Wednesday 21 December 2016

Was it possible to take the Russian ambassador’s killer alive?

 
Why wasn’t killer captured?
 
 


Was it possible to take the Russian ambassador’s killer alive?
December 21, 2016 Vladimir Vaschenko, Gazeta.ru 

It was possible not to kill the assassin of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov, but take him alive, argue some Russian experts. This would have helped to shed light on the crime, including on who may have ordered the assassination. One Russian observer even believes that the killer was liquidated on purpose in order to complicate the investigation.

The assassination of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov has been the top story for the Turkish press. Yet there is very little information on what the Turkish law-enforcement agents did to detain the killer.

It is known that at about 7:30 p.m. local time Karlov arrived at the Center of Modern Art in Ankara to participate in the opening of a photo exhibition. His speech had lasted for less than a minute when the killer, who was standing behind him, took a gun out of his pocket and crying "Allahu Akbar" shot Karlov in the back several times. In total the assassin fired 11 shots into the diplomat.

Afterwards, he cried out slogans about Aleppo and Syria for several minutes and shot at the ceiling and towards the scattered crowd.

Twenty-five minutes after the assassination, the killer was shot dead by members of Turkey's special units. The assassin was later named as 22-year-old Mevlut Mert Altintash, who for the last two years had served in a division of the local Interior Ministry special forces responsible for crowd control.
It was possible to take him alive

According to Boris Dolgov, senior scientific collaborator at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Middle East Institute, Karlov's assassination could have been either the act of a lone killer or a well-planned operation.

"I think it's strange that Altintas was killed. There was the possibility of taking him alive, then questioning him and getting him to tell the authorities who he was linked to," said Dolgov.

RA ASSASSIN
VIDEO

Why wasn’t killer captured?

Andrei Popov, a veteran of the Federal Security Service’s Alpha special unit and a reserve lieutenant colonel, analyzed the operation carried out on Altintas.

"It is always difficult to discuss an operation when you are not present on the site and far from the concrete circumstances surrounding it,” said Popov.

“However, it is obvious that by the time the Turkish special forces got involved, the ambassador's killer had already disclosed himself as the culprit. On the video that I saw it is also clear that the criminal did not prevent the people from leaving the building and did not try to take hostages. It was possible to take him alive."

Popov believes that this opportunity was not taken advantage of due to a disagreement among the Turkish law enforcement officers or to their unprofessionalism.

"In such cases the mechanism of detainment is already prepared: The object is shot in the right shoulder, which deprives him of the possibility to put up active resistance. Subsequently, he is detained,” he explained.

Popov added that he “did not rule out” that Altintas could have had accomplices in Turkey's special forces and security services who had “decided to eliminate him so that he wouldn't tell the investigators all the circumstances of the assassination.”

Meanwhile, on Dec. 20, 18 employees from Russia's Investigative Committee and Foreign Ministry arrived in Ankara. They will be investigating Karlov's assassination together with the Turkish law enforcement agents. According to the local press, the Russian ambassador's body was delivered to the Expert Forensic Institute in Ankara for examination and on Dec. 20 was flown to Moscow.

First published in Russian by Gazeta.ru

Russian Ambassador assassination video

RA Assasination

IMF Chief Found Guilty of Corruption, Won't Punished


IMF Chief Christine Lagarde
IMF Chief Christine Lagarde Found Guilty of Corruption, Won’t Be Punished

By Jeremiah Jones
Global Research, December 20, 2016
Counter Current News 19 December 2016

Christine Lagarde, head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), on Monday was found guilty of “negligence” for approving a massive government payout to business tycoon Bernard Tapie during her tenure as French finance minister.

“This should help calm all that they’re-only-in-it-for-themselves, anti-establishment feeling out there,” quipped Globe and Mail senior international correspondent Mark MacKinnon in response to the latest charge of government corruption.

Though Judge Martine Ract Madoux did not hand down a sentence for the managing director, the court said Largarde “should have done more” to prevent the €405m ($422m) payout, Bloomberg reports.

Tapie, a close associate and financial backer of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, was awarded the payout in 2008.

AFP explains:

“An arbitration panel ordered the payout to Tapie in connection with his sale of sportswear company Adidas. The panel upheld Tapie’s claim that the Crédit Lyonnais bank had defrauded him by intentionally undervaluing Adidas at the time of the sale and that the state — as the bank’s principal shareholder—should compensate him.

