(2021-08-19). From Afghanistan to Syria: Women's Rights, War Propaganda and the CIA. globalresearch.ca Western heads of state, UN officials, military spokespersons will invariably praise the humanitarian dimension of the October 2001 US-NATO led invasion of Afghanistan, which allegedly was to fight religious fundamentalists, help little girls go to school, liberate women subjected to the yoke of the Taliban.
(2021-08-19). "Uncertainty, Fear": How Afghan Women & Ethnic Minorities Feel About Taliban Takeover & U.S. War. democracynow.org 
We look at how the rights of women and ethnic minorities will be impacted by the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan with two Afghan women who fled their country. Mariam Safi, who left Kabul last month and is founding director of the Organization for Policy Research and Development Studies, says the Taliban's rapid advance across the country surprised many people who had been hoping for a negotiated end to the war. "We had felt that there would be some space for a political settlement," says Safi. "What has happened has certainly caught everyone by surprise." We also speak with journalist Zahra Nader, a member of the…
(2021-08-19). Greater Idlib: Russian Airstrikes Wipe Out Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham Headquarters (Photos). southfront.org 
A Russian Su-24 strike aircraft in the sky over the Khmeimim airbase in Syria. Photo: Dmitriy Vinogradov / RIA Novosti | On August 19, warplanes of the Russian Aerospace Forces carried out several airstrikes on the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib, which is held by al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other terrorist groups. | According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the Russian airstrikes targeted a headquarters of HTS located near the town of Ein Shib i…
(2021-08-19). International Experts Confirm Occurrence of Massacres in Bolivia after Coup against Evo Morales (GIEI Report). orinocotribune.com On Wednesday, August 18, the Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts (GIEI) of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) presented a long awaited report confirming that the Bolivian coup regime was responsible for the massacres of Bolivian people who had opposed the coup against Evo Morales in late 2019. | In this regard, Patricia Tapatá, representative of the IACHR and head of the group of experts, provided details on the "We have examin…
(2021-08-19). Venezuela's Arreaza: Almagro Should be Investigated for Bolivia's 2019 Coup & Massacres. orinocotribune.com On Wednesday, August 18, the Foreign Affairs Minister of Venezuela, Jorge Arreaza, spoke in favor of investigating the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, for his role in the coup against Evo Morales in November 2019, and for supporting the de facto government of Jeanine àÅñez and her human rights violations. | The statement was made by Arreaza in a tweet published this Wednesday that read: "the Interdisciplinary Group of Experts of the IACHR [Inter-American Commission on Human Rights] confirmed serious human rights violations in Bolivia during the de facto governme…
(2021-08-19). Video: Taliban 2.0: Claims of Rights for Women, Free Media, No Terrorism. globalresearch.ca
(2021-08-19). The Hourly Minimum Wage Should Be $26. commondreams.org "We totally need the help," said one school superintendent of a Florida district that's been threatened with sanctions for defying a ban on mask mandates.
(2021-08-19). UK Navy's Public Brawl over Responsibility for Nuclear Mass Destruction. counterpunch.org In a rare, public dispute between British Naval officers over legal responsibility for attacks using nuclear weapons, two retired British submarine commanders have openly attacked each other's views in writing. The online confrontation opens a window to the tortured thinking inside the perpetual, high-level, planning and reparation for such attacks among nuclear armed states. The
(2021-08-18). Talibanned? Social media wrangles with accounts deemed 'terrorist' as Taliban returns to power in Afghanistan. rt.com 
YouTube, Facebook and Twitter have come down on opposing sides of the free speech debate, for once unable to agree upon whether to ban the Taliban as a 'controversial' entity, after the Islamic group took over Afghanistan. | Facebook, which claims it has blacklisted Taliban-linked groups under its "dangerous organizations policy" for "years" due to US Treasury Department sanctions, does not plan to alter its approach now, a spokesperson declared on Tuesday. Instead, Facebook will defer to the "authority of the international community." | This policy holds for its subsidiary corporations Instagram and WhatsApp…
(2021-08-18). Afghan politicians meet with Taliban leaders in Kabul amid protests and other stories. peoplesdispatch.org Today we look at protests in Afghanistan as Taliban members meet with political leaders, the GIEI report on human rights abuses during the 2019 Bolivian coup, and more…
(2021-08-18). Headlines for August 18, 2021. democracynow.org Taliban Addresses Women's Rights, Press Freedom in First Press Conference Since Takeover, U.S. Continues Evacuations as Top Dems Pledge to Investigate Biden's Afghanistan Exit, Haiti Earthquake Death Toll Hits 2,000 as Survivors, Many Now Unhoused, Lashed by Tropical Storm, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Tests Positive for Coronavirus, Alabama Runs Out of ICU Beds; 3,000 NOLA Students and Staff in Quarantine, New Zealand Orders Lockdown After ID'ing One COVID Case, Tokyo Extends State of Emergency; Thai Protesters Demand PM Step Down for Mishandling COVID, India Bans Single-Use Plastics, But New Law Contains Major Loopho…
(2021-08-18). "People Are Thirsty for Peace": Afghans Wary of Taliban as Group Vows to Uphold Rights. democracynow.org 
We go to Kabul for an update as the Taliban moves to secure control of Afghanistan. The group said Tuesday former government officials will not face retribution and that the rights of women and journalists will be upheld. The Taliban's rhetoric and the relatively restrained behavior of its fighters in Kabul are starkly different from how the group governed Afghanistan after seizing power in 1996, when it imposed draconian restrictions on everyday life. Despite the Taliban's pledges, many women across Afghanistan have not left their homes since the Taliban seized control over the weekend and as thousands of people…
(2021-08-18). Taliban 2.0: Claims Of Rights For Women, Free Media, No Terrorism. southfront.org 
