02/09/12

Permalink US-led airstrike kills 8 Afghans, including 6 children

A US-led airstrike has claimed the lives of at least eight civilians, including six children, in Afghanistan’s eastern province of Kapisa, Press TV reports. - The foreign forces carried out the aerial attack on Thursday in Nejrab district of Kapisa province, local officials and eyewitnesses told Press TV. the civilians were killed while they were feeding their animals on a mountain in Giawa in Nejrab district, witnesses said. Hundreds of civilians have lost their lives in US-led airstrikes and ground operations in various parts of Afghanistan over the past months, with Afghans becoming more and more outraged over the seemingly endless number of deadly assaults. Afghan authorities have repeatedly warned NATO forces to avoid killing civilians during military operations.


Permalink British, Qatari troops already waging secret war in Syria?

British and Qatari troops are directing rebel ammunition deliveries and tactics in the bloody battle for Homs, according to an Israeli website known for links to intelligence sources. - Four centers of operation have been established in the city with the troops on the ground paving the way for an undercover Turkish military incursion into Syria. The debkafile site said the presence of British and Qatari troops in Homs topped the agenda of Tuesday’s talks between Assad’s officials and head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service Mikhail Fradkov. Qatar makes little secret of supporting the Syrian opposition with cash, arms and political support. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani said in mid-January he is ready to send troops to Syria to stop the violence there. Britain insists it is not planning any military action against the Assad regime. The scenario painted by the report closely resembles Libya’s collapse into anarchy. UN Security Council resolution 1973 forbade any ground troops from intervening in Libya while creating a pretext for NATO to launch a bombing campaign against Muammar Gaddafi’s troops.


Permalink Report of Arab League mission to Syria contradicts Western propaganda

As in their eight-month war for regime change in Libya, the US and its NATO allies in Western Europe have claimed in their present buildup toward intervention in Syria to be acting in the name and at the behest of the Arab League.

The resolution on Syria vetoed at the United Nations Security Council by Russia and China was moved by the Arab League, citing the failure of the regime of Bashir al-Assad to abide by its demands for an end to violence against the opposition. The veto has been followed by hysterical official denunciations in the West and a media propaganda campaign portraying the developments in Syria as an entirely one-sided and indiscriminate massacre carried out by the Assad regime against its own people. The UN resolution included a brief reference to the observer mission sent by the Arab League into Syria, “commending its efforts” and suggesting that violence had prevented it from continuing its work. The reality, however, is that to make the case for regime change in Syria, the League, currently chaired by Qatar and politically dominated by the US-aligned Gulf monarchies, had to terminate its own observer mission suppress and squelch its report. The real failure, as far as its Arab League paymasters were concerned, was that the mission’s findings cut across the campaign justifying regime change in the run-up to the UN Security Council meeting—above all by insisting that Syria’s “citizens believe the crisis should be resolved peacefully through Arab mediation alone, without international intervention.”

Xymphora: Why the Arab League monitors had to get out of Syria in such a hurry - "Independent Report Contradicts Western Portrait of Syria" Added (via Angry Arab): "The observer Ahmed Manaï “The Arab League has buried the observers report on Syria”". "The Western Logic Of Intervention In Syria"

Walt: "Will victory in Libya cause defeat in Syria?" Leaving aside the fact that there was no 'victory' for Americans in that or any other War For The Jews, American gross misuse of the Libyan resolution led directly to the China/Russia veto of the Syrian resolution.
"Wikileaks: US government: 'We should coordinate with the Saudis & Egyptians to undermine a stronger Assad!'" From late 2006.

The Telegraph: International 'militarisation' in Syria growing closer, warns US official
Al Arabiya News: At least 117 killed in military attacks mostly across Syrian city of Homs

Global Research: SYRIA. TEXT OF LEAKED ARAB LEAGUE MISSION REPORT Report Reveals Media Lies Regarding Syria - The report acknowledges the existence of "an armed entity" involved in the killings of civilians and police as well as the conduct of terrorist acts, which in turn have contributed to triggering actions by government forces. The Report refers to "armed opposition groups" as well as to the "Free Syrian Army", both of which, according to the AL Mission, are involved in the deliberate killing of innocent civilians.


