[Breitbart] Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) told Breitbart News in an exclusive interview Friday that he believes upwards of $40 million per week in American taxpayer dollars is still going to the Taliban every week, despite a current freeze on foreign aid.
“We’ve been told that it is, somehow they’re getting it,” he said. “That’s on the surface that we know about.”
After the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Biden administration continued to send billions of U.S. taxpayer funds to the country, arguing that it wanted to continue to provide humanitarian assistance to Afghans, despite the Taliban taking over the country and controlling where the money is spent.
It is not clear how much money the Biden administration has sent to Afghanistan.
The weekly inflow of $40 million weekly cash infusions to Afghanistan refers to a United Nations humanitarian aid effort that the U.S. is the largest donor to, according to a January 2024 Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) report.
In April 2023, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) John Sopko testified to Congress that the U.S. had made available $8 billion to Afghanistan after the August 2021 withdrawal. It is not clear whether the $40 million weekly cash infusions for humanitarian aid are being drawn from the $8 billion and over what time period the $8 billion is meant to last for.
According to a Center of Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) report, SIGAR also found that the Taliban have “siphoned or benefited from a considerable amount of humanitarian aid,” by infiltrating United Nations-partnered Non-Governmental Organizations to access their aid budgets; imposing taxes and “security” fees on humanitarian workers; directing aid agencies to serve Taliban officials and family members; and taxing Afghan aid recipients at high rates, in some cases amounting to 60 to 100 percent of the aid received.
Burchett in December 2023 first introduced a bill to stop the flow of money to the Taliban, which was first brought to his attention by podcaster and former Navy SEAL Shawn Ryan and an Afghan-American Army veteran whose pseudonym is “Legend.” The bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously, but did not gain support in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
Burchett reintroduced his bill, dubbed the No Tax Dollars for Terrorists Act, on January 10 of this year.
“There’s been a lot of work done on this bill and I couldn’t have raised the issue without the help of Shawn Ryan and Legend. This legislation has been sat on long enough. I look forward to working it through both chambers and getting it to President Trump’s desk as quickly possible,” Burchett said in a statement at the time.
The bill would force the State Department to develop and implement a policy to oppose any foreign aid from going to the Taliban; require a report on any cash assistance programs in Afghanistan and how the U.S. keeps the Taliban from accessing that; and require a report on the Afghan Fund and the Afghanistan Central Bank.
Burchett said the bill has gained the support of Sens. Tim Sheehy (R-MT) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).
[SUDANTRIBUNE] The Al Jazeera Conference said on Thursday that 8,000 people were killed and tens of thousands injured in Sudan's Al Jazeera state during the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) control of the area.
The RSF launched attacks on towns and villages in Al Jazirah after entering Wad Madani in December 2023, and the violence continued until January 2025, the conference said. It reported widespread abuses against civilians, particularly women and children, including killings, forced displacement, arrests, rapes and kidnappings.
''The conference has documented an increase in the death toll to 8,000, while injuries have reached tens of thousands since the RSF invaded Al Jazirah state in December 2023,'' Al-Mabr Mahmoud, secretary-general of the Al Jazirah Conference, told Sudan Tribune.
The conference, a local civil group formed after the RSF takeover, said some 2,500 villages were affected by forced displacement, and an estimated 5 million of the state's 7 million people were displaced over the past year.
It also documented 213 cases of rape and said 10,000 people were arrested or kidnapped between December 2023 and January 2025, with many still missing.
The conference said initial estimates put losses to industry, commerce, health, and agriculture at more than $30 billion, adding that assessments were ongoing.
The RSF has been accused of widespread abuses in Al Jazirah since it took control of much of the state. Sudan's army and allied forces have since regained control of some key areas, including Um Al-Qura, Tambool, Wad Madani, Rufa'a and al-Hasahisa, in January and February.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/08/2025 00:00 ||
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[AFRICANEWS] Hundreds of Somalis gathered in the Peace Garden in Mogadishu to show their support for Paleostinians.
Many participants waved Paleostinian flags and displayed banners stating ''Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... is not for sale'' and ''Somalis stand with Paleostine.''
How wonderful that the Somalis have no vote whatsoever.
They criticized Trump's suggestion that residents of Gaza should relocate to countries like Egypt and Jordan.
Ahmed Abdullahi Mohammed, a protester, stated, "Our brothers in Paleostine have faced ongoing suffering, and for President Trump to suggest that Gazooks should move elsewhere is a complete trap. Trump aims to entrap Moslems in Gaza, and that is why we are here; we will not accept this."
