December 20, 2020 – Page 3 – THE OVAL CIRCLE

USA

NYTimes retracts ‘Caliphate’ podcast & reassigns reporter, admitting star ‘ISIS executioner’ likely never went to Syria

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

The NY Times has finally retracted its award-winning podcast about a Canadian-born Islamic State executioner, months after Ottawa discovered he’d made it all up, admitting their fact-checking was “not sufficiently rigorous.” … Read More >NYTimes retracts ‘Caliphate’ podcast & reassigns reporter, admitting star ‘ISIS executioner’ likely never went to Syria

Russia

Pompeo labels Putin ‘enemy’ of freedom as Trump era ends in war of words with Russia

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

Any hopes Moscow may have that relations with the US could improve during Donald Trump’s final month in office are likely fading, as Mike Pompeo claimed Russia is an “enemy” of the US amid a growing spat between the two nations. … Read More >Pompeo labels Putin ‘enemy’ of freedom as Trump era ends in war of words with Russia

Russia

Cosmonauts to intensify search for leak on ageing International Space Station amid concerns over DEPLETING oxygen reserves

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

Mission control has asked cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to find the source of a leak from Russia’s Zvezda module on the facility, warning that the craft has been losing its reserve supply of oxygen. … Read More >Cosmonauts to intensify search for leak on ageing International Space Station amid concerns over DEPLETING oxygen reserves

Russia

Cuff luck! Russian Police officer dodges death when drug dealer opens fire, with bullet lodging in cop’s handcuffs (VIDEO)

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

They’re designed to stop people from getting away, but one Russian policeman owes his lucky escape to a pair of handcuffs, after they stopped a bullet heading for his chest during an attempt to arrest a suspect. … Read More >Cuff luck! Russian Police officer dodges death when drug dealer opens fire, with bullet lodging in cop’s handcuffs (VIDEO)

Russia

‘We need more public diplomacy, not less’: ex-Ambassador McFaul ‘saddened’ by US closing last two regional consulates in Russia

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

The former Obama-era US envoy to Russia, Michael McFaul, has criticized Washington for shutting down its last remaining regional consulates in Russia. Ties between the two nations have been severely degraded in recent years. … Read More >‘We need more public diplomacy, not less’: ex-Ambassador McFaul ‘saddened’ by US closing last two regional consulates in Russia

Russia

Major fire engulfs administrative building in Moscow, prompting mass evacuation (VIDEO)

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

Two dozen firetrucks have been called on site to tackle a major blaze in an administrative building located on one of Moscow’s main transport arteries. Some forty people were evacuated. … Read More >Major fire engulfs administrative building in Moscow, prompting mass evacuation (VIDEO)

Russia

Russian officer killed in explosion in Nagorno-Karabakh as troops help de-mine post-war landscape

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

A Russian sapper has been killed in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, after an explosive device went off during the de-mining efforts that have been ongoing since the Moscow-brokered truce between Armenia and Azerbaijan. … Read More >Russian officer killed in explosion in Nagorno-Karabakh as troops help de-mine post-war landscape

USA

FDA investigating allergic reactions to Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine after multiple incidents

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to find the “culprit” behind reports of allergic reactions to the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine. … Read More >FDA investigating allergic reactions to Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine after multiple incidents

USA

Trump lashes out at media for blaming ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ for hacking, says it ‘may be China’

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

President Donald Trump has broken with the media and his own Secretary of State, brushing aside allegations that Russia was behind a massive computer hack. Trump instead claimed that the real culprit could be Beijing. … Read More >Trump lashes out at media for blaming ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ for hacking, says it ‘may be China’

USA

Soros-funded Los Angeles DA stokes more outrage by calling family of murder victim too uneducated to ‘KEEP THEIR MOUTH SHUT’

Posted on December 20, 2020December 20, 2020By Editor

The new Los Angeles County prosecutor, elected with funding from billionaire George Soros, has inflamed tensions over his left-wing policies by calling family members of a murder victim too uneducated to “keep their mouth shut.” … Read More >Soros-funded Los Angeles DA stokes more outrage by calling family of murder victim too uneducated to ‘KEEP THEIR MOUTH SHUT’