(2022-02-04). Human Rights in Prolonged Occupation: Israel's Treatment of Palestinians (HRW). juancole.com ( Human Rights Watch ) — This memorandum provides an overview of several of Human Rights Watch's central concerns with respect to the Israeli government's human rights practices in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Committee in advance of its review of Israel in March 2022. This …
(2022-02-04). Amnesty: 'Israel' Imposing 'Apartheid' on Palestinians. orinocotribune.com Occupied Palestine (QNN)- 'Israel' is carrying out "the crime of apartheid against Palestinians" and must be held accountable for treating them as "an inferior racial group", Amnesty International said in a new report. | Released on Tuesday, the 278-page report by the leading rights group details how Israeli occupation authorities enforce a system of oppression and domination against the Palestinians. | The damning investigation sets out how massive seizures of Palestinian land and property, unlawful killings, forcible transfer, drastic movement restrictions, and the denial of nationality and citizenship to Pales…
(2022-02-04). Can Israel stop the world from saying 'apartheid'? Concealing the suffering in Palestine. mronline.org 
Israel attempts to improve its public image to counter efforts by human rights organizations that reveal the nature of Israeli apartheid.
(2022-02-04). US claims assassination of ISIS leader in Syria. wsws.org In a White House statement celebrating the killing, Biden hailed the US military as "the solid-steel backbone of this nation."
(2022-02-04). US outruns regional states in race for Kabul. asiatimes.com 
In a hugely consequential advisory, the US Treasury Department quietly signaled on Wednesday (February 2) that it was "tweaking" sanctions against Afghanistan's Haqqani Network. International banks can now transfer money to the Taliban, including its affiliated Haqqani Network, without fear of breaching sanctions. Washington simply issued clarifications dilating on the relaxation of sanctions announced in …
(2022-02-04). Saudi Airstrikes Kill Seven Houthis in Yemen's Taiz. news.antiwar.com Saudi forces carried out a series of airstrikes in Taiz Province in SW Yemen on Thursday, The attacks hit western Taiz, reportedly striking a weapons cache belonging to the Houthis, and setting off a substantial explosion. | Exactly why Taiz came under attack is unclear. The city has been contested for the entire seven years of the Yemen War. The Saudi invasion force was never able to take the city, one of the fi…
(2022-02-04). Do you trust Biden or ISIS, Psaki asks skeptical reporter. rt.com 
The White House spokeswoman dismissed a question about evidence in deadly Syria raid | White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki mocked the idea that the US administration may provide journalists inaccurate information about its military operations abroad. | When asked if Washington would be giving any proof that the target of a US commando raid in Syria blew himself up along with members of his family, Psaki asked whether skeptics would rather trust terrorists. | She was confronted by a journalist on Air Force One over an account of events that President Joe Biden gave to the public. | Speaking a few hours after…
(2022-02-04). Palestinian resistance is forcing liberals to see Israel's apartheid. electronicintifada.net Watch Ali Abunimah and Benjamin Norton discuss Amnesty's new report.
(2022-02-04). Biden administration must rejig its North Korea strategy. asiatimes.com The UN Security Council was to hold an emergency meeting this Friday to discuss North Korea's seven missile tests in the past four weeks. The meeting was requested by the United States, along with Britain and France, and agreed by Russia, which holds the presidency of UNSC for the month of February. However, given the …
(2022-02-04). Some Consequences of the Latest hate Speech Incident in India. journal-neo.org 
On January 10 the Supreme Court of India agreed to urgently consider a petition on "hate speech" against the country's Moslem communities, with reference to specific incidents, most notoriously an incident in December 2021 in Haridwar — a city venerated in the Himalayan foothills on the banks of the River Ganges. Both the city and …
(2022-02-04). As India passes 41 million official COVID-19 cases, Modi boasts of his "great success" wsws.org Modi's criminal profits-over-human-lives policy has already created an unbelievable humanitarian crisis in the world's second most populous country.
