News of the World

[kyonides]

US NEWS

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New CENTCOM interviews may shed light on the Afghanistan withdrawal

CENTCOM was not forthcoming in its press release or in response to questions from the Washington Examiner about which aspects of Vargas-Andrews’s description of events at Abbey Gate it is looking to corroborate. Vargas-Andrews’s written testimony offers multiple new points of information for CENTCOM to pursue.

First was Vargas-Andrews’s allegation that, from his sniper team’s tower, he saw a man in the crowd who “fit the description exactly” of the Islamic State suicide bomber that intelligence assets said would be in the vicinity of Abbey Gate. Though he says people from psychological operations “confirmed the subject met the suicide bomber description,” there was confusion in his chain of command as to whether Marines could engage the target.

In a shorter but no less important observation, Vargas-Andrews also said that U.S. forces “immediately ... started taking fire from the neighborhood” in the aftermath of the suicide bombing. This is in direct contradiction to the previous assessment that the bombing emanated from “a single person-borne explosive device with no associated enemy small arms fire.”

CENTCOM did tell the Washington Examiner that interviewees include 16 U.S. Marines, two U.S. Army personnel, and one member of the U.S. Navy who were medically evacuated in the aftermath of the Abbey Gate bombing. Given that all of these people could not have fit in the tower from which Vargas-Andrews witnessed the suicide bomber, it is likely that CENTCOM is looking to corroborate details about the possibility that the bombing was part of a complex attack involving multiple ISIS fighters.

The Washington Examiner spoke with people who witnessed the bombing but whose insights have not been sought by CENTCOM. Their reports are based upon the specific sound and appearance of 7.62-millimeter ballistic rounds used in AK-47 rifles often wielded by Taliban or ISIS fighters compared with the appearance of and sound made by 5.56-millimeter ammunition used in American weapons.

Hospital corpsman first class Kyle Tillman told the Washington Examiner that he treated an Afghan woman during the mass casualty event who “had a 7.62 round lodged in her left forearm.”

Joe Laude, who served with the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment in Kabul, told the Washington Examiner that he “heard rounds go off immediately after” the bombing. Laude believes “it was a case of AK-47 [fire],” adding that it “sounded like 7.62 coming in.” Laude said the incident “resembled a complex attack.”

Well, I guess it would be reasonable to conclude that some Taliban or some other Middle Eastern rebel was firing his AK-47 in that area the very same day that bomb exploded in the Afghan airport.

Now the question here is why didn't CENTCOM ask their personnel about these secondary events apparently related to the suicide bombing?  Are they truly searching for the truth? Or is it possible that they have political motives not to pursue a full fledged investigation of all the testimonies and evidence found there?

Ex-Plainfield mayoral candidate charged with mailing nearly 1,000 bogus voter registration forms

Dr. Henrilynn Ibezim has been charged with telling campaign workers to complete hundreds of fake voter registration applications and mail them to election officials in Union County and allegedly bringing a large white garbage bag stuffed with almost 954 voter registration forms to the post office.

Ibezim was challenging Plainfield Mayor Adrian Mapp in the 2021 Democratic primary.

“Attempting to tamper with an election result through fraud impairs the ability of legitimate voters to choose their representatives, a cornerstone of American democracy,” said Attorney General Matt Platkin. “It also undermines the legitimacy of government and the public’s confidence in their elected officials and in elections generally.  My office will vigorously pursue these crimes to protect New Jersey’s electorate from being defrauded and to safeguard the integrity of our institutions.”

Prosecutors claim Ibezim showed up at the Elizabeth Post Office with voter registration forms that had the same handwriting.

He is charged with election fraud, criminal attempt to commit false registration or transfer, tampering with public records, falsifying public records, forgery, and hindering apprehension or prosecution.
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Ibezim finished fourth in the primary with just 103 votes. Mapp defeated Richard Wyatt, Jr. by 269 votes, a five-point margin.

 Now we know why he badly needed those fake voter registration forms.
By the way, don't even think this is some sort of political persecution for the Attorney General Platkin is a Democrat, as you can read it here.

Education Department says 2.5 million student loan borrowers affected by billing errors

The Department of Education said one of its student loan servicing companies in Missouri had failed to send out timely repayment notices to 2.5 million borrowers, leading hundreds of thousands of borrowers to miss their payment deadline.

Education officials said on Monday that the errors were made by the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, which had only given some borrowers a one-week notice ahead of the deadline. Servicers are generally required to send out the payment notices at least 21 days before the payments are due.

As a result of the error, nearly 800,000 borrowers became "delinquent" on their student loans.

The administration said it had withheld $7.2 million in payment to MOHELA for October and directed the loan servicer to place all affected borrowers in forbearance until the problem is resolved.

"The Biden-Harris Administration is looking out for borrowers at every step throughout their return to repayment. Our oversight efforts have uncovered errors from loan servicers that will not be tolerated," Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement.
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The department said it has also identified a small number of borrowers who received incorrect payment amounts on their billing statements from several loan servicers and other borrowers who have pending Borrower Defense claims that were incorrectly placed back in repayment status. These borrowers were also placed in forbearance.

The errors come after the department announced just over 300,000 borrowers had been billed an incorrect amount earlier this month after they applied for President Joe Biden’s new income-driven repayment plan.

Left-wing Arabella Advisors groups cut ties with Palestinian terror-tied charity

Two groups in the largest Democratic-tied dark money network in the United States are parting ways with a "progressive" charity in Arizona revealed through a Washington Examiner investigation to share Palestinian terror ties.

New Venture Fund and Windward Fund, two charities managed by the liberal consultancy Arabella Advisors, steered $473,000 between 2020 and 2021 to Alliance for Global Justice, according to tax forms. However, the funds are announcing they will not be handing grants anymore to the Arizona nonprofit group, which four payment processors have dropped this year over its links to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terror group.

