Michigan Vote Fraud WITNESS assassination attempt

https://www.bitchute.com/video/XS0iMDsylnML/

Operation Capstone: War games to mock up worst-case scenarios and test country's readiness for No Deal Brexit will be carried out THIS WEEK

War games codenamed ‘Operation Capstone’ will test the UK's readiness

It is one of the biggest peacetime operations to help keep the country moving

An extensive operation will be rolled out if the UK leaves the EU with a deal or Christmas leave will be cancelled for officials and hundreds of border staff deployed under government preparations for a No Deal Brexit which will begin this week.

War games codenamed ‘Operation Capstone’, which will mock up the worst-case scenarios, will test the country’s readiness on Wednesday.

Officials will test border disruption and fishing boats entering the UK’s waters illegally.notIn one of the biggest peacetime operations, the combined forces of the police, border guards, customs officials and military personnel will help keep the UK moving.

An extensive operation months in the planning will be rolled out whether Britain leaves the EU with a deal or not. The plan includes seven inland sites to handle extra border checks away from ports to keep lorries moving.

A 27-acre lorry park off the M20 will be opened in case of huge queues caused by lengthy border checks at Dover. A bespoke app will also be rolled out to help hauliers know which site they need to go to.

Up to 900 extra officials will try to smooth over processes at the border, checking lorries and enforcing new import controls.

According to the Sun on Sunday, Christmas leave will be cancelled for senior officials carrying out particularly sensitive and important roles.

Some 14,000 military personnel on standby to help could also have their leave put on hold if they are needed.

Hundreds of extra police could be drafted in to Kent to stop smugglers exploiting the situation by sending migrants across the Channel.

As revealed on Saturday, four Royal Navy vessels will also be deployed off the coast to stop French trawlers fishing in British waters if there is no deal. The Navy will have the power to arrest French and other EU fishermen who illegally enter Britain’s waters.

In any scenario, the UK Government is bringing in a Fish Export Service which will issue validated catch certificates free of charge and offer round the clock technical support.

http://www.scoopyweb.com/2020/12/operation-capstone-war-games-to-mock-up.html

2 arrested for human smuggling conspiracy and defrauding US government agencies

NEW YORK — A six-count indictment was unsealed in the Eastern District of New York (EDNY) Thursday charging Dat Tat Ho and Manh Ngoc Nguyen with conspiring to defraud U.S. government agencies and alien smuggling for financial gain, and related crimes. The defendants allegedly smuggled Vietnamese aliens into the United States to work for illegally low wages at hair and nail salons in New York City and on Long Island. This investigation was conducted by ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, New York (IRS-CI) and U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, New York Region (DOL-OIG). Both defendants were ordered detained pending trial.

Seth D. DuCharme, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI); Jonathan D. Larsen, Special Agent-in-Charge; and Michael C. Mikulka, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, New York Region (DOL-OIG), announced the indictment and arrests.

“This case is an example of callous labor trafficking hiding in plain sight. In what seemed to be an endless scheme, this transnational criminal organization allegedly manipulated the asylum process and profited off the plight of their nail salon employees whom they victimized,” stated HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Fitzhugh. “HSI, through collaboration with its federal, state and local partners, methodically unraveled the vast reach of this enterprise which led to the indictment of these criminals. It is important for anyone who is a victim of human smuggling to know that these investigations prioritize ensuring the safety of the victims while bringing those responsible to justice.”

“It is reprehensible when others allegedly seek personal financial gain by smuggling persons into the United States and paying them illegally low wages,” stated IRS-CI Special Agent-in-Charge Jonathan D. Larsen. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prevent this abuse and protect the financial integrity of our tax system.”

“Combatting labor trafficking is an important part of the mission of the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate all forms of labor trafficking,” stated DOL-OIG Special Agent-in-Charge Michael C. Mikulka.

"As alleged, Ho and Nguyen conspired to smuggle aliens into the United States, keep them under the defendants’ control and pay them illegally low wages to work in nail and hair salons,” stated Acting United States Attorney Seth D. DuCharme. “As this case demonstrates, we take seriously our responsibility to maintain security at our borders and prosecute those who seek unlawful commercial advantage and financial profit through the exploitation of other human beings.”

https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/2-arrested-human-smuggling-conspiracy-and-defrauding-us-government-agencies

Report: W.H.O. Chief Tedros Could Face Genocide Charges

The head of the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus faces a call for prosecution over his alleged involvement in directing security forces in his Ethiopian homeland.

The Times of London reports an American economist nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, David Steinman, accused the 55-year-old career bureaucrat of being one of three officials in control of the Ethiopian security services from 2013 to 2015.

Tedros was the country’s health minister from 2005 to 2012 and its foreign minister until 2016, when his communist Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) was the main member of the ruling coalition.

Analysts, reportedly including American government officials, have listed the TPLF in the Global Terrorism Database.

The Times says Steinman, an economist and campaigner nominated for the peace prize last year, lodged the complaint at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

He alleged Tedros “was a crucial decision maker in relation to security service actions that included killing, arbitrarily detaining and torturing Ethiopians.”

The complaint to prosecutors at the ICC comes after General Berhanu Jula, Ethiopia’s army chief of staff, called last month for the WHO leader to resign. He accused him of trying to procure weapons for the Tigray region, where the Ethiopian army is fighting local forces.

