EUROPE

Britain rocked by attempted pogroms against migrants

Published

05.08.2024 16:39

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Nationalists took to the streets and riots broke out in towns and cities across Britain after online rumours that a Muslim immigrant was the suspect in last Monday’s knife attack on a Taylor Swift themed children’s dance class in Southport, which left three young girls dead.

On Tuesday, rioters descended on Southport, attacking a mosque and clashing with and injuring police officers.

The suspected killer is accused of killing Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Bebe King, 6, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, with a kitchen knife after entering the classroom in Hart Street, Southport. Eight other children suffered stab wounds and two adults were seriously injured.

Attacker is a Welsh-born 17-year-old of Rwandan origin

Authorities have confirmed that the suspect in the Southport stabbing, 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana, was born in the UK.

Contrary to earlier reports on social media, Rudakubana is not an asylum seeker or someone who recently crossed the Channel illegally on a raft.

The 17-year-old was born in Cardiff, Wales. His parents are originally from Rwanda and have lived in Southport for some time. The prosecution told the court that Rudakubana had been ‘diagnosed with autism’ and had ‘for some time been unwilling to leave the house or communicate with his family’.

Neighbours of the Rudakubana family told the Mirror that the teenager was shy and introverted and could often be heard singing at the family home in Lancashire.

One of the neighbours said: “It’s a big shock. He would come home from school and sing. She never went out, we never saw her, we never spoke to her for seven years except to say hello,” said one neighbour.

Neighbours also said the Rudakubana family was heavily involved in a local church, describing the teenager as a “quiet choir boy”.

Rudakubana was also part of a school drama group that once performed in a show at the Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End. He also trained in karate with his father.

Motivation for murder not yet clear

The 17-year-old suspect is being held in a juvenile detention centre pending a defence and trial preparation hearing on 25 October.

The motive for the suspect’s actions is not yet known as the police have not revealed it.

However, the allegations suggest that the murder weapon was a curved kitchen knife.

Until Thursday, the identity of the suspected killer, a 17-year-old teenager, was not known under British law. In Britain, the names of people under the age of 18 are generally not released by the police or courts. The only exceptions are for serious crimes and crimes of public interest.

But on Thursday, Judge Andrew Menary agreed to lift the restrictions on the defendant’s identity. “Continuing to prevent full reporting has the disadvantage of allowing others to spread false information in a vacuum. As he turns 18 in six days’ time, I am not making a section 45 order, although I recognise that there is an exceptional circumstance given his age,” Mr Justice Menary said.

The judge added that postponing the release of Rudakubana’s name until next week “could provide an additional pretext for renewed community unrest”.

False reports on social media trigger fascist uprising

Following the murders in Southport, misleading posts and false rumours spread online about the identity of the attacker.

Many of these contained anti-Muslim immigrant rhetoric.

In response to these reports, a group of 200-300 rioters descended on the town on Tuesday, attacking and looting some shops, while mosques were also attacked.

The violence then spread to other parts of the UK, with protests on Wednesday night in London and the northern cities of Hartlepool and Manchester.

In London, a demonstration outside Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s 10 Downing Street residence escalated tensions with scuffles, bottles thrown at police and chants of ‘shame’.

In Hartlepool, north-east England, protesters set fire to police cars and threw objects at officers; police said eight people were arrested.

Hartlepool police said officers had ‘missiles, glass bottles and eggs thrown at them and several suffered minor injuries’.

On Sunday, hundreds of anti-immigration protesters gathered near a hotel near Rotherham in northern England that the Home Secretary said was harbouring asylum seekers.

The protesters, many wearing masks or balaclavas, threw bricks at police and smashed several windows of the hotel before setting fire to a large rubbish bin near the hotel, an eyewitness told Reuters.

Local police said 10 officers were injured in clashes with the 700-strong crowd in Rotherham, with some throwing wooden planks and spraying officers with fire extinguishers before smashing hotel windows.

Racists searched vehicles for ‘non-white and non-British’ people

According to the Daily Mail, “Islamophobic slogans” were heard during the attempted pogrom, and in some parts of the country rioters were filmed stopping cars and questioning drivers about whether they were “white and British”.