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(2021-08-18). The Palestinian Cause is Neither a Religious nor a Human Rights Cause. orinocotribune.com By Susana Khalil — Aug 15,2021 | The Palestinian cause is political, it is a cause of National Liberation. |
(2021-08-18). Central Syrian Insurgency: Syrian Officer, Iraqi Fighters Killed In New Attacks By ISIS Cells. southfront.org 
Illustrative image. | ISIS terrorists continue to launch attacks against Syrian government forces and their allies in Syria's vast central region. | Early on August 18, ISIS cells attacked several posts of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) near the town of al-Sholah, which is located on the Deir Ezzor-Homs highway. According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), an officer was killed and five soldiers were wounded as a result of the attack. | At around the same t…
(2021-08-18). Protest demands ICE free all detainees. workers.org 
Philadelphia — Despite temperatures in the mid-90s, more than 50 community activists rallied here on Aug. 12 to demand Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cease transferring migrant workers and refugees from a detention center in York, Pa., to other prisons. Recorded voices from people impacted by transfers were heard by . . . |
(2021-08-18). Iran Considers Alex Saab a Prisoner of War of the United States. orinocotribune.com Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, has said that Venezuela's Special Envoy Alex Saab, under detention in Cape Verde and facing extradition to the United States, can be considered a prisoner of war, due to the violations that the United States Government has committed by getting him arrested in Cape Verde and by pressuring that country's government for his extradition. | Khatibzadeh made these comments on Saab's situation at a press conference on Monday, August 16. He denounced the arrest and the intention to extradite Saab to a third country as it violates diplomatic lega…
(2021-08-18). Human Rights Are Not 'A Threat to Development'. otherwords.org On the last night of a recent trip to Minneapolis, I walked along the Mississippi River waterfront. | A young man, a worker with the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, asked if I had any questions. We spoke at length about the river and his job, which allowed him to talk about life as a Dakota Santee. | He shared that seeing the river was a daily painful reminder of the destruction of the area's natural features, including islands and waterfalls, to facilitate commerce. "How do you process that?" I asked. | He shrugged and replied, "We fight Line 3." | For seven years, Minnesota's tribal nations, alo…
(2021-08-18). Not notable enough? UN torture rapporteur who defended Assange gets rejected by Twitter for verification. rt.com 
Twitter has apparently never heard of UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer — an outspoken defender of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange — since it denied his verification request, saying he wasn't notable enough. | "Seriously?" Melzer tweeted on Wednesday, posting a screenshot of the message he received from Twitter's Verification service saying that "the evidence provided did not meet our criteria for notability." | "I am an official international mandate holder of [UN special procedures experts] appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, with an official webpage @UNHumanRights & countless p…
(2021-08-18). Report Shines Light on Abuse by Bolivia's Interim Government. latinorebels.com LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivia's recent interim government persecuted opponents with "systematic torture" and "summary executions" by security forces in the tumultuous aftermath of Evo Morales' resignation in 2019, according to a new report by independent human rights experts.
(2021-08-18). 'The World Is Watching': Indigenous Critics of Line 3 Meet With UN Human Rights Expert. commondreams.org "We must keep Arctic oil in the ground if we want a livable planet for future generations."
(2021-08-18). Minnesota: Campaign to get ICE out of Hennepin County advances. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – There have been some recent advances in the campaign to end cooperation between the largest county in Minnesota, Hennepin County, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The campaign has been organized by the Decriminalizing Communities Coalition, which brings together several local immigrant rights and social justice organizations. | On May 24, the Decriminalizing Communities Coalition sent a letter to Hennepin County Sheriff David Hutchinson that was signed by over 300 Hennepin County residents requesting a meeting to discuss the need to stop his department's cooperation with ICE. The c…
(2021-08-18). Disability rights and justice ‚àí for the people, against incarceration. workers.org 
Black Panther Party-run free medical clinic in Boston, 1970. The following was excerpted from a July 29 webinar held by the Disability Justice and Rights Caucus of Workers World Party that emphasized the interconnections betwee the struggles of disabled people and incarcerated people. Caucus members participating below were Brian Shea . . . |
(2021-08-18). House on verge of votes on infrastructure, budget, voting rights. peoplesworld.org 
WASHINGTON—With heavy lifting scheduled in the U.S. House next week on infrastructure, the budget, and voting rights, progressive groups and their allies are scrambling to put pressure on the majority Democrats to stand by party priorities on those issues. Those priorities include provisions to battle climate change, tax the rich, permanently enact paid family and …
(2021-08-18). A Chance to Protect Our Essential Workers. otherwords.org Immigration agents arrested over 600 undocumented workers at a poultry plant in Jackson, Mississippi two years ago in what remains the This August, on the two-year anniversary of that raid, immigrant rights advocates demanded that U.S. officials take action to repair the harms inflicted on the workers and their communities. | Some 230 of the workers have already been deported but another 400 are still waiting for their day in court. And while they wait, many are unable to provide for themselve…
(2021-08-18). As Covid-19 Cases Rise, Global Task Force Lays Out How to Avert Future Pandemics. commondreams.org GOP-appointed judges sided with Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and right-wing lawmakers in the state, who are seeking to secure a quorum to pass legislation attacking voting rights.