Puppet MastersS


Megaphone

Audio released by WikiLeaks accuses Obama & Bush administrations of corruption


RT
Mon, 16 Nov 2015 18:43 UTC
Image
© Saul LOEB / AFPUS President Barack Obama (R) and former US President George W. Bush bow their head on July 2, 2013 during a wreath-laying ceremony for victims of the 1998 Embassy bombing at the Bombing Memorial at the US Embassy in Dar Es Salaam.
Whistleblowing organization WikiLeaks has published a trove of classified audio files indicating that the Bush and Obama appointees engaged in misappropriation of funds in a program intended to help disabled people find jobs.

WikiLeaks had 30 hours of audio recordings related to a billion-dollar corruption scandal "with links to the White House," the organization said in a tweet on Monday.

Comment: More shameful corruption in the White House payable with our tax dollars.

Read More...
Bullseye

US intentionally spares ISIS to weaken Assad, says Lavrov


RT
Tue, 17 Nov 2015 22:05 UTC
isis tank
© Stringer / Reuters
The US and its allies are playing a dangerous game in Syria as they count on Islamic State to weaken President Bashar Assad, but at the same time don't want the terror group to seize power in the country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

Despite announcing ambitious plans for its coalition against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), "the analysis of those [US-led] airstrikes during over a year lead to conclusion that they were hitting selectively, I would say, sparingly and on most occasions didn't touch those IS units, which were capable of seriously challenging the Syrian army," Lavrov told the Rossiya 1 channel.

The Russian FM called Washington's actions in Syria a "dangerous game," making it hard to determine America's true aims in Syria.

"Apparently, it's a kind of a 'honey is sweet, but the bee stings' situation: they want IS to weaken Assad as soon as possible to make him leave somehow, but at the same time they don't want to overly strengthen IS, which may then seize power," he explained.
Read More...
Sheriff

Putin names and shames Obama into bombing ISIS oil smugglers


Moon of Alabama
Mon, 16 Nov 2015 22:39 UTC
ISIS oil trucks
© Reuters
The U.S. claims it wants to hit the Islamic State but in one year of bombing it never really touched one of its biggest sources of income. Hundreds of oil tanker trucks are waiting every day at IS distribution points to smuggle oil to Turkey and elsewhere. Only one such distribution point was ever bombed and that attack was by the Iraqi air force.

Now the Russian President Putin played some "name and shame" at the G-20 meeting in Turkey and, lo and behold, the problem gets solved.

The Obama administration recently claimed it would increase attacks on the most expensive Syrian oil infrastructure which is owned by the Syrian government but under IS control. But it said it would still not hit the large truck gatherings.
While the American-led air campaign has conducted periodic airstrikes against oil refineries and other production facilities in eastern Syria that the group controls, the organization's engineers have been able to quickly repair damage, and keep the oil flowing, American officials said. The Obama administration has also balked at attacking the Islamic State's fleet of tanker trucks — its main distribution network — fearing civilian casualties.

But now the administration has decided to increase the attacks and focus on inflicting damage that takes longer to fix or requires specially ordered parts, American officials said.
The obvious target to stop the oil trade is to hit the trucks. Without trucks the other infrastructure is useless for IS as the oil can not be sold. With trucks destroyed the men behind the smuggling will lose all profits and leave the business. The "civilian casualties" argument does not hold. There could be warnings to avoid human damage or one could consider that these oil smugglers are dealing with terrorists and thereby accomplices. The real U.S. reluctance to hit the oil smuggling might be out of deference to the Turkish government which of course profits from such oil transfers.

Comment: For more on Obama's refusal to halt the ISIS oil trade see:

Read More...
Chess

U.S. defeated at Vienna by Russia's insistence upon democracy in Syria

Eric Zuesse
Sott.net
Mon, 16 Nov 2015 22:15 UTC
obama putin
The Syrian peace talks in Vienna, over the weekend, produced an agreement between all parties, and it constitutes a major defeat for the United States, because the result is entirely in accord with the longstanding Russian position, which the U.S. government has consistently opposed, that only the Syrian people should have the right to determine who will, and who won't, be able to run in Syrian elections.

The AP headlined on Sunday, November 15th, "Syrian Legislator Praises Aspects of Plan to End War," and quoted Syrian parliamentarian Omar Ossi, head of the parliament's reconciliation committee, as telling the AP that "the plan has many points that 'run in harmony' with Assad's position." What Ossi objected to was that some nations are "betting on the issue of toppling the Syrian regime by military force," instead of by allowing democracy to determine the result.

On Saturday, November 14th, the crucial second round of the Vienna talks on resolving the crisis in Syria ended with a joint statement in which all 17 of the participating countries agreed that in six months, Syria must have a transitional government, and that 12 months after that, there will be a Presidential election to determine the country's leader.

The key sticking-point until this weekend had been whether Syria's current President, Bashar al-Assad (whom even Western polls show to be overwhelmingly supported by Syria's population) would be allowed to be a candidate in this election. The U.S. said no, Russia said yes.

