"Good news, mein Fuehrer. We've found more classified documents here in the chancellery garden."
Thursday, January 12, 2023
Wednesday, January 11, 2023
The Muslim Brotherhood in France (6)
This is the latest in our series of original translations of European articles on the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe and the 6th such article on France. The below France Bleu article concerns a local French public official who has been accused of ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. We have no information that might support or refute the allegations against the politician in question. The article is translated as is by Fousesquawk.
"I am secular and a Republican," says the elected official in Valence, Adem Benchelloug, accused of ties with the Muslim Brotherhood.
It is the Journal du Dimanche that is revealing an internal note within the Drome (geographical department in France) Territorial Intelligence. According to this document, Adem Benchelloug, municipal councilor and vice president of the agglomeration of communities, is reportedly close to the Muslim Brotherhood. The Valence elected official says he is bruised and refutes the allegations.
Valence
France Bleu-Drome Ardeche
Sunday, January 8, 2023 at 18:21-Updated Monday, January 9, 2023 at 08:45
By Nathalie De Keyzer
"I am wounded and bruised". That is the reaction of Adem Benchelloug after the article published January 7 by Journal du Dimanche (Sunday Newspaper). Entitled "In Valence, the shadow of the Muslim Brotherhood", this article describes the contents of a note within the Drome Territorial Intelligence (RT) that was addressed to the Prefect of Drome last August 3. A note in which the RT, according to our colleagues, shared their suspicions about the municipal counselor assigned to the movement of equipment in the quarter of Valence. Adem Benchelloug is also the 13th vice president of the Valence Romans (agglomeration of communities in charge of sports.
"It's a bunch of assertions without proof"
(Contacted) Sunday afternoon, the elected official said he was wounded by these allegations. "I am wounded and bruised when I see such accusations that are founded on nothing." Adem Benchalloug continues: "It's a bunch of assertions without proof and allegations without foundation. Territorial intelligence is there to produce intelligence, that's their role, but let them do it in the correct manner."The elected official states: This note brings nothing concrete and reveals nothing because there is nothing to reveal."
Defamation
The vice president in charge of sports in the Valence Romans community agglomeration chooses a sports metaphor in responding: "I take the blow", but he also notes that for him, these allegations are defamation and that he will take his time to respond point by point. He is presented in the note as, "an elected official with a theologically-formatted profile since 2012 within the associations, Ouverture and the Plume Institute," two associations "essential in the Brotherhood theological training in the Drome (department)", again according to the Territorial Intelligence.
Adem Benchelloug admits having taken a course in the Arabic language in the summer of 2010 at the Plume Association "but I am neither closely nor remotely connected to the Muslim Brotherhood movement. I am no more than an elected, secular Republican, and before being an elected Republican, I was just a young man in the community invested in the associative environment of the secular hearth of Valensolles (district in Valence), therefore, a home for all. I am the pure fruit of the school of the Republic."
Violent messages on social media
And Adem Benchelloug says he is also affected by the particularly aggressive reaction that the article triggered on social media. "When we see the reactions of the fascistsphere calling for actions against me, it affects me, and it makes me fear for my family, for (our) living well together."
What evidence?
Nicolas Daragon, the Republican mayor of Valence, also says he is outraged by these revelations. "I am shocked to read of such false accusations that are not founded on any proof." The mayor, who says he has known his municipal counselor more than 15 years, was not aware of this RT case, nor of the note to the prefect. Thus, he first raises the question of evidence. "There, based on the fact that a municipal counselor took a foreign language course for one month 12 years ago, they say that he is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood? There is a moment when you should bring evidence when you advance such remarks."
Even if the elected official knows it, it is the nature for Territorial Intelligence to work with total discretion, and to collect bundles of information without real material evidence, which is extremely complicated to obtain in these types of cases.
Questions from the mayor of Valence
The mayor and president of the agglomeration of Valence Romans resumes his form of questioning: "In this note, it is said that there is an organization that trains jihadists. This organization is still open! Last summer, after having been awakened, the prefect indicated to me that the Muslim school was run by the Muslim Brotherhood. She made her 10th or 11th return (visit). So today, I question: The prefect received this note on August 3, she should alert me, she should not spread it in the media, and she should take measures to ensure internal security and public tranquility, something that as of today is absolutely not the case. And so I question myself as to whom we are really targeting? Is there not a form of settling of scores today?
