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#russia is a sponsor of terrorism
nelligekata · 2 years
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amnesty international armed forces of ukraine International Committee of the Red Cross ICRC
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sprout-fics · 8 months
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hi, hope u're having a great morning, day or evening whenever and wherever you are reading this!
I have not been here for a long time yet but I can tell I'm enjoying ur omegaverse series very much c:
also thank u very much for repost u did about makarov and overall glorification of russian military. sometimes being Ukrainian in the fandom of cod feels lonely when I see posts of people simping for Makarov 🥲. so it made me feel warm and comforted for a second <3
have a great time and sorry for my English skills if smth!
дякую <3
I'm glad you're enjoying omegaverse! What a lovely ask <3
I'm sorry this fandom does not feel like a comforting place for you because of this issue. That honestly makes me so sad. I think there's a lot of insensitivity in this fandom to many many issues that require care- Sexual assault, military propaganda, violent relationships/dark content, and failure to equivalate much of the game's messages that mirror real life. It makes me doubt just how many people in this fandom actually follow current events and are aware of the atrocities committed by the Russian military. I think often how people are frequently lacking the clarity to discern fiction from reality. It's really disheartening to see this spill over to a war that has been so incredibly violent and atrocious towards civilians.
You have a space here. My heart goes out to you and your country. Know that so so many of us support you right now. Please stay strong.
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news4dzhozhar · 4 months
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tomorrowusa · 1 year
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The European Parliament is simply stating the obvious, though in a formal way: Russia is a terrorist state. That makes Vladimir Putin the Osama bin Laden of the 2020s; if he ends up the same way as bin Laden, few people will shed tears – even in Russia.
The European Parliament on Wednesday adopted a resolution declaring Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism because of Moscow’s strikes on civilian targets, at the same time as Kyiv’s military administration reported three people were killed and half a dozen injured in a Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s capital.
“The deliberate attacks and atrocities committed by Russian forces and their proxies against civilians in Ukraine, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and other serious violations of international and humanitarian law amount to acts of terror and constitute war crimes,” the Parliament said.
The resolution was adopted with 494 votes in favor, 58 against and 44 abstentions.
Putin knows he cannot win in Ukraine. His shit army has displayed a previously unimaginable amount of incompetence, sloth, drunkenness, and criminality. So he is intentionally committing acts of terrorism against civilians and civilian infrastructure to make himself feel better.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a statement that “the terrorist state continues to fight against civilians and civilian objects. As a result of a missile attack on the maternity ward of Vilnyansk hospital, an infant died and a woman was injured. There are probably still people under the rubble.”
Zelenskyy noted, too, that Russian missiles hit a high-rise building and another medical facility in Kupyansk, killing two people and injuring a third.
As President Zelenskyy noted, terrorist Russia bombed a maternity hospital earlier this week.
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Pope Francis has referred to terrorist Russia’s actions as “genocide” and compared them to Stalin’s intentional mass starvation campaign against Ukraine in the 1930s known as the Holodomor.  
Pope Francis compares Russia's invasion of Ukraine to Stalin-era famine
During his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square, the pope asked people to commemorate "the terrible Holodomor genocide, the extermination by hunger of 1932-33 artificially caused by Stalin" alongside Ukrainians on Saturday.
"Let us pray for the victims of this genocide and let us pray for all Ukrainians, the children, the women and the elderly, the babies who are today suffering the martyrdom of aggression," he said.
Putin’s war crimes against civilians will only make Ukrainians more determined to drive out the invaders. It will cause more people in NATO countries to demand that more arms and weapons systems be delivered to Ukraine.
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unknownworlds4 · 2 years
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Russia as a State Sponsor of Terrorism: What does it mean?
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine drags on, many have called on the United States government to label the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism. The impacts of this action would be catastrophic for Russia.
What is Terrorism?
Let’s begin by defining what Terrorism is. The United Nations has defined terrorism as Criminal acts intended to provoke a state of terror in the general public, which under no circumstances can be justified. Is Russia guilty of this?