Embattled W.H.O. chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was warmly applauded Sunday by China’s Communist regime. https://t.co/AZnUh28IYl

— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) May 24, 2020

In his complaint, Steinman pointed to a 2016 U.S. government report on human rights in Ethiopia that found the “civilian authorities at times did not maintain control over the security forces, and local police in rural areas and local militias sometimes acted independently”.

Steinman added the U.S. report cited “other documented crimes”. He accused Tedros of being involved in the “intimidation of opposition candidates and supporters”, including “arbitrary arrest . . . and lengthy pre-trial detention”.

According to the Times, the complaint also alleged that Tedros oversaw the “killing, and causing serious bodily and mental harm to, members of the Amhara, Konso, Oromo and Somali tribes with intent to destroy those tribes in whole or in part.”

Tedros has denied the allegations and any wrongdoing. As recently as last month he issued a statement addressing the current situation in Tigray.

“There have been reports suggesting I am taking sides in this situation,” he said. “This is not true and I want to say that I am on only one side and that is the side of peace.”

This is not the first time Tedros has been at the center of controversy in his Ethiopian homeland.

https://www.breitbart.com/health/2020/12/14/w-h-o-chief-tedros-could-face-genocide-charges/

The Central Bank Bond Buying Scheme (Debt Monetization) Will Only Get Worse

A few days ago Bloomberg came out with an article about how major central banks have done $5.6 trillion worth of QE this year.

However, just this week the Bank of Japan (BOJ) & European Central Bank (ECB) announced new stimulus (really bailout) QE programs.

A lot of these programs are being done solely to create newly created currency units out of thin air to buy government bonds to maintain or grow the size of government.

Meanwhile, the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) just issued a new report about how “markets” are now moving from a liquidity crisis into a solvency crisis because of the global cash flow problem. As in there is not enough cash flow to service existing debts let along ever think of paying a lot of them off. And yet Wall Street banks and other large banks in the EU, UK, Japan and China want to keep issuing more debt and credit!

Commit to tipping us monthly for our hard work creating high level, thought provoking content that includes interviews with top experts, analysis and short videos about investing and the economy www.patreon.com/wallstformainst

https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/the-central-bank-bond-buying-scheme-debt-monetization-will-only-get-worse/

Don’t Go to Church, Don’t Buy Christmas Presents: German Government’s Festive Covid Lockdown

Germany will enter a harsh coronavirus lockdown this week, with Angela Merkel’s government warning residents to not go out for Christmas shopping, Christians to not attend church services, and pupils to stay away from school.

The nationwide lockdown Germany is already under “was not enough”, German Chancellor Angel Merkel said as she introduced a series of new measures including closing schools, all non-essential shops, and even banning outright the sale of some seasonal celebratory items. The new lockdown begins on Wednesday (16th) and will last, with an exception for a quick break for Christmas itself, until January 10th.

Sunday’s announcement is the second full lockdown Germany has imposed in 2020, following another in April.

Shops have been targeted in particular as the German government blames Christmas shopping for a rising number of coronavirus transmissions. Britain’s Sky News cites Merkel’s comments specifically on the matter as: “I would have wished for lighter measures. But due to Christmas shopping, the number of social contacts has risen considerably… There is an urgent need to take action.”

Thousands Protest Coronavirus Lockdown Measures Across Germany on Left and Right https://t.co/2invxLMt3b

— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) May 19, 2020

Children are to be sent home from school for the duration of the lockdown for home learning, and the German government will even appeal to Christians to not attend church services, but instead watch them online. Church attendance will only be permitted if members of the congregation maintain social distancing — not easy on what is typically the busiest time of the year for churches. Bars and inns were already closed under Germany’s November lockdown — still in force — and will remain closed until January.

Germany is a federal state, and state governments gave enhanced details on the coming lockdown decided on Sunday to residents on Monday. Suddeutsche Zeitung reported the comments of Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder when he described the terms of the federally-imposed lockdown, noting among the exceptions to the shop-closure order were to be those selling food, medicine, and petrol.

The closure of retail businesses in the run-up to Christmas, traditionally the busiest and most profitable time of year for many, will come as a bitter blow despite the German government’s offer of financial support to companies impacted. As with other countries, the move will likely again push consumers towards online shopping giants, further swelling their profits.

Already on the Cusp Before Coronavirus Downturn, Germany Enters Recession https://t.co/or1HkQ2o0u

— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) May 16, 2020

https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/12/14/dont-go-to-church-dont-buy-christmas-presents-german-governments-festive-covid-lockdown/

‘Criminal’: Fines Against Defiant NJ Gym Surpass $1 Million

The fines against a New Jersey gym that has publicly resisted Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s COVID-19 lockdown measures have amassed to more than $1 million, but the gym owner is refusing to back down.

Ian Smith, the co-owner of Atilis Gym in Bellmawr, New Jersey, has repeatedly made headlines for fully opening his gym in defiance of Murphy’s mandates, which restrict the number of people allowed in gyms and compel people to wear masks“Governor Murphy has thrown everything he possibly could to shut us down. He has arrested my partner and I, given us over 60 citations, some of them criminal. He fines us $15,497.76 per day for every day we’re in operation. Our fines are totaling over $1.2 million, but every single day, Frank and I open our gym,” Smith told “America’s Newsroom” earlier this week.

