I mention only two infamous days on Migrant Tales annually: the coup in Argentina on March 24, 1976, and the man who went on a murderous rampage against 77 people on 22/7. Let’s offer a moment of silence to the victims, killed, and those who survived this atrocity. Source: Migrant Tales Further reading: ANALYSIS – Commemorating
Search Results for: 22/7
10 years after the 22/7 mass killings in Norway and what it reveals about us
Ten years have passed since 22/7, and some Norwegians are still asking, “why?” I remember that day as if it were yesterday. First, a bomb exploded in downtown Oslo, and what followed then were the cold-blooded murders of young people on Utøya island. A total of 77 people lost their lives on that day. Countless
The Norwegian mass murderer, 22/7, and Jussi Halla-aho
Hateful and racist words can turn into bullets. THE STORY WAS UPDATED Two days and nine years had gone by when Norway and Europe witnessed the horrific events of 22/7 that left 77 people dead and many others with physical and psychological injuries for the rest of their lives. One of the matters that we
22/7: A day that will live in infamy and one we must not forget
The far-right was riding the crest of the wave in 2011. In Finland, the radical right Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party had scored their historic parliamentary victory. But then three months later, Anders Breivik appeared from nowhere and went on to murder 77 people to save – according to him – Europe from being overrun by Muslims.
What have we learned after 22/7? That we have a great ability to deny and forget?
Today marks the day when a white Norwegian terrorist called Anders Breivik murdered in cold blood 77 people. Mentally deranged? This is how some want to interpret such a vile act of terrorism. One of the matters that the monstrous attack by Breivik has proven eight years after it happened is that we have a
(Migrant Tales July 22, 2014) Anders Breivik: Three years after the horror of 22/7 in Norway
How many still remember 22/7, when mass-murderer Anders Breivik went on the rampage seven years ago killing 77 innocent victims? Who wants to remember the man that carried out the worst attack on Norway since the Second World War?
Six years after 22/7: What can one person do?
Anders Breivik committed a horrendous act six years ago on July 22. While anti-immigration groups want us to forget what happened, we can never forget. Breivik is the smoking gun that proves that those that preach hatred have the potential to spread fear and death.
Five years after 22/7 the Nordic region continues to bleed hatred
Is it a coincidence that Perussuomalaiset (PS)* Youth leader Sebastian Tynkkynen wants to make hate speech possible by doing away with laws that prohibit it? Is it a coincidence that he states openly and publicly, like PS MP Teuvo Hakkarainen, that Finland should rid itself of Muslims?
Let´s (not) forget 22/7 and Anders Breivik
As we distance ourselves from the horror of July 22, 2011, when a Anders Breivik killed 77 innocent lives, the more our collective memory begins to fail us. Islamophobia, xenophobia and anti-cultural diversity sentiment have strengthened their grip in the Nordic region after 22/7.
(Migrant Tales July 22, 2014) Anders Breivik: Three years after the horror of 22/7 in Norway
How many still remember 22/7, when mass-murderer Anders Breivik went on the rampage three years ago killing 77 innocent victims? Who wants to remember the man that carried out the worst attack on Norway since the Second World War? What will the local papers write about that horrific day, today? What will their editorials say if
Migrant Tales (July 22, 2012): What have we learned after Norway’s 22/7
What goes around comes around. Exactly a year ago (2012) Anders Breivik carried out his mass killings, which ended up causing the death of 77 innocent victims. Have we learned anything from that tragic Saturday that shook the Nordic region and changed it permanently? In order to answer that question, we’d have to travel back in
Migrant Tales (July 22, 2012): What have we learned after Norway’s 22/7 and the Boston bombings?
Comment: As the manhunt for one of the two suspects continues in Boston, what should our reaction be to the two Chechen killers? This blog entry written on the first anniversary of the horrific killings in Norway by Anders Breivik could shed light on that question. ____________________ What goes around comes around. Exactly a year
What have we learned after Norway’s 22/7?
