Sharp rise in American suicides – CDC

Experts suggest the figures reflect a worsening mental health crisis in the United States

The US suicide rate increased by 2.6% in 2022 to 49,449 people, according to statistics released this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as official data continues to show an upward trend after suicide numbers fell in 2019 and 2020.

The rise in 2022 follows a 5% increase in US citizens taking their own lives in 2021, with campaigners suggesting the figures reveal a worsening mental health crisis in the United States.

“Mental health has become the defining public health and societal challenge of our time,” Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said in a statement about the new findings. He called the numbers a “sobering reminder of how urgent it is that we further expand access to mental health care [and] addressing the root causes of mental health struggles.”

US adults aged 65 and above saw a precipitous 8.1% rise in suicides in 2022, to 10,433 cases. This reflects a continuation of historical data showing that the suicide rate in the 65+ age group has risen by 62% between 2007 and 2021, according to the CDC in June.

The research also indicated that the mental health crisis in the United States is an issue affecting all age groups. A survey conducted by the CDC in March shows that around one in three teenage high school girls said that they have contemplated ending their lives at some point. More than half – 57% – also stated that they feel “persistently sad or hopeless.”

“Nine in ten Americans believe America is facing a mental health crisis. The new suicide data reported by the CDC illustrates why,” US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said of the report, according to CBS on Friday.

Becerra added: “One life lost to suicide is too many. Yet, too many people still believe asking for help is a sign of weakness.”

June figures, also from the CDC, showed that nearly one in five (18.4%) US adults said that they had been diagnosed as suffering from depression at some point in their lives.

However, the survey also suggests that a person is more likely to be diagnosed with depression depending on circumstances, such as where they live. Just under 13% of Hawaiian citizens reported a depression diagnosis, compared to 27.5% in West Virginia, the CDC said.

https://www.rt.com/news/581191-us-cdc-suicide-data/

Egypt rejects US pressure to arm Ukraine – WSJ

Cairo has reportedly balked at requests to send weapons to Kiev as it seeks to maintain neutrality on the conflict with Russia

Egyptian officials have reportedly decided not to get involved in arming Ukraine, shrugging off repeated US requests to produce artillery shells and other weapons needed for Kiev’s counteroffensive against Russian forces.

Washington has also asked Egypt to supply antitank missiles, air defense systems and small arms for Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing unidentified US officials. The requests were made on multiple occasions, including a March meeting between US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo.

“In conversations with US officials, Egypt hasn’t definitively rejected the requests, but Egyptian officials said privately that Egypt has no plans to send the weapons,” the newspaper said.

That message has apparently not reached Washington. A US State Department official expressed optimism on getting Egypt to help Ukraine, telling the newspaper that “our discussions with our Egyptian partners on our mutual interest in ending Russa’s war are productive and ongoing.”

Earlier this year, Cairo reportedly backed down under US pressure from an alleged plan to sell rockets to Russia. Al-Sisi has tried to maintain good relations with both Washington and Moscow amid the Ukraine crisis, declining to join in the US-led campaign to arm Ukraine and punish Russia.

The WSJ noted that the failure to enlist Egypt in the effort comes at a “critical moment” in the conflict, in which Ukrainian forces are trying to push through Russia’s formidable defensive lines as the US tries to rally military and diplomatic support for Kiev. Al-Sisi’s decision also comes at a time when some members of Congress are urging President Joe Biden’s administration to withhold $320 million of the $1.3 billion in annual US military aid pledged to Egypt, citing the country’s human rights record.

US intelligence agencies reportedly expected a different outcome. The Washington Post reported in April that according to leaked US intelligence documents, the Egyptian government had approved a plan to sell 152mm and 155mm artillery rounds to the US for transfer to Ukraine.

https://www.rt.com/news/581176-egypt-reffuses-to-arm-ukraine-amid-us-pressure/

Frustrated Ukraine to ‘punish’ Israel, Kyiv Post reports

The newspaper quoted an unnamed Ukrainian security official as lamenting the country’s “pro-Russian position” and lack of “real help”

Ukraine is considering taking certain steps against Israel in retaliation for its failure to show enough support, the Kyiv Post newspaper has reported, citing an anonymous security source. Among the measures allegedly under consideration is the expulsion of Israel from high-level meetings at the US’ Air Force Base at Ramstein in Europe, on fears the Middle Eastern state may leak information to Russia.

