'Terrorist Attack' Rocks Russian Consulate In France On 3-Year Ukraine War Mark

A suspected terror attack has taken place against the Russian consulate in the French city of Marseille on Monday, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has confirmed, after explosions erupted inside the consulate's walls. Three explosive devices were thrown onto the grounds of the consulate which detonated, resulting in damage but no casualties. The diplomatic compound has subsequently been sealed off by police pending an investigation.

The attack corresponded to the three-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Army poured across the borders from Russia and staging grounds in Belarus on February 24, 2022.

There are reports that one of the devices failed to detonate, and the building in the southern port city is swarming with police and firefighters, as "around thirty units" were dispatched to the scene, AFP describes. The device that did not explode was later detonated by a police-operated robot.

"The explosions on the territory of the Russian Consulate General in Marseille have all the signs of a terrorist attack," foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told a press briefing.

"We demand that the host country undertake exhaustive and speedy investigative measures, as well as steps to strengthen the security of Russia's foreign missions," she said. This isn't the first time explosives have been 'randomly' hurled at Russian diplomatic compounds in Europe, but this one clearly planned and timed to mark the day of Feb.24.

The Associated Press has some further details as follows:

A second device, which was also thrown against the consulate's outer wall, did not explode and fell to the sidewalk. A bomb disposal expert was called to the scene.

The suspect fled and an investigation has been launched, an official said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to be publicly named by national police policy. Authorities did not provide details on the suspect or a motive.

For its part the French government has "condemned any attack on the security of diplomatic compounds. The inviolability, protection and integrity of diplomatic and consular premises, as well as their personnel, are fundamental principles of international law" in a statement.

Russian embassies and consulates are on high alert worldwide, given the potential for more attacks marking three years since the invasion.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/terrorist-attack-rocks-russian-consulate-france-3-year-ukraine-war-mark

Alina Habba: Transparency. Transparency is coming. We had a lot of defiance, I think, is the word you were looking for from the radical left, and that’s because they would have rather us kept quiet. They didn’t want to expose the funding that they were getting through NGOs, through USAID. Now they’re going panic because they don’t want anybody to know who was on Epstein’s Island, who was a pedo, and who is probably still sitting in DC. The reality of the situation is this. There will be accountability, and America deserves it. We needed to know what the drones are. We needed to know that we were okay. We need to know about Epstein’s Island. We want to know about JFK. The days of American government hiding from American people are over. We need transparency. We have done that, and we will continue to do so. I’m excited for Pam and now Cash to get in there and clean up our mess.

https://rumble.com/embed/v6mcpbx/?pub=4

‘Facts will come out’ – New Delhi on USAID funding voter turnout

Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has responded to allegations of foreign interference after Donald Trump flagged alleged funding for the country’s elections

India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has expressed concerns about potential foreign interference in the country’s elections, just days after US President Donald Trump claimed that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) had allocated $21 million to boost voter turnout in the South Asian nation.

Speaking at the Delhi University Literature Festival on Saturday during a conversation with Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, Jaishankar said: “As a government we are looking into it because such organizations have an obligation to report. And my sense is, the facts will come out.”

The minister added that USAID was allowed to operate in India “in good faith.” However, the information that is now “emerging from the US administration” seems to reveal activities “which are in bad faith,” Jaishankar emphasized.

The mention of $21 million in funding allegedly provided to India first appeared earlier, in the list of cancelled programs released by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk.

This has sparked a political row in New Delhi regarding the intended recipients of these funds. The Indian foreign ministry previously stated that they are looking into “deeply troubling” information about US government activity in the country.

Trump, addressing an event in Miami last week, questioned the intent of this allocation. “Why do we need to spend $21 million for voter turnout in India? Wow, $21 million! I guess they were trying to get somebody else elected,” he said.

