Islamization of UK > Starmer makes himself a hero to illegal immigrants already; For something completely different

 

The stunning election of left wing governments in both Britain and France in a few days, is the best thing to happen in Islam since Oct 7th. Britain's Starmer has already declared an end to the attempt to deport undocumented migrants to Rwanda. Consequently, a court case against the deportation has already been thrown out. This should be a record-breaking year for migrants entering England. Indeed, a record-breaking 4 years.

UK resolves Rwanda asylum seeker cases

after Labour govt scraps deportation policy

The High Court cases of three asylum seekers who had brought legal action to block their potential removal to Rwanda were resolved on Tuesday after the UK's incoming Labour government vowed to scrap the controversial deportation policy. 

By:NEWS WIRES

Three asylum seekers who brought court action to block the UK's attempt to send them to Rwanda had their cases resolved on Tuesday, after the incoming Labour government ditched the policy.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Saturday that the migrant deportation plan forged by the ousted Conservative government was "dead and buried".

There had already been a spate of legal challenges to the scheme, with the UK Supreme Court in November last year ruling that it was illegal under international law as Rwanda could not be considered a safe country for asylum seekers.

Government lawyer James Eadie told the High Court in London on Tuesday: "In relation to the three named claimants, these claimants' cases will be fully disposed of and withdrawn subject to the (interior ministry) paying their costs."

The Labour Party said before last Thursday's general election that it would ditch the scheme, which the Tories said would deter huge numbers of migrants trying to get across the Channel to the UK on small boats from northern France.

Sixty-five people were brought ashore Monday – the first under the new government – taking the total number of arrivals so far this year to 13,639, according to an AFP tally of official figures.

'No obligation' to return the money

Rwanda, home to 13 million people in Africa's Great Lakes region, claims to be one of the most stable countries on the continent and has drawn praise for its modern infrastructure.

But rights groups accuse veteran President Paul Kagame of ruling in a climate of fear, stifling dissent and free speech.

A spokesman for his government said Monday that "Rwanda takes note of the intention of the UK government to terminate the Migration and Economic Development Partnership Agreement".

As part of the deal, the UK has already paid some £240 million ($307 million) to Rwanda, with a further £50 million scheduled to be sent at a later date.

In January, Kagame said the money was "only going to be used if those people will come. If they don't come, we can return the money".

However, he later specified there was "no obligation" to do so.

(AFP)

And now, for something completely unexpected...

Manchester Mosque Apologizes for Calling

Invited Rabbi ‘Child killer'

Jewish Press, July 7, 2024:

A Manchester mosque has issued an official apology after a Jewish Conservative Party candidate it had invited to speak was called a “snake” by bigoted hecklers.

After Rabbi Arnold Saunders, the Conservative candidate in the Bury South parliamentary district of Manchester, spoke at the Masjid Bilal Islamic Centre in Prestwich, he was harassed by several individuals in an incident captured on video.

“The event was well received and the Rabbi was welcomed, and most people present engaged positively with the Rabbi,” read a statement issued by the mosque. “Unfortunately one or two individuals questioned the Rabbi in a hostile manner and this clip has been widely circulated. This clip was recorded by one of the individuals himself.”

The video shows a man demanding Saunders “condemn the IDF” before being told “nobody wants you here, leave” and “you justified children to be murdered … when you are with your own people these are the things you say, then you come here and smile like a snake.”

The mosque said Saunders “was treated inappropriately and disrespectfully. Any genuine political questions should have been raised respectfully.”

Expressing regret for the insults, the mosque stated it had “already apologized to the Rabbi for how he was treated and wish to extend our apologies to others who have seen the clip and are upset by it.”…

 

Islamization in America > NJ School apologizes to Muslim group for calling ISIS a Terror Group

 

While Muslims in New Jersey schools are in far smaller numbers than in Germany or France, their influence punches above their weight already. There was nothing wrong with the question asked in a fair and open society. But the principal of the school seems to have been intimidated to the point of making an apology, and, more than likely, a new policy forbidding asking questions about Islamic terror groups.

This is how Islam works until it reaches a certain percentage of society when they establish Sharia-compliant laws. And, it will happen long before they become a majority.

