The Netherlands: Dutch PM under protection as the ‘Mocro Mafia’ drug cartel sows fear in the Netherlands - by David GORMEZANO

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has been placed under police protection in response to fears of an attack by the Mocro Mafia (Moroccan mafia), a North African criminal organisation linked to cocaine trafficking, two months after Dutch investigative journalist Peter R. de Vries was murdered in Amsterdam.

No more cycling alone through the streets of The Hague to get to meetings for Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. On September 27, Dutch daily De Telegraaf reported that the Royal and Diplomatic Security Services have deployed personal security guards to protect the prime minister, who is believed to be under threat from the Mocro Mafia.

The group operates out of the Netherlands and Belgium and controls a third of all cocaine traffic in Europe. One police union chief said in 2019 that the Netherlands was becoming a narco-state. The 2014 novel “Mocro Maffia”, co-authored by Marijn Schrijver and Wouter Laumans, coined the term and brought the criminal gang to the public’s attention, recounting how a group of Moroccan jewellery thieves in Amsterdam created one of Europe’s most powerful criminal organisations. After its success in the Netherlands, the book was made into a TV series.

Read more at: Dutch PM under protection as the ‘Mocro Mafia’ drug cartel sows fear in the Netherlands

Panama - Religion: 'Repent or die': Panama religious sect kills seven in bizarre ritual

Ten members of evangelical ‘New Light of God’ group arrested as bodies of six indigenous children and one adult found

Read more at:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/16/panama-burial-pit-children-exorcisms-religious-sect?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Add_to_Firefox

USA: NRA Strikes again: Number of fatalities' after shooting at Parkland, Florida, high school, senator says - by Elizabeth Chuck and Corky Siemaszko

Lets Make America Great Again By Closing Down The NRA

A teenage gunman opened fire at a South Florida high school on Wednesday afternoon, killing multiple people before he was arrested, officials said.

The suspect, believed to be about 18 years old, is a former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland and there are at least 20 victims, Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel said.

It was not immediately clear how many of those victims were injured and how many died, but Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., citing Broward County officials, told NBC News that there were "a number of fatalities."

Note EU-Digest: As of February this year there have already been 6 school shootings, and 168 shootings involving schools since the Sandy Hook Dec. 14, 2012 school massacre. Yes indeed America is first allright, also in gun violence.

Read more: 'Number of fatalities' after shooting at Parkland, Florida, high school, senator says - NBC News

USA - Crime - White supremacists committed most extremist killings in 2017 says ADL

White supremacists and other far-right groups committed the majority of extremist-related murders in the United States last year, according to a new report by the Anti-Defamation League. 

 Read more: White supremacists committed most extremist killings in 2017: ADL | Euronews

USA Fort Lauderdale, Lone disturbed gun-man kills and causes panic and chaos at Fort Lauderdale airport - by RM

Chaos, Panic and Confusion at Fort Lauderdale airport (photo CNN)

The tragic shooting of innocent passengers today at  the Fort Lauderdale airport by a lone gun-man also exposed  some disturbing facts about the safety and security measures deployed at one of the US's most important airports.

The chaos, panic and disorganization which manifested itself at Fort Lauderdale Airport during and following the shooting was quite  unreal .

People were running all over the place as were the large numbers of police and security forces, who seemed to be falling over each other, running in different direction.

For some reason it did not look as if there was some central control keeping it all together.

Much later many passengers were still pacing the tarmac and the curb of the terminal. By then it had been more than 10 hrs. after the  first shots were fired by the gun-man.

At the time of this writing many planes are  still lined up on the runway, many with passengers still sitting in them.  Several medical emergencies were also reported as some of the passengers sitting in these planes became unwell being in closed quarters for such a long time.

It also has to be brought-up that tragic events like this often are also the result of the very limited restrictions there on buying guns in America.

The NRA which is supported by many Democrats and Republicans alike in Congress can and should also indirectly be blamed for many of the killings in the US, including this one in Fort Lauderdale.

Allowing mentally disturbed people, including the one in Fort Lauderdale who went on a killing spree, to not only freely being able to buy a gun, but also to carry it in his bag on an aircraft is really irresponsible and criminal.

When will the US  Congress  finally show the guts to legislate some serious gun control measures and laws to avoid having these massacres happen over and over again?

EU-Digest

Turkey coup: Chaos continues in Turkey Live updates - by Lauren Said-Moorhouse

After a night of explosions, gunfire and tanks rolling along the streets, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Turkey Saturday that an attempted military coup was over and the government was in charge.

However, the sounds of fighting were still being reported in Ankara and Istanbul after the chaotic attempt by members of the military to wrest control from Erdogan.

At least 90 people died and 1,000 people were injured and hundreds arrested across the country.

Read more: Turkey coup: Live updates - CNN.com

US firearms industry marketing guns to children says report from Violence Policy Center

NRA strikes again: marketing gun sales tochildren

The American firearms industry is targeting children as young as six with brightly colored guns and encouraging parents to let children take up shooting at an early age, according to a new report.

The Violence Policy Center, which aims to stop gun violence, said in its report that gun manufacturers are marketing to the youngest consumers because their primary market -- white men -- is aging.

"The firearms industry has set its sights on America's children. Much like the tobacco industry's search for replacement smokers, the gun industry is seeking replacement shooters," the group said in a statement.

"Along with the hope of increased gun sales, a corollary goal of this effort is the creation of the next generation of pro-gun advocates for future political battles."

Examples of "aggressive efforts" to market to children include rifles made with plastic parts so they are easier to handle, with less weight and recoil, the report said. Some manufacturers sell firearms in a variety of kid-friendly bright colors, including pink for girls.

The report also pointed out that the firearms industry and its lobby want parents to let their children "access guns at the earliest possible age."

The National Rifle Association, the main gun lobby in the US, previously had a website for its junior members, divided into "Under 8" and "8 and Up," the Violence Policy Center said.

Now called "NRA Family," the website's content includes a 2014 article reviewing the Thompson/Center HotShot youth rifle, calling it "a tiny gun intended for the very youngest shooters -- the ultimate first gun."
The article cited the manufacturer as saying the rifle is targeted to kids aged six to 12.

Gun violence is rife in the US, where a third of children live in a household with at least one weapon, according to the group Everytown for Gun Safety. Its statistics show that seven children and teens are killed with guns in the US on an average day.

Read more: Flash - US firearms industry marketing to children: report - France 24

Turkey softens tone in Armenian row, Germany to defy Ankara

Turkey's prime minister has said the government "shares the pain" of descendants of Ottoman Armenians killed in 1915. Germany, meanwhile, looks set to follow the pope and others in calling the killings "genocide."

Ahmet Davutoglu sought to reach out to Armenians on Monday, sayingTurkey wanted to heal the wounds of the past 100 years after the mass killings of their ancestors under the Ottoman Empire.

However, the Turkish prime minister's statement stopped well short of recent comments by Pope Francis and the European Parliament, never referring to the events as "genocide"."We once again respectfully remember and share the pain of grandchildren and children of Ottoman Armenians who lost their lives during deportation in 1915," Davutoglu said in a statement released by his office to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the killings, observed on Friday, April 24.

Turkey softens tone in Armenian row, Germany to defy Ankara | News | DW.DE | 20.04.2015