Public Enquiry
Jack The Ripper was a three man gang - The Final Solution with Stephen Knight (1980)
updated
Pope Leo defends Parolin after Israeli embassy complaint
thetablet.co.uk/news/pope-leo-defends-parolin-after-israeli-embassy-complaint
Israel’s Embassy to the Holy See accused Cardinal Parolin of implying ‘moral equivalence’ by describing both the Hamas attack and the IDF offensive as ‘massacres’.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/10/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-258
The Pope defended comments by the Vatican’s Secretary of State that Israel’s Embassy to the Holy See said undermined peace efforts.
Speaking to reporters in Castel Gandolfo on Tuesday, Pope Leo said Cardinal Pietro Parolin had “very clearly expressed the opinion of the Holy See” on the war in Gaza when he spoke to Vatican News to mark the second anniversary of the Hamas terror attack on 7 October 2023.
In the remarks published on Monday, Parolin called the attacks on Israel, in which around 1,300 people died, an “inhuman massacre”, and said the world “cannot and must not forget” the 251 hostages taken by Hamas and their allies.
He said the Holy See continued to ask and pray “that this perverse spiral of hatred and violence, which risks dragging us into an abyss with no return, come to an end”.
“We need to recover a sense of reason, abandon the blind logic of hatred and revenge, and reject violence as a solution,” Parolin said. “Those who are attacked have a right to defend themselves, but even legitimate defence must respect the principle of proportionality. Unfortunately, the resulting war has brought about disastrous and inhuman consequences.”
The conduct of the Israel Defence Force (IDF) “disregards the fact that it is targeting a largely defenceless population, already pushed to the brink, in an area where buildings and homes are reduced to rubble”, he said. “It is unacceptable and unjustifiable to reduce human beings to mere ‘collateral damage’.”
While he condemned antisemitism as “a cancer that must be fought and eradicated”, Parolin said he was “positively impressed by the turnout in demonstrations [against the war] and the commitment of many young people” around the world. He criticised “the countries truly capable of exerting influence [which] have so far failed to act to stop the ongoing massacre”.
In a statement posted on social media the next day, Israel’s Embassy to the Holy See said the cardinal’s intervention, “though surely well-intentioned, risks undermining efforts both to end the war and counter rising antisemitism”.
“Most concerning is the problematic use of moral equivalence where it does not belong,” it said, specifying his description of both the Hamas attack and the IDF offensive as “massacres”.
“There is no moral equivalence between a democratic state protecting its citizens and a terrorist organization intent on killing them,” the embassy’s statement said. “We hope that future statements will reflect this important distinction.”
The embassy previously criticised Parolin in February last year after he told reporters that the IDF had not been “proportionate” in its conduct of the war. It said he had come to “erroneous conclusions”, insisting that “IDF operations are conducted in full compliance with international law”.
In his comments in Castel Gandolfo on Tuesday evening, Pope Leo described the time since 7 October 2023 as “two very painful years”, remembering the victims of the Hamas attack and the roughly 67,000 Palestinians who have died since.
“We must think about how much hatred exists in the world and begin to ask ourselves what we can do,” he said. “We must reduce hatred, we must rediscover the ability to dialogue, to seek peaceful solutions.”
Pope urges leaders to commit to plan for peace in Gaza
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/10/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-258
British universities invest £450m in companies complicit in Israeli crimes: Report
Research from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign suggests more than 100 universities have funds involved
middleeasteye.net/news/british-universities-invest-ps450m-companies-complicit-israeli-crimes-report
More than 100 British universities have over £454m (about $600m) invested in companies complicit in Israeli violations of international law, research from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) has claimed, revelations that have angered pro-Palestinian activists.
At the end of last year, the PSC unveiled a publicly accessible database listing 117 of the UK’s 151 universities with investments in companies that the group deems complicit in Israeli war crimes against Palestinians.
For the PSC, those companies help sustain “Israel’s system of institutionalised racist discrimination, amounting to the crime of apartheid… [through] weapons, technology and other support it receives from companies around the world.”
The campaign began when Huda Ammori, the PSC’s campaigns officer, set up a chapter of the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement at the University of Manchester in her student days.
At the time, she suspected many universities as well as her own were involved in such practices. That spurred her to begin collecting information for PSC’s database.
“For me it was an outrage, as any student, especially as a Palestinian student, who has to pay tuition fees towards institutions that are investing in companies enabling these abuses,” Ammori told Middle East Eye.
“But I knew that it wasn’t just the University of Manchester, and this would probably be something that’s happening across UK institutions.”
Visual surveillance in Jerusalem
The PSC sent Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to all 151 British universities asking for their direct and indirect investments and the value of those investments.
Of the universities, 53 refused to hand over information, 42 used the public interest exemption for the Freedom of Information Act and 11 did not respond.
In order to determine an estimated number of investments for universities that did not provide information, PSC used the data from universities that did supply their details and calculated an average percentage of investments in complicit companies.
The PSC notes that universities in the UK invest in a range of companies that supply Israel’s military with weapons and help construct Israel’s illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The University of Oxford is the highest offender, with an estimated £130,447,800 of investments in complicit companies.
A number of institutions are invested in Cisco Systems, such as Imperial College London, which has £2,995,670 in investments in the company.
Cisco has set up technological hubs in the West Bank, Naqab (Negev) and occupied Syrian Golan, expanded visual surveillance in Jerusalem, and provides information technology to the Israeli military.
'Ethical investment policy'
Several universities invest in some of the world’s largest arms manufacturers, including Boeing, Airbus and BAE Systems - all of which supply weapons and aircraft to the Israeli military.
University College London, which has £2,901,978 in complicit investments, ironically has BAE Systems sponsoring their Centre for Ethics and Law.
The University of Manchester has £734,000 in investments in Caterpillar, a company providing the Israeli military with the D9 bulldozers used to demolish Palestinian homes, schools and communities.
Despite this, Manchester is one of nearly 90 British universities who say they conduct an “ethical investment policy”.
“As a university, we work closely with our investment managers to ensure our portfolio complies with our published Socially Responsible Investment Policy and considers environmental, social and governance issues, as well as financial factors,” a University of Manchester spokesperson told MEE.
Students take action
The database’s publication sparked outrage among students.
Ammori said more than 20 student-run Palestine solidarity groups are now using the database in their campaigns.
At campuses without active Palestinian societies, like the University of St Andrews, students are reaching out to the PSC about how they can take action.
When the PSC published its database, it also sent out letters to the universities with the information collected.
German city withdraws prize from Lebanese artist over BDS support
Read More »
It also sent the universities a pledge to sign, which would see the institutions affirming they will commit to principles of anti-discrimination and anti-racism
Russia has once again rejected the re-instatement of expired UN sanctions on Iran, following the activation of the so-called snapback mechanism by the European troika. Russia’s UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya said Moscow WILL NOT RECOGNIZE the snapback.
Russia does not recognize snapback of UN sanctions against Iran: Envoy
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/10/02/756118/Russia-Iran-snapback-UN-sanctions
The Russian ambassador to the United Nations says his country does not recognize the legitimacy of reimposing the world body’s sanctions on Iran via the so-called snapback mechanism.
"We do not recognize the snapback as coming into force," Vassily Nebenzia said at a press conference on Wednesday marking the start of Russia’s presidency of the UN Security Council for October.
He also censured the Western countries for initiating the illegal snapback procedure despite being themselves “serial violators” of Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The Western states claim to be open to diplomacy, but they “forfeited a diplomatic solution” by activating the snapback, he added.
“So we'll be leaving in two parallel realities because for some, ‘snapback’ happened. For us, it didn't. That creates a problem. How will we get out of it? Let's see.”
Nebenzia further noted that Moscow is not happy with the UN chief, who rushed to implement a legally flawed resolution regarding the reinstatement of Security Council sanctions on Iran, which had been previously terminated under the US-abandoned JCPOA.
On August 28, the UK, Germany, and France (collectively known as the E3) invoked the snapback mechanism, a 30-day process to restore all anti-Iran sanctions.
Tehran rejected the move as illegitimate, citing the US’s unilateral withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 and the European trio's decision to align with unlawful sanctions rather than fulfilling their JCPOA obligations.
An 11th-hour effort by Russia and China aimed at giving diplomacy more time to resolve Iran’s nuclear issue failed to win enough votes at the Security Council on September 26.
Two days later, the US and the Europeans alleged that the anti-Iran UN resolutions and the associated sanctions were re-imposed, urging all UN member states to implement the restrictive measures.
Additionally, in his remarks, the Russian envoy said the three European countries were “very close to a deal [with Iran], but then they were told [of sanctions reinstatement] by a certain former participant of the JCPOA, from whom the whole thing started. The first original sin was committed by that country in 2018... They (the Americans) told no, and the Europeans said, yes, sir.”
The Europeans demonstrated that they are only “cronies and proxies of the country (the US) that decides everything. They do not decide anything,” he pointed out.
researchgate.net/publication/395590795_Anomalous_Lead_and_Cadmium_isotope_ratios_in_dust_samples_taken_near_the_site_of_the_Israeli_bombing_in_Beirut_Lebanon_on_Sept_27_2024_provide_evidence_of_neutron_exposures
Although the authors are open to alternative scientific explanation of the results, the findings are held to provide further evidence of the employment by Israel of a novel Uranium-based neutron warhead weapon. The existence of such a weapon could be further investigated by measurements on crater and local dust samples, particularly by gamma and alpha spectrometry. Other samples containing lead and copper from the attack sites will show neutron activation evidence. The authors have other samples from the site (which are being investigated) and more of the samples reported here. On 19th December 2024 Dr Jihad Abboud, President of the Lebanese Chemists Syndicate, Dr Robert L Gallagher, Chair of the American Peace Information Council, and representative of Green Audit, and Lebanese journalist Yvonne Anwar Saouiby visited the impact site of the bomb that killed Hezbollah General Secretary Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut. They took a Geiger Counter and found that the site was significantly more radioactive than the normal background for the area. Dr Gallagher reported that 100m from the impact site the normal background radiation level was between 0.07 and 0.1 µSv/h. As they approached the Nasrallah bombing site the reading steadily increased to 0.27 to 0.32 µSv/h at the site itself. Measurements close to the ground gave an increased dose rate [1,2]. This was 84 days after the explosion [3]. In 2006, a similar finding of radiation at a bomb crater in Khiam was reported by the late Dr Ali Al Khobeisi, and the samples taken there were analysed by two separate techniques in the UK (alpha spectrometry and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry ICPMS) [4,5]. Enriched Uranium (EU) was detected.
One explanation is that a new weapon has a neutron-producing warhead and the short-lived radiation (12 weeks) is due to activation products which physically decay over a period of some months. This explanation, due to the late Dr Emilio Del Guidice, also predicts the excess Enriched Uranium which has been found [6]. Dr Jihad Abboud had obtained a fairly fresh sample from a worker shortly after the bombing and sent it for analysis to France. The French laboratory reported unofficially that it contained significant levels of Uranium but refused to provide details, presumably for political reasons. Nevertheless, Dr Abboud released a short report about the issue of Uranium contamination [7]. Three soil samples were collected from the impact site some 12 weeks after the explosion. The samples were obtained from the ground surfaces using a small portable vacuum cleaner. Samples labelled e and b were from close to the impact site of the weapon. A third sample c was taken from Deeb neighbourhood, 100m from the impact site, but which had also been bombed. A vehicle engine air filter was also obtained. The samples were relayed via France to the Green Audit lab in England and screened for activity using various detectors. A previous report has provided evidence, and microphotographs of CR39 alpha track images showing the existence of mobile micron sized Uranium particles in the two proximal samples e and b. Uranium particles were not seen in the sample c. Here we provide results of high resolution ICPMS measurements of Lead, Cadmium and Mercury isotopes in samples e and c carried out in the USA by a commercially certified laboratory. Prof. Robert L Gallagher, who was organising the project in the Lebanon lived in Beirut under the name of Dr Robert Daly. He had organised conveying these samples from the bomb sites to Green Audit via France and was killed whilst swimming in the sea [8,9] shortly after a third set of samples was intercepted by the French Customs in Bordeaux. This paper is dedicated to his memory.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/09/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-257
researchgate.net/publication/395590795_Anomalous_Lead_and_Cadmium_isotope_ratios_in_dust_samples_taken_near_the_site_of_the_Israeli_bombing_in_Beirut_Lebanon_on_Sept_27_2024_provide_evidence_of_neutron_exposures
Similar results are found for Mercury isotopes but less weight can be placed on this due to larger errors in the signal counts. Although the authors are open to alternative scientific explanation of the results, the findings are held to provide further evidence of the employment by Israel of a novel Uranium-based neutron warhead weapon. The existence of such a weapon could be further investigated by measurements on crater and local dust samples, particularly by gamma and alpha spectrometry. Other samples containing lead and copper from the attack sites will show neutron activation evidence. The authors have other samples from the site (which are being investigated) and more of the samples reported here. On 19th December 2024 Dr Jihad Abboud, President of the Lebanese Chemists Syndicate, Dr Robert L Gallagher, Chair of the American Peace Information Council, and representative of Green Audit, and Lebanese journalist Yvonne Anwar Saouiby visited the impact site of the bomb that killed Hezbollah General Secretary Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut. They took a Geiger Counter and found that the site was significantly more radioactive than the normal background for the area. Dr Gallagher reported that 100m from the impact site the normal background radiation level was between 0.07 and 0.1 µSv/h. As they approached the Nasrallah bombing site the reading steadily increased to 0.27 to 0.32 µSv/h at the site itself. Measurements close to the ground gave an increased dose rate [1,2]. This was 84 days after the explosion [3]. In 2006, a similar finding of radiation at a bomb crater in Khiam was reported by the late Dr Ali Al Khobeisi, and the samples taken there were analysed by two separate techniques in the UK (alpha spectrometry and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry ICPMS) [4,5]. Enriched Uranium (EU) was detected.
One explanation is that a new weapon has a neutron-producing warhead and the short-lived radiation (12 weeks) is due to activation products which physically decay over a period of some months. This explanation, due to the late Dr Emilio Del Guidice, also predicts the excess Enriched Uranium which has been found [6]. Dr Jihad Abboud had obtained a fairly fresh sample from a worker shortly after the bombing and sent it for analysis to France. The French laboratory reported unofficially that it contained significant levels of Uranium but refused to provide details, presumably for political reasons. Nevertheless, Dr Abboud released a short report about the issue of Uranium contamination [7]. Three soil samples were collected from the impact site some 12 weeks after the explosion. The samples were obtained from the ground surfaces using a small portable vacuum cleaner. Samples labelled e and b were from close to the impact site of the weapon. A third sample c was taken from Deeb neighbourhood, 100m from the impact site, but which had also been bombed. A vehicle engine air filter was also obtained. The samples were relayed via France to the Green Audit lab in England and screened for activity using various detectors. A previous report has provided evidence, and microphotographs of CR39 alpha track images showing the existence of mobile micron sized Uranium particles in the two proximal samples e and b. Uranium particles were not seen in the sample c. Here we provide results of high resolution ICPMS measurements of Lead, Cadmium and Mercury isotopes in samples e and c carried out in the USA by a commercially certified laboratory. Prof. Robert L Gallagher, who was organising the project in the Lebanon lived in Beirut under the name of Dr Robert Daly. He had organised conveying these samples from the bomb sites to Green Audit via France and was killed whilst swimming in the sea [8,9] shortly after a third set of samples was intercepted by the French Customs in Bordeaux. This paper is dedicated to his memory.
