Since the publication of Seymour Hersh’s bombshell article alleging that the U.S. was behind the Nord Stream sabotage, many sceptics have concluded the case is now closed. It was America.
This attitude is understandable. After all, Hersch is a legendary investigative reporter who in his long career has broken several stories that were initially dismissed as fabrications and later proven correct. All of these stories were, shall we say, ‘inconvenient’ for the U.S. government.
What’s more, his sabotage story seems to fit together so well. U.S. officials have been threatening for years – and I’m directly quoting here – to “end”, “halt”, “stop”, “kill”, “cancel”, “shut down”, “take out”, “terminate” and “put an end to” Nord Stream 2. (Seriously, watch this video by Matt Orfalea.) And no-one besides the Norwegians – whom Hersh claims were also involved – will benefit more from Nord Stream’s demise than Uncle Sam.
Yet I’m not convinced. Sure, my prior has shifted somewhat toward the U.S. as the party responsible. But if I had to bet, I still think Ukraine’s the most likely culprit.
To begin with, several commentators have picked holes in Hersh’s story, which is far from watertight. Indeed, it’s much more porous than his ultra-confident tone implies. Some of his quotes even sound like they were lifted from a Hollywood movie. Referring to Biden – the alleged mastermind of the operation – Hersh’s source apparently said, “I gotta admit the guy has a pair of balls.”
Then there’s all the circumstantial evidence pointing to Ukraine. Let’s review it.
Motive. Sabotaging the pipelines eliminated Germany’s incentive to defect from the pro-Ukraine coalition. It also ensured that any Russian gas flowing to Northern Europe in the near future will have to go through Ukraine.
Risk. Of all the possible culprits, Ukraine is the only one that could sabotage the pipelines without the risk of sparking World War III. And even though they would have technically attacked Germany, justifying it as retaliation against Russia would have been fairly straightforward (their infrastructure was getting bombed at the time).
Precedent. Since the conflict began, Ukraine has carried out a number of successful sabotage operations. They were behind the attack on Kerch bridge, the assassination of Darya Dugin, and the explosion at Saky airfield. They’re also alleged to be responsible for a spate of “mystery explosions” inside Russia itself. According to the FSB, they even attempted to sabotage the South Stream pipeline.
Warning. Last September, Der Spiegel reported that Germany had been warned by the CIA about a possible Ukrainian attack on the Nord Stream pipelines.
Disclosure. In a recent interview with Freddie Sayers, U.S. national security advisor Fiona Hill stated, “Some of my colleagues who have been looking at this think Ukraine could have done it. And this isn’t implausible”. As to whether they had the means, “Ukraine could have found a way of doing this: we’ve seen them be extremely inventive” – she added.
If the Ukrainians were in fact responsible, how do we explain the threats from U.S. officials, such as Biden’s pronouncement that “there will be no longer Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it”?
Easy. When Biden said that, he didn’t mean “we will blow up the pipeline”; he meant “we will tell Germany to cancel its approval”. And of course, that’s exactly what Germany did on February 22nd last year. The U.S. has been pressuring Germany to cancel the pipelines since as far back as 2008. And when Russia recognised the two breakaway regions, they finally had the leverage they needed.
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Following on from yesterday’s debate about GB News (can’t remember how it started) I had forgotten until this morning that the former PM is going to have a show. I accept that any media outlet in the relative mainstream may have a fairly broad of views expressed on it (except the BBC) but how a channel can feature that man and have any credibility is beyond me.
I struggle to see the man as anything but a pathetic spineless buffoon desperately grasping for relevance.
GB News seems to be where the architects of the failed Brexit project go to die.
You are very charitable toward the man. I think the buffoon thing is just an act.
Don’t know why you’ve attracted so many downvotes.
Quite right, ToF. The buffoonery is all an act and I don’t think we have ever seen the real person called Boris Johnson, just the image he projects. The downvotes are probably from Brexiteers who can see no wrong in the man. What’s with his hair though? Did he get a perm and it went wrong? Has he been sleeping on the sofa again? It is a sad reflection of GB News that the year started with Mark Steyn and ends with Johnson.
