Puppet MastersS


Pirates

Yemen: US kills top al-Qaeda leader, 5 years after 'promoting' him, reportedly by US drone strike


RT
Thu, 06 Feb 2020 23:32 UTC
al Raymi
© IntelCneter/NewscomMilitary commander Abu Qasim al Raymi of AQAP, 2009
The leader of al-Qaeda of the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) was killed in a counter-terrorism raid in Yemen, US President Donald Trump has stated. The group may be no closer to defeat than in 2015, when its last "emir" was killed.

Trump announced the death of Qassim al-Raymi on Thursday evening, without noting the exact date or method of execution.
"Under [al-Raymi], AQAP committed unconscionable violence against civilians in Yemen and sought to conduct and inspire numerous attacks against the United States and our forces. His death further degrades AQAP and the global al-Qa'ida movement, and it brings us closer to eliminating the threats these groups pose to our national security."
Unconfirmed reports about al-Raymi's death emerged last week, with some suggesting that the terrorist leader was killed in a US drone strike.

His terrorist group claimed responsibility for the lethal shooting at a naval base in Pensacola, Florida last year, when a Saudi cadet being trained at the facility shot and killed three American sailors.

Comment: See also:



See also:

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Arrow Up

Nord Stream 2: Investors to meet their commitments despite US threats of sanctions


RT
Thu, 06 Feb 2020 13:41 UTC
NS 2 pipevessels
© Nord Stream 2Pipe laying vessels for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline
European companies have already invested billions of dollars in the Nord Stream 2 underwater pipeline from Russia to Germany, and are not going to ditch the project despite the threat of new US sanctions.

Washington could be preparing to target the massive Russian-European energy project again after last year's restrictions failed to completely stop it. US lawmakers want to approve another sanctions bill, this time imposing restrictions on the European investors involved in it or the potential buyers of the gas, delivered via the route after its completion, the German business outlet Handelsblatt reported earlier this week citing its sources.

Christine Bossak, a spokesperson for Uniper, one of the lenders of the project, told Sputnik on Thursday:
"We know that the Americans are determined to prevent Nord Stream 2​​​. We have undertaken to provide financing for up to one tenth of the project costs and, under the circumstances, we will meet these obligations in accordance with contractual and legal requirements."
According to an agreement signed in 2017, some 50 percent of financing for the Nord Stream 2 is being provided by European energy majors - France's Engie, Austria's OMV, Denmark's Shell, as well as Germany's Uniper and Wintershall. Thus the firms are set to pay nearly $1 billion each to cover half of the total €9.5 billion (nearly $10.5 billion) cost of the pipeline.
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Black Cat

Puppet Guaidó: The Trudeau government's effort to overthrow Venezuelan government

Yves Engler
Dissident Voice
Wed, 05 Feb 2020 00:00 UTC
Justin Trudeau & Juan Guaido
Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, and interim President of Venezuela Juan Guaido meet at Trudeau's Parliament Hill office in Ottawa, Ontario, Monday, Jan. 27, 2020. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP)
What's more likely to shape Canadian policy in the Hemisphere: human rights and democracy or bankers' bottom-line?

Last week Venezuelan politician Juan Guaidó was fêted in Ottawa. The self-declared president met Canada's Prime Minister, international development minister and foreign minister. Trudeau said, "I commend Interim President Guaidó for the courage and leadership he has shown in his efforts to return democracy to Venezuela, and I offer Canada's continued support."


Comment: It is to be reminded that Trudeau's mandate comes with a mere 33 per cent of the popular vote that he is offering up to Guaidó. History is showing that Trudeau is offering up 'support' as part of Canada's continuous pledge to the status quo, of which mining, banking, and not least is American foreign policy that firmly holds the whip.

It's almost as if Guaidó has been manufactured out of thin air and helped by the like of the LIMA Group? At present, it does not seem to be working out well for Guaidó, so will have to stay tuned.


Last month Guaidó was dethroned as leader of Venezuela's national assembly. While the vote was contested, it represents a significant blow to Guaidó's year-old claim to be Venezuela's legitimate President. To shore up his position as opposition leader, Guaidó travelled to a number of international capitals, the World Economic Forum in Switzerland and was a guest of Donald Trump at the US president's state of the union address.

Comment: The Making of Juan Guaidó: How The US Regime Change Laboratory Created Venezuela's Coup Leader

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Star of David

Russian MoD charges Israeli airstrikes on Damascus suburbs put civilian flight with 172 passengers at risk


RT
Fri, 07 Feb 2020 18:33 UTC
Airbus A320 Cham Wings
© Flightradar / Oleksiy NaumovAn Airbus A320 operated by Cham Wings
Israeli strikes on Damascus suburbs put a civilian aircraft in serious danger and forced it to divert to Russia's Khmeimim airbase as the Syrian air defense was activated to repel the attack, the Russian military said.

