#AFP Modernization Program

[xtruss]

EL LOCO! Tantric Sex and Dog Cloning: A Guide to Argentina’s Trash Trumpy New President

Leftist-hating Libertarian Javier Milei won the Nation's Presidency in a Runoff Election Sunday Night. The Former American President, Donald J. Trump, is a Big Fan

— By Nikki McCann Ramirez | Rollingstone | November 20, 2023

Javier Milei speaks to supporters after winning the Presidential election runoff at his party headquarters in Buenos Aires, Argentina on November 19, 2023. Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images

Argentina has elected a self-described anarcho-capitalist libertarian Javier Milei as its next president. The result of Sunday’s runoff election will mean sweeping changes to the second-largest economy in South America, which will now be helmed by one of the most bizarre figures in modern politics.

An economist-turned-legislator, Milei’s abrasive political stylings, unruly mop of hair, anti-communist ravings, and taste for conspiracies have earned him comparisons to Donald Trump, and support from right-wing figures within American media and international politics.

While wielding chainsaws as campaign props and sporting “Make Argentina Great Again” hats, Milei, nicknamed “El Loco,” has promised drastic cuts to government spending and social programs in order to curb skyrocketing inflation. As Argentina braces for what promises to be one of its most consequential presidencies in decades, here’s what you need to know about Javier Milei.

He’s an Anarcho-Capitalist Libertarian … Most of the Time

Basically, Milei wants a much, much, much, smaller government, charged only with the maintenance of justice and state security. In a viral video, Milei was filmed ripping tags with the names of a slew of government agencies off of a whiteboard. The ministries on his chopping block include: Education (“Indoctrination”); Culture; Environment and Sustainable Development; Women, Genders and Diversity; Public Works; Science, Technology and Innovation; Transportation; Health; and Social development.

They are all “out,” as he put it, “Even if [they] resist.”

As a libertarian, Milei supports the legalization of sex work, increased civilian access to guns, and the decriminalization of drugs. He has also stated that he is largely indifferent to same-sex marriage and issues of gender expression. However, his commitment to personal freedoms has been described as inconsistent when compared to his ultra-conservative views on abortion, which he opposes in virtually all circumstances, including instances of rape. Earlier this year, Milei proposed Argentina hold a referendum to overturn the law that established a right to abortion in 2020.

He Says He’s a Tantric Sex Guru

Milei’s journey into politics began largely through appearances on various Argentinian TV channels. In one interview, Milei revealed that he was not only a libertarian in an economic sense but also in his personal life.

“Yes, yes, yes,” Milei responded when asked if he supported open relationships and non-monogamy, adding that in his view, relationships should operate under the same principles of competition as the free market. “I don’t like monopolies,” he said.

In another interview, Milei spoke openly about having had threesomes and previously working as a tantric sex coach. At one point Milei revealed that through his tantra practice, he was able to hold off ejaculation for up to three months.

Interestingly enough, Milei considered comprehensive sex education to be a form of socialist indoctrination by the left.

He Cloned his Dead Dog and Consults the Clones for Political Advice

Milei considered his now-deceased English Mastiff Conan (named after Conan the Barbarian) his child, so much so that he had him cloned. Milei now owns four of those cloned mastiffs, one named after the original Conan and the others after famous conservative economists. He considers the clones his grandchildren. In his view, cloning is a way to “approach eternity.”

The president-elect dedicated his victory on Sunday to his fur babies, but it’s not the first time Conan and his progeny have been referenced as an integral part of his campaign. Milei revealed earlier this year that he communicates with his four-legged children via a mystic and that each dog serves a distinct advisory role.

Milei has also indicated that through his medium, he has been able to communicate with famous economists like Murray Rothbard and Ayn Rand. He’s even claimed to have communicated with God, who convinced him to launch a career in politics.

He Supports the Sale of Human Organs, and Maybe Kids

Free-market-loving Milei has indicated his support for private sale of human organs.

In June of last year, Milei stated that he would legalize the sale of organs, which is currently illegal in Argentina: “If you have your daughter about to die, and you need to pay for a [medical] intervention. If someone wants to buy your kidney and you could sell it to them. The solution is very painful, you are giving up an organ and, if you also add state regulations, it is worse. I’m talking about social cooperation and voluntary exchanges. It’s the decision of individuals.”

“If liberalism is the unrestricted respect for the life of others, based on the principle of non-aggression and in defense of the right to life, freedom and property; and my first property is my body, then why shouldn’t I be able to do what I want with my body?” he said in another interview.

The comments generated controversy as Milei was essentially suggesting that an individual sell a kidney and undergo invasive surgery in order to afford a separate life-saving medical procedure for a loved one. Additionally, the black market trade of organs has frequently been associated with organized crime in many South American countries, and often results in the exploitation of poor individuals.

What Milei was willing to see on the free market once again generated controversy when he suggested that he might be open to the sale of children. In 2022, when asked if he would support the right to sell one’s kids, Milei responded “it depends.”

He clarified that while he personally wouldn’t sell a child, it’s all a matter of context. “It is not what Argentine society is discussing, perhaps 200 years from now,” he added.

Milei later claimed that his comments had been misrepresented, and that he was “obviously not in favor of the sale of children.”

He’s an Anarcho-Capitalist Libertarian … Most of the Time

Basically, Milei wants a much, much, much, smaller government, charged only with the maintenance of justice and state security. In a viral video, Milei was filmed ripping tags with the names of a slew of government agencies off of a whiteboard. The ministries on his chopping block include: Education (“Indoctrination”); Culture; Environment and Sustainable Development; Women, Genders and Diversity; Public Works; Science, Technology and Innovation; Transportation; Health; and Social development.

They are all “out,” as he put it, “Even if [they] resist.”

As a libertarian, Milei supports the legalization of sex work, increased civilian access to guns, and the decriminalization of drugs. He has also stated that he is largely indifferent to same-sex marriage and issues of gender expression. However, his commitment to personal freedoms has been described as inconsistent when compared to his ultra-conservative views on abortion, which he opposes in virtually all circumstances, including instances of rape. Earlier this year, Milei proposed Argentina hold a referendum to overturn the law that established a right to abortion in 2020.

He Says He’s a Tantric Sex Guru

The president-elect dedicated his victory on Sunday to his fur babies, but it’s not the first time Conan and his progeny have been referenced as an integral part of his campaign. Milei revealed earlier this year that he communicates with his four-legged children via a mystic and that each dog serves a distinct advisory role.

Milei has also indicated that through his medium, he has been able to communicate with famous economists like Murray Rothbard and Ayn Rand. He’s even claimed to have communicated with God, who convinced him to launch a career in politics.

He Supports the Sale of Human Organs, and Maybe Kids

Free-market-loving Milei has indicated his support for private sale of human organs.

In June of last year, Milei stated that he would legalize the sale of organs, which is currently illegal in Argentina: “If you have your daughter about to die, and you need to pay for a [medical] intervention. If someone wants to buy your kidney and you could sell it to them. The solution is very painful, you are giving up an organ and, if you also add state regulations, it is worse. I’m talking about social cooperation and voluntary exchanges. It’s the decision of individuals.”

“If liberalism is the unrestricted respect for the life of others, based on the principle of non-aggression and in defense of the right to life, freedom and property; and my first property is my body, then why shouldn’t I be able to do what I want with my body?” he said in another interview.

The comments generated controversy as Milei was essentially suggesting that an individual sell a kidney and undergo invasive surgery in order to afford a separate life-saving medical procedure for a loved one. Additionally, the black market trade of organs has frequently been associated with organized crime in many South American countries, and often results in the exploitation of poor individuals.

What Milei was willing to see on the free market once again generated controversy when he suggested that he might be open to the sale of children. In 2022, when asked if he would support the right to sell one’s kids, Milei responded “it depends.”

He clarified that while he personally wouldn’t sell a child, it’s all a matter of context. “It is not what Argentine society is discussing, perhaps 200 years from now,” he added.

Milei later claimed that his comments had been misrepresented, and that he was “obviously not in favor of the sale of children.”

He’s a Fan of Fascist Trump, and Fascist Trump is a Fan of Him

Following Milei’s victory on Sunday, Trump congratulated him on Truth Social. “Congratulations to Javier Milei on a great race for President of Argentina. The whole world was watching! I am very proud of you,” the former president wrote. “You will turn your Country around and truly Make Argentina Great Again!”

It’s true that Milei has embraced his own version of MAGA politics, and even sported his own “Make Argentina Great Again” hats.

A staunch populist who pulled off a dark horse bid for the presidency amidst a wave of public ire at the establishment, the comparisons between Trump and Milei are plain to see, with uniquely bizarre hairstyles to boot. Milei followed one of Trump’s most infamous tactics in his own rise to the presidency: preemptively claiming election interference to guard against a potential loss.

Milei has expressed his desire to improve the relationship between the United States, and with Trump remaining the clear frontrunner in the Republican primaries, a future relationship with Milei could mirror Trump’s past relationship with other right-wing leaders in the Americas like Brazil’s former president, Jair Bolsonaro.

He REALLY Hates the Left

Milei is, at heart, a culture warrior. A soldier in the batalla cultural unfolding in Latin America and South America, Milei, like many of the American right’s most staunch culture warlords, is bitterly antagonistic to leftist politics.

