Podcasts about Port Arthur

At this time of year, when many of us are rudely awoken from our hard-earned slumber by multiple ghosts wanting us to support their gofundme or something, I thought we might look at ghosts. What are they? Are they even real? And if they're not, what are they for? And the exploration is framed by a series of strange experiences I had recently at Australia's most haunted site and possibly the cruelest place in the entire British Empire, Port Arthur. Enjoy! PS - Let me also take the opportunity to sincerely thank you for listening, watching, supporting and sharing the various Rune Soup offerings in 2025. Have a wonderful Christmas.

Anthony Albanese ha annunciato una revisione delle agenzie di sicurezza e un piano per ridurre il numero di armi da fuoco, sulla scia del provvedimento seguito alla strage di Port Arthur. Intanto, l'opposizione federale ha chiesto l'apertura di una Commissione d'inchiesta sull'attentato di Bondi.

After the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, Australia tightened its gun laws, and has since been considered a world-leading example by gun control advocates of how to lessen the chances of mass shootings occurring.However, the mass murder of at least 15 people in an antisemitic attack at Bondi beach on Sunday has again raised the issue of gun access, and Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has said he is “ready to fight” to strengthen the laws again.On today's show, Ariel Bogle, an investigations reporter with Guardian Australia, explains why the number of guns in Australia has been rising, and how stricter laws might be received in the country.The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption. For more episodes, just search 'The Global Story' wherever you get your BBC Podcasts.Producers: Hannah Moore and Xandra EllinExecutive producer: James ShieldMix: Marty PeraltaSenior news editor: China CollinsPhoto: Photo of unregistered handguns that were returned to police, near Smederevo, Serbia. Credit: Dimitrije Goll /EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Die Australiese eerste minister, Anthony Albanese, het ʼn nuwe nasionale terugkoopskema aangekondig om oortollige, pas verbode en onwettige vuurwapens terug te koop. Dit volg na Sondag se slagting op Bondi-strand waarin 15 mense doodgeskiet is. Dis die grootste skema sedert die Port Arthur-massaslagting in 1996 waarin 35 mense dood is. Albanese sê daar is meer as 4 miljoen vuurwapens in die land, wat meer is as tydens die Port Arthur-slagting:

Australia’s PM announces massive gun buyback scheme following Sydney mass shooting; new virtual reality project developed as an immersive tool for indigenous people; koala tests public transport in Brisbane. Katie Macdonald shares all the details with Lester Kiewit. Good Morning Cape Town with Lester Kiewit is a podcast of the CapeTalk breakfast show. This programme is your authentic Cape Town wake-up call. Good Morning Cape Town with Lester Kiewit is informative, enlightening and accessible. The team’s ability to spot & share relevant and unusual stories make the programme inclusive and thought-provoking. Don’t miss the popular World View feature at 7:45am daily. Listen out for #LesterInYourLounge which is an outside broadcast – from the home of a listener in a different part of Cape Town - on the first Wednesday of every month. This show introduces you to interesting Capetonians as well as their favourite communities, habits, local personalities and neighbourhood news. Thank you for listening to a podcast from Good Morning Cape Town with Lester Kiewit. Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays between 06:00 and 09:00 (SA Time) to Good Morning CapeTalk with Lester Kiewit broadcast on CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/xGkqLbT or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/f9Eeb7i Subscribe to the CapeTalk Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/sbvVZD5 Follow us on social media CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, Australia tightened its gun laws, and has since been considered a world-leading example by gun control advocates of how to lessen the chances of mass shootings occurring. However, the mass murder of at least 15 people in an antisemitic attack at Bondi beach on Sunday has again raised the issue of gun access, and Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has said he is “ready to fight” to strengthen the laws again. On today's show, Ariel Bogle, an investigations reporter with Guardian Australia, explains why the number of guns in Australia has been rising, and how stricter laws might be received in the country. Producers: Hannah Moore and Xandra Ellin Executive producer: James Shield Mix: Marty Peralta Senior news editor: China CollinsPhoto: Photo of unregistered handguns that were returned to police, near Smederevo, Serbia. Credit: Dimitrije Goll /EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

சிட்னி Bondi கடற்கரையில் 15 பேர் கொலை செய்யப்பட்ட சம்பவம் ஆஸ்திரேலியாவில் நடந்த இரண்டாவது மிகப் பெரிய படுகொலை சம்பவம் எனப்படுகிறது. 29 ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன் தஸ்மேனிய மாநிலத்தில் இடம்பெற்ற Port Arthur படுகொலைகள் இன்று அதிகம் பேசப்படுகிறது. இந்த சம்பவம் பற்றிய விரிவான விளக்கத்தை முன்வைக்கிறார் ஊடகத்துறையில் பல ஆண்டுகளாக பணியாற்றும் மூத்த ஒலிபரப்பாளர் இரா.சத்தியநாதன் அவர்கள். அவரோடு உரையாடுகிறார்: றைசெல்.

Terrorists killed 15 people near Bondi Beach in Australia. In this episode, we spoke to an Australian listener about her country's history of gun control laws, differences been gun culture in the United States and Australia, and what this tragedy means for Australia. NBC's report on the victims of the Bondi Beach attack: https://www.nbcnews.com/world/australia/bondi-beach-shooting-victims-australia-hanukkah-attack-rcna249203The Guardian's detailed report of the timeline of the Bondi Beach attack: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/15/a-visual-guide-to-the-bondi-beach-terror-attackThe Washington Post's article on the Brown University shooting victims Ella Cook and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/12/15/brown-university-shooting-victims/Pew Research's data on 2023 gun homicides: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/03/05/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-us/Forbes's article detailing the Australian Institute of Criminology's gun homicide statistics: https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacharyfolk/2025/12/14/the-gun-murder-rate-in-australia-where-15-were-slain-at-bondi-beach-is-6000-lower-than-in-us/Gallup data on views in the United States toward gun control: https://news.gallup.com/poll/513623/majority-continues-favor-stricter-gun-laws.aspxUnited Nations data on intentional homicide: https://data.unodc.org/datareport/hom-victimFind discounts for Murder Sheet listeners here: https://murdersheetpodcast.com/discountsCheck out our upcoming book events and get links to buy tickets here: https://murdersheetpodcast.com/eventsOrder our book on Delphi here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/shadow-of-the-bridge-the-delphi-murders-and-the-dark-side-of-the-american-heartland-aine-cain/21866881?ean=9781639369232Or here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Shadow-of-the-Bridge/Aine-Cain/9781639369232Or here: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Bridge-Murders-American-Heartland/dp/1639369236Join our Patreon here! https://www.patreon.com/c/murdersheetSupport The Murder Sheet by buying a t-shirt here: https://www.murdersheetshop.com/Check out more inclusive sizing and t-shirt and merchandising options here: https://themurdersheet.dashery.com/Send tips to murdersheet@gmail.com.The Murder Sheet is a production of Mystery Sheet LLC.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Australia has long been held up across the world as the gold standard of gun control. Firearms laws are the responsibility of the states and territories, and the National Firearms Agreement was introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre to standardise rules about who could own a gun - and why. Now, National Cabinet has decided that even tighter rules around gun ownership should be rapidly rolled out after a licensed firearm user and his son killed at least 15 people in a terrorist attack at Bondi. - 少なくとも15人が犠牲となったボンダイの銃撃事件を受け、ナショナル・キャビネットは緊急会合を開き、銃の所持をめぐる規制を、さらに厳しくし、早急に導入することを決めました。

Ateşli silahların kontrolü denince akla ilk gelen ülkelerden biri Avustralya. Ateşli silahlar yasaları eyaletlerin ve bölgelerin sorumluluğunda. Ulusal Ateşli Silahlar Anlaşması da 1996 Port Arthur katliamından sonra uygulamaya kondu. Kimin ve neden silah sahibi olabileceğine dair kuralların ülke genelinde belli bir standarda getirdi. Ancak Pazar günü silah ruhsatı olan bir kişi ve oğlunun Bondi'da terör saldırısı gerçekleştirmesi sonrası hükümetler kuralların daha da sıkılaştırmaya karar verdi.

It's Tuesday, December 16th, A.D. 2025. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 140 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Kevin Swanson Chinese Communists arrested 18 pastors over evangelism online Chinese Pastor Ezra Jin and 17 other pastors have been arrested by Chinese Communist authorities on charges of using illegal information networks. Translation? Putting the Gospel message on Zoom is now illegal in China.   The pastors are facing three years in prison.   A pastor's wife described the situation on the Christian Broadcasting Network. WIFE: “China opened the door for the Western society and then grow their economy. I grew up from that period of time. So, I thought we weren't gonna be put in jail because of our Christianity or our faith.” Chinese officials convicted liberty advocate Jimmy Lai Not surprisingly, those Chinese communists have convicted Hong Kong's pro-liberty advocate, Jimmy Lai, with conspiracy to collude with foreign forces. It's a charge that could put him in prison for life. This was the highest profile case since Hong Kong was turned over to the communists in 1997, and Hong Kong's democratic elections halted in 2020. China to eliminate out-of-pocket expenses for childbirth China is planning to eliminate all out-of-pocket medical costs for childbirth with the hopes of encouraging more births. China's fertility rate is dismal, hovering around 1.0. In fact, Chinese deaths have outnumbered births for three years in a row now. The countries with the lowest fertility rates in the world are Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, Ukraine, and Chile. Two Muslim men killed 16 Jews in Sydney, Australia On Sunday, two Muslim men, a father and son, have been identified as suspects in the killings of 16 people at a Jewish celebration of Hannukah in Sydney, Australia on Bondi Beach, reports the Associated Press. That's the worst mass shooting in Australia since the Port Arthur massacre of 1996 where 35 people were killed and 23 were injured. Providentially, a bystander of Muslim background, 43-year-old Syrian fruit shop owner, Ahmed Al-Ahmed, happened on the scene. He tackled and disarmed one of the gunmen during the deadly massacre, preventing further carnage.  Ahmed was shot in the shoulder and arm while hiding behind a tree after confronting the gunman. Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is promising “tougher gun laws” in response. Actor Rob Reiner and wife allegedly killed by son Director and actor Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found dead Sunday, apparent victims of foul play at their home in Los Angeles, reports The L.A. Times. Sadly, Rob Reiner was an atheist, as was his father, Carl Reiner — another famous movie director.   Rob Reiner will be best remembered in the political realm for his leftist views, especially in his opposition to California's Proposition 8, and efforts to introduce homosexual marriage to the state and the country. At last report, Rob and Michele's son Nick, age 32, has been taken into custody by the Los Angeles Police Department, charged with the murder of his parents. He has a long history of drug addiction. Exodus 21:15 speaks to this sort of crime, as do Jesus's words in Matthew 15:4: “And he who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.” Little Sisters of the Poor vs. Obamacare continues After 14 years, Little Sisters of the Poor, comprised of Roman Catholic nuns, continues to object to the Obamacare mandate to provide coverage for abortifacients for their organization.    Back on July 8, 2020, the Supreme Court ruled 7–2 in favor of the Little Sisters, upholding federal rules that exempted religious organizations from the contraceptive mandate. But now, Pennsylvania and New Jersey have refused to drop their efforts to take away the Little Sisters' protection in the lower courts. Last August, a rogue federal district court in Philadelphia ruled against the Little Sisters and vacated the religious exemption rules that had protected them.  The case is in appeal to the Third Circuit Court. Bill Clinton unresponsive to Congressional subpoena over Epstein GOP House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer announced he will initiate contempt of Congress proceedings against Bill and Hillary Clinton. At issue is the Clintons' decision to ignore the committee's subpoenas issued back in August, in relation to investigations of the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking scandal. Epstein visited the White House 17 times in 1993 after Bill Clinton's inauguration. Artificial Intelligence: Time Magazine's “Person of the Year” Time Magazine's Person of the Year goes to Artificial Intelligence or rather, the architects of AI. Spending on Artificial Intelligence development has increased from $40 billion to $400 billion in just the last ten years.  Nvidia's stock has increased 60-fold, while Microsoft and Alphabet, Inc. have increased 7-fold over the same timeframe. Kirk Cameron advocates unbiblical theology of annihilationism Actor and Christian celebrity Kirk Cameron suggested in his recent podcast that hell is not forever — a departure from the long-held position of an eternal punishment for those who do not trust Christ, reports The Christian Post. CAMERON: “Eternal judgment or eternal punishment doesn't necessarily mean that we are being tormented and punished forever and ever, every moment for eternity. It means that the punishment we deserve is irreversible. It's permanent; it's eternal. You're dead. You've been destroyed. You have perished. You're gone, and you're never coming back.” This theological position is called annihilationism, a belief that all damned humans and fallen angels – including demons and Satan -- will be totally destroyed and their consciousness extinguished. CAMERON: “I actually think this is a really good argument for annihilationism. Just because the righteous go to eternal life, which is the gift of God, not that the wicked are granted an eternity of punishment. The punishment of the wicked is final. It is irreversible.” Rev. Al Mohler, President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, called the admission “sad.” And in his words: “The admonition to confess Christ or risk non-existence just doesn't pass the New Testament test, and there is a good reason it doesn't work in a sermon either. The stakes are just too low, and the fires of hell hold no eternal consequence.” At the final judgment, as recorded in Matthew 25: 41-43, Jesus said to those on His left hand: “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.' … And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Imprisoned fathers reunited with daughters at dance And finally, the “God Behind Bars” organization links local churches to prisons, and reunites families, especially children with their incarcerated parents or grandparents.   This Christmas season, the organization sponsored its first Father-Daughter Dance at the Angola Louisiana State Penitentiary.    Twenty-nine fathers were reunited with their daughters that night, many of whom had not seen their daughters for years — some over a decade. The ministry calls these events "moments of restoration … and the Gospel in motion." Close And that's The Worldview on this Tuesday, December 16th, in the year of our Lord 2025. Follow us on X or subscribe for free by Spotify, Amazon Music, or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

