Free Republic

Pro-Polisario activists in Spain have been urging the Spanish government to reverse his decision to endorse the Autonomy Plan as a serious and credible solution to end the Sahara dispute.Rabat - Spanish security services expelled on Wednesday a man from a Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) event after he displayed the separatist flag of the Algerian-backed and self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). The event, which took place in Burgos, a city in Castile-Leon, was part of the Spanish ruling party’s pre-campaign meetings ahead of local and regional elections that are set to take place in Spain next month. During...

Organized demolition crews, mostly made up of Moroccan migrants, are putting German lives at risk with their high-explosive ATM heists ... Organized criminal gangs active in the Netherlands and France, mostly made up of Moroccan migrants, are blowing up ATMs in Germany at a record pace in highly professional robbery operations. In 2022, government statistics indicate that they blew up 500 such machines, with statistically more than one machine being blown up every day. Cash remains popular with Germans, and to feed this demand, banks operate nearly 100,000 ATMs located throughout the country, with the machines routinely containing between €50,000...

Eva Kaili is the name on everyone's lips in Brussels.The Greek MEP was considered, until her arrest on 9 December, a rising star among the ranks of the socialist group (S&D). Known as media-friendly and approachable, Kaili was first elected to the European Parliament in 2014, running with the centre-left PASOK party, and was re-elected in 2019.In January 2022, the 44-year-old was named one of the parliament's 14 vice presidents, a culmination of her legislative work in digital topics such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and blockchain.Since her shocking detainment, Kaili has been expelled from PASOK, suspended from the S&D group...

President praises Mohammed V, who made North African country into a safe haven from Nazi persecution during World War II, thanks current monarch for supporting community, educationPresident Isaac Herzog thanked Morocco’s King Mohammed VI in a letter on Tuesday for his country’s provision of a “safe haven” for Jews during the Holocaust. The letter — marking two years since Morocco normalized ties with Israel — was the first occasion an Israeli state official has paid tribute to the Holocaust-era actions of Morocco’s monarch at the time, according to the presidency. Herzog expressed Israel’s gratitude to the king “and the people...

PARIS — According to reports, watching soccer is finally interesting as France descends into fiery chaos after a Morocco semi-final loss. "Wow, now THIS is entertaining," said one viewer while watching a Morocco supporter beating up a French guy with a stale baguette while several others lit the Louvre on fire. "Look at all the fighting and explosions! Why can't soccer always be like this?" Early reports indicate World Cup viewership is now at an all-time high as people around the world tune in to see massive, fiery street brawls. "Who knew watching soccer could be such an engaging experience?"...

Walk through this part of central Brussels on a sunny morning and you could just as well be in Rabat or Tangiers. In this Moroccan neighbourhood in the heart of the Belgian capital...The atmosphere is undoubtedly Moroccan as you head down the main street towards Midi train station. Five million Moroccans live abroad, most of them in Europe. They make up large minorities in France, Spain, Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands. Here in Brussels and surrounding regions, they number 400,000. Morocco's victories showed celebrations turning ugly in several European cities. In places, celebrations turned to street battles involving young Morocco...

Spicy harissa paste from Tunisia, Morocco's Raï music, and Kalela dance from Zambia were selected to join United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO's) intangible cultural heritage list. The agency met in the Moroccan capital Rabat, to examine proposals for its List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which aims to protect cultural traditions, practices, and knowledge. There was no debate over whether to include Tunisia's harissa - a paste made with sun-dried hot peppers, spices and olive oil, found in almost every restaurant in Tunisia and exported worldwide. The debates were longer for Kalela, a traditional dance that originated during...

The UN General Assembly this week passed a resolution to characterize the founding of the modern state of Israel in 1948 as a “catastrophe,” in what has been heralded as a major victory for pro-Palestinian activists. The word “Nakba,” which means catastrophe or disaster in Arabic, was also a term coined by the Palestinians to commemorate the Jewish state’s founding. The UN resolution acknowledges the Palestinian version of the events that led to Israel’s creation, and calls for the “commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Nakba,” with a “high-level event” at the global body on May 15th, 2023. May...

Incoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu said Wednesday that a normalization agreement between Israel and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is within reach and would effectively “end the Arab-Israeli conflict.” The latest statement from the Prime Minister comes as the new conservative coalition vows to confront terrorism in the Middle East and strengthen alliances with Arab allies. Speaking from Israel at an online event hosted by Temple Emanu-El’s Streicker Center, Netanyahu reminded an online audience of nearly 300 people that the Abraham Accords were negotiated by the former Trump administration when he was Israel’s prime minister. The Accords normalized...

The United Nations has decided that Israel needs to get rid of its nuclear weapons — if indeed it has any. But the organization has nothing to say about Iran.In a 152-5 vote on Friday, the UN’s General Assembly voted to have Israel dispose of its nuclear weapons and place any nuclear sites within its borders under the watchful eye of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The dissenting votes were from the United States, Canada, Israel, Micronesia, and Palau. Twenty-three nations and the European Union abstained.Fox News reports that it has never been confirmed that Israel has any nuclear weapons,...