The demonstration in Mogadishu highlights the growing regional opposition to Trump's stance on Gaza, alongside widespread calls for global support for Paleostinians.
Sheikh Abdi Hayyi, one of the protest organizers, remarked, "Trump's decision is ironic and undermines justice. It aligns with aggressors and infringes on the rights of those who have fought for independence for many years. Instead of backing their struggle for freedom, he opposes them and supports their enemy, telling them to abandon their land. This is something we cannot accept, and as Somalis, we see this as a grave injustice." You're welcome.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/08/2025 00:00 ||
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[AFRICANEWS] UN human rights chief Volker T rk on Friday (07 Feb) expressed profound concerns at the ongoing violent escalation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) caused by the ongoing Rwanda-backed M23 offensive.
''If nothing is done, the worst may be yet to come, for the people of the eastern DRC, but also beyond the country's borders,'' he told a Special Session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Since 26 January, nearly 3,000 people have been killed and 2,880 injured in attacks by the M23 and their allies ''with heavy weapons used in populated areas, and intense fighting against the armed forces of the DRC and their allies'', the High Commissioner said, as UN Member States weighed setting up a fact-finding mission to investigate extreme rights violations still being committed in the DRC provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu.
Hostilities continue to occur in this mineral-rich region that has been unstable for decades amid a proliferation of armed groups, which has forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes for many years and seek safety in displacement camps. Fighting escalated in late January when Tutsi majority M23 fighters seized control of parts of North Kivu, including areas near Goma, and advanced towards South Kivu and the eastern DRC's second city of Bukavu.
A draft resolution circulated before the Special Session — the 37th since the Council was created in 2006 - also condemned Rwanda's military support of the M23 armed group and called for both Rwanda and M23 to halt their advance and to allow lifesaving humanitarian access immediately.
#4
Well, how about the Belgians go back in and start chopping off hands and arms and maybe killing a few along the way. Belgian chocolate just doesn't taste the same as it did.
Trump has signed sanctions against South Africa for their recent land seizure bill.
He is ordering all aid to South Africa be halted and he is also ordering federal agencies to prioritize humanitarian relief and admission to the United States for Afrikaner refugees. pic.twitter.com/14Yv8vREfE
Posted by: Fred ||
02/08/2025 00:00 ||
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#1
He is ordering all aid to South Africa be halted and he is also ordering federal agencies to prioritize humanitarian relief and admission to the United States for Afrikaner refugees.
Rejoice, O Houthis! You are not forgotten! Soon — soon— you will enjoy being the focus of President Trump’s attention. Perhaps it will even be as exciting for you as for USAID…
[IsraelTimes] US President Donald Trump will adopt a more aggressive strategy to tackle the Iran-backed Houthi rebels than his predecessor Joe Biden did, a source familiar with US military planning tells the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news outlet.
While the Yemeni rebel group has halted its attacks on Israel and international shipping amid the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza, the source says that the Trump administration “will not sit back and wait for attacks” before targeting the group.
“Expect us to escalate and intensify in the coming weeks,” the source adds.
Upon his return to the White House last month, Trump re-labeled the Houthis as a “foreign terrorist organization,” after Biden dropped the designation in 2021 intending to address humanitarian concerns in Yemen.
[HotAir] And you thought that USAID was all about distributing rice, beans, and medicine, didn't you?
Well, not quite. There's also fomenting "color revolutions," funding Hamas, al Qaeda, ISIS, and the censorship complex.
Oh, and destabilizing Romania, and...how about a coup in Bangladesh? Nothing like a good coup to brighten your day. I'm still waiting for anti-Bibi protests (and some Israeli parties) finances to be traced to USAID.
In 2015 the US State Department was open about funding and training the Arab List…
Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) has been leading the charge to defend USAID. Here he is listed as the main “Hill Outreach” point of contact for a USAID-funded NED program to “destabilize Bangladesh’s politics” by funding transgender dance festivals and Bangladeshi rap groups. pic.twitter.com/yElFZUrstX
Leaked docs reveal that prior to the toppling of Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina, the US govt-funded International Republican Institute trained an army of activists including rappers and “LGBTQI people,” even hosting “transgender dance performances,” to achieve a national “power shift.” Institute staff said the activists “would cooperate with IRI to destabilize Bangladesh’s politics.”
