China vs. ISIS in Middle East

Posted on November 21, 2015November 21, 2015 by Denise Simon

China does have involvement in Syria and the conflict against Islamic State. The reasons are many.

In part from WSJ: For years, China has battled a sporadically violent separatist movement, made up of Turkic-speaking mainly Muslim Uighurs, who seek to establish an independent state in the Xinjiang region in northwestern China. Beijing says the Uighur separatist group East Turkestan Islamic Movement has links with terrorist groups abroad, including Islamic State. Those skeptical of that claim say the movement is motivated more by large-scale Han Chinese migration to Xinjiang and discriminatory ethnic policies than by calls for global jihad.

Cracking down on the separatist movement “should become an important component of international counterterrorism,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said this week at the Group of 20 summit in Turkey.

The killing might help China to push for better counterterror collaboration with other countries, though such cooperation comes with its own liabilities, according to Ni Lexiong, a military expert at Shanghai’s University of Political Science and Law. “If China grows too close with Europe and the U.S., then terrorists are more likely to kill the Chinese people they find. But if it doesn’t do anything, it will look weak.”

China shares intelligence and conducts counterterror exercises with neighboring countries such as Pakistan and India, and has been attempting to help mediate between the Taliban and the government in Afghanistan. Most of those agreements involve Uighurs, and Beijing has steered clear of direct support for the fight against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, citing a long-standing policy of noninterference in other countries’ internal affairs.

In part from Bloomberg: President Xi Jinping condemned the Islamic State’s execution of a Chinese national, an act that raises pressure on China to take a greater role in resolving Syria’s civil war.
Xi issued a statement on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Manila on Thursday, after Islamic State claimed credit for killing Fan Jinghui, 50, and another Norwegian captive. The group published pictures of the two dead men in its English-language Dabiq magazine on Wednesday under the banner “Executed.” It was the first time the Islamic State had killed a Chinese captive.
The executions show the increasingly global impact of violence by Islamic State and its affiliates, as leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi looks to incite a clash of civilizations. Attacks that killed scores in Paris and Beirut — days after a bomb brought down a Russian jet with 224 people on board — have increased efforts for greater international cooperation to strike back against Islamic State.
While the killing might increase China’s urgency in seeking a resolution to the Syrian civil war helping Islamic State to thrive, it was unlikely to steer the country toward support for military intervention, said Li Wei, head of security and anti-terrorism research at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations. “I don’t see any possibility for China to join the international coalition in air-striking the group in any near future,” Li said. “China will likely play a more active diplomatic role in participating in the Syrian peace process.”
Thursday’s statement was the first time Xi had publicly mentioned the Islamic State by name, Li said.

In part NYT‘s: Mix of Foreigners in Mali Reflects Different Business Interests

While Mali’s tourism industry has been devastated in recent years by growing unrest, the country continues to host foreigners who represent a variety of business interests.

The presence of Chinese soldiers as part of a peacekeeping effort in Mali, and the release of several Chinese nationals from the hotel hostage crisis on Friday reflect Africa’s relationship with its largest trade partner.

In Mali, the China Railway Engineering Corporation, which is thought to employ several of the freed hostages, is reported to be part of an $8 billion project to update the railway infrastructure that links Guinea and Mali.

The area near Bamako is also a draw for Chinese entrepreneurs, part of a group of more than one million people who have left China to seek out better opportunities in Africa.

Along with China, several other countries, including the United Arab Emirates and India, are looking to expand their business foothold in African countries. In Mali, initiatives include the expansion of agricultural investments, the mining of iron ore and other natural resources, and the distribution of pharmaceuticals.

Twenty Indian citizens who were evacuated from the hotel were working for a company based in Dubai and were staying at the Radisson on a long-term basis, according to CNN. In July, the Dubai-based Emirates Airline said it would begin offering direct flights between Dubai and Bamako.

