Tensions Rise Between Algeria and Morocco as Algeria Closes Diplomatic Offices

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

Algeria cuts diplomatic ties with Morocco over ‘hostile actions’ | Middle East News

From www.aljazeera.com
2021-08-24 17:55:33

Excerpt:

Algeria’s Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra accuses Rabat of ‘hostile actions’ as Algiers breaks ties with its neighbour.

Algeria is cutting diplomatic relations with Morocco, Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra said, accusing its neighbour of “hostile actions”.

Morocco and Algeria have had strained relations for decades, mainly over the issue of Western Sahara.

“Algeria has decided to cut diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Morocco from today,” Lamamra said at a news conference on Tuesday.

“The Moroccan kingdom has never stopped its hostile actions against Algeria,” he said.

The cutting of diplomatic relations is effective from Tuesday but consulates in each country will remain open, Lamamra said.

Morocco’s Foreign Ministry could not be immediately reached for comment.

King Mohammed VI has called for improved ties with Algeria.

Algeria last week said lethal wildfires were the work of groups it has labelled “terrorist”, one of which it said was backed by…

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Taliban Hope to End Resistance as They Surround Panjshir Valley

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

Mark Clouse- A legend of Afghanistan is holed up and resisting the Taliban from his base in the Panjshir Valley. The Taliban have taken control of the surrounding area and now prepare to try to take the valley citadel.

Taliban Near Resistance Stronghold Panjshir After Retaking 3 Nearby Areas

From www.ndtv.com
2021-08-23 18:06:13

Excerpt:

Afghanistan: Forces loyal to Ahmad Massoud have established themselves in the Panjshir stronghold. (File)

The Taliban were in position near the Panjshir valley and had retaken three districts in northern Afghanistan that fell to local militia groups last week, a spokesman said on Monday, though there were no confirmed reports of further fighting.

The districts of Bano, Deh Saleh, Pul e-Hesar in the northern province of Baghlan were taken by local militia groups last week in one of the first signs of armed resistance to the Taliban since their seizure of the capital Kabul on August 15.

By Monday, Taliban forces had cleared the districts and were established in Badakhshan, Takhar and Andarab near the Panjshir valley, according to the Twitter account of spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.

Forces loyal to Ahmad Massoud, son of the late mujahideen commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, have established themselves in his Panjshir stronghold, which resisted both the Soviets and the Taliban before…

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Capsized Immigrant Boat Off Coast of Libya Kills 17

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

17 presumed dead after migrant boat capsizes off Libya

From kwwl.com
2021-08-23 21:03:25

Excerpt:

CAIRO (AP) — A U.N. official says a boat crowded with dozens of migrants capsized off Libya and at least 17 people are presumed dead. The accident happened Sunday night off the western town of Zuwara. The U.N. official says there were around 70 migrants on board the rubber boat and the Libyan coast guard managed to rescue 51 Egyptians. One body was recovered and at least 16 other migrants were missing and assumed to have drowned. It was the latest disaster in the Mediterranean Sea involving migrants seeking a better life in Europe. Libya has emerged as the dominant transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East.

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Gaza Hit with Air Strike After Incendiary Bomb Attack

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

IDF strikes Gaza in response to incendiary balloons – report

From www.jpost.com
2021-08-23 20:49:00

Excerpt:

The IDF struck targets in the Gaza Strip on Monday night after 10 fires were sparked by incendiary balloons launched from Gaza, according to Palestinian reports.

The balloon launches came as Palestinian factions threatened to continue “popular activities,” including border protests, until the blockade on the Gaza Strip is lifted and Qatari funds are transferred into the coastal enclave.

Shortly before the strikes began, a Palestinian merchant was reportedly arrested by Israeli forces at the Erez crossing into the Gaza Strip. The reason for his arrest is as of yet unclear.

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Turks to Get S-400 Missiles from Russia

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

Russia, Turkey close to signing new S-400 missile contract – Ifax – Arab News

From www.arabnews.com
2021-08-23 07:43:30

Excerpt:

Russia and Turkey are close to signing a new contract to supply Ankara with additional S-400 air defense units in the near future, the Interfax news agency cited the head of Russia’s Rosoboronexport arms exporter as saying on Monday.
Turkey’s initial purchase of S-400s from Russia strained ties with the United States and its NATO allies. Washington sanctioned Ankara and has threatened to impose new sanctions if it buys more major arms systems from Moscow.

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House Republicans Want to Know How Taliban Ended Up with US Arms

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

Mark Clouse- House Republicans seek answers on US weapons seized by Taliban

From thehill.com
2021-08-23 20:11:32

Excerpt:

Two Republicans on the House Oversight Committee are requesting the Pentagon detail its plans to recover or destroy billions of dollars worth of U.S weapons now in the hands of Taliban fighters following the fall of Afghan national security forces.

“As a direct result of the Biden Administration’s poorly planned and executed U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Taliban is now armed with a significant arsenal of U.S.-made weaponry. Worse, it would appear the Biden Administration has no clue what or how many weapon platforms are now owned and operated by the Taliban,” the GOP lawmakers wrote in a letter shared exclusively with The Hill on Monday.

The letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd AustinLloyd AustinBritain to urge G7 leaders to consider adopting sanctions against Taliban: report Interpreter’s daughter trampled in crowd at Kabul airport: report Sunday shows – Afghanistan’s collapse in the spotlight MORE — signed by Rep. James ComerJames (Jamie) R. ComerFreedomWorks…

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Taliban Famine Predicted for Afghanistan in September

Freedomist Editor August 24, 2021

Mark Clouse- Afghanistan could start to run out of food by September, UN warns | Global development

From www.theguardian.com
2021-08-23 20:21:00

Excerpt:

UN agencies have warned of food shortages to Afghanistan as early as September without urgent aid funding, as it emerged first aid supplies, including surgical equipment and severe malnutrition kits, were stuck due to restrictions at Kabul airport.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday the closure of the airport to commercial flights has held up key deliveries.

