Monthly Archives: January 2020

2020-01-31: News Headlines

RT (2020-01-31). Murder charges dropped against 3 Moscow sisters who killed abusive father. rt.com In a case which has shocked Russians, three Khachaturian sisters admitted to killing their father after he subjected them to mental, sexual, and physical abuse spanning years. | They faced charges of premeditated murder, but now their lawyer says the Russian Prosecutor General's office has ordered investigators to drop that arraignment, and instead reclassify the killing as lawful self-defense. | Lawyer Aleksey Parshin told TASS news agency that officials have declined to support the Investigative Committee's case against the sisters. Parshin said that the Khachaturians responded to their father's "unlawful at…

RT (2020-01-31). While other countries evacuate citizens from Wuhan, China is to bring over 200 people from Thailand, Malaysia back home. rt.com Despite the coronavirus outbreak, over 200 Chinese nationals in Southeast Asia are desperate to come home. China has sent planes to bring them back to Wuhan while other nations airlift their citizens out of the quarantined city. | Ever since the Wuhan cordon sanitaire began on January 23, tourists from Hubei province have been stuck in nearby Southeast Asian countries, unable to get back home. Malaysia banned visitors from Wuhan on January 27, but those who were in the country already still remain. | Thailand has not shut its borders yet, but that's of little help to the tourists: Wuhan is closed off from the…

RT (2020-01-31). Boom! 94yo WWII veteran fires 152mm howitzer in stunning VIDEO. rt.com A decorated WWII veteran couldn't resist trying a large-caliber cannon while visiting a Russian military compound in Siberia and didn't miss a single target. The jaw-dropping moment was caught on film. | It's been 75 years since Mikhail Asanov came back from the war, but his shooting skills are still as sharp as ever. This week, he was invited to share his wartime experience with young soldiers near the Siberian town of Kemerovo, but the visit ended up being a spectacular live-fire exercise. | Russia's Defense Ministry released a video showing the 94-year-old veteran being escorted towards a Msta-B 152mm howit…

RT (2020-01-31). Lavrov, new ambassador Sullivan discuss prospects for Russia-US bilateral ties. rt.com Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and new US Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan discussed on Friday the prospects for Russia-US relations, in Lavrov's first meeting with Sullivan since he started in the role. | They discussed the current state of affairs and prospects for the development of Russian-American relations, as well as some pressing international problems, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. | Lavrov expressed hope that the new US ambassador would contribute to "the normalization and strengthening of relations between our countries in various fields." | Sullivan, who arrived in Moscow on January…

RT (2020-01-31). Facebook, Twitter face fines in Russia for violating local data protection law. rt.com Facebook and Twitter were required by law to notify the telecom watchdog about storing Russian users' data within Russia by January 31. Neither did, and they now face fines of up to $95k — and up to $280k for repeat violations.

Whitney Webb (2020-01-31). How government and media are prepping America for a failed 2020 election. mronline.org Russia, China and Iran are already being blamed for using tech to undermine the 2020 election. Yet, the very technologies they are allegedly using were created by a web of companies with deep ties to Israeli intelligence. |

RT (2020-01-31). Crimean official quits, changes her mind, then quits again after bizarre 'bread and fur coats' scandal. rt.com "Fur-coat gate" has gripped Crimea after a local official resigned, then re-instated herself, before — somewhat unbelievably — later resigning again. All in the space of a couple of days. | The controversy started when Maya Khuzhina was pictured handing out pieces of bread to elderly veterans of the Second World War Leningrad blockade while wearing an expensive animal skin. The siege of the city — now Saint Petersburg — by Nazi Germany and its Finnish and Italian allies, lasted 872 days and resulted in over a million deaths, a great many of them from starvation. | In her role as chair of…

RT (2020-01-31). Russia set to train astronauts for India's 1st manned Gaganyaan mission. rt.com India, which is striving to become the fourth space superpower, is sending a group of astronauts to Russia where they will be given rigorous training at the famed Cosmonaut Training Center outside of Moscow. | An Indian crew of four is arriving in February and the program "is intended for one year and a half," the head of Russia's Cosmonaut Training Center, Pavel Vlasov, told TASS. The center will train a spacecraft commander and spacecraft flight engineers, using the time-tested Soyuz. | India, which is seeking to launch its first-ever manned mission — known as Gaganyaan ('sky vehicle' in Sanskrit) &#150…

RT (2020-01-31). Churchill sightseeing in Crimea and FDR saluting the flag: Russia declassifies PHOTOS taken ahead of 1945 Yalta conference. rt.com As part of a WWII document trove declassified ahead of the 75th anniversary of the Yalta summit, never before seen photographs show US and British leaders and officers arriving in Crimea and touring Sevastopol with Soviet hosts. | British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt traveled to Crimea in February 1945, to meet with Soviet leader Joseph Stalin at the Black Sea town of Yalta. | Official photos from the Yalta conference itself were taken by American photographers at the Livadia Palace, where the US delegation was staying. Prior to the summit, however, Soviet photogr…

RT (2020-01-31). WATCH huge concert hall ceiling collapse in St. Petersburg, one worker has been killed. rt.com A construction worker has been found dead after a St. Petersburg concert hall collapsed as it was being demolished. Footage shows tragic moment a worker desperately scrambled to reach a crane as the structure broke apart. | Drone footage shows a huge cloud of dust coming from the St. Petersburg Sports and Concert Complex. The massive stadium suffered a roof collapse as workers attempted to dismantle the structure. | Warning: This video contains disturbing images | –í –ü–∏—Ç–µ—Ä–µ –ø—Ä–∏ —…