The United Nations General Assembly's first committee, which deals with disarmament, global challenges, and threats to peace that affect the international community, voted 152-5, on Friday, on a resolution concerning "the risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East". The resolution states that Israel must dispose of all its nuclear weapons and place its nuclear sites under the International Atomic Energy Agency's purview. The resolution, which is submitted every year to the UNGA in New York, was submitted by Egypt and sponsored by the Palestinian Authority and 19 counties including Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, and the United Arab Emirates. Canada, Israel,...

The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (SNCF), a French state-owned railroad operator, came to California in hopes of helping the state build a high-speed rail system from Los Angeles to San Francisco but left for North Africa in 2011 because the region was 'less politically dysfunctional' than the Golden State. Within 7 years, they built a functioning high-speed rail system in Morocco, the New York Times reported. California sought to have the first high-speed rail system in the country, but a new report from the Times showed political disagreement on the train's route slowed the ambitious project to...

Lizard Skull Fossil Closeup One of the Thalassotitan skulls. (University of Bath) The discovery of incredible fossils of a giant marine lizard reveals how this ancient extinct beast would have ruled the sea 66 million years ago. The beast is a newly discovered species of mosasaur, giant marine reptiles that hunted the oceans during the Late Cretaceous. It's called Thalassotitan atrox, and wear on its teeth along with other remains found at its excavation site suggest that this intimidating animal was no gentle giant – but feasted on difficult prey such as sea turtles, plesiosaurs, and other mosasaurs. Other mosasaurs...

President Biden travels to Israel and Saudi Arabia next week — his first trip to the Middle East since entering the White House. And while the president has been eager to criticize a range of his predecessor's policies, he is fully embracing one key pillar of Donald Trump's Middle East policy — the Abraham Accords. Those deals were brokered by the Trump White House in 2020 to normalize relations between Israel and a number of Arab countries, including Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Morocco. It was a huge rupture from recent history in which Arab nations had made it...

British and Moroccan scientists said Tuesday they had found the remains of two new species of extinct animals in the Saharan desert, describing the find as one of the most important of the past 50 years. The team of paleontologists said they had unearthed a new species of pterosaur, a flying reptile from the Mesozoic era, and a new type of sauropod, a giant four-legged herbivore from the Jurassic period.

“The prophet of Allah took off his gown and put it on Om Ali and slept with her in her grave and they kicked dirt on him, saying: ‘Oh messenger of Allah, we saw you do something no one else has ever done.’ He said: ‘I dressed her in my gown, so she can wear the gowns of paradise and I slept with her in her grave to relieve her of the torments of the grave.'” (Kanz al-‘Ommal in Sunan al Aqwal wa al-Af’al, vol. 16, p. 158) “There is no need to rewash a dead woman if her husband...

Iran was surprised to see the recent Negev Summit where Israel hosted the foreign ministers of the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Egypt. It is now examining how strong this new alliance might be. Iran was surprised to see the recent Negev Summit where Israel hosted the foreign ministers of the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Egypt. While Tehran has been shouting about the Abraham Accords since the beginning, accusing Arab states of betraying the Palestinian cause and threatening them against working with Israel, it appears that the Islamic Republic now understands that this new era of peaceful diplomacy is actually happening...

The foreign ministers of countries under Iran’s guns seemed more intent on cooperation among themselves than on backing America’s pursuit of reviving a failed nuclear deal. Beefed up military and intelligence cooperation among regional allies to confront Iran is the most positive outcome of the Negev summit — even as America inexplicably remains determined to appease the mullahs. Foreign ministers of Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, and Egypt today ended a summit hastily organized by Israel’s foreign minister, Yair Lapid, at the Negev town of Sde Boker. They decided to boost security cooperation and vowed to meet periodically in...

Bennett's office said that the prime minister feels well and will work from home while quarantining......Israel's Police Chief Kobi Shabtai also tested positive, according to a report this morning. Because he tested positive, Bennett is required to be in quarantine for five days or until symptoms subside which means he will miss in-person meetings over the next few days.... Bennett has had at least three doses of the Pfizer COVID vaccine. Currently, a historic summit is taking place in the Negev at Sde Boker with the foreign ministers of six nations. Israel's Foreign Minister Yair Lapid is hosting Blinken and...

Man allegedly instigated Islamist terrorism while in jail(ANSA) - ROME, FEB 21 - A 43-year-old self-proclaimed imam who allegedly called for the Vatican to be destroyed has been sent to trial in Turin. Bouchta El Allam, who is of Moroccan origin and was detained by Carabinieri police in May 2021, is accused of instigation to commit crimes for terrorism. The trial is set to start in March. The alleged wrongdoing regards Jihadi propaganda that the man alleged promoted during a spell in jail in Alessandria for a drug-related felony between the summer of 2020 and the spring of 2021. (ANSA).