[FoxNews] The U.S. ramped up its fight against Caribbean narco mobs Monday as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine touched down in Puerto Rico to bolster military operations.
Puerto Rican Gov. Jenniffer González-Colón and First Gentleman Dr. José Yovín Vargas welcomed the pair, framing the visit as the Trump administration’s show of support for troops training on the island.
"We thank President Trump and his administration for recognizing Puerto Rico’s strategic importance to our national security, and for their commitment to combat narco mobs and the narco-dictator Nicolás Maduro," the governor said. "We fully support America First policies that protect our borders and fight illicit activities in defense of the American people."
The meeting took place at Muñiz Air Base in Carolina, outside San Juan, and drew top brass including Puerto Rico National Guard Adjutant General Carlos José Rivera-Román, Public Safety Secretary Brig. Gen. Arthur Garffer, and other senior military leaders.
Hegseth spoke to nearly 300 soldiers at the base, thanking and describing them as "American warriors." The secretary of war also provided affirmation that those serving in the Armed Forces will be the best equipped and prepared in the world.
The visit comes as the U.S. military expands its naval footprint near Venezuela
...a country in Central America that sits on an enormous pool of oil. Formerly the most prospereous country in the region, it became infested with Commies sniffing almost unlimited wealth. It turned out the wealth wasn't unlimited, the economy collapsed under the clownish Hugo Chavez, the murder rate exceeded places like Honduras and El Salvador. A significant proportion of the populace refugeed to Colombia and points south... , part of President Donald Trump ...The cad! Twice caught beating wimmin!... ’s push to choke off drug flows from Latin America.
Naval and air assets have been dispatched to confront traffickers and secure key maritime routes, with some already used this week against alleged narco-terrorists.
Indeed. Yesterday we learnt here that actually one of the idiots on the boat misfired a flare gun. Nobody is out to get them — in that way, at any rate. What IDF frogmen might be doing under the surface of the sea is completely unknown.
by Leonid Tsukanov
On the night of September 9, a dangerous incident occurred in the Tunisian port of Sidi Bou Said. The flagship ship of the humanitarian project "Freedom Flotilla", on board of which was Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who was heading to Gaza, was allegedly attacked by an unknown drone.
Meh. They’re stuck there until tomorrow anyway — some sort of repairs because they’re too stupid to do scheduled maintenance.
According to reports from the area, a fire broke out in the bow of the flagship. Although there were no casualties, the vessel requires repairs.
The activists sailing with Thunberg believe the attack was an Israeli warning designed to disrupt their mission to deliver humanitarian aid to the enclave. However, as the course of the current mission shows, the process is much more important to its participants than the result.
HUMANITARIAN FLEET
The international confederation of volunteer organizations "Freedom Flotilla",
Whose freedom, O Russian writer? Not of the Palestinians, who will continue to live under the totalitarian thumb of Hamas until the IDF frees them. Of the Jews? They have kept themselves free by watering the tree of Liberty for a century with lots of Jewish blood. The Israeli Arabs? Some of them have joined the Jews in watering that tree — the others just complain while enjoying the fruits of that watering. Is there anyone one else whose freedom the flotilla might be interested in?
which Thunberg previously joined as one of the public leaders, includes about twenty foundations and non-profit organizations from Canada, Italy, Spain, Malaysia, New Zealand, Brazil, Sweden, South Africa and Turkey.
Their activities are supported by Hollywood actors, politicians and philanthropists of world renown, as well as ordinary activists. The total number of supporters of the project exceeds 50 thousand people, of which about 15 thousand are regular participants of the actions.
Since 2006, when Israel imposed a partial blockade on Gaza, Flotilla activists have been regularly rushing into the enclave, but, with rare exceptions, to no avail.
The previous large-scale attempt to reach the shores of Gaza in the summer of 2025 ended in failure. On June 10, activists under the command of Thunberg were arrested by an Israeli naval patrol and, after a “clear lecture” on the crimes of Hamas and its loyal groups in Gaza, were sent home by plane.
The detained ships were towed to Israel, and from there gradually returned to their home ports. The fate of the humanitarian cargo carried by the first flotilla is not known for certain.
The Israeli side claims that the medicines and construction materials were added to UN land convoys and transferred to the enclave. Some of the property, which had "signs of dual-use goods" (several lathes, fertilizers with saltpeter, etc.), was confiscated by security forces.
