Puppet MastersS


Stock Up

Russia's national payment system MIR to expand in Europe


RT
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 17:39 UTC

Comment: The IRONY if Russia's MIR - a 'forced innovation' due to US sanctions - winds up taking market share from VISA/Mastercard in Europe!


Russia MIR payment
© Sputnik / Mikhail Voskresenskiy
MIR payment system, developed by Russia in response to Western sanctions, is set to hit the European market. It will launch a pilot project at the Russian-British business forum in London on Wednesday.

PayXpert will become the unique acquirer of MIR cards in Europe, and the UK will be the first country where the system will operate, according to one of the organizers of the business event, the Roscongress Foundation.

"The launch of our joint project with PayXpert is the first and foremost step in the development of MIR acquiring in Europe, which will lay the foundation for new promising trends in the foreign expansion of Russian payment cards," said CEO of the MIR payment system Vladimir Komlev.
Read More...
Chess

Turkey won't support anti-Russia military plan until NATO recognizes Kurdish YPG as terrorists

Robin Emmott
Reuters
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 17:20 UTC
Turkey and NATO flags
© BELGA / AFP
Turkey is refusing to back a NATO defense plan for the Baltics and Poland until the alliance offers Ankara more political support for its fight against Kurdish YPG militia in northern Syria, four senior alliance sources said.

Ankara has told its NATO envoy not to sign off on the plan and is taking a tough line in meetings and in private conversations, demanding the alliance recognize the YPG as terrorists in the formal wording, the sources said.

Turkey's NATO delegation was not immediately available for comment. Turkey's defense and foreign ministries did not respond to requests for comment.
Read More...
Bulb

Schiff hits the fan: First House Democrat publicly opposes impeachment

Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 15:45 UTC
Rep. Brenda Lawrence
With public support for impeachment waning and the risk of a potentially disastrous Senate trial looming, House Democrats have suffered their first impeachment defection after Rep. Brenda Lawrence of Michigan said she no longer supports the effort.

"We are so close to an election. I will tell you, sitting here knowing how divided this country is, I don't see the value of taking him out of office," said Lawrence, who instead favors censuring President Trump over allegations that he withheld military aid in Ukraine for self-serving purposes, according to the Washington Examiner.
Read More...
Quenelle

"Illegal colonial occupier": Mauritius blasts UK as it skips UN deadline to return Chagos Islands housing US airbase


RT
Fri, 22 Nov 2019 14:19 UTC
US B-2 Spirit bomber
© Reuters / US Department of DefenseA file photo of a US B-2 Spirit bomber refueling at Diego Garcia
The UK missed a UN deadline to vacate its Indian Ocean islands, the largest of which hosts an American airbase, garnering some strong words from its former colony Mauritius, which sold them to London for £3m back in the day.

Pravind Jugnauth, the Prime Minister of Mauritius, has branded the United Kingdom an "illegal colonial occupier" after the six-month deadline to surrender control over the Chagos Islands passed on Friday.

In May, the UN General Assembly voted by an overwhelming majority (116-to-6) for a resolution demanding that the islands be handed over to Mauritius. Earlier, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) made history by declaring the Chagos archipelago illegally occupied by the British.

Comment: See also: Spain refuels Russian ships despite NATO pressure, says UK has to leave Gibraltar

Read More...
Snakes in Suits

State department releases detailed accounts of Biden-Ukraine corruption

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Mon, 25 Nov 2019 05:11 UTC
Hunter and Joe Biden
© David McNew | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesHunter Biden and Joe Biden
A liberal watchdog group's attempt to nail Rudy Giuliani has backfired in spectacular fashion after their FOIA request resulted in the US State Department releasing detailed accusations of corruption against the Bidens - based on interviews with former Ukrainian officials who were in charge of the investigations.

Responding to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit from the group American Oversight, the State Department on Friday night released almost 100 pages of records detailing efforts by Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani to investigate corruption, which include contacts with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) earlier this year.

While American Oversight's 'gotcha' is that Giuliani had "multiple contacts" with Mike Pompeo and others while investigating Ukraine corruption, they completely ignore interview notes containing detailed allegations by former Ukraine Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin - who Joe Biden had fired, as well as his successor, prosecutor general Yuriy Lutsenko - who "believes Mr. Viktor Shokin the former Prosecutor General is honest."

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Eye 1

Pompeo contradicts US policy and international law on Israeli settlements, dozens of Palestinians injured during clashes, alleged rockets from Gaza leads to air raids from Israel


Sputnik
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 20:48 UTC
palestine
© REUTERS / MOHAMAD TOROKMAN
Dozens of Palestinians were injured during clashes with the Israeli military in the West Bank after protests in response to the United States' decision to recognize Israeli settlements in the territory began on Tuesday, media reported.

Earlier in the day, media reported that the president of the Palestinian Fatah movement, Mahmoud Abbas, made the call and was joined by other factions, urging Palestinians to join the "Day of Rage" protest against the US position on settlements.

According to the Palestinian WAFA news outlet, dozens of Palestinians suffered from tear gas and rubber bullets used by the Israeli military during the protests in some cities of the West Bank.

Comment: Sputnik reports on the :
rocket gaza
© AP Photo / Ariel Schalit
Sirens went off in Gaza Strip and Sderot, Israeli Defence Forces reported on their twitter page on Tuesday.

Following the sirens, two launches from Gaza Strip at Israeli territory were identified, according to the IDF. The military added the Iron Dome air defence system managed to intercept one projectile.

