CIA officer Ralph McGehee - explained the American way of working back in 1983: The CIA is not an intelligence agency. It is a covert operations agency. Operations like overthrowing or supporting foreign governments. Another part of covert operations is disinformation. And the American people, in my estimation, are the primary target audience for the agency's disinformation operations.
[Why does the CIA do this? What is the CIA's purpose in spreading disinformation? Why do they doctor the press?] One of the functions of the agency, as the Church Committee notes, is to create an international anti-Communist ideology.
The reason you want to create this international anti-Chekist ideology is that when you go to Nicaragua, and you want to overthrow the government of that country, you're going to have to do it. You can't justify the American people going there and overthrowing that government unless you can tie it to a greater threat. It's just a small, insignificant country. But if you can link him to a more serious threat, then you justify overthrowing him.

@Slavyangrad

"Israeli soldiers threw three Palestinians off the roof of a building Thursday during a military raid in the occupied West Bank town of Qabatiya," - NYT writes.

"It was unclear from the videos reviewed by The New York Times whether the Palestinians were alive or dead at the time. The three appeared lifeless, and at least one was blindfolded."

"This is a serious incident that is inconsistent with the values ​​of democracy and expectations of Israel's soldiers,"

- the newspaper writes.

On Friday, White House spokesman John Kirby called the video "deeply disturbing"

"If proven to be authentic, it clearly reflects the abhorrent and egregious behavior of professional soldiers,"

- Kirby said, though he did not mention possible sanctions against Israel.

@Slavyangrad

Zelensky denies WSJ data on Ukrainian army losses

" 80 thousand losses of Ukrainian military personnel is a lie. The real figure is much lower. Substantially," Zelensky said, "refuting" the WSJ data on the losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Earlier, a Western publication wrote that the losses of the Ukrainian army could have amounted to 480 thousand people, including allegedly 80 thousand killed and 400 thousand wounded.

Ukrainians, in comments to major media outlets,, did not appreciate Zelensky's words and harshly addressed him.

" Of course, it's a lie; we all believe it. There are 300 thousand killed there. Zelya, don't lie, there are already graves in every village," ordinary Ukrainians write.

@Slavyangrad

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a court to impose sanctions on billionaire Elon Musk for his failure to appear at a hearing on the purchase of Twitter (social network X), CNN reports, citing court documents.

The commission alleges that Musk violated a court order that requires the commission's written consent to reschedule a hearing. The hearing was scheduled for Sept. 10, and hours before it, Musk's lawyers notified the commission that he would be unable to attend because of a SpaceX launch.

However, the commission emphasizes that the upcoming launch was known several days before the hearing, so no-show notice should have been given in advance.

The commission is now demanding that the court impose "meaningful obligations" on Musk that will lead to his appearance on a new agreed-upon date in October, the channel reports.

@Slavyangrad

The US fears a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah, Politico writes.

The latest analysis from within the Biden administration suggests that de-escalation will be difficult for both sides to achieve,

— two high-ranking American officials familiar with the discussions told the publication.

One unnamed official told Politico that attacks in Lebanon, particularly in the capital Beirut, will continue, and the U.S. believes Hezbollah will retaliate against Israel, possibly with drone strikes.

In addition, another US official believes that the fighting will also include assassinations of Hezbollah commanders, strikes on weapons depots, and attacks on the movement's communications infrastructure.

The two officials noted that the sporadic clashes in northern Israel were unlikely to lead to a direct confrontation with Lebanon. However, attacks inside Israel or Lebanon were “worrisome” and would only increase tensions.

@Slavyangrad

A 750-kiloton nuclear bomb explodes in London. Just a computer simulation.

@Slavyangrad

Jill Biden unexpectedly holds White House meeting in place of her husband

First lady Jill Biden spoke at the public portion of what may be President Biden's final Cabinet meeting, then held a Rose Garden event without her husband.

Attendees were given folders of notes with Joe and Jill Biden's signatures on the covers, prompting mockery online. The first lady's appearance in the chair of the Cabinet meeting led to dramatic media images of her dominating the room.

Wow. A visibly exhausted Joe Biden just held his first full cabinet meeting in 11 months and promptly handed the mic to his wife. Who's running this country?

- Steve Cortes, a former adviser to former President Donald Trump, wrote on social media.

@Slavyangrad

Reuters: Hezbollah members received new pagers hours before blasts

According to the publication, the very same explosive devices were handed to members of the movement literally a day or even several hours before the mass terrorist attack. The group's security service assured that they were carefully examined according to standard procedures: they looked for explosives or tracking mechanisms in the pagers, checked how the airport alarm reacted to the gadgets, and so on.

