Dr. Patrick Slattery’s News Roundup
A service of DavidDuke.com
From Russia Today
Pope Francis says ‘Arab invasion’ is social fact … and a good thing
Published time: 4 Mar, 2016 21:18
Pope Francis © Tony Gentile / Reuters
Europe is facing an ‘Arab invasion’, Pope Francis mused while addressing a French Christian group, adding that the trend is actually a positive one.
“We can speak today of Arab invasion. It is a social fact,” the pontiff said, according to extracts from his address earlier this week which were published by the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano on Thursday.
He then added: “How many invasions has Europe experienced in the course of its history! But it’s always been able to overcome them and move forward, finding itself complimented and improved by the cultural exchange they brought about.”
The Pontiff also reflected on the history of migration into Europe and the positive impact it has had on European culture as we now know it.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
ADL: Trump’s statement on Jews and white supremacists ‘obscene’
(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League condemned as “obscene” a statement by presidential candidate Donald Trump, which appeared to tie Jewish donors to white supremacists.
Trump made the statement Thursday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” when asked about the white supremacist David Duke, and why he had declined to condemn him during an earlier interview last week on CNN, when he was asked about Duke and other racist individuals of groups that endorsed Trump’s candidacy.
“David Duke is a bad person who I disavowed on numerous occasions over the years,” Trump said on “Morning Joe”, adding he did not immediately condemn him on CNN because, “I don’t like to disavow groups if I don’t know who they are. I mean, you could have Federation of Jewish Philanthropies in groups.”
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From PressTV
Syria legislative polls not to interfere with peace process: Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin tells the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Italy that the Syrian government’s decision to hold parliamentary elections in April does not interfere with the peace process in the crisis-hit country.
Putin made the remarks during a 50-minute conference call on Friday with British Prime Minister David Cameron, French President Francois Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
“The Russian side noted that a decision by the Syrian authorities to hold parliamentary elections in April, 2016 is being conducted in accordance with the existing Syrian constitution and does not interfere with steps to build the peace process,” the Kremlin said in a statement following the phone call.
Last month, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad called for legislative polls to be held on April 13.
According to the Kremlin statement, all European sides expressed satisfaction that the ceasefire in Syria “is being observed on the whole” and “is creating conditions for the launch of a political process in Syria through the inter-Syrian dialogue under the auspices of the United Nations.”
A ceasefire agreement in Syria, brokered by Russia and the United States, entered into force on February 27. The Syrian government accepted the terms of the truce on condition that military efforts against Daesh and the al-Nusra Front Takfiri terrorists, who are excluded from the ceasefire, continue.
Monitoring the truce
The Russian army has deployed electronic systems, radars, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to monitor violations of the ceasefire in Syria.
The military is using the Zoopark-1 missile and artillery ground reconnaissance system, which is capable of automatically determining the coordinates of enemy artillery location to provide target sighting information to its own countermeasure equipment.
The system can detect up to 70 firing positions in a 17-kilometer (10.5-mile) radius in a minute.
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From Russia Today
‘There will be no EU in 5 years, only Ukraine’ – Radical Party MP
Published time: 4 Mar, 2016 18:29
Ukrainian leader of Radical Party Oleg Lyashko. © Sputnik
The EU, Schengen area and maybe even NATO will be gone in five years, the leader of the Ukrainian Radical Party, Oleg Lyashko, has said, responding to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s comments that Ukraine would not become an EU or NATO member in the next 20 to 25 years.
“Indeed, Ukraine will not be an EU member, as because of the policy carried out by the leadership of the united Europe, there will be no EU in 5 years,” Lyashko wrote on his Facebook page.
“There will be no EU, no Schengen, maybe no NATO. But there will be Ukraine. And what it [Ukraine] will look like, depends on the Ukrainians themselves, not on Juncker, who is already planning his visit to Russia,” he added.
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From PressTV
Turkey unsafe country for asylum seekers: Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch (HRW) says Turkey is an unsafe country for asylum seekers, most of whom are fleeing war and terrorism in the Middle East.
“Reports by Amnesty International and local groups speak of arbitrary arrests of refugees and of ill-treatment in detention in Turkey, plus denial of legal representation or aid, making it impossible for them to challenge their detention and deportation,” the HRW said on Thursday.
The rights group noted that Ankara does not provide “effective protection” for refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, who account for 90 percent of all asylum seekers in Turkey.
Senior officials from the European Union and Turkey will meet in Brussels on Monday to discuss the implementation of a joint action plan that the EU hopes will limit the influx of asylum seekers from Turkey to Greece.
The EU has offered Ankara three billion euros (USD 3.3 billion) in return for its attempts to stem the flow of hundreds of thousands of refugees arriving in the continent via Turkey.
“EU leaders are in a panic to stop refugee flows before spring, and they seem willing to throw human rights overboard in the process,” said Judith Sunderland, acting deputy director for the Europe and Central Asia division of the HRW.
“It is naked self-interest and wishful thinking to say Turkey is a safe country of asylum – it is not, and this deal could cause much more harm than good,” she added.
On Thursday, European Council President Donald Tusk said it was up to Ankara to decide what extra action it could take to reduce the inflow of refugees into Europe.
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From Russia Today
Japanese PM suspends construction of controversial US base in Okinawa
Published time: 4 Mar, 2016 07:40
© Toshifumi Kitamura / AFP Files / AFP
Construction work on a new US airbase in Japan’s southern island of Okinawa is to be suspended, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Friday. Abe says the base needs to be built, but will engage in further dialogue with the Okinawa authorities.
“The government has decided to accept the court-mediated settlement plan,” Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said, according to the Kyodo news agency.
The settlement plan was agreed with the Okinawa prefectural government and concerned landfill work, which needed to take place in order for the US military base to be built.
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