The activists themselves claim that their cargo never reached Gaza.
Less than two months later, they assembled a new humanitarian convoy. The second flotilla, named Sumud (Arabic for "fortitude"), consisting of twenty ships, left Barcelona on August 31. In the open sea, it joined the convoy from Genoa (9 ships), which had left the day before.
The organizers of the “sea march” expect that along the way they will be joined by several dozen more mini-caravans from other European and North African capitals, and the total number of ships in the flotilla will exceed 70.
Tunisia was designated as the final "assembly point" for the activists. In early September, the flotilla dropped anchor in the port of Sidi Bou Said, where it hoped to replenish its water and food supplies, as well as wait for the "lagging" caravans (about 30 ships) and load additional humanitarian aid collected by local sympathizers.
NIGHT RAID
On the night of September 9, the bow of the anchored Family Boat (the flagship of the flotilla, on which the movement's top brass headed by Thunberg were on board) suddenly caught fire. According to activists, they were attacked by an unknown drone that crashed into the side. The fire partially damaged the main deck and below-deck storage.
Some of the Flotilla members (like activist Yasmin Aker ) go even further and claim that the attack is an “Israeli military operation.” According to Anker, unknown UAVs accompanied the humanitarian convoy almost from the Spanish coast, keeping some distance and flying around the leading ships.
Thunberg and her supporters call the attack and previous incidents a "blatant threat" from Tel Aviv, designed to "lead them astray" and disrupt the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Tunisian authorities deny the UAV strike, explaining the fire on the vessel by internal malfunctions. According to the Sidi Bou Said administration, citing reports from the security services and the army, no unidentified UAVs were recorded flying over the waters.
Israeli military and civilian officials have not commented on the situation with the strike on the flotilla.
The issue would have been completely hushed up if not for the intervention of UN functionaries. In particular, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, spoke on the side of the activists.
It was she who drew attention to the “inhuman blow” to European activists, which ensured that the news hit the front pages of world newspapers and forced official Tunisia to react to what happened less formally.
An hour after Albanese's statement, Tunisian security forces blocked access to the port area and began a re-examination of the impact area and a search for UAV debris.
At the same time, the Internet was filled with photos of the Family Boat with traces of serious fire and destruction in the bow. However, most of the photos have obvious signs of retouching and the actual damage to the vessel is somewhat less.
However, the nature of the incident has not yet been fully established. The working version is that the UAV did not crash into the side of the ship, but dropped a small explosive device or container with an incendiary mixture on the vessel.
DELAYED PATH
At the moment, the Sumud flotilla is about 2,000 kilometers away from Gaza. The activists initially expected to cover the final stretch of the Mediterranean Sea by mid-September, but due to the incident with the Family Boat, the departure to sea has been postponed for several days.
The flotilla has already deviated from its course several times, delayed off the coast of Mallorca and returned to Barcelona due to bad weather conditions. As a result, the activists will only be able to arrive in Gaza on time if they move towards their destination without long breaks.
True, a new insurmountable obstacle is already looming on the horizon.
As the Israeli military operation in the enclave expands, a significant portion of the coastline is under their control. And the areas remaining "under Palestinian control" have been declared a high-risk zone.
For this reason, Thunberg and her supporters will not be able to slip into Gaza unnoticed, even miraculously bypassing Israeli naval patrols.
However, the activists are more concerned with the process than with the result. Their “journey” to Gaza is broadcast on streaming services almost in real time, and any incidents along the way, even the smallest ones, are made public and encourage numerous sympathizers to donate more money to the “irreconcilable organization.”
Even if the current mission fails, the activists will more than recoup their expenses and will be able to form a new "Freedom Flotilla" to challenge Tel Aviv once again. True, without the intention of winning this battle.
[IsraelTimes] Anti-Zionist Jewish Student Front declares its commitment ‘to dismantling Zionism in its entirety by confronting Zionist institutions on campus’
An anonymous group of Jewish student activists has broken away from Jewish Voice for Peace
… neither Jewish nor for peace, it was founded by Hamas BDS activist Hatem Bazian, while its social media managers live in Lebanon and a large chunk of its funding comes from the Soros Open Society Foundations. But some of its useful idiots identify as “Jewish”…
to form a new national organization, the Anti-Zionist Jewish Student Front, that pledges to escalate campaigns against Zionism on college campuses.
