People Sold as Slaves, Auctioned for $400

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“Eight hundred,” says the auctioneer. “900 … 1,000 … 1,100 …” Sold. For 1,200 Libyan dinars — the equivalent of $800.

Not a used car, a piece of land, or an item of furniture. Not “merchandise” at all, but two human beings.

One of the unidentified men being sold in the grainy cell phone video obtained by CNN is Nigerian. He appears to be in his twenties and is wearing a pale shirt and sweatpants.

He has been offered up for sale as one of a group of “big strong boys for farm work,” according to the auctioneer, who remains off camera. Only his hand — resting proprietorially on the man’s shoulder — is visible in the brief clip. (Read more from “People Sold as Slaves, Auctioned for $400” HERE)

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Mass Graves Discovered in Former ISIS-Controlled Territory Could Contain 400 Bodies

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Mass graves discovered at an Iraqi airbase that was previously under the Islamic State group’s control could contain up to 400 bodies, an Iraqi official said Sunday after local residents described the atrocities the terror group carried out.

The bodies were found in an abandoned base near Hawija, a northern town retaken in early October, Kirkuk governor Rakan Saed said, adding that the place was “turned into an execution ground.” Hawija, about 150 miles north of Baghdad, was under ISIS control since 2013 until last month.

Officials discovered torn clothing and possible human bones and skulls in the area. It’s unclear when the bodies, which include civilians and security forces, will be exhumed.

Khalaf Luhaibi, a local shepherd, led troops to the mass graves and said ISIS brought captives to the area, shot and killed them or poured oil over them and lit them on fire. Other residents also gave “witness accounts” of the atrocities ISIS carried out when it held control of the area, the BBC reported. (Read more from “Mass Graves Discovered in Former ISIS-Controlled Territory Could Contain 400 Bodies” HERE)

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School to Students: Have a Very Quran Christmas

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Students in Norway, a nation with a 1,000-year-old Christian heritage, are being treated this year to a very Quran Christmas as educators seek “to create respect and understanding between different religions.”

The report comes from Bruce Bawer, who writes on the Gatestone Institute website that “shoehorning Quran verses into a Christmas event does nothing but cause misunderstanding.”

“The whole thing was pretty bizarre, given that (a) Christmas is not an Islamic holy day, and (b) thanks to such misguided innovations, a whole generation of Norwegian children will grow up thinking ‘that Allah and the Quran have something to do with Christmas.’”

He explains citizens of the Nordic nations are “not big believers these days,” but they do remain devoted to their Christian heritage.

“At least in Norway, which is probably the most culturally conservative of the Nordic lands, confirmation is still a universal rite of passage. Most of the official national holidays are Christian holy days, even if most people could not tell you exactly what Ascensions Day and Pentecost commemorate,” he said. (Read more from “School to Students: Have a Very Quran Christmas” HERE)

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Progress: Trump, Putin Reportedly Agree to Defeat ISIS in Syria

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By Fox News. President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a joint statement on Saturday vowing to continue the fight against ISIS in Syria until the militants are completely defeated, Reuters reported, citing the Kremlin.

The statement was released after the two leaders chatted briefly during the APEC summit in Danang, Vietnam, Reuters reported, citing the Kremlin.

The statement reportedly said both Washington and Moscow agree that there is no military solution to the conflict and both countries expressed a commitment to Damascus’ sovereignty.

The two leaders chatted on Saturday while they walked to a “family photograph” at the summit and donned matching silk button-down shirts the day before, holding true to the tradition of wearing local attire at annual display of cooperation among world leaders.

The White House and the Trump administration earlier appeared to downplay Trump’s possible meetings with Putin during the summit. (Read more from “Trump, Putin Reportedly Agree to Defeat ISIS in Syria” HERE)

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Trump and Putin on Fighting ISIS

By BBC. US President Donald Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have agreed to defeat so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria, the Kremlin says.

It said a statement was prepared by experts after they met briefly on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific summit in Vietnam on Saturday.

There has been no official confirmation from the US about the statement so far.

The Kremlin say they also agreed there was no military solution to the conflict in Syria.

A meeting between President Trump and Vladimir Putin was widely expected at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (Apec) summit, but few details have emerged. (Read more from “Trump and Putin on Fighting ISIS” HERE)

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Black Death Latest: New Country on Alert as Plague Outbreak Threatens to SPREAD

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At least 143 people have died and 2,000 have been infected since the outbreak began in early August.

Nine surrounding African countries were previously told to brace for the disease.

They include South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania Kenya, Ethiopia, Comoros, the Seychelles, Mauritius and Reunion.

But now Malawi’s health secretary has confirmed the country is ready for any outbreaks amid concerns over the African nation’s “porous borders”.

Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Dr Dan Namarika, said Malawi has “cross border teams that interface with our Mozambique counterparts”. (Read more from “Black Death Latest: New Country on Alert as Plague Outbreak Threatens to SPREAD” HERE)

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Saudi Arabia and Iran Battle for Power in the Middle East

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Saudi Arabia’s order for its citizens to evacuate Lebanon is the latest ominous signal in an escalating confrontation between the Middle East’s chief regional rivals, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The two nations have long fought proxy wars against each other, but many fear that the newly empowered Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is looking to assert Saudi Arabia’s regional dominance at any cost. The conflict heated up last year when Saudi Arabia executed a Shiite cleric and then severed diplomatic ties with Iran.

