2019-10-30: News Headlines

Margaret Kimberley (2019-10-30). The Baghdadi Scam. commondreams.org Americans may snicker when Trump pays homage to an army dog that he says helped to track Baghdadi but they should remember that Bush and Obama and now Trump are responsible for far greater suffering. (Photo: Chris J Ratcliffe/Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/syria_6.jpeg

Staff (2019-10-30). Wildfire Erupts Near Reagan Library in Southern California. truthdig.com SIMI VALLEY, Calif. — A new wildfire erupted Wednesday in wind-whipped Southern California, forcing the evacuation of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and nearby homes, as both ends of the state struggled with blazes, dangerously gusty weather and deliberate blackouts. | Driven by powerful Santa Ana winds, the brush fire broke out before dawn between the cities of Simi Valley and Moorpark north of Los Angeles and exploded to more than 1,300 acres (526 hectares), threatening 6,500 homes, Ventura County officials said. | Library spokeswoman Melissa Giller said around midmorning that the hilltop museum i…

RT (2019-10-30). 1 killed as rocket hits checkpoint 'METERS' from US embassy in Baghdad. rt.com A rocket has struck a checkpoint inside Baghdad's Green Zone, killing one Iraqi soldier and injuring another, Iraq's security forces have confirmed. It struck some 50 meters from the gates to the US Embassy, media reports say. | Two rockets were reportedly fired into the heavily fortified Green Zone area of Baghdad on Wednesday night. Iraqi military sources confirmed one soldier was killed and another wounded, but did not elaborate. | Some media reports indicated, however, that the area was targeted by mortar fire. | The Green Zone is a walled-off district in the heart of the Iraqi capital where government bui…

Liberation News Champaign-Urbana (2019-10-30). University of Illinois leadership attacks solidarity with Palestine. liberationnews.org Activists condemn false conflation of anti-zionism with anti-semitism.

RT (2019-10-30). 'Rupublicans' should fight 'infair' impeachment: Trump tweet typos set Resistance tongues wagging again. rt.com US President Donald Trump has urged his party to push back on the "impeachment nonsense" — but his early morning typos are feeding the trolls and the online 'Resistance,' convinced that they will get him this time. | Tweeting on Wednesday morning, Trump repeated that the transcript of his July call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was "totally appropriate" and called the Democrat-led impeachment process "just a continuation of the Witch Hunt Hoax" — meaning the debunked Russian collusion conspiracy. | He managed to misspell a few things, however. | | In the sea of hostile responses ever…

Staff (2019-10-30). Chile Scraps Asia-Pacific and Climate Summits Amid Protests. truthdig.com SANTIAGO, Chile — Chilean President Sebastián Piñera said Wednesday that he is canceling two major international summits so he can respond to protracted nationwide protests over economic inequality that have left more than a dozen people dead, hundreds injured and businesses and infrastructure damaged. | The decision to call off the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and U.N. global climate gatherings, planned for November and December, respectively, dealt a major blow to Chile's image as a regional oasis of stability and economic development. | Piñera said he was forced to cancel both events due to the chao…

The Canary (2019-10-30). Brazilian president defends policies amid recent Amazon fires. thecanary.co Brazil's president has launched a strong defence of his far-right government while on a visit to Saudi Arabia, blasting any criticism of his policies on recent fires in the Amazon region.Jair Bolsonaro also criticised French president Emmanuel Macron in a speech on Wednesday before the Future Investment Initiative in the kingdom, while praising American leader Donald Trump.Bolsonaro at one point said: "The Amazon region belongs to us."Bolsonaro praised US president Donald Trump (AP)Scientists say the vast rainforest is a bulwark against global warming as its lush vegetation absorbs heat-trapping carbon dioxide fr…

Miko Peled (2019-10-30). At This Year's J Street Conference, "Progressive" Pols Bow to Israel While Preaching Peace. mintpressnews.com Progressive politicians like Bernie Sanders should be credited for finally offering solutions to decades-old Israeli Human rights violations, but those solutions are often little more than talking points designed to placate their base and appease Israel.

