Haha NZ National won more than 38 per cent of the vote and 48 seats. ACT Party's 11 seats, the right-bloc partners hold 59 seats — not enough to form a majority government with the New Zealand parliament set to have a total of 122 seats this term. its now a month since Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and his Labour Party lost the election, but they have been sworn in again as a caretaker government while their political opponents keep talking including Peters !!______________________________________________________ After all the pomp and pageantry in Washington with a state dinner and meetings with US President Joe Biden, where the strategic alliance was celebrated with unusual gusto, Mr Albanese hotfooted it to Beijing where he was feted in personal meetings with no less than President Xi Jinping. Japanese leaders are incensed at reports Mr Xi expressed a desire during his discussions with Mr Albanese to join the 12-member regional trade pact known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Haha !!______________________________________________________ Former UK Prime Minister David Cameron has made a surprise comeback to the British government after being appointed to head the country’s Foreign Office by incumbent PM Rishi Sunak. Cameron, who led the country for six years, resigned in 2016 after the UK voted to leave the European Union. The move was announced by Downing Street on Monday as part of a major cabinet reshuffle. David Cameron was a member of Conservative Friends of Israel as an MP and patron of the Jewish National Fund before stepping down in 2011 while prime minister. However: Saturday was the biggest ever pro-Palestine march in UK history, with over 800,000 people marching in the streets calling for a ceasefire in Gaza_______________________________________________________ Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko held talks in New Delhi on Monday. The discussions covered bilateral topics, including political, trade, economic, energy, connectivity, defense and consular issues. Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko held talks in New Delhi on Monday. The discussions covered bilateral topics, including political, trade, economic, energy, connectivity, defense and consular issues, Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi announced on X (formerly Twitter). He added that the parties shared their “perspectives on regional and global issues of mutual interest.” The meeting comes just days after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited New Delhi for an annual 2+2 ministerial dialogue. Blinken held discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 10 on the sidelines of the event, and the two “reaffirmed” their countries’ “shared vision for close partnership in the Indo-Pacific and on issues of global importance,” according to the US State Department’s readout. Last month, media reports suggested that Moscow and New Delhi were in discussions regarding a bilateral summit between Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin by end of the year. However, there was no “immediate date or plans for that,” the Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson later clarified. Diplomatic sources have confirmed to RT that while both sides remain in close contact and discussions on a potential meeting are being held at a high level, nothing has been decided yet. Economic cooperation between Russia and India has been growing rapidly in the past year. According to data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry, total trade between the two countries in the first eight months of the year reached nearly $44 billion. Defense and security cooperation has also been robust, with Russia currently executing multiple large orders, including the construction of two stealth frigates and the delivery of the two remaining units of S-400 Triumph air defense
yeah few loose canons on here One deleted off one of his blogs the very information that he now seeks. So I gave him a hint but clearly flew over the top head. The hint Queensland has its own state constitution but is part of Australia. And likewise Ukraine by virtue of its constitution that was ratified in 1936 bound Ukraine to the Democratic Russian Federations constitution that was created after the demise of the Soviet Union in 1991 and ratified in December 1993. Ukraine was not one of the five parts of the old of Soviet Union that elected to separate from Russia and Ukraine's own state like constitution bound it to the Democratic Russian Federation and its Bill of Rights.
Even half dumb clown should be able to comprehend even though google search engine has been cleaned of related factorial information. It doesn't take an much brain power to figure out that Ukraine is alleged by a bunch christian Nazi supporters to have created a new Ukraine Constitution and separation 1996. As for full of it swede no comment mate
US House Speaker Johnson floats two-step measure to avert gov't shutdown
The House and Democratic-led Senate must agree on a spending vehicle that President Joe Biden can sign into law by Friday, or risk a fourth partial government shutdown in a decade that would close national parks, disrupt pay for as many as 4 million federal workers and disrupt a swath of activities from financial oversight to scientific research.
_____________________________________________ China accused Canada, Saturday, of conducting a "malicious and provocative" air patrol over the disputed South China Sea, after Ottawa rebuked Beijing for what it described as a second risky midair intercept in two weeks.
Canada's Defense Minister Bill Blair said Friday that a Chinese fighter jet twice flew close to a Canadian Cyclone helicopter over the Paracel Islands, Oct. 29, firing flares "directly in front" of the aircraft on the second flyby. _______________________________________________ Russia on Tuesday formally withdrew from a landmark security treaty which limited key categories of conventional armed forces, blaming the United States for undermining post-Cold War security with the enlargement of the NATO military alliance.
The 1990 Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE), signed a year after the fall of the Berlin Wall, placed verifiable limits on categories of conventional military equipment that NATO and the then-Warsaw Pact could deploy.
The treaty was designed to prevent either side of the Cold War from amassing forces for a swift offensive against the other in Europe, but was unpopular in Moscow as it blunted the Soviet Union's advantage in conventional weapons.
Russia suspended participation in the treaty in 2007 and halted active participation in 2015. More than a year after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin in May signed a decree denounced the pact. ______________________________________________________ The United States will suspend the operation of its obligations under a late Cold War-era security treaty next month following Russia's withdrawal, a senior White House official said Tuesday.
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan made the announcement as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) decided to suspend its obligations of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) aimed at limiting key categories of conventional military equipment in Europe.
The suspension came as prospects for international security cooperation remain bleak amid Russia's protracted war in Ukraine and the escalating war between Israel and the Hamas militant group, not to mention the intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry. _____________________________________________________ WeWork, the SoftBank Group-backed startup whose meteoric rise and fall reshaped the office sector globally, sought U.S. bankruptcy protection on Monday after its bets on companies using more of its office-sharing space soured.
The move represents an admission by SoftBank, the Japanese technology group that owns about 70percent of WeWork and has invested billions of dollars in its turnaround, that the company cannot survive unless it renegotiates its pricey leases in bankruptcy.
A WeWork spokesperson said about 92percent of the company's lenders had agreed to convert their secured debt into equity under a restructuring support agreement, wiping out about $3 billion of debt. SoftBank would retain an equity stake under the proposed restructuring, according to court documents.
The China Development Bank on Monday disbursed a 7 billion yuan ($956.61 million) loan agreement with Egypt's central bank, according to a statement released by the Beijing-based bank on Tuesday.
The agreement was signed during the third Belt and Road Forum held in Beijing earlier this month, the statement said, and is to finance projects agreed upon at that summit as well as during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2021.
Data from the World Gold Council reveals that China purchased 23 tonnes of gold in July, bringing its total net gold acquisitions for 2023 to 126 tonnes. As a result, China's gold reserves now stand at approximately 2136 tonnes, representing roughly 4 percent of the global gold reserves.
The stock of global debt rose $10 trillion in the first half of 2023, bringing it to a new record high of $307 trillion, according to a report by the Institute of International Finance released Tuesday.
Mature markets such as the U.S., the U.K., Japan and France were responsible for more than 80% of the debt build-up in the first half of the year, while China, India and Brazil have seen the most pronounced increase in the emerging markets. ________________________________________________ Debt as a share of GDP has risen to about the same level as in the United States, while in dollar terms China's total debt ($47.5 trillion) is still markedly below that of the United States (close to $70 trillion). As for non-financial corporate debt, China's 28 percent share is the largest in the world.
China is one of the United States's largest creditors, owning about $859.4 billion in U.S. debt. ________________________________________________ In 2022, global public debt – comprising general government domestic and external debt – reached a record USD 92 trillion. Developing countries owe almost 30% of the total, of which roughly 70% is attributable to China, India and Brazil. ____________________________________________________ In total, the Chinese state and its subsidiaries have lent about $1.5 trillion in direct loans and trade credits to more than 150 countries around the globe. This has turned China into the world’s largest official creditor — surpassing traditional, official lenders such as the World Bank, the IMF, or all OECD creditor governments combined.
Russia is confident that current attempts by the Kiev regime to split the Orthodox community in Ukraine will be successfully quashed, Alexey Polishchuk, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Second CIS Department, said in an interview with TASS.
The diplomat reiterated that on October 19, the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s unicameral parliament, passed a bill in the first reading aimed at banning the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) and ensuring its further absorption by the breakaway schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), "which is Washington and Constantinople’s political project." "The Orthodox faith has weathered many tragic events, including the Tatar-Mongol invasion, the Union of Brest (in 1595-1596, which shifted the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of traditionally Orthodox lands from the Patriarchate of Constantinople to the Holy See in Rome - TASS), numerous wars and other large-scale upheavals. We are confident that the current attempts to artificially break Orthodoxy apart will also be surmounted," he noted.
Polishchuk stressed that the bill allowing the banning of the UOC is "legally invalid and contravenes the Ukrainian constitution." "Such an initiative is part of the Kiev regime’s extensive information campaign to discredit the UOC and its clergy. Such destructive steps are splitting Ukrainian society, striking a nerve among tens of millions of Orthodox believers. It is obvious that such a policy track may have the most serious consequences," he said, noting that canonical Orthodoxy on the territory of modern-day Ukraine has a long history going back over one thousand years.
"We have been consistently urging the global community to condemn the iniquity underway in Ukraine and have been calling upon international organizations to demand that the Kiev regime abandon the policy of church repressions," the diplomat concluded. Situation around Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC)
In recent years, the Ukrainian authorities have been openly moving toward banning the UOC and this process has only intensified since February 2022. The schismatics from the OCU, with the Ukrainian government’s approval, have been taking over UOC churches by force and attacking UOC priests. The canonical church is being deprived of its right to lease land plots for siting its churches, while its priests are being accused of high treason and other crimes, sanctioned or stripped of citizenship. Although at least 5-6 mln Ukrainians still adhere to the UOC, according to data from the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, the officially sanctioned persecution of the canonical church continues unabated.
On the instructions of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, the government drafted a bill aimed at banning the canonical church. On October 19, the Verkhovna Rada passed it in the first of three readings. The UOC pointed out that the bill contravenes the country’s constitution and violates the right of citizens to freedom of religion.
The corruption within Ukraine is unmatched anywhere in the world, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday. "In Russia, we have plenty of problems. We, in Russia, and in the entire world are fighting corruption, but corruption in Ukraine has taken on a life of its own - there is nothing like it in the world, you can take it from me," he said at a meeting with the new members of the Russian Public Chamber.
