Monday, May 13, 2019
Trump’s Lifetime Of Lies Comes Crashing Down
Sweden Reopens Rape Case against Julian Assange
Swedish prosecutors are to reopen an investigation into a rape allegation against Julian Assange.
The deputy director of public prosecutions, Eva-Marie Persson, announced the decision at a press conference on Monday, saying: “I have today taken the decision to reopen the preliminary investigation.”
She said the circumstances now allowed for an extradition to Sweden from Britain, and a new interview with Assange should be held.
She said: “After reviewing the preliminary investigation carried out so far, I find that there still exist grounds for Julian Assange to be suspected on probable cause of the charge of rape. It is my assessment that a new questioning of Assange is required.” » | Caroline Davies | Monday, May 13, 2019
Saudi Oil Tankers Show 'Significant Damage' after Sabotage Attack, Says Riyadh
Two Saudi oil tankers have suffered “significant damage” in an apparent sabotage attack off the coast of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, the Saudi energy minister has said.
The reported incident – which could threaten the security of global oil supplies – came after the US warned ships that “Iran or its proxies” could be targeting maritime traffic in the region, prompting the US to send an aircraft carrier strike group and B-52 bombers to the Persian Gulf.
One of the two vessels was on its way to be loaded with Saudi crude oil bound for customers in the US, state news agency SPA reported. The attack did not lead to any casualties or an oil spill but caused significant damage to the structures of the two vessels, said Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih on Monday. » | Staff and agencies | Monday, May 13, 2019
Sunday, May 12, 2019
Conversion by Aversion? Featuring Arnoud van Doorn, Former Member of the Dutch Freedom Party
President Trump Tells Reporter That Asking Government To Investigate Biden Is Ok | The Last Word | MSNBC
Saturday, May 11, 2019
John Bolton Gearing Up the US for War with Iran
Farage Cannot Be Allowed to Dictate Britain’s Future. He Must Be Thwarted
If you care about what the Brexiters are doing to our country, then vote on 23 May. All that matters is that on 24 May, Nigel Farage and his allies on the far right of the Conservative party cannot claim they speak for Britain.
Politics is not an exact science. After the vote, there will be a ledger. On one side will be hard or no-deal Brexit with Farage and the Tory fellow travellers. On the other will be those who want an end to Brexit and those who believe that, after this degree of mess and on a decision of this magnitude, the final say should be with the people.
The most important thing to remember is that with the knowledge of these election results parliament will take its decision. MPs will scrutinise the ledger as if their future depends on it.
So, the big message: vote. Because your vote will affect their vote. » | Tony Blair | Saturday, May 11, 2019
Louis Farrakhan Denies Antisemitism – Then Refers to 'Satanic Jews'
In a speech denying allegations of antisemitism, misogyny and homophobia after Facebook banned him from the social media platform, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan referred to “Satanic Jews”.
During the speech on Thursday at a Catholic church on Chicago’s South Side, Farrakhan said people shouldn’t be angry if “I stand on God’s word”. He also said that he knows “the truth” and “separate[s] the good Jews from the Satanic Jews”. » | Associated Press in Chicago | Saturday, May 11, 2019
Poll Surge for Farage Sparks Panic among Tories and Labour
Senior Tory and Labour politicians have issued frantic calls to their voters to back them in next week’s European elections after a new poll showed support for Nigel Farage’s Brexit party had soared to a level higher than for the two main parties put together.
The Opinium survey for the Observer places the Brexit party on 34%, when people were asked how they intended to vote on 23 May, with Labour slipping to 21% and the Conservatives collapsing to just 11%. Ominously for Theresa May, support for the Tories at the European elections is now less than a third of that for Farage’s party, and below that for the Liberal Democrats, who are on 12%.
The poll suggests the Brexit party, launched only last month, is now on course for a thumping victory that Farage will, MPs fear, use to back his argument that the UK must leave the EU immediately without a deal. » | Toby Helm and Michael Savage | Saturday, May 11, 2019
Protesters March in Cardiff for Welsh Independence
THE GUARDIAN: Thousands march in Cardiff calling for Welsh independence » | Mattha Busby | Saturday, May 11, 2019
Can Europe Save the Iran Nuclear Deal? | Inside Story
EU leaders have rejected that ultimatum, but say they're committed to keeping the nuclear deal alive. Iran says the response isn't strong enough, and is accusing the Europeans of submitting to pressure from the United States. Can a way forward be found?
Presenter: Halla Mohiedeen | Guests: Nathalie Tocci - Director of the Italian Institute of International Affairs and a special adviser to EU foreign policy chief; Federica Mogherini. Mahdi Ghodsi - Economist at The Vienna Institute For International Economic Studies; François Nicoullaud - Former French Ambassador to Iran
Is Capital Punishment for Abortion & Miscarriage Coming to America?
