Month: November 2018

ISIS Takes Credit For Melbourne Knife Attack That Left 1 Dead, 2 Wounded

As authorities in Melbourne confirm that a stabbing attack that unfolded on a busy Melbourne street on Friday afternoon is believed to have been an act of terror, ISIS has stepped up and taken credit for the attack.

Attack

A man stabbed three people in Melbourne on Friday, killing one and wounding two before police fatally shot him in the chest. The incident was captured on video that has widely circulated on social media and local television. In the footage, the man can be seen lunging at two police officers as a car fire burned in the background. As the attacker repeatedly swung his knife at one officer, the other pulled out his firearm and shot him. The attacker later died in the hospital.

By that point, the attacker had already stabbed three bystanders, wounding two and killing a third. Of the two surviving victims, one has been identified as Tasmanian Rod Patterson.

“Three people have been stabbed, unfortunately one of them is deceased at the scene,” David Clayton, police superintendent of Victoria state, told reporters.

Police encountered the attacker after being drawn to Melboourne’s Bourke Street, located in a busy shopping district that was packed with shoppers at 4 pm local time, in response to a car fire. Before police arrived, bystanders fled the area while one man charged at the attacker with a shopping trolley to try and subdue him before police drew their weapons.

One witness told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio that, as the police officers engaged the attacker, “bystanders were yelling out ‘just shoot him, just shoot him’.”

Authorities believe the attacker, 31, moved to Australia from Somalia in 1990s, and that his family members have been suspected of being involved in terror-related activities.

Inside the burning car, investigators found gas cannisters, which suggested that the man had deliberately set the fire.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemned the attack in a message posted to twitter.

Photos of the body of one victim, who was covered by a sheet at the scene, circulated online.

Sheet

In a statement through their Amaq news agency, ISIS claimed the attacker was one of their “fighters.” Though this doesn’t mean the organization necessarily had any involvement in the attack. ISIS has a well-known reputation for taking credits for attacks they had nothing to do with, or that were organized by lone wolf attackers.

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Police Respond To Active Shooter Situation At North Carolina High School

Police was responding on Friday to active shooter situation at the Topsail High School, near Wilmington according to WECT, a local television station. Law enforcement sources say the scene is “still active.”

Based on live pictures from WECT-TV, there is a heavy law enforcement presence at the school, which is located at 245 N. Saint Johns Church Road in Hampstead.

There have been no immediate reports of injuries and students were not due to report to class until 8 a.m. WECT reported that there may have been some students on campus when the incident was reported around 7 a.m.

A Pender County dispatcher told Reuters that deputies were responding to a situation at a local high school, but could not elaborate.

“It’s extremely busy right now,” an emergency dispatcher told Time magazine. “All of our units are trying to take this person into custody.”

Surf City Middle School, just over 8 miles from Topsail, has also reportedly been placed on lockdown.

According to unconfirmed social media reports the shooter may be on the roof of the school

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In Major Defeat For Trump, Judge Blocks Construction Of Keystone XL Pipeline

In a setback for the Trump administration, a federal judge in Montana temporarily halted construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline late on Thursday on the grounds that the U.S. government did not complete a full analysis of the environmental impact of the TransCanada Corp project and failed to justify its decision granting a permit for the 1,200-mile long project designed to connect Canada’s tar sands crude oil with refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. The ruling came in a lawsuit that several environmental groups filed against the U.S. government in 2017, soon after President Donald Trump announced a presidential permit for the project.

The judge, Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court in Montana, said President Trump’s State Department ignored crucial issues of climate change in order to further the president’s goal of letting the pipeline be built. In doing so, the administration ran afoul of the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires “reasoned” explanations for government decisions, particularly when they represent reversals of well-studied actions.

Morris wrote that a U.S. State Department environmental analysis “fell short of a ‘hard look’” at the cumulative effects of greenhouse gas emissions and the impact on Native American land resources.  He also ruled the analysis failed to fully review the effects of the current oil price on the pipeline’s viability and did not fully model potential oil spills and offer mitigations measures.

However, the decision does not permanently block a pipeline permit. It requires the administration to conduct a more thorough review of potential adverse impacts related to climate change, cultural resources and endangered species. The court essentially ordered a do-over.

Morris, a former clerk to the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist, was appointed to the bench by President Obama.

