released Monday, it is based on 2,000 unpublished pages of notes from interviews conducted by the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which was tasked with looking into the reasons for this country’s failures surrounding the Afghanistan War. The U.S. government sought to keep secret the names of officials interviewed for the investigation, but the Washington Post won a three-year legal battle allowing their publication.  The legal battle isn’t quite over, but the Post decided to publish the story now anyway. “The Post is publishing the documents now, instead of waiting for a final ruling, to inform the public while the Trump administration is negotiating with the Taliban and considering whether to withdraw the 13,000 U.S. troops who remain in Afghanistan,” Whitlock wrote.  “The American people have been lied to,” John Sopko, head of SIGAR, told the Washington Post.  The report places blame on both sides of the aisle, citing efforts to conceal the reality of the unwinnable war that continued across the presidencies of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump.  “In news conferences and other public appearances, those in charge of the war have followed the same talking points for 18 years. No matter how the war is going—and especially when it is going badly—they emphasize how they are making progress,” writes Whitlock.  The documents also portray U.S. government officials as disorganized and unsure of what the goals in Afghanistan were even supposed to be.  “Some U.S. officials wanted to use the war to turn Afghanistan into a democracy. Others wanted to transform Afghan culture and elevate women’s rights. Still others wanted to reshape the regional balance of power among Pakistan, India, Iran and Russia,” Whitlock reports.  The report cites the work of Neta Crawford, a political science professor and co-director of the Costs of War Project at Brown University. That project found that “since 2001, the Defense Department, State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development have spent or appropriated between $934 billion and $978 billion, according to an inflation-adjusted estimate.”  Crawford appeared on The Real News Network this past November to talk about her work on the Costs of War Project and whether U.S. military spending is keeping us safer.  “Is the United States safer because of the wars?” she said. “One might ask it this way. Following the 9/11 attacks, there were estimates of the numbers of Al Qaeda and Taliban in Afghanistan and there were estimates later in the other war zones of the number of militants and ISIS and other organizations that have followed on from Al Qaeda. In no war zone is that the case that we have fewer militants. In fact, we’ve killed many tens of thousands of militants, that is, enemy combatants. Yet those organizations are roughly the same size today as they were when they started — as when we started these wars. It’s unclear that these wars are effective at killing militants. What they may be doing is making more militancy in the sense that people are defending themselves from U.S. and other countries’ aggression.”


fortruss--2019-02-18--CHUTZPAH Intensifying attacks on Donbass Poroshenko requested help compiling evidence of Russian A

CHUTZPAH: Intensifying attacks on Donbass, Poroshenko requested help compiling evidence of Russian Aggression for his Munich speech

Novorosinform reports this: President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko ordered to prepare “evidence” of shelling from the Donbass and Russian side for an accusation against Moscow during his speech at the Munich Security Conference. This was announced by the head of the press service of the People’s Police of the DPR, Daniel Bezsonov.  “According to the information we have, Poroshenko ordered the command of the occupying forces to prepare for him a false evidence base, which he could use to initiate new sanctions against the Russian Federation during his speech at the Munich Security Conference. As conceived by puppeteers from Washington, Poroshenko should appear before the world community in the form of an “innocent lamb,” he said.   “We express our sincere hope that the leadership of the OSCE will not go in the wake of Poroshenko and his owners, but will strictly follow the unshakable European principles and impartially fulfill their functional duties,” the head of the press service of the DPR army added.  Recall that as a result of today’s shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine against the DPR, three houses, a gas pipeline and a car are damaged.Yesterday in Donbass, two Right Sector and Azov platoons   arrived.  The day before Poroshenko’s Munich speech FRN got this report:  Today, the People’s Militia of the DPR reports a sharp increase in the intensity of the attacks on the DPR.  The situation at the front in the Donbass continues to deteriorate. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are increasing the number and intensity of shelling. During the day there were several demolitions of residential buildings. Also a number of districts remain without light.The Ukrainian armed forces over the past week violated the cease-fire 173 times violated the cease-fire, firing on districts in 23 settlements of the DPR. This was announced today by the Deputy Head of the People’s Militia of the DPR, Eduard Basurin.“ The intensity of shelling from the side of the Volga Federal University has increased dramatically. A total of 173 blasts were recorded in the districts of 23 populated areas of the Republic over the past week,” Basurin noted.  According to him, shelling was carried out from mortars with a caliber of 120 and 82 mm, weapons of infantry fighting vehicles, grenade launchers, large-caliber machine guns and small arms. At the same time, during the previous week, the Armed Forces of Ukraine violated the cease-fire regime 120 times by bombarding areas of 19 settlements.  Earlier today, Ukrainian militants shot at the checkpoint in the Donbas. On the 14th, the mayor of Gorlovka, Ivan Prikhodko, said that the Ukrainian militants had directly hit the roof of a residential apartment building in the DPR. Recall that on February 13 during the day, the Armed Forces of Ukraine 8 times violated the “silence mode” in the DPR.