What goes around comes around. Exactly a year ago Anders Breivik carried out his mass killings, which ended up causing the death of 77 innocent victims. Have we learned anything from that tragic Saturday that shook the Nordic region and changed it permanently? In order to answer that question, we’d have to travel back in time
Migrant Tales (July 25, 2011): Living in post-22/7 Europe
It is ironic that those right-wing populist and far-right parties that have gone out of their way to warn us about the threat of multiculturalism and religions like Islam have become the threat and Trojan Horses in our societies. In one horrific blow, Anders Behring Breivik did not only strike at Norway’s liberal democracy, but
Living in post-22/7 Europe: “Fjordman” bows out
As Migrant Tales correctly predicted shortly after the mass killings in Norway, the impact on the sabre-rattling European chorus warning us of the danger of Islam is now on the defensive and on the run. “Fjordman,” Anders Behring Breivik’s mentor, said he would go underground for his own safety and never publish again with the infamous pseudonym, according to tabloid Ilta-Sanomat.
Living in post 22/7 for Finland’s PS: Better late than never?
It is clear that matters are no longer the same for the Perussuomalaiset (PS) party after the horrific events that shook Norway and the world on July 22. Migrant Tales predicted a couple of days after the mass killings that they would cast a critical light on far right and right-wing populist parties like the PS, which have been riding the crest of the popularity wave thanks to their anti-immigrant and anti-Islam rhetoric.
Living in post-22/7 Europe: The tide has turned
One of the biggest blows to the far right and right-wing populist parties in Europe and the Nordic Region after the horrific events in Norway has been to seriously question their raison d’être: their provocative anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam discourse.
Living in post-22/7 Europe
It is ironic that those right-wing populist and far-right parties that have gone out of their way to warn us about the threat of multiculturalism and religions like Islam have become the threat and Trojan Horses in our societies. In one horrific blow, Anders Behring Breivik did not only strike at Norway’s liberal democracy, but tore a hole in the argument of the anti-immigrant populists and fanatics.
Denmark shooter is allegedly white and has ties with the far-right
It was about 11 years ago on 22/7 when Norwegian Anders Breivik shocked us by murdering 77 victims. His motive? Anti-Muslim racism. Yesterday, there was a hint of déjà-vu when a 22-year-old “ethnic Dane,” a term used to mean white Dane, went on the rampage in the Fields shopping center of Copenhagen killing at least
What does Finland’s far-right Perussuomalaiset think of the overturning of Roe and Wade and attack of a gay bar in Oslo?
Setting aside the US Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe and Wade, which effectively took away women’s rights to have an abortion, we saw the cold-blooded attack at a gay bar by a man in Oslo that left two dead and 21 wounded. Meanwhile, in Finland, Yle reported some MPs’ reaction to the Supreme Court
STATEMENT: The great replacement theory and playing with fire
It was only in March when the Finnish Security Service (Supo) 2020 annual report warned that the great replacement theory is nothing more than a conspiracy theory used by far-right terrorist groups. Should we be surprised that Finns Party (PS) politicians like its leader Jussi Halla-aho, vice president Riikka Purra, and party secretary Simo Grönroos have spread
The far right and their rabid show dog in Finland that knows no master
If there is one matter that will bring down the far-right Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party, it is their racist and nationalistic ideology. We already saw this on 22/7 with Anders Breivik and now with political violence against Pekka Kataja of the same party. On July 17, Kataja was paid a visit by three men who attacked
Why are the PS so silent about the US President Joe Biden’s administration?
TOPLINE The silence emerging from the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* politicians are highly revealing. Their populist autocratic mentor, former President Donald Trump, is history and no longer in power. KEY FACTS While only PS MEP Laura Huhtasaari and PS MP Veikko Vallin were some of the very few politicians of the party to comment on the transfer
Halla-aho, Purra, Tavio, Niikko and all of you PS politicians: Trump’s stench will linger
THIS STORY WAS UPDATED TOPLINE It is quite extraordinary that the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* continues to play down and deflect criticism for their admiration and support for outgoing US President Donald Trump whose most recent crimes included actively inciting a mob to violently assault the legislative branch of government to overturn the election he lost by
Why radical-right populism will fail in Finland
TOPLINE After the historic election of the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party in 2011, when it won 39 seats in parliament from 5 previously, two international events have kept in check the PS’ rise: the bloody 22/7 events that left seventy-seven dead in Norway, and Wednesday’s storming of the Capitol building in Washington. After the historical rise
Radical right 101 (lesson 1): Is the Perussuomalaiset a radical right party?