“Get out of Britain” was written on walls, while some attackers were seen giving the “Roman salute”, identified with the Nazis.

Videos taken by people inside the Rotherham hotel show masked men shouting and threatening to slit the throats of asylum seekers before trying to set the building on fire.

“Throw them out, England” and “Burn them down” were chanted by people at the scene, many of whom had their faces covered.

Starmer’s ‘right-wing thuggery’

As protests continued on Thursday, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with police chiefs from across the country to discuss how to quell the violence that erupted in the nights after Monday’s killings.

At the meeting, he condemned the violence and praised the police and other emergency services for the way they dealt with it.

Speaking later at a press conference, Starmer said: “As far as the far right is concerned, this is a co-ordinated, deliberate action. This is not just a protest that got out of control. It’s definitely a group of individuals who are inclined to violence,” Starmer said.

Starmer also warned social media companies that they must comply with the law on disinformation. “It’s a criminal offence and it’s happening on your sites,” Starmer said of the spread of disinformation that helps fuel violence.

In a statement on Sunday, Starmer also condemned what he called “far-right thuggery” and said perpetrators would face the full force of the law after days of violent anti-immigrant protests culminated in the targeting of hotels.

In a statement on Sunday, Starmer also condemned what he called ‘far-right thuggery’ and said the perpetrators would face the full force of the law after days of violent anti-immigrant protests culminated in the targeting of hotels.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council said 147 people had been arrested since Saturday night and more would be arrested in the coming days.

The Home Office said extra security would be provided to mosques under new arrangements following threats to mosques, including one in Middlesbrough.

Meanwhile, Mr Starmer will hold an emergency meeting with police chiefs today (5 August) following days of violent anti-immigrant protests in which buildings and vehicles were set alight and hotels used by asylum seekers were targeted.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the rioters, who threw bricks at police officers, looted shops and attacked mosques and Asian-owned businesses, were ’emboldened by this moment to stir up racial hatred’.

Cooper made clear that the crackdown would include those spreading misinformation online.

English Defence League at centre of suspicion

Police blamed ‘online disinformation amplified by high-profile individuals’ for fuelling the violence.

One of the most prominent, Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, leader of the “anti-Islam” English Defence League (EDL), has been accused by the media of spreading misinformation to his 875,000 followers on X.

Yaxley-Lennon, who goes by the pseudonym Tommy Robinson, said: “They are lying to all of you. They are trying to turn the nation against me. I need you, you are my voice,” he wrote.

Mr Robinson posted a video of a clash in Stoke in which he claimed two protesters had been stabbed “by Muslims”. The post was viewed two million times on X.

Two hours later, Staffordshire Police said the information was incorrect and that the men had been injured when they were ‘hit by something thrown from their own side’.

In May 2014, the EDL took to the streets of Rotherham again, with speeches claiming that Rotherham was a ‘Muslim centre’ and that the council was run by ‘snotty lefties’.

Yaxley-Lennon had previously been sentenced to 18 months in prison for offences including assault and mortgage fraud.

Civil war is inevitable, says Elon Musk

“Civil war is inevitable,” X owner Elon Musk said in response to a post on the social media network blaming mass migration and open borders for riots in Britain.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told broadcasters that tensions had escalated and flared online and that the government would take up the issue with social media companies.

“I think what you’re seeing is networks of different individuals and groups trying to fan the flames,” she told Sky News, refusing to answer questions about whether foreign governments were involved.

She said people had views and concerns about issues such as immigration, but blamed extremist, racist and violent groups for the violence.

“Reasonable people with all those views and concerns don’t pick up bricks and throw them at the police,” the minister said.

Clashes between anti-fascists and right-wing groups: Racists burn library

Anti-racist groups also mobilised and organised counter-demonstrations in several cities.

In Liverpool, police intervened on Saturday to prevent clashes between far-right rioters and anti-fascists.

Merseyside Police said racists set fire to a library later in the day, burning books and trying to prevent firefighters from reaching the blaze. Police arrested 23 people.

