Month: September 2024

While many analyses of Germany have tended to focus on East versus West, an equally telling divide has become evident between young people and their older compatriots.

Brandenburg’s State election of September 22 had Socialists (SPD) ending on top, with around 31 per cent of the vote, followed closely by the hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) on about 30 per cent.

A marked age gap among the electorate has been revealed in a breakdown of the respective results.

Younger and first-time voters overwhelmingly preferred AfD. Around one-third of 16-to 26-year-olds voted for the AfD, while all other parties trailed behind. In this case, the Socialists only won 19 per cent of the vote. The same was true among 25-to-34-year-olds.

Within the 45-to-59 age range, SPD did better, scoring 29 per cent of the vote, although the AfD still lead with 32 per cent.

That changed among 60-to 69-year-olds, where SPD tallied 35 per cent, rising to 49 per cent of 70-year-olds and above.

The data has led to AfD co-chair Alice Weidel stating: “The SPD is above all a pensioners’ party.”

Mary Kahn, a newly elected MEP for the AfD, who was born in 1994, told Brussels Signal she was more than happy with her party’s success in Brandenburg, calling it “a historic result and a signal for the federal elections in 2025”.

She said the AfD was “the party of the future”.

“It’s also clear to see that young people are rejecting Green and Left politics,” Khan added.

“Having experienced the disastrous impact of mass migration, the costly pursuit of renewable energy and the crazy LGBT agenda, it can hardly come as a surprise.

“The AfD stands for prosperity, security and peace. Unlike other parties, we offer young people the opportunity to reconnect and embrace their cultural and historical roots. We are the only patriotic party who are proud to be German and proud to prioritise the needs of the German people.

“That’s why it’s clear for many young people that if they want positive change, they have to vote for the AfD,” she said.

Researchers have pointed out that younger voters and older voters seem to operate in differing realities, with life experiences and media consumption not the same.

German youth, seeing an influx of migrants in recent years, seem much less positive about the current demographic shift and accompanying societal changes. The bulk of their media consumption is online, including TikTok, Twitter and “reels” sent to each other.

Following the latest State elections, teachers’ associations have called for improved media education for students and teachers, claiming: “Social media often favour extremes.”

Free Democratic Party (FDP) leader Christian Lindner claimed young people no longer cared for climate,but were concerned with economic security and “the feeling that you can no longer openly say what you think”.

Psychologist Rüdiger Maas at the Institute for Generational Research recently told newspaper Die Welt, that Germany’s younger people “experience the influx of migrants much more directly than older people because they often share the same rooms with the refugees, in the outdoor pool, when they go out or at school”.

“The attacks of the last few weeks have also fuelled fears,” he added, referring to, among other assaults, a deadly stabbing spree linked to Islamic State in late August.

Neglecting young people during the Covid pandemic seemingly in favour of the older generation was also cited as a reason for the youth element’s electoral preferences.

In 2011 it was the SPD, the hard left Die Linke Party and the Greens who had changed the Brandenburg State Constitution and lowered the voting age to 16, apparently assuming they had that vote in their pockets.

AfD ‘party of the future’ as German youth swings Right (brusselssignal.eu)

Following his party’s disastrous results at recent regional elections in Germany, Christian Lindner, leader of the liberal Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) issued an ultimatum to his coalition partners in the German federal government: change course on migration and the economy, or the government will collapse.

The FDP, which has been a member of the so-called ‘traffic light’ coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens since 2021, suffered heavily in elections in the eastern states of Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg, receiving 0.89%, 1.12%, and 0.83% of the votes respectively. In nationwide surveys it is polling at less than 4%, meaning it would drop out of the federal parliament, the Bundestag, for only the second time in its history following next year’s elections.