Migrant Tales will start publishing news about how the far-right, specifically the radical right, is dupping half a million Finns. I consider the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* as the biggest menace to Finland’s democracy, our Nordic way of life, and vibrant cultural diversity. Former PS party secretary and MP, Riikka Slunga-Poutsalo, disagrees. She said on A-studio (31.8)
Islamophobia is the biggest menace facing Finland and its institutions today
Even if Islamophobic parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* rarely mention the word “Muslim(s)” in their hate messages and campaigns, Islamophobia is without a doubt the most significant threat today to Finland’s institutions and society. Apart from the steady rise of hate speech and hate crime, Islamophobia is spearheaded by parties like the PS. It, if
A white supremacist terrorist strikes again in Norway. White supremacist terrorism is the biggest threat to Europe and Finland.
THE STORY WAS UPDATED It is surprising that in Norway, one of Europe’s wealthiest and whitest countries has suffered some of the worst terrorist attacks in Europe. Eight years ago, on 22/7, Anders Breivik emerged and killed 77 people. The most recent terrorist attack by an alleged white supremacist in Norway on Saturday attacked with
“Young white man” opens fire inside mosque near Oslo in Norway
THE STORY WAS UPDATED A “young white man” was arrested in Norway after shooting inside a mosque today, according to the BBC. The man injured one person after he opened fire on the Al-Noor Islamic Center near Oslo. According to a tweet by Tommi Kotonen, “Norwegian newspaper [VG] reports that police is investigating a forum
YLE News: What Prosecutor General Raija Toiviainen forgets to tell us about growing hate speech in Finland
There’s a lot of evidence of how Finland denies an issue like racism and near-constantly plays down its impact on migrants, minorities, and society in general. Prosecutor General Raija Toivainen claims in a YLE News story that racist statement lead to bitterness, radicalization, and terrorism.
Wednesday was a good day for racism in Finland: Pia Kauma and Gleb Simanov
Wednesday was a good day for racism in Finland. National Coalition Party (NCP) substitute MP Pia Kauma, who accused migrant women three years ago of demanding social welfare to buy new baby carriages, took over as MP after Alexander Stubb took started his tenure at the European Investment Bank (EIB).
Will Donald Trump breathe new life into a doomed party called the Perussuomalaiset?
Donald Trump’s election victory has emboldened our own group of populists, racists, and bigots in Finland who pray what happened in the United States will breathe new life into a political disaster called the Perussuomalaiset (PS)*. There are many reasons why copying and pasting populist rhetoric in the United States won’t work in Finland.
PS MP Teuvo Hakkarainen may face prosecution for ethnic agitation
There’s a strong chance that Perussuomalaiset (PS)* MP Teuvo Hakkarainen may face prosecution for ethnic agitation, according to YLE. The matter will be decided by the general prosecutor’s office after a police investigation.
White Finns attack a pregnant Muslim woman at the Itäkeskus shopping center
A Muslim woman who was four-months pregnant was attacked Sunday by around ten white Finns at the Itäkeskus shopping center located in Eastern Helsinki, reports Helsingin Sanomat.
Not even a xenophobic lifesaver can save the Perussuomalaiset from sinking in the polls
Support for the anti-immigration populist Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party has hit a new all-time low of 7.6%, according to the latest poll by YLE, according to YLE News. The poor showing of the party reveals that its strategy to target and increase attacks against migrants, asylum seekers and minorities in July has badly backfired.
Finland’s blind spot of racism and the incitement of violence against migrants and minorities
July was a busy month for hate speech with the usual bunch of politicians from a particular party hurling insults at migrants and minorities. If we look at the pyramid of hate below, we can see politicians like Perussuomalaiset (PS)* MP Teuvo Hakkarainen and PS youth leader Sebastian Tynkkynen venturing with their comments to the bias-motivated-violence phase, which openly incites violence against migrants and minorities.
Juha Sipilä and Petteri Orpo: The sad Finnish tale of spineless politicians
In the United States, a lot of Republican politicians who should know better still haven’t withdrawn their support for Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump despite his ultranationalistic, racist and misogynistic comments. The latest row involves Trump insulting the parents of Captain Humayun Khan, a Muslim who was killed in Iraq.