Maintaining that more than 83,000 visitors have come to his gym without a single case of COVID-19, Smith said, “What’s happening to the middle class and small businesses in America is nothing short of a complete tragedy. I would go so far as to call it criminal. You are putting people out of business for good. You are making them reliant on big government. You are taking away their civil liberties under the guise of pretending like you care about public health.”.

In a video posted to Instagram in September, Smith wrote:

Our COVID-19 safety protocol has been proven effective.

As expected, the simple and easy to implement practices we put into place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 met and exceeded all other required government protocol. Small businesses have been held hostage for political purposes. OUR SCIENCE IS CLEAR. We now DEMAND that our elected officials show us the science in which they used to shutter our businesses and keep us isolated. It is time to reopen this country. No more shutdowns. No more masks. Kids back in school. IN PERSON VOTING. It’s time to make some noise. Lets share this and hold these elected officials accountable.

http://www.tathasta.com/2020/12/criminal-fines-against-defiant-nj-gym.html

Dominion Software Intentionally Designed to Influence Election Results: Forensics Report

A forensic audit of Dominion Voting Systems machines and software in Michigan showed that they were designed to create fraud and influence election results, a data firm said Monday.

“We conclude that the Dominion Voting System is intentionally and purposefully designed with inherent errors to create systemic fraud and influence election results,” Russell Ramsland Jr., co-founder of Allied Security Operations Group, said in a preliminary report.

“The system intentionally generates an enormously high number of ballot errors. The electronic ballots are then transferred for adjudication. The intentional errors lead to bulk adjudication of ballots with no oversight, no transparency, and no audit trail. This leads to voter or election fraud. Based on our study, we conclude that The Dominion Voting System should not be used in Michigan. We further conclude that the results of Antrim County should not have been certified,” he added.

Ramsland, a former Reagan administration official who has worked for NASA, and others from the group examined Dominion products in Antrim County earlier this month as part of an ongoing case.

The team inspected and performed forensic duplication on the county’s election management server, which was running Dominion Democracy Suite 5.5.3-002, compact flash cards used by local precincts in their Dominion ImageCast system, USB memory sticks used by Dominion Voter Assist Terminals, and USB memory sticks used for the poll book. They used X-Ways Forensics and other tools including Blackbag-Blacklight Forensic Software, and Virtual Box.

13th Circuit Judge Kevin Elsenheimer approved the forensic examination in Bailey v. Antrim County, which alleges the infamous vote flip county officials reported last month may have not been the result of human error, as officials had alleged.

Elsenheimer earlier Monday agreed to let the report on the examination be published.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/dominion-software-intentionally-designed-to-influence-election-results-forensics-report_3617675.html?utm_source=newsnoe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-2020-12-14-2

One of Joe Biden’s Wisconsin Electors Broke State Election Law by Falsely Claiming Indefinite Confinement

One of Joe Biden’s Wisconsin electors falsely claimed she was “indefinitely confined” to her home leading up to Election Day, but pictures on her social media show her out and about campaigning.

Wisconsin Democrat state senator Patricia Schachtner will cast one of her state’s 10 electoral votes for Joe Biden on Monday.

However, Schachtner claimed to the Wisconsin Elections Commission in a signed statement that she was “indefinitely confined” to her home due to Covid and therefore needed a mail-in ballot.

Schachtner posted Facebook photos of her and her husband (who also claimed to be indefinitely confined) outside enjoying themselves.

Schachtner was seen out and about campaigning with treasurer Sarah Godlewski in October.

Exclusive story via Newstalk1130:

Schachtner and her husband Joseph appear on the Wisconsin Elections Commission list of nearly 250,000 voters who signed a statement on their mail-in ballots that they were indefinitely confined to their homes because of “because of age, physical illness or infirmity” or if they are “disabled for an indefinite period.”

The Wisconsin Elections Commission’s list of indefinitely confined voters obtained by “The Dan O’Donnell Show” includes both Schachtner, a Democrat from Somerset who lost her bid for re-election last month, and her husband.

Senator Schachtner has not yet responded to repeated requests for comment.

Wisconsin Statute 12.13 defines election fraud as making “false statements to the municipal clerk, board of election commissioners, or any other election official whether or not under oath.”

A false statement of indefinite confinement is a false statement to elections officials, and thus could be a Class I felony punishable by 3.5 years in prison and fines of up to $10,000.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/12/one-joe-bidens-wisconsin-electors-broke-state-election-law-falsely-claiming-indefinite-confinement/

Gates On CNN: ‘Appropriate’ To Close Bars And Restaurants. Cruz: Halt CNN, Microsoft, Dems’ Salaries. Then Let’s Hear You On Lockdowns.

Sunday’s “State Of The Union,” CNN Host Jake Tapper, who reportedly has a net worth of $8 million, asked one of the world’s richest men, multi-billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, whose net worth is reportedly $129 billion, whether states needed to consider taking “the kind of drastic action we saw when the pandemic first began? Or can there be a more nuanced approach?”

Gates responded, “Bars and restaurants in most of the country will be closed as we go into this wave. And I think, sadly, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) fired back at Gates’ comment about closing restaurants and bars on Twitter, writing: “Leftists: a millionaire & a billionaire discuss how they think its ‘appropriate’ to destroy & bankrupt small businesses across America. Tell you what…halt ALL salaries at CNN & Microsoft, stop paying Dem politicians & then let’s see if they think TWO MORE YEARS shutdown is OK.”

