(2021-04-20). President Maduro: US Escalates War, Prevents Vaccine Sales to Venezuela. orinocotribune.com The Venezuelan president denounced threats by the US towards COVID-19 vaccine distribution companies, preventing them from trading with the Bolivarian Republic. | "They have gone so far as to threaten the companies that distribute vaccines with sanctions, if they sell vaccines to Venezuela… Washington has escalated its war against the country," said Nicolás Maduro on Sunday, April 18, during a televised speech. | However, the president said, Venezuelan authorities continue to manage the doses they've acquired to combat the pandemic, despite the illegal economic and commercial blockade by the United States and E…
(2021-04-20). Jurors Deliberate in Derek Chauvin Trial as Prosecution Urges Them to "Believe What They Had Seen" democracynow.org 
As jury deliberations are underway in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged with murder and manslaughter for killing George Floyd last May, we go to Minneapolis to discuss final arguments and what is next in the case. We speak with civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong, who says the prosecution "started strong and ended strong" by reminding "the jury that they could believe what they had seen with their own eyes."
(2021-04-20). The Public Should Have Access to the Surveillance Court's Opinions. aclu.org For decades, a special court—the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, or "FISC"—has issued secret legal opinions authorizing the U.S. government to conduct sweeping programs of electronic surveillance. These opinions have had a profound impact on Americans' rights to privacy, free expression, and free association. But many of them are entirely hidden from public view. | Secret law undermines democracy and the legitimacy of the judicial system—especially when the law being withheld from the public affects the rights of millions of people. So today, the ACLU is asking the Supreme Court to o…
(2021-04-20). AOC's Green New Deal reintroduced as she claims 'trampling of indigenous rights' & 'racial justice' are causes of climate change. rt.com 
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) has left critics scratching their heads after citing the "trampling of indigenous rights" and "racial justice" as causes of climate change. | Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) reintroduced the Green New Deal on Tuesday, a redux of the same resolution introduced in 2019 that was quickly used by Republicans to paint Democrats like Ocasio-Cortez as extremist and socialist in their views. | The Green New Deal calls for the decarbonization of the US economy, as well as free higher education for every American, among many other proposals. The reint…
(2021-04-20). Blocked from Civil Dissent, Women in Saudi Arabia are turning to business as 'quiet' Feminist activism. juancole.com 
By Sophie Alkhaled | — Prominent Saudi women's rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul was released from prison on February 10 2021 after 1,001 days in custody. Al-Hathloul, a leading campaigner for women's rights in Saudi Arabia, had been sentenced to five years and eight months in prison in 2018 for pushing a foreign agenda and using …
(2021-04-20). Make aid to Israel conditional on protecting Palestinian human rights, say Sanders, Warren. peoplesdispatch.org Successive US governments, irrespective of the ruling party, have been providing billions of dollars in aid to Israel each year. Israel has been accused of using the money to sustain its occupation of Palestine…
(2021-04-20). Después de 30 años a favor del capital: Para una integración del Cono Sur y América Latina a favor de los derechos de los trabajadores y cuidando del medio-ambiente. globalizacion.ca Poder celebrar los 30 años de una iniciativa de integración en el Cono Suramericano ya es un acontecimiento. Libertad de ir y venir entre los países, filas exclusivas para viajantes extranjeros pero de nacionalidad de países del Mercosur en los…
(2021-04-20). Zionist forces raid occupied lands, arrest Palestinians. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 20 (MNA) — Israeli regime's military forces raided an area in "occupied lands" on Tuesday and detained a number of Palestinians.
(2021-04-20). Human rights experts demand UAE provide 'meaningful information' on Sheikha Latifa. news.un.org United Nations independent human rights experts on Tuesday demanded that the United Arab Emirates provide "meaningful information" on the fate of Sheikha Latifa Mohammed Al Maktoum as well as assurances regarding her safety and well-being, "without delay".
(2021-04-20). China Pres. calls for fairer world order as rivalry with US. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 20 (MNA) — Chinese President called for a rejection of hegemonic power structures in global governance, amid growing tensions between Washington and Beijing over a widening range of issues including alleged human rights abuses.