The PS claws to racism and bigotry because it has lost its vain hope to keep Finland white
The Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party is fuming attempting to get the maximum political mileage from its recent racist and bigoted outbursts by playing down such social ills and prop up its poor standings in the polls.
A belated response to racist comments by a member of the PS is half a response
Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party has been (surprise, surprise) in the past two weeks on the racist rampage against migrants and minorities. The first one was lodged on July 15 by PS MP Teuvo Hakkarainen, who suggested that Muslims should be kicked out of Finland, followed by comments by Matias Turkkila (17.7), PS Youth leader Sebastian Tynkkynen, who parrots Hakkarainen’s call on July 19.
White Finnish privilege #30: Whitewashing and racializing the news
On the fifth anniversary, when Anders Breivik went on the rampage in Oslo on 22/7 by killing 77 victims, we saw another gunman in Munich who followed the Norwegian killer’s example. We now know with pretty much certainty that there was a connection between what the shooter did in Munich and with the fifth anniversary.
The role of the Finnish media and politicians who spread their racist statements
The Perussuomalaiset (PS)* is a horrible party for migrants and minorities. They have the dubious “honor” of being the first modern party in Finland to capitalize on voters’ racism and bigoted views. Certainly they couldn’t have done it alone. All the major parties have the same type of politicians who state and write the same type of things.
Police study on immigration paints a threatening and bleak picture of Finland’s ever-growing culturally diverse society
Weird things happen when an anti-immigration party like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* get power and partner with two other mainstream parties, the Center Party and National Coalition Party (NCP), which have done too little to tackle racism and discrimination in Finland. One of the many things that can happen is a study, “Immigration, Security and Foresight,” published with the blessings of the council of state.
Far right Olli Immonen is a thankless MP to the PS and Timo Soini
Some politicians, like Perussuomalaiset (PS)* MP Olli Immonen live in a bubble inflated by their rhetoric and delusions. We got a taste of his hateful ideology in July, when he declared war on “the nightmare of multiculturalism” and how he vowed that “his fighters” will “fight until the end for our homeland.”
Miten perussuomalaisuutta kielen keinoilla rakennetaan
Yksi kieli, yksi mieli oli J.V. Snellmanin ajama nationalistinen aate 1800 luvulla, jolloin hän oli vaikuttava fennomaani Suomessa. Hän vaikutti merkittävästi suomen kielen asemaan ja Suomen markan käyttöönottoon. Snellmanin päivänä 12.5 vietetään suomalaisuuden päivää. Snellmanilaiseen nationalismiin ei liittynyt rotuajattelua, vaan sen omivat svekomaanit, jotka olivat toki osaksi liberaaleja, mutta myös konservatiiveja ja vastustivat mm. säätykiertoa.
Finland’s Rosa Parks moment and crossing the line
For those of us who have been anti-racism activists for many years, Tuesday, July 28, offered us something we hadn’t seen before in Finland: A spontaneous 15,000-20.000-strong demonstration against racism and fascism in Helsinki. Was that very important demonstration a Rosa Parks moment and an important watershed to make Finland a more inclusive country?
Migrant Tales (June 23, 2012): What is the fine line that separates Anders Breivik and PS MP Olli Immonen?
This week we heard Anders Breivik’s closing statements in his defense for killing 77 innocent victims. In his final tirade of how multiculturalism is responsible for fuelling the Islamization of Europe, the mass killer showed no remorse. “The attacks on July 22 were preventive attacks to defend the indigenous Norwegian people,” he said. “I therefore
Are Bush’s Iraq War and Abu Ghraib torture to blame as well for the Charlie Hebdo attack?
