Greenland-and President Trump's Ham-Handed Approach

President Trump is amping up the temperature over Greenland. He is now imposing new tariffs on several European countries until the Greenland issue is "resolved". Recently, he has made statements in public to the effect that we are going to take Greenland one way or the other, "the easy way or the hard way". His stated position seems to be that either Denmark sells us Greenland or we take it by force.

The justification? Greenland occupies a strategic position in the Arctic Circle, and that Russian and Chinese naval vessels in the region pose a threat.

Let me get one thing out of the way: That is a legitimate concern and one that must be addressed by NATO. 

That said, Trump's approach is ham-handed, as is his style. That is how he has spent his life getting things he wanted or things he wanted to have done. The result here is that the Europeans no longer feel they can depend on the US. Of course, we all know that Trump wants our NATO partners to do much more in the defense of their own continent. I have no quarrel with that.

What I find troubling is Trump's tendency to alienate our friends and allies. That is exactly what is happening here. It is not that I am pro-Europe. They have enough problems of their own, largely of their own making, which this site regularly reports on. But in this case, one cannot blame them for being offended, especially Denmark, to say nothing of the Greenlanders.

Here is how the Greenland issue should be handled: Trump and his pertinent cabinet members should sit down with NATO (which includes Denmark) and explain our concerns regarding the Russians and Chinese. The US, as part of NATO, already has a small military presence in Greenland. Our position would be that this presence and the overall NATO presence should be dramatically increased for the sake of everyone's security.

If Trump wants to purchase Greenland, he can sit down with Denmark and make the offer. If Denmark says Greenland is not for sale (which they have so stated), Trump needs to back off. The reasonable solution is for NATO to jointly agree that Russian and Chinese encroachment is unacceptable and that there will be a much greater NATO presence in Greenland.

As it is, this drama is giving the US a black eye. And it was totally unnecessary.

The Muslim Brotherhood in Sweden (23)

The below article by Johan Westerholm on the Swedish site, Ledarsidorna is translated by Fousesquawk. This is the latest in our series of translations of original European articles on the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe and the 23rd on Sweden. Westerholm is the "go-to" expert when it comes to the Muslim Brotherhood in Sweden.

This article describes the recent designation of parts of the MB as terrorist organizations by the US State and Treasury Departments and the implications for the Swedish government, which has a long history of working with and financially supporting MB-connected organizations in Sweden. While it is a welcome development, in my opinion, it doesn't go far enough. The entire MB  apparatus should be designated as a terrorist organization, and that should apply to its US branches as well.

USA classifies parts of Muslim Brotherhood as terror (organizations)

Caption: Swedish Institute in Alexandria

Yesterday, the US State and Treasury Department secretaries decided to outlaw parts of the Muslim Brotherhood. The decision is designed in such a way that will very likely affect the Swedish delegation and the Swedish Institute in Amman, Jordan. Both Swedish authorities have a long history together with the Muslim Brotherhood as enablers, financiers, and support organisations. 

Yesterday, the respective US State and Treasury secretaries, Marco Rubio and Scott Bessent, decided to follow through on President Donald Trump's statement on outlawing parts of the Muslim Brotherhood. The decision (is) to eliminate the capabilities and operations within the Muslim Brotherhood's branches or network that pose a threat against the US, according to an earlier Executive Order (14362).  

Yesterday's decision means that the US is designating the Lebanese, Jordanian, and Egyptian branches of the Muslim Brotherhood as terror organisations.

The American State Department is designating the Lebanese Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terror organization and a specially designated global terror organization (SDGT. The group's leader, Muhammad Fawzi Taqqosh, is also designated as an SDGT.

At the same time, the Treasury Department is designating the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood as SDGTs for having given material support to Hamas. The US states it will use all available means to deprive the Muslim Brotherhood branches of the resources to engage in or support terrorism.

The Brotherhood was founded in 1928 in Egypt as an Islamist movement that promoted social reforms through political activism. Since 2013, the Brotherhood has been banned and designated as a terrorist group in countries like Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. The US earlier hesitated to classify the Brotherhood as a terrorist group despite considering it in 2019.

