UNESCO says no Jewish history on Temple Mount; Hebron and Bethlehem 'Integral part of Palestine'
Netanyahu: UNESCO resolution ‘ignores unique Jewish connection to Temple Mount’
PM: UNESCO's decision ignores a 'fundamental part of human history'
Unclear who will benefit from polemical decision.
Temple Mount
Israeli flag and Temple Mount . (photo credit:MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
UNESCO,
the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Association,
announced a number of resolutions just before the weekend started.
One,
submitted by the Russian Federation, called for defining UNESCO’s role
in safeguarding and preserving Palmyra and other Syrian World Heritage
sites. Another was about “Enhancing UNESCO’s contributions to promote a
culture of mutual respect and tolerance.”
A third was simply
entitled “Occupied Palestine” and addressed the Jerusalem Old City
hotspot that Jews refer to as the Temple Mount and Muslims call Haram
Al-Sharif, the Noble Sanctuary. Except that the Jewish link to the site,
considered the holiest place for Jews, went unmentioned.
In
the context of Jerusalem’s Old City, the document refers to Israel
solely as “the occupying power” and refers to the site itself, the world
famous esplanade flanked by the Western Wall - considered by many
experts to be the last existing retaining wall of the mount that once
held the ancient Jewish temples - only by its Islamic moniker.
The
decision refers to the plaza fronting the Western Wall only in
quotation marks, except when using one of its Arabic names, Al-Buraq, a
reference to the Prophet Mohammed’s ascent to heaven.
The Israeli government responded with fury.
“This
is yet another absurd UN decision,” an incandescent Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement released late on Saturday.
“UNESCO ignores the unique historic connection of Judaism to the Temple
Mount, where the two temples stood for a thousand years and to which
every Jew in the world has prayed for thousands of years. The UN is
rewriting a basic part of human history and has again proven that there
is no low to which it will not stoop.”
Carmel Shama Hacohen,
Israel’s representative to UNESCO, that has its seat in Paris, issued a
press release declaring that “even if UNESCO passes dozens of
resolutions, and decides to continue passing thousands more, Jerusalem
will always remain as part of the capital of Israel and the Jewish
people.”
On Saturday night, addressing Jordan, Algeria, Egypt,
Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Sudan, the nations which presented
the resolution, Shama Hacohen averred that, “As you continue on this
path of incitement, lies and terror you will be sending UNESCO down a
path towards irrelevance.”
The Jordan Times reveled: “Jordan triumphant in ‘diplomatic showdown’ over Jerusalem at UNESCO.”
Jews
are permitted to visit the site at pre-arranged times, but under
international agreements signed in 1967, when Israel captured the area
from Jordan in the 1967 war, Jewish worship is banned.
Without
citing specifics, the resolution also condemned Israel for “planting
fake Jewish graves in other spaces of the Muslim cemeteries” and for
“the continued conversion of many Islamic and Byzantine remains into the
so-called Jewish ritual baths or into Jewish prayer places.”
Among
the states supporting the decision were Argentina, France, Spain,
Slovenia, Sweden, India and Russia, several of which enjoys ostensibly
warm relations Israel.
A UNESCO spokesman declined to comment on the decision.
The Israeli government also declined to comment beyond the statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The
resolution, considered a victory for anti-Israel hard-liners, also
affirms that Hebron, a city that according to a most histories has a
3000-year history of Jewish life, and Bethlehem, the birthplace of
Jesus, are “are an integral part of Palestine.”
Referencing
“ongoing Israeli illegal excavations, works, construction of private
roads for settlers and a separation wall inside the Old City of
Al-Khalīl/Hebron, that harmfully affect the integrity of the site, and
the subsequent denial of freedom of movement and freedom of access to
places of worship,” UNESCO also urged “Israel, the occupying Power, to
end these violations in compliance with provisions of relevant UNESCO
conventions, resolutions and decisions.”
This resolution is not
the first attempt to designate anew holy sites in what may be the most
contested spot in the Middle East.
In October, 2015, facing the
rejection of Russia, China and even Cuba, that usually joins
anti-Israel initiatives, the Palestinian delegation to UNESCO withdrew a
proposed resolution that would have defined the Western Wall itself as
an “integral part” of the compound holy to Muslims.
Anwar Ben
Badis, a professor of Arabic and Aramaic at the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem and at Al-Quds University, who often leads tours of the
esplanade, said the decision was “unequivocally political, not legal or
binding in any way, but at attempt to support and further the
Palestinian struggle.”
Speaking with The Media Line, Ben Badis
said he believes “that every decision provides international support to
everything the Palestinians are doing to free Al-Aqsa and all of
Palestine.”
Monday, April 18, 2016
Pennsylvania Cop Threatens Child on School Bus: Don’t Smile or I’ll Drag You to the F*cking Police Car
Pennsylvania Cop Threatens Child on School Bus: Don’t Smile or I’ll Drag You to the F*cking Police Car
April 17, 2016
The video was posted on April 13 but the caption doesn’t give much in the way of details. It says the officer works for the North Braddock Police Department. He walks over to a child seated on a school bus and leans over threateningly.
“Smile in my face one more time and I’ll be dragging your ass off this bus and back to that f*cking police car,” the officer says. “Don’t smile one more time.”
The video doesn’t show the child he was talking to, but the other children on the bus seem to be elementary school-age.