In its article on Thursday, the Kyiv Post quoted an unnamed staffer from Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council as saying that the “Israeli authorities never provided any real help.”

According to the media outlet, officials in Kiev are unhappy about what they see as the Jewish state’s “unfriendly actions towards Ukraine and pro-Russian position on the international arena.”

In addition, the unnamed Ukrainian security staffer told the Post that there is a “real danger” that information discussed with Israel at the Ramstein meetings “will probably fall into the possession of the aggressor state.”

Known officially as the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, the regular gatherings at the air base in Germany see representatives from 30 NATO members and 24 other countries coordinate military aid donations to Kiev.

https://www.rt.com/news/581190-ukraine-measures-against-israel/

Zelensky Fires All Regional Military Recruitment Heads over Bribes to Avoid Battle Corruption Accusations

Accusations of widespread bribery have seen Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fire every head of the country’s regional military recruitment centres, as officials were reportedly caught accepting money from men hoping to avoid battle.

In the latest Ukrainian corruption scandal, 112 criminal cases have been opened against military enlistment offices throughout the country, with President Zelensky claiming that there is evidence that “some took cash, some took cryptocurrency” in exchange for helping men avoid being sent to the frontlines.

In response, Zelensky sacked all the territorial heads of recruitment centres and ordered Ukrainian commander-in-chief General Valerii Zaluzhnyi to find replacements, according to The Guardian.

“This system should be run by people who know exactly what war is and why cynicism and bribery during war is treason,” he said in a video statement. “Instead, soldiers who have experienced the front or who cannot be in the trenches because they have lost their health, lost their limbs, but have preserved their dignity and do not have cynicism, are the ones who can be entrusted with this system of recruitment.”

“The cynicism is the same everywhere,” Zelensky continued. “Illicit enrichment, legalisation of illegally obtained funds, unlawful benefit, illegal transfer of persons liable for military service across the border.”

The Ukrainian president said that every “military commissar” who faces criminal cases will be held accountable. He said that those who are not convicted, they can keep their military honours if they are willing to “prove their worthiness” by going to the frontlines themselves.

It comes just a week after Zelensky slammed the “revolting practices” of those involved in military recruitment after an Odesa-based official was revealed to have somehow obtained $5 million and property in Spain.

Meanwhile, according to Ukrainian news site ZN.ua, the Ministry of Defence has been accused of potential corruption as some 4,900 jackets purchased from Turkey were bought for $421,000 when they only should have cost $142,000.

Corruption is nothing new in the former Soviet state, with Ukraine consistently ranking among the most corrupt nations in the world. Despite this, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union have all poured billions into the country since last year’s invasion by Moscow.

Despite growing opposition to continued American involvement in the war, President Joe Biden is currently trying to pass through an additional $24 billion in aid to Ukraine.

House Republicans, who are currently blocking the latest round of funding, have previously alleged potential corruption, including officials engaging in bribery as well as purchasing food supplies for the military at vastly inflated prices.

This week Heritage Action Acting Executive Director Ryan Walker told Breitbart News that before any more American tax dollars are sent to Kyiv, there should be a full accounting of the $113 billion already sent to the country and that the White House should actually lay out a strategy for the war.

https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2023/08/12/zelensky-fires-all-military-recruitment-heads-over-corruption-accusations/

Texas Man Who Raped and Murdered 8-Year-Old Girl Charged With Killing Two People After Being Released

A Texas man who raped and killed an eight-year-old girl has been charged with two more murders after he was released from prison.

Raul Meza Jr., 62, served roughly a third of his 30-year sentence in the 1982 rape and killing of 8-year-old Kendra Page, whose body was found in an Austin elementary school dumpster.

Meza was released in 1993 but was driven out of six different cities by protesters who did not want him in their neighborhoods.