The World Food Programme (WFP), which brings in supplies by road, said it was getting food through via four different supply routes for the moment, but could start running out of food by next month.

Andrew Patterson, the WFP’s deputy country director in Afghanistan, said they were transporting food through humanitarian crossings, including from Uzbekistan, though which 50% of supplies arrived, as well as via Pakistan and Turkmenistan.

“Winter is coming. We are going into the lean season and many Afghan roads will be covered in snow. We need to get the food into our warehouses where it needs to be distributed,”…

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Son of Legendary Mujahideen Commando Resists Taliban in the Panjshir Valley

Freedomist Editor August 23, 2021

PGC – A last remnant of Taliban resistance in Afghanistan remains in the Panjshir Valley, in the Northeastern regiion of the embattled country. A legend in his own right, Ahmad Massoud, the leader of what the Taliban themselves refer to as the Panjshir state, is also the son of a legendary mujahideen Fighter and Commando Ahmad Shah Massoud, who was assassinated just before the successful 9/11 assault on America led by Osama Bin Laden.

The American military appears not to be a factor in the fate of this holdout area within Afghaanistan that has managed to muster a resistance force of some 9.000 fighters peppered throughout the mountains that catacomb the valley the Taliban must walk into and claim.

Taliban Says “Hundreds” Of Fighters Heading For Holdout Afghan Valley

From www.ndtv.com
2021-08-22 16:59:19

Excerpt:

Afghanistan Crisis: Panjshir, north of Kabul, is long known as an anti-Taliban bastion.

Dubai:

The Taliban said on Sunday that “hundreds” of its fighters were heading to the Panjshir Valley, one of the few parts of Afghanistan not yet controlled by the group.

Since the Taliban overran Afghanistan, flickers of resistance have begun to emerge with some ex-government troops gathering in the Panjshir, north of Kabul, long known as an anti-Taliban bastion.

“Hundreds of Mujahideen of the Islamic Emirate are heading towards the state of Panjshir to control it, after local state officials refused to hand it over peacefully,” the group wrote on its Arabic Twitter account.

Since the Taliban took control of the country following a lightning charge into the capital Kabul, thousands of people have made their way to Panjshir, according to a spokesman for anti-Taliban forces.

In Panjshir, Ahmad Massoud, the son of legendary mujahideen commander Ahmad Shah Massoud who was assassinated by Al-Qaeda two days before the September 11, 2001 attacks, has sought to assemble a force of around 9,000 people to counter the terrorists, the spokesman, Ali Maisam Nazary, told AFP.

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Chinese State News Gets Preferential Treatment from Our

Twitter and Facebook Like China Better than They Like Americans

Freedomist Editor August 23, 2021

PGC – China’s state news media outlets are clearly dedicated to spreading misinformation on a daily basis that serves the interests of one man, Chairman Xi, the absolute fascistic dictator of China and head of the Chinese Communist Party, the big brother of the American Democrat National Committee. These organizations are given free reigh on American social media platforms, operated, owned, and run by human beings who openly hate America, the Bill of Rights, and liberty in general. These platforms regularly remove American citizens from their platforms for allegedly spreading misinformation while they continue to allow an enemy of the American people, the CCP (DNC ally and inspiration), to spread disinformation on their platform designed to destroy the American democratic republic limited by a bill-of-rights-based constitution.

They win because they have allies in our boardrooms, not because they’re clever. They’re jsut really good at offering bribes, like access to a massive money-making market in exchange for acting more in line with the CCP than our own Bill of Rights.

Xinhua Infiltrates Western Electronic Media, Part 2: Relationships with News Agencies and Distribution Services

From jamestown.org
2021-08-17 18:31:43

Excerpt:

Author’s Note: This is the second part of a two-part article series in China Brief exploring methods by which Xinhua and other Chinese state-owned media organizations are seeking greater presence and influence for their propaganda material in English-language online media. The first article examined recent examples of “advertorial” advertising, in which Xinhua content has been hosted on the websites and promoted in the e-mail advertising of prominent English-language news and foreign affairs publications (China Brief, April 12).

Introduction

Xinhua, the state news agency of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), serves a role very different from that of its nominal counterparts in democratic states, such as Britain’s BBC, Germany’s Deutsche Welle, or Taiwan’s Central News Agency. Xinhua (新华 or “New China”) functions as the official mouthpiece of China’s ruling party: Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Xi Jinping, reinforcing a long-standing…

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EU Wants to Have Diplomatic Relations with Taliban without Recognizing Them

Freedomist Editor August 23, 2021

EU eyes talks with Taliban but no plans to recognize them

From www.pbs.org
2021-08-17 19:27:45

Excerpt:

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union has no immediate plans to recognize the Taliban after their sweeping victory in Afghanistan but will talk with the militants to ensure that European citizens and Afghans who have worked with the EU can leave safely, the bloc’s top diplomat said Tuesday.

Speaking after leading emergency talks among the EU’s foreign ministers, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also underlined the importance of opening talks with the Taliban to help prevent a new exodus of refugees as a humanitarian crisis unfolds in the conflict-ravaged country.

“We have to get in touch with the authorities in Kabul, whatever they are. The Taliban have won the war, so we will have to talk with them,” Borrell told reporters. “This dialogue will also have to focus on the means to prevent the return of foreign terrorists.”

“It’s not a matter of official recognition, it’s a matter of dealing with” the Taliban, Borrell said.

The EU has…

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