MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT: Societal Chaos And Civilizations Unraveling - At Least 16 Injured In Jerusalem Bus Explosion! [PHOTOS + VIDEOS]

Twitter: Danny Swibel

April 18, 2016 - JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - A bus has exploded in Jerusalem, leaving around 16 casualties, Israeli media report, citing emergency medical services.

The massive explosion occurred in Hebron Way, west Jerusalem, with police citing "a militant attack" as the probable cause of the blast.

Multiple social media posts show smoke coming out of the burned-out bus, which is standing in the middle of the road.

Initial reports indicated there were 20 casualties. Now Jerusalem Post reports 16 people were injured in the blast, with two injured "seriously," one "moderately," and five "lightly." The newspapers cite sources in the Magen David Adom emergency service.

Some of the injured were evacuated to Jerusalem's Shaare Zedek Medical Center. Others were taken to Hadassah Hospital nearby.

The bus was reportedly not carrying any passengers when it exploded, an Israel Police spokesperson said, as cited in the media. The casualties were apparently due to being close to the blast.

“When I arrived at the scene I saw two buses going up in flames and about 10 causalities among them, one who was mortally wounded and another in serious condition,” Mickey Cohen, head of the Jerusalem emergency response service, told Haaretz.

#BREAKING: Explosion on bus in #Jerusalem. Initial reports of at least 20 injured pic.twitter.com/qL9BuDdsPT

— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) April 18, 2016

Smoke from Jerusalem bus blast pic.twitter.com/lvKRg93sBD

— Dan Williams (@DanWilliams) April 18, 2016

At least 16 wounded, two seriously, in #Jerusalem bus blast. Updates: https://t.co/cvbpVKNC4I pic.twitter.com/RxhHqkW4QU

— Haaretz.com (@haaretzcom) April 18, 2016

Jerusalem district police say the bus could have been blown up by an explosive device or targeted by a suicide bomber who detonated the device inside the bus, according to news outlet Arutz Sheva.

Eugenia Ugrinovich, a freelance journalist in Jerusalem, has told RT that the police confirmed "there was an explosive device at the back of the bus that caused [the] fire," saying the casualties were suffering from injuries typical for an explosion.

She added that Jerusalem will be on high alert with security tightened in public places for days to come. The bus blast was the first since 2012, Ugrinovich said, adding that lone-wolf attacks like this are very difficult to prevent and will surely happen again in future.

According to the police, the bus departed from the southern part of the city and arrived at Moshe Baram Street, when apparently an explosion was heard and the bus caught fire.

Suicide attacks on Israeli buses took place regularly in the early 2000s, and became a hallmark of the Palestinian uprising. In March 2002, a suicide bomber blew himself up inside a bus in Jerusalem, leaving 25 injured. Several months later, another suicide bomb attack on a bus in northern Israel killed 17 and injured 43, most of them IDF soldiers.

Violence between Israelis and Palestinians has abated somewhat recently after a series of stabbing attacks last year. At least 21 Israelis and 131 Palestinians were killed in that spike of violence. In early January, at least two people were killed and several others injured following a shooting at a bar in central Tel Aviv.

פיגוע בי-ם: פיצוץ באוטובוס ריק, אוטובוס לידו גם עלה באש שם נפצעו 2 קשה 3 בינוני 5 קל.
צילום מדברים תקשורת pic.twitter.com/NBOpLx3Zu6

— אלי שלזינגר (@leizersh) April 18, 2016

The gunman was described by an eyewitness as being "light-skinned and not Eastern looking," and as carrying an M-16. Further reports said the shooter, identified as 29-year-old Nashad Milkham, reportedly stole the gun from his father, who worked in the security industry.

The blast aboard the bus was caused by a bomb, Brachie Sprung, a spokeswoman for Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat, told Reuters: "It was small, but it was definitely a bomb."


WATCH: Jerusalem bus explosion.

Police say the bus explosion was a terror attack after bomb disposal experts found parts of an explosive device at the scene.

Ruslan Kandaurov, head of the Russian Embassy’s consular section, has told TASS that one of the people injured in the blast is an Israeli-Russian dual national, who is presently “in moderate condition.”

Jonathan Hessen, a political analyst in Israel, told RT that Hamas has already claimed responsibility for the attack, carried out in response "for the atrocities, as they put it, committed by the State of Israel towards Al-Aqsa mosque and the Temple Mount." He said that Israeli leadership is committed to retaliate against any threat to citizens, but added that it will not necessarily escalate tensions between Israelis and Palestinians. - RT.

DOOMSDAY: The Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists - The Threat Of OBLIVION Pits Humanity At 'THREE MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT" On Doomsday Clock!

6th November 1952: Characteristic mushroom shaped cloud begins formation after the first H-Bomb explosion (US) at Eniwetok Atoll in the Pacific
Three Lions/Getty Images

January 28, 2016 - UNITED STATES - Humanity is still terrifying close to wiping itself out, according to one of the world's most senior group of experts.

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, which sets the widely-respected "Doomsday Clock", said that it was making no change to the time of three minutes to midnight. When that time was set in a meeting last year, it became the closest to oblivion that humanity has ever been.

The group of senior scientists, formed in the wake of the Second World War and the threat of nuclear oblivion, said that nobody should take solace in the fact that humanity has moved no closer to oblivion.""Three minutes (to midnight) is too close," a statement from the Bulletin read. "Far too close."We, the members of the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, want to be clear about our decision not to move the hands of the Doomsday Clock in 2016: That decision is not good news, but an expression of dismay that world leaders continue to fail to focus their efforts and the world's attention on reducing the extreme danger posed by nuclear weapons and climate change.

"When we call these dangers existential, that is exactly what we mean: They threaten the very existence of civilization and therefore should be the first order of business for leaders who care about their constituents and their countries."

Experts at The Bulletin noted the success of deals with Iran on nuclear weapons, and in Paris on climate change. But they said that continuing and new threats from countries like North Korea served as a balance to that progress.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board have since published an open letter to the governments of the world
announcing that the clock will remain at 11:57 for another year.

"Even as the Iran agreement was hammered out, tensions between the United States and Russia rose to levels reminiscent of the worst periods of the Cold War," The Bulletin wrote. "Conflict in Ukraine and Syria continued, accompanied by dangerous bluster and brinkmanship, with Turkey, a NATO member, shooting down a Russian warplane involved in Syria, the director of a state-run Russian news agency making statements about turning the United States to radioactive ash, and NATO and Russia repositioning military assets and conducting significant exercises with them.

"Washington and Moscow continue to adhere to most existing nuclear arms control agreements, but the United States, Russia, and other nuclear weapons countries are engaged in programs to modernize their nuclear arsenals, suggesting that they plan to keep and maintain the readiness of their nuclear weapons for decades, at least -- despite their pledges, codified in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, to pursue nuclear disarmament."

