Italy on Full Alert for October 7

-Il Tempo

October 7 is approaching, the one-year anniversary of the horrendous terror attack against Israel by Hamas. As the war in the Middle East rages on and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has been eliminated by Israel, anti-Semitic demonstrations are on the rise in Italy (among other nations). Just in the past few days, pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Milan marched with signs accusing politician Lilian Segre and Defense Minister Guido Crosetto of being "Zionist agents". This is being interpreted by Italian authorities as an invitation to kill these two people. As a result of all this, Italian police and intelligence agencies are drastically increasing security in Jewish neighborhoods and institutions.

Sadly, October 7 is looming as a day of maximum danger for Jews around the world. If the pro-Palestinian forces decide to commemorate this dark day with marches and celebrations, it will say much about the evil of their cause. Worse yet, there is a very real likelihood that violence against Jews will erupt.

I lived in Italy for five years, and I know that the Italian people themselves are not anti-Semites. Unfortunately, too many people who think otherwise have invaded their country. Along with some on the Italian left, they have left a stain on Italy.

The article below in Il Tempo is translated by Fousesquawk.

Jew hunting, Democratic Party is silent. Rome ghetto on alert for October 7.

-Christian Campigli  30 September 2024

A clue is a clue, two clues are a coincidence, but three clues are proof. In Italy, the wind of anti-Semitism has been blowing with deplorable force for a year. To be precise, unlike the greatest immortal (work) of the genius of mystery novels, Agatha Christie, the clues in these 12 months have been at a much higher number.

Punctually reported by our newspaper, (and) minimized by the trombones of the left. Because-it is well to point out- this new hunt for Jews was born, grew, and developed completely on the left bank of Italian politics. In the aftermath of the obscene poster displayed against Liliana Segre and Guido Crosetto, the tension has reached unimaginable heights just in 2023. The attention of the police and intelligence services is at its maximum in view of the demonstrations of the coming October 7. Security measures in the ghetto zone and sensitive targets in the Jewish community will be heightened in light of the situation in the Middle East, the recent anti-Semitic demonstrations, and pro-Palestinian marches next Saturday close to the anniversary and banned in the past few days. The level of security, according to what has been learned, was already very high. The situation in the Middle East and recent anti-Semitic demonstrations have led to a further increase in security measures, also in the area of the Jewish ghetto of Venice-the oldest in Europe- and in regards to other possible sensitive targets in the city.

To fully understand how the current situation can no longer be minimized with a shrug of the shoulders (the behavior held up to today by the vast majority of the progressive intelligentsia), it is indispensable  to take a step back and rewind the tape to Saturday afternoon. On the day of the death of the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, hundreds took to the streets of Rome and Milan to shout their closeness to the Palestinians and Lebanese and their anger toward Israel. Yet another denial to those who maintain that in our country, one cannot democratically express their dissent. In this case, however, the limit of decency and shame has been largely crossed when some demonstrators paraded with chilling posters, like that showing the image of Liliana Segre, accompanied by the writing, "Zionist agent". An intolerable suggestion that brought an immediate response from the President of the Senate, Ignazio La Russa.

"Firm and decisive condemnation for what happened at the pro-Palestinian march in Milan, during which, posters were exhibited with the first and last names of persons accused of being Zionist agents, including Senator for Life, Liliana Segre, Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, and Riccardo Pacifici. We are faced with dangerous verbal violence and defamations that cannot be accepted." In the past year year, journalists of the caliber of David Parenzo, Maurizio Molinarui, and Daniele Capezzone  have been physically prevented from speaking in public universities. Universities, which on the contrary, hosted sermons from imams little inclined toward world peace and brotherhood among peoples and diverse religions. And what to say about repeated insults received by Consul Marco Carrai or by Ester Mieli. "We are one step removed from Jew hunting and acts of open violence towards Jewish religious and non-religious  institutions and their representatives," noted Walker Meghnagi, president of the Jewish Community of Milan. "What is being put out in the streets by the demonstrators is of exceptional gravity. A spiral of blind, anti-Semitic  hatred and genocidal appeals have been created already comparable to that of the Nazi-fascist nature of the 30s and 40s of the last century."

Germany: Syrian Man Sets Fire to Two Buildings in Essen: Children Critically Injured

-BILD

On Saturday evening in the city of Essen, a 41-year-old Syrian man, apparently enraged because his wife left him, set two buildings on fire, rammed his van into a shop, and held witnesses at bay with a machete until he was captured by police. He was apparently targeting people whom he suspected were supporting his estranged wife.

-BILD

A total of 31 people were injured including 10 children, 2 of whom are in critical condition from smoke inhalation. Residents were literally passing their small children down from the rooftop to rescuers. This incident has made headlines all over Germany.

The below article from BILD is translated by Fousesquawk. A video is in the process of being subtitled in collaboration with Gates of Vienna and Vlad Tepes.

After machete attack by Syrian

Two children in life-threatening condition!

Caption: Dramatic scenes: Residents of one of the burning houses in Essen rescue their children, risking their own lives in the process.

Private photo

September 29, 2024 14:27

Essen (North Rhine Westphalia)

Tears and cries of despair Saturday evening in Altessen. Parents put themselves in danger to save their children from a fiery death. A Syrian (41) had shortly before set their houses on fire. 

Thick black smoke comes out from the window of an apartment on the top floor in north Essen. Residents escape to the roof. With one arm, a young woman tries to hold onto the gable, with the other she lowers a little girl down. Two men come to her on a long ladder, another stands on the window sill holding onto the child.