“It was Lagarde who, in her role as French finance minister, ordered the case to be heard by an arbitration panel instead of proceeding through the regular courts.

“Critics say that Lagarde ensured Tapie received preferential treatment by referring the matter to arbitration as a quid pro quo for his financial support for Sarkozy during his 2007 presidential bid.”
Lagarde, who is traveling to Washington, D.C., was not present at Monday’s hearing in Paris, though she will likely appeal the decision. Reuters notes that the ruling could potentially trigger “a new leadership crisis at the International Monetary Fund after Lagarde’s predecessor Dominique Strauss Khan resigned in 2011 over a sex assault scandal.”

What’s more, the trial and surprise conviction will likely “reviv[e] concerns in France about high-level corruption,”the New York Times notes, “shining a spotlight on intimate ties between politicians and business people, and on the large sums that are sometimes used to grease the country’s political wheels.”

As many noted, Lagarde’s conviction capped off a year of intense political upheaval and establishment backlash across the globe.

GR Editor’s Note: Dominque Strauss Khan was framed in 2011. Lagarde was appointed to the position of Managing Director of the IMF (replacing Strauss Khan) a few days prior to a New York Court ruling which completely exonerated Dominique Strauss Khan on the basis of lack of evidence.
While Strauss Khan was dismissed following the 2011 scandal (despite the ruling of the New York court case which abandoned all charges again him) the financial scam involving Christine Lagarde was known to the French government. This however did not prevent her appointment to the IMF.  Needless to say, she retains her position at the IMF despite having been involved in a financial scam.

The original source of this article is Counter Current News
Copyright © Jeremiah Jones, Counter Current News, 2016

 

China Seizes U.S. Navy Drone in In South China Sea


Photo credit: NOEL CELIS/AFP/Getty Images
China Seizes U.S. Navy Drone in In South China Sea
By Emily Tamkin, Paul McLeary
December 16, 2016 - 2:38 pm
emily.tamkin@emilyctamkin

On Friday, amid U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s tough talk on Beijing, a Chinese navy ship snapped up an unarmed U.S. underwater drone just 50 miles from Subic Bay, in the Philippines.
The move represents a brazen effort to further stake out China’s unilateral sway over the South China Sea, coming hard on the heels of new revelations that Beijing has sent more advanced weapons to its fake islands in the region. It also seems a deliberate riposte after the top U.S. admiral in the Pacific redoubled American commitment to free and open navigation in the crucial waterway.

A U.S. defense official said Friday that a Chinese naval vessel grabbed the drone when it was operating with the oceanographic survey ship USNS Bowditch not far from the Philippine capital. The drone was only about 500 yards away from the unarmed U.S. ship when it was seized. Despite immediate protests by U.S. forces, the Chinese slipped away.

“It is ours, and it is clearly marked as ours and we would like it back,” Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis told reporters at the Pentagon on Friday. “And we would like this not to happen again.”
The Navy has over one hundred such gliders that can be deployed for up to a month at a time, transmitting oceanic data back to ships and ground stations. In a statement, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook added that “China unlawfully seized” the ocean glider, which was “conducting routine operations in accordance with international law.”

The Bowditch was in contact with the Chinese Navy ship throughout the incident, but American requests to return the vessel was ignored, a defense official confirmed. “The [drone] is a sovereign immune vessel of the United States,” Cook added. “We call upon China to return our UUV immediately, and to comply with all of its obligations under international law.”

Seizing military goods belonging to another country in international waters is a particularly aggressive step, even for a country like Beijing, which rejects or systematically ignores huge chunks of international maritime law.

“This is borderline unbelievable. It is hard to imagine what possible rationale Beijing is going to come up with,” said Gregory Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. AMTI produced the new surveillance photos this week showing Chinese air-defense installations on disputed atolls. Poling said that given where the incident occurred, “there is no conceivable map” which could justify its behavior.

On Thursday, in Sydney, Australia, U.S. Pacific Commander Adm. Harry Harris said, “We will not allow a shared domain to be closed down unilaterally no matter how many bases are built on artificial features in the South China Sea.” That prompted a rejoinder from nationalist media in Beijing and Chinese government officials.

The drone incident also comes at a complicated time for U.S.-Philippine relations, especially regarding China. The election of anti-American Rodrigo Duterte as Philippine president this May has soured ties between Manila and Washington and postponed defense exercises. On Thursday, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay said that the Philippines would no longer focus on the South China Sea in its relationship with China, essentially ceding terrain to Beijing just months after Manila won a landmark international arbitration case that pilloried China’s illegal behavior.