Hamas says it has never been an obstacle to reaching a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip
Islamic Jihad: US and West not seeking Gaza ceasefire
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/09/22/755539/Islamic-Jihad--US-and-West-not-seeking-truce
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement has stated that no new ceasefire proposals for Gaza have been received, adding that the United States and the West do not seek an end to the war until all groups resisting Israel, not only in Palestine but throughout the region, are eliminated.
Mohammad Al-Hindi, the Deputy Secretary-General of the resistance movement, emphasized on Monday that Israel and the US have never been sincere in negotiations, referencing their retreat from proposals previously presented by US envoy Steve Wittkoff, a plan to which the resistance had already expressed agreement.
Al-Hindi noted that the Israeli regime bombed a Palestinian delegation in Qatar while they were discussing a ceasefire proposal there.
Israel targeted Hamas headquarters in Doha in what was described as an “assassination operation,” resulting in the deaths of several members of the Palestinian resistance movement as well as a Qatari security officer.
Fortunately, the group's top leadership, including Khalil al-Hayya, Khaled Meshal, and Zaher Jabarin, survived the attack.
Israeli officials confirmed that prime minister Netanyahu informed US President Donald Trump shortly before the strike that Israel intended to attack Qatar, a critical mediator in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
This attack has raised new security concerns among Persian Gulf Arab nations, as Israel's airstrikes have devastated Gaza and extended to countries including Iran, Lebanon, Qatar, Syria, and Yemen.
Al-Hindi characterized the current situation as “blocked,” noting a lack of new proposals at this time. He also pointed to the recent recognition of Palestine as a state by some of Israel’s European allies, calling it a diplomatic setback for Israel.
However, he warned that such recognitions hold little weight if they do not lead to an end to the genocide in Gaza and the escalating settlement activities in the West Bank.
The resistance official urged Western and Arab states to reassess their normalization of relations with the Israeli regime and reconsider their political, security, and economic cooperation with the occupying power.
Israeli attacks render two Gaza hospitals ‘out of service’: Health ministry
Israeli attacks render two Gaza hospitals ‘out of service’: Health ministry
The Gaza Health Ministry says two hospitals in the largest city of the besieged Palestinian territory are “out of service” due to the Israeli bombing of their surrounding areas.
In defiance of international criticism, Israel has recently launched a large-scale invasion of Gaza City. The campaign of genocide in Gaza commenced on October 7, 2023, following Hamas’s historic Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, which was a response to the intensified atrocities committed against the Palestinian people by the Israeli regime.
The health ministry of Gaza reports that at least 65,300 Palestinians have been killed thus far, primarily women and children.
Additionally, Gaza is enduring mass starvation due to Israel’s deliberate blockade of aid into the territory.
The Hamas Resistance Movement says it has never been an obstacle to reaching a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. The movement’s remarks came in response to US President Donald Trump’s recent claims that the movement is the party refusing the Gaza truce.
Richie is joined by regular guest Tony Gosling. Tony is a broadcaster, author and former BBC journalist. On today's show the guys discuss the UN report which claims that Israel is committing genocide, the strange circumstances surrounding the murder of Republican activist Charlie Kirk, Keir Starmer's Peter Mandelson problem, why everyone needs to understand accelerationism and more.
podomatic.com/podcasts/richieallen/episodes/2025-09-16T11_14_36-07_00
Order of Nine Angles: What is this obscure Nazi Satanist group?
bbc.com/news/world-53141759
A US soldier has been accused of plotting an attack on his own unit by sending information to an obscure Nazi Satanist organisation called the Order of Nine Angles (ONA). But who are they?
Founded in the UK in the 1970s, the ONA is an increasing focus for law enforcement and has appeared as an influence in several recent UK terrorism prosecutions relating to the extreme right-wing.
US soldier accused of planning attack on own unit
The group lionises the Nazi era and dates its calendar from the birth of Adolf Hitler, but its supernatural belief system goes beyond anything normally associated with right-wing extremism.
IAEA ‘fully satisfied’ with cooperation agreement; objections by 3rd parties ‘strange’: Iran FM
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/09/11/754788/Iran-IAEA-agreement
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is completely satisfied with the terms of an agreement that was recently reached between the body and the Islamic Republic.
“From now on, Iran’s cooperation with the agency will follow this framework, and the agency is fully satisfied with the agreement,” the top diplomat said on Wednesday, speaking alongside his Tunisian counterpart Mohamed Ali Nafti during a joint press conference in Tunis on Wednesday.
Araghchi travelled to Tunis after signing the deal with the IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi in Cairo a day earlier to pave the way for resumption of cooperation between the two sides.
Tehran suspended the cooperation in protest at the UN nuclear watchdog’s most recent anti-Iranian resolution that was used by the Israeli regime and the United States to try to justify their illegal and unprovoked war on Iran in June.
Speaking alongside Grossi during a press conference that followed conclusion of the deal, Araghchi had noted how Iran’s cooperation towards realization of the deal conveyed the country’s good will, despite its having faced the aggression.
Adding to his remarks alongside the Tunisian official, the foreign minister, meanwhile, reminded that the illegal aggression had rendered it impossible for the body to continue its inspections as before.
“The agency acknowledged that the reality on the ground had changed and that a new framework for cooperation was needed. Therefore, we negotiated with the agency and were able to finalize this framework yesterday,” he said.
The official additionally questioned objections raised by some countries to the agreement, noting how the same states used to urge continued cooperation between the two sides.
The agency, Araghchi said, “is the only international authority for reviewing the nuclear status of countries.” “If it reaches an agreement with a country, it certainly takes into account its technical considerations,” he added.
“Therefore, objections from countries that have always claimed that Iran must cooperate with the agency are, from our perspective, strange.”
The official did not name any specific party, but the United States, the Israeli regime, and their key Western allies – the UK, France, and Germany – have been exerting considerable pressure on the agency aimed at forcing it to come up with anti-Iranian measures.
Israel seeking ‘full dominance’ over West Asia region
Elsewhere in his remarks, the official condemned the Israeli regime’s rampant deadly aggression throughout the West Asia region, including across the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and most recently Qatar.
“The threat posed by the Zionist regime is the greatest threat to peace and security in the region, and confronting it requires a collective decision within the region.”
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/09/06/754451/Hezbollah-is-Lebanon-s-historical-shield,-strong-sovereign-partner-with-army--Top-cleric
Lebanon’s Grand Shia Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Qabalan says the Hezbollah resistance movement is historically the Arab nation’s protective shield against potential foreign threats, its guarantor force, and a strong sovereign partner with the army.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/09/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-256
“There is no benefit in elimination of the Resistance Front other than serving the interests of the Israeli entity. The ongoing political game is all right as long as it does not turn out to be a sovereign suicide,” Qabalan noted.
He added, “A mistake regarding the Resistance issue places Lebanon at the heart of destruction. Lebanon’s sovereignty is not a property for sale… Any government violation of national sovereignty and the constitutional charter nullifies the legitimate existence of the ruling administration.”
The prominent Lebanese Shia cleric warned against “political gambling with Lebanon’s future.”
“We will not accept any political or sovereign suicide. The army and the Resistance are a single national force, and any attempt to divide them serves Zionists’ interests. The army will remain committed to its national position and sovereign partnership, and will not fall into the Zionist entity’s trap,” Qabalan said.
The senior Shia cleric further noted that reality on the ground in Lebanon has established the equation “No army without Resistance, no Resistance without army.”
“Lebanon has no greater interest than a partnership between the army and the Resistance,” Qabalan said.
The Lebanese army has submitted a proposal to the government’s cabinet aimed at disarming Hezbollah, stating that the military will commence its implementation.
On Friday, Lebanon’s cabinet assembled for three hours, which included a presentation of the plan by army commander Rodolphe Haykal. The plan did not provide a timeline for its execution and cautioned that the army had restricted capabilities.
Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos informed reporters following the session that the government expressed its approval of the plan, yet refrained from stating that the cabinet had officially approved it.
He stated that the army would commence the execution of the plan based on its logistical, material, and personnel resources, which may necessitate “additional time [and] additional effort.”
Morcos stated that the specifics of the plan would be kept confidential.
Despite near-daily Israeli airstrikes and repeated violations of Lebanese airspace and sovereignty, Hezbollah remains the only credible military force capable of confronting the occupation and preventing further Israeli incursions.
Lebanese officials have condemned Israel’s continued occupation of five positions in southern Lebanon, calling it a clear breach of the 2024 ceasefire deal between Lebanon and Israel.
As calls to disarm Hezbollah grow louder from Washington and Israel, many in Lebanon argue that such efforts ignore the core issue of Israel’s continued violations of Lebanese sovereignty.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/08/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-254
Relations with the United States: Asked about Donald Trump’s recent remark about a “conspiracy” between Russia, China, and North Korea, Putin replied: “The President of the United States is not without humor, we all know that well. I have good relations with him, and we call each other by first name.” He stressed that no negative judgments were expressed toward the American administration during the SCO summit or the military parade in Beijing.
https://english.pravda.ru/news/world/163978-putin-beijing-press-conference/
Putin also praised the role of US special envoy Steven Witkoff, saying he faithfully conveys Washington’s position: “I am absolutely convinced that Mr. Witkoff presents the position of the American president, not anyone else.”
Strengthening Ties with China: Reviewing the outcome of his visit, Putin described it as highly positive: “Such visits allow us to speak in a friendly atmosphere on any matter of mutual interest, and this proved very important and useful.” He welcomed President Xi Jinping’s initiative on global governance as timely and constructive.
He noted that China remains a “locomotive of the global economy” with growth above 5 percent. Though growth rates have slowed, he said the larger economic base makes those figures more significant, and rising demand for energy resources underpins new agreements such as Power of Siberia-2.
US denies visas for Palestinian officials before UN assembly
State Dept cites Palestinian appeals to ICC and ICJ over Israeli abuses in occupied territory in justifying move.
aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/29/us-denies-visas-for-palestinian-officials-ahead-of-un-assembly
The administration of United States President Donald Trump has announced it is denying and revoking visas for members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September.
The announcement was made in a statement released by the US Department of State on Friday.
“The Trump Administration has been clear: it is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” the statement said.
The statement said the members “must consistently repudiate terrorism”, citing the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel.
It also accused the Palestinian Authority of “attempts to bypass negotiations” by appealing to the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice for Israeli abuses committed in both the occupied West Bank and throughout Israel’s war in Gaza, which UN experts have called a genocide.
Both the PA, which has limited self-governing authority in the occupied West Bank, and the PLO, the internationally recognised Palestinian umbrella organisation, serve as representatives for the Palestinian people and push for recognition of a Palestinian state on the global stage.
The Trump administration had previously sanctioned members of the PA and PLO, accusing them of the “glorification of violence” and “undermining peace”.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/08/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-254
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen told the FT they had "pretty precise" plans to send troops to Ukraine as part of any peacekeeping mission. It comes as Russia said it would continue
UK summons Russian ambassador over Ukraine strikes
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c890j8zye0wo
Russia's ambassador to the UK has been summoned to the Foreign Office, following Moscow's major strikes on Kyiv overnight.
At least 21 people, including four children, were killed in a wave of attacks on Ukraine's capital, according to Ukrainian officials. The offices of the British Council were also "severely damaged," the organisation said.
Andrei Kelin is thought to have met Foreign Office officials - not ministers - when he attended on Thursday afternoon.
In a post on X, Foreign Secretary David Lammy confirmed Mr Kelin had been summoned, and said that "the killing and destruction must stop".
The British Council which works to promote cultural relationships and educational opportunities between the UK and other countries, said a worker at its office was injured in the attack and is in a stable condition in hospital.
In a statement it said: "Following last night's attack on Kyiv, our British Council office has been severely damaged and will be closed to visitors until further notice.
"While there may be some delays in our responses, our work with our Ukrainian partners in education and culture continues."
Lammy condemned the attack and said: "Putin strikes last night killed civilians, destroyed homes and damaged buildings, including the British Council and EU delegation in Kyiv."
Following the meeting with Mr Kelin, the Foreign Office issued a statement calling for Russia to "stop this senseless killing and destruction immediately".
Good morning. I'm outraged by the attack on Kiev, also hitting our EU offices. This was the deadliest drone and missile attack on the capital since July. And as you can see behind me on the screen. Um, it was an attack also on our delegation. I just spoke with our deputy ambassador and I'm relieved that none of our staff were harmed. Last night's attack struck in close proximity of the diplomatic mission, the representation of our union. Two missiles hit in a distance of 50 meters of the delegation within 20 seconds. And this is another grim reminder of what is at stake. It shows that the Kremlin will stop at nothing to terrorise Ukraine, blindly killing civilians, men, women, and children, and even targeting the European Union. This is why we are keeping maximum pressure on Russia. That means tightening our sanctions regime. We will come forward soon with our 19th package of hard-biting sanctions. And in parallel, we are advancing the work on the Russian frozen assets to contribute to Ukraine's defence and reconstruction. And of course, we're ensuring strong unwavering support to Ukraine, our neighbour, partner, friend, and our future member. Tomorrow I will travel to the seven member states that are strengthening and protecting our external borders with Russia and Belarus. I want to express the EU's full solidarity with them and share the progress we are making in building a strong European defence industry, especially through our joint defence instrument safe. And finally, I want to thank our brave staff in the EU delegation in Ukraine. They are doing outstanding work under extremely difficult conditions. I will deliver this message to them in person when I next go to Kiev. Thank you very much.
Revelations from one of the senior US generals...
▪️Russia’s nuclear arsenal has been almost completely modernized and the special military operation in Ukraine has not weakened it, US Air Force Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration Deputy Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Andrew Gebara said
▪️Donald Trump would like to conclude a new agreement that will replace the Russia-US New START Treaty, Gebara noted
Full, original, Mitchell Institute interview 27Aug25
youtube.com/watch?v=dD1A4E1l23E
The Mitchell Institute is pleased to feature Lt. Gen. Andrew J. Gebara as its next Aerospace Nation guest. He is the Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration for the United States Air Force. While nuclear deterrence is always important, the current threat environment heightens the critical nature of this mission. Added to this is the reality that the U.S is in the midst of recapitalising all three legs of its nuclear triad, plus NC3. In this position, Lt Gen Gebara is responsible for strategic deterrence policy, nuclear oversight, arms control and the Department of Defense foreign clearance program, as well as providing focus on the nuclear deterrence and countering weapons of mass destruction missions for the Air Force. Join us for what will be a most interesting conversation.
Iran rejects Trump's claim about building nuclear weapons
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/08/26/753772/Iran-rejects-Trump-s-claim-about-building-nuclear-weapons
Iran has dismissed US President Donald Trump’s accusations regarding the country’s peaceful nuclear program, saying they are outdated remarks made by an ordinary Iranian citizen.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei posted on X on Monday, referring to Trump’s recent media post in which he accused Iran of attempting to develop nuclear weapons.
Baghaei said this accusation was based on statements made years ago by an Iranian citizen, which have since been repeatedly rejected by high-ranking Iranian officials and even some American officials.
He stated that Trump’s claims are part of his efforts to justify the United States’ unlawful attack on Iran’s peaceful nuclear facilities and to support Israel’s military actions against the country.
He also referenced a testimony from the US Director of National Intelligence, who affirmed that the intelligence community continues to assess that Iran is not attempting to build a nuclear weapon.
Baghaei pointed out that, in an effort to incriminate Iran, Trump overlooks the testimony of Tulsi Gabbard before Congress from March 2025 and instead relies on the personal analysis of an Iranian citizen from 2022.
Baghaei concluded that this approach exposes Trump's claims' political rather than factual basis.
Iranian officials maintain that the country is not seeking nuclear weapons in line with a religious decree issued by Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.
