India's Kerala State is 'Fortress of Secularism', Will Not Implement Citizenship Law – Chief Vijayan
sputniknews.com | 2020-01-17
New Delhi (Sputnik): India has witnessed widespread protests in favour and against the controversial law enacted by the federal government in December to grant citizenship rights to persecuted minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, barring Muslims.
sputniknews.com/india/202001171078057105-indias-kerala-state-is-fortress-of-secularism-will-not-implement-citizenship-law-chief-vijayan/

The ERA Just Got Ratified by Virginia, the Needed 38th State!
Dave Lindorff | counterpunch.org | 2020-01-17
Here's a big deal that's bound to become a lot bigger this year. Exactly 100 years after women finally won the vote with ratification of a 19th Amendment to the US Constitution, the state legislature of Virginia on January 15 finally became the needed 38th state of the Union to ratify the proposed Equal Rights…
counterpunch.org/2020/01/17/the-era-just-got-ratified-by-virginia-the-needed-38th-state/

20th Anniversary of Rosa Parks Day
Michael Harris | indybay.org | 2020-01-17
20 years later the struggle continues in the City of Sacramento to honor the "Patron Saint" of the Women's Political Council who later became the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement." Thankfully, Attorney Fred Gray, Esq. is still on the case and preparing to join us MLK 50 Anniversary – Sacramento Public Library.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/17/18829822.php

Equal Rights Advocates Contingents at Women's March SF & Oakland
Equal Rights Advocates | indybay.org | 2020-01-17
Equal Rights Advocates (ERA), 1170 Market, Suite 700 @ 11: 30 AM before Women's March San Francisco | Oscar Grant/Frank Ogawa Plaza, 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, CA 94612 @ 10 AM before Women's March Oakland…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/15/18829774.php

Equal Rights Advocates Contingents at Women's March SF & Oakland
Equal Rights Advocates | indybay.org | 2020-01-17
Equal Rights Advocates (ERA), 1170 Market, Suite 700 @ 11: 30 AM before Women's March San Francisco | Oscar Grant/Frank Ogawa Plaza, 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, CA 94612 @ 10 AM before Women's March Oakland…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/01/15/18829774.php

The Maldives Seek Financing to Manage Climate Change Impacts
telesurenglish.net | 2020-01-17
The Republic of Maldives' Foreign Affairs Minister Abdulla Shahid Thursday indicated that his country, a small island nation located in the Indian Ocean, is struggling to find financing that will allow it to build infrastructure to mitigate the risks of sea-level rise. | RELATED: | Germany Agrees on Plan to Phase out Coal Power by 2038 | "For the Maldives, and, for the world over, climate change can be best described as a security and human rights challenge," said Shahid at the Raisina…
telesurenglish.net/news/The-Maldives-Seek-Financing-to-Manage-Climate-Change-Impacts-20200117-0001.html

The impeachment trial begins as Trump escalates fascistic appeals
wsws.org | 2020-01-17
The Democratic impeachment process will not stop Trump's increasingly blatant assault on the constitutional foundations of basic democratic rights.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/01/17/pers…

Sanctions harm reconstruction in Syria's Homs province
Karin Leukefeld | workers.org | 2020-01-17
Published in Junge Welt, Dec. 16. Translation by John Catalinotto. According to Gov. Talal Barasi, about half a million people fled from Homs province, the largest in Syria, during the war. Some 2.3 million people had lived in Homs before the war, Barasi explained in an interview with Junge Welt. . . . | Continue reading Sanctions harm reconstruction in Syria's Homs province at Workers.org…
workers.org/2020/01/45594/

'We don't have political problems with India': Iran's Zarif urges Delhi to defy US sanctions & resume buying Iranian oil
rt.com | 2020-01-17
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has called on India to shirk Washington's "maximum pressure" sanctions campaign and continue sourcing its energy from the Islamic Republic, arguing it's in the country's best interest. | While on a four-day visit to India, Zarif insisted Iran could best meet New Delhi's oil needs, assuring that his country would keep politics out of its business dealings and remain a reliable partner. | "For India's economic growth you need more and more energy and energy security, which has been an area of concern," Zarif said at a meeting of the Federation of Indian Export Organi…
rt.com/news/478470-iran-india-oil-us-sanctions/

The World Looks to Abandon the Dollar as US Sanctions Tighten Their Grip
Ryan McMaken | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-17
When the US places financial sanctions on one country, it de facto sanctions many other countries as well

Rights group slams Asian countries over violations
yenisafak.com | 2020-01-17
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has released its annual World Report 2020 documenting human rights abuses around the world.Kenneth Roth, the organization's executive director, launched the report in New York after being denied entry on Sunday to Hong Kong, where the event was originally scheduled to be held.The 652-page World Report reviews human rights practices in some 100 countries

