Yesterday I did two short video reports from outside the Lebanese Parliament – inside a military cordon that totally sealed off downtown Beirut – on the appointment of General Joseph Aoun, Head of the Lebanese Armed Forces, as President of Lebanon.
There is no other Western source giving any of this detail – not even that it is directly unconstitutional for a present or former Head of the Armed Forces to become President in Lebanon.
This report by William Christou is fascinating because it is a dark image mirror of my report. The facts are the same, but presented in a neoliberal rose-coloured light.
I report that Lebanese politicians were directly threatened by France and Germany that unless General Aoun was appointed, then Israeli troops will not leave Southern Lebanon as stipulated in the ceasefire deal.
The Guardian tells this as “Army commander’s election increases confidence that ceasefire deal will hold”.
I retell the massive pressure put on Lebanon by the United States, France and Saudi Arabia to appoint the General in addition to the Israeli military threat. Special Envoys arrived from Joe Biden (the US envoy being Tel Aviv-born IDF member Amos Hochstein), President Macron and Mohammed bin Salman. The French and Saudis were actually in the room at parliament.
The Guardian sees this as “helpful” international diplomacy.
The Hezbollah-Israel war, as well as external pressure, had seemingly helped finally overcome that gridlock on Thursday. In the days before the election, a series of diplomats visited Beirut to hold talks with the main political figures.
For 13 months and 14 failed elections, Hezbollah and their allies had blocked the appointment of General Aoun. That he is the United States and Israel’s man is not in doubt. Despite Hezbollah attempting to make the most of their having voted for Aoun in the final round, to rescue what credit they could from the inevitable, this is no doubt another defeat for them following the disastrous ceasefire agreement that led to the same-day start of the assault on their ally Assad.
There is one stark and undeniable truth. The United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia have gained massively in the geopolitics of the Middle East. Iran’s position has been very seriously weakened. Panglossian attempts to downplay this by anti-Imperialists, with whom I sympathise, are unhelpful.
Both Syria and Lebanon have in the last month gained new leaders whose chief qualification for office is that they both commanded military forces which did not fire a single shot against Israeli invasion and occupation of their countries.
The Greater Israel project is well underway, with Saudi and Turkish agreement in exchange for the suppression of Shia Islam in the remaining Arab territories. Aoun’s appointed role is as a hammer against Hezbollah.
Finally, and just for fun, if you want to know what the new leadership style feels like:
To be blunt, our two months in Lebanon before Christmas made a slight financial loss. I was delighted with the output of four mini-documentaries and numerous short video reports and articles, some of which individually had millions of viewers. But to date the model of reader-sponsored real overseas journalism is not proven nor stable.
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Thanks Craig, the comparison to the Grauniad piece is indeed darkly illuminating. The world is going backwards to an even more dystopian imperialism than the one ostensibly overturned in the 20th century. I’m glad from this point of view not to have children. What kind of world are the next generation inheriting, with no substantial positive ideology around as an inspiring alternative vision?
Beg to differ. There is a competing and inspiring vision (not an ideology, we need none of that), Russia’s.
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/56255
That would seem to be more truthfully referred to as a jesus ideology vision.
Which seems to redefine ‘true’ as ‘true values’.
Thank you for relaying the truth about these developments in the Arab world. The Guardian is simply the house paper of a hard-right imperialist and genocidal Labour government, some of the most unprincipled and discredited people imaginable.
Thanks Mr. Murray for your very valuable report from Beirut, where apparently the threatening Israeli drones have finally disappeared. Moreover your comments are fully in line with those of CNN in their piece yesterday
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/09/middleeast/joseph-aoun-elected-lebanon-president-intl/index.html
Actually, it’s been public knowledge for quite a while, since the Doha agreement, that Aoun was supported in his presidential bid by the major powers involved in the Lebanese scene.
And as you aptly conclude, the whole new situation in the Middle East is a severe setback for the ‘axis of resistance’ and for Iran in particular. It will probably get even worse when Donald/Elon are in the White House again….
The US Embassy in Beirut tried to gin up a civil war against Hezbollah with the right wing groups led by Civil war veteran Samir Geagea who hopes the Shiite militia will be pressed into a position where it has no choice but to disarm. That failed, now Joseph Aoun will be required to disarm Hezbollah as per UNSC Resolution 1701. And clear Southern Lebanon of all Hezbollah infrastructure [Tunnels Etc] The Israelis will insist on this. This is a disaster for the arc of Resistance. Nasrallah would never have agreed to capitulate like this. Here is a reminder the loss of Syria meant for the resistance….The late Hezbollah leader Nasrallah warned over 10 years ago that if Syria falls, Palestine will be lost.
“My brothers and sisters, if Syria falls into the hands of the U.S., Israel, the people who accuse others of heresy, and all of America’s pawns, which purport to be leading countries in the region, the resistance will find itself under siege, and Israel will invade Lebanon, in order to impose its terms on the Lebanese people, and in order to revive its aspirations and schemes. Then, Lebanon will embark upon another Israeli era. If Syria falls, Palestine will be lost. The resistance in Palestine will be lost. Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem”
https://www.memri.org/tv/hizbullah-secretary-general-nasrallah-vows-defend-syria-we-can-send-tens-thousands-mujahideen
Trying to put a positive slant on this obscenity. A battle has been lost but the war will continue.
“T’is but a scratch” as the Black Knight said, after losing both his arms.
Our gracious host, whose culture knows no boundaries, correctly alluded to Voltaire’s most famous short novel Candide.
Stevie Boy
Yes it will.
If the US and their proxies push hard and decide that they can ‘ take out ‘
Iran without any comeback they are seriously mistaken.
If you back someone into a corner they end up having nothing to lose then
what have you got to lose?
As usual it will not be the US who receives the blowback.
It will be Israel and Syria and of course the Iranian people.
If that happens then we will have to see how the US reacts initially and then after
the blowback in Israel in particular.
If their aircrafts get shot down and their missiles are intercepted the alternative for
them is what?
Troops on the ground?
Not a chance.
Maybe reformed ISIS ‘ rebels’ will be put to work in or near Iran as the US and Israel don’t have a
great history of success in that department.
We might find out their true purpose then.