“The only way to move forward is to strengthen the other aspects of our relationship and also make sure that in the process, you are able to pursue confidence-building measures that will eventually allow you, in the future, to resolve your disputes peacefully,” he said, noting, “What will you do? Engage yourself in a war with China where there will be no winners? Nobody wants a war.”

The big hit to China’s reputation that everyone expected when it ignored the Hague ruling might come as a result of the drone snatching. Euan Graham, director of international studies at the Lowy Institute for International Policy, said on Twitter, “Stunt humiliates USN but hurts China’s reputation more. Does [Chinese Admiral] Wu Shengli want to command a rogue navy?”

It’s not the first time China has grabbed or threatened U.S. gear in the region. In the spring of 2001, a U.S. surveillance plane collided with a Chinese jet near Hainan; the plane and its crew were held for months. In 2009, the U.S. Navy said that Chinese vessels were harassing its surveillance ships. In 2011, Vietnam accused China of cutting survey ships’ cables. More recently, Chinese naval vessels and aircraft have in many instances practiced unsafe maneuvers, threatening on-sea or mid-air collisions.

China’ silence so far on the motives behind the drone episode make it even harder for experts to understand.

“If this was planned to send a message, you have to say something for the message to get out,” said Poling. “All of this is bizarre, even by Chinese standards.”

Source:FP

வட மாகாணசபை முடிவை எதிர்த்து பனங்கட்டிக் கொட்டு மீனவர் போராட்டம்

 
மன்னார் பனங்கட்டிக்கொட்டு மீனவர்கள் வீதியை மறித்து போராட்டம்
 
மன்னார் பனங்கட்டிக்கொட்டு மீனவர்கள் வீதியை மறித்து போராட்டம்
தென் கடல் பகுதியில் 'கட்டுவலைத் தொழிலை' மேற்கொண்டு வரும் மன்னார் பனங்கட்டிக்கொட்டு மற்றும் அயல் கிராம மீனவ ர்களின் கட்டு வலைகளை கடலில் இருந்து அகற்றுவதற்கான நடவடிக்கைகளை (இன்று) புதன்கிழமை மன்னார் கடற்தொழில் திணைக்களத்தின் உதவிப்பணிப்பாளர் மேற்கொண்ட நடவடிக்கைகளுக்கு எதிர்ப்புத்தெரிவித்து பனங்கட்டிக்கொட்டு கிராம மக்கள் இன்று புதன்கிழமை காலை 6.15 மணி முதல் வீதி மறியல் போராட்டத்தில் ஈடுபட்டனர்.
 
 
மன்னார் பிரதான பால வீதியில் இன்று காலை 6.15 மணியளவில் ஒன்று கூடிய நூற்றுக்கணக்கான மக்கள் வீதியை மறித்து ஆர்ப்பாட்டத்தில் ஈடுபட்டனர்.இதனால் காலை 6.15 மணிமுதல் மன்னாரில் இருந்து வெளிமாவட்டத்திற்கு செல்லும் போக்குவரத்துச் சேவைகள் பாதிக்கப்பட்டது.
 

அரச பேருந்துகளையும் இடைமறித்து தமது ஆர்ப்பாட்டத்தை முன்னெடுத்தனர்.



 
 
இதன் போது மன்னார் பொலிஸ் அத்தியட்சகர் மற்றும் மன்னார் பொலிஸ் நிலைய பொறுப்பதிகாரி ஆகியோர் சம்பவ இடத்திற்கு வருகை தந்து வீதிமறியல் போராட்டத்தில் ஈடுபட்ட மக்களுடன் போச்சுவார்த்தை நடத்தினர்.எனினும் உரிய அதிகாரிகள் சம்பவ இடத்திற்கு வந்து தங்களுடன் போர்ச்சுவார்த்தை நடத்தி தென் கடல் பகுதியில் உள்ள 'கட்டுவலைகளை' அகற்ற மாட்டோம் என உறுதிமொழி வழங்க வேண்டும் என கோரிக்கை விடுத்ததோடு தொடர்ந்தும் வீதியை மறித்து ஆர்ப்பாட்டத்தில் ஈடுபட்டனர். இத னால் நீண்ட நேரம் போக்குவரத்துச் சேவைகள் பாதிக்கப்பட்டிருந்தது.

