(2019-09-13). The Pirates of Gibraltar. counterpunch.org 
On April 17, 2019, a tanker named Grace 1 left Iran for an unspecified destination with reportedly 2.1 million barrels of crude oil, worth some $130 million. According to a March 20 report in Reuters about how Iran tries to evade US sanctions, the Grace 1 was "Panamanian-flagged and managed by Singapore-based shipping services firm." The Grace 1, TankerTrackers reported, was built in 1997 and, given its age and size, was not allowed to dock at many ports. It therefore had a history of handling ship-to-ship fuel oil transfers at sea. It would typically receive fuel oil from Iran, the source stated, and then delive…
(2019-09-13). Taliban Negotiators Go to Moscow After Trump Declares Talks 'Dead'. truthdig.com 
Russia has been accused of aiding the group as a safeguard against an Islamic State affiliate with ties to a militant group in Central Asia.
(2019-09-13). Israelis Lose Interest in Politics and Upcoming Election. therealnews.com 
Shir Hever talks about the slow election cycle in Israel, the second in the same year, in which the parties make minimal effort to campaign. Opinion polls predict the same result as the election last April, meaning that no clear winner can be identified…
(2019-09-13). The Age of Constitutional Coups. counterpunch.org 
In 2017, in the wake of a failed military putsch the previous year, Turkey's prime minister Recep Erdogan held what the British journalist Patrick Cockburn rightly calls "a blatantly rigged referendum which marginalized parliament and gave him dictatorial powers." Erdogan won a narrow majority that "was only achieved late on election night when the head of the electoral board overseeing the election decided that votes not stamped as legally valid, numbering as many as 1.5 million, would be counted as valid." Erdogan then implemented a national educational curriculum that devalued secular liberal ideas and science…
(2019-09-13). Hong Kong and the Future of China. counterpunch.org 
Something didn't quite add up. This past weekend, protestors were rallying outside the American embassy in Hong Kong. They were waving American flags. They were singing The Star-Spangled Banner. One 24-year-old protester wore a red Make America Great Again hat. Some signs at the protest read "President Trump, please liberate Hong Kong." "The Chinese government More
(2019-09-13). AOC's face on fire in Republican 'genocide' ad makes Democrats cry racism. rt.com 
With no clear winner emerging from the third Democrat primary debate, the party has found something to unify around: calling Republicans racist over a provocative ad that linked socialism to Pol Pot and the Cambodian genocide. | "This is the face of socialism. And ignorance," says the thirty-second clip, opening on the smiling image of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), a self-described democratic socialist. The face then begins to burn away, revealing the grisly photos of the 1970s genocide in Cambodia. | "Does Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez know the horror of socialism? My father was minutes from death…
(2019-09-13). #NeverForget the War in Afghanistan. truthdig.com 
Donald Trump has killed a deal with the Taliban based on the death of one U.S. soldier. But more will die if troops remain in the longest war.
(2019-09-13). Marjorie Cohn on Afghanistan's Unending War, Amit Narang on Deregulation & Corporate America. fair.org 
New Yorkers who were here for September 11 remember vigils, hugs from strangers and signs all over the streets reading, "Our grief is not a cry for war." But war is what came, to the delight of many in media—first to Afghanistan, which the US invaded on October 7, 2001, and never left.
(2019-09-13). Human Trafficking is Booming in Yemen as the War Enters its Fifth Year. mintpressnews.com 
A complete absence of law and order in Yemen has given rise to a black Suq (market) of human trafficking on a scale never before seen in the war-torn and war-weary nation.
(2019-09-13). Creepy Republican Ad During Democratic Debate Attacks Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. theintercept.com The strange Republican obsession with attacking Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez reached a new low in a commercial break during the Democratic presidential debate in Houston on Thursday night. | The widely reviled commercial, which aired on ABC and was paid for by donors to the GOP New Faces PAC, opened with a photograph of the young Latinx congresswoman's face being set on fire to reveal images of the 1970s genocide in Cambodia underneath. | The attack ad…
(2019-09-13). Video: Why Are We Still in Afghanistan? globalresearch.ca The 9/11 attacks were categorized as act of war by a foreign nation (Afghanistan) against a member of the Atlantic Alliance (the USA). Afghanistan had attacked America. Under NATO's doctrine of collective security the terror attack on the WTC was an act of war by a foreign country against all NATO member states.
