(2021-10-07). Report: Azerbaijan mulls buying Israeli Arrow-3 interceptor missiles amid tensions with Iran. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Azerbaijan weighs buying Israeli Arrow-3 missile amid Iran tensions Azerbaijan is considering buying Israel's Arrow-3 missile defense system amid tensions with Iran, according to Israel Hayom newspaper. The move would be a major step in typically quiet Israel-Azerbaijan defense ties. Azerbaijan's government began stopping, fining and in at least two cases detaining Iranian vehicles transiting …
(2021-10-07). Chinese envoy rejects U.S. accusations at UN debate. ecns.cn A Chinese envoy on Monday rejected false U.S. accusations against China's human rights situation and called for solidarity and cooperation.
(2021-10-07). Transcript: "Making the Most of Special Drawing Rights: Approaches to Maximize Impact and Create a Sustainable and Just Recovery" cepr.net CEPR Senior Research Fellow Andrés Arauz participated in an event on October 4th as part of the IMF Annual Meetings, sponsored by CEPR, ActionAid, Afrodad, the Bretton Woods Project, the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, Eurodad, Global Policy Forum, Global Call to Action Against Poverty, Jubilee Debt Campaign, Latindadd, Oxfam International, Social Justice in Global …
(2021-10-07). United States: More than 200,000 march to defend abortion rights. greenleft.org.au Supporters of abortion rights turned out across the United States in protest against laws in Texas and Mississippi that effectively outlaw most abortions, reports Barry Sheppard.
(2021-10-07). Tamil activists speak out for rights here and in Sri Lanka. greenleft.org.au Rachel Evans spoke to Tamil refugees and activists Kalyani Inpakumar and Renuga Inpakumar about the continuing persecution of Tamils in Sri Lanka and the campaign for rights here.
(2021-10-07). Alameda's Women's March has New Twist on Hanger Theme. indybay.org The San Francisco East Bay city of Alameda was one of over six hundred across the nation calling for women's rights to health care including abortion services.
(2021-10-07). US Sanctions against India: Delhi's Planned Purchase of Russia's S-400 Air Defense Systems. globalresearch.ca
(2021-10-07). Federal Judge Blocks Texas Abortion Ban, Blasts "Offensive Deprivation of Such an Important Right" democracynow.org 
A federal judge has temporarily blocked Texas's near-total ban on abortions, granting the Justice Department's emergency request to halt the law while courts consider its legality. In his ruling, Judge Robert Pitman slammed the Texas ban's unconstitutionality, writing, "This Court will not sanction one more day of this offensive deprivation of such an important right." "Judge Robert Pitman ruled and said what advocates in Texas and clinics operators in Texas have been saying all along … a near-total ban on abortion in the state of Texas is flagrantly unconstitutional," says Amy Littlefield, abortion access corr…
(2021-10-07). Federal judge temporarily blocks Texas abortion ban. salon.com "This Court will not sanction one more day of this offensive deprivation of such an important right"
(2021-10-07). Biden administration defends CIA against torture victim. wsws.org The Supreme Court is hearing an appeal by Abu Zubaydah, held at Guantanamo Bay, for the disclosure of additional information about his torture, including being waterboarded 83 times in a month.
(2021-10-07). Ex-CIA Officer Who Led Raid that Captured Leading Al Qaeda Suspect Is Now Denouncing CIA for Torturing Him for 20 Years In Guantanamo Without Ever Charging Him With A Crime. covertactionmagazine.com The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments from attorneys for Abu Zubaydah, a Guantánamo prisoner once thought to be the third-ranking leader in al-Qaeda, about whether their client would be allowed to depose two CIA contract psychologists who devised and carried out the Agency's torture program and who personally participated in Zubaydah's torture.
