[Garowe] Omar Ali Abdi, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Defence, revealed that some senior government officials under President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s administration have been sharing sensitive military intelligence directly with al-Shabaab ... the personification of Somali state failure... holy warriors.
Ali stated that the government is currently investigating these officials, who are suspected of collaborating with al-Shabaab, and that measures will be taken, including stripping them of their ranks and removing them from the military register.
"Some former officials are passing crucial military information to al-Shabaab, including secrets related to ongoing operations," said Ali, who expressed support for the administration's efforts to defend the government and its recent military appointments.
This disclosure is not new to the Somali public, who have long suspected that al-Shabaab has infiltrated government institutions, the military, and other key offices. This infiltration has allowed the group to access critical intelligence, including sensitive details about military operations.
On Friday, near Boos-Hareeri, located in the Middle Shabelle region, senior government military officer Abukar Abdulle Raage Gar-Maqaate was killed, along with his accompanying troops. Their vehicles were seized by the holy warriors.
The government has faced setbacks in its operations in the Shabelle region, with areas that were previously liberated from al-Shabaab now slipping back into the holy warriors' control. Continuous attacks are also making it difficult for the government forces to maintain their defense.
[ShabelleMedia] A significant contingent of Æthiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) troops have been stationed near the border town of Ferfer, close to Æthiopia’s frontier with Somalia, military sources reported Saturday.
The deployment comes amid heightened tensions as the troops prepare to support operations against an ongoing al-Shabaab ... the personification of Somali state failure... offensive in Somalia’s Hiran and Middle Shabelle regions.
The murderous Moslem group al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda affiliate, has intensified attacks in central Somalia in recent weeks, prompting concerns over regional security.
Æthiopian forces, which have a history of involvement in Somalia to combat the insurgency, are expected to bolster Somali National Army efforts in the affected areas.
The strategic positioning near Ferfer suggests a potential cross-border operation to stem the murderous Moslems’ advance.
Æthiopian officials have not yet commented on the scale or timeline of the deployment. The move follows reports of al-Shabaab recapturing territory in Middle Shabelle, reversing earlier gains by Somali government forces.
Regional analysts say Æthiopia’s involvement could be critical in stabilizing the volatile Hiran and Middle Shabelle provinces, though it may also heighten tensions with Somalia amid ongoing diplomatic disputes.
The situation remains fluid, with further developments anticipated as Æthiopian troops mobilize to address the growing threat.
[IsraelTimes] PM’s confidant claimed Egyptian public less opposed to idea than its government, alarming Cairo, which has since sought to bring him to country to further make case against idea
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer held a "tense" meeting with a senior Egyptian official late last month in Jerusalem, during which the latter sought to convey Cairo’s fervent position against moving Gazooks into the Sinai Peninsula, an Israeli official and a second source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel.
The Egyptian official relayed that Cairo is alarmed by calls from Israeli politicians to push Paleostinians into 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... and stressed that Egypt views any such effort as an existential threat, the sources said.
So? Leaving them where they are is an existential threat to Israel, and Egypt has been deliberately arming them, making them even more so. Consequences, O Egypt, that you have worked hard to earn.
According to the sources, Dermer responded by maintaining that the Egyptian people are not as opposed to taking in Gazooks as the Egyptian government is.
Alarmed by the answer — in addition to disagreeing with it — Egyptian officials have since sought to arrange a meeting for Dermer with some of the country’s more big shots in Cairo in order to further make the case against the relocation of Paleostinians into the Sinai. While Egypt was hoping that the meeting would take place earlier this month, it has not yet been finalized, the sources said.
Take the hint, dudes. The next iteration won’t be as gentle.
A spokesperson for Dermer said his office wouldn’t comment on private meetings.
Dermer was last in Cairo in January, quietly traveling there for meetings to discuss bilateral security coordination, the sources said.
The idea of moving Paleostinians to Egypt is also being pushed by US President Donald Trump ...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party... , who proposed that the US take over Gaza and relocate all of its roughly two million residents.
The idea was quickly rejected by Egypt, whose leader, President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, has held off on meeting Trump at the White House, despite overtures by Washington to set up such a sit-down, during which he’d likely be cornered into offering public comments regarding Trump’s plan, the two sources told The Times of Israel.
Last month’s tense meeting in Jerusalem came against a backdrop of already simmering tensions between the governments of Israel and Egypt, the two sources said. For the past several months, Israeli politicians have been raising in meetings with visiting US politicians allegations that Egypt is violating the peace treaty between the two countries by massing troops along the Gaza border.
Israel’s ambassador to the US also raised the issue during a meeting with the executives of US Jewish groups.
"Egypt is in very serious violation of our peace agreement in the Sinai. This is an issue that is going to come to the fore because it’s not tolerable," Yechiel Leiter told the American Jewish leaders in a recording obtained by The Times of Israel.
"We have bases being built that can only be used for offensive operations, for offensive weapons — that’s a clear violation," he said. "For a long time, it’s been shunted aside, and this continues. This is going to be an issue that we’re going to put on the table very soon and very emphatically."
Leiter also accused Sissi’s family of profiting from the desperation of Paleostinians seeking to flee the Gaza Strip and of duplicitously operating to benefit Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... The comments angered Cairo, which raised them during the meeting last month with Dermer, the Israeli official and the second source familiar with the matter said.
”How dare you speak hard truths about us where everyone can hear! Learn your place, O uppity Jews!”
Unlike Israel’s politicians, the Israeli security establishment has not been voicing concern to counterparts in Cairo regarding Egypt’s military posture in the Sinai Peninsula, the two sources said.
Some have pointed to recently posted footage showing a large Egyptian tank presence in the Sinai, but those clips have not been verified, and an Israeli security official said the clips were not recent.
#1
As long as we in Israel remember that, for Arabs, Peace treaties is just another way to wage war. And that their (and their Globalist allies) ultimate goal is final solution of the "Jewish Problem", we'll be OK.
[Breitbart] The European Union saw over a million over a million asylum applications lodged by foreigners for the second straight year in 2024, the international migration regulator disclosed this week.
The annual report from the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) revealed that EU nations, as well as Norway and Switzerland, had 1,014,420 requests for asylum last year. This marked the second year in a row that over a million requests were filed, 1,143,437 recorded in 2023, Euronews reports.
According to the EUAA, some 48 per cent of asylum applicants came from countries with historically low chances of qualifying for refugee status, perhaps indicating an economic motive behind their attempts to gain residency in Europe.
Meanwhile, figures from the EU’s Frontex border agency showed 239,000 illegal border crossings into the bloc, meaning that around one in four asylum applicants likely entered the bloc illegally.
