Sweden: "knife attack was a racially motivated hatecrime" by killer "fan of Adolf Hitler" by france24english | Lenin turned into Darth Vader to radiate Dark side & free Wi-Fi in Odessa by RussiaToday
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Wearing black clothes, the man poses with a sword in hand. The picture was taken a few minutes before the attack, that has left Sweden in shock. Walking into the school, the assailant went from classroom to classroom, stabbing anyone who crossed his path. When police arrived at the scene, they fell face to face with the attacker. Police then fired 2 shots on the attacker, who died from his wounds at the hospital.
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Wearing black clothes, the man poses with a sword in hand. The picture was taken a few minutes before the attack, that has left Sweden in shock. Walking into the school, the assailant went from classroom to classroom, stabbing anyone who crossed his path. When police arrived at the scene, they fell face to face with the attacker. Police then fired 2 shots on the attacker, who died from his wounds at the hospital.
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The respect Ukrainians hold for the Dark Lord from the Star Wars films has taken a new turn, as an artist from Odessa has transformed a statue of Lenin into a Darth Vader monument, with a Wi-Fi router hidden under the helmet included as a nice bonus.
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Сотни мигрантов пересекают российско-норвежскую границу на велосипедах - они нашли новый путь, который позволяет им попасть в Европу, избегая опасного путешествия по Средиземному морю. Подписывайтесь: http://www.youtube.com/user/bbcrussian?sub_confirmation=1
Russia’s airplanes cut off routes used by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) to deliver supplies to Syria from Iraq by bombing a bridge over the Euphrates River, the Russian General Staff said.
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Two members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard, including an ex-bodyguard for Iran's former president have been killed in Syria, Iranian media reported on October 23.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S.-backed military operation that freed 70 Islamic State hostages in Iraq also produced a big cache of intelligence, and U.S. forces supporting Iraqi troops are likely to undertake more raids in the future, the U.S. defense chief said on Friday.
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Distrust set the allies to snoop on each other after they split over the Iran nuclear deal. Each kept secrets.
Jinjing, a penguin native to chilly Patagonia, keeps returning to a warm stretch of Brazilian sand to live and frolic with his 71-year-old widower friend.
A collision between a truck and a bus in southwestern France left 42 people dead and several seriously injured in the country’s worst traffic accident in years, French officials said.
Sunni Muslim extremist group releases video featuring Hebrew-speaking fighter threatening more attacks on Jews in Israel.
Peru arrests army officer for drug trafficking by Associated Press
Peruvian authorities have arrested an army lieutenant who they allege regularly collected bribes from drug traffickers for letting small planes ferry cocaine out of the world’s No. 1 coca-producing valley.
The secretary of state is in Vienna for meetings with fellow diplomats to discuss the war in Syria.
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A video shows a masked militant speaking impeccable Hebrew as he praises a wave of Palestinian attacks on Israelis and threatens to eradicate Jews from the Holy Land.
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A 19-year-old is killed and three passing students are wounded in the shooting apparently triggered by a fight over a dice game.
Aerial footage shows the devastation in a war-torn suburb of Damascus where Syrian troops are battling opposition forces.
The US president says the Black Lives Matter movement is drawing attention to a specific problem that’s happening only in African American communities. Obama made the comments on Thursday at a White House forum on the criminal justice system, adding that it’s important to realise that ‘the African American community is not just making this up’
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Police say the shooting at Tennessee State University was confined to a dispute over a dice game, and did not bear the hallmarks of a mass shooting. The unknown gunman allegedly killed a 19-year-old man who was not a student, and injured three female 18-year-old students. Police say no other students were put in jeopardy. Photograph: AP
Continue reading...Analyst: Expect Little From Kerry-Lavrov Talksby webdesk@voanews.com (Jeff Custer)
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is meeting this week with leaders from several Middle Eastern countries and Russia about how to revive the political process in war-torn Syria. But at least one analyst suggests no one should expect big headlines from Friday's discussions. VOA's Jeff Custer reports.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton gave a forceful defense Thursday of her handling of the 2012 terrorist attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, in the face of tough questioning by Republicans. Her appearance before a House select committee came at a key point in her campaign for the White House. VOA national correspondent Jim Malone reports.
