Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited by Leonid Tsukanov
[Regnum] The post-mortem analysis of the failed rebellion in Niger continues. Central authorities are blaming foreign powers (primarily France) and promising retaliation. Against this backdrop, the personnel changes that have occurred in the highest echelons of power in the African country seem unsurprising.
However, a closer look at the new appointees reveals that government leader Abdurrahmane Chiani has positioned the new candidates in such a way that his opponents in European capitals will interpret the signal unambiguously.
MACRON COMMANDED, THE SHEIKHS PAID
Although Niger's leadership has yet to identify the rebellion's leaders, more than two weeks after its suppression, the names of external sponsors were announced almost immediately. And without mincing words.
According to Soumane Boubacar, Minister of State for the President and official government spokesman, French President Emmanuel Macron personally stood behind the plotters. According to Boubacar, Macron himself proposed the general framework for the operation to his General Staff, which would culminate in Paris's triumphant return to Niger and regain control of the uranium deposits that previously fueled the Fifth Republic's nuclear power plants.
Macron allegedly justified his decision by saying that Niger's central government had been weakened by internal strife, and that some of the army's elites were allegedly nostalgic about the pro-French regime.
Even after the Chief of the General Staff, Fabien Mandon, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Land Forces, Jacques de Montgrot, who, due to their professional background, had a good understanding of the state of affairs in Africa and real support from Paris, spoke out against the adventure, the operation was still given the green light.
Moreover, as the investigation established, the rank-and-file participants in the conspiracy were not financed by the French budget. It is noted that a significant portion of the transactions conducted by the arrested military personnel on the eve of the mutiny were routed from Persian Gulf countries.
The money is said to have come from accounts linked to the Emirati al-Nahyan family's financial empire and Arab shell companies run by confidants of UAE intelligence chief Tahnoun al-Nahyan.
CALLS DURING A FIGHT
The statements of Niger's public figures also fit well with the testimony of soldiers from the 1st Parachute Battalion—the unit that bore the brunt of the rebel attacks and prevented them from taking control of key facilities in the capital.
Officers from the unit that remained loyal have become frequent guests on local airwaves, vying with each other to tell how, right during the siege, their phones were bombarded with calls from supporters of President Mohamed Bazoum, who was ousted in 2023 (including his advisor and confidant Hamid Amadou N'gadé ), urging the paratroopers to switch sides and receive amnesty.
According to statements circulating in the Nigerien press, N'gadé acted as a sort of collective voice for the Economic Community of West African States, declaring that the group "does not want much bloodshed" and is prepared to intervene jointly with the French to end the fighting. And then, to facilitate a peaceful return of power from Chiani to Bazoum.
In part, such reports are likely aimed at a domestic audience, but it is telling that, with the onset of the coup, the President of Benin did indeed suddenly interrupt his trip abroad and return to the country to establish a crisis center—even though the rebels' actions did not pose a direct threat to the security of his country at that time, and the main battles were taking place far from the border.
Furthermore, several days before the crisis, radio traffic between Benin and Côte d'Ivoire, another regional ally of Paris, increased sharply. French troops stationed in these countries were put on high alert even before the first shots were fired near the Nigerien capital, Niamey.
This indicates that even if France was not directly involved in preparing the coup, it was ready to reap its benefits immediately. Like the UAE, for whom the return of the Bazoum regime would have opened up excellent prospects for developing Niger's gold and uranium markets, as well as strengthening its military and political influence in the Sahel and creating an additional foothold for bolstering loyalists in Libya.
SIGNALS THROUGH COMMANDERS
Having barely recovered from the aftermath of the mutiny, Ciani carried out a series of personnel changes. Specifically, he removed Major General Moussa Salau Barma, one of the architects of the 2023 anti-French coup, from his post as Chief of the General Staff and replaced him with Brigadier General Maman Sani Kiau.
The latter has extensive combat experience, including commanding special forces in the Tillabéri and Diffé regions, where a significant portion of the rebels originated. He is considered one of the most respected senior commanders. This was likely Niamey's official attempt to demonstrate that it still listens to and relies on the army.
The chiefs of staff of the ground forces and air force also changed. The former commanders and superiors—mostly from Barma's inner circle—followed their patron into retirement.
Interestingly, after the military chain of command shakeup, Barma received no "comfort" position, even in the civilian sector, and disappeared completely from the public agenda, which is unusual for a politician of his caliber. It's possible that the Chiani government held him personally responsible for the rebel breakthrough.
Moreover, the new commander also serves as a living symbol of resistance to Western military influence. It was Kiau, as a negotiator for the transitional government in 2023, who worked with the French and American contingents, forcing them to expedite their withdrawal from Niger.
Considering that there are still military missions from EU countries on the territory of the republic (in particular, the Italian one, stationed at “Air Base 101,” but which was effectively inactive during the recent crisis), such an appointment should serve as a signal for them.
The newly appointed military commanders share another common trait: they have all worked closely with the Russian Ministry of Defense's Africa Corps (including in combat) and advocate for expanded military-political coordination with Russia.
And herein lies another message that the African country is conveying externally: it is placing a decisive bet on Russian assistance to strengthen its sovereignty, and regards any European interference in its affairs as hostile.
[IsraelTimes] Sean Middlebrough was granted 3-day leave in October 2025 while awaiting trial for role in planning violent raid on Elbit factory; details reported after judge lifts gag order.
A member of the proscribed Paleostine Action group in the UK skipped bail almost a year ago while he was awaiting trial over his alleged role in planning a violent mostly peaceful raid on a factory operated by Israeli defense firm Elbit, and has since disappeared, British media reported on Monday.
Sean Middlebrough, 34, of Liverpool, was granted leave for three days to attend his brother’s wedding in October, but never returned to jail.
Police reportedly believe Middlebrough may have left the country, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. Details of the developments were permitted for publication on Monday after a judge lifted a gag order.
🚨 BREAKING: A Palestine Action terrorist is on the run having been released from custody for his brother’s wedding. He has not returned and may have left the country.
• Self-proclaimed communist Sean Middlebrough, 34, of Liverpool, was one of eight accused of organising the 6… pic.twitter.com/28gjg3vQyb
Since vanishing, Middlebrough has sent messages to supporters, later published online, vowing that he will not be "held as an Israeli prisoner of war in a British prison," the BBC reported.
He was among eight suspects accused of being involved in planning a 2024 raid on a factory operated by Israeli defense firm Elbit that caused more than $1 million in damage.
Though none of the eight were among the group that breached the factory on the night of the attack, they were accused of making lists of equipment, carrying out reconnaissance, and buying tools and weapons that were used in the raid. They deny the charges against them.
Middlebrough specifically was accused of providing £890 (approximately $1,200) to buy equipment for the raid, including torches, backpacks, sledgehammers, a bolt cutter and other items. Prosecutors said he traveled to Bristol along with others before the attack and stayed in the area for two days, then left hours after the raid.
During the raid, Paleostine Action activist Samuel Corner used a sledgehammer, allegedly part of the equipment paid for by Middlebrough, the BBC said, to hit a policewoman attending the scene of the break-in, breaking her spine and severely injuring her. Earlier this year, Corner was sentenced to over seven years in prison.
Middlebrough and the seven others were being held in jug last year before the start of their trial.
On October 20, he was granted temporary bail for the wedding, the BBC reported. He was supposed to surrender himself to HMP Wandsworth in London on October 24 but never arrived.
According to the media reports, police believe supporters have helped him to leave the UK.
The trial for all eight defendants went ahead in June, though the jury was not told why Middlebrough was not in court.
He was eventually convicted in August of criminal damage, while the jury did not reach a verdict on other charges against all eight. A retrial is set for 2028.
Reports on his conviction were withheld from publication under a gag order because Middlebrough was also facing charges, along with another man, of planning a Paleostine Action protest at the wedding party of former UK prime minister Boris Johnson ...pro-Brexit British prime minister, succeeding no-Brexit Theresa May. BoJo is noted as much for his sparkling personality and his hair as for his Conservative policies....> in July 2022.
The BBC, apparently referring to that case but without naming Middlebrough, said Monday that the jury failed to reach a verdict, and no date has yet been set for a retrial.
In an August retrial, four activists were sent to prison for their part in the Elbit raid; the judge handed out longer terms after determining a "terrorism connection." A different jury in February had cleared them of aggravated burglary but failed to reach verdicts regarding criminal damage and some other charges.
Wearing red boilersuits, the four activists damaged computers, drones and other equipment, then clashed with security guards and police who tried to stop them in the August 2024 raid. The group said they aimed to "dismantle drones and weaponry" they believed would be used to kill people, particularly 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.
According to the BBC, Elbit Systems in Bristol has said that none of the items it makes at the Bristol factory go to Israel.
The assault on the Bristol factory was one of the events that led the UK government last year to ban Paleostine Action as a terrorist organization. The ban under the 2000 Terrorism Act, which went into force on July 5 last year, made membership of or support for the direct action group a criminal offense punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Since then, some 3,000 people have been arrested at rallies and demonstrations.
[KhaamaPress] Global oil prices fell on Wednesday after an unexpected increase in U.S. crude oil inventories outweighed investor concerns over potential supply disruptions following attacks on Saudi Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start... ’s oil infrastructure.
Brent crude futures fell 93 cents, or 0.86%, to $107.82 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped 97 cents, or 0.92%, to $104.86 a barrel during early trading. The decline followed a sharp rally a day earlier that pushed both benchmarks to their highest levels since May amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Market sentiment shifted after the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported an unexpected 7.1 million-barrel increase in U.S. crude inventories for the week ending September 11. Analysts surveyed by Rooters had expected a drawdown of about 1.6 million barrels, making the larger-than-expected stock build a bearish signal for oil prices.
The inventory data came despite continuing concerns over Saudi Arabia’s oil exports after Iran-backed Iran's Houthi sock puppets ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him... fighters targeted the kingdom’s East-West Pipeline and facilities linked to the Red Sea export hub at Yanbu. The attacks forced Saudi Arabia to suspend oil loadings at Yanbu and reroute some crude shipments through Oman’s Sohar port using ship-to-ship transfers.
The East-West Pipeline is one of Saudi Arabia’s most important export routes because it allows crude oil to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Energy analysts have warned that prolonged disruptions to the pipeline could threaten up to 4% of global oil supply, although Saudi authorities have sought alternative export routes to reduce the immediate impact on international markets.
Despite Wednesday’s decline, crude prices remain significantly above levels seen before the latest escalation in the U.S.-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 JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... conflict. Traders continue to monitor the security of the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea shipping corridor, where regional attacks have heightened concerns over global energy supplies and maritime transport.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
09/17/2026 12:00 ||
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[Garowe] Ottoman Turkish authorities have deported 50 Somali nationals to Mogadishu, according to information obtained by Somali media, as nearly 300 Somali youths are reportedly being held at a facility in Istanbul awaiting possible deportation.
The group that arrived at Mogadishu's Aden Adde International Airport comprised 25 men and 25 women, according to sources familiar with the arrivals.
The 50 deportees are reportedly the first group among nearly 300 Somali youths who have been rounded up in recent days and taken to a detention facility in Istanbul ahead of possible removal from The Sick Man of EuropeTurkey ...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund... Some of the youths contacted by Somali media said they had not committed any offences in Turkey. They said those facing deportation included university students and people working in the country.
Others, however, were reportedly suspected of involvement in irregular migration activities, according to information gathered about the group.
The circumstances surrounding the deportations remained unclear, including the specific grounds cited by Ottoman Turkish authorities for removing the individuals.
Somalia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was not aware of the situation involving the deported youths when contacted for comment.
The ministry also said Turkey had the right to deport people it did not want to remain in the country, according to the response provided to Somali media. What?? Surely there's a Federal Judge in San Francisco to put a stay on this!
It was not immediately clear whether the deportees had been given access to legal proceedings or whether individual deportation orders had been issued in their cases.
Turkey has previously deported Somali nationals from the country, although the scale of the latest reported operation and the reasons behind it could not immediately be independently verified.
Turkey has for years been an important destination and transit point for Somalis seeking opportunities in Europe. Some migrants colonists have used routes through Turkey to reach Greece and other European countries, often through irregular migration networks.