Erdoğan as usual will dance on both sides of the dancefloor at once – doing The Twist.
A little histrionic, in fact the new “president” doesn’t have the power to do the things you described.
Nor did the Israelis when they actually occupied Lebanon and had armed collaborators & local allies providing full assistance.
Syria was not quite as important as Nasrallah’s public statements, to justify his troops intervention there. Plus the HTS types don’t really control the country and are also currently fighting the Kurds. So Syria doesn’t pose a threat right now, despite a few small border clashes.
WHO news headline from November 24th last. “More health workers and patients have been killed proportionally in Lebanon than in Ukraine and Gaza”. Article goes on:
“22 November 2024, Beirut, Lebanon – Since 7 October 2023, 47% of attacks on health care – 65 out of 137 – have proven fatal to at least one health worker or patient in Lebanon, as of 21 November 2024. This is a higher percentage than in any active conflict today across the globe. — 226 health workers and patients were killed in Lebanon and 199 injured between 7 October 2023 and 18 November 2024. In the same period, a combined total of 1401 attacks on health in (Gaza), Lebanon and Israel – 1196 in Gaza, 137 in Lebanon and 68 in Israel”.
Israel of course conducted all those attacks on Lebanon as well as on Gaza.
Catch 22 for the new president whoever that person might be. Rise up against your new colonial masters and you will be bombed even more – kowtow and there’s any semblance of sovereignty gone. Whether this will be accepted by the other Lebanese communities including Hezbollah remains to be seen. I do n’t think they will take it lying down for long despite the likely costs in terms of more bombing of health facilities and deaths,
Good piece, Craig – you need to get on BlueSky to promote your work, uncensored. It’s growing rapidly.
Further to this, Jonathan Cook has posted this article (linking to it) on BlueSky. Not sure why Craig doesn’t do so himself.
Question: why did Hezbollah vote for Aoun? After all, they had successfully prevented the IDF from advancing into Lebanon.
Well what could one say, the Lebanese leaders cozy up with the same americans that just – through Israel – destroyed their nation, killing thousands, with american missiles, bullets. We are talking about wilful slaves there is no other word for it.
Perhaps Lebanon will sign a normalization-deal with Israel too while they are on it? Even the lebanese governmental media had no shame putting up this some months ago:
“Israeli FM says Lebanon could join normalization with Israel if Saudi deal is achieved”
https://www.nna-leb.gov.lb/en/regional/732236/israeli-fm-says-lebanon-could-join-normalization-w
Paul Craig Roberts opinion on the demise of Syria and the possible capitulation of Lebanon, he puts down to Arab disunity, as Jack and others have indicted Gadaffi had it right at the Arab League meeting in Damascus [2008] “The US came, deposed an Arab leader, Saddam Hussein and hung him, then killed 1 million Arabs, what did the Arab leaders do who are laughing and grinning at my speech at this moment Why they did nothing, but he warned them, they will come after you next. Prophetic words.
Paul Craig Roberts…”The demise of Syria has left Iran, Muslim but not Arab, isolated and Hezbollah cut off from resupply. This has removed the pressure on the Israeli government and anointed the criminal Netanyahu the crown of the Founding Father of Greater Israel. The failure of Russia and Iran to have foreseen the adverse strategic consequences for them, instead wandering off into false peace agreements, indicates a failure in strategic judgment. They did not sell out Syria. They just failed to understand the importance of Syria to them. Both are now set up for continuing attack as they are obstacles to Washington and Israel’s hegemony. The terrorist army that Washington unleashed on Syria is a Washington asset.
The disunity of Arabs has left them easy pickings for outside rulers. The American Zionist neoconservatives, closely allied with Israel, have almost achieved their agenda of overthrowing 7 countries, although it has taken them longer that 5 years.
Both Russia and Iran had already had their noses rubbed in it with it the lightning victory of Azerbaijan (backed by Turkey and Israel) in 2023. Shades of Zionist type coating to the aggression – “You’ve never really lived here. This has always belonged to us”, destruction of churches and graveyards – and a very real nakba or “ethnic cleansing” for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh. Curiously, practically zero fuss in the west. Never mind that the expelled people were all or almost all Christians and the attackers were Muslims. A lesson for those who think every conflict in the Middle East is to do with religion. That said, I’m not sure why Iran didn’t come to Armenia’s aid. Presumably they just didn’t have the military resources.
You omit to mention that the Azerbaijani action was only a response to the Armenian aggression back in 1993, when Armenia occupied large areas of Azeri land outside Nagorno-Karabakh, and that this action was basically a take-back of the land occupied then, but it frightened the Nagorno-Karabakhians into fleeing.
Yes indeed, every resistance-group and/or pan-arabism are to be put down. Khadaffi, for all his faults at least had some integrity and honesty.
Back in the 80s he said that after Palestine, Israel will go after other arab nations. And as we have seen, first the genocide in Gaza, then the destruction of Lebanon, then Israel attacked Iran, Syria, Yemen etc. He was certainly right about israel’s machinations but he was loathed and hated by the western/israel-collaborationist arab leaders:
Video: Gadaffi speech in front of arab leaders in 1988 , 3:37 minutes
https://www.tiktok.com/@habatovation/video/7291536900173614342
I cannot understand how the lebanese could invite Amos Hochstein, the very guy that OKd Israel’s destruction of Lebanon:
“According to several US and Israeli officials who spoke with POLITICO, Presidential adviser Amos Hochstein and Brett McGurk, the White House coordinator for West Asia, told Israeli leaders in recent weeks that Washington “agreed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s broad strategy to shift Israel’s military focus to the north against Hezbollah.””
–
““Behind the scenes, Hochstein, McGurk, and other top US national security officials are describing Israel’s Lebanon operations as a history-defining moment — one that will reshape the Middle East for the better for years to come,” the POLITICO report reveals”.
https://thecradle.co/articles/washington-quietly-gave-israel-greenlight-to-expand-war-against-lebanon-report
“I cannot understand how the lebanese could invite Amos Hochstein, the very guy that OKd Israel’s destruction of Lebanon:”
Which lebanese have invited Hochstein and what is their motivation?