In terms of countries of origin for supposed asylum claims, Syria remained in the top place with 151,000, followed by Afghanistan at 87,382, Venezuela (73,187), Turkey (55,705), and Colombia (51,529).
Germany, with its large economy and generous welfare schemes for migrants, remained the top destination for migrants seeking asylum last year, with over a quarter of a million filed at 237,000. Spain stood in second at 165,767, followed by Italy at 158,867, France (158,730), Greece (73,688), Belgium (39,206) and the Netherlands (33,437).
In contrast, Hungary only saw 29 asylum applications last year, in a demonstration of the strict border controls enacted by the conservative-populist government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Budapest.
For protecting his nation’s borders, Orbán has long been at odds with Brussels, which has imposed millions in fines against Hungary, subtracting from reallocated EU funds.
The issue of mass migration into Europe has become a key driver of elections, with anti-mass migration parties seeing wins in recent years in countries like the Netherlands and populist parties making significant gains in countries like France and Germany.
A survey from YouGov conducted last month found that majorities in Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden all believe that immigration has been too high into their countries over the past decade.
This was particularly true for Spaniards and Germans, with 80 and 81 per cent of their respective populations saying that levels of been too high.
Meanwhile, a majority of respondents in the seven nations surveyed felt that their governments had performed very or fairly badly in terms of controlling immigration. Over eight in ten in both France and Germany felt their governments had failed on the immigration front.
[IsraelTimes] National Students for Justice in Palestine calls for mass unrest on campuses across the US, after the Trump administration’s crackdown on anti-Israel activists at Columbia University.
NSJP issues a statement calling on activist groups and individuals to walk out of class, “take over central spaces on campus, and assert our mass power.” The protest activities are scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
The statement is cosponsored by several other leading anti-Israel activist groups and says it is in response to the Trump administration’s moves against anti-Israel activists.
“The popular movement against Zionism, imperialism, and fascism will not shy away in the face of federal threats,” the statement says.
The call to arms comes after the Trump administration cut $400 million in funding to Columbia, and ICE agents detained a student protest leader, days after campus activists held several disruptive rallies and distributed Hamas propaganda.
“We will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said.
[FoxNews] Todd Lyons has been selected to serve as the acting director of ICE, while Madison Sheahan was appointed to the role of deputy director
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem tapped a new director and deputy director to lead U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as she works to reinstate a culture of results and accountability under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Noem announced the appointments on Sunday, saying Todd Lyons will serve as acting ICE director, and Madison Sheahan will serve as the deputy director of ICE.
"For the past four years, our brave men and women of ICE were barred from doing their jobs—ICE needs a culture of accountability that it has been starved of under the Biden Administration," Noem said. "Todd Lyons and Madison Sheahan are work horses, strong executors, and accountable leaders who will lead the men and women of ICE to achieve the American people’s mandate to target, arrest and deport illegal aliens."
In a press release, Homeland Security said Lyons currently serves as the acting executive associate director of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).
He has served in a variety of other roles within ICE, including assistant director of field operations for ERO, where he oversaw all 25 field offices and domestic operations across the U.S. Prior to that, Lyons worked as the ERO field office director (FOD) in the Boston field office, where he oversaw ERO activities in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Vermont.
Lyons started his career in federal service in 1993 as a member of the U.S. Air Force, and in 1999, he went into civilian law enforcement in Florida. Lyons joined ERO as an ICE agent in Dallas, Texas, in 2007.
Sheahan and Noem have worked together in the past, though most recently the new deputy director of ICE has served as the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, where she oversaw a $280 million budget and led a team of over 800 employees across wildlife, fisheries and enforcement divisions.
She helped establish the Special Operations Group inside the enforcement division, which places priority on public safety through historic partnerships with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies when major events like Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl take place in The Big Easy.
Sheahan also advised Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry in her role.
Prior to that, she worked for then-South Dakota Gov. Noem in various leadership positions, including the state Republican Party and on special initiatives aimed toward advancing Noem’s agenda.
[KhaamaPress] The U.S. State Department has issued a travel advisory urging American citizens to reconsider their travel plans to Pakistain due to the rising number of terrorist attacks and armed conflicts in the country.
According to a report by Express Tribune on March 8, the U.S. government has labeled Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... , and several areas along the Pakistain-India border as "threat areas." These regions are at a high risk of armed conflicts and potential terrorist activity, with the likelihood of violence escalating in the near future.
The State Department warned that Lions of Islam might launch attacks without warning, targeting a range of locations such as transportation hubs, shopping centers, military facilities, airports, universities, and places of worship. This widespread threat poses significant risks to both locals and foreign visitors.
The advisory also pointed out that U.S. diplomats and diplomatic areas in Pakistain have been attacked in the past, raising concerns that public places and vehicles in the country are now vulnerable to similar attacks. The increasing threats have prompted the U.S. to advise its citizens to remain alert when traveling in Pakistain.
Pakistain has yet to respond publicly to this heightened travel advisory. However,
death is not the end. There remains the litigation over the estate... the country has seen a surge in violence in recent months, with both the Baloch Liberation Army in Balochistan and the Tehrik-e-Taliban ...the once and current oppressors of Afghanistan... Pakistain (TTP) in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa continuing to clash with Pak security forces.
The U.S. travel warning underscores the escalating security situation in Pakistain, particularly in regions like Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, which have become the epicenter of armed conflicts and terrorist activities. The government’s focus on these areas highlights the growing instability and the challenges faced by local authorities in maintaining law and order.
The ongoing violence, with groups like the Baloch Liberation Army and TTP intensifying their campaigns against Pak forces, points to a broader security crisis in the country. These conflicts not only jeopardize the safety of civilians but also impact the overall stability of Pakistain.
[IsraelTimes] Drills in northern Indian Ocean meant to boost cooperation between the three countries; South Africa, UAE, Qatar and Pakistan among countries to send observers
The navies of Iran, Russia and China will hold military drills off the coast of 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... this week in a bid to boost cooperation, Iranian media reported on Sunday.
The three countries, which share a common desire to counter what they characterize as US hegemony, have held similar exercises in the region in recent years.
The drills "will begin on Tuesday in the port of Chabahar," located in southeast Iran on the Gulf of Oman, the Tasnim news agency said, without specifying their duration.
"Warships and combat and support vessels of the Chinese and Russian naval forces, as well as the warships of Iran’s naval forces of the army and the Revolutionary Guards" are expected to participate, according to Tasnim.
The exercises will take place "in the northern Indian Ocean" and aim to "strengthen security in the region and expand multilateral cooperation between participating countries," Tasnim said.
Azerbaijan, South Africa, Oman, Kazakhstan, Pakistain, Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... , Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Sri Lanka will attend as observers.
China will deploy "a destroyer and a supply ship," the Chinese Defense Ministry said on the WeChat social media network.
The Iranian army conducted drills in the same area in February to "strengthen defense capabilities against any threat."
China played a key role in rekindling diplomatic ties between Iran and 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... in 2023.
Last week, Rooters reported that Russian missile specialists flew to Tehran around the time that Iran launched ballistic missiles at Israel.
Since its establishment, the Islamic Theocratic Republic has repeatedly stated that it is dedicated to the destruction of Israel.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini...> said on Saturday that Tehran will not be "bullied" into negotiations, a day after US President Donald Trump ...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party... said he had sent a letter to the country’s top authority to negotiate a nuclear deal.
…the Scottish-Pakistani lawyer tapped in 2021 to be prosecutor for the ICC. With his expensive suits, shining shaved head, and comfortable padding, he looks exactly like movie villain, despite being Ahmadiyya — so he should know better. Oddly enough, one of his brothers, former Conservative Party MP Imran Ahmad Khan, is a convicted sex offender…
the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor leading a war crimes case against Israel, is facing renewed scrutiny following allegations of serious misconduct. According to the Daily Mail, Khan allegedly pressured a female colleague for over five months to withdraw her accusations of sexual misconduct, including making multiple daily calls urging her to retract her claims.
The report highlights that Khan’s alleged actions coincided with his pursuit of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. These charges, announced in May 2024, came just two weeks after he learned of the accusations against him, raising concerns over his ability to act impartially. Critics argue that his legal actions against Israel may be politically motivated, serving as a distraction from his personal scandal.
Sources cited in the report indicate that Khan repeatedly attempted to convince his accuser to sign a letter disavowing her claims. His persistent efforts allegedly led the woman to flee the Netherlands, leaving her car at the airport and cutting off contact with her immediate family. This has raised further concerns about the ethical conduct of the ICC's top prosecutor and his handling of sensitive cases, including those involving Israel.
Adding to the controversy, Khan’s close adviser, Mamadou Racine Ly, reportedly also pressured the woman to state she had no complaint, further calling into question the ICC's internal integrity. The report suggests that such behavior could undermine confidence in the ICC’s ability to conduct fair investigations, particularly regarding Israel’s actions in the ongoing conflict.
Despite the allegations, Khan remains in his role, refusing to step aside even after direct pleas from senior ICC officials, including American lawyer Brenda Hollis, who leads the court’s Palestine investigation. His refusal to temporarily step down has raised fears that the ongoing investigation into his misconduct could be compromised, further damaging the credibility of the ICC's case against Israel.
The controversy surrounding Khan has cast a shadow over the ICC's pursuit of Israeli leaders, with many questioning whether justice can be served impartially under his leadership. As the investigation into his actions unfolds, scrutiny over his motivations and the broader implications for Israel remains high.
Only a naif or a fool would believe this is anything but taqiyya.
[IsraelTimes] US hostage envoy Adam Boehler praises what he calls a Hamas proposal that would see a five- to ten-year truce with Israel during which the terror group would disarm and forego political power in Gaza, and claims his decision to enter direct talks with the terror group was coordinated with Jerusalem.
As he makes his rounds on Hebrew-language newscasts this evening, Boehler tells the Kan public broadcaster that Hamas “suggested exchanging all prisoners… and a five-year to ten-year truce where Hamas would lay down all weapons and where the US, as well as other countries, would ensure that there are no tunnels, there’s nothing taken on the military side, and that Hamas is not involved in politics going forward.”
He calls the proposal “not a bad first offer.”
Amid concerns that the White House is prioritizing the release of American hostages over Israeli ones, the US envoy reassures the Israeli public that the Trump administration intends to get both “Americans and Israelis out, our commitment is full.”
Boehler also says Israel was informed about his talks with Hamas before they even started, contradicting Israeli officials who say they only learned of the talks when they were already underway.
“My actions were coordinated with Israel… even though maybe there were some who said they weren’t,” he says. “My job isn’t to move Israel aside, Israel is a major ally… I want to be added to what happens to Israel, not take away.”
He dismisses conflicting narratives from Israel and Hamas on ceasefire developments, saying “that sounds a little like a game to me, that sounds like politics.”
Boehler calls US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, National Security advisor Mike Waltz and Secretary of State Marco Rubio “the A-team of foreign policy” from the US perspective, and asserts his confidence that the negotiators could reach an agreement in the region within “weeks.”
[IsraelTimes] Donald Trump’s former ambassador to Israel blasts the US president’s hostage envoy for meeting with Hamas, saying talks with the group are pointless.
“This past week, President Trump brilliantly presented Hamas with a binary choice: release all the hostages and surrender, or be destroyed. It is the only path to ending the war,” David Friedman writes on X.
“If I heard [hostage envoy Adam Boehler] correctly on the Sunday news shows, he took the unprecedented step to meet with Hamas to consider a third way — whether a deal could be struck where Hamas ‘would not be involved in governing Gaza,'” he continues.
He calls any agreement with Hamas “a waste of time” which “will never be kept.”
“Attempting one is beneath the dignity of the United States,” Friedman writes. “Adam, I know you mean well but listen to your boss. The choice must remain binary.”
Meanwhile, Boehler takes to X to praise Israel for unspecified moves, saying they have made an agreement with Hamas possible.
“Israel’s actions have opened the door to a lasting truce — prisoner releases, disarmed fighters and Hamas out of politics,” writes Boehler. “We’re close.”
#3
The way this type of logic gets fixed is by placing an indemnity on the agreement in such that if Hamas violates the agreement one of Adam Boehler children's lives is forfeited.
Harsh, but makes them have skin in the game so that their decisions are a bit more based in reality so that they suffer the consequences of their foo-foo wuu-wuu fantasies.
#7
If Hamas offered to change its charter, that would be taqqiya as well. Unfortunately, their reputation as untrustworthy is well-earnt. Any agreement with them needs sharp teeth — really, it should be that every dead hostage can be traded only for a single dead Palestinian, and if there are none already available, then the next in line will be stood up and shot at the exchange. For fairness, you see.
#8
it should be that every dead hostage can be traded only for a single dead Palestinian
Like for like seems reasonable, but the established exchange rate is something one Juice for a thousand Paleos. Given the surplus of jailed terrorists, it should be no problem to brew up sufficient deaders. The only question is whether Hamass wants them in bulk or individually wrapped.
[IsraelTime] Political adviser to terror group’s leader says Hamas not opposed to releasing soldier; Hamas spokesman rejects extension of original deal’s first phase
Meetings between Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... leaders and US hostage negotiator Adam Boehler in recent days have focused on the release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, a senior Hamas official told Rooters on Sunday.
