From Russia Today
Almost 30% of Germans want to quit EU as support for Merkel’s govt. drops below 50%
Published time: 1 Jun, 2016 15:39
© Tobias Schwarz / Reuters
Nearly a third of Germans would like to leave the European Union according to a poll published in the Handelsblatt newspaper. Although Germany is traditionally pro-EU, the survey shows the growing discontent in the bloc’s largest member. TrendsEU refugee & migrant influx, Eurozone crisis
Anti-EU skepticism has recently been growing in Germany due to Berlin’s refugee policies, which saw over a million migrants arrive in 2015, with hundreds of thousands more expected during the course of this year.
The YouGov poll commissioned by Handelsblatt found that 29 percent of Germans would leave the EU if a referendum were to take place. Surprisingly, only 54 percent of those living in Germany supported staying in the bloc, with the remainder undecided.
Members of the German public have also become fed up with Berlin having to bail out Greece from its debt crisis to the tune of billions of euros. The poll showed that the German public believes Athens is the biggest benefactor of being a member of the bloc.
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From Russia Today
US ‘provocations’ may force China to declare air defense zone in S. China Sea – report
Published time: 1 Jun, 2016 10:28
© AFP
Beijing is reportedly planning to launch an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the South China Sea, the timing of which will depend on US “provocations.” Billions of dollars of trade passes annually through the area, which is subject to rival claims.
A source close to China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) told the South China Morning Post daily that security conditions in the region, namely the US military presence, would define the timing of the ADIZ declaration.
“If the US military keeps making provocative moves to challenge China’s sovereignty in the region, it will give Beijing a good opportunity to declare an ADIZ in the South China Sea,” the source told the newspaper.
The country’s Defense Ministry told the South China Morning Post in a written statement that it was “the right of a sovereign state” to designate an ADIZ.
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From Russia Today
‘Exemplary intl relations:’ Russia-China ties at their peak despite Western sanctions
Published time: 1 Jun, 2016 05:52
05/31/2016 Moscow. Dai Bingguo, the Chinese Chair of the Chinese-Russian Committee for Friendship, Peace and Development, addresses the second international conference “Russia-China: towards a New Quality of Bilateral Relations.” © Kirill Kallinikov / Sputnik
Russia and China have strengthened their cooperation and proved their partnership is vital despite Western sanctions and Washington’s disapproval of their strategic alliance, participants of the Russia-China forum in Moscow told RT.
The conference titled “Russia and China: Taking on New Quality of Bilateral Relations” took place on May 30 and May 31. It was organized by the Russian International Affairs Council.
“Together we can become a center that can influence global processes,” Boris Titov, co-chairman of the Russian-Chinese Friendship committee and Russia’s ombudsman for entrepreneurs’ rights, told RT on the sidelines of the conference on Tuesday.
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From Russia Today
Dalai Lama says Europe has accepted ‘too many’ refugees
Published time: 31 May, 2016 20:59
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama © Abhishek Chinnappa / Reuters
Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, thinks that Europe has accepted too many refugees, saying that they should stay only temporarily and return to rebuild their home countries once the conflicts there have been resolved.
Speaking in Dharamsala in northern India where the Tibetan government resides in exile, the Dalai Lama said in an interview with the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that “When we look into the face of every single refugee, especially the children and women, we can feel their suffering.”
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From Russia Today
Lavrov: Russia demands that Turkey withdraw its troops from Iraqi territory
Published time: 31 May, 2016 18:10
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov © / Reuters
The presence of Turkish armed forces in Iraq without invitation is unacceptable, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a Tuesday interview, in which he also questioned why the West has turned a blind eye to Ankara’s violation of Iraqi sovereignty.
“We demand that Turkey withdraw its troops from Iraqi territory, where they are deployed, as former Turkish Prime Minister Davutoglu put it, to ‘strengthen’ Iraq’s sovereignty. This position is absolutely unacceptable,” Lavrov told Komsomolskaya Pravda daily.
Russia’s Western partners and Turkey’s allies from NATO should pay much greater public attention to Ankara’s activities in the region, Lavrov noted, adding that currently NATO’s stance is that Turkey is a member, so they will sort things out among themselves.
“What about Cyprus, which is not a NATO member and whose airspace is violated by the Turkish Air Force on a regular basis? And secondly, what kind of a position is that – if you are a NATO member, you can do whatever you like? ” the Russian FM asked.
In Iraq, Ankara is realizing Turkey’s “neo-Ottoman aspirations” and pursuing certain economic goals, Lavrov said.
