Author: M Barbu

After Ten Years of War, Conflict Still Paralyses Syria

What does the conflict in Syria look like on the ground?

The sides to the conflict are locked in an uneasy standoff that has brought the country a measure of calm, but fighting could rapidly reignite and trigger international instability. The turning point in the past year came when a Russian-Turkish ceasefire announced on 5 March 2020 halted a year-long Syrian regime onslaught on Idlib in the north west. This paused most fighting on the war’s last active front. Turkey expanded its military presence in Idlib, securing the truce. Thus, the area became the latest example of de facto ceasefires around the country.

Brent crude floats near $70 on demand recovery anticipation

Oil prices edged up on Monday, with Brent drifting near $70 a barrel, propped up by output cuts from major producers and optimism about global economic and fuel demand recovery in the second half of the year.

Brent crude futures for May gained 50 cents, or 0.72%, to $69.72 a barrel by 0528 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for April was at $66.13 a barrel, up 52 cents, or 0.79%.

TV channel investigation shows how ISIS terrorists found safe haven in Europe

French TV channel M6 aired lately an investigation on ISIS terrorists who have managed to settle without any problem in Europe, and particularly in Germany.

The M6 flagship program “Enquête Exclusive” showed how ISIS terrorists managed to slip through the cracks by posing as asylum seekers, and how they ended up being greeted with open arms and offered a safe haven in Germany, because of the dangerous laxity of German authorities.

Boko Haram Kills JTF Commander, Three Others In Borno

Some operatives of the Nigerian Army were also killed during the attack on Thursday in Gudumbali, a village in Kukawa LGA. Some CJTF members have still not been accounted for 48 hours after the ambush.

Militants of the Islamic State backed faction of Boko Haram, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), formerly known as Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’wah wa’l-Jihād, have killed a top commander of the Civilian Joint Task Force in the Kakuwa Local Government Area of Borno state, Yusuf Baba Idris and three other members of the vigilante group.

Five Characteristics Of The New Ideal Worker

Evidence is mounting: the old vision of “ideal” workers — who give 100% to their employers, without family interference — aren’t actually ideal for 21st century organizations. In fact, the old model of full devotion to work has a negative influence on performance, research says. Now it’s time to talk about “the new ideal worker,” someone who is able to achieve a better work-life balance and bring more to the various tables in their lives.

Russia Now Has More Political Prisoners Than USSR Did In 1976 – OpEd

Two years ago, Russian activist Vladimir Kara-Murza pointed out that Vladimir Putin’s Russia had more political prisoners than the USSR did when Andrey Sakharov began calling attention to them in the USSR in 1976 (rferl.org/a/activist-number-of-political-prisoners-in-russia-twice-what-it-was-in-ussr/30048022.html).

In period since Kara-Murza made that calculation, Ellen Leafstedt of St. Antony’s College in Oxford says, the numbers of political prisoners in Russia have only increased and indeed continue to rise. In an article for the Riddle portal, she suggests that it is important to recognize their diversity (ridl.io/ru/nakazanie-bez-prestuplenija/).

A World Beguiled By ‘Techno-Voodooism’ – OpEd

What happens when systems cross the threshold of peak complexity and can no longer be improved in their current forms? Decision-makers can commission competing models in order to pick a winner. This however calls for patience, prudence and sound oversight. Alternately, they can pounce on a fantastical blueprint that will supposedly gel via Artificial Intelligence and get to play monopoly at the same time. An all-in-one solution!

Such thinking was precisely what beleaguered the F-35 combat aircraft program with its estimated $1.7 trillion in lifetime costs. After 20 years of troubled development, the stealth fighter’s problems have become so insurmountable that the US Air Force is now considering a clean slate fighter jet program to replace its ageing F-16s.

How The Fed’s Inflation Is Driving Stock Buybacks – OpEd

Senator Elizabeth Warren appeared on CNBC last week, sparring with hosts Becky Quick and Joe Kernan over stock buybacks.

Both sides here either forget about, miss, or fail to prioritize the key behavioral incentives that drive this activity.

It is true that company managers are shareholder agents—and are obligated to pursue projects to the end of wealth maximization. If the managers perceive that they do not have enough net present value–positive projects to pursue, they often pay dividends or do share buybacks.

What did Turkey gain from the Armenia-Azerbaijan war?

In 2011, the International Crisis Group wrote that if a war broke out between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Turkey risked being “dragged in” to the conflict. “Public pressure” might force Ankara to intervene in support of Azerbaijan, the ICG wrote, “contrary to [its] larger foreign policy interests.” As a result, Turkish officials were “doing all they can to persuade Baku war would be a ‘nightmare scenario.’”

Mali: nouveaux affrontements entre al-Qaïda et l’État islamique

Au mois d’octobre, des combats violents opposant les combattants du groupe État islamique et d’al-Qaïda avaient été signalés. C’est à nouveau le cas depuis une dizaine de jours dans la région du Gourma malien. Les branches locales des deux organisations terroristes, Aqmi et l’EIGS, sont en concurrence au Sahel pour le contrôle de certaines zones.