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Absolutely. Ever sense the unprovoked invasion began, Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukrainian civilians, destroying apartments buildings, hospitals, and shopping centers. Missile attacks in Mariupol, Chernihiv, Kramatorsk, Odessa, Kharkiv, Kremenchuk, Chasiv Yar, and Vinnytsia have resulted in large numbers of civilian casualties. The Russian government also has a long history of aggression both inside and outside of the country. This includes the support of the brutal regime of Syrian dictator Bashir Al-Assad, allegedly organizing the murders of various dissidents such as Boris Nemtsov and Anna Politkovskaya, conducting war crimes during the Second Chechen War between 2000 and 2009, and involvement in the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 over Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine in 2014.
State Sponsors of Terrorism
Beginning in the 1970’s, the United States Department of State has maintained the list of “State Sponsors of Terrorism”. Countries included on this list have been alleged to have “repeatedly provided support for acts of international Terrorism”. Inclusion on the list imposes strict unilateral sanctions that the US government can also make allied nations and trade partners follow. The countries that are currently on the list are North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Cuba. Countries that have been on the list in the past include Iraq, Libya, South Yemen, and Sudan.
Results of being Designated a Terrorist State
Being included on this list is followed by unilateral sanctions. Bear in mind, some of these are already in place due to the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the ongoing war:
A ban on arms-related exports
Controls over dual-use items, requiring a 30 day Congressional notice for good or services that could significantly enhance the country’s military capabilities. Dual use items are products that have both civilian or military applications. This includes vehicle parts, chemicals, mechanical equipment, and electronic components.
Prohibition on economic assistance of any kind
Requiring the United States to oppose loans by the World Bank and other international financial institutions
Lifting diplomatic immunity to allow families of terrorist victims to file civil lawsuits against the country in American courts
Denying companies and individuals tax credits for income earned in terrorist listed countries
Denial of duty free treatment of goods exported to the United States
Authority to prohibit any US citizen from engaging in a financial transaction with a terrorist listed government without a Treasury Department license
Prohibition of Defense Department contracts above $100,000 with companies controlled by Terrorist list states
The main sanction that would happen if Russia were included would be to its reputation. Jason Blazakis, former Director of the U.S. State Department Counterterrorism Finance and Designations Office in the Bureau of Counterterrorism and Professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, stated in an Op-Ed for the Los Angeles Times, that Russia being designated a terrorist state would be the “ultimate sanction”. Think about it. What country would want to be doing business with a terrorist state? Many nations would cease trade or any other operations in Russia very quickly. Any governments that continue to do business with Moscow would be subject to secondary sanctions. “It would also have the added benefit of getting more companies to de-risk from Russia. That would likely include US and non-US companies. Businesses don’t like operating in countries that are state sponsors of terrorism” Blazakis stated. Although many companies have ceased operations in Russia already, those that haven’t would flee in droves.
As you can see designating Russia as a terrorist state would have catastrophic impact on the Russian economy. The “nuclear economic option” so to speak. Maybe this would finally get the point across to Russia that their invasion is unjustified and immoral. I will also list charities you can donate to to help Ukraine. Slava Ukraini 🇺🇦
World Vision
International Medical Corps
Save the Children
Action Against Borders
Project HOPE
International Rescue Committee
Heart to Heart International
CARE International
Razom for Ukraine
Voices of Children
Come Back Alive
Serhiy Prytula Foundation
United24
Hospitallers
Army SOS
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Бессилие перед HIMARS. Россияне радуются теракту. Теперь они – православный ИГИЛ (Powerlessness before HIMARS. The Russians rejoice about the attack. Now, they are Russian Orthodox ISIS)
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Российские военные пропагандисты по спущенной из Кремля методичке рассказывают, что удар по Виннице – это их ответ на HIMARS. Знаете, о чём это говорит? Что у них нет ответа на HIMARS. (Russian military propagandists, according to a training manual sent down from the Kremlin, say that the strike on Vinnitsa is their response to HIMARS. Do you know what it says? That they don't have an answer to HIMARS.)
