Supposed pamphlet found on North Korean soldiers in Kursk according to .

China Sent Emergency Humanitarian Aid to Gaza via Egypt - Telesur English

Article

“To alleviate humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip, the Chinese government has continued to provide assistance,” said Liao, reiterating China’s willingness to maintain close communication and coordination with Palestine and Egypt in this effort.

In a significant gesture of support, China has dispatched two packages of emergency humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, signing the necessary documents at a ceremony held on Monday in Cairo.

The Chinese embassy in Egypt confirmed the news, highlighting the commitment of the Chinese government to alleviate the humanitarian crisis facing the Palestinian enclave.

Chinese Ambassador to Egypt, Liao Liqiang, and his Palestinian counterpart, Diab al-Louh, were present at the signing, where Liao stressed that China has been providing humanitarian assistance to Palestine, including food and medicine.

“To alleviate humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip, the Chinese government has continued to provide assistance,” said Liao, reiterating China’s willingness to maintain close communication and coordination with Palestine and Egypt in this effort.

The Palestinian ambassador expressed the sincere gratitude of the Palestinian people and government for the emergency humanitarian aid sent by China.

Al-Louh also highlighted China’s continued support for the Palestinian cause in international forums, emphasizing the “deep friendship” between both nations and China’s role as a “great responsible country.” This aid delivery comes at a critical time for Gaza, where the population is facing severe difficulties due to recent conflicts.

China’s humanitarian assistance reflects the growing international commitment to address the urgent needs of those affected by war and underscores the importance of cooperation among nations in times of crisis.

Violent Unrest Erupts in Mozambique Following Election Ruling - Telesur English

Article

At least 21 people have been killed in violent unrest across Mozambique following the Constitutional Council’s decision to uphold the victory of the long-ruling Frelimo party in the October presidential election.

Interior Minister Pascoal Ronda announced late Tuesday that the court ruling, made on Monday, confirmed Frelimo’s candidate, Daniel Chapo, as the winner with 65.17% of the vote, dismissing allegations of widespread fraud.

The ruling has sparked a wave of protests led by opposition supporters who claim the election was rigged. Demonstrations have erupted nationwide, with protesters blocking roads, burning tires, and clashing with security forces. In several provinces, public buildings and vehicles have been vandalized as anger over the election results escalates.

The violence has resulted in at least 78 arrests, with the government warning of more detentions as protests continue. Minister Ronda stated that “the armed and defense forces will increase their presence in critical and key points,” emphasizing that security measures are being reinforced to restore order.

The opposition, led by politician Venâncio Mondlane, has rejected the court’s decision and accused Frelimo of electoral manipulation. Mondlane’s party alleges that the election was marred by voter intimidation, ballot stuffing, and irregularities in vote counting.

Allegations of vote rigging against Frelimo are not new; the ruling party has governed Mozambique since its independence in 1975 and has often faced criticism for consolidating power and stifling opposition voices.

The announcement from the Constitutional Council has reignited tensions in a nation already grappling with economic hardships, widespread poverty, and an ongoing Islamist insurgency in Cabo Delgado province.

Protesters in urban centers such as Maputo, Beira, and Nampula have been particularly vocal, prompting police to deploy tear gas and live ammunition to disperse crowds. Reports from local activists indicate that several deaths occurred during clashes between demonstrators and security forces.

Human rights groups have urged the government to exercise restraint and ensure the safety of peaceful protesters as Mozambique faces a critical moment amid rising tensions and escalating violence.

I hope President Daniel Chapo Trap House can maintain control and surpress these far-rights groups

Several countries expressed their condolences for the plane crash in Kazakhstan, among them Russian President Vladimir Putin and leaders of Venezuela and Iran.

Nicaragua: President Ortega Laments the Passing of Former President of Surinam Desi Bouterse - Telesur English

Article

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, in a message addressed to the wife, family, comrades, and people of Suriname, lamented the passing of the former president of Suriname, Desi Bouterse. The communication highlights the friendship and camaraderie that united the Nicaraguan president with the Surinamese leader.

In the message, specifically addressed to Ingrid, Bouterse’s wife, his children, family, and the National Democratic Party, President Ortega expressed his deep sorrow for Bouterse’s departure to what he called “another Plane of Life. “”With great sadness, we have received the news of the Departure to another Plane of Life of our Dear Companion and Comrade, former President of Suriname, Desi Bouterse,” the statement reads.

The Nicaraguan president recalled the long and faithful friendship he maintained with Bouterse, highlighting the shared moments of struggle and victories. “With Desi, we were united by a Long and Faithful Friendship in so many moments of struggle and victories. He was always a loyal walker alongside Just and Solidarity Causes,” added President Ortega in his message.

The President of Nicaragua, in addition to expressing his condolences, extended his affection to Ingrid, her children, family, and all the Surinamese people, stating that Bouterse was a leader much loved by his people. “May our Affection be with Ingrid, her children, family and her People, whom he loved so much,” the note reads.

Finally, Daniel Ortega concluded his message wishing Desi Bouterse rest in peace. “Rest in Peace, our Dear Brother Desi Bouterse,” he concluded.

Sgt. Desi Bouterse was the Socdem Military Dictator of Suriname (1980 - 1987), and later on he was democratically elected as a social-democrat (2010 - 2020).

A final news post for today, this time with some news from Russia’s special military operation.

Russian forces liberated the small DPR settlement of Gigant: https://sputnikglobe.com/20241226/russian-forces-take-control-of-gigant-settlement-in-dpr---mod-1121274112.html

Russian forces shot down a US-built F-16 warplane as it attempted launching missiles at the liberated parts of Zaporozhye oblast: https://www.rt.com/russia/610032-russia-shot-down-f16/

Another report revealed that Ukrainian men continue fleeing the country – they do not want to die for the corrupt Maidan dictatorship: https://sputnikglobe.com/20241226/ukrainians-do-not-want-to-defend-incumbent-govt-calling-country-prison---reports-1121270932.html

Some news (and a little combat footage) from occupied Palestine and Yemen.

Palestinian resistance movements have released more recent combat footage showing sniper, IED, and RPG strikes on Zionist occupation forces in northern Gaza: https://southfront.press/israel-stands-firm-on-gaza-despite-taking-more-losses/

A Zionist genocidal airstrike massacred five Palestinian Al-Quds Today journalists near the Al-Awda Hospital in central Gaza’s Nuseirat refugee camp: https://www.rt.com/news/609967-journalists-killed-gaza-israel-strike/

Zionist warplanes attacked Yemen’s Sana’a International Airport; the Ras Kanatib power plant; and the Ras Issa and Hodeidah ports. The attacks killed four civilians: https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2024/12/26/739783/Israel-launches-airstrikes-Yemen

https://tass.com/world/1894097

Looks like one of India's former leaders, Manmohan Singh, passed away.

Anyone know if he was actually good? Or was he another generic neoliberal?

Reddit is gushing over him which is probably a bad sign.

Some Syria news.

This news summary shows video footage of the protests in western Syria against the Western-backed “HTS” regime. The West’s “HTS” puppets opened fire on the peaceful protesters, revealing the true nature of this new “CNN democracy”: https://southfront.press/syria-is-boiling-amid-new-wave-of-crimes-of-armed-groups-loyal-to-new-government/

Syrian patriotic resistance forces (composed of former Syrian Arab Army troops) continue armed resistance in Tartus province against the “HTS” regime (note, yesterday the resistance eliminated 14 “HTS” gunmen in Tartus): https://thecradle.co/articles/clashes-erupt-in-western-syria-after-locals-ambush-hts-fighters

In addition, the resistance also eliminated four “HTS” gunmen in Balkasa (northwest of Homs): https://tass.com/world/1894101

The “HTS” regime also appointed a UN-designated al-Queda terrorist, Anas Hassan Khattab, as its new “intelligence chief” (I wonder how CNN will try spinning this...): https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2024/12/26/739791/Syria-nas-Hassan-Khattab-HTS-Israel-al-Bashir-Golani

Israel strikes Yemen airport as WHO chief prepares to board plane

Israeli warplanes struck multiple targets across Yemen on Thursday, the Israel Defense Forces said, including the country’s largest airport, where the head of the World Health Organization was about to board a flight.

The strikes targeted military infrastructure used by the Houthi rebels, the IDF said. The militant group has for months launched missiles at Israel, two of which broke through Israeli air defenses in the past week, causing damage and injuries.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the WHO, said the airport was bombarded as he was set to board. A member of his plane’s crew was injured in the strike, he said in a post on X. He said he and his United Nations colleagues were safe but that “the air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged.”

Panic in global metals markets as China rare earth export bans close brokerage hubs (Disclaimer: I'm unfamiliar with this author, I just came across their video version of this article through the youtube algo)

The Chinese bans are pushing metals prices violently higher, and causing panic across defense sectors where these materials are vital for aerospace, ballistics, and munitions.

US miners are reluctant to invest in new production, arguing that China could simply relax restrictions in the future and prices would fall below their cost of production. But industry insiders admit that any production in North America and Europe would fall far short of demand, and would take years to come online.

Gotta love when one hand of capital can't cooperate with the other hand because it might negatively impact their profit margins in the short-term. Nevermind that the military arsenal the west uses to maintain the current world order - bullying other nations into selling us their resources and labor for violently-low prices - is itself still heavily reliant on those nations exporting materials to us. I'm sure that contradiction won't blow up in 's face at all.

Meanwhile China stays winning

In Finland news: a very telling newspiece on the English side of the national news that for once flaunts many of the common consent building rhetorics that are commonly used here.

So we have another war consent building cable situation happening in the Baltic. You can sense the alarm from the article, there is much readiness from the ghoulish right wing politicians.

Plus much decisiveness and monitoring from the wet mitten that is our PM: "According to Orpo, the matter was tackled decisively and investigative measures were launched immediately. "This sends a message that Finland aims to tackle this issue and put an end to it," said Orpo."

---

Sure, because we absolutely aren't dogs of the empire and what we say matters so much in the world...

Back from my self-imposed Hexbear exile, I needed to turn off news (which dramatically failed) and stop reading some of the weird ass tantrums here. Now some unrelated points as usual:

• Situation in Syria is slowly reaching a new chaotic state. Numerous sectarian clashes between HTS and Alawites, and Kurds vs Turkish-backed fighters in the north. The main cities are still calm and in an optimistic mood though, I was in a video call with my cousin on Monday and he filmed some of the markets and main squares in Damascus, it looked pretty calm and people are still in some sort of revolutionary euphoria. Iraq 2003-2007 is still definitely on the cards, sectarian battles and stuff like that will escalate and reach a climax before things settle. The new government from a pure bureaucratic standpoint are doing okay imo though, things are slowly returning to normal and somehow functioning.

• Russian crossing of the Oskol was strangely uneventful, they just crossed from 2-3 points and established a pretty solid bridgehead on the other side of the river. I expected some grand battle when they would inevitably cross the river one day, but it was pretty anticlimactic and Ukrainian troops on the west bank of the river seem to be unprepared and outnumbered even by some Russian troops without heavy equipment. Kurakhove, Velika Novosilka and Toretsk seem to be wrapping up by the end of January, next step is probably Pokrovsk until some bigger Russian movements by summer 2025. The war in the current pace still doesn't reach any final stage until summer 2026.

• Visiting Iraq with the wife and the kid in around a month, you'll get a trip report and some non-doxxing pics if things permit.

• I don't like how things are going in Iran, the country seems to be entering a hard period of decline and they'll be Syria'd by Trump and Israel if they don't get their shit together soon.

• This website has some of the dumbest drama I've ever seen lmao, grow up

hope pope fucking drop kicks biden when he arrives in vatican.

Excommunicate his ass first, so that he knows he is going to hell

Danish Army Top Brass Under Investigation for Leaking Confidential Information

The Danish military prosecution Corps is investigating possible breaches of confidentiality by several military employees, including Army Chief Peter Boysen. The inquiry focuses on their statements to the media regarding artillery systems purchased from the the controversial "Israeli" arms manufacturer Elbit, a company responsible for systematic war crimes and crimes against humanity. These systems were equipped with civilian GPS systems, susceptible to jamming and spoofing, making them unfit for modern warfare.

It is unknown exactly what statements caused military prosecutors to begin their investigation. In interviews to the media Boysen has told that the army knew that the system only came with civilian GPS and that replacing them had always been the plan.

The purchase has been marred by irregularities, including rushing the purchase past parliamentary approval giving lawmakers mere hours to familiarise themselves with the deal under false pretenses of urgency, preferential treatment of Elbit and undisclosed links to a separate legal settlement with the controversial arms manufacturer. A previous investigation that was concluded in November was hindered by restrictions on witness interviews, but political pressure is building for further inquiries into the purchase.

In 2020 Hans-Christian Mathiesen, a predecessor of Boysen as chief of the army, received an unsuspended prison sentence for nepotism for giving his wife preferential treatment in her career.

• Source: BT (corporate media), December 25th 2024

Following up to my previous comment regarding the chinese 6th Generation fighter/aircraft test flight footage that emerged today it seems increasingly likely that China has indeed flown what seems to be a second, distinct 6th Generation platform earlier this week. Specificaly Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (They developed the j-35, Chengdu AC developed the j-20 and the 6th Gen aircract my previous post was about. Both practicaly different divisions under state owned umbrella company AVIC) apparently flew on the 22th what some speculate might be prototype for a 6th gen 2-engine (maybe naval fighter?)

https://x.com/OedoSoldier/status/1872296926412173656

https://x.com/RupprechtDeino/status/1872290715851698484

Not a great day for the pentagon

China is building the world’s largest hydroelectric dam to try and save the world from climate change, but at what cost?

Link

Very nice update from the DPRK

North Korea has opened up a new landmark beer bar and restaurant in its capital, Pyongyang. The Hwasong Taedonggang Beer Restaurant serves Taedonggang beer, which comes in several varieties, as well as a range of international brands. The beer restaurant is in Hwasong, an eastern suburb of Pyongyang. It is among three new suburbs built in the past year in a renewed attempt to provide more housing in the capital.

https://youtu.be/RxZML_B0DlM

Fox News reports that on the same night a U.S. Navy F/A-18 'Super Hornet' was shot down over the Red Sea, the USS Gettysburg fired an 'SM-2' interceptor missile at another F/A-18, missing it by about 30 meters.

Wtf is this? Biden is executing Order 66?

China’s EV sales set to overtake traditional cars years ahead of west

China is set to smash international forecasts and Beijing’s official targets with domestic EV sales — including pure battery and plug-in hybrids — growing about 20 per cent year on year to more than 12mn cars in 2025, according to the latest estimates supplied to the Financial Times by four investment banks and research groups. The figure would be more than double the 5.9mn sold in 2022.

“They want to electrify everything,” said Liew. “No other country comes close to China.”

As China’s EV market tracked towards year-on-year growth of near 40 per cent in 2024, the market share of foreign-branded cars fell to a record low of 37 per cent — a sharp decline from 64 per cent in 2020, according to data from Automobility, a Shanghai-based consultancy.

Vincent Sun, an equity analyst covering China’s car sector for investment research group Morningstar, noted that several multinational carmakers, including Germany’s Volkswagen, were not expecting to release major new EV models in China until late 2025 or 2026.

