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Hiliter

Day after Sessions shake-up, Mueller begins writing his 'Final Report' on Trump-Russia investigation

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Thu, 08 Nov 2018 11:35 UTC
Mueller
© AP/J. Scott Applewhite
One day after Attorney General Jeff Sessions was announced out at the Department of Justice, CNN reports that special counsel Robert Mueller's team has "begun writing its final report," according to "multiple sources." According to CNN, "all signs point to an investigation that is winding down."

Rumors over Mueller's final report comes as Democrats go into full panic mode over the appointment of Matt Whitaker - Sessions' former right-hand man, as interim Attorney General Whitaker will take over the Russia investigation from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who signed off on a FISA surveillance warrant application and subsequent renewals for former Trump campaign aide Carter Page.

Democrats have raised concerns over how Whitaker will handle the Russia investigation, with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) demanding Whitaker recuse himself over previous comments about the special counsel, after he said that if Mueller investigates the Trump family finances beyond anything to do with Russia, "that goes beyond the scope of the special counsel."

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) also called for Whitaker's recusal, stating that "Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein should be allowed to continue to oversee the investigation, unhindered."

In a Wednesday tweet, Pelosi said: "Given his record of threats to undermine & weaken the Russia investigation, Matthew Whitaker should recuse himself from any involvement in Mueller's investigation. Congress must take immediate action to protect the rule of law and integrity of the investigation."

Comment: Don't sit on the edge of your chair waiting for this report...track records of past investigations indicate it could be years - but then again, they had real events to probe.

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X

US tells the world to avoid Iranian oil tankers


RT
Thu, 08 Nov 2018 14:43 UTC
IranTanker
© Getty ImagesIranian Tanker
The US State Department has warned nations, allowing Iran's shipping vessels into their territorial waters and ports, of potential risks connected to insurance liabilities amid the recently introduced sanctions.

"If Iranian tankers make calls to your ports or transit through your waterways, this comes at great risk," Brian Hook, the State Department's special representative on Iran policy told journalists.

After global insurers withdrew coverage from Iranian vessels, the Islamic Republic will have to turn to domestic insurance corporations, which in turn won't be able to meet the expense in case of maritime accidents that could run into billions of dollars, according to the top official.

"Oil spills and accidents involving tankers are extremely costly. From the Suez Canal to the Strait of Malacca - and all chokepoints in between - Iranian tankers are now a floating liability," Hook said. "Countries, ports, and canal operators, and private firms should know they will be likely responsible for the cost of an accident involving a self-insured Iranian tanker," he added.

Comment: Tankers unable to procure insurance, facing unsurmountable risk, is a strategy gone too far. See also: Huge Iranian oil armada to dock in China before US sanctions kick in

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Bad Guys

Will Saudi Arabia's crimes against humanity finally be stopped?

Andre Vltchek
21st Century Wire
Wed, 07 Nov 2018 00:00 UTC
saudi arabia
It appears that the KSA has crossed all lines of decency, if there were ever any.

In the eyes of many in the West, it crossed them not because it has been brutally killing tens of thousands of innocent people in Yemen, not even because it keeps sponsoring terrorists in Syria, (and in fact all over the world), often on behalf of the West. And not even because it is trying to turn its neighboring country, Qatar, from a peninsula into an island.

The crimes against humanity committed by Saudi Arabia are piling up, but the hermit kingdom (it is so hermit that it does not even issue tourist visas, in order to avoid scrutiny) is not facing any sanctions or embargoes, with some exceptions like Germany. These are some of the most barbaric crimes committed in modern history, anywhere and by anyone. Executing and then quartering people, amputating their limbs, torturing, bombing civilians.

But for years and decades, all this mattered nothing. Saudi Arabia served faithfully both big business and the political interests of the United Kingdom first, and of the West in general later. That of course includes Israel, with which the House of Saud shares almost a grotesque hatred towards Shi'a Islam.

And so, no atrocities have been publicly discussed, at least not in the Western mass media or by the European and the US governments, while weapons, worth hundreds of billions of dollars, have been arriving into the KSA, and the oil, that dark sticky curse, kept flowing out.

Was Riyadh enjoying total impunity? Definitely!

Comment: See also:

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Footprints

Hostages freed as Syrian forces launch offensive against Daesh in Safa region


Sputnik
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 02:03 UTC
Syrian troops
© Sputnik/Iliya PitalevSyrian Forces
Some 1,500 Daesh terrorists are believed to remain in this area of southern Syria.

As the Syrian armed forces steadily regain control over their country's territory, an offensive has been launched against the remnants of Daesh in the Safa Volcanic Field in southern Syria.

The offensive became possible after Syrian forces freed 19 civilians that Daesh terrorists at Safa had used as their "last bargaining chip," Al-Masdar News reports.

"For months, Daesh has used these hostages to leverage the Syrian military to halt their operations in the Al-Safa region of southern Syria," the report stated.

The hostages had been held in captivity since July 25, when terrorists raided the Druze-majority city of Suwayda and neighbouring villages, killing more than 250 civilians, according to PressTV.

Now, without those hostages in their grasp, Daesh has nothing to hide behind. As Daesh kept bargaining back and forth (a threat to execute hostages actually prompted a liberation operation), Syrian forces were conducting a military build-up in the region. According to Al-Masdar News, the Syrian Arab Army's 4th Armoured Division is now fully deployed at Safa, which likely indicates the government is no longer interested in negotiations.