Sonntagsfrage zur Bundestagswahl • INSA/BILD: CDU/CSU 32 % | AfD 20 % | SPD 15,5 % | BSW 10 % | GRÜNE 9,5 % | FDP 3,5 % | DIE LINKE 2,5 % | Sonstige 7 %
➤ Übersicht: https://t.co/Gzilw3J3L9
➤ Verlauf: https://t.co/vnhJf7ub9S pic.twitter.com/JjyiMRfdbz

— Wahlrecht.de (@Wahlrecht_de) September 23, 2024

Experts believe that the FDP’s participation in the coalition has forced the party to take leftist positions, thereby losing the trust of its voters. The party is known to be conservative on issues such as migration, the economy, and the budget, and has criticised its coalition partners for dismantling nuclear power plants too quickly.

The radical green policies, the tax hikes, and the lax attitude towards illegal migration have evidently put pressure on the party leadership, and in a vote earlier this year, the members of the party only narrowly voted for the FDP to remain in the coalition and keep the government intact.

The FDP’s most recent results seem to have spurred Christian Lindner to act, saying the upcoming months will be the “autumn of decisions,” meaning the coalition will have to change course on migration, stabilise the budget, and set up a program to induce economic growth. Lindner said his party would evaluate the work of the coalition based on these conditions. He did not, however, explicitly say whether a negative evaluation would result in the FDP leaving the government.

Others have been more outspoken. Deputy chairman Wolfgang Kubicki said “either the traffic light coalition shows that it can draw the necessary conclusions from these elections, or it ceases to exist.” He warned that the FDP would “not wait until Christmas.” Regarding the economy, he demanded structural reforms, and regarding migration, he said that the Greens cannot keep blocking decisions to introduce a tougher asylum policy.

“The AfD has not become strong because it is so great, but because we, the traffic light, are also failing on migration policy,” he emphasised, pointing to the right-wing anti-immigration AfD party’s success and its first-ever state election victory in Thuringia.

The FDP’s Bavarian branch leader Martin Hagen went even further by saying, “you have to be ready to pull the plug,” adding that “Germany needs an economic and migration policy U-turn, which does not seem possible with this coalition.”

The recent regional elections have also highlighted the downward spiral of the Greens, who barely managed to pass the 5% threshold needed to enter the Saxony parliament and failed to gain any seats in Thuringia and Brandenburg. According to the latest nationwide opinion polls, the party’s support has dropped to single digits (9.5%) for the first time in years.

The most popular party in national polls is the centre-right CDU/CSU alliance with 32%, the AfD is second at 20%, and the Social Democrats are polling at 15.5%.

https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/liberal-fdp-threatens-to-leave-german-government/

In a post-election interview with Alexander Gauland, German broadcaster rbb presenter Sascha Hingst said that people should find gang rape and knife terror less serious because they can still buy a kebab at his ‘little Turk’ (sic!) after 10 pm in the evening.

The state broadcaster not only outdid itself with its propaganda agitation before the elections in Brandenburg, Saxony and Thuringia, but also with its coverage of yesterday’s election results: there was not only the presenter who cut off Alice Weidel when she criticised the state broadcaster’s reporting. There was also German television journalist Carsten Behrendt, who could hardly contain his joy last night after the first forecast and celebrated the Greens’ 4.6 per cent as a “victory across the board” (not for the country, but for the party).

However, it was probably rbb presenter Sascha Hingst who took the cake when he talked to Alexander Gauland about gang rape being less of a problem because – note the arrogant ‘wording’ – he can still get a kebab at his ‘little Turk’ after 10pm in the evening.

People who don’t live in the state radio bubble may now be wondering what good the best kebab from the ‘little Turk’ can do if you are raped or stabbed on the way home – sometimes even both. Before and after. But that’s not the point…

ARD: Döner macht schöner – selbst Gruppenvergewaltigungen! (philosophia-perennis.com)

Keen observers will have noted a trend of late: The mainstream media is suddenly very, very fascinated with the subject of “polyamory.” For those blessedly unaware of what that is, “polyamory” is a cluster of people who are collectively intimate — so instead of couples, you have “throuples” and “quads” and beyond that, presumably, a harem or whatever. The term was coined around 1990, and with the success of the LGBT movement in redefining marriage and the natural family, the polyamorists are now beginning the push for state recognition of their weird arrangements.