P.S. A quite good comment and some very interesting insights into Russian orc society and propaganda...While the Ukrainian army is successfully destroying Russian artillery ammunition depots and commanders of orc hordes responsible for war crimes, the Kremlin is engaged in war crimes by attacking defenceless civilians...
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taiwantalk · 10 days
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minnesotafollower · 4 months
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Two U.S. Congress Officials Object to O’Grady’s Defense of U.S. Designation of Cuba as State Sponsor of Terrorism   
U.S. Representative Jim McGovern (Dem., Mass.) and U.S. Senator Peter Welch (Dem., VT) jointly voice their objection to Mary Anastasi O’Grady’s defense of the  U.S. designation of Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism because, they argue, she presented no evidence for that action.[1] Yes, McGovern and Welch say, “Cuban officials meet with counterparts in Russia and China, but so do American…
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politicoscope · 2 years
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Russia 'State Sponsor' of Terrorism (EU Lawmaker Resolution)
Russia ‘State Sponsor’ of Terrorism (EU Lawmaker Resolution)
The European Parliament during a session in Strasbourg on Wednesday adopted a resolution designating Russia as a ‘state sponsor of terrorism’, according to the text of the document published on its website. The session was broadcast live on the European Parliament’s website. According to the resolution, the European Parliament “recognizes Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism and as a state…
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globalcourant · 2 years
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Latvian Parliament Declares Russia ‘State Sponsor of Terrorism’
Latvian Parliament Declares Russia ‘State Sponsor of Terrorism’
Latvian MPs on Thursday declared Russia a “state sponsor of terrorism” whose actions in Ukraine constitute “targeted genocide against the Ukrainian people”. The statement MPs adopted said the parliament “recognizes Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, and calls on other like-minded countries to express the same view”. Voting by 67 in favor and none against or abstaining in Latvia’s unicameral…
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k-s-morgan · 5 months
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This is a belated post where I wanted to briefly address the outcomes of 2023!
While Ukraine mostly faded from the stage of world's news, unfortunately, the situation didn't get better for my people. Every day Russia kills, maims, and ruins everything it can touch. Every day civilians die from its imprecise missiles, random shootings and artillery, and outright executions. I often see that those living in other countries call this Putin's war, but it really isn't. This is the war sponsored by Putin and his regime, true, but first and foremost, this is the war of Russian people. It's hundreds of thousands of Russian people who arm themselves and go kill our defenders and our civilians. It's Russian people who fire from tanks and other deadly weapons to ruin the Ukrainians' homes, to scorch our land, to leave nothing but destruction instead of cities and villages. It's Russian people who build the missiles, load their bombers, and fly for 5+ hours to direct them at our cities, homes, factories, and even empty fields.
This is me during one of the latest massive attack that took place on January 2. At first, at night, 35+ Russian-Iranian drones bombed us. Then Russian people sent about 100 missiles at us, mainly at my city Kyiv.
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Our air defense system managed to intercept the majority of them, but while it sounds like interception is an entirely positive thing, it might have terrible consequences. Because the parts of the missiles fall down randomly. They can kill any human or creature walking down the street; they can collapse on top of a residential building. There is no escape, no way to feel safe even with the best air defense systems surrounding the city. Here's one of many disastrous results of this attack.
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Dead and injured people and animals. Damaged and lost apartments.
On December 29, another attack killed over 30 people in Kyiv alone. You can see their faces below. They deserve to be seen and remembered.
This is a short story of just two latest attacks that took place just within one week, just in one city. Imagine how many of them me and my people lived through during the entire year? How many more we will have to experience?
Actually, we lived through another one before I finished writing this post. It happened on January 8, and it killed even more civilians.