The terror designation will enable the freezing of assets, travel bans, and sanctions against leaders like Lebanon's Taqqosh, and can potentially expand to other global networks. The designation means that the US is also open (to the possibility of) imposing sanctions against third parties who, one way or another, give support to the Muslim Brotherhood's associated organisations in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt. 

It cannot be ruled out that the sanctions will affect Sweden, the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and not least, the aid authority SIDA, as well as parts of the Swedish state-financed civil society.

Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs-Long history of support for Brotherhood

Even though Sweden closed the Swedish Institute in Alexandria, Egypt in 2018/19, the institute and its successors have had a history that, with probability bordering on certainty, is known to the US intelligence and security agencies.

The Swedish Institute in Alexandria (SwedAlex) was a Swedish state authority for dialogue among Europe, Sweden, the Middle East and North Africa, founded in 1999, but closed in 2019 and moved to Stockholm. As a basis for its establishment, Ambassador Sverker Åström conducted an investigation on behalf of the then-Aid Minister, Pierre Schori (Social Democrat). Charlotta Sparre was appointed Investigation Secretary.

Sparre was then, between September 2008 and August 2013, Sweden's ambassador to Jordan, and between 2013 and 2017, Sweden's ambassador in Egypt. Sparre would return yet later in the institute's history.

Over time, the institute was developed into a pure communication platform tailor-made for the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, but financed with grants from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and, ultimately, the Swedish taxpayers. Under the direction of Peter Weiderud (Social Democrat), the institute, during the period of 2015-2018, came too close to the Muslim Brotherhood, according to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, which forced a closure.

In the fall of 2018, Weiderud showed up unannounced in Stockholm. A month later, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that the institute would be shut down, but without Weiderud returning to Alexandria to carry out the shutdown.

Within the party, Weiderud, prior to his appointment as director in Alexandria, was the chairman of the Social Democrats for Faith and Solidarity. It was during this period that the side organization formed a partnership with the Islamic Association in Sweden (IFiS). According to themselves, IFiS is the Muslim Brotherhood's network organisation in Sweden.

As a reason, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the Ministry could not come to an agreement with the State Property Agency (SFV) on the rent. A claim that turned out not to be true. Initially, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs classified the rental agreement with SFV as "secret", but SFV released it in a separate release of information request.

There were no rental negotiations. On the contrary, the agreement had been relatively recently renegotiated, and there were two years remaining on the rental agreement when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided to shut it down. The location has since stood empty, and the premises are today for sale by the Swedish Church, the actual owner of the property. 

After the shutdown, other locations were considered, and eventually, a successor was established, with practically the same type of activity as in Alexandria, but in Amman, Jordan. Charlotta Sparre, the first Investigation Secretary from 1999, would lead the move of the temporary office in Stockholm to Amman, Jordan, where it has been in operation since 2021.

At the inauguration of the institute, representatives from all established religions and political movements in the region were invited. Except for Jews and Israeli citizens, who were excluded. The keynote speaker at the reinauguration was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Annika  Söder  (Social Democrat).

Today, since August 2024, Charlotta Sparre has been working as deputy director of the Moscow-oriented Swedish Peace Research Institute, SIPRI.

Netherlands: Somali Man on Trial for Attempted Rape & Attempted Murder

 Hat tip Gates of Vienna and Vlad Tepes

A Somali man is on trial in Amsterdam on charges that he attempted to rape and murder a 20-year-old woman in May 2024. Only the action of passersby and police saved the woman's life. According to the victim, she was walking alone in Amsterdam late one night when she was attacked and dragged into a nearby park. Witnesses called the police, and the suspect was arrested at the scene. 

The prosecution, however, is only asking for a sentence of 5 years for Mohammed H., who came to the Netherlands when he was 7 years old. He reportedly has a long criminal record for theft and drug offenses.

The below video from AT5 (NL) is translated by Fousesquawk. Hat tip to Gates of Vienna and Vlad Tepes for the subtitling.

The ICE Issue: What Is the Responsibility of State and Local Police?

This article first appeared in New English Review.