The Paris climate talks offered some hope, the experts wrote. But they did little about the already dire effects of climate change on the environment.

"Promising though it may be, the Paris climate agreement came toward the end of Earth's warmest year on record, with the increase in global temperature over pre-industrial levels surpassing one degree Celsius," The Bulletin's statement says. - Independent.

DOOMSDAY: Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists To Announce What Time It Is On The Doomsday Clock On Wednesday - Will The Minute Hand Advance Closer To Midnight?!

January 25, 2016 - UNITED STATES - We will find out how close we are to Armageddon when the world’s most revered scientists gather in Washington DC to announce what time it is on the Doomsday Clock.

The symbolic timekeeper of our impending destruction is currently set at three minutes to midnight — the closest we have ever been to that dreaded hour since the clock began ticking in 1947.

The clock is a universally recognised indicator of our vulnerability to catastrophe from nuclear weapons, emerging technologies and more recently, global warming. We ignore it at our peril.

On Wednesday morning (1.30pm Tuesday in America), the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists will reveal whether the minute hand will be adjusted, at a live press conference in Washington DC.

Tick tock: The world will find out today whether the Doomsday Clock, currently set at three minutes to midnight, will inch closer to the hour of the apocalypse ...

Will the clock move forward a minute — or two — or remain at three minutes to midnight (still not good)?

“Tensions between the United States and Russia that remain at levels reminiscent of the Cold War, the danger posed by climate change, and nuclear proliferation concerns, including the recent North Korean nuclear test, are the main factors influencing the decision about any adjustment that may be made to the Doomsday Clock,” a statement on the Bulletin’s website said.

“In January 2015, the Doomsday Clock’s minute hand advanced two minutes, moving from five to three minutes before midnight, the closest it has been to catastrophe since the early days of above-ground hydrogen bomb testing.”

Last year’s dramatic shift towards midnight prompted the group — which counts 16 Nobel Laureates among its members — to pen an open letter to the world’s leaders warning immediate action must be taken to prevent a tragedy of global proportions.

“In 2015, unchecked climate change, global nuclear weapons modernisations, and outsized nuclear weapons arsenals pose extraordinary and undeniable threats to the continued existence of humanity, and world leaders have failed to act with the speed or on the scale required to protect citizens from potential catastrophe,” it wrote.

“These failures of political leadership endanger every person on Earth.”

Former US Marine Amir Hekmati speaks to the media in his home state Michigan after his release from an Iranian prison as part
of a new deal between Iran and the US aimed at developing the friendship between the two countries.Source:AP

British Prime Minister David Cameron and Russian President Vladimir Putin look uncomfortable at the G20 Turkey Leaders Summit on November 16, 2015,
Last year saw relations between Russia and the west deteriorate to Cold War levels.Source:Getty Images

The recent peace deal between Iran and the United States and progress made at the Paris climate change summit will also be taken into account in the calculations but it’s hard to say how much of a mitigating effect these positive developments will have.

BULLETIN OF THE ATOMIC SCIENTISTS — WHO ARE THEY?
The group was founded in 1945 by University of Chicago scientists who helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan Project. They named themselves the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists and in 1947 created the Doomsday Clock “using the imagery of apocalypse (midnight) and the contemporary idiom of nuclear explosion (countdown to zero) to convey threats to humanity and the planet”.

Timeline of terror

Is Jonas the blizzard actually a message from God? Picture Nathan EdwardsSource:News Corp Australia

Any adjustment to the Doomsday Clock’s minute hand is made by the Bulletin’s Board of Directors and its sponsors, which include 16 Nobel Laureates. The Clock has become a universally recognised indicator of the world’s vulnerability to catastrophe from nuclear weapons, climate change, and emerging technologies in the life sciences.

THE IMPENDING ANNOUNCEMENT FREAKING OUT ‘ENDTIMERS’
At any given moment, anywhere in the world there are a bunch of people who believe the world is about to end.

The epic blizzard Jonas is doing nothing to ease fears of America’s perpetual preppers, who are likely to be tipped over the edge if the Doomsday Clock edges any closer to midnight.

Religious “prepper” sites with names like Rapture Ready and The Endtimes Forecaster are sending readers into a frenzy with their take on Jonas and the many other unusual weather and planetary events currently affecting the world.

“As most of you are aware Jonas/Jonah was the prophet that delivered the message of coming judgment to the capital city of the Assyrians — Nineveh (in Iraq and currently occupied by Islamic State),” noted William Frederick, who runs The Endtimes Forecaster blog.

“Is God sending America a message through this storm? And if so, is the message that God is sending America; yet forty days, and judgment cometh? It is interesting to note that the Fast of Nineveh just ended on 1/20/16 and the storm formed the day after.”

Religious prepper William Frederick’s homepageSource:Supplied

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, seen delivering a speech at a national awards ceremony for nuclear scientists who contributed
to the country's January 12, 2016 nuclear test, may force the Doomsday Clock forward.Source:AFP

Doomsayers also live in fear of the months June, July and August this year when the Earth is expected to experience a polar shift. A widely held belief in the prepper community is that the Earths poles will actually flip, turning north to south on compasses, causing the sun to rise in the West and continents to lurch, triggering earthquakes and the ultimately the destruction of the world.

According to NASA, however, this is a load of rubbish. The space agency confirms the Earth’s poles are moving but stresses that we are not at risk from the phenomenon.

In fact, the magnetic north pole has inched north by more than 1100km since the early 19th century when its location was first determined by explorers. It picked up speed in the 21st century, moving at about 64km a year, compared with 16km a year in the early 20th century.

NASA says the magnetic field has flipped its polarity many times over the millennia with no dramatic effects. In the past 20 million years, the poles have reversed about every 300,000 years — though it has been twice that long since our planet experienced the last reversal. - News.

NUCLEAR FALLOUT: Bizarre Mutated Animal Found Near U.S. Nuclear Site - "It Can Only Be Described As MONSTROUS"; Fully-Formed Teeth And Extra Jaw GROWING OUT OF HEAD; Scientists Are "MYSTIFIED, STUNNED AND PUZZLED" By EXTREMELY RARE DEFORMITY; Official Says "We Haven't Seen Anything Like This Before"! [PHOTOS + VIDEO]

January 23, 2016 - IDAHO, UNITED STATES - The following is a news release from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game… The mountain lion had an unusual deformity—fully-formed teeth and what appears to be small whiskers were growing out of hard fur-covered tissue on the left side of the animal’s forehead… It is possible that the teeth could be the remnants of a conjoined twin… It is also possible that deformity was a teratoma tumor… They are rare in humans and animals. Biologists from the southeast region of Idaho Fish and Game have never seen anything like this particular deformity before… Mountain lions have large home ranges (50 to 150 square miles). - East Idaho News.



