(2020-01-15). Trump deal instead of Iran nuclear deal? I agree! US president gives Twitter nod to BoJo. rt.com 
Boris Johnson's suggestion that the 2015 Iran nuclear deal be replaced with a new one — named after Donald Trump — received an enthusiastic response from the US president. | "Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, stated, 'We should replace the Iran deal with the Trump deal.' I agree!" Trump proclaimed in a tweet released Wednesday. | Earlier, Johnson said he understands American concerns over the "flawed" 2015 pact with Iran, which saw the Islamic Republic dramatically reducing its nuclear program in exchange for lifting crippling economic sanctions. | Prime Minister of the United Ki…
(2020-01-15). EU Nations Push Iran in Last-Ditch Bid to Save Nuclear Deal. truthdig.com 
Britain, France and Germany trigger pact's dispute mechanism, starting the clock on a process that could result in more sanctions on Iran.
(2020-01-15). 'Why do you allow the United States to bully you?' — Iranian FM to Europe over nuclear deal tensions. rt.com 
Iranian FM Zarif criticized the European decision to trigger an investigation into Tehran's alleged non-compliance with the nuclear deal — asking why it allows "bullying" from the United States, who derailed the agreement. | During an international conference in New Delhi, Iranian FM Mohammad Javad Zarif was asked about the fate of the 2015 nuclear deal. The agreement went downhill in May 2018 when the US dropped out, then re-imposing sweeping sanctions and vowing to pile "maximum pressure" on Iran. | On Tuesday, the European trio triggered an investigation after Iran announced that it will move beyond u…
(2020-01-15). Constitution & citizens' rights to define the use of international law on Russian soil — Putin. rt.com 
Vladimir Putin has proposed a major amendment ensuring that provisions of international law can only be applied in Russia if they don't come into conflict with the constitution or abuse rights and liberties of Russian citizens. | "I believe that the time has come to make some changes to the basic law of the country, which directly guarantees the priority of the Russian constitution in our legal environment," President Putin said as he delivered his annual state-of-the-nation address on Wednesday. | In some cases, Russia's governing document may be placed above international legislation, he explained. | This li…
(2020-01-15). Putin proposes major amendments to Russia's constitution incl. about his own post, says people should vote on changes. rt.com 
The constitution should take priority over international law if the latter violates the rights of Russian citizens or violates Russia's constitutional principles, President Vladimir Putin has proposed. | Amendments to the constitution could be put to a popular vote to ensure "the development of Russia as a welfare and rule-of-law state," the Russian leader said in his annual state of the nation address. | Adopting a brand new constitution is not necessary because the current one will remain relevant for many years to come, Putin explained. But he did suggest some changes he'd like to see. | Domestic v inte…
(2020-01-15). The prosecution of Julian Assange, the destruction of legality and the rise of the national security state. wsws.org The political and legal attack on Assange represents a qualitative intensification of the destruction of core rights and, indeed, on legality itself as the mode of bourgeois rule.
(2020-01-15). IACHR Denounces Ecuadorian Govt. Repression In October Protests. telesurenglish.net The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) presented on Tuesday a report on its visit to Ecuador last October, when massive protests took place against the neoliberal measures promoted by President Lenin Moreno. | RELATED: | Ecuador Buys $4m Worth of Non-Lethal Weapons for Armed Forces | The IACHR report states that "the acts of protest, in…
(2020-01-15). Facebook's Soleimani Ban Flies in Face of First Amendment. zcomm.org If sanctions can be invoked by a social media network to take down certain content, what is next?>
(2020-01-15). Lavrov: Russia to Continue De-Dollarisation Drive Amid 'Increasingly Aggressive' US Sanctions Policy. sputniknews.com Once one of the largest national investors in US Treasury obligations and the US dollar, Russia has been shrinking its holdings substantially in recent years as relations with Washington continue to sour.
(2020-01-15). An interview with historian Clayborne Carson on the New York Times' 1619 Project. wsws.org Professor Carson is professor of history at Stanford University and director of its Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute. He is the author and editor of numerous books on King and the civil rights movement.
