Israeli Snipers Kill Three Children and A 20yr Old In Gaza

Israeli snipers shot dead four in the Gaza Strip and injured over 200 this Saturday.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, four Palestinians have been confirmed dead and 244 injured.

Those killed were identified as Mohammed Jehad sa’ad (20 years old), Adham Nedal Amara (17 years old), Hashem Abu Alkhair (17 years old) and Bilal Al-Najjar (17 years old).

Three ambulances were attacked today, as well as six journalists and 3 medical staff.

Prominent journalist Walid Mahmoud, was targeted with a headshot, but survived after the bullet hit his camer instead.

Amongsted the injured were also 56 children and 15 women.

Today marked a year since the start of the Great Return March -on 30 March (land day)- over 270 Palestinians have been shot dead and 33,000+ injured since the beginning of the demonstrations. No Israeli snipers have died and 4 were lightly injured.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/israeli-snipers-kill-three-children-and-a-20yr-old-in-gaza/

Russia Continues to Dump Dollar, Buying Up 31 Tonnes of Gold in Single Month

Moscow's sovereign gold stockpile jumped up to over 2,100 metric tonnes last year, with the country's status as a major gold producer allowing for reserves to be built up using domestically sourced bullion.

Russia's hunger for gold continues to grow, with freshly released Central Bank data showing reserves climbing by 31.1 tonnes, or 1.5 per cent of total reserves, in the month of February alone. Taking account of another 6.22 tonnes of the precious metal purchased in January, reserves now stand at some 2,149.25 metric tonnes, according to the Central Bank.

According to Bloomberg, Russia's gold rush'n approach to the precious metal is an indication that the country continues to make "rapid progress in its effort to diversify away from American assets."

According to the business resource, the impact of more countries taking a similar approach to the dollar could be problematic, with the US' European partners, including France, Poland and Hungary, already engaged in similar gold buys or referring to their dependence on the dollar "an issue of sovereignty."

For Russia, Bloomberg suggested, the gold stockpile means safety "against geopolitical shocks and the threat of tougher US sanctions as relations between the two powers continue to deteriorate." However, with Russian gold mines' output topping out at about 300 tonnes per year, and the Central Bank buying up nearly 275 tonnes of that in 2018, Russia is on-course to making substantial purchases abroad, according to observers.

"Should it reach the limit for domestic purchases, I think the Central Bank will start to import gold," Oleg Kouzmin, chief economist at the Moscow-based brokerage firm Renaissance Capital, said.

According to the economist, continued tensions with Washington mean that Russia's bullion reserves will keep growing as a percentage of total reserves. Gold already accounts for close to 20 percent of Russia's total foreign-exchange reserves, with the dollar dropping from a whopping 46 percent of reserves in mid-2017 to 22 percent now. The remaining dollar cushion is accounted for by Russia's continued dependence on the greenback for international trade.

Russia's Buy-Up Has Global Impact on Prices

https://sputniknews.com/business/201903301073683758-russia-gold-buy-up-continues/

Taxes of Ukraine’s Poroshenko show his income jumped 10,000% thanks to Rothschild Trust

The annual income gains of Petro Poroshenko, who is currently fighting for a second presidential term in Ukraine, saw a nearly hundredfold surge in 2018, the president’s tax documents reveal.

According to the Ukrainian unified register of asset and income declarations, Poroshenko’s fortune totaled 1.56 billion hryvnia (US$57 million) over 12 months through March 31, which is 95 times as much as he reported in the same period a year ago. In 2017, Poroshenko’s gains reportedly reached 16.3 million hryvnia ($600,000).

Most of Poroshenko’s income – around $40.4 million – reportedly comes from return on investment in Zurich-based Rothschild Trust Schweiz, a trust subsidiary of Rothschild Bank AG. The Ukrainian president also earned $14.7 million in profit from the Prime Assets Capital investment fund, while returns on domestic government loan bonds amounted to nearly a million dollars.

Poroshenko reportedly received around $30,000 from property sales, with more than $14,000 reportedly received from his wife Marina Poroshenko. Meanwhile, his official paycheck totals $12,400.

The average monthly salary in Ukraine in September 2018 was 9,042 hryvnia (about $320), according to the country’s State Statistics Service.

According to the tax filings, the president owns a residential house with an area of more than 1,330 square meters in Kozyn, Kiev Region, along with three land plots in the same village with a total land area of about 42,000 square meters. Poroshenko also has three properties with a total land area of more than 12,000 square meters and two apartments in Kiev. Another apartment belonging to the president is located in the city of Vinnytsia, while Poroshenko’s wife owns a flat in Kiev, and a land plot and a garden house in Boryspil district in Kiev Region.

