#4
The movie was Ride the Wild Surf. I watched it in my local theater when it first came out in 1964 and it was a part of my inspiration, along with The Endless Summer and the Beach Boys, to become a surfer. Maybe you could say I was easily influenced but it sure looked like surfing was a lot of fun and, when I tried it, I found out that it really was. It helped that I lived in San Diego and was able to cajole my parents and my friends were able to cajole their parents to take us to the beach. The movie also starred such luminaries of the time as Fabian, Jody Wallis, Brie Matthews, Peter Brown, Chase Colton, Augie Poole, Tab Hunter and James Mitchum. Yes, James Mitchum was Robert Mitchum's son.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
02/22/2023 12:40 Comments ||
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#6
Yeah, between movies like these and the surfer/drag music of the day made it a slam dunk for selecting San Diego for Boot Camp. What a fish this Michigan boy was….. got there; no bikinis, palm trees, bikinis, Little Deuce Coupes, bikinis, Dead Man Curve…..Still better than the Army
[ShabelleMedia] Somali security forces managed to finalise an al-Shabaab ...... an Islamic infestation centering on Somalia attempting to metastasize into Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and similar places, all of which have enough problems without them... siege at a house in the capital, Mogadishu on Tuesday.
The ministry of information has announced the end of the hours-long operation to regain control of the beachfront house in Abdulaziz District.
It added at least 10 people were killed and 7 maimed in the al-Shabaab attack that started with a suicide kaboom at the gate of the house accommodating maimed Macwisley fighters.
Four button men who fought off security forces the police inside the house were rubbed out, ending one of the major attacks in the capital since the beginning of 2023.
The al-Qaeda affiliated group claimed it killed dozens of soldiers in the house attack, a claim that the government has denied.
The ministry of information said four soldiers sustained wounds during the operation that began in the afternoon and ended in the evening.
The deputy speaker of the Senate Ali Sha’ban who was in the house at the time of the attack was evacuated by the police to a safer location.
Al-Shabaab targeted Macwisley fighters for their role in the Hiran battle which dealt a big blow to the gunnies since last year.
Al-Shabaab ...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... forces of Evil have been targeting military centers and highly populated regions in the country, but the military has been responding by waging sophisticated operations. The operations, the government says, have leftover 700 forces of Evil dead and thousands injured, in what analysts have termed a "huge success".
The number of casualties still remains scanty but the forces of Evil may have suffered massive losses according to witnesses. The al-Shabaab extortionists usually claim victory in such attacks even in the instances where it is clear that they have lost on the battlefield across the country.
Earlier today, Major Mohammed Dahir Abdulle, a senior Somali Police officer survived a landmine explosion on the road in Hodan District, Mogadishu, witnesses said. The forces of Evil also are notorious for targeting senior government officials in their cowardly attacks along with innocent civilians.
[AlAhram] Suspected jihadists killed at least 15 soldiers in troubled northern Burkina Faso ...The country in west Africa that they put where Upper Volta used to be. Its capital is Oogadooga, or something like that. Its president is currently Blaise Compaoré, who took office in 1987 and will leave office feet first, one way or the other... , just three days after an ambush that claimed the lives of 51 troops, security sources said Tuesday.
A unit in Tin-Akoff in Oudalan province near the border with Mali "came under violent mostly peaceful attack" on Monday evening, a source said, giving a toll of "about 15 dead" with others still missing.
The army mounted a counter-attack with air support, "neutralising... dozens of terrorists," the source added.
A second source in the security forces confirmed the assault and put the toll at 19 soldiers dead and "dozens of missing."
The bloodshed came as the Sahel nation reeled from a bushwhack last Friday near Deou, also in Oudalan province.
Fifty-one soldiers died and 160 jihadists were killed in that action and the aftermath, according to army figures.
Jihadist turbans in Mali began launching cross-border incursions on the landlocked Sahel state more than seven years ago.
Since then, than 10,000 civilians, police and troops have died, according to NGO estimates, and more than two million people have fled their homes.
Around 40 percent of the nation's territory lies outside the government's control.
Anger within the military at failures to turn the tide sparked two coups last year.
Hours before news broke of the latest attack, political parties and civil groups displayed their support for the ruling junta.
"In these difficult times, I urge the Burkinabe people to cultivate a spirit of national unity and support the transitional authorities in their resolve to restore our territorial integrity," said Zephirin Diabre of the Union for Progress and Change (UPC).
Junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traore acknowledged the fight against jihadism was "strewn with pitfalls" but said the authorities remained "determined" to triumph.
Friday's attack was the deadliest among the security forces since Traore, 34, took power in late September, vowing to recover territory captured by the jihadists.
But attacks have escalated sharply in recent weeks -- since the start of the year, more than 200 people have died, according to an AFP toll.
Political commentator Harouna Traore asked why the armed forces seemed to be so vulnerable.
"Why are patrols being carried out without aerial surveillance? Today, we have drones, reconnaissance aircraft, which should mean we no longer run into ambushes," he said.
Burkina Faso's junta, like its counterpart in Mali, has fallen out with La Belle France, the country's traditional ally.
La Belle France is pulling out its troops -- a special forces unit of around 400 men based near the capital Ouagadougou.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[KavkazUzel] The defense of Ibragim Khachukaev, a native of Chechnya, accused of justifying terrorism, sought to mitigate the preventive measure and challenge the judge, but the Supreme Court of Chechnya upheld the decision to extend Khachukaev's arrest and found no grounds for challenging the judge.
The lawyer of a resident of Chechnya accused of justifying terrorism, Ibragima Khachukaeva, announced gross violations in the criminal case and in the consideration of the investigation's petition to select a preventive measure for the defendant, Kavkaz.Realii reported today.
In the complaint, the lawyer Umar Chapanov pointed out that in the additional materials provided by the prosecutor's office "there is no information about Khachukaev's involvement in illegal acts in 2020 on the territory of the Chechen Republic." The detention protocol states that the accused was caught after committing the crime, although Khachukaev is charged with an Internet publication posted in April 2020, that is, almost three years before the initiation of a criminal case and detention, the publication states.
As follows from the decision of the Supreme Court of Chechnya, Khachukaev's defense also pointed out that the judge violated the principle of legal proceedings - the interpreter appointed by the court did not fully know the Chechen language and the lawyer had to perform the duties of an interpreter. According to the defense, the judge who considers the case in the court of first instance is interested in the outcome of the case and violates the principle of adversarial parties.
However, the Supreme Court of Cheney indicated that there were no legal grounds for disqualifying the judge, including in connection with non-procedural communication during the judge’s break with the prosecutor who participated in the consideration of the investigator’s petition for a preventive measure in the form of detention. At the same time, Khachukaev was previously convicted - in 2021 he was sentenced to a year in prison for hitting a policeman.
The lawyer also asked to change the measure of restraint for his client to house arrest, since he does not intend to hide from the investigating authorities. However, the court upheld the decision of the Staropromyslovsky District Court dated January 27, 2023 on the arrest of Khachukaev, according to the decision posted on the website of the court.
The "Caucasian Knot" wrote that according to the Prosecutor General's Office for January-October 2022, most terrorist crimes were registered in Dagestan and Moscow. Chechnya and Ingushetia took the third and fourth places in the ranking.
Accused of serious crimes in Chechnya and the Kuban are often people who were previously placed under arrest on administrative cases. After a series of arrests, following continuously one after another, the security forces initiate cases under "terrorist" articles, Novaya Gazeta Europe stated, after analyzing the data of the courts.
Gunmen attacked a police post in #Pakistan’s insurgency-hit southwestern #Baluchistan province on Tuesday, triggering a shootout that killed two officers, police said, the latest sign of increasing violence in the country. pic.twitter.com/YlmIeIGY9F
[Dawn] Two Levies personnel were martyred after their checkpost came under attack in the Babri area of Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... ’s Mastung district on Monday night, an official said on Tuesday.
Talking to Dawn.com, Assistant Commissioner Mastung Barkat Baloch said a group of armed bully boyz attacked a checkpost located along the Quetta-Taftan highway, causing the martyrdom of two personnel who were identified as Manzoor Ahmed and Muhammad Aslam.
He said the bodies of the martyred personnel had been moved to a hospital.
The deputy commissioner said the law enforcement personnel had launched a search operation in the area to nab the attackers.
Balochistan’s apex committee — comprising top civil and military officials of the province — had earlier this month decided to increase the role of Levies Force in maintaining law and order a day after twin attacks in the province’s capital injured seven people.
The committee had also decided to empower police and Levies force to act against bully boyz and their controllers.