sputnik--2019-11-24--Ukrainian Forces in Donbass Claim Being Attacked 3 Times During Day

According to the Joint Forces Operation's command, the positions were fired at with heavy machine guns, mortars, and anti-tank grenade launchers.  On 9 November, both the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) militants and the Ukrainian security forces began the withdrawal of troops near Petrivske, with the process monitored by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The same day, the DPR announced that it had fully withdrawn its forces from the area. On 11 November, the Ukrainian military said that it had also completed the practical phase of the troop pullout.  On 21 July, an indefinite ceasefire between Ukraine, and the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk entered into force.  In April 2014, the Ukrainian government launched an offensive against the self-proclaimed Lugansk and Donetsk people’s republics, which claimed independence after what they considered to be a coup in Ukraine two months earlier.


unian--2019-01-03--Donbas warzone update Five enemy attacks no Ukrainian army casualties in past day

Donbas warzone update: Five enemy attacks, no Ukrainian army casualties in past day

The Russian-led forces did not use proscribed weapons.  Russian-led military forces mounted five attacks on Ukrainian positions in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, in the past day; no Ukrainian army casualties were reported.  "There were no Joint Forces casualties in the past day," Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) press service said in its morning update on Facebook on January 3.  The enemy shelled Ukrainian positions near the village of Khutir Vilny close to the village of Stanytsia Luhanska in the Luhansk sector, using grenade launchers of various systems, large-caliber machine guns and small arms. Attacks were also reported near the village of Opytne in the Donetsk sector and the village of Vodiane in the Mariupol sector.  Pisky in the Donetsk sector was under enemy sniper fire.  The Russian-led forces did not use proscribed weapons.  According to intelligence reports, one enemy troop was killed and three were injured on January 2 over careless handling of weapons.  Since Thursday midnight, Russian-led forces have not opened fire.


unian--2019-01-19--JFO Ukraine reports four enemy attacks in Donbas Jan 19

JFO: Ukraine reports four enemy attacks in Donbas Jan 19

The situation in the area of the Joint Forces Operation remains under control of Ukrainian troops.  Russia's hybrid military forces mounted four attacks on Ukrainian army positions in Donbas on January 19.  Read alsoUkraine forces in Donbas shoot down enemy drone equipped with fragmentation explosives (Video)  "No Ukrainian soldiers were killed or wounded from 00:00 to 18:00 Kyiv time," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) said in an update on Facebook.  The enemy opened fire from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms at the Ukrainian positions near the villages of Stanytsia Luhanska, Vilniy, Pisky, and Shyrokyne.  The situation in the area of the Joint Forces Operation remains under control of Ukrainian troops.