Poroshenko is currently trying to scratch out a win in Ukraine’s presidential election against showman Vladimir Zelensky, who is reportedly leading the race with 30.4 percent of the vote. According to official exit poll data, Poroshenko is second with 17.8 percent, while veteran Ukrainian politician Yulia Tymoshenko is third spot with 14.2 percent.

As no candidate received an absolute majority, the Ukrainian Central Election Commission is set to hold the second round on April 21.

https://www.blacklistednews.com/article/71902/taxes-of-ukraines-poroshenko-show-his-income-jumped-10000-thanks-to-rothschild.html

>>6007329

stopped using swift payment system too

Israel Praises Nonviolence of Great Return March Anniversary Protest in Gaza, Shoots Demonstrators Anyway

While the IDF and Israeli government have suffered few — if any — consequences for their excessive use of force against Gazan demonstrators, the Great Return March and the Israeli response has caused a notable shift in favor of Palestinian rights at the international level.

GAZA CITY — During a non-violent commemoration of the beginning of the Great Return March and Palestine’s Land Day, Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) snipers killed four people in Gaza, three of them minors, and shot six journalists and three medical volunteers — all of whom were clearly marked in press or medical-team vests. In addition to the four fatalities, an estimated 244 Palestinians were injured, including 56 children and 15 women, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The Great Return March began last year on Land Day and has been mainly focused on protesting the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip as well as the right of return for Palestinians in exile.

Notably, the carnage occurred despite an unprecedented effort by Gazans as well as Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, to keep all demonstrators hundreds of meters from the border fence and prevent any behavior that could be considered violent or threatening to Israeli forces. Indeed, even the New York Times noted as much, writing that “Hamas … deployed scores of people in orange vests to keep most demonstrators at least 300 yards from the fence, the distance Israel had demanded as a buffer.”

Despite claims from the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman that peaceful protests would be rewarded, Israeli forces used live ammunition with little restraint, hence the large number of casualties. No IDF personnel were killed or injured during Saturday’s demonstration.

Claims have been made by Gazans that journalists and medics were intentionally targeted by IDF snipers despite their clearly marked status as members of the press / medical personnel. One prominent Gazan journalist, Walid Mahmoud, had been targeted by a sniper who had aimed at his head, and was only saved when the bullet hit his camera — then positioned in front of his face.

Israel praised the peaceful nature of Saturday’s demonstrations, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described as “calm” even though Israeli forces killed four Palestinians and injured scores more. Netanyahu asserted that the nonviolence that defined Saturday’s demonstration was achieved thanks to Israel’s recent movement of tanks, artillery and four brigades of soldiers to the Gaza border. Israel also recently bombed the Gaza Strip in response to an alleged rocket attack that damaged a home in central Israel but caused no deaths.

https://www.mintpressnews.com/israel-great-return-march-shoots-demonstrators/256792/

https://www.timesofisrael.com/joined-by-netanyahu-brazilian-president-visits-western-wall/

Local Elections In Turkey: Erdogan’s Bloc Loses Ankara And Istanbul, Turkey Gets First Communist Mayor Elected

While Ukraine is engaged in a standoff between a comedian and the rulling oligarch, Turkey held local elections. President Recep Erdogan and his allies remained in power but they seem to be lost some key positions on the local level.

Mansur Yavaş, the candidate of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and İYİ (Good) Party, has emerged as the winner in Ankara, becoming the capital’s new mayor. He is about 2% ahead of his rival, according to unofficial figures. Mehmet Ozhaseki, the candidate of the People’s Alliance, between the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) received nearly 47.76% of the votes. The CHP has ousted the ruling party from the post after 25 years, with 49.75% of the ballots.

https://southfront.org/local-elections-in-turkey-erdogans-bloc-loses-ankara-and-istanbul-turkey-gets-first-communist-mayor-elected/

Hawks Clamoring to Attack Iran

As Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Advisor John Bolton, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Saudi crown prince and de facto ruler Mohammad bin Salman clamor for a war against Iran, they seem to have conveniently forgotten the destruction and mayhem wrought by the American invasion of Iraq 16 years ago.

These war drummers are underestimating the potential negative consequences of the war and overestimating the Iranian people’s dislike of their theocratic regime. They, like the advocates of the Iraqi invasion in the winter of 2002 and early spring 2003, are confusing Iranians’ dislike of the ayatollahs with their potential embrace of a foreign invader.

On the eve of the Iraq war, former President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, the Vice President Chief of Staff and Assistant to the President David Addington all claimed that the Iraqi invasion aimed at liberating the country from the brutal regime of Saddam Hussein. Removing Saddam from power, they maintained, would eliminate the threat of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and bring stability, security, and democracy to Iraq.