(2019-09-13). Video: Why Are We Still in Afghanistan? globalresearch.ca 18 years later, the US and its NATO allies still have troops in Afghanistan with no plans on leaving. | We were told this was about 9/11 and Osama Bin Laden, but these were lies. | So why are the troops still …
(2019-09-13). Without Bolton's Hindrance Peace Might be Possible with Iran and North Korea. globalresearch.ca On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump finally fired his third national security advisor, John Bolton after eighteen long and grueling months. John happens to be the thirty-fifth member of Trump's revolving door administration to get fired or resign, since he …
(2019-09-13). With Bolton Out of the Way, Peace With North Korea Is Possible. truthout.org | | On September 10, President Trump fired John Bolton, his third national security adviser, announcing on Twitter that Bolton's "services were no longer needed." Unsurprisingly, Bolton fired back by tweet, countering that he hadn't been fired, but in fact had offered his resignation. | It was no secret in Washington that Trump grew increasingly frustrated with Bolton's hawkish positions, even joking in m…
(2019-09-13). Civilians Work Toward Peace in Wartime Afghanistan. truthout.org | | On a very warm September morning in Kabul, several dozen men, women, and children sit on the carpeted floor of a room at the Afghan Peace Volunteers' Borderfree Center. The women cluster together. All wear burqas, but because of the heat they push the steel blue veils back, revealing their faces. Most of the men wear traditional tunics and pakol hats. | Parents and children alike listen intently to Masoma, a young Afghan woman who coordinates the Center's "Street Kids School." She explains the importance of ste…
(2019-09-13). Is the War in Syria Over? Netanyahu Meets Putin. globalresearch.ca War in Syria rages in parts of the country. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov claims it's over, saying: | "The war in Syria has really come to an end. The country is gradually returning to a normal, peaceful life," adding: | "Some hotspots …
(2019-09-13). The War in Eastern Ukraine May be Coming to an End But Do Any Americans Care? counterpunch.org On Saturday September 7, Russia and Ukraine agreed to a prisoner swap which has brought hope of improved relations between the two countries and an end to the 5-year long conflict in Eastern Ukraine. A peace accord is being planned for later this month in Normandy involving Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany. Ukraine's newly elected More
(2019-09-13). How China Sees the World. counterpunch.org Beijing. Question. What leader saw his country's military dropping 26,171 bombs in one year? That works out at every day of that year, the country's military dropped 72 bombs, or 3 bombs every hour, 24 hours a day, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. He was a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Answer Barack Obama. More
(2019-09-13). Baltimore Displays Inflatable 'Trump Rat' to Greet US President. telesurenglish.net Dozens of protesters gathered in downtown Baltimore on Thursday as U.S. President Donald Trump made his first visit to the city since he blasted it as a "disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess." | RELATED: | Trump Fired Bolton for Going Against Easing Iran Sanctions | "A 14-foot inflatable Trump rat feels like an appropriate form of protest for th…
(2019-09-13). Trump in Denial over Israeli Spying on the White House. globalresearch.ca Israel aggressively spies on allies and adversaries alike. | Former CIA counterintelligence specialist/military intelligence officer Philip Giraldi earlier accused Israel of stealing everything it can get its hands on — notably military and industrial secrets. | He called evidence of Israeli spying …
(2019-09-13). Iran Trumps Trump. globalresearch.ca Iran has trumped Trump by routing its oil tanker along the northern shore of the Mediterranean, pausing at ports in Greece and Turkey, then anchoring off Syria's Tartus. The current occupant of the White House, Donald Trump, persuaded London …
(2019-09-13). On the Manila arrest order against Prof. Jose Maria Sison, Chair Emeritus of the ILPS. fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following Sept. 10 statement from the International League of Peoples' Struggle (ILPS). | The International League of Peoples' Struggle (ILPS) denounces in the strongest possible terms the US-Duterte regime for the issuance of a warrant of arrest on Prof. Jose Maria Sison, Chairperson Emeritus of the ILPS. | Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 32 Judge Thelma Bunyi-Medina issued the arrest warrant last August 22 for Sison and 37 others in connection with the so-called "Inopacan massacre" supposedly committed by the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New Peo…
(2019-09-13). US Navy Enters Disputed South China Sea Amid Row With Beijing. telesurenglish.net A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Sea on Friday, the U.S. military said, a move likely to anger Beijing. | RELATED: | China, US Grant Trade Concessions Ahead of New Talks | The busy waterway is one of a growing number of flashpoints in the U.S.-Chinese relationship, which include an escalating trade war, American sanctions on China's military and U.S. relations with Taiwan. | Commander Reann Mommsen, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Navy's Seventh Fl…
(2019-09-13). Official Secrets: A whistleblower attempts to prevent the Iraq War. wsws.org The intensely relevant film is based on the true story of Katharine Gun, who leaked a memo exposing the criminality of the preparations for war against Iraq and was charged by the British government under the Official Secrets Act.