"Believe me - I had close contacts with former leaders - they buy everything: the vote in the Supreme Court, the vote in the Constitutional Court. Buy!" he said. He recalled his talks with the former Ukrainian leaders who used to say when discussing certain topics: "We will take care of this, it will cost this much." "This coming from the highest officials! I was taken aback! I said: ‘This is how you do things here?! [And the answer was]: Well, yes, this is the way it is here,’" Putin shared details.
As an example of corruption in Ukraine, the Russian president cited arms sales. "They say now - weapons from Ukraine are popping up in the Middle East. Of course they are, because they sell them," he said, adding that Ukraine also sells weapons to the Taliban (outlawed in Russia). And, from there, [the weapons] spread anywhere," Putin said.
"Everything is for sale," he described the situation in Ukraine.
"People in Novorossiya and Donbass were living in such conditions, with everything bogged down in corruption," he said. "We must introduce our standards steadily while showing respect to society, to the people living there." He admitted, however, that corruption is a problem in Russia as well. "But the scope is different: there [in Ukraine], corruption is actually legal," he added.
Armed Israeli settlers stormed the Armenian Quarter in occupied East Jerusalem on Sunday, 5 November, in an effort to lay a hand on a piece of land following the signing of a murky deal between the Jerusalem Arminian Patriarchate and Xana Capital, owned by Jewish Australian investor Danny Rubenstein.
Rubenstein carries an Israeli passport and also goes by the name Danny Rothman. _________________________________________________________ Sweden's exports of ball-bearings to Germany were vitally important, but were even overshadowed during the early years of the war when Sweden supplied Germany with 40 percent of its iron-ore before imports of iron ore from other European countries reduced this dependency.
Sweden declared its neutrality in September 1939. However, after the German occupation of Norway and Denmark in April 1940, Sweden was less well placed to resist German pressure to relax its neutral stance. In June 1940 Sweden signed a transit agreement with Germany allowing goods and troops to transit Sweden on their way from Norway to Finland. German soldiers on rotation to and from the war front made about 250,000 trips across Swedish territory, as late as August 1943. Moreover, the Swedish Navy escorted German convoys in the Baltic.
The Germans also increased their economic and financial ties to Sweden. When the war begun Germans had over 130 corporations, or groups of corporations in Sweden that were outright branches and subsidiaries of German firms. There were also firms that were believed to be financed by German corporations of German nationals. These included AEG, Krupp, the Siemens Group, I.G. Farben, and Telefunken Gesellschaft. In addition, there were over 170 Swedish corporations, or group of corporations, to varying degrees had an identity of interest with German corporations, such as patent and trademark agreements, "dummy" and "cloaking" activities, cartel agreements, contractual relationships, and direct representation of German firms, e.g., through Swedish sales agencies.
German influence was significant in Swedish industry, such as iron-ore and mining, coal import and distribution, machine and machine tool manufacture, forestry, chemical raw materials manufacture, shipping and shipbuilding, and steel. The Germans also had real estate investments in Sweden.
Germany's war effort depended significantly upon its imports of raw materials and goods from the neutral nations. Sweden's exports of ball-bearings to Germany were vitally important, but were even overshadowed during the early years of the war when Sweden supplied Germany with 40 percent of its iron-ore before imports of iron ore from other European countries reduced this dependency.
Major Australian port operator shuts down amid cyber security incident, impacting goods in and out of the country In short: Goods coming in and out of Australia are at a stand still because a major port operator DP World has shut down land operations in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle. The federal government is helping respond to the incident.
DP World Australia, which operates ports in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle, is responsible for 40 per cent of maritime freight said it began responding to a cybersecurity incident on Friday.
While ships remain able to unload freight, the freight cannot then leave the port site. _____________________________________________________ The number of Ukrainian asylum seekers in the EU continues to soar, reaching 4.2 million people registered in the bloc and eligible for various social benefits, officials said on Friday.
However, Russia has also emerged as a major destination for Ukrainian refugees. According to Vassily Nebenzia, Moscow’s permanent representative to the UN, since February 2022 several Russian regions have received more than five million people from Ukraine and Donbass.
Shortly after the start of the conflict, the EU invoked the Temporary Protection Directive which grants Ukrainian citizens the right to free or subsidized housing, medical care, employment, and education on the bloc’s territory.
An Israeli minister said on Sunday that using a nuclear weapon on Gaza is "an option" in Tel Aviv’s ongoing war on the besieged Palestinian enclave.
Amichai Eliyahu belongs to the far-right Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party, led by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, and has been the Minister for Heritage in the Israeli government since 2022. _________________________________________________ Nine people were killed in US warplanes strikes on an Iran-linked weapons storage facility in eastern Syria on Wednesday in response to attacks against American personnel, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.
It is the second time in roughly two weeks that the United States has targeted a location in Syria it said was tied to Iran, which supports an array of armed groups that Washington blames for a spike in attacks on its forces in the Middle East. _________________________________________________________ After four years, the Chinese mega-mart in Jordan - Dragon Mall - has closed its doors. The 160 orientally-decorated stores and office spaces could not attract the business once hoped for the $20-million-worth project - built to serve as a reflection of China’s investments in Jordan.
Over the last decade, China has signed agreements for infrastructure projects in Jordan worth over $7 billion, including plans to construct a new Jordan-China university, a national railway network, and an oil pipeline to link Iraq and Jordan.
But as hope for the Dragon Mall’s success has faded, so too have China’s billion-dollar promises for massive development projects, the majority left as no more than ink on paper.
Chinese investment in Jordan - what Beijing once saw as its “gateway” into the Levant - has been “a flop”, Jesse Marks, a non-resident fellow at the Washington-based Stimson Center, told The New Arab.
One of the few Chinese projects that have actually materialised has left Jordan caught in a heated lawsuit to get out of a deal that would leave the resource-poor Kingdom billions of dollars in debt.
As per the current agreement for the construction of the Attarat power plant, a Chinese-built shale-oil power plant in the country’s southeast, Jordan must pay China $8.4 billion over a 30-year period, which, after the first two years of the plant’s operations, Jordan has barely managed to repay, according to the Associated Press.
However, the removal of the contract would undermine one of China’s leading Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects, likely fuelling tension between Amman and Beijing.
So, the Attarat power plant - once set to be the largest BRI private infrastructure project outside of China - has left Jordan between a rock and a hard place with Beijing, stuck in a lawsuit destined to end in frustration.
Indonesia inaugurated a $100 million floating solar farm on Thursday, the largest in Southeast Asia, as it seeks more opportunities to transition to green, renewable energy.
The Cirata floating solar farm, which is expected to generate enough electricity to power 50,000 households, is built on a 200-hectare (500-acre) reservoir in West Java, about 130 kilometres (80 miles) from the capital, Jakarta. A aerial picture shows the newly built floating solar power plant on the water at Cirata Reservoir, West Java, on Nov. 9, 2023, shortly before being inaugurated by President Joko Widodo. Photo by AFP/Bay Ismoyo
I agree, they should be forced to restore annexed land and forced to accept internationally agreed boarders, that includes sharing water and paying for stolen oil, and compensate for the damage they have unlawfully inflicted upon others...there nuclear capability must be removed etc etc
Yes I've met quite few good Jewish people, also had helpful Jewish fiends as well. Is like Americans, there are lots of good Americans, is the same here in Australia lots of good Australian's, not many Aussie's are dirty lying pricks like Albanese, Abbott, Rudd, Turnbull, Morrison, Joyce and Howard, most Aussie's are good people. Same in NZ most are good people, I wont be trusting Winston Peters, in my opinion Peters is a hypercritical liar, likewise lots of liars in NZ Defence Force HQ in Wellington. There are a few members on here that I wouldn't want covering my back; drunks, religious nutters who think they should be respected who clearly suffer display lost listen symptoms. Respect isn't offered to close minded bigots...
The Indian Air Force's Number 4 squadron of Soviet-made MiG-21 Bison fighter aircraft performed its final flight over a base in Rajasthan, where they had been stationed since 1966. From now on, the squadron will operate modern Russia-made Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighter jets, the Indian Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Tuesday. _______________________________________________________ Egypt to launch Islamic stock index _______________________________________________________ France is out, who is in? African countries are building a new security order
_________________________________________________________ Niger turns to China to build Africa’s longest oil pipeline ___________________________________________________________ US President Joe Biden announced on Monday that he intends to remove the Central African Republic (CAR), Gabon, Niger, and Uganda from America’s flagship trade initiative ________________________________________________________________________ Australian miner AVZ Minerals is heading to international arbitration over rights to one of the world’s largest hard-rock lithium deposits in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the company announced on its website on Monday. ________________________________________________ Libya tells Western ambassadors to go home Supporters of Israel should also face an oil and gas embargo, the parliament in Tobruk has said
Israel first occupied Gaza during the 1967 Six-Day War with Egypt, Jordan, and Syria, and only withdrew its troops and settlers nearly 40 years later. It has maintained a tight blockade over the enclave in the years since, and has launched periodic bombing campaigns against Hamas since the group took control of Gaza in 2006. The latest round of fighting erupted last month on the heels of a Hamas terrorist attack which killed around 1,400 Israelis. The IDF has launched weeks of retaliatory airstrikes and gradually escalated a ground attack on Gaza, leaving more than 10,000 Palestinians dead, according to local officials.______________________________________ Central banks bought 800 tons of gold from January to September this year, the highest on record for the nine-month period, according to the World Gold Council. In its Gold Demand Trends report for the third quarter of the year, the industry group said net buying of bullion by central banks in the first nine months was up 14% year-on-year. According to the World Gold Council’s data, China has been the largest buyer of gold this year as part of its 11-month buying streak. Among other notable buyers are Poland, Singapore, Türkiye, Russia, and India. The increased purchases of gold by emerging economies follow a global trend of central banks moving away from the US dollar as a reserve currency._______________________________________________________ In February, Moscow and Beijing sealed an agreement for additional natural gas supplies to China via the Far Eastern route. The project involves the construction of a cross-border section across the Ussuri River between the already operational Russian pipeline and the Chinese city of Hulin. After reaching full capacity, the route will allow for the delivery of 10 billion cubic meters of Russian pipeline gas to China annually. Russia currently supplies gas to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline, a section of the so-called Eastern Route, under a bilateral 30-year agreement. Deliveries started in 2019, and the pipeline is expected to reach its full operational capacity of 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually by 2025. ___________________________________________________________ The US dollar is facing a growing challenge from BRICS countries due to the bloc’s planned expansion and efforts to boost the use of national currencies in trade among members, according to Joe Sullivan, a former special adviser on the White House Council of Economic Advisers. In an article for Foreign Policy magazine published earlier this week, Sullivan suggested that BRICS is likely to strip the dollar of its hegemony over global trade even if it doesn’t have a single currency. The US dollar is facing a growing challenge from BRICS countries due to the bloc’s planned expansion and efforts to boost the use of national currencies in trade among members, according to Joe Sullivan, a former special adviser on the White House Council of Economic Advisers.