Originally published at - http://www.voanews.com/media/video/clinton-offers-forceful-defense-benghazi-hearing/3019667.html
Originally published at - http://www.voanews.com/media/video/clinton-offers-forceful-defense-benghazi-hearing/3019667.html
In their second Oval Office meeting in as many years, President Barack Obama and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif vowed to deepen counterterrorism and economic cooperation, while also calling on the Afghan Taliban to enter into direct talks with the Kabul government. VOA correspondent Aru Pande reports.
Originally published at - http://www.voanews.com/media/video/obama-sharif-talk-afghan-reconciliation-counterterrorism/3019686.html
Originally published at - http://www.voanews.com/media/video/obama-sharif-talk-afghan-reconciliation-counterterrorism/3019686.html
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Vienna for talks with his Russian, Saudi and Turkish counterparts on a political solution in Syria. The U.S. and its allies have made it clear that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is not a part of that solution, but Russia is lending military support to his regime. Zlatica Hoke has more.
Originally published at - http://www.voanews.com/media/video/3019709.html
Originally published at - http://www.voanews.com/media/video/3019709.html
Watch highlights from the House hearing about an attack in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012, when Hillary Rodham Clinton was secretary of state. The hearing began at 10 a.m. and, with breaks, lasted until 9 p.m.
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ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey is preparing for tens of thousands more refugees from Syria as government forces and Russian warplanes pound opposition-held areas, and officials said many would try illegally to get to Europe.
MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Russian and Jordanian militaries have agreed to coordinate actions on Syria via a special working mechanism in Amman, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying by Rossiya-24 TV channel out of Vienna.
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VIENNA (Reuters) - The United States, Russia, Turkey and Saudi Arabia met on Friday to explore a political solution to the Syrian civil war despite the basic U.S.-Russian disagreement over Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's fate.
Russia plans to open a $5 billion credit line for Iran to help finance joint infrastructure projects in the country, officials said October 22 .
Tensions Soar Amid Protests Over Press Freedom In Georgiaby support@pangea-cms.com (RFE/RL)
Hundreds of protesters rallied in Tbilisi October 22 against the Georgian government's alleged attempts to silence the country's biggest and most popular television channel, raising fears of a political crisis.
The Russian president said Damascus was willing to make common cause with the armed opposition as long as they were willing to fight the Islamic State.
The West should see Russia’s intervention in Syria as a desperate gamble, not a brilliant gambit.
Gen. John R. Allen, who departs next month, created an international coalition to fight the Islamic State, but his plan did not foresee Russian intervention.
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U.S. and Russia Find Common Goals on Syria, if Not on Assadby MATTHEW ROSENBERG and NEIL MacFARQUHAR
Secretary of State John Kerry and Sergey V. Lavrov, his Russian counterpart, said they agreed that the Islamic State must be defeated and that talks were a positive sign.
October 23, 2015, 8:06 PM (IDT)
The White House said Friday that Brett McGurk has been named as US President Barack Obama's new envoy to the coalition against ISIS. He will replace Gen. John Allen, who is stepping down in November. McGurk is currently serving as Allen's deputy.
Beneath the headquarters of America’s premier crime-fighting organization, one of the parking ramps has been condemned because corroded pieces of the ceiling were falling on cars.
Netting hangs on the Ninth Street facade to prevent broken concrete from hitting passersby 160 feet down on the sidewalk below. During a July fire drill, half of the building’s alarms didn’t go off.
In Homeland Security |
The FBI's headquarters is falling apart. Why is it so hard for America to ...
