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Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

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PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES. Gaza Strip. Khan Yunis. July 23, 2014. Palestinians fleeing fighting in their neighbourhood arrive at a shelter.

General News, third prize stories at the 2015 World Press Photo Contest.

Photograph: Sergey Ponomarev for The New York Times

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A History of Sarin as a Weapon

A man breathes through an oxygen mask, after what rescue workers described as a suspected gas attack in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in rebel-held Idlib, Syria, on April 4, 2017. Ammar Abdullah/Reuters

A History of Sarin as a Weapon

It has only been used in three attacks—Tuesday’s attack in Syria may have been No. 4.

By Amarnath Amarasingam for The Atlantic. April 5, 2017 [x]

Yesterday, the world watched in horror as a deadly chemical agent—likely sarin gas, one of the most-toxic chemical weapons in existence—was unleashed on unsuspecting civilians, including dozens of children. Doctors and rescue workers posted videos of the attack on Syria’s rebel- and jihadist-controlled town of Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib province. Soon, the images of dead, poisoned children had spread across the world, followed by condemnations by the United Nations and NGOs alike.

After news of the attack became public, President Donald Trump released a short statement, calling it “reprehensible” but also blaming the Obama administration for establishing a red line against chemical attacks and doing nothing. On Wednesday, Nikki Haley, the American ambassador to the United Nations, forcefully told the UN Security Council that the “illegitimate Syrian government, led by a man with no conscience, has committed untold atrocities against his people for more than six years.”

While the identity of the chemical used in the attack is still unclear, investigators suspect “sarin or worse.” Médecins Sans Frontières has also confirmed that the victims’ symptoms are consistent with exposure to agents like sarin.

The Syrian government, for its part, has denied responsibility, instead blaming the attack on the armed rebel groups of Idlib and accusing them of using civilians as human shields. Several experts, however, have noted that the manufacturing process for sarin is too complicated for the rebels. And if they managed to steal the nerve gas, it wouldn’t have been in large quantities.  

The Syrian government knows just how deadly sarin can be when used in chemical attacks. If sarin was indeed Assad’s agent of choice, it is clear that his is a regime emboldened to act with impunity, red lines or no.

Sarin is an extremely toxic, colorless, odorless gas that acts on the nervous system. It falls in the same category of substances as pesticides, also known as an organophosphates; even small amounts can cause death within minutes. Because sarin acts on the nervous system, it essentially disrupts all bodily functions. The pupils shrink to pinpoints, the mouth and lungs fill with saliva and bodily fluid, and the heart begins to slow. Blood pressure, responsible for keeping a healthy person lucid and conscious, decreases, and the victim loses consciousness. He may drown in his own secretions. His bowels and bladder spasm painfully and empty out. Some victims may experience seizures. Death comes quickly and mercilessly. (The antidote for sarin poisoning, atropine, is a cheap and effective medication available on every resuscitation cart in every hospital in North America. But with large-scale attacks in active war zones, rescue efforts can be futile.)

Sarin, along with other nerve agents like Tabun and Soman, was first produced in Germany’s famous I.G. Farben factory in October 1938 by chemist Gerhard Schrader and his team—quite by accident. Schrader and company stumbled upon the agent in the process of trying to develop a pesticide that targeted an insect’s nervous system. When Schrader himself came into contact with the liquid, he and his team were incapacitated for nearly a month. (The word sarin is an acronym for the names of the four scientists who developed it.) Later, the Nazi government told Schrader to forget about insects and focus on weaponizing sarin as soon as possible. Despite the Nazis’ chemical-weapons advantage, Hitler decided not to use them against Allied forces, for reasons unclear.  

In 1993, the Chemical Weapons Convention, an arms-control treaty ratified, at present, by 192 states, banned sarin, classifying it as a Schedule-1 chemical. These are chemicals with “such lethal or incapacitating toxicity” that they have “little or no use for purposes not prohibited under this convention”—chemicals, in other words, with no use other than as weapons.