The video has so far been shared 3,300 times
Watch the video, as posted to Facebook, here:
UK private military firm hired ex-child soldiers from Sierra Leone for Iraq ops
UK private military firm hired ex-child soldiers from Sierra Leone for Iraq ops
Former child soldiers from Sierra Leone have been employed by a private British military company to provide security for American bases in Iraq as part of a 2,500-strong contingent hired for the job, a new Danish documentary has revealed.RT | April 18, 2016
According to investigation based on contract documents, UK’s Aegis Defense Services contracted by US Department of Defense employed some 2,500 mercenaries to provide security force for the Pentagon-administered Project and Contracting Office (PCO) in Iraq.
Part of the security force, according to a documentary, titled Børnesoldatens Nye Job (The Child Soldier’s New Job) included child soldiers from Sierra Leone who were paid only $16 a day.
“When war gets outsourced, then the company tries to find the cheapest soldiers globally. Turns out that that is former child soldiers from Sierra Leone. I think it is important that we in the West are aware of the consequences of the privatization of war,” said the film’s director, Mads Ellesøe, as quoted by the Guardian.
Aegis was hired by Washington starting from 2004 to provide security for American bases in Iraq. The firm initially employed British, American and Nepalese personnel to do the job. But from 2011, the firm started to employ fighters from Africa to cut costs.
James Ellery, who was a director of Aegis Defense Services between 2005 and 2015, acknowledged that Aegis recruited personnel from Sierra Leone because they were cheaper than Europeans. Yet he stressed that the UK firm has never bothered to check whether the security force had employed any former underage combatants.
While agreeing that it would have been better to recruit Brits, Ellery told the Guardian, that “it can’t be afforded… I’m afraid all we can afford now is Africans.”
Sierra Leone proved to be a perfect place for recruitment as the country had just emerged from the ashes of the atrocious civil war (1991-2002), tarnished with crimes against humanity and the widespread use of child soldiers to carry out the fighting.
Speaking with the British publication Ellery revealed that child soldiers cannot be prosecuted for war crimes under international law.
“They are, once they reach 18, in fact citizens with full rights to seek employment, which is a basic human right. So we would have been completely in error if, having gone to Sierra Leone, we excluded those people,” he explained.
One of the only things Aegis cared for was strict adherence to physical health requirements.
“The moment they [recruitment agents] start sending us people who are blind in one eye or have Aids, that’s it. Contract over,” Ellery said. “Because those sort of things, although they sound facetious, are big problems in Africa, because you don’t want people dying after you’ve put them through expensive training and then they die because they’ve got Aids and so on.”
Founded in 2002 by Tim Spicer, the former Scots Guards officer, notorious for supplying weapons in Sierra Leone to support the local government, Aegis Defense Services is now chaired by Sir Nicholas Soames, a Tory MP and a grandson of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
In 2015 the operations of Aegis were taken over by a Canadian security company, GardaWorld. Contacted by the Guardian into the alleged allegations in the documentary, Graham Binns, Aegis’s former CEO and GardaWorld’s senior managing director shifted the blame onto the contractor’s respected country of origin which provided the British company with their personnel.
“We worked very closely with our audited, vetted and authorised agents to recruit, vet and screen our professionals. Our agents were authorised [as was the employment of individuals] by the relevant national government of the countries from which we recruited,” he said.
The documentary shot in the US, UK, Sierra Leone and Uganda will be broadcasted on Denmark television on Monday, April 18.
The use of child soldiers became widespread during the civil war in Sierra Leone where the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), in addition to state forces and state-supported militias widely recruited children for combat. An estimated 10,000 children took part in the conflict. Some of the child soldiers were also girls, who had been reportedly subjected to repeated abuse and rape. Most children were required by their superiors to commit war crimes such as murders, rapes, sexual slavery, mutilations and other forms of human rights abuses.
Defense Secretary in Iraq for ISIS Talks
| Defense Secretary in Iraq for ISIS Talks |
|
Defense Secretary Ash Carter traveled to Baghdad Pennsylvania Legalizes Medical Marijuana
| Pennsylvania Legalizes Medical Marijuana |
|
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bipartisan bill into law Pentagon ‘Misled’ Congress Over Rapes
| Pentagon ‘Misled’ Congress Over Rapes |
|
Pentagon officials misled lawmakers about military sexual-assault
investigations by providing vague or incorrect information, depicting
civilian police as unwilling or unable to investigate offenders, the
Associated Press reports. Many of the cases reportedly involved
soldiers. According to the AP, internal government documents show that
various prosecutors and law-enforcement agencies failed to charge
service members who were punished in military court for the same sex
crimes, but in many of those instances, the civilian officials’ actions
were allegedly portrayed inaccurately or omitted entirely. The AP writes
that in some cases, the accounts were so vague that they couldn’t be
corroborated. Advocacy group Protect Our Defenders—which released the
documents to the AP through a public information request—is expected to
unveil a report 
Muslim Student Kicked Off Southwest Flight For Speaking Arabic
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Israeli Police Are Abusing Detained Palestinian Children
Israeli Police Are Abusing Detained Palestinian Children
Photo © Majd Gaith
Interviews with children who have been detained, video footage, and reports from lawyers reveal that Israeli security forces are using unnecessary force in arresting and detaining children, in some cases beating them, and holding them in unsafe and abusive conditions.
Since October 2015, protests in the West Bank and Gaza have escalated, as has the use of live fire against demonstrators by Israeli forces. The number of Palestinian children arrested by Israeli forces has more than doubled since then.
The failure to abide by international norms and protections under Israeli law concerning child detainees is particularly worrying given the spike in the number of children arrested during the recent violence.
Photo © Majd Gaith
Interviews with children who have been detained, video footage, and reports from lawyers reveal that Israeli security forces are using unnecessary force in arresting and detaining children, in some cases beating them, and holding them in unsafe and abusive conditions.
Since October 2015, protests in the West Bank and Gaza have escalated, as has the use of live fire against demonstrators by Israeli forces. The number of Palestinian children arrested by Israeli forces has more than doubled since then.
The failure to abide by international norms and protections under Israeli law concerning child detainees is particularly worrying given the spike in the number of children arrested during the recent violence.
| Read more » |
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Iran Accuses US of Violating Nuclear Deal
Iran Accuses US of Violating Nuclear Deal
America’s history shows trustworthiness isn’t its long suit, treaties and other deals agreed to systematically violated – culpability ignored or counterparties wrongfully blamed for its breaches.By Stephen Lendman | April 16, 2016
After last year’s nuclear deal was consummated, Obama lied, saying “(h)istory shows that America must lead not just with our might, but with our principles. It shows we are stronger not when we are alone, but when we bring the world together.”
According to a complaint filed last August with the IAEA, Iran said Washington breached nuclear deal principles straightaway – three days after the deal was reached.
At the time, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said “(t)he military option… remain(s) on the table…enhanced because we’ve been spending (past) years gathering significantly more (intelligence) about Iran’s nuclear program.”
Tehran said this threat to use military force preemptively without just cause constitutes a “material breach of the commitments just undertaken.”
The agreement was never meant to be a vehicle to facilitate US spying on the Islamic Republic.
Iran “(r)ecall(ed) past instances, in which highly confidential information provided by the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Agency inspectors had been leaked, posing a grave threat to the national security of Iran… it is absolutely essential and imperative for the Agency to take immediate and urgent action to reject such flagrant abuses,” a statement said.
Washington used the nuclear deal to justify expanding its regional military footprint, increase aid to Israel and sell billions of dollars more weapons to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.
On Friday, Iranian central bank head Valiollah Seif accused US-led Western countries of locking Tehran out of the international financial system, another flagrant deal breach with likely more coming.
According to Seif, Western nuclear deal counterparties have done “almost nothing” to live up to provisions agreed on.
“(W)e are not able to use our frozen funds abroad.” Unless resolved, the deal “breaks up on its own terms,” he said without further elaboration.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest lied, claiming “(t)he United States, along with the rest of the international community, is committed to living up to our end of the bargain” – at the same time saying Washington has no intention of giving Tehran access to America’s financial system.
State Department spokesman admiral John Kirby compounded the Big Lie, claiming Washington fulfilled its part of the deal.
“There is no need to do more when we have met all of our commitments,” he disingenuously claimed.
It’s well known Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful with no military component and no known intention to have one.
Washington’s concerns otherwise were and remain red herring cover for its real aim – regime change, replacing Iran’s sovereign independence with puppet governance it controls.
Longstanding US hostility persists. Normalization remains unattainable as long as neocons infesting Washington, Israel and AIPAC reject it.
Stephen Lendman can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
His new book as editor and contributor is titled Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.
Japan Hit By Magnitude 7.4 Earthquake
It was the second earthquake in just over 24 hours after a quake killed
nine people and injured at least 1,000 in the same area. Read more.
Friday, April 15, 2016
Red-handed: UK military trained Saudis as they rained fire on Yemen
Red-handed: UK military trained Saudis as they rained fire on Yemen, says Reprieve
UK military personnel have delivered a series of three-week courses on “international targeting” to the Saudi forces currently engaged in pummeling Yemen, a Freedom of Information (FoI) request shows.RT | April 15, 2016
The revelations were made following a request by the human rights NGO Reprieve. The organization is now urging the UK government to stop providing military support.
While the MoD has long claimed its role is purely advisory, the revelations lay bare the closeness with which the two countries operate.
It now appears courses were being run by RAF officers as recently as 2015 on “international targeting” over three separate three-week blocks.
This included training on the Storm Shadow missile, which is launched from aircraft to destroy enemy bunkers.
Gunnery instruction on targeting and locating enemy gun batteries was also carried out by a seven-strong detachment of personnel from the Royal Artillery.
The artillery team delivered 52 hours of training to Saudi gunners and included a senior major, a captain, a sergeant major and a sergeant.
The MoD said the course had been delivered to “a mixed group of soldiers and officers” from the Royal Saudi Land Forces RSLF) field artillery.
Saudi personnel have also visited the UK for training.
The military said their personnel were not involved in “carrying out strikes, directing or conducting operations in Yemen or selecting targets, and are not involved in the Saudi targeting decision-making process.”
They stressed, as they have on numerous occasions, that the UK military “provide guidance on best practice techniques, including advice to help continued compliance with international humanitarian law.”
Reprieve case worker Omran Belhadi said: “Claims by ministers that Britain is helping the Saudi government abide by the law are disingenuous.”
He pointed out that legal training on rules of engagement and the laws of war did not seem to have sunk in if, indeed, it was delivered.
“Extensive British ‘targeting training’ has done nothing to prevent the bombing of schools, hospitals and weddings, and the deaths of thousands of Yemeni civilians,” Belhadi told the Guardian.
Abused? You Can’t Work at These Churches
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Aeroflot to cut Airbus & Boeing orders after Transaero takeover
Aeroflot to cut Airbus & Boeing orders after Transaero takeover
Russian flagship airline Aeroflot may cut back on new aircraft from Boeing and Airbus after inheriting 35 airliners from bankrupt rival Transaero, says the company’s Deputy CEO Giorgio Callegari cited by Bloomberg.RT | April 15, 2016
State-run Aeroflot plans to take over leases on 16 Boeing 737-800 and Airbus A321 single-aisle aircraft as well as operate 19 Boeing 747 and 777 wide-bodies which were in service with Transaero.
