Politics

After many years of a massive refugee influx into Europe from Middle East wars, especially going to back to the height of the 2015 migrant crisis, several European countries have ordered a halt to processing asylum applications from Syrians. This comes after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria.

The UK, German, and Austria have confirmed they are freezing their applications. Germany alone has taken in some one million Syrians. Other countries halting their process includes Italy, Norway, Greece, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Finland.

Austria has gone the furthest, with country’s interior minister, Gerhard Karner, saying, “I have instructed the ministry to prepare a program of orderly repatriation and deportation to Syria.”

London’s Home Office also confirmed it has “temporarily paused decisions on Syrian asylum claims whilst we assess the current situation.”

“We keep all country guidance relating to asylum claims under constant review so we can respond to emerging issues,” a spokesperson said.

German officials have also begun signaling that Syrians should make arrangements to return home. Germany’s interior minister, Nancy Faeser, said on Monday that “Many refugees who have found protection in Germany now finally have hope of returning to their Syrian homeland and rebuilding their country.”

However, many Syrians would have greater fear of the new jihadist groups which took over Damascus, and might seek asylum given an al-Qaeda offshoot (HTS) now controls the country. This is especially true of Syrian Christians, Alawites, and Druze.

There’s no assurance that the situation will get any better in Syria under HTS rule, after the basically overnight collapse of an entire state system and its services. One NGO is speaking sense in terms of the realities on the ground:

“Chaos and violence continue to reign in Syria. Armed groups control large parts of the country and there is neither a stable government nor functioning state structures,” its spokesperson Tareq Alaows said in an email. “Much of the infrastructure has been destroyed and millions of people inside Syria are still displaced. Many cities are considered unsafe and there is no sign of a normalization of living conditions.”

Still, the presence of such large numbers of Syrian and other Middle East refugees has long unleashed a political firestorm in European politics. This is whey European officials are relieved that these massive changes in Syria provide an opportunity to send people back to their homeland.

Authored by Andrew Korybko via substack,

The epic collapse of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) over the past ten days and Assad’s cowardly flight from Damascus early Sunday morning herald the dawn of a new Syria.

The most immediate risk is that the entire country collapses just like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya before it.

That could create a black hole of instability from which innumerable global terrorist threats could emerge. Here’s what has to happen to prevent post-Assad Syria from experiencing that dark future:

1. The Army & The Security Services Must Remain Intact

The three preceding cases of state collapse were characterized by the army and the security services dissolving shortly after their foreign-backed regime change plots succeeded. In Syria’s case, the SAA still exists as an institution even though it’s on the retreat to who knows where, perhaps to the Alawite-majority coast. It’s therefore imperative that it doesn’t fall apart and cooperates with the non-terrorist anti-government opposition (NTAGO) to ensure that everything doesn’t spiral out of control.

2. Political Reform Must Begin Without Delay

Lavrov repeatedly emphasized during his interview at Saturday’s Doha Forum that that the Syrian government and the NTAGO must immediately implement UNSC Resolution 2254 from late 2015, which calls for drastic political reforms such as a new constitution and UN-supervised elections. It was Assad’s refusal to compromise with the NTAGO that ultimately led to this disaster. Prime Minister Jalali will reportedly serve as caretaker leader during the political transition, however, which is a positive sign.

3. The Russian-Written Draft Constitution Must Be Revived

It was assessed late last month that one of “The Five Reasons Why Syria Was Caught By Surprise” is because Assad rejected the Russian-written draft constitution from January 2017’s first Astana Summit, which was constructively critiqued in detail here at the time. With him out of the way, the multiple concessions that this document called for Damascus to make might finally become a reality, and they might even be taken further than its authors initially envisaged given the new circumstances.

4. The Alawite & Kurdish Minorities Must Be Protected

The Alawite coast remains outside the control of Turkish-backed Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) terrorists for now as does the US-backed Kurdish-controlled northeast, both minorities of which must be protected from the jihadists. To that end, the aforesaid document could lay the basis for broad Bosnian-like federalized autonomy that could result in the coast falling under Russia’s “sphere of influence”, as could the northeast if Trump withdraws US forces from there like RFJ Jr. claimed that he plans to do.

5. The Interim Government Must Maintain Russia’s Bases

And finally, Russia can help the interim Syrian government fight against terrorists just like it helped Assad do from 2015 onward, so they must allow it to maintain its bases for that purpose. Their withdrawal would leave the Syrian state defenseless and the Alawite-majority coast at HTS’ mercy. In fact, since Russia’s intervention in Syria was driven by anti-terrorist motives, it might refuse to withdraw on national security pretexts and possibly midwife an independent coastal state to legitimize its continued presence.

Post-Assad Syria is on the brink of all-out collapse that could turn it into the world’s largest hotbed of terrorism if this process isn’t soon averted.

The most effective way to prevent this from happening is following the five pieces of advice from this analysis.

Anything less would greatly raise the chances of the worst-case scenario transpiring, but even in that event, Russia could still mitigate some of the damage if it continues bombing terrorists in Syria and supports the creation of an independent coastal state.