Astonishingly, if yesterday’s attack did use sarin, it would be only the fourth confirmed use of the agent as a weapon in history—two of them apparently by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during the Syrian Civil War. The first occurred on March 16, 1988, at the end of the Iran-Iraq war. In the Kurdish town of Halabja, about a dozen miles from the Iranian border, Iraqi aircraft appeared overhead and spread poisonous gas, killing over 5,000 people. It later became clear that the U.S. government was aware of the attack and had stayed quiet. Families in Halabja were utterly disoriented by the attack, as they watched birds fall from trees and animals and neighbors collapse to the ground, writhing in pain.  

The second confirmed use of sarin occurred on March 20, 1995, when the Japanese new religious movement known as Aum Shinrikyo released the gas on three subway lines in Tokyo, killing 12 and injuring and producing symptoms in thousands of others. As one of the survivors noted, “really, it was like I’d been shot or something, all of a sudden my breathing completely stopped. Like, if I inhaled any more, all my guts would come spilling right out of my mouth.” The investigation into the terror attack revealed that it was carried out by a group of 10 men and masterminded by their leader, Shoko Asahara.

The two most-recent cases of weaponized sarin use occurred during the Syrian Civil War. On August 21, 2013, according to the United Nations, areas in East Ghouta, a suburb of Damascus, were struck by Assad-regime rockets containing sarin. While estimates of the death toll vary, the U.S. government’s report on the attack puts the figure at 1,429 dead, including 426 children. The report also places the blame squarely on the Assad regime, and dismissed its claim that the rebels themselves had launched the attack to invite international sympathy.

If investigations prove, as many believe, that the Syrian regime was behind the latest attack, the international community once again has a decision to make. It can wag its finger once more, hold more meetings at the United Nations, or it can take a harsher stance that Assad must be removed from power. Assad has killed and displaced more Syrians than the Islamic State and all the jihadist groups combined. He has bombed hospitals and targeted rescue workers, and used chemical weapons. The international community must not afford him any legitimacy.

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New York (2009) Maya & Danyal Shaikh

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Stunning Photographs of Dutch Tulip Fields by Bea Nagy