I voted to leave the EU but even if he had executed Brexit in the way I think it should have been done that cannot excuse what he did with regard to the Covid scam.
Like most of his actions, there is no conviction behind any of them. That is what marks him out as a fraud. Yes, he did get behind Brexit but it seems we are still somehow inextricably and inexplicably linked to the EU – the ECHR being just one example. It shows that Brexit, the one that was oven ready, was actually only ever half-baked and left the door open for a reversal – if required – which is what I believe some people in power actually want to happen, against the wishes of the people. It would put us neatly back into a common jurisdiction which serves the Agenda 2030 project very well – you can’t have sovereign nations after all.
Brexit gave us the opportunity to scrap VAT, a terrible, terrible tax.
That we didn’t is all the evidence I need to know it was always the intention that we rejoin.
Spot on. Boris is a chancer.
Brexit. Some struggle to accept the colossal failure it has been.
We’ve gone from being governed by Brussels bureaucrats to being governed by Whitehall bureaucrats with an identical agenda.
Maybe they think we have a better chance now of affecting things through the ballot box or perhaps the illusion of “independence” is prize enough for them. I don’t know.
I still think it was a step in the right direction and a pre requisite to the changes that I would like to see happen here, but it was never going to be the whole solution, just a beginning. We need to cure our addiction to a nanny state. I doubt this will happen in my lifetime. Here I go being despondent again – that patronising writer will be back to tell me off.
Maybe our children’s children will start to see the benefits…:-)
I like to think things will turn around one day.
Brexit has been handled by remainers, of course.
The EU is part of the globalist plan and institutionally anti-white, so attempting to leave was absolutely necessary.
The economic costs are trivial compared to those of 26 years of the highest immigration by far in our history, lockdowns or Net Zero.
Brexit was handled by Remainers is just excuses.
Boris Johnson walked away from the project days after winning the referendum. The whole thing was fronted and led by clowns. Lots of people have good ideas. But execution is everything. And anyone could have seen the people behind the project were a bunch of lightweight talkers. Was the project undermined? Yes. Were the leaders of the project ready for opposition? No. Should they have been prepared? Of course. But bullshitters don’t plan, don’t prepare, they bullshit.
Regarding you’re anti-white comment, you are way way off the mark. The anti-whiteness is 100% an anglo-saxon, UK/US obsession. Spend any amount of time in continental Europe and you’ll see that there is nothing of the kind going on there. That obsessive white self hatred is 100% a US thing that the UK has copied for reasons that are quite beyond me.
Same. I think it’s totally inappropriate and they’ve lost pretty much all credibility tbh. I think Neil Oliver and Patrick Christys are the only saving graces on that channel now. ( Spoken by someone who doesn’t actually watch it, only clips posted online. ) Somehow the inclusion of Johnson kind of negates all the good bits for me. The buck stopped with him during the entire shitfest scamdemic, and he blatantly wore his ”rules for thee but not for me” hat on many occasions, but he went ahead and screwed over the British people anyway. And pretending he was at death’s door, bloody lying PoS!
On the plus side, Johnson has neither the organisational skills nor work ethic of someone like Blair or Clinton. So unlike those two monsters, the amount of damage he can inflict on others at this point is pretty minimal. His entire power is in his gab and I’ll be stunned if there is anyone left prepared to take what he has to say seriously.
Which Clinton?
Hillary failed to get elected while Bill did not much at all.
As for Blair, he did a lot but most of it damaged us. He had gaining support from almost all the media and the bulk of the official opposition as well as academia and the civil service. On that basis he could do as he liked. Even the intelligence service lied for him.
A fair assessment of Boris after his term as Mayor would have to be positive, not that I agree with all he did.
I’m thinking of The Ckinton Foundation and Tony Blair Institute. These are not insignificant organisations that attempt to shape policy in that devious backdoor, out of the public view kind of way (and of course enrich their founders in the process). They are bastions of evil, as far as I can see.
But you have to have a minimum of work ethic and stick to it ness which Boris Johnson definitely doesn’t have.
I doubt he’ll do much damage talking on GB News. If I’m anything to go by, his once mildly amusing toff schtick now grates the f**k out of me. I literally can’t stand to listen to the man.