"We condemn terrorism and violence against civilians in all forms and do not support any projects or provide any grants to organizations that fund terrorism," New Venture Fund President Lee Bodner told the Washington Examiner. "New Venture Fund is discontinuing grants to any projects hosted by Alliance for Global Justice."

Windward Fund President Lynn McNair told the New York Post the charity "is no longer providing grants to organizations that are sponsored by Alliance for Global Justice."

"Our organization does not support terrorism in any form and strongly denounce any violence against civilians," McNair said.

Biden administration ordered to stop cutting state-installed razor wire at border

The Biden administration was ordered to stop cutting state-installed razor wire at Texas's border with Mexico.

Judge Alia Moses of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas ordered the Department of Homeland Security to cease "disassembling, degrading, [or] tampering" a razor wire barrier erected by the state of Texas along its border with Mexico. The lawsuit was brought forward last week by Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX), who asked for an immediate injunction after DHS destroyed much of the barrier with a variety of means in order to allow illegal immigrants through.

Abbott contended the destruction of the wire had accelerated since Sept. 20, as shown by "pictures, video, and declarations from various officials associated with the Plaintiff" that "detail specific instances when the federal government allegedly damaged the Plaintiff’s property and consequently allowed migrants to enter."

"The Plaintiff raises numerous claims against the Defendants, including common law conversion, common law trespass to chattels, and Administrative Procedure Act violations," the judge's ruling read.

FDA warns dozens of over-the-counter eye drops could cause dangerous infections

The Food and Drug Administration on Friday issued a warning to consumers to not purchase or immediately discontinue use of 26 over-the-counter eye drops due to possible risk of eye infections, potentially leading to partial vision loss or blindness.

FDA investigators found unsanitary conditions at the manufacturing plant shared by the various generic eye drop brands, including bacteria in "critical drug production areas in the facility."

The products under emergency recall are marketed as CVS, Rite Aid, Target Up&Up generic products, as well as those under the Leader, Rugby, and Velocity Pharma brands.

Agency regulators said in their advisory that they urged the brands to remove their products as early as Wednesday, and that CVS, Rite Aid, and Target had already begun complying.

Eye drops and other ophthalmic products "pose a potential heightened risk of harm to users because drugs applied to the eyes bypass some of the body's natural defenses," according to the FDA statement.

ASIAN NEWS

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China holds 'strategic' talks with Iran after Hamas terrorist attack

Chinese Premier Li Qiang touted the “comprehensive strategic partnership” between China and Iran on the sidelines of a diplomatic summit, despite Iran’s patronage of the Hamas terrorists who sparked a devastating conflict with Israel.

“China is ready to work with Iran to … enrich the connotation of the China-Iran comprehensive strategic partnership and bring more benefits to the two peoples,” Li told Iranian Vice President Mohammad Mokhber during a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Kyrgyzstan.

Li offered that salute in the first known public meeting between senior officials of the two regimes, according to the South China Morning Post. Their encounter, which ran parallel to Russia’s decision to host Hamas and a different senior Iranian official for meetings in Moscow, demonstrated Beijing’s apparent attempt to use Israel’s war with Hamas as an opportunity to expand ties with Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East — from Iran to U.S. allies such as the Gulf Arab states.

“The catastrophic fallout of the abrupt escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli situation recently is heart-wrenching,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Thursday, after a meeting of the China-Arab Civilization Dialogue in the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday. “China’s policy and position on the Palestinian question was highly recognized by the Arab delegates at the dialogue. Exchanges between civilizations are an important means enabling human beings to rise above differences and achieve harmonious coexistence.”

Achieving harmonious coexistence they say!?
Then why don't they ask Hamas to stop launching rockets at Israeli locations packed with civilians?
Usually, a large portion of those rockets misfire and fall down right on top of their fellow Palestinians or Arabs, just as it happened that terrible day where people in the local hospital's parking lot lost their lives due to a relatively small explosion. Thus, it makes me wonder how can they treat Hamas and anybody tied to it as friends or even as serious business partners at all.

Japan's state justice minister resigns over illegal campaign ad

Japan's State Minister of Justice has resigned after taking responsibility for proposing the use of paid online ads for campaigning by a mayoral candidate in Tokyo.

Kakizawa Mito tendered his resignation on Tuesday morning. The use of paid Internet ads for campaigning violates the public offices election law.

Tokyo prosecutors have searched the office of Koto Ward Mayor Kimura Yayoi in connection with the case. Her camp had posted the paid ad on a video-sharing site, calling on viewers to vote for her in the mayoral election held in April.

Justice Minister Koizumi Ryuji told reporters that he talked with Kakizawa by phone.
He quoted Kakizawa as saying that he had not been aware of the illegality of his proposal but is deeply remorseful. Koizumi said he told Kakizawa to hold himself fully accountable as a politician.

Kakizawa is a Lower House member elected from a district in Tokyo that covers Koto Ward. The 52-year-old was appointed State Minister of Justice in a Cabinet reshuffle in September.

Japan's Cabinet approves sanctions against Hamas members

The Japanese government has decided to impose sanctions on members of the Palestinian Islamic group Hamas.

It approved the sanctions at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. Japan has condemned the group's assaults and its abduction of civilians in Israel as terrorist attacks that can never be tolerated.

The sanctions are intended to make Japan's position clear. They are also aimed at cutting off the group's revenue sources.

Assets of nine Hamas individuals involved in managing the group's finances, as well as a Gaza-based cryptocurrency exchange used for money transfers, will be frozen.

The United States has already announced that it is imposing similar sanctions.