(2019-09-13). Joe Biden: New Level of Iraq War Lies. "Yes, I did oppose the war before it began." globalresearch.ca Presidential candidate Joe Biden is now claiming about the 2003 Iraq invasion: "Yes, I did oppose the war before it began." | Biden has been claiming: | "From the moment 'shock and awe' started, from that moment, I was opposed to the …
(2019-09-13). Russia's "Multilateral Strategic Stability" Proposal Could Bring "Balance" to South Asia. globalresearch.ca Russian media reported that the "multilateral strategic stability" proposal by some of the country's leading experts to actively prevent a military confrontation between nuclear powers runs counter to Moscow's current foreign policy, though its possible promulgation would represent a victory …
(2019-09-13). US Defense Secretary Mark Esper's Search for "A Normal Country". Beware of Russia and China Attempts to "Disrupt the International Order" globalresearch.ca In delivering his first major policy-speech since being sworn in as US Defense Secretary in July, Mark Esper said in London on September 6th that the United States' European allies needed to be wary of developing closer ties with China….
(2019-09-13). Video: Russia Resumes Strikes on Terrorists in Idlib. globalresearch.ca On September 11, the US-backed Revolutionary Commando Army claimed that it had repelled a Syrian Arab Army (SAA) attack in the 55km zone surrounding the US military garrison in al-Tanf. The militant group said that SAA units advanced using a …
(2019-09-13). Israel Was Caught Spying on Capitol Hill Cellphones and Trump Was Fine With It. truthout.org | | Daniel Lipmann at Politico dropped the bombshell that mysterious electronic spying devices placed throughout Washington, D.C. and close to the White House and the Capitol were traced by the FBI to Israel. | The Israelis deployed StingRay mobile identity-catchers, devices that are mistaken for cell towers by cell phones, allowing them to capture the contents of calls and the mobile brows…
(2019-09-13). Netanyahu: Israel Will Probably Launch Full-Scale War in Gaza "Before the Elections" theantimedia.com Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel will probably launch a full-scale war on Gaza "before the elections."
(2019-09-13). Former US intelligence officials say Israel spied on the White House. wsws.org A report in Politico says that the Israeli government is "most likely" behind cell phone surveillance devices found by the Department of Homeland Security in the vicinity of the White House in 2017.
(2019-09-13). The Sacking of John Bolton. counterpunch.org "Every time the president, or Pompeo, or anyone in the [Trump] administration came up with an idea, they had to face Dr No." — Cliff Kupchan, Chairman of the Eurasia Group, The Washington Post, Sep 11, 2011. It was compelling viewing (one does not so much read Twitter as see it as a series of More
(2019-09-13). OACC Movie Nights: Fall of the I-Hotel. indybay.org Oakland Asian Cultural Center | 388 Ninth St. Suite 290 | Oakland, CA 94607…
(2019-09-13). Sofa Secrets Series. indybay.org 388 Ninth St. Suite 290 | Oakland, CA 94607…
(2019-09-13). Why I took action to prevent the world's largest arms fair. thecanary.co The noise is deafening as giant attack helicopters fill the sky. They land excruciatingly close, just metres from us. A line of police guard the killer machines. These helicopters have been deliberately built, piece by piece, in factories all over the world, in order to murder. | Waves of despair wash over me as I think about all the people, unknown to me, who have been killed by weapons fired from helicopters just like this. I cry for those who have lost loved ones in Afghanistan, Syria, Li…
(2019-09-13). Video: "Syria will Win this War for Nation-state Sovereignty, for Religious Pluralism, for Civilization" globalresearch.ca We sent the War to Syria's shores. | We sent the terrorists, the mass destruction, the mass lies. | We sent the evil, the death, the barbarism. | And we are still doing it. | In the following interview with Dr. Ayshar Midani, we …
(2019-09-13). #NeverForget the War in Afghanistan. truthdig.com Trump has killed a deal with the Taliban based on the death of one U.S. soldier. But more will die if troops remain in the longest war.