Speaking to Sky News, Debbie Stokes, who works at Spellow Library and Community Centre, said the chaos in Liverpool on Saturday night was “disgusting”.

“I am disgusted to see what has happened to the library. The Nazis burned books; these people have gone one step further and burned a library,” Stokes said.

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EUROPE

Operationsplan Deutschland: The debate over ‘planned economy’ in Germany

Published

3 hours ago

21/11/2024

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As Ukraine fires U.S.-made long-range missiles at Russia for the first time and Russian leader Vladimir Putin updates his country’s nuclear doctrine, European countries are preparing for an all-out war on the continent.

According to a 1,000-page document drawn up by the German armed forces called ‘Operationsplan Deutschland’, Germany will host hundreds of thousands of troops from NATO countries and act as a logistics hub to send huge amounts of military equipment, food and medicine to the front line.

The German military is also instructing businesses and civilians on how to protect key infrastructure and mobilize for national defense in the event of Russia expanding drone flights, espionage and sabotage across Europe.

Businesses have been advised to draw up contingency plans detailing the responsibilities of employees in the event of an emergency, and told to stockpile diesel generators or install wind turbines to ensure energy independence.

More state intervention in the economy under discussion

In this context, state intervention in the economy and in companies is being discussed more intensively.

The German state has far-reaching rights in crisis situations. The energy crisis showed how quickly the state can intervene: At the time, the German government filled gas storage facilities by law, nationalized the gas importer Uniper and supplied floating LNG terminals.

According to Bertram Brossardt, CEO of the Bavarian Business Association, even a “transition to a planned economy” could be possible in an emergency.

This ‘planned economy’ could involve the state issuing food vouchers or even forcing people to work in certain sectors, such as water or transport companies.

Companies could also benefit if they have employees who volunteer for disaster relief, the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) or the fire brigade.

Lieutenant Colonel Jörn Plischke, who conducted the company training in Hamburg, said: “It costs you a few days a year to support this. But in a crisis, you have a direct link to the people who protect people and infrastructure,” he said.

Hamburg: The intersection of civil and military economy

Hamburg, where Lieutenant Colonel Plischke attended the event, is a central hub for the transport of goods and troops.

“If our infrastructure is used for military purposes, the risk of cyber-attacks and sabotage increases significantly,” the mayor of the Hanseatic city, Peter Tschentscher, told the Faz newspaper.

The Hamburg Senate has therefore created additional staff to strengthen civil defense. A third ‘home defense corps’ has been introduced, made up of volunteers who do not fight in the troops but work to ensure protection and security.

Exercises are currently being held in the Hanseatic city with the German armed forces and civilian forces.

According to the report, this exercise, called ‘Red Storm Alpha’, is training in the protection of port facilities.

The next exercise, ‘Red Storm Bravo’, will start soon and will be on a larger scale.

The lessons learnt from these exercises will then be incorporated into the ‘Operationsplan Deutschland’. This plan is intended to be a ‘living document’, constantly evolving and adapting to new information and threats.

EUROPE

The era of the ‘right-wing majority’ in the European Parliament

Published

5 hours ago

21/11/2024

Harici.com.tr

Under Ursula von der Leyen’s second presidency, the European Commission will abandon its previous ‘cordon sanitaire’ policy towards the ‘far right’.

Leyen’s new Commission will include two members from the ‘far right’. Raffaele Fitto of Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy – FdI), the party of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Olivér Várhelyi, who is close to Fidesz, the party of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

Fratelli d’Italia is part of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group in the EP, while Fidesz is part of the Patriots for Europe (PfE) group, which also includes the French National Rally (RN) and the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ).

The conservative European People’s Party (EPP), led by German CSU politician Manfred Weber, has repeatedly cooperated with the ECR in the past legislature and explicitly reserves the right to do so in the future.

The cordon sanitaire against the right is practically non-existent

More recently, it has voted with the PfE and sometimes even with the Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN), of which the German AfD is a member. The traditional border against the ‘extreme right’ (the so-called ‘security cordon’) is thus continuing to crumble.

