I'm waiting for Saudi Arabia to get drawn into this fiasco of America's making. Then we'll see fireworks.
Trump's New York sentencing indefinitely postponed Trump was due to be sentenced after being convicted of 34 felonies for covering up hush payments to Stormy Daniels By Nicholas Liu News Fellow Published November 22, 2024 Former U.S. President Donald Trump sits in the courtroom for his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 21, 2024 in New York City. (Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images) New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan issued an order Friday that indefinitely postpones President-elect Donald Trump's sentencing in the Stormy Daniels hush money case. The order states that the court will grant a stay of sentencing, agreed to by both Trump and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, but it remains unclear if the case will now be entirely dismissed.
As you'd expect, only in America. If it were a unemployed black man, he'd be in jail years ago. I'm wondering if the teflon zionist company has an influence.
I agree with you, unfortunately. Three buckets of shit, or entire categories of impending fuckups, if you will, that will end the Republican Party as we currently know them no later than 2032. I would be more specific, but its certain to fall on deaf ears. Besides, what credibility does a lazy ass truck driver have? Failure to identify and lead from sound principles has consequences. Inevitable fuckups that inevitably ensue will have consequences. Democrats having free reign over our political system will have consequences. All of the preceding assumes we avoid WW-III, AI related issues, and massive civilian unrest. I'm trying think of something clever to close with regarding religion, but not feeling it.
Jewish salami slicing...... all with America's blessing. Israeli settlers set sights on Trump support for full control of West Bank Jonathan Saul and James Mackenzie Sat, November 23, 2024 3 / 5 Israeli settlers set sights on Trump support for full control of West Bank FILE PHOTO: Aftermath of Israeli settlers attack in Al-Bireh city By Jonathan Saul and James Mackenzie SHILO, West Bank (Reuters) - After a record expansion of Israeli settlement activity, some settler advocates in the occupied West Bank are looking to Donald Trump to fulfil a dream of imposing sovereignty over the area seen by Palestinians as the heart of a future state. The West Bank has been transformed by the rapid growth of Jewish settlements since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned at the head of a far-right nationalist coalition two years ago. During that time, an explosion in settler violence that has led to U.S. sanctions. In recent weeks, Israeli flags have sprouted on hilltops claimed by some settlers in the West Bank's Jordan Valley, adding to worries among many local Palestinians of greater control of those areas. Some settlers prayed for Trump's victory before the election. "We have high hopes. We're even buoyant to a certain extent," said Yisrael Medad, an activist and writer who supports Israel absorbing the West Bank, speaking to Reuters about Trump's victory in the house he has lived in for more than four decades in the West Bank settlement of Shilo. Settlers have celebrated Trump's nomination of a clutch of officials known for pro-Israel views, among them ambassador Mike Huckabee, an evangelical Christian who has said the West Bank is not under occupation and prefers the term "communities" to "settlements." And over the past month, Israeli government ministers and settler advocates who have cultivated ties with the U.S. Christian right have increasingly pushed the once fringe idea of "restoring sovereignty" over the West Bank in public comments. The Netanyahu government has not announced any official decision on the matter. A spokesperson at Netanyahu’s office declined to comment for this story. It is by no means certain Trump will give backing to a move that puts at risk Washington's strategic ambition of a wider deal under the Abraham Accords to normalize Israel's ties with Saudi Arabia, which, like most countries in the world, rejects Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank. "Trump's desire for expansion of the Abraham Accords will be a top priority," Dennis Ross, a former Middle East negotiator for Democratic and Republican administrations said, based on his own assessment of Trump's foreign policy considerations. "There's no way the Saudis will think seriously about joining if Israel formally absorbs the West Bank," he said. Annexation would bury any hope of a two-state solution that creates an independent Palestine and also complicate efforts to resolve more than a year of war in Gaza that has spilled over into neighbouring Lebanon. In his first term, Trump moved the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and ended Washington's long-held position that the settlements are illegal. But, in 2020, his plan to create a rump of a Palestinian state along existing boundaries derailed efforts by Netanyahu for Israeli sovereignty over the area. The president-elect has not revealed his plans for the region. Trump transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt did not answer questions about policy, saying only that he would "restore peace through strength around the world." Nonetheless, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, one of the most prominent pro-settler ministers in the government, said