Puppet MastersS


Eye 1

Obama administration to create new task force to hunt terrorists across the globe - report


RT
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 16:26 UTC
Task force to hunt terrorists worldwide
© Manuel J. Martinez / Reuters
The outgoing administration is reportedly seeking to create a new special operations task force that would use the elite Joint Special Operations Command's experience to carry out clandestine activities all across the globe as an independent entity.

The proposal includes transformation of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) from being a strike tool employed by US Army's regional commands into a key part of a new multi-agency intelligence force, Washington Post reported.

Referred to as the 'Counter-External Operations Task Force,' or Ex-Ops, the new organization would act globally with the stated goal of targeting terrorists beyond conventional conflict zones like Syria or Libya, according to Obama administration officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Ex-Ops task force could also share intelligence as well as deliver recommendations and advice to Western militaries and security forces, or even conduct joint operations, the report said.

It will report to the Pentagon through the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), according to the military officials, creating a "hybrid command system" that can bypass the Army's regional commands to speed up preparations for covert operations.

Comment: See also: Safer to be a soldier: Red Cross says civilians have become the foremost victims in Middle East conflicts

Read More...
Bad Guys

Faltering US Empire still seeks more influence across Asia

Ulson Gunnar
New Eastern Outlook
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 19:15 UTC
east asia flags
While the US could accurately be described as a global power in decline, the ambitions of prominent special interests at the center of its economic and political power still pose a potent threat to global stability and national sovereignty worldwide. In Asia particularly, despite a clear shift in a regional balance of power that has persisted for nearly a century, the US is still actively involved in attempting to dictate which governments come to power in respective nation-states and how they rule and all in an attempt to create a balance of power in Asia that serves US interests.

From Myanmar to Vietnam, US Ambitions Still a Clear and Present Danger

US ambition to transform Asia manifests itself in a number of ways. In Malaysia, it has been fueling for years the so-called Bersih movement and its campaign for "clean and fair elections." While the movement attempted to appear spontaneous and independent of any political party, it was quickly revealed that its core leadership was funded by the US State Department via the US National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and Open Society. It was also revealed that Bersih was in fact an auxiliary front of a political coalition headed by US-backed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim who quite literally led the protests in the streets himself.

Extensive US support has been provided to the now ruling government of Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar, including the creation of Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy's (NLD) entire media capabilities. Pro-NLD media platforms created and funded annually by the US government include the New Era Journal, the Irrawaddy, and the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB). It was also revealed that Suu Kyi's Minister of Information, Pe Myint, was quite literally trained in Bangkok by the US government-funded Indochina Media Memorial Foundation, which now co-occupies the Western media's Foreign Correspondents Club (FCCT) office in Bangkok.

Comment: Despite the US' vigorous attempts to hold on to power in Asia, they are trying to fight nature. As a totally foreign culture miles away, the US can only maintain control of Asia by expending enormous energy, using forceful and devious methods described above. China on the other hand only has to keep steadily progressing, and the region will naturally end up under Chinese influence. And on that point, Chinese hegemony probably would serve Asia's interests much better than a US hegemony. China builds bridges while the US drops bombs.

Read More...
Light Sabers

They just won't quit: Ukraine government forces go on offensive again, get beaten back

J. Arnoldski
Fort Russ
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 19:11 UTC
Ukraine hostilities
Active hostilities broke out this morning near the residential area of Sakhanka. This has been reported by a representative of the Donetsk People's Republic's operational command from the scene of events.

The Ukrainian armed forces and volunteer battalions, including no less than three platoons and supported by artillery, attempted to go on the offensive from the direction of Dzerzhinskoye (called Azov in Ukraine).

The attack was repulsed by the armed forces of the DPR and the enemy lost no less than 5 soldiers and 8 wounded. A UAF APC was also hit.

Fighting also erupted near Shirokino, where the Ukrainian side attempted to attack the DPR's positions on the southern front. The operational command of the DPR reported: "At 10:00 on November 26th, the enemy, with forces of up to three platoons of personnel and supported by armored vehicles under the cover of 82mm and 122mm mortar fire from Shirokino, attempted to attack our positions near the village of Vodyanoe. Over the course of the firefight, the enemy was stopped and driven back to their original positions."
Read More...
Light Saber

France's Francois Fillon, as president will fight Islamism with Russia


Sputnik
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 01:05 UTC
Fillon
© darium over-blog.comPresidential hopeful Francois Fillon
France should restore its ties with Russia in order to cooperate in the fight against Islamists, Francois Fillon, the winner of the first round of The Republicans party primaries, said on Thursday.

The presidential hopeful made a series of statements at the final rally in Paris two days before the second round of primaries. "If we do not create conditions for effective international coalition, if we refuse to ally with Russia, Islamic totalitarianism will continue to wreak the havoc," he said at a rally at Porte de Versailles.

Fillon also urged Qatar and Saudi Arabia on Friday to expel from France the Salafist preachers — Sunni fundamentalists, who believe in a unified Islamic state and Sharia law. "We must be free to say to Qatar and Saudi Arabia they must expel the Salafist preachers from the country," he added. He also said that in case of victory in the presidential elections he would pursue national interests of France and "no unions would be able to influence it."

Late on Thursday, republican candidates Francois Fillon and Alain Juppe held final debates before the second round of primaries. Fillon attacked the policy of French President Francois Hollande with regard to Russia and called to restore cooperation with Moscow.

Comment: It is hard to know if politicians running for office are personally invested in what they propose or if it is just that trendy thing that will get them elected. In qualifying a popular position with a possibly untenable one, they say the 'right' things knowing the likelihood of it happening will be limited. Trump is the trend. Expelling Salafist preachers/Sunni fundamentalists is the lesser possibility.

Read More...
Star of David

Umm al-Hiran: Israel illegally evicts Bedouin residents


Sputnik
Thu, 24 Nov 2016 13:08 UTC
Save Umm al hiran
© AFP/Ahmad Gharababli
Israel's eviction of Negev Bedouins from the village of Umm al-Hiran in the West Bank amounts to illegal discrimination, a prominent international human rights watchdog said Thursday.

Earlier in November, Israeli authorities approved plans to demolish a part of the village and displace 20 people to make way for an Israeli settlement following a 13-year legal dispute between the Bedouin community and the state. Demolition was later postponed, while the court order is valid until the end of the month.

"The forcible eviction of Bedouin residents to make way for a new Jewish town would be a blatant and ugly episode of discrimination mirroring Israel's unlawful settlements... Long after most of the rest of the world has such rejected racist policies, the Israeli government keeps building and razing communities on the basis of religion and ethnicity," Human Rights Watch (HRW) Middle East Director Sarah Leah Whitson was quoted as saying in a HRW statement.

HRW stressed that Israel was bound by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) to ensure adequate consultations, provide appropriate compensation and demonstrate a clear public interest of evictions before approving such moves.

The village was settled by the current Bedouin community in 1956 after being evicted by Israeli forces from their land over 10 years before then. The village is considered illegal by Israeli authorities as no legal title was given during the settlement. Planning authorities are set on building a new Jewish town of Hiran on the site. Residents were offered plots of land in a nearby town as compensation.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Blue Planet

Tributes to Fidel Castro from around the world


RT
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 10:47 UTC
Fidel Castro
© Uppity Woman - WordPress.comFidel Castro, iconic and controversial figure in world history
World leaders pay tribute to the longtime Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, describing the comandante as an iconic figure of his time who fiercely resisted colonialism, the US blockade, and the country's hardships.

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his condolences to the Cuban government and people on Saturday. The Kremlin statement said Castro's name "is a symbol of an entire era in modern history." "The free and independent Cuba built by him and his associates has become an influential member of the international community, and an inspiring example for many countries and peoples," the statement said. It also underlined Castro's personal determination to develop lasting relationships between Moscow and Havana. "This man of strength and wisdom always looked straight into the future," it stressed. "He represented the highest ideals of a politician, citizen, and patriot who firmly believed in his cause."

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader who met Castro in person, told Interfax on Saturday he is "truly saddened that Fidel's time is now over," adding that "he will remain in our memories as an outstanding politician, a great personality, and a friend." He added that throughout the Castro era, Cuba became a developed country which "makes a gigantic contribution to world affairs and strengthening cooperation across the globe." Gorbachev refused to elaborate on the period of strained relations between the USSR and Cuba, saying instead that Fidel was largely upset with the failures of perestroika.

Comment: Incumbent Cuban President Raul Castro announced the death of his brother, Fidel Castro, who died on Friday at age 90. A funeral ceremony will take place in the Cuban city of Santiago de Cuba on December 4th.



See also:

