News For June 16, 2010

Ethnic Cleansing in Kyrgyzstan
More American Chickens Come Home to Roost

By Ted Rall

The events in Osh mark the beginning of a new surge of anti-Americanism with long-term repercussions. Continue

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Afghanistan: The Longest Lost War

By James Petras

Outside of the central districts of a few cities and the military fortresses, the Afghan national resistance forces, in all of their complex local, regional and national alliances, are in control, of territory, people and administration. Continue

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From Kabul to Kingston

By Richard Drayton

Army tactics in Jamaica resemble those used in Afghanistan – and it's no mere coincidence. Continue

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Wikileak Case Echoes Pentagon Papers

By Coleen Rowley and Robert Parry

Though there are historic parallels between the actions of Manning today and those of Ellsberg in 1971, a major difference is the attitude of the mainstream U.S. news media, which then fought to publish Ellsberg’s secret history but now is behaving more like what former CIA analyst Ray McGovern calls the “fawning corporate media” or FCM. Continue

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Possible Western Pennsylvania Link to Israeli Nukes Boosted

By Richard Gazarik

Did Israel steal 206 pounds of weapons-grade uranium with covert U.S. government assistance? Continue

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On Israel, Congress Still Obedient

By MJ Rosenberg

I'd just like to cite a few of the endorsements Israel's attack on the Gaza flotilla has elicited from Congress.  It is useful to know the lengths that some members of Congress will go to maintain the good will (and more) of the "pro-Israel" lobby. Continue

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Helen Thomas: In Appreciation

By Paul Craig Roberts

Having removed Helen Thomas from the journalism scene, the Israel Lobby is now working with its agents on the Wall Street Journal editorial page to eliminate the Helen Thomas Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Society of Professional Journalists. Continue

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Broken Promises, Broken Laws, Broken Lives

By Amy Goodman

Federal authorities are investigating whether officials of the government south of the border participated in a citizen’s kidnapping and torture—Canadian authorities, that is, investigating the possible role of U.S. officials in the “extraordinary rendition” of Canadian citizen Maher Arar. Continue

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US Citizen Not Allowed To Return Home
American Man in Limbo on No-Fly List

By SCOTT SHANE

For six weeks, Mr. Wehelie has been in limbo in the Egyptian capital. He and his parents say he has no radical views, despises Al Qaeda and merely wants to get home to complete his education and get a job. Continue

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Simmons Says Nuclear Device Only Option to Stop Oil Flow

Video - Bloomberg

Matthew Simmons, founder of the Ocean Energy Institute, talks with Bloomberg's Lori Rothman about BP Plc's oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico and his view that the use of a "small-bore nuclear device" is now the "only option" to stop the flow of oil. Continue

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Humiliation and Shame
Part of Being Insured in America

By Donna Smith

I could feel the muscles in my face tense as the humiliation spread through my body. This body, just moments ago worthy of plans to relieve pain and head for some better health, now was deemed unworthy of care. Shame. All that old shame I used to feel before our medical bankruptcy was rising in my gut. It hurt so badly. But I was determined not to show my anger or my sadness. Continue

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A Poor Nation, With a Health Plan

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Rwanda has had national health insurance for 11 years now; 92 percent of the nation is covered. Continue

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"Capitalism is Destroying the World"
President Chavez's Socialist World Vision

Must Watch Interview

"Bush decided to reactivate the US Fourth Fleet to operate in Latin America. Obama, instead of suspending or getting rid of the Fourth Fleet has seven military bases planned in Colombia. What for? Is it to go to war, to dominate the Latin American continent?" Continue

