Philby's Choice. Unknown Life of the World's Most Talented Spy

Gilet Jaunes: Yellow Vest Protesters Fight Police, Ransack Shops and Set Fire to Bank in Paris

THE INDEPENDENT: Interior minister condemns 'ultra violent' group as city is ransacked

Yellow vest protesters hurled stones at police officers, ransacked shops along the Champs-Elysees and set fire to a bank, as Paris saw its 18th consecutive weekend of protests.

Police fired tear gas and water cannons at the anti-government demonstrators after the protests turned violent.

Firefighters rescued two people from a burning bank, with 11 people suffering minor injuries in the blaze.

Two news stands on the avenue also caught fire, as bonfires burned in the streets. By late afternoon police officers had arrested around 120 protesters.

A number of demonstrators ransacked the high-end Fouquet's restaurant and clashed with riot police in front of the Arc de Triomphe. » | Zamira Rahim | Sunday, March 17, 2019

Holocaust Survivor Anton Mason Testimony

Opinion: Dissecting the Dreams of Brexit Britain

THE NEW YORK TIMES: I've traveled England trying to understand what drives the Brexit psyche.

The June 2016 Brexit referendum left Britain a divided nation. That much we know. But the referendum didn’t create division. It exposed something that was already there, latent. This was hard to see if you attended to people’s conventional political views about taxation or public spending; even the issue of immigration, by itself, wasn’t “it.” Nor was it to be found in something as vague as “feelings” or “emotions.” It lay elsewhere, in the realm of the individual political psyche, that blending of personal, family and nonacademic history, casually informed reasoning, clan prejudice, tribal loyalty and ancestor worship that forms the imaginative framework in which, as we represent it to ourselves, our lives relate to events in the wider world. Read on and comment » | James Meek | Mr. Meek is the author, most recently, of “Dreams of Leaving and Remaining.” | Friday, March 15, 2019

The Guardian View on the Christchurch Attacks: Extremism’s Rising Danger

THE GUARDIAN: The far right seeks to divide. Responsible politicians ought, especially in times of grief and anger, to bring people together

New Zealand is best known for its breathtaking wilderness, found in distant but secure islands at the edge of the world. On Friday that changed. Forty-nine people were killed in shootings at two mosques in central Christchurch in a suspected terrorist attack during the congregational prayer. The horrific events have left the country in mourning and shock. Muslims make up less than 1% of New Zealand’s population and the faith’s most prominent adherent is a rugby player. This was a stupefying amount of lethal force in a country that saw only 35 homicides in all of 2017. New Zealand as a nation will collectively have to deal with a trauma that no parent, no relative, no friend should ever endure. » | Editorial | Friday, March 15, 2019

Could Brexit Be Delayed? - Inside Story

'Brexit means Brexit' - or maybe it doesn't after all.

Britain's Prime Minister has repeated her slogan many times, insisting that Britain will leave the European Union on March the 29th. But with just two weeks to go, MPs have voted to delay the divorce until June.

The leaders of ALL EU countries now need to decide whether that can happen. And despite the biggest vote defeat in British parliamentary history, Theresa May says she'll try one more time next week to persuade MPs to back her withdrawal deal.

Will the European Union delay Brexit?

Presenter: Hazem Sika | Guests: Catherine McBride - Senior Economist, International Trade and Competition Unit at the Institute of Economic Affairs, London; Donnacha O'Beachain - Associate Professor, School of Law and Government, Dublin City University; Jon Worth - European Union Affairs blogger and visiting lecturer, College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium

North Korea Threatens to Scuttle Talks With the U.S. and Resume Tests

THE NEW YORK TIMES: North Korea threatened on Friday to suspend negotiations with the Trump administration over the North’s nuclear arms program and said its leader, Kim Jong-un, would soon decide whether to resume nuclear and missile tests.