last week he hoped Israel could absorb the West Bank as early as next year with the support of the Trump administration. Israel Ganz, the head of the Yesha Council, an umbrella group of West Bank Jewish municipalities, said in an interview that he hoped the Trump administration would "let" Israel's government move ahead. Ganz led a prayer session for a Trump victory in the ruins of an old Byzantine basilica in Shilo before the Nov. 5 election. "We prayed that God will lead to better days for the people of the United States of America and for Israel," he said. Shilo has been a popular stop for visiting U.S. politicians, including both Huckabee and Pete Hegseth, Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense. Last week, Huckabee told Arutz Sheva, an Israeli news outlet aligned with Smotrich's Religious Zionism movement, that any decision on annexation would be a matter for the Israeli government. Huckabee did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Senior Palestine Liberation Organization official Wasel Abu Yousef said any such action by the Israeli government "will not change the truth that this is Palestinian land." SURROUNDED Together with the neighbouring settlement of Eli, Shilo sits near the centre of the West Bank, an hour from Jerusalem along Route 60, a smooth motorway that contrasts sharply with the potholed roads that connect the area's Palestinian cities. Bashar al-Qaryouti, a Palestinian activist from the nearby village of Qaryut, said the expansion of Shilo and Eli had left Palestinian villages in the central West Bank surrounded. Al-Qaryouti described an increase in settlers constructing without waiting for formal paperwork from the Israeli government, a trend also noted by Peace Now, an Israeli activist group that tracks settlement issues. "This is happening on the ground," Al-Qaryouti told Reuters by phone. "Areas across the centre of the West Bank are under the control of settlers now." The West Bank, which many in Israel call Judea and Samaria after the old Biblical terms for the area, is a kidney shaped region about 100 km (60 miles) long and 50 km (30 miles) wide that has been at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since it was captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war. Most countries consider the area as occupied territory and deem the settlements illegal under international law, a position upheld by the U.N's top court in July. Around 750,000 Palestinians were displaced with the creation of Israel in 1948, according to U.N. estimates. The West Bank is claimed by Palestinians as the nucleus of a future independent state, along with the Mediterranean enclave of Gaza to the south. But the spread of Jewish settlements, which have mushroomed across the West Bank since the Oslo interim peace accords 30 years ago, has transformed the area. Revered as the site of the tabernacle set up by the ancient Israelites after they returned from exile in Egypt and kept there for 300 years, modern Shilo was established in the 1970s and has the air of a gated community of quiet streets and neat suburban homes. Its population in 2022 was around 5,000 people. For supporters of Jewish settlements, the Biblical connection is what gives them the right to be there, whatever international law may say. "Even if the Byzantines, the Romans, the Mameluks and Ottomans ruled it, it was our land," said Medad. As such, settler advocates reject the term "annexation," which they say suggests taking a foreign territory. Settlement construction in the West Bank reached record levels in 2023. Since the war started in Gaza last October, a spate of new roads and ground works have changed the appearance of hillsides across the area visibly. Criticism from the Biden administration has done nothing to stop it. At the same time, violence by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has spiralled, including around Shilo, drawing international condemnation and U.S. and European sanctions, as recently as this week, against individuals deemed to have taken a prominent part. Settler leaders including Ganz say violence has no place in their movement. The settler movement has argued that they provide security for the rest of Israel with their presence in areas near Palestinian towns and cities. "IRREVERSIBLE FACT" A series of steps have been taken to consolidate Israel's position in the West Bank since Netanyahu's government came to power with a coalition agreement stating "The Jewish people have a natural right to the Land of Israel." "We're changing a lot of things on the ground to make it a fact that Israel is in Judea and Samaria as well," said Ohad Tal, chairman of Smotrich's parliamentary faction, speaking beside a red Trump MAGA hat on a shelf in his Knesset office. A whole mechanism has been built "to effectively apply sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, to make it an irreversible fact that Jewish presence is there and to stay." Many functions relating to settlements previously handled by the military have been handed to the Settlement Administration, a civilian body answerable directly to finance minister Smotrich, who has an additional defence ministry portfolio that puts him in charge of running the West Bank. In 2024, nearly 6,000 acres (2,400 hectares) have been declared Israeli state land, a classification that makes it easier to build settlements, the biggest annual growth on record and accounting for half of all areas declared state land in the