On August 5, months of violent street protests finally toppled Bangladesh’s elected Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. When the military seized power and announced the imposition of a so-called “interim administration,” video footage showed Hasina fleeing to India aboard a helicopter. As vast swarms of student protesters overran the presidential palace, Western media outlets and many of their progressive-leaning consumers cheered the rebellion, framing it as a decisive defeat of fascism and the restoration of democratic rule.
Hasina’s replacement, Muhammad Yunus, is a longtime Clinton Global Initiative fellow granted a Nobel Prize for pioneering the dubious practice of micro-lending. While Yunus has hailed the “meticulously-designed” protest movement that thrust him into power, Hasina personally accused Washington of working to remove her from power over her alleged refusal to allow a US military base on Bangladeshi territory. The State Department has dismissed allegations of US meddling as “laughable,” with spokesman Vedant Patel telling reporters that “any implication that the United States was involved in Sheikh Hasina’s resignation is absolutely false.”
But now, leaked documents reviewed by The Grayzone confirm the State Department was informed of efforts by the International Republican Institute (IRI) to advance an explicitly stated mission to “destabilize Bangladesh’s politics.” The documents are marked as “confidential and/or privileged.”
IRI is a Republican Party-run subsidiary of the National Endowment for Democracy, which has fueled an array of regime change operations across the globe since it was conceived in the office of CIA Director William Casey over forty years ago.
The newly-uncovered files reveal how IRI spent millions in the lead-up to Hasina’s overthrow covertly coaching opposition parties and establishing a regime change network concentrated among the country’s urban youth. Among the GOP-run Institute’s front line foot soldiers were rappers, ethnic minority leaders, LGBT activists hosting “transgender dance performances” in the presence of US embassy officials – all groomed to facilitate what the US intelligence cutout called a “power shift” in Bangladesh.
#5
There really needs to be deeper analysis on these USAID payments. They still spout examples like 20 million went to Iraq for Sesame Street production. I want to know the actual $ that went to Iraq (how much and to whom money was diverted). And I want DOGE to claw back the money misappropriated.
[IsraelTimes] As massacre was unfolding, Palestine Solidarity Campaign asked police in London to approve demo the following week; Campaign Against Antisemitism: PSC ‘rushed to activism while Jews were being slaughtered’
Pro-Paleostinian, anti-Israel activists in the UK began organizing a large anti-Israel demonstration in central London even as the Hamas ..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,... onslaught in southern Israel was unfolding, UK news outlets have reported, citing information revealed by the Freedom of Information Act.
Soon after midday on October 7, 2023, the Paleostine Solidarity Campaign sought and obtained police approval for a mass protest to be held a week later, the reports said on Thursday.
A recent request for information from the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) showed that the Paleostine Solidarity Campaign called the police shortly after noon on October 7 — some eight hours after Hamas breached the Israel-Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... border in multiple places, invaded Israel and began its slaughter — to inform the police of its intention to hold a demonstration against Israel the following Saturday, on October 14, 2023.
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign called the police shortly after noon on October 7 — some eight hours after Hamas breached the Israel-Gaza border in multiple places, invaded Israel and began its slaughter — to inform the police of its intention to hold a demonstration against Israel the following Saturday, on October 14, 2023.
At the time that the request was filed, the massacre was ongoing and the IDF was scrambling to regain control of the southern communities invaded by Hamas. Israel was still far from fully understanding the scale of the unfolding disaster. In total, some 1,200 people were killed that day, most of them civilians, and 251 were taken hostage and dragged back to the Gaza Strip.
The police approved the October 14 demonstration, and it went ahead, as did other anti-Israel marches and protests elsewhere in the UK. Numerous anti-Israel demonstrations have been held in the UK since.
"The Met was contacted on Saturday, Oct. 7 at approximately 12:50 p.m., via telephone call and informed of the intention to protest," a police spokesperson said in response to the request for information, as cited by the Telegraph. "The Met committed this to our systems on the same day and are satisfied being contacted by telephone was a sufficient means in which to notify the MPS as the event was taking place seven days after notification."
Responding to the report, the Campaign Against Antisemitism told the Daily Mail that "this revelation ends the charade that the Paleostine Solidarity Campaign is a peaceful advocacy group."
"For sixteen months, the Metropolitan Police has allowed regular anti-Israel marches by a group that rushed to activism while Jews were being slaughtered," the group added.
