U.S., UK, France: Libya War Will End When Gadhafi Goes

By Spencer Ackerman

You’d think that an op-ed from three world leaders titled “Libya’s Pathway to Peace” would spell out how the western bombing campaign against Moammar Gadhafi will end. Instead, it lays out a demand, and expands the war in the process. Continue

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How Not To Win Wars

By Fred Reed

Ever wonder why the US military can’t win wars? Why a few ragtag guerillas could send it running out of Somalia (Black Hawk Down)? Why one guy with a truck bomb could chase the Marines out of Lebanon? Continue

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Don’t Betray Us, Barack — End the Empire

By Oliver Stone and Peter Kuznick

Obama has taken a page from the Bill (and Hillary) Clinton playbook and governed as a right-leaning centrist. While trying naively to ingratiate himself with an opposition bent solely on his defeat, he has repeatedly turned his back on those who put him in office. Continue

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Manning Peer Sheds Light on WikiLeaks:
Former military intel analyst shares his thoughts on the motive of alleged leaks

By Will Graff

"Most of the guys I went through intel school with, who went to Iraq with me, are either dead, killed themselves, are in a long-term care institution or completely disabled." Continue

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Is The US Press Waking up?
State Dept Grilled About Bradley Manning

Video

Reporter grills U.S. Department of State, pointing out the hypocrisy of the U.S. releasing their Human Rights report giving themselves a squeaky clean image, and at the same time denying the U.N.'s Special Rapporteur access to evaluate the condition of Pfc. Bradley Manning. Continue

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Slip-sliding into Recession

By Mike Whitney

Even though things were scarier under Bush, most people still believed we could turn things around at the ballot box. Now they know they can't. Continue

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17 killed as suicide bomber targets Indonesia mosque: "A man has blown himself up ... the police is talking about a suicide bomber during Friday prayers in the mosque at the police station in Cirebon in West Java. The mosque was full of police officers at the time of the explosion,"

Afghan suicide blast kills Kandahar police chief and two bodyguards: "A suicide attacker detonated himself at the police headquarters. The police chief has been martyred," provincial spokesman Zalmai Ayubi said.

Afghan Taliban to Open Office in Turkey: Turkey says it is willing to host a political office for Taliban militants from Afghanistan in order to promote talks to end the war there. An unnamed Afghan official is quoted as saying that planning for the office is already in progress.

Russia asks for immediate ceasefire in Libya: "Today we can state that in a series of cases, military action has exceeded the mandate conferred by the United Nations Security Council," said Sergei Lavrov

No UN mandate for Libyan ground operations, regime change – Lavrov: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that the UN Security Council Resolution 1973 does not provide a mandate for ground operations in Libya, nor should NATO be aiming for a regime change.

Russia concerned over abused mandate of UN resolution on Libya: Medvedev : Russia is strongly concerned over an abused mandate under the UN Security Council resolution on Libya, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told reporters here on Thursday.

Nato rejects Russian claims of Libya mission creep: Asked whether Nato should increase its military operation in order to oust Gaddafi, Lavrov said: "The UN has not authorised regime change."

France, Britain, US say Kadhafi cannot stay: France, Britain and the US say it is “unthinkable” for Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi to stay in power. The UN should consider a new resolution to address Kadhafi’s future, according to France’s defence minister.

Libya letter by Obama, Cameron and Sarkozy: Full text: President Barack Obama of the US, Prime Minister David Cameron of the UK and President Nicolas Sarkozy of France have written a joint letter to The Times of London, the International Herald Tribune and Le Figaro, vowing to keep up the pressure on Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and pledging to maintain Nato military pressure on his forces.

Libya: Berlusconi says Italy won't bomb Gaddafi's forces: - Italy will not drop bombs on Libya, its former colony, prime minister Silvio Berlusconi said on Friday. We've already done enough," he said during a cabinet meeting, according to Italian news reports.

Ex-CIA Officer: Obama is Fooling Himself, Muslims See US Bombing Libya: : RT talks to former CIA counterterrorism analyst Michael Scheuer.

