(2020-04-25). "Sanctioned Countries" Are Now Leading the World in the Fight Against Coronavirus. globalresearch.ca After weeks of dismissing it as a liberal "hoax" designed to unseat the president, brushing the virus off as no big deal and under control, the Trump administration is clearly floundering in its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite …
(2020-04-25). 'Iran will never initiate any conflict in the region,' Rouhani says amid raging tensions with US. rt.com 
Tehran will not be the instigator of hostilities with the US in the region, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has said. The countries traded military threats earlier this week. | Rouhani made his comments during a phone call with the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, on Saturday. "The Islamic Republic of Iran closely monitors and tracks the activities and movements of the Americans, but will never initiate any conflict or tension in the region," he said. | At the same time, Rouhani reiterated that Tehran considers the US sanctions against the country illegal under international law, and said that they are…
(2020-04-25). Sean Hannity and Rick Scott's best sheriff friend under DOJ and Fl DOH investigation. indybay.org The Justice Department and Florida Department of Health are investigating Sheriff Carmine Marceno for civil rights abuses, human rights abuses, ADA violations and felony abuse of disabled adults.
(2020-04-25). SF May Day Car Caravan: Cancel Rent, Homes For All, Debt Free Future! indybay.org Meet up location, route and details coming soon!
(2020-04-25). Iran exports products to 128 world countries despite sanctions: IRICA. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 25 (MNA) — In spite of cruel sanctions imposed against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the country managed to export products to 128 countries, said President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) Mehdi Mir-Ashrafi on Friday.
(2020-04-25). The moral side of the epidemic. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 25 (MNA) — Now the shoe is on the other foot. The timing couldn't be better for Americans to experience first-hand a downturn economy; a chronic pain Iranians have endured for four decades under US-led sanctions. The novel coronavirus is all over the place.
(2020-04-24). The Courts Won't Free Migrant Children Because of COVID-19. We Must. truthout.org Migrant child detention is in the national spotlight again. Because of COVID-19, a U.S. District Court is considering mass release of children from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) custody. Like many times before, coverage of this story has not included voices of community and family members who have resisted migrant child detention for years. My organization,
(2020-04-24). During Coronvrius: Cuba to the Rescue, But Don't Tell the American people. mintpressnews.com Anti-Cuba zealots in the Trump administration have been enticing Cuban doctors working overseas to defect, paying journalists to write negative stories, slapping sanctions on Cubans in charge of the program, and strong-arming countries to expel Cuban doctors.
(2020-04-24). Judge shoots down California law mandating background checks for ammunition buyers, citing 'grave injury' to 2nd Amendment. rt.com 
A federal judge has overturned a law forcing Californians to undergo background checks when buying ammunition, arguing the rule set fire to the Second Amendment and deprived citizens of their right to bear arms. | US District Judge Roger Benitez blocked the 2016 law on Thursday from a San Diego courtroom, penning a lengthy 120-page opinion slamming "onerous and convoluted" laws and regulations that trample rights guaranteed under the Constitution. | "The experiment has been tried. The casualties have been counted. California's new ammunition background check law misfires and the Second Amendment rights of Cali…
(2020-04-24). They Were Willing to Make the Ultimate Sacrifice for the U.S., but Trump Won't Let Them Become Americans. aclu.org 
Ange Samma, a 22-year-old green card holder from Burkina Faso, came to the United States seven years ago, when he was still a teenager. After studying electrical engineering at community college, he decided to enlist in the U.S. Army in 2018. He wanted to give back to his adopted country and also hoped joining the military would help him achieve his goal of becoming an electrical engineer. , , Ange currently serves on active duty as a soldier in South Korea. But despite serving this country on a U.S. military base in a foreign country, he still hasn't been able to obtain citizenship through his military servic…
(2020-04-24). Up in smoke: Mike Tyson's CBD business partner targets naming rights for Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium. rt.com 
For the first time ever, Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium's naming rights are up for grabs, and a British billionaire who helped launch Mike Tyson's CBD company is believed to be one of the strong contenders to land the deal. | The Catalan club revealed this week that they intend to seek a sponsor for their 99,000 capacity arena in the heart of Barcelona and donate the proceeds to the fight against coronavirus. | It will be the first time in the club's history that they have made such a money-spinning move, and comes three seasons before the club has plans to do so, but the extent of the COVID-19 outbreak in Spain…
(2020-04-24). "We Don't Have the Capacity to Treat": Palestinian-Canadian Doctor Says Israel Must Lift Gaza Siege. democracynow.org 
As fears continue to grow about what a rampant outbreak of the coronavirus might do to the occupied Palestinian territory, already crippled by years of Israeli sanctions, we get an update from Dr. Tarek Loubani, Palestinian-Canadian doctor and emergency physician who volunteers in the Gaza Strip and returned from a trip there last month. "Testing is severely limited," he says. "There have been fewer tests in Gaza so far throughout the entire pandemic than there were in South Korea yesterday."
