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By Stuart Littlewood

@ Palestine Update

“Promise not to prosecute Israeli war criminals, not to go for full UN membership, not to seek justice but submit to rigged talks, and we’ll support you” Britain’s Foreign Office, on its website, states loudly and clearly:

“The UK is committed to upholding international justice and all of our international obligations. Our core principle is clear. Those guilty of war crimes must be brought to justice whether they are Israeli or any other nationality. We are also committed to ensuring that UK systems are robust in meeting its international law obligations.”

Yet ugly rumours are flying that the British government twisted the arm of President Abbas and told him the UK would only support Palestine’s modest upgrade to ‘observer state’ at the UN (to be decided tomorrow, Thursday) if he pledged not to pursue Israeli war criminals through the International Criminal Court.

In a statement issued yesterday by the Palestinian Mission in London, Ambassador Hassassian says: “It was reported recently in several media outlets that in exchange for its  – the British government’s – support of the Palestinian UN bid it wants guarantees from Abbas including: (1) That the Palestinians will not bring cases against Israeli officials to the ICC or other UN agencies…(2) That the Palestinians will not use UN observer status as a basis for a renewed appeal to the UN Security Council for full membership to the UN…(3) That Abbas will commit to renewing peace talks with Israel without preconditions.

“Such steps would undermine the Palestinian leadership and its credibility with its own constituents. The British government is once again putting conditions for its support to the Palestinian people instead of shouldering its historic responsibility towards them… I urge the British government to fulfil its responsibility and stand at the right side of history by recognizing the state ofPalestine and voting in favour of an enhanced Palestinian status at the UN.”

This morning the Palestinian embassy in London was unable to verify that any such pressure was put on Abbas. But that is not to say it didn’t happen and numerous media sources got it wrong. The conversation was likely to have taken place in Ramallah, and Ramallah is not noted for its responsiveness to media questions.

A last-minute message from the PLO communications office reads:

“I can confirm that there has been British pressure to deprive of our right to ratify an international treaty. I can also ratify that we have been very clear in telling the UK that we are not going to compromise on our sovereignty. The resolution haven’t been and will not be modified to adequate any objection to our right to self determination and protection of our people.”

What exactly that means I don’t know. And they still won’t say who put the squeeze on Abbas.

If nothing else, this episode demonstrates once again the deplorable state of the PLO/PA’s media skills.

If indeed any attempt were made by the UK government to deprive the Palestinians of the status, privileges and freedoms enjoyed by their neighbours it would be a deep disgrace on the people of Britain.

Solemn and binding obligations to pursue war criminals… do they mean nothing?

It was established at Nuremberg after World War 2 that crimes against the peace, crimes against humanity and war crimes are also offences against the whole of international society.

All states that are party to the Geneva Conventions – and that includes the UK – are under a solemn and binding obligation to seek out those suspected of having committed grave breaches of the Conventions and bring them to justice. There should be no hiding place for those suspected of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The UN’s Goldstone report and the international law panel appointed after the Gaza flotilla incident raised the issue of Israel’s impunity and unaccountability.

But what we’re up against in the UK is a biased and unprincipled administration that wants to let ‘friendly’ war criminals off and protect them from arrest while they visit Britain. The government recently watered down UK law on universal jurisdiction arguing that foreign politicians they happen to like, no matter how thuggish, should never be made to feel unwelcome. The overriding principle that no-one, regardless of nationality, should feel able to commit war crimes with impunity, is sacrificed so that the likes of former foreign minister Tzipi Livni, with the blood of thousands of Palestinian dead and wounded on her hands, can go shopping in London.

Livni, the pin-up girl of the Knesset, is reported to be making a comeback in Israeli politics at the head of a new party in January’s elections. Seems our Foreign Office chaps are hopelessly smitten by her.

Meanwhile mountains of evidence of Israel’s war crimes are just waiting to be tested in the International Criminal Court.

The purpose of the ICC is “to help end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community”. The Court has jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by nationals of a State Party or on the territory of a State Party since July 2002.

115 states have signed up. The UK is one of them, and so too is Afghanistan. But rogue states like the US, Israel and Saudi skulk in the outer darkness.

A further 34 countries, including Russia, have signed but not ratified. Three — Israel, Sudan and the United States — signed and then, presumably realising their conduct was not up to the standards expected and no doubt wishing to undermine its work whenever it suited them, ‘unsigned’.

Palestine declared its voluntary acceptance of the ICC’s jurisdiction in 2009, but whether it should be regarded as a ‘State’ as required by Article 12(3) of Rome Statute has been the subject of much debate. In April this year the ICC General Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said the court would not accept a Palestinian demand to investigate alleged war crimes by Israel untilPalestine was recognize as a state by the UN General Assembly. “In order to proceed we need the General Assembly of the UN accepting Palestine as an observer state. As soon as this is done we can proceed.”

If the ICC does acquire jurisdiction, it will inherit a whole shed-full of damning evidence gathered not only by Goldstone but many other organisations such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the Arab League Fact Finding Committee.

Consequently Israel and its obedient friends America and Britain are getting edgy.

In the meantime the PLO Executive’s Hanan Ashrawi has announced that Palestine’s final resolution was submitted to the UN on Monday, so all this last-minute bickering and arm-twisting is academic. It has been too late to change the wording since last weekend.

