News For July 01, 2010

The Civilian Expeditionary Force:
Obama Says 'Burden' Can’t be All on the Military

By Sunlen Miller

“We just got to be smart about using all the elements of American power, not just one element of American power,” he said. Continue

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Iranian Defector: I've Escaped from CIA

By MATTHEW COLE

The Iranian nuclear scientist in the middle of the high stakes battle between Washington and Tehran has released two new videos, claiming to have "escaped" U.S. intelligence and says he's on his way back to Iran. Continue

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Doubts Grow In Whistle-blower "Suicide"

By Alex Newman

New revelations in the suspicious “suicide” death of whistle-blower Dr. David Kelly point even more strongly to the possibility of murder and a subsequent cover-up. Continue

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Double Standard: BP and Bhopal

By Bill Quigley and Alex Tuscano

When President Barak Obama went after BP and demanded a $20 billion dollar fund be set up for victims of the Gulf oil spill, the people of India were furious. They saw a US double standard. The US demonstrated it values human life within the US more than the lives of the people of India. Continue

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Why The Greater Depression Still Lies Ahead

By Michael Pento

Messrs. Barack Obama, Benjamin Bernanke and Timothy Geithner do not understand the real cause of this debt crisis. They are politicians first and economists or students of the market second--if at all. Therefore, it is not wise to count on them to tell us when the Great Recession is over, or to provide a plan to prevent another one in the future. Continue

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31 suspected Taliban killed in Afghan gunbattle: The alliance says troops had called in air support during running gunbattles in the southern province of Helmand which erupted after rebels attacked soldiers moving in on their compound with machine guns and rockets.

NATO occupation force soldier killed in S Afghanistan: A soldier with the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was killed in Afghanistan's restive southern region Thursday the first day of the month while the ISAF had experienced a deadliest month on June with losing 102 service members in almost nine-years of war.

US to blame for Afghan slaughter: Villagers in Baghran district of Helmand province reported that children and women were killed by the foreign troops.

Lawmakers ask for Afghanistan exit strategy: Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, joined other House members in calling for President Obama to provide Congress with "a clear commitment and plan to withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan" before a vote expected later this week that would provide $58 billion for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

War-funding puzzle stumps Democrats: House Democratic support for the war in Afghanistan has eroded to a point where President Barack Obama is now so reliant on Republican votes that he’s backtracking from his own party’s efforts to add new education funding to avert teacher layoffs.

Urge Congress to Support a Timetable for Military Withdrawal from Afghanistan: No to More Money for War, Yes to Feingold-McGovern bill for Withdrawal Timetable

Hague 'surprised' if UK forces in Afghanistan by 2014: He said he did not expect UK combat forces to still be there by the time of the next general election in 2015.

US to cut $4bn in Afghan aid after corruption allegations: Claims that large amounts of money have been flown out of war-torn country but government has blocked investigations