* * *

The ruling is a victory for environmentalists, tribal groups and ranchers who have spent more than a decade fighting against construction of the pipeline that will carry heavy crude to Steele City, Nebraska, from Canada’s oilsands in Alberta.

“The Trump administration tried to force this dirty pipeline project on the American people, but they can’t ignore the threats it would pose to our clean water, our climate, and our communities,” said the Sierra Club, one of the environmental groups involved in the lawsuit, adding that “today’s ruling makes it clear once and for all that it’s time for TransCanada to give up on their Keystone XL pipe dream.” The lawsuit prompting Thursday’s order was brought by a collection of opponents, including the indigenous Environmental Network and the Northern Plains Resource Council, a conservation coalition based in Montana.

On the other hand, the ruling was a major defeat for Trump, who attacked the Obama administration for stopping the project in the face of protests and an environmental impact study. Trump signed an executive order two days into his presidency setting in motion a course reversal on the Keystone XL pipeline as well as the Dakota Access pipeline.

In addition to the president, the ruling deals a major setback for TransCanada and could possibly delay the construction of the $8 billion, 1,180 mile (1,900 km) pipeline. It’s intended to be an extension of TransCanada’s existing Keystone pipeline, which was completed in 2013. Keystone XL (the initials stand for “export limited”) would transport up to 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day from Alberta, Canada, and Montana to Oklahoma and the Gulf Coast. In the U.S., the pipeline would stretch 875 miles through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska, with the rest continuing into Canada.

Trump supported building the pipeline, which was rejected by former President Barack Obama in 2015 on environmental concerns relating to emissions that cause climate change. Trump said the project would lower consumer fuel prices, create jobs and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.

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Global Stocks, Oil Tumble As Dollar Surges And Familiar Fears Return

Was the Wednesday post-election rally a one-hit wonder? Was the FOMC, despite its surprisingly sparse statement, superhawkish? Was nothing actually fixed this week (narrator: “it wasn’t”) and are all the “same old” fears – trade wars, interest rates, China, tighter financial conditions, peak earnings, slowing global economy – haunting the market making a comeback?

Those are questions on traders’ minds this morning as global markets were headed for their biggest drop in two weeks, awash in a sea of red, as the MSCI World index fell half a percent, its biggest drop since Oct. 26 …

… as Brent tumbles below $70/barrel to a 6 month low, while WTI is now 21% below its recent high and has entered a bear market, now down for a record 10th consecutive day in a row…

… and as the dollar surge brings it just shy of the 2018 highs as the yuan resumed weakening on growing concerns about a slowdown in China, despite inflation data out of Beijing overnight that came in as expected.

While the Fed’s decision to hold rates was expected, some traders had expected an even more dovish approach and a mention of the October rout; its absence led to an overly hawkish take with the Fed confirming a December increase is a distinct possibility for the robust US economy. That contrasts sharply with China, where cooling producer price inflation and falling car sales suggested an economy struggling to gain traction.

“Worries about trade wars and how the slowdown in China will impact the rest of the world mean stocks appear to be more risky, so there’s a typical risk-off move in markets today,” said DZ Bank rates strategist Pascal Segesser.

And as “plain vanilla” growth risks return now that the election is gone, stocks in Hong Kong and China were the main losers in Asia, where a financial sector sub-index fell more than 2 percent after China’s banking watchdog told lenders to allocate at least a third of new loans to private companies, raising the prospects of a jump in bad assets.  Additionally, a decline in Chinese PPI, weak car sales and a disappointing outlook from a top online travel company combined to reignite lingering concerns about the health of the world’s second-biggest economy as BBG notes. As as result, the Shanghai Composite, a barometer for overall risk sentiment outside the US, continued to slide, and was down 1.4%, closing just below 2,600, its lowest level since the end of September.

European stocks followed Asia lower, with Europe’s Stoxx 600 Index down 0.7%, dragged lower by mining and energy shares after crude oil entered a bear market and most industrial metals fell, while disappointing forecasts from Richemont and Thyssenkrup AG also weighed on the index.

US equity futures contracts pointed to second day of declines for U.S. stocks.

Losses in equities pressured bond yields lower, with debt in Germany and the United States rising across the board, pressured by world trade frictions and a budget standoff between Italy and Brussels. 