New Jersey school district apologizes for enraging Muslims by calling ISIS a terror group

JUN 23, 2024 8:00 AM BY ROBERT SPENCER

Yes, the insanity and denial of obvious reality is moving to a new level. Not long ago, this school may have expected protests for calling ISIS “Islamic,” even though its actual name is “Islamic State.” But now Teaching While Muslim is enraged because the school called the Islamic State a “terror group.” If ISIS isn’t a terror group, what is? But once the Western intelligentsia started denying reality, all bets were off, and this became the inevitable result. For years I have warned that charges of “Islamophobia” were being and would be used to inhibit all opposition to jihad violence. And here we are.

A side note regarding historical illiteracy: this school calls itself Schuyler-Colfax Middle School. This suggests that it was named in honor of two people, one named Schuyler and the other Colfax, or perhaps for one person with a hyphenated surname. In reality, however, the school is named for Schuyler Colfax, who was vice president of the United States from 1869 to 1873. Clearly the people who made the school sign, and possibly the people who ordered it, had never heard of Vice President Colfax, and so stuck an extraneous hyphen between his names, which would be as silly as my calling myself Robert-Spencer. Now, Schuyler Colfax is certainly not a major or pivotal figure in American politics. He was just another postbellum corrupt politician. But Americans should know their history. Not knowing or valuing our culture and heritage is one of the key causes of not being willing to defend them, and they are most certainly under attack.

New Jersey school district apologizes for offending Muslims 

with question about ISIS terror group in quiz

by Gabriel Hays, Fox News, June 21, 2024:

A New Jersey school district apologized for offending a Muslim activist group this week after a middle school teacher featured a class quiz question naming the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, as a terror group.

The Wayne Township Public Schools superintendent’s office sent out a statement to the district expressing regret over an “inappropriate” question that was asked during a quiz at Schuyler-Colfax Middle School earlier this week.

“The question was offensive and contrary to our values of respect, inclusivity, and cultural sensitivity,” the office said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

The superintendent’s letter addressed a recent complaint made by the activist group “Teaching While Muslim” (TWM) on social media.

The group, which describes itself on its website as a network of Muslim educators that confronts “discrimination, implicit bias, and institutional racism” against Muslims in public schools, shared an Instagram post condemning a quiz question that one teacher posed to his seventh-grade students about the Islamic State.

The group shared a screenshot of the question, which read, “It is a terrorist organization that commits acts of violence, destroys cultural artifacts, and encourages loss of life in order to achieve its goal of global rule under strict Islamic Sharia law.”

Students were prompted to choose the group from the multiple choices below, which included, “The Shining Path,” “al Qaeda,” “Islamic State,” and the “Palestinian Liberation Organization.”

The image featured the “Islamic State” bubble filled in, as it was the correct answer. TWM condemned the question in the post’s caption, stating, “We have seen anti Muslim & anti Palestinian sentiments, teachers, and content in our schools over and over again. But we must not allow it to continue. Call and email everyone that you can.”

“This is not okay on a million levels. Go. And yes. This is real,” the post added. It also included a screenshot of the school principal’s alleged apology for the question, as pointed out by conservative journalist Andy Ngo on X….

When asked to confirm details of TWM’s account against Schuyler-Colfax Middle School, the superintendent’s office provided its statement apologizing for the incident.

It read, “First, I sincerely apologize on behalf of the school district. Such incidents are unacceptable and do not reflect the standards we uphold for our educational community. We understand the deep concern and disappointment this has caused among students, parents, and the broader community. It is also important to recognize that one question does not define our entire school community.”…

The Media is the Message > BBC's woefully inadequate apology for antisemitism; CNN Drops "Team Hitler' Producer

..

BBC apologizes for ignoring antisemitic content and errors in its Arabic service

by Batya Jerenberg, 

World Israel News, 

November 6, 2022:

The BBC has apologized for ignoring antisemitic content and factual errors about Israel in its Arab-language department, veteran Jewish newspaper and website The Jewish Chronicle (The JC) reported Thursday, in a statement its critics say is not nearly enough to correct an unethical, longstanding policy in its service in general.