Este domingo se produjo un atentado terrorista en la playa de Bondi en Sídney, Australia, durante la celebración del primer día de Janucá, la fiesta de las luces hebrea que conmemora la victoria de los macabeos sobre los seléucidas. Esto sucedió hace mucho tiempo, allá por el siglo II a.C. Es una festividad muy popular entre los judíos equivalente en muchos aspectos a la Navidad cristiana. Dos hombres armados, un padre y su hijo, abrieron fuego contra la multitud reunida en un parque junto a la playa. El ataque, que el Gobierno australiano ha calificado como terrorista y antisemita ha dejado 16 muertos y decenas de heridos (unos 40, entre ellos algunos policías). Uno de los atacantes fue abatido por la policía en el lugar, el otro quedó en estado crítico bajo custodia. El tiroteo ocurrió alrededor de las 18:45 cuando unas mil personas disfrutaban de una celebración puramente festiva, sin contenido político alguno, que culminaría con el encendido de una menorá gigante. Los agresores, vestidos de negro, dispararon desde un puente peatonal con rifles eligiendo a los objetivos de forma deliberada. Los vídeos grabados por testigos presenciales, difundidos luego rápidamente a través de las redes sociales, capturaron bien el pánico del momento: gritos, personas huyendo, víctimas en el suelo y el acto heroico de Ahmed al Ahmed, un frutero local que se abalanzó sobre uno de los terroristas y le arrebató el arma. Además, la policía halló un vehículo con artefactos explosivos improvisados que fueron desactivados. Este es el atentado más mortífero en Australia desde la masacre de Port Arthur en 1996 que provocó 35 muertos. Aquello empujó al Gobierno australiano a aprobar leyes muy estrictas de control de armas. Uno de los sospechosos estaba fichado por los servicios de inteligencia, pero no le consideraban una amenaza inmediata. Las autoridades investigan los motivos de los terroristas, aunque, por el contexto, todo apunta a que se trata de un atentado movido por la judeofobia, algo que ha aumentado mucho en Australia desde que estalló la guerra de Gaza hace dos años. Desde entonces se han incrementado los ataques contra los judíos, que en Australia conforman una comunidad de unas 120.000 personas Para los judíos locales Australia era algo así como un refugio frente al auge de la judeofobia en Europa y EEUU. El atentado acaba con esa percepción de seguridad en un país con poca violencia armada y escasos atentados terroristas. El primer ministro Anthony Albanese lo describió como un "ataque dirigido contra judíos australianos" y un "acto de puro mal". Tanto en Europa como en Estados Unidos las condenas se sucedieron. Lo que ha sucedido en Australia no es algo aislado. En los últimos años se ha normalizado la hostilidad contra los judíos en todo Occidente ya que se suele minimizar y, en ocasiones, hasta contemporizar con ella. Para Australia y, en general, para todo Occidente, lo de la playa de Bondi es un toque de atención. Hay que hacerse cargo del problema y desplegar una estrategia integral para combatir la judeofobia: más recursos para seguridad, determinación política, educación para rebatir los prejuicios y protección de las comunidades vulnerables. De lo contrario, el miedo y la división terminarán por pasar una factura mucho más alta. En La ContraRéplica: 0:00 Introducción 3:50 El aviso australiano 32:37 “Contra el pesimismo”… https://amzn.to/4m1RX2R 34:36 La doctrina Monroe 42:48 Las directivas europeas 46:06 ¿Por qué los jóvenes votan a la derecha? · Canal de Telegram: https://t.me/lacontracronica · “Contra el pesimismo”… https://amzn.to/4m1RX2R · “Hispanos. Breve historia de los pueblos de habla hispana”… https://amzn.to/428js1G · “La ContraHistoria del comunismo”… https://amzn.to/39QP2KE · “La ContraHistoria de España. Auge, caída y vuelta a empezar de un país en 28 episodios”… https://amzn.to/3kXcZ6i · “Contra la Revolución Francesa”… https://amzn.to/4aF0LpZ · “Lutero, Calvino y Trento, la Reforma que no fue”… https://amzn.to/3shKOlK Apoya La Contra en: · Patreon... https://www.patreon.com/diazvillanueva · iVoox... https://www.ivoox.com/podcast-contracronica_sq_f1267769_1.html · Paypal... https://www.paypal.me/diazvillanueva Sígueme en: · Web... https://diazvillanueva.com · Twitter... https://twitter.com/diazvillanueva · Facebook... https://www.facebook.com/fernandodiazvillanueva1/ · Instagram... https://www.instagram.com/diazvillanueva · Linkedin… https://www.linkedin.com/in/fernando-d%C3%ADaz-villanueva-7303865/ · Flickr... https://www.flickr.com/photos/147276463@N05/?/ · Pinterest... https://www.pinterest.com/fernandodiazvillanueva Encuentra mis libros en: · Amazon... https://www.amazon.es/Fernando-Diaz-Villanueva/e/B00J2ASBXM #FernandoDiazVillanueva #australia #bondibeach Escucha el episodio completo en la app de iVoox, o descubre todo el catálogo de iVoox Originals

L'analisi dei fatti di domenica da parte di Matteo Vergani, professore associato alla Deakin University e direttore del Tackling Hate Lab.

L'attentato di Sydney, il più grave dal massacro di Port Arthur del 1996, ha riacceso in Australia il dibattito su antisemitismo, radicalizzazione e leggi sulle armi. Mentre Tel Aviv accusa: “Il sangue delle vittime è sulla coscienza del governo Albanese”.

Úc từ lâu đã được coi là tiêu chuẩn vàng về kiểm soát súng trên thế giới. Luật súng là trách nhiệm của các tiểubang và vùng lãnh thổ, và Hiệp định Súng Quốc gia được ban hành sau vụ thảm sát Port Arthur năm 1996, nhằm tiêu chuẩn hóa quy định về ai có thể sở hữu súng và vì lý do gì. Giờ đây, Hội đồng Nội các Quốc gia đã quyết định rằng các quy định nghiêm ngặt hơn về quyền sở hữu súng cần được triển khai nhanh chóng, sau khi một người dùng súng có giấy phép cùng con trai đã giết ít nhất 15 người trong một vụ tấn công khủng bố tại Bondi.

.Australia has long been held up across the world as the gold standard of gun control. Firearms laws are the responsibility of the states and territories, and the National Firearms Agreement was introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre to standardise rules about who could own a gun - and why. Now, National Cabinet has decided that even tighter rules around gun ownership should be rapidly rolled out after a licensed firearm user and his son killed at least 15 people in a terrorist attack at Bondi. - Австралия на протяжении многих лет считается «золотым стандартом» в сфере контроля над огнестрельным оружием. Законы об оружии находятся в ведении штатов и территорий, а Национальное соглашение об огнестрельном оружии было введено после массового убийства в Порт-Артуре в 1996 году, чтобы унифицировать правила: кто и по каким причинам может владеть оружием. Теперь Национальный кабинет министров решил в ускоренном порядке ввести ещё более жёсткие правила владения оружием после того, как лицензированный владелец огнестрельного оружия и его сын убили по меньшей мере 15 человек в террористической атаке на Бондае.

Australia has long been held up across the world as the gold standard of gun control. Firearms laws are the responsibility of the states and territories, and the National Firearms Agreement was introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre to standardise rules about who could own a gun - and why. Now, National Cabinet has decided that even tighter rules around gun ownership should be rapidly rolled out after a licensed firearm user and his son killed at least 15 people in a terrorist attack at Bondi. - अस्ट्रेलियालाई विश्वभर नै बन्दुक नियन्त्रणको उत्कृष्ट उदाहरणका रूपमा लामो समयदेखि हेरिँदै आएको छ। बन्दुक सम्बन्धी यहाँका कानूनहरू राज्य र प्रादेशिक सरकारहरूको जिम्मामा छन्। सन् १९९६ मा भएको पोर्ट आर्थर नरसंहार पछि बन्दुक कसले र किन राख्न पाउने भन्ने नियमहरू एकरूप बनाउन राष्ट्रिय बन्दुक सम्झौता लागू गरिएको थियो। बोन्डाइमा भएको आक्रमणमा लाइसेन्स प्राप्त कथित आरोपित बाबु र उनका छोराको गोली प्रहारबाट कम्तीमा १५ जनाको मृत्यु भए पछि, सङ्घीय मन्त्रिपरिषद्ले बन्दुक स्वामित्व सम्बन्धी अझ कडा नियमहरू छिटो लागू गर्ने निर्णय गरेको छ। एक रिपोर्ट।

Australia has long been regarded as the gold standard for gun control worldwide. Following the tragic incidents in Bondi last Sunday, the Federal Cabinet has decided to quickly introduce even stricter rules for gun ownership. - Australien gilt seit langem als Goldstandard für Waffenkontrolle – und das weltweit. Nach dem Massaker von Port Arthur im Jahr 1996 wurde das National Firearms Agreement eingeführt, um die Regeln darüber zu vereinheitlichen, wer eine Waffe besitzen darf und aus welchen Gründen. Nach den tragischen Vorfällen in Bondi vom vergangenen Sonntag hat das Bundeskabinett beschlossen, rasch noch strengere Regeln für den Waffenbesitz einzuführen.

A Austrália tem vindo a ser referência a nível mundial no que ao controlo de armas diz respeito. As leis sobre armas de fogo são da responsabilidade dos estados e territórios, e o Acordo Nacional sobre Armas de Fogo foi introduzido após o massacre de Port Arthur, em 1996, com o intuito de uniformizar as regras sobre quem tem permissão para possuir uma arma e porquê. Agora, depois de um indivído legalmente habilitado a deter armas de fogo e o respetivo filho terem provocado a morte a, pelo menos, 16 pessoas num ataque terrorista em Bondi, o Gabinete Nacional considera urgente a implementação de regras ainda mais apertadas.

ទាំងពិភពលោកជាយូរមកហើយ។ ច្បាប់អាវុធគឺជាការទទួលខុសត្រូវរបស់រដ្ឋ និងដែនដី ហើយកិច្ចព្រមព្រៀងអាវុធថ្នាក់ជាតិត្រូវបានណែនាំឡើងបន្ទាប់ពីការសម្លាប់រង្គាលនៅ Port Arthur ឆ្នាំ 1996 ដើម្បីធ្វើឱ្យមានស្តង់ដារច្បាប់អំពីថាតើនរណាអាចមានកាំភ្លើង - និងមូលហេតុអ្វី។ ឥឡូវនេះ គណៈរដ្ឋមន្ត្រីជាតិបានសម្រេចថា ច្បាប់កាន់តែតឹងរ៉ឹងជុំវិញការមានកាំភ្លើងគួរតែត្រូវបានដាក់ចេញយ៉ាងឆាប់រហ័ស បន្ទាប់ពីអ្នកប្រើប្រាស់អាវុធដែលមានអាជ្ញាប័ណ្ណម្នាក់ និងកូនប្រុសរបស់គាត់ បានសម្លាប់មនុស្សយ៉ាងហោចណាស់ 15 នាក់នៅក្នុងការវាយប្រហារភេរវកម្មនៅ Bondi។

