The conservative journalist who was arrested over a fight with Antifa protesters in Portland is threatening legal action against the police department and other local officials. The portion of the scuffle that was recorded on video showed Antifa thugs attacking Sortor before he threw a punch in defense. Police arrested three people, including Sortor, but a district attorney later dropped the charge against the journalist. 'The arrest was made without probable cause and was clearly in retaliation for his efforts to expose the truth.' On Monday, Sortor released a letter sent to the police department demanding an investigation into his arrest and also an apology. "The arrest was made without probable cause and was clearly in retaliation for his efforts to expose the truth about conditions and activity in Portland to the broader public," reads the letter from Sortor's attorney. "The decision to make this arrest does not appear to have been made by a line officer, but rather by or at the direction of a member of the command staff and/or a supervising officer," the letter continues. "Such an arrest is unconstitutional and deeply troubling."The letter goes on to demand an apology within seven days and also the initiation of an internal investigation into his arrest. "Even more concerning, this incident appears to be part of a larger pattern and practice within the Portland Police Bureau of suppressing and silencing conservative media and political activity," the letter reads. The letter concludes by threatening that Sortor would "proceed accordingly" if the demands were not met. He also posted a filing demanding "all records relating to selective enforcement and COORDINATION with Antifa." RELATED: Karoline Leavitt suggests cutting funds to Portland after arrest of conservative journalist during anti-ICE riot Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images The district attorney indicated in a press release Monday that his office did not believe there was enough evidence to prove Sortor was guilty of disorderly conduct. The district attorney did not drop the charges against the other two people arrested. They were identified as 49-year-old Angela Davis and 43-year-old Son Mi Yi. "Free speech does not include the freedom to commit crimes. It does not matter if an individual is expressing ideology from the left, right, or center," District Attorney Nathan Vasquez wrote in a statement provided to KOIN-TV.A Blaze News request for comment to the city attorney's office was not immediately answered.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

AFPIllegal miners excavated a trench that was 55 feet deep and 65 feet long at the site of a 2,000-year-old settlement. In the the eastern Sahara desert lies the ancient remains of Jabal Maragha, which was once a small settlement in the ancient Nubian Kingdom of Kush. Recently, however, this 2,000-year-old historic site was destroyed by a gang of illegal treasure hunters who dug a massive trench there in search of gold. According to Africa News, the gang of miners used a pair of machines to dig out a giant hole that measured 55 feet deep and 65 feet long. Officials from Sudan’s Antiquities and Museums Department said that the historical site was rendered unrecognizable. “We worked on this site for a month,” said archaeologist Habab Idriss Ahmed, who first excavated Jabal Maragha’s ruins in 1999. “At the time, it was a quiet and beautiful site, never touched by anyone. But today, when I came here, I was shocked by the way it has been destroyed.” According to Hatem al-Nour, Sudan’s director of antiquities and museums, the treasure hunters had so thoroughly destroyed the site because the ground there is composed of layers of metallic sandstone and pyrite, which must have triggered their metal detectors. AFPThe destroyed ruins of Jabal Maragha. The Kingdom of Kush ruled the lands south of Egypt from 2500 B.C. to 300 A.D., during which time Jabal Maragha was in use as a checkpoint, likely between 350 B.C. and 350 A.D. Meanwhile, the kingdom’s capital of Meroë served as a robust center for culture and commerce which thrived for centuries. Although at one point it was a colony of Egypt, the Kingdom of Kush maintained some independence due to its wealth of natural iron and gold mines nearby as well as its distance from Egypt. While Egypt suffered from the invasions of the Greeks, Persians, and Assyrians, the Kingdom of Kush was left untouched. Around 730 B.C., the Nubian king Piye invaded and conquered Egypt, becoming the first pharaoh of Egypt’s 25th dynasty which lasted for 75 years. Ebrahim Hamid/AFP via Getty ImagesJabal Maragha is just the latest historical site to be vandalized by illegal gold miners in Sudan. As a historical site, the Kingdom of Kush holds much importance. Even though the Egyptians are most known for their pyramids, the Kushites actually built more pyramids than they did. Over 200 ancient pyramids are estimated to still exist across Sudan today. “While they are not as old or as large as the pyramids in Egypt, they are unique in that they are steeper, and they were not all dedicated to royals,” journalist Isma’il Kushkush noted. Given the territory’s rich history and wealth of natural resources, it is no surprise that the ancient site has become a target for illegal gold miners. Indeed, this incident is not the first. At least 100 out of 1,000 well-known archaeological sites around Sudan have already been destroyed so far, especially through the use of heavy, gold-digging machinery. “There are a lot of attempts to attack archaeological sites,” explained Hatem al-Nour. “This