PCR is an utter crank, his paranoid ahistorical and parochial projections don’t match reality. Even when he stumbles upon something factual.
It gets subsumed in hysterical exaggerations and “giant evil master plots TM”. Even though Israeli & US policy is clearly far more reactive, opportunistic, stupid and costly.
Than whatever he dreams up as the “bigger picture”.
This is a guy who thinks Russia is losing a war it’s clearly winning. Because Putin hasn’t nuked Brussels, Birmingham or Baltimore.
In revenge for receiving pin-pricks, compared to what the Russians have dished out to Ukraine, on a regular basis.
I wonder how the Iranian foreign ministry reads the possibilities for US action or inaction once Trump has reascended. His statement that “all hell will break out in the Middle East” if the POWs held by the Resistance in Gaza aren’t returned to the Zionist occupation by the time he’s inaugurated in nine days’ time sounds as though it was thought about properly beforehand. It doesn’t sound as though he’s shooting from the hip. I’m quite sure he knows he’s not allowed to do that where the Middle East is concerned. I don’t have any particular view on what’s going on, but isn’t he open to a kinda January surprise similar in nature but not in effect to the October one that brought down Carter electorally in 1980?
One power that seems on first-order analysis to have had its arse kicked in the Middle East is Russia.
… A NATO base in Jordan FFS?
A NATO base in Jordan is necessary for the US-Israeli interest, because I reckon the regime is quite shaky, and the success of the jihadis in Syria will only provoke the ISIS-like sentiments of many of the East Bank tribes. They’re all ready to join ISIS, but the mukhabarat (intelligence organisation) keeps them under control.
It is hard to anticipate where Trump will act, in relation to his declared intentions. Russia sustained the status quo for Israel and Iran for over a decade, and tackled some of the worst Daesh areas in Syria. Syria was always a land of 2 pipelines, competing for control of oil and gas and looking after their own areas of control. Russia patrolled the border and buzzed Israel when it occupied the Golan Heights, but didn’t actually follow through on requiring Israel to stay within its borders. The Agreement which was originally designed and brokered by Kissinger, and renewed periodically by Netanyahu, respected the protection which Israel would receive from Russia should a threat from Iran become imminent. I found it interesting that the death of Kissinger correlated with the active start of the current objectives and can imagine he would have approved it as far back as 2012 before the intended events in Ukraine were explained to Congress in 2013.
Putin will be fully aware of the geopolitical redesign across the region of the Middle East and has removed his assets from the firing line. Trump had originally declared his opposition to the US backed hostilities in Ukraine, and largely put a stop to the US funding the Azov Brigade in 2018. Melania may also have a view on the Ukraine Russia confrontation. I know nothing about her origins.
So – did Netanyahu not receive an invitation to Trump’s inauguration? Is Trump fully aware of the danger which objects to him potentially moving the chess pieces which have been so long in the planning? He will need to have made his decisions by next week. The world is holding its breath to see which way things will fall.
Melania Trump comes from Slovenia and is neither from a powerful family nor super-rich. Not a player.
Donald Trump will want some killing on the first day or within a few days – with deaths at least in the 100s. Probably inside the US itself, maybe also outside, but directly attributed to him and boasted about by him, Mr Testicles. The 100s figure is a rough guess, but I’ll be surprised if it’s less than 20. It could also be larger than the 100s.
The focus right from the start won’t be on healthcare, tax cuts, greenwash, or even weapons contracts. It will be military action.
If it’s outside the US, Trump may do something like send a ship somewhere (especially if it’s near there already, so Canada is a possibility, albeit probably a small one) or order a flight – a provocation.
The US flag over Canada image, that he posted to Musk’s website (a website which gets mentioned in most western MSM “news” articles at the current time), is just saying “Hey, c***s! Look how crazy I am!” A distraction.
The story about Netanyahu not going to the inauguration is chaff too. Few foreign heads of government get invited to US presidential inaugurations. Netanyahu didn’t go in 2017 either. Meanwhile the whole MSM is trumpeting the question “Has Trump fallen out with Netanyahu?” Well no he hasn’t. It’s all BS.
He’s threatening “hell” across the Middle East not if the occupation doesn’t release its prisoners, but if the resistance doesn’t release its ones. Just to put it bluntly.
Maybe Netanyahu’s reign is finally coming to an end and Trump is preparing the ground. You would have to cheque with Miriam Adelson which psychopathic headcase has been chosen for the succession.
Miriam Adelson – now there is someone who surely will be attending the inauguration.
Regarding what might happen on or soon after 20 Jan, a Trump Korea play is possible.
The flight recorders on flight 7C-2216 which crashed in South Korea on 29 Dec are said to have stopped working four minutes before the crash. The idea that this was because the aircraft’s electrical system failed is ludicrous. This flight must have been sabotaged.
What many forget (perhaps it’s not on TwitterX or Bluesky?) is that weaponry exists that’s far more advanced than admitted. (Of course one can’t “prove” it or read the wall-scribbles of “shmexperts” that claim it. This doesn’t stop it being true.) This includes cyber. A surprise and extremely powerful “All your base are belong to us” cyber attack was surely what brought down the Syrian government and regime. Where next? This kind of weapon seems ideal for fast-effect provocations.
Perhaps the next attack will be on financial systems. As Rachel Reeves takes a begging bowl to China…
For once, I don’t buy conspiracy for this plane crash. The videos are quite clear, everyone on that flight was alive until it smashed into the wall at the end of the runway, then it was over. The lesson is simple, don’t build a wall at the end of a runway.
But it crash landed and there were no records of its last four minutes in the flight recorder.
the Guardian has been under direct MoD control since publishing the Snowden leaks in 2013.
https://www.declassifieduk.org/how-the-uk-security-services-neutralised-the-countrys-leading-liberal-newspaper/
it was always going to present this brazen western stooge Aoun as a force for good in the Levant, just as it has Azov and ISIS thugs in Ukraine and Syria.
the Guardian is a more important propaganda tool for the state than the Times and the Telegraph because it works its stuff on people who consider themselves sceptical of imperialism and war.
Snowden was a twat for working with the Guardian and the NYT.
I’m confused and intrigued by this. those are the bibles of the Holocaust Harris – #Resistance fraternity. if you don’t trust them then where are you getting all your truths from? this is a genuine question.