“We haven’t seen anything like this in our region” [said Idaho Fish and Game's Jennifer Jackson] The young male was killed Dec. 30 in Franklin County … “we determined something really interesting was going on.” - East Idaho News.

Mutant Mountain Lion With Horns Deformed By Idaho’s Nuclear Weapons Testing Fallout?… [It’s] head has a fairly hideous looking growth sprouting from the back of its skull… some on social media wonder if it’s possible that Idaho’s fallout from Nevada nuclear weapons testing is somehow linked to the bizarre creature… “It has all of us scratching our heads. It’s a bizarre situation and a bizarre photo,” said biologist Zach Lockyer… [S]ome on social media believe it’s possible that Idaho’s nuclear weapons testing history may be involved… [A] 2010 study by a researcher of the University of South Alabama concluded the “rates of conjoined twins and teratomas also seem to be elevated” in humans from the Chernobyl fallout… [T]hose medical conditions happen to be the two leading explanations for the deformed mountain lion… - Inquistr.

Idaho Fish and Game mystified by rare, deformed mountain lion — A mountain lion with an extremely rare deformity is a puzzling discovery for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game… [A] possibility is a teratoma tumor… and are incredibly rare… - KBOI.

State wildlife biologists have been left puzzled over a mountain lion found with teeth growing out the side of its forehead… Idaho Fish and Game biologists say they’ve never seen such a “bizarre” abnormality before. - CBS.


[It] has turned into a worldwide media sensation… [S]tories can be found on YouTube with commentators linking the deformity to radioactive forests and Atomic City, Idaho… “We had a three-headed calf,” [Local veterinarian Lincoln Mumford] said. “The calf had a jaw on one side of its head and one the other side, it had a jaw, teeth and whiskers.”… From Riverdale to the Utah border, there are just five adult cougars that [Boone Smith, a local big cat expert] knows of… - Idaho State Journal.


[W]ildlife biologists were stunned by what they saw… an abnormality local Fish and Game biologists say they have never seen before. - Idaho State Journal.


It had fully-formed teeth growing out of the top of its head… The deformity could be a “monster tumor“… [It] can only be described as bizarre, even monstrous. - CNN.


WATCH: Deformed mountain lion a mystery.

Watch other broadcasts here: KSTU | CBS

Compiled by: ENE News.

MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT: Societal Chaos And Civilizations Unraveling - Saudi Arabia And Iran Row Escalates; Spreads To Other Nations; Could the Diplomatic War Of Words Boil Over Into War?!

"That the year the Messiah will arrive when all the nations of the world will antagonize each other and threaten with war. The king of Persia (Iran) antagonizes the King of Arabia (Saudi Arabia) with war. The King of Arabia goes to Edom (The Western Countries, headed by USA) for advice. Then the King of Persia destroys the world (and since that cannot be done with conventional weapons it must mean nuclear which can destroy most of the world). And all the nations of the world begin to panic and are afraid, and Israel too is afraid as to how to defend from this. G-d then says to them “Do not fear for everything that I have done is for your benefit, to destroy the evil kingdom of Edom and eradicate evil from this world so that the Messiah can come, your time of redemption is now." - Yalkut Shimoni, 2000-Year-Old Rabbinic Literature.

January 4, 2016 - UNITED STATES - The fallout of Saudi Arabia's execution of a Shiite cleric is spreading beyond a spat between the Saudis and Iranians, as other Middle East nations chose sides Monday and world powers Russia and China weighed in.

Relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran -- two Middle Eastern powerhouses -- quickly deteriorated following Riyadh's execution of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr Saturday.

Hours after the death sentence was carried out, protesters in Shiite-majority Iran attacked the Saudi Embassy in Tehran. The Saudis cut diplomatic relations with Iran over the attack on its embassy.

Officials from both countries defended their positions Monday and showed no sign of backing down.

Saudi Arabia suspended all flights to and from Iran. It also sent a letter to the U.N. Security Council accusing Iranian authorities of failing in their duties to protect the Saudi embassy.

Jaberi Ansari, a spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry, said his country is committed to protecting diplomatic missions and reiterated that no Saudi diplomats were harmed -- or even present -- during the attack.

He accused Saudi Arabia of "looking for some excuses to pursue its own unwise policies to further tension in the region."

Meanwhile, some nations picked sides while others called for calm.

Here's the latest on where things stand:

Picking sides

Bahrain announced Monday that it was severing diplomatic ties with Iran, citing Tehran's "blatant and dangerous interference" in Bahrain and other Arab countries.

The United Arab Emirates said it was "downgrading" its diplomatic relations with Iran. The UAE recalled its ambassador in Tehran and said it would also reduce the number of diplomats stationed in Iran, according to state news agency WAM. A government statement said the UAE "has taken this exceptional step in light of Iran's ongoing interference in internal (Gulf Cooperation Council) and Arab affairs that has recently reached unprecedented levels."

The diplomatic row spread to Africa, where Sudan -- a majority Sunni Muslim country -- expelled the Iranian ambassador and the entire Iranian diplomatic mission in the country. Sudan also recalled its ambassador from Iran.

The Saudi government announced the Sudanese move, saying Sudan acted because of "the Iranian interference in the region through a sectarian approach."

Russia and China, two of the biggest geopolitical players in the hemisphere, released statements calling for restraint between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

"Moscow is concerned about escalation of the situation in the Middle East with participation of the key regional players," the Russian foreign ministry said Monday. Russia called on the Saudis and Iranians to "show restraint and to avoid any steps that might escalate the situation and raise tensions including interreligious ones."

China's foreign ministry said it is paying close attention to the events and hopes "all parties can remain calm and restrained, use dialogue and negotiations to properly resolve differences, and work together to safeguard the region's peace and stability."

Could the diplomatic war of words boil over?

It had -- even before Saudi Arabia announced its decision to cut ties with Iran, said Fawaz Gerges, chair of contemporary Middle Eastern studies at the London School of Economics.

"Their conflict is playing out on Arab streets big time," he said.

Already the two nations were on opposite sides of conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Bahrain and Lebanon. Now, he said, the question is how much worse things might get.

"The situation is extremely volatile between the two most powerful states in the Gulf, Sunni-dominated Saudi Arabia and Shiite-dominated Iran. You have a war of words. You have war by proxies ... This really could get very ugly and dangerous in the next few weeks and next few months," Gerges said.