The death toll from a shooting at Sydney's Bondi Beach on Sunday has risen to 16, with a father and son identified as the attackers, police said Monday.警方周一表示，周日在悉尼邦迪海滩发生的枪击事件死亡人数已升至16人，袭击者已被确认为一对父子。Police in the state of New South Wales (NSW) said on Monday morning that 16 people have been confirmed dead after the shooting.新南威尔士州警方周一上午表示，枪击案发生后，已有16人被确认死亡。A police statement said that 14 people died at the scene and two others died in hospital.一份警方声明称，14人当场死亡，另有2人在医院不治身亡。The deceased range in age from 10 to 87 years old and includes one of the attackers.死者年龄跨度从10岁到87岁不等，其中包括一名袭击者。Another 40 people were being treated in hospital for their injuries as of Monday morning, five of whom were in critical condition.截至周一上午，另有40人因伤在医院接受治疗，其中5人伤势危急。NSW Police Force Commissioner Mal Lanyon told a press conference on Monday morning that the two alleged shooters were a 50-year-old man and his 24-year-old son.新南威尔士州警务处长马尔·兰尼恩（Mal Lanyon）在周一上午的新闻发布会上表示，两名涉嫌枪手分别是一名50岁的男子和他24岁的儿子。The 50-year-old, who was killed at the scene, was a licensed firearm holder with six guns legally in his possession, Lanyon said.兰尼恩说，这名当场被击毙的50岁男子是持证枪支拥有者，其名下合法拥有六支枪。The shooting occurred at around 6:47 pm local time on Sunday when the two men opened fire on a crowd of at least 1,000 people who gathered at the beach for an event celebrating the first day of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.枪击事件发生在当地时间周日晚上6点47分左右，当时这两名男子向聚集在海滩上庆祝犹太节日“光明节”（Hanukkah）第一天的至少1000名人群开火。Lanyon, who on Sunday night officially declared the shooting as a terrorist attack, said Monday that investigations into motives behind the attack are ongoing.兰尼恩已于周日晚间正式宣布这起枪击事件为恐怖袭击，他在周一表示，关于袭击背后动机的调查正在进行中。Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the attack was an act of "pure evil" and that Australia would do whatever is necessary to stamp out antisemitism.澳大利亚总理安东尼·阿尔巴尼斯（Anthony Albanese）表示，这次袭击是“纯粹的邪恶”行径，澳大利亚将采取一切必要措施来消灭反犹太主义。"It is a scourge and we'll eradicate it together," he said.“这是一个祸害，我们将共同根除它，”他说。It marks Australia's most deadly mass shooting since 35 people were killed at Port Arthur in the island state of Tasmania in 1996, which prompted fundamental changes to Australia's gun ownership laws.这是自1996年塔斯马尼亚岛亚瑟港发生35人被杀事件以来，澳大利亚发生的最致命的大规模枪击事件，当年的惨剧曾促使澳大利亚对枪支所有权法律进行了根本性的改革。 Death toll死亡人数Critical condition伤势危急，病危Alleged[ə'ledʒd]涉嫌的，声称的Licensed firearm holder持证枪支拥有者

pWotD Episode 3148: 2025 Bondi Beach shooting Welcome to popular Wiki of the Day, spotlighting Wikipedia's most visited pages, giving you a peek into what the world is curious about today.With 462,501 views on Sunday, 14 December 2025 our article of the day is 2025 Bondi Beach shooting.A terrorist mass shooting occurred on 14 December 2025 at Archer Park beside Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. It took place in the late afternoon during a Hanukkah celebration hosted by the Chabad of Bondi in which a thousand people were in attendance. Police and Australian intelligence agencies declared it an Islamic State–linked terrorist incident, and numerous world leaders, news outlets and Australian authorities described it as antisemitic.Two gunmen shot at the crowd and killed fifteen people, including a child. Police killed one of the two perpetrators and took the second into custody. An unarmed bystander had intervened and disarmed one of the gunmen. Police said the alleged gunmen were father and son. Forty-two people, including at least two police officers, were injured and taken to various hospitals. The New South Wales Police Force responded to the incident, and police later found and removed a suspected homemade bomb from a car belonging to one of the shooters. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was a deliberate attack on Jewish people during the first day of Hanukkah.It is Australia's deadliest terror incident, and its second-deadliest mass shooting after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, which led to the country having some of the strictest gun laws in the world.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 06:56 UTC on Tuesday, 16 December 2025.For the full current version of the article, see 2025 Bondi Beach shooting on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm neural Brian.

Police have declared a mass shooting at Bondi Beach on Sunday a terrorist attack, after two gunmen opened fire on hundreds of people gathered for a Hanukkah celebration. At least 16 people have been killed, including a child, in Australia's deadliest mass shooting since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. The event has prompted global condemnation, heightened security at Jewish sites, created fear among communities and renewed calls from leaders to confront hate and stand in solidarity with the Jewish community. - 警察は、14日日曜日にシドニーのボンダイ・ビーチで起きた銃撃事件について、テロ行為と断定しました。ビーチではユダヤ教の祭り、「ハヌカ」が行われていましたしたが、2人の男は集まっていた数百人に向け、発砲。子ども1人を含む少なくとも16人が死亡しました。

Cảnh sát đã tuyên bố vụ xả súng hàng loạt tại bãi biển Bondi hôm Chủ nhật là một vụ tấn công khủng bố, sau khi hai tay súng nổ súng vào hàng trăm người đang tụ tập để mừng lễ Hanukkah. Ít nhất 16 người đã thiệt mạng, trong đó có một trẻ em, trong vụ xả súng hàng loạt đẫm máu nhất ở Úc kể từ vụ thảm sát Port Arthur năm 1996. Sự kiện này đã dẫn đến sự lên án trên toàn cầu, tăng cường an ninh tại các địa điểm của người Do Thái, gây lo sợ trong các cộng đồng và làm dấy lên lời kêu gọi từ các nhà lãnh đạo về việc đối mặt với thù ghét và thể hiện sự đoàn kết với cộng đồng Do Thái.

Polisi wametangaza shambulio la risasi nyingi huko Bondi Beach Jumapili kama shambulio la kigaidi, baada ya wanaume wawili kufyatua risasi kwa mamia ya watu waliokusanyika kwa ajili ya sherehe ya Hanukkah. Watu wasiopungua 16 wameuawa, pamoja na mtoto, katika shambulio la risasi nyingi lililosababisha vifo vingi zaidi nchini Australia tangu mauaji ya Port Arthur ya mwaka 1996. Tukio hilo limezua shutuma za kimataifa, limeongeza usalama kwenye maeneo ya Kiyahudi, limeleta hofu miongoni mwa jamii na kuzusha tena wito kutoka kwa viongozi kukemea chuki na kusimama pamoja kwa mshikamano na jamii ya Kiyahudi.

Police have declared a mass shooting at Bondi Beach on Sunday a terrorist attack, after two gunmen opened fire on hundreds of people gathered for a Hanukkah celebration. At least 16 people have been killed, including a child, in Australia's deadliest mass shooting since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. The event has prompted global condemnation, heightened security at Jewish sites, created fear among communities and renewed calls from leaders to confront hate and stand in solidarity with the Jewish community. A warning: This story contains distressing content. - सिड्नीको बोन्डाइ बीचमा आइतवार, डिसेम्बर १४ मा भएको घटनालाई प्रहरीले एक आतङ्कवादी आक्रमणको संज्ञा दिएको छ। हिजो उक्त स्थानमा यहुदी समुदायले मनाउने चाड हानुकाका लागि पुगेका सयौँको भिडमा, दुई कथित बन्दुकधारीले गोली प्रहार गरे पछि, १६ जनाको मृत्यु भएको अधिकारीहरूले बताएका छन्। ज्यान गुमाउनेमा एक बालिका र एक आक्रमणकारी पनि रहेका छन्। यो घटनाले विश्वको ध्यान खिचेको छ। धेरैले यसको निन्दा गरेका छन्, यहुदी धार्मिक स्थलहरूमा सुरक्षा कडा गरिएको छ, मानिसहरूमा त्रास फैलिएको छ, र समुदायका अगुवाहरूले, घृणाविरुद्ध एकजुट हुन तथा यहुदी समुदायसँग ऐक्यबद्धता जनाउन आह्वान गरेका छन्। एक रिपोर्ट। चेतावनी: यस सामाग्रीले केही श्रोताहरूलाई विचलित बनाउन सक्छ।

Police have declared a mass shooting at Bondi Beach on Sunday a terrorist attack, after two gunmen opened fire on hundreds of people gathered for a Hanukkah celebration. At least 16 people have been killed, including a child, in Australia's deadliest mass shooting since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. The event has prompted global condemnation, heightened security at Jewish sites, created fear among communities and renewed calls from leaders to confront hate and stand in solidarity with the Jewish community.

The Bondi Beach shooting has seen state, territory and federal politicians agree that Australia's already stringent gun laws need to be reviewed and strengthened. The National Firearms Agreement was introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre to standardise rules about who could own a gun - and why. But experts on firearms legislation say some holes in the rules have become apparent. In New South Wales, applications to have a firearms licence are handled by the Gun Registry - which came under intense scrutiny after a tragic murder suicide in 2018, when an estranged father, John Edwards, fatally shot his teenage children. He had a history of domestic violence which hadn't been flagged to the Gun Registry. Not all the changes recommended after the Edwards inquest have been implemented. Deborah Groarke spoke to Maya Arguello who's a law and criminology expert at the Swinburne University of Technology.

.Australia has long been held up across the world as the gold standard of gun control. Firearms laws are the responsibility of the states and territories, and the National Firearms Agreement was introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre to standardise rules about who could own a gun - and why. Now, National Cabinet has decided that even tighter rules around gun ownership should be rapidly rolled out after a licensed firearm user and his son killed at least 15 people in a terrorist attack at Bondi.

Sunday’s Bondi Beach terrorist attack, which targeted a Hanukkah celebration, was the worst mass shooting in Australia since Port Arthur. Some in the Jewish community have been fearing a deadly attack for years. This episode features the stories of witnesses, such as reporter Elias Visontay, and mother-of-three Jacqui Cohen, who took cover with her 12-year-old daughter. Crime and justice reporter Amber Schultz, who spoke to the mother and wife of the suspected gunmen, also details what is known about the shooters, their motive and how they had access to weapons in a country lauded for its gun control.F​or crisis support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or NSW Health Mental Health Line​, available 24/7 on 1800 011 511.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

İki silahlı saldırganın Pazar günü Bondi Plajı'nda Hanuka kutlaması için toplanan yüzlerce kişiye ateş açmasının ardından polis meydana gelen olayı terör saldırısı olarak ilan etti. Avustralya'da 1996 Port Arthur katliamından bu yana yaşanan en ölümcül kitlesel silahlı saldırıda aralarında bir çocuğun da bulunduğu en az 16 kişi hayatını kaybetti. Olay dünya çapında kınandı, Yahudi mekanlarında güvenlik arttırıldı. Cemaatler arasında korku yarattı ve liderlerden nefretle yüzleşme ve Yahudi toplumuyla dayanışma çağrıları yenilendi.

Sunday’s Bondi Beach terrorist attack, which targeted a Hanukkah celebration, was the worst mass shooting in Australia since Port Arthur. Some in the Jewish community have been fearing a deadly attack for years. This episode features the stories of witnesses, such as reporter Elias Visontay, and mother-of-three Jacqui Cohen, who took cover with her 12-year-old daughter. Crime and justice reporter Amber Schultz, who spoke to the mother and wife of the suspected gunmen, also details what is known about the shooters, their motive and how they had access to weapons in a country lauded for its gun control.F​or crisis support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or NSW Health Mental Health Line​, available 24/7 on 1800 011 511.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The nation is still reeling after yesterday’s mass terror attack on Bondi Beach. The Prime Minister has flagged an overhaul of gun laws as questions are raised over how the gunmen had access to such high-powered registered weapons. It comes as a number of the 15 victims killed in the worst mass shooting since Port Arthur have been identified. In this special episode, we bring you all the latest details on this terror attack on Jewish people celebrating Hanukkah. If you or someone you know is feeling distressed, support is available: Griefline (National grief support line) : 1300 845 745 Lifeline (24-hour Crisis Line): 13 11 14 Members of the public can contact the Public Information & Enquiry Centre on 1800 227 228 for information relating to people impacted by the Bondi Beach Terrorism Incident. Police are urging anyone with mobile phone or dashcam vision relevant to the incident to upload it through the NSW Police website. It can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Policja uznała niedzielną masową zbrodnię na plaży Bondi za atak terrorystyczny. Dwóch uzbrojonych mężczyzn otworzyło ogień do setek osób zgromadzonych na obchodach Chanuki. Co najmniej 16 osób zginęło, w tym jedno dziecko. Jest to najtragiczniejsza zbrodnia w Australii od masakry w Port Arthur w 1996 roku.

Police have declared a mass shooting at Bondi Beach on Sunday a terrorist attack, after two gunmen opened fire on hundreds of people gathered for a Hanukkah celebration. At least 16 people have been killed, including a child, in Australia's deadliest mass shooting since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. The event has prompted global condemnation, heightened security at Jewish sites, created fear among communities and renewed calls from leaders to confront hate and stand in solidarity with the Jewish community. - রবিবার ১৪ ডিসেম্বর বন্ডাই সমুদ্র সৈকতে সংঘটিত নির্বিচার গুলির ঘটনাকে সন্ত্রাসী হামলা হিসেবে ঘোষণা করেছে পুলিশ। হানুকা উদ্‌যাপন উপলক্ষে জড়ো হওয়া শত শত মানুষের ওপর দুই বন্দুকধারী গুলি চালায়। অস্ট্রেলিয়ার ইতিহাসে ১৯৯৬ সালের পোর্ট আর্থার হত্যাকাণ্ডের পর এটিই সবচেয়ে ভয়াবহ নির্বিচার গুলির ঘটনা। এতে এই প্রতিবেদন লেখা পর্যন্ত অন্তত ১৬ জন নিহত হয়েছেন, যার মধ্যে একজন শিশুও রয়েছে।

Australian police have declared the deadly mass shooting at a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney's Bondi Beach a terrorist attack. At least 16 people, including a child, were killed when two gunmen opened fire on hundreds gathered for the event, marking Australia's deadliest shooting since Port Arthur in 1996. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has urged peace and unity, while the New South Wales Premier has appealed for blood donations. The attack has drawn global condemnation, including criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the government's handling of antisemitism.