People engage in gaming through a variety of formats, from consoles to mobile devices, driven by factors like convenience, cost, and immersive experiences.

This graphic, via Visual Capitalist’s Kayla Zhu, visualizes the share of U.S. consumers that reported gaming on a specific device within the past month, using data from a Circana online survey of 5,100 active U.S. gamers conducted in May through June 2024.

The categories of gaming devices are as follows:

• Mobile: iPhone, Android smartphone, iPad, and other smartphone or tablet devices

• Computer: Desktop, laptop, Steam Deck, or other portable PC devices

• Console: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Pro, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Xbox One X, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo Wii

• Other: Virtual reality (VR) headsets, plug-and-play devices, child-oriented devices

Which Gaming Devices Do Americans Use The Most?

Below, we show the share of U.S. consumers ages two and up that played on a qualifying device within the previous month of Circana’s survey.

About 71% of U.S. consumers played some form of video game in the month prior to Circana’s survey, with mobile gaming being the largest platform with 65% of U.S. consumers gaming on a mobile device in 2024.

Over half of gamers’ weekly playtime takes place on their phones, according to Circana. The main draw is convenience, as players already have their devices with them, along with the low cost and easy accessibility of mobile games.

PC and console gaming are almost evenly tied, with 36% and 35% of respondents gaming on these platforms respectively.

When looking these formats’ market shares, console gaming held a slight lead over PC gaming with 57% of the 2023 market share, or $53.1 billion revenue compared to PC’s $40.4 billion.

The “Other” gaming category grew by 2% since 2022 due to increased adoption of virtual reality (VR) gaming. VR usage and ownership among U.S. teens is on the rise, with weekly VR use increasing from 10% to 13% and headset ownership growing from 31% to 33% over the past six months, according to a survey by Piper.

Gaming preferences are also dependent on generation. Younger generations like Gen Alpha, Gen Z, and Millennials tend to play on PCs or console more often than older generations, according to Newzoo.

In terms of gaming genres, older generations like Gen X and Boomers tend to gravitate towards puzzle games, usually played on mobile devices.

To learn more about the video game industry, check out this graphic that visualizes console launch prices, adjusted for inflation.

Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson was arrested on Friday by the FBI on public corruption charges, according to Fox News.

She is facing five wire fraud charges and one theft charge related to federal program funds, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts. 

Prosecutors allege that in late 2022, she hired a relative and arranged for them to receive inflated pay, most of which they were instructed to kick back to her.

The Fox News report said that federal authorities arrested Fernandes Anderson at her Dorchester home, prompting Boston Mayor Michelle Wu to call for her resignation. Wu said: “Like any member of the community, Councilor Fernandes Anderson has the right to a fair legal process.”

“But the serious nature of these charges undermines the public trust and will prevent her from effectively serving the city. I urge Councilor Fernandes Anderson to resign,” she added.

A filing of the charges read: “From in or about early to mid-2023, Fernandes Anderson was facing personal financial difficulty, which included missing monthly rent and car payments, an impending $5,000 civil penalty from the Ethics Commission, and incurring bank overdraft fees, which resulted in Fernandes Anderson maintaining low daily bank balances.”

“On or about June 9, 2023, at approximately 4:11 p.m., Staff Member A texted Fernandes Anderson, “Bathroom” to let Fernandes Anderson know that Staff Member A was waiting in the bathroom to hand the $7,000 cash to Fernandes Anderson,” it continues.

“Within seconds, Fernandes Anderson texted Staff Member A, “Ready” to confirm that Fernandes Anderson was ready to accept the $7,000 cash kickback from Staff Member A.”

“Shortly following these texts, Staff Member A handed Fernandes Anderson approximately $7,000 in cash at a bathroom in City Hall,” the filing reads.

Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen commented: “Her behavior, as alleged in today’s indictment, is a slap in the face to the hardworking taxpayers in the city of Boston who have every right to expect that the city’s funds are in good and honest hands.”

“This case illustrates how the FBI, and our partners, are working hard every day to battle public corruption and the corrosive damage it does to people’s faith in government,” she continued.

In 2022, Fernandes Anderson hired two immediate family members to her staff, violating city rules, and was fined $5,000 by the Ethics Commission after firing them. Last month, the state’s Campaign Finance Office flagged her campaign for exceeding contribution limits and delayed deposit filings, according to WCVB.

Authored by Pepe Escobar,

Until recently, a serious geopolitical working hypothesis was that West Asia and Ukraine were two vectors of the standard Hegemon modus operandi, which is to incite and unleash Forever Wars. Now both wars are united in an Omni-War.

A coalition of Straussian neo-cons in the US, hardcore revisionist Zionists in Tel Aviv and Ukrainian neo-nazi shades of grey is now betting on a Final Confrontation – with several overtones ranging from expanding lebensraum to provoking the Apocalypse.

What stands in their way is essentially two of the top BRICS: Russia and Iran.

China, self-protected by their collective lofty dream of “community of a shared future for mankind”, warily watches on the sidelines, as they know that at the end of the road, the true “existential” war by the Hegemon will be against them.