Anonymous Hacked ISIS, Terror Plots Revealed

Posted on November 21, 2015November 21, 2015 by Denise Simon

———————————————————————————————————————————–
———- SPREAD THIS LINK ON TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, WHATSAPP OR ANY MEDIA SERVICE USING #22DAESH AND #OPPARIS ————
===================================================================================================================================
Tl;dr: Daesh plans attack on Paris and the world on the 22nd of November. #22Daesh #OpParis http://pastebin.com/wkigzJZD
^^^^^^ You can copy this as a post for on social medias. Required trending #: #22Daesh
===================================================================================================================================
Short summarization:
All proof was submitted to official authorities all around the globe days ago. They have it and it is their responsibility to do something with it. But because they have not done anything with it yet and it’s almost the 22nd, we have taken matters into our hands. We only take the responsibility of warning civilians (incase the authorities do not act well enough).
We have seen and received threats from several (pro-)Daesh accounts, but not just regular threats. These threats were all focussed on 1 date: the 22nd of November. Our intel team started gathering Intel after having verified the threats and has narrowed all it’s findings down to this pastebin.
This is a warning to anyone going to any of the events listed below or going to any event with a lot of people, church services included – but the risk of any churches outside Paris/France being targeted is low.
=======================================================================
Events in Paris that have been confirmed are at risk:
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– Demonstration by: “Collectif du droit des femmes” (Group for women’s rights) (Demonstrations are now banned, cancelled)
– Cigales Electroniques with Vocodecks, RE-Play & Rawtor at Le Bizen
– Concrete Invites Drumcode: Adam Beyer, Alan Fitzpatrick, Joel Mull.. at Concrete (Probably cancelled)
—————————————————–
Events we have received/found threats for, but weren’t 100% confirmed:
—————————————————–
– WWE Survival Series (US)
– Feast of Christ the King celebrations (Rome/Worldwide)
– Al-Jihad, 1 Day Juz (Indonesia)
– Five Finger Death Punch (Milan, Italy)
– University Pastoral Day (Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon)
“Threats” aren’t the same as “plans”, even though some threats look like plans it doesn’t mean they are all planned to be executed.
We hope that at these events adding more security will be enough to prevent any possible attacks.
—————————————————–
There will be big events worldwide on the 22nd, go at your own risk.
(..) = Added notes after our official release
=======================================================================
History: http://pastebin.com/pX0z2mi7
Official press release: http://pastebin.com/u03Rr634
—————————————————–
We are Anonymous.
We are Legion.
We do not Forgive.
We do not Forget.
Expect us.

Anonymous says ISIS planning attacks in US, Paris, elsewhere Sunday

TheHill: The hacker collective Anonymous says the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is planning to launch attacks in the U.S., Paris, Indonesia, Italy and Lebanon on Sunday.

OpParisIntel, the name of Anonymous’ mission against ISIS, released a statement Saturday saying it had uncovered information regarding new terror plots “on Paris and the world” scheduled for Nov. 22.

“All proof was submitted to official authorities all around the globe days ago,” the statement said, as first reported by the International Business Times. “They have it and it is their responsibility to do something with it. But because they have not done anything with it yet and it’s almost the 22nd, we have matters into our own hands.”

“We only take the responsibility of warning civilians (incase the authorities do not act well enough),” the statement added.

Anonymous warned against attending events with large crowds, especially church services, but added that “the risk of any churches outside Paris/France being targeted is low.”

The group listed several events in Paris that it said “have been confirmed are at risk” and several events around the world that are not yet “100% confirmed,” including a major WWE pro wrestling event in Atlanta, Ga.

“The goal is to make sure the whole world, or at least the people going to these events, know that there have been threats and that there is possibility of an attack to happen,” the statement continued.

Anonymous told IBT that it has sent the information to U.K. intelligence agency MI5, as well as the CIA and the FBI in the U.S., but has refused to release proof of the attacks publicly.

“If we share the proof [publicly], everyone will start calling it fake because screenshots can be edited and accounts can be deleted,” the hacking group said. “We have purposely not shared account links publicly because they would be shut down immediately and then no one would believe the proof.”

Anonymous declared cyber war on ISIS after the group claimed responsibility for a terrorist attack in Paris last week, killing at least 132 civilians and injuring hundreds.