Asked whether Palestine would file complaints with the International Criminal Court, Ashrawi said it would be for the Palestinian leadership to decide. She also said that the Palestinian Authority would not abandon any of the inalienable Palestinian rights guaranteed by international law.

Within Palestinian ranks there seems to be a measure of unity. Hamas’s chief-in-exile Khaled Meshaal and fellow political bureau member Izzat al-Rishq said on Monday that they supported Abbas in going before the United Nations, but warned that Palestinian “constants and rights” must not be compromised nor any inch of Palestinian land sacrificed.

Whether Hamas’s leaders-on-the-ground are quite so enthusiastic isn’t clear. However, prime minister Ismail Haniyeh said “nobody is against statehood, and (my government) supports any political move to establish a Palestinian state on the occupied Palestinian territory.”

Frank Olsen’s family claim CIA threw him from a hotel window and covered up his death after he witnessed torture by agency operatives in Europe

By Karen McVeigh in New York

29 November 2012

@ guardian.co.uk

CIA Headquarters, Langley, VA

The family of a US government scientist who fell to his death from a New York hotel window six decades ago have launched a lawsuit for damages against the CIA, alleging the agency was involved in his murder and a subsequent cover-up.

In one of the most notorious cases in the organisation’s history, bioweapons expert Frank Olson died in 1953, nine days after he was given LSD by agency officials without his knowledge.

In the lawsuit, filed in the US district court in Washington on Wednesday, Olson’s sons Eric and Nils claim their father was murdered after he witnessed extreme interrogations in which the CIA killed suspects using the biological agents he had developed.

The CIA has long denied any foul play, though it was forced to admit in 1975, more than 20 years after the death, that the scientist had been given LSD in a spiked glass of Cointreau. The agency, which originally told the family the death was a result of job-induced stress, has since maintained that it was a drug-induced suicide.

But in a statement on Wednesday, Eric Olson said: “The evidence shows that our father was killed in their custody. They have lied to us ever since, withholding documents and information, and changing their story when convenient.

“We were just little boys and they took away our lives – the CIA didn’t kill only our father, they killed our entire family again and again and again.”

The lawsuit alleges that even when the drug details emerged, the CIA embarked on a “multi-decade cover-up that continues to this day.”

Olson began work at the special operations division (SOP) of the army’s biological laboratory at Fort Detrick in Maryland in 1950. The CIA worked with the SOP researching biological agents and chemical weapons. In 1952 and 1953, he was focused on bioweapons that could be transmitted through the air, according to the lawsuit.

In the year of his death, Olson visited Porton Down, the UK’s biological and chemical warfare research centre in Wiltshire, as well as bases in Paris, Norway, and West Germany. During these trips, according to the family’s lawsuit, he “witnessed extreme interrogations in which the CIA committed murder using biological agents that Dr Olson had developed”.

The lawsuit gives no details of the deaths or where they occurred.

The family said Olson was disturbed by what he had seen and told his wife, Alice, he wanted to quit.

On 19 November 1953 he was taken to a secret meeting Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, where he was given the drink laced with LSD. On 24 November, according to the lawsuit, he told a colleague he wanted to resign.

But instead, on Thanksgiving weekend, he travelled to New York for a psychiatric evaluation and checked into the Statler Hotel. In the early hours of 28 November, he crashed through the window of the 13th-floor room he was sharing with a CIA doctor and plunged to his death in the street below.

The family lawsuit alleges that, immediately following his death, a person in Olson’s room made a phone call. The hotel operator overheard one party say “Well, he’s gone.” The person on the other end responded simply “That’s too bad.”

The role of LSD in the death only emerged in 1975 during a series of post-Watergate era disclosures about CIA abuses, which revealed programmes on brainwashing, mind control and other human experiments during the early days of the cold war. The Olson case became a symbol for reckless CIA behaviour and government secrecy.

Soon after the revelations, Gerald Ford apologised to the family for an experiment gone wrong, the CIA promised a “complete file” of documents into his death and they were awarded a financial settlement.

But his sons, who have spent much of their adult lives searching for answers in the case, say their questions have been met with cover-ups and lies ever since. Eric Olson said the CIA had refused to provide documents to the family as recently as last year.

Over the years, the Olson family has uncovered evidence they believe supports their theory. Olson’s body was exhumed in 1993 and a forensic scientist, James Starrs, concluded that he had probably been struck on the head and then thrown out of the window. Later, the New York district attorney conducted an investigation into his death which was inconclusive.

Scott Gilbert, lead counsel in the lawsuit, said: “It’s unfathomable that our own government could stand by as its agents, operating on United States soil, killed an American citizen in cold blood, destroyed his family, and then allowed those directly responsible to walk away without so much as a blemish on their personnel files. Instead of putting its energy and resources into doing what is right, the United States – including this administration – has sought to bury this and hide the truth.”

Jennifer Youngblood, a spokeswoman for the CIA, said the agency did not normally comment on pending court cases. However, she added: “Without commenting on this specific legal matter, CIA activities related to MK-Ultra [a behavioral engineering programme] have been thoroughly investigated over the years, and the agency co-operated with each of those investigations. MK-Ultra was investigated in 1975 by the Rockefeller commission and the Church committee, and in 1977 by the Senate select committee on intelligence and the Senate subcommittee on health and scientific research. In addition, tens of thousands of pages related to the programme have been declassified and released to the public.”