Now the Saudis are publicly airing their disapproval with Iran’s chief foreign affiliate, Hezbollah, which has significant representation in Lebanon’s parliament and has asserted its influence in neighboring Syria.

Experts, however, don’t think a regional conflagration is imminent. “The Saudis have always thought the wrong solution for their problem with Iran and now their hope is the Trump administration will come in and tilt the balance in their favor,” said Ali Vaez, the Iran project director at Crisis Group. “It’s unlikely to change Iran’s regional policy — Iran will continue to support its allies and proxies in the region — but it’s unlikely to result in a major conflict.”

Even if the conflict doesn’t boil over, there is plenty at stake for the U.S. and the world in the battle between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran. There’s the price of oil, which rises during crises — an ironic benefit to the belligerents, who have some of the world’s largest oil reserves — and there’s the regional balance of power. (Read more from “Saudi Arabia and Iran Battle for Power in the Middle East” HERE)

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U.S. Muslim Stokes Violence Against Coptic Christians

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Some of the most vicious incitement against Christians in Egypt originates from a petite Egyptian woman sitting at a computer in her home in a quiet suburb of New Jersey.

It is not as though Egypt’s Muslim community needs any encouragement to go after Coptic Christians, but Arat Oraby does her part, calling the Copts a “gang” that needs to be boycotted and subjugated.

“The problem of the Christians in Egypt is that they follow the church gang,” she wrote. “They believe that (Coptic Pope) Tawadoros the criminal, or any other criminal who will replace him, was selected by the Lord and speaks on His behalf. The church gang deceives its followers in this despicable way, just like a thief or a swindler from the Middle Ages.”

She often refers to Christians as “Nazarenes,” as they are called in the Quran and by ISIS, and tells Egyptians to boycott Coptic businesses and buy only from fellow Muslims.

A Coptic priest was murdered on the streets of Cairo last week by a young Muslim, the latest in a string of murders and church bombings that began more than a year ago. (Read more from “U.S. Muslim Stokes Violence Against Coptic Christians” HERE)

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U.S. Seeks Restrictions on Mexican Trucking Under NAFTA

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The U.S. has proposed another difficult change to the North American Free Trade Agreement that could eventually restrict long-haul Mexican truckers from operating in the country, according to people familiar with the discussions.

American negotiators asked to remove Mexico’s long-haul industry from a Nafta chapter on cross-border services, according to an industry official familiar with the proposal who isn’t authorized to speak publicly. That could open the door to restrictions on truckers, as losing Nafta trade protections and advantages would make it harder for Mexico to challenge any future U.S. requirements on trucks such as new safety checks.

One government official familiar with the text said the U.S. proposal would allow restrictions and limitations on Mexican trucking if certain conditions were reached, while another official described it as a broad industry exclusion that came during the last round of talks in October. Neither was authorized to speak publicly. The U.S. Trade Representative’s office declined to comment, and hasn’t made its proposals public. Reuters also reported last month that the U.S. was seeking fresh restrictions on long-haul trucks from Mexico, citing a person familiar with discussions. (Read more from “U.S. Seeks Restrictions on Mexican Trucking Under NAFTA” HERE)

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Chilling ISIS Vow to Kill Children

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A pro-ISIS group that threatened “more bitter and greater” Manhattan attacks after last week’s deadly ramming on the West Side bike path urged more attacks on the West today with a propaganda poster showing the Eiffel Tower extending upward as a rifle.

Monday is the two-year anniversary of coordinated attacks on Paris in which nine terrorists killed 130 people.

The Wafa’ Media Foundation titled the PR poster “The Specter of Terrorism,” stating in English, “You will pay very expensive price for your war on Islam.”

The message adds: “We will take revenge for the blood of Muslims on your land, we will kill the young before the older watch this.”

Wafa’ issued a justification for the bombing of British teens at a May concert in Manchester, UK. As ISIS has placed a heavy focus on training youths, they’ve also encouraged targeting them: the first issue of their Rumiyah magazine justified killing civilians including “the young adults (post-pubescent ‘children’) engaged in sports activities in the park.” (Read more from “Chilling ISIS Vow to Kill Children” HERE)

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North Korea Warns of ‘Abyss of Doom’ If ‘Lunatic’ Trump Remains President

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The United States will continue to stare into the “abyss of doom” until “lunatic old” President Trump is removed from office, according to a North Korean missive Wednesday, released just hours after Trump warned the rogue regime not to “try” America.

The Hermit Kingdom demanded the U.S. “withdraw the hostile policy toward” Kim Jong Un’s dictatorship and said a “decisive choice” needed to be made, the state-run Korean Central News Agency said Wednesday.

“The U.S. must oust the lunatic old man from power and withdraw the hostile policy towards [North Korea] at once in order to get rid of the abyss of doom,” the statement read. “The U.S. had better make a decisive choice…if it does not want a horrible nuclear disaster and tragic doom.”

Kim’s warning about the impending “abyss of doom” heading toward the U.S. — and every country joining in America’s aim to dismantle Pyongyang’s nuclear program — comes after Trump issued a stark warning to Kim Jong Un during a speech in South Korea during Trump’s five-country Asia tour.

“Do not underestimate us. And do not try us,” Trump said, directly addressing North Korea as Trump stood in a room full of South Korean lawmakers. “The weapons you are acquiring are not making you safer, they are putting your regime in grave danger.” (Read more from “North Korea Warns of ‘Abyss of Doom’ If ‘Lunatic’ Trump Remains President” HERE)

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