RT (2020-01-31). First two cases of coronavirus confirmed in Russia, both Chinese citizens. rt.com Russia has registered its first patients diagnosed with the new Chinese coronavirus, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova has confirmed. The alarming news comes just a day after Moscow closed its Far Eastern border with China. | Golikova told reporters that the two sufferers are Chinese citizens, one in the Far Eastern Zabaikalsky Region, and the other in the Tyumen Region in western Siberia — which are separated by a distance of about 4,000km. | The patients in question have been subjected to "strict monitoring." They have been put into quarantine and are receiving medical care. The head of Rospotrebna…

RT (2020-01-31). Anzhelika Timanina: The Russian Olympic champion swimmer chasing Tokyo surfing dream (PHOTOS). rt.com The former captain of Russia's synchronized swimming team, Anzhelika Timanina, has been included in the national surfing squad as the sport plans to make its Olympic debut at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. | The 30-year-old blonde, who called time on her illustrious swimming career in 2016, has been swept away by another sport, finding a new passion and motivation in surfing. | Having swap…

RT (2020-01-31). Serbia will continue developing relations with Russia & China despite EU concerns — Vucic. rt.com Belgrade has excellent relations with Russia and China and will continue developing them, following the example of leading European countries, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday. He made the statement at a joint press conference with visiting EU High Commissioner for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrel in Belgrade. | "We are on the European path and do not conceal this before our Russian and Chinese partners," TASS quoted Vucic as saying. "But we have good, excellent cooperation with the Russians and the Chinese and we will continue developing this cooperation." | He expressed hope…

RT (2020-01-31). Erdogan blasts Arab states for backing Trump's Middle East plan. rt.com Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blasted a number of Arab nations on Friday for backing a Middle East peace plan unveiled by the US, condemning it as "treason." | "Some Arab countries that support such a plan commit treason against Jerusalem, as well as against their own people, and more importantly against all humanity," Erdogan told his party's provincial heads in Ankara. | Erdogan, a strong advocate of Palestinian rights, singled out Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Jordan, AFP reports. "Saudi Arabia in particular, you are silent. When will you break your silence? You look at Amman,…

RT (2020-01-31). Tehran says US sanctions on chief of nuclear energy organization was 'unwise move'. rt.com Iran's nuclear energy organization has described recent sanctions on the head of the agency by the US an "unwise move." Washington announced new sanctions on Thursday against the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and its director, Ali Akbar Salehi. The sanctions freeze any assets that Salehi has within US jurisdiction. | The organization tweeted on Friday that "the unwise move" by President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Salehi and AEOI "will not in any way interrupt [Iran's] peaceful nuclear activities and policies." | "Such cruel sanctions will further enhance the nuclear scientist's motives in…

Eds. (2020-01-31). Palestinians around the world reject Trump's 'fraud of the century'. mronline.org Palestinians have responded to US President Donald Trump's peace plan with a resounding "no," expressing their frustrations with what they have dubbed as the "fraud of the century." From social media to the streets, Palestinians in the occupied territory and in the diaspora have rejected Trump's vision for the region, criticizing the plan for granting […] |

CounterSpin (2020-01-31). Omar Baddar on Israel/Palestine 'Peace' Plan, Rainey Reitman on Greenwald Persecution. fair.org MP3 Link This week on CounterSpin: It is strange to think that you could create a plan to shape the relationship between two entities, in consultation with one but not the other, and then not just declare it, yourself, a "win-win," but also say to the unconsulted party, "You better take it, or else." Yet …

RT (2020-01-31). Afghanistan will need 'billions in foreign aid,' US agency warns. rt.com A US agency warned on Friday that Afghanistan will need vast amounts of foreign funding to keep its government afloat through 2024. International money pays for roughly 75 percent of all of Afghanistan's costs, while government revenue covers barely a quarter of Afghan public expenditures. | The warning comes as foreign donors become increasingly angry over the cost of corruption and the US seeks a peace deal with the Taliban to withdraw its troops from the country. The Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which issues reports quarterly to US Congress, monitors all US spending relating…

RT (2020-01-31). Top cleric Sistani condemns use of force to disperse Iraq protest camps, calls for elections. rt.com Iraq's leading Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has condemned the use of force to disperse protest camps across the country. | He also renewed calls for early elections to be held in a free and fair manner. | Sistani, who delivered his message through a representative at Friday prayers in the holy city of Kerbala, also "heavily condemned" US President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan, Reuters reported. | Earlier this month, Sistani condemned the US-Iranian military confrontation taking place on Iraqi soil, saying it risked plunging the war-ravaged country and the wider Middle East into deepe…

Miko Peled (2020-01-31). Dead on Arrival: Dissecting Trump's Vision for the Future of Palestine. mintpressnews.com What used to be an idea expressed by only the most extreme right-wing Zionists, namely ridding Israel of its Palestinian citizens, is now part of a "peace" plan and has been given the rubber stamp of the United States government, writes Miko Peled.

Alan Macleod (2020-01-31). A New US Air Force Video Game Lets You Drone Bomb Iraqis and Afghans. mintpressnews.com The U.S. Air Force recently unveiled its newest recruitment tool, an online video game that lets you carry out targeted killings by drone in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.

Staff (2020-01-31). Australia Offers a Preview of the World to Come. truthdig.com Unless we remove the arsonists in power across the globe, we're headed for a climate catastrophe no less destructive than nuclear war.

Neil deMause (2020-01-31). Media on Climate Crisis: Don't Organize, Mourn. fair.org While US media have indeed ramped up their coverage of the climate crisis, they continue to give short shrift to what are arguably the most important factors for determining our future: what specific human practices are responsible for the changing climate, why carbon emissions continue to rise, and what we can and should be doing about it.