past three decades, Peace Now said in a report in October. At least 43 new settler outposts have been established over the past year, compared with an average of under 7 a year since 1996, according to a separate analysis from Peace Now. The outposts, often satellites of existing settlements on nearby hilltops that allow the original location to expand, have been served with kilometres of new roads and other infrastructure. Often built illegally according to Israeli law, the Yesha Council has said almost 70 were extended government support this year. "It's clever because it's boring looking," said Ziv Stahl, a director of Yesh Din, another Israeli group that tracks settlements. "They are not legislating now, saying 'We are annexing the West Bank', they are just doing it." (Additional reporting by Ali Sawafta in Ramallah and Matt Spetalnick in Washington) Israeli settlers pray Trump will realize their West Bank hopes Sat, November 23, 2024 STORY: The Israeli settlement of Shilo is perched in the highlands of the occupied West Bank. Jewish settlements such as Shilo have recently seen rapid expansion onto land claimed by Palestinians. And Jewish settlers are optimistic that incoming U.S. president Donald Trump will help them realize a key goal: the annexation or absorption of the West Bank into Israel, despite Palestinian objections. Yisrael Medad is a Jewish Israeli activist who lives in Shilo: "I think that we're still in a process of getting both the American administration, United Nations and other people to realize that our rights extend to Judea and Samaria and eventually we will be able to have sovereignty here." Since conquering the West Bank from Jordan in a 1967 war, Israel has not officially annexed the territory. And Palestinians, Israeli peace activists, and previous U.S. administrations have hoped the West Bank would one day become part of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. One Palestinian activist said the expansion of settlements had left Palestinian villages in the central West Bank surrounded. He said much of the expansion was happening without formal approval from the government, telling Reuters, "areas across the centre of the West Bank are under the control of settlers now." According to analysis from the Israeli non-government group Peace Now, which tracks settlement expansion, at least 43 new settler outposts have been established over the past year. That's compared with an average of under seven a year since 1996. Most countries consider the West Bank occupied territory and deem the settlements illegal under international law. That position was upheld by the U.N's top court in July. At the same time, violence by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has escalated, drawing international condemnation and U.S. and European sanctions It is difficult to see how the next Trump administration could balance Israel absorbing the West Bank with preserving Palestinian dreams of statehood. One of the diplomatic achievements of Trump's first term in office is what are called the Abraham Accords: a deal that normalized relations between Israel and four Arab nations. And Trump may likely want to expand the Accords to include Saudi Arabia. But Riyadh rejects Israeli claims to sovereignty in the West Bank. Former U.S. Mideast envoy Dennis Ross told Reuters, “there’s no way the Saudis will think seriously about joining if Israel formally absorbs the West Bank.” HUCKABEE: "I recognize Judea and Samaria as part of Israel." But many figures in the incoming Trump administration, particularly those on the American Christian right, are explicitly sympathetic to Israel's settler movement. They include Christian Evangelical Mike Huckabee, who Trump named as his next ambassador to Israel. Many American Evangelicals affirm what they say are ancient Jewish claims to the land, which they call by the Biblical names Judea and Samaria. Near the settlement of Shilo is an archaeological site that some identify with Biblical figures such as Hannah, and the prophet Samuel. Huckabee, as well as Trump's nominee for Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, have visited the site. Huckabee did not immediately respond to a request for comment. PASSENTIN: "Many of the people of the new administration have been here to Shilo with us, have prayed with us, have toured with us, have come because they understand the Biblical significance and how important it is to Israel." Eliana Passentin lives in the nearby settlement of Eli and serves on the regional council. "And I think that the new administration understands and appreciates the right we have as Jews to the biblical heartland." In his first term, Trump moved the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. He also ended Washington's long-held position that the settlements are illegal. But, in 2020, his plan to create a rump of a Palestinian state along existing boundaries derailed efforts by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for Israeli sovereignty over the area. Now, Israeli activists hope that sovereignty will finally be made official. GANZ: "Our hope is that we will take a decision together." Israel Ganz is the head of the Yesha council, and umbrella group of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. "I understand the responsibility is in the Israeli government, but I hope that the Trump administration will let them take the decision, that will be good for the State of Israel, and I will say the Middle East."