Read More...
Control Panel

Russia on guard while receiving Trump's charm offensive

M K Bhadrakumar
Indian Punchline
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 19:25 UTC
Vladimir Putin
Nauseated yet?
By a curious twist of irony, it is now Russian President Vladimir Putin's turn to adopt what late Ronald Reagan once counselled in Soviet-American relations - Trust but verify. Putin might make a slight alteration, though - Trust but warily. Reagan spoke the famous words after deciding he could do business with Mikhail Gorbachev — in fact, to emphasize to the latter specifically the extensive verification procedures that would enable both sides to monitor compliance with the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty signed on 8 December 1987.Gorbachev apparently responded: "You repeat that at every meeting," to which Reagan answered, "I like it." Putin is yet to have a jovial exchange of that sort with the US President-elect Donald Trump, but the ambience is striking. Putin must be sizing up that Trump is making just the correct noises about Russia ties, the latest being his interview with the New York Times on Thursday where he said:
  • I would love to be able to get along with Russia and I think they'd like to be able to get along with us. It's in our mutual interest. And I don't go in with any preconceived notion, but I will tell you, I would say — when they used to say, during the campaign, Donald Trump loves Putin, Putin loves Donald Trump, I said, huh, wouldn't it be nice, I'd say this in front of thousands of people, wouldn't it be nice to actually report what they said, wouldn't it be nice if we actually got along with Russia, wouldn't it be nice if we went after ISIS together, which is, by the way, aside from being dangerous, it's very expensive, and ISIS shouldn't have been even allowed to form, and the people will stand up and give me a massive hand. You know they thought it was bad that I was getting along with Putin or that I believe strongly if we can get along with Russia that's a positive thing. It is a great thing that we can get along with not only Russia but that we get along with other countries.
But then,Trump fought shy of calling it a wholesome reset, pleading that reticence is in order "after what happened previously" (during the Obama administration). Trump made it sound like bonhomie, personal chemistry and the stuff of fighting the ISIS - nothing more, nothing less.

At any rate, Moscow has just made two major announcements, which are in the direction of strengthening Russia's strategic deterrence against any belligerent military moves by the US. First, Moscow announced on Tuesday the deployment of advanced S-400 surface-to-air missiles and nuclear-capable Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad in response to the NATO military build-up on Russia's western borders.


Comment: Russia deploys Iskander rockets in Kaliningrad exclave over US cruise missile threat


Military analysts regard the Iskander complex as superior to all domestic and foreign analogues in terms of its strategic mobility, stealth capability, flight mission, and high capability to fulfill combat missions in the conditions of fire and electronic countermeasures. Effectively, all Europe becomes a 'duck' now. The flight time of Iskander from Kaliningrad to Berlin will be about 3 minutes flat.
Read More...
Jet5

Syrian Army bombs Turkish FSA camp for the third time

RusVesna - translated by J. Arnoldski
Fort Russ
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 18:20 UTC
syrian jet
© Manu Brabo/AP
Today, November 26th, Syrian air forces bombed Turkish troops and FSA militants in the Aleppo province for the third time. The Kurds, Turks, and famous "Syrian opposition" activists have simultaneously reported this.

"In Syria, bombs fell on armored vehicles and a military camp where FSA groups and the Turkish army were based. Three strikes have led to the death of 40 soldiers," Turkish journalists from the Ahmed Haber agency have reported.

Ahmed Hani, an activist from the Kurdish self-defense forces, writes: "URGENT: Assad's military planes have attacked a Turkish military camp in the village of Azraq. Casualties have been reported. A Turkish tank is on fire." He added: "There was an attack yesterday as well. Today, Russian and Assad's planes also bombed a military base of FSA groups in Azraq."

Turkish inSpeak reported: "Syrian fighter jets bombed a military camp and an armored personnel carrier of the FSA. There are many killed and wounded, news is incoming from the scene."
Read More...
Eye 1

Possible conflict of interest: Trump owns shares in two companies behind the Dakota Access pipeline


RT
Sat, 26 Nov 2016 13:27 UTC
ND pipeline protest
© Stephanie Keith / ReutersProtesters march along a road during a protest against plans to pass the Dakota Access pipeline near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation, near Cannon Ball, North Dakota, U.S. November 18, 2016.
President-elect Donald Trump's investments in two companies behind the Dakota Access pipeline, although small, are raising concerns about whether Trump's stake in the project could affect decisions he makes about the pipeline as president.

According to Trump's 2016 federal disclosure forms, the billionaire businessman owned between $15,000 and $50,000 in stock from Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, the owners of the controversial Dakota Access oil pipeline. A year earlier, his share was between $500,000 and $1 million.

The president-elect sold off his shares in Energy Transfer Partners, Trump campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks said. If true, it is unclear why investments in the company are still listed in the disclosure.

However, Trump's financial disclosures also show he has between $500,000 and $1 million invested in Phillips 66, another energy company headquartered in Texas with a 25 percent ownership share of the Dakota Access.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Light Saber

Paul Craig Roberts: Trump the Great?

Institute for Political Economy
Paul Craig Roberts
Fri, 25 Nov 2016 00:00 UTC
Donald Trump
© Unknown
Liberals, progressives, and the left-wing (to the extent that one still exists) are aligning with the corrupt oligarchy against president-elect Trump and the American people.

They are busy at work trying to generate hysteria over Trump's "authoritarian personality and followers." In other words, the message is: here come the fascists.

Liberals and progressives wailed and whined about "an all white male cabinet," only to be made fools by Trump's appointment of a black male and two women, one a minority and one a Trump critic.

The oligarchs are organizing their liberal progressive front groups to disrupt Trump's inauguration in an effort to continue the attempt to delegitimize Trump the way the paid Maidan protesters were used in Kiev to delegitimize the elected Ukrainian government.

Comment: See also: The risks and opportunities the world faces with Trump as president

Read More...