The Canary (2020-01-31). Climate activists from Africa speak out about the marginalisation of African voices. thecanary.co Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate and peers from other African nations have made an urgent appeal for the world to pay more attention to the continent that stands to suffer the most from climate breakdown despite contributing to it the least.The Fridays For Future movement and activist Greta Thunberg held a news conference with the activists in Sweden to spotlight the marginalisation of African voices."African activists are doing so much": Nakate — along with Makenna Muigai of Kenya, Ayakha Melithafa of South Africa, and climate scientist Ndoni Mcunu of South Africa — pointed out the challe…

Staff (2020-01-31). White House Curbs Immigration for 6 Nations in Election-Year Push. truthdig.com WASHINGTON — The Trump administration announced Friday that it was curbing legal immigration from six additional countries that officials said did not meet security standards, as part of an election-year push to further restrict immigration. | Officials said immigrants from Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Eritrea, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania will

RT (2020-01-31). Trump to expand travel ban, targeting immigrants from 6 more countries. rt.com US President Donald Trump will issue an updated version of his controversial travel ban, acting Homeland Security head Chad Wolf said Friday. The existing ban will remain in place, having been okayed by the Supreme Court in 2018. | Speaking to reporters by phone, Wolf said that the updated ban will suspend immigrant visas for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria. Non-immigrant visas from these countries will not be affected. | 'Diversity Visas' — handed out by lottery to boost immigration from countries with low rates of immigration to the US — for nationals of Sudan and Tanzania wil…

RT (2020-01-31). 'No such proposal': Islamabad rejects 'speculation' over alleged plan to integrate Pakistani-held part of Kashmir. rt.com Pakistan has denied it is gearing up to merge the territory it administers in the disputed region of Kashmir with the rest of the country, dismissing reports to the contrary as media speculation. | "There is no such proposal under consideration," Pakistani Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said. She was responding to reports in the media that Islamabad is allegedly seeking to integrate Azad Jammu and Kashmir (also known as Azad Kashmir) into Pakistan. | The rumors have been circulating in the media since December, after the region's prime minister reportedly suggested that he could become the las…

RT (2020-01-31). Turkey 'will not hesitate to use military force' if attacks by Syrian govt forces don't stop in Idlib — Erdogan. rt.com Ankara will not sit idly by as the Syrian Army carries out an offensive in northeastern Idlib province, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned, saying all options, including the most extreme ones, are on the table. | "We will not watch the situation in Syria… We will not hesitate to do whatever it takes, including using military force," Erdogan said on Friday in Ankara. He

RT (2020-01-31). Mission incapable? Pentagon review finds gun on F-35 fighter jet can't hit targets & 800+ software glitches — report. rt.com The long list of problems plaguing the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter continues to grow, with a Pentagon review finding over 800 software flaws in the costly aircraft, as well as defects that prevent its guns from hitting targets. | The annual assessment by the Pentagon's director of operational testing and evaluation, Robert Behler, revealed that the program that has cost over $400 billion so far has a long way to go before the jets are truly operational. | The fifth-generation stealth fighter is struggling to meet combat readiness, with some 873 outstanding software issues — including cyber security vulnerab…

Vijay Prashad (2020-01-31). The war in Libya will never end. mronline.org General Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army (LNA) continue to partly encircle Libya's capital, Tripoli. Not only does the LNA threaten Tripoli, but it is within striking distance of Libya's third-largest city, Misrata. |

RT (2020-01-31). 'Disney princess moment': Fans rejoice as Priyanka Chopra and Danielle Jonas pose as 'Frozen' sisters Anna and Elsa at Grammys. rt.com After posing for cameras as they walked down the red carpet at the Grammys, Indian actress Priyanka Chopra and Danielle Jonas decided to partake in a behind-the-scenes photoshoot, producing some quality Instagram pics. | Chopra made headlines earlier this week with the revealing white gown that she wore to the music awards ceremony — and it appears that her critics didn't stop her from showcasing her unusual attire. Her sister-in-law, actress Danielle Jonas, recently shared photographs from an impromptu photoshoot held during the event. The pair can be seen playfully posing somewhere behind the scenes and…

Agha Hussain (2020-01-31). Wealthy Gulf States Plan to Spend Big to Coax Syria Away from Iran. mintpressnews.com In the first of a three-part series, Agha Hussein investigates efforts by wealthy Gulf Arab countries to ply post-war Syria away from Iran by investing heavily in its post-war reconstruction.

Eric A. Gordon (2020-01-31). F.W. Murnau's 'Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans' has thrilling new score. peoplesworld.org LOS ANGELES—This is a film town But there's no period at the end of that sentence because L.A. is so much more. Not heavy industry so much, except the port, overland shipping and warehousing, and it's probably the most productive garment center in the United States now. It's a transportation hub and a generator of …

Staff (2020-01-31). 'Women to One Side, Men to the Other'. truthdig.com ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive Mirza had a sense of foreboding soon after she crossed into the U.S. with her two children and their father, David. A Border Patrol agent ordered the family from Honduras and the rest of their group to divide into two lines: "Women to one side, men to the other." | Mirza held 19-month-old Lia and joined the women's line. David took their 6-year-old son Sebastian and lined up with the men. An agent told them not to worry,…

Robert Lipsyte (2020-01-31). The Super Bowl Presidency. counterpunch.org Five Criteria for Selecting the Worst Old White Man to Lead Us Attorney General William Barr's campaign to expand the powers of the presidency to unprecedented imperial levels has been misinterpreted as an attempt to raise Donald Trump to the level of his strongman heroes like Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong-un, and Jair Bolsonaro. Fake news!

