#Airports Council International

[w0rldwanderlust]

Domestic Flights, Or Trains?

French Domestic Flights Banned in Favor of Train Rides to Reduce Carbon Emissions

Domestic flights may be banned soon in France, after the European Commission has approved the move. Friday, it was announced that the EU would allow France to go through with their plan of banning short-distance domestic flights and severely restricting private flights. The idea was proposed by France’s Citizens’ Convention on Climate in 2021, a civilian assembly looking for ways to help reduce…

[globalonlineeducation]

The OLC isa global premier online training providers in aviation & airport industry to upskill the employees with the changing dynamics at workplace and technology providing a wide selection of industry standard professional courses based on the industry best practices developed by industry professionals. 

[zvaigzdelasas]

Haiti’s deepening crisis — armed groups launching an assault on the government, and the de facto prime minister on indefinite layover in the San Juan, Puerto Rico airport — is a predictable consequence of 14 years of U.S. support for undemocratic regimes connected to Haiti’s PHTK party as it has dismantled Haiti’s democracy.

Haiti has a chance at reversing this descent and returning to a more stable, democratic path, but only if the Biden administration will let it.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry was stranded in San Juan Tuesday on his way back from Kenya, where he had signed an agreement for Kenyan police to come bolster his repressive, corrupt and unpopular regime. The armed groups, including many that had collaborated with Henry’s regime, took advantage of his absence to attack government infrastructure, and free 5,000 prisoners, many of them members of armed groups. Henry had planned to fly to the neighboring Dominican Republic and take a helicopter ride back to Haiti’s National Palace under the cover of darkness. But Dominican authorities refused entry to the prime minister’s chartered plane, which re-routed to San Juan.

Prime Minister Henry has not yet resigned, and the State Department denied reports that it demanded his resignation. But Henry has clearly lost the support of the United States, which for two years had allowed him to resist Haitians demands for fair elections. Absent Washington’s support, Henry has little chance of regaining power.

This dire situation is not only predictable, it was predicted. Haitian-American officials, Haitian civil society, members of the U.S. Congress, and other experts had been warning for years that the U.S. propping up Henry would lead to increasing tragedy for Haitians. The United States, which installed Henry in power in the first place, ignored these pleas and stood resolutely by its friend. With U.S. support, Henry’s unconstitutional term as prime minister exceeded any other prime minister’s term under Haiti’s 1987 Constitution. Levels of gang violence, kidnapping, hunger, and misery also reached unprecedented levels.

The United States is still insisting on getting Kenyan troops to Haiti. The State Department has persistently — if so far unsuccessfully — tried to deploy non-American boots onto Haitian ground since Henry requested them in October 2022. The mission’s deployment initially stalled because it was widely rejected as a bad idea that will primarily serve to prop up the repressive regime that generated the crisis. Haitian civil society [groups] repeatedly insisted that the first step towards security must be a transitional government with the legitimacy to organize elections and determine how the international community can best help Haiti.

Concerns that the intervention would serve only to reinforce an unpopular regime led the countries that the Biden administration first tapped to lead the mission, including Canada, Haiti’s Caribbean neighbors, and Brazil, to pass. The U.N. itself concluded that the mission would require too much “robust use of force” to be appropriate for a peacekeeping mission. So, the Security Council took the unusual step of authorizing the mission, but on the condition that it not actually be a U.N. mission that the organization would have to take responsibility for. The Biden administration, likely concerned about election-year cell phone videos of troops shooting indiscriminately in crowded neighborhoods — as the last foreign intervention did — declined to send U.S. troops for the mission (but is considering deploying a small Marine contingent to Haiti in early March).

Last August Kenya — which did not even have diplomatic relations with Haiti but did need the hundreds of millions of dollars that the United States offered — agreed to lead the mission. The exploratory delegation Kenya sent to evaluate conditions in Haiti quickly realized how deadly the planned mission would be for Haitians and Kenyans alike, and proposed to limit its scope to protecting public infrastructure.

The United States was not open to renegotiating the deal, and Kenya withdrew its proposed limits. But Kenya’s High Court temporarily blocked the deployment as unconstitutional. Ariel Henry’s visit to Kenya was for the signature of an accord that Kenya’s President William Ruto hoped would overcome the court’s objections. Kenyan lawyers insist that the agreement itself is illegal, and are continuing their challenge. In the meantime, Kenyan officers who had volunteered for the mission are changing their minds. Another obstacle appeared on March 7, when the White House conceded that the mission cannot be deployed without congressional approval of funding.

The State Department’s insistence that the Kenyan deployment must nevertheless happen raises fears that the United States will also continue its policy of installing and propping up undemocratic regimes in Haiti. Finance Minister Patrick Boisvert, who Henry tapped as interim prime minister when he left for Kenya, increased concerns of authoritarian governance on March 6 when he declared a three-day curfew and state of emergency throughout the Port-au-Prince region in an edict that did not even mention the legal basis for his authority. The next day Boisvert raised more fears by extending the emergency measures for a month and adding in a ban on all protests.

The State Department’s rescinding its support for Henry might have been promising had the gangs not already made his ouster inevitable. State’s claim that it now supports “an empowered and inclusive governance structure” that will “pave the way for free and fair elections” might have been promising if it had not added the condition that the new government must “move with urgency to help the country prepare for a multinational security support mission.”

A legitimate, broadly supported, sovereign transitional Haitian government might request foreign police assistance. But a government allowed to form only if it accepts a U.S.-imposed occupation force originally designed to prop up a hated, repressive government is not sovereign. It may not be legitimate or broadly-supported either.

The United States tasked CARICOM, the federation of Haiti’s Caribbean neighbors, to forge a civil society consensus. CARICOM has enjoyed credibility in Haiti in the past, but over the past few months it has faced criticism for trying to strong-arm civil society into an agreement that maintained Henry’s power. Not surprisingly, CARICOM-led talks on March 6 and 7 failed.

