Recent Appearances...

Warning: Undefined array key "rbname" in /data/rantburg.com/www/rantburg/pgrecentorg.php on line 14
Hello !
Recent Appearances...

Britain

Slavery reparations not about transfer of cash

2024-11-04

[BBC] When they say it's not about the cash? It's all about the cash
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said the concept of reparations for former colonial nations affected by slavery "is not about the transfer of cash".

In his first comments since 56 Commonwealth leaders signed a statement saying the time had come for a conversation about reparations, Lammy told the BBC that was not "the debate people are wanting to have".

The UK government previously ruled out paying reparations for slavery and Downing Street said its position included "other forms of non-financial reparatory justice too".

Lammy said the UK would instead look to develop relations with African nations through sharing skills and science.

What form could reparations for slavery take?

UK will not pay out over slavery, says Reeves

During his first visit to Africa as foreign secretary, Lammy said reparations were not about money, "particularly at a time of a cost of living crisis".

Reparations are measures to make amends for past actions deemed wrong or unfair, and can range from the financial to symbolic.

Caribbean nations have made a 10-point plan for reparatory justice in which they call for a full formal apology, education programmes, healthcare and direct monetary payments.

Speaking in Lagos, a Nigerian port city once central to the transatlantic slave trade, the foreign secretary said the period was "horrific and horrendous" and had left "scars".

"I am the descendant of enslaved people, so I recognise that."

Lammy said it was right that an apology had been made "and we commemorated the abolition of the slave trade" when Labour was last in power.

The UK has never formally apologised for its role in the slave trade, though in 2007 then-Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair said: "Well actually I have said it: We are sorry. And I say it again now."

The British government and the monarchy played a key role in the centuries-long slave trade from 1500, alongside other European nations.

Britain also had a key role in ending the trade, through Parliament's passage of a law to abolish slavery in 1833.

Lammy's remarks followed the discussion of reparations at a summit of Commonwealth leaders in Samoa in October.

Amid growing calls from Commonwealth heads of government to pay reparations for the country's role in the slave trade, Downing Street had insisted the issue would not be on the table.

But Sir Keir Starmer later signed a document calling for talks on "reparatory justice" alongside other Commonwealth leaders - though he said there had been no discussions about money at the meeting.

Lammy said he believed developing nations would benefit as part of that through things such as the transfer of technical skills and science expertise from the UK.

Link

Britain

Surveillance State: Tony Blair and Ex-Tory Leader Call for Chinese Communist-Style Digital ID

2023-02-25

[Breitbart] Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the ex-leader of the Tory Party William Hague have called for a “technological revolution” in how the state monitors citizens, including the imposition of a digital ID that would include swaths of personal data, in a scheme being likened to Communist China.

Demonstrating yet again the distinction without difference between the two main parties in Westminster, former Labour Party Prime Minister Tony Blair and his former Conservative opponent at the parliament dispatch box, William Hague penned a joint article for The Times of London, arguing in favour of the formation of a national Digital ID, that would include passport and driving licence details, as well as tax records and right to work documents.

In order to sell the scheme to the public, which roundly rejected previous attempts by Blair during his time in Downing Street to introduce a national identity card, the two globalist politicians played up how a digital ID would offer a “simpler and easier” means of accessing government benefits and that public services could be specifically tailored to individual needs.

Link

-Short Attention Span Theater-

Meghan Markle reportedly networking with Democrats, eyes bid for US president. Really!

2021-03-15

I think it’s marvelous that she is gearing up to shovel masses of Democratic/Progressive donors’ money into the economy with the guarantee that it will have no impact whatsoever.

[PAGESIX] ~~Princess~~ Meghan Markle

...unlikable American former starlet married to the formerly likable Prince Harry. Chock full of lefty political opinions, Markle's most important characteristic is that she is Black, even though she doesn't look it. Her mother, y'see, is half black and her father is white, which would make her a quarter Black. Her half brother described her (to her husband, before their marriage) as a jaded, shallow, conceited woman that will make a joke of you and the royal family heritage. Once married, she was too good for the Royals and she and Harry decamped to Beverly Hills, kind of like the Clampetts did, thus making a joke of Harry and the royal family heritage...
is reportedly already networking with Tammany hangers-on to help her ambitions to become the first female US president.The Duchess of Sussex previously told friends about her political ambitions — and now hopes her blockbuster Oprah Winfrey interview will strengthen support in the US, sources told the Mail on Sunday newspaper.