The child rapist and possible serial killer has been charged with murdering his 80-year-old roommate, Jesse Fraga, in May and his former neighbor Gloria Lofton, 65, in 2019.

A grand jury has determined that Meza strangled Lofton “in the course of committing and attempting to commit the offense of aggravated sexual assault.”

NBC reports, “After authorities launched a manhunt for Meza, whom they described as Fraga’s caregiver and roommate, he called a city of Austin hotline and told a homicide detective: ‘My name is Raul Meza, and I think you’re looking for me,’ according to the affidavit.”

Fraga was a former probation officer and spent decades trying to help Meza after he was released.

“During the call, Meza confessed to the murders of Fraga and Lofton, the affidavit says. Meza said that he killed Fraga after becoming frustrated over a sexual relationship the two were having, according to the affidavit. Authorities have not corroborated the claim.”

Austin Police are now looking at as many as ten cold cases, going as far back as 1996, that could be connected to Meza, NBC News reports.

Meza is scheduled to appear in court on August 22. He is currently being held at the Travis County Jail.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/08/texas-man-who-raped-killed-8-year-old/

HORROR: Deranged Texas School Employee Brutally Beats Helpless Special Needs Teen on School Bus (VIDEO)

Conroe, Texas – An absolutely terrifying scene unfolded Thursday showing a Texas school employee beating the tar out of a helpless 17-year-old on a school bus.

Click2Houston reported the incident occurred as the students were being transferred home.

Conservative activist and reporter Sarah Fields shared two shocking videos showing the moment the employee started assaulting the helpless teen who is in foster care.

In the videos, the school worker can be seen pushing the student to the bus floor before landing several punches on him. The employee also appears to grab the kid by the shirt and yell in his face.

At no time does the teen attempt to defend himself.

Fields reveals in her reporting that the assailant is a school bus monitor. Moreover, the foster teen has a severe intellectual disability.

The kid was beaten so badly that he was sent to the hospital. He has since been released according to KTRK.

Update – he is NOT a teacher. He is a bus monitor.

— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) August 11, 2023

Update – The child is low IQ with a serious intellectual disability.

Before the incident, the bus driver told all of the students (all foster kids) that this is why they are all in CPS, because nobody wants to put up with them.

The child (Mike) is low functioning and gets…

— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) August 11, 2023

According to Click2Houston, the unnamed school bus monitor was fired Friday after the Conroe Independent School District learned of the incident. Police are investigating the assault and said that they expect to pursue criminal charges against the employee.

Conroe students were horrified over the incident, leading some to wonder if they are safe at school.

“I was honestly shocked, I never expected that I would see someone that is supposed to be a role model and a leader in our school, like a staff member. I would never think that they would put their hands on a kid,” Alexa Perez said to Click2Houston.

“Are we really safe at school?” another student asked KTRK. “To get to the point to where you have to use violence is crazy.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/08/horror-deranged-texas-school-employee-brutally-beats-helpless/

Mexican Cartel Weapons Found on Border Along Texas Bank of Rio Grande

Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents found a small cache of Mexican cartel weapons on the Texas bank of the Rio Grande. This is the second suspected armed cartel incursion incident in the South Texas border town during the month of August.

As migrant apprehensions surge along the Texas border, law enforcement officers face a growing threat of Mexican Cartel violence in South Texas. Border Patrol officials reported the seizure of two cartel rifles and ammunition found Friday on the U.S. bank of the Rio Grande near Fronton, Texas. There were no arrests made in relation to the incident.

In a Friday morning post on “X,” formerly Twitter, Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez of the Border Patrol’s Rio Grande Sector highlighted the seizure and stated, “Our U.S. Border Patrol Agents confront threats daily as they do their best to secure our border. Agents working jointly with our L.E. partners made a significant discovery of weapons and ammunition hidden by criminal organizations near Fronton, TX.”

The Border Patrol released photos of the weapons seizure of two rifles, several rifle magazines, and an ammunition carrier. The weapons appear to be an AR-15 style rifle and a Kalashnikov-style rifle. One photo shows the Kalashnikov rifle submerged in the river. The agency did not provide any other information regarding the multi-agency discovery other than to indicate no suspects were arrested in connection with the finding.

