"Unrest In the Middle East" - a valid headline for over 2000 years.

[Mongrel]

Just a little thing, but interesting all the same (I am biased, of course): Only 40% of Iranians now identify as Muslims

For obvious reasons, the survey had to pull some interesting tricks to get a good sampling, but from what I can tell it was as sound a poll as it could be under the circumstances.

[Yoji]

(I guess this thread is okay for Gaza/Palestine talk?)

I don't listen to the radio much anymore, so I'm not sure if anyone else has heard how an Air Force service member (spoiling for violence)fucking lit himself on fire in front of the Israeli embassy in DC and later died as a protest against the genocide in Palestine

I know the mainstream press hasn't talked as much as it should about what's going on over there, and I'd like to think this would shock them out of it. But I thought I read somewhere that this might not even be the first time this happened during this latest conflict??

It already has a Wikipedia article, but I can't spoiler links without it showing through the blackout bar.

[Friday]

From the wikipedia article:

After igniting himself, Bushnell repeatedly shouted "Free Palestine!" as he was burning, until he collapsed to the ground.[2][3][14][15] The security officer radioed in for assistance. A police officer approached the scene, aiming a gun at Bushnell off-camera and ordered him to "get on the ground" multiple times, while another officer yells "I don't need guns, I need fire extinguishers".

hahahah i fucking love cops

[Mongrel]

(I guess this thread is okay for Gaza/Palestine talk?)

I don't listen to the radio much anymore, so I'm not sure if anyone else has heard how an Air Force service member (spoiling for violence)fucking lit himself on fire in front of the Israeli embassy in DC and later died as a protest against the genocide in Palestine

I know the mainstream press hasn't talked as much as it should about what's going on over there, and I'd like to think this would shock them out of it. But I thought I read somewhere that this might not even be the first time this happened during this latest conflict??

It already has a Wikipedia article, but I can't spoiler links without it showing through the blackout bar.

Yeah there was one a few months ago. :(

There hasn't been much talk about it because... well you know what, I won't assume, other than to say it's grim shit. But from any allusions or oblique mentions I've seen from you guys or the way anyone here already referred to the Israel-Palestine dynamic prior to October 6th, I suspect we all share basically the same position.

[Yoji]

A police officer approached the scene, aiming a gun at Bushnell off-camera and ordered him to "get on the ground" multiple times, while another officer yells "I don't need guns, I need fire extinguishers".

hahahah i fucking love cops

They really do have no other language besides violence, do they? Like, the only tool they reach for to fix things is something made explicitly to break things.

There hasn't been much talk about it because... well you know what, I won't assume, other than to say it's grim shit. But from any allusions or oblique mentions I've seen from you guys or the way anyone here already referred to the Israel-Palestine dynamic prior to October 6th, I suspect we all share basically the same position.

It feels like a hot take these days, but I'm generally opposed to children being blown to smithereens for any reason. Generally something that should be avoided at all costs, y'know?

[nosimpleway]

"to smithereens" is the worst way to get blown for adults, too

[Büge]

[Friday]

and once, he smoked pot

[Mongrel]

"Yeah? So what?"

[Destynova]

"He was no angel."

[sei]

i can be your angle or yuor statistic

[Mongrel]

Islamic rebels in Syria have taken Aleppo, Syria's second-largest city. This is the Tahrir al-Sham, a local gang which is not Al Qaeda/ISIS (they have in fact fought those groups) they've been allowing other religious groups to worship in area under their control, but are still a fundamentalist group looking for religious rule, so the outcome for a Syria under them is uncertain but likely ranges from an Iranian-type state to a Turkish-style one. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic rebels are still in their pocket fief in the east of the country. Whoever ends up in charge, they'd have to put in some pretty serious effort to be worse than Assad.

Russian, Iranian, Hezbollah, and Assad's Syrian Army propped up by the Arab League have all completely vanished from Aleppo, abandoning large amounts of equipment as well as the city.

Assad has reportedly already fled to Russia according to some Syrian sources, but this is unconfirmed and my just be chatter. Trying to find out more on this. This is all moving much quicker than conventional media can respond to, so no brobdingnagian articles up yet to share, it's unclear if the entire Assad regime will collapse shortly or will try to hold on, but Assad's allies appear to have all but deserted him right now.

EDIT: Turkish-backed rebels in the north have also just begun an offensive.