Military Madness > Mad USA Advisor advises WWIII; NATO's Underwater Exercise near Nord Stream Pipelines; Ukraine Shells Refugee Convoy - Kills Children

..

West and Russia already fighting WW3 – former US advisor

Fiona Hill argues that Americans have “failed to recognize” the scope of the Ukraine conflict

FILE PHOTO: Fiona Hill testifies before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe

in Washington, DC, February 2, 2022 ©  AFP / Alex Wong

The West has been fighting World War III against Russia “for a long time” without being aware of it, former White House advisor Fiona Hill told the New Yorker magazine on Thursday. Moscow, however, is aware, with President Vladimir Putin accusing the collective West of waging “hybrid war” on Russia.

“We’ve been in this for a long time, and we’ve failed to recognize it,” said Hill, who served in Donald Trump’s national security council before testifying against him during the 2019 impeachment inquiry.

With the US backing a coup in Kiev in 2014 and supplying military aid to Ukraine while it waged war against the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics in the eight years since, Hill suggested that Washington could reevaluate its stated policy of supporting Ukraine without becoming a direct party to the conflict.

“If the goal is to avoid a conflict in which we are already fighting, then does the rest of Washington’s approach to Russian aggression need to be reconsidered?” the New Yorker paraphrased her argument.

While Hill did not directly call for the US to enter open war with Russia, other US lawmakers and former officials have. Shortly after Russian troops rolled into Ukraine in February, a group of these national security experts called on President Joe Biden to enforce a “no-fly zone” over Ukraine. Such a measure would see the US and any willing NATO allies commit to shooting down Russian aircraft, something Moscow has explicitly said it would perceive as an act of war.

Russia already considers itself at war with NATO in Ukraine, and Putin has vowed to use “all available means” to defend its own territory, including four former Ukrainian regions set to join the Russian Federation in the coming days. In a speech on Friday after signing accession treaties for these four regions, Putin accused the West of waging a “hybrid war” against Russia to prevent the development of a “multipolar world.”

This is NATO's proxy war with Russia, being fought in a country which does not even belong to NATO. A country that is one of the most corrupt in the entire world. 

NATO tested underwater ‘equipment’ close to Nord Stream – Moscow

Poland's FM thanks the USA for destroying the Nordstream pipelines

NATO conducted exercises using deep-sea equipment in the area where gas leaks in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines were detected this week, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova said on Thursday. She added that the entire Baltic Sea is “packed full” of the bloc’s military infrastructure.

Speaking at a regular press briefing on Thursday, Zakharova dismissed any allegations that Russia was behind the incident. “May I ask you a question? When exactly did Russia decide it wanted to stop supplying energy to Europe?” she asked.

Zakharova said NATO was engaged in military activities close to the location where the leaks were found, noting that it might have presented an interesting “opportunity” for the bloc.

“So, maybe the NATO bases never conducted exercises there, while American soldiers have never been stationed on the territory of nearby countries?” she quipped, adding that this summer "in the area of Bornholm, Denmark, NATO conducted exercises that used deep-sea equipment”.

Zakharova was apparently referring to Exercise Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 22 in the Baltic Sea, which took place in June 2022 and were meant to demonstrate the military bloc's “mine hunting capabilities,” according to the statement by the US Navy at the time. In particular, it sought to experiment with Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUV) by deploying them off the coast of Bornholm island.

Poland's FM

Zakharova urged Washington to offer “an explanation” and “confess” to the truth, saying that the US had left that job to Poland's former foreign minister, Radoslaw Sikorski, who earlier “thanked” the US for destroying the pipeline.

NATO said Thursday that the pipelines were damaged in what appeared to be a “deliberate, reckless, and irresponsible acts of sabotage,” promising to meet any attack on its critical infrastructure “with a united and determined response.”

Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the Nord Stream leaks as a probable “terrorist act” which is unlikely to have been possible “without the involvement of some state power.”

On Monday, Denmark reported leaks from the pipelines after the operator reported a loss of pressure on both Nord Stream 1 and 2. Danish and Swedish authorities later said there had been a series of undersea explosions near Bornholm. In total, there have been four gas leaks detected in the Nord Stream system.

So, the question is, who gains the most from destroying Nord Stream pipelines? Russia instantly loses many customers for its gas. That puts pressure on Europe with winter approaching rapidly. It also cuts off a revenue stream that Russia sorely needs to continue its war against NATO in Ukraine. And, repairs will take a long time and be very expensive if even possible in a hostile environment.

What does the NATO-USA bloc have to gain from blowing up the pipeline? It cuts off a revenue stream to Russia; it puts pressure on Europe to buy American gas at outrageous prices; and with MSM in their pockets, they can convince everyone that it was Putin's fault. It's pretty obvious who has the most to gain.

Children among dead after Ukraine shells refugee convoy – LPR

Over 30 people were killed in an attack near Kharkov, the Lugansk People’s Republic’s

envoy to Moscow claims

FILE PHOTO. ©  Mykhaylo Palinchak / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images

The Ukrainian army has attacked a refugee convoy in the eastern region of Kharkov, killing over 30 people, according to the Lugansk People’s Republic’s envoy to Russia.

