Daily Archives: November 20, 2020

2020-11-20: News Headlines

Raul Diego (2020-11-20). Predictive Programming? Israeli Publishers Have Been Writing About a COVID-Like Pandemic for Years. mintpressnews.com The general public's willing acceptance of the draconian restrictions placed on mobility and freedom of assembly due to the coronavirus was "predicted" in fictional novels and other artistic creations over the last few decades. Is it a matter of life imitating art or something more sinister?

Ramzy Baroud (2020-11-20). As Israel Destroys EU Projects in Palestine, European Foreign Policy Remains Impotent. dissidentvoice.org Belgium is furious. On November 6, the Belgian government condemned Israel's destruction of Belgian-funded homes in the Occupied Palestinian West Bank. Understandably, Brussels wants the Israeli government to pay compensation for the unwarranted destruction. The Israeli response was swift: a resounding 'no'. The diplomatic row is likely to fizzle out soon; neither will Israel cease …

Staff (2020-11-20). K-9 attacks: The new (old) face of police brutality. therealnews.com Indiana mother Jennifer Fleming speaks out about the brutal and excessive police dog attack on her 19-year-old daughter, and calls for police to rethink how these animals and their handlers are trained.

MEE and agencies (2020-11-20). Macron accuses Turkey of stoking anti-France sentiment in Africa. middleeasteye.net Macron accuses Turkey of stoking anti-France sentiment in Africa | Tensions have risen between Paris and Ankara over the French president's defence of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad | Fri, 11/20/2020 – 13: 57 | Macron at a press conference at the G5 Sahel summit on 30 June 2020 in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott (AFP) | French President Emmanuel Macron accused Turkey on Friday of p…

C.J. Atkins (2020-11-20). Is there life after coronavirus? China proved pandemic can be controlled. peoplesworld.org TORONTO—Nine months ago, in early February, People's World interviewed Lupin, a 26-year-old man from Wuhan, China. At the time, his hometown was the epicenter of what scientists were still calling the "novel coronavirus," a pneumonia-like illness which soon sparked a pandemic that engulfed the entire world. Lupin was working overseas in Canada but had returned …

Patricia Gorky (2020-11-20). Georgia emerges as central target of far right mobilization. liberationnews.org Tensions in Georgia, a state playing a key role in the outcome of the 2020 election, are rising. Far right groups continue to mobilize around the unfounded claims of widespread election fraud in the state.

MEE staff (2020-11-20). UN experts warn 50 people face possible executions in Iraq after unfair trials. middleeasteye.net UN experts warn 50 people face possible executions in Iraq after unfair trials | After 21 executions this week, UN experts urge Baghdad to halt mass capital punishment | Fri, 11/20/2020 – 22: 08 | Statement by UN experts notes there are currently about 4,000 prisoners slated for execution (AFP/File photo) | UN human rights experts have said 50 Iraqi prisoners face possible execution next week following convict…

Alan Macleod (2020-11-20). Shocking New Figures Show How Just Much the US is Fueling the Violence in Yemen. mintpressnews.com New figures from the UN and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute show that since the war in Yemen began, the US has sold over $13 billion in high-tech weapons to Saudi Arabia, making the Kingdom a cash cow for US weapons makers.

Shatha Hammad (2020-11-20). Palestinians with disabilities battling PA for vital healthcare. middleeasteye.net Palestinians with disabilities battling PA for vital healthcare | Covid-19 has exposed a deeply flawed health insurance system that lets disabled Palestinians down badly | Fri, 11/20/2020 – 16: 17 | Disability rights activists including Abdelrahman Awwad (C) and Shatha Abu Srour (R) have staged a sit-in for nearly three weeks in Ramallah. The banner reads: "We die of coronavirus and we die of medic…

Deirdre Griswold (2020-11-20). Capitalists profit off pandemic. workers.org Many countries around the world have successfully contained the coronavirus. Most notable is China, the most populous nation and the place where the virus first appeared. As of Nov. 15, China reported a total of 4,634 deaths from COVID-19 and only 13 new cases. (worldometers.info/coronavirus) Here in the United States, . . . |

Derek Ford (2020-11-20). Indianapolis movement defeats ruling-class attack on the poor. liberationnews.org Yet the struggle is far from over.

Sheren Khalel (2020-11-20). Campaigns to boycott Saudi Arabia G20 summit gain momentum. middleeasteye.net Campaigns to boycott Saudi Arabia G20 summit gain momentum | From hashtags to petitions, damning statements and full-page newspaper ads, human rights groups demand kingdom be held accountable | Fri, 11/20/2020 – 17: 12 | G20 logo is projected at historical al-Tarif in Diriyah district on outskirts of Saudi capital, Riyadh, on 20 November (AFP) | Human rights groups and activists have intensified ca…

_____ (2020-11-20). Jewish-Led Groups Condemn Pompeo For Declaring Boycott-Divestment Movement Anti-Semitic. popularresistance.org Jewish peace activists led a wave of stinging rebuke of U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Thursday after he declared the peaceful Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement for Palestinian human rights "anti-Semitic" while visiting an illegal Israeli settler colony built on stolen West Bank land. | Pompeo became the first top U.S. diplomat to visit an Israeli settlement in the unlawfully occupied West Bank of Palestine as he lunched at a winery in Psagot, located on a hill formerly known as Jabel Tawil until Israeli forces conquered it in 1967.

