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| Friday August 22nd 2014 |
Gaza: Hamas says 18 suspected informants executed
Hamas sources in Gaza say 18 people suspected of collaborating with Israel have been executed.
The killings came after an Israeli airstrike left three senior Hamas leaders dead on Thursday.Officials in Gaza say at least two more Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes overnight, and Israel said more rockets were fired from Gaza.
More than 2,070 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and 66 Israelis, mostly troops, have been killed in six weeks.
A Thai national in Israel was also killed by rocket fire early on in the conflict. No-one was injured by the rockets which hit Israel on Friday morning.
Hostilities between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza resumed on Tuesday, scuppering efforts in Cairo to achieve a long-term ceasefire deal.
Hamas has insisted on a lifting of the economic blockade of Gaza as part of any longer-term deal.
Israel has vowed to pursue its campaign until "full security" is achieved through the disarmament of Hamas and other groups in Gaza.
'Forced by circumstances' Hamas sources said Friday's executions had been carried out by what it called the Resistance, which may suggest the involvement of other armed Palestinian factions.
Hamas officials told Reuters that the first 11 executions were carried out at an abandoned police station.
Witnesses said another seven people were shot by men in Hamas uniforms outside the Al-Umari mosque in central Gaza.
Related: Gaza conflict: Israel PM Netanyahu vows further campaign
ISIS' thirst for oil could lead to 'global catastrophe' if unchecked, experts say
Islamic State's thirst for blood has the world on edge, but its equally insatiable yearning for oil could prove a "catastrophe" for the global economy if the terror organization isn't stopped, experts say.
The jihadist group, formerly known as ISIS, now controls seven oil fields and two small refineries in northern Iraq, bringing in as much as $2 million per day by selling up to 40,000 barrels via middlemen in illicit deals. The black market oil sells for roughly $25 to $60 per barrel, compared to the current market rate of $102, according to Luay al-Khatteeb, founder and executive director of the Iraq Energy Institute. And while this is a veritable drop in the global bucket of oil production, the crude spigot will continue translating into terror funds for Islamic State militants if unchecked, al-Khatteeb and other experts told FoxNews.com.
Shiite Militia Attack Sunni Mosque In Iraq, Dozens Killed: Officials
At least 30 people were killed when a Shi'ite Muslim militia opened fired inside an Iraqi Sunni mosque in the country's eastern Diyala province on Friday, an Iraqi security source said.
The security source said at least 30 bodies had arrived at the hospital in the city of Baquba in Diyala province. Witnesses said the death toll from the attack was higher, but it was not immediately possible to verify the reports.Such sectarian violence could hurt efforts by Iraq's new prime minister, moderate Shi'ite Haider al-Abadi, to form a government that can unite Iraqis against Islamic State, the Sunni militants who have seized large parts of the country.
Attacks on mosques are acutely sensitive and have in the past unleashed a deadly series of revenge killings and counter attacks in Iraq, where violence has returned to the levels of 2006-2007, the peak of a sectarian civil war.
Iraqi Shi'ite militia forces executed 15 Sunni Muslims and then hung them from electricity poles in a public square in Baquba in July, police said.
Diyala police officials told Reuters they had provided Shi'ite militias with names for hit lists so that suspected members of Islamic State could be tracked and executed.
Syrian civil war death toll rises to more than 191,300, according to UN
Human
rights office says figure includes additional killings from earlier
periods as well as deaths since last report in July 2013
The death toll from Syria's civil war has risen to more than 191,300 people, the United Nations has said.
The figures for March 2011 to April 2014 are the first to issued by the UN's human rights office since July 2013, when it documented more than 100,000 killed.
The UN's top human rights official, Navi Pillay, who oversees the Geneva-based office, said the figures are so much higher because they include additional killings from earlier periods, as well as deaths since the last report. The exact figure of confirmed deaths is 191,369, Pillay said.
"As the report explains, tragically it is probably an underestimate of the real total number of people killed during the first three years of this murderous conflict," she said.
Pillay, the UN high commissioner for human rights, criticised what she described as the world's "paralysis" over the fighting in Syria, which "has dropped off the international radar" in the face of so many other armed conflicts.