The collective claimed to have shut down 5,500 ISIS Twitter accounts earlier this week.

Holocaust Documents Found in Apartment, Budapest

Posted on November 21, 2015November 21, 2015 by Denise Simon

Holocaust Documents Trove Unearthed In Budapest Apartment

A vast and historically valuable trove of Holocaust-era documents, long thought destroyed during World War II, has been found hidden in a wall cavity by a couple renovating their Budapest apartment.

BreitbartLondon: The haul of 6,300 documents are from a 1944 census that was a precursor to the intended liquidation of the Hungarian capital’s 200,000 Jews in Nazi death camps.

Brigitte Berdefy, co-owner of the apartment overlooking Hungary’s parliament, said that in August a worker detected paper after jamming a screwdriver through a crack in the wall.

“We thought we’d ruined the neighbour’s wallpaper,” Berdefy told AFP.

But then her husband Gabor peered through the crack and saw what looked like handwriting.

Carefully removing each brick, the couple eased out some 61 kilogrammes (135 pounds) of dusty papers, many with bits of plaster caked on, but all more or less intact.

With the ink still readable — thanks to a lack of air in the cavity and nicotine from the heavy-smoking former owner — the yellowed papers were given to the Budapest City Archives.

Istvan Kenyeres, head of the archives, was amazed.

“Most wartime papers are more faded or rotten than medieval documents, on bad quality paper due to the rationing,” he told AFP.

“The content and scale of the finding is unprecedented,” he said. “It helps to fill a huge gap in the history of the Holocaust in Budapest.”

– Ironing history –

Since September, restorers at the archives have been literally ironing the papers to study them, pausing occasionally when they spot someone famous among the scrawled names.

The May 1944 Budapest census was to identify houses to serve as holding locations for Jews before moving them to a planned walled ghetto in the city’s seventh district.

Two months earlier Nazi Germany had occupied Hungary and deportations in the countryside to the gas chambers of Auschwitz began almost immediately.

The forms found in the Budapest apartment contain names of each building’s inhabitants, and whether they are Jewish or not, with total numbers of Christians and Jews marked in the corners.

“Jewish people filled in the forms honestly, they refused to believe where this might end up,” said Kenyeres.

Shortly after the census, around 200,000 Jews were moved into some 2,000 selected buildings, “Yellow Star Houses” with the Star-of-David Jewish symbol painted on the doors.

“Thanks to the Berdefys, we know that if a lot of Jews lived in a building then it likely became a Yellow Star House,” Kenyeres said.

In late 1944, they were crammed into the ghetto, where some died of starvation or were shot next to the river — a poignant memorial of abandoned iron shoes today marks the spot.

The arrival of the Russian army in January 1945 saved the rest though, and unlike the Jews from outside the city, most of Budapest’s Jewish population survived.

An estimated total of 600,000 Hungarian Jews perished in the Holocaust, most in Auschwitz.

Kenyeres said that an estimated 23,000 more documents may still be out there which would give further valuable insight into what happened in 1944 and would also be digitalised and made available to the public if they turned up.

“People should look behind their walls, you never know in Budapest what could be there.”

Paris Terrorist Hiding in Brussels, Country Lockdown

Posted on November 21, 2015November 21, 2015 by Denise Simon

When a war is ranging on in cities in Europe, when borders are open, when migrants roam through the streets and towns, metropolitan areas take on the appearance of World War ll.

DailyMail: Hunt for world’s most wanted: Final Paris fugitive is alive, hiding in Brussels and has SKYPED his friends – as his brother pleads with him to turn himself in

Salah Abdeslam phoned friends who claim he is now hiding in Brussels
The dangerous fugitive used skype to contact two friends while on the run
Abdeslam’s brother Mohammed has urged Salah to give himself up
An international arrest warrant has been issued for Salah Abdeslam following his role in the deadly Paris attacks
Four people dragged from their car and arrested by police in Brussels

By Tom Wyke for MailOnline

Salah Abdeslam, 26, is believed to be the eight gunman and is wanted in connection to the horrific co-ordinated ISIS attacks

The fugitive ISIS gunman wanted in connection to the deadly Paris attacks has spoken to three friends via Skype and is thought to be hiding in Brussels, Belgium.

