Putin responded on December 26 to a journalist‘s request to comment on the Trump team’s reported early November suggestion to delay Ukraine‘s membership in NATO for 10 to 20 years.[1] Putin stated that it does not matter if Ukraine joins NATO „today, tomorrow, or in 10 years.“ Putin‘s December 26 statement is part of a series of comments he has made recently reiterating his refusal to consider compromises on his late 2021 and early 2022 demands.[2] These demands include forcing Ukraine to become a permanently neutral state that will never join NATO, imposing severe limitations on the size of the Ukrainian military, and removing the Ukrainian government.
Archiv: Sabotage (de / en)
Putin rejects Trump team‘s peace plan proposal — ISW
His demands continue to include Ukraine’s permanent neutral status, renouncement of NATO ambitions, restrictions on its military size, and regime change in Kyiv.
Netanyahu throws cold water on hostage deal prospects, and reminds us what a curse he is for Israel
(December 23, 2024)
From the beginning it was clear that the only feasible post-Hamas arrangement would be a return of the Palestinian Authority, which now runs the West Bank autonomy zones, back to Gaza, from which Hamas expelled it in 2007 by force. Israel itself once yearned for this, back when rational people governed the country. The proposals pushed by President Joe Biden for more than a year now envision versions of this, with the PA rejuvenated and assisted by Arab and perhaps other forces.
An Israel that wanted this would have ensured that Hamas is out of the way, publicly and persistently offering its remaining troops exile. Arab pressure on the group would have been overpowering. Israel would possibly get peace with Saudi Arabia as part of the bargain.
Instead, Netanyahu’s goons flooded the airwaves arguing that Israel cannot pull out of Gaza and end the war because Hamas would regain power.
Amtsenthebungsantrag gegen Präsident Yoon Suk Yeol gescheitert
Grund ist eine fehlende Beschlussfähigkeit des Parlaments, weil sich an der Abstimmung nur 195 Abgeordnete beteiligten.
Mindestens 200 der insgesamt 300 Abgeordneten hätten abstimmen müssen. Somit scheiterte die Abstimmung automatisch an der fehlenden Beschlussfähigkeit.
Trump’s Genius Plan to Release Gaza Hostages: More War
Trump’s comments came after Hamas issued a video statement saying 33 of its captives have been killed during Israel’s brutal war on Gaza dating back to October last year, when Hamas attacked Israel and took more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Trump demands immediate release of Oct. 7 hostages, says otherwise there will be ‘HELL TO PAY’
“Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social site.
He added that, “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”
Hamas says 33 Israeli captives have been killed by Israeli air strikes
A new video released by al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas‘s military wing, warns Israel against furthering the war on Gaza and says 33 Israeli captives held in the strip have already been killed by Israeli airstrikes
JCPOA: A New Gold Standard for Non-Proliferation Agreements
(June 7, 2017)
The established pattern of constraints on Iran’s nuclear program could be held as the gold standard for the rest of the international community. This option is readily available to the United States and the partners with which it negotiated the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA): China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the European Union. The international community should draw on that agreement and turn its standards into general, global ones, applying them to all countries seeking to enrich uranium or attempting to use plutonium for any purpose.
Biden administration to allow American military contractors to deploy to Ukraine for first time since Russia’s invasion
(November 8, 2024)
The Biden administration has lifted a de facto ban on American military contractors deploying to Ukraine to help the country’s military maintain and repair US-provided weapons systems, particularly F16 fighter jets and Patriot air defense systems, an official with direct knowledge of the plan told CNN.
(,,,)
It is not clear whether Donald Trump will keep the policy in place when he takes office in January. Trump has said he hopes to end the war between Ukraine and Russia “within 24 hours” of returning to power.
Deutsche Geheimdienste warnen vor Russland
Auch Bundesinnenministerin Nancy Faeser (SPD) warnte vor den zunehmenden Gefahren durch russische Geheimdienst-Aktivitäten in Deutschland. „Wir sehen, dass Putins Regime immer aggressiver agiert“, sagte Faeser dem „Handelsblatt“. Der CDU-Politiker Roderich Kiesewetter warnte in diesem Zusammenhang auch vor Gewalttaten: „Sabotage und gezielte Mordanschläge sind deshalb wahrscheinlich“, sagte er ebenfalls dem „Handelsblatt“.
Warnung deutscher Geheimdienste: „Russische Spionage und Sabotage nehmen zu“
Nach Informationen der Nachrichtenagentur dpa bestand der glückliche Zufall darin, dass der Weiterflug des aus dem Baltikum stammenden Frachtpakets sich in Leipzig verzögerte. Das Paket hatte einen Brandsatz enthalten, der dort zündete und einen Frachtcontainer in Brand setzte. In Sicherheitskreisen wird davon ausgegangen, dass der Vorfall im Zusammenhang mit russischer Sabotage steht.
„Der Kreml sieht den Westen und damit auch Deutschland als Gegner“, warnte auch Bruno Kahl, Präsident des Bundesnachrichtendienstes (BND), mit Hinweis auf den Ukraine-Krieg.
(…)
Alle drei Geheimdienst-Spitzen mahnten, dass die Sicherheitsdienste mit den nötigen Kompetenzen ausgestattet werden müssten, um die Gefahren abwehren zu können. Rosenberg sagte, sie hoffe auf „eine Realitätsanpassung der Gesetzeslage, um unseren Auftrag bestmöglich erfüllen zu können“.
Exclusive: Iran‘s Khamenei warned Nasrallah of Israeli plot to kill him, sources say
(October 2, 2024)
Nasrallah‘s assassination followed two weeks of precise Israeli strikes that have destroyed weapons sites, eliminated half of Hezbollah‘s leadership council and decimated its top military command.