The security cordon was systematically relaxed by the EPP in the last legislative period. As early as January 2022, the EPP made it possible for an MEP from the right-wing ECR to be elected as one of the vice-presidents of the EP.

A study by the Greens shows that the European Commission under Ursula von der Leyen has relied on MEPs from the ECR and even the more right-wing ID (Identity and Democracy) group in around 340 votes to secure a majority.

According to the study, these demands often included a reduction in the CO2 price for the car industry or the approval of subsidies for fossil fuels.

With the votes of the EPP, ECR and ID, the EPP also managed to block a motion in April 2024 proposing measures to prevent parliamentary staff from being harassed by MEPs.

So, one small step after another, the security cordon was broken.

Breaking point: European right united against Maduro

In September, one of the first votes of the newly elected EP attracted more attention. The resolution under discussion would have recognised Edmundo González, the defeated candidate in the presidential elections in Venezuela on 28 July 2024, as the real winner of the elections.

The resolution in favour of González was tabled jointly by the EPP and the ECR, in which the party of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is the largest group.

The resolution was finally adopted with the votes of Orbán’s Fidez, Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) and PfE, which includes the FPÖ, and the ESN, which includes the AfD.

The ‘Venezuelan majority’ at work in the EP: EPP support for the AfD

The so-called ‘Venezuelan majority’ – the large voting majority of conservative and right-wing parties in the EP – has since come into play on several occasions.

This was the case in October, for example, when the European Parliament decided on the procedure for presenting and voting on future EU commissioners. Also in October, the EPP voted in favour of an AfD budget motion proposing the erection of extensive barriers at the EU’s external borders.

The EPP, ECR and PfE also voted to award this year’s European Parliament Sakharov Prize to González and right-wing Venezuelan opposition politician María Corina Machado.

Finally, last week the EPP joined with other MEPs on the right to amend a bill aimed at halting global deforestation.

Sparking outrage on the left, several rebel MEPs from the ECR, PfE, ESN and the liberal Renew group backed the EPP on key amendments.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was elected in July on the basis of an alliance between the EPP, Liberals, Socialists and Greens.

In its second term, the European Commission is abandoning its previous ‘cordon sanitaire’ policy against the ‘far right’.

New Commissioners from the right

Raffaele Fitto, a member of Giorgia Meloni’s FdI party, is known as one of Meloni’s closest friends and will be appointed by Leyen as one of the vice-presidents of the EU Commission ‘responsible for cohesion and reforms’.

Hungary, on the other hand, has appointed former Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi as a commissioner in Brussels, with future responsibility for health. Várhelyi is very close to Prime Minister Orbán’s Fidesz party.

There is strong protest against Fitto and Várhelyi in the Socialist and Green parliamentary groups, which support the Leyen Commission. It is rumoured that both groups will not support the appointment of the two politicians.

The invisible architect of the right-wing alliance: Manfred Weber of the CSU

The row over future commissioners has come to a head in recent days.

EPP President Manfred Weber (CSU), who is seen as the main architect of his group’s alliance with the ECR and the EPP, could theoretically get two right-wing commissioners approved with a “Venezuelan majority”.

However, if CDU or CSU politicians in the EP vote with the AfD on a key decision, this could be seen as an unwelcome signal shortly before the early German elections.

But as former Italian prime ministers Romano Prodi and Mario Monti said on Tuesday, pressure is growing for the EU to act ‘as one’ at a time when it faces ‘major challenges both in the East and in the West’.

We have a responsibility to make sure that something changes after this election… The majority will very often include the ECR,” German EPP MEP Peter Liese of the CSU also told reporters on Monday.

Liese said he had no “firewall” against the ECR and claimed that Fitto’s senior position had been negotiated as part of an agreement between the main political families in the European Council at the beginning of the summer.

Continued support for Ukraine in return for right-wing MEPs

On Wednesday (20 November), however, the leaders of the European Parliament’s political groups, meeting in Brussels, reached an agreement.

According to this, Fitto and Várhelyi will be allowed to take up the positions in the European Commission that Leyen has envisaged for them, and the Socialists will agree to this.

In return, the EPP promises to cooperate only with ‘pro-Ukrainian’ parties that support the EU and the rule of law.