Nancy Pelosi: We Now Face A Trump-Made 'Constitutional Crisis' | The Beat With Ari Melber | MSNBC
US Conservative Pundit Ben Shapiro Ends Interview with BBC's Andrew Neil
THE GUARDIAN: Ben Shapiro apologises to Andrew Neil after being 'destroyed' in BBC interview » | Mattha Busby | Saturday, May 11, 2019
From Tehran: Are US & Iran Going to War
Friday, May 10, 2019
‘Call Me’ Maybe – Trump Asks Iran to Chat
Europe Must Never Repeat Brexit, Says Guy Verhofstadt
The European parliament’s Brexit coordinator, Guy Verhofstadt, has warned that the UK’s decision to leave the EU has already done “far more damage than has ever been predicted”.
Appearing alongside the Liberal Democrat leader, Vince Cable, at a European election campaign event in Camden, north London, on Friday morning, the leader of the Alliance for Liberals and Democrats for Europe said he wanted to send a message to people on the continent to “never repeat Brexit again”. » | Frances Perraudin | Friday, May 10, 2019
Queen's Meeting with King of Bahrain Prompts Protests
Campaigners have condemned Buckingham Palace’s invitation to the king of Bahrain to attend the Windsor horse show this weekend, arguing that the UK should not provide a public relations opportunity to what they say is an increasingly repressive regime.
King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa met the Queen at the event on Friday, demonstrating a warmth of official ties despite the Middle Eastern’s state’s outlawing of political opposition and repression of its Shia majority since a failed 2011 revolt.
Ali Mushaima, the son of a jailed opposition leader, said he would demonstrate outside the event to draw attention to the detention of his father and other politicians jailed during the crackdown, which has lasted most of the decade. » | Dan Sabbagh | Friday, May 10, 2019
THE GUARDIAN: I’m fasting in protest outside Royal Windsor Horse Show to save my father in Bahrain » | Ali Mushaima | Friday, May 10, 2019
Donald Tusk: Chance of Brexit Being Cancelled Could Be 30%
The chances of the UK staying in the EU are as high as 30% as the country would be likely to reject Brexit in a second referendum, the president of the European council, Donald Tusk, has said.
The bloc’s most senior official claimed the British public had only truly debated Brexit after the 2016 referendum and there was significant reason to believe the leave vote could be reversed.
Describing the decision by the former British prime minister, David Cameron, to call the vote as a political miscalculation, Tusk said he would expect a different result in a vote today given what had been learned about the consequences of leaving.
“The referendum was at the worst possible moment, it is the result of a wrong political calculation,” Tusk said in an interview with the Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza (GW) that was shared with the Guardian as part of the Europa collaboration of six European newspapers.
“A real debate about the consequences of Brexit wasn’t had during the referendum campaign, but only after the vote. Today the result would probably look different. Paradoxically, Brexit awoke in Great Britain a pro-European movement.” » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Friday, May 10, 2019
Col. Wilkerson: US Would Face a Unified Venezuelan Military in an Armed Intervention
Thursday, May 09, 2019
Trump’s Foolish Iran Policy Only Makes War More Likely
It is unclear what, if anything, Iran can do to induce the United States and its regional allies to halt their escalating war of attrition before it provokes all-out conflict. When Donald Trump reneged on the UN-ratified nuclear agreement with Tehran last year, he said he wanted a better deal. Iran must change its behaviour, he said, and act like a “normal country”.
This was always disingenuous. Iran’s authoritarian and abusive rulers certainly need to mend their ways. But what Trump and his imperious advisers really meant was that they must do what America says, in conformity with American interests. What they want is an end to 40 years of post-revolution defiance. What they want is regime change in Iran. » | Simon Tisdall | Thursday, May 9, 2019
THE GUARDIAN: Trump’s antics over Iran have endangered us all. The stakes are now lethally high » | Jonathan Friedland | Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Donald Trump Tells Iran ‘Call Me’ over Lifting Sanctions
Donald Trump has offered Iran direct talks, saying its leaders should “call me” and suggested the US would help revive the country’s economy as long as Iran did not acquire nuclear weapons.
The impromptu offer by the US president, if serious, represents a dramatic lowering of the bar set by his administration for lifting extensive sanctions, including an oil embargo. Iran is already party to a 2015 agreement that strictly limits its nuclear programme and places it under close scrutiny. Trump withdrew the US from that Obama-era treaty a year ago.
“What I’d like to see with Iran, I’d like to see them call me,” Trump said. He pointed out the Iranian economy was in shambles as a result of the US pressure campaign.