Settling of scores?
Nicolas Daragon concludes: "Not only is nothing clear, but there are some strange maneuvers that make me think there is a sort of settling of scores. It's as if certain state representatives whose departures have been announced, at this time, were saying, 'After me, the deluge'. So there are some steps that are unworthy. And this note, the fact that it is circulating (now) when it was addressed last August 3rd to the prefect of Drome puzzles me."
It must be said that the relations between the mayor of Valence and the prefect of Drome have been strained for six months since the Muslim school affair. Is the mayor implying that Elodie Degiovanni herself might have leaked this note? The mayor's answer is clear. "Well, it's either the sender of the note or whoever received it. But it's one or the other. And given the trustworthiness of relations that we have had for a certain number of months now in Drome, I ask myself. At the least."
We have contacted the prefect of Drome regarding this attack against her by the mayor. Sticking to her position since the start of the Muslim school affairs, she does not wish to comment.
The opposition demands an emergency municipal meeting
One opposition party has already reacted. The ex-LREM (Renaissance Party) municipal counselor, Bruno Casari, and Socialist Florent Mejean, in separate statements, are calling for pretty much the same thing: The withdrawal of the Adem Benchelloug delegations, as well as his resignation and the holding of an emergency municipal meeting.
France: Another Stabbing Attack in Paris
Hat tip Francois DeSouche
Gare du Nord, Paris. AFP
It has happened yet again. The scenario is all too familiar. This morning, at the Gare du Nord train station in Paris, a man identified as a Libyan male in his 20s, went on a stabbing spree wounding six persons before being shot and critically wounded by police. (Certain news sources have described the suspect as Algerian, but Libyan seems more credible at this point.) Police report that the man had a record for petty crimes under several aliases and was under an expulsion order to Libya. Due to the unstable situation in Libya, the expulsion had not been carried out.
The below link, via Francois DeSouche (France), has several videos. The first one graphically shows how one of the victims was attacked (Viewer warning).
The below two articles, via Francois Desouche, are translated by Fousesquawk.
Knife attack at Gare du Nord (North Train Station). Assailant was under OQTF expulsion order
by Cecile Ollivier with Gauthier Hartmann January 11, 2023 at 16:54
Caption: Police at Gare du Nord train station Wednesday, January 11, 2023-Julien de Rosa/Agence France Presse
INFO BFMTV- The perpetrator of the attack is a Libyan, aged around 20, arrived in France three years ago.
The man who attacked and wounded 6 people with a knife at the Gare du Nord train station in Paris Wednesday morning was under an order of obligation to leave French territory (OQTF), issued in the summer of 2022, BFMTV has learned.
Known for acts of petty crime
Thanks to fingerprint analysis, police were able to identify this Libyan man, aged about 20. Having Arrived in France three years ago, he was known to police under multiple aliases for petty crimes, principally property damage.
The expulsion order he was subject to had not been executed. Expulsions to Libya are complicated due to the current instability of the country, but also due to the absence of an exchange channel for the identification of Libyan nationals.
Wednesday (today) around 6:45, the man (who was) "extremely threatening", attacked six people at the exterior entrance to the Gare du Nord, stated the Minister of Interior, Gerald Darmanin, who was at the scene Wednesday morning.
The individual was then neutralized by police in civilian clothes as well as frontier police, posted at the Gare du Nord. The assailant has been hospitalized after being shot three times by police. Gerald Darmanin explained Wednesday morning that he was "between life and death".
The preliminary toll is six people wounded by stabbing, "of which, one is more serious than the others," the Minister of Interior indicated.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, several witnesses reportedly heard the man yell, "Allahu akbar" during the attack, which police are still attempting to verify. At this point, police are not calling this a terrorist crime. I suspect that will change if and when the above witnesses' statements are verified.
Below is a partial translation of an article from Europe 1 (also via Francois Desouche).