In 5 months time when putin catches taurus to the dome during victory parade:

this devious provocation from kiev regime will not go unanswered, we are preparing new documents for the un to review

Real wages cut in half is an epic win.

https://x.com/redstreamnet/status/1871218360870121607

In some huge news we \have footage of what probably is the maiden flight of China's 6th Generation manned fighter/bomber aircraft, and the first one of its kind that has been caught on camera (unclear if the US has even flown a working prototype of their current design, whatever that might be after a dozen requirement revisions). Flown on the birthday of the great helmsman, Mao Zedong no less. (links at the end)

One of the most (only) credible PLA watchers in western circles is posting about it (RickJoe_PLA on twitter, PLARealTalk on reddit) so its most likely legit. The obvious implication here is that China has overtaken the US in terms of next-gen airframe development. This publically flew before NGAD or F/A-XX (US) the status of which is very unclear, and you can argue that this is proof that China now holds the lead in next-gen R&D. For reference F-35, F-22 (US) , Su-57 (Russia), J-20 and J-35(China) are the only 5th Gen platforms around. Based on past timetables an optimistic guess is that this might enter service in 2029-31

Copying some of the stuff posted around. It is seen flown alongside a J-20S as a chaseplane. Not an expert but ppl seem to notice it to be 3 engined, quite big and thin relative to size. J-20 is already decently voluminous as fighters go , but the "J-XD" alongside looks like it's a whole other level. Even with three engines, this thing will have a lot of internal volume to play around with, whatever its role might be.

https://x.com/RickJoe_PLA/status/1872197785040359930

https://x.com/Rational314159/status/1872198848455815332

https://x.com/RupprechtDeino/status/1872210704914366565

https://x.com/RupprechtDeino/status/1872207504807272541

https://x.com/RupprechtDeino/status/1872202725439778856

EDIT: Unconfirmed as of right now, but it seems like Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (They developed the j-35, Chengdu AC developed the j-20 and the 6th Gen this post is about. Both practicaly different divisions under state owned umbrella company AVIC) might have also flown something similar this week. Likely a second distinct 6th Gen platform on a similar stage of development!!

Lmao chuds are furious at El*n musk. He said country needs white collar immigrants and the chuds are fuming "NOOOOO! MUH ETHNOSTATE! YOU TRAITOOOOOR!!!"

Some more self-important ravings from US-imperial chihuahua Estonia:

Politico: Estonia’s city at the ‘end of the free world’ stares across a frozen border at Russia

Selected excerpts

NARVA, Estonia — This snow-covered border bridge between two medieval fortresses in a Russian-speaking corner of Estonia might be where World War III starts.

"We are not intending to start a third world war, but we see the constant attempts to provoke us to do something which would have a higher impact," said Egert Belitšev, the director general of Estonia’s Police and Border Guard Board, on a snowy December afternoon in Narva.

Few countries lust for WWIII more than Estonia.

About a quarter of Estonia's population of 1.4 million is ethnic Russian. Most hold Estonian citizenship and a majority feel close ties to Estonia, but the Kremlin is a past master of exploiting ethnic differences to claim a special role in protecting the Russian diaspora. It's done that in Georgia and Moldova and that was the pretext for its invasion of Ukraine.

A couple thousand murdered ethnic Russians in Ukraine might have something to say about that “pretext” if they weren’t murdered.

The worry is that the Kremlin could play the same card and try to seize eastern Estonia, with its large population of ethnic Russians, and then dare NATO to launch a global war in response. A failure to react would show that NATO's Article 5 common defense provision is meaningless.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin even suggested in 2022, not long after Moscow launched its all-out war on Ukraine, that Narva is historically part of Russia.

ALL PUT WAR! ALL OUT WAR! PUTLER ALL OUT WAR!!!

Narva, the third-largest city in Estonia, is closer to St. Petersburg than it is to Tallinn. Of its roughly 56,000 inhabitants, 96 percent speak Russian and a third hold a Russian passport

Took a while to bring up this extremely important figure, huh.

Describing the city as "the end of the free world,” Belitšev, an ethnic-Estonian security official, doesn't think Estonia's NATO allies are prepared for what might happen here.

There are some 900 British soldiers deployed in the country as part of a multinational NATO force at the Tapa air base west of Tallinn; France also has troops there. The British government has pledged to have its 4th Brigade Combat Team on stand-by for rapid deployment. NATO has created battlegroups in most eastern member countries, and plans to expand those groups in Latvia and Lithuania. It hasn't made that commitment in Estonia due to a shortfall in the British Army, which has only two armored brigades available.

lol this irrelevant imperial pet would be steamrolled within hours if any world war were to actually break out

Israel slaughters 5 journalists by bombing their broadcast van

https://t.me/jeniincamp/92581

Today’s combat footage and news from the Donbass.

An overview of recent Russian advances in the DPR, plus combat footage (some 18+): https://southfront.press/military-overview-on-december-25-2024-russian-forces-occupied-100-sq-km-in-ukraine-in-the-last-48-hours/

Russian forces have now liberated all the residential areas of the DPR city of Kurakhovo (only the industrial outskirts on the western side remain to be cleared): https://news-pravda.com/ukraine/2024/12/25/940941.html

Russian drones finished off an abandoned Kiev regime tank: https://odysee.com/@RT:fd/moddrone:4

Syrian forces suffer 14 fatalities in countryside clashes

Transitional administration said 10 police members also wounded by ‘remnants’ of Assad regime in Tartous Reuters Wed 25 Dec 2024 23.35 GMT

Fourteen members of the Syrian police were killed in an “ambush” by forces loyal to the ousted government in the Tartous countryside, the transitional administration said early on Thursday, as demonstrations and an overnight curfew elsewhere marked the most widespread unrest since Bashar al-Assad’s removal more than two weeks ago.

Syria’s new interior minister said on Telegram that 10 police members were also wounded by what he called “remnants” of the Assad government in Tartous, vowing to crack down on “anyone who dares to undermine Syria’s security or endanger the lives of its citizens”.

Earlier, Syrian police imposed an overnight curfew in the city of Homs, state media reported, after unrest there linked to demonstrations that residents said were led by members of the minority Alawite and Shi’ite Muslim religious communities.

Reuters could not immediately confirm the demands of the demonstrators nor the degree of disturbance that took place.

Some residents said the demonstrations were linked to pressure and violence in recent days aimed at members of the Alawite minority, a sect long seen as loyal to Assad, who was toppled by Sunni Islamist rebels on 8 December.

Spokespersons for Syria’s new ruling administration led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, a former al-Qaida affiliate, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the curfew.

State media said the curfew was being imposed for one night, from 6pm local time (1500 GMT) until 8am on Thursday morning.

The country’s new leaders have repeatedly vowed to protect minority religious groups, who fear the former rebels now in control could seek to impose a conservative form of Islamist government.

Small demonstrations also took place in other areas on or near Syria’s coast, where most of the country’s Alawite minority live, including in Tartous.

The demonstrations took place about the time an undated video was circulated on social networks showing a fire inside an Alawite shrine in the city of Aleppo, with armed men walking about inside and posing near human bodies.

The interior ministry said on its official Telegram account the video dated back to the rebel offensive on Aleppo in late November and the violence was carried out by unknown groups, adding whoever was circulating the video now appeared to be seeking to incite sectarian strife.

The ministry also said some members of the former regime had attacked interior ministry forces in Syria’s coastal area on Wednesday, leaving a number of dead and wounded.

Denmark boosts Greenland defence after Trump repeats desire for US control

The Danish government has announced a huge boost in defence spending for Greenland, hours after US President-elect Donald Trump repeated his desire to purchase the Arctic territory.

Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the package was a "double digit billion amount" in krone, or at least $1.5bn (£1.2bn).

He described the timing of the announcement as an "irony of fate". On Monday Trump said ownership and control of the huge island was an "absolute necessity" for the US.

I don’t know if they already planned to do this beforehand and just leaned into Trump’s remarks, but in any case Trump just gave Denmark the excuse to do more austerity by spending more money into military.

The end result is still the same though: more public assets get privatized and eventually sold to foreign capital.

There is a new genre of crank who thinks every medium sized explosion is caused by small tactical nukes:
https://xcancel.com/Ben68638515/status/1871046543958331531

The dude really thinks the Nordstream pipeline was sabotaged by nukes and even has an entire page on his personal site dedicated to this:
https://www.geophysical-forensics.ch/nordstream.html

Wake up babe new MH17 with KAL007 characteristics just dropped

(CW: Torygraph) Azerbaijan Airlines crash sparks speculation plane ‘accidentally shot down by Russia’

An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash on Christmas Day has prompted speculation the plane was shot down by Russia after it took a detour of hundreds of miles in the wrong direction and crash-landed with holes in the fuselage.

The incident, which killed at least 38 people and injured a further 29, took place after a significant detour, which could have been caused by GPS jamming.

It was flying from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan to Grozny, the capital of Chechnya in the north Caucasus.

Vladimir Putin’s forces have militarised the area the plane was flying over, on a detour that had not been planned by the airline.

