Ukraine peace talks collapse over ceasefire as fighting rages - AFP
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By Andrei Makhovsky & Richard Balmforth REUTERS • Saturday January 31, 2015 10:12 PM
MINSK, Belarus — Peace talks over Ukraine collapsed on Saturday after just more than four hours with no tangible progress toward a new cease-fire but with Ukraine’s representative and separatist envoys angrily accusing each other of sabotaging the meeting.
Ukraine’s representative, former President Leonid Kuchma, left the talks in Minsk, Belarus, telling the Interfax news agency that separatist officials had undermined the meeting by making ultimatums and refusing “to discuss a plan of measures for a quick cease-fire and a pull-back of heavy weapons.”
Denis Pushilin, one of the separatist officials, told the Russian news agency RIA that they were ready for dialogue “but not ready for ultimatums from Kiev while shelling by their forces is going on in the background of towns in the Donbass (industrialized eastern Ukraine).”
The meeting of the “contact group,” which also involves a Russian envoy and an official from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, took place in the Belarussian capital even as fighting between Kiev’s forces and the Russian-backed rebels raged on in Ukraine’s east, claiming more civilian and military lives.
The outcome dashed hopes that a new cease-fire could be put together soon to stem nine months of conflict pitting Ukrainian government forces against Russian-backed separatists who have declared “ people’s republics” in eastern Ukraine.
Shortly before the Minsk talks broke up, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Russia’s Vladimir Putin had expressed hope in a three-way phone call that the meeting would at least produce a cease-fire agreement.
More than 5,000 people have died since the conflict erupted last April after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in response to the ousting of a Moscow-backed president in Kiev by street protests.
Heavy shelling continued on Saturday in Ukraine’s eastern regions as the separatists sought to tighten a circle around government forces clinging to control of the strategic rail and road junction of Debaltseve.
Regional police Chief Vyacheslav Abroskin, in a Facebook post, said 12 civilians had been killed on Saturday by separatist shelling of the town, which lies to the northeast of Donetsk.
Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak said 15 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed and 30 wounded in clashes across the east.
Debaltseve is on the main highway linking Donetsk and the other big rebel-controlled city of Luhansk and is also a vital rail link for goods traffic from Russia which Kiev accuses of arming the rebels.
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PEACE talks aimed at halting rising bloodshed in eastern Ukraine have ended in failure, with Kiev’s envoy saying pro-Russian separatists wrecked a deal by refusing to discuss an immediate ceasefire.
The delayed talks in Minsk were “thwarted” after top rebel leaders stayed away and their negotiators also refused to discuss withdrawing heavy weapons, former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma told Interfax Ukraine news agency.
Mr Kuchma also accused the insurgents’ representatives of putting forward “ultimatums” at the four-hour talks in the Belarussian capital without giving any more details.
The negotiator for the rebel Donetsk People’s Republic, Denis Pushilin, however, blamed Kiev for causing the collapse of the talks and said insurgent leaders would only agree a deal if Kiev’s forces halt fire first.
Mr Pushilin said the rebels also insisted the demarcation line include territory taken since the previous line was agreed in September, said by analysts to be around 500sq km.
Mediators from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe had hoped to thrash out a “binding” truce to revive a shattered peace plan despite Kiev suffering one of its bloodiest days yet in the nine-month conflict with 15 Ukrainian troops killed.
The OSCE as well as Russian officials attended the talks in Minsk after a nominal September ceasefire collapsed under the latest wave of violence.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel talked to each other by phone over the weekend, urging the warring factions to agree a truce in fighting that has left at least 5100 people dead.
The insurgents last week pulled out of peace talks and announced the start of an offensive designed to expand their control over a much broader swathe of the industrial southeast.
They said they would push their offensive “until the entire Donetsk and Lugansk regions are freed” of Ukrainian troops should the talks fail.
OSCE officials had said they hoped a deal would also provide for the “unrestricted supply of basic goods and humanitarian assistance” as the civilian death toll mounts in rebel regions Donetsk and Lugansk.
Fighting is raging around the strategic Ukrainian-controlled transport hub of Debaltseve, some 50km northeast of the separatist stronghold of Donetsk.
The town of 25,000 people was built around a railroad connecting the two rebel centres of the Russian-speaking southeast.
Defence Minister Stepan Poltorak for the first time said separatist forces had taken “partial” control of Debaltseve, where rebels claim to have surrounded some 8000 Ukrainian troops.
The rebels on Friday said that they had taken the town of Vuglegirsk — some 10km from Debaltseve — although Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said fighting there was ongoing.
Both towns were without water, electricity or heating, said regional police chief Vyacheslav Abroskin.
The latest violence has alarmed Ukraine’s Western allies, with US Secretary of State John Kerry announcing plans to express his support for the war-torn nation during talks in Kiev on Thursday with President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk.
Mr Kerry will then meet his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich, the State Department said.
Western governments and Ukraine accuse Russia of arming and training the rebels, who are deploying extensive weaponry including tanks and multiple rocket launchers. Russia denies claims it has sent regular troops and arms to bolster the rebels, who claim to get all their weaponry from captured Ukrainian supplies.
The 28-nation EU on Thursday extended through September a first wave of targeted sanctions it had slapped on Moscow and Crimean leaders in the wake of Russia’s March seizure of the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine.
Russia accuses the West of manipulating the Ukrainian government, which came to power in elections after the ouster in huge street demonstrations last year of a Kremlin-backed leader.
AFP
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· · · · · · · ·
Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma (C) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) envoy, Swiss Heidi Tagliavini (R) leave the presidential residence in minsk, Belarus after talks on January 31, 2015. Talks aimed at settling the conflict between separatist rebels and government forces in eastern ukraine have ended without a breakthrough. [Photo: Imagine China]
The latest round of peace talks on Ukraine crisis ended in the Belarusian capital of Minsk on Saturday without an agreement.
Present at the negotiations of the "contact group" in the day were former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, representatives of the self-claimed Donetsk and Lugansk republics in eastern Ukraine Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego, Russian Ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov, as well as a special delegate of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Heidi Tagliavini.
"Today's consultations under the plan for the implementation of the Minsk agreements have been aborted due to the absence of Alexander Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky (leaders of the two self-claimed republics), to ultimatums from their representatives Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego, and to their refusal to discuss the plan of measures for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of heavy armaments," the Interfax news agency reported, citing Kuchma as saying.