31 injured in Essen-Altessen

She is just one of the total of 31 victims attributed to the man who caused fear and terror in the Ruhr city. The 41-year-old Syrian injured 10 children, some seriously, two of whom are in life-threatening condition.

After the double arson, he grabbed a machete, sat in his delivery van, and began his rampage.

The man threatened passersby with a machete in Essen-Altessen and ran into a vegetable store.

Private photo

According to police, the nightmare began around 5:10 pm on the Altessenerstrasse (street) at the corner of Pielstickerstrasse. There, the perpetrator set fire to a building. After that, he drove to Zollvereinstrasse (Customs Union Street), where he set another house on fire.

His next objective: Katernbergerstrasse. With his van, he deliberately drove into the window of a vegetable shop, backed up, and rammed the shop again. Finally, the Syrian drove to another shop, got out with the machete in hand, and threatened people. Videos from witnesses show how the passersby try to keep the attacker at a distance and throw objects at him.

Caption: The perpetrator drove his van into a vegetable shop.

Photo: Justin Brosch

Attorney speaks of mental illness

According to WDR (West German Radio), a police patrol arrested the machete man, (who is) known to police, in the immediate vicinity of the scene shortly afterward. The resident of Essen, with Syrian roots, had burn injuries on his hands. The prosecutor's office took over the investigation, (and) on Sunday, an arrest warrant was issued. The Syrian is in custody.

His defense attorney, Volker Schroeder tells BILD: "I have taken over the defense. I don't see any terrorist background here, only mental illness. The whole thing looks like a family drama."

Whether the 41-year-old is really sick, as the lawyer claims, will be determined after interviews and assessments by experts.

Caption: The police are able to arrest the Syrian, wearing a white shirt and baseball cap, in this rear courtyard.

Photo: Screenshot KDF-TV & Picture 2024

Critically injured children

Essen's lord mayor, Thomas Kufen (51, CDU):  "The acts were obviously directed against a family."  At the same time, (being) aware that that small children are harmed, particularly affects him. The lord mayor spoke Sunday about "dramatic hours" for his city.

On Sunday morning, the police still could not give an all-clear for the health condition of the critically injured children. A police spokeswoman told BILD: "This is apparently smoke (inhalation). To our knowledge, they have survived the night."

*Update: From WAZ.de Essen: Translation by Fousesquawk. Subtitling by Gates of Vienna and Vlad Tepes.

*Update (9-30): German media is reporting that the two children who were in life-threatening condition are now out of danger.

Another Terrorist Bites the Dust

Hassan Nasrallah

"If they [the Jews] all gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of going after them worldwide." 

Those were the quoted words of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, over two decades ago. Now the Israeli military has taken him out, just as they took out Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, a couple of months ago. And for those of you here in America who would condemn this, keep in mind that this is what we did to Usama bin Laden and other terrorist leaders who were killing Americans.  

I recall several years ago when David Horowitz was speaking in San Diego before a UCSD audience. When a Muslim female challenged him during the q and a, Horowitz quoted the above statement and asked her if she was for or against it. She replied, "For."

And how ironic that the killing of Nasrallah coincided with Bibi Netanyahu's speech to the UN, in which he excoriated that corrupt organization and its support for the forces seeking Israel's destruction.

Yesterday was a good day. Thank you, Israel.

France: Heavy Fallout From Murder of Girl by Illegal Migrant

This week, we reported on the latest murder of an innocent person in France at the hands of an illegal migrant, in this case from Morocco. Once again, France is shaken by another monstrous act committed by one who should not have been in the country.

Philippine's funeral

-France Bleu

Jordan Bardella, the leader of the conservative National Rally (RN) party, was interviewed on a show entitled 20 Hours (France 2).  He passionately denounced the inaction and weakness of the government and the French justice system.

Jordan Bardella

The below article in Le Figaro is translated by Fousesquawk.

The murder of Philippine: Jordan Bardella accuses the State of "having failed" and the justice system of being "irresponsible"

By John Timsit

Posted yesterday at 22:09, updated three hours ago

Caption: Jordan Bardella, guest on 20 Hours, Thursday evening. Screenshot/France 2

A guest on 20 Hours on France 2, the president of National Rally Party (NR), says that the deputies of his party will propose the reinstatement of "double punishment".

The tragic death of the young Philippine continues to provoke turmoil. While the principal suspect, of Moroccan origin, was arrested in Switzerland, his profile (under an Order to Leave French Territory), convicted for rape, freed at the beginning of September...), the political class has immediately seized upon the case. The left condemns but is divided as to the diagnosis and the measures to take. The center bloc is quite discreet. As for the right and the National Rally (party), they are raising the tone and multiplying the propositions as to migrant and judicial cases.

After the revelations that the foreign national, age 22, was free for three weeks in September despite the positive response of Morocco to the expulsion request from France, Thursday evening on France 2's 20 Hours, Jordan Bardella denounced an "irresponsible justice system" and the State that "failed". While Justice Minister Didier Migaud had indicated, a few hours before the arrest of the individual by Swiss police, that "judicial laxness does not exist," his nationalist adversary believes conversely that the indulgence of French authorities has "dramatic consequences for insecurity." 

"How many tragedies are needed?"

