Tucker Carlson, one of the few real MSM reporters in the Western hemisphere
Carlson had a good answer although we would simply say enacting a coup is the beginning of authoritarian rule.
Puppet Masters
Tucker Carlson, one of the few real MSM reporters in the Western hemisphere
Carlson had a good answer although we would simply say enacting a coup is the beginning of authoritarian rule.
© Bassam Khabieh / Reuters
The damaged cars and buildings are seen in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern Ghouta, Damascus, Syria February 25, 2018
The damaged cars and buildings are seen in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern Ghouta, Damascus, Syria February 25, 2018
"As of 14:30 local time, no one has left the area," Major General Vladimir Zolotukhin, a spokesman for the Russian Center for Reconciliation in Syria, told journalists. "The militants do not let anyone out," he said, adding that the situation on the ground remained "complicated" as the militants continued to shell the neighboring area, and even went on offensive against the Syrian Army positions.
The armed groups had been carrying out provocations for some five hours by conducting shelling around every 30 minutes, the general said, noting that the Syrian government forces observed the humanitarian pause and did not respond to the incitement. The attacks also targeted the recently established eastern Ghouta humanitarian corridor.
According to the Syrian SANA news agency, the militants shelled a refugee camp in the al-Wafidin neighborhood near Damascus, which is part of the corridor. The attack on the humanitarian corridor resulted in no casualties. However, six civilians were injured in separate militant shelling that targeted a settlement in the Damascus countryside.
Comment: Comment The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) observed the Russian-sponsored ceasefire between the hours of 9:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M. (Damascus Time), today, before resuming their operations inside the East Ghouta this afternoon.
Once they were given the green light by their high command, the Syrian Arab Army's (SAA) 4th Mechanized Division stormed the large district of Al-Ajami in the Harasta suburb.The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) once again advanced inside the East Ghouta region, today, capturing several sites from the jihadist rebels of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham and Faylaq Al-Rahman.
According to a military source in Damascus, the Syrian Arab Army is attempting to seize the last building blocks under the control of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham and Faylaq Al-Rahman in this district.
According to an Al-Masdar field correspondent in Damascus, the Syrian Arab Army's 4th Division managed to break-through the jihadist defenses at the Harasta Orchards, seizing nearly 200 meters of territory in the process.See also: Russian MoD: Militants' shelling prevents civilians from leaving Eastern Ghouta
The Syrian Army is attempting to capture the Harasta Orchards in order to apply pressure on the rebel forces in the large city of Douma.
Jonathan Winer
After his name surfaced in news media reports related to probes by House Republicans into the dossier, Winer authored a Washington Post oped in which he conceded that while he was working at the State Department he exchanged documents and information with dossier author and former British spy Christopher Steele.
Winer further acknowledged that while at the State Department, he shared anti-Trump material with Steele passed to him by longtime Clinton confidant Sidney Blumenthal, whom Winer described as an "old friend." Winer wrote that the material from Blumenthal - which Winer in turn gave to Steele - originated with Cody Shearer, who is a controversial figure long tied to various Clinton scandals.
Steele was commissioned to produce the dossier by the Fusion GPS opposition research firm, which was paid for its anti-Trump work by Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee.
Comment: Winer also happens to be notorious Bill Browder's "legal counsel". He's the guy that got Alex Krainer's expose of Browder removed from Amazon. What a tangled web of disreputable connections...
Russian curling team Alexander Krushelnitsky and Anastasia Bryzgalova
It makes no logical sense that an athlete would do a one-time consumption of a chemical that is of no value in circumstances where it is almost certain to be detected with huge negative consequences.
That is precisely the situation. The Russian Mixed Curling bronze medal winner, Alexander Krushelnitsky, had to give up his medal, plus that of his partner wife, because traces of meldonium were found in his urine sample. He had previously tested clean. Meldonium is a medication which helps keep the heart healthy by increasing blood flow.
That would be of no benefit in a sport like curling which requires accuracy, strategy and focus but is not taxing physically. The "sweeping" to help guide the rock down the ice lasts only 20 seconds or less. International curlers were astounded at the news and bemused at the idea of performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) for curling. The skip of the Danish curling team said "I think most people will laugh and ask, 'what could you possibly need doping for?"
© Bassam Khabieh / Reuters
A child removes debris from a damage building in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern Ghouta, Damascus, Syria February 25, 2018.
A child removes debris from a damage building in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern Ghouta, Damascus, Syria February 25, 2018.
Johnson was responding to an urgent question in Parliament on the situation in Syria and the ongoing offensive in Eastern Ghouta. The foreign secretary appeared to resent the fact that military action in Syria was initially blocked by the House when former Prime Minister David Cameron called for it back in 2013, although that was later overturned by a vote two years later.
Johnson said he would now consider "limited strikes" if there was "incontrovertible evidence of further use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime or their supporters." He added that while there may be international support for a response to the "individual use of chemical weapons," it would be "misleading" to say the same for "sustained military engagement."