It's possible a more direct military conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran could erupt, said retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, a CNN military analyst.

"That's the key issue," he said. "This is spiraling very quickly."

Why are there tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia?

It's nothing new that the two countries aren't seeing eye to eye.

"Iran and Saudi Arabia are neither natural allies nor natural enemies, but natural rivals who have long competed as major oil producers and self-proclaimed defenders of Shia and Sunni Islam, respectively," University of South Florida Professor Mohsen M. Milani wrote in an analysis for CNN in 2011.

Both Saudi Arabia and Iran are painting themselves as victims as tensions between them escalate, Gerges said.

"What you have is not only a clash of narratives, you have basically a huge divide, a war by proxy, a cold war taking place between Saudi Arabia and Iran," he said. "It's a war about geopolitics. It's about power. It's about influence."

So why are things getting worse now?

The latest flashpoint emerged after Saudi Arabia executed dissident Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr and dozens of others over the weekend.

It wasn't long before protesters attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran, hurling Molotov cocktails and cheering as the building caught fire. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called for divine revenge against Saudi Arabia.

"It was almost inevitable that this (the severing of diplomatic relations) would follow, especially since the response from Iran, completely expectedly, was full of rage, and Iran's supreme leader essentially summoned the wrath of God against Saudi Arabia," said Bobby Ghosh, a CNN global affairs analyst and managing editor of Quartz.

But analysts say looking within Iran and Saudi Arabia gives a greater understanding of why both countries have an interest in fueling the rivalry.

"There are domestic reasons for both of these countries right now to refuse to pull punches against each other," said Ian Bremmer, president of the Eurasia Group consulting firm.

Saudi Arabia, he said, is dealing with plummeting oil prices and an internal succession battle over who will next take the throne.

Iran, he said, needs a way to block reformists and Western advances in light of the recent nuclear deal. For both sides, he said, nationalist behavior can score points at home.

"That," Bremmer said, "makes this an incredibly dangerous conflict."

What can we expect to see in the coming days?

Don't expect the heated rhetoric to die down any time soon, analysts said.

"This is Saudi Arabia saying, 'The gloves are off,'" Ghosh said.

Gerges said that could ripple across the region.

"We were hoping that a diplomatic solution could be found to the Syrian crisis in the next few months. Forget about it," he said.

"We were hoping for a diplomatic solution in Yemen. Forget about it. ... Here, you have the two most powerful Islamic states in the heart of the Middle East now basically waging a direct confrontation, as opposed to an indirect war by proxy, so ... we should be really alarmed at the escalation of the confrontation." - CNN.

NEW WORLD DISORDER: Terrorism, False Flag Distractions, Societal Collapse, Wars And Civilizations Unraveling Ahead Of The Black Celestial Event - Saudi Arabia Forms 34-State Global Islamic Military Alliance, To Fight Terrorism!

Members of Saudi special forces take part in a graduation ceremnoy held in Riyadh on May 19, 2015. © Faisal Al Nasser / Reuters

December 16, 2015 - SAUDI ARABIA - A Riyadh-based “Islamic military alliance” has been formed to fight terrorism, Saudi Arabian state TV has announced. The coalition consists of 34 countries, including the Gulf States, a number of African countries, Turkey, Egypt, Malaysia and Pakistan.

The new alliance’s initiatives could potentially include troops on the ground, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told reporters at a briefing in Paris on Tuesday.

“There are discussions [among] countries that are currently part of the coalition [like] Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain about sending in some special forces into Syria,” Adel al-Jubeir said, as cited by Reuters.

“Nothing is off the table,” the minister said, adding that “it depends on the requests that come” and that the picture should become clearer within the next few weeks.

Countries involved in the coalition aside from Saudi Arabia, include Jordan, the UAE, Pakistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, Turkey, Chad, Togo, Tunisia, Djibouti, Senegal, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Gabon, Guinea, the partially-recognized state of Palestine, the Islamic Federal Republic of the Comoros, Qatar, Cote d’Ivoire, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Maldives, Mali, Malaysia, Egypt, Morocco, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Yemen.

“The countries here mentioned have decided on the formation of a military alliance led by Saudi Arabia to fight terrorism, with a joint operations centre based in Riyadh to coordinate and support military operations,” state news agency SPA quoted an official statement as saying.

The statement added that the coalition has “a duty to protect the Islamic nation from the evils of all terrorist groups and organizations whatever their sect and name which wreak death and corruption on earth and aim to terrorise the innocent,” Reuters quotes.

The coalition’s headquarters will be based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital.

Currently, there are a number of active coalitions fighting terror groups such as Islamic State (IS, Daesh, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in Syria and Iraq.

The US-led coalition has gathered the support of at least 65 countries. However, various media reports have claimed that fewer than a dozen states are actually contributing, with American jets carrying out most of the strikes.

Moreover, the coalition has received international criticism for being ineffective. “We can state the [US-led] coalition is simulating the fight against ISIS and real terrorism and acts on its own politicized approach to the situation, which runs counter to international law, at least in Syria. Now we can see that [this happens] not only in this country. As is known, the inactivity of the actions of the [US-led] coalition was distinctly confirmed by the growing ISIS problem,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said last week.

The US-led coalition’s airstrikes in Syria have never received permission from Syrian President Bashar Assad to enter the country’s airspace.

Meanwhile, Russia has been conducting its own airstrikes targeting IS and other terrorist groups in Syria since September 30. The strikes were launched at the formal request of Damascus. Russian jets have been carrying out sorties from Moscow’s Hmeimim Air Base in Latakia.

The Russian-led operation also involves coordinating its efforts with regional governments, including those of Syria, Iran and Iraq, which is known as the RSII coalition.

Russia has been calling for a global coalition to fight IS. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in November he wanted global cooperation to combat terrorism. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has echoed Putin’s words, stressing that countries with large Muslim populations, Russia among them, should team up against the terrorist groups.

Meanwhile, a Saudi-led coalition has been bombing Yemen as part of a campaign against the Houthi rebels that ousted president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. The latest statement from the coalition said a ceasefire is due to be established Tuesday. “The command of the coalition forces announces a ceasefire as of 12 pm Sanaa time ... while retaining the right to respond to any breach of the ceasefire,” the Saudi state news agency SPA quoted.Saudi Arabia has been carrying out assaults on the Houthis, who continue to hold the Yemeni capital of Sanaa. The conflict has created an emergency situation, with UN agencies raising alarms that millions of Yemenis are in mortal danger of starvation. Nearly 6,000 people have been killed in the Saudi-led airstrikes and fighting. - RT.

