(2020-12-14). John Pilger: The Most Lethal Virus Is Not COVID. It Is War. mintpressnews.com 
In the midst of the greatest health emergency in modern times, with more than 4 million surgical procedures delayed by the National Health Service, Britain has announced a record increase of £16.5 billion in so-called defense spending.
(2020-12-14). "Myopia:" Moroccan Director/Actor Sanaa Akroud's Latest Screen Gem. counterpunch.org 
This film story by Sanaa Akroud is, like its title "Myopia", just too simple to carry the power of a deeply moving universal message. Fatem a hardy woman from a remote Moroccan mountain village is sent on a frivolous mission to the city where she is innocently swept up in a street protest. She finds
(2020-12-14). A Middle Finger Cost Me My Livelihood as a Woman Athlete. aclu.org 
It took a split second for my whole world to come crashing down. , , My teammates on the University of Connecticut's women's soccer team were jumping and screaming and hugging each other. We had just won a championship game. It was one of the happiest moments of my life — my first championship win at the collegiate level. Without thinking, I flashed a middle finger in celebration as I embraced teammates on camera. I couldn't have known that split-second, mindless gesture of celebration would cause UConn to suspend me from the NCAA tournament, revoke my scholarship, and completely upend my life as I…
(2020-12-14). Israel's Isolation of Palestinian Child Prisoners Amounts to Torture. globalresearch.ca Israeli authorities routinely detain Palestinian children in isolation solely for interrogation purposes, a practice that amounts to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, Defense for Children International — Palestine said in a report released today. | The 73-page …
(2020-12-14). Europe's Anti-Russia Sanctions Result in Extensive Economic Losses and Growing Tensions with Russia. globalresearch.ca New data out this week indicates that the European Union has suffered aggregate economic losses amounting to over €120 billion due to its policy of imposing sanctions against Russia. That's according to figures
(2020-12-14). Have the Machines Already Taken Over? counterpunch.org "The planet groans every time it registers another birth" — Paul Simon, The Obvious Child According to Ron Milo and his colleagues at Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, in 2020 the mass of artificial, human made objects on Earth is likely greater than the mass of all living things. The human-made world — steel,
(2020-12-14). UN human rights chief 'appalled' at Iran execution, questions trial process and verdict. news.un.org Iran's decision to hang media activist Ruhollah Zam on Saturday was an appalling violation of human rights that followed a deeply flawed trial process, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a statement on Monday.
(2020-12-14). India moves to strengthen strategic relations with Sri Lanka and the Maldives. wsws.org Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval's trip to Sri Lanka was aimed at securing maritime cooperation to counteract Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean region.
(2020-12-14). Borrel says EU should find ways to return US to JCPOA. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Dec. 14 (MNA) — The European Union's chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, says the bloc should find a way with the Biden administration to return the US to its commitments under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
(2020-12-14). Explosion rocks Singapore-flagged tanker off Saudi port of Jeddah. middleeasteye.net 
Explosion rocks Singapore-flagged tanker off Saudi port of Jeddah | No claim of responsibility for blast but incident comes as Houthis rebels step up cross-border attacks | Mon, 12/14/2020 – 07: 34 | Last month, the Houthis said they struck a plant operated by Saudi Aramco Jeddah with a Quds-2 missile (AFP) | An explosion rocked a Singapore-flagged oil tanker off the Saudi port city of Jed…
(2020-12-14). Loujain al-Hathloul: Saudi Arabia uses tweets supporting women's rights as evidence. middleeasteye.net 
Loujain al-Hathloul: Saudi Arabia uses tweets supporting women's rights as evidence | Activist's support for women's right to drive and criticism of kingdom's guardianship system cited by prosecutor in terrorism court | Mon, 12/14/2020 – 14: 29 | Saudi activist Loujain al-Hathloul is being tried in a terrorism court (AFP) | The Saudi public prosecutor on Monday cited tweets about a campaign to let women drive…
(2020-12-14). Thousands are facing famine in Yemen due to continuing war and lack of foreign aid. thecanary.co Thousands of people in Yemen are on the brink of According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), 13.5m people in Yemen are facing high food insecurity. From analysis during October to December, the IPC found that about 16,500 people are facing a "catastrophe" level of food insecurity. | The IPC projected this to increase in 2021, leading to around 47,000 people enduring the highest level of food insecurity by June.