In Homeland Security The netting on Ninth Street catches falling pieces of concrete; Director James B. Comey Jr. keeps one of the larger pieces in his office. Further retrofitting is prohibitively expensive; despite the Hoover building's overall size of 2.4 million gross ... and more » |
President Obama tapped State Department official Brett McGurk Friday as special envoy to the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State, replacing the retiring Gen. John Allen.
Mr. McGurk has been serving as Gen. Allen's deputy in the campaign against the extremist group in Iraq and in Syria. With the Russian ...
WASHINGTON (AP) - A U.S. citizen who claims American officials falsely imprisoned and tortured him for several months in Africa can't sue the FBI agents involved because the conduct took place overseas during a terrorism investigation, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.
The 2-1 ruling from the U.S. Court of ...
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Iran confirmed Friday that one of its generals was killed late Thursday during clashes in central Syria, bringing the total number of Iranian killed in action in the war-torn country this week to eight, according to state-controlled news reports.
Brig. Gen. Reza Khavari, a senior commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is actively working to combat rebels seeking to depose President Bashar al-Assad, “was martyred in clashes” with opposition forces, some of which are being armed by the United States.
Khavari was “fulfilling his duty as a military advisor,” according to Iran’s state-controlled Fars News Agency.
At least seven other IRGC members part of the country’s Ansar Corps, which carries out clandestine activities outside the Islamic Republic’s borders, have also been killed in Syria in the past two days.
An IRGC official told Fars News on Friday that the “IRGC has boosted the number of its advisors in Syria in recent days following government troops’ striking victories in multiple fronts across the nation.”
Iran has publicly boosted its presence in the country since finalizing a nuclear accord with global powers earlier this year. Russia also has been actively running military operations in the country in the hope of bolstering Assad.
The IRGC confirmed a total of eight deaths this week.
“Asked why the IRGC casualties in Syria are mostly ranking officers, [the IRGC] said Iran does not have combat troops in Syria and has only sent advisors to help the Muslim nations, who provide counseling services and strategies to the Syrian army commanders in the battlefield and from a very close range to the forefront,” according to the report.
Another IRGC leader killed in Syria had served as a bodyguard for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the former president of the Islamic Republic. This official was “martyred while fulfilling his duty as a military advisor in Syria’s North province of Aleppo,” according to Fars.
Three other IRGC leaders killed this week were “veteran commanders,” according to the report.
The post Top Iranian Commander Killed in Syria appeared first on Washington Free Beacon.
 Российская Газета |
Игорь Конашенков вышел на связь с журналистами с аэродрома Хмеймим
Российская Газета Вчера официальный представитель Минобороны России генерал-майор Игорь Конашенков рассказал о действиях нашей авиагруппы в Сирии за минувшие сутки. В отличие от предыдущих брифингов эти сведения были озвучены не в Москве, а на сирийском аэродроме Хмеймим, куда ... В Сирии российские военные пригласили на авиабазу журналистов из разных странПервый канал Минобороны: Экипажи ВКС в Сирии за счет знания местности уничтожают по две и более целей за вылетВзгляд Российский Су-24М отправился на боевое задание с базы в Сирии. Кадры взлетаРИА Новости Все похожие статьи: 135 » |
Obama, Police Join in Call to Cut Incarcerationsby webdesk@voanews.com (Carolyn Presutti)
Pushing to reduce the U.S. prison population, President Barack Obama hosted a forum Thursday that drew more than 100 police chiefs, prosecutors and criminal justice experts to the White House.