Addressing diplomats and foreign correspondents at a news conference in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui said that personal relations between Mr. Kim and Mr. Trump were “still good and the chemistry is mysteriously wonderful.”

But she said that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and John Bolton, Mr. Trump’s national security adviser, had created an “atmosphere of hostility and mistrust” that thwarted the top leaders’ negotiations in Hanoi, Vietnam, last month.

After the Hanoi meeting ended without a deal, the North Korean leader had serious doubts about the merits of continuing negotiations with Mr. Trump, Ms. Choe said. » | Choe Sang-Hun | Friday, March 15, 2019

Holocaust Survivor Frank Shurman Testimony

This testimony from Jewish Survivor Frank Shurman is from the archive of the USC Shoah Foundation Institute and is also featured in Echoes & Reflections: A Multimedia Curriculum on the Holocaust.

Irish PM Brings Partner to Meet Mike Pence and Delivers Pointed Remarks on Sexuality

THE GUARDIAN: Leo Varadkar spoke on the changes for Ireland and called out various forms of discrimination

The Irish prime minister, Leo Varadkar, who is gay, brought his partner to a meeting on Thursday with the US vice-president, Mike Pence, a conservative Christian once dubbed “the face of anti-LGBTQ hate in America”.

Varadkar, who is in Washington this week to reaffirm the longstanding shared history between the two countries, brought his partner, Matt Barrett, to a St Patrick’s Day breakfast at the vice-presidential residence at the Naval Observatory.

Varadkar tweeted that he and Barrett had received a “warm reception” at Pence’s home, but in pointed remarks to Pence and gathered media, he also called out various forms of discrimination.

“I lived in a country where if I’d tried to be myself at the time, it would have ended up breaking laws,” he said. “But today, that is all changed. I stand here, leader of my country, flawed and human, but judged by my political actions, and not by my sexual orientation, my skin tone, gender or religious beliefs.” » | Luke O’Neil | Thursday, March 14, 2019

Jacinda Ardern Says Christchurch Mosque Shootings Were Terrorist Attack

New Zealand's prime minister has issued 'the strongest possible condemnation of the ideology of the people who did this' after mass shootings at two mosques. The country's terrorism threat level has been raised and flights in and out of Christchurch were cancelled as intelligence agencies worked to secure the city. Mass shooting at two Christchurch mosques – video report.

THE GUARDIAN: What we know so far »

THE GUARDIAN: Far-right ideology detailed in Christchurch shooting 'manifesto' » | Lisa Martin | Friday, March 15, 2019

Trump’s War Hawk Advisors Have Pushed Us Into A New Cold War

The Trump Administration has put us back into a new Cold War, thanks to his incompetent, war-hungry advisors. By pulling the US out of the INF treaty with Russia, this administration has launched a new arms race that could dwarf what we saw during the decades of the Cold War. The only people who come out on top of this are the defense contractors. Ring of Fire’s Mike Papantonio and Farron Cousins discuss this issue.

Tucker Carlson Reaches New Deplorable Level And Dave Rubin Fails On Fox News

Tucker Carlson added some more bigotry to his show. Dave Rubin becomes Fox News’ newest shill. Cenk Uygur, host of The Young Turks, breaks it down.

MPs to Vote on Second Referendum Amendment for First Time

THE GUARDIAN: Labour, Tory, SNP, Lib Dem and Plaid Cymru MPs also sign amendment to give Commons indicative votes

MPs will vote on a second referendum amendment for the first time as well as on a cross-party motion that would allow the Commons to take control of the Brexit process.

The Speaker unexpectedly selected a second referendum amendment from Sarah Wollaston for voting on Thursday night. Wollaston, who recently defected from the Conservatives to the Independent Group, has won support from the Lib Dems for her amendment.

It says that the UK’s exit from the European Union should be delayed for the purpose of “legislating for and conducting a public vote” in which staying in the EU is an option. » | Dan Sabbagh | Thursday, March 14, 2019

Holocaust Survivor Ernest Lobet Testimony

This testimony from Jewish Holocaust Survivor Ernest Lobet is from the archive of the USC Shoah Foundation Institute.

