Puppet MastersS


Bad Guys

Tony Blair Institute confirms it received 'millions' from Saudi Arabia


RT
Sat, 08 Sep 2018 12:33 UTC
Tony Blair
© Lucy Nicholson / ReutersFormer British PM Tony Blair speaks at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., May 3, 2016.
The Tony Blair Institute (TBI), an organisation set up by the former British prime minister, has revealed, in accounts released Wednesday, that it received financial donations from Saudi Arabia.

Blair's non-profit institute confirmed that it received payments from the Saudi-owned Media Investment Limited (MIL), a subsidiary of Saudi Research & Marketing Group (SRMG), which is registered in tax haven Guernsey. SRMG had been chaired by Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Mohammed al Farhan, now Saudi Arabia's culture minister.

The Sunday Telegraph reported in July that MIL had given £9m ($12m) to Blair's organisation. However, the amount donated by MIL is not stated in the accounts. A spokesperson for the TBI could not confirm a figure but insisted the amount will be included in the organisation's 2018 accounts, which will be published in a year's time, the Financial Times reports.

Comment: The Blair Institute has been advising Bin Salman's so-called progressive reforms. The Middle East Eye reports:
The former UK prime minister's group reached an agreement earlier this year to help support Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's modernisation programme under a "not for profit" arrangement, the Telegraph reported.

Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 is a programme of reforms intended to open up and diversify the kingdom's oil-centric economy by selling public assets, including a stake in the world's biggest oil producer, Aramco, and reinvesting the funds.
The results? Economic reforms have flopped and social reforms mean that now even women can get their heads chopped off. Throw in the Saudis bombing school children with impunity and you have a recipe for 'progressive reform' that only the liberal Western elite could cook up.

Also see:

Read More...
Eye 1

US recalls diplomats from El Salvador, Panama and Dominican Republic over rejection of Taiwan


RT
Sat, 08 Sep 2018 13:20 UTC
Flags of Taiwan and US
© Tyrone Siu / Reuters
The recent recognition of Beijing's One China policy by three Latin American countries has prompted the US to recall its ambassadors from the Dominican Republic, El Salvador and Panama.

Dominican Republic Ambassador Robin Bernstein, US Ambassador to El Salvador Jean Manes, and Charge d'Affaires in Panama Roxanne Cabral were all recalled "for consultations related to recent decisions to no longer recognize Taiwan," the State Department said.

The US will now discuss ways in which it "can support strong, independent, democratic institutions and economies throughout Central America and the Caribbean," after the countries' governments switched their allegiance from Taipei to Beijing.


Comment: The US supports Taiwan independence but doesn't support independent minded countries making their own decisions that run counter to the US.

Read More...
Eye 1

Twitter exposes its politically motivated censorship policy by banning Alex Jones

Elizabeth Vos
Disobedient Media
Thu, 06 Sep 2018 13:08 UTC
Jack Dorsey
It has been a busy month for Twitter, and Alex Jones, with Jack Dorsey forced to defend the decision not to ban Jones early last month, only reverse course by suspending Jones shortly after a tense Senate hearing on social media.

The Senate hearing, in which Dorsey spoke alongside Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, saw the Twitter CEO questioned on his decision not to ban Jones. Shortly afterward, Twitter permanently suspending Jones's verified account as well as that of Infowars.

The Gateway Pundit reported Jones's response to the ban:

"I was taken down not because we lie, but because we tell the truth - and because we were popular... And because we dared to go to that committee hearing and stand up to Rubio and stand up to the lies of mainstream media and speak the truth."

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Mail

Russia's upper house speaker delivers letter from Putin to Kim Jong-un


RT
Sat, 08 Sep 2018 13:13 UTC
Kim Jong Un
© Reuters
Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko gave a letter from President Vladimir Putin to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a Russian delegation's visit to Pyongyang.

The North's leader wishes to visit Russia after receiving Putin's message on Saturday. The time and venue for such a meeting will be discussed by the countries' diplomats, but Kim does not want to put it off, Matvienko said.

It is not the first time that the two statesmen have exchanged correspondence. In June, Putin sent Kim another invitation, floating the idea of the North Korean leader traveling to Vladivostok for an economic forum in September.

Comment: It does appear Kim Jong-un is serious about Korea's future: N. Korea vows denuclearization within Trump's first term

Read More...
Rocket

Several rockets target Iraq's Basra Airport, close to where US Consulate is located


RT
Sat, 08 Sep 2018 13:07 UTC
missile launch
© Reuters
Numerous rockets were fired at Iraq's Basra airport on Saturday morning following violent protests in the city. Officials said the sudden attack did not disrupt flights in or out of the city.

A local official at Basra International Airport said three rockets were fired at the facility, AP reported on Saturday. He told the news agency that no casualties had been reported and added that the attack did not disrupt air traffic.

Basra airport, the second largest in Iraq, is situated close to the US consulate in the city. Home to some 2.5 million people, Basra is located in the oil-rich Shiite heartland, which saw violent protests overnight.

Comment: For more on Iraq's latest unrest:

Read More...
Pirates

Terrorists & White Helmets met in Idlib to prep for final stage false flag chem attack according to Russian MoD


RT
Sat, 08 Sep 2018 12:28 UTC
gas mask idlib
© Khalil Ashawi / ReutersA man tries an improvised gas mask in Idlib, Syria
The Russian military has obtained "irrefutable" data that terrorist groups, including Jabhat an-Nusra, and the infamous White Helmets met in Idlib province on Sunday, according to the ministry's spokesperson Igor Konashenkov.

