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submitted 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) by SeventyTwoTrillion@hexbear.net to c/news@hexbear.net

Image is of Assad's presidential palace in 2013. There's more images of it in this article, though the words in it aren't worth reading.


Here is Assad's version of events. I like to imagine he's making one of those Youtuber apology videos where they sigh at the start and talk in a chastised yet somewhat defensive tone of voice.

As terrorism spread across Syria and ultimately reached Damascus on the evening of Saturday 7th December 2024, questions arose about the president's fate and whereabouts. This occurred amidst a flood of misinformation and narratives far removed from the truth, aimed at recasting international terrorism as a liberation revolution for Syria.

At such a critical juncture in the nation’s history, where truth must take precedence, it is essential to address these distortions. Unfortunately, the prevailing circumstances at the time, including a total communication blackout for security reasons, delayed the release of this statement. This does not replace a detailed account of the events that unfolded, which will be provided when the opportunity allows.

First, my departure from Syria was neither planned nor did it occur during the final hours of the battles, as some have claimed. On the contrary, I remained in Damascus, carrying out my duties until the early hours of Sunday 8th December 2024. As terrorist forces infiltrated Damascus, I moved to Latakia in co-ordination with our Russian allies to oversee combat operations. Upon arrival at the Hmeimim airbase that morning, it became clear that our forces had completely withdrawn from all battle lines and that the last army positions had fallen. As the field situation in the area continued to deteriorate, the Russian military base itself came under intensified attack by drone strikes.

With no viable means of leaving the base, Moscow requested that the base’s command arrange an immediate evacuation to Russia on the evening of Sunday 8th December. This took place a day after the fall of Damascus following the collapse of the final military positions and the resulting paralysis of all remaining state institutions.

At no point during these events did I consider stepping down or seeking refuge, nor was such a proposal made by any individual or party. The only course of action was to continue fighting against the terrorist onslaught.

I reaffirm that the person who, from the very first day of the war, refused to barter the salvation of his nation for personal gain, or to compromise his people in exchange for numerous offers and enticements is the same person who stood alongside the officers and soldiers of the army on the front lines, just metres from terrorists in the most dangerous and intense battlefields. He is the same person who, during the darkest years of the war, did not leave but remained with his family alongside his people, confronting terrorism under bombardment and the recurring threats of terrorist incursions into the capital over 14 years of war. Furthermore, the person who has never abandoned the resistance in Palestine and Lebanon, nor betrayed his allies who stood by him, cannot possibly be the same person who would forsake his own people or betray the army and nation to which he belongs.

I have never sought positions for personal gain but have always considered myself as a custodian of a national project, supported by the faith of the Syrian people, who believed in its vision. I have carried an unwavering conviction in their will and ability to protect the state, defend its institutions, and uphold their choices to the very last moment.

When the state falls into the hands of terrorism and the ability to make a meaningful contribution is lost, any position becomes void of purpose, rendering its occupation meaningless. This does not, in any way, diminish my profound sense of belonging to Syria and her people – a bond that remains unshaken by any position or circumstance. It is a belonging filled with hope that Syria will once again be free and independent.


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The bulletins site is here!
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Israel-Palestine Conflict

If you have evidence of Israeli crimes and atrocities that you wish to preserve, there is a thread here in which to do so.

Sources on the fighting in Palestine against Israel. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:

UNRWA reports on Israel's destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.

English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news.
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.

English-language PalestineResist telegram channel.
More telegram channels here for those interested.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict

Sources:

Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
Simplicius, who publishes on Substack. Like others, his political analysis should be soundly ignored, but his knowledge of weaponry and military strategy is generally quite good.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.

Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.

Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:

Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.

https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.

Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:

Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.


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[-] Hohsia@hexbear.net 82 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Another school shooting

I’m sure that’s great news for the bourgeois who are glad the ruling class is no longer being targeted and we’re back to our regularly scheduled hell world programming

[-] supafuzz@hexbear.net 60 points 2 days ago

Abundant Life Christian School, the irony

one-star google maps review, "not as abundant as advertised"

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[-] Redcuban1959@hexbear.net 48 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Live updates: Abundant Life Christian School Shooter was a 17-year-old female student, official tells AP

A teenage student opened fire at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday, killing a teacher and another teenage student in the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said. Victims: A teacher and a teen student were killed in the shooting by a fellow student, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said in a press conference Monday afternoon. Six other students are being treated at local hospitals, with two in critical condition.