An Airbus A320 flying from Tehran to the Syrian capital was forced to make an emergency landing following an Israeli missile attack, the Russian Defense Ministry said. It added that using civilian aircraft as a "shield" is "commonplace" for Israeli Air Force pilots.

The aircraft was about to land at Damascus International Airport, but was unable do so as the Syrian air defense systems engaged the hostile targets. The jet could have found itself in the crossfire if it weren't for the Damascus air traffic control, whose "timely actions" averted a possible disaster.

Comment: The aftermath of Israel's reckless attack. Why does Israel feel threatened by a car dealership?
Footage provided by Ruptly shows locals clearing the rubble from the streets in the western suburbs of Damascus, where the Israeli missiles landed overnight. Broken glass and pieces of concrete are seen scattered all over the place, along with several vehicles that have apparently burned out overnight.

"As you can see, yesterday the area was targeted by Israel, this area has a lot of car rental companies and many cars were [damaged], thank god the damages were only material," Asaad Khallouf, the director of the Damascus Countryside industrial area, can be heard saying in the video.

Syria now looking at further upgrades to its aerial defense systems:
According to the Syrian diplomat, Syria will fully review its missile defense systems, taking into account Israel's actions.

"Syria uses all air defense systems to protect the airspace from continued aggression by Israel. Repeated airstrikes have convinced Syria of the need for a more advanced anti-aircraft missile system, and Syria will search for reasonable options to strengthen the air defense system," Mustafa said.

"Israel is taking advantage of the fact that Syria is actively fighting terrorist groups in Idlib ," the Syrian ambassador continued. In addition, Mustafa condemned Israel for trying to "hide behind a passenger plane and completely neglecting the lives of civilians."
Israel really doesn't care who gets in the way of its 'exceptional' right to attack whomever it pleases. There aren't enough consequences to make it matter, and it knows it.

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X

DNC chair Perez demands Iowa recanvass, more sordid details emerge about Shadow app's backers


RT
Thu, 06 Feb 2020 17:52 UTC
iowa caucus failure rig democrats
© Reuters / Brenna NormanIowa Democratic Party chair readies the excuses
Increasingly glaring irregularities in the Iowa caucus have forced DNC chair Tom Perez to call for a recanvass, as new revelations about those who funded the fiasco suggest a campaign to steal not just the election, but the party.

Just when it looked like the Iowa caucus nightmare was over, with 97 percent of precincts reporting and so many "inconsistencies" glossed over to reach that point that the most corrupt banana republic would raise an eyebrow, Perez has called for a do-over. "In light of the problems that have emerged" and "to assure public confidence in the results," the party leader ordered its Iowa chapter to "immediately begin a recanvass" on Thursday, adding that a recanvass is not a recount per se but "a review of the worksheets from each caucus site."

Comment: Sanders now declaring victory in the Iowa debacle, because math:
"What I want to do is thank the people of Iowa for the victory they gave us on Monday night," Sanders said in a press conference on Thursday. With some 97 percent of precincts reporting, the Vermont senator is ahead in the popular vote by over 6,000, but still lags slightly in delegates behind South Bend, Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Not everyone was satisfied with Sanders' belated claim to the prized Iowa victory, however. One reporter demanded to know why he should believe Sanders' victory speech over that of his upstart rival, only to be hit with a math lesson.
Because I got 6,000 more votes. And where I come from, when you get 6,000 more votes, that's generally regarded to be the winner.
With about 180,000 voters in the Iowa caucus divided among eight candidates, Sanders reasoned, 6,000 was a healthy margin of victory.

When the app that was supposed to report vote totals failed on Monday night, statistics the Sanders campaign had collected from precinct captains placed him in an easy first place by raw votes. That didn't stop Buttigieg from staking his claim to the Iowa ribbon, considered an important victory because it's the first state to hold a contest. Most of the time, candidates who win Iowa go on to secure their party's nomination.
History is repeating in Iowa,brought to you by the usual suspects. From 2016:

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Bulb

Stop using Russia as chief 'bogeyman', let's normalize relations - Putin spokesman to US politicians


RT
Thu, 06 Feb 2020 13:29 UTC
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin
© REUTERS/Grigory DukorU.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin
After a few years of 'Russiagate', which bizarrely mutated into a Ukraine-inspired impeachment trial, now that Donald Trump has been declared 'not guilty' by the Senate, the Kremlin would like to move on.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, says it's time for American politicians to stop using Russia as the main "bogeyman" in their internal battles. He added that as soon as Russian-American relations are taken off the domestic agenda in Washington, it should be possible to "normalize" relations between the two countries.

Asked to comment on the Senate's verdict, Peskov noted that Russia "traditionally doesn't like to interfere in the internal politics of the US," but conceded the outcome of the trial was "quite easily predicted by anyone, not just specialists in American affairs."