(2020-04-24). Bachelet Denounces Violence Against Journalists During Pandemic. telesurenglish.net Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, expressed April 24, her concern about journalists and mass media censorship during the Covid-19. Bachelet also stated several governments exert pressure over communication professionals. | RELATED: | "Some states have used the outbreak of the new coronavirus as a pretext to restrict information and stifle criticism," the UN representative said. According to Bachelet, rel…
(2020-04-24). PCHR: Weekly Report on Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (16 — 22 April 2020). imemc.org Palestinian Center for Human Rights Summary of Israeli Violations of Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (16-22 April, 2020) Israeli occupation forces (IOF) continued to violate Palestinians' human rights and commit crimes against civilians and their properties, conducting raids into Palestinian cities without regard to the state of emergency …
(2020-04-24). 'No time to blame the messenger' warns UN rights chief, amidst media clampdowns surrounding COVID-19. news.un.org The coronavirus pandemic has spawned new threats to press freedom in some countries, according to the UN human rights chief, who declared on Friday that "credible, accurate reporting is a lifeline for all of us".
(2020-04-24). Florida voting rights trial to be argued online. splcenter.org When the Southern Poverty Law Center goes to trial next week over a law undercutting the biggest expansion of suffrage since the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the judge will not be on the bench, but in a remote location, staring at his computer screen.
(2020-04-24). We're Going to Court on April 27 to Strike Down This Poll Tax for Good. aclu.org On April 27, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), ACLU of Florida, and our litigation partners will go to trial in U.S. District Court against the state of Florida to win the ability to vote for hundreds of thousands of eligible state voters now being denied that basic right. | In November 2018, more than 64 percent of Florida voters approved Amendment 4, returning the right to vote to Floridians convicted of felonies who completed their sentence and supervision. The only persons excluded are those convicted of homicide or sexual crimes. | Immediately, the Florida Legislature set out to undermine voters'
(2020-04-24). Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Responds to CDC's Preliminary Release of COVID-19 Race Data. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-04-24). Despite US Sanctions, Iran Launches Military Satellite for Defense. globalresearch.ca On April 22, the 41st IRGC commander …
(2020-04-24). Solidarity over sanctions. nationofchange.org By not responding to the global health crisis in a humane way, the American foreign policy establishment and many of its allies are eroding the country's soft power and risk having much less influence over world affairs when it passes.
(2020-04-24). Israeli Forces Detain 14 Palestinians, including Former Prisoner. imemc.org Israeli occupation forces invaded West Bank towns, early Thursday morning, and detained 14 Palestinians, the Palestinian WAFA News Agency reported. In the northern occupied West Bank, soldiers stormed Tulkarem and detained a former prisoner. Also in the northern West Bank district of Jenin, Israeli troops abducted 2 Palestinian men from …
(2020-04-23). UN chief warns that coronavirus pandemic is becoming a 'human rights crisis'. thecanary.co 
UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has said the coronavirus pandemic is "a human crisis that is fast becoming a human rights crisis".The UN chief issued a video message warning there is discrimination in the delivery of public services to tackle coronavirus (Covid-19) and there are "structural inequalities that impede access to them".He said the pandemic has also seen "disproportionate effects on certain communities, the rise of hate speech, the targeting of vulnerable groups, and the risks of heavy-handed security responses undermining the health response".He warned that with "rising ethno-nationalism, populi…
(2020-04-23). Human rights 'uplift everyone'; must guide COVID-19 recovery response, says UN chief. news.un.org The coronavirus pandemic is not only a critical public health danger, it is also a human, economic and social emergency that is "fast becoming a human rights crisis", the UN chief said on Thursday, releasing a new policy brief on shaping an effective, inclusive response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(2020-04-22). Car caravan to free Gerald Reed, prisoners facing pandemic. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – 100 cars surrounded the Thompson Center in Chicago's Loop, April 20, during Governor J.B. Pritzker's daily press briefing on COVID-19. The caravan protest was held to demand Pritzker free police torture survivor Gerald Reed and all vulnerable prisoners at Cook County Jail, Illinois Department of Corrections prisons and ICE detention centers in Illinois – especially those over 60, those with medical conditions, and those who the governor's own Torture Commission has already confirmed are victims of police torture and therefore wrongfully convicted. | In the lead car of the caravan, Frank Chapman of t…
(2020-04-22). Sanctioned Countries Are Now Leading the World in the Fight Against Coronavirus. mintpressnews.com Countries currently facing US sanctions, around a quarter of the world's population, are faring far better than the United States and leading the global fight against COVID-19.
(2020-04-22). UN rights chief rejects killings acknowledged by Cameroon, and Iran's execution of child offenders. news.un.org The UN's human rights chief has been weighing in on recent killings committed by State authorities, or by rogue members of State military forces, emphasizing that all Governments must strictly abide by international law and hold those who serve, accountable for any violations.
(2020-04-22). How Trump's Foreign Policy Puts Troops at Risk of Covid-19. thenation.com How Trump's Foreign Policy Puts Troops at Risk of Covid-19…
(2020-04-24). Iran 'honored' to cut corona deaths to a third amid sanctions: Health Minister. iranian.com The daily death toll and positive cases of coronavirus in Iran have dropped respectively to one third and 40 percent over the course of three weeks, which is a source of honor for the country amid the tough sanctions, Health Minister Saeed Namaki has said. The Iranian health ministry on Friday announced that the total …
(2020-04-23). Sanctioned, Alone, but Still More Efficient: How Iran Fights Coronavirus and the US. iranian.com The 2019—20 coronavirus pandemic is taking a toll all over the globe, causing severe socioeconomic disruption, the stock market crash, millions of job losses,…
(2020-04-23). EU censures US for refusing to ease sanctions on Iran. iranian.com The European Union has censured the United States for refusing to ease sanctions on the Islamic Republic and blocking an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan to Iran to help it fight the COVID-19 pandemic. "We supported first to soften the sanctions and second, the request by Iran to the International Monetary Fund for financial help," EU foreign …
(2020-04-22). Iran Non-Oil Exports Hit $60bln in Two Years. iranian.com Iran has pocketed around $60 billion from exports of products, services and energy since the US withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and imposed its sanctions on the country's sale of crude two years ago. A senior official at the ministry of trade (MIMT) said on Tuesday that Iran had shipped a total of 135 …
(2020-04-21). Death Trap Jail: Pepper-Sprayed, Otay Mesa Detainees Demand Release as COVID-19 Spreads Inside. democracynow.org 
We look at the mounting number of COVID-19 cases inside immigration jails across the country and one of the largest outbreaks at the Otay Mesa Detention Center near San Diego, run by private prison company CoreCivic. Prisoners were told to sign contracts, written only in English, in exchange for receiving face masks. When some refused to sign, guards pepper-sprayed them. This comes as activists say hundreds imprisoned in detention centers in California are on hunger strike. We get an update from Ruth Mendez, community activist and volunteer with Otay Mesa Detention Resistance.