As far back as September, CNBC reported, “Some 163,735 businesses have indicated on Yelp that they have closed, a 23% increase since mid-July. According to Yelp data, permanent closures have reached 97,966, representing 60% of closed businesses that won’t be reopening.”

In the interview, Tapper asked Gates, “What do you think? Do you think more states needs to consider taking that kind of drastic action and the kind of drastic action we saw when the pandemic first began? Or can there be a more nuanced approach?”

Gates answered, “Well, certainly, mask-wearing has essentially no downside. They’re not expensive. Bars and restaurants in most of the country will be closed as we go into this wave. And I think, sadly, that’s appropriate. Depending on how severe it is, the decision about schools is much more complicated, because, there, the benefits are pretty high, the amount of transmission is not the same as in restaurants and bars.”

“So, trade-offs will have to be made,” Gates continued. “But this — the next four to six months really call on us to do our best, because we can see that this will end, and you don’t want somebody you love to be the last to die of coronavirus.”

“When do you think life will fully return to what we thought of as normal back in January, no masks, no social distancing, no other protective measures necessary?” Tapper asked.

“Certainly, by the summer, we will be way closer to normal than we are now,” Gates replied. “But even through early 2022, unless we help other countries get rid of this disease, and we get high vaccination rates in our country, the risk of reintroduction will be there and, of course, the global economy will be slowed down, which hurts America economically in a pretty dramatic way. So, we will have, starting in the summer, about nine months where a few things, like big public gatherings, will still be restricted. But we can see now that, somewhere between 12 to 18 months, and we have a chance, if we manage it well, to get back to normal.”

that’s appropriate.”

http://www.tathasta.com/2020/12/gates-on-cnn-appropriate-to-close-bars.html

Google services outage hits YouTube, Gmail, Drive worldwide

All services from Alphabet Inc were down for users across the globe late on Monday night, preventing people from accessing Gmail, YouTube and other products.

Errors ranged from "something went wrong" on YouTube, to "there was an error. Please Try again later. That's all we know," when attempting to login to the company's mail product. Google products were failing to load for users in Australia, the US, the UK and across Europe.

“We’re aware of a problem with Gmail affecting a majority of users,” a status update on a Google dashboard said early on Tuesday morning AEDT. There were similar updates for Google's many other services, such as Docs, Hangouts and Chat.

The services that were affected for nearly an hour before they were restored for most users, Google said.

In a tweet, the company attributed the problem to an "authentication system outage" that lasted for approximately 45 minutes starting at 7.32am Eastern time in the US (11.32pm AEDT).

"We apologise for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience and continued support," Google said on its website. "Please rest assured that system reliability is a top priority at Google, and we are making continuous improvements to make our systems better."

Outages are not uncommon for any website or provider, with companies including Google as well as Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and others routinely experiencing them due to temporary server errors often caused by human error. But Monday's outage is notable for its pervasiveness across the Alphabet portfolio.

The company's search product was functioning correctly, and third-party ads – Google's main revenue driver – remained visible in results, suggesting advertising was unaffected.

The website DownDetector, which collates user-reported errors on websites, mobile networks and other platforms, was showing tens of thousands of complaints around 7am in New York, extending to Google's office tools such as Drive and Meet, Google Maps, and Google's smart home products such as Nest.

The popular mobile game Pokemon Go was also impacted, reports on DownDetector implied, most likely caused by Google accounts being necessary to login to the game.

https://www.smh.com.au/technology/alphabets-youtube-gmail-google-drive-services-face-outage-20201214-p56ngh.html

Trump Repeats Threat to Veto NDAA, Says the Bill Is a Gift to China

Massive $740 billion legislation includes provisions to block troop drawdowns in Afghanistan and Germany

On Sunday, President Trump repeated his threat to veto the $740 billion 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) after the massive spending bill was passed through both chambers of Congress.

The president wrote on Twitter: “THE BIGGEST WINNER OF OUR NEW DEFENSE BILL IS CHINA! I WILL VETO!”

It’s not clear what aspect of the NDAA Trump thinks is a gift to China. The 4,517-page bill includes multiple sections that call for evaluations of Beijing’s activities in Taiwan, Xinjiang, the cyber-realm, space, and other areas. Members of Congress were quick to point out how “tough” the bill is on China.

“President Trump clearly hasn’t read the bill, nor does he understand what’s in it,” Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) said in response to Trump’s tweet. “There are several bipartisan provisions in here that get tougher on China than the Trump Administration has ever been.”

Trump’s main gripe with the $740 billion legislation is that it does not include an amendment to repeal Section 230, a law that gives tech platforms immunity from liability over the content published by third party users.

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) delayed a vote on the NDAA last week over an amendment that seeks to block troop drawdowns in Afghanistan. The amendment would require reports from the State Department, Pentagon, and DNI over the impact the withdrawals would have on US national security.

The assessment would be required as soon as the NDAA becomes law. Assessments would also be required when troop numbers go below 4,000, and again at 2,000. The Trump administration is currently carrying out a plan to bring numbers down to 2,500 by January 15th.

The NDAA also includes an amendment to block a planned troop drawdown from Germany. The Trump administration ordered the Pentagon to take about 12,000 troops out of Germany of the approximately 34,500 stationed there. The amendment would not allow troops to leave the country until 120 days after the Pentagon submitted a report to Congress on the drawdown.

