Dr. Patrick Slattery’s News Roundup
A service of DavidDuke.com
From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Ukrainian Jewish leaders appeal to Netherlands voters to approve EU trade pact
AMSTERDAM (JTA) – Ukrainian Jews appealed to the population of the Netherlands to vote in favor of a referendum over a trade agreement between Ukraine and the European Union.
The appeal by 19 leaders of Ukraine’s Jewish population was published last week on the website of Vaad, a large organization representing Ukrainian Jews.
In the letter, they stressed Ukrainian Jews’ support for closer ties between Kiev and the European Union, which the undersigned wrote would be strengthened if a majority of voters in the April 6 referendum indicate their approval of the EU Association Agreement with Ukraine.
The referendum over the trade agreement, which removes some taxes on imports from Ukraine into the European bloc, was scheduled amid opposition to the pact in the Netherlands – the only EU country that has yet to sign off on the accord so it can go into effect.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
US Joint Chiefs chairman visiting Israel
JERUSALEM (JTA) — The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Joseph Dunford, is visiting Israel.
Making his second visit to Israel since assuming his position in October, Dunford arrived Wednesday for an official visit as the guest of his Israeli counterpart, Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement. They are scheduled to discuss a variety of issues.
“The visit reinforces the strong and enduring US-Israel defense relationship and continues the cooperation between the two militaries,” the IDF said in the statement.
On Wednesday, Israel and the United States announced that Vice President Joe Biden would visit Israel for two days beginning March 8.
From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Donald Trump cites Jewish charity in explanation for not disavowing KKK
Donald Trump, entering the fifth day of defending himself against his equivocal response on CNN to an endorsement by David Duke, said the former Ku Klux Klan head was a “bad man.”
The characterization Thursday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” is about as direct as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination has been so far in disavowing the white supremacist who expressed support for him.
But Trump had to add a wrinkle. Having previously blamed a faulty earpiece for failing to condemn Duke, he this time said he couldn’t just come out and condemn groups generically because — what if they were Jewish?
“And the one question that was asked of me on CNN — he’s having a great time — he talked about ‘groups of people.’ And I don’t like to disavow groups if I don’t know who they are. I mean, you could have the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies in ‘groups,’” he said.
From PressTV
Russia warns of ‘very long’ war in Yemen
Russia warns that the war raging in Yemen could be far from over due to the obstacles being thrown in the way of its cessation by the Saudi-backed fugitive Yemeni government.
Russia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin made the remarks on Thursday after a UN Security Council meeting on the crisis, which has befallen the Arab world’s poorest nation.
“We hear that the government does not want to have a ceasefire until there is a comprehensive settlement,” he said, adding, “This is a recipe for a very long conflict which will have even more dramatic results.”
Yemen’s fugitive president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, stepped down last January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by the country’s Houthi Ansarullah revolutionaries. The Yemeni parliament did not approve of his resignation at the time either.
Gradually, as the Yemeni government failed to provide security and properly run the affairs of the country, the Ansarullah fighters started to take control of state matters to contain corruption and terror.
In March 2015, Hadi fled Aden, where he had sought to set up a rival power base, to Riyadh after the revolutionaries advanced on the southwestern port city. He also withdrew his resignation.
The Houthis, however, said Hadi had lost his legitimacy as president of the country after he escaped the capital.
Saudi Arabia has been bombing the country for about a year now in order to restore Hadi and undermine Ansarullah. At least 8,300 people, among them 2,236 children, have been killed and over 16,000 others sustained injuries since the onset of the Saudi invasion.
Riyadh forwarded a resolution to the United Nations last year, calling on the Houthis to withdraw from all the territories under their control.
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From Russia Today
EU sanctions against Russia should be lifted ‘as soon as possible’ – regional Italian president
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 23:53
© David Mdzinarishvili / Reuters
On the sidelines of a meeting with Russian partners, the president of Italy’s northwestern region of Liguria condemned the sanction imposed by the EU against Russia and expressed his intention to develop relations and intensify cooperation with Moscow.