In January, her office said it had stopped updating the death toll, blaming a lack of access in Syria and its inability to verify source material. It was unclear why it has released new figures now.
The UN also would not endorse anyone else's count, including the widely quoted figures from the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has closely counted the deaths since Syria's crisis began in March 2011. On Thursday, the observatory said the number of deaths has reached 180,000.
Ukraine crisis: Russia aid convoy 'invades Ukraine'
Ukraine's President Petro
Poroshenko has accused Russia of a "flagrant violation of international
law" after Russian humanitarian aid lorries entered Ukraine without
permission.
More than 100 Russian lorries had entered on Friday without any customs clearance or Red Cross escort, he said.The aid is destined for civilians in the east Ukraine war zone, especially the rebel-held city of Luhansk.
Russia accused Ukraine of unreasonable obstruction and sent the convoy in.
Ukraine's security chief Valentyn Nalyvaychenko said it was a "direct invasion" but no force would be used against the convoy.
Reports suggest the lorries are being escorted by rebel fighters.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it was not part of the convoy "in any way".
Russia's foreign ministry has warned Ukraine not to take any action against the convoy, without specifying the consequences.
In a statement (in Russian), President Poroshenko said "a column of more than 100 vehicles entered Ukrainian territory without a customs inspection, without border control or International Red Cross escort, which is a flagrant violation of international law".
Former cricket hero's party quits parliament to pressure Pakistani PM to resign
ISLAMABAD – Lawmakers from
the party of Pakistani cricketer-turned politician, Imran Khan, have
resigned from parliament to pressure the country's prime minister to
step down over what they describe as fraud in last year's election.
Khan's Tehrik-e-Insaf party won 34 seats in the 342-member National Assembly, or lower house of parliament, in the 2013 elections that brought premier Nawaz Sharif into power.
Arif
Alvi, a lawmaker from Khan's party said Friday he had handed over the
resignations to the assembly secretary in Islamabad as the speaker was
not present at the time.
Under law, the speaker accepts resignations after assuring that the lawmakers in question did not quit under pressure.
Khan, along with thousands of his supporters, has been demonstrating outside parliament since Tuesday to pressure Sharif's government to step down.
Anti-govt protests continue amid deadlock over talks in Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: The anti-government protests in Pakistan entered the ninth day on Friday amidst serious differences between the negotiators and protest leaders, who are demanding nothing less than Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's resignation as a pre-condition for talks.
Sharif, on Thursday, had said that neither he would launch a crackdown on the mass protests nor will he quit while protest leaders — Imran Khan and Canada-based cleric Tahir-ul Qadri — have vowed to remain in the capital until the prime minister resigns.
The protests were launched last Thursday from Lahore and later marched to Islamabad where protesters entered the high security 'Red Zone' that houses important government buildings including the parliament house, prime minister house, president house, and the supreme court besides embassies.
Since then, thousands of supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-i- Insaf chairman Imran Khan and firebrand cleric Qadri have been demonstrating outside the parliament building here.
In his overnight speech, Khan asked people to come in big numbers on Friday and promised a change of government by the weekend.
Qadri also said that the end of the government was not far away. The protests at night have become quite a spectacle due to live music and the dances.
The unprecedented upheaval came as Mr. Zuma was grilled over the equivalent of $26-million (U.S.) of taxpayer money spent on “security upgrades” at his private residence.
Led by firebrand Julius Malema, a former member of the ruling party, about 20 lawmakers of his Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party defied repeated orders to leave from Speaker Baleka Mbete.
Dressed in their usual “workers solidarity” outfits of red overalls, hardhats and maid’s uniforms, they refused to budge – chanting, pointing fingers and banging desks.
The Speaker called for help from security and all MPs were asked to vacate the chamber while the EFF members were dealt with.
Mr. Zuma, who had at first smiled at Mr. Malema’s display, was among the first to leave.
For around 10 minutes, live broadcasts of Parliament showed the EFF members alone in the lower-level National Assembly chamber and still chanting. The broadcast was then cut.