Meanwhile, in FX, the confident Fed boosted the dollar, which had weakened sharply after mid-term elections this week raised the prospects of U.S. political gridlock. The greenback gained a quarter of a percent against the euro and half a percent against the British pound, and is back to just shy of its 2018 highs. The DXY dollar index gained 0.25 percent to 96.86. The Aussie swung to a loss as the central bank’s economic forecasts disappointed traders. The pound erased some of this week’s gains as the Irish border continued to be the biggest hurdle to a Brexit divorce deal; U.K. data was mixed, with the trade deficit shrinking while industrial production and services figures were underwhelming.

In commodities, oil prices fell to multi-month lows as global supply increased and investors worried about the impact from soaring US output, set to hit a record 12mmbpd, and concerns about fuel demand from of lower economic growth and trade disputes.  Benchmark Brent crude oil fell to its lowest since early April, down more than 18 percent since reaching four-year highs at the beginning of October. Also overnight, the sturdy dollar tarnished the appetite for safe-haven gold with the price down 0.2% at $1221.42 an ounce.

 

Market Snapshot

  • S&P 500 futures down 0.4% to 2,796.50
  • STOXX Europe 600 down 0.5% to 365.14
  • MXAP down 1.1% to 152.39
  • MXAPJ down 1.4% to 485.31
  • Nikkei down 1.1% to 22,250.25
  • Topix down 0.5% to 1,672.98
  • Hang Seng Index down 2.4% to 25,601.92
  • Shanghai Composite down 1.4% to 2,598.87
  • Sensex down 0.2% to 35,156.02
  • Australia S&P/ASX 200 down 0.1% to 5,921.85
  • Kospi down 0.3% to 2,086.09
  • German 10Y yield fell 2.8 bps to 0.429%
  • Euro down 0.2% to $1.1338
  • Brent Futures down 0.2% to $70.49/bbl
  • Italian 10Y yield rose 5.7 bps to 3.025%
  • Spanish 10Y yield fell 0.6 bps to 1.602%
  • Brent Futures down 0.2% to $70.50/bbl
  • Gold spot down 0.3% to $1,220.88
  • U.S. Dollar Index up 0.1% to 96.85

Top Overnight News

  • Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and U.S. Appeals Court Judge Edith Jones are among the people White House aides and outside advisers are considering to replace Jeff Sessions as the nation’s top law enforcement officer
  • The White House is unprepared to defend itself against a coming wave of investigations by newly empowered House Democrats, who have vowed to probe everything from cabinet members’ ethics scandals to conflicts of interest involving the president’s business empire
  • UBS risks billions in fines as its two biggest legal cases in years are hitting the final stretch, in a test of Chief Executive Officer Sergio Ermotti’s strategy of taking on French and U.S. authorities
  • China laid out banks’ lending targets for private companies, as it aims to boost large banks’ loans to private companies to at least one-third of new corporate lending
  • India’s government is asking the central bank to hand over a part of its surplus reserves to put that to more productive use, an official told reporters
  • Amid optimism a Brexit deal could be reached soon, the Irish border issue continues to be the biggest hurdle while crunching the numbers suggests any deal faces a difficult journey through Parliament

Asian equity markets traded lower following a lacklustre lead from Wall St where the mid-term stock rally stalled as focus shifted to the FOMC. ASX 200 (-0.1%) and Nikkei 225 (-1.1%) were lower with energy stocks pressured after a continued slump in oil prices and as soft earnings results also clouded over Tokyo sentiment. Hang Seng (-2.4%) and Shanghai Comp. (-1.4%) were the worst hit in the region as tech and energy stocks lagged, while continued PBoC liquidity inaction and inline inflation data proved to be inconclusive for sentiment. Finally, 10yr JGBs were flat with prices uneventful as the pressure from the recent losses in T-notes was counterbalanced by the risk averse tone and BoJ’s presence in the market for JPY 980bln of JGBs across the curve.