Splitters!
In a statement released this week, the group framed itself as part of what it termed a global “student intifada” and said it was aligning with the “Popular University,” a loose network of pro-Palestinian activists.
“We work to dismantle Zionism in its entirety by confronting Zionist institutions on campus, to struggle for divestment, and to pursue the criminalization of Zionism as a white supremacist weapon of war,” the statement said.
More than half of Israeli Jews are from the Middle East, Africa, and other regions not part of the “white” part os the world. They have no connection, either genetic or historic, with the West.
Jewish Voice for Peace, the country’s largest anti-Zionist Jewish organization, confirmed the separation. The group has grown in prominence in recent years, staging high-profile demonstrations against Israel’s war in Gaza and partnering with progressive advocacy groups. But it has recently shifted its energy toward political lobbying after not achieving its organizing goals.
The Anti-Zionist Jewish Student Front presents itself as more radical,
…oh goody — just what the world needs: more vicious idiots…
questioning whether existing nonprofit structures are effective for campus activism and rejecting the centrality of messaging like “anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.”
Instead, it says it will focus on direct confrontation with “Zionist institutions on campus” and on pushing for divestment. Its logo features the Yiddish phrase “L’chaim Intifada”
…L’chaim is Hebrew….
surrounded by an Arabic slogan that reads, “Where there is oppression, may there thrive resistance.”
Striving together for a Judenfrei world.
The announcement appeared on Instagram, posted by the account of the Anti-Zionist Jewish Student Front and tagged as a collaboration with five others: campus chapters at George Washington University, Georgetown University and American University; the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, an activist group formed in 2008; and anti-Zionist activist Anna Rajagopal.
Indian-American whose family converted to Judaism when she was a child. She resides in Houston and has an unreasoning hatred of Zionists.
The organization did not respond to an press inquiry. Rajagopal responded to a request for comment to say that she did not represent the groups involved and had “no desire to talk to an employee of the Jewish Telegraph[ic] Agency about any topic, ever.” She did not respond to further questions.
The announcement video cites numerous Jewish concepts, including “tzedek” or justice and “doikayt,” the Yiddish word meaning “hereness” that anti-Zionist Jewish activists have adopted as a watchword.
Yiddish, the dialect of some European Jews, instead of Hebrew, the universal language of the Jews and of Israel.
The video features footage from George Washington University, where pro-Palestinian advocacy has been notably fierce. Just weeks after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, students there projected anti-Israel messages including “Glory to our martyrs” on a university building. The school suspended both JVP and Students for Justice in Palestine in the aftermath.
Both groups have since disaffiliated from the school. The school’s chapter of JVP told the student newspaper last month, after it was suspended for another year, that it would cease to function as a student group.
Now, it is also ceding from the national JVP organization, a move that JVP’s senior manager of campus organizing, Jonah Rubin, confirmed in a statement.
“The decision to amicably separate comes after long and principled discussions between all parties,” Rubin said. “While we share the goal of mobilizing anti-Zionist Jews working towards Palestinian liberation, our analyses of the strategy and tactics best suited to respond to the current moment of genocide in Gaza and rising fascism at home have diverged.”
He added, “Through our discussions it became clear that the best path forward was to pursue our shared goals in separate organizations. We wish these students the best.”
Rubin added that JVP’s more than 100 local chapters will continue to build “a grassroots movement of anti-Zionist Jews dedicated to taking strategic action to combat racism, fascism, genocide, and apartheid.”
The Anti-Zionist Jewish Student Front, too, promises a robust future, animated by a belief in “rejecting Zionism and upholding Palestinians’ right to return, remain, and resist.”
“Students are learning and adapting every day in the fight against the American and Zionist imperialist beast,” the group’s video says. “Our numbers grow, our principles fortify, and our dedication to enacting substantive change has never been stronger.”
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Abbott said on Tuesday: 'I signed laws that BAN Sharia Law and Sharia Compounds in Texas. No business and no individual should fear fools like this.'
Texas governor Greg Abbott has announced a ban on Sharia Law in the state after an imam launched a campaign to pressure Muslim-owned stores to stop selling pork, alcohol and lottery tickets.