She has been openly networking among Tammany hangers-on to help build fundraising teams and a campaign for the White House, according to a senior UK politician who served under former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and has close ties to Washington.

"The Blairite, internationalist and Democratic party networks are buzzing with talk about Meghan’s political ambitions and potential backers," the anonymous source told the UK paper.

Markle, 39, is thought to be looking at the 2024 campaign if President Joe Bidn

...... 46th president of the U.S. We get to suffer the consequences......
, who will be 82, decides against running for a second term, the source said. If successful, it would make her the first female US president.

Link

Britain

Lord Ahmed charged with attempted rape of girl

2019-03-03

[BBC] A member of the House of Lords has been charged with two counts of attempting to rape a girl.

Former Labour peer Lord Ahmed of Rotherham, 61, is also charged with indecent assault of a boy under 13.

Rotherham? That does seem to match the culture that’s been revealed there. What odds those two youngsters were not his only adventures over the years....

Prosecutors allege the offences took place between 1971 and 1974, when Lord Ahmed would have been aged between 14 and 17.

Two other men, Mohammed Farouq, 68, and Mohammed Tariq, 63, both from Rotherham, have also been charged.

All three men are due to appear at Sheffield Magistrates' Court on 19 March.

Mr Farouq of Worrygoose Lane, Rotherham, is charged with four counts of indecently assaulting a boy under 13 between 1968 and 1972.

Mr Tariq of Gerard Road, Rotherham is charged with two counts of indecently assaulting a boy under 13 between 1970 and 1972.

Nazir Ahmed was born in Pakistain and moved to the UK in 1969 with his family to join his father who was working in steel factories in Rotherham.

He joined the Labour Party in 1975 aged 18 and became a councillor in Rotherham in 1990.

In 1998 he became one of the first Moslem peers when he was appointed to the House of Lords by then-Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Link

Africa Subsaharan

Blacks doomed without whites; Bob anti-white stance ‘dangerous’, says Zanu PF MP

2018-07-10

[NEWZIMBABWE] OUTGOING Zanu PF MP for Mpopoma-Pelandaba, Joseph Tshuma has made astounding claims Zim-bob-weans were doomed without the involvement of whites in their affairs.
A bit of diversity ain't gonna hurt 'em. It can't make things worse, anyway.
Tshuma, who is also party central committee member, was speaking at a political parties discussion forum in Bulawayo Saturday.

The event was hosted by the Zim-bob-we Union of Journalists (ZUJ) and the Bulawayo Media Centre.

Relations between the country and the West took a knock at the turn of the century when then President Bob Muggsy Mugabe

Nonagenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case. Dumped in November 2017 when the Missus decided she wanted to be president, and opposed heer might against Crocodile Mnangawa Important safety tip: If your opponent goes by the name Crocodile andf your title is Shopper in Chief let him win....
seized productive land which was in the hands of white Zim-bob-weans of European descent for redistribution to black locals.

Mugabe went on to introduce laws which compelled foreign businesses in Zim-bob-we to surrender at least 51 percent equity to blacks.

He followed his policies with repeated public rants against whites on alleged attempts to recolonise his country through financial support to his opponents as well as attempts to prescribe solutions to the country’s myriad problems.

Mugabe once stunned the world during an international summit attended by world leaders when he confronted then British Prime Minister Tony Blair and telling him to "keep your England and I will keep my Zim-bob-we".

Meanwhile,
...back at the pond, the enormous newt was trying to decide if Gloria was edible...
his anti-white stance Saturday invited strong rebuke from one of his former allies, Tshuma who described it as "dangerous".

"We are coming from the era of Robert Mugabe. An era which closed us out from the rest of the world," Tshuma said.

"We began to leave in a vacuum. That was the most dangerous thing that was ever experienced by this country other than the bombings during the liberation struggle."

The Zanu PF politician said no other country was capable of developing without the involvement of whites.

"We made a mistake as a party through our (former) president when we said’ Blair keep your England and we keep our Zim-bob-we’.

"Yes, we kept our Zim-bob-we but what kind of Zim-bob-we did we keep? One thing that I have been made to understand and agree strongly whether painful or not, we cannot do away with that person called umkhiwa (white).