In a statement to the Telegraph, PSC defended its decision to begin organizing a protest on October 7, while the mass-murder of Israelis was in progress, claiming that "it was already clear" Israel would respond to the Hamas onslaught with "indiscriminate violence."
"It is entirely appropriate, therefore, that PSC would call for a protest that would seek an immediate ceasefire and call for the root causes of Israeli occupation and apartheid to be addressed," a front man for the group said.
He accused those opposed to the PSC’s actions on October 7 of attempting to "deflect attention from the crimes against humanity that Israel has committed."
Thousands of people rallied on October 14 in London and other UK cities, demanding "Freedom for Paleostine" and denouncing Israel. In London, demonstrators massed near BBC News’ headquarters before an afternoon rally near then-prime minister Rishi Sunak’s Downing Street office and residence. There were festivities in Trafalgar Square when activists threw bottles, placards and flares at the police, according to the Daily Mail, and at least 15 people were arrested.
[IsraelTimes] Meeting with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar in Ashdod Port, Italy’s top diplomat Antonio Tajani says his country will not work with UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees.
“We don’t want to work with UNRWA and we condemn the use of UNRWA offices as a prison for Israeli hostages,” says Tajani.
The mother of freed hostage Emily Damari said last week that her daughter had been held at UNRWA facilities in Gaza.
Sa’ar says at the joint press conference that the UN Human Rights Council “acted in the most outrageous way possible.”
“They were biased, they were obsessive, you can say they were antisemites because they used double standards with regards to our state.”
Sa’ar announced this week that Israel would no longer participate in the UNHRC, following the US’s withdrawal.
Sa’ar hints that US President Donald Trump’s proposal for the Gaza Strip should be taken seriously.
“Today, it is important to listen carefully to new ideas that have been proposed and to think outside the box,” he says.
“Gaza is a failed experiment. It failed under Egyptian sovereignty. It failed when handed to the Palestinian Authority under the Oslo Accords. Ever since we saw terrorism rise. It has certainly failed under Hamas,” he argues. “Gaza, in its current state, has no future.”
“We must try to find a different solution,” Sa’ar says. “We must take a new approach.”
[IsraelTimes] Sources tell Reuters that Karim Khan’s name has been added to nonpublic annex, exposing him to US asset freeze and travel ban
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan is the first person to be hit with economic and travel sanctions authorized by US President Donald Trump ...His ancestors didn't own any slaves... that target the war crimes tribunal over investigations of US citizens or US allies, two sources briefed on the matter told Rooters on Friday.
Khan, who is British, was named on Friday in an annex — not yet made public — to an executive order signed by Trump a day earlier, a senior ICC official and another source, both briefed by US government officials, told Rooters. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a confidential matter.
The sanctions include freezing of US assets of those designated and barring them and their families from visiting the United States.
The order directed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in consultation with Secretary of State Marco Rubio ...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration... , to submit a report within 60 days naming people who should be sanctioned.
The ICC on Friday condemned the sanctions, pledging to stand by its staff and "continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world, in all situations before it." Court officials met in The Hague on Friday to discuss the implications of the sanctions.
The International Criminal Court, which opened in 2002, has international jurisdiction to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in member states or if a situation is referred by the UN Security Council.
Dozens of countries warned on Friday that the US sanctions could "increase the risk of impunity for the most serious crimes and threaten to erode the international rule of law."
"Sanctions would severely undermine all situations currently under investigation as the court may have to close its field offices," the 79 countries — who make up about two-thirds of the court’s members — said in a statement.
UN DEAL WITH US
Under an agreement between the United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... and Washington, Khan should be able to regularly travel to New York to brief the UN Security Council on cases it had referred to the court in The Hague. The Security Council has referred the situations in Libya and Sudan ...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans... ’s Darfur region to the ICC.
"We trust that any restrictions taken against individuals would be implemented consistently with the host country’s obligations under the UN Headquarters agreement," deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Friday.
Khan was most recently in New York last week to brief the Security Council on Sudan.
"International criminal law is an essential element to fighting impunity, which is unfortunately widespread," Haq said. "The International Criminal Court is its essential element, and it must be allowed to work in full independence."
After previously announcing their withdrawal from ECOWAS, accusing the bloc of straying from its founding ideals—Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso officially exited the organization following more than a year of intense diplomatic tensions.https://t.co/5BqbeEPG7Fpic.twitter.com/69CtQdH5FR
[IsraelTimes] Somaliland and Puntland named as locations under discussion for Gazan relocation per Trump’s plans; Israeli official says any talk of destinations is ‘extremely premature’.
