Recent Appearances...

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Recent Appearances...

Olde Tyme Religion

Niqab ban at Zakho university exams sparks debate

2024-05-14

[Rudaw] Two female students at the faculty of Islamic studies in the University of Zakho

…Zakho is in Duhok province…

said on Sunday that they were barred from writing final exams because they wear the niqab, a traditional Islamic veil that completely covers the face and body. The university administration said that all students must be identified in order to prevent cheating.

The incident has sparked debate on social media about security and identification concerns versus religious freedom.

One of the students said they had been informed in advance that they would not be able to cover their faces during exams. "We complained, but no one listened to us. And today we attended wearing a niqab and the examinations committee told us we should not present ourselves like this," she told Rudaw’s Gharib Majid.

The student said they were first told that they could write their exams in a separate hall, monitored by female invigilators with no men present, which they would agree to, however that was later changed.

Another student said that this was her second year wearing a niqab to university and no one had obstructed her from writing exams before.

About five students refused to remove their niqabs and enter the exam hall, according to the students.

The University of Zakho said that they required all students to be identified in order to prevent cheating.

"Due to many unexpected situations, such as cheating issues and some other problems, students had been warned earlier that they should remove their niqabs for the exams, but they did not listen to this," read a statement from the university on Facebook, following an outcry on social media over the news.

"The students were told that a female inspector would examine them before entering the examination hall, but some of them refused," it added.

The niqab is a traditional article of clothing worn by some female Moslems around the world. What separates a niqab from the hijab is the face cover. A niqab must be loose fitting, be a muted color, and show only the eyes of the person.

Many countries have wrestled with regulating Islamic dress such as the niqab. Some European nations have imposed partial or full bans on face coverings, citing security, women’s rights, and secular traditions. Opponents of the bans argue they violate women’s human rights
...which are usually open to widely divergent definitions...
, could lead to the marginalization of women who chose to wear the coverings, and criticize laws that dictate what a woman can wear.

Link

Iraq

Turkey launches fresh airstrikes in Iraq as Erdogan renews threats for offensive

2024-05-07

[al-Monitor] ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
launched new ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s against the positions of Kurdish turbans in northern Iraq, the Ottoman Turkish Defense Ministry said on Monday, as Ankara ramps up its threats of a fresh military operation in the region.

The Ottoman Turkish Defense Ministry said 16 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) were killed in the strikes conducted in the northern Iraqi regions of Hakurk, Metina and Gara.

Headquartered in Iraqi Kurdistan, the PKK has been fighting for Kurdish self-rule inside Turkey since 1984 and is considered a terror organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
A video shared on the ministry’s X account showed an F-16 fighter jet taking off from an unspecified airbase then hitting several targets in the region.

Turkey’s counterterrorism operations are "continuing at an increasing pace," Defense Minister Yasar Guler said in an address to the Ottoman Turkish army’s top brass on Monday.

The fresh strikes came as Ankara renewed its threats of a large-scale military offensive in the region. "It is not possible for us to feel safe as long as the PKK finds a breathing space in Iraq and Syria," Ottoman Turkish President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First

His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First

...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In ~~Xanadu~~ Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential ~~Pleasure Dome~~ Palace decree. It has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
said later on Monday in a televised speech after a cabinet meeting in Ankara. "We will deliver the final blow to the separatist organization, whose maneuver room is shrinking."

Turkey also accuses the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the main ally of the US-led anti ISIS coalition in Syria, of having ties with the PKK.

Guler also issued a similar warning last week when he criticized an Iraqi Kurdish political party, as well as Iran, for what he described as their lack of action against the Kurdish hard boys.

He said the PKK "moves, operates and trains its fighters freely" in the northern Iraqi province of Sulaimaniyah, which borders Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
and is under the control of the Kurdish Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

He added that the PKK turbans were forced to retreat toward the southern parts of Iraqi Kurdistan by Ottoman Turkish military operations in the region, but that the Iraqi side was failing to take any action to counter them. "Thus, we have to do whatever is necessary, and we will do it," Guler said during a televised interview.

Turkey, which maintains more than a hundred military outposts in northern Iraq, accuses the PUK — one of the two dominant political parties in Iraqi Kurdistan — of cooperating with the PKK.

Turkey has kept its airspace closed for flights to and from the international Sulaimaniyah airport since April in a bid to increase pressure on the PUK, which is headed by Bafel Talabani, the son of late Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.

The Iraqi central government designated the PKK as a banned
...the word banned seems to have a different meaning in Pakistain than it does in most other places. Or maybe it simply lacks any meaning at all...
organization last month but stopped short of declaring it a "terrorist organization" — a long-sought demand by Ankara. Guler said the coordination between Ankara and Baghdad has increased since the move.