When allowed, Haitians have a history of coming together to make their way out of a crisis. Haiti became a country in 1804 by defeating Napoleon, with almost no outside help. In 1986, when the U.S. finally withdrew its support from Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier, Haitians eventually wrested power from the military and held fair elections. In 2006, they voted their way out of the crisis created by the U.S. kidnapping of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide two years before. In August 2021, shortly after the killing of Haiti’s last president, Jovenel Moïse, a broad-based group presented the Montana Accord that would have created a transitional government leading to elections in two years. The U.S. vetoed the accord, citing, among other reasons, that the two-year time frame was too long. That was 30 months ago, and there are no elections in sight.No amount of submission to U.S. demands by Prime Minister Henry and his predecessors can justify the absolute horror that our support has allowed them to inflict on the Haitian people. It is time for the United States to let Haitians come together and make their way out of the current crisis. Civil society [groups] [see] an opportunity for democracy in the crisis, and people all over Haiti have been meeting, discussing and negotiating to develop platforms for a broad-based, legitimate transitional government that can hold fair elections. It is expected that soon — maybe within weeks — one of these platforms will rise to the top, and civil society will coalesce around it. The United States needs to let that process happen without interference or conditions.

8 Mar 24

[sylvia-on-the-run]

The Massacres and Ethnic Cleansing in Northern Gaza Are the Responsibility of the Entire International Community

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine renewed its call to the peoples of the Arab nation and all solidarity forces with the Palestinian people to escalate urgent movements and protests in solidarity with northern Gaza.

The Front clarified that the horrific massacre committed by the occupation on the night of Saturday, October 19, 2024, reveals the true extent of what is happening in northern Gaza. The occupation forced tens of thousands of residents into an area no larger than 3 square kilometers after pursuing them for days with bombings and massacres, only to end by launching a brutal airstrike on that small space, packed with children, women, and families.

The Front emphasized that the entire international community is complicit in these heinous crimes and the declared ethnic cleansing of our people by continuously providing the occupation with cover and time to commit its massacres.

It pointed out that the United States is allowed to manipulate the international system and use it as a tool to cover up these genocidal crimes, while the U.S. administration is directly involved.

The Front also stressed that the official Arab regimes, through their failures and the subordination of some of their components, and through the direct partnership of others, bear significant responsibility for the ongoing genocide against our people.

It confirmed that, over a year into this war, these regimes still tremble before the zionist entity and its allies, refraining from taking even the simplest measures of pressure against this entity and its American ally.

The Front stated: "These regimes continue to suppress their people and prevent any protest movements, linking their fate to the fate of the occupation and war criminals. They even avoid proposing superficial draft resolutions against the occupation at the UN Security Council for fear of embarrassing the U.S. administration, while some of their factions continue to supply the Zionist entity with what it needs and open their lands and airports to the forces of aggression to launch attacks on our people."

The Front affirmed that the people of the world face a difficult challenge today, represented by the unchecked brutality of colonialism, practicing the ugliest crimes of genocide and ethnic cleansing openly and continuously. This demands reactions that go beyond mere protest and solidarity, forming genuine pressure on the interests of the forces of aggression and the coalition of genocide.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine Central Media Office October 20, 2024

[girlactionfigure]

🟧  Sunday afternoon - events from Israel  

ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

♦️LEBANON.. The IDF announces it eliminated in an airstrike yesterday in Beirut Nabil Qaouk, commander of Hezbollah's Preventative Security Unit, and deputy head of the group's executive council.

♦️LEBANON.. Lebanese media: The fate of Hashem Safieddine, the current Hezbollah council head and expected successor to Nasrallah, remains unknown.

♦️IDF ATTACKING LEBANON.. Air force attacks continue all the time in all of Lebanon.  Relatively low intensity compared to the past few days.

♦️GAZA.. IDF installing huge observation poles on the Philadelphi border corridor.

♦️GAZA.. Destroyed: an underground route about a kilometer long in a civilian area.  In the tunnel, several rooms and facilities were found that were used byHamas to hide for extended periods, as well as weapons storage.

♦️GAZA.. airstrike against a group of Hamas operatives operating out of a former school in the northern Gaza Strip a short while ago. Hamas terrorists were using the Umm al-Fahm School in Beit Lahiya to plan and carry out attacks against IDF troops and against Israel.

♦️SYRIA.. air defense systems activated in Homs, Syria - which has been a frequent target of the IDF.  Syrian media reports that before noon the IDF attacked positions of the pro-Iranian militias in the area of ​​Wadi Hana near Al-Qusayr in Homs.

🔹LEBANESE PM.. Prime Minister Najib Mikati at a press conference: ready to implement UN resolution 1701.  The number of displaced people may reach a million.

🔹US ADMIN SAYS.. The Biden administration continues to call on Israel to refrain from a ground operation in Lebanon - and claim that such a move would harm attempts to weaken support for Hezbollah inside Lebanon, per the Washington Post.

🔹NOTING CHANGING TONE.. in the international press: (Amit Segal)

1. Israel has the most impressive army in the world

2. Israel is winning the war on terror

3. Israel exposed the hypocrisy of Biden's & UK’s Starmer’s policy

4. Were the hawks in Israel right and is it possible to achieve a complete victory?

Articles in the Daily Telegraph ->

Israel has exposed the lie at the heart of Starmer and Biden’s foreign policy - https://archive.md/6peFD#selection-2369.4-2369.81

Israel has proved it has the most impressive military in the world - https://archive.md/Ge9kB#selection-2369.4-2369.70

 ❗️AIR TRAVEL.. the EU Aviation Safety Agency really did issue an airspace warning for Israel warning airlines away from Sept. 28 until Oct. 31.  “Considering the current conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, there is a high risk to civil aviation. The conflict involves rockets, missiles and drones launches from Lebanon with Israeli airstrikes and artillery fire, including systematic activation of air-defence systems… Although, until now the Civil Aviation Authority of the State of Israel has been efficiently managing the risks to civil aviation in its airspace through a tactical deconfliction, it is considered that the current intensity of the conflict represents an overall high risk to civil aviation.”

