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A30 world news
Diaranson 6 october 2021

Belarus parliament votes to suspend readmission of migrants

unusually high number of Monday for humanitarian as-
migrants, most from Iraq and sistance for the migrants.
Afghanistan, arriving at their
borders with Belarus in re- Speaking in the Belarusian
cent months. They have ac- parliament, Belarus’ Interior
cused Lukashenko of encour- Minister Ivan Kubrakov de-
aging the flow of migrants scribed the suspension of the
and using them as a weapon readmission agreement as a
in what they described as “temporary measure,” adding
a “hybrid war” against the that the readmission agree-
27-nation bloc in retaliation ment with the EU could
for its sanctions on Belarus. come back into effect “after
relations normalize.”
The EU sanctions were put
into place after the Belarus Pavel Latushko, a leading
government cracked down figure of the Belarusian op-
harshly on anti-government position who lives in Poland,
protesters in 2020 and were charged that Belarusian au-
tightened this year after Be- thorities have encouraged the
larus forcibly diverted a pas- flow of migrants to the EU.
senger plane to arrest an op-
position journalist. “Lukashenko is taking re-
venge against the EU by
(AP) — Lawmakers in upper house of the Belaru- that the nation can’t afford Poland has responded to the unleashing a hybrid war and
Belarus have voted to sian parliament formalizes the costs involved in stem- large-scale migration by de- using refugees to openly
suspend an agreement the move that was announced ming the flow of migrants ploying troops, refusing to blackmail European authori-
with the European Union by Belarus’ President Alexan- heading to Europe and would let migrants apply for asylum ties,” Latushko told The As-
obliging the ex-Soviet na- der Lukashenko in June. instead use the funds to offset and pushing some back across sociated Press. “Migration is
tion to take back migrants the impact of EU sanctions. the border into Belarus. The part of a broad campaign of
that crossed its territory Lukashenko and his officials tough approach has drawn confrontation with the West
into the EU. have described the measure Belarus’ EU neighbors Po- criticism from human rights pursued by the Belarusian
as part of Belarus’ response land and Lithuania have been groups. Poland’s influential authorities.”
The vote late Monday in the to the EU sanctions, arguing struggling to cope with an Catholic Church appealed

French child kidnap plot shows global sway of QAnon style

(AP) — The old mu- rope have committed a crime Bloom said. mains under judicial supervi- sion until her trial.
sic box factory had been linked to the QAnon-style
abandoned for years on web of false beliefs that sent Part of QAnon’s loose col-
the outskirts of the Swiss hundreds to storm the U.S. lection of beliefs is specific
mountain town, with Capitol on Jan. 6. It shows to the United States, where
paint curling at the edges how what was once a strictly the conspiracy theory began.
of its dingy grey and yel- U.S. movement has metasta- But the conviction that there
low walls. sized around the world, with is a deep state conspiracy and
Europol, the European um- cabals of government-spon-
It was the perfect hiding place brella policing agency, adding sored child traffickers crosses
for the young French mother QAnon to its list of threats borders, as does anti-vaccine
and her 8-year-old daugh- in June. QAnon influence rhetoric since the start of the
ter at the heart of Operation has now been tracked to 85 pandemic.
Lima, an international child countries, and its beliefs have
abduction plot planned and been adapted to local contexts The abduction of Mia was
funded by a French group and languages from Hindi to inspired by a former politi-
with echoes of the far-right Hebrew. cian who promised to save
extremist movement QA- child trafficking victims and
non. A California father this sum- lead France back to its former
mer took his two children to greatness. The AP pieced the
Lola Montemaggi had lost Mexico and killed them un- story together from inter-
custody of her daughter, Mia, der the influence of “QAnon views with investigators and
to her own mother months and Illuminati conspiracy lawyers, as well as thousands
earlier because French gov- theories,” federal authorities of online messages, show-
ernment child protective say. QAnon supporters also ing how QAnon-style beliefs
services feared the young have been linked to at least six draw in the vulnerable and
woman was unstable. Mon- attempted kidnappings in the connect them in often dan-
temaggi found people online United States, convinced that gerous ways.
who shared the QAnon be- children are falling victim to
lief that government workers pedophiles, according to Mia Two men charged in the ab-
themselves were running a Bloom, who documented the duction were charged — and
child trafficking ring. Then abductions for her book on two others were arrested
she turned to her network QAnon published this sum- Tuesday — in an unrelated
to do what she needed to do: mer. far-right plot against vac-
Extract Mia. cine centers and government
“If someone is trying to ministries, a judicial official
The April 13 kidnapping of get back their child and said on condition of anonym-
the girl from her grandmoth- says they’re with this cabal, ity to discuss the fast-moving
er’s home marked what is be- there’s now a support net- investigation. Montemaggi
lieved to be the first time that work where before QAnon was freed Monday after near-
conspiracy theorists in Eu- it would not have existed,” ly six months in jail, but re-