And the (party) boss passionately took on a martial tone: "How many tragedies until our political leaders become aware of what is happening today in our country?" He took the opportunity to recall that the RN deputies will propose "within a few days, "the reinstatement of double punishment" (prison and deportation) for foreigners committing a crime or misdemeanor. A way for the member of the European Parliament to respond to "the innumerable cases in which our migrant policy coupled with the weakness of criminal sentences leads to an explosive  cocktail for our compatriots."

Once Jordan Bardella's main measures were laid out, the successor to Marine Le Pen and journalist Anne-Sophie Lapix engaged in a little back and forth. When the host estimated, using supporting sources, that the average cost of an expulsion was 13,800 euros, Jordan Bardella responded: "And the cost of the life of Philippine, Madame?". " The cost of Philippine's life is inestimable for everyone," thundered Anne-Sophie Lapix, who asked the RN president for details on the financing of his migrant program.

The nationalist leader may well have argued that Philippine is "the only one who has been executed at this moment," the host of "20 Hours" accused her guest of not answering. Then "bringing the question back to an extremely sensitive subject": "Nobody wished for Phillipine's death".  Not enough to perturb Jordan Bardella, according to whom the subject of financing is posed for only one reason: "We are so used to the State doing nothing, being weak."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fousesquawk comment:

Philippine

Was her life not worth 13,800 euros?

Is Faculty for Justice in Palestine Contributing to Anti-Semitism on Campus?

University of Wisconsin at Madison

According to a recently released study by the Amcha Initiative, the answer seems to be yes.

The Amcha Initiative was founded by two retired University of California professors to study, expose, and counter campus anti-Semitism. Over the years, I have been proud to occasionally collaborate with this group. I fully support what they do. If you go to their website, you can go through their database of documented incidents on US campuses.

In the wake of the October 7, 2023 atrocity against Israel carried out by Hamas animals, we have seen our campuses double down on the pro-Hamas activity, which has become louder, more disruptive, and more violent. As more negative attention has been drawn to Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), a new organization was formed to support them. That is Faculty for Justice in Palestine (FJP), a collection of anti-Israel oddballs and misfits who have allied themselves with the explosion in campus encampments and refusals to obey directives of the university, campus police, and outside police who have been attempting to restore order on campus.

The Amcha Initiative study indicates that on campuses where FJP chapters have been formed, anti-Semitic incidents tend to increase. That seems logical since students can only feel empowered when they have faculty supporting them, egging them on, and participating in their campus disruptions. Just days ago, I posted a report that two UC Irvine professors have been charged for their roles in campus disruptions when police were called in to break up the encampment set up by students and outside activists last spring.

Encampments, however, are the least of the problems. The worst aspect of all this is that Jewish students have been intimidated on campus by pro-Palestinian bullies. This has been going on for years, but increased dramatically after October 7. And to make things even worse, students and activists who actually celebrate October 7 have been joined and supported by like-minded professors, some of them even Jewish!

I encourage my readers to read the above report and go through the data base of university incidents that go back years.

The "UGA 6"

First, it was the "Irvine 11", referring to the 11 members of the Muslim Student Union who disrupted a talk by then-Israeli ambassador to the US, Michael Oren at UC Irvine in 2010. They were charged and convicted of misdemeanors in state court and promptly took on the mantle of victim.

Now it's the "UGA 6", referring to 6 members of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) who were arrested and suspended at the University of Georgia earlier this year for refusing to disperse from their encampment during the post-October 7 pro-Hamas protests. As with the "Irvine 11", the local chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) has rushed to the defense of the "UGA 6" demanding that charges be dropped. Here is how the conservative blog, Legal Insurrection, is reporting the matter.

Here is how the UGA campus newspaper, Red and Black, is reporting the story.

And yes, there is an op-ed in this edition of the Red and Black by two faculty members who are calling predictably for the charges to be dropped. As their "template", they proudly point to their own student disruptions at the University of North Carolina during the 1980s, when they were protesting apartheid in South Africa.

"Life's hard.'

Naturally, CAIR is right in the middle of this. At the same time that all this SJP activity is leading to increased anti-Semitism on campuses, CAIR is making its own contribution to the problem nationwide, both on campuses and on the street.

In my view, without commenting on the guilt or innocence of the specific acts these 6 SJP members are accused of, it seems appropriate that the case go to court. When you occupy public space and create disruptions, disobey police orders to disperse, and interfere with the operation of the school, there have to be consequences. Sorry, little snowflakes, but suspension and prosecution are two possible consequences. 

Back in the 1960s when I was in high school, these disruptions would never have been tolerated. Why should it be any different in a university? Just what is it about a university that means you can engage in all this disruptive activity that a high school would not tolerate? Of course, things have changed in high schools too since when I was a kid.

Spain: Woman Who Fled Forced Marriage Speaks out Against Salafism

Haman Serroukh is a Spanish woman of Moroccan origin who, at age 15, fled a forced marriage. Today, she is speaking out publicly against the problem of Salafism, the strict version of Islam that is most problematic in European countries. She has written a book entitled "Coraje-El precio de la libertad ("Courage-the price of liberty"). She also speaks out against forced marriages of young Muslim girls in Spain, which is also used as a tool to enable men to immigrate to Europe.

The Spanish site, InfoCatolica, has just published an article on an interview Serroukh gave to El Mundo. It is translated by Fousesquawk.

(She) is one of the most critical voices against the advance of Salafism.

Hanan Serroukh: "We increasingly see more girls in Spain totally veiled and dressed in black."