(2019-09-13). Rideshare Drivers are Employees, Not Contractors. counterpunch.org In 2015, Waheed Etimad immigrated with his wife and their children to the United States from Afghanistan, where he'd been a translator for the U.S. Army. Etimad began taking courses at Diablo Valley College, studying to become a computer engineer while driving full time for Uber at night. People who knew Etimad called him a More
(2019-09-13). Elizabeth Warren Calls for Withdrawal of US Troops From Afghanistan. truthout.org | | At the third presidential primary debate in Houston, Texas, senator and 2020 candidate Elizabeth Warren called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Warren also spoke about her stance on U.S. trade policy and how "our trade policy in America has been broken for decades." | TRANSCRIPT: | JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Let's go back to last night's debate. This is Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren. | SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: So, our trade policy in America has been broken for decades…
(2019-09-13). Video: The Arabian Peninsula's "New Cold War". The UAE-Saudi Confrontation in Southern Yemen. globalresearch.ca On August 29, the United Arab Emirates carried out a series of airstrikes on forces loyal to the Saudi-backed government of Yemen. The strikes reportedly killed or wounded over 300 people. The UAE said that the targets were some "terrorist …
(2019-09-13). Sri Lanka still not safe for Tamils. greenleft.org.au 
refugee rights Sri Lankan civil war Tamil rights Chris SleeIssue 1237 Sri Lanka deportation to dangerSeptember 13, 20…
(2019-09-13). Former Colombian guerrillas rearm as government undermines peace accords. greenleft.org.au 
Colombian peace process James JordanIssue 1237 Colombia Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) FARC-EPSeptember 13, 2019A new phase of armed conflict in Colombia h…
(2019-09-13). West Papua: End Australian and US training of Indonesian military. greenleft.org.au 
civil rights Peter BoyleIssue 1237 Australia West Papua independence Indonesian repressionSeptember 13, 2019″We are winning the struggle with Indonesia," said Benny Wenda, chair of the…
(2019-09-13). Joe Biden Faces Criticism over His Healthcare Plan & His Support for Iraq Invasion at Third Debate. democracynow.org 
The 10 leading Democratic presidential candidates appeared for the first time on the same stage Thursday night at a debate at Texas Southern University in Houston. It was the third debate of the primary season, but it marked the first time former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren took part in the same debate. Biden repeatedly faced criticism for his healthcare plans and for his vote to support the war in Iraq.
(2019-09-13). Elizabeth Warren Calls for Withdrawal of U.S. Troops from Afghanistan. democracynow.org 
At the third presidential primary debate in Houston, Texas, senator and 2020 candidate Elizabeth Warren called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Warren also spoke about her stance on U.S. trade policy and how "our trade policy in America has been broken for decades."
(2019-09-12). Exit John Bolton, But Will That Mean An End To His Failed Foreign Policy? dissidentvoice.org 
Leon Neal, Getty Images Many who oppose the aggressive foreign policy of the United States under President Donald Trump, which has resulted in record numbers of bombs dropped, regime change operations against Venezuela, Nicaragua, Iran and Hong Kong, the abusive use of unilateral coercive measures (sanctions) and record military budgets, cheered when uber-hawk, John Bolton …
(2019-09-12). Chakras, Subtle Bodies and the Aura. dissidentvoice.org 
It's a modest apartment in Newport where I sit with Susan Swift to go over "quite the life" as any listener might say about this feisty, spiritual and articulate, world-traveling woman. The hitching post Susan and I tie our respective philosophical steeds on is "philosophy" and "fate," although we could have brought in a whole …
(2019-09-12). 'Loser' v 'warmongering chickenhawk': 2 Republican lawmakers in epic Twitter beef. rt.com 
A disagreement on 9/11 over John Bolton and US withdrawal from Afghanistan descended into a full-on Twitter war between Rep. Liz Cheney and Senator Rand Paul, in a sequel to the beef between their fathers over invading Iraq. | It all started when Paul (R-Kentucky) backed two state legislators who blasted Cheney (R-Wyoming) for demanding a more aggressive foreign policy. "Why do some neocons continue to advocate for endless wars?" he quipped. "Let's focus on America First, not Afghanistan!" | Cheney snapped back that she stands with Trump and US troops in not surrendering to terrorists, "unlike [Paul], who seem…
(2019-09-12). Moscow Communists see vote increase after demanding democracy in Russia. peoplesworld.org 
LISBON, Portugal—Major gains in last Tuesday's Moscow municipal elections for the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) followed weeks of protests in the capital in which party members participated. Thousands rallied and marched in Moscow demanding free elections and fair coverage of them by state-run television. Although Gennady Zyuganov, the party's leader, has been …
(2019-09-12). Facebook sanctions Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu over hate speech violation. thecanary.co 
Facebook has sanctioned the page of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu because of a violation of the company's hate speech policy.Facebook said the social network had suspended for 24 hours the page's bot, or automated chat function.The page had called on voters to prevent the establishment of a government composed of "Arabs who want to destroy us all — women, children and men".The Facebook logo displayed on a smartphone (Dominic Lipinski/PA)…