The Israeli regime carried out wanton aggression against Iranian soil in June, targeting top-ranking military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians.
It also deliberately attacked the Natanz nuclear facility in central Iran’s Isfahan city, which drew widespread condemnation as an act that violates all international laws.
In response, Iran launched a retaliatory operation dubbed ‘True Promise III’ in self-defense. Iran’s Armed Forces deployed hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones in the face of an unprovoked Israeli war, forcing the regime to request a ceasefire only after 12 days.
The Alaska Summit: Where Even Peace Is Controversial
Nancy O'Brien Simpson 20Aug 2025
https://english.pravda.ru/opinion/163791-alaska_summit/
Imagine hating Donald Trump so much you want peace talks to fail.
That dark reflex was visible again at the Alaska Summit, where early signs of dialogue between Russia, Ukraine, and the United States were met with derision from voices more invested in political point-scoring than in the lives at stake. For some commentators, the problem was not whether talks might save Ukrainian civilians or Russian conscripts, but whether the very act of negotiation could be spun as a Trump victory. This is hardly new in American politics. In 1968, Richard Nixon’s allies quietly urged South Vietnam to resist Lyndon Johnson’s peace initiative, helping to prolong a war that killed tens of thousands more. Political rivalry, in its most cynical form, has a way of outlasting human lives.
But to understand why Russia is not interested in a ceasefire, one has to enter their frame of reference. For Moscow, a ceasefire is not peace; it is a trick. History has trained them in suspicion. During the Korean War, talks dragged on for two years while both sides replenished their armies. Today, NATO promises of limitless support for Ukraine make any pause feel less like compromise and more like surrender. Russia, having endured the “forever sanctions” imposed since 2014, believes that only a structural settlement—NATO guarantees, recognition of new borders, and the lifting of economic punishment—qualifies as peace. Anything else is theater.
The Western press often frames Russia as stubborn, unwilling to negotiate. Yet it was Russia, in late 2021, that sent draft security proposals to Washington and Brussels, offering talks before tanks ever rolled across the border. The proposals were dismissed outright. In the Russian imagination, that rejection confirmed what they had long believed: that they were not respected as a sovereign power, that their security concerns counted for nothing. What followed was brutal, yes, but also in their minds inevitable.
No side will get everything it wants. Wars do not end with neat lines of victory anymore. Korea remains divided, Bosnia fractured, Cyprus frozen in time. To expect Russia to abandon Donbas entirely is no more realistic than expecting Ukraine to quietly accept its permanent loss. What will come—because history demands it—will be compromise. Perhaps international peacekeepers will patrol Donetsk. Perhaps autonomy will be carved out on paper while remaining contested in practice. But neither total victory nor absolute humiliation is in the cards.
And so the argument that peace talks are betrayal—that even beginning them rewards aggression—is an old one. The same words were used against the Dayton Accords in 1995, accused of “rewarding ethnic cleansing.” They were hurled against the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, accused of legitimizing terrorism. Yet both agreements, fragile at first, grew into blueprints for stability.
Peace talks, even failed ones, move the clock forward. They force both sides to say aloud what they want and what they cannot have. They puncture the fantasy of total victory. And for all the voices—Western pundits, arms dealers, and political opportunists—who foam at the mouth that peace itself is dangerous, there is a harder truth: only through dialogue can the bloodshed stop. War exhausts nations. Peace, however imperfect, saves them.
And perhaps this is why the Russians cling to the word “peace” with such gravity. They carry centuries of endurance on their backs—sieges survived, winters that froze armies, cities rebuilt from ash. For them, peace is not softness but the deepest form of strength. It is not the opposite of war but its only worthy conclusion. To mock their insistence on it is to miss the simple fact that every people, at the edge of exhaustion, longs for the same thing: to set down their weapons, to bury their dead with dignity, and to imagine a future that is larger than the ruins of the present.
See more at https://english.pravda.ru/opinion/163791-alaska_summit/
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/08/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-252
NUJ members hold vigils and protests for colleagues killed in Gaza Following the killing of five Al Jazeera staff and a freelance photojournalist by Israeli forces on Sunday, NUJ members across the UK and Ireland are holding vigils and protests in solidarity with colleagues killed. According to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) at least 195 journalists and media workers - including 181 Palestinians - have been killed since 7 October 2023, making this the deadliest war for our profession in recent history. The NUJ has deplored the killings and supported calls for an investigation into the actions of the Israel government. The union is also encouraging chapels and branches to hold solidarity vigils at branches and workplaces over the coming days to protest against the killing of colleagues in Gaza. We have also produced graphics that can be downloaded from the website. Members can also sign an open letter to the UK government and donate to the IFJ Safety Fund, which offers practical help and solidarity. Dublin On Monday 11 August more than 250 people gathered in the centre of Dublin for a protest vigil organised by NUJ members in solidarity with Al Jazeera journalists killed in a targeted attack sanctioned by the Israeli government. Emma O'Kelly, Dublin Broadcasting branch chair, told the vigil there was no justification for the actions of Israel and no evidence to support the claims that any of the journalists were agents of Hamas. Dominica Fratelier, President of the Federation of Journalists, on the killing of Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza. When will the genocide end?
nuj.org.uk/resource/nuj-members-hold-vigils-and-protests-for-colleagues-killed-in-gaza.html
The slogan ‘Make Crime illegal’ was deliberately provocative, designed to capture attention and spark a much-needed conversation about the state of crime in Dublin. It is a call to action.
meonjournal.com/read/an-interview-with-nick-delehanty
I did not expect it to go viral the way it did, but I was delighted because the aim was to the get the conversation started. It worked!
The slogan highlights the gap between the laws on the books and the reality on our streets. Yes, crime is de jure illegal, but the enforcement and consequences of criminal actions often fall short. We see this in the prevalence of suspended sentences and the leniency often shown towards repeat offenders, which undermines the rule of law and erodes public trust in the justice system.
Walking through Dublin’s inner city, it is evident that we are facing a serious crisis. Drug-related crime, anti-social behavior, joy-riding and public disorder are rampant. Zombie heroin addicts roam freely, and businesses are suffering due to the constant threat of theft and vandalism. I recently had a debate with someone who argued that “ah sure the zombies are harmless”!! That's not a standard we should accept!
The reality is that the residents no longer feel safe, and the sense of community has been severely eroded. We’ve reached a point where even basic standards of civil society are being compromised.
The intent behind ‘Make Crime illegal’ is to underscore the need for stricter enforcement of existing laws, ensuring that those who commit crimes face appropriate consequences. It's about making our streets safer and restoring a sense of order and accountability.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/08/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-252
This is the moment when the US has to stick to a course of normalization with Russia no matter what the EU and Kiev want
US President Donald Trump’s explicit refusal to make public what points of disagreement remain and have prevented a breakthrough for now is a very good sign: Clearly, he believes that they can be cleared up in the near future and, thus, deserve discretion.
Yet we do have a few hints allowing for some plausible guessing about the summit’s vibe: Not surprisingly, both leaders made no secret of their respect and even guarded sympathy for each other. That is – and has always been – a good thing, too. But in and of itself that cannot carry an agreement about Ukraine or a broader policy of normalization (or perhaps even a new détente, if we are all very lucky). For that, both Trump and Putin are too serious about adhering to national interests.
More tellingly, immediately after the meeting, Trump used a Fox News interview to state three important things. He confirmed that there was “much progress,” acknowledged that the Russian president wants peace, and told Zelensky “to make a deal.” When Putin, at a short press conference, warned Brussels and Kiev not to try to sabotage the talks, Trump did not contradict the Russian leader.
rt.com/news/623066-alaska-summit-success-last
WATCH US F-35 fighter jets escort Putin’s plane
A formation guarded the Russian president as he departed Alaska following his summit with Trump
The Kremlin has shared footage of US F-35 fighter jets flanking Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plane as it headed across the Bering Strait, following a summit with his American counterpart, Donald Trump, in Alaska.
rt.com/russia/623045-f22-escort-putin-plane
Ukraine kills civilians trying to cross into Russia – senior diplomat
The documented murders are part of Kiev’s wider push to wipe out the population in the border Donetsk region, Rodion Miroshnik has said
rt.com/news/623060-ukraine-kills-civilians-crossing-russia
Ukrainian troops have over the course of the conflict killed hundreds of civilians attempting to cross the frontline into Russia, senior diplomat Rodion Miroshnik told the news agency TASS on Friday.
Miroshnik, who serves as the Russian Foreign Ministry’s ambassador-at-large for the Kiev regime’s war crimes, said the cases had been documented through testimony and video evidence.
“There are hundreds of cases. There are instances where people were shot while trying to cross the [front] line, bombarded with drones, attacked,” the diplomat said.
Miroshnik went on to claim that Kiev’s forces deliberately murder civilians in the new Russian region of Donetsk.
Polish president-elect asks Zelensky to exhume victims of Ukrainian Nazis READ MORE: Polish president-elect asks Zelensky to exhume victims of Ukrainian Nazis
“There were cases where Ukrainian forces went through the basements of houses and threw grenades at people ‘as a preventive measure,’ he said. Such tactics, seen in the towns of Avdeevka, Selidovo, and Dzerzhinsk in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) left areas “completely cleared” of civilians, he added. The same happened in Chasov Yar, a key Ukrainian stronghold liberated by Russian forces two weeks ago.
According to the diplomat, evidence suggests that Kiev’s forces kill those whom Ukraine no longer sees as its own citizens, but rather as “separatists” waiting to be liberated by Russia.
In June, the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Kiev of deliberately exterminating civilians in Donbass, including mass killings of the elderly and drone strikes on residential buildings.
facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560264720331
Thank you for your referral concerning the grave situation in Gaza and allegations against various private enterprises with a footprint within the UK.
This is a subject that we have spent significant time considering, particularly in relation to the arms industries. We will log your correspondence and consider these allegations accordingly.
I attached a link to our terms of reference and remit, which can be found on the Crown Prosecution Service website:
cps.gov.uk/publication/war-crimescrimes-against-humanity-referral-guidelines
Yours Sincerely,
Chris
DS Chris De Asha
War Crimes Investigations
SO15 Counter Terrorism Command
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution 377 A, the "Uniting for Peace" resolution, states that in any cases where the Security Council, because of a lack of unanimity among its five permanent members (P5), fails to act as required to maintain international security and peace, the General Assembly shall consider the matter immediately and may issue appropriate recommendations to UN members for collective measures, including the use of armed force when necessary, in order to maintain or restore international security and peace.
It was adopted 3 November 1950, after fourteen days of Assembly discussions, by a vote of 52 to 5, with 2 abstentions.
The resolution was designed to provide the UN with an alternative avenue for action when at least one P5 member uses its veto to obstruct the Security Council from carrying out its functions mandated by the UN Charter. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_General_Assembly_Resolution_377_(V)
Netanyahu is boxed in, hamstrung by fundamentalist Zionazi coalition, annexing West Bank, ramping up Gaza genocide. A war criminal's conspiracy that's been PREMEDITATED for decades.
UN demands end to deliberate starvation
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/08/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-251
Some say better analysis than @BBCNews @SkyNews or @AlJazeeraWorld
Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, almost exactly nine months after the gruesome murders of by Jack the Ripper, as if the killings were part of some dark ritual performed by the Golden Dawn to bring about the birth of some sort of “mind-controlled” messiah of chaos, and Aleister Crowley must have been his handler. Edward Bulwer-Lytton, the “Grand Patron” of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia (SRIA), whose Supreme Magus, William Wynn Westcott, was one of the three founders of the Golden Dawn. Westcott became an important member of Blavatsky’s Theosophical Society, later also Master of the Masonic research lodge Quatuor Coronati, and under his authority Theodor Reuss founded irregular masonic and Rosicrucian lodges in Germany in 1902. Crowley joined Reuss’s Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO) in 1912. Eerily, in the Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky described the ominous portent of the so-called Vril force of the coming race mentioned by Bulwer-Lytton:
It is this Satanic Force that our generations were to be allowed to add to their stock of Anarchist's baby-toys.... It is this destructive agency, which, once in the hands of some modern Attila, a bloodthirsty antichrist, for instance, would in a few days reduce Europe to its primitive chaotic state, with no man left alive to tell the tale.
The doctrines of the Nazis merged the ideas of Bulwer-Lytton’s The Coming Race and the theory of the Atlantean origins of the Aryans developed by Blavatsky. Like René Guénon and Julius Evola, Blavatsky believed in the polar origins of mankind in Hyperborea, a legendary country supposedly in the far North polar regions, whose capital was Thule, according to mythology of the Thule Society, which derived elements of its ideology and membership from earlier occult groups founded by Guido von List Society and Lanz von Liebenfels, the Order of the New Templars, an offshoot of the OTO. The Thule Society was responsible for development of the German Workers’ Party (Deutsche Arbeiter-Partei, or DAP), founded in January 1919, which was joined by Adolf Hitler, and which was renamed as the NSDAP (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei), known as Nazi party.
ordoabchao.ca/volume-three/aryan-christ
In 1898, Herzl began a series of diplomatic initiatives to build support for a Jewish country. He was received by Kaiser Wilhelm II on several occasions, one of them in Jerusalem, and attended the Hague Peace Conference, enjoying a warm reception from many statesmen. Herzl appealed to the Rothschilds, Sir Samuel Montagu, later cabinet minister, and to the Chief Rabbis of France and Vienna. In preparatory notes for his appeal to Baron Maurice de Hirsch to underwrite the Jewish State, Herzl concluded his request with the words “Honor, Freedom, Fatherland,” the old motto he recalled from his days in the Burschenschaft (fraternity) Albia, which was associated with Georg von Schönerer.
ordoabchao.ca/zionism/zionism
A few months before meeting Victor Emmanuel III, Herzl was warned by Dr. Joseph Samuel Bloch, editor of the Österreichische Wochenschrift, that if he were to present himself as the Messiah, that all Jews would reject him. Instead, he told Herzl, “The Messiah must remain a veiled, hidden figure.”[8] Nevertheless, in “Theodor Herzl: Between Myth and Messianism,” Robert S. Wistrichin pointed out, “Yet his diaries testify that from June 1895 (when his Zionist conversion is usually dated) his curiosity and even sense of affinity with Shabbetai Zevi was growing.”[9] Herzl wrote in a diary entry from March 1896: “the difference between myself and Shabbetai Zevi, or the way I perceive him… is that Zevi became so great that he equaled the greats of this world, whereas I belong to the little ones of this world.”[10] In Herzl’s utopian novel Old-New Land (1902), the protagonists are presented with the choice of spending an evening at a theatrical performance, a drama about Moses, or an opera about Zevi, they choose the opera. The novel’s protagonist David Littwak, while watching the opera, explains the success of false leaders:
ordoabchao.ca/zionism/zionism
Adil Raja replied: “My sources are based here and in Pakistan. I use layers to protect them. The information comes from sources in Pakistan to the layers in the UK who then pass the information to me.” He said he did this in order to protect his sources from harassment as they are placed at the highest levels in government and intelligence in Pakistan and revealing their identity would put them at risk of abductions and torture.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/08/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-251
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Pakistan as Support Grows for Imran Khan’s Call for Democracy
Islamabad, August 5, 2025 — Thousands of Pakistanis across the country took to the streets today, responding to the call of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, demanding the restoration of democracy and accountability. The protests, however, faced stiff resistance from state institutions, with the ISI and Punjab Police actively working to suppress dissent.