In the statement, a spokesperson for the British government-funded broadcaster said, “We apologise for the unacceptable delay and will ensure formal responses are issued as soon as possible.”

The apology came a year and a half after 26 specific complaints were sent in to the service by Camera, a media watchdog which scrutinizes Arabic language media, during Israel’s Operation Guardian of the Walls.

A Camera spokesperson said that only seven of its critiques “received a proper, timely response and resolution.” The average wait-time was four months.

“The BBC’s complaint system is unable to meet its own standards when it comes to content in Arabic about Israel and Jews,” the spokesperson said.

The BBC’s rules state that complaints should be addressed within ten working days when possible. Although none of Camera’s complaints were rejected, the service sent no response to 14 of them. It corrected three of their articles in line with the critiques without publicly acknowledging their errors.

One mistake, regarding holy sites in Jerusalem, was acknowledged a full year later, but the error is still in the online version of the article, the JC reported.

Campaign Against Antisemitism dismissed the apology, saying it felt “forced.”

The Arabic station has 36 million listeners, making it a very influential voice in the Arab world. Jewish media in the UK have reported many times over years of monitoring about how the department’s reporters take extremist views instead of giving objective facts, with one regular Islamist commentator, Abdel Bari Atwan, openly happy over terrorist attacks against Israel, with no backlash from their employer.

Last month, The JC launched an online petition demanding a parliamentary inquiry into BBC coverage of Jews and Israel. It came on the heels of a letter the paper sent to politicians and public figures, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, asking that Atwan be taken off the air and that the BBC be forced to correct its bias against Israel….

In the BBC’s response, which took over a month to arrive, it defended its employee, saying that keeping Atwan was “in the public’s interest.”

A Campaign Against Antisemitism spokesperson said that the BBC’s apology felt “forced,” coming as it did “as calls mount for a parliamentary inquiry into antisemitism at the BBC.”

CNN fires ‘Team Hitler’ producer over anti-Israel rant

But only after "Honest Reporting' goes public

 

CNN fires ‘Team Hitler’ producer over anti-Israel rant(Shutterstock)

Idris Muktar Ibrahim declared himself a member of “#TeamHitler” on Twitter

while describing Hamas terrorists as “freedom fighters defending their land.”

By JNS

November 20, 2022

CNN cuts ties with “TeamHitler” producer after Honest Reporting exposed him.

The watchdog NGO recently revealed that CNN producer Idris Muktar Ibrahim had declared himself a member of “#TeamHitler” on Twitter while describing Hamas terrorists as “freedpm [sic] fighters… definding [sic] their land.”

“After HonestReporting notified CNN of their producer’s offensive social media history, a spokesperson immediately assured us the matter was being investigated,” stated Honest Reporting.

“A deafening silence followed, however, leaving us wondering whether CNN was serious about dealing with an employee who glorified Adolf Hitler and lavished praise on a terrorist group,” the NGO said.

As a result, the organization called on its followers to contact CNN about the matter. HonestReporting soon received a response from CNN:

“Idris was employed as a freelancer by CNN. We were not aware of these tweets, which were published before we began working with him. We have informed him that we will no longer be working with him in the future.”

HonestReporting executive director Gil Hoffman said: “We at HonestReporting will continue to make sure that those who call for the annihilation of the Jewish people will not report the news about the Jewish state.”

==========================================================================================

Aussie Rugby Star Apologizes After Sharing ‘I Love Jesus’ Message at Easter

© Global Look Press / AFLO / Yoshio Tsunoda

Australian rugby star Samu Kerevi has apologized for “offending ” some fans after sharing an Easter message which quoted from the Bible, amid a backlash against Kerevi's international teammate Israel Folau over anti-gay comments.

Kerevi, who is captain of The Queensland Reds and has won more than 20 caps for the Wallabies, shared a message at Easter on his Instagram account which read: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16."

“Thank You Jesus for dying on the cross for me. I love you Jesus,” he added, alongside a picture of himself appearing for the Reds.

The post came amid a row involving Wallabies teammate Folau, who is facing the sack over a social media post earlier in April in which he said that “hell awaits” gay people.