Phase one has the been a wave of propaganda. Publications on both sides of the Atlantic have been covering sordid little stories about infidelity and love triangles with great vigor, as I reported earlier this year in The European Conservative. The New York Times published a review of Molly Roden Winter’s “open marriage” memoir titled “How a Polyamorous Mom Had ‘a Big Sexual Adventure’ and Found Herself.” The New Yorker published an essay titled “How Did Polyamory Become So Popular?” on Christmas Day. Time Magazine published an essay titled “Polyamory isn’t just for liberals,” which begins this way:

Polyamory seems to have burst upon the American mainstream over the past two decades. The deluge of podcasts, TV shows, books, and magazine articles detailing polycules, metamores, throuples, threesomes, and moresomes testifies to the growing number of Americans willing to jettison monogamy.

It has always grimly humorous to see the press breathlessly reporting on their own reporting. (“There has been increased media interest in polyamory,” the interested media reported polyamorously.) Presumably, the media knows why they have decided to dedicate so many resources to discussing why polyamory is a pretty good thing, actually, and it has quite a lot to do with the fact that they have served as the propaganda arm of the Sexual Revolution for decades now, and this is the latest thing. The most forthright contribution comes from New York Magazine, which dedicated its entire last issue to instructing its readers on how to go about things. Titled “Polyamory: A practical guide for the curious couple,” the issue’s cover featured a photo of four cats clutching each other.

Canadians will no doubt be unsurprised to hear that Trudeau’s Liberal government has gotten in on the game as well, but they may be shocked to discover how much it cost. According to a report by Cosmin Dzsurdzsa at True North, a Quebec study titled “Children’s views on the romantic partners of their polyamorous parents” in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, which was funded by a federal grant — the taxpayers — for a cool $70,662. The study, unsurprisingly, stated that children being exposed to polyamory was healthy and positive for their development. According to Dzsurdzsa:

Researchers interviewed 18 children between the ages of 5 and 16 years old. Three of the children in the cohort lived in households with their parents’ multiple sexual partners. Nine of the 10 households interviewed included adults who identified as LGBTQ+.

According to the study:

According to (polyamory)-practicing parents, exposing their children to (polyamory) teaches them to develop healthy, positive and respectful interpersonal relationships based on honest communication and transparency. As previously mentioned, most participating children mentioned more than one romantic partners in their lives.”

I could have told you that parents who sleep around would justify it by saying it was “good for their kids” for free, but the Canadian taxpayer had to pony up 70k for that gem. Utterly ignoring decades of research emphasizing the advantages of the natural family — and of children growing up with their mother and their father, rather than a parent and whoever that parent happens to be sleeping with at the moment — the researchers credulously reported that kids thought that their parent’s flavor of the month was someone who “expanded their circle of friends” or someone “who contributed to their material well-being.” As Dzsurdzsa summarized:

“For example, 9-year-old Ayden said he was able to create a special bond with one of his mother’s romantic partners, because he introduced him to a new hobby, which he now enjoyed doing with him: ‘One of the things that’s cool about him is that he’s the one who showed me how to do magic.,’” researchers wrote. One of the reasons cited as a benefit included that polyamorous partners gave kids “access to various material resources” like access to pools and gifts.

“Romantic partners were described by the children as contributing to their material comfort, by buying them things or sharing their possessions with them,” researchers wrote.  “For instance, 12-year-old Margo felt closer to her mother’s girlfriend than to her mother’s boyfriend. According to her, the fact that her mother’s girlfriend was younger than her mother’s boyfriend, and the fact that she was of the same gender as her meant that the two of them quickly found things in common,” the study reads.

In other words, the study is a very expensive exercise in listening to promiscuous adults justify their lifestyles. The study concluded that “ultimately, the presence of several loving and caring adults in the lives of their children is perceived by polyamorous parents as beneficial for the emotional, social and intellectual development of their children.” Key takeaway there: perceived by the parents. Children have suffered the most from the breakdown of the natural family as parent embark on their own selfish romantic adventures, and so in order to justify the Sexual Revolution, the press and the politicians and the academics collectively pretend that the kids would rather have access to a pool or magic tricks or presents than a stable family home that doesn’t revolve around their parents’ libidos and fetishes. It’s a sick joke — and, worse, we’re paying for this propaganda.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/mainstream-media-puts-spotlight-on-polyamory-as-latest-trend-in-sexually-deviant-behavior/?utm_source=most_recent&utm_campaign=usa

On Friday, rescue services responded to an emergency call in the 13th arrondissement of Paris and were greeted with a “scene of horror” after finding a rape victim nearly beaten to death inside an apartment.