"When you do that, it is at your own peril. You need the white man to be there somewhere."

Incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa has moved to try and mend the country’s relations with the West through an engagement process that has seen Western business delegations visit the country to explore opportunities.

Link

Home Front: Politix

100% of those around Trump consider him 'moron, idiot': Author

2018-01-06

See more here.

[PRESSTV] The author of a very critical book about Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
's first year in office has said that "one hundred percent" of those around the US president consider him "moron, idiot."

Michael Wolff, whose book "Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House" went on sale on Friday, said in an interview he spent three hours with Trump during the presidential campaign and in the White House.

The author contradicted Trump's assertion that he had never talked to the writer for the book and had authorized "Zero access" to the White House.

Wolff told NBC News on Friday that for the book he conducted interviews with those in close contact with Trump and his entire circle questioned his fitness for office. The book depicts a president who was ill-prepared to win the office in 2016, and Trump aides who ridiculed his abilities.

"They all say he is like a child. And what they mean by that is he has a need for immediate gratification. It's all about him," he said.

"Let me put a marker in the sand here. One hundred percent of the people around him" question Trump's fitness for office, Wolff added.

PressTV: Ivanka, Kushner 'struck a deal’ for her to run for president

The author of the explosive new Trump book says he can't be sure if parts of it are true

[BusinessInsider] The author of the explosive new book about Donald Trump's presidency acknowledged in an author's note that he wasn't certain all of its content was true.

Michael Wolff, the author of "Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House," included a note at the start that casts significant doubt on the reliability of the specifics contained in the rest of its pages.

Several of his sources, he says, were definitely lying to him, while some offered accounts that flatly contradicted those of others.

In other cases, the media columnist said, he did use his journalistic judgment and research to arrive at what he describes "a version of events I believe to be true."

But some were nonetheless included in the vivid account of the West Wing's workings, in a process Wolff describes as "allowing the reader to judge" whether the sources' claims are true.

In other cases, the media columnist said, he did use his journalistic judgment and research to arrive at what he describes "a version of events I believe to be true."

Other people mentioned in the book have also disputed claims made about them.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who the book said warned Trump that he may be under surveillance from British spies, issued a statement describing the claim as "categorically absurd" and "simply untrue."

Anna Wintour, the longtime Vogue editor, also dismissed the claim that she lobbied Trump to be his ambassador to the UK as "laughably preposterous."

Other journalists have also urged caution. Some cited Wolff's track record ‐ questions were raised about his 2008 book on Rupert Murdoch ‐ and others compared his claims with their own knowledge of the Trump White House.

Link

Europe

Europe ~~migrant~~ colonist briefs, Part II

2018-01-01

From the Daily Mail - immigration:

Macron ramps up expulsions and ID checks on migrants as he looks set to miss his ambitious deadline of getting people 'off the streets and out of the woods' by the end of 2017
26/12/17
Macron said in July he wanted people 'off the streets, out of the woods' by the end of 2017 and emergency lodgings 'everywhere' in France. But he looks set to miss his deadline

Asylum applications to the European Union will TRIPLE by 2100 as global warming causes people to move to cooler climates, experts claim
22/12/17
The research, led by Columbia University, suggests that weather shocks in countries around the world have increased applications by asylum seekers hoping to enter the EU

Mayors from seven major French cities write open letter saying they are overwhelmed by the flow of migrants
19/12/17
Local chiefs from Nantes, Lille, Bordeaux, Grenoble, Rennes, Toulouse and Strasbourg wrote an open letter to Parisian officials to ask for relief from the 'extreme tension' caused by migrant arrivals.

Asylum seekers will be forced to hand over cash and mobile phones under tough new rules unveiled by Austria's new far-right coalition
19/12/17
Austria's new coalition has pledged to stop illegal immigration, cut taxes and resist EU centralisation, and will be led by Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, at 31 the world's youngest leader

From Breitbart - immigration:

Hamburg Police to Deploy Mass Camera Network to Prevent New Year’s Sex Attacks
31 December
Hamburg police will deploy a mix of fixed cameras, vehicle cameras, and officer body cameras to prevent sexual assaults and identify those who carry out attacks on New Year’s Eve.