Dr. Leon Tressell (2019-10-30). British Government Retains Julian Assange in a Maximum Security Prison at the Behest of Trump Regime. globalresearch.ca At his latest extradition hearing Julian Assange was once again denied justice by a British court. | If extradited to the U.S. he faces 175 years imprisonment for revealing American war crimes committed during its regime change wars in Iraq and …

Santa Cruz News (2019-10-30). After Fighting to Keep Ross Camp Open, Homeless Woman Killed When Tree Strikes Campsite. indybay.org Deseire Quintero, whose name became synonymous with the legal effort to keep the Ross Camp in Santa Cruz open to its homeless residents, died Sunday morning when a tree fell and struck her at a survival campsite located in a wooded area in Pogonip, a City park. Quintero was 55 years old.

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2019-10-30). Yemen and The Militarization of Strategic Waterways. globalresearch.ca Among Washington's strategic objectives is the militarization of major sea ways. This strategic waterway links the Mediterranean to South Asia and the Far East, through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Maj. Danny Sjursen (2019-10-30). In Defense of Tulsi Gabbard. truthdig.com "The trouble [with injustice] is that once you see it, you can't unsee it. And once you've seen it, keeping quiet, saying nothing, becomes as political an act as speaking out. There is no innocence. Either way, you're accountable." —Arundhati Roy | Once again, Arundhati Roy—the esteemed Indian author and activist—more eloquently described what I'm feeling than I could ever hope to. After tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, a lifetime in the Army and burying several brave young men for no goo…

Scott Ritter (2019-10-30). Russia Isn't Getting the Recognition It Deserves on Syria. truthdig.com At a time when the credibility of the United States as either an unbiased actor or reliable ally lies in tatters, Russia has emerged as the one major power whose loyalty to its allies is unquestioned, and whose ability to serve as an honest broker between seemingly intractable opponents is unmatched. | If there is to be peace in Syria, it will be largely due to the patient efforts of Moscow employing deft negotiation, backed up as needed by military force, to shape conditions conducive for a political solution to a violent problem. If ever there was a primer for the art of diplomacy, the experience of Russia in S…

Celal Cahit Agar (2019-10-30). There's more to Turkey's invasion of northern Syria than the media's reporting. thecanary.co Dr Celal Cahit Agar is a lecturer at St Andrews University, School of Management. This article was co-authored with Steffen Bà∂hm, professor in organisation studies at the University of Exeter Business School. | Turkey's recent invasion of northern Syria — i.e. " Operation Peace Spring" — sought to displace largely Kurdish communities and establish what Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdoƒüan calls a 2…

Juan Cole (2019-10-30). Bernie Sanders Refuses to Bow to Israel. truthdig.com Bernie Sanders has almost single-handedly changed the discourse on Israel in the Democratic Party and in the United States more generally. But his appearance at the J-Street conference was a further tour de force, and the positions he has staked out clearly have put pressure on the other Democratic candidates to take a position on Israeli land-grabs in the Palestinian West Bank and economic strangulation of the Palestinians in Gaza. | Sanders said in his address that Palestinians also want peace. He said, said, "let me underline this" and continuing, "It is not anti-Semitism to say that the Netanyahu government h…

teleSUR (2019-10-30). Iraqi PM Loses Two Main Backers as Resignation is Imminent. telesurenglish.net The Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi suffered a major blow on Wednesday when his two main backers agreed to work to remove him from office. The loss of these two main backers comes as protests against his government gained momentum in Baghdad and much of the Shi'ite south only to be met with violence. | RELATED: | Iraqi Protests Intensify After PM Refuses Early Elections | According to reports, populist Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who leads parliament's largest bloc, had as…

James J. Zogby (2019-10-30). 'Attention Must be Paid' to the Sufferings of the Palestinian People. globalresearch.ca With mass protests roiling Lebanon and Iraq, unsettling developments in Syria and Yemen, and the latest episode of the continuing soap opera that calls itself Israeli politics, little attention is being given to the plight of the Palestinians. One consequence …

United Nations (2019-10-30). Iraq protests: UN calls for national talks to break 'vicious cycle' of violence. un.org The UN's most senior official in Iraq, visited protesters in central Baghdad on Wednesday, calling for "a national dialogue to identify prompt, meaningful responses to break the vicious cycle of violence" which has roiled the country during the past five days.

WSWS (2019-10-30). Iraqi regime responds to mass protests with brutal crackdown. wsws.org The Iraqi police and security services have killed at least 250 people and injured thousands in a crackdown against the mass protests that erupted earlier this month.

