Welcome to The Now

 A follow-up on a previous post : First Israel tried to outright ban the "Arab parties" (read: the Palestinians), arguing that "outside" influence impacted the elections. This was eventually overturned by their Supreme Court . The backlash from the ban attempt led both the opposition party and the "Arab parties" to attack Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party.  For what it's worth, Israeli Officials have more or less dismissed the Likud Party's claim and said that the election results will stand . I find it very, very rich that the world is now in an political mindscape where the losing party/faction is claiming electoral interference from outside forces. In the United States, it's Russia or China. "Muslims" are being blamed for the protests in France. The UK cites outsiders for the birth of groups like Palestine Action. And then there's South America... But if we're being honest, there's only a few countries/nations with...

 

  Via the BBC : A modelling scout linked to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has been found dead at his home. Daniel Siad, 69, was discovered on Monday in Colombes, a north-west suburb of Paris, the Nanterre prosecutor's office confirmed to the BBC. [SNIP] Siad's name appeared thousands of times in the Epstein files released by the US government. He had previously denied any knowledge of the threat that Epstein posed. Here's another (French-based) story on Siad's passing: Also, here's a video of Siad giving his account on his relationship with Epstein:

  Via the BBC : Indonesia says it is preparing up to 8,000 soldiers for deployment to Gaza, the first country to do so as part of phase two of the ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States late last year. The army chief of staff, General Maruli Simanjuntak, said training for the soldiers had already begun, and that they would focus on medical and engineering roles in Gaza. Indonesia has joined President Donald Trump's Board of Peace, which was announced last month. It has a mandate from the United Nations Security Council to establish an International Stabilization Force (ISF), which will help secure border areas in Gaza and ensure the territory's demilitarisation, including the disarmament of Hamas. The board, which is due to have its first meeting in Washington on 19 February, will also oversee a new technocratic Palestinian government in Gaza and post-war reconstruction. The timing of the Indonesian troop deployment and their exact role in Gaza have not yet been fina...

Sigh. First the bad news : TikTok keeps track of everything you do on its app – no surprises there. What's less obvious is how the company follows you around other parts of the internet that have nothing to do with TikTok.  In fact, TikTok collects sensitive and potentially embarrassing information about you even if you've never used the app. Over the past week, I've watched websites sending TikTok data about cancer diagnoses, fertility and even mental health crises. It's part of a tracking empire that extends far beyond the social media platform. Now, thanks to a new set of features, TikTok is poised to expand its network and see even more details about your life. The change comes just weeks after the sale of TikTok's US operations to a group of companies with ties to US President Donald Trump. The deal has led to fresh privacy concerns from some human rights experts and users, though TikTok says it has transparent guidelines on how it responds to government reques...

 

 

 When e veryone's a "Hamas ally" (or the United States case, a drug dealer) anything can be justified . NOTE: The Hamas members who where there were invited under the premise of negotiating a deal with Israel. So to infer that the reason that this location was attacked because "evil Hamas" was around is very disingenuous.  

  BBC : the 30-year-old baby (hint: frozen embryo).  The Hill : President Trump wants a $200 million White House renovation. The Times of Israel : (flashback) AOC's true political origins.  Reuters : Should the CEO of Intel resign because of ties to China?

 When you're indebted to the West and decide to not  play ball, you get a quick lesson on how much power you really have...

  Novara Media has more:

 Guess Harry and Meghan weren't just blowing smoke about the racial climate in England, huh?

So yes Sudan is in conflict , and that is taking it's toll on the country . 

 

  Apparently , the United States government have realized that all of these bombs being sold to Israel is mysteriously being used on all Palestinians, and not just the "threat of Hamas:" The US last week paused a bomb shipment for Israel over concerns it was going ahead with a major ground operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, a senior US administration official said. The shipment consisted of 1,800 2,000lb (907kg) bombs and 1,700 500lb bombs, the official told the BBC. Israel has not "fully addressed" US concerns over humanitarian needs of civilians in Rafah, the official said. An Israeli military official appeared to play down the US move. Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari told a news conference that the US had provided "unprecedented" security assistance since the beginning of the war, adding that disputes between the allies were resolved "behind closed doors in a matter-of-fact way". "We are responsible for the securi...

  It takes a lot of stones to lecture a country that your country had colonized on environmentalism. 

 The BBC may come off as civil and objective, but their ties to the state (in this case, Great Britain) runs deep. 

As Secular Talk explains.