According to some witnesses at the scene, the suspect reportedly shouted, "Allahu akhbar" during the attack. An element that the investigators of the Criminal Brigade are in the process of verifying, in cross-checking the interviews of witnesses and victims. At this stage, police who have been interviewed report having heard some remarks made in the Arabic language, without, however, being able to confirm what was precisely reported by certain witnesses.
A false identity?
According to information received by Europe 1, the suspect, who had no papers, stated in the morning that he was Algerian. He gave his name as Mohamed Amine M., a name not known to police, and was born, according to his statements, April 14, 1991. He would then be 31 years old. However, the attacker reportedly gave a false identity. Checking the files, his fingerprints matched five aliases with different dates of birth.
Tuesday, January 10, 2023
Belgium: Drug War Claims Life of 11-Year-Old Girl
The city and port of Antwerp, Belgium is probably Europe's biggest gateway for narcotics, and the city has its share of violence and drug gangs. On Monday evening, in the Merksem area of Antwerp someone fired bullets into the garage of a residence owned by the city's most notorious drug gang (family name not reported). An 11-year-old girl, the niece of the leaders of the gang, was killed. The leaders of the gang are fugitives hiding in Dubai. Other news sources describe the family as being originally from Morocco.
The below article from today's French-language La Libre (Belgium) is translated by Fousesquawk.
The little 11-year-old girl killed in a shooting "came from the richest family in the Antwerp underworld": Here is what we know.
Killed in a shooting on Monday, January 9, Firdaous, a little girl barely 11 years old, reportedly is from the largest Antwerp family implicated in drug trafficking.
Editorial staff
Posted January 10, 2023 at 10:53-Updated January 10, 2023 at 17:50
Caption: Death of a child during a shooting in Antwerp: "(Drug) consumers should look at themselves in the mirror"
According to our colleagues at HLN, little Firdaous comes from a family of drug barons. Her mother, Naziha, is reportedly the older sister of Othman, Younes, and Nordin El B. Naziha's brothers are not unknown to the police and intelligence services. They have already had contact with the justice system several times within the framework of investigations in the world of drugs. Since the monitoring of the Sky ECC chat service, investigators affirm it is clear that Othman and Younes pull the strings of the Antwerp drug scene out of Dubai, our Flemish colleagues indicate.
However, Naziha's family seems to be apart from all that. Neighbors describe a nice, irreproachable family. Aside from her oldest son, Mohamed El J., suspected of being linked to his notorious uncle, Othman, the possible cause of the attack Monday evening. (Antwerp mayor) Bart de Wever had also described the family of "baron" Othman as 'The richest in the Antwerp underworld".
There will certainly be a reaction
Othman E.B., uncle of the child shot and killed in Merksem Monday evening, confirms Tuesday to the newspaper, Gazet van Antwerpen, that the family will respond to the tragedy without resorting to violence. "We will search for the perpetrators with the police and the justice system," declared the 30-year-old wanted by police for drug trafficking, presumably from Dubai.
The mayor of Antwerp, Bart de Wever (N-VA), announced Monday evening that the family targeted by the attack is known in the drug world and that the incident should be considered in this context. He said he feared reprisals. "There will certainly be a reaction," Othman E.B. told the Gazet van Antwerpen. "But not how the mayor imagines it. History has already shown us innumerable examples of avengers, and it has never ended well for them." The uncle of the victim also denies any relation with the "underworld" or violence.
Othman E.B. has never been convicted in Belgium for drug trafficking, unlike his younger brother, Younes, also wanted by judicial authorities. He thinks the perpetrators of attacks like that on Monday should be punished more severely. "Some people who commit these attacks are sentenced to punishments of three years, suspended," he laments.
Monday, January 9, 2023
Austria: Iraqi Man Goes on Stabbing and Shooting Rampage
Linz
In the Austrian city of Linz (Austria's third-largest city) today, a 41-year-old Iraqi man stabbed his Rumanian-born wife and then drove downtown to stab a man alleged to be a "rival" for his wife's affections. The suspect also, at some point, hijacked a car, was involved in two car accidents during the police chase then engaged in an exchange of gunfire with police before being subdued.
The below article from Krone (Austria) is translated by Fousesquawk. The article has videos of the incident.