Riot police arrived and a forcible eviction appeared on the cards before negotiations with the EFF led to the suspension of the session. Mr. Zuma did not reappear.
A report by South Africa’s Public Protector had called on Mr. Zuma to repay some of the millions spent on items such as a swimming pool, amphitheatre, cattle pen and chicken run at his rural home in Nkandla.
Prabowo alleged the vote-counting was "a massive, structured and systematic fraud,", withdrew from the race after it became clear Joko was the winner, and said he would appeal the results.
The Constitutional Court reviewed Prabowo's appeal and announced Thursday a unanimous rejection of the appeal.
"The court rejects ... all applications from the applicant [Mr Subianto] by all nine judges," Constitutional Court Chief Hamdan Zoelva declared at an hours-long reading of the verdict. Subianto's campaign said they would accept the Constitutional Court's verdict.
Khan's Tehrik-e-Insaf party won 34 seats in the 342-member National Assembly, or lower house of parliament, in the 2013 elections that brought premier Nawaz Sharif into power.
Under law, the speaker accepts resignations after assuring that the lawmakers in question did not quit under pressure.
Khan, along with thousands of his supporters, has been demonstrating outside parliament since Tuesday to pressure Sharif's government to step down.
Anti-govt protests continue amid deadlock over talks in Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: The anti-government protests in Pakistan entered the ninth day on Friday amidst serious differences between the negotiators and protest leaders, who are demanding nothing less than Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's resignation as a pre-condition for talks.
Sharif, on Thursday, had said that neither he would launch a crackdown on the mass protests nor will he quit while protest leaders — Imran Khan and Canada-based cleric Tahir-ul Qadri — have vowed to remain in the capital until the prime minister resigns.
The protests were launched last Thursday from Lahore and later marched to Islamabad where protesters entered the high security 'Red Zone' that houses important government buildings including the parliament house, prime minister house, president house, and the supreme court besides embassies.
Since then, thousands of supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-i- Insaf chairman Imran Khan and firebrand cleric Qadri have been demonstrating outside the parliament building here.
In his overnight speech, Khan asked people to come in big numbers on Friday and promised a change of government by the weekend.
Qadri also said that the end of the government was not far away. The protests at night have become quite a spectacle due to live music and the dances.
Riot police deployed as South African MPs protest Zuma's expenses
Riot police were deployed to South Africa’s Parliament as it collapsed into chaos on Thursday with a group of radical lawmakers yelling at President Jacob Zuma: “Pay back the money.”The unprecedented upheaval came as Mr. Zuma was grilled over the equivalent of $26-million (U.S.) of taxpayer money spent on “security upgrades” at his private residence.
Led by firebrand Julius Malema, a former member of the ruling party, about 20 lawmakers of his Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party defied repeated orders to leave from Speaker Baleka Mbete.
Dressed in their usual “workers solidarity” outfits of red overalls, hardhats and maid’s uniforms, they refused to budge – chanting, pointing fingers and banging desks.
The Speaker called for help from security and all MPs were asked to vacate the chamber while the EFF members were dealt with.
Mr. Zuma, who had at first smiled at Mr. Malema’s display, was among the first to leave.
For around 10 minutes, live broadcasts of Parliament showed the EFF members alone in the lower-level National Assembly chamber and still chanting. The broadcast was then cut.
Riot police arrived and a forcible eviction appeared on the cards before negotiations with the EFF led to the suspension of the session. Mr. Zuma did not reappear.
A report by South Africa’s Public Protector had called on Mr. Zuma to repay some of the millions spent on items such as a swimming pool, amphitheatre, cattle pen and chicken run at his rural home in Nkandla.
Indonesian court confirms Joko Widodo's presidential win
Indonesia's Constitutional Court ruled Thursday to uphold July's presidential election results, confirming Joko Widodo as president.
Indonesia's Constitutional Court issued a ruling Thursday that confirmed Joko Widodo as the winner of the July presidential election.His defeated opponent, Prabowo Subianto, lost the election to Joko by a six percent margin, alleging electoral fraud hours before the election results were issued.Prabowo alleged the vote-counting was "a massive, structured and systematic fraud,", withdrew from the race after it became clear Joko was the winner, and said he would appeal the results.
