Typically, comments about rising inequality refer to the stark disparities in incomes of the very highest-paid Americans and everyone. We have observed in several posts, for example, that most of the income gains over the last few decades have gone to the very richest Americans. That means the highest-paid Americans have been claiming a larger and larger share of earnings.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said that an all-out "war" against the Gaza Strip is inevitable.

"If there's one thing I regret -- it's that we didn't finish the job back then -- we cannot avoid the need to complete the job," Olmert said on Wednesday, referring to the Gaza war while he was in office. "Israel cannot accept the presence of a terror entity in Gaza, which threatens the citizens of Israel, without taking action. Not random action, but controlled, precise and organized action with enough force to bring a change to the reality in Gaza," Olmert was quoted as saying by Ynetnews.

Israeli forces have carried out large numbers of ground and air attacks on Gaza since the end of Operation Cast Lead against the Gaza Strip at the turn of 2009. More than 1,400 Palestinians were killed during the three-week Israeli land, sea and air offensive in the impoverished coastal enclave. The offensive also inflicted USD 1.6 billion damage to the Gazan economy. Israel laid an economic siege on the Gaza Strip in June 2007, after Hamas took control of the enclave. The blockade has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic situation in the Gaza Strip. Some 1.5 million people are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of movement, and the right to appropriate living conditions, work, health and education. [Cartoon © Carlos Latuff]

AztlanNet: Israel has now massacred over 300 Palestinian children in Gaza - Photos

The EF English Proficiency Index -- the first of its kind to rank English language proficiency -- pulled its results from more than two million people in 44 different countries who took a free online English test between 2007 and 2009. Norwegians were ranked as having the world's best English skills as a second language, followed by the Dutch and Danes. Swedes came in at number four, ahead of the Finns, according to the EF EPI.

At least three Afghan civilians have been killed and four others injured when US-led coalition troops opened fire on them after a road accident in Kandahar province. Foreign forces stationed in south Afghanistan opened fire on the driver and the passengers of a vehicle after the driver lost control of the car near a check post and hit several soldiers, a Press TV correspondent reported on Thursday.

The number of civilians killed by both militants and US-led troops in Afghanistan has largely increased since 2009. In its annual civilian casualty report, the United Nations said 2,777 civilians were killed in 2010, a 15 percent increase over the previous year. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has repeatedly condemned the US-led forces for committing serious crimes against civilians in the war-ravaged country. Karzai also accused Western security institutions of worsening the security situation in his country by increasing civilian deaths. Insecurity is on the rise across the Asian country despite because of the presence of over 150,000 US-led forces there.

News.com.au: NATO admits Afghan civilian deaths

Palestinian establishment targeted by Israeli war-
planes this week in the north of the Gaza Strip

Israeli violations of international law and humanitarian law in the OPT continued during the reporting period (24 – 30 March 2011)

Shooting: During the reporting period, IOF killed 3 Palestinian resistance activists and wounded 3 others in the Gaza Strip. They also wounded 5 Palestinian civilians, including two children, in the West Bank. In the Gaza Strip, on 30 March 2011, IOF extra-judicially executed an activist of the al-Quds Brigades (the armed wing of Islamic Jihad) and wounded another one seriously in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah. On 27 March 2011, IOF killed two activists of the al-Quds Brigades and wounded a third one in the northern Gaza Strip. An IOF warplanes fired at these activists after they had fired home-made rockets into Israeli towns. On 24 March 2011, a Palestinian resistance activist was wounded by a missile fired by an IOF drone in the northern Gaza Strip. During the reporting period, IOF launched a series of air strikes and artillery shelling against targets in the Gaza Strip. As a result of these attacks, two tunnels on the Egyptian border were destroyed and at least 30 houses and two schools were damaged. In the West Bank, IOF wounded 5 Palestinian civilians, including two children. During the reporting period, IOF used excessive force to disperse peaceful demonstrations organized in protest to Israeli settlement activities and the construction of the annexation wall in the West Bank. As a result, 4 Palestinian civilians, including two children, were wounded, and dozens of Palestinian civilians and international human rights defenders suffered from tear gas inhalation. IOF also arrested 14 Israeli human rights defenders and two Palestinian civilians. On 25 March 2011, a Palestinian civilian, who suffers from a psychological disorder, was wounded by the Israeli police in Fassayel village near Jericho.

Incursions: During the reporting period, IOF conducted at least 52 military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, during which they arrested 27 Palestinian civilians, including 14 children. The widest incursions were into Beit Ummar town, north of Hebron, during which IOF arrested 18 Palestinian civilians, mostly children. In the Gaza Strip, IOF conducted two limited incursion into Palestinian areas, during which they leveled areas of Palestinian land.