Staff (2020-01-31). Senate May Delay Final Trump Trial Vote. truthdig.com WASHINGTON — The Senate is considering pushing off final acquittal in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial until next week under a proposal being negotiated Friday by party leaders. | The situation remained fluid, but senators have indicated they want more time to publicly debate the charges and air their positions on the coming vote, according to a Republican familiar with the proposal but unauthorized to discuss it. The person was granted anonymity. | The shift in timing ahead of Trump's all but certain acquittal shows the significance of the moment to senators in voting that would bring to a close…

Staff (2020-01-31). Inappropriate, Not Impeachable: Key GOP Senator's "Astonishing" Statement Clears Way for Acquittal. democracynow.org The Republican-led Senate appears poised to acquit President Trump as early as today in his historic impeachment trial. On Thursday night, Republican Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee announced he would vote against calling witnesses. Alexander said it was "inappropriate" for Trump to ask a foreign leader to investigate a political rival, but he went on to say "there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitution's high bar for an impeachable offense." Democrats need four Republican senators to support calling for witnesses, bu…

Al Neal, John Wojcik (2020-01-31). UN agency declares the coronavirus a global health emergency. peoplesworld.org The World Health Organization, an agency of the United Nations, declared the outbreak ignited by a new strain of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in China that has spread to over a dozen countries as a global health emergency Thursday after a rapid spike in the number of cases this past week. To date, more than 7,800 …

RT (2020-01-31). Feast in time of plague? Trump official says China coronavirus is good for US economy. rt.com US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Thursday the deadly coronavirus outbreak that has claimed the lives of 213 and infected almost 10,000 people globally could boost the US economy. | "I think it will help to accelerate the return of jobs to North America — some to US, probably some to Mexico as well," Ross said in an interview on Fox News. | He acknowledged the downside, saying, "I don't want to talk about a victory lap over a very unfortunate, very malignant disease." | Ross added that businesses need to take the risk into account and consider the virus when reviewing supply chains. | Also on rt.c…

Staff (2020-01-31). China Has to Feed 50 Million People Now on Lockdown. truthdig.com Residents in the Wuhan area say that supermarkets remain stocked, but keeping them supplied is a massive governmental effort in logistics.

Staff (2020-01-31). Delta, American Suspend Flights Between U.S. and China. truthdig.com NEW YORK — Delta Air Lines and American Airlines said Friday they will suspend all flights between the U.S. and China, making them the first U.S.-based airlines to do so and joining several international carriers that have stopped flying to China as the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread. | American said it will halt the flights starting Friday and running through March 27. Delta plans to wait until Feb. 6 to suspend China operations to help travelers in China leave the country. Delta said it will stop the flights through April 30. | United Airlines, the only other U.S. carrier with direct flights to…

RT (2020-01-31). Special Indian flight en route to Wuhan to deliver medical supplies & evacuate citizens stranded in coronavirus epicenter. rt.com An Air India flight has been given the green light to travel to the Chinese city of Wuhan — ground zero for a new rapidly spreading coronavirus — in order to evacuate citizens and drop off sorely needed medical supplies. | Taking off from Mumbai early on Friday, local time, the Boeing 747 will first stop off at India's capital, Delhi to load up on supplies before heading into China for the rescue mission, where a number of nations have issued travel restrictions due to the new virus, recently declared a global health crisis by the World Health Organization. | An Air India 747 is currently en route…

RT (2020-01-31). Italian Council of Ministers declares state of emergency due to coronavirus health risk. rt.com Rome has declared a state of emergency for six months in response to Italy's first two coronavirus cases. The decision comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the epidemic a global crisis. | Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on Friday that two Chinese tourists staying in Rome had tested positive for the virus. As part of its emergency measures, Italy has suspended all direct flights to China. | The tourists from Wuhan — the Chinese city where the virus originated — made several stops in Italy, including Milan and Parma, before arriving in Rome. Eighteen other Chinese ci…

RT (2020-01-31). Pakistan suspends direct flights to China as novel coronavirus claims more lives. rt.com Pakistan is suspending all direct flights to Chinese cities days after four of its students tested positive for the new coronavirus. Similar measures have been taken in countries across Asia, Europe, and the Americas. | "We are suspending flights to China until February 2," the additional secretary of aviation, Abdul Sattar Khokhar, told Reuters on Friday, saying Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will review the situation after that date. | Local media shared an official CAA letter sent to local managers of Air China and China Southern Airlines — the two carriers serving direct flights between a n…

Hatewatch Staff (2020-01-31). Workers Organization Shares Staff, Cash With Anti-Immigrant Groups. splcenter.org U.S. Tech Workers, a project of the anti-immigrant group Progressives for Immigration Reform (PFIR), has ties to an anti-immigrant hate network and unprecedented access to the Trump administration.