Speaking after a meeting in Moscow with the head of the Russian upper house’s international affairs committee, Konstantin Kosachev, President of Liguria Giovanni Toti reaffirmed the friendship between Italy and Russia noting that both countries are suffering from sanctions.
“We hope sanctions will finish as soon as possible,” Toti told RT. “Our link could be stronger than now.”
Toti said together with leaders of other Italian regions they are planning to hold another meeting with Russian colleagues in the near future to discuss what can be done about sanctions crippling both economies, and to strengthen relations in tourist and cultural areas.
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From The Daily Mail
The new Iron Curtain holding back the hordes: The 19-mile barbed wire fence built on Macedonia’s border to stop a human tide of migrants as Greece is told it faces being ‘sacrificed’ to save the EU
- Migrants are continuing to flock to the tent city located on the Greek border despite recent closure of the crossing
- Thousands of refugees have been waiting all day, hoping to be allowed into Macedonia and cross further into Europe
- The UN revealed some 131,000 people have entered Europe so far this year despite the new border measures
- This number of migrants entering Europe was not reached until the second half of 2015, the UNHRC said
These razor-wire fences last night became the new frontier in Europe’s bid to tackle the migrant crisis as Greece was told it faced being ‘sacrificed’ to save the EU.
Austria and the Balkan countries yesterday refused to ease border restrictions that have led to the Greeks being sealed off from the rest of the Continent.
For 19 miles along the boundary with Macedonia, the parallel lines of 8ft fencing keep thousands of migrants trapped in Greece.
Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann yesterday said border controls introduced through Europe were needed to end the ‘disorganised chaos’. He warned that Austria would no longer be ‘a waiting room for Germany’.
From PressTV
EU pressures Turkey to reduce refugee influx
The European Union says Turkey has to do more to reduce the influx of refugees into the continent.
On Thursday, Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, which sets out the bloc’s political direction, said it was up to Ankara to decide what extra action it could take to bring about the reduction.
Many in Europe favor a mechanism that would enable the asylum seekers’ “fast and large-scale” return to Turkey, he said at a joint press conference with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, suggesting that the country had better act promptly. It was only this method, he said, that would effectively “break the business model of the smugglers.”
Tusk has traveled to Turkey from the Greek capital of Athens, where he had warned economic refugees that they would not be welcomed in Europe, saying they did not stand to much gain by reaching the continent.
“Do not believe the smugglers. Do not risk your lives and your money. It is all for nothing,” he said.
Tusk will stay on for a meeting with Turkish President Recep Teyyip Erdogan and is scheduled to meet with Davutoglu again next Monday at an emergency EU-Turkey summit dedicated to the issue of refugees.
The bloc has already offered Ankara three billion euros ($3.3 billion) so it can improve asylum seekers’ living conditions. It has also pledged to rekindle the talks on the country’s potential EU membership and accelerate visa-free travel across the bloc for Turkish nationals.
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From PressTV
Syria plunges into dark as nationwide blackout strikes
Syria has plunged into dark as the country’s electricity network is down for unknown reasons, state media reports say.
“The electricity network has been cut in all governorates,” official news agency SANA said on Thursday, quoting a source in the Ministry for Electricity.
The television report added that “attempts to find out the cause of the outage” had started.
According to residents in the capital, Damascus, they have been without power since 1:00 p.m. local time (1100 GMT).
According to Syria’s state mobile provider, its Internet service had been “partially cut due to part of the network unexpectedly malfunctioning.”
Later reports by SANA quoted the Syrian electricity minister as saying that the electricity supply was gradually returning in different parts of the country, while power is expected to be restored by midnight.
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From PressTV
Some 30 towns, villages in Syria’s Hama join national reconciliation
Some 30 towns and villages in the Syrian province of Hama have joined the national reconciliation process through the mediation of a Russian center, the head of the center says.
German Rudenko told reporters on Thursday that representatives of local communities had signed a deal banning use of weapons against government forces and returning state power to the region.
