Over the course of the night of June 13th 2017 (13/6/17) into June 14th 2017 (14/6/17) a fire completely destroyed the 129 apartment Grenfell Tower on the
Lancaster West housing estate in the Kensington area of the UK city of
London. The fire left 80 either dead or missing presumed dead.
The UK Labour Party have treated this almost exactly the same as the US Democrat Party treated the June 12th 2016 (12/6/16) terror attack against the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, US. A perfectly normal part of their campaign to be exploited to score points off their political rivals.
However as the investigation has progressed a number of worrying details have begun to emerge of how London Fire Brigade (LFB) responded to the fire.
The main one of these is that it was London Fire Brigade who certified Grenfell Tower as safe. So no matter what the arguments are about cladding, sprinkler systems etc ultimately it was the LFB who told all the other authorities that the building was safe.
The initial fire crew that attended the scene put out the fire in the apartment where it originated. They then packed up their equipment and went to leave the scene.
I don't think this is as dramatic as it first sounds. They were called to put out a fire in a single apartment. When they realised that it was the entire building that was on fire they remained at the scene and called for extra resources. Obviously though the Public Inquiry will have to look in detail at that chain of events and whether the correct decisions were made in a timely fashion.
More worryingly is that after a major incident had been declared the LFB waited a full 30 minutes before requesting what is known as an aerial platform. This would have allowed them to reach above the area of the building that was burning and douse it with water to prevent the fire spreading further.
What worries me about LFB's integrity is that they have claimed this delay was caused by government cuts to their budget. That is simply not true. The required resources were available just minutes from the scene. However the decision to request those resources was not taken for a full half hour.
Then there is the decision not to evacuate the building for up to four hours after the LFB first responded to the fire.
This has been put down to a firefighting tactic known as; "Defend in Place." The principle behind this tactic is that buildings such as Grenfell Tower are designed so any fire is contained in each apartment. Failing that it is contained between floors. Therefore evacuating the entire building would actually further endanger residents by putting them at risk of panic and crushing during the evacuation.
However within 40 minutes footage of the fire spreading up the exterior of the building was all over the TV news. Therefore I find it hard to understand why the Fire Officer in command of the incident was unable to identify that the Defend in Place tactic had failed and order an evacuation.
These failures by the LFB and whether they are justifiable or not they are certainly failures seem very similar to the 1989 Hillsborough Stadium disaster. Unless you believe the wilder conspiracy theories no-one set out to kill 96 football fans that day.
The Hillsborough disaster actually began with a crush amongst fans on the Leppings Lane road outside of the stadium. The Police Officer in command that day David Duckenfield then decided to open an exit gate to allow the fans to enter the stadium more quickly. Ironically this was done in an effort to protect the fans from being crushed.
At the same time as opening the exit gate the Police Officer in command failed to block the entrance to the central terrace pen. This meant that fans were crammed into that central pen rather than being evenly distributed across the three pens.
The Police Officer in command then failed to identify that the central pen had become overcrowded and order it to be evacuated.
Finally the Police Officer in command of what at that time was a major incident failed to request that ambulances that were lined up outside be allowed to enter the stadium to treat the injured.
Although public perception has changed a lot since then at the time of the Hillsborough disaster the police were hailed as heroes just as the LFB are being hailed as heroes in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire. There was lots of talk of officers bravely putting their lives in danger to rescue the injured from violent football hooligans.
These tales of heroism grew into a sort of reverence around the police that meant their actions were never properly questioned during the subsequent Taylor Public Inquiry.
During that Inquiry Duckenfield claimed that the dynamic nature of the disaster caused him to freeze up so he couldn't be blamed for his actions and inactions. Now 28 years later Duckenfield is finally to be charged with Manslaughter by Way of Gross Negligence meaning that claim will finally be tested in Court.
So in light of the Grenfell Tower fire there are very serious questions to be asked of London Fire Brigade. Any criminal investigation would be remiss if it failed to ask those tough questions.
The LFB is under the authority of London's Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan. He also has responsibility for London's Metropolitan Police Service (MPS). However the rules are quite clear that he cannot and should not attempt to influence policing policy.
Over the course of last night (13/7/17) we've been given a stark reminder of how Sadiq Khan is coping with his responsibility for crime and policing.
Over a 90 minute period two young men on a Motor Scooter/Moped sprayed acid in the faces of five people apparently in the course of committing a series of robberies. This represents the convergence of two growing crime problems within London.
The first of these is the use of Motor Scooters in robberies.This involves often two people riding a Motor Scooter riding up onto the pavement to steal valuables such as cellphones from people going about their daily lives. Often the Motor Scooters themselves are stolen.
This type of crime is being driven by the policies of the MPS. They will not give chase to suspects on Motor Scooters in case through their own reckless and criminal behaviour the suspects end up injuring themselves. As a result criminals know that if they use a Motor Scooter to commit a crime the police won't event attempt to try and catch them.
As with all other motor vehicles the police also have the power to stop any Motor Scooter without cause and seize any vehicles that are found to be stolen, not insured or not taxed. However for some reason the police decline to do this.
The second growing crime problem is the use of acid as a weapon.
This was something that was actually very fashionable amongst football hooligans in the 1970's and 1980's. You used to be able to by a brand of Jiff lemon juice that was sold in a squeezable plastic bottle in the size and shape of a lemon. You would then drain out the lemon juice and replace it with something more corrosive such as Ammonia or Nitric or Sulphuric acid before squirting it in someone's face.
The use of acid as a weapon along with football hooliganism very much fell out of fashion following the Hillsborough disaster.
What seems to have brought the use of acid back into fashion in London is the capital's close cultural links with nations on the Asian sub-continent. Particularly Pakistan.
Particularly within Pakistan's Muslim communities the honour system still very much exists. This holds that if a woman is thought to bring dishonour on her family she is to be violently punished by the men in her family. If the supposed dishonour is vanity the woman is often punished by having acid thrown on her.
The number of these attacks in Pakistan greatly increased in the late 2000's and early 2010's largely being imported from Taliban controlled Afghanistan. To stop the practice being imported from Pakistan to its own Muslim communities India actually banned the retail sale of acids in 2013.
Through the capital's cultural links to Pakistan the honour system and the use of acid as a weapon has been imported. There is has mixed with criminals old enough to remember the 1970's and 1980's.
In 2016 there were 458 acid attacks in London. However until today they've not made it onto the news. With one notable exception.
On June 21st (21/6/17) Resham Khan and Jameel Muhktar were attacked with acid in the Beckton area of east London. This was given widespread media coverage because Jameel Muhktar wanted to use the incident to promote the conspiracy theory that Islamaphobia amongst British authorities meant the crime wasn't being investigated. There are several things wrong with that.
Firstly there were 458 acid attacks in London alone in 2016. So the MPS failing to investigate an acid attack is far from an uncommon event.
Secondly the majority of those 458 acid attacks were carried out by Muslims as honour punishments. Normally against a daughter, sister or cousin who'd brought shame on the family by dressing in western clothes, seeking an education or drinking alcohol. Exactly the sort of things that Resham Khan had been doing.
The police are generally discouraged from investigating these crimes out of the misplaced sense of cultural sensitivity which Sadiq Khan relies on for votes.
Finally following the attack Jameel Muhktar was placed in a medically induced coma for several days. That made it rather hard for the police to interview him hampering the investigation.
Then of course there is London's ever growing problem of knife violence. I think this was best summed up during the June 3rd (3/6/17) marauding run-over and stabbing terror attack in the London Bridge area of London.
During the course of that incident there was another stabbing attack in the Vauxhall area of London which is around 30 minutes walk from London Bridge. This led to great concern that London was suffering a widespread marauding attack.
It turned out though the Vauxhall stabbing attack was just another one of London's everyday stabbing attacks.
Last night's acid attacks have led the national news throughout the day. Now the media have started to realise that it reflects very badly on Sadiq Khan and the Labour Party it will be interesting to see how the story gets downgraded.
I've already noticed that now Friday prayers have begun at the local Mosque both BBC and Sky News are declining to broadcast live from the scene.
15:50 on 14/7/17 (UK date).
Edited at around 19:10 on 14/7/17 (UK date) to add;
BBC London News who you thought would be all over this story instead decided to bump it to item two. Sandwiched between two stories about how awesome Labour London Mayor Sadiq Khan is.
As for Labour London Mayor Sadiq Khan he has reacted rather predictably. Along with local Labour MP Diane Abbott he has tried to shift the blame onto the national government by demanding they introduce legislation designating acid as a type of offensive weapon.
As such I should point out that all corrosive substances including acids and the far more potent alkaloids have been designated as offensive weapons since the introduction of the 1953 Prevention of Crime Act. The transfer of said substance to a secondary container demonstrates intent.
Therefore the question is really why under Labour London Mayor Sadiq Khan the MPS feel they are unable to enforce this particular law?
It is likely to be the same reason they feel they are unable to enforce the laws that state that you can only drive a Motor Scooter with the owner's permission while you are insured to do so and said vehicle is properly taxed;
The Labour Party need their thugs on the streets to scare up votes.
Friday, 14 July 2017
Wednesday, 12 July 2017
Operation Featherweight: Month 36, Week 4, Day 2.
On November 6th 2016 (6/11/16) the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF/QSD) launched an operation designated; "Wrath of Euphrates" to liberate the Syrian city of Raqqa from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
The SDF are a coalition of forces made up of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the Christian Syriac Military Council (MSF) and fragments of what used to be known as the Free Syrian Army (FSA) alongside Arab tribal forces local to north-east Syria.
They are supported by the US-led coalition Combined Joint Task Force: Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR) who have embedded Special Operations Forces (SOF's) and conventional US military artillery units within the SDF.
The city of Raqqa lies within the Euphrates River basin. It sits around 120km (70 miles) south of the town of Ackackale on Syria's border with Turkey and around 250km (150 miles) west of Syria's border with Iraq. It has functioned as ISIL's de facto capital in Syria since 2013.
The first stage of the Wrath of Euphrates operation was to advance SDF forces close to Raqqa. This was carried out in three phases;
The first phase of the operation launched on November 6th 2016 (6/11/16) was to advance south from the town of Ayn Issa towards Raqqa. This was completed on November 25th 2016 (25/11/16) with the SDF taking up positions roughly 25km (15 miles) north of Raqqa.
The second phase of the operation launched on December 10th 2016 (10/12/16) was for the SDF to sweep down from the town of Sarrin along the banks of the Euphrates to the Tabqa Dam complex. This was completed on January 20th 2017 (20/1/17) with the SDF taking up positions at Jabour Castle at Lake Assad some 10km (6 miles) west of the Tabqa Dam and 40km (25 miles) west of Raqqa.
The third phase of the operation launched on February 4th (4/2/17) was to secure the territory east of Raqqa cutting it off from the city of Deir-ez-Zour around 120km (70 miles) south-east of Raqqa along the Euphrates. This third phase was completed on March 19th (19/3/17) with the SDF taking up positions around al-Karamah which is roughly 30km (20 miles) south-east of Raqqa.