I know that there are good, sane, compassionate Russians. I have some relatives among them. One of them, my aunt, can't keep herself entirely silent: she's deeply religious, and a few weeks ago, in a church, she risked saying that killing Ukrainians is bad. Another man told her that she's scum and that if she dares to open her mouth again, he will report her to authorities. The headmaster of a school where my aunt teaches was imprisoned for 7 years for refusing to hold a Z-event among students. Living there must be a torture of another kind, where you are surrounded by zombies who openly promote terrorism and bless missiles sent to kill other human beings. The problem is that sane and compassionate Russians are the minority - the vast majority is happy to either kill us or they support those who kill us. Or they simply don't care, trying to claim that everything is complicated when in reality, there is nothing complicated about it at all. Russia is a terrorist state and the world allows its people and its government to keep being monsters.
Seeing the indifference and impotence of seemingly powerful countries makes me increasingly concerned and depressed. At this point, I don't think I'm simply affected by my experiences: the world is rapidly going to hell, with terrorist countries like Russia being allowed to revel in their blood-thirstiness and the other terrorist countries, like North Korea, or potential offenders like China, observing and taking notes. When a criminal sees that no one is punished for a crime, they escalate. More criminals appear. This is what I feel is going to start happening more and more, until half of the planet is plunged into death and destruction. I'll be so very glad to be wrong.
On a personal note, I lost my most beloved pet pigeon Daikiria in 2023. I love her and miss her so much that I still cry whenever I think of her. In turn, I acquired a red nightmare of a rabbit who eats everything, including my feet, and two more pigeons. Taking care of them brings me joy - I only hope that my effort will actually benefit them.
Here's a pigeon that I named Noveria the day I found her, in a video I made for my vet. Attacked by a cat, bleeding all over, with broken ribs and a missing piece of her wing, with no tail:
Here is she now. She is feeling much better, although unfortunately, she got sick because of her weakened immune system.
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My kitties continue to be adorable dorks. Here's me sleeping with my cat Tom after one of the attacks - he's really scared of loud sounds, so he sleeps like a rock afterward, just like me.
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My family stays strong, and I hope we will remain to be so.
Writing stories remains a huge source of relief and distraction to me, and your support, love, and care give me strength even when I feel like I'm about to run out of it.
Thank you to those who support me on Patreon and give me a chance to have a safety net shielding me from some of the horrors and insecurities - thanks to you, I can rest sometimes when I would have to work instead; I can afford some more distractions and to write more as a result. Thank you to those who leave comments, kudos, asks; thank you to my friends who never fail to message me with questions about my well-being. I love and I appreciate you tremendously, and despite all my fears and worries, I hope that we will get to see a better future still.
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darth-mortem · 4 months
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This is a first chapter of my COD fic "At the Crossroads of the Worlds" translated bu @g8se.
Task force "141" was sent to clean up a secret laboratory, the research of which was financed by states recognized as sponsors of terrorism. The soldiers broke into a bunker located in the Caucasus Mountains on the Russian-Georgian border. At first, everything went according to plan, but after the fighters split up, Ghost came across a strange room, the door of which locked automatically the moment he was inside. Without knowing it, Simon Riley had set off an experiment that had been brewing here for years, and now he would have to be very strong to finally return home.
Chapter 1 of 6. 2084 words.
Past character death, angst, action, secret lab, experiment, parallel worlds
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August 15, 2030. Georgian-Russian border. Caucasus Mountains. Coordinates classified. Experiment status: Prepared for the first stage. Research No. 16/3. Reality LW-414/2030. Attempt to transport into reality LW414/2016.
Captain Simon "Ghost" Riley walked slowly down the corridor, illuminated by the bright, cold light of built-in lamps on the walls and ceiling. He held his assault rifle at the ready and listened to the conversations of other members of Task Force 141 through the earpiece of his radio. The unit had split up ten minutes ago, and its members were now inspecting all levels of the bunker, each carrying out their assigned tasks. Some engaged in clearing operations, facing armed guards head-on, while others searched for information and civilian personnel in this classified scientific facility funded by the budgets of several countries - sponsors of terrorism, including Russia, Iran, Palestine, and several others.