Meanwhile, Russia and Iran need to mobilize for Totalen Krieg. Because that’s what the enemy is launching.

Undermining BRICS and the INSTC

The total destabilisation of Syria, with heavy CIA-MI6 input, now proceeding in real time, is a carefully engineered gambit to undermine BRICS and beyond.

It proceeds in parallel to Pashinyan removing Armenia from the CSTO – based on a US promise to support Yerevan in a possible new clash with Baku; India being encouraged to ramp up a weapons race with Pakistan; and across-the-board intimidation of Iran.

So this is also a war to destabilize the International North South Transportation Corridor (INSTC), of which the three major protagonists are BRICS members Russia, Iran and India.

As it stands, the INSTC is totally geopolitical risk-free. As a top BRICS corridor-in-the-making, it carries the potential to become even more effective than several of China’s cross-Heartland corridors of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The INSTC would be a key lifeline for a great deal of the global economy in case of a direct confrontation between the US/Israel combo and Iran – with the possible shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz leading to the collapse of a multi-quadrillion pile of financial derivatives, economically imploding the collective West.

Turkiye under Erdogan, as usual, is playing a double game. Rhetorically, Ankara stands by a genocide-free and sovereign Palestine. In practice, the Turkiye supports and funds a motley crew of Greater Idlibistan jihadis – trained by Ukrainian Neo-nazis in drone warfare and with weapons financed by Qatar – who have just marched on and conquered Aleppo, Hama, and possibly beyond.

If this army of mercenaries were real followers of Islam, they would be marching in defense of Palestine.

At the same time, the real picture inside the corridors of power in Tehran is extremely murky. There are factions favoring getting closer to the West, which clearly would have ramifications for the Axis of Resistance’s ability to fight Tel Aviv.

On Lebanon, Syria never wavered. History explains why: from the point of view of Damascus, Lebanon historically remains a governorate, so Damascus is responsible for the security of Beirut.

And that’s one of Tel Aviv’s key motives to propel the current Salafi-jihadi offensive on Syria – after smashing virtually every communication corridor between Syria and Lebanon. What Tel Aviv could not accomplish on the ground – a victory over Hezbollah in southern Lebanon – has been replaced by isolating Hezbollah from the Axis of Resistance.

When in Doubt, Re-Read Xenophon

Wars in West Asia are a complex mix of national, sectarian, tribal and religious vectors. In a sense, they are endless wars; controllable to an extent, but then back again.

The Russian strategy in Syria seemed to be very precise. As it was impossible to normalize a completely fragmented nation, Moscow opted to free the Syria that really matters – the capital, the most important cities, and the Eastern Mediterranean coast – from the Salafi-jihadi mobs.

The problem is that freezing the war in 2020, with direct implication by Russia, Iran and (reluctantly) Turkiye, did not solve the “moderate rebel” problem. Now they’re back – in full force, supported by a vast Rent-a-Jihadi mob, with NATOstan Intel behind them.

Some things never change.

2012. Jake Sullivan, then an aide to Hillary Clinton: “AQ [al-Qaeda*] is on our side in Syria.”

2021. James Jeffrey, special envoy to Syria under Trump (2018-2020): “HTS [Hayat Tahrir al-Sham*] is an asset to the US’s strategy in Idlib.”

There could not be better timing for the revival of the HTS “asset”. HTS if filling an enormous void; beware when that happens in West Asia. Russia is fully concentrated on Ukraine. Hezbollah suffered heavily from Tel Aviv’s bombings and serial killing. Tehran is fully concentrated on how to deal with Trump 2.0.

History always teaches us. Syria is now a West Asian Anabasis. Xenophon – a soldier and writer – tell us how, in the 4th century B.C., an “expedition” (“anabasis”, in Ancient Greek) of 10,000 Greek mercenaries were engaged by Cyrus the Younger against his brother Artaxerxes II, King of Persia, from Armenia to the Black Sea. The expedition miserably failed – and the painful return journey was endless.

2,400 years later, we see governments, armies and mercenaries still plunging into the endless West Asia wars – and extracting themselves now is even more insoluble.

Syria now is tired, attritted, with the SAA becoming complacent with the long freeze of the war since 2020. All that coupled with the vicious starvation siege unleashed by the US Caesar Act, and the impossibility to start rebuilding the nation with the help of at least 8 million citizens who fled the endless war.

Over these past 4 years, problems piled up. There were endless breaches of the Astana process and Israel bombed Syria almost daily with impunity.

China was basically immobile. Beijing simply did not invest in the rebuilding of Syria.

Perspective is sobering. Even Russia – which is a de facto Resistance icon in itself, even if not formally part of the West Asian Axis of Resistance – has taken nearly three years of hard slog in its fight with Ukraine.

Only a cohesive, consolidated Axis of Resistance – after getting rid of countless 5thcolumnists working inside – would have a chance against being picked off one by one by the same consolidated enemy, over and over again.

Sometimes it feels like the BRICS – particularly China – haven’t learned anything from Bandung in 1955, and how the Non-Alignment Movement (NAM) was neutralized.

You can’t beat a pitiless hegemonic hydra with flower power.