Pakistani FM highlights plight of Kashmiris at DC event
yenisafak.com | 2020-01-17
Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi used an event Thursday hosted by a think tank in Washington, D.C. to call attention to the plight of the Kashmiri people, who have been under severe restrictions for the past several months.Speaking at a discussion held by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Qureshi said India has been seeking to break the will of Kashmiris by imprisoning them in their homes and imposing a communications blockade."Thousands of Kashmiris, particularly young boys, have been imprisoned, tortured. Even children as young as nine have not been spared," he said.Earlier in t…
yenisafak.com/en/world/pakistani-fm-highlights-plight-of-kashmiris-at-dc-event-3509823

Conspiracy Theories, Threats of Violence Loom Over Coming Gun Rally in Richmond
splcenter.org | 2020-01-16
Gun-rights activists and antigovernment extremists are planning a protest in Richmond, Virginia, on Monday fueled by antigovernment conspiracy theories and accompanied by online calls for violence.
splcenter.org/hatewatch/2020/01/16/conspiracy-theories-threats-violence-loom-over-coming-gun-rally-richmond

Argentina: Sala Turns 4 Years as Prisoner of the System
telesurenglish.net | 2020-01-16
Argentina's social activist Milagro Sala Wednesday turns four years of political persecution and arbitrary detention due to accusations that have not been proven. | RELATED: | Court To Rule on Milagro Sala's Fifth Trial | In an interview with local outlet Pagina 12, she explained how her detention has harmed both her life and Tupac Amaru, a neighborhood association that works in favor of women and the poor at the Province of Jujuy. | Although authorities allowed her to remain under house…
telesurenglish.net/news/Argentina-Sala-Turns-4-Years-as-Prisoner-of-the-System-20200116-0008.html

Lebanon: Dozens Detained, Injured in 2nd Night of Protests
telesurenglish.net | 2020-01-16
Hundreds gathered outside Lebanon's central bank Wednesday evening for the second night demanding access to their deposits and voicing anger for those detained the previous night. | RELATED: | Lebanese Focus New Wave of Protests Against Banks | "The total number of people arrested now tops 100, it's madness," said Nizar Saghieh, who heads the Legal Agenda non-government org…
telesurenglish.net/news/Lebanon-Dozens-Detained-Injured-in-2nd-Night-of-Protests-20200116-0012.html

Curbs on withdrawals by banks trigger protests in Lebanon
Peoples Dispatch | peoplesdispatch.org | 2020-01-16
A large number of demonstrators gathered in front of bank offices in Beirut for the second consecutive day on Wednesday January 15, to protest against the curbs imposed on withdrawal of dollars. Some of the protesters resorted to violence and vandalized the bank offices. | The police fired teargas and detained around 17 protesters for indulging in violence. This led to another round of protests in front of the police headquarters. Demonstrators demanded the release of those arrested. | As per the Red Cross, around 47 people were injured in the police action on Wednesday. Majority of them were taken to nearby hosp…
peoplesdispatch.org/2020/01/16/curbs-on-withdrawals-by-banks-trigger-protests-in-lebanon/

Arkansas Legislators' Attack on Abortion is Unconstitutional
Michele Goodwin | aclu.org | 2020-01-16
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled time and again that | reproductive privacy is "central to personal dignity and autonomy, [which] are | central to the liberty protected by" the Constitution. The Court has made | eminently clear that under the Constitution, the right of a pregnant person to | terminate a pregnancy prior to viability is a right so essential to our freedom | that our government cannot ban or impose an undue burden on its exercise. But | despite the long-standing clarity of this principle, reproductive health and rights | continue to come under blistering, unrelenting attack. | Nowhere is this cl…
aclu.org/news/reproductive-freedom/arkansas-legislators-attack-on-abortion-is-unconstitutional

Broad Bipartisan Congressional Votes on Revised NAFTA Cement New Floor for Trade Pacts: Pharma Giveaways, Extreme Investor Rights in Past Pacts Are Out, Better Labor and Environmental Terms In After Democrats Forced Trump to Redo His 2018 NAFTA 2.0 Deal
commondreams.org | 2020-01-16
______________________________…
commondreams.org/newswire/2020/01/16/broad-bipartisan-congressional-votes-revised-nafta-cement-new-floor-trade-pacts?cd-origin=rss

Syrian conflict has 'erased' children's dreams: new UN report
news.un.org | 2020-01-16
Nearly nine years of conflict in Syria have robbed boys and girls of their childhood and subjected them to "unabated violations of their rights", including being killed, maimed, displaced, forced to fight or subjected to torture, rape and sexual slavery.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/01/1055412