This means that the old ‘cordon sanitaire’, i.e. the border against the ‘extreme right’, has been replaced primarily by foreign policy conditions.

According to the EPP’s interpretation, there are no longer any obstacles to cooperation with the ECR.

EUROPE

Turmoil in the SPD: Pistorius vs. Scholz

Published

1 day ago

20/11/2024

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Pressure is mounting on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to relinquish leadership of his party, the Social Democrats (SPD), ahead of the upcoming snap elections. This move is seen as a potential lifeline for the party, currently polling in third place, to regain electoral momentum.

The SPD leadership has thus far supported Scholz’s bid for a second term in the federal elections, now rescheduled for 23 February 2025 following the collapse of the three-party coalition on 6 November. However, internal dissent is growing.

In two heated party meetings last week, SPD MPs deliberated over whether Defence Minister Boris Pistorius should replace Scholz as the party’s candidate. According to Der Spiegel and POLITICO, one meeting included the conservative wing of the SPD, while the other involved its left wing. Both groups reportedly had significant support for replacing Scholz with Pistorius.

Calls for Scholz to step aside reached a crescendo on Monday, with prominent SPD politicians from North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, leading the charge.

Pistorius’ voices rise within the party

Dirk Wiese and Wiebke Esdar stated: “The focus is on finding the best political line-up for this election. We hear a lot of praise for Boris Pistorius. It is clear that the final decision on the chancellor candidacy will rest with the party committees, as it should.”

Markus Töns, a long-time SPD member, echoed this sentiment in Stern: “The chancellor has done a good job in difficult circumstances, but the coalition’s end signals a need for a fresh start. Boris Pistorius would make this easier than Olaf Scholz.”

Former SPD leader Sigmar Gabriel was even more critical. Writing on X (formerly Twitter), Gabriel warned of “growing resistance” within the SPD to Scholz’s leadership. “The SPD leadership’s only response is appeasement and loyalty pledges. What we need is bold political leadership. Without it, the SPD risks falling below 15 percent,” he cautioned.

Scholz confident of ‘support from the leadership’

The SPD leadership had planned to finalize the chancellor candidacy decision at its party conference on 30 November. However, the timeline may accelerate to quell the escalating debate.

Speaking from the G20 Summit in Brazil, Scholz dismissed questions about his candidacy, expressing confidence in party support. “The SPD and I aim to win this election together,” he told Die Welt. Secretary-General Lars Klingbeil reinforced this stance, stating on ARD television: “We are committed to continuing with Olaf Scholz—there’s no wavering.”

Chancellor returns without stopping in Mexico

Despite these reassurances, Scholz abruptly canceled his planned trip to Mexico, returning to Berlin after the G20 Summit amid rumors of party infighting. While the SPD leadership held a conference call on Tuesday to discuss the campaign strategy, no decisions were reached.

Recent opinion polls paint a bleak picture for both Scholz and the SPD. The party is polling at 16 percent, far behind the CDU and the far-right AfD, marking a steep decline of 10 points since the 2021 elections.

Yet, Boris Pistorius remains Germany’s most popular politician, consistently outpacing CDU leader Friedrich Merz in approval ratings. This has fueled hopes within the SPD that Pistorius could revitalize their electoral prospects.

Pistorius’ rising profile is not without controversy. Known for his hawkish stance on military issues, he advocates for making the German military “fit for war” and has pushed for increased defense spending to meet NATO’s 2 percent of GDP target. Critics argue that these positions clash with the SPD’s traditional skepticism toward military intervention and ties with Moscow.

Nonetheless, many within the SPD believe Pistorius offers the best chance to avoid a crushing defeat in February’s elections. Pistorius has championed investments to rebuild the Bundeswehr after decades of neglect and launched initiatives to recruit for Germany’s depleted armed forces. His restructuring of the army earlier this year emphasized regional defense over external missions.

Internationally, Pistorius’ assertive approach has earned respect from Western allies, positioning him as a strong contender for the chancellorship despite his public denials. “We already have a candidate, and he is the sitting chancellor,” Pistorius recently told German state television.