Link

-War on Police-

‘We lost heroes.' 3 US Marshal Task Force officers killed, 4 CMPD officers hurt, 1 critically, in east Charlotte shootout

2024-04-30

The shooter, Terry Clark Hughes, cut down in his prime. The most he accomplished in life was to be dangerous.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) — Three U.S. Marshal Task Force officers were killed, and four Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers were hurt during an east Charlotte shooting, which stemmed from a fugitive warrant operation on Monday afternoon.

At least one shooting suspect was found dead at the home after clearing the scene, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police. A second suspect was identified and taken

"Today is an absolutely tragic day for the city of Charlotte and the profession of law enforcement," said CMPD police chief Johnny Jennings. "Today, we lost some heroes that were out just simply trying to keep our community safe."

Residents, along with anyone in the area of the neighborhood, were asked to avoid the area as active gunfire was ongoing for hours. At 4:56 p.m., CMPD said the area was safe. The situation began around 1:50 p.m. along Galway Drive near Denson Place.

Link

-Lurid Crime Tales-

Sheriff's office IDs 16-year-old kid accused of shooting 10 at event venue in Seminole County

2024-04-29

[CLICKORLANDO] A 16-year-old boy is accused of shooting 10 people at an event venue near Sanford early Sunday, according to the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies responded to Cabana Live — an event venue and restaurant located at 4380 Carraway Place — to conduct an area patrol due to a large crowd at the venue, the sheriff’s office said in a statement. Shortly after midnight, the deputies heard gunshots coming from the rear of the establishment, causing the crowd to disperse, the statement reads.

It was soon apparent that several patrons had been shot, as well as that a security officer working for the business had successfully apprehended the shooter, the sheriff’s office said. According to Sherlocks, the incident began as a verbal altercation that escalated and resulted in a total of 10 people suffering non-life-threatening gunshot wounds, primarily to their lower extremities.

The shooter, identified Sunday afternoon as Christopher Bouie Jr., was booked into a juvenile detention center, the sheriff’s office said.
Aspiring rapper? Turning his life around?
Bouie faces charges of possession of a firearm by a minor, use and display of a firearm during a felony, firing a weapon in public property and attempted homicide, according to his arrest report.

News 6 is naming and showing Bouie due to the severity of the charges he faces.

Bouie’s arrest report describes the fight in greater detail, stating it was a fist fight that he was uninvolved in at the time he "turned around and pulled out a black and silver handgun (9mm) and began shooting towards a crowd of people." The security guard who stopped Bouie was able to tackle the teen and disarm him "almost immediately" after he began shooting, according to the report.

Of the ten victims who arrived at the hospital with gunshot wounds from the incident, several have indicated they wish to prosecute, the report states.
Street gang initiation participant.
A social media post made by Cabana Live states it had reserved the venue for a private event and that the shooting happened outside of the establishment, adding its employees were safe and the business was back open for normal working hours as it cooperates with the investigation.

Link

Iraq

Turkey to end Claw-Lock operation in Kurdistan in the summer: Advisor

2024-04-21

[Rudaw] ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
<del>The Sick Man of Europe</del> Turkey

...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
will end its latest aerial military operation against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the Kurdistan Region in the summer, an advisor at the Ottoman Turkish defense ministry said on Thursday.

Operation Claw-Lock was launched by Turkey on April 18, 2022 with the goal of targeting PKK positions in the Metina, Zap, Avashin, and Basyan areas in northern Duhok province along the Ottoman Turkish border.

"The lock in Claw-Lock will be closed this summer," Zeki Akturk, Press and Public Relations Advisor at the Ottoman Turkish defense ministry, told news hounds on Thursday.

He added that "rapid operations" against the Kurdish group will continue in the Region.

Turkey’s Claw-Lock Operation is part of a series of military offensives that started in 2019 against the PKK in northern Duhok province to eradicate the group in its bases in the Kurdistan Region’s mountains. Ottoman Turkish forces have built dozens of outposts within the Kurdistan Region’s borders during its operations.

Link

Iraq

Unidentified drones target Sulaimani village: Local official

2024-04-21

Just the general background of daily living up there.

[Rudaw] Two separate dronezaps targeted a village near the Mawat district of Sulaimani province, resulting in material damage, the district’s mayor announced on Wednesday.

"We were targeted twice in the Sharbazher area by drones," Kamaran Hassan, Mayor of Mawat, which is part of the Sharbazher area, told Rudaw.

The first strike targeted a house in the Kurala village, according to Hassan, who noted that no one was in the house at the time of the attack.

Hassan said that in a separate strike, the Tazha and Shilana forests in Sharbazher area were targeted, resulting in no casualties, as was the case for the first strike.

Media affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) blamed ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund...
for the attack, while the Ottoman Turkish defense ministry has yet to comment on the matter.