Top Asian News

  • A Fifth of China’s Housing Is Empty. That’s 50 Million Homes
  • PBOC’s Yi Warns of Uncertainties in Fed’s Policy, Trade Tensions
  • Russia Challenges U.S. in Hosting Taliban at Afghan Talks
  • China Banks Fall on Concern Loan Targets Are a Step Too Far

Major European equities are lower across the board (Eurostoxx 50 -0.8%) as the sentiment seen in Asia spills over onto the region. Material names lag amid the slump in base metal prices, while consumer staples outperform. The finance sector is also experiencing weakness with the likes of Spanish banks exposed to Mexico (BBVA -6.7%, Sabadell -2.8%, Santander -2.4%) pressured after Mexican banks fell overnight amid a surprise proposal from the incoming President AMLO to scrap bank fees. (Note: BBVA made 28% of its revenues and 34% of its operating income from Mexico last year.) Meanwhile, UBS (-4.3%) shares declines after the US Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the bank for defrauding investors in its sales of mortgage-backed securities leading up to the global financial crisis. Over in Germany, steel-maker Thyssenkrupp (-11.0%) shares slumped after the company announced a profit warning due to provisions for an ongoing cartel probe and quality problems at its auto business. Elsewhere, Richemont (-6.7%) shares declines amid disappointing earnings, hitting the likes of European Luxury names (LVMH -2.0%, Kering -3.6%) in sympathy.

Top European News

  • Turkey Cancels 3 Bond Auctions on Reduced Financing Needs
  • Pound Skeptics Turn Believers as Brexit Divorce Deal Looks Near
  • France Seizes Ryanair Plane to Force State Aid Repayment
  • Telecom Italia Scraps Debt Plan, Sees $2.3 Billion Writedown

In FX, the dollar appears to have stopped for the Greenback on Wednesday, and its resurgence from mid-term election lows has been fuelled to a degree by the latest FOMC policy statement that effectively underpins market expectations for a December hike. Amidst almost universal gains vs currency counterparts, the index is now nudging 97.000 from just shy of 95.700 at one stage and the 2018 peak of 97.201 is back within striking distance. GBP – Brexit impulses continue to ebb and flow between positive vibes on deal prospects and the proverbial cliff edge withdrawal, but the bottom line is that Irish border and back-stop differences remain unresolved to leave the UK at risk of failing to agree terms at home and/or with the EU. Hence, Sterling has lost momentum and is underperforming alongside the NOK (undermined by much softer than expected Norwegian inflation data to trade down around 9.5700 vs the Eur) within the G10 ranks, as Cable teeters above 1.3000, and largely shrugged off a barrage of UK data (GDP firm and trade above consensus, but other elements less encouraging). CAD/EUR – The next worst majors, with Loonie hit by collapsing oil prices and sliding towards 1.3200 vs its US peer, while the single currency continues its relatively sharp and abrupt pull-back from 1.1500 to retest support ahead of the 1.1300 ytd low. Ongoing Italian-EU budget differences are weighing along with more signs of a slowdown, or even weakness in the Eurozone economy, while hefty option expiries are also eyed (1.1300 in 1.1 bn, 1.1340-50 in 2.0 bn and 1.1375 in 1.3 bn for example). AUD/NZD – Also falling prey to their US rival’s revival and hardly helped by neutral or wait-and-see policy guidance from the RBA or RBNZ, as Aud/Usd recoils to sub-0.7250 and Nzd/Usd backs off further from almost 0.6800 to under 0.6750.

In commodities, WTI (-1.6%) and Brent (-1.4%) lost the USD 60/bbl and USD 70/bbl handles respectively, after the complex entered into bear market territory amid rising supply and concerns of a slowdown in global economic growth. Both benchmarks declined around 20% from the four-year highs reached at the front end of October and are set for a fifth straight week of declines, while North Sea Brent Crude hit seven-month lows. The slide has been exacerbated by US’ decision to permit eight countries to continue importing Iranian oil after the imposition of sanctions on the OPEC member, as well as record production of crude oil over in the States. Looking ahead, investors and traders will be focusing on this weekend’s meeting of OPEC and its allies where they are set to discuss output strategies in Abu Dhabi on Sunday. During the week, there were source reports that Russia and Saudi are to start discussing oil production cuts in 2019. This comes after OPEC’s October production reached the highest level since 2016, while Russia hiked its output in the prior month to recent highs of 11.4mln BPD. Producers on Sunday will have to discuss the threat of a glut alongside the prospect of lower demand from faltering EM economies and repercussions from US-Sino trade disputes.