(2020-01-15). US expects UN sanctions on Iran to 'snap back into place'. yenisafak.com The United States believes international sanctions on Iran will be swiftly reimposed now that France, Britain and Germany have formally triggered a mechanism to help enforce Iran's nuclear agreement, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday."I've had very direct discussions – as well as Secretary Pompeo has – with our counterparts," Mnuchin told CNBC. "I think you saw the E3 did put out the statement and have activated the dispute resolution. And we look forward to working with them quickly and would expect that the U.N. sanctions will snap back into place."
(2020-01-15). Women's March SF 2020: Human Rights Watch Contingent. indybay.org Women's March SF, Civic Center/UN Plaza, San Francisco, CA 94102…
(2020-01-15). Putting the truth behind bars. workers.org 
Did you know that one of the most protected rights in this country is the right of the government to lie to the people? That is the essence of the persecution being carried out right now against Chelsea Manning and Julian Assange. Manning was a U.S. Army intelligence analyst based . . . | Continue reading Putting the truth behind bars at Workers.org
(2020-01-14). Johnson calls for 'Trump deal' to resolve Iran tensions. thecanary.co 
Donald Trump should produce a replacement for the Iran nuclear deal, Boris Johnson said as he called for tensions in the Gulf to be "dialled down".The UK, along with European allies, has remained part of the troubled nuclear deal despite the US president's opposition.The prime minister said one of the problems the American leader had with the agreement was that it was negotiated by his predecessor, Barack Obama, so putting in a replacement "Trump deal" would be a way out of the current crisis. | The US has pulled out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which eased sanctions in return for Iran agree…
(2020-01-14). The World Must End The US' Illegal Economic War. dissidentvoice.org 
The United States is relying more heavily on illegal unilateral coercive measures (also known as economic sanctions) in place of war or as part of its build-up to war. In fact, economic sanctions are an act of war that kills tens of thousands of people each year through financial strangulation. An economic blockade places a …
(2020-01-14). "Morir Soñando": Martín Espada Reads Poem About Luis Garden Acosta, Young Lord & Community Activist. democracynow.org 
Last week marked the first anniversary of the passing of Luis Garden Acosta, the founder and longtime president of the nationally known El Puente youth and community leadership program in Brooklyn. Long regarded as one of New York City's foremost human rights and Latino community activists, Garden Acosta died last January at the age of 72. A former seminarian who had been active in the Catholic antiwar movement, Garden Acosta joined the Young Lords Party in 1970 and later founded that group's Massachusetts chapter while he was still a student at Harvard Medical School. He went on to pioneer successful nonviolent…
(2020-01-14). Almost 1,000 Migrants Returned to Libya This Year Already: IOM. telesurenglish.net More than 950 refugees and migrants, among them 136 women and 85 children were intercepted in the Mediterranean in the first two weeks of 2020 and returned to inhumane detention centers in war-ravaged Lybia, one of the least safe countries for them, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). | RELATED: | African Migrants in Egypt Face Increasingly Violent Racism | "
(2020-01-14). The US Is Waging a Stealth War at the Mexico Border. truthout.org In recent decades, U.S. immigration policies have aggressively targeted families fleeing violence and poverty in Mexico and Central and South America, spawning a network of detention centers that now exist indefinitely along our southern border. The U.S.'s approach to tackling undocumented immigration has come under fire for its use of brutal tactics such as deliberately separating families, placing them in confinement under harsh conditions, and denying them adequate medical and legal counsel. | On today's program, Joh…
(2020-01-14). The Trump Administration Weakens Standards for ICE Detention Facilities. aclu.org Last month, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officially released a new version of its National Detention Standards (NDS), which govern the treatment of immigrant detainees held in almost 140 facilities in 44 states. These facilities include local and state jails and prisons — some operated by private prison companies — under contract with ICE. Despite being considered "civil detention," almost 20 percent of ICE detainees are held in these jails and prisons, many of which are located in remote, rural locations. | ICE describes its…
(2020-01-14). The World Must End the US' Illegal Economic War. Sanctions Imposed on 39 Countries. globalresearch.ca The United States is relying more heavily on illegal unilateral coercive measures (also known as economic sanctions) in place of war or as part of its build-up to war. In fact, economic sanctions are an act of war that kills …
(2020-01-14). US Police Remove Housing Rights Activists From Oakland Home. telesurenglish.net Members of the advocacy group Moms 4 Housing were forcibly evicted Tuesday morning by heavily armored police from a home they were occupying in Oakland. | RELATED: | US Gov't Criminalizes Homeless People, Ignores Causes: Analyst | The expulsion occurred despite community members gathered in force and in great numbers to show support for the collective of homeless and marginally housed mothers, working to end the housing crisis in the Bay Area. | "We've built a movement of thousa…
(2020-01-14). US Sanctions Venezuela's New Parliament Leader, Senior Opposition Lawmakers. venezuelanalysis.com The legislature's new opposition leadership "categorically" rejected the sanctions.
