The U.S. recently purchased 81 obsolete Soviet-era combat aircraft from Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic, with intentions to supply them to Ukraine.
Inputs that matter: It seems strange that the U.S. government buys aircraft from the 1970s and 1980s for a nation that had just received shipments of the latest military technology.
- Instead, such a purchase looks more like money laundering for a spy game.
- Meanwhile, the BBC reports that a senior Islamic State commander who had a $5m (£4m) U.S. bounty on his head has been killed by troops from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
The opportunity: The International Criminal Court (ICC) is being warned by members of Congress in both parties that arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials will be met with U.S. retaliation.
- The White House declined to comment on Netanyahu's call with Biden but said, "The ICC has no jurisdiction in this situation, and we do not support its investigation."
- The ICC has been investigating allegations of war crimes against both the Israeli military and Palestinian militia groups dating back to 2014.
Zoom in: GRU Unit 29155 is a Russian spy organization under Vladimir Putin that is responsible for poisoning enemies of the Kremlin and blowing up materiel stored in Czechia and Bulgaria.
- Today, the Czech Intelligence Center for Counter-Terrorism and Organized Crime has released the findings of a years-long investigation into Unit 29155's role in destroying two Czech government-run weapons and ammunition depots in 2014 in Czechia.
- These attacks, which resulted in Prague's expulsion of 18 Russian intelligence officers operating in the country under diplomatic cover, were conducted with explosive devices emplaced by Unit 29155's most recognizable operatives: Alexander Mishkin, 44, and Anatoly Chepiga, 45.
- Both would gain international notoriety for trying to murder Sergei Skripal, a GRU officer turned British double agent, along with his daughter Yulia, in Salisbury, England, in 2018, with the military-grade nerve agent Novichok.
Between the lines: According to the European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, Spain, Ireland, Belgium, Slovenia, and Malta will recognize Palestinian statehood by the end of May.
- Israel subsequently accused the four countries of offering a "prize for terrorism" that would reduce the chances of a negotiated resolution to the Gaza conflict.
- Since 1988, 139 out of 193 United Nations member states have recognized Palestinian statehood.
Follow the money: Thousands of videos allegedly showing an Indian Member of Parliament (MP), Prajwal Revanna, sexually abusing women have circulated in the southern state of Karnataka, sparking outrage.
- The MP belongs to the Janata Dal (Secular), an ally of PM Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.
- His father, HD Revanna, a legislator in the Karnataka state assembly, is also accused in the police complaint lodged by a former family employee.
- On Monday, the JD(S) announced suspending Prajwal Revanna.
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Read More
- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/an-assassination-plot-on-american-soil-reveals-a-darker-side-of-modi-s-india/ar-AA1nQzg7
- https://theins.ru/en/politics/271205
- https://banananomics.co/musks_superior_diplomacy_welcomed_by_china
- https://www.axios.com/2024/04/29/icc-congress-netanyahu-israel-gaza
- https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/04/icj-genocide-cases-israel-palestine/678235
- https://www.timesofisrael.com/eu-top-diplomat-at-least-5-countries-expected-to-recognize-palestinian-state-in-may/
- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-68927974
- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-68918326
- https://twitter.com/Megatron_ron/status/1785252432307437741