The Constitutional Court reviewed Prabowo's appeal and announced Thursday a unanimous rejection of the appeal.
"The court rejects ... all applications from the applicant [Mr Subianto] by all nine judges," Constitutional Court Chief Hamdan Zoelva declared at an hours-long reading of the verdict. Subianto's campaign said they would accept the Constitutional Court's verdict.
Armed woman stopped at Philippine palace gate wanted to see Aquino, security officials say
MANILA, Philippines – Security
officials say a woman armed with a pistol tried to enter the Philippine
presidential palace and was demanding to see President Benigno Aquino
III.
Commodore Raul Ubando, head of the presidential guards, said the woman was immediately disarmed Friday and turned over to Manila police for investigation.
Sprawling
Malacanang palace has several entrances, and the woman was stopped at a
gate far from Aquino's office and living quarters.
The woman told reporters she had no intention of hurting anybody but wants Aquino to step down because Filipinos were getting poorer under his administration.
Ubando says no one was hurt and the Manila Police District would decide whether to file charges based on its investigation.
Police say the woman will be examined to determine if she has any psychological disorder.
Kadyrbayev, from Kazakhstan, is seeking a lighter sentence as part of his plea.
He is one of three people charged with hampering the investigation into the blast that left more than 260 injured.
Last month, a US jury found Kadyrbayev's roommate, Azamat Tazhayakov, guilty of obstructing the investigation by removing items which included Tsarnaev's laptop.
Lighter sentencing The objects were removed from a dormitory room at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, where they were all students, hours after the FBI publicly released photographs of the bombing suspects.
The backpack and fireworks - emptied of their explosive powder - were later found in a Massachusetts landfill.
Under the plea agreement, prosecutors say they would ask for no more than seven years in a federal prison for 20-year-old Kadyrbayev.
Judge Douglas Woodlock did not immediately accept the plea, but said he would put it under review.
Kadyrbayev is due to be sentenced on 18 November, whereas Tazhayakov - also from Kazakhstan - will be sentenced on 16 October.
Both men also face charges of conspiracy, which together with obstruction can carry a penalty of up to 25 years.
A third man, Robel Phillipos, has been charged with lying to investigators in connection with the matter. If convicted, the US national could face a possible 16-year sentence.
Tsarnaev - who faces the death penalty if convicted - will stand trial in November.
He has pleaded not guilty to 30 charges, of which 17 carry the possibility of capital punishment.
Prosecutors allege Tsarnaev set off two pressure cooker bombs with his older brother Tamerlan, who later died in a police shoot-out.
Hagel spoke at a press conference in which he addressed the execution of American journalist James Foley, at the hands of terrorists from the group, also known as ISIS or ISIL. The U.S. military continues to launch airstrikes against Islamic State targets in northern Iraq, in support of Iraqi and Kurdish forces, but Hagel suggested more action may be necessary.
"ISIL is as sophisticated and well-funded as any group that we have
seen," Hagel said. "They're beyond just a terrorist group. They marry
ideology, a sophistication of strategic and tactical military prowess.
They are tremendously well-funded. Oh, this is beyond anything that
we've seen. So we must prepare for everything."
He said the only way to do that is take a "cold, steely hard look" and "get ready."
The U.S. has restricted its military action to Iraq, but concerns have increased as the Islamic militant group extends its reach from safe havens in Syria across the Iraqi border.
Speaking alongside Hagel at a Pentagon news conference, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey said that although the Islamic State group can be contained it cannot be defeated without attacking it in Syria.
The GAO also says the Pentagon's use of funds to conduct the transfer, when no money was available, was a violation of the Antideficiency Act which bars spending by agencies above the amount of money that Congress has obligated.
In May, five senior Taliban were released from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in exchange for Bergdahl, who had disappeared in 2009. Under exchange terms, the five Taliban are to remain in Qatar for a year.