The rescue workers were responding to an emergency call from the woman’s partner, who said she was in danger. The firefighters discovered an “unconscious woman” who was “partially undressed with her panties and pants removed.” The woman was lying on the ground and suffering from severe injuries across her body, including bruises, skin abrasions, and signs of strangulation. Her mouth and nose were also bloody.

Once inside the apartment, firefighters spotted the man accused of raping the victim, who immediately tried to escape, according to French newspaper JDD. The firefighters subdued the man after “very strong resistance,” according to a police source. The police arrived shortly thereafter and arrested him.

🇫🇷👩‍🦰 "Do you want to f**k me?"

This French woman can't even enjoy a morning on the beach without being sexually harassed.

This migrant man was arrested shortly after this incident for choking and assaulting another woman. pic.twitter.com/4PONWl4PR9

— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) September 12, 2024

Migrants and foreigners are responsible for a huge share of sexual violence against women in France. As Remix News has previously reported, rapes have soared in France in tandem with mass immigration, with the vast majority of suspects being foreigners. Now, in some cities, French women are afraid to walk the streets, and some are even assaulted for simply wearing a dress that foreign men deem to be too short.

The French feminist collective Collectif Némésis has been actively exposing the dangers posed by mass immigration and the deteriorating situation for Western women across the country. Many of the women belonging to the group have been delivering personal testimonials of the sexual harassment and abuse they have suffered, especially from North Africans, also known as Maghrebis.

https://rmx.news/article/scene-of-horror-french-woman-raped-and-left-for-dead-in-paris-foreigner-who-barely-speaks-french-arrested/

While bathroom etiquette might not be the most exciting subject, it’s a crucial aspect of travelling, particularly in Greece. Unlike many other countries, Greece has distinct regulations about what should not be flushed down the toilet. Knowing these rules is essential to prevent embarrassing incidents.

In Greece, only human waste should be flushed. Toilet paper, sanitary products, and other items must be disposed of in the garbage can next to the toilet. Ignoring this rule can lead to clogged pipes—something no traveller wants to deal with!

The reason for this strict guideline lies in the plumbing. Greek pipes are narrower than U.S. pipes, typically around 2 inches in diameter—about half the size of American plumbing. Adjusting to this practice might take some time, but it’s a necessary precaution.

You’ll likely encounter restroom signs reminding you not to flush paper, but these may not always specify toilet paper. For hygiene reasons, it’s advisable to wrap your paper in clean sheets before discarding it. Don’t worry; everyone follows this practice, so there’s no judgment.

While some newer buildings have upgraded plumbing capable of handling toilet paper, these are the exception rather than the rule.

Greece, along with Turkey, Egypt, Thailand, and Vietnam, advises against flushing toilet paper. It’s wise to carry additional tissues when travelling to be prepared in the event that a public restroom is out of supplies.

Additionally, be prepared for squat toilets in some places, which require a bit of practice. Knowing basic phrases like “Where is the bathroom?” or “Can I have more toilet paper?” can also help ease your travel experience.

For a smooth trip, consider using translation apps to communicate effectively. By following these tips, you can confidently navigate Greece’s restroom rules and focus on enjoying your travels.

The Toilet Paper Mistake You Should Avoid At All Costs When Visiting Greece (greekcitytimes.com)

by Giulio Meotti

Sometimes it seems that the UN Secretary General draws inspiration from George Orwell’s “1984” for his press releases. Like when he said that October 7 did not happen “out of nowhere”. In short, Israel was asking for it.

Regarding the explosions against Hezbollah in Beirut, Antonio Guterres asked “not to turn civilian objects into weapons”. It is not right to detonate pagers and walkie talkies in the pockets of Lebanese Shiite terrorists. It goes without saying that the Secretary General did not ask himself why the Iranian ambassador to Beirut, Mojtaba Amani, also had a Hezbollah pager. The UN does not do well on asking itself such questions.