Staff (2020-01-31). Headlines for January 31, 2020. democracynow.org Senate Poised to Acquit President Trump in Impeachment Trial, World Health Organization Declares International Public Health Emergency, U.S. Special Envoy Warns of International Crisis in Idlib, Syria, Britain Formally Withdrawing from European Union Tonight, Pentagon Deploys 1st Low-Yield Nuclear Warhead-Armed Submarine, Trump Admin Poised to Loosen Restrictions on Use of Landmines, Human Rights Groups Condemn Mexico for Crackdown on Central American Migrants, Mexican Butterfly Conservationist Found Dead, Bolivia's Movement for Socialism Candidate Luis Arce Returns to Bolivia, U.S. Pushes EU to End Ban on Chemic…

WSWS (2020-01-31). Australia: Alice Springs group condemns silence of "Bring Assange Home" parliamentary group. wsws.org "It is now more than three months since your group was established but it has done nothing of substance in this time."

orion the elder (2020-01-31). Gracias Chelsea Manning & Julian Assange for Exposing Bush's War Crimes. indybay.org Fruitvale and MacArthur oakland 94602…

Codepink SF (2020-01-31). Col. (ret.) Ann Wright Fundraising/Speaking on GAZA/The 2020 Freedom Flotilla. indybay.org ANSWER Meeting Room, 2969 Mission Street, San Francisco 94110 (Mission at 26th Street)…

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2020-01-31). Coronavirus Epidemic: WHO Declares a Global Public Health Crisis, Can We Trust the WHO? globalresearch.ca In the course of the last two weeks, the World Health Organization (WHO) had already pointed to a possible Global Public Health crisis in relation to China's novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) categorized as a viral pneumonia. The virus outbreak is centred …

2020-01-31: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media!

Trump to expand travel ban, targeting immigrants from 6 more countries
rt.com | 2020-01-31
US President Donald Trump will issue an updated version of his controversial travel ban, acting Homeland Security head Chad Wolf said Friday. The existing ban will remain in place, having been okayed by the Supreme Court in 2018. | Speaking to reporters by phone, Wolf said that the updated ban will suspend immigrant visas for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria. Non-immigrant visas from these countries will not be affected. | 'Diversity Visas'

White House Curbs Immigration for 6 Nations in Election-Year Push
Staff | truthdig.com | 2020-01-31
WASHINGTON

Workers Organization Shares Staff, Cash With Anti-Immigrant Groups
Hatewatch Staff | splcenter.org | 2020-01-31
U.S. Tech Workers, a project of the anti-immigrant group Progressives for Immigration Reform (PFIR), has ties to an anti-immigrant hate network and unprecedented access to the Trump administration.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2020/01/31/workers-organization-shares-staff-cash-anti-immigrant-groups

Top cleric Sistani condemns use of force to disperse Iraq protest camps, calls for elections
rt.com | 2020-01-31
Iraq's leading Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has condemned the use of force to disperse protest camps across the country. | He also renewed calls for early elections to be held in a free and fair manner. | Sistani, who delivered his message through a representative at Friday prayers in the holy city of Kerbala, also "heavily condemned" US President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan, Reuters reported. | Earlier this month, Sistani condemned the US-Iranian military confrontation taking place on Iraqi soil, saying it risked plunging the war-ravaged country and the wider Middle East into deepe…
rt.com/newsline/479714-sistani-force-iraq-us/

Gracias Chelsea Manning & Julian Assange for Exposing Bush's War Crimes
orion the elder | indybay.org | 2020-01-31
Fruitvale and MacArthur oakland 94602…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/30/18830211.php

Gracias Chelsea Manning & Julian Assange for Exposing Bush's War Crimes
orion the elder | indybay.org | 2020-01-31
Fruitvale and MacArthur oakland 94602…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/30/18830211.php

Australia: Alice Springs group condemns silence of "Bring Assange Home" parliamentary group
wsws.org | 2020-01-31
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/31/wilk-j31.html

Col. (ret.) Ann Wright Fundraising/Speaking on GAZA/The 2020 Freedom Flotilla
Codepink SF | indybay.org | 2020-01-31
ANSWER Meeting Room, 2969 Mission Street, San Francisco 94110 (Mission at 26th Street)…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/29/18830150.php

Coronavirus Epidemic: WHO Declares a Global Public Health Crisis, Can We Trust the WHO?
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-31
In the course of the last two weeks, the World Health Organization (WHO) had already pointed to a possible Global Public Health crisis in relation to China's novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) categorized as a viral pneumonia. The virus outbreak is centred …
globalresearch.ca/coronavirus-epidemic-who-declares-a-global-public-health-crisis-can-we-trust-the-who/5702360

The War in Libya Will Never End
Vijay Prashad | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
General Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army (LNA) continue to partly encircle Libya's capital, Tripoli. Not only does the LNA threaten Tripoli, but it is within striking distance of Libya's third-largest city, Misrata. Both Tripoli and Misrata are in the hands of the Government of National Accord (GNA), which is backed by the United…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/the-war-in-libya-will-never-end/

The war in Libya will never end
Vijay Prashad | mronline.org | 2020-01-31
General Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army (LNA) continue to partly encircle Libya's capital, Tripoli. Not only does the LNA threaten Tripoli, but it is within striking distance of Libya's third-largest city, Misrata. | Source…
mronline.org/2020/01/31/the-war-in-libya-will-never-end/

The War in Libya Will Never End
Vijay Prashad | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
General Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army (LNA) continue to partly encircle Libya's capital, Tripoli. Not only does the LNA threaten Tripoli, but it is within striking distance of Libya's third-largest city, Misrata. Both Tripoli and Misrata are in the hands of the Government of National Accord (GNA), which is backed by the United…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/the-war-in-libya-will-never-end/

I Will Hold You in My Arms a Day After the War
Vijay Prashad | zcomm.org | 2020-01-31
There is an economic war against the planet, one that has no anti-war movement…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/i-will-hold-you-in-my-arms-a-day-after-the-war/

Blocking trains and removing coal
Sarah Freeman-Woolpert | zcomm.org | 2020-01-31
Climate activists fight to close one of New England's largest power plants…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/blocking-trains-and-removing-coal/