"Several meetings have already taken place in Doha, focusing on releasing one of the dual-nationality prisoners. We have dealt positively and flexibly, in a way that serves the interests of the Paleostinian people," said Taher Nunu, political adviser to the leader of the terror group, confirming that talks took place over the past week.
The US-Hamas discussions broke with a decades-old policy by Washington against negotiating with groups that the US has designated terrorist organizations. Hamas has been proscribed as such since 1997.
Nunu said the sides had also discussed how to see through the implementation of the phased agreement with Israel that went into effect on January 19.
"We informed the American delegation that we don’t oppose the release of the prisoner within the framework of these talks," Nunu told Rooters.
Alexander, a 21-year-old who grew up in New Jersey and then returned to Israel, where he was born, to serve in the IDF, is believed to be the last living American hostage held by Hamas in 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... , though the bodies of several Americans are also believed held in the Strip.
In total there are 24 presumed-living hostages and 35 bodies held by Hamas or its allies in Gaza.
US President Donald Trump ...So far he's been unkillable, and they've tried.... ’s special envoy Steve Witkoff told news hounds at the White House last week that gaining Alexander’s release was a "top priority for us."
Nunu praised what he described as the "important role" played by Witkoff — who is expected to travel to Doha this week, according to Axios — in reaching the January 19 ceasefire agreement that halted the fighting in Gaza.
"We hope that he (Witkoff) will work to succeed in the negotiation of the second phase," Nunu said.
In remarks on Sunday defending the US-Hamas talks, Trump’s hostage envoy Boehler said, "I want to note the American hostages that are there. One in particular that’s alive. Adi [sic] Alexander and four dead bodies of Americans. There have been about 50 killed, and that is just not acceptable."
HAMAS SPOKESMAN: NO EXTENSION OF PHASE ONE Meanwhile,
...back at the wreckage, Captain Poindexter wished he had a cup of coffee. Even instant would do... in an interview aired by al Jazeera early Sunday morning, Hamas front man Hazem Qassem said the terror group "does not mind the release of Israeli prisoners with American citizenship," but added that this will only happen "within a comprehensive agreement."
Qassem said Hamas is sticking to its conditions for a second phase to the ceasefire with Israel — a hostage-prisoner exchange, Israel’s complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and a guarantee of no return to war — stressing that Hamas "rejects extending the first stage of the ceasefire agreement."
Qassem said he does not "rule out the possibility of meeting with representatives of the US administration."
"Hamas understands that Washington has the ability to pressure" Israel on these conditions, he added.
ISRAEL SENDING DELEGATION TO QATAR FOR TALKS
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced late Saturday that he would send a delegation to Doha on Monday in an attempt to move negotiations forward.
The delegation will be headed by the government’s hostage point man Gal Hirsch, and senior Shin Bet official "M.," an Israeli official told The Times of Israel. Netanyahu’s political adviser Ophir Falk will also join the delegation. The delegation that flew to Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... in February was made up of the same officials.
M. is flying in place of the head of the security agency, Ronen Bar, whom Netanyahu removed from his negotiating role and is reportedly seeking to fire.
[IsraelTimes] US hostage envoy Adam Boehler says he doesn’t “really care” about Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer’s criticism of his direct talks with Hamas, while referring to Palestinian prisoners as “hostages.”
“I don’t really care about that that much — no offense to Dermer,” Boehler says during an interview with Israel’s Channel 13, appearing to escalate a scuffle that was first held privately between the two on Tuesday hours after Israel learned of the US hostage envoy’s direct talks with Hamas.
“If it was a big deal every time Dermer got a little bit upset… Ron might have a lot of big deals every day,” Boehler says. “I love Ron. We’ll work together again. It was great. I take no offense because he was doing what he was supposed to do.”
“I don’t mean to injure Ron or anyone else… Dermer runs a country with Bibi that is on its own, where they are exchanging massive amounts of hostages for one person,” Boehler says.
“And I will say, it’s a lot of hostages. We wouldn’t do that deal in the United States,” Boehler adds, revealing his views on the trades that Israel has been making with Hamas.
“I respect and understand his position. However, we also have our own interests in the US, and I believe and hope that some of those interactions [with Hamas] can speed things up,” he adds.
The senior American official, who has repeatedly referred to Israeli hostages as “prisoners,” appears to now be using the term “hostages” to describe Palestinian prisoners, adopting rhetoric common with Hamas but considered offensive in Israel and among many Americans. Hamas has referred to civilians kidnapped on October 7, including children and the elderly, as prisoners who were “arrested.”
Boehler tells i24News in a separate interview that he was the one who reached out to Hamas to hold direct talks earlier this year, not the other way around.
“We don’t think meeting somebody is a concession,” he adds.
[IsraelTimes] The identities and addresses of thousands of Israeli gun owners have been leaked online following a hack carried out by Iranians in February, Haaretz has reported.
The newspaper says the leak could threaten some 10,000 people who could be targeted by criminal elements seeking to obtain the weapons.
The report says over 100,000 files were stolen from various sources including the police, the National Security Ministry, and private security firms. Police have said their systems were not breached, and Haaretz said it was not clear where the files were taken from.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Leonid Tsukanov
[REGNUM] The Israeli high command continues to undergo changes caused by the conflict in the Gaza Strip. Recently, Eyal Zamir replaced the Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Herzi Halevi, who resigned under public pressure.
"Tank General," as Zamir's opponents nicknamed him (referring to his many years of service in the armored forces, his general inflexibility and intractability), appeared at the General Staff at the right time. Tel Aviv-Hamas talks have reached a dead end, and the parliamentary "opposition of the generals" is persistently trying to blame the current cabinet for the failures. The US is looking for a balance between pressure on the enclave and cautious diplomacy.
Against this background, the new appointment in the General Staff shows that the Israeli government is ready to continue the confrontation with Hamas and is doing everything to ensure that the new operation proceeds without delay.
SUITABLE CANDIDATE
Zamir's biography is fully in line with the "spirit of the times". He is a second-generation career soldier; his grandfather fought in the ranks of the underground organization "Etzel" against the Arab-British forces in Palestine.
In addition, the future Chief of the General Staff himself fought against Hezbollah and Palestinian forces for many years and is familiar with the tactics of his opponents first-hand. As commander of the Saar mi-Golan armored brigade, he contributed to the isolation of the Gaza Strip, for which he earned a place on the list of "eternal enemies of Hamas."
In addition, the new Chief of General Staff has the advantage of having strong ties to American politicians and industrialists. Since the beginning of the conflict in Gaza, Zamir has overseen the procurement of weapons for the IDF's operational needs from the United States, and has also participated in coordinating US financial aid packages for Israel for defense purposes. He played a significant role in increasing the American "weapons ration" and lifting restrictions on the supply of MK-84 heavy aerial bombs to Tel Aviv.
