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Electronic Intifada director’s violent arrest and MI6 infiltration into ‘neutral’ Switzerland

By Kit Klarenberg | Press TV | February 22, 2025

On January 25th, prominent Palestinian-American journalist and activist Ali Abunimah, co-founder of the Electronic Intifada website, was violently arrested by undercover operatives in Switzerland, en route to a speaking event.

He proceeded to spend three days and two nights in jail completely cut off from the outside world, during which he was interrogated by local defense ministry intelligence apparatchiks without access to a lawyer or even being informed why he was being imprisoned.

Abunimah was then deported in the manner of a dangerous, violent criminal.

Abunimah’s ordeal caused widespread outcry, not least due to Switzerland being the oldest ‘neutral’ state in the world. Such is Bern’s apparently indomitable commitment to this principle, that it initially refused to join the UN lest its neutrality be compromised, only becoming a member in September 2022, following a public referendum.

Moreover, the country routinely scores highly – if not highest – in Western human rights rankings, and has provided a safe haven for foreign journalists and human rights activists fleeing repression.

Abunimah’s flagrantly political persecution and ruthless treatment, undoubtedly motivated by his indefatigable solidarity with Palestine, stands at total odds with Swiss neutrality.

So too Bern’s secret, little-known involvement in Operation Gladio. Under the auspices of this monstrous Cold War connivance, the CIA and MI6 constructed underground shadow armies of fascist paramilitaries that wreaked havoc across Europe, carrying out false flag terror attacks, robberies, and assassinations to discredit the left, install right-wing governments, and justify crackdowns on dissent.

Switzerland’s Gladio unit was known as Projekt-26, the numerals referring to the country’s separate cantons. Its existence was uncovered in November 1990, as a result of an unrelated Swiss parliamentary investigation triggered months earlier.

This probe was launched after it was revealed local security services had kept detailed secret files on 900,000 citizens, almost one-seventh of the country’s total population, throughout the Cold War.

The inquiry found during the same period, P-26 operated “outside political control”, and specifically targeted “domestic subversion”. Its membership ran to around 400, with “most” being “experts” in “weapons, telecommunications and psychological warfare.”

The unit moreover “maintained a network of mostly underground installations throughout Switzerland,” and was commanded by “a private citizen who could mobilize the force without consulting [the] army or government.”

Parliamentarians also concluded that P-26 “cooperated with an unidentified NATO country.”

It was some time before that “NATO country” was confirmed to be Britain. Subsequent investigations shed significant light on London’s mephitic relationship with P-26, and the unit’s role within the wider Operation Gladio conspiracy.

Much remains unknown about the extent of its activities, and will most certainly never emerge. But while P-26 was officially disbanded after its public exposure, the recent persecution of Abunimah strongly suggests MI6 continues to exert unseen influence over Switzerland’s politics, intelligence, military and security apparatus today.

‘A Scandal’

Discovery of P-26 prompted a dedicated inquiry into Switzerland’s “stay behind” network, overseen by local judge Pierre Cornu. It was not until April 2018 that a truncated version of his 100-page-long report was released, in French.

No English translation has emerged since, and a dedicated multi-page section on P-26’s relationship with US and British intelligence is wholly redacted.

Still, the report acknowledged the unit’s operatives were trained in Britain – Gladio’s secret “headquarters” – and remained in regular, covert contact with London’s embassy in Bern.

Oddly, a 13-page summary of Cornu’s report, published in September 1991, was far more revealing. It noted that British intelligence “collaborated closely” with P-26, “regularly” tutoring its militants in “combat, communications, and sabotage” on its home soil. British advisers – likely SAS fighters – also visited secret military sites in Switzerland.

Numerous formal agreements were signed between the clandestine organization and London, the last being inked in 1987. These covered training, and supply of weapons and other equipment.

Describing collaboration between British intelligence and P-26 as “intense”, the summary was deeply scathing of this cloak-and-dagger bond, describing it as wholly lacking “political or legal legitimacy” or oversight, and thus “intolerable” from a democratic perspective.

Until P-26’s November 1990 exposure, elected Swiss officials were purportedly completely unaware of the unit’s existence, let alone its operations. “It is alarming [MI6] knew more about P-26 than the Swiss government did,” the summary appraised.

P-26 was moreover backed by P-27, a private foreign-sponsored spying agency, partly funded by an elite Swiss army intelligence unit. The latter was responsible for monitoring and building up files on “suspect persons” within the country, including; “leftists”; “bill stickers”, Jehovah’s Witnesses, citizens with “abnormal tendencies”; and anti-nuclear demonstrators.

To what purpose this information was put isn’t clear. Many documents detailing the activities of both P-26 and P-27 and the pair’s coordination with British intelligence, apparently couldn’t be located while Cornu conducted his investigation.

Obfuscating the picture even further, in February 2018 it was confirmed 27 separate folders and dossiers amassed during Cornu’s probe had since mysteriously vanished.

Local suspicions this trove was deliberately misplaced or outright destroyed to prevent embarrassing disclosures about “neutral” Switzerland’s relationship with US and British intelligence, and NATO, emerging abound to this day.

At the time, Josef Lang, a left-leaning former Swiss lawmaker and historian, who had long called for the Cornu report to be released in unredacted form, declared:

“There are three possibilities: the papers were shredded, hidden, or lost, in that order of likelihood. But even if the most innocent option is the case, that’s also a scandal.”