“It’s not news anymore that we incarcerate a greater percentage of our people than any othercountry," said forum moderator Bill Keller. The United States has "four times the rate of China, five times the rate of England, nine times the rate of Germany." Keller is editor-in-chief of The Marshall Project, a journalism organization focusing on criminal justice. It has reported the nation has 600 prisoners for every 100,000 Americans. The U.S. hands out more severe sentences than other democracies and fails to rehabilitate many inmates before they are released, Keller pointed out. The president said reforms could improve security while reducing incarceration costs, which he put at $80 billion a year. "If we had smarter sentencing and thought about dealing with drug offenses more intelligently and had evidence-based approaches to rehabilitation and reducing recidivism," he said, "... that leads us save money to put onto streets for greater police presence and to focus prosecutors' attention on the truly more dangerous criminals." Earlier Thursday, a Senate committee approved a sentencing bill that would reduce so-called mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolentdrug offenders. The 15-5 bipartisan vote pushes the bill closer to passage on the Senate floor. Thecrime dosage Sentencing needs adjustment, said Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck. "If you view a criminal justice system as a response to a sickness in America, then you have to look at sentencing as a dosage," Beck commented, adding that the current crime level requires "a different dosage." "We have to recognize that all crimes don’t carry the same weight and some crimes involve addiction and mental illness," Beck said, "and we have other pathways that can be more effective than incarceration.” U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado John Walsh said prosecutors have lessened the use of mandatory minimums, but he would not support dropping all required sentences. A group of prosecutors has come out against lowering federal mandatory minimum sentences. "Thosemandatory minimum sentences are triggered by a threshold quantity of narcotics," said Steve Wasserman, an officer with the National Association of Assistant U.S. Attorneys. His group has issued a report, "The Dangerous Myth of Drug Sentencing Reform." "In order to be eligible for a mandatory minimum sentence, you have to have been involved in distributing or possesses with the intent to distribute a large quantity of drugs, depending on whether it’s a five-year or 10-year mandatory minimum," Wasserman said. "Those are entirely appropriate sentences."
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President Vladimir Putin gave a belligerent keynote speech at the prestigious annual Valdai Conference, ringing all the chimes of Kremlin propaganda even more vigorously than usual.
Welcome to our column, Russia Update, where we will be closely following day-to-day developments in Russia, including the Russian government’s foreign and domestic policies.
The previous issue is here.
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–The Non-Hybrid War
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–The Non-Hybrid War
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A statue of Bolshevik revolutionary Vladimir Lenin in Ukraine's Odessa has been converted into a monument to Darth Vader - the city's response to a law requiring the eradication of Communist Party symbols.
French President: Assad is Problem, Not Solution in Syriaby webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is the problem and not the solution where the crisis in Syria is concerned, French President Francois Hollande said on Friday. "We need to work to find a political solution," Hollande said during a visit to Athens. "Bashar al-Assad is not the solution, he is the problem." Hollande was speaking at a news conference alongside Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. European Union heads of state have been critical of Russia's military intervention in the civil war that has killed 250,000 people in Syria, but have failed to agree among themselves on whether Assad should have any role in ending the crisis. France has repeatedly said Assad should not be involved in any talks.
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Iran marches, Russia rules, Obama watchesby Charles Krauthammer
Barack Obama has washed his hands of Syria - which means that Russia and Iran will have their way
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 Yahoo News UK |
Germany''s Merkel: No Quick End to Sanctions Against Russia--Update
Nasdaq BERLIN--German Chancellor Angela Merkel indicated Friday that there won't be a quick end to economic sanctions against Russia, stressing that their lifting hinges on the complete implementation of the Minsk peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. Merkel Says EU Agreement With Ukraine Not Aimed AgainstRussiaRadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty Merkel says wants good economic ties with Ukraine and RussiaYahoo News UK Russia's System of Managed Chaos (Op-Ed)The Moscow Times (registration) all 151 news articles » |
As western nations retire from the global stage, Russia and China step up, writes Michael Fullilove
Hackers may have gained access to the personal data of some of the British telecommunications company’s four million customers, but it was unclear who had committed the breach.