While declaring their loyalty to the key Minsk agreements signed in September, which called for a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian fighters and military equipment from Ukraine, representatives of eastern Ukrainian insurgents said the status of Kiev's negotiator was insufficient for them to sign a final deal.
Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky reiterated their stance that leaders of their republics will not come to Minsk unless the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko publicly declares a ceasefire and withdraw heavy weapons from the division line.
Kiev's delegate responded that the Ukrainian side would not accept any preconditions.
There is no statement from either the Russian Ambassador or the OSCE delegate yet.
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· · ·
31 January 2015 Last updated at 17:30 ET
Ukrainian troops are trying to defend the key transport hub of Debaltseve
Sanctions debate
Terrified civilians have been leaving Debaltseve in the past several days
The rebels have been steadily advancing on Ukrainian positions in recent days
Residents in the rebel stronghold of Donetsk say they are running out of essential supplies
Ukrainian troops are trying to defend the key transport hub of Debaltseve
At least 40 people have been reported killed as fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian rebels rages on in the east of the country.
Ukrainian officials say 15 soldiers and 12 civilians died in the past 24 hours. The rebels report 13 casualties.
The separatists also claim to have seized the town of Vuhlehirsk and surrounded the key hub of Debaltseve, but the Ukrainian military denies this.
Meanwhile, urgent truce talks ended in Belarus, but no deal was signed.
Representatives of Ukraine and Russia, as well as rebel envoys and members the Organization for Security and Co-operation (OSCE), took part in the meeting in the Belarusian capital Minsk.
Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, Kiev's representative at the talks, was quoted as saying that the talks had been "thwarted" by the rebels.
The recent heavy fighting has left a September ceasefire - also agreed in Minsk - in tatters.
'Displacement and suffering'
The latest report on the situation in the conflict zone stood in stark contrast to the concept of a ceasefire.
On Saturday, Ukrainian Defence Minister Stepan Poltorak told reporters that "15 soldiers were killed and another 30 injured" during the fighting on the "whole line of contact" in the past 24 hours.
The BBC's David Stern: "Expectations are low that fighting will end anytime soon"
He also admitted that Debaltseve was now "partially controlled" by the rebels.
Meanwhile, Vyacheslav Abroskin, head of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry in the Donetsk region, said 12 people were killed by rebel shelling in the town.
In the rebel stronghold of Donetsk, Eduard Basurin, deputy commander of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, said 13 people - including civilians - were killed in the past 24 hours in the areas held by the separatists.
He also claimed that some 8,000 Ukrainian troops were now surrounded in and around Debaltseve.
Ukrainian officials earlier denied the claim.
In a statement, Ertugrul Apakan, the chief monitor of the OSCE mission in Ukraine, condemned the shelling of densely populated civilian areas in eastern Ukraine.
"Yet again, innocent civilians have been impacted by the crisis, and yet again we are seeing more bloodshed," Mr Apakan said, urging all sides "to prevent further displacement and suffering".
On Thursday, EU foreign ministers agreed to extend existing sanctions against Russia until September.
At an extraordinary meeting in Brussels, they also agreed to discuss names to add to the list of individuals targeted for EU travel bans and asset freezes.
However, they did not agree on imposing new economic sanctions against Russia.
Terrified civilians have been leaving Debaltseve in the past several daysThe rebels have been steadily advancing on Ukrainian positions in recent daysResidents in the rebel stronghold of Donetsk say they are running out of essential supplies
Thursday's EU meeting was called after the government-held port of Mariupol in Ukraine was shelled last weekend, with the deaths of at least 30 people. Ukraine blamed the rebels for the attack.
The government in Kiev and Nato say hundreds of Russian tanks and armoured vehicles are in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow denies direct involvement but says some Russian volunteers are fighting alongside the rebels.
More than 5,000 people have been killed and some 1.2 million have fled since the rebels seized a big swathe of Luhansk and Donetsk regions last April, following Russia's annexation of Crimea.
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Published time: January 31, 2015 14:02
Edited time: January 31, 2015 22:22
Edited time: January 31, 2015 22:22
Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma (2nd R) after arriving at Minsk International Airport, January 31, 2015. (Reuters/Vasily Fedosenko)
All of the participants of the contact group on the Ukraine crisis – OSCE representatives, Kiev, Moscow, and the Donbass region – have met in Minsk. No new agreements have been reached, with the meeting ending in a blame game between Kiev and the rebels.
The meeting amid the deteriorating situation and intense fighting in eastern Ukraine was held behind closed doors and lasted for over three hours.
Ukraine was represented by ex-President Leonid Kuchma. Viktor Medvedchuk, leader of the 'Ukrainian Choice' political organization, also participated as the contact group's special representative on humanitarian issues. Others were Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Heidi Tagliavini, and Russian ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov.
Kuchma, Tagliavini and Zurabov have their signatures under the September Minsk peace agreements, which stipulated ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy artillery from the frontline and exchange of prisoners.
The self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk have also sent their envoys to Minsk - Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego.
Representatives of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics Denis Pushilin (R) and Vladislav Deinego answer journalists' questions at Minsk Airport, January 30, 2015. (RIA Novosti/Viktor Tolochko)
The meeting did not result in the signing of any concluding document, discussions on which continue, Lugansk representative Vladislav Deinego told RIA Novosti. He added that the date for the next contact group meeting has not been discussed.
Donetsk representative Dmitry Pushilin also told the agency that the two self-proclaimed republics are ready to comply with the previous Minsk protocol and continue the talks. No new agreements have been reached, with the sides only managing to voice their positions, Pushilin added.
Kiev representative Leonid Kuchma claimed that Saturday's talks were wrecked by the Donbass side. The meeting had no results to help the ceasefire, as "Aleksandr Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky, who originally signed the Minsk documents, failed to attend, and their representatives only made ultimatum-like statements," Kuchma told Interfax Ukraine. Kiev's position remains unchanged, with Ukraine eager to comply with the previous agreements signed in Minsk on September 5 and 19, he added.
Plotnitsky denied allegations that it was his side which wrecked the talks.
