Puppet MastersS


Tank

Destruction of American-made M1 Abrams tanks is a sign of Ukrainian desperation

Mike Fredenburg
The Epoch Times
Fri, 29 Mar 2024 23:35 UTC
A US M1 Abrams tank
© SputnikA US M1 Abrams tank.
Thirty-one M1 Abrams tanks were delivered to Ukraine in September/October 2023 only to effectively disappear from the news for about four months. Now with the reported destruction of the fourth M1 Abrams tank in a span of 12 days, they are back in the news. And the fact that they are back in the news is a sign of how desperate things are for Ukraine.

There are a number of plausible reasons that Ukraine did not deploy the Abrams and their freshly trained crews to the frontlines until just recently, and none of them are mutually exclusive.

First, while a properly supported M1 Abrams is very effective, it is highly maintenance intensive and guzzles gas. So before they could be used at all effectively, the proper support infrastructure and logistics needed to be in place. Also, by the time the Abrams could be properly supported by Ukraine, it was facing heavily fortified lines that included tank traps, trenches, tank-killing drones, massed artillery fires, and minefields that have proved devastating to Ukraine's other tanks. And with the failure of Ukraine's counteroffensive, it made sense to keep the gas-hungry and maintenance-intensive Abrams in reserve for defensive operations when Russia inevitably began its own offensive operations.
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Laptop

Feds order YouTube to reveal identities of video viewers

Pieter Arntz
Malwarebytes
Tue, 26 Mar 2024 23:25 UTC
guy on computer
Federal US authorities have asked Google for the names, addresses, telephone numbers, and user activity of accounts that watched certain YouTube videos, according to unsealed court documents Forbes has seen.

Of those users that weren't logged in when they watched those videos between January 1 and 8, 2023, the authorities asked for the IP addresses.

The starting point of one of the investigations is an entity that uses the handle "elonmuskwhm" and is suspected of money laundering by selling Bitcoin for cash. As part of the investigation, agents sent the suspect links to tutorials on YouTube about mapping via drones and augmented reality software.Then they asked YouTube to send them data about the people that watched that video.

But those video tutorials were not private and had been watched over 30,000 times by the time the agents asked YouTube's parent company Google for information about the viewers.

In another case, related to a bomb threat, the authorities asked for information about the viewers of eight selected live streams. One of those live streams has over 130,000 subscribers.
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Light Sabers

Best of the Web: Iran vows 'harsh' response to Israel's assassination of IRGC Commander in airstrike on its Syrian consulate


Atlas
Mon, 01 Apr 2024 17:43 UTC
El canciller iraní, Hosein Amir Abdolahian (izda.), habla con la prensa a su llegada a Beirut, la capital del Líbano, 9 de febrero de 2024.
FILE: Iran's Foreign Minister
The Iranian Ambassador to Syria has stated that Iran's response to the assassination of IRGC Commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi will be "harsh."

What retaliation looks like remains unknown at this time, as Iran could seek to target Israel directly or send more powerful weapons to Hezbollah and the Houthis to carry out attacks.

What is likely to happen, however, is that Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria will start to ramp up attacks against American forces in the region.

Comment: As noted in the X post below, these strikes are a violation of international law, and US 'sources' recently acknowledged they would be advantageous. Furthermore, as analysts Almassian, and Beely, write in their posts further below, these strikes in Syria appear to be an attempt by Israel to significantly escalate, and widen, the conflict. One of the strikes against Hezbollah in particular exposes Israel's coordination with the 'Islamicist' terror groups in Syria:
An Opinion Piece on March 27, 2024 in the WSJ, Openly Called for US-Israeli Strikes on Iranian Interests in Lebanon and Syria... "Israel and the U.S. have the tools to strike Iranian military capacity in Syria and Lebanon. This is the operational decisive point of Iran's campaign — not Gaza and Yemen, despite the public focus on Hamas and the Houthis. The U.S. and Israel can rapidly degrade state capacity in Lebanon and Syria, forcing Iran to assume direct control of both territories, or to shrink its defense perimeter to Iraq, thereby essentially abandoning its ability to pressure Israel and the U.S. in the short term."

Kevork Almassian:


IIsrael targeted the Iranian consulate in Damascus❗️

The Israeli attacks killed Abu Mahdi Zahidi, a high-ranking commander of the IRGC, his second-in-command, and three military advisors.

