Author: Mikhail Bogdanov

“They were plotting to kill a huge number, tens of thousands of people at this concert, I am sure many Americans,” CIA Deputy Director David S. Cohen said “Tens of thousands” of fans were the target of a thwarted terrorist attempt at Taylor Swift’s recent Vienna shows, a CIA official told reporters on Wednesday, Aug. 28. CIA Deputy Director David S. Cohen shared new details of the thwarted terror plot that canceled all three of the 34-year-old pop star’s planned Eras Tour concerts in Austria earlier this month during the annual Intelligence Summit just outside Washington, D.C., reports The New York Times and NBC News. “They…

Washington/Vienna/Berlin (10/8 – 45.45)After a tip-off by U.S. intelligence officials and only a few hours left Austrian police made swift arrests. The plot seems too bizarre not to be true. Abul Baraa, aka Ahmad Armih, the German based hate-preacher in Berlin radicalized via Tik-tok or Istagram a 19-year Beran A. to swear the oath of alliance to the Islamic State. After a tip-off by U.S. intelligence officials and only a few hours left Austrian police made swift arrests. The plot seems too bizarre not to be true. Abul Baraa, aka Ahmad Armih, the German based hate-preacher in Berlin radicalized via…

Once worn by political prisoners in Nazi camps, the symbol has recently been associated with Hamas, but also with pro-Palestinian activism. Opinion is divided on whether Germany is justified in mulling a ban. A target, a sign of resistance, a badge of honor, a Nazi-era symbol — the inverted red triangle means many things to many people. The upside-down triangle appeared in videos released by the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, to mark potential Israeli military targets, such as tanks, shortly after the Israeli invasion of Gaza. The European Union as well as the United States, Germany and several other countries have…

While Russia’s army is bogged down in Ukraine, its mercenaries are faring no better in Africa. In late July 2024, mercenaries from the the Wagner Group, a Moscow-aligned private military company, accompanied the Malian army in what the Malian regime called a “stabilization operation” in the West African country’s northeastern town of Tinzaouaten, near the Algerian border. That mission quickly went sideways when fighting broke out between that coalition and rebels from the Permanent Strategic Framework, an ethnically Tuareg separatist group. In retreat, Wagner and Malian forces were ambushed by militants from the al-Qaida affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, or JNIM. Upward of 80 Wagner personnel…

Warner Music Group (WMG) has announced a new structure for its Recorded Music operations, with industry vet Simon Robson now in charge of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. According to the company, the move is to better support artists, connect local expertise with global opportunities, and drive growth. Robson, appointed as WMG’s president of international recorded music in 2020, began his Warner Music career in 1998 as director of finance for the Asia Pacific region. After working at Warner Music Japan, he became VP of operations and finance for Europe in 2004. He served as COO and CFO of…

Sarawak’s pioneer cheese producer Green Valley Dairy Farm in Lawas is poised to export its products, including its buffalo milk Mozzarella cheese, to international markets, said state Deputy Minister of Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Ismail. He said this is in line with the desire to make Lawas a hub for the production of Mozzarella cheese, which is known as the best cheese in the world. “Green Valley has already linked up with buyers from the Middle East and Africa as well as Europe for export purposes through the global trade network in Dubai,” he…

Israel’s officials are contemplating the possibility of initiating a preemptive attack on Iran if there is a threat of an imminent strike from Tehran. Israel’s officials are contemplating the possibility of initiating a preemptive attack on Iran if there is a threat of an imminent strike from Tehran, as reported by the Times of Israel on Monday. “Israel would consider launching a preemptive strike to deter Iran if it uncovered airtight evidence that Tehran was preparing to mount an attack,” the Israeli newspaper stated. According to Times of Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gathered Israel’s top security officials for a meeting on…

EU chief nuclear negotiator Enrique Mora attended Pezeshkian’s formal inauguration but there were no high-level delegations from EU countries Another casualty of the alleged Israeli strike that assassinated the leader of Hamas’ political wing while he was in Tehran for the inauguration of Iran’s new president could well be the prospect of renewed Iranian diplomacy with the U.S. and the European Union. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed revenge for what Iran sees as a direct and brazen attack on its sovereignty. A further escalation of tensions between Iran and its “Axis of Resistance” and Israel and its allies would force Europeans…

Disney plans to spend at least $1 billion every year in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Africa over the next five years to produce movies and TV shows, a company spokesperson told Reuters today. The company will commit the amount across films, Disney+, National Geographic and other TV productions, the spokesperson added in an emailed statement. Disney’s plans could build on the recent success of films like “Inside Out 2” and the company’s television business. “Inside Out 2” notched $1.6 billion in global ticket sales and “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which debuted in the current quarter, has brought in…

China and Tajikistan on Friday announced the elevation of ties to comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ongoing state visit to Tajikistan, injecting new momentum and opening up a new chapter in bilateral ties and common development of the two countries. The visit, which saw Xi award Tajik President Emomali Rahmon the Friendship Medal of the People’s Republic of China and the issuing of a joint statement detailing the blueprint for bilateral cooperation, is seen as a landmark event, underscoring the high-quality development and the elevation of bilateral ties led by head-of-state diplomacy, analysts said. It showed that the…