Tag: veterans

Israeli Legal Group Unveils ‘Self-Defense’ App to Protect IDF Veterans from Foreign Arrest Campaigns

Israeli legal advocacy group Shurat HaDin has launched a new app designed to protect Israel Defense Forces (IDF) veterans from efforts to arrest them while traveling abroad, with the organization’s president warning that pro-Palestinian groups are actively tracking Israeli soldiers and pursuing legal action against them in foreign countries.

Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, founder and president of Shurat HaDin-Israel Law Center, told Breitbart News that the threat has become serious enough that Israeli diplomatic officials are regularly warning veterans about potential efforts to detain them.

“It’s a real danger because pro-Palestinian organizations, like Hind Rajab or the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, are tracing IDF soldiers,” Darshan-Leitner said. “Every week there are soldiers who get warnings from the Israeli consulate or the Israeli ambassador to leave a certain country because of an arrest warrant that these organizations are seeking against them.”

Shurat HaDin launched the app, called Shachpatz — Hebrew for “bulletproof vest” — in late August to give veterans a centralized system for preparing to travel, receiving warnings while abroad, and obtaining assistance if they encounter legal trouble.

The app incorporates travel warnings and alerts from Israel’s Foreign Ministry and IDF, legal information, emergency and diplomatic contacts, a pre-travel checklist, and instructions explaining what travelers should do if questioned or detained.

Darshan-Leitner said the organization has also assembled a “war room” of more than 600 lawyers across 17 countries prepared to provide emergency legal assistance.

“If something happens, we put it on the app. If somebody else hears about it, they immediately put it on the app,” she explained. “It has instructions on what to do to try to avoid such an incident, how to take care of yourself before you travel, what to be alert to when you travel, and what to do if you get interrogated or arrested.”

Travelers can also report their own experiences, allowing Israelis to alert one another about hostile incidents or identify destinations where they have been treated particularly well.

“You know, they protected us, so now we have to protect them,” Darshan-Leitner said. The goal, she added, is to create “a community of travelers from Israel” capable of warning one another when problems arise.

Darshan-Leitner identified Belgium, South Africa, Canada, Thailand, and the Netherlands among countries where she believes Israeli veterans face heightened legal risks, pointing particularly to countries whose legal systems recognize forms of universal jurisdiction.

She sharply rejected the premise that foreign courts should be policing the conduct of Israeli soldiers, arguing that Israel maintains its own system for investigating allegations of misconduct by its forces.

“Israel does not need a foreign country to govern its soldiers,” she said. “Israel has a very strong law-enforcement system that prosecutes soldiers if they need to.”

Darshan-Leitner argued that the groups pursuing Israeli veterans are ultimately interested less in securing convictions than in generating the spectacle of an Israeli soldier being detained abroad.

“All they need to claim a victory is a photo of an IDF soldier arrested in a foreign airport,” she said.

Such an arrest, she warned, could have repercussions far beyond the individual involved by making reservists reluctant to travel and potentially causing young Israelis preparing for military service to reconsider joining combat units.

“People who served in reserve 300 days or 600 days and now want to go on vacation to chill out shouldn’t be afraid to go everywhere in the world,” she said.

Shurat HaDin’s involvement in the issue predates the current war. Darshan-Leitner said the organization has spent roughly 15 years fighting legal actions targeting Israeli soldiers and officials, including proceedings involving the International Criminal Court.

The organization has also pursued legal actions of its own against Hamas and Palestinian Authority officials and challenged international legal proceedings against Israeli officials.

Earlier this year, Shurat HaDin filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court against Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and other senior Spanish officials, alleging that Madrid enabled Iran’s “terror machine” through the export of dual-use components to the Islamic Republic.

Darshan-Leitner described Shachpatz as an extension of that broader legal campaign, but one aimed directly at protecting individual Israelis before an attempted detention can become an international incident.

“This time, the act is actually an act of self-defense,” she said, “to defend the IDF soldiers and do anything possible in order to prevent such arrest warrants.”

Because Shachpatz had been available for only about a week when Darshan-Leitner spoke with Breitbart News, the app itself had not yet been used to intervene in an attempted arrest, although Shurat HaDin had previously assisted Israelis facing legal threats abroad through its existing network.

Thousands of people had already downloaded the app, she said.

“We don’t want to see it happen,” Darshan-Leitner said of an arrest attempt requiring the app’s emergency resources, “but I’m sure it will become handy, unfortunately.”

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U.S. Military Veterans Appeal Directly to Trump to Help Uncover the MMTLP Financial Scandal

After Years of Regulatory Stonewalling, Veterans Are Taking Their Fight Straight to Their Commander in Chief

American military veterans caught in the unresolved MMTLP financial debacle are taking their fight directly to President Donald Trump.

MMTLP (Meta Materials Class A Preferred Stock) is a controversial security that was abruptly frozen by FINRA in December 2022, leaving thousands of retail investors unable to trade or exit their positions.

After more than three years of unanswered questions, regulatory roadblocks, and congressional inaction, affected veterans say they have exhausted the normal chain of command.

Now they are going to the top.

The President of the United States.

For these veterans, this is no longer simply a story about a stock ticker.

It is about trust.

It is about accountability.

And it is about whether the federal agencies responsible for protecting American investors are willing to show the public what really happened.

VETERANS FOLLOWED THE CHAIN OF COMMAND

Military veterans understand the chain of command.

When something goes wrong, you document it.

You report it.

You move it up the chain.

That is exactly what veterans inside the MMTLP community say they have done.

They contacted state securities regulators, Attorneys General, Congress and the SEC, and filed Freedom of Information Act requests. They asked for investigations, meetings and the records.

And after more than three years, they still do not believe they have received a full accounting of what happened.

The consequences have been real.

Veteran advocates say members of the broader MMTLP community have lost homes, retirement savings and marriages. They also report suicides among affected investors.

For veterans watching their fellow service members suffer, enough is enough.

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Veterans For Peace Condemns Marco Rubio’s Threats Against Cuba and Against US Peace and Solidarity Activists

Veterans For Peace has issued a strong condemnation of Marco Rubio’s McCarthyite report, Cuba, the Capital of 21st Century Communism, which was released by the State Department on July 20. The 100-page document charges Cuba with interfering in the internal affairs of the United States, while accusing U.S. peace and solidarity activists of being foreign agents of Cuba.

“Talk about turning things on their head,” responded Veterans For Peace. “It is the U.S. that has waged an economic war against Cuba for 64 years with a blockade that prevents it from normal trade relations with the U.S. and other countries, stunts its economic development, and denies it access to medicines and other essentials.

“It is the U.S. CIA that organized a failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in 1961, setting the stage for the 1962 Cuban missile crisis that almost led to a nuclear war. It is the U.S. that is currently enforcing a deadly oil embargo on Cuba, and it is the U.S. president and secretary of state who are openly threatening a U.S. military invasion of Cuba. What has Cuba ever done to the U.S.? Cuba is being punished for declaring its independence from U.S. imperialism and for attempting to develop a socialist economic model that is not based on exploitation and profiteering.

“We reject the Trump administration’s sudden return to “anti-communism” as a means of undermining the credibility of its political opponents — whether from the Democratic Party or actual left-wing organizations. If this is an attempt to intimidate those who are organizing for a just and peaceful world, it will not work. We will not be intimidated. If Trump’s and Rubio’s sudden obsession with “communists” and “political terrorists” is telegraphing their intention for a clampdown on dissent in the U.S., we take this very seriously.

“As veterans and active duty military, we swore an oath to “defend the U.S. Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic.”  We take this oath very seriously — more so than ever as the domestic enemies of our democracy ominously rear their ugly heads.  We will resist.

“Veterans For Peace will not be intimidated. We stand in solidarity with Cuba and with all those who struggle for human rights and democracy in the U.S. We will support active-duty military members who refuse to participate in an illegal invasion of Cuba. We also encourage service members to refuse illegal orders to support racist ICE raids or to suppress our First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and assembly in the U.S.” 

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Major VA study to examine effectiveness of psilocybin on depression, PTSD

The Department of Veterans Affairs is launching research to determine whether psilocybin — the psychoactive ingredient in “magic mushrooms” — can be used safely and effectively to address veterans’ treatment-resistant depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The trial, known as the Psilocybin Intervention for Veterans Overcoming Treatment-Resistant Depression,” or PIVOT, study aims to include at least 240 veterans, all of whom have difficult-to-treat major depressive disorder and some who also have PTSD.

The study will take place at five VA medical centers through June 2031 and will assess patients’ levels of depression before and after treatment, side effects and overall response among participants.

“Far too many veterans are living with mental health conditions that don’t respond to available treatments,” VA Secretary Doug Collinssaid in a statement. “Under President [Donald] Trump, VA is pursuing all avenues to evaluate new treatments and offer meaningful relief for those who have worn the uniform. This clinical trial reflects another step toward this goal.”

Last month, researchers with Ohio State University’s Center for Psychedelic Drug Research and Education published the findings of a small, 12-person study on the safety of using psilocybin to treat severe PTSD in veterans.

After receiving eight hours of psychotherapy and two doses of synthetic psilocybin and integrative therapy, nine participants, or 75%, no longer met the clinical criteria for having PTSD.

According to the research, published July 30 in Communications Medicine, participants showed no serious adverse effects, including suicidal ideation or behavior. Non-serious side effects included headache, anxiety and dizziness.

“For a population with severe treatment-resistant PTSD, these results are striking,” said Stacey Armstrong, associate director and senior researcher at the center.

The PIVOT study will involve veterans with major depressive disorder who have not responded to current treatments, including those with or without a diagnosis of PTSD. In the double-blind, randomized trial, veterans will receive one dose of psilocybin or a placebo, along with therapeutic support. They will receive a second dose one month later, also with support, and will be evaluated two to four weeks following each session.

They also will receive follow-up six months after their participation.

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Firearms drive majority of veteran suicides, federal data shows

Veterans in the United States die by suicide at higher rates than the general population, and firearms are involved in most of those deaths, according to a new analysis of federal data.

The report, released by Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun violence prevention advocacy group, analyzed data from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and found that on average, approximately 18 veterans die by suicide each day, and about 13 of those deaths involve firearms.

By 2023, firearms were used in about three-quarters of veteran suicides, up from about two-thirds in 2001, according to the analysis. Although veterans make up a relatively small share of the U.S. population, they account for nearly one in five firearm suicide deaths nationwide.

The analysis found that the veteran firearm suicide rate increased by about 67% between 2001 and 2023, compared with a 35% increase among nonveteran adults.

The report points to differences in firearm ownership as one factor that may contribute to the disparity. About half of veterans report owning firearms, compared with roughly 20% of nonveteran adults, according to the report.

Some research suggests that access to firearms is associated with increased suicide risk. Studies cited in the report found that gun ownership is linked to roughly a threefold increase in suicide risk and that about 90% of suicide attempts involving a firearm are fatal.

“It could not be more clear that easy access to firearms is the primary cause of veterans’ high suicide mortality rates,” Chris Marvin, veteran lead at Everytown for Gun Safety and a combat-wounded military veteran, said in an email.

The analysis found that veterans ages 18 to 34 now have the highest suicide rate among veterans, a shift from earlier years when the highest rates were among middle-aged and older veterans.

Although men account for most veteran suicide deaths, firearm suicide rates among female veterans have increased more rapidly in recent years, according to the report. Women make up about 11% of the veteran population.

Other contributors to suicide risk among veterans include mental health conditions, substance use, chronic pain, financial strain and challenges related to the transition from military to civilian life.

Access to mental health care, housing stability and employment may also contribute to the risk, according to the report.

