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Defense opens its case in MH17 trial, charges prosecutors with illegal hobbling, sabotage, excessive haste

John Helmer
Dances with Bears
Mon, 16 Mar 2020 00:00 UTC
Horse and ropes
© unknown
Defence lawyers for Oleg Pulatov, one of the four men charged by the Dutch government with murder in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, have told the court the prosecutors were acting illegally in the case they have presented so far.

A lawyer for the 298 victims killed on board the aircraft, and their next of kin, also accused the prosecution of unlawfully keeping the evidence in the case file secret. No reporters for the international or Dutch media have published this part of the trial.

The Dutch Justice Ministry does not allow public release of the transcript of the proceedings, nor the livestream archive its cameramen have produced at the two days of hearing so far, March 9 and 10.

For the record and legal analysis of the March 9 hearing, dominated by presiding judge Hendrik Steenhuis, click to open. For the report of the prosecution claims on March 10, read this.

The video record of the defence lawyer, Sabine ten Doesschate, commencing her argument on March 10 can be viewed here, starting at Min 4:18:30.
Defense counsel
© Ruptly
The defence counsel for Oleg Pulatov – left, Yelena Kutyina, the Russian attorney for the defence; centre, Boudewijn van Eijck; right (speaking), Sabine ten Doesschate.

Comment: See also:

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Stock Down

The global economy was deathly sick long before now, but Covid-19 will conveniently take the blame if it crashes

Norman Lewis
RT
Wed, 18 Mar 2020 18:23 UTC
stock exchange hand sanitizer coronavirus
© Reuters / Lucas Jackson
As economists begin to predict what the global economic effects of Covid-19 will be, the danger is we play up the economic damage of the virus while hiding the deep-rooted sources of our contemporary financial doldrums.

It is inevitable that economic forecasts of the impact of Covid-19 on the global economy are being revised daily, if not hourly. It is right that economic forecasters should be updating their predictions. But we all need to keep in mind that these revised forecasts are little more than guesswork - however sophisticated their computer modelling might be.

This is not prejudice against economists, the experts Michael Gove in particular referred to when he said during the Brexit referendum that the British people had had enough of them - referring specifically to their shaky prediction track record. Economic predictions and forecasting are notoriously difficult. It is the reason why leading economist JK Galbraith once quipped that the only function of economists was "to make astrology look respectable."

We are going to see a proliferation of astrology in the days ahead. The biggest danger is going to be the battle to avoid economic alarmism.

Comment:

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Brick Wall

EU's cherished 'open borders' system facing collapse amid Covid-19 outbreak

Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge
Wed, 18 Mar 2020 17:44 UTC
border controls europe
© Getty Images
Motorists arrive at the UK border after leaving a cross-channel ferry in Portsmouth
As The Gatestone Institute's Soeren Kern detailed earlier, as a growing number of countries close their borders to fight the coronavirus pandemic, the European system of open internal borders - a cornerstone of European integration - is on the brink of collapse.

The so-called Schengen Area, which comprises 26 European countries, entered into effect in 1995 and abolishes the need for passports and other types of control at mutual borders. It is a key practical and symbolic achievement of European integration and is now falling apart.

In a move packed with political significance, Germany, the largest and most powerful country in the European Union, on March 16 introduced controls on its borders with Austria, Denmark, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland after it registered 1,000 new cases of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in just one day.
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Pumpkin

Creepy Joe-mentia somehow wins all 3 primaries in Arizona, Florida and Illinois

Grace Segers, Caroline Linton, Melissa Quinn
CBS News
Wed, 18 Mar 2020 17:31 UTC
Joe Biden
© CBS News/screencapture
Joe Biden
Joe Biden swept all three primaries on Tuesday night in Arizona, Florida and Illinois, CBS News projects. The contests took place amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis that led Ohio officials to postpone their primary, which had also been scheduled for Tuesday.

In remarks after his early win in Florida, Biden, speaking from his home in Wilmington, Delaware, said his campaign appeared to have had a "very good night," but he also spoke about the coronavirus crisis. He told Americans that "it's important to get through this crisis protecting both the public health and our democracy."

Comment: Bernie is currently reassessing his chances and will likely drop out, bowing once again to the DNC's internal machinations.
Biden swept the board in Tuesday's primaries, significantly expanding his delegate lead over Sanders and appearing to effectively wipe out the Vermont senator's chances of a comeback.