Official statement:  Ben Gurion Airport is open for takeoffs and landings. Those leaving Israel should take into account there may be difficulties in their return to Israel (due to flight availability.)

▪️ECONOMY.. The price of fuel at the beginning of October will be NIS 7.16 per liter, a decrease of 0.13 per liter.

▪️WAR POLITICS.. Arab MK Ahmed Tibi: from the Ra'am-Ta'al faction “Israel excels in assassinations. Killings do not bring security, agreements bring security. The worst thing about the killings is when families and children are killed.  There is no worse criminal situation than those not involved being killed.” 

[mariacallous]

Today, Sunday Oct. 20, Moldovans are heading to the polls to pick their next president and to decide whether they want to introduce the objective of European integration in the country’s Constitution. The stakes are high for the country’s future.

The Kremlin’s writing checks

Russia’s fear of Moldova, a nation of 3 million people, making a free decision is so pronounced that it does not spare any resources to undermine and influence both voting campaigns. According to the estimates of Moldovan authorities, more than 100 million EUR are spent to interfere in the process only this year. The European Parliament condemned Russia’s escalating malicious activities in Moldova, recently passing a resolution with overwhelming majority.

The EU is not alone in calling out Russian malign influence campaigns in Moldova. The United States, too, have stated on Oct. 15 that Russia is working actively to undermine Moldova’s election and its European integration. According to National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby “in the last several months, Moscow has dedicated millions of dollars to influencing Moldova’s presidential election. We assess that this money has gone toward financing its preferred parties and spreading disinformation on social media”.

Meanwhile, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin’s press secretary insists that Russia is not interfering in Moldova’s internal affairs and regrets that Russia’s supporters in Moldova are not allowed to have their parties and Russian outlets are not allowed to cover the electoral process.

A journalistic investigation revealed that the EU accession referendum is the main target for the pro-Kremlin forces in Moldova. Ziarul de Garda’s undercover reporter, infiltrated in a voters’ buying network, was told that if the referendum fails, the pro-European president would lose grounds.

Pro-Kremlin forces still manage to flood the information space with anti-EU narratives. Some of them target the EU itself, some focus on the referendum, and others question whether the Government is truly European. In an earlier article, we outlined how the Kremlin and its associates in Moldova were seeking to discredit the referendum.

Now, after months of their disinformation experiments, pro-Kremlin mouthpieces honed in on fewer topics in order to scare voters away from EU.

All hands on deck

A music video three Russian superstars, Filip Kirkorov, Nikolay Baskov and Stas Mihailov, singing in Romanian about Moldova was released just a week before elections and referendum. The video starts with images depicting war, LGBT marches and immigrants’ riots, suggesting that these are from the EU. It then continues with nice panoramic views of Moldovan landscapes and concludes that Moldova does not need “their” problems, therefore people should say “No” to EU and vote “No” in the referendum.

These narratives – Moldova would be dragged into war, EU means LGBT and Brussels wants to send illegal immigrants to candidate countries are among the most used as the referendum gets closer.

Migrants and wealthy Europeans are coming

For example, pro-Kremlin propagandists claimed that 100 men went out of a plane flying from Alger to Ukraine that landed on a small airport in North of Moldova. Fact-checkers proved that the plane landed for maintenance and brought no people to Moldova. Nevertheless, the initial video gained almost 30 000 reactions on TikTok.

An article published by The Sunday Times, about discussions in Brussels on so-called deportation camps for migrants, which mentioned Moldova, became another hot topic for disinformation channels. Malign actors used this to scare readers that the country would be flooded with illegal immigrants deported from the EU. Chisinau stated that it is not discussing anything like this and would not accept such an idea.

On the other hand, pro-Kremlin mouthpieces, including Russian MFA, used an interview by EU Ambassador to Moldova to create a wave of discontent related to selling of land to foreigners after EU accession. Moldovan President and Prime-Minister reacted by stating that this is subject to negotiations, as it was the case of all the countries which joined the EU in the recent years. Still, there were 700 publications on the topic with more than 1.5 million views across different platforms in just several days.

Pick your poison

Pro-Kremlin actors are trying to serve different audiences and accommodate the topics accordingly. For Russian speakers, an important part of the disinformation toolkit in Moldova focuses on exacerbating sensitivities about Transnistrian and Găgăuzian regions. One article claimed that the Sandu government might help Ukraine attack Transnistria region. A second asserted that Moldova might join the EU and Ukraine in attacking the region.

Other Kremlin-linked outlets have built on this fearmongering by noting Russia’s readiness to serve as a diplomatic facilitator (opens in a new tab) between the Moldovan government and Transnistrian de facto authorities.

Similarly, Găgăuzia has also been weaponized by pro-Kremlin disinformation actors seeking to further polarize Moldovan society, including by claims that Moldovan government is suppressing free speech by fining a pro-Kremlin, Găgăuzian television company for spreading disinformation.

Moreover, stories related to Moldova allegedly preparing to host F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine kept appearing for months. In September, Russian MFA repeated this “concern,” although Chisinau stated denied such possibility.

Romanian language speakers are relatively more exposed to stoking fears about EU liberal policies, detrimental Western influence and Western values which are being “imposed” on Moldovans. An example of this was a false claim about an alleged decision to ban the Russian Orthodox Church in Moldova, which was published and promoted by Russian state-affiliated outlets and pro-Kremlin actors on Telegram.