By Michelle Chen, In These Times

29 November 12

@readersupportednews.org

Perhaps the images no longer have the power to shock. Charred bodies and wailing families appear in the news with grim frequency, giving the numbing impression that industrial fires are simply a necessary toll for poor nations on the road to “development.” The latest factory inferno in South Asia should prompt us to ask why this keeps happening, but once again, challenges from local and international labor advocates are being dodged by the global apparel-manufacturing machine.

The fire this weekend at the Tazreen factory outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, which killed more than 110 of the 1,000-plus workers, bears the stamp of some of the world’s most iconic fashion labels. According to labor advocates, the Western brands linked to the factory included Disney, Sears, Dickies, Sean Combs’s Enyce and Walmart’s Faded Glory.

A Bangladeshi Army personnel walks through the rows of burnt sewing machines in the Tazreen factory, which caught fire Sunday, killing more than 110 workers. (Stringer/AFP/Getty Images)

According to initial reports, the workplace was fraught with fire-safety issues, including the lack of a viable road for rescue workers to approach the facility and a lack of safety exits. Before workers could flee, some managers reportedly “stopped them running to safety after the fire alarm had gone off.”

Just about everyone who could be held responsible has a story to deflect the blame, and some are even implicating workers.

Amid international outcry and local street protests in response to the fire, Bangladeshi authorities suggested that the incident was not a product of an industrial accident such as faulty wiring, but sabotage, pointing to another investigation of fires reportedly started by workers in a nearby factory. (Notably, Bangladesh’s garment industry is a bulwark of the country’s low-wage economy, employing about 3 million people.) Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina argued the Tazreen fire also appears to be the result of arson, perhaps tied to local political conflicts—a claim echoed by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. According to Hasina, the disaster “was not an accident, (it was) planned. The incident takes place when it is the time for buyers to come and sign contracts.”

Activists are wary that authorities are seeking a smokescreen to conceal deeper safety issues. Scott Nova of the anti-sweatshop group Worker Rights Consortium tells Working In These Times that the investigations should focus on “unsafe buildings” and workplace hazards underlying the tragedy:

This is a kind of political misdirection that we’ve seen before from the industry in Bangaldesh and its political allies. … But because the Bangladesh government and industry cannot admit that workers are dying because of lax regulation and unsafe working conditions in the industry in Bangladesh, they need some kind of scapegoat. And so they make up stories about saboteurs and arsonists whose goal somehow is to destroy the Bangladesh apparel industry.

The debate over the origins of the fire misses systemic issues that were an open secret long before Tazreen burst into flames, according to the Associated Press: an egregious lack of protections that left workers unable to use fire extinguishers; workers locked tightly inside so that windows had to double as fire exits, with cell phone lights pointing the way. Nor does it account for why managers ordered workers to return to their work stations as the building blazed.

The website of the factory’s parent company suggests that it has been approved by the certification body Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production, but the organization insists it did not inspect the factory.

Liana Foxvog of the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) tells Working ITT via email that a full investigation should be conducted, but that some facts are already certain:

Putting aside the question of the cause of the fire, it is evident from worker reports that Tazreen Fashions failed to uphold fire safety precautions and the magnitude of the tragedy would have been far less would have been far less had the brands paid fair prices to help ensure building compliance with fire-safety code and required sufficient, accessible exits and adequate emergency evacuation training. … All told, the situation amounted to a death trap when fire erupted.

Yet the safety violations are mere symptoms of the deep lack of accountability ingrained in the structure of the global apparel supply chain. The incident has shed light on the murky connections among various buyers and brands from Hong Kong to the United States, and it exposes the ease with which multinationals have been able to duck responsibility for labor- and human-rights violations by diffusing the manufacturing process across various countries.

Walmart claims to have been unaware that its clothes were still produced in Tazreen, saying that it had previously cut off business with the factory and it was not an unauthorized producer. But the main evidence that has emerged to support this claim is an internal “ethical sourcing” audit from mid-2011, posted online, which indicates that “high risk” conditions or violations could be dropped if it got three such ratings over a two-year period. The ultimate outcome of Tazreen audit is unclear, but in any case, the standard procedure for dropping an unscrupulous supplier might apparently last as long as two years—far too long for workers who risk their lives every workday.

In response to Walmart’s claim that Tazreen was dropped before the fire, Nova of the Worker Rights Consortium says, “Unless Walmart is willing to supply proof of that, I don’t see why anyone should believe it. And even if they can prove it, it doesn’t change the fact that they allowed their stuff to be made there, whether by omission or commission, and are responsible for protecting those workers.”

The deaths of the garment workers are the by-products of a rapid-fire manufacturing system that drives the fashion cycle and mass-produced inventories of Walmart and other chains. The production patterns that run on poverty wages and brutal work conditions in the Global South parallel exploitation at the upper end of the supply chain, resulting in low wages and precarious temporary work in Western warehouses and retail stores. In this way, the Black Friday Walmart protests throughout the U.S. and the Tazreen fire protests in the streets of Bangladesh are converging in a single labor struggle to hold global brands accountable.

Labor activists in Bangladesh have routinely been attacked and suppressed for challenging exploitative employers and calling attention to the country’s fatal dependence on cheap garment exports. Earlier this year, labor organizer Aminul Islam was found tortured and killed, and the case remains unresolved.