The Times of Israel is liveblogging today’s event, including the release of the hostages, here. No doubt our other usual Israelisources are doing the same.
[IsraelTimes] Hamas sends list after delay, says Israel to free 183 Palestinian security prisoners in exchange for abductees; 2 male hostages released last Saturday discharged from hospital
Hamas ..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",... on Friday evening named three hostages set to be released from captivity the next day, following an hours-long delay past the 4 p.m. deadline.
The Prime Minister’s Office and the Hostages Families Forum both confirmed that the hostages to be released were Ohad Ben Ami, 56, Eli Sharabi, 52, and Or Levy, 34.
The release was expected to begin on Saturday morning.
Sharabi was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri when Hamas murderous Moslems rampaged through southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
His wife and daughters were murdered in their home’s safe room and he and his brother Yossi were taken captive. Yossi has since been confirmed dead and Hamas is holding his body.
Levy, 34, was kidnapped from the Supernova rave near Kibbutz Re’im on October 7. His wife Einav was killed, and their now three-year-old son Almog has been staying with his grandparents since. He has been told for the past 16 months that his father is missing and is being searched for.
Ben Ami was kidnapped from Be’eri. His wife Raz Ben Ami was also kidnapped, and released as part of a week-long ceasefire in November 2023. Their daughters campaigned hard for their freedom.
The Hamas prisoners’ media office said Israel was expected to free 183 Paleostinians in exchange for the release of three hostages, including 18 who have been serving life sentences, 54 serving long sentences and 111 who were detained in the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip during the war.
The terror group’s delay in providing the list of hostages to be freed Saturday underlined the obstacles hanging over the fragile deal that has halted the war in Gaza.
Earlier Hamas had accused Israel of breaching the ceasefire accord, claiming it had delayed the entry of hundreds of trucks carrying food and other humanitarian supplies agreed under the truce deal that took effect on January 19, and holding back all but a fraction of the tents and mobile homes needed to provide shelter to people returning to their bombed-out homes. Mobile Homes?? F that!
COGAT, the Israeli military agency that is overseeing the aid deliveries into Gaza, denied the accusation and warned that Israel would "not tolerate violations by Hamas."
The Prime Minister’s Office also put out a statement saying the Israeli leader viewed such violations "gravely."
Work on the potential second stage of the multi-phase agreement, aimed at securing the release of around 60 male hostages and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, has begun and an Israeli negotiating team was expected to fly on Saturday to Doha, Hebrew media reported on Friday.
The Israeli military said on Friday that commanders were conducting situational assessments ahead of the next phase of the agreement currently being discussed, with troops deployed at various points around the Gaza Strip.
Hamas said only 8,500 trucks out of the 12,000 that should have arrived so far had entered the territory, most containing food and secondary goods including chips and chocolate instead of more urgent items. In addition, only 10% of the 200,000 tents and 60,000 caravans needed to provide shelter had arrived, Hamas said, leaving hundreds of thousands in harsh winter weather.
Finally, heavy machinery needed to clear millions of tons of rubble and recover the thousands of bodies thought to be buried had not arrived.
Almost three weeks after the start of the ceasefire, "the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to tank dangerously," the Hamas statement said.
Israel has rejected accusations that it is dragging its feet on enabling the entry to aid supplies as "a completely unfounded claim," saying it has allowed in thousands of trucks, including tents and shelters.
COGAT said more than 100,000 tents had entered Gaza since the agreement came into force last month and that caravans were also being allowed in, while tractors had entered from Egypt since Sunday. It said 12,600 trucks had entered Gaza so far.
Friday also saw freed hostages Keith Siegel, 65, and Ofer Calderon, 54, discharged from hospitals after spending several days under care following their release from Gaza.
The third hostage freed with Calderon and Siegel last Saturday was Yarden Bibas, whose wide and young children remain in Gaza, their fates unknown. According to Channel 12 news, Israel is pressuring mediators to secure the release of Shiri Bibas and her young sons, Ariel, 4, and Kfir, 2. Hamas was to release living women and kiddies first under the deal, and Israel has said it has "grave concern" for their lives.
A Hamas official cited by the network said the terror group would see how Trump’s plan to "take over" the Gaza Strip progresses before deciding on the fate of the deal. According to the network, the terror group is unlikely to thwart the rest of the first phase, including Saturday’s expected hostage release.
