Bits and Bites from Around the World > Man and surfboard bitten in half by large shark off a Sydney beach

 

Surfer dies in Sydney shark attack

By Simon Corlett

   

A 57-year-old man has died after being bitten by what officials are calling a “large shark,” while surfing at Long Reef Beach north of Sydney, Australia, police confirmed Saturday. Photo by Dean Lewins/EPA-EFE

Sept. 6 (UPI) -- A man has died after being bitten by what officials are calling a "large shark," off a beach in Sydney, Australia, police confirmed Saturday.

The man's surfboard was bitten in two during the attack, which happened around 10 a.m. AEST at Long Reef Beach, a popular surfing location north of Sydney.

The man, identified by the Sydney Morning Herald as Mercury Psillakis, suffered critical injuries, losing both of his legs. Officials said he died at the scene.

Witnesses estimated the shark to be almost 20 feet in length and occurred some 320 feet from shore.

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"Officers attached to Northern Beaches Police Area Command have closed the beach and will liaise with experts from the Department of Primary Industries to determine the species of shark involved," the New South Wales Police said in a statement.

"Two sections of a surfboard have been recovered and taken for expert examination."

The beach was heavily populated with surfers at the time of the shark attack, which happened a day before Father's Day in Australia.

Psillakis was a father and well-known member of the local surfer community, local media reported.

Shark attacks are commonplace in Australia, with the country experiencing on average around 10 injuries and 2.8 deaths per year attributed to sharks over the last decade, according to data from the Taronga Conservation Society.

Over 90% of all shark bite incidents in Australia involve White Sharks, Bull Sharks, Tiger Sharks, Wobbegongs and other whaler sharks, according to the society.

Long Reef Beach falls under the New South Wales Shark Management Program, a collection of nets and drumlines, drones and other measures meant to keep the animals from attacking humans.

Middle East Madness > Hamas Tortured Israeli Hostage to Death

 

Autopsy finds that Hamas tortured Israeli hostage Itzik Elgarat to death

Aug 17, 2025 8:00 am By Robert Spencer7 Comments

This is not at all surprising, given that terror is the only tool the Qur’an provides for dealing with those whom one fears and hates: “Make ready for them all that you can of force and of warhorses, so that by them you may strike terror in the enemy of Allah and your enemy…” (Qur’an 8:60)

Autopsy finds: Itzik Elgarat was tortured to death in Hamas captivity

Israel National News, August 14, 2025:

Danny Elgarat, the brother of Itzik Elgarat, who was abducted from Nir Oz on October 7th, 2023, and whose body was returned in the previous hostage deal, revealed on Thursday that the autopsy of his brother’s body found that he was tortured to death in an interrogation.

“Itzik didn’t die from a heart attack. His body arrived with many broken ribs as a result of external pressure to the chest, broken big toes, and a broken nose,” Elgarat wrote.

He added, “The cause of death wasn’t legally conclusive, but it was stated that such a scope of breaks in a living human could cause their death.”

Dani Elgarat told the Knesset last month that his brother died of a heart attack in captivity while being interrogated by Hamas terrorists, who suspected he was a pilot.

“Yesterday, intelligence personnel came to see me and updated me on something new,” Elgarat said. “My brother was held together with Edan Alexander, and one day, they took him out for interrogation. They suspected my brother was a pilot. He never came back from that interrogation.”

“Edan asked where Itzik was, and they told him he had ‘gone.’ Itzik suffered a heart attack from the torture during the interrogation,” Elgart recounted through tears.

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Middle East Madness > Iran pulls a Satanic Reversal to explain their loss of the 12-day war with Israel; Albanese exposed in the UN

 

Rather than admit the obvious, that God was on Israel's side, Iranian leaders explain the catastrophe as being the fault of evil spirits invoked by Israel. It's an amazing admission that Allah is powerless against jinns, or against the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as he has always been since he doesn't really exist anyway. Iran had to invoke a Satanic Reversal to explain the loss.

Satanic Reversal - accusing your enemy of doing what you did.

Iranian official says Israel ‘occult and supernatural spirits’ against the Islamic Republic during 12-day war

Jul 13, 2025 3:00 pm By Robert Spencer6 Comments

The jinn are spirit beings that Allah created from “smokeless fire” (55:15). The twentieth-century Islamic scholar Muhammad ibn al-Uthaymeen states a standard Muslim view when he asserts that while human beings cannot see jinn, “undoubtedly the jinn can have a harmful effect on humans, and they could even kill them. They may harm a person by throwing stones at him, or by trying to terrify him, and other things that are proven in the sunnah (prophetic teachings) or indicated by real events….There are numerous reports which indicate that a man may come to a deserted area, and a stone may be thrown at him, but he does not see anybody, or he may hear voices or a rustling sound like the rustling of trees, and other things that may make him feel distressed and scared. A jinn may also enter the body of a human, either because of love or with the intention of harming him, or for some other reason.”