Iran‘s Quds Force commander Qaani under investigation for suspicion of espionage
On Thursday, Iranian sources revealed that the commander of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Esmail Qaani, is under investigation on suspicion of espionage, after his chief of staff, Ehsan Shafiqi, was suspected of collaborating with Israel.
Exclusive: Esmail Qaani under guard and questioned as Iran probes Nasrallah killing
Nilforoushan, who had flown into Beirut that evening from Tehran, was taken directly from the plane to the operations room beneath the residential neighbourhood of Haret Hreik, the sources said. He arrived there before Nasrallah.
The strike that targeted the meeting took place shortly after Nasrallah entered the room, the sources said.
“The breach was 100 percent Iranian and there is no question about this part,” a source close to Hezbollah told MEE.
Iranian state media announced Nilforoushan’s death as a “martyr” who died alongside Nasrallah.
Sources close to Hezbollah told MEE that Qaani was in Lebanon and had been expected to attend the Shura Council meeting at Safieddine‘s invitation on the day of the air strike.
But Qaani apologised and backed out of the meeting shortly before it began, they said.
Nasrallah, Netanyahu agreed to a truce before Israel assassinated Hezbollah leader: Report
)October 3, 2024)
The revelation from Bou Habib could provide insight into how Israel killed Nasrallah, who has survived multiple Israeli assassination attempts over the decades.
Another report from Reuters published on Wednesday said that Iran‘s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei sent a messenger to warn Nasrallah that Israel was planning to assassinate him. That messenger, senior Iranian commander Abbas Nilforoushan, was also killed in the Israeli strike on Friday 27 September.
And the dumbass award of the decade goes to…: the United Nations and the „Palestinian Authority“
One of the most important UN resolutions – we mentioned it yesterday – is to be voted on today or tomorrow (unclear). But it is still hidden by those who bring it into the UN General Assembly and by the United Nations Organization itself.
That is bonkers. Mildly spoken.
Netanyahu said to ask AG to probe him and Gallant in bid to avert ICC arrest warrant
Channel 12 news said Netanyahu wanted a probe into the ongoing war and how the military campaign against Hamas has been handled to be opened and then closed, with an update filed to the ICC that the charges had been investigated by Israel and therefore do not require the court’s intervention.
According to the report, Baharav-Miara rejected the request on the grounds that it was a blatant ploy and would not satisfy the ICC.
Report: Netanyahu Says 9/11 Terror Attacks Good for Israel
(April 16, 2008)
„We are benefiting from one thing, and that is the attack on the Twin Towers and Pentagon, and the American struggle in Iraq,“ Ma‘ariv quoted the former prime minister as saying. He reportedly added that these events „swung American public opinion in our favor.“
Netanyahu reportedly made the comments during a conference at Bar-Ilan University on the division of Jerusalem as part of a peace deal with the Palestinians.
US-Diplomatin Nuland räumt offen ein: Friedensverhandlungen zwischen Kiew und Moskau auf „Empfehlung“ von Washington abgebrochen
„Relativ spät im Spiel begannen die Ukrainer, um Rat zu fragen, wohin diese Sache führen würde, und es wurde uns, den Briten und anderen klar, dass Putins Hauptbedingung in einem Anhang zu diesem Dokument, an dem sie arbeiteten, versteckt war. Sie enthielt Beschränkungen für die genauen Arten von Waffensystemen, über die die Ukraine nach der Vereinbarung verfügen durfte, so dass die Ukraine als militärische Macht im Grunde kastriert wäre. Für Russland gab es keine ähnlichen Beschränkungen. Russland wurde nicht verpflichtet, sich zurückzuziehen. Russland wurde nicht verpflichtet, eine Pufferzone an der ukrainischen Grenze einzurichten, und es wurde nicht verlangt, dass seinem Militär, welches der Ukraine gegenüberstand, dieselben Beschränkungen auferlegt werden. Und so begannen die Menschen innerhalb und außerhalb der Ukraine zu fragen, ob dies ein guter Deal sei, und das war der Punkt, an dem er auseinanderfiel.“
Nuland confirms West told Zelensky to abandon peace deal
“Relatively late in the game the Ukrainians began asking for advice on where this thing was going and it became clear to us, clear to the Brits, clear to others that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin‘s main condition was buried in an annex to this document that they were working on,” she said of the deal being discussed by the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Türkiye’s largest city.
The proposed agreement included limits on the kinds of weapons that Kiev could possess, as a result of which Ukraine “would basically be neutered as a military force,” while there were no similar constraints on Russia, the former diplomat explained.
“People inside Ukraine and people outside Ukraine started asking questions about whether this was a good deal and it was at that point that it fell apart,” Nuland said.
B‘Tselem at the UNSC: For the Israeli government, the occupation and the settlements matter more than human life
On Sunday, we woke up to the news that six Israeli hostages were executed by Hamas, just before soldiers reached them in a tunnel in Gaza. Another six, added to tens of thousands of people in this land who should not have died over the past year. During this week, hundreds of thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets. They feel angry, desperate and betrayed by their government. They have understood, perhaps for the first time, that the Israeli government does not want to return the hostages in a deal, but to continue the war indefinitely. They see that the occupation and the settlements matter more than human life – and not only of Palestinians, said B‘Tselem Executive Director Yuli Novak, who addressed the UN Security Council last night (Wednesday) . B’Tselem – the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories was invited by the Slovenian President of the Security Council to provide an expert review of the state of human rights in Israel/Palestine following the war.