As developments unfolded over the past 16 years, the “liberation” claims proved to be bogus. The invasion and the decision to de-Ba’athify Iraq and dissolve the Iraqi military created an environment conducive to sectarianism, insurgency, and terrorism. The vacuum that followed the regime collapse, the incompetence of the American administration in the “Green Zone,” and the pervasive corruption of the new Iraqi governing councils was quickly filled by pro-Iranian militias, al-Qaeda, and later the Islamic State. The promise of stability and security was replaced by chaos, bloodshed, and mayhem.

The massive destruction of Iraq and the horrendous human and material cost the American “liberation” caused for the country will be child’s play compared to what could happen if Trump and his Israeli and Saudi allies decide to attack Iran. Unlike Iraq—which the British cobbled together after World War One out of the Shia, Sunnis, and Kurds under a minority Sunni rule— Iran has been in existence for centuries with a vast territory and a huge population. If attacked, Iran has the capability to retaliate against its neighbors, especially Saudi Arabia. Its air and missile forces could quickly destroy the oil and gas facilities and the water and power grids on the Arab side of the Gulf. A war against Iran could easily spread to the Gulf and the Levant. The entire region could go up in flames.

Hubris and Ignorance

The Bush administration was not willing or interested in answering the “morning after” questions regarding the post-Saddam future of Iraq. Whenever I and others urged policy makers to consider the law of unintended consequences and what could go wrong in Iraq following the invasion, Vice President Cheney and Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld dismissed our concerns and arrogantly claimed that the U.S. military and civilian administration following the invasion would be able to control the situation in Iraq. Their hubris regarding America’s power and ignorance of Iraqi realities on the ground led to a total breakdown of Iraqi society following the demise of the Saddam regime.

The Trump administration seems to be equally arrogant and ignorant about Iran. It has displayed a similar disregard for strategic thinking about the future of Iran beyond the clerical regime. The Iranophobes within the administration seem to be more obsessed with Iran than the Bush administration was ever with Iraq.

https://www.globalresearch.ca/hawks-clamoring-attack-iran/5673312

Mad Maxine Waters Says Dropping All Charges Against Hate Hoaxer Jussie Smollett Was ‘Correct Thing’

Even though America is almost evenly divided politically, there was one occurrence recently that we all pretty much agreed upon: Dropping all charges against Jussie Smollett didn’t make sense.

But to Mad Maxine Waters, yup, that was the “correct thing.”

The California Democrat, who has been race-baiting for decades, said, hey, nobody got hurt, and the hate hoaxer paid $10,000, anyway, so let’s all just move on, OK?

“First of all, we probably will never know all of the details,” Waters told ExtraTV. “We’ve heard a lot of information. No one was hurt — that is, physically, killed, shot — he never committed a crime before, he forfeited the bail and it’s this kind of situation where they close the case all over the country every day. I have learned this isn’t unusual.”

She went on to say the case has garnered “a lot of attention because of who he is — he’s an extremely talented man who people have come to love because he is on TV. I’m hopeful that he will go on with his career and be successful.” Saying she hasn’t spoken to Jussie since the charges were dropped, Rep. Waters said, “I would love to see him, and I am looking forward to seeing him very soon.”

Waters made her comments backstage at the NAACP Image Awards over the weekend. Smollett was also nominated for an award — best-supporting actor in a television drama, “Empire” — but he lost.

In January, Smollett claimed he was attacked by two white men who yelled “This is MAGA country,” a reference to President Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.” The allegations fell apart under police questioning and Smollett was indicted by a grand jury on 16 charges, including making false statements to police. But in a universally condemned move last week, all that was wiped by a Chicago prosecutor, who suddenly announced she was dropping all charges and sealing the case.

The actor claimed two men attacked him at 2 a.m. when he was walking home from a sandwich shop. He said they poured what he believed to be bleach on him, and placed a rope around his neck.

Last Tuesday, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx announced that her office was dropping the case. Smollett was allowed to walk free after forfeiting his $10,000 bail and performing 16 hours of community service, to which Foxx said, “I believe this is a just outcome based on the circumstances.”

Smollett later declared that the state’s attorney’s decision exonerated him.

“I want you to know that not for a moment was it in vain. I have been truthful and consistent on every level since day one. I would not be my mother’s son if I was capable of one drop of what I’m accused of. This has been an incredibly difficult time. Honestly one of the worst of my entire life. But I am a man of faith and I am a man that has knowledge of my history and I would not bring my family, our lives or the movement through a fire like this, I just wouldn’t,” he said.

But the city of Chicago doesn’t agree.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/04/nuts-mad-maxine-waters-says-dropping-all-charges-against-hate-hoaxer-jussie-smollett-was-correct-thing/