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Fighting between
jihadist groups in Syria
kills nearly 70:
Two formerly allied jihadist
groups clash in north Syria
over influence in Idlib
province, nearly 70 fighters
dead
39 Syrian soldiers
killed during IS offensive
in Aleppo;
At least 39 government
soldiers have been killed
over the past 36 hours, when
the Islamic State (IS)
unleashed a violent
offensive on areas under the
government control in
southern countryside of
Aleppo
More unsupported
propaganda
from HRW?
Syria: Coordinated
Chemical Attacks on Aleppo:
Syrian government forces
conducted coordinated
chemical attacks in
opposition-controlled parts
of Aleppo during the final
month of the battle for the
city
Russian MoD Slams
HRW's 'Amateurish' Claims
Syrian Army Used Chemical
Weapons:
"Such reports, drafted by
amateurs, citing data from
social networks and stories
by unknown anonymous
eyewitnesses by phone,
destroy the already
controversial reputation of
Human Rights Watch,"
Security forces kill
24 IS members after sneaking
into eastern Mosul:
A Counter-Terrorism Officer
announced on Tuesday, that
24 members of the Islamic
State, including two elite
leaders, were killed, after
sneaking into eastern Mosul.
Iraq: Baghdadi
escapes, 13 commanders
killed in bombing;
Iraq fighter jets dropped
bombs on a house in an
orchard, in Anbar province,
believed to be hosting a
meeting of senior members of
the Islamic State, including
its leader Abu Bakr
Baghdadi.
Trump moves spark
Iraqi anger, calls against
future alliance;
Iraqi anger at Washington
comes at a crucial juncture
in a long and often
contentious relationship.
U.S.-backed Iraqi forces are
about to launch an assault
aimed at retaking the
western half of Mosul
Yemen conflict:
Seven Saudi soldiers killed
on border;
At least seven Saudi
soldiers have been killed in
the past week in border
clashes with Houthi rebels,
state media says.
Yemen suicide car
bombing kills three:
officials;
The attack targeted a sports
and culture club in the
Huthi-controlled town of
Radaa, he said, in the
central province of Baida
where Al-Qaeda fighters are
present.
Fact or fiction?
Riyadh recruits 350 Comorian
militias for Yemen war:
Using the Comorian forces is
part of the Israeli-US plan
to recruit military men from
different African countries,
including Senegal, Djibouti
and Eritrea, to fight
against the Yemeni army and
Ansarullah forces.
Turkey: Hundreds
detained over alleged links
to PKK:
Police conducted
simultaneous raids in 37
different provinces and
taken 834 people into
custody, state-run Anadolu
Agency quoted police forces
as saying on Tuesday.
Palestinians in
occupied East Jerusalem
battle for their homes:
Dozens of Palestinian
families live with the
constant threat of eviction
by Israeli squatters groups
in the occupied city.
Israeli president
slams land grab law:
“Israel adopts international
law,” he explained, “which
does not allow a state to
impose its laws on areas not
under its sovereignty. If a
country does such a thing,
it becomes a legal
cacophony. It will cause
Israel to be seen as an
apartheid state.”
US President Donald
Trump sons to launch Dubai
golf course;
DUBAI: US President Donald
Trump's sons are to
inaugurate a branded golf
course in Dubai on Saturday,
the first public launch for
the business empire since
Trump took office in
January.
UN air strikes in
Central African Republic
kill several - militia;
A top militant and three
others were killed in
Central African Republic
when a UN helicopter fired
on fighters advancing
towards the town of Bambari
Congo Police Kill at
Least Four in Dawn Raid on
Separatist
: This adds to wider
tensions across Congo since
President Joseph Kabila
refused to step down after
his mandate expired in
December.
‘Blackwater Air’ Is
Back, and Flying for U.S.
Special Forces:
A corporate descendant of
the notorious guns-for-hire
firm just got a $204 million
contract to support American
troops in Africa.
US
Kills 18 Civilians In
Afghanistan:
“Initial enquiries suggest
that the airstrikes killed
at least 18 civilians,
nearly all women and
children,” the U.N. said in
a statement late Sunday,
referring to its own
investigation.8 Civilians In
Afghanistan:
Afghanistan: 16 ISIS
militants killed in
Nangarhar air and ground
operations;
The provincial police
commandment in a statement
said the militants were
killed in the past 24 hours
in Haska Mina and Kot
districts.
Seven killed in
separate Kashmir clashes:
Pakistani soldiers, Indian
troops and one suspected
rebel killed in separate
incidents in disputed
region.
Kim
Jong-un's half-brother Kim
Jong-nam allegedly
assassinated in Malaysia by
'female North Korean spies
: The women are believed to
be North Korean agents but
have so far been able to
evade a police hunt.
The Coming Showdown
in Okinawa:
Okinawa Gov. Takeshi Onaga
arrived at the National
Press Club last Friday to
address the media after
spending three days in
Washington talking about his
opposition to a new U.S.
Marine base on the island.
Trump expects Russia
to return Crimea to Ukraine:
White House;
U.S. President Donald Trump
made it clear he expects
Russia to return Crimea to
Ukraine and reduce violence
in Ukraine, White House
spokesman Sean Spicer said
on Tuesday.
Demonizing Russia?
Russia sends spy ship near
US coast:
The Russian ship was in
international waters, 70
miles off the coast of
Delaware and heading north
at 10 knots, according to
one official. The U.S.
territory line is 12
nautical miles.
Russia "Secretly"
Deploys Banned Cruise
Missile In "Latest Challenge
To Trump";
The deployment of the
missile - which may well be
defensive in light of the
recent build up of NATO
forces on Russia's borders -
could also "increase the
military threat to NATO
nations
Ukraine turns a
blind eye to ultrarightist
militia;
Despite Kiev’s pledge to
rein them in, rogue militias
continue to fight against
Moscow-backed separatists.
Climate change
impact on animals
'under-appreciated': study:
Nearly half of endangered
mammals and a quarter of
birds are already harmed by
climate change -- a much
bigger segment than
previously thought,
researchers have found.
Trump Turns Screws
on Venezuela by Sanctioning
Vice President:
El Aissami is the son of
Syrian and Lebanese
immigrants, El Aissami was a
student leader before
assuming the post of
minister of interior and
justice in 2008 and then
winning the governorship of
Aragua state in 2012.
Sanctioned for
drugs, Venezuela
vice-president slams U.S.
'aggression':
Vice President Tareck El
Aissami on Tuesday called
his blacklisting by the
United States on drug
charges an "imperialist
aggression" in the first
bilateral flare-up under the
administration of U.S.
President Trump.
‘Keep out, CNN’:
Venezuelan President blasts
network for ‘sticking nose
in’:
“CNN, do not get into the
affairs of Venezuelans. I
want CNN well away from
here. Outside of Venezuela.
Do not put your nose in
Venezuela,” Maduro said, as
cited by El Nacional.
30 Tons of
Venezuelan Bolivar Bills
Found Hoarded in Paraguay:
The massive find is the
latest example of the
ongoing of hoarding
Venezuela’s larger notes as
part of the so-called
currency war.
Declassified: How America
Planned to Invade Italy (To
Save It from Russia)::
Some Americans are
remembering that the United
States also fiddled with
elections in numerous
nations during the Cold War,
including Chile, Iran and
Central America.
World’s 2nd largest
stockpile of gold leaves the
United States
: Late last week the German
government moved $13 billion
worth of gold from New York
to Frankfurt.
How Corporate Media
Paved the Way for Trump’s
Muslim Ban:
Over the years, media
unjustifiably reserve the
word “terrorism”—and the
corollary breathless
coverage it
entails—overwhelmingly for
political violence leveled
by Muslims.
Canadian school
district won’t risk field
trips to the U.S. after
Trump’s executive order
: : The local public school
board is cancelling all
student field trips to the
United States because the
current American political
climate is considered too
“unsafe” and unpredictable
to permit cross-border
travel.
Widespread
Anti-Trump Protests Take
Place Across Mexico;
Anti-Donald Trump
demonstrations were held in
18 cities across Mexico on
Sunday, marking the
country's first such
protests since the U.S.
president's inauguration
less than a month ago.
Mexico is ready to
hit the U.S. where it hurts:
Corn.:
Mexico is one of the top
buyers of American corn in
the world today. Mexican
senator Armando Rios Piter,
says he will introduce a
bill this week where Mexico
will buy corn from Brazil
and Argentina instead of the
United States.
Michael Flynn:
Trump's national security
adviser resigns:
Mr Flynn is said to have
misled officials about his
call with Russia's
ambassador before his own
appointment. It is illegal
for private citizens to
conduct US diplomacy.
Contradicting White
House, Ryan Claims Trump
Asked For Flynn's
Resignation:
House Speaker Paul Ryan
(R-WI) said Tuesday that
former National Security
Adviser Michael Flynn was
asked to resign from his
position by the President
Trump knew Flynn
misled officials on Russia
calls for ‘weeks,’ White
House says;
The comments contrast with
the impression given by
Trump on Friday aboard Air
Force One that he was not
familiar with a Washington
Post report that revealed
that Flynn had not told the
truth about the calls.
WikiLeaks: Flynn
Leaving Due to
'Destabilization Campaign'
by Dems:
WikiLeaks on Tuesday blamed
a “destabilization campaign”
by the media and Democrats
for national security
adviser Michael Flynn's
resignation.
Justice Department
warned White House that
Flynn could be vulnerable to
Russian blackmail:
The acting attorney general
informed the Trump White
House late last month that
she believed Michael Flynn
had misled senior
administration officials
about the nature of his
communications with the
Russian ambassador to the
United States
The Leakers Who
Exposed Gen. Flynn’s Lie
Committed Serious — and
Wholly Justified — Felonies:
The only reason the public
learned about Flynn’s lie is
because someone inside the
U.S. government violated the
criminal law by leaking the
contents of Flynn’s
intercepted communications.
Pelosi Calls On FBI
To 'Accelerate' Probe Into
Connections Between WH,
Russia:
"The American people deserve
to know the full extent of
Russia’s financial, personal
and political grip on
President Trump."
In
Final Interview, Defiant
Flynn Insists He Crossed No
Lines, Leakers Must Be
Prosecuted;
Michael T. Flynn said he
“crossed no lines” in his
discussion with Russia’s
ambassador, but ultimately
he was most concerned about
the steady stream of leaks
to reporters based on
classified information.
Russian lawmakers
cry foul over resignation of
national security adviser
Michael Flynn:
“Even a readiness for
dialogue is perceived by the
hawks in Washington as
thought-crime,” Konstantin
Kosachev, chairman of
Russia’s senate foreign
affairs committee wrote.