Israel’s former spy chief slams Netanyahu over Philadelphi Corridor
Argaman, who headed the Shin Bet between 2016 and 2021, said the majority of weapons entered Gaza through the Rafah border crossing.
“When Netanyahu speaks of remaining on the Philadelphi Corridor, he knows very well that no smuggling takes place over the Philadelphi Corridor. So we are now relegated to living with this imaginary figment,” he said.
Netanyahu says security in Gaza is critical to stop Hamas smuggling hostages into Iran: ‚lost forever‘
According to Netanyahu, the best way to prevent these Hamas hostage smuggling efforts is through maintaining the contested Philadelphi Route – a security corridor that runs between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
Netanyahu is unequivocal about ceasefire and hostage agreement with Hamas: ‘There’s not a deal in the making’
(September 5, 2024)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday was as clear as he has ever been that he does not believe a ceasefire and hostage deal is likely in Gaza in a sharp rebuke to the Biden administration’s insistence it’s close at hand.
“There’s not a deal in the making,” Netanyahu told Fox News. “Unfortunately, it’s not close.”
Netanyahu derailed a potential Gaza hostage deal in July, Israeli newspaper reports
)September 4, 2024)
The report lends credence to charges often leveled at the prime minister – most notably by hostage families – of purposefully prolonging the war and torpedoing deals for his political benefit. Far-right members of Netanyahu’s coalition have pledged to bring down the government should he end the war.
Several news outlets, including CNN, have reported on the late July demands made by Netanyahu, but this is the first time the Israeli document has been obtained in full.
Why are American Jewish institutions ignoring the hostage families?
(July 7, 2024)
There are exceptions of course. The Reform Movement issued a statement supporting President Joe Biden’s announcement of a potential ceasefire and hostage release plan, and calling on Netanyahu to accept it. T’ruah, the organization I lead, has been clear in our calls for a bilateral ceasefire that brings home the hostages and ends the war. Ditto our partners in the Progressive Israel Network, including J Street, Americans for Peace Now, New York Jewish Agenda and New Israel Fund.
But many of the largest Jewish organizations, including legacy groups such as Jewish Federations of North America, American Jewish Committee and the Anti-Defamation League have decoupled calls to “Bring them Home” from any talk of ending the war, and have refrained from placing any blame on the Israeli government.
Hostages families forum blames Netanyahu for death of captives
„A deal for the return of the abductees has been on the table for over two months,“ the forum said. „If it weren‘t for the thwarting [of the deal], the excuses and the spins, the abductees whose deaths we learned of this morning would probably be alive.
„Enough with the excuses. Enough with the spins. Enough of the procrastination!
The time has come to return our abductees home – the living for rehabilitation and the victims and the murdered for burial in their own country.“
‘Mr. Death’: Hostage families say Netanyahu has condemned their loved ones to die
(August 31, 2024)
In a statement read out in front of the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv, family members of the hostages accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government of knowingly condemning the hostages to death.
“Netanyahu and his partners in the cabinet decided to torpedo the [hostage-ceasefire] deal due to the Philadelphia spin, and as such knowingly condemn the hostages to death,” the statement says.
Einav Zangauker, mother of Hamas hostage Matan Zangauker, calls Netanyahu “Mr. Death.”
Trump rally counter-sniper backs bombshell ‘evidence tampering’ claims by House GOPers
Washington Regional SWAT counter-sniper Ben Shaffer said it was “absolutely” concerning that the roof of the AGR International building had been quickly scrubbed and gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks’ body disposed of before an official autopsy report could be released.
Five House Republicans — Reps. Andy Biggs and Eli Crane of Arizona, Matt Gaetz and Cory Mills of Florida, and Chip Roy of Texas — hosted the panel discussion with Shaffer and other witnesses at the conservative Heritage Foundation.
UN says Israel denied 30 percent of aid missions to Northern Gaza in March
“IDF soldiers too often delay or deny convoys from crossing checkpoints, with rejected requests for safe passage, searches, detentions and sometimes violence against aid convoys and awaiting crowds,” it added.
The aid missions included: food distributions, fuel, emergency medical teams movement and delivery of supplies to hospitals; and support for water, sanitation, and hygiene activities, the UN agency said
Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #148
– Since 1 March, 30 per cent of humanitarian aid missions to northern Gaza and 10 per cent of missions to southern Gaza were denied access by the Israeli authorities.
– Nearly 40 per cent of school buildings in Gaza have been directly hit, according to an updated assessment of satellite imagery by the Education Cluster.
TLS 1.3: Slow adoption of stronger web encryption is empowering the bad guys
(April 6, 2020)
Asymmetric encryption is used during the “handshake”, which takes place prior to any data being sent. The handshake determines which cipher suite to use for the session – in other words, the symmetric encryption type – so that both browser and server agree. The TLS 1.2 protocol took multiple round trips between client and server, while TLS 1.3 is a much smoother process that requires only one trip. This latency saving shaves milliseconds off each connection.
Taktik des Terrorkrieges: “Hate Speech” und Kontrolle
(27.01.2018)
Lüge, Betrug, Verrat, Vergewaltigung, Mord, Folter, Ausbeutung, Unterdrückung, Krieg, Genozid und deren strukturelle Manifestation durch Politik, Staat und Kapital zu hassen ist eine ganz normale menschliche Emotion. Sie kann allerdings genau dazu benutzt werden was sie bei Menschen normalerweise hervorruft.
