Quick Takes: <i>News You May Have Missed</i>

Quick Takes: News You May Have Missed

By: Aaron Klein

Published: August 31st, 2011

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Many ‘Libyan’ Rebels Are Not Libyan

The so-called popular uprising in Libya was supported and partially carried out by foreign mercenaries, according to Egyptian security officials speaking to this column.

The security officials said Egyptian authorities recently arrested a number of mercenaries who returned to Egypt from fighting in Libya.

The claim may bolster critics who question the composure of the rebels’ National Transitional Council, which has been recognized by the United States and most of the international community as the country’s de facto government.

At the start of the insurgency, rebel leader Abdel-Hakim al-Hasidi admitted in an interview with an Italian newspaper that some of his fighters were recruited from foreign countries, while others were on the front lines against coalition troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Iran Scales Back Funding To Hamas

Disappointed with the recent performance of Hamas, Iran has massively cut back funding for the terrorist group that rules the Gaza Strip, according to informed Middle Eastern security officials and sources close to Hamas.

The sources said the Islamist group is studying the possibility of moving its headquarters from Damascus to another country, possibly Egypt, if that country can guarantee a replacement of some of the funding that has until now come from Iran.

Reached for comment, Hamas’s chief political adviser, Ahmed Yousef, refused to attribute financial hardships to any action by Iran.

“All Palestinians are suffering from a lack of funds,” Yousef told this reporter.

“And this is related to the Israeli siege against Gaza and the sanctions. All Palestinians are in bad need, suffering from financial problems,” he said.

However the Mideast security officials and sources close to Hamas confirmed that Iran this month didn’t transfer its monthly multi-million dollar stipend to fund Hamas’s rule in Gaza.

As a result, the salaries of Hamas employees due this past Thursday were not paid in full.

The security officials and sources said Iran’s disappointment stems in large part from the ongoing insurgency targeting the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, an Iranian ally.

Iran had expected so-called Palestinian refugees in Syria to join forces with Assad and to attend protests in favor of his regime. Instead, the refugees largely stayed on the sidelines, with some even aiding Assad’s opposition.

Private Agency Received Government Funds To Promote ObamaCare

President Obama’s former political director worked at an international advertising agency that received government funds to direct a multi-million dollar campaign to sell ObamaCare to the public, this column has learned.

Last week, Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates government corruption, reportedly obtained documents showing the White House helped coordinate the taxpayer-funded publicity campaign.

The campaign used Internet search engines such as Google and Yahoo to drive web traffic to government websites promoting the Affordable Health Care Act, also known as ObamaCare.

The campaign was led by Ogilvy & Mather, an international advertising, marketing and public relations agency based in Manhattan.

The documents, obtained using a Freedom of Information request, showed that from October 2010 through February 2011, the Obama administration spent $1,435,009 on an online advertising campaign alone, including campaigns with Google and Yahoo, at almost $300,000 per month

Adding a new dimension to the controversy, this column has learned that a former top Obama official works at Ogilvy.

Matthew Nugen, former national political director for Obama’s presidential campaign, joined Ogilvy’s government relations department in 2009 and is now senior vice president of its government relations department.

An Ogilvy bio states Nugen was “part of the senior team that developed and implemented the multi-state primarycampaign plan that successfully launched Obama to the White House.”

Following the primary, Nugen was put in charge of the 2008 Democratic National Conventionin Denver, where he oversaw all aspects of the convention operation for the campaign.

For the final two months of the campaign, Nugen traveled with then-Sen. Joe Biden and served as an Obama senior political adviser.

Before joining the Obama campaign, Nugen was the deputy executive director at the Democratic National Committee.

A Politico.com profile of Nugen says he “was there when they debated internally about which parts of their economic plan to emphasize and which to abandon. Ditto for any healthcare reform plan.”

Aaron Klein is Jerusalem bureau chief and senior reporter for WorldNetDaily.com. He is also host of an investigative radio program on New York’s 770-WABC Radio, the largest talk radio station in the U.S., every Sunday between 2-4 p.m. His new website is KleinOnline.com.

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About the Author: Aaron Klein is Jerusalem bureau chief and senior reporter for WorldNetDaily.com. He is also host of an investigative radio program on New York's 770-WABC Radio, the largest talk radio station in the U.S., every Sunday between 2-4 p.m (CHANGE TO 7-9 p.m.). His website is KleinOnline.com

Quick Takes: News You May Have Missed

Iran Scales Back Funding To Hamas

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