National Cabinet will meet to consider tougher firearm restrictions in the aftermath of the Bondi Beach antisemitic massacre, as the Department of Home Affairs scrambles to fast-track visas for Jewish mourners to attend imminent funerals. Political editor Geoff Chambers joins us to talk about why Anthony Albanese has been slow to act on anti-Semitism and where he takes it from here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Editor-at-large Paul Kelly says the Bondi Beach massacre is a much greater challenge for Anthony Albanese than the choice John Howard faced after the 1996 Port Arthur slaughter. Kelly - the doyenne of Australian political journalists - says the violent manifestation of evil anti-Semitism can only be tackled with bold, whole-of-society reform. Read more about this story, plus see photos, videos and additional reporting, on the website or on The Australian’s app. This episode of The Front is presented by Claire Harvey, produced by Kristen Amiet and edited by Lia Tsamoglou. Our team includes Tiffany Dimmack, Joshua Burton, Stephanie Coombes and Jasper Leak, who also composed our music. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This terror attack in Sydney is what everyone else has been saying it is: absolutely horrific. Antisemitic terrorism. Sadly, this type of attack is happening and will keep happening more frequently, according to intelligence agencies. And the worst part is that it's almost impossible to stop. Australia has what the world considers the 'gold standard' gun control. After the Port Arthur massacre, they tightened up the rules. But it still has more guns now than it did back in the 90s - both in number and per capita. Guns don't cause terror attacks of course. For that, you'll need radial fanatics with a screw loose. The internet is full of them. It's a great place to meet like-minded people, sadly. We run very expensive security agencies in most Western countries whose job it is to track people down and prevent Bondi beach events. In this case, ASIO knew about the son with the gun in Sydney as early as six years ago. There were links to ISIS. But it didn't stop him, did it? Brenton Tarrant was posting about the God-awful things he was going to do up to a year beforehand online, but wasn't stopped, either. Samsudeen - the guy who slit peoples' throats while they shopped for groceries in New Lynn - he was actually being watched and followed at the time and even he still managed to stab eight innocent people. Some argue migration is the problem. They say Jews and Muslims have been fighting for centuries and that's where the problem lies. Except mass shootings are perpetrated by all different sorts of people for all different sorts of reasons. There's left-wing extremism - the death of Charlie Kirk, the insurance assassin, the attempt on Trump are all suspected of being motivated by far-left extremists. And then you've got right-wing extremism and radical Islamic terrorists. And then there's just completely crazy people who seem to have no motive, they just want to be famous or kill people for a body count like life is some video game. The sad, disturbing, uncomfortable part of this attack is that it won't be the last, and there's very little it seems we can actually do to stop them. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ဖဲမုၢ်ဒဲး—မုၢ်ခီၣ်ထံးနံၤ ပိာ်ခွါခံဂၤနုာ်လီၤခးတၢ်ကဲထီၣ်ဖဲ Bondi Beach ပီၣ်လဲၣ်ကၢၢ်နံၤ ပှၤအိၣ်ဖှိၣ်မၤဘူၣ်သကိး ဟးနူၣ်ခၣ်ဘူၣ်အပူၤန့ၣ် ပၢၤကီၢ်ပာ်ပနီၣ်ဘိးဘၣ်ရၤလီၤအီၤလၢအမ့ၢ်ပှၤမၤတၢ်စုဆူၣ်ခီၣ်တကးအတၢ်ဒုးထီဒါတၢ်န့ၣ်လီၤ. ပှၤသံအစှၤကတၢၢ်အိၣ်ဝဲ ၁၆ဂၤ, လၢအပၣ်ဃုာ်ဖိသၣ်တဂၤ ဒီး စးထီၣ်ဖဲ ၁၉၉၆နံၣ် Port Arthur တၢ်ခးသံတၢ်ဂီၢ်မုၢ်ဂီၢ်ပၤကဲထီၣ်ဝံၤအလီၢ်ခံန့ၣ် တၢ်ကဲထီၣ်တဘျီအံၤန့ၣ်မ့ၢ်ဝဲ အီစထြ့လယါကီၢ် တၢ်ခးသံတၢ်ဂီၢ်မုၢ်ဂီၢ်ပၤကဲထီၣ်အဒိၣ်ကတၢၢ်တဘျီန့ၣ်လီၤ. တၢ်ကဲထီၣ်သးအံၤ ဒုးကဲထီၣ်ဝဲ ဟီၣ်ခိၣ်ဒီဖျၢၣ် အတၢ်ပဲၤအၢပဲၤသီ, မၤဆူၣ်ထီၣ်ဃံးထီၣ်ဝဲ တၢ်ဘံၣ်တၢ်ဘၢ ဖဲပှၤကၠူ (ပှၤယူဒၤဖိ) အိၣ်အလီၢ်သ့ၣ်တဖၣ်, ပှၤတဝၢသ့ၣ်တဖၣ်ပျံၤတၢ်ဖုးတၢ်ဒီး ခိၣ်နၢ်သ့ၣ်တဖၣ် မၤသီထီၣ်က့ၤ အဝဲသ့ၣ်တၢ်ဃ့ထီၣ်လၢ တၢ်ကဒုးဆၢၣ်မဲာ် တၢ်သူၣ်ဟ့သးဟ့ဒီး အိၣ်ဃူအိၣ်ဖိးသကိးဒီး ပှၤကၠူအပှၤတဝၢသ့ၣ်တဖၣ်န့ၣ်လီၤ.

The terrorist attack targeting Jewish people at Bondi is the worst mass shooting in Australia since the Port Arthur massacre.Sixteen are dead and many more injured at a place special in Australia's heart, at an event special to the Jewish community, Hanukkah. Today, extremism expert Dr Josh Roose on whether authorities failed to heed the warnings. Also, Bondi local and Sydney cardiologist Dr James Otton who rushed to assist the wounded.Featured: Dr James Otton, cardiologistJosh Roose, associate professor of politics at Deakin University

Sydney and Australia are reeling after two shooters opened fire on a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach, killing 16 people and injuring dozens more. One of the shooters was killed, the other is in police custody in hospital. In this special extended headlines episode of The Briefing, Sacha Barbour Gatt and Chris Spyrou take you through everything we know so far about Australia’s worst mass shooting since the Port Arthur massacre. Resources: If you have been directly impacted or know someone who has been, the Public Information and Inquiry Centre can be contacted by calling 1800 227 228. The Red Cross has activated its ‘Register, Find, Reunite’ service to help people confirm the safety of their loved ones at register.redcross.org.au. Lifeline: 13 11 14 Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @thebriefingpodInstagram: @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @TheBriefingPodcastFacebook: @thebriefingpodcast Take part in The Briefing survey HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A devastating terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community at Bondi Beach has left 15 innocent people dead and 42 injured. Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon confirmed the attackers acted alone as a pair, in a Father & Son duo.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, the bros dive into the chilling legends of Port Arthur, one of Australia's most violently haunted landscapes. From the echoes of prisoners who never left, to shadow figures stalking the ruined penal colony after dark, this episode drags you straight into the misty heart of Tasmania's most cursed ground. Expect history, horror, and a whole lot of “nope.”Support the show with our sponsors:➡️ EarnIn — Take control of your pay! Download EarnIn today (E-A-R-N-I-N) in the Google Play or Apple App Store, and enter BROHIOPODCAST under Podcast when you sign up. It really helps the show.➡️ DraftKings Casino — Holidays on the House is BACK! Fire up the Daily Rewards Rocket on DraftKings Casino for your free chance at FIVE THOUSAND in Credits. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER… (full legal read included in the episode). Step inside Port Arthur—if you dare.Find Us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/c/BrohiopodcastWe Live Stream All Our Episodes! youtube.com/brohiopodcastFind us on all the socials @BrohioPodcast

With special guest: David W Cameron… in conversation with Bill Kable Port Arthur is a beautiful setting for what our guest today describes as “misery of the deepest dye”. In his book Convict-Era Port Arthur David Cameron takes us back to the days before it became a convict settlement, before its charms were viewed in a completely different light by the British newcomers. Its advantages as a proposed convict settlement included that it was surrounded by wild impenetrable bush except for one narrow access route that was easily secured. The security at what became known as The Dog Line involved half-starved dogs that were waiting for any convicts trying to escape. You could not swim away from confinement but just in case food scraps were often scattered to keep the sharks interested. However as we hear today there was one bold escape when convicts stole the Commandant’s boat and got as far as New South Wales before their recapture and return. David tells us what the conditions were really like and why Port Arthur had such a feared reputation as the last stop for the worst of the worst. Most of the inmates had committed a second offence on top of the original crime that had them sent to New South Wales or Tasmania. Podcast (mp3)

Port Arthur was built to break men, but its most enduring ghosts are the women who watched. Today, we walk Civil Officers' Row, peel back the polite façade of gardens and verandas, and listen to the mothers of Port Arthur who never truly left. hauntedamericanhistory.comBarnes and Noble -   https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-forgotten-borough-christopher-feinstein/1148274794?ean=9798319693334AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FQPQD68SEbookGOOGLE: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=S5WCEQAAQBAJ&pli=1KOBO: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-forgotten-borough-2?sId=a10cf8af-5fbd-475e-97c4-76966ec87994&ssId=DX3jihH_5_2bUeP1xoje_SMASHWORD: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1853316 !! DISTURB ME !! APPLE - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disturb-me/id1841532090SPOTIFY - https://open.spotify.com/show/3eFv2CKKGwdQa3X2CkwkZ5?si=faOUZ54fT_KG-BaZOBiTiQYOUTUBE - https://www.youtube.com/@DisturbMePodcastwww.disturbmepodcast.com YOUTUBE⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@hauntedchris⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok- @hauntedchris LEAVE A VOICEMAIL - 609-891-8658 Patreon- ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/hauntedamericanhistory⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter- @Haunted_A_HInstagram- haunted_american_historyemail- hauntedamericanhistory@gmail.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Japan's New PM and Existential Threat of Taiwan Conflict Guest: Lance Gatling Lance Gatling discussed Japan's new Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, who has adopted a notably hawkish position towards China, stating that a blockade or threat against Taiwan could be interpreted as an existential threat to Japan, allowing the possibility of engaging in collective defense with allies like the U.S. or Philippines, and amid rising tensions and China's attempts to inflict economic damage, Takaichi is moving to accelerate the doubling of Japan's defense procurement budget, while the U.S. withdrawal of the mobile Typhoon missile system was criticized as strategically counterproductive during this critical moment. 1904 PORT ARTHUR