(…)
Des Weiteren gibt die Akzeptanz des politischen, letztlich unweigerlich repressiven Begriff “Hate Speech” (Hass-Sprache) repressiven Organen die Option einer maximal perfiden und zynischen Dialektik: mehr Lüge, mehr Betrug, mehr Verrat, mehr Vergewaltigung, mehr Mord, Folter, Ausbeutung, Unterdrückung und Krieg gegen Ausgelieferte und Hilflose anzuwenden, mit der ganz normalen menschlichen Reaktion der Betroffenen zu rechnen, diese einzukalkulieren, sogar gezielt zu provozieren und diese dann als “hateful” zu bezeichnen und noch mehr entsprechende Maßnahmen gegen diese anzuwenden, da diese ja “hateful” seien, abnormal und gefährlich.
Ignoring ICJ, Israel accelerates genocide by targeting UNRWA and Gaza‘s healthcare
It ruled on several provisional measures, including that Israel must abstain from genocidal acts, bring accountability for the normalised genocidal rhetoric from state level to civil society, and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.
But just hours after the verdict, not only did Israel resume its indiscriminate attacks, it took it even further by going after UNRWA, the UN agency that serves as a lifeline for millions of people in Gaza.
United Against Nuclear Iran: The Shadowy, Intelligence-Linked Group Driving the US Towards War With Iran
(12.01.2024)
UANI’s board is a who’s who of high state, military and intelligence officials from around the Western world. Among its more notable members include:
– CEO Mark Wallace, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and deputy campaign manager for George W. Bush’s 2004 reelection.
– Chairman Joe Lieberman, former senator and Democratic vice-presidential nominee for the 2000 election.
Tamir Pardo, Director of the Mossad, 2011-2016.
Dennis Ross, former State Department Director of Policy Planning and former Middle East Envoy under George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
Field Marshall Lord Charles Guthrie, ex-Chief of Staff of the U.K. Armed Forces.
– Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida.
– August Hanning, President of the German Federal Intelligence Service (BND), 1998-2005; State Secretary at the Federal Interior Ministry, 2005-2009.
– Zohar Palti, former head of the Political-Military Bureau, Israeli Ministry of Defense; former Director of Intelligence of the Mossad.
– Frances Townsend, Homeland Security Advisor to President George W. Bush.
– John Bolton, former U.S. National Security Advisor and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.
– Roger Noriega, former Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs and Ambassador to the Organization of American States.
– Otto Reich, former Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs and architect of the 2002 U.S. coup against Venezuela.
– Michael Singh, White House Senior Director for Near East and North African Affairs, 2007-2008.
– Giulio Terzi di Sant-Agata, former Italian Foreign Minister.
– Robert Hill, former Minister of Defense of Australia.
– Jack David, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction, 2004-2006.
– Mark Kirk, U.S. Senator for Illinois, 2010-2017.
– Lt. Gen. Sir Graeme Lamb, ex-Director of U.K. Special Forces and Commander of the British Field Army.
– Norman Roule, former CIA Division Chief and National Intelligence Manager for Iran at the Director of National Intelligence.
– Irwin Cotler, Canadian Minister of Justice and Attorney General, 2003-2006.
– Baroness Pauline Neville-Jones, U.K. Minister of State for Security and Counter Terrorism, 2010-2011.
IDF arrests 8 UNRWA staffers over suspected Hamas ties – report
It is understood UNRWA requested Israel access to the detainees.
Israel possesses concrete evidence tying several dozen UNRWA employees to the October 7 massacre.
‚Shocking, unsustainable and desperate‘ conditions across Gaza, Security Council hears
Also briefing the Council was Christopher Lockyear, Secretary General, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors Without Borders.
Fearful of further deadly Israeli attacks, he said he was “appalled” by the United States’ repeated use of its veto power to obstruct efforts to adopt the most evident of resolutions: one demanding an immediate ceasefire.
“We live in fear of a ground invasion” in Rafah, he said.
Calling Washington’s new proposed draft resolution “misleading at best”, he said the Council should reject any resolution “that further hampers humanitarian efforts on the ground and leads this Council to tacitly endorse the continued violence and mass atrocities in Gaza”.
US says it cannot independently verify Israel‘s UNRWA claims
The intelligence report‘s findings are in stark contrast to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken‘s remarks in January, in which he said that the accusations against UNRWA were “highly, highly credible”.
The Journal also reported that Israel has not “shared the raw intelligence behind its assessments with the US” despite the strong security relationship between the two countries.
Israel has shared a dossier of sorts outlining its accusations, alongside details of where their evidence stems from, with the US and several western news organisations.
A US intelligence report has said that Israel‘s claims that UNRWA staff took part in Oct 7 „cannot be independently verified“, & that it had “low confidence” in the allegation.
Major UNRWA donors, incl the US, have frozen vital funds bcz of Israel‘s allegations.
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini says „the UN has never, never, ever received any written dossier, despite our repeated call.“
Pro-Kremlin propaganda targets TNA sister publication Misbar, other MENA fact-checkers
The Matryoshka campaign takes a different approach.
Instead of sharing the fake news pieces themselves, accounts re-share posts from other accounts in the same network, and post them directly on the feeds of known fact-checking outlets. These “reshares” are formulated as a fact-checking request.
The accounts simulate the behaviour of a typical social media user, who might be sceptical of a piece of news, and would like the opinion of a trusted fact-checking source.
However, this process of resharing is repeated by other accounts in the network, ad nauseam. The “stacking” of posts containing false news reports is akin to how Matryoshka dolls operate, which is where the campaign gets its name from.
TLS 1.3: Slow adoption of stronger web encryption is empowering the bad guys
(April 6, 2020)
Asymmetric encryption is used during the “handshake”, which takes place prior to any data being sent. The handshake determines which cipher suite to use for the session – in other words, the symmetric encryption type – so that both browser and server agree. The TLS 1.2 protocol took multiple round trips between client and server, while TLS 1.3 is a much smoother process that requires only one trip. This latency saving shaves milliseconds off each connection.