During the course of these three phases the SDF liberated in excess of 4,200kmsq (2,500 milesq) of territory from ISIL.
On March 22nd (22/3/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate both the town of Tabqa and the Tabqa Dam. This was completed on May 11th (11/5/17).
On June 6th (6/6/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate the city of Raqqa itself. This was launched on three axis. North, West and East.
The northern axis advanced on the sprawling former Syrian military - Division 17 - base to the north of the city. At some 50kmsq (30 milesq) this Division 17 is almost half the size of Raqqa itself. As of July 11th (11/7/17) the SDF now control some 60-70% of the Division 17 base.
The western axis began by advancing into the Jazra suburb on the western side of Raqqa. They then proceeded to liberate the Sabahiya, Romaniyah, al-Qadisiyyah and al-Hattin districts all sitting on the western side of Raqqa.
On July 3rd (3/7/17) the western axis entered the Yarmouk district at the most south-westerly tip of Raqqa. They currently control around 10-15% of the Yarmouk district while fighting continues in the an-Nadah and al-Baryd districts which sit east of the Romaniyah district and north-east of the al-Qadisiyyah and al-Hattin districts.
The eastern axis began by advancing into the Mashlab district at the most south-easterly tip of Raqqa on June 6th (6/6/17). Having liberated the Mashlab district on June 9th (9/6/17) the eastern axis proceeded to the liberate the al-Sinaa district directly to the west on June 15th (15/6/17).
The eastern axis then liberated the Bitani district which sits directly to the north of al-Sinaa district on June 17th (17/6/17). This allowed them to enter the Rawdah district which sits north-west of the Bitani district on June 28th (28/6/17).
On July 2nd (2/7/17) the eastern axis entered the Hisham Abdulmalik district at the very south of Raqqa on the banks of the Euphrates. On July 6th (6/7/17) the eastern axis was able to enter the al-Mahdi, ar-Rashid and ar-Rafiqah neighbourhoods of Raqqa's Old City district. This sit directly to the west of the al-Sinaa and Bitani districts.
The SDF are currently in control of roughly 95% of al-Mahdi neighbourhood, 5% of ar-Rashid neighbourhood and 30% of ar-Rafiqah neighbourhood. They also control around 30% of the Hisham Abdulmalik district and 50% of Rawdah district.
While the advances have been taking place within Raqqa the SDF have also been conducting a west-to-east sweep along the southern banks of the Euphrates.
On June 29th (29/6/17) this succeeded in completely cutting Raqqa off from the outside world. This sweep has continued with the SDF yesterday (11/7/17) reaching positions roughly 15km (9 miles) south-east of Raqqa. This puts them in control of the village of Ukayrishah which had served as an important oil transit site for ISIL.
Within the YPG element of the SDF there is an International Brigade of foreign volunteer fighters. They in part are deployed in the east-to-west sweep south of Raqqa.
On July 5th (5/7/17) an International Brigade patrol was ambushed by ISIL. This resulted in the deaths of three volunteers;
The SDF are a coalition of forces made up of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the Christian Syriac Military Council (MSF) and fragments of what used to be known as the Free Syrian Army (FSA) alongside Arab tribal forces local to north-east Syria.
They are supported by the US-led coalition Combined Joint Task Force: Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR) who have embedded Special Operations Forces (SOF's) and conventional US military artillery units within the SDF.
The city of Raqqa lies within the Euphrates River basin. It sits around 120km (70 miles) south of the town of Ackackale on Syria's border with Turkey and around 250km (150 miles) west of Syria's border with Iraq. It has functioned as ISIL's de facto capital in Syria since 2013.
The first stage of the Wrath of Euphrates operation was to advance SDF forces close to Raqqa. This was carried out in three phases;
The first phase of the operation launched on November 6th 2016 (6/11/16) was to advance south from the town of Ayn Issa towards Raqqa. This was completed on November 25th 2016 (25/11/16) with the SDF taking up positions roughly 25km (15 miles) north of Raqqa.
The second phase of the operation launched on December 10th 2016 (10/12/16) was for the SDF to sweep down from the town of Sarrin along the banks of the Euphrates to the Tabqa Dam complex. This was completed on January 20th 2017 (20/1/17) with the SDF taking up positions at Jabour Castle at Lake Assad some 10km (6 miles) west of the Tabqa Dam and 40km (25 miles) west of Raqqa.
The third phase of the operation launched on February 4th (4/2/17) was to secure the territory east of Raqqa cutting it off from the city of Deir-ez-Zour around 120km (70 miles) south-east of Raqqa along the Euphrates. This third phase was completed on March 19th (19/3/17) with the SDF taking up positions around al-Karamah which is roughly 30km (20 miles) south-east of Raqqa.
During the course of these three phases the SDF liberated in excess of 4,200kmsq (2,500 milesq) of territory from ISIL.
On March 22nd (22/3/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate both the town of Tabqa and the Tabqa Dam. This was completed on May 11th (11/5/17).
On June 6th (6/6/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate the city of Raqqa itself. This was launched on three axis. North, West and East.
The northern axis advanced on the sprawling former Syrian military - Division 17 - base to the north of the city. At some 50kmsq (30 milesq) this Division 17 is almost half the size of Raqqa itself. As of July 11th (11/7/17) the SDF now control some 60-70% of the Division 17 base.
The western axis began by advancing into the Jazra suburb on the western side of Raqqa. They then proceeded to liberate the Sabahiya, Romaniyah, al-Qadisiyyah and al-Hattin districts all sitting on the western side of Raqqa.
On July 3rd (3/7/17) the western axis entered the Yarmouk district at the most south-westerly tip of Raqqa. They currently control around 10-15% of the Yarmouk district while fighting continues in the an-Nadah and al-Baryd districts which sit east of the Romaniyah district and north-east of the al-Qadisiyyah and al-Hattin districts.
The eastern axis began by advancing into the Mashlab district at the most south-easterly tip of Raqqa on June 6th (6/6/17). Having liberated the Mashlab district on June 9th (9/6/17) the eastern axis proceeded to the liberate the al-Sinaa district directly to the west on June 15th (15/6/17).
The eastern axis then liberated the Bitani district which sits directly to the north of al-Sinaa district on June 17th (17/6/17). This allowed them to enter the Rawdah district which sits north-west of the Bitani district on June 28th (28/6/17).
On July 2nd (2/7/17) the eastern axis entered the Hisham Abdulmalik district at the very south of Raqqa on the banks of the Euphrates. On July 6th (6/7/17) the eastern axis was able to enter the al-Mahdi, ar-Rashid and ar-Rafiqah neighbourhoods of Raqqa's Old City district. This sit directly to the west of the al-Sinaa and Bitani districts.
The SDF are currently in control of roughly 95% of al-Mahdi neighbourhood, 5% of ar-Rashid neighbourhood and 30% of ar-Rafiqah neighbourhood. They also control around 30% of the Hisham Abdulmalik district and 50% of Rawdah district.
While the advances have been taking place within Raqqa the SDF have also been conducting a west-to-east sweep along the southern banks of the Euphrates.
On June 29th (29/6/17) this succeeded in completely cutting Raqqa off from the outside world. This sweep has continued with the SDF yesterday (11/7/17) reaching positions roughly 15km (9 miles) south-east of Raqqa. This puts them in control of the village of Ukayrishah which had served as an important oil transit site for ISIL.
Within the YPG element of the SDF there is an International Brigade of foreign volunteer fighters. They in part are deployed in the east-to-west sweep south of Raqqa.
On July 5th (5/7/17) an International Brigade patrol was ambushed by ISIL. This resulted in the deaths of three volunteers;
- Luke Rutter. Aged 22 years old from Birkenhead, UK.
- Nicholas Warden. Aged 29 years old from New York State, USA.
- Robert Grodt. Aged 28 from California, USA.
Sunday, 9 July 2017
Operation Featherweight: Month 36, Week 3, Day 6.
Mosul Has Been Liberated.
In the summer of 2014 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) invaded the north-west of Iraq. This included seizing the city of Mosul which has functioned as the group's de facto capital in the country ever since.
On October 17th 2016 (17/10/17) an operation was launched to liberate Mosul from ISIL. This was intended as a combined operation.
The Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga along with the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) militias would take responsibility for securing the areas around Mosul. The ISF would take responsibility for liberating the city itself.
All aspects of this operation have been supported by the US-led coalition - Combined Joint Task Force: Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR).
The first phase of the operation was to surround Mosul on three sides. It was completed on November 7th 2016 (7/11/16).
The second phase was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the east of the Tigris River. This eastern half is sometimes referred to as; "The Left Bank."
This phase was begun on November 1st 2016 (1/11/16). It was completed with the liberation of all of the eastern half of Mosul on January 24th 2017 (24/1/17).
The third phase of the operation was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the west of the Tigris River. This western half is sometimes referred to as; "The Right Bank." Following a short and planned paused this third phase began on February 19th (19/2/17).
As of June 17th (17/6/17) the only area of Mosul remaining under ISIL control was the Old City district.
Within the Old City ISIL had concentrated their forces at the Grand Mosque of al-Nuri located just north of the junction between al-Shaziani Street and Nineveh Street. This is where ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi publicly declared the group to be a Caliphate and he its Caliph.
The Federal Police element of the ISF actually entered the Old City district on March 21st (21/3/17). As of May 4th (4/5/16) they had surrounded the al-Nuri Mosque on three sides; The north, east and south.
On June 18th (18/6/17) the Counter Terrorism Force (CTF/Golden Division) element of the ISF joined the Federal Police in the battle for the Old City. They entered from Ibrahim al-Athir Street to the west and advanced east along Nineveh Street to the al-Nuri Mosque.
By June 21st (21/6/17) the Golden Division had come within 30 metres/yards of surrounding the al-Nuri Mosque on its western side.
Realising they could no longer defend the Mosque ISIL pulled their forces back to the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex. ISIL then proceeded to blow up the al-Nuri Mosque to prevent anyone from having it.
On June 29th (29/6/17) the Federal Police and Golden Division elements converged on the site of the al-Nuri Mosque securing the ruins and the surrounding area. On July 2nd (2/7/17) the ISF liberated the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex.
This left ISIL in control of just a roughly 2.7kmsq (1.6 milesq) area between Nabi Jorjis Street and the Tigris River.
As of Saturday (8/7/17) the ISF had reduced this area of ISIL control to a roughly 1kmsq (0.6milesq) area between the banks of the Tigris and road east of Nabi Jorjis Street which is apparently too small to name.
This morning the Golden Division reached the banks of the Tigris in the Midan area which sits in the middle of this area. By roughly midday (local) today the ISF had limited ISIL presence to approximately 30 fighters in a handful of buildings close to the al-Shohada Bridge to the north and the Old Bridge to the south.