In contrast, there was relative calm in Sindh, where Haleem Adil is believed to be aligned with intelligence agencies, and local authorities did not report significant protests. Balochistan, already grappling with insurgency and unrest, remained largely quiet, with ongoing security concerns limiting mass mobilization.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa witnessed a mixed response. Supporters of Ali Amin’s rhetoric were seen rallying, while authorities awaited reactions from local workers and activists. Meanwhile, in Kashmir, residents were reportedly free to voice their opinions, standing united in their own struggle for rights and autonomy.
A notable development occurred in Islamabad, where an attempt by the government to organize a counter-protest focused on Kashmir instead turned into a spontaneous rally in support of Imran Khan. School children and youth, gathered by authorities, unexpectedly voiced overwhelming support for the former Prime Minister, turning the event into a powerful demonstration of popular backing. The spectacle exposed the fragility of military-led propaganda, highlighting that Imran Khan remains the most popular leader among Pakistan’s current and future generations.
Analysts point out that Imran Khan’s political ideology centers around accountability and civilian supremacy—a stark contrast to the military’s overt and covert influence over the country’s governance. The widespread protests underscore a growing public demand for democratic reforms and transparency, challenging the entrenched military establishment’s hold on power.
As tensions continue to simmer, the resilience of Pakistan’s democracy remains uncertain, but the voices of the people, especially the youth, are increasingly difficult for the regime to silence.
soldierspeaks.org/imran-khan-democracy-protests-august-2025
If the end of the war is part of a joint effort, with the support of regional counties and the US, I believe the Israeli public will support it."
Ami Ayalon, Former Shin Bet Head
politicsthisweek.wordpress.com/2022/04/28/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-86
Estella Ticknell, former Deputy Mayor, and Film Studies lecturer at UWE, joins Tony and Martin. Good films. Rise of Netflix and Amazon. Jimmy Savile documentary on Netflix.
Vote on Bristol Mayoral system. Bristol Arena move to Filton. Former Bristol Mayor, George Ferguson, on why he thinks we should just have a Metro Mayor. PMQs Council Tax inequalities. Cost of living crisis and foodbanks. George on the ‘One City’ slogan used by Mayor Rees. What is ‘One City’? Building development in Bristol under Marvin. Housing in UK.
PMQs Kier Starmer – UK has highest inflation and slowest growth in G7. Energy company profits and bonuses while customers suffer. PMQs Court case deems unlawful the Governments actions of sending elderly, without testing for Covid, from hospitals to care homes. Partygate. Ukraine war – history of the conflict – and compared to Yugoslavia war.
Bitchute video of complete show
Part Two - Ukraine/Covid/Climate Round-Up With End Times Prophecy Reports
Ukraine war. BBC report by Jenny Hill in Moscow on how Russians see conflict, and also a meeting at Ramstein Base for US to coordinate arms deliveries to Ukraine.
Liz Truss, Foreign Secretary, gives a speech on Ukraine at Mansion House – Russia should be pushed out of Donbass and Crimea.
Ukrainian General, Yan Kazemirovich, on the CIA sponsored Masonic Lodge Master and Ukrainian Oligarch Victor Pinchuk was really running the show up to the coup in 2014, and all under the influence of Ihor_Kolomoyskyi, a Ukrainian oligarch.
Oligarch Igor Kolomoisky, President Vlodymyr Zelensky and the Azov Battalion
BBC report by Sarah Montague, where Alexander Rodnyansky explains why civilians and Ukraine army should be evacuated from Asovstal steel plant. John Mark Dougan, former US Marine Corps, on what’s happening in Mariupol. Chechnya Brigade in Russian Army.
Alex Krainer, author of ‘The Grand Deception’ about Bill Browder, on Nazis in Ukraine and a possible false flag nuclear attack by the West LINK**
Scott Ritter on Nazis in the Ukrainian Army. Time Magazine – Nazis in Ukraine LINK**.
Mark Musser on Nazis pursuing environmentalism.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/07/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-250
There were more than 80 members of ACORN involved, including parents and their children. The group say they were made aware by staff members that We The Curious had allowed for AXA insurers to use their events space for a conference. AXA insurers have continuously been condemned by protesters for investing in companies that sell weapons to Israel. ACORN took control of the entrances and let families enter for free In an email to the centres’ CEO Donna Speed, the group said they were “outraged” that they were “supporting arms companies selling weapons to Israel, while Israel commits genocide against Palestinians.” The group also cited a plaque in the museum that “celebrated Leonardo UK as a sponsor,” despite Leonardo UK making “F35 fighter jet parts that have been sold to Israel and used in Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza.” The group went into the centre and demanded that as a result of these ties, visitors would enter the centre for free that day. Blocking some of the entrances they say that more than 480 visitors were able to visit for free. Avon and Somerset Police were called to the centre at 1.47pm. A spokesperson said that: “Officers attended to enable a peaceful protest and found a group of about 40 people gathered.” Protesters gathered outside. James Baldwin of ACORN said: “The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognising this may be incapable of morality. “We will not rest or stand by while you continue to work with arms companies that are complicit in the mass murder of Palestinian children. “We will use all our power to expose your unethical and immoral behaviour, until you reassess your position. “We, the people of Bristol, are capable of morality, and it is time to show us that you can be.” The group have demanded the following from We The Curious: Stop taking funds from all arms companies, including in particular those profiting from Israel’s genocide in Palestine Donate the money you received from Leonardo UK to a charity supporting Palestinians, such as Medical Aid for Palestinians State publicly that you are refusing to take funds from arms companies, and calling on other institutions in our city to do the same Sign up to Bristol Apartheid Free Zone We The Curious closed early and protesters left at 3.45pm.
Elsie and Wesley discuss the campaigns Acorn have been covering, mainly housing problems, but also pro Palestinian issues, and transport. They have been trying to work with the Green Bristol Council on these issues.ACORN WINS
Bristol Council voted to fund additional staff for debt advice services, agreed to meet with us to discuss reducing bailiffs, & we were repeatedly name-dropped during the vote We look forward to BCC continuing to meet our demands & the needs of Bristolians ACORN member and bus driver Mike and his family were being threatened by Marstons bailiffs who REFUSED to set up a payment plan for council tax owed and REFUSED to take into account vulnerabilities at the property. Not on our watch! A day later and a call from ACORN led to the bailiff order being suspended and Mike and his family have some breathing space. The bailiff we spoke to was already well aware of ACORN and his tone completely changed once they realised who they were dealing with! Another family free from bailiff harassment, and another bailiff who knows he can't push around ACORN members Bristol council have told us they've sent bailiffs to over 27000 Bristolian households in one recent year.Despite the council's so-called 'ethical debt collection policy', our members have reported that these bailiffs have ignored vulnerabilities and bullied low income people. We are demanding that Tony Dyer, leader of the council: Stops using bailiffs to collect council tax debt
Sky News report about a homeless man. Daniel Wren, a carpenter who, despite working, is unable to afford a place to live, highlighting the stark reality of working homelessness in Britain today. Daniel Wren has fallen on hard times and he is among a growing population of rough sleepers. His demographic, someone in the twilight of his working life, is one that homeless charities are increasingly concerned about. 'You don't think the bubble will burst':...
Acorn have their national conference coming up in Bristol on Saturday 30th August. Follow Acorn on X, Facebook, or their website. ACORN return to bailiffs to protest ‘harassment and intimidation’
https://acornuk.good.do/southwest/tony_dyer_medieval_email/
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/07/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-250
Tiny, rule-breaking public appointment circle in the wake of eight years of Lord Marvin Rees OBE’s Bristol mayoralty. Joe Banks, freelance journalist, joins Tony and Martin. He has continued investigating Bristol City Council, and found malpractice, dodgy planning deals, a culture of cover up, and revolving door jobs. Who is Kevin Slocombe and why is he in the news? Slocombe's role with Marvin Rees at Bristol City Council. Examples of interference in the work of officers and in the planning process.
lawcom.gov.uk/project/misconduct-in-public-office
Kevin Slocombe was working for both WECA and Avon and Somerset police while they were investigating and then arresting the former WECA mayor and Slocombe's Bristol mayor office arch enemy, Dan Norris. Norris was dramatically arrested suspected of sexual abuse but there have still been no charges. Were the allegations against him malicious? Was the then metro-mayor Dan Norris' arrest made for political reasons...?
https://x.com/AudreySuzanne/status/1952367006126055639
Corrupt WECA appointments process: Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees is gone but what about his mayors' office? The boys are back in Town! WECA jobs for Marvin Rees’ Mayor's Office and ex BCC Chief Exec Peacock. Peacock gets Slocombe in too. But WECA's procurement rules were not followed - Police and Crime Commissioner: Who is Clare Moody, the PCC? How and why was Kevin Slocombe chosen as her Deputy?
What have the Greens been doing to improve the culture at Bristol City Council? –Joe explains why he thinks the Councillors were not scrutinising enough, and this culture has carried on with the Greens in charge. Data retention/deletion of emails - After it emerged Marvin Rees' emails had all been deleted, Golden Motion in December 2024, supported by all parties, calling for greater transparency - Report comes back from officers 6 months later saying new policy will be that all emails are deleted after two years.
Head of Information Assurance, BCC, Ben Hawkin is an expert in secrecy – not public service. -
Freedom of Information requests Enforcement notice from the Information Commissioner’s office is appealed by the Monitoring Officer, Tim O'Gara O'Gara has previously broken the law with his unlawful councillor complaints process. Who will monitor a corrupt and potentially criminal monitoring officer?
bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/tensions-flare-over-transparency-secrecy-10199061
Bristol council accused of 'secrecy' after quiet attempt to overturn order An activist claimed the council "keeps covering stuff up and it just looks terrible" A top council lawyer has taken the unprecedented step of appealing an enforcement notice from a regulator to improve transparency. Persistent failures to provide the public with information within legal time limits has caused Bristol councillors to raise fears about a culture of secrecy. Last year the Information Commissioner’s Office ordered Bristol City Council to get better at responding to freedom of information requests (FoIs). The watchdog said Bristol was “consistently” one of the councils which had sparked the most complaints about FoIs in recent years. Tim O’Gara, director of legal and democratic services, was grilled by councillors on the audit committee on Monday, July 28, about the enforcement. He faced questions over why he chose to appeal, if any politician was involved in the decision, and why councillors weren’t told sooner. Article continues below He said: “It wouldn’t be appropriate to comment on live legal proceedings. The decision to appeal the enforcement notice was made by me. Under the council’s constitution, I’m responsible for instituting and defending legal proceedings. I did that based on legal advice. “We’re waiting probably longer than we thought we would be waiting. We will report back in due course as and when we receive a judgement. It’s not a political consideration whether or not I institute or defend legal proceedings. We do that day in, day out.” This could be the first time a public authority has ever appealed an enforcement notice from the Information Commissioner, according to one expert. . ...
See Joe's Substack or website for his articles. Steve Brodie Panorama documentary about Lloyds fraud the BBC are possibly the only media to investigate compelling allegations of corruption within Bristol City Council and the Police, who are paid by the council, despite hundreds of Freedom of Information requests which prove it.
'You'll get hell': How Israeli officials justify using starvation as weapon of war in Gaza Thursday, 24 July 2025
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/07/24/751771/How-Israeli-officials-justify-using-starvation-as-weapon-of-war-in-Gaza
By Humaira Ahad
Lana no longer plays with her brother. The rosy-complexioned child who once ran barefoot across the courtyard now sits slumped against a cement wall, her yellowed skin barely concealing the skeleton underneath.
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/07/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-250
“She can’t walk. She can’t stand for long,” wrote Alaa Arafat, the aunt of little Lana. “All she wants is to sleep and sit. I can’t believe what has become of her.”
Lana is one of Gaza’s million children, over half the besieged territory's population, enduring the slow and systematic agony of the Israeli regime’s starvation campaign.
For months now, the war-ravaged coastal strip has been at the epicenter of what experts describe as a textbook case of genocidal assault—one that uses hunger itself as a calculated instrument of war.
The Health Ministry in Gaza reported that 101 Palestinians, including 80 children, have already died from starvation and dehydration since the genocidal war began.
In the last week alone, dozens more hunger-related deaths were reported across the territory with haunting images shared on social media platforms.
A policy with deep roots
From former Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol’s 1967 remark, “We’ll deprive Gaza of water, and the Arabs will leave,” to the current architects of the genocidal war, Israel’s approach has remained strikingly consistent, with starvation being used as an instrument of occupation and ethnic cleansing.
Internal documents and years of public statements by the regime's political and military officials paint a chilling picture, with almost all of them being unapologetic and brazen in their war rhetoric.
Starvation was first publicly crystallized in 2007, following the landslide electoral victory of the Hamas resistance movement in Gaza, when Dov Weissglas, adviser to the then-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, openly called for starving Palestinians.
“The idea is to put the Palestinians on a diet, but not to make them die of hunger,” he said.
Israeli documents revealed an explicit calculation of caloric needs for the Gaza population. The amount of food allowed inside the besieged strip was measured to hover just above famine thresholds.
Israeli rights group Gisha later explained the policy: “Israel banned glucose for biscuits and the fuel needed for regular supply of electricity, paralyzing normal life in Gaza and impairing the moral character of the State of Israel. I am sorry to say that major elements of this policy are still in place,” the group’s director was quoted as saying in 2010.
Starvation as a strategy
Since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, the regime has dropped the veil of plausible deniability.
Starvation has now been embraced as an open tactic of war against Palestinians, especially vulnerable children.
One after another, regime officials have advocated denying food, water, fuel, and medicine to the entire population of Gaza.
Moshe Saada, an Israeli Knesset member, stated with brutal clarity that he was interested in "starving the Gazans and imposing a siege to the max," adding that "whoever wants to leave will leave to a humanitarian zone that we will administer.” (April 24, 2025)
Itamar Ben-Gvir, far-right minister and a staunch advocate of settler-colonialism, declared that the food and aid depots "should be bombed in order to create military and political pressure.” (April 23, 2025)
Bezalel Yoel Smotrich, far-right finance minister and head of the Religious Zionism Party, said the time was ripe "to completely stop the transfer of humanitarian aid to Hamas... the time has come to occupy the Gaza Strip, to seize territory from them permanently ..." (February 10, 2025)
Avigdor Lieberman, former deputy prime minister and finance minister of the regime, took it further back to 2024: “The only arrangement that needs to be made with Gaza is to stop all transfers of humanitarian aid, equipment, fuel, electricity and water,” he said. (August 28, 2024)
16.48 BST
Peter Hain says anti-apartheid campaigners would have been treated as terrorists under logic used to ban Palestine Action
The Labour peer Peter Hain, who was a leading anti-apartheid campaigner in the UK and who led the direct action protests that disrupted South African rugby and cricket tours in 1969 and 1970, told peers that he was “deeply ashamed” that his party was banning Palestine Action.
If he was doing that today, he would be “stigmatised as a terrorist, rather than vilified, as indeed I then was”, he said. He went on:
That militant action could have been blocked by this motion [the order banning Palestine Action] as could other anti-apartheid activity, including militant protests to stop Barclays Bank recruiting new students on university campuses, eventually forcing Barclays to withdraw from apartheid South Africa.
Remember also that Nelson Mandela was labelled a “terrorist” by the apartheid government, by British prime minister Maragret Thatcher, by the United States and other Western governments during much of the Cold War.
Mandela even remained on the US terrorism watchlist until 2008, many years after becoming South Africa’s first democratically elected president and receiving the Nobel Peace Prize.
After his African National Congress had been banned, Nelson Mandela was convicted for sabotage and conspiracy to overthrow the apartheid government when he backed armed struggle despite strongly opposing the very essence of terrorism: namely violent and indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians.
Nevertheless, he became a global icon and in 1996 President Mandela addressed both Houses of this Parliament in Westminster Hall.