It would be difficult to find a more suitable candidate among the career military to emphasize the readiness of the Israeli authorities to fight the Hamas threat “until victory.”
CLEANING UP THE GENERAL STAFF
Zamir's appointment as Chief of Staff not only serves practical purposes, but is also intended to strengthen the Israeli government's shaky influence over the army. It is no secret that Zamir has close ties to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and fully shares his views on fighting Israel's internal and external enemies.
Back in 2022, it was assumed that Zamir would take the post of Chief of General Staff - the Israeli Prime Minister had been insisting on this for quite some time. However, in order not to upset the balance of power in the coalition, he was forced to give in to then Defense Minister Benny Gantz and agree on the candidates he proposed for the Chief of General Staff and his deputies.
This later resulted in constant attempts by Gantz and his protégés in the General Staff and parliament to impose their own vision of the operation in Gaza on the prime minister’s office.
After Gantz left the military cabinet in July 2024, Netanyahu considered his obligations to his former ally completely exhausted. In this regard, it is not surprising that other candidates for the high post - Generals Amir Baram and Tamir Yadai, who were considered ideologically close to Ha-Levi and other opposition-minded military leaders (the so-called "generals' opposition") - were not appointed.
In fact, Netanyahu managed to “cleanse” the General Staff of opponents of continuing the armed struggle against Hamas, or at least push them out of decision-making.
Without a connection with those who are fighting Hamas “on the ground,” the claims of the retired members of parliament, led by Gantz, no longer sound so confident.
"LESSONS OF WAR"
The very first press conference of the "Tank General" only emphasized the upcoming changes within the Israeli armed forces. Zamir unambiguously called 2025 "the year of war with Hamas and Iran" and announced large-scale reforms in the troops.
Among other things, they decided to disband “due to low efficiency” the Department of Strategy and Iran, created by their predecessors and responsible for developing operations against Iranian proxy formations throughout the Middle East.
Along the way, the new Chief of Staff plans to form at least one new infantry and tank brigade, as well as to bring back into service the previously disbanded reconnaissance units within the armored forces (Palsari). The return of the Palsari, according to Zamir, is dictated by the "lessons of war", since most of the IDF's armored losses in Gaza occurred precisely because of weak reconnaissance.
Moreover, the initiated reshuffles among the generals, in particular the appointment of "hawks" Yaniv Asor and Itzik Cohen to the posts of commander of the Southern Command and head of the operations department, respectively, indicate that "Tank General" intends to impose a more aggressive and assertive strategy of action on the army. Both officers are known as opponents of any agreement on Gaza other than the capitulation of Hamas.
Another important step was the intention to completely revise the investigations into the "October 7 catastrophe" prepared by Ha-Levi and his subordinates. The IDF's February report, which blamed the government for military miscalculations in the initial stages of the conflict with Hamas, was declared invalid.
The new commission, the convening of which Zamir has already announced, will include high-ranking retired officials, equally distant from both Netanyahu and the key figures of the “generals’ opposition,” which will make it possible to smooth over the political component of the investigation or at least not bring it into the public arena.
TWO WAYS
So far, the course of the new Chief of Staff completely coincides with the American vision of the situation in Gaza: US President Donald Trump supports Israel’s plans to act more harshly towards Hamas and issues ultimatum after ultimatum to Gaza.
However, in parallel, the White House has entered into direct negotiations with the movement outside the existing formats. This turn of events is causing concern in Tel Aviv, no matter how much Washington prefers diplomatic means to force. Especially in conditions when its other regional allies are categorically against a tough scenario.
However, Netanyahu has taken precautions against this eventuality as well. The Israeli army is gathering strength for a decisive attack. And even in the event of a “disengagement” with the US, Zamir’s connections should help maintain the previous volumes of military supplies for some time and provide fuel for the blitzkrieg in Gaza.
[NY Post] Actions (or lack of) have Consequences. Who knew? Shiver in the dark, savages
Israel is cutting off its electricity supply to Gaza as the country’s energy minister vowed to use “all the tools available” to free the last of the hostages held by Hamas.
The supply of electricity into the Gaza Strip from Israel was cut off suddenly on Sunday by the Israel Electric Corporation on the orders of Energy Minister Eli Cohen.
“We will employ all the tools available to us so that all the hostages will return, and we will ensure that Hamas won’t be in Gaza on the ‘day after,'” Cohen said in a short video statement.
The decision to cut electricity is expected to also cut off a major source of clean drinking water for hundreds of thousands of residents of the war-torn territory — a desalination plant, which converts salt water to fresh water.
Israel previously cut electricity from Israel to Gaza in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks, but that November, the country announced the renewal of supply to the desalination plant close to Deir el-Balah in central Gaza.
This plant, which serves more than 600,000 residents of Gaza, has now had its power cut off by Israel.
The facility is one of three seawater processing plants in the Gaza Strip, which, before the war, met around 15% of the water needs for the more than 2 million residents of the territory.
Israel has not ruled out cutting off water supplies to Gaza, the government said on Sunday.
The move came a week after Israel announced it was halting the entry of goods into Gaza on March 2, in response to what it called the Hamas terror group’s refusal to accept a proposal to extend the initial stage of the ceasefire and hostage release deal.
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/10/2025 00:00 ||
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[11137 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
#2
I looked into this. I was thinking there was no way the Israelis cut Gaza Palestinians off from electricity. Things that get me excited, I have learned, are usually exaggerations. This is no exception.
The electricity that the jews supplied only powered 50% of the Palestinian grid. Palis still have solar farms, and Hamas has control over Diesel Generators and has a monopoly on Diesel in Gaza.
That is plenty of electricity to keep the Pali War Machine going. Which disappointed me.
#3
If, as protesters allege, Israel is really committing "genocide", why are they supplying any electricity, water, or food? I really doubt that Hitler supplied these thing to Jews.
[MSN-Jpost] Qatar has been increasingly vocal in its critique of Israel. Its foreign minister warned against attacks on Iran in an interview with Tucker Carlson in the US on Friday.
Qatar said the “Persian Gulf states will run out of drinking water in three days if Iran’s nuclear sites are attacked,” according to Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Iran’s official news agency.
This seems to be a talking point aimed at getting the Trump administration to enter a new deal with Iran, rather than pressure the Iranians in a way that could lead to Iran-Israel military clashes.
This appears to be part of Doha’s strategy, which is connected to a string of recent comments. In early March, for instance, Qatar slammed the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) for issuing a report about the October 7 massacre that said financial payments from Doha to Gaza had empowered Hamas.