The small border town of Fronton, with a population of 167 residents, has been the scene of other cartel-related border activity in recent months. On Saturday, the images of three suspected Mexican cartel gunmen crossing the Rio Grande were captured by law enforcement cameras, according to Fox News report. One of the men depicted in the images on Saturday appeared to be wearing body armor. The three suspected Mexican cartel gunmen were not arrested despite a coordinated effort by the Border Patrol to locate them.

On Friday, an armed cartel gunmen crossed the Rio Grande with a group of migrants. He allegedly pointed the rifle at members of the Texas National Guard patrolling near the international railroad bridge in Eagle Pass, Texas, a law enforcement source told Breitbart Texas. A video shows the gunman returning to Mexico dragging a barrel and carrying the rifle.

In June, Department of Public Safety (DPS) Highway Patrol troopers working in the same area arrested five suspected Mexican cartel members and seized two AR-15 style rifles in the same area. In that incident, DPS Spokesperson Lieutenant Chris Olivarez told Breitbart Texas the men were believed to be connected to the Cartel Del Noreste faction of the Los Zetas cartel.

Olivarez told Breitbart Texas, “One of the men told CID special agents they came under fire from Mexican law enforcement and fled across the Rio Grande.” The men were wearing camouflage clothing, complicating the search to find them in the thick brush along the banks of the river.

In addition to the recent incursions by suspected Mexican cartel gunmen, law enforcement agencies are also dealing with a significant surge in migrant crossings in the area. Weekend migrant apprehension numbers provided by the Border Patrol for the Rio Grande Valley Sector show a nearly 200% increase over the last month. A total of 1647 migrants were encountered during the weekend ending July 8. During the weekend ending August 6, the agency reported migrant encounters had climbed to 4,660.

During the first ten days of August, RGV agents apprehended more than 10,000 migrants, according to a confidential law enforcement source. During the same period, Del Rio Sector agents apprehended more than 6,000 migrants.

https://www.breitbart.com/border/2023/08/12/mexican-cartel-weapons-found-on-border-along-texas-bank-of-rio-grande/

Tens of Thousands of Doctors Walk Off Job Again in England as Strikes Continue

LONDON (AP) – Tens of thousands of doctors in England walked off the job Friday for another four-day stretch, with growing concerns that their bitter pay dispute with the British government will drag on into the winter.

The fifth round of strikes by doctors at the early stages of their careers is set to last until 7 a.m. Tuesday morning. Some of the junior doctors on strike started their first jobs in the state-funded National Health Service only days ago.

The action by junior doctors, who do much of the routine work in hospitals and who work very long hours, will inevitably add to the backlog at the embattled health service. According to the NHS, the number of procedures and appointments being canceled or rearranged is set to hit 1 million by the time the doctors return to work, at a cost of 1 billion pounds ($1.27 billion).

The British Medical Association, which represents the approximately 75,000 junior doctors, has been asking for a 35% pay bump to get pay back to 2008 levels once inflation is taken into account. But the government is only offering them 6% with an additional consolidated increase, and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has insisted there will be no more discussions.

Junior doctor Sumi Manirajan, deputy co-chair of the BMA´s U.K. doctor committee, said she sees colleagues at “burnout point” every day.

“All we’re asking for is our pay to go back to the 2008 levels. We´re not asking for a pay rise,” the 29-year-old said at a picket line outside University College Hospital in north London.

“My friends have left the NHS after a year of service and have gone to Australia,” said Manirajan, who has been a junior doctor for three years.

For its part, the government insists that its pay offer is fair and that meeting the pay demand would further stoke inflation across the U.K.

“We as a government have to be responsible in the pay settlements that we give, and we listened to the Independent Pay Review body,” Treasury minister John Glen told Sky News.

Like other nations in Europe, the United Kingdom has faced disruptive strikes as workers, from teachers to train drivers and nurses, have pressed for pay that keeps pace with a sharp increase in consumer prices. On Friday, the biggest rail workers union, the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said 20,000 of its members working for 14 train operators would walk out on Aug. 26 and Sept. 2.