Hello again Pacific War Week by Week listeners, it is I your dutiful host Craig Watson with more goodies from my exclusive patreon podcast series. This is actually going to be a two parter specifically looking at the failure and responsibility of Emperor Hirohito during the 15 year war Japan unleashed in 1931. Again a big thanks to all of you for listening all these years, you are all awesome.   Hello everyone, a big thanks to all of you who joined the patreon and voted for this to be the next episode, you all are awesome.    Now I realize very well when I jumped into my former patreon episode on Ishiwara Kanji, I fell into a rabbit hole and it became a rather long series. I wanted to get this one done in a single episode but its also kind of a behemoth subject, so I will do this in two parts: this episode will be on Hirohito's failure and responsibility in regards to the China War from 1931-1941. The next one will cover Hirohito's failure and responsibility in the world war from 1941-1945.   I am not going to cover the entire life of Hirohito, no what I want is to specifically cover his actions from 1931-1945. Nw I want you to understand the purpose of this episode is to destroy a narrative, a narrative that carried on from 1945-1989. That narrative has always been that Emperor Hirohito was nothing more than a hostage during the war years of 1931-1945. This narrative was largely built by himself and the United States as a means of keeping the peace after 1945. However upon his death in 1989 many meeting notes and diaries from those who worked close to him began emerging and much work was done by historians like Herbert P Bix and Francis Pike. The narrative had it that Hirohito was powerless to stop things, did not know or was being misled by those around him, but this is far from the truth. Hirohito was very active in matters that led to the horrors of the 15 year war and he had his own reasons for why or when he acted and when he did not.   For this episode to be able to contain it into a single one, I am going to focus on Hirohito's involvement in the undeclared war with China, that's 1931-1941. For those of you who don't know, China and Japan were very much at war in 1931-1937 and certainly 1937 onwards, but it was undeclared for various reasons. If you guys really like this one, let me know and I can hit Hirohito 1941-1945 which is honestly a different beast of its own.   For those of you who don't know, Hirohito was born on April 29th of 1901, the grandson of Emperor Meiji. Hirohito entered the world right at the dawn of a new era of imperial rivalry in Asia and the Pacific. According to custom, Japanese royals were raised apart from their parents, at the age of 3 he was placed in the care of the Kwamura family who vowed to raise him to be unselfish, persevering in the face of difficulties, respectful of the views of others and immune to fear. In 1908 he entered elementary education at the age of 7 and would be taught first be General Nogi Maresuke who notoriously did not pamper the prince. Nogi rigorously had Hirohito train in physical education and specifically implanted virtues and traits he thought appropriate for the future sovereign: frugality, diligence, patience, manliness, and the ability to exercise self-control under difficult conditions. Hirohito learnt what hard work was from Nogi and that education could overcome all shortcomings. Emperor Meiji made sure his grandson received military training.   When Emperor Meiji died in 1912, Hirohito's father, Yoshihito took the throne as emperor Taisho. Taisho for a lack of better words, suffered from cerebral meningitis at an early age and this led to cognitive deficiency's and in reality the Genro would really be running the show so to say. When Taisho took the throne it was understood immediately, Hirohito needed to be prepared quickly to take the throne. After Meiji's funeral General Nogi politely told the family he could no longer be a teacher and committed seppuku with his wife. He wrote a suicide letter explained he wanted to expiate his disgrace during the russo japanese war for all the casualties that occurred at Port Arthur, hardcore as fuck. Hirohito would view Nogi nearly as much of an iconic hero as his grandfather Meiji, the most important figure in his life.   Hirohito's next teacher was the absolute legendary Fleet Admiral Togo Heihachiro who would instill national defense policy into him. Hirohito would be taught Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahans theories as all the great minds were taught at the time. Now I know it sucks but I cant delve deep into all this. What I want you to envision is a growing Man, instilled with the belief above all else, the Kokutai was most important. The Kokutai was the national essence of Japan. It was all aspects of Japanese polity, derived from history, tradition and customs all focused around the cult of the Emperor. The government run by politicians was secondary, at any given time the kokutai was the belief the Emperor could come in and directly rule.   If you are confused, dont worry, I am too haha. Its confusing. The Meiji constitution was extremely ambiguous. It dictated a form of constitutional monarchy with the kokutai sovereign emperor and the “seitai” that being the actual government. Basically on paper the government runs things, but the feeling of the Japanese people was that the wishes of the emperor should be followed. Thus the kokutai was like an extra-judicial structure built into the constitution without real legal framework, its a nightmare I know.    Let me make an example, most of you are American I imagine. Your congress and senate actually run the country, wink wink lets forget about lobbyists from raytheon. The president does not have actual executive powers to override any and all things, but what if all Americans simply felt he did. Thus everyone acted in accordance to his wishes as they assumed them to be, thats my best way of explaining Japan under Hirohito.    Emperor Taisho dies in 1926, and Hirohito takes the throne ushering in the Showa Era. He inherited a financial crisis and a military that was increasingly seizing control of governmental policies. Hirohito sought to restore the image of a strong charismatic leader on par with his grandfather Meiji, which was sorely lacking in his father Taishos reign. He was pressured immediately by the Navy that the national sphere of defense needed to be expanded upon, they felt threatened by the west, specifically by the US and Britain who had enacted the Washington Naval Treaty. Hirohito agreed a large navy was necessary for Japan's future, he was a proponent of the decisive naval battle doctrine, remember his teacher was Togo.    From the very beginning Hirohito intensely followed all military decisions. In 1928 the Japanese covertly assassinated the warlord of Manchuria, Zhang Zuolin. The current prime minister Tanaka Giichi had performed a thorough investigation of the incident and presented his report to Hirohito on December 24th of 1928. He told Hirohito he intended to court martial the criminals, purge the army and re-establish discipline. However the rest of Tanaka's cabinet wished to allow the army to deal with the matter and quiet the entire thing down. Hirohito responded by stating he had lost confidence in Tanaka and admonished his report. Hirohito allowed the army to cover up the incident, he sought to have it hushed up as well. Thus Hirohito had indulged the army in its insubordination and the kwantung army officers now felt they could take matters into their own hands.   Also in 1928 the Tanaka cabinet failed to endorse the international protocol banning chemical and biological warfare. The next year the privy council, pressured by the military, failed to ratify the full geneva convention of prisoners of war. Hirohito in response began doing something Emperor Meiji never had done, he began to scold officials to force them to retire from positions. Tanaka Giichi was bullied out. Hirohito then stated his endorsement of Hamaguchi Osachi as Tanaka's successors.   Just a few months after Hamaguchi cabinet formed, Hirohito overrode the advice of his naval chief of staff and vice chief of staff, Admiral Kato and Vice Admiral Suetsugu. The Americans and British were hinting they might form a naval alliance against Japan if she did not abide by the Washington Conference mandates on naval tonnage. Kato and Suetsugu refused to accept the terms, but prime minister Hamaguchi stood firm against them. The navy leaders were outraged and accused Hamaguchi of signing the treaty without the support of the Navy General Staff thereby infringing upon the “emperor's right of supreme command”. Two months after signing the treaty, Hamaguchi was assassinated and upon learning of this Hirohito's first concern apparently was “that constitutional politics not be interrupted”. The military felt greatly emboldened, and thus began the age of the military feeling “its right of supreme command”. Generals and Admirals fought back against arms reduction talks, discipline within the officer corps loosened, things spiraled out of control. Alongside this came the increasing cult of the emperor, that they were all doing this in his name.   When rumors emerged of the emerging Mukden Incident in 1931, Hirohito  demanded the army be reigned in. Attempts were made, but on September 18th of 1931, Kwantung army officer detonated an explosion at Liut'iaokou north of Mukden as a false flag operation. The next day the imperial palace were given a report and Hirohito was advised by chief aide de camp Nara Takeji “this incident would not spread and if the Emperor was to convene an imperial conference to take control of the situation, the virtue of his majesty might be soiled if the decisions of such a conference should prove impossible to implement”. This will be a key theme in Hirohito's decision making, protect the kokutai from any threats.   As the Mukden incident was getting worse, the Kwantung officers began to demand reinforcement be sent from the Korea army. The current Wakatsuki cabinet met on the issue and decided the Mukden incident had to remain an incident, they needed to avoid a declaration of war. The official orders were for no reinforcements of the Korea army to mobilize, however the field commander took it upon his own authority and mobilized them. The army chief of staff Kanaya reported to Hirohito the Korea army was marching into Manchuria against orders. At 31 years of age Hirohito now had an excellent opportunity to back the current cabinet, to control the military and stop the incident from getting worse. At this time the military was greatly divided on the issue, politically still weak compared to what they would become in a few years, if Hirohito wanted to rule as a constitutional monarch instead of an autocratic monarch, well this was his chance. Hirohito said to Kanaya at 4:20pm on September 22nd “although this time it couldn't be helped, [the army] had to be more careful in the future”. Thus Hirohito accepted the situation as fait accompli, he was not seriously opposed to seeing his army expand his empire. If it involved a brief usurpation of his authority so bit, as long as the operation was successful. Within two weeks of the incident, most of Japan had rallied being the kwantung army's cause. Hirohito knew it was a false flag, all of what they had done. Hirohito planned the lightests punishments for those responsible. Hirohito then officially sanctioned the aerial strike against Chinchou, the first air attack since ww1.   A message had gone out to the young officers in the Japanese military that the emperors main concern was success; obedience to central command was secondary. After the Mukden incident Prime Minister Wakatsuki resigned in december after failing to control the army and failing to contain the financial depression. The new Priminister Inukai took to action requesting permission from Hirohito to dispatch battalions to Tientsin and a brigade to Manchuria to help the Kwantung army take Chinchou. Hirohito responded by advising caution when attacking Chinchou and to keep a close eye on international public perception. Nevertheless Chinchou was taken and Hirohito issued an imperial rescript praising the insubordinate Kwantung army for fighting a courageous self defense against Chinese bandits. In a few more years Hirohito would grant awards and promotions to 3000 military and civil officials involved in the Manchurian war. When incidents broke out in Shanghai in 1932 involved the IJN, Tokyo high command organized a full fledged Shanghai expeditionary force under General Shirakawa with 2 full divisions. But within Shanghai were western powers, like Britain and America, whom Hirohito knew full well could place economic sanctions upon Japan if things got out of hand. Hirohito went out of his way to demand Shirakawa settle the Shanghai matter quickly and return to Japan.   And thus here is a major problem with Hirohito during the war years. On one end with Manchuria he let pretty much everything slide, but with Shanghai he suddenly cracks the whip. Hirohito had a real tendency of choosing when he wanted to act and this influenced the military heavily. On May 15th of 1932, young naval officers assassinated prime minister Inukai at his office. In the political chaos, Hirohito and his advisors agreed to abandon the experiment in party cabinets that had been the custom since the Taisho era. Now Hirohito endorsed a fully bureaucratic system of policy making, cabinet parties would no longer depend on the two main conservative parties existing in the diet. When the diet looked to the genro as to who should be the next prime minister, Hirohito wrote up “his wishes regarding the choice of the next prime minister”. Loyal officials backed Hirohito's wishes, the cult of the emperor grew in power. To the military it looked like Hirohito was blaming the party based cabinets rather than insubordinate officers for the erosion of his own authority as commander in chief. The young military officers who already were distrustful of the politicians were now being emboldened further.    After Manchuria was seized and Manchukuo was ushered in many in the Japanese military saw a crisis emerge, that required a “showa restoration' to solve. There were two emerging political factions within the military, the Kodoha and Toseiha factions. Both aimed to create military dictatorships under the emperor. The Kodoha saw the USSR as the number one threat to Japan and advocated an invasion of them, aka the Hokushin-ron doctrine, but the Toseiha faction prioritized a national defense state built on the idea they must build Japans industrial capabilities to face multiple enemies in the future. What separated the two, was the Kodoha sought to use a violent coup d'etat to do so, the Toseiha were unwilling to go so far. The Kodoha faction was made up of junior and youthful officers who greatly distrusted the capitalists and industrialists of Japan, like the Zaibatsu and believed they were undermining the Emperor. The Toseiha faction were willing to work with the Zaibatsu to make Japan stronger. Hirohito's brother Prince Chichibu sympathized with the Kodoha faction and repeatedly counseled his brother that he should implement direct imperial rule even if it meant suspending the constitution, aka a show restoration. Hirohito believed his brother who was active in the IJA at the time was being radicalized. Chichibu might I add was in the 3rd infantry regiment under the leadership of Colonel Tomoyuki Yamashita.   This time period has been deemed the government by assassination period. Military leaders in both the IJA and IJN and from both the Kodoha and Toseiha began performing violence against politicians and senior officers to get things done.    A enormous event took place in 1936 known as the february 26 incident. Kodoha faction officers of the IJA attempted a coup d'etat to usher in a showa restoration. They assassinated several leading officials, such as two former prime ministers and occupied the government center of Tokyo. They failed to assassinate the current prime minister Keisuke Okada or take control over the Imperial palace. These men believed Japan was straying from the Kokutai and that the capitalist/industrialists were exploiting the people of the nation by deceiving the emperor and usurping his power. The only solution to them was to purge such people and place Hirohito as an absolute leader over a military dictatorship.    Now the insurrectionists failed horribly, within just a few hours they failed to kill the current prime minister, and failed to seize the Sakashita Gate to the imperial palace, thus allowing the palace to continue communicating with the outside, and they never thought about what the IJN might do about all of this. The IJN sent marines immediately to suppress them. The insurrectionists had planned to have the army minister General Kwashima who was a Kodoha backer, report their intentions to Hirohito who they presumed would declare a showa restoration. They falsely assumed the emperor was a puppet being taken hostage by his advisers and devoid of his own will.   At 5:40am on February the 26th Hirohito was awakened and informed of the assassinations and coup attempt. From the moment he learnt of this, he was outraged and demanded the coup be suppressed and something I would love to highlight is he also immediately demanded his brother Prince Chichibu be brought over to him. Why would this be important? Hirohito believed the insurrectionists might enlist his brother to force him to abdicate. Hirohito put on his army uniform and ordered the military to “end it immediately and turn this misfortune into a blessing”. Hirohito then met with Kwashima who presented him with the insurrectionists demands to “clarify the kokutai, stabilize national life and fulfill national defense, aka showa restoration”. Hirohito scolded Kwashima and ordered him to suppress the mutiny. On the morning of the 27th Hirohito declared administrative martial law on the basis of Article 8 of the Imperial Constitution, pertaining to emergency imperial ordinances. Formally he was invoking his sovereign power to handle a crisis. Hirohito displayed an incredible amount of energy to crush the mutiny as noted by those around him at the time. Every few hours he demanded reports to be given to him by top officials and at one point he was so angry he threatened to lead the Imperial Guard division himself to go out and quell it. Hirohito met with Chichibu and its alleged he told his brother to end any relationships he had with the Kodoha members. By february 29th, Hirohito had firmly crushed the mutiny, most of the ringleaders were arrested. In april they were court martialed secretly without even given a chance to defend themselves in court and 17 were executed by firing squad in July. As a result of it all, the Kodoha faction dissolved and the Toseiha faction reigned supreme.    