(2021-04-20). Make Aid To Israel Conditional On Protecting Palestinian Rights. popularresistance.org The US Democratic party's leading senators and last year's presidential aspirants, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, on Monday, April 20 called on the Joe Biden administration to use the billions of dollars of aid given to Israel to pressurize it to protect Palestinian human rights and work for a peaceful resolution of the conflict. The senators were speaking at the conference of J Street, a "pro-Israel, pro-peace" lobbying group in the US. | Both Sanders and Warren, speaking separately, asked for putting conditions on the military aid to Israel. They argued that the US aid is used by Israel to prolong its occ…
(2021-04-20). US Resuming Arms Sales to United Arab Emirates is Disastrous, Given its Wars on Yemen, Libya. juancole.com By Afrah Nasser | — Yemen Researcher, Middle East and North Africa Division | — ( Human Rights Watch) — United States President Joe Biden called in early February for "ending all American support for offensive operations in Yemen, including relevant arms sales." At the time, I, like many human rights advocates who have been …
(2021-04-20). Russia: 200 Militants Killed in Airstrikes in Eastern Syria. news.antiwar.com Russian Admiral Alexander Karpov has This area is known to be one of those awash in ISIS holdouts. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that ISIS had claimed to have killed two Russian soldiers in the area, speculating that this is why Russia hit them. | Admiral Karpov reported that in addition to 200 killed, the airstrikes destroyed 24 ve…
(2021-04-20). Following US, EU to Boost Presence in Indo-Pacific to Counter China. news.antiwar.com The European Union is following the US and looking to EU foreign ministers released a statement on the strategy. Borrowing language from the US, the ministers said the EU should "reinforce its strategic focus, presence and actions in the Indo-Pacific … based on the promotion of democracy, rule of law, human rights and intern…
(2021-04-20). Civil rights groups urge Biden administration to cancel $50,000 in student debt per borrower. nationofchange.org "The $1.7 trillion student loan crisis is crushing individuals, families, and our economy, and the weight of this burden is disproportionately borne by women and Black and Latino borrowers."
(2021-04-20). Focusing on lifting US anti-Iranian sanctions, a top priority. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 20 (MNA) — Chinese representative in the meeting of Joint Commission of Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) said that concentrating on lifting US anti-Iranian sanctions is still the main priority.
(2021-04-20). US schedules to suspend sanctions, not lift them. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 20 (MNA) — A source in Vienna said that the US's schedule was only to suspend sanctions imposed against the Islamic Republic of Iran, not to lift them completely.
(2021-04-20). JCPOA Joint Commission meet to continue next week in Vienna. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 20 (MNA)-Stressing that discussions made in today's Joint Commission of JCPOA with regard to lifting sanctions and nuclear issues, coordinator of Joint Commission of JCPOA announced that next meeting of Commission will be held next week.
(2021-04-20). Washington Sanctions Cuba. Why Not Saudi Arabia? strategic-culture.org Cuba will remain one of Washington's chosen enemies, while relations with the murderous autocratic Saudi regime will be "recalibrated". | According to the geopolitical analysis site
(2021-04-20). Raab confirms Magnitsky sanctions will be introduced to tackle dirty money. thecanary.co The government will introduce Magnitsky sanctions to tackle dirty money following the Russia report, Dominic Raab has confirmed. | Money laundering Britain: | As ministers were pressed on why half of all the money laundered out of Russia travels through the United Kingdom, Raab announced he will "shortly be introducing an extension to the Magnitsky sanctions" to crack down on the scandal. | The foreign secretary's comments came as MPs raised concerns about rising tensions at Ukraine's border due to the recent Russian military build-up of forces there. | Speaking during Foreign Office departmental question…
(2021-04-19). Meet Cariol Horne, Black Police Officer Fired After Stopping Fellow Cop's Assault on Handcuffed Man. democracynow.org 
Amid nationwide protests over police abuse, we speak with Cariol Horne, the Buffalo police officer whom a New York court has just vindicated for stopping a fellow cop from choking a handcuffed Black man during an arrest. In 2006, Horne, who is Black, saw a white officer repeatedly punching the man in the face before putting him in a chokehold. After Horne heard the man say "I can't breathe," she intervened by grabbing the officer's arm. Horne was sanctioned by the Buffalo Police Department, reassigned, then fired in 2008, just months before she was eligible to receive her full pension. A new ruling makes her elig…
(2021-04-19). The Weekly Round-Up: are immigrants and asylum seekers getting their day in court? ukhumanrightsblog.com 
In the news: The rights of immigrants and asylum seekers have been at the forefront of the news this week, with the Home Secretary coming under fire both in the courts and in the political arena. On Wednesday, a landmark court ruling held Ms Patel accountable for failures properly to investigate deaths among asylum seekers at detention …
(2021-04-19). The Spread of Global Hate. counterpunch.org 
One insidious way to torture the detainees at Guantanamo was to blast music at them at all hours. The mixtape, which included everything from Metallica to the Meow Mix jingle, was intended to disorient the captives and impress upon them the futility of resistance. It worked: this soundtrack from hell did indeed break several inmates.