[IsraelTimes] Issa was killed by Israel in March 2024; one terror operative says: ‘Do not think the resistance has ended with the assassination of the great leader’
Hundreds of Hamas ..the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood,... operatives and onlookers gathered in the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip’s Bureij camp on Friday for the funeral of Marwan Issa, the slain deputy leader of the terror group’s armed wing.
Brandishing assault rifles, fighters from the group’s Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades packed the narrow streets of the central Gaza camp for the funerary procession. Their eyes were the only visible feature behind black masks.
The Israeli military said it killed Issa in a March 2024 Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... . Hamas only confirmed his death on January 30 amid an ongoing ceasefire with Israel in Gaza.
The group also announced the death of Hamas military chief Muhammad Deif, whom Israel said it had killed in a July 2024 airstrike, as well as several other fighters and commanders.
Issa’s coffin, draped in the green Hamas flags and adorned with pictures of the slain deputy, was carried aloft by operatives during the procession. Friday prayers before the burial were held in a sports stadium in the camp.
"Do not think that the resistance has ended with the liquidation of the great leader Marwan Issa," said an operative from the 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... terror group, whose members were also out in force at the funeral.
"We have many resistance fighters and heroes, and we are constantly preparing for you," he added.
Israel accused Issa of being one of the organizers of Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack, which started the Gaza war. On that day, thousands of marauding turbans swept across the border and attacked numerous Israeli communities and bases, killing some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and abducting 251 to Gaza.
Israel also targeted the heads of Hamas during the war. Ismail Haniyeh ...became Prime Minister of Gaza after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continued as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintained a separate PM in the West Bank. Zapped during the 2023-24 war, to eveyone's satisfaction... was assassinated in Tehran in July 2024, with Jerusalem taking responsibility in December, while Yahya Sinwar was killed by troops in Gaza in October 2024.
Hamas, published the names of 183 Palestinian detainees who are slated to be released Saturday in exchange for three Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip https://t.co/nWdjSlw4hSpic.twitter.com/ZMPDRTs61s
Trump administration approved the sale of over $7.4 billion in weapons to Israel, including 3,000 Hellfire missiles and $6.75 billion in bombs and guidance kits of the BLU-109, a hardened bunker buster penetration bomb.
[Breitbart] Iranian Lawmaker Publicly Threatens He ‘Will Not Hesitate’ to Assassinate President Trump
A senior Iranian lawmaker and member of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee has openly declared his intent to assassinate President Donald Trump, stating he would “not hesitate” to kill the U.S. Commander in Chief after Trump warned he would “obliterate” the Islamic theocracy if it did so.
Iranian MP Mojtaba Zarei’s remarks, which he posted on the Iranian social media messaging platform Eitaa on Wednesday in response to President Trump’s warning the Islamic republic of drastic repercussions in the event of any attempt on his life, have fueled concerns over Iran’s escalating rhetoric against the U.S.
As a mere MP of a rubber stamp parliament he can’t actually do anything about it, so paragraphs of his threats snipped.
Zarei’s statement follows a recent declaration by Kayhan newspaper — widely regarded as a mouthpiece of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei — that the Islamic Republic remains committed to avenging the death of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian commander and terrorist mastermind responsible for the murder of hundreds of Americans, in a U.S. airstrike in 2020.
The publication suggested that carrying out an assassination against Trump is a duty of Iran’s leadership.
On Tuesday, while signing an executive order restoring his policy of “maximum pressure” on Tehran, President Trump was asked about the possible consequences for Iran if it attempted to take his life.
“If they did that, they would be obliterated,” Trump said. “That would be the end. I’ve left instructions. If they do it, they get obliterated; there won’t be anything left.”
The President acknowledged feeling “torn” over the sanctions directive, indicating a preference to “work out a deal” and suggesting he is open to negotiating with the Islamic Republic’s president.
Trump also said that Iran was “too close” to developing a nuclear weapon, and that it would not have been so close if he had continued in the presidency after 2020.
Tensions between Iran and the U.S. have remained high since the death of the former IRGC Quds Force commander, with Iranian officials repeatedly vowing retaliation.
The latest threat comes as Iranian assassination plots have been uncovered in various parts of the world, including attempted hits on U.S. officials and dissidents on American soil.