Henceforth will be referring to all US military elements as “Joseph Biden’s forces”

Buried this tidbit quite a ways under the headline:

The plane was attempting to land at a Russian airport in Grozny, which at the time of landing was under attack by Ukrainian drones.

Rybar, an influential Telegram channel with 1.3 million subscribers, also confirmed Baza’s description, saying the damage to the fuselage resembles “striking elements of an anti-aircraft missile”.

He continued: “The plane itself was heading to Grozny - at that time, a raid by launched Ukrainian UAVs was actually being repelled over the region. Several drones were shot down over Vladikavkaz in North Ossetia and neighboring Ingushetia.”

GPS jamming being the culprit would be bizarre, considering GPS jamming is to be expected on such routes and would be immediately detected. In any case it should be a non-event for any commercial airliner as they would simply switch the nav system to INS-only.

If any GPS shenanigans are involved, spoofing would seem much more likely. The navigation system operates with inertial navigational information updated with radio beacons and GPS information. This is the only conceivable scenario where a gross navigational error would’ve gone undetected by the crew.

It’s not the 80s anymore. Cockpits have graphical displays of aircraft position, and a sudden jump across the world should immediately result in disregarding any GPS information.

A key difference from KAL007 is that this flight was well within radar range and this ATC would’ve had independent position information. How could they possibly not have noticed this “unplanned detour in the wrong direction”? We live in an age where any deviation from the planned route should sound an automated alarm. Not to mention, if you are hundreds of miles off course, you likely wouldn’t even be able to contact the appropriate controller on the VHF frequency. Being that far off course without realizing it is almost completely inconceivable anywhere other than over the Pacific Ocean, and even that would require deliberate and targeted GPS spoofing. I fly transpacific routes all the time - the position is regularly checked. The circumstances that allowed KAL007 to happen, the official version anyway, simply no longer exist.

Brazilian liberal, pro-Lula da Silva mayor upsets the Zionist community in Brazil with a Christmas message.

In a Christmas message, Alexandre Kalil, former mayor of Belo Horizonte, published: “Just a reminder that Jesus was Palestinian, a refugee, poor, persecuted, tortured and murdered for preaching equality, social justice and love”.

Alexandre served as president of Clube Atlético Mineiro, a football club based in Belo Horizonte, Brazil that competes in Campeonato Brasileiro, the top tier of the Brazilian football league system, as well as in the Campeonato Mineiro. Alexandre is of Syrian descent, he is the only son of former club president Elias Kalil. Alexandre Kalil's career in Atletico started in the early 1980s, managing its volleyball team. He was also the football director and the president of the deliberation council.

Per the cradle, the Syrian ministry of interior announced 24 regime casualties with 14 dead after an ambush near tartous, presumably by SAA remnants

https://t.me/thecradlemedia/27206

Let me know if I’m posting too much:

1 Syrian protests were apparently based on old news about the shrine burning. Nevertheless,

2 government forces are reportedly mobilizing to suppress (kill and maim) the protestors

https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/134214

Yemen deserves to be the leader of the Resistance. They are not corrupt and consequently their nation is more united than any other country in the Resistance. They also do not suffer from 'self-overthrowing policies' syndrome that Iran suffers from. I hope Hezbullah recovers from the damages that it received for supporting Palestine. And I hope my country, Iran, do fix itself before its too late. So many talented smart people leave this country because of what Zionists call "our assets in Iran", that is extremists, especially the ones acting like one to get seats and ruin this country.

Merry Christmas. Wish you a happy year.

Post from a Syrian Christian telegram regarding backlash to the mass protests

https://streamable.com/16dr1r

“🇸🇾 - "Homs for Sunnis, Alawites out!"

Sectarian protests begin in Homs. This is a prelude for something much uglier. Al Sharaa also personally called for the targeting of Alawite villages several times in recorded speeches, yet we're supposed to be silent in the face of "isolated incidents".

After the Alawites, they're going to go after us.”

https://t.me/syrianchristian/420

ELL em ayy oh

https://x.com/ltc_shoshani/status/1871654116986179772

https://adamtooze.substack.com/p/chartbook-341-on-thinking-in-medias

There is some small leftie infighting over tooze liberalism (re: mr anderson). I'm linking the piece cause aside from that it's interesting

https://xcancel.com/MenchOsint/status/1871946832601084300

Brave ansar allah drone exploded a transformer

Further protests by Christians outraged at the burning of a shrine to Abu Abdullah bin Hamdan Al-Khasibi in Aleppo. At least 2 have been murdered by the militants. Turns out treading the middle ground between Al-Nusra and everybody else doesn’t “protect minorities,” it just gives official cover to vigilante sectarian violence.

https://t.me/DarEQuds/5052

Personally I’d save my anti-Christian action for after December, just to be safe, but I guess that’s why I don’t run Syria

Baking hope in Gaza: Making Christmas cookies in a displacement tent

Khan Younis, Gaza – From a makeshift kitchen with a sand floor and a nylon roof, and lacking the most basic equipment, Mayess Hamid prepared Christmas cookies this year.

Hamid, 31, has been making cakes and cookies for about 10 years, working at one of Gaza’s largest cake shops before it was destroyed in Israel’s continuing war on the besieged enclave.

Like many in Gaza, she lost her job when the bakery she worked at was bombed.

“I wanted to start the year with optimism and make Christmas cookies to distribute to the children around me in the camp,” she says as she kneads.

“The war turned our lives upside down. I lost my income, and my home was destroyed,” says Hamid, who has been displaced nine times since her family left Zeitoun, east of Gaza City, and has now settled in al-Mawasi in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.

“My children are excited, waiting eagerly and trying to help, especially with decorations,” she adds, arranging the cookies in a baking tray.

Making cookies was challenging because of basic food shortages that are so severe that some parts of Gaza are in famine.

Israel has largely blocked the entry of aid and commercial shipments since the beginning of the war.

Drawing from her experience, she substitutes unavailable materials with things she can find.

“Before the war, I decorated cakes with ready-made sugar paste. Now, I use a mix of liquid cheese and powdered sugar, and it works,” she says.

Lacking Christmas cookie cutters, Hamid drew stencils on paper using her phone, cut them out, and shaped the dough by hand using a knife.

“Even simple tasks like baking cookies have become challenges during the war,” she says, arranging the cookies and preparing to bake in a nearby clay oven the whole camp relies on.

“From gathering materials to shaping dough and baking, each step feels unfamiliar and complicated.”

As the second batch of cookies bakes, Hamid begins to decorate the first inside her small tent.

“The war may have taken my home and life as I knew it, but not my passion for decorating and attention to detail,” she says, glancing around her tidy tent.

While trying to bring a festive feel to the displacement camp, Hamid cannot hide her sorrow that the world celebrates Christmas as usual, while Gaza endures a second year of war and devastation.

“We try to smile, but our wounds run deep, and there is little we can do. We feel forgotten.”

At the same time, she still clings to hope that this Christmas will bring peace. Her sole Christmas wish is for the war to end.

“Just let the war stop. Let the killing and destruction end so we can live in peace with our children,” she says.

this is a few days old but nobody posted it i think

Human Rights Watch determines israel is committing acts of genocide

Israel’s Crime of Extermination, Acts of Genocide in Gaza Authorities’ Widespread Deprivation of Water Threatens Survival

• Israeli authorities have deliberately inflicted conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of part of the population in Gaza by intentionally depriving Palestinian civilians there of adequate access to water, most likely resulting in thousands of deaths.
• In doing so, Israeli authorities are responsible for the crime against humanity of extermination and for acts of genocide. The pattern of conduct, coupled with statements suggesting that some Israeli officials wished to destroy Palestinians in Gaza, may amount to the crime of genocide.
• Governments and international organizations should take all measures to prevent genocide in Gaza, including discontinuing military assistance, reviewing bilateral agreements and diplomatic relations, and supporting the International Criminal Court and other accountability efforts.

this is following the previous amnesty international report that determined that israel is committing acts of genocide in gaza

Felt the urge to dust off some research on family friends and rediscovered that I'm 4 degrees of separation from Assad. Solid ones, too. Guess that's less signficant now

Daily reminder that the astronauts that capitalism stranded on the ISS are still stuck up there.

https://nypost.com/2024/12/24/us-news/how-astronauts-stranded-on-the-international-space-station-got-santa-hats/

Why does nobody get called out for being a in the news megathread when they don't link their source 😤

Merry christmas to all bloomers and doomers

and

the point is, of course, to change it

Biden has had a hard time being president since the 2020 election race due to his age and the health problems that came with it, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources.