Maria Zakharova , the spokesperson of the Russian MFA scared Moldovans that someone “will come to change their boys to girls and girls to boys” in the first week of the electoral campaign. Zakharova was standing next to prominent representatives of Ilan Shor. The sanctioned pro-Russian oligarch and politician Shor himself criticized the organization of the “Coming Out day” by a local NGO in Chisinau, stating that “Moldovans were not born for LGBT prides” and called supporters to comment on the topic.

Priests, Money and Deception

Spreading disinformation represents only a small part of the wide range of hybrid arsenal targeting the EU candidate country. Some outlets wrote that in the past month, up to 500 priests from Moldova went on pilgrimages to Russia. In the same time, at least 20 priests are under investigation (opens in a new tab) for receiving money from Ilan Shor, through a Russian bank, sanctioned by the US and EU.

Independent media have reported about priests campaigning against the EU in the churches. One of the invoked reasons is that “because of the EU values, there are already toilettes for both boys and girls in some Chisinau schools.” Another priest explained that «democracy» comes from «demonic» and, that while Europe is lacking values, the Government imports only the bad things from the EU.

Moldovan police and Anticorruption Prosecutor’s office stated on 3 October that they discovered a large scheme of corrupting voters. It included around 130,000 people and 15 million dollars transferred from Russia to Moldova. Several thousand coordinators received up to 2500 dollars a month to set up a network of people who would receive money to vote against EU integration in the referendum and for a presidential candidate. The name of the candidate would have been communicated via Telegram on the eve of the elections. Ziarul de Garda’s investigation largely confirmed the scheme.

Moldovan public servants have received false letters bearing the signs of the European Commission and of the EU Partnership Mission to Moldova. They were “informed” of the need to learn English and display LGBT flags on their institutions. Employees of the Ministry of Agriculture learned that farmers were “refused” requested help and the forged letter from EUPM called Moldovans to fight in Ukraine.

These letters were not distributed by the pro-Kremlin media and only reached the state officials. The public learned about them mainly from the Government’s statements that pointed out that the letters are false.

Responding to FIMI

Meta announced in May, August and October that it deleted at least 50 accounts, 108 pages, one group and 20 Instagram accounts involved in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour.”  These were part of a network targeting Russian-speaking audiences in Moldova. They were promoting Russian-language news brands posing as independent entities with presence on several platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, Odnoklassniki (Russian social media platform), and TikTok. The last announcement was made on 11 October, just 9 days before elections and referendum in Moldova.

On 10 October, Telegram closed 15 channels and 95 chat-bots, including those of Ilan Shor and people from his close circle in an unprecedented move. When accessed from Moldova, the channels read that they violated local legislation. TikTok and Google stated publicly that they have dedicated teams to fight disinformation during Moldovan elections.

On 14 October, European Union adopted restrictive measures against five individuals and one entity responsible for actions destabilizing the Republic of Moldova. These are actors linked to Ilan Shor and “Evrazia,” a Russian based NGO proposing to promote the Eurasian Economic Union in Moldova.

Fog of information war

Disinformation bends the perception of reality as was illustrated by the recent Watchdog.md survey which asked about upcoming referendum votes. A clear majority of 63% declared to vote Yes against 32% who opposed the mentioning EU integration in the constitution. Yet only 53% of people believed that the YES vote has a majority support in population even though every single poll taken this year indicated a clear majority (up to 2:1) for the pro-EU decision. Only 75% of those who support EU accession believe that the majority of Moldovans support it. In contrast, 65% of those who are against the EU believe that they are the majority.

Indeed, the week before elections and EU accession referendum there is constant pressure and a kind of numbing disinformation noise in ones ears. One scandal follows another, tens of social media pages share scaring ”facts” about the EU and hundreds of trolls comment to any post with electoral promises of some politicians.

Civil society, media, government and social media platforms however became much more efficient in discovering and fighting hybrid threats, including FIMI. Law enforcement institutions are making progress in tracing illegal money transfers. Fact-checkers react to disinformation by publishing accurate data and social networks are slowly paying attention to inauthentic online behavior. The reaction, and most importantly, preventing mechanisms are still to be adjusted, but clearly the right way of fighting disinformation is by uniting the efforts.

Reprinted from EUvsDisinfo. See the original here.

EUvsDisinfo is the flagship project of the European External Action Service’s East StratCom Task Force. Its core objective is to increase public awareness and understanding of the Kremlin’s disinformation operations, and to help citizens in Europe and beyond develop resistance to digital information and media manipulation.

[world-of-wales]