100%
Well, that’s one presenter’s programme that I won’t be watching on GBN. I appreciate Neil Oliver’s output, and even Rees-Mogg’s and one or two others. Being charitable, it might be a back door way of keeping Ofcom at bay!
Quite how Neil Oliver holds on is a miracle. He is a saving grace alright and has never once wobbled in his message or delivery. A man of great integrity.
Absolutely Mogs.
China India Reject Wind Solar Obsession
latest leaflet to print at home and deliver to neighbours or forward to politicians, media, friends online.
“…intelligence experts warn….”
should read
“…intelligence experts, funded by vested interests, are fomenting a new wave of radicalisation…”
Surprised this isn’t in the roundup. /sarc.
South Africa institute proceedings with the International Criminal Court against Israel:
https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20231229-pre-01-00-en.pdf
Full ICJ filing here:
https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20231228-app-01-00-en.pdf#page=72
Typical response:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/blood-libel-israel-slams-south-africa-for-filing-icj-genocide-motion-over-gaza-war/
The South African government lacks any credibility.
‘UN experts today called for accountability against xenophobia, racism and hate speech that were harming migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and even citizens perceived as foreign throughout the country.
Experts noted that xenophobia, especially against low-income, African and South East Asian migrants and refugees, had been a feature of South African politics for many years. In 2008, for example, xenophobic violence resulted in the death of over 60 people and contributed to the displacement of at least 100,000.
Xenophobia is often explicitly racialised, targeting low-income Black migrants and refugees and, in some cases, South African citizens accused of being “too Black to be South African.”
In one highly publicised incident in April 2022, a 43-year-old Zimbabwean national and father of four was killed in Diepsloot by a group going door-to-door demanding to see visas. The attackers drove the victim out of a place where he was seeking refuge, beat him and set him on fire.
The violence has continued unabated—it is alleged that the burning of the Yeoville Market in Johannesburg on 20 June 2022 was carried out by persons targeting migrant shopkeepers.’
United Nations Human Rights July 2022
‘South African government data indicated between 58 and 74 murders on farms annually in the period 2015–2017……….annual murder count of 20,000 total murders in South Africa.’
‘What is happening in Cape Town, what has been allowed to develop on the forgotten and dumped communities of the Cape Flats, has to be a crime against humanity: 1 875 people have been killed there this year.
In June last year, there were 344 murders in Cape Town. This year that number had spiralled to 448.’
IOL 13 July 2019
List of UN resolutions concerning Israel:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_Nations_resolutions_concerning_Israel#
The U.N. also lacks any credibility.
Typical. Meanwhile their human lawn mowing has successfully killed over 21,000 dead and 7000 mossing, the majority children. Northern Gaza is flattened in order to “dissuade” the native population from returning.
Stomach churning stuff that the bigots can’t look directly at.
War is a dirty business. No-one comes out of it with clean hands…
There are wars and then there are slaughters…
….and CodePink.org has a petition to encourage other countries to follow SA’s lead:
https://www.codepink.org/icj
I’m looking for the petition to encourage the Saudi coalition to stop bombing the crap out of Yemeni civilians. Is that on a different list.?
That ended thankfully.
A nice piece to get the blood pressure of all the warmongers and Israel apologists ATL and BTL up: https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/israels-genocide-betrays-the-holocaust?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=778851&post_id=140183849&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=97oj4&utm_medium=email
https://euromedmonitor.org/en/article/6067/Amid-ongoing-genocide-in-Gaza,-systematic-Israeli-theft-occurring-in-Palestinian-civilian-homes
According to testimonies gathered by Euro-Med Monitor, the Israeli army’s crimes extend beyond arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, and field executions. They also involve the intentional destruction of property, the theft of personal belongings, and the looting and burning of homes—all part of a systematic strategy that is evidently based on collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
Based on the testimonies it has been documenting, the Euro-Med Monitor team stated that its preliminary estimates suggest that the Israeli army may have looted valuable possessions worth tens of millions of dollars, in addition to stealing personal belongings from Palestinian civilians.
Perhaps they need to re-read that bit in the Bible and why it didn’t go so well for Saul….
