Posted on

The Israeli ceasefire: Victory or defeat for whom?

Update on Palestine, 21 May 2021: A ceasefire was declared for 2:00 am on the 21st in the Gaza bombing campaign, “Operation Guardian of the Walls”. The Palestinians have prevailed. It was a unilateral ceasefire on the part of the Israelis, voted for unanimously by the Israeli Security Cabinet. This came after a phone call by Biden on Wednesday, where he stated that “he expected a significant de-escalation today on the path to a ceasefire“. The Israeli bombings ended with a phone call. Hamas followed suit. There were celebrations well into the night in Gaza and Jerusalem. Palestinians were praying freely in Al-Aqsa mosque Friday morning. Continue reading “The Israeli ceasefire: Victory or defeat for whom?”

Posted on

Hamas and Israel’s black year

Following on the Sheikh Jarrah post, we see that the current bombings and air strikes in Israel and Gaza are more than a flash in the pan or an isolated event. This is the end result of interventions in the region of the Levant and the larger region of West Asia that have been ongoing for at least a century, having possibly reached the end of their line in Israel, now in the throes of what just might well be the final showdown between the Palestinians and the Zionists. If events go according to plan – yes, there is a plan – the peoples of West Asia will no longer have the Zionists to meddle in their affairs, which means the Western powers will no longer have their ‘land-based aircraft carrier’. What follows will not be easy to read, as events have gone beyond any reasonable hope of a peaceful resolution to the current crisis, the reason for saying so to be outlined in this post. But in understanding the strategies working out, a door opens to a brighter and peaceful future for the region. Continue reading “Hamas and Israel’s black year”

Posted on

Sheikh Jarrah

Since the 6th of May this year, Israel has experienced the worst violence it has seen in years. It began between Palestinian protesters and Israeli settlers and police over a planned Israeli Supreme Court decision regarding what would have been forced evictions of Palestinians in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, East Jerusalem. The violence has coincided with the holidays of Laylat al-Qadr and Jerusalem Day, the former being an Islamic holy day and the latter being an Israeli holiday. Jerusalem Day is opposed by left-wing Israelis and Palestinians. It is marked by the ‘Dance of the Flags’ through the streets of Jerusalem to the Western Wall and has often provoked violent clashes. This year was exceptional in terms of the escalation of violence, escalating at Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israel currently faces an uncertain future, shown in its astrology and in the current events. Continue reading “Sheikh Jarrah”

Posted on

The Iran-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

Receiving little notice or discussion in the mainstream press, Iran and China have just signed a comprehensive strategic agreement, stretching over 25 years, to the tune of upwards of $500 billion. In other words, this is a permanent agreement, if one thinks in the long term, as do most Asian nations. The agreement will be a boon to both Iran and China – a win-win agreement for sure. It will also mark some serious re-thinking of strategies in the West relative to Asia and especially to the Middle East, now known as West Asia. The Beltway is not happy about the agreement, for obvious reasons given their current animosity to both Iran and to China. This agreement bears a closer look, as it marks the start of big changes to come in the power base in West Asia and American influence therein. Continue reading “The Iran-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership”

Posted on

Update on Myanmar’s color revolution

Not even two weeks after Biden’s inauguration in the US, there was what was widely called a coup in Myanmar. In the first post on this blog regarding events there, I put forward the scenario that what was taking place was not your standard coup, but a ‘readjustment’ of sorts. Now there is little doubt as to what is happening in Myanmar: We are watching yet another attempt at a color revolution in that troubled land. Conspiracy? Chinese interference? Another military takeover? The Russians are behind it? Read on. But the violence taking place in Myanmar has an old familiar smell and the true colors of the belligerents are starting to show. Continue reading “Update on Myanmar’s color revolution”

Posted on

A Ukrainian fandango [Updated at end]

Fandango: Def. – 1) a Spanish dance, or 2) tomfoolery (a foolish activity)

Most readers will have heard by now about increasing Russian aggression and troop movements in far eastern Ukraine. That’s the story we get – “Russian aggression”. Ukrainian forces, egged on by certain NATO partners, have chosen to forego talks with Lavrov over the increasing tensions in Ukraine. As a result, and reading from the 1st two parts of this series of posts, we hold the thought there will be no ‘conversation’ between the Ukrainian armed forces and Shoigu about the Donbass or Crimea. But the situation there is looking increasingly to be the case. Rumor has it that there may be a full assault on the Donbass by mid-April – the 15th to be exact – the date for the region to turn hot, or sometime in May at the latest. We need to have a look at this rapidly evolving situation. Continue reading “A Ukrainian fandango [Updated at end]”

Posted on

ScoMo’s ‘women problems’

It would appear that some Aussie pollies assume their fortunes extend to asserting their mandated right, by virtue of being elected, to abuse women peers and young staffers. In the latest episode, from the day after Valentine’s day (cringe-worthy, that) Australia has been roiled once again with yet another sex scandal, this time with Liberal Party pollies getting their jollies in Parliament House and generally harassing some of their women peers in the process. The National Party occasionally gets called out, too. Not a good look, boys. I wouldn’t go so far as to call them ‘mates’. ScoMo, the PM (a.k.a. ‘Slow Mo’ and ‘Scotty from Marketing’) is not exactly helping himself or the situation, either. I could be more pointed about the matter, and I will later in this piece. But for now, we want to look at what is going on in the Aussie chart, and if there is anything in particular that would indicate such a trend over the years. (I’ve heard a lot of goss on the subject, having lived there for almost 20 years. And no, I won’t be telling stories. This piece isn’t about prurient curiosity.) Continue reading “ScoMo’s ‘women problems’”

Posted on

The Ever Given incident (final report at end)

The Ever Given is a huge container ship, Japanese-built, owned and operated by the Taiwanese company Evergreen Marine Corporation. On the 23rd of March this year the Ever Given ran aground at the Red Sea end of the Suez Canal, near Suez, clogging the canal and blocking scores of ships from transit through the canal. As of 3 Apr, with this update, the ship has been refloated and the canal cleared. The operator of the ship has apologized for the incident, and will probably have to pay out BIGLY for interruptions to shipping and for re-floating the ship. But this story is about more than a simple, if costly, shipping incident. Continue reading “The Ever Given incident (final report at end)”

Posted on

Shoigu’s workshop

I have read somewhere that when dealing with Russia, one can either speak with Lavrov or one will have to speak with Shoigu. One goes first to Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister. If talks don’t work, then one has to speak with Shoigu. Sergei Shoigu is Russian Defense Minister. Recently Shoigu and Putin spent the weekend taking in the air of the forest, most likely in Tuva, Shoigu’s home base, and Shoigu’s workshop. Apparently the man enjoys woodworking and has a nice shop, from the photos. But that is not the subject of this post. Shoigu also has charge of another ‘workshop’, and it would appear that ‘talks’ between various parties and Shoigu will soon be taking place. Continue reading “Shoigu’s workshop”

Posted on

Shoigu’s other workshop

Following from the post about Syria, we move on to consider the situation in Ukraine, and whether or not Ukrainian and NATO partners would rather speak with Lavrov or with Shoigu. It would appear at the moment that Ukrainians, at least the ones in power in Kiev and nationalist minorities, would prefer to speak with Shoigu, given the points outlined in the previous article. There is also an ulterior motive with the NATO forces – largely an Atlanticist contingent – in pushing for a conflict in eastern Ukraine. We will outline what that might be here, as well as what the astrology is showing for Ukraine, which is looking to be increasingly fractious. Continue reading “Shoigu’s other workshop”