Up to that time, the U.S. had consistently insisted that Assad must be removed from office. However, after the Paris terrorist bombings on Friday the 13th, Secretary of State Kerry indicated that the United States might cease to insist on Assad's removal. Russia, and its allies, Iran and Syria, had already made clear, and they continued to hold, that there be simply no agreement if the U.S. and its allies (including Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and UAE — all very active participants in that war to overthrow Assad) continued insisting on having a right to dictate who may and who may not run in this election. Russia and its allies insisted that only the Syrian public has a right to determine Syria's leader — that no foreign powers do.

Comment: Oops: France's Le Figaro poll finds over 70% want Syria's Assad to remain in power

A recent poll carried out by France's Le Figaro newspaper has indicated that at least 72 percent of respondents want Syrian President Bashar Assad to remain in power.

The survey, published on Thursday, asked: "Should world powers demand Bashar Assad to leave?" At least 28 percent from 21,314 respondents have voted "Yes" so far, while the majority - 72 percent - have said "No".

Read More...
Blackbox

SOTT Focus: Bearded Middle East Jihadis or clean-shaven white professional hit-men? A few questions about the Paris attacks

Harrison Koehli
Sott.net
Wed, 18 Nov 2015 23:41 UTC
paris attacks
© Jay Directo/AFP/Getty
Some 300 people were killed or injured in last week's terror attacks in Paris. We're told that six of the terrorists blew themselves up: two during the police raid on the Bataclan theater, three outside or near the Stade de France, and one at the Voltaire restaurant. Here's a timeline of the bombings, adapted from the Guardian's summary of the timeline provided by Paris prosecutor Francois Molins:
9:20pm One victim was killed when the first explosion went off in Saint Denis near the Stade de France during a football match between France and Germany. The body of a terrorist was found at the scene wearing a suicide belt filled with shrapnel.

9:30pm A second explosion went off outside the Stade de France. The body of another suicide bomber was discovered at the scene with a similar explosive belt.
Bilal Hadfi, 20 years old and thought to have fought with ISIS in Syria after becoming radicalized last year, and Ahmad Al Mohammad, the 25-year-old Syrian who reportedly passed through Greece and Serbia in October and whose passport was found on or near his body, have been identified by French authorities as the two suicide bombers described above. However, a day after French authorities 'confirmed' that the man was indeed Al Mohammad, Serbian police arrested a man possessing a passport identical to that found at the Stade - only the photograph is different, suggesting that one or both of the passports are forged. Was the man by which the passport was found the same man who used this passport to enter Greece and Serbia?
Read More...
Chess

French and Belgian intelligence knew Paris attackers had terrorist backgrounds

Julian Borger
The Guardian
Mon, 16 Nov 2015 21:32 UTC
Abdel-Hamid Abu Oud
© AFP/Getty Images Abdel-Hamid Abu Oud, who French authorities say is the mastermind behind the attacks, had been identified as an accomplice of two jihadis who were killed in a shootout in Verviers, Belgium in January.
With every new piece of information that has come to light about the perpetrators of the Paris attacks, it has become clearer that the intelligence services in France and Belgium knew about their jihadi backgrounds.

Several had dossiers identifying them as radicals. At least five had travelled to fight in Syria and returned to homes in France or Belgium. They were dots on the radar screen but the security services failed to join them up and so overlooked the gathering conspiracy.

"What we know is that most of these people came back from Syria and nobody stopped them," said Natalie Goulet, a member of the French senate foreign and defence committee. "Whatever the reform that has been implemented [in the intelligence agencies] it's not working."

Comment: With the billions being poured in to various alphabet agencies around the globe and endless global surveillance, still they fail to detect even 'known terrorists'. Wouldn't it be better to pursue a new course away from the disastrous foreign policies that helped spawn this nightmare in the first place? Sadly that would seem highly unlikely, as it would require human intelligence, not the authoritarian kind.

See: Enough of the hysterical warmongering: End the 'War on Terror' and you end ISIS

Imagine what could have been done if an equal amount of money had been invested into tracking and closing down the financial backers and arms suppliers for ISIS. That there is a global surveillance system yet they don't this information beggars belief. In fact it is already known, and courtesy of Mr Putin could be shared, but this will fail to make the mainstream headlines as suddenly the emperor would have no clothes.

See: Putin: '40 countries finance ISIS, including some G20 members'

Read More...
Bulb

Kissinger: West should work with Russia in war against ISIS


RT
Tue, 17 Nov 2015 22:07 UTC
Henry Kissinger
© Hispan TV
Europe and the US should work with Russia to defeat ISIS, since it's in everyone's common interest to stop radical Islamist movements before they become an existential threat, former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said.

After allowing the US to dominate the Middle East for over 30 years, Russia became involved in the region because the rise of radical Islamist movements has threatened its domestic stability, the senior statesman told the audience at the annual Global Security Forum hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC on Monday.

"Russia is trying to prevent the emergence and consolidation of this kind of radical Islamist [threat], and in that respect their objectives, developed on their own, are really parallel with ours," Kissinger said. "So I see a possibility - in fact, a likelihood - that we could come to an understanding with Russia."