Last month, the government announced pay increases for millions of public sector workers, including teachers, who were one group who decided to call off their strike action in the wake of the offer made – 6.5% in their case.

The junior doctors aren’t the only grouping in the NHS who are in a dispute with the government over pay. Radiographers and senior doctors, known as consultants, have also walked off the job recently, though nurses have ended their strike action after a ballot of members failed to meet the required number of votes to back another walkout.

https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2023/08/12/tens-of-thousands-of-doctors-walk-off-job-again-in-england-as-strikes-continue/

GOP Slams Biden for ‘Bowing’ to Ayatollah, ‘Endangering’ Americans with ‘Reckless’ $6B Iran Deal

Republican officials blasted the Biden administration for “bowing to the Ayatollah” and “endangering” Americans, after it struck a deal with the Iranian regime to transfer five Iranian-Americans from prison to house arrest in exchange for billions in unfrozen assets.

On Thursday, the Biden administration’s deal with Tehran to unfreeze $6 billion in Iranian financial assets and release a “handful” of Iranian nationals jailed for violating U.S. sanctions in exchange for five Americans taken prisoner by Iran on highly dubious charges of espionage, came to light.

“Iran’s frozen funds in South Korea will be unblocked and transferred to Qatar,” the Iranian mission to the United Nations stated, apparently referring to the $6 billion sum.

U.S. sources who spoke to the far-left New York Times publication and Reuters confirmed the financial aspects of the deal.

In response, Republican members took to social media to express harsh criticism of the “dangerous” move.

“While we always welcome the release of American hostages—if they are in fact released after President Biden pays Iran $6 billion in ransom—this craven act of appeasement will only embolden the ayatollahs to take more hostages,” wrote Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR).

“Iran will also use these ill-gotten gains to attack our troops, fund terrorism, and arm Russia,” he added in another tweet. “This cycle will continue until President Biden stops dancing to Iran’s tune and starts responding firmly and decisively to their aggression.”

Senator and presidential candidate Tim Scott released a statement accusing President Biden of “releasing $6 billion to the world’s largest state sponsor of terror.”

“U.S. sanctions have been critical in deterring the dangerous Iranian regime,” he added. “Bowing to the Ayatollah endangers Americans at home and abroad.”

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2023/08/11/gop-slams-biden-for-bowing-to-ayatollah-endangering-americans-with-reckless-6b-iran-deal/

Transgender ‘Man’ Who Molested Autistic Children at Therapy Center Found Dead in Jail Cell

A transgender “man” who confessed to molesting autistic children at a therapy center where they were employed has been found dead in their jail cell.

At least one of the victims was still in diapers.

The deceased predator, Leomeir Kennedy, 31, was identified in court documents as a “transgender man” — meaning they were likely born female. Neutral pronouns are being used in this report because the biological sex is unclear.

In April, Kennedy confessed to molesting three children under their care, two of which were patients at the Hopebridge Autism Therapy Center in Greenwood, Indiana, after their phone and laptop were given to police by a colleague.

“A probable cause affidavit stated Kennedy admitted to molesting a child while babysitting in October of 2017. He claimed it happened once while changing the child’s diaper,” Fox 59 reported earlier this year.

Kennedy told police that they chose to work at the center because it was a “victim pool.”

The mother of one of the victims, a nonverbal child, told the station that she began noticing changes in their behavior in January.

“More temper tantrums, more aggression, and self-injuries,” the mother, identified only as “Jane,” said. “A lot more.”

“They can’t talk to us. They depend on them and us. For someone who we have to trust and they have to trust to do something like this is sickening. It’s terrible.”

Fox 59 reported, “Investigators said Kennedy admitted to molesting one child during a diaper change and another child while tickling them. Court documents show Kennedy said one of the children had ‘lust’ in their eyes and described it as feeling like ‘Christmas’ when he touched the child.”

“A search of Kennedy’s electronics reportedly found a search on DuckDuckGo of a ’13-year-old gang raped’ and two sexual images of very young children he received from someone on the Whispr app,” the report added.