NEW WORLD DISORDER: Terrorism, False Flag Distractions, Societal Collapse, Wars And Civilizations Unraveling Ahead Of The Black Celestial Event - Putin Tells Defense Chiefs To Strengthen Russia Nuclear Forces As A Russian Destroyer Fires Warning Shots At Turkish Fishing Boat On Collision Course In The Aegean Sea!

December 13, 2015 - RUSSIA - President Vladimir Putin ordered defense chiefs to strengthen Russia’s strategic nuclear forces amid rising tensions with the U.S. over the global balance of power.

New weapons should go to “all parts” of the nuclear triad of air, sea, and land forces, Putin told a Defense Ministry meeting in Moscow on Friday. Action must also be taken “to improve the effectiveness of missile-attack warning systems and aerospace defense.”

Russia’s military will have five new nuclear regiments equipped with modern missile complexes next year, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told the same meeting. More than 95 percent of the country’s nuclear forces are at a permanent state of readiness, he said.

Putin’s moves to reinforce Russian nuclear capabilities are reviving Cold War tensions with the U.S. and its allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The U.S. warned in June that the Kremlin’s “nuclear saber-rattling” is undermining stability in an attempt to intimidate European neighbors. Russia’s nuclear arsenal, its annexation of Crimea in 2014 and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine, in July led Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to call the country the most pressing threat to U.S. national security.

Putin said Russia’s military must continue its program of training drills and devote special attention to the “transport of troops over long distances” as well as “strategic nuclear deterrence” and the ability to airlift forces including “anti-aircraft, missile and electronic elements.”

New Weapons

About 56 percent of Russian nuclear weapons are new, including modern missiles, upgraded aircraft and a strengthened submarine capacity, Shoigu said. Russia has also expanded the military’s combat capabilities by reinforcing its western and south-western army groups and building four bases in the Arctic region, he said.

NATO’s troop presence in the Baltic states and central Europe increased sharply in the past year, Shoigu said. The U.S. also has about 200 nuclear weapons sited in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany and Turkey and has plans to modernize them, he said.

Amid a conflict with NATO member Turkey over the shooting down of a Russian warplane near the Syrian border last month, Putin ordered defense officials to “react harshly” to threats to Russia’s forces operating in Syria. Any such threats should face “immediate extermination,” he said.

The Russian air campaign in Syria against Islamic State and other militants is aimed at protecting Russia from terrorism, and actions are being synchronised with operations of special forces against domestic threats, Putin said. Airstrikes are being coordinated with both President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and those of the opposition Free Syrian Army, which has more than 5,000 troops fighting terrorists with weapons supplied by Russia, he said.

Islamic State has more than 60,000 terrorists and is expanding its influence in Syria and Iraq, Shoigu said. Russian airstrikes in Syria that began Sept. 30 have hit 8,000 terrorist infrastructure targets during 4,000 combat missions, he said. - Bloomberg.

Russian destroyer fires warning shots at Turkish fishing boat on collision course in Aegean

Smetlivy anti-submarine ship © Wikipedia

A Russian destroyer had to open warning fire as a Turkish fishing vessel sailed on a collision course towards them and didn’t respond to calls from the warship, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.

The incident happened in the northern part of the Aegean Sea some 12 nautical miles from the Greek island of Lemnos, the ministry said.The crew of the Kashin-class guided missile destroyer Smetlivy spotted the Turkish fishing trawler some 1,000 meters from the Russian warship early on Sunday morning, the ministry said. The ship was sailing towards the destroyer and ignored calls for radio contact and other attempts to communicate.

When the Turkish vessel approached to about 600 meters, the Smetlivy opened small arms fire at a spot in front of the trawler, taking care to avoid any risk of hitting the Turkish ship itself, the report said.

The ministry said the Turkish fishing ship changed course after that and kept about 540 meters from the Smetlivy, but didn’t contact the Russian warship.

“Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov has summoned the military attaché of the Turkish embassy in Russia in connection with the incident in the Aegean Sea,” the statement said.

There is serious tension between Turkey and Russia after an incident on the Turkish-Syrian border, in which Turkish fighter jets shot down a Russian bomber plane conducting airstrikes against terrorist forces in Syria. Turkey said the move was justified by a 17-second incursion into Turkish airspace.

Russia denied the Russian warplane crossed the border and called the incident a stab in the back. Moscow accused Ankara of protecting terrorists in Syria to ensure a continued flow of smuggled oil to Turkey, which Russia says profits some senior Turkish officials. - RT.

SOCIETAL COLLAPSE: Triple Terror - Up To 60 Killed, 80 Wounded As 3 Car Bombs Explode In Syrian Christian Town!

FILE PHOTO. © SANA / Reuters

December 11, 2015 - SYRIA - Three car bomb explosions in the town of Tell Tamer in Syria's northeastern Al Hasakah province killed up to 60 and injured some 80 people on Thursday.

The blasts struck near a Kurdish militia forces field hospital and in the crowded Souk Al Jumla market square, where the majority of the fatalities occurred. Most of the affected people were civilians, but there were some Kurdish and Assyrian self-defense fighters among them.

The vehicles were allegedly packed with large amounts of explosives, which also inflicted significant damage to nearby buildings and infrastructure. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks.Tell Tamer is predominantly inhabited by Kurds, Arabs and Assyrians. The town, also home to an Assyrian Christian community, has become a target of numerous terror attacks and incursions by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) militants over the last months.

In September, IS militants organized a series of deadly terror attacks in the town of Hasakah, which killed 39 and injured more than 100. Terrorists targeted the headquarters of the Kurdish militia and pro-government forces, but most of the victims were civilians, according to TASS.

In February, IS terrorists took some 200 local Christians hostage and also destroyed five local churches.

This caused most of the residents to flee to nearby Hasakah, the governorate’s capital city some 600 kilometers from Damascus. Kurdish forces and local fighters have temporarily joined forces with the Syrian Army and cleared the region of IS jihadists.

The Syrian conflict has taken the lives of more than 250,000 people, according to UN estimates. The humanitarian crisis has internally displaced over 6.5 million Syrians and forced 4.3 million to flee the country. They have sought refuge in neighboring countries and Europe. - RT.

NEW WORLD DISORDER: Terrorism, False Flag Distractions, Societal Collapse, Wars And Civilizations Unraveling Ahead Of The Black Celestial Event - Putin Issues Deadly Command, That Any Targets Threatening Russian Forces In Syria Must Be Immediately Destroyed!

An S-400 air defence missile system is deployed for a combat duty at the Hmeymim airbase to provide security of the Russian air group's flights in Syria.
© Dmitriy Vinogradov / Sputnik

December 11, 2015 - RUSSIA - Jihadists in Syria pose a direct threat to Russia, Putin told a defense meeting in Moscow, adding that any targets threatening the country's military there should be destroyed.

Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said Islamic State’s influence in Syria keeps expanding.

The Russian military’s actions in Syria are being coordinated with Russian special services such as the FSB, who are disclosing terrorist cells, including Islamic State, Putin said.

All forces threatening Russian servicemen in Syria should be destroyed, according to the Russian president.

"Any targets threatening our [military] group or land infrastructure must be immediately destroyed," Putin said, speaking at a Defense Ministry event.

Putin said over 5,000 members of the Free Syrian Army are operating on the terrorists’ side.

"In general, the actions of the Russian groups deserve high praise. This is a result of work by the Ministry of Defense, General Staff officers, Russian Air Force pilots and the Russian Navy," he added.
‘ISIS influence expanding in Syria’ - Russian Def Min

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu added that Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) controls about 70 percent of Syria’s territory, adding that in Syria and Iraq there are about 60,000 militants.

"The Islamic State area of influence is expanding," he said, “There is a threat that their actions will be transferred to Central Asia and the Caucasus.”

To the date, the Russian military has carried out about 4,000 sorties, striking around 8,000 terrorist facilities in Syria, he added.

Drones have proved a necessary part of the military operation against the terrorists, according to Shoigu. He said that Moscow has an about 1,720 drones at its disposal.


WATCH: Any threats to Russian military in Syria will be destroyed - Putin .

- RT.

NEW WORLD DISORDER: Terrorism, False Flag Distractions, Societal Collapse, Wars And Civilizations Unraveling Ahead Of The Black Celestial Event - Putin Raises Possibility Of Using Nuclear Weapons Against ISIS, But Hopes They "Will Never Need" Them; ISIS Show Off Tanks And Hi-Tech Weapons Bought From The West! [PHOTOS]

December 9, 2015 - MIDDLE EAST - Vladimir Putin has praised the Russian cruise missiles fired against terrorists in Syria from the sea.

He expressed hope that these weapons would not have to be armed with nuclear warheads.

Meeting in the Kremlin with Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, who reported the latest results of the anti-Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) ops in Syria, the Russian president made a notable remark.

“We must analyze everything happening on the battlefield, how the weapons operate. The Kalibrs (sea based cruise missiles) and KH-101 (airborne cruise missile) have proved to be modern and highly effective, and now we know it for sure - precision weapons that can be equipped with both conventional and special warheads, which are nuclear,” Putin said.


WATCH: Hopefully, no nukes needed in fight against ISIS – Putin.

“Naturally, this is not necessary when fighting terrorists and, I hope, will never be needed,” the president added.

On Tuesday, a Russian Kilo-class submarine, the Rostov-on-Don, fired Kalibr-PL cruise missiles against an IS installation near the terrorists’ stronghold in Raqqa.

Water-to-surface cruise missiles were launched from a submerged sub in the Mediterranean Sea, according to the Russian defense minister.

“We’ve been registering the missiles launches, flights and, of course, their hitting the targets,” Shoigu said. “We warned our Israeli and American colleagues about these launches."

Kalibr and KH-101 cruise missiles have been deployed for the first time this year in Russia’s counter-terrorist operation in Syria. - RT.

ISIS show off TANKS and devastating hi-tech weapons looted from Iraqi army and bought from West

ISIS propagandists have released pictures of the sophisticated and devastating weapons it wields as part of its campaign of terror across the Middle East - including heavy TANKS.

The militants showed off their military power as part of their slick PR campaign - but fail to mention they rarely use their armoured vehicles because they are an easy target for the warplanes of Russia, America, Britain and France.

They were featured on Terrormonitor's Twitter feed and were reportedly taken during fighting at Deir Ezzor military airport.

Britain, France, Russia and the United States provided most of the weapons being used by ISIS to carry out appalling war crimes, a new report claims.

As the UK joins its allies in carrying out airstrikes in Syria, the Government has come in for renewed accusations of having sown the seeds of conflict itself.

A new study by Amnesty International claims much of the weaponry used by Islamic State (IS) fighters was supplied by the same Western powers now trying to bomb it out of existence.

 Armoured: ISIS released pictures of their devastating - but rarely used - weaponry. Twitter

Firepower: ISIS proudly displayed their anti-aircraft weapon. Twitter

Blast: A tank opens fire with its cannon. Twitter

Explosive: A militant opens fire with an rocket launcher . Twitter

Huge supplies of guns, rifles, mortars and missiles have been flowing into Iraq for years as the state struggled to retain control after British and American forces withdrew.

Oliver Sprague, Amnesty UK’s Arms Programme Director, said: "Decades of free-flowing arms into Iraq meant that when IS took control of these areas, they were like children in a sweetshop.

"The fact that countries including the UK have ended up inadvertently arming IS, should give us pause over current weapons deals.

"The UK was one of the key supporters of a global Arms Trade Treaty, intended to prevent the proliferation of arms and their use in horrific abuses like IS are committing."

"Risks need to be far more carefully calculated, and we shouldn’t wait for this worst-case-scenario to happen before acting to prevent sales of arms which could fuel atrocities."

Although Soviet Kalshnikovs are the most commonly used, the oldest piece of kit in the IS arsenal is believed to be a British World War One rifle.

Amnesty says IS fighters acquired a windfall of internationally manufactured arms after taking control of Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, in June, 2014.

Warfare: The pictures were released by ISIS propagandists. Twitter

Guns: A Chinese-made Kalashnikov and American M4 rifle, the latter captured from ISIS militants . Matt Cetti-Roberts/info@frontlinepictures.com

Mortars: ISIS fund their arms shipments through taxation and illicit oil sales

Afghanistan: At least 40 Islamic State recruits can be seen in the Sheikh Jalaluddin training camp

They included US-manufactured weapons and military vehicles which they then used to take control of other parts of the country.

Meanwhile, a suicide bomber killed at least six people outside a Shi'ite mosque in the Iraqi capital on Wednesday, according to police and medical sources, in an attack claimed by Islamic State.

Seven others were wounded in the attack, which took place in the mainly Shi'ite Ubaidi neighbourhood of eastern Baghdad and targeted worshippers leaving the mosque, police said.

"The suicide attacker was trying to enter the mosque before a guard stopped him, but he blew himself up," said one policeman near the scene of the attack. - Mirror.

MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT: Societal Chaos And Civilizations Unraveling - Israel Jets Strike Gaza In Response To Rocket Fire!

An Israeli air force F-15 fighter jet. © Amir Cohen / Reuters

November 24, 2015 - MIDDLE EAST - The Israeli Air Force has launched airstrikes targeting a “Hamas post” in the Gaza Strip in retaliation to a rocket that was launched at southern Israel earlier in the day.