The reported deportations come as Turkey has stepped up efforts in recent years to combat irregular migration and tighten controls on foreigners residing in the country.
Turkey has also maintained close political, economic and security ties with Somalia, including cooperation on defence, development and humanitarian assistance.
The latest deportations could raise concerns among Somali families and students in Turkey, particularly if further groups are removed from the country.
There was no immediate detailed statement from Ottoman Turkish authorities explaining the reported deportations or confirming the number of Somali nationals currently facing removal.
The reported arrival of the 50 Somalis in Mogadishu is expected to draw further attention to the treatment of Somali nationals in Turkey and the growing challenges facing migrants colonists using Turkey as a route towards Europe.
Now y'all done it. Strongly worded letter inbound!
🚨 UN SECURITY COUNCIL CONVENES AS HOUTHIS THREATEN GLOBAL SHIPPING
The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting as Iran-backed Houthis advance around the strategic Bab el-Mandeb and intensify attacks on Saudi Arabia.
🚨 UN SECURITY COUNCIL CONVENES AS HOUTHIS THREATEN GLOBAL SHIPPING
The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting as Iran-backed Houthis advance around the strategic Bab el-Mandeb and intensify attacks on Saudi Arabia.
U.S. envoy Jennifer Locetta urged the council to be “clear-eyed” about Iran’s role in arming, funding and directing the Houthis.
“Freedom of navigation underpins the global economy, and the United States is working with our partners to protect it,” she said.
Bahrain warned: “It is high time for the Security Council to take a more decisive stance.”
[Yahoo News] The US military hosted senior military representatives from eight nations at a conference in Germany last week, with participants discussing ways to strengthen security cooperation in the Middle East, a US government official said on Tuesday.
Further details, including the scope and location of the meeting, were initially unclear.
The Axios news portal had earlier reported, citing Israeli sources, that senior military commanders from the United States, Israel and several Arab countries met in Germany to discuss the Iran war and ongoing tensions in the region.
The commander of the US regional command, CENTCOM, Brad Cooper, is said to have insisted that the US military would not withdraw its troops from the Middle East despite Iranian attacks on US bases.
Cooper reportedly invited participants to the private meeting. Besides him, the chiefs of staff of Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Egypt took part.
Per Copilot AI The Suez Canal generated $40 billion in revenue from 2019-2024.
I don't think Egypt is going to appreciate the lost revenue with the Houthi's interfering with shipping traffic. Egypt has what none of the others have (except Israel) a military with enough troops to destroy the Houthis in probably a fairly short timeframe.
#5
Egypt has what none of the others have (except Israel) a military with enough troops to destroy the Houthis
Which would be true, Chantry, except that both troops and officers are Egyptian. Mr. Wife was nearly arrested, back in the day, for taking a photo of the picturesque soldier guarding the end of the Cairo street where his hotel was located. Had they not confiscated his film, we could have seem the man standing at his personal version of attention, his sandals and gunstock both held together by lots of duck tape. Apparently the need for duck tape was a state secret when Mubarak was running things.
They’re still finding Egyptian sandals and weapons in the Sinai desert, thrown away as excess weight when they fled ahead of IDF tanks during the Yom Kippur War in 1973.
#6
@5 I'm not saying the Egyptians have a great military, just a big enough one to put boots on the ground. Not sure why Egypt would have been invited otherwise. Egypt is ranked at 29th* in oil production, not bad, but not enough to be major difference in oil output from the Middle East.
[Rudaw] Iraq's Iran-aligned gang Kata’ib Sayyed ...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged... al-Shuhada on Wednesday denied a claim by an Iraqi politician that it had handed over weapons to the government, saying he had no authority to speak on its behalf.
Against the backdrop of the Iraqi government’s looming September 30 deadline for the US-led Global Coalition against 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) to complete its drawdown which coincides with a disarmament campaign to confine all non-state arms to state control, Ali Anheri, member of the Parliamentary Defense and Security Committee, on Tuesday claimed that the faction had begun the process of handing over weapons and stated that only Kata'ib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba had yet to comply.