Climate activists from Africa speak out about the marginalisation of African voices
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-01-31
Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate and peers from other African nations have made an urgent appeal for the world to pay more attention to the continent that stands to suffer the most from climate breakdown despite contributing to it the least.The Fridays For Future movement and activist Greta Thunberg held a news conference with the activists in Sweden to spotlight the marginalisation of African voices."African activists are doing so much": Nakate

Erdogan blasts Arab states for backing Trump's Middle East plan
rt.com | 2020-01-31
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blasted a number of Arab nations on Friday for backing a Middle East peace plan unveiled by the US, condemning it as "treason." | "Some Arab countries that support such a plan commit treason against Jerusalem, as well as against their own people, and more importantly against all humanity," Erdogan told his party's provincial heads in Ankara. | Erdogan, a strong advocate of Palestinian rights, singled out Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Jordan, AFP reports. "Saudi Arabia in particular, you are silent. When will you break your silence? You look at Amman,…
rt.com/newsline/479696-erdogan-arabs-trump-palestinians/

Why is the U.S. Always at War? Is Peace Possible?
Party for Socialism and Liberation, Sonoma | indybay.org | 2020-01-31
A'Roma Roasters Coffee and Tea | 95 5th St, Santa Rosa, California 95401…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/28/18830143.php

Tehran says US sanctions on chief of nuclear energy organization was 'unwise move'
rt.com | 2020-01-31
Iran's nuclear energy organization has described recent sanctions on the head of the agency by the US an "unwise move." Washington announced new sanctions on Thursday against the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and its director, Ali Akbar Salehi. The sanctions freeze any assets that Salehi has within US jurisdiction. | The organization tweeted on Friday that "the unwise move" by President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Salehi and AEOI "will not in any way interrupt [Iran's] peaceful nuclear activities and policies." | "Such cruel sanctions will further enhance the nuclear scientist's motives in…
rt.com/newsline/479745-iran-us-sanctions-nuclear/

Trump's 'peace plan' gives the go-ahead to Israel's biggest land grab in decades
Tom Anderson | thecanary.co | 2020-01-31
Donald Trump's ' plan for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict' is catastrophic for Palestinians. One major problem is that it gives the green-light to Israeli politicians' long-held plans to annex the Jordan Valley. | The Jordan Valley, which includes the Dead Sea region, makes up a third of the occupie…
thecanary.co/global/world-analysis/2020/01/31/trumps-peace-plan-gives-the-go-ahead-to-israels-biggest-land-grab-in-decades/

"Balfouristans" for Bibi: "Apartheid" Isn't an Insult, It's a Blueprint
Richard Eskow | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
The image on the left is from a map Donald Trump tweeted out with the label, "Vision For Peace: Conceptual Map/The Future of Palestine." The one on the right shows the "Bantustans" created by apartheid-era South Africa in 1970, a move designed to pen the country's black citizens into impoverished "homelands." Any questions? These maps…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/balfouristans-for-bibi-apartheid-isnt-an-insult-its-a-blueprint/

Afghanistan will need 'billions in foreign aid,' US agency warns
rt.com | 2020-01-31
A US agency warned on Friday that Afghanistan will need vast amounts of foreign funding to keep its government afloat through 2024. International money pays for roughly 75 percent of all of Afghanistan's costs, while government revenue covers barely a quarter of Afghan public expenditures. | The warning comes as foreign donors become increasingly angry over the cost of corruption and the US seeks a peace deal with the Taliban to withdraw its troops from the country. The Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which issues reports quarterly to US Congress, monitors all US spending relating…
rt.com/newsline/479669-afghanistan-foreign-aid-us/

Trump's Annexation Scheme: A Stake in the Heart of the Moribund Two-State Solution and Peace
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-31
Since no-peace/peace plans first surfaced in the 1970s, the US and Israel supported Palestinian self-determination in name only. | Both countries opposed the idea since Israel seized Palestinian territory not stolen in 1948. | A two-state solution was theoretically possible years earlier, …
globalresearch.ca/trump-annexation-scheme-stake-heart-moribund-two-state-solution-peace/5702445

To Keep the Rohingya Alive
J.B. Gerald | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-01-31
The Contracting Parties confirm that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and to punish.

Omar Baddar on Israel/Palestine 'Peace' Plan, Rainey Reitman on Greenwald Persecution
CounterSpin | fair.org | 2020-01-31
MP3 Link This week on CounterSpin: It is strange to think that you could create a plan to shape the relationship between two entities, in consultation with one but not the other, and then not just declare it, yourself, a "win-win," but also say to the unconsulted party, "You better take it, or else." Yet …
fair.org/home/omar-baddar-on-israel-palestine-peace-plan-rainey-reitman-on-greenwald-persecution/

Dead on Arrival: Dissecting Trump's Vision for the Future of Palestine
Miko Peled | mintpressnews.com | 2020-01-31
What used to be an idea expressed by only the most extreme right-wing Zionists, namely ridding Israel of its Palestinian citizens, is now part of a "peace" plan and has been given the rubber stamp of the United States government, writes Miko Peled.
mintpressnews.com/dissecting-trump-israel-palestine-mideast-peace-plan/264508/

War tensions mount between NATO powers over Libya, Mediterranean
wsws.org | 2020-01-31
The Berlin conference has set the stage not for peace, but only for stepped-up imperialist interventions to divide up the profits to be extracted from Libya and the entire region.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/31/fran-j31.html

