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Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Global Figures Crowding Top 10 in TIME Person of the Year Poll

Although Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders continues to lead the poll, global figures take five of the top ten spots in the final week of voting — Malala Yousafzai in second place, Pope Francis in third, “refugees” in fifth, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in eighth and German Chancellor Angela Merkel currently in tenth place.
International leaders have been named most influential by the magazine in recent years; the Pope was TIME’s Person of the Year in 2013, and before that Russian President Vladimir Putin was chosen as Person of the Year in 2007.
Voting on the readers’ choice poll ends Dec. 4 at 11:59 p.m., and the winner of the poll will be announced Dec. 7. TIME’s editors will choose the Person of the Year, the person TIME believes most influenced the news this year for better or worse, but that doesn’t mean readers shouldn’t have their say. Cast your vote here. 

Kenya Hunts Somalia-Linked British Jihadist

Malik Yassin
Kenya's interior ministry tweeted a photograph of Malik Yassin and appealed for information that would help arrest him.
Malik Yassin
He is described as a tall and slim white man, with brown hair and brown eyes and speaking with a British accent.
"Malik Yassin, a British citizen, is suspected to have sneaked into the country and police have issued an alert for his arrest," the ministry said in on its Twitter feed.
"Police suspect that Malik is one of the al Shabaab foreign fighters of British origin," it added.
The interior ministry said another British jihadi, Thomas Evans, was killed in June during an attack on a Kenyan military base in the northern coastal region of Lamu County, near the Somali border.
Kenya has been on increased alert after various attacks by al Shabaab who are trying to get Kenyan troops and other members of an African Union force out of Somalia.
One of the worst attacks was in April when the Somali Islamist group in April stormed Garissa University, near the Somali border, and murdered at least 148 students.
The group was also responsible for the deaths of 67 people in 2013 when it attacked the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi.
Kenya has in the past been a traditional transit route for Britons seeking to get to Somalia to join al Shabaab.
Convicted murderer Michael Adebolajo, who was responsible for the hacking to death in London of serving soldier Lee Rigby in 2013, was deported by Kenya after being arrested near the Somali border.
It is also believed that fugitive Samantha Lewthwaite, who was married to 7/7 bomber Jermaine Lindsay and is known as the White Widow, is believed to be hiding in Kenya.
She left Britain for East Africa in 2012 and is known to have links to al Shabaab.

Putin and Obama Discuss Syria Political Settlement

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that he and President Barack Obama have a shared understanding on how to move toward a political settlement in Syria, but added that incidents like the recent downing of a Russian warplane by a Turkish fighter jet stymie broader cooperation against extremism.
Putin and Obama had a half-hour meeting on the sidelines of a climate summit near Paris, and the Russian leader told reporters they discussed efforts to compile a list of extremist groups and another one of members of legitimate political opposition.
Putin said “we have an understanding how we should proceed if we talk about a political settlement. We need to work on a new (Syrian) constitution, new elections and the control over their outcome.”
At the same time, he said, disputes such as last Tuesday’s shooting down of a Russian warplane imperil cooperation on defeating extremists and resolving Syria’s turmoil.
Turkey said it downed the plane after it intruded its airspace for 17 seconds despite repeated warnings, while Russia insisted that the plane had remained in Syria’s airspace and denounced Ankara’s move as a “treacherous stab in the back.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has expressed regret over the incident, but Putin has made it clear that Russia wants a formal apology, something Turkey has refused to do.
In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said the 
U.S. President Obama chats with Russia's President Putin prior to working session G20 summit in Antalya
Kayhan Ozer—Pool/ReutersRight: President Obama chats with Russia's President Vladimir Putin prior to a working session at the Group of 20 (G20) leaders summit in Antalya, Turkey, Nov. 16
United States has corroborated that the Russian plane violated Turkish airspace, based on evidence from Turkey and from “our own sources.”
Russia on Monday imposed sanctions including a ban on Turkish food exports.
Putin said he was “very sorry” to see the break-down of long-cultivated links with Turkey, but added that problems in bilateral ties have started building up long ago as Turkey has refused to hand over Russian suspects accused of terrorism.
He also accused Turkey of downing the Russian warplane in order to protect what he described as massive illegal imports of Islamic State-produced oil, saying that Ankara’s claim that it was worried about Russian blows on the territory populated by a Turkish ethnic group in Syria was “just a pretext.”
“We have every reason to believe that a decision to shoot down our plane was prompted by a desire to ensure security of that oil to the territory of Turkey and on to sea ports for loading into tankers,” he said.
Putin had presented fellow leaders at the Group of 20 summit hosted by Turkey in Antalya earlier this month with aerial pictures of what he described as convoys of oil trucks carrying oil from IS-controlled oilfields in Syria to the Turkish territory.
While Erdogan has denied the Russian accusations, Putin insisted that the illegal oil trade has acquired a massive scale.
“We have received additional information confirming that oil from IS-controlled deposits flows into Turkey on an industrial scale,” he said.
“Our pilots write on their bombs: “For ours!” and “For Paris!” Putin said. “And the Turkish air force shoots down our bomber! What kind of broad coalition can we talk about then?”
Still, he added that Russia would continue its efforts to help form a wider coalition against extremism.
“We will strive for helping form a working broad coalition and regional and financial interests fall behind a global terror threat,” he said, adding that it’s impossible to unite global efforts against the IS as long as “some use terrorist organizations to achieve momentary political goals and fail to observe the U.N. Security Council resolutions banning the sales of illegally produced oil.”