(2021-04-19). Racism, worker rights and the FedEx shooting. workers.org 
The mass shooting April 15 at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis took the lives of eight workers and injured seven more. Half of those slain were members of the Sikh community, and one was a young African American woman. The murderer, 19-year-old Brandon Hole, killed himself after the shootings took . . . |
(2021-04-19). Cancel it: Biden pressured to eliminate $50,000 student debt per borrower. peoplesworld.org 
President Joe Biden is under mounting pressure to address the rapidly growing student debt crisis by canceling up to $50,000 in crushing individual student loans. A growing chorus of elected officials and advocates say Biden can cancel the debt through executive action. Also, 415 community, civil rights, climate, health, consumer, labor, food and farm, and …
(2021-04-19). Battleground Baltimore: Protests Against Police and For Tenants' Rights. therealnews.com 
In this week's roundup of Baltimore news: Solidarity marches with Chicago and Minneapolis, the problematic Security Deposit Alternatives Bill, 'Dark City Beneath the Beat' on Netflix, and more.
(2021-04-19). Daunte Wright's Killing Makes the Case for Shrinking Police Budgets. counterpunch.org 
Three weeks into the Minneapolis trial of Derek Chauvin for the killing of George Floyd, a white police officer in the neighboring suburb of Brooklyn Center killed a young Black man named Daunte Wright and illustrated in tragic terms just how law enforcement remains engaged in a racist war on Black America in spite of
(2021-04-19). Renegotiating JCPOA: Biden, Europe and Iran. counterpunch.org 
After years of negotiations, the U.S., under President Barack Obama (don't get this writer started on him), Iran and several other nations signed an agreement that limited Iran's nuclear development program, in exchange for the lifting of many sanctions issued against that nation. This was good news all around: many nations had a major new market for their goods, Iran was able to export its own products and services, and the world, bizarrely, breathed a sigh of relief that Iran would not develop the nuclear weapons that its spokespeople always said it never had any interest in anyway; its nuclear program was for…
(2021-04-19). Latest Law Pod UK episode: 100 days since UK's withdrawal from the EU — a review. ukhumanrightsblog.com 
In her latest episode of 2903cb, Professor Catherine Barnard looks back on the past 100+ days since the UK withdrew from the EU. The dire forecasts of chaos at our borders have not been realised, and the doomsayers of Brexit have probably got it wrong. The Covid effect has obviously been dramatic. The economy is …
(2021-04-19). Big Bad SouthFront Is Once Again Threatening The Leadership Of The World's Sole Superpower. southfront.org 
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(2021-04-19). Race report 'attempts to normalise white supremacy' — UN human rights experts. thecanary.co 
A controversial report into racial disparities attempts to "normalise white supremacy" and the Government should reject its findings, human rights experts from the UN have warned. | The UN Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent said it "categorically rejects and condemns" the findings of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities ( The Government-commissioned report said racism is a "real force" but that Britain is no longer a country where the…
(2021-04-19). Texas police arrest ex-deputy over fatal triple shooting, ending search for suspect. rt.com 
A former deputy sheriff has been arrested over a triple shooting in Austin, Texas at the weekend, a local police chief has said. Officers had launched a manhunt for the suspected shooter, following Sunday's killings. | Stephen Broderick, 41, was carrying a pistol as he was detained on a rural road in the Austin suburb of Manor early on Monday morning, Manor Police Chief Ryan Phipps said. | Officers had received two phone calls about a possible sighting of Broderick, who has now been taken to Travis County jail. | Three people were confirmed dead in a shooting in the Arboretum area of northwest Austin on Sunday…
(2021-04-19). Biden Blames Russia For The Exact Same "Interference" That US Corporate Media Is Guilty Of. southfront.org 
Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | Although obviously not an avid reader or fan of Southfront, Michael Tracey's concise post of April 16th very clearly captures the irony and hypocrisy of the latest round of sanctions announced by the Biden administration. The allegations of "influencing" or "interfering" in the U.S election process that undermined the public's trust in the process was actually carried out on a daily basis by right-leaning corporate media such as Fox News or Newmax. Not to mention corporate media's total censorship of the New York Post's story on the infamous Hunter Biden laptop. Why were…