Comment: Notice the mainstream media has minimal coverage of this latest 'gas attack' on Syrian civilians and now the US is backing away from the incident. Seems Russia foiled their plans by exposing the false flag operation before it happened.
It looks like the carnival is in town - a real 'cirque du freak'. The USS Carney, a Tomahawk-cruise missile destroyer arrived in Odessa this week. A video of its docking appeared on the official Twitter page.
While this is Ukrainian waters, one still must wonder what was the point of the move? To train with the Ukrainian navy? Please! The most impressive warship in the Ukrainian navy is a frigate. For those unaware, Frigates are not a very formidable class of ship - especially measured up against the US and Russia's best destroyers and cruisers.
Comment: We do know how the US reacts when Russia appears to be close by: US media loses it when Russian 'spy' ship makes annual trip to the Caribbean
Also See:
- Russian fighter jet flies within 5 feet of US spy plane "preventing violation of Russian airspace", ends its mission prematurely - UPDATE (VIDEO)
- More Black Sea provocations by the bumbling US-NATO war machine
- Tensions escalate: US Navy and Russia both send warships to the Black Sea
© RIZWAN TABASSUM / AFP
The Russian Ministry took pains to highlight Asif's visit. A 'working visit' cuts out protocol frills and gets straight to transacting business. Yet, Moscow made an exception and issued a glowing 'curtain-raiser' to hail Asif's arrival. There must have been strong reasons to do so. The regional backdrop is indeed tumultuous. The new Cold War is slouching toward the Hindu Kush and Central Asian steppes and Pakistan's geography is regaining the criticality in strategic terms reminiscent of the 1980s.
The Russian statements have become highly critical of the US regional strategies in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. Moscow has concluded that the US is determined to keep an open-ended military presence in the region. On the other hand, Russia is being kept at arm's length from the Afghan problem. Instead, Washington is directly engaging the Central Asian states, bypassing Russia, including at the military level. Clearly, Washington is working hard to undermine Moscow's leadership role in the region in the fight against terrorism and to challenge Russia's notion of being the provider of security to the former Soviet republics neighboring Afghanistan.
Comment: The more the U.S. behaves like a bully, the more the rest of the world understands the need to unite against it.
© AP Photo/ Luis M. Alvarez
The State Department is launching a $40 million initiative to crack down on foreign propaganda and disinformation amid widespread concerns about future Russian efforts to interfere in elections.
The department announced Monday that it signed a deal with the Pentagon to transfer $40 million from the Defense Department's coffers to bolster the Global Engagement Center, an office set up at State during the Obama years to expose and counter foreign propaganda and disinformation.
© The Hawaii Independent
No further information has been released.
Comment: Early on February 27, aircraft of the US-led coalition carried out strikes on Syrian government forces at the village of Salhiya in the province of Deir Ezzor, according to pro-government sources.
Then, pro-government sources claimed that government forces had reportedly responded with launching anti-aircraft missiles at the aicraft attacking their positions.
An unveryfied video even appeared online showing the alleged moment of the government forces' response:
If these reports are confirmed, the incident will show the growing level of tensions between the Syrian-Iranian-Russian alliance and the US-led coalition in the Euphrates Valley.
© REUTERS/ Bassam Khabieh
Damaged buildings are seen in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern Ghouta, Damascus, Syria, February 25, 2018
Damaged buildings are seen in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern Ghouta, Damascus, Syria, February 25, 2018
Russian General Viktor Pankov said that civilians cannot leave Eastern Ghouta as humanitarian corridors had been shelled by militants.
"At 9 am on February 27, a humanitarian corridor was opened for the release of civilians from the zone of de-escalation. Currently, militants launched intense shelling and not a single civilian has come out," the general told reporters.
On Monday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that a new daily humanitarian pause in Eastern Ghouta would start on Tuesday from 09:00 [07:00 GMT] until 14:00, following the relevant order of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Security at the exit from the humanitarian corridor is set to be provided by the Russian military police and the Syrian army.
Comment: The Syrian military accused the Islamist rebels in the East Ghouta on Tuesday morning of attacking the humanitarian corridor that was setup for civilians to flee the fighting in this farming region near Damascus city.
According to the Syrian military, the Islamist rebels heavily shelled the humanitarian corridor that was setup at the Wafiddeen Refugee Camp near the large city of Douma.See also: Russian MoD: Daily 5-hour humanitarian pause introduced in E. Ghouta starting Feb 27
Comment: It's really ironic that the Left can't see its own authoritarianism, given that the biggest totalitarians of the 20th century were on the Left. They just can't seem to grok that believing yourself to be good and virtuous, demonizing those you believe are evil for not agreeing with you, and using all means at your disposal to coerce your enemies into agreement or silence, including state power, is what all authoritarians do.