Kuchma previously said he was only ready to have talks with the leaders of the self-proclaimed republics - Aleksandr Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky.
“There must be Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky. Those who signed the agreements and who have some power,” he said as cited by Segodnya.ua.
Donetsk and Lugansk representatives said that the heads of the territories – Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky - would only come to the meeting in case of a halt in military actions and a new agreement ready and approved by the envoys.
A woman surveys damage done to a house, which according to locals was recently damaged by shelling, in the suburbs of Donetsk January 30, 2015 (Reuters / Alexander Ermochenko)
“After that they will be ready to come,” Pushilin said, as cited by TASS. “I guess the main argument in support of them now staying with their citizens, actually facing genocide, is yesterday’s shelling of people queuing for humanitarian aid [in Donetsk]. 12 people were killed as a result and 20 were injured.”
The shelling of densely populated civilian areas in eastern Ukraine was on Saturday condemned by the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan.
“I urge all sides to exercise maximum restraint, and fully assume their responsibility to prevent further displacement and suffering, and to redouble their efforts to reach a political settlement,” said Apakan.
Vladimir Putin, Angela Merkel, and Francois Hollande have discussed the increased violence in southeastern Ukraine in a phone conversation, the Kremlin's press service said on Saturday. The state leaders expressed their hopes that an immediate ceasefire and heavy artillery withdrawal will be key issues to be discussed at the contact group meeting.
At least 12 civilians were killed in Donetsk on Friday. The self-proclaimed republic’s officials said Ukrainian troops shelled the city from a neutral zone north of the airport. Kiev has blamed rebels, describing the attack as an attempt to undermine the Minsk peace talks.
Trucks of the 12th Donbas humanitarian convoy organized by the Russian Emergency Ministry have arrived in Donbas. (RIA Novosti/Mikhail Parhomenko)
On Saturday, Russian trucks carrying humanitarian aid to the Donbass region were accompanied from the Russia-Ukraine border by OSCE mission observers for the first time. Two convoys of over 170 trucks crossed the border, carrying over 1.5 tons of humanitarian aid including food, medicine, articles of daily necessity, and some building materials.
"At the Matveev Kurgan crossing point of the border, the control of the convoy was conducted by both sides, with the Ukrainian border service using specially trained sniffer dogs. After passing the inspection point, the convoy was accompanied by OSCE mission representatives, who were also present during the unloading process," Russia Emergency Services official Aleksandr Lekomtsev told RT.
He added that the dogs were used in the process for the first time, and that there were no complaints or remarks regarding the cargo from the Ukrainian side. The convoy was the 12th Emergency Services' humanitarian aid delivery mission, with almost 15 tons of aid previously supplied to the Donetsk and Lugansk regions from Russia.
Earlier on Saturday Ukrainian Foreign Ministry official Evgeny Perebiynis commented on the Russian aid convoys, saying the delivery of such aid should be conducted according to accepted international practice and with the approval of Ukraine's government. He added that previous aid freight had been allegedly delivered "with blatant violations of such rules," Interfax Ukraine reported. At the same time, the official said that Ukraine is ready to accept humanitarian aid from foreign states and international organizations.
A Russian convoy of trucks carrying humanitarian aid for Ukraine in Donetsk region (Reuters / Maxim Shemetov)
According to the Defense Ministry of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, intense fighting in the region continued on Saturday. The Ukrainian army shelled territories near Donetsk more than 20 times on Saturday night, Eduard Basurin of the ministry told journalists, adding that two civilians were killed in the attacks.
Fighting has also continued in one of the flash points in the region, in the town of Debaltsevo, located some 55 kilometers (34 miles) from Donetsk. According to Basurin, the Ukrainian army has been fighting with local militia to break out of an entrapment and advance towards the areas controlled by rebels. Kiev, which has up to 10,000 servicemen near Debaltsevo, denied that its troops are being trapped in the town. Over 300 civilians were evacuated from there on Friday, Kiev confirmed.
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Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma (2nd R) after arriving at Minsk International Airport, January 31, 2015. (Reuters/Vasily Fedosenko).
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Ukraine talks in Minsk yield no deal, source says - CNN.com
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Minsk talks on situation in Ukraine should lead to compromise
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Fighting rages in eastern Ukraine as Minsk peace talks are ...
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Ukraine Fighting Continues as Talks Stallby By ANDREW E. KRAMER
Envoys representing Ukraine, Russia and a European monitoring group opened a new round of cease-fire talks in Belarus on Saturday, but without leaders of the Russian-backed separatists.
The Vatican says two Polish-born prelates are being investigated by authorities in the Holy See for alleged possession of child pornography.
Russia increases gold purchases by 123%by The European Union Times
The Central Bank of Russia bought a record amount of gold in the first 11 months of 2014 spending an estimated $6.1 billion. Increasing gold reserves attempts to reduce dependence on the dollar amid geopolitical tension, Mark O’Byrne of GoldCore, told RT.
Russia’s gold purchases accounted for a third of the world’s total of 461 tons, according to research by Thomson Reuters GFMS (Gold Fields Mineral Services). The amount of gold bought went up 123 percent from the previous year to 152 tons, worth $6.1 billion at current prices. It’s the most Russia has spent since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Given the tension between the US and Russia, it’s more likely Russia will sell dollar assets and buy gold, said O’Byrne.
“That will be done both to protect the ruble and potentially to position the ruble as a reserve currency in the long-term, but also as a signal to Washington,” he said, adding that it’s almost like a geopolitical move showing that Russia has a monetary and financial alternative and it can retaliate if economic sanctions were to deepen.
On Thursday EU foreign ministers decided to prolong sanctions against Russian officials and the militias in eastern Ukraine until September 2015, but decided against broadening the list of economic restrictions. A final decision is expected in February.
“Increasing the share of gold in foreign exchange reserves is not a short-term speculation, it’s a long-term diversification,” O’Byrne said.
Analysts from GFMS partially attribute the increase in Russian gold purchases to the buying of the metal from domestic production that increased 9 percent year-on-year. At the same time, it won’t be easy to sell these volumes overseas due to sanctions, they say.
“This is a clear positive for the gold price,” said Matthew Turner, analyst at Macquarie, as quoted by the FT. “If central banks had not purchased that gold it would have been bought by private investors or jewelry consumers, and this would likely have required a lower gold price.”
