U.S. sees assault on Idlib as escalation of Syria conflict: Pompeo
8/31/2018, 3:53:27 PMU.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday said the United States views the Syrian government military assault on the rebel-held province of Idlib as an escalation of the Syrian conflict. ✔ FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pauses while speaking to members of the media following two days of meetings with Kim Yong Chol, a North Korean senior ruling party official and former intelligence chief, before boarding his plane at Sunan International Airport in Pyongyang, North Korea, July 7, 2018 ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
North Korea accuses US of hostile steps
8/31/2018, 3:12:01 PMundefined ✔ Experts worry that the resumption of such joint military drills could anger the North and throw cold water on the overall denuclearization process as Pyongyang has called them a rehearsal for invasion of the North ✔ Uncertainty has been mounting since Trump recently canceled a planned trip by his Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Pyongyang, citing lack of progress in the denuclearization process
US extends travel ban on North Korea
8/31/2018, 3:10:09 PMundefined ✔ The travel warning for North Korea remains in place ✔ He was released in June last year, but he was in a coma ✔ Speaking about North Korea at a Washington forum earlier this week, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said, We knew this was going to be a slow, tough process
North Korea vows to deepen relations with Cuba
8/31/2018, 3:12:26 PMundefined ✔ The newspaper also heaped praise on Cuba for making progress in improving its economy, which it said have been devastated by oppression from imperialists, apparently pointing to the sanctions imposed by the United States ✔ The North recently sent high-ranking officials, including its No. 2, Choe Ryong-hae, to the island country in a bid to demonstrate their long and friendly relations
The caricature of Assad is a deflection from the reality on the ground in Syria
8/31/2018, 3:39:29 PMWestern ideologues maintain that the conflict in Syria revolves around the status of Bashar Assad. It doesn’t. What’s more, they know it doesn’t. ✔ The welfare of the people has always been the alibi of tyrants , Camus points out, and who could argue otherwise after surveying the wreckage of Western foreign policy in recent times alone ✔ Those who understand this are not Assadists, they are simply realists
‘I went to war-torn Syria – and had a great time!'
8/31/2018, 3:08:35 PMJorgo Molotsios, a travel blogger, who is originally from Belgium, travelled to Syria in July and got to take in the sights in places such as the capital city Damascus, Douma and Homs. ✔ You'll see a lot of Muslims on Friday shopping in this district because all the shops are still open.' The road to Homs ✔ 'I'd say, as long as you follow how the war evolves and stick to the government controlled areas, why not if you're adventurous?'
The Latest: UN warns against assault on Syria's Idlib
8/31/2018, 2:16:19 PMBEIRUT (AP) — The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local): 5 p.m. The head of the U.N. agency for refugees says a potential military offensiv ✔ BEIRUT (AP) The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local): 5 p.m. The head of the U.N ✔ The campaign for Idlib, the opposition’s only remaining stronghold in the country and now a refuge for over one million displaced Syrians, is likely to be the last major theater of battle after seven years of brutal civil war
Information Center on North Korea brings scholars from abroad
8/31/2018, 3:08:55 PMundefined ✔ Inside the Ministry of Unification's Information Center on North Korea ✔ The center hosts probably the world's largest collection of North Korean documents and publications outside the DPRK, said Tertitskiy, who hold a Ph.D ✔ She said general visitors other than scholars or students studying the North also visited the center out of curiosity to see North Korean publications
Travel feature praising 'egalitarian' North Korea under fire as 'unashamed PR'
8/31/2018, 12:02:54 PMundefined ✔ This is a country where hundreds of thousands have staved in famines, dissent will lead you to being fired out a cannon, and thousands spend their lives in slave labour prison camps ✔ They sung Korean folk songs with gusto but took even more pleasure in telling jokes against Americans and the Japanese, their former colonial masters
Cleric: 'No going back' on Ukraine split from Russia Church
8/31/2018, 2:24:08 PMISTANBUL (AP) — A senior official in the Orthodox Church says "there's no going backwards" in granting Ukrainian clerics full ecclesiastic independence from the Russian Orthodox C ✔ ISTANBUL (AP) A senior official in the Orthodox Church says there's no going backwards in granting Ukrainian clerics full ecclesiastic independence from the Russian Orthodox Church to which they have been tied to for hundreds of years ✔ The AP found that the same hackers charged with intervening in the 2016 U.S. presidential election also spent years trying to eavesdrop on Bartholomew's entourage
A Chemical Weapons 'Attack' Trap Is Being Laid to Keep Trump in Syria
8/31/2018, 2:04:04 PMAccording to a recent report by Joachin Flores at Fort Russ News, the U.S. offered a withdrawal plan to Bashar al-Assad of Syria with three conditions. What should be immediately obvious is that the U.S. offered the meeting and opened up the talks. This is proof positive that the U.S. position in Syria is untenable and the U.S. is searching for a way out that will save a little face. First : Iran’s full withdrawal from the Syrian south. ✔ Here’s the big carrot, military withdrawal, but it comes with burning sticks, continued U.S. presence, Iran withdraws and siphoning off of all profit from Syria’s natural resources ✔ So, the argument for the false flag makes sense to trap Trump into having to stay, if not expand the conflict, to push Assad from office while damaging him at home on the eve of the mid-terms