Massive Rejection of Trump's Plan in Palestine, Jordan, Yemen
telesurenglish.net | 2020-01-31
Thousands of Palestinians held numerous demonstrations on the first Friday following the announcement of the so-called "Deal of the Century" promoted by the U.S. President Donald Trump. | RELATED: | Palestinian Leaders Taking Steps to Topple Trump's 'Peace Plan' | From Gaza to the West Bank, people protested energetically against what they called "an aparthei…
telesurenglish.net/news/Massive-Rejection-of-Trumps-Plan-in-Palestine-Jordan-Yemen-20200131-0006.html

Palestinians around the world reject Trump's 'fraud of the century'
Eds. | mronline.org | 2020-01-31
Palestinians have responded to US President Donald Trump's peace plan with a resounding "no," expressing their frustrations with what they have dubbed as the "fraud of the century." From social media to the streets, Palestinians in the occupied territory and in the diaspora have rejected Trump's vision for the region, criticizing the plan for granting […] | Source…
mronline.org/2020/01/31/palestinians-around-the-world-reject-trumps-fraud-of-the-century/

No War, No Sanctions on Iran
We Insist | indybay.org | 2020-01-31
January 25, 2020…a fabulous San Francisco turnout at the last in a series of emergency protests prompted by Trump's assassination of Iran's General Qasem Soleimani.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/30/18830196.php

Chile: One Dead and 124 Arrested During a Violent Early Morning
telesurenglish.net | 2020-01-31
One dead person, 124 detainees and several wounded was the balance of the police repression to the protests that Chileans carried out in the early hours of Friday in Santiago. | RELATED: | Chilean Students Protest Controversial Exam in Santiago | On Thursday afternoon, citizens went out to protest the death of Jorge Mora, a fan of the Colo-Colo soccer team, who was hit by a Police truck last Tuesday. | His death intensified popular mobilizations against the neoliberal state, which th…
telesurenglish.net/news/Chile-One-Dead-and-124-Arrested-During-a-Violent-Early-Morning-20200131-0005.html

Right-Wing Business Billionaires Launch Attack on Bernie Sanders
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-01-31
Conservative business executives launched an ad campaign against Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders this week, attacking the democratic socialist on his plans to provide health care to all Americans and clean up the planet with a major public works program. | The wealthy manufacturing, poultry, fast food, and finance magnates, several of whom are Charles Koch allies, have recently donated millions of dollars to (CFGA), the super PAC affiliated with the right-wing political advocacy group
truthout.org/articles/right-wing-business-billionaires-launch-attack-on-bernie-sanders/

Erdogan's Outburst Against Russia Reveals Frustration
Paul Antonopoulos | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-31
Back in November 2015, a Turkish F-16 fighter jet shot down a Russian Sukhoi Su-24M near the Syria–Turkey border on the allegations that the Russian warplane had violated Turkish airspace for 17 seconds

Two Wings, Four Despotisms
Paul Street | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
Republican Tyranny, Orange Menace Democracy is trumped in the United States by multiple, overlapping, interrelated and mutually reinforcing forms of despotism. The Trump administration and the Trumpified Republican Party, backed by a cult-like base, embody a creepy, neofascistic variant of the disease. The Republican White House and Senate are currently been conducting a tasteless tutorial…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/two-wings-four-despotisms/

Two Wings, Four Despotisms
Paul Street | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
Republican Tyranny, Orange Menace Democracy is trumped in the United States by multiple, overlapping, interrelated and mutually reinforcing forms of despotism. The Trump administration and the Trumpified Republican Party, backed by a cult-like base, embody a creepy, neofascistic variant of the disease. The Republican White House and Senate are currently conducting a tasteless tutorial in…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/two-wings-four-despotisms/

Pipeline or a Pipe Dream: Israel, Turkey Hydrocarbon Conflict is Brewing in the Mediterranean
Ramzy Baroud | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
Massive natural gas discoveries off the eastern coast of Israel and Palestine is slated to make Tel Aviv a regional energy hub. Whether Israel will be able to translate positive indicators of the largely untapped gas reserves into actual economic and strategic wealth is yet to be seen. What is certain, however, is that the…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/pipeline-or-a-pipe-dream-israel-turkey-hydrocarbon-conflict-is-brewing-in-the-mediterranean/

Pipeline or a Pipe Dream: Israel, Turkey Hydrocarbon Conflict is Brewing in the Mediterranean
Ramzy Baroud | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-31
Massive natural gas discoveries off the coast of Israel and Palestine are slated to make Tel Aviv a regional energy hub. Whether Israel will be able to translate positive indicators of the largely untapped gas reserves into actual economic and strategic wealth is yet to be seen. What is certain, however, is that the Middle…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/31/pipeline-or-a-pipe-dream-israel-turkey-hydrocarbon-conflict-is-brewing-in-the-mediterranean/

More Fallout from Trump's Annexation Scheme of the Century
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-31
The unacceptable scheme is further proof of a geopolitical know-nothing US president

How government and media are prepping America for a failed 2020 election
Whitney Webb | mronline.org | 2020-01-31
Russia, China and Iran are already being blamed for using tech to undermine the 2020 election. Yet, the very technologies they are allegedly using were created by a web of companies with deep ties to Israeli intelligence. | Source…
mronline.org/2020/01/31/how-government-and-media-are-prepping-america-for-a-failed-2020-election/

Anzhelika Timanina: The Russian Olympic champion swimmer chasing Tokyo surfing dream (PHOTOS)
rt.com | 2020-01-31
The former captain of Russia's synchronized swimming team, Anzhelika Timanina, has been included in the national surfing squad as the sport plans to make its Olympic debut at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. | The 30-year-old blonde, who called time on her illustrious swimming career in 2016, has been swept away by another sport, finding a new passion and motivation in surfing. | READ MORE: Insane acrobatics & spectacular jump shots: Why beach handball deserves a spot on Olympic schedule (PHOTOS) | Having swap…
rt.com/sport/479724-anzhelika-timanina-synchronized-swimming-surfing/