Ghost inspected this level of the bunker alone. The commander of Task Force 141, Major Price, had ordered the soldiers to form groups of two or three, but Simon didn’t follow this order. He hadn't followed them for seven years since that fateful day, when a bullet from the Russian terrorist Makarov's pistol took the life of Sergeant John "Soap" MacTavish.
For Ghost, John wasn't just a partner or a fellow soldier; he was the one who saw beyond the terrifying skull mask and recognized a human in him. He made Simon feel alive again. John reminded him of how to be happy, laugh, and love. He was Ghost's personal ray of sunshine, and when he was gone, the light went out forever.
Riley couldn't come to terms with it and continue to live a full life. He kept his distance from everyone and didn't even try to socialize with the new members of the unit. People came and went, and Simon didn't even bother to remember their faces. At some point, he considered leaving the army altogether, but then he realized that he didn't know how to do anything else, so he stayed. The only person Simon occasionally spoke to outside of missions was Price. He knew that Simon felt guilty for John's death, which is why he turned a blind eye to Ghost's insubordination, especially considering that he was still the most effective member of Task Force 141.
The doors to his right of swung open, and his reflexes kicked in before his brain. The man in a white lab coat received a devastating blow to the face with the butt of the rifle and fell like a felled tree. Captain Riley dragged him into the room he had emerged from and quickly secured him to a pipe using plastic ties.
“Bravo 0-7, took another one,” Ghost reported over the radio. “Checking the last rooms on the sixth level.”
“Copy, Bravo 0-7,” he heard Price's response. “Try to find out what they were up to. We're almost done clearing the fifth level and heading down to you. Copy?”
“Crystal clear,” Ghost frowned, and the corners of his lips under the mask drooped. “Bravo 0-7, out.”
He didn't need assistance. Riley could handle it on his own and escort the captives. But he never argued with Price during missions. Ghost might not follow his orders, but for other soldiers, the authority of the major had to remain unquestionable.
After surveying the room, Ghost went out and headed towards the last set of doors at the end of the corridor. Behind them, was a desolated room in absolute chaos. Chairs were scattered on the floor, papers strewn about, monitors partially turned off, only a few displaying some unintelligible numbers and symbols that constantly changed each other. There could be something useful here, but before sitting at the computer and attempting to extract information, Ghost moved towards another set of doors in the far corner of the room. These were massive air-tight doors with a complex opening mechanism. Opposite them stood a table with several monitors, and looking at them, Simon understood that one of them seemingly transmitted views from several cameras installed in the room behind the mysterious doors. Why this was necessary, the captain did not understand, as the small room behind the doors was absolutely empty. Its walls were covered in some silvery material, thick wires protruding in places. Also, Riley noticed several panels with small screens and numerous LED indicators.
“Bravo 0-7,” Ghost spoke, examining the locking mechanism of the air-tight doors on the room's interior monitor, “it seems I've found something.”
“What exactly, Bravo 0-7?” Price asked.
“Don't know yet,” Riley replied. “Trying to figure it out.”
“Be careful,” the major said. “Bravo 6, out.”
Simon glanced at the other monitors. Two code designations immediately caught his eye: LW414/2030 and LW414/2016. A progress bar flickered between them, showing ninety-eight percent, followed by calculations of adjustments in meters and, for some reason, in hours. Simon couldn't comprehend what it was exactly because everything was encrypted. He tried to look at the papers, but it was even worse, so without further delay, Riley approached the air-tight doors and pulled the lever of the opening mechanism.
As soon as he entered the small square room, Simon smelled the electrified air. An orange light started flashing above the door, and instead of the voices of the soldiers he heard a buzzing noise of interference in his earpiece. Some contour that ran around the entire perimeter of the room opened after the doors were unlocked and now lit up in red. A mechanical female voice from a speaker hidden somewhere in the wall began to repeat something persistently in a language Ghost did not know, and then the doors automatically closed, and the lever of the mechanism moved into the "locked" position. The contour closed, its colour changed from red to green, and the voice from the speaker said something else, after which it started a countdown.
