The United States Patriot Act is similar to the legislations carried out by the Nazi Germany in the World War II era, a former CIA officer says.

“The Patriot Act was similar to legislation carried out by the Nazis because essentially it was using terrorism in both cases as an excuse to strip civil liberties that were enjoyed in both countries; in the United States and Germany,” Phillip Giraldi said in an interview with Press TV. “Governments have been willing to use fear, such as fear of terrorism, and fear of the enemy, as a way to get the people lined up in support of government policies. Very often these policies are essentially bad for the people because they take away many of their rights,” the former CIA officer said.

He went on to say that the relationship between the American citizens and the US government has changed for the worse since the introduction of the Patriot Act, adding that Americans had not become any safer by their rights being stripped away. The US Patriot Act and desecration of the constitution has brought a dictatorship surveillance society of phone tapping, hidden cameras and policy brutality in the United States, Giraldi said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has criticized the Palestinian Authority (PA) for trying to condemn Israeli settlement projects at the UN Security Council.

"The only way that there will be a resolution of the conflict... is through a negotiated settlement," she told reporters at the State Department on Thursday.

"We don't see action at the UN or any other forum as being helpful in bringing about this desired outcome," AFP quoted the top US diplomat as saying. On Tuesday, Palestinian resolution against illegal Israeli settlement buildings in the occupied Palestinian territories was formally put to the Security Council. The resolution would condemn Israel's settlement activities and reiterate an existing UN demand for all building work in the occupied territories to stop. Clinton did not comment on whether the United States will veto the resolution or not.

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The Guardian: Obama must call Israeli settlements illegal

ISTANBUL — The United States and other world powers went into another round of talks with Iran here on Friday with low expectations, but with Iran indicating that it would like to make progress on a fuel-swap arrangement originally designed by Washington as a confidence-building measure.

A remarkable FBI organisation chart which reveals the hierarchy of the main New York mafia families was revealed yesterday after federal agents made more than 100 arrests in the biggest organised crime crackdown in history. The colour-coded chart shows how the syndicates' organisation bears more of a resemblance to a corporate line-up than that of notorious crime families. The red bars highlight the leading figures that were arrested yesterday in New York, New Jersey and New England.

Among them are street boss Andrew Russo and acting underboss Benjamin Castellazzo from the Colombo family, and Bartolemeo Vernace and Joseph Corozzo from the Gambino family. The 'boss' is seen as the undisputed leader of the organisation with the underboss a powerful second-in-command. The green colour-coded panels depict those of the captains in the crime families. Also known by their Sicilian name of 'capos', captains are similar to a military captain who commands his soldiers. The Mafia are known for using colourful nicknames and among those accused are monikers such as 'Tony Bagels', 'Johnny Pizza', 'The Bull', 'Meatball', 'Jack The Whack' 'Junior Lollipops' 'Bobby Glasses', 'Vinny Carwash' and 'Lumpy'.

A new poll shows Sarah Palin’s favorability ratings have taken another hit following her response to the Arizona shootings. According to a CBS News/New York Times poll of registered voters, just 19% now have a favorable view of Palin, compared to 57% who have an unfavorable view. The same poll taken in late October showed Palin with a 22% favorable rating and a 48% unfavorable rating. Palin has been much criticized over the past week for a map she made in 2010 which placed a set of crosshairs over Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords’ district. In response to the criticism Palin claimed that she was a victim of “blood libel,” which only ended up generating more controversy. After being considered a media darling during the 2008 Republican Convention, Palin poll numbers now make her one of the most disliked personalities in politics.

It appears the British are much harder on their former leaders than Americans. Amid an inquiry into the 2003 military invasion of Iraq, David Cameron, the sitting British Prime Minister, called for public pressure on former Prime Minister Tony Blair over his refusal to release letters sent to US President George W. Bush in the lead-up to war. Blair was expected to testify before Downing Street's Chilcot Committee on Friday. Cameron, leader of the conservative faction in Britain's government, said he hoped the inquiry would be "as open and clear as possible." The committee was recently told by Matthew Rycroft, Blair's former private secretary, that he'd written two different retellings of the communications between Blair and Bush, in order to obscure what really transpired. Rycroft was a significant figure in the ramping up of anti-war sentiment across the US and UK, after the release of a document he authored which came to be better known as the "Downing Street Memo."

Al Jazeera: Blair faces Iraq inquiry again
NPR: Britain's Tony Blair Faces New Grilling On Iraq War
Daily Mail: Downing Street ordered a 'Cover up' over Straw's bid to talk Blair out of Iraq invasion, explosive new evidence reveals

The wrong men were convicted of murdering US reporter Daniel Pearl, who was kidnapped in Pakistan in 2002. British-Pakistani Omar Sheikh and three other men were not even present when the WSJ reporter was murdered, says report.

Cablegate reinforces suspicions of Irish government complicity in US rendition: US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks are gradually adding to a picture wherein the government of Ireland ignored public opposition to suspected US rendition flights through its territory, and looked for ways to co-operate with alleged US abuses while avoiding liability and political fallout.

According to a report by IANS/AKI, one of the wiretaps has her saying this: "I have denied everything. I'm trying to save him (Berlusconi), so I can make some money out of this." In another phone conversation the girl says she would make five million euros by remaining silent and thereby helping Berlusconi suppress the allegations. Tapes of her conversations revealed that Berlusconi offered her money and other favors for keeping the affair under wraps. "He says I'll give you whatever money you want, I'll shower you with gold, but it's important that you hide everything and don't say anything to anyone,' she said.

High-resolution aerial photos taken over Brisbane last week have revealed the scale of devastation across dozens of suburbs and tens of thousands of homes and businesses. This is part two of an ABC News special presentation showing before and after photos of the floods. View part one. The aerial photos of the Brisbane floods were taken in flyovers on January 13 and January 14. Hover over each photo to view the devastation caused by flooding.

JERUSALEM, Israel — The role of the United States as the largest single donor to both Israel and the Palestinians was thrown into sharp relief last November when the Israeli government rejected 20 U.S. F35 Joint Strike Fighter jets worth $2.75 billion in return for extending a West Bank settlement freeze by 90 days. The offer — some called it a “bribe” — of military material equal in value to nearly an entire year’s worth of U.S. aid to Israel, renewed questions about the purpose of U.S. aid in the region and whether it might be more effectively deployed to better serve American strategic interests. Israel receives more U.S. foreign aid than any other country, now around $3 billion every year. It is used only for military purposes — Israel voluntarily gave up U.S. civil aid more than a decade ago. Seventy percent of the aid is earmarked for purchases from U.S. companies.

According to the State Department’s latest budget justification for foreign operations, “U.S. assistance will help ensure that Israel maintains its qualitative military edge over potential threats, and prevent a shift in the security balance of the region. U.S. assistance is also aimed at ensuring for Israel the security it requires to make concessions necessary for comprehensive regional peace.” This alliance is expressed in regular joint military training exercises, intelligence-sharing, a free trade agreement between the two countries, regular White House visits by Israeli leaders and frequent top-level consultations at all levels of government and the military.

Footage of Israel demolishing Palestinian lands and building settlements, filmed by a racist Israeli settler