Although there is a tiny bit of tidying up left to do this represents the functional liberation of all of the city of Mosul. That liberation was declared by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at around 12:30 (15:30 local).
Throughout the operation to liberate Mosul I have said that there have been many things wrong with the way the operation has been planned. I have also said that when the battle is won I will look at all those problems in detail. I still intend to do that.
However for now I'd like to revel in the fact that after 1,125 days of occupation and 266 days of battle
Mosul Has Been Liberated!
17:15 on 9/7/17 (UK date).
In the summer of 2014 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) invaded the north-west of Iraq. This included seizing the city of Mosul which has functioned as the group's de facto capital in the country ever since.
On October 17th 2016 (17/10/17) an operation was launched to liberate Mosul from ISIL. This was intended as a combined operation.
The Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga along with the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) militias would take responsibility for securing the areas around Mosul. The ISF would take responsibility for liberating the city itself.
All aspects of this operation have been supported by the US-led coalition - Combined Joint Task Force: Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR).
The first phase of the operation was to surround Mosul on three sides. It was completed on November 7th 2016 (7/11/16).
The second phase was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the east of the Tigris River. This eastern half is sometimes referred to as; "The Left Bank."
This phase was begun on November 1st 2016 (1/11/16). It was completed with the liberation of all of the eastern half of Mosul on January 24th 2017 (24/1/17).
The third phase of the operation was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the west of the Tigris River. This western half is sometimes referred to as; "The Right Bank." Following a short and planned paused this third phase began on February 19th (19/2/17).
As of June 17th (17/6/17) the only area of Mosul remaining under ISIL control was the Old City district.
Within the Old City ISIL had concentrated their forces at the Grand Mosque of al-Nuri located just north of the junction between al-Shaziani Street and Nineveh Street. This is where ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi publicly declared the group to be a Caliphate and he its Caliph.
The Federal Police element of the ISF actually entered the Old City district on March 21st (21/3/17). As of May 4th (4/5/16) they had surrounded the al-Nuri Mosque on three sides; The north, east and south.
On June 18th (18/6/17) the Counter Terrorism Force (CTF/Golden Division) element of the ISF joined the Federal Police in the battle for the Old City. They entered from Ibrahim al-Athir Street to the west and advanced east along Nineveh Street to the al-Nuri Mosque.
By June 21st (21/6/17) the Golden Division had come within 30 metres/yards of surrounding the al-Nuri Mosque on its western side.
Realising they could no longer defend the Mosque ISIL pulled their forces back to the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex. ISIL then proceeded to blow up the al-Nuri Mosque to prevent anyone from having it.
On June 29th (29/6/17) the Federal Police and Golden Division elements converged on the site of the al-Nuri Mosque securing the ruins and the surrounding area. On July 2nd (2/7/17) the ISF liberated the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex.
This left ISIL in control of just a roughly 2.7kmsq (1.6 milesq) area between Nabi Jorjis Street and the Tigris River.
As of Saturday (8/7/17) the ISF had reduced this area of ISIL control to a roughly 1kmsq (0.6milesq) area between the banks of the Tigris and road east of Nabi Jorjis Street which is apparently too small to name.
This morning the Golden Division reached the banks of the Tigris in the Midan area which sits in the middle of this area. By roughly midday (local) today the ISF had limited ISIL presence to approximately 30 fighters in a handful of buildings close to the al-Shohada Bridge to the north and the Old Bridge to the south.
Although there is a tiny bit of tidying up left to do this represents the functional liberation of all of the city of Mosul. That liberation was declared by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at around 12:30 (15:30 local).
Throughout the operation to liberate Mosul I have said that there have been many things wrong with the way the operation has been planned. I have also said that when the battle is won I will look at all those problems in detail. I still intend to do that.
However for now I'd like to revel in the fact that after 1,125 days of occupation and 266 days of battle
Mosul Has Been Liberated!
17:15 on 9/7/17 (UK date).
Wednesday, 5 July 2017
Operation Featherweight: Month 36, Week 3, Day 2.
In the autumn of 2013 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) were in extremely bad shape. The Syrians had limited them to an area in and around the Euphrates River basin in the north-east of the country.
With the motto of; "Maintain and Expand" this loss and contraction was obviously very bad news for the group.
So in December 2013 ISIL almost abandoned Syria entirely instead invading Anbar Province in the south-west of Iraq. In the summer of 2014 ISIL also invaded the north-west of Iraq including the city of Mosul. Since then Mosul has functioned as ISIL's de facto capital in Iraq.
In June 2016 the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) liberated the city of Fallujah from ISIL. This marked the functional liberation of Anbar Province from the group although ISIL do maintain some camps in the vast unpopulated areas of Anbar Province. Particularly around the border town of Qaim.
In October 2016 the ISF launched an operation to liberate Mosul. This was intended as a combined operation.
The Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga along with the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) militias would take responsibility for securing the areas around Mosul. The ISF would take responsibility for liberating the city itself. All aspects of this operation have been supported by the US-led coalition - Combined Joint Task Force: Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR).
The first phase of the operation was to surround Mosul on three sides. The northern Tel Skuf Front, the eastern Kalak Front and the southern Qarrayah/Gwer Front. This was completed with the liberation of Hamman al-Alil on the Qarrayah front on November 7th 2016 (7/11/16).
The second phase was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the east of the Tigris River. This eastern half is sometimes referred to as; "The Left Bank." This phase was begun before the first phase had been completed with the ISF entering the al-Quds neighbourhood from the Gogjali neighbourhood on the Kalak Front on November 1st 2016 (1/11/16).
This second phase was completed with the liberation of all of the eastern half of Mosul on January 24th 2017 (24/1/17).
The third phase of the operation was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the west of the Tigris River. This western half is sometimes referred to as; "The Right Bank." Following a short and planned paused this third phase began on February 19th (19/2/17) with the ISF advancing north from Hamman al-Alil.
This saw the ISF enter western Mosul on ultimately three axis;
Initially the Federal Police element of the ISF entered the city from the Mosul International Airport/Ghazlani Military base at the southern most tip of the city. The Counter-Terrorism Force (CTF/Golden Division) axis entered the city from the al-Rayyan neighbourhood at the south-western tip of the city.
Eventually they were joined by the 9th Armoured Division and the combined Rapid Reaction Force elements of the ISF who opened a northern axis entering the Musaharrifah district of western Mosul on May 4th (4/5/17).
On June 17th (17/6/17) all three of these axis had converged on the Old City district. The only area of Mosul remaining under ISIL control.
The Federal Police element of the ISF actually entered the Old City district on March 21st (21/3/17). Having secured the al-Tob neighbourhood to the south of the Old City and the Corniche area between the Old City and the Tigris River they advanced within the Old City on two axis. Heading north along al-Shaziani Street and west along Nineveh Street.
On June 18th (18/6/17) the Federal Police were joined in the Old City by the Golden Division of the ISF. Entering from Ibrahim al-Athir Street the Golden Division advanced east along Nineveh Street.
Within the Old City ISIL had concentrated their forces at the Grand Mosque of al-Nuri located just north of the junction between al-Shaziani Street and Nineveh Street. This is where ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi publicly declared the group to be a Caliphate and he its Caliph.
As of May 4th (4/5/17) the Federal Police element of the ISF had surrounded the al-Nuri Mosque on three sides; north, east and south. As of June 18th (18/6/17) the Golden Division element of the ISF had advanced along Nineveh Street to come within 30 metres/yards from surrounding al-Nuri Mosque from the west.
On June 21st (21/6/17) ISIL realised that they could no longer defend al-Nuri Mosque so blew it up in an act of spite. The thinking being that if they couldn't have the Mosque then no-one could. ISIL then centred their forces around the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex in the north-east quadrant of the Old City.
On June 29th (29/6/17) the Federal Police and Golden Division elements converged on the site of the al-Nuri Mosque securing the ruins and the surrounding area. On July 2nd (2/7/17) the ISF liberated the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex.
As a result ISIL are now limited to just the roughly 2.7kmsq (1.6 milesq) area between Nabi Jorjis Street and the Tigris River.
To put the remaining part of the Mosul operation in the most naked terms there are roughly 300 ISIL fighters remaining in that small area. The ISF's job is to find them and kill them. Obviously they don't want to be found and they don't want to be killed.
Therefore I can't really say how long this task will take but the main combat operation in Mosul is now all but over.
There are many to choose from but one of the main flaws of the Mosul operation was the failure to surround the western side of the city. This left a vast 28,000kmsq (16,800milesq) area designated; "Falls Road" open to allow ISIL fighters to flee from Mosul.
The purpose of leaving the Falls Road open was specifically to allow ISIL to flee from Mosul up the Euphrates River basin to their de facto capital in Syria - Raqqa.
The thinking being that this would bring a quick victory that would allow then US President Barack Obama to propel his designated successor Hillary Clinton to victory in the November 8th 2016 (8/11/16) US Presidential Election.
The flaw in this plan is that if ISIL fighters can flee from Mosul to Raqqa they can also flee from Raqqa to Turkey via an area of the Syria/Turkey border designated; "Garvaghy Road." From Turkey ISIL fighters can then travel to wherever they like in the World be it Europe, Libya, the Philippines etc.
Fortunately the PMF element of the ISF were alive to this threat.
So on October 29th 2016 (29/10/16) the PMF opened a western front advancing from the southern Qarrayh Front to the town of Tal Afar which sits about 80km (48 miles) west of Mosul on the H47 Highway between Mosul and Iraq's border with Syria. This was completed on November 16th 2016 (16/11/16) sealing Mosul off from the Falls Road.
Since then the PMF have tightened that boundary all the way up to Mosul. They have also secured all the territory west the Qarrayh - Tel Afar line to Iraq's border with Syria. They completed this on June 7th (7/6/17) the PMF liberated the village of Tal Safuq which sits directly on the Iraq/Syria border.
The only location within this area still under ISIL control is the town of Tal Afar itself. Iraq's neighbour to the north Turkey has repeatedly threatened to attack Iraq if the PMF enter Tal Afar.
However it has been decided that once Mosul has been completely liberated the ISF will move to liberated Tel Afar. Despite opposition from Iraq's Kurds I consider the liberation of Tal Afar to be part of the Mosul operation rather than a separate operation in itself.
Before the PMF moved to seal the Falls Road a NATO meeting was held in late-October 2016. Here particularly European members of NATO made it extremely clear to the US the flaw in leaving the Falls Road open. As a panicked response to this criticism Obama declared that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF/QSD) would liberate Raqqa.
The SDF operation designated; "Wrath of Euphrates" was launched on November 6th 2016 (6/11/16).
The first phase of the operation was to advance south from the town of Ayn Issa towards Raqqa. Ayn Issa is located roughly 70km (40 miles) east of the Euphrates and 70km (40 miles) north of Raqqa.