‘Clandestine Networks’

The unsolved murder of Herbert Alboth amply reinforces the conclusion that shadowy elements within and without Switzerland were sure that certain facts about the country’s involvement with Operation Gladio would never be known.

A senior intelligence operative who commanded the “stay behind” unit during the early 1970s, in March 1990 Alboth secretly wrote to then-Defence Minister Kaspar Villiger, promising that “as an insider” he could reveal “the whole truth” about P-26. This was right when Swiss parliamentarians began investigating the secret maintenance of files on “subversives”.

Alboth never had an opportunity to testify. A month later, he was found dead in his Bern apartment, having been repeatedly stabbed in the stomach with his own military bayonet.

Contemporary media reports noted a series of indecipherable characters were scrawled on his chest in felt pen, leaving police “puzzled”.

Strewn around his home were photographs of senior P-26 members, “stay behind” training course documents, “exercise plans of a conspiratorial character,” and the names and addresses of fellow Swiss spies.

On November 22nd, 1990, one day after P-26 was formally dissolved, the European Parliament passed a resolution on Operation Gladio.

It called for the then-European Community, and all its member states, to conduct official investigations “into the nature, structure, aims and all other aspects of these clandestine organizations or any splinter groups, their use for illegal interference in the internal political affairs of the countries concerned,” their involvement in “serious cases of terrorism and crime,” and “collusion” with Western spying agencies.

The resolution warned:

“These organizations operated and continue to operate completely outside the law since they are not subject to any parliamentary control and frequently those holding the highest government and constitutional posts are kept in the dark as to these matters… For over 40 years [Operation Gladio] has escaped all democratic controls and has been run by the secret services of the states concerned in collaboration with NATO… Such clandestine networks may have interfered illegally in the internal political affairs of member states or may still do so.”

Yet, outside formal inquiries in Belgium, Italy, and Switzerland, nothing of substance subsequently materialized. Today, we are left to ponder whether Gladio’s constellation of European “stay behind” armies was ever truly demobilized, and if British intelligence still directs the activities of foreign security and spying agencies under the noses of elected governments.

Given London’s intimate, active complicity in the Gaza genocide and ever-ratcheting war on Palestine solidarity at home, Abunimah is an obvious target for the MI6 spy agency.

So too Richard Medhurst, a British-born, Vienna-residing independent journalist arrested upon arrival at London’s Heathrow airport in August 2024 on uncertain “counter-terror” charges.

On February 3rd, Austrian police and intelligence operatives ransacked his home and studio, confiscating many of his possessions, including all his journalistic materials and tools, before detaining and questioning him for hours.

Believing this to be no coincidence, Medhurst asked the officers if London had ordered the raid. An officer replied, “No, Britain doesn’t talk to us.”

Coincidentally, Austria is another ostensibly “neutral” country in which MI6 was embroiled in Operation Gladio. Following World War II, British intelligence armed and trained a local “stay behind” cell comprised of thousands of former SS personnel and Neo-Nazis.

Innocently named the Austrian Association of Hiking, Sports and Society, like its Swiss counterpart, the unit operated with such secrecy that “only very, very highly positioned politicians” were aware.

For his part, Medhurst is absolutely convinced London is behind his persecution:

“Some of these Austrian accusations are very similar to the British ones… I think it’s being coordinated with Britain… British police seized a Graphene OS device from me and [it’s] very unlikely they’d be able to crack it… I suppose that’s why Britain asked the Austrians to raid me, grab anything they could find and go on this massive fishing expedition,” he said.

“The warrant even mentions my arrest in London to try and bolster their case.”

February 22, 2025 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Deception, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Arrest of Electronic Intifada journalist exposes deep Zionist footprints in Switzerland

Mario Fehr in Zurich 10 October 2023
By David Miller | Press TV | February 20, 2025

Ali Abunimah, the director of the Electronic Intifada, an independent pro-Palestine news website, was recently arrested in Switzerland and later deported.

One man was identified as the proximate cause – the Zurich security minister, Mario Fehr.  It was also revealed that Fehr is a fanatical Zionist.

As the Grayzone website reported at a “rally in solidarity with Israel” on Oct. 10, 2023, Fehr openly stated that “the fate of Israel and its inhabitants is close to my heart.”

He also stated that the Gaza-based resistance movement Hamas and the Islamic Republic of Iran have always called for the “destruction of Israel and the Jews.”

“Anyone who rapes women, kills old people, kidnaps children, dehumanizes the dead, takes countless peaceful people hostage is not a negotiating partner – he is a rapist, a murderer, a terrorist,” Fehr was quoted as saying.

“Golda Meir was right: ‘You cannot negotiate peace with somebody who has come to kill you.’ Peace will not be possible with Hamas and its accomplices!”

But, is the influence of Zionism in Switzerland greater than just one corrupt official?

Let’s have a deeper look.

The Zionist movement is led by the World Zionist Organisation based in occupied Jerusalem al-Quds along with three key allied bodies collectively called the “Israeli national institutions.”

In every country where the Zionist movement is organized, there are local branches of these four groups.

Switzerland is no different.

The Swiss Zionist Federation is the local branch of the WZO, which brings together all Swiss Zionist identifying groups.

