Daily Archives: June 11, 2020

2020-06-11: News Headlines

Jonathan Cook (2020-06-11). Israel and the US Step Up Efforts to Intimidate the Hague War Crimes Court. globalresearch.ca In the near-two decades since the International Criminal Court was set up to try the worst violations of international human rights law, it has faced harsh criticism for its highly selective approach to the question of who should be put …

Palestinian BDS National Committee (2020-06-11). European Court of Human Rights Deals Major Blow to Israel's War on Palestine Solidarity. globalresearch.ca ECHR rules unanimously that French highest court's criminal conviction of Israel boycott advocates violates the European Convention on Human Rights' freedom of expression article | *** | The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)

Lucas Leiroz de Almeida (2020-06-11). Nord Stream 2 Trade Geopolitics: Towards a US-Germany "Tariff War". Washington Threatens Germany with Sanctions. globalresearch.ca The United States continues to threaten Germany with sanctions if the European country proceeds with the Nord Stream 2 project — a strategic partnership with Russia to build a large gas pipeline that would facilitate the energy flow between Russia …

The Tricontinental (2020-06-10). Dossier 20: Health is a political choice. mronline.org In the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), Article 25 offers an expanded vision of what it could mean to be a human being. Human beings, it notes, have 'the right to a standard of living adequate for [their] health and well-being'. This includes 'food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social …

Stephen Lendman (2020-06-10). Suppressing the Truth, Sustaining The Lie. Censorship is the "New Normal" in America. globalresearch.ca Censorship is the new normal in the US. They're increasingly threatening speech, press, and academic freedoms — how all police states operate. | Tech giants Facebook, Twitter, Google, and others, along with establishment media, are complicit with a campaign to suppress …

news.un (2020-06-10). Rights experts condemn use of force against journalists covering US protests. news.un.org Journalists covering ongoing protests denouncing systemic racism and police brutality in the United States must be able to do their job in peace, two experts on the right to freedom of expression said on Wednesday.

WSWS (2020-06-10). Protests erupt in Syria as the economy collapses. wsws.org The Syrian pound has fallen precipitously following Lebanon's economic crisis last October and now the US's Caesar Act allowing President Donald Trump to impose fresh sanctions.

Matt Cagle (2020-06-10). Microsoft Says it Supports Racial Justice. Will it Refuse to Power Discriminatory Police Surveillance? aclu.org As major tech companies rush to claim solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, they're being rightfully called out for the ways their products and workplace conditions actively undermine the rights and safety of Black people. IBM has listened and

Brasil de Fato (2020-06-10). Victims of neoliberalism, poor countries face consequences in healthcare systems. peoplesdispatch.org Healthcare is a political choice. The statement, presented by the Dossier n ∫ 29 of the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research, launched on Tuesday (9), is based on the crisis scenario deepened by the COVID-19 pandemic in four countries that have suffered the effects of neoliberal governments in recent years: Brazil , Argentina, South Africa, and India. | The study depicts the way in which, during the fight against covid-19, healthcare agents are considered essential, while it is widely recognized that they are not guaranteed many rights. However, the analysis argues that such evident neglect results fr…

teleSUR (2020-06-10). Iran Urges UN to Prevent the US From Extending Sanctions. telesurenglish.net Iran's President Hassan Rohani Wednesday urged members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to curb U.S. attempts to extend sanctions against his country. | RELATED: | Next October, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a 2015 nuclear deal popularly known as "The Arms Embargo", will be lifted as agreed in the UNSC resolution 2231. | Currently, however, the United States does not recognize this international agre…

Jonathan Cook (2020-06-09). The US and Israel Hope to Scare the Hague War Crimes Court off from Helping Palestine. dissidentvoice.org In the near-two decades since the International Criminal Court was set up to try the worst violations of international human rights law, it has faced harsh criticism for its highly selective approach to the question of who should be put on trial. Created in 2002, the court, it was imagined, would act as a deterrent …

news.un (2020-06-09). Arrest of Sudanese war crimes suspect 'extremely significant': UN rights chief. news.un.org The arrest of Ali Muhammad Ali Abd—Al-Rahman, commonly known as Ali Kushayb, an alleged former Janjaweed militia leader in the restive Darfur region of Sudan, has been hailed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, as an "extremely significant development".

