Author: admin

Authored by Kit Knightly via OffGuardian.org,

Yesterday evening, the UK’s High Court ruled in favour of the Metropolitan Police in a legal challenge pertaining to the use of Live Facial Recognition Technology (LFR) across London’s transport network.

The case had been brought by Silkie Carlo of Big Brother Watch and Shaun Thompson, a youth worker who was previously misidentified by the technology, “over concerns it could be used arbitrarily or in a discriminatory way”.

Specifically, their lawyers argued that the current powers claimed by police governing the use of LFR would breach articles 8, 10 & 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR),

But the High Court judges said “nah”, and dismissed the challenge in favour of the police.

Shocking, right?

The establishment judges voted in favour of the establishment cops using technology to violate people’s rights in the name of protecting the establishment.

‘Cause for a second there we didn’t know which way that might go.

The failure of this legal challenge will open the door for a national rollout of FTR across high streets and transport hubs up and down the country.

There’s a good, technical breakdown of the legal proceedings here.

The claimants have already stated they plan to appeal the ruling.

Personally, I question the decision to base the case on protecting the innocent from “errors” in the LFR tech, rather than the question of the right to privacy as a general principle, but I’m not a lawyer…and they were probably going to lose whatever they said.

All in all, it’s just another example of the increasing normalization of authoritarianism in the UK.

The UK Parliament has just passed a law banning smoking for everyone born after January 1st 2009, meaning the legal age of smoking will increase by one year every year until the last smokers die off.

Some will say “that’s good, tobacco is poison”, but I will always argue that people have the right to live as wisely or foolishly as they want, as long as they are not hurting other people.

And I don’t trust any government empowered to protect me “for my own good.”

Oh, and the British schools are going to be made to ban smartphones, too.

It’s all getting very claustrophobic in the UK right now.

But, in totally unrelated news, black balaclavas are relatively inexpensive and can be purchased from most major clothing retailers.

Consider stocking up, until they’re illegal too.

Turkey’s government as well as some members of the European Parliament on Wednesday criticized recent remarks by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggesting Europe should not fall under the influence of Russia, Turkey, or China – calling the comments misleading and divisive.

Von der Leyen on Monday had casually grouped NATO member Turkey with China and Russia as malign influences on the continent, which contradicts the fact that the EU has relied on Turkey to play a key diplomatic role in the Ukraine war, as well as to absorb war refugees from the Middle East.

She had in the remarks declared that the EU “must succeed in completing the European continent so that it is not influenced by Russia, Turkey or China.”

She then urged Europe to “think bigger and more geopolitically” when it comes to the continent getting away from cheap Russian energy and low-cast Chinese labor. She argued for greater European independence, also amid tensions with the Trump administration.

Lawmakers from the Left Group in the European Parliament, including Belgian members Rudi Kennes and Marc Botenga, took Turkey’s side and slammed the remarks as “both inaccurate and very strange,” emphasizing that Turkey is a NATO ally and maintains multifaceted relations with the European Union.

“Turkey is still officially a candidate country for EU membership,” the officials noted. “These kinds of statements serve to split the world into ‘us’ and ‘others,’ as if there were some kind of purity test, and as if there were an intention to control the rest of the continent,” Botenga said.

Botenga further warned that framing international relations as “friends versus enemies” poses significant risks for global stability. One source also underscored why Brussels was quick to try and do damage control in an EU presser:

This rapid clarification underscores Brussels’ awareness of the sensitivity. Turkey remains a vital partner on multiple fronts: migration management, Black Sea security, energy transit, and regional stability. Yet the episode reveals an underlying unease in EU circles about Turkey’s independent foreign policy, especially at a time when some voices within Ankara are openly exploring alternatives to traditional Western alignments.

There was indeed some fast backtracking on the word choice and rhetoric…

The EU attempts to backtrack from Von der Leyen’s statement which has described Turkish influence as adversarial on par with China and Russia pic.twitter.com/q54ID5cIkA

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) April 21, 2026

Still, the elephant in the room is that Turkey is very much an geopolitical Eurasian outlier – on the hand possessing the second largest army in NATO, and on the other often doing things contrary to NATO and EU interests, such as cozying up to Moscow on certain key issues.

Submitted by Michael Kern of OilPrice.com,

The UK is hosting (yesterday and today) a two-day multinational conference convening military planners from more than 30 countries as Britain and France renew efforts to re-open the Strait of Hormuz.

The two-day conference takes place just after U.S. President Donald Trump late on Tuesday extended the U.S.-Iran ceasefire until negotiations with Iran conclude “one way or the other.”

President Trump has also ordered that the U.S. blockade at the Strait of Hormuz remains in place.

Hopes of U.S.-Iran negotiations resuming as early as Wednesday were dashed after reports emerged that the trip of U.S. Vice President JD Vance to Pakistan, which hosted the previous round of failed talks, has been put on hold.

As of early Wednesday, there were no signs that the talks could resume soon.

The U.S. is keeping the naval blockade outside the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has called a “siege” and a violation of the ceasefire.