Trump later mentioned the funding for “voter turnout” in India in several public speeches. Repeating the claim at a Republican Governors Association (RGA) meeting, he alleged the funding had essentially been meant for “kickbacks” to those who allocated the money.

https://www.rt.com/india/613221-india-usaid-voter-election-jaishankar/

GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn demands FBI, IRS release ‘complete, unredacted’ Epstein flight logs, surveillance footage

Sen. Marsha Blackburn called Monday on newly inaugurated FBI Director Kash Patel to follow through on his commitment to transparency in the case of notorious sex predator Jeffrey Epstein.

Blackburn (R-Tenn.), 72, insisted Patel and acting IRS Commissioner Douglas O’Donnell release their respective agencies’ “complete, unredacted records” on Epstein amid longstanding public questions and speculation about his associates that have swirled since his death in 2019.

“This critical information identifying every individual who could have participated in Jeffrey Epstein’s abhorrent conduct is long overdue,” Blackburn wrote in a letter to Patel.

“The survivors of Mr. Epstein’s horrific crimes want transparency and accountability, and they — and the American people — deserve nothing less.”

The Republican is demanding the FBI fork over the complete flight logs from Epstein’s jet and helicopter, his convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell’s records — including the pervert’s notorious “little black book” containing the names and contact info of the rich and famous — and surveillance footage of his Palm Beach, Fla., residence.

https://nypost.com/2025/02/24/us-news/gop-sen-marsha-blackburn-demands-fbi-irs-release-comeplete-unredacted-epstein-flight-logs-surveillance-footage/

Hamas Says Israel’s Delay in Releasing Palestinians Is ‘Blatant Violation’ of Ceasefire Deal

Israel was supposed to free more than 600 Palestinians from Israeli jails in exchange for the six Israeli captives Hamas released on Saturday

On Sunday, Hamas responded to Israel’s decision to delay the release of more than 600 Palestinians from Israeli jails as a “blatant violation” of the hostage and ceasefire deal.

Under the deal, Israel was supposed to release 620 Palestinians, including women and children detained in Gaza after October 7, 2023, in exchange for the six Israeli hostages Hamas handed over on Saturday.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the release was delayed over alleged Hamas “violations,” including the handover ceremonies, which he said “humiliate” the Israeli hostages.

In response, Hamas official Ezzat El Rashq said Netanyahu’s decision “reflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement, represents a blatant violation of its terms, and shows the occupation’s lack of reliability in implementing its obligations.”

Israel has repeatedly violated the ceasefire deal, including by continuing to shoot and bomb Palestinians in Gaza. Since the truce went into effect on January 19, Israeli forces have killed more than 100 Palestinians in the territory.

Netanyahu said that the release of the 620 Palestinians was delayed until “the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies.”

The six Israelis freed by Hamas on Saturday were the last of the surviving hostages who were set to be released under the first phase of the ceasefire deal, and the progress of the negotiations on the second phase, which Israel repeatedly delayed, is unclear. Another Hamas official said on Sunday that the negotiations would be suspended until Israel released the jailed Palestinians.

Israeli media reported last week that Netanyahu had added several new demands for the second phase, including continued Israeli “security control” of Gaza and the disarmament and removal of Hamas, two conditions Hamas has strongly rejected.

Netanyahu has also been warning he’s ready to restart Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, a threat he repeated on Sunday. “We are prepared to resume intense fighting at any moment,” he said. “In Gaza, we have eliminated most of Hamas’s organized forces, but let there be no doubt — we will complete the war’s objectives entirely — whether through negotiation or by other means.”

https://news.antiwar.com/2025/02/23/hamas-says-israels-delay-in-releasing-palestinians-is-blatant-violation-of-ceasefire-deal/

Latest US Strike Killed Brother of Syrian Government Minister

CENTCOM claims man was ‘senior leadership facilitator’ for al-Qaeda-linked faction

The US has continued carrying out airstrikes against Syria’s Idlib Governorate’s Harem District, near the Tel al-Karama refugee camp this weekend, targeting and killing Wasim Tahsin Bayraqdar, who they described as a “senior leadership facilitator” for the al-Qaeda-linked Hurras al-Din.