(2022-02-04). Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa. wsws.org Strikes across France by healthcare, transport and employment agency workers over staff shortages, workload and pay; protests by teachers across Iran against wages and conditions following protests of retirees demanding a rise in pensions; 5,000 South African food workers on indefinite strike against pay and job cuts for eleventh week…
(2022-02-04). U.S., Finnish aircraft participate in NATO interoperability exercise. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com 351st ARS participates in Horseblanket Mission with Finnish Air Force Aircrew assigned to the 351st Refueling Squadron participated in a long-range aerial refueling mission, partnering with Finnish fighter squadron 31 to refuel fighter jet. The exercise took place from Jan. 24 to Jan. 27 2022 in Romanyuk, Finland. The Horseblanket mission aims to improve interoperability …
(2022-02-04). Ford Saarlouis and Valencia plants: The blackmail continues. wsws.org Ford in Europe has announced electrification plans for plants in Cologne (Germany), Kocaeli (Turkey) and Craiova (Romania). However, the plants at Almussafes and Saarlouis must compete against each other in an internal "bidding war" for the commitment to produce an electric model.
(2022-02-04). France plans to head Baltic-style NATO battle groups in Black Sea region. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com France wants to Lead a New Multinational NATO Contingent in the Balkans French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who is in Bucharest, met virtually today with nine of his Eastern European counterparts to discuss the crisis over Ukraine…. In a speech to the Romanian parliament yesterday, Le Drian said Paris wanted to show its solidarity …
(2022-02-04). A conversation with literary scholar and biographer Jonathan Bate about Shakespeare and "the empowering possibilities that I've always believed that literature has" wsws.org Jonathan Bate is a prominent British literary scholar, historian and biographer who has written extensively about Shakespeare and Renaissance Literature, Romanticism, contemporary poetry and theatre history.
(2022-02-04). Poorer countries facing sovereign debt crisis. wsws.org One of the most vulnerable countries is Sri Lanka. Rating agency S&P Global warned last month the country faced a possible default this year as it downgraded its sovereign bonds.
(2022-02-04). Erdogan is Covering up his Crimes against Syria. journal-neo.org 
As of late, various media have been publishing numerous reports about the involvement of Turkish law enforcement agencies and special services that are supervised directly by Erdogan in blatantly illegal operations in several countries. Thus, in recent years, the Turkish agencies have kidnapped dozens of people in various countries. Since 2016, or after the attempted …
(2022-02-04). Headlines for February 4, 2022. democracynow.org Biden Claims ISIS Leader Detonated Bomb That Killed 13 at Site of U.S. Raid, Vladimir Putin Meets Xi Jinping in Beijing as Winter Olympics Open, State Dept. Questioned over Claims Russia Is Plotting "False Flag" Operation in Ukraine, South African Plant Produces mRNA COVID Vaccine Based on Moderna Data, Chicago Ex-Cop Who Murdered Laquan McDonald Released After Just Three Years in Prison, Biden on Crime in New York City: "The Answer Is Not to Defund the Police", Turkey Blames Greek Border Guards After 12 Asylum Seekers Freeze to Death, Texas Butterfly Conservation Center Shuts Doors Following Right-Wing Harassmen…
(2022-02-03). What makes Amnesty's apartheid report different? electronicintifada.net Israel fears being branded an "apartheid state" at the UN.
(2022-02-03). Israel's Claims to be a Democracy ring Hollow as Amnesty Finds it an Apartheid State. juancole.com By Nasim Ahmed | — ( Middle East Monitor ) — Amnesty International became the latest human rights group to label Israel an apartheid state. In a damning report titled "Israel's Apartheid against Palestinians" the rights group concludes that the occupation state has imposed a "cruel system of domination" and is committing "crimes against humanity." …
(2022-02-03). How Israel is an apartheid regime, with Ali Abunimah. multipolarista.com Mainstream human rights organization Amnesty International admitted Israel is committing apartheid against Palestinians, a crime against humanity. Journalist Ali Abunimah discusses the parallels to South Africa and roots in settler-colonialism.
