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[Erkki]

Quote from the Middle East thread:

The US shot down another pro-regieme Iranian made drone. Between this, the shooting down of that Syrian jet, the shooting down of a previous drone, and a report of a Russian jet buzzing an American jet by 5 feet and acting erratically while armed, it feels like the whole thing is slowly escalating, with the slowly part speeding up.

Didn't the buzzing incident happen in the Baltic Sea? There were plenty of similar cases in 2016 and 2015 as well, and this year is no exception when it comes to military activity in the area. If anything, it is only escalating further as there are ever larger excercises and more activity on both sides of the EU's Eastern border on the ground, at sea and in the air. Pictured below, the FiAF escorts and photographs Russian air force traffic in the narrow tunnel of international air space on the Gulf of Finland almost daily. It apparently isnt uncommon for the Russians to have FiAF F/A-18s on one side and Spanish F/A-18s or RAF Typhoons on the other.

Spoiler: Two Su-24s and a F/A-18 phographed from a another F/A-18 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: B-52 and a Su-27 photographed from KC-135 tanker (click to show/hide)

"Security vacuums" tend to be filled and all that.

[martinuzz]

Brussles escaped a bloody attack yesterday. Police confirmed that the man who was shot at Brussels Central Station was carrying a nail bomb. He tried detonating it, but te detonator failed. He was then shot by the military. It is unknown if he died instantly, or if the died during the hours after that while explosives sqauad was examing him.
The man has been identified as a 37-year old man from Molenbeek. He was already known to the police, but not for radicalism. He was known as a criminal.

[Sheb]

Brussles escaped a bloody attack yesterday. Police confirmed that the man who was shot at Brussels Central Station was carrying a nail bomb. He tried detonating it, but te detonator failed. He was then shot by the military. It is unknown if he died instantly, or if the died during the hours after that while explosives sqauad was examing him.
The man has been identified as a 37-year old man from Molenbeek. He was already known to the police, but not for radicalism. He was known as a criminal.

Ugh, I guess I'll stop complaining about soldiers in the streets then.

[martinuzz]

Our national meteorological institute (KNMI) gave off a code red warning for my area. Fire-services are placed on high alert, while the military is keeping firefighting aircraft on standby. Unusual drought of the past weeks dramatically increased the chance for wildfires starting in the North-Brabant and Zeeland provinces.

[smjjames]

Our national meteorological institute (KNMI) gave off a code red warning for my area. Fire-services are placed on high alert, while the military is keeping firefighting aircraft on standby. Unusual drought of the past weeks dramatically increased the chance for wildfires starting in the North-Brabant and Zeeland provinces.

UNLEASH THE DIKES!

Sorry for the bad joke, lol

Quote from the Middle East thread:

The US shot down another pro-regieme Iranian made drone. Between this, the shooting down of that Syrian jet, the shooting down of a previous drone, and a report of a Russian jet buzzing an American jet by 5 feet and acting erratically while armed, it feels like the whole thing is slowly escalating, with the slowly part speeding up.

Didn't the buzzing incident happen in the Baltic Sea? There were plenty of similar cases in 2016 and 2015 as well, and this year is no exception when it comes to military activity in the area. If anything, it is only escalating further as there are ever larger excercises and more activity on both sides of the EU's Eastern border on the ground, at sea and in the air. Pictured below, the FiAF escorts and photographs Russian air force traffic in the narrow tunnel of international air space on the Gulf of Finland almost daily. It apparently isnt uncommon for the Russians to have FiAF F/A-18s on one side and Spanish F/A-18s or RAF Typhoons on the other.

Spoiler: Two Su-24s and a F/A-18 phographed from a another F/A-18 (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: B-52 and a Su-27 photographed from KC-135 tanker (click to show/hide)

"Security vacuums" tend to be filled and all that.

Yeah it was the Baltics. I know that encounters and escorts like you describe are routine, but 5 feet? That's 1.5 meters in metric btw. It was also going too fast and behaving erratically, that, to me, isn't rendezvousing and escorting, it's being outright reckless.

[Neonivek]

Well the UK (Well Britain) does have a 76 approval rating on Homosexuals (and a 18% disapproval rating).

Does make me wonder why they aren't allowed on children's television...

[smjjames]

Well the UK (Well Britain) does have a 76 approval rating on Homosexuals (and a 18% disapproval rating).

Does make me wonder why they aren't allowed on children's television...

Not sure what that has to do with any of the recent stuff?

[Neonivek]

Sorry homonyms

[Erkki]

Yeah it was the Baltics. I know that encounters and escorts like you describe are routine, but 5 feet? That's 1.5 meters in metric btw. It was also going too fast and behaving erratically, that, to me, isn't rendezvousing and escorting, it's being outright reckless.

What is very worrying is that they werent routine even during the Cold War(over the Baltic Sea and generally in Northern Europe, I mean), but have become that only recently. Looks like there are several cases reported for today too.

[martinuzz]

Today, over 50000 people from Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands formed a 90km long human chain between the Belgian Tihange nuclear power plant, and the German city of Aachen, to express their concern about the 40 year old plant.

The protestors are alarmed by the recent study that showed the reactor walls of Tihange-2, one of the plant's 3 reactors, to have hairline cracks.
Combined with an increasing amount of failures in the reactor, the fear amongst those living in the region of an incident, which would render the area uninhabitable for decades, is increasing.

The Belgian government however, maintains it's position, claiming the power plant is safe.
The Tihange plant was built in 1975, and was originally scheduled to be closed down in 2015.
The plant's 3 reactors account for about one quarter of the total Belgian electricity consumption.
Some years ago, Belgian PM Di Rupo decided the plant can remain in operation until 2023.
The Belgian state has a huge economic interest in the plant. It is calculated that the plant makes 1 million euro every day, for the Belgian treasury.
According to the Belgian government, closing down the plant would also mean that the nation's electricity supply would become unreliable.

[martinuzz]

Dutch cameraman Bram Janssen has been arrested in Istanbul for filming at the Gay Pride in Istanbul.
In 2015, the Gay Pride has been banned in Turkey. Today, when LGBT Turks had ignored the ban and went out into the streets of Istanbul, police used brute force to disperse them, using batons, tear gas and rubber bullets. Many LGBT protestors have been arrested.

Dutch national news reporter Lucas Waagmeester, who was also present, reports that despite Janssen showing the police his Turkish Press Card, he was arrested by the police. Our ministry of foreign affairs reports it is currently trying to get into contact with Janssen, so they can offer him diplomatic assistance.

Janssen has worked in Istanbul since 2016 for the American press agency AP. Before that, he spent two years in Iraq, and he regularily returns there, ever since the liberation battle of Mosul has begun. He won the Dutch Silver Camera award in the category 'international news', as well as the US Pulitzer prize in the category 'Breaking News', for his reporting of the situation in Mosul.

Let's hope Turkey does not still hold a grudge for our deportation of their minister, or the poor guy might be in for an unpleasant ride.

[redwallzyl]

Don't worry their totally not a brutal dictatorship now! some guy on the internet said so!

[martinuzz]

Camera guy has already been released.

[scriver]

"Okay guys we're banning your pride parade because we can't guarantee your safety from radicals. And if you hold one anyway, we're going to hurt you."

[martinuzz]

EDIT: OOPS this was supposed to go in the IS thread. Moved it