Imam F. Qasim ibn Ali Khan of Masjid At-Tawhid was seen in a viral video confronting a store employee and accusing the business of selling 'haram' products forbidden under Islamic law.
The governor also addressed the imam, saying: 'If this person, or ANYONE, attempts to impose Sharia compliance, report it to local law enforcement or the Texas Dept. of Public Safety.'
In a statement, Abbott's office added: 'In Texas, we believe in equal rights under the law for all men, women, & children. Any legal system that flouts human rights is BANNED in the state of Texas.'
Abbott did not specify which bill he was referencing, but he signed a bill in 2017 that prohibits judges from applying any foreign law, including Muslim law, in US courtrooms.
Imam Khan, who leads a Nation of Islam
…considered heretical by mainstream (Sunni and Shiite) Moslems, who also object to their race…
-affiliated mosque in the Houston area, warned Muslim business owners they would face boycotts and public protests if they refused to comply.
In the viral video that sparked widespread outrage, he said a nationwide protest movement was set to begin specifically targeting Muslim businesses that violate Islamic teachings.
'We're kicking off a national protest and demonstration campaign against all Muslim businesses that have haram in their stores,' Khan said in the video.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations slammed governor Abbott's move, calling it 'fearmongering' and saying Sharia means 'the way to water' and compared it to Halacha for Jewish people or Canon law for Catholics.
'When Texas Muslims pray to God five times a day, donate (to) charity, fast in Ramadan, or speak up against injustice, among many other practices, they are observing sharia,' CAIR said.
The group said it is false that Sharia is 'banned' in Texas.
In several videos posted to Khan's TikTok and his 17,000 followers, Khan was seen confronting an employee at a Muslim-owned store, warning the business was violating Islamic law by selling 'haram' goods - items forbidden in Islam.
'This is the beginning of the campaign. We're serving notice to America and the world that enough is enough,' Khan said.
'The people that call themselves Muslims should not be selling haram in their stores... Pork, alcohol, and gambling need to stop.'
Standing outside the storefront with printed protest signs, Khan accused Muslim merchants of betraying their faith for profit and threatened coordinated action if they don't comply.
#2
One thing the "patrols" tell you is that there are a lot of Muslim business owners in the Houston area who have no problem selling booze and bacon. The preacher doesn't preach against fornication unless there's a lot of hanky-panky going on in the congregation.
Posted by: Matt ||
09/10/2025 13:06 Comments ||
Top||
#3
One other point: the Salina store is miles from the nearest muslim church, school, or whatever. They're just driving up and down the road harrassing people.
(Salina at Lockwood, east Houston)
Sounds like a simple shakedown.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
09/10/2025 13:37 Comments ||
Top||
#4
The easy superiority and entitlement shown by the holy man is truly remarkable.
[Breitbart] The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the Trump administration’s statement on the Senate version of a must-pass defense authorization bill, stating it thwarts President Donald Trump’s ability to conduct diplomacy and rein in immigration.
The OMB sent the Statement on Administration Policy (SAP), which was obtained by Breitbart News, to Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, about the Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2026. The letter states that the Trump administration has three priorities with the Department of War: “re-establish deterrence, rebuild the military, and revive the warrior ethos.”
Both chambers of Congress are working to advance their versions of the NDAA. The Senate last week set up voting to advance the legislation, while the House Rules Committee met Monday to discuss moving its version through Congress’s lower chamber. Congressional defense leaders hope to find a compromise bill that can be crafted before Thanksgiving.
The Trump administration’s SAP articulates the president’s view on the current status of the bill and outlines changes it wishes to see to the bill.
The SAP argues that the bill, as currently written, “adheres to a status quo that has been used against the Administration in the past authorizing an increase in discretionary appropriations for defense”:
The Administration is pursuing flexible and efficient investment in capabilities designed for manufacturability, unmanned platforms, incorporation of artificial intelligence, and use of advanced manufacturing techniques, many of which will come at lower costs. While the bill makes strides in certain areas, there is still more work to be done to ensure it does not tie the hands of the Administration to implement the President’s reforms at the Pentagon.
While the Trump administration letter praises the bill for making strides, it noted that there are many provisions that may hamstring the president’s authority to carry out his electoral mandate to conduct diplomacy and crack down on immigration.