Some Experts Hopeful About Syria's Chancesby webdesk@voanews.com (William Gallo)
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is meeting this week with leaders from several Middle Eastern countries and Russia about how to revive the political process in war-torn Syria. That diplomatic effort that has been attempted before, and each time it has failed to halt the conflict that has left hundreds of thousands of Syrians dead and created the worst refugee crisis since World War II. This time the diplomatic push comes at a potentially critical moment, with Russia intensifying military and diplomatic support for its longtime ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Russian warplanes have been bombing the rebels trying to overthrow Assad, and weeks of those air raids have helped the Syrian military retake some territory. Assad made his first known trip outside Syria this week since the unrest began in 2011, traveling to Moscow for a meeting at the Kremlin with Russian President Vladimir Putin. To take a closer look at the situation in Syria, VOA spoke with a number of experts on the region, including some who are hopeful that the possibility of resuming efforts for a negotiated settlement in Syria have now increased. Here are excerpts of those interviews: Nabeel Khoury is a visiting associate professor at the Middle East and North African Studies program of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. Question: Did Assad's meeting with Putin embolden the Syrian leader? How much does this Russian military support change the calculation on the ground? Answer: The Syrian army is regaining territory lost earlier to opposition forces, and Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah have stepped up their support on the ground. So clearly, in the last few weeks, Assad has felt good about what's happening on the ground. I think this visit is not so much to further embolden him as it is to showcase that Russia has the upper hand in terms of determining how things are going in Syria - and perhaps broader than that, in the region. Q: Is this increased Russian intervention a hopeful sign, or is this a failure of U.S. foreign policy? A: You could view it both ways. It is a failure of U.S. policy because for the past four, almost five, years, the initiative was there for the U.S. to take. And the passive initiatives that this administration has taken has fallen far short of accomplishing anything on the ground or politically. The Russians stepped in and already, militarily, are already making a difference. And this was the goal of Russia's military intervention: not so much to just conduct some token strikes against people they don't like, but actually to reverse the strategic situation on the ground. It was a very purposeful military intervention, and it clearly has made a difference. Now comes the time for some kind of political move, and clearly the videos that came out of the [Putin-Assad] meeting showed essentially Putin lecturing Assad and telling him that with the military achievements now going on, the time for a political settlement is approaching. David W. Lesch is Professor of Middle East History in the Department of History at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Q: How significant was the meeting in Moscow between President Assad and President Putin? A: For Putin, it again puts him again at diplomatic center stage. He's painted this picture that all roads lead to Russia. Look at who he's received in Russia over the last month and a half or so: leaders or leading officials from Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iran. And he's long met with elements of the Syrian opposition. And now Assad. The image he gives is that only he can meet with all of the stakeholders in the conflict, from all sides of the conflict, and that only he can generate an end to the conflict. And for Assad, of course we know he's been an international pariah, he's been delegitimized as a ruler by most. But now, he's met quite possibly at the current time with the most popular and influential leader in the world. And just by osmosis, he's gained some legitimacy. And he presents this image of being statesman-like, in control, that he's on the uptick, that he's breaking out of his isolation. Q: How about the Syrian opposition. Where does this leave them? A: The Russian military strikes have degraded the non-ISIS opposition. And frankly, I think that Putin and Russia have engaged in this because they've made the conclusion that a political solution or a negotiated settlement is out of the question; it just isn't going to happen. They tried, and therefore let's try a different tactic. And this one is to degrade the non-ISIS position to a point where all that's left in the short or near term, if Putin achieves his objectives, is Assad and ISIS. And he's betting that most of the world in that sort of situation will side with the lesser of evils, and side with Assad. Q: Will that strategy work? A: I think he's underestimating the fighting ability of the non-ISIS opposition in Syria. And also I think he's probably reinvigorated some of the Sunni Arab conservative monarchies in the Persian Gulf in particular - individuals and governments - to increase their support for Sunni elements in Syria to fight against Assad. So I think that Putin may have underestimated that. But if he's successful, he will have achieved some immediate medium-term objectives at a fairly low cost. Michael Kerr is the Director of the Institute of Middle Eastern Studies and the Center for the Study of Divided Societies at King's College London. Q: What are the chances Kerry's meetings will result in anything more substantial than did the other meetings he's had on this over the years? A: The challenge for the U.S. and the European Union and other parties is to come up with a policy that provides consistent and robust support politically for whatever moderate opposition groups that come to the fore in any new political initiative. And that's been sorely lacking. I'm not sure that's going to happen. Because U.S. policy on Syria has been premised around not