In the wake of industrial disasters, advocacy groups like the ILRF have made some strides in shaming companies into tightening standards. Uproar over a recent high-profile factory fire in Ashulia, Bangladesh spurred Tommy Hilfiger to initiate a safety reform program. But despite defiant grassroots protests, workers in Bangladesh lack a strong labor movement that could mobilize to protect them and advocate for better conditions before, not after, the next tragedy.

Incidents such as the Tazreen fire and an even more deadly blaze in Pakistan this September draw comparisons to the Triangle fire of the early 20th century in Manhattan, which led to public horror at the brutal deaths of young workers. But while the Triangle Fire lit the spark for significant labor reforms in the United States, no one knows how many more South Asian workers will perish until the lessons are learned. Of course, corporations have learned carefully over the years how to atomize the supply chain to minimize liability. They’re working hard to ensure that Triangle’s lessons for the labor struggle, of the need to empower workers to protect themselves, are quietly forgotten.

Al-Qaeda-linked Terrorists Eliminated, Hideouts Destroyed, Weapons Seized

Nov 27, 2012

PROVINCES, (SANA)- A unit of the Armed Forces on Tuesday killed members of an armed terrorist group who were looting oil and smuggling it to Turkey by tanks in Abu Khashab area in Deir Ezzor Countryside.

An official source in the province told SANA reporter that a number of terrorists were killed and others injured including leader of the group, terrorist Saddam Awwad al-Saho, nicknamed “al-Tair”.

Another unit of the Armed Forces targeted an armed terrorist group in al-Jbeileh neighborhood in Deir Ezzor city, killing a number of its members and injuring others.

The source added that terrorists Mohammad Jassem al-Ibrahim and Saaed Samir al-Ghadban were identified among the dead.

The source pointed out that leader of one of the armed terrorist groups, Ali Amin Khuder al-Hussein, who was injured in the clash, died later in Turkey.

Army Destroys Terrorists’ Cars, Continues Clearing al-Lairamoun in Aleppo

A unit of the Armed Forces destroyed two cars equipped with machineguns and another carrying terrorists, weapons and ammunition in Karm al-Jabal area in Aleppo.

In a relevant context, other army units killed and injured scores of al-Qaeda-linked mercenary terrorists near the fifth Industrial School and al-Salehin police station in the city.

The Armed Forces continued their operations to clear al-Maamel area in al-Lairamoun of terrorists, destroying their vehicles and equipment.

On the other hand, Police members in al-Zerbeh area in Aleppo clashed with terrorists who launched an attack with machienguns and sniper rifles, killing and injuring many of them.

Al-Qaeda-linked Terrorists Eliminated in Damascus Countryside

A unit of the Armed Forces clashed with al-Qaeda-linked terrorists at al-Bassel roundabout in Daraya  city in Damascus Countryside and killed and injured a number of them.

SANA reporter pointed out that some terrorists managed to flee and hide in the neighboring residential buildings and shops.

Earlier, an army unit killed a number of terrorists near al-Radwan Hospital in the city, while many terrorists were also killed near al-Ibaa private school, according to a source in the province.

The locals in the city said that an armed terrorist group attacked Othman Bin Affan Mosque and set fire to it.

A unit of the Armed Forces killed a number of al-Qaeda terrorists and destroyed their weapons and ammunition in al-Dhiyabiyeh town.

An official source told SANA reporter that an army unit destroyed a DShK machinegun which the terrorists set uo on the roof of a building in the area.

The source added that other units of the Armed Forces continued pursuing armed terrorist groups in al-Husainiyeh and Hejjeira towns, killing scores of terrorists and injuring many others.

In the same framework, an official source told SANA reporter that an army unit targeted a gathering for terrorists at the crossroads of the towns of al-Buwaideh, al-Hejjeira and al-Ziyabiyeh.

The source said that the operations resulted in killing a number of terrorists and destroying two 4WD cars, one of which equipped with a DShK machinegun, while the other was carrying terrorists, ammunition and weapons.

In Zamalka town, a unit of the Armed Forces carried out a qualitative operation against al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group.

An official source at the province told SANA reporter that the operation resulted in the killing of a number of terrorists, including Ahmad Khalil Idris, Bashir Kharban and Mohammad Nour Abboud, nicknamed Abu Khaddouj.

Members at  the Police station of Jubar town confronted an attack by a terrorist group, killing and injuring many terrorists while the rest fled away.

Training Camp Destroyed, Terrorists Killed, Explosive Devices Dismantled in Idelb

In a qualitative operation, a military unit destroyed a training camp where armed terrorist groups were centered in Kafar Takharim town in Idleb countyside.

An official source in the province told SANA reporter that several terrorists were killed in the operation, as many others were injured.

The source added that another military unit killed several terrorists and injured others who were horrifying people and perpetrating acts of robbery and theft in Jidar Bkafaloun.

In another context, military engineering units dismantled four explosive devices, planted by terrorists on Ariha-Muhambel road near Bsanqoul village, each weighs 100 kg, prepared to be detonated remotely.

Al-Qaeda-Linked terrorists Killed in al-Hassaka

Units of the armed forces today carried out qualitative operations against gatherings of terrorists at Aliya and Mabrouka in al-Hassaka countryside, destroying 10 cars, some of them equipped with DSHK machineguns.

A source in the province told SANA that the Army operations led to the killing and injuring of a number of terrorists from al-Qaeda.