This phase of the operation was completed on November 25th 2016 (25/11/16). It saw the SDF liberate roughly 600kmsq (360 milesq) of territory and take up positions roughly 25km (15 miles) north of Raqqa.
The second phase of the operation was launched on December 10th 2016 (10/12/16). It's objective was to see the SDF sweep down the banks of the Euphrates from the town of Sarrin to the Tabqa Dam. Sarrin is located roughly 70km (40 miles) north-west of Ayn Issa on the banks of the Euphrates while the Tabqa Dam is located around 40km (25 miles) west of Raqqa.
This second phase was completed on January 20th 2017 (20/1/17). It saw the SDF take up positions at Jabour Castle at Lake Assad some 10km (6 miles) west of the Tabqa Dam and liberate roughly 3,200kmsq (1,900 milesq) of territory between Lake Assad and the Ayn Issa line.
The third phase was launched on February 4th (4/2/17). It's objective was to secure the territory north-west of Raqqa cutting the city off from Deir-ez-Zour - the other major city on the Euphrates around 120km (70 miles) south-east of Raqqa.
On March 6th (6/3/17) the SDF secured control of the main Raqqa to Deir-ez-Zour road around 6km (3.5 miles) south-east of the town of Madan. Madan sits around 55km (30 miles) south-east of Raqqa and around 65km (40 miles) north-west of Deir-ez-Zour.
This third phase was completed on March 19th (19/3/17) with the SDF taking up positions around al-Karamah which is roughly 30km (20 miles) south-east of Raqqa. In the process the SDF liberated another roughly 1000kmsq (600 milesq) of territory bringing the total territory liberated in the operation to in excess of 4,200kmsq (2,500 milesq)
On March 22nd (22/3/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate both the town of Tabqa and the Tabqa Dam. This was completed on May 11th (11/5/17).
On June 6th (6/6/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate the city of Raqqa itself. This was launched on three axis.
The northern axis advanced on the sprawling former Syrian military - Division 17 - base to the north of the city. At some 50kmsq (30 milesq) this Division 17 is almost half the size of Raqqa itself.
The western axis advanced on the Jazra suburb around 1km (06 miles) to the west of Raqqa. The eastern axis advanced on the Mashlab district at the south-eastern tip of the city.
While these advances were taking place another element of the SDF were advancing west to east on the southern bank of the Euphrates.
On the first day the western axis were able to take full control of Jazra. On June 9th (9/6/17) it advanced into the Sabahiya district which sits almost directly north of Jazra.
On June 10th (10/6/17) the western axis entered the Romaniyah district which sits north-east of the Sabahiya district. This allowed them to liberate both Sabahiya and Romaniyah districts on June 11th (11/6/17).
On June 12th (12/6/17) the western axis entered the al-Hattin district which sits directly east of the Sabahiya district.
As part of the effort to liberate the al-Hattin district the western axis advanced into the al-Baryd district on June 14th (14/6/17). The al-Baryd district sits directly east of the Romaniyah district and north-east of the al-Hattin district.
On June 23rd (23/6/17) the western axis entered the al-Qadisiyyah district. This sits directly to the south of al-Hattin district. It was liberated on June 26th (26/6/17).
On June 28th (28/6/17) the al-Hattin district was finally liberated. This allowed the western axis to advance into the an-Nadah district which sits directly east of the al-Hattin district and south of the al-Baryd district.
On July 3rd (3/7/17) the western axis entered the Yarmouk district. This sits directly south of the al-Qadisiyyah district on the banks of the Euphrates.
On June 9th (9/6/17) the eastern axis were able to fully liberate the Mashlab district. This allowed them to enter the al-Sinna district directly to the west which was liberated on June 15th (15/6/17).
On June 16th (16/6/17) the eastern axis entered the Bitani district directly to the north of al-Sinaa district. This was fully liberated on June 17th (17/6/17). On June 28th (28/6/17) the eastern axis entered the Rawdah district which sits north-west of the Bitani district.
On July 2nd (2/7/17) the eastern axis was able to fully liberate the al-Hal market area between the al-Sinna district and the Euphrates. This allowed them to enter the Hisham Abdulmalik district at the very south of Raqqa on the banks of the Euphrates.
Due to the size of the District 17 base the northern axis' progress relatively slow but steady. As of June 29th (29/6/17) they were in control of more then 60% of the base.
On June 29th (29/6/17) the west to east advance across the south bank of the Euphrates was complete. This meant that Raqqa was finally sealed off on all sides from the outside world.
These lightning advances mean that just 30 days into the battle the SDF now completely control or partly control 12 of Raqqa's 27 districts. This represents roughly 30% of the city.
16:50 on 5/7/17 (UK date).
With the motto of; "Maintain and Expand" this loss and contraction was obviously very bad news for the group.
So in December 2013 ISIL almost abandoned Syria entirely instead invading Anbar Province in the south-west of Iraq. In the summer of 2014 ISIL also invaded the north-west of Iraq including the city of Mosul. Since then Mosul has functioned as ISIL's de facto capital in Iraq.
In June 2016 the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) liberated the city of Fallujah from ISIL. This marked the functional liberation of Anbar Province from the group although ISIL do maintain some camps in the vast unpopulated areas of Anbar Province. Particularly around the border town of Qaim.
In October 2016 the ISF launched an operation to liberate Mosul. This was intended as a combined operation.
The Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga along with the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) militias would take responsibility for securing the areas around Mosul. The ISF would take responsibility for liberating the city itself. All aspects of this operation have been supported by the US-led coalition - Combined Joint Task Force: Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTFOIR).
The first phase of the operation was to surround Mosul on three sides. The northern Tel Skuf Front, the eastern Kalak Front and the southern Qarrayah/Gwer Front. This was completed with the liberation of Hamman al-Alil on the Qarrayah front on November 7th 2016 (7/11/16).
The second phase was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the east of the Tigris River. This eastern half is sometimes referred to as; "The Left Bank." This phase was begun before the first phase had been completed with the ISF entering the al-Quds neighbourhood from the Gogjali neighbourhood on the Kalak Front on November 1st 2016 (1/11/16).
This second phase was completed with the liberation of all of the eastern half of Mosul on January 24th 2017 (24/1/17).
The third phase of the operation was to liberate the area of Mosul that sits to the west of the Tigris River. This western half is sometimes referred to as; "The Right Bank." Following a short and planned paused this third phase began on February 19th (19/2/17) with the ISF advancing north from Hamman al-Alil.
This saw the ISF enter western Mosul on ultimately three axis;
Initially the Federal Police element of the ISF entered the city from the Mosul International Airport/Ghazlani Military base at the southern most tip of the city. The Counter-Terrorism Force (CTF/Golden Division) axis entered the city from the al-Rayyan neighbourhood at the south-western tip of the city.
Eventually they were joined by the 9th Armoured Division and the combined Rapid Reaction Force elements of the ISF who opened a northern axis entering the Musaharrifah district of western Mosul on May 4th (4/5/17).
On June 17th (17/6/17) all three of these axis had converged on the Old City district. The only area of Mosul remaining under ISIL control.
The Federal Police element of the ISF actually entered the Old City district on March 21st (21/3/17). Having secured the al-Tob neighbourhood to the south of the Old City and the Corniche area between the Old City and the Tigris River they advanced within the Old City on two axis. Heading north along al-Shaziani Street and west along Nineveh Street.
On June 18th (18/6/17) the Federal Police were joined in the Old City by the Golden Division of the ISF. Entering from Ibrahim al-Athir Street the Golden Division advanced east along Nineveh Street.
Within the Old City ISIL had concentrated their forces at the Grand Mosque of al-Nuri located just north of the junction between al-Shaziani Street and Nineveh Street. This is where ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi publicly declared the group to be a Caliphate and he its Caliph.
As of May 4th (4/5/17) the Federal Police element of the ISF had surrounded the al-Nuri Mosque on three sides; north, east and south. As of June 18th (18/6/17) the Golden Division element of the ISF had advanced along Nineveh Street to come within 30 metres/yards from surrounding al-Nuri Mosque from the west.
On June 21st (21/6/17) ISIL realised that they could no longer defend al-Nuri Mosque so blew it up in an act of spite. The thinking being that if they couldn't have the Mosque then no-one could. ISIL then centred their forces around the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex in the north-east quadrant of the Old City.
On June 29th (29/6/17) the Federal Police and Golden Division elements converged on the site of the al-Nuri Mosque securing the ruins and the surrounding area. On July 2nd (2/7/17) the ISF liberated the Ibrahim Sina hospital complex.
As a result ISIL are now limited to just the roughly 2.7kmsq (1.6 milesq) area between Nabi Jorjis Street and the Tigris River.
To put the remaining part of the Mosul operation in the most naked terms there are roughly 300 ISIL fighters remaining in that small area. The ISF's job is to find them and kill them. Obviously they don't want to be found and they don't want to be killed.
Therefore I can't really say how long this task will take but the main combat operation in Mosul is now all but over.
There are many to choose from but one of the main flaws of the Mosul operation was the failure to surround the western side of the city. This left a vast 28,000kmsq (16,800milesq) area designated; "Falls Road" open to allow ISIL fighters to flee from Mosul.
The purpose of leaving the Falls Road open was specifically to allow ISIL to flee from Mosul up the Euphrates River basin to their de facto capital in Syria - Raqqa.
The thinking being that this would bring a quick victory that would allow then US President Barack Obama to propel his designated successor Hillary Clinton to victory in the November 8th 2016 (8/11/16) US Presidential Election.
The flaw in this plan is that if ISIL fighters can flee from Mosul to Raqqa they can also flee from Raqqa to Turkey via an area of the Syria/Turkey border designated; "Garvaghy Road." From Turkey ISIL fighters can then travel to wherever they like in the World be it Europe, Libya, the Philippines etc.
Fortunately the PMF element of the ISF were alive to this threat.
So on October 29th 2016 (29/10/16) the PMF opened a western front advancing from the southern Qarrayh Front to the town of Tal Afar which sits about 80km (48 miles) west of Mosul on the H47 Highway between Mosul and Iraq's border with Syria. This was completed on November 16th 2016 (16/11/16) sealing Mosul off from the Falls Road.
Since then the PMF have tightened that boundary all the way up to Mosul. They have also secured all the territory west the Qarrayh - Tel Afar line to Iraq's border with Syria. They completed this on June 7th (7/6/17) the PMF liberated the village of Tal Safuq which sits directly on the Iraq/Syria border.
The only location within this area still under ISIL control is the town of Tal Afar itself. Iraq's neighbour to the north Turkey has repeatedly threatened to attack Iraq if the PMF enter Tal Afar.
However it has been decided that once Mosul has been completely liberated the ISF will move to liberated Tel Afar. Despite opposition from Iraq's Kurds I consider the liberation of Tal Afar to be part of the Mosul operation rather than a separate operation in itself.