engaging, at least in the sense that Russia has. Q: What are some of the possible ways in which the Syrian conflict could be resolved? A: There are a number of different options. One option is a military victory; that seems extremely unlikely. Another option is partition; that seems very unlikely now that Russia has backed Assad. Another would be some sort of decentralization. And another would be some form of power-sharing. Now I would not be surprised at all, given the comments that have come from Moscow over the last 48 hours, if Putin has said to Assad that the price that you must pay for your regime to survive and for you personally to survive is some form of power-sharing with some of the opposition forces. And Assad has probably accepted that, because not negotiating is not going to be an option for him. His future is now going to be determined to a great extent by Moscow. Q: So you think there is a good chance that this increased Russian backing of Assad will actually result in movement towards a political resolution? A: No, I wouldn't say there is a good chance. But the cards on the table have been reshuffled and redealt. There's not an international alignment or agreement over Syria. We're far, far from that. But there is an opportunity for the West to pressure Russia diplomatically in the coming months through the U.N. The difficulty will be for the West, and the West will need to compromise with Russia in order to achieve this, is to come up with a policy with the Russians and a political policy that matches their military requirements on the ground. And a key to that might be defeating ISIS. But an international scenario for Syria, where Russia and the U.S. agree and all the regional players of significance are kept within the tent - that will be very, very hard to come by. But Moscow is taking the lead on this. The road to Damascus is running at the moment through Moscow, not Washington. Q: What is the best hope for a resolution to the Syrian conflict, at this point? A: Probably it will be everybody's least favorite option in Syria, but some form of a power-sharing arrangement is quite likely. Whether that takes place on a confessional or sectarian basis or on an opposition, regional basis, I don't know. But I think that idea might lead to cease-fires and lead to negotiations and lead to a coalition of forces that are willing to challenge and isolate ISIS. Because it's fundamentally important that Syria is maintained as within the boundaries of the state that presently exists but have been challenged by ISIS. If Syria breaks up, then there's going to be a rump Islamic entity that transcends Syria's present borders, and none of the parties to the conflict want to see that happen. Ammar Abdulhamid is a Syrian pro-democracy activist, author, currently based in Silver Spring, Maryland. He is the founder of the Tharwa Foundation, a nonprofit group dedicated to democracy promotion, peace-building and post-conflict reconstruction. Q: Do you think Kerry's meetings hold any prospect for being successful? Haven't we been here before? Is a political solution still possible? A: It is very difficult to expect much from this particular round. Mr. Kerry had earlier noted that the administration might be willing to live with having Assad be part of an interim arrangement, thus abandoning another red line earlier adopted by the administration regarding the conflict in Syria. But even this concession may not be enough at this stage. Putin seems to be interested in a larger deal, one that legitimates his involvement in Syria, which seems to be a longer-term project than previously thought. Putin might also be interested in linking developments in Syria with those in eastern Ukraine. Q: How would you describe the Obama administration's Syria strategy so far? What would you change to make it more effective? A: If there was any strategy, it seems focused on limiting any potential involvement in Syria, and everywhere else, because the Obama administration deemed interventionism itself as the problem, even if to pre-empt violence, as would have been the case in the early months of the Syrian Revolution, and even if for humanitarian reasons, as is the case now. There are a variety of steps that can be described in order to build a strategy that is actually focused on ending the suffering of the Syrian people. The first is: get a new president, one not blinded by his own ideological imperatives. Once we have that, we can discuss the other steps. For now, the trick is to keep enough Syrians in Syria and enough habitable Syria until a new president assumes office. Q: How does Russia's campaign of airstrikes and increased political backing of Assad change the calculus for a political resolution? A: Even before its campaign, there was enough Russian support for Assad, and enough dithering by the Obama administration, to make Russia a necessary partner in any serious political process in Syria. With this campaign - and what seems to be a desire to build an even larger military and economic presence along the coastal areas, and perhaps Damascus and Aleppo - a kind of Russo-Iranian mandate seems to be emerging over the Western parts of Syria, one that the Russians and Iranians want the U.S., Turkey and Saudi Arabia to accept. The opposition might have to live with something along these lines, but so long as the Russians and Iranians insist on having Assad stay as president, no matter how much you limit his authority, it might be impossible to get such a deal, and the proxy war in Syria will continue. One way or another, Assad has to be to eased out, or unceremoniously disposed of. His departure may not usher in democracy, but it would least the mark the end of an era and the beginning of a new one. Syrians need that in order to make sense of all what had transpired earlier. Q: What are the chances that the Syria conflict escalates as a proxy war between the US and Russia? A: There is a good chance of that, as an administration pressured to be tough but without having to intervene practically has no other option. VOA's Victor Beattie contributed reporting for this story..