President Trump has until December 23rd to decide on the bill. If he goes through with a veto, it would likely still become law since both the House and Senate passed the NDAA with well over the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto.

https://news.antiwar.com/2020/12/14/trump-repeats-threat-to-veto-ndaa-says-the-bill-is-a-gift-to-china/

Army Suspends Battalion Commander, Sergeant Major in Korea Amid Racism Allegations

The Army has suspended a battalion commander and command sergeant major in South Korea while an investigation is conducted into allegations of racism, bigotry and discrimination.

Maj. Gen. Steve Gilland, commander of the 2nd Infantry Division, suspended the command team Lt. Col. Sean McBride and Command Sgt. Maj. Mario Salomone of the 602nd Aviation Support Battalion after receiving an anonymous tip alleging racist behavior, according to a Dec. 12 Facebook statement from Lt. Gen. W. M. Burleson III, commander of Eighth Army at Camp Humphreys.

The statement did not release the identities of McBride and Salomone.

"This week, Eighth Army received allegations of racism, bigotry and discrimination in one of our formations via the Eighth Army Anonymous Assistance line," Burleson wrote. "My intent is to always tackle these challenges head-on."

McBride and Salomone will remain suspended for the duration of the investigation, according to the statement.

"These actions do not presuppose any outcome and are intended to ensure a full, fair, and impartial inquiry," Burleson said in the statement. "Other allegations properly within the authority of Criminal Investigation Division are being addressed by them."

Army Times first reported this story.

The statement did not release any further details about the nature of the allegations or specific alleged behavior.

Military.com reached out to the Army in South Korea for further details about the case, but did not receive an immediate response.

Burleson said he has identified trust, accountability and transparency as the three major themes crucial to eliminating discrimination.

"Trust is crucial in our formations, and lack of trust erodes and degrades the cohesiveness of our teams, impacts readiness, and our ability to 'Fight Tonight,'" he wrote.

"Accountability and transparency go hand-in-hand with building trust. We must demonstrate that we are taking an active approach to resolving those issues and concerns and providing candid feedback to our units about the steps we are taking to make our team strong and ready."

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/12/14/army-suspends-battalion-commander-sergeant-major-korea-amid-racism-allegations.html

China bails out Pakistan for repayment of debt to Saudi Arabia

China has agreed to bail out Pakistan by providing it with $1.5 billion to help to repay a $2 billion debt to Saudi Arabia, according to the Express Tribune.

Citing anonymous sources in the Finance Ministry, the report stated that Pakistan was set to repay the first $1 billion of the debt to Saudi Arabia today, with the second payment due in January.

The money was provided neither as a commercial loan nor from China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange. Instead, it was given through the decision to increase the bilateral Currency-Swap Agreement (CSA) between the two allies by an additional 10 billion Chinse Yuan, approximately $1.5 billion.

Pakistan's debt to Saudi Arabia was set after the Kingdom called in its own loan to its South Asian ally in August. The move was retaliation for the Pakistani government's call for Riyadh to convene a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to discuss the Kashmir issue.

The refusal to do so, and subsequent ending of the loan agreement — which was for $3 billion and an oil credit facility amounting to a further $3.2 billion — was a sign of the breakdown in relations between Riyadh and Islamabad in recent years. Bilateral relations deteriorated further when Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman refused to meet with Pakistan's army Chief of Staff during the latter's visit to Riyadh.

It was then that Pakistan's Foreign Minister visited China, with the aim of strengthening relations with Beijing and to see what economic support it could offer.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20201214-china-bails-out-pakistan-for-repayment-of-debt-to-saudi-arabia/

US removes Sudan from state sponsors of terrorism list

The US has listed Sudan on its list of State Sponsors of Terrorism since 1993 for hosting the late Al-Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden

The United States (US) has removed Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, the US Embassy in Khartoum announced today.

"The Secretary of State has signed a notification stating rescission of Sudan's State Sponsor of Terrorism designation is effective as of today (December 14), to be published in the Federal Register," the embassy said in a statement. It added that the 45-day congressional notification period has lapsed.

The US has listed Sudan on its list of State Sponsors of Terrorism since 1993 for hosting the late Al-Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden.

The designation meant the US could not give Sudan economic assistance, and effectively blocked financing or debt relief by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank

"This achievement comes with numerous opportunities for Sudan's development," tweeted Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, adding that his country "officially" rejoined the international community as a "peaceful nation supporting global stability" after nearly three-decade of isolation.

After 3 decades of global isolation on the #SSTL #Sudan officially rejoins the int'l community as a peaceful nation supporting global stability. This achievement comes with numerous opportunities for Sudan's development & we thank everyone involved in making this happen.#NewEra pic.twitter.com/I8EQG04CK5

— Abdalla Hamdok (@SudanPMHamdok) December 14, 2020

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said rescinding the designation "represents a fundamental change in our bilateral relationship toward greater collaboration and support for Sudan's historic democratic transition."

"This achievement was made possible by the efforts of Sudan's civilian-led transitional government to chart a bold new course away from the legacy of the [former President Omar] Bashir regime and, in particular, to meet the statutory and policy criteria for rescission," Pompeo said in a statement today.

"We commend the calls of the Sudanese people for freedom, peace, and justice, and we congratulate the members of the civilian-led transitional government for their courage in advancing the aspirations of the citizens they serve."

