The Temple Mount debacle continues in Jerusalem. Now that Ramadan is over, small groups of Jews are being allowed back on the mount. But, of course, Hamas is characterizing this as a storming of the Al Aqsa Mosque. Meanwhile, Hamas and Islamic Jihad flags – flags which are banned by Palestinian authorities – are being allowed by the Israeli police to fly on the Temple Mount. To add one more insult, two-thousand-year-old antiquities are being destroyed by Muslims to create projectiles to throw at police. For a detailed analysis of this appalling state of affairs, please watch my special update, “Who Controls the Temple Mount?”
In Turkey last week, the Mossad thwarted an attempted assassination on an Israeli official. The would-be assassin is a member of the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and is currently being held in custody. Investigators have determined that also on his “to-do list” were the killings of a senior US General in Germany and a journalist in France.
Also in Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to return a million Syrian refugees to their homeland. Not only has the mass migration fleeing the Syrian war created a financially untenable situation for Turkey with inflation up to 70% in April, but the crisis is causing political damage for the president as he faces next year’s election.
Rumors circulated by Iranian sources claim that in Syria, President Bashar al-Assad survived an assassination attempt as he arrived at the Hassan Mosque in Damascus for the Eid al-Fitr prayer. No more information has been released, but later pictures show him in the mosque participating in the prayer service.
The horrific violence continues in Afghanistan. Last Thursday saw a double attack in Mazar-i-Sharif in which nine were killed and thirteen were injured. Another attack occurred the next day killing another ten. Then, on Sunday in Kabul, a bomb attack on a passenger bus killed one woman and wounded three more. That makes twelve attacks in two weeks.
Violent riots continue in Paris as citizens protest the re-election of Emmanuel Macron. France is witnessing a divided society after the election, a situation that has already been seen in numerous other EU and Western countries.
Russian President Vladimir Putin continues his rocket attacks on Kiev, Lviv, Odessa, and other cities. Many are speculating that on May 9 – Victory Day, when Russia celebrates its 1945 defeat of Nazi Germany – Putin will upgrade the intensity of his actions against Ukraine from a “military operation” to an all out war. This would allow him to call all Russia’s reserve forces into action. The nuclear threat continues also, with the Russian military practicing simulated nuclear-capable missiled strikes yesterday in the western enclave of Kaliningrad. For on-going detailed reporting on events in Ukraine, please follow my Telegram channel.
Yesterday, the EU announced new sanctions against Moscow. In the crosshairs are Russia’s top bank and Russian broadcasters. However, the most significant target is Russia’s oil industry.
All crude imports will be embargoed within six months. The ban will expand to include refined oil products by year-end.