Alan MacLeod (2020-06-09). Fake taxis among the latest tools in the NYPD's rights-busting crackdown on protesters. mronline.org The NYPD is famous for violating civil rights so it comes as no surprise that protests over the police brutality in the city have elicited a violent crackdown from the city's finest.

Dale Ho (2020-06-09). We're Working to Safeguard Our Democracy and Our Health. aclu.org No one should have to choose between their health and their vote, but during the Wisconsin primary, an estimated

WSWS (2020-06-09). UK protesters speak on George Floyd demonstrations. wsws.org "America claims to be the 'land of the free,' but protesters are being denied their First Amendment rights"

LaLa B Holston-Zannell (2020-06-10). Sex Work is Real Work, and it's Time to Treat it That Way. aclu.org Sex workers aren't always a part of the conversation about police brutality, but they should be. Police regularly target, harass, and assault sex workers or

RFE (2020-06-10). Iran To Shut Down Several TV Channels Beaming Programs To Other Countries. iranian.com Iran's state television may have to shut down several foreign language channels due to financial strains caused by sanctions, mismanagement, falling viewership figures and long-standing differences between the state broadcaster and the presidential administration. Payman Jebelli, the head of the external services of the Islamic Republic of Iran's Broadcasting organization (IRIB) told Fars news agency …

Staff (2020-06-10). Buffalo Police Assaulted a 75-Year-Old Longtime Peace Activist, Now Trump Is Attacking Him Too. democracynow.org We look at the story of peace activist Martin Gugino, who was hospitalized in critical condition after being pushed to the ground by a police officer in Buffalo last week — an attack captured on video that has been viewed millions of times. On Tuesday, President Trump attacked the 75-year-old activist on Twitter, suggesting he staged his fall and was "an ANTIFA provocateur," echoing baseless claims from a segment on the far-right channel One America News Network. We speak with Lu Aya, a member of the New York-based group The Peace Poets, who organized with Martin in the group Witness Against Torture. "Marti…

Staff (2020-06-09). DACA Recipients "Want to Be in the Streets Building Solidarity" But ICE Arrests 3 at Phoenix Protest. democracynow.org Immigration agents are facing accusations of targeting protesters who are recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. Police in Phoenix, Arizona, arrested community activist Máxima Guerrero as she was leaving a protest on May 30 with a group of legal observers. She was one of three DACA recipients arrested over that weekend in Phoenix. We get an update from Sandra Castro Solis with the Phoenix-based grassroots immigrant justice group Puente Human Rights Movement, who says that despite the risks, "we're in a moment where people want to be out in the streets building that solidarity."

Staff (2020-06-09). Immigration Agents Target People at Police Brutality Protests, Including a U.S. Citizen Military Vet. democracynow.org As protests against police brutality continue nationwide, immigrant rights advocates are sounding the alarm over the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at some of the demonstrations. A viral video showed a group of ICE agents working with the New York City Police Department to detain a protester at a George Floyd rally in New York City last week, and advocates say agents held the man on the ground as they pointed three guns at him and handcuffed and searched him. He was reportedly released after agents found a military veteran's ID on him, and is a U.S. citizen of Puerto Rican descent. We spea…

Staff (2020-06-09). Amid Protests & Pandemic, 200+ Unhoused People Sheltering in Minneapolis Hotel Now Face Eviction. democracynow.org We go to Minneapolis, where the community has taken over a Sheraton hotel to provide shelter to more than 200 unhoused people amid protests and the pandemic. Now they face eviction. "Using hotels for emergency housing is an obvious answer," says Rosemary Fister, community organizer. "They are largely vacant as we enter an economic depression in the midst of a global pandemic."