MY TAKE

This marks a significant escalation by Israel towards Iran, specifically targeting the 'axis of resistance'. The strikes targeted a high-ranking IRGC officer who plays a crucial role in Iran's operations in Syria.

Moreover, the attack specifically aimed at the Iranian Consulate, which holds the status of a sovereign Iranian territory. Consequently, Israel's strike can be interpreted as a direct attack on Iran, rather than targeting targets that are "Iranian-linked" or "Iranian-affiliated," as the US and Israel have previously concealed using such terms.

WHAT DOES ISRAEL WANT?

Israel seeks to intensify and expand the scale of the conflict in order to compel direct involvement from the United States. American people need to understand the seriousness of the situation. Israel is actively attempting to involve their nation in another costly and dangerous conflict in the Middle East.

HOW WILL IRAN RETALIATE?

It is not easy to provide an answer to this question as Iran operates based on strategic decisions rather than emotions. Tehran aims to manage the tense situation in the region as the 'axis of resistance' continues to make slow but effective progress against the US/Israeli influence in West Asia.

Iran's response is not to be underestimated but the extent of their reaction is contingent upon various factors, including the location and nature of the response.

On the other hand, the ongoing Israeli assaults on Syria demonstrate that, despite the war and devastation caused by neocons and Zionists, Damascus remains a focal point in the conflict with Israel. The primary goal of weakening the pan-Arabist country was to ultimately eliminate the Palestinian cause by cutting off the main military support route for non-state actors opposing Israel in the region.
Vanessa Beely:
'Both aggressions targeted Hezbollah sites. The attack on Aleppo was unexpected - it is far away from the southern Lebanon front..can only be interpreted as an Israeli attempt to expand the war ..while triggering an escalation from the north-western Al Qaeda groups'


Russia foresaw the escalation a few days ago: Russia condemns Israel's latest airstrikes on Syria as 'provocative actions which can lead to extremely dangerous consequences'

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Red Pill

US seeking to distort facts about Moscow terror attack - intelligence report


RT
Mon, 01 Apr 2024 17:13 UTC
crocus
© Sputnik/Maksim Blinov
The US State Department and special services have reportedly been ordered by the Biden administration to create a "distorted picture" about last month's terrorist attack on a concert hall in Moscow and to remove any suspicion from the Ukrainian government, according to Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).

On March 22, four gunmen stormed the Crocus City Hall concert venue just outside Moscow, going on a shooting spree and setting fire to the building. The massacre resulted in 144 deaths.

The Afghanistan-based offshoot of the Islamic State terrorist group has claimed credit for the attack. However, the head of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), Aleksandr Bortnikov, has claimed that the US, UK, and Ukraine may be linked to the crime.

Comment: The US is flailing about, hopelessly trying to control the narrative around the Crocus terrorist attack. It's not that different than its efforts in Ukraine to counter Russia.

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Red Flag

Russia-NATO relations worse than during Cold War - Moscow


RT
Mon, 01 Apr 2024 17:05 UTC
nato hq
© AFP / Kenzo Tribouillard
The current state of relations between Russia and NATO can be described as "something more than a Cold War," the head of Moscow's delegation at the Vienna talks on military security and arms control, Konstantin Gavrilov, has said.

During an interview with RIA Novosti on Monday, Gavrilov was asked to comment on French President Emmanuel Macron's February statement that he "cannot exclude" the possibility of troops from NATO countries being sent to Ukraine to aid Kiev in the conflict with Moscow.

"The military strategists in Washington and Brussels should realize: if by lifting the taboo on the potential deployment of the bloc's servicemen to Ukraine they are trying to test our country's strength, then we are ready for any turn of events," he replied.
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Network

Reuters reports Iran tipped Russia off about 'terrorist operation' ahead of attack, but Kremlin says it was not aware of any such warning


RT
Mon, 01 Apr 2024 17:00 UTC
crocus
© Sputnik / Sergey Bobylev
Iran alerted Russia of a looming major "terrorist operation" in the country days before the deadly Crocus City Hall attack, which claimed the lives of over 140, Reuters reported on Monday, citing three sources familiar with the matter. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, however, told reporters he was not aware of such a warning.

The Iranian side reportedly attributed the imminent attack to terrorists within Islamic State's Afghanistan-based ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K), citing information obtained during interrogations of suspects in recent deadly bombings in the country. Earlier this year, Tehran detained some 35 suspected members of ISIS-K, following a major blast in the city of Kerman that killed about 100 people.