@Brian, I think you put that rather well but what could he or Wikileaks have done differently?
The Grauniad has been a shitrag for decades now.
Laughable excuse for journalism.
The Guardian’s editorial when Thatcherite Labour were elected in 1997 was hilarious though.
They called it something like the greatest radical opportunity Europe has seen for 30 years. It might as well have been printed in a Whitehall basement with monitors reporting to Peter Mandelson.
I stopped reading it shortly after.
Hmm, disagree.
I actually subscribe to Peter Hitchen’s take on new labour. They *were* in fact much more radical, than say Tony Benn.
It’s just a very particular form of radicalism that isn’t labelled as such.
Because it’s a radicalism derived from certain extant establishment orthodoxies. Blair just accelerated and took them a lot further.
They meant they saw the Blairite Labour Party as committed to radical leftwing social reform. It was never anything of the kind. Tony Blair openly praised Thatcher before the election. Jack Straw called on the police to make more effort to clear beggars off the streets. That was also before the election. There was no excuse for anybody who called themselves leftwing to support New Labour ever.
Compare with Tony Benn who was for British withdrawal from NATO, unilateral nuclear disarmament, and the abolition of the monarchy. He was also quite tough on the private schools. (I’m not sure whether he was for legally abolishing them, but he may have been.)
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/straw-sets-agenda-for-reclaiming-the-streets-1599506.html
meanwhile.
“A judge in London has ruled that Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) must explain what happened to certain documents in the Julian Assange case that it claims no longer exist”
https://consortiumnews.com/2025/01/10/judge-orders-cps-to-come-clean-on-deleted-assange-docs/
Meanwhile, in the Guardian, read it, and weep! These must be the wars that the Guardian censor their own readers from criticising freely, never mind actually campaign against.
“Our appeal has raised £1.5m for those affected by war. You can still donate
Katharine Viner”
That money goes to three charities: Médecins Sans Frontières, War Child, and Parallel Histories. The first two may do some good work, but the third one seems to be a load of crap, pushing out stuff in British schools about how there are two sides to the story of Israel versus Palestine, etc. They sound like a Zionist or “Prevent” front. Those who want to donate to help people in Gaza, Ukraine, Russia, or Sudan should look for charities which actually do that, in those places, right now.
It’s pretty shitty of Viner to talk about helping “those affected by war” when some of the money’s going to put printed stuff into British classrooms./
Any charity appeal by the MSM will be driven by their particular agenda. So, yes think before giving to a rag owned and run by very wealthy psychopaths. Same with banks and big industry.
Treachery and crushing of every anti-israel resistance everywhere in the arab world:
“Palestinian Authority forces besiege Jenin camp in West Bank ”
Palestinian Authority security forces have imposed a siege on the Jenin refugee camp in the northern part of the occupied West Bank, preventing the entry of food and medical supplies.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/01/12/740762/Palestinian-Authority-forces-lay-siege-to-Jenin-camp-in-northern-West-Bank
The disgraceful, so called, “Palestinian Authority” should be looked upon with the exact same disdain one look upon Israel. Now they use the same terror, starvation tactic as Israel against their own people, making their behavior an easy target for claims of hypocrisy.
Send Mahmoud Abbas to the ICC too!
The Guardian is surely the worst of the worst in terms of what it purports to be compared to what it actually is.
Further confirmation today with its complete blanking of Ivor Caplin’s arrest in a paedophile sting.
https://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2025/01/11/former-hove-mp-arrested/
Ivor Caplin is chairman of the Jewish Labour Movement, a fanatically zionist Labour centrist group which, in the Guardian’s reckoning, is one of the most important organisations in the UK. Throughout the fake antisemitism crisis of the Corbyn years, the Guardian urgently headlined every complaint and “fear” of the JLM. Its journalists and columnists parroted every JLM talking point. Owen Jones actually spoke at their events.
Today it is suddenly an organisation of no interest whatsover to the Guardian.
Perhaps they might not want to comment on an ongoing investigation, but they’ll cover it if he’s convicted and sent down?
That is not their policy. They are always reporting arrests and allegations. They daily headlined “antisemitism” allegations under Corbyn,
regularly from Ivor Caplin himself. They have ignored every paedophile scandal of Starmer Labour with the same unscrupulousness they promoted fake antisemitism under Corbyn.
Oh dear. Pedo gangs running free in the UK and Pedo MPs and BBC employees don’t want to know. And, it turns out they all support the zionist, jewish state. No coincidence then that the ‘Babylonian Talmud’, Judaism’s highest moral, ethical and legal authority, defends pedophilia.
Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg, a whistleblower inside the Satmar community, published his findings in Vice magazine under the title ‘The Child-Rape Assembly Line’. Sounds familiar …
Are we seeing the spread of the greater Israel project to Egypt ?
“He was a relative unknown until a few weeks ago, but Ahmed al-Mansour has managed to develop a cult following in his native Egypt after Syrian rebels toppled the Assad dynasty.”
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/ahmed-al-mansour-egyptian-fighter-syria-whos-causing-sisi-alarm
To compare with the terrorist state’s bombing of all 30+ branches of the Al-Qard Al-Hasan savings bank in Lebanon: in Gaza the same terrorist state has also bombed all of the universities and destroyed 90% of the schools, and they have continued to bomb the already bombed-out schools when they were being used as civilian shelters. This has always been what these Nazis mean by “the infrastructure of terror” – hospitals, schools, the water supply, the electricity supply, roads, etc.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/01/12/740768/%E2%80%98Israel-has-decimated-the-entire-education-system-in-Gaza%E2%80%99–Malala-Yousafzai
There can no “Wallenberg” operation in Gaza. The terrorists would bomb it. (Ask the families and colleagues of the hundreds of UN staff who have been murdered.) Think who that makes the Zionists worse than.
No wonder the BBC hate you Craig
Brilliant reporting of truths.. Western Lie and Evil ..Take care
Let me Explain..
Cry and Scream..
to the Uncaring Silent Gods ..
why I need
A few momonts more,
to see my children on the Plane..