The Administration “strongly objects” to provisions in the bill that would extend the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and authorize additional funding to Ukraine:
Similarly, the Administration objects to section 1224, which requires the creation of a depot-level maintenance plan in conjunction with the Ukrainian government. Furthermore, the Administration strongly objects to section 1228, which usurps the Administration’s authority to dictate the terms of its intelligence support to the Ukrainian government. These four provisions do not advance the Administration’s objective to end the conflict in Ukraine. The Administration looks forward to working towards legislation that aligns with the Administration’s goals of advancing a peaceful resolution and working with European allies to take responsibility for the continent’s security, including accountability for aid and defense necessary to fully secure Ukraine’s future.[Emphasis added]
President Trump has worked to end the war in Ukraine; in August, he hosted a summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
The White House opposes section 1217, which would prohibit Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth from using funds to reduce or consolidate bases located in Syria. The Trump administration said that this raises “serious constitutional concerns,” as it would bar the president from discharging his duties as Commander in Chief. The Trump administration has sought to reduce its military presence in Syria.
The SAP also opposes sections 1205 and 1235, which would require the Secretary of Defense to consult with the Secretary of State before he engages in foreign policy diplomacy.
The administration opposes section 1033 of the bill, believing it would hinder the Department’s ability to control immigration:
The Administration strongly opposes the proposed insertion of subsection (i), section 1033, Rule of Construction Regarding Use of Authority for Immigration Enforcement. This would hinder the Administration’s ability to provide detention support to the Department of Homeland Security. The Department of War currently makes a general determination in reliance on representations made by the supported law enforcement agency about this nexus for those transferred to such facilities. Requiring individual level, “independent” verification by the Secretary of War would hinder the President’s execution of statutory authorities to remove illegal aliens from the United States. It could also raise constitutional concerns because the President has important foreign relations responsibilities, including managing matters related to terrorism and immigration. [Emphasis added]
Regarding the administration’s “constitutional concerns” for the NDAA, the SAP stated:
As detailed above, multiple provisions in this bill raise serious constitutional concerns. They include: Constraining the discretion and oversight of the President over the Armed Forces and immigration policy, constraining the President’s agenda in diplomacy and foreign affairs, interfering with the President’s control over classified information, attempting to restrict the exercise of the executive power of the President or his officers, and controlling the structure and makeup of the Executive Branch.
The letter added, “The Administration looks forward to working with the Congress to resolve these and other issues as this legislation advances.”
Ugh. But that’s how calls for “Intifada” is received by those gleefully saying it, Senator, not just by Jews and Israelis. When they say it, they very definitely mean, “Kill all the Jews”, because nowadays Jew-hate is all edgy and stuff. Your problem is those in your party, including yourself, who do not immediately and loudly denounce them for it without softening, instead immediately throwing them back into the gutter they climbed out of when Barack Obama was running for president. You can’t take their votes without being tarred by their brush. So sorry.
Our experts are better than your experts. And we have considerably more of them, so sit down and shut up.
[IsraelTimes] A letter demanding the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) rescind an accusation against Israel is finalized with 537 signatories.
The signees include experts in the field of law, antisemitism, history, the Holocaust and genocide, as well as former prosecutors and government officials.
The IAGS has a membership of around 500, although only 129 voted on the genocide resolution, most of those in favor.
The IAGS also has an open-door policy for members, with no qualifications needed to join, and did not release the names of those who voted to accuse Israel of genocide.
The list finalized today includes the name and affiliation of the signatories.
They include Eli Rosenbaum, a former US Department of Justice war crimes prosecutor; Jeffrey Mausner, a former Nazi war crimes prosecutor for the US; Bruce Einhorn, a former US federal judge; Irwin Cotler, a former Canadian minister of justice; and prominent lawyer Alan Dershowitz.
Other signatories include faculty at universities across the US, the Holocaust Museum of South Florida and the Vermont Holocaust Memorial.
The campaign was organized in large part by the Academic Engagement Network, a Jewish advocacy group for university faculty.
"Scholarship must be guided by rigorous standards of empirical accuracy and academic integrity, not distorted for ideological ends," said the group’s director, Miriam Elman.
Except there was no drone yesterday — one of the activists misfired a flare.
[IsraelTimes] Organizers of a Gaza-bound flotilla carrying aid and pro-Palestinian activists say that another of their boats has been struck in a suspected drone attack off Tunisia’s coast. Perhaps the flare mishap gave somebody an idea.