(2020-01-14). NGOs Urge UN to Disclose Firms Involved in Israel's Settlements. telesurenglish.net Ramallah-based human rights group Al-Haq released Tuesday a statement urging the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and its chief Michelle Bachelet to publish a database listing companies that "directly and indirectly, enabled, facilitated and profited from the construction and growth of the settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory." | RELATED: | Netanyahu Pledges ICC Investigation Won't Impede Settlements | The d…
(2020-01-14). Iran to Sue the US and Trump for Killing General Soleimani. globalresearch.ca According to Iran's Judiciary Spokesman Gholamhossein Esmayeeli, the country's ruling authorities will sue the US in international courts for Soleimani's assassination. | "This brutal act was a violation of human rights and all international rules," Esmayeeli stressed, adding: | "Martyr Soleimani …
(2020-01-14). US Clearing Anti-War Voices Off Social Media. theantimedia.com (TMU) — Instagram and its parent company Facebook are removing posts that appear to be in support of the late Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani in order to comply with U.S. sanctions, a company spokesperson recently told CNN. "We operate under U.S. sanctions laws, including those related to the U.S. government's designation of the IRGC and …
(2020-01-14). Venezuela Condemns US Sanctions Against Assembly's New Leadership. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's government denounced Monday a new attack by the United States of unilateral and coercive sanctions against Venezuelan officials, including lawmakers from the opposition who were elected on Jan. 5 as the National Assembly's new leadership. | RELATED: | Desperate Juan Guaido Vows Again to Plunder teleSUR's Signal | In the statement released by Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza on his Twitter account, the authorities said that U.S.'s President Donald Trump's adminis…
(2020-01-14). Even When You Change Its Name, Solitary Confinement Is Torture. truthout.org This piece was co-published with Solitary Watch. | If he took 13 steps in his size 11 shoes, Brandon Serna had walked the length of his cell. If he took more than six steps, he'd walked its width. For more than one year, the 40-year-old spent over 16 hours each day locked in this cell with his 30-year-old cellmate. | This is life in the "restricted movement" unit (RMU) at Indiana's Wabash Valley Correctional Facility. I…
(2020-01-14). Minutes After His Release, Soldiers Abduct A Palestinian Who Spent 18 Years In Prison. imemc.org The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported that Israeli soldiers abducted, Tuesday, a Palestinian man just minutes after his release from prison, after he was held captive for 18 years. The PPS said the Palestinian political prisoner, Ismael Affana, from occupied East Jerusalem, was released from the Negev Detention Camp, …
(2020-01-14). Israel Extends Detention of Two Palestinian Prisoners, Days Before Release. imemc.org The Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) said the Israeli government renewed the administrative detention of Shorouq al-Badan, 25, for six more months, on Monday, only two days before her scheduled release, the Palestinian News and Info Agency (WAFA) reported. Badan, from Bethlehem, was arrested July 2019, and was supposed to be …
(2020-01-14). Detainee Zahran Suspends Hunger Strike. imemc.org The Palestinian Commission of Detainees' and Ex-Detainees Affairs has reported that detainee Ahmad Zahran, 42, has suspended the hunger strike, which lasted for 113 days, after reaching an agreement with the Israeli Prison Authority regarding his continued Administrative Detention without charges or trial. Lawyer Jawad Bulus, the head of the …