[SHAFAQ] The Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani, will personally supervise the investigation into the "Jayayla massacre", politician Raad al-Dahlaki said on Tuesday.
"We met with Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani to shed light on the circumstances of the Jayayla massacre. I held a phone call with some of the deaders' relatives and the Sheikhs of al-Azza tribes to inform al-Sudani about all the facts," al-Dahlaki said in a statement.
Al-Dahlaki said that the premier pledged to keep tabs on the investigation by himself and form a committee to assess the performance of the security commanders in the governorate.
"A local combat force will be formed to secure the village," he added.
Yesterday, a group of armed persons attacked the village of Jayayla, 18 kilometers northeast of Baqubah, and killed at least seven persons. The massacre comes in retaliation for a recent attack that targeted civilians in their farm on the outskirts of the Bu Bali village.
Forces from the army and police were deployed in the territory between the two villages to deter possible retaliatory attacks.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/22/2023 00:00 ||
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[IsraelTimes] Troops clash with button men in Jenin during nightly arrest operations; nearly a dozen firearms seized across West Bank
Israeli troops raided three workshops in the West Bank early Tuesday morning that the army said were used to manufacture firearms, during overnight operations that saw 11 Paleostinians detained and 11 firearms seized.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, troops entered the village of Urif near the West Bank city of Nablus to detain two wanted Paleostinians who were suspected of involvement in terror activities.
During the raid, the IDF said troops found and confiscated three gunsmithing lathes, a makeshift "Carlo" submachine gun, an M16 assault rifle, dozens of weapon parts and ammunition, and a car.
For the past year, the IDF has been conducting near-nightly raids during an anti-terror offensive in the West Bank following a series of Paleostinian terror attacks that killed 31 people in 2022, and another 11 since the beginning of the year.
The military said troops also clashed with Paleostinian button men in the West Bank city of Jenin overnight. Two wanted Paleostinians were detained, and the troops seized four M16 rifles and two handguns, the IDF said.
In several Paleostinian villages in the Bethlehem area, the military said troops detained three wanted Paleostinians and seized an M16 rifle, two handguns, and ammunition.
A wanted man was also detained in the town of Bir Nabala, just north of Jerusalem, and another two men were arrested in the Aqabat Jabr refugee camp, adjacent to Jericho, the IDF said.
The 11 wanted Paleostinians were handed over to the Shin Bet for further questioning.
No Israeli soldiers were reported hurt during the raids.
[IsraelTimes] Bassem Saadi, leader of terror organization in West Bank, confesses to some charges in plea deal; also given suspended sentence; no immediate comment from Gazoo-based group
A military court sentenced a senior Paleostinian Islamic Jihad ...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah... member to 22 months in prison Tuesday over his activities in the terror group.
Continued on Page 49
[NPASyria] On Tuesday, an IED went kaboom! in a civil car near a military post of the Syrian government forces in al-Matar neighborhood in the city of Daraa, southern Syria.
A local source told North Press that the earth-shattering kaboom caused the car’s owner to sustain critical injuries and was transferred to al-Rahma Hospital that is situated near the earth-shattering kaboom scene.
Al-Matar neighborhood is one of the government security square’s neighborhoods in Daraa where several military posts of the government military security branch are deployed.
Last week, Daraa and its countryside witnessed different attacks launched by unknown gunnies, resulting in the killing of four individuals in different areas.
On Feb. 17, a government soldier was killed by unknown attackers in the city of al-Sanamayn in the northern countryside of Daraa.
Since the government forces re-captured Daraa in 2018, the governorate has been in a state of insecurity, as daily liquidations target government soldiers, officials and officers. Thefts have surged, too.
In July 2018, opposition factions and Syrian government forces reached an agreement, mediated by Russia, for the opposition-held areas of Daraa.
According to the deal, opposition bandidosDeath Eaters who agreed to hand over heavy weapons, were handed special cards to protect them from prosecution, and allowed to stay in Daraa. Those opposed to the agreement were forced to leave for Idlib, which is under the control of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, formerly al-Nusra, before that it was called something else ...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State... (HTS — formerly al-Nusra ...formally Jabhat an-Nusrah li-Ahli al-Sham (Support Front for the People of the Levant), also known as al-Qaeda in the Levant. They aim to establish a pan-Arab caliphate. Not the same one as the Islamic State, though .. ... Front).