“What they should be doing is calling me up, sitting down and we can make a deal, a fair deal,” Trump said. “We just don’t want them to have nuclear weapons. It’s not too much to ask. And we would help put them back into great shape.” » | Julian Borger in Washington and Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor | Thursday, May 9, 2019
Is this, perhaps, a ruse? – Mark
Die Schwulenheiler | Panorama - die Reporter | NDR (2015)
Bob Woodward: I Think We Have a Governing Crisis
Wednesday, May 08, 2019
Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor – What's in a Name?
The decision by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to call their son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor came as a surprise to many.
The forenames are far from traditional for the royal family, which may be exactly why the couple, anxious for their son to have as normal an upbringing as possible, chose them. While there are courtesy titles they could have used, such as the Earl of Dumbarton, they have chosen not to do so for now, according to palace sources.
The name Archie – a shortened version of Archibald, which is of German origin and means “genuine”, “bold” and “brave” – has become increasingly popular. According to the Office for National Statistics, it was the 18th most popular in the UK in 2017, while Harrison came in at 34th. » | Caroline Davies | Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Is the Iran Nuclear Deal Dead? | Inside Story
The US president decided a year ago to pull out of the Iran nuclear agreement, which imposed limits on Tehran’s nuclear activities. Trump then re-imposed sanctions against Iran, and recently extended them to threaten those countries still party to the deal.
Iran has now reacted, warning the UK, France, Germany, China, and Russia, it will step up uranium production unless they meet their commitments within 60 days.
Russia is putting the blame on what it calls 'lamentable' behaviour from the US, while EU leaders are warning Iran of possible consequences.
Can the deal be renegotiated and revived?
Presenter: Imran Khan | Guests: Mohammad Marandi - Professor of North American Studies at University of Tehran; Rina Shah - Republican Strategist and Consultant; Ali Fathollah-Nejad - visiting fellow at Brookings Doha Center
The Rise of the Right: Populism in Germany - BBC News
The Nine’s Europe Correspondent Jean Mackenzie travels across the continent, to find out why these movements are surging - meeting the people celebrating their rise and those fighting to stop them.
The first in this series comes from Germany, where the far-right party the AfD is now Germany’s main opposition. We ask whether their place in Parliament is emboldening more extreme groups.
Tuesday, May 07, 2019
Trump's Attacks on Palestinians Are "Evil and Unacceptable," Says Human Rights Lawyer
Juncker: Europeans Have Lost Their 'Libido' for Each Other
Trita Parsi: John Bolton Has Wanted War with Iran for 20 Years. Now Could Be His Best Chance
In a statement on Sunday night, Bolton said the move was intended to “send a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian régime that any attacks on United States interests or on those of our allies will be met with unrelenting force.”
On Monday acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said the deployment was made because of a “credible threat by Iranian régime forces” but he offered no details. Axios is reporting the threat is based on information passed on from Israel.
The Trump administration has been ratcheting up pressure against Iran following Washington’s withdrawal from the landmark Iran nuclear deal last year. Last month, the US designated Iran’s élite Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization. The Trump administration also said it will end a waiver program that allowed some nations to circumvent US sanctions and continue buying Iranian oil without suffering penalties.
We speak with Trita Parsi in Washington DC, author of “Losing an Enemy: Obama, Iran, and the Triumph of Diplomacy.” He is the founder and former president of the National Iranian American Council, and an adjunct associate professor in the Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University.
Pompeo Won’t Seek OK to Attack Venezuela
George Clooney Vows to Keep Up Pressure on Brunei over Gay-sex Death Penalty
George Clooney has promised to keep up pressure on Brunei after the oil-rich country’s sultan, Hassanal Bolkiah, announced it would not enforce the death penalty for gay sex.
Gay sex remains illegal in Brunei, punishable by up to 10 years in jail.
Clooney said the moratorium on executions was a “huge step forward after a giant leap backwards”, but that “the law to stone their citizens is still in place”. He added: “For my family and me, we simply can’t walk away until this draconian law is no longer on the books.” » | Andrew Pulver | Tuesday, May 7, 2019
CIA Warns Arab Activist of Potential Threat from Saudi Arabia
The CIA has warned Norway that a prominent Arab activist who is living in the country under asylum protection is facing a potential threat from Saudi Arabia, the Guardian has learned.
The pro-democracy activist, İyad el-Baghdadi, is a vocal critic of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
El-Baghdadi was alerted to the threat on 25 April, when Norwegian authorities arrived at his doorstep, took him to a secure location, and warned him he was in possible danger from an unspecified threat emanating from the kingdom.
The activist was told the threat had been passed on to Norwegian authorities by a foreign intelligence agency, which the Guardian has confirmed was the CIA. » | Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington and Nick Hopkins in London | Tuesday, May 7, 2019
Monday, May 06, 2019
John Bolton Can Almost Taste War With Iran
US Deploys Aircraft Carrier and Bombers after 'Troubling Indications' from Iran
The US is sending an aircraft carrier and a bomber task force to the Middle East in response to a “number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings” from Iran, the national security advisor John Bolton has said.