The recent events in Minneapolis, which have followed similar events in places like Chicago and other cities, highlight a breakdown in the system when it comes to the relationship between federal agents and state and local police. We have had situations in which the governors of  Illinois and Minnesota, among others, as well as the mayors of Chicago and Minneapolis, again, among others, have openly condemned ICE operations in arresting illegal aliens, even those identified as dangerous criminals. As a result, the police departments of those cities have come under fire for not securing their streets and maintaining public safety. So, just what are the duties and responsibilities of any municipal police force in the face of ICE operations?

The political leaders are arguing that it is not the job of state and local police to enforce federal immigration laws. This is true. It is also true that the federal government is not asking them to- except for notifying ICE when they have an illegal alien in their custody-which the Democratic politicians in so-called sanctuary cities forbid them to do. That in itself is outrageous. When I was in DEA, and we arrested a non-citizen for drug trafficking who was in the country illegally, notifying Immigration was one of the first things we did. When I was working in Los Angeles from 1978-1982, we had an Immigration agent assigned to our task force. He was usually present when we made the arrests. And it did not matter who the mayor of the city or the president of the US was at the time. It was our policy.

That aside, here is what the local city police forces must do-no matter what they or their political leadership think of the ICE operations. They still have a duty to maintain safe streets, and it is they who are responsible for crowd control. ICE agents are not trained in crowd control. If there is an ICE operation, and these well-organized mobs show up to interfere and attack federal agents, that's where the local police come in. That is what they are trained to do, and that is part of their sworn duty. Moreover, if federal agents of any agency find themselves under attack or faced with a situation they cannot themselves control, calling in police backup is the normal procedure, at least it was back in my days. And when your fellow law enforcement brothers and sisters are putting out a call for help, you don't stand down. You respond. I guarantee you, if an off-duty federal agent is driving down the street and sees a uniformed cop needing assistance in a dangerous situation, he or she will stop and render assistance. It is part of our culture.

Or at least it used to be. In the recent case in Chicago, when ICE agents found themselves surrounded by a hostile mob, and they called Chicago PD for assistance, the responding officers were ordered to stand down by their watch supervisor. Shame.

Now we have Minneapolis, where both Governor Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey are openly inciting resistance by their local population (not to mention the outside agitators). Not only are they putting ICE agents' lives in danger, but everybody else's as well, including those of their own officers if and when they decide to take action. 

In an ideal Minnesota, ICE would notify the MPD that they will be operating in a certain area at a certain time. That way, if citizens start calling the police that there is trouble at such and such a location, the MPD would know what was going on and be prepared to respond if things get out of hand, because that would be their responsibility-to make sure the streets are safe.

But when the local police, in any city, abrogate their duty to engage in crowd control and secure the streets, you have scenes like we see right now in Minneapolis, ICE agents, untrained in crowd control, having to physically defend themselves with whatever they have on hand, and the optics are not pretty. 

I truly believe that the cops on the beat, whether they agree with ICE's actions or not, are not happy with the policies they are told to follow by their political leadership. And to think that fools like Governor Walz are even implying that they would use their own law enforcement forces to stop ICE is simply the height of irresponsibility.

We depend on our law enforcement agencies at every level to coordinate together and come to each other's assistance in emergency situations.  The last thing we need is a situation where two law enforcement entities are facing off against each other. If it ever comes down to that, this country is in serious trouble.

Germany: No Prison for Killer of 16-Year-Old Girl

Liana K.(16), the victim

-Junge Freiheit

Last August, we reported on the case of an Iraqi asylum-seeker who was arrested for pushing a 16-year-old girl in front of an oncoming train in Friedland, Germany, near Goettingen. Now the prosecutor has decided to drop criminal charges against the man, identified only as Muhammad A., a rejected asylum-seeker from Iraq on the grounds that he is schizophrenic. Instead, he will be sent to a psychiatric hospital.

The below article from Junge Freiheit is translated by Fousesquawk.

Charges dropped

Prosecutor deems murderer of Liana K. not criminally responsible

Germany/ January 15, 2026

No charges in the case of Liana K.  The prosecution is proceeding only for preventive detention against the Iraqi, who killed the 16-year-old. The rejected asylum-seeker is reportedly not criminally responsible.