─ •✧ WILLIAM'S YEAR IN REVIEW : MARCH ✧• ─

1 MARCH - William was accompanied by Catherine for presenting Leeks to the Welsh Guards during the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards St. David's Day Parade at Combermere Barracks. 2 MARCH - William and Catherine received The Crown Prince and Princess of Norway at Windsor Castle. They later held a Meeting with Norwegian business delegates accompanied by the Crown Prince Couple. 6 MARCH - He chaired a Meeting of The Prince's Council. 7 MARCH - William held an Investiture at Windsor Castle. 9 MARCH - William and Catherine were received by Ms. Manju Malhi (Deputy Lieutenant of Greater London) at the Hayes Muslim Centre in Middlesex. 10 MARCH - He received Ms. Hannah Jones (Chief Executive, Earthshot Prize) at Windsor Castle. 13 MARCH - William and Catherine attended the Commonwealth Service in Westminster Abbey. Afterwards, he attended the Commonwealth Day Reception at Buckingham Palace. 14 MARCH - William held a Meeting at Windsor Castle. 16 MARCH - William held an Investiture at Windsor Castle. Afterwards, he visited Aston Villa FC at Bodymoor Heath. 17 MARCH - William accompanied Catherine in presenting Shamrocks to Irish Guards as they attended the 1st Battalion Irish Guards' St. Patrick's Day Parade in Aldershot. He appeared in a TV special with Groundswell for Red Nose Day. 19 MARCH - William wrote a letter to Alpha United Juniors condemning the incidents of racism being faced by their players. 20 MARCH - He received Mr. Alastair Martin (Secretary of the Duchy of Cornwall) at Windsor Castle. 21 MARCH - William held a Meeting with Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez & Pierre-Yves Paslier (Founders, NotPla) 22 MARCH - William departed Royal Air Force Northolt for Poland where he was by His Majesty's Ambassador to the Republic of Poland (Her Excellency Ms. Anna Clunes) upon arrival at Rzeszow-Jasionka International Airport. He met British troops at the Airport. Afterwards, he visited a Rzeszow Military Base in and visited British troops providing support to Poland and Ukraine. Subsequently, William met Ukrainian refugees living in temporary accommodation in Warsaw. In the evening, he was spotted at Butero Bistro having dinner. 23 MARCH - William laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Plac Marszalka Józefa Pilsudskiego and called upon The President of the Republic of Poland at the President's Chancellery. Afterwards, he met Ukrainian refugees at Hala Koszyki. Subsequently, subsequently he met Ukrainian staff from the British Embassy in Kyiv at Hala Koszyki. After completing his visit to Poland, William arrived at the Royal Air Force Northolt from Poland. 24 MARCH - William approved the appointment of the High Sheriff of Cornwall (Mr Toby George Howell Ashworth)

[humanrightsupdates]

Haiti is on the brink of a total collapse or takeover of the state as violent criminal groups seeking to overthrow the government have attacked police officers and state institutions, including prisons, Human Rights Watch said today. The groups’ actions have brought economic activity, the delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance, and nearly all transportation, including the country’s main port and international airport, to a near standstill.

“With Haiti on the cusp of even greater chaos and violence, it is more urgent than ever for regional and international partners to support Haitians’ calls for a rights-based international response that addresses all aspects of the crisis,” said Nathalye Cotrino, crisis and conflict researcher at Human Rights Watch. “This should include an international support mission that complies fully with human rights and the formation of a transitional government that can work with partners to restore basic security, democratic governance, access to necessities, and the rule of law.”

In October 2023, the United Nations Security Council authorized a Multinational Security Support mission to provide operational support and training for the Haitian National Police, though it has yet to deploy to Haiti.

Criminal groups, which control much of the country, including nearly all of the capital, Port-au-Prince, have killed over 1,100 people and injured nearly 700 others just since the start of 2024, according to the UN. Nearly 13,000 people were killed, injured, and kidnapped by criminal groups between January 2022 and early March 2024. Thousands of women and children have been victims of sexual violence and over 362,000 people have been internally displaced. The rates of food insecurity in Haiti are among the worst in the world. Many children are out of school, and child use and recruitment by criminal groups are on the rise. [Human Rights Watch]

[eretzyisrael]

On Sept. 28, the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a pro-Hamas Islamist group, will hold its 18th Annual Banquet at the Newark Liberty International Airport Marriott Hotel (Liberty Marriott). Attendees will hear from Alaa El Saadawi, a sheikh who tried to flee the U.S. with suitcases full of cash after the Al Qaeda-linked charity he worked for was designated as a terrorist group; and Sami Hamdi, an anti-Israel activist who said he "felt the euphoria" on Oct. 7, when Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people and kidnapped 250 others, including individuals from New Jersey.

You can make a difference in three easy steps:

1) First, sign up to send pre-written emails to Liberty Marriott and its corporate offices. Tell Marriott executives immediately to cancel CAIR-NJ’s fundraising gala and stop booking events with terrorist-supporting organizations. 

2) ***Most important step*** Check your email for details on how to call the Liberty Marriott. We will send you a short script and contact information. Hotels respond most favorably when they are inundated with phone calls.

Don't want to wait? Call now: (973) 623-0006. When prompted, say "guest services" to connect to the front desk.

3) After your call, visit the “MEF Advocates” tab and “Log an Interaction” to tell us about your experience with hotel staff. 

CAIR was credibly linked to Hamas in a 2007 terror finance trial, and seven CAIR leaders have been arrested, convicted, or deported for terrorism-related crimes. This extremist nonprofit regularly promotes Islamist speakers who attack Jews, Hindus, women, and the gay community. Liberty Marriott and Marriott corporate executives have so far refused to acknowledge problems with hosting CAIR-New Jersey’s fundraiser, despite canceling CAIR events in other towns and cities. 

Act now! Join the campaign to #CancelCAIR and ensure that the Marriott denies event space to terrorist-supporting organizations. 

The link is here.

[armoricaroyalty]

Previous | Chapter Start | Beginning | Next

author's notes: Yet another post with only my own characters...I'm doing the impossible. Not my own settings, though, so thanks to @ardeney-sims and @nexility-sims for letting me send my sims abroad!

Also, I'm retconning Emily's dad's title. He used to be a Grand Duke, but I decided that I like Archduke better. Carry on.

Transcript under the cut.

Nakawe Palace // Armorican State Visit - Day 1

ROSALIND | Hey. MARY | [over the phone] Hey yourself. ROSALIND | [sighs] Darling, it's so good to hear your voice. MARY | [over the phone] Long day? ROSALIND | The longest. [yawns] And not just because of the time difference.