Aiming to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, the flotilla is due to resume its voyage on Wednesday after being delayed multiple times by weather conditions and other issues.
“Second night, second drone attack,” Melanie Schweizer, one of its coordinators, tells AFP.
The British-flagged Alma was docked in Tunisian waters on Tuesday, when it was “attacked” and “sustained fire damage on its top deck,” the Global Sumud Flotilla says in a statement, adding no one was hurt.
That’s exactly what happened with the flare yesterday.
AFP journalists at the scene saw a boat in the distance surrounded by Tunisian law enforcement vessels with flashing lights.
The incident comes a day after the activists said another of their boats was hit by a similar suspected UAV attack, but Tunisian authorities said “no drones” had been detected.
The activists say they will continue their “peaceful voyage” on Wednesday as planned, as the flotilla “presses forward with determination and resolve.”
#4
The Times of Israel links to a tweet of the “second drone attack” posted by the flotilla. Unfortunately, the video doesn’t actually play, and the same video they posted on Instagram has been pulled — it’s not clear by who.
One possibility is that they were again ratioed badly with evidence that it was another flare gun or something definitely not Israeli.
Interesting that this happened the day after Israel killed a bunch of Hamas big turbans in Doha.
[IsraelTimes] Family thanks US and Israel for helping secure Tsurkov’s release from Iran-backed militia, which says it freed her ‘to facilitate withdrawal of US forces,’ prevent ‘conflicts’ in Iraq
An Israeli-Russian graduate student from Princeton University in New Jersey who was kidnapped by a Shiite militia in Iraq in 2023 has been released from captivity and is now in US custody, US President Donald Trump ...His ancestors didn't own any slaves... and the student’s family said on Tuesday.
While Iraq said a "group of outlaws" kidnapped Elizabeth Tsurkov,
…one of those presumably brilliant idiots who oughtn’t be allowed out without a keeper…
Trump announced she was released by the powerful pro-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... Kataeb Hezbollah militia group.
"As a culmination of extensive efforts exerted by our security services over the course of many months, we announce the release of the Russian citizen, Elizabeth Tsurkov," Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudan ...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans... i said on X, without noting her Israeli citizenship.
Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that Tsurkov "was just released" by Kataeb Hezbollah "after being tortured for many months" and was now at the US embassy in Baghdad.
Sabah al-Numan, the military front man for the Iraqi prime minister, said later in a statement that "following extensive and high-level security and intelligence efforts... authorities succeeded, on September 9, in locating and reaching the site of her detention."
Tsurkov was delivered to the US embassy to "facilitate her reunion with her sister, a US citizen," he added.
Numan also said Tsurkov was kidnapped by a "group of outlaws" without naming any party, and stated that Iraq’s security forces "will continue to pursue all those involved in this crime and ensure they are held accountable."
’ALL THE LOVE WE HAVE BEEN WAITING TO SHARE’
Tsurkov’s sister, Emma, a US citizen who has campaigned for her release, said she was in Washington for meetings this week when she heard the news from Adam Boehler, the US special presidential envoy for hostage affairs.
The sisters were able to connect by phone and expect to be reunited in the next 24 hours, though the details were still being worked out, Emma Tsurkov said.
"I heard her voice for the first time in 2 1/2 years and still couldn’t believe it, and I just melted on the floor," she said in an interview with The News Agency that Dare Not be Named. "I heard her voice and she heard mine, and it was the most joyous experience of my life, and we both started sobbing and screaming."
Emma Tsurkov also issued statements thanking Trump, Boehler, the US embassy in Baghdad and the non-profit group Global Reach for their roles in securing the release, as well as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli hostage point man Gal Hirsch "for their dedication and determined leadership."
"My entire family is incredibly happy. We cannot wait to see Elizabeth and give her all the love we have been waiting to share for 903 days," she posted on social media. "If Adam had not made my sister’s return his personal mission, I do not know where we would be."
Global Reach, which works for the release of Americans held in captivity abroad, said that Tsurkov had received a medical assessment at the American embassy in Baghdad.
Netanyahu later said he called Tsurkov’s family.
"Through teamwork led by Hostage and Missing Persons Coordinator Gal Hirsch, which lasted many long months and after great efforts, we succeeded in bringing about her release," said Netanyahu.