Three children martyred by Explosive of terrorists in Home Countryside 

An explosive device was detonated today while terrorists were preparing it inside a house in al-Fayezeih village in Homs countryside, leading to the killing and injuring of all the terrorists in the hideout.

A source in the province told SANA that the explosion also caused the martyrdom of three children who were in the next door.

 Hideout for Jabhat al-Nusra Terrorists Stormed in Jisr al-Shughour

A unit of the Armed Forces stormed al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists hideout in Mhambel Town in Jisr al-Shughour countryside and destroyed the ammunitions and weapons inside it.

A source in the province told SANA reporter that four snipers were killed in addition to leader of a terrorist group, terrorist Abdul Majeed Khuder.

The source added that units of the Armed Forces killed a number of terrorists and injured others who attempted to attack a law-enforcement checkpoint in Maaret al-Numan city.

The source pointed out that the army seized the terrorists’ ammunitions and weapons, including RBG and mortar launchers, a 14,5 mm machinegun and automatic rifles in addition to sophisticated communication devices.

In Atmah in Harem countryside, a unit of the Armed Forces on Monday destroyed a terrorists’ headquarters and a warehouse, killing all the terrorists inside them belonging to the so-called Shuhadaa al-Atareb (al-Atareb Martyrs) brigade.

Meanwhile, 15 terrorists were killed in the explosion of an explosive device they were planting on Darkoush-Zarzour road in Idleb countryside.

10 Cars for Terrorists, Some Equipped with DShK Machineguns, Destroyed in Hama

A unit of the Armed Forces destroyed a number of cars, some equipped with machineguns, were used by terrorists to attack the citizens and loot their properties in Hama countryside.

SANA reporter quoted a source in the province as saying that the Armed Forces carried out two qualitative operations against terrorists in Asseileh village south of Hama city, killing a number of terrorists and injuring others.

The source added that the two operations resulted in destroying 10 cars, 3 of which are equipped with DShK machineguns.

Terrorist Gathering Targeted in Homs

A unit of the Armed Forces targeted a gathering for mercenary terrorists, killing many of them and injuring others in al-Shomariyeh in the countryside of al-Qseir in Homs.

SANA reporter quoted a source in the province as saying that terrorist Abdullah al-Waw was identified among the dead.

Policemen Clash with Terrorists in Raqqa

In al-Thawra area in Raqqa, policemen clashed with terrorists, killing and injuring many of them.

Cabinet Stresses Protection of Vital Facilities, Approves New Bills on Combating Corruption

Nov 27, 2012

DAMASCUS, (SANA) – Prime Minister, Dr. Wael al-Halqi, on Tuesday reviewed the difficulties facing the health, services and electricity sectors, indicating to the role of the civil society in protecting the vital and industrial facilities and highways side by side with public authorities to ensure delivering its services to the citizens.

During the Cabinet’s weekly session, al-Halqi stressed the need for making use of public and civil capabilities and for citizens to shoulder their responsibilities in protecting the vital facilities, including cereal silos, oil and electricity facilities and dams, against the terrorist attacks.

He called upon all ministries to cooperate and coordinate with the Ministries of Oil and Electricity to help them perform their duties and guarantee the delivery of fuel to feed electricity generation plants.

The Cabinet approved drafts laws on establishing an independent committee for combating corruption and a control and inspection department, in addition to endorsing a bill on illicit gains.

The National Media Council’s decision on granting licenses to newspapers and magazines was also approved.

Talks during the meeting discussed the issue of providing job opportunities to families of the martyrs from the Armed Forces, Internal Security Forces and the civilian workers who were martyred while carrying out their national duties.

Deputy Prime Minister for Services Affairs, Minister of Local Administration, Omar Ghalawanji, briefed the ministers on the situation of services sector and the transgressions against its facilities which reflected negatively on the citizens’ livelihood.

He indicated that subcommittees were formed in the provinces to enhance protection procedures for vital economic and industrial facilities.

In turn, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, Minister of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection, Qadri Jamil, reviewed the government’s procedures to provide food materials and oil derivatives, stressing that the reserves and storage of local needs are sufficiently available for the next stages.

Minister of Electricity, Imad Khamis, said the terrorist attacks against power generation and distribution plants caused the continuation of the electricity rationing programs, adding that the Ministry is doing its best to repair damage and maintain the electrical systems  to reduce rationing hours.

Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Said Hneidi, reviewed the challenges facing oil and gas sector due to the repeated terrorist attacks and the Ministry’s efforts to provide oil derivatives and resume oil and gas pumping operations.

In turn, Minister of State for National Reconciliation Affairs, Ali Haidar, briefed the cabinet on the Ministry’s efforts to solve citizens’ problems.

Transport Minister, Mahmoud Said, reviewed the Ministry’s procedures to support air and marine transport systems, in addition to maintaining railway networks.

The Cabinet also listened to a review from the Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, Jasem Zakarya, on the progress achieved in the Youth Employment Program.

Al-Lahham Stresses Necessity of Unifying Efforts to Overcome Negative Impacts of  Crisis on Development

Nov 27, 2012

DAMASCUS, (SANA) – Speaker of People’s Assembly, Mohammad Jihad al-Lahham, stressed the importance of cooperation between civil and official institutions and encouraging individuals’ capabilities to overcome the obstacles hindering development process in Syria through restoring stability, rebuilding damaged areas and returning displaced people to their houses which is the government’s main priority in current stage.