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From The Times of Israel
Trump said planning Israel trip before July GOP convention
Four sources tell New York Magazine presumptive Republican nominee weighing visit; Jewish son-in-law, Sheldon Adelson said making arrangements
Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump is reportedly planning to visit Israel before the GOP convention in late July.
According to New York Magazine, four sources linked to the Trump campaign confirmed the Republican White House hopeful is considering a trip to the Jewish state in the next six weeks, though nothing has been finalized.
Trump’s Jewish son-in-law Jared Kushner and casino magnate Sheldon Adelson were reportedly arranging the trip.
A Trump campaign spokesperson denied the report.
US billionaire businessman Sheldon Adelson (YouTube screenshot)
From PressTV
Syria forces start operation to retake control of Manbij from Daesh
Syrian forces have launched an offensive to push Daesh Takfiri terrorists out of the northern city of Manbij near the Turkish border, US military officials say.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – a coalition of Kurdish and Arab forces – began the operation in a bid to choke off Daesh’s access to an area it uses to move weapons and militants across the border, US officials speaking on condition of anonymity said on Wednesday, Reuters reported.
“It’s significant in that it’s their last remaining funnel” to Europe, a US military official said.
The raid in Manbij, located in Syria’s Aleppo Province, will be supported by a small number of US special operations forces on the ground, who will be acting as advisors and staying some distance back from the frontline, the official added.
He further went on to say that airstrikes by the US-led coalition will also back up the campaign.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Golden Dawn lawmaker says Israel ‘eternal enemy’ of Greeks, Christians
ATHENS (JTA) — Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos called on the Justice Ministry to take action against a neo-Nazi lawmaker after he made anti-Israel comments in parliament.
Speaking during a debate in parliament on Monday, Christos Pappas, from the Golden Dawn party, called Israel an “eternal enemy of Greece and Orthodoxy.”
Pappas was speaking during a debate on the ratification of Greece’s international agreements with other countries.
“The state of Israel implements genocidal methods and is a regional troublemaker,” he said, according to the Kathemirini newspaper, asking how “a state like Israel could possibly have relations with Greece, which is the cradle of civilization and humanism.”
From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
3 in 4 Israelis back same-sex marriage, survey finds
Activists and members of the gay community protest in Jerusalem on July 30, 2015. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
(JTA) — Some 76 percent of Israelis support some form of recognized same-sex civil marriage in Israel, up from 64 percent a year ago, according to a new survey.
The survey of 500 participants was conducted last week amid festivities for Tel Aviv Pride Week, when the city celebrates its lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population with help from thousands of tourists.
It was initiated by Hiddush, a nonprofit organization that advocates for religious pluralism in Israel, and conducted by the Smith Polling Institute.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Avigdor Liberman: National unity more important than land
Avigdor Liberman speaking during a Knesset meeting about Operation Protective Edge, Aug. 4, 2014. (Flash 90)
(JTA) — Israel’s new defense minister told senior military leaders that a unified country is more important than holding onto territory and that he is committed to preventing unnecessary conflicts.
Avigdor Liberman, who is known for his hawkish positions as foreign minister, met for the first time Tuesday with the Israel Defense Forces’ chief of staff and other top brass, the Times of Israel reported.
“I’ve said this before: When there is a clash of values between the unity of the people and territorial integrity, the people are more important,” said Liberman, who heads the Yisrael Beiteinu party and lives in the West Bank settlement of Nokdim.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
ADL task force to combat anti-Semitic abuse of journalists covering campaigns
Donald Trump speaks at a rally in San Diego on May 27, 2016 in San Diego, May 27, 2016. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League has announced a task force to look into the anti-Semitic harassment online, including death threats, of journalists covering the 2016 presidential campaign.
Its members will include at least two journalists who were targeted by self-described followers of Donald Trump after writing about the presumptive GOP candidate’s campaign for president.
The Task Force on Hate Speech and Journalism, announced this week, was established after the ADL said it has been contacted by journalists from across the political spectrum who have faced harassment and anti-Semitic messages in response to their coverage.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
This 25-year-old Jewish woman could become the youngest person in Congress
Erin Schrode (Josh LaCunha)
(JTA) — Erin Schrode may not be a household name — yet. But if the 25-year-old Jewish activist lures enough of her millennial peers to the polls for California’s Democratic primary on June 7, she just may become the youngest person in the U.S. House of Representatives — and the youngest woman ever elected to Congress.