According to the website Syria.liveuamap.com, the assault on Daesh started Thursday, after a pre-emptive bombardment. Some 1,500 fighters are estimated to be holed up in the volcanic field.
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Passport

Trump signs order denying asylum to illegal migrants, as caravan approaches US - migrants 'have to come in legally'


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 17:01 UTC
Border patrol asylum seeker
© Agence France-Presse/John MooreA US Customs and Border Patrol agent speaks with a Cuban asylum seeker in Texas
President Trump has signed an immigration order requiring asylum seekers to make their claim at their point of entry to the US, and barring illegal immigrants from requesting asylum.

"We need people in our country but they have to come in legally and they have to have merit," Trump told reporters on Friday, before departing for Paris.

The order comes after weeks of Trump promising to crack down on illegal immigration, as a caravan of several thousand migrants makes its way toward the US' southern border from Central America. The caravan is currently around 600 miles from the United States.

Comment:

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Sheriff

DC authorities investigating Antifa protest at Tucker Carlson's home as possible hate crime


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 16:36 UTC
tucker carlson
© Agence France-Presse/Getty/Phillip FaraoneFox News host Tucker Carlson
The protesters that descended on Fox News' Tucker Carlson's home in Washington, DC, Wednesday night might face hate crime charges, police said. The activists defaced the host's home as his wife cowered inside.

Washington's Metropolitan Police Department said it is treating the incident outside the home of the conservative news channel star as a "suspected hate crime," as they believe Carlson was targeted because of his political beliefs.

Police were called to Carlson's home after a group of some 20 protesters surrounded his house, chanting loudly. Many of the self-described anti-racist protesters were carrying signs, some of which they later left on the cars parked in the driveway and porch. Police reported that protesters also vandalized Carlson's property, spray-painting an "anarchy symbol on the driveway."

Comment: Tucker is suffering the effects of effectively calling out the radical Left.

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Attention

Motorcade carrying British, Belgian PMs involved in collision, two police officers injured


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 13:10 UTC
theresa MAy
© FILE PHOTO AFP / DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS
A motorcade carrying the British and Belgian Prime Ministers, Theresa May and Charles Michel, has been involved in a traffic collision which left two police officers, who accompanied it on bikes, injured.

There has been no official statement from the authorities or police, but according to media reports a car moving along the same road in front of the convoy did not follow police instructions and apparently failed to move aside.

Instead, the driver is alleged to have suddenly slammed on the brakes. As a result, two police officers riding motorcycles rammed into the vehicle and found themselves thrown to the ground. It was initially reported that a vehicle had rammed the convoy.

Comment: There have been a few road incidents involving high profile people recently: Also of note:

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Mr. Potato

Delirious Bojo claims Saudi war on Yemen and Khashoggi murder 'helps Iran'


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 10:50 UTC
boris johnson
© Reuters / Toby Melville
Former UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson has put forth an intriguing argument for finding the killers of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi: not doing so will help Iran! Oh, and maybe the war on Yemen is bad, also.

Khashoggi, a self-exiled critic of the current Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey on October 2. Ankara immediately accused Riyadh of murdering the journalist, with anonymous government officials offering many graphic accounts of his death. After initially denying the accusations, the Saudis admitted Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate. The investigation is ongoing.

Writing in the Post on Thursday, Johnson seemed confident he knew all the facts already.

"I don't have any doubt about what happened: the plot to lure him to the Saudi consulate; the savage attack by heavies from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's own security team; the dismembering of the body," he said. "Nor do I doubt for a second that this disgusting assassination was ordered at the highest levels of the Saudi regime."

Comment: Bojo may be popular in the UK, but around the world he is ridiculed. For insight into the actual motivations behind the Khashoggi murder, see: And check out SOTT radio's:

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Dollar

US corporations steal $180bn from the rest of the world every year through tax evasion


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 16:04 UTC
Tax evasion study
© Getty Images
A new study by top economists and experts found that tax avoidance and evasion translate into hundreds of billions of dollars in unpaid taxes every year, with the money ending up in the pockets of the world's wealthiest people.

The paper, 'The Exorbitant Tax Privilege', was co-written by Thomas Wright and University of California, Berkeley economist Gabriel Zucman, one of the world's top authorities on tax havens.

The research shows that almost 50 percent of US multinationals' profits are currently generated in tax havens, while back in 1970, the number was less than 10 percent. The corporations effectively pay tax rates of 27 percent on profits generated in non-tax havens, and seven percent in tax havens.
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Eye 2

UN refugee agency finally agrees with Russia: Terrorists in Rukban camp are using civilians as human shields


Sputnik
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 15:17 UTC
Refugees Rukban camp Syria
© Associated Press / FileSyrian refugees gather for water at the Rukban refugee camp in Jordan's northeast border with Syria
The situation in Syria's Rukban refugee camp has become "horrible" after several years without sufficient aid, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the Middle East and North Africa Bureau Director Amin Awad told Sputnik.

"We just had a mission into Rukban; it was a horrible situation," Awad said on Thursday after UN humanitarian workers delivered aid to the camp for the first time since January. "People did not receive aid for the last four years. I mean receive aid in substantive manner. Of course, they were receiving cross-border aid from Jordan but it wasn't enough."

Moreover, the Rukban refugee camp houses terrorists, smugglers and traffickers who use innocent people as human shields, Awad sressed. Sputnik.

Comment:

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