Speaking to Iraqi TV channel al-Rasheed TV, Anheri said the group's head, Abu Ala al-Wala'i, was among those who had handed over heavy weapons to the Popular Mobilization Commission, and that the handed-over items, including drones, had been catalogued and recorded.
Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada rejected Anheri's account in a statement issued in the early hours of Wednesday, branding them as "false claims."
"We reaffirm to the public that what was stated in those remarks is completely untrue," the group stated, adding that "the aforementioned member of parliament does not represent any official spokesperson for the brigade and has no authority to issue positions or statements on its behalf."
Only members of the group are entitled to speak on its behalf, it reiterated.
According to Anheri, there is a wide consensus that the Iraqi government should hold an exclusive monopoly on weapons capable of crossing borders, including drones, missiles and heavy anti-air weaponry - except among the factions themselves.
"They have some conditions. There could be some flexibility on some of these conditions," Anheri said on Tuesday, naming the US-opposed PMF Law, which seeks to institutionalize armed factions - some of whom are US-designated terrorist groups - as a core demand.
The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) was established in 2014 by decree of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's highest Shia religious authority, as an umbrella of roughly 70 mostly Shia gangs with around 250,000 members formed to fight the ISIS insurgency.
Despite being state-funded, the PMF includes factions aligned with Iran's "Axis of Resistance®" - Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah, Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba and Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada - with the latter three having yet to heed the disarmament call and who have progressively raised their demands which include the dissolution of Kurdish Peshmerga forces, removal of Kurdish groups with cross-border ties to 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 JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... and The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor... , and a full US troop withdrawal from Iraq as a pretext for noncompliance.
In his inaugural address to parliament in mid-May, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi pledged security reforms including "confining weapons under state control," and in June ordered a committee formed to oversee the separation of political parties and armed factions from the PMF of which Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq was among the first to agree to Zaidi's push, severing ties with their fighters within the PMF.
A committee of senior Coordination Framework figures, including former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, is negotiating the process with the factions.
With the deadline a mere two weeks away, rhetoric among Iraqi politicians has shifted from talk of disarmament toward "organizing" or "restricting" weapons, particularly those capable of striking neighboring countries - a focus sharpened by an attack on Saudi Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start... 's East-West pipeline that an Iraqi government investigation found was launched from Maysan province, heavily damaging its pumping stations.
Iraqi government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi, speaking to Iraqi channel al-Sharqiya in Gay Paree on Tuesday, reiterated the government's position that it must hold a monopoly on the use of force.
"The reasons that allowed arms to remain outside state control during the events of 2014 no longer exist today... after September 30, Iraq and the Iraqi state will have a monopoly over the tools of force, and this constitutes a return to normal constitutional stipulations," he said.
No other party would be permitted a security role on the government's behalf, he said, warning that groups who fail to comply "will have to face the law."
WASHINGTON, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab unveiled on Thursday details of a next-generation air-to-air missile developed to counter threats from China and a new agreement with the Defense Department to boost production as the Pentagon rebuilds munitions stockpiles.
The war on Iran depleted U.S. and allied missile stocks, spurring a push to rapidly acquire less expensive long-range precision-strike weapons.
The missile, known as the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM), has been developed in secrecy for years as the U.S. military's answer to increasingly capable long-range air threats from China. Lockheed said the weapon offers greater range and effectiveness than existing air-to-air missiles — an advantage against Chinese fighter jets like the J-20.
The AIM-260 will be used on stealth fighters like the F-22 Raptor and F-35.
"JATM is one of our nation's most important air dominance capabilities, but because of the classified nature of the program, it's also a story we haven't been able to tell," Tim Cahill, president of Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, said in a statement. "We're proud to finally talk about the extraordinary work behind this missile and how we're working with the U.S. government to rapidly scale production."
The first images of the weapon emerged in May and Australia has announced it will buy roughly $521 million worth of JATM missiles. The quantity and unit price were not disclosed.
The framework agreement lays the groundwork for a multiyear procurement contract aimed at strengthening the defense industrial base for the program. Lockheed said it would fund investments needed to boost output under the deal.
[ShabelleMedia] The United States has renewed a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the identification or location of Khadra Essa, also known as Umm Qaqa al-Somali, whom the U.S. government identifies as the chief sharia instructor of an all-female 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) battalion.