Friday Morning Briefing
8/31/2018, 1:40:27 PMWashington comes together to commemorate the late Senator John McCain, Iran moves missiles to Iraq in warning to enemies and a top U.S. spy catcher says China is using fake LinkedIn accounts to recruit Americans. ✔ Reuters takes a look at who the winners and losers may be from the new NAFTA deal ✔ Funds run by BlackRock voted in favor of a recent shareholder proposal that would have required Tesla to replace Elon Musk with an independent chairman ✔ Colin Kaepernick's case against NFL heads to trial Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
South and North Korean families separated by war say tearful goodbyes
8/31/2018, 3:09:43 PMundefined ✔ Stay healthy, grandmother, until the day of reunification ✔ Reunions have been sporadically held since 1985, with this latest batch occurring after the neighbours renewed exchanges this year following a standoff over Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programmes
Oil steady as trade war worries balance Iran sanctions
8/31/2018, 12:23:33 PMOil prices steadied on Friday as concerns over the impact of a trade war depressed sentiment, although impending U.S. sanctions on Iran and falling Venezuelan output supported the market. ✔ Trump is prepared to ramp up a dispute with China and has told aides he is ready to impose tariffs on $200 billion more Chinese imports as early as next week, Bloomberg reported on Thursday ✔ Oil analysts cut their price forecasts for 2018 for the first time in almost a year in August, as concerns about the impact of the global trade war deepen, a Reuters poll shows ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
OPEC August oil output hits 2018 high despite Iran losses: Reuters...
8/31/2018, 12:33:15 PMOPEC oil output has risen this month to a 2018 high as Libyan production recovered and Iraq's southern exports hit a record, a Reuters survey found, although a cut in Iranian shipments due to U.S. sanctions limited the increase. ✔ Saudi Arabia, after a big increase in June output, apparently backtracked on plans for a further boost in July and cut supply last month to 10.40 million bpd ✔ Supply has edged up to 10.48 million bpd in August, the survey found, still lower than June’s 10.60 million bpd ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
NK blames US for deadlock in denuke talks
8/31/2018, 3:11:04 PMundefined ✔ The U.S. should play its role in carrying out the historic joint statement reached between the U.S. and North Korea, not focus on military gambling, which does more harm than good, it said ✔ The outlet also referred to the U.S. resuming sanctions on Iran after leaving the Iran nuclear deal
Turkey & Qatar are being punished for refusing to do Washington’s bidding on Iran
8/31/2018, 1:12:53 PMFor years, Turkey and Qatar were at the vanguard of the Western imperial project in the Middle East. Having had their fingers burnt in Syria, however, they’re refusing to facilitate Washington’s Iran plans – and paying the price. ✔ Trade with Syria, of course, also slumped by 70 percent as a direct effect from the Syrian war , from $1.8 billion worth of exports in 2010 to $497 million two years later ✔ According to the new law, travelers no longer had to declare transported currency or profit amounts at the customs booth ✔ For all his bluster, it is a clear admission of weakness and failure
RUSSIA THREAT: Russia to hold ‘MISSILE-FIRING’ war games in Mediterranean
8/31/2018, 2:23:59 PMRUSSIA’s military will hold war games in the Mediterranean Sea tomorrow with Vladimir Putin's armed forces poised to carry out missile-firing tests with submarines, destroyers and aircraft all taking part in the Kremlin's show of force that is set to last a week. ✔ Putin's Navy will hold military exercises in the Mediterranean Sea (Image: TASS/PA) The Russian Defense Ministry has said that these military exercises are necessary to ensure the safety of the shipping and flights ✔ Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and his Russian allies have strongly denied the allegations
In fit of anti-Trump pique, American liberals shamelessly embrace ‘deep-state’ criminals
8/31/2018, 2:56:32 PMIn their blind hatred for Trump, liberals have sunk to an all-time low by unabashedly cheering a war criminal. ✔ I find it very curious that both Maher and his fellow liberal HBO comedy comrade John Oliver of Last Week Tonight are so enamored with the intelligence agencies ✔ He currently resides in Los Angeles where he runs his acting coaching and media consulting business
Suspected terrorist who sought refugee status in Germany handed over to Russia
8/31/2018, 2:47:33 PMA man suspected of terrorist activities in Syria has been extradited from Germany to Russia after allegedly attempting to gain the refugee status using forged documents. ✔ The suspect was born in 1987 in the North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria ✔ Eventually, the suspect decided to move to Europe and allegedly attempted to obtain refugee status in Germany using counterfeit documents ✔ The extradition took place on August 30 on a Berlin-Moscow flight ✔ Investigators continue their work to collect evidence
John McCain's letter to a future Navy pilot arrived two days after his death. Here's what he told him.