Goettingen. The prosecutor of Goettingen has decided not to file charges against Muhammad A., the alleged murderer of the 16-year-old Ukrainian girl, Liana K. Due to a diagnosis of schizophrenia, the Iraqi asylum-seeker is judged not criminally responsible at the time of the crime, the prosecution announced on Thursday.

According to all available information, on August 11, at the Friedland Train Station,  A. pushed K. in front of a freight train traveling at 100 km/h  through the station. Liana K. was killed. The case caused nationwide attention. At the time of the crime, the perpetrator was subject to deportation. Liana's mother spoke out at the time in an interview with Junge Freiheit and demanded justice. 

Instead of charges, the prosecution has now filed an application with the Goettingen State Court for preventative detention. A preventive detention proceeding does not result in a prison sentence, rather placement in a psychiatric or rehabilitation center.

A. reportedly has had delusions

On Wednesday, Junge Freiheit reported that Liana's mother feared precisely this outcome. She pointed out last week to this news site that in 2025, A. spent a short time in custody for exhibitionism. "Where is the justice if he now goes into a psychiatric facility and not a prison for the murder of an innocent 16-year-old?"

According to the Lower Saxony Interior Ministry, in an examination of A. at the Protestant Hospital in Goettingen-Weende in April 2025, there was no mental illness found. However, he later was a patient two times for a few hours in a psychiatric clinic, including the day right before the crime in August 2025. In July, he expressed the delusion that someone wanted to kill him by gas, electricity, or poison.

After the crime, the prosecution ordered an expert opinion on the criminal responsibility. Since the end of August, Muhammad A. has been in the secure psychiatric facility in Moringen pursuant to a custody order from the Goettingen District Court. 

Italy: Moroccan Sentenced to 3-1/2 Years for Attempted Murder

Hat tip Gates of Vienna and Vlad Tepes.

Mogliano

A 49-year-old Moroccan man has been sentenced to 3-1/2 years of imprisonment and deportation by a judge in Treviso (Veneto), Italy. In an incident last year, the defendant broke a beer bottle during an argument with a local resident and tried to slit his throat. In all, the victim suffered 4 wounds to his ear and his face.

The below article in La Tribuna di Treviso is translated by Fousesquawk.

He tried to slit a man's throat during an argument: Three years, six months for attempted homicide

The argument occurred a few months ago in the area of the train station. The victim, a 49-year-old, has suffered permanent damage to his face

Marco Filippi    January 13, 2026

Caption: The injured man on the ground in a pool of blood

With the neck of a broken glass bottle, he hit the resident of Mogliano 4 times, aiming for the neck.

Fortunately, the blows did not hit him in the jugular, but the blows inflicted caused permanent damage to one ear and to his mouth. The attack, occurring in May of last year, resulted in the arrest of Moroccan Isam Rachid, 49, of Mogliano (defended by attorney Massimiliano Bruni). Now comes the conviction for attempted homicide. 

In a summary trial, Judge Carlo Colombo sentenced Rachid to three years, six months, and twenty days. Once the accused serves his sentence, he will be expelled from Italy. Rachid benefited from a 1/3rd reduction of sentence due to the summary trial and recognition of mitigating circumstances.  

The aggravating circumstance of trivial motives, argued by the prosecutor, was also dropped as the surveillance cameras of the Daspar Supermarket, located on via Roma, near the train station, where the attack occurred, show that the provocation between the two was reciprocal. The injured party, Luigi D., 49, of Mogliano, was part of the civil part (of the trial) along with attorney Massimo Benozzati.   

The attack

The two, in fact, knew each other because a few days previous, they had a heated argument. It appears that the resident of Mogliano, who lives in the vicinity, had reproached the Moroccan because he had harassed some young girls near the station. A few days later, in the afternoon of May 27, 2025, the two ran into each other on via Roma, near the Despar, behind the train station.

The bitterness of the argument of a few days previous, evidently, had not passed. During a new argument, the Moroccan, who had a bottle of beer in his hand, resorted to action. After smashing the bottle, Rachid lunged at the Mogliano resident with the clear intent to strike him in the throat. Four blows injured the 49-year-old in the face, and he still bears the scars.