Restrictions on Movement: Israel had continued to impose a tightened siege on the OPT and imposed severe restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem. Israel has continuously closed all border crossings to the Gaza Strip for over three years. The illegal Israeli-imposed closure of the Gaza Strip, which has steadily tightened since June 2007, has had a disastrous impact on the humanitarian and economic situation in the Gaza Strip.

New report shows global death penalty use is shrinking Countries that use the death penalty are increasingly isolated following a decade of progress toward abolition, Amnesty International has said today (28 March), as it published its annual assessment of the global use of the death penalty. In its Death Sentences and Executions in 2010 report, Amnesty officially recorded 527 executions in 23 countries - down from at least 714 executions in 2009. However, these minimum figures do not take full account of China, where thousands are believed to be executed every year and where the authorities remain highly secretive about its use. In 2010, says Amnesty, capital punishment was carried out in the following countries: China (1,000s), Iran (252+), North Korea (60+), Yemen (53+), USA, (46), Saudi Arabia (27+), Libya (18+), Syria (17+), Bangladesh (9+), Somalia (8+), Sudan (6+), Palestinian Authority (5), Egypt (4), Equatorial Guinea (4), Taiwan (4), Belarus (2), Iraq (1+), Malaysia (1+), Bahrain (1), Singapore (unknown number) and Vietnam (unknown number).

The Obama administration has sent teams of CIA operatives into Libya in a rush to gather intelligence on the identities and capabilities of rebel forces opposed to Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi, according to U.S. officials. The information has become more crucial as the administration and its coalition partners move closer to providing direct military aid or guidance to the disorganized and beleaguered rebel army. Although the administration has pledged that no U.S. ground troops will be deployed to Libya, officials said Wednesday that President Obama has issued a secret finding that would authorize the CIA to carry out a clandestine effort to provide arms and other support to Libyan opposition groups. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, insisted that no decision has been made.

Patrick Martin: American media silent on CIA ties to Libya rebel commander

NYT: C.I.A. Agents in Libya Aid Airstrikes and Meet Rebels - A "shadow force" of clandestine CIA operatives are meeting with rebels, aiding airstrikes in concert with RC-135 V/W aircraft and global hawk weapon systems in order to "help bleed Colonel Qaddafi's military."

Antiwar: CIA Ground Forces Operating in Libya for ‘Several Weeks’

At least 40 civilians have been killed in air strikes by Western forces on Tripoli, the top Vatican official in the Libyan capital told a Catholic news agency on Thursday, quoting witnesses. "The so-called humanitarian raids have killed dozens of civilian victims in some neighborhoods of Tripoli," said Giovanni Innocenzo Martinelli, the Apostolic Vicar of Tripoli. Western powers say they have no confirmed evidence of civilian casualties from air strikes, which they have carried out under a U.N. mandate to protect civilians caught in conflict between Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces and rebels. "It's true that the bombardments seem pretty much on target, but it is also true that when they hit military targets, which are in the middle of civilian neighborhoods, the population is also involved," Martinelli said.

New York Daily News: 40 civilians reportedly killed in NATO air strikes on Tripoli; Defense Secretary to address congress

At least 15 people have been killed in heavy flooding in southern Thailand. The government says nearly 1m people have been affected by more than a week of unseasonably heavy rain. Tens of thousands of tourists are also stranded on Thailand's many islands. The BBC's Jonathan Josephs reports.

● Radioactivity levels in the ocean 4,385 times above regulatory limit
● Fisherman warned not to operate within 12 miles of plant
● Compensation claims could top $12bn
● Power firm's shares lose 80% of value - may need government bailout
● President still recovering in hospital recovering from 'fatigue and stress'
● U.S. sends specialist Marine unit to assist in decontamination
● Traces of radioactive particles found in U.S. milk

Japan has finally conceded defeat in the battle to contain radiation at four of its crippled reactors and they will be closed down. Details of how this will be done are yet to be revealed, but officials said it would mean switching off all power and abandoning attempts to keep the nuclear fuel rods cool. The final move would involve pouring tonnes of concrete on the reactors to seal them in tombs and ensure radiation does not leak out. It comes after Japan's nuclear safety agency revealed levels of radiation in the ocean near the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant had surged to 4,385 times the regulatory limit. The dramatic announcement that the four reactors are out of control and will have to be decommissioned was made yesterday by the chairman of the electric company operating the Fukushima plant.