That brave Ireland Sent..
coming to the Slaughter..
with honorable intent
Just a few minutes more..
then I’ll succumb
to the West’s Evil Wore
a few moments more.
Voyager – BrianFujisan
Two weeks to go before the end of the ceasefire. Was impotency to defend Lebanese interests against Israel the aim of Aoun’s election masked by his military credentials? As Rybar in English reports on its Telegram channel today.
“Last night, the Israeli Air Force carried out one of the most powerful series of strikes on Lebanese territory since the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah. The strikes hit both Hezbollah ammunition depots in the south of the country and targets on the border with Syria.
According to the IDF Spokesperson’s statement, the attack was prompted by the inaction of the Lebanese army, which the Israelis had previously informed about Hezbollah’s attempts to accumulate ammunition and use border infrastructure for arms smuggling.”
In other words the Lebanese army must attack their own people but not their external enemies.
Bear in mind that Hizbullah agreed to vote for the election of Aoun. That means they must have a deal to protect Hizbullah’s situation. Certainly the driving force for the truce was that the Christian and other non-Shi’a communities objected to be being bombed to hell by Israel. The Christian disconnect from Hizbullah’s war has been known for a long time, but they are no longer the majority, or even dominant, force as they had been before the civil war. Hizbullah is the largest bloc in parliament. So it must have been a delicate political judgement, driven by Lebanon’s catastrophic economic situation, but the Lebanese army is in no way situated to replace Hizbullah or disarm them.
I fear the Zionists attacks in the West Bank will escalate – which this man must be hoping will happen.
“The Israeli regime’s housing and construction minister has called on prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to facilitate the illegal settling of one million Israelis in the occupied West Bank.
Speaking to an Israeli news site on Sunday, Yitzhak Goldknopf urged Netanyahu to “bring a million Jews to Judea and Samaria,” referring to the West Bank by its Israeli term.
He also called for Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip to be leveraged to ramp up the regime’s settlement construction activities.
Over 770,000 Israelis live in settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East al-Quds, according to the latest figures released by the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, a Palestinian Authority agency.
While all Israeli settlements are illegal under international law, the Tel Aviv regime keeps expanding them in blatant violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions.”
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/01/13/740828/Israeli-minister-Goldknopf-settling-West-Bank
In her latest article Caitlin Johnstone informs us of the following:
The Australian political-media class has been rending its garments over a ridiculously fake incident of antisemitic graffiti at a synagogue in Sydney, which features both swastikas and the words “Free Palestine” right next to each other.
And she then goes on to say:
It’s weird how few people I see calling this what it so obviously is. Apparently we’re all supposed to take very seriously the idea that either (A) Nazis are spray painting the words “Free Palestine” next to their swastikas, or (B) that supporters of Palestinian rights are spray painting Nazi symbols next to their pro-Palestinian slogans. Apparently we’re all truly expected to pretend we don’t know some Israel supporter did this themselves to provide political cover for the genocide in Gaza.
She then posts a link to other such incidents, which turned out to be faked.
https://caityjohnstone.medium.com/amazon-is-censoring-my-most-recent-magazine-issue-3197e41f2f93
Anyway, After reading it I did a search to see how widely – or not – it’s being reported and, in doing so, discovered this isn’t the first time it’s happened. The following article is from May 1st last year:
‘Swastika found drawn on USC campus fence post’
A swastika was found drawn on a fence post at the edge of USC’s campus Tuesday, as pro-Palestine demonstrators continue their camp-in protest at the university.
https://www.foxla.com/news/usc-swastika-fencepost-usc-palestine-protest
And this, albeit from May 2021:
‘Swastika, ‘Free Palestine’ Graffiti Spray-Painted on Door of UK Synagogue’
A synagogue in Norwich, UK, has been defaced with antisemitic graffiti that include a swastika and an ethnic slur for Jews.
Local police said that sometime between 4 pm on Thursday and 7:30 am on Friday, the perpetrator spray-painted a swastika along with the words “K*ke” and what appeared to be “Free Palestine,” with several of the letters intertwining, on the door of the Adat Yeshua Messianic Synagogue in Norwich, in England’s Norfolk County.
https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/05/14/swastika-free-palestine-graffiti-spray-painted-on-door-of-uk-synagogue/
And this, from yesterday:
‘2 synagogues in Sydney graffitied with swastikas’
On Friday, according to Australian reports, Southern Sydney Synagogue was graffitied in red and black with swastikas as well as the phrases “Hitler on top” and “Allahu akbar,” Arabic for “God is great.” The following day, Saturday, the city’s Newtown Synagogue was likewise graffitied with red swastikas. And a house in Sydney was tagged with the phrase “F— Jews.”
https://forward.com/fast-forward/687952/2-synagogues-in-sydney-graffitied-with-swastikas/
And this, from October 30th last year:
‘Swastikas and ‘Free Palestine’ found spray-painted in tony Montauk’
Anti-Semitic graffiti was found spray-painted across Montauk Monday morning, including crudely rendered swastikas and scrawled letters that appeared to read “Free Palestine.”
The hateful symbols and phrases were discovered plastered across the doors, fencing, and picnic tables of two downtown restaurants — Naturally Good, and Sausages Pizza and Pastabilities — and on food trucks and signage about two miles away at Ditch Plains Beach.
“With the current climate and the state of affairs in the world it is troubling that an individual — or, individuals — would act out in such a manner,” East Hampton Town Police Captain Chris Anderson told Newsday.
Another phrase read “Jeden die.” It appeared they intended to write “Juden” — the German word for “Jews.”
https://nypost.com/2023/10/30/metro/swastikas-appear-across-montauk-on-monday-morning/
And this is from a Jewish News article re the incident in Norfolk in May 2021:
‘Messianic synagogue daubed with ‘Free Palestine’ and swastika’
Binyamin Sheldrake, from the insttution, told Jewish News he thought the worsening situation in the Middle East had emboldened antisemites to “jump on the bandwagon”.
“It’s horrible, it’s just people feeling they have permission to be antisemitic at the moment,” he said. “They get encouraged to step out and do stuff like this…”
Council officials were scrubbing off the slurs from the synagogue door this afternoon. “Police were saying they regard it as a hate crime,” he said.
