Author: yreape

There are reports that Khalifa Hafta’s forces were involved in the heavy shelling of a district in Tripoli, Libya recently. Hafta formerly fought with Colonel Gadaffi. Oil was discovered in Libya in 1959 according to reports. King Idris of Libya had entered into an allegiance with the British who is thought to have represented their interests during negotiations with Italians concerning Cyrenacia which may have become part of Libya as a result, and other states.
Muammar Gadaffi became leader of Libya following a reportedly bloodless military coup. The Libyan Arab Republic was established with the motto freedom, socialism and unity. The new regime was anti-colonialism and as such was criticised.
Deteriorating relations with the west culminated in the 1986 US bombing of Libya. An as called government of national accord was established in 2015 which is now the authority in Libya and is known to be a u.n. initiative. This has led to warring factions. The as called first Libyan civil war resulted in the death of Colonel Gadaffi. The current crisis being termed the second Libyan civil war. Factions loyal to Colonel Gadaffi are fighting for control of Libya’s oil.

Two people were shot according to news during recent protests in Hong Kong. A policeman with gun in hand was grappling with a man when another masked man approached. He was shot in the chest. This was followed by another shooting. There appeared to be three policeman in all, in the area who were outnumbered.
The protests are said to have started because of the introduction of a bill allowing extradition to mainland China. The protesters are believed to be pro-democracy.

What was termed the iron curtain demarked east and western Europe, from the end of world war II until 1990 when the Berlin wall, which seperated east and west Germany, began to be dismantled by the German military.
In 1989, a series of revolutions in eastern europe marked the end of the Soviet Union. German reunification took place in 1990. Since then many east German factories have shut down leading to mass unemployment and complaints that the young have little opportunities other than joining the German armed forces. East German street and place names commemorating socialist heroes have gradually been replaced.

There is news of Sam Rainsey, the leader of the opposition in exile, Cambodia, being prevented from boarding a Thai airways plane because of plans to re-enter Cambodia for talks. Most of his followers have been arrested for sharing Facebook posts in favour of his return.
Cambodia officially dropped its socialist principles in favour of capitalism around 1992. The u.n
transitional authority in Cambodia was in operation from 1992-93 following the 1991 Paris peace accord which can be traced back to 1968 and efforts to end the war in Vietnam, a war against colonialism. What followed was the International commission of control and supervision.
Between 1969-73 Cambodia was bombed by South Vietnam and the US. An invasion by north Vietnam, and political differences led to many deaths. Many more died of starvation in the years that followed inspite of an enforced migration of the population to the countryside in order to further self-sufficiency.
Prime minister Hun Sen is reported to be opposed to further u.n. trials concerning the war. There may be a movement towards Cambodian unity.

The President of Brazil since January 2019, Jair Bolsonaro, a retired military officer, proceded two former presidents, one of which was impeached and removed from office, and the other, Michel Temer, was arrested in March of this year. Whereabouts unknown.
The charges relating to Michel Temer are supposed money laundering, and Luis Lula de Silva who was president from 2003-2010 was charged alongside him. According to news, de Silva should be released shortly.
Money laundering is the concealing of ill gotten gains for instance, by way of small deposits that won’t arouse suspicion. Another example is the use of off shore accounts, although modern phenomena such as the seizing and freezing of assets make off shore accounts a safe alternative.
The accusations against de Silva appear to focus around the purchase of two properties.
Current president Jair Bolsonaro is discussing the economy on Twitter. Brazil is known to have the largest economy in South America yet remains poor. It has been the subject of controversy lately, being blamed for forest fires. Western media has blamed the Brazillian government. Others believe political components may be at work. There is a suspicion that crops have been severely damaged in this way.