@antonioguterres, in consultation @UNLazzarini, has appointed an independent review group to assess whether @UNRWA is doing everything within its power to ensure neutrality & respond to allegations of serious breaches:
Breaking .. Channel 4 have finally been shown the dossier for Israel’s claims that UNRWA staff were behind Oct. 7th. Channel 4 concludes that “Israel provides NO evidence to support this claim”.
As donors suspend critical funding to UNRWA, allegations against staff remain murky
But Israel refuses to share either its evidence or the intelligence dossier – a summary of which was seen by FRANCE 24 – with UNRWA, posing a challenge for the UN agency to complete its inquiry.
UNRWA Set to Lose $65 Million, Documents Show
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, the main aid agency in Gaza, is set to lose $65 million by the end of February as donors’ funding cuts begin to kick in, according to internal accounting documents reviewed by The New York Times.
‘We cannot abandon the people of Gaza’: chiefs of UN agencies and NGOs unite in appeal for UNRWA
The IASC signatories to the appeal are:
– Martin Griffiths, Emergency Relief Coordinator and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
– Qu Dongyu, Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
– Jane Backhurst, Chair, ICVA (Christian Aid)
– Jamie Munn, Executive Director, International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA)
– Amy E. Pope, Director General, International Organization for Migration (IOM)
– Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
– Paula Gaviria Betancur, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (SR on HR of IDPs)
– Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
– Natalia Kanem, Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
– Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
– Michal Mlynár, Executive Director a.i., United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat)
– Catherine Russell, Executive Director, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
– Sima Bahous, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UN Women
– Cindy McCain, Executive Director, World Food Programme (WFP)
– Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization (WHO)
Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel | Flash Update #106
France, Japan join UNRWA fund freeze as Jordan warns against ‘collective punishment’
France and Japan said Sunday that they were suspending funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency, becoming the latest country to make such a move after accusations of staff involvement in the Hamas-led October 7 massacre, while Jordan warned that cutting financial support to UNRWA amounted to “collective punishment.”
This would be a great time for Arab States such as Saudi Arabia, Algeria, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and others to step in and increase their funding of @UNRWA
(…)
Lifesaving programmes in peril, UNRWA chief urges countries to reconsider funding suspension
Nine countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany, have suspended funding to UNRWA following allegations that several Agency staff were involved in the 7 October terror attacks in southern Israel
Mr. Lazzarini said that the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), the highest investigative body in the UN system, has already been seized of the matter.
“An investigation by OIOS into the heinous allegations will establish the facts,” he said.
UN-Sonderberichterstatterin kritisiert Zahlungsstopp an UNRWA
Die UN-Sonderberichterstatterin für die Palästinensergebiete, Francesca Albanese, hat den Zahlungsstopp mehrerer Länder an das UN-Hilfswerk für palästinensische Flüchtlinge (UNRWA) als möglicherweise rechtswidrig kritisiert. Die Entscheidung der Länder, darunter die USA und Deutschland, werde „rechtliche Verantwortung nach sich ziehen“ …
UNRWA fund cuts by the West ‘collective punishment’ against Palestinians
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said he was shocked such decisions were taken as “famine looms” in Gaza, which has been devastated by nearly four months of relentless Israeli bombardment that has killed more than 26,000 people.
The agency, with its 13,000 employees in Gaza, is the main organisation aiding Gaza’s population amid the humanitarian disaster. More than two million of the besieged enclave’s 2.3 million people depend on the UNRWA for “sheer survival”, including food and shelter, Lazzarini said, warning this lifeline can “collapse any time now”.
UNRWA employs 30,000 people. Israeli intelligence claims 12 were involved in the 7 October attack. That‘s 0.04% Biden, Trudeau, Albanese and Meloni immediately move to accelerate genocide by collective punishment, cutting desperately needed relief aid. It is beyond belief.
@lauraches21
Replying to @CraigMurrayOrg
Let‘s be honest. We all know how reliable „Israeli intelligence“ is its just another pathetic way of deflecting and giving the UN/UNRWA less credibility due to their witness statements read out yesterday.
@CraigMurrayOrg
Yes. I assume this was planned in advance including with the neoliberal states who leapt in.
@bigbaddommie
Replying to @CraigMurrayOrg
The 12 have also been sacked
@CraigMurrayOrg
Sacked before the investigation. It is disgraceful.
So now Britain, Italy, Netherlands and Finland have pulled out today – joining the already Canada, the US and Australia who had backed out of donating to @UNRWA. What the fuck is this – a ploy just to starve any remaining #Palestinians in #Gaza to death?
Germany announced the freezing of funds to UNRWA following the report that 12 UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7 massacre. In doing so, it joins the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Italy, Finland and the Netherlands.
BREAKING: 7 COUNTRIES HAVE THUS FAR SUSPENDED FUNDING TO THE UNRWA
– USA
– Canada
– UK
– Finland
– Australia
– Italy
Canada, U.K., Australia, others join U.S. in pausing funding to UNRWA
Driving the news: A senior Israeli official said the Shin Bet and Israeli military intelligence provided information that pointed to the active participation of UNRWA staffers and the use of the agency‘s vehicles and facilities during the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
„This was strong and corroborated intelligence,“ the official said. „A lot of the intelligence is a result of interrogations of militants who were arrested during the Oct. 7 attack.“
Statement on UNRWA Allegations
The Department of State has temporarily paused additional funding for UNRWA while we review these allegations and the steps the United Nations is taking to address them.