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20201214-us-removes-sudan-from-state-sponsors-of-terrorism-list/

Top Michigan Republicans shut down prospect of overturning result for Trump as Electoral College meets

The two top Republican officials in the Michigan state legislature on Monday made clear the state would not award its electors to President Trump as tensions bubble in the state ahead of its formal Electoral College vote.

State Senate majority leader Mike Shirkey (R) and House Speaker Lee Chatfield (R) issued separate statements on Monday making clear the legislature would not appoint electors that undercut the state's popular vote, which Joe Biden won by nearly 140,000 votes. The statements came as Michigan closed its legislative office buildings on Monday due to credible threats of violence.

"Michigan’s Democratic slate of electors should be able to proceed with their duty, free from threats of violence and intimidation," Shirkey said in a statement. "President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris won Michigan’s presidential election. It is our responsibility as leaders to follow the law and move forward in pursuit of policies that contribute to the betterment of Michigan."

Shirkey credited Trump with shedding light on flaws in the election process that require fixing to avoid voting irregularities. But the state did not uncover fraud at a scale that would change the result, he said.

Chatfield directly addressed the push from Trump and some of his allies for state legislatures to subvert the popular vote results and appoint their own electors to back Trump in the Electoral College. He cited long-standing precedent in Michigan to award Electoral College votes to the popular vote winner, something that was solidified in 2000 by the Supreme Court.

“Again - I fought hard for President Trump. Nobody wanted him to win more than me," Chatfield said. "I think he's done an incredible job. But I love our republic, too. I can't fathom risking our norms, traditions and institutions to pass a resolution retroactively changing the electors for Trump, simply because some think there may have been enough widespread fraud to give him the win.

"That's unprecedented for good reason," he added. "And that’s why there is not enough support in the House to cast a new slate of electors. I fear we'd lose our country forever. This truly would bring mutually assured destruction for every future election in regards to the Electoral College. And I can't stand for that. I won’t."

Both Shirkey and Chatfield met with Trump at the White House last month as the president pressed to overturn the election results.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/530110-top-michigan-republicans-shut-down-prospect-of-overturning-result-for-trump

Court orders prosecutors to amend indictment against Netanyahu

Judges say ‘quite a few details are missing’ from charge sheet in 1 of 3 cases, but reject PM’s request for indictment to be thrown out

The Jerusalem District Court on Monday rejected a demand by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attorneys to cancel the criminal charges against him due to issues with the filing process, but ordered prosecutors to amend the indictment in one of three cases the premier was charged in.

The judges said “quite a few details are missing” from the indictment in Case 4000, which they said are “material and relevant to the defendants’ defense.”

The case involves suspicions that Netanyahu granted regulatory favors benefitting Shaul Elovitch, the controlling shareholder of Bezeq telecoms, in exchange for positive coverage of the prime minister and his family from the Bezeq-owned Walla news site.

In their ruling, the judges instructed prosecutors to significantly amend the indictment to clearly distinguish Netanyahu from his family members, as well as Elovitch from his wife, Iris.

Shaul Elovitch arrives at the Jerusalem District Court on May 24, 2020. (Amit Shabi/Pool/Flash90)

Netanyahu’s lawyers have complained that the premier in many cases was grouped with his family in supposed demands from Elovitch to make various changes in Walla’s coverage. They said it was not clear why Netanyahu must answer for demands allegedly made by his wife or son.

The court said prosecutors must make clear who made the demands in every case and whether the prime minister was allegedly aware of the requests or involved in them.

It also told prosecutors to provide detailed information about the alleged contacts between Netanyahu and the Elovitches and the benefits they gave him. The premier’s lawyers had asserted that the information provided was not detailed enough.

“There is no place for generalizations or lack of details,” the judges wrote.

In total, judges told prosecutors to amend 21 clauses in the indictment due to insufficient details.

They also rejected a demand by Netanyahu’s lawyers to amend the charges in another affair, dubbed Case 1000.

Concerning Netanyahu’s demand to throw out the indictment because it was allegedly filed in contravention of a law allowing Knesset members to request parliamentary immunity, the court said there were no grounds to cancel the charges since they were filed after the prime minister had withdrawn a request for the Knesset to grant him immunity.

Netanyahu cheered the ruling.

“A tough blow for the prosecutors,” he said in a statement. “It’s again been proved that they didn’t search for a crime but rather invented a crime.”

https://www.timesofisrael.com/court-orders-prosecutors-to-amend-indictment-against-netanyahu/

Hunter Biden SUBPOENAED [4 Investigations]. Pay-to-play with Burisma & two dozen other entities

Hunter Biden Subpoenaed Over Burisma, Two Dozen Other Entities As Part Of Four Investigations

https://theduran.com/hunter-biden-subpoenaed-4-investigations-pay-to-play-with-burisma-two-dozen-other-entities/

Pentagon investigating false alarm about missile attack on U.S. base in Germany

Those who heard the alarm took it seriously, and warned others to take cover.

Defense officials are investigating what triggered a false emergency alert over the weekend at a major U.S. military base in Germany, where people were urged to take cover against an incoming missile strike.

"It's important that we find out what happened, for a lot of reasons," a Pentagon official told Just the News. "We don't want people getting needlessly alarmed, and we don't want them to be complacent in the face of a genuine alert."

