The netflix movie “The White Helmets” may win an Oscar in the “short documentary” category at the Academy Awards on Sunday February 26. It will not be a surprise, despite the fact that the group is a fraud and the movie is an contrived infomercial.
Today, shortly after the Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov’s return to base, and on the occasion of Defender of the Fatherland Day (the day that Russian commemorates its armed forces) President Putin met in the Kremlin with some of the officers of the Admiral Kuznetsov and of the naval ships which accompanied her in her mission off the Syrian coast.
Most of the media has singled out for attention President Putin’s claim the decision to send the Admiral Kuznetsov to join the fight in Syria originated with him.
Today, the same day that ISIS surrendered Al-Bab to the Turkish army, ISIS abandoned Mosul airport to the Iraqi army.
This is the first important point recaptured by the Iraqi army since the offensive to liberate western Mosul from ISIS was launched on Sunday.
Turkish news agencies are reporting that ISIS fighters have surrendered the strategically important town of Al-Bab in northern Syria to the Turkish military, which is now in full control of the town.
This follows a succession of see-sawing battles for the town, during which Turkish troops have often suffered heavy losses.
Latest opinion polls in France suggest that Marine Le Pen is increasing her first round lead, and is starting to close the gap between herself and whatever challenger she will face in the second round of the French election.
This is happening at the same time as the centrist challenger – Emmanuel Macron – is showing the first signs of losing support.
The Iraqi government on Sunday 19th February 2017 launched the second stage of its campaign to liberate Mosul – Iraq’s second largest city – from ISIS.
The initial target of the offensive is Mosul’s airport. Al-Jazeera has published a dramatic account of the early stages of the battle, which includes this evocative phrase
Whilst US President Donald Trump battles the US intelligence community and the US elite, the foreign leader he most wants to deal with – Russia’s President Putin – has been addressing the senior staff of the organisation he once headed, Russia’s counter-terrorism and counter-intelligence agency, the FSB.
Ukraine’s decision to block the adoption by the UN Security Council of a statement dedicated to the late Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin was a disgraceful act.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov described Ukraine’s actions…
This infographic comes courtesy of HowMuch.net, which visualizes Brand Finance’s list of the top 500 brands.
Each country’s brand is sized accordingly to the dollar value of that company.
That most valuable brand in the world is Google, which edged out Apple by about $2B (via Zerohedge)…
President Trump has continued his practice of picking senior military officers to the senior posts in his administration by naming General H.R. McMaster to the post of National Security Adviser following the recent forced resignation of General Michael Flynn.
This came after the President’s original choice – Admiral Bob Hayward – turned down the offer.