Elsewhere, metals trade lower across the board with copper underperforming amid post-FOMC dollar strength and concerns regarding slowing global economic growth. Among precious metals, spot gold (-0.3%) tracks USD action, with the yellow metal dropping to the lowest level this month, while spot silver (-0.4%) is set for its largest weekly percentage decline in nine weeks. US Federal judge blocked Keystone XL Pipeline stating that US administration’s justification for the approval was incomplete, while the judge added that the State Department failed to evaluate climate impact, oil spills and cultural resources.

US Event Calendar

  • 8:30am: PPI Final Demand MoM, est. 0.2%, prior 0.2%; Ex Food and Energy MoM, est. 0.2%, prior 0.2%; Ex Food, Energy, Trade MoM, est. 0.2%, prior 0.4%
  • 8:30am: PPI Final Demand YoY, est. 2.5%, prior 2.6%; Ex Food and Energy YoY, est. 2.3%, prior 2.5%; Ex Food, Energy, Trade YoY, prior 2.9%
  • 8:45am: Bloomberg Nov. United States Economic Survey
  • 10am: Wholesale Inventories MoM, est. 0.3%, prior 0.3%; Wholesale Trade Sales MoM, est. 0.4%, prior 0.8%
  • 10am: U. of Mich. Sentiment, est. 98, prior 98.6; Expectations, est. 87.2, prior 89.3; Current Conditions, est. 114.9, prior 113.1

 

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Christie, Acosta And Bondi Top Trump’s List To Replace Sessions

As acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker’s refusal to recuse himself from overseeing the Mueller probe rattles Democrats and even Kellyanne Conway’s husband – all of whom worry that President Trump may finally have found a way to force an ending to the interminable investigation – the shortlist for Jeff Sessions’ replacement is growing longer.

According to multiple media reports, Trump is considering no fewer than seven people for the job: Chris Christie, Rudy Giuliani, former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, Labor Secretary Alex (not Jim) Acosta, HHS Secretary Alex Azar, US Appeals Court Judge Edith Jones and former Attorney General William Barr, who held the job under President George W Bush. 

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham has also been rumored as a top pick, and is far and away the leading candidate on online betting markets, though his name has been largely absent from media reports. 

Acosta

Alex Acosta

To that list, some would add Whitaker, who has remained a favorite to remain in the job permanently despite being a politically contentious pick. But according to Bloomberg, members of the GOP’s senate leadership are pushing for Acosta, seeing him as more likely to win confirmation given that he has already been vetted and has a more compelling life story. Acosta, the son of Cuban refugees, went to Harvard for undergrad and law school before clerking for the Supreme Court.

Causing no end of frustration for Democratic leaders, Whitaker has so far refused to recuse himself from overseeing the Mueller probe, despite his public criticism of Mueller’s probe as illegal and a “witch hunt.” And sources close to Whitaker say he has no intention of doing so  (and why would he, considering that would almost certainly sink any chance he has of staying in the job). However, Whitaker has reportedly told friends that he would consult Justice Department ethics officials if a specific conflict arose.

Bondi

Pam Bondi

Anyone who takes the reins of the Mueller probe will have the option of dismissing an agreement between Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein and Mueller that gave Mueller a long leash, which he has used to expand the investigation far beyond its original scope of examining links between the Trump Campaign and the Russian government. Democratic leaders, including Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, have said that the timing of Sessions’ firing is “suspicious” given that Democrats are expected to leverage their subpoena power to open even more investigations into Trump on everything from his personal finances, to his Russia ties. Pelosi and Schumer have demanded that Congress take immediate action to protect Mueller.

Even one Republican Senator said she’s “worried” that Mueller won’t be allowed to finish his work.

One Bloomberg source questioned whether Christie and Bondi, both politically divisive figures, could win Senate confirmation.

But the whims of any future AG pick may not be the biggest threat to the Mueller probe. A court challenge to Mueller’s authority has taken on new significance in light of recent events, according to Reuters. 

A DOJ attorney on Thursday spelled out the circumstances under which Special Counsel Robert Mueller could be fired in a court case that took on new significance this week following Sessions’ ouster. After refusing to comply with a Mueller grand jury subpoena back in May, Roger Stone associate Andrew Miller filed a court challenge alleging that Mueller’s authority was illegitimate because he was illegally appointed. That case is being argued on Mueller’s behalf by Deputy Solicitor General Michael Dreeben.