Israel Folau

Some fans questioned Kerevi’s Easter post in light of the Folau controversy, with one writing: "I know a lot of gay kids and adults in our sport would love to hear a rugby leader like you say you love and respect them for who they are – are you willing to endorse that message?"

Another wrote: "I hope you don't support Israel's comments Samu." 

Kerevi later took to Instagram Stories to apologize “to anyone that I have offended in giving praise to our God on a weekend that we take off to celebrate his Sacrifice for you and I.”

After the bizarre apology, he later posted a message clarifying that he was “not apologizing for my faith in Jesus Christ my saviour."

"I do not feel obliged to apologise because of a situation happening right now to a brother of mine,” he added, referring to Folau’s case.

Kerevi has won considerable support from fans despite the initial criticism from some, while fellow Wallabies international and Queensland Reds teammate Taniela Tupou – known as ‘The Tongan Thor’ – wrote on Facebook: “Might as well sack me and all the other Pacific Islands rugby players around the world because we have the same Christian beliefs.

“I will never apologise for my faith and what I believe in, religion has got nothing to do with rugby anyways.”

Taniela Tupou (C) gave a show of support to his teammate. © Global Look Press / AFLO / Jun Tsukida

Folau, meanwhile, is set to learn his fate at a code of conduct hearing with a three-member Rugby Australia panel on May 4.

The star, capped 73 times by his country, faces the termination of his contract with both club and country, ahead of the World Cup in Japan later this year.

Corruption is Everywhere - But Northern Ireland's Ian Paisley?

DUP meets to discuss Paisley’s political future

after Sri Lankan holiday scandal

DUP MP Ian Paisley apologises to the House of Commons in London for failing to register two family holidays funded by the Sri Lankan government, which he previously estimated was worth £50,000. Photograph: PA Wire

Senior DUP personnel met today to discuss the political future of North Antrim MP Ian Paisley.

The party did not reveal the outcome of the meeting but said it may issue a statement on the matter early next week.

Mr Paisley made an emotional statement to the House of Commons this week, apologising for his failure to declare two luxury holidays that were paid for by the Sri Lankan government.

A parliamentary watchdog has called for the North Antrim MP to be suspended for 30 sitting days because he failed to declare the holidays, which were worth more than £50,000.

Another DUP MP, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson told the BBC today that his party was not going to take “a lynch mob approach”.

Speaking on the Today programme, Sir Jeffrey said Mr Paisley’s behaviour had been unacceptable.

However, he added: “Ian is entitled to have his case heard, he is entitled to fairness.

“We are a democratic party - the clue is in our name - and this matter has been referred to our party officers. They will consider the report prepared by the standards committee, they will consider what has happened and they will come to a decision.”

Sir Jeffrey said that Mr Paisley had apologised and acknowledged that what he had done was unacceptable.

In Belfast on Friday, Mrs May sidestepped questions about the impact the Commons suspension of Mr Paisley would have on future legislative Brexit battles she will face.

But she said the confidence and supply agreement with the DUP had allowed the Government to deliver “key decisions”. Mrs May said it was a “matter for Parliament” how it dealt with breaches of its rules.

Mr Paisley’s trips also included meeting with Sri Lankan governmental figures. The threshold for registering such hospitality in 2013 was around £660. He subsequently wrote a letter to the prime minister arguing on behalf of the Sri Lankan government. Mr Paisley has faced calls to resign his seat and there is a prospect of a by-election as a consequence of the sanction.

At times struggling to maintain his composure, Mr Paisley apologised to the House, to his colleagues in the DUP and to his constituents.

“I take my duties as a Member of Parliament seriously. I believe that I conduct myself with colleagues with integrity and openness, which is why I have such remorse about the matter, as I believe it goes against the grain of who I am, especially how it is portrayed,” he said.

“It is to my constituents, who have sent me here since 2010, that I make the profoundest of all apologies. They have honoured me with unwavering support to be their voice and I hope that they will continue to have that confidence in me in the future.”