Right Wing Populism Could Become ‘New Normal’, No End in Sight For Surge: Tony Blair Institute
29 December
The “populist surge” in Europe has far from peaked and is the most significant change to the European order since the end of the Cold War, a new report by former British left-wing Prime Minister Tony Blair’s own think tank has claimed.

Inter-Ethnic Conflicts on the Rise Between Asylum Seekers in Germany
29 December
Migrants of different ethnicities are forming enclaves within asylum homes and the level of inter-ethnic violence is on the rise as some African migrants claim to be treated as “like dirt” by Arab asylum seekers.

‘Accept the Will of the People on Migration, Culture, or Hit the Road’: Orbán Tells Europe’s Leaders
29 December
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said elections held across the continent are proof that Europeans are “asserting their will” by supporting leaders who reject mass migration and support Christian foundations, and gave a warning to politicians who deny the “natural order of democracy”.

Arrest Made After Asylum Seeker Run Over Outside Illegal Calais Migrant Camp
28 December
A French man in his fifties was arrested earlier this week and has been charged with fleeing the scene of an accident after his vehicle hit a 22-year-old Iraqi asylum seeker near the Grande-Synthe migrant camp in Dunkirk.

EU Army’s First Deployment? Austria Calls For Military-Backed ‘Safe Zones’ in Migrant Origin Countries
28 December
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has urged the European Union (EU) to create safe zones within migrant-origin countries and deploy member states’ armed forces to stop the flow of migrants.

Asylum Seeker Pair Arrested After Sexually Exposing Themselves to Girls as Young as Ten
27 December
The asylum seekers, a 32-year-old Syrian and a 20-year-old Afghan, were arrested in the German city of Augsburg after repeatedly exposing their genitals to young girls on public transportation.

Afghan Migrant Found Dead By Side of the Road in Calais
25 December
An Afghan migrant was found dead by the side of the road in Calais in an apparent hit and run as investigators search for a potential suspect in the case. The man, who has not been able to be identified or his age

‘A Historic Day’ – 162 Migrants Flown Direct from Libya to Europe for First Time
23 December
A group of 162 “vulnerable” refugees were flown directly from Libya to Italy on Friday for the first time, a day hailed as “historic” by Interior Minister Marco Minniti.

Syrian Migrant Living in Sweden Arrested For Plotting Terror Attack in Copenhagen
23 December
Danish authorities have arrested and charged a 30-year-old Syrian asylum seeker living in Sweden, believe to have attempted a terrorist attack last November.

Hungary: We Will Make Our Country Family Friendly So Population Can Grow Without Mass Migration
22 December
The Hungarian government has pledged measures to support naturally growing the population – rejecting mass migration – as an effort to halt the demographic decline after Prime Minister Viktor Orbán declared 2018 to be a “year of families”.

EU Citizens’ Fear of Mass Migration and Terrorism Has More Than Doubled
21 December
Voters across all 28 member states agree that terrorism and immigration are the most important issues facing the European Union – far ahead of the economy, unemployment, or climate change.

Left-Wing Politician Bemoans Lack of Police Action Against Migrant Criminals
21 December
Left-wing Green Party politician Peter Seifert has complained of a lack of action by German police against migrant criminals, increasing the popularity of the anti-mass migration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

France Brings First of 3,000 Migrants Directly from Africa Under New Migrant Plan
21 December
France has begun a new initiative to bring in 3,000 migrants directly from Africa as 19 Sundanese migrants arrived on Monday who will be temporarily housed in a monastery in Alsace.

Doctors and Pro-Migrant Activists Prosecuted over Fake Medical Certificates for Asylum Seekers
21 December
Five medical doctors and four pro-migrant activists have been indicted on charges relating to the issuance of fake medical certificates to asylum seekers to keep them in France.

Poll: 70 Per Cent of Swiss Would Be ‘Disturbed’ by Increase in Muslim Population
21 December
A poll has revealed that a large majority of Swiss citizens would be “disturbed” if the country’s Muslim population were to increase.

UN Human Rights High Commissioner Labels New Austrian Government ‘Dangerous’
20 December
United Nations Human Rights High Commissioner Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein has slammed the new Austrian conservative-populist coalition government claiming their right-wing policies are “dangerous.” Al Hussein said he was “very worried” about the implications for the rest of Europe after the conservative

Austria’s Conservative-Nationalist Coalition to Impose ‘Sanctions’ on Migrants Who Refuse to Integrate
20 December
Austria’s new conservative-nationalist coalition is set to get tough on illegal migration and migrants who refuse to integrate into Austrian society.

Global Free Movement: UN Chief Calls Migration a ‘Right’ in a ‘World on the Move’
20 December
Global free movement and “safe”, orderly mass migration should be a right for all poor and unskilled migrants from the third world, according to the director general of the United Nations’ Migration Agency.

UN Launches App to ‘Empower’ Migrants, Encourage Them to ‘Migrate Safely’
19 December
The International Organization for Migration has launched ‘MigApp’ – a mobile phone app developed to “engage” and “empower” migrants and help them “migrate safely”.

Council of Europe: ‘Diversity and Mass Migration Have Always Been Integral Part of Continent’s History’
19 December
“Europe has always been a continent of diversity. Migration has always been an integral part of its history,” the Council of Europe has claimed in a statement marking International Migrants Day.

Czech Prez: Europe Is ‘Jeopardised by a Culture of Hatred Incompatible with Ours’, Israel a ‘Heroic Model for Us’
19 December
The President of the Czech Republic has warned that Europe’s values are being “jeopardised by a culture of hatred that is incompatible with ours”, and said “Israel and its heroism are a model and encouragement for us.”

Malmö Police Backtrack After Warning Girls Not to Go out at Night Alone After Brutal Rape
19 December
The police in the heavily-migrant populated Swedish city of Malmö has backtracked after warning young women not to go out alone at night in no-go zones after a brutal rape in which some claim a 17-year-old girl had her vagina lit on fire.

‘Merkel Has the Blood of My Son on Her Hands’: Mother of Terror Victim
19 December
The mother of the truck driver murdered by failed asylum seeker terrorist Anis Amri last Christmas has blamed German Chancellor Angela Merkel for his death saying his blood is “on her hands”.

Populist Leaders: EU ‘Existential Threat’ to Europe, ‘Drowning It in Migrants to Destroy Our Diversity’
19 December
Populist leaders meeting in Prague this weekend said the EU is “killing Europe”, as they agreed to work on building an alternative model of cooperation that respects the continent’s peoples and cultures.

Protests in Austria as New Right-Populist Government Sworn In
18 December
Left-wing protestors attempted to break through police barricades outside the presidential palace during the inauguration of the new Austrian government Monday morning, as 31-year-old Sebastian Kurz became the world’s youngest national leader.

Link

Arabia

Saudi Arabia, Israel to establish economic relations for first time

2017-06-18

[Iran Press TV] Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
and the Israeli regime are in clandestine talks to establish official economic relations for the first time since the entity was created on the Paleostinian territories some 69 years ago, a report says.

The Times, citing unnamed Arab and American sources, said in a report on Saturday that forming economic connections between to two, which would be gradual and step by step, could begin by allowing Israeli companies to open shops in the Arab kingdom, or granting El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. permission to fly over Saudi airspace.

"However,
a clean conscience makes a soft pillow...
any such progress would bolster the alliance between Iran’s two most implacable enemies and change the dynamics of the many conflicts destabilizing the Middle East," the report speculated.

So far Saudi officials have had some open meetings with bigwigs in Israel, trying to gradually pave the way for establishing ties with the occupying regime.

Back in May last year, Israeli newspaper Arutz Sheva reported that Saudi Arabia and its Persian Gulf allies, namely Jordan and Egypt, had been sending messages to Israel through various emissaries, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. They had asked Tel Aviv to resume Middle East negotiations under new terms, which included changes to the Saudi initiative.

Link

Terror Networks

Sergey Lavrov: No one knows who got shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles in Libya

2016-08-27

[Wash Times] The Russian foreign minister made comments Tuesday on the whereabouts and wisdom of the United States providing shoulder-fired ManPAD anti-aircraft missiles to groups in Libya. The comments were reported by the Russian state news agency TASS.

"To all appearances, our Western colleagues have not yet become fully aware of the consequences of their military operations of the past few years in the countries of the Middle East and Africa. They believed that they would destroy the regimes of Saddam Hussein and Muammar Qaddafi and immediately democracy would triumph in Iraq and Libya. Instead, chaos came to reign there and army depots and arsenals abandoned by the military were ransacked there." All the weapons, including shoulder-fired antiaircraft missile systems and hundreds of tons of ammunition "have disappeared without a trace," Sergey Lavrov said.

"Now fratricidal wars are raging in these states and no end to them can be seen so far. Unfortunately, the situation was predictable and the Russian president warned about this numerously."

In Libya alone, no less than 500 Strela and Igla shoulder-fired antiaircraft missile systems have disappeared.

"The first alarm bell rang in Mali where militants shot down a governmental MiG-21 plane from a portable antiaircraft missile in 2012. No one knows in the hands of which terrorist groupings these systems most dangerous for civil aviation may end up -- the ISIL, Jabhat al-Nusra, Al Qaeda. Likewise, no one knows when and where these weapons will be used next time. In Iraq, hardly anyone --hundreds of thousands of those killed or millions of people living in the conditions of a civil war -- has felt more at ease that the Britons have found after a probe that then-Prime Minister Tony Blair had actually deceived the parliament, pushing through a decision to involve the UK army in the invasion together with the Americans.

"It goes without saying that the effects could have been far more ruinous, if Russia three years ago had not prevented a US strike on Syria persuading Assad to give up his chemical weapons. One cannot but feel horror at the thought in whose hands portable antiaircraft missiles, other conventional weapons and chemical weapons stockpiles might have ended up now," Mr. Lavrov said.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Cameron warns of long Syrian bombing campaign

2015-12-04

The mission to target so-called Islamic State militants in Syria could take some time and will require persistence, PM David Cameron has said.

RAF Tornados conducted air strikes on six targets in Syria, "successfully" attacking an IS-controlled oilfield, the Ministry of Defence confirmed. There will be "strong support from our allies" for the action, the PM added.

Two more Tornados and six Typhoons have arrived at RAF Akrotiri, in Cyprus, from where they will join the attacks.

Speaking after the strikes, Mr Cameron said the operation in Syria would require "patience".

"It is complex and it is difficult what we are asking our pilots to do, and our thoughts should be with them and their families as they commence this important work," he said.

The decision to approve the mission was "good for the country", the prime minister said, adding: "There was a compelling case for extending our air strikes from Iraq to Syria, and I was glad to see such strong support right across parliament."

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair has welcomed the result of the vote, saying European forces had to lead the response to the threat. Delivering the Kissinger Lecture at the Library of Congress in Washington, Mr Blair said: "We should learn the lessons of the whole period from 9/11 to today and try to forge a new synthesis of foreign policy which recognises the need for an active policy of engagement, but in a way sophisticated by our experience, not incapacitated by it.

"For Europe, there is a huge calculation to be made. This security threat is at our door. It is actually within our home."

He added that there was "no doubt" in his mind that "this is a battle we will win".

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said the MoD would be assessing the damage done by the first strikes, saying he had personally approved the targets ahead of the Commons vote. He said the aim was to strike "a very real blow on the oil and revenue on which Daesh depends".

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the UK was obliged under the terms of the UN Security Council resolution on dealing with IS to coordinate with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on air strikes in the country.

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner said the IS-controlled Omar oilfield in eastern Syria - hit by UK air strikes - was one of eight oilfields targeted by coalition forces. He said the decision to target oilfields may have been a political one - to avoid civilian casualties.

But our correspondent said there was now "an urgency" among US-led forces to "close down" IS sources of revenue. The oilfield at Omar potentially represents more than 10% of its income, the MoD said.

This morning's newspapers in Damascus reiterate criticism Syrian officials have made for years about the West's engagement here.

"Britain didn't ask permission from Syria's government," declares the state news agency SANA. "Cameron told lies," it says.

Syrian officials insist Britain and its allies must follow Russia's example and co-ordinate their campaign with Syrian government forces. If they don't, they warn, they simply won't succeed.

And they may interdict the Syrian-Rooshun boodle...

Mr Fallon said there was a "very rigorous" process by which targets were chosen, and all British military action would adhere to "very strict rules of engagement".

Asked how long the UK might be involved in the coalition campaign against IS in Syria, he said it would "not be quick", but argued it had not been right to leave bombing to other air forces.