On the morning of July 8th of 1937 came the Marco Polo Bridge incident, a nearly identical false flag operation to what occurred at Mukden in 1931. Hirohito's reaction was first to consider the possible threat of the USSR. He wondered if the communists would seize the opportunity to attack Manchukuo. This is what he said to Prime Minister Konoe and army minister Sugiyama “What will you do if the Soviets attack us from the rear?” he asked the prince. Kan'in answered, “I believe the army will rise to the occasion.” The emperor repeated his question: “That's no more than army dogma. What will you actually do in the unlikely event that Soviet [forces] attack?” The prince said only, “We will have no choice.” His Majesty seemed very dissatisfied.    Hirohito demanded to know what contingency plans existed. After this he approved the decision of the Konoe cabinet to move troops into Northern China and fixed his seal to the orders of dispatch. The emperor had tacitly agreed to it all from the start. With each action taken for the following months, Hirohito would explicitly sanction them after the fact. In his mind he kept thinking about a fight with the USSR, he believed he had no choice in the China matter. All of his top ranking officials like Sugiyama would tell him “even if war with China came… it could be finished up within two or three months”. Hirohito was not convinced, he went to Konoe, to imperial conferences, to other military officials to get their views. None convinced him but as Hirohito put it  “they agreed with each other on the time factor, and that made a big difference; so all right, we'll go ahead.”     Two weeks into the conflict, the kwangtung army and Korean army were reinforced by 3 divisions from Japan and on July 25th were reaching Beijing. What did the man who was not responsible in such decision making say? On July 27 Hirohito sanctioned an imperial order directing the commander of the China Garrison Force to “chastise the Chinese army in the Peking-Tientsin area and bring stability to the main strategic places in that region.” Hirohito wanted a killing blow to end the war, and thus he escalated the incident. Historian Fujiwara Akira noted “it was the [Konoe] government itself that had resolved on war, dispatched an army, and expanded the conflict,” and Hirohito had fully supported it”   Chiang Kai-shek abandoned northern China pulling into the Interior and unleashed a campaign in Shanghai to draw the Japanese into a battle showcased in front of western audiences. Chiang Kai-shek tossed the creme of his military all into Shanghai to make it as long and explosive as possible to try and win support from other great powers. On August 18 Hirohito summoned his army and navy chiefs for a pointed recommendation. The war, he told them, “is gradually spreading; our situation in Shanghai is critical; Tsingtao is also at risk. If under these circumstances we try to deploy troops everywhere, the war will merely drag on and on. Wouldn't it be better to concentrate a large force at the most critical point and deliver one overwhelming blow? Based on our attitude of fairness, Do you, have in hand plans for such action? In other words, do we have any way worked out to force the Chinese to reflect on their actions?”   The chiefs of staff returned 3 days later with an aerial campaign to break China's will to fight and strategic cities needed to be seized. Hirohito gave his sanction and on August 31st gave the order “for the Dispatch of the North China Area Army. [D]estroy the enemy's will to fight and wipe out resistance in the central part of Hepei Province,” Over the course of weeks Hirohito sanctioned 6 troop mobilizations to the Shanghai area where the fighting had bogged down. Then he sanctioned 3 divisions from Taiwan to Shanghai, but for units in northern Manchuria to stand guard firmly in case the USSR attacked. The entire time this was happening both China and Japan referred to it as an incident and not a real war lest either of them lose the backing of their great power allies. Japan needed oil, iron and rubber from America, China was likewise received materials from the USSR/America/Britain and even Germany.    By november the war was not going well and Hirohito had the Imperial Headquarters established within his palace as a means to exercise his constitutional role as supreme commander, the army and navy would act in concert. For a few hours in the morning a few days every week, the chiefs of staff, army and navy ministers and chiefs of operations would meet with Hirohito. At these imperial conferences Hirohito presided over and approved decisions impacting the war. This was Hirohito's device for legally transforming the will of the emperor into the will of the state. Hirohito not only involved himself, sometimes on a daily basis he would shape strategy and decide the planning, timing and so on of military campaigns. He even intervened in ongoing field operations. He monitored and occasionally issued orders through commanders to subordinate units. Now I can't go through the entire 1937-1945 war and showcase all the things he did but I will highlight things I think we're important.    On November 9th, the Shanghai battle was finally falling apart for the Chinese as they began a withdrawal to the Nanking area some 180 miles away. The Japanese forces chased them and for the first time were really coming into direct contact with Chinese civilians, when it came to Shanghai most had evacuated the areas. The Japanese burned, plundered and raped villages and towns as they marched towards Nanking. On december 1st, Hirohito's imperial HQ ordered the 10th army and Shanghai expeditionary force to close in on Nanking from different directions, a pincer maneuver. Prince Asaka took command of the Shanghai expeditionary force and General Matsui commanded the Central China Area Army consisted of the Shanghai force and 10th army. Asaka led the forces to assault the walled city of Nanking with a population estimated to be 4-5 hundred thousand and it would fall on December 13th. Was there an order to “rape Nanking”, no. The Imperial HQ did not order the total extermination of the Chinese in Nanking, they had ordered an encirclement campaign. However, the standing orders at this time were to take no prisoners. Once Nanking fell, the Japanese began to execute en massage military prisoners and unarmed troops who surrendered willingly. There was a orgy of rape, arson, pillage and murder. The horror was seen in Nanking and the 6 adjacent villages over the course of 3 months far exceeding any atrocities seen during the battle for Shanghai or even the march to Nanking. General Nakajima's 16th division on its first day in Nanking was estimated to have murdered 30,000 POWs. Estimate range insanely, but perhaps 200,000 POW's and civilians were butchered over the course of 6 weeks.   Prince Asaka the 54 year old grand uncle to Hirohito and other members of the Imperial Family commanded the attack on Nanking and supervised the horrors. 49 year old General Prince Higashikuni chief of the army air force alongside Prince Kan'in knew of the atrocities occurring. Army minister Sugiyama knew, many middle echelon officers of the Imperial HQ knew. Hirohito was at the top of the chain of command, there is no way he was not informed. Hirohito followed the war extensively, reading daily reports, questioned his aides. It was under his orders that his army “chastise China”, but did he show any concern for the breakdown of his army's discipline? There is no documented evidence he ordered an investigation, all we are met with as historians is a bizarre period of silence. Hirohito goes from supervising the war with OCD precision, to silence, then back to normal precision. Did Hirohito show anything publicly to show angry, displeasure or remorse, at the time he energetically began spurring his generals and admirals on their great victories and the national project to induce “Chinese self-reflection”.    On November 24th Hirohito gave an after the fact sanction to the decision of General Matsui to attack and occupy Nanking. Hirohito was informed the city was going to be bombarded by aircraft and artillery and he sanctioned that as well. That was basically him removing any restrictions on the army's conduct. On December 14th the day after Nankings fall, he made an imperial message to his chiefs of staff expressing his pleasure at the news of the city's capture and occupation. Hirohito granted General Matsui an imperial rescript for his great military accomplishments in 1938 and gave the order of the golden early to Prince Asaka in 1940. Perhaps Hirohito privately agonized over what happened, but publicly did nothing about the conduct of his armed forces, especially in regards to the treatment of POW's.   Emperor Hirohito was presented with several opportunities to cause cease-fires or peace settlements during the war years. One of the best possible moments to end it all came during the attack on Naking when Chiang Kai-sheks military were in disarray. Chiang Kai-shek had hoped to end the fighting by enticing the other great powers to intervene. At the 9 power treaty conference in Brussel in november of 1937, Britain and the US proposed boycotting Japan. However the conference ended without any sanctions being enacted upon Japan. The Konoe government and Imperial HQ immediately expanded the combat zone. Chiang Kai-shek in desperation accepted a previous offer by Germany to mediate. Oscar Trautmann, the German ambassador to China attempted to negotiate with Japan, but it failed. China was offered harsh terms; to formally recognize Manchukuo, cooperate with it and Japan to fight communism, permit the indefinite stationg of Japanese forces and pay war reparations.    On January 9th of 1938, Imperial HQ formed a policy for handling the China incident which was reported to Hirohito. Konoe asked Hirohito to convene an imperial conference for it, but not to speak out at it  “For we just want to formally decide the matter in your majesty's presence.” Konoe and Hirohito were concerned with anti expansionists within the army general staff and wanted to prevent German interference in Japanese affairs. On January 11th, the policy was showcased and adopted, there would be no peace until Chiang kai-shek's regime was dissolved and a more compliant regime followed. Hirohito presided over the conference in full army dress uniform and gave his approval. He sat there for 27 minutes without uttering a word, appearing to be neutral in the matter, though in fact he was firmly backing a stronger military policy towards China.    The Konoe cabinet inaugurated a second phase to the China incident, greatly escalating the war. By this point in time Japanese had seen combat casualties at 62,007 killed, 160,000 wounded. In 1939 it would be 30,081 killed, 55,970 wounded, then 15,827 killed and 72,653 wounded in 1940. Major cities were under Japanese control ranging from the north east and south. Chiang Kai-shek fled to Chongqing, the war was deadlocked without any prospect of victory in sight.    On July 11 of 1938, the commander of the 19th division fought a border clash with the USSR known to us in the west as the battle of Lake Khasan. It was a costly defeat for Japan and in the diary of Harada Kumao he noted Hirohito scolded Army minister Itagaki “Hereafter not a single soldier is to be moved without my permission.” When it looked like the USSR would not press for a counter attack across the border, Hirohito gave the order for offensives in China to recommence, again an example of him deciding when to lay down the hammer. Konoe resigned in disgrace in 1939 having failed to bring the China war to an end and being outed by his colleagues who sought an alliance with Germany, which he did not agree with. His successor was Hiranuma a man Hirohito considered a outright fascist. Hiranuma only received the job because he promised Hirohito he would not make enemies of Britain or the US by entering in a hasty alliance with Nazi Germany. However his enter prime ministership would be engulfed by the alliance question.   In May of 1939 there was another border clash with the USSR, the battle of Khalkhin Gol. This one was much larger in scale, involving armored warfare, aircraft and though it seems it was not used, the Japanese brought biological warfare weapons as well. The Japanese had nearly 20,000 casualties, it was an unbelievable defeat that shocked everyone. Hirohito refrained from punishing anyone because they technically followed orders based on a document “outline for dealing with disputes along the manchurian soviet border” that Hirohito had sanctioned shortly before the conflict arose.   In July of 1939, the US told Hiranuma's government they intended not to renew the US-Japan treaty of commerce and navigation. Until this point Roosevelt had been very lenient towards Japan, but now it looked to him war would break out in europe and he wanted Japan to know they could expect serious economic sanctions if they escalated things. Hirohito complained to his chief aide de camp Hata Shunroku on August 5th “It could be a great blow to scrap metal and oil”. Then suddenly as Japan was engaging in a truce with the USSR to stop the border conflict, Germany shocked the world and signed a nonaggression pact with them. This completely contravened the 1936 Japan-German anti-comintern pact. Hiranuma resigned in disgrace on august 28th.    Hirohito was livid and scolded many of his top officials and forced the appointment of General Abe to prime minister and demanded of him “to cooperate with the US and Britain and preserve internal order”. Then Germany invaded Poland and began a new European War. Abe's cabinet collapsed from the unbelievable amount of international actions by January 14th 1940. Hirohito appointed Admiral Yonai as prime minister  and General Tojo to vice army minister. As we have seen Hirohito played a active role appointing high level personnel and imposed conditions upon their appointments.    Hirohito dictated what Yonai was to do, who he was to appoint to certain positions so on and so forth. When a large part of the military were calling for an alliance with Germany, Hirohito resisted, arguing Japan should focus on the China war and not ally itself to Germany unless it was to counter the USSR. Three months passed by and Germany began invading western europe. Norway fell, Denmark fell, Luxembourg, Belgium, the netherlands and then France, it was simply stunning. While Japan had been locked in a deadlock against China, Germany was crushing multiple nations with ease, and this had a large effect on asia. Britain, France and the Netherlands could not hope to protect their holdings in asia. But Hirohito kept pressuring Yonai not to begin any talks of an alliance, and the military leaders forced Yonai's cabinet to collapse.    So Hirohito stood by while Hiranuma, Abe and Yonai met each crisis and collapses. He watched as the China war went nowhere and the military was gradually pushing for the Nanshin-ron doctrine to open a southern war up with the west. Not once did he make a public effort on his lonesome to end the war in China. Japan's demands of China were unchanged, relations with the west were getting worse each day. The China war was undeclared, hell it was from the Japanese viewpoint “chastising China”. Japan was no respecting any rules of war in China, atrocities were performed regularly and for that Hirohito shared responsibility. For he alone was free to act in this area, he needed to act, but he did not. He could have intervened and insisted on respecting the rules of war, especially in regards to POW's and the results could have been dramatically different. Hirohito bore direct responsibility for the use of poison gas upon Chinese and Mongolian combatants and non combatants even before the undeclared war of 1937.    Then on July 28th of 1937 Hirohito made his first directive authorizing the use of chemical weapons which was transmitted by the chief of the army general staff prince Kan'in. It stated that in mopping up the Beijing-Tientsin area, “[Y]ou may use tear gas at suitable times.” Then on September 11th of 1937 he transmitted again through Kan'in the authorization to deploy special chemical warfare units in Shanghai. Gas weapons were one weapon the imperial HQ, aka Hirohito held effective control over throughout the China war. Front line units were never free to employ it at their own discretion, it required explicit authorization from the imperial HQ. During the Wuhan offensive of August to October 1938, imperial HQ authorized the use of poison gas 375 separate times. Hirohito authorized on May 15th of 1939 the carrying out of field studies of chemical warfare along the Manchukuo-soviet border.  In 1940 Hirohito sanctioned the first experimental use of bacteriological weapons in China, though there is no documented evidence of this, given the nature of how he micro managed everything it goes without saying he would have treated it the same as the poison gas. He was a man of science, a person who questioned everything and refused to put his seal on orders without first examining them. Imperial HQ directives went to unit 731 and as a rule Hirohito overlooked them. There again is no documents directly linking him to it, but Hirohito should be held responsibility for strategic bombing campaigns performing on cities like Chongqing. Alongside such horror Hirohito sanctioned annihilation campaigns in China. Such military campaigns were on the scale of what occurred at Nanking. Take for example the Hebei offensive which saw the infamous “three alls policy, burn all, kill all, steal all”.    Before Pearl Harbor and the ushering in of the war against the west, look at the scene that had unfolded. China and Japan were not officially at war until December of 1941. Not to say it would have been easy by any means, but look at the countless opportunities the man, emperor, so called god if you will, held in his hands to stop it all or at the very least stop escalating it. Why did he not do so? To protect the Kokutai. Above all else, the role and survival of the emperor's divinity over the people of Japan was always at the forefront of his mind. He did what he thought was always necessary to thwart threats internal and external. He allowed his military to do horrible things, because they did so in his name, and likewise they were a threat to him. I know its abrupt to end it like this, but for those of you who perhaps say to yourself “well he really was powerless to stop it, they would have killed him or something”, who chose suddenly to intervene in 1945 and made the decision to surrender?

