Free Republic

The Swiss federal government announced on Monday that it has frozen “any assets held in Switzerland by Nicolás Maduro and other persons associated with him, with immediate effect.” Maduro was taken into custody by the U.S. military on Saturday to face narco-terrorism and weapons charges. The Federal Council, which is the seven-member cabinet that serves jointly as head of state for Switzerland, said it was acting quickly to “prevent an outflow of assets.” “The asset freeze does not affect members of the current Venezuelan government,” the statement noted. “Should future legal proceedings reveal that the funds were illicitly acquired, Switzerland...

Democratic Illinois Governor JB Pritzker was seen posing with a man who worked as a 'Peacekeeper' in the state, less than a week before he was arrested for allegedly killing a father while fleeing a robbery at a Louis Vuitton store. Keller McMillan, 35, was one of seven men charged with murder, burglary, and retail theft after they robbed a luxury retail store and allegedly killed a father who was driving to work. It has now been revealed that McMillan was working as a 'Peacekeeper,' a trained community member who is sent to violent hotspots to de-escalate conflicts.

Israel released rare footage showing Mossad operatives on the ground in Iran carrying out precision attacks against the nation’s air defenses and ballistic missile launchers. According to the official, Mossad agents set up a drone base on Iranian soil near Tehran. The drones were activated overnight, striking surface-to-surface missile launchers aimed at Israel. Israel spent years preparing for the operation against Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, a security official tells The Times of Israel, including building a drone base inside Iran and smuggling precision weapons systems and commandos into the country. The effort hinged on tight joint planning between the...

Several European leaders urged Israel and Iran to de-escalate after Jerusalem launched a “pre-emptive” strike on Iranian military leaders and facilities over night. Iran’s Ayatollah has vowed “harsh punishment” in revenge after Israel launched targeted strikes overnight and launched a flight of suicide bomb drones, but European leaders urged both sides to stay their hands and engage in diplomacy. The United Kingdom, which has given Israel the cold shoulder in many respects since the new left-wing government took power last year rushed to assert it was “not involved in what happened overnight” and said its goal is to “prevent escalation”....

An unhinged tourist from Chile beat a man to death with a fire extinguisher — all because the victim tried to calm him down as he was getting kicked out of a Florida motel, officials said. Piero Estefano But-Castillo, 25, fatally stomped and pounded Robert Krusinowski, 55, at a Quality Inn in Kissimmee, Florida on Wednesday, according to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office. But-Castillo had just arrived in the United States on a 90-day tourist visa from Chile on Jan.1, Fox35 reported. The alleged maniac flew off the handle when he was told that he would be evicted from the...

For weeks Kiev officials and many corners of Western media and the Washington national security establishment have hyped the Russian troop build-up in regions of Russia that are within 400km of Ukraine's border, accusing the Kremlin of planning an invasion of Donbass sometime in January. This month started, for example, with The Washington Post citing US intelligence to claim this would involve a whopping 175,000 Russian troops mustered near the border. But like with prior similar instances (such as failed predictions last spring that never materialized), it's looking like the opposite is set to happen, with on Saturday Reuters reporting...

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden repeated his controversial contention Thursday that police should try to shoot dangerous suspects in the leg as a form of de-escalation. "You have to teach people how to de-escalate circumstances. De-escalate," Biden said during an ABC News town hall. "So, instead of anybody coming at you and the first thing you do is shoot to kill, you shoot them in the leg."

<p>US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said on Monday the United States would closely examine proposed de-escalation zones aimed at easing Syria’s civil war but warned “the devil’s in the details” and that much needed to be worked out.</p> <p>The deal to create “de-escalation” zones in the major areas of conflict in western Syria took effect on Saturday.</p>

Full text of the agreement reached between Iran, Russia and Turkey in Astana on May 4 on the creation of de-escalation areas in Syria has been released. The memorandum released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation stated that the aim was “to put a prompt end to violence, improve the humanitarian situation and create favorable conditions to advance political settlement of the conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic”. Full text of the agreement made between Iran, Russia and Turkey in Astane on May 4 is as follows: “The Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation...