Egyptians lineup to choose their president on May 23, 2012. (Aljazeera) By Hasan Afif El-Hasan Arab people are demanding democracy after living for decades under authoritarian regimes suffering systematic violations of their natural rights where injustice, impunity, police torture, battering and excessive use of deadly force were the norm. Ramzy Baroud put it [...]
To get their searing point across, a new educational and fundraising campaign by the UK-basedFreedom From Torture, which gives medical care to survivors of torture, features help-wanted“ads” in mainstream papers. “The government of a Middle Eastern state is recruiting a senior torturer to work in a well-equipped prison. Our ideal candidate would be prepared to inflict extreme pain [...]
Nazism, Zionism, and the Arab World Countering the myths spread by pro-Israel ideologues By Annette Herskovits May 21, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — The intricate, sprawling architecture of deception that shapes understanding of the Israel-Palestine conflict in America is probably unique in history. For over six decades, the U.S. Congress, [...]
A sign on a door labeled “Interrogation Booths” in both English and Arabic at Camp Honor military base in Baghdad’s Green Zone, taken before the government announced the prison was closed. (photo: Human Rights Watch) Rights Group: Iraq Torture Prison Still Open Human Rights Watch reports notorious Camp Honor prison still in use a year [...]
New Israeli cabinet “war government” 9 May 2012 No one can know what goes on inside the mind of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu these days regarding several regional issues. But what can be foretold is that this man is harbouring evil and planning wars after killing the peace [...]
Opposition to Iran war gaining momentum By Kourosh Ziabari link http://www.presstv.ir/detail/240364.html Several prominent academicians, peace activists, artists, journalists and even Nobel Prize laureates have stood shoulder by shoulder with the international organizations to voice their dismay and alarm at the renewed war rhetoric of Israel against Iran and its possible plans for launching a military [...]
Capitalism in the Second Decade of the 21st Century: From the “Golden” to the Dark Ages of Capitalism By James Petras May 09, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — The economic, political and social outlook for the second decade of the 21st century is profoundly negative. The almost universal consensus, even [...]
Adam Yauch used his celebrity status to speak out against US military action in the Middle East, pointing out that it would only lead to more and more retaliation and that most people there were not terrorists [AP] Brooklyn, NY - In 1998, the Beastie Boys walked up to the VMA mics in matching utilitarian grey [...]
Uprooting Trees and Lives by Abby Zimet The latest lofty move by the Middle East‘s self-professed only democracy: Israel has orderedPalestinian farmers in Deir Istiya, a major West Bank olive producing village, to uproot at least 1,400 trees they have tended for generations because…..umm. Petition to halt the largest of years of such actions, currently at a stand-off thanks to protests by residents and [...]
Israeli politics have shifted far to the right over the past six decades [GALLO/GETTY]Be’er-Sheva, Israel - Not long after Israel celebrated its 64th Independence Day on April 26, a friend prepared a quiz of sorts. She read out loud political quotes to about ten guests who were having dinner at my house, and asked us to [...]
Suggested Topics Al-Qaeda O Lordy, lordy. So there’s Bin Laden, hiding in Abbottabad and he’s waffling on about Fisk. Should The Independent’s man in the Middle East and my old chum Abdul Bari Atwan be given exclusive material on the 10th anniversary of the international crimes against humanity of 9/11 (my definition, not OBL‘s)? Can OBL be [...]
link to interactive map- a must to look at to see the real position http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/interactive/2012/04/2012417131242767298.html Doha, Qatar - US military bases continue to form a strategic envelope around Iran, although the American withdrawal from Iraq at the end of 2011 may have changed the regional balance somewhat towards Iran’s favour. While US forces [...]
Israel and the walls that surround it Does the new border wall with Lebanon highlight Israel’s precarious relationship with its neighbours? A wall is sometimes built to protect, sometimes to separate and occasionally to do both – but will Israel’s latest project protect it or further seal the country’s isolation in the region? “Israeli isolation [...]
People from all walks of life, and from all around the world, make up the supporters of the BDS campaign [EPA] Dear David, It’s been too long. I was a little surprised that I was not part of your just published list of dangerous, Jew- (self-) hating, Nazi-loving supporters of Boycotts, Divestments and Sanctions against [...]
Egyptian women protest against the army’s use of violence against them in Cairo in 2011 after images of women who had been brutally beaten were circulated. Photograph: Mohamed Omar/EPA After the Arab spring, the sexual revolution? Mona Eltahawy‘s ‘Arab men hate women’ article sparks demands for a sea change in engagement between the sexes Martin Chulov in Beirut, [...]
How Obama Recycled a Lie about Iran By Elizabeth Murray April 26, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — In June 2007, Middle East expert and University of Michigan professor Juan Cole remarked that bad translations can sometimes start wars. Professor Cole, in this case, was referring to the misleading, yet widely circulated mistranslated [...]
Iran and Israel: Comparing military machines Assessing statistics for the two regional rivals at the heart of the Middle East dispute over nuclear arms. Ben Piven Israel, the US, and some European powers have alleged that Iran aims to build nuclear weapons to complement its conventional arms, but Tehran says its current programme is for peaceful, civilian purposes. Regardless, [...]