The Johnson County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that Kennedy was unresponsive in their cell at approximately 9:32 a.m. on Friday.

Prison staff attempted to revive the predator using CPR, but Kennedy was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Johnson County Coroner’s Office has said that there is no indication of foul play, meaning it was likely a suicide.

The predator was supposed to go to trial at the end of July, but it was moved to September.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/08/transgender-man-who-molested-autistic-children-therapy-center/

Alabama Special Education Teacher Arrested for ‘Sending Explicit Video’ to 17-Year-Old

An Alabama special education teacher has been arrested for sending an “explicit video” to a 17-year-old student.

On August 9, law enforcement was alerted that Franklin County Schools employee Timothy Mark Wells had sent the inappropriate video to the teenager.

Wells is a special education teacher at Phil Campbell High School.

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) obtained the video and issued a warrant for the teacher.

News 19 reports, “Wells admitted to sending the video to someone under 18 years old while being interviewed by officers.”

Wells turned himself into the Franklin County Detention Center on Friday morning.

The disgraced teacher is charged with being a School Employee Distributing or Soliciting Obscene Material to or from a Student and Distributing Harmful Materials to Minors.

Franklin County School Superintendent Greg Hamilton told News 19 that Wells has been placed on administrative leave.

“I am aware of the on-going investigation. I find the allegations deeply concerning. The education, welfare, and safety of the students of Franklin County are top priorities of the Franklin County Board of Education. I cannot discuss specific details or personnel matters,” Hamilton told local station WAFF.

It remains unclear if there are additional victims. The investigation is ongoing.

Authorities told the local station that Wells will be issued a bond by a Franklin County judge.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/08/alabama-special-education-teacher-arrested-sending-explicit-video/

“Time for the Bud Light Treatment” – Social Media Erupts After Skittles Partners with Far-Left Group Which Supports Sex Procedures for Children and Places “Black Trans Lives Matter” On Its Packaging

Skittles apparently wants to become candy’s version of Bud Light thanks to their decision to push the far-left’s trans agenda.

The Daily Mail reported Friday that conservatives are up in arms after learning the candy brand has altered their packaging and joined forces with a far-left group called The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). This is the fourth year in a row they have partnered with the organization.

One astute social media user notes that GLAAD supports children receiving sex procedures, including gender reassignment surgeries.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/08/time-bud-light-treatment-social-media-erupts-after/

Ian Watkins, Lostprophets Singer Convicted of Child Sex Offenses, Brutally Stabbed in Jail

Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins is fighting for his life after being stabbed several times on Saturday in a British jail where he is serving a 29-year sentence for sex crimes.

The 46-year-old singer was reportedly grabbed by three fellow inmates and held hostage before being stabbed and left to die in a cell, according to the Mirror.

“He was found by officers after being held hostage and battered on Saturday morning. He’s in a life-threatening condition and there are fears he could die. If he survives, he’ll have been very lucky,” a source told the paper.

Watkins was reportedly held for six hours by the other inmates and suffered a serious beating before being stabbed, authorities say.

“Police are investigating an incident which took place on Saturday at HMP Wakefield. We are unable to comment further while the police investigate,” HMP Wakefield prison officials said in a statement.

Several days later, law enforcement said Watkins’ injuries were not life-threatening.

Lostprophets performed from the late ’90s through the early 2000s, but fell apart when leader Watkins was convicted on sex offenses in 2013. Watkins was charged with thirteen sexual offenses against children, including the attempted rape of a one-year-old girl.

During his trial, Watkins was accused of blowing crystal meth fumes in a child’s face to get the child ready for sexual assault and that he plotted to sexually abuse two babies with the approval of the mothers of the infants. It was also alleged that Watkins had a video recording of his sex acts with a child.

Watkins eventually pleaded guilty to several counts of rape and sex with a child as well as possession of child and human-on-animal porn.

The group disbanded in 2013, one month before Watkins was convicted and handed a 29-year sentence in December.

One of Watkins’ ex-girlfriends said she was surprised that such a brutal attack on the singer hadn’t occurred before now.