And so many Westerners are too busy criticizing evil Israel to ask themselves why a high-ranking Iranian official was so close to a Hezbollah pager. We all know why.

Nor has Guterres ever asked Hamas not to “turn civilian objects into weapons,” as it has done every day since October 7 and with every civilian resource in Gaza: schools, homes, UN offices, mosques, water and electricity systems, hospitals, ambulances.

Guterres simply cannot say “Hezbollah,” not even when they fired a missile at the Majdal Shams soccer field in the Golan Heights at the end of July, killing twelve children. The secretary’s statement leaves no trace of who launched the missile.

After October 7, it was clear how well Hamas had cultivated public relations in the West. The same goes for Hezbollah.

The flags of the Lebanese “party of God” (a yellow banner with a Kalashnikov and a verse from the Koran in the center) now fly openly on American campuses, from Columbia to Hunter College in New York, to marches for Gaza in European cities from London to Berlin. Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s second-in-command, encouraged student protests in the West, as did his godfather, the Iranian Ayatollah Khamenei.

Noam Chomsky, the famous American linguist and godfather of so much Western antagonism, even visited Hezbollah’s headquarters and met its leader Nasrallah.

“I think Nasrallah has a reasoned and convincing argument that they should be in Hezbollah’s hands (the weapons) as a deterrent to potential aggression,” Chomsky said. “Hamas and Hezbollah are progressive movements that are part of the global left,” said Berkeley philosopher Judith Butler in a video that caused a scandal. George Galloway, leader of the radical independent left in England, worked for Al Mayadeen, the pro-Hezbollah Lebanese channel (one of the many Islamist channels to which Galloway has lent his services). And with Galloway, Jeremy Corbyn’s group, which he called Hamas and Hezbollah “friends.”

Officials close to Hezbollah represent the group at meetings of the World Social Forum. An Italian academic delegation also left from Rome’s University of La Sapienza to meet Hezbollah.

And how much Hezbollah has been able to build bridges in the West was seen at the most prestigious Canadian university, McGill in Montreal.

First the partnership with the University of Tehran. Then McGill professors, like Soroosh Shahriari, who tweeted in support of the Islamic Republic’s brutal repression of the women-led uprising against the forced use of the hijab in response to the murder of Mahsa Amini. Then, in 2024, the university that was occupied in the name of Gaza, displaying Hamas and Hezbollah flags and even setting up student summer camps where they learned to fight Israel. Finally, the disinformation experts who found that the anti-Israel protests at McGill University were fueled by a social media campaign with ties to Iran.

And like Hamas, Hezbollah also benefits from the double standards of some of the press.

In late July, the Washington Post apologized for its front page the day before, which juxtaposed an image of family members grieving for a child killed in a Hezbollah rocket attack on the Golan Heights with a headline that read: “Israel Strikes Targets in Lebanon”. The subheading that accompanied the image didn’t even mention the Hezbollah rocket attack that killed twelve Druze children playing on a soccer field in Majdal Shams.

And with thousands of rockets fired by Hezbollah into Israel since October 7, with 43 Israelis killed, and 60.000 Israelis forced to evacuate northern Israel, one can imagine many more Western Nasrallah fans on the way.

Ed. note:

But facts are facts. Famed Syrian-Druze journalist, Faisal Al-Qassem, who has millions of followers on social media, including a program on Al-Jazeera, wrote the following about the pager operation: “What happened to Hezbollah today can be classified as the largest preemptive strike in modern history. It can be compared to Israel’s preemptive strike on the Egyptian Air Force before the Six-Day War. Today, Hezbollah has thousands of paralyzed members among its senior leaders and operatives.” And he adds: “If Hezbollah enters a war now, its wounded will not find a single available bed in Lebanon’s hospitals, as they are currently full of casualties. Worse yet, Hezbollah has lost its most important security and military communication devices. Checkmate.”