Denied

When the Daily Telegraph broke the story of Mr Paisley’s holidays in Sri Lanka, where he was accompanied by his family, he initially denied the reports and threatened to sue the newspaper.

The holidays included business-class air travel, accommodation at first-class hotels, helicopter trips and visits to tourist attractions for Mr Paisley and his family.

Mr Paisley said that mistakes made by those in public life were amplified and that they ought to be.

“That is the nature of the job that all of us do and all of us understand that. However, I believe in a politics and in politicians who can admit to human frailty, who can apologise, mean it, and move on, because that is what real life is all about,” he said.

“It is often said that it is how we respond to these challenges in our lives that defines who and what we are, and defines our character and demonstrates to us where the true source of our personal strength rests. The 8th-century (BC) prophet Isaiah said, ‘You were angry with me, that anger has turned away, you comfort me.’ I hope to learn that lesson.”

The Commons Standards Committee on Wednesday outlined the sanction for Mr Paisley, son of late DUP founder the Rev Ian Paisley, saying he had committed “serious misconduct” and his actions “were of a nature to bring the House of Commons into disrepute”.

Mr Paisley’s potential suspension would start in September if MPs approve it.

Members who are suspended from the Commons for more than 10 days are open to a recall petition. A by-election would be triggered if 10 per cent of the electorate in Mr Paisley’s North Antrim constituency sign that petition.– PA

Stormont, NI

I Said Israel Should be Ashamed – Now I Am the One Who is Ashamed

Daniel Sugarman

On Tuesday Daniel Sugarman wrote an article on the clashes at the Gaza border.

Today he acknowledges that he was wrong.

Palestinian protestors at the Gaza border(Photo: Twitter @IDF)

It’s never easy to say you’re sorry.

To admit you’re wrong. To announce publicly, “I made a mistake”.

But to apologise when that apology comes bound up with what is, perhaps, the most intractable conflict on earth, makes it a thousand times harder. 

But that is what I am. Sorry.

A few days ago I wrote a column about the latest round of violence on the border with Gaza. 

It was a cry from the heart. I love Israel. I have always loved it, and cannot envision a time when I will not love it. 

But in my office, I sit near a television set. And on Monday, I saw the following, side by side.

On the left, in Jerusalem, I saw happy faces. Self-congratulatory faces. I saw the Prime Minister of Israel talking about how the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem was a big step towards peace. 

And on the right, simultaneously, in Gaza, I saw tear gas, and smoke, and bullets. 

And it was in this context that I wrote my piece, which was an extremely personal one. I wrote it in anguish. I wrote it making clear that I despised Hamas and all it stood for. But I also wrote the following:

“Every bullet Israel fires, every life Israel takes, makes this situation worse. There are ways to disperse crowds which do not include live fire. But the IDF has made an active choice to fire live rounds and kill scores of people. You cannot tell me that Israel, a land of technological miracles which have to be seen to be truly believed, is incapable of coming up with a way of incapacitating protestors that does not include gunning dozens of them down. But no. In front of the entire world, Israel keeps shooting, and protestors, including very young protestors, keep dying. You may tell me that Hamas wants these deaths, wants to create martyrs, wants to fill the hearts of the people of Gaza with rage against Israel because the alternative is for people to look at their lives in Gaza and rage against Hamas. But if you tell me that, why are you not asking yourselves why Israel is so willingly giving Hamas exactly what it wishes?”

I received a lot of praise for my piece, from people I admire greatly, as well as from a great many unexpected sources, including from within the Jewish community.

I also received a lot of criticism. I got called a traitor, and that most vile of all insults a Jew can bestow or receive, a “Kapo”. 

People also wrote pieces in response. I was told that, as a Jew not currently living in Israel, my greatest worry was whether Starbucks would have almond-soya milk for my latte.

But the criticism I paid more attention to was from people who pointed out that it was absurd to deal in hypotheticals. I’d said that surely there must be a way the protestors could be stopped without shooting live ammunition at them – that Israel, with its incredible technological capabilities, must be capable of developing a way. That was a cry of anguish, but it was not an argument. If no such technology currently exists, then it was absurd of me to blame the IDF for not magically willing it into existence. The traditional crowd stopping technology would not have worked effectively. Rubber bullets are only short range. The same with water cannons. And with tens of thousands of people rushing the border, this would have been extremely unlikely to work effectively. The border would have been broken through. And then, without much of a doubt, a lot of people in Israel would have died.  That was, after all, Hamas’s stated aim.

