GOP Senators Alert Barr to Allegations Mueller’s Team Misrepresented Trump Campaign Emails to Fuel Russian Collusion Conspiracy Theories

Senators Chuck Grassley and Lindsey Graham alerted Attorney General Bill Barr to allegations Mueller’s team misrepresented Trump campaign emails to fuel Russian collusion conspiracy theories.

Then-Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley sent Mueller a letter in 2017 alleging his team mischaracterized Trump campaign emails in a court filing to suggest Trump’s advisors were eager to meet Russians during the 2016 presidential election.

In the newly released 2017 letter from Grassley to Mueller obtained by Fox News, the Iowa lawmaker shows concerns about the “absence of additional context” in various court filings against George Papadopoulos as well as media coverage of the documents. “The glaring lack of [context] feeds speculation and innuendo that distorts the facts,” Grassley wrote at the time.

In a March 8th letter to Attorney General Bill Barr, Grassley and Graham refer the AG back to Grassley’s 2017 letter alleging the special counsel’s investigators selectively picked certain details and emails from Trump’s advisors to include in a court filing to push the Russian collusion narrative out to the public.

It’s unclear if Barr reviewed the senators’ letter; a DOJ representative declined to comment on the missive, Fox News reported.

Fox News is told Grassley and Graham wanted Barr to have this material before he reviewed the Mueller report, out of concern some emails were selectively quoted to give a “nefarious” impression.

That court filing said Papadopoulos emailed another campaign official in May 2016 with the subject line, “Request from Russia to meet Mr. Trump.” The document said the email stated that Russia “has been eager to meet Mr. Trump for quite sometime and have been reaching out to me to discuss,” adding in a footnote that the official forwarded the email to another campaign official asking to discuss: “We need someone to communicate that DT is not doing these trips. It should be someone low level in the campaign so as not to send any signal.”

Grassley and Graham said the rabid main stream media then took the cherry-picked emails to report a “Campaign official suggested ‘low level’ staff should go to Russia.” However, the Republican lawmakers said the full emails from the Trump campaign paint a completely different story.

“In full context, the emails in question actually show that the Trump Campaign wanted someone ‘low level’ to decline these types of invitations,” Grassley and Graham wrote in the letter to Barr.

Grassley and Graham continued, “Another citation was reported by some news outlets as evidence that the campaign, notably Papadopoulos and Sam Clovis, encouraged personnel to meet with the Russians.” This line in the court filing said that a campaign supervisor (Sam Clovis) told George Papadopoulos “I would encourage you” and another advisor to “make the trip” if possible, (to a meet with Russians).

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/04/gop-senators-alert-barr-to-allegations-muellers-team-misrepresented-trump-campaign-emails-to-fuel-russian-collusion-conspiracy-theories/

Detained Suspect Claims Attack On U.S. Forces In Manbij Was Planned & Prepared In Idlib

The January 16 bombing, which claimed the lives of four Americans in Syria’s Manbij, was planned and prepared in the militant-held governorate of Idlib, one of the alleged attack perpetrators confessed in a video released by the Hawar News Agency (ANHA) on April 5.

ANHA, which is known for its close ties with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), identified the filmed suspect as 27-year old Abdul Aziz Mohammed al-Shajyi. The man, who is originally from the town of Tell Abyad, joined ISIS in 2014 and fled to the SDF-held city of Manbij three years later.

Al-Shajyi said in the video that he met the planner of Manbij bombing, who is known only his nom de guerre “Abu Ali,” few months after arriving in the city. A mediator by the name Abu Nada al-Kurdi introduced the two terrorists to each other inside a mosque in Manbij.

According to the available information, Abu Ali is originally from Idlib. The terrorist commander was heading ISIS’ al-Hijrah Office in the city of Raqqa in the early years of the self-proclaimed caliphate. The office was responsible for coordinates the movements of foreign terrorists between Syria and Turkey.

“Abu Ali asked me about the living conditions in Manbij and the situation in general, especially the whereabouts of international coalition forces and where they are stationed,” Al-Shajyi said describing his first meeting with Abu Ali.

Abu Ali went back to Idlib after his first meeting with al-Shajyi. Later the terrorist commander returned to Manbij and monitored several convoys of the US-led coalition. Al-Shajyi said that Abu Ali became furious when he found out that coalition vehicles are equipped with mobile phone jammers and immediately returned to Idlib.

After returning to Idlib for the second time, Abu Ali phoned al-Shajyi and told him that he want him to shelter a man named Abu Yasin that will arrive in Manbij soon. The man will be later known as the suicide bomber of Manbij attack. In a press release by its news agency, Amaq, ISIS mentioned his full nom de guerre “Abu Yasin al-Shami.” According to al-Shajyi, the man is originally from the countryside of Homs.

In the day of the attack, January 16, Abu Ali returned from Idlib to Manbij and met with al-Shajyi and Abu Yasin inside a car. Al-Shajiy said that the terrorist had brought with him a bag full of explosives and handed it over to Abu Yasin, who embarked on his mission right away.

“Abu Ali immediately moved the car and entered the streets in the neighborhood, we heard huge explosion from the area where international coalition vehicles were parked,” al-Shajyi said in the confession video.

U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan R. Farmer, Navy Chief Cryptologic Technician Shannon M. Kent, Department of Defense civilian employee Scott A. Wirtz and civilian interpreter Ghadir Taher were killed in Manbij attack, that also claimed the lives of ten Syrian civilians.

Abu Ali ordered al-Shajyi to destroy the phone that he used to communicate with him following the attack. However, this didn’t save al-Shajyi, as the SDF’s security forces were able to track him for several weeks before finally arresting him in a special operation on March 20.

The Al-Shajyi story complements with the information provided by ISIS itself. If it’s confirmed, it will be another evidence of how Idlib has become the new safe haven for terrorists in Syria.

https://southfront.org/detained-suspect-claims-attack-on-u-s-forces-in-manbij-was-planned-prepared-in-idlib/

Under supervision of Belgian experts, terrorists supply missiles with chemical warheads

Idleb, SANA – Local sources revealed that terrorists of Jabhat al-Nusra and “Turkistani Party” have mounted chemical warheads on 120 missiles in cooperation with western experts as to launch assault on safe areas and military points in Hama and Lattakia.

The sources clarified according to a report published Russian in Sputnik News Agency that Jabhat al-Nusra and Turkistani Party terrorist groups have mounted chemical warheads on 120 missiles in one Jabhat al-Nusra positions in Sahl al-Rouj area in western Idleb.

The sources added that the missiles had been transferred from one of Jabhat al-Nusra’s arms caches to their position in Sahl al-Rouj on five ambulance vehicles last Monday, noting that “the White Helmets” terrorists have also transferred special equipment from Khan Sheikhoun to the region.

They said that Belgian chemical experts collaborated in equipment of missiles with chemical materials, adding that they also supervised transfer of eight chlorine gas capsules from one of Jabhat al-Nusra positions in the town of al-Dana in Northern Idleb to the base.

https://sana.sy/en/?p=162614