The current spot price for gold is $1,263 per ounce which is below the recent five-month record of $1,300.
The research forecasts that soon Russia may slow global gold purchase rates and enter the sales market to sell its reserves in order to support the national currency.
During the crisis of 1998, Russia had to sell 118 tons of gold reserves to cover fiscal deficits. At the same time, the current situation is not as dramatic as Russian foreign exchange reserves are valued at $378.1 billion.
“We are still a long way off Russia needing to sell gold,” said Turner.
Russia was the second biggest gold producer in 2014. Last year it extracted 272 tons of gold, outstripped by China with 465.7 tons, and just ahead of Australia producing 269.7 tons.
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Putin Orders Special Forces To Protect Greek Leaders Life “At All Costs” by The European Union Times
A stunning new report circulating in the Kremlin today prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) states that President Putin has ordered an immediate deployment of at least 125 special forces operatives to Greece to “insure the protection of life at all costs” of that nations new Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. [Photo left]
According to this report, Prime Minister Tsipras took office this past week after his Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) party won a “blowout” election victory sending shockwaves through the corridors of power in both the European Union and the United States.
Upon taking office, this report continues, Prime Minister Tsipras further “shocked and stunned” both the EU and US by holding his first official government meeting with Ambassador of Russia to GreeceAndrey Maslov.
Compelling Prime Minister Tsipras to first meet with Ambassador Maslov, this report says, were fears that his life was in immediate danger from both the EU and US due to intelligence reports he’d received within hours of taking office provided to him by his own nations National Intelligence Service (EYP).
Though this MoFA report doesn’t say what the exact fears of Prime Minister Tsipras or the EYP, were, it does state that were of such a magnitude that Ambassador Maslov, acting on his own authority, ordered an immediate attachment of his own personal protection detail to that of the new Greek leader own security forces.
In addition to those special forces authorized by Ambassador Maslov to protect Prime Minister Tsipras, this report states, President Putin’s new order authorizes a further deployment to Greece of Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR RF) operatives and a contingent of specialists from the Psychological Security Department (PSD) of the Presidential Security Service (SBP).
Important to note, MoFA experts in this report say, is that the PSD is the intelligence branch of SBP that is responsible for analyzing information collected of the options about the lives risk of the President.
The PSD further mixes several selected intelligence experts from the Military Intelligence, Federal Internal Security and the Foreign Intelligence into one branch and their orders to help protect the life of Prime Minister Tsipras are authorized under the Law on Foreign Intelligence that allows them toconduct joint operations with foreign security services.
Also to be noted, this MoFA report says, is that the Federations assisting in the protection of Prime Minister Tsipras’ life is fully compatible with normal diplomatic functions as an historic obligation between Greece and Russia has long existed since diplomatic relations between the two nations have been in force since 1828, and both nations share strong social, religious and cultural ties.
Most astounding, perhaps, in this report is its detailing that Prime Minister Tsipras, nearly immediately upon his receiving Russian special forces protection, fired his first shot against both the EU and US banking oligarchs by publishing an open letter to the German people that, in brief part, said:
“My party, and I personally, disagreed fiercely with the May 2010 loan agreement not because you, the citizens of Germany, did not give us enough money but because you gave us much, much more than you should have and our government accepted far, far more than it had a right to. Money that would, in any case, neither help the people of Greece (as it was being thrown into the black hole of an unsustainable debt) nor prevent the ballooning of Greek government debt, at great expense to the Greek and German taxpayer.”
Following this open letter, this report continues, Prime Minister Tsipras “went nuclear” and declared that Greece that will not cooperate with the ‘troika’ [European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund] of international lenders, and does not plan to seek an extension for its aid package which is set to expire at the end of February.
In striking back against Greece, however, this report says, German Chancellor Angela Merkel angrily replied that Greece could expect no further debt relief from the West’s banking oligarchs, a stance, mind you, that was countered by Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov stating that if Greece asked for loans the Federation would be inclined to give them.
Most critical to note, this report concludes, is that Greece doesn’t need Europe’s or America’s money to keep its budget afloat anymore, but Europe needs Greece’s money to keep its banks afloat. However, and should Greece fully break with the EU and the Euro, both the Federation and the New Development Bank (NDB) [formerly referred to as the BRICS Development Bank] are able and willing to help Greece helping it escape Western domination.
And going from the truly ominous to the absolutely scary implications of this MoFA report, though not directly contained in it, is an interview given this past week by former US Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Dr. Paul Roberts who stated that the machinations being undertaking by the EU and US in both Greece and Ukraine were going to allow President Putin to crush both the West and NATO by destroying their oligarch banking system, and as we can, in part, read:
“…right now there are a great many things in the financial system that can blow up but the real blow up is going to require flight from the dollar and the euro. Once that happens, they can’t bail out the banks, the derivatives or the sovereign bonds.In the short-term, while they can still print money, they can keep this rigged system standing.But the minute the value of both the dollar and the euro start collapsing, that’s when the game is over.Both of these currencies have increased in quantity far beyond the ability of the underlying economies to provide goods and services. When the flight comes there will be no way to stave off the instabilities that currently exist in the system…”
Read the whole story
· · · · · · ·
Ukraine’s nine-month conflict plunged further into deadly violence, as Russia-backed rebels pressed their offensive to take the city of Debaltseve and officials held a new round of cease-fire talks.
A view of the Brooklyn skyline with a seven-alarm fire in a records-storage building on North 11th Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on Saturday morning.
Joshua Bright for The New York Times
A seven-alarm fire engulfed a warehouse crammed with official documents near the waterfront in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on Saturday morning, sending plumes of brown, acrid smoke into the air that could be seen as far off as New Jersey.
By late afternoon, ten hours after the blaze erupted at 6:20 a.m., the fire was still far from out as flames burrowed through court files and hospital and social-service records, and firemen battled brutal cold and wind, Chief of Department James E. Leonard said.
“They’re extremely, extremely exposed,” he said. “The cold can be painful, it’s going to hurt you.”
No firefighters were injured, Chief Leonard said, but one neighborhood resident suffered slight smoke inhalation.
More than two hundred firefighters converged on the CitiStorage building at 5 North 11th Street near Kent Avenue, fighting the blaze from land and from fire boats.