But what really affected me the most was yesterday, when a Hamas operative went on television and claimed that, of the 62 people killed in the last two days, fifty were Hamas operatives. Islamic Jihad claimed three more, meaning that over 80 percent of the people who were killed while trying to breach the border were members of terrorist organisations whose direct aim is to bring death and suffering into Israel. 

And I opened my eyes and saw what I had done.

I had fallen into the trap I had always been convinced I would not fall into. I had condemned Israel for defending itself. 

There are things one can write about how Israel could have acted differently in the run-up to these attempts to charge the border. But I did not write about those in my original piece. I wrote that, by killing the Palestinians running towards them, the IDF was giving Hamas exactly what it wished for – martyrs for the cause.

I failed to acknowledge that, either way, Israel would be giving Hamas what it wanted. Shoot at those charging at you and Hamas would have its martyrs. Fail to shoot and Hamas would break through the barrier and bring suffering and death – its stated aim - to Israelis living only a few hundred metres away from that barrier. The march may have originally been, as it was declared to be, about Palestinians returning to the homes they had to leave 70 years before. But Hamas’s aim was far more straightforward - “We will take down the border and we will tear out their hearts from their bodies.”

I wrote in my previous article that Israel was a regional powerhouse, and that it was strong enough to take criticism from Jews in the Diaspora. 

I still believe it is strong enough to do so. I just don’t believe that my criticism of it was valid. Given the circumstances, and the situation on the ground, I am at a loss in terms of coming up with a better solution. The choice was, quite literally, shoot at people running at you with the stated aim of killing you and your families, or fail to shoot and let them do it.

A few days ago I said I could not and would not defend Israel’s actions. Now, in the cold light of day, I could not and would not see how I would fail to defend them.

I said that Israel should be ashamed of its actions. But today I am the one ashamed. 

This is a perfect example of one of the serious flaws in modern-day reporting. It has become emotional to the point that there is little room for logic or truth. Daniel Sugarman was blessed with the ability to see that and with the opportunity to retract it and apologize for it. Far too many MSM reporters fail to recognize that emotions have replaced truth and integrity in the media and, for that matter, in too many governments.

Spanish Basque Separatist Group ETA Dissolves After 54 Years

It's always news when peace breaks out, partly because it is so unlikely and unexpected. With numerous extremely well financed groups doing their utmost to ensure peace is a rare event (it's hard to sell weapons when there is peace), one has to be surprised when it happens.

By Ed Adamczyk

Graffiti reading "Viva ETA. The fight of yesterday, today and tomorrow" is seen in San Sebastian, Basque Autonomous Community, Spain, in 2017. The group, responsible for over 850 deaths in its 54-year campaign, announced its dissolution. File Photo by Javier Etxezarreta/EPA

UPI -- The Spanish Basque separatist group ETA said it's dissolving after more than a half-century, during which more than 800 people died amid its campaign.

ETA, considered a terrorist organization by the European Union, sent letters to organizations in Spain's northeastern Basque region last month.

The letters, meant to show the group's decision is "definite and conclusive," said ETA will dissolve all structures and "has terminated its political initiatives." The declaration acknowledges the formal end of its mission.

A formal dissolution ceremony in the French town of Cambo-les-Bains is scheduled for this weekend.

The group's name is an acronym of "Euskadi Ta Askatasuna," or "Basque Homeland and Liberty" in the Basque language.

In its 54-year campaign for an independent Basque republic, ETA was responsible for the deaths of 853 people in the Basque Autonomous Community and the nearby Chartered Community of Navarre. Hundreds more disappeared or were injured.

Last month, the group apologized for its past violence, saying it accepts "direct responsibility" for years of bloodshed -- and asked for forgiveness for the deaths of people without "a direct participation in the conflict."

Nearly half the deaths attributed to ETA have not been fully investigated, and many Basques feel there remain issues to be resolved before peace can be established.