January 9, 2023 16:10 Federal states-Upper Austria
Shots, auto hi-jacked: Videos show dramatic scenes in Linz
In a rampage through Linz, an Iraqi man (41) reportedly stabbed his wife on Monday and then fled. The insane act ended in several car accidents and a police chase. In the arrest, there were many shots fired-One witness filmed the tense moments. Another video shows the suspect as he hijacked a car in Linz.
Shots in broad daylight in the middle of Linz! The rampage of an Iraqi man (41) ended around 1 pm-as reported in detail- after two accidents, with an arrest in front of a hotel at Meixnerkreuzung. Several eyewitnesses filmed the exchange of gunfire.
At the start of the video, the shooter can be seen fleeing from police. A short time later, a large number of heavily armed police and a completely demolished vehicle can be seen. Where the man got the weapon from is the object of the investigation.
An additional video is also circulating Monday. It shows the suspect as he forces the driver of a car at gunpoint to get out of the car and as he (the suspect) takes possession of the vehicle.
Police asking for photo and video material
The police are asking witnesses who took photos of the crimes, the flight, or the arrest to make the photo or video material available to the authorities. Please contact the nearest police station or at telephone number 059133 40 1133.
Rival attacked with knife
The 42-year-old Rumanian woman was the first victim, and she herself notified the police at 6:45 am. She was taken to the hospital with injuries to her abdomen. The 41-year-old then drove to his wife's workplace and there attacked his presumed rival with the knife. During the ensuing flight, the shooter was involved in two traffic accidents and was shortly arrested afterward.
Sunday, January 8, 2023
Germany: Islamic Terror Chemical Attack Thwarted
Thanks to a tip from the FBI, German police have prevented a planned terror attack using cyanide and Ricin. According to the below article in Welt, police in Castrop-Rauxel (North Rhine Westphalia) arrested an Iranian national who they believe was planning a chemical attack. The man is suspected of being a sympathizer of the Islamic state. Other German sources are reporting that the man's 25-year-old brother was also arrested. It is not clear whether the above toxic substances were seized.
The below article from Welt is translated by Fousesquawk. This is an opinion article that is quite critical of German authorities since they allegedly do not have the capabilities of ferreting out these plots without the aid of foreign authorities.
The federal government underestimates the Islamic danger
January 8, 2023
By Lennart Pfahler
Editor, Investigation and Reportage
The decisive tip for the danger of attack in North Rhine Westphalen came from the FBI. The authorities (there) have better chances of recognizing danger than the German services. It was wrong from the start to dissolve the circle of experts on Islamism.
Again a plan of attack. Again, thwarted at the last minute. Over the weekend, SEK officers arrested a 32-year-old Iranian. He reportedly attempted to obtain the bio-weapons Cyanide and Ricin. According to security circles, the man sympathizes with the Islamic State. So the FBI gave a decisive tip to the (German) Federal Criminal Police. The security authorities once again profited from their foreign contacts. There, the authorities have far better chances of monitoring dangers. Chances for which the investigators and intelligence services here have fought for years.
Caption:
In the search in the Ruhr district against a possible planned attack, the investigators found no toxic substances in the apartment of the suspect. That was confirmed by Senior Prosecutor Holger Heming. General Prosecutor's Office in Duesseldorf in an interview with Welt.
Source: Welt
On the other hand, the federal government has recently acknowledged the Islamism theme with indifference. A group of experts based at the Federal Interior Ministry under the Ampel-Coalition* will not be continued. It has been canceled without replacement.
* A political coalition between three parties, SPD, FDP, and Green (Red, yellow, green).
A series of attacks against synagogues had already shocked the Ruhr District in November: Shots fired at a rabbi's house in Essen and an arson near the synagogue in Bochum. Investigators anticipated a planned attack in Dortmund. They suspect a group with the best connections with the Iranian State to be behind the series (of attacks). WELT investigations showed: At least one suspect went in and out of a radical Shia mosque. Followers of the Hizbollah terror organization and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards meet there.