It is the third US drone strike against Idlib since President Trump took office last month, and all three reportedly targeted and killed Hurras al-Din leaders. This is particularly noteworthy since Hurras al-Din announced it was dissolving in late January, before any of these attacks.

This latest attack is perhaps an even bigger deal because Bayraqdar is the brother of Samer Bayraqdar, who is the Syrian government’s current Religious Endowments Minister. The ministry ensures that endowments are used properly for the maintaining of mosques and to help pay for religious education.

The US claimed the Bayraqdar that they killed was an active member of Hurras al-Din, despite the obvious handicap of that group apparently having dissolved weeks ago. Syrian researchers are also reporting that the man actually left Hurras al-Din five years ago after becoming disillusioned with the group.

The statement from researcher Mohammed Munir al-Faqir, who claimed to have met Bayraqdar in 2022, after he had already left Hurras al-Din and became a businessman, declaring that the US had killed “an isolated civilian citizen” and urging they retract their previous targets and reevaluate them.

That’s unlikely to happen, as the US, at least, seems satisfied with the narrative that Bayraqdar was an active “finance and logistics officer” at Hurras al-Din, and indeed has never appeared to even acknowledge the very public dissolution of the organization.

Hurras al-Din was effectively al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria. They were distinct from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is broadly the current government. HTS had similar ideology to Hurras al-Din and going back through a series of rebrandings and renamings got its own start as al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), the original al-Qaeda affiliate in neighboring Iraq.

Therefore it is not necessarily implausible that a minister from an al-Qaeda-linked government might well have a brother affiliated with a separate al-Qaeda-linked organization. At the same time there is a paucity of evidence that this was actually the case, just a claim from CENTCOM that they hold that to be true.

There’s also no sign the US is slowing down on striking Syria, as on Sunday another strike was reported in Idlib, which killed another person. Details are still emerging on this newest strike though it seems probable that whoever this was, it will be presented as something to do with Hurras al-Din.

https://news.antiwar.com/2025/02/23/latest-us-strike-killed-brother-of-syrian-government-minister/

Israeli Defense Minister Says 40,000 Forcibly Displaced Palestinians in West Bank Cannot Return Home

Israeli tanks are now operating in the occupied West Bank for the first time since 2002

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday that the Israeli military has forcibly displaced 40,000 Palestinians in the northern occupied West Bank and that they couldn’t return home as the IDF will be operating in the area over the next year, raising fears of a new ethnic cleansing campaign.

The Israeli military launched the current operation in the West Bank, dubbed “Iron Wall,” on January 21. It has been focused on the northern cities of Jenin and Tulkarm but has spread elsewhere in the occupied territory. In a new escalation, Israeli tanks entered the West Bank on Sunday for the first time since 2002.

Katz said in a statement that he ordered the Israeli military “to prepare for an extended stay in the camps that have been cleared for the coming year, and not to allow residents to return.”

“We will not return to the reality that existed in the past. We will continue to clear refugee camps and other terrorist centers in order to dismantle the [militant] battalions and terrorist infrastructures of extremist Islam that were built,” Katz added.

The tank deployment into the West Bank came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered an escalation in the occupied territory following the bombing of empty buses in the Israeli city of Bat Yam near Tel Aviv. Israeli officials blamed West Bank resistance groups for the attack, and a note was left that said “revenge from Tulkarm.” However, two Jewish Israelis were arrested over their alleged involvement in the bombing.

According to the UN, more than 50 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank since the new operation was launched last month. The dead include many civilians and children as the Israeli military expanded an “open fire order” in the occupied territory.

On Friday, two Palestinian children were killed by Israeli troops in the West Bank. Rimas al-Amouri, a 13-year-old girl, was shot in the back while standing in the courtyard of her family home in Jenin.

Ayman Nassar Taysir al-Hemouni, a 12-year-old boy, was also shot in the back while standing near the home of a family member in the southern West Bank city of Hebron. Both al-Hemouni and al-Amouri were shot by Israeli troops who were inside armored vehicles.

