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Exit polls indicate Modi on course to win second term as Indian PM - by substantial majority


RT
Mon, 20 May 2019 09:31 UTC
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
© Reuters / Adnan AbidiPrime Minister Narendra Modi
India's ruling National Democratic Alliance headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party is on course to win the general election by a substantial margin, multiple exit polls indicate.

The world's largest democracy, with nearly 900 million eligible voters, finished its complicated, weeks-long, multi-stage election process on Sunday to decide who sits in India's 543-member lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha.

While the final results will not be officially announced until May 23, multiple exit polls show that Modi will most likely secure his second five-year term as prime minister after a strong performance by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in an epic clash with the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) led by Rahul Gandhi from the Indian National Congress (INC) party.


Comment: For more information and an excellent analysis of the general elections, see: Indian General Elections 2019: Money, Social Media and Nationalism

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Eye 2

Flashback The OPCW, the Douma gas attacks & the Skripals

Catte Black
OffGuardian
Fri, 17 May 2019 18:10 UTC
collage skripals syria gas attack
© The OffGuardian
In view of the latest revelations from the leaked report, which seem to prove that at least some elements of the Douma "chemical attack" were entirely staged, we want to take look back at the chaotic events of Spring 2018.
  • What was the agenda behind the Douma false flag?
  • Why was the US response seemingly token and ineffective?
  • Why was the Secretary of State Rex Tillerson fired?
  • What agenda tied the Skripal case to the Douma attack?
The following is an extract from an article by Catte originally published April 14th last year, which takes on a greater weight in light of certain evidence - not only that the Douma attack was faked, but that the OPCW is compromised.

You can read the whole article here.

Comment: The OPCW may as well close up shop. Its once-impeccable reputation for impartial investigation is in tatters. OPCW confirms leak of covered-up report, suggesting Douma incident 'false-flag' is genuine
Peter Hitchens, for a long time the only mainstream voice to express any doubts about the "official narrative" on Douma, wrote to the OPCW to ask about the leaked report.

He wrote a column about it. We suggest you read it, but the most important passage, taken directly from an OPCW statement, is this:
"Pursuant to its established policies and practices, the OPCW Technical Secretariat is conducting an internal investigation about the unauthorised release of the document in question."
Note the language. Nowhere is it disputing either the findings of the document, nor the veracity. Instead, they are "conducting an investigation" into its "unauthorised release".

That is as close to an admission as makes no difference. For now, we can safely conclude the document is real, and the findings genuine.

That means, not only that the Douma "chemical attack" was likely staged, but that the OPCW knew this and chose to cover it up.

A very distressing series of events, and one that could easily have lead to an all-out war between Syria, Russia and NATO.


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Pirates

Google pulls Huawei's Android license, forces it to use open source version, wait for updates

T.C. Sottek
The Verge
Mon, 20 May 2019 17:45 UTC
huawei blocked by US google
© Alex CastroGoogle has cut off Huawei’s Android license
A dramatic escalation in the US war on Chinese tech firms

Following the US crackdown on Chinese technology companies, Google has cut off Huawei's Android license, dealing a huge blow to the besieged phonemaker. Reuters first reported the news, and The Verge subsequently confirmed Google's suspension of business with Huawei with a source familiar with the matter.

Reached for comment, a Google spokesperson said only "We are complying with the order and reviewing the implications." The order, in this case, appears to be the US Commerce Department's recent decision to place Huawei on the "Entity List," which as Reuters reports is a list of companies that are unable to buy technology from US companies without government approval.

Comment: RT reports pressure on Huawei from another quarter with Intel and Qualcomm halting microchip supplies to Huawei:
Several major US corporations, such as Qualcomm and Intel, have reportedly joined Google in implementing President Donald Trump's executive order that declared Chinese tech giant Huawei a national security risk.

Following in the footsteps of Google, a number of top American chipmakers - including Intel, Qualcomm, Xilinx, and Broadcom - halted their business transactions with Huawei, according to Bloomberg, citing insiders. The companies are said to have told their employees that no new shipments will be made "until further notice."

Lumentum Holdings, which sells components to Huawei, also announced that it would stop selling to the Chinese firm. The company said Monday that it was lowering its quarterly outlook since sales to Huawei accounted for 18 percent of overall revenue in its most recent quarter.