US senators unveil resolution against Libya conflict: US military strikes on Libya are "not in the vital interests of the United States" and further action should require congressional approval, under a symbolic senate resolution unveiled Thursday.

West's demands insulting - Gaddafi's daughter: "In 1911 Italy killed my grandfather in an air strike and now they are trying to kill my father. God damn their hands," Aisha Gaddafi told the flag-waving crowd who had gathered at her father's Bab Al-Aziziyah compound in the capital.

President of Burkina Faso 'flees mutiny': Compaore, who has held power in the land-locked, West African nation for nearly 24 years, left during the night for his hometown Ziniare, 30km north of capital Ouagadougou, an official speaking on condition of anonymity told the AFP news agency.

Death of fourth person in ten days in Bahrain detention centers: According to the Bahrain News Agency, “The UN Secretary General expressed the United Nations’ support for all measures taken by Bahrain to preserve its security and stability hailing the reform process spearheaded by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.”

Hospitals show ugly truth about Bahrain, as US looks the other way: TINY Bahrain, a vital American ally in the Gulf region, is reimaging itself as a classic Cold War police state in the aftermath of the democracy uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa.

U.S. defends Bahrain policy: "Even though the American administration's words are all about freedom and democracy and change, in Bahrain, the reality is that they're basically a protection for the dictatorship," said Zainab al-Khawaja, a prominent human-rights activist who went on a hunger strike after her father, husband and brother-in-law were arrested at her apartment in Bahrain during the weekend.

United Arab Emirates: The Making of a Police State: Over the last few years, the UAE has become increasingly oppressive. The recent crackdowns show how bad it really is.

Thousands rally for, against Yemen's President Saleh: Yemenis have turned out in massive crowds across the country to demand their embattled president immediately step down, while loyalists rally in his support in Sana'a

Despite ban Saudis hold protests: Hundreds of anti-government protesters have taken to the streets of Saudi Arabia, demanding the release of political prisoners and an end to Saudi military presence in Bahrain.

Italian Activist Killed in Gaza After Kidnap: Hamas government spokesman Ihab al-Ghoussein branded the murder a "heinous crime which has nothing to do with our values, our religion, our customs and traditions" and said "the other members of the group will be hunted down and the law will be applied."

UN Gaza report co-authors round on Goldstone: Three mission members say calls to recant UN report disregard the rights of Palestinian and Israeli victims

Stranger than fiction: U.S. Senate urges UN to rescind Goldstone's Gaza report: Resolution 138 passes unanimously, calls on members of Human Rights Council to 'reflect the author's repudiation off the Goldstone report's central findings', and asks UN chief Ban to 'do all in his power to redress the damage to Israel's reputation'.

US Embassy Cables: The power of words once spoken: The flood of WikiLeaks documents being publicized in Haaretz has revealed some intriguing information about foreign leaders and, of course, our very own politicians.

Wikileaks: China accused of stealing 'terabytes' of U.S. data: U.S. State Department cables obtained by WikiLeaks has revealed that U.S. investigators fear that China has stolen 'terabytes' of sensitive data from the U.S. Government.

U.S. Military Spending Has Almost Doubled Since 2001: The U.S. spent an astounding $698 billion on the military last year, an 81% increase over the last decade.

Fukushima Reactors Are a "Ticking Time Bomb," Japanese Govt in Denial: Scientist Michio Kaku: When we hear "that things are stable, it’s only stable in the sense that you’re dangling from a cliff hanging by your fingernails."

BP oil spill: British diplomatic damage control efforts revealed: British diplomats in Washington made immediate attempts to limit the political damage following the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, documents obtained under the US Freedom of Information Act reveal.

Scott Ritter convicted in online sex case: A former top United Nations weapons inspector caught in an online sex sting was convicted in the US late yesterday. The jury deliberated two days before finding Ritter guilty of six of the seven charges against him.

Detroit to send layoff notices to all its public teachers: The emergency manager appointed to put Detroit's troubled public school system on a firmer financial footing said on Thursday he was sending layoff notices to all of the district's 5,466 unionized employees.