(2020-05-23). Mercenaries, pandemic and riots in Venezuela: A grassroots perspective. mronline.org 
Venezuela is confronting COVID-19 amid foreign sanctions and mercenary incursions. Complicating matters further is the explosive combination of deep recession and a nationwide lockdown, which has triggered incidents of looting and riots.
(2020-05-22). Venezuelan Army to escort Iranian tankers bringing gasoline to Venezuelans blockaded by U.S. sanctions. mronline.org 
This was announced by the Minister for Defense, Vladimir Padrino López, this Wednesday. "We have established contact with the Minister of Defense of Iran. All these ships, when they enter our exclusive economic zone (370Km), will be escorted by ships and planes of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB), to welcome them and say to …
(2020-05-22). Indian trade unions protest attack on workers' rights. peoplesdispatch.org Ten central trade unions in India issued a nationwide protest call against the changes being made to labour laws. On Friday, May 22, unions across the country took to the streets to stage demonstrations against the attack on workers' rights. The protestors were peaceful and followed physical distancing and other safety norms. Still, multiple instances of repression and detentions took place.
(2020-05-22). Victims of intercommunal violence in South Sudan deserve 'justice, truth and reparations': Bachelet. news.un.org The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Friday condemned a fresh wave of intercommunal violence in the world's youngest nation, South Sudan, that has left hundreds dead across 28 villages in Jonglei State, according to local authorities.
(2020-05-22). ICE's Lack of Transparency About COVID-19 in Detention Will Cost Lives. aclu.org Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) detention system was marked by its
(2020-05-21). The Absurd Attacks on the ACLU. aclu.org On May 19, the National Review editors condemned the ACLU's "absurd" lawsuit against Education Secretary Betsy DeVos's new Title IX regulations, which govern sexual harassment and assault at schools that receive federal funding. They argue that we had sacrificed our principles by seeking to "weaken" due process standards. President Trump promptly retweeted it, though showed no evidence that he actually read it. But the National Review's criticism bears no relation to the lawsuit we actually filed. Our suit challenges provisions letting schools ignore serious claims of sexual harassment altogether. It does not…
(2020-02-08). Iraq and Russia Prepare to Boost Military Ties as US Threatens Sanctions. theantimedia.com Iraq and Russia are preparing for deepening military coordination.
(2020-05-22). Guatemalan Leader Blasts Trump Admin's "Contaminated" Deportation Flights as Rights Groups Say Expulsions Show "Reckless Disregard" for Rights and Health. commondreams.org "Guatemala is an ally to the United States, the United States is not an ally to Guatemala," said President Alejandro Giammattei. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-05-23). Can Sex Workers Survive COVID-19 When The Government Won't Give Aid? therealnews.com 
Sex Workers' rights advocates have been demanding decriminalization of their work, but now under the pandemic regulations even legal forms of sex work like strip clubs have been targeted by the federal government and alienated from government aid.
(2020-05-22). Roaming Charges: Shallà≤: 120 Days of COVID. counterpunch.org As the USA approaches an official tally of 100,000 dead from COVID-19, let us recall that this bracing toll is still 467,000 fewer deaths than the number of Iraqi children who died as a result of the Bush/Clinton economic sanctions (not to mention the ongoing war itself.)
(2020-05-22). Third White Man Arrested for Murder in Ahmaud Arbery Shooting as DOJ Considers Hate Crime Charges. democracynow.org 
Authorities have arrested a third white man for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, this one charged with felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment. We speak with civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump about how William Bryan filmed Arbery jogging down a narrow road in Brunswick, Georgia, in broad daylight, before he was confronted by two armed white men — retired police officer Gregory McMichael and his son Travis — who shot him three times. "This was never about any trespassing or burglary," Crump says. "This was always about profiling Ahmaud Arbery because of the color of his skin."
(2020-05-22). FBI Says It Will Investigate Breonna Taylor Shooting Death as Police Chief Announces Retirement. democracynow.org 
We speak with Ben Crump, attorney for the family of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old aspiring nurse who was shot to death by police inside her own apartment. Her family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Louisville Metro Police Department that details how police shot Taylor at least eight times after they burst into her apartment, unannounced, with a search warrant. The man police were looking for did not live in Taylor's apartment and was reportedly already detained by police when officers arrived at Taylor's residence on the night of March 13. At the time of her killing, Taylor had been working as an e…
(2020-05-23). Immigrants Jailed by ICE Are Winning Court Battles to Get Free. truthout.org By the time the coronavirus pandemic reached a crisis level in the United States in March, José Velásquez had already spent almost 900 days in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention. A Guatemalan asylum seeker, Velásquez had celebrated his 18th and 19th birthdays behind bars, and, as the pandemic worsened, he worried about making it to his 20th. Over the course of two years in the notorious Adelanto detention center in California, the teenager had developed serious hypertension, a condition th…
(2020-05-22). FBI Says It Will Investigate Breonna Taylor Shooting Death. truthout.org We speak with Ben Crump, attorney for the family of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old aspiring nurse who was shot to death by police inside her own apartment. Her family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Louisville Metro Police Department that details how police shot Taylor at least eight times after they burst into her apartment, unannounced, with a search warrant. The man police were looking for did not live in Taylor's apartment and was reportedly already detained by police when officers arrived at Ta…
(2020-05-24). Police in Hamburg use WATER CANNONS to disperse demonstrators against anti-lockdown protest (VIDEO, PHOTOS). rt.com 
Police have deployed water cannons to break up a sparse crowd demonstrating against a sanctioned anti-lockdown rally in Hamburg, Germany, that saw dozens turn out while minding social distancing rules.
| Police have deployed water cannons to break up a sparse crowd demonstrating against a sanctioned anti-lockdown rally in Hamburg, Germany, that saw dozens turn out while minding social distancing rules. | Police had to intervene after a small group of about 120 counter-pro…
(2020-05-23). Israeli Authorities Place Palestinian under Administrative Detention. imemc.org Israeli Prison Service (IPS) reportedly placed, on Saturday, a Palestinian man from the northern West Bank city of Jenin, under administrative detention, with no charges, for a period of six months. Family members of Mahmoud Said Alsa'dy, 40, told the Palestinian WAFA News Agency that the Israeli prison authority of …