Photos allegedly depict soldiers raping and sexually abusing prisoners. ● Thousands of images depicting U.S. soldiers abusing prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan may be released this week following the Senate's 'torture report'. The images, part of a collection from 203 investigations into detainee abuse by U.S. military, are said to depict horrifying methods of torture. One photo reportedly shows an American soldier raping a female prisoner, while other pictures allegedly depict sexual assaults on prisoners with truncheons, wire and a phosphorescent tube. Some of the photographs were initially set to be released in 2009, but were blocked after President Obama backtracked, stating that it could pose a safety risk to troops on the ground. In May 2009, Obama claimed publishing the pictures would inflame anti-American feeling in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A Victoria police officer is under investigation after a 76-year-old man accused him of using excessive force during a traffic stop. ● The officer, Nathanial Robinson, 23, was placed on administrative duty Friday pending the outcome of an internal investigation into whether he violated the use of force policy when he tased Victoria resident Pete Vasquez, said Chief J.J. Craig. The officer was hired after graduating from the police academy two years ago. The incident happened Thursday after Robinson saw an expired inspection sticker on the car Vasquez was driving back to Adam's Auto Mart, 2801 N. Laurent St., where he helps with mechanical work.

ISIS™ nabs a chocolate shop in Sydney, right across from Channel 7! ■ As of 10 PM Central time on the 14th (which is the 15th in Australia) an "Islamic terrorist" has taken over a Lindt chocolate shop in Sydney Australia and held 50 people hostage. But there are serious problems with this story. The first problem? A sign the hostages reportedly were forced to hold up against the windows which read "We sacrifice ourselves for you, O Mohamed" was shown via a blurry photograph and had incomplete text. This would be expected of a hack doing this, no Muslim would get the text wrong. The second serious problem is that this is purportedly an ISIS action. But it appears to be a lone gunman doing it all, which reeks to high heaven of a pre programmed CIA drone doing this according to what ever script was washed into his head especially with the sign being apparently half baked in appearance. The third serious problem? As of 10 PM CST, absolutely nothing about this has been released on anything other than twitter. Nada on Drudge, CNN or anywhere else.

Stephen Lendman ■ Knee-Jerk Reaction to Sydney Hostage Siege
AP/Big Story: Police say Sydney cafe hostage situation over
Sputnik News: Sydney Opera Evacuated After Reports of Suspicious Package
Itar-Tass: Five hostages escape from cafe in Sydney, negotiations underway
PressTV: Five hostages escape from Australia cafe

‘They need to know that they’ll run into severe trouble’ if they enter Europe. Wolfgang Kaleck represented Khaled El Masri, who was tortured by the CIA. ● A leading German human rights lawyer has called on prosecutors across Europe to “get active” and prepare to seize any CIA agents and US officials involved in torture who enter their territories. Wolfgang Kaleck said the US Senate committee report on CIA torture was giving new impetus to European resolve to hold those in positions of power responsible for the use of unacceptable interrogation techniques. “We’re preparing reams of dossiers, and demanding of prosecutors that they do the same for those who are named in the report and those known as the higher-ups who directed and conducted this system,” said Kaleck, the director of the European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) in Berlin. “If these people enter European territory, they need to know that they’ll run into severe trouble,” he told the Guardian. The Senate intelligence committee concluded that the CIA misled the White House, the Justice Department, Congress and the public over a torture programme, launched in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, which was both ineffective and more brutal than the agency disclosed.

The BRussells Tribunal ■ Torture: Accountability - YES. Impunity - NO (Petition)
Matthew Schofield ■ Yet no apology: CIA’s mistaken detention destroyed German man’s life
RT.com: Cheney defends CIA torture, calls interrogators heroes
PressTV: UK parliament inquiry mulls summoning Blair, Straw
The Daily Mail: Now put Blair and Straw on trial for torture
Patrick Martin ■ Cheney on CIA torture: “I’d do it again in a minute”
Washington's Blog ■ US Government Officials Admit: We’ll Torture Again, Unless You Prosecute Us
Robert Fisk ■ Once again language is distorted in order to hide US state wrongdoing
RT.com: 'Stripped naked, kept in solitary': Manning tortured like terrorist

American investigative historian Eric Zuesse has said that the United States is using the crisis in Ukraine to wage an all-out war against Russia. ● “Washington isn’t out to help the Ukrainian people; it’s solely using Ukraine as a launching-pad for WWIII against Russia,” he wrote in an article published by Global Research on Sunday. The famous author explained that President Barack Obama was expected to sign the “congressional authorization for war against Russia” and the Pentagon was shipping “military supplies into Ukraine for use against Ukraine’s ethnic Russians.” Zuesse also noted that Moscow would respond to Washington’s measures against the Kremlin after a leading Russian parliamentarian said Americans wanted to turn Ukraine into a fighting platform against his country. The historian finally urged the American people to question US authorities about the reason that they voted to approve sending weapons to Ukraine.

ukraine.ru: Stratfor: Ukraine is an important prize in the US vs Russia arena
ukraine.ru: Washington urges all countries not to do business with Russia

Both Christian and Islamic Eschatology provide startling and dramatic evidence of a Russian tryst with destiny. It remains an abiding mystery that the Roman Catholic Church and Protestantism both seem to be either unaware of this subject, or lack interest in it. ● Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) prophesied that the Malhama (i.e., Armageddon) will be followed by a conquest of Constantinople. The Ottoman (so-called) Islamic Empire waged unjust war on RUM (i.e., the Eastern Orthodox Christian world) for almost 500 years in a futile effort to sabotage that End-time alliance of Muslims with RUM which will conquer Constantinople. ● The conquest of Constantinople indicates that Russia will survive the Malhama and that the Russian navy is destined to play a significant role in the liberation of the Holy Land from Zionist godlessness, decadence and oppression. ● We have built the foundation of this lecture on the Qur'an. When Ahadith are in harmony with that foundation from the Qur'an, they are embraced and they then expand our understanding. But when they are in disharmony, or in conflict, with that foundation from the Qur'an, then such Ahadith cannot be preferred to the foundation derived from the Qur'an.