Al-Lahham was speaking at the opening of a workshop titled “population and development under current circumstances” at al-Sham Hotel which was organized in cooperation between the People’s Assembly and the United Nations Fund for Population (UNFPA) .

He said that the Syrian people are required to shoulder their responsibility in conveying the message of peace against the ferocious war targeting their unity, history, present and future.

The Speaker expressed confidence in the Syrians’ ability to overcome the current crisis and to cooperate with their state to pass the negative impacts of this war.

Al-Lahham said that reports on population and development indicated that Syria was making progress towards achieving the third millennium and the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) goals before the events.

He added that the current crisis overshadowed all economic and social aspects of the Syrians’ life and caused huge damage to the infrastructure, human resources and development.

Al-Lahham said that the international community did not commit to the recommendations adopted at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) on supporting Syria and reducing the repercussions of current events on citizens.

“Some regional and western countries imposed economic sanctions against the Syrian people’s livelihood and supplied the terrorist gangs with weapons and facilitated smuggling mercenaries and takfiris into the Syrian territories to kill the Syrian people and undermine the state components,” Speaker of People’s Assembly said.

He called for finding appropriate means to overcome the economic and social consequences of the crisis.

He said that the national reconciliation committee will continue its work throughout the Syrian provinces, in cooperation with civil associations and the Ministry of State for the National Reconciliation Affairs to restore communication among all spectrums of the Syrian society.

In turn, Assistant Representative of the United Nations Fund for Population (UNFPA) in Syria Omar Ballan, said that the Fund is coordinating with all governmental and non-governmental parties and the UN organizations to carry out the annual plans, including meeting the people’s needs, particularly those affected by current circumstances.

He added that the People’s Assembly can have a prominent role in specifying the needs and facilitating access to affected areas, in addition to following up and evaluating relevant programs.

Ballan indicated that the aid response plan, set up in coordination with the Syrian government in accordance with the UN General Assembly, aims at supporting the government’s efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to the affected people.

The participants in the workshop stressed the need that humanitarian aid reach the affected families in all areas and basic requirements be provided in all shelter centers.

Director of Planning and International Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, Ali Belan, highlighted that the Higher Relief Committee was formed since months to mobilize and organize efforts targeting the affected families.

He explained that sub-committees were formed to follow up on the situation of the affected families basically through establishing a database for the affected persons inside and outside the shelter centers.

He also indicated the establishment of centers for registering the affected families outside the temporary shelters, underscoring the great support provided by the Ministry in terms of facilitations and financial aid, which amounted up to scores of SYP millions, to the NOGs that offer direct services to the affected people.

For her part, Huda Sheikh al-Shabab, Director of Planning Department at the Education Ministry, said that most of the displaced families due to the terrorist groups’ practices were provided shelter in schools, referring to the establishment of entertainment school clubs and prefabricated class rooms for affected students.

A number of the People’s Assembly members in addition to representatives of the Planning and International Cooperation Commission and the ministries of Local Administration, Social Affairs and Labor, Health, Education and NGOs and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent took part in the workshop.

Venezuela fully Supports Syria in its War against Terrorism

Nov 27, 2012

CARACAS, (SANA)-Deputy Foreign and Expatriates Minister Fayssal Mikdad on Tuesday discussed with Venezuelan Deputy Foreign Minister Temir Parras the political developments in the Middle East and Latin America.

During the meeting, the two sides described as deep the strategic relations between the two countries and peoples, founded by Leaders of the two countries, Presidents Bashar al-Assad and Hugo Chavez, expressing satisfaction over the implementation of agreements and programs which were signed in Damascus and Caracas.

The Venezuelan Deputy Foreign Minister expressed his country’s full support to Syria as leadership and people in the face of foreign conspiracy which seeks to deviate Syria’s attention from the main conflict in the region, the Arab-Israeli conflict.

He condemned the terrorist acts carried out by armed groups supported by external countries which pose a threat to the security, safety and stability of Syria, calling for stopping the support of terrorism, funding it or hosting those who perpetrate criminal acts.

For his part, Mikdad expressed Syria’s appreciation for the true support of Venezuela to Syria in all fields, indicating to the targets and dimensions of the attack of the western countries, particularly the US, France and Britain in cooperation with Turkey, some Gulf states and Libya and their support to the terrorists, proving them with fatal equipment to weaken Syria and divide its national unity and foil its stances against the Israeli occupation.

The Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister affirmed inevitability of Syria’s victory in its war against the terrorism and the foreign intervention in its affairs, this victory which will be considered as a victory for all powers which defend their countries’ independence and sovereignty.

Armenian President Calls for Halting Violence and Finding Political Solution to Crisis in Syria

Nov 27, 2012

BEIRUT, (SANA)- The Armenian President, Serzh Sargsyan, expressed his country’s concern over the events taking place in the Middle East region, calling for finding a political solution to the crisis in Syria.

Sargsyan was speaking during a lunch banquet held in his honor by Speaker of the to Lebanon Beirut, Ali Abdul-Karim.

He called for halting the violence in Syria, noting that the terrorist operations are totally unacceptable.

“I’m certain that the arising situation is the result of some countries trying to solve some issues of their own at the expense of the Syrian people’s blood,” said the Armenian President, adding that Armenia has always called for halting the violence and working to find a political solution to the crisis in Syria.

He called upon the Armenians in Syria to struggle for the sake of restoring peace as soon as possible to Syria which has welcomed them and become their second home.