Editor (2020-11-20). How to End the War in Afghanistan (Video). scheerpost.com The U.S. war on Afghanistan is in its 19th year. Enough is enough! Ann Wright is the moderator. Panelists are Kathy Kelly, Matthew Hoh, Rory Fanning, Danny Sjursen, and Arash Azizzada. Ann Wright is a retired Army Colonel who became a US diplomat for 16 years in US Embassies in Grenada, Nicaragua, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, …

_____ (2020-11-20). The AMA Officially Recognized Racism As A Public-Health Threat. popularresistance.org The American Medical Association has officially defined racism as a public health threat that has created substantial health inequality. | Racism, both systemic and structural, has historically perpetuated health inequality and cut short the lives of many Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) in the US and around the world. | Over the last year, a number of county and state authorities have also labelled racism a public health threat. | Among them are county councils in San Bernardino, California, and Montgomery, Maryland, as well as authorities in Michigan, Nevada, Cleveland, Denver, and Indianapolis.

Stephen Lendman (2020-11-20). Possible US Strike on Iran? globalresearch.ca Since Iran ended a generation of US/UK-installed fascist tyranny in 1979, both wings of US duopoly rule waged dirty war on the country and its people by other means. | They stopped short of attacking Iranian territory militarily. | Will US hardliners …

Uriel Araujo (2020-11-20). US Under Joe Biden Will Pursue Policy of "Countering" and "Encircling" Russia. globalresearch.ca On Sunday, there were new street demonstrations in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. Last week, two British diplomats were declared "persona non grata" by the Belarusian government. They are accused of conducting "destructive activities" — most probably related to aiding …

Great Game India (2020-11-20). Portuguese Court Rules PCR Tests as Unreliable & Unlawful to Quarantine People. globalresearch.ca The court stated, the test's reliability depends on the number of cycles used and the viral load present. Citing "if someone is tested by PCR as positive when a threshold of …

Nicky Reid (2020-11-20). Why Artsakh Still Matters to American Anarchism. counterpunch.org The news broke like a fever last Monday night. A deal had been signed by Armenia and Azerbaijan to end the bloody month long war in Nagorno-Karabakh which had claimed the lives of thousands on both sides. This is a good thing right? How could any peace be bad? But something felt all wrong about

Timothy Pratt (2020-11-20). Why Georgia's Unscientific Recount 'Horrified' Experts. thenation.com Why Georgia's Unscientific Recount 'Horrified' Experts…

Yuri Martins Fontes (2020-11-20). Golpe colorido na Bielorrússia : a planificaàßà£o social de Lukashenko. globalresearch.ca Nestes primeiros vinte anos do século, presenciamos um surpreendente avanàßo tecnológico em setores como informática, telecomunicaàßàµes, indústria militar e também na tecnologia dos golpes de estado. Nà£o só os aparelhos telefà¥nicos e computadores sà£o hoje mais potentes e discretos, mas …

news.un (2020-11-20). 'Act urgently' to stave off catastrophic famine in Yemen: Guterres. news.un.org Yemen is in "imminent danger of the worst famine the world has seen for decades", the UN chief warned in a statement released on Friday, calling for urgent action on the part of the international community to "stave off catastrophe".

C-Span (2020-11-20). Video: Senate Hearing on COVID-19 Outpatient Treatment. globalresearch.ca The media has consistently suppressed the three top experts in early outpatient treatment of Covid. (They each have hundreds of peer-reviewed medical publications in top journals, over time.) | Testimony includes the fact that Asia and Africa are on top of …

Gary M. Kramer (2020-11-20). "Collective" is an urgent exposé of killer corruption & how journalism and the people fought back. salon.com Salon spoke to the filmmaker about the investigation into the lies that cost lives & sparked protests in Romania…

_____ (2020-11-20). Attacking Iran Would Be Colossally Stupid. strategic-culture.org Daniel LARISON | Last week, the president The president's Iran obsession has bee…

_____ (2020-11-20). Trump Plans Series Of Actions Against China Before Biden Inauguration. popularresistance.org The Trump administration is planning a series of hardline actions against China with the aim of making it politically untenable for a Biden administration to reverse the moves, administration officials told Axios. | According to the officials, the administration plans to sanction or restrict trade with Chinese companies, officials, and government entities. The actions will be related to alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang and Hong Kong, so-called threats to US national security, and China's fishing industry.