Turkey frequently bombards areas of the Kurdistan Region under the pretext of targeting the PKK. In February, Kamaran Osman, a member of the Community Peacemaker Teams (CPT), a human rights
...which often include carefully measured allowances of freedom at the convenience of the state...
organization that monitors Turkey’s operation in the Kurdistan Region, told Rudaw that Ankara conducted 1,548 such attacks in 2023.

Turkey has repeatedly warned the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), which effectively controls the local governments in Sulaimani, about the PKK’s activities in the province, with Defense Minister Yasar Guler saying in September that his country is "continuously warning" Talabani about what he called "an increase in terrorist activities" in Sulaimani.

Last month, Ottoman Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said during a televised interview that the "cordial" relations between the PKK and the PUK "constitute a national security threat," for Ankara.

Iraq’s National Security Council banned the PKK from operating in the country last month, following a high-level meeting between Ottoman Turkish and Iraqi officials. The two sides discussed measures to be taken against the group, which Baghdad said poses a security threat to both countries.

In March, the PKK announced that it had downed 15 Ottoman Turkish drones between February 2023 and March 2024, adding that it had acquired new missile systems to shoot down, without providing details on the type and quantity of the acquisition.

Ottoman Turkish President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First

Link

Iraq

29 foreign infiltrators arrested across the Sulaymaniyah border

2024-04-12

[NINANEWS] Border forces arrested today, Thursday, (29) foreign infiltrators who attempted to cross the border illegally in Sulaymaniyah Governorate.

The Ministry of Interior said in a statement, “the Third Regiment of the Third Border Brigade was able to arrest (29) infiltrators who attempted to cross the border illegally within the administrative borders of Sulaymaniyah Governorate.”

The statement indicated “organizing a fundamental arrest report and taking the necessary legal measures against them.”

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Turkey bombards Kurdish positions near Manbij: Monitor

2024-04-11

[Rudaw] The Ottoman Turkish army and its Syrian proxies on Wednesday bombarded positions of Kurdish-led forces near the northern Syrian city of Manbij, a war monitor reported.

"Ottoman Turkish forces bombed with artillery shells positions of the Manbij Military Council near the city of Manbij in eastern Aleppo," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britannia-based war monitor.

The monitor did not mention any casualties as a result of the festivities.

The Manbij Military Council, a local force affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), oversees security in Arab-majority Manbij. Security in Kurdish-controlled areas in north and northeast Syria is managed through military councils led by locals to maintain the delicate balance of the region and prevent Arab discontent.

The festivities come amid an increased surge of violence near Manbij between Kurdish-led forces and Ottoman Turkish-backed murderous Moslems, according to SOHR.

~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
has long viewed strategic Manbij, located at the crossroads connecting Aleppo, Raqqa, and the Kurdish-administered northeast, as a key zone to launch its next military operation to seize northern Syria from Kurdish forces.

In 2022, Ottoman Turkish President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First

...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
labeled the Manbij and Tal Rifaat as Ankara’s next targets in order to complete its long-desired 30-kilometer "safe zone" along the southern border.

Turkey accuses the Kurdish forces of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the SDF, of being the Syrian front for the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

Ankara has carried out three military operations against Kurdish forces in northern Syria since 2016, invading key towns near the border such as Afrin, Sari Kani (Ras al-Ain), and Gire Spi (Tal Abyad).

Link

-Lurid Crime Tales-

Inmate who escaped Hawaii jail, got struck by a vehicle while fleeing police has died

2024-03-29

[Yawn!] Anybody know what's for dinner?

[NY Post] An inmate in Hawaii who broke out of jail, jumped onto an interstate during his escape and was hit by a car while fleeing police last week has died, authorities said.
I guess I should be interested, if only for the comedy value. Cue mournful ukelele music...

I had no idea mournful ukulele music was a thing.

Matthew J. Ornellas Jr., 33, beat feet from Kauai Community Correctional Center last Friday but, just moments after escaping the facility, became the victim of a serious hit-and-run.
"Har! I'm a dangerous desperado and you coppers can't catch me! Haleakkaloa!"
[VROOM! THUMP!]
"Aaaaiiieee! I am undone!"
"Does Haleakaloa have one K or two?"
On Thursday, the Hawaii Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said he died of injuries he suffered.
"He's dead, Jim!"
Officials at the facility said Ornellas scaled a fence with razor wire, and correctional officers gave chase but lost sight of him.
"Razor wire?"
"He's gettin' away!"
"I'm goin' around to the gate."
"Meet you there!"
The correctional officers then heard a loud sound and ultimately found Ornellas on the interstate, about 100 yards from the jail.
Yeah. The interstate. In Hawaii.
He was maimed and was subsequently hospitalized.
"Into th' ambulance wit' yez, me boyo!"
"You sure you're Hawaiian, Paddy?"
Orenellas was running north on the southbound lane of Kuhio Highway when he was hit, Kauai police said.
Important safety tip: Don't do dat.
He was serving time for a drug conviction, according to the Hawaii Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
A drug conviction? Like wow, man!
The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said it is continuing to investigate the escape.