The daily, El Mundo, has interviewed Haman Serroukh, who, after fleeing from a forced marriage, converted into a voice against Salafism in Spain. In her book, "Courage-The price of liberty", she denounces the expansion of Islamism in certain neighborhoods, the institutional inaction, and the increase in forced marriages among Muslim girls in Europe.

9-13-2024 at 2:11

(El Mundo/InfoCatolica) Hanan Serroukh, born in Barcelona in 1974, and of Moroccan descent, escaped from her family at age 15 after refusing a forced marriage. Today, she is one of the most critical voices against Salafism and denounces what she considers a "blindness" of European institutions faced with the expansion of Islamism in certain neighborhoods. In her new book, "Courage-The price of liberty" (Publ. Sekotia), Serroukh shares her personal experience and warns of the dangers of Islamic extremism in Europe.

A life marked by the fight for liberty

Serroukh relates how, at a very early age, she was confronted with the hard reality of living under an oppressive system. "The hardest (part) is realizing that you are in a living prison, that they are attacking your freedom, and you have to flee," she says. In her case, though it was difficult, she thinks that she grew up in a context less influenced by Salafism than now, which permitted her to recognize her rights as a Spanish citizen. Nevertheless, she stresses that today the situation is different. "To be born in Spain doesn't guarantee that you grow up with European democratic values," due to the growing influence of Islamist actors in some neighborhoods.

The escape and the price of repudiation

At age 15, Serroukh made the most difficult decision of her life: to escape. "The hardest moment was going out onto the street and knowing that you would not return to feeling that you had a mother, a family," she confesses. She was found in Gerona by two officers of the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalunya State Police), who seeing her disoriented, offered her assistance. This was the start of her new life, marked by the repudiation of her family and community for having chosen liberty.

The troubling increase in forced marriages in Spain

Serroukh denounces the growing number of forced marriages among girls in Spain, signaling the existence of "parallel societies" in certain neighborhoods controlled by Salafism. According to her, in these environments, democratic values are replaced by rules that limit the rights of minors. "We increasingly see girls in Spain totally veiled and dressed in black," she laments and adds that many of these girls assume that the lack of rights is normal, which makes it difficult to report their situation.

The indifference of the institutions and the lack of effective policies

Serroukh sharply criticizes the inaction of the public administrations, and in her opinion, they have not understood the magnitude of the problem. According to her, the imposition of the hijab and the duty to attend madrasas are not just examples of how girls are subjected to a system alien to democratic values. "The administrations do not understand the social diversity, instead of constructing a collective idea and one of citizenship, they are giving answers segregated by (groups)," she reports.

The use of marriages to regularize the entry of immigrants

Serroukh also warns of the practice of sending girls to countries of origin of the families to marry them and facilitate the legal arrival of men in Europe. "They are being deceived," she claims, giving as example cases in which the minors have been rescued by Spanish authorities, though she emphasizes that many times it is impossible to help them due to the pressure that Islamist communities exert, even including justifying physical violence as occurred with the two sisters murdered in Tarrasa (sic)*.

The difficult situation of unaccompanied foreign minors (menas)

Serroukh was a minor cared for by the Spanish protection system, and from this perspective, she criticizes the current handling of the menas (unaccompanied foreign minors).  "Europe will not be able to care for Africa's children," she states bluntly, and adds that the system of protection of minors in Spain is "completely broken". For Serroukh, it is fundamental to improve the resources and policies of prevention, but it is also crucial that the countries of origin, like Morocco, assume their responsibility in the protection of minors.

* Translator's note: In 2022 two Pakistani sisters residing in Tarrassa, Spain, were lured back to Pakistan and murdered when they refused arranged marriages.

France: Moroccan Suspect in Custody for Rape and Murder

Bois de Boulogne in Paris

-La Provence

Once again, it has happened, this time in France. A 22-year-old Moroccan man, identified only as Taha O, is charged with the rape and murder of Philippine, 19 years old in Paris. Previously imprisoned for rape in France, he was under a deportation order and placed in some sort of house arrest. He left France, indeed, but not before allegedly raping and murdering the victim in Paris' Bois de Boulogne, where her body was discovered buried. He has been captured in Geneva and is awaiting extradition.

Of course, we are experiencing the same problems in the US, thanks to the lax border policies of Biden, Harris, and Mayorkas, but too many innocent victims have died in western Europe thanks to their own lax immigration-deportation policies.

Le Figaro has the latest here and is translated by Fousesquawk. (Note: this article is still being updated and may change from the translated version.)

Murder of Philippine: Judicial investigation opened for homicide, also for rape.

By Agence France Presse (AFP) and Alexandra Perrini

Posted three hours ago, updated 2 hours ago.

The investigating judge has issued an arrest warrant for the suspect, Taha O., who was arrested in Switzerland on September 24. He was already known to French justice authorities and was the subject of an Order to Leave French Territory (deportation).

Since Tuesday, an investigating judge has been in charge of the case opened specifically for homicide and rape in connection with the death of the young student, Philippine, in Paris, and in which a suspect was arrested Tuesday evening in Switzerland. The judicial investigation involves the crimes of murder preceded, accompanied, or followed by another crime, rape, theft, and fraud, all (in connection with) criminal recividism.