Hain said the suffragettes would have been banned under the same logic,
The suffragettes too have gained iconic status, treated as heroines today. Yet they could have been suppressed under this proscription. They used violence against property in a strategic manner to demand voting rights for women as part of civil disobedience protests when their peaceful protests seemed futile.
They intended to highlight the injustice of denying women the vote and to provoke a reaction that kept the issue in the public eye. Like Nelson Mandela, they were vilified at the time, including in strident denunciations by members of this house …
They even hid small homemade bombs inside mailboxes and attempted to bomb Westminster Abbey and Prime Minister David Lloyd George’s uncompleted house.
Frankly Palestine Action members spraying paint on military aircraft at Brize Norton seems positively moderate by comparison. And those alleged to have done this are being prosecuted for criminal damage – as indeed they should be.
Hain said that “real terrorists” were groups like al-Qaida and Islamic State, who have killed thousands of people.
He ended:
This government is treating Palestine Action as equivalent to Islamic State or al-Qaida, which is intellectually bankrupt, politically unprincipled and morally wrong. Frankly I am deeply ashamed. And that is why I support this regret amendment.
theguardian.com/politics/live/2025/jul/03/keir-starmer-rachel-reeves-welfare-bill-nhs-10-year-plan-west-streeting-uk-politics-latest-news-updates
Hamas has reacted to the US claim that the group has stalled Gaza ceasefire talks. The resistance movement rejected the U-S special envoy’s allegations that it lacked the will to reach an agreement
politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/07/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-249
Hamas responds to ceasefire draft, demands changes to Israeli army's position in Gaza
Dispute remains on topics of prisoner exchange, military's withdrawal lines and aid distribution mechanism
middleeasteye.net/news/hamas-responds-ceasefire-draft-demands-changes-israeli-armys-position-gaza
Hamas and other Palestinians factions have reportedly demanded changes to the truce proposal regarding the Israeli army's withdrawal positions as well as amendments to the aid mechanism in Gaza.
Early on Thursday, Hamas announced it was submitting its official response to the ceasefire draft to mediators.
According to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, two sources - an Egyptian source familiar with mediation efforts and a Hamas source - noted amendment requests made by the Palestinian movement regarding the deployment of the Israeli army further away, near the Gaza boundary.
One condition stipulated the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt be opened immediately after the ceasefire begins, the sources say.
The Egyptian source noted that US negotiators have expressed their commitment to ensuring ongoing discussions if a 60-day truce period does not conclude with an agreement.
"Now the ball is in the Israeli court, as the mediators await its response regarding the aid and redeployment maps clauses," the Egyptian source said.
According to the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, a source said the response by Hamas "improved" compared to previous proposals, but stressed that "the improvement is not sufficient, but it may form the basis for subsequent negotiations".
The withdrawal of the army, especially away from civilian areas, was one of the points of contention on the Israeli side, which Yedioth Ahronoth described as "much more than Israel was willing to do".
Meanwhile, the Hamas official speaking to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed noted concerns of displacement amongst Palestinians in Gaza, explaining that the clause pertaining to the opening of the Rafah crossing would allow Egyptian coordination to guarantee that the besieged enclave would not be emptied of its residents.
Moreover, the clause aims to affirm the freedom of movement of Palestinians, moving away from the concept of a prison, and ensuring that families stranded in Egypt are able to reunite with families across the Gaza Strip.
One of the amendments in Hamas' latest response has called for the exclusion of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) from participating in future aid distribution and delivery efforts, instead, relying on the previous mechanism led by the United Nations and other human rights organisations.
This demand has been one of a few that the Palestinian factions have laid stress on, especially with the ongoing attacks on relief-seekers at GHF-controlled distribution points.
The US and Israeli-backed GHF was established to supplant the UN in distributing aid in Gaza. Only a trickle of food has entered the enclave, and some Palestinians, including children, are dying of hunger.
More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces while trying to access food aid in Gaza since the militarised GHF began operations in late May, the United Nations said on Tuesday.
Additionally, Israeli media reports that due to Hamas' distrust of US assurances of a continuation of the truce after the 60-day period is completed, requests have been made to release the maximum number of Palestinian prisoners.
This includes some of the most notable prisoners that the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar had vowed to release before he was killed by the Israeli military, Ynet reported.
The Israeli Channel 12 quoted a senior Israeli official that it "appears there will be no rapid progress" due to the "current gaps between the two sides regarding the prisoner exchange and the Israeli army's withdrawal lines".
It added that they are attempting to find possible "bridges" to overcome these differences and push towards the release of Israeli captives in Gaza.
July 17, 2025 News
palestinechronicle.com/ansarallah-strikes-again-eilat-port-shuts-down-permanently
Yemen’s Ansarallah launched fresh attacks on Israeli military sites and intensified their naval blockade, forcing the closure of Eilat Port amid mounting economic losses for Israel.
The Yemeni Armed Forces, affiliated with the Ansarallah movement, announced on Wednesday that they had carried out four fresh military operations targeting Israeli sites, including a direct missile strike on the Ben Gurion Airport, using a Zulfiqar ballistic missile.
In an official statement, Ansarallah’s military spokesperson, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, said that three additional attacks targeted the port of Umm al-Rashrash (Eilat), a military site in the Naqab (Negev) region, and Ben-Gurion airport, using a total of four drones.
Saree reiterated that the Yemeni Armed Forces “remain committed to their religious, moral, and humanitarian responsibility toward the Palestinian people,” stressing that these operations will continue until Israel ends its war on Gaza and lifts the siege.
Yemen Issues New Warnings
The Yemeni military also renewed its warning to international companies operating in ports located in occupied Palestine, cautioning that their vessels could become targets if they continue such activity.
Yemen confirmed it is maintaining its naval blockade on Israeli shipping in both the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, framing it as part of a wider military campaign in support of Gaza.
On Tuesday, Saree had confirmed successful drone strikes on a key Israeli military site in the occupied Naqab region.
In his statement on July 15, Saree emphasized that Yemeni operations will persist without interruption until the aggression on Gaza ceases and the blockade on Palestinians is lifted.
Total Shutdown
Yemen’s maritime blockade has already caused significant economic repercussions in Israel. The Israeli business outlet The Marker reported that Eilat Port will completely shut down operations starting Sunday after the city’s municipality froze its bank accounts due to millions of shekels in debt.
The port has faced near-total paralysis since November 2023, when Yemen began its naval blockade on ships heading to Israel, which drastically reduced revenue and crippled commercial activity.
According to The Marker, Eilat Municipality froze the port’s accounts because of massive outstanding debts, effectively bringing all port operations to a standstill.
Earlier reports from The Marker revealed that Eilat Port’s revenue had plummeted by 80% in 2024, as international shipping companies avoided the Red Sea route due to Yemen’s blockade, imposed in solidarity with Gaza.
The Yemeni army has launched new retaliatory operations against Israeli targets deep inside the occupied territories in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
Israel scrambles to address maritime insurance freeze after Houthi attacks, sources say
middleeasteye.net/news/israel-approaches-maritime-insurers-after-houthi-attacks
Decision of US insurer not to provide additional 'war risk' coverage to vessel sunk by Yemeni group could have chilling effect on Haifa port
Israel has approached marine insurers about the status of war risk coverage for vessels with indirect ties to Israel amid concerns that back-to-back Houthi attacks in the Red Sea could hurt traffic at the port of Haifa, two shipping sources have told Middle East Eye.
In early July, Yemen's Houthis launched a sophisticated and multi-pronged attack on The Magic Seas and The Eternity C, two Greek-owned and Liberian-flagged vessels in the Red Sea.
Both vessels were sunk by the group, officially known as Ansar Allah.
The attacks were the largest in scope, and firepower, since the Houthis began targeting ships in the Red Sea in November 2023 in what they say is solidarity with besieged Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
"There is a big discussion in the market right now whether insurers should cover vessels with even indirect connections to Israel," one of the shipping sources told MEE.
"This is not good for Israel. The optics are damaging. The Israelis have spoken to insurers and shipping companies."
Israel was alarmed after Eternity C's US-based insurer, Travelers, decided not to extend war risk coverage on the vessel before its passage in the Red Sea.
The decision is likely to leave the Greek operator, Cosmoship Management, with losses of around $20m based on the estimated value of the vessel.
It also means that ship owners and operators could eschew calling at Israeli ports for fear of not obtaining coverage in the future.
"Vessels are going to start to avoid calling at Israeli ports. It's not about getting hit by the Houthis, but the chance of not being insured," a maritime security official told MEE. "Does a secondary or tertiary link to Israel mean you can be denied coverage?"
The Eternity C had no direct link to Israel, but Cosmoship vessels regularly called at Israeli ports last year. The CEO of Stem Shipping, the owner of Magic Seas, acknowledged that his vessels sometimes call at Israeli ports also.
There are multiple layers to maritime insurance. Underwriters are able to levy additional premiums on vessels transiting a list of designated areas viewed as high on "war risk".
The list is drafted by Lloyd's of London's Joint War Committee. Vessels are required to notify their insurers before travelling in these areas. In the case of Eternity C, Travelers refused to provide additional coverage to the vessel, Lloyd's List, an insurance journal, reported.
The Houthi attacks prompted many vessels, especially container ships, to avoid the Red Sea route between Asia and Europe in favour of the longer journey around Africa's Cape of Good Hope. However, dry bulk carriers, tankers and many Chinese vessels have continued to transit the Red Sea.
Pressure from Israel to restart attacks
The Houthis stopped attacking vessels in January when a short-lived truce between Hamas and Israel was in effect. Israel unilaterally withdrew from the ceasefire in March, and the Yemeni group started firing missiles at Israel, although they refrained from maritime attacks.
US President Donald Trump then began a widespread bombing campaign against the Houthis that lasted until 6 May. Trump's decision to stop the strikes came in response to lobbying by Saudi Arabia, the Houthis' former foe, MEE revealed at the time.
The agreement was framed as one between the US and the Houthis only. Oman, which mediated between Washington and the group, said that "neither side will target the other" but said it included commitments for the "smooth flow of international commercial shipping".
Roughly two weeks after the agreement, the Houthis said they were imposing a "maritime blockade" on the Israeli port of Haifa.
"This was never a written ceasefire. It is an understanding and specific only to the US. The Houthi strategy is to attack vessels without getting the US drawn in,” Mohammad al-Basha, a Yemen analyst at the Basha Report risk advisory firm, told MEE.
The Houthis largely sat out the recent conflict between Israel and the group's reported patron, Iran, following Israel's surprise attack on the Islamic Republic in June. Basha said that the attacks earlier this month were likely coordinated with Tehran.
15 Jul 2025
bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0lq6pz9
Donald Trump has given an exclusive interview to the BBC's chief North America correspondent Gary O'Donoghue.
Mr Trump made the phone call, which lasted 20 minutes, after conversations about a potential interview to mark one year on since the attempt on his life at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
During the wide-ranging conversation, Mr Trump discussed the assassination attempt, his relationship with Russia's President Putin, and what will define his legacy.
Economics Professor Steve Keen, on disastrous international markets fallout after last Friday's UK mini-budget, and how countries need long term planning. I owe enormous intellectual debts to Hyman Minsky and Augusto Graziani. But at one point, my "little knowledge" led me to believe, falsely, that they had both made a huge mistake in claiming that repaying debt destroyed money: Graziani: As soon as firms repay their debt to the banks, the money initially created is destroyed. (Graziani 1989) Money is created as banks lendmainly to businessand money is destroyed as borrowers fulfill their payment commitments to banks. (Minsky 1982) This couldn't be right, I thought: surely once banks had created money, they wouldn't let it be destroyed? I considered cash loans in particularsurely the cash wasn't destroyed on receipt, but put back into the vault for relending? This is why the model of money in my Debunking Economics (Keen 2011) is of a cash-lending bank, and not a modern electronic banking system, where loans are simultaneously matched by direct payments into deposit accounts. Then I developed Minsky, the monetary modelling software that I named in honour of Hyman Minsky. I came to really understand double-entry bookkeeping, and realised that Minsky and Graziani were correct, and I was wrong. These days, money is primarily the sum of private bank deposit accounts. When you show modern bank lending and bank debt repayment in a double-entry table, it's obvious that the former creates money, and the latter destroys it. This points to a general rule about money creation and destruction: leaving aside cash loans, and direct government payments of cash to the non-bank public, to create money, an operation must increase both the Assets and Liabilities (or short-term Equity) sides of the banking system's ledger. Conversely, this means that operations that occur exclusively on either the Assets side or Liabilities & Equity side neither create nor destroy money. Having made this mistake myself, I came to realise that understanding double-entry bookkeeping is the "Holy Grail" to understanding money, and therefore that if someone makes claims about money that contradict double-entry bookkeeping (DEB for short), then they should be ignored, because they don't know what they are talking about.
Liz Truss being interviewed by Bristol BBC radio reporter – sticking to the mini-budget. Liz Truss interviewed by BBC Lancashire BBC Bristol and BBC Stoke radio – fracking. NHS problems. BBC Radio Nottingham: Liz Truss told budget is like a 'reverse Robin Hood' – audio When it was announced that Liz Truss would break her silence on the collapse of the pound by appearing on local radio stations, there was mockery from some London-based journalists who felt she should have given an interview to a national news outlet. Instead, it was BBC Leeds’s breakfast show that helped shift the price of UK government debt, as traders tuned in and realised the prime minister was sticking to her economic plan. As presenter Rima Ahmed put it to the prime minister: “Where’ve you been?” Radio Kent put it in more stark terms, with one listener asking Truss: “Are you ashamed of what you have done?” The prime minister’s rapid-fire set of eight short interviews with BBC radio stations in an hour produced more news than often emerges from a single slot on Radio 4’s Today programme. One benefit that local radio journalists have over reporters who deal with Downing Street on a daily basis is that they have no incentive to hold back. They are unlikely to have the prime minister on their programme as a regular guest and there is no need to have the complicated ongoing relationships with Downing Street communications staff. Instead they have the chance to ask a handful of questions and try to make their name – and represent the views of their listeners. Thursday’s interviews were coordinated by the BBC’s Central News Service, which provides national news coverage to the BBC’s 40 local outlets across England the Channel Islands – often by booking a guest who can be interviewed across multiple outlets on the same topic. In this case, radio stations covering Leeds, Norfolk, Kent, Lancashire, Nottingham, Teesside, Bristol, and Stoke-on-Trent were each given about five minutes’ airtime with Truss.
Disastrous Liz Truss interviews show BBC local radio still packs a punch
Jim Waterson
theguardian.com/politics/2022/sep/29/disastrous-liz-truss-interviews-bbc-local-radio-packs-punch-analysis?amp
Analysis: PM’s eight short interviews produced more news than a typical slot on Radio 4’s Today programme
Latest politics news – live
BBC Radio Nottingham: Liz Truss told budget is like a 'reverse Robin Hood' – audio
Thu 29 Sep 2022 13.22 BST
Last modified on Fri 30 Sep 2022 05.29 BST
When it was announced that Liz Truss would break her silence on the collapse of the pound by appearing on local radio stations, there was mockery from some London-based journalists who felt she should have given an interview to a national news outlet.
Instead, it was BBC Leeds’s breakfast show that helped shift the price of UK government debt, as traders tuned in and realised the prime minister was sticking to her economic plan. As presenter Rima Ahmed put it to the prime minister: “Where’ve you been?”
Radio Kent put it in more stark terms, with one listener asking Truss: “Are you ashamed of what you have done?”
The prime minister’s rapid-fire set of eight short interviews with BBC radio stations in an hour produced more news than often emerges from a single slot on Radio 4’s Today programme.