Conditions almost could not be better for fire, or worse for firefighters, Chief Leonard said, with stiff winds feeding the flames and ice coagulating around fire hydrants and pump trucks.
Chief Leonard offered no estimate on when the fire might be out. But he added that fire crews would likely be on the scene for weeks at the building, which occupies nearly half a square block.
“This is going to smolder for quite some time,” he said.
Groups that said they had records stored in the warehouse include the state court system, the city Administration for Children’s Services, the city Health and Hospitals Corporation, and members of the Greater New York Hospital Association.
The children’s service agency said it had been in the process of removing its files from the waterfront warehouse. “We are currently working to assess the number and type of files that may have been impacted by this massive fire,” the agency said in a statement.
The city hospital agency said it kept electronic versions of patient records and added, “We do not anticipate this will affect our operations.”
A spokesman for the state courts said on Saturday that the agency had been in the process of moving its records, too.
Above the wind-whipped waterfront, slips of charred paper swirled through the air. Souvenir seekers scooped up handfuls of soggy documents strewn along the shoreline of the East River. One man picked up a scrap of paper documenting a urine sample. “Patient given specimen cup,” it read.
Firefighters were first called to a small fire at the building around 4:30 a.m. and, with the help of the building’s sprinkler system, put it out in 45 minutes, Chief Leonard said.
They were summoned back just over an hour later for a second fire already so large they could not enter the building.
It was not known if the two fires were related; the causes of both are being investigated.
The storage space, which opened in 1994, is a vestige of Williamsburg’s once-industrial waterfront, bordered to the south by parks built in tandem with glassy high-rise condominiums.
Well into the late afternoon, an oversize Fire Department boat blasted water at the fire. Firefighters perched at the ends of ladders trained hoses at the building, only to have the frigid wind turn most of the water to rainbow-colored spray.
Passers-by held scarves over their mouths to filter out the pungent smoke.
“I can’t believe it’s not out by now,” said Mark Engel, 41, a lawyer from Long Island. “It’s like 9/11, you don’t know what you’re breathing, I’m afraid to have my kids here.”
Andrew Renneisen contributed reporting.
Read the whole story
· · ·
Apparent death of kidnapped journalist follows days of back-door negotiations between Islamic State and government Shinzo Abe
Islamic State (Isis) militants have released a video purportedly showing the beheading of the Japanese journalist Kenji Goto, ending days of negotiations by diplomats to save the man.
The video, called A Message to the Government of Japan, featured a militant who looked and sounded like a man with a British accent who has taken part in other Isis. Goto, kneeling in an orange prison jumpsuit, said nothing in the roughly one-minute-long video.
Continue reading...
A video shows the beheading of a journalist, Kenji Goto, killed a week after ISIS announced the killing of another Japanese hostage.
Conflict Leaves Ukrainian Neighborhood Divided, Terrifiedby webdesk@voanews.com (Al Pessin)
People in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk districts find themselves squarely in the path of advancing Russian-backed rebels, who want to take back the territory they held at the beginning of the conflict last year. Many local residents are afraid, but others would welcome the change — even when a rebel shell lands in their neighborhood. In the Luhansk district town of Papasna, just 15 kilometers from where the Ukrainian government marks the front line, a house belonging to...
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 Brooklyn Paper |
Fire raging at warehouse on W'burg waterfront
Brooklyn Paper The fire ignited just before dawn at the CitiStorage building on Kent Avenue between N. 10th and N. 11th streets, and firefighters got the call at 6:28 am, fire officials said. Greenpoint YMCA. It quickly escalated and FDNY reps said more than 200 firefighters ... and more » |
Study of rare surnames shows rich British families stay that way for generations – and that attempts to promote social mobility have been ineffective
Attempts to improve social mobility in Britain throughout the last 150 years have failed to make any material difference, according to new research.
A study tracking 634 rare surnames, such as Pepys, Bigge and Nottidge, has shed new light on how wealth has been handed down since 1850. Researchers studied a variety of sources – including the censuses of 1841–1911, records of births, marriages, probates and baptisms, apprentice contracts, ship passenger lists and newspaper announcements – and concluded that, down the generations, the “iron law” of inheritance had consistently trumped all efforts to improve social mobility in England and Wales.
Continue reading... Sky News Australia |
Islamic State Militants Say They Killed 2nd Japanese Hostage
New York Times AMMAN, Jordan — The Islamic State claimed to have beheaded a Japanese journalist in a video released Saturday night, culminating a two-week-long drama that appears to have cost the lives of two Japanese men. The video of the killing of the journalist, ... Video purports to show body of Japanese hostage Kenji GotoIrish Times Islamic State claims it has beheaded Japanese hostage Kenji GotoTimes of India Video purportedly shows ISIS beheading of Japanese hostage: SITEMSNBC New York Daily News -CBS News -VICE News all 3,846 news articles » |
BEIRUT/TOKYO (Reuters) - Islamic State militants released a video on Saturday which purported to show the beheading of Japanese journalist Kenji Goto, who the al Qaeda offshoot had been holding hostage.
 The Journal News | LoHud.com |
Warning: Amtrak passenger had measles
The Journal News | LoHud.com A college student who rode an Amtrak train through Westchester last Sunday has the measles, prompting health officials to warn anyone who came in contact with the patient to watch for signs of the illness. The Bard College student took the No. 283 Empire ... and more » |
Two purported ISIS fighters interviewed for a news agency working in ISIS-held territory have given the same reason for the militants' retreat from the Syrian city of Kobani: the constant pummeling by coalition airstrikes.
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A newly distributed ISIS release appears to show the decapitated body of captive Japanese journalist Kenji Goto.
National Post |
ISIS admits defeat in Kobani for the first time, blaming US warplanes ...
National Post Warning: Graphic Images. BEIRUT — The Islamic State group has acknowledged for the first time that its fighters have been defeated in the Syrian town of Kobani and vowed to attack the town again. In a video released by the pro-IS Aamaq News Agency late ... Foster Families Fight Vaccine RegulationsNBCNews.com US general says Syrian town of Kobani taken from Islamic StateReuters Kerry says retaking Kobani a 'big deal'Sky News Australia Voice of America -Washington Times -The Independent all 185 news articles » |
After paying bribes and enduring long delays while pursuing resolution in Afghanistan’s government courts, a growing number of citizens turn to an informal justice system that includes tribal elders and the Taliban insurgents.