At the end of the day on Tuesday, the investigating judge issued an arrest warrant against the suspect, identified thanks to the use of surveillance video images, specifically from the bank where he made a withdrawal using the bank card stolen from the victim, and "telephonic investigations", the prosecutor's office stated. "At the same time, the subject was arrested in Switzerland in the canton of Geneva," at the end of Tuesday, he added. "The French judicial authorities will send an extradition request to the Swiss judicial authorities for the purpose of having the subject turned over as soon as possible," the Public Ministry stated.

The body of Philippine, a 19-year-old student at the University of Paris-Dauphine, was discovered buried in the Bois de Boulogne, in west Paris, during a search Saturday afternoon. The family had reported her disappearance. The student had been seen for the last time Friday during breakfast time at the university located near the woods. The results of the autopsy carried out Sunday, "have not been communicated at this point," the prosecutor's office noted.

Targeted for deportation

The suspect, Taha O., a Moroccan national, age 22, had been "sentenced by a juvenile criminal court in Val d'Oise on October 5, 2021, to 7 years in prison for acts of rape committed in 2019-for which he had been placed in pre-trial detention in 2019, and freed at the end of his sentence in June 2024," the Public Ministry explained.

Illegally in France, he was notified of an order to leave French territory (OQTF) on June 18, 2024. Upon leaving prison, he was placed in an administrative retention center (CRA) in Metz. His stay was extended three times before he was assigned to (house) arrest in a hotel in the Yonne (French départment in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region).  

On September 18, the prefecture of Yonne reported his non-compliance, and Taha O. was placed in the file of wanted persons.

Buildings Defaced at UNC by Pro-Hamas Thugs

Hat tip Campus Reform

-Daily Tarheel

It's the same old familiar story. On September 19, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, hundreds of pro-Hamas activists, led by (who else?) Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), marched around campus, disrupted classes, and spray-painted buildings with insults directed at the school, ROTC, and Israel. In addition, they took down an American flag and put up the Palestinian flag. Campus Reform has the report here.

The UNC campus newspaper, Daily Tarheel, has a report with several photographs here. Like virtually all campus papers, the Daily Tarheel has an op-ed editorial page. Thus far, I see no pieces devoted to the incident, let alone condemning the incident, in that section. Hopefully, the next edition will, but I am not optimistic.

As we all know by now, this is what the pro-Palestinian mob does. They deface, destroy, disrupt, assault, tear down etc. They are utterly incapable of building anything constructive. There should be no room on any campus for these thugs. They need to be charged and expelled from campus, not suspended, expelled. As for professors withholding grades "in solidarity", they should be summarily fired.

Wake Forest to Host Rabab Abdulhadi on October 7

Hat tip College Professors United for Jews and Israel

For years, I have been writing about San Francisco State University professor Rabab Abdulhadi. In my opinion, she is an unabashed anti-Semite and supporter of terrorist acts against Israel, which she considers "legitimate resistance".  She should have been fired from her position at SFSU years ago, but she has been protected by that radical institution masquerading as a university.

Now she is scheduled to speak at Wake Forest University on October 7. This is how Wake Forest is going to commemorate one of the most hideous massacres in human history, by hosting a woman who wholeheartedly supports Hamas and its actions. 

To be sure, Wake Forest is not the only university that has invited her to speak over the years. When she was scheduled to speak at UC Irvine in 2015 with her pals from the SFSU General Union of Palestinian Students (GUPS), a group that has openly advocated the murder of Israel soldiers, the audience was told no videotaping was allowed. I refused to comply with that order, and when the dean of students backed me up, Abdulhadi and her little rascals failed to materialize on stage even though there were several chairs set up for them.

To host someone like Abdulhadi is bad enough, but to do it on October 7 is an obscenity. To make matters even worse, it is the Humanities Institute, History Dept., Dept. of Politics and International Affairs, and the Middle East South Asian Studies Program who are sponsoring the event. And how about that National Endowment for the Humanities!

As yet, I see no reporting on this in the Wake Forest campus newspaper, Our Gold and Black.

It may well be free speech under our Constitution, but what a disgrace!

Just Whom Is Columbia's Interim President Apologizing to?

Hat tip College Professors United for Jews and Israel

Columbia University's interim president, Katrina Armstrong, has issued a public apology in connection with this year's police actions against the encampment and occupation of a campus building by pro-Palestinian demonstrators. The apology is reported in the Columbia Spectator, the campus newspaper of Columbia. The problem is-just whom is she apologizing to?

It does not appear that the apology is directed at students and university staff whose studies/teaching were disrupted by the occupation. It does not appear that the apology was directed at the families of Columbia students who are paying high tuitions to Columbia  and getting disruption of services.

Most importantly, there is no apology to Columbia's Jewish students, who have been the victims of harassment, insults, and disruption of their events for years now, culminating in the encampments and occupations on campus by pro-Hamas thugs in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist atrocities against Israel. 

For the life of me, I do not understand why any Jewish students would want to attend this joke of a university.

Germany: Home of Pro-Israel Politician Smeared With Red Paint

Joe Chialo-victim
-Berliner Morgenpost

-BZ Die Stimme Berlins

A pro-Israel politician from the Christian Democrat Union (CDU) party has had his home smeared with red paint and anti-Israel messages in the Pankow district of Berlin. Joe Chialo is a senator (minister) of culture in Berlin's government. He was born in Bonn to Tanzanian diplomats. The attack is the result of his support for Israel. I don't know if there is also a racial aspect to this attack, but it is despicable, nonetheless. This is the kind of tactic that pro-Palestinian activists are noted for all over the world.

This article from Berliner Morgenpost is translated by Fousesquawk.