Randi Nord (2019-10-30). Secret Document Reveals Plans for Civil War in Lebanon, Israeli False Flags, and Invasion. globalresearch.ca This article was first published on April 8, 2019, several months prior to the ongoing protest movement and civil strife in Lebanon. The analysis presented in this article is not corroborated by secondary sources. | *** | During his visit with US …

Staff (2019-10-30). In Lebanon, Protests Continue After Prime Minister Hariri Resigns. truthout.org Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced the resignation of his government on Tuesday following nearly two weeks of nationwide anti-government protests. In a televised address, al-Hariri said he had hit a "dead end" in resolving the crisis. Demonstrators "were congratulating each other while at the same time acknowledging that the struggle is very long," says Lebanese journalist, Lara Bitar, who joins us from Beirut for an update. She says protesters have promised to stay in the streets until all of th…

Kathy Kelly (2019-10-30). Camp Bucca, Abu Ghraib and the Rise of Extremism in Iraq. counterpunch.org Sunday morning, President Trump announced the death of Abu Bakr Al- Baghdadi and three of his children. President Trump said Al-Baghdadi, the founder of ISIS, was fleeing U.S. military forces, in a tunnel, and then killed himself by detonating a suicide vest he wore. In 2004, Al-Baghdadi had been captured by U.S. forces and, for More

Stephen Lendman (2019-10-30). Trump's Phony Pretext to "Protect" Syria against ISIS: US Occupation and Plunder of Syrian Oil Prevails. globalresearch.ca US aggression in Syria is all about eliminating its sovereign independence, gaining another imperial trophy, installing puppet rule, plundering its resources, exploiting its people, removing an Israeli rival, and isolating Iran — ahead of stepped up hostile actions against its …

Ramzy Baroud (2019-10-30). The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestinian Christians that nobody is talking about. dissidentvoice.org Palestine's Christian population is dwindling at an alarming rate. The world's most ancient Christian community is moving elsewhere. And the reason for this is Israel. Christian leaders from Palestine and South Africa sounded the alarm at a conference in Johannesburg on October 15. Their gathering was titled: "The Holy Land: A Palestinian Christian Perspective". One …

Staff (2019-10-30). Chomsky: Trump's Actions on Syria Reflect the Foreign Policy of a Con Man. truthout.org Donald Trump's handling of U.S. foreign policy with Syria has baffled and angered both the diplomatic and military establishments in the United States. Nonetheless, he continues to maintain power as "an effective con man who has a good sense of what animates his voting base," Noam Chomsky argues in the exclusive interview for Truthout that follows. | Trump rose to power with the aid of vitriolic but disingenuous "anti-establishment" rhetoric that appealed to millions of disgruntled voters. Essenti…

Mark Taliano (2019-10-30). Fake Narratives as Cover for High Crimes. The Al Baghdadi ISIS-Daesh "Fairytale" globalresearch.ca Western stories about Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi are meant to confuse, to distract, and to strengthen fake narratives. | First, the West supports Daesh in Syria (and beyond). It isn't a secret. High profile people such as Tulsi Gabbard even admit it….

teleSUR (2019-10-30). Bolsonaro Threatens to Cancel Brazil's Largest TV Network. telesurenglish.net Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro threatened on Wednesday to cancel the license of Brazil's largest TV network, Globo, accusing it of "villainous journalism" after a report connecting him with a former police officer accused of killing a Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman last year. | RELATED: | Lula Turns 74 in Prison over Unjust Convictions | TV Globo reported on Tuesday that just hours before the March 2018 murder the suspect was alleged to have told a doorman he was going to Bolsonaro's ho…

Larry Romanoff (2019-10-30). Robert McNamara's Infamous "Project 100,000" and the Vietnam War. A Premeditated Crime against Humanity. globalresearch.ca In the very long list of shocking and abominable atrocities committed by the US, there is one that stands out as especially obscene for the appalling and hypocritical inhumanity of US Government leaders. This was "Project 100,000", a US military …

teleSUR (2019-10-30). Three People Shot Dead at Long Beach, California Residence. telesurenglish.net Three people were killed and nine others wounded in a shooting during a Halloween party at a home in Long Beach, California, on Tuesday night, police and fire department officials said. | The scene was filled with chaos when firefighters reached the residence, Long Beach Police Department spokeswoman Karen Owens said. One suspect had fled. | The three dead were all males in their 20's, police said. The condition of the wounded was not immediately made available. | People at the residence were attending a party and were wearing Halloween costumes, Owens said. | The Los Angeles Times reported that some reside…