____________________________________________________________ India has abstained from all resolutions moved against Russia in the United Nations (UN) since it launched its military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. New Delhi has also increased the purchase of Russian crude oil and continued buying weapons from Moscow. India’s trade volume with Russia has soared in recent months, with turnover for goods in January-August already surpassing the total for the previous year. According to data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry, total trade between the two countries in the first eight months of the year reached nearly $44 billion._______________________________________________________________ India plans to increase purchases of Russian coking coal, which is vital for the steel industry, chairman of the Steel Authority of India (SAIL) Amarendu Prakash told reporters on Monday. According to Prakash, Russia offers cheaper prices on the raw material than Australia,
yeah: The Russian foreign minister on Monday said the West is pushing the Middle East region to the brink of a “big war,” leading to a surge in terrorism and refugee flows.
“Now we see how the Anglo-Saxons are literally pushing the Middle East to the brink of a big war,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a panel discussion during the Russia International Exhibition and Forum in Moscow.
Lavrov went on to argue that this approach used by the West is “fully manifested” in Ukraine, Iraq, Libya and Syria.
“Other results of such a policy are a surge in terrorism and extremism, broken human destinies, destroyed families, millions-strong flows of refugees,” he added.
Lavrov said the West is accustomed to “solving its own problems at the expense of others, to exploiting other people’s resources.”
He argued that NATO is a “relic of the past,” adding that the alliance is “spreading its tentacles” all over the world which may lead it to “overstrain” itself. _____________________________________________________ Civilian deaths in 1 month of Israeli attacks on Gaza top entire Russia-Ukraine war toll 10,022 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza since Oct. 7 compared to 9,806 in Ukraine since Feb. 24 last year _____________________________________________________ Palestine urges ICC to issue arrest warrants for Israeli officials over Gaza conflict Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh calls for action to halt Israeli attacks in Gaza Strip _____________________________________________________ Int’l community should not let Gaza tragedy continue: China Beijing says ‘disastrous humanitarian situation in Gaza is calling out to human conscience’ _______________________________________________________ 56 mosques destroyed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since Oct. 7 Total number of mosques damaged in Gaza Strip rises to 192 _________________________________________________________ US State Department on Monday said statements by an Israeli minister who threatened to consider using nuclear bombs in Gaza is "wholly unacceptable. _________________________________________________________ Germany on Monday condemned statements by an Israeli minister who threatened to consider using nuclear bombs in the Gaza war. The remarks by Israel’s Cultural Heritage Minister Amichai Elijahu are “of course to be condemned. Such statements are unacceptable,” Kathrin Deschauer, deputy spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, said at a press briefing in Berlin.
During an interview on Sunday, Eliyahu, a minister from the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, said dropping a “nuclear bomb” on the Gaza Strip is “an option.” ____________________________________________________________ Oil prices up ahead of US Federal Reserve meeting, sighting the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict including Israeli airstrikes Tuesday on Jabalia refugee camp deepen concerns that oil supply routes might be disrupted _______________________________________________________________ “China stands ready to strengthen coordination with Egypt and other Arab countries to work for a comprehensive, just and enduring solution to the Palestinian question at an early date,” Xi had told visiting Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.
I understand you choose to cling to your religious persuasion and that is your right. Myself I really believe that all faith based religions are are evil. It is your right cling to your ego if you must. I don't min I read every day about the stupidity of people religions, myself I chucked Christianity out of my life a long time ago as it is without doubt a complete nonsense. I happened to meet with the Tibetan 20,000 year old explanation an explanation that has its bases well tested using human ability to engage mind in logic and reason. Anyway this is my offering to you soldier Lukeon: Animals have always been regarded in Buddhist thought as sentient beings. The doctrine of rebirth held that any human could be reborn as animal, and any animal could be reborn as a human.
The Four Noble Truths are the essence of Buddha’s teachings. They are: · the truth of suffering · the truth of the cause of suffering · the truth of the end of suffering · the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering
Simply put, suffering exists; it has a cause; it has an end; and it has a cause to bring about its end. This emphasis on suffering does not mean that Buddhism dwells on a negative world view – it has a pragmatic perspective about the reality of what humanity faces. The concept of pleasure is accepted but needs to be recognized as fleeting and temporary. The pursuit of worldly happiness is unquenchable yet ultimately, only ageing, sickness, and death are certain.