Rodion Miroshnik wrote on his Telegram channel that those killed in the artillery bombardment included children. He added that emergency services are unable to access the bodies, as shelling from Kiev’s forces continues. The republic’s health ministry stated that seven other people were injured, including two children who lost their parents in the shelling.

Miroshnik claimed the Ukrainian army knew exactly who they were shooting at, as they had allegedly used drones to track down the refugee vehicle convoy and were “intentionally aiming at civilians.” Kiev has yet to respond to the allegations.

Speaking to the Russia 24 TV channel, the LPR envoy noted that the number of civilians trying to get out of Kharkov Region has significantly increased in recent days, as fighting in the area has intensified in the wake of Kiev’s forces reclaiming most of the region. Miroshnik said most of the fleeing residents are trying to cross into Russia’s Belgorod region or the LPR, especially from the cities of Kupyansk and Balakleya.

Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian president Pyotr Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”

He didn't mention the brutal attacks on the Russian-speaking regions by Ukraine's Azov neo-Nazi battalion.

In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.

Military Madness > Righteous Murder of Children by Pentagon; Biden May Change Nuclear Weapons Policy; Neo-Nazi Advisor to Ukraine Military

..

No ‘misconduct or negligence’ in US drone strike on Afghan aid worker

that killed 7 children, Pentagon probe finds

3 Nov, 2021 19:00 

The US airstrike that killed 10 Afghan civilians, including seven children, in August was not caused by misconduct or negligence, the Pentagon has found after an “independent review.” No disciplinary action has been recommended.

It was a communications breakdown rather than any sort of malice or ineptitude, Air Force Lt. Gen. Sami Said suggested in his review, the contents of which were relayed to Associated Press by a senior defense official. He clarified that the breakdown occurred in the process of identifying and confirming the target of the bombing and that, Said had concluded, it had occurred despite “prudent measures to prevent civilian deaths.”

How can a communications breakdown involving very high-tech systems like weaponized drones, and the lives of innocent adults and children, be anything other than ineptitude?

Whoever made the decision to launch the missile errored seriously and should suffer the consequences.

However, Said acknowledged that better communication between those involved in the decision to strike and “other support personnel” might have raised legitimate concerns about the bombing, even if they might not have prevented it.

Said's report seemingly exonerated the Pentagon of any and all responsibility for blowing up a 37-year-old employee of an American humanitarian NGO who was driving with nine members of his family. The report, which apparently has been endorsed by Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin, also called for more to be done to prevent “confirmation bias.” Confirmation bias, in this case, would have led the strike team to cherry-pick the data that supported team members' collective suspicions that the occupant of the car was an Islamic State terrorist.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley, patted himself on the back for several days following what the Pentagon called a “righteous strike.” That is, until it was learned that the driver, Zemari Ahmadi, had been working as an electrical engineer for the US-based aid group Nutrition and Education International for more than a decade. At the time of his death, he was carrying water jugs to his employer’s Kabul office, where he was supposed to pick up a laptop, the group has confirmed.

I wonder if Milley will still profess a righteous strike when he stands before God on that day.

As I have written many times, it is almost always children who pay for the madness of men!

Biden ready to change US nuclear weapons policy – reports

3 Nov, 2021 17:13

Minuteman III missile launches from Vandenberg Air Force Base in United States. April 26, 2017.

© Reuters / Michael Peterson

The Biden administration is reportedly considering a revision to US nuclear doctrine, with national security officials said to be debating whether to declare that the “sole purpose” of its atomic stockpile is deterrence.

The National Security Council is holding a series of inter-agency meetings this month regarding changes to the US’ “nuclear posture,” according to the Washington Post. Unnamed officials told the paper a new nuclear policy would be announced in early 2022.

President Joe Biden is said to be in favor of the revision, which would narrow the circumstances in which the US would use nuclear weapons. If ratified, they would be used only to deter a direct attack or retaliate after a strike. During his campaign for the presidency in 2020, Biden expressed his support for a ‘sole purpose’ declaration and pledged to put it into practice.

Near the end of his stint as vice-president in 2017, Biden commented that it would be “hard to envision a plausible scenario” in which the first use of nuclear weapons by the US would either “be necessary” or “make sense.” 

Although the Obama administration flirted with making that declaration, it did not ultimately do so, while, in 2018, the Trump administration rejected both the ‘sole purpose’ and ‘no first use’ doctrines. Under the latter policy, the US would pledge not to preemptively use nuclear weapons in a conflict. 

While progressive politicians and non-proliferation advocates have urged Biden to declare an explicit ‘no first use’ policy, he hasn’t indicated that he supports any such promise. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers and key US allies alike have warned against making any modifications that would remove decades of intentional ambiguity over the country’s threshold for nuclear weapons use. 

“[The] ‘sole purpose’ nuclear policy is just ‘no first use’ by another name, and to even consider adopting either is a complete betrayal of our allies,” James Risch (R-Idaho), the most senior GOP member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told the Financial Times. Writing in Defense News, he noted that such policy changes “scare our friends, encourage our adversaries, and damage the very nonproliferation goals it claims to advance.”