Allegra Harpootlian (2019-10-30). I Write About Endless Wars and I Keep Crying at Work. thenation.com I Write About Endless Wars and I Keep Crying at Work…

Staff (2019-10-30). New Research Shows Rising Sea Levels Could Wipe Out Major Cities by 2050. truthout.org Ho Chi Minh City, along with the rest of southern Vietnam, " could all but disappear" by 2050. | Bangkok, Thailand, currently home to over eight million people, is under severe threat. | Basra, Iraq, the nation's second-largest city, "could be mostly underwater" by mid-century. | Those are just some of the alarming conclusions of a new research paper on the dire global consequences of rising sea le…

Press TV (2019-10-30). Syria: The Launch of a Constitutional Committee a Sign of Hope for Syrian People. dissidentvoice.org 29 October 2019 Peter Koenig Transcript of a PressTV Interview following a live press Conference by the Foreign Ministers of Russia, Iran and Turkey at the UN Geneva, Switzerland Background GENEVA, October 28 (Xinhua) — The UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, said here on Monday that the Constitutional Committee's launch should be a …

RT (2019-10-30). Russian MoD Doubts Trump's Announcement of Killing ISIS Chief al-Baghdadi. dissidentvoice.org There's no credible data to prove a successful American raid took place against Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Russia's Defense Ministry said. The US coalition didn't even carry out any airstrikes in Idlib recently. Earlier, Trump made a rare Sunday address from the White House informing the world that al-Baghdadi was eliminated in northwest …

Steven Sahiounie (2019-10-30). "We're Keeping the Oil" says Trump: Military Conflict Between Russia and the US Looms in Northeast Syria. globalresearch.ca U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper explained in a press conference Tuesday, that a new U.S. force will be stationed in eastern Syria to protect the oil fields. Barbara Starr, CNN's Pentagon reporter, pressed Esper on whether the US military …

WSWS (2019-10-30). Sri Lanka: SEP presidential candidate addresses meetings in war-ravaged north. wsws.org The SEP presidential candidate explained that the democratic rights of the oppressed can be achieved only in the struggle for socialism.

teleSUR (2019-10-30). Chile SuspendS Hosting of APEC and COP25. telesurenglish.net Chile has withdrawn as host of an APEC trade summit in November where the United States and China had been expected to take major steps toward ending a 15-month-old trade war that has slowed world economic growth. | RELATED: | Chile: Thousands March, Demand Constitution Change | Chilean President Sebastian Pinera said he had taken the "painful" decision to cancel the summit in Santiago, as well as a high-profile international gathering on climate change in December, to focus on restoring law…

teleSUR (2019-10-30). US House of Reps Votes to Recognize Armenian Genocide. telesurenglish.net The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to recognize the mass killings of Armenians a century ago as a genocide, a symbolic but historic vote instantly denounced by Turkey. | RELATED: | US House Democrats Ready Impeachment Rules, as 1st Trump Official Testifies | The Democratic-controlled House voted 405-11 in favor of a resolution asserting that it is U.S. policy to commemorate as genocide the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoma…

Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History (2019-10-30). Naturalist Night: American Indians 101. indybay.org Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History | 1305 E Cliff Dr, Santa Cruz…

UUSF Morning Forum (2019-10-30). Trump, Turkey and the Kurds – signs of a crumbling U.S. empire. indybay.org Unitarian Universalist Society of S.F. | 1187 Franklin St. corner of Geary Ave. | San Francisco…

Dr. Albert Einstein (2019-10-30). Albert Einstein's 1948 Letter to the NYT Warning Of Zionist Fascism In Israel. globalresearch.ca Letters to the Editor | New York Times | December 4, 1948 | TO THE EDITORS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES: | Among the most disturbing political phenomena of our times is the emergence in the newly created state of Israel of the "Freedom …