Before the PMF moved to seal the Falls Road a NATO meeting was held in late-October 2016. Here particularly European members of NATO made it extremely clear to the US the flaw in leaving the Falls Road open. As a panicked response to this criticism Obama declared that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF/QSD) would liberate Raqqa.
The SDF operation designated; "Wrath of Euphrates" was launched on November 6th 2016 (6/11/16).
The first phase of the operation was to advance south from the town of Ayn Issa towards Raqqa. Ayn Issa is located roughly 70km (40 miles) east of the Euphrates and 70km (40 miles) north of Raqqa.
This phase of the operation was completed on November 25th 2016 (25/11/16). It saw the SDF liberate roughly 600kmsq (360 milesq) of territory and take up positions roughly 25km (15 miles) north of Raqqa.
The second phase of the operation was launched on December 10th 2016 (10/12/16). It's objective was to see the SDF sweep down the banks of the Euphrates from the town of Sarrin to the Tabqa Dam. Sarrin is located roughly 70km (40 miles) north-west of Ayn Issa on the banks of the Euphrates while the Tabqa Dam is located around 40km (25 miles) west of Raqqa.
This second phase was completed on January 20th 2017 (20/1/17). It saw the SDF take up positions at Jabour Castle at Lake Assad some 10km (6 miles) west of the Tabqa Dam and liberate roughly 3,200kmsq (1,900 milesq) of territory between Lake Assad and the Ayn Issa line.
The third phase was launched on February 4th (4/2/17). It's objective was to secure the territory north-west of Raqqa cutting the city off from Deir-ez-Zour - the other major city on the Euphrates around 120km (70 miles) south-east of Raqqa.
On March 6th (6/3/17) the SDF secured control of the main Raqqa to Deir-ez-Zour road around 6km (3.5 miles) south-east of the town of Madan. Madan sits around 55km (30 miles) south-east of Raqqa and around 65km (40 miles) north-west of Deir-ez-Zour.
This third phase was completed on March 19th (19/3/17) with the SDF taking up positions around al-Karamah which is roughly 30km (20 miles) south-east of Raqqa. In the process the SDF liberated another roughly 1000kmsq (600 milesq) of territory bringing the total territory liberated in the operation to in excess of 4,200kmsq (2,500 milesq)
On March 22nd (22/3/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate both the town of Tabqa and the Tabqa Dam. This was completed on May 11th (11/5/17).
On June 6th (6/6/17) the SDF launched an operation to liberate the city of Raqqa itself. This was launched on three axis.
The northern axis advanced on the sprawling former Syrian military - Division 17 - base to the north of the city. At some 50kmsq (30 milesq) this Division 17 is almost half the size of Raqqa itself.
The western axis advanced on the Jazra suburb around 1km (06 miles) to the west of Raqqa. The eastern axis advanced on the Mashlab district at the south-eastern tip of the city.
While these advances were taking place another element of the SDF were advancing west to east on the southern bank of the Euphrates.
On the first day the western axis were able to take full control of Jazra. On June 9th (9/6/17) it advanced into the Sabahiya district which sits almost directly north of Jazra.
On June 10th (10/6/17) the western axis entered the Romaniyah district which sits north-east of the Sabahiya district. This allowed them to liberate both Sabahiya and Romaniyah districts on June 11th (11/6/17).
On June 12th (12/6/17) the western axis entered the al-Hattin district which sits directly east of the Sabahiya district.
As part of the effort to liberate the al-Hattin district the western axis advanced into the al-Baryd district on June 14th (14/6/17). The al-Baryd district sits directly east of the Romaniyah district and north-east of the al-Hattin district.
On June 23rd (23/6/17) the western axis entered the al-Qadisiyyah district. This sits directly to the south of al-Hattin district. It was liberated on June 26th (26/6/17).
On June 28th (28/6/17) the al-Hattin district was finally liberated. This allowed the western axis to advance into the an-Nadah district which sits directly east of the al-Hattin district and south of the al-Baryd district.
On July 3rd (3/7/17) the western axis entered the Yarmouk district. This sits directly south of the al-Qadisiyyah district on the banks of the Euphrates.
On June 9th (9/6/17) the eastern axis were able to fully liberate the Mashlab district. This allowed them to enter the al-Sinna district directly to the west which was liberated on June 15th (15/6/17).
On June 16th (16/6/17) the eastern axis entered the Bitani district directly to the north of al-Sinaa district. This was fully liberated on June 17th (17/6/17). On June 28th (28/6/17) the eastern axis entered the Rawdah district which sits north-west of the Bitani district.
On July 2nd (2/7/17) the eastern axis was able to fully liberate the al-Hal market area between the al-Sinna district and the Euphrates. This allowed them to enter the Hisham Abdulmalik district at the very south of Raqqa on the banks of the Euphrates.
Due to the size of the District 17 base the northern axis' progress relatively slow but steady. As of June 29th (29/6/17) they were in control of more then 60% of the base.
On June 29th (29/6/17) the west to east advance across the south bank of the Euphrates was complete. This meant that Raqqa was finally sealed off on all sides from the outside world.
These lightning advances mean that just 30 days into the battle the SDF now completely control or partly control 12 of Raqqa's 27 districts. This represents roughly 30% of the city.
16:50 on 5/7/17 (UK date).
Monday, 3 July 2017
Someone's Getting Can-Can Canned.
On Tuesday (27/6/17) it was revealed that the US popstar Rihanna has a new man in her life. He has since been identified as Hassan Jameel a 29 year old native of Saudi Arabia.
Hassan Jameel and his family made their money by being the sole importer of Toyota motor vehicles into Saudi Arabia. Since 2015 he has been under investigation by the US Treasury Department's Terrorism Financing Unit for then supplying those Toyota vehicles to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
This US investigation has led to Hassan Jameel recently developing an unhealthy interest in British supermodel Naomi Campbell. He was in a similar relationship to the one he is currently in with Rihanna with Naomi Campbell back in 2015/16.
Hassan Jameel's interest in Naomi Campbell stems from the testimony she gave against Liberian warlord Charles Taylor in his trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). Charles Taylor's conviction at that trial set the legal precedent that if you provide any form of material support - such as Toyota motor vehicles - to people engaging in war crimes and crimes against humanity you are responsible for those crimes.
Naomi Campbell's involvement in that trial was triggered by Nelson Mandela. He introduced the two and in an effort to bed the supermodel Charles Taylor gave Naomi Campbell illegal, so-called; "Blood Diamonds." Mandela then took those blood diamonds off Naomi Campbell and stored them in a safe place until they could be used to prove Charles Taylor's involvement in child slavery.
Naomi Campbell does not have a reputation for being particularly intelligent. Nor does she have a reputation for being in any way empathetic to the suffering of others. Therefore there have long lingered questions over whether Naomi Campbell ever knew she was being used by Mandela in an effort to make Charles Taylor pay for his crimes.
The majority of charges Charles Taylor was convicted of at the ICC related to the 1991-2002 civil war in Sierra Leone. This war was only brought to an end when the British military intervened in 2000 under Operation Palliser. Therefore there have also long lingered questions over how involved British intelligence were in Mandela's sting operation against Charles Taylor.
I should also point out that leader of the UK opposition Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn recently condemned Britain's intervention to end the civil war in Sierra Leone. I think that says a lot about the man.
Hassan Jameel's interest in Rihanna stems from the ongoing feud between Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Through an organisation called the Muslim Brotherhood Qatar is closely allied with Turkish President/Prime Minister/Emperor Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
On July 16th 2016 (16/7/16) Erdogan hit a problem. Sections of the Turkish military rose up against him and his efforts to turn Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
The US took the curious step of warning Erdogan about this rising in order to help him survive. This warning included getting Rihanna to release the song; "Sledgehammer." Within Turkey is a sort of shorthand for the military rising up against Erdogan.
In retaliation the Saudis launched their operation against Rihanna. In retaliation for the success of the operation the Qataris bombed the Manchester Evening News Arena (MENA) in Manchester, UK during a concert US popstar Arianna Grande was performing as part of her Dangerous Woman Tour (DWT). This was in reference to Rihanna's 2013 Diamonds World Tour (DWT).
News of the Saudis operation against Rihanna was made public on Tuesday (27/6/17) when pictures were released showing Rihanna and Hassan Jameel together at a Spanish villa.
On Wednesday (28/6/17) Spanish authorities launched a series of anti-terrorism raids against people associated with ISIL. The main target of the operation was Tarik Chadlioui a 44 year old preacher of Belgian/Moroccan dual national. Despite being under investigation since 2015 Chadlioui has been allowed to travel freely both within Europe and globally. He was actually arrested in the UK.
On Thursday (29/6/17) there was a curious incident in Spain's immediate European neighbour France. Here a man repeatedly drove his vehicle at low speed into railings outside a Mosque in the Paris suburb of Creteil. This was initially reported as an anti-Muslim terror attack but really barely qualifies as a road collision.
What was interesting about the story is that the vehicle used was widely reported as being a Toyota 4x4 of the type Hassan Jameel has long been suspected of supplying to ISIL. However the vehicle was actually a Renault Clio. Not the sort of vehicle you would ever mistake for a Toyota 4x4. Particularly in a nation which is very proud of building Renault Clio's.
At the risk of slipping into cliche I not actually angry about the Saudi operation against Rihanna. I'm just disappointed.
You almost expect that the Saudis to attempt an operation of this type. However you equally expect that Rihanna and the people around her to make sure that it fails.
The fact that Rihanna and the people around her have screwed up this badly has become a major source of embarrassment to the US.
So on Friday (30/6/17) we had a shooting incident at the Lebanon Bronx hospital in New York City (NYC). Rihanna's mentor and owner of her management company Jay Z is extremely proud of the fact he comes from the Bronx district of NYC. However I suspect the Bronx is about to become a lot less proud of him.
In 2015 though to 2016 the country Lebanon saw mass protests about the failure to collect trash leading to it piling up in the streets. When I heard that Rihanna and Naomi Campbell had apparently been feuding over Hassan Jameel I immediately found myself thinking; "Not since Lebanon have people argued this much over trash."
On Saturday (1/7/17) a hip-hop feud led to a shooting at a nightclub in Little Rock, Arkansas, US wounding 28. Being slightly smaller that the US state of Oregon the US frequently refer to the UK as a little rock. This was intended as a warning to Qatar and Saudi Arabia not to let their feud spill out into the UK again.
On Sunday (2/7/17) US popstar Britney Spears visited Israel. The Israelis made sure everyone knew about this by claiming she was scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu and making sure she was mobbed by aggressive crowds at a trip to the Western Wall.
In 2003 Britney Spears released a song called; "Toxic." On Friday (30/6/17) I described Rihanna's current political status as; "Radioactive." I specifically chose those words to avoid referencing the Britney Spears song.
Legally speaking Britney Spears is actually considered a child. Following a very public meltdown in 2008 Britney Spear's father and her attorney were given legal guardianship (Conservatorship in California law) over all aspects of her finances and personal affairs.