attack is a strong coup because this site is a rare site that contained a lot of useful information for research on the history of Sudan.” YouTubeJabal Maragha is one among many ancient sites across Sudan in danger of careless treasure hunters. The rampant vandalism of Sudan’s ancient sites has in part been facilitated by a lack of resources to properly protect them. But it is also fueled by corruption among officials and rich benefactors who are able to fund illegal treasure hunters without consequence. In fact, according to the archaeologists, it’s not uncommon for captured bandits to be set free by authorities within hours of their arrest. This is exactly what happened in the case of Jabal Maragha. Authorities failed to press charges, which meant that the vandals could retrieve their equipment and leave without issue. “They should have been put in jail and their machines confiscated,” Mahmoud al-Tayeb, an expert formerly associated with Sudan’s antiquities department, reported. “There are laws.” Al-Nour added that there is one policeman for 30 sites and that he has no communication equipment or adequate means of transport. These illegal digs have cost the Sudanese more than the price of gold. These treasure hunters have little appreciation for the ancient sites that they plunder, and as a result they have erased parts of Sudanese history that may never be recovered. Next, read about how overweight tourists are crippling the donkeys in Santorini. Then, read about how a mining company blew up an ancient Aboriginal site — and it was totally legal. The post Illegal Gold Diggers Destroy 2,000-Year-Old Heritage Site In Sudan appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Carabinieri/FacebookItalian police hold one of the suspected forgeries. Italian police just seized 21 works of art attributed to Salvador Dalí that are presumed to be forgeries. The pieces were all part of an exhibition called “Salvador Dalí: Between Art and Myth” that recently opened at Palazzo Tarasconi in Parma. The collection had previously appeared in Rome, where the Carabinieri’s Cultural Heritage Protection Unit began to question the art’s authenticity after a routine inspection. An investigation is now underway to confirm the legitimacy of the lithographs. Italian Authorities Suspect Forgery At A Salvador Dalí Exhibition Last week, authorities seized 21 lithographs from the Salvador Dalí exhibition in Parma. According to a Facebook post by the Carabinieri, the police began to doubt the authenticity of some of the artwork earlier this year after a routine inspection of the exhibition while it was on display in Rome. “During the inspection, the kind we generally do at museums, something seemed to be amiss,” the senior officer leading the investigation, Diego Polio, told The Guardian. “We noticed that only lithographs, posters, and drawings by Dalí were on display, along with a few statues and other objects, but no paintings or anything of importance. It was difficult to understand why someone would want to organize an exhibition of such low-value works.” Public DomainSpanish surrealist artist Salvador Dalí with his pet ocelot in 1965. The police alerted the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation of their suspicions about the exhibit, only to learn the foundation had never been in contact with the exhibition’s organizers or curator. The Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation is devoted to safeguarding Dalí’s legacy, and “Salvador Dalí: Between Art and Myth” never got its seal of approval. “From the moment the content of this exhibition — which began in Rome and has now moved to Parma — became known, the Dalí Foundation expressed its doubts… regarding three drawings and a series of graphic works,” said a representative of the foundation, as reported by The New York Times. The foundation sent experts to Rome to see the lithographs for themselves, and they still had doubts about their authenticity. So, when the exhibition reopened in Parma recently, the police moved in, seizing the suspected forgeries. However, the curator of the event insists the artwork is legitimate. The Debate About The Authenticity Of The Lithographs Vincenzo Sanfo, the curator of “Salvador Dalí: Between Art and Myth,” stands firm that he has the documentation needed to authenticate the lithographs. He says they are part of a collection called Les Chevaux de Dalí that was published in 1983. Christie’sOne of Salvador Dalí’s horse lithographs that was sold by Christie’s in 2010. Still, an investigation is now underway. No one has yet been charged with any wrongdoing, but the police are looking into the exhibition’s organizers, and the curator is also a person of interest. “It’s clear that as the curator he allowed the works to be exhibited but prosecutors still have to examine his position,” Polio told The New York Times. Sanfo, in turn, said that he was surprised by the Carabinieri’s focus on the exhibition, because the pieces are “not so valuable” and don’t “justify all the ruckus.” “Salvador Dalí: Between Art and Myth” remains open to the public for now, but the results of the authentication are pending. After reading about these alleged Salvador Dalí forgeries, discover the story behind the infamous Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist. Then, learn about the Monuments Men who rescued priceless works of art from the Nazis. The post Police Just Seized 21 Works Of Art Suspected To Be Forgeries From A Salvador Dalí Exhibition In Italy appeared first on All That's Interesting.

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