NEWS SUMMARY-INTELLIGENCE REPORT TUESDAY 7/16-WEDNESDAY 7/17/2019

(WORK IN PROGRESS THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY)

THE UNITED STATES IMPOSING SANCTIONS ON FOUR TOP GENERALS FROM THE COUNTRY OF MYANMAR (FORMERLY BURMA).

THOSE GENERALS AND THEIR FAMILIES BANNED FROM ENTERING THE USA BECAUSE OF THE CONFLICT IN THE PREDOMINATELY BUDDHIST COUNTRY WITH THE ROHINGYA MUSLIMS.

SECRETARY OF STATE MIKE POMPEO BLAMING THE GENERALS FOR WHAT ARE CONSIDERED HARSH POLICIES AGAINST THE ROHINGYA MUSLIM MINORITY IN THE COUNTRY.

THE MYANMAR GOVERNMENT VIEWS THE CONFLICT AS A FIGHT WITH ISLAMIC TERRORISM.

BUT POMPEO ACCUSES THE GENERALS OF INVOLVEMENT IN "GROSS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS" THAT INCLUDE "EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS" AND "ETHNIC CLEANSING" INVOLVING MUSLIMS IN BURMA.

THE CONFLICT DRAWING ATTENTION ALSO BECAUSE OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSAND OF ROHINGYA REFUGEES WHO HAVE FLED INTO NEIGHBORING BANGLADESH.

THE BBC GIVES ITS VERSION OF THE STORY......LINK

AND THE STATEMENT OF SECRETARY OF STATE MIKE POMPEO DIRECTLY FROM THE STATE DEPARTMENT....LINK

A "partial perliminary injunction" from a federal judge against ranchers Dwight and Steven Hammond in Oregon Tuesday.

US District Judge Michael Simon ruling in response to a complaint from environmental groups objecting to former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's decision to allow the Hammond's to use federal lands for grazing.

Zinke's decision coming after President Trump's pardon of the Hammonds last year who were serving mandatory terrorism sentences for lighting a backfire to protect their land from a brushfire that ended up damaging federally owned land.

The Hammond's plight brought to the world's attention by Ammon Bundy and the Oregon Standoff protest of early 2016.

Judge Simon's ruling allows partial grazing rights on one of two plots of land that the Hammonds were authorized by the Interior Department to use because of former secretary Zinke's decision.

Simon's injunction today will be in force while he hears the case and until he rules on it.

The story of the court decision from Maxine Bernstein of  "Oregon Live"....LINK

The US House voting 240-187 to condemn President Trump for "racist comments" in connection with his tweets about four Democrats in the House who are considered "Progressives".

The Democrats joined by Independent Justin Amash and four Republicans including African-American Congressman Will Hurd of Texas.

"They'd like to talk and we'll see what happens"

The words of President Trump at the White House Tuesday during a cabinet meeting.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo noting at the meeting what Iran's Foreign Minister has already said, that Iran's missile program is on the table in talks.

But Javad Zarif says US sanctions must be lifted on Iran in order for talks to go forward.

And Iran's United Nations spokesman saying that media characterizations of Zarif's comments saying Iran's missiles are a topic for negotiations are not true.

Concerns being raised over the status of on oil tanker that went into Iranian waters while traveling through the Strait of Hormuz late Saturday.

A manager for a United Arab Emirates shipping firm says it was ''hijacked' by Iranians.  That according to "TradeWinds", a global shipping news service.

The Panamanian flag tanker Riah, based in the UAE, also stopped sending it location data.

The Associated Press quoted Captain Ranjith Raja of a tracking data firm called Refinitiv as saying:

"That is a red flag"

No comment from either Iranian officials or the US Fifth Fleet in the Persian Gulf region on this matter according to the AP.

The Minister of the Environment in President Emmanuel Macron's government, Francois du Rugy, resigning Tuesday after a media report about du Rugy's spending practices when he was Speaker of the National Assembly early in Macron's presidency.

The "Mediapart" website reported spending on lavish dinners and an apartment for du Rugy.   It's also reporting Tuesday that du Rugy used money given to him as a member of the European Parliament to defray political contributions to the EELV environmentalist political party in France.

Du Rugy immediately filed a defamation suit against the "Mediapart" website.

A vote in the European Parliament Tuesday on new EU leadership set to take office November 1st.

Ursula von der Leyen, German defense minister and political ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, nominated to be president of the EU Commission.

She told the parliament she supports a "green deal" for Europe and an extension of the October 31st deadline for Brexit.

Responding to her speech Brexit Party leader and parliament member Nigel Farage described von der Leyen's agenda as comparable to "Communism" and said:

"What you've seen from Ursula von der Leyen today is an attempt for the European Union to take control of every single aspect of our lives"

Farage's comments in full at this link.....HERE

At the end of process a secret ballot with von der Leyen winning support of 383 MEP's, just nine votes above an absolute majority.

Turkey says it will send a fourth ship to drill for natural gas off the coast of Cyprus in response to the EU imposed sanctions on it Monday.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a statement Tuesday calling the EU sanctions for Turkish drilling operations off the coast of Cyprus biased and a denial of the existence of the Turkish part of Cyprus.

The former president of Peru, Alejandro Toledo, arrested in the United States.   Peru had requested  Toledo's arrest in March of 2018.

He is wanted in connection with allegations of taking bribes during his term of office from 2001 to 2006 from the Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht to the tune of 20 million dollars.

Toledo is a visiting professor at Stanford University in California.

The airspace of Pakistan is now fully open.    The final restrictions lifted some five months after the confrontation between India and Pakistan when Indian aircraft bombed a camp in Pakistani territory and Pakistan shot down an Indian warplane

Civilian air traffic had been impacted by the shutdown with flights either cancelled or rerouted.

The lifting of the last restrictions will allow civil aircraft starting flights from India to fly over Pakistan.

A mass "Free Tommy Robinson" demonstration scheduled for central London on Saturday August 3rd.

Last Saturday there was a rally outside the Belmarsh prison in London supporting Tommy Robinson and more rallies are expected there.

Robinson sentenced for contempt last week in London by two High Court judges and is serving a 66 day sentence reported in isolation at the prison that houses terrorist suspects, jihadists and hardened criminals in the UK.   Also at Belmarsh Wikileaks founder and publisher Julian Assange.

Robinson's crime was reporting public domain information outside a child rape gang trial involving Muslim defendants in Leeds, England on May 25th, 2018.

Former US Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens had died at the age of 99.   He was appointed by former President Gerald Ford in 1975 and retired in 2010.   Over his years on the court Stevens gained the reputation of being on the liberal side of court decisions.

And that's the way it really is as we come into Wednesday July 17th, 2019.