Well I’m not interested enough to click on the article but I’m willing to bet everyone on that New Year’s Honours list is a complete arsehole.
You’re right not to, Mogs, it’ll only spike your blood pressure! It’s a certain sign that the trolls and ogres have captured the castle but, more than that, it shows how utterly meaningless these baubles are except to those who still get dazzled by their cheap and tacky glitter.
Why is our money being given to any sports bodies? How can taking money in taxes and then giving some of it away again be more efficient than us giving or spending money directly to causes we approve of? Why do I have to fund Parkrun?
Words fail.
‘Women raped by Hamas were found with nails driven into their thighs and groin and were passed around by terrorists who slaughtered them after or even during gang-rape, horrifying new witness accounts of October 7 reveal.
‘Images shown to the New York Times by Israeli authorities showed a woman who had dozens of nails driven into her thighs and genitals in a savage example of mutilation, while other clips displayed the corpses of soldiers and civilians alike who had been either shot or stabbed in the groin.
Another dark image dubbed ‘the woman in the black dress’ showed the corpse of an Israeli later identified as Gal Abdush. She is seen splayed on the floor, legs wrenched apart with her vagina exposed, and covered in burns. Her lifeless body was crumpled in the dirt next to the husk of a heavily damaged car riddled with bullet holes.
Both Gal and her husband were slaughtered by Hamas as they tried in vain to escape along highway Route 232, away from the Nova music festival massacre. Their sons, Eliav, 10, and Refael, 7, have been left orphaned.
Meanwhile, several witnesses described seeing many other women raped and killed on Route 232, with soldiers and investigators claiming they discovered bodies around the Nova festival ground who showed signs of abuse in and around their genitals, the New York Times reported.
One witness, named only as Sapir, said she watched in horror from a hiding place in the shrubs just off Route 232 as Hamas gunmen gang-raped several women, stabbing them in the back when they protested and cutting off their breasts.
‘One continues to rape her, and the other throws her breast to someone else, and they play with it, throw it, and it falls on the road,’ Sapir said.
But these latest accounts only bring into sharper focus the inhuman treatment of Israeli civilians at the hands of Hamas attackers, adding to a mountain of evidence already exposed.’
Mail online 30 Dec. 2023
How can anyone downtick this, antisemitism is rife sadly even here.
Perhaps people bright enough not to fall for UK government propaganda about a deadly virus and a climate emergency are also bright enough not to fall for Israeli government propaganda?
Or so monumentally dim that either they cannot comprehend the written English or perhaps cannot even read:
‘Images shown to the New York Times.’
‘Another dark image dubbed ‘the woman in the black dress’ showed the corpse of an Israeli later identified as Gal Abdush.
She is seen splayed on the floor, legs wrenched apart with her vagina exposed, and covered in burns. Her lifeless body was crumpled in the dirt next to the husk of a heavily damaged car riddled with bullet holes.
Both Gal and her husband were slaughtered by Hamas as they tried in vain to escape along highway Route 232, away from the Nova music festival massacre. Their sons, Eliav, 10, and Refael, 7, have been left orphaned.’
Reference above
Christ, you’re even thicker than Monro.
That it is written in the NYT is not evidence that it is true.
Sticking your fingers in your ears and shouting ‘na na na na nah! I can’t hear you!’ is pathetic.
‘Video sources were clearly identified. Much of the footage was taken from Hamas body cameras, a sure sign the killers thought they were murdering in impunity. CCTV cameras and victims’ phones provided time-stamped evidence too.’
Yep, the selective outrage and hypocrisy of the resident Jew-hating, anti-Israel, rape apologist Hamas Fanclub ( and we all know who they are by now ) is plain for all to see. The first-hand accounts and witness testimonies, including that of the doctors examining the released female hostages, will be discounted and deemed to be lies, based purely on the heritage of the victims, such is the strength of their prejudice against all things Israel.
I wonder if any non-Israeli hostages claiming they experienced or witnessed sexual violence would actually get a fairer hearing and may even be given the benefit of the doubt. But you’re right. It’s just blatant antisemitism and such people are absolutely sickening to me. Women especially should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves, even more so if you laughingly refer to yourself as a ‘feminist’!
