On December 20, 2024 a Saudi national drove his car intentionally through a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, killing 5 and injuring over 200 others. One of the dead included a 9-year-old boy. The suspect is 50-year old Taleb A. He is allegedly an ex-Muslim angry at the German state for not allowing more Saudi ex-Muslims to emigrate to the country.
The attack has highlighted Germany’s growing impatience with mass immigration of peoples who don’t want to become culturally German. As of right now, the center-right appears poised to regain control of the government, but rallies in response to the attack suggest the AfD, the more conservative party, could benefit.
Germany: Magdeburg attack could shape upcoming elections – DW (English) Source Link Excerpt:
“Only the AfD would have deported the man long ago,” Sven Tritschler, the deputy chairman of the AfD in the state parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, posted to social media.
Dominik Kaufner, an AfD member of the Brandenburg state legislature, posted to social media that “millionfold migration is the problem and millionfold remigration is the solution.”
South Korea’s Yoon Suk Yeol declared a national emergency, claiming North Korean sympathizers had infiltrated the government. After police raided the parliament building, the besieged parliament voted to lift the emergency, with Yoo’s own party voting against him.
After the emergency order was rescinded, parliament moved to impeach the PM. After the impeachment, the highest court has already begun the trial to determine his guilt. The PM isn’t waiting for the results, pledging to step aside.
South Korea impeachment live: impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol vows to step aside | South Korea– www.theguardian.com Source Link Excerpt:
South Korea’s impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday said he would “step aside” after parliament voted to remove him from office, urging an end to “politics of excess and confrontation”.
“Though I must now step aside for a while, the journey toward the future… must never come to a stop,” he said in a televised address.
In the span of less than 2 weeks, what started as a surge by anti-government forces in Syria turned into a complete rout, leading to the President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, fleeing the country to become a political refugee in Russia. This also led to Israel launching the largest airstrike since the 6-Day War in an effort to eliminate the Syrian army’s left-behind equipment and munitions.
Blinken confirms direct contact with Syria’s rebel leaders – nbcnews.com Source Link Excerpt:
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Saturday that the U.S. has made direct contact with Syria’s Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) rebels, as they transition from a militant insurgency toward a more legitimate governing authority.
“We’ve been in contact with HTS and with other parties,” Blinken said after talks in Aqaba, Jordan, with diplomats and representatives from several Arab nations.
The U.S. designates HTS a terrorist organization, making it legally impossible to work with the group, but contact underscores ongoing efforts to change that designation as the U.S. and its allies look to support Syria’s transition from Assad rule.
In a joint statement released after the meeting, the governments of the U.S., Turkey, E.U., and Arab Countries called for a “a more hopeful, secure and peaceful future” in Syria, stressing respect for women and minorities, and preventing “the reemergence of all terrorist groups.”
The Syrian government has lost control of much of its Idlib Province, including the major city of Aleppo, to a sudden surge by a mix of anti-government forces. Russia appears to be scaling back its support of the Syrian regime or pausing to determine how to react. So far, no effective counterassaults have occurred, but the advances have finally been mostly halted.
Syria’s insurgency leader tours seized city of Aleppo, as fierce battles intensify near Hama – AP Source Link Excerpt:
The leader of Syria’s most powerful insurgent group Wednesday toured the seized city of Aleppo in a surprise visit, for the first time since the group captured large parts of the city last weekend, as fierce fighting intensifies in the government-led counter-offensive in northern Hama.
Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who heads jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, greeted crowds of supporters near the city’s iconic citadel as he smiled and waved in dark green military garb. Surrounded by masked gunmen in flak jackets, men and boys chanted “God is great” as he walked through the heart of Syria’s largest city.
The latest flareup in Syria’s long civil war comes after forces opposed to Syrian President Bashar Assad ousted his troops from Aleppo, the country’s largest, as well as seized towns and villages in southern parts of the northwestern Idlib province.