Here’s more from Reuters.

In May, Andrew Miller, who is an associate of long-time Trump adviser Roger Stone, refused to comply with a grand jury subpoena from Mueller. Miller was held in civil contempt. He filed a legal challenge, asserting Mueller has no authority to compel his testimony or to oversee the probe because he was illegally appointed.

Dreeben told a three-judge appeals panel on Thursday that there are checks and balances on Mueller’s activities that make his appointment lawful. One of these is that he could be fired by Whitaker, now acting attorney general, if Whitaker revoked department regulations governing Mueller’s appointment to make him fireable without cause.

The special counsel is not “off in a free-floating environment,” Dreeben said in arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that attempted to show Mueller’s power is circumscribed by the law.

It’s unclear when a ruling might be handed down in that case. But, until it is resolved, lawmakers and President Trump will be eagerly watching to see if the court might simply eliminate one of the president’s most enduring headaches without the president having to do a thing – or expend any of the precious political capital that, in an era of divided government, will be in increasingly short supply.

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France Takes The Lead In Protecting Iran Oil Trade From U.S. Sanctions

Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via Oilprice.com,

France aims to lead the European Union (EU) efforts in defying U.S. sanctions on Iran, by supporting the creation of a payment mechanism to keep trade with Iran and making the euro more powerful, France’s Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said in an interview with the Financial Times.

“Europe refuses to allow the US to be the trade policeman of the world,” Le Maire told FT, adding that the EU needs to “affirm its sovereignty” in the rift between the EU and the United States over the sanctions on Iran.

The EU has been trying to create a special purpose vehicle (SPV) that would allow the bloc to continue buying Iranian oil and keep trade in other products with Iran after the U.S. sanctions on Tehran return.

The idea behind the SPV is to have it act as a clearing house into which buyers of Iranian oil would pay, allowing the EU to trade oil with Iran without having to directly pay the Islamic Republic.

As the U.S. sanctions on Iran snapped back on Monday, the SPV hasn’t been operational and reports have had it that the undertaking is very complicated and politically sensitive. The bloc is also said to be struggling with the set-up, because no EU member is willing to host it for fear of angering the United States, the Financial Times reported recently, citing EU diplomats.

On Monday, the Belgium-based international financial messaging system SWIFT said that it would comply with the U.S. sanctions on Iran and would cut off sanctioned Iranian banks from its network. This was a blow to the EU’s attempts to defy the U.S. sanctions.

The decision by SWIFT highlights the need for an SPV, France’s Le Maire told FT, but he refused to name countries that could host such a special vehicle. Yet, there have been expressions of interest, he told FT.

Meanwhile, the United States has been dismissive of the idea of an SPV, and Brian Hook, U.S. Special Representative for Iran and Senior Policy Advisor to the Secretary of State, said in a press briefing with European reporters on Monday:

“We have not seen much, if any, demand for the Special Purpose Vehicle. I think if you take a look at the over 100 corporations that have decided to choose the United States market over the Iranian market, they’re not looking to avail themselves of any type of vehicle.”  
 

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Brickbat: Need to Know

ReceiptStatistics Canada, the government agency which conducts the nation’s census, has ordered banks and other financial institutions to give it personal transaction data for 500,000 people without their consent. The agency says it needs the data, including everything from account balances to ATM cash withdrawals, to create reports on the nation’s spending habits and consumer trends. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promises the data will be anonymized and no one’s privacy will be breached.

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$500 Milllion Norwegian Frigate Rammed By Oil Tanker

A Norwegian Navy frigate was rammed by an oil tanker on Thursday at approximately 4 a.m. local time while it was docked on the country’s west coast, according to the military. The crew of 127 was evacuated as the vessel took on water and began to sink. 

Eight people were slightly injured in the incident on the KNM Helge Ingstad, which had recently returned from the “Trident Juncture” NATO drill. Meanwhile, some 10,000 liters of helicopter fuel leaked into the sea, according to Johan Marius Ly of the Norwegian Coast Guard. The fuel is expected to evaporate quickly. 

Nils Andreas Stensoenes, the head of Norway’s Navy said that the cause of the accident is unclear, adding that the frigate was pushed into shallow waters by tugboats so that it would not fully sink. 