Shortly after the shooting, the school's Facebook page posted, stating that they had had an active shooter incident and were asking for prayers.

Shooter: The shooter was a 17-year-old female student, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. Police in Madison, Wisconsin, said the shooter apparently was dead by suicide when officers arrived. Location: The shooting took place at the nondenominational Abundant Life Christian School, which has about 390 students, from kindergarten through high school, according to its website.

[-] AOCapitulator@hexbear.net 46 points 2 days ago

I think this is the first female school shooter I've heard of

[-] PaulSmackage@hexbear.net 39 points 2 days ago

Brenda Spencer, the topic of the Boomtown Rats song "I Don't Like Mondays", did it back in 1979. I think she might be the first?

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[-] miz@hexbear.net 28 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

looked it up and apparently there have only ever been 4 mass shootings (defined as 4 or more victims) that were done by a woman. this might be number 5

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[-] mkultrawide@hexbear.net 32 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Looking at some of what's been released that is claimed to be by her, it seems like she might have been some sort of femcel nazi groyper (???), but it's still a but early to say definitively.

[-] Florn@hexbear.net 40 points 2 days ago

As someone who went to one of these nondenominational schools, I'm interested to see what comes out about the school down the line.

[-] Thorngraff_Ironbeard@hexbear.net 35 points 2 days ago

They are all either scams or Pedophile rings or both.

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[-] totalyNOTaPIRATE@hexbear.net 95 points 3 days ago

Wtf

Democrats eye Harris 2028 presidential run as they devise political comeback Party aides are confident in US vice-president’s ability to bounce back, including a bid for California governor emocratic party aides have begun to float ideas for a Kamala Harris political comeback, reportedly eyeing another run at the US’s highest office even as the party continues to grapple with the electoral messages contained in the vice-president’s decisive defeat in November’s White House race against Donald Trump.

Harris, who has reportedly not ruled out a second run for the presidency, is now reported to be considering a run for the California governorship, currently held until 2027 by Gavin Newsom. Newsom was a rumoured presidential contender during the chaotic summer that saw Joe Biden step down from a rematch with Trump – whom he defeated in the 2020 election – and then endorse Harris as his replacement.

According to the Washington Post on Monday, some Democratic party aides believe Trump – who, among other things, overcame a criminal conviction and other such charges to win – has sufficiently overturned the norms of losing White House candidates’ not attempting a second bite at the proverbial apple to give Harris the opportunity of a repeat bid in 2028, this time for the full cycle.

“Since Donald Trump has rewritten the rules – the norms – I don’t believe Kamala Harris or anyone should try to go with precedent, ever,” said Donna Brazile, a Harris ally, Al Gore 2000 presidential campaign manager and political commentator. “There are no rule books.”

Molly Murphy, a pollster who worked on the both the Biden and Harris campaigns, told the outlet: “The rules potentially don’t apply this time, and she still absolutely could have a mulligan because of the unique circumstances of this race and the candidate switch.

“But I don’t think it will be a given.”

The sentiment that Harris could make another bid for the White House comes as the Democratic party is sculpting an argument that her loss to Trump was not as comprehensive as has been popularly portrayed. She emerged from her three-month, $1.5bn campaign with higher approval ratings than she entered it, according to the political website 538, though she lost the electoral college 312-226 and became the first of three candidates to lose the popular vote to Trump.

“She is ending this race in a very different place than other nominees that have lost,” one Harris adviser told the outlet. “Her approval is higher. People were very happy with the race that she ran.”

Supporters further point to unequal political consequences for male and female candidates following a ballot box loss. Hillary Clinton did not attempt another run after losing to Trump in 2016, handing the Democratic torch to one-term president Biden.

Debbie Walsh, director of the center for American women and politics at Rutgers University, told the Post, “landing in general has kind of been harder for women”, noting that women who served at state level positions “don’t get the soft landing of a position in a law firm that allows them to regroup and earn some money and maybe run for something else. They struggle a bit.”

But as Harris considers her future – husband Doug Emhoff is returning to entertainment law – donors and supporters in California, where she served as a US senator and state attorney general, are pushing for a run for governor in 2026 to replace who would then be the outgoing, term-limited Newsom.

“The people that drove that conversation – within 18 minutes of the election being called – was the finance team,” one Harris confidante told the outlet.