Salah Abdeslam, 26, is believed to be the eight gunman and played a key part in organising the horrific co-ordinated ISIS attacks.

Two of the jihadi’s friend told Salah’s brother Mohammed, that they had spoken to the wanted man although it remains unclear why he made contact.

Fresh photos of Salah emerged this week with the radical Islamist wearing a pair of large framed glasses and long floppy hair.

It is believed the wanted gunman may be in disguise after photos were published of him as part of a wanted poster.

‘I believe he is not far away,’ Mohammed Abdeslam when asked about the phone conversation, sparking suggestions his brother may be hiding in Brussels.

He urged his brother to give himself up and contact the authorities.

Salah Abdeslam, a French national, lived in Brussels for several years, and is thought to have played a key part in organising logistics for the shocking terror attacks in Paris.

Despite an international arrest warrant on his head, the French national has so far managed to evade capture after going on the run on November 13.

Police did stop Salah Abdeslam just before the Belgian border but after briefly questioning him, they mistakenly allowed the wanted terrorist to carry on his way.

It is believed the dangerous gunman was assisted over the border along with two men, who were later arrested by police.

‘I believe he is not far away,’ Mohammed Abdeslam (pictured) when asked about the phone conversation, sparking suggestions his brother may be hiding in Brussels

Mohammed Abdeslam was questioned and later released by police after the horrific attacks in Paris. Three days ago he was spotted lighting candles in remembrance of the victims in the attack

The embarrassing gaffe was later confirmed by the police who are pursuing Abdeslam having tracked down and killed the attack’s mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud.

Abaaoud died in a hail of bullets after a lengthy shootout with police, in which over 5,000 gun rounds were fired by police and two of the three heavily armed wanted men.

Abaaoud’s cousin, Hasna Aitboulahcen, was also killed in the shooting, although initial reports that she had died after detonating a suicide vest proved to be false.

A third suspect in the flat is thought to have detonated his vest, killing Hasna Aitboulahcen and wanted ISIS poster boy Abdelhamid Abaaoud.

Wanted: Police have issued an international arrest warrant for 26-year-old Salah Abdeslam, from Brussels, who is one of three brothers said to be involved in terror plot and rented their getaway

Hiding: Authorities had believed he might be hiding with Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the suspected mastermind of the Paris terror attacks, pictured, who was staying in a flat in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis

Suspect: Salah’s brother Brahim Abdeslam (left) blew himself up at le Comptoir Voltaire. Belgian Bilal Hadfi, 20, (centre left), detonated his suicide vest at the Stade de France, French bomber Omar Mostefai, centre, killed himself at the Bataclan and Samy Amimour, 28, (right) was also involved in the gig attack

Timeline of events: Eight terrorists carried out the devastating attacks on Friday night, leaving 130 people dead and another 352 injured

The hunt for Salah Abdeslam comes as heavily armed police and soldiers patrolled in the streets of Brussels today.

The city’s subways as well as many stores were closed as the government warned of a threat of Paris-style attacks.

Prime Minister Charles Michel said the decision to raise the threat alert to the highest level was taken ‘based on quite precise information about the risk of an attack like the one that happened in Paris.’

The plot involved ‘several individuals with arms and explosives’, according to the Prime Minister who speculated the jiihadis may have been looking to target several locations.

The Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s office said Saturday that several weapons were discovered during the search of the home of one of three people arrested in connection with the Paris attacks, but said no explosives were found.

Authorities across Europe, the Mideast and in Washington are trying to determine how a network of primarily French and Belgian attackers with links to Islamic extremists in Syria plotted and carried out the deadliest violence in France in decades – and how many may still be on the run.

Prime Minister Charles Michel (pictured centre) said the decision to raise the threat alert to the highest level was taken ‘based on quite precise information about the risk of an attack like the one that happened in Paris’

The city’s subways as well as many stores were closed as the government warned of a threat of Paris-style attacks

Belgian soldiers patrol the streets of Brussels as the government raised the terror alert level following ‘serious and imminent threat’

Heavily armed and watchful, troops have been keeping a careful eye in Brussels ahead of security worries

BBC TV Host on ISIS, Obama Not so Much

Posted on November 20, 2015November 20, 2015 by Denise Simon

When they shout Allah Akbar, it generally means in any translation: Duck and Cover….