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Pakistan: Thirty eight militants killed in Bajaur action: Pakistani attack helicopters and heavy artillery on Wednesday killed 38 militants in a tribal district on the Afghan border where commanders had said the Taliban were purged, officials said.
Three militants killed in Swat clash: Security forces killed three militants in Swat’s Charbagh area, DawnNews reported. Bodies of two suspected militants were also found from the area.
Dozens of Pakistani troops 'captured by the Taliban': The Taliban says it is holding up to 40 Pakistani troops after its raid in the Mohmand tribal area on Monday.
Four NATO Occupation Force Soldiers Killed in Northern Afghanistan Four NATO service members were killed and three others were injured in two separate blasts in Kunduz province Wednesday
2 US service members killed in Afghanistan: A roadside bombing killed two U.S. service members in northern Afghanistan on Wednesday, officials said, pushing the death toll among American troops so far this month to 30.
Polish soldier killed in Afghanistan: report: A Polish soldier was killed as a result of the shelling of Camp Warrior in Afghanistan on Tuesday, the PAP news agency reported, citing a spokesman for the Polish military contingent in the central Asian country.
Poland wants troops out of Afghanistan: Poland's Defense Minister Bodan Klich has called for the withdrawal of polish troops from Afghanistan before 2013, demanding that Afghan forces shoulder the responsibility.
Turkish troops enter Iraq, kill four Kurdish rebels: Turkish soldiers on Wednesday crossed into northern Iraq in pursuit of Kurdish rebels for the first time in two years and bombed targets across the border, killing four militants, the army said.
Iraq: Bomb kills Sunni militia leader near Baghdad: The leader of a government-backed Sunni militia was killed in a bombing west of Baghdad Wednesday, one in a series of attacks targeting Iraqi security forces and their allies.
Kyrgyzstan unrest: 'more than 500 dead': Around 170 people have died in Kyrgyzstan's ethnic unrest, according to estimates, but Save the Children's country director tells Channel 4 News he has heard more than 500 lives have been lost.
Kyrgyz violence level 'alarming': Children being killed and civilians raped in ethnic unrest in country's south, UN says.
Kyrgyzstan violence: UN official accuses outside groups of planning attacks: "We have strong indications that this event was not a spontaneous inter-ethnic clash – that it was to some degree orchestrated, targeted and well planned," Colville said, speaking in Geneva.
Three Russian aircraft with humanitarian aid arrive in Kyrgyzstan: The United States on Wednesday said it had decided to allocate Kyrgyzstan USD 10.3 million in assistance as ethnic violence continues in the Central Asian state
Turkey forms committee to probe Israeli raid on Gaza flotilla: Turkey Foreign Ministry announces probe of the IDF's raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla last month; IHH tells European Parliament members it has assembled six ships for flotilla to sail next month.
Israeli Flotilla Attack May Violate International, Maritime Laws: John Quigley, professor of international law at Ohio State University, told IPS boarding a flagged vessel on the high seas is impermissible without the consent of the flag state.
Stranger than fiction: Democrats demand flotilla "terrorists" be denied entry into U.S.: A half-dozen elected Democrats called on the State Department to ban every flotilla participant from entering the United States.
Iran warns Israel of retaliation if its Gaza-bound aid ship is attacked: Iranian MP Mahmoud Ahmadi Biqash said that Egypt also agreed to issue visas for 70 Iranian parliamentarians who have registered to travel to the Gaza Strip.
Saving Israel, 1st aim of UN sanctions: Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the main purpose behind the UN Security Council's (UNSC) anti-Iran resolution was to save the Israeli regime from worldwide criticisms.
Majlis orders 20% uranium enrichment: "Majlis calls on the government to lay the base level for its enrichment activities at 20 percent as these countries have failed to respect the NPT regulations and did not supply fuel to the Tehran Research Reactor," the Fars news agency quoted Larijani as saying.
Israeli Nuclear Missile Boats Off Iranian Coast: Israel is stationing three of its five Dolphin class submarines in the Red Sea, and will keep one of them operating off the Iranian coast at all times. These subs will be armed with cruise missiles (equipped with nuclear warheads).
Report: Israel Police shot Palestinian instead of arresting him: East Jerusalem man who ran over Border Police officers was reportedly shot twice in the face from close range while lying on the ground.
Israel and the U.S. ruling on war crimes: A recent ruling effectively revokes immunity for foreign officials living in the United States for crimes committed in their home countries. It could put Israelis in the dock.
WikiLeaks Founder Has Massacre Video: Philip Shenon, a former investigative reporter at The New York Times, is the author of The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation.
First, China. Next: the Great Firewall of... Australia?: If Canberra's plans for a mandatory Internet filter go ahead, Australia may soon become the first Western democracy to join the ranks of Iran, China and a handful of other nations where access to the Internet is restricted by the state.
Internet 'kill switch' proposed for US: A new US Senate Bill would grant the President far-reaching emergency powers to seize control of, or even shut down, portions of the internet.
FBI apologizes to NY man raided in bomb plot probe: Mohammad Iqbal (ICK'-bahl) says agents returned his Pakistani passport and other items they seized in the raid on his home in Shirley, on Long Island.
Seattle Police Officer Caught on Tape Punching Woman During Jaywalking Stop: SPD has launched an investigation. It all started when a cop stopped a man for jaywalking. Things escalated quickly from there as voices were raised and a crowd gathered. When two young women intervened an onlooker pulled out his camera phone and started to roll tape.
Oil spill flowing at up to 2.52 million gallons a day, scientists say: Scientists provided a new estimate for the amount of oil gushing from the ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday that indicates it could be leaking up to 2.52 million gallons of crude a day.
Oil spill raises concerns about air quality along coastal Louisiana: Video : There are effects from the oil spill that you can see, like oil washing ashore, and those that you can't, like when oil compounds breakdown and go airborne.
BP Hires Mercs to Block Oily Beaches: BP, in a move destined to go down as one of the bestest public relations moves ever, has apparently hired a private security company to help to keep pesky reporters from covering the unfolding catastrophe on the beaches of the Gulf Coast.
BP Said to Agree on $20 Billion Fund for Oil Spill : BP Plc tentatively agreed to put about $20 billion into a fund to pay damages over a period of time resulting from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, with claims administered by the lawyer who oversaw executive compensation for the government’s financial bailout, people familiar with the talks said.
Obama's Oil Spill Speech: Full Text: Remarks of President Barack Obama-As Prepared for Delivery - Address to the Nation on the BP Oil Spill - Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Ixtoc Disaster Holds Clues to Evolution of an Oil Spill: On a spring day in the Gulf of Mexico, a pipe issuing from the sea floor ruptured, sending an explosion rippling up to the drilling platform above and spewing oil into the surrounding waters. That was 31 years ago.
Food Prices to Rise by Up to 40% Over Next Decade, UN Report Warns: Growing demand from emerging markets and for biofuel production will send prices soaring, according to the OECD and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisatio
Nightmare vision for Europe as EU chief warns 'democracy could disappear' in Greece, Spain and Portugal: Countries in debt may fall to dictators, EC chief warns. 'Apocalyptic' vision as some states run out of money
Unemployment bill dealt Senate defeat: After coming out on the losing end of a 52-45 test vote, Obama's Democratic allies have been forced back to the drawing board in their efforts to extend unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless and provide $24 billion in aid to cash-strapped state governments.
California unemployment benefits stall without Congressional extension: An unknown number of unemployed Californians will have unemployment insurance benefits interrupted or cut off, as Congress has yet to take action on whether to extend them, the state’s Employment Development Department is warning.
Nasa warns solar flares from 'huge space storm' will cause devastation: Britain could face widespread power blackouts and be left without critical communication signals for long periods of time, after the earth is hit by a once-in-a-generation “space storm”, Nasa has warned.