THREAD

1)
This has been making a lot of noise among #Iran’s netizens.

Hamas co-founder Mahmoud al-Zahder said in a recent interview that in 2006 Qassem Soleimani gave them $22 million in cash.

This is how the regime spends the Iranian people’s

#BREAKING
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

Al-Qaeda has a new home base. It is the Islamic Republic of #Iran. We ignore this Iran/al-Qaeda nexus at our own peril.

Al-Qaeda has had a relationship with Iran for nearly three decades.

THREAD

1)
#Iran’s regime has a network of apologists/lobbyists in the US influencing foreign policymakers.

Kaveh Afrasiabi was recently arrested for acting as an agent of #Iran's regime.
https://t.co/fJq6jRtBha

There are more.

cc: @TheJusticeDept

THREAD

1)
U.S. charges political scientist Kaveh Afrasiabi with acting as an agent of #Iran's regime.

https://t.co/fJq6jRtBha

Afrasiabi is one of many “scholars” lobbying & pushing Tehran’s talking points in the West.

cc:
@TheJusticeDept

President Muhammadu Buhari’s romance with Niger Republic has become an affront to the national interest of Nigeria. When he was sworn-in as an elected president in 2015 he went to Mamadou Issoufou’s presidential palace in Niamey, Niger Republic, to celebrate.

They gave him the reception of a conquering Fulani warlord: a white horse and sword.
I found that curious. How can a Nigerian leader celebrate his electoral victory in a foreign country and not Daura, his supposed hometown in Nigeria?

Answer has since been provided through Buhari’s policy actions in the past 5+ years. We have since learnt that Buhari is a first-generation Nigerian whose father, Ardo Adamu Buhari, a duck seller, had migrated from Niger, settled in Nigeria and married a Nigerian woman, Zulaihat.

The borders defined by the European colonial masters mean nothing to typical Northerners. When you hear that Nigerian borders are porous, what it really means is that there is no intention in the minds of Northern Nigerians and their elite to create an effective barrier between..

them and their kith and kin in the neighbouring countries of Niger, Chad and Northern Cameroun. Meanwhile, the Southern borders are strictly monitored (within the limits permitted by the selfish interests of corrupt Customs and Immigration officials).

THE EVOLUTION OF OUR NATIONAL FLAG (1857-1947)

The INDIAN NATIONAL FLAG is not just a flag! It's a testimony of patriotism and seamless sacrifice. A symbol representing one of the oldest civilizations on this planet.

Let's hope what happened yesterday never repeats!

(Thread)

After the revolt of 1857, the first Indian flag was designed. The design was based on western heraldic standards with "Union Jack" in the upper-left quadrant and a "Star of India" enclosed in the royal crown in the middle of the right half.(1)

The flag was a symbol of the direct imperial rule in India.(2)

In 1904 the first Indian flag which stood for India's independence from the British was devised. The design was provided by sister Nivedita, an Irish disciple of Swami Vivekananda.(3)

The flag was red and yellow with an image 'Vajra' (weapon of god Indra). The phrase 'Vande Mataram' was written in Bengali on it. The red colour and the yellow colour signified freedom and victory while the symbol of vajra stood for strength.(4)

The Great Northern Forests of Canada, Russia and Scandinavia are doomed to destruction due to the most severe expected temperature increases from global warming anywhere on Earth which will turn them to savannah within decades with severe consequences for all life on Earth.

*An extensive review of studies published in the journal Science found that the boreal forest can't migrate north fast enough to outpace the impacts of a changing climate.*

"This forest will convert to a type of savannah."

'consequences..will be

'feedback loops created by permafrost melt and wildfire destruction represent just a few of the worrisome effects of climate change in the boreal. Boreal forest ecosystems are particularly at risk to the rising temperatures of climate change'.

'Worrisome'!https://t.co/zZNKrRnqoZ

'Boreal forests aren’t just important for the climate. They are also home to over 20,000 species and of these more than 300 species listed in the IUCN Red List.. from woodland caribou in North America, and Blakiston’s fish owl in Russia, to Siberian

'When you add up both the absorption and emission, Canada's forests haven't been a net carbon sink since 2001. Due largely to forest fires and insect infestations, the trees have actually added to..greenhouse gas emissions for each of the past 15

1. TLDR: What will it take for Pakistan to pressure the Taliban into a ceasefire? Pressure, concessions, clear priorities, & ultimately cooperation from Pakistan. A very tall order.

2. Many Afghanistan policy proposals require some action by Pakistan. But as usual there is a disconnect where Washington believes it can demand Pakistan "do more" without providing much in return and Islamabad thinks half-measures will suffice. It is a destructive dance.

3. Pakistan helped bring the Taliban to the negotiating table in Doha but stopped there & instead opted to tacitly support the Taliban’s bargaining position to enter into a ceasefire only after further concessions from Kabul & US troops leave.

4. The Taliban are overplaying their hand by delaying talks & escalating violence, while Pakistan is underplaying its hand by refusing to add pressure.

5. Why won’t Pakistan further pressure the Taliban?
- What’s in it for me? (sensitive to "do more")
- Less influence over current TB leadership.
- Scared of blowback from sectarian groups, TTP (so they say).
- Some sympathy for group.