Kissinger's appearance at the event had been arranged months in advance. Originally intended to be a discussion of the Iran nuclear deal in the context of events in the Middle East, his talk mostly dealt with the challenges for the US and Europe in developing strategy to deal with Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS or ISIL) in the wake of Friday's terrorist attacks in Paris.
Read More...
Megaphone

Best of the Web: US Senator sends letter to Assad supporting fight against ISIS, calls situation "unlawful war of aggression by foreign powers"

Hazem Sabbagh
Syrian Arab News Agency
Tue, 17 Nov 2015 21:52 UTC
Image
President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday received a letter from U.S. Senator for the State of Virginia Richard Black a letter in which he said "I was pleased by the Russians' intervention against the armies invading Syria. With their support, the Syrian Army has made dramatic strides against the terrorists."

"I was delighted by Syria's resounding victory over ISIS at the Kuwairis Airfield. My compliments to those who heroically rescued 1,000 brave Syrian soldiers from certain death. I am convinced that many such victories lie ahead," Black added.

The Senator asserted that the war on Syria was not caused by domestic unrest, saying "It was an unlawful war of aggression by foreign powers determined to force a puppet regime on Syria. General Wesley Clark, former Supreme Allied Commander Europe, revealed that by 2001, Western powers had developed plans to overthrow Syria. Yet after fifteen years, of military subversion, NATO, Saudi Arabia and Qatar still cannot identify a single leader who enjoys popular support among the Syrian people."

"Foreign powers have no right to overturn legitimate elections and impose their will on the Syrian people. Syrians alone must determine their destiny, free of foreign intervention. I am disappointed that the UN has turned a blind eye to the unlawful interference in Syria's internal affairs," he added.

Comment: More and more US politicians are willing to speak up about the reality of what is happening in Syria. It seems as though Putin standing up to the American bully is causing those in the Empire to steel themselves up to say how they really feel, and it's about time!

Read More...
Dollar

Capitalizing on terror: Who's making a killing from the Paris Attacks?

Daniel McAdams
Lew Rockwell
Tue, 17 Nov 2015 12:37 UTC
Image
© nationofchange.org
Terrorism is great for business if you're in the business of growing the government leviathan. The bodies in Paris are not yet buried, while the vultures with dollar signs (and pounds and Euros, etc) in their eyes have already swooped down for a feast.

Terrorism, what is it good for?

1) The military-industrial-Congressional complex:

Thanks to Glenn Greenwald for bringing to light the enormous profits that are already rolling in for the merchants of death as Paris still smolders. As Greenwald points out, the markets could hardly wait to start buying from these military suppliers:
Image
And France's largest arms manufacturer:
Image
2) The surveillance/spy state:

This morning UK prime minister David Cameron announced that, in light of the Paris attacks, an additional 2,000 spies will be hired in Britain's MI5, MI6, and GCHQ. The British are among the most spied-upon people on the planet, and with a 15 percent increase in spy hires they can look forward to having even more of their private lives in view of government snoops, as well as their civil liberties further clipped in the name of freedom. Cameron calls ramping up the surveillance state "invest[ing] more in our national security," but does anyone believe an even larger spy bureaucracy will keep Britain safe?

Comment: And lets not forget the bankers.



Read More...
Eiffel Tower

Best of the Web: Paris terror attacks: Witness at bar massacre says gunmen were 'white, clean-shaven, muscular - like soldiers' - Gunmen came and left in black Mercedes

Matthew Drake & Dan Warburton
The Mirror, UK
Sun, 15 Nov 2015 21:01 UTC
Paris attack map 800px
Shooters, brandishing assault rifles and dressed in black uniforms, were seen slowly pulling up in the Merc during a series of coordinated atrocities

Two heavily armed ISIS gunmen pulled up in a black Mercedes-Benz and calmly slaughtered scores of ­innocent diners in a Paris bistro ­before driving away. An eyewitness has told how 20 people were executed in a ­calculated attack on a busy restaurant in the heart of the French capital as they ate at tables on the pavement.

A shocking description of the assassins and their barbaric assault came as the first eyewitness ­accounts emerged last night. Mahoud Admo said:
"The gunman showed no emotion at all as he began spraying bullets into the ­diners. He just kept reloading his machine gun and firing, without saying a thing. The people outside the bar were dead straight away. There were streams of blood everywhere and broken glass. It was carnage."
Shocking details of the bloody attack came as France remained on high alert while special forces ­continued to hunt for members of the terror cell.

ISIS claimed ­responsibility for the sickening ­attacks which have killed at least 127 people and left up to 60 more seriously injured.

The attack at Le Belle Equipe took place shortly after the first of three explosions rocked the Stade de France, where the host nation was playing against Germany.

Comment: ISIL has claimed responsibility for this heinous act. ISIL has also cultivated a particular image through its propaganda videos. Yet eyewitnesses describe the antithesis of that image. No masks, no headbands with slogans printed on them, no blacks flags (a supposed signature left at the scene of the Charlie Hebdo attack and several other terrorist incidents).

Instead, someone who saw them up close is describing white, clean-shaven men who look and act like soldiers. Very strange.

Read More...