Juan Cole (2019-10-30). Bernie Sanders Says Give Aid to Gaza and That Calling Out Netanyahu's Racist Government Isn't Anti-Semitism. commondreams.org Sanders went so far as to say that some of the $3.8 billion that currently goes to Israel every year should be dedicated to humanitarian aid for Gaza. (Photo: MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/gettyimages-1178661604.jpg

Andre Vltchek (2019-10-30). Beirut Is Burning: Rebellion Against the Elites Has Commenced. globalresearch.ca Tires are burning, smoke is rising towards the sky. It is October, the 18th day of the month, the capital city of Lebanon, in the past known as the "Paris of the East", is covered in smoke. | For years I …

Peter Koenig (2019-10-30). Syria: The Launch of a Constitutional Committee — A Sign of Hope for Syrian People. globalresearch.ca Background | The UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, said here on Monday that the Constitutional Committee's launch should be a sign of hope for the long-suffering Syrian people. | Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Pedersen said that the …

United Nations (2019-10-30). 'Historic' new Syria talks should focus on relief for war-weary civilians, says UN negotiator. un.org Work on drafting a new foundational text for war-torn Syria officially began at the UN in Geneva on Wednesday with representatives from the Syrian Government and opposition sitting face to face and preparing to discuss the country's future for the first time in the nearly nine-year conflict.

South Front (2019-10-30). Video: Kurdish SDF Withdraw, Syrian Army Reinforces Positions on Turkish Border, US Forces Remain in Eastern Bank of Euphrates. globalresearch.ca On October 27, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced that they have started withdrawal from the Turkish border in the framework of the de-escalation zone agreement reached by Presidents Erdogan and Putin. The SDF said that Syrian border guards …

Andrea Germanos, staff writer (2019-10-30). 'A Mockery of Justice': Outrage Over One-Month Community Service Sentence for Israeli Soldier Who Shot Dead Palestinian Teen. commondreams.org The sentence is "entirely disproportionate with the criminal act of killing an unarmed child protester," says a human rights organization. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/israeli-soldier-one-month-killing-teen.jpg

Kenneth Surin (2019-10-30). Even Bojo Johnson Can't Find His Promised Brexit Wunderland. counterpunch.org Egotistical, lazy, unscrupulous, corrupt, priapic, self-indulgent, faux-clownish but nasty underneath, sociopathic, and so forth, are just some of the adjectives used in the British media to describe Boris Johnson. Some of us on the left of course use language that is far blunter and epithet-filled. With his over-privileged background, BoJo is accustomed to having the world conform to his desires ex machina. More

Staff (2019-10-30). Lebanon's Prime Minister Hariri Resigns, But Protests and Demands For a New Government Continue. democracynow.org Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced the resignation of his government on Tuesday following nearly two weeks of nationwide anti-government protests. In a televised address, al-Hariri said he had hit a "dead end" in resolving the crisis. Demonstrators "were congratulating each other while at the same time acknowledging that the struggle is very long," says Lebanese journalist, Lara Bitar, who joins us from Beirut for an update. She says protesters have promised to stay in the streets until all of their demands are met, including the resignation of all top government officials, early parliamentary election…

Staff (2019-10-30). Headlines for October 30, 2019. democracynow.org Vindman: White House Transcript of Trump Phone Call Omitted Key Words, Boeing CEO Grilled by Senate Lawmakers Over 737 MAX Failures, Lebanese Prime Minister Resigns Amid Massive Protests, Tens of Thousands Pour into Baghdad's Tahrir Square as Iraq Protests Continue, Anti-Government Protests in Haiti Enter their Seventh Week, Ceasefire Between Turkey and Syrian Kurds in Northern Syria Expires, House Votes for Resolution to Recognize Armenian Genocide, Journalist Max Blumenthal Says He Was Arrested on False Charges, National Weather Service Issues "Extreme Red Flag Warning" over Fires, Protesters Slam BlackRock for…

Editor (2019-10-30). No solo una guerra comercial. workers.org øQué hay realmente detrás de las difíciles negociaciones comerciales entre los Estados Unidos y la China Popular? øEs, como ha afirmado la administración, que China no estaba comprando suficientes productos agrícolas estadounidenses? China se ha convertido en un gran mercado para los agricultores del Medio Oeste de EE. UU., que . . . | Continue reading No solo una guerra comercial at Workers.org