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Hundreds of Russian military contractors in Libya were evacuated on Monday after retreating from fighting on the capital's front lines, forces backing the unity government said. The claim comes after a series of setbacks for eastern-based military commander Khalifa Haftar's year-long offensive to seize Tripoli from the UN-supported Government of National Accord (GNA). "An Antonov 32 military cargo plane landed at Bani Walid airport to resume the evacuation of Wagner [Group] mercenaries who had fled southern Tripoli to an as-yet unconfirmed destination," pro-GNA forces wrote on Twitter. Pro-GNA forces said Monday some "1,500 to 1,600 mercenaries" had fled from the...

State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement Saturday that the U.S. is "concerned" by a request for military support by the Government of National Accord (GNA). The U.S. is also concerned about the Libyan National Army's (LNA) "threat to use foreign-supplied air assets and mercenaries." Forces led by the LNA's Khalifa Haftar have been supported by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Russian mercenaries, according to the wire service, which cited diplomats and Tripoli officials. A U.S. official told Reuters that the presence of the Russian forces is "creating a bloodier conflict." "More civilian damage, damage to infrastructure...

Where was Samantha Power when an unarmed Iranian young woman, Neda Soltan, was shot by Iranian troops, and bled to death in the street? As a member of Team Obama, does anyone recall Power saying anything critical of Iran? Does anyone recall Barack Hussein Obama commenting on that horrific assault on human rights? Oh wait, he did say something: “We’re still waiting to see how it plays itself out….” ... Everyone must hear about this. Every outlet in the world should publicize how the murderous Iranian regime is mowing down protesters. ... Wait until Samantha Power hears about how Samantha...

American interests are under attack in Libya, whether we realize it or not. Adversaries and allies alike are attempting to install a dictator. In doing so, they’re undermining U.S. credibility and challenging American leadership of the international order. Hundreds—maybe thousands—of Russian mercenaries joined the battle for Tripoli, Libya’s capital, this fall, fighting alongside aspiring strongman Khalifa Haftar. Russia’s primary interest isn’t Libya, but the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. President Vladimir Putin interpreted

In late February, the Israeli Knesset passed the NGO Funding Transparency Bill by 40 to 34. It had been a long journey for the bill, which despite, its neutered, state was still a declaration of war by the conservative Likud Party against the shadow NGO empire that was the Soros way. While the bill was no longer able to empower the lifting of tax exempt status for foreign funded NGOs and it only addressed foreign funding of NGOs by government entities, it was a major step for foreign funding transparency. The Soros empire had been built on non-transparency, on hidden...

What do Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri—that is, the late leader of ISIS, and the late and current leaders of al-Qaeda—have in common? That they’re among the world’s most notorious Islamic terrorists? Yes, but there’s something else, something more subtle, that binds them: they all began their careers as members of the Muslim Brotherhood, the oldest and most widespread political Islamic organization in the world. (snip) Of course, a year later Egypt revolted against the Brotherhood, which found itself again labeled a terrorist organization. Even so, the Brotherhood remains alive and well, particularly in the United...

In Iraq, demonstrators are being shot dead in the streets. In Lebanon, protesters have paralysed the country and seem set to bring down the government of Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri. In recent weeks the Egyptian security forces crushed attempts to protest against the police state of President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi... A rough approximation is that 60% of the region's population is under the age of 30. A young population can be a great asset to a country. But only if the economy, the educational system and the institutions of the state are functioning well enough to accommodate their needs, and...

Accompanied by the image of a blood-splattered cross and star of David Billboards belonging to the traditionalist Muslim Justice and Development Party (AKP) municipality are on public display in Konya, central Turkey, featuring the verbatim text of Koran 5:51 (in accurate Turkish translation). Accompanied by the image of a blood-splattered cross, and star of David, the text simply re-states Koran 5:51: O you who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians as Auliya' (friends, protectors, helpers, etc.), they are but Auliya' to one another. And if any amongst you takes them as Auliya', then surely he is one of...

DOD records obtained by Judicial Watch contain the first official documentation that the Obama administration knew that weapons were being shipped from the Port of Benghazi to rebel troops in Syria. The heavily redacted documents do not disclose who was shipping the weapons. Another DIA report, written in August 2012 (the same time period the U.S. was monitoring weapons flows from Libya to Syria), said that the opposition in Syria was driven by al Qaeda and other extremist Muslim groups: “the Salafist, the Muslim Brotherhood, and AQI are the major forces driving the insurgency in Syria.” The growing sectarian direction...

Moscow, October 13, Interfax - A new Syrian constitution being drafted now must guarantee interests of all ethnic and religious groups living in the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. "People need to know that they live in their own country and that it protects them by law. This must be equally true for Sunnis and Shia, for Alawites and Christians," Putin said in an interview with RT Arabic, Sky News, and Al Arabiya, posted on the Kremlin website. "It will not be easy; it will be a difficult process, but I believe it can work," he said. "Do you...