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 РБК |
Тела красногорского стрелка нашли в доме его соседа
РБК Подозреваемый в совершении четырех убийств в Красногорске Амиран Георгадзе обнаружен мертвым. Тело нашли в деревне Тимошкино в Красногорском районе. Он застрелился еще в день преступления. Указатель на въезде в деревню Тимошкино. Фото: РИА Новости. В этом ... Адвокаты подозреваемого в пособничестве красногорскому стрелку обжаловали его арестКоммерсантъ «Красногорский стрелок» Георгадзе найден мертвымИзвестия Что случилось с «красногорским стрелком» Георгадзе: три версииКомсомольская правда Московский комсомолец -РИА Новости -Ura.ru Все похожие статьи: 328 » |
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IRAQ and SYRIA
A US service member was killed during a joint mission by US special forces and Kurdish fighters yesterday while rescuing captives of the Islamic State in Iraq, the Pentagon has confirmed. It is the first death of an American soldier in combat in that country for four years. [Wall Street Journal’s Gordon Lubold and Matt Bradley]
Sixty-nine hostages were rescued in the operation, which targeted an ISIS prison north of the town of Hawija, the Kurdistan regional security council said. [Reuters’ Phil Stewart and Isabel Coles] The captives were facing “imminent mass execution” by the Islamic State, officials said. [The Guardian’s Martin Chulov et al]
The Defense Department continued to call the US effort a “train, advise and assist” mission, rather than a combat one, observes Nancy A. Youssef, adding that the death “marked the latest game of military semantics in a war defined as much by its messaging as by its tactical results.” [The Daily Beast]
Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested that Syria’s government could cooperate with rebel groups which are willing to battle ISIS. [BBC; Reuters] Putin also suggested that now is a critical moment in East-West relations, not unlike the conclusion of the Cold War. [New York Times’ Neil MacFarquhar]
At least seven medical facilities have been bombed by Russia in Syria since that country entered the civil war, killing at least four people, according to Physicians for Human Rights. [New York Times’ Kareem Fahim]
The White House is looking for ways to protect Syrian civilians, considering whether to deploy US troops to establish no-fly zones and safe havens in Syria. Mark Mazzetti and Peter Baker report. [New York Times]
US plans to recapture Raqqa from ISIS are already facing challenges. Liz Sly reports. [Washington Post]
“The time of the Kurds;” a look at the group from the Council on Foreign Relations.