It was unclear on Sunday night what Iranian actions Bolton was referring to. There have been no recent incidents in the Persian Gulf where US and Iranian navies are routinely in close proximity and the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group was already bound for the Gulf a month before Bolton made his announcement.
However, the tone of Bolton’s declaration looked likely to escalate tensions in the region, and it comes days after the Iranian government expressed concern that Bolton and other hawks were seeking to draw the Trump administration into a new war.
In a written statement, Bolton said the ships and planes were intended “to send a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian regime that any attack on United States interests or on those of our allies will be met with unrelenting force.” » | Julian Borger, World affairs editor | Monday, May 6, 2019
Sunday, May 05, 2019
Brunei Says It Will Not Enforce Gay Sex Death Penalty after Backlash
Brunei’s Sultan, Hassanal Bolkiah, has extended a moratorium on the death penalty to incoming legislation on punishments for gay sex, after a global backlash led by celebrities such as George Clooney and Elton John.
The country provoked an outcry when it rolled out its interpretation of Islamic laws, or sharia, on 3 April, punishing sodomy, adultery and rape with death, including by stoning.
Brunei has consistently defended its right to implement the laws, elements of which were first adopted in 2014 and which have been rolled out in phases since then.
However, in a rare response to criticism aimed at the oil-rich state, the sultan said on Sunday that the death penalty would not be enforced in the implementation of the sharia penal code order (SPCO). » | Reuters | Sunday, May 5, 2019
Saturday, May 04, 2019
Mike Pompeo: A Bully Boy Calls at No 10
American secretaries of state can be earnestly dull, like John Kerry, or plain brilliant, like George Marshall; Machiavellian, like Henry Kissinger, or intensely political, like Hillary Clinton. Mike Pompeo, the bluntly spoken, present-day incumbent who will discuss “shared global priorities” with Theresa May in London, is simply a problem.
As last week’s failed US pressure tactics in Venezuela showed, the former army officer, Christian evangelical and ex-CIA director favours a muscular approach to diplomacy. His messianic drive to force regime change in Iran is another example. He recently suggested Donald Trump had been sent by God to save Israel from Tehran’s mullahs.
Speaking in Cairo in January, Pompeo celebrated US support for dictators such as Egypt’s Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and the Saudis’ war in Yemen. Next month, he will help unveil a peace plan that could destroy any lingering Palestinian hopes of an independent state. But he makes no apologies. “I’ll put it bluntly. America is a force for good in the Middle East,” he declared. » | Simon Tisdall | Saturday, May 4, 2019
Why We Can't Stop Eating Unhealthy Foods
Friday, May 03, 2019
Florida Votes to Allow Teachers to Carry Weapons in the Classroom
In the aftermath of the massacre, in which 1 7 people were killed, state representatives lifted a ban on arming those who "exclusively perform classroom duties".
Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is now expected to sign off a new law that enables teachers who pass a 144-hour training course to carry a gun.
Activists including a gun control group started by survivors of the Parkland shooting, March for Our Lives, are calling on Governor DeSantis to veto the reform, using the hashtag #BooksNotBullets on social media. » | Phoebe Davis | Friday, May 3, 2019
Thursday, May 02, 2019
Trump's Foreign Policy | Full Debate | George Galloway, Mark Leonard
Craig Murray: "Anyone Who Believes Julian Assange Case Is Genuinely Independent Is a Fool"
As Venezuela Coup Fizzles, Pompeo Threatens US Attack
Wednesday, May 01, 2019
A Very Singular Man: Edward Heath Profile
Economist Jeffrey Sachs: US Sanctions Have Devastated Venezuela & Killed Over 40,000 Since 2017
The report examines how US sanctions have reduced the availability of food and medicine in Venezuela and increased disease and mortality.
We speak with Jeffrey Sachs in our New York studio. In the report, he writes, “American sanctions are deliberately aiming to wreck Venezuela’s economy and thereby lead to régime change. It’s a fruitless, heartless, illegal, and failed policy, causing grave harm to the Venezuelan people.”
What's Next for Venezuela after 'Attempted Coup'? | Inside Story
On Tuesday, opposition leader Juan Guaidó called on the army to oust Maduro. But by the end of the day, Guaidó was in hiding, and dozens of his supporters were injured in scuffles with security forces.
Both sides are urging Venezuelans to hold more protests. Who's backing them? And what's next in this drawn-out political crisis?