Explainer: The Hague Invasion Act and the ICC arrest warrants against Israel US official made threats to invoke the controversial "Hague Invasion Act." Here’s what the act entails and why it is significant following ICC Israel warrants The New Arab Staff 22 November, 2024 Could G.I Joes soon be on the streets of The Hague? [Getty] The arrest warrants issued on Thursday by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant have sparked intense reactions from the United States, including threats from lawmakers to invoke the controversial "Hague Invasion Act." Here’s what the act entails and why it is significant in the current context. What is the Hague Invasion Act? The Hague Invasion Act is the informal name for the American Service-Members' Protection Act, signed into law by President George W. Bush on 3 August 2002. The law was designed to protect U.S. military personnel and government officials from being prosecuted by the ICC. It gives the United States the authority to use "all necessary means," including military force, to secure the release of any U.S. or allied citizen detained by the ICC. It came ahead of the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq where U.S. and UK troops are alleged to have committed numerous war crimes. The act came as a response to the U.S. refusal to recognise the jurisdiction of the ICC, fearing that American soldiers and officials could be subject to politically motivated prosecutions. Due to its provisions, the law has been dubbed the "Hague Invasion Act," as it theoretically allows the U.S. to invade the Netherlands, where the ICC is based, to free any Americans in ICC custody. How does It relate to Israel? The ICC’s recent arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant have intensified debates around the Hague Invasion Act. Some U.S. lawmakers, particularly those who are strong supporters of Israel, have suggested using the act as leverage against the ICC and any countries that might enforce the arrest orders. Republican Senator Tom Cotton went as far as to threaten the ICC, calling it a "kangaroo court" and hinting at the use of the Hague Invasion Act against nations that attempt to detain Israeli officials. "The ICC is a kangaroo court and Karim Khan is a deranged fanatic. Woe to him and anyone who tries to enforce these outlaw warrants. Let me give them all a friendly reminder: the American law on the ICC is known as The Hague Invasion Act for a reason. Think about it," he wrote on X. While U.S. President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump did not go this far, Biden lambasted the ICC's warrants while Trump's pick for national security advisor Mike Waltz threatened the court with "a strong response" and wrote on social media that the ICC "has no credibility". The U.S. has historically opposed ICC investigations into Israel, citing concerns over fairness and jurisdiction, and has used diplomatic and financial means to shield Israeli leaders from accountability in international courts. On Wednesday, the U.S. vetoed a UN Security Council Gaza ceasefire resolution. International reactions and legal implications The Hague Invasion Act has long been controversial, even among U.S. allies. When it was first passed, it triggered a wave of criticism, particularly in Europe. Human Rights Watch described the law as an attempt to intimidate countries that cooperate with the ICC. The Netherlands, as the host country of the ICC and a NATO ally, was particularly vocal in its opposition, given the implicit threat that the U.S. could, in theory, invade its territory. In the context of the ICC arrest warrants for Israeli officials, the Hague Invasion Act is being framed as a potential tool to deter the enforcement of international justice. The ICC has 124 member states, all of which are obligated to execute arrest warrants issued by the court. This puts Israeli leaders, including Netanyahu, at risk of being detained if they travel to any of these countries, significantly limiting their diplomatic freedom. However, U.S. lawmakers' threats suggest that there may be severe consequences for any country that attempts to enforce these arrest orders. Whether or not the U.S. would actually use military force under the Hague Invasion Act remains uncertain, but the mere threat serves as a powerful signal to the ICC and the international community. However, Ohio State University law professor John Quigley told The New Arab's Arabic edition: "There isn’t much the U.S. can do against the ICC after its decision to issue an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu." He explained that some members of Congress want to punish the court and that once President-elect Donald Trump assumes office in January, he might take measures against some court officials, as he did previously when he barred them from entering the United States. However, "there is nothing the U.S. can do to prevent the court from handling a case or doing what it needs to do in any case."