“Even though we were signed to a major record label distributed all around the country and around the world, we still moved as independent artists” ~ Bun B  In this powerful new episode of Skipping Class, Lalaa Shepard of The Progress Report Media Group sits down with Southern hip-hop icons Bun B and Cory Mo — two Texas legends who've built one of the most respected legacies in rap culture. Born and raised in Port Arthur, Texas, Bun B came up alongside the late, great Pimp C as one half of the legendary group UGK (Underground Kingz).  Known for their authenticity, storytelling, and southern pride, UGK became a foundation for generations of artists. After Pimp C's passing, Bun continued to honor that legacy through solo projects, teaching, activism, and entrepreneurship — most notably with his nationally celebrated Trill Burgers brand.  Cory Mo, a Houston native and longtime UGK affiliate, came up producing for Pimp C and other Southern heavyweights before relocating to Atlanta to continue building his career. From behind the boards to the mic, Cory Mo has worked with some of the biggest names in hip-hop — from Big K.R.I.T. and Killer Mike to 8Ball & MJG — while keeping the Trill sound alive.  Together, the two break down the process behind their 2025 joint album “Mo Trill” — a project that bridges eras with features from Scotty ATL, Akeem Ali, LaRussell, Monaleo, and more. They open up about staying independent, navigating the music business, and why Southern culture continues to define hip-hop.  Bun B also shares exclusive stories about being one of the few artists to record with both Beyoncé and Jay-Z, creating “Give Me That” with Webbie, recording the same day in Atlanta with Jeezy and Gucci Mane, and how the success of Trill Burgers reflects decades of consistency, patience, and progress.  Watch the full interview for rare stories, laughs, and wisdom from two OGs!  Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/corymomusic/  https://www.instagram.com/bunb/  https://www.instagram.com/lalaashep/  https://www.instagram.com/theprogressreport101/  https://www.instagram.com/tprmediagroup1/  Website:  Listen to us on Apple Podcasts  Listen to us on Spotify Podcasts  Home : The Progress Report Media GroupEmpowering Stories, Amplifying Voices - Your Source for Exclusive Urban Media Insightstprmediagroup.comThe Progress Report PodcastMusic Podcast · Updated Weekly · The Progress Report is more than media-it's a movement. Founded in Atlanta, we are a…podcasts.apple.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The last time we spoke, Ishiwara had been spending considerable amounts of time with the Kwantung Army staff trying to figure out a way to push the envelope on seizing Manchuria. Ishiwara and his like minded colleagues had tried everything to persuade the Imperial Japanese army high command to initiate a course of action, but everytime the message was the same “wait, wait until next year, we can't do this at this time”. In 1931 Ishiwara and Itagaki organized the last major expedition into Northern Manchuria to get the newest recruited Kwantung officers up to speed and ready for plans they had been cooking up. Captain Nakamura Shintaro disappeared on the way back to Port Arthur. The Kwantung officers took the initiative, one could call it “Gekokujo / ruling from below” because without approval, in fact basically against the orders of high command they mobilized their forces outside their designated railway zone and headed for Mukden to quote “get the Chinese military to help investigate the Nakamura disappearance”. When Tokyo HQ got a whiff of this they dispatched a telegram immediately demanding the Kwantung officers get their men back and not use the Nakamura incident as a way of “solving the Manchurian problem”   For Ishiwara this was the last straw. He doubled down and pushed for a plot to provoke military conflict outside of Mukden. As he wrote in almost a messianic Nichiren conviction ‘I will be the pillar of Japan; I will be the eyes of Japan; I will be the great vessel of Japan” . During the last hectic weeks, General Honjo Shigeru arrived to take command of the Kwantung Army and there is no solid evidence Ishiwara and his radical group had disclosed their plans to him. However when everything began to move into motion, Honjo agreed to Ishiwara's military solution for the Manchurian problem.   On september 18th of 1931, a bomb was planted by the Kwantung army upon the south manchurian railway tracks at Liutiaokou. There was an explosion and the Kwantung army immediately claimed it to be a Chinese plot and moved with skill and precision to overrun the Peitaying Barracks. General Honjo's first reaction was hesitation, but then he committed additional units to aid the radicals and upon seeing the chaos unfold, ordered the seizure of all of Mukden in the process. Investigators would find the actions of Honjo over the course of the next few days to be quite indecisive. At first he seemed to be attempting to localize the incident, but then, likely as a result of Ishiwara and Itagaki pressuring him, relented to ordering a general assault on all Chinese positions in the area. Thus what was a isolated incident, transformed into a major offensive, and that major offensive was largely directed by two of Honjo's subordinates, as you may guess Ishiwara and Itagaki.   Now after the bomb explosion, the next 10 days saw southern and central Manchuria suddenly under the control of the Kwantung army. Itagaki as a senior staff officer and full colonel, was technically Ishiwara's superior, but for the next 4 months it appears Ishiwara was the main driver behind the military actions. Itagaki was quote to say to a friend during the offensive “Never mind Honjo, it's Ishiwara's War”. And indeed, being so far from Tokyo HQ's control, it really was Ishiwara's war. Tokyo dispatched official orders on September the 19th opposing the offensive, despite a lot of sympathy for the cause amongst the high commanders. Ishiwara and Inagaki had been planning this for months, they were willing to risk it all, so they disobeyed and carried on. Ishiwara began by first coercing Honjo for reinforcements and freedom to take initiative, as he was quoted asking ‘to pursue actively the security and order of all of Manchuria”.   Now obviously Ishiwara and Itagaki wanted to expand the offensive through the officials means firstmost, but they definitely went around the officials channels as well. One devious method they employed was to create chaos for civilians in Manchurian cities, thus increasing the need for better security for Japanese residents. This would allow the Kwantung army troops to deploy past their set perimeters. Immediately after what is now called “the Mukden incident”, military agents were dispatched to Kirin to create some chaos within the city. Reports of incidents from Kirin began to poor into the Kwantung Army HQ alongside Ishiwara demanding Honjo dispatch forces to Kirin to protect Japanese residents there. He also advocated for demanding reinforcements from the Korea Army, but Honjo was unwilling to go that far. It seems Ishiwara feared missing a golden opportunity and chose another course of action. On the night of the 20th, he gathered together a bunch of younger Kwantung officers such as Itagaki's assistant, Captain Katakura Tadashi and told them “I can't do anything more to budge the commander and so i'm giving up my responsibilities for the direction of operations. Katakura, you take over”. Well it seems this little ploy had the intended effect as all the young officers immediately began pressuring Honjo to support Ishiwara's demands to advance to Kirin, many of them threatening to resign. After several hours of the officers nagging, Honjo related and authorized the despatch of troops.    The operation against Kirin was carried out in lightning fast speed. Ishiwara directed the bulk of the 2nd division led by General Tamon Jiro to rush over to Kirin by rail. They entered the city without firing a single shot and forced the local Chinese commander to proclaim the independence of the province from Zhang Xueliang's regime. Within hours after this, the Korea army responded to a aid request sent out by the Kwantung Army staff on september 21st and began moving into Manchuria. Within only 48 hours the Japanese military had seized Kirin which lay outside the Kwantung operational zone and the Korea army was invading Manchuria without any approval from Tokyo, military discipline thus had been shattered.    Chief of staff Kanaya Hanzo had issued specific orders to limit the scope of the Kwantung army's operations and entrusted discretionary authority to the field commanders for certain emergency situations, usually of a local nature. The Kirin expedition did not exactly fall within any of these boundaries. Bolstered by their success, Ishiwara and Itagaki followed up the Kirin operation by pressing for an advance upon Harbin. As you might recall from the previous episode, the entire idea of taking Manchuria was built upon speed and precision. The Kwantung army had tiny forces compared to the immediate Chinese forces in Manchuria. However here they were blocked by directives sent from Tokyo HQ which forbade the movement of Kwantung troops beyond the south manchuria railway, up to this point they had limited their actions along those margins. Ishiwara attempted arguing something on more political lines. He argued Japan should aid Manchurian independence and sent the idea straight to Tokyo central HQ. In a sharp rebuff on October 3rd, Tokyo HQ affirmed its opposition to expanding the hostilities and rejected the political idea.   With the hard no from Tokyo HQ, the Kwantung radicals thought the only course of action was to cause even more chaos to force the issue. Ishiwara took the lead again, trying to toss Tokyo HQ off balance. Ishiwara personally went out on October the 8th, dressed in military pilot gear and slipped into one of five Chinese aircraft that had been seized at Mukdens airfield. He then personally led a raid, though later in life, such as at the Tokyo War crimes trials he would argue the flight was supposed to be just a reconnaissance of enemy activities at Chinchou. As he asserted, it was only at the last minute, some intelligence sprang up that anti-aircraft guns had been installed at Chinchou and thus the Kwantung army Commander had given permission to neutralize them if fired upon. Ishiwara stated that he and the 4 other aircraft accompanying him were fired upon and thus they dropped around 75 bombs on Chinchou, yes quite the course of events. As you might guess, more contemporary accounts would indicate this was a premeditated effort designed to freak out Tokyo.    The raid against Chinchou did indeed freak out Tokyo, the staff there began to fear the west would begin tossing condemnation upon them. Tokyo high command was in a bad spot. They felt obliged to back up the Kwantung army publically, by issuing post-facto approval of the many chaotic attacks, but internally they were livid. Major Endo Saburo of the intelligence division was sent to Manchuria to investigate the Chinchou situation. Saburo said upon asking Ishiwara what occurred, he responded that he had acted under the principle of field initiative and that was the reason why he never informed Tokyo in advance. Saburo also noted the manner in which he spoke to him indicated that Saburo alongside the intelligence division should mind their own business. Saburo also found out there were murmurs in Manchuria that if Tokyo high command did not get onboard, the Kwantung army was prepared to go it alone. It seemed the radical Kwantung officers would even go against the imperial japanese army command to get what they wanted. Ishiwara went as far as to send this telegram to Tokyo “For the sake of the nation we are doing our very best in Manchuria, but if the Japanese government constantly interferes we cannot complete our great work. Then the Kwantung army will have to come to the point where we will have to break the glorious history of the imperial army and separate ourselves from the empire”.If you thought this was pretty nuts, a rumor also emerged that Ishiwara and Itagaki were going to use an independent Manchuria as a base to perform a coup d'etat against the Japanese government, to overthrow the capitalists strangling the people and to establish a national socialist regime built around the emperor. For those of you who know your 1930's Japanese government by assassination history, you know exactly what this rumor is about, a little something that will occur in 1936. Whether Ishiwara and Itagaki actually intended to do this is unknown, but they certainly put out the word.   On october 18th, war minister Minami Jiro sent a telegram over to the Kwantung army ordering them to cease any and all talk of making Manchuria independent or trying to take control of it. Alongside that, they sent operations section, Colonel Imamura Hitoshi to Manchuria to talk some sense into Ishiwara and Itagaki. They all met at a restaurant in Mukden where Imamura began by explaining the purpose of his mission, but before he could even really begin, Ishiwara blurted out “whats the matter? Doesn't central headquarters have any backbone?” A great way to start a meeting to be sure. Imamura tried to explain the situation, but Ishiwara said “if we follow the spineless Tokyo approach we'll never settle the Manchurian problem”. Imamura replied “we can't accomplish anything by following the arbitrary decision of field elements, which may create a crisis that will shake the whole army. In such a problem it is essential for the whole nation to be unified”. To this Ishiwara apparently said really loudly in the restaurant that he was sleepy, rolled over on the tatami and closed his eyes. Imamura furious haha, get up quickly after denouncing his so called hosts for conducting official IJA business at a restaurant and left. The next day they all met again, where Ishiwara and Itagaki kept speaking about the necessity to create an independent state, since there was no hope of the Chinese reforming Manchuria. After Imamura left that meeting, Ishiwara said to Itagaki “Imamura is a fine fellow, but he doesn't understand China”.   