Princess Ismerie International Airport // Toulon, Aducia

MARY | Have you been watching the news? ROSALIND | [over the phone] I haven't even checked Twitter. Haven't had the time. MARY | Well, domestic coverage is very good. Josie will be thrilled. ROSALIND | [laughs] Forget Josie, I'm thrilled! Thank you darling, that's amazing! I needed good news after the day I've had. MARY | [over the phone] Oh dear. Who's acting up now? Freddy or Vivi? ROSALIND | [over the phone] Neither. It’s my Dad. MARY | Really? ROSALIND | It's so weird. He’s acting like...a reptile or something. MARY | [over the phone] …you’re going to have to unpack that one, babe. ROSALIND | I don't know! He's acting almost normal, which is weird. ROSALIND | [over the phone] He seems almost at ease. MARY | Well…he knows the Reyeses pretty well, doesn't he? He's been to Uspana a couple times over the years, right? ROSALIND | Hm...Not since the early 2000’s, though. ROSALIND | It was for…someone’s wedding? Maybe Leonor’s? MARY | Oh. ROSALIND | Yeah. Like, I knew they were friendly, but I guess they’re actually friends? They sat together at lunch and dinner. MARY | [over the phone] ...huh. ROSALIND | Yeah, it's super weird! MARY | [over the phone] Sounds like it. ROSALIND | That's not it, though! He had the weirdest conversation with me after dinner, too…he was all “being sovereign means you have to make hard decisions.” As if I don’t already know! MARY | Well...he doesn’t know about our Aducian side project. ROSALIND | [over the phone] Oh, you sent the DNA sample to the lab, right? MARY | Yup. Overnight express. We’ll know by Friday. ROSALIND | [over the phone[ Friday…[sighs] Saints, what if it’s actually his? MARY | It’ll be okay. Either way...we’ve got our plans in place. ROSALIND | We can't let this get out. MARY | [over the phone] It won't, babe. I promise. ROSALIND | [sighs] This could ruin everything. Emily is the best thing that’s ever happened to Freddy, and ever since they started dating, her father is actually cooperating with Dad. The rest of the Archdukes actually listen to him! This is the first time in years he hasn’t had an obstructionist council. MARY | I know. It's going to be— [boarding announcement] MARY | [over the phone] They just called my flight for boarding. ROSALIND | I love you, darling. MARY | [over the phone] Love you too. See you tomorrow! ROSALIND | [smiling] Tomorrow… [she gazes at the ring box]

[aimeedaisies]

The Princess Royal’s Official Engagements in June 2023

01/06 As Colonel-in-Chief of The Royal Logistic Corps, Princess Anne attended the Freedom of the City of Winchester Parade at the Guildhall to mark the 30th Anniversary of the Corps, followed by a Service of Thanksgiving in Winchester Cathedral. 🫡

03/06 Princess Anne departed from Heathrow Airport for Canada and was received at Calgary International Airport by the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta. 🇨🇦

As President of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Commonwealth Study Conferences, HRH met with delegates and later attended a Dinner at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. 🌍

04/06 As President of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Commonwealth Study Conferences, HRH attended the Opening Plenary of the Commonwealth Study Conference. She departed Calgary Airport for the United Kingdom and arrived back on 05/06 🇨🇦

06/06 As Royal Patron of Motor Neurone Disease Association, attended a Care Forum at Boughton House, Kettering. 🦠

As Master of the Corporation of Trinity House, HRH attended a Younger Brethrens’ Dinner at Trinity House, Tower Hill, London EC3. 🍽️

07/06 As Master of the Corporation of Trinity House, HRH attended the Trinitytide Anniversary Annual Court Meeting, Church Service and Luncheon at Trinity House. 🥗

The Princess Royal attended the Canadian Armed Forces Day Reception at the High Commission of Canada in the United Kingdom, Canada House, Trafalgar Square. 🇨🇦

08/06 The Princess Royal, as Honorary Air Commodore of Royal Air Force Brize Norton, attended a Parade to mark the retirement of C-130J Hercules and the disbandment of 47 Squadron at Royal Air Force Brize Norton. ✈️

Her Royal Highness, As Royal Patron of the Security Institute, HRH attended a Careers Fair at the Victory Services Club 💼

As Patron, International Students House, attended a Reception. 👨‍🎓

12/06 As Patron, of the British Nutrition Foundation, Princess Anne visited Washingborough Academy in Lincoln, to mark the 11th Healthy Eating Week for Schools. 🍎

As President of Carers Trust, HRH visited the new Facilities for Carers at the Carers’ Support Service at the Old Waterworks Office in Grimsby. 🩺

As Chairman of the International Olympic Committee Members Election Commission, HRH held a Dinner at St James’s Palace. 🍽️

13/06 Held an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace. 🎖️

The Princess Royal, As Chairman of the International Olympic Committee Members Election Commission, held a Members Election Commission Meeting. 🤸‍♀️

14/06 Held two Investiture ceremonies at Windsor Castle. 🎖️

Received His Excellency Sir Rodney Williams (Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda) and Lady Williams. 🇦🇬

15/06 The Princess Royal as Colonel of The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) carried out the following engagements;

Attended the parading of the new Sovereign’s Standard to the Regiment followed by a Reception at Hyde Park Barracks.💂‍♂️

Attended a Household Cavalry Council Meeting at Hyde Park Barracks. 🐴

The new Sovereign’s Standard to The Blues and Royals was presented by HRH to HM in the Quadrangle of Buckingham Palace and was received with a Royal Salute. After the new Standard was consecrated, The Parade subsequently ranked past HM and HRH. 🚩

As President of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, attended the Fellows’ Reception at the Royal Geographical Society. 🌍

16/06 The Princess Royal, as Colonel of The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons), presided over a Conference attended by the Colonels of the Regiments of the Household Division. HRH subsequently attended the Senior Colonels’ Dinner at Clarence House. 🫡

17/06 In her role as Colonel-in-Chief of the Blues and Royals and Gold Stick in Waiting, the Princess Royal along with Sir Tim and other members of the royal family attended King Charles first Trooping the Colour Parade as monarch. 💂‍♂️