“My only reaction is simply that I cannot believe it took them so long, particularly in Wakefield Prison,” former girlfriend Jo Mjadzelics told the Mirror.

https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2023/08/11/convicted-sex-offender-and-lostprophets-singer-ian-watkins-in-serious-condition-after-stabbing-in-jail/

Honduran Asylum-Recipient Sentenced for Smuggling Migrants — For Third Time

A Honduran migrant will spend six and a half years in prison for his third conviction on human smuggling charges. The Honduran man had been smuggling migrants for more than nine years — some of that time while he was under asylum protection.

This week, 41-year-old Marlon Enrique “Gordo” Gallegos Rapalo appeared before Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane in McAllen, Texas. The judge sentenced him to six and a half years in prison. Gallegos pleaded guilty to human smuggling charges earlier this year following an arrest in July 2022.

According to information released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, Gallegos was living in the U.S. under asylum protection — meaning that he could not be deported at the time of his multiple offenses. Court documents show that he had been arrested several times and had been sent to prison two times before, once in 2015 and once in 2017, on human smuggling charges. During the sentencing hearing, Crane said Gallegos had “committed a serious abuse of the system” and ordered that he be deported after completing his sentence.

According to prosecutors, Gallegos leased a house in McAllen and used it to house more than 200 migrants who were being moved into the country and on to the north. At the time of his arrest in July 2022, authorities found 35 migrants inside the stash house.

A criminal complaint from October 2014 revealed that Gallegos helped carry out a smuggling attempt where they used scouts and various vehicles to move migrants in and out of a stash house. After authorities raided that house, they found 15 migrants and learned that Gallegos had also been arrested in February 2014 but his charges had been “dropped.” Court documents do not reveal a reason for the dismissal of the charges. In the October 2014 case, Gallegos pleaded guilty and received a prison sentence of one year and four months.

In February 2017, federal authorities arrested Gallegos near McCook, Texas, where he was in charge of a stash house. Court documents revealed that Gallegos would bring food and water and coordinate the migrants being taken and removed from the house. In that case, Gallegos also pleaded guilty and received a prison sentence of two years and three months.

https://www.breitbart.com/border/2023/08/11/honduran-asylum-recipient-sentenced-for-smuggling-migrants-a-third-time/

Update: At Least 80 Dead, 1000 Still Missing, Additional Areas Evacuated from Wildfires in Hawaii

The Gateway Pundit reported on the devastating wildfires in Hawaii that have left at least 80 dead with approximately 1,000 people still unaccounted for.

A new fire on Friday night led to the evacuation of ab area near the town of Kaanapali in West Maui. Reports Saturday reveal that fire has been 100% contained.

ALERT 🚨 Another fire Kaanapali, a town north of Lahaina in West Maui, is evacuating people due to a growing fire.

pic.twitter.com/OKMQnnARUg

— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) August 12, 2023

KITV4 reports, “A fire that flared up near Kaanapali in West Maui is now 100% contained, according to Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen. Some Kaanapali residents and visitors near where the fire started were forced to evacuate as firefighters worked to battle the blaze. Others chose to voluntarily evacuate as a precaution.”

While the latest fire has been contained, a highway re-closure into Lahaina continues into Saturday.

Kelly Armstrong, a Kaanapali Resident and former Candidate for Hawaii House of Representatives, joined One America News to talk about the devastation he has witnessed.

Tonight on Real America! Kaanapali Resident and former Candidate for Hawaii House of Representatives Kelly Armstrong talks about the devastation he’s witnessing as fires raged across the island of Maui. Catch the full episode live tonight at 8pm Eastern, 5pm Pacific, or on the… pic.twitter.com/hTkZt02GKJ

— One America News (@OANN) August 10, 2023

The New York Post reported on those still missing:

About 1,000 people are missing in the devastating Hawaii wildfire whose death toll has climbed to at least 55 – including a disabled veteran who sent his family a terrifying photo of raging flames near his home.

Gov. Josh Green told reporters Thursday night that around 1,000 people were still unaccounted for in what was becoming the deadliest disaster in the Aloha State’s history.

“It doesn’t mean that many have passed … we can’t contact them, we can’t know,” the governor explained of scenes of devastation that look “like a bomb” went off.