The questionnaire on amending US nuclear policy the White House sent to allies earlier this year received an “overwhelmingly negative” response, according to the Financial Times, with an unnamed European official saying any changes would be a “huge gift to Russia and China.” 

The proposed new policy would be “soul crushing” to allies and partners, another unnamed source told the paper, adding that there was “genuine concern” over how much more allies “can take,” after the US’ chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and issues concerning the Nord Stream 2 Russia-Germany gas pipeline.

Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated that Washington’s decision, back in 2019, to pull out of a Cold War-era nuclear weapons deal could lead to escalating tensions and spark a “new arms race.” Asked about nuclear weapons, he said the threat of mutual destruction remained.

Earlier this year, Putin signed a decree approving Russia’s policy of keeping nuclear weapons at a “sufficient level to ensure deterrence” so as to guarantee the “sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state.” It said Moscow viewed nuclear weapons as “a means of deterrence” and that their use would be an “extreme forced measure.”

Ukraine appoints former neo-Nazi paramilitary leader

to senior army advisory role

3 Nov, 2021 10:58 

FILE PHOTO. © Sputnik / Stringer

The former leader of Ukrainian fascist paramilitary group ‘Right Sector’, known for its far-right views, has been appointed to the role of adviser to the commander-in-chief of the country’s armed forces, he reported on Tuesday.

Dmitry Yarosh announced his new job on Facebook.

“By order of Lieutenant-General Valeriy Zaluzhny, I have been appointed adviser to the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Thank you for your trust! Together we will win!” he wrote.

Right Sector was created in 2013 as a confederation of several radical nationalist groups during the violent, Western-backed Maidan protests in Kiev. One of the founding groups of the organization was Tryzub, a paramilitary group started by the Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists, a political party that idolizes Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera. As head of Tryzub, Yarosh was chosen to be the leader of Right Sector.

This group came to prominence in 2014, when its members were involved in violent clashes with law enforcement officers. It is also suspected of being behind the 2014 Odessa Massacre, in which more than 40 people were killed in a fire at the city’s House of Trade Unions.

The group has also been accused of anti-Semitism. According to an article by the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board, later republished by the UN Refugee Agency’s Refworld, Right Sector was implicated in an incident “in which graffiti depicting swastikas was painted on tombs in a Jewish cemetery.” The organization denied the accusation.

Following the events of the Maidan, when violent street protests toppled a democratically elected government, the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in east Ukraine unilaterally declared their independence from Kiev. In response, Right Sector took up arms, forming a volunteer battalion to fight against separatists.

Nowadays, Yarosh is known for his view that Ukraine should escalate the war in Donbass and even suggested launching grenades at the building of opposition-leaning TV channel 112, located in the center of the capital.

The neo-fascist paramilitary leader, who also served a term as an MP, is known for being strongly anti-Russian and has regularly echoed the belief of the authorities in Kiev that Moscow is in control of the separatists in the Donbass. In 2019, Yarosh claimed that the Kremlin plans to destroy Ukraine by 2024 and called for an intensification of combat operations in Donbass to neutralize “collaborationist pro-Moscow forces.”

Populist Parties Surge in Italian Election - Not Good News for EU

EU - listing a bit more to starboard

By Hilary Clarke and Euan McKirdy, CNN

(CNN) Populist parties have gained ground at the expense of establishment voices in Italy's parliamentary elections, which produced no clear winner as votes were being counted in the early hours of Monday.

The anti-establishment Five Star Movement is projected to have gained the most votes by a single party, while a center-right coalition looks set to hold the most seats in the country's senate.

According to state broadcaster RaiNews24, Five Star Movement led by 31-year-old Luigi di Maio is projected to gain over 32% of the vote, still short of the 40% needed to form a government.

Based on early vote count, the result looks like a win for the center-right coalition brokered by former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, which collectively is projected to hold the biggest share of the vote -- 35.5%.

The result, which is comprised of Berlusconi's Forza Italia, Matteo Salvini's far-right League and the neo-fascist Brothers of Italy, means it will have the most seats in parliament, but 4% short of the 40% needed to avoid a hung parliament.

Berlusconi's Forza Italia is projected to receive 14%; the xenophobic and populist League, formerly known as the Northern League, also is expected to win 16%.

Berlusconi, a multi-billionaire, is currently not eligible to be Prime Minister because he has been convicted of tax fraud.

Poor showing for ruling party

The result is a blow for another former leader, Matteo Renzi, whose center-left group, comprised of his Democratic Party and the liberal More Europe party could only muster 23% between them.

The poor showing comes despite the ruling party projected to get the second-largest share of votes, 19%, for an individual party. Renzi, a center-left reformer, stepped aside in 2016 after the failure of a controversial constitutional referendum,

Italian political leaders seemed to be waiting for more results before weighing in on social media, with only the League leader Matteo Salvini tweeting "My first word: THANK YOU."

Bad news for EU unity

The poll is being closely scrutinized by European leaders who are concerned by the increasingly euro-skeptical sentiment and fearful of any instability in the Eurozone's third-largest economy.

If projections are accurate, the result means that Italy could be plunged into months of further political deadlock that could have broader implications for Europe -- both the League and the Five Star Movement are anti-EU parties.

One of the main issues in the election has been the surge in undocumented immigrants entering Italy, one of the main entry points into Europe from migrants from Africa and Asia.

The narrative around immigration took a darker turn after a man linked with neo-fascist political parties apparently went on a shooting rampage targeting African migrants in the town of Macerata. The incident fueled serious political debate about how the country is reconciling its fascist past.

Sweeping change

The populist parties' gains in the polls were not lost on US President Donald Trump's former strategic adviser Steve Bannon, who was in Rome to observe the elections.

Bannon said in an interview with Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper that an alliance between the anti-immigrant League party and the populist Five Star Movement was "the ultimate dream."

"This election is crucial for the global populist movement" he said, saying it was an issue of "sovereignty" for Italians opposed to immigration.

Another far-right politician, France's Marine Le Pen, tweeted that the projected results signaled an anti-EU sentiment in the southern European country.

"The European Union is going to have a horrible evening," she said in the post.

Final results are expected at 2 p.m. local time (8 a.m. ET). The real work will begin once all the final votes are through and negotiations begin for a coalition.

Neo-Nazi Leader Quits Movement after Coming Out as Gay & Jewish

Anyone who doesn't know that God has a sense of humour needs to know that this kind of story happens every year or two. It's hilarious!

©  john kevin wilshaw / YouTube

A prominent neo-Nazi and National Front organizer has come out as gay and revealed his Jewish heritage. He made the revelations about his violent past while renouncing far-right extremism.

Kevin Wilshaw, 58, spent his entire adult life promoting white supremacism and was a high-profile figure in the National Front (NF) in the 1980s. He was still speaking at extremist events as recently as this year and was arrested for spewing race hate online in March.

Speaking to Channel 4 News, he admitted to acts of violence and racism including smashing a chair over someone’s head in Leeds and vandalizing a mosque in Aylesbury. He said he joined “because he didn’t have many friends at school,” and was looking for “comradeship” and to be “a member of a group of people that had an aim.”

“Even though you end up being a group of people that through their own extreme views are cut off from society, you do have a sense of comradeship in that you’re a member of a group that’s being attacked by other people,” he added.

Wilshaw joined the British National Party (BNP) at the age of 18 after a stint with the NF, and also dabbled with violent fringe groups such as the Racial Volunteer Force. According to Hope Not Hate, a charity that “campaigns to counter racism and fascism,” Wilshaw had belonged to the far right since 1974.

Wilshaw said he eventually realized racism was “rubbish” and quit the far-right after receiving abuse from within the movement over his sexuality.

“It’s a terribly selfish thing to say, but it’s true, I saw people being abused, shouted at, spat at in the street – it’s not until it’s directed at you that you suddenly realize what you’re doing is wrong,” he said.

He feels “appallingly guilty” over his past and now wants to fight racism, although he said he feared reprisals from the far-right for his “betrayal.”

New figures released on Tuesday revealed a stark rise in Islamophobic hate crimes reported in London in the last year.

A total of 17,042 race or religious-related crimes were reported to police 12 months up to April 2017, compared to 16,762 in the previous financial year.

The sharpest increase was recorded among anti-Islam crime, with offences up by a quarter. Homophobic crimes rose 6 percent and anti-Semitic offences increased 4.5 percent.

The government has also been urged to launch an inquiry into far-right extremism in the armed forces after four soldiers were arrested for being alleged members of a banned neo-Nazi group called National Action.

Cambridgeshire Neo-Nazi Rally Allowed as 'Charity' Event

By Sally Chidzoy
BBC East home affairs correspondent


Blood and Honour is banned in a number of countries across Europe and in Russia

Hundreds of people attended a neo-Nazi rally that was not opposed by police in the belief it was a charity event.

About 350 people attended the rally on the anniversary of the death of Ian Stuart Donaldson, who founded white supremacist group Blood and Honour.

But Cambridgeshire Police said the force had been told the Haddenham gathering on 23 and 24 September was in aid of Help for Heroes.

Mr Donaldson died in a car crash in Derbyshire in 1993, aged 36.

Blood and Honour has been banned in a number of countries across Europe and in Russia.

Matthew Collins, from the Hope not Hate campaign group, told the BBC the gathering was an annual Blood and Honour event following the death of Mr Donaldson and had moved around the UK because it had "struggled to find venues that will host them".

He said there were a number of banning orders against the group in other countries due to imagery used at concerts and links to violent extremism.

About three-quarters of those attending travelled from Europe to be at the event and this included people from countries that ban Blood and Honour.

A witness to the event, who wished to remain anonymous, described seeing "a lot of cars, a big bonfire and a lot of music".

"The one that I heard was a song about white power and this kept going on and on. It was very loud and distinctive."

'Private party'

East Cambridgeshire District Council said a temporary event notice was filed online for a "private party with music".

It said, like all applications, it was passed to the police to see if they had any objections and, as none were raised, the event went ahead.

Help For Heroes said the event was not registered with the charity, adding it was "strictly non-political" and it did not accept donations from extremist groups.

Mr Collins said it was "disappointing" the event had been allowed but he was "aware of a number of occasions when the police appear to have been caught short about the activities of the extreme far right".