On the issue of ground forces, he said the prime minister of Iraq had made it very clear he did not want Western troops on the ground to fight IS.

In a statement, the MoD said the British jets - supported by a Voyager air refuelling tanker, an unmanned Reaper drone and other coalition aircraft - had attacked six targets.

"Carefully selected elements of the oilfield infrastructure were targeted, ensuring the strikes will have a significant impact on Daesh's ability to extract the oil to fund their terrorism," it said.

Before the attacks, pilots used the aircrafts' sensors to confirm "no civilians were in the proximity of the targets", it stated.

Link

Government

Judge Napolitano: The midwife to chaos, Clinton's lies.

2015-10-31

[Wash Times] The New York Times' Maureen Dowd captured the moment last weekend when she referred to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as "the midwife to chaos" in Libya. Ms. Dowd apparently came to that conclusion after watching Mrs. Clinton bobbing and weaving and admitting and denying as she was confronted with the partial record of her failures and obfuscations as secretary of state, particularly with respect to Libya.

The public record is fairly well-known. In March 2011, President Obama declared war on Libya. He did this at the urging of Mrs. Clinton, who wanted to overthrow Libyan strongman Col. Moammar Gadhafi so she could boast of having brought "democracy" to the region.

She and Mr. Obama conspired to do this even though former President George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair had publicly praised Gadhafi as an ally in the war against terrorist groups and even though the United States was giving the Gadhafi government more than $100 million a year in foreign aid.

Mr. Obama did his best to avoid constitutional norms. He deployed American intelligence agents on the ground, not troops, so he could plausibly deny he had put "boots" on the ground. He did not seek an American national consensus for war because Libya presented no threat whatsoever to the United States. He did not obtain a congressional declaration of war as the Constitution requires because he couldn't get one. And he did not seek United Nations permission, which is required to attack a fellow U.N. member.

He did obtain a U.N. embargo of the shipment of weapons into Libya, and he secured a NATO-enforced no-fly zone over portions of Libya. In order to enforce the no-fly zone, NATO sent jet fighters over the skies of Libya. The jets were guided and directed by American intelligence agents on the ground to bomb Libyan planes on the ground, which had been paid for by American taxpayers.

To pursue her goal of a "democratic" government there, Mrs. Clinton, along with Mr. Obama and a dozen or so members of Congress from both houses and both political parties, decided she should break the law by permitting U.S. arms dealers to violate the U.N. arms embargo and arm Libyan rebels whom she hoped would one day run the new government. So she exercised her authority as secretary of state to authorize the shipment of American-made arms to Qatar, a country beholden to the Muslim Brotherhood and friendly to the Libyan rebels, and a country the United States had no business arming -- unless the purpose of doing so was for the arms to be transferred to the rebels.

Once this plot was hatched, Mrs. Clinton and her fellow conspirators realized that some of these rebel groups were manned by al Qaeda operatives; and selling or providing arms to them is a felony -- hence the reason for months' worth of missing and destroyed Clinton emails. How could someone running for president possibly justify providing material assistance to terrorist organizations in the present international climate?
Gives midwifery a bad name simply through association.

Link

Africa North

Ex-UK PM Blair 'tried to save Qaddafi:' report

2015-09-01

[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] British former Prime Minister Tony Blair is set to be the subject of a UK parliamentary inquiry after allegations in a new book that he tried to save late Libyan dictator Muammar Qadaffy
... who had more funny outfits than Louis XIV...
back in 2011, the Times of London reported on Monday.

According to a new biography of current UK Prime Minister

David Cameron
... has stated that he is certainly a big Thatcher fan, but I don't know whether that makes me a Thatcherite, which means he's not. Since he is not deeply ideological he lacks core principles and is easily led. He has been described as certainly not a Pitt, Elder or Younger, but he does wear a nice suit so maybe he's Beau Brummel ...
, Blair was contacted by "a key individual close to Qadaffy" during the 2011 military campaign to end the dictator's regime.

Upon receiving the information, Blair phoned the prime minister's residence, Number 10 Downing Street, on his behalf. In his call to Downing Street, Blair purportedly said that Qadaffy wanted "a deal with the British."

Link

Warning: Undefined property: stdClass::$T in /data/rantburg.com/www/rantburg/pgrecentorg.php on line 132
-12 More