cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/80533 > Spy balloons, used by Japan to drop bombs during World War II, are now far more sophisticated, can fly at up to 200,000 feet, evade detection, and can carry a small nuclear bomb that, if exploded in the atmosphere, would shut down the grid and wipe out electronics in a many-state-wide area. > > "China’s recent balloon flyover of the United States is clearly a provocative and aggressive act. It was most likely a type of dry run meant to send a strategic message to the USA. We must not take this for granted.” > > EMP experts have warned that China, North Korea, Russia, and Iran have programs to hit the U.S. grid with electromagnetic pulse weapons that would cut the cord for a year or longer. A congressional report has warned that a blackout that long could result in millions of deaths.

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/68586 > - Serbia > - Disputed Border Between China And India > - Taiwan > - Iran > - Ukraine

In December, Iran asked Russia for help in quelling the popular uprising and asked for equipment to fight the protests as well as advisers for training, the Iran International TV channel reported, citing secret documents. The Iranian Interior Ministry officially recognized the deaths of 200 citizens during the protests. According to human rights activists, the death toll is more than 460.

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/64005 > Briar is a messaging app designed for activists, journalists, and anyone else who needs a safe, easy and robust way to communicate. Unlike traditional messaging apps, Briar doesn't rely on a central server - messages are synchronized directly between the users' devices. If the internet's down, Briar can sync via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, keeping the information flowing in a crisis. If the internet's up, Briar can sync via the Tor network, protecting users and their relationships from surveillance.

The real war against women

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/56930 > Saudi officials said Iran is poised to carry out attacks on both the kingdom and Erbil, Iraq, in an effort to distract attention from domestic protests that have roiled the country since September.

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/55089 > “Since 2015, the Iranian government has gradually introduced biometric ID cards that include a chip in which data such as iris scans, fingerprints and facial images are stored. > > Today there are concerns that such information held by the state may be used in conjunction with facial recognition technology to identify people who violate the mandatory dress code, both on the streets and on the Internet. Many analysts point out that Iran’s government is now able to track its citizens very easily wherever they are.” > > Meanwhile, “some of the women arrested for defying the new August 15 decree were identified after videos were posted online of them being harassed on public transportation because they were not wearing the garment properly.” In short, it is the police as automated management of the polis that makes the morality police more effective and oppressive. > > The servility and fanatical adherence of so many oppressed people who become oppressors themselves, on the other hand, are abjections that run through all degrees of technical development.

The Iran Human Rights Group reported 92 people have been killed, 41 just on Friday.

Do Omar, Tlaib, and AOC just want the Iran protests to go away because Iran’s repressive and bloodthirsty regime interferes with their “Islamophobia” narrative? Sure looks like it.

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/48121 > In Iran, demand for VPN downloads increased by more than 3000 percent in September, according to TopVPN100.com. > > Yet, other countries too have seen surges this year. > > For instance, Sri Lanka saw a 17,000 percent increase in VPN downloads on April 3 2022, when social media platforms Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp were banned. > > The internet blackout came as the government enforced a curfew, attempting to keep protesters from hitting the streets over a disastrous economic downturn, mainly attributed to governmental mishandling, which led to major food and fuel shortages.

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/48111 > Help users in totalitarian regimes access Signal

Ghazaleh Chelavi was shouting: “We are all #MahsaAmini”. Now indeed she is another Mahsa and now herself got killed by police in Iran. international media ask my if we Iranians trust that the regime said they will investigation the death of Mahsa. No and this is the reason. Another woman, Hananeh Kia, 23 years old, was shot by Iranian security forces while she was protesting over the murder of #MahsaAmini in Nowshar city. She is one of the dozens of ppl lost their lives during the ongoing protests. The world must take action against our killers.

cross-posted from: https://exploding-heads.com/post/45896 > "[T]he sick delusional motivation to westernize and highjack Amini’s death is disgusting. No, there is no comparison in the west. Stop comparing your 'struggle' to theirs. It’s not the same and it’s disgusting,"

The regime’s anti-riot police were seen firing on protesters with an AK-47. The sniper was aiming precisely at the protesters in the crowd and firing his weapon.

cross-posted from: https://community.hackliberty.org/post/4425 > Just over a week ago, we announced that Iranian censors had started blocking all Signal traffic in the country. As an interim solution to help people in Iran get connected again, we’ve added support in Signal for a simple TLS proxy that is easy to set up, can be used to bypass the network block, and will securely route traffic to the Signal service.