(…)
The United States has reached out to the Government of Israel to seek more information about these allegations, and we have briefed Members of Congress.
Serious allegations against UNRWA staff in the Gaza Strip
(26.01.2024)
„The Israeli Authorities have provided UNRWA with information about the alleged involvement of several UNRWA employees in the horrific attacks on Israel on 7 October.
“To protect the Agency’s ability to deliver humanitarian assistance, I have taken the decision to immediately terminate the contracts of these staff members and launch an investigation in order to establish the truth without delay. Any UNRWA employee who was involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution.
TLS 1.3: Slow adoption of stronger web encryption is empowering the bad guys
(April 6, 2020)
Asymmetric encryption is used during the “handshake”, which takes place prior to any data being sent. The handshake determines which cipher suite to use for the session – in other words, the symmetric encryption type – so that both browser and server agree. The TLS 1.2 protocol took multiple round trips between client and server, while TLS 1.3 is a much smoother process that requires only one trip. This latency saving shaves milliseconds off each connection.
The coming US-Saudi nuclear deal: Keep it honest
(January 5, 2024)
In 1988, the Central Intelligence Agency did discover that Riyadh bought SS-2 medium-range missiles from China but only after the deal was sealed. In 2003, when China exported DF-21 ballistic missiles to the Kingdom, the CIA again found out and was even allowed to verify the missiles were not nuclear-capable, but only after the missiles were delivered.
Several years later, when intelligence finally leaked out that China secretly built missile factories for the Saudis, the Trump administration was mum on whether there was an intelligence failure and allowed speculation that it had blessed the transaction. Then, in 2020, when US intelligence confirmed China was helping the Kingdom mill uranium domestically, it did so, again only after the mining and milling were well underway.
This track record of studied inadvertence, then, brings us to the next worry: MBS wants Washington to green-light the Kingdom enriching uranium…
Die Achse des Religiösen
(8. Mai 2013)
Israel, Saudi-Arabien, die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate, Jordanien und die Türkei wollen einen Militärpakt gründen. Die U.S.A. befördern die Angelegenheit, so israelische „Offizielle“.
After Hamas: Rationales and dilemmas for US-Saudi nuclear agreement persist
(19 October 2023)
The United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) have for over a decade negotiated without success the terms of an agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation. These negotiations have intensified recently in the context of US efforts to broker a normalisation agreement between the KSA and Israel, which have included discussions about how the US could solidify its own support for Saudi Arabia. On the 7th of October 2023, Hamas terrorists appeared to drive a stake through the heart of the US effort to broker Israel-KSA normalisation. This has sent shockwaves through the region, and the full implications remain uncertain. However, it seems likely that in the longer run, rationales for normalisation and for US nuclear engagement with Riyadh will remain, reflecting the fact that the Hamas attacks underscored that a future nuclear-armed Iran would be a yet more formidable adversary for both Israel and the KSA.
Shin Bet Source in Gaza Reportedly Warned of Major Hamas Attack on Israel Set for Early October
According to the Channel 12 report, the handler of the source passed the information further, estimating that if Hamas‘ plan „indeed nears execution, additional information will reach us.“ However, the specific information was eventually halted at a lower level and did not reach higher-ranking authorities.
The alert received in the summer was revisited as part of the Shin Bet‘s investigations into the intelligence failure. Shin Bet sources claimed that no additional information supporting that specific intelligence was found during the examinations
Report: Shin Bet dismissed Gaza source’s tip on plans, timing of major Hamas attack
The network cited unnamed Shin Bet sources saying that the lack of corroborating intelligence, and the fact that the source had only started speaking to the Shin Bet a relatively short while before — had contributed to the tip not being taken seriously, though they have since admitted that the source is highly reliable.
Even though Bar, the agency’s chief, hadn’t heard about the information, Channel 12 cited multiple sources as saying the Shin Bet won’t blame lower-ranking officers, and admitting the service failed to prevent the assault.
Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar-David as photographed last week during a visit to two weapons factories: #Elbit Systems and IAI. On a shell intended for use in bombings in the Gaza Strip he wrote: „The people of Israel live. Greetings from the Histadrut and the workers in Israel
Hostage Deaths Fuel Israelis’ Doubts About Netanyahu
n the face of increasing pressure from the United States, Britain and Germany, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has doubled down on his opposition to what these allies see as the future of Gaza: an interim government overseen by the Palestinian Authority and an eventual Palestinian state existing alongside Israel.
Speaking only hours after the army admitted to shooting three Israeli hostages as they held up a white flag in Gaza, fueling consternation and anger among Israelis, Mr. Netanyahu appeared to be trying to change the subject, boasting that he had prevented the creation of a Palestinian state in the past and would continue to do so.
PM: I’m proud I blocked a Palestinian state. Looking at Gaza, everyone sees what would have happened
At the Tel Aviv press conference, Netanyahu is asked by a reporter why he did not withdraw from the Oslo Accords, given that he keeps criticizing them.
“I inherited the Oslo Accords,” he says. “The decision to bring the PLO from Tunis, and plant it in the heart of Judea and Samaria [West Bank], and in Gaza, was a decision made and implemented before I became prime minister. I thought it was a terrible mistake and I still do.”
Turning on the reporter, he says: “You and your journalist friends have been blaming me for almost 30 years for putting the brakes on the Oslo Accords, and preventing the Palestinian state. That’s true,” he says.
#BREAKING Hamas claims responsibility for deadly Jerusalem shooting attack that killed 3 people
Surveillance camera footage shows the shooting attack at the entrance to Jerusalem this morning. Two people were killed, and at least seven others were hurt. Two off-duty soldiers and an armed civilian shot the terrorists dead.
