Houthi Rebels Claim Another US MQ-9 Reaper Drone Taken Down over Yemen...8th drone of this type - that costs about $30m - to be shot down since the start of the war on Gaza

The Houthis have claimed to have shot down a United States military drone over Yemen, in the latest attack by the group, which has disrupted shipping trade through the crucial Bab al-Mandeb Strait, drawing US strikes.

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Yemen's Houthi rebels say they shot down another US MQ-9 drone - Region - World - Ahram Online

Houthis claim downing another US MQ-9 Reaper drone over Yemen

The Houthis have not released footage for the latest attack, but have shown downing US drones with missiles before.

The Yemeni group has carried out dozens of attacks on ships with links to Israel in a show of solidarity with Palestinians amid Israel’s 11-month-old war on Gaza.

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Yahya Saree, the military spokesman of the Houthi group, said in a prerecorded video message released early on Sunday that the MQ-9 Reaper was shot down by air defenses over Marib as “it was carrying out hostile activities”.

• This is the eighth drone of this type to be shot down since the start of the war on Gaza, he said. 
• The group has not so far released footage of the downed attack and surveillance aircraft that costs about $30m.

The advanced drones, which can fly at altitudes up to 15,240 metres (50,000 feet) and for up to 24 hours, have been flown by US military and intelligence forces over Yemen for years. That includes during years of civil war that broke out after the Houthis rebelled against the government in late 2014. The fighting has largely ended after a UN-brokered ceasefire in December 2023.

Houthi forces will continue to mount attacks in support of Palestinians and “are in the process of strengthening defensive capabilities” to confront continuing  joint air strikes by the US and United Kingdom on Yemen, according to Saree.

Video Duration 0 minutes 35 seconds0:35

US strikes in Yemen?

After the video was released, the Houthi-run Al Masirah satellite news channel reported multiple US-led strikes near the city of Ibb south of capital Sanaa.

• The US military did not immediately respond to either claim of air strikes or the shooting down of the its drone over Yemen.

The latest attacks on Yemen claimed by the US military came on Friday, when its forces said they destroyed a Houthi-launched drone and a “support vehicle”.

Watch: Yemenis Mock U.S MQ-9 Drone As It Turns Into Fireball Over Marib | Details

Premiered 9 hours ago #HouthiRebels #YemenRebels #HouthiFighters

Yemen's Houthi rebels claim to have downed a US MQ-9 drone over Marib province, citing support for Palestinians and opposition to US-UK actions. Pro-government sources dispute this claim. The Houthis have targeted numerous vessels in the Red Sea since October 2023, causing maritime disruptions and casualties. They assert targeting ships linked to Israel, US, or UK, but many attacked vessels have no clear connection. #HouthiRebels #YemenRebels #HouthiFighters #MQ9ReaperDrone #Marib #YahyaSaree #US #UK

Last week, the US military said the Houthis attacked two crude oil tankers, including the Saudi-flagged Amjad and the Panama-flagged Blue Lagoon in the Red Sea, calling them “reckless acts of terrorism”.

• The Houthi military claimed responsibility for targeting the Blue Lagoon with multiple missiles and drones but did not make any mention of the Saudi tanker.

The Amjad was carrying about two million barrels of oil, according to the US military, which did not report any casualties.
In late August, the Houthis released footage of fighters boarding the Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion, and detonating explosives on the ship, which has prompted concerns of an environmental disaster.

• The Yemeni group, which landed an explosive-laden drone in Tel Aviv in July killing one person, have said their attacks will only stop when Israel’s killings in Gaza cease.

More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its devastating war on October 7.

Video Duration 2 minutes 26 seconds

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Pope Francis visits remote jungles of Papua New Guinea

German Chancellor Scholz Is Certain He Can Win Reelection, Even Though Polls Say 84% of Voters Are Dissatisfied With His Government | Gateway Pundit

JOKER:
Delusional German Chancellor Scholz Is Certain He Can Win Reelection, Even Though Polls Say 84% of Voters Are Dissatisfied With His Government

by Paul Serran Sep. 7, 2024 5:40 pm 167 Comments

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Olaf Scholz may be the most unpopular German Chancellor in many decades, but that does not keep him from being ‘sure’ that he can win reelection a year from now.

• Delusional Scholz shrugs off the very negative polling figures and predicts that he will lead his Social Democratic Party (SPD) to a second term in office, in the elections set for September next year.

To Berlin’s Tagesspiegel newspaper, he declared that he was ‘firmly banking on the SPD and me gaining a mandate that will be strong enough for us to lead the next government.’

Tagesspiel reported:

“[Question] Chancellor, are you still the right person to serve Germany?

[Scholz] Of course. The federal government has mastered major crises, especially after Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. We have ensured that homes remain warm and industry can continue to produce. We have spent more than 300 billion euros to ensure that neither citizens nor companies are overwhelmed by the rapidly rising energy prices. Energy prices have since fallen. Inflation is back below two percent.”

This bold prediction comes despite his dismal polling figures, the poor results for the SPD in the June elections to the European Parliament and – this month – a catastrophic performance in two German state elections that saw right winger of AfD surging.

DPA reported:

“‘Governing is not getting any easier, so we should do it’, Scholz said, setting out the aim of a coalition led by the SPD.”

Scholz predicts that the election ‘would turn on character and integrity’ – and he thinks that’s a good thing for him.

“‘For the SPD and me, it is important to put forward pragmatic and realistic proposals on how Germany can truly make progress,’ he said.”

He argues that a key potential challenger within the SPD, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, is backing him as the candidate for the chancellorship.
But the people do not seem to agree. After the latest deadly knife attack – carried out by a Syrian Islamist living in Germany as a refugee awaiting deportation – public opinion has become very focused.

Deutche Welle reported:

“In the Deutschlandtrend survey on public broadcaster ARD, 77% of the 1309 eligible voters polled answered yes to the question: ‘Do we need a fundamentally different asylum and refugee policy so that fewer people come to us?’

Almost three-quarters said they are in favor of introducing permanent controls at German borders, and 72% are in favor of extending the powers of the security authorities, for example, allowing them to access electronic communications such as chats.”

48% of respondents think that refugees and immigration are currently the most important political issue – 22 percentage points more than in April of this year.
Scholz’s three governing parties are seen as way less able to manage immigration than their conservative competitors.

And no less than 84% of respondents say they are less or not at all satisfied with the federal government’s work. This is the highest figure since the government took office at the end of 2021.

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Chinese banks have built a $100bn short against the US dollar to prop up the yuan — and hedge funds are eager to get in on the trade

 

Holger Zschaepitz

@Schuldensuehner

Chinese banks have built a $100bn short against the US dollar to prop up the yuan — and hedge funds are eager to get in on the trade. At the center of it all are transactions known as FX swaps. These have quietly become a key tool for state-run Chinese banks seeking to prop up the yuan during periods of outsized selling pressure. https://bloomberg.com/news/features/2024-09-05/china-s-banks-build-100-billion-short-on-us-dollar-to-prop-up-yuan-cny-usd?utm_source=website&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=twitter?sref=R17xFhjo…

4:43 PM · Sep 5, 2024

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