“​Here’s the challenge: there’s no power, no internet, no phone, no radio. You compound some of that. So when we’re speaking to our officers, we need them to get a (satellite) phone,” Green continued.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/08/update-least-80-dead-1000-still-missing-additional/

French State Broadcaster Fires Second Journalist for Antisemitic Tweets

Revelations about the social media usage of journalists from French state media outlet France 24 has seen a second figure pushed out for his antisemitic tweets.

France 24 fired their Beirut correspondent Joelle Maroun in March after revelations of extremist social media posts by The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA), and now a second journalist Dina Abi-Saab has also been fired.

CAMERA say after their exposé revealing posts by France24 journalists expressing “support for terrorism and antisemitism in their Arabic social media accounts”, three members of staff — Laila Odeh, Sharif Bibi, and Dina Abi-Saab — were required to sign an ethics charter.

The document contains a promise to reject “any incitement to crime, violence, hatred, racism, anti-Semitism, misogyny, homophobia, xenophobia”, the campaign group stated.

It is reported Odeh and Bibi signed, but Abi-Saab refused, leading to her ouster at the state media firm. Israel’s i24 reports Abi-Saab is a Lebanese heritage journalist who was France 24’s Geneva correspondent and who reportedly blamed Jewish people for the Israeli-Palistinean conflict and praised a terrorist online.

Much of the content highlighted by CAMERA showed a certain preoccupation among the four with Adolf Hitler, with one writing that she wished Hitler was born Lebanese. As noted by the Jerusalem Post, the French government was called out for using taxpayers’ money to fund the salaries of the journalists.

Following the dismissal of the journalists, CAMERA executive director Andrea Levin said: “What we see is that these France 24 Arabic journalists hold intensely passionate antisemitic attitudes and extremist political views that appear deeply rooted.

“Contrary to what France 24’s leadership may think, Odeh’s support for antisemitism and terrorism isn’t normal political ‘activism’ and is unlikely to be dispelled in conventional warnings that she adhere to professional ethical standards.”

“France 24 evidently knows there’s a serious problem to be addressed,” Levin added. “That’s important. Hopefully, the network’s leadership realizes the full implications – that activist antisemites on their Arabic staff will undermine the integrity of the entire enterprise – as antisemitism so often does when it’s not vigorously renounced and removed.”

https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2023/08/12/french-state-broadcaster-fires-second-journalist-for-antisemitic-tweets/

Uganda’s Marxist Dictator Defends ‘Anti-Homosexuality’ Law After World Bank Cuts Off Loans

Radical leftist Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni defiantly stood by his country’s harsh new law against people perceived as homosexual on Wednesday after the World Bank suspended new loans to Uganda.

Museveni accused the World Bank in remarks on Thursday of using financial pressure to force Ugandans to abandon their values.

“I want to inform everybody, starting with Ugandans, that Uganda will develop with or without loans,” Museveni said in a statement.

“With discipline, patriotism and combating corruption, we shall thrive because our agriculture is there, our industries are growing and our services sector is expanding. It is therefore unfortunate that the World Bank and other actors dare to want to coerce us into abandoning our faith, culture, principles and sovereignty, using money. They really underestimate all Africans,” Museveni said.

“I have patiently explained to some of the actors that merely being a homosexual is not targeted by this law. It is going from being a homosexual to recruit or coerce others into your deviance, that is targeted by the law,” he said.

“We do not need pressure from anybody to know how to solve problems in our society,” he declared.

The president met with Ugandan broadcasters on Thursday and urged them to “always be patriotic and avoid promoting the politics of identity.”

Museveni and his information minister, Chris Baryomunsi, said they are negotiating with the World Bank to reverse the loan freeze.

“However, the World Bank and others should be reminded that Uganda is a sovereign country, which takes decisions in the interests of her people, and this is the spirit of the Anti-Homosexuality Act,” Baryomunsi added.

https://www.breitbart.com/africa/2023/08/11/ugandas-marxist-dictator-defends-anti-homosexuality-law-after-world-bank-cuts-off-loans/

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