Japan Today: Up to 1,000 bodies left untouched near nuclear plant due to radiation fears

AllThingsNuclear: The IAEA has found cesium-137 concentrations of up to 3.7 megabecquerels per square meter, 40km from Fukushima Dai-ichi. After Chernobyl, the deposition level triggering compulsory relocation was 1.48 MBq/sq.m

Arthur Silber, one of the most incisive and eloquent analysts writing today, is, in his own words, "sick, broke and scared." Silber is wracked by chronic and worsening health problems, which he is having to endure in dire poverty. Voluntary contributions to his website are his only source of income; but of course, when he is sick, as he often is, he can't post new material, and therefore donations drop off.

He is in a particularly bad spiral at the moment, with mounting medical bills and an all-too-real prospect of homelessness. This is what often happens to fearless truth-tellers in our God-led land of Hope and Plenty, with liberty and justice for all, etc. We cannot change this grim reality overnight -- but we can take immediate action to help one of our most valuable voices.

I know times are hard all over (except for the gilded few), but if you have anything at all to spare, please head over to Silber's website, and drop something in the PayPal coinbox. Thanks. [Arthur Silber articles@AWIP]

I couldn’t bear to watch the President’s why-we’re-in-Libya speech as it was broadcast: it’s Spring, after all, and my garden needs planting. Priorities, priorities, priorities: so important, in politics and in life. We all have our priorities: I have mine, and the President of the United States has his. As an indication of the latter, I note that Obama waited a whole week after deploying US forces before deigning to explain his actions to the American people. He has yet to go to Congress for authorization, although he made sure he cleared it with our pushy allies and the UN Security Council. Having received this double-dispensation, Congress is for him but an afterthought. This is the true meaning of “multilateralism”: world opinion matters, American opinion – not so much.

When he finally did come before us to justify this latest episode of world-saving, he didn’t address Congress, but “the most servile audience he could find,” as James Bovard so trenchantly put it, “uniformed military officers at the National Defense University. The room will be full of people who are owned lock, stock, and barrel by the government. The officers have spent their lives working for Uncle Sam, and they know that a single ill-time hoot during Obama’s talk could end their careers.” There would be no “You lie!” moment in this setting. Such safeguards were not for nothing, because practically every other word out of his mouth was either a lie or a truth so veiled in ambiguity that it merges into untruth on closer inspection.

Chris Floyd: A Hundred Years of Rain: Air War Comes Full Circle in Libya
Bill Van Auken: Obama on Libya: A war for US “interests”
Barry Grey: London conference plots imperialist carve-up of Libya
Glenn Greenwald: Obama and American exceptionalism
Stephen Lendman: Obama on Libya: Defending the Indefensible
Benjamin H. Friedman: Three Phony Reasons to Bomb Libya
William Blum: Libya and The Holy Triumvirate
Nebojsa Malic: Another Evil Little War
Stephen Lendman: Planned Regime Change in Libya
Stephen Lendman: US-Led Libyan Ground Assault Planned
Stephen Lendman: Cheerleading for War
Richard Falk: Qaddafi, Moral Interventionism, Libya, and the Arab Revolutionary Moment
Stephen Lendman: Western Aggression on Libya

• Pro-Gaddafi forces retake Brega and advance on Ajdabiya
• Britain backs US on legality of arming Libyan rebels
• Defiant Gaddafi denounces rebels as al-Qaida terrorists
• Top US officials to brief Congress on Libya strategy
• Assad gives first speech since protests began

CBS News: Top Libyan minister defects to the U.K.

[A woman shouts slogans in support of Libyan President Moammar Gadhafi as she carries his photo, at the Pan African Freedom Square, in Uganda capital Kampala Tuesday March 29, 2011. Police in Uganda say they stopped supporters of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi from marching toward and possibly attacking U.S. and other embassies in Kampala. A group of several hundred Africans from countries like Kenya, Somalia, and Tanzania held an anti-U.S. rally where they held signs like "Down with America" and "Down with Obama." (AP Photo/Stephen Wandera)]

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) - Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi is welcome to live in the East African nation of Uganda, the president's spokesman told The Associated Press on Wednesday, in what appears to be the first country to offer him refuge.

An intense diplomatic effort is under way to find a country where Gadhafi can go, as an international military effort against Gadhafi's forces continues.

The spokesman for Uganda's president, Tamale Mirundi, told the AP that Gadhafi would be welcome in Uganda. He said Uganda's policy is to accept asylum seekers, especially because so many Ugandans fled the country during the longtime rule of dictator Idi Amin. "So we have soft spots for asylum seekers. Gadhafi would be allowed to live here if he chooses to do so," Mirundi said.