His Majesty was followed by The Prince of Wales (Colonel, Welsh Guards), The Princess Royal (Colonel, The Blues and Royals, Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) and The Duke of Edinburgh (Royal Honorary Colonel, 1st Battalion London Guards) on horseback down the Mall towards Horse Guards Parade. Duchess Sophie, Sir Tim and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester travelled in carriages and the Duke of Kent (Colonel, Scots Guards) followed by car. 🐎

The troops on Parade, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Livesey, Welsh Guards (Field Officer in Brigade Waiting), received The King with a Royal Salute. 🫡

After the Parade, the RF rode back to Buckingham Palace on horseback, in carriages and by car. The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment and The King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery ranked past The King on arrival at Buckingham Palace. 🐴

The royal family stood on the balcony of Buckingham Palace and witnessed a fly-past by aircraft of the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force. ✈️

19/06 The Princess Royal and Sir Tim with other members of the royal family and other members of the Garter attended a Chapter of the Most Noble Order of the Garter in the Throne Room, Windsor Castle.

They all later attended a Luncheon Party for the Companions of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. 🥪

An Installation Service was held in St George’s Chapel at which two new members were installed in the order. 🪶

20/06 As Colonel, The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons), attended a Dinner at Drapers’ Hall. 🍽️

Unofficial Attended day one of Royal Ascot with Zara and Mike Tindall, Peter Phillips and Lindsay Wallace 🐎

21/06 Unofficial Princess Anne, Sir Tim, Zara & Mike Tindall and other members of the RF attended day two of Royal Ascot. 🐴

22/06 Unofficial Princess Anne, Sir Tim, Zara & Mike Tindall and other members of the RF attended Ladies Day, day three of Royal Ascot. 🐴

23/06 Visited the Royal Highland Show at the Royal Highland Centre in Edinburgh where she met exhibitors, farmers, animals and sampled local food and drink. 🐮🐑🧀🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

24/06 Attended the Icelandic Horse Society British Championships and Summer Festival at Washbrook Farm, Aston le Walls. 🇮🇸🐎

27/06 Attended the opening ceremony of the World Equestrian Festival, CHIO Aachen, Germany. 🇩🇪🐎

28/06 Toured behind the scenes and met team GB at the World Equestrian Festival, CHIO Aachen, Germany. 🇩🇪🇬🇧

29/06 The Princess Royal, as President of Carers Trust, accompanied by Sir Tim, attended a Reception in London SW1. 🦽

Princess Anne as Patron of United Kingdom Sailing Academy, accompanied by Sir Tim, attended a Founders’ Club Dinner at the Corporation of Trinity House. ⛵️

30/06 The Princess Royal presented Prize Day awards at the Royal School Haslemere. 🏆

Total official engagements for Anne in June: 40

2023 total so far: 262

Total official engagements accompanied by Tim in June : 6

2023 total so far: 56

[amin13864]

Macron's most important demands

1 Beirut declared a demilitarized city From Hezbollah militia.

2 Dismantling all warehouses and institutions of HEZBOLLAH from Beirut and the southern suburb

3. Handing over Beirut airport to a joint international force headed by Germany

4. Deployment of UNIFIL in Beirut and Mount Lebanon and the installation of naval cruisers off Beirut, reaching the south

5. Dismantling all HEZBOLLAH missiles and weapons systems in the south and handing over to UNIFIL.

6. Resignation of the House of representatives and Their head Nabih Berri and the government, and holding quick elections that will result in the immediate election of a president for the republic.

7. Expel the security personnel. Suspicious affiliations and purging devices

8. If the officials reject these demands, a decision will be issued by the Council Security within 10 days to order the assignment NATO takes over security in Lebanon and the implementation of the above points.

Definitely he is jocking

[zvaigzdelasas]

U.S., in policy switch, urges humanitarian pauses in Gaza - WaPo

After weeks of declining to back growing international calls for “humanitarian pauses” in Israeli airstrikes to allow a steady flow of aid to enter Gaza, permit American and foreign citizens to exit into Egypt and facilitate the release of hostages, the Biden administration is now fully in favor of them and is pressing Israel to agree.

The abrupt policy shift comes as [...] much of the world has declined to follow the U.S. lead in withholding public criticism of how Israel is conducting its war against Hamas.[...]

The administration’s public promotion this week of humanitarian pauses came after what one U.S. official said was “a lot of the groundwork in private communications.” But it still left the United States behind the curve of international opinion, as the U.N. General Assembly Friday overwhelmingly approved an Arab-sponsored resolution calling for a complete ceasefire. Only 14 of the 193 U.N. member nations voted against the measure, including the United States, Israel and several Pacific island and eastern European states. Most close U.S. allies were in favor or abstained from the vote.[...]

Last week, the United States vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for humanitarian pauses, saying that the measure did not affirm Israel’s right to defend itself. Over the weekend, Secretary of State Antony Blinken offered to “consider” such pauses to protect civilians.[...]

Of the many civilians The Washington Post has contacted inside Gaza waiting to leave, none has said that Hamas or anyone else has physically prevented them from crossing. But the border gate is not operational.[...]

A range of countries and the United Nations have together sent hundreds of tons of humanitarian aid to Egypt’s Arish airport near Rafah, where the Egyptian Red Crescent is organizing aid for delivery to Gaza. In recent days, more than 200 trucks filled with aid stood waiting on the Egyptian side of the crossing. Angry truck drivers staged a protest last week, demanding they be allowed to deliver their desperately needed cargo to “Palestinian brothers” on the other side of the border.[...]

Eighty-four truckloads have now entered Gaza from Egypt since last weekend, just a small fraction of the more than 100 a day that U.N. officials have said is the bare minimum for civilian survival. U.S., U.N. and Egyptian officials have said a main impediment to a more substantial flow is the length of time it has taken for Israel’s inspections of every truck[...]