Aeroflot is reviewing the order for 22 Airbus A350s and the same number of 787 Dreamliners manufactured by Boeing.
“It would be inaccurate and unprofessional to say that if I put 19 wide-bodies into my group then the plan stays the same. It cannot be,” said Callegari, adding that the overall fleet plan needed corrections and updates.
The 19 planes Aeroflot will get from Transaero are to be deployed on routes to Russia’s Far East, including Khabarovsk, Vladivostok, and the Kamchatka peninsula.
They’ll be operated under the Rossiya brand, around which Aeroflot is consolidating regional operations, though some of the jets will also provide charter services in collaboration with Russian tour operators.
The company doesn’t need the four new Boeing 747-8s ordered by Transaero, according to the CEO.
Transaero, once the second biggest airline in Russia, filed for bankruptcy in October 2015. The company was unable to service its debts including leasing obligations of about $4 billion.
As part of the takeover of some of Transaero’s routes and aircraft, Aeroflot is obliged to save as many jobs as possible at the bankrupt airline.
READ MORE: Transaero, Russia’s biggest private airline files for bankruptcy
No Porn for North Carolina: Adult Entertainment Site Blocks Access Thanks to New Anti-LGBT Law
By Carrie Weisman, AlterNet
The site is the first porn company to boycott North Carolina over the new law. READ MORE»
Ted Cruz's Dark, Twisted World: Why His Far-Right Social Views Are Even Scarier Than You Think
By Heather Digby Parton, Salon
It will come as no shock that the Texas senator is an extremist. But it might surprise to learn just how extreme he is. READ MORE»
The Madness of Modern War: We Don't Even Have Words That Can Explain It
By William Astore, TomDispatch
A dictionary of euphemisms for imperial decline. READ MORE»
Has Torture Become Normalized in Our Culture? It's Still Unbelievably Inhumane
By Silja J.A. Talvi, AlterNet
What should be horrifying to Americans has become old hat—or worse, with Trump as torture’s new cheerleader. READ MORE»
Russia Proposes International Observers at Turkish-Syrian Border
Russia Proposes International Observers at Turkish-Syrian Border – Lavrov
Russia proposes deploying international observers at Turkey’s border with Syria to monitor the situation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday.Sputnik – 15.04.2016
“Since Turkey itself denies the very existence of the problem, we suggest, not formally at this point, a draft resolution or another decision so that Turkey invites independent international observers to its territory to monitor the actual situation on the border,” Lavrov told reporters.
Russia hopes that the West will be able to get clear answers from Ankara regarding the possibility of deploying observers, he said.
“US officials assure us that they are also concerned about the problem on the border and are working with Ankara to solve it,” Lavrov added.
Activists were preventing war crimes by blockading world’s biggest arms fair – judge
Activists were preventing war crimes by blockading world’s biggest arms fair – judge
RT | April 15, 2016
Eight
activists standing trial for disrupting the world’s biggest arms fair,
held in London last September, have been found not guilty. The court
ruled they were acting to prevent a greater crime, according to an
anti-arms trade group.In his ruling, the judge said there was clear, credible and largely unchallenged evidence of wrongdoing at Defence & Security Equipment International (DSEI), according to Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT).
He said there is “compelling evidence” that arms sold at DSEI are used for repression and human rights abuses.
Ham & High reporter Rachel Roberts said the judge dismissed the argument, put forward by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), that a not guilty verdict will “open floodgates” to anarchy in the UK.
Instead he accepted that all eight defendants acted reasonably and proportionally to try and prevent the sale of illegal arms and war crimes, Roberts tweeted.
The ruling is a victory for anti-arms trade activists, who sought to highlight the UK’s complicity in war crimes committed by repressive regimes around the world.
The eight activists issued a statement through CAAT in which they called on the public to join the campaign to shut down DSEI.
“Over the week, we have put DSEI and the arms trade on trial and we have proven them to be illegitimate. Our only regret is that we didn’t succeed in shutting down DSEI,” they said.
“Our thoughts are with the people who suffer as a result of the arms trade and the survivors of repressive regimes, torture, war and conflict. We call on more people to join us in our efforts to shut down DSEI 2017 and take collective action to end the arms trade.”
The campaigners were arrested after blocking the road leading to the arms fair last September, preventing tanks and weaponry from entering.
The activists used the defense of necessity, insisting their actions were justified because they intended to prevent greater crimes taking place around the world.
CAAT said the trial highlighted UK complicity in war crimes in Yemen, where the British military is offering support to the Saud-led coalition waging war against Houthi rebels.
It also raised awareness about British complicity in human rights abuses in Bahrain and the slaughter of Kurdish civilians by Turkey, according to the group.
2015’s DSEI event featured stalls from more than 1,500 exhibitors, including arms giants Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, Finmeccanica and others.
Customers included representatives from Saudi Arabia, Israel, Bahrain and Egypt.
Evidence Points to the CIA Targeting Assad, Not Daesh in Syria
Evidence Points to the CIA Targeting Assad, Not Daesh in Syria
The Syrian ceasefire is hanging in the balance, former Republican congressman Ron Paul and political analyst Daniel McAdams note in their Liberty Report; however, Washington continues to push ahead with its military program aimed at training and arming the so-called Syrian rebels.Sputnik | April 14, 2016
To complicate matters further, there is enough evidence that the moderates have repeatedly teamed up with al-Qaeda affiliate al-Nusra Front on the ground, calling it a “marriage of necessity.”
Even State Department spokesman Mark Toner has recognized that “there is some co-mingling” of al-Qaeda militants and the US-backed Syrian rebels.