In a statement from Qatar’s International Media Office, Doha cited “false accusations made by the Shin Bet security agency linking Qatari aid to the October 7 attack… yet another example of deflection driven by self-interest and self-preservation in Israeli politics.”
This also comes as media outlets and protesters have expressed concern about Doha’s role in influencing Israel.
PRESSURE ON ISRAEL
Over the weekend, Doha appeared to ratchet up pressure on Israel. Qatar said Israeli nuclear facilities should be brought under the regulation of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and it called for Israel to sign the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT) at a session of the IAEA in Vienna on Saturday.
This happened as Doha was continuing to host talks on a ceasefire in Gaza, Ynet reported. So far, Israel appears to have been outplayed in those talks, as Doha and Hamas hold most of the cards. The US is also having direct talks with Hamas now.
The foreign minister’s comments to Carlson are of particular interest in the region, and Iranian media outlets appeared to be pleased by them.
“[Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani] says Persian Gulf countries will run out of drinking water within three days if Iran’s nuclear facilities are attacked,” IRNA reported.
“[He] has strongly warned that any attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities will have catastrophic consequences for the entire region,” the report said.
The comments were made about the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant because of its proximity to the sea, which is close to the other Persian Gulf countries.
The water supply “would basically be entirely contaminated... the whole country would run out of water in three days… This is not only applied for Qatar, it is applied for Kuwait, for the UAE, for all of us in that part… We are physically close to Iran, about 120 miles away, right across the water,” the report said. “You can get there by a 90-minute boat ride.”
“Al Thani also expressed hope for a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear issue,” the report said.
“We do not support any military action in this region in any way, and we will not stop trying until a diplomatic solution is found between the United States and Iran,” IRNA quoted him as saying.
This is important, and it illustrates how Qatar is now playing its cards. Doha is pressuring Israel while also hosting talks. It is also more openly critiquing Israel while seeking to gets its message to more Right-leaning media and media personalities who are followed by some people in the pro-Trump orbit.
It remains to be seen whether the Trump team and envoy Steve Witkoff can achieve a new hostage deal.
Trump has been very vocal about support for the hostages and bringing them home. He hosted several of the freed hostages at the White House in early March.
Witkoff also said he hoped Hamas would show goodwill and release American citizen Edan Alexander, one of the hostages in Gaza.
Any Hamas leadership still hanging around in Qatar should be eliminated.
By Qatar if they were smart, but we know they aren't.
Here's a tip for any Islamic hell-hole that wishes to pretend to be a "vacation destination": Shut up. Literally. Shut up and quit exposing the fact that your government and your people have nothing in common with the money you'd like to have come visit your bullshit country.
#5
@3 This could allude to a possible contamination of the Gulf' water with radioactive isotopes from Iranian facilities or it could be a threat of direct retaliation against desalination plants.
[IRNA] Qatar has called for increased international efforts to place all Israeli nuclear facilities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
In a statement on Sunday, the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the UN nuclear watchdog to bring all of Israel’s nuclear facilities under its supervision.
The statement followed a meeting of IAEA governors in Vienna attended by Jassim Yacoub Al-Hammadi, Qatar’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations Office and International Organizations in Vienna. It also called on Israel to join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
During the meeting, Al-Hammadi stressed the need for the international community and its institutions to uphold their commitments under UN Security Council resolutions.
He called for increased international efforts to make Israel join the NPT, noting that all Middle Eastern countries are parties to the treaty and have established effective safeguard agreements with the IAEA.
Like Iran, you mean? How is that working out for you?
The official further condemned Israel’s aggressive policies toward Palestinians, including calls for the forced displacement of residents of Gaza, blocking humanitarian aid, and intensifying military raids in the occupied West Bank.
[IsraelTimes] Captive soldier’s family says video shows time has run out, point to his ‘severe psychological state, non-functional right hand, and broken nose,’ and express torture fears
Hamas ..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",... on Friday published a video of hostage Matan Angrest begging to be set free, in an apparent effort by the terror group to mobilize Israeli public opinion in favor of continuing the ceasefire deal amid an impasse in negotiations.
In the video, the 21-year-old captive IDF soldier, taken from a tank at Nahal Oz during battles there on October 7, 2023, says he has been held for 511 days, indicating it was likely filmed last week.
Angrest, whose family approved the clip for publication, says he’s been told of the impasse in talks and feels that the Israeli government is deserting the hostages. "We’re starting to lose hope," Angrest says, his voice emotionless throughout the video.
He warns against a return to fighting by the IDF, saying doing so won’t secure freedom for the remaining 59 hostages. Angrest says the only way the hostages will go free is through a continuation of the phased deal to which the sides principally agreed in January.
On Saturday, the first phase of the ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas drew to a close. Talks regarding terms of a poteantial second phase were supposed to have begun on February 3, but Israel has largely refused to engage in them, as phase two requires Israel to fully withdraw from 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... and agree to a permanent end to the war in exchange for the remaining living hostages.
Instead, it has sought to advance a new proposal for an extension of the first phase through Ramadan and Passover, which ends on April 19. At the beginning of the period, Hamas would release half of the remaining 59 hostages — 24 of whom are believed to be alive — while the second half would be released at the end of the ceasefire, if the sides agree to terms for a permanent end to the war.
Reflecting on his conditions in captivity in the Hamas propaganda video, Angrest says he hasn’t seen sunlight and has sufferd from the winter cold. He adds that he’s been treated "like a soldier," and not as a regular hostage, without offering details.
Pleading to US President Donald Trump ...Perhaps no man has ever had as much fun being president of the US... to secure his release, Angrest says, "You’re the only one who has the power to influence Netanyahu."
He tells his parents and three siblings that he knows they’re fighting for him and that he can’t wait to hug and see them again.
Angrest closes by calling on the Israeli public to take to the streets in droves in order to protest for the release of the remaining hostages.
In a statement released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, Angrest’s family said, "We are shaken by the video we just saw, in which we see our Matan looking drained and desperate after 518 days in Hamas’s tunnels."
"Beyond the grave psychological state evident in the footage, his right hand is non-functional, his eyes and mouth are asymmetrical, and his nose is broken: according to testimonies from those who have returned, this is all due to interrogations and torture in captivity. What more proof is needed to understand that time has run out?"
The family also appealed to Trump — the latest demonstration that hostages’ families believe the US president, not the Israeli prime minister, is the key to their loved ones’ release — urging him to "continue fighting for our Matan and all 58 other hostages with the same unwavering commitment and relentless determination. We must not stop until the deal is completed — only when the last hostage comes home."
On Monday the family had published the first photo of Angrest from captivity, from a previous video received from Hamas. That still photo joined an audio recording released several months back, in which Angrest begged Netanyahu to secure his release, in comments likely dictated by his captors.