Iranian official claims Israel used ‘the occult and supernatural spirits’ during 12-day war

Jerusalem Post, July 13, 2025:

A senior Iranian official claims that Israel deployed “the occult and supernatural spirits” during its war with Iran, Iran International reported on Friday.

Abdollah Ganji, former editor of the IRGC-linked newspaper Javan, told his 150,000 followers on X/Twitter on Wednesday that a “strange phenomenon” had taken place during the 12-day war.

“After the recent war, a few sheets of paper were found on the streets of Tehran containing talismans with Jewish symbols,” he wrote. “In the first year of the Gaza war, news had also leaked about Netanyahu meeting with occult specialists.

“A few years ago, the Supreme Leader had stated that hostile countries and Western and Hebrew intelligence services use occult sciences and jinn entities for espionage.”…

Jinn are also said to have the capability of assuming different forms and exercising extraordinary powers.

They were first mentioned in the Quran and are conceptualized in Islam “as creatures parallel to human beings who are capable of choosing between good and evil and must thus face eventual salvation or damnation,” Britannica explained.

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The Speech that the UN Never Wanted to Go Public

written by Phil Schneider July 13, 2025 2K views

The UN’s two-facedness vis-a-vis Israel is being exposed day after day. The UN was not just an enabler in the Hamas terrorist build up against Israel. The UN organization UNRWA literally too active part in building up terrorist infrastructure in Gaza and educating Arab children to kill Jews. Thankfully, President Trump is taking on the UN too.

It is not only President Trump who has taken on the fight. Secretary of State Rubio has joined in and is actually applying sanctions to the UN officials who spend their time literally supporting terrorists who wake up in the morning to kill Jews.

The UN is a corrupt yet very well-funded organization that accomplishes the opposite of what it was set up to do. It is supposed to help promote peace. It does the opposite. It is supposed to bring opposing sides together. It takes an active side against those who are promoting open discussion to improving peace worldwide. 

It is way overdue that the UN goes through a reset. The representatives of the UN should not be political appointees of politicians. They should be people that are recognized worldwide for their genuine humanitarian accomplishments. Instead of the UN being the beacon of light it ought to be, it is a farce of an organization wherein those who are true representatives of peace and harmony are drowned out by the chorus of liars, fakers and enablers of terrorists. 

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Middle East Madness > Iran arrests 700, executes 6, in response to Rising Lion; Damage to Iran's nuclear program limited - IAEA; Iran is furious at IAEA Chief

 

Six executions hardly qualify as 'mass executions' as I quoted in a previous report. My apologies for the hyperbolic headline in that report.

Islamic Republic of Iran: Security forces arrest at least 700 people for alleged ties to Israel

Jun 28, 2025 12:00 pm By Robert Spencer5 Comments

This is a pretext for the Islamic Republic to be able to round up all manner of dissidents.

Iran arrests at least 700 nationals for alleged ties to Israel – report

Jerusalem Post, June 27, 2025:

Iran has arrested at least 700 people since Operation Rising Lion began due to alleged ties with Israel, the Iranian exiled women’s organization Association Femme Azadi reported on Thursday night.

“Reports confirm the arrest of rabbis and religious leaders in Tehran and Shiraz, accused, without evidence, of ties to Israel,” the organization wrote on its social media.

Six additional people have been executed on suspicion of collaborating with Mossad, Israel’s public broadcaster KAN News noted.

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Iran has executed nine individuals accused of espionage so far in 2025, KAN added….

Editor’s note: The headline of an earlier version of this report said that 700 Jews were arrested, instead of 700 people. This mistake has since been corrected.

Wave of arrests among Iranian Jews – despite loyalty to regime

by Nitzan Kedar, Israel National News, June 27, 2025 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

Jewish and international sources report a marked increase in pressure and alleged persecution of Iran’s Jewish community following Operation Rising Lion, despite public expressions of loyalty to the regime by Jewish leaders in the country.

According to Iran International, security forces recently raided the homes of Jewish families in Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan. During these operations, authorities confiscated mobile phones, computers, and other personal belongings. Individuals with any digital ties to relatives in Israel were reportedly detained for questioning, with some held for extended periods. In several cases, past travel to Israel was cited as grounds for arrest — a serious allegation under Iranian law.