MPs Reject No-deal Brexit by Majority of 43 in Second Vote

THE GUARDIAN: Brexit delay possible after MPs vote against leaving European Union without a deal

MPs have inflicted a fresh defeat on Theresa May, rejecting the idea of Britain leaving the EU without a deal and clearing the way for Brexit to be delayed.

After the prime minister’s deal was heavily voted down for a second time on Tuesday, she announced a government motion ruling out a no-deal Brexit on 29 March – overturning her longstanding policy of refusing to rule it out.

May promised MPs a free vote, but the motion was carefully worded, with the final sentence stating that, “leaving without a deal remains the default in UK and EU law unless this house and the EU ratify an agreement”.

However, MPs voted by 312 to 308 to support a backbench amendment which struck out that last phrase so as to rule out a no-deal exit altogether. » | Heather Stewart, Political editor | Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Trump Autographs Bibles In Alabama Because Nothing Makes Sense Anymore

Donald Trump toured disaster areas in Alabama last Friday after a monster tornado destroyed a town and left more than 20 people dead. But the President didn’t waste too much time mourning those we had lost, as he then headed to a church where he signed bibles for phony religious Republicans. This is exactly the kind of thing that the bible warned us about, and this fake evangelicals don’t even realize it. Ring of Fire’s Farron Cousins discusses this.

Chris Hedges: US Record Suicides Prove Economic Decline

Chris Hedges, author and host of RT America’s “On Contact” joins Rick Sanchez to discuss the skyrocketing problem of suicide and self-destructive behavior and why we should only expect it to get worse.

I'm Not Afraid Of Anyone, Particularly President Trump: Elizabeth Warren | Morning Joe | MSNBC

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., shares here thoughts on being a capitalist, why she isn't afraid of the president in a race, breaking up 'big tech' and why she believes in markets with rules and a 'cop on the beat'.

The West Should Cut Ties With Saudi Arabia

With friends like these, who needs enemies? Saudi Arabia is out of control. After the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, most likely on direct orders from the Saudi Crown Prince and de facto ruler Mohammed Bin Salman, it’s time for the West to sever ties with this regime of criminal despots. The House of Saud assassinates journalists and imprisons dissidents. Its military indiscriminately bombs civilians in the cruel war against Yemen, which has led to a massive humanitarian catastrophe with an estimated 85,000 children dying of starvation. And that’s not to mention the Saudi regime’s oppression of women and religious minorities, or its troubling support for Islamist fundamentalism around the world. Saudi Arabia has long been accused of backing terrorist organisations and funding the extremist schools that provide them with recruits and influence. Saudi Arabia is a menace, and the West should end its alliance with this pernicious regime.

That’s the high-minded reasoning of the Saudi-bashers. But no matter how much we abhor the behaviour of the Saudi government, shouldn’t we consider our own interests before ending a hugely beneficial decades-old partnership? After all, as more pragmatically-minded people point out, Saudi Arabia is a crucial bulwark against the dangerous influence of Iran, which threatens the region with its expansionist ambitions. Saudi Arabia also provides the West with vital intelligence in the fight against groups such as al-Qaeda and ISIS. And while we may not like the conservative form of Islam practised in the Kingdom, is that any of our business? If it is, shouldn’t we support its reform-minded Crown Prince? After all, he has lifted the ban on Saudi women driving, allowed cinemas to reopen for the first time in 35 years, and has promised to introduce a more moderate form of Islam to the Kingdom. Shouldn’t the West give him a chance?

The BBC’s star international correspondent Lyse Doucet chaired a line-up of Middle East experts. Who’s right and who’s wrong? Hear the arguments and decide for yourself.