(2020-12-14). Evasions and Cover-ups by Western Governments over Funding of Terrorist Groups in Syria Start to Unravel. dissidentvoice.org 
Evidence of Dutch and British funding for extremists who've beheaded children & carried out ethnic-cleansing grows by the day. Yet most of the mainstream media — including the BBC — still try to keep this truth silent. Recently, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte effectively blocked a Parliamentary motion to allow an external independent investigation of …
(2020-12-14). Ignore the Spin, The Hague's ICC Ruling on British War Crimes in Iraq Is Damning. globalresearch.ca The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court recently reported that there was "reasonable basis to believe" that British troops committed war crimes in Iraq. She declared that there was evidence of crimes including unlawful killing, rape, torture and inhumane treatment …
(2020-12-14). Nothing Was Delivered: Trump's Antiwar Deception. counterpunch.org President Donald Trump seems uninterested in ending any "endless wars." Before leaving office, he could and should do so in Afghanistan, for example, where U.S. forces—while losing the longest war in our history—have led a brutal occupation for nearly 20 years. Afghanistan is just one of the places where Donald Trump has set records for
(2020-12-14). Red Scare and Love Scare: Two-Pronged McCarthyism Afflicts Indian Democracy. zcomm.org All protesters are being branded 'Maoists', and those who dare to love beyond the boundaries of their faith 'jihadists'
(2020-12-14). Antisemitism Claims Mask a Reign of Political and Cultural Terror Across Europe. globalresearch.ca The Israeli newspaper Haaretz has run a fascinating
(2020-12-14). South Korean auto workers set to intensify strike action. peoplesdispatch.org Automotive workers of Kia Motors Corp in South Korea are set to hold partial strikes till Thursday and a six-hour walkout on Friday. They have been protesting for over a month demanding better wages and working conditions…
(2020-12-13). On Contact: Wrecking The left. popularresistance.org On the show this week, Chris Hedges talks to journalist Diana Johnstone about the betrayal of the left with its historical role as the champion of social justice and peace now replaced with the boutique activism of identity politics, political correctness and what has become known as humanitarian intervention, the justification of US and NATO adventurism and wars on the specious belief it would liberate the women of Afghanistan or the peoples of Iraq. | Diana Johnstone's memoir is 'Circle in the Darkness: Memoir of a World Watcher'. Johnstone was the European editor of In The Times from 1979 to 1990, and her work…
(2020-12-13). 'Inhumane treatment': Turkey accuses Greece of migrant 'pushbacks' into Turkish waters. rt.com 
The Greek Coast Guard has been sending illegal migrants stranded on islands in the Aegean back to Turkish territorial waters, Turkey's Interior Minister has said, accusing Athens of "torture." | The Greek coast guards have been engaged in "torture and inhumane treatment every day," Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said in a Twitter post, addressing Greek Minister for Migration and Asylum, Notis Mitarachi. | Dear Minister Your Coast Guard units are leveling up the torture and inhumane treatment everyday. | Watch your forces engaging…
(2020-12-13). Antioquia: Colombia Counts 83rd Massacre of 2020. telesurenglish.net At dawn, a group of about 50 people with rifles raided in the Cuturú village, in the rural area of Caucasia of Lower Cauca Antioquia. Three men were murdered while they conversed and five others, among them two women, were injured. | RELATED: | As quoted by Noticias Caracol, Antioquia Police Commander Colonel Jorge Cabra indicated that armed men arrived at the scene in boats an…
(2020-12-13). Russia's Forgotten Nuclear Disaster. counterpunch.org 
It was a warm fall day on September 29, 1957, not much unlike any other in the deep Russian interior. Residents in the Chelyabinsk oblast cared for their crops of wheat and potatoes, others herded cattle. Women hung out their family's clothes to dry as the winds picked up before the sun descended. In the
(2020-12-13). Police drop probe into Tory MP accused of rape who's been conducting parliamentary duties from home. thecanary.co Police have reportedly dropped their investigation into a Conservative MP and ex-minister who was arrested after a woman accused him of rape, sexual assault and coercive control. rape | The Metropolitan Police had said they received allegations on 31 July of sexual offences and assault. The allegations related to four separate incidents at addresses in London, including in Westminster, between July 2019 and January 2020. | Police arrested the Conservative MP on 1 August on suspicion of rape and took him into custody at an east London police station. They later released him on bail, the force added. | But the Sund…
(2020-12-13). Social Researcher Receives 9-Year Imprisonment in Iran, Report Says. sputniknews.com TEHRAN (Sputnik) РAn Iranian court has sentenced Kameel Ahmady, a social researcher and citizen of both Iran and the United Kingdom, to nine years of imprisonment and a €600,000 ($728,237) fine, Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.