Another possible reason Uganda might accept Gadhafi is that Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is, like Gadhafi, among the old guard of African leaders. Museveni has been in power for 25 years, though he won re-election in February amid signs that many Ugandans still genuinely support him. Gadhafi has been in power for more than 40 years.

Israel is studying plans to create an artificial island along the Gaza Strip with sea and air ports to be controlled by the Palestinian Authority, an Israeli television channel reported Tuesday. The project, under development for three months by Transport Minister Yaakov Katz proposes building a man-made island four kilometres (2.5 miles) long and two kilometres (1.2 miles) wide, Israel's Channel 2 television reported. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu backs the plan for the island, which would also contain a tourist area, a marina, hotels and a desalination plant for sea water, the report said. It would be linked to Gaza by a four-kilometre bridge. It is estimated the project will cost $5-$10 billion (3.5-7 billion euros) and take six to 10 years to complete, the channel reported.

The project's backers in the government would like to see the island managed by Mahmud Abbas' Palestinian Authority -- freezing out Islamist movement Hamas which controls the Gaza Strip.

Google leveled new charges against China this week, claiming that the country has interfered with some citizens' access to the Internet giant's Gmail service, disguising the interference as technical glitches. Security experts say that China is most likely using invisible intermediary servers, or "transparent proxies," to intercept and relay network messages while rapidly modifying the contents of those communications. This makes it possible to block e-mail messages while making it appear as if Gmail is malfunctioning.

Yahoo: Facebook drops uprising page after Israel protest
BBC: Facebook has removed a page calling for a new Palestinian uprising against Israel after more than 350,000 people signed up to it

An American-Venezuelan lawyer says she possesses a document that would prove Washington has plans to engage in subversive activities in Venezuela and Libya to gain control of their huge oil and gas resources. In an exclusive interview with Press TV, Eva Golinger said that the document includes a map that offers specific directions and targets. According to Golinger, the US government has been pursuing the so-called 'irregular warfare' strategies of subversion, penetration and infiltration in places that hold strategic energy resources.

“When I was doing that research and I found that the document was the same time when the US government had entered into an agreement with Colombia to increase their military presence,” Golinger said. “I also found another document called white paper all from the US air force and air force command operation team and it specifically referred to how the US needed to establish this kind of full spectrum control military control to conduct the operations in certain regions, particularly talking about South America,” she added.

Golinger warned that Washington has set an agenda to highjack the ongoing revolutions in the Arab world and North Africa in order to institute friendly regimes and secure its long-term interests.

A new poll published on Wednesday found nearly half of Americans were opposed to US military involvement in Libya, reflecting tricky political ground being navigated by President Barack Obama. But the Quinnipiac University survey also found that most voters were confident the US mission to shield civilians from Moamer Kadhafi could succeed, though there was an undercurrent of concern about a long engagement. Qunnipiac also uncovered warning signs for Obama over his wider political prospects, with its survey recording its lowest-ever approval rating for the president -- 42 percent -- down from 46 percent earlier this month.

Respondents also said by a margin of 50 to 41 percent that Obama did not deserve to be re-elected in 2012.

The conference on Libya held Tuesday at London's Lancaster House was a repulsive exercise in hypocrisy and cynicism. In the name of liberating the Libyan people, the United States and Britain brought together foreign ministers from 40 countries and dignitaries from international organizations such as the United Nations, NATO and the Arab League to sanction an escalation of the air war against the former colony and set the stage for the installation of a stooge regime. As American, British and French missiles and bombs continued to rain down on Libyan government troops and civilian populations in cities such as Tripoli and Sirte, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and British Prime Minister David Cameron declared that the military assault would continue indefinitely.

Stephen Lendman, Obama on Libya: Defending the Indefensible

The far right Yisrael Beiteinu party accomplished one of their key post-election goals today, passing the controversial new Citizenship Act through the Israeli Knesset in a vote that sparked angry condemnation from Arab MPs, many of whom may lose their citizenship if the act is interpreted broadly. Though the bill was sold primarily as allowing the government to revoke citizenship from “terrorists” it also allowed revocation for acts of espionage or “acts harming Israel’s sovereignty,” a catchall phrase which has many concerned. This is because the act was being touted by Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman as part of a “no citizenship without loyalty” agenda.

"When the tsunami hit and Hideaki Akaiwa realized his wife was in grave danger, he defied all odds by finding scuba gear, swimming under the waves to their home, and saving her. He then went for his mother, saving her too, and has been out almost every day looking for survivors."

They could be the earliest Christian writing in existence, surviving almost 2,000 years in a Jordanian cave. They could, just possibly, change our understanding of how Jesus was crucified and resurrected, and how Christianity was born.