Russian President Putin is acting as though the Middle East were another “troublesome province that needs to be brought up short by the power of the centralized state,” suggests Maxim Trudolyubov. [New York Times]
Putin’s “supposed strategic genius” is a “myth,” explains Michael A. McFaul. [New York Times]
BENGHAZI
Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton appeared before the House Select Committee on Benghaziyesterday, giving nearly 11 hours of testimony concerning the 2012 terrorist attack in Libya. [Reuters’ Jonathan Allen and John Whitesides; Wall Street Journal’s Byron Tau and Peter Nicholas]
During the hearing Clinton again took responsibility for the attacks but emphasized that in her role as secretary of state she had never personally approved or denied requests for greater security on the compound. Michael D. Shear and Michael S. Schmidt provide the details. [New York Times]
Clinton “put the controversy … firmly behind her” and “emerged” from the hearing “largely unscathed,” fending off accusations of her failure to protect the four Americans who were killed – and avoided an intense focus on her private email server. [The Guardian’s Dan Roberts et al; Politico’s Rachael Bade]
Democrat Rep Elijah Cummings denounced the Benghazi panel, prompting applause from the audience during the testimony. [The Hill’s Julian Hattem]
The alleged leader of the attack, Ahmed Salim Faraj Abu Khatallah “barely rated a mention” during the 11 hours of testimony, writes Michael Daly. [The Daily Beast]
The New York Times editorial board suggests that the committee “further discredited itself”yesterday, observing that the panel “elicited little new information and offered little hope that their inquiry would find anything” that the previous seven did not.
The Economist observes that much of the questioning from GOP committee members was “ill-focused, irrelevant or asinine.”
Americans “should be enraged” by the committee, writes Michael Tomasky at The Daily Beast.
By the time Hillary Clinton appeared before the panel yesterday, she didn’t “have to make any real effort to paint the Benghazi inquiry as partisan.” [Politico Magazine’s Todd S. Purdum]
GUANTÁNAMO BAY
A secret Pentagon program was disclosed this week by 9/11 death-penalty trial defense attorney Jay Connell to the court. Carol Rosenberg provides the details. [Miami Herald]
A former military judge who presided over the 2013 court martial of Private Chelsea Manning has been added as a new adviser to the staff of the 9/11 terror trial. [Miami Herald’s Carol Rosenberg]
ISRAEL and PALESTINE
Secretary of State John Kerry met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday in Berlin, urging the leader to tone down his inflammatory language that US and European officials claim is adding to the escalating violence. Kerry noted that his conversation with Netanyahu gave him “a cautious measure of optimism.” [New York Times’ Matthew Rosenberg and Alison Smale]
Muslims of all ages will be permitted to enter Jerusalem’s most delicate holy site to perform Friday prayers, the first time since violence escalated in mid-September. [AP]
An account of souring relations between President Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,from Adam Entous at the Wall Street Journal.
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
President Obama vetoed the National Defense Authorization Act, using the power for just the fifth time in his presidency. The measure, rejected because of the manner it uses money intended for war spending, will be sent back to the GOP-led Congress. [Reuters; New York Times’ Julie Hirschfeld Davis] Footage of Obama’s comments and his official veto of the bill available here.
A bomb attack targeting a mosque in Maiduguri, northeast Nigeria killing at least 18 people this morning. There is yet to be a claim of responsibility but Boko Haram is suspected of being behind the attack. [AP]
A suicide bomb attack in southwest Pakistan hit a mosque yesterday, killing at least 10 people and wounding others, government officials said. [AP] And Saeed Shah and Adam Entous report on Gen Raheel Sharif, the head of Pakistan’s army who “has eclipsed the authority” of the country’s government on important security related matters. [Wall Street Journal]
The Obama administration has officially endorsed the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act, the controversial major cybersecurity bill that is set for its final vote on Tuesday. [The Hill’s Cory Bennett]
The World Bank’s operational policies treat human rights “more like an infectious disease than universal values and obligations,” according to the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Professor Philip Alston, accusing the bank’s approach to human rights of being “incoherent, counterproductive and unsustainable,” according to a new report. The World Bank has rejected the assertions. [The Guardian’s Sam Jones]
Afghanistan’s special forces are in the firing line as the country’s army and police force struggle to contain the escalating insurgency that has advanced on a number of cities in recent weeks. [Reuters]
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