“Leftist sons of whores,” “shit leftists,” and “filthy leftists” are just some of the descriptors Milei uses to describe his political opposition, and much of his rhetoric regarding progressive values is practically a word-for-word translation of the kind of language used by the American right.

Milei accuses “cultural Marxists” of promoting feminism, environmental sustainability, gender ideology, diversity initiatives, and social welfare that (in his opinion) will inevitably turn Argentina into a socialist hellscape. Sound familiar?

“You can’t give leftist pieces of shit even a millimeter because if you give them a millimeter they will use it to destroy you,” he exclaimed in a now-viral interview earlier this year. In his own political platform, Milei has promised to take the metaphorical chainsaw to Argentinian government bodies and organizations who he sees as the most prominent promoters of leftist ideology.

[iconsofchange]

Icons of Change Awards 2025

SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

Champion in Military Leadership, Human Rights Advocacy, and Reservist Development

MAJOR GENERAL JOEL ALEJANDRO S. NACNAC PA

Deputy Chief of Staff for Reservist and Retiree Affairs, J9 | Attorney at Law | Human Rights Advocate | Peace and Security Leader

Major General Joel Alejandro S. “JoeNac” Nacnac is a distinguished military leader and public servant, whose career reflects an unwavering dedication to promoting peace, upholding human rights, and strengthening the Philippine Reserve Force. As the 34th Deputy Chief of Staff for Reservist and Retiree Affairs (J9), he has consistently prioritized the advancement, development, and modernization of the Reserve Force — focusing on ensuring it remains a reliable partner for national defense, disaster response, and peacebuilding.

Champion in Military Leadership and Human Rights Advocacy

MGEN Nacnac’s career is defined by both valor and vision. Beginning his military journey as a warrior on the frontlines, earning recognition as the “Warrior of Kalinga,” he led battalions in critical combat missions and was inducted as an honorary member of the First Scout Ranger Regiment and the Special Forces Regiment (Airborne) for his exemplary leadership and combat prowess.

His commitment extended beyond the battlefield. As Director of the AFP Center for Law of Armed Conflict, he raised the center’s profile, integrating human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL) into the Armed Forces’ systems and processes — a landmark achievement in aligning military operations with global human rights standards.

Promoting Strong Institutions and Reservist Development

Today, as J9, MGEN Nacnac steers the administration, training, equipage, and utilization of the Citizen Armed Forces, emphasizing integrity, professionalism, and ethical values. He has introduced progressive reforms in the AFP Reserve Force, ensuring that reservists and retirees continue to contribute meaningfully to national peace, security, and resilience efforts.

Previously, he served as The Internal Auditor, AFP, safeguarding the integrity and credibility of the AFP’s resource and financial management. He has also championed programs that fortified the operational efficiency, morale, and discipline within the Armed Forces, including as Army Provost Marshal, where he received back-to-back recognitions as AFP Best Provost Marshal in 2017 and 2018.

Academic and Professional Excellence

MGEN Nacnac exemplifies academic brilliance and continuous learning. He graduated at Ilocos Norte National High School, and went on to earn:

- Master of Arts in Economics (Ateneo de Manila University)

- Juris Doctor (Baguio Colleges Foundation)

- Master’s in Public Management, Major in Development and Security (Development Academy of the Philippines, with Special Citation of Academic Distinction)

He is a Bar Passer (2004), a Certified Security Professional, and a graduate of prestigious local and international defense courses including the Command and General Staff Course (ranked No. 1 in his class) and the UN Military Observer Course in Australia.

Recognized Impact in Peace, Security, and Community Service

His remarkable military and public service have earned him numerous national and international awards, including the Distinguished Service Stars, Outstanding Achievement Medals, Bronze Cross Medals, Military Merit Medals, UN Service Medals, and many others. A UN peacekeeper, respected civic leader, and multi-sport athlete, MGEN Nacnac is also an active member of various civic and fraternal organizations — including the Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines and Rotary Club of Ormoc.

Why MAJOR GENERAL JOEL ALEJANDRO S. NACNAC is an Icon of Change

Major General Joel Alejandro S. Nacnac stands as a Champion of military leadership that honors the principles of peace, justice, human rights, and institution-building. Through decades of fearless service, human rights advocacy, and strategic leadership, he has advanced the mission of peace and security while nurturing future-ready citizen soldiers.

His work makes him a model Icon of Change for Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions, and a powerful example of how integrity, wisdom, and bravery can drive a nation forward.

#IconsOfChange2025#MetroManila#Philippines#MGENJoelNacnac#MilitaryLeadership#HumanRightsAdvocate#ReservistDevelopment#ArmedForcesOfThePhilippines#PeaceAndJustice#SDG16#RecognizingVisionEmpoweringTransformation

[firstoccupier]

Why China Fears the Philippines' Modest Missile Defense While Ignoring Its Own Arsenal

The Philippines News Agency (PNA) recently reported on the country’s pursuit of a comprehensive missile defense system [1]. This initiative, outlined in the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept (CADC), is part of the ongoing modernization program for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) [1]. The AFP chief, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., has requested the Typhon Missile System from the US,…

[militaryleak]

PT PAL Indonesia Starts Construction of Philippine Navy 124-meter Landing Platform Dock

PT PAL Indonesia has commenced the construction of third landing platform dock (LPD)-like strategic sealift vessel (SSV) for the Philippine Navy. This marks a key milestone in the ongoing defense partnership between the two nations, highlighting the level of trust bestowed upon Indonesia's ship manufacturing capabilities. The LPD, a class of two ships, is a pivotal component of the Philippine Navy's Landing Dock Acquisition Project under the Horizon 2 phase of the Revised Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program. This ambitious initiative, with a budget of PHP5.56 billion, signifies the Philippines' commitment to enhancing its sealift and amphibious assault capabilities.

PT PAL Indonesia has commenced the construction of third landing platform dock (LPD)-like strategic sealift vessel (SSV) for the Philippine Navy. This marks a key milestone in the ongoing defense partnership between the two nations, highlighting the level of trust bestowed upon Indonesia’s ship manufacturing capabilities. The LPD, a class of two ships, is a pivotal component of the Philippine…

[onbepaymentsolutions]

Optimizing Business Through Payment Efficiency, Part 2: Unlocking Time & Cost Savings By Partnering With A Payments Fintech

While economic uncertainty can be worrying, times of change bring the chance to innovate, optimize your business processes, and discover new sources of revenue. If your business routinely makes disbursements to customers and workers, upgrading your payment strategy is an opportunity you might not have considered.

In part two of this series, the Onbe editorial team spoke with Damien Glista, Vice President of Relationship Management and Sales at Onbe, to glean insights from his 16 years in the payments industry. Glista shared ways that adopting modern, digital-first payment solutions can save time and labor, unlock cost savings, and reduce risk while improving the payee experience.  

The High Cost of Check Processing

For most businesses, making a payment means cutting a check. While it sounds simple, issuing paper checks becomes complex and costly when a high volume of payments is involved—think consumer refunds, rebates, or salesperson incentives. “Check processing is a big job for accounts payable teams,” Glista explained. “Then, since not every recipient will cash their check, staff end up spending many more hours either resending checks or filing unclaimed property reports.”

Paper checks don’t just mean an administrative hassle; they can result in steep costs for payers, generally in the range of $3-12 per check. “You have to factor in not only the cost of paper and postage, but the expense of dealing with checks that weren’t cashed,” said Glista. “Each state has different rules and regulations for handling unclaimed property, and getting it wrong could lead to steep fines. Many businesses don’t realize how much they could save by switching to a third-party payment solution.”

Partnering with a payments fintech lets businesses hand over or automate most of the administrative labor involved in managing payment programs, plus gain access to more efficient payment solutions, such as virtual cards. “You not only can reduce the work involved in making and reconciling payments, but you can switch to faster, digital and electronic payment methods that eliminate the costs of printing and delivery,” said Glista.

Fraud Management: A Steep Administrative Burden

Working with a payments partner can also eliminate the burden of handling fraud—and help reduce fraud activity through a proactive approach. 63% of organizations reported check fraud in 2022, according to the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP). ���Whenever fraud occurs, your team needs to void and reissue the check, alert the bank, and file a claim with your company’s insurance provider,” says Glista. “Depending on the scale of your payments operation, that could turn out to be an enormous lift.”

Through a payments fintech, businesses could reduce fraud with a combination of A.I.-enabled fraud detection solutions and modern, digital payment methods that come with less fraud risk. “At Onbe, we not only have the latest tools and capabilities to combat fraud, but we assume all responsibility for fraud on behalf of our clients,” says Glista. “Even if you have the expertise to prevent and mitigate fraud in-house, at the end of the day, most businesses are better served by handing over the risk, altogether.”

Unlocking Time and Opportunities

Offloading fraud management and other administrative processes saves businesses hours per week. “With a lighter burden, your staff can spend more time on higher-value activities,” said Glista. “Ultimately, that could lead to uncovering new ways for your business to innovate and drive efficiency.”

Using a corporate payouts gateway also improves the experience for payees, resulting in a more engaged and loyal base. “Paying primarily by check comes with frictions for recipients as well as your business,” said Glista. “These range from delivery issues if your recipient changed addresses to a lack of options for underbanked consumers. And the costs to you could be anything from customer service escalations to the loss of a customer.” The majority of consumers prefer digital payments to checks and want to be able to choose their preferred payment method, according to Onbe’s 2023 Future of Payments survey. Glista explained, “Using a payouts gateway to switch from checks to more cost-efficient, in-demand payment choices is a win for your back-office team, your recipients, and your bottom line.”

Original Source: https://www.onbe.com/post/optimizing-business-through-payment-efficiency-part-2-unlocking-time-cost-savings-by-partnering-with-a-payments-fintech

[biglisbonnews]

Is the Smart Data reforms what UK businesses need to thrive? UK business leaders require confidence in order to initiate investment programsPATRICK HERTZOG/AFP A robust business alliance spearheaded by John Penrose, MP for Weston-Super-Mare, is urging the government to expedite Smart Data reforms, which aims to bolster the competitiveness of British exporters, stimulate investment in UK digital jobs, and offer better bargains for consumers, all of which will help to reduce the cost of living. Commissioned by Rishi Sunak, Penrose has thrown his weight behind measures to enhance Britain's world-leading digital success in open banking to be extended as quickly as possible to industries beyond financial services. The partnership includes entities such as NatWest, TISA, the Financial Data and Technology Association, The Payments Association, Open Banking Excellence (OBE), fintech Ozone API and Icebreaker One. They have jointly written to ministers, advocating for swift implementation of previously agreed reforms in order to prevent British businesses from being disrupted by foreign competitors. The proposed reforms in the Data Protection and Digital Information (No.2) Bill includes provisions to introduce Smart Data reforms, but no specific timelines have been provided for their enactment in various business sectors. However, UK business leaders require confidence in order to initiate investment programs immediately, and modern digital enterprises must move much, much faster than traditional customary speed. Penrose, Author of a Sunak-commissioned report on UK Competition Policy, stated the transformative impact of open banking and smart data on the UK banking system. According to Penson, this is due to the fact that it is "giving us all cheaper and better-value services even if we don't realise it's what lies behind the online financial apps and services so many of us are using nowadays". The MP for Weston-Super-Mare, in acknowledging the global success of open banking in the UK, cautioned that competitors in other nations will not stand still. So, to stay ahead, Penson said British businesses must replicate their success across the various sectors of the economy to provide better prices and develop world-leading enterprises in industries like online retailing and energy. He expressed enthusiasm for the proposed reforms, but Penson said there is an urgent need for ministers to provide specific implementation plans and schedules once so businesses can get started. Helen Child, Founder of Open Banking Excellence (OBE), in an interview, emphasised the importance of data sharing as the foundation of open banking. According to her, this data can be used by lenders to undertake accurate real-time affordability assessments and make more educated decisions, allowing previously excluded customers to demonstrate their trustworthiness. She also pointed out the role of open banking in personal financial management tools, enabling customers to have a comprehensive view of their accounts and make better financial decisions. Child stressed that by accelerating the global expansion of open banking, the company can make an actual change during the cost of living crisis by addressing the challenge of financial inclusion. Child lauded Penrose's amendment and the Bill for positioning the UK as a global leader in open banking and finance, urging support from all stakeholders to maintain this leadership position. She warned that if the government and regulators do not act, the country risks losing its hard-won worldwide leadership position. Ghela Boskovich, Regional Director, Financial Data and Technology Association, Head of Europe, said the primary lesson from the UK Open Banking experience has been the importance of proper governance, oversight, and stakeholder convening, which Boskovich stressed, can only be accomplished through a coordinating body, an implementation entity. Ozone API Co-Founder and CEO, Chris Michael, believes that Smart Data is projected to stimulate innovation and investment in various fields by tech companies. More importantly, he said this should provide significant and much-needed value to both personal and business clients. He noted that the implementation of Open Banking in the UK and many other regions, including the Middle East and Latin America, has shown that having a well-defined standard, a strong mandate, and an implementation body is critical to delivering these benefits on time. Tony Craddock, The Payments Association's Director General, stressed the importance of developing standards that can be applied across sectors to capitalise on expertise in open banking, in order to support the proposed amendments to the Bill. Related Articles Small businesses face declining confidence in Q2 2023 during economic challenges Bank of England raises UK interest rates to a record 5.25% Is the Smart Data reforms what UK businesses need to thrive? https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/smart-data-reforms-what-uk-businesses-need-thrive-1718284

[usafphantom2]

Macron says France is willing to train Ukrainian fighter pilots

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 05/16/23 - 20:03 in Military, War Zones

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that his country “opened the door” to the training of Ukrainian fighter pilots.

Macron said in an interview with French television TF1 that France is open to training Ukrainian fighter pilots in France and that these training programs can start immediately.

“We have opened the door to the training of pilots, and this with several other European countries that are also prepared,” Macron said during an interview with the TF1 television channel. Discussions with the Americans are underway."

Asked about the delivery of warplanes to Ukraine, Macron said he had not discussed this issue with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during his visit to France this weekend.

French President Emmanuel Macron meets with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in Paris. (Photo: Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images)

"I didn't talk about planes. I talked about missiles. I talked about training,” he said. Asked about the training of Ukrainian pilots on French warplanes, he said: "There are no taboos".

Kiev is now particularly focused on obtaining donations from Allied fighters to regain control of its skies in the face of Russian air and drone attacks.

In the United Kingdom, Zelenskiy said he wanted to create a “fighter coalition” to supply modern planes to Ukraine. But while the United Kingdom also pledged to train Ukrainian fighter pilots, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Monday that the issue “was not a simple thing”.

Zelenskiy, making his nightly video speech of a train that took him back to Kiev after a stop in London on Monday, said that the United Kingdom and Poland agreed to join a coalition that is being created to train Ukrainian pilots in modern Western aircraft.

“Great Britain – yes. Poland – yes. And I'm sure that France and other partners will join," he said.

Tags: Armée de l'air - French Air Force/French Air ForceMilitary AviationWar Zones - Russia/Ukraine

Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Daytona Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. Uses Canon equipment during his photographic work around the world of aviation.

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[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Philippines, Brazil agree to foster deeper defense relations

The defense cooperation between the Philippines and Brazil is looking to grow deeper as both countries expressed intent to take it to a whole new level this year.

To start it off, Department of National Defense (DND) Officer in Charge Jose Faustino Jr. met with representatives from the Brazilian government headed by Ambassador Piragibe Tarragò, Special Envoy of Brazil to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and Ambassador of Brazil to the Philippines Antonio J. M. de Souza e Silva, on Wednesday, July 20, at the DND Headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

During the meeting, Faustino solicited Brazil’s support for the ASEAN Outlook in the Indo-Pacific and welcomed the further development of bilateral cooperation between the two defense establishments.

He recalled Brazil’s contributions to the modernization program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which include the successful acquisition and delivery of six units of Super Tucano aircraft from Embraer, a Brazilian company, in 2020.

Meanwhile, Tarragô said that defense “is one of the significant areas of cooperation” between the Philippines and Brazil.

Continue reading.

[nemolian]

Study confirms superior sound of a Stradivari is due to the varnish

Enlarge /

A 1729 Stradivari known as the "Solomon, Ex-Lambert" on display at Christie's in New York in March 2007.

Along with Andrea Amati and Andrea Guarneri, Antonio Stradivari dominated the so-called Golden Age of Violins (roughly 1660 to 1750), and the instruments they crafted remain the gold standard today in terms of acoustic quality. World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma has long favored a Stradivarius instrument, as does violinist Joshua Bell. But scientists have been arguing for years about precisely why these instruments have such superior sound. A recent paper published in the journal Angewandte Chemie confirms a theory dating back to 2006: the secret lies in the chemicals used to soak the wood, most notably borax, zinc, copper, alum, and lime water.

I've written extensively about this topic in the past. The (perceived) unique sound can't just be due to the instrument's geometry, although Stradivari's geometrical approach did give us the violin's signature shape. One hypothesis is that Stradivari may have used Alpine spruce that grew during a period of uncommonly cold weather, which caused the annual growth rings to be closer together, making the wood abnormally dense. Another prevailing theory has to do with the varnish: namely, that Stradivari used an ingenious cocktail of honey, egg whites, and gum arabic from sub-Saharan trees—or perhaps salts or other chemicals.

Then again, the difference may be all in our heads. A player's instrument preference is highly subjective, and there's some evidence of so-called "psychoacoustics" at play: that is, we've become so awed by the name Stradivarius that it influences how we evaluate or respond to the sound of one of Stradivari's instruments.

In fact, a 2012 double-blind study of 21 experienced violinists found that most of the subjects preferred playing the newer instruments; the Stradivarius ranked last in their preferences. Most of them couldn't tell the difference between the old and new instruments, with no significant correlation between an instrument's age and its monetary value. "Rather than searching for the 'secret' of Stradivari, future research might best be focused on how violinists evaluate instruments, on which specific playing qualities are most important to them, and on how these qualities relate to measurable attributes of the instruments, whether old or new," the authors concluded.

The varnish theory dates back to 2006, when Joseph Nagyvary, a professor emeritus of biochemistry at Texas A&M University, made headlines with a paper in Nature claiming that it was the chemicals used to treat the wood—not necessarily the wood itself—that was responsible for the unique sound of a Stradivarius violin. Specifically, it was salts of copper, iron, and chromium, all of which are excellent wood preservers but may also have altered the instruments' acoustical properties. He based his findings on studies using infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to study the chemical properties of the backboards of several violins (the backboard is the instrument's largest resonant component).

Enlarge /

Close-up of the sculpture of Antonio Stradivari (1644–1737) in Corso Garibaldi, Cremona, Italy.

Elena Piccini/Fototeca Gilardi/Getty Images

In 2007, physicist George Bissinger of East Carolina University used a 3D scanning laser to produce detailed and quantitative measurements of the acoustic properties of several Strad violins—essentially mapping out how they vibrate to produce those heavenly tones. Bissinger hung each of the five violins by elastic bands, then struck the wood of the top plate with a little hammer while recording and measuring the vibrational modes with the scanner.

He specifically wanted to measure the in-plane and out-plane motion: the in-plane motion is the source of much of the sound energy, and this converts into out-plane motion, which produces the rich tonal sounds we associate with fine violins. In addition, he hired a world-class violinist to play each of the violins used in the study for an hour to get the feel of the instruments and then offer subjective ratings for each one. The musician's subjective analysis was then compared to the objective acoustical data. The resulting measurements were sufficiently detailed to reconstruct the stiffness properties of the wood used to make the Strads, according to Bissinger.

CT scans

In 2008, Berend Stoel from the Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands collaborated with a luthier named Terry Borman to take CT scans of several Strads, along with several modern instruments for comparison. The aim was to study the density of the woods used, since differentials in wood density impact vibrational efficiency and thereby the production of sound. Stoel had developed a computer program that noninvasively calculated lung densities in people suffering from emphysema, and he adapted it to study wood densities from CT scans.

There wasn't much significant difference between the average wood density of the classical and modern violins used in the study. But the density differences between wood grains of early and late-growth wood was significantly smaller in the classical Cremonese violins compared with modern violins. "Our results clearly document basic material property differences between the woods used by the classical Cremonese and contemporary makers," the authors concluded.

More evidence in favor of Team Varnish came from a 2016 study by researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA). They studied how a varnish's chemical composition, thickness, and degree of penetration into the wood affected the acoustics of the instrument.

As I wrote for Gizmodo in 2016:

They used samples of Norway spruce tone wood cut from the same tree and coated the samples with different kinds of varnish: two of their own making, and two used by German master violin makers. Then they conducted vibration tests of the samples over time, using x-ray tomography to measure the effects.

The researchers found that all the varnishes increased the wood's dampening ability—that is, how well it absorbs and stops vibrations. That extra damping, compared to unvarnished wood, leads to a warmer, mellower, and aesthetically pleasing sound. The varnishes favored by German luthiers performed slightly better in that regard, and also made for better sound radiation (louder tones).

A 2017 study by Taiwanese researchers compared the maple used by Stradivarius with modern, high-quality maple wood. Their analysis showed evidence of chemical treatments in the form of aluminum, calcium, and copper, among other elements. And thanks to the decomposition over time of a wood component called hemicellulose, the Stradivari and Guarneri instruments used in the study had 25 percent less water than modern instruments. "This is fundamentally important because the less moisture, the more brilliant the sound," Nagyvary told The New York Times.

Enlarge /

Violinist Adrian Pintea plays a 1729 Stradivari known as the "Solomon, Ex-Lambert" in 2007 at Christie's in New York.

Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images

This latest study analyzes trace chemicals preserved in the maple wood used to make the soundboards of Stradivari and Guarneri instruments. The research involved a rare collection of Cremonese wood samples of spruce and maple used by Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati, and the results were then compared to modern spruce and maple tonewoods, as well as woods from antique Chinese zithers and less exceptional old European violins.

They found traces of borax and several metal sulfates in the wood samples dating between 1600 to 1750. As David Bressan explained over at Forbes:

Borax, also known as sodium-borate, occurs naturally in evaporite deposits produced by the repeated evaporation of seasonal lakes. Borax is still used today in various household laundry and cleaning products, and in the past was used also as an insecticide and fungicide, killing pests. Copper and zinc sulfates, often associated with copper ore, likely served the same purpose. Alum, an evaporite mineral containing sulfur, aluminum, potassium and sodium, was added to the mix to form a weak acidic environment in the wood, preventing mold growth. Halite, common table salt, was added as moisture control, keeping the wood too dry for microbes and fungi, and at the same time preventing the deformation of the instrument caused by humidity fluctuations.

This is welcome news to Nagyvary, who co-authored this latest paper. "This new study reveals that Stradivari and Guarneri had their own individual proprietary method of wood processing, to which they could have attributed a considerable significance," he told Texas A&M Today. "They could have come to realize that the special salts they used for impregnation of the wood also imparted to it some beneficial mechanical strength and acoustical advantages. These methods were kept secret. There were no patents in those times. How the wood was manipulated with chemicals was impossible to guess by the visual inspection of the finished product."

Nagyvary still thinks more research is needed to shed further light on the connection between the chemicals used to treat the wood and the sound quality of the finished instruments. "First, one needs several dozens of samples from not only Stradivari and Guarneri, but also from other makers of the Golden Period (1660-1750) of Cremona, Italy," he said. "There will have to be better cooperation between the master restorers of antique musical instruments, the best makers of our time, and the scientists who are performing the experiments often pro bono in their free time."

DOI: Angewandte Chemie, 2021. 10.1002/anie.202105252 (About DOIs).

via:Ars Technica, September 16, 2021 at 07:00PM

[xtruss]

Trump And Hegseth Are Dishonoring Black And Latino Veterans’ Service

The Pentagon’s Arlington National Cemetery Website Deleted Black, Latino, and Women Webpage Memorials as Part of Racist, Fascist, Bigot and Ignorant Trash 🗑️ Trumpet 🎺 and White Trash Human Waste Hegseth’s Diversity Purge

— By Michael Embrich | March 20, 2025 | Rolling Stone

President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on February 26, 2025. (Photo by Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

Brig. Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Sr. was the first Black general in the U.S. Army, promoted in 1940. His son, Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., became the first Black general in the U.S. Air Force in 1954. Their historic achievements broke racial barriers and paved the way for greater inclusion of African Americans in the U.S. military.

Attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Davis Barracks in the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, alongside the remaining Tuskegee Airmen, was one of the greatest honors of my life. I got the opportunity to meet the family of Davis Jr., including his nephew, Doug Melville, author of Invisible Generals: Rediscovering Family Legacy, and a Quest to Honor America’s First Black Generals.

This is why I took it personally, as should all Americans, when references to their graves were purged from the Arlington Cemetery website — based on orders from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, a former Fox News personality who attained the rank of a mid-level Army officer.

The deletion of a webpage honoring the graves of Davis Jr. and several other Tuskegee Airmen came two months after the Air Force removed and then restored a basic-training class featuring videos of the Tuskegee Airmen. “This will not stand,” Hegseth said at the time.

Under Hegseth’s anti-diversity directive, the military is actively erasing its acknowledgements of countless minority veterans and references to diversity, justice, and respect — the very values these heroes fought for.

The removal of images and stories of minority service members, including historic milestones like the first female Ranger School graduate, signals an attempt to whitewash military history and undermine recruitment efforts among women and people of color. This is more than an attack on political correctness — it’s an assault on truth, service, and the fundamental ideals of military honor.

Hegseth issued a memo last month demanding that public-affairs officers remove all online content that promotes “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” which it defines as “programs, concepts, or materials about critical race theory, gender ideology, and preferential treatment or quotas base.”

As public-affairs officers across the Department of Defense struggle to interpret what “DEI” even means under the new directive, the safest bet appears to be the wholesale deletion of any content that acknowledges Black, Brown, and women service members.

On the Arlington Cemetery website’s page on notable graves, references to African American history, Hispanic American history, and women’s history were all deleted.

The Pentagon even removed an article honoring Jackie Robinson’s service in World War II and his role as the first Black Major League Baseball player in the modern era, before reposting it Wednesday.

This pattern of racial cleansing from the Department of Defense’s historical record is not just disturbing — it is dangerous. It will lead to morale and recruitment problems, compounding the broader crisis of an all-out demagogic assault on the contributions of historic military figures.

The road to fascism is often paved with vague notions of “fairness” that elevate the majority race, religion, or ethnic group while casting the “other” as undeserving of recognition or honor, erasing them from historical narratives. This serves two insidious purposes: first, to reinforce fascist propaganda that certain races or classes are unworthy of recognition or accolades; second, to rewrite history itself, ensuring that future generations never accept these marginalized groups as true members of the nation they helped build and defend.

Eventually, these tactics become self-fulfilling prophecies. At this rate, the more Trump and Hegseth amplify this rhetoric, the fewer contributions and less participation we will see from historically underrepresented groups in our military — and, consequently, in federal and public service.

Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place of more than 400,000 American service members, is supposed to be a sanctuary of honor and remembrance and respect — something Hegseth and Trump seem to care little for. Let’s be clear: Black and Latino service members have fought in every American war, from the Buffalo Soldiers and Tuskegee Airmen to the Borinqueneers and the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. Many were denied full recognition in their time — with some only receiving the Medal of Honor decades after their service. Now, even their stories are being scrubbed from public view. This should make every American sick to their stomach.

Trump, a man who dodged the draft with phony bone spurs, and Hegseth, who has spent his career exploiting veterans for personal and political gain, have done more to dishonor military service than any foreign adversary’s propaganda ever could. Hegseth, who actually wore the uniform, should know better — but instead, he chooses to enable Trump’s most disgraceful instincts when it comes to our nation’s heroes.

Erasing the contributions of Black, Latino, and women veterans is not just an attack on history — it’s an assault on the very foundation of military service. Neither Hegseth nor Trump could ever match the sacrifice, courage, and honor displayed by these veterans. I am deeply alarmed by what is happening at the Department of Defense and across our federal government. Those who have enabled this suppression should be ashamed.

Our military and civilian leaders at the Pentagon must take a stronger stand. They should follow the example of Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff whom Hegseth fired, and others who refused to carry out Hegseth and Trump’s agenda. History will judge those who resisted and were removed more kindly than those who remained complicit.

— Michael Embrich is a Veteran, Former Member of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs’ Advisory Committee on the Readjustment of Veterans, and a Former Congressional Staffer.

[newstfionline]

Thursday, January 7, 2021

The coronavirus intensified a hunger crisis last year, but 2021 could be worse (Washington Post) The coronavirus pandemic unleashed cascades of suffering in 2020. People around the globe faced the threat of the virus, along with the devastating ripple effects of efforts to control its spread. For much of the world, the legacy of the pandemic will be impossible to untangle from the stark material inequities that worsened it—and that it exacerbated. Among the most dangerous of these: a mounting hunger crisis, set to grow even more dire in 2021. The World Food Program, the branch of the United Nations responsible for delivering lifesaving food assistance, expects to need to serve 138 million people this year—more than ever in its 60-year history. The rise in hunger is “due to what I call ‘the three Cs’—conflict, covid and climate,” said Steve Taravella, a WFP spokesman. “We don’t take the word ‘famine’ loosely, but with famine looming in several countries at once, we’re facing a genuine crisis.” And as the situation worsens, the agency is also facing major funding shortfalls. It expects to raise only around half of the $15.1 billion it projects it will need in 2021, Taravella said. The agency is steeling itself “for an especially heartbreaking year,” he said.

Pro-Trump mob storms US Capitol in bid to overturn election (AP) A violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday and forced lawmakers into hiding, in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election, undercut the nation’s democracy and keep Democrat Joe Biden from replacing Trump in the White House. The nation’s elected representatives scrambled to crouch under desks and donned gas marks, while police futilely tried to barricade the building, one of the most jarring scenes ever to unfold in a seat of American political power. A woman was shot and killed inside the Capitol, and Washington’s mayor instituted an evening curfew in an attempt to contain the violence. The rioters were egged on by Trump, who has spent weeks attacking the integrity of the election and had urged his supporters to descend on Washington Wednesday to protest Congress’ formal approval of Biden’s victory. Some Republican lawmakers were in the midst of raising objections to the results on his behalf when the proceedings were abruptly halted by the mob.      The president gave his supporters an added boost Wednesday morning during an appearance at a rally outside the White House, where he urged them to march to the Capitol. He spent much of the afternoon in his private dining room off the Oval Office watching scenes of the violence on television. At the urging of his staff, he reluctantly issued a pair of tweets and a taped video telling his supporters it was time to “go home in peace.” The Pentagon said about 1,100 District of Columbia National Guard members were being mobilized to help support law enforcement at the Capitol. More than a dozen people were arrested. As darkness began to set in, law enforcement officials worked their way toward the protesters, using percussion grenades to try to clear the area around the Capitol. Big clouds of tear gas were visible.

Biden win confirmed (AP) Congress confirmed Democrat Joe Biden as the presidential election winner early Thursday after a violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election, undercut the nation’s democracy and keep Trump in the White House. Lawmakers were resolved to complete the Electoral College tally, and they pushed through the night with tensions high and the nation’s capital on alert. Before dawn Thursday, lawmakers completed their work, confirming Biden won the election. Trump, who had repeatedly refused to concede the election, said in a statement immediately after the vote that there will be a smooth transition of power on Inauguration Day.

Democrats ahead in Georgia (Foreign Policy) Democrat Raphael Warnock has been declared the winner in his race against Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler while the other race between Jon Ossoff and Sen. David Perdue remains too close to call, although the New York Times predicts Ossoff is likely to win. Warnock has a lead of more than 50,000 votes and Ossoff is ahead by more than 16,000 with most of the uncounted votes remaining in the heavily Democratic Atlanta area. If Democrats win both seats, they would take control of the Senate with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the tie-breaking vote. Foreign Policy’s Mike Hirsh argues that no matter who prevails in Georgia, the effect on President-elect Joe Biden’s foreign policy is likely to be minimal. “Over the past four years the Senate Republicans have been more willing to challenge President Donald Trump on foreign-policy issues—and thus may end up being more receptive to Biden’s plans, especially when it comes to restoring relations with U.S. allies that have been so damaged during the Trump years,” Hirsh writes.

New Year & New Economic Woes for Cubans as Prices Surge (AFP) Raisa Lemus had to return home to fetch extra money to finish her shopping, Arturo Sobrado was angered by the “abusive” bus fare hike and Norma Pousada was left bemused that shops no longer accepted her money. For Cubans, the new year has begun with a steep, painful rise in prices due to a complex economic reform launched on January 1 by the government that also included an increase in salaries. The two cohabiting currencies in circulation for a quarter of a century are being fused into one: and one is worth 24 times less than the other. To soften the blow, the government announced a bumper five-fold hike in the minimum wage. But basic goods such as food and electricity have also seen a sharp rise in prices since the Christmas holidays. Although the government has set a six-month period to phase out the convertible peso—which is pinned to the dollar and was introduced in 1994 to replace the US currency that was commonly used alongside the regular peso—many stores have put up signs saying they are not accepting it any more.

Chilean lawmakers propose making coronavirus vaccine mandatory (Reuters) Chilean lawmakers on Tuesday presented a bill before Congress that would make vaccination against the coronavirus mandatory as the country’s center-right government pushes to inosculate the majority of its population by mid-year. The bill would modify the country’s health code, which already requires vaccination against smallpox, whooping cough and other diseases, according to the opposition Christian Democracy party lawmakers who submitted the legislation. An IPSOS survey in early December found that seven out of 10 Chileans said they would be willing to get vaccinated. Health Minister Enrique Paris said earlier this week that officials would study the proposal.

British judge denies WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange bail in extradition case, citing flight risk (Washington Post) A British judge on Wednesday refused to grant bail and release WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who will remain in a prison cell on the outskirts of London while the U.S. government pursues its case against him. Assange is charged with 18 federal crimes, including conspiring to obtain and disclose classified diplomatic cables and sensitive military reports from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Lawyers for the U.S. government said they will appeal to Britain’s High Court the judge’s ruling to halt the extradition, a process that could take several months. Prosecutors want Assange flown to Northern Virginia to face the charges, which could lead to a life sentence in a maximum-security prison if he were convicted. In her ruling from the bench denying Assange’s bid for freedom, the judge recited some history, noting that Assange was granted bail by a British court in 2010 as he fought extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted for sexual assault. The Swedish case was later dropped. The judge recalled how in June 2012 Assange fled from British justice and sought refuge in the Ecuadoran Embassy in London, which granted him asylum. Assange spent almost seven years as a fugitive in the embassy, until Ecuador revoked his protection and British police arrested him in April 2019. Since then, he has been in Belmarsh.

India’s internet shutdowns cost its economy nearly $3 billion in 2020 (Quartz India) India’s constant internet blackouts have taken a huge toll on its economy. National shutdowns left Indian businesses without hundreds of hours of vital internet access, costing billions in lost revenue. Authorities cut Indians off from the internet for more than 1,655 hours as a result of national shutdowns, according to research by Top10VPN, a publication focused on internet privacy. And many people with internet still couldn’t use it without obstacles. Governments also deliberately reduced internet bandwidths for more than 7,200 hours, bringing speeds down to 2G—SMS and voice calls continue to function but modern websites and apps are rendered useless. It’s not too far from a complete blackout. The economic cost of these restrictions amounts to a whopping $2.88 billion in 2020, according to Top10VPN.

China reacts to storming of U.S. Capitol (Foreign Policy) Pro-Chinese Communist Party (CCP) commenters are gleeful at the scenes of chaos in Washington on Wednesday, after U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to overturn the November 2020 election results culminated in armed supporters breaching the U.S. Capitol. Many in China have made comparisons to so-called color revolutions in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, which Beijing paints as U.S.-backed attempts to topple hostile governments. The belief that the United States would collapse like the Soviet Union has circulated among members of the Chinese elite since the mid-2000s, especially after the 2008 financial crisis. Under President Xi Jinping, Chinese officials have been encouraged to study the Soviet collapse closely as an example of what mistakes China should avoid. The scenes in Washington, so reminiscent of the Russian parliamentary violence of the 1990s, will only encourage such convictions.

China steps up curbs near Beijing (Reuters) Chinese authorities imposed travel restrictions and banned gatherings in the capital city of Hebei province, which surrounds Beijing, in the latest escalation of measures to stave off another coronavirus wave. The province, which entered a “wartime mode” on Tuesday, accounted for 20 of the 23 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases reported in mainland China on Jan. 5, more than the total of 19 cases in the province in the three previous days. The head of the World Health Organization on Tuesday said he was “very disappointed” that China still had not authorized a team of international experts tasked with examining the origins of the coronavirus into the country.

Hong Kong Police Arrest Dozens of Pro-Democracy Leaders (NYT) The Hong Kong police arrested 53 elected pro-democracy officials and activists early Wednesday for their involvement in an informal primary election, the largest roundup yet under the new national security law imposed by Beijing to quash dissent. The mass arrests—which included figures who had called for aggressive confrontation with the authorities as well as those who had supported more moderate tactics—underscored Hong Kong officials’ efforts to weaken any meaningful opposition in the city’s political institutions. The police also visited the offices of at least one law firm and three news media organizations to demand documents, broadening the burst of arrests that started before sunrise and sent a chill through Hong Kong’s already-demoralized opposition camp. The moves suggested that the authorities were casting a wide net for anyone who had played a prominent role in opposing the government.

North Korea’s Kim says economic plan failed as rare party congress begins (Reuters) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his five-year economic plan had failed to meet its goals “on almost every sector” as he kicked off the ruling Workers’ Party congress on Tuesday, state media KCNA reported on Wednesday. The rare political gathering, which Kim last hosted in 2016, has drawn international attention as he is expected to unveil a new five-year economic plan and address foreign policy, just two weeks before U.S. President-elect Joe Biden takes office. In his opening speech, Kim said the country had achieved a “miraculous victory” by bolstering its power and global prestige since the last meeting, referring to military advances that culminated in successful tests in 2017 of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of striking the U.S. mainland. But the five-year economic strategy he set forth in 2016 had failed to deliver, he said, calling for a boost in North Korea’s self-reliance to tackle internal and outside challenges hindering its progress.

Netanyahu re-election hopes hinge on vaccination campaign (AP) For media-obsessed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the coronavirus vaccine has arrived just in time. With elections approaching in March, Netanyahu has placed his world-leading vaccination drive at the center of his reelection campaign—launching an aggressive media blitz portraying him as almost singlehandedly leading the country out of the pandemic. He appears to be betting that a successful vaccination effort can persuade voters to forget about his corruption trial and the economic damage caused by the coronavirus crisis. Netanyahu, like his good friend Donald Trump and other world leaders, frequently tries to use social media and tightly controlled press conferences to bypass the traditional media—and the scrutiny that has come along with it. While this strategy has often served Netanyahu well, his obsession with controlling the message also threatens to backfire. It lies at the heart of a corruption case in which he is accused of granting favors to powerful media figures in exchange for positive coverage of him and his family. An expanded indictment released this week outlined 150 incidents showing detailed control he allegedly tried to exert over the media. This included pressure on a news site to drop critical coverage about a lacy dress worn by his wife, and pushing the site to publish photos of her meeting actor Leonardo DiCaprio.

Syria says Israel strikes again, several missiles downed by air defences (Reuters) Israel struck targets in southern Syria on Wednesday in the third such attack in nearly 10 days, state TV reported as military defectors said the missiles targeted Iranian revolutionary guard bases. A military spokesman said missiles flying over the Golan Heights targeted several locations and air defences downed several missiles. Live coverage showed a multi-storey building on fire. There was no immediate comment from an Israeli military spokesman but Israel’s Defence Force Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi said last month the missile strikes had “slowed down Iran’s entrenchment in Syria”. “We have struck over 500 targets this year, on all fronts, in addition to multiple clandestine missions,” Kochavi said in comments published in Israeli media.

Saudi Arabia Leads Oil Production Cuts (Foreign Policy) The OPEC+ group of oil producing countries have agreed to cut production in February, as Saudi Arabia volunteered to take one million barrels of its oil off the market per day in order to shore up prices. The decision seems to have done the trick, at least temporarily. The U.S. oil price benchmark passed the $50 dollar mark for the first time since February in the wake of the news. The Saudi decision reflects the uncertain global economic prospects in the year ahead. Vaccine programs, heralded as the quickest route to normalcy, have sputtered in some countries and are potentially years away in others. Saudi Arabia’s decision to shoulder the production cuts seems to have kept oil producing countries together, but as Edoardo Campanella argued in November, the group needs to reimagine its role if it is to remain relevant in a changing world.

Theft leads to community giving in Miami (AP) Two days before Thanksgiving, on the eve of a turkey giveaway for dozens of jobless residents in an impoverished Miami neighborhood, Sherina Jones got word that one of the free community refrigerators she’d been stocking was stolen. Jones had been helping to feed the poor in Miami for months. About half of her clients are homeless; others are day laborers who take to-go lunches or single moms who can’t feed their kids. When one of the refrigerators was stolen just before the Thanksgiving Day turkey giveaway, it was more than a theft. It felt like an act against a community in need. Just when it seemed the Grinch-like act would ruin the holiday, something magical happened: Residents of a community where many can barely afford rent pulled together, each giving a little until they ended up collecting quite a lot. The Rev. Michael Daily heard about the stolen refrigerator on the news. He works at a community agency that helps local churches and knew that many parishioners were counting on those meals. He used agency funds to buy Jones a fancy double-door refrigerator and enlisted a construction worker to help build protective housing so it can’t be stolen. A group of artists designed T-shirts and donated the proceeds. All together, more than 330 people raised over $23,000 on a fundraising website. The community’s response to a toy drive in December allowed Jones to give away dozens of bicycles, dolls and other presents to 400 families. “People come by and stock the fridge during the evenings or buy a bulk of things and drop it off. I’m so appreciative,” Jones said. “We’ve all come together to take care of each other.”

[militaryleak]

Philippine Navy Strengthens Maritime Defense with New Acero-class Gunboats

The Philippine Fleet (PF) has recently welcomed two additional fast attack interdiction craft (FAIC) platforms, termed the Acero-class gunboats, courtesy of Israel. The acquisition, part of the FAIC Acquisition Project under the Revised AFP Modernization Program Horizon 2, marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing modernization efforts of the Philippine Navy (PN). The delivery of these gunboats via the Kogra Royal cargo ship culminated in their arrival at the Commodore East Posadas Wharf in Cavite City, where they will undergo essential enhancement, maintenance, and training. Designated as PG-906 and PG-907 within the Acero-class patrol vessels of the Fleet’s Littoral Combat Force, these platforms symbolize a substantial reinforcement to the PN's naval strength. The recent delivery brings the total count of Acero-class gunboats within the PN's fleet to six. The initial duo, BRP Nestor Acero (PG-901) and BRP Lolinato To-Ong (PG-902), were received in 2022 and commissioned shortly after. Following suit, BRP Gener Tinangag (PG-903) and BRP Domingo Deluana (PG-905) were delivered in April of the subsequent year and swiftly commissioned into service the following month. The genesis of this procurement traces back to the PN's requirement, articulated in 2019, for a new class of coastal patrol interdiction craft. These missile-capable vessels, designed on the blueprint of Israel's Shaldag V patrol boat, aimed to supplant the retired Tomas Batilo-class fast attack crafts. The proposal from Israel Shipyards Ltd. stood out for its prowess as an interdiction craft, outstripping previous vessels utilized by the PN.

The Philippine Fleet (PF) has recently welcomed two additional fast attack interdiction craft (FAIC) platforms, termed the Acero-class gunboats, courtesy of Israel. The acquisition, part of the FAIC Acquisition Project under the Revised AFP Modernization Program Horizon 2, marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing modernization efforts of the Philippine Navy (PN). The delivery of these gunboats via…

[sciencespies]

Ten Museums You Can Virtually Visit

https://sciencespies.com/history/ten-museums-you-can-virtually-visit/

Ten Museums You Can Virtually Visit

SMITHSONIANMAG.COM | March 20, 2020, 7 a.m.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, museums and cultural institutions across the globe are closing their doors to the public. But while visitors can no longer roam the halls of these institutions, virtual tools and online experiences mean anyone with an internet connection can browse world-class collections from home.

The Smithsonian Institution, of course, has its own array of virtual tours, experiences and educational resources. Among the other experiences on offer: Scroll through an extensive trove of 3-D photographs from the Minneapolis Institute of Art, explore online exhibits from the National Women’s History Museum in Virginia, or admire artistic masterpieces from the Dalí Theatre-Museum in Spain. Additionally, around 2,500 museums and galleries, including the Uffizi Galleries in Florence and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, are offering virtual tours and presenting online collections via the Google Arts and Culture portal.

For those in search of armchair travel inspiration, Smithsonian magazine has compiled a list of ten museums that have found new ways to fulfill their critical mission of cultivating creativity and spreading knowledge.

The Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza

The museum is one of Madrid’s “Big Three” cultural institutions.