A group of 70 or so "books", each with between five and 15 lead leaves bound by lead rings, was apparently discovered in a remote arid valley in northern Jordan somewhere between 2005 and 2007. A flash flood had exposed two niches inside the cave, one of them marked with a menorah or candlestick, the ancient Jewish religious symbol.

A Jordanian Bedouin opened these plugs, and what he found inside might constitute extremely rare relics of early Christianity. That is certainly the view of the Jordanian government, which claims they were smuggled into Israel by another Bedouin. The Israeli Bedouin who currently holds the books has denied smuggling them out of Jordan, and claims they have been in his family for 100 years. Jordan says it will "exert all efforts at every level" to get the relics repatriated.

In the latest outrage of the global "vegan police" striking out against those who follow a healthy diet, a couple in France is now facing up to 30 years in prison because they refused to feed their baby junk infant formula and instead breastfed her. The baby died at 11 months of age, and when ambulance workers arrived and found the baby dead, instead of consoling the parents, they called the police. Why? Because the parents were vegans.

And because the parents were vegans, an autopsy was performed that found the baby was deficient in vitamin A and vitamin B12, which the deputy prosecutor claimed could have been related to the vegan diet of the parents. The couple has now been charged with "food deprivation followed by death" and faces up to 30 years in prison.

British government finally apologises for a soldier who shot a 12-year-old girl in the back as she walked to church. Soldier not jailed. The brother of Majella O’Hare says his family does not want to meet the soldier who shot his sister in the back as she walked to church. Michael O’Hare was speaking as he left a meeting with Secretary of State Owen Paterson yesterday, following a letter to the family from Defence Secretary Liam Fox offering "profound apologies" for the 12-year-old's death. The Government’s apology followed a report by the Historical Enquiries Team. Despite the letter of contrition, the O’Hare family said after yesterday’s meeting at Hillsborough that they don’t want to meet the soldier who fired the fatal shot. Michael Williams was acquitted of Majella's manslaughter in 1977. Now believed to be in his 50s, the former soldier is understood to live in England. Michael says his family no longer wants to meet the soldier.

Syrian President Bashar Assad accepted the resignation of the government on Tuesday, Syrian state television said. "President Assad accepts the government's resignation," an announcement on state television said. Assad was expected to address the nation later on Tuesday or Wednesday in a speech which may include a decision to abolish emergency laws, after two weeks of democracy protests gripped the country.

The Telegraph: Syrian Cabinet resigns amid mounting unrest
The Star: Syria at crossroads as casualties mount

Israel threatens unilateral steps if UN recognizes Palestinian state. Foreign Ministry instructs envoys in 30 countries to send 'diplomatic protest' to host nations over plan for September vote in General Assembly. Israel informed the 15 members of the United Nations Security Council last week, as well as several other prominent European Union countries, that if the Palestinian Authority persists in its efforts to gain recognition in September as a state within the 1967 borders, Israel would respond with a series of unilateral steps of its own. Senior Foreign Ministry officials said the ministry's director general, Rafael Barak, sent a classified cable last week to more than 30 Israeli embassies, directing them to lodge a diplomatic protest at the highest possible level in response to the Palestinian efforts to gain international recognition for statehood at the UN General Assembly session in September.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has said his government is in a state of maximum alert over the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. Plutonium has been detected in soil at the facility and highly radioactive water has leaked from a reactor building. Officials say the priority remains injecting water to cool the fuel rods. Mr Kan told parliament the situation at the quake-hit plant "continues to be unpredictable". The government "will tackle the problem while in a state of maximum alert", he said, adding that he was seeking advice on whether to extend the evacuation zone around the plant. Meanwhile National Strategy Minister Koichiro Gemba said the government could consider temporarily nationalising Tepco, the company running the plant. On Monday shares in the company dropped to their lowest level in three decades.

The Telegraph: Japan on "maximum alert" as plutonium found in soil near nuclear plant
WSWS: Contaminated water leaking from Japanese nuclear plant
You Tube: Mounting evidence that Japan is hiding reality of radiation & nuclear problems - Video
Stephen Lendman: Japan's Leaking Water Radiation 100,000 Times Above Normal

Berechnete Vertikalbewegung des Meeresbodens beim Sendai-Beben

[Another “American” Hero gone + Bageant Moves On] After a vibrant life, Joe Bageant died yesterday {March 26} following a four-month struggle with cancer. He was 64. Joe is survived by his wife, Barbara, his three children, Timothy, Patrick and Elizabeth, and thousands of friends and admirers. He is also survived by his work and ideas.