(2021-04-19). Syria to hold presidential elections in May. peoplesdispatch.org The elections will be held on May 26 amid a deteriorating economic situation, badly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, economic sanctions imposed by the US and the European Union and the decade of war in the country…
(2021-04-19). Vienna talks reveal Biden team's attachment to sanctions that would torpedo Iran deal. thegrayzone.com Biden's foreign policy team refuses to relieve Iran from sanctions illegally imposed by the Trump administration, setting the stage for the collapse of negotiations and a major crisis. The Biden administration signaled once again at the April 9 Vienna meeting on the Iran nuclear deal that it intends to maintain Trump-era Iran sanctions in an effort to win political and military concessions going well beyond the original deal itself. Team Biden continued to insist during the conference that Iran return …
(2021-04-19). China sanctions Icelandic individual over Xinjiang. ecns.cn The Chinese embassy in Iceland on Friday announced sanctions against an Icelandic individual for spreading lies and disinformation on so-called human rights issues in China's Xinjiang without naming the person.
(2021-04-19). MYANMAR CRISIS: Stand with the people and protect them, urges UN rights expert. news.un.org The international community has a responsibility to protect the people of Myanmar, under attack from their own military, the UN independent human rights expert on the country argues, in the second part of our in-depth interview, calling also for refuge to be given to those who have fled for their lives to neighbouring countries.
(2021-04-19). Samoa's 2021 Election: The End Of A One-Party State? — Analysis. eurasiareview.com By Jon Fraenkel* | Elections in Samoa are usually a foregone conclusion. The ruling Human Rights and Protection Party (HRPP) habitually wins, and the opposition is left with only a handful of Yet in an election held on 9 April 2021, the result was a dead heat, with both the HRPP and the new FAST party (Fa'atuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi) tied with 25 seats each, and the balance in the 51-member parliament held by an independent. The…
(2021-04-19). Rights experts condemn UK racism report attempting to 'normalize white supremacy'. news.un.org UN independent human rights experts on Monday denounced a government-backed report into racism in the United Kingdom, saying that it further distorted and falsified historical facts, and could even fuel racism and racial discrimination.
(2021-04-19). Rights experts condemn UK report attempting to 'normalize white supremacy'. news.un.org UN independent human rights experts on Monday denounced a government-backed report into racism in the United Kingdom, saying that it further distorted and falsified historic facts, and could even fuel racism and racial discrimination.
(2021-04-19). Minneapolis: Major protest set for closing arguments in case of killer cop Chauvin. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – A coalition of 20-plus Twin Cities organizations plan to protest on Monday, April 19 at 5 p.m. outside the Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis, with a call for justice for George Floyd and conviction of Derek Chauvin. April 19 is when closing arguments and as jury deliberations begin. | The evening protest will include speakers with analysis of the day's and week's events. There will be a march – no matter how many streets the city tries to close off. | "We will assert our First Amendment rights," say protest organizers. | The coalition demands are as follows:
| — Con…
(2021-04-19). Moscow vows tit for tat response to any US sanctions. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 19 (MNA) — Russian authorities stated on Monday that any restrictions imposed by the US administration will trigger a response in kind from Moscow.
(2021-04-19). Russia, US hold meeting on JCPOA in Vienna. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 19 (MNA) — The head of the Russian delegation to the JCPOA talks announced that he met with the US Special Representative for Iran and discuss the lifting of sanctions and the full implementation of the agreement.
(2021-04-19). Iran: Vienna Talks 'on Right Track'. news.antiwar.com Even though the Biden administration appears to be in no hurry to give Iran sanctions relief, Iranian officials continue to speak positively of the indirect talks ongoing in Vienna that are aimed at reviving the nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA. | "We are on the right track and some progress has been made, but this does not mean that the talks in Vienna have reached the final stage," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman "Consultations will be easier if the United States decides to mo…