The UK is engaging in digital revolt at the moment with a viral petition becoming the tip of that resistance spear. The petition asks the viewer to sign a request for the British government to hold a general election.
The petition states, “I would like there to be another General Election. I believe the current Labour Government have gone back on the promises they laid out in the lead up to the last election.” As of right now, the petition has over 2.3 million signatures.
Israel’s ambassador to D.C. told Israeli Army Radio that a ceasefire was being negotiated with Hezbollah and there were “points to finalize.” He added, “we are close to a deal… it can happen within days.”
Middle East latest: Israeli ambassador to US says Hezbollah cease-fire deal could come ‘within days’– abcnews.go.com Source Link Excerpt:
The Israeli ambassador to Washington says that a ceasefire deal to end fighting between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah could be reached “within days.”
Ambassador Mike Herzog told Israeli Army Radio on Monday that there remained “points to finalize” and that any deal required agreement from the government. But he said “we are close to a deal” and that “it can happen within days.”
Among the issues that remain is an Israeli demand to reserve the right to act should Hezbollah violate its obligations under the emerging deal. The deal seeks to push Hezbollah and Israeli troops out of southern Lebanon.
Israel accuses Hezbollah of not adhering to a U.N. resolution that ended the 2006 war between the sides that made similar provisions, and Israel has concerns that Hezbollah could stage a Hamas-style cross-border attack from southern Lebanon if it maintains a heavy presence there. Lebanon says Israel also violated the 2006 resolution. Lebanon complains about military jets and naval ships entering Lebanese territory even when there is no active conflict.
It is not clear whether Lebanon would agree to the demand.
The optimism surrounding a deal comes after a top U.S. envoy held talks between the sides last week in a bid to clinch a deal.
Hezbollah began attacking Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, a day after Hamas’ raid on southern Israel, setting off more than a year of fighting. That escalated into all-out war in September with massive Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon and later an Israeli ground incursion into the country’s south.
The Pentagon has acknowledged officially that U.S. troops are serving alongside Philippine troops, engaging in mutual maritime operations in the South China Sea. The operation is called “Task Force Ayungin,” named after the Ayungin Shoel that the task force is patrolling.
Anti-American Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin posted on X “I visited the Command and Control Fusion Center in Palawan today. I also met with some American service members deployed to U.S. Task Force Ayungin, and I thanked them for their hard work on behalf of the American people and our alliances and partnerships in this region.”
US Reveals New South China Sea ‘Task Force’ – newsweek Source Link Excerpt:
The Pentagon has confirmed that American troops are quietly assisting Philippine maritime operations in the South China Sea, in a sign of the United States’ growing support for its ally amid flaring tensions with China.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin referenced the collaboration in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, highlighting “Task Force Ayungin,” which involves U.S. military personnel working alongside the Philippines military’s Western Command.
“I visited the Command and Control Fusion Center in Palawan today,” Austin wrote. “I also met with some American service members deployed to U.S. Task Force Ayungin, and I thanked them for their hard work on behalf of the American people and our alliances and partnerships in this region.”
Pentagon spokesperson Pete Nguyen told the Philippine news outlet Inquirer that the task force focuses on planning, training, and systems provided through U.S. security assistance. “This support includes unmanned surface vessels that Secretary Austin observed during his stop in Palawan,” he said.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, center, visits the Command and Control Fusion Center on the Philippine island of Palawan along with Philippines’ defense chief Gilberto Teodoro. During his visit, he signed a bilateral intelligence-sharing agreement…. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, center, visits the Command and Control Fusion Center on the Philippine island of Palawan along with Philippines’ defense chief Gilberto Teodoro. During his visit, he signed a bilateral intelligence-sharing agreement.
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry and U.S. Department of Defense with written requests for comment.
Nguyen stressed that the task force reflects a continuation of decades of close U.S.-Philippine cooperation. Philippine National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano told the news agency that U.S. involvement is limited to “intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, [and] maritime domain awareness,” with no “direct participation” in Philippine operations.