Mr Perry is accused of trying to punish a political rival by vetoing the funding of an agency she heads. If convicted, the Republican faces up to 99 years in prison, but some are finding it hard to take the indictment seriously.
"Unfortunately, there has been a sad history of the Travis County District Attorney's Office engaging in politically-motivated prosecutions, and this latest indictment of the governor is extremely questionable," Republican Senator Ted Cruz, also of Texas, posted on his Facebook profile.
It's a sentiment that spans the political spectrum. In New York magazine, liberal blogger Jonathan Chait writes:
The theory behind the indictment is flexible enough that almost any kind of political conflict could be defined as a "misuse" of power or "coercion" of one's opponents. To describe the indictment as "frivolous" gives it far more credence than it deserves.
Even Democratic strategist and former senior advisor to President Barack Obama David Axlerod is sceptical, tweeting that, "Unless he was demonstrably trying to scrap the ethics unit for other than his stated reason, Perry indictment seems pretty sketchy."
But Democratic congressman Joaquin Castro, also from Texas, called on Mr Perry to resign "for the sake of Texas."
And The Economist warns that until the facts are made public, it's too soon to write off the charges.
Yet the seeming flimsiness of the indictment may prove to be the most ominous aspect of the situation for the governor. It raises the possibility that the prosecutor's evidence, which has been presented to the grand jury but not to the general public, was convincing.
The P-8, a new, militarized Boeing-737 anti-submarine warfare aircraft, was conducting routine surveillance of the Chinese coast over the East China Sea on Monday when the incident occurred, said U.S. defense officials familiar with reports of the encounter.
Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Jeffrey Pool had no immediate comment but
said he would provide “an explanation of the event” on Friday.
The defense officials said the Chinese Su-27 interceptor jet flew within 50 feet of the P-8 and then carried out a barrel roll over the top of the aircraft—a move described by officials as dangerous and meant to threaten the surveillance aircraft.
It was the second threatening encounter of a U.S. surveillance aircraft this year. In April, a Russian Su-27 flew within 100 feet of a U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft during another dangerous intercept over waters north of Japan.
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Commodore Raul Ubando, head of the presidential guards, said the woman was immediately disarmed Friday and turned over to Manila police for investigation.
The woman told reporters she had no intention of hurting anybody but wants Aquino to step down because Filipinos were getting poorer under his administration.
Ubando says no one was hurt and the Manila Police District would decide whether to file charges based on its investigation.
Police say the woman will be examined to determine if she has any psychological disorder.
Boston bomber 'friend' Dias Kadyrbayev pleads guilty
A friend of one of the
men suspected of carrying out the Boston Marathon bombing has pleaded
guilty to obstructing the probe into the attack.
Dias Kadyrbayev admitted removing Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's
backpack containing emptied fireworks after the 15 April 2013 attack,
which killed three people.Kadyrbayev, from Kazakhstan, is seeking a lighter sentence as part of his plea.
He is one of three people charged with hampering the investigation into the blast that left more than 260 injured.
Last month, a US jury found Kadyrbayev's roommate, Azamat Tazhayakov, guilty of obstructing the investigation by removing items which included Tsarnaev's laptop.
Lighter sentencing The objects were removed from a dormitory room at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, where they were all students, hours after the FBI publicly released photographs of the bombing suspects.
The backpack and fireworks - emptied of their explosive powder - were later found in a Massachusetts landfill.
Under the plea agreement, prosecutors say they would ask for no more than seven years in a federal prison for 20-year-old Kadyrbayev.
Judge Douglas Woodlock did not immediately accept the plea, but said he would put it under review.
Kadyrbayev is due to be sentenced on 18 November, whereas Tazhayakov - also from Kazakhstan - will be sentenced on 16 October.
Both men also face charges of conspiracy, which together with obstruction can carry a penalty of up to 25 years.
A third man, Robel Phillipos, has been charged with lying to investigators in connection with the matter. If convicted, the US national could face a possible 16-year sentence.
Tsarnaev - who faces the death penalty if convicted - will stand trial in November.
He has pleaded not guilty to 30 charges, of which 17 carry the possibility of capital punishment.