Comment: Though quite reasonable, Peskov's request is being made of what may very well be the most pathologized and power-obsessed body of politicians, pundits and intelligence personnel that Washington has ever seen. And this is to say nothing of the arms industry that seeks to ever greater profits in pushing for war with "bigger and badder" enemies. In other words, while Peskov's statements are the only sane and rational ones in this discussion, the US would seem to be on an obsessed and one way trip down the road of aggression, confrontation and, ultimately, self-destruction.

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Info

Made in America: Moving the goalposts in US-China confrontation

Larry Romanoff
Global Research
Wed, 05 Feb 2020 00:00 UTC
China flag
The prospect of 'moving the goalposts' is a peculiarly American strategy to ensure that America will always win. To accomplish this, one either moves the goalposts in position to receive the ball regardless of how badly-aimed it might be, or moves them out of the path of the opponent's well-placed kick so he fails to score. This move is often accompanied by sudden changes in either the rules or the method of keeping score, all designed to "level the playing field" and ensure that America wins.

In 2012 China filed more patents worldwide than did the US, but sadly China's patents were bad while America's patents were good because US patents are made for freedom and democracy while China's are just about money. The Americans admitted China had surpassed the US in patent applications, but then added "although the quality of China's patents is often disputed", the accusation once again serving as proof. 'Quality' being partially defined as new inventions as opposed to refinements, and by curious metrics like "influence" and "global reach" and the number of times a patent is cited in a publication. So the Americans rush to cite each other's patents in every American publication, which magically greatly enhances their creativity and innovation, and America still wins. There seems almost no claim too vacuous for the Americans to posit.
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2 + 2 = 4

'Because I got 6,000 more votes': Bernie Sanders declares victory in Iowa caucus

Jake Johnson and Jon Queally
Common Dreams
Thu, 06 Feb 2020 00:00 UTC
Bernie Sanders Campaign
© Bernie Sanders CampaignDemocratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks from his campaign's New Hampshire headquarters in Manchester on February 06, 2020.
"From where I come, when you get 6,000 more votes that's generally regarded to be the winner."

Touting his 6,000-vote lead over Pete Buttigieg with 97% of Iowa Democratic caucus precincts reporting, Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday declared victory in the first-in-the-nation presidential contest and slammed the state Democratic Party's handling of the process as "extremely unfair to the people of Iowa" and the entire 2020 Democratic presidential field.

"What I want to do today, three days late, is to thank the people of Iowa for the very strong victory they gave us at the Iowa caucuses on Monday night," Sanders said during a press conference in Manchester, New Hampshire. "Even though the vote tabulations have been extremely slow, we are now at a point with some 97% of the precincts reporting where our campaign is winning the popular initial vote by some 6,000 votes."

"In other words, some 6,000 more Iowans came out on caucus night to support our candidacy than the candidacy of anyone else," the Vermont senator added. "And when 6,000 more people come out for you in an election than your nearest opponent, we here in northern New England call that a victory."

Comment: One thing's for sure, Bernie's going to have to fight real hard against the utterly corrupt DNC machine if he's serious about winning the nomination. Otherwise he may as well hang it up right now because there's no way the DNC will let him lead the party.

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Snakes in Suits

How can America play kingmaker in Venezuela when it can't be trusted to conduct a caucus in Iowa?

Robert Bridge
Strategic Culture Foundation
Fri, 07 Feb 2020 00:00 UTC
Buttigieg
© Flickr / Phil Roeder
Just one day after the Iowa caucuses had descended into unbridled mayhem with the Democratic Party failing at simple arithmetic, Washington's man in Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, was feted at Trump's State of the Union Address as the rightful leader of the South American country. These dual events are symptomatic of a murderous empire drunk on hubris and arrogance, teetering on the edge of self-annihilation.

Future historians, when conducting the messy autopsy on Clown Nation, will point to the first week of February 2020 as the moment when the greatest experiment in popular democracy entered into an inescapable death spiral. This implosion will probably puzzle many people because, as the Commander-in-Chief Donald J. Trump reminded throughout his SOTU address, times are good - indeed, as they so often are before an epic crash.

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Arrow Up

UK wants to ease trade restrictions on some Russian imports as trade rises for third year


RT
Fri, 07 Feb 2020 09:56 UTC
steel worker
© Reuters / Wolfgang RattayFILE PHOTO: A steel worker
The British government is looking to lift anti-dumping measures on Russian goods, imposed by the EU back in 2015. The restrictions could be removed in 2021 when the 11-month Brexit transition period ends.

The UK's Department for International Trade said in a statement published Thursday that it is going to review all anti-dumping, anti-subsidy, and safeguard measures currently in place, including the import duties on products originating from Russia.

"Transition reviews will assess whether the current measure is appropriate for the UK market and whether it should be varied, changed or terminated," it said.

Comment: With an increasingly perilous world economic outlook, businesses, particularly in the UK, are in no position to sacrifice profitable trade in the name of pointless political power plays:

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