Israeli strikes without warning in central Beirut kill at least 20 as diplomats push for cease-fire An excavator removes a destroyed car … more > By Abby Sewell and Bassem Mroue Associated Press Saturday, November 23, 2024 https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/nov/23/israeli-strikes-without-warning-central-beirut-dip/ BEIRUT, Lebanon — Israeli airstrikes Saturday in central Beirut killed at least 20 people, officials said, as the once-rare attacks on the heart of Lebanon’s capital continued without warning while diplomats scrambled to broker a cease-fire. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 66 people were wounded in the strikes, which were the fourth in central Beirut in less than a week. The escalation comes after U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein traveled to the region in pursuit of a deal to end months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah that has erupted into full-on war. Israeli attacks have killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the Israeli side, about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed by bombardment in northern Israel and the fighting. The 4 a.m. strikes destroyed an eight-story building in central Beirut. Hezbollah legislator Amin Shiri said no Hezbollah officials were inside. The attack stripped the facades from some nearby buildings and crumpled cars. “The area is residential, with closely packed buildings and narrow streets, making the situation challenging,” said Walid Al-Hashash, a first responder with the Lebanese Civil Also Saturday, a drone strike killed two people and injured three in the southern Lebanese port city of Tyre, according to the Lebanese state-run National News Agency. Mohammed Bikai, spokesperson for the Fatah Palestinian faction in the Tyre area, said those killed were Palestinian refugees from nearby al-Rashidieh camp who were out fishing. Despite a warning last month by Israel’s army to avoid Lebanon’s southern coast, “you can’t tell someone who needs to eat that you can’t fish,” Bikai said. The Health Ministry said other airstrikes killed eight people, including four children, in the eastern town of Shmustar, five others in the southern village of Roumin, and another five people in the northeastern village of Budai. Two Western diplomatic officials on Saturday described disputed points between Israel and Lebanon in cease-fire negotiations. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the talks. The current proposal calls for a two-month cease-fire during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon and Hezbollah would end its armed presence along the southern border south of the Litani River. Thousands more Lebanese army troops would patrol the border area with U.N. peacekeepers, and an international committee would monitor the deal’s implementation. The officials said Israel wanted more guarantees that Hezbollah’s weapons are removed from the border area. Israeli officials have said they would not agree to a deal that did not explicitly grant them freedom to strike in Lebanon if they believe Hezbollah is violating it. Lebanese officials have said the inclusion of such a term would violate their country’s sovereignty. And Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said this week that the militant group would not agree to a deal that doen’ts not entail a “complete and comprehensive end to the aggression.” Lebanon and Israel also dispute which countries would sit on the monitoring committee. The officials said Israel refused to allow France, which has been close with Lebanon since its colonial rule there ended. Lebanon refused to have Britain, a close ally of Israel. In northern Gaza, the Health Ministry said at least 80 people, total, were killed on Thursday and Friday, including near the Kamal Adwan and Al-Ahli hospitals. It said dozens of people were trapped under the rubble. Israel’s army said it wasn’t aware of a strike near Kamal Adwan, and it didn’t respond to questions about the other attacks. On Saturday, at least six people, including three children and two women, were killed in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to Associated Press reporters and staff at Nasser Hospital. “Suddenly we woke up to dust, smoke and a fire,” said one grieving father, Ahmad Ghassan. “We found him dead and his brother injured.” Another father wept as he carried his child’s body in a bloodstained sheet. And Al-Awda Hospital said it received six bodies after Israel shelled a house north of the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. The Palestinian death toll from the 13-month-long war surpassed 44,000 this week, according to the Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. It has said more than half the dead are women and children. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead. The Israeli offensive in Gaza has devastated wide areas, and around 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been displaced, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands live in tent camps with little food, water or basic services. At least two women were shot dead Saturday while waiting in line for bread in central Deir al-Balah, relatives and witnesses told the AP. It was unclear who shot them and why. The United Nations says its attempts to support hard-hit northern Gaza, which has been the focus of a renewed Israeli offensive for weeks, have been denied or impeded, and that less than 20% of the population has remained there since the offensive began.
Israel is running out of fresh blood to spill in Gaza so it needs to create new enemies. I mean, if America supplies unlimited bombs ya gotta try to use them up. Thank god for Trump, after Biden the nutter we needed another nutter to continue the killing. Bibi is happy.