Link

-Lurid Crime Tales-

Video shows teen gunman lean out car window and open fire in shooting that killed Vegas mother

2024-03-29

[NY Post] Newly unveiled footage shows the moment a passenger fired a gun as he leaned out a car window during a drive-by shooting that killed a 43-year-old mother on a Las Vegas street.

Kevin Perez-Stubbs, 16, allegedly shot and killed innocent bystander and mother of one Shawna McCowan in April 2023 after she and a friend got caught in the gunfire.

She was walking with the friend and dogs on the same sidewalk as two teens toward whom Perez-Stubbs was allegedly shooting when she was shot, police documents reportedly stated, according to KLAS.

Two teens had gotten into a fight earlier at an apartment complex close by before the shooting erupted on the street.

New grainy surveillance footage obtained by KLAS this week showed McCowan and her companion walking up the street on the night of April 23 before a car with its headlights off drove toward the camera and two people were seen fleeing down the street.

A passenger then fired a gun while hanging out the window as the vehicle went down the empty street, according to the footage.

McCowan, who split time between Colorado and Las Vegas, was hit in the back and neck after multiple rounds were fired, according to police docs the station reported on.

The teacher, who also worked as a flight attendant, was rushed to a nearby hospital and pronounced dead, leaving behind a husband and son.

Four teenagers were charged with murder following the incident.

Accused gunman Perez-Stubbs, 16, his brother Johnathan Perez-Stubbs, 19, and Mezarius Finch, 17, were arrested last year, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

Earlier this year, Tyshean Tillman, 19, was arrested and charged with open murder with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit murder, the Las Vegas Metro Police Department said.

Tillman was the alleged driver while Jonathan Perez-Stubbs and Finch were passengers in the car, police have said.

Tillman, Finch and Johnathan Perez-Stubbs all took plea deals, though more information was not revealed because the records were sealed, KLAS reported.

Kevin Perez-Stubbs’ trial on murder and conspiracy to commit murder charges is reportedly set for June.

Link

Iraq

Turkey hits alleged PKK targets in the Kurdistan Region

2024-03-27

[Rudaw] ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
<del>The Sick Man of Europe</del> Turkey

...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
’s defense ministry announced on Thursday it targeted alleged Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) positions in the mountainous areas of the Kurdistan Region.

The ministry announced on X that it had targeted a total of 39 alleged PKK positions consisting of "shelters, hideouts and caves" in the Zap, Metina, Gara, Khakurk, and Qandils areas on March 19 and March 20.

The announcement comes two days after the Ottoman Turkish defense ministry stated that PKK fighters attacked its forces in the Kurdistan Region, killing one soldier and injuring four others.

On Saturday the PKK announced that its fighters attacked Ottoman Turkish army positions in the Kurdistan Region, killing two soldiers and injuring three others.

According to the ministry, the targeted positions harbored high-ranking PKK operatives.

The PKK announced on Wednesday that it had downed 15 drones since February 2023, the latest drone being shot down on March 1. The group also noted that it has acquired new missile systems to shoot down Ottoman Turkish drones, without providing details on the type and quantity of the acquisition.

Link

Iraq

Duhok villages hit by suspected Turkish artillery

2024-03-27

[Rudaw] Suspected Ottoman Turkish artillery hit two villages in Duhok province’s Amedi area late on Friday, causing fear among villagers, locals told Rudaw.

The bombs struck Sargali and Barchi villages, which are both located in areas known for frequent festivities between the Ottoman Turkish army and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

"The shelling is carried out by ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire...
," Sherwan Sargali from Sargali told Rudaw.

Shelling of both villages has been going on for two days and has scared residents, he added.

Seven shells struck Barchi village on Friday, resident Lazgin Barchi told Rudaw. The holy man said they do not know who carried out the shelling.

Turkey has recently upped its efforts to curb the PKK threat on its border with the Kurdistan Region. Ottoman Turkish President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First

...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
said earlier this month that Ankara is close to completing a zone that will "permanently resolve" security issues along the border.

He called on everyone in the region to respect Ankara’s security strategy or "be the cause of the tensions that will arise."

Earlier this month, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defense Minister Yasar Guler, and head of its intelligence agency (MIT) Ibrahim Kalin visited Baghdad for a second round of high-level security talks. The first round was held in Ankara in December.

A day after the meeting, The Iraqi National Security Council announced it was banning the PKK from operating in the country, claiming that the group poses a threat to Baghdad and Turkey.

Link

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