In the meantime, Google has confirmed it was also "complying with the order and reviewing the implications" of the ban introduced by Trump under the pretext of national security. While Google has yet to make an official announcement, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer is likely to lose access to Android operating system updates, while its forthcoming smartphones will be shut out of most Google apps and services.

Washington accuses Huawei of spying on behalf of the Chinese government, but the telecommunications giant consider the US officials' rhetoric to be a blatant example of unfair market competition.


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Control Panel

Ukraine's new leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy moves quickly to dissolve parliament, forge new path for peace in Donbass and Russia

Nataliya Vasilyeva and Efrem Lukatsky
AP
Mon, 20 May 2019 00:00 UTC
Volodymyr Zelenskiy
© APVolodymyr Zelenskiy
Emboldened by his stunning victory last month, Ukrainian TV star Volodymyr Zelenskiy moved swiftly Monday to dissolve the country's parliament, moments after he was sworn in as the country's new president.

Zelenskiy, who won 73% of the vote last month, justified his contentious decision to dissolve the parliament, which is controlled by allies of the man he defeated, Petro Poroshenko, on the grounds it has become a hotbed of self-enrichment.

A presidential decree formally disbanding the parliament is expected later Monday. If all goes to plan, the snap election will be held within two months after the decree is signed.

Elections to the Supreme Rada were scheduled for Oct. 27, which raised the prospect of Zelenskiy struggling to enact his agenda in the face of a hostile parliament over his first few months in power.

Zelenskiy, who played the Ukrainian president on a popular TV show for years, is gambling that his popularity will see the next parliament dominated by supporters of his agenda to reform Ukraine and steer a new path with Russia.

Comment: The question now is: can Zelenskiy actually do anything construcive with the far-right powers of Azov Battalion entrenched in the military - and with NATO powers itching to draw Russia into conflict using eastern Ukraine as a flashpoint.

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Attention

Need we wonder? Neocons ADMIT they will lie us into war

James Corbett
The Corbett Report
Sat, 18 May 2019 00:00 UTC
AbramsPencePompeoBolton
© Dario Las Americas, Kacper Pempel/Reuters/UnknownElliott Abrams • Mike Pence • Mike Pompeo • John Bolton
Now that mustachioed super villain John Bolton is in the driver's seat of America's foreign policy, an old video of the arch-neocon admitting he would lie to the public to achieve his goals is making the rounds once again.

Go ahead and watch it for yourself


Here's the money quote for those who missed it: "If I had to say something I knew was false to protect American national security, I would do it."

The example he gives to flesh out his point is relatively uncontroversial. "I don't think we're often faced with that difficulty, but would I lie about where the D-Day invasion was going to take place to deceive the Germans, you'd better believe it."

But is that where the principle of knowingly lying to the public in the name of "national security" begins and ends? Not revealing the dates and locations of planned military operations? Or do you think that someone like John Bolton and his neocon friends just might use this idea of lying to achieve his goals a bit more liberally?

Comment: See also:

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Arrow Down

Trump aims to reverse Rust Belt slide as polling indicates he is trailing Joe Biden

Alex Isenstadt
Politico
Mon, 20 May 2019 05:01 UTC
TrumpSupporters
© Mark Makela/Getty ImagesSupporters of President Donald Trump demonstrate last month in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Donald Trump's aides and allies are moving aggressively to shore up his support in three Rust Belt states that propelled him to the presidency - but where his own polling shows him in trouble heading into 2020.

Trump will travel to Pennsylvania Monday for a rally that comes after recent visits to Wisconsin and Michigan, two other states at the center of his reelection strategy. Those appearances are just the most public display of his team's efforts to fortify his standing.

Behind the scenes, they've rushed to the aid of languishing state Republican Party machines and have raised concerns that a potential GOP Senate candidate in Michigan could hurt the president's prospects there. They are also scrutinizing the map for opportunities to fire up his base in the trio of states.