A report by the regional government last year noted 4,000 documented cases of torture by ETA security forces between 1960 and 2014. Only 20 cases resulted in court sentences.

The letters said the Basque community now faces "a new opportunity to definitively close the cycle of conflict and build a future between us all."

While ETA's attempt to create a sovereign Basque state was ineffective, the Basque region has more autonomy today than any of Spain's 17 regions -- with its own police force, education system, language and financial relationship with the federal government. The special powers were granted by Spain to the region in a new constitution in 1978.

19 Years After NATO Bombed Serbia, Most Serbs Won’t Take Apology From Alliance – Poll

In the 1990s, NATO lost its raison d'être when the Iron Curtain fell and Communism collapsed. They had to find a new reason for their existence and where better to find a reason for a military alliance than in the Balkans. They got their new lease on life and it only cost a few thousand lives at most. 

Since 1999, NATO has seemingly made a art-form out of provoking regional wars - Libya, Syria, etc., but as both these missions became absolute disasters, NATO has turned it's attention to fear-mongering - creating hysteria about Russia that is way over the top. But they are making and selling weapons like never before in history, so everyone is getting filthy rich. 

© Marko Djurica / Reuters

A majority of Serbs today would not accept an apology from NATO for its 1999 military intervention in Kosovo. Only 10 percent would wish to see their country become a member the trans-Atlantic defense bloc, recent poll shows.

The continued animosity towards NATO in Serbia was highlighted by an opinion poll conducted by the Belgrade-based Institute for European Affairs in mid-March. According to the poll, only 10 percent of Serbs support membership of the military bloc while 84 percent oppose it. The mood is particularly strong in the Serbian capital, where the level of support for NATO membership is 5.8 percent, and among young people aged 18 to 25 (7.7 percent). Only 18 percent believe that becoming an ally would be beneficial for Serbia.

Former Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic and his policies are perceived as the main reason for the bombings by 17.4 percent of Serbs. The second-most mentioned reason was that the US and Western powers were simply pursuing their interests. It was cited by 15.2 percent of respondents. Other popular explanations included a goal to push ethnic Serbs out of Kosovo (12.6 percent) and to remove Kosovo from Serbia (10.5 percent).

If NATO were to offer Serbs an apology for the bombings, 62 percent of them would not accept it according to the poll. The defiant attitude is most prominent among Belgrade residents (65.9 percent) and people aged 30-44 (67.3 percent), who were teens or young adults during the bombing campaign. A majority of 66 percent said NATO bombings of Yugoslavia could have been avoided.

NATO justified its intervention in Kosovo by accusing the Milosevic government of ethnically cleansing the province. 

Of course, only NATO would believe that the way to end ethnic cleansing is to drop bombs on people.

The bombings lasted 78 days and officially claimed at least 758 civilian lives, though Serbian sources say the true figure may be double that. The violence in Kosovo followed decades of inter-ethnic alienation and tension in the province. The loss of the province was a great symbolic blow to Serbs, who historically consider the land essential to their statehood and of great spiritual significance.

FBI Director Accuses Poland and Hungary of Helping With the Holocaust

FBI director's article stirred up a strong reaction. One reaction by a Washington Post columnist and the wife of the Speaker of the Polish Parliament, Anne Applebaum, follows this brief article.

FBI director James Comey

Poland has summoned the US ambassador and demanded an apology over comments on the Holocaust by FBI director James Comey.

The foreign ministry said Mr Comey had suggested in a Washington Post article that some Poles were accomplices.

That's not actually correct. What he said, (below in blue) was that there were murderers and accomplices of Germany, Poland and Hungary. Consequently, he's accusing Poland and Hungary of being as guilty as Germany. What do you think? Does the Director need history lessons or English lessons?

After the summons US envoy Stephen Mull said he made it clear the US believed "Nazi Germany alone" was responsible.

Six million Polish citizens were killed by the Nazis during World War Two, half of them Jewish.
'Falsification of history'

In the Washington Post article on Thursday, aimed at raising education about the Holocaust, Mr Comey wrote: "In their minds, the murderers and accomplices of Germany, and Poland, and Hungary, and so many, many other places didn't do something evil.