Spy Murder Probe Likely to Further Strain British-Russian Relations by webdesk@voanews.com (Henry Ridgwell)
Relations between Russia and the West are set to become even more strained amid an inquiry in London into the murder of a former Russian spy. Lawyers at the inquiry accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of directing a "mafia state." Meanwhile, Royal Air Force fighters intercepted Russian bombers close to British airspace this week, prompting authorities to summon Moscow’s ambassador. Henry Ridgwell reports.
Russia's Economic State Is A Reversal Of Fortune For Putin
NPR Russia's Economic State Is A Reversal Of Fortune For Putin. January 30, 2015 5:07 AM ET. Audio for this story from Morning Edition will be available at approximately 9:00 a.m. ET. Renee Montagne discusses the state of Russia's economy with Sergei ... |
 Reuters UK |
Opposition blogger may have 'outed' Putin's daughter
Reuters UK Putin has made his and his family's private life little less than a state secret, keeping his rarely-photographed daughters Yekaterina, 28, and Maria, 29, out of sight and managing his divorce with the minimum fuss. But opposition blogger Alexei ... |
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Putin's Dancing Daughter Said to Run Fund Backed by Dad's Allies
Bloomberg (Bloomberg) -- Russian executives close to Vladimir Putin are backing an ambitious startup incubator and science center next to Moscow State University that may prove lucrative. Given the nature of Russian business under Putin, that's not a huge surprise. |
 New York Times |
Spy vs. Nonspy in Putin's Russia
New York Times Earlier this week, F.B.I. agents in New York arrested a 39-year-old Russian man named Evgeny Buryakov, whom federal prosecutors accused of participating in a spy ring gathering economic intelligence on the United States. There were three spies in all, ... and more » |
Экс-депутат Госдумы, председатель партии "Западный выбор" Константин Боровой рассказал изданию
"ГОРДОН"
, как Путин продвигает идею мирового господства, кто будет сидеть рядом с ним на Гаагском суде и что может стать окончательным крахом для российской экономики.
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Константин Боровой в студии радио Premier (США) во время эфира программы "Политинформация", пилотный выпуск которой завершился исполнением гимна Украины.
Фото: Константин Боровой / Facebook
Фото: Константин Боровой / Facebook
Война на Донбассе каждый день уносит жизни десятков людей. Телесводки пресс-центра АТО со страшными цифрами воспринимаются уже почти привычно, по-военному – отчего становится еще страшнее. Это значит, мы привыкаем к войне. Долгой, жестокой и бессмысленной.
Только за последние две недели жертвами терактов, совершенных пророссийскими боевиками на Донбассе, стали десятки человек. Это и пассажиры автобуса "Донецк – Златоустовка", обстрелянного из "Градов" на украинском блокпосту 13 января. И пассажиры донецкого троллейбуса, в который 22 января, в утренний час-пик, целенаправленно был выпущен снаряд. И жители мариупольского микрорайона Восточный, где в результате массированного субботнего обстрела 24 января погибли больше 30 человек, 108 – ранены.
ВИДЕО
В числе тех, кто погиб в результате теракта в Мариуполе, – семья из четырех человек: супружеская пара, их дочь и внук. Видео: Радио Свобода / Youtube
Экс-депутат Госдумы, председатель партии "Западный выбор" Константин Боровой считает, что очередной акт путинской агрессии может совершиться где угодно – в акватории Черного моря или, к примеру, в странах Балтии. Путин, по его мнению, озабочен идеей передела мира, он непредсказуем и готов к новым военным конфликтам.
Константин Боровой сейчас находится в США, где в эфире русскоязычного радио Premier начал работу над проектом "Политинформация", который называет "контрпропагандой".
"США тратит сотни миллионов долларов на то, чтобы остановить войну в Украине, гибель людей, – сказал он в программе. Санкции против России, о чем говорил Барак Обама, наносят огромный ущерб экономике США. Но принципы важнее… Даже Китай, который некоторое время назад поддерживал Россию, уже занимает иную позицию. Если не остановить агрессию России, завтра она начнет отнимать часть территорий и у других стран".
Один из выпусков "Политинформации" завершился исполнением гимна Украины, за что, по словам Борового, в адрес программы пришли восторженные отклики от украинцев, живущих в США.
Нет такого преступления, на которое Путин не пошел бы ради своего личного выживания. Ведь в прошлом он – руководитель КГБ, самой циничной спецслужбы в мире.
– Константин Натанович, вы не раз говорили о том, что у Европы и США, как бы ни сочувствовали там Украине, есть много своих проблем. Мы, украинцы, тоже понимаем: то, что так остро болит у нас, в других странах отдается лишь эхом. Но события последних недель, связанные с серией терактов на Донбассе, говорят о том, что Путин с территории Украины бросает вызов Западу…
– Если в начале войны речь могла идти о коридоре к Приднестровью, который Путину нужно было бы пробить через Украину, то сегодня он озабочен куда более глобальной идеей мирового господства, переделом мира, и у него отказывают тормоза. У Путина есть две главные задачи: удержать власть и вернуть "свое". Не хотите отдавать – будет конфликт.
Ведь в Украине Путин рассчитывал на сценарий, подобный тому, что удалось разыграть в Абхазии и Южной Осетии: мол, признавать или не признавать "Крымскую народную республику" – дело ваше, и даже можете выражать свое несогласие, но это свершившийся факт.
Однако вышло иначе. Санкции нарастают, в США рассматривается предложение об отключении России от всемирной системы межбанковских коммуникаций SWIFT, что может стать настоящей катастрофой для российской экономики. Российским банкам придется вернуться к телетайпам и почтовой связи, как это было полвека назад. Решение об отключении России от SWIFT было бы очень сильным шагом…
– … после которого, видимо, пришлось бы ждать эскалации войны и новых терактов. Медведев ведь уже заявил по этому поводу, что экономическая реакция России на отключение от SWIFT, "да и вообще всякая другая реакция будет без ограничений".