“The work is very meticulous and delicate; everything here is based on religious and national matters, but overall about 30 communities have signed an application form to join the peace process and negotiations.”
Up to 1,000 militants promised to drop their weapons and join the peace process in a gathering held in the capital of Dara’a Governorate on Monday.
National reconciliation was previously achieved in Rif Dimashq Governorate and some areas in Homs Governorate.
The program is a peace settlement proposed by Syrian government to solve the crisis in the country.
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From Russia Today
Direct dialogue, amnesty & free elections is key to Ukraine settlement – Lavrov
Published time: 4 Mar, 2016 00:09
(L-R) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier (R) and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin (2nd R) © Geoffroy Van Der Hasselt / AFP
Direct dialogue between Kiev and Ukraine’s eastern regions is core to the process of settling the country’s political crisis, the Russian FM said following a Normandy Four meeting, which reaffirmed all parties’ commitments to the Minsk agreements
Germany and France understand and support the sequence of steps that should be taken in order to reach a political settlement in Ukraine, Russia’s Foreign minister Sergey Lavrov told journalists after the meeting in Paris.
“We did not make any deep conclusions but simply confirmed the necessity of the strict implementation of what had been agreed upon,” Lavrov said.
“As the next step, we discussed the elections, in the context of preparation of everything that is required in order to hold them,” Lavrov said, adding however that there has been no progress, mostly due to Kiev’s reluctance to engage in direct dialogue with the regions.
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From Russia Today
Marooned on the Greek border: ‘Jungle’-like refugee camp springs up and grows rapidly at Idomeni
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 20:53
Migrants argue between themselves as they wait to cross the Greek-Macedonian border, near the village of Idomeni, Greece March 3, 2016. © Marko Djurica / Reuters
Giant refugee camps have sprung up along the Greek border with Macedonia and up to 11,000 migrants have become stuck at the Idomeni border crossing – a bottleneck on the ‘Balkan refugee route’, through which thousands of asylum seekers try to reach Europe.
Some two weeks ago the camp had not even been there – it started blossoming after Macedonian authorities tightened immigration restrictions on February 23, banning Afghans from passing through the country’s borders, following a similar move by Serbian authorities. But with some 30,000 refugees and other migrants stranded in Greece at the moment, the flow of asylum seekers heading for Idomeni has been growing daily. Just on Wednesday, up to 2,500 refugees, tired from days on foot, joined those already stuck at the camp.
On Monday, Macedonian officials temporarily closed the border for all, a move that resulted in heavy clashes between the disgruntled asylum seekers and police, who used batons and fired tear gas to disperse the angry mob that stormed the border, ramming down a metal gate. Macedonian police say they’ve deployed additional troops to prevent further clashes, with two rows of barbed-wire fencing to hold the migrants back set up earlier in the week. The country’s authorities have been defensive of such stance. “Our daily admittance of migrants will depend on how many will be accepted in EU countries,” Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski, told reporters in Skopje on Wednesday, as Reuters reported.
Migrants who are waiting to cross the Greek-Macedonian border, gather to receive travel documents near the village of Idomeni, Greece, March 3, 2016. © Marko Djurica / Reuters
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From Russia Today
N. Korea launches missile test hours after UN introduces new sanctions
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 15:21
© Kyodo / Reuters
North Korea fired six short range missiles into the Sea of Japan, hours after the UN Security Council approved to introduce new sanctions against Pyongyang. A South Korean official said the projectiles flew about 100 to 150km before landing in the sea.
South Korean defense spokesman Moon Sang Gyun said the projectiles were launched from the eastern coastal town of Wonsan on Thursday. Meanwhile, an unnamed official from Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff mentioned that the missiles flew about 100 to 150km before coming down in the Sea of Japan, according to the AP.
Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, says that North Korea has not taken any lessons on board, after the latest round of sanctions imposed by the Security Council.
“It means that they’re not drawing the proper conclusions yet,” said Churkin.