When I reflect on what happened this week in Paris my thoughts drift to George W. Bush and his proclamation that the United States is on a crusade against terrorism. Juan Cole, an expert on Middle East politics, asks an important question on his blog: Having American troops occupy it [Baghdad] for 8 years, humiliate
Financial Times: MEP Jussi Halla-aho racist track record leaves PS out in the cold
Success comes with a high political price especially if you base that success on spreading racism and prejudice. That is exactly the case of the Perussuomalaiset (PS),* who are hoping to join the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) in Brussels but have been rejected by them because they see PS MEP Jussi Halla-aho as too racist,
Disingenuous Finnish PS MEP-elect Jussi Halla-aho fears image would suffer with parties like far-right National Front
In an interview on YLE, Perussuomalaiset (PS) newly elected MEP Jussi Halla-aho said that it was doubtful that the anti-immigration party would form part of a parliamentary group with far-right parties like the National Front of France “because the party’s image would suffer.” What a disingenuous statement by a politician who has based his career
Selective hatred and racism know no master
Migrant Tales has written on a number of occasions about how intolerance and discrimination are a direct threat to our society since such social ills eat away at our values and thereby undermine who we are. We have demonstrated how anti-immigration parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS) use selective hatred to ensure their followers that they are
MPs in Finland should not seek populistic and quick fixes to issues like poverty
Is it a coincidence that MPs of Finland’s four largest parties aim to pass anti-begging legislation in the face of ever-growing poverty in this country as a survey by YLE showed? Aren’t the four MPs, who claim the bill has the backing of 102 lawmakers, concerned that the anti-begging motion is a copy from Norway,
Geert Wilders crosses line, highlights European anti-immigration politicians’ master plan
We’ve seen a lot of xenophobia and anti-immigration rhetoric thrown at us in the past by politicians like Geert Wilders, who likes to test the waters of hate to see if he can take another step towards his grand plan, which is to make Holland white again. Wilders’ plan against cultural and ethnic diversity is
Finland and Europe must not forget its culturally diverse history
Why have so many in this land forgotten our culturally diverse history? Why don’t we teach it more at schools? At homes? If over 1.2 million emigrants left this land between 1860 and 1999, certainly that says a lot about the source of our diversity. It’s fortunate that Finland wasn’t a former European colonial powers like
Government talks in Norway are a preview of what may happen in Finland in 2015 with the PS
Take a close look at Norway if you want to see what may happen in Finland after the 2015 parliamentary elections, when the right-wing populist Perussuomalaiset (PS) may be in government.The populist anti-immigration Progress party (FrP) of Norway will form part of a coalition government with the Conservative Party (Høyre), Christian Democrats and Liberals. If the Conservative Party
The shadow of Anders Breivik’s mass killings hang over coalition talks after Norway elections
The landslide victory of Norway’s opposition Conservatives (Høyre) on Monday was short-lived after the country’s next prime minister, Erna Solberg, faced tough coalition talks with the anti-immigration and populist Progress party (Fremskrittspartiet) of which Anders Breivik was a member and whose cold-blooded killings continue to haunt the country, reports Reuters. Visit Wikipedia site here. Outgoing Labor Party
Fifty years from Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech
Today marks the 50th anniversary when Martin Luther King Jr.(1929-68) gave his historic “I have a dream” speech. When he gave the speech in Washington on August 28,1963, I was eight years old. Even if I knew nothing about MLK at the time never mind anything about his famous speech, his words would have a
Death threats and the PS threat to our Nordic way of life
Perussuomalaiset (PS) chairman, Timo Soini, reveals in a recent blog that he got four death threats recently. Interior Minister Päivi Räsänen’s Christian Democratic party received a bomb threat as well, which was reported by tabloid Iltalehti. The death threats are similar to what Swedish-language journalists received a while back. Migrant Tales has been a victim of
The Boston bombings reveal a deadlier blowback
I was shocked to hear about the twin bombs in Boston and my heart goes to the victims. Two days after the incident, however, speculation has been rife about the probable ethnicity of the perpetrator. The eerie silence of the killer suggests that this was probably carried out individually. The latest story on the
Could Finland and the Nordic region see Golden Dawn-like fanatics in the future?
The news from Greece is getting more distressing as Golden Dawn neo-Nazi thugs continue to terrorize sensible Greeks, immigrants and other minorities with the collusion of the police. An investigative report by The Guardian exposes how bad things are in Greece at present and why matters will get far worse. Could we see something similar happening in
What separates our counterjihadists from jihadists?