Or to put it in Saudi Arabian terms; "Britney Spears is a woman."
If Rihanna is happy to continue a relationship with a Saudi she clearly has no objections to a third party guardian being appointed to take control of her finances and personal affairs.
Late on Sunday (2/7/17) there was another incident close of a French Mosque. This time in Avignon on the south coast - close to the scene of the 2016 Bastille Day attack in Nice. It appears that in a gang-related incident two men opened fire on a street where a Mosque also happened to be located. The police are searching for a Renault Clio which probably means Toyota 4x4.
On July 21st (21/7/17) a French produced movie called; "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" featuring Rihanna is scheduled to be released. Rihanna's casting in this movie is part of the multitude of favours that were called in to help decontaminate her following the 2013 DWT.
Now that Rihanna has rejected all that support in the most appalling way it hardly seems appropriate to go ahead with releasing the movie. No matter how much it will cost the French production company.
The Avignon incident also references the June 18th (18/6/17) incident at a Mosque in the Finsbury Park area of London, UK. This came directly before the start of formal negotiations on Britain exiting the European Union (EU) - the so-called; "Brexit."
Those Brexit negotiations came just 10 days after the UK's June 8th (8/6/17) General Election.
That election was marred by the MENA and June 3rd (3/6/17) London Bridge terror attacks which were carried out to give an advantage to the Labour Party. Having teamed up with terrorists to deny Britain a government the Labour Party then set about trying to destabilise the nation further with the June 13th (13/6/17) Grenfell Tower fire.
Therefore the Finsbury Park incident was staged to pose the question to the EU of whether Britain needs to do more to protect its citizenry from the Labour Party.
Unfortunately the UK decided to overplay it hands. On the final day of the Brexit session - June 23rd (23/6/17) - Loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) leader Gary Haggarty plead guilty to multiple counts of terrorism and pledged to turn states evidence. To coincide with this the UK charged the Finsbury Park accused Darren Osborne with terrorism.
The problem is that on December 5th 2015 (5/12/15) a Muslim man attacked non-Muslim members of the public with a knife in the Leytonstone area of London. He was not charged with terrorism. On August 3rd 2016 (3/8/16) a Muslim man attacked non-Muslim members of the public with a knife. Despite killing one he was not charged with terrorism.
So by charging Darren Osborne with terrorism Britain has sent out a clear message to anyone tempted to repeat his actions that the British legal system is there to persecute rather than protect non-Muslims. In short they've just made the problem much worse.
Today (3/7/17) 18 people have been burnt to death - Grenfell Tower style in a bus crash in the Bavaria region of Germany.
There is an Irish rebel song called; "18 Brits Were Blew to Bits." Set to the tune of children's nursery rhyme; "Old McDonald Had a Farm" this celebrates some of the terror attacks of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA).
The main one it celebrates is the August 27th 1979 (27/8/79) Narrow Water ambush. Here 18 British soldiers aboard a bus were blown up by a roadside bomb. Although fashion and photography have changed the scenes from Germany look similar to the Narrow Water aftermath.
Another attack the song celebrates is the assassination of Lord Mountbatten also on August 27th 1979 (27/8/79). Lord Mountbatten was killed by a bomb on his fishing boat in County Sligo in the Republic of Ireland. In the Irish language the "i" is pronounced more and an "ea." So at a push Sligo sounds like; "Slago." In British slang "Slag" is a sexually promiscuous woman of low moral standing.
It sounds then that if Hassan Jameel were wiped out in a drone strike and Rihanna was killed as collateral damage the only sympathy she can expect is someone sarcastically muttering; "Oh well, 18 BRITS (awards) have been blown to bits."
The bus in Germany seems to have crashed into a truck carrying mattresses which immediately caught fire. Throughout June I've been complaining of being really tired.
Basically in the week before the Eurovision Song Contest I concluded that I was exhausted. So I went through it powered by adrenaline. I finished by Eurovision coverage on the evening of May 22nd (22/5/17). A couple of hours later the MENA bombing occurred so I went through all that on adrenaline. Since then the UK's seen the London Bridge attacks, the General Election, the Grenfell Tower fire, the Finsbury Park incident and several incidents of rioting.
I had a little break starting on May 30th (30/5/17). In the early hours of June 1st (1/6/17) I was woken up in the middle of an adrenaline fuelled panic attack. I've discussed all this with a doctor and although not ideal it is simply the human body behaving the way it should under the circumstances. The solution is to change the circumstances.
That involved fixing a time to go to bed and avoiding stress in the hour or so before that time. Things like the Finsbury Park incident and last Sunday's (25/6/17) rioting in the Forest Gate area of London really haven't helped.
Also I do need to buy a new mattress but can't afford one. So those Grenfell Tower victims complaining their taxpayer funded hotels aren't luxurious enough shouldn't be expecting any sympathy from me.
16:00 on 3/7/17 (UK date).
Hassan Jameel and his family made their money by being the sole importer of Toyota motor vehicles into Saudi Arabia. Since 2015 he has been under investigation by the US Treasury Department's Terrorism Financing Unit for then supplying those Toyota vehicles to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
This US investigation has led to Hassan Jameel recently developing an unhealthy interest in British supermodel Naomi Campbell. He was in a similar relationship to the one he is currently in with Rihanna with Naomi Campbell back in 2015/16.
Hassan Jameel's interest in Naomi Campbell stems from the testimony she gave against Liberian warlord Charles Taylor in his trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). Charles Taylor's conviction at that trial set the legal precedent that if you provide any form of material support - such as Toyota motor vehicles - to people engaging in war crimes and crimes against humanity you are responsible for those crimes.
Naomi Campbell's involvement in that trial was triggered by Nelson Mandela. He introduced the two and in an effort to bed the supermodel Charles Taylor gave Naomi Campbell illegal, so-called; "Blood Diamonds." Mandela then took those blood diamonds off Naomi Campbell and stored them in a safe place until they could be used to prove Charles Taylor's involvement in child slavery.
Naomi Campbell does not have a reputation for being particularly intelligent. Nor does she have a reputation for being in any way empathetic to the suffering of others. Therefore there have long lingered questions over whether Naomi Campbell ever knew she was being used by Mandela in an effort to make Charles Taylor pay for his crimes.
The majority of charges Charles Taylor was convicted of at the ICC related to the 1991-2002 civil war in Sierra Leone. This war was only brought to an end when the British military intervened in 2000 under Operation Palliser. Therefore there have also long lingered questions over how involved British intelligence were in Mandela's sting operation against Charles Taylor.
I should also point out that leader of the UK opposition Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn recently condemned Britain's intervention to end the civil war in Sierra Leone. I think that says a lot about the man.
Hassan Jameel's interest in Rihanna stems from the ongoing feud between Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Through an organisation called the Muslim Brotherhood Qatar is closely allied with Turkish President/Prime Minister/Emperor Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
On July 16th 2016 (16/7/16) Erdogan hit a problem. Sections of the Turkish military rose up against him and his efforts to turn Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
The US took the curious step of warning Erdogan about this rising in order to help him survive. This warning included getting Rihanna to release the song; "Sledgehammer." Within Turkey is a sort of shorthand for the military rising up against Erdogan.
In retaliation the Saudis launched their operation against Rihanna. In retaliation for the success of the operation the Qataris bombed the Manchester Evening News Arena (MENA) in Manchester, UK during a concert US popstar Arianna Grande was performing as part of her Dangerous Woman Tour (DWT). This was in reference to Rihanna's 2013 Diamonds World Tour (DWT).
News of the Saudis operation against Rihanna was made public on Tuesday (27/6/17) when pictures were released showing Rihanna and Hassan Jameel together at a Spanish villa.
On Wednesday (28/6/17) Spanish authorities launched a series of anti-terrorism raids against people associated with ISIL. The main target of the operation was Tarik Chadlioui a 44 year old preacher of Belgian/Moroccan dual national. Despite being under investigation since 2015 Chadlioui has been allowed to travel freely both within Europe and globally. He was actually arrested in the UK.
On Thursday (29/6/17) there was a curious incident in Spain's immediate European neighbour France. Here a man repeatedly drove his vehicle at low speed into railings outside a Mosque in the Paris suburb of Creteil. This was initially reported as an anti-Muslim terror attack but really barely qualifies as a road collision.
What was interesting about the story is that the vehicle used was widely reported as being a Toyota 4x4 of the type Hassan Jameel has long been suspected of supplying to ISIL. However the vehicle was actually a Renault Clio. Not the sort of vehicle you would ever mistake for a Toyota 4x4. Particularly in a nation which is very proud of building Renault Clio's.
At the risk of slipping into cliche I not actually angry about the Saudi operation against Rihanna. I'm just disappointed.
You almost expect that the Saudis to attempt an operation of this type. However you equally expect that Rihanna and the people around her to make sure that it fails.
The fact that Rihanna and the people around her have screwed up this badly has become a major source of embarrassment to the US.
So on Friday (30/6/17) we had a shooting incident at the Lebanon Bronx hospital in New York City (NYC). Rihanna's mentor and owner of her management company Jay Z is extremely proud of the fact he comes from the Bronx district of NYC. However I suspect the Bronx is about to become a lot less proud of him.
In 2015 though to 2016 the country Lebanon saw mass protests about the failure to collect trash leading to it piling up in the streets. When I heard that Rihanna and Naomi Campbell had apparently been feuding over Hassan Jameel I immediately found myself thinking; "Not since Lebanon have people argued this much over trash."
On Saturday (1/7/17) a hip-hop feud led to a shooting at a nightclub in Little Rock, Arkansas, US wounding 28. Being slightly smaller that the US state of Oregon the US frequently refer to the UK as a little rock. This was intended as a warning to Qatar and Saudi Arabia not to let their feud spill out into the UK again.
On Sunday (2/7/17) US popstar Britney Spears visited Israel. The Israelis made sure everyone knew about this by claiming she was scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu and making sure she was mobbed by aggressive crowds at a trip to the Western Wall.
In 2003 Britney Spears released a song called; "Toxic." On Friday (30/6/17) I described Rihanna's current political status as; "Radioactive." I specifically chose those words to avoid referencing the Britney Spears song.
Legally speaking Britney Spears is actually considered a child. Following a very public meltdown in 2008 Britney Spear's father and her attorney were given legal guardianship (Conservatorship in California law) over all aspects of her finances and personal affairs.
Or to put it in Saudi Arabian terms; "Britney Spears is a woman."
If Rihanna is happy to continue a relationship with a Saudi she clearly has no objections to a third party guardian being appointed to take control of her finances and personal affairs.
Late on Sunday (2/7/17) there was another incident close of a French Mosque. This time in Avignon on the south coast - close to the scene of the 2016 Bastille Day attack in Nice. It appears that in a gang-related incident two men opened fire on a street where a Mosque also happened to be located. The police are searching for a Renault Clio which probably means Toyota 4x4.
