Cuba Protests: 5,000 Arrested, Police Target Religious Leaders

Independent media confirmed the arrests of at least 5,000 people since protests against communism erupted in Cuba on Sunday, a total including those known to be under investigation but not the disappeared.

The human rights group Cuban Prisoners Defenders submitted a list of 162 people to the United Nations on Wednesday suspected of being the victims of forced disappearances, meaning their families have reported them missing, but police have not confirmed their arrest. Cuban police regularly detain individuals perceived to be opposed to the Communist Party for participating in peaceful protests, practicing journalism, or being involved with religious groups not controlled by the Party. The Cuban Observatory for Human Rights, a non-governmental organization, revealed in a report published this month that Cuba has enacted over 30,000 arbitrary arrests against perceived dissidents in the last five years.

Protests erupted in Cuba on Sunday calling for an end to the communist regime. The protests attracted thousands of people in nearly every major city in the country – spanning the entire island – and prompted Cuban police to respond by opening fire on protesters, beating them publicly, using attack dogs to maul them, and otherwise violently repressing them. President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who represents the public face of the Castro family regime, also called on civilians to violently attack protesters on the streets in an “order of combat” issued late Sunday.

The Cuban independent news outlet 14 y Medio reported on Wednesday that it could confirm, citing civil society organizations, “over 5,000 people imprisoned or under investigation” as a direct result of Sunday’s protests, among them a disproportionate number of journalists and pro-democracy activists. It noted that the regime’s internet shutdown made it much more difficult to communicate across the island, so there are likely a high number of others who participated in protests but remain incommunicado or whose relatives have not been able to reach journalists to report them missing.

Cuban citizens throughout the country have also expressed concerns over the potential deaths of their loved ones. Reports on social media suggest that hospitals are not allowing family members to visit patients in the hospital recovering from bullet wounds, leaving unclear their health status. The communist regime admitted to one death during the protests on Wednesday, a man identified as Diubis Laurencio Tejeda. Authorities did not reveal a cause of death in his case. The statement in which the Ministry of Interior revealed the death also accused protesters of attempting to attack a police station.

https://www.breitbart.com/latin-america/2021/07/14/cuba-protests-arrested-police-target-religious-leaders/

Whistleblower Leaks Email Revealing Biden Admin Using US Military to Secretly Move Illegal Aliens Around the Country

Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Wednesday said a whistleblower leaked an email to him revealing the Biden Administration is using the US Military to secretly move illegal aliens around the country from Laughlin Air Force Base.

The US Military is supposed to defend this nation, but they are now secretly aiding and abetting illegal alien invaders.

The email, written by Lt. Col. Matthew Burrows and leaked to Tucker Carlson reads: “Over the next few days, weeks or months, you may see passenger aircraft on our ramp transporting undocumented non-citizens. Please review the attached public affairs guidance on the issue.”

Burrows then commanded military men in uniform to hide what was happening on the base from the very Americans they are sworn to serve: “Do not take photographs and refrain from posting anything on social media,” the email reads.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/07/whistleblower-leaks-email-revealing-biden-admin-using-us-military-secretly-move-illegal-aliens-around-country-video/

$706 Billion Pentagon Funding Bill Advanced by House Committee Would Close Gitmo, End 2001 AUMF

The second of two major defense budget bills has been okayed by the House Appropriations Committee, providing $706 billion in funds for the Pentagon for fiscal year 2022. The bill includes plans for closing the Guantanamo Bay prison and ending the 2001 and 2002 authorizations for use of military force (AUMF).

The House committee approved the bill on a party-line vote of 33-23, overriding the objections by Republicans that the bill’s 1.4% increase was too small. However, Democrats said they disapproved of the large spending bill and only advanced it to submit it to a wider debate in the full House chamber.

“We just spend too much on what is defined as traditional defense, and many of us in the country and many of us in Congress would like to redefine defense,” said Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), according to The Hill. “What’s actually in the defense of this country? It’s not in defense contractors, but it’s things like pandemics and climate change and other items.”

The appropriations bill is one of two bills that comprise the National Defense Authorization Act, with the other being the authorization bill, which sets the spending priorities. The NDAA is expected to be heard by the committee on July 21.

The bill includes several important amendments added by the committee, including two ending the 2001 and 2002 AUMFs, which Congress created to authorize both the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as military operations in undeclared war zones if they were against al-Qaeda or forces aligned with the terrorist group, such as the Somali group al-Shabaab.