[NPASyria] On Tuesday, Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced the arrest of two Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS) murderous Moslems in two different security operations in Raqqa and its countryside, northern Syria.
The SDF Media Center said that with the support of the US-led Global Coalition and after precise monitoring and tracking, counter-terrorism units managed to arrest two "ISIS terrorists" in Raqqa city and al-Salhabia village, west of Raqqa.
The statement added that the two arrestees were "collaborating with the terrorist cells of ISIS by providing intelligence and coordinates to facilitate terrorist acts."
On Feb. 18, the SDF announced the killing of two leaders of ISIS, and the wounding of four soldiers of the US-led Global Coalition and a dog in two security operations in the countryside of Deir ez-Zor, eastern Syria.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
02/22/2023 02:30 ||
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[NPASyria] On Monday, Jaish al-Sharqiya (Army of Lions) bully boys, a faction of the Syrian National Army (SNA) affiliated with The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire... , cut down 300 olive trees in the town of Jindires in Afrin countryside, northwestern Syria, to set up tents for settlers and its members.
An exclusive source told North Press that the faction cut down trees to establish a settlement and set up tents for settlers and its members in the village of Sindiyanke.
On Feb. 13, members of the Jaish al-Sharqiya and other SNA factions chopped trees in Kafira village in Jindires town to sell as firewood to homeless people affected by the earthquake, exploiting the needs of the earthquake-affected people, according to the source.
Jindires, in the Afrin region, is among the worst earthquake-affected areas in Syria, with 513 dead and 831 injured. Over 200 buildings have completely collapsed and around 500 have been partially damaged.
Afrin, including Jindires, has been under the occupation of the Ottoman Turkish forces and the SNA factions since March 2018 following the so-called "Olive Branch" military operation against to push away the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) under the pretext of protecting "Ottoman Turkish national security."
The operation caused the displacement of about 300.000 of the original inhabitants of the Kurds of Afrin who have been taking shelter in 42 villages and five camps in Aleppo northern countryside, locally known as Shahba region, since then.
After the occupation of Afrin, thousands of olive trees have been cut down by the SNA factions, according to press and human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. reports.
[NPASyria] A leader of a Turkish-backed faction in a village in Afrin, northwest Syria, stole on Monday 29 tents meant to be delivered to people affected by the Feb. 6 earthquake that hit the town of Jindires west of Afrin, a local source said.
The source told North Press that Ibrahim al-Qadi, leader of Sultan Muhammad al-Fateh, a faction of the Turkish-backed Syrian opposition factions, also known as the Syrian National Army (SNA), in the village of Termisha in Shiekh Hadid district stole 29 tents and all relief aid and emergency kits attached to them that are meant to be delivered to IDPs in Jindires that are affected by the earthquake.
At dawn on Feb. 6, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit south and central Turkey and northwest Syria, leaving more than 44.000 dead and much more injured, in addition to flattening an uncounted number of buildings in both countries.
Jindires is the most affected area in Syria by the earthquake, as 513 individuals were killed and 831 others were injured, in addition to the destruction of 200 buildings and the partial damages to over 500 others.
The source added that al-Qadi sold each tent for between 200 and 300 USD without the supplements and relief aid.
On Feb. 8, dozens of residents in Afrin attacked the relief office of the city’s local council, affiliated with the Syrian opposition, after refusing to provide aid for those affected by the earthquake.
Afrin has been under the control of Turkey and its affiliated SNA factions since March 2018.
[NPASyria] On Monday, button men affiliated with the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS) attacked the house of an oil well investor in the northern countryside of Deir ez-Zor Governorate, eastern Syria.
A local source close to the targeted person in the town of al-Suwar, 70 km north of Deir ez-Zor, said that ISIS holy warriors targeted the house of Ahmad al-Zaher, an investor in the oil wells in the village of Daman in the al-Suwar town, with machine guns.
The source added that al-Zaher received messages two days ago via WhatsApp in which people speaking on behalf of the ISIS giving him 24 hours to pay $10.000 as zakat (Royalties).
He also received another message, after yesterday’s attack, in which the ISIS members confirmed that this attack was merely an alert and warning, according to the source.
The majority of traders and investors in oil wells are forced to pay royalties to ISIS for fear of being killed under the constant threats, while others resort to moving outside the region for fear of ISIS’ tyranny.