Anjem Choudary took part in a talk in Helsinki Thursday about freeing Muslim hostages. The Muslim cleric has said a lot of controversial things in the past like Islam will overrun Europe and that Prime Minister David Cameron and U.S. President Barack Obama should be killed. He’s even predicted that a “tsunami” of Muslim immigrants will sweep
Jyväskylä may turn into another blow to Finland’s Counterjihadist -anti-immigration hardliners
If the Counterjihadist-anti-immigration tide turned in Finland and the Nordic region after 22/7, when Anders Breivik went on the rampage killing 77 innocent people, the attack in Jyväskylä on Wednesday by suspected far-right thugs could be a serious blow to anti-immigration and far right groups in Finland. Whenever hatred metamorphoses into violence, like in the case
How to stand up to the Counterjihadists of Finland
Swedish-language daily HBL writes on Sunday that we must challenge the rhetoric of hatred by Counterjihadists. As everyone knows, the Counterjihadist hardcore in the Perussuomalaiset (PS) party comprises of three MPs: Jussi Halla-aho, James Hirvisaari and Olii Immonen. While many at Migrant Tales have valiantly challenged Counterjihadism in the past, populist radical right-wing rhetoric and hate
Breivik, Europe’s Counter-Jihadist mass killer, gets at least 21 years
Anders Breivik, the Norwegian mass killer who shocked Europe and the world on July 22, 2011, was sentenced to at least 21 years in prison. The sentence by the Oslo district court is not only a relief to the loved ones of the 77 victims, but sends an important political message as well. The court
What is the fine line that separates Anders Breivik and PS MP Olli Immonen?
This week we heard Anders Breivik’s closing statements in his defense for killing 77 innocent victims. In his final tirade of how multiculturalism is responsible for fuelling the Islamization of Europe, the mass killer showed no remorse. “The attacks on July 22 were preventive attacks to defend the indigenous Norwegian people,” he said. “I therefore
Finland & Cultural Diversity 2011
In many respects 2011 was a watershed year for Finland and Europe concerning the rise of anti-immigration parties and xenophobia. The biggest news to hit Finland this year was without a doubt the April 17 election, which saw the anti-immigration Perussuomalaiset (PS) party win 39 seats compared with only 5 in 2007. On July 22 Anders Breivik gunned down most of his 77 victims in Norway.
AFP & YLE: Halla-aho claims being victim of “witch-hunt”
True Finns Party MP Jussi Halla-aho says that he feels that a witch-hunt has started against him and free speech after the Norway tragedy. In an interview with AFP, he said that things are completely out of control.
Europe’s and Finland’s radical right: toning down diatribe rhetoric
We are seeing today how the impact of the killings in Norway have placed the far right and right-wing populist parties under greater scrutiny. If these parties are now forced to tone down their anti-immigration message that fueled their rise, will greater scrutiny dull their message and weaken them in the end?
YLE: Parties consider Halla-aho’s position
Jussi Halla-aho, a critic of immigration and multiculturalism, is facing pressure to stand down as chair of parliament’s Administration committee in the wake of the Norwegian terror attacks. The Administration Committee deals with matters that include immigration policy and gun legislation.
Waging a war of “total words” in Finland and Europe
The Age of Chivalry died in the 2008 municipal election in Finland with the advent of “total words.” The ongoing war of words bring near memories of the former German concept of “total war,” which meant attacking undefended shipping, helpless civilians and breaking all the rules of wars prior to WW I.
The PS Counter-Jihadists are Soini’s biggest threat
For those who still believe that the mass killings in Norway will not impact parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS) and hate websites in this country should think twice. Migrant Tales was right: there is already clear evidence that living in a post-22/7 Europe has torn a hole in the argument of the anti-immigrant populists and extremists in Finland.
YLE: Halonen calls for resistance to hatred
President Tarja Halonen says that now is the time to let Norwegians grieve for the victims of last Friday’s attacks. At the same time, this is the right moment to think of ways to prevent such a tragedy from striking any country again, according to Halonen.
Spiegel Online International: European Right Under Pressure in Wake of Attacks
Europe’s right-wing populists are not used to being on the defensive. But the perpetrator of last Friday’s horrific attacks in Norway was steeped in their anti-immigration, Muslim-skeptical ideology. They now find themselves in an uncomfortable position.
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