Last month, the House also voted to repeal the 2002 and 1991 AUMFs - although US President Joe Biden proved he could still order airstrikes in Syria and Iraq without them just days later by claiming self-defense instead.

The bill also says its funds cannot be used to operate the Guantanamo Bay detention center after September 30, 2022, or to “support or facilitate offensive military operations conducted by the Saudi-led coalition against the Houthis in the war in Yemen.”

Interestingly, it also requires the secretaries of Defense and State to furnish Salvadoran authorities with “all relevant information and documents” relating to the 1981 El Mozote Massacre, in which nearly 1,000 villagers were murdered, half of them children, by the US-trained Atlacatl Battalion. Last year, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele blocked the probe from going forward, claiming the country’s records had been destroyed, but hearings related to charges against 17 Salvadoran military officers moved ahead this past May, which might go to trial later this year.

It would also provide Israel with $150 million to buy new Iron Dome air defense systems, which it uses to intercept rockets fired from Gaza and Lebanon. Israel fired thousands of interceptors during the 11-day war with Gaza in May, and many rockets escaped their defenses and struck Israeli towns, killing at least 13 people. The money is just part of $500 million being funneled to Israel for missile defense programs, including the Arrow missile system.

In terms of new construction, the bill provides for eight new US Navy warships, including two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, a Constellation-class frigate, a Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine, two Virginia-class attack submarines, and more funds for the programs associated with the Ford-class carriers and Zumwalt-class destroyers. It also provides for 85 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and 12 more F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighters.

https://sputniknews.com/military/202107141083386234-706-billion-pentagon-funding-bill-advanced-by-house-committee-would-close-gitmo-end-2001-aumf/

Nominee to Lead Pentagon Purchasing Withdraws Amid Investigation

The Biden administration's nominee to be the Pentagon's top weapons buyer has withdrawn his nomination.

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby confirmed at a news briefing Wednesday that Michael Brown took himself out of the running to be the Defense Department's undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment in a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

In the letter, which was obtained by Military.com, Brown said he was stepping aside because an inspector general investigation into his hiring practices at the Defense Innovation Unit would hold up his nomination by as much as a year, and he did not want to slow the department’s work down.

"While I am confident the Office of Inspector General will ultimately find no wrongdoing on my part, I know there are other qualified candidates who can focus on the urgent business of making our acquisition processes faster and more effective," Brown wrote. "I must put the interests of the department above my own enthusiasm for serving as the undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment."

Inside Defense first reported the news.

Brown remains the head of the Defense Innovation Unit, which he has run since 2018, Kirby said.

Defense One reported in April that the IG was looking into allegations Brown sidestepped federal hiring rules at the Defense Innovation Unit, but had not yet launched a formal investigation.

Brown is alleged to have given six employees special treatment during hiring, such as tailoring job descriptions to those candidates' abilities to ensure they would get the job.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2021/07/14/nominee-lead-pentagon-purchasing-withdraws-amid-investigation.html

Georgia Republicans expand margin of victory, winning 2 state House seats

Republican margins of victory increased from 4% to 26% after losing both Senate seats to Democrats.

Republicans in Georgia won two decisive victories for state House seats, greatly increasing the margin of victory from 2020's election.

Two Republicans, Leesa Hagan and Devan Seabaugh, were declared the winners of special elections Tuesday night, according to the Associated Press.

Hagan, Who was Toombs County Republican Party Chairwoman, won her election for House District 156 with 52% of the vote, according to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Hagan will replace Republican Greg Morris, who resigned after fellow legislators elected him to the state Transportation Board. Morris garnered 100% of the vote in 2020 since he ran unopposed.

Seabaugh won House District 34, which includes sections of Cobb County, which in February had sued former President Donald Trump in 2024 over a lawsuit by the former president questioning the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election results in the county.

Seabaugh won his election with 63% of the vote, expanding the margins of victory 4% in 2020 to 26% in 2021, according to GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel. Seabaugh will replace Republican Bert Reeve, who had resigned to work for Georgia Tech.

Tuesday's widened margin of victory for Republicans comes after the party suffered multiple defeats during the 2020 election, with the state voting for Democratic President Joe Biden and voting to replace Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler David Purdue with Democratic Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff.

https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/georgia-republicans-expand-margin-victory-winning-2-state-house-seats