"This evening I spoke with Emma and Avital her sisters, and in the emotional conversation I told them that all of Israel is happy to see her back home," he continued.
"We will continue to fight with strength and determination until we bring all of our hostages back home — both the living and the fallen," he said, referring to the 48 hostages still held by Paleostinian terror groups 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... Hirsch issued a separate statement saying he spoke with Tsurkov and that "during her captivity she was aware of and heard about our efforts to return her. This is a priceless moment."
PHD CANDIDATE
Tsurkov, a doctoral student at Princeton University and fellow at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy, went missing in Iraq in March 2023.
She had likely entered Iraq on her Russian passport and had travelled to the country as part of her doctoral studies.
She was active on Twitter, where she has tens of thousands of followers and describes herself as "passionate about human rights ...not to be confused with individual rights, mind you... In Baghdad, she had focused on pro-Iran factions and the movement of Iraqi Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr as part of her research on the region.
She was kidnapped as she was leaving a cafe in the Iraqi capital’s Karrada neighborhood, an Iraqi intelligence source told AFP in 2023.
Israeli authorities blamed Kataeb Hezbollah for her disappearance, but the US-designated terror group implied that it was not involved.
KATAEB HEZBOLLAH
Kataeb Hezbollah did not claim in 2023 the abduction, but a source in the group told AFP Tuesday Tsurkov was released to spare Iraq any "conflicts."
She "was released according to conditions, the most important of which was to facilitate the withdrawal of US forces without a fight and to spare Iraq any conflicts or fighting," the source said.
"She was released and not liberated. No military operation was carried out to free her," the source added.
Like other gangs trained by Iran during the war 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.... group (IS), Kataeb Hezbollah were integrated into the regular security forces as part of the Hashed al-Shaabi or the Popular Mobilization force (PMF).
However,
some people are alive only because it's illegal to kill them... the faction has developed a reputation for sometimes acting on its own.
The group and other Iran-backed Iraqi factions have been calling for the withdrawal of US troops deployed in Iraq at Baghdad’s invitation as part of the anti-IS coalition.
US forces in Iraq and neighboring Syria were repeatedly targeted by Kataeb Hezbollah and other pro-Iran groups following the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023.
They have responded with heavy strikes on Tehran-linked targets, and the attacks have halted.
[IsraelTimes] Freed Israeli-Russian hostage Elizabeth Tsurkov is expected to be flown to Israel in the coming days and will undergo the same process as hostages freed or rescued from Hamas captivity in Gaza, the Kan news outlet reports. Hostages brought back from Gaza have been hospitalized in special wards, where they are able to reunite with family while gradually recuperating and undergoing various medical and mental health checkups.
According to Kan, Israel was not asked to make any concessions in exchange for her release, the circumstances of which have remained murky.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The days when “terrorist leaders” enjoyed immunity anywhere in the world are over. This statement was made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on September 9, commenting on the attack on the leaders of the Palestinian Hamas movement in Doha, Qatar.
"[The strike on Doha] could open the door to ending the war in Gaza," he said.
Netanyahu also stressed that Israel carried out this operation on its own initiative and bears responsibility for it.
The Israeli Air Force struck the Hamas headquarters in Doha on the afternoon of September 9. The Israeli army said the strike targeted members of the Palestinian movement who are responsible for terrorist attacks in Israel, including the attack on October 7, 2023. Eyewitnesses reported several explosions in Doha.
[IsraelTimes] Turkish and Egyptian interlocutors warned Hamas’s political leadership to tighten security around their meetings in the weeks before Israel’s attack on the group in Doha yesterday, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing interviews with officials from Israel, the US, Qatar and other Arab countries.
According to the report, 10 jets were deployed to fire long-range munitions at a house in the Qatari capital where Hamas’s political leadership had gathered to discuss the latest ceasefire proposal for Gaza.
The jets fired the missiles from outside Qatari airspace and also did not breach the airspace of Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates, the broadsheet reports.
To be fair, how could Hamas leaders possibly secure themselves against something like that?
US officials tell the newspaper that Israel informed the US of the attack minutes before the launch, and did not disclose the target.
[IsraelTimes] Agreement comes two months after Tehran suspended ties with the International Atomic Energy Agency in the wake of Israel’s war against its nuclear program.
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.
...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans...
