NEWS SUMMARY-INTELLIGENCE REPORT FRIDAY 7/19-SATURDAY 7/20/2 NEWSDUMP EDITION

(WORK IN PROGRESS THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY)

At the end of a week of being under attack for "racism" President Trump intervening on behalf of a rap music artist being detained in Sweden.    More on that further down this news summary but first...

BREAKING NEWS: 

IRANIAN MEDIA REPORT THAT A BRITISH FLAGGED OIL TANKER HAS BEEN SEIZED BY IRANIAN FORCES.

IRAN CLAIMING THAT THE TANKER WAS SEIZED FOR VIOLATING MARITIME REGULATIONS.

AN IRANIAN OFFICIAL TELLING THE FARS NEWS AGENCY OF IRAN THAT THE VESSEL WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WITH AN IRANIAN FISHING BOAT AND IGNORED ITS DISTRESS CALL.

THE BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY JEREMY HUNT EARLIER SAID THAT TWO OIL TANKERS HAD BEEN SEIZED.

BUT THE SITUATION INVOLVING THE LIBERIAN FLAGGED BUT BRITISH OWNED VESSEL MESDAR WAS A TEMPORARY BOARDING BY ARMED MEN EARLIER FRIDAY.

THE OWNERS OF THE 'STENA IMPERO' BOUND FOR SAUDI ARABIA SAID FRIDAY THAT THEY LOST CONTACT WITH THE TANKER AND THAT IT IS MOVING TOWARDS IRAN.

THE TANKER WAS SURROUNDED BY FOUR IRANIAN BOATS AND A HELICOPTER IN INTERNATIONAL WATERS AT AROUND 11 AM FRIDAY EASTERN US TIME.

THE BBC REPORTS THAT THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT'S 'COBRA' EMERGENCY COMMITTEE MET TWICE FRIDAY TO DISCUSS THE MATTER.

A BRITISH SPOKESWOMAN SAID IRAN ACTION WAS 'UNACCEPTABLE'.

UK VESSELS BEING ADVISED TO STAY OUT OF THE AREA.

THE UK SAYING IT IS SEEKING A DIPLOMATIC SOLUTION TO THE MATTER FOR NOW.

BUT ALSO SAYING THAT IF THE MATTER IS NOT 'RESOLVED QUICKLY' THERE WILL BE 'SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES'.

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SAYS THE UNITED STATES IS WORKING WITH THE UK ON THE MATTER.

IRAN'S PRESS TV REPORTS........LINK

THE BBC REPORTS.......LINK

Iran stated its intention in recent days to respond to the seizure of one of its tankers by the UK.

Earlier Friday the Supreme Court in Gibraltar granted a 30-day extension for detention of that Iranian oil tanker seized earlier this month by British Royal Marines.

The seizure based on suspicion of the oil tanker carrying fuel for Syria in violation of sanctions.

The Friday action follows a trip to London earlier this week by Gibraltar's Chief Minister, who held talks with Iranian officials about the "Grace 1".

A story about this from the "Gibraltar Chronicle".......LINK

Iran releasing drone video footage Friday to refute the notion that a drone was shot down when it got too close to the USS Boxer amphibious ship.

Iran saying the footage exposes "lies" coming from Washington.

President Trump announced the drone shoot down at the White House Thursday.

The story from Iran's "Press TV".....LINK

The Pentagon making it official Friday that US forces are going to Saudi Arabia with the approval of King Salman.    Its seen as a move in opposition to an Iranian threat.

Earlier in the week reports came out about a Patriot missile battery being deployed at an air base near the Saudi capital Riyadh.   A squadron of F-22 stealth fighters will also be deployed there.

Amidst all the controversy surrounding them, its been almost forgotten that Congresswomen Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan are set to visit Israel in a few weeks.

Their trip will include extensive interaction with Palestinians in the territories where they live.

Israel's Ambassador to the United States confirming Friday that Omar and Tlaib will be allowed to enter the country for their visit.

More on the ambassador's comments and the legalities surrounding their visit from Israel National News......LINK

Police in Japan named the suspect in Thursday's deadly arson attack on an anime studio in Kyoto.

Shinji Aoba in custody at a hospital being treated for burns.

He has criminal record involving stealing from a convenience store according to the Japanese authorities.    Witnesses who saw his arrest Thursday outside the studio said Aoba was complaining that the studio had stolen his ideas from a novel he wrote.

33 died and dozens of others were injured in the attack.

President Trump intervening in the jailing in Sweden of rap artist A$AP Rocky.    He is being held while Swedish authorities investigate an assault allegation against him.   They decided Friday to hold him for another week while the probe continues.

The President was called about the matter by Kanye West and said he is contacting the Swedish Prime Minister.

Trump tweeting in part:

"So many people would like to see this quickly resolved"

The full Friday afternoon tweet from President Trump is here.....LINK

Tommy Robinson will be allowed visitors next Tuesday at Belmarsh Prison in London where he is jailed after judges found him guilty a second time for contempt over his live streaming of a child rape gang trial involving Muslim defendants.

Among the visitors will be Ezra Levant of "Rebel Media" who says he wants to ask Tommy and will look for any signs that he is being mistreated at the prison dubbed the "British Gitmo".

Also, word has gotten out that Tommy talked through an outside window with another famous prisoner who was put into the cell above him.

It was Wikileaks founder Julian Assange being held while extradition proceedings are underway at the request of the United States. 

More on that in this post......LINK

A police board in Chicago voting to fire four officers accused of covering up the murder of black teenager Laquan McDonald in 2014.

Last year the officer who shot McDonald found guilty.  Jason Van Dyke convicted of second degree murder and aggravated assault charges.

The four officers according to the board exaggerated the threat posed by McDonald, shot 16 times while holding a pocket knife.

The officers can appeal their firing in court.

A ruling from the Dutch Supreme Court Friday putting 10 percent liability on the Netherlands in the deaths of 350 Bosnian Muslim men killed by Bosnian Serbs in 1995.

Dutch soldiers from a UN peacekeeping force were present when Serb forces overran the town of Srebrenica but the court ruled that under the circumstances there was only a ten percent chance for the soldiers to have saved the lives of the Muslims.

The legal claim against the Dutch government brought by a group called the Mothers of Srebrenica with a lower Dutch court's ruling establishing 30 percent liability on the government reduced by Friday's higher court ruling.

The relatives of the victims expressed their disappointment with the court ruling.

Some 8-thousand Bosnian Muslims were killed by Serb forces in what was called the Srebrenica Massacre.

The Prime Minister of predominately Muslim Kosovo in the Balkans resigning after being summoned for questioning by a special war crimes tribunal backed by the European Union.

Ramush Haradinaj was a commander in the "Kosovo Liberation Army" during a war against Serbia and Serbian control of Kosovo.

Haradinaj is accused of committing atrocities against Serbs and other ethnic groups during the war in the late 1990's.

He was tried and acquitted by two UN war crimes trials but now this new court backed by the EU is attempting to prosecute him.

South Africa's former President Jacob Zuma pulling out of a corruption inquiry.    Zuma had started testifying Monday before a panel of judges probing corruption when he was in office.

His lawyer called the probe a "political process" and said Mr. Zuma was being 'treated as someone who was accused".

Zuma forced to resign in February 2018 being replaced by his deputy Cyril Ramaphosa.    

The judicial panel adjourned a planned Friday session to hear Zuma's final day of testimony.

And that's the way it really is as we come newsdumping into Saturday July 20th, 2019.   Today the 50th anniversary of astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's landing on the Moon.