(2020-01-14). Stop NSO Group Exporting Spyware to Human Rights Abusers in Israel. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-01-14). Guatemalan Indigenous leader Daniel Pascual denounces political persecution. peoplesdispatch.org On January 14, the legal process against Guatemalan Indigenous leader Daniel Pascual is set to begin. Pascual is accused of defamation, slander and injury by the son of a high-ranking military official and interior minister during the dictatorship of Ríos Montt. | According to Pascual's organization the Committee for Peasant Unity -CUC- the charges are unfounded and in violation of the Constitution as well as several international conventions that Guatemala has ratified. Due to his visible role in the defense of human rights and vulnerable communities in Guatemala, Pascual has long been subjected to a systematic…
(2020-01-14). Chile: NIHR Asks To Investigate Chemicals Used By Riot Police. telesurenglish.net The Chilean National Institute of Human Rights (NIHR) informed this Monday that it will ask the Ministry of Health and the police (Carabineros) to investigate which chemicals were used against this weekend's demonstrations. | RELATED: | Chile Charges State Oil Company Over Environmental Failures | The entity indicated on its website that this event wa…
(2020-01-14). Colombia: 'Staggering number' of human rights defenders killed in 2019. news.un.org The UN human rights office, OHCHR, is "deeply troubled by the staggering number of human rights defenders killed in Colombia" last year, its spokesperson said on Tuesday.
(2020-01-14). India's Kashmiri Detainee Self-Censorship Demand Is Undemocratic. asia-pacificresearch.com …
(2020-01-14). Selected Articles: Iran to Sue the US and Trump for Killing General Soleimani. globalresearch.ca 
SELECTED ARTICLES FROM GLOBAL RESEARCH | . | | India's Kashmiri Detainee Self-Censorship Demand Is Undemocratic | By Andrew Korybko, January 14, 2020 | India's demand that thousands of Kashmiri detainees sign a bond that commits them to not to make any comments …
(2020-01-14). Trump Embraces Anti-LGBTQ Pastor Who Pushed "Conversion Therapy" truthout.org Evangelical pastor Robert Jeffress came under fire from civil rights groups last month after delivering a speech at the White House Hanukkah celebration because he had previously said that all Jews are destined for an afterlife in hell. Jeffress's opinions about LGBTQ people are similarly distressing — but not, apparently, to President…
(2020-01-13). Review: "To The Promised Land," King's fight for economic justice. peoplesworld.org 
As we near the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Holiday we would do well to reassess the role that economic justice played in the 1960s civil rights movements, especially for African Americans. Dr. King said in 1967, "It is the black man who to a large extent produced the wealth of this nation…the black man …
(2020-01-13). Israel Breaches Law, Transfers 34 Palestinian Minors From Prisons. telesurenglish.net Israeli Prison Service (IPS) transferred Monday 34 Palestinian children from Ofer prison in Ramallah to Damoun in Haifa without any stated reason and without the presence of adults to represent them. | RELATED: | Embracing Palestine: How to Combat Israel's Misuse of "Antisemitism" | The transfer, common for adults but unusual for child detainees, was slammed by Palestinian activists and rights organizations as illegal and dangerous. | "This move puts the minors at risk o…
(2020-01-13). Venezuela Blames Sanctions After UN Voting Right Suspended. venezuelanalysis.com Venezuela, which has one of the highest UN contribution rates in the region, has not paid its dues since 2018.
(2020-01-13). Big Tech Firms Are Joining Trump's All Out War Against Iran. mintpressnews.com Deleting messages of support for Iran may seem a petty, childish retaliation for opposing the Trump administration, but it has profound ramifications for freedom of access to information.