“Fucking hell,” Riley cursed, slinging his rifle over his shoulder and rushing towards the doors. “Bravo 0-7 calling Bravo 6! Bravo 6, can you hear me?”
There was no response. There wasn't even interference, just dead silence. Ghost grabbed the lever, tried to turn it, but all in vain, despite the fact that the captain was a very physically strong person.
The electrifying sensation intensified. The air distinctly smelled of ozone, and sparks began to run along the walls following complex and tangled contours. Riley retreated to the centre of the room, gritting his teeth. The room was too small to blast the doors, and they were so massive that it might not work anyway. The countdown continued, electrical discharges intensified, and then Ghost saw how the laces of his boots lifted into the air. The same happened with other elements of his gear – at first with smaller items, but gradually even heavier objects, like his assault rifle, which the lieutenant grabbed by the strap and pulled towards himself.
“Bravo 6,” Ghost tried once more without any hope, “John, can you hear me? Respond!”
The captain felt his feet lifting off the floor, where lines of contours were also glowing. Numbers and symbols appeared on the screens of the panels, all indicators lit up green, and then the accumulated static turned into a powerful electrical arc that pierced Ghost's body, sending him into oblivion.
Consciousness returned to him slowly but surely. Riley felt the cold wind piercing through his clothes and gear. Somewhere nearby, he could hear rumbling, and these sounds seemed familiar, but Ghost couldn't recall what exactly could be the source.
Captain Riley could only open his eyes on the third attempt. Above him was the overcast sky shrouded in led clouds. He lay on the ground, arms outstretched, listening to the rumbling of... the helicopter rotor!
Simon didn't understand what was happening. He remembered being trapped in a small room deep underground in the bunker. He remembered something strange happening to him, a jolt of wildly powerful electricity, and... he found himself here. And now, as he slightly raised himself and looked around, Ghost realized where exactly this "here" was. The landscape around him was familiar – it was what the members of Task Force 141 saw when they landed and headed towards the entrance to the bunker. Perhaps, Major Price or someone from the team managed to open those doors from the outside. They found Ghost in the blackout and brought him to the surface. So, the helicopter he hears is their evacuation transport.
Having reasoned this way, Ghost stood up, hoisted his assault rifle, and headed towards the sound. Of course, it was strange to be left alone here, but perhaps the soldiers were occupied with captives, and someone went for supplies. Captain Riley, however, felt better, and overall quite normal for someone who got electrocuted. The radio was still silent, but Simon had already climbed a small hill, saw the helicopter, and people around. Captain Riley was about to shout that he was okay when suddenly he realized that these people were not members of Task Force 141. Moreover, it seemed they were enemies. They surrounded two soldiers, one of whom seemed to be seriously injured. The other was supporting him on his shoulders and wouldn't have time to grab his weapon when one of the men – presumably the leader – pulled out his pistol and pointed it at his chest.
Simon didn't know what was happening, but he saw a patch with the British flag on the sleeve of the man the other was aiming at. Without thinking for another second, Captain Riley swung his assault rifle off his shoulder, released the safety, and, chambering a round, fired a short burst into the air, drawing attention to himself.
They started to shoot at Ghost, so he ran, ducking and returning fire, and when the distance closed, he pulled out and threw several metal knives one after another, reducing the number of enemies. The soldier with the British flag carefully laid his comrade on the ground and remained by his side, also starting to return fire. Now Ghost could see his balaclava with a skull print and the bald head of the enemy leader, who, realizing that something had gone awry, was trying to retreat to the helicopter.
"Hey, you!" Ghost found himself next to the guy in the balaclava and grabbed him by the shoulder. "Kill the pilot! Come on, let's go!"