Mark Gardner from Community Security Trust, which protects British Jews from anti-Semitism, said it looked "like somebody pulled the wool over the police's eyes".

The BBC contacted Blood and Honour for comment. .....And? What a weird way to end an article.

Norway's Monster Wins in Court Against State

Mass killer Anders Breivik's human rights breached in prison, court rules

By Tim Hume and Olav Mellingsater, CNN

Oslo, Norway (CNN)Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik has won part of his lawsuit against the state over his solitary confinement in a high-security prison, a court announced Wednesday.

The Oslo district court found the 37-year-old's treatment in prison violated Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, prohibiting "inhuman or degrading treatment," and ruled that his conditions must be eased.

The court also ordered the government to pay legal costs of 331,000 kroner ($40,600) for the right-wing extremist, who killed 77 people in a shooting rampage and bombing attack in 2011.

Norway has the right to appeal the ruling. It has not announced whether it intends to do so.

The court dismissed Breivik's claim that the government had violated Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees respect for "private life" and correspondence.

The ruling outlined areas of concern in regard to the conditions of Breivik's confinement, which, taken as a whole, constituted a breach of his rights.

These included the duration of his isolation, and inadequate consideration of the mental impact of the regime. It also said the routine nude checks Breivik had to go through were not sufficiently justified from a security perspective.

But it did not give concrete directives on how the conditions should be changed.

Breivik's complaints

Breivik's case centers on the complaint that he is banned from contact with other inmates, has limited contact with prison guards and had had virtually no contact with anyone outside a professional capacity.

It claims his only visitor in a non-professional context has been his mother, before her death in 2013, and that during her visits, they only had about five minutes together when they could hug. His only other visitors were restricted to communicating with him through a glass panel.

His complaint claimed the approval process for visits was so strict that it effectively prevented visits, as were the restrictions on his mail, which denied him the opportunity to build relationships.

It also complained that he had been subjected to more than 800 nude inspections, some of which were carried out by female prison officers, and none of which had found anything.

This, I can agree with as being way over the top. With no visitors except professionals, how is he going to acquire anything contraband? These were obviously for the sake of embarrassing Breivik and for the amusement of the guards.

Boy, I wish my barracks rooms in the military had been this nice

State response

In response, the state legal team argued in papers submitted to the court that the high security restrictions placed on Breivik were appropriate given the seriousness of his crimes, and well within the limits allowed for under the European Convention on Human Rights.

It argued that Breivik was a very dangerous man -- a mass killer who was methodical, rational, and who had shown no regret for his actions.

The documents argued that restrictions, such as the time spent in handcuffs, had been gradually eased in line with ongoing risk assessments.

The defense documents claimed Breivik received regular visits from a "visit friend" and priest, and that he undertook correspondence studies with the assistance of a social worker.

Breivik had access to a computer, without Internet access, as well as writing tools, a TV and a PlayStation gaming console, the documents said.

An exercise room with a scenic view of a wall

They claimed that censorship of his mail was not in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, and was appropriate given the risk that he would contact far-right sympathizers and potentially encourage them to commit acts of violence or terrorism.

It only takes one Breivik to inspire another, state lawyer Adele Matheson Mestad told the court Tuesday.

Letters, phone calls to sympathizers

Mestad said that out of a total of 4,000 letters sent to or by Breivik, about 600 had been blocked by prison authorities. These were letters attempting to establish networks or encourage extremism, both in Norway and abroad, in countries including the United States, Britain, Russia and Poland, Mestad told the court.

The biggest category of correspondence blocked were mass letters to supporters -- people he didn't know personally, but with whom he was attempting to build networks due to their shared racist ideology.

Another category of blocked mail was sent to prison inmates, attempting to establish "brotherhoods" in prisons.

In my opinion, security trumps human rights, at least to a degree. The Norwegian judge doesn't seem to agree. I hope they appeal.

Germany's Streets Full of Anti-Immigration Rallies and Counter Rallies

Cologne cathedral lights were switched off
as part of a protest against the anti-Islam rallies

Supporters and opponents of a group campaigning against what it sees as the "Islamisation" of Europe are holding rival rallies across Germany.

There have been weekly protests by the Patriotic Europeans against the Islamisation of the West (Pegida) since October.

Dresdan Pegida rally - 18,000 supporters

A record 18,000 people turned out on Monday at one rally in Dresden.

But counter demonstrations have sprung up and the group has been condemned by senior German politicians.

Thousands of people are marching in Berlin, Cologne, Dresden and Stuttgart.

In Berlin, police said that some 5,000 counter-demonstrators blocked hundreds of Pegida supporters from marching along their planned route.

A total of 22,000 anti-Pegida demonstrators rallied in Stuttgart, Muenster and Hamburg, according to the DPS news agency.

But in Dresden, police said that 18,000 people turned up for just one anti-immigration rally. The counter-demonstration attracted 3,000 people.

A supporter of the Pegida movement holds a flag in a demonstration on Jan. 5, 2015

Supporters of the Pegida movement, including some holding lanterns glowing in the colours of the German flag, gather for another of their weekly protests on January 5, 2015 in Germany
Some 18,000 supporters of Pegida attended a rally in Dresden

In Cologne, the authorities switched off the lights of the city's cathedral as a way of telling Pegida supporters they are supporting "extremists".