Erdogan Challenging Putin

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's president, has said he would be ready to quit office if allegations by his Russian counterpart that Turkey traded oil with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group were proved.
Erdogan's comments on Monday came after Vladimir Putin accused Turkey of shooting down the Russian Su-24 warplane last week to protect supplies of oil from ISIL to Turkey.
Turkey has already rejected the accusation.
"I will say something very strong here," Erdogan was quoted as saying by the state-run Anadolu news agency on the sidelines of the UN climate talks near Paris, which Putin is also attending.
"If such a thing is proven, the nobility of our nation would require that I would not stay in office."
Challenging Putin, who has refused to meet Erdogan after the November 24 incident in Yamadi, in Syria's Latakia province, Erdogan said: "And I tell Mr Putin: Would you stay in that office? I say this clearly."

Al Qaeda Threatens Saudi Over Mass Executions

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) pledged on Twitter to carry out attacks in response to the executions.
"We swear to God, our blood will be shed before the blood of our captives, and their pure blood will not dry before we shed the blood of the soldiers of al Saud," the group said in a post on Tuesday.
"We will not enjoy life unless we get the necks of the al Saud rulers."
Firemen work at the site where a car exploded near a Shi'ite mosque in Saudi Arabia's Dammam
Over the past year, a new wave of terror attacks, mostly claimed by Islamic State, have killed dozens in bombings and shootings in the kingdom. 
Last week it was reported that Saudi authorities were planning to execute more than 50 people convicted of "terrorist crimes".
Some of those facing execution were affiliated with al Qaeda, it was reported.
Others were from the eastern town of Awamiya, where the government has suppressed Shi'ite demonstrations for equal rights.
One of the prisoners awaiting execution is Ali Mohammed al Nimr, who was reportedly sentenced to death for his part in anti-government protests, including breaking allegiance to the king and rioting.
He was 17 when he was arrested in 2012.
His case has drawn international condemnation - including from France as well as Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn - because of his age, as well as allegations he was tortured and did not have a fair trial.
More than 1,000 Shi'ites protested against the planned executions at a mosque in Awamiya.
Saudi Arabia has already executed over 150 people this year, the most in 20 years, according to Amnesty International.
Many of those killed have been foreigners convicted of drug-related crimes.
In August, two men from Chad were executed in Mecca for their part in an al Qaeda terror attack a decade ago, officials said.
Executions are carried out in public, mostly by beheading with a sword.

Germany Joins Campaign Against IS

Soldiers
Germany will commit up to 1,200 soldiers to support the international coalition fighting the militant group under the plan, which requires parliamentary approval.
It also intends to send Tornado reconnaissance aircraft, tanker planes and a warship in support roles - but will not actively engage in combat.
Chancellor Angela Merkel's governing coalition has a large majority and approval looks assured. The parliament will hold a vote on Wednesday.
France had requested Germany's help in the fight following the 13 November terror attacks in Paris which killed 130 people.
The German cabinet's approval comes a day before British MPs vote on airstrikes against IS targets in Syria.
US, French and Australian warplanes are already taking part in coalition airstrikes in Syria.
Russia has also been bombing IS targets - but there has been concern it has mainly been targeting foreign-backed Syrian rebels.
German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier acknowledged it could be a protracted fight.
"We are doing what is militarily necessary, what we can do best, and what we can back politically," he told the Bild newspaper ahead of the cabinet vote.
"We need patience against an enemy like IS."
Last week, defence minister Ursula von der Leyen indicated a German frigate would help protect the French flagship Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean from where fighter jets carry out bombing runs.
She said the tanker aircraft could refuel the jets mid-air.
Ms von der Leyen, however, ruled out German forces working with Syrian leader Bashar al Assad. 
"The top line is: there will be no cooperation with Assad and no cooperation with troops under his command," she told ARD television.
Germany previously resisted a direct involvement in Syria, but had been providing training and weaponry to Kurdish forces battling IS in the war-torn country.

The Weapons Britain Could Use Against IS

Reaper Remotely Piloted Air System
If the green light is given, military action could begin within days.
But what sort of weapons are at Britain's disposal?
A rocket-propelled, radar guided weapon that could be used to hit smaller targets - such as vehicles at long range.
A tandem charge warhead is detonated upon impact to ensure penetration of armour.
Parts of the RAF are already equipped to fly with the missiles and they were used when Tornado fighter-bombers carried out airstrikes on IS targets in Iraq.
Described as "arguably the most advanced weapon of its kind in the world" by the RAF, the cruise missiles were used during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
The long-range air-launched missiles feature an integrated GPS to navigate their way to targets at low level.
The RAF's Tornado GR4 can usually carry a handful of Paveway IV bombs or two Stormshadow "bunker busters", which could be dropped on IS buildings or compounds.
These would be launched from Royal Navy attack submarines, which have been equipped with the missiles since the late 1990s.
Royal  Navy Submarine HMS Astute Fires a Tomahawk Cruise Missile (TLAM) During Testing Near the USA
The missiles have a range of well over 1,000 miles and can be redirected to a new target whilst in the air.
They can also beam back images to the submarine
RAF Tornado GR4
Unmanned drones currently deployed in Afghanistan could be redirected to attack targets in Syria.
The UK has a number of Reaper drones, which can be used for reconnaissance and ground attack missions.
In October, David Cameron announced the Government would double the number of drones in the British fleet by buying 20 Protectors and scrapping the existing Reaper model.
However, the drones may just be used for surveillance, gathering information about key targets and IS strongholds, rather than carrying weapons.