In addition, BZ-Die Stimme Berlins has video of the incident two weeks previous when Chialo was speaking at an event that was disrupted.

Pro-Palestinian scene

House of Culture (Minister) Joe Chialo smeared with paint

9-23-2024, 13:41.

By Dennis Meischen

Editor

Caption: The residence of Culture (Minister) Joe Chialo was smeared with red paint.

Berlin- For weeks, the CDU politician has been the target of pro-Palestinian activists. The background is his pro-Israel stance.

Late Sunday night/early Monday morning, unknown person(s) sprayed the facade and court entry of the private residence of Joe Chialo (CDU) in Pankow (Berlin) with red paint. That is confirmed by the police in response to an inquiry by this editorial staff. In addition, several messages were written, such as "Genocide Joe" and "Meet our demands". That is a clear reference to the alleged genocide that the pro-Palestinian activists and Israel critics accuse (Israel of) in the Gaza Strip. State Security has begun an investigation, (and) a connection to the pro-Palestinian scene seems probable.

"I lack words for what is happening here," stated the Berlin military rabbi, Schlomo Afanasev, on social platform X (formerly Twitter).  Culture (Minister) Joe Chialo has our full support, but it is shocking that now he needs personal protection and a safe space on his own doorstep. What kind of world has this become? It is simply sick."

Caption: Only two weeks ago, Berlin's culture minister, Joe Chialo (CDU) had to leave the stage under police protection.

Berlin's sitting mayor, Kai Wegner (CDU) also sharply condemned the paint attack on Chialo's house. On X (formerly Twitter), he wrote that "every line" has been crossed. The attack shows that the perpetrators disqualify themselves from any discussion."It is even more important to break up the underlying structures," Wegner adds. "We will exhaust all constitutional means against those who  attack people out of political motives, want to stir up fear, or believe they need to bring international conflicts to our Berlin streets. This is why a democracy clause is urgently necessary when it comes to distributing state funds. There can be no tax money for enemies of democracy."

Joe Chialo has long been the target of pro-Palestinian protests

Chialo has repeatedly become the target of pro-Palestinian activists in the past several days due to his pro-Israel views. The background is the democracy clause he is pushing for in the Culture (ministry), which ensures that anti-Semites and other extremists get no more funding for projects from the public coffers. Critics see this as a deliberate oppression of Israel-critical and pro-Palestinian opinions. 

Specifically, in October 2023, Chialo stopped the payment of funds that were to run to 2025 for the Neukoellner Cultural Center, "Oyoun", because a controversial event was held there. A few weeks after the October 7 Hamas attack, an anti-Israel association close to the BDS movement celebrated its 20th anniversary.  The matter is now being litigated in court and is in the Higher Administrative Court 

Joe Chialo had to be taken from stage under police protection

Just two weeks ago, due to this decision, Chialo was attacked at the reopening of the Center for Art and Urbanism in Moabit (Berlin). In front of the entrance, 40 pro-Palestinian demonstrators waited for him. The group, according to police, directed banned chants against the cultural minister, insulted him, threatened him, and set off pyrotechnics. Chialo finally had to be taken from the stage under police protection. In previous appearances by the culture minister, activists had demanded that the cultural center be preserved.

Shortly afterward, Chialo complained to "Spiegel" (news magazine) about an "increasingly aggressive brutalization in the debates". He told the magazine, "It all seems that the radical left and the self-proclaimed Hamas supporters are flaunting their one-sided and distorted worldview, without consideration of the consequences."

The Turmoil Continues at Rutgers

Hat tip Campus Reform, College Professors United for Jews and Israel, and Canary Mission.

Of all the major American universities that have problems with anti-Semitism on campus, Rutgers is among the worst. This site is full of articles about anti-Semitism at Rutgers that go back several years. In the midst of all the criticism and the Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights launching an investigation into accusations of anti-Semitism (and Islamophobia, of course), the president of the university, Jonathan Holloway, has announced he will leave his post after the 2024-2025 school year. It can't come fast enough. The school has also come under the microscope of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, headed by Virginia Foxx (R-NC). Clearly, drastic change is need at Rutgers.

It should be noted here that Rutgers is home to Professor Jasbir Puar, long accused of making public statements that are considered anti-Semitic. To be sure, Rutgers has had other similarly-minded professors over the past several years, like Africana Studies professor  Noura Erakat and microbiology professor Michael Chakindas, the latter of whom allegedly was a fan of stereotyped images of Jews, hooked noses, and all that stuff.

Here is what my friends at the Amcha Initiative have to say about Rutgers from their database of campus anti-Semitism. It isn't pretty.

In addition, within the law school, there is a group called the Center for Security, Race, and Rights (CSRR), which is under fire for allegedly exacerbating the problem of anti-Semitism on campus. One look at their website, and it is clear that this center is dedicated to pushing the anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian agenda, as well as complaints about Islamophobia. Its director, Sahar Aziz, has been widely criticized for controversial comments she has made in the wake of the October 7, 2023 attack and massacres by Hamas. Presently, CSRR is hosting a series of lectures devoted to the above conflict, a program that is also drawing fire from critics concerned about anti-Semitism on the Rutgers campus. One wonders why the law school of a "prestigious" university like Rutgers would host such a group under its umbrella.

Then again, should we really be surprised?

One Fine Day on a Spanish Beach

The flood of illegal migrants arriving in Spain from Morocco continues unabated. Two days ago, a speedboat dropped off some 30 men of Moroccan origin on a beach occupied by shocked sun-bathers. Police and the Civil Guard had to chase them down in the nearby town.