"We don't think of it as a protest, but we would like to make the many conservative Christians [who support Pegida] think about what they are doing," the dean of the cathedral, Norbert Feldhoff, told the BBC.

A woman protesting against the anti-Islam party Pegida holds up a sign

Only about 250 Pegida supporters showed up in Cologne, compared to thousands of counter-demonstrators.

Much of the city centre was also plunged into darkness as lights were switched off at major buildings and bridges across the Rhine, according to the news agency DPA.

"Today, there is really a democratic sign being sent and a lot of people in Cologne are expressing their opinion," said Cologne mayor Juergen Roters.

"They want to stress that we here in Cologne do not want to have anything to do with right-wing extremists and xenophobic people."

In Dresden, carmaker Volkswagen said it was also keeping its manufacturing plant dark to show that the company "stands for an open, free and democratic society."

A man holds a sign reading "No to Islamisation of Europe!"

German Chancellor Angela Merkel attacked the movement in her new year speech, saying its leaders have "prejudice, coldness, even hatred in their hearts".

Pegida organiser Kathrin Oertel responded in a speech at the rally in Dresden. She said that there was "political repression" in Germany once again.

"Or how would you see it when we are insulted or called racists or Nazis openly by all the political mainstream parties and media for our justified criticism of Germany's asylum seeker policies and the non-existent immigration policy?"

A poll of just over 1,000 people carried out by Germany's Stern magazine found one in eight Germans would join an anti-Islam march if Pegida organised one near their home.

Germany receives more refugees and asylum seekers than any other EU country. Many of those have come from war-torn Syria.

It's a problem wanting help with the deplorable condition of the poor people of Syria, they are desperate for sure. But the impact of Muslims in any country to which they immigrate very significantly affects the culture. Many Muslims do not integrate into society very well and often end up living in Muslim sections of a city where they don't integrate at all.

Germany is super-wary of neo-Nazi like people for obvious reasons. Unfortunately that affects their view of Pegida which overcomes any fear of Islam. Fear of Islam is what motivates Christians to march with Pegida. Check out the video at this link.

Islam has a way of taking over countries. Because of dramatically different birth rates, France will be a Muslim country within a generation or two. French society will disappear and Sharia will become national law. Look at ANY Islamic country and ask yourself if that's what you want your country to be in this century.

Germany is now expediting that process and may be in danger of competing with France to see who is going to commit cultural suicide first.

Swedish Far-Right Leader: Jews Must Abandon Religious Identity to be Swedes

The leader of Sweden’s Jewish community has condemned as “good old right-wing antisemitism” remarks by a far-right leader who said Jews cannot be Swedes unless they abandon their Jewish identity.

Lena Posner Körösi, president of the Official Council of Jewish Communities in Sweden, said the comments conveyed a message that Jews were untrustworthy and could not be considered real Swedes, “exactly like in 1930s Germany” from which her grandfather had fled.

Björn Söder said Jews could become Swedish citizens but could not be
Swedish unless they were assimilated. Photograph: Bob Strong/Reuters

Official Sweden and social media have been in uproar after Björn Söder, secretary of the anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats and deputy speaker in parliament, said Jews could become Swedish citizens but could not be Swedish unless they were assimilated.

Posner Körösi said the remarks showed “the mask is slipping” from the face of Sweden Democrats to reveal the essence of what they stand for.

“I am appalled that Sweden’s third largest party can express itself in this way about Jews and other minorities,” she said. “We have to take them really seriously. This not a small group of fanatics you can dismiss.”

The party took 13% of the vote in elections in September.

Söder claims he was quoted out of context. He also singled out the indigenous Sami people and Kurds in his newspaper interview, not just Jews. “Those who know me when it comes to Jews know I have long had a very strong commitment to both the state of Israel and the Jewish people,” he told Swedish Radio.

Hmmm. There seems to be a dichotomy here. Is he doing damage control? Is his commitment to Israel and the Jewish people restricted to those who live in Israel?

Söder had said in a newspaper interview it would be a problem if there were too many people in Sweden “who belong to other nations” and had non-Swedish identities. Paying immigrants to go home would also help to avoid “foreign enclaves” and instead “create a society with a common identity”, he said.

Yet, he fails to mention Islam. One would think that they would be the primary target for Soder. Sweden has about 5% of their population as Muslims, though only a small fraction of those are practicing Muslims.

The Sweden Democrats have thrown Swedish politics into turmoil after they used their power of veto two weeks ago to block the government’s budget and force fresh elections in March. The party appears to be thriving on the sense of political crisis, with opinion polls suggesting it is set to increase its share of the vote to between 16% and 18%.

Last week the prime minister, Stefan Löfven, who leads a minority coalition with the Greens, accused the party of being “neo-fascist”. Löfven said he found Söder’s remarks “very, very scary”.

Söder faced calls from parties on the centre left to resign his post as deputy speaker. His remarks were criticised by a leading party colleague as “extremely vague”.