The proud millennial — Schrode eschews the characterization of her peers as lazy and entitled — has long been on the fast track to success.
At 13, she founded Turning Green, a national nonprofit that promotes environmental education and advocacy. In 2010, following the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti, Schrode launched The Schoolbag, which provides school supplies to needy students around the world.
Such inspired entrepreneurship has earned her kudos from the Jewish community, including a spot on the Forward’s list of most inspiring Jewish teens and a $36,000 prize from the Helen Diller Family Foundation’s Teen Tikkun Olam program.
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From Russia Today
Greece spends all money received from EU to handle migrant crisis – official
Published time: 2 Jun, 2016 01:19
© Yannis Kolesidis / Reuters
Finances received by Athens from the EU as part of a bailout program are of hardly any help to Greece, the country’s deputy foreign minister told RT. The official claimed that all of the money goes to tackle what he described as “humanitarian disaster.”
Saying that, although its EU partners have been helping Greece “in many ways,” Greece’s alternate foreign minister responsible for European affairs, Nikos Xydakis, told RT that his nation is “under constant pressure.”
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From Russia Today
NATO needs Russia as major foe to maintain bloc’s relevance – Russia’s envoy
Published time: 1 Jun, 2016 13:56
Polish and U.S soldiers look at a Patriot missile defence battery during join exercises at the military grouds in Sochaczew, near Warsaw. © Franciszek Mazur / Agencja Gazeta / Reuters
NATO needs the image of Russia as a major adversary in order to return to the center of global affairs by proving there are no other options to maintain security in the region other than US-Europe military alliance, Moscow’s envoy to the bloc says.
The alliance is shifting to Cold War-era schemes of maintaining security in Europe, believes Russia’s envoy to NATO, Aleksandr Grushko. To pursue that goal, the alliance consistently eliminates the tools created once the Cold War was over, literally “inviting us to return into the past,” he told Rossiyskaya Gazeta daily.
Political efforts alone would not be enough to break this tendency, it implies a rejection of “confrontational military planning,” Grushko said.
NATO-centric policies based on Europe-US strategic ties lay claim to remain the only source of security and to do so they need a major foe the alliance is supposed to be countering, he said. These policies also have another aim to make Europeans to hike security expenditures and buy American weapons, according to Grushko.
After all, the quality of European security will be defined not only by Russia-NATO relations, but also by creating a collective security means to deal with common threats, Grushko forecast.
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From PressTV
King Salman denied visits over deteriorating mental condition
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has been denied any manner of visits due to his deteriorating mental condition, a report says.
Saudi Defense Minister and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has issued orders to the Saudi court banning any manner of meeting with the king due to his “brain damage”, said the report published by the Palestinian Manar online newspaper on Wednesday, citing an informed source.
The denial of visiting rights encompasses all members of the royal family and foreign dignitaries.
The source noted that foreign embassies, especially that of the US, are diligently tracking Salman’s health and reporting back to their countries.
These countries are afraid of the unrest in Saudi Arabia in the event of Salman’s death, the source added.
In a report published in January, the Palestinian newspaper said the Saudi king was suffering from periodic blackouts and the inability to speak.
It noted that his loss of awareness had prompted his physicians to advise his sons to restrict their father’s public appearances in a bid not to disclose the worsening conditions. The king was said to have been confined in one of the rooms of his palace.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Watch
Israel takes anti-boycott fight to halls of United Nations
The United Nations hosted an anti-BDS summit at its New York City headquarters, May 31, 2016. (Shahar Azran)
UNITED NATIONS (JTA) – It was an incongruous sight: The U.N. General Assembly hall filled to capacity with 1,500 cheering people waving miniature Israeli flags and singing “Hatikvah,” Israel’s national anthem.
No, hell hadn’t frozen over.
The occasion was a one-day conference hosted by Israel’s U.N. mission devoted to fighting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against the Jewish state. It turns out any U.N. member state can reserve space at the world body’s headquarters in New York – even the iconic General Assembly hall – for events. On Tuesday, the Israeli mission stacked the seats of the great hall not with delegates representing countries from around the world but with Jews and pro-Israel activists, many of them college students and high school seniors.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Israeli woman allegedly gang raped by 3 Palestinians says she consented
One of two Palestinians cleared of raping a disabled Israeli woman in Tel Aviv court, June 1, 2016 (Screenshot from Walla)
(JTA) — A developmentally disabled woman who said she had been raped by three Palestinians because she is Jewish reportedly recanted her version of events.