Israel’s escalations in the West Bank have also involved the destruction of infrastructure, including roads and homes, mirroring the strategies of the IDF in Gaza. When “Iron Wall” was first launched, Katz said the Israeli military was applying “lessons” that it had learned in Gaza.

https://news.antiwar.com/2025/02/23/israeli-defense-minister-says-40000-forcibly-displaced-palestinians-in-west-bank-cannot-return-home/

Attacks Trump and Musk

But kisses Bibi's ASS

Trump DHS Head Deputizes 600 State Officials as Immigration Officers in Major Border Push

Starbucks plans to lay off 1,100 corporate employees globally as new Chairman and CEO Brian Niccol streamlines operations.

In a letter to employees released Monday, Niccol said the company will inform employees who are being laid off by mid-day Tuesday. Niccol said Starbucks is also eliminating several hundred open and unfilled positions.

“Our intent is to operate more efficiently, increase accountability, reduce complexity and drive better integration,” Niccol wrote in the letter.

Starbucks has 16,000 corporate support employees worldwide, but that includes some employees who aren’t impacted, like roasting and warehouse staff. Baristas in the company’s stores are not included in the layoffs.

Niccol said in January that corporate layoffs would be announced by early March. He said all work must be overseen by someone who can make decisions while the the Seattle coffee giant reduces the complexity of its structure and eliminates silos within the company that slow communication.

“Our size and structure can slow us down, with too many layers, managers of small teams and roles focused primarily on coordinating work,” Niccol wrote.

Starbucks hired Niccol last fall to turn around sluggish sales. He has said he wants to improve service times — especially during the morning rush — and reestablish stores as community gathering places.

Niccol is also cutting items from Starbucks’ menu and experimenting with its ordering algorithms to better handle its mix of mobile, drive-thru and in-store orders.

Starbucks’ global same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, fell 2% in its 2024 fiscal year, which ended Sept. 29. In the U.S., customers tired of price increases and growing wait times. In China, its second-largest market, Starbucks faced growing competition from cheaper rivals.

https://www.bostonherald.com/2025/02/24/starbucks-layoffs-corporate-employees/

Yair Lapid reflects on Israel’s survival, strength, fight against antisemitism in AIPAC address

Israeli Opposition leader and Yesh Atid Chair Yair Lapid addresses Congressional Summit

Former Prime Minister and current opposition leader Yair Lapid addressed the AIPAC Congressional Summit in Washington, DC, on Monday.

To the crowd, Lapid spoke of his experiences on October 7, 2023, sitting in his Tel Aviv home’s basement, holding his daughter Yael’s hands.

Yael, who has autism and is non-verbal, left the basement to go sit by herself with headphones on, disconnecting while listening to “It’s a Small World After All,” made famous by Disney theme parks worldwide.

He connected her reaction to Israel’s hardest morning to date with his father’s experience 80 years earlier in a basement in the ghetto of Budapest, Hungary, as a 13-year-old who the world wanted to kill for no reason other than that he was Jewish.

Lapid connected both experiences with the Jewish mission time and again of coming out stronger from the darkest moments. “I'm a believer in the ability of the Jewish people to rise from the ashes,” Lapid told the crowd.

https://youtu.be/GiGTx73Kd2Q

Jewish Australian officer branded security risk over ties to Israel, 'divided loyalty'

A Jewish-Australian Army Reserves officer from Australia could have his security clearance revoked because of his ties to the Jewish State.

Due to divided loyalty between Australia and Israel, risk of being influenced by the Mossad, and failure to disclose interactions with Israelis, a Jewish Australian Army Reserves officer’s security clearance was on Thursday recommended to be revoked in an Administrative Review Tribunal ruling.

The ruling came in response to an appeal by the officer against a 2023 Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) Adverse Security Assessment recommending stripping Negative Vetting Level 2 security clearance because of concerns over his loyalty to Australia, susceptibility to foreign influence, and compliance with security holder obligations.