The UK, which early this month hosted the first such meeting, said that this week’s conference is part of the UK and French leadership of a multinational coalition to reopen the Strait.

“The sessions will advance military plans to reopen the Strait, as soon as conditions permit, following a sustainable ceasefire agreement,” the UK government said in a statement.

“The task, today and tomorrow, is to translate the diplomatic consensus into a joint plan to safeguard freedom of navigation in the Strait and support a lasting ceasefire,” UK Defence Secretary John Healey said ahead of the conference.

“International trade, energy security and the stability of the global economy depend on freedom of navigation,” the UK official added.

“By building on our common purpose, strengthening multinational coordination and planning for effective collective action, we can help reopen the Strait, stabilise the global economy and protect our people.”

Ukraine announced Tuesday it completed repairs to the damaged Druzhba oil pipeline and stands ready to resume pumping Russian oil to Europe, a step Ukrainian officials expect will unlock a long-delayed EU aid package.

The timing is quite interesting and surely not coincidental given that Hungary’s newly elected PM Péter Magyar and his victorious Tisza party are now in Budapest rapidly preparing for the transfer of power in Hungary. Magyar just accomplished a dramatic landslide defeat of Viktor Orbán last Sunday.

The pipeline, which carries crude to Hungary and Slovakia, has sat at the center of a monthslong ratcheting standoff, which served to further distance Hungary under Orban from the EU.

Hungary and Slovakia have accused the Zelensky government of intentionally delaying repairs to pressure them, after a last January alleged Russian strike on Druzhba damaged it, and halted oil flows to central Europe.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has just confirmed on social media, “Ukraine has completed repair work on the section of the oil pipeline that was damaged by a Russian strike,” and hence: “The pipeline can resume operation.”

“We must continue systematic sanctions pressure on Russia over this war and work on further diversifying energy supplies to Europe,” Zelensky said further. “Europe must be independent from those who seek to destroy or weaken it,” he added.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters in Luxembourg that an agreement on the funds is expected within 24 hours: “I hope that everything goes well,” she said. “Hopefully, all the obstacles are removed.”

As for Magyar, his election win was heralded as a substantial victory for the global left wing, from EU globalists to Democrats in the US. Their assumption is that with Orbán’s veto power out of play, they will be able to do they want in Ukraine and in Hungary.  However, the new Prime Minster may not be as cooperative as they initially believed.  

Magyar has stated that he will not try to block the €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine which Orbán originally vetoed, but he also stated that Hungary will not be contributing to such loans and that the government will not support any attempt to induct Ukraine into the EU. 

Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova:

Ukraine has started pumping oil through the Druzhba pipeline, and supplies to Slovakia are expected to resume Thursday.

— Polymarket Intel (@PolymarketIntel) April 22, 2026

He also announced this week that he will not allow Hungary to join in the EU’s “Migration Pact” and that he plans to further strengthen Hungary’s borders. 

Via The Cradle

Hungary’s incoming Prime Minister, Peter Magyar, stated on April earlier this week that his government will arrest Israeli Prime Minister and ‘wanted war criminal’ Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits, as Budapest reconsiders the previous government’s plan to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

“I made myself clear to the Israeli prime minister too, we are not re-entering … because my colleagues examined the matter, and we can still stop withdrawal until June 2,” Magyar said.

The prime minister-elect said his government intends to reverse Hungary’s exit from the ICC before it takes effect, after legal advisors determined the withdrawal process remains incomplete and can still be stopped once his administration takes office.

“The firm intention of the Tisza government is to halt this process and ensure that Hungary remains a member of the ICC,” he stated, adding, “If someone is a member of the ICC and a person who is wanted enters our country, then they must be taken into custody.”

The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, in November 2024 over his role in leading Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza, with the warrant requiring member states to detain individuals sought by the court if they enter their territory.

Magyar’s remarks come despite having invited Netanyahu days earlier to attend a national commemoration later this year, raising questions over the apparent contradiction between the invitation and Hungary’s stated legal obligations.

“I don’t need to spell it out over the phone,” Magyar added, referring to a call last week in which he invited Netanyahu to attend an October ceremony commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Hungarian Uprising. He went on to say, “I assume that every head of state and government is familiar with these laws.”

Magyar’s position stands in direct contrast to that of his predecessor, former prime minister Viktor Orban, who refused to arrest Netanyahu during a 2025 visit and initiated Hungary’s withdrawal from the ICC while guaranteeing him immunity.

Earlier this year, Washington moved to shield Israeli officials from accountability, targeting those pursuing legal action over Gaza instead.

Washington imposed “terrorist-grade sanctions” on ICC judges and UN rapporteur Francesca Albanese, freezing assets and obstructing war crimes probes after she warned major US tech firms – including Alphabet, Amazon, Lockheed Martin, and Microsoft – that their support for Israeli military operations could amount to “gross violations of human rights” in Gaza.

UN officials warned that the sanctions are illegal and risk undermining the broader human rights system, as Washington moves to penalize those pursuing accountability while continuing to arm Israel.