On Feb. 2, ISIS sleeper cells burned an oil well, for one of the oil wells’ investors, for refusing to pay the zakat near the town of al-Suwar.
Recently, ISIS sleeper cells have intensified their actions in Deir ez-Zor countryside despite security operations carried out by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
[NPASyria] On Monday, a child lost his life and another was maimed when a landmine, likely a remnant of Islamic State (ISIS), went kaboom! in the east of Deir ez-Zor, eastern Syria.
A local source from the town of al-Dweir, 70 kilometers east of Deir ez-Zor, said the 15-year-old Yasin al-Hamad lost his life and the 13-year-old Muhammad al-Hussein was injured in a landmine explosion left by ISIS on the outskirts of al-Dweir desert.
The source added that al-Hussein was transferred to a hospital in the capital Damascus for treatment as he urgently needs to be subjected to a surgery in the chest due to pieces of shrapnel in his body, according to a doctor at the hospital.
On Feb. 18, two forces of Evil of the Iranian-backed Liwa Fatemiyoun were killed when a landmine went kaboom!, likely a remnant of the ISIS, in al-Quriyah desert in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor.
Since 2017, the Syrian government forces have been combing the desert in response to ISIS increasing practices that have caused the forces massive human and material losses.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
02/22/2023 02:30 ||
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[An Nahar] An Iranian court on Tuesday sentenced to death on terror charges an Iranian-German national who supporters say was kidnapped in the Gulf and forcibly returned to Iran ...They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... for a show trial.
The Tehran Revolutionary Court convicted Jamshid Sharmahd in connection with the deadly bombing of a mosque in 2008, the judiciary's Mizan Online news agency reported.
Iranian authorities announced in August 2020 that Sharmahd, 67, who is also a German national and a U.S. resident, was arrested in what they described as a "complex operation" without specifying how, where or when he was seized.
His family say that he was kidnapped by the Iranian security services while in transit in Dubai and then brought under duress to Iran.
"They kidnapped Jamshid Sharmahd and now they've sentenced him to death after a sham trial," said the head of the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) group Mahmood Amiry Moghaddam.
"Basically the Islamic republic is threatening to kill a hostage," he added.
German opposition MP and foreign affairs committee member Norbert Roettgen tweeted that "he was kidnapped by the regime in Iran and now sentenced to death also to put pressure on Germany".
"The government must now make it unmistakably clear that they do not accept this arbitrary judgement and are fighting for the life," he wrote on Twitter.
- 'SCAPEGOATING MY DAD' -
Sharmahd is accused by Iran of leading the Tondar group which aims to topple the Islamic republic and is outlawed as a terrorist organization by Iran.
Mizan said Sharmahd planned to commit 23 "terrorist" acts, of which he succeeded in five, including the bombing of a mosque in the southern city of Shiraz on April 12, 2008, which killed 14 people and maimed 300 others.
Prosecutors had also accused Sharmahd of having established contact with "FBI ...Formerly one of the world's premier criminal investigation organizations, something for a nation to be proud of. Now it's a political arm of the Deep State oligarchy that is willing to trump up charges, suppress evidence, or take out insurance policies come election time... and CIA officers" and of having "attempted to contact Israeli Mossad agents."
[IsraelTimes] Austrian foreign ministry summons Iranian envoy to lodge unequivocal protest; two other Austrian nationals among at least 17 Western passport-holders being detained
An Austrian has been sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in jail in Iran ...Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979... for spying, Vienna said Tuesday, adding it had summoned the Iranian ambassador.
The foreign ministry had announced the man’s detention in October and said it is in regular contact with his family.
"He was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for alleged espionage, with two years of probation being waived in the case of good behavior," the ministry said.
It found out about the verdict on Monday and summoned the Iranian ambassador on Tuesday to express "our unequivocal protest."
It added the Austrian ambassador in Iran was able to meet the man during three prison visits since his detention.
"We will continue to exhaust all possibilities to give him and all other imprisoned Austrian citizens all over the world the best possible consular support," the ministry said.
At least 17 Western passport-holders are detained in Iran, most of them dual nationals, including two Iranian-Austrians.
Tehran insists all have been subject to a proper judicial process.
Rights groups and supporters however say they are innocent, and that they are being held as part of a policy of hostage-taking to extract concessions from foreign governments.
Activists fear there may be more cases yet to be confirmed.