First responses and the arrest

The incident occurred in front of several people, some of whom called 112. The Carabinieri arrived at the scene a short time later and found the resident of Mogliano on the ground in a pool of blood. The 118 emergency personnel, responding to the scene, quickly transported the injured person to the Ca' Foncello di Treviso Hospital, while the Moroccan was arrested for attempted homicide by the Carabinieri from the Mogliano station 

After spending a few days in Santa Bona Prison, the Moroccan was placed under house arrest in the apartment where he lives in Mogliano.

The man is actually in the country legally, and, before the incident, had no criminal record. In the course of the investigation, the public prosecutor, Giovanni Valmassoi, had ordered an expert evaluation to determine if the blows inflicted were potentially fatal.

The conclusions of the expert were unequivocal. Analysing both the wounds of the injured party and the films of the supermarket, it was clear that the Moroccan struck to kill. Once the sentence is served, the Moroccan will be expelled from Italy, as ordered by Judge Colombo.

Netherlands: Axe Attack in Nijmegen

-Powned

On January 7, in the Dutch city of Nijmegen, some sort of dispute broke out between two men at a checkout line in a supermarket. Subsequently, one of the men began to chase the other out of the store with an axe, striking him at least once before bystanders overpowered him. The victim, a 39-year-old man, not further identified, was taken conscious to a hospital. The attacker, identified only as a 45-year-old man from Nijmegen, is in custody, and neither his name nor a motive has been released.

Witnesses interviewed by reporters at the scene blamed the government for the incident, and one stated that "they should all be sent to Siberia." In the videotape of the incident, one person, possibly the suspect, is heard to possibly say "takbir" (which in Arabic is related to the phrase, Allahu Akhbar") a couple of times, but this is not certain. It should also be pointed out here that one of the bystanders who responded and helped overpower the attacker was named Mohammed.  

We will update this story as further details become available. In the meantime, the article below from RTL Nieuws is translated by Fousesquawk.

   

Man attacked with axe in a shopping center, bystanders intervene

RTL News  January 8, 2026 Updated January 8, 2026

A serious incident (occurred) in a Nijmegen shopping center yesterday afternoon. A 45-year-old man from Nijmegen attacked at least one bystander with an axe. A 39-year-old man was injured and was taken to the hospital. The suspect is under arrest. The incident was filmed by bystanders.

Caption: Screenshot from the video

The images show that initially, a scuffle breaks out at the cashier of a supermarket, in which a person runs away. In the background, screaming and yelling can be heard.  

Watch the images here.

Further on in the shopping center, the axe is wielded again. Both the man with the weapon and another involved bystander landed on the ground.

Several bystanders rushed to help, and the man was then overpowered. According to the police, the victim was conscious and taken by ambulance to a hospital.

Dispute

The two men involved, according to a witness, had a dispute with each other before the incident that was captured on video, Raymond Jansson told De Geldlander. According to him, Jansson was one of the men who managed to overpower the suspect with the blade. 

Attempted manslaughter

The police inform RTL News that the man is suspected of attempted manslaughter. Depending on the investigation, that suspicion could change. The man is in custody, and the exact circumstances surrounding the violence are still under investigation.

Police are not sharing more information in connection with the investigation.

Austria: Teenage Rat Pack Faces Justice (Sort of)

Donaustadt (Vienna)

A teenage rat pack is facing justice in an Austrian courtroom. Four defendants (ages 14, 15, 15, and 17) are facing sentencing for a series of assaults committed in Donaustadt, a district of Vienna. The defendants, in beating and robbing their victims, also videotaped the acts, including one clip where a 16-year-old teenager was forced to kiss the hands and feet of one of the 15-year-olds before being violently beaten.

The defendants in the article are described as citizens of Iraq, Romania, and Austria. That is probably misleading.

This case is reminiscent of what is happening in Sweden, where immigrant gangs not only attack and beat young Swedes, but consciously humiliate them in the process. It appears this has spread to Austria.

The article below from today's Kronen Zeitung is translated by Fousesquawk.

Victim of violence (16) had to kiss the feet of the perpetrator

Court  January 8, 2026

Caption: Four defendants (14, 15, 15, and 17) brought to trial from pre-trial detention

A brutal youth gang from Donaustadt filmed their attacks with a cell phone. A particularly disgusting clip: The 15-year-old defendant forces a teenager to kiss his hands and feet. Before the situation escalates.