“The CST will be informed. Police were saying it’s probably an extreme left-wing group, not a right wing group because of ‘Free Palestine’ but that’s a shot in the dark.”
https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/norwich-synagogue-daubed-with-free-palestine-and-swastika/
And this from April last year:
‘Two Philadelphia synagogues vandalised with swastika graffiti’
One synagogue had a swastika daubed on a banner expressing solidarity with Israel
Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El in the suburb of Wynnewood, had a swastika daubed on a banner expressing solidarity with Israel and Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel in Center City, had graffiti spray-painted on the sidewalk by its entrance last week.
The synagogue’s leadership also issued a statement on Facebook.
It said: “A swastika is not a commentary on the policies of the State of Israel, nor is it a sign of solidarity with Palestinians. It is a symbol of hatred and division.”
https://www.thejc.com/news/world/two-philadelphia-synagogues-vandalised-with-swastika-graffiti-m0ksmzpk
Yes, it could be that in some cases it’s Palestinian supporters using the swastika to make a comparison between the genocide Israel is committing in Gaza and the mass extermination of Jews by the Nazis, but the obvious thing for them to do would be to point THAT out. And given everything else the pro-Israel lobby have said and done to discredit and demonise and smear Palestinian supporters, I’d wager that it’s more-than-likely Zionists at work.
Just after I posted the comment above I thought about how the MSM was full of stories about Jeremy Corbyn supporters posting hateful and/or threatening comments either to, or about, the various Labour MPs – mostly female – who were ‘standing up to him’ and criticising him regards antisemitism in the LP. I have no doubt whatsoever that 1. The numbers were vastly inflated, and 2. That most of them were genuine criticisms and not remotely antisemitic, and 3. That it was fascist/zionist scumbags who were behind the really vile stuff in the vast majority of cases. As I’ve said on many occasions (mostly on skwawkbox) going back years, isn’t it funny how in these days of mass surveillance the police hardly ever manage to track them down on the one hand (the really vile or threatening posters, that is), and that the culprits themselves know how to avoid being traced and tracked down on the other. And WHO would know how to do that!
Anyway, I just did a search to see if I could find an example – an article – about JC supporters (allegedly) abusing whoever and, as such, came across this Jewish Chronicle article/opinion piece from August 26th, 2015 (just a couple of weeks or so prior to the leadership election), which I’ve never come across before:
‘Corbyn supporters post vile racism and he says nothing’
Did Twitter break the Labour party?
I am not being facetious. There is a certain gallows humour in joking about the wave of online antisemitism from supporters of Jeremy Corbyn.
Twitter has given voice and focus to a loud, dedicated minority among Mr Corbyn’s wider support; those who dislike, hate or even loathe Jews…
The majority of Jeremy Corbyn’s supporters are not antisemites but hundreds, maybe even thousands, of them are. Antisemites form a significant minority of Corbynites and they are among the loudest online. Abuse and Jew-hatred is rife…
Next, you have people who are antisemitic but do not know they are. Perhaps these are more worrying….. The antisemites are drawn to Mr Corbyn like a moth to a flame.
https://www.thejc.com/lets-talk/corbyn-supporters-post-vile-racism-and-he-says-nothing-fmxa6es1
Until I came across this article just now I had no idea that the zionist propagandist scum were going at it so hard so early on. And the author of the piece doesn’t appear to be named. Perhaps it was a joint effort!
Found a piece a month earlier in 2015, concerned that he was due to speak at a MEMO conference
https://cst.org.uk/news/blog/2015/07/08/jeremy-corbyn-and-antisemitism-questions-to-answer
It also refers to an upcoming hustings, which was at the JW3 centre. It would be reported that he’d said the Balfour declaration was “imposed” by Jewish members of the cabinet. But it was evident he said or meant “opposed”, because he then in the same meeting referred to the antizionist Jewish minister Montague opposing it.
https://web.archive.org/web/20151001012301/http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/140282/jeremy-corbyn-clarifies-balfour-declaration-remark-after-hustings-confusion
Reminds me I once saw a Japanese Youtuber vesting the Banksy art museum in Gaza is it. He showed a quote from Balfour on display, about zionism being more important than the desires of the Arab locals. When I checked, Banksy had omitted a word, fwiw Balfour wrote “desires and prejudices”.
The following is a good example of what I was referring to in my post earlier, and as I’m sure everyone who follows Craig would agree, is complete and utter B/S black propaganda garbage lies and fabrication:
‘Jewish Labour MP reveals she received more than 20,000 pieces of abuse in just 12 hours’
Speaking to the BBC this morning the MP said: “Since the end of June I have received somewhere in the region of 25,000 pieces of abuse.
“I got 20,000 pieces of abuse within 12 hours and once it starts on social media it keeps going.”
“It’s vile, it’s disgusting and it’s done in the name of the leader of the Labour Party, which makes it even worse.
What Smeeth is claiming is that she received 20,000 pieces of abuse (described as ‘hate messages’ in other papers) in the twelve hour period after the episode with Marc Wadsworth at the launch of the Chakrabati Report re antisemism at the end of June in 2016. And Smeeth is mentioning this for the first time at the beginning of September, some two months later.
I only learnt about her ‘speaking to the BBC’ when I came across the Telegraph article earlier. I first came across her absurd and outrageous lies and claims in a Sunday Times interview with her, published the following day (which had obviously been put together prior to her speaking to the BBC). So we’re supposed to believe that following an event that got widespread coverage in the MSM, Smeeth received 20,000 abusive and antisemitic messages… BUT!, she didn’t bother to notify the MSM about it. Yeah, sure! The reality is that even had she only received dozens of such messages, she would have notified the media about it/them at the time (albeit transforming them into HUNDREDS, no doubt). Let alone several hundred such messages! Of course she would. Oh, but she didn’t. I wonder why NOT?!