In addition, there is a branch of the so-called “Jewish National Fund” which is the pre-eminent land theft agency of the Zionist movement.

It has been called a “colonialist agency of ethnic cleansing” by noted Israeli scholar and historian Ilan Pappe. The Swiss branch is called the KKL-JNF Switzerland and it states that it “works closely with the head office in Israel.”

There is also a department of the Jewish Agency the Zionist regime-controlled institution that recruits settlers to come and live on the land stolen by the JNF.

Lastly, there is a branch of the Keren Hayesod known as the Foundation Fund since it raises money to pay for the illegal settlers and their settlements.

The Swiss branch is called the Keren Hajessod Switzerland.

The global Zionist movement is also supported by the World Jewish Congress.

Its Swiss branch is called the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities. It is given the acronym SIG in German which stands for Schweizerischer Israelitischer Gemeindebund.  The federation organizes some 18 regional members.

Other Israel lobby groups include:

No wonder Abunimah, a Palestinian-American journalist who has been a vocal advocate of the Palestinian cause and a fierce critic of the Zionist regime’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, was arrested in Switzerland.

Switzerland has also had a long and close historical relationship with the Zionist movement.

The first-ever conference of the Zionist Organisation was held in Basel, Switzerland in August 1897.

In fact, no city outside occupied Palestine has hosted the World Zionist Congress so often.  Ten of the gatherings of a total of 22 up until 1946 were held in Basel.

The World Zionist Organisation returned to Basel in 2022 for what it called the ‘most significant Zionist gathering of the decade’. It was celebrating the 125th anniversary of the inaugural Zionist Congress.

There are also other connections between Zionism and Switzerland.

In August 1936, the founding plenary of the World Jewish Congress was held in  Geneva. The WJC today is led by Ronald S Lauder, the heir to the Estee Lauder cosmetics fortune.

He led the Jewish National Fund from 1997 to 2007 and has been its board chair ever since. The World Jewish Congress elected Lauder as its president in 2007, a position he continues to occupy.

He was named seventh amongst the 50 most influential Jews in the world by the Jerusalem Post in 2024. Lauder is an extreme Zionist, supporter of the racist Birthright programme.

As Alan McLeod has written, Lauder is a “close confidant and supporter of Benjamin Netanyahu, who was appointed a negotiator for Israel with the government of Syria in 1998.

His presence at a One Jerusalem rally in front of religious extremists in 2001 led to a boycott of the Estée Lauder brand across the Muslim world.”

In 1982, the Lubavitcher Rebbe sent an emissary to Zurich which is home to a significant ultra-orthodox Jewish community. Today the genocidal cult that is Chabad-Lubavitch has nine separate branches in Switzerland.

In recent years there have been efforts to proscribe Hamas as a terrorist group and to cut funding to UNRWA. Amongst other groups, the pressure has been applied by NGO Monitor which attempted to undermine pro-Palestine groups and by the Geneva-based UN Watch which poses as independent but is actually a front group for the American Jewish Committee as was reported by Press TV’s Palestine Declassified show in 2024.

In late 2023 the Members of the Israel-Switzerland Parliamentary Friendship Group conducted an official visit to Bern. The visitors were two members of the Knesset, MK Yosef Taieb and MK Hamad Amar, belonging to the extremist Shas and Yisrael Beiteinu parties respectively.

It is no surprise then to learn that the Federal Council of Switzerland adopted the IHRA working definition in June 2021 and added it to the existing armory for weaponizing antisemitism in the country.

The Zionist movement in Switzerland makes sure to keep up the pressure to maintain the fake definition of antisemitism by inventing a supposed epidemic of racism against the Jews.

There are several groups doing this including Intercommunity Coordination against Anti-Semitism and Defamation (CICAD) which is run by a lifelong Zionist Johanne Gurfinkiel.

Unsurprisingly it deliberately blurs together prejudice against the Jews with pro-Palestine protest.

In addition, the main Israel lobby group the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities co-published a report in 2023 claiming that antisemitism “nearly tripled” after the launch of al Aqsa Flood.

The SFJC collaborated to produce the report with the Foundation Against Racism and Antisemitism. This group is strongly Zionist and explains anti-Semitism in a way that simply echoes the foreign policy lines developed by the Zionist regime.

Scandalously the lobby groups are financially supported by the Swiss governmental body, the Service for Combatting Racism.

Like many other European countries, the Zionists are firmly embedded in Swiss society.

Uprooting them and consigning Zionism to the dustbin of history will not be easy, but it is a necessary task wherever the racist ideology is found.

David Miller is the producer and co-host of Press TV’s weekly Palestine Declassified show. He was sacked from Bristol University in October 2021 over his Palestine advocacy.

February 20, 2025 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , | Leave a comment

FM: Iran won’t condone language of threats; maximum pressure doomed to fail

Press TV – February 18, 2025

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the Islamic Republic does not condone threats, stressing that the US’s “maximum pressure” campaign will certainly fail.

Araghchi made the remarks at a meeting with Wolfgang Amadeus Bruelhart, the Swiss Special Envoy for the Middle East and North Africa, on the sidelines of the 8th Indian Ocean Conference in Oman on Monday.