During the questioning of the accused in Vienna District Court, the judge plays the video, which the 15-year-old, together with 4 other teenagers sitting in the defendants' dock, recorded on September 20, 2025, in a park in Kagran, Donaustadt. They are disturbing images.

A boy with fear in his eyes is seen, who has to alternately kiss the feet and hands of his tormentor. Before the perpetrator, in an explosion of violence, knocks the 16-year-old victim down, then brutally kicks the teenager. The clip was promptly uploaded onto Snapchat with Arab music, smileys, and the text: "I f----ed up his nose. So cool."

Insert:

"I only wanted to protect my friend... We talked nicely to him, but he answered rudely".

This is how a 15-year-old justifies forced kissing and assault

Random victim brutally assaulted

"I only wanted to protect my friend," the young defendant argues insolently. "From whom?", the female judge is puzzled over the curious claims presented to her by the 5 defendants-Austrian, Iraqi, and Romanian citizens- in the trial. In addition to the forced kissing, there are also serious robbery and other assaults-also, according to the charge, involving a knife. 

Caption: The lawyers Marcus Januschke and Florian Höllwarth 

Violence was involved in the attacks. An adult random victim suffered multiple facial fractures and 4 broken teeth. The first defendant paid damages of 2,800 euros in the trial. The loot in another case: Just 15 euros.  

Partial sentences for the 15-year-old

The boys, 4 of whom were brought out of pre-trial detention, partially confessed. Two received diversion, the other 3 partial sentences. In addition, the 15-year-old who forced his victim to kiss his feet got 15 months in custody, 12 suspended. (The sentence) is not yet in effect.  

Today's ICE Shooting in Minneapolis

This article first appeared in New English Review. It was written yesterday.

Today, an ICE agent shot and killed a woman as she attempted to drive away from agents who were ordering her out of the car for blocking a street in Minneapolis. There are videos of the incident, some of which do not conclusively show where the agent who shot was standing in relation to the suspect's car.

Fox News has a clearer video here. In addition, this photo shows a bullet hole in the suspect's vehicle on the left side of the front windshield.

-Fox News

So, as one agent is attempting to open the suspect's driver door, the agent who fires the shots is standing in front of the vehicle's left front headlight. The suspect backs up and then drives forward toward the agent who fired the shots. This video does not conclusively tell us if the car actually struck the agent. (reportedly, the agent suffered some injury that required hospitalization, though that is not apparent from the video.) At any rate, once the vehicle starts in the agent's direction, he draws his weapon and fires. 

So what is the law and the policy that federal agents operate under in this kind of situation? First of all, federal policy says agents do not fire at a moving vehicle. There are just too many things that can go wrong when that happens. Federal policy is also not to fire at a fleeing suspect, whether in a vehicle or not.

But there is a very big exception: If the fleeing suspect is posing an immediate threat to the lives and safety of the agents-or anybody else, firing is justified. The same goes for when a suspect is trying to run down an agent with a moving vehicle. It is not just the agent who is in immediate threat of injury or death; any other agent seeing that threat can fire when a vehicle is being weaponized. The basic rule here is that if you try to ram your car at law enforcement, you can expect to be shot at.

This morning, I heard some talking heads on CNN say that the agent should have just gotten out of the way. That is common sense and the first natural reaction. It appears the agent in question made such a maneuver. That doesn't necessarily affect the justification for firing.

As a retired DEA agent (and US Customs before that), I was in an almost identical situation one night in Los Angeles, in which one of my fellow agents (an Immigration officer at that) was struck by a suspect who was behind the wheel. (Not at full speed but with a couple of start and stop maneuvers by the driver. I was just a few feet away from the driver's side window and had a clear shot at his head. I almost fired, but held back when I noticed that one of our agents was standing just to my left and slightly in front. Had he suddenly moved in front of me as I fired, I would have hit him. As it was, I held my fire, the Immigration agent who was struck fired his weapon at the left front tire and put a hole in his hubcap. What resulted was a car chase through several municipalities around Los Angeles until he finally crashed into the curb, and we could pull him out of the car.