(2022-02-03). Can Israel stop the world from saying 'Apartheid'? greenleft.org.au The Israeli state is pulling out all stops to delegitimise international organisations that dare use the term "apartheid" to describe its decades-long brutal occupation of Palestine, writes Vijay Prashad.
(2022-02-03). Amnesty International Defends Report on Israeli Apartheid, Rejecting Criticism from U.S. & Israel. democracynow.org 
Amnesty International has become the third major human rights organization to accuse Israel of committing the crime of apartheid against Palestinians in a new report released on Tuesday. Amnesty finds Israel's system of apartheid dates back to the country's founding in 1948 and has materialized in abuses including massive seizures of Palestinian land and property, unlawful killings, forcible transfer, drastic movement restrictions, and the denial of nationality and citizenship to Palestinians — all of which constitute apartheid under international law. We speak with Amnesty International USA's executive dir…
(2022-02-03). Jan Egeland on Afghanistan Facing Famine, a Massacre in DR Congo & Civilian Casualties in Syria. democracynow.org 
The United Nations warns Afghanistan is "hanging by a thread" as millions in the country suffer from hunger and are at risk of freezing to death during the winter as U.S. sanctions have devastated the economy. We get an update on what is now the world's largest humanitarian crisis from Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council. He also discusses how the NRC has condemned the deadly attack on a camp for displaced people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the organization's humanitarian concerns after the U.S. raid in Syria targeting an ISIS leader that reportedly killed at least 13, inc…
(2022-02-03). US Exacts Revenge on Afghanistan for its Defiance. journal-neo.org 
Ever since the Taliban (an organization deemed terrorist and banned in Russia) took control of Afghanistan last August amid a shameful and chaotic US withdrawal, the country, ravaged by war and occupation for 20 years, has plunged deeper and deeper into disaster, causing new waves of displacement, further impoverishing it and raising the specter of …
(2022-02-03). The Year of the Tiger Starts With a Sino-Russian Bang. strategic-culture.org The Year of the Black Water Tiger will start, for all practical purposes, with a Beijing bang this Friday, as Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, after a live meeting before the initial ceremony of the Winter Olympics, will issue a joint statement on international relations. | That will represent a crucial move in the Eurasia vs. NATOstan chessboard, as the Anglo-American axis is increasingly bogged down in Desperation Row: after all, "Russian aggression" stubbornly refuses to materialize. | After an interminable wait arguably due to the lack of functionaries properly equipped to write an intelligible lett…
(2022-02-03). Food for thought: going beyond 'survival' in Vietnam. asiatimes.com 
My first restaurant opened in Hoi An, then an old trading village, three decades ago. At the time, Vietnam was cut off from the Western world because of a trade embargo designed to invert the result of what we called the American War. But we persevered, and shortly after I served my first meals, a …
(2022-02-03). Peltier has COVID-19: President Joe Biden, Do The Right Thing, Free Leonard! covertactionmagazine.com On January 28th, Brian Schatz, (D-Hawai'i), chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs urged President Biden to commute …
(2022-02-03). As oil giants announce massive profits, BP oil refinery worker in Indiana declares: "We're ready to strike" wsws.org Oil workers are angered over being kept in the dark by the United Steelworkers (USW) and are ready to fight the highly profitable oil giants.