Hezbollah’s many friends in the West | Israel National News – Arutz Sheva

The Church of England (CoE) has come under fire for advertising for its “head of racial justice priority” role, which offers a salary of £66,646 a year.

The successful candidate, who will earn double the salary of vicars, will be responsible for the creation of a “racially just church” in the Diocese of London. Parish priests in the diocese currently receive a stipend £31,644.

The role is described as “an exciting opportunity to lead the Diocese of London’s priority of a more racially-just Church and we are looking for a collaborative leader who has vision to see change, tenacity to deliver and the confidence to challenge and inspire”.

It is one of a number of “racial justice” positions rolled out by the CoE in recent years as part of diversity, equality and inclusion initiatives.

This position in London boasts the highest salary offered so far for one of these types of roles.

The Lead Bishop on Racial Justice, the Bishop of Edmonton Rt Rev Canon Dr Anderson Jeremiah said the Church is at “a pivotal moment to commit our resources into tangible action, prayerfully enabling the Church to become more racially just”.

The lucky candidate will “foster a culture… built on love, fairness, equity, justice, collaboration and integrity”, “break down mental, cultural and institutional barriers… to engender true race equality” and help “address the historical legacy of slavery and challenge systemic racism”.

However, some have criticised the salary for being excessive and an “insult” to existing clergy members.

The Rev Marcus Walker, the rector of St Bartholomew the Great in the City of London, told The Telegraph: “Dioceses can’t wave deficit-riddled accounts at parishes, demanding over £100,000 in parish share, and then pull this kind of salary out of nowhere.

Catholic priest Ed Tomlinson wrote: “Salaries like this are an insult to hard working and often under valued clergy.”

Another user described the salary as ”an appalling waste of money (and a disgrace that the clergy – of all people – have to be treated in such a patronising way)”.

Responding to the criticism, Jeremiah said: “The issues of clergy pay and racial justice are entirely distinct. Clergy pay in the Church of England is being looked at very carefully at a national level.

“However, conflating these two issues undermines each of their importance to the Church, and detracts from the work underway to address them both as challenges.

“The Diocese makes no apologies for making racial justice a priority. Racial injustice is part of the history of this Diocese, and of the Church of England.

“If we want a safe and equitable church – whether in ministry, vocation or administration – credible change cannot be achieved in a vacuum. It requires concerted time, effort and resources. That is why this role is so important.”

In February, the Rt Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin, the Bishop of Dover, told the General Synod in February that Anglicans needed to “further embed racial justice” in the Church.

She added that the church should not be afraid of being called “woke”and continue in their diversity, equality and inclusion initiatives.

https://www.gbnews.com/news/church-of-england-racial-justice-job-paying-controversy

In the regional and Senate elections in the Czech Republic, the right-wing ANO (Action of Dissatisfied Citizens – Akce Nespokojených Občanů) party, a member of the Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament, won big.

The Greens, on the other hand, lost 97 per cent of their seats.

Populist former prime minister Andrej Babis led his ANO party to a landslide victory in the election on September 21.

ANO won 10 of the 13 regions contested, securing a total of 291 local council seats – up 119 seats compared to the previous election.

In two regions, ANO is now able to govern without forming a coalition.

Its party leader Andrej Babiš has hailed the victory in the regions as “a phenomenal success”. He gave the lion’s share of the credit to party deputy leader Karel Havlíček, who actively helped campaigning, particularly in Central Bohemia where the party won an unexpected and convincing victory.

ANO is the main opposition party in Czechia and has positioned itself increasingly to the Right, turning into a populist, Conservative and nationalist party after it left the Liberal Renew group in the European Parliament.

For the first time in Czech history, five senators were elected in the first round. Two from the ANO party, one Christian Democrat, one Social Democrat and one independent. Over the weekend of September 28, the other 22 Senate seats will be voted on in run-offs.

Elections for one-third of the 81 Senate seats are held every two years, Senators are elected for a six-year term.

Amid Cyclone Boris that flooded large areas of Central Europe recently, including in the Czech Republic, Greens took the biggest beating.