Angrest’s family said he was "undergoing hellish torment, torturous interrogations, and is being held in inhuman conditions."
The family also lamented that although he was seriously maimed when kidnapped to Gaza, the soldier was not included in the "humanitarian" category of hostages released in the first stage of the ceasefire agreement, "because he’s an Israeli soldier."
Israel unveiled the offer to extend the ceasefire’s first stage a week ago, dubbing it the "Witkoff proposal" and saying it had been crafted by US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff.
Netanyahu’s office indicated it would be willing to hold talks on the terms of a permanent ceasefire in this framework, but the premier has long insisted that he will not accept anything other than Hamas’s complete surrender and exit from Gaza.
Hamas has thus far rejected the "Witkoff proposal" — which the US envoy himself has yet to publicly endorse — insisting that it will only agree to release hostages through the framework that the sides inked in January.
Meanwhile,
...back at the abandoned silver mine, there was another explosion... the US began holding direct talks with Hamas in recent weeks aimed largely at securing the release of five American-Israeli hostages. Those negotiations have yet to bear fruit, leading US President Donald Trump to issue an ultimatum on Wednesday, demanding that the terror group immediately release all hostages or face destruction.
Top Trump aides indicated that they expected movement toward their goal in the coming days.
Trump issued the ultimatum shortly after meeting with a group of eight former hostages in the Oval Office.
Reflecting on the experience on Friday, Trump told news hounds he was surprised to learn from the released hostages he’d met that not a single one of their Hamas captors treated them with kindness.
"I said, ’Did you see anybody in there [who] was kind out of the hundreds of people that you were seeing [from] Hamas? Did some of them wink at you and say, ’Don’t worry, you’re going to be okay, or give you a piece of bread?’ ’No,’" Trump recalled.
"I said, ’Were there any people that were kind? I was shocked. The answer was nobody. There was nobody. Just the opposite. They’d be slapped and punched. One man broke his ribs. He couldn’t breathe for a month. It was brutal," he said, appearing to reference the testimony of recently released hostage Eli Sharabi.
"I was so surprised. Because you think there’d be a couple of people that would be kind, that would say, ’You’re going to be okay.’ But they had none of that. It’s pretty amazing," Trump said.
Meanwhile on Friday, a group of more than 50 former Hamas hostages signed onto a letter to Netanyahu calling for Israel to continue with the ceasefire deal so the remaining captives in Gaza can return home.
[IsraelTimes] Experts say Iranians risked execution by sending footage to Channel 12; ‘We love Israel… Iranian women fell in love with Israeli soldiers,’ Baha’i woman says in report
Iranians in Tehran illicitly filmed scenes of their capital for Israeli Channel 12 news, an act that constitutes espionage in 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 can warrant a death penalty The clips, broadcast on Saturday, included footage showing locals at high-end shopping malls that the videographers said are only financially accessible to those connected to the regime.
"I filmed this video with great difficulty and fear, and I said I would send it to the Israeli Channel 12," said a 44-year-old Iranian who sent footage for the report and went by the alias Ali, speaking in Persian. "I committed a dangerous act. If you just talk to Israelis, you become a spy and they will execute you."
The report showed Ali’s face from the nose down while he was speaking with a Channel 12 journalist.
"I have a master’s degree in electronics, and I’m unemployed," said Ali, who emphasized his economic grievances throughout the report.
Ali filmed himself traveling by subway to Tehran’s District 1, where senior regime and Revolutionary Guards officials reside.
"People are tired. The Iranian citizens, who are tired of the Islamic Theocratic Republic, are uncomfortable, bored, servile," he said.
Beni Sabti, an Iran expert, told Channel 12 that the Iranian regime considers the release of such footage from within Iran to be an embarrassment and harmful to the country.
Rani Amrani, also an Iran expert, told the outlet that had Ali been caught, he would have certainly received the death penalty.
Ali’s footage of Tehran’s Fereshteh Street showed lavish malls and homes, and women without their hair covered, even though hijabs are mandatory in Iran.
"Out of all the products, there isn’t one that is less than 200 or 300 dollars," Ali said as he walked past store windows inside a mall. "Only one percent of Iran’s residents can shop at a store like this. Me and those like me, can’t. Ninety-nine percent of Iranians can’t."
The images of luxury shown by Ali stand in contrast to Iran’s economic situation, which Sabti said is the worst since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Ali also showed footage of a market in Tehran at 6 p.m. running without any electricity. "Unfortunately, we have electricity only one hour a day. God knows where the electricity goes."
A clip shown on the report showed people suspended in midair on a fairground ride that stopped because of a power outage. At the same time of day, the report charged, the power was on in the malls of District 1.
"[The regime] gives money to Hamas ..always the voice of sweet reason... , Hezbollah, Iraq, Afghanistan, and the whole world gets its share from Iran," Ali told the Channel 12 news hound. "Why should we live in such poverty? Why should I be unemployed now?"
The report also showed another Iranian’s footage of a high-end restaurant in Tehran.
"This restaurant we’re seeing, if I come in to eat one meal, it will cost half my monthly salary," he said. "Only the men, children of the country’s leaders, children of politicians, the Revolutionary Guards, their children, them themselves, only they can come shop in [stores] like this."
The report also showed footage of young Iranians with connections to the regime at luxurious parties in bathing suits and without their hair covered.
"They’re always saying ’Death to America, Death to England,’ all over while their children have American, British and Canadian passports," Ali told Channel 12. "People are angry at them and disturbed by them."
HIJAB PROTESTS
Channel 12 also interviewed a Baha’i woman, using the alias Miriam, about Iranian women’s discontent with mandatory hijab laws.
Miriam told Channel 12 that while the enforcement of hijab laws has generally become more "gentle," women fear receiving fines for driving without a head covering. "You receive [a fine] if you are caught without a hijab behind the wheel three times. You receive three text messages telling you to adhere to the hijab mandate, and if you don’t adhere, they will impound your car."
Miriam said that after the death of Mahsa Amini — who died while in the custody of Iranian morality police for not wearing a hijab, sparking widespread protests — she found the courage to walk in the streets with her head uncovered.
"I think this regime will not last. Considering the pressures placed on it and the mistakes it made toward its people, it won’t last. It will destroy itself with its own hands."
When asked what she thinks of Israel, Miriam said, "We all want to have good relations with Israel, and we all love Israel... It’s funny, many Iranian women fell in love with the Israeli soldiers that were so handsome. They hoped Israel would attack Iran."