Boom! 94yo WWII veteran fires 152mm howitzer in stunning VIDEO
rt.com | 2020-01-31
A decorated WWII veteran couldn't resist trying a large-caliber cannon while visiting a Russian military compound in Siberia and didn't miss a single target. The jaw-dropping moment was caught on film. | It's been 75 years since Mikhail Asanov came back from the war, but his shooting skills are still as sharp as ever. This week, he was invited to share his wartime experience with young soldiers near the Siberian town of Kemerovo, but the visit ended up being a spectacular live-fire exercise. | Russia's Defense Ministry released a video showing the 94-year-old veteran being escorted towards a Msta-B 152mm howit…
rt.com/russia/479682-war-veteran-fires-howitzer/

Russia set to train astronauts for India's 1st manned Gaganyaan mission
rt.com | 2020-01-31
India, which is striving to become the fourth space superpower, is sending a group of astronauts to Russia where they will be given rigorous training at the famed Cosmonaut Training Center outside of Moscow. | An Indian crew of four is arriving in February and the program "is intended for one year and a half," the head of Russia's Cosmonaut Training Center, Pavel Vlasov, told TASS. The center will train a spacecraft commander and spacecraft flight engineers, using the time-tested Soyuz. | India, which is seeking to launch its first-ever manned mission

WATCH huge concert hall ceiling collapse in St. Petersburg, one worker has been killed
rt.com | 2020-01-31
A construction worker has been found dead after a St. Petersburg concert hall collapsed as it was being demolished. Footage shows tragic moment a worker desperately scrambled to reach a crane as the structure broke apart. | Drone footage shows a huge cloud of dust coming from the St. Petersburg Sports and Concert Complex. The massive stadium suffered a roof collapse as workers attempted to dismantle the structure. | Warning: This video contains disturbing images | –í –ü–∏–Ç–µ–Ä–µ –ø–Ä–∏ –…
rt.com/russia/479732-st-petersburg-concert-hall-collapse/

First two cases of coronavirus confirmed in Russia, both Chinese citizens
rt.com | 2020-01-31
Russia has registered its first patients diagnosed with the new Chinese coronavirus, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova has confirmed. The alarming news comes just a day after Moscow closed its Far Eastern border with China. | Golikova told reporters that the two sufferers are Chinese citizens, one in the Far Eastern Zabaikalsky Region, and the other in the Tyumen Region in western Siberia

World Health Organisation officially declares coronavirus a "global health emergency"
wsws.org | 2020-01-31
The announcement came the same day that Russia closed its border with China and authorities confirmed a human-to-human transmission of the virus in the United States.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/31/viru-j31.html

Ukraine government plagued by political infighting
wsws.org | 2020-01-31
Sharp divisions are coming to the fore as the government is pressing ahead with mass privatizations and attempts to negotiate a settlement with Russia over the ongoing civil war in eastern Ukraine.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/31/ukra-j31.html

Murder charges dropped against 3 Moscow sisters who killed abusive father
rt.com | 2020-01-31
In a case which has shocked Russians, three Khachaturian sisters admitted to killing their father after he subjected them to mental, sexual, and physical abuse spanning years. | They faced charges of premeditated murder, but now their lawyer says the Russian Prosecutor General's office has ordered investigators to drop that arraignment, and instead reclassify the killing as lawful self-defense. | Lawyer Aleksey Parshin told TASS news agency that officials have declined to support the Investigative Committee's case against the sisters. Parshin said that the Khachaturians responded to their father's "unlawful at…
rt.com/russia/479713-charges-dropped-russian-sisters-murder-father/

Trump and Putin Made this the Best Week Ever for Netanyahu
Andrew Korybko | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-31
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is coasting into his country's third elections on March 2 with the success of two tremendous achievements over the past week that was interestingly made possible by both American and Russian Presidents. U.S. President …
globalresearch.ca/trump-putin-made-best-week-ever-netanyahu/5702401

Churchill sightseeing in Crimea and FDR saluting the flag: Russia declassifies PHOTOS taken ahead of 1945 Yalta conference
rt.com | 2020-01-31
As part of a WWII document trove declassified ahead of the 75th anniversary of the Yalta summit, never before seen photographs show US and British leaders and officers arriving in Crimea and touring Sevastopol with Soviet hosts. | British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt traveled to Crimea in February 1945, to meet with Soviet leader Joseph Stalin at the Black Sea town of Yalta. | Official photos from the Yalta conference itself were taken by American photographers at the Livadia Palace, where the US delegation was staying. Prior to the summit, however, Soviet photogr…
rt.com/news/479635-yalta-1945-photos-declassified/

Lavrov, new ambassador Sullivan discuss prospects for Russia-US bilateral ties
rt.com | 2020-01-31
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and new US Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan discussed on Friday the prospects for Russia-US relations, in Lavrov's first meeting with Sullivan since he started in the role. | They discussed the current state of affairs and prospects for the development of Russian-American relations, as well as some pressing international problems, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. | Lavrov expressed hope that the new US ambassador would contribute to "the normalization and strengthening of relations between our countries in various fields." | Sullivan, who arrived in Moscow on January…
rt.com/newsline/479746-lavrov-us-ambassador-sullivan/

Elizabeth Warren issues call for internet censorship
wsws.org | 2020-01-31
While nominally directed against Russia and right-wing "trolls," the proposal would open the way to a sweeping attack on the democratic rights of the American people.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/31/warr-j31.html