Current protests in Iraq may be due to an ailing economy. The 1916 Sykes-Picot agreement defined the spheres of control and influence in Iraq and beyond, instigating the eventual partition of the middle east; and according to legislation by Britain and France with assent from the Russian empire and Italy.
At the end of world war I, Britain selected administrators in Iraq from the Sunni Arab elite which, according to some beliefs, was the beginning of a fateful alliance.
Relations are ambiguous since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, that is, diplomatic relations have not been severed on an elite level inspite of the slaughter on the ground.
Current protests in Iraq began in early October. An Iraqi woman spoke to Western contingents on film saying, “You steal from us, we will fight, men and women together.”

Romania is a south eastern European country. It borders Bulgaria, Hungary, Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine. The end of communism in Europe began spontaneously in 1989. The Romanian revolution of that year culminated with the execution of Nicolae Ceauşescu, a Romanian communist politician and leader, and his wife Elena.
Austerity policies which were introduced in the 1980’s may have been a factor, supposedly to pay foreign debt although previously the country had a good economy reported to be growing at one of the fastest rates in the world. There is a belief that Romania was a victim of exploitation.
The treaty of Bucharest, 1913 marked the end of sovereignty for Romania. Communist rule began in 1947 with a reported coup, deposing Michael I, who’s cousins are said to be both queen Elizabeth II and her husband, who formerly held the title of prince of Greece and Denmark.
In 2004 OMV Austria acquired 51% of Romanian Petrom, said to be the largest acquisition in their history. OMV are now thought to be market leaders in central and eastern Europe. Romanian Petrom is listed as a subsidiary. OMV’s net income in 2017 was reported to be 853 million euros.
Despite Romania being one of the best performing economies in Europe in 2017, it remains mainly underdeveloped. It has been criticised by the world bank for not allocating its resources to politically connected contingents: Supposed land reforms after 1989 are reported to have constituted the allocation of small farms to people who fought on the side of the, as called national salvation front who seized power after the death of Nicolae and Elena Ceauşescu, both who died by firing squad.
The prime minister of Romania since 2018 is Viorica Dăncilă who is said to be head of government, although the president represents the country internationally and the judiciary being independant of both the executive and legislator.

Protesting Lebanese citizens, according to Western news, are complaining about government corruption. It might be the world bank want to charge Lebanon for restructuring work which has been the subject of controversy. Lebanon is described by western media as being on the brink of collapse.
The borders of contemporary Lebanon correspond to the ancient Phoenican city states. Following the collapse of the Ottoman empire after the first world war, Lebanon became the subject of a league of Nations mandate. The mandate is reported to differ from colonialism in that the governing country is given the power to act as administrators until such a time as Lebanon becomes independant. Various documented wars have been about soveregnity.

An attack on a military base in the middle of the Sahara, in Mali, began with shellfire from heavily armed unidentified men according to news. Fifty three soldiers and one civillian are believed to have been killed before the attackers retreated.
The military presence in Mali is a u.n. security council initiative and multi dimensional. This has resulted in various insurrections in the mineral rich region. Around twenty people were killed last month on a gold mining site in nearby Burkina Faso bringing the total death toll believed to be 204 out of an estimated 15,000 u.n. peace keepers deployed in the region:
Mali, formerly Sudan, is believed to be the third largest producer of gold in Africa.

What is described by some as the Armenian genocide refers to the massacres and supposed forced deportation of hundreds of thousands of Armenians during the first world war.
A series of Muslim Arab armies conquered the area from the middle ages culminating in the Ottomon dynasty which ruled Eastern Armenia. Western Armenia was part of the Russian empire from 1828.
Russia entered the first world war against Germany in 1914.
An estimated million and a half, said to be mainly Christian Armenians were killed by Ottoman forces who backed Germany, from about 1914-1917. Many are reported to have had their properties consficated and were marched away to various areas. There were accusations of atrocities.
Present day Armenians are believed to be local to the highlands of Armenia, then Eastern Armenia. Muslim Kurds in present day Armenia are recognised as Armenian and assimilated. Conversion to Islam in the middle east is thought to have been mandatory. There may be around 37,000 Kurdish people living in Armenia according to some statistics, and an estimated 30-40 million worldwide, fourteen million living in what is sometimes known as Kurdish Turkey and used to be western Armenia.