And so despite the chaos and mania, the Kwantung Army had been restrained from pursuing any sustained military action through october. Ishiwara as you would imagine kept arguing they had to advance into northern manchuria. In early november Ishiwara got lucky again, finding a pretext in more destroyed railways. The rail bridges over the Nonni river south of Tsitsihar had allegedly been blown up by hostile Chinese forces. When Japanese engineer units showed up to repair the damaged tracks they were fired upon by Chinese forces. To the high officials in Tokyo it looked like a justifiable reason to take defensive measures. This was also being meet with Kwantung intelligence information being sent to Tokyo that Chinese forces in northern Manchuria were planning a southward offensive. Ishiwara had provided some rather exaggerated reports to the Japanese public to manipulate their opinion through the press which in turn put pressure on Tokyo into supporting an advance into northern manchuria.   Tokyo authorized a defensive operation, limited to time and distance aimed at defending the Japanese positions at the Nonni River bridges. Kwantung army forces began moving north and soon were engaged in heavy fighting around the railway area of Tahsing. Ishiwara personally led men during this, it would actually be the only time in his military career to do so. General Honjo, rightfully feared the Kwantung forces were getting out of hand sent a cabled on November 5th announcing under the “rinsan inmei / provisional mandate”, the general staff was assuming direct command authority in Manchuria. As you can imagine Ishiwara and his like minded Kwantung officer colleagues were livid. Honjo followed this up by stating he would resign if they did not comply, but Ishiwara brushed off the provisional mandate stating “that the directive from the chief of staff is just a personal, not an imperial order. No matter how many we get of those we shouldn't' care. We'll just go ahead with our plans”. On november 17, the Kwantung army began advancing upon the city of Tsitsihar seizing it 2 days later.    Facing yet another terrible situation publicly, the IJA high command allowed the Kwantung to advance upon Tsitsihar, but then uproar started abroad, forcing them to order the city evacuated. Ishiwara then began a huge argument amongst the staff stating the evacuation was unacceptable because of the sacrifices the forces had already made. But Honjo was standing firm. Then a few days later, Chinese forces began to assemble at Chinchou  and there had been some conflicts emerging between Japanese and chinese forces at Tientsin. Well Ishiwara immediately went to work demanding Honjo launch an offensive on Chinchou as a first step of linking their forces closer to Tientsin incase they were overwhelmed. To secure the advance, they also asked the Korea army to help out. Yet again Tokyo was tossed the hot potato. Tokyo high command ordered an immediate cease to the offensive and a withdrawal east of the Liao river. The Kwantung army paused, not so much before of the order, but because the Korea army refused to participate in the offensive against Chinchou, and they were most definitely needed.    Ishiwara faced a dilemma, without the reinforcements the entire offensive might be doomed. And then fatefully, Premier Wakatsuki was outed on December 11th.War Minister Minami and Chief of staff Kanaya, both who tried to moderate the Kwantung army's offensives were replaced by Araki Sadao an aggressive leader of the Kodoha Faction, known in english as “the imperial way faction”. To explain a bit, within the Japanese military there were cliques, kind of like the warlords cliques in many ways. They fought to direct the future operations of the IJA and even IJN to an extent. There were two main ones that influenced the 1930's heavily, the Kodoha and Toseiha (control faction). The Kodoha were not an organized political party, nor did they have an official standing within the IJA, but they were certainly influential. Kodoha members tended to be younger officers in the IJA, particularly those in the Kwantung army. General Sadao Araki was a founder of the faction and they were heavily influenced by Bushido, Fascism and the Kokutai. They sought a return to “the good old days” as one says. They say liberal democracy as a poison hurting Japan. They viewed the capitalists, industrialists and elites of Japan, ie the politicians, bureaucrats and Zaibatsu leaders to be responsible for ruining the once great nation. They wanted to see the Emperor take back full power, in what they would call a “showa restoration”. Their number one enemy, as was viewed by most of the Japanese military at this time, was the USSR and communism as a whole. Thus they were also by proxy in favor of the Hokushin-ron “northern strike policy” which was the Japanese theoretical war plan to invade the USSR. Now I don't want to go to far down the rabbit whole, but due note they were counter balanced by another faction known as the Toseiha faction, who were I guess to put it lightly, more moderate. The Toseiha were headed by Hideki Tojo famously and they opposed the Kodoha faction on a few grounds, one important one being, they did not want to cause a violent revolution to usher in the Emperor dominance. The Toseiha shared a lot of principles with the Kodoha, but they did not favor the Hokushin-ron strategy and instead adopted the Nanshin-ron strategy “southern strike” into southeast asia and the resource rich dutch east indies. It goes without saying the Toseiha faction enjoyed better relations with the IJN. So just to place this story within the political realm we are speaking, these two factions began to compete heavily for dominance 1931 onwards.   With Araki Sadao and some help from Prince Kan'in who was a Kodoha sympathizer things dramatically changed in Tokyo command. All of a sudden, offensive operations against Chinese forces in Manchuria became “bandit suppression” campaigns. The Kwantung army with Tokyo's full backing soon pursued all their military objectives, set out by Ishiwara and Itagaki since September. Chinchou and Shanhaikwan were seized in early January of 1932; Tsitsihar by February and by spring of 1932 Ishiwara argued to the staff they should complete the full seizure of Manchuria both north and south. In April that year he laid out “Manshu haiti heiryaku / the program for pacification of manchuria”. This new plan called for the seizure of Hailar in the north because “it was pivotal to the defense against the USSR”. It also called for seizing Jehol province because “it was an important condition to the independence of Manchuria”. By the end of the year Hailar was taken and in 1933 the Kwantung army was marching upon Jehol.   It goes without saying Ishiwara was central to the conquest of Manchuria. The Kwantung Army and IJA overall had numerous options laid bare to them to solve the Manchurian problem, but Ishiwara's primary concern was total control over Manchuria for its resources, strategic position and to obtain a continental base for a war against America. To Ishiwara, taking all of Manchuria was necessary to prepare for the Final War. Without Ishiwara it is certain there would have been conflict in Manchuria between Japan and China, but would Japan have outright seized the province? Ishiwara spent years planning and pushing the envelope. When the plan was unleashed, it would turn out Ishiwara and his colleagues did not have a concrete timetable for conquest and lacked quite a few contingency plans. Despite the chaotic nature of it all, the conquest of Manchuria was a stunning success. So much so, Ishiwara said to a friend of his, Satomi Kishio in 1932 “Even if Japan has to face the entire world, she can't be beaten”.   Ironically as many of you know, Japan's actions in Manchuria cost her greatly. Japan was now hated by the Chinese, well much more so. The west condemned Japan's actions, alongside the USSR. As my professor first taught me in a class about the Pacific War when I was a wee lad in his early 20's “It all was about Manchuria, everything started with Manchuria, and it ended with Manchuria in 1945”. The Manchuria affair started Japan on an inevitable course to fight the China War, which inturn led her to fight the west. It was a self-fulfilling prophecy. The entire affair also brings into question the subject of military discipline. Many look at the Gekokujo variable as an explanation as to how people like Ishiwara and Itagaki got away with all they did. You know, these militarist hardtype junior officers just ran amok, performed some rebellious acts defying their superiors, forcing their hands to become accomplices. Now don't get me wrong Gekokujo definitely played a hand, particularly when you look at Ishiwara. But it does not take away from the fact there simply was a high level of indiscipline within the Japanese army.   Ishiwara would have been 100% fully aware what his actions might result in, hell the guy before him, Colonel Komoto Daisaku is a great example. Ishiwara spent a long time with Komoto and saw the man's career broken as he was exiled for the Huanggutun incident. But Ishiwara was not only focus on Manchuria, he had a close eye on the political situation in Tokyo. Ishiwara knew the 1931 cabinet was crumbling, he knew certain high officials like Araki Sadao were in fast track position for promotions and their sympathies were with his cause. Ishiwara was betting, certain sympathizers such as Kodoha faction aligned ones would take seats of power necessary to help push his cause. His gamble more than paid off. All the main actors in the Manchurian affair were rewarded for their accomplishments. Ishiwara received the Order of the Golden Kite 3rd class. More importantly he returned to Japan as a rockstar hero, the younger IJA officers were enthralled by him. Ironically Ishiwara had fostered indiscipline within the army more so, that when he went up the ladder becoming a member of the Tokyo staff it would bite him in the ass.   Manchukuo and racial harmony   Now Ishiwara's dream of taking control over Manchuria was almost purely a means to end end: ie to obtain resources and a strategic position to face America. Once Manchuria was under their control, Ishiwara directed his attention towards another goal aside from this, that of racial cooperation among the asian peoples. Manchukuo or rather Ishiwara's view of what it could be was a springboard of his vision for a East-Asian league, something that had a firm basis in his Final War theory. During Ishiwara's tour of duty in Manchuria in 1932, this Pan-Asian idea of what Manchukuo could be is what set him apart from many of his Kwantung Army colleagues, it also marked him to be very unorthodox within the IJA.    Manchukuo as many of you probably know, was a sham puppet state created to legitimize Japan's seizure of Manchuria. The Japanese high command simply sought to use the guise of an indigenous movement for independence to hide the fact the simply invaded a part of China and stole it. To do this they went as far as grabbing the last Qing emperor, Puyi and tossing him upon the throne of the new state of Manchukuo while they tossed up principles of racial harmony. For obvious reasons this was all done. You can't control a region full of a population that rightfully hates you without trying to win them over. Now what the Japanese did have going for them, was there did exist elements in Manchuria who sought independence. This was Manchuria, the heart of Nurhaci's Manchu people, don't get me started on what a Manchu exactly is by the way, listen to the fall and rise of China podcast for that. The Japanese had a lot to work with, it could be seen as a righteous Qing revival, or simply giving power back to the Manchu. There was also a large presence of Mongolians, and yes Inner Mongolia would come into all of this. Manchuria came into the nationalist fold late and not exactly willingly. Also the fear of the USSR was not something Japan had alone, Manchuria had struggled against the USSR for a very long time. There was also of course a large Japanese settler population in Manchuria who obviously welcomed the seizure. The Zhang Xueliang regime was not exactly too too friendly to the Japanese within the borders and a lot of discriminatory measure had been exacted upon them. When Zhang Xueliang had joined the Nationalists this had basically spelt doom upon them, at some point they knew they would be kicked out.   While the offensives were in full swing, Ishiwara and Itagaki met with other influential Kwantung Officers to figure out how they could exert control over Manchuria. Officer Katakura, chief of staff Miyake, Dohihara Kenji of the Mukden special service organ all met, looking over a previous plan created by Colonel Dohihara, for a multi racial autonomous nation of Manchuria. It was to be headed by the last Qing emperor, Puyi and needed to possess complete autonomy in internal matters, but its defense and foreign relations would be entrusted to Japan. Ishiwara drafted the plans by September 22nd and they were telegrammed to Tokyo on October 2nd. Tokyo high command disproved of the objectives, but nonetheless worked with the Kwantung army for 5 months on the creation of a new state based on two major principles: the so-called indigenous movement for Manchurian independence and the administrative planning for the Kwantung army to control it.    The Kwantung army went to work using the traditional structure of Manchuria, local self governing bodies. They bribed, persuaded and threatened as many as they could throughout 1931 carefully cultivating a local autonomy movement against the Kuomintang hardliners. One of the first things they created was “Jichi Shidobu self-government guidance board”, whose organ was responsible for coordinating various regional movements for independence to work with the Kwantung army to, in the words of Miyake “guide Manchuria to self-government”. The head of this board was appointed to the Mukden elder statesmen Yu Ch'ung-han, a man educated in Japan and previous advisor to Zhang Zuolin. His board would consist of 20 Japanese and 10 Manchurian members. Such organs were opened Japanese civilians in Manchuria and they flocked to them to support the so called multiracial political structure, because they could bend it to their own benefit.   The Kwantung army began tossing the slogans “racial harmony, racial equality and the righteous way” around heavily. The Kwantung army control over Manchuria was hashed out easily by establishing Japanese advisors over all organs who held ultimate veto authority, they would be appointed at all levels of government, thus everything was in reality Japanese controlled. Everything was going according to Ishiwara's vision….or was it? You would think so, and Ishiwara was definitely pushing all of this forward, but by 1933 he suddenly became a ferocious critic of the very beast he had helped create.