Ben Gvir at Jerusalem attack scene: We must only speak to Hamas through military actions
“This type of incident proves again how much we can’t show weakness, how much we have to speak to Hamas only through intentions, only through the war,” he says, appearing to criticize the government’s ceasefire negotiations with the terror group.
Gantz says Jerusalem attack strengthens Israel’s resolve to keep up war on terror
“This terror attack is further proof of our obligation to continue to fight with strength and determination against murderous terrorism, which threatens our citizens. In Jerusalem, Gaza, in Judea and Samaria, and everywhere,” Gantz writes on X, using the biblical name for the West Bank.
Readout of President Biden’s Call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel
(6 hours ago)
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. spoke today with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to welcome the deal for the release of at least 50 hostages held by Hamas. The two leaders discussed the pause in the fighting, which will allow for surging in much needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza. The Prime Minister thanked the President for his tireless efforts, and those of his team, to help broker this deal.
Gaza: Israel and Hamas Truce, Hostage Release Delayed The delay is a hammer blow to families desperate to see their loved ones return home, and to two million-plus Gazans praying for an end to 47 days of war and deprivation.
In surprise delay, top Netanyahu aide says hostage release ‘not before Friday’
National Security Council chairman Tzachi Hanegbi circulated a statement that said the negotiations for the hostages “are constantly progressing” and “the release will begin according to the original agreement between the parties, and not before Friday.”
An Israeli source also said the four-day lull in fighting, per the deal, would be on hold and that Israeli military operations in Gaza would continue as long as the agreement is not finalized, Haaretz reported.
Gaza suffers another communications blackout amid Israeli bombardment
Telecom provider Paltel reported a “complete disruption” of communications and internet services in Gaza on Wednesday morning.
The disruption comes after Israel imposed a near-complete communications blackout on Gaza from Friday to Sunday that lasted close to 36 hours.
For years, Netanyahu propped up Hamas. Now it’s blown up in our faces
Most of the time, Israeli policy was to treat the Palestinian Authority as a burden and Hamas as an asset. Far-right MK Bezalel Smotrich, now the finance minister in the hardline government and leader of the Religious Zionism party, said so himself in 2015.
According to various reports, Netanyahu made a similar point at a Likud faction meeting in early 2018, when he was quoted as saying that those who oppose a Palestinian state should support the transfer of funds to Gaza, because maintaining the separation between the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza would prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.
JCPOA: A New Gold Standard for Non-Proliferation Agreements
(June 7, 2017)
The established pattern of constraints on Iran’s nuclear program could be held as the gold standard for the rest of the international community. This option is readily available to the United States and the partners with which it negotiated the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA): China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the European Union. The international community should draw on that agreement and turn its standards into general, global ones, applying them to all countries seeking to enrich uranium or attempting to use plutonium for any purpose.
‚Sensitive‘ Israeli Intelligence on Iranian Nuke Program Shifting the Tide, Israeli Official Says
(12.09.2022)
According to a diplomatic source, Prime Minister Yair Lapid presented the Germans with intelligence that ‚proves the Iranians are cheating as we speak,‘ claiming the Americans‘ hardened their stance in response to the information
JCPOA: A New Gold Standard for Non-Proliferation Agreements
(June 7, 2017)
The established pattern of constraints on Iran’s nuclear program could be held as the gold standard for the rest of the international community. This option is readily available to the United States and the partners with which it negotiated the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA): China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the European Union. The international community should draw on that agreement and turn its standards into general, global ones, applying them to all countries seeking to enrich uranium or attempting to use plutonium for any purpose.
Von wem bekommt Saudi-Arabien wirklich Atomwaffen-Technologie?
(10.November 2013)
Ohne die Integrität von BBC-Reporter Mark Urban in Zweifel ziehen zu wollen: meiner Einschätzung nach handelt es sich bei diesen (auch ihm gegenüber) gezielt gestreuten entsprechenden Informationen über Pakistan als Quelle der saudischen Atombombe um “operative Informationen”, wie man im Apparat zu Deutschland zu sagen pflegt, um solche Begriffe wie “psychologische Kriegführung” oder schlicht “Lüge” zu vermeiden bzw aufzuhübschen.
Meiner Einschätzung nach bieten sich statt Pakistan zwei weitere expansive, kriegführende, imperialistische und skrupellose Atom- und Kolonialmächte für die Proliferation von Atomwaffen bzw der dafür notwendigen Technologie nach Saudi-Arabien an: Israel und Frankreich
Guatemala kurz vor der Stichwahl zur Präsidentschaft
(17.08.2023)
Im Mittelpunkt der Proteste standen die fortgesetzten Angriffe der Staatsanwaltschaft auf die sozialdemokratische Partei Movimiento Semilla, die überraschend bei den Wahlen am 25. Juni den zweiten Platz erreicht hatte. Sie tritt mit ihrem Kandidaten Bernardo Arévalo zur Stichwahl für die Präsidentschaft am kommenden Sonntag gegen Sandra Torres von der Partei „Einheit der Nationalen Hoffnung“ (UNE) an.
Mitte Juli hatte die siebte Strafkammer in Guatemala-Stadt nach Ermittlungen der Sonderstaatsanwaltschaft angekündigt, die Partei Semilla wegen angeblicher Unregelmäßigkeiten bei den Mitgliederlisten auszuschließen. Zwar hob das Verfassungsgericht den Beschluss wenige Tage später auf, allerdings nur für den laufenden Wahlprozess. Eine Klage von Semilla wies das Verfassungsgericht zurück, so dass der Prozess der Suspendierung der Partei weiterhin offen ist.