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From Russia Today
Turkey must do more to stop terrorist oil trade, Washington says
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 12:58
Trucks with oil products cross the Syrian-Turkish border. (Still frame taken from the video posted by the Russian Defense Ministry on its official YouTube channel.) © Ministry of defence of the Russian Federation / Sputnik
Ankara must take strong measures to prevent terrorist groups in Iraq and Syria from benefiting from illegal oil trade, hostages and antiquities, the US Department of State has said in a report.
Turkey’s rapid economic growth – combined with the country’s commercial relationships and geographical proximity to unstable conflict-plagued areas like Iraq, Syria and Crimea – makes it “vulnerable to money laundering and terrorist finance risks,” the US Department of State said in a report on narcotics, money laundering and financial crimes.
The report stated that in addition to drug trafficking, other key sources of laundered funds range from tax evasion to kidnapping.
“Terrorism financing is present, particularly in the form of cash flows across Turkey’s southern border into Syria; and terrorist organizations with suspected involvement in narcotics trafficking and other illicit activities are present in Turkey. Turkey’s nonprofit sector remains vulnerable to terrorism financing. Recent conflicts at the southern border of Turkey have increased the risks for additional sources of terrorism financing and money laundering attached to human trafficking and oil and antiquities smuggling from the region to Europe.”
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From Russia Today
Kurds claim downing of Turkish helicopter bombing them over Iraqi Kurdistan – reports
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 08:42
© Umit Bektas / Reuters
Reports have emerged that Kurds have shot down a helicopter over Iraqi Kurdistan, which they say was used in airstrikes against them. Turkish officials have made no comment, but a source confirmed to RT that the incident took place.
Previously Ankara acknowledged conducting airstrikes on alleged PKK targets in Iraq. Turkish military is also targeting Kurds inside the country and shelling Kurdish militias in northern Syria.
One sortie apparently went wrong for a Turkish assault helicopter as Iraqi Kurdish militia claim they shot the aircraft down.
Kani Xulam, from the American Kurdish Information Network, told RT that official Ankara would refrain from reporting any losses in operations against the Kurds, striving to portray the Turkish military as “an invincible power that cannot be beaten.”
The Turkish authorities are aiming to make the Kurds submit to them and “come down on their knees,” he said.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Obama urged to meet survivors of terror attacks on Argentina Jewish sites
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee urged President Barack Obama to meet with survivors of two 1990s terrorist attacks on Jewish institutions when he travels to Argentina.
“As you work to renew the partnership between the United States and Argentina, we would like to suggest that you use this visit as an opportunity to pay tribute to victims of terrorism in Argentina and pledge to help bring those responsible to justice,” said the March 1 letter from Reps. Ed Royce, R-Calif., the committee chairman, and Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., its top Democrat.
“The attacks that targeted the Israeli Embassy on March 17, 1992 and the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) on July 18, 1994 were the deadliest in the country’s history,” the letter said. “Recognizing the victims and pledging assistance would send an important signal that the U.S. will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Argentina to fight terrorism.”
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Major German supporter of Israel arrested for drug possession
BERLIN (JTA) — One of Israel’s strongest political supporters in Germany was found with illegal drugs during a police search.
Volker Beck, the Green Party’s parliamentary spokesman for interior affairs and religion, and president of the German-Israeli Parliamentary Friendship Group of the Bundestag since 2014, will give up both roles, a spokesman from his office told the Spiegel Online magazine. The tabloid Bild reported that the substance found was likely crystal meth.
Beck, 55, who had addressed 150 members of the Rabbinical Conference of Europe visiting Germany’s capital on Monday, was subjected to a search Tuesday while on foot in the city and did not resist, Berlin state prosecutor Martin Steltner told Spiegel Online. The prosecutor did not confirm reports about the substance itself, which is undergoing a chemical evaluation. Beck reportedly was found with 0.6 grams of the substance.
In a statement, Beck said he had “always supported a liberal drug policy” and that his attorney would address pending charges.