The woman, a 20-year-old resident of Tel Aviv whom Israeli media described as having a reduced cognitive ability, told police that she had been gang raped on May 11, the eve of Israeli Independence Day, in southern Tel Aviv.
The story rocked Israel, especially after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leveled — and later withdrew — charges that the media and political class had ignored the rape for political reasons.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Watch
Comedian Natasha Leggero, newly Jewish, says ‘abortions are cool’ in Judaism
(JTA) — Speaking on late-night TV about her recent conversion to Judaism, stand-up comedian and actress Natasha Leggero said one of her new faith’s positive qualities is that “abortions are cool.”
Appearing last Wednesday on the TBS show “Conan” with Conan O’Brien, the Catholic-born Leggero — who stars on the Comedy Central series “Another Period” — said, “You could get an abortion on every Jewish holiday and it would be OK.”
“I’m not saying I’m going to get an abortion, but it’s like AAA,” she said, referring to the automotive club. “You’re not going to use all those tows, but no, it’s just nice to know …”
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From Russia Today
Merkel to miss vote as Turkey pressures Germany not to recognize Armenian genocide
Published time: 1 Jun, 2016 21:09
© Ozan Kose / AFP
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will miss a vote on whether to label the killings of around 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman Turks during the First World War as genocide. The German parliament is set to weigh in on the resolution on Thursday.
“At the moment, this vote is due in the morning or at lunchtime and as things stand the chancellor will not take part in the vote in the German Bundestag because she has public appointments,” spokeswoman Christiane Wirtz said on Wednesday, as cited by Reuters.
Although Merkel will not be attending, the chancellor has already indicated that she is in favor of the resolution.
“She told me this morning that she sided with her parliamentary group,” Wirtz said when answering a question regarding whether Merkel approved the resolution to recognize the Armenian genocide, according to AFP.
Her stance is supported by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, who has urged German politicians not to be influenced by Turkish rhetoric.
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From Russia Today
First in the world: Denmark MPs approve removing ‘transgender’ from mental illness list
Published time: 1 Jun, 2016 11:08
© Francois Lenoir / Reuters
Transgender people in Denmark will soon no longer be classified as having a mental illness, lawmakers from the parliament’s Health Committee have decided. The move has been hailed as a victory by rights groups.
The decision, which will take effect on January 1, 2017, was made by Danish lawmakers on Tuesday. As of that date, the word “transgender” will no longer appear on Denmark’s official list of mental illnesses.
“Trans people in Denmark feel stigmatized when they are diagnosed as having a ‘mental disorder,’” Social Democrat spokesman Flemming Møller Mortensen told Ritzau news agency.
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From The Times of Israel
20,000 walk through Toronto in support of Israel
Prime Minister Trudeau says two countries have been friends through ‘triumph and tragedy’
Some 20,00 people marched through Toronto on Sunday in an annual show of support for Israel that also raised over one million dollars for education and projects in the Jewish state.
The Greater Toronto’s 46th annual Walk with Israel event attracted even more participants than last year’s 17,000, the Canadian Jewish News reported.
Among the dignitaries who took part were Israel’s Consul General to Canada DJ Schneeweiss, Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett, provincial Tory Leader Patrick Brown, Toronto councilor James Pasternak and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.
Bennett read out a statement prepared by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“Canada has been a friend of Israel for almost seven decades, through triumph and tragedy,” Trudeau said. “We will continue to stand with Israel, one of our closest friends and partners, thanks to our shared values and the presence of a dynamic and thriving Jewish Canadian community.”
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From The Times of Israel
French Jews flee Paris suburbs over rising anti-Semitism
Some abandon France for Israel, but many more escape violence, harassment at the hands of Muslim neighbors by moving to Jewish population centers
LE RAINCY, France (AFP) – When Alain Benhamou walked into his apartment near Paris in July 2015 and saw the words “dirty Jew” scrawled on the wall, he knew it was time to leave.
It was his second such break-in in less than three months and the 71-year-old no longer felt welcome in Bondy, a Parisian suburb he had called home for more than 40 years.
“Until the years 2000-2005, the town was nice and quiet, with 250 to 300 Jewish families and synagogues full on the Sabbath,” Benhamou says.
“Now, only about a hundred Jewish families remain.”
Benhamou is part of a growing number of French Jews who have effectively become internal refugees, fleeing insecurity and seeking protection in numbers in an atmosphere they say is increasingly hostile, and often expressed in relation to conflict in the Middle East.
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