Needless to say, it is inconceivable that she wouldn’t have been on to the MSM straight away if she had received even a few hundred abusive messages within the space of twelve hours (after the MW episode), let alone 20,000, and it is of course all total B/S propaganda lies, which she and her fascist zionist buddies concocted much later on.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/09/02/jewish-labour-mp-reveals-she-received-more-than-2000-pieces-of-a/
The Sunday Times interview – headlined ‘Jewish MP receives 25,000 hate messages’ – is now behind a paywall, but it wasn’t at the time, and for several years or more afterwards, as I accessed it a number of times to copy and paste passages and link to it in comments that I posted (on skwawbox and JVL, and maybe even on here). Well, I suppose it’s the sort of B/S propaganda you’d want as many people as possible to read! And when I did a search earlier, it seems like most of the MSM covered the story, and probably ALL of them, and every single one of them knew it was complete and utter zionist garbage of course.
Afterthought: Wasn’t it Hitler who said ‘The bigger the lie…..’
In this 2017 interview with the pro-baby bombing Jewish Chronicle, Owen Jones says the rightwing Israel lobby group Jewish Labour Movement are goodies; the anti-zionist Corbyn-supporting Jewish Voice for Labour are baddies; demands Corbyn stand down as leader; insinuates the left is riven with antisemitism; says he looks forward to visiting Israel; and that he opposes BDS because “you end up indiscriminately targeting Jewish people”.
https://www.thejc.com/news/features/owen-jones-why-im-defending-jews-on-the-left-irqk199p
It seems like she read out in Parliament a few messages that were antisemitic. Then implied that all the rest of the ‘hateful’ (and disagreeable?) messages were because she’s Jewish.
Something about that Wadsworth incident that never get publicity, was that it was started by an allegation by a reporter who was there, sat next to Smeeth. His name was Kevin, from Politics Home. I found no info saying he’s Jewish. He used to be an editor for The Sun.
Yet a Rabbi later claimed that the accusation against Wadsworth should be trusted, because Jewish people can tell, like have a sixth sense for antisemitism. Well how did Kevin tell? The Telegraph reporter, Kate, when given the microphone, had complained about Wadsworth handing out a Momentum-related leaflet. Then Wadsworth, when given the microphone, complained about her handing his leaflet to Smeeth, thus could see who was “working hand in hand”. That is literally an allegation of political collusion, not the antisemitic trope of Jews controlling the media. The awful irony is that Smeeth then responded by storming off colluding with the media by declaring it antisemitic. The later hearing expressed concern that the accusation itself became the evidence.
The fly on the wall documentary of the witch hunt, which showed how Mossad insisted on total control within the Labour Party, may well have generated that level of horror, and response from people concerned that our democracy was being destroyed by Smeeth – and others – who insisted on putting the interests of Israel above those of the UK. Shai Masot was the controller whose meetings were shown. Momentum also sabotaged the Corbyn Opposition by separating his supporters from the old guard of new Labour before launching the antisemitism smear campaign to weed out all the left leaning Jewish people from the Party.
It was a time of puzzlement, disbelief, and concern, until the intensity of the msm onslaught showed quite how this man of peace was not acceptable to the real power in the UK
And now, for what it’s worth, the new Lebanese PM has been nominated, Nawaf Salam.
And guess what, he’s the former president of the International Court of Justice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nawaf_Salam
What to think of this new development? Better ask Craig…
Madison
His Wikipedia entry is impressive.
Maybe a little optimism is possible.
I just now went on the Jewish Chronicle’s website to check out something (see below), and the following article/headline/story was top of a list of current articles, posted yesterday evening (the 13th):
Jewish uproar as ‘antisemitic’ Irish president announced as guest of honour at Holocaust event
Michael Higgins has been accused of spreading lies about Israel
https://www.thejc.com/news/world/jewish-uproar-as-antisemitic-irish-president-announced-as-guest-of-honour-at-holocaust-event-hpsx6bs3
I haven’t bovvered reading it, cos it’ll no doubt set me off again! And there was also this, further down the list (posted on Jan 9th):
Outrage over National Portrait Gallery photo of keffiyeh-donned Gaza activist
Image of anti-Israel PSC campaigner who compared Gaza War to the Holocaust on display in taxpayer funded gallery
The National Portrait Gallery has come under fire from Jewish campaigners for displaying a keffiyeh-draped portrait of a Welsh woman who retweeted a post about the “Zionist regime” and has addressed crowds at numerous anti-Israel rallies.
The photograph of Nelly Adam, also known as Queen Niche, appears in the gallery’s 2024 Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize exhibit, which opened in November.
https://www.thejc.com/news/uk/outrage-over-national-portrait-gallery-photo-of-keffiyeh-donned-gaza-activist-y6zhofe2
Yep, there’s outrage and uproar galore!
And there was also this (posted on Jan 9th) about some guy I’ve never heard of (Dan Bilzerian), but they manage to incorporate the garbage about Roger Waters, and remind their readers about it as such:
News UK Jewish employees ‘deeply upset’ by ‘extreme antisemitism’ on Piers Morgan Uncensored
Staff accused the show of giving guests a platform to spout ‘dangerous and shameful’ rhetoric in interviews.
Jewish employees of News UK were left “deeply upset” last year after Piers Morgan’s Talk TV show gave a platform to “extreme antisemitism”.
Staff accused showrunnes of giving guests a platform to spout “dangerous and shameful” rhetoric in interviews.
And further on:
Morgan, who recently left News UK, had also interviewed Pink Floyd star Roger Waters after the bassist was investigated for wearing an allegedly “Nazi-style” uniform during a gig in Germany, despite his claims that the costume was a “statement in opposition to fascism” and that suggestions otherwise were “disingenuous and politically motivated”.
During his appearance, Waters claimed that Jews have no historical connection to the land of Israel and accused Israeli authorities of exaggerating the events of the October 7 2023 Hamas attack through “lies”.
https://www.thejc.com/news/uk/news-uk-jewish-employees-extreme-antisemitism-piers-morgan-rgbrr8k4
Anyway, the reason I went on their website is to search for the Ruth Smeeth B/S to see how they covered it, and unlike the rest of the MSM (in so far as I’ve checked, who mention ‘20,000’ (abusive messages in the space of twelve hours) the JC has it as ‘the majority’ of the 25,000 abusive messages she received. Now why wouldn’t you just say that it was 20,000….. Oh, maybe it’s because many of their readers may have thought to themselves ‘Hmm, how come I didn’t hear about it at the time’. Talking of which, I hadn’t heard of this bit before:
The outside of her home was damaged after the EU referendum in June, an incident which she now viewed as “much more concerning”.