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 ✕ View Business Insider Business Insider, Inc. GET - On Google Play.  STRATEGY 8 things successful people do when they don't like someone Lindsay Dodgson, Business Insider UK Mar. 22, 2017, 11:09 AM 824,565  Successful people often shift their perspectives on things.Unsplash / Pixabay Unless you're a genetic anomaly, it's likely you will meet people you don't like throughout your lifetime. Whether it's your mother-in-law or one of your colleagues, you're bound to come across someone you simply don't click with. According to Deep Patel, author of the book A Paperboy's Fable: The 11 Principles of Success, it helps to remember nobody's perfect. That includes you. In a blog post for Entrepreneur.com, Patel highlights some tips successful people use to deal with people they don't get along with. After all, it's unlikely you'll simply be able to avoid people you don't like — in fact, Patel argues if you restrict who you can work with, you are only limiting yourself. Instead of burying your head in the sand, try and shift your perspective in the ways successful people do. Here are some tips from Patel and other sources such as Psychology Today. View As: One Page Slides 1. Accept that you can't get on with everyone.  Pixabay As much as we hope to like everyone we meet, it often simply isn't the case. Patel says the first step to dealing with the people you don't click with is accepting nobody gets on with everyone, and that's okay. It doesn't mean you're a bad person, and it doesn't mean they are either (not necessarily, anyway.) According to psychologist Dr Susan Krauss in a blog post on Psychology Today, it's likely that you and the person just aren't a good fit. Consultant and author Beverly D. Flaxington explains in another blog post on Psychology Today that our behavioural styles can get come between people. Some are dominant, whereas others are timid. Some people are optimists and others consider themselves "realists." A research paper by Hamstra et al looked at something called "regulatory fit," which translates as: we are much more likely to put effort into the things we like doing. Chances are you don't enjoy interacting with the people you don't like, and so you don't put much effort in. Over time, this lack of effort can turn into contempt. 2. Try and put a positive spin on what they are saying.  Unsplash / Katie Treadway Krauss says you could try and look at how people are acting differently. Your in-laws might not have meant to imply that you aren't smart, and your co-worker may not actually be trying to sabotage you. Even if the person you're having difficulty with is aggravating you on purpose, getting angry about it will probably just make you look bad. So try and give them the benefit of the doubt. 3. Be aware of your own emotions.  Mark Mauno / Flickr Patel says it's important to remember your own emotions matter, but ultimately you alone have control over how you react to situations. People will only drive you crazy if you allow them to. So don't let your anger spin out of control. If someone is rubbing you the wrong way, recognise those feelings and then let them go without engaging with the person. Sometimes just smiling and nodding will do the trick. The key, Patel says, is in treating everyone you meet with the same level of respect. That doesn't mean you have to agree with a person you don't like or go along with what they say, but you should act civilised and be polite. In doing this, you can remain firm on your issues but not come across like you're attacking someone personally, which should give you the upper hand. 4. Don't take it personally and get some space.  Unsplash / Sander Smeekes More often than not a disagreement is probably a misunderstanding. If not, and you really do fundamentally disagree with someone, then try and see it from their perspective. Try not to overreact, because they may overreact in return, meaning things escalate quickly and fiercely. Try to rise above it all by focusing on facts, and try to ignore how the other person is reacting, no matter how ridiculous or irrational. Concentrate on the issue, Patel says, not the person. If you need some space, take it. You're perfectly within your rights to establish boundaries and decide when you interact with someone. If you feel yourself getting worked up, take a time-out and get some breathing space. President of TalentSmart Dr. Travis Bradberry explains it simply in a post on LinkedIn: if they were smoking, would you sit there all afternoon inhaling the second-hand smoke? No, you'd move away and get some fresh air. 5. Express your feelings calmly and consider using a referee.  Gareth Williams / Flickr Usually, the way we communicate is more important than what we actually say. If someone is repeatedly annoying you and it's leading to bigger problems, Patel says it's probably time to say something. However, confrontation doesn't have to be aggressive. Patel recommends you use "I" statements, such as "I feel annoyed when you do this, so could you please do this instead." Being as specific as possible will make it more likely the person will take what you're saying on board. It will also give them a better opportunity to share their side of the story. Krauss says it might be a good idea to use another person as a mediator in these discussions because they can bring a level of objectivity to a situation. You may not end up as friends, but you might find out a way to communicate and work together in an effective way. She says learning to work with people you find difficult is a very fulfilling experience, and it could become one more way of showing how well you overcome barriers. 6. Pick your battles.  Pixabay / Unsplash Sometimes it might just be easier to let things go. Not everything is worth your time and attention. You have to ask yourself whether you really want to engage with the person, or your effort might be better spent just getting on with your work, or whatever else you're doing. Patel says the best way to figure this out is weighing up whether the issue is situational. Will it go away in time, or could it get worse? If it's the latter, it might be better expending energy into sorting it out sooner or later. If it's just a matter of circumstance, you'll probably get over it fairly quickly. 7. Don't be defensive.  Pixabay / hzv_westfalen_de If you find someone is constantly belittling you or focusing on your flaws, don't bite. The worst thing you can do is be defensive. Patel says this will only give them more power. Instead, turn the spotlight on them and start asking them probing questions, such as what in particular their problem is with what you're doing. If they start bullying you, call them out on it. If they want you to treat them with respect, they have to earn it by being civil to you, too. Dr Berit Brogaard, a neuroscientist, explains in a blog post on Psychology Today that workplace gossip and bullying can be a method of power play, or a way of bullying others into submission. If you want to be sneaky to get someone to agree with you, there are psychological tricks you can use. Research suggests you should speak faster when disagreeing with someone so they have less time to process what you're saying. If you think they might be agreeing with you, then slow down so they have time to take in your message. 8. Ultimately, remember you are in control of your own happiness.  Unsplash / Olu Eletu If someone is really getting on your nerves, it can be difficult to see the bigger picture. However, you should never let someone else limit your happiness or success. If you're finding their comments are really getting to you, ask yourself why that is. Are you self-conscious about something, or are you anxious about something at work? If so, focus on this instead of listening to other people's complaints. You alone have control over your feelings, so stop comparing yourself to anyone else. Instead, remind yourself of all your achievements, and don't let someone gain power over you just because they momentarily darken your day. MORE FROM BUSINESS INSIDER UK: It looks like 'The Walking Dead' season 7 finale is setting up a big moment from the comics, but there may be a catch 5 details you may have missed on Sunday's episode of 'The Walking Dead' The Trump era is ushering in a 'more is more' design renaissance in America Veteran journalist Ted Koppel to Fox's Sean Hannity: You are 'bad for America' Here's what will happen to your Sears warranty if the company goes bankrupt (SHLD) Share This Post  