How is Germany reacting? Perhaps, the decisive blow against Shia-Iranian extremism is still to come. The doors of the Islamic Center of Hamburg )IZH) are still open. The IZH is considered the most important representative of the Mullah regime. And the Revolutionary Guards are still not classified as a terror organization. The prerequisites for that have not been met, explains the Foreign Office. That is nonsense. This federal government needs an Islamism expert circle more urgently than ever.
Friday, January 6, 2023
What Will Biden Say to His Border Patrol Agents on Sunday?
So President Biden has announced that at long last, he will visit the border on Sunday, specifically El Paso, which is swarming with illegal migrants. He will meet with Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. Biden says he wants to assess the situation. At the same time, he is announcing new measures to try and get a handle on the crisis. I assume he will be accompanied by his feckless vice president (Kamala Harris-the supposed "border czar") and his feckless director of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas. My question is whether he will meet with rank-and-file Border Patrol agents and look them in the eye. If so, what will he say to them?
Will he tell them the border is secure?
Will he tell them that illegal migrants are comparable to "Jews fleeing the Holocaust", echoing a statement he made this week?
Will he tell them they "they are going to pay" for the so-called whipping that agents on horseback supposedly administered to Haitian migrants coming across the Rio Grande in 2021? That was a statement he made at the time and a charge that was proven to be false. Or will he apologize for his past statement?
As he is talking to Border Patrol agents (if he talks to them at all) will Mayorkas be lurking over his shoulder ready to jot down the names of any agents who dare to speak frankly to Biden about the situation?
Frankly, I am getting ahead of myself because I frankly don't know how Biden can look those agents in the face.
Charlie Hebdo: The Latest Cartoon Controversy
This article first appeared in New English Review.
The French satirical magazine, Charlie Hebdo, is back
in the news again. On January 7, 2015,
al-Qaeda-linked terrorists attacked the Paris office of Charlie Hebdo
and murdered 12 people in retaliation for the cartoons mocking the Prophet
Mohammad that Charlie had published. The incident led to worldwide
outrage and an international defense of freedom of expression. To mark the 8th
anniversary of the attack and to show solidarity for women’s rights in Iran,
Charlie held a competition
for cartoons to mock the mullahs who rule Iran and who have clamped down so
brutally on demonstrators protesting the recent death of a young woman who had
“improperly” worn her headscarf at the hands of Iran’s “morality police”. To
be blunt, a couple of the submissions exhibited by Charlie are beyond
tasteless and should be prefaced with a viewer warning. That said, the question
arises of whether they should have been censored, especially by French
standards. They do not directly attack Islam, but they do definitely insult the
mullahs, which in itself, is hardly a bad thing.
At any rate, there is outrage in Teheran, and the Iranian
government has made it clear they are not amused. More ominously, Iran’s
foreign minister has made it clear that there will be a response, and we all
know what that means coming from the world’s largest state sponsor of
terrorism. Along more traditional diplomatic lines, the Iranian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs has summoned the French ambassador in Teheran for a formal
dressing down, and the Iranian Embassy in Paris has issued a formal letter
demanding that the French government take action. Just what action was not
specified, but it can be assumed that Iran wants Charlie Hebdo to be
punished, shut down, prosecuted, or maybe even have its staff stoned to death
on the Place de la Concord. As I write, it is not known what the French
response will be.
What I would like to see is for the French government to
tell the mullahs that there will be no punishment for Charlie Hebdo, and
that France will not accept moral lectures from Iran. It would be nice if
France reminded Teheran they (the French) resent seeing so many French churches
being attacked physically by disaffected Muslim migrants. It would be even nicer to see France-to say
nothing about the rest of the civilized world- break relations with Teheran
altogether, but I don’t expect that to happen.
The question also arises as to what France would do if they
are hit with a terrorist attack-not just another attack, of which they have had
many, but one clearly traced back to Teheran. That would be an act of war and
should be treated accordingly. But then again, this is France we are talking
about here. However, the West cannot allow itself to be threatened into taking
away our freedom of expression. We allow our own majority religion, Christianity,
to be criticized or even insulted. Why should we make an exception for Islam or
in this case, mullahs in Iran? The obvious comeback is that Christians don’t
respond with violence, but some Muslims do. In addition, as long as the West
has to deal with jihadi terrorism, and as long as barbaric 7th-century practices continue to be carried out in many Islamic countries, Islam
will be subjected to criticism. As it is, many Europeans, who don’t enjoy the
same First Amendment rights that we Americans enjoy, are reluctant to speak out
on these issues, not just fearing a violent Muslim response, but punitive
action by their own governments.