According to reports, Israeli jets targeted a training camp of Hamas’ armed wing in central Gaza, apparently blaming the group for the rocket that landed in southern Israel's Eshkol Regional Council on Monday morning.

The projectile exploded in unpopulated area, causing no injuries or damage.

Alert sirens were not activated, but security forces reportedly swept the area to find the remnants of the rocket.

Israel maintains that Hamas bears full responsibility for all “goings-on in the Gaza Strip,” according to an IDF statement cited by Haaretz.

The Israeli military “will continue to act with severity to keep the calm in southern communities,” it added. - RT.

MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT: Societal Chaos And Civilizations Unraveling - Israel Strikes Damascus In Syria... Again; Dozens Of Palestinians Injured In Clashes On Anniversary Of Arafat's Death; At Least 41 Killed And 200 Hurt In Beirut Suicide Bombings!

IAF fighter jets during the Red Flag joint exercise at Nellis air force base in Nevada . (photo credit:COURTESY IDF SPOKESMAN'S OFFICE)

November 12, 2015 - MIDDLE EAST - Israel reportedly carried out an airstrike Wednesday near the airport in the Syrian capital Damascus. Meanwhile, dozens of Palestinians have been injured in clashes with Israeli forces on the anniversary of former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s death. Youths threw stones and burned tires while Israeli security forces responded with tear gas and live bullets. And, two suspected suicide bombings in the southern suburbs of Beirut have left at least 41 people dead, Reuters reports citing the Interior Ministry. The death toll is expected to rise with Lebanon's Red Cross putting the number of those injured over 200.

Israel Strikes Damascus in Syria ... Again

Around two weeks after a reported Israeli strike on a weapons convoy in Syria, media outlets associated with Syrian President Bashar Assad reported Wednesday night another Israeli airstrike in the country.

According to the reports, Israeli aircraft carried out the strike adjacent to the Damascus airport at around 6:00 p.m. Yet it was not clear whether the target of the attack was a weapons shipment, or an alternate target, such as an Iran-backed terror cell operating against Israel. 

Defense officials declined to comment on the foreign media reports.

However, Israel did previously announce a strict-policy of intolerance towards threats to the state, such as weapons transfers between Syria and Lebanon.

The last reported Israeli strike in Syria, on October 31, targeted numerous Hezbollah targets in Syria's south.

In the October alleged attack, Syrian media reported that up to a dozen Israeli war planes conducted the mission close to the Lebanon-Syria border in the Qalamoun Mountains region. Estimated targets included a weapons convoy destined for Hezbollah fighters traveling through Syria.

The alleged attack on Wednesday night would be the second attributed to Israel since Russia began operating in the area.

Israel has reportedly struck Hezbollah in Syria several times over the past year.

Earlier this year, the Israel Air Force reportedly struck a vehicle located in a Druse village in southwestern Syria, killing Hezbollah men and a pro-Assad militiaman, as well as a military base in Lebanon.

Another reported strike targeted a Lebanese military installation near the Syrian border, wounding six. It is believed to belong to a pro-Syrian Palestinian faction. In a newsflash, Syrian state television quoted a military source as saying that Israeli planes had struck a base belonging to the Damascus-based Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, a faction that backs Assad. - JPOST.

Dozens of Palestinians injured in clashes on anniversary of Arafat’s death

Palestinian protesters run from tear gas canisters fired by Israeli troops during clashes in the West Bank city of Bethlehem November 11, 2015.
© Abdelrahman Younis / Reuters

Dozens of Palestinians have been injured in clashes with Israeli forces on the anniversary of former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s death. Youths threw stones and burned tires while Israeli security forces responded with tear gas and live bullets.

At least four people were wounded by live ammunition near Ramallah, in Al-Bireh, the Palestinian health ministry said. Another person reportedly remains in a critical condition and is undergoing surgery after being shot in the heart.

Clashes in Al-Bireh erupted after a few hundred Palestinians marched towards Israeli forces, as part of a rally to commemorate Yasser Arafat’s life. At some point the youths began throwing stones at the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), and rolling burning tires towards the security personnel. The IDF responded by firing tear gas and live bullets.

In other clashes in the West Bank, live rounds injured at least six other Palestinians in the city of Tulkarem.

In total, “62 citizens were injured by live ammunition and rubber-coated bullets during clashes with the (Israeli) occupation in Tulkarem, Ramallah, Al-Bireh and Bethlehem,” the health ministry announced.

Those hurt were transferred to the Palestinian Medical Complex in Ramallah, the Palestinian Health Ministry told the Ma’an news agency, adding that all were shot in the lower body.


WATCH: Palestinians injured in clashes with Israel.

Israeli forces said that they were responding to violence stemming from the Palestinian side. They confirmed the use of live fire.

“Rioters attacked forces and hurled Molotov cocktails and rocks at them. The forces then responded,” the statement said.

In the Gaza Strip, several Palestinian protesters were also injured during clashes with Israeli forces at the border of the Bureij refugee camp. Young protesters fired slingshots and threw tear gas back at IDF troops. The latter subsequently returned fire.

Meanwhile, over 2,000 activists flocked to a rally at the Al-Azhar University in Gaza. Organized by the Fatah Youth Movement, students marched to commemorate the anniversary of the death of the PLO chairman Yasser Arafat, who many believe was poisoned by Israel eleven years ago. There were no reports of violence.

The latest tensions erupted over a month ago when Israel tried to restrict access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem. Some 77 Palestinians have been killed since late September. At least 10 Israelis have died as the tensions continue. - RT.

At least 41 killed, 200 hurt in southern Beirut suicide bombings

Double blast in southern Beirut suburb of Burj al-Barajneh, Lebanon.

A pair of suicide bombings killed at least 41 people and wounded over 200 more Thursday evening in southern Beirut, a Lebanese Health Minister Wael Abu Faour said.

The blasts shook Bourj al-Barajneh, one of the biggest and most well-known largely Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, according to the state-run National News Agency.

The Lebanese news agency reported that two suicide bombers blew themselves up within 150 meters (490 feet) and five minutes of each other.

It was not immediately clear where they came from or what their motivation was.

Yet, in a purported statement circulated online by ISIS supporters on social media, ISIS claimed responsibility for the blasts. CNN hasn't confirmed the authenticity of the statement.


In addition to the human toll, the explosions damaged at least four nearby buildings. Video distributed by Reuters showed a dramatic scene in the bombings' aftermath, with rescue workers carrying out victims past piles of rubble and through a mass of people.

After the blasts, authorities closed all entrances to Bourj al-Barajneh, NNA reported. Judge Sakr Sakr dispatched military police and other authorities to investigate the blasts, cordoning off the area around them.