 
 
இந்தநிலையில் மன்னார் கடற்தொழில் திணைக்கள அதிகாரிகள் சம்பவ இடத்திற்கு வந்து மீனவர்களுடன் கலந்துரையாடினர். இத ன்போது வடமாகாண சபை உறுப்பினர் வைத்திய கலாநிதி ஜீ.குணசீலன் சம்பவ இடத்திற்கு வருகை தந்து ஆர்ப்பாட்டத்தில் ஈடு பட்ட மக்களுடன் கலந்துரையாடினார்.
 

இதன் போது பனங்கட்டிக்கொட்டு கிராமத்தைச் சேர்ந்த பல நூற்றுக்கணக்கான மீனவர்கள் கட்டுவலைத்தொழிலையே மேற்கொ ண்டு வருகின்றனர்.ஆராம்ப காலத்தில் மன்னார் சௌத்பார் தென்கடல் பகுதியில் இரும்புக் குழாய் மூலம் இவ் வலைகள் பாயப்ப ட்டிருந்தது.

 
 
இதனால் அயல் கிராம மீனவர்களின் படகுகளுக்கு சேதம் விளைவிக்கின்றது என்ற கேள்விக்கு அமைவாக இரும்புக்குழாய்கள் மூலம் பாயப்பட்ட வலைகள் இரும்பு பைப் இன்றி மிதவை மூலம் பாயப்பட்டு எந்த விதமான பாதிப்புக்களும் இன்றி நாங்கள் கட ற்தொழிலில் ஈடுபட்டு வந்தோம்.
 

இந்த நிலையில் தென் கடல் பகுதியில் பாய்ச்சப்பட்டுள்ள கட்டு வலைகள் அனைத்தையும் அகற்றுமாறு கடந்த மாதம் 9 ஆம் திகதி மன்னார் கடற்தொழில் திணைக்கள உதவிப்பணிப்பாளர் கடிதம் அனுப்பியுள்ளார்.
 

இந்தநிலையில் இன்றைய தினம்(21) குறித்த தென் கடல் பகுதியில் உள்ள கட்டு வலைகளை அகற்ற மன்னார் கடற்தொழில் திணை க்கள உதவிப்பணிப்பாளர் நடவடிக்கைகளை மேற்கொண்ட நிலையிலே நாங்கள் நீதி கோரி வீதி மறியல் போராட்டத்தில் ஈடுபட்ட தாக மக்கள் தெரிவித்தனர்.

 
 
இந்த நிலையில் வருகை தந்த பொலிஸ் அதிகாரிகள் கடற்தொழில் திணைக்கள அதிகாரிகளுடன் மேற்கொண்ட பேச்சுவார்த்தை யின் காரணமாக கடலில் உள்ள கட்டு வலைகள் அகற்றப்படாது என கடற்தொழில் திணைக்கள அதிகாரிகள் தெரிவித்தனர்.
 

இன்று(21) மாலை இவ்விடயம் தொடர்பில் கொழும்பில் இருந்து வருகை தரும் உயர் அதிகாரிகளுடன் பேச்சுவார்த்தை மேற்கொ ள்ளப்பட்டு இறுதி முடிவுகள் மேற்கொள்ளப்படும் என தெரிவிக்கப்பட்டது.
 

இந்த நிலையில் வீதிமறியல் கைவிடப்பட்டது.பின் குறித்த கிராம மக்கள் மன்னார் மாவட்டச் செயலகத்திற்கு சென்று கடற்தொ ழில் நீரியல் வளத்துறை அமைச்சர் மஹிந்த அமரவீர அவர்களுக்கு வழங்கப்பட வேண்டிய மகஜரை மாவட்ட அரசாங்க அதிபர் எம்.வை.எஸ்.தேசப்பிரியவிடம் கையளித்தனர்.
 

வீதி மறியல் போராட்டத்தின் காரணமாக காலை 6.30 மணி முதல் 7.40 மணிவரையில் போக்குவரத்துக்கள் தடைப்பட்டிருந்தமை குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது.
 
நன்றி: செய்தி புகைப்படங்கள் உதயன்

NYT TELLS JOURNALISTS TO AVOID WORDS “GENOCIDE,” “ETHNIC CLEANSING,” AND “OCCUPIED TERRITORY''

LEAKED NYT GAZA MEMO TELLS JOURNALISTS TO AVOID WORDS “GENOCIDE,” “ETHNIC CLEANSING,” AND “OCCUPIED TERRITORY” Amid the internal battle over...