Presenter: Imran Khan | Guests: Ramon Muchacho - former mayor of Chacao District, an opposition stronghold in Caracas; Paul Dobson - journalist at venezuelaanalysis.com; Tom Long - Professor of South American Politics at Warwick University, UK
Guaidó’s Coup Is a ‘Farce’ – Daniel McAdams
Venezuelan Government Says 'Coup Attempt' Failed | Al Jazeera English
Venezuela Crisis: Maduro Claims Victory over 'Deranged' Coup Attempt
Nicolás Maduro claimed his troops have thwarted a botched attempt to topple him masterminded by Venezuela’s “coup-mongering far right” and Donald Trump’s deranged imperialist “gang”.
In an hour-long address to the nation on Tuesday night – his first since the pre-dawn uprising began – Maduro accused opposition leader Juan Guaidó and his political mentor Leopoldo López of seeking to spark an armed confrontation that might be used as a pretext for a foreign military intervention.
However, “loyal and obedient” members of Venezuela’s Bolivarian armed forces had put down the mutiny within hours of it starting shortly after 4am, Maduro claimed, in direct contradiction to Guaidó’s earlier remark that the president no longer had military backing. » | Wednesday, May 1, 2019
THE GUARDIAN: Venezuela: Moscow persuaded Maduro not to step down, US claims » | Julian Borger in Washington and Joe Parkin Daniels in Bogotá | Tuesday, April 30, 2019
Tuesday, April 30, 2019
UK's Brexit Obsession Will Diminish Country, Says UN Poverty Expert
The United Nations global poverty expert, Philip Alston, has warned that Britain’s preoccupation with Brexit will leave the country severely diminished whether or not it leaves the EU because too little is being done to alter policies driving people deeper into poverty.
The eminent New York-based human rights lawyer, who is in the final year of his term as the UN rapporteur on extreme poverty, said on Tuesday: “You are really screwing yourselves royally for the future by producing a substandard workforce and children that are malnourished.” » | Robert Booth, Social affairs correspondent | Tuesday, April 30, 2019
Julian Assange World Exclusive: Secrets from Inside the Embassy | 60 Minutes Australia
Monday, April 29, 2019
US Threatens Iran with 40% Inflation
Joe To President Donald Trump: You Can Call Out White Nationalism | Morning Joe | MSNBC
Amal Clooney Calls Out Trump Administration at the UN | NowThis
In the latest current events news on the Trump administration, Amal Clooney, human rights lawyer and wife of George Clooney, recently spoke at the United Nations in front of the UN Security Council about some of the most dire global issues: sexual violence, sex slavery, and other related war crimes. In the Amal Clooney speech, she directly called out the President Trump administration for impeding the UN's efforts to help women hurt by the Islamic State and other destructive regimes. The Donald Trump White House has been persistent over reproductive rights, but this Amal Clooney UN speech, Clooney showed she wasn't afraid.
Can Iran Close Hormuz Strait? | Inside Story
Now, the US decision to impose further economic sanctions on Iran has prompted threats from Tehran to close this strategic waterway. This week, Washington will end all waivers granted to eight countries, including China and India, that import Iranian oil.
The Trump administration says it's part of its 'maximum pressure' campaign to stop Iran from destabilising the region. But what are the consequences of shutting the Strait of Hormus, not just for Iran, but the region and global oil markets?
Presenter: Kamahl Santamaria | Guests: Mohammad Eslami, political researcher and columnist; Manouchehr Takin, independent oil and energy consultant; Simon Mabon, senior lecturer in international studies at Lancaster University
Nigel Farage Is Fuelled by the Betrayal Myth. And Brexit Is Only the Start
It is a grim reflection that no contemporary British politician better understands the networks, dynamics and ever-changing rules of modern politics than Nigel Farage.
He is as effective as he is awful. His fledgling Brexit party is not fielding candidates in Thursday’s local elections – though its baleful spirit will surely loom over the battle for control of 248 English councils, in which the Tories are expected to suffer serious losses.
Instead, Farage is keeping his powder dry for the European elections that will be held on 23 May, assuming Theresa May has not secured Britain’s exit from the European Union by then.
In the latest Opinium poll of voting intention, his new movement is level pegging with Labour on 28% – 14 points ahead of the Tories. » | Matthew d’Ancona | Monday, April 29, 2019
Sunday, April 28, 2019
What Shapes US Foreign Policy in the Middle East? | Inside Story
US president Donald Trump has taken a 'hands-off' approach to foreign policy while pushing his 'America First' strategy. He has long promised to find a solution to the conflict in Palestine with what he calls the 'deal of the century'. But there hasn't been much detail on what that deal contains.
Now, with an election year coming up in the US, and an ever-changing political dynamic in the Middle East, what will be America's policy in the region? And are we heading towards more uncertainty?