From the very beginning, his entourage adjusted the presidential schedule, noting that Biden gets tired if meetings drag on, makes mistakes and has various "limitations." He was distanced from ministers, Congress and other high-ranking officials, isolated from the scrutiny of the public and the press.

His closest aides and advisers, such as Sullivan, Richetti and Brainard, often acted as intermediaries, and even Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen had a hard time getting face-to-face meetings with Biden, including at key moments like the “disastrous” withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. And when they met with Biden, his interlocutors were asked to be clear and concise.

One lawmaker who did speak one-on-one with Biden noted that the president lacks stamina and relies heavily on his staff. Biden was especially bad in the mornings, so they tried to schedule meetings later. And sometimes they cancelled them altogether if the president was having a "bad day."

The president was literally led by the hand by his aides, especially during trips or public appearances. The White House, however, denies that the president's schedule was changed due to his health.

Some recent combat footage from the Donbass and Kursk oblast.

A video collection showing Russian forces in action in the Donbass: https://southfront.press/chronicle-of-the-fighting-in-ukraine-in-videos-22-23-december-2024/

This news article has another video collection, from Kursk oblast: https://southfront.press/ukraine-is-losing-kursk-battle/

A Russian drone strike video collection from near the Kiev-occupied western DPR city of Krasnoarmeysk (AKA “Pokrovsk”): https://news-pravda.com/world/2024/12/24/938992.html

That one time Israel sniped Santa Claus in Gaza in 2017

There was a comic series i read the first couple of issues pre-covid

spoiler

(Undiscovered country it's ok art and story wise but although it attempts to subvert it due to the premise it does tend to end up being ra-ra americana and orientalist)

just picked it back up and read the 30 issues since, it still hasn't finished guess I'll wait another half decade

GOAT is washed 💔💔💔

spoiler

Still love you khamenei ♥️♥️♥️♥️

Remember when the Israeli football hooligans were rioting and the BBC tried to pass footage of them beating someone as the opposite?
Today, 45 days later, they are "happy to correct the record."

Seems like russian cargo ship "just did that" in mediterranean (sunk). All according to masterplan

I just don't see what the fuck they are thinking they are doing

https://archive.is/WjBbA(from FT)

Defaults on leveraged loans soar to highest in 4 years

US companies are defaulting on junk loans at the fastest rate in four years, as they struggle to refinance a wave of cheap borrowing that followed the Covid pandemic. Defaults in the global leveraged loan market — the bulk of which is in the US — picked up to 7.2 per cent in the 12 months to October, as high interest rates took their toll on heavily indebted businesses, according to a report from Moody’s. That is the highest rate since the end of 2020.

The rise in companies struggling to repay loans contrasts with a much more modest rise in defaults in the high-yield bond market, highlighting how many of the riskier borrowers in corporate America have gravitated towards the fast-growing loan market.

Because leveraged loans — high yield bank loans that have been sold on to other investors — have floating interest rates, many of those companies that took on debt when rates were ultra low during the pandemic have struggled under high borrowing costs in recent years. Many are now showing signs of pain even as the Federal Reserve brings rates back down. “There was a lot of issuance in the low interest rate environment and the high rate stress needed time to surface,” said David Mechlin, credit portfolio manager at UBS Asset Management. “This [default trend] could continue into 2025.”

Punitive borrowing costs, together with lighter covenants, are leading borrowers to seek other ways to extend this debt. In the US, default rates on junk loans have soared to decade highs, according to Moody’s data. The prospect of rates staying higher for longer — the Federal Reserve last week signalled a slower pace of easing next year — could keep upward pressure on default rates, say analysts.

Many of these defaults have involved so-called distressed loan exchanges. In such deals, loan terms are changed and maturities extended as a way of enabling a borrower to avoid bankruptcy, but investors are paid back less.

Such deals account for more than half of defaults this year, a historical high, according to Ruth Yang, head of private market analytics at S&P Global Ratings. “When [a debt exchange] impairs the lender it really counts as a default,” she said.

“A number of the lower rated loan-only companies that could not tap public or private markets had to restructure their debt in 2024, resulting in higher loan default rates than those of high-yield bonds,” Moody’s wrote in its report. Portfolio managers worry that these higher default rates are the result of changes in the leveraged loan market in recent years. “We’ve had a decade of uncapped growth in the leveraged loan market,” said Mike Scott, a senior high yield fund manager at Man Group. Many of the new borrowers in sectors such as healthcare and software were relatively light on assets, meaning that investors were likely to recover a smaller slice of their outlay in the event of a default, he added.

“[There has been] a wicked combination of a lack of growth and a lack of assets to recover,” thinks Justin McGowan, corporate credit partner at Cheyne Capital. Despite the rise in defaults, spreads in the high-yield bond market are historically tight, the least since 2007 according to Ice BofA data, in a sign of investors’ appetite for yield. “Where the market is now, we are pricing in exuberance,” said Scott.

Still, some fund managers think the spike in default rates will be shortlived, given that Fed rates are now falling. The US central bank cut its benchmark rate this month for the third meeting in a row. Brian Barnhurst, global head of credit research at PGIM, said lower borrowing costs should bring relief to companies that had borrowed in the loan or high-yield bond markets.

Jay Powell speaks at a press conference “We don’t see a pick-up in defaults across either asset class,” he said. “To be honest, that relationship [between leveraged loans and high-yield bond default rates] diverged probably in late 2023.”

But others worry that distressed exchanges hint at underlying stresses and only put off problems until a later date. “[It’s] all well and good kicking the can down the road when that road goes downhill,” noted Duncan Sankey, head of credit research at Cheyne, referring to when conditions were more favourable for borrowers. Some analysts blame loosening credit restrictions in loan documentation in recent years for allowing an increase in distressed exchanges that hurt lenders. “You can’t put the genie back in the bottle. Weakened [documentation] quality has really changed the landscape, in favour of the borrower,” said S&P’s Yang.

Zionist invasion of Egypt in 1... 2...

Israel accuses Egypt of violating peace treaty, worried about Egypt's "growing military strength"

David Govrin, Israel’s former ambassador to Cairo, has accused Egypt of breaching the peace treaty between the two countries and warned Tel Aviv about Egypt’s growing military strength, Sama reported, citing Yedioth Ahronoth.

In an interview with the Israeli news site, Govrin claimed that Egypt is investing significant sums in military enhancement and violating the military annexe of the peace agreement.

Govrin served as Israel’s ambassador to Egypt from 2016 to 2019 and, as of November 2021, was Israel’s first ambassador to Morocco before retiring from the Foreign Ministry.

Govrin alleged: “There is no doubt that Egypt is breaching the military annexe of the peace treaty. It has deployed a larger number of military forces in Sinai than permitted under the agreement and beyond what Israel approved, citing its recent requests to combat terrorism in Sinai.”

READ: Israel PM Netanyahu is not visiting Cairo, Egypt source says

He also warned that Egypt is heavily investing in its military capabilities despite its struggling economy and the absence of external threats.

“There is substantial investment in military and civilian infrastructure east of the Suez Canal,” he said. “Israel must take Egypt’s military capabilities into account and not rely on good intentions or shared interests. These can change quickly.”

Discussing Egypt’s attitude towards Israel, Govrin remarked: “On one hand, there is hostility and resentment, as Israel is perceived as an imperialist entity, a foreign implant, and an artificial creation.”

Govrin concluded his interview with Yedioth Ahronoth by saying: “After all these years, and even after 7 October 2023, questions remain about Egypt’s genuine recognition of Israel within its 1948 borders.”