Sweden Democrat leaders have courted controversy in the past by claiming that Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Sweden’s soccer superstar born of Yugoslavian immigrants in Malmö, was not truly Swedish. Niclas Nilsson, party leader in its southern stronghold of Kristianstad, told the Guardian last week: “Zlatan grew up in an area where there were not many Swedes, then he has moved from country to country, so he is a bit Swedish but also cosmopolitan.”

Willy Silberstein, president of the Swedish Committee Against Antisemitism, told TT news agency: “I am a Jew, born in Sweden. I am as Swedish as Björn Söder.”

The Sweden Democrats did not respond to a request for comment.

Austria to Shut Down The Saudi School in Vienna

VIENNA: Austrian authorities said Tuesday they have ordered a Saudi-financed school to close due to allegations of anti-Jewish teachings and for failing to give the names of staff.

The Saudi School in Vienna “is being investigated over suspicions of anti-Semitic teachings,” Matias Meissner, a spokesman for Vienna’s Schools Board, the Stadtschulrat, told AFP.

“We have also asked the school to supply us with a translation of all teaching materials,” he said.

The Arabic-language school with around 160 pupils opened in the Austrian capital around 10 years ago and has been ordered to close at the end of the current school year.

It also failed to meet a request to supply a list of all teachers and administrative staff by December 1.

The school was not immediately available for comment. It has four weeks to appeal.

The closure order comes as the government prepares controversial changes to Austria’s century-old Islamic Law in an attempt to tackle extremism among the European Union country’s Muslim minority.

Where are the liberals with their calls of Nazism, fascism, racism and all the other isms?

The amendments, due to go before parliament in the new year, tighten rules on foreign financing of prayer houses and mosques and ban extremist symbols, and local Muslim groups are not happy.

Germany Beginning to Wake to the Almost Inevitable Islamisation of Europe

A march against "Islamisation of the West" is due to take place in Dresden, with turnout expected to reach about 10,000 in the eastern German city.

A big counter-demonstration is also being organised, similar in size.

Dresden is the birthplace of a movement called "Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West" (Pegida), which staged a big rally a week ago.

Justice Minister Heiko Maas called Pegida's protests "a disgrace". But the Eurosceptic party AfD is sympathetic.

"Most of their demands are legitimate," said Bernd Lucke, leader of the conservative Alternativ fuer Deutschland (AfD), which has campaigned for a tougher policy on immigration, as well as rejection of the euro.

In the western city of Cologne, about 15,000 people attended a demonstration on Sunday to promote tolerance and open-mindedness, under the motto: "You are Cologne - no Nazis here."

Immigration has become a hot topic in Germany this year, amid a surge in the numbers of asylum seekers, fuelled by the wars in Syria and Iraq. Germany takes in more asylum seekers than any other country.

Germany expects 200,000 asylum claims for 2014, up from 127,000 in 2013.

Lutz Bachmann launched the Pegida movement through a Facebook group

German media report that Pegida grew out of a Facebook group launched by Lutz Bachmann, 41, a chef-turned-graphic designer. He insists that he is not racist. He has admitted to past criminal convictions, including for drug-dealing. He says he spent two years in prison.

The AfD leader in Dresden, Frauke Petry, said Pegida "is protesting against inadequate legislation on asylum rights - they are also demanding that German law be applied against law-breakers, and they are opposing religious extremism".

The centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) - in the ruling coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats - called Pegida's organisers "Nazis in pinstripes".

Police sources, quoted by the Spiegel online news website, said hundreds of Pegida activists in Dresden were members of two hooligan groups regarded as far-right.

Minister Maas said Pegida must be "unmasked", and he called for a "broad counter-movement embracing civil society and all political parties".

Not sure what he means by 'unmasked', unless it is the fact that Bachmann spent 2 years in jail. Does a criminal conviction in the past make an organization criminal? Does it indicate that a man is racist? 

The slur, 'Nazis in pinstripes' is absurd. There is no reasonable comparison between Nazi hatred for Jews and patriotic Germans who don't want Germany to become an Islamic state. The Jews never numbered more than several million in their history. Islam numbers about 1.5 billion. That number should be enough to scare the daylights out of you. A force that large moving in one direction is nearly unstoppable. 

The 'Nazi' slur could only have been made by those who are either too blind, or too stupid, to read the very clear writing on the wall. They need to look at France, which is just waking up to the fact that France, as we know it, will disappear within two generations, and it is probably too late to do anything about it. 

Creeping Islamisation will conquer all of Europe while our grandchildren are still alive, and it will do it with the complicity of astonishingly naive, liberal governments.

Neo-Nazis in Ukraine - A Realistic Assessment

The Azov volunteer battalion is run by an extremist
group and sports a modified neo-Nazi Wolf's Hook

Ever since Ukraine's February revolution, the Kremlin has characterised the new leaders in Kiev as a "fascist junta" made up of neo-Nazis and anti-Semites, set on persecuting, if not eradicating, the Russian-speaking population.

Putin is using this 'fascist junta' idea as a pretext for being involved in eastern Ukraine. His involvement is 'for the protection of the Russian speaking people'.

This is demonstrably false. Far-right parties failed to pass a 5% percent barrier to enter parliament, although if they had banded together, and not split their vote, they would have probably slipped past the threshold.