(2021-10-07). Abu Zubaydah Was Tortured for Years at CIA Black Sites. Biden Is Trying to Keep the Abuse Secret. democracynow.org 
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday in a case brought by Abu Zubaydah, the Guantánamo prisoner who was the first subject of the CIA's torture program. Zubaydah's legal team has spent years trying to obtain testimony from two psychologists who helped the CIA design and implement his torture, and the Biden administration is continuing the Trump's administration strategy to keep key information about Zubaydah's torture in Poland classified despite the fact that the two psychologists are willing to testify. Several justices contradicted the Biden administration, suggesting Zubaydah, the only witness besi…
(2021-10-07). Trump had dinner with Mitt Romney to "torture the guy": book. salon.com A new book reveals Trump's infamous dinner with Mitt Romney was exactly what people thought…
(2021-10-06). The Police State's Reign of Terror Continues … With Help from the Supreme Court. dissidentvoice.org 
Rights aren't rights if someone can take them away. They're privileges. — George Carlin You think you've got rights? Think again. All of those freedoms we cherish—the ones enshrined in the Constitution, the ones that affirm our right to free speech and assembly, due process, privacy, bodily integrity, the right to not have police seize …
(2021-10-06). Guantanamo Bay: CIA 'torture programme' in spotlight at US Supreme Court. middleeasteye.net 
Guantanamo Bay: CIA 'torture programme' in spotlight at US Supreme Court | Palestinian Guantanamo detainee Abu Zubaydah is seeking access to information regarding his treatment while in US custody | Wed, 10/06/2021 – 15: 40 | At the time of his capture, the CIA claimed Abu Zubaydah was a top-level al-Qaeda leader, but later conceded he was never a member of the armed group (AFP/File photo) | The
(2021-10-06). Protest Against Construction of US Base in Neuquén, Argentina. orinocotribune.com 
About 60 organizations marched against the construction of a US base in Neuquén, Argentina. | On September 30, a protest caravan, mobilized by a multisectoral grassroots movement against the installation of a so-called US "humanitarian base" in Neuquén city, marched to the proposed construction site of the US base. "No to the Yankee base in Neuquén" was the main slogan chanted by the demonstrators. | More than 60 Mapuche and human rights organizations plus workers unions and political parties constituted the multisectoral movement in Neuquén which commemorated Independence Day with an extensive caravan of over hu…
(2021-10-06). UAE: Former UN official urges release of activist Ahmed Mansoor. middleeasteye.net 
UAE: Former UN official urges release of activist Ahmed Mansoor | At Dubai Expo 2020 Mary Robinson called on UAE authorities to set free the 51-year-old Mansoor, a 'brave human rights defender' | Wed, 10/06/2021 – 14: 47 | Mary Robinson, a former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at a UN Security Council meeting, New York 9 January 2020 (AFP) | A former UN official on Wednesday called on the United Arab E…
(2021-10-06). The Anonymous Executioners of the Corporate State. scheerpost.com 
Original illustration by Mr. Fish | By Chris Hedges / Original to ScheerPost | Judge Loretta Preska, an advisor to the conservative Federalist Society, to which Chevron is a major donor, sentenced human rights attorney and Chevron nemesis Steven Donziger to six months in prison Friday for misdemeanor contempt of court after he had already spent 787 days under house arrest in New York. | Preska's caustic outbursts — she said at the sentencing, "It seems that only the proverbial two-by-four between the eyes will instill in him any respect for the law" — capped a judicial farce worthy of the antics of…
(2021-10-06). Iranian Weapons Shipments Continue To Pour Into Eastern Syria. southfront.org 
Iranian-backed forces massing around Deir Ezzor city. | Early on October 6, an Iranian weapons shipment arrived in the eastern Syrian governorate of Deir Ezzor, according to the Syrian Observatory (SOHR) for Human Rights. | The London-based monitoring group said that the shipment entered from Iraq through an unofficial border crossing. The weapons, which included short-range rockets and their launchers, were moved to the town of al-Mayadin in the southern countryside of Deir Ezzor. They were allegedly stored in tun…
(2021-10-06). Human Rights Attorney Sentenced to Prison After Winning Case Against Chevron. zcomm.org In a move calculated to shield Chevron and deter other lawyers from suing giant corporate polluters, U.S. human rights attorney Steven Donziger was sentenced on October 1 to the maximum of six months in prison for criminal contempt…