Of course, writing as an American, I should not forget the
shameful action in 2012 by the Obama Justice Department in jailing the producer of a film (“The Innocence of
Muslims”) in the US mocking the Prophet Mohammad after riots broke out in the
Middle East in protest.
This situation, as it stands, could calm down, blow over, or
quickly develop into something much more serious. It is likely that a lone wolf
jihadi or group will decide to act on their own. It is all too easy to say that
security in France must be heightened. The security and intelligence forces are
already stretched to the maximum. Many will say this is a time for skillful
diplomacy on the part of the French. I say it is a time for firmness. They
don’t have to say they agree with the latest cartoons, but they should not
allow a government like Iran’s to dictate a change in their laws protecting
freedom of expression.
Wednesday, January 4, 2023
Official Communique From Iranian Embassy in Paris
Hat tip F Desouche
Below is a copy of the official communique from the Iranian Embassy in Paris in response to the latest cartoons by Charlie Hebdo. Translation by Fousesquawk.
January 4, 2023-16:03
Communique from the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran/ Odious action by Charlie Hebdo in the publication of insulting caricatures against the Supreme Guide
Press release
Press release from the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Paris condemning the odious action of Charlie Hebdo in organizing a competition and publication of insulting caricatures against the Supreme Guide of the Islamic Republic.
Following its odious action of launching an " international competition of caricatures of the Supreme Guide of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the magazine Charlie Hebdo devoted its special edition of January 4, 2023 to particularly revolting designs and hateful and insulting phrases.
In accordance with the principles and rules of interaction law, this action by Charlie Hebdo is not only unjustifiable under the principle of freedom of expression, moreover, is an outrage and an insult against personages and peoples and the establishment of a campaign of insults and lies, as well, as spreading of hate, symbolizing the very negation of human rights.
Furthermore, the action of Charlie Hebdo illustrates the instrumentalization and selective usage of the principle of freedom of expression. However, this aggressive (publication) takes advantage of the hostility against religion and religious values, and in the past, has always attempted to use it as a pretext to justify its insults against the beliefs and values of various nations.
In addition, Charlie Hebdo, which claims in a lying manner to want to defend the rights of women, has published in its special edition particularly obscene and degrading designs in regards to women, which reveals its vile face and the true nature of this publication which instrumentalizes women with a "woman-object" look.
The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in firmly condemning this action by Charlie Hebdo, expects the competent French authorities to take the necessary and immediate measures against this publication in order to prevent the continuation of this campaign of insults and hatred, which will certainly have harmful and destructive effects upon the relations between the two countries and the two peoples.
Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran -Paris
Iran Threatens France Over Charlie Hebdo Cartoons
The French satirical magazine, Charlie Hebdo, is once again under deadly threat for its latest cartoons. This time, the government of Iran is threatening retaliation over Charlie Hebdo's cartoons mocking the Ayatollah Khamenei, the highest religious and political figure in Iran.
On January 7, 2015, the Paris office of Charlie Hebdo was hit with a terrorist attack in retaliation for cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammad. Twelve people were murdered.
The below article from today's Belgian French-language daily, La Libre, is translated by Fousesquawk.
(Viewer warning above link- The message on one of the cartoons says, "Mullahs, go back to where you came from".)
"This will not stand without an effective and firm response": Iran warns Paris after the publication of "insulting" caricatures by Charlie Hebdo
Iran warned Paris on Wednesday that it would react after the publication of "insulting" caricatures of the supreme head of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the satirical French magazine, Charlie Hebdo.
The satirical weekly, earlier in the day, published dozens of caricatures featuring the highest religious and political personality of the Islamic Republic.
It concerns caricatures selected during the course of a competition launched in December, as demonstrations multiplied in Iran after the death in detention on September 16 of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman arrested for allegedly violating the country's strict dress code applied to women.