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20241224-ex-israel-envoy-accuses-egypt-of-breaching-peace-deal/

In Ramallah, a rally organized by the DFLP to support the resistance in Jenin and calling for unity in confronting the occupation https://t.me/jeninnews1/130513

Fatah banned Al Jazeera in the west bank. Traitorous pigs not even willing to allow Qatari comprador media to operate. Fuck Abbas. Hope his tortured body gets paraded around the streets of Al-Aqsa, like how Mussolini was

Biggest banks sue the Federal Reserve over annual stress tests

Has anyone seen this video purporting to show HTS hunting down Assadists in Latakia? Wondering if it’s old and being misrepresented

https://t.me/voiceof_syria/1873

If not, it’s more evidence of the silent atrocities being carried out by the new regime

Sudan drops out of hunger-monitor system on eve of famine report

spoiler

The Sudanese government has suspended its participation in the global hunger-monitoring system on the eve of a report that’s expected to show famine spreading across the country, a step likely to undercut efforts to address one of the world’s largest hunger crises.

In a letter dated Dec. 23, the government’s agriculture minister said the government is halting its participation in the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system. The letter accused the IPC of “issuing unreliable reports that undermine Sudan's sovereignty and dignity.”

On Tuesday, the IPC is expected to publish a report finding that famine has spread to five areas in Sudan and could expand to 10 by May, according to a briefing document seen by Reuters. “This marks an unprecedented deepening and widening of the food and nutrition crisis, driven by the devastating conflict and poor humanitarian access,” the document stated.

A spokesperson for the Rome-based IPC declined to comment.

Sudan’s withdrawal from the IPC system could undermine humanitarian efforts to help millions of Sudanese suffering from extreme hunger, said the leader of a non-governmental organization operating there, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“Withdrawal from the IPC system won’t change the reality of hunger on the ground,” the NGO source said. “But it does deprive the international community of its compass to navigate Sudan’s hunger crisis. Without independent analysis, we’re flying blind into this storm of food insecurity.”

Another ballistic missile, or multiple missiles, from Yemen was fired at Israel last night, with high altitude interceptions visible. Not exoatmospheric as that would produce a bluish to purple tinted explosion and not the orange explosion seen on video, but high altitude within the atmosphere. There were videos of the interception and debris falling down.

Video of interception

Xcancel mirror

Video of debris

Xcancel mirror

Not even a month

Hundreds protest in Christian areas of Syrian capital after Christmas tree burned

Demonstrations flare after video spread on social media showing hooded fighters setting fire to tree Agence France-Presse in Damascus and Reuters Tue 24 Dec 2024 11.48 GMT

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in Christian areas of Damascus early on Tuesday to protest against the burning of a Christmas tree near Hama in central Syria, Agence France-Presse journalists witnessed.

“We demand the rights of Christians,” protesters chanted as they marched through the Syrian capital towards the headquarters of the Orthodox patriarchate in the Bab Sharqi neighbourhood.

The protests come a little more than two weeks after an armed coalition led by Islamists toppled the government of Bashar al-Assad, who had cast himself as a protector of minorities in the Sunni-majority country.

A demonstrator who gave his name as Georges told AFP he was protesting “injustice against Christians”.

“If we’re not allowed to live our Christian faith in our country, as we used to, then we don’t belong here any more,” he said.

The protests erupted after a video spread on social media showing hooded fighters setting fire to a Christmas tree in the Christian-majority town of Suqaylabiyah, near Hama.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the fighters were foreigners from the Islamist group Ansar al-Tawhid.

In another video posted to social media, a religious leader from Syria’s victorious Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) addressed local people, claiming those who torched the tree were “not Syrian” and promising they would be punished. “The tree will be restored and lit up by tomorrow morning,” he said.

The Islamist HTS movement, rooted in al-Qaida and supported by Turkey, has promised to protect minorities since its lightning offensive toppled Assad this month after years of stalemate.

Turkey’s interior minister said on Tuesday that more than 25,000 Syrians had returned home from Turkey since Assad was ousted. Turkey is home to nearly 3 million refugees who fled the civil war that broke out in 2011, and whose presence has been an issue for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government.

“The number of people returning to Syria in the last 15 days has exceeded 25,000,” Ali Yerlikaya told the official Anadolu news agency. Ankara is in close touch with Syria’s new leaders and focusing on the voluntary return of Syrian refugees, hoping the shift in power in Damascus will allow many of them to head home.

The US military said on Monday it conducted an airstrike in Syria that killed two Islamic State operatives and wounded one. The IS operatives were moving a truckload of weapons in Dayr az Zawr province, an area formerly controlled by the Syrian government and Russians, when they were targeted with the airstrike, US Central Command said in a statement on X.

Summary of recent events in Gaza, per Al-Jazeera:

Israeli artillery has shelled the third floor of the al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza’s besieged Jabalia refugee camp, according to our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic.

The Israeli army has detonated remote-controlled explosives in the barely functioning Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Beit Lahiya, injuring at least 20 patients and medical staff.

Also in Beit Lahiya, Israeli soldiers are forcing wounded and sick people to leave the Indonesian Hospital, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

At least 21 people have been killed and 51 injured across Gaza in the past 24 hours, according to the Ministry.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 45,338 Palestinians and wounded 107,764 since October 7, 2023. At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day, and more than 200 were taken captive.

Macron announces France's fourth government in a year

this fucking guy.

Both Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu and Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot kept their jobs, the presidency said.

Mr Lecornu, a 38-year-old loyalist with a keen political nose, has served in every government since Mr Macron's first election as president in 2017.

Conservative Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, who has vowed to crackdown on illegal immigration, and right-wing Culture Minister Rachida Dati, also stayed in their posts.

Mr Bayrou had hoped to bring in figures from the left, right and centre to protect his government from possible censure, but his 35-member team does not include any members of the left-wing coalition New Popular Front.

Just before the official announcement, right-wing politician Xavier Bertrand, who had been tipped for the health ministry, announced he would not be part of the government.

He alleged that it had been formed with the implicit "backing" of far-right leader Marine Le Pen, who will play a key role in ensuring its survival.

Is jacobin fucking high?

One of Karl Marx’s most persistent points, from “On the Jewish Question” forward, is that despite the formal freedoms that we enjoy in a liberal state — the right to freedom of speech, for example, or freedom of religion — we are socially and in fact unfree. (As Bruno Leipold reports in his Citizen Marx, a lot of Marx’s evidence for this claim, particularly about religion, came from travelers’ reports to America, which Marx read assiduously.) That is what it means to live in a liberal society, says Marx: formally free, actually unfree.

But lately I’ve been wondering whether we are not living in the reverse. Despite the efforts of right-wingers to bend the state in a repressive, less free direction, society seems more and more resistant to these efforts. Producing a situation that is, in some sense, the mirror image of what Marx described.

You are totally free, unless you protest anything state deems important. Or strike in important industry. Look at my leftist "intellectuals", we are boned

Happy Holidays

The cops are gonna force Luigi into the Hannibal Lecter face cover into court one of these days.

In reading over syria events, i've encountered something about kurds not only controlling oil (which they get out through iraq and turkey (?), but that they also control the arable lands and were syria's source of food before civil war. What were they doing during us-backed autonomy? Collecting harvest only for themselves? or also shipping it out? or selling to assad?

(also, naks bilal is the daftest motherfucker, talking about sisi cowering in fear over syria, lmao, sure they can ditch sisi, nothing would change though, just as nothing changed the first time)

Ukraine is in a very serious shortage of infantrymen and can't keep up with the war and it's terrible demands. Not only they're forcing everyone they can into the frontline troops, but they're also recruiting specialists from specialized units as frontline infantry, in this case, from Anti-Aircraft units. This is more or less what happened around 1943 when the Luftwaffe started to press surplus men into the "Luftwaffen-Feld-Divisionen", that is, infantry formations made up of anti-aircraft artillerymen, mechanics, airmen and other Luftwaffe personnel, sent into battle with disastrous results. As the nazis suffered worse shortages of infantry, they started to empty the Kriegsmarine's ships from men and formed "Naval Infantry" units that were desperately thrown against the Soviet onslaught with little training, again, with disastrous results. When you have to send your specialists into combat as infantry it means you're completely fucked.