unian--2019-01-19--Ukraine reports nine enemy attacks in Donbas in past day

There were no Ukrainian army casualties in the past day.  Russian-led forces mounted nine attacks on Ukrainian troops in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, in the last 24 hours.  Read alsoPoroshenko: Ukraine's army hasn't used Javelins in combat yet  "No Ukrainian army casualties have been reported in the past day. According to intelligence reports, one occupier was killed," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation said in an update on Facebook as of 07:00 Kyiv time on January 19, 2019.  Russian occupation forces opened aimed fire from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms as they attacked the defenders of the town of Krasnohorivka, and the villages of Vilniy, Hnutove, and Vodiane.  The enemy also employed 82mm mortars near the villages of Pisky and Vodiane, as well as heavy machine guns and small arms near the town of Maryinka and the village of Chermalyk. In addition, a sniper was active near Hnutove.  "Since Saturday midnight, Russian-led forces haven't attacked the Ukrainian positions yet," the report said.


unian--2019-01-20--JFO Ukraine reports 16 enemy attacks in Donbas in past day

JFO: Ukraine reports 16 enemy attacks in Donbas in past day

There were no Ukrainian army casualties in the past day.  Russian-led forces mounted 16 attacks on Ukrainian troops in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, in the past 24 hours.  Read alsoUkraine forces in Donbas shoot down enemy drone equipped with fragmentation explosives (Video)  "No Ukrainian army casualties have been reported in the past day. According to intelligence reports, one occupier was killed and another one was wounded," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation said in an update on Facebook as of 07:00 Kyiv time on January 20, 2019.  The enemy opened fire from grenade launchers of various systems and heavy machine guns (twice) near the village of Shyrokyne, from grenade launchers – near the village of Pisky, from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms (twice) – near the town of Maryinka, from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms (twice) – outside the village of Lebedynske, from grenade launches, heavy machine guns and small arms (thrice) – in the area of the village of Pavlopil, from automatic grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and 120mm mortars (twice) – near the town of Krasnohorivka, and from grenade launchers and heavy machine guns near the village of Vodiane, the report said.  Russian occupation forces also employed large-caliber machine guns outside the village of Vilne, as well as small arms and heavy machine guns (twice) near the village of Stanytsia Luhanska.  According to intelligence reports, one occupier was killed, and another one was wounded on January 19.  Since Sunday midnight, Russian-led forces have attacked the Ukrainian positions near Hnutove, using automatic grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms.  As UNIAN reported earlier, the Ukrainian forces in Donbas had shot down an enemy drone equipped with fragmentation explosives.


21stcenturywire--2019-09-10--BREAKING US Behind Hong Kong Protests Admits US Policymaker

BREAKING: US Behind Hong Kong Protests – Admits US Policymaker

The US continues to deny any involvement in ongoing unrest in China’s special administrative region of Hong Kong. However, even a casual look at US headlines or comments made by US officials and policymakers – makes it clear the unrest not only suits US interests, but is spurred-on almost exclusively by them.  The paradoxical duality of nearly open support of the unrest and denial of that support has led to headlines like the South China Morning Post’s, “Mike Pompeo rebukes China’s ‘ludicrous’ claim US is behind Hong Kong protests.” The article claims:  However, even US policymakers have all but admitted that the US is funneling millions of dollars into Hong Kong specifically to support “programs” there. The Hudson Institute in an article titled, “China Tries to Blame US for Hong Kong Protests,” would admit:  The article would then quote Pillsbury as saying:  A visit to the NED’s website reveals an entire section of declared funding for Hong Kong specifically. The wording for program titles and their descriptions is intentionally ambiguous to give those like US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plausible deniability.  However, deeper research reveals NED recipients are literally leading the protests.  The South China Morning Post in its article, “Hong Kong protests: heavy jail sentences for rioting will not solve city’s political crisis, former Civil Human Rights Front convenor says,” would report:  The article would omit mention of Johnson Yeung Ching-yin’s status as an NED fellow. His profile is – at the time of this writing – still accessible on the NED’s official website, and the supposed NGO he works for in turn works hand-in-hand with US and UK-based fronts involved in supporting Hong Kong’s current unrest and a much wider anti-Beijing political agenda.  Johnson Yeung Ching-yin also co-authored an op-ed in the Washington Post with Joshua Wong titled, “As you read this, Hong Kong has locked one of us away.”  Wong has travelled to Washington DC multiple times, including to receive “honors” from NED-subsidiary Freedom House for his role in leading unrest in 2014 and to meet with serial regime-change advocate Senator Marco Rubio.  It should also be noted that the Washington Post’s Anne Applebaum also sits on the NED board of directors.  This evidence, along with extensively documented ties between the United States government and other prominent leaders of the Hong Kong unrest reveals US denial of involvement in Hong Kong as yet another willful lie told upon the international stage – a lie told even as the remnants of other victims of US interference and intervention smolder in the background.  The direct ties and extreme conflicts of interest found under virtually every rock overturned when critically examining the leadership of Hong Kong’s ongoing unrest all lead to Washington. They also once again reveal the Western media as involved in a coordinated campaign of disinformation – where proper investigative journalism is purposefully side-stepped and narratives shamelessly spun instead to frame Hong Kong’s ongoing conflict in whatever light best suits US interests.  What’s worse is big-tech giants like Facebook, Twitter, and Google purging thousands of accounts attempting to reveal the truth behind Hong Kong’s unrest and the true nature of those leading it. If this is the level of lying, censorship, and authoritarianism Washington is willing to resort to in order for Hong Kong’s opposition to succeed, it begs one to wonder what this so-called opposition is even fighting for. Certainly not “democracy” or “freedom.”  ***   Author Tony Cartalucci, Bangkok-based geopolitical researcher, writer and special contributor to 21st Century Wire. Over the last decade, his work has been published on a number of popular news and analysis websites, and also on the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”. See Tony’s work at his 21WIRE archive.