Tyler S. Drumheller, a high-level CIA officer who publicly battled agency leaders over one of the most outlandish claims in the U.S. case for war with Iraq, died Aug. 2 at a hospital in Fairfax County. He was 63. The cause was complications from pancreatic cancer, said his wife, Linda Drumheller. Mr. Drumheller held posts in Africa and Europe over a 26-year career during which the CIA’s focus shifted from the Cold War to terrorist threats. He rose to prominent positions at CIA headquarters, serving as chief of the European division at a time when the agency was abducting al-Qaeda...

Two Ukrainian military aircraft IL-76TD destroyed on the territory of Al Jafra airbase in Libya. This is reported by Avia.pro. The aircraft were destroyed by rocket attacks. Soon information was published that one of the planes suffered as a result of a strike of Bayraktar TB2 Turkish drone, but the army representatives did not confirm this information and added that this drone was shot down from the missile system. Information agency reports that these planes were transporting prohibited weapons from Turkey to Libya. As a result of the explosion, one of the pilots died.

An airstrike on a migrant detention center in the Tajoura suburb of Libya's capital killed at least 44 people early Wednesday morning, according to the United Nations. More than 100 people were injured. The strike hit a hangar within the Tajoura Detention Center, obliterating what had been a shelter that was housing roughly 120 people. The death toll has grown as local health authorities report casualties. The U.N.-recognized government in the capital, Tripoli, has accused strongman Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army of carrying out the attack. As NPR's Jane Arraf reports, the migrants' hangar is next to a...

Former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi collapsed and died following a court session Monday. He was 67. Morsi, a senior figure in the Muslim Brotherhood, was elected as Egypt's president in June, 2012 in the wake of the Arab Spring, which compelled Hosni Mubarak to resign after decades as president. He was deposed in a military coup in July 2013 following mass protests against his rule. Following his ousted, Morsi stood trial for the shooting of protesters, espionage for foreign military organizations including Hamas and Hezbollah, and for breaking out of prison in 2011 prior to his election. He was convicted...

Reports say clashes between Gen Khalifa Haftar's rebels and pro-government groups are taking place in three suburbs to the south of the city. Tripoli is the base of the UN-backed, internationally recognised government. The UN's Libya envoy has insisted that a planned conference on possible new elections will still go ahead. In a televised address the head of the UN-backed government, Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, accused Gen Haftar of launching a coup. Mr al-Sarraj said his government had "extended our hands towards peace", but said Gen Haftar will now be met with "nothing but strength and firmness". Tripoli residents have...

Iran looking to exploit the crisis in Algeria, in another threat to the EU A crisis in Algeria caused by a leadership vacuum with no prospects in sight is feared to be creating an opportunity for Iranian elements to hijack the country and “pose a dangerous strategic threat to Europe.” “ Tens of thousands took to the streets, chanting “No to a fifth Bouteflika term” and “No to the mafia regime,” in the largest mass protests in Algeria since the 2011 Arab Spring…..on Monday, Algerian strongman and national hero President Abdelaziz Bouteflika dropped his bid to run for a fifth...

Obama Scandal: Former President Obama and his political supporters have repeatedly stated that his administration was scandal-free, unlike administrations before and after. "We're probably the first administration in modern history that hasn't had a major scandal in the White House," Obama himself said. A new book puts the lie to that statement. Never mind that the left-leaning big media basically ignored major scandals during the Obama years, ranging from the IRS targeting scandal and the VA's deadly waiting lists for veterans to Hillary Clinton's illegal use of an unsecured, hackable home-brew server for her official duties as secretary of state...

Television journalist Lara Logan poked the mainstream media beehive last week in a no-holds-barred interview where she bluntly accused many reporters of becoming “political activists” and even “propagandists” for the Left and said journalism has descended into “absolute horses**t.” The response has been furious, personal, and devoid of the respect normally demanded for rape survivors.Lara Logan is a rape survivor in the most literal no-horsesh**t sense of the term. She was assaulted by a mob in Cairo while covering the Arab Spring uprising in February 2011 for CBS News and could easily have been killed. She has made it clear...

Former US president Barack Obama lied to Saudi Arabia when violating the redlines he famously declared regarding Syria’s use of chemical weapons and then not acting when they were used, a former senior Saudi official said in an interview with Independent Arabia. Bandar bin Sultan served for years as head of Saudi intelligence as well as the Saudi ambassador to the United States. In the interview, he recalled a last phone call between the late Saudi King Abdullah and Obama, during which the Saudi leader told the US president: “I did not expect that [after] this long life, I would...

DOHUK, Iraq (Reuters) - One protester was killed and at least 10 others wounded when they stormed a Turkish military camp near Dohuk in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region on Saturday, burning two tanks and other vehicles, residents and Kurdish officials said. Najib Saeed, the chief health official in the area, said it was not yet clear what caused the death. He said Turkish soldiers had shot at protesters and that the burning of vehicles and equipment had caused several explosions. Baghdad's foreign ministry criticized the Turkish troops for opening fire and said it would summon Turkey's ambassador over the incident.