“We are in a security phase for the time being,” he added. 

The collision ripped an opening in the frigate’s hull, which was “taking in more water than they can pump out,” according to the rescue center’s Eirik Walle. “There is no control over the leak and the stern is heavily in the sea.” 

The Maltese-flagged oil tanker, Sola TS, was not damaged in the incident, and its 23-man crew remained onboard. 

The 442-foot KNM Helge Ingstad cost approximately $500 million USD, and was built in the Spanish Navantia shipyard between 2006 – 2011. The purchase included six NH-90 helicopters which can operate from the ship. 

The Helgewas one of the most expensive purchases the Norwegian military has made, and has a large quantity of weapons and explosives on board. 

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CDC Director: Congo’s Ebola Outbreak May Not Be Containable

Authored by Mac Slavo via SHTFplan.com,

Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that people need to be prepared for the worst.  Redfield said the Democratic Republic of Congo’s newest Ebola outbreak may not be containable.

Tom Inglesby, the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security in Baltimore, said that if the Ebola outbreak becomes endemic in the Congo’s North Kivu province, it shows “we’ve lost the ability to trace contacts, stop transmission chains and contain the outbreak.” In this situation, Ebola could spread, which could negatively impact both trade and travel, according to a report by Becker’s Hospital Review.

“I do think this is one of the challenges we’ll have to see, whether we’re able to contain, control and end the current outbreak with the current security situation, or do we move into the idea that this becomes more of an endemic Ebola outbreak in this region, which we’ve never really confronted,” Dr. Redfield told The Washington Post.

According to The Washington Post, if international Ebola containment efforts fail in the Congo, it would mark the first time the virus was not stopped since 1976 when Ebola was first identified. The current Ebola outbreak is going on its fourth month, totaling 300 cases and 186 deaths as of November 4th.

The problems with containment of this particular Ebola outbreak stem from the fact that the disease is spreading in an active war zone with several armed groups attacking health officials, government aids and civilians. Some civilians with Ebola have refused treatment, and health care workers are still being infected. About 60 to 80 percent of new cases do not show an epidemiological link to prior cases.

The daily rate of new Ebola cases had more than doubled in early October. In addition, there is community resistance and a deep mistrust of the government as the raging outbreak continues to spread through an active war zone. 

The World Health Organization (WHO), CDC and other international health organizations say they are worried about the current Ebola outbreak spreading to port cities like Butembo, which will only exacerbate infection transmission rates.

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Far-Right German Euroskeptic Party Expels Member Over Hitler Wine Labels

Germany’s right-wing Alternative for Germany party has expelled a party member who was a lawmaker in Berlin’s state government after a decade-old photograph surfaced where wine bottles bearing labels with Adolf Hitler’s image could be seen in the background. According to the Guardian, photos of Jessica Bießmann, the party member in question, show her lying on her side on a kitchen counter. Four bottles of wine with labels bearing depictions of Adolf Hitler can be seen sitting on a shelf in the background. 

Bießmann, who was elected to the Berlin parliament in 2016 and had served as family spokeswoman for the AfD group, told German media that she regretted that the photo had been taken – but emphasized that it had been taken in the home of a former friend and uploaded to social media 10 years ago. She said she didn’t notice the wine bottles in the background when she decided to share the photo on the Internet. 

Germany

She said she had not noticed the wine bottles and that the picture had been taken in the house of a former friend. It was uploaded to social media more than 10 years ago and recently reappeared on Twitter.

Hitler

Party leaders in Berlin said the photos were unacceptable.

AfD’s Berlin state and parliamentary group head, Georg Pazderski, said the photos were unacceptable. He said the Berlin AfD had also begun proceedings to expel Bießmann from the party.

The scandal, according to Guardian, could potentially offer more incentive for Germany’s domestic intelligence agencies to monitor the AfD over its purported links to far-right and neo-Nazi groups after some party members were seen marching with members of far-right parties following a series of gatherings of such groups in an eastern German city, Chemnitz. Nazi symbols are banned in Germany and neo-Nazi parties are illegal. The country only lifted the ban on using symbols in a historical context in video games earlier this year.

However, the party’s leadership has said it has managed to persuade some of its more “problematic” members to leave the party. If surveillance is eventually pursued, the party has also raised the possibility of challenging in a European court of human rights.

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