Presenter: Peter Dobbie | Guests: Mahmoud Jabara - Visiting Lecturer, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg; Seyed Mohammad Marandi - Dean at the Faculty of World Studies, University of Tehran; Omar Ayasra - Researcher in Religious Sociology and Political Transformation; Mohammed Cherkaoui - Senior Fellow, Al Jazeera Centre For Studies
Saturday, April 27, 2019
Nicola Sturgeon Interview on Brexit, Scottish Independence and the Euro
Will Macron's Promises End Yellow Vests Protests? | Al Jazeera English
He's responded to the biggest challenge to his presidency by offering some concessions to the Yellow Vest protesters. They've brought Paris - and other cities - to a standstill every Saturday for months demanding cuts to the cost of living.
Macron is proposing lower taxes for some, pensions reform, stopping the closure of schools and hospitals - and making it easier to hold a referendum on vital issues. There are other proposals too. But are they enough to stop the riots and revolt against his ideas for the future of France?
Presenter: Adrian Finighan | Guests: Renaud Girard - Chief Foreign Correspondent, Le Figaro newspaper; Charles Lichfield - European Affairs Analyst, Eurasia Group of consultants; Jacques Reland - Head of European Research, Global Policy Institute
Loneliness Epidemic As Deadly As Smoking | 60 Minutes Australia
Brazil Governed by ‘Lunatics’ and US ‘Lackeys’, Says Ex-president Lula
Brazil is being governed by “a bunch of lunatics” and United States “lackeys” who have shattered its international reputation, former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has claimed in his first interview since being jailed one year ago.
Lula, Brazil’s president from 2003 and 2011, surrendered himself to police last April after being convicted on corruption charges he disputes.
The 73-year-old leftist had been forbidden from giving face-to-face interviews until Friday, when two Brazilian journalists were allowed to visit him at his prison in southern Brazil following a lengthy legal battle.
Lula told them Brazil needed to undergo period of “self-reflection” after what he described as the “crazy” fake news and hate-filled election of far-right populist Jair Bolsonaro last year. “What we can’t have is this country being run governed by a bunch of lunatics. The country doesn’t deserve this and above all the people do not deserve this.” » | Anna Jean Kaiser in São Paulo and Tom Phillips | Saturday, April 27, 2019
Friday, April 26, 2019
Trump Withdraws from UN Arms Treaty as NRA Crowd Cheers in Delight
Donald Trump has announced that the US will withdraw its support for a United Nations treaty regulating the multibillion-dollar global arms trade.
Addressing the National Rifle Association (NRA) in Indianapolis, the president said he would revoke America’s status as a signatory of the arms trade treaty regulating conventional weapons including small arms, battle tanks, combat aircraft and warships.
“My administration will never ratify the UN arms trade treaty,” Trump said. “We’re taking our signature back. The United Nations will soon receive a formal notice that America is rejecting this treaty.”
Trump added: “Under my administration, we will never surrender American sovereignty to anyone. We will never allow foreign bureaucrats to trample on your second amendment freedom. I’m officially announcing today that the United States will be revoking the effect of America’s signature from this badly misguided treaty.” » | David Smith in Indianapolis | Friday, April 26, 2019
UN Condemns Saudi Executions, US Barely Reacts
37 Men Were Executed and Court Filings Show Some Protested Their Innocence
Brazil Must Not Become a 'Gay Tourism Paradise', Says Bolsonaro
Brazil’s far-right president, the self-declared homophobe Jair Bolsonaro, has been accused of inciting hatred towards LGBT people after declaring the South American country should not become a “gay tourism paradise”.
“If you want to come here and have sex with a woman, go for your life,” Bolsonaro reportedly told journalists in the capital, Brasília. “But we can’t let this place become known as a gay tourism paradise. Brazil can’t be a country of the gay world, of gay tourism. We have families,” Bolsonaro added, according to the Brazilian magazine Exame.
The comments – made during a breakfast meeting with Brazilian reporters – sparked an immediate reaction from LGBT campaigners. » | Tom Phillips and Anna Jean Kaiser in São Paulo | Friday, April 26, 2019
Simon Schama on the Lessons of History for Brexit and Donald Trump
Should Trump Be Committed to a Mental Health Facility?
Elizabeth Drew On 'The Danger in Not Impeaching President Donald Trump' | The Last Word | MSNBC
Thursday, April 25, 2019
Sen. Warren Wants to Jail Those Who Caused 2008's Meltdown
Kim - Putin Summit: What's Different from Meetings with Trump? | DW News
Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Irans Präsident nennt Trump einen „Halbstarken“
Der iranische Präsident Hassan Rohani hat den amerikanischen Präsidenten Donald Trumpals einen „Halbstarken“ bezeichnet. „Diplomatie ist nur dann möglich, wenn gegenseitiger Respekt herrscht und kein Druck ausgeübt wird“, sagte Rohani in einer Kabinettssitzung am Mittwoch. Verhandlungen mit einem „Halbstarken“ seien in dieser Phase auch nicht möglich, so der iranische Präsident laut dem Webportal des Präsidialamtes.