The number of detainees remains unclear, though the names of dozens have been published. Jewish community sources describe an atmosphere of fear, with reports of entire families being taken into custody.

Today, Iran’s Jewish population is estimated at around 10,000, down from 80,000 before the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Most live in the same cities where these incidents have been reported.

In a statement this week, Dr. Younes, the Jewish representative in Iran’s parliament, acknowledged the community has faced difficulties, saying, “Air Force attacks in Iran have created many problems for the Jewish community,” including damage to homes. He emphasized that Iranian Jews remain committed to the Islamic Republic and its ideals….

If that's true, then you probably deserve everything you get. You are not in God's grace.

IAEA chief: Iran could resume uranium enrichment

‘in matter of months’

Jun 30, 2025 8:30 am By Christine Douglass-Williams2 Comments

The Islamic Republic of Iran remains a grave threat, given the latest report from the International Atomic Energy Agency. For years, Grossi has been sounding the alarm about Iran’s uranium enrichment, which proved to be accurate. Should his threat be ignored, and should a Democrat government follow the Trump administration, it’s obvious what will happen.

There’s no negotiating with Iran; such talks only serve to buy the Islamic regime more time. Israel was correct to continue its attacks before Trump intervened.

Iran could resume uranium enrichment in ‘matter of months,’ IAEA chief says

AFP, June 29, 2025:

UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi says Iran likely will be able to begin to produce enriched uranium “in a matter of months,” despite damage to several nuclear facilities from US and Israeli attacks, CBS News said Saturday.

Israel launched a bombing campaign on Iranian nuclear and military sites on June 13, saying it was aimed at keeping Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Then, last Sunday, the United States subsequently bombed three key facilities used for Tehran’s atomic program.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said that the extent of the damage to the nuclear sites is “serious,” but the details are unknown, while US President Donald Trump insisted Iran’s nuclear program had been set back “decades.”

Trump's declaration of total destruction of the nuclear program was way too premature.  

In Israel, IDF spokesman Brig. Gen. Effi Defrin said Israel thinks Iran’s nuclear program had been set back years by the war, but that it was “still too early” to tell.

But Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said “some is still standing.”

“They can have, you know, in a matter of months, I would say, a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium, or less than that,” Grossi said Friday, according to a transcript of the interview released Saturday….

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Iran: Khamenei-linked newspaper calls for arrest and execution of IAEA chief

Jul 1, 2025 10:30 am By Christine Douglass-Williams1 Comment

The gloves are finally off with Iran after years of its manipulation of Western leftists in negotiations. Obama and Biden poured billions into its coffers in sham nuclear deals. International Atomic Energy Agency Chief Rafael Grossi has been sounding the alarm for years about Iran’s uranium enrichment, warning since 2021 that only countries making bombs are enriching uranium at Iran’s level. Iran already has a record of arbitrarily detaining, imprisoning and executing those inside its own country who oppose it. Since the Israeli and American destruction of its nuclear capabilities, not to mention humiliation, its Khamenei-linked Kayhan newspaper is now resorting to threatening whoever crosses its path, even if they are outside Iran.

Condemnation from the UK, France and Germany will fall on deaf ears among leaders of the Islamic regime and its loyalists.

UK, France, Germany condemn threats against IAEA head after Iran newspaper calls for his arrest

Reuters, June 30, 2025:

DUBAI, June 30 (Reuters) – Britain, France and Germany denounced threats against the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Monday, after a hardline Iranian newspaper said IAEA boss Rafael Grossi should be tried and executed as an Israeli agent.

“France, Germany and the United Kingdom condemn threats against the Director General of the IAEA Rafael Grossi and reiterate our full support to the Agency and the DG in carrying out their mandate,” said a statement from the three countries’ foreign ministries.

“We call on Iranian authorities to refrain from any steps to cease cooperation with the IAEA. We urge Iran to immediately resume full cooperation in line with its legally binding obligations, and to take all necessary steps to ensure the safety and security of IAEA personnel,” they added.

The statement did not specify what threats had been made against Grossi, but it follows an article in Iran’s hardline Kayhan newspaper, closely associated with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which accused Grossi of ties to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency. Should Grossi enter Iran, he should be tried and sentenced to death, it said.

Grossi has not directly responded to the newspaper’s allegations. He has said his top priority is ensuring IAEA inspectors can return to nuclear sites in Iran as soon as possible….

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