8/31/2018, 2:04:01 PMOne of the last letters U.S. Sen. John McCain sent was to a Navy ensign awaiting pilot training at Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona. ✔ After a memorial service in Arizona on Thursday, the late senator arrives in Washington D.C ✔ Airman 1st Class Pedro Mota, 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Fullscreen Frank Luke Jr.: Luke Air Force Base is named after 2nd Lt ✔ Antonio Chavez of Phoenix, talks about Sen
Jack Ryan review: Amazon's action analyst must spy harder
8/31/2018, 12:14:00 PMJack Ryan sees things others don't, but we've seen it all before. ✔ There's grimy interrogation cells and SWAT creeping up stairwells and militiamen firing RPGs off the back of pickup trucks ✔ As Ryan, Krasinski just about anchors the story with his ever-watchable charm, but it's something of a thankless task: all too often, Ryan is just an observer ✔ Movie magic: The secrets behind the scenes of your favorite films and filmmakers
'US urged to offer concessions to NK'
8/31/2018, 3:11:01 PMundefined ✔ Washington wants to see something more concrete and tangible on the North's denuclearization and the point is that the North is being prepared to go forward its commitment ✔ But the two sides don't want to walk away from the negotiating table with no results ✔ Any further escalation will make the situation worse, said an attorney at a local law firm that offers legal services for businesses in North Korea
Rejected asylum seekers decry 'no honorable return'
8/31/2018, 3:13:05 PMundefined ✔ The Ministry of Justice designated the Gimpo Foreign Citizen Support Center, a government office offering a much larger migrant-friendly environment than the small Gimpo Immigrant Center, as the city's main Korean teaching center for migrants ✔ Nonetheless, such discrimination would be a sign of a process the country is becoming more ethnically versatile, Nani said
Documentary on North Korea's TB to be aired Monday
8/31/2018, 3:08:52 PMundefined ✔ The film titled Out of Breath presents the journey of U.S. doctor Stephen Linton and Korean-American doctor KJ Seung, who have been visiting the North every six month to help North Korean doctors fight the spread of MDR-TB ✔ They have been working with the Eugene Bell Foundation ✔ The film was directed by Korean-American Hein S. Seok ✔ The Japanese broadcaster will re-air the film on Sept
Pictures of the month: August | Pictures | Reuters
8/31/2018, 1:47:36 PMTourists walk past giant hand structure on the Gold Bridge on Ba Na hill near Danang City, Vietnam, August 1. REUTERS/Kham ✔ Tourists walk past giant hand structure on the Gold Bridge on Ba Na hill near Danang City, Vietnam, August 1 ✔ REUTERS/Stringer Close 30 / 60 People watch the Auto Mall Outdoor Entertainment show as they attend the New Jersey State Fair in Augusta, New Jersey, August 12
Mexico has Trump figured out
8/31/2018, 3:09:20 PMThe trade deal press announcement was ridiculous, but Mexico is getting what it needed. ✔ If someone is holding a bomb and threatening to detonate it, the authorities may try to coax him into handing it over peacefully ✔ Instead, so consumed by his desire to snub Trudeau on his reality show, Trump was willing to announce a deal with Mexico that is good for both countries
Moon to send envoys to Pyongyang on Sept. 5
8/31/2018, 3:08:44 PMundefined ✔ Because the inter-Korean summit is being held at an important juncture, we have decided the envoys will go to Pyongyang for the South and North to hold intense talks ✔ Pyongyang and Washington are seen to have differences over which of the two measures should take place first
China’s Muslim Crackdown Extends to Those Living Abroad
8/31/2018, 12:53:36 PMChinese Uighurs living overseas have become a focus of one of government’s largest mass incarcerations in decades. Beijing is concerned that radical Islamic militants are behind a sporadically violent Uighur separatist movement in Xinjiang. ✔ Reached on mobile phone, that police officer said he couldn’t answer questions, adding: Our job is secret ✔ This time amid the detention campaign, his younger son was denied a passport but given a one-way travel document valid for three months ✔ The canceled Chinese passport of Saiyidi Ayixiguli, a 71-year-old Chinese Uighur who lives in Australia
FT Health: Africa squeezed by burden of disease and lack of investment