Detainees Committee: "Political Prisoners In Nafha Prison Face Dire Living Conditions"
IMEMC News | imemc.org | 2020-01-16
The Palestinian Detainees Committee has reported, Thursday, that the political prisoners who were transferred from Ramon prison to Nafha are facing extremely dire living conditions. In a statement, the Committee said that the prison administration in Ramon has transferred around 100 detainees from Ramon prison to sections three and four …
imemc.org/article/detainees-committee-political-prisoners-in-nafha-prison-face-dire-living-conditions/

The Trump Administration Weakens Standards for ICE Detention Facilities
Eunice Cho | commondreams.org | 2020-01-16
Under the new rules, immigrant detainees will face even greater hurdles in accessing lawyers and legal materials. (Photo: Shutterstock) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
commondreams.org/views/2020/01/16/trump-administration-weakens-standards-ice-detention-facilities?cd-origin=rss

Iranian Opposition–1970s to 2020
Ron Jacobs | zcomm.org | 2020-01-16
As residents of those nations working to return Iran back to its previous status as a client of imperialism, our task is to oppose the sanctions demanded by the United States and the war moves accompanying those sanctions…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/iranian-opposition-1970s-to-2020/

UK, France and Germany push Iran to the brink
Newsclick | peoplesdispatch.org | 2020-01-16
Newsclick's Prabir Purkayastha talks about the decision by three major European countries to activate the conflict resolution mechanism for the Iran nuclear deal which could lead to further sanctions on Iran.
peoplesdispatch.org/2020/01/16/uk-france-and-germany-push-iran-to-the-brink/

Iran accuses EU of adhering to Trump's policy, asks its troops to leave the region
shweta | peoplesdispatch.org | 2020-01-16
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif said that Germany, France and the UK, which are signatories to the deal, had failed to provide necessary safeguards to Iran against the illegal sanctions imposed by the US…
peoplesdispatch.org/2020/01/16/iran-accuses-eu-of-adhering-to-trumps-policy-asks-its-troops-to-leave-the-region/

Trump's Broad-Based Sanctions Failed in Iran and Will Fail in North Korea
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-01-16
In both Iran and North Korea, the Trump administration has pursued an aggressive policy of " maximum pressure"

Red Flag Nation: Anti-Gun Laws, Sanctuary Cities and the Second Amendment
John W. Whitehead | globalresearch.ca | 2020-01-16
"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."

Rights group says Myanmar continues to deny Rohingya rights
yenisafak.com | 2020-01-16
Myanmar continues to deny basic citizenship rights to persecuted Rohingya community, a rights group said on Thursday.The Bangkok-based Fortify Rights group revealed internal communications in the Myanmar government directing junior officials to issue National Verification Cards (NVCs) to Rohingya in internment camps."The document states the team would be tasked with issuing NVCs to 'Bengali people'

Iraqi Prime Minister Backs Off Expelling US Troops
Jason Ditz | theantimedia.com | 2020-01-16
(ANTIWAR.COM)

Tampa students rally against aggressions towards Iran
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-01-15
Tampa, FL – At the University of South Florida, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held their second rally against the President Trump's and U.S. aggression towards Iran. The protest, attended by around 20 students on campus on January 14, has come in the wake of the assassination of a high-ranking Iranian military figure, Qassem Soleimani. | Along with the threat of more U.S. troops to the region and further hostilities, Iran has been hit by U.S. economic sanctions since 2010. An SDS member told the crowd, "The sanctions have greatly limited the amount of medical resources that Iran can get. This has result…
fightbacknews.org/2020/1/15/tampa-students-rally-against-aggressions-towards-iran

Pennsylvania prisoners resist media censorship
Ted Kelly | workers.org | 2020-01-15
When Vol. 61 No. 48 of Workers World newspaper came across the desk of the prison staff at State Correctional Institution Frackville in December, censors seized on an article that criticized the Pennsylvania facility's administration for a variety of offenses. In direct violation of the inmates' First Amendment rights, staff . . . | Continue reading Pennsylvania prisoners resist media censorship at Workers.org…
workers.org/2020/01/45549/

3 people detained after live mortar round found in car at Pearl Harbor base gates
rt.com | 2020-01-15
Three men have been arrested attempting to bring a live mortar round into the US' Pearl Harbor military base in their vehicle, according to military officials. The incident shut down the base for hours. | It's not clear why the group had the explosive device, which authorities said did not have a firing device attached but could be modified and triggered by something other than the usual mortar tube. A spokesman for the Hawaii base, Charles Anthony, called the device a "deadly weapon." | The trio, all civilians without authorized access to the base, were stopped on their way into the sprawling facility by secu…
rt.com/usa/478377-pearl-harbor-live-mortar-gates/