What is the cycle of rebirth? The role of karma can be seen in the Buddhist explanation of the cycle of rebirth. Buddhist cosmology suggests that there are six realms into which any being can be reborn – three fortunate realms, and three unfortunate realms.
The inhabitants of the three unfortunate realms – the animal realm, the hungry ghost realm and the hell realm – suffer untold suffering. Those who create favorable, positive karma will take rebirth in one of the fortunate realms: the realm of demigods, the realm of gods, and the realm of humans. Although the demigods and gods enjoy pleasures, they suffer unceasing jealousy and envy.
Despite all the many difficulties involved in being born a human, the human realm is considered the most fortunate realm of rebirth. This is because it is only with a human rebirth that Enlightenment can be achieved. Given the number of living things, to be born human is, to Buddhists, a precious and rare opportunity.
________________________________________ NEW DELHI: Israel is attempting to control the Indian media narrative on Palestine, journalists have warned, as they denounced a public attack by Tel Aviv’s envoy on one of India’s most prominent magazines. _______________________________________________ Honduras on Friday became the latest Latin American country to recall its ambassador to Israel for consultations as it condemned what it called genocide and other serious violations of international law in the Gaza Strip.
HHDL teachers non violence, no money in that !!___________________________________ Quick look around: Ankara has withdrawn its ambassador to Israel, citing the country’s refusal to consider a ceasefire in Gaza___________________________ America’s new nuclear bomb planned for development has the potential to level central Moscow and kill more than 300,000 of its 13 million inhabitants, Newsweek magazine reported on Friday, citing a simulation created through the online tool Nukemap. The Pentagon announced late last month that it would seek to make a new variant of the B61 nuclear gravity bomb – the B61-13 – pending authorization by Congress. The weapon would have an estimated 360-kiloton yield, which is 24 times more powerful than the one dropped on Hiroshima during World War______________________________________ French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna paid a visit to Nigeria on Friday, urging African nations not to develop relations with Moscow instead of Paris. During her visit to the capital, Abuja, which she called “an opportunity to highlight the strong growth of cooperation,” the minister announced “the imminent return of $150 million of the funds embezzled by Sani Abacha” which were seized by the courts and have been frozen in France since 2021. These three African countries are former French colonies whose pro-Paris governments have been overthrown by the military. The most recent coup took place this summer in Niger. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger are part of the Sahel region, which also includes Chad and Mauritania. Colonna told the press that “the Sahel does not represent all of Africa,” noting that “there are many different and more positive situations beyond the Sahel.” Meanwhile, many African countries maintain warm relations with Russia. The Russia-Africa Summit, which was held in St. Petersburg in July, was attended by representatives of all 54 African countries, including 45 heads of state or government.___________________________________________________ Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday that his forces would continue their skirmishes with the Israeli military until Hamas achieves victory in Gaza. Nasrallah warned that an attack on Lebanon would be the “most foolish mistake” in Israeli history. “What is happening in Gaza today is not just another war; it is a decisive historical battle with consequences that will reshape the future,” Nasrallah said in a televised speech. Hezbollah’s objectives in this battle, he stated, are to “stop the aggression” on Gaza and ensure that Hamas “achieves victory” against Israel.___________________________________________ The latest fighting came a day after Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah warned that Israel's war in the Gaza Strip could turn into a regional conflict if Israel pushed on with its offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory._______________________________________ Thai officials held direct talks with Hamas in Iran last week over the fate of 22 of the kingdom's nationals taken hostage by the Palestinian militant group in its attack on Israel, the head of the Thai delegation said._________________________________________ UN chief says he is 'horrified' by reported attack outside Al-Shifa hospital ‘Images of bodies strewn on street outside hospital are harrowing,’ says Antonio Guterres of attack, which killed at least 13 people and wounded 26_____________________________________________ North Korea has created a new holiday to celebrate the anniversary of the successful test launch of its Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile last year, state media reported Sunday. On November 18, 2022, Pyongyang carried out what is believed to be the first full flight test of the Hwasong-17 — dubbed the “monster missile” by analysts. continued
You probably noticed i deleted clowns post. During my three times round world, I met a Tibetan, revisited him another three times, we got on well, he was parachuted into Bangladesh when Pakistan invaded India. Indian government requested HH Dalai Lama supply troops and Tenzing was eating smoked rats in Bangladesh. We got pissed & stoned etc etc. When I finally stopped traveling another Tibetan appeared a couple of times here in Australia his name Karma Phunstok <
> Karma & Carol were very helpful, we might have heard about dupe few times. Karma traveled to NZ painted some Dharma teachings in the Temple at 159 Parakiore Road, Kamo, Whangarei. I formally studied Buddha Dharma at Chenrezig Institute at Eudlo in Qld <
> Later I was appointed Director of Temple Gyalwa Ensapa at Kellabakh in NSW until it the Temple was desecrated. Dalai Lama appeared and requested I explain a teaching to Australian & NZ Governments, I did that. Recorded my answer in law in both countries. During that process HH Dalai Lama got me to submit UN documents on his behalf, I based my submission on the Chinese Constitution. Also the Tibetan Government in Exile supplied a submission for inclusion as did the European Parliament. The document sighted China's intention to murder 27 Tibetans, it was accepted by UN and China was called to account, however they simply ditched their constitution adopted a new Chinese constitution and shot the Tibetans. HH Dalai Lama informed Howard's Government I was a qualified Practitioner. I have been repeatedly attacked by an element of Liberal & Labor clowns ever since. We have very short human rebirth endowed with qualities other sentient beings lack. I urge you to enjoy a quite kilometer stroll, as there is much to grain, nothing to loose mate.
