Free Republic

James O’Keefe’s OMG (O’Keefe Media Group) has recently released explosive undercover footage that purportedly shows a CIA contractor discussing how intelligence agencies conspired to withhold information from then-President Donald Trump. “I have evidence that exposes the CIA, and it’s on camera. I am working on releasing a story that I believe is the most important of my entire career,” O’Keefe said last week. O’Keefe Media Group on Wednesday released part one: Exposing the CIA: A project manager working in cyber operations told OMG’s undercover journalist that the Director of the CIA would keep information from Trump. The contractor, identified as...

Russian lawmakers have passed legislation changing the age categories for those called up for the military potentially meaning that older troops could be sent to fight in Ukraine. With President Vladimir Putin's forces reportedly facing heavy losses in his invasion of Ukraine, Russia's parliament, the Duma, has this week passed a raft of measures to help with mobilization, including tougher fines for those who avoid the draft as well as extending upper age limits for reserves. The State Duma said Tuesday it had adopted a law raising the maximum age by half a decade for those who had already completed...

A Ukrainian official tweeted a video of troops holding a flag in the settlement, located about halfway between Mariupol and Zaporizhzhia in the country's southeast. "The 35th brigade and the 'Ariy' territorial defence unit have fulfilled their task and liberated the village of Staromaiorske. Glory to Ukraine!" said a soldier in the video. Staromaiorske lies to the south of a number of small settlements that Ukraine has recaptured during its counteroffensive, which began in June. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy had hinted at a significant win on the frontline last night. "By the way, today our boys had very good results...

Fresh off his claim of victory in capturing the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, Russian mercenary boss Yevgeniy Prigozhin warned that Moscow’s brutal war could plunge Russia into turmoil similar to the 1917 revolution unless its detached, wealthy elites become more directly committed to the conflict. In a lengthy interview with Konstantin Dolgov, a political operative and pro-war blogger, Prigozhin, the founder and leader of the Wagner mercenary group, also asserted that the war has backfired spectacularly by failing to “demilitarize” Ukraine, one of President Vladimir Putin’s stated aims of the invasion. He also called for totalitarian policies. “We are in...

Ukraine is able to export electricity for the first time in six months as its energy infrastructure recovers from months of repeated Russian attacks. Russia began its lengthy and deliberate assault on Ukraine's energy infrastructure last October. It led to power cuts and scheduled blackouts, leaving towns and cities in darkness during winter. Ukraine was forced to stop electricity exports - but will now be able to sell its excess power again. Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko signed an executive order authorising the exports, although local customers remain the priority. He said the system had been producing extra capacity for almost...

RALEIGH, N.C. - A former CIA contract employee was sentenced Tuesday to nearly 8 1/2 years in prison for beating an Afghan detainee who later died. David Passaro, 40, was accused of hitting Abdul Wali with a flashlight and kicking him in the groin during a two-day interrogation at a remote military base in Afghanistan in July 2003. Wali died within 48 hours of the interrogation, after complaining of abdominal pain and an inability to urinate. Passaro was the first American civilian charged with mistreating a detainee during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was found guilty last year...