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JORDAN. Near Amman. 1969. Young Fatah recruits train by the refugee camp of Baka.

All these young people come from Palestinian refugee camps - most of them are orphans, their fathers having been killed in fighting. Many come from Karame, a bombed village near the Jordan River, victim of March 1968 fighting. They go to school in the morning and usually train in the afternoon. They start their training between the ages of 10 to 13, but they are only allowed to go into combat at the age of 16.

Photographs: Bruno Barbey/Magnum Photos

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JORDAN. Near Amman. 1969. Young Fatah recruits train by the refugee camp of Baka.

All these young people come from Palestinian refugee camps - most of them are orphans, their fathers having been killed in fighting. Many come from Karame, a bombed village near the Jordan River, victim of March 1968 fighting. They go to school in the morning and usually train in the afternoon. They start their training between the ages of 10 to 13, but they are only allowed to go into combat at the age of 16.

Photographs: Bruno Barbey/Magnum Photos

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Moola Chotok, Balochistan, Pakistan.

(Source)

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Crimean Tatars (Crimean Tatar: Qırımtatarlar or Qırımlar, Turkish: Kırım Tatarları or Kırımlılar, Russian: Крымские Татары, Ukrainian: Кримськi Татари or Кримцi) are a Turkic ethnic group that formed in the Crimean Peninsula in the 13th–17th centuries, primarily from the Turkic tribes that moved to the land now known as Crimea in Eastern Europe from the Asian steppes beginning in the 10th century, with contributions from the pre-Cuman population of Crimea.

Crimean Tatars constituted the majority of Crimea’s population from the time of its ethnogenesis until mid-19th century, and the relative largest ethnic population until the end of 19th century. Almost immediately after the liberation of Crimea, in May 1944, the USSR State Defense Committee ordered the removal of all of the Tatar population from Crimea, including the families of Crimean Tatars serving in the Soviet Army – in trains and boxcars to Central Asia, primarily to Uzbekistan. Starting in 1967, some were allowed to return to Crimea, and in 1989 the USSR Parliament condemned the removal of Crimean Tatars from their motherland as inhumane and lawless. Today, Crimean Tatars constitute approximately 12% of the population of Crimea.

Historians suggest that inhabitants of the mountainous parts of Crimea lying to the central and southern parts (the Tats), and those of the Southern coast of Crimea (the Yalıboyu) were the direct descendants of the Pontic Greeks, Armenians, Scythians, Ostrogoths (Crimean Goths) and Kipchaks along with the Cumans while the latest inhabitants of the northern steppe represent the descendants of the Nogai Horde of the Black Sea nominally subjects of the Crimean Khan. It is largely assumed that the Tatarization process that mostly took place in the 16th century brought a sense of cultural unity through the blending of the Greeks, Armenians, Italians and Ottoman Turks of the southern coast, Goths of the central mountains, and Turkic-speaking Kipchaks and Cumans of the steppe and forming of the Crimean Tatar ethnic group.However, the Cuman language is considered the direct ancestor of the current language of the Crimean Tatars with possible incorporation of the other languages like Crimean Gothic.