The U.S. State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme said Essa is a Somalia-born Dutch citizen who travelled to Syria in 2014 to join ISIS. The programme is offering up to $5 million for information about her.
According to the U.S. government, Essa received formal training in Syria from ISIS-Nusaybah Katibah in the use of weapons and explosives, as well as in suicide operations.
The Rewards for Justice programme said Essa has advocated violence and encouraged other ISIS members to carry out attacks in multiple countries. It also accused her of teaching ISIS bully boy ideology used to justify suicide operations and the killing of civilians, as well as recruiting new members for the group.
Essa was a leader of Nusaybah Katibah, also known as ISIS-NK, an all-female combat battalion formed in Raqqah, Syria, in 2016. The group recruited, organised and trained women in combat and military skills, according to the U.S. government.
At its height, ISIS-NK had several hundred trained members, including U.S. and European citizens, the Rewards for Justice programme said. The group has since diminished following ISIS’s loss of its territorial stronghold in Syria but remains active, according to the U.S. government.
The U.S. government also alleges that Essa was involved in enforcing ISIS’s interpretation of sharia law against women. According to Rewards for Justice, she issued orders that resulted in physical punishments, including assaults and killings.
Essa has also been linked by U.S. authorities to the case of two American children who were taken to Syria by their mother in 2015 to join ISIS. After their mother died during a military strike against ISIS forces in 2019, Essa allegedly took custody of the children and moved them to an undisclosed location in Syria, according to Rewards for Justice.
The programme said the children, Yusuf and Zahra Shikder, were last known to be in Syria. It separately offers up to $5 million for information leading to their location, recovery and return.
Rewards for Justice, administered by the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service, offers financial rewards for information that helps the U.S. government locate or disrupt individuals and networks involved in terrorism and other threats.
The programme’s current listing identifies Essa as a target in the Near East region and places the reward at up to $5 million.
[Rudaw] Forty-nine former members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were released and transferred to northeast Syria (Rojava) on Wednesday, local officials told Rudaw, noting that two of those released were women. The move is linked to the landmark agreement reached between Damascus and Rojava on January 29, which provides for the release of detainees.
Mahmoud Khalil Ali, widely known as Siamand Afrin, deputy commander of general security in Rojava’s Hasaka province, told Rudaw's Nalin Hassan that "the released batch includes 49 SDF fighters, two of whom are women."
The release is part of broader efforts to implement the January 29 agreement to integrate Rojava's civil and military institutions into the Syrian state. The deal was reached between the SDF and Syria's interim authorities, with significant mediation from the United States as well as Kurdish political figures from the Kurdistan Region.
Ahmed al-Hilali, deputy governor of Hasaka and a key member of Damascus' team overseeing the integration process, told Rudaw in early June that more than 1,200 detainees linked to the SDF had been released by the Syrian leadership.
"According to estimates provided by relevant SDF authorities, there were 1,070 detainees in Syrian custody. However,
a person who gets all wrapped up in himself makes a mighty small package... after inspections of several prisons and detention centers, more than 1,200 SDF-affiliated detainees were released," Hilali said.
He further noted the Syrian government’s commitment to "releasing those whose sole reason for detention was their membership in the SDF," while adding that the cases of individuals who have "pending charges against them" have not yet been settled.
The January 29 agreement followed a sharp escalation in mid-January, when Syrian government forces and affiliated gangs seized territory previously held by the SDF across eastern Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Hasaka provinces.
The SDF served as the de facto military force in Rojava and a key ground partner of the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat 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), playing a central role in liberating areas held by the hard boy group across Syria and maintaining security in those regions to prevent its resurgence.
Former SDF chief Mazloum Abdi announced the group's dissolution in late August, declaring its mission "complete." The announcement followed a meeting between Abdi and Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who the following day appointed the former commander as a presidential adviser.
Beyond the prisoner releases, the January 29 agreement establishes a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire, alongside provisions for the integration of Rojava's civil and military institutions into the Syrian state.
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.
[IsraelTimes] 
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund...
...Arabic term meaning 
...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 