Based on two interviews with the officer, ASIO had determined that he had demonstrated a higher level of loyalty to Israel than Australia. The tribunal concluded that the officer held “divided loyalties between his obligations as a security clearance holder and his faith and Jewish cultural identity,” though noted that he had not been disloyal to Australia.

ASIO said that the officer had stated in a 2022 interview that he “loves Israel,” felt a “natural solidarity with Israel,” and, as a Jewish person, has “loyalty to Israel.” He also used “we” in relation to his discussion of Israeli politics. Individuals with backgrounds associated with foreign states are attractive recruitment prospects, according to ASIO.

While in the interview, the officer stated that he would not transfer information to Israel “Concerning Australian capability and Australian interest,” he also said that if it were “neutral” information or about a third party, he would notify ASIO about passing on the information.

https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-843505

Rep. Luna proposes mandatory drug tests for all members of Congress.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna has proposed mandatory drug tests for all members of the House and Senate. This initiative aims to ensure that elected officials are held to the same standards as many other professions that require drug testing. Luna’s proposal has sparked discussions about accountability and transparency within the government.

The proposed plan would involve regular, random drug testing for all members of Congress. The tests would be conducted by an independent third party to ensure impartiality and accuracy. Members who test positive for illegal substances would face disciplinary actions, which could include suspension or expulsion from their positions.

Luna’s proposal also includes provisions for mandatory drug education and rehabilitation programs for members who test positive. These programs would be designed to help individuals overcome substance abuse issues and return to their duties with a clear mind and renewed focus.

The idea of mandatory drug testing for Congress has been supported by various public figures, including Elon Musk, who recently stated that it would be a “great idea” to implement such tests for all federal workers. Luna’s proposal is seen as a step towards increasing trust in government institutions by ensuring that lawmakers are free from substance abuse.

https://www.dbrecoveryresources.com/2025/02/drug-testing-for-all-of-congress/

Now we know why the Officers were fired from the Pentagon … they were planning a coup.

Is anyone surprised? It’s still scary to think about though.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1893673896227770857

How the CIA Gave Birth to the Modern Drug Trade in the Americas

Anonymous officials informed major US outlets this week about the CIA’s ‘benevolent’ new role: flying MQ-9 Reaper drones over Mexico to spy on drug cartels. What's wrong with this picture?

The carefully placed reports, released within 24 hours of one another, come in the wake of the State Department’s designation of eight major Latin American drug traffickers as “global terrorist organizations.”

Unfortunately for the CIA, anyone with even a cursory knowledge of its activities knows that the agency has been more of an ally, rather than an enemy, to the drug pushers bringing violence and death to American communities.

In 1985, the Iran-Contra scandal exposed the Reagan administration’s facilitation of secret arms sales to Iran to fund rebels in Nicaragua, with the CIA implicated in Contra cocaine trafficking into the US.

In 1996, investigative reporter Gary Webb independently corroborated and elaborated on allegations that the crack epidemic rocking America’s inner cities was linked to traffickers enjoying protection from the CIA.

Webb’s reporting was probed by the federal government and major US media, but any info on the CIA’s involvement was swept under the rug. Webb was found dead in his home in 2004, shot twice in the head. His death was ruled a suicide.

Iran-Contra was just a small part of the CIA’s global drug smuggling empire:

Lawyer, banker, OSS and CIA officer Paul Helliwell has been called the “pioneer of CIA drug dealing.”

In 1962, Helliwell created the Castle Bank & Trust offshore in the Bahamas to support CIA ops against Castro’s Cuba and other anti-US forces across Latin America. Before that, he ran Overseas Supply, a CIA front company smuggling Burmese opium to finance a dirty war against China.

The Bahamian scandal blew up in 1973 during a tax evasion probe by the IRS, with Richard Nixon attempting to clip the CIA’s wings by creating the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). Some believe the move, combined with Nixon’s obsession with the JFK murder, helped precipitate Watergate and the president's 1974 resignation in disgrace.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20250221/how-the-cia-gave-birth-to-the-modern-drug-trade-in-the-americas-1121591463.html