Pip Hinman (2020-11-20). State Bank of India must not fund Adani. greenleft.org.au Jim McIlroy and Coral Wynter report on Stop Adani's protest outside the State Bank of India, which is considering giving the mining conglomerate $1 billion.

Sheren Khalel (2020-11-19). 'We are not afraid of you, Mike': Activists react to Pompeo's move against pro-BDS groups. middleeasteye.net 'We are not afraid of you, Mike': Activists react to Pompeo's move against pro-BDS groups | Secretary of State Mike Pompeo designated any group that supports Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement as antisemitic | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 19: 35 | Palestinians demonstrate near Israeli settlement of Psagot against visit by Mike Pompeo on 18 November (AFP/File photo) | Pro-Palestine and…

Ragip Soylu (2020-11-19). Turkey hikes interest rates after Erdogan agrees to swallow the bitter pill. middleeasteye.net Turkey hikes interest rates after Erdogan agrees to swallow the bitter pill | Central Bank vows to continue monetary tightening until a permanent fall in inflation | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 12: 27 | A man walks past an information screen displaying rates in front of an exchange office in Istanbul, on October 26, 2020 (AFP) | The Turkish Central Bank has increased its policy interest rate by 475 points to 15 pe…

Tim Wheeler (2020-11-19). Karl Yoneda and Elaine Black—star-crossed lovers in a class war. peoplesworld.org In October 1987, I covered a rally in Washington, D.C., for the People's Daily World celebrating the federal government's apology for the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. The event, which drew hundreds to the U.S. Capitol steps, was sponsored by the Japanese American Citizens League. Among those who flew into town …

Hajira Asghar (2020-11-19). Palestinians, Iran in the crosshairs as Pompeo makes farewell visit to Israel. liberationnews.org Pompeo used the occasion to deepen two of the most odious features of U.S. foreign policy: support for the colonial occupation of Palestinian land, and warmongering against Iran.

Miko Peled (2020-11-19). The Last Negotiator: The Death of Saeb Erekat Could Mark the End of Palestinian Reconciliation. mintpressnews.com Saeb Erekat was one of the last of a generation of Palestinian negotiators inspired by the conciliatory style of Yasser Arafat. His death may be the end of an era of hope that a peaceful solution with Israel is possible.

RT (2020-11-19). Karabakh truce was about 'saving lives, not scoring political points': Russia's Lavrov addresses 'wounded pride' of US & France. rt.com The aim of the Moscow-brokered armistice between Azerbaijan and Armenia was to stop the violence in Nagorno-Karabakh as soon as possible, Russia's Foreign Minister has told RT, adding that there was no time for third-party talks. | The ceasefire was not a result of Moscow's desire to gain some international prestige, but that of a wish to preserve human life and end the military clashes on its doorstep, Sergey Lavrov said. The foreign minister also called concerns expressed by the US and France over the deal somewhat misplaced. | In a situation when every minute counted and every such minute cost human lives,…

RT (2020-11-19). Are you a fabulist who believes all sorts of myths about Russia? You might be in luck, because New York Times is hiring in Moscow. rt.com If anyone still has any illusions about the mainstream media reporting reality, rather than seeking to shape narratives, the job description the New York Times posted for its new Moscow bureau chief ought to dispel them. | In a

Stephen Shenfield (2020-11-19). What's going on in Belarus? dissidentvoice.org An interview conducted by Stephen Shenfield of the World Socialist Party of the United States with Dmitry Kosmachev, a member of the Minsk Socialist Circle, about the situation in Belarus, the current protests, and where they may lead. ***** Stephen Shenfield: In the 1990s I made visits to five of the new post-Soviet republics — Russia, …

Alex MacDonald (2020-11-19). Israel boycott: What is the BDS movement? middleeasteye.net Israel boycott: What is the BDS movement? | As the US prepares to brand the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement 'antisemitic', Middle East Eye takes a look at the campaign | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 11: 20 | People take part in a pro-Palestinian demonstration on 10 October 2015 in Paris calling for a boycott of Israel and for the recognition of the State of Palestine (AFP) | For 15 years, the Bo…

MEE and agencies (2020-11-19). BDS: US to label Israel boycott movement as 'antisemitic'. middleeasteye.net BDS: US to label Israel boycott movement as 'antisemitic' | Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also announces that settlement products will be labelled 'made in Israel' | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 08: 38 | Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife Susan are seen past American and Israeli flags as they step off a plane at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv (AFP) | The United States will label the Boycott…

RT (2020-11-19). (WATCH) First European Union nation gets Russia's Sputnik V vaccine to fight Covid-19, as samples arrive in Budapest. rt.com Hungary has become the first country in the European Union to receive a batch of Russia's Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine as a container with samples arrived in Budapest, on Thursday, and was handed over to Hungarian medics. | "Vaccine samples manufactured in Russia have arrived in Budapest," Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto An exclusiv…