(2020-01-12). 'Totally up to them': Trump says he 'couldn't care less' if Iran negotiates with US or not. rt.com 
US President Donald Trump said his maximum pressure campaign against Iran is not about bringing it to the negotiating table, but ensuring that Tehran doesn't obtain nuclear weapons or kill protesters. | "Actually, I couldn't care less if they negotiate. Will be totally up to them but, no nuclear weapons and 'don't kill your protesters'," Trump said in a tweet Sunday night, contradicting the narrative of National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien. | National Security Adviser suggested today that sanctions & protests have Iran "choked off", will force them to negotiate. Actually, I couldn't care less if they negot…
(2020-01-12). Ex-US intel officer: Pompeo 'lying through his teeth' on Iran. thegrayzone.com The Trump administration is imposing new sanctions on Iran and defying Iraq's call for a US troop withdrawal. This comes…
(2020-01-11). Salt Lake denounces war on the homeless and war with Iran at four energetic rallies. fightbacknews.org Salt Lake City, UT – The Trump administration rang in the New Year by putting millions of lives at risk with the assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani and threatening a war with Iran. Similarly, Salt Lake City police began 2020 with a violent raid on the homeless community and the organizers fighting to protect them. | Salt Lake residents responded fiercely with no less than three anti-war rallies in the last week, as well as a rally in support of unsheltered folks and tenants' rights. | On January 4, 200 gathered at an event organized by supporters of Bernie Sanders, and on January 8, hundreds more…
(2020-01-10). The Critical Role Auditing Plays in the Battle Against Police Surveillance. therealnews.com 
Auditors across the country are turning the tables on police surveillance. The Police Accountability Report spoke to an auditor who was arrested to understand how filming cops ultimately preserves our civil rights.
(2020-01-10). Pregnant Workers Are Still Fighting for the Right to Work. aclu.org In 2015, | Michelle Durham, an ACLU client, was faced with an impossible choice: | continue working and risk the health of her pregnancy or give up her paycheck. | She was working | as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) for Rural/Metro Corporation, a company | in Alabama that provides emergency medical care to people living in areas that | lack basic medical services. Shortly after joining Rural/Metro Corporation in | Alabama, Michelle learned she was pregnant with her first child and was advised | by her health professional not to lift more than 50 pounds. She was confident | the company would grant her a…
(2020-01-10). Venezuela: Guaido installs parallel parliament, US threatens more sanctions. greenleft.org.au 
Venezuela Ricardo VazIssue 1248 Venezuela Juan Guaido US Vice President Mike PenceJanuary 10, 2020Opposition leader Juan Guaido installed a "parallel" parliament in Caracas on January 7. | The…
(2020-01-09). Andrew Bacevich: Trump Sparked "Unnecessary Crisis" by Killing Soleimani, Barely Avoiding War. democracynow.org 
President Trump vowed on Wednesday to hit Iran with new sanctions but appeared to pull back from taking any new military action. Tension between the two countries soared after the U.S. assassinated Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani at the Baghdad International Airport last week. Early on Wednesday, Iran retaliated by firing 22 ballistic missiles at military bases in Iraq housing U.S. forces, but no one was injured in the attack. Iran had warned the Iraqi government about the strike in advance. Two small rockets also later hit the Green Zone near the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. During a televised address on Wednesda…
(2020-01-09). International Criminal Court Prepares to Try Israelis over War Crimes. therealnews.com 
Shawan Jabarin of the Al-Haq human rights organization discusses the International Criminal Court decision to prepare a lawsuit against the state of Israel regarding war crimes committed against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. Israeli authorities are already panicking.
(2020-01-08). Trump Announces Additional 'Punishing' Sanctions on Iran. therealnews.com 
Updated 1: 15 PM ET | U.S. President Donald Trump made a statement Wednesday morning at 11: 30 AM EST and announced that Iran "appears to be standing down" following strikes on U.S. air bases in Iraq. He said there were no American or Iraqi casualties resulting from the attacks. | Trump said that while the U.S. was evaluating its options, it would "immediately impose additional punishing sanctions" against Iran until it "changes its behavior." He called Iran the "leading sponsor of terrorism" and repeatedly said that he would not allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons. Since 2017, the Trump administration has impose…