He nodded and ran around the helicopter. Captain Riley stayed with the wounded soldier and quickly replaced the magazine in his rifle. Meanwhile, the bald man turned around, raising his pistol again, and Ghost froze, unable to believe what he was seeing.
"Shepherd?" he finally exclaimed. "It can't be!"
After Johnny’s death, Price himself killed the traitor of a general with his own hands, yet here he was, staring at Ghost with a cold gaze and aiming a pistol at him.
A gunshot echoed. The bullet hit Simon in the chest, but it didn't get through the armoured plate. Captain Riley, purely on reflexes, returned fire. A burst from his assault rifle tore through Shepard's body, and he fell. Another soldier in a balaclava was already running toward Riley, wielding his weapon.
"Shepard is a traitor!" he shouted. "I just received a message from the captain!"
"We need to get out of here," Ghost got up, rubbing his chest. "Let's carry your friend into the heli. Provide him with first aid. I'll take the pilot's seat. Just tell me where to fly."
Two soldiers, both hiding their faces behind skull masks, picked up the third one and brought him into the helicopter. The situation was strange, even wild, but Simon strangely felt neither suspicion nor doubt towards his new companion. On the contrary, this man seemed eerily familiar and inspired absolute trust in Simon. And it appeared that the guy in the balaclava felt the same way about Riley. He didn't ask who his unexpected rescuer was or where he came from, haven’t even asked for Ghost's name. However, Ghost didn't waste time on etiquette either. After receiving the coordinates for the flight, Riley focused on piloting the helicopter, glancing at the dashboard. Somewhere there, they would meet a captain, likely the leader of these two soldiers. Most likely, he could clarify the situation and provide Ghost with information about what happened to TF 141 and where to find them.
“We’re almost there,” Ghost reported, having replaced his dead radio with the one that belonged to the pilot of this helicopter. “How's your friend?”
“Solid,” came the response. “Our guys are already waiting, so land here!”
“Roger that,” Riley replied briefly and started to land, glancing at the two soldiers who were waving at the helicopter.
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Netanyahu needs to go and not just for this failure. He’s been a heavy handed autocrat for years.
That said we shouldn’t be victim blaming the Israelis in this time of crisis. Hamas are not some type of “avengers” championing the Palestinians. Hamas did this at the request of their masters the Iranians and Vlad Putin. The leaders of Hamas live in mansions in Qatar while the Palestinians have the worst living conditions in the world. Most Palestinians do not support Hamas and see them as an occupying force that brings nothing but death and destruction to Gaza. Further there is a growing movement inside Israel to reject older hard liners like creepy Netanyahu and finally reach some sort of amicable settlement with the Palestinians.
The Palestinians had just completed a deal with Israel that would have loosened sanctions and allowed more aid into Gaza and the West Bank. Now that is out the window and the Palestinians are back to being human shields for the Hamas terrorists. Hamas had just been hosted by Putin in Moscow where they promised a big distraction that would sow chaos and discord among the western nations supporting Ukraine. Iran is a leading arms supplier to Russia and the principal master and financier to Hamas and Hezbollah.
There will never be peace in the Middle East as long as duplicitous rogue states like Iran are sponsoring extra national shadow governments and militias. Middle East kingdoms need a villain to distract and unite their people. Israel (and its ally the U.S.) are the foil for the theo-fascists states in that region. There are no easy solutions here and Israel is not entirely blameless. But now is not the time to stick it to Israel as Hamas terrorists are beheading babies and burning other infants alive. That’s a bad look for those of us on the left and it’s being exploited heavily by Fox and other right wing outlets. You’re not supporting the Palestinians at this point, you’re celebrating Hamas’s ISIS style terrorism.