Ali, who said that until a decade ago he supported the regime, ended his interview with a message to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei ...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini...> "Know this, Khamenei, this is your end, you’re old, you’re dying. Nobody will replace you. We, the regular people, won’t allow it. If the working class wants to revolt, bullets and tanks won’t be able to stand in its way. The people will take down this regime... Later, they’ll write in the pages of history that there used to be a country like that. It was the richest country in the world, but its people were the poorest in the world."
Then it’s time for Israel to resume the war against Hezbollah — they aren’t abiding by the truce, which forbids them rearming, so why should Israel?
[IsraelTimes] In comments tonight, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem insisted his organization is alive and well, but admitted taking heavy blows during its fight with Israel, while claiming that the group is choosing to lay low for the time being to let Lebanon’s armed forces confront Israel instead.
Qassem, speaking to Hezbollah mouthpiece al-Manar for the first time since taking over the group in the wake of leader Hassan Nasrallah’s assassination by Israel, said: “The resistance is fine and continuing, but it has been wounded and has made sacrifices. Does anyone expect the resistance to continue without sacrifices? Great sacrifices, yes, but we realize that these sacrifices must be made.”
He said Hezbollah was committed to “resistance to liberate the land and confront expansionist Israel that wants to usurp the region, not just Palestine.”
He also rejected the notion of Hezbollah disarming after new President Joseph Aoun said the Lebanese state must have control over “the decisions of war and peace,” and to do this, it must “monopolize or restrict weapons to the state.”
Qassem said: “We have nothing to do with this matter. We are a resistance that considers Israel a threat to Lebanon, and there is no objection to the army and the state defending Lebanon. The resistance has the right to continue to protect Lebanon. Therefore, we do not consider the president’s words about the exclusivity of weapons to be directed at us.”
He also praised Lebanese who have “offered martyrs” to fighting Israel.
“The resistance is not a phase, but rather it is ongoing, and it is an idea that is adopted by the young and old, women and men,” he said. “We feel proud when we hear the stances of these people… There is a woman who says: ‘I have offered three martyrs, two of my sons-in-law, and two of my grandchildren, and the rest I am ready to offer, and I am ready to offer myself.’
“Or the one who says: ‘I have offered my only son and I am ready to offer more,’” he added. “This is a great example. Who can defeat these people?”
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah is also responsible for destabilizing the situation in Syria. This opinion was expressed on March 9 by Sajid al-Deek, a representative of the security forces in the Syrian province of Latakia.
Interesting times for the allies of the old regime, and Iran’s willing tools. More than Hezbollah might want to retreat to their home territory post haste, if they can…
"Hezbollah has provided support to some parties in some areas of the [Mediterranean] coast," he said on Al Arabiya TV.
According to al-Dik, the Lebanese movement, together with other countries, supported some parties and the remnants of the forces of supporters of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in a number of areas along the country's coast.
A Syrian security official added that five people who held high positions under Assad had been detained, but declined to name them for security reasons. He said the new Syrian authorities were 90% in control of the situation.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, on March 6, clashes occurred in Latakia between Assad supporters and forces of the new Syrian government. As a result of the unrest, a curfew was imposed in the province. Later, units of the Syrian army loyal to the new government entered the city.
Kurdish television channel Rudaw reported on March 8 that at least 532 civilians had been killed in clashes in the provinces of Latakia, Tartus and Homs. It specified that most of the dead were members of the Alawite community, which makes up 12% of Syria's population.
Assad resigned as president of Syria on December 8, 2024, and fled the country after a large-scale offensive by armed opposition groups on Damascus. He received political asylum in Russia. Ahmed al-Sharaa became the head of the interim government.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] Iran will never discuss with the United States the cessation of the republic's nuclear program. This was stated by the Iranian mission to the UN on March 9.
"If the goal is to dismantle Iran's peaceful nuclear program in order to claim that what [44th US President Barack ] Obama could not achieve has now been achieved, such negotiations will never take place," said a statement published on H.'s social network.
It is also noted that Tehran allows the possibility of holding negotiations on its nuclear program only if the topic of discussion is possible militarization.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, on March 7, US President Donald Trump said that he had sent a letter to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei proposing to hold talks on the country's nuclear program. Washington is considering both military and diplomatic solutions to the issue, but prefers negotiations, the American leader clarified.
The next day, Khamenei said Tehran would not negotiate with the US because the White House was trying to impose its own interests on the republic instead of solving problems. Trump responded by saying that time was running out for the US to conclude a nuclear deal with Iran.
The press secretary of the Russian president Dmitry Peskov recalled Moscow's position, according to which the US and Iran should resolve the issue of the nuclear program only by peaceful, political and diplomatic means. He also added that the topic of Iran was raised during the talks in Riyadh, but it was not discussed in detail.
Posted by: badanov ||
03/10/2025 00:00 ||
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[11139 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
That's fine, their words would mean nothing anyway.
[Rudaw] A Kurdish politician on Saturday said that more than 600 settler families have left Afrin, while 400 Kurdish families have returned to their homes.
"The percentage of Kurds in Afrin and its countryside has increased, while the percentage of [settled] Arabs has decreased," Ahmed Hassan told Rudaw. He is the head of the local council for the Kurdish National Council (ENKS/KNC) - a coalition of Kurdish political parties that is considered the main opposition in northeast Syria (Rojava).
"Some villages in Afrin have been completely emptied of displaced Arabs who had settled there," he added.
In 2018, The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire... and its allied Syrian militias seized control of Afrin, a Kurdish enclave in northwest Syria. Thousands of Kurds fled, many moving to the nearby Shahba region and families displaced from elsewhere in Syria moved into Afrin.
International organizations have recorded numerous human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. violations against Afrin’s Kurdish population since 2018, including killings, kidnappings, looting of agricultural crops, cutting down olive trees, and imposing taxes on farmers.
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa visited Afrin in mid-February, and met with locals, the majority of whom were Kurds. He pledged to remove gangs and put an end to the violations, a representative from ENKS who attended the meeting told Rudaw.
Hassan confirmed that the general security forces under the Syrian government in Damascus are present in the center of Afrin, while armed factions still control several other districts.
"The general security forces have informed residents of these districts that within 15-20 days, they will extend their control there as well, and no armed factions will remain. Residents should be able to return safely," he said.
He added that the situation in Afrin "has significantly improved compared to previous years" and that the return of property to its original owners "is being resolved within a matter of days."
"Armed factions are no longer interfering, and their presence is now limited to only a few areas," he said.
Kurds returning to Afrin are no longer subjected to imprisonment or forced to pay levies. Displaced families returning to their homes had been forced to pay fees, ranging from $1,000 to $1,500.
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.
... the personification of Somali state failure...
... the personification of Somali state failure...
..a regional Iranian catspaw,...
...the once and current oppressors of Afghanistan...
...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...
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
..always the voice of sweet reason...
...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire...