Tucker Carlson's Racism Revealed

Auch Mays neuer Brexit-Deal wird abgeschmettert

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Nächste große Pleite für Theresa May: Auch das nachgebesserte Austrittsabkommen mit der EU wird vom britischen Parlament mit großer Mehrheit abgelehnt. Wie geht es nun weiter?

Bei der Abstimmung über das Brexit-Abkommen mit der Europäischen Union am Dienstagabend im britischen Parlament hat Premierministerin Theresa Mayabermals eine Niederlage erlitten. Auch den mit Brüssel nachgebesserten Deal unterstützt die große Mehrheit der Abgeordneten nicht. Insgesamt stimmten 391 Parlamentarier gegen das Abkommen – und nur 242 dafür. Es ist bereits die zweite schwere Niederlage für den Deal, den May im vergangenen Jahr mit der EU vereinbart hatte. » | Quelle: sreu./dpa | Dienstag, 12. März 2019

Brexit : le Parlement britannique rejette à nouveau l'accord de May

LE FIGARO: Les députés britanniques ont rejeté mardi soir l’accord de Brexit négocié entre Londres et Bruxelles, par 391 voix contre 242, plongeant le Royaume-Uni dans l’incertitude à 17 jour de la date prévue du divorce. Le texte avait déjà été massivement rejeté en janvier. Après le vote de ce mardi, la première ministre Theresa May a répété que cet accord était «le seul et meilleur accord possible». En revanche, pour le chef de l'opposition travailliste, Jeremy Corbyn, cet accord "est mort". » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | Mardi 12 Mars 2019

MPs Ignore May's Pleas and Defeat Her Brexit Deal by 149 Votes

THE GUARDIAN: Despite late concessions in Strasbourg, PM’s plan voted down for second time

Theresa May has suffered a second humiliating defeat on her Brexit deal, as MPs rejected the last-minute reassurances she won from the EU27 on Monday, and voted it down by a majority of 149.

With just 17 days to go until the UK is due to leave the EU, MPs ignored the prime minister’s pleas to “get the deal done”, after the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) said it could not support the agreement.

With her voice cracked and fading, the prime minister had earlier pleaded with the House of Commons: “This is the moment and this is the time – time for us to come together, back this motion and get the deal done. Because only then can we can get on with what we need to do, what we were sent here to do.” » | Heather Stewart, Political editor | Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Holocaust Survivor Brian "Baruch" Bergman

This testimony from Jewish Holocaust Survivor Brian Bergman i is from USC Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive®, an online portal that allows users to search through and view more than 55,000 video testimonies of survivors and witnesses of genocide.

Tucker Carlson's Sexist Rants Reveal an Ugly Truth

THE GUARDIAN: The Fox News host has shown us just how much misogyny continues to be tolerated – and encouraged – by men

Tucker Carlson, the Fox News commentator with a primetime show and a history of vitriolic racist rants, is in the news again after the media watchdog group Media Matters unearthed recordings of him from the mid-aughts, in which Carlson calls into a radio shock jock program to make a series of luridly sexist assertions and racist asides, palling around with a host who goes by the moniker “Bubba the Love Sponge”.

In the recordings, Carlson says women are “like dogs”, claiming: “They’re extremely primitive, they’re basic, they’re not that hard to understand.” He insists that women find misogynist degradation pleasurable and makes sexual, antagonistic comments about women he does and does not like. » | Moira Donegan | Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Jewish Survivor Testimony: Irma Meyer

A Conversation with Tova Friedman – Holocaust Survivor

Tova Friedman gives a detailed account of her experience during WWII. Including her time in Poland and the Auschwitz Concentration Camp.

Niklas Frank: "Die Deutschen müssten wissen, wohin es führt" | DW Deutsch

Niklas Frank ist der Sohn jenes Mannes, der als Hitlers Generalgouverneur im besetzten Polen verantwortlich war für die NS-Vernichtungslager im Land. Niklas Frank hat seine Vergangenheit schonungslos aufgearbeitet - die Deutschen aber hätten es nicht, sagt er im DW-Interview.