The party lost nearly all their seats, ending up with just three. The Greens previously had 99 seats via the Pirate Party and eight via Zeleni. The Pirates lost 96 seats and Zeleni all of theirs.

Leader of the Pirate Party Ivan Bartoš announced that the party’s leadership would resign at an upcoming conference that will examine the causes behind the group’s implosion.

He said Pirate councillors in the various regions had done a great deal of work but he was disappointed with the vote result. In recent weeks, the party leader has come under fire for what many saw as the poorly executed digitisation of the country’s building permits system.

Zeleni’s leadership also resigned. Green co-chair Magdalena Davis said the election result was “a major failure”.

“I accept full responsibility for the result and will resign from my position, together with the other members of the Presidium.”

She went on to complain about “the growing trend of ‘oligarchisation’ of politics“.

“We are not backed by any lobby groups that would finance our election campaigns in exchange for later ‘services’, only a number of small donors like you or me,” Davis added.

The Conservative-Liberal party ODS of current Prime Minster Petr Fiala, and part of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) in the EP, had a fairly good result, gaining eight seats, leaving it with 106 overall and securing the second spot across the board. ODS said it did not expect these results to impact the national government.

Voter turnout was only around 33 per cent.

The average age of elected councillors was 50.77 years. The oldest councillor is 76 years old, the youngest 20 years old. In regional councils, 540 men and 145 women will have a seat, according to the Czech Statistical office.

Czechia, regional parliament elections, 99.37% counted:

Seats won by party

ANO-PfE: 291 (+119)
ODS-ECR: 106 (+8)
STAN-EPP: 93 (+5)
KDU/ČSL-EPP: 48 (-8)
SPD-ESN: 32 (+7)
KSČM-NI: 33 (+21)
TOP 09-EPP: 16 (-4)
SocDem-S&D: 13 (-21)
Piráti-G/EFA: 3 (-96)

+/- vs. 2020 regional… pic.twitter.com/fDCNBUA2qR

— Europe Elects (@EuropeElects) September 21, 2024

Right wins regional elections in Czechia, Greens obliterated (brusselssignal.eu)

A Syrian migrant in Germany found guilty of raping a 13-year-old girl and repeatedly masturbating in front of another 11-year-old girl he groomed on Snapchat has been jailed for four and a half years.

The 26-year-old defendant was convicted at the Ellwangen regional court on Friday in relation to crimes committed back in April last year.

The court held that the man from Syria had used the Snapchat messaging app, popular with the younger demographic, to initiate conversations with minors. One schoolgirl he spoke to on the app agreed to meet with him at a sports field near her home last spring where she was forced to have sexual intercourse without a condom.

At the trial, a key witness was the victim’s cousin whom the girl had spoken to about her fledgling relationship with the defendant and whom she walked to the sports field with.

The court heard how after the rape the victim tearfully confided in her cousin, telling her she had had sexual intercourse with the defendant but had been forced to and told him several times she didn’t want it.

The schoolgirl also told her cousin that the defendant had threatened to kill her if she told anyone about the assault.

“She was afraid to tell her parents,” the witness told the court.

When the defendant was confronted about the death threat by the cousin over the telephone, he dismissed it as a joke.

In a separate incident, the Syrian migrant was also convicted for his inappropriate relationship with another minor, an 11-year-old girl whom he invited to his apartment “to cuddle.” Both victims had met the man through Snapchat.

Once there, he masturbated in front of her several times.

The girl told her mother about the incident who then filed a police report.

The first victim had taken a photograph of the man, which was used by the police to identify the suspect and arrest him. A request for information was also sent to Snapchat, which provided his email address and full name.

“The verdict is a severe punishment because you have committed a grave injustice,” the presiding judge, Jochen Fleischer said during the sentencing hearing.

The defendant was handed three years and nine months for the rape of the 13-year-old victim, and one year and six months for the sexual abuse of children without physical contact in relation to the 11-year-old girl.

The court ordered for part of the sentences to run concurrently for a total prison sentence of four years and six months.

https://rmx.news/article/syrian-child-rapist-jailed-in-germany-for-attacks-on-13-and-11-year-old-schoolgirls-he-groomed-on-snapchat/