(Kyle Magnuson via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY-SA 2.0)

Home to the world’s second largest private collection of art, the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza owns masterpieces by giants of virtually every art movement—to name just a few, Jan van Eyck, Titian, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Picasso and Dalí. To spotlight these artistic treasures, the Madrid museum offers an array of multimedia resources. Users can take a virtual tour of the entire building (or a thematic tour covering such topics as food, sustainability, fashion and even “inclusive love”); browse current and closed exhibits; and watch behind-the-scenes videos featuring interviews, lectures and technical studies.

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea

Visitors look at a site-specific art project called Home Within Home by artist Suh Do-Ho during a media event before the opening of a branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, in Seoul.

(Jung Yeon-Je / AFP via Getty Images)

Committed to offering a culturally rewarding experience since opening its doors in 2013, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul (MMCA) has established itself as a prominent cultural platform and leader in Korean art. In collaboration with Google Arts and Culture, the MMCA is now offering a virtual tour of its collections. This experience takes visitors through six floors of modern and contemporary art from Korea and around the world. Those seeking an educational walkthrough can follow along by tuning into curator-led recorded tours.

The Anne Frank House

Take a virtual tour of the Secret Annex, or explore the home where Frank and her family lived before going into hiding.

(�� Anne Frank House / Photo by Cris Toala Olivares)

The Anne Frank House, established in cooperation with the famed diarist’s father, Otto, in 1957, strives to inform the public through educational programs and tours of the building where the teenager and her family hid during World War II. To delve deeper into the story detailed in Frank’s diary, online visitors can watch videos about her life; virtually explore the Secret Annex; look around the house where she lived before going into hiding; and view the Google Arts and Culture exhibition “Anne Frank: Her Life, Her Diary, Her Legacy.”

The Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums (pictured here), the Anne Frank House and the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City are among the many cultural institutions with online offerings.

(Getty Images)

Home to some 70,000 artworks and artifacts spanning centuries, continents and mediums, the 5.5-hectare Vatican Museums are among Italy’s finest cultural institutions. Virtual visitors can tour seven different sections of the sprawling complex, enjoying 360-degree views of the Sistine Chapel, perhaps best known for Michelangelo’s ceiling and Last Judgment fresco; Raphael’s Rooms, where the Renaissance artist’s School of Athens resides; and lesser-known but equally sumptuous locations such as the Pio Clementino Museum, the Niccoline Chapel and the Room of the Chiaroscuri.

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Guggenheim.

(Stan Honda / AFP via Getty Images)

“Since its founding, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum has maintained a belief in the transformative powers of art,” reads the Manhattan museum’s website. “In uncertain times such as these, art can provide both solace and inspiration.”

In a nod to this mission, the Guggenheim, a cultural center and educational institution devoted to modern and contemporary art, has opened up its collections to online visitors. The building itself, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is an architectural masterpiece; audiences can listen to an audio guide of its history or journey up its spiral halls via a Google Arts and Culture virtual tour. For those who want to take a deeper dive into the museum’s collections, the Guggenheim’s online database features some 1,700 artworks by more than 625 artists.

The London National Gallery

You can virtually tour 18 galleries in this London institution.

(Getty Images)

Take a virtual tour of 18 gallery rooms, enjoy a panoramic view of the museum’s halls and click through a wide collection of artistic masterpieces using the National Gallery’s virtual tools. Based in London, this museum houses more than 2,300 works reflecting the Western European tradition between the 13th and 19th centuries. Collection highlights include Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers and J.M.W Turner’s The Fighting Temeraire.

NASA Research Centers

NASA space scientist, and mathematician Katherine Johnson poses for a portrait at work at NASA Langley Research Center in 1980.

(Photo by NASA / Donaldson Collection / Getty Images)

For those fascinated by space exploration, NASA offers online visitors the chance to take a behind-the-scenes look inside its facilities. Visitors can take virtual tours of the organization’s research centers, where aeronautic technology is developed and tested, and learn more about the functions of different facilities. The online tour of Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, covers 16 locations, including the Flight Research Hangar and the Katherine Johnson Computational Research Facility. The virtual tour of the Glenn Research Center in Ohio, meanwhile, takes visitors inside facilities such as the Supersonic Wind Tunnel, where high speed flight is researched, and the Zero Gravity Research Facility, where microgravity research is conducted.

The National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City

Carved statue outside the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City

(Photo by DEA / G. Dagli Orti / De Agostini via Getty Images)

Home to the world’s largest ancient Mexican art collection, in addition to an extensive collection of ethnographic objects, the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City preserves the country’s indigenous legacy and celebrates its cultural heritage. In collaboration with Google Arts and Culture, the museum has made some 140 items available for online visitors to explore from their homes. Among the objects available for viewing are the famous Aztec calendar sun stone and the striking jade death mask of ancient Mayan king Pakal the Great.

San Francisco’s De Young Museum

The observation tower at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park

(Photo via Smith Collection / Gado / Getty Images)

One of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the de Young Museum’s new copper-clad building in Golden Gate Park combines art with architecture. The collection features a priceless array of American art dating from the 17th to the 21st centuries, as well as artifacts from Africa and Oceania, modern and contemporary art, costumes, and textiles. Through Google Arts and Culture, the de Young offers 11 exhibits, including “Cult of the Machine” and “Ruth Asawa: A Working Life.”

The Louvre

The Louvre’s famous glass pyramid

(Photo by Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)

Housed in a large fortress along the banks of Paris’ Seine River, the Louvre regularly tops rankings of the most-visited museums in the world, with millions of visitors flocking to its halls in search of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and other instantly recognizable artworks. Virtual tours offered by the Louvre include a walkthrough of the Egyptian antiquities wing and a view of the museum’s moat, which was built in 1190 to protect Paris from invaders.

#History

[usafphantom2]

Two more A330 MRTTs for NATO's multinational MMU fleet

A participating country is considering increasing its participation, which would result in the acquisition of another aircraft.

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 08/06/2022 - 15:00 in Military

At the end of July 2022, the two A330 MRTT (T-059 and T-060) arrived at Eindhoven's MMU base.

Airbus delivered two A330 MRTT transport and refueling aircraft to the MMU in Eindhoven in just three days. The next two MRTT A330 for the unit will not arrive until 2024.

In just three days, the multinational transport aircraft and refueler unit MMU (Multinational MRTT Unit) received two new Airbus A330 MRTT (Multi-Role Tanker Transport) aircraft last week, after conversion to Airbus Defence and Space in Seville to a base in Eindhoven.

The two aircraft with military registrations T-059 and T-060 raise MMU's MRTT fleet to a total of seven units. The last two pending orders for MMU's A330 MRTT will not be delivered until 2024.

Six European countries are financially involved in the MMF (Multinational MRTT Fleet) program according to the required flight hours: Germany (5,500 flight hours), Netherlands (2,000 flight hours), Luxembourg (1,200 flight hours), Belgium (1,000 flight hours), Norway and the Czech Republic (100 flight hours each). Belgium expressed interest in requesting an additional 1,000 flight hours, which would have to require the purchase of a tenth aircraft for the MMU.

The acquisition of the nine A330 MRTT aircraft ordered so far was carried out by OCCAR (Organization for Joint Arms Cooperation) under the auspices of NATO. The logistics management of the fleet was taken over by the NSPA, NATO's support and purchasing agency.

The MMU will park five of its A330 MRTT at the Main Operational Base in Eindhoven and four more at the Advanced Operational Base in the military part of Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany.

Due to the war in Ukraine and the introduction of NATO's new system of Enhanced Surveillance Activities (EVA) to strengthen the protection of airspace in Eastern European countries, the A330 MRTTs were requested more frequently than initially planned. In July, NATO Air Command reported that the MRTT fleet refueled more than 750 aircraft on about 160 emergency flights.

By the middle of this month, three A330 MRTTs will participate in their longest mission to date. They participate in the Rapid Pacific 2022 exercise organized by the German Air Force, in which six Eurofighters and three Airbus A400M will be transferred to Australia. They will stay there for several weeks to participate in the Pitch Black exercise along with the French Air and Space Force, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), as well as an international force organized by the Australian Navy.

Tags: A330 MRTTairbusMilitary AviationNATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organization

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Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, he has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Dayton Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in a specialized aviation magazine in Brazil and abroad. He uses Canon equipment during his photographic work in the world of aviation.

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[onearchipelago-blog]

New Post has been published on https://www.onearchipelago.com/india-seeks-supply-ph-modern-military-hardware/999/

India seeks to supply PH with modern military hardware

Secretary of National Defense Delfin Lorenzana said India wanted to help the Philippines’ effort to modernize its military arsenal by supplying military hardware.

Lorenzana was asked if there was any signed agreement between the Philippines and India during the 31st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit last week.

Lorenza revealed there was no deal formally signed so far, except for documents, memorandum of understanding on visitation (MoU), military students coming in the Philippines, among others.

“We haven’t signed any right now, but we already have some documents, memorandum of understanding about visitation, military students coming here, or students, officers of the AFP and enlisted personnel of the AFP going there,” Lorenzana said.