Trumps Entscheidung, bei Sanktionen gegen Öl-Importe aus Iran keine Ausnahmen mehr zuzulassen, führte in Iran zu unterschiedlichen Reaktionen. Die Revolutionsgarden (IRGC), die Eliteeinheit der Streitkräfte, drohten sogar damit, die Straße von Hormus im Persischen Golf zu blockieren. Sie gilt als die wichtigste Öl-Handelsroute, durch die fast ein Drittel aller Öl-Exporte verschifft wird. Eine Blockade dieser Route würde nach Meinung vieler Beobachter zu einem militärischen Konflikt am Persischen Golf führen. » | Quelle: dpa/AFP | Mittwoch, 24. April 2019
La première ministre écossaise appelle à un second référendum sur l’indépendance
Le gouvernement écossais va introduire «prochainement» un projet de loi visant à organiser un nouveau référendum sur l’indépendance de l’Écosse d’ici 2021, a déclaré ce mercredi la première ministre écossaise Nicola Sturgeon. «Nous allons prochainement présenter un projet de loi fixant les règles pour tout référendum relevant actuellement ou à l’avenir de la compétence du parlement écossais», a déclaré la cheffe du Parti national écossais (SNP) au Parlement écossais à Édimbourg, espérant que ce texte serait voté d’ici à la fin de l’année. » | Par Le figaro.fr et AFP agence | mercredi 24 avril 2019
UK Condemns Saudi Arabia over 'Repulsive' Mass Executions
Britain has issued its sharpest condemnation of the direction of Saudi Arabian human rights policy, describing its mass executions as “repulsive” and “utterly unacceptable in the modern world”.
The remarks came after further details emerged of the Saudi government’s execution on Tuesday of 37 people, including three who were minors at the time of their alleged offence.
One of those executed was then crucified, according to Saudi state media.
The Foreign Office minister Sir Alan Duncan, answering an urgent question in the Commons, spurned the usual diplomatic niceties, saying the mass executions were “a deeply backward step which we deplore”. He added it was “deplorable and totally unacceptable” that at least one of those executed had been a minor at the time of the arrest.
He highlighted reports that one of those executed was displayed on a cross, saying that anyone in the House, just two days after Easter, would find “more repulsive than anything we could picture”.
He added: “Any country needs to realise that when it uses methods like this they will eventually backfire. The practical benefit is entirely negative.” » | Patrick Wintour, Diplomatic editor | Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Chris Hedges - The American Empire Will Collapse Within a Decade, Two at Most | November 19, 2018)
The Guardian View on Donald Trump’s UK Visit: A Mistake
Rolling out the red carpet for a US president ought to be easier than this. Britain and America share a “special relationship” which rests on a common language, histories and ideals. Yet Donald Trump makes building on this impossible. He is no friend of this country. The president has repeatedly attacked leading British politicians, singling outLondon’s mayor, Sadiq Khan. He retweets fascists. On the day news emerged that Mr Trump would be accorded a state visit to Britain, he was threatening to veto a UN resolution against the use of rape as a weapon of war. America has been taken over by a demagogue who sees Brexit as an opportunity for a rabble-rouser to rise here too. He is a dangerous liar whom racists and misogynists think of as one of their own. Mr Trump ought to be held at a distance, not invited for dinner with the Queen. » | Editorial | Tuesday, April 23, 2019
Donald Trump's Comments About Princess Diana Will Definitely Give You The Creeps »
Tuesday, April 23, 2019
Stop Buying Iranian Oil or Face Sanctions? | Inside Story
Iran is threatening retaliation by blocking the Strait of Hormuz - the world's lifeline of oil from all Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq. The move has brought America's rivals and allies on the same page.
China and Turkey have condemned the decision; and India and Japan, major buyers of Iranian oil, are scrambling to meet the shortfall.
Many countries would now feel the pinch of sanctions Washington re-imposed after pulling out from Iran nuclear deal last year.
Will the development stoke tensions in the Gulf? And does Donald Trump risk alienating friends and antagonizing rivals?
Presenter: Imran Khan | Guests: Adolfo Franco, Republican strategist & Former Adviser to President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain; Mohammad Marandi, Head of the North American Studies Graduate Program at the University of Tehran; Dan Wang, China Analyst, The Economist Intelligence Unit
Trump's Latest Iran Sanctions Show an Unraveling of US Foreign Policy
Monday, April 22, 2019
Is Zelensky Up to the President's Job? | Inside Story
But stand-up comedy is one thing, standing up to Russia and the myriad other problems facing Ukraine is another thing altogether.