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Man Running for Congress in Florida Sells 86-47 Merch, Threatens to Dox J6ers in Unhinged Video: “They Deserve a f***ing Noose”

Mark Davis, Air Force veteran and small business owner, is running unaffiliated (No Party Affiliation / NPA) in Florida’s 16th Congressional District, which covers parts of Hillsborough and Manatee counties, including areas around Parrish and Tampa Bay.

In the 2026 general election for U.S. House, he faces incumbent Republican Rep. Vern Buchanan.

Davis has become known for his very public use of “86 47” anti-Trump messaging, the same violent messaging that led to an indictment of former FBI Director James Comey.

You can read that indictment here.

Davis has worn “86 47” hats in photos, driven with an “86 47” license plate, and sells hats, t-shirts, and other merch directly on his campaign website.

After Comey was indicted, Davis doubled down. He posted defiant photos of himself in the hat with the license plate and said things like “Arrest us all. I dare you.”

He called the crackdown “silly” and vowed to keep wearing/selling the merch daily through the election.

In a recent post on Instagram, Davis said, “January Sixers don’t deserve a billion dollars. They deserve a f***ing noose.”

“And if I find out that any of you January Sixers request funds from this little fucking slush fund that Trump set up, I’m gonna personally dox the living fucking shit out of you.”

“Have fun.”

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Veteran Who Graham Platner Said Didn’t ‘Deserve to Live’ Slams Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders for Backing Him 

Graham Platner, the Maine Democrat running for senate who has been plagued with multiple scandals calling his character into question, was recently exposed once again, for mocking a fellow war veteran and saying that he didn’t ‘deserve to live.’

That veteran is a man named Teddy Daniels and he just wrote an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, firing back at Platner for his comments.

This weekend, Daniels appeared on CNN and slammed not only Platner, but Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders for backing Platner, despite all of these awful remarks and controversies.

Transcript via Mediaite:

I kind of consider the source on that, first and foremost, and I’ll be honest with you, what really upset me about the comments is — you know, I can’t even say that I was upset. I’m upset about the comment that he made about Chris Kyle. You know Chris Kyle has kids. He’s not here to defend himself.

I have kids and you know with people like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders backing this man, I want them, I want Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders to — my youngest is 8, he turns 9 in a couple days — to tell my kids that they’re supporting a man who said their father didn’t deserve to live. I mean, think about that. You know, that’s the issue there. It’s just sad that somebody like this is being considered for a position in leadership in the United States Senate.

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Iowa Hospital Accused of Illegally Harvesting Air Force Veteran’s Organs, Skin, Eyes and Tissue – Daughters Sue for Malpractice and Emotional Distress

The daughters of a 69-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran have filed a federal lawsuit against an Iowa hospital, claiming staff improperly harvested their father’s organs, skin, eyes, and tissue without his prior consent or any authorization from his next of kin.

The lawsuit claims the harvesting was done without even attempting to contact his children.

Martin Gillespie, a proud Air Force veteran described by family as a loving father of three and grandfather of eight, was pronounced dead on April 1 at Alegent Health Community Memorial Hospital in Missouri Valley.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by Law & Crime, Gillespie never authorized any anatomical gifts or organ donation during his lifetime.

The complaint alleges that hospital staff made “no attempt to contact” Gillespie’s next of kin, his daughters, Christina Gubbels and Daun Stoddard, before referring his body to the Iowa Donor Network.

Hours later, on the same day, the Iowa Donor Network harvested his organs, skin tissue, and eyes.

Gillespie’s body was then transported to Hennessey Funeral Home in Missouri Valley for cremation.

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Exploiting Veterans To Advance An Unaffordable Housing Agenda

One of the side effects of our misguided monetary policy in recent decades is the spike in home ‘values’.  Housing is one of the most common inflation hedges this side of gold.  It gives investors a relatively safe place to park their resources, and put them to work. 

But it’s not just big institutional investors who act as landlords.  Almost 9 in 10 such homes are owned by those who can count their entire portfolio on one hand. 