Palestine and Its People: Understanding the Past By William James Martin linkhttp://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=19252 It is impossible to understand the present Palestinian/Israeli conflict without understanding the past, in particular, the 1948 ethnic cleansing of Palestine by Ashkenazi Jews from Eastern Europe, who are not Semitic people, but indigenous to Eastern Europe. [...]
Tel Aviv is often described as ‘insulated’ from the Israeli/Palestinian conflict [EPA] Washington, DC - The occupation and the Iran nuclear issue have swallowed up Israel. Unless you live there, the only sense you get of that country is that it is obsessed with Iran, maintaining the occupation and exploiting the Holocaust to keep critics of [...]
Turkey says Israel must apologize for killing 9 Turkish nationals in May 2010. ISTANBUL (Reuters) — Turkey has refused to allow Israel to take part in a NATO summit next month because the country has not apologized for the 2010 killing of Turkish activists in a raid on a ship taking aid to Palestinians, a [...]
(photo: Birmingham Friends of the Earth) Published on Sunday, April 22, 2012 by Informed Comment Earth Day Means Nothing If We Don’t Limit Carbon Emissions by Juan Cole The first observance of Earth Day was March 21, 1970. I was 17, and along with other students at Broad Run High School, went out with garbage bags [...]
by Dariush Gilani 21-Apr-2012 link http://www.iranian.com/main/2012/apr/all-quiet Checking out the US media recently I have noticed a dramatic downturn in anti-Iran rhetoric. Now that the Israeli leaders got what they wanted from the Obama administration, in terms of more weapons and money and a relief from forced negotiation with Palestinians, the scare tactic about nuclear Iran has [...]
The Grand Prix, Western Hypocrisy and the Gulf States By Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey April 21, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — Let us be perfectly clear. Qatar has emerged as the main western puppet State in the Gulf, while Bahrain receives favoured treatment despite a despotic crackdown on activists and Saudi Arabia, despite having a [...]
YouTube/NCPCF2010 Attorney Stephen Downs speaks at a news conference in March organized by the National Coalition to Protect Civil Freedoms in Washington, D.C. Every week, Truthdig recognizes an individual or group of people who spoke truth to power, blew the whistle or stood up in the face of injustice. See past winners here, and nominate [...]
A Palestinian woman at a demonstration in the village of al-Walaja. Photo Credit: Ryan Rodrick Beiler / Shutterstock.com LIKE THIS ARTICLE ? Join our mailing list: Sign up to stay up to date on the latest headlines via email. How We’re Footing the Bill for Violent Crackdowns on [...]
Chomsky: U.S. security requires something approaching absolute global control By Gaius Publius on 4/19/2012 09:15:00 AM I’m approaching a short trip, so posting will be light. But I want to put this up before I head out. Not that this — the headline statement — is surprising, but that it’s said out loud. [...]
Asia/Middle East: Increase Protections for Migrant Workers Labor Ministers From 19 Countries Meet for Second ‘Abu Dhabi Dialogue’ A RELATED MATERIALS: Asia: Governments Should Jointly Protect Migrant Workers The draft framework contains many positive elements that could help reduce recruitment-related exploitation and workplace abuse of contractual migrant workers. But it [...]
Yusuf is currently working on a musical featuring songs he wrote as Cat Stevens [GALLO/GETTY] The artist formerly known as Cat Stevens is starting a new chapter – one that has been in the making since the day he first picked up a microphone.Rock icon Yusuf Islam – who goes by the single name Yusuf [...]
By RAMZY BAROUD Jenny Tonge’s victory over the lobby “My Lords, I was in Gaza six weeks ago,” began Baroness Tonge, when she spoke at the House of Lords in January 2009. “Now, as a result of the impotence of the international community, not just in Gaza, but…over 40 years of [...]
THE ROVING EYE The fast and furious Sunni revenge By Pepe Escobar And the winner is … the Gulf Counter-revolution Club (GCC), also known as Gulf Cooperation Council. Their collective celebration party is this weekend’s Bahrain Formula 1 Grand Prix – complete with buckets of Moet and Ferraris oozing by. [...]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 18, 2012 5:20 PM CONTACT: MADRE Diana Duarte, Media Coordinator Phone: +1 212 627 0444 Email: media@madre.org A Women’s Human Rights Agenda for the G8 WASHINGTON – April 18 – On May 18, leaders of the world’s eight largest economies (the G8) will gather at Camp David, a walled-off retreat reserved for the [...]
By Sherwood Ross (about the author) By Sherwood Ross The U.S. should end all aid to Israel if it attacks Iran, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk says. It should “tell Israel outright that both American money and American political and military support will end should it decide to drag America into another Middle [...]
Nobel Peace Laureate Rejects U.S. State Department – NATO – Chicago Agenda http://warisacrime.org/content/nobel-peace-laureate-rejects-us-state-department-nato-chicago-agenda FROM: MAIREAD MAGUIRE Dear Friends, I write to let you know that I have decided not to attend the 12th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates on 23rd-25th April, 2012, in Chicago, USA. On 10th April, Sec. of State H. Clinton [...]