But this info comes from the villainous, pathologically lying Israeli side, not the Hamas-run ‘Gaza Ministry of Truth’, perma-victim ‘Palestinian’ side, ergo it’s bound to be a load of fictitious kack, right?! We all know that terrorists tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the TRUTH, don’t we? That’s a given.
Well said.
‘Hamas relies on the Israeli government’s aim to minimise collateral damage, and is also aware of the West‘s sensitivity towards civilian casualties. Hamas’ use of human shields is therefore likely aimed at minimising their own vulnerabilities by limiting the Israeli Defense Forces’ (IDF) freedom of action. It is also aimed at gaining diplomatic and public opinion-related leverage, by presenting Israel and the IDF as an aggressor that indiscriminately strikes civilians.
Hamas’ most common uses of human shields include:
Firing rockets, artillery and mortars from or in proximity to heavily populated civilian areas, often from or near facilities which should be protected according to the Geneva Convention (e.g. schools, hospitals, or mosques).
Locating military or security-related infrastructures such as HQs, bases, armouries, access routes, lathes, or defensive positions within or in proximity to civilian areas.
Protecting terrorists’ houses and military facilities, or rescuing terrorists who were besieged or warned by the IDF.
Combating the IDF from or in proximity to residential and commercial areas, including using civilians for intelligence gathering missions.
By engaging in these acts, Hamas employs a win-win scenario:
if indeed the IDF uses kinetic power, and the number of civilian causalities surges, Hamas can use that as a weapon in the lawfare it conducts. It would be able to accuse the IDF (and Israel) of committing war crimes, which in turn could result in the imposition of a wide array of sanctions.
On the other hand, if the IDF limits its use of military power in Gaza to avoid collateral damage, Hamas will be less vulnerable to Israeli attacks, and thereby able to protect its assets while continuing to fight.
Hamas’ growing strategic distress in the face of recent geopolitical developments will probably push the organisation towards a more pragmatic strategy in the near future.
However, the movement is simultaneously preparing itself for yet another round of armed conflict with Israel. If this indeed happens, and in light of the success of the human shield practice, there is every reason to believe Hamas will continue resorting to the use of civilians as human shields.
Recommendations
Without delving into the complex landscape of Pol/Mil responses to asymmetric challenges, countries and militaries that wish to protect their national security interests and fulfil their strategic objectives must address the following issues: Strategically, nations should prepare to publicly justify their position, and reveal their adversary’s use of civilians in combat.
That can only be accomplished by thoroughly documenting incidents, preparing supportive messages, and working across multiple channels to convey those narratives.
Target audiences should be thoroughly considered, including governments, NGOs, transnational organisations, colleges and universities, and general public opinion (including social media platforms and other fora).
Such a plan should be an inherent part of any strategy, and should be prepared before commencing any military operation.
Operationally, priority should be given to information activities aimed at the very civilians who are used as human shields, in order to undermine the adversary and convince civilians to actively or passively refuse to serve as human shields.
These aspects should be an inherent part of any operational plan, and should be prepared before commencing any military operation. Such activities need to be coherent, consistent and coordinated.
When it comes to lawfare, nations should focus on two sets of measures:
Defensive.
Governments should thoroughly investigate every case in which the military is accused of committing war crimes, even if the alleged government knows the claims to be false.
Governments should not ignore any claims, as this allows the adversary to control the narrative.
Such investigations should be conducted in accordance with international law best practices.
Nations who are or who have been subject to allegations (founded or unfounded) of war crimes that occurred specifically in an urban or contested environment should proactively engage the international community to evaluate and revise – if necessary – international law to fit the 21st century battlefield.
Special attention should be given to the legal aspects of warfare, in the sense that military planning should include legal advisors who are highly familiar with international law.’
STRATCOM 2014
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-12910945/BORIS-JOHNSON-claim-moral-superiority-autocracies-judges-America-seek-power-people-Let-2024-year-champion-true-democracy.html
He is utterly, utterly shameless. Introspection is presumably just a word in a dictionary for Bozo.
Staggering.