Prosecutors allege Tsarnaev set off two pressure cooker bombs with his older brother Tamerlan, who later died in a police shoot-out.
Hagel: ISIS 'beyond anything that we've seen,' US must 'get ready'
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel issued a dire warning Thursday about the threat posed by the Islamic State terrorist group, saying the organization is "beyond anything that we've seen."Hagel spoke at a press conference in which he addressed the execution of American journalist James Foley, at the hands of terrorists from the group, also known as ISIS or ISIL. The U.S. military continues to launch airstrikes against Islamic State targets in northern Iraq, in support of Iraqi and Kurdish forces, but Hagel suggested more action may be necessary.
He said the only way to do that is take a "cold, steely hard look" and "get ready."
The U.S. has restricted its military action to Iraq, but concerns have increased as the Islamic militant group extends its reach from safe havens in Syria across the Iraqi border.
Speaking alongside Hagel at a Pentagon news conference, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey said that although the Islamic State group can be contained it cannot be defeated without attacking it in Syria.
Pentagon Violated Law With Bowe Bergdahl Prisoner Swap: GAO
Congressional investigators say the Pentagon violated the law when it swapped five Taliban leaders for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was held prisoner in Afghanistan for five years.
The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office says the Defense Department's failure to notify the relevant congressional committees at least 30 days in advance of the exchange broke the law.The GAO also says the Pentagon's use of funds to conduct the transfer, when no money was available, was a violation of the Antideficiency Act which bars spending by agencies above the amount of money that Congress has obligated.
In May, five senior Taliban were released from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in exchange for Bergdahl, who had disappeared in 2009. Under exchange terms, the five Taliban are to remain in Qatar for a year.
US Democrats rally around... Rick Perry?
Texas Governor Rick Perry went to the Travis County criminal justice centre this week to be processed on abuse of power charges recently brought against him.Mr Perry is accused of trying to punish a political rival by vetoing the funding of an agency she heads. If convicted, the Republican faces up to 99 years in prison, but some are finding it hard to take the indictment seriously.
"Unfortunately, there has been a sad history of the Travis County District Attorney's Office engaging in politically-motivated prosecutions, and this latest indictment of the governor is extremely questionable," Republican Senator Ted Cruz, also of Texas, posted on his Facebook profile.
It's a sentiment that spans the political spectrum. In New York magazine, liberal blogger Jonathan Chait writes:
The theory behind the indictment is flexible enough that almost any kind of political conflict could be defined as a "misuse" of power or "coercion" of one's opponents. To describe the indictment as "frivolous" gives it far more credence than it deserves.
Even Democratic strategist and former senior advisor to President Barack Obama David Axlerod is sceptical, tweeting that, "Unless he was demonstrably trying to scrap the ethics unit for other than his stated reason, Perry indictment seems pretty sketchy."
But Democratic congressman Joaquin Castro, also from Texas, called on Mr Perry to resign "for the sake of Texas."
And The Economist warns that until the facts are made public, it's too soon to write off the charges.
Yet the seeming flimsiness of the indictment may prove to be the most ominous aspect of the situation for the governor. It raises the possibility that the prosecutor's evidence, which has been presented to the grand jury but not to the general public, was convincing.
Chinese jet threatened U.S. intelligence aircraft
A Chinese jet fighter flew dangerously close to a U.S. Navy P-8 anti-submarine warfare aircraft near Japan this week in an encounter that highlights China’s continued aggressiveness in the region.The P-8, a new, militarized Boeing-737 anti-submarine warfare aircraft, was conducting routine surveillance of the Chinese coast over the East China Sea on Monday when the incident occurred, said U.S. defense officials familiar with reports of the encounter.
The defense officials said the Chinese Su-27 interceptor jet flew within 50 feet of the P-8 and then carried out a barrel roll over the top of the aircraft—a move described by officials as dangerous and meant to threaten the surveillance aircraft.
It was the second threatening encounter of a U.S. surveillance aircraft this year. In April, a Russian Su-27 flew within 100 feet of a U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft during another dangerous intercept over waters north of Japan.
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