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The Blissful Ignorance of American neo-Nazis

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The violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville reflects the dangerous, open-the-floodgates culture that having a Bully-in-Chief in the White House has created in America.
Hundreds of protesters descended upon Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 12, 2017 for a “Unite the Right” rally. 
The rally was dispersed by police minutes after its scheduled start at noon, after clashes between rallygoers and counter-protesters, and after a torchlit pre-rally march Friday night descended into violence.
But later that day, as rallygoers began a march and counterprotests continued, a reported Nazi sympathizer drove a car into a crowd of counterprotesters, killing one and injuring 19.
Self-described “pro-white” activist Jason Kessler organized the rally to protest the planned removal of a statue of confederate general Robert E. Lee from a park in Charlottesville. 
Kessler is affiliated with the alt-right movement that uses internet trolling tactics to argue against diversity and “identity po…
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Indonesian court sentences 4 drug smugglers to death

Meth bust by Indonesian police (file photo)
Meth bust by Indonesian police (file photo)
The Medan District Court on Wednesday decided on capital punishment for 4 Indonesians convicted of smuggling 270 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine from Malaysia to North Sumatra.

The 4 defendants are businessmen Ayau and Daud, alias Athiam, from Bengkalis, Riau, Lukmansyah, a security guard in Dumai, Riau, and Jimmy Syahputra, a resident of Deli Serdang, North Sumatra.

The panel of judges found that they violated the Narcotics Law, which carries a maximum penalty of death for traffickers.

"The defendants are proven to have conspired to traffic narcotics. With all the evidence, the judges rejected their defence and ordered the death penalty," said presiding judge Asmar while reading out the verdict on Wednesday night.

In October, the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), along with the Dumai Customs Office, foiled the smuggling in Medan, North Sumatra.

Almost 300 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, locally known as shabu-shabu, were packaged in 45 boxes.

The value of the substance is estimated to be Rp 500 billion, with the average price of meth in Indonesia Rp 2 billion per kilogram.

Indonesia is currently one of the main markets for meth trafficking in Asia. A number of smuggling attempts in large amounts have been successfully foiled by the authorities.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has implemented a tough drug policy by ordering executions of drug traffickers since he took office in 2014.

The government is currently preparing for a 3rd round of executions of 18 inmates, despite condemnation from human rights activists.

Asmar said the syndicate transported the meth from China to Malaysia and finally to Medan, North Sumatra.

Daud first met a person, identified as Lau Lai alias Aan alias Jecky who is still at large, at the CK Malaka Hotel in Malaysia in August.

They later plotted to smuggle the drugs to Medan. Lau Lai asked Daud to find a receiver and a warehouse to keep the meth in Medan.

Daud later contacted Ayau and Irwan Toni, also still at large, to find the meth storage place in Medan.

Daud also contacted Jimmy and transferred Rp 55 million to the latter's account to purchase a car to unload and transport the large amount of meth from Dumai port, Riau, to Medan.

The court also revealed that in September Irwan contacted Lukmansyah to tell him that the meth packages were on their way to Medan. It was at this time that the information was leaked to the custom officials in Dumai.

The meth arrived at Dumai in October and was initially to be kept in a water tank at the Jade Square warehouse complex on Jl. Yos Sudarso, Medan.

Authorities raided the warehouse a day after the meth arrived and arrested Jimmy and seized the meth packages.

The lawyer of the 4 defendants, Nurwadi Aco, said he would appeal the verdict.

"Several facts are still in dispute," he said after the trial.

Source: The Jakarta Post, June 23, 2016

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Location: Indonesia

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Iran: Shameful execution of Alireza Tajiki, arrested at age 15

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Following today’s execution of Alireza Tajiki, a young Iranian man who was arrested, convicted and sentenced to death as a child, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa Magdalena Mughrabi said:
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Florida Supreme Court strikes blow to death row inmates

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ISIS releases new pictures of gay man being thrown off a roof in Syria

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The terrorist group known as ISIS has released pictures of a man being thrown off a roof in Syria.
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Iran: Call to Save 7 Prisoners on the Verge of Execution

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One of the prisoners was 17 when he committed the alleged "crime"
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The amendment will apply retroactively, thus commuting the sentences for many of the 5,300 inmates currently on death row for drug trafficking. Under the new bill, the punishment for those already convicted and given the death penalty or life in prison, other than those meeting the new execution requirements, will be commuted to up to 30 years in jail and a cash fine.
Iran’s parliament passed a long-awaited amendment to its drug trafficking laws on Sunday, raising the thresholds that can trigger capital punishment and potentially saving the lives of many on death row.
The bill must still be approved by the conservative-dominated Guardian Council but gained parliamentary approval after months of debate, according to parliament’s website and the ISNA news agency.
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Maldivian and international human rights groups urge Maldives President to halt execution plans

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Iran: Execution Sentence Issued for Two Afghan Juvenile Offenders

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NCRI - Two young 20- and 19-year-old prisoners from Afghanistan were sentenced to death in central prison of Zahedan, Southeast Iran, on the charges of armed robbery from a financial institution.
According to reports, they were subjected to intense physical and mental torture in the prison, in order to confess to what they were asked to in front of the television camera.
Hamza Noorzehi, 20, and Amir Noorzehi, 19, were arrested in Zahedan on 28 July 2014.
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Bali nine Renae Lawrence, other Australians recommended for sentence cut

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Jakarta: Bali nine drug mule Renae Lawrence is expected to have her jail sentence cut by six months which would see her complete her prison term by the middle of next year.
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