Pien Huang (2020-06-11). WHO Believes That Mass Protests Are Important Even in a 'Pandemic' Provided They're More Popular Than WHO. anti-empire.com In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization took time at its daily press conference to address another pressing issue: the wave of protests against police violence and racial injustice. The demonstrations began in the U.S. when George Floyd died on May 25 after a police officer had pressed a knee into his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds while detaining him in Minneapolis. | The protests are now spreading around the world to Europe, Africa and other regions. | "WHO fully supports equality and the global movement against racism. We reject discrimination of all kinds," said WHO director…

R. Robertson (2020-06-11). Tsuru for Solidarity Vigil: Black Lives Matter/Free Families Detained by ICE. indybay.org Tsuru for Solidarity, a community of Japanese Americans, supports the Black Lives Matter movement and calls for the release of families detained by ICE. On June 7, at Orange Park in South San Francisco, they offered prayers and performed bon odori dance for all the lives lost to state violence. As part of their sojourn, some laid paper cranes in the memorial garden at the former site of the Tanforan Assembly Center where 7,800 were imprisoned in 1942 for just one "crime"–their Japanese ancestry.

Staff (2020-06-10). Noam Chomsky: Amid Protests and Pandemic, Trump's Priority Is Protecting Profits. truthout.org Many years ago, social scientist Bertram Gross saw "friendly fascism" — an insidious authoritarianism that denies democratic rights for corporate ends without the overt appearance of dictatorship — as a possible political future of the United States. | Today, that future has arrived. Donald Trump has not only consolidated the integration between Big Business and government, but now, with the country in the grip of some of the biggest protests in more than half a century, he is ac…

The Canary (2020-06-10). Met Police accused of racism after rapper Wretch 32's father is Tasered at home. thecanary.co Police are facing calls for a watchdog investigation after rapper Wretch 32's father was Tasered by police in his home. | Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and human rights group Amnesty have urged the Independent Office for Police Conduct to launch an inquiry into what happened. | Oliver Feeley-Sprague from the charity said it "beggars belief" that the Metropolitan Police internal standards department found no misconduct had occurred. | Footage posted online showed 62-year-old Millard Scott tumbling downstairs at his north London home after an officer is heard to warn: "Police officer with a Taser. Stay where you are."

RT (2020-06-10). Call Russia 'sponsor of TERROR'! Imperial-minded House Republicans urge return to Cold War footing & drastic sanctions policy. rt.com The largest House GOP caucus has released a 'national security strategy' that envisions escalating sanctions against China and Russia, more war on terrorism in the Middle East, and a Cold War-type infowar, among other things. | The 120-page It offers a laundry list of possible actions agains…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-10). Trump eying Whites for November elections: West Asia commissioner for human rights. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 10 (MNA) — As the US in engulfed in anti-racism protests following the brutal suffocation of black citizen George Floyd by a white policeman in Minneapolis on May 25, some analysts and politicians are of the opinion that Donald Trump, who is not hiding his racist tendencies, is seeking to use the situation to win the votes of the whites in the November elections.

en.mehrnews (2020-06-10). Be ashamed of crying wolf over detention of an Iranian. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 10 (MNA) — In a tweet on Wednesday, Iran's Ambassador to UK Hamid Baeidinjad lashed out at United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom Woody Johnson for his latest remarks urging the release of the detained Iranian citizen Morad Tahbaz by the Islamic Republic.

Fight Back (2020-06-11). Philippines: Denounce threats against protesters using Covid-19 as pretext. fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement of Marco Valbuena, Chief Information Officer, Communist Party of the Philippines. | The Party denounces the Philippine National Police, whose spokesperson today, June 5, disparaged the mass actions against the Anti-Terror Bill saying the protesters compromised public health. The PNP's statement is a thinly veiled threat against the people's civil and political rights. | The PNP has now set the stage to stop further protest actions in an attempt to stop the mounting protest movement against the ATB. Earlier today, in the name of "public health," polic…