This article in Diario Sur (Spain) is translated by Fousesquawk. The above video is also translated by Fousesquawk. Hat tip to Gates of Vienna and Vlad Tepes for subtitling.

A speedboat with some 30 Maghrebian migrants arrives on a beach at Nerja

The occupants, 33 Moroccan men, of whom 6 are minors, are in good health after being intercepted by the Guardia Civil (Civil Guard) and local police.

Caption: The moment when the boat drops off the Maghrebian (North African) migrants, including 6 minors.

-Angel Moyano

By Eugenio Cabezas

Thursday, September 19, 2024. Updated September 20, 2024 at 11:59 

A new disembarcation of Maghrebian migrants in Nerja. It was 4:45 pm Thursday when the sun-bathers were surprised by the arrival of a large pneumatic boat, a speed boat with three outboard motors, with some 30 migrants of Maghrebian origin on board.

The occupants, mostly middle-aged men from Morocco, along with 6 minors, jumped into the water a few meters from shore, and the boat took off at high speed. The migrants then began to disperse to the easternmost coastal city of the province. A team of Guardia Civil and local police was deployed to try to locate them.

According to what SUR has been able to confirm, 33 Moroccan men were intercepted, 6 of whom are minors. However, appropriate tests to determine their age are pending. Some of the migrants were arrested after they had run more than 3 kilometers near the Calaceite Beach at Torrox.

At the foot of Calle (street) Chaparil in the center of the easternmost coastal locality of the province, one of the Maghrebian migrants who was stopped explained to this newspaper that they departed early in the morning from the coastal zone of Rif in Morocco.

The man stated that there were 26 young men, all Moroccan. The migrant, who spoke a little Spanish, said that all were in "good health" and were "happy" to arrive in Spain.

The intercepted migrants were transferred to the Guardia Civil post at Nerja, in order to proceed with efforts to repatriate them to the Alawi nation (Morocco), according to what SUR has been able to confirm.  Specifically, from Nerja, they were transferred to the Temporary Care Center for Foreigners (CATE) located at the facilities of the Port of Malaga.

Caption: Some of the Maghrebian migrants intercepted Thursday on Calle Chaparil, Nerja.

-Eugenio Cabezas

Second boat in 20 days

The previous boat with migrants that arrived at Nerja was last August 29, when it reached the beach at El Playazo, a speedboat with some 20 people on board. In the early morning hours, the Guardia Civil arrested two dozen middle-aged men of Maghrebian origin, who also succeeded in reaching the shore. 

In an initial operation, 5 of the migrants were located, and a subsequent search in the zone succeeded in intercepting 15 others, according to what the news agency, Europa Press, reported, citing sources close to the case, who explained that the Integrated System of Exterior Surveillance (SIVE) of the Guardia Civil detected the boat, and officers were deployed to intercept it.

The same sources said that at the beginning of the operation, 5 persons were (detained), and later the location of the other 15 was also found, among whom one was a minor judging by his appearance. The Guardia Civil transferred all these people to CATE, located at the facilities of the Port of Malaga.

The boat, also a speedboat with outboard motors, arrived at the shore of the Nerja beach of El Playazo in the early morning hours. Several neighbors and witnesses alerted the state security forces of its presence although it was already being tracked by Guardia Civil radar. 

DHS/HSI Trying to Get Title 21 Authority (Federal Drug Statutes)

This article first appeared in New English Review.

Alejandro Mayorkas

Recently, I posted an article in New English Review on how then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris and then-Governor Jerry Brown presided over the dissolution of the California Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement (BNE) in 2012. It brings to mind how my former agency, the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), has survived attempts by previous administrations to merge DEA into the FBI. It took intensive lobbying campaigns by DEA leadership and their allies in state and local police agencies to convince the Justice Department that it was a bad idea.

But DEA is hardly out of the woods. Under Homeland Security Director, Alejandro Mayorkas, who is nonchalantly presiding over an open border and the deadly fentanyl epidemic that has gone with it, DHS and its main investigative agency, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), are engaged in a blatant effort to obtain full authority to enforce US Code Title 21 statutes. (Title 21 is the part of the federal criminal code that deals with drug trafficking and distribution of controlled substances. Presently, it is DEA/DOJ's authority to grant Title 21 powers to agents from other agencies, like HSI, when they are working with DEA on cases.)  

According to my sources, as part of his campaign to expand his empire, Mayorkas is trying to make the case that DEA is failing in its efforts in the war on drugs. He conveniently ignores the fact that our open border with Mexico, which he is charged with securing, is a major cause of the drug smuggling problem from Mexico including fentanyl.

This has predictably led to friction and anger on the part of DEA personnel, both at the managerial level and among the rank-and-file agents. They complain that HSI is not only attempting a hostile takeover of Title 21 authority but also often tries to steal credit from cases that were made principally by DEA, something the FBI has long been notorious for among other law enforcement agencies. It goes without saying that Mayorkas is not held in high esteem by the employees of DEA.