MEE correspondent (2020-11-19). Saudi alliance with Yemen's Islah on the brink over Muslim Brotherhood tensions. middleeasteye.net Saudi alliance with Yemen's Islah on the brink over Muslim Brotherhood tensions | Islahi leaders are nervous that their patron Riyadh has turned its back on them, which may push more into the arms of the Houthis | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 16: 25 | Yemeni tribesmen from forces loyal to the Yemeni government walk around the Awwam Temple area in the province of Marib, where Islahis and Saudis hav…

MEE staff (2020-11-19). Saudi court sentences Salman al-Odah's brother to five years in prison. middleeasteye.net Saudi court sentences Salman al-Odah's brother to five years in prison | Khaled al-Odah's sentencing comes three and a half years after he was detained for showing solidarity with his brother on social media | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 17: 39 | Khaled al-Odah was also issued a travel ban preventing him from leaving the country (Abdullah Alaoudh/Twitter) | Saudi Arabia sentenced the brother of jailed cleric Salman al-O…

RT (2020-11-19). Tehran adds 'aircraft carrier warship' to Iran's navy amid rising tensions with Washington. rt.com Iranian military officials claim the country has bolstered its navy with the introduction of a new warship capable of carrying aircraft, drones, helicopters, and missiles, according to a statement issued on Thursday. | The 150-meter Shahid Roudaki vessel is "ready to carry out missions," Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement on its website. | The IRGC's existing fleet mainly comprises small vessels off the Iranian coast and near the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic choke point on a major international oil and gas shipping route. | The announcement of the new addition to the fleet com…

MEE staff (2020-11-19). Amnesty urges G20 leaders to 'stand up for brave activists' jailed in Saudi Arabia. middleeasteye.net Amnesty urges G20 leaders to 'stand up for brave activists' jailed in Saudi Arabia | Women's empowerment features prominently on G20 Agenda, despite several activists languishing in jail or facing trial | Thu, 11/19/2020 – 18: 17 | Protesters gather at Saudi embassy in Washington to remember slain Middle East Eye columnist Jamal Khashoggi (AFP/File photo) | Member states of the Group of 20 (G20) meeting in thi…

WSWS (2020-11-19). Saeb Erekat: Palestinian peace negotiator who epitomised the degeneration of the PLO (1955-2020). wsws.org While all obituaries testify to Erekat's tenacity, none could explain why he and the Palestine Liberation Organisation were in the end wholly unsuccessful.

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2020-11-19). "Proudly Pro-BDS": Jewish-Led Groups Condemn Pompeo for Declaring Boycott-Divestment Movement Anti-Semitic. commondreams.org "Our response to the false designation will be to… challenge Israeli policies of occupation and apartheid and galvanize public opinion for freedom and justice in Palestine," vowed CodePink's Medea Benjamin. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/pomp_0.jpg

Dr. Zuhair Sabbagh (2020-11-19). Forbidden Weapons and Israeli War Crimes. globalresearch.ca In the period 2008-2014, Zionist settler colonialists launched three aggressive wars against the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip: (1) Dec 2008-Jan 2009, (2) 14 Nov 2012, and (3) July-August 2014. During these aggressive wars, the Israeli military used a number …

Alex Bainbridge (2020-11-19). Death squads trained at Duntroon — not just a few bad apples. greenleft.org.au Alex Bainbridge writes that the release of the report into Australian war crimes in Afghanistan should be shocking — but it isn't.

Andrew Korybko (2020-11-19). Trump's Decision to Withdraw US Troops From Afghanistan. globalresearch.ca Trump's decision to cut the number of US troops in Afghanistan from 4500 to 2500 raised questions about whether he's simply fulfilling a campaign promise out of principle or whether he's hedging his bets in a Machiavellian way by preemptively …

sputniknews (2020-11-19). US Navy Secretary Wants New Fleet at Indo-Pacific 'Crossroads' in Case of 'Dust-Up' With China. sputniknews.com A new proposal to recreate a defunct US Navy fleet in the western Pacific could provide the US with another way to confront China in the South China Sea, but could also alienate regional partners at the same time.

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-19). Zarif to visit Moscow to discuss JCPOA, Nagorno-Karabakh. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 19 (MNA) — Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said that Iranian FM is scheduled to visit Moscow to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh and issues of mutual interests.

Polina Aniftou (2020-11-19). "The End of the War in Syria Will Come as Part of the Agreement Between Iran and China," Says Iranian Foreign Policy Analyst. globalresearch.ca As the US changes leadership, new opportunities for re-alignment may open up for the Middle East and the wider region. To understand more fully the implications presented in conflicts ranging from the US-Iran tension, the Syrian war, and the role …