Same with all religions, I was lied to when i was seventeen by Tiny Hill and that lead to 13 months in Vietnam, army is still lying and depriving me of a discharge the NZ High Court upholds my right to (appeal to the High Court 16th December 2002 at Rotorua). It is the 20,000 year old Buddhist philosophy's view. That all sentient beings, like ourselves, have been migrating from life to life since beginningless time. The wisdom arises by utilizing our ability to review using logic and reason. By deduction our true nature is moving energy driven by its causes. Likewise for all sentient beings that have mind and fear death, by deduction have at some time in the past been our own mothers, given birth to us, fed and protected us and therefore the religious nutters and drunks are killing there own mothers while creating the certain karma's driven by the causes of been killed, its certain bound up in time 100% certain A mind set that drops tons of bombs on men women and children, as well as killing probably trillions of other sentient the mindless clowns are certainly killing, the birds, bees fish and so forth that have mind and fear death same as we do. Feel free to check whether what I have just written is correct: Try 159 Parakiore Road, Kamo, Whangarei 0176, New Zealand
The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a Republican plan to provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel
The bill was the first major legislative action under new pro-Israel Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson.
It comes as Israel killed over 9,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including 3,826 children, much of it using American weaponry.
Massacres have taken place across Gaza, most recently with Israel's bombing of a refugee camp. __________________________________________________________________ Premier Netanyahu continues to use scriptures to defend Israeli war on Gaza Israeli prime minister cites Torah to encourage soldiers, justify onslaught on Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once again used Jewish religious references to encourage his soldiers in their fight against the Palestinian groups in Gaza.
At least three times, Netanyahu quoted scriptures in his speeches to justify the onslaught on Gaza.
In a letter he addressed to the Israeli soldiers and officers on Friday, he used several quotes from the Torah to incite them against the Gaza Strip.
"Remember what Amalek did to you," Netanyahu told the Israeli soldiers, in reference to the warring Amalekites tribe, mentioned in several books of the Hebrew and Christian scriptures, to justify their attacks on Gaza.
“This is a war between the children of light and the children of darkness,” Netanyahu said using these words of religious connotation. "We will not relent in our mission until the light overcomes the darkness; the good will defeat the extremist evil that threatens us and the entire world."
"You have girded me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me," Netanyahu quoted from the Jewish book of Tanakh (Psalms 18:40).
Last week, Netanyahu also invoked Jewish and Christian scripture to justify the ongoing war on the Gaza Strip. Religious Nutters supported mostly by drunks
The Three Brotherhood Alliance, also known as the Brotherhood Alliance, is an alliance between the Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army formed in June 2019.
The group rose to prominence in 2023 in resisting the Burmese junta in the wake of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état. The three-armed groups were silent about the coup initially but released a statement reaffirming the alliance's existence in March 2021. During the Myanmar civil war, the group fought mainly in Rakhine State and northern Shan State. On October 27, 2023, the alliance launched Operation 1027, an offensive against the junta in northern Shan state.
In 2016, following increased tensions between the Rohingya people of Rakhine State in western Myanmar and Buddhist extremists allied with the Myanmar military, the Burmese government began a genocidal campaign to expel Rohingya civilians from Rakhine state. The tensions hit a boiling point following an attack by Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) militants against a Burmese police outpost. The Arakan Army, which had fought against the Tatmadaw in the early 2010's alongside the Kachin Independence Army, resumed operations in Rakhine state following the resurgence in conflict and in 2018, conducted several attacks against the Tatmadaw in Rakhine state
The Ta'ang National Liberation Army predominantly conducted localized operations against the Tatmadaw in northern Shan State prior to the 2021 coup. Despite being created in 2009, more recent than other rebel groups in Myanmar, the TNLA received public support from Ta'ang people and military support from other rebel groups like the KIA and United Wa State Army. Prior to the coup, the TNLA clashed regularly with the Restoration Council of Shan State over control of northern Shan state.
The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army is an ethnic armed group representing the Kokang people in northern Myanmar. Prior to the coup, the group participated in sporadic clashes between the Tatmadaw and the TNLA, but ultimately signed a ceasefire with the Tatmadaw in 2019.
The Northern Alliance is a coalition of four rebel groups – the MNDAA, AA, TNLA, and the KIA – that was founded in 2016 to participate in peace talks with the Burmese government. The KIA later joined the FPNCC, which the TNLA, AA, and MNDAA were not part of.