_____ (2020-06-10). The Network In Defense Of Humanity Demands Justice For George Floyd. popularresistance.org The Network in Defense of Humanity adds its voice to those of thousands in the United States and around the world who are demanding Justice for George Floyd. | The image of a man of African descent being killed by a racist policeman is very common in the United States. In fact, the police murder about a thousand people annually; a disproportionate number of them are Black. | George Floyd's murder was no different, but it has been on an exponential level since the scene of his death by torture was documented in detail as he told the white policeman "I can't breathe"—first he appealed to his torturer, then to…

_____ (2020-06-09). Over 600 Groups And Families Of People Killed By Police Call For UN Investigation. popularresistance.org The undersigned family members of victims of police killings and civil society organizations from around the world, call on member states of the UN Human Rights Council to urgently convene a Special Session on the situation of human rights in the United States in order to respond to the unfolding grave human rights crisis borne out of the repression of nationwide protests. The recent protests erupted on May 26 in response to the police murder of George Floyd | in Minneapolis, Minnesota, which was only one of a recent string of unlawful killings of unarmed Black people by police and armed white vigilantes. | We ar…

_____ (2020-06-09). Healthcare Workers: From 'Heroes' To Targets Of Police Repression. popularresistance.org We healthcare workers were arrested and prevented from assessing many protesters with serious injuries who were cuffed on the ground crying for help, some visibly bleeding. Police informed us they had their own medics but had only two FDNY EMTs to triage a crowd of more than a hundred people. Police also refused to allow us to help people whose hands were zip-tied and visibly purple, only loosening ties on one protester, borrowing our shears. After detainees — who were prevented from even shouting their names and identifying information to legal observers nearby — were packed into jail cells scattered…

Kathy Wilkes (2020-06-09). Workers Can Refuse Unsafe Conditions. progressive.org Workers asked to work in situations that present a danger to their health and safety have rights, and they should not be afraid to assert them.

Disability Rights California (2020-06-09). Thursday 6/11: Your Right to Vote, Voice Your Choice! Webinar (Disability Rights CA). indybay.org Online…

Disablity Rights California (2020-06-09). Tuesday 6/9: Su Derecho a Votar – °Exprese Su Elección 2020! (webinar/ en linea). indybay.org Online…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-09). Iran's re-export of fishery products to EU kicks off despite US sanctions. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 09 (MNA) — State Veterinary Medicine Organization on Tue. revealed the re-export of fishery products to the European Union [EU].

yenisafak (2020-06-09). Greece, Italy ink accord on maritime zones. yenisafak.com Greece and Italy on Tuesday signed an accord on maritime boundaries to establish an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between the two countries.The agreement was signed during Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio's visit to the Greek capital Athens.The new agreement is an extension of the agreement signed between the two countries in 1977, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said, adding the rights in the EEZ areas were determined by the new agreement."This is an important development, a historic day," said Dendias, adding the rights of Greek fishermen are guaranteed with the agreement.Maio, for his part, said the…

_____ (2020-06-09). The Rest Of The World Sees Uprisings, Not Riots. popularresistance.org U.S. officials, whether Democrat or Republican, pretend that only other countries violate human rights. Every year, the State Department issues a report on worldwide human rights with the heaviest criticism aimed at enemies du jour such as China, Russia, and Iran. | Human rights, as defined by U.S. officials, include freedom of the press, maintaining an independent judiciary, and civil rights. But most of the world, the United Nations included, goes further, saying human rights include the right to a job, health care, and housing, among other things. | Not surprisingly, U.S. leaders never mention authoritative in…

Leila Rafei (2020-06-08). Three Missouri Voters Explain Why Everyone Should be Able to Vote by Mail in 2020. aclu.org The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way the world operates, but as the presidential election approaches, many states have failed to respond when it comes to voting. The safest way to vote during the pandemic is to