At the risk of digressing, a little background is necessary regarding the FBI's history with DEA. During the early Reagan administration, there was consideration of merging DEA into the FBI. While that was ultimately rejected by then-Attorney General William French Smith,  the FBI was given joint jurisdiction over Title 21 in 1982. The result? Inter-agency turf battles of the type that had previously led President Nixon to create DEA in 1973, mainly to eliminate duplication of efforts and turf battles between the predecessor Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (BNDD) under DOJ, and US Customs, which was then under the Treasury Department. In that reorganization, 500 Customs agents (including myself) were transferred to the newly created DEA to join with former BNDD personnel. During the Clinton administration in the 1990s, there again was consideration of merging DEA into the FBI. (Both agencies were and are still under the DOJ.) Ultimately, Attorney General Janet Reno decided against it. 

Previously, DEA's Office of Training was located at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center at Glynco, Georgia, along with most other federal law enforcement training offices. As part of the second contemplated merger, DEA's Office of Training was moved to the FBI Academy at Quantico, Virginia Marine Corps Base, in 1985 where it remained until 1999. I myself spent the last 5-1/2 years of my DEA career as a trainer at Quantico (1990-1995).  After Reno ultimately decided against the merger, the FBI informed DEA that they would need to start looking elsewhere for a training facility. Then DEA Administrator, Jack Lawn, obtained a commitment from then-Marine Corps Commandant, General Alfred M. Gray, to give DEA space at Quantico for its own academy. When other government agencies tried to butt in and exercise some degree of control over the planned facility, General Gray bluntly informed all concerned that either the land would go to DEA or it would go to nobody. As a result, DEA now has its own facility just down the road from the FBI Academy. The facility opened on April 28, 1999.

A note about Jack Lawn: In the 1980s, Lawn, a former Marine and FBI official, was transferred to the position of DEA administrator, according to many, to oversee the transition of DEA into the FBI. However, Lawn became an opponent of the merger and successfully defended and saved DEA. To this day, he is almost universally regarded by retired agents as DEA's greatest administrator. On the other hand, former FBI official, Oliver "Buck" Revell, in his memoirs, wrote that while he was a senior FBI official at HQs, the FBI all but had DEA absorbed until "Jack Lawn went native". 

That brings us to the present day. Alejandro Mayorkas, who has shamelessly turned our Border Patrol into little more than Walmart greeters and destroyed that agency's morale in the process, not only openly lies (even under oath) about the border being secure, but (according to my sources) blames DEA for the drugs flowing across, including the deadly fentanyl, which is claiming hundreds of thousands of American lives every year. The precursors to produce fentanyl are primarily produced in China and smuggled to Mexican traffickers who finish the product and smuggle it over the border into the US. DEA has no jurisdiction over border enforcement. That comes under DHS. Along with the millions of illegal aliens, the crimes, the murders, the rapes, terrorists, gangs, and other drugs, the fentanyl epidemic is directly attributable to Mayorkas and his bosses in the White House. DEA does its part with an office in Beijing working to get cooperation from the Chinese authorities, whose cooperation is, frankly, a mixed bag. 

As a side note, DHS is not the only federal law enforcement entity suffering from bad morale. Not surprisingly, the Secret Service is also suffering from poor morale, exacerbated by the recent attempts on former President Trump. Many agents are seeking jobs elsewhere in law enforcement, including with DEA.

Of course, if Kamala Harris is elected president in November, one can only speculate how she would treat the Mayorkas-DEA matter. Given her track record with California BNE, I fear that she would be very receptive to whatever Mayorkas has to say. In my view, throwing federal drug enforcement into multi-mission agencies like the FBI or DHS/HSI is a bad idea. The FBI, since 9-11, has rightfully cut back drastically on its drug investigations in favor of counter-terrorism. DEA is a single-mission agency and has established great relations and respect with not only other US police agencies but foreign police agencies as well. Handing drug enforcement over to DHS under a corrupt, incompetent, and dishonest figure like Alejandro Mayorkas is a recipe for disaster.

As just another example of Mayorkas' malfeasance, this week, Aaron Heitke, a retired Border Patrol supervisor, who was in charge of the San Diego sector, testified this week before the House Committee on Homeland Security that he was ordered by the Biden administration not to speak publicly about the illegal migrant problems. More specifically, he testified that most of their manpower was shifted away from their normal border posts to other sectors to process all the illegal migrants. As we know, so many of these were turning themselves into Border Patrol officers, requesting asylum, being processed, and being sent on their way to who knows where. I bring that up because DHS is claiming that 90% of the fentanyl seizures occur at ports of entry as opposed to isolated areas with no authorized ports of entry. Even if that figure is correct, Heitke's testimony would suggest that ports of entry are not being manned sufficiently to do more effective border inspections.

This is not to suggest that DEA and DHS agencies shouldn't work together. Customs and Border Protection certainly has a role to play at the border and frequently encounters drug smugglers. If they make an arrest or seizure at the border, the case is turned over to the local DEA office for further investigation and prosecution, which was the case between Customs and DEA after the 1973 merger. In addition, I have no objection to having DHS agencies participating in federal drug task forces with DEA, but DEA is the lead agency when it comes to federal drug enforcement, and it should stay that way as opposed to creating more interagency turf battles-which are all too frequent as it is. DHS and HSI are presenting this as a common-sense move to add more manpower and resources to fighting drugs, but as they tout their successes and capabilities, barely mentioning what DEA is already doing domestically and internationally worldwide, this smacks of a naked power grab by Mayorkas, a political hack who has no credibility as it is. If DHS/HSI can make such a great contribution, one wonders why they have failed so miserably at the southern border. Under Mayorkas and the Biden-Harris administration, they have taken a serious situation and only made it worse. They hardly represent the solution.