"2 rockets were just fired from #Gaza at Israeli civilians. 1 rocket was intercepted by the Iron Dome Aerial Defense System," the IDF wrote on its Twitter page.

There is a video that reportedly captures the incident circulating social media.


This month, border tensions escalated again. They were triggered by Israel's killing of Baha Abu al-Atta, a top commander from Palestine's Islamic Jihad group in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian militants fired multiple rockets toward Israel, while the latter responded with aerial attacks.
More from Sputnik:
Israeli aircraft conducted airstrikes on targets west of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip and in Khanyounis, in the north of the territory, early Wednesday morning.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tweeted Wednesday morning that the airstrikes were in response to rocket fire from Gaza earlier in the day.

"In response to the rockets fired from Gaza at Israeli civilians earlier tonight, our fighter jets just struck a number of Hamas terror targets in #Gaza," the IDF said. "Hamas will bear the consequences for actions against Israeli civilians."


​ Yemeni news channel Masirah TV reported multiple strikes were conducted near Ein Goliath after midnight Wednesday.


Palestinian journalist Diaa Mahmoud claimed to have heard sounds of an airstrike conducted west of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.


Social media footage allegedly from the scene shows a portion of the strike.


An alarm activated in the Ashkelon Regional Council prior to the reported Israeli Air Force strike was identified by the Israel Defense Forces as non-rocket fire. The Ashkelon Municipality later announced that no projectile fell into the city, reported The Jerusalem Post.
On Tuesday, two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip, activating the Israeli Iron Dome air defense system. The recent attack conducted by the Israeli Air Force is viewed as a response to the earlier rocket fire from Gaza, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to "respond firmly to any attack."
"If anyone in Gaza thinks he can raise his head after Operation Black Belt - he is seriously mistaken. We will respond firmly to any attack against us and continue to maintain Israel's security on all fronts," Netanyahu said in a translated Twitter post.


Though this exchange of fire renews violence that had previously calmed between Gaza and Israel, the latter carried out several strikes against dozens of targets, including warehouses and reconnaissance sites, in Syria last week.
See also:

Read More...
Gold Bar

Poland repatriates 100 tons of gold from Bank of England storage

Marek Strzelecki and Dorota Bartyzel
Bloomberg
Mon, 25 Nov 2019 12:00 UTC
bullion
© Bank of EnglandGold bullion in the vaults at the Bank of England.
Poland brought about 100 tons of gold home from the Bank of England in a bid to demonstrate the strength of nation's $586 billion economy, central bank Governor Adam Glapinski said.

The institution bought about 126 tons in 2018 and 2019 to increase its gold reserves to 228.6 tons. As a result, the country has become the 22nd-biggest bullion holder in the world and has the biggest reserves of the metal in the European Union's east, the central bank said.

Glapinski said the central bank will keep bringing the precious metal home if the "reserve situation is favorable."

Comment: A wise move from Poland considering the BoE has shown itself to be totally untrustworthy following the theft of Venezuela's gold, although it should be just as concerned by its reliance on its partnership with the US. Considering the increasingly unstable global economy, with much of it based on speculation and 'confidence' rather than hard assets or reality, many countries are hedging their bets, as well as preparing for the ditching of the dollar as world reserve currency:

Read More...
Info

Tulsi Gabbard and Joe Rogan agree that new laws need to be formed to end big tech censorship

Tom Parker
Reclaim the Net
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 18:47 UTC
tulsi rogan willink
Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard has been one of the most vocal critics of big tech on the campaign trail. And in a recent appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Gabbard provided more details on how she would rein in the massive amounts of power that these large social media companies hold.

The discussion began when Rogan said he thinks new laws need to be formed to protect users from the huge influence social media companies have over public discourse.

Gabbard agreed and when Rogan asked her specifically what she would do if she became president, she proposed a two-pronged legal approach.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Bomb

Baghdad blasts kill 6 as top Pentagon officials visit Iraq


RT
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 00:00 UTC
Bagdhad explosion
© REUTERS/Khalid al-MousilyThe explosions come as protesters clash with Iraqi security forces in Baghdad, November 26, 2019.
At least six people were killed and another 15 injured in three explosions across Baghdad. No one has claimed responsibility for the blasts, which come amid month-long popular unrest and a visit of top Pentagon officials to Iraq.

A motorcycle bomb in the northern Shaab district killed three and injured five on Tuesday, Reuters reported citing Iraqi security and medical sources. Another two people died and six were hurt when a second motorcycle exploded in the nearby Bayaa district. An improvised explosive device killed one person and injured four in the Baladiyat district in eastern Baghdad.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Sweden investigates Iraqi Defence Minister for 'war crimes' during recent protests


Sputnik
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 11:05 UTC
judge
© Sputnik / Vladimir Fedorenko
Najah al-Shammari, the embattled Iraqi Defence Minister, is already under investigation for grant fraud in Sweden, where he's lived since 2009 ultimately acquiring citizenship in 2015.

Iraqi Defence Minister Najah al-Shammari is now being investigated for crimes against humanity by Swedish prosecutors, after he was earlier confirmed to be a Swedish citizen, the Prosecutor's Office reported.

The preliminary investigation is being led by Chamber Prosecutor Neela Frisell at the National Unit against International and Organised Crime and is "at a very early stage", according to the statement.

Comment: There may be some truth to al-Shammari's response that a third party may be responsible for much of the bloodshed during the protests:

Read More...