So while federal lawmakers bemoan the ‘affordability’ crisis that they arguably created, state and local lawmakers are left to deal with it.  Too often though, they make things worse.

Last week the San Antonio City Council banned landlords who own five or more rental homes from declining to rent to veterans for the express reason that they use a federal housing voucher as partial payment. 

This is another example of government showing insufficient understanding, much less respect for, the supply side of the economic equation.  This tendency has even penetrated our cultural lexicon.

When my financial literacy class discussed “unearned” income recently, returns from rentals was included with investments in stocks, bonds and the like.  I felt the need to clarify the term. 

Speaking from experience, landlords are ‘on’ 24/7, dealing the tenant concerns, neighborhood/HoA issues, etc.  Plus, when tenants move out, the clock starts ticking. 

The condition of the property must be assessed, cleanup is needed, and repairs might be necessary.  Then there’s marketing, sifting through prospective new tenants, and signing an agreement.

If I got that knocked-out in 4-6 weeks, I was content.  Considering I had a full-time job, was raising four daughters, and teaching at night, I considered that timeframe a win.  That is not “unearned.” 

Insert government meddling, and you introduce a new, unique headache into the process. 

When I started renting, my realtor brought up the possibility of accepting section 8 vouchers.  “It’s a steady income,” he said.  I declined, but not because I’m uncharitable.  Once when a tenant’s husband left, I lowered her rent for the remainder of the lease.

I declined section 8 because I didn’t want to deal with potential bureaucratic hassle, like the inspection headaches laid out by a local landlord.  Sidewalk problems that are the “city’s responsibility.”  Repairs to floors devoid of any actual problems.

I just wanted to convert the house I used to live in into a rental that could eventually help pay for my daughters’ college.  Landlords like the author on the other hand, are trying to help others in the community of lesser means, people who could use a hand-up. 

Aren’t citizens like her the same ones whose virtues are extolled by politicians, aiding citizens that those pols claim to care for?  This issue presents one of the clearest contrasts between the private sector and the public sector.

On the one hand, you have people serving a market demand, in this case with altruistic intentions, and with their own resources. 

On the other hand, you have politicians who promise ‘affordable’ housing on the campaign trail, put citizens on the hook for a staggering amount of debt that their property taxes finance, and then kneecap those who are already doing the work. 

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Former NFL Player Sentenced to Prison for $197M Medicare Fraud

The Department of Justice announced that former NFL player Joel Rufus French, 47, was sentenced to 16+ years in prison and ordered to pay $110,753,619 in restitution after a years-long scheme to bilk Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) out of nearly $200 million.

He also forfeited approximately $17 million that the government seized from bank accounts and other assets.

French was an All-American tight end at Ole Miss before briefly playing in the NFL for the Seattle Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers.

According to the DOJ, French, who owned a marketing company and was the beneficial owner of eight durable medical equipment (DME) companies, was selling patient information and sham doctors’ orders for orthotic braces that patients did not want or need.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. shared, “Fueled by lies, bribes, and overseas telemarketers, this corrupt scheme preyed on senior citizens and disabled veterans to flood the country with unnecessary medical devices — and then billed the taxpayer for it.”

“Today’s sentence makes clear that if you target America’s elderly, sick, or vulnerable — and rob America’s purse doing so — you will be targeted and brought to justice.”

“The defendant orchestrated a brazen, yearslong scheme that preyed on elderly patients and the families of disabled and deceased veterans to steal millions from Medicare and CHAMPVA.”

Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Scott J. Lampert of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS‑OIG) added, “By hiding behind overseas call centers, sham telemedicine companies, and straw‑owned DME suppliers, he exploited some of the most vulnerable people these programs were created to protect.”

“This lengthy sentence underscores the seriousness of his crimes and sends a clear message: HHS‑OIG and our law enforcement partners remain steadfast in safeguarding taxpayer‑funded programs and ensuring those who seek to defraud them will be found, stopped, and held accountable.”

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