During the meeting, Araghchi referred to the three rounds of negotiations held between Iran and the three European signatories to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and expressed Tehran’s readiness to continue talks with the three European countries, namely the United Kingdom, France, and Germany (E3).

The minister stressed that the Islamic Republic “does not brook the language of threats or pressure”, asserting that the policy of maximum pressure led by the US “is bound to fail.”

That came as US President Donald Trump has signed a memorandum re-imposing his so-called “maximum economic pressure” on Iran.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the Iranian minister hailed the long-standing ties between Iran and Switzerland, stressing the importance of the “constructive” role played by the country, which acts as the protecting power for the US in Tehran, in promoting peace and stability in the region.

He also welcomed the upcoming round of political talks scheduled to take place between Tehran and Bern in the Iranian capital.

“We emphasize [the importance] of continuing dialogue and cooperation in this regard”.

For his part, Bruelhart stressed the “significant and influential” role played by Iran in the region.

He also underscored the importance of talks with Iran on bilateral and regional issues, and expressed his country’s keenness to continue dialogue with Tehran, especially during the upcoming meeting in Tehran.

Iran and the E3 have been conducting on-again, off-again talks since 2021, three years after the United States illegally and unilaterally left a historic nuclear accord between Iran and world powers under Donald Trump, returning Washington’s unlawful sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The trio then failed to live up to their promise of bringing Washington back into the deal.

Reacting to the counter-party’s non-commitment to its obligations, Tehran initiated a set of retaliatory nuclear steps, including by activating more advanced centrifuges.

The country has been stepping up the measures in response to the other parties’ continued refusal to uphold their obligations.

February 18, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Wars for Israel | , , , | Leave a comment

Geneva rejects amnesty grants to nationals fighting in Ukraine

Al Mayadeen | February 15, 2025

Switzerland’s parliament on Friday upheld its ban on citizens joining foreign military conflicts by rejecting a proposal to grant amnesty to those who fought in Ukraine. This decision comes after the country confirmed its first combatant casualty in the war.

Earlier, the Legal Affairs Commission of the National Council had opposed the initiative, which was introduced by Social Democratic Party deputy Jon Pult to exempt Swiss nationals fighting in Ukraine from prosecution.

“The prohibition of participating as a volunteer in combat led by foreign forces is a fundamental principle of Swiss law. Granting amnesty or proceeding with rehabilitations in ongoing conflicts would constitute an undesirable political recognition of mercenarism,” the commission said in a publication on the Swiss Parliament’s website.

The commission emphasized that Swiss law strictly forbids nationals from joining foreign militaries, reaffirming the country’s commitment to neutrality. Consequently, Swiss citizens involved in such conflicts will still face legal consequences upon their return.

Earlier this week, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) confirmed the death of a Swiss national who had joined Ukraine’s Armed Forces (AFU)—the first officially acknowledged case since the conflict escalated. The AFU had previously notified the Swiss embassy in Kiev of the individual’s likely death in combat, though details about their unit or deployment remain undisclosed.

30 out of 57 Swiss nationals reportedly died while fighting in Ukraine, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, although the exact number of Swiss mercenaries in Ukraine remains unclear. According to Swiss military justice authorities, 13 investigations were ongoing last year into nationals suspected of mercenary activities.

How is Ukraine handling dissertations and losses?

Since the war with Moscow escalated in 2022, Ukraine has actively recruited foreign fighters to counter battlefield losses and desertions.

The Ukrainian government adopted sweeping mobilization measures and intensified efforts to enforce conscription. These measures include stricter penalties for draft evasion, prompting an increase in attempts to flee the country illegally.

The Ukrainian military, which has been grappling with acute shortages of soldiers, has lowered the mobilization age and intensified recruitment efforts.

President Volodymyr Zelensky’s measures also included severe penalties for draft evaders, including the seizure of property and freezing of bank accounts.

Efforts to escape conscription have led to tragic consequences, with reports of Ukrainian men drowning in attempts to cross into neighboring countries like Romania.

The challenges of evasion are compounded by border restrictions and heightened surveillance.

In response to mounting evasion attempts, Ukrainian authorities have cracked down on corruption within the conscription process, dismissing regional military recruitment chiefs implicated in bribery scandals.

February 15, 2025 Posted by | War Crimes | , | Leave a comment

Swiss official who jailed journalist Ali Abunimah is fanatical pro-Israel activist

By Wyatt Reed · The Grayzone · January 28, 2025

The Swiss official who ordered the arrest of renowned Palestinian-American journalist Ali Abunimah justified doing so on the false and defamatory basis that Abunimah is “an Islamist Jew-hater.” Mario Fehr, the head of Zurich’s Department of Security, made the bogus accusation in a recent comment to the Swiss publication NZZ, which also falsely characterized Abunimah as an “Islamist” and an “extremist.”

Swiss authorities detained Abunimah on Jan. 25, after they initially allowed him entry into Switzerland following an hour-long interrogation. Abunimah was deported on Jan. 27 after two nights, during which Swiss officials refused to tell him whether he was being charged with a crime. According to the Swiss newspaper NZZ, officers in Zurich successfully petitioned federal police for an arrest warrant after realizing Abunimah had travelled to the country in order to deliver a speech at an event organized by the Zurich Palestine Committee. Fehr explained the arrest by stating, in reference to self-described “non-religious person” Ali Abunimah: “We do not want an Islamist Jew-hater who calls for violence in Switzerland.”