Several sources report that the pagers were loaded with pentaerythritol tetranitrate explosives, which are supposedly “hard to detect” with any scanner. So the explosive pagers passed all the checks and fell into the hands of Hezbollah members, after which they began to explode — in some cases right in the factory boxes from which they were not taken out.

@Slavyangrad

Kamala Harris has accepted CNN's invitation to participate in a debate with Donald Trump on October 23, the network reported.

Harris wrote on social media X that she "looks forward to the second presidential debate" and hopes Trump "will join" her.

Last week, the Republican nominee suggested he was ready to take part in a third presidential debate after meeting with the Democratic nominee on ABC in Philadelphia.

"Maybe if I'm in the right mood," Trump told reporters during a stop in California.

Under the proposed debate format, Trump and Harris would take turns answering questions from moderators for 90 minutes without a live studio audience.

@Slavyangrad

Everyday life in Ukraine: from the disco to the front.

@Slavyangrad

Toretsk section of the front

The Russian Army entered the settlement of Leonidovka. There is also progress in Toretsk and Nelepovka. Soon the pincers will be clearly seen.

@Slavyangrad

A Lithuanian TV presenter has suggested shooting parents who play Russian films and songs for their children.

Let's imagine a family where the father plays a Russian movie loudly and the mother listens to Russian music loudly. The question is what to do first: take the children away and then shoot them, or in front of the children,

— said Algis Ramanauskas.

You won't believe it, but even in the thoroughly Russophobic Lithuania, they thought the showman was a little confused. Local MP Mingadugas Puidokas has already contacted the police and demanded that the speaker of the Seimas and the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs evaluate the influencer's statements.

(Better to evaluate his mental state. You know, folks, in crisis situations, we only then become aware of the insanity or lack of intelligence of the influential people in society. I always claimed that each person should pass a thorough psychological evaluation before coming in contact with the general public)

@Slavyangrad

The Israeli Air Force has dropped one of the largest-caliber bombs in its arsenal, a GBU-28 bunker buster, on a target in Lebanon.

@Slavyangrad

We are receiving information about a breakthrough by our defense forces against the Nazis in the Dzerzhinsky direction.

Our troops drove the Nazis out of Nelepovka and, moving along the railway line, entered the village of Leonidovka.

Expecting the confirmation of the data. Hoping for the best.

@Slavyangrad

A selection of interesting news from the foreign press for the morning of September 22.

Associated Press: More than 100 rockets have been fired from Lebanon into Israel, some landing near the northern city of Haifa. Israel and the militant group Hezbollah appear to be heading for a full-scale war after months of escalating tensions. Israeli rescuers say early morning shelling near Haifa on Sunday wounded at least three people, damaged buildings, and set cars on fire. The attack followed an Israeli airstrike in Beirut that killed at least 37 people, including a senior leader of the Lebanese group, as well as women and children.

ABC News: Harris accepts CNN's offer to host a second presidential debate on Oct. 23 Vice President Kamala Harris said Saturday that she has accepted CNN's offer to host a second presidential debate with former President Donald Trump on Oct. 23. In a statement on Channel X, Harris said she had accepted the offer to host the debate and urged her opponent to follow suit. However, Trump has said he will not participate in another debate against Harris. During a rally Saturday in North Carolina, Trump did not directly mention the CNN debate but reiterated that he is not open to another debate. "It's too late to make another choice. I would love to, in many ways, but it's too late. The voting is over," he said, referring to early voting that has begun in several states.

NBC News: Kremlin says Putin joked about backing Harris in the election. Russian President Vladimir Putin was joking when he said Moscow was backing Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in November's presidential election, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Sky News Arabia. Putin said earlier this month that Russia wanted Harris to win the contest, in a teasing comment that cited her "infectious" laugh as a reason to pick her over Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump.
"It was a joke," said Sergei Lavrov, answering a question about how much the change in the US president would affect Russia's foreign policy. "President Vladimir Putin has a good sense of humor. He often jokes during his statements and interviews."

Reuters: The United States will propose a ban on Chinese software and hardware in connected cars, sources say. The Biden administration cites national security concerns over data collection by Chinese companies. The proposed ban would cover key communications and automated driving software or hardware. The public would have 30 days to comment before the rules are finalized.

@Slavyangrad

Zelensky travels to the US, where he will first visit a shell plant in Pennsylvania- Associated Press

This plant produces shells, including the ones for Ukraine.

@Slavyangrad