"The insulting and indecent act of a French publication in publishing caricatures against the religious and political authority will not stand without an effective and firm response," declared the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hossein Amir-Abdollahien, on Twitter.
In December, Charlie Hebdo had announced that this "international competition to produce caricatures of Khamenei was aimed at supporting the "Iranians who are fighting for their liberty".
The authorities state that hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed and thousands of others arrested in what they generally describe as "riots". They accuse foreign powers and opposition groups of stirring up the trouble.
Charlie Hebdo published the caricatures in a special edition on the anniversary of the deadly attack against its Paris office on January 7, 2015. That had been perpetrated by assailants declaring to have acted in the name of Al Qaida to avenge the decision of the paper to publish caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad.
The publication of these caricatures caused a lot of anger in Muslim countries, and the 2015 attacks brought a wave of support for the magazine around the world.
Tuesday, January 3, 2023
Germany: Several Cities Hit With New Year's Rioting-Berlin
Berlin (Deutsche Welle)
Just as in France and other Western European countries, New Year's Eve resulted in riots in large cities. In Germany, it was the same. Several large German cities were hit by riots by people mostly described by the media and police as "young men", but occasionally described by more accurate reports as "young migrants". Berlin was apparently the worst hit. Jihad Watch and the Hungarian blog, ReMix News, have reported on the riots in Berlin. There is also a link to the German news site, Bild, with several photos.
The below article from the German news site, Welt, reports that there were (initially reported) 145 arrests in Berlin, mostly of "young men with migration backgrounds". Further in the article, it is reported that among the above number of arrests were 27 Afghans and 21 Syrians. It is also reported that a total of 18 nationalities are among the arrests and that 45 have German citizenship.
All arrested suspects have since been freed though still facing charges.
The below article from Welt is translated by Fousesquawk.
Caption: After the attacks against police and rescue personnel on New Year's Eve, Bavaria's Interior Minister Hermann demands strong punishment. What is now known: Among the New Year's Eve arrests in Berlin, are mostly young men with migration backgrounds.
On New Year's Eve, rescue services, police, and firefighters were attacked with rockets and fireworks. Just in Berlin, the police took 145 people into custody. All are reportedly free again. The investigations continue.
After the New Year's Eve riots in Berlin, the police released further information regarding the suspects. Accordingly, in connection with the riots, 145 people were provisionally arrested, most of whom were men, as a police spokesperson said Tuesday evening. With that, he confirmed media reports. After the conclusion of the police measures, all suspects have reportedly been released.
Altogether, there are reportedly 18 different nationalities arrested. 45 of the suspects have German citizenship. Then there are 27 suspects with Afghan nationality and 21 Syrians.
Originally, the number of arrests was given as 159. There were some double counts, said the police spokesperson. The numbers are still preliminary.
Due to the riots, a total of 355 criminal and administrative proceedings were initiated. Being investigated, among others, are breaches of the peace, attacks, and resistance against enforcement officers and rescue services, dangerous bodily injury, and causing an explosion.
250 arrested in North-Rhine Westphalia
Besides Berlin, according to a preliminary total from the Central Police Service, 42 police were injured. The North-Rhine Westphalia Interior Minister, Herbert Reul (Christian Democrat Union) ordered the responsible to be quickly identified and punished. As of now, more than 250 people have been arrested or taken into custody, he told WDR-Radio in Cologne on Monday.
After the New Year's attacks, the federal government is also counting on a consistent legal prosecution of the perpetrators. The deputy government spokeswoman, Christian Hoffman, said Monday in Berlin that there is great trust in the investigative officials of the federal states that the perpetrators who carried out these attacks, will be consistently identified. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (Social Democrat Party) stated (she was) "stunned and angry" over the attacks on the first responders.
Hoffman stressed: "The rule of law must not allow people who celebrate peacefully in our cities and emergency personnel who do their duty, to be subjected to these kinds of attacks." In the name of the government and Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (Social Democrat Party), she specifically thanked the police, rescue personnel, and volunteers for their courageous, dangerous intervention on New Year's Eve.