It’s unclear how Fehr came to adopt this patently false claim, but the article in NZZ gives a hint. In painting the secular Abunimah as a jihadist, the story’s authors relied on a leader of a little-known group called “Never Again Is Now,” (NAIN) which characterizes itself as “the only non-profit organization in Switzerland dedicated exclusively to combating antisemitism,” says it “demands the uncompromising enforcement of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism,” and claims: “we… defend Israel against anti-Zionist agendas.”

NZZ quoted one of the group’s board members, Thomas Patzko, as stating “Abunimah and his platform are a mouthpiece for Hamas.” The outlet cited NAIN while insisting that Abunimah “delegitimizes the victims of the terrorist attack on October 7, specifically women and children” – a reference to Abunimah’s factual statement that “there is no credible evidence of a single rape on October 7.”

It’s not yet apparent whether these false accusations by Swiss media or the Zionist group led directly to Abunimah’s deportation. But at some point prior to Abunimah’s scheduled address, “the Zurich [regional] police had become aware of Abunimah’s planned appearance,” NZZ reported. “They had submitted a request to Fedpol for an entry ban,” the outlet wrote, adding “this request was granted” by “the responsible government councilor and security director Mario Fehr.”

What is clear, however, is the Zurich security chief’s allegiance to the Zionist narrative. At a “Rally in solidarity with Israel” on Oct. 10, 2023, Fehr openly stated that “the fate of Israel and its inhabitants is close to my heart” before rattling off a comprehensive list of pro-Israel talking points, ranting about Iran and quoting notoriously racist Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, while demanding the Swiss government cease funding any development projects in Palestine.

“Hamas and its main sponsor Iran have always called for the destruction of Israel and the Jews. The fact that official Swiss foreign policy believed in the illusion that it could seriously negotiate with these terrorists is naive and shameful. – Anyone who rapes women, kills old people, kidnaps children, dehumanizes the dead, takes countless peaceful people hostage is not a negotiating partner – he is a rapist, a murderer, a terrorist. Golda Meir was right: ‘You cannot negotiate peace with somebody who has come to kill you.’ Peace will not be possible with Hamas and its accomplices!”

Minutes later, Fehr launched into a tirade about those who “somehow try to explain that Israel is actually to blame,” complaining: “These relativists should simply spend their next trip to the Middle East in Gaza.” Though he conceded that “many Palestinian civilians are also suffering and are affected,” Fehr insisted that “the responsibility for this lies solely with the Hamas terrorists,” stating flatly: “Israel is not to blame for this escalation.”

Ultimately, Fehr insisted the Swiss “Federal Council must suspend development cooperation with Palestine (like the EU) until it is clear who the money is really going to benefit” because “there is currently no negotiating partner on the Palestinian side.”

“Anyone who sees it differently is allowing money to flow to terrorists,” he claimed.

In an interview with NZZ one month after the Oct. 7, 2023 attack, Fehr claimed that “the rampant anti-Semitism” had become “unbearable” in Switzerland, a trend he said was borne out by pro-Palestinian protests, and which he attributed to the presence of Arabs:

“We see from Palestine demonstrations that anti-Semitism is more widespread in certain cultural circles. Particularly in parts of the Arab world, children learn to hate Jews and Israel from an early age. We have to be careful that we don’t give this hatred any room here.”

Fehr criticized authorities in Switzerland for allowing pro-Palestinian protests to take place and said he had demanded they ban such events in areas under his jurisdiction, asserting that “anti-Israel demonstrations that are increasingly being hijacked by extremists.”

“Their goal is the annihilation of Israel and all Jews. The danger that Islamists from Germany or other countries will now move to Switzerland and spread their hatred is real. A large Palestine demonstration took place in Bern last Saturday, and the next one has been planned and approved for this weekend in the city of Zurich. I think that is negligent.”

“I have emphatically insisted to the head of municipal security to not authorize any more Palestine demonstrations in the current dangerous situation,” he stated.

Asked whether regional police under his command would “continue to support the Zurich city authorities, even though the city allows such demonstrations,” Fehr replied simply: “We will protect Jewish institutions as before – with all the means at our disposal.”

January 30, 2025 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , | Leave a comment

Switzerland releases, deports pro-Palestine American journalist

Press TV – January 28, 2025

Swiss officials have freed and deported prominent Palestinian American journalist Ali Abunimah, whom they arrested in the city of Zurich and held in police custody for three days, raising concerns about freedom of speech in the European country.

Abunimah, executive director of the online Electronic Intifada publication covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, confirmed his release in a post published on the X social media platform on Monday.

He said Swiss authorities detained him because of his advocacy for Palestinian rights.

“My ‘crime’? Being a journalist who speaks up for Palestine and against Israel’s genocide and settler-colonial savagery and those who aid and abet it,” the Palestinian American journalist wrote.

He was arrested in Zurich on Saturday before he was set to deliver a speech in the city. UN human rights experts and activists condemned the arrest.

The Reuters news agency, citing the Swiss police, said on Sunday that an entry ban and other measures under the country’s immigration law were the reason for Abunimah’s arrest.

The 53-year-old journalist said that when he was questioned by police officers, they accused him of “offending against Swiss law,” without providing specific charges.