JCPOA: A New Gold Standard for Non-Proliferation Agreements
(June 7, 2017)
The established pattern of constraints on Iran’s nuclear program could be held as the gold standard for the rest of the international community. This option is readily available to the United States and the partners with which it negotiated the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA): China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the European Union. The international community should draw on that agreement and turn its standards into general, global ones, applying them to all countries seeking to enrich uranium or attempting to use plutonium for any purpose.
TLS 1.3: Slow adoption of stronger web encryption is empowering the bad guys
(April 6, 2020)
Asymmetric encryption is used during the “handshake”, which takes place prior to any data being sent. The handshake determines which cipher suite to use for the session – in other words, the symmetric encryption type – so that both browser and server agree. The TLS 1.2 protocol took multiple round trips between client and server, while TLS 1.3 is a much smoother process that requires only one trip. This latency saving shaves milliseconds off each connection.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard runs drill on disputed islands as US military presence in region grows
Iran did not provide a reason for launching the drill, though such snap exercises have happened in the past.
Analysis: Buildup of American forces in Persian Gulf a new signal of worsening US-Iran conflict
Thousands of Marines backed by advanced U.S. fighter jets and warships are slowly building up a presence in the Persian Gulf. It’s a sign that while America’s wars in the region may be finished, its conflict with Iran over its advancing nuclear program continues to worsen, with no solutions in sight.
The dispatch of the troop-and-aircraft-carrying USS Bataan to the Gulf, alongside stealth F-35 fighters and other warplanes, comes as America wants to focus on China and Russia.
In sign of increased tensions with Iran, US forces build up presence in Persian Gulf
Washington has sent ships, planes and marines to boost security around Strait of Hormuz, where Tehran has resumed harassing and seizing ships trying to pass through vital waterway
U.S.-Saudi Deal: Nuclearization of the Middle East Starts Here
The deal between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia wasn‘t opposed by Netanyahu, but all countries aiming for a military nuclear program did so under the guise of a civilian program. Just look at Iran
Thailand: Wahl des Premiers verschoben
Gegenwind von Konservativen und Militär
„March on Jerusalem“-organizers: NATO-coup in Ukraine and military coup in Egypt as a blueprint
Obviously, spies are trying to infiltrate Israel´s Democracy Movement that resists the judicial coup of Benyamin Netanyahu´s extreme right-wing government. That spies agenda seems to follow some „broad consensus“ of Mossad and CIA, demanded by US state leadership, to keep situation under control and safequard geostrategic goals.
An analysis and prognosis.
Moscow lists seven conditions for grain deal resumption
Listing Russia’s conditions, Polyansky insisted that sanctions on the country’s grain and fertilizer exports to global markets should be lifted “in practical terms rather than just in words” while all obstacles to Russian financial institutions involved in the sector must also be removed, including their reconnection to the SWIFT payment system.
Russia comes under pressure at UN to avoid global food crisis and revive Ukrainian grain shipments
China’s deputy U.N. ambassador Geng Shuang noted U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ commitment to make every effort to ensure that both Ukrainian grain and Russian food and fertilizer get to world markets. He expressed hope that Russia and the U.N. will work together to resume exports from both countries “at an early date” in the interest of “maintaining international food security and alleviating the food crisis in developing countries in particular.”
China drängt Russland zu neuem Getreidedeal
Russland ist im Sicherheitsrat der Vereinten Nationen von seinem Verbündeten China, den Entwicklungsländern sowie den westlichen Staaten unter Druck gesetzt worden, eine weltweite Nahrungsmittelkrise abzuwenden. Die ukrainischen Getreidelieferungen müssten rasch wieder möglich gemacht werden, hieß es. Chinas stellvertretender Ständiger Vertreter bei den Vereinten Nationen, Geng Shuang, forderte eine baldige Wiederaufnahme der Ausfuhren von Getreide und Düngemitteln aus Russland und der Ukraine.
Russia to inspect ships in Black Sea if necessary — MFA
Russia wants ships in the Black Sea to be inspected to make sure they are not being used to carry weapons, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin told a briefing on Friday.
Speaking about the statement of the Russian Ministry of Defense that Moscow will consider all ships that go to Ukrainian ports along the Black Sea as carriers of military cargo, Vershinin said: „What is meant there is that we must make sure of this, we must check if a ship is carrying something bad.“
Russian strikes on Ukraine ports ‘further blow to global food security’
Ms. DiCarlo strongly condemned the aerial strikes this week on the ports in Odesa, Chornomorsk and Mykolaiv, which destroyed critical infrastructure and killed or injured civilians.
The attacks followed Russia‘s decision on Monday to effectively end the Black Sea Initiative, the UN-brokered accord that facilitated Ukrainian grain and foodstuffs to be shipped to international markets at a time of spiralling global food prices and rising hunger.
Ms. DiCarlo said these events are but the latest developments in Russia’s „senseless war against its neighbour“, which has consequences that can be felt around the world.
Blockaded on all fronts: Poland and Hungary threaten to cut Ukraine’s export route to the West
As Russia once again bombards and blockades Ukraine‘s Black Sea ports — through which the country exports its vast agricultural produce — Poland and Hungary threaten to cut off the country‘s western exit routes.
Russia bombs Ukraine ports, threatens ships, as Kyiv deploys cluster munitions
„The aggressor is deliberately hitting the port infrastructure – administrative and residential buildings nearby were damaged,“ Kiper said on Telegram.
The Chinese foreign ministry said the shock wave of the explosion „knocked down parts of the walls and window panes of the consulate.“