Only one government minister has links to nationalist parties - though he is in no way a neo-Nazi or fascist. And the speaker of parliament, Volodymyr Groysman, is Jewish. He has the third most powerful position in the country after the president and prime minister.

But Ukrainian officials and many in the media err to the other extreme. They claim that Ukrainian politics are completely fascist-free. This, too, is plain wrong.

As a result, the question of the presence of the far-right in Ukraine remains a highly sensitive issue, one which top officials and the media shy away from. No-one wants to provide fuel to the Russian propaganda machine.

Mr Poroshenko (R) was pictured on his website clasping
Serhiy Korotkykh on the shoulder (5 Dec)

But this blanket denial also has its dangers, since it allows the ultra-nationalists to fly under the radar. Many Ukrainians are unaware that they exist, or even what a neo-Nazi or fascist actually is, or what they stand for.

Controversial 'patriot'
This hyper-sensitivity and stonewalling were on full display after President Petro Poroshenko presented a Ukrainian passport to someone who, according to human rights activists, is a "Belarusian neo-Nazi".

The Ukrainian leader handed out medals on 5 December to fighters who had tenaciously defended the main airport in the eastern region of Donetsk from being taken over by Russian-backed separatists.

Among the recipients was Serhiy Korotkykh, a Belarusian national, to whom Mr Poroshenko awarded Ukrainian citizenship, praising his "courageous and selfless service".

The president's website showed a photo of Mr Poroshenko patting the shoulder of the Belarusian, who was clad in military fatigues.

Serhiy Korotkykh was among the fighters surrounded inside
the wreck of Donetsk airport terminal (7 Dec)

Experts who follow the far right have strongly objected to President Poroshenko's decision.

They say Mr Korotkykh was a member of the far-right Russian National Unity party and also a founding member of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Society (NSS) in Russia.

According to Ukrainian academic Anton Shekhovtsov, the NSS's main goal "is to prepare for a race war".

Mr Shekhovtsov said the Belarusian had been charged for involvement in a bombing in central Moscow in 2007, and was detained in 2013 in the Belarusian capital Minsk for allegedly stabbing an anti-fascist activist. He was later released for lack of evidence.

Even though the details involved accusations rather than facts, if true they were damning, said human rights activist Halya Coynash.

Top Ukrainian officials then rejected as defamatory any claims that Mr Korotkykh had neo-Nazi ties.

"Counter-intelligence has no information that could prevent him from receiving Ukrainian citizenship," said Valentyn Nalyvaychenko, the head of Ukraine's security services.

Nevertheless, the fact is, neo-Nazis are indeed a fixture in Ukraine's new political landscape, albeit in small numbers.

Azov battalion volunteers in Kiev (file pic Oct 2014)
The Azov battalion seems to enjoy the support of several top officials

Azov Battalion
As Mr Korotkykh's case demonstrates, the ultra-nationalists have proven to be effective and dedicated fighters in the brutal war in the east against Russian-backed separatists and Russian forces, whose numbers also include a large contingent from Russia's far right.

As a result, they have achieved a level of acceptance, even though most Ukrainians are unfamiliar with their actual beliefs.

The volunteer Azov Battalion is a case in point.

Run by the extremist Patriot of Ukraine organisation, which considers Jews and other minorities "sub-human" and calls for a white, Christian crusade against them, it sports three Nazi symbols on its insignia: a modified Wolf's Hook, a black sun (or "Hakensonne") and the title Black Corps, which was used by the Waffen SS.

Azov is just one of more than 50 volunteer groups fighting in the east, the vast majority of which are not extremist, yet it seems to enjoy special backing from some top officials:

- Interior Minister Arsen Avakov and his deputy Anton Gerashchenko actively supported the parliament candidacy of Andriy Biletsky, the Azov and Patriot of Ukraine commander
- Vadim Troyan, another top Azov official and Patriot of Ukraine member, was recently named police chief for the Kiev region
- Mr Korotkykh is also an Azov member

Ukraine's media has been noticeably silent on this subject.

Recently, prominent newspaper and online publication Left Bank published an extensive interview with Mr Troyan, in which the journalists asked no questions at all about his neo-Nazi past or political views.

And after the Unian news agency reported the presidential ceremony under the headline, "Poroshenko awarded Belarusian neo-Nazi with Ukrainian passport", it was soon replaced with an article that air-brushed out the accusations of extremism.

Unian's editors have declined to comment on the two pieces.

There are significant risks to this silence. Experts say the Azov Battalion, which has been widely reported on in the West, has damaged Ukraine's image and bolsters Russia's information campaign.

And although Ukraine is emphatically not run by fascists, far-right extremists seem to be making inroads by other means, as in the country's police department.

Ukraine's public is grossly under-informed about this. The question is, why doesn't anyone want to tell them?

Is the government pressuring the media to stay away from this subject? It certainly looks like it. Ukraine is hardly in a position to refuse the help of the Azov Battalion, however, controlling the media is not a good sign in any country, even one with the extraordinary precariousness of Ukraine. Also, the appointment of Vadim Troyan as police chief for Kiev region is a little disturbing - I can't see anything good coming from that.