From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Israel’s first transgender beauty pageant slated for May
(JTA) — Israel will be holding its first beauty pageant for transgender women.
Nearly 30 transgender Jews and Arabs auditioned Thursday at a Tel Aviv club for a place in the Miss Trans Israel pageant, according to The Associated Press.
“Definitely we are achieving, enlightening the people to accept and empower transsexuals,” Israela Stephanie Lev, the pageant’s organizer, told the AP.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Israeli general questioned over rape allegations
JERUSALEM (JTA) — An Israeli general was questioned for six hours over accusations that he raped one female soldier under his command, then was accused of sexually harassing another soldier.
Wednesday’s questioning was the second time that Brig.-Gen. Ofek Buchris has been questioned by police over the first accusation, according to Israeli media reports.
The second woman came forward later in the day to accuse Buchris of sexually harassment during her army service.
Buchris, whose name was ordered released Wednesday night by the military court in Tel Aviv, was suspended from his position earlier this week over the rape accusation. Following the release of the general’s name, the first victim’s father called for other women to come forward.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Oberlin president defends ‘academic freedom’ after prof posts conspiracy theories
(JTA) — In a lengthy statement that referenced his Jewish background, Oberlin College’s president responded to the firestorm surrounding a professor’s controversial social media posts, but he stopped short of condemning the professor.
In a statement published Tuesday on an official college website, Marvin Krislov said the posts by assistant professor Joy Karega “affected me on a very personal level.”
Last week, after media reports that Karega had posted conspiracy theories about Jews and claimed that Israel was behind the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attacks in France, Krislov had issued a brief statement that the Ohio liberal arts college he helms “respects the right of its faculty, students, staff and alumni to express their personal views.”
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Amy Schumer Twitter joke insults Jews, Gossip Cop says
(JTA) — Jewish comic Amy Schumer tweeted a Jewish joke criticized as “offensive and wrong” by the Gossip Cop website.
In a Twitter post Wednesday, the comedienne and actress made public a photo of herself standing between a clarinetist and a saxophonist, each holding his instrument. Her caption read “A Jew with horns.” She later amended the phrase to “I meant to say a Jew with 2 horns.
From Russia Today
Merkel ally fights to keep pork on menus despite concern over offending Muslims
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 17:19
© Michaela Rehle / Reuters
There’s a battle taking place in Germany over one of the country’s most beloved foods. An arm of Chancellor Merkel’s party is fighting to keep pork on the menu in public institutions, after some reportedly removed the meat to avoid offending Muslims.
The regional Schleswig-Holstein branch of the CDU party has announced plans to ensure pork continues to be available in public canteens, as well as in daycare centers and schools across the north German state.
The proposal is due to be presented at a regional parliamentary session next week.
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From Russia Today
Nice’s mayor to visit Crimea amidst Paris’ discontent
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 14:41
Christian Estrosi, mayor of Nice. © Eric Gaillard / Reuters
The mayor of the French Mediterranean city of Nice will visit Crimea to renew a longstanding cooperation agreement with the city of Yalta. The French government decried the visit’s importance, dubbing it “an initiative of one of the local politicians.”
Nice, a renowned holiday resort on the Mediterranean, and Yalta, a coastal gem on the Black Sea, have been sister cities for over half a century and are set to continue their close ties despite the political rift between EU and Russia, since the Crimean Peninsula reunited with the latter almost two years ago.
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From Russia Today
Rise of anti-Semitism in Europe ‘major threat’, say Jewish leaders
Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 14:35
A policeman stands guard in front of the Hyper Cacher kosher supermarket in Paris where four Jews were killed last year. © Charles Platiau / Reuters
Two in five Jewish leaders across Europe believe the rise in anti-Semitism represents a “major threat” to the future of their communities, according to a new report.
The Third Survey of European Jewish Leaders and Opinion Formers, which polled 314 leaders in 32 countries, was published this week and found particular concern over hatred against Jews on the internet.
Among those interviewed were executive directors, program coordinators, rabbis, education professionals, media owners, and academics.
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