As is policy, both DEA and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS)  investigated the shooting, and the Immigration agent was cleared. The fact was that the driver had attempted to drive through the agent, not once, but twice (from a starting position). The agent was able to show that he was in danger of his life. He had actually been struck (bumped) by the car twice. 

But what if I had fired-and most assuredly would have killed him? My defense would have been the same as the INS agent. In other words, I would have been acting in his defense. Would I have been justified? Or would I have been prosecuted? Let's just say that I think I made the correct, split-second decision. In the case of today's shooting, it comes down to whether the agent reasonably felt that his life was in immediate danger when he made that split-second decision.  I think he can make that case.

Turning now to the reactions from Governor Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey, I can only call them despicable. Walz kept saying he wanted to speak carefully, but, as usual, he didn't. He even implied that he might use the National Guard in his state against ICE. Frey was worse. He told ICE to "get the F--- out of Minneapolis," and said that the reasoning given by ICE of self-defense was "BS" (he did not use the acronym). In effect, Frey is fanning the flames. 

The plain and simple fact is that the state of Minnesota and the city of Minneapolis are acting irresponsibly and bear some of the blame for this death. They don't have to actually go out and help round up illegal aliens, but they have a duty to keep their streets safe. There should be complete cooperation between state, local, and federal law enforcement. Ideally, ICE should be informing the local police of an impending operation, and the police should ensure that order is kept on their streets. In addition, local police should always notify ICE when they have someone in custody who is not in the country legally. How much easier -and safer for all concerned- if ICE agents could simply go to a jail when they are advised that an illegal alien prisoner is being released and take that person into federal custody pending deportation. Instead, what we have are sanctuary cities that will not do that, necessitating ICE agents having to go into the community, find, and arrest these people at much greater risk to themselves and everybody else, including the suspect.

So now we have incidents like what happened today in Minneapolis.

The Indictment of Maduro

 This article first appeared in New English Review.

As a retired DEA agent, I could not help but feel a sense of pride seeing Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro being led into the DEA office in New York to be processed (fingerprinted and photographed). It was very similar to my feeling of pride in 1989 when Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was brought to the US by DEA agents. Like Noriega, Maduro is not charged with being a dictator or a political foe of the US. Like Noriega, Maduro is faced with serious charges for his involvement in facilitating the smuggling of drugs into the US. Noriega was convicted and served 3 decades in prison in the US, France, and Panama. Maduro's guilt or innocence will be decided by a federal court as well.

As for the military action that resulted in Maduro's arrest in terms of international law, that will be widely discussed in the days, weeks, and months ahead. What happens in Venezuela now is open to question. Whether it will follow the path of Panama after Noriega or Iraq after Saddam Hussein, I have no idea. Much of that will depend on how the Venezuelan military and the populace react.

I am not a lawyer, so take it for what it's worth. In my view, in terms of US law, there is little to debate, although the Democrat left has already condemned the action. Some are already demanding that Maduro be returned to Venezuela. That will not happen. These legal points were argued and settled in the Noriega case. No US law has been violated in bringing Maduro to justice.

For the benefit of those who may not know, under American conspiracy statutes, those who are involved in the importation of drugs to the US are chargeable, even if they have never previously set foot in the US. Drugs destined for the US represent a crime against the US, and everyone involved in that activity is indictable. Among the charges Maduro is facing are 21 USC 841 (a) (1) pertaining to manufacture, possession, and distribution of controlled substances, 21 USC 952 pertaining to importation of controlled substances, and 21 USC 963, conspiracy to commit the above offenses. Since the drugs in question were destined for the US, our courts have jurisdiction.

It is also legally irrelevant how the defendant came into the custody of US authorities-unless such action violates the "conscience of the court". Albeit vague, the term does have legal implications. In this case, it is a result of a military action. Are the courts going to rule that the invasion of Venezuela was unconstitutional?

I will leave the questions of international law, failure to consult with Congress, and the righteousness of going into Venezuela to the experts and the local bartenders. I have my own opinion and concerns, but the main point here is that legally, the prosecution of Maduro et al. is on solid ground. 

