Stephen Lendman

Stephen Lendman: Israel Threatens Syria

Israel gives chutzpah new meaning. War on humanity defines its agenda. It's partnered with Washington's war on Syria. It's heading perhaps toward greater intervention. It warned Russia about supplying Syria with sophisticated defensive anti-aircraft missiles. It said Israel will react in response. More on that below.

A previous article discussed Russian S-300 launch systems and other defensive missile sales to Syria. Vladimir Putin said existing contracts will be honored. Netanyahu tried to dissuade him. They met face-to-face. Perhaps Israel's early May aggression convinced him they're urgently needed.

A May 26 London Sunday Times article suggested otherwise. It headlined "Putin axes Syria missile deal to aid Israel." Israeli media highlighted the report. It claimed Putin agreed to halt S-300 sales in return for Israel pledging no more Syrian strikes. Israeli officials denied the report. They told Israeli radio that Russia intends to fulfill its commitment. They're unclear on timing or whether shipments already arrived.

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Niles Williamson

On Wednesday, the US launched a drone strike in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal region, killing at least seven people. The strike, the first since Pakistan’s May 11 elections and Obama's speech on drone policy last week, was a clear message that Washington intends to continue its global campaign of drone strikes—violating Pakistan's national sovereignty and summarily murdering Pakistanis.

In yesterday’s attack, a CIA drone fired two missiles, destroying a house purportedly used as a meeting place for Taliban militants in the village of Chashma Pull. Three children were amongst those reported injured in the attack.

The victims reportedly included Wali Ur-Rehman, the second-in-command of Tahreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a coalition of Pakistani militias fighting the US occupation of Afghanistan and the Pakistani state, which is collaborating with the US war.

TTP spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan refused to confirm or deny that Rehman had been killed in the strike. It is not uncommon for those targeted for murder by Washington to be reported dead, only to resurface at a later date.

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John W. Whitehead

"One of the hallmarks of an authoritarian government is its fixation on hiding everything it does behind a wall of secrecy while simultaneously monitoring, invading and collecting files on everything its citizenry does." ~ Glenn Greenwald

President Obama’s declaration that “America is at a crossroads” in the fight against terror, a fight that is increasingly turning inwards, setting its sights on homegrown extremists, should give every American pause.

We have indeed reached a crossroads. History may show that from this point forward, we will have left behind any semblance of constitutional government and entered into a militaristic state where all citizens are suspects and security trumps freedom. Certainly, this is a time when government officials operate off their own inscrutable, self-serving playbook with little in the way of checks and balances, while American citizens are subjected to all manner of indignities and violations with little hope of defending themselves. We have moved beyond the era of representative government and entered a new age, let’s call it the age of authoritarianism.

Even with its constantly shifting terrain, this topsy-turvy travesty of law and government has become America’s new normal. Don’t believe me? Let me take you on a brief guided tour, but prepare yourself: the landscape is particularly disheartening to anyone who remembers what America used to be.

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