THE GUARDIAN: Ukraine faces difficult decisions over acute shortage of frontline troops

spoiler

Depleted army is increasingly made up of older men, but Zelenskyy is reluctant to lower mobilisation age from 25

On a recent icy afternoon in the western Ukrainian city of Kovel, a silver-haired man in military fatigues prepared to board a train. A small boy hugged him at the knees, reluctant to let go. “Come on Dima, say goodbye to grandad,” his mother told him, pulling him away. A few minutes later, the train pulled out of the station with the man on board, headed on a long journey to the east of the country, towards the frontlines in the fight against Russia. Daughter and grandson, both in tears, waved from the platform.

Similar scenes now play out frequently in Ukraine, where the depleted and exhausted army is increasingly made up of older men. As the country approaches three years of full-scale war with Russia, and waits uneasily for the arrival of Donald Trump in the White House, an acute personnel shortage at the front presents a dilemma.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has resisted public calls from the Biden administration to lower the age at which men can be mobilised from 25, where it currently stands, to 18, citing the sensitivities of sending younger men to fight in a society that already faces a demographic crisis. But with Russia continuing to find fresh recruits for its grinding advances, the army is struggling to find enough people to fill the gaps at the front.

A series of interviews with Ukrainian officers, who spoke anonymously, given the sensitivity of the issue, paint a worrying picture for Ukraine’s war effort.

“The people we get now are not like the people who were there in the beginning of the war,” said one soldier currently serving in Ukraine’s 114th territorial defence brigade, who has been stationed in various hotspots over the past two years. “Recently, we received 90 people, but only 24 of them were ready to move to the positions. The rest were old, sick or alcoholics. A month ago, they were walking around Kyiv or Dnipro and now they are in a trench and can barely hold a weapon. Poorly trained, and poorly equipped,” he said.

Two sources in air defence units told the Guardian the deficit at the front has become so acute that the general staff has ordered already-depleted air defence units to free up more men to send to the front as infantry. “It’s reaching a critical level where we can’t be sure that air defence can function properly,” said one of the sources, saying he had been prompted to speak out by a fear that the situation was a risk to Ukraine’s security.

“These people knew how air defence works, some had been trained in the West and had real skills, now they are sent to the front to fight, for which they have no training,” said the source.

These men are too valuable. These people know how complex systems like S300 and Patriot work, including their radar systems, aiming systems, the nature of the enemy's weapons and capabilities... they're too precious to just throw into a frozen trench to die to a 25$ commercial drone that drops a decades old F1 grenade. Plus they have little to no infantry training.

Commanders can use the orders to send soldiers they do not like to the front, as punishment, said the source. There is also a fear that, equipped with sensitive knowledge about Ukrainian air defence positions and tactics, there is a risk of these soldiers giving up important information if they are captured by Russians at the front.

Last month Mariana Bezuhla, an outspoken and controversial MP, claimed in a post on Telegram that air defence troops were being transferred to infantry units, leading to worse success rates for Ukraine shooting down Russian drones. Yurii Ihnat, a spokesperson for the air defence forces, confirmed at the time that the transfers were taking place, saying they were “very painful”. But he denied that it was affecting shoot-down rates.

Those the Guardian spoke with said the increasing demands for transfers were making it hard to run the air defence units properly, however. “This has been going on for a year but it’s been getting worse and worse,” said another source, an officer working on air defence. “I’m already down to less than half [of full strength]. In recent days the commission came and they want dozens more. I’m left with those aged 50-plus and injured people. It’s impossible to run things like this,” he said.

While the first months of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 saw lines of Ukrainians ready to volunteer, and hundreds of thousands of people have willingly gone to the front since, mobilisation has been a major challenge for Kyiv for the past year, with squads of recruitment officers roaming the streets and handing out call-up papers. Men of conscription age have been barred from leaving the country since the start of the invasion.

Most Ukrainians understand the need for mobilisation, but the policy is unpopular on a personal level, and the recruiting squads often face anger and abuse as they look for new conscripts. In a telling sign of the changing attitudes in the country, a poll by the Kyiv-based Razumkov Centre over the summer found that 46% of respondents agreed that there was “no shame in evading military service”, while only 29% disagreed.

The personnel shortage has soured relations between Kyiv and Washington over recent months. Officials in the Biden administration felt irritated that Zelenskyy and other officials frequently demanded more weapons, but were unable to mobilise the requisite manpower to fill the ranks. “Manpower is the most vital need” Ukraine has at the moment, White House national security council spokesperson Sean Savett said in a statement last month. “We’re also ready to ramp up our training capacity if they take appropriate steps to fill out their ranks,” he said.

Ukrainian officials felt the public calls by the US to lower the mobilisation age to 18 was insensitive and inappropriate. Ukraine expanded its mobilisation drive in April, lowering the call-up age to 25 from 27, but a majority of Ukrainians, even those at the front, are wary of lowering it further, citing a need to protect the younger generation. Many soldiers say that the way to boost mobilisation rates is not by lowering the call-up age but by offering better incentives and more training. “It’s not about age, really, they need good conditions and motivation,” said the soldier from the 114th brigade. “Eighteen-year-olds are still children. Maybe they could lower it to 23 if necessary, but there are still enough people in Kyiv who could be mobilised but don’t want to go,” he added.

---

Ukraine is facing a massacre while their elites and their US "friends" are filling their pockets with easy money. Instead of looking for a diplomatic way out of this mess, they insist on sending more men towards their pointless deaths. Ukraine fought well, they accepted the Russian invitation to fight and fough well, but sometimes you gotta understand that you lost, that no matter how many people you throw into the meatgrinder it's over. The killing must end at some point, it's insane.

Former President Bill Clinton is in the hospital after developing a fever

Fuck Jimmy Carter, but it would be hilarious if he outlived Bill Clinton because he's even worse.

'When You Leave Israel and Enter Gaza, You Are God': Inside the Minds of IDF Soldiers Who Commit War Crimes

https://archive.ph/O8rGB

CW: Nazi shit that is so Nazi one of the soldiers has to literally ask "Are we the fucking Nazis?!"

Here is a tweet with screenshots of text if you don't want to read the whole thing: https://xcancel.com/shaabiranks/status/1871208919994958023

Luigi is pleading not guilty
Kinda interesting that the state went for the terrorism angle but the feds are treating it more like a targeted murder. It's somewhat contradictory and could make it difficult for some of the charges to stick.

By the way, I absolutely do not accept the irony regarding Putin's statement that military tasks in Syria were solved brilliantly by Russia. They were solved brilliantly at that time. No irony. Russia preserved Syria as a state and gave it 8 years of a quiet life.

But circumstances tend to change, and those who, resting on their laurels, do not feel this, lose. Putin won the war in Syria, but lost the peace. The saddest thing is that such a matrix can be reproduced today (as it is regularly reproduced with dreary predetermination) with Ukraine.

You can win the war but still lose the peace. Can Putin keep the peace in Ukraine? That’s the question.

Feels like we sort of passed over the massive news of the Northvolt (Europe's only EV battery producer) collapse a few weeks back, so I'm going to re-up it here to highlight how monumentally fucked the European automobile industry is long term. Not exactly news to anybody here that's been paying attention, but the staggering mismanagement of what is so obviously a key and strategic piece of European industry is perhaps still baffling. The article's name is "The Northvolt dilemma: can European EVs avoid relying on Asian batteries?", and as the Betteridge law of headlines states, the obvious answer to this question is "No."

Two months before Northvolt filed for bankruptcy in the US, Robin Zeng, known as China’s “battery king”, had a quick but grim answer as to why European battery makers were struggling to make good products. “They have a wrong design . . . they have a wrong process . . . and they have the wrong equipment. How can they scale up?” the chief executive of CATL told Nicolai Tangen, the head of Norway’s $1.8tn oil fund. “So almost all mistakes together.” The bleak assessment from the world’s biggest electric vehicle battery manufacturer captures the scale of the failure for the industries behind the critical technology for Europe’s decarbonisation, leaving governments, companies and investors at a loss as to how to recraft the continent’s strategy to compete with China.