The alarm was raised Saturday at the sprawling Ramstein Air Base in southwest Germany, when people were warned via loudspeakers that an attack was imminent.

Those who heard the warning took it seriously.

"I ran into the [base exchange] and started yelling at folks to take cover," one airman wrote on the base Facebook page. In another post he wrote: "When you hear this is not an exercise on the loud voice it makes our stomach knot up."

Commanders soon assured the approximately 55,000 people connected to the base that they were safe.

"Today, the Ramstein Air Base Command Post was notified via an alert notification system of a real-world missile launch in the European theater," officials wrote on Facebook on Saturday. "The Command Post followed proper procedure and provided timely and accurate notifications to personnel in the Kaiserslautern Military Community."

The launch actually was part of a training exercise, officials wrote in the post. "The situation is all clear."

Questions remain about the training exercise, and the warning system glitch that briefly created havoc on the facility that hosts a number of military organizations. Among other things, the base serves as headquarters for U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and is an installation for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The Saturday warning most likely started with missile defense procedures at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado, one military official told Just the News. Two possible scenarios could explain the false alarm, the official said.

In one scenario, the alarm was intended to be an exercise, but inadvertently wasn't labelled as such. "Someone may have sent across a training event, and forgot to include the part about this being a drill," the official said.

https://justthenews.com/government/security/pentagon-investigating-what-caused-false-alarm-about-missile-attack-us-base

Warnock: U.S. Senators ‘Gangsters and Thugs’ Who Aimed to ‘Kill Children’

Georgia Dem savaged lawmakers for supporting a 2017 tax cut

Georgia Democratic Senate candidate Raphael Warnock described members of the U.S. Senate as "gangsters and thugs" whose votes for a 2017 tax cut exposed their willingness to "kill children."

The remarks, which have not previously been reported, may provide another opening for Warnock's Republican opponent, Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who has worked to portray him as a "radical liberal." Warnock, a pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, has come under fire for other controversial statements, including his praise for Rev. Jeremiah Wright's "God Damn America" speech, his condemnation of Israel, which he likened to apartheid South Africa, and his claim that "America needs to repent for its worship of whiteness."

In the December 2017 sermon, Warnock slammed members of the Senate for passing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The tax reform legislation—which reduced tax liability for low- and middle-class Americans last year, according to IRS data—was approved by Congress in December 2017 without a single Democratic vote.

"While others were sleeping, members of the United States Senate declared war, launched a vicious and evil attack on the most vulnerable people in America," said Warnock. "Herod is on the loose. Herod is a cynical politician, who's willing to kill children and kill the children's health program in order to preserve his own wealth and his own power."

Herod the Great is the Judean king who attempted to kill the infant Jesus by ordering the mass slaughter of Jewish babies in Bethlehem, according to the New Testament.

Warnock continued, "On Friday night, the United States Senate decided by a slim majority to pick the pockets of the poor, the sick, the old, and the yet unborn in order to line the pockets of the ultra-rich. Don't tell me about gangsters and thugs on the streets, there are more gangsters and thugs in Washington, D.C., in the Capitol than there are—a bunch of them."

Warnock's remarks came the day after Senate Republicans passed a version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Congress passed a final version of the legislation on Dec. 20, 2017, in a party-line vote; President Donald Trump signed it into law two days later.

While Loeffler was not in the Senate at the time of the vote, Georgia Republican senator David Perdue—who is locked in a tight race against Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff—did vote in favor of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

"Raphael Warnock's comments are abhorrent—and yet totally unsurprising. He and his leftist running mate, Jon Ossoff, consistently support socialist economic policies that raise taxes, kill jobs, shutter small businesses, and weaken America's standing," Perdue spokeswoman Lizzie Gregory told the Washington Free Beacon. "The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act—championed by leaders like Senator David Perdue—fueled the greatest economic turnaround in American history. Warnock and Ossoff are running to destroy it."

Warnock did not respond to a request for comment.

Democrats have criticized the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as a giveaway to wealthy Americans and corporations, though independent analyses, including one from the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan economic think tank, found that "the net effect of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was to reduce effective tax rates across income groups."

The policy, which went into effect in 2018, had the largest benefit for low- and middle-income earners, according to a MarketWatch analysis of IRS data released in March.

"Taxpayers making between $40,000 and $50,000 a year had the largest fall in average tax liability, a 14.5 percent drop," MarketWatch reported. Those earning between $15,000 and $20,000 saw a 12.5 percent decrease in tax liability, while those who earned between $25,000 to $30,000 had an 11.2 percent decrease and those who earned between $100,000 and $200,000 had a 10.9 percent decrease.

The high-stakes Georgia race is one of two run-offs in the state that will determine party control of the Senate next year. The election is scheduled for Jan. 5.

https://freebeacon.com/2020-election/warnock-u-s-senators-gangsters-and-thugs-who-aimed-to-kill-children/

Hunter Biden email shows $400G unreported income from Burisma, states he needs to 'amend' tax returns

President-elect's son confirmed he is under federal investigation for his 'tax affairs'

Hunter Biden did not report “approximately $400,000” in income he collected from his position on the board of Ukrainian natural gas firm Burisma Holdings when he joined in 2014, according to an attorney for his firm who noted that his tax returns needed to be amended, a new email obtained by Fox News shows.