Afghan Leader: Foreign Contracts Fuel Corruption: Hamid Karzai and his finance minister pushed back Wednesday against allegations of government corruption, saying that their international partners must shoulder some of the blame for waste, graft and the billions of dollars streaming out of the country.
Pakistan: 20 rebels killed in Orakzai blitz: A government official says fighter jets have bombed suspected militant hide-outs in a new assault on a Pakistan tribal region where the army had previously declared victory. He says at least 20 people have died.
Somali clashes kill 21 as moderate group issues demands: At least 21 people were killed and 42 wounded in fighting in Somalia, a human rights group said on Thursday as Ahlu Sunna wal-Jamea, a moderate Islamist group criticised the government for the second time for failing to honour an agreement signed between the two sides.
17 killed as Turkish army clashes with Kurds: At least 12 Kurdish separatist fighters and five members of the Turkish security forces have been killed in clashes in the southeast of the country, the army said.
11 Algerian police killed in ambush: The attack took place at dawn on Wednesday, near the town of Tinzaoutine, about 2,000 km south of the capital Algiers.
3 killed in Iraq bomb and shooting attacks: Iraqi police officials said two soldiers and a member of a government-backed Sunni militia were killed Thursday in attacks in Baghdad and the north.
Revealed: Tony Blair's battle with law chief after warning Iraq war would be illegal: Tony Blair’s fury at being told the Iraq War was illegal was laid bare yesterday after secret memos from his Attorney General were finally published.
Stranger than fiction: Blair to receive US peace medal: Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is to receive a prestigious US medal and $100,000 (£67,000) prize for his work in conflict resolution.
Al-Houthi’s group accuses the Yemeni government of bombing villages in the province of Saada: Al-Houthi’s group announced that some villages in the area Al-Amshia, northwestern part of the province of Saada in northern Yemen, was bombed by rockets from the Dechev Camp in the region.
Russia to sell $1 bln worth of arms to Yemen - expert: A Yemeni delegation led by President Ali Abdullah Saleh discussed sales of Russian arms to the Arab republic on Wednesday during the leader's short visit to Moscow.
Ben-Eliezer meets with Turkish FM in effort to resolve bilateral crisis: Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman fumes after being left out of the loop
Israel signals compensation for Mavi Marmara victims: Israel has signaled it may compensate and apologize to families of some of the victims of its aid-flotilla raid in comments during a covert meeting between Turkish and Israeli officials, the first high-level contact since the deadly attack.
Abbas: No direct talks without progress on borders and security: Abbas warned before meet with George Mitchell in Ramallah that his people were losing faith in a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israel arrests Hamas MP: Israeli police have arrested a Hamas MP for refusing to comply with an order expelling him from Jerusalem, police said.
Why are so many Israelis arrested over illegal arms deals worldwide?: At least seven Israeli arms dealers are currently in jail in four countries - the United States, Russia, France and Britain - on charges of illegal arms dealing. Some of them are also suspected of crimes such as forgery, bribery, money laundering and violating UN Security Council embargoes.
Judge grants ex-Israeli spy US asylum: US Department of Homeland Security attorney Kerri Calcador said she was dropping objections to asylum, with no further explanation given of the rationale behind the decision.
Russian 'Spy suspect' disappears in Cyprus: A man wanted by the US authorities on suspicion of being the 11th member of a Russian spy ring has gone missing after being released on bail in Cyprus, police said.
Russian spy ring: Anna Chapman's father still works at foreign ministry: FBI spy suspect Anna Chapman's friends denounce claims but father's job may further strain Moscow-Washington ties
Justin Raimondo: Are the Russians Really Coming?: Something doesn’t smell right about this whole affair: my BS-ometer is clanging pretty loudly, and yours should be, too.
Extrajudicial Killing: Counter-terrorism official defends U.S. campaign of targeted killings: Leiter was asked whether he had any qualms about reports that Anwar Awlaki, a U.S. citizen and radical cleric, was added to the CIA's hit list this year.
Secret list shows fate of Argentine disappeared: The documents - copies of which were obtained by the AP - include handwritten notes made during torture sessions, reports about spying efforts, the names of intelligence agents and the identities of bodies. Many bear the stamps and signatures of police and military agencies and officials.
Scrap dollar as sole reserve currency: U.N. report: A new United Nations report released on Tuesday calls for abandoning the U.S. dollar as the main global reserve currency, saying it has been unable to safeguard value.
National debt soars to highest level since WWII: The federal debt will represent 62% of the nation's economy by the end of this year, the highest percentage since just after World War II, according to a long-term budget outlook released today by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.
May pending home sales tumble without tax credits: The number of buyers who signed contracts to purchase homes tumbled in May, a sign the housing recovery can't survive without government incentives.
Let them eat cake: 1.3 million unemployed won't get benefits restored: For the third time in as many weeks, Republicans in the Senate successfully filibustered a bill Wednesday night that would have continued unemployment checks to people who have been laid off for long stretches.
New jobless claims rise in sign of weak job market: Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose last week for the second time in three weeks. At the same time, more than a million people have lost benefits and more could be cut off now that Congress has failed to extend federal jobless aid.
Recession cut into employment for half of working adults, study says : The recession has directly hit more than half of the nation's working adults, pushing them into unemployment, pay cuts, reduced hours at work or part-time jobs, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.