Commentary: What justice looks like in Chicago
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-01-15
Chicago, IL – In a pair of upcoming cases, Associate Judge Thomas Hennelly will have the fate of three wrongfully convicted men in his hands. Given who put them behind bars, his rulings could send a signal that Chicago has firmly turned its back on the legacy of police torture and wrongful convictions that hangs over the city. But, given Hennelly's direct involvement in prosecuting police torture victims and his attempt to hide racist constitutional violations, Chicagoans would be remiss to expect impartiality from the bench. | In one of the cases, that of Gerald Reed, Hennelly is deciding whether a man tortured…
fightbacknews.org/2020/1/15/commentary-what-justice-looks-chicago

Trump deal instead of Iran nuclear deal? I agree! US president gives Twitter nod to BoJo
rt.com | 2020-01-15
Boris Johnson's suggestion that the 2015 Iran nuclear deal be replaced with a new one

Iran's Rouhani Demands US, EU Troops Leave the Middle East or Face "Danger"
Tyler Durden | theantimedia.com | 2020-01-15
(ZH)

Chile Takes a Step Towards the Approval of Same-Sex Marriage
telesurenglish.net | 2020-01-15
Chile took an important step towards equal marriage on Wednesday after the Senate of the southern country took one step forward to approve legislation allowing it, a fact that LGTBI associations and much of the political spectrum described as " historic". | "Today's accomplishment is due to organizations that have been demanding their rights for decades. From that first public demonstration in 1973 until the last Pride march. It was an honor to make the Senate available to equality and love," said the President of the Upper House, opposition lawmaker, Jaime Quintana. | By 22 votes in favor, 16 against and one…
telesurenglish.net/news/Chile-Takes-a-Step-Towards-the-Approval-of-Same-Sex-Marriage-20200115-0017.html

The Trump Administration Weakens Standards for ICE Detention Facilities
Eunice Cho | aclu.org | 2020-01-14
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

The World Must End The US' Illegal Economic War
Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-01-14
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 …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/01/the-world-must-end-the-us-illegal-economic-war/

"Morir Soñando": Martín Espada Reads Poem About Luis Garden Acosta, Young Lord & Community Activist
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-01-14
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…
www.democracynow.org/2020/1/14/luis_gard…

"Morir Soñando": Martín Espada Reads Poem About Luis Garden Acosta, Young Lord & Community Activist
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-01-14
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…
www.democracynow.org/2020/1/14/luis_gard…

US Sanctions Venezuela's New Parliament Leader, Senior Opposition Lawmakers
Lucas Koerner | venezuelanalysis.com | 2020-01-14
The legislature's new opposition leadership "categorically" rejected the sanctions.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14764

Colombia: 'Staggering number' of human rights defenders killed in 2019
news.un.org | 2020-01-14
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.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/01/1055272

US Clearing Anti-War Voices Off Social Media
Darius Shahtahmasebi | theantimedia.com | 2020-01-14
(TMU)

Venezuela Blames Sanctions After UN Voting Right Suspended
Paul Dobson | venezuelanalysis.com | 2020-01-13
Venezuela, which has one of the highest UN contribution rates in the region, has not paid its dues since 2018.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14762

Big Tech Firms Are Joining Trump's All Out War Against Iran
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2020-01-13
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.
mintpressnews.com/social-media-joining-trump-war-against-iran-sanctions/264066/

Ex-US intel officer: Pompeo 'lying through his teeth' on Iran
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2020-01-12
The Trump administration is imposing new sanctions on Iran and defying Iraq's call for a US troop withdrawal. This comes…
thegrayzone.com/2020/01/12/ex-us-intel-officer-pompeo-lying-through-his-teeth-on-iran/

Ex-US intel officer: Pompeo 'lying through his teeth' on Iran
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2020-01-12
The Trump administration is imposing new sanctions on Iran and defying Iraq's call for a US troop withdrawal. This comes…
thegrayzone.com/2020/01/12/ex-us-intel-officer-pompeo-lying-through-his-teeth-on-iran/

Pregnant Workers Are Still Fighting for the Right to Work
Vania Leveille | aclu.org | 2020-01-10
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…
aclu.org/news/womens-rights/pregnant-workers-are-still-fighting-for-the-right-to-work

The Critical Role Auditing Plays in the Battle Against Police Surveillance
Staff | therealnews.com | 2020-01-10
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.
therealnews.com/stories/auditing-battle-against-police-surveillance

Venezuela: Guaido installs parallel parliament, US threatens more sanctions
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2020-01-10
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…
greenleft.org.au/content/venezuela-guaido-installs-parallel-parliament-us-threatens-more-sanctions

International Criminal Court Prepares to Try Israelis over War Crimes
Staff | therealnews.com | 2020-01-09
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.
therealnews.com/stories/international-criminal-court-prepares-israel-war-crimes