(2020-04-21). NYC Immigrant Communities Fight Hunger, Exploitation & Invisibility Through Mutual Aid. democracynow.org 
We look at how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting undocumented people here in New York City, where the coronavirus has hit immigrant communities the hardest, even as the numbers of daily deaths statewide has declined in recent days. As reports of widespread poverty and hunger continue in the immigrant communities, people are also organizing and helping each other through mutual aid despite extraordinarily difficult circumstances. We are joined by Juan Carlos Ruiz, Lutheran pastor at Good Shepherd Church in Brooklyn and co-founder of the national New Sanctuary Movement and the New Sanctuary Coalition here in Ne…
(2020-04-21). 'US sanctions prepared Iran to face historic oil crash'. iranian.com First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri says America's tough sanctions targeting Iran's economy and energy sector have helped the Islamic Republic adapt to the historic oil market crash, which has seen US crude futures plunge below zero for the first time in history. "Crises and sanctions [imposed by] the United States of America have enabled us …
(2020-04-20). Human Rights Watch cabildea por sanciones letales contra Nicaragua y Venezuela, mientras arrecia la crisis de Covid-19. thegrayzone.com Human Rights Watch está orgullosamente asumiendo el crédito por sanciones devastadoras contra Nicaragua, mientras busca escalar la guerra económica en…
(2020-04-20). Headlines for April 20, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. Fatalities Top 40,000; Nursing Homes Hit Hard as Death Tolls Soar | , Trump and Governors at Odds over Coronavirus Testing as Uneven Reopening of States Commences, Right-Wing Groups Organize Anti-Lockdown Protests Around the Country | , New Deal on Relief for Small Businesses Could Be Imminent But May Lack Key Democratic Provisions, Immigrant Prisoners at Otay Mesa Launch Hunger Strike, Denounce Inhumane Treatment | , Michael Cohen to Be Released from Federal Detention as Prisoners Nationwide Face Mounting Coronavirus Risk, Italy Records Lowest Daily Death Toll in a Week; Spain & France Also Show Signs of Pr…
(2020-04-20). 'The US Reaction to Pressure to Ease Sanctions Was to Double Down' – CounterSpin interview with Joe Emersberger on sanctions under Covid-19. fair.org 
"If there were an opposition movement in countries like Canada and the United States and Europe, the demand wouldn't just be, 'You gotta stop this'; the demand would actually be, 'Hey, we've got to prosecute the people involved with this. This is killing people. This is a crime. People should be facing legal consequences for this.'"
(2020-04-19). Free the refugees detained in Kangaroo Point at risk of COVID-19. greenleft.org.au 
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(2020-04-17). What it's Like in ICE Detention During a Pandemic. aclu.org As millions of people in the U.S. shelter in their homes, and millions more who aren't able to stay indoors practice social distancing or other measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19, a crisis is brewing in the facilities where immigrants are detained. Cramped conditions and inadequate access to hygiene or medical care have created what one medical expert called a "tinderbox" for the disease in a letter to Congress., , Many of those in detention are asylum seekers, who came to the U.S. to ask for protection after fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries. Many others were long-time U.S. resi…
(2020-04-16). Bolivian coup leader freaks out on The Grayzone for 'fascist' label in complaint to OAS 'human rights' arm. thegrayzone.com The director of far-right Bolivian coup leader Camacho's presidential campaign threw a slander-laced tantrum against The Grayzone in a letter…
(2020-04-13). Congressman John Lewis shares message of support for SPLC's work. splcenter.org Congressman John Lewis has been a tireless champion for equal rights and justice for more than six decades.
(2020-04-10). Mike Elk on Frontline Worker Rights, Joe Emersberger on Pandemic Sanctions. fair.org 
Media…
(2020-04-10). Get-out-the-vote effort goes digital for COVID-19 pandemic. splcenter.org Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Alexis Carr was able to knock on doors in Montgomery, Alabama, register people to vote, instruct them on voting rights and encourage them to cast their ballots on Election Day.
(2020-04-08). Nativist Hate Groups Want to Keep People in ICE Detention Despite COVID-19 Threat. splcenter.org Anti-immigrant think tanks are pushing for the U.S. to detain immigrants and asylum seekers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, even as prisoners stage hunger strikes and other protests in response to what they describe as deteriorating health conditions in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities.
(2020-04-04). Stop Tightening the Thumb Screws: A Humanitarian Message. zcomm.org One way to help others survive is to insist that the United States lift sanctions against Iran and instead support acts of practical care…
(2020-03-13). No, Venezuela does not have a six child per family policy. zcomm.org I respect UK journalist Andrew Buncombe. As I noted for FAIR last year, he was one of the few corporate journalists who reported on a study linking Trump's financial sanctions on Venezuela to thousands of deaths by the end of 2018. Since 2018, Trump has repeatedly intensified the sanctions and threatened Venezuela with military action,
(2020-02-08). Iraq and Russia Prepare to Boost Military Ties as US Threatens Sanctions. theantimedia.com Iraq and Russia are preparing for deepening military coordination.