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Shame on Israel

An Israeli policeman stands smiling and pointing next to the body of 16-year-old Sabri Fayez al-Rujoub, who has just been shot dead by an Israeli soldier 

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دادے بھاز آن بھاز شئیر کبو ▶▶⏭▶▶⏭⏭▶♻♼♽✳✴ لمئی زبان نا حیثیت ہم لمہ نا مریک لمئی زبان نن ہمو زبانے پانہ ہرادے ننا لمہ غاک پارہ ۔ نن لمہ نا کُٹ ئٹی انت کہ ہیل کینہ ۔ ہمو لفظ ﺅ تلفظ مچا زند ننا ہیت آتا بشخ جوڑ مریرہ ۔ چنکی ٹی لمہ غاک ننے خاچفنگ کن کل لولی تے تینا زبان ئٹی ایترہ ۔ ولدا لمہ نا باءآن پیشتموکا ہر ہمو دعانا لفظاک ہم اونا تینا زبان ئٹی مریرہ ۔ ہمو لفظاتے ٹی ہمو ہنینی مریک ہراننا زندگی نا بشخ جوڑ مریرہ ۔ دا ہمو زبان مریک ہرادے نن لمئی زبان پانہ ۔ انسان تے تینا زبان تو ہمو خس مہر مریک اخس کہ اودے تینا لمہ تو مہر ارے۔ دنیا ٹی ہمو بندغاک عزت ﺅ قدر ئنا خواجہ مریرہ ہرا تینا ثقافت ، رسم ﺅ دود ،تینا لمئی زبان ﺅ انسانی سیالی تا عزت ﺅ قدرئنا خیالے تخرہ ۔ دنیاٹی ہر لمئی زبان انسان ئے مدام محبت نا سبخ ترسا ہیسنے ۔ دنیا نا امر و لمہ ئس مرے ہرانا تعلق امرو ملک ، مذہب یا علاقہ سے آن مرے او تینا چھناتے ہر وقت مہر ئنا سبخ ایتک۔ ولے افسوز ئٹ پاروئی تمک بھلو وخت ئسے آن دنیا ٹی بشخ ﺅ بانٹ کن زبان آتے ہم کاریم ٹی ہترنگ نا کوشش کننگنگ ئٹی ئے ہنداڑے علاقائی بشخ ﺅ بانٹ نا خواست زبان مسنے ۔ ننا سیالی ہم اسہ ہنونو زبان ئسے تون ئے ہراداڈغار نا وارث زبان مرسا کلان متکنا زبان ارے ۔ بقول پروفیسر ڈاکٹر واحد بخش بزدار صاحب کہ ای بابائے بلوچستان میر غوث بخش بزنجو نا داہیت ئتو مکمل تفوکٹ کہ ننا اصل زبان براہوئی ئے ایلو زبان آتے نن پدان ہیل کرینن ۔اوفک پاریر کہ براہوئی ناقواعدی ہاٹی( Grammatical Structure)دا وختسکان تینا جند ئنا ئے ہرادے او سوگوی ئٹ تورینے ولے ایلو زبان آک داٹی ہم بدلی ہیسنو۔ براہوئی زبان ئے پہہ مننگ دا نا حیثیت ئے چاننگ ضروری ��ے کہ دا وختسکان دا زبان ئے بے خواجہی کننگانے ہرا المیہ سے آن کم اف ۔ اقوام متحدہ نا قرار داد ناردٹ بندغ گوننگ (مردم شماری )مادری زبان تا بنیادا مریک ۔ہرا مرسا بسنے براہوئی ہر وخت مردم شماری ٹی مسنے ہرانا ردٹ 1911ءنا مردم شماری نا ردٹ سراوان ٹی کل بندغاک 63781مسنو ﺅ اوفتے ٹی 47816براہوئی مسنو ہندن جہلاوان ٹی کل بندغاک84398مسنو ﺅ اوفتے ٹی 69553براہوئی مسنو۔ دا لحاظٹ ہننگہ تو براہوئی کلان بھلا زبان مرسا بسنے ولے 1997نا مردم شماری فارم آن سیاسی ﺅ غلطی سے نا سوب آن براہوئی ئے کشنگا ہرانا پد دا مس کہ براہوئی نا تعداد معلوم متو ﺅ دا زبان پاکستان ئٹی اسہ فیصد (ٹک) ظاہر کننگا ہرا ڑے دا زبان ئٹی ہیت کروکا مخلوق نا حق آک خلنگار۔ لیکچرار آتا پوسٹ آتیان الیس ٹی وی ، ریڈیو نا پروگرام آتسکان داخس کہ براہوئی تے ریڈیو نا شاٹ ویو آن ہم کشنگا۔ سی ایس ایس ئٹی ہم دادے اوار شاغنگتو او داڑکن ٹی وی چینل لائسنس آن ہم انکار کننگاکہ دا زبان ئٹی ہیت کروکو بھاز کم ئے۔ پاکستان نا بھلا بھلا یونیورسٹی تیٹی ہم براہوئی نا پوسٹ آک متوس کہ دانا تعداد کم ئے لہٰذا دا خ��است ئے کہ براہوئی زبان ئٹی ہیت کروکا ک تینا زبان نا خواجہی ئے کیر۔ تینا زبان ئے جوان وڑٹ است بڈی ایتر۔ مردم شماری فارم ٹی تینا ماردی زبان ئے براہوئی ظاہر کیر تاکہ براہوئی زبان مستی کائے ۔ داڑان خدانخواستہ قوم ئسے ہچو نقصان ئس بفرو۔ براہوئی نا کم مننگ آن بھلو نقصان مرو، مستان کہ براہوئی مردم شماری ٹی مسنے ہم تو نقصان متو۔ قوم ﺅ ڈغار نا حق آک پوروی ٹی بسر۔ داسہ نن زبان تا بنیادا اِرا بشخ ہلنگٹی اُن ﺅ اسہ بشخ ئس سیال آک دیرہ ۔ اگہ براہوئی تے کشنگا تو دانیمہ مریرہ تو ننا قومی نقصان مریک۔امیدے کہ مردم شماری ٹی ہروڑ ئنا بے فائدہ غاسوچ آن مُر مرسا براہوئی ئے ٹک کننگو تاکہ دا زبان زندہ سلامت مرسا اونا پاروکاک کل آسراتی تے دوئی مننگ کیر۔ ٭٭٭٭٭٭٭