Permalink Food Prices Soaring in Iran as US Sanctions Miss Regime and Hit Civilians

President Obama’s announcement of even more sanctions against the Iranian government was virtually uniformly praised among political leadership, and the argument that Iran’s government was circumventing previous sanctions was largely accepted as justification. - The argument has some validity. Indeed, most indications are that the Iranian government has been able to find workarounds on many of the sanctions, and the desperate efforts to halt the flow of crude oil from the country seem to be doomed to failure. Nevertheless, every new round of sanctions takes a toll on the civilian economy of Iran and cripples private industries that don’t have access to the loopholes that state industry does. This has fueled inflation, unemployment, and, increasingly, soaring food prices. Iran’s state oil company is still shipping crude, but the cooking oil that Iranian companies buy from abroad isn’t getting in so easily. Corn and rice shipments are down, payments to suppliers are defaulting, and once again the US sanctions have made Iran’s civilian population even more desperate, with no one to turn to but the government.


Permalink FAA told to make room for drones in U.S. skies

Within a few years, that flying object overhead might not be a bird or a plane, but an unmanned aircraft. - Drones, perhaps best known for their combat missions in Afghanistan, are increasingly looking to share room in U.S. skies with passenger planes. And that's prompting safety concerns. Right now, remote-controlled drones are used in the U.S. mostly by the military and Customs and Border Patrol in restricted airspace. Now, organizations from police forces searching for missing persons to academic researchers counting seals on the polar ice cap are eager to launch drones weighing a few pounds to some the size of a jetliner in the same airspace as passenger planes. On Monday, the Senate sent to President Obama legislation that would require the Federal Aviation Administration to devise ways for that to happen safely in three years.


Permalink Senate sneaks in SOPA under a new name

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) launches a second round of attacks in an attempt to censor the Internet. - After trying to adopt Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA), both pieces of legislation turned out to be a disaster, causing outrage among Internet giants and ordinary users alike. Congress had to retreat. However it's determined to get what it wants this time. After the shelving of SOPA and PIPA back in January Reid stated,“There is no reason that the legitimate issues raised by many about this bill cannot be resolved.” As RT reported last month, Senator Reid added that lawmakers will“continue engaging with all stakeholders to forge a balance between protecting Americans’ intellectual property, and maintaining openness and innovation on the Internet.” The vote on the anti-piracy legislation was postponed from its January 24date after Wikipedia and other popular websites went dark to protest the draft law. Now the battle for online freedom continues.


Permalink Government may sanction 'incapacitating chemical agents' banned in warfare for rioters, scientists fear

Experts concluded that the Government may be preparing to exploit a loophole in the Chemical Weapons Convention allowing the use of incapacitating chemical agents for domestic law enforcement. - Leading neuroscientists believe that the UK Government may be about to sanction the development of nerve agents for British police that would be banned in warfare under an international treaty on chemical weapons. A high-level group of experts has asked the Government to clarify its position on whether it intends to develop "incapacitating chemical agents" for a range of domestic uses that go beyond the limited use of chemical irritants such as CS gas for riot control.


Permalink IRAQ: Unspoken Crimes against Humanity Committed against the People of Iraq: Detailed and Documented

Criminally Neglected by the International Community: Open Letter to The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay: Dear Mrs. Pillay, On 24 of January you said you were "shocked" at reports that 34 individuals, including two women, were executed in Iraq on 19 January following their conviction for various crimes. "Even if the most scrupulous fair trial standards were observed, this would be a terrifying number of executions to take place in a single day," you said. "Given the lack of transparency in court proceedings, major concerns about due process and fairness of trials, and the very wide range of offences for which the death penalty can be imposed in Iraq, it is a truly shocking figure." "Most disturbingly," you added, "we do not have a single report of anyone on death row being pardoned, despite the fact there are well documented cases of confessions being extracted under duress. (…) I call on the Government of Iraq to implement an immediate moratorium on the institution of death penalty". On the same day that you made this statement, a U.S. military judge sentenced a Marine squad leader, who pleaded guilty for war crimes in connection with the assassination of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha, to a maximum of 90 days in prison and a reduction in pay and rank. But because he pleaded guilty, Staff Sgt. Frank G. Wuterich won't serve any time in the brig. Eight Marines were initially charged. One was acquitted, and six others had their cases dropped. Understandably, the Iraqis reacted with outrage. We wonder if you were "shocked" when you read this verdict. Did you think this was an example of "transparency in court proceedings"? Didn’t you have "major concerns about due process and fairness of trials" in this case? We assume you did. So why didn’t your office issue a statement condemning the US government? And what does this tell you about the value of Iraqi lives? [...] Yours truly. Dirk Adriaensens