(2022-02-03). Mysterious Group Claims Responsibility For Rocket Attack On Turkish Base In Iraq (Videos, Photos). southfront.org 
FILE PHOTO: Turkish soldiers seen at the border town of Akcakale © Reuters / Murad Sezer | Early on February 3, a rocket attack targeted a Turkish military base located near the town of Zaylkan in Bashiqa district in the northern Iraqi province of Nineveh. | Several news sources reported that 18 Grad rockets hit the base and its vicinity. One of these sources, the Sabereen News channel on Telegram, claimed that more than a dozen Turkish service members were killed or wounded as a result of the rocket attack. The Turki…
(2022-02-03). Headlines for February 3, 2022. democracynow.org U.S. to Deploy 3,000 Additional Troops to Eastern Europe Amid Tensions over Ukraine, Witnesses Say U.S. Raid That Killed ISIS Leader in Syria Left Civilians Dead, Pentagon Sends Warship and Planes to UAE; Saudi Arabia and Israel Hold Joint Naval Exercises, Militia Attacks DRC Camp for Displaced People, Killing 60, Pfizer Asks FDA to Approve COVID Vaccine for Young Kids Despite Mixed Clinical Trial Results, Ecuadorian Court Rejects Oil Drilling on Indigenous Lands in Amazon Rainforest, Biden Renominates Former Chevron Lawyer First Tapped by Trump to Become Federal Judge, Senate Forges Ahead with Judicial Confirmat…
(2022-02-03). Instead of Freeing Palestinian Prisoners, New Scheme Aims at Punishing Their Families. dissidentvoice.org 
A scheme is underway to withhold or to reduce payments made by the Palestinian Authority to the families of Palestinian prisoners. According to Israeli media, the Biden Administration has requested that the PA entirely overhauls its support system of Palestinian prisoners. The Palestinian leadership had already expressed willingness to engage the US in a 'discussion'. …
(2022-02-03). 'Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy': Rediscovering the wheel. peoplesworld.org 
The films of Japanese film director and screenwriter Ryusuke Hamaguchi lodge in your brain and heart like small incendiary devices, ticking from his self-awareness toward yours. What did the character mean by that? How does that change her life? Where are we going with this anyway? They are the slowly digestible complexities of people discovering …
(2022-02-03). Is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea Beginning to Open Up? journal-neo.org 
After a year and a half of interruption, North Korea has reopened rail connections with China. Since the end of January 2020, the DPRK has halted cross-boarder railway services. Even though on June 26, 2020 one freight train passed from Hunchun (a border city in China's Jilin province) to Tumangang station on the North Korea-Russian …
(2022-02-03). Black Woman President Of ABC News Suspends Whoopi Goldberg For Two Weeks Over Holocaust Comments. moguldom.com Iconic Hollywood star and TV host Whoopi Goldberg was suspended from popular morning show "The View" on Tuesday, Feb. 1, by ABC News President Kim Godwin after making inaccurate claims about the Holocaust. "Effective immediately, I am suspending Whoopi Goldberg for two weeks for her wrong and hurtful comments," Godwin said in a statement. "While …
(2022-02-03). The Russians Are Coming: Are Beijing and Moscow at the Cusp of a Formal Alliance? dissidentvoice.org It should matter little to the Chinese that American diplomats and a handful of their western allies will not be attending the Beijing Winter Olympics in February. What truly matters is that the Russians are coming. The above is not an arbitrary statement. It is supported with facts. According to a survey conducted by China's Global …
(2022-02-03). Attacks on Pakistan military bases leaves 19 soldiers killed. en.mehrnews.com Insurgents in the Pakistani province of Balochistan attacked two military bases overnight, killing four soldiers while losing 15 of their own men, a top official said on Thursday.
(2022-02-03). Filipino ex-militant and peace consultant's killing raises many questions. peoplesdispatch.org The banned Communist Party of the Philippines has questioned the military's narrative surrounding the death of Pedro Codaste and alleged that he was kidnapped and tortured before being killed…
(2022-02-03). US to deploy advanced fighter jets and warships in UAE amid escalation in Yemen war. peoplesdispatch.org 
A year ago, the Joe Biden administration had announced the end of US' role in the Saudi Arabia and UAE-led war in Yemen which has killed hundreds of thousands and caused the world's largest humanitarian crisis…
(2022-02-03). Breaking: Special Forces Land In Syria's Greater Idlib, Engage Militants In Kill Or Capture Operation. southfront.org 
File image. | Early on February 3, a suspected US special force landed from several helicopters near the northern Syrian town of Atimah right on the border line with Turkey. | The force came from the direction of Syria's northeastern region, where the US-led coalition maintains a number of bases. | After landing, the force, which was backed by several attack helicopters, combat drones and fighter jet, engaged in fierce clashes with unidentified militants while apparently carrying out a kill or capture operation.