On July 21st (21/7/17) a French produced movie called; "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" featuring Rihanna is scheduled to be released. Rihanna's casting in this movie is part of the multitude of favours that were called in to help decontaminate her following the 2013 DWT.
Now that Rihanna has rejected all that support in the most appalling way it hardly seems appropriate to go ahead with releasing the movie. No matter how much it will cost the French production company.
The Avignon incident also references the June 18th (18/6/17) incident at a Mosque in the Finsbury Park area of London, UK. This came directly before the start of formal negotiations on Britain exiting the European Union (EU) - the so-called; "Brexit."
Those Brexit negotiations came just 10 days after the UK's June 8th (8/6/17) General Election.
That election was marred by the MENA and June 3rd (3/6/17) London Bridge terror attacks which were carried out to give an advantage to the Labour Party. Having teamed up with terrorists to deny Britain a government the Labour Party then set about trying to destabilise the nation further with the June 13th (13/6/17) Grenfell Tower fire.
Therefore the Finsbury Park incident was staged to pose the question to the EU of whether Britain needs to do more to protect its citizenry from the Labour Party.
Unfortunately the UK decided to overplay it hands. On the final day of the Brexit session - June 23rd (23/6/17) - Loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) leader Gary Haggarty plead guilty to multiple counts of terrorism and pledged to turn states evidence. To coincide with this the UK charged the Finsbury Park accused Darren Osborne with terrorism.
The problem is that on December 5th 2015 (5/12/15) a Muslim man attacked non-Muslim members of the public with a knife in the Leytonstone area of London. He was not charged with terrorism. On August 3rd 2016 (3/8/16) a Muslim man attacked non-Muslim members of the public with a knife. Despite killing one he was not charged with terrorism.
So by charging Darren Osborne with terrorism Britain has sent out a clear message to anyone tempted to repeat his actions that the British legal system is there to persecute rather than protect non-Muslims. In short they've just made the problem much worse.
Today (3/7/17) 18 people have been burnt to death - Grenfell Tower style in a bus crash in the Bavaria region of Germany.
There is an Irish rebel song called; "18 Brits Were Blew to Bits." Set to the tune of children's nursery rhyme; "Old McDonald Had a Farm" this celebrates some of the terror attacks of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA).
The main one it celebrates is the August 27th 1979 (27/8/79) Narrow Water ambush. Here 18 British soldiers aboard a bus were blown up by a roadside bomb. Although fashion and photography have changed the scenes from Germany look similar to the Narrow Water aftermath.
Another attack the song celebrates is the assassination of Lord Mountbatten also on August 27th 1979 (27/8/79). Lord Mountbatten was killed by a bomb on his fishing boat in County Sligo in the Republic of Ireland. In the Irish language the "i" is pronounced more and an "ea." So at a push Sligo sounds like; "Slago." In British slang "Slag" is a sexually promiscuous woman of low moral standing.
It sounds then that if Hassan Jameel were wiped out in a drone strike and Rihanna was killed as collateral damage the only sympathy she can expect is someone sarcastically muttering; "Oh well, 18 BRITS (awards) have been blown to bits."
The bus in Germany seems to have crashed into a truck carrying mattresses which immediately caught fire. Throughout June I've been complaining of being really tired.
Basically in the week before the Eurovision Song Contest I concluded that I was exhausted. So I went through it powered by adrenaline. I finished by Eurovision coverage on the evening of May 22nd (22/5/17). A couple of hours later the MENA bombing occurred so I went through all that on adrenaline. Since then the UK's seen the London Bridge attacks, the General Election, the Grenfell Tower fire, the Finsbury Park incident and several incidents of rioting.
I had a little break starting on May 30th (30/5/17). In the early hours of June 1st (1/6/17) I was woken up in the middle of an adrenaline fuelled panic attack. I've discussed all this with a doctor and although not ideal it is simply the human body behaving the way it should under the circumstances. The solution is to change the circumstances.
That involved fixing a time to go to bed and avoiding stress in the hour or so before that time. Things like the Finsbury Park incident and last Sunday's (25/6/17) rioting in the Forest Gate area of London really haven't helped.
Also I do need to buy a new mattress but can't afford one. So those Grenfell Tower victims complaining their taxpayer funded hotels aren't luxurious enough shouldn't be expecting any sympathy from me.
16:00 on 3/7/17 (UK date).
Friday, 30 June 2017
Do I Need a Synonym of Misery?
On May 22nd (22/5/17) the Manchester Evening News Arena (MENA) in the UK city of Manchester came under terror attack.
An Islamist suicide bomber detonated his device amongst crowds leaving an Ariana Grande concert being held at the venue. This killed 22 civilians and wounded 59 more.
The attack was directed by Qatar's ruling Al-Thani family. A concert on Ariana Grande's Dangerous Woman Tour (DWT) was targeted to invoke memories of Rihanna's highly political 2013 Diamonds World Tour (DWT).
The main objective of Rihanna's DWT was to cause her to suffer some sort of psychotic breakdown/mental health emergency while in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on October 19th 2013 (19/10/13). As such I designated the entire tour; "Operation Misery."
The purpose of causing Rihanna such suffering was to serve as a US apology to the Gulf States over Rihanna's role in triggering the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt in 2011. It's when US intelligence makes statements like that I for one seriously start to doubt their sanity.
Rihanna's DWT lasted for an entire year travelling to many of the nations on Earth touching on many political issues as it went. So invoking memories of it reopened a lot of old wounds and old arguments.
For example the European leg of the tour was - politically speaking - a complete washout. The nations that compete in the Eurovision Song Contest every year were completely unfazed by the political antics of a popstar. So everyone really used that period to go and do something else.
One of the things I did was get arrested on a malicious charge of criminal damage. My contact with the British criminal justice really contrasted with the Egyptian criminal justice system and how little Islamist President Mohammed Morsi had done to reform it in his year in power. This along with Morsi's many other failures led to him being deposed in a second popular revolution in July 2013.
I can't speak for the then UK Home Secretary now Prime Minister Theresa May but I found the entire DWT to be just completely emotionally exhausting.
However the DWT was almost four years ago. Since then there have been big changes both in the Middle East, North Africa (MENA) region. For example the global fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) formally began in the summer of 2014.
As a result I was never sure why Qatar had decided to revisit Rihanna's DWT. Over the past couple of days I've finally received the last pieces of the puzzle.
Qatar is very closely allied with Turkey through an organisation called the Muslim Brotherhood. In July 2016 Turkish President/Prime Minister/Emperor Recep Tayyip Erdogan faced a significant problem. Sections of the Turkish military rose up against him and his efforts to turn Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
In the weeks leading up to this rising the US took an usual step. They decided to warn Erdogan to assist him in turning Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
In part these warnings took the form of getting Rihanna to release the song; "Sledgehammer." As I'm sure you can find out from Wikipedia "Sledgehammer" refers to a high profile and long-running Turkish court case. Therefore within the country it is a sort of shorthand for the military rising up against Erdogan.
Within the Gulf States there is a huge rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. In particular Saudi Arabia objects to Qatar's support for the Muslim Brotherhood and by extension ISIL. So the Saudis were understandably furious at Rihanna's attempts to save Qatar's Muslim Brotherhood ally Erdogan.
In retaliation Saudi Arabia launched an operation to use a man by the name of Hassan Jameel to get close to Rihanna. With this being a sort of honeytrap I really want to use the phrase; "Penetrate her inner circle."
This Saudi operation has been successful. As a result the Qataris are furious it is their Saudi rival rather than themselves who get to humiliate Rihanna.
Since the DWT I have been gradually trying to politically decontaminate Rihanna. This has involved slowly dismantling the surveillance networks I built up to basically stalk her. As a result I do not know exactly how and when the Saudi operation began and progressed.
However it seems that the first introductions between Rihanna and Jameel were made around the time of New Year's Eve 2016 (31/12/16). The relationship started to blossom around March 2017. This triggered a showbiz feud between Rihanna and Naomi Campbell - a previous target of Jameel's.
I frequently cite the precedent set by the International Criminal Court in their conviction of Liberian warlord Charles Taylor in 2012. This precedent holds that if you provide any form of material support to those committing war crimes and crimes against humanity you are legally responsible for those crimes.
Naomi Campbell actually testified against Charles Taylor during his trial.
Nelson Mandela had recruited Naomi Campbell in a sort of sting operation against Charles Taylor. Having been introduced by Mandela Taylor attempt to bed the supermodel by giving her a gift of illegal mined so-called "Blood Diamonds." Mandela then put these blood diamonds in a safe and they were later used to prove Charles Taylor was involved in child slavery.
It is easy to see why Hassan Jameel would be extremely interested in the Charles Taylor precedent. He and his family made their money by being the sole importer of Toyota motor vehicles into Saudi Arabia.
ISIL do love a Toyota motor vehicle. So much so that in 2015 the US Treasury Department's Terrorism Financing Unit launched a special investigation specifically to find out how ISIL are obtaining all their Toyotas.
That investigation has yet to report. That is likely because it has found what we all know. Toyota vehicles are shipped to Saudi Arabia by Hassan Jameel. They are then shipped from Saudi Arabia to ISIL in Iraq and Syria.
So there are actually already growing questions over why Hassan Jameel has not been designated as a global terrorist.
In 2013 I said it was a bad idea for Rihanna to date Chris Brown because he once physically beat her in his motor vehicle. A large number of Hassan Jameel's vehicles have been blown up in drone strikes.
So despite my best efforts to decontaminate her Rihanna has decided to make herself fully radioactive.
In the wake of the MENA bombing Rihanna and her US intelligence handlers actually had the cheek to accuse me of being responsible for the link by not dismantling my networks more quickly.
11:15 on 30/6/17 (UK date).
An Islamist suicide bomber detonated his device amongst crowds leaving an Ariana Grande concert being held at the venue. This killed 22 civilians and wounded 59 more.
The attack was directed by Qatar's ruling Al-Thani family. A concert on Ariana Grande's Dangerous Woman Tour (DWT) was targeted to invoke memories of Rihanna's highly political 2013 Diamonds World Tour (DWT).
The main objective of Rihanna's DWT was to cause her to suffer some sort of psychotic breakdown/mental health emergency while in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on October 19th 2013 (19/10/13). As such I designated the entire tour; "Operation Misery."
The purpose of causing Rihanna such suffering was to serve as a US apology to the Gulf States over Rihanna's role in triggering the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt in 2011. It's when US intelligence makes statements like that I for one seriously start to doubt their sanity.
Rihanna's DWT lasted for an entire year travelling to many of the nations on Earth touching on many political issues as it went. So invoking memories of it reopened a lot of old wounds and old arguments.
For example the European leg of the tour was - politically speaking - a complete washout. The nations that compete in the Eurovision Song Contest every year were completely unfazed by the political antics of a popstar. So everyone really used that period to go and do something else.