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[Mohamed Baker was playing soccer with his cousins on a beach in Gaza. Four of them died right in front of his eyes.]

I can’t wait to hear Hasbara trolls deny this :) “never happened” “these kids were hiding behind khamas” “they had missiles in their pants”

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The Kalash people as an ancient cultural continuum between South Asia and Europe

The Kalash people practice an ancient form of Indo-European [polytheism] in an unbroken tradition having survived against all odds in a remote mountain region of northern Pakistan. The isolated Chitral Valley is home to Dardic people who speak an ancient Indo-European language called Nuristani. This is what remained when the Indo-Iranian and Indo-Aryan subgroups cleaved off after their invasion of the Indian subcontinent. Their religion descends from the Rigvedic period and they have close genetic ties to modern Europeans.

Some of their religious customs echo pre-christian Slavic ones – a cosmic dualism pitting a thunder god against a chthonic rival, a polymorphic fertility deity, animal sacrifice, use of wooden idols and a corpus of nature spirits. Their pantheon even includes a female deity of death named Mara. The women’s clothing bare remarkable resemblance to Slavic folk costume, especially the Ukrainian type. 

Whats more, the Kalash have a winter solstice ritual that may yield precious clues to the meaning behind Slavic yule log (Bozic/Badnjak/Budnik) tradition. Here a young boy assumes the role of the polymorphic solar fertility hero by taking to the hills during summer. He returns to his community and completes the rite of passage during the night of the winter solstice. Per Wikipedia,“This includes the Festival of the Budulak (buḍáḷak, the ‘shepherd king’). In this festival, a strong prepubescent boy is sent up into the mountains to live with the goats for the summer. He is supposed to get fat and strong from the goat milk. When the festival comes he is allowed for a 24-hour period only to have sexual intercourse with any woman he wants, including even the wife of another man, or a young virgin. Any child born of this 24-hour period is considered to be blessed. “

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Boy missing in Srinagar

 STATE TIMES NEWS SRINAGAR: A boy is reportedly missing from Nowlari in Baramulla District. Police post Kongamdar was informed that a boy identified as Syed Javed Razvi, son of Syed Mohammad, resident of Nowlari, Baramulla was missing from 16th February.