Niklas Frank on the German People

A rare honest appraisal of the German People by a son of one its cruelest Nazi murderers. Niklas Frank is the son of Hans Frank, the German Governor-General of occupied Poland during World War II. He spoke about his father and the German nation on the SBS Insight Program broadcast on 4 August 2015.

Shamima Begum: IS Teen's Baby Death 'Tragedy' – BBC Newsnight

The son of Shamima Begum - who fled London to join the Islamic State group - has died in a Syrian refugee camp. Dal Babu, a former Metropolitan Police chief superintendent and friend of the Begum family joins Katie Razzall in the studio, alongside the Daily Mail's Larisa Brown, who met Shamima and her son in the camp last month. The UK Home Office declined to speak to Newsnight.

Shamima Begum: Baby Son Dies in Syrian Refugee Camp

THE GUARDIAN: Three-week-old infant is the third child the teenager from east London has lost

The newborn son of Shamima Begum has died and been buried in a Syrian refugee camp, three separate sources have confirmed to the Guardian.

The baby boy, named Jarrah, was buried on Friday, three weeks after the east London teenager turned Islamic State devotee gave birth.

The sources include a Kurdish intelligence official who said the infant had been hospitalised in al-Roj camp in north-eastern Syria with breathing difficulties several times in the past week. A friend of Begum said that “the baby turned blue and was cold” before being rushed to a clinic inside the camp. Jarrah is understood to have been buried along with two other children who were burned in a fire on Thursday night. » | Martin Chulov in Beirut and Mohammed Rasool | Friday, March 8, 2019

HARDtalk Niklas Frank Son of Hans Frank, Governor of Nazi Occupied Poland 1939 – 45

HARDtalk is in rural northern Germany to meet Niklas Frank, a journalist and writer but also the son of Hans Frank, the brutal Nazi Governor of Poland from 1939 to 1945. He was convicted of war crimes and executed after the Nuremberg trials for the major role he played in the deaths of millions of Jews and Poles during the Second World War. Niklas Frank tells Stephen Sackur how he's coped with the crimes of his father and why he will not let his fellow Germans forget the worst aspects of the Nazi era.

Nazi Leader's Son: 'Don't Trust Us' Germans – BBC News

Germany could return to authoritarianism if the economic conditions were to seriously worsen in the country, the son of Hans Frank the governor general of Nazi occupied Poland during World War Two, has told BBC Hardtalk. "As long as our economy is great, and as long as we make money everything is very democratic," said Niklas Frank, but "if we have five to 10 years heavy economic problems the swamp is a lake, and is a sea and will swallow again, everything," he added. Niklas Frank said he "despises" his father for the crimes he committed while he was governor-general of Poland from 1939 to 1945, and tours Germany giving speeches about his father and the legacy of the Nazi era. Hans Frank was convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the Nuremberg trials and executed in 1946.

The Hitler Family

German Academics and Authors Call for End to 'Gender Nonsense'

THE GUARDIAN: Open letter hits back at demand for more gender-neutral nouns

A group of German authors, comedians and academics have added fuel to the flames of an increasingly bad-tempered culture war over language bias by calling for a fightback against “ridiculous linguistic constructions” designed to make German more gender-neutral.

In an open letter published by the Dortmund-based German Language Association, signatories including the philosopher Rüdiger Safranski, novelist Peter Schneider, comedian Dieter Hallervorden and the former head of the country’s domestic intelligence Hans-Georg Maassen, hit back against calls for more gender-neutral generic nouns.

In German, where nouns have either a male, female or neuter gender, words for mixed groups of people are traditionally based on the masculine form. If you are talking about a group of teachers, for example, you would say die Lehrer, not die Lehrerinnen. » | Philip Oltermann | Friday, March 8, 2019

Former Chief of Staff John Kelly: We Don't Need a Wall from Sea to Sea

At an appearance at Duke University on Wednesday, President Trump's former chief of staff and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said he doesn't believe we need a wall along the Mexican border from "sea to shining sea." Bob Cusack, editor-in-chief of The Hill, joined CBSN to discuss the day's political news.