"[ISIS-K members] were instructed to prepare for a significant operation in Russia... One of the terrorists said some members of the group had already traveled to Russia," one of the sources told the news agency.
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People 2

Genocide in Gaza - Western Hypocrisy and FIFA's Double Standards

Issam Khalidi
Palestine Chronicle
Mon, 01 Apr 2024 13:53 UTC
FIFI president Infantino
Sports is not a marginal component in Gaza's society. There was a time when Gaza was the center of gravity for Palestinian sports.
In the same way that many others are concerned and outraged about the ongoing genocide in Gaza, I was listening to an Israeli official on MSNBC talking about "the massacre of October 7, and the war in Gaza."

For the ethnic cleansing of Palestine to be justified by Israel and its supporters, the Israeli narrative of the 'war between Israel and Hamas', and not Israel's genocide on Gaza, must be accepted by the world.

Howeer, many international law experts stated that what is taking place in Gaza is genocide. And indeed, there is no need to be an international law professor to realize that this is the case.

The statements we hear from extremist Israeli leaders are chilling, sometimes difficult to believe. What is happening in Gaza has impacts on the world's consciousness, especially among the young generation.

Comment: Most of the international sports organisations clearly follow the Western mindset and are displaying their hypocrisy. The Olympic games meant to take place this year is another example where Russia and Belarus are punished yet Israel is given a free pass. See also:

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Easter Egg 2

Outrage as Biden proclaims Easter Sunday as 'Trans Day of Visibility' and White House BANS children from submitting religious-themed Easter egg designs

Will Potter
Daily Mail
Sat, 30 Mar 2024 18:35 UTC
biden easter bunny
The White House has sparked outrage by banning children from submitting Easter Egg designs for this year's Easter Egg Roll with any 'questionable content,' including political statements and religious imagery.
President Biden has sparked outrage by declaring this Easter Sunday will also officially become Transgender Day of Visibility.

The White House doubled up backlash as it also banned religious imagery in submissions from children of military families taking part in the traditional Easter Egg Roll event, as critics branded the moves an 'attack on Christianity.'

Former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy led the charge, as he mused 'I wonder how (Biden) came up with that date' by having Easter Sunday clash with the transgender tribute day.

Comment: It's not by accident that the White House is, obviously deliberately, looking to inflame Christians by openly mocking their traditions. All the rhetoric around the blasphemous move is designed to incense Christians (including much of that coming from 'the right'). As James Lindsay says, "They do these provocations intentionally... as a means of stoking a reaction they can use to their advantage."

Click through to see Lindsay's entire post below (worth the read):
See also:

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Telephone

Kremlin responds to Zelensky's remarks on talks with Russia


RT
Sat, 30 Mar 2024 14:12 UTC
kremlin
© Sputnik/Maxim Blinov
The Ukrainian president has suggested that a return to 1991 borders is no longer a precondition for negotiations.

Ukraine must take into account the fact that its borders have changed drastically since the beginning of its conflict with Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said, commenting on the prospects for peace talks.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky suggested in an interview with CBS News that a return to 1991 borders was no longer a precondition for negotiations with Russia. However, he still insisted that Kiev must regain the territory it lost to Moscow in 2022.
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People

UK govt lawyers conclude Israel in breach of humanitarian law - media


RT
Sun, 31 Mar 2024 20:04 UTC
gaza Maghazi refugee camp
© Getty Images / Anadolu / Ashraf AmraA view of damaged buildings at Maghazi refugee camp after Israeli attack in Deir al-Balah, Gaza on March 29, 2024.
British authorities, however, have apparently opted to keep the findings out of the public domain.

Lawyers for the UK government have established Israel has been breaking humanitarian law amid its ongoing conflict in Gaza with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, a senior Tory is claiming, according to leaked audio revealed by the Observer newspaper on Saturday.

Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Alicia Kearns, made the remarks earlier this month during a Conservative Party fundraising event. "The Foreign Office has received official legal advice that Israel has broken international humanitarian law but the government has not announced it," Kearns, a former official with the Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence, who has been pressing the government on the matter, said during the event.

Comment: Suppressing findings which are inconvenient is nothing new for Western governments so it's no real surprise that the findings have not been made public. Whether anything changes now that the findings are public remains to be seen (don't hold your breath).

See also:

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