21stcenturywire--2019-09-27--Hong Kong Protests Fading Foreign Tantrum Not Genuine Revolution

Hong Kong Protests Fading: Foreign Tantrum, Not Genuine Revolution

Just as unfolded in 2014 during the so-called “Umbrella protests” or “Occupy Central” movement, a growing backlash has begun across Hong Kong against US-funded protests that have attempted to disrupt governance and commerce as part of a floundering movement to maintain Western influence in the region.  The Sydney Morning Herald in its article, “Triads linked to violent pro-China gangs as Hong Kong protests enter dangerous new phase,” ignored weeks of violence carried out by US-backed protests in Hong Kong, and portrayed locals retaliating as “violent pro-China gangs.” It should be pointed out that Hong Kong is in China.  Having failed to attract wider public support, US-backed protesters have begun resorting to increasingly disruptive activities including raiding government buildings, storming commercial districts to intimidate visitors from mainland China and even targeting public transportation.  Backlash Follows Weeks of Violence and Vandalism by Pro-Western Protests  Before the SMH’s “violent pro-China gangs” showed up, US-backed protesters had admittedly stormed Hong Kong’s Legislative Council (LegCo) building.  The BBC in its article, “Hong Kong police evict protesters who stormed parliament,” admitted:  The BBC also admitted the protesters carried out vandalism inside the building:  The Financial Times in their article, “Hong Kong protesters target Chinese government office,” mentioned another government building targeted by the protesters, the Liaison Office for Hong Kong representing Beijing. The article reported:  The Guardian attempted to conceal the nature of the protests in its article, “Hong Kong protest ends in chaotic clashes between police and demonstrators,” which was ultimately about protesters targeting a shopping centre popular with mainland visitors.  However, the Financial Times in its article, “Hong Kong protesters try to woo Chinese tourists to their cause,” admitted the protesters intentionally targeted the shopping centre rather than merely being “chased into it.” The article admits:  A recently built high-speed train station connecting Hong Kong with mainland China was also targeted. AFP-JIJI in its article, “Hong Kong protesters march on station to get message across to visiting Chinese mainlanders,” would admit:  The US-backed protesters have also targeted journalists. The New York Times in its article, “Hong Kong Protesters’ New Target: A News Station Seen as China’s Friend,” attempted to defend the targeting of journalists perceived as being “pro-Beijing” claiming:  The New York Times fails to mention that opposition media is almost exclusively funded and supported from abroad, particularly out of Washington DC. If Beijing has no say or influence in Hong Kong, territory literally within its own borders, what say does Washington have so many thousands of miles away?  Together, the increasingly disruptive behaviour of the protesters coupled with growing violence and overt endorsement and even support being provided by the United States and other foreign interests, are attempting to target and impact virtually every aspect of life in Hong Kong linked to stability, peace and prosperity.  If the United States cannot maintain Hong Kong as its foothold inside Chinese territory and enjoy the benefits of its prosperity, no one else will either.  The government of Hong Kong is elected by both the people and organisations representing influential business communities there. The government is overwhelmingly pro-Beijing because Hong Kong is now firmly part of China. It was handed back to China in 1997 by the UK after over 170 years of British subjugation.  An influx of mainlanders, major infrastructure projects and flourishing business between the former British colony and China’s mainland has begun the irreversible re-integration of Hong Kong back into China.  