Inspections that take 10-15 minutes during the normal flow of Egyptian-Israeli trade are now taking “hours,” 

27 Oct 23

[news-of-the-day]

5/30/24

Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts of the hush money trial, making him now a felon. His sentencing hearing will be on July 11th. Maximum is four years in prison, but he's a first offender and it's a nonviolent crime, so even if he were just a regular Joe Shmoe, he may receive home confinement or even probation. This isn't a federal case so he can't pardon himself later. I'll try to write slowly over the weekend to describe this case better. Some of his more serious cases, like the Georgia one, are also state level but aren't scheduled until after the election.

In a massive, massive reversal, the Biden administration is now allowing the Ukraine to fire US-made weapons into Russia proper, but only near the borders. This is due to the sudden Russian advances, because until now the US has been trying desperately to avoid escalating the situation.

Israel is now allowing food produced in Israel and the West Bank to be sold to Gaza, the first time since the war. Ever since the Rafah offensive started, pretty much all aid has ground to a halt, and people are starving. Whatever gets in will undoubtedly not be enough.

Garry Conille was voted in as Haitian prime minister by the Presidential Transition Council. After Prime Minister Moise was assassinated in 2021, the country — which admittedly already wasn't the most stable — kinda started slipping into chaos. The next prime minister, Henry, was under suspicion for the assassination. He also started losing control of the country to gangs, to the point that he once couldn't land his plane from an international trip because gangs had taken over the airport. He resigned a few months ago and the council stepped in. Conille has led the country briefly and has a lot of experience in the UN, but it's a very, very perilous situation with over 4000 people since January dying due to gang violence. He will lead the country until the next elections, but there haven't been any held since there's too much violence in the streets. There's literally no functioning legislature due to this.

Slovakian Prime Minister Fico was released from the hospital after he was shot during a meeting with supporters. The shooter, a 71-year-old man with no strong political affiliations, seems to have gotten entrenched with political fervor. In recent years political tension in Slovakia has ratched up and there are even talks of possible civil war, ever since a journalist was killed in 2018 whilst investigating corruption.

Fourteen Hong Kong pro-democracy activists were convicted and two were acquitted for subversion. They were amongst 47 others who were arrested in 2020 by organizing an unofficial primary to pick candidates to run for office and were accused of trying to overthrow the government.

India is suffering a horrible heatwave with at least 115°, with one city reaching 126°. Only ten people have died so far, but many have been hospitalized and there undoubtedly will be more to come.

1) Politico, Washington Post 2) BBC 3) Reuters 4) CNN, BBC 5) NYT 6) Al Jazeera 7) Times of India

[theivorybilledwoodpecker]

President Joe Biden received an icy reception outside a fundraiser in Philadelphia. While Biden spoke to donors about "American possibilities" inside the Hilton Philadelphia at Penn's Landing, outside, hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters shouted their support for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, according to White House pool reports. Others yelled "shame" as Biden and his motorcade departed for Philadelphia International Airport en route back to Washington, D.C. "Some protesters held up a big sign that said 'Genocide Joe & Netan-Nazi,'" according to press pool reports from the Monday event. ... The White House has downplayed the anger directed at Biden over his response to the Israel-Hamas war, including outside former first lady Rosalynn Carter's memorial service last month in Georgia. We're not worried about nicknames and bumper stickers," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said. "It’s First Amendment, free speech." "But this word 'genocide' is getting thrown around in a pretty inappropriate way by lots of different folks," he continued. "Israel is trying to defend itself against a genocidal terrorist threat. So, when we're going to start — if we're going to start using that word, fine, let's use it appropriately."

Fuck you, John Kirby.

I'm skeptical the International Criminal Court will have any consequences for Western officials. But one can only hope, and I hope Biden and Kirby share a cell.

[mariacallous]

The Polish foreign minister has urged his EU counterparts to remove restrictions placed by their countries on the use of long-range weapons donated to Ukraine.

Radosław Sikorski said that Ukraine should be able to use such weapons for “legal self-defense.” His comments come in the wake of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s British cabinet address where he appealed to politicians to remove restrictions on how Ukraine can use weapons supplied by its Western allies to allow long-range strikes on Russia. NATO members, which include all but four EU states, have adopted a number of approaches to how Ukraine can use the weapons they donate. Some have said that the Ukrainian military can use the donated weapons to attack targets inside Russia. However, the United States, a key NATO member, has taken a “narrower” approach. Washington has allowed weapons to be used only just inside Russia’s border against targets supporting Russian military operations in Ukraine. Sikorski made the call during a monthly meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) in Brussels on Monday. He said that with long-range arms Ukraine could prevent Russian attacks, such as the recent shelling of a children’s hospital in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, by being able to destroy fighter jets and attack the airports from which they take off. Sikorski argued that defending children’s hospitals “is not escalation… but self-defense, which is legal under international law.” During the conference, Sikorski pointed out that Hungary had announced it would continue to block the reimbursement of funds from the European Peace Facility for weapons transferred to Ukraine. The purchases of weapons for Ukraine are made by member countries, after which they can apply for reimbursement from the EU budget. However, the disbursement of funds has been blocked by Hungary for months, as the allocation of further tranches of funds to the EPF must be unanimously approved by EU states. “This is a big disappointment for me,” Sikorski said. He went on to list the reasons for Budapest’s opposition and said that now Hungary’s “pretext” to oppose the reimbursement was “that Hungary is not allowed to import Russian oil shipped by a specific Russian company, Lukoil, which is subject to sanctions, even though it can be done through another Russian company.” He told the FAC meeting that Poland was still waiting to be reimbursed 2 billion zlotys (€470 million) from the European Peace Facility.