(2021-10-06). Syrian Army Pounds Greater Idlib, Senior Commander Says Ground Operation Is Near (Videos). southfront.org 
Illustrative image.Untewewitled.jpg | On October 6, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) pounded the al-Zawiya Mount in the southern part of the region of Greater Idlib. | Dozens of artillery rounds and rocket hit the towns of al-Fatterah, Sufuhon, Fleifel, and Benin in the mountainous area, which is known to be a stronghold of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the de-facto ruler of Greater Idlib, and the Turkish-backed National Front for Liberation. | According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Russian drones…
(2021-10-06). "Becoming Abolitionists": Derecka Purnell on Why Police Reform Is Not Enough to Protect Black Lives. democracynow.org 
Derecka Purnell draws from her experience as a human rights lawyer in her new book, published this month, "Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protests, and the Pursuit of Freedom," to argue that police reform is an inadequate compromise to calls for abolition. Since the murders of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville in 2020, many states have passed laws aimed at reforming police, but congressional talks at the federal level have broken down. Purnell reflects upon her personal journey as a Black woman who believed in police reform before pivoting to abolition, saying, "I became a part of soci…
(2021-10-06). Police Reform Is Not Enough to Protect Black Lives. truthout.org 
Derecka Purnell draws from her experience as a human rights lawyer in her new book, published this month, Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protests, and the Pursuit of Freedom, to argue that police reform is an inadequate compromise to calls for abolition. Since the murders of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville in 2020, many states have passed laws aimed at reforming police, but congressional talks at the federal level have broken down. Purnell reflects upon her personal journey as a Black woman…
(2021-10-06). FRSO, Milwaukee Alliance, SDS, and others rally to defend reproductive rights. m.fightbacknews.org Milwaukee, WI – On the afternoon of October 2, Freedom Road Socialist Organization – Wisconsin held a demonstration to protest Texas' abortion ban. This was held in collaboration with the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racial and Political Repression and Students for a Democratic Society, and with coordination from a couple of individual organizers. The demonstration consisted of a march through downtown from Planned Parenthood to the Milwaukee office of Senator Ron Johnson, a noted reactionary and proponent of the same ideas encompassed by the Texas law. Once outside Senator Johnson's office, organizers transitioned…
(2021-10-06). Hudson Valley: October 2 marches for reproductive rights. fightbacknews.org Newburgh, NY – In Newburgh, 120 gathered at the steps of the courthouse. In New Paltz, on Main Street, 100 stood in front of Elting Library. In Poughkeepsie there were 75. In Kingston, another 150. Woodstock 100. Across the Hudson Valley we took the streets. There were actions in towns, villages and hamlets as we joined the over 650 marches taking place across the United States. | It has been a long time coming but on October 2, we gathered demanding reproductive freedom for all and support for women's liberation. | On September 1, abortion became illegal in Texas except in the very earliest stage of pregnan…
(2021-10-06). Economic, medical sanctions considered as terrorist act. en.mehrnews.com Condemning all forms of terrorism, including economic and medical terrorism, Iran's permanent Ambassador to the United Nations said that sanctions target ordinary people and are considered a terrorist act.
(2021-10-06). Forbes Reveals Why the US Government Is Trying to Extradite Venezuelan Diplomat Alex Saab. counterpunch.org Alex Saab is "the key that unlocks the Venezuelan monetary mystery—that is, how a country facing sanctions from the US, the UK and the European Union—is still able to export things like gold and oil…and really the only man who can actually explain how the country [Venezuela] survives today," according to Forbes. The US would
(2021-10-06). Saudi Arabia: Appeals court upholds 20-year sentence of aid worker. middleeasteye.net 
Saudi Arabia: Appeals court upholds 20-year sentence of aid worker | Areej al-Sadhan says her brother Abdulrahman was tortured by Saudi officials and denied access to lawyers while in prison | Wed, 10/06/2021 – 15: 59 | Aid worker Abdulrahman al-Sadhan was sentenced to 20 years in prison and given a 20-year travel ban (Supplied) | An appeals court in Saudi Arabia upheld on Wednesday a lengthy prison sentence f…