He said he was “cut off from communication with the outside world, in a cell 24 hours a day”, adding that he was unable to contact his family. He added that he was only given back his phone at the gate of the plane that flew him to Istanbul.

Abunimah noted that during the period when he was taken to prison like a “dangerous criminal”, Switzerland welcomed Israeli President Isaac Herzog to the World Economic Forum in Davos.

“This ordeal lasted three days but that taste of prison was more than enough to leave me in even greater awe of the Palestinian heroes who endure months and years in the prisons of the genocidal oppressor,” Abunimah said.

“More than ever, I know that the debt we owe them is one we can never repay and all of them must be free and they must remain our focus.”

UN experts denounced Abunimah’s detention as an assault on free speech.

The UN special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan, called the arrest “shocking news” and urged Switzerland to investigate and release him.

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, also called for an investigation into the incident.

“The climate surrounding freedom of speech in Europe is becoming increasingly toxic, and we should all be concerned,” Albanese wrote in a social media post.

The detention of Abunimah took place against the backdrop of intensified restrictions on pro-Palestinian advocates in Europe, amidst the catastrophic war on Gaza.

In April, Germany canceled a conference intended for advocates of Palestinian rights and barred British physician Ghassan Abu Sittah, who had provided medical assistance in Gaza, from entering the country.

January 28, 2025 Posted by | Full Spectrum Dominance | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Swiss police arrest director of Electronic Intifada news outlet

Al Mayadeen | January 26, 2025

Swiss authorities have detained Ali Abunimah, a Palestinian-American journalist and co-founder of the pro-Palestine news outlet The Electronic Intifada (EI).

Abunimah was reportedly questioned by Swiss police for an hour upon his arrival at Zurich airport on Friday before being granted entry into the city.

Reports suggest he was arrested the following day, ahead of a scheduled speaking event.

“Abunimah’s arrest appears to be part of a growing backlash from Western governments against expressions of solidarity with the Palestinian people,” the Electronic Intifada said.

The Chicago-based independent publication voiced its solidarity with Abunimah, stating, “Speaking out against injustice in Palestine is not a crime. Journalism is not a crime.”

In posts on his X account, the journalist condemned the Israeli genocidal assault on the Gaza Strip and expressed support for the Palestinian resistance against the occupation.

His latest article, published on The Electronic Intifada on January 18, was titled “How Gaza’s Resistance Defeated Israel.”

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) emphasized that Abunimah has been a consistent advocate against “Israel’s” injustices in Palestine, highlighting that his arrest appears to be a direct result of his outspoken activism.

“Abunimah’s arrest is a stark reminder of the increasing attempts to stifle voices calling for justice and accountability,” it pointed out.

Belgian-Lebanese activist Dyab Abou Jahjah, founder of the Hind Rajab Foundation, described Abunimah as a “political prisoner” and demanded his immediate release.

Last year, British police raided the home of Asa Winstanley, an associate editor with EI, and seized his computers and phones.

January 26, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , , , | Leave a comment

Swiss People’s Party Demands Resignation: Defense Minister Under Fire for Security Policy Failures

Sputnik – 12.01.2025

According to the Swiss People’s Party (SVP), Switzerland is incapable of guaranteeing internal and external security because of its arms deliveries to Ukraine and its rapprochement with NATO.

The Swiss People’s Party, Switzerland’s largest political force, has called on the head of the country’s Defense Ministry, Viola Amherd, to resign over her failed security policy.

“The fact that Switzerland can no longer guarantee its internal and external security is the result of political mistakes – and a consequence of wrong appointments,” a statement read.

Viola Amherd is also blamed for the country’s rapprochement with NATO.

“Those who are gradually tying Switzerland to NATO are accepting that young Swiss are dying abroad and that Switzerland is being dragged into foreign conflicts,” the Swiss People’s Party said.

According to the SVP, Amherd prefers to deal with gender issues in the armed forces rather than military equipment.

“She allows weapons ordered for Switzerland to be delivered to Ukraine. These are the wrong priorities, Federal Councillor,” the SVP said in a statement.

In late October 2024, Amherd said that Bern should ease restrictions on the re-export of Swiss weapons because of the country’s arms business. She cited the fact that the Netherlands had already decided to stop buying weapons from the nation because of the current ban on re-exports, and that Germany could follow suit.

Russia believes that arms supplies to Ukraine hinder a settlement and directly involve NATO countries in the conflict. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine would be a legitimate target for Russia. According to Lavrov, the United States and NATO are directly involved in the conflict, not only by supplying weapons, but also by training personnel in the UK, Germany, Italy, and other countries. The Kremlin stated that the West pumping Ukraine with weapons does not contribute to negotiations and would have a negative effect.

January 12, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , , | Leave a comment

Switzerland’s UDC Party Accuses Government of Undermining Country’s Neutrality

Sputnik – 22.08.2024

The largest party in the Swiss parliament, the Democratic Union of the Centre (UDC), accused President Viola Amherd and the government of undermining Switzerland’s neutrality by seeking to join the EU’s Military Mobility project.

On Wednesday, the Swiss government said that it intends to join the EU’s Military Mobility project, which aims to facilitate the movement of troops and military equipment across European territory.