(2022-02-03). Military Situation In Syria On February 3, 2022 (Map Update). southfront.org 
Click to see full-size image | On February 3, the Russian Ministry of Defence recorded no hostilities and ceasefire violations in Idlib region in the past 24 hours; | On February 3, the US special forces backed by several attack helicopters, combat drones and warplanes attacked Atmah town in Idlib province. 13 people were reportedly killed in the attack; | On February 3, the SDF security operation aimed to arrest ISIS members continue in the city of Hasakah; | On February 3, the US killed Abu Ibr…
(2022-02-03). Multiple Casualties Reported as US Conducts 'Counterterrorism' Raid in Syria – Video. sputniknews.com Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said on Thursday that US Special Operations units have successfully completed a counterterrorism mission in northwestern Syria.
(2022-02-03). US operation in Syria leaves at least 10 killed, incl. kids. en.mehrnews.com Local media in Syria reported that at least 10 people were killed during a heliborne operation carried out by the US troops in the northern suburbs of Idlib, Syria.
(2022-02-03). In Video: Russian Advisors Train Syrian Soldiers On Man-Portable Air-Defense Systems. southfront.org 
Screen grab from RT video. | Russian military advisors had been training Syrian Arab Army (SAA) soldiers on the use of man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADs), RT reported on January 31. | According to the Russian network, Russian advisors and SAA officers developed a new training program that reduces the time needed to train soldiers on portable air-defense systems from six months to two weeks. | During the short training program, soldiers are taught how to identify, track and fire at fighter jets and drones as well as…
(2022-02-03). Escalation Between Turkish Forces & SDF Continues In Northern & Northeastern Syria (Photos). southfront.org 
File image. | Escalation between Turkish forces and the Kurdish-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) continues in Syria's northern and northeastern regions. | On February 3, SDF fighters targeted a vehicle of the Turkish military that was moving along the border with the Syrian town of al-Darbasiyah, which is located in the northern al-Hasakah countryside. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) claimed that the attack resulted in casualties, without providing any addition details. | In an apparent response t…
(2022-02-03). Between Russia and the USA: Will Turkey's Zigzags Work in the 'Ukraine Crisis'? strategic-culture.org It is not possible to be at more than one table at the same time, especially in topics such as Ukraine, where tensions are at critical levels, Erkin àñncan writes. | It would be more appropriate to call this crisis a 'Russia-US/NATO crisis', rather than Russia-Ukraine. | While the Western world continues its strategy of containing Russia at full speed, under the leadership of the USA, the Western media (propaganda device at all) continues to pump the opposite narrative: the so-called Russian occupation. | The 'Russian occupation' narrative featured in the Western media is actually not about the steps that…
(2022-02-03). DM: Ukraine, Turkey sign agreement to produce Turkish combat drones for war in Donbass. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Reznikov Announces Signing Of Framework Agreement With Turkey On Construction Of Bayraktar Drone Plant In Ukraine Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov announced the signing of a framework agreement with Turkey on the construction of a Bayraktar drone plant in Ukraine. *** Reznikov said that a delegation of the Republic of Turkey would be visiting Ukraine today. …
(2022-02-03). Situation in Turkey is Putting Erdogan's Abilities to the Test. journal-neo.org 
In the last few years, Turkey's economy has been caught in a drawn-out recession, largely due to the increasing costs related to the current model of economic growth. And as the economy is deteriorating, so is the political and economic situation in the country, forcing President Erdogan to make choices which are far from popular. …
(2022-02-03). At least 12 refugees die of cold on Greece-Turkey border. peoplesdispatch.org 
Both Turkey and Greece have blamed each other for the tragic deaths, with the Turkish interior minister calling the European Union's policy of pushing back refugees "inhuman"