For his part, the Lebanese Parliament Speaker reiterated that the only way to solve the crisis in Syria is through dialogue, warning that the entire region is threatened to be fragmented in light of the daily funding and smuggling of weapons and incitement to sedition and discord.

Medvedev: Crisis in Syria Should Be Settled by Syrians Themselves

Nov 27, 2012

MOSOCW, (SANA) – Russia’s Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev, reiterated his country’s stance which calls for solving the crisis in Syrian by the Syrians themselves.

Russia Today website quoted Medvedev as saying in a press conference with his French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault, in Paris that Russia, unlike its foreign partners including France, believes that settling the conflict in Syria should be done by the Syrians themselves.

“We don’t consider that interference in the internal affairs of sovereign countries is a correct step even if we had questions about the observance of human rights,” added Medvedev, indicating that these questions should be directed to both the Syrian government and opposition.

He said that both sides are responsible for violence, noting that “Our mission is to persuade them to sit down around the dialogue table and reach agreement on the future of the Syrian people and not only the future of President Bashar al-Assad.”

Bogdanov: Necessity of Political settlement through National dialogue

The Special Envoy to the Russian President, Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Bogdanov discussed with the Syrian Ambassador in Moscow Riyad Haddad the latest developments and situation in Syria.

A statement for the Russian Foreign Ministry, quoted by Russia Today TV on Tuesday said that the two sides underlined the mutual understanding of the necessity for an immediate halt to the bloodshed in Syria and move the situation into the political settlement stream through peaceful negotiations and an internal comprehensive Syrian dialogue.

Bogdanov announced on Monday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is expected to meet representatives of the Syrian opposition at the National Coordination Committee next Thursday.

Mehmanparast: Dialogue Best Way for Crisis in Syria

Nov 27, 2012

TEHRAN, (SANA) – Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, stressed that the best way for solving the crisis in Syria is through ending violence and adopting dialogue and elections.

In a televised interview broadcast by Iranian media on Tuesday Mehmanpawast said that the Western countries that reject dialogue, support gunmen and want foreign intervention in Syria are trying to fulfill hidden agendas and goals.

On the other hand, the Iranian official pointed out that the Palestinian resistance confused the Zionists in eight –day period, forcing them to look for truce and submit to the condition of the resistance, adding that many Zionist ministers including the Israeli war minister resigned in the wake of the resistance’s response to the Israeli aggression on Gaza.

Larijani condemns sending arms to terrorists in Syria

Speaker of the Iranian Shura Council Ali Larijani strongly condemned sending shipments of arms by a number of states to the terrorist groups in Syria, considering that as ” a difficult problem for the Syrians.”

Larijani, following a meeting with Iraqi scholar Mohammad Bahr al-Ulom in al-Najaf, said “some countries’ intervention and sending arms to Syria represent a big problem for the Syrians.. Iran believes that implementing reforms in Syria should be done within an atmosphere of calm.”

Larijani’s visit to Iraq comes within a regional tour where he visited Syria, Lebanon and Turkey, concentrating on the crisis in Syria and means of resolving it.

Education Ministry Intensifies Response Plan Measures for Displaced Students 

Nov 27, 2012

DAMASCUS, (SANA)- Director of Planning Department at the Education Ministry, Huda Sheikh al-Shabab, stressed that most of the families who were displaced due to the armed terrorist groups’ practices were provided shelter in schools in the various provinces.

Speaking at a workshop organized on Tuesday in cooperation between the People’s Assembly and the United Nations Fund for Population (UNFPA) under the title ‘population and development under current circumstances’, Sheikh al-Shabab referred to the intensified measures taken in the context of a response plan set up by the Ministry to meet the needs of the affected students.

She explained that students of various grades, who were left with no official documents, have been tested and enrolled in suitable grade classes, indicating the distribution of thousands of school bags to students within the framework of the plan.

The Director stressed that the Ministry has established around 103 entertainment school clubs which targeted students in the provinces of Daraa, Damascus Countryside, Lattakia and Tartous, and is working on applying this activity in the rest of the provinces to reach 300 clubs.

Scores of prefabricated class rooms, Sheikh al-Shabab added, were set up in schools, mostly in Damascus, Tartous and Quneitra, which are crowded with students coming from affected areas to contribute to compensating missing lessons.

She also pointed out to the rehabilitation of 117 schools which were put back into service in the provinces of Damascus, Damascus Countryside, Homs, Daraa and Hasaka.

She highlighted the Ministry’s efforts in terms of organizing workshops for administrative and teaching cadres to train them on psychological support and first aid.

Ukrainian Marathon Swimmer Oleg Sofyanik  Visits Syria Thursday

Nov 26, 2012

DAMASCUS, (SANA)-Ukrainian marathon swimmer Oleg Sofyanik arrives in Syria on Thursday to swim in its regional waters along with a team of Ukrainian swimmers in solidarity with Syria, its people and leadership in the face of the conspiracy to which it is exposed.

Head of the Ukrainian Swimming Union and a number of media staff will accompany Swimmer Sofyanik in his visit which was delayed due to personal circumstances.

Sofyanik program in Syria is to swim from Tartous to Arwad Island and vice versa, hold a press conference and meet a number of political, sport and popular activities.

On October 22nd, Sofyanik held a press conference in Kiev in which he stressed the need for the civilized world to support the Syrian people in their struggle against terrorism and the crimes of extremist groups supported by countries that claim to fight terrorism and extremism.