One benefit that local radio journalists have over reporters who deal with Downing Street on a daily basis is that they have no incentive to hold back. They are unlikely to have the prime minister on their programme as a regular guest and there is no need to have the complicated ongoing relationships with Downing Street communications staff. Instead they have the chance to ask a handful of questions and try to make their name – and represent the views of their listeners.
Thursday’s interviews were coordinated by the BBC’s Central News Service, which provides national news coverage to the BBC’s 40 local outlets across England the Channel Islands – often by booking a guest who can be interviewed across multiple outlets on the same topic. In this case, radio stations covering Leeds, Norfolk, Kent, Lancashire, Nottingham, Teesside, Bristol, and Stoke-on-Trent were each given about five minutes’ airtime with Truss.
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Liz Truss
‘A reverse Robin Hood’: key exchanges from Liz Truss’s radio interviews
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As a result the prime minister sat in Downing Street between 8am and 9am, having only a few seconds to pause between interviews before being patched in to the next breakfast show. The absence of a camera means there is no television footage of Truss squirming – but the short, rapid nature of the interviews still made them perfect for clipping and sharing on social media and in WhatsApp groups.
The interviews come as the BBC tries to figure out a future for its local coverage in England, which is being hit hard by job cuts caused by ongoing real-terms cuts to the licence fee. The corporation is trying to work out a digital future for its local coverage, with BBC local radio stations reaching 7.7 million people in the latest audience figures – down 11% in the last three months alone. Yet the response to Thursday’s interviews suggest there is still an appetite for local accountability journalism presented in a way modern audiences want to consume it.
David Cameron was a particular fan of doing the BBC’s local radio interview round, arguing it kept him sharp and required him to be briefed by aides on issues that affected regional areas – even if he sometimes forgot which area he was talking about.
On Thursday, Truss seemed to be caught off-guard by a question from Amy Oakden on BBC Radio Tees about dead crabs washing up on the shores of the North Sea – a significant issue in the area that has been largely off the national political agenda.
Her pledge to repeal the ban on fracking, popular in libertarian circles of the London Tory thinktank world, went down badly with Radio Lancashire’s Graham Liver: “Your local MPs, all Conservative, don’t want it … Why can’t you tell us this morning there won’t be a return to fracking in Lancashire?”
The prime minister paused then replied: “I don’t accept the premise of your question.”
Yet Oldhouse Warren and most of Worth Forest are fiercely private, and nature there has been badly damaged by the past management of their owners.
And now Center Parcs and the landowners plan to make big money out of it – building a holiday town of 900 lodges and big visitor attractions utterly unsuited to wild countryside & ancient woodland.
This forest should be open and free to us all & a haven for nature, like Epping Forest and the New Forest.
WORTH FOREST IS WORTH SAVING
Join Landscapes of Freedom and the national Right to Roam campaign in Sussex on 24th September for a mass trespass to save Oldhouse Warren, the heart of the largest forest in Sussex!
It will be a day of celebration. A celebration of the once mighty and wild Worth Forest, and perhaps a grieving for what it was and a summoning of what it could again be, a people’s forest.
INFO HERE: https://www.eventbrite.com/.../worth-forest-is-worth...
There will be expert led veteran tree and botany walks, funghi perhaps, and the history and future hopes for this forest will be shared. Together we'll picnic, with speeches (few!), song, poetry and perhaps dance.
Wear forest or folkloric finery - or not! Stout footwear will be a must, tis the High Weald, tis muddy. Come with merry heart and claim the Right to Roam!
facebook.com/LandscapesOfFreedom
A council employee blocked the resident from chucking water at the mayor
Tristan CorkSenior Reporter
16:49, 29 SEP 2022A woman attempts to throw water over the Mayor of Bristol, Marv bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/tower-block-residents-throw-water-7645174
The mayor of Bristol was accosted by angry residents of the tower block hit by last weekend's fire tragedy, with one throwing water towards him and accosting him as he approached the building for a meeting. The police were called to Twinnell House in Easton after the confrontation, which happened as Marvin Rees and his entourage visited the tower block for the first time since Sunday morning's fire, in which 30-year-old Abdul Jabar Oryakhel was killed.
One woman approached the mayor and a council employee managed to block her attempt to throw water over him from a distance, before the resident berated him in the street. Other residents, who have long complained about conditions in the tower block off Stapleton Road, said his visit, made five days after the fatal fire, had come too late.
The meeting with local residents lasted around an hour, and was held in the tower block's ground-floor community room, which had been closed and locked up by the city council for years. Residents said it was the first time many had ever been in there.
After the meeting, Mr Rees said it went well. "We had a very constructive conversation with residents, just about the building itself, how it was supposed to work in the event of a fire, and the building did work in the way it was supposed to work - the fire was contained, people were able to leave in an orderly way. The support measures were in place in the community.
"So we talked through that. We talked through their wider concerns about quality of life in the block as well, and about how we make sure that our housing services are as good as they need to be," he added. In recent years, residents of Twinnell House have been the subject of police and council protection orders because of anti-social behaviour and drug dealing, and in August 2020, parents told Bristol Live how their children have to run a gauntlet of drug dealers in the corridors trying to recruit them on their way home from school.
People living in Twinnell House have spoken out this week about the conditions in the flats, and about their fears over the fire safety procedures and the council's response. One resident told BBC Points West, who were the only media to have been informed in advance by the Mayor's Office about the visit taking place this morning, that they weren't happy the Mayor had left it so long.
"It's embarrassing for him to show his face after four days (since) when the incident happened," he said. "He's the representative of this city, and basically he didn't have time to come in to show his respect. We lost one of our own who lived in the building, and that's the city he's representing," he added.
The police were called to the tower block after the Mayor arrived. It is unclear who called them, but three officers arrived to the tower block. Bristol Live has asked the mayor's office if anyone from the mayor's team or the council called the police, and is awaiting a response.
Accelerationism Nick Land Order of Nine Angles & Alexander Dugin
politicsthisweek.wordpress.com/2022/09/22/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-107
DAVID LIVINGSTONE – CHAOS OUT OF ORDER – 2022-04-01 © TOSN-94
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Tagged in Annetta Driskell, David Livingstone, Kynthea, Timothy Saunders and posted in Author, Masons / Free Masons / Knights Templar, Russia, Secret Societies / Knights of Templar / Masonic Order, Shows, TOSN, Warfare / Energy Warfare / Weather Wars / Bio Warfare / AI Warfare / Psychological Warfare
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David Livingstone reveals the ‘hidden hand’, the influence and events that have led us to where we are today.
In an uncensored conversation, David exposes the covert forces behind the Ukrainian War, Invasion? Liberation? or Distraction ??? And what of Canada, regarding Covid in the wake of the Truckers Freedom Convoy?
We look at where we are now and what we can expect next in this transformation.
Are we in a Great Reset or a Great Renaissance ??
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DAVID LIVINGSTONE,
Website: ordoabchao.ca
David Livingstone is an independent researcher, and his book represents the culmination of nearly 30 years of research. When he attended the Liberal Arts College of Concordia University in Montreal, he read William H. McNeil’s The History of Western Civilization, which mentioned the appearance of the so-called “Indo-Europeans,” who emerged suddenly out of the Caucasus and conquered the known parts of the world. The story seemed strange to him. Most nations emerged gradually when they turned to agriculture. These Indo-Europeans had no prior presence in history and burst out of nowhere, and supposedly mastered the chariot, though they came from a mountainous region.
As David investigated further, he discovered that the “Indo-Europeans” was the politically-correct term for the Aryan race. And their existence was merely a theory, which was shaped through the influence of the occult, particularly Bible legends of the “Sons of God” and of Atlantis. he learned that these ideas derived from the influence of Freemasonry, and also the notorious Illuminati.
However, for the most part, mainstream historians have shied away from investigating what they consider a field rife with cranks and “conspiracy theory.” These societies typically claimed a fantastic pedigree about themselves, stretching far back into ancient times, and involving history’s most famous figures and epochs. While some of these assertions might sound outlandish, they were often nevertheless based in an element of truth. Therefore David set out to find out the truth about their origin and influence.
The result is a fascinating version of history, which reveals a completely different pattern and significance than has otherwise been taught by mainstream historians. In fact, McNeill’s “history” is propaganda, associated with a project from the University of Chicago, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation, which is known as the “Western Civilizations Course.” It represents a eurocentric version of history inspired by the philosophy of Hegel. Interestingly, the one proof of Hegel’s affiliation with the Illuminati was his mention of the Owl of Minerva, the society’s symbol, which is also the logo of the Liberal Arts College.
Rather, the so-called history of “Western Civilization” as it is taught is inspired by the Kabbalah, which teaches history as an unfolding divine plan, where God is a man who comes to know himself. Supposedly, man’s intellectual development begins in Greece, with the emergence of philosophy, supposedly the first rejection of God, and the first attempt at the independent use of “reason.” In reality, Greek philosophy represented the first important development of the Kabbalistic tradition, which forms the bedrock of the Western occult tradition, which shaped most of the key events of Western history, from the Crusades to the Renaissance and finally the Enlightenment, which shaped our modern era.
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Show Items
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David’s Items:
1. Networks Behind Ukraine’s Nazis: Pinay Cercle, Accelerationists, George Soros with David Livingstone
REES-MOGG LIE NO. 2: Regulation of Water in the UK is a non existent as illustrated by the discharge of untreated sewage closing hundreds of our beaches in the summer of 2022
Fracking won’t work in UK says founder of fracking company Cuadrilla Chris Cornelius says geology is too challenging and government’s support is merely ‘soundbites’ Fracking in the UK will be impossible at any meaningful scale and will not help with the energy price crisis, the founder of the UK’s first fracking company has warned. Chris Cornelius, the geologist who founded Cuadrilla Resources, which drilled the UK’s first modern hydraulic fracturing wells in Lancashire, told the Guardian that he believed the government’s support for it is merely a “political gesture”. “I don’t think there is any chance of fracking in the UK in the near term.” He said that when Cuadrilla had operated here, it had discovered that the geology of the UK was unsuited to widespread fracking operations. “No sensible investors” would take the risk of embarking on large projects here, he said. “It’s very challenging geology, compared with North America [where fracking is a major industry].” Unlike the gas-bearing shale deposits in the US, the shale resource in the UK is “heavily faulted and compartmentalised”, making it far harder to exploit at any scale. Liz Truss, the prime minister, has made clear she supports fracking and will lift the moratorium that has been in place since 2019, though it remains to be seen where and how sites will be licensed. She has said she hopes to see gas from fracked sites as soon as six months from now. But Cornelius said that “would not happen”. Truss’s decision to give the green light to fracking “is not going to have an impact” on the UK’s energy supply, he told the Guardian in an interview. “It makes good soundbites but I can’t see anything happening,” he said. In the longer term, he said it was possible there could be a few localised operations, but they would be small and could not make a meaningful contribution to the UK’s energy needs. “They will never be at scale, because the capital costs are a huge issue,” he said.
The former Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, asked what studies had been done on the effect of fracking on aquifers. Mr Rees-Mogg referred to a 2021 report, which he said concluded that most of evidence on aquifer pollution was invented. [The report by the Royal Society recommended surveys of methane and other contaminants in groundwater before, during and after shale gas operations]. Cheaper energy The business secretary said a shale gas supply would “bring us cheaper energy”. But this has been disputed by many experts and leading Conservatives, including the now chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng. Richard Burgon, Labour, Leeds East, said fracking was being pursued by the government “in the corporate interest”. He said renewables were nine times cheaper than gas.
theguardian.com/environment/2022/sep/21/fracking-wont-work-uk-founder-chris-cornelius-cuadrilla
drillordrop.com/2022/09/22/tory-anger-at-lifting-fracking-moratorium-what-mps-said
mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/vladimir-putin-will-mobilise-1million-28056046
A source has claimed that Vladimir Putin will be allowed to call up a total of one million people, not 300,000 as officially announced. He is said to be scared to reveal the truth to Russians
Vladimir Putin has cleared the way to mobilise one million civilian reservists to fight Western-backed Ukraine, not 300,000 as officially announced, it has been claimed today.
A secret seventh article in his "partial mobilisation" presidential decree allows him to call up a total of one million people, a source told independent investigative media outlet Novaya Gazeta Europe.
The Russian President is said to be scared to reveal the truth to his citizens as he fears more dissidents will leave the country.
However, the Kremlin denied the claims, with state-owned news agency RIA citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov who called the report "a lie".
It comes after Putin and his defence minister Sergei Shoigu yesterday announced 300,000 Russians would be called up to fight in Ukraine.
Enlistment is underway today on a grand scale across Russia's 11 time zones, as seen in multiple videos.
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov yesterday refused to disclose the content of the classified seventh article of the decree but admitted it related to the number of Russians to be mobilised, according to Kommersant newspaper.
The article was "for official use", he said.
Peskov added: "The only thing I can tell you...Sergei Shoigu said in his interview - 300,000 people [will be mobilised].
"We are talking about up to 300,000 people. And also, as the Minister of Defence explained, not all at once."
However, Novaya Gazeta said secret Article 7 hides the real figure which officials did not mention.
The defence ministry wanted his entire decree secret but in the end, only the seventh article was classified, it was claimed.
"The figure was corrected several times, and in the end, they settled on one million," said the Novaya Gazeta source.
Two Russian soldiers patrolling the Mariupol drama theatre, whiThe newspaper's claim is echoed by Telegram channel General SVR which said the 300,000 figure is "false".
"It is planned to mobilise 500,000 people by the end of the year and another 500,000 people by March next year," it stated.
The anti-Putin channel, which claims insider Kremlin sources, also claimed the "general estimate of losses by March next year is about 300,000 killed and wounded".
This is in addition to some 81,572 killed so far, according to the channel, which predicted in advance the mobilisation move by Putin.
Russian soldiers on a tank in Volnovakha district in the pro-RuThe Russian president will also impose "the most stringent measures to ensure mobilisation" with "a ban on movement even across the country" using police and national guards.
Dissidents will find their bank accounts blocked, preventing them from obtaining money - including those who have fled abroad.
"It is dangerous for men of military age to keep money in any bank in Russia," said the channel.
All Russian men are required to do a year's military service between the ages of 18 and 27, although university students may instead receive instruction from a military faculty alongside their chosen studies.
unherd.com/thepost/kwasi-kwarteng-bets-the-house-on-old-ideas
Despite the hype, the mini-budget isn't all that radical
Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng. Credit: Getty
If you believe George Monbiot in The Guardian today, then Liz Truss and her Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng are about to turn Britain into a turbo-capitalist dystopia. Goodbye green and pleasant land, hello Blade Runner nightmare.
His evidence is that the government is stuffed full of free market liberals who used to work for think tanks like the Institute of Economic Affairs and the Adam Smith Institute. And he’s right: many of their alumni are now employed in Downing Street. Furthermore, Monbiot points out that these outfits are opaquely funded, that they coordinate their activities in private meetings, and hold ideological positions that fall outside of the mainstream.
However, much the same could be said of groups on the radical Left of British politics. And in neither case is any of this illegal. This is a democracy in which people are allow to challenge the status quo from either direction. Indeed, the last general election in 2019 was a choice between the two sets of radicals — and the voters turned Right.
Of course, what the voters specifically chose was Boris Johnson and his get-Brexit-done boosterism — it wasn’t a vote for Blade Runner capitalism. However, science fiction was the last thing on offer from Kwarteng in his mini-budget today. As the Shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, pointed out, what we actually got was a grab-bag of dusty old ideas: income tax cuts, low corporation tax, stamp duty reductions and the acceleration of infrastructure projects. There’ll also be another tightening-up of social security provision to squeeze more people into the workforce.