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minnesotafollower · 4 months
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Cuba’s Current Economic and Political Crises
Introduction[1] At least by early December 2023, it was evident that Cuba was experiencing a horrible economic crisis. One commentator put it this way: “Cuba is going through the worst crisis it has experienced in decades, with widespread shortages of food and medicines, rolling blackouts and a sky-high 400% annual inflation rate. The calls on the communist leadership to open up the economy to…
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prismatic-bell · 7 months
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The murderous terror assault by Hamas on Israel was the worst terrorist attack on a democratic country since 9/11. In fact, proportionate to population, the death toll from these attacks is about six times worse than 9/11. Those of us over 30 remember the Bali bombings of 2002, when Islamist terrorists killed 88 Australians. Imagine a terror attack on Australia which caused 4,000 deaths. That would be equivalent to what Israel has undergone in the past week.
One of the standard responses to this assault has been to assert that Israel has the right to defend itself. The United Nations Charter gives all sovereign states that right. Ukraine is exercising that right, right now, in the face of Russia's illegal invasion. But Ukraine's situation is very different to Israel's. Russia has launched a conventional military invasion, which Ukraine is resisting by conventional military means. Apart from Russia and its apologists, no-one seriously disputes Ukraine's right to resist Russia's invasion.
Israel, by contrast, has faced an attack by a non-state actor, Hamas, which has seized control of a territory, Gaza, contiguous to Israel, and used it to launch repeated missile offensives against Israeli cities, and now a full-scale terror assault on Israeli communities. In these circumstances, what does it mean to say that "Israel has the right to defend itself"? Does it mean that Israel can fight off (or kill) the terrorists that attacked it, but cannot touch them or their commanders in the territory they control? That is a recipe for endless repeats of what we have seen over the past week.
The right to self-defence is not a purely passive right, a right to react when attacked. The stated purpose of Hamas is the destruction of Israel and the death of every Jew in Israel – indeed every Jew in the world. The experience of the past decade, culminating in the events of last week, shows that Israel cannot defend itself against an existential threat of that kind unless Hamas is destroyed. That is the mission Israel has now undertaken.
Contrary to the repeated assertions of Israel's legion of critics, the Israel Defence Force does not deliberately target civilians.* It targets terrorist infrastructure. But because Hamas chooses as a deliberate strategy to embed its terrorist infrastructure among the civilian population of Gaza, Hamas cannot be destroyed without causing civilian casualties. Hamas fires its rockets from schools and hospitals and mosques, so that Israel will be forced to bomb these sites to stop the missile attacks. Hamas in fact wants civilian deaths in Gaza, so that it can display its "martyrs" in front of the world's media and anti-Israel NGOs like Amnesty.
Everyone who has repeated the statement "Israel has the right to defend itself" will now have to remain resolute in support of Israel’s decision to exercise that right in practice over the coming days and weeks. Whether Israel decides on a land invasion, or confines itself to air attacks, there will be a lot of deaths in Gaza. Israel's friends will need to stress, in the face a concerted anti-Israel propaganda campaign, that responsibility for every death that occurs in Gaza lies with Hamas, and also with the Iranian regime which sponsors and bankrolls Hamas.
* If you believe Israel does target civilians, or is engaged in "collective punishment" in bombing Gaza, consider this. Gaza is a densely populated urban area, with no air defences and no air-raid shelters (because Hamas does not allow them). Israel has among the most powerful and sophisticated armed forces in the world. It has complete control of the air over Gaza. If Israel chose, it could reduce the whole of Gaza to rubble in a few days and kill most of its population. Clearly that is not what Israel has chosen to do.
Although currently available statistics are not very reliable, they bear this out. According to al-Jazeera, Israel has dropped 6,000 bombs on Gaza this week, and has killed 2,700 people in doing so. That is, Israel has had to drop 2.2 bombs to kill one person. Does anyone seriously suppose that the Israeli Air Force is as incompetent as that kill-rate suggests? These figures can only mean that Israel is actively trying to avoid killing civilians.
I don’t expect rationality from the people claiming Israel has no right to defend itself. Apparently there are now literal actual Nazis showing up at pro-Palestine rallies, throwing seig heils, and not being challenged by a single person.
Masks are off. It was never about Israel.
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