Northvolt’s demise means the battle for dominance of the European market is likely to play out between Asian battery makers. LGES and SK On both have European plants, in Poland and Hungary respectively, while CATL has a factory in Germany and a second site in Hungary due to begin production next year. But Tim Bush, a Seoul-based battery analyst at UBS, said there was little prospect at present that the Asian battery makers would be able to help the EU to meet its target for 90 per cent of the continent’s EV batteries to be produced locally by 2030. Bush noted that Korean battery makers were already paring back their investments in Europe, having invested billions of dollars in plants in North America that have been running at low utilisation rates because of lower than expected consumer demand for EVs. Potential Chinese battery investments on the continent were also likely to be complicated by the ongoing trade dispute between Brussels and Beijing over EU tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, he added. “The Koreans are not expanding, the Chinese have suspended construction and Europe’s new entrants are dropping like flies,” said Bush.

With European start-ups still behind in their ability to manufacture batteries at scale, industry executives say the only solution may be to continue their reliance on Asian participants until homegrown companies can absorb technology knowhow on battery chemistry, mass production and equipment manufacturing. “We need to find a deal with China because we won’t be able to compete . . . without the support of the Chinese companies that control the mining industry, chemicals, refining and their capacity and competence,” Luca De Meo, Renault’s chief executive, told reporters last month.

So basically, the Europeans destroyed their only chance of domestic battery consumption by epic mismanagement, and their acquiescence to USAmerican empire means they're fucking up their opportunity to draw Chinese EV investments into Europe proper due to tensions and sanctions, and the US/South Korea can't even begin to supply the necessary battery supply for the EU, so their car industry is basically fucked. The USAmerican destruction of European industry proceeds apace...

Source: https://archive.is/4Ys7n

Shortly after Trump's speech, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino released a video declaring that “every square meter of the canal belongs to Panama and will continue to belong” to his country. Without mentioning Trump by name, Mulino addressed Trump's complaints over rising fees for ships crossing the canal, saying they are set by experts who take into account operational costs, and supply and demand factors.

“The tariffs are not set on a whim” Mulino said. He noted that Panama has expanded the canal over the years to increase ship traffic “on its own initiative,” and added that shipping fee increases help pay for improvements. “Panamanians may have different views on many issues” Mulino said. “But when it comes to our canal, and our sovereignty, we will all unite under our Panamanian flag.”

Trump then took to his social media site to offer in response, “We'll see about that!" He also posted a picture of a U.S. flag planted in the canal zone under the phrase, “Welcome to the United States Canal!”

Trump is going to push Panama towards China and Venezuela, isn't he? At this point it's US tradition to antagonize a Latin-American country until they seeks closer relations with either Russia or China.

We joke about the war on Christmas, but it’s literally happening in Syria as Christians have reportedly been murdered in Wadi Al-Nasirah and threatened with expulsion in Maaloula. Less immediately harmful, but symbolic, is the arson of the Christmas tree in Suqaylibiyah

https://t.me/ASSYRIA11/47621

https://t.me/ASSYRIA11/47623

https://t.me/ASSYRIA11/47625

Cubans protest against US embargo outside US embassy in Havana

Hundreds of thousands of Cubans, led by former president Raúl Castro and current president Miguel Díaz-Canel, protested this Friday (20) outside the US embassy in Havana against Washington's trade blockade, a month before Donald Trump's return to the White House.

The “March of the fighting people against the blockade and the permanence of Cuba on the list of countries sponsoring terrorism” started from the Anti-Imperialist Tribune, an iconic esplanade in front of the US embassy, located on the Cuban capital's main seafront avenue, known as the Malecón. “We are marching now to tell the US government to let the Cuban people live in peace. Down with interference!” said Díaz-Canel, addressing the crowd, who were waving Cuban flags.

Despite being 93 years old, former president Raúl Castro, who officially retired in 2021, was at the head of the march, along with the Cuban president. “Tear down the blockade” and ‘We're not terrorists, take us off the list’, chanted the participants. “We need them to open their doors to us so that we can trade with all countries,” Rogelio Savigne, 55 and head of transportation at a state-owned company, told AFP. “If there hadn't been the blockade, the difficulties we're going through wouldn't be like this,” said Faustino Miranda (85), a pensioner.

Díaz-Canel denounced that, “when they persecute and prevent financial transactions [...], they are denying the people of Cuba food, medicine, fuel, goods, supplies and essential commodities for survival.” During his first term in office (2017-2021), Trump, who takes office on January 20, interrupted the historic rapprochement that both countries had begun in 2014 under Barack Obama (2009-2017). Trump applied 243 measures that reinforced the embargo, which has been in place since 1962, including the reincorporation of the island on the US list of “countries that sponsor terrorism”, along with Iran and North Korea. Democrat Joe Biden barely eased these sanctions and kept Cuba on the list, which blocks financial and economic flows to the island.

According to the authorities, around 700,000 people attended the demonstration in Havana, a figure that AFP was unable to verify independently. Mobilizations like this were started by Fidel Castro in the 1980s and have been organized at times of strong tensions between Havana and Washington.

Here's my last post about the protest in Serbia since the thread got locked

@Eldungeon2@hexbear.net They were coopted in years past by the neolib opposition, but this one is the initiative of the students, so the likelihood of it happening is pretty slim (at least not by the opposition). Also, as far as I'm aware, occupy was just camping on wall street, not literally obstructing government institutions from working like it's happening here.

@starkillerfish@hexbear.net I'll probably do a write-up when I get my bearings in order. As for the universities, I don't think it makes a difference as long as there exists a mechanism by which students can legally organize and close it down in protest.

What I forgot to mention is that the protest was attended by some 100k people, one of the largest in Serbia ever. Oh, and here's eurofucks getting what they deserve

Turkish foreign minister says no room for Kurdish militants in Syria's future

The new Syrian government is either gonna allow or get assistance from Turkey to wipe out the SDF aren’t they?

HTS called for all weapons and arms within the country to come under their control, and I highly doubt SDF is gonna comply.

Telegram link

Video shows Zionazi automated robots placing explosive boxes at the gates of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza.

Officer dresses as Grinch for drugs raid in Peru - ABC News

The police say the Grinch costume enabled the officer to approach the target building as part of seasonal celebrations without being detected by suspects. An undercover Peruvian officer dressed as the famous Dr. Seuss character has led a police operation in Lima to dismantle a drug trafficking gang.

An agent in the Green Squadron, a specialised unit of the Special Operations Division in Peru, went "unnoticed" before he busted open the home of suspected drug traffickers in San Bartolo, southern Lima. A video released by police shows the Grinch in a Santa suit, searching the house and finding money and drugs.

The Grinch had participated in a Christmas activity prior to the drug bust, ensuring the police presence in the neighbourhood went unnoticed, according to head of the Police Green Squadron Colonel Carlos Lopez Aedo. “Using the ingenuity and cleverness [of the unit] we used the Grinch after an activity for Christmas,” said Mr Lopez Aedo. “The presence of the Grinch went unnoticed."

"He was the one who initiated the operation by breaking the access door and we managed to capture these three drug traffickers," he said. Authorities said they seized packages of cocaine hydrochloride and cocaine paste, as well as precision instruments such as scales and strainers.

Police officers said they made three arrests. After the successful raid, the Grinch only had one thing to say. "I hate Christmas and criminals." The Peruvian police unit involved often dresses its agents up as famous characters as they carry out operations during holiday periods. Agents in the past have dressed up as superheroes, as well as horror movie characters like Freddy Krueger.

@Redcuban1959@hexbear.net, I didn't have a chance to respond to you before the last thread was locked. With regard to the Unification Church,

They believe that due to Japanese imperialism in Korea, all Japanese people have "negative ancestral karma."

This can only be corrected via ruinous financial donations to the unification church, which is what happened to Tetsuya Yamagami's mother.

I don't think this put them at odds with the Japanese government at all to be clear, which is why it continued for so long prior to Abe's assassination.

As far as the DPRK goes they're definitely extremely Anti-Communist, however, they are also pro-reunification of Korea. I'm not sure exactly where that lands them on any given issue, but there is a reason that they have a lot of CIA ties.

With the escalation in Jenin, the resistance threatens suicide bombings while the PA deploys RPGs

https://t.me/jeninnews1/130304

https://t.me/jeninnews1/130306

Slow news day 😃

Here's my last post about the protest in Serbian since the thread got locked and I didn't respond to the comments

@Eldunge