There was nothing truly shocking — for instance, the abolition of the green belt or the scrapping the net zero target. As for the newly announced ‘Investment Zones’, if they turn out to much more than a re-branding of similar (and ineffective) policies from the past, I’d be flabbergasted.
If there was any novelty in Kwarteng’s mini-budget, it’s that he’s dusted-off so many of these clichéd measures — and thrown them at a faltering economy — at the same time. There’s also zero embarrassment about the fact that these are intended as incentives for the already wealthy. Indeed, the scrapping of the levy on bankers’ bonuses and the refusal to impose further windfall taxes on energy company super-profits deliberately highlights the Truss-Kwarteng approach. The same goes for the decision to muzzle the Office for Budget Responsibility: absolutely nothing must be allowed to dilute the government’s pro-growth, pro-business message.
What we’ve seen today is an expensive gamble — not on genuinely new ideas, but on the old idea that the already wealthy will create more wealth if only they receive enough encouragement from the state. This isn’t quite what the Left caricature as ‘trickle-down economics’, but it does presuppose that the rich and powerful will return the favour and mobilise their wealth to get the economy growing again.
If they don’t, and this experiment leaves nothing behind but a further mountain of public debt, then consequences will be far-reaching. It will be a disaster for Britain of course — and an open goal for Keir Starmer at the next election. We can also expect an almighty ideological backlash within the Conservative Party.
If big business thinks it can simply take the government’s money without coming through for the British economy, then it is making a suicidal mistake.
dw.com/en/the-crown-estate-the-mysterious-property-empire-behind-queen-elizabeth-ii/a-57821897
One of the largest property groups in Europe is directly tied to Queen Elizabeth II. Strictly speaking, the 95-year-old monarch doesn't own it. But neither does the government, making it complex legally.
Regent Street is one of London's best-known thoroughfares. The 1.3-kilometer (0.8-mile) stretch intersects the districts of Soho and Mayfair in the heart of the city's famous West End. It is lined with well-known shops, bars and restaurants.
As commercial real estate goes, it is about as prime as it gets. Remarkably, practically every square inch of the street is owned by a single company: The Crown Estate.
This is clearly not just any old enterprise. As well as vast tracts of central London, The Crown Estate owns property all across the UK, from castles and cottages to agricultural land and forests plus retail parks and shopping centers. It owns more than half the UK's entire seashore, giving it hugely valuable auction rights for offshore commercial activity, such as wind farms.
Administering real estate worth at least £14.1 billion (€16.4 billion, $17.8 billion), it is one of Europe's largest property groups. The question of who exactly owns the real estate empire is not a straightforward one, though.
The Crown Estate's profits
"The Crown Estate belongs to the reigning monarch 'in right of the Crown,' that is, it is owned by the monarch for the duration of their reign, by virtue of their accession to the throne," the company explains on its website. "But it is not the private property of the monarch — it cannot be sold by the monarch, nor do revenues from it belong to the monarch."
Crown Estate logo
The Crown Estate made €400 million profit in 2019/20
It also makes clear that the British government also does not "own" The Crown Estate, which is registered as a corporation sole and managed by an independent organization. The royal family is not involved in its governance.
There is also a distinction between the wealth of The Crown Estate and the queen's own personal wealth. For example, she is the owner of Balmoral and Sandringham Castles, which she inherited. According to the May 2021 edition of The Sunday Times Rich List, Queen Elizabeth II has a personal net worth of £365m. A whopping £100 million of that alone accounts for the queen's family's personal stamp collection, known as the Royal Philatelic Collection.
While The Crown Estate ownership question itself is not easily defined, it is clear that the business does well. In its most recent accounts for the financial year 2019/2020 (up until March 31, 2020), it reported record profits of £345 million. While results for 2020/21 have not been reported yet, it is clear that the pandemic has had an impact. Prolonged lockdowns meant several of The Crown Estate's commercial tenants owed it millions in rent.
However, there has been more good news than bad recently. An auction earlier this year for seabed rights for six new offshore wind farms could potentially bring huge revenues. Several major oil consortiums purchased option fees which when combined could mean up to £8.8 billion in revenues for The Crown Estate over the next decade.
The Crown Estate's profits are given every year to the British government, and the company says its clear purpose is "to create lasting and shared prosperity for the nation."
England Caister-on-Sea, Norfolk Windpark
The company owns the foreshore and seabed around England and Wales, giving it lucrative auction rights for windfarms
However, 25% of the profits are given back to the queen and the royal family as part of the Sovereign Grant, which is used to fund the royal family itself on an annual basis. For example, this year's figure of £85.9 million is 25% of The Crown Estate's profits in 2018/19. So that means the queen's own personal fortunes are directly connected to the performance of The Crown Estate.
Conquest and colonialism
Laura Clancy is a lecturer at Lancaster University and is the author of the forthcoming book "Running the Family Firm: How the Monarchy Manages its Image and Our Money." She says The Crown Estate "reproduces their power" and argues that the royal family escapes appropriate scrutiny for its inherited wealth at a time of rising global inequality, particularly in the area of property ownership.
"There is a lot of talk generally about inequality, particularly around the elites and 'the 1%' and how much of global wealth they are taking," she told DW. "And often the monarchy is not part of that conversation. I think of them as 'The Firm,' I think of them as a corporation."
Referring to The Crown Estate, she said: "When you look at the list of what they own, it's crazy. The amount of London that they own, the seabed and the foreshore, all these kind of things."
Lavrov says the West has now become part of the war in Ukraine by supplying military aid
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says the West has now become part of the war in Ukraine by supplying military aid and information to Kiev.
Blinken accuses Putin of committing ‘aggression’ in Ukraine; Russia blames US for ‘Russophobia’
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/09/22/689674/US-and-Russia-exchange-barbs-at-UNSC-
Thursday, 22 September 2022 7:28 PM
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused Vladimir Putin of committing “aggression” in Ukraine and demanded the Russian president be held to account for it, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the US and its allies are victims of "Russophobia."
"The very international order we've gathered here to uphold is being shredded before our eyes," Blinken told the UN Security Council in a special session on Wednesday as leaders met at the United Nations in New York.
"We cannot -- we will not -- let President Putin get away with it," Blinken declared.
The top US diplomat accused the Russian leader of adding "fuel to the fire" with recent steps including announcing a partial mobilization in Russia, where Putin said that his country is now fighting “the entire Western military machine” in Ukraine.
“If the territorial integrity of our nation is threatened, we will certainly use all the means that we have to defend Russia and our people,” Putin said in his address on Wednesday. He called up reservists and planned referendums in Russian-held Ukrainian territory.
Blinken said it was critical to show that "no nation can redraw the borders of another by force."
"If we fail to defend this principle when the Kremlin is so flagrantly violating it, we send the message to aggressors everywhere that they can ignore it, too,” he added.
Lavrov denounced US accusations.
"There's an attempt today to impose on us a completely different narrative about Russian aggression as the origin of this tragedy," Lavrov told the Security Council.
He accused the US and its allies of "Russophobia.”
"The United States and their allies with the connivance of international human rights organizations have been covering the crimes of the Kiev regime," Lavrov said.
This came after US President Joe Biden warned Putin against thoughts of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, adding that it would “change the face of war unlike anything since WWII.”
Biden said on Friday Moscow would become a global pariah if it uses weapons of mass destruction on the former Soviet state.
In an interview with a US media outlet, Biden was asked what his message to Putin would be if he felt the best way to operate in Ukraine was to use nuclear or chemical weapons against Kiev's forces.
Putin's spokesman advises Biden of Russia's nuclear 'red line'
Russian president announces partial military mobilization: Report
Wednesday, 21 September
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/09/21/689579/Russia-Putin-partial-mobilization-Ukraine-Donbass-liberate
Russia's President Vladimir Putin has announced a partial military mobilization in the Russian Federation, according to the Tass news agency.
In a televised address, Putin said he had signed a decree on partial mobilization, due to begin on Wednesday, stressing that he was taking necessary steps to protect Russia's sovereignty as the West is looking to "weaken" and "destroy" the country.
“We are talking about partial mobilization, that is, only citizens who are currently in the reserve will be subject to conscription, and above all, those who served in the armed forces have a certain military specialty and relevant experience,” Putin said.
The decision to partially mobilize is “fully adequate to the threats we face, namely to protect our homeland, its sovereignty and territorial integrity, to ensure the security of our people and people in the liberated territories,” he added.
The Russian president said his aim was to "liberate" east Ukraine's Donbas region, and that most people in the region did not want to return to what he called the "yoke" of Ukraine.
He also accused the West of ordering Ukraine to undermine peace talks with Moscow, saying the West would not be "happy with a peaceful" solution to the conflict.
Putin’s address to the nation came a day after four Ukrainian regions announced plans to hold referendums to join Russia in a matter of days, mirroring the move that was taken by the former Ukrainian region of Crimea in 2014, which led to its incorporation into the Russian Federation.
Speaking on Tuesday, the pro-Russian leaders of the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, the southern region of Kherson, and the southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia announced that they were planning to hold the votes as soon as Friday.
Also in 2014, Donetsk and Luhansk, which together form the Donbass region, broke away from Ukraine. Back in February, Putin signed a decree recognizing the two regions as “independent republics.”
Later that month, Russia launched "a special military operation" aimed at “demilitarizing” the Donbass. Announcing the operation, Putin said the mission was aimed at “defending people who for eight years are suffering persecution and genocide by the Kiev regime.”
The operation then expanded to involve Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
by Enough is Enough UK
eventbrite.com/e/enough-is-enough-bristol-launch-tickets-415481695937
Free
Date and time
Tue, September 20, 2022
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM BST
Location
St George's Bristol
Great George Street
Bristol
BS1 5RR
View map
Enough is Enough is Launching in Bristol!
About this event
Enough is Enough would like to welcome supporters from Bristol and the surrounding area to our launch rally - the start of our campaign to beat the cost of living crisis!
Speakers include: CWU General Secretary Dave Ward, ACORN Head Organiser Nick Ballard, UCU President Janet Farrar, and writer and poet Vanessa Kissule - with more to be announced!
We have 5 central demands.
1. A Real Pay Rise
A £15 an hour minimum wage, a real public sector pay rise, and an inflation busting-rise in pensions and benefits.
2. Slash Energy Bills
Cancel the October price hike and return to the significantly lower pre-April energy price cap
3. End Food Poverty
Enshrine the Right to Food in law and put this into practice by introducing universal free school meals, community kitchens, and reinstating the £20-a-week Universal Credit uplift.
4. Decent Homes for All
Cap rents, build 100,000+ council homes a year, insulate homes and introduce a charter for renters’ rights.
Limit the number of holiday homes in any area, limit AirBnBs and ensure they are taxed properly.
5. Tax the Rich
Make the rich pay their fair share by raising taxes on the wealthiest and the profits of big businesses. Crack down on tax avoidance and evasion.
And alongside that, we should be cutting the tax burden on working people, starting by reversing the recent hike to National Insurance.
If you would like to join us - come to the rally and help pitch in. Together we can win for ordinary working people!
www.wesayenough.co.uk
St George's is a fully accessible venue - full details can be found at stgeorgesbristol.co.uk/your-visit/access
Ben Norton's Multipolar world blovodcast
https://thesaker.is/ben-norton-aka-multipolarista-interviews-michael-hudson-destiny-of-civilization/
after World War One, America had already achieved its industrial dominance. And it was after World War One that America said, ok, now our protective tariffs have enabled us to outproduce all the other countries, and our protectionist agriculture especially – the most protected sector in America, has always been agriculture, since the 1930s.
Basically it said, well, now we can outproduce other countries, we can undersell them, now we can tell them to go for free trade.
And after World War Two, the Americans created the World Bank for economic impoverishment, and the International Monetary Austerity Fund.
And the World Bank’s leading objective was to prevent other countries from investing in their own food production.
The guiding line of the World Bank was, we’ve got to provide infrastructure for building up plantation agriculture in Latin America, and Africa, and other countries, so that they will grow tropical export crops, but they cannot be permitted to grow grain or wheat to feed themselves; they must be dependent on the United States.
And so the function of free trade, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund has been to finance dependency, backed up by the American support of dictatorships throughout Latin America who agree to have client oligarchies supporting pro-American trade patterns and avoiding any kind of self-reliance, so that the United States can do what it has recently done to Russia and other countries, impose sanctions – say, well, now that you depended on us for your grain, we can now impose sanctions, and you can’t feed yourself if you don’t follow the policies we want.
That was the policy that America tried to use against China after Mao’s revolution. And fortunately for China, Canada broke that monopoly, and said, well, we’re going to sell grain to China. And China was always very friendly to Canada in those earlier decades.
So basically, free trade means no government, no socialism. It means central planning essentially by Wall Street – countries should let American firms come in, buy control of their raw materials, resources, control of their oil and gas, and mineral rights, and forests and plantations, and basically let other countries send their whole economic surplus to the United States, where it will be duly financialized to buy out other countries’ raw materials and rent yielding resources.
BENJAMIN NORTON: Yeah, and in your book, you have a very funny passage that I think really encapsulates this ideology that you’re talking about here.
You referred to Charles Wilson, who was the secretary of defense under Eisenhower in the U.S., and he was also the former CEO of General Motors.
And he famously said, “What’s good for General Motors is good for the country.” And that idea has morphed into the idea that, “What’s good for Wall Street is good for America.”
And then you note that “this merged with evangelistic U.S. foreign policy that says ‘What’s good for America is good for the world.’ And therefore the logical syllogism is clear: ‘What’s good for Wall Street is good for the world.’”
And you describe this, you link it to the new cold war, this idea that what’s good for the U.S. is good for the world and what’s good for Wall Street is good for the U.S., therefore, what’s good for Wall Street is good for the world.
You argue, “We must recognize how finance capitalism has gained power over industrial economies, above all in the United States, from which it seeks to project itself globally, led by the financialized U.S. economy. Today’s new Cold War is a fight to impose rentier-based finance capitalism on the entire world.”
http://pakistanassociationbristol.org.uk/about-us/about-pakistan.html
What Imran Khan achieved as President of Pakistan in a few years, how he was ousted by a no confidence vote after his Ukraine policies weren’t approved of, and how he has now become very popular.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/08/22/687806/Khan-Pakistan-Youtube-censor-
Faruk also explains how the floods in Pakistan have been seen as an act of God for the bad treatment of Khan – and how appalling the present government’s response to floods has been. Pakistan: Imran Khan supporters prevent police from arresting him Imran Khan addressed a rally at the weekend at which he criticised the police’s detention of an aide. Supporters of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan gathered around his home on Monday to prevent police from arresting their leader, who has been charged under anti-terror laws. Hundreds of supporters of the cricketer-turned-politician assembled outside his hilltop mansion in the capital city of Islamabad on Monday, vowing to “take over” if he was arrested. - - - - -
Former PM Khan accuses Pakistani govt. of blocking YouTube to censor his speech Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan accused the government of temporarily blocking YouTube in the country on Sunday evening to prevent people from listening live to a speech he gave at a political rally. The accusation came after Pakistan's electronic media regulator late on Saturday announced a ban on the live airing of Khan's speeches because of what it called his "hate speech" against state institutions. "Imported govt blocked YouTube midway through my speech," Khan said on Twitter. A spokesman for the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, which regulates the internet in the country, did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment. Khan has been pushing for new elections in Pakistan after being ousted from power in April through a parliamentary vote. He has been delivering fiery speeches at gatherings across the country. 'Provocative statements' "Mr. Imran Khan... in his speeches/statements is continuously ... leveling baseless allegations and spreading hate speech through his provocative statements against state institutions," the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) said in its statement on Saturday. PEMRA said it was, with immediate effect, prohibiting news channels from broadcasting his speeches live, but said recorded speeches could be aired. Khan's speeches were "prejudicial to the maintenance of law and order and likely to disturb public peace and tranquility", PEMRA added. Khan has targeted a number of state institutions, including the government, the police and the country's powerful army. Khan's party had said shortly after Saturday's television ban it would go live on "500+ YouTube and Facebook channels." Pakistan's Imran Khan calls for early elections after thumping However, many social media users around Pakistan reported problems in accessing YouTube when Khan was about to address a gathering on Sunday evening in the garrison city of Rawalpindi. Khan said in his speech on Sunday that he was being censored for not accepting the current coalition government which had voted him out of power. The television ban came a day after Khan hurled threats against Islamabad's police chief and a female judge for what he claimed was the arrest and alleged torture of his close aide who is facing sedition charges. His aide had called on lower and middle ranks of the military to defy orders from the top brass. On Sunday Islamabad police booked Khan for threatening police officials and a judicial magistrate under sections of the anti-terrorism act.