Notions including “Basic Law” and “one country, two systems” were imposed on Beijing which at the time still lacked the political, economic and military power it now possesses. Both Basic Law and the “one country, two systems” arrangement were imposed on Beijing by London specifically as a means of technically handing Hong Kong over, but in practice, maintaining Western influence and the region’s role as Anglo-American foothold within Chinese territory.     As British influence across Asia-Pacific waned over time, Washington took over. Core leaders of Hong Kong’s ongoing protests against Beijing are funded and directed by Washington with many of these leaders, including Martin Lee, Joshua Wong and Benny Tai having literally traveled to Washington to receive support and even awards for their continuously disruptive behaviour.  Beijing has patiently weathered the West’s disruptive activities within its territory. In addition to Hong Kong, the US has nurtured separatism and terrorism in China’s Xinjiang region as well as armed insurrection and separatism in Tibet that has spanned more than half a century.  All of this is part of an admittedly decades-long strategy of encircling and containing China’s rise as a global power in order to preserve American primacy.  China’s answer has been meeting US-backed identity politics designed to divide and destroy, with massive infrastructure, education and economic programmes that have clearly gained the upper-hand even in places like Hong Kong where Western influence has been so deeply entrenched.  When faced with the choice of political instability or infrastructure and economic prosperity, the choice is very simple for the people of not only Hong Kong, but also Xinjiang and Tibet.  It is no wonder residents in Hong Kong have responded negatively to the violence and disruption perpetrated by US-backed protesters. The majority of Hong Kong has nothing to gain from disrupting commerce, targeting infrastructure, blocking roads and the vandalism of public property especially considering why it is really being done.  It is not being done for the people of Hong Kong or the nation of China of which Hong Kong once again now belongs. It is being done for Washington and is just one small part of a much wider, global slash-and-burn foreign policy. The protests in Hong Kong are also part of that policy failing. As US primacy fades across the globe, Washington has resorted to increasingly desperate and spiteful acts of destabilisation, as seen in Hong Kong.  The protests have no future in Hong Kong. They are led by an increasingly unpopular minority backed by a fading global power, and fighting against a growing global colossus within its own borders. The only real question is; how much damage will Washington and its proxies do as they throw this final tantrum?  Joseph Thomas is chief editor of Thailand-based geopolitical journal, The New Atlas and contributor to the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.


21stcenturywire--2019-10-08--ECUADOR: Protests Heat Up in Quito, Moreno Government Leaves Capital City

Ecuador’s President Lenin Moreno has announced his administration is leaving the capital city of Quito amid new protests.  Protesters have been met with tear gas from police on the streets of Quito, as they came out against the Moreno government and “austerity cuts tied to a recently implemented IMF deal,” RT reports.    Mass protests were also cracked down on by police last April, after the US-backed Moreno regime allowed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to be illegally rendered by British abductors from its embassy. Those demonstrations were also met with violence from the Ecuadorian police including beatings, tear gas attacks, and the use of trained attack dogs against peaceful demonstrators.  A central focus of the protests for Ecuadorians has been the role of what critics have dubbed the “International Misery Fund,” or, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the austerity measures tied to its loan guarantees.  It has also been reported that Moreno has since relocated his administration to the city of Guayaquil, about 400 kilometers southwest of Quito.