Commenting on the issue, Daniel McAdams, the Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity, referred to the Wall Street Journal article that shed some light on Washington’s plans to send various types of anti-aircraft weapons to Syrian rebels.
“Throughout this ceasefire the US is taking the opportunity to provide a lot of arms to the so-called moderates — three thousand tons by one estimate. But the logic is insane: [these arms] only will be available if the ceasefire fails. That is like telling a kid: ‘You only get a cookie if you don’t eat your broccoli’,” McAdams noted.
But what looks even more suspicious is that the CIA has been supplying advanced anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems to the Syrian rebels. There is no doubt that these types of weapons are primarily aimed against Bashar al-Assad’s tanks and aircraft, not at Daesh’s Toyota trucks.
“The CIA agenda is definitely not anti-ISIS [Daesh], it’s primarily anti-Assad. And I think that is evident by the kinds of weapons they provided. They provided TOW missiles which are only effective against the Syrian government’s tanks. The Manpads, the shoulder fired missiles, which shot down two Syrian Air Force planes over the past couple of weeks. And even the Soviet-era “Grad” rockets, which are used to fight against the Syrian [Arab] Army. So, the types of weapons, I think, tell us a lot about what the CIA is focused on,” McAdams remarked.
Therefore, the CIA is turning a blind eye to the fact that the Syrian rebels and al-Nusra Front’s terrorists are “co-mingled.”
There is yet another issue that prompts concern: it seems that the CIA and the Pentagon have two different agendas regarding Syria.
To add to the confusion, the CIA is supporting one faction of the Syrian rebels, while the Pentagon is backing another group of fighters.
It turns out that in February, 2016 the CIA-armed group Knights of Righteousness was attacked by the Pentagon-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in Syria.
“One hand of our government does not even know what the other hand is doing,” Dr. Ron Paul noted.
The former US congressman expressed his concerns regarding Washington’s unstoppable militarism in the region.
“What if what we are doing is making things worse — worse for us, worse for the people, worse for the cause of peace?” Paul asked.
However, this question remains largely neglected by the US policymakers. The lessons of the past remain unlearnt and what Washington is doing right now in Syria and Iraq is “the reactivation of the militarism,” he stressed.
The former Republican congressman emphasized that while pursuing the idea of regime change overseas, the US establishment is not bothered by the fact that the nations’ current governments may be better than anything Washington is going to suggest.
“We are sending more weapons in [Syria] because the foreign policy remains the same: it is a militant foreign policy of intervention, it’s based on the assumption that we are responsible for the world at large, that we are policemen of the world, and chaos would break out if we weren’t there to bring about order. And all you have to do is look at history and look at the Middle East, chaos, you know, follows our interventions,” Paul underscored.
Ukraine Approves New Prime Minister
Ukraine Approves New Prime Minister
Ukraine's parliament approved Volodymyr Groysman as Ukraine's new prime minister (Kyiv Post) Thursday,
following the resignation of former Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk
earlier this week. The approval of Groysman, an ally of President Petro
Poroshenko, has raised hopes that Ukraine may be able to move forward
with a new government after being hampered by political deadlock amid
accusations of graft in Yatsenyuk's administration and delays in
securing a bailout loan from the International Monetary Fund (WaPo). Groysman promised to crack down on corruption and pursue closer ties with Europe (RFE/RL).
US State Department Human Rights Report (2015) [minors in Israeli prisons]
US State Department Human Rights Report (2015)
[15 April 2016] – On 14 April the US State Department released its annual global report
on human rights for 2015. The report includes sections on
Israel/Palestine and as in previous years, the State Department has
considered the treatment of minors detained by the Israeli military and
prosecuted in military courts.
After referring to UNICEF's 2013 report - Children in Israeli Military Detention
- and the UN agency's finding that the "mistreatment of Palestinian
children in the Israeli military detention system appears to be
widespread, systematic, and institutionalized,” the State Department
noted that reports of mistreatment continued in 2015. These reports
included:
· 90 per cent of minors reported being hand-tied;
· 81 per cent of minors reported being blindfolded;
· 61 per cent of minors reported being subjected to physical abuse; and
· 96 per cent of minors reported being denied access to a lawyer prior to questioning.
For the first time the State
Department also referred to reports that Israeli forces were conducting
night raids in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in a "widespread and
systematic manner" and noted that they almost universally led to "a
sense of fear and terror" among residents, especially children.
As in previous years, the State
Department noted that Israeli authorities continue to apply two distinct
legal systems in the West Bank, one military and one civilian,
depending on whether the individual is Palestinian or an Israeli
settler. For Palestinians prosecuted in the military court system, the
State Department noted that the conviction rate remains above 99 per
cent.
The State Department noted that the
military authorities continued to use confessions signed by Palestinian
minors, written in Hebrew, a language most could not read, as evidence
against them in military courts and that these confessions were
reportedly frequently coerced.
Finally, the State Department noted
that Israeli authorities "frequently transferred detainees from the West
Bank to Israel for detention and interrogation." It should be noted
that the transfer and detention of Palestinian detainees from the West
Bank is classified as a war crime under Articles 76 and 147
of the Fourth Geneva Convention, to which both Israel and the US are
State parties. These transfers currently affect more than 7,000 men,
women and children each year under an Israeli government policy
established in 1967.
Links
Turkey insult case can go ahead - Merkel
Turkey insult case can go ahead - Merkel
Germany will allow prosecution of comedian who mocked Turkey's leader, but up to courts to decide, Merkel says
For more details, see the BBC News website
Three More Russian TV Channels Banned in Ukraine
Three More Russian TV Channels Banned in Ukraine
by aletho
Sputnik
- 14.04.2016 KIEV – Ukraine’s National Council of Television and Radio
Broadcasting added three Russian cable channels to its list of banned
outlets, the regulator said Thursday.