Occupation – The German Tragedy

Theodor Morell Documentary - Biography of the Life of Hitler's Doctor Theodor Morell

Biographical Documentary on the life of Hitler's Doctor Theodor Morell. A documentary on the life of Dr. Theodor Morell. From his upbringing, to him being appointed the Fuhrer Adolf Hitler's doctor and administering him with powerful combinations of medications.

Andrew Bacevich: The US-Saudi Relationship Is a Principal Source of Instability in the Middle East

We look at a number of recent developments in U.S.-Saudi relations, a day after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a confirmation hearing for retired four-star general John Abizaid to become U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia. On Monday, the Trump administration gave a private briefing to senators on the investigation into the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October. Senators slammed the briefing for providing no new information. Meanwhile, The New York Times has revealed new details about the jailing and torture of a doctor with U.S. citizenship in Saudi Arabia. Walid Fitaihi is a Harvard-trained doctor who has been jailed without charge since 2017. We speak with Andrew Bacevich, a retired colonel and Vietnam War veteran, author and professor emeritus of international relations and history at Boston University, and William Hartung, director of the Arms and Security Project at the Center for International Policy.

EU Rebukes Saudi Arabia over Human Rights at UN Forum l Al Jazeera English

As many as 36 countries, including all the European Union members, have signed a statement criticising Saudi Arabia's human rights record. It calls on the kingdom to cooperate with a United Nations-led investigation into the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and to release the detained activists. Al Jazeera's Nadim Baba reports from Brussels.

Paul Manafort Sentenced to 47 Months in Prison

President Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort has been sentenced to 47 months in prison.

Paul Manafort Is Sentenced to Less Than 4 Years in 1 of 2 Cases Against Him

THE NEW YORK TIMES: ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Paul Manafort, the political consultant and Trump presidential campaign chairman whose lucrative work in Ukraine and ties to well-connected Russians made him a target of the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, was sentenced on Thursday to nearly four years in prison in the financial fraud case that left his grand lifestyle and power-broker reputation in ruins.

The sentence in the highest-profile criminal case mounted by the special counsel’s office was far lighter than the 19- to 24-year prison term recommended under sentencing guidelines. Judge T. S. Ellis III of the United States District Court in Alexandria, Va., said that although Mr. Manafort’s crimes were “very serious,” following the guidelines would have resulted in an unduly harsh punishment. » | Sharon LaFraniere | Thursday, March 7, 2019

Manafort Has Been Sentenced. Who Is He?

Donald Trump Faces Litany of Investigations into Business Practices | Al Jazeera English

As the probe into US President Donald Trump's alleged collusion with Russia in the 2016 election continues to heat up, he faces multiple investigations on several fronts. His aides will have to answer questions over the alleged misuse of campaign funds, taking money from a foreign state and whether he's profited personally while in office, among other matters. Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane reports from Washington, DC.

Inside the Unprecedented Partnership between Fox News and the Trump White House

President Trump has long acknowledged top-rated Fox News as his favorite media outlet, and the network relishes its role as a conservative voice. But its increasingly close relationship with the administration is drawing criticism. William Brangham talks to the New Yorker's Jane Mayer about an unprecedented “feedback loop” and whether the president has made policy decisions to help Fox succeed.

Michael Cohen Has New Evidence Against President Donald Trump | Hardball | MSNBC

Michael Cohen appeared before the House Intelligence Committee for a second time. Multiple reports indicate that Cohen showed up with new evidence to back his allegation that the President's lawyers edited his false statement to Congress in 2017.

Private Jet Sales Are Soaring Thanks To Republicans’ Tax Cuts