Oh the Karen ( Kayin) peoples been fighting in Burma long time. Once upon-a-time I wandered around their they are nice folks. The Karen are an ethnic group who have resided in Burma for over two thousand years and were one of the first inhabitants of the region. Many of the Karen have fled Burma due to religious and ethnic persecution by the government. What is the conflict in Myanmar? Insurgencies have been ongoing in Myanmar since 1948, the year the country, then known as Burma, gained independence from the United Kingdom. The conflict has largely been ethnic-based, with several ethnic armed groups fighting Myanmar's armed forces, the Tatmadaw, for self-determination. (Tatmadaw simply means "armed forces" in Burmese, but the name has become synonymous with the current military authority, given its huge power in the country and global notoriety. For centuries the Burmese monarchy had a standing army, but it was disbanded under British rule.) me to Myanmar military has carried out a brutal nationwide crackdown on millions of people opposed to its rule. The junta security forces have carried out mass killings, arbitrary arrests, torture, s*xual violence, and other abuses that amount to crimes against humanity. Alliance of ethnic armed groups says it has taken a key border town and overrun dozens of military bases. A week ago, one of Myanmar’s most powerful ethnic armed alliances launched a coordinated attack on a dozen military outposts in northern Shan State, along the country’s eastern border with China. Code-named Operation 1027, the plan is to assert and defend territory against Myanmar military incursions, eradicate “oppressive military dictatorship”, and combat online fraud along the border, according to a statement from its organisers, the Three Brotherhood Alliance. For generations, the country was called Burma, after the dominant Burman ethnic group. But in 1989, one year after the ruling junta brutally suppressed a pro-democracy uprising, military leaders suddenly changed its name to Myanmar. By then, Burma was an international pariah, desperate for any way to improve its image. According to a statement released on Tuesday, the alliance has so far seized more than 80 military bases and taken over the border post of Chin Shwe Haw, while more than 100 military soldiers have surrendered to resistance forces. Footage posted by alliance members on social media indicates that they have also seized large caches of military weapons and ammunition. The recent surge in fighting comes after roughly 1,000 days of violence and upheaval since Senior General Min Aung Hlaing removed the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Within months, the military’s lethal crackdowns on nonviolent protests had sparked an armed uprising that has since grown to an unprecedented scale. Aung San Suu Kyi is or was married to an Englishmen, she is good person Butcher
online today!robplum Blog Comments (895)
me to
One Belt and Road Initiative growing stronger
Haha NZ National won more than 38 per cent of the vote and 48 seats. ACT Party's 11 seats, the right-bloc partners hold 59 seats — not enough to form a majority government with the New Zealand parliament set to have a total of 122 seats this term. its now a month since Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and his Labour Party lost the election, but they have been sworn in again as a caretaker government while their political opponents keep talking including Peters !!______________________________________________________After all the pomp and pageantry in Washington with a state dinner and meetings with US President Joe Biden, where the strategic alliance was celebrated with unusual gusto, Mr Albanese hotfooted it to Beijing where he was feted in personal meetings with no less than President Xi Jinping.
Japanese leaders are incensed at reports Mr Xi expressed a desire during his discussions with Mr Albanese to join the 12-member regional trade pact known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Haha !!______________________________________________________
Former UK Prime Minister David Cameron has made a surprise comeback to the British government after being appointed to head the country’s Foreign Office by incumbent PM Rishi Sunak. Cameron, who led the country for six years, resigned in 2016 after the UK voted to leave the European Union.
The move was announced by Downing Street on Monday as part of a major cabinet reshuffle.
David Cameron was a member of Conservative Friends of Israel as an MP and patron of the Jewish National Fund before stepping down in 2011 while prime minister. However: Saturday was the biggest ever pro-Palestine march in UK history, with over 800,000 people marching in the streets calling for a ceasefire in Gaza_______________________________________________________
Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko held talks in New Delhi on Monday.
The discussions covered bilateral topics, including political, trade, economic, energy, connectivity, defense and consular issues. Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko held talks in New Delhi on Monday. The discussions covered bilateral topics, including political, trade, economic, energy, connectivity, defense and consular issues, Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi announced on X (formerly Twitter). He added that the parties shared their “perspectives on regional and global issues of mutual interest.” The meeting comes just days after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited New Delhi for an annual 2+2 ministerial dialogue. Blinken held discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 10 on the sidelines of the event, and the two “reaffirmed” their countries’ “shared vision for close partnership in the Indo-Pacific and on issues of global importance,” according to the US State Department’s readout. Last month, media reports suggested that Moscow and New Delhi were in discussions regarding a bilateral summit between Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin by end of the year. However, there was no “immediate date or plans for that,” the Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson later clarified. Diplomatic sources have confirmed to RT that while both sides remain in close contact and discussions on a potential meeting are being held at a high level, nothing has been decided yet.
Economic cooperation between Russia and India has been growing rapidly in the past year. According to data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry, total trade between the two countries in the first eight months of the year reached nearly $44 billion. Defense and security cooperation has also been robust, with Russia currently executing multiple large orders, including the construction of two stealth frigates and the delivery of the two remaining units of S-400 Triumph air defense