"The national council’s April 14 decision removes Russian television
channels RTG TV (Russian Travel Guide), Retro and Kinoclub from the list
of foreign programs, whose content meets […]
Palestinian prisoners in Nafha prison violently attacked, collective Friday prayers prohibited
Palestinian prisoners in Nafha prison violently attacked, collective Friday prayers prohibited
by samidoun
Palestinian prisoners in Nafha prison have been forbidden from Friday
prayers on 15 April following a violent attack by Israeli prison guards
and special forces on several units inside the prison on Wednesday, 13
April. Israeli armed units stormed section 14 in the prison on Wednesday,
an area where 80 Palestinian prisoners affiliated with the PFLP,
Islamic Jihad and Fateh are held, with tear gas and pepper spray. On Wednesday morning they also stormed the prison's sections 13 and 11.
Ma'an reported that
"the warden informed prisoners of the decision and threatened that
every cell of the prison will be raided if the decision is violated."
Collective Friday prayers have never been prohibited in Nafha before, reported the Palestinian Prisoners' Center for Studies. Prisoners' representative Ahmed al-Khatib
was isolated after being attacked; four Palestinian prisoners were
transferred to solitary confinement in Ramon prison. The entire prison
has been placed under lockdown by the Israeli prison administration.
Al-Muhja Foundation reported that prisoners in section 14 began protesting
after over two months of strict security conditions, including repeated
denials of family visits; on Wednesday, 13 April, a prison guard
refused for 40 minutes to allow one Palestinian prisoner, Akram Siyam,
to visit the toilet. Siyam was assaulted by prison guards and when other
prisoners came to his defense, the section was attacked by special
forces wielding dogs, tear gas and pepper spray. The attack on the
section continued for six hours, in which the attacking forces
deliberately poured out food supplies, oil and cola, ransacked and
destroyed books, and flooded the cells with large amounts of water,
including mattresses. Section 14 consists of 10 rooms, including three
rooms of prisoners of the Popular Front, two rooms of prisoners of
Islamic Jihad, and five rooms of Fateh prisoners.
Several
prisoners were hospitalized due to pepper spray injuries and injuries
from beatings; at least one was critically injured. Palestinian
prisoners in Ramon and Ketziot have announced protests in support of
fellow prisoners in Nafha. There is also a movement for a general one-day hunger strike in all prisons on 17 April, Palestinian Prisoners' Day, in protest of the attack on Nafha prisoner.
Photo: Ira Machefsky/Flickr
Demonstration in New York calls for justice for victim of NYPD entrapment after suicide attempt
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Demonstration in New York calls for justice for victim of NYPD entrapment after suicide attemptby samidoun |
Community members in New York City gathered outside One Police Plaza on Tuesday, 12 April in support of Ahmed Ferhani, whose suicide attempt in Attica prison in upstate New York sparked outrage and renewed determination to challenge his conviction.
Ferhani,
a young Algerian American man with a lengthy history of mental illness,
including involuntary commitment in a psychiatric hospital, was
targeted by an undercover NYPD officer, known under the pseudonym "Ilter
Ayturk," in a "terrorism case" built on entrapment. "Ayturk" had
previously infiltrated Palestinian community and solidarity activist
group Al-Awda New York,
the Palestine Right to Return Coalition, attending internal meetings,
befriending members, and even traveling to the US Social Forum with
Al-Awda, joining a closed BDS planning meeting.
After
apparently failing to build any form of case against Al-Awda members,
"Ayturk" extended his efforts to entrapping vulnerable individuals like
Ferhani. "The case against him was flimsy enough that the FBI removed
itself from the investigation in its early stages. The NYPD continued to
pursue Ferhani, despite its knowledge of his history of mental illness
and self-harm," reported journalist John Knefel in The Nation.
Ferhani's lawyer Lamis Deek
said, “The NYPD themselves targeted him for this very lengthy and
embarrassing intelligence and surveillance operation. They themselves
had been picking him up from his home since he was 16 years old and
taking him to Bellevue and Elmhurst – these are mental health hospitals –
to be institutionalized. So, they knew that he had mental health issues
even before they infiltrated his life."
Following
his imprisonment in 2012, Ferhani repeatedly reported abuse at the
hands of prison guards, including physical and sexual abuse and
harassment, denial of food and water, and access to prison services. In a
letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Ferhani wrote,
“I want everyone to know that the next time I am violated by correction
officers or their supervisors I will take my own life. If taking my own
life is the only way to expose the evils that are practiced daily by
corrections officers then I will be glad to do it.”
Following
Ferhani's suicide attempt, he remains in a coma; his lawyer and Al-Awda
co-chair Lamis Deek stated that his chances of survival are 50%.
Video: Lamis Deek on the case of Ahmed Ferhani:
The
protest demanded accountability from the Department of Corrections and
Department of Justice for the abuse Ferhani suffered in prison, and from
the NYPD for its policies of surveillance and targeting of communities
that continue to harm not only Ferhani, but entire communities.
Participants
in the rally included Ferhani's lawyers and legal team, families
impacted by surveillance and NYPD repression, migrant rights
organizations, Palestinian and Palestine solidarity activists including
members of Al-Awda, anti-police brutality and other social justice
movements.