– Ситуация вокруг России настолько плоха, что ее почти невозможно ухудшить. А что касается терактов… Сбитый Boeing, обстрел Мариуполя, другие трагедии – это "случайности", которые, повторяясь, становятся закономерностью.
Место падения малайзийского Boeing-777, сбитого террористами в Донецкой области 17 июля 2014-го. На борту самолета погибли 298 пассажиров. Фото: uapress.info
Да, трудно поверить в то, что ответственный глава государства может принимать решения об уничтожении такого количества людей. Но нет такого преступления, на которое не пошел бы этот циник ради своего выживания. Ведь в прошлом он – руководитель КГБ, самой циничной спецслужбы в мире и самой агрессивной. Не только он, но и его окружение понимают, что для них речь идет уже не о сохранении капиталов, а именно о личном, повторюсь, выживании.
22 января 2015-го в результате теракта на транспортной остановке в Донецке погибли 13 человек. Фото: dn.vgorode.ua
На суде в Международном военном трибунале по обе стороны от Путина будут сидеть Игорь Сечин и Сергей Иванов (Сечин – президент государственной нефтяной компании "Роснефть", приближенный к Путину, Иванов – руководитель администрации президента РФ. – "ГОРДОН"). Там же, в случае справедливого суда, окажутся и очень многие люди из команды Путина.
– В числе первых, вероятно, и министр иностранных дел Лавров, который открыто врет всему миру, что российских войск на Донбассе нет, как в очередной раз заявил он журналистам перед встречей со своим коллегами-дипломатами в Берлине. Интересно, что сказал бы он, если бы встреча глав МИД началась с демонстрации фото- и видеодоказательств его лжи?
– Все и так знают, что Лавров откровенно, нагло врет, и он знает, что об этом знают все. Но он на службе у Путина, и отступать ему некуда. Дипломаты также несут ответственность за свои действия. Кстати, в 1946-м на Нюрнбергском процессе были осуждены несколько немецких дипломатов, а Риббентропа, советника Гитлера по внешней политике, приговорили к смертной казни.
ВИДЕО
Министр иностранных дел РФ Сергей Лавров: "Покажите русские войска в Украине" (фрагмент видео с 1.15). Пресс-конференция накануне встречи глав МИД стран "нормандской четверки" в Берлине. 21 января 2015-го
– Но объясните, зачем же Путину множить количество томов для возможного судебного процесса с описанием его новых преступлений?
– Вспомните классические примеры диктаторов, которые до последнего момента отказывались от любых переговоров с оппозицией и США: Муаммар Каддафи, Саддам Хусейн, который устраивал митинги в поддержку самого себя, когда американцы уже подходили к Багдаду, кричал, что всех их уничтожит.
Сегодняшнее российское общество – это отравленное поколение
– Если представить, что Путин, осознавая тяжесть своего позора или неотвратимость наказания, вдруг застрелится завтра, имперская политика России может измениться в одночасье?
– Дело даже уже не в Путине, а в том, что делать с российским обществом после ужасной националистической, фашистской раскрутки. Это отравленное поколение и после Путина будет выбирать нового президента по образу и подобию его. И причина не в народе, а в том, чем его "травили" долгие годы.
Лечить такое общество, как показывает пример Германии, очень трудно. Ведь немцы, поддерживавшие нацистов, по существу, даже не раскаялись после Второй мировой войны. Они просто ушли из жизни. Социологические исследования 1948 года, когда принималась демократическая конституция Германии, показали, что 72% немцев готовы были снова голосовать за нацистов.
История превращения России в не демократическое государство начиналась еще в 1995-м, за пять лет до прихода Путина к власти, когда министр иностранных дел РФ Евгений Примаков впервые заговорил о построении многополярного мира, в котором Россия будет одним из его полюсов. Тогда-то и началась реализация этой программы, которая привела Россию почти к фашистской диктатуре.
ВИДЕО
Клип на песню Андрея Макаревича "Моя страна сошла с ума". Видео: Sergii Omelchuk / Facebook
Путин – это естественный финал постепенного перехода страны к националистическому, авторитарному государству. По аналогии с Германией 1933-го, когда к власти пришел Гитлер, в России год от года увеличивался военный бюджет. Так реализовывалась задача укрепления внутренней власти за счет расширения жизненного пространства. Теперь обиженная после распада СССР нация возвращает "свое".
– Америка, которой Путин отводит роль главного политического противника и виновника всех российских бед, а также Запад, кажется, все еще надеются, что Путин остановится сам. Но для украинцев и думающих россиян, лучше иностранцев понимающих его менталитет, уже очевидно, что Путин с его упрямством, амбициями и, видимо, нездоровой психикой, будет продолжать войну – без оглядки на санкции, угрозу отключения от системы SWIFT и международную изоляцию России…
– Ясно, что Евросоюз войны не хочет. К тому же меняется ситуация внутри стран ЕС. Во Франции на выборах победила ультраправая партия "Национальный фронт", лидер которой, Марин Ле Пен, получила от России кредит на 9 миллионов евро. В Греции, не без помощи России, пришли к власти радикалы, причем и левые, и правые – это пророссийские партии. Видимо, работа по расколу ЕС Россией ведется очень активно и не бесплатно.
– ОБСЕ намерена поставить вопрос о проведении международной миротворческой операции на Донбассе. Если такое решение будет принято, как это может изменить ситуацию в Украине?
– Я считаю, это было бы верное решение. ОБСЕ предложила России закрыть границу с Украиной, хотя в закрытии границы участие России и не обязательно. Но в этом случае неизбежен военный конфликт с российскими вооруженными частями, которые к этому моменту не успеют выйти с территории Украины.
Путин непредсказуем. К тому же он ищет повод для конфликта и очень агрессивно наступает. Его нужно останавливать только силой
Думаю, европейцы сделают все возможное, чтобы обошлось без крови. Военные специалисты говорят о том, что в распоряжении американцев и европейцев есть самое современное вооружение, которое позволяет остановить агрессора с помощью нескольких высокоточных выстрелов, что, конечно, грозит человеческими потерями и новой агрессией со стороны России.
Именно опасность развития конфликта и останавливает Запад и США. У России нет подобных вооружений, но ответ Путина может быть самым неожиданным. Удар по кораблям, находящимся в Черном море, к примеру, или по союзникам в странах Балтии. Путин непредсказуем. К тому же он ищет повод для конфликта и очень агрессивно наступает. Его нужно останавливать только силой. Но для того чтобы проявить силу, нужна воля, а этого нет.