Final comment: Today DHS Secretary Kristi Noem made a statement praising the work of her department, the military, the FBI, and the CIA. Call it inter-agency rivalry or whatever, but I was taken aback that she did not mention DEA. I was not following the case over the years as to who was doing what, and I am certain that many agencies had a part in this. But there must be a reason that Maduro was processed in the DEA office.

Italy: New Year's Eve in Florence

Piazza Duomo, Florence-in quieter times

In Europe, New Year's Eve was difficult, to say the least. The worst incident happened in Crans Montana, Switzerland, a Swiss ski resort in the Swiss Alps, where young celebrants accidentally set fire to the roof of a nightclub. The death toll is over 40. It is the top news story all over Europe, and there are several nationalities among the dead and injured.

Meanwhile, the usual riots and torched cars broke out all over France. There were riots in Dutch cities as well as in Germany.

In Florence, young men described as North Africans engaged in a mega brawl in front of the famed cathedral (Il Duomo). The article below from Il Tempo, translated by Fousesquawk, has a brief video of the incident.

Radio Genoa has a much clearer version of the video here (hat tip Gates of Vienna).

Shocking video, the mega brawl by foreigners in Piazza Duomo (Cathedral Square) in Florence

January 2, 2026

Foreigners rampaging in Cathedral Square on New Year's Eve. Around 12:40 am, some 20 youths of Maghrebian (North African) origin started a violent brawl, using tables, chairs, and bottles. The incident began in Republic Square and then moved to a pizzeria in Cathedral Square. The outside of the location was vandalized. During the brawl, a bottle was thrown inside, fortunately without hitting any of the employees. Law enforcement intervened at the location to report the situation under control. In these images, the fury of the groups of North Africans.

"The images of the mega brawl that took place in Cathedral Square deeply wound Florence and the residents of Florence," said European Parliament deputy of Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy party), Francesco Torselli, municipal councilor of Fratelli d'Italia, Alessandro Draghi, and the president of the National Youth of Florence, Simone Sollazzo. "Brutal, gratuitous, senseless violence exploded in the heart of the city in one of the most beautiful squares in the world, and, at least on paper, among the most protected. Shocking scenes that require serious reflection: How is it possible that all this has happened right here, before the eyes of everybody?"Fratelli d'Italia members write. Municipal Counselor for Security, Andrea Giorgio, speaks of the exploitation of the incident on the part of the center-right. 

"New year, the usual Torselli: The brawl incident in Cathedral Square is serious and will be investigated by law enforcement, but as usual, the Fratelli d'Italia European Parliament deputy exploits it and says things that are not true, forgetting that the right has been governing for three years, and the Italians are still awaiting answers on security,"  Giorgio asserts. "The propaganda mechanisnm from the right is always the usual: distort reality, constructing polemics and lies to cover their failure, and attack Mayor Funaro and the administration (...) "Describing the most beautiful New Year's Eve in Florence in recent years by summarizing it with only one incident, serious-not to minimize it, but still limited like that, is to manipulate reality." But the images speak clearly.

How to Get Promoted to Full Professor at Columbia University

"Entry only for Aryans"

Sign in Nazi Germany

Columbia University 2024

An associate professor at Columbia University named Manan Ahmed was captured on videotape blocking an unidentified student from accessing a part of the campus during the spring 2024 encampment fiasco.

I am cross-posting an article from The College Fix dated December 29, 2025, which shows a video of a verbal confrontation between Ahmed and an unidentified student in which Ahmed is telling the student "you can't go in", apparently referring to the spring pro-Palestinian encampment. The video clip ends at the point when the student tells Ahmed he is going in and invites (Ahmed) to stop him. What happened after that is not shown. The video was posted on X December 3, 2025, by the group, Columbia Jewish and Israeli Students.

You might think that Columbia would take some sort of disciplinary action against a professor who blocks a student from entering any part of public space on campus.

Wrong!

Columbia has now reportedly promoted Ahmed to full professor, according to the X posting.

"Jews not wanted here"

According to the website of Columbia's Center for the Study of Ethnicity and Race, Ahmed is still listed as an associate professor. However, the History Department lists him as a full professor.

It would appear that Columbia University has still not learned its lesson.