One of the things I did was get arrested on a malicious charge of criminal damage. My contact with the British criminal justice really contrasted with the Egyptian criminal justice system and how little Islamist President Mohammed Morsi had done to reform it in his year in power. This along with Morsi's many other failures led to him being deposed in a second popular revolution in July 2013.
I can't speak for the then UK Home Secretary now Prime Minister Theresa May but I found the entire DWT to be just completely emotionally exhausting.
However the DWT was almost four years ago. Since then there have been big changes both in the Middle East, North Africa (MENA) region. For example the global fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) formally began in the summer of 2014.
As a result I was never sure why Qatar had decided to revisit Rihanna's DWT. Over the past couple of days I've finally received the last pieces of the puzzle.
Qatar is very closely allied with Turkey through an organisation called the Muslim Brotherhood. In July 2016 Turkish President/Prime Minister/Emperor Recep Tayyip Erdogan faced a significant problem. Sections of the Turkish military rose up against him and his efforts to turn Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
In the weeks leading up to this rising the US took an usual step. They decided to warn Erdogan to assist him in turning Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
In part these warnings took the form of getting Rihanna to release the song; "Sledgehammer." As I'm sure you can find out from Wikipedia "Sledgehammer" refers to a high profile and long-running Turkish court case. Therefore within the country it is a sort of shorthand for the military rising up against Erdogan.
Within the Gulf States there is a huge rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. In particular Saudi Arabia objects to Qatar's support for the Muslim Brotherhood and by extension ISIL. So the Saudis were understandably furious at Rihanna's attempts to save Qatar's Muslim Brotherhood ally Erdogan.
In retaliation Saudi Arabia launched an operation to use a man by the name of Hassan Jameel to get close to Rihanna. With this being a sort of honeytrap I really want to use the phrase; "Penetrate her inner circle."
This Saudi operation has been successful. As a result the Qataris are furious it is their Saudi rival rather than themselves who get to humiliate Rihanna.
Since the DWT I have been gradually trying to politically decontaminate Rihanna. This has involved slowly dismantling the surveillance networks I built up to basically stalk her. As a result I do not know exactly how and when the Saudi operation began and progressed.
However it seems that the first introductions between Rihanna and Jameel were made around the time of New Year's Eve 2016 (31/12/16). The relationship started to blossom around March 2017. This triggered a showbiz feud between Rihanna and Naomi Campbell - a previous target of Jameel's.
I frequently cite the precedent set by the International Criminal Court in their conviction of Liberian warlord Charles Taylor in 2012. This precedent holds that if you provide any form of material support to those committing war crimes and crimes against humanity you are legally responsible for those crimes.
Naomi Campbell actually testified against Charles Taylor during his trial.
Nelson Mandela had recruited Naomi Campbell in a sort of sting operation against Charles Taylor. Having been introduced by Mandela Taylor attempt to bed the supermodel by giving her a gift of illegal mined so-called "Blood Diamonds." Mandela then put these blood diamonds in a safe and they were later used to prove Charles Taylor was involved in child slavery.
It is easy to see why Hassan Jameel would be extremely interested in the Charles Taylor precedent. He and his family made their money by being the sole importer of Toyota motor vehicles into Saudi Arabia.
ISIL do love a Toyota motor vehicle. So much so that in 2015 the US Treasury Department's Terrorism Financing Unit launched a special investigation specifically to find out how ISIL are obtaining all their Toyotas.
That investigation has yet to report. That is likely because it has found what we all know. Toyota vehicles are shipped to Saudi Arabia by Hassan Jameel. They are then shipped from Saudi Arabia to ISIL in Iraq and Syria.
So there are actually already growing questions over why Hassan Jameel has not been designated as a global terrorist.
In 2013 I said it was a bad idea for Rihanna to date Chris Brown because he once physically beat her in his motor vehicle. A large number of Hassan Jameel's vehicles have been blown up in drone strikes.
So despite my best efforts to decontaminate her Rihanna has decided to make herself fully radioactive.
In the wake of the MENA bombing Rihanna and her US intelligence handlers actually had the cheek to accuse me of being responsible for the link by not dismantling my networks more quickly.
11:15 on 30/6/17 (UK date).
Thursday, 29 June 2017
The Khan Inquiry Gets It's Judge.
Over the night of June 13th (13/6/17) into June 14th (14/6/17) a fire
completely destroyed the Grenfell Tower apartment building on the
Lancaster West housing estate in the Kensington area of the UK city of
London. So far 80 people are either confirmed dead or missing presumed dead.
Almost as if they had time to plan the UK Labour Party used the fire as an opportunity incite public anger as part of a campaign against the governing Conservative Party. This included London's Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan calling for a Public Inquiry. A tactic frequently used in British politics to delay or avoid entirely criminal prosecutions.
In a moment of weakness Britain's Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May granted this demand of the Labour Party. Today retired Judge Sir Martin Moore-Bick has been appointed to head that Inquiry.
This has led to some complaints by the Labour Party because although qualified in criminal law Sir Moore-Bick is an expert in commercial and contract law. It must be said that is exactly the type of Judge you want leading an Inquiry of this type.
The first job of the Inquiry will be to examine how the fire started and spread.
Unless it immediately finds evidence of arson it will then move on to explore whether criminal negligence played a role. The most severe negligence offence is Manslaughter by way of Gross Negligence. This can be sentenced in exactly the same way as murder.
In order to determine whether negligence has been a factor the Inquiry will have to look at whether due diligence was performed in the contractual relationship between the building owner and the Tenant Management Organisation (TMO).
The Inquiry will also have to look at whether due diligence was performed in the contractual relationship between the TMO and any maintenance contractors.
The Inquiry will also have to look at whether due diligence was performed in the contractual relationship between those maintenance contractors and their suppliers.
The Inquiry will also have to look at whether due diligence was performed by the Labour-led Fire and Emergency Planning Authority in issuing the building with a fire safety certificate.
Once you've got through those very complex aspects of contract law proving criminal offences such as manslaughter and possibly fraud is actually the easy bit.
19:40 on 29/6/17 (UK date).
Edited at around 14:50 on 30/6/17 (UK date) to add;
Today the UK Times newspaper has run a story that has been picked up by the BBC. It claims that the metal panels on the outside of Grenfell Tower were originally intended to be made of Zinc but were changed to Aluminium to save money during renovations.
Although it is not as aesthetically pleasing as Zinc Aluminium is actually one of only a small number of substances that has is 100% fireproof. It has no ignition point. So on the face of it this story is utterly meaningless.
However in the immediate aftermath of the fire the Labour Party claimed that these metal panels had only been fitted for aesthetic purposes. The implication being that the evil Conservative Party don't even want to have to look at poor people.
This is simply a lie. The panels were fitted as part of an insulation system to prevent energy waste. This involves putting a layer of insulation wool against the exterior brickwork of the building and then placing metal panels on top of the insulation wool to protect it from the elements and keep it attached to the building.
This insulation wool is actually laminated front and back with Aluminium foil to make it more fire resistant. The problem is that this wool is delivered in huge blocks and then cut into the right sized panels by workmen on site. As a result the top and the bottom of the wool panels is not laminated with Aluminium.
The existing fire testing only requires these wool panels to be exposed to heat on their laminated sides. The enhanced testing that so far has produced a 100% failure rate requires the wool panels to be exposed to heat on their unlaminated tops and bottoms.
Obviously the investigation will need to be completed before we can be sure but it appears that the fire has spread up through the unlaminated wool panels. The exterior metal panel has nothing to do with it.
Therefore one of the main recommendations is likely to be that these wool panels are laminated at the top and the bottom.
That could mean having them tailor made at the factory but I think the race is now on to patent an Aluminium tape that can be applied to the wool panels by workmen on site.
15:05 on 30/6/17 (UK date).
Almost as if they had time to plan the UK Labour Party used the fire as an opportunity incite public anger as part of a campaign against the governing Conservative Party. This included London's Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan calling for a Public Inquiry. A tactic frequently used in British politics to delay or avoid entirely criminal prosecutions.
In a moment of weakness Britain's Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May granted this demand of the Labour Party. Today retired Judge Sir Martin Moore-Bick has been appointed to head that Inquiry.
This has led to some complaints by the Labour Party because although qualified in criminal law Sir Moore-Bick is an expert in commercial and contract law. It must be said that is exactly the type of Judge you want leading an Inquiry of this type.
The first job of the Inquiry will be to examine how the fire started and spread.
Unless it immediately finds evidence of arson it will then move on to explore whether criminal negligence played a role. The most severe negligence offence is Manslaughter by way of Gross Negligence. This can be sentenced in exactly the same way as murder.
In order to determine whether negligence has been a factor the Inquiry will have to look at whether due diligence was performed in the contractual relationship between the building owner and the Tenant Management Organisation (TMO).
The Inquiry will also have to look at whether due diligence was performed in the contractual relationship between the TMO and any maintenance contractors.
The Inquiry will also have to look at whether due diligence was performed in the contractual relationship between those maintenance contractors and their suppliers.
The Inquiry will also have to look at whether due diligence was performed by the Labour-led Fire and Emergency Planning Authority in issuing the building with a fire safety certificate.
Once you've got through those very complex aspects of contract law proving criminal offences such as manslaughter and possibly fraud is actually the easy bit.
19:40 on 29/6/17 (UK date).
Edited at around 14:50 on 30/6/17 (UK date) to add;
Today the UK Times newspaper has run a story that has been picked up by the BBC. It claims that the metal panels on the outside of Grenfell Tower were originally intended to be made of Zinc but were changed to Aluminium to save money during renovations.
Although it is not as aesthetically pleasing as Zinc Aluminium is actually one of only a small number of substances that has is 100% fireproof. It has no ignition point. So on the face of it this story is utterly meaningless.
However in the immediate aftermath of the fire the Labour Party claimed that these metal panels had only been fitted for aesthetic purposes. The implication being that the evil Conservative Party don't even want to have to look at poor people.
This is simply a lie. The panels were fitted as part of an insulation system to prevent energy waste. This involves putting a layer of insulation wool against the exterior brickwork of the building and then placing metal panels on top of the insulation wool to protect it from the elements and keep it attached to the building.
This insulation wool is actually laminated front and back with Aluminium foil to make it more fire resistant. The problem is that this wool is delivered in huge blocks and then cut into the right sized panels by workmen on site. As a result the top and the bottom of the wool panels is not laminated with Aluminium.
The existing fire testing only requires these wool panels to be exposed to heat on their laminated sides. The enhanced testing that so far has produced a 100% failure rate requires the wool panels to be exposed to heat on their unlaminated tops and bottoms.
Obviously the investigation will need to be completed before we can be sure but it appears that the fire has spread up through the unlaminated wool panels. The exterior metal panel has nothing to do with it.
Therefore one of the main recommendations is likely to be that these wool panels are laminated at the top and the bottom.
That could mean having them tailor made at the factory but I think the race is now on to patent an Aluminium tape that can be applied to the wool panels by workmen on site.
15:05 on 30/6/17 (UK date).
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