An Iranian court on Tuesday sentenced to death an Iranian-German national who supporters say was kidnapped abroad and forcibly returned to Iran for a show trial.
I’m sure we are all shocked to discover that jihadis act like rapacious bandits instead of pure-minded saints.
[NPASyria] Mulhem Jamil, 41, a pseudonym for a resident of the city of Idlib, was forced to cancel a project he had prepared with a group of volunteers, which included erecting 150 tents for those affected by the earthquake.
At dawn on Feb. 6, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Syria and The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire... , killing more than 44.000 and injuring many more, in addition to destroying thousands of buildings.
"Our project was to build 150 shelter tents for earthquake victims in the countryside of the town of Atarib, which was severely damaged by the earthquake," Jamil told North Press. "But the unbelievable high prices of the tents, not to mention their unavailability in the market, prevented that."
The project had to be scaled down to 50 tents, and was later canceled. Inquiring about the reason for the tents’ high prices, it became clear to Jamil that the Development Office of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, formerly al-Nusra, before that it was called something else ...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State... (HTS, formerly al-Nusra ...formally Jabhat an-Nusrah li-Ahli al-Sham (Support Front for the People of the Levant), also known as al-Qaeda in the Levant. They aim to establish a pan-Arab caliphate. Not the same one as the Islamic State, though .. ... Front) itself was offering the tents for rent or sale at a price of $250 per a small tent and $1.800 for large ones.
HTS has also seized donated tents and stocked them in its warehouses to sell them later to local and international organizations, Jamil added.
The Development Office moved the quake victims’ shelters from the city of Idlib and some of its towns to the old camps designated for those displaced by war, with the aim of seizing financial and relief aid sent to the earthquake victims.
An exclusive source from the Development Office told North Press that HTS aims to add earthquake victims to the aid program targeting IDPs in the camps in order to seize hundreds of thousands of dollars and tens of tons of relief aid provided to quake-victims and store them in their warehouses.
The earthquake has become a great opportunity for merchants in Idlib to monopolize goods, taking advantage of the scarcity of some materials and the increased demand by both residents and organizations.
Prices have increased threefold compared to the pre-earthquake period, according to residents and local charities workers.
The price for blankets, mattresses, and tents to shelter earthquake-affected people, not to mention foodstuffs, were increased not despite but because of the urgent need for them.
EXPLOITING NEEDY PEOPLE
The HTS-linked Salvation Government has not only shirked its responsibility for not controlling the market by curbing monopolies and price gauging. According to press reports, the authority is itself involved in monopolizing relief supplies, most notably tents that are sold to organizations at high prices.
Hasnaa al-Ali, 32, a pseudonym for a woman from the Jindires district affected by the earthquake, currently resides in the Atme area, north of Idlib. She expresses her frustration at being unable to buy what her family needs. The family has lost everything.
"We need beddings for our children, but a single mattress is sold at $40 and a blanket at $15, knowing that both of them cost less than $20 before the earthquake," al-Ali added.
"Even the food baskets that we were supposed to get are now sold in the [Ottoman Turkish-backed] National Army souks in Afrin and in its outskirts at $70 per basket," al-Ali said.
Most of the international and local aid reached the region but not those most affected by the earthquake, according to al-Ali.
The majority of it is stored in HTS warehouses and those of the Ottoman Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), she said.
DEVASTATED AREAS TURN INTO MARKETS
Fadi Haj Ali, 50, an employee in the Development Office and responsible for overseeing the shelters, said that "the number of earthquake-affected people is rising with frequent aftershocks causing cracks in buildings in addition to thousands of Syrians returning to Idlib and its countryside."
Haj Ali justified the high prices of tents and relief equipment because of "the ability of NGOs to buy large amounts from markets, making it unable for locals and small merchants to purchase."
"Most aid reaches HTS’ Development warehouses in large numbers, but the distribution mechanism is exclusive to certain people among the HTS," he said.
This has infuriated many locals. Only 400 tents out of 2.200 stored in Development warehouses were distributed to affected people in the last days.
Devastated areas in Jindires, Idlib, and its countryside have transformed into big markets for tents and food parcels, which are traded by supervisors and executives of the HTS and SNA, says Haj Ali.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
...... an Islamic infestation centering on Somalia attempting to metastasize into Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and similar places, all of which have enough problems without them...
...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State...
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling 
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling 
...They hate 
...Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979...
...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State...