I considered Joe to be the best 'southern' writer of his generation. Even if you didn't agree with all of his viewpoints, he always put a smile on your face. He was one of those guys who in his healthy times would answer his emails and was as down to earth in his communications as he was in his writings.

His essays and books remain required reading. Maybe one day we'll see some of his work on the silver screen. Joe, you will be missed .....

Joe Bageant:
Bass Boats and Queer Marriage
Understanding America's Class System
When did America become a goddamn homeland?
Round Midnight: Tortillas and the Corporate State

She has spent hours on her hair and make up, bought a new outfit and done her nails. So perhaps it is only fair that her date should pay for dinner. Pretty women are less likely than plain Janes to offer to contribute towards the bill on a first date, research shows. But they are not worried about the expense - it is likely to be because they believe their date should pay for the pleasure of being with them, according to researchers at St Andrews University. The intriguing finding comes from a study of 416 men and women who were asked to rate themselves for attractiveness, ahead of going on a series of hypothetical dates.

Capping weeks of secretive negotiations and intense political jockeying, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and leaders of the Legislature on Sunday announced a $132.5 billion budget agreement that would cut overall spending, impose no major new taxes and begin a long-term overhaul of New York State’s bloated Medicaid programs. The agreement, five days before the March 31 budget deadline, offered the prospect of Albany’s first on-time budget in five years. If enacted by lawmakers, the deal would cut the state’s overall year-to-year spending for the first time in more than a decade. While some details were not available on Sunday night, the outlines of the deal suggested that Mr. Cuomo had won a significant victory in his battle to rein in state spending and corral the unions and other special interests that have long dominated the budget process in Albany. It would also fulfill one of Mr. Cuomo’s main campaign pledges: to avoid new taxes in addressing the state’s financial problems.

Bernie Sanders: A list of some of the 10 worst corporate income tax avoiders
JustinWrites: General Electric made 14.2 billion profit in 2010 and paid $0 in U.S. taxes

The Libyan National Council, the Benghazi-based group that speaks for the rebel forces fighting the Gaddafi regime, has appointed a long-time CIA collaborator to head its military operations. The selection of Khalifa Hifter, a former colonel in the Libyan army, was reported by McClatchy Newspapers Thursday and the new military chief was interviewed by a correspondent for ABC News on Sunday night.

Hifter’s arrival in Benghazi was first reported by Al Jazeera on March 14, followed by a flattering portrait in the virulently pro-war British tabloid the Daily Mail on March 19. The Daily Mail described Hifter as one of the “two military stars of the revolution” who “had recently returned from exile in America to lend the rebel ground forces some tactical coherence.” The newspaper did not refer to his CIA connections. McClatchy Newspapers published a profile of Hifter on Sunday. Headlined “New Rebel Leader Spent Much of Past 20 years in Suburban Virginia,” the article notes that he was once a top commander for the Gaddafi regime, until “a disastrous military adventure in Chad in the late 1980s.”

U.S.-led military action in Libya has bolstered rebels fighting Moammar Gadhafi's forces, but the international operation could continue for months, the Obama administration says. Ahead of President Barack Obama's national address Monday to explain his decision to act against the Libyan leader, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in appearances on the Sunday talk shows that the intervention had effectively rendered Gadhafi's forces defenseless against air attacks and created the conditions for opposition advances westward.

WSWS: Gates and Clinton hint at open-ended war in Libya

BENGHAZI, Libya: Oil fields in rebel-held territory in Libya are producing between 100,000 and 130,000 barrels a day, and the opposition plans to begin exporting oil "in less than a week", a rebel representative said on Sunday. "We are producing about 100,000 to 130,000 barrels a day, we can easily up that to about 300,000 a day," said Ali Tarhoni, the rebel representative responsible for economy, finance and oil, at a news conference. He said the rebel government had agreed an oil contract with Qatar, which would market the crude, and that he expected exports to begin in "less than a week".

Libya has accused the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) of terrorizing and killing its civilians as part of attacks against forces loyal to the embattled 68-year-old Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi. "The terror people live in, the fear, the tension is everywhere. And these are civilians who are being terrorized every day," Reuters quoted Libyan government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim as saying in the capital Tripoli on Sunday. "We believe the unnecessary continuation of the air strikes is a plan to put the Libyan government in a weak negotiating position. NATO is prepared to kill people, destroy army training camps and army checkpoints and other locations," he added.

How U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan murdered innocent civilians and mutilated their corpses – and how their officers failed to stop them. Plus: An exclusive look at the war crime photos censored by the Pentagon.