“The UDC resolutely opposes Switzerland’s participation in the EU military pact PESCO [Permanent Structured Cooperation]. The Federal Council is thus frivolously abandoning the neutrality and sovereignty of our country. By participating in the EU military pact, the Federal Council, through gross negligence, is also endangering the security of the Swiss population. The UDC demands that the Federal Council bring this issue before parliament without fail,” the party said in a statement on Wednesday.

The UDC also accused the European Union of pursuing an expansionist policy in Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova.

“The goals of Switzerland as a neutral and sovereign state do not coincide at all with the goals of the EU. Especially since the EU considers itself a geopolitical player and pursues an obvious expansionist policy towards Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova,” the party added.

Switzerland is not a member of the European Union or NATO. However, the Swiss Foreign Ministry’s 2022 foreign policy report announced the country’s intention to strengthen security cooperation with the alliance. In 2024 the Swiss military are expected to take part in 20 military drills beyond the country’s territory and in four drills within its soil, all of which involve NATO states.

August 22, 2024 Posted by | Militarism | , , | Leave a comment

“Ukraine is bleeding to death” – retired German general calls for a way out of Ukrainian conflict

By Ahmed Adel | May 17, 2024

Retired German general Roland Kather, on the TV channel Die Welt, called for examining possible scenarios for exiting the Ukrainian conflict. On the same day as Kather’s comments, retired colonel and former Swiss intelligence officer Jacques Baud said that US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin could not define what would be considered a victory in Ukraine.

“Ukraine is gradually running out of blood. It does not have enough personnel to create an appropriate reserve,” Kather noted, adding that Ukrainian soldiers are “tired, weak,” and their morale has fallen.

The presenter asked Kather if it is necessary to start “at least thinking” now about what the exit scenarios for this “war of attrition” might be.

“For months, we can say, since the beginning of this terrible war of attrition, I have always advocated that behind the scenes – at least not publicly, not in the media – think about, as you said, what exit scenarios are possible,” said the general.

However, Kather acknowledged that this would be “very difficult” if one side or the other saw military opportunities for progress.

It is recalled that in an interview with US journalist Tucker Carlson, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that negotiations with Ukraine in 2022 were almost completed. However, after the withdrawal of Russian troops from Kiev, the Ukrainian side “threw away” all agreements, and later, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky legislatively banned any negotiations with Russia.

Kather’s comments come as Baud said in an interview with the YouTube channel Dialogue Works that US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has failed to define what victory over Russia in Ukraine means to him.

During the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin was asked to determine what would be considered a victory in Ukraine, and he was unable to answer the question, the expert noted.

Baud stressed that if the West does not know why it is fighting in Eastern Europe, it will not be able to conduct combat operations and prevail. According to him, without a strategy, tactics are just noise before defeat. The former military officer said this is exactly what we are witnessing in Ukraine with the North American and Ukrainian approaches.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on May 13 that Moscow is ready if the West wants to resolve the Ukrainian crisis on the battlefield. Russia’s top diplomat also highlighted that the conference on Ukraine in Switzerland, scheduled for mid-June and to which Russia was not invited, is only for drawing up an ultimatum for Moscow.

Although Switzerland has not invited Russia to the conference, China, Brazil, and other major Global South countries have been pushing to involve Moscow in the process. Russia said it is not against peace negotiations, but even if invited, it would not participate because it does not consider Switzerland a neutral actor since the country joined US-led sanctions against Moscow, discrediting its role as a mediator to the conflict.

Effectively, Switzerland’s neutrality is a sham, and the peace conference will achieve nothing in ending the war since Russia was obviously not invited despite being in control of the situation on the ground and continuing to liberate territory. Therefore, while Switzerland and the West will pretend to work for peace in Ukraine and give self-adulation, Ukraine will continue “running out of blood,” as Kather highlighted.

Last month, former Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu revealed that Ukraine had suffered half a million personnel losses since Moscow launched its special military operation in February 2022. 215,000 Ukrainian soldiers were lost in 2023 alone. This is a calamitous loss of life or permanent injury for survivors.

Despite self-adulation and promises of never-ending support for Ukraine, the US and Europe will not be able to continue providing endless cash flow to Ukraine since they are already struggling with economic crises, growing unemployment, and multiple social issues. This reality once again raises questions about the purpose of the Swiss peace conference since Russia is not participating.

Yet, with the Ukrainian military “running out of blood,” President Volodymyr Zelensky is refusing to accept reality. Instead, according to The Guardian, the Kiev regime believes they can win the war. The British newspaper said, “Nonetheless, it is true that the prospect of some decisive breakthrough routing Russian troops from Ukrainian soil looks more remote than ever.” Essentially, the longer Zelensky and the West allow the war to go on, the culling of young Ukrainians will continue at a catastrophic rate.

Ahmed Adel is a Cairo-based geopolitics and political economy researcher.

May 17, 2024 Posted by | Militarism | , , | Leave a comment

Western media sees spies and saboteurs everywhere

By Patrick Poppel | April 29, 2024

An article entitled “Spies and Saboteurs” was published in the NZZ (Neue Züricher Zeitung). This choice of words reminds us very much of the time of the Second World War. A Russian agent is now suspected behind every corner in Europe. There were even reports of planned attacks by the Russian secret service on German soil. But most of the allegations concern disinformation and cyberattacks that are intended to destabilize Germany from Russia.