Порошенко проявляет выдержку, что тоже хорошо. Но оправданием этому может быть только невозможность ответных действий. Если же возможность существует и не используется, – это признак беспечности, я бы сказал.
– Порошенко направил Путину открытое письмо с требованием об освобождении всех заложников, включая Надежду Савченко. Но глава российской делегации в Парламентской ассамблее Совета Европы Пушков заявил о том, что Надежду не только не отпустят, но и не допустят к ней делегацию ПАСЕ. Отказ якобы связан с тем, что Россию до апреля 2015 года лишили права голоса и участия в руководящих органах Ассамблеи. Хотя Савченко была похищена и вывезена в Россию еще в июле. Она уже больше 45 дней продолжает голодовку в московском СИЗО, что грозит ей гибелью. Как вы считаете, удастся все же добиться ее освобождения?
– Порошенко – именно тот человек, кто будет судить Путина или, по крайне мере, свидетельствовать против него в Гаагском суде. Путин должен это учитывать, поэтому, надеюсь, к Порошенко он все же прислушается.
ВИДЕО
Российское правительство по-прежнему тщательно скрывает от родственников военнослужащих, что они воюют в Украине. Правду родные узнают только тогда, когда из Украины в Россию приходит "груз-200". Видео: Телеканал "Дождь" / Youtube
– Путин уже проявил невиданное "благородство", предложив украинским призывникам пересидеть в России период мобилизации…
– Ну, что ж, это информационная война. Думаю, в ответ Порошенко должен обратиться к матерям российских военнослужащих и объяснить, что выполнение преступных приказов – это тоже преступление, за которое предусмотрено наказание. Хотя, что может быть еще большим наказанием, чем смерть? Российские военнослужащие не защищены никакими законами. Россия превратила их в террористов, которых можно даже в плен не брать, а просто уничтожать на месте, что украинская армия и делает, защищая свою страну.
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Lucas Jackson/ReutersMembers of the public react as they walk past a New York Police Department Hercules team on patrol near Penn Station in New York August 24, 2011
NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton intends to create a new unit of police officers specially trained to use heavy weaponry. They'll be equipped with "extra heavy protective gear, with the long rifles and machine guns," he said during a Thursday press conference.
As a critic of militarized police forces, I must acknowledge that New York City and Washington, D.C., by virtue of their status as prime terrorist targets, can justify counterterrorism training and weaponry that would be absurd elsewhere, which isn't to say that this heavily armed, 350-person squad is a no-brainer. It isn't as if such a unit would've stopped the attacks in Boston or 9/11 or Oklahoma City—or the terrorist attack in Paris, or the ones some years ago in Madrid or London.
Lucas Jackson/ReutersNew York Police Department Organized Crime Control Bureau officers prepare for urban assault training at a facility in New York August 4, 2011.
The benefit to such a squad is its ability to respond to an attack like the ones in Mumbai or Nairobi, where heavily armed gunmen seize a building with many hostages. The cost is the danger that the militarized unit will be turned on U.S. citizens.
Alas, that worst-case scenario seems to be Bratton's plan. The unit, dubbed a Strategic Response Group, is "designed for dealing with events like our recent protests, or incidents like Mumbai or what just happened in Paris,” Bratton declared, giving no sign of recognizing that one of those things is unlike the others.
Lucas Jackson/ReutersNew York Police Department Emergency Service Unit officers practice urban assault tactics during a training session in New York August 4, 2011.
The NYPD has a history of violently suppressing protests.
An investigation undertaken by law clinics at NYU, Fordham, Harvard, and Stanford concluded, after eight months of study, that the NYPD abused Occupy Wall Street protesters and violated their rights on numerous occasions during the 2011 protests that radiated out from Zuccotti Park. Their report is titled "Suppressing Protest: Human Rights Violations in the U.S. Response to Occupy Wall Street."
In a 2012 article, I noted 14 specific allegations of abuse.
Lucas Jackson/ReutersA New York Police Department officer with a heavily armed Transit Operation Response Canine Heavy weapons unit stands at an entrance to the subway system in New York August 5, 2011.
Last year, the New York Civil Liberties Union declared victory in its lengthy attempt to seek redress for some of the NYPD abuses perpetrated during protests in 2004: "New York City has agreed to pay nearly $18 million for the arrest, detention and fingerprinting of hundreds of protesters, journalists, legal observers and bystanders during the 2004 Republican National Convention – the largest protest settlement in history. The NYCLU filed the first cases following the Convention and has been central to the legal challenge to the NYPD’s actions."
When the unit trained to fight terrorists with heavy weapons is sent to face unarmed New Yorkers exercising their right to free assembly, hopefully they'll wield their machine guns more responsibly than Anthony Balonga did his pepper spray:
Under a plan created by chief of department James O’Neill, the NYPD will cut the number of officers assigned to specialty roles, and increase the number of officers on patrol in local precincts. “We’ll assign them to steady sectors," Bratton said. "Having more patrol officers and sector cars lessens the tyranny of the radio and allows time for new, creative types of police work.”
...this pilot program is similar to one he began rolling out when he was an officer working in Boston in the 1970s. It was so successful in his precinct, he was promoted within the Boston department to expand the program citywide. It never happened though, because Boston ended up laying off officers before Bratton’s plan could be implemented. Bratton also said there is a similar program used in the Los Angeles Police Department, which he led for seven years in the 2000s. “For years we’ve been asking our officers to engage in the community, but we’ve never given them time to do it, or the training,” Bratton said.
Under the new plan, officers will be able to more easily follow up on past crimes, meet with community members, and build relationships with local residents. “Cops will know their sectors and the citizens will know them. They’ll know the problem areas and the problem people. I truly believe when cops embrace their neighborhoods, their neighborhoods will embrace them back,” Bratton said.
If residents in those same neighborhoods take to the streets in civic protest, perhaps they'd be better policed by those same officers rather than heavily armed strangers.
This article originally appeared at The Atlantic. Check out The Atlantic's Facebook, newsletters and feeds. Copyright 2015. Follow The Atlantic on Twitter.
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