The moves come at a time of growing anxiety over the geographic linchpin of his 2020 hopes. The Trump campaign recently completed a 17-state polling project that concluded the president trails Joe Biden in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan, according to two people briefed on the results. America First Action, the principal pro-Trump super PAC, is expected to conduct its own polling and focus groups in Pennsylvania and Michigan later this summer.
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Satellite

Qatari broadcaster reveals alleged satellite images of damaged Saudi oil facilities


Sputnik
Mon, 20 May 2019 18:16 UTC
Saudi/oil
© AP/John MooreSaudi Oil
Two Saudi oil facilities located along a major pipeline were hit in a drone attack on Tuesday, which prompted Riyadh to temporarily shut down the pipeline and carry out retaliatory airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen.

Qatar's Al Jazeera broadcaster has shared what it calls satellite imagery showing the damage dealt to a Saudi oil station in a Houthi drone attack.

According to Al Jazeera, the images were taken one day after the attack on Saudi Aramco's pumping station 8, located some 330 kilometres west of the kingdom's capital, Riyadh.

Satellite image analysis is said to have shown a four-metre fracture in the tube, which resulted in crude oil leaking over an estimated area of ​​1,000 square meters.

It is understood that the precision of the attack, which apparently hadn't affected the nearby administrative and residential buildings, rules out claims that the pipeline hit was coincidental.
Saudi oil facility
© UnknownSaudi oil facility
While Riyadh is yet to comment on the images, Saudi officials confirmed last Tuesday that pumping station 9 was also targeted in the drone attacks. The two stations sit along the key East-West pipeline, which stretches across the entire peninsula from the Abqaiq oil field in the east to the Yanbu oil terminal on the Red Sea coast.

Comment: See also:

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Family

Trump on raging abortion law battle: 'Strongly pro-life' but supports certain exceptions


RT
Sun, 19 May 2019 12:40 UTC
Trump/choose stuff
© Esther Faciane
US President Donald Trump has made his first public statement about a controversial new abortion ban in Alabama, describing himself as "strongly pro-life" but is also arguing that abortion is appropriate in some cases.

The US president tweeted on Sunday, stating that the procedure is only appropriate as a result of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is at stake.


Describing his position as the same stance taken by former President Ronald Reagan, Trump touted his administration's "new & positive attitude about the Right to life," while accusing the "Radical Left" of "imploding" over abortion laws.

"We must stick together and Win for Life in 2020. If we are foolish and do not stay UNITED as one, all of our hard fought gains for Life can, and will, rapidly disappear!" he wrote.

Comment: See also:

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X

Chewed up and spit out: Venezuela's military traitors now abandoned by Guaido and Colombia

Paul Antonopoulos
FRN
Sat, 18 May 2019 00:00 UTC
Maduro and Lopez
© APPresident Nicolas Maduro
More than 60 former Venezuelan soldiers who took refuge in Colombia after defecting from the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB) were expelled from their hotel in the city of Cúcuta along with their families.

There are about 160 people in total who said that Venezuela's self-proclaimed president, Juan Guaidó, does not give them any support. "We are adrift, nobody from our president, Juan Guaidó, who we support 100%, none of them came here," said a Venezuelan deserter, quoted by TeleSUR. The reason for the hotel eviction was the lack of payment and debt for accommodation and food services.

The Colombian government offered some options for deserters to continue to enjoy shelter in their country, but deserters claim that such measures would remove refugee status and lose political protection.

Now the former military personnel have been transferred to the facilities of the Colombian migration service to decide their future and what can be offered to them.


Comment: See also:

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Light Sabers

IRGC Chief: Iran prefers peace but is not 'afraid' of war


RT
Sun, 19 May 2019 11:01 UTC
Salami
© theiranproject.comIranian Brigadier General Hossein Salami
Iran does not want war with the United States, the head of the elite Revolutionary Guards has claimed, adding that Washington lacks the "will" to fight Tehran.

"The difference between us and them is that they are afraid of war and don't have the will for it," Major General Hossein Salami said, according to the Fars news agency.

Salami has made a number of public statements about rising tensions with the United States, following Washington's declaration that a joint strike group was being deployed to the Persian Gulf to send Iran a "message."

The Iranian general described the move as part of a "psychological war," noting that Tehran has grown accustomed to a large US military presence in the region.

His comments echo similar remarks made by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who said on Saturday that Iran does not want war. The Iranian diplomat also boasted that no country on earth is under the "illusion" that it could "confront Iran" in the Middle East.

Comment: See also:

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