The former VP crushed Sanders in Florida, leading by almost 40 points with most precincts reporting. Biden had similarly resounding victories in Illinois and finished the night by claiming victory in Arizona.

In a statement on Wednesday morning, Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir said that the candidate would be "having conversations with supporters to assess his campaign" but for the moment he was focused on the government's response to the Covid-19 crisis and ensuring that the US "takes care of working people and the most vulnerable."

There were no bright spots for Sanders on Tuesday night: he trailed Biden by around 100 delegates in Florida alone, and his favorables among Latinos failed to translate to delegates in Arizona, which has a large Hispanic population. Ultimately, Biden has expanded his delegate lead over Sanders to a point where it is increasingly implausible for Sanders to catch up before the Democratic National Convention, which is expected to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in mid-July.

Shakir also suggested, however, that any decision to suspend the campaign would not be rushed, noting that the next primary contest is "at least three weeks away."

Sanders' main rationale for remaining in the race may now be to retain a place on the debate stage from where he can attempt to push Biden toward the left on policy. This dynamic has already been effective to a certain extent. Just one hour before the pair's last debate, Biden announced he was adopting a proposal to remove tuition costs for public colleges for families earning under $125,000.

Though more limited than Sanders' plan to eliminate tuition and fees at two and four-year public colleges for students, regardless of income, such a move indicated an olive branch to Sander's progressive faction.

It is likely that Sanders and his team are now preparing to rally Democrats to coalesce around Biden in accordance with the wider objective of defeating Donald Trump in November.


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Blackbox

What's stopping NATO from exploiting Turk-Russia "tensions" in Syria?

Salman Rafi Sheikh
New Eastern Outlook
Wed, 18 Mar 2020 02:34 UTC
flag Turkey NATO
In any other sort of circumstances, the NATO countries from Europe and North America would have rushed to help Turkey fight the "Russian invaders" in Syria and accomplish their avowed mission. This, however, did not happen when Turkey and Russia came "eye ball to eye ball" in Syria over the question of the liberation and control of Syria's Idlib province and the adjoining strategically important areas, including the M-4 highway. Tensions are already disappearing with a Turkey-Russia "deal", paving the way for an eventual settlement of interests. The question, however, that begs attention here is: why could the NATO countries not change Turkey's position in a way that would have re-established it as a NATO ally in Syria, pitched against the Russians, Syrians and the Iranians?

While the US did "offer" its support to Tukey, words could not be translated into action, even though a number of Western political pundits have been writing and speaking about the "fragility" of Turkey-Russian alliance and the need for the West to win Turkey back. A number of reasons explain why this has not happened.

Comment:

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Info

9 Things you should know about the 2020 stock market crash

Mike Whitney
The Unz reader
Sun, 15 Mar 2020 00:00 UTC
crash
1- Investors are cashing in and heading for the exits

According to Bloomberg News: "Investors made their biggest dash for cash in history" in the last week. "They channeled $137 billion into cash-like assets and a record $14 billion into government bonds in the five days through March 11.....(while) money managers are liquidating en masse." ("Investors Liquidate Everything in Record $137 Billion Cash Haul", Bloomberg)

Why are investors exiting the market?

Because the psychology that drives business investment ("animal spirits") has been dramatically impacted by the coronavirus. Expectations for future prosperity have been dampened by the fog of uncertainty. When uncertainty prevails, confidence wanes and investors cash in and get out. Coronavirus is fiendishly designed to push stocks and bonds lower in response to the staggering deluge of bad news.

2 - Stocks have been walloped, but consumer confidence is just now starting to drop

According to the University of Michigan, consumer sentiment fell from 101.0 to 95.9 in February. These calculations were made before the "Thursday's stock-market plunge — the worst since 1987 — and the rapid shutdown of university campuses, public schools, major sports and entertainment venues over the last 24 hours.... the data suggest that additional declines in confidence are still likely to occur as the spread of the virus continues to accelerate." (Bloomberg)

Stocks will undoubtedly reflect investor pessimism in the months ahead, pushing prices lower while the virus spreads.