The memo dated Jan. 16, 2017, one of multiple new emails obtained by Fox News, detailed President-elect Joe Biden’s son's income for the years 2013 through 2015 for tax purposes.

Biden, last week, confirmed that he was under federal investigation for his "tax affairs."

The email, which was first reported by NBC News, was sent to Hunter Biden from Eric Scherwin, who at the time served as president of Rosemont Seneca. Fox News could not verify its authenticity; neither Scherwin nor Hunter Biden attorney George Mesires immediately responded to Fox News' requests for comment.

"In 2014, you joined the Burisma board and we still need to amend your 2014 returns to reflect the unreported Burisma income," Scherwin wrote to Hunter Biden. "That is approximately $400,000 extra so your income in 2014 was closer to $1,247,328."

The email stated that in 2013 Hunter Biden’s taxes reported “$833,614 in income,” in 2014 “your taxes reported $847,328 in income. (To be amended at $1,247,328),” and in 2015 reported $2,478,208 in income.”

Scherwin described Hunter Biden’s income in 2013 and 2014 as “normal years” when his income “was based pretty much solely on income from Rosemont Seneca and Boies.”

Scherwin went on to explain Hunter Biden’s “increased income in 2015,” noting that he collected “$166,666 from Burnham (for RSA), $216,000 from Boies, $365,403 from Owasco (for RSA), $300,000 one time payment from Eudora (for the 1/3 of CitizensRx).”

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/hunter-biden-email-tax-returns-unreported-burisma-income

U.S. Sanctions Turkey Over Purchase of Russian S-400 Missile System

WASHINGTON — Today, the United States is imposing sanctions on the Republic of Turkey’s Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) pursuant to Section 231 of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) for knowingly engaging in a significant transaction with Rosoboronexport, Russia’s main arms export entity, by procuring the S-400 surface-to-air missile system. The sanctions include a ban on all U.S. export licenses and authorizations to SSB and an asset freeze and visa restrictions on Dr. Ismail Demir, SSB’s president, and other SSB officers.

STATEMENT FROM MICHAEL R. POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE:

The United States made clear to Turkey at the highest levels and on numerous occasions that its purchase of the S-400 system would endanger the security of U.S. military technology and personnel and provide substantial funds to Russia’s defense sector, as well as Russian access to the Turkish armed forces and defense industry. Turkey nevertheless decided to move ahead with the procurement and testing of the S-400, despite the availability of alternative, NATO-interoperable systems to meet its defense requirements. This decision resulted in Turkey’s suspension and pending removal from the global F-35 Joint Strike Fighter partnership.

Today’s action sends a clear signal that the United States will fully implement CAATSA Section 231 and will not tolerate significant transactions with Russia’s defense and intelligence sectors. I also urge Turkey to resolve the S-400 problem immediately in coordination with the United States. Turkey is a valued Ally and an important regional security partner for the United States, and we seek to continue our decades-long history of productive defense-sector cooperation by removing the obstacle of Turkey’s S-400 possession as soon as possible.

https://breaking911.com/u-s-sanctions-turkey-over-purchase-of-russian-s-400-missile-system/

Michigan Dominion Voting Machines: Forensics Report

Allied Security Operations GroupAntrim Michigan ForensicsReport

23 pages

https://www.depernolaw.com/uploads/2/7/0/2/27029178/antrim_michigan_forensics_report_[121320]v2[redacted].pdf

John Pilger: The Most Lethal Virus is Not Covid-19. It is War.

Covid-19 has provided cover for a pandemic of propaganda, says John Pilger.

Britain’s Armed Services Memorial is a silent, haunting place. Set in the rural beauty of Staffordshire, in an arboretum of some 30,000 trees and sweeping lawns, its Homeric figures celebrate determination and sacrifice.

The names of more than 16,000 British servicemen and women are listed. The literature says they “died in operational theatre or were targeted by terrorists”.

On the day I was there, a stonemason was adding new names to those who have died in some 50 operations across the world during what is known as “peacetime”. Malaya, Ireland, Kenya, Hong Kong, Libya, Iraq, Palestine and many more, including secret operations, such as Indochina.

Not a year has passed since peace was declared in 1945 that Britain has not sent military forces to fight the wars of empire.

Not a year has passed when countries, mostly poor and riven by conflict, have not bought or have been “soft loaned” British arms to further the wars, or “interests”, of empire.

Empire? What empire? The investigative journalist Phil Miller recently revealed in Declassified that Boris Johnson’s Britain maintained 145 military sites – call them bases — in 42 countries. Johnson has boasted that Britain is to be “the foremost naval power in Europe”.

In the midst of the greatest health emergency in modern times, with more than 4 million surgical procedures delayed by the National Health Service, Johnson has announced a record increase of £16.5 billion in so-called defence spending – a figure that would restore the under-resourced NHS many times over.

But these billions are not for defence. Britain has no enemies other than those within who betray the trust of its ordinary people, its nurses and doctors, its carers, elderly, homeless and youth, as successive neo-liberal governments have done, Conservative and Labour.

Exploring the serenity of the National War Memorial, I soon realised there was not a single monument, or plinth, or plaque, or rosebush honouring the memory of Britain’s victims — the civilians in the “peacetime” operations commemorated here.

https://consortiumnews.com/2020/12/14/john-pilger-the-most-lethal-virus-is-not-covid-19-it-is-war/

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