The militants plotted the final scenarios for the chemical attacks that the Syrian army are expected to make in the cities of Jisr ash-Shugur, Serakab, Taftanaz and Sarmin, the Russian military revealed.

"Full readiness of all participants involved in the staging of the provocations is be ensured by the evening of September 8," Konashenkov stated. He added that the terrorists are to receive a "special" signal from some "foreign friends of Syrian revolution" to launch the operation.

The statement comes after earlier warnings from Moscow's that militants are preparing to stage a chemical attack in the Syrian province to give the Western coalition a pretext to strike Syria. In August, the Defense Ministry said that eight canisters of chlorine had been delivered to a village near Jisr al-Shughur city, and that a foreign-trained group of militants had also arrived in the area to simulate a rescue operation after the staged attack.

The US and its allies have repeatedly stressed its readiness to strike Syria if any attack takes place, ignoring all Russia's warnings. Washington's envoy to the UN Nikki Haley recently said that she already knows the perpetrators in case a chemical incident takes place in Syria.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Bad Guys

Why the war in Yemen is largely ignored by the Fake News media


RT
Sat, 08 Sep 2018 12:33 UTC
ICYMI Yemen war video
© ICYMI
Some are predicting that the battle for the city of Idlib could signal the end of the Syrian war. So will the mainstream media then turn to Yemen for its fill of stories on Middle East misery? Erm...doubt it!

At first glance Yemen's war seems to have it all: disease, famine, air strikes against civilians and schools. This is all great stuff for the morning headlines. Unfortunately, this is unlikely to be enough to attract the grizzled Western war reporters streaming out of Syria.

ICYMI looks at why the Middle East's poorest nation just can't get any attention.

Comment: Also see: 5 reasons the nightmarish Saudi-led, Western-backed war on Yemen should never be forgotten - In pictures

Read More...
Caesar

What now for the Donbass after Zakharchenko's Death?

Rostislav Ishchenko
Stalker Zone
Tue, 04 Sep 2018 10:48 UTC
Translated by Ollie Richardson & Angelina Siard - Originally published in Russian at alternatio.org
zakharchenko funeral
Aleksandr Vladimirovich Zakharchenko, the Head of the DPR, the chairman of the board of ministers, and also the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the republic, has perished. He was one of the most charismatic leaders of the Donbass uprising, the potential leader not only of a united DPR and LPR, but also of all the Southeast. And since it is precisely the Southeast, in the conditions of holding minimally honest elections, that determines the format of Ukrainian power, Zakharchenko could have (owing to a particular combination of circumstances) become the first actual national president of Ukraine.

However, events obviously developed in an alternative way. That's why, in practice, Aleksandr Zakharchenko was the person who persistently and consistently led Donbass towards Russia, openly affirming that he doesn't see another destiny for the region.

It isn't surprising that after his death a feeling of uncertainty descended over Donbass. A question arose: what will happen tomorrow? Will Zakharchenko's course be preserved or will it be changed? And if it is changed, then how and when?
Read More...
Bad Guys

Arming of terrorists by US in Syria a major concern for Turkey - Erdogan


RT
Fri, 07 Sep 2018 12:38 UTC
erdogan
© Umit Bektas / Reuters
The Turkish president has told his Russian and Iranian counterparts that the arming of Kurdish militias in northern Syria is a major cause of instability, which requires attention on par with the situation in Idlib.

He added that the Tehran summit may be the last chance to resolve the situation in Syria's Idlib in a peaceful manner.

Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russia's Vladimir Putin are visiting Tehran for tri-party talks with Hassan Rouhani. The leaders of Iran and Turkey disagreed on priorities for the three nations, as they seek an end to the seven-year-old war in Syria.

Rouhani argued that the continued presence of jihadist groups in the Idlib governorate - the last remaining stronghold of radical Islamists in Syria - warrants a major offensive operation there. However, Erdogan reiterated his government's concerns about potential loss of civilian lives and a mass exodus of refugees from the area into Turkey, which could be triggered by such a military operation.


Comment: It's a serious problem currently afflicting Europe: Refugees or ISIS fighters? Cyprus authorities fear the worst after finding incriminating photos


Comment: See also: And check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Kurdistan and Catalonia: The Politics of Self-Determination

Read More...
Toys

Trump threatens China with $267 billion in additional tariffs


RT
Fri, 07 Sep 2018 16:51 UTC
trump
© Brian Cahn/Global Look Press
President Donald Trump told reporters that tariffs on an additional $267 billion worth of Chinese goods are ready to go, in addition to the $200 billion in tariffs the White House has already lined up.

Trump told reporters about the tariffs on Friday while returning to Washington DC from Montana, where he held a campaign-style rally Thursday night.

The new taxes are in addition to a 25 percent levy on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods with which Trump has already threatened China. These tariffs have not yet been applied, and White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said that Trump will not make a final decision on implementing them until after he evaluates comments from the public.

Comment: Trump must know that China won't concede to an unfair deal, and China is already opting for less volatile and more viable alternatives, so one suspects that, as Trump has done before, these relentless tariff threats are part of a strategy, possibly related to the US midterm elections, to appear strong but to eventually propose a more reasonable deal: Also check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Trump Ditches Europe, Europe Bluffs, Russia and China Carry on With Eurasian Integration

Read More...