“What they want to enter is they want to provide us, to supply us also with equipment because they have a very robust defense industry. They are making there ships, tanks, whatever ammunitions. In fact, in the past, we bought ammunition rounds of our military artillery from them, so they are capable of doing that and they want to tap into our market because they know we are modernizing, we have so many things to buy and they want to enter.”

It remains to be seen if the Philippines will form an agreement with India on military equipment supply. But in the past, India was almost close to secure a deal with the Philippines in its Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program.

State-owned Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), one of India’s leading shipyards, previously won the first round bid to sell frigates to the Philippines that were worth P18 billion during the wake of the Hague ruling; however, Lorenzana said India got disqualified due to some financial requirements.

“In fact, they participated in the bidding last time in the frigate (project) but they lost in the second round. They won in the first round but when our technical personnel went to India to (inspect) their financial capability, they found out they cannot, there were technically, disqualified; so that’s why Hyundai won because they were the second winner,” Lorenza said.

By that time, India’s defense ministry sought to save the issue by sending a diplomatic mission in Manila, where discussions on whether or not India could assure that the yard would be financially backed were made, according to sources by Economic Times.

The Philippines’ requirement in the bid included a single payment after the two frigates were delivered, which the GRSE could not meet. India’s system of procurement is usually by tranche payments, meaning, structured payments are made as the construction progresses at the shipyard.

[bountyofbeads]

More than 100 Uyghur graveyards demolished by China, satellite images show

https://cnn.it/2QHNlSP

This is a heartbreaking and difficult story to read and watch. What is happening to the Uighur(Uygher) community within China is characteristic to what happened to the Jews under Nazi occupation under Hitler. Xi Jinping is a trying to literally erase an entire population in Xinjiang. THIS CANNOT STAND IN 2020. China MUST be HELD ACCOUNTABLE.

More than 100 Uyghur graveyards demolished by Chinese authorities, satellite images show

By Matt Rivers, Lily Lee and Yong Xiong,

Updated 1451 GMT (2251 HKT) January 2, 2020 | CNN | Posted Jan. 2, 2020 |

Beijing (CNN)Uyghur poet Aziz Isa Elkun fled China's far western Xinjiang region nearly 30 years ago.

He's not welcome in the country. He can't even phone his mother. She said it was better if he didn't, because every time he did, police would show up at her door.

So, when Elkun's father died in 2017, there was no way he could go back to China for the burial. To be closer to his family, he would view his father's grave on Google Earth.

"I know exactly where his tomb is," Elkun told CNN in his north London home. "When I was a kid we would go there, pray at the mosque, visit our relatives. The entire community was connected to that graveyard."

He "visited" his father like this for nearly two years. But in June, something changed. The satellite photo on Google had been updated and the graveyard that used to be there was now nothing more than a flattened, empty field.

"I had no idea what happened," said Elkun. "I was completely in shock."

[VIDEO >>The Sultanim Cemetery in the center of Hotan City is one of the most famous ancient cemeteries in Xinjiang. It was destroyed between January to March 2019.]

CEMETERIES DESTROYED

Elkun's story is not unique.

China appears to have been destroying traditional Uyghur cemeteries for several years as part of what critics describe as a broader, coordinated  campaign to control Islamic beliefs and Muslim minority groups within its borders.

In a months' long investigation, working with sources in the Uyghur community and analyzing hundreds of satellite images, CNN has found more than 100 cemeteries that have been destroyed, most in just the last two years. This reporting was backed up by dozens of official Chinese government notices announcing the "relocation" of cemeteries.

The destruction of Uyghur cemeteries was first reported in October by French news agency AFP and satellite imagery analysts Earthrise Alliance. They found at least 45 cemeteries had been destroyed since 2014.

AFP reporters visited several sites of destroyed cemeteries. In some, they found several bones that scientists later confirmed from photos were human remains

[VIDEO >>The graveyard in Xayar County, central Xinjiang, where Aziz Isa Elkun father's Isa Abdulla was buried after he died on in November 3rd, 2017.]

CNN has identified more than 60 other gravesites that are no longer there, by cross-checking sites known to the Uyghur community abroad with satellite images taken over a number of years.

In response to CNN's request for comment, the Chinese government didn't deny the cemetery destruction.

A spokesperson with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement in part, "Governments...in Xinjiang fully respect and guarantee the freedom of all ethnic groups... to choose cemeteries, and funeral and burial methods."

One official notice announcing the "relocation" of a cemetery in western Aksu City said it needed to be moved "to meet the demand of city planning and promote construction."

CNN shared before and after images with five experts from Canada, the United States and Australia with experience in Uyghur culture or satellite imagery. They included Rian Thum, a respected historian who uses satellite imagery as part of his research into Islam in China.

[VIDEO>>This cemetery was located in downtown Aksu City, Xinjiang. It was destroyed sometime between March and April, 2018.]

Thum confirmed the majority of the satellite images shared with him were undoubtedly destroyed cemeteries. The other four experts verified the rest of the sites.

"It is a phenomenon that stretches right across the region of Xinjiang," said Thum.

At a press conference on December 16, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said that citizens' freedom of religious belief is strongly protected in Xinjiang and that local people endorsed the Chinese government's measures to "fight terrorism and maintain stability."

[VIDEO>>This cemetery was located northwest of the city of Aksu, Xinjiang. It was destroyed and relocated between February and March 2019.]

HUMAN RIGHTS CRISIS

China is under intense and unwelcome international scrutiny after the release of documents that appear to confirm that it is deliberately trying to alter the Uyghur people to be more like the wider mandarin-speaking Han Chinese population.

The US State Department has said up to two million people from Muslim ethnic minorities, including Uyghurs, have been held in a massive network of detention camps since 2017.

China's government has consistently denied it is committing human rights abuses. It says the camps are voluntary vocational training centers, designed to stamp out religious extremism that has led to terrorist attacks.

In July, China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region Chairman Shohrat Zakir described the camps as "vocational training centers."

"They are not concentration camps as called by some people," he said. "People arrive and leave constantly ... Most have already gone back to society."

[VIDEO>>Leaked documents reveal China's brutal treatment of Muslims 05:25]

But leaked documents released by international media in November detailed a co-ordinated program of "ideological" re-education in heavily fortified detention centers,  undermining Beijing's narrative.

It isn't the first evidence of a coordinated campaign against Uyghur citizens. Multiple former detainees have told CNN they were tortured inside the camps and forced to pledge loyalty to China's Communist Party.

Leaked video earlier this year showed prisoners being led from a train, while under heavy guard, blindfolded and shackled.

Outside the camps, it appears the government is trying to erase key elements of Uyghur culture.

More than a million Chinese public servants have been sent to stay with Uyghur families to ensure that they acted sufficiently patriotically. Satellite imagery and media reports suggest mosques have been destroyed across the region.

"This is absolutely a massive effort to eradicate Uyghur culture as we know it and replace it with a Chinese communist party approved culture," said Thum.

At a press conference on December 16, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said that citizens' freedom of religious belief is strongly protected in Xinjiang and that local people endorsed the Chinese government's measures to "fight terrorism and maintain stability."

'GATHERING PLACES

Cemeteries are important in every culture, but perhaps more so in Uyghur culture. Cemeteries are central to village life, a place to meet and connect one generation to the last.

"It's akin for an American to see Arlington cemetery razed and the tomb of the unknown soldier dug up and paved over," said Thum.

"People would come to a shrine or cemetery from all over the Uyghur region for the annual pilgrimage festival... People pray for health and blessings, meet neighbors, share communal feasts and shop at carnival-like markets."

Experts and activists said cemeteries that had existed for hundreds of years were wiped out in a matter of months.

According to Uyghur activists and documents, the Sultanim Cemetery in the center of southwestern Hotan had existed in one form or another for more than 1,000 years, and was one of the most spiritually significant resting places in the city.

According to satellite images, it was completely flattened by April 2019.

Some cemeteries were redeveloped quickly with seeming disregard for the spiritual places they once were, the investigation by AFP showed, paved over and seeded with modern buildings.

[VIDEO>>Part of the Sultanim Cemetery appears to now be a parking lot.]

CNN also found multiple public documents online confirming cemetery relocation in several different cities.

The May 2017 notice gave relatives just over two weeks to come and register their loved ones' graves before the removal and relocation work started. "Those graves that have not been registered within the date will be seen as unclaimed graves," the notice said.

What happened to the unclaimed graves was not mentioned.

Other official reasons for the destruction include wanting to build "civilized" cemeteries to "promote cultural and ideological progress."

[VIDEO>>Reporter: Uyghurs say camps meant to eradicate culture 03:30]

'CULTURAL GENOCIDE '

Aziz Isa Elkun doesn't know what happened to his father's remains.

Contacting his remaining family in Xinjiang, he believes, is too dangerous. For those living in the region, contact with the outside world often brings increased police scrutiny.

Amnesty International has reported that those who take calls from abroad are sometimes detained by authorities. Elkun himself is terrified that his 78-year-old mother, who he believes is not in great health, could be swept up in the dragnet by his actions.

He even fears that speaking to the international media could have negative effects for his family inside the country. But Elkun said he believes has no choice but to speak out, calling what is going on in Xinjiang a "cultural genocide."

"We cannot live with (the government) together anymore, they've crossed too many red lines," he said.