Permalink The Zionist Entity: Judge Orders Professor To Remain In Prison Without Charge

The Israel military court has extended administrative detention for two months in addition to three months already detained for civil rights lawyer Dr. Yousef Abdul Haq, a lecturer at An-Najah National University and the Cultural Coordinator for the Tanweer Palestinian Cultural Enlightenment Forum, currently detained in Ofer Prison near Ramallah. - This arbitrary administrative detention is legally incompatible with the most basic international standards of human rights, because it is without any specific charge against the prisoner, it also depends on the military file and secret evidence which cannot be seen by the detainee or defense lawyers; this file is prepared by the Israel intelligence service collecting intelligence information illegally. This type of detention is internationally banned not only for the specific category of the Palestinian people; and in addition includes lawmakers in the Palestinian Legislative Council, members of local councils, university students, political activists, academics, trade unionists and even women and children. The imposition of administrative detention by Article 111 of the military state of emergency imposed by the British colonial authorities of Palestine in September of the year 1945 is illegal on the grounds that Article 43 of the Hague international agreement of 1907 prohibits an occupying power to change the legislative reality of the country occupied.


Permalink Israel about to expel Bedouin from homes to expand settlements

Israel: Cancel plan to forcibly displace Jahalin Bedouin communities - Israeli defence minister Ehud Barak should cancel military plans to forcibly displace around 2,300 Bedouin residents of the West Bank to an area beside the Jerusalem municipal garbage dump, Amnesty International said today in a new briefing paper. In Stop the Transfer: Israel about to expel Bedouin from homes to expand settlements, the organization calls on the Israeli military to order an immediate halt to all demolitions in the 20 communities affected by the plan. Amnesty International said that verbal promises made by Israeli military officials last week not to implement pending demolition orders in Khan al-Ahmar, one of the Bedouin communities targeted for displacement in the Jerusalem district of the occupied West Bank, are insufficient.


Permalink U.S. accuses Russia of practicing "checkbook diplomacy" on Abkhazia and South Ossetia

U.S. also plays the checkbook game with regard to Kosovo / Checkbook Diplomacy Doesn’t Apply to the United States. - The United States, Australia, and New Zealand and their ally in Tbilisi, Mikheil Saakashvili, are upset that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov recently visited Fiji. The fear from Washington, Canberra, Wellington, and Tbilisi was that Lavrov was going to offer Fiji lucrative financial assistance in return for the South Pacific nation’s recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The two countries broke away from Georgia, triggering a war between Georgia and Russia in 2008. While the Obama administration is cautioning Fiji about recognizing the independence of the two secessionist republics in return for economic aid from Moscow, something Washington calls Taiwan-style “checkbook diplomacy,” it is more than happy to reward other countries with special incentives if they recognize the independence of America’s creation in the Balkans that was severed from Serbia, Kosovo.


Permalink Six men face charges for Guarani murders in legal ‘milestone’

Six men are being brought to trial for the murder of two Guarani Indians who were killed in Brazil’s Mato Grosso do Sul state in 2009. The case has been described as ‘an important milestone’ by a public prosecutor.

Genivaldo Verá and Rolindo Verá were victims of an armed attack, after their Y’poi community attempted to reclaim its ancestral land from ranchers.

Brazil’s Public Ministry has announced that ranchers and politicians are among those facing prosecution. The charges they face include: homicide; hiding a body; shooting a firearm; and bodily harm against an elderly person.

One of the men under investigation, cattle rancher Firmino Escobar, also held the Guarani of Y’poi hostage in 2010, imprisoning them on their land and cutting off food and medical supplies. Survival has a recording of him refusing an undercover Survival campaigner entry to the site. He also falsely denied any Indians were on the land.

The Public Ministry is considering opening another police investigation into other people who may have been involved in the fatal attack in 2009.


Permalink Ter·ror·ist (Noun): Anyone Who Disagrees with the Government

Any American Who Criticizes the Government May Be Labeled a Terrorist. - Well, according to a law school professor, pursuant to the Military Commissions Act, “Anyone who … speaks out against the government’s policies could be declared an ‘unlawful enemy combatant’ and imprisoned indefinitely. That includes American citizens.”And according to an FBI memo, peace protesters are being labeled as “terrorists”. Anyone who disagrees with the “acceptable” way of looking at things is a terrorist. How is this different from Stalin or Mao’s use of labels such as “enemy of the state”?


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