Washington and Manila share a Mutual Defense Treaty, which Austin and President Joe Biden have stressed is “ironclad.” The treaty has sparked discussions in light of clashes between Philippine maritime forces and their Chinese counterparts.
I visited the Command and Control Fusion Centerin Palawan today. I also met with some American service members deployed to U.S. Task Force Ayungin, and I thanked them for their hard work on behalf of the American people and our alliances and partnerships in this region. pic.twitter.com/baqgo72r1T
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) November 19, 2024
During Austin’s two days in the Philippines, he met with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., visited the unified command center in Palawan, and inked an intelligence-sharing agreement.
“No military agreement, or defense and security cooperation, in whatever form, should target any third party or harm the interests of any third party,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said during Monday’s regular press conference.
“Nor should it undermine regional peace or exacerbate regional tensions,” he went on, adding that the only way to maintain regional piece is to “uphold good-neighborliness and friendship and maintain strategic independence.”
The deployment of U.S. personnel to Task Force Ayungin comes amid increased tensions in the South China Sea, where Philippine and Chinese forces have repeatedly clashed over contested waters.
China claims nearly the entire sea, using its controversial “dashed line” to assert control over resource-rich areas despite international rejection of those claims.
An independent tribunal at The Hague ruled in 2016 that China’s territorial claims, represented by the nine-dash line, were incompatible with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Beijing, however, has dismissed the decision as invalid.
The United States put an end to a UN resolution that would have required an “immediate and unconditional ceasefire” in Gaza. The resolution had secured 14 votes before the U.S. veto ended the whole process. As the UN pushes for ceasefire, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister and Minister of Defense.
The ICC might be pushing as hard as they can before Trump returns to the White House. While he was in office, ICC officials faced sanctions over what it deemed “malicious prosecutions” that affect America and her allies. It is expected the powerless court will face significant sanctions come January 20, 2025.
US Vetoes Gaza Ceasefire Resolution At UN Security Council – rttnews.com Source Link Excerpt:
The United States has vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that demanded an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Despite having secured 14 votes in favor, the draft resolution put forward by the 10 elected members of the Security Council on Wednesday failed to pass owing to the negative vote by a permanent member, the U.S.
The text also reiterated the Council’s demand for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, but the U.S. vetoed it saying it doesn’t guarantee the release of hostages.
For a resolution to be adopted, it must secure at least nine votes in favor, and no negative votes – or vetoes – by any of the five permanent members of the Security Council.
The US representative Ambassador Robert Wood said in his statement that the U.S. could not support an unconditional ceasefire unless it was tied to releasing the hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas and other militants.
After Somaliland saw it elect Abdirahman Mohammed Abdullahi as their next President, the U.S. Embassy from Mogadishu Somalia tweeted “The United States congratulates the people of Somaliland on their recent election and PRESIDENT-ELECT @Abdirahmanirro on his election. Somaliland’s impressive record of elections and peaceful transfers of power is a model for the region and beyond.”
Somalia has long considered Somaliland as a part of itself, a sentiment not shared by Somalilanders. A U.S. affirmation of Somaliland would effectively end any Somalian annexation dreams for the foreseeable future. The region has the attention of many major world powers, including the U.S., Russia, China, and Turkey.
United States Hails Somaliland Election as “Impressive,” Signals Possible Recognition – borkena.com Source Link Excerpt:
Following the announcement of Abdirahman Mohammed Abdullahi as the winner of Somaliland’s election, the United States has praised the process as “impressive,” signaling that Somaliland may soon be recognized as an independent state.
This statement was issued by the U.S. Embassy in Mogadishu, Somalia, which still considers Somaliland an integral part of its territory, despite Somaliland’s de facto independence for over three decades.
“The United States congratulates the people of Somaliland on their recent election and PRESIDENT-ELECT @Abdirahmanirro on his election. Somaliland’s impressive record of elections and peaceful transfers of power is a model for the region and beyond.”