Foreign Digest: United Kingdom, Hezbollah, Russia and Iran

Update: formation of a minority Government for the United Kingdom

            British Prime Minister Theresa May is forming a Conservative minority government for the United Kingdom with the confidence of a minor party, the pro-unionist Northern Irish conservatives, instead of a coalition government, to gain the confidence of a majority of the parliament.  A minority government is potentially less stable than even a coalition.  Already, there are reports of talks between some Tories and the main liberal opposition party members to form a coalition in favor of a softer negotiating position in regard to leaving the European Union.

Hezbollah targets the United States

            There were reports earlier this week of members of Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shi’ite terrorist organization, of seeking targets for violent jihad in the homeland of the United States.  Hezbollah is sponsored by Iran and Syria.  The terrorists were responsible for killing more Americans, most notoriously the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983, than any Islamist organization before the September 11 Attacks.

Update on protests in Russia

            Widespread protests are continuing in Russia against the tyranny and corruption of the Russian Federation’s dictatorship.  There have been nearly two thousand arrests of peaceful protestors.  The opposition leader was again arrested even before the demonstrations and sentenced to another 30 days imprisonment.  The freedoms of assembly and speech are among the freedoms not tolerated by the Russian regime.  

The Trump Administration has condemned Russia’s arrests of the protestors, but Donald Trump, the Russian-backed pretender to the American presidency, has continued his policy of never criticizing Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, despite continued Russian aggression in Ukraine, Russian atrocities in Syria, and Russia interference in the democratic elections of the United States and European states.

The protests coincided with the thirtieth anniversary of United States President Ronald Reagan’s inspiring speech in West Berlin, West Germany at the Brandenburg Gate at the Berlin Wall in which he challenged the Soviets to “tear down this wall” and “open this gate.”  The wall came down and the gate was opened less than a year and a half later. 

Senate approves U.S. sanctions on Iran and Russia 

           The United States Senate has passed legislation for additional economic sanctions on the terrorist-sponsoring Iranian Islamist regime.  Included in the bipartisan bill are additional, targeted sanctions against the Russian Federation and regime officials for human rights violations and Russian support for the terrorist-sponsoring brutally-tyrannical regime of Syria, which is Iran’s ally, and a limitation on the power of the President to lift such sanctions.  It is uncertain if the House of Representatives would approve the Senate bill or if Donald Trump would sign the bill that includes sanctions against his Russian friends.