(2020-12-13). Philippines: Labor movement demands release of Human Rights Day 7. fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating this December 11 joint statement from the Council of Global Unions Philippine affiliates. | PH affiliates of global unions demand release of HRD7, stop arrests of PH unionists | We strongly deplore the simultaneous raids of residences and the consecutive arrests of trade union organizers, Dennise Velasco of Defend Jobs Philippines, Romina Astudillo, Deputy Secretary-General of Kilusang Mayo Uno-Metro Manila, Mark Ryan Cruz, Regional Executive Committee of KMU-Metro Manila, Jaymie Gregorio Jr. of KMU-Metro Manila, Joel Demate of Solidarity of Labor Rights and Welfare (SOLAR)…
(2020-12-12). America Is Contributing to Iran's Shocking Covid-19 Death Toll. scheerpost.com Farhad Babaei/ Magnus News] By Juan Cole / Informed Comment The US financial and trade blockade of Iran, which has strangled its economy, has also taken a heavy toll on the country's coronavirus response. Nick Paton Walsh, Jo Shelley, Ramin Mostaghim and Scott McWhinnie at CNN did a great story on this heartrending travesty. They write, "Retired teacher Khalif Farahani struggles to speak… |
(2020-12-12). Israel-Morocco deal: Palestinians and Sahrawis hope for renewed solidarity. middleeasteye.net 
Israel-Morocco deal: Palestinians and Sahrawis hope for renewed solidarity | Activists have long linked the two people's struggles, and hope the latest normalisation deal will encourage the Palestinian leadership to do the same | Sat, 12/12/2020 – 10: 26 | Supporters of the Polisario Front separatist movement hold a banner reading "All for Palestine, all for Western Sahara" during a demonstratio…
(2020-12-12). The Heat: China Economic Strategy. america.cgtn.com 
Policy, pandemic and politics are on the agenda as Chinese leaders get set to meet to chart the way forward.
(2020-12-12). Qiao Collective on challenging U.S. aggression on China, the role of the Western left. mronline.org 
On the domestic front, the U.S. propaganda machine mostly works instead to position China as this great, menacing oriental Other. We've seen this during the COVID-19 pandemic in Trump's rhetoric about the "China virus" and in Biden's attempts at one-upmanship.
(2020-12-12). Go Vote Yourself a Raise, Georgia—You've Long Earned It. commondreams.org Candidates should be pushed to say if they stand with the super-rich profiteering, callous Big Business tycoons or with the people who work for pitiful wages, on the rugged frontlines, and keep our society running. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/georgia_primary.jpg …
(2020-12-12). Qatar: Between the Scylla of Coercion and the Charybdis of Accommodation: an inquiry into sub-regional geopolitics. zcomm.org Responses to Interview Questions on Sub-Regional Geopolitics in the Persian/Arab Gulf countries, Qods News Agency, 10 Dec 2020…
(2020-12-11). Moonanum James, °presente! workers.org 
Special to Workers World Moonanum James speaks at National Day of Mourning, Plymouth, Mass., 2016.Credit: Hannah Kirschbaum Moonanum James, co-leader of United American Indians of New England, died of cancer on Dec. 4 at the age of 70. A member of the Aquinnah Wampanoag nation, he fought to continue the . . . |
(2020-12-11). Now in print and available:'Capitalism on a ventilator: The Impact of Covid-19 in China & the U.S.'. workers.org 
"Capitalism on a Ventilator: The Impact of COVID-19 in China & the U.S." is a new anthology contrasting the effective Chinese response to COVID-19 with the disastrous response here in the U.S. It pushes back against the racist anti-China campaign in the media. Due to the growing hostility of the . . . |
(2020-12-04). US Slaps More Sanctions on Iran, Claiming Tehran Has Secret Chemical Weapons. theantimedia.com Iraq used chemical weapons against Iran in 1980s war while receiving support from the US.