Addison Blu (2020-06-08). Syria Sends Advisors to Aid US Rebels. anti-empire.com WASHINGTON — As the United States works through its immense internal challenges with human rights, equality, and government use of force, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad seeks to help the US in the same way the US helped during the recent Syrian civil war. | "We're sending advisors from our elite special operations units to, you know, help foster peace," Assad told reporters while hiding a smirk. "I can't tell you how valuable it was to have a foreign influence stoking the fires during a period of violent unrest. The least we can do is return the favor." | Assad's aides exchanged high fives in a symbol of…

ahtribune (2020-06-08). Syria: Will the Great Middle Eastern War Begin in the Levant? ahtribune.com The world is in turmoil. 2020 has already brought major multiple crises, with the Iranian-American clash in Iraq which followed the US assassination of Major General Qassem Soleimani, and the COVID-19 health pandemic and economic disaster that struck all continents and stole the lives of over 400 thousand people around the world, costing tens of millions of jobs. None of this, however, prevented America from imposing even more sanctions on Iran, Syria and Venezuela. Iran — already under maximum sanctions since 1979 — sent five tankers to Venezuela to break the embargo on components and spare parts…

RT (2020-06-08). Transparency and change in the US under Democrats? 'Don't be fooled,' says UN torture expert. rt.com The notion that the Democratic Party would be better than Republicans at delivering transparency and accountability is flawed, because US government impunity is "systemic," UN Special Rapporteur on torture Nils Melzer has said. | With the November presidential election looming and protests raging across the US following the police killing of George Floyd, many on the Left are insisting that change will only come if people "vote Democrat" and "vote blue no matter who." | Yet, Democrats taking the wheel in January 2021 would not necessarily bring any significant change in terms of transparency and accountability…

WSWS (2020-06-08). The global protests and the fight against capitalism. wsws.org The global wave of demonstrations against police violence is the response to decades of unending war, the destruction of basic democratic rights, and a massive concentration of wealth in the hands of a tiny ruling elite.

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-06-08). Families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Michael Brown, and Philando Castile Join 600+ Groups Urging UN Probe of US Police Violence. commondreams.org Relatives of four black Americans killed by police—George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Michael Brown, and Philando Castile—joined with over 600 rights groups Monday to demand a United Nations probe into racist policing and law enforcement's violent suppression of ongoing mass protests against police brutality and systemic racism in the United States. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

_____ (2020-06-08). US Veterans, Including Active Duty, Reject Militarization Against Demonstrators. popularresistance.org The United States is in the midst of a mass uprising against police violence, but also a whole list of grievances such as the lack of jobs, health care, education and more. Sustained protests have been going on for two weeks defying curfews and severe repression by police. The national guard has been deployed to 23 states and President Trump threatened to deploy the military against people expressing their First Amendment rights. We speak with Danny Sjursen, a retired Major and spokesperson for About Face: Veterans Against the War, about how members of the military are responding to current events. Veterans have…

Fight Back (2020-06-08). 10,000-plus march against police crimes in Jacksonville FL. fightbacknews.org Jacksonville, FL – On Saturday, June 6, over 10,000 residents of Jacksonville came out to an historic march hosted by the Jacksonville Community Action Committee. This march came a week after 3500 people gathered on the headquarters of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) to demand: Release of body camera footage being held hostage by JSO; an end to excessive force, by instituting community control via a Civilian Police Accountability Council; and transparency in testing and reporting of COVID-19 for those in JSO custody. | With the June 6 march being the largest civil rights demonstration in the city's histor…

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-06-08). Decrying 'Unacceptable' Brutality, UK Lawmakers Join Half a Million Britons in Calling to Halt Tear Gas, Rubber Bullets Exports to US. commondreams.org Calling on the British government to avoid complicity in "a continuous breach of human rights" in the U.S., more than 600,000 Britons on Monday had signed a petition demanding a suspension of tear gas, riot gear, and rubber bullet exports to the country. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-08). US imposes new sanctions against Iranian tankers. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 08 (MNA) — US Treasury Department recently added 125 ships and tankers linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran to its sanctions list.

yenisafak (2020-06-08). Turkey orders 149 people detained for suspected FETàñ links. yenisafak.com Turkish security authorities on Monday launched multiple operations in various provinces to arrest terror suspects affiliated with the FETO