Early last year, after six hard months soldiering in Afghanistan, a group of American infantrymen reached a momentous decision: It was finally time to kill a haji.

Among the men of Bravo Company, the notion of killing an Afghan civilian had been the subject of countless conversations, during lunchtime chats and late-night bull sessions. For weeks, they had weighed the ethics of bagging "savages" and debated the probability of getting caught. Some of them agonized over the idea; others were gung-ho from the start. But not long after the New Year, as winter descended on the arid plains of Kandahar Province, they agreed to stop talking and actually pull the trigger.

Jerry White: Photos released of atrocities by US “kill team” in Afghanistan
James Petras: Imperialism and Imperial Barbarism
Rory Fanning: The making of a war crime

In one of the strongest criticisms yet, Russian Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said the coalition air attacks amounted to intervention in the civil war, which were not authorised by resolution 1973. “There is a clear contradiction here. We believe that interference of the coalition in the internal civil war, has not been sanctioned by the UN Security Council resolution,” Lavrov said. The statement by Lavrov follows criticism by Russian premier Vladmir Putin, who also condemned the UN resolution. Despite holding veto power as a permanent UN Security Council member, Russia chose not to block resolution 1973, which allowed for military intervention to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya.

More than 10,000 Indonesians have rallied peacefully to support pro-democracy movements in Libya, Yemen and Bahrain.The crowd, organised by an Islamic political party, expressed opposition to the international air strikes that have checked Libya’s military and helped rebels gain control of key towns.

At least 61 people have been killed in 10 days of anti-government protests in the southern city, posing the most serious challenge to President Bashar al-Assad's rule. Assad has yet to respond to the demonstrations, which have spread to the port city of Latakia and Hama, but Vice President Farouq al-Shara said Assad would announce important decisions in the next 48 hours. The demonstrators in Deraa had converged on a main square chanting: "We want dignity and freedom" and "No to emergency laws", the witness said. He said security forces fired in the air for several minutes, but protesters returned when they stopped. Security forces had in recent days reduced their presence in the poor, mostly Sunni city, but residents said on Monday they had returned in strength.

Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant may have experienced a partial meltdown last week, which would explain the highly radioactive puddles found at the site and radiation levels in the sea. Japan's chief cabinet secretary Yukio Edano said in a news conference today that the radioactive water found at the no. 2 reactor at the plant was due to a temporary partial meltdown of fuel rods, reports Kyodo News. The radioactive water was first noticed when two workers stepped into a contaminated puddle at the no. 2 reactor on Thursday. Since then, the plant's owner, the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), has been working to remove the radioactive water and pinpoint its source.

NHK: More radioactive substances found in seawater
ChannelNewsAsia: Highly radioactive water spreads at Japan plant

New Shocking Video Of The Japanese Tsunami [The first one] by timbarracuda

A magnitude-6.5 earthquake shook eastern Japan off the quake-ravaged coast on Monday morning, the U.S. Geological Survey reported, prompting Japan to issue a tsunami alert. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries, but the Japan Meteorological Agency announced that a tsunami of up to 1.6 feet (a half meter) may wash into Miyagi Prefecture. The tsunami alert was localized to Japan. The U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said no wave was expected in Hawaii or on the U.S. west coast. The alert was prompted by a quake that the U.S. Geological Survey measured at 7:23 a.m. Monday Japan time (2223 GMT Sunday) near the east coast of Honshu. The USGS said the quake was 3.7 miles (5.9 kilometers) deep.

Thousands of Pakistani demonstrators have taken to the streets in the capital Islamabad to condemn unauthorized US drone attacks on the country's tribal regions. Supporters of Pakistan's Jamaat-e-Islami religious party converged in front of the Parliament House on Sunday to demand that the government review its relations with Washington, a Press TV correspondent reported. The protesters maintained that a simple apology or words of condemnation from Obama's administration do not go far enough, otherwise the US drone attacks would have stopped by now.

“There are demands that we should regain our sovereignty, the war has shifted in Pakistan and our soldiers are being killed. The government should step out of the war,” a demonstrator told Press TV on condition of anonymity. Speaking at the rally, the chief of Jammat-e-Islami strongly criticized the Pakistani government for following what he called American policies. “The government must avoid military operations in the North Waziristan. If they carry out any such operations at the American behest it will be disastrous for the country,” Syed Munawar Hassan said.

Being low mouse on the totem pole is tough on murine self-esteem. It turns out it has measurable effects on brain chemistry, too, according to recent experiments at Rockefeller University. Researchers found that mice that were bullied persistently by dominant males grew unusually nervous around new company, and that the change in behavior was accompanied by heightened sensitivity to vasopressin, a hormone involved in a variety of social behaviors. The findings suggest how bullying could contribute to long-term social anxiety at the molecular level.