Posted by: Mercutio ||
02/08/2025 09:57 ||
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#3
Given, he is wearing flack vests to public appearances now. I'd say it is a good indicator that the Iranian people are fed-up with this Middle Ages style rule, culture & lifestyle. And are seeking to re-enter the 21st century.
[NEWARAB] The US has warned that Hezbollah's involvement in the Lebanese government is a "red line", as envoy Morgan Ortagus visited Beirut on Friday, delivering a strong message to the country's leaders while praising Israel's war on the country.
Ortagus' visit came amid ongoing political negotiations, with Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam working to form a government.
The US is reportedly pressuring him to exclude Hezbollah, reinforcing Washington's longstanding stance against the Iran-backed group's role in Lebanese politics.
Following talks with Leb ...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade.... 's President Joseph Aoun at the presidential palace, Ortagus made a pointed statement underscoring US support for Israel's operations against Hezbollah.
"We are grateful to our ally Israel for defeating Hezbollah," she said during a presser.
"It is thanks to President Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam and everyone in this government who is committed to an end to corruption— and making sure that Hezbollah is not a part of this government and remains disarmed and militarily defeated," she added.
Hezbollah was severely weakened in the war, with Israel assassinating its leadership, destroying much of its weapons stockpiles, and forcing the group out of southern Lebanon under a ceasefire agreement brokered by Ortagus' predecessor, Amos Hochstein.
In response to a question about Hezbollah's potential insistence on being in the government, Ortagus dismissed any concerns.
"I am certainly not afraid of Hezbollah," she said.
"We have set clear red lines in the United States that [Hezbollah] won't be able to terrorise the Lebanese people, and that includes by being a part of the government."
Hezbollah responded by accusing her of "blatant interference in Lebanese illusory sovereignty". The head of its parliamentary bloc, Mohammed Raad, denounced her comments as being "full of malice and irresponsibility".
Posted by: Fred ||
02/08/2025 00:00 ||
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Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin.
[ColonelCassad] After the talks in Damascus, some progress has been made on the bases in Syria.
The militants are generally not against keeping the Russian bases in Syria, and have even officially stated that the fact that the Russian Aerospace Forces have been ironing them out for years, including before they seized power, is nothing. Let bygones be bygones... They say we are looking to the future and blah-blah-blah.
In fact, on a fundamental level, they are not against Russia improving its offer on the bases. In fact, bargaining continues on these issues. If the parties agree on a price, the bases will remain in a somewhat reduced form.
Of course, they will ignore the militants' demands to hand over Assad. But the inclusion of grain, oil and weapons in the payment for the bases is already under discussion. The key issue is weapons and ammunition. Russia would not be against limiting itself to oil and food supplies, as is done in the case of the Taliban. But the militants want more.
This is what will be discussed in the coming weeks. If they agree on the price, there will be bases. If they don't agree, we'll have to look for an option in another country (there are options). Of course, it would be desirable to keep Khmeimim and the logistics point in Tartus, but not at any price.
I hope our negotiators will be able to get better conditions.
P.S. A new African Corps base has recently appeared in Africa near the capital of Mali, a military base is being developed at an airfield in the capital of Niger + preparations are underway to occupy the former American base in Agadez, and a military airfield is being expanded in southwestern Libya near the border with Sudan
Syria will agree to keep Russian military bases if it is beneficial to Damascus. This was stated on February 7 by the head of the republic's Ministry of Defense, Marhaf Abu Kasra, in an interview with The Washington Post.
He said that the Syrian authorities are “weighing Moscow’s demands” and are ready to agree to the preservation of the Russian Aerospace Forces base in Khmeimim and the Russian Navy logistics center in Tartus, as long as it “serves the interests of Damascus.”
"If we get benefits from this for Syria, then yes," Abu Kasra said.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, in early December, the armed opposition of Syria began an offensive against the government troops of the republic. On December 8, the Syrian army left the center of Damascus. Militants captured the headquarters of state television and announced the seizure of power in Syria. The president of the republic, Bashar al-Assad, resigned and left the country, receiving political asylum in the Russian Federation. Ahmed al-Sharaa was declared the head of the administration of the interim government of Syria.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Mikhail Bogdanov said in December that Russia expects to maintain military bases in Syria. At the end of January, an interdepartmental delegation of Russia held talks with al-Sharaa. As Bogdanov noted, they were constructive.
On February 3, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow was continuing dialogue with Damascus on the further use of Russian military bases.
Posted by: badanov ||
02/08/2025 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (al-Nusra)
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.
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans...
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