Comment: See also:

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Control Panel

UN angry after hundreds of Europe-bound migrants stopped at sea, returned to Libya


Breitbart
Sun, 15 Mar 2020 00:00 UTC
migrants
© Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP/Getty
Libya's coast guard intercepted over 400 Europe-bound migrants off the country's Mediterranean coast and returned them to the capital of Tripoli over the past 24 hours, the UN migration agency said Sunday.

The International Organization for Migration tweeted that 301 migrants on three boats were intercepted on Saturday and brought back to Tripoli. Another 105 migrants on two boats were intercepted on Sunday.

It said most of the migrants were taken to detention centres in Libya, where there are "serious concerns over their safety."

Some migrants managed to escape at the disembarkation point, as the boats were brought back to shore, the IOM said.

"It is unacceptable for this to continue despite repeated calls to put an end to the return of vulnerable people to detention and abuse," said Safa Msehli, a spokeswoman for the IOM.


Comment: Under the mask of humanitarian concerns the UN continues to take the view that allowing more migrants into Europe is somehow a good thing. But then again the UN by its statements and policies appears to be deluded about a good many things; climate change, regime change wars, free speech among others. The UN is held captive by ideological possession ala George Soros, and would benefit from the knowledge and the wisdom of wiser minds.

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Bad Guys

New police powers to be rushed through UK gov to 'tackle coronavirus'

Annabelle Dickson
Politico
Tue, 17 Mar 2020 20:32 UTC
police
© Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
Police and immigration officers in the U.K. could receive new powers to detain people
The U.K. government on Tuesday set out a suite of new powers it will seek to tackle coronavirus.

Police and immigration officers would be given new powers to detain people and put them in isolation facilities "if necessary to protect public health," under the proposed new law due to be introduced in parliament on Thursday.

The U.K. Border Force would be allowed to temporarily suspend operations at airports and other transport hubs "if there are insufficient resources to maintain border security."

The emergency bill also proposes a relaxation of the rules around registering deaths; measures to allow recently retired National Health Service staff and social workers to return to work without it hitting their pensions; and a reduction in paperwork so patients can be discharged from hospital quicker.

Comment: Will these new 'relaxed' rules really be switched off once the 'crisis' has blown over?

See also: Panic Pandemic: Why Are People Who Should Know Better Buying The COVID-19 Hype?

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Bizarro Earth

Multiple rockets hit Green Zone in Baghdad, US coalition denies attack on Camp Taji


RT
Wed, 18 Mar 2020 20:17 UTC
green zone iraq
© Reuters / Thaier al-Sudani
At least three rockets have reportedly struck Baghdad's Green Zone, according to Iraqi authorities. The spokesman for the US-led coalition denied reports of a rocket attack on nearby coalition base Camp Taji, however.

Several unguided Katyusha rockets struck the fortified area on Tuesday, reportedly striking homes in the al-Jadriya neighborhood.

The projectiles landed over 2km from the US embassy in Baghdad, according to coalition spokesman Myles Caggins, and there were no reported casualties.

Caggins denied a report of late-night rocket fire on Camp Taji, the coalition base where one British and two American servicemen were killed last week.

The attack was the fourth in a week and came just a day after two rockets hit Besmayah, a coalition base 45km southeast of Baghdad that is home to NATO troops including a large Spanish contingent. On Saturday, a strike on Camp Taji wounded two Iraqis and three American servicemembers.
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Arrow Up

Trump officially cinches Republican Party nomination

Tamar Lapin
New York Post
Wed, 18 Mar 2020 01:30 UTC
donald trump ok
© AFP via Getty Images
It was a 'for Don' conclusion.

President Trump officially cinched the GOP nomination on Tuesday night after raking in wins in the Florida and Illinois primaries.

Trump — who had only token opposition — now has more than the 1,276 delegates, the necessary threshold for the nomination, according to an Associated Press count.

"It shows the enthusiasm behind President Trump, it shows how unified Republicans are behind President Trump and how intense their support for him is," said Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh.

"Republicans and President Trump's supporters have been just itching to get involved in the process that will end with his reelection in November," Murtaugh said.

The president had 1,141 delegates going into Tuesday's contests and needed 135 more to win. Arizona was not holding a Republican primary.

His re-nomination came much faster than in 2016, when he passed the magic number in late May in North Dakota.

Trump reaped all but one of the available delegates this primary season, with former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld winning one in the Iowa caucuses.
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