Outgoing president Petro Poroshenko says Zelensky's too naïve for hard politics, but it is dissatisfaction with old faces like Poroshenko that has probably benefitted the comedian.
He's campaigned on an anti-establishment, anti-corruption platform; and that seems to have resounded with his supporters.
Zelensky won with more than 70 percent of the vote. But with no previous political experience how will he tackle the many challenges ahead? What's the punchline?
Presenter: Imran Khan | Guests: Valentin Yakushik, Professor of political science at the National University of "Kiev-Mohyla Academy"; Uly Brueckner, Jean Monnet Professor in European Studies at Stanford University, Berlin; Dmitry Babich, Political Analyst at Rossiya Segodnya news agency
Brunei Defends Death by Stoning for Gay Sex in Letter to EU
Brunei has written to the European parliament defending its decision to start imposing death by stoning as a punishment for gay sex, claiming convictions will be rare as it requires two men of “high moral standing and piety” to be witnesses.
In a four-page letter to MEPs, the kingdom’s mission to the EU called for “tolerance, respect and understanding” with regard to the country’s desire to preserve its traditional values and “family lineage”.
The new penal code, which also provides for the amputation of thieves and whipping of people wearing clothes associated with the opposite sex, was brought in on 3 April, despite international condemnation.
But in the letter, the kingdom claimed the outcry is due to a misconception that it wanted to clarify.
“The criminalisation of adultery and sodomy is to safeguard the sanctity of family lineage and marriage to individual Muslims, particularly women,” it said.
“The penal sentences of had – stoning to death and amputation – imposed for offences of theft, robbery, adultery and sodomy, have extremely high evidentiary threshold, requiring no less than two or four men of high moral standing and piety as witnesses, to the exclusion of every form of circumstantial evidence.” » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Monday, April 22, 2019
Will Brexit Happen? Political Heavyweights Take On Debate | 60 Minutes Australia
Comedian Wins Landslide Victory in Ukrainian Presidential Election
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, an actor and comedian with no political experience other than playing the role of president in a TV series, has won a landslide victory in Ukraine’s presidential election, with near-complete counting showing he has won over 70% of the vote.
The incumbent, Petro Poroshenko conceded defeat on Sunday evening before results started coming in.
According to official results released on Monday morning, with 85% of the vote counted, 41-year-old Zelenskiy had won 73.4% of the vote, compared to Poroshenko’s 24.4%. » | Shaun Walker in Kyiv | Monday, April 22, 2019
Sunday, April 21, 2019
Iraq's Oldest Christian Town Celebrates Easter without Isis
The church ceiling was still scorched and some cherished relics missing, but after five years of war and exile, their tormentors were finally gone.
When the men and women of Iraq’s oldest Christian town gathered for Easter mass this weekend, they did so knowing that the Islamic State extremists who had chased them away were not coming back. Their battlefield defeat two months ago meant the people of Hamdaniya (also called Qaraqosh) could once again celebrate without fear.
A large congregation shuffled into pews that only two years ago lay in splintered ruin, both in the Church of the Immaculate Conception and every other church in Hamdaniya, which, like much of the rest of northern Iraq, had been overrun by extremists from Isis.
A priest in bright red robes holding a gold crosier in one hand and a small cross in the other spoke in Syriac only blocks away from where militants plotted chaos and even genocide for vulnerable communities. » | Martin Chulov in Hamdaniya | Sunday, April 21, 2019
Marlene Dietrich - Ein Engel in der Dämmerung
Mayor Pete
(Un)Welcome: Sweden's Rise of the Right
How Can Stateless People Cross Borders? | DW Documentary
In the aftermath of the First World War, more than two million people fled the Russian Revolution and the Armenian massacres. To prevent them from returning to their home countries, their respective governments revoked their citizenships. These permanent exiles had no choice but to start anew elsewhere and spread out around the world. To deal with this fraught situation, Norwegian diplomat Fridtjof Nansen, the League of Nations’ first High Commissioner for Refugees, worked hard to create a passport for these "stateless" persons. The so-called "Nansen Passport" was introduced on 5 July 1922. It was a symbolic document that made history as the first international legal instrument for the protection of refugees. This identity card and travel document allowed them to enter all the member states of the League of Nations at a time when many European states were closing their borders because of fascism, anti-Semitism and war and paying increasing attention to the legal status of both residents and foreigners. Famous artists such as Anna Pavlova, Vladimir Nabokov, Marc Chagall, Igor Stravinsky and Robert Capa, as well as more than a million other stateless persons, mostly refugees from Russia and the Ottoman Empire, received these precious passports. States have not used collective deprivation of citizenship as a weapon since 1945, but the UN General Assembly did not officially ban it until 2012.
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