8/31/2018, 1:28:23 PMundefined ✔ Register here to receive your free weekly briefing by email Africa may be rising economically, but progress on the health of its inhabitants remains strikingly sluggish ✔ (FT) Care crisis England is lagging behind countries such as Germany and Japan in adapting funding systems for care of the elderly
US to end funding for UN agency for Palestinian refugees
8/31/2018, 2:17:46 PMThe Trump administration has decided to end all funding to the United Nations agency tasked with supporting Palestinian refugees and call for a large reduction in the number of Palestinians considered to be refugees, sources told CNN. ✔ It has long been considered what is called a final status issue in peace talks, an acknowledgment that it is among the toughest areas for Israelis and Palestinians to reach agreement ✔ CNN's Jeremy Diamond, Zachary Cohen, Oren Liebermann and Andrew Carey contributed to this report
As Assault Looms, Syrian Rebels Detain Those Trying to Surrender
8/31/2018, 2:48:42 PMSyrian rebels are braced for battle and have detained dozens of people suspected of negotiating surrender, as the Assad regime prepares to retake the country’s last opposition stronghold. ✔ [Russian Foreign Minister] Lavrov wanted to get into Idlib through reconciliation but thankfully we don’t have many frogs here, said Abed al-Malik Sheikh, an activist in Idlib province, using a derogatory term for those who surrender ✔ The last time Russia carried out exercises in the Mediterranean waters was in April ahead of U.S. strikes against regime positions for the use of chemical weapons against civilians
U.S., Germany at Odds Over Serbia-Kosovo Land Swap
8/31/2018, 3:53:22 PMThe U.S. and Germany are in disagreement over a possible plan to redraw the border between Serbia and Kosovo, with Berlin concerned the move could open a Pandora’s box of ethnic recriminations in the region. ✔ A train with the words Kosovo is Serbian written on in different languages, before departing to Mitrovica, Kosovo, at the railway station in the Serbian capital Belgrade in January 2017 ✔ The dispute between Serbia and Kosovo stretches back into the 1990s
Why Robert Mueller's wins haven’t shaken Donald Trump voters
8/31/2018, 2:50:41 PMTrump voters wanted a businessman who cares about three major things: the economy, national security and trade deals. That's what they got. ✔ And some Trump voters want to know why he's not investigating Hillary Clinton ✔ The stock market responded by closing over the 26,000 mark ✔ And that fact seems to be frustrating to some folks ✔ Gary Varvel is a columnist and cartoonist at The Indianapolis Star, where this column first appeared
If 3's a crowd, how about 11? House primary draws big field
8/31/2018, 2:37:20 PMCONCORD, Mass. (AP) — If three's a crowd, what does 11 make? An open Massachusetts congressional seat has prompted a political free-for-all of sorts, with 10 Democra ✔ An open Massachusetts congressional seat has prompted a political free-for-all of sorts, with 10 Democrats and a Republican vying for the affection of voters in Tuesday's primary putting it among the nation's most crowded House races ✔ Organization will be critical in a race that could easily be won with less than 20 percent of the vote, and where turnout is expected to be modest on the day after Labor Day, said Cluverius
Guernsey grave digger jailed for looking after murder victim's guns
8/31/2018, 1:08:53 PMNeil McDonald admitted drugs and firearms charges after police discovered several guns belonging to Latvian national Mikus Alps, pictured, whose body was found in a burned out car. ✔ He had not looked in the bags and had no idea what was in them ✔ 'The Sicilian Mafia is a kindergarten compared to the methods used by the Kremlin to achieve its imperialist goals ✔ 'For them there is no difference whether they kill in eastern Ukraine or in centre of Europe
Analysis | The Daily 202: Kavanaugh could offer the decisive vote to uphold Trump’s crusade against affirmative action
8/31/2018, 1:44:55 PMA DOJ filing against Harvard provides a reminder of the stakes in next week’s Supreme Court confirmation hearing. ✔ -- Trump’s plan to build an entire village in rural Scotland, by Quartz's Max de Haldevang: Last month, the Trump Organization announced something strange: a plan to build an entire town in rural Scotland, with a kitsch design that blends American suburbia with Scottish oil country
>>> Open This Series
Comments
Post a Comment