YahooNews: Andrew Neil has blasted the “scumbags” of ISIS in a rant on BBC show This Week.
The former newspaper editor labelled the so-called Islamic State, “Islamic Scumbags”, adding: “Whatever atrocities you’re currently capable of committing, you will lose.
“In 1,000 years’ time Paris, that glorious city of lights, will still be shining bright, as will every other city like it.
“While you will be as dust, along with the ragbag of Fascists, Nazis and Stalinists who have previously dared to challenge democracy and failed.”

The rant, which has been shared thousands of times on Twitter, was delivered late last night on BBC politics show This Week in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks which claimed the lives of 129 people last Friday.
“Welcome to This Week,” began Neil. “The week in which a bunch of loser jihadists slaughtered 132 innocents in Paris to prove the future belongs to them rather than a civilisation like France.
“Well I can’t say I fancy their chances,” he declared, adding that France is the country of “Descartes, Monet, Cézanne and Gauguin,” name checking a slew of scientific and cultural names along with French fashion designers, food and musicians.
“Cutting edge science, world class medicine, fearsome security forces, nuclear power, Coco Chanel, Chateau Lafite, Coq Au Vin, Daft Punk, Zizou Zidane, Juliette Binoche, liberté, égalité, fraternité, and crème brûlée,” he listed.
Andrew Neil on This Week, top pic (BBC/Twitter) and the Eiffel Tower lit up in the colours of the French flag in the wake of the Paris attacks (Rex)
And ISIS would have little chance, said Neil, with their “Beheadings, crucifixions, amputations, slavery, mass murder, medieval squalor, a death cult barbarity that would shame the Middle Ages.”
Despite Neil’s speech being shared 8,000 times, comic Jenny Eclair was first to criticise it as being too similar to a recent televised tirade from HBO host John Oliver.
“@bbcthisweek @afneil this is a rip of viv the vastly superior John Oliver rant – sack your second hand script writers,” she wrote.
However, the speech won many fans among social media. Caroline Morris tweeted: “Thank you Andrew for this excellent monologue – from the heart,” while Joani Walsh wrote: “Awesome. Freakin’ awesome. Even more stirring than footie fans singing the Frenchie national anthem.”
“Proof that you can be opinionated on the BBC. @AfNeil superb as ever,” added Twitter user Iain Dale.
Andrew Neil’s speech in full
Good evening all, welcome to This Week. A week in which a bunch of loser Jihadists slaughtered 132 innocents in Paris to prove the future belongs to them, rather than a civilisation like France. Well I can’t say I fancy their chances.
‘France – the country of Descartes, Boullée, Monet, Sartre, Rousseau, Camou, Renoit, Berlioz, Cezanne, Gogan, Hugo, Voltaire, Matisse, Debussy, Ravel, Sanson, Bizet, Satie, Pasteur, Moliere, Franc, Zola, Balzac, Poulenc.
‘Cutting edge science, world class medicine, fearsome security forces, nuclear power, Coco Chanel, Chateau Lafite, coq au vin, Daft Punk, Zizou Zidane, Juliette Binoche, Liberté, égalité, fraternité, and creme brûlée.
‘Versus what? Beheadings, crucifixions, amputations, slavery, mass murder, medieval squalor, a death cult barbarity that would shame the Middle Ages. Well I.S. or Daesh or ISIS or ISIL, or whatever name you’re going by, I’m sticking with I.S. – as in ‘Islamist Scumbags’. I think the outcome is pretty clear to everybody but you. Whatever atrocities you’re currently capable of committing – you will lose.
‘In a thousand years’ time Paris – that glorious city of lights – will still be shining bright, as will every other city like it, while you will be as dust, along with a rag-bag of fascist, Nazis and Stalinists who have previously dared to challenge democracy – and failed.’