This article in the so-called “quality medium” is not an isolated case in the media world of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Just a few days ago there was a scandal in Austria because an employee of the secret service was accused of working as a spy for Russia. Whether this is true or not, this person was immediately shown to be close to the opposition FPÖ party. In many Austrian media, bizarre connections to other political figures were described, without being able to prove this. The target of this report was clearly not this “agent” but the opposition party.

This anti-Russian opinion formation now flanks the anti-democratic and totalitarian developments, as there is already discussion in Germany about banning a party (AFD) that does not correspond to the mainstream.

The role of the systemic media in manipulating the political landscape must be questioned more closely in the future. Especially because they are financed by public structures. These media create an atmosphere in society, which is used as a basis for discussions in parliament and even changes in laws.

But it’s not just the media that is working against the opposition. There are now also demonstrations against the opposition in Germany, which are massively supported by the state media. These “protests against the right” must be analyzed as an artificially created movement. State-funded media, cultural associations and artists are gathering people here to take to the streets against the opposition.

The AFD in Germany and the FPÖ in Austria are repeatedly described as pro-Russian and individuals there have often been asked to explicitly distance themselves from Russia. Apart from that, these political forces cannot be described as pro-Russian, as they include many transatlantic politicians.

We have to ask ourselves why such a major campaign is now being organized against the opposition. The answer is that the system can no longer explain its own incompetence and work against the state’s sovereign interests. Only when you point your finger at someone do three fingers point back at you.

Fear of Russian espionage and sabotage is currently at a peak in Europe. It is expected that this situation will not change soon. This fear has existed in Eastern Europe for years, but now the West is also mired in this paranoia.

It is important to the media in the West to create threats and enemy images. Russia is currently the target of this propaganda. But in the future it could also become a different state. Just as people are afraid of Russia’s spies today, tomorrow they might be afraid of China’s economy or Africa waking up.

Europe is in a difficult situation due to geopolitical changes. And systems that get into trouble often tend to act irrationally. These are difficult times for the political opposition and happy journalists in Europe. Anyone who doesn’t follow the mainstream is excluded and attacked in the media.

However, these political and media instruments could also be just the beginning of further development. The first arrests have already been made and the investigation is continuing. The search for “enemies of the state” will not stop. In this context, one should just think about who the enemies of democracy are here.

Such a division in society never existed in Western Europe, even during the Cold War. Since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict in 2014, the mass migration in 2015 and the ongoing climate hysteria, society in the West has been divided into two groups. These two groups have no common points of contact with each other.

This is a very dangerous domestic political development. And the current media propaganda is not helping to ease the mood between the government and the opposition. It will only achieve the opposite and divide society even further.

The defamation of the opposition through these espionage scandals is a new stage in the political struggle and allows us to see exactly how cooperation between Western secret services, lobbyists, governments and the media works.

Patrick Poppel is an expert at the Center for Geostrategic Studies in Belgrade.

April 29, 2024 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Russophobia | , , | Leave a comment

Censorship & persecution of dissident voices continues across the world

The ‘cautionary tale’ modus operandi

Health Advisory & Recovery Team | April 15, 2024 

Those who, like the members of HART, have been speaking out for three or four years about the perils of lockdowns, the lack of access to proper medical care and the utter debacle of the unsafe and ineffective vaccines, keep hoping the tide is turning. But for every stone upturned another boulder seems to descend to crush the truth. There is also no apparent end to the persecution of doctors speaking out.

Two physicians from opposite ends of the world and facing loss of their medical careers for speaking out against the vaccine saviour narrative, typify the current authoritarian approach. Charles Hoffe from Canada and Shankara Chetty from South Africa have two things in common, firstly both are clinicians serving a large local population and secondly both have shared their experiences widely.  In Dr Chetty’s case he has reported his success at treating over 1000 covid patients with a combination of repurposed drugs including antihistamines in a clinical centre in rural South Africa with no access to oxygen let alone intensive care. In Dr Hoffe’s case, he first hit the headlines when he reported a high frequency of serious adverse events when his patients started receiving the mRNA vaccines.

Both these hard working and ethical physicians now, three years on, are being subjected to investigations by their medical boards. For Dr Chetty, he has previously been found guilty of professional misconduct but was called to attend a further hearing last week in front of the Health Professionals Council of South Africa. The results of their deliberations are awaited.

For Charles Hoffe the situation is even more bizarre. He was due for a hearing last week but when he submitted all the supportive evidence for his case, the health board in British Columbia deposited a large amount of evidence of their own but then threatened to invoke a ruling by which their evidence would be accepted as ‘fact’ by the court and Dr Hoffe and his legal team would be unable to cross question the data or present any information to the contrary. It looks like the right to a free trial has been abandoned in Canada, along with the right to free speech.

Below is a list of some senior clinicians and academics from across the world who have been vilified for speaking truth to power. It is by no means comprehensive.

USA:

Canada:

Australia:

New Zealand:

Germany:

France:

Switzerland:

  • Thomas Binder (initially incarcerated in a mental institution)

UK:

This list is continuing to grow despite the increasing reports in the scientific literature which confirm almost everything they have said.

When does it stop?

April 15, 2024 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance, Science and Pseudo-Science | , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

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