"They convinced themselves it was the right thing to do, the thing they had to do."

The words sparked a storm of protest in Poland.

President Bronislaw Komorowski told Polish television the comments were an "insult to thousands of Poles who helped Jews".

Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz said: "To those who are incapable of presenting the historic truth in an honest way, I want to say that Poland was not a perpetrator but a victim of World War Two. I would expect full historical knowledge from officials who speak on the matter."

Ambassador Mull, who on Sunday attended ceremonies marking the 72nd anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising against the Nazis, said in a statement he had written to Mr Comey "protesting the falsification of history, especially... accusing Poles of perpetuating crimes which not only they did not commit, but which they themselves were victims of."

After Sunday's summons he added: "I made clear that the opinion that Poland is in any way responsible for the Holocaust is not the position of the United States.

"Nazi Germany alone bears responsibility. I now have a lot of work before me to make things right in this situation."

Anne Applebaum
Washington Post

Response 
Anne Applebaum
Washington Post
The Polish ambassador to Washington has protested, the Polish president has protested, the speaker of the Polish parliament (to whom I am married) has protested — and the U.S. ambassador to Warsaw has apologized profusely. Why? Because James Comey, the director of the FBI, in a speech that was reprinted in The Post arguing for more Holocaust education, demonstrated just how badly he needs it himself.

In two poorly worded sentences, he sounded to Polish readers as if he were repeating the World War II myth that most drives them crazy: Namely, that somehow, those who lived in occupied Eastern Europe shared full responsibility for a German policy. Comey put it like this:

“In their minds, the murderers and accomplices of Germany, and Poland, and Hungary, and so many, many other places didn’t do something evil. They convinced themselves it was the right thing to do, the thing they had to do.”

There are a number of problems with that pair of weak sentences, starting with the vast difference between Germany and the rest. During the war, Germany had a state policy of exterminating the Jews. This policy involved not “accomplices” but hundreds of bureaucrats, tens of thousands of soldiers, train schedules and plans. Germany also encouraged the creation of collaborationist governments in other countries – Vichy France, for example – some of which used their own police officers to send their Jewish citizens into the German death camps.

Germany also occupied Poland, but there was no Polish “Vichy.” During the war, there was no Polish state at all. Indeed, it was the absence of the Polish state that enabled the Germans to create a lawless, violent world, one in which anyone could be arbitrarily murdered, any Jew could be deported — and any Pole who helped a Jew could be shot instantly, along with his entire family. Many were. Millions of others died too – Polish intellectuals, priests and politicians were all Nazi targets.

In the course of the war, most of Poland’s infrastructure, industry and architecture were destroyed. In that atmosphere, many people were frightened by or indifferent to the fate of the Jews, and some murdered in order to avoid being murdered. But that doesn’t mean that “in their minds” they “didn’t do something evil.”

Although the circumstances were different, Germany’s leading role is equally clear in Hungary. The wartime government of Adm. Miklós Horthy did pass anti-Semitic legislation and did align itself with the Nazis. But the mass murder and deportation of the Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz began only in March 1944, when that government dissolved and was replaced with a straightforward German occupation. Once the Hungarian state had been dissolved, in other words, Hungary also became a lawless, violent zone where anything was possible.

So no, it is not true, as Comey made it sound, that “murderers and accomplices” in Germany, Poland and Hungary and lots of other places were somehow responsible for the Holocaust. And no, it isn’t true that the Holocaust is a story of so many otherwise “good” people who “convinced themselves it was the right thing to do.”

On the contrary, it’s a story about the power of fear, the danger of lawlessness and the horror that was made possible by a specific form of German state terror in the years between 1939 and 1945 – a terror that convinced many people to do things that they knew were terribly, terribly wrong. If the FBI director wants to take some lessons from Washington’s excellent Holocaust museum, that’s very admirable. But first he should make sure he’s understood what he’s seen.

Anne Applebaum writes a biweekly foreign affairs column for The Washington Post. She is also the Director of the Global Transitions Program at the Legatum Institute in London.