Nostr notes by R. Scott (i47i) :freebsd_logo:

Germany Signs Major Missile Deal with Diehl Defence Germany's ...

2026-02-08T23:05:32Z

Germany Signs Major Missile Deal with Diehl Defence

Germany's Bundeswehr has signed significant new contracts with Diehl Defence for missiles from the Iris-T family, boosting its air defense capabilities.

Covers short and medium-range missiles for both air-to-air combat (IRIS-T) and ground-based air defense (Iris-T SLS & SLM).

Exact numbers and value are classified, but it follows a 2023 framework agreement for over 1,200 Iris-T missiles.

The Iris-T SLM has successfully intercepted hundreds of air targets in Ukraine.

The system is in service or on order for many nations, including Sweden, Switzerland, and Denmark.

Germany plans to acquire 50 Iris-T SLM units in total, with the first delivered in 2024.

To meet demand, Diehl is investing ~€1.5 billion to expand capacity, with a new factory set to produce an extra 2,000 missiles per year.

The article mentions the Iris-T SLM is a potential candidate for Austria's planned medium-range air defense system.

https://militaeraktuell.at/en/germany-bundeswehr-signs-missile-contracts-with-diehl-defence/

#DiehlDefence #IrisT #Bundeswehr #AirDefense #MilitaryContract #DefenseIndustry #Germany #Missiles

Trump, Putin to meet: Will Ukraine get US Tomahawks or not? > ...

2025-10-17T16:16:31Z

Trump, Putin to meet: Will Ukraine get US Tomahawks or not?

> United States President #DonaldTrump and Russian President #VladimirPutin have agreed to hold another summit to discuss ending the war in #Ukraine, after a high-stakes summit in Alaska in August failed to yield concrete results.

> Following a two-hour call with Putin on Thursday – the first time the two leaders have spoken since Alaska – Trump said a meeting would take place within two weeks in #Hungary’s capital, #Budapest. The Kremlin has also confirmed the meeting.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/10/17/trump-putin-to-meet-will-ukraine-get-us-tomahawks-or-not #Russia #UkraineWar #Tomahawks

Miss Sassy, Springfield, Ohio, 2024. Miss Sassy’s owner told ...

2025-10-09T10:36:36Z

Miss Sassy, Springfield, Ohio, 2024.

Miss Sassy’s owner told police her pet had been eaten by Haitian immigrants before the cat was found in her basement.

> Algorithm Nation - Fights about digital filtering tools have turned more and more bitter. That’s because of their extraordinary power to shape both political opinion and mass culture.
https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2025/10/23/algorithm-nation-invisible-rulers-character-limit-filterworld/
https://archive.is/2025.10.02-130005/https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2025/10/23/algorithm-nation-invisible-rulers-character-limit-filterworld/
#socialmedia #propaganda

The 15 most banned books in U.S. schools > The most commonly ...

2025-10-05T20:10:00Z

The 15 most banned books in U.S. schools

> The most commonly banned books in U.S. schools include LGBTQ titles, international bestsellers, teen romantasy novels and a 1962 classic, according to a new report that compares modern-day censorship to Cold War-era McCarthyism.

> More than 6,800 book bans were enacted during the 2024-25 school year in 87 public school districts across 23 states, according to a report released Wednesday by PEN America, a nonprofit that advocates for free expression. The report was released ahead of Banned Books Week, which starts Sunday.

> “Censorship pressures have expanded and escalated,” Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America’s Freedom to Read program, said in a news release. “A disturbing ‘everyday banning’ and normalization of censorship has worsened and spread over the last four years.”
https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/15-banned-books-us-schools-rcna235157 #LGBTQ #ColdWar #McCarthyism #censorship #education #freespeech #bookbans #books

Gold smashes record on Fed cut bets and eroding trust > ...

2025-09-07T23:51:15Z

Gold smashes record on Fed cut bets and eroding trust

> Compounding the bullish momentum is a crisis of confidence in US institutions. Trump's public criticisms of Fed Chair #JeromePowell and reported efforts to influence the board have sparked fears that the US central bank's political independence is under threat, a scenario European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde called a "very serious danger" to the global #economy.
https://news.cgtn.com/news/2025-09-05/Gold-smashes-record-on-Fed-cut-bets-and-eroding-trust-1GpZrZn9NYI/p.html #DonaldTrump #MAGA #gold #FederalReserve

Banned group: UK police say almost 900 arrests made at Palestine ...

2025-09-07T21:02:43Z

Banned group: UK police say almost 900 arrests made at Palestine Action demo

> Nearly 900 people were arrested in London this weekend during a protest supporting the banned group Palestine Action, with most detained for backing a proscribed organisation and others held over assaults on officers.
https://today.rtl.lu/news/world/a/2334649.html #UK #GazaWar