In the past decade torture has never been very far from the headlines but the recent outbreak of protests across the Middle East has put the issue right back in the spotlight. Activists from Egypt to Libya, and Bahrain to Yemen have all included torture among the list of crimes allegedly committed by security forces. Understandably they want the perpetrators brought to justice. But as our story this week demonstrates, while legal sanctions can sometimes be applied, the physical and mental scars from torture take a very long time to heal.

In the mid 1970s a coup brought a military junta to power in Argentina. Its leader General Jorge Videla was a fanatical anti-Communist who fought a five-year dirty war against opponents. More than 30,000 people were imprisoned, tortured and murdered by the army and secret police. Though Videla was eventually convicted of crimes against humanity – and he and other junta leaders are now back in court facing further charges, only one of the people who did the actual torturing has ever been confronted with the human cost of his crimes. We first showed this film by Rodrigo Vazquez in 2009, but its themes are as relevant today as they were then. Some of the images are disturbing.

Marie Trigona:
Landmark Human Rights Case in Argentina Puts Torture on Trial
Memory and Justice: A Photo Essay on Argentina's Human Rights Movement

Japanese researchers have confirmed that a 13-meter tsunami hit a shelter one kilometer from the coast of Rikuzen-takata City in Iwate Prefecture on March 11th. The researchers from the University of Tokyo and Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology say that the tsunami reached beams near the ceiling of a gymnasium where many people were sheltering after the initial quake. Many of them were swept away and drowned. The researchers say the tsunami travelled at a speed of more than 40 kilometers per hour and the waves were so powerful that they carried mountain rocks weighing about 20 tons each to places around the sports center. A researcher said he believes the tsunami quickly reached the 2nd floor of the gymnasium and it would have been very difficult for people to evacuate to higher places. The researchers also found that an estimated 16-meter tsunami struck a hotel on the coast of the city. They confirmed that the waves destroyed facilities up to the 4th floor of the building. Sunday, March 27, 2011 20:08 +0900 (JST)

Tokyo Electric Power Company has retracted its announcement that 10 million times the normal density of radioactive materials had been detected in water at the Number 2 reactor of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The utility says it will conduct another test of the leaked water at the reactor's turbine building. The company said on Sunday evening that the data for iodine-134 announced earlier in the day was actually for another substance that has a longer half-life. The plant operator said earlier on Sunday that 2.9 billion becquerels per cubic centimeter had been detected in the leaked water. It said although the initial figure was wrong, the water still has a high level of radioactivity of 1,000 millisieverts per hour. Sunday, March 27, 2011 22:02 +0900 (JST)

Delaware Department of Transportation crews escorted by state police tore down basketball hoops this morning in two neighborhoods in Claymont amid protests from residents who say the nets aren't harming anyone. (03/25/11)

Prudish Police State: Cops executed late-night, no-knock entry into family's home, after photos printed at local Wal-Mart show nudity of 35-yr-old women mistaken as a child. Court rules the entry a violation of Fourth Amendment law governing the obligation to knock and announce.

It is estimated more than 250,000 people from across Britain have taken part in a demonstration in central London against government spending cuts. The march and rally, organised by the TUC, have been largely peaceful, but a separate group of several hundred people has attacked shops and businesses in the West End. The BBC's Home Affairs correspondent Tom Symonds reports.

Rudy Cech: IMAGES
AllVoices: UK March for the Alternative: Few hundred mar protest, 214 arrests and 84 injuries - Video

[You Tube] It is short concise, and shows what the Koch Bros want. They will do anything, anytime, anyplace to destroy us and those who oppose them. As the video says, it is the oligarchy vs everyone else. The oligarchy rules for themselves, and no one else. Again, we need to share this with everyone..

One of the most intense scandals the field of psychology has faced over the last decade is the involvement of several of its members in enabling Bush's worldwide torture regime. Numerous health professionals worked for the U.S. government to help understand how best to mentally degrade and break down detainees. At the center of that controversy was -- and is -- Dr. Larry James. James, a retired Army colonel, was the Chief Psychologist at Guantanamo in 2003, at the height of the abuses at that camp, and then served in the same position at Abu Ghraib during 2004. Today, Dr. James circulated an excited email announcing, "with great pride," that he has now been selected to serve on the "White House Task Force entitled Enhancing the Psychological Well-Being of The Military Family." In his new position, he will be meeting at the White House with Michelle Obama and other White House officials on Tuesday.