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, March 5, 2012. (Photo: Doug Mills / The New York Times)An interview with academic and author Dr. Arshin Adib-Moghaddam on the consequences of a future war with Iran. War on Iran: America’s Next Catastrophe in the Middle [...]
Members of the so-called Quartet of Middle East peacemakers meets in Amman, Jordan in January (Reuters/Jordan News Agency, File) By Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Middle East peace mediators on Wednesday criticized Israeli settlement building and called on donors to meet aid pledges to the Palestinians as they sought to revive moribund peace talks. The [...]
Israeli leaders are regularly cited in western media calling for an attack on Iran‘s nuclear facilities [GALLO/GETTY] An Israeli attack on Iran is imminent; at least that’s what someone reading much of the Western media might think these days.As Iran continues to develop its nuclear energy programme, some policymakers and commentators in the west say [...]
Author Hooman Majd says Iran will not capitulate [Ken Browar] In a recent New York Times op-ed, Iranian-American journalist Hooman Majd wrote that sanctions against Iran are “turning into a form of collective punishment” and are unlikely to bring about the change western governments are after. Western nations have increased bilateral sanctions in recent years as Iran forges [...]
China gets most of its Gulf oil from Saudi Arabia – 1 million barrels per day to be exact [EPA] New York, NY - Though the so-called “cable gate” scandal has largely vanished from public view, revelations from classified US State Department correspondence continue to illuminate present day geopolitical dilemmas. Take, for example, mounting tensions in [...]
The Winds of War By Stephen Lendman - Posted on 11 April 2012 The Winds of War by Stephen Lendman When Washington plans regime change, wars are waged if other methods fail. For over a year, Western-generated violence ravaged Syria. Assad remains firmly in control. As a result, expect [...]
If Iran Had Nuclear Weapons Most Arab People Would Feel Safer By Noam Chomsky The Arab dictators may be in America’s pocket but, says Noam Chomsky, polls show repeatedly that it is the United States and Israel that are viewed as the greatest threat to the vast majority of the Arab [...]
Scoundrels Attack Gunter Grass Truths by Stephen Lendman Touching the most sensitive nerves has risks. Nearly always hostile responses follow. Criticizing Israel is the third rail of US politics. It’s also largely off limits in scoundrel media managed news, op-eds, and editorials. Gunter Grass took the risks. He [...]
Israel Afraid of Iraq’s US-Provided Warplanes That Israel feels threatened by Iraq – America’s intended client – is a monument to the failure of the Iraq war by John Glaser, April 09, 2012 Print This | Share This Recent U.S. military aid and arms sales to Iraq are fueling concern in Israel amid intelligence reports that Baghdad is increasingly [...]
(MaanImages/file) GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Israel’s navy fired live ammunition at a fishing boat in the Gaza Strip on Monday, witnesses said. Several shells were fired into open areas off the Gaza coast, locals told Ma’an. An Israeli military spokeswoman said that a fishing boat had deviated from the designated fishing area, and after failing [...]
Putting Syria Into Some Perspective By William Blum April 07, 2012 “Information Clearing House” — The Holy Triumvirate — The United States, NATO, and the European Union — or an approved segment thereof, can usually get what they want. They wanted Saddam Hussein out, and soon he was swinging from a [...]
What ‘not’ to say about Iran’s nuclear topic 05 April 2012 The subject of Iran’s nuclear ambitions has returned to the spotlight in the past few days following an absence of a few weeks, due to the world’s preoccupation with the developments in Syria as well as the various tours made by [...]
THE ROVING EYE We want war, and we want it now By Pepe Escobar It was deep into the night, somewhere over Siberia, in a Moscow to Beijing flight (BRIC to BRIC?) when the thought, like a lightning bolt, began to take hold. What the hell is wrong with those Arabs? Maybe [...]
Iran/Israel locked in Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) deterrence status By Franklin Lamb (about the author) opednews.com Beirut Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD), the doctrine of military strategy and national security policyin which a full-scale use of high-yield weapons by two opposing sides would effectively result in the potential annihilation of both the attacker and the defender becoming thus a war that [...]
U.S. Army soldiers in four-wheel vehicles wait as bundles of fuel are air delivered by a C-17 Globemaster III to Forward Operating Base Waza K’wah in Paktika province, Afghanistan, Jan. 30, 2011. (Photo: The U.S. Army) Who Benefits From the Organized Violence of War? A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic [...]
Advancing the Policy of “Aggressive Diplomacy” Iran in Obama’s Speeches By Sasan Fayazmanesh The best way to understand the Middle East policies of U.S. officials is to study their speeches at the annual policy conferences of American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), where nearly every political figure must pay homage to Israel and its most [...]
An estimated 70,000 people currently live in 45 unrecognised Bedouin villages in the Negev [REUTERS] Beer-Sheva, Israel - “It is not every day that a government decides to relocate almost half a per cent of its population in a programme of forced urbanisation,” Rawia Aburabia asserted, adding that “this is precisely what Prawer wants to do”.The meeting, which [...]