If Harris, who beat Trump by 20 points in California, runs for and wins the governorship, she would become the nation’s first Black female governor, a considerable consolation prize.

But other Democrats are also considering both races. For president, Newsom as well as fellow governors JB Pritzker of Illinois and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan are said to be getting into position.

Harris campaign aides acknowledge the competition but say her name recognition, coupled with donors and experience as well as a conviction that she was dragged by Biden’s unpopularity, opens the starting gate for a comeback.

It’s almost Shakespearean that Joe Biden didn’t just kill his own campaign – he killed hers, too,” a Harris campaign adviser told the Post.

Meanwhile, California congresswoman Katie Porter, a potential state governor candidate, diplomatically told the outlet: “I am certain that everyone will want to support Kamala Harris in continuing to serve this country.”

Harris herself has not revealed her thinking but is said to be “processing” her loss and plans to “stay in the fight”.

“The fight that fueled our campaign – a fight for freedom and opportunity – that did not end on November 5,” Harris said on a call with donors and supporters in November.

Harris ultimately used the word “fight” 19 times during that call.

That last sentence killed me inside. My day is ruined.

[-] WeedReference420@hexbear.net 68 points 2 days ago

Democrats eye Harris 2028 presidential run

Electoral human wave tactics

[-] hotcouchguy@hexbear.net 70 points 2 days ago

If the candidate in front of you drops dead, pick up their PAC and continue fundraising!

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[-] Alaskaball@hexbear.net 70 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Harris, who has reportedly not ruled out a second run for the presidency,

This was her second run, are they saying she's contesting the election or that the libs are just trying to erase the fact Harris was so absurdly unpopular she dropped out of the 2016 primaries before the first delegate casted their vote at ~~Idaho?~~ ~~Indiana?~~ ~~Illinois?~~ Iowa?

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[-] 187_Invitation@hexbear.net 41 points 2 days ago

The US-led mediation efforts to declare a permanent truce in the Manbij and Kobani regions were unsuccessful.

The US-led mediation efforts to declare a permanent truce in the Manbij and Kobani regions were unsuccessful due to Turkey's approach in dealing with the mediation efforts and its evasion to accept key points. These points included the transfer of remaining Manbij Military Council fighters and civilians wishing to move to safer areas within north and eastern Syria, as well as the resolution of the issue concerning the transfer of Suleiman Shah's remains to their former location. Despite US efforts to stop the war, Turkey and its mercenary militias have continued to escalate over the last period. SDF Media Center

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[-] Boise_Idaho@hexbear.net 68 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

🇲🇱Biggest Lithium plant in Africa, unveiled in Mali:
https://xcancel.com/cecild84/status/1868657869702201691

Yesterday, Mali Inaugurated , the largest lithium production mine in Africa, and the fifth in the world, the new "Lithium Mali SA" plant opened its doors in Goulamina, in the Bougouni region, Mali. The ceremony took place under the chairmanship of the President of the Transition, Army General Assimi GOÏTA, accompanied by members of the government, the president of the National Transitional Council (CNT), and in the presence of local and traditional authorities. The Chinese Ambassador to Mali, CHEN Zhihong, as well as the Chairman and CEO of the Ganfing company, Wang Xiao SHEN, also attended this event.

In his speech, the President of the Transition, HE General Assimi Goïta, stressed the importance of this new infrastructure for Mali, emphasizing that this project, the result of profound reforms in the mining sector, constitutes a major step forward in the exploitation of the country's natural resources. The Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces expressed his satisfaction to see this project, eagerly awaited by Malians, particularly those in Bougouni and its surroundings, come to fruition. Concerning the expected economic benefits, the General announced an initial turnover of 680 billion FCFA, which will stimulate the national economy. The dividends from the mine, estimated at 71 billion FCFA, will be shared between the State (30%) and the private sector (5%). An investment of 25 billion FCFA is also planned for community projects, such as roads, health centers, schools and energy infrastructure. This project will create thousands of jobs, thus contributing to a significant reduction in unemployment and better employability of young people. The President of the Transition praised the "strategic and sincere" cooperation between Mali and China, thanking the Chinese company Ganfing for its commitment to respect Malian laws and support the socio-economic development of local communities.

This project required an investment of more than 300 billion FCFA and should generate more than 150 billion FCFA each year for the Malian state.

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this post was submitted on 16 Dec 2024
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