Photos: DRUM (Desis Rising Up and Moving) and Suzanne Adely
Thursday, April 14, 2016
Arab Youth view ISIL as major Mideast Obstacle, want less Religion
Arab Youth view ISIL as major Mideast Obstacle, want less Religion
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |April 13, 2016
The annual Arab Youth survey conducted by pollsters Burson-Marsteller is out, reporting on 3500 interviews with Arabs 18-24 years of age in 16 countries.Those of you who have read my recent book,
The New Arabs: How the Millennial Generation is Changing the Middle East , won’t be surprised at the findings.
Arab youth think there is too much religion in public life. Only 29% actively disagree with this sentiment. This finding tracks with the findings I reported from Pew– that the Arab Millennials are generally somewhat less observant than their parents, and in the generation gap on this issue is particularly large in Tunisia and Lebanon. Interestingly, the youth of the conservative Gulf Cooperation Council countries (Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Oman) feel more strongly against religion in public life than do Levantines and North Africans (though in N. Africa twice as many people feel there is too much religion in public life as demur.)
The single biggest obstacle these youth see to a more successful Middle East is Daesh (ISIS, ISIL)! Indeed, nearly 4 in 5 said that they were concerned about its rise. Not only does the phony caliphate attract almost no support but 80% said they wouldn’t favor it even if it gave up its violence and gory spectacles. In accordance with this negative attitude toward Daesh, a plurality of the youth identified terrorism as the second biggest obstacle the region faces.
My book was widely and very positively reviewed. But one downside of coming out in July, 2014, three weeks after the fall of Mosul to Daesh, was that reviewers wanted to know why there was nothing about Daesh in it. But it was about secular-minded youth in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and that was before Daesh got a toehold in Sirte and before some radicals in the Sinai franchised themselves as Daesh. The New York Review of Books actually put a picture of Daesh fighter on the page where my book was discussed. My book was about liberal and leftist youth in a different part of the Middle East.
I was upset. Because the Daesh narrative is a relatively minor phenomenon in the region and a flash in the pan, but the generation of young Arabs I studied has already done great things and is poised to do more, and it is relatively secular-minded.
In this survey, the youth are cynical about Daesh. The leading explanation they gave for its rise is unemployment.
They are worried about rising sectarianism. And, they are more concerned with stability than regular elections. Except in Egypt, they have a certain amount of buyers’ remorse for how their revolutions have turned out.
And they’re worried about youth unemployment. Less than half think good jobs are available to them in their area.
But they also think Daesh is a reaction against Western military dominance in the region (i.e. a reaction against humiliation). if you put together US troop presence in the region, the US invasion of Iraq, and the Israeli troop presence in the region, about a third of respondents felt foreign military occupation provoked the advent of Daesh.
The youth see Saudi Arabia and the United States as their countries’ most important allies. Other allies are the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and France. France has come up in their esteem as an ally during the past year, displacing Kuwait from fifth place.
For Iraqi, Lebanese and Palestinian youth, Iran is seen as a major ally. This sentiment is regional– confined to the Fertile Crescent. In contrast, most other Arabs see Iran as an enemy.
The general sentiment that the US is an ally is not found in Iraq. Nine in ten Iraqi youth see the United States as an enemy.
Mission accomplished!
Overwhelming majorities of youth want their national leaders to expand personal freedom and human rights for women. This sentiment is at 90% of respondents in Saudi Arabia.
So, not only are these youth dead set against Daesh but they have a feminist side.
http://www.juancole.com/2016/
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
Video of Montebello officer slamming man's head onto pavement results in criminal charges
Video of Montebello officer slamming man's head onto pavement results in criminal charges
Los Angeles Times | April 13, 2016 | 12:49 PM
A former Montebello police officer was arrested today after
being charged with assault in an incident in which authorities said he
slammed a man's head into the pavement.The Oct. 31, 2014, incident involving Mark Ryan, 37, and an alleged tagger was captured on video by a restaurant security camera.
Read more >>
Trey Gowdy Admits Faking Clinton Emails To Make Her Look Guilty
Trey Gowdy Admits Faking Clinton Emails To Make Her Look Guilty
By JC Torpey on October 22, 2015Categories: Republican Watch, WTF?
Rep. Gowdy admitted his actions, but only did so after the CIA outed his egregious lapse in judgement and procedure to both sides of the House, and only after Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Mar.) called Rep. Gowdy out in a letter.
This revelation was the last partisan straw that broke the supposedly non-partisan Benghazi Select Committee’s back.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and other Democratic leaders sent a letter to Republican National Committee Chairman, Reince Priebus to demand that they and the GOP give back the $4.7 million in taxpayer money the Benghazi Select Committee has spent, according to Roll Call.
Democratic leaders demand the GOP disband the Benghazi Committee and stop using it as a “Clinton opposition machine,” to raise money for GOP presidential candidates – donations resulting from lies.
Secretary Clinton is testifying at the Select Benghazi Committee all day Thursday, Oct. 22.
Clear Implications Arise From Confusing Timeline
The CIA contacted both parties to say Rep. Gowdy, lied about and falsified the classified information he used to accuse Secretary Clinton of allegedly leaking the information and allegedly burning a spy in the process, according to the Oct. 18 letter from Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Mar.).Rep. Cummings, the ranking Democrat on the Select Committee, wrote:
“On October 7, 2015, you sent me a 13-page letter making a grave new accusation against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Specifically, you accused her of compromising national security and endangering lives.
The problem with your accusation—as with so many others during this investigation—is that you failed to check your facts before you made it, and the CIA has now informed the Select Committee that you were wrong.”
He added:
“Contrary to your claims … the CIA confirmed that ‘the State Department consulted with the CIA on this production, the CIA reviewed these documents, and the CIA made no redactions to protect classified information.’
Unfortunately, you sent your letter on October 7 without checking first with the CIA. Now that we have done so, we have learned that your accusations were incorrect.”