Russia says US crossing ‘red line’ giving Ukraine long-range HIMARS missiles
Russia says US crossing ‘red line’ giving Ukraine long-range HIMARS missiles
US will cross ‘red line’ if it gives Ukraine longer-range missiles: Russia
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/09/15/689262/Russia-Ukraine-US-longer-range-missiles-HIMARS-Germany-Mars-II-MLRS
US Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) (L) talks with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) during a rally with fellow Democrats before voting on H.R. 1, or the People Act, on the East Steps of the US Capitol on March 08, 2019 in Washington, DC. (AFP photo)
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova
Russia has warned if the United States supplies Ukraine with longer-range missiles, Washington will cross a “red line” and become “a party to the conflict,” more than six months into Moscow’s military operation in the ex-Soviet republic.
In a press conference on Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Russia “reserves the right to defend its territory.”
“If Washington decides to supply longer-range missiles to Kiev, then it will be crossing a red line, and will become a direct party to the conflict,” she warned.
Russia began its “special military operation” in Ukraine on February 24, with a declared aim of “demilitarizing” Donbas, which is made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk self-proclaimed republics. Back in 2014, the two republics, which are predominantly Russian-speaking, broke away from Ukraine, prompting Kiev to launch a bloody war against both regions.
The years-long conflict has killed more than 14,000 people, mostly in the Donbas.
Since the onset of the ongoing conflict between the two countries, the United States and its European allies have unleashed an array of unprecedented sanctions against Russia and poured numerous batches of advanced weapons in Ukraine to help its military fend off the Russian troops, despite repeated warnings by the Kremlin that such measures will only prolong the war.
The US has already provided Kiev with advanced rockets capable of hitting targets up to 80 kilometers away, while so far refusing to publicly announce it would send rockets with more than double that range.
Since the beginning of the war, the US has been providing Kiev with military aid, including at least 16 HIMARS systems, four of which arrived in August.
HIMARS is a light multiple-rocket launcher that can hit targets with precision. It is capable of launching all rockets specified in the Multiple Launch Rocket System Family of Munitions (MFOM).Its manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, says the system has a “recognized and proven range” of up to 300 kilometers.
While Kiev implores for more Western weapons, Moscow says it sent troops to prevent Ukraine being used as a platform for Western aggression and to defend Russian speakers in Donbas.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has time and again said the US is prolonging the war in Ukraine as part of what he called Washington’s efforts to maintain its global hegemony.
Russia warns US against sending long-range arms to Ukraine, vows use of nukes
Russia has warned the US against supplying long-range weapons to Ukraine, saying Moscow is determined to use nuclear arms if its existence is threatened.
Germany to give Ukraine more multiple-rocket launchers
Separately on Thursday, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said Berlin would supply two more multiple-rocket launchers to Kiev.
“We have decided to deliver two more MARS II multiple rocket launchers including 200 rockets to Ukraine,” she told a Bundeswehr conference in Berlin.
Mars II MLRS is a German multiple-rocket launcher adopted by the Bundeswehr back in 1990. It is a certified European version of the American M270 MLRS multiple-rocket launcher.
The system, according to its manufacturer, uses the same projectiles as the M142 HIMARS, but has two containers instead of one, capable of firing 12 rockets in one salvo, rather than six.
“On top of this, we will send 50 Dingo armored personnel carriers to Ukraine,” Lambrecht said, referring to an armored vehicle the German army extensively used during NATO's military operation in Afghanistan.
Back in July, Lambrecht announced Berlin had sent three MARS II MLRS and a total of 10 PZH-2000 self-propelled guns to Ukraine from Bundeswehr warehouses.
Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:
www.presstv.ir
www.presstv.co.uk
vigilantcitizen.com/vc-resources/the-one-eye-sign-its-origins-and-occult-meaning
While the All-Seeing Eye is esoterically associated with the opening of the Third Eye to attain spiritual illumination, the One-Eye sign made by celebrities is about the exact opposite: Hiding and incapacitating an eye. The symbolism of this gesture is powerful.
Katy Perry hiding one eye with the Eye of Horus in her video Dark Horse.
When you hide one eye, you effectively block half of your vision. In symbolic terms, you become half-blind to the truth. By hiding one eye, celebrities symbolically “sacrifice” a vital part of their being for temporary material gain. And, since eyes are the “windows to the soul”, this gesture symbolizes the partial or total loss of one’s soul.
In Mind Control
The One-Eye sign is also an important symbol in the occult elite’s secret obsession: Monarch mind control. Known by many as project MKULTRA, mind control aims to turn humans into slaves through abuse, trauma, and programming. There is an actual culture revolving around Monarch mind control, complete with its own universe of symbols. And the One-Eye sign is part of it.
This is a painting by Kim Noble, a survivor of trauma-based mind control. This painting is called The Naming and relates to the naming of an alter persona.
This painting named I-Test also visually describes the trauma and programming of an MK slave.
Proof of Absolute Control by the Occult Elite
The omnipresence of the One-Eye sign in mass media also serves another purpose: It proves that all outlets of mass media are owned by a very small, elite group. Indeed, in order to have the same exact sign appear consistently and repeatedly across all media platforms and across the world, there needs to be a centralized source of power that forcibly makes this happen.
Think about the amount of money, power, and influence that is required to have all of these celebrities perform this specific gesture in videos and photoshoots. Now, ponder on the amount money, power, and influence that is required to have this specific sign plastered across magazine covers, movie posters, music videos and anything else that might reach the eyes of the masses.
In short, this symbol represents the global elite and all of its agenda: The debasing of the human psyche, the promotion of satanism, the normalization mind control, the normalization of transhumanism, the blurring of genders and more. The ultimate goal: Straying the masses as far away as possible from Truth, health, and balance.
In Conclusion
The symbol of the eye is an archetype that transcends time and space. Perhaps because humans instinctually respond to gazing eyes, there is something about that symbol that is jarring yet fascinating. While, in ancient times, the symbol of the All-Seeing Eye was often equated with the sun god, it gradually became a symbol of the power of the secret societies that shaped history in the last centuries.
Nowadays, the entertainment industry revels in the twisting and corruption of powerful symbols in the pursuit of its debasing agenda. The omnipresence of the One-Eye sign now symbolizes the omnipresence of the occult elite. It is them saying: “Look at who we control”.
That being said, there is a silver lining here. The One-Eye sign is a convenient way of identifying media to avoid because it is most likely drenched in the occult elite’s debasing agenda.....
American Farmers Forced to Destroy Crops, Sell Livestock amid Water Restrictions
Posted on August 23, 2022 by Constitutional Nobody
ussanews.com/2022/08/23/american-farmers-forced-to-destroy-crops-sell-livestock-amid-water-restrictions
American farmers are being forced to destroy their own crops and sell off their livestock due to widespread water restrictions.
The thinning of U.S. farms is, in turn, driving up food prices and adding to the overall economic downturn that Americans have been increasingly struggling with for the past two years.
Water restrictions amid drought conditions have put the production of beef, dairy, wheat, vegetable, fruits, and nuts at serious risk, according to a survey from the American Farm Bureau Federation.
ussanews.com
As Slay News has previously reported, farmers have been reporting that water cutbacks are turning their land into dust.
Droughts have been persistent in the states throughout the Central Plains up to North Dakota, all the way west to California, and all the way south to Texas.
This is nearly the entire region that is vital to U.S. agriculture.
ussanews.com
The area makes up about half of the nation’s $364 billion agricultural production value, according to the AFBF.
“This includes 74% of beef cattle, responsible (in total) for 18% of U.S. agricultural production by value; 50% of dairy production, responsible (in total) for 11% of U.S. agricultural production by value, over 80% of wheat production by value and over 70% of vegetable, fruit and tree nut production by value,” the AFBA outlined.
The cutbacks have been widely blamed on poor management by water authorities during drought periods.
“The consequence to me personally is around the tune $150,000 to $200,000 in lost profit,” Texas farmer Tim Gertson said.
“As droughts worsen and get more intense, the consequences for rice farming is when there starts to be more of demand on that natural resource on water.”
As of July 1, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) cut farmers in its supply areas off from water this season.
The LCRA is targetting farmers as part of its water management plan to help with the preservation of water.
American farmers forced to destroy crops sell livestock amid water restrictions
“So, what happens when we get cut off for our second crop water is we’re unable to grow the portion of our crop that we can grow the most efficiently, and the most profitable,” Gertson said.
Luckily for Gertson, he gets some of his water from a well on his property to help grow crops.
But, that’s not always enough to get the job done and isn’t something that’s sustainable for all farmers since building a well is so expensive and overuse can cause the well to run dry.
Farmers and ranchers are now being forced to take drastic measures just to survive.
Most notably, there has been a significant increase from last year in farmers having to till under crops, remove fruit trees, and even sell off their livestock.
“Those who reported tilling under crops because of drought conditions jumped from only 24% of respondents last year to 37% of respondents this year,” the AFBF reported.
TheGunBox.com
“Similarly, 33% of respondents reported destroying and removing orchard trees and other multiyear crops as prevalent or higher, up from only 17% last year.”
Across the region surveyed by the AFBF, respondents also expected average crop yields to be down 38 percent this year.
Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico are expected to have the biggest drops in yield.
Meanwhile, ranchers are having to drastically reduce their herd sizes.
Many did so last year and told the AFBF that they had to do so again this year.
“Of the surprising 67% of respondents who reported reducing herd sizes in 2021, nearly 50% were further reducing their herd or flock this year, 37% were maintaining the reduced herd size and only 14% were building their headcount back up,” the AFBF reported.
Along with the 67 percent who had to reduce herd sizes last year, 76 percent also fallowed their rangeland.
One promising sign, though, is that although ranchers have had to reduce herds and fallow land, many are holding onto their land.
But as herds are thinned out, these “smaller inventories of livestock across a region that supports over 70% of domestic beef production by value decreases production and drives up prices for consumers,” the AFBF noted.
politicsthisweek.wordpress.com/2022/08/25/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-103
Misconduct probe upholds series of complaints against former area commander
liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/disciplinary-probe-claims-former-top-13306718
A Merseyside Police misconduct investigation has upheld complaints against a former senior police officer accused of lying.
Michael Cloherty - once Knowsley’s area commander - was accused of dishonesty after a row over a minor crash led to him arresting a member of the public.
He was cleared of misconduct, perjury and perverting the course of justice charges during a trial in Preston Crown Court.
But an internal investigation - where the burden of proof is lower - has ruled it is likely he was repeatedly dishonest in the actions that led to Jack Beecham’s prosecution.
The row between the pair dates back to a crash in May 2010 that was described in court as a “relatively modest in nature, minor road traffic collision”.
Mr Cloherty, then a superintendent on Wirral, claimed Mr Beecham had refused to give his details then assaulted him.
The electrician was initially convicted of assaulting a constable - but successfully overturned the decision on appeal.
That paved the way for an investigation into Mr Cloherty’s actions that found a series of discrepancies - leading to the accusations at the centre of the failed crown court prosecution of the 52-year-old.
Much of the case against Mr Cloherty was based on pocket book entries which it was claimed had been falsely made to cover problems with a statement he had given over Mr Beecham’s arrest.
Those entries began in a notebook where the first records started on May 19.
But police logs suggested Mr Cloherty was only issued with the book on May 27, the day of the crash, raising questions over how it contained entries starting eight days earlier.
The investigation was hampered by the “loss” of the previous notebook - meaning the dates as to when he needed his new book could not be corroborated.
The disciplinary probe upheld complaints that Mr Cloherty:
- Lied about the date he replaced the pocket notebook in which he recorded the incident with Mr Beecham in
- A series of pocket book entries dated before May 27 were dishonest
- The recording of a false start date for the notepad (May 19) was dishonest
- He made a “misleading” and “dishonest” witness statement when questioned over his notebook
- He was dishonest over the use of his notebook during court testimony
- The ‘loss’ of his pocket notebook was dishonest
The jurors who found Mr Cloherty not guilty had to believe beyond all reasonable doubt that he had committed the offences if they were to find him guilty.
In police misconduct investigations the threshold of proof is lower, however, with professional standards departments making their decisions on the balance of probabilities.
So while the misconduct investigation ruled against Mr Cloherty, it did not claim that he was criminally dishonest.
The probe concluded in March - almost seven years after the crash.
Speaking to the ECHO, Mr Beecham welcomed the findings but said his efforts to question Merseyside Police’s prosecution was set to continue.
He said he was “very pleased that Merseyside Police have established a ‘bad apple’” and promised to continue his case against Mr Cloherty’s actions to see if there was more wrongdoing.
Julian Assange's Barrister Jen Robinson, Democracy Dies If Wikileaks Loses
Jennifer Robinson, barrister for Julian Assange, explains why barristers are going on strike.
politicsthisweek.wordpress.com/2022/08/25/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-103
Press Gazette – US informants were not harmed by Wikileaks. Jennifer Robinson discusses Chelsea Manning, how Julian Assange’s case is moving forward now, and how Julian is coping in prison. Similarities of the Dreyfuss Case to Julian’s. Jennifer Robinson on how secret services are spying on lawyers and journalists, and the important impact Wikileaks has had for peace and democracy in bringing Governments to account. Australian PM dismisses calls to demand US drops prosecution of Assange Anthony Albanese refused to say whether he had discussed the case with President Joe Biden after the UK ordered the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition. The WikiLeaks co-founder is wanted by the US on 18 counts, including a spying accusation, after his organisation published confidential military records and diplomatic cables. If convicted of breaching the Espionage Act, Assange faces up to 175 years in jail. Julian Assange speaking from the balcony of the Ecuadorian embaJulian Assange speaking from the balcony of the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2017 (Dominic Lipinski/PA) / PA Wire Following the Home Secretary Priti Patel’s signing of an order to extradite Mr Assange to the US on Friday, reports emerged in Australian media that the newly elected Albanese government was lobbying its US counterparts behind the scenes to have him freed. In a statement, the country’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was continuing to provide consular assistance to Assange, but could not intervene. It also added that Assange’s case had “dragged on for too long and that it should be brought to a close”. On Monday, Australia’s immigration minister Andrew Giles said Mr Albanese had “made clear that enough was enough for Julian Assange and the treatment that he had been subjected to” in the case. The Australian has spent more than three years in prison after spending years in the Ecuadorian embassy, where he had been living since 2012. Jennifer Robinson, a lawyer for Assange, told a press conference in London on Friday his legal team would be appealing against Ms Patel’s decision to grant his extradition.
standard.co.uk/news/uk/joe-biden-wikileaks-julian-assange-prime-minister-canberra-b1007112.html