Doesn’t surprise me one bit… and it was more-than-likely that Jeremy Corbyn antisemitic bloke.
MP received 25,000 abusive messages
https://www.thejc.com/news/mp-received-25-000-abusive-messages-ujh46n2e
PS I thought I’d finished, but I’d probably not get off to sleep for thinking about it, and so I had to do a search re her home being damaged. So first I did a general search, and there was absolutely nothing, and then I did a search on the JC (re >ruth smeeth home damaged<), and there were 0 results. I think what probably made me wonder if it was true is her saying that it's an incident she now views as 'much more concerning'. Ah, so that's why we didn't hear about it at the time – ie because she wasn't that concerned about it – but then later on she was. And it's odd how it doesn't say anything about what this damage to her home amounted to. Which was also a bit of a giveaway!
Night, night.
Trump shares Jeffrey Sachs’ spot-on criticism of a wanted war criminal.
How it’s framed by one corner of the media:
“Trump shares inflammatory video with crude reference to Netanyahu”
Jerusalem Post?
Nope.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/08/trump-video-crude-reference-netanyahu
Leftmost British MSM outlet during world-historic genocide.
Yes what on earth is “inflammatory” “crude” about the video ?
20 years back, these views that Sachs put out in the video, one read in the Guardian, that fact is something the Guardian should ponder about instead of writing this nonsense.
Indeed, but it has hitched its wagon to genocidal Labour and the US Democrats. It has to condition its readers to support these political parties no matter what they do.
Jack.
The Guardian and many other News ‘ Outlets ‘ will continue to do what’s necessary until The US and THE President Trump say otherwise.
I like Jeffrey Sachs and he is a genuine International Rules type person but I see this a lot that the US must obey the ‘ Rules ‘ but they don’t.
You cannot appeal to Israel’s and the US’s better nature – neither have one and there is little doubt in my mind that Trump may consider having a crack at Iran.
Thereby putting Russia on the spot and semi indirectly China.
How it will pan out – I don’t know but if Russia ( they are signing a Military? Pact on the 17/1/25) end up doing an ‘ All for One and One for All ‘ routine, then they had better come up with the goods.
I’m not convinced as Russia has more pressing things to do and in terms of Syria – it depends on whom you believe – dropped the ball?
In all at the moment it doesn’t look good and we will have to see what Trump wants to do?
Sachs said that Trump is pro Israel but not necessarily pro Netanyahu, then again,Trump being Trump and the US being the US then they think that they are the only one’s in the game.
You can have all your plans but reality will knock them down.
Turkey’s collusion with Israel in Syria and Gaza :
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/01/14/740881/Turkey-has-colluded-with-Israel-to-carve-up-Syria-and-collaborated-with-Tel-Aviv-in-perpetrating-the-Gaza-genocide
“At least 4,000 Turkish citizens have fought in the Israeli occupation forces during the genocide in Gaza.”
“Another more disturbing part of the story is how the Turkish state, and even those close to Erdoğan, has directly profited from the killing in Gaza. An Israeli company, Dorad Energy, supplies electricity to Israeli military bases, the second largest shareholder in the firm is Zorlu Holding, headed by Erdoğan’s close friend, Ahmet Nazif Zorlu.”
“The much vaunted Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline continued to supply 40% of Israel’s oil, running directly through Turkey.
This could have been cut off at any time, but Erdoğan repeatedly refused. Erdoğan even comically claimed at one point that he had ended Turkey’s $10 billion a year trade with Israel.
This claim was a blatant lie as Turkish ships continued heading to Israel, pretending to go to Port Saeed in Egypt, but diverting to Haifa. Some Turkish ships switched off their transponders and then docked at Ashdod.
The son of a former Turkish prime minister exposed Erdoğan on live TV, asserting that Erdoğan labels exports as destined for Palestine, but actually sends them to Israel.“
Trump appears to have ended the Gaza slaughter before taking office. If that happens, he will have successfully cemented it in history as a Democratic Pary genocide. Never forgive the liberals who supported Biden and Harris all the way through it, right to the end, deciding no red lines were crossed.
Source: Trump’s Mideast Envoy Forced Netanyahu to Accept a Gaza Plan He Repeatedly Rejected
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2025-01-13/ty-article/.premium/trumps-mideast-envoy-forced-netanyahu-to-accept-a-gaza-plan-he-repeatedly-rejected/00000194-615c-d4d0-a1f4-fbfdce850000
Perhaps it is the Biden administration that sought a deal to add to his legacy to, in the end, somehow cover up his genocidal support for Israel?
Trump also said that he would unleash “hell” (against palestinians) if the israeli “hostages” were not released.
What if Hamas Doesn’t Release the Hostages by Trump’s Inauguration?
https://archive.is/VWCCG
However Palestinians of course already live in “hell” so I assume Trump’s statement played no role for Hamas in agreeing to this deal.
And speaking of the “deal” itself, I assume it will be as bogus as the Lebanese ceasefire-deal that Israel breached from the getgo without any repercussion.
Just as the USA is ‘agreement adverse’, the Israeli’s are ‘peace adverse’. Every single ceasefire entered into by Israel has been broken within hours of commencement. Anyone who thinks the killing will stop is a fool, at best.
John Helmer has an account of the machinations of all the actors in Assad’s decision to abandon Syria…
“[Iranian] General Esbati revealed that Iran’s relations with Mr. al-Assad had been strained for months leading to his ouster, saying that the Syrian leader had denied multiple requests for Iranian-backed militias to open a front against Israel from Syria, in the aftermath of the Hamas-led attack of Oct. 7, 2023.
Iran had presented Mr. al-Assad with comprehensive military plans on how it could use Iran’s military resources in Syria to attack Israel, he said. The general also accused Russia, considered a top ally, of misleading Iran by telling it that Russian jets were bombing Syrian rebels when they were actually dropping bombs on open fields. He also said that in the past year, as Israel struck Iranian targets in Syria, Russia had “turned off radars,” in effect facilitating these attacks…
https://johnhelmer.net/writing-on-the-kremlin-wall-is-it-strategy-or-alibi/