Sunday, January 1, 2023
New Year's Eve in France: Interior Minister Hails "Historic Decrease" in Burned Cars
As if France hasn't suffered enough riots lately related to the Moroccan team's victories and ultimate defeat in the World Cup, New Year's Eve has become a time for mostly immigrant youths to riot, attack police, and burn cars. It's become kind of like the ball that descends over Times Square in New York at the strike of 12. It's been going on every New Year's Eve for several years now.
This year was no exception, but France's feckless Interior Minister, Gerald Darmanin, is declaring victory because there was a 21% decrease in the number of cars burned around the nation on New Year's Eve, a "historic decrease", according to Darmanin. (Arrests were up this year, however.)
Below is the text of Darmanin's press release, translated by Fousesquawk.
Press release 12-1-23
New Year's Eve: Historic decrease in number of burned cars
Gerald Darmanin, Minister of Interior and (Overseas possessions), profoundly thanks the police, gendarmes, sappers-firefighters, Vigipirate military personnel, as well as personnel of civil security engaged over the course of the previous night to look after the security of the French people during New Year's Eve.
Thanks to the mobilization of 90,000 police and gendarmes across the national territory, the number of vehicles burned is at a historic decrease of 21% compared to the previous year. 690 vehicles, were burned, compared to 874 in 2022. The resolute action of the police (has resulted in) a downward trend in the number of vehicles set on fire in the last few years since in 2019, 1316 vehicles had been set on fire (2020 not being comparable due to a curfew imposed on the population). On the other hand, police and gendarmes carried out 490 arrests (441 in 2021) an increase of 11%.
In conformance with the instructions of the Minister of Interior and (Overseas Possessions), the National Police and National Gendarmes have fully assured national order this New Year's Eve. The year 2022, thus, has become that in which New Year's Eve has seen the fewest cars burned and the most arrests. In this sense, the police have allowed our fellow citizens to participate in these festivities throughout the territory in a serene climate.
Gerald Darmanin extends all his support to personnel injured in their duties as well as their families.
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Contrary to Darmanin's positive spin, the French blog, Francois DeSouche, has a different take. DeSouche has compiled a list of cities that suffered riots and fires using local news sources. There are lots of videos. There is way too much for this humble site to translate, but the videos pretty much need no translation. We are translating just the headline of the below link.
New Year's Eve- Mortars fired-Molotov cocktails- cars burned and fires all over France- a Gendarmerie post attacked- Children's home (set) on fire
We are also translating one of the articles describing the midnight merriment, in this case from Nantes. The article is from the news source, Ouest France (West France).
Cars burned and police targeted by mortars, a restless New Year's Eve in Nantes
The night of Saturday, 31 December to Sunday, January 1 was shaken by some urban violence in several (parts) of Nantes. Some cars were set on fire, at least about 20 according to our information, and mobile gendarme vehicles were targeted by thrown Molotov cocktails and shots of mortar fireworks in the Malakoff quarter.
The mortar fireworks started to explode in the sky over Nantes at 10 pm Saturday, 31 December when police and firefighters rushed into the Halveque quarter of Nantes. The first car on fire on New Year's Eve was reported on Boulevard du Professor Rene-Auvigne.
At 11 pm, there are three cars on fire which were set on fire in a parking lot in front of Sillon de Bretagne, in St Herblain. Upon arrival, first responders are met by mortar fire. Then at the foot of an apartment building, two young men on a scooter aim in the air.
"Incivilities" in the Pin-Sec quarter forced Tan to temporarily cut off Number 1 Tram line between Souillardene and Beaujoire.
Other burned cars would necessitate the intervention of firefighters all night in several Nantes districts. According to our information, some 30 cars were destroyed by flames on this night of the change of year. This was still being reported in Malakoff shortly before 5 am.
In this quarter on the banks of the Loire, urban violence was reported beyond midnight. The mobile gendarmes, who were positioned in "security" between the buildings, were attacked by several individuals for several hours.
They were hit by projectiles and even Molotov cocktails, reported an officer at the scene. The police responded with tear gas grenades. It remained tense all night.
This Sunday morning, January 1st, the police indicate that 15 persons were arrested in connection with this urban violence and are presently in custody. (This) includes 9 charged with possession, transport, and use of firework mortars. The prefect had signed a prohibition concerning these pyrotechnic devices.
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