Rep. Gowdy wrote a response admitting he falsified Secretary Clinton’s documents. He added that yes, he presented the fake documents as evidence of Secretary Clinton’s alleged guilt, but then went a step further to write that he would continue to alter documents as he sees fit.
Partisan Intent of Benghazi Committee Obvious
The latest revelations prove the Select Benghazi Committee is a partisan attack on Secretary Clinton. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) confirmed as much when he said House Republicans impaneled the Select Committee to attack Secretary Clinton’s “poll numbers,” according to Roll Call.
Seven Congressional investigations had already cleared Secretary Clinton and the State Department of wrongdoing.
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Russia Regrets Certain Countries’ Unwillingness to Ratify Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
Russia Regrets Certain Countries’ Unwillingness to Ratify Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
Russia regrets that a number of countries, including those trying to position themselves as global leaders, have yet to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, the Russian President said Monday.Sputnik – 11.04.2016
Moscow calls on world leaders to join the treaty and prohibit nuclear explosive tests, Vladimir Putin stressed.
“The unwillingness of these countries to become full parties to the treaty is cause for serious regret, especially given the fact that some of them claim to be leaders and to practically hold special powers in dealing with global security issues. We again call on their leaders to show real political will and join CTBT as soon as possible,” Putin said in a statement.
The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty was adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 1996.
All five nuclear weapons states as recognized by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons — the United States, China, Russia, France and the United Kingdom, are signatories to the treaty.
The treaty, aiming to create a legally binding prohibition on nuclear explosive tests for all its parties, will enter into force when China, Egypt, India, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan and the United States ratify it.
Goldman Sachs: Just 5 Billion dollar Fine Compared to 13 Billion Dollar Taxpayer Bailout
Goldman Sachs: Just 5 Billion dollar Fine Compared to 13 Billion Dollar Taxpayer Bailout
Goldman Sachs aggressively sold sub-prime packages to investors as a first class product, while at the same time laying equally aggressive bets that those packages would fail. That is not my analysis; it is one of the things they have admitted as part of the deal in the United States that means that, in return for a 5 billion dollar fine, yet again no corrupt and fraudulent bankers are going to jail.By Craig Murray | April 11, 2016
The ultimate irony is that the 5 billion dollar fine is dwarfed by the 13 billion dollar taxpayer bailout they received after the banks’ immoral antics caused massive economic collapse. So the net result of their appalling behaviour has been that they collect not only the profit from those bets the system would collapse, but an eight billion dollar net payment from ordinary taxpayers thrown in. Which eight billion dollars has been just a contribution to the bonuses and partner remuneration which have continued to bulge in their over-stuffed pockets since 2008, uninterrupted by the crash, thanks to the generosity of poor taxpayers struggling to balance their personal budgets.
This is a description of the position of Goldman Sachs in the United States, but it sums up the entire banking crisis worldwide and its result in the punishment of entirely the wrong people, and the continued rewards enjoyed by the crooks.
Due to new media (of which this blog is one atom in a mighty sea) public awareness of what is happening is growing, as is the desire for popular resistance to the super-rich. But they are not surrendering control any time soon. Which is why the call for Clinton to release the transcripts of the extravagantly paid talks she gave to Goldman Sachs is more than a question of political openness. It goes to the heart of the rot in the system.
Monday, April 11, 2016
‘American Idol’ Runner-Up Says She Doesn’t ‘Agree’ With LGBT ‘Lifestyle’
‘American Idol’ Runner-Up Says She Doesn’t ‘Agree’ With LGBT ‘Lifestyle’
“Although all of us may not agree with that particular lifestyle for religious reasons, whatever the reason is, you still treat each other with respect. Everybody is a human being. We should be able to coexist with one another,” La’Porsha Renae, who has landed a recording deal with Big Machine Records, said. “I am one of the people who don’t really agree with that lifestyle. I wasn’t brought up that way. It wasn’t how I was raised.”
“Although all of us may not agree with that particular lifestyle for religious reasons, whatever the reason is, you still treat each other with respect. Everybody is a human being. We should be able to coexist with one another,” La’Porsha Renae, who has landed a recording deal with Big Machine Records, said. “I am one of the people who don’t really agree with that lifestyle. I wasn’t brought up that way. It wasn’t how I was raised.”
Bryan Adams Follows In Springsteen’s Footsteps, Cancels Mississippi Gig
Bryan Adams Follows In Springsteen’s Footsteps, Cancels Mississippi Gig
“Using my voice I stand in solidarity with all my LGBT friends to repeal this extremely discriminatory bill,” he wrote. “Hopefully Mississippi will right itself and I can come back and perform for all of my many fans.”
“Using my voice I stand in solidarity with all my LGBT friends to repeal this extremely discriminatory bill,” he wrote. “Hopefully Mississippi will right itself and I can come back and perform for all of my many fans.”
Director: CIA Won’t Waterboard Again
| Director: CIA Won’t Waterboard Again |
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The CIA would refuse to use harsh “enhanced interrogation” tactics like
waterboarding, even if ordered to do so by a future president,
Director John Brennan said. “I will not agree to carry out some of these
tactics and techniques I’ve heard bandied about because this
institution needs to endure,” he told NBC News. Republican presidential
candidate Donald Trump has said if elected, he would reintroduce
waterboarding, which was banned in 2009 and is considered torture under
international law. Trump has said he would use waterboarding and other
methods he described as “a hell of a lot worse” to interrogate suspected
terrorists. GOP rival Sen. Ted Cruz has said he doesn’t consider
waterboarding to be torture, but wouldn’t authorize “widespread use” of
the method.
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