Citizens have been urged to stay away from the bloody scene as well as nearby hospitals to make it easier for ambulances to get back and forth.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam declared Friday a day of mourning for the victims of the bombings, a terrorist attack condemned by officials across the country's political landscape.

Bombings not new to Lebanon

Lebanon has seen plenty of violence involving numerous parties in recent decades, including recently as fallout from the bloody civil war in neighboring Syria.

That war has flooded the Middle Eastern nation with more than a million refugees, according to the United Nations, and also contributed to intermittent spillover violence.

Most of that bloodshed has been concentrated near the Syrian border, though not all, as evidenced by a November 2013 Beirut bombing that killed at least 23 people and wounded about 150 more.

The al Qaeda-linked militant group Abdullah Azzam Brigades claimed responsibility for that bombing and warned of more to come unless the Lebanese-based, Iranian-backed Shiite militia Hezbollah stops sending fighters to support Syrian government forces. - CNN.

 

WORLD WAR III: Is Washington Preparing For World War III - The U.S. Pentagon Engages In Systematic Preparations And Strategic Planning As Military Conflict With China And Russia Becomes Inevitable?

November 10, 2015 - UNITED STATES - The US military-intelligence complex is engaged in systematic preparations for World War III. As far as the Pentagon is concerned, a military conflict with China and/or Russia is inevitable, and this prospect has become the driving force of its tactical and strategic planning.

Three congressional hearings Tuesday demonstrated this reality. In the morning, the Senate Armed Services Committee held a lengthy hearing on cyberwarfare. In the afternoon, a subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee discussed the present size and deployment of the US fleet of aircraft carriers, while another subcommittee of the same panel discussed the modernization of US nuclear weapons.

We will provide a more detailed account of these hearings, which were attended by a WSWS reporter. But certain preliminary observations can be made.

None of the hearings discussed the broader implications of the US preparations for war, or what a major war between nuclear-armed powers would mean for the survival of the human race, and even of life on our planet. On the contrary, the hearings were examples of what might be called the routinization of World War III. A US war with China and/or Russia was taken as given, and the testimony of witnesses and questions from senators and representatives, Democrats and Republicans alike, concerned the best methods for prevailing in such a conflict.

The hearings were component parts of an ongoing process. The witnesses referred to their past writings and statements. The senators and representatives referred to previous testimony by other witnesses. In other words, the preparations for world war, using cyber weapons, aircraft carriers, bombers, missiles and the rest of a vast array of weaponry, have been under way for a protracted period of time. They are not a response to recent events, whether in the South China Sea, Ukraine, Syria or anywhere else.

Each of the hearings presumed a major US conflict with another great power (sometimes unnamed, sometimes explicitly designated as China or Russia) within a relatively short time frame, years rather than decades.

The danger of terrorism, hyped incessantly for the purposes of stampeding public opinion, was downplayed and to some extent discounted. At one point in the Senate hearing on cyberwarfare, in response to a direct question from Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the panel witnesses all declared that their greatest concern was nation-states, not terrorists.

One of the witnesses at that hearing was Dr. Peter W. Singer, listed as a “Strategist and Senior Fellow” for New America, a Washington think tank. He titled his presentation, “The Lessons of World War 3.” He began his prepared statement with the following description of that imagined conflict:

“US and Chinese warships battle at sea, firing everything from cannons to cruise missiles to lasers. Stealthy Russian and American fighter jets dogfight in the air, with robotic drones flying as their wingmen. Hackers in Shanghai and Silicon Valley duel in digital playgrounds. And fights in outer space decide who wins below on Earth. Are these scenes from a novel or what could actually take place in the real world the day after tomorrow? The answer is both.”

None of the hearings saw any debate about either the likelihood of a major war or the necessity of winning that war. No one challenged the assumption that “victory” in a world war between nuclear-armed powers is a meaningful concept. The discussion was entirely devoted to what technologies, assets and human resources were required for the US military to prevail.

This was just as true for the Democratic senators and representatives as for their Republican counterparts. By custom, the two parties are seated on opposite sides of the committee or subcommittee chairmen. Without that arrangement, there would be no way of detecting, from their questions and expressions of opinion, which party they belonged to.
Contrary to the media portrayal of Washington as deeply divided between parties with intransigently opposed political outlooks, there was bipartisan agreement on this most fundamental of issues, the preparation of a new imperialist world war.

The unanimity of the political representatives of big business by no means suggests that there are no obstacles in the path of this drive to war. Each of the hearings grappled, in different ways, with the profound crisis confronting American imperialism. This crisis has two major components: the declining economic power of the United States compared to its major rivals, and the internal contradictions of American society, with the deepening alienation of the working class and particularly the youth.

At the House subcommittee hearing on aircraft carriers, the chairman noted that one of the witnesses, a top Navy admiral, had expressed concern over having “an 11-carrier navy in a 15-carrier world.” There were so many challenges confronting Washington, he continued, that what was really needed was a navy of 21 aircraft carriers—double the present size, and one that would bankrupt even a country with far more resources than the United States.

The Senate hearing on cybersecurity touched briefly on the internal challenge to American militarism. The lead witness, retired Gen. Keith Alexander, former director of the National Security Agency and former head of the Pentagon’s CyberCommand, bemoaned the effect of leaks by NSA contractor Edward Snowden and Army private Chelsea Manning, declaring that “insider attacks” were one of the most serious threats facing the US military.

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia asked him directly, referring to Snowden, “Should we treat him as a traitor?” Alexander responded, “He should be treated as a traitor and tried as such.” Manchin nodded heartily, in evident agreement.

While the witnesses and senators chose to use the names of Snowden and Manning to personify the “enemy within,” they were clearly conscious that the domestic opposition to war is far broader than a few individual whistleblowers.

This is not a matter simply of the deep-seated revulsion among working people in response to 14 years of bloody imperialist interventions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Libya, Syria, Yemen and across North Africa, important as that is.

A war between the United States and a major power like China or Russia, even if it were possible to prevent its escalation into an all-out nuclear exchange, would involve a colossal mobilization of the resources of American society, both economic and human. It would mean further dramatic reductions in the living standards of the American people, combined with a huge blood toll that would inevitably fall mainly on the children of the working class.

Ever since the Vietnam War, the US military has operated as an all-volunteer force, avoiding conscription, which provoked widespread opposition and direct defiance in the 1960s and early 1970s. A non-nuclear war with China or Russia would mean the restoration of the draft and bring the human cost of war home to every family in America.

Under those conditions, no matter how great the buildup of police powers and the resort to repressive measures against antiwar sentiments, the stability of American society would be put to the test. The US ruling elite is deeply afraid of the political consequences. And it should be.


- Zero Hedge.