By Countercurrents.org

28 November 2012

@ Countercurrents.org

A joint Turkey-NATO team starts work to assess where to station Patriots, how many would be needed and the number of foreign troops that would be sent to operate those, said a statement. The army says those would be used only for defense [1]

Foreign soldiers assigned to operate the system in Turkey would be placed under the framework of a memorandum of understanding in accordance with Turkey’s status of forces agreement (SOFA) with NATO, the General Staff said.

The site survey is for the deployment of Patriot Air and Missile Defense Systems, the Turkish Armed Forces said while reiterating that the system is for defensive purposes.

NATO had previously been carrying out work for command and control, rules of engagement and integration of Patriot systems with Turkey’s air defense system, the statement also said.

“We are a NATO member and we believe that there is need for deployment of these [Patriot missiles]. As you know, there is a possibility of ballistic missiles [being used] by Syria,” Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesperson Bülent Arınç told reporters following a six-hour long Cabinet meeting.

However, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned last week that such a deployment could spark a “very serious armed conflict” involving NATO.

NATO chief Anders Rasmussen told Lavrov that any deployment “would in no way support a no-fly zone or any offensive operations,” according to a spokesman for the alliance.

Iran also said the deployment would add to the region’s problems.

NATO’s chief says the command of Patriots will be under the control of the alliance and hints that the decision will be taken within ‘days.’ Meanwhile, opposition parties slam the deployment decision. [2]

NATO General-Secretary Anders Rasmussen believes that NATO allies will respond positively to Turkey’s demand for Patriot missiles within “days” and that command of the system will be under NATO control. He also said the alliance would not avoid using further measures for Turkey’s defense.

Rasmussen made the comment in an interview with private Turkish broadcaster NTV.

“Russia has no right to intervene in this process. This is a NATO decision; third parties have nothing to say,” Rasmussen said about Russian objections to the deployment.

According Rasmussen, NATO finances would be used to fund the Patriot system and Turkey would also contribute as the host country.

The NATO chief was also questioned regarding the efficiency of Patriot missiles. “I suppose this deployment will dissuade potential aggression,” he said.

“Similar instruments were used in Turkey in 2003. NATO possesses sufficient instruments to provide for Turkey’s defense and will not avoid using them.” Rasmussen did not give a specific date for the deployment of the missiles, though he said it would take days, not weeks.

Source:

[1] Hürriyet Daily News, “Turkey, NATO in field near Syria for Patriots”, Nov. 27, 2012, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-nato-in-field-near-syria-for-patriots.aspx?PageID=238&NID=35524&NewsCatID=338

[2] Hürriyet Daily News, “NATO to control Patriots”, Nov. 28, 2012, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/nato-to-control-patriots.aspx?pageID=238&nID=35632&NewsCatID=338

By Countercurrents.org

28 November 2012

@ Countercurrents.org

Climate crisis exposes a lot of facts of the present world order: (1) The rich countries are refusing new emission cuts. (2) The wealthy countries have not only failed to provide cash to help poor countries adapt to climate crisis, but much of the money they gave so far has come out in the form of loans that will need to be repaid. The poor have to pay interest. (3) The number of coal fired power plants is going to increase globally. (4) Permafrost is thawing that will further increase global warming.

An AP report by Michael Caseyap from Doha said:

The first signs of tensions emerged at the Doha climate talks on November 27, 2012 as delegates from island and African nations chided rich countries for refusing to offer up new emissions cuts over the next eight years which could help stem global warming.

The debate mostly swirled around the Kyoto Protocol. Countries are hoping to negotiate an extension to the pact that runs until at least 2020 but several nations like Japan and Canada have said they won’t be party to a new one.

Marlene Moses, chairwoman of a coalition of island countries, said she was “gravely disappointed” with rich nations, saying they have failed to act or offer up any new emissions cuts for the near term. The US, which is not a signatory of Kyoto, has said it would not increase earlier commitments to cut emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020.

“In our view, these actions are an abdication of responsibility to the most vulnerable among us,” Moses said.

The Japanese delegation defended its decision not to sign onto a Kyoto extension, insisting it would be better to focus on coming to an agreement by 2015 that would require all countries to do their part to keep global temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees C, compared to pre-industrial times.

The position of Japan and other developed countries has the potential to reignite the battles between rich and poor nations that have doomed past efforts to reach a deal. So far that hasn’t happened, but countries like Brazil are warning that it will be difficult for poor nations to do their part if they continue watching industrialized nations shy away from legally-binding pacts like Kyoto.

“This is a very serious thing,” said Andre Correa do Lago, who heads the Brazil delegation and is the director general for Environment and Special Affairs in the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“If rich countries which have the financial means, have technology, have a stable population, already have a large middle class, if these countries think they cannot reduce and work to fight climate change, how can they ever think that developing countries can do it,” do Lago said.

“That is why the Kyoto Protocol has to be kept alive. It’s the bar. If we take it out, we have what people call the Wild West. Everybody will do what they want to do. With everyone doing what they want to do, you are not going get the reductions necessary.”

It’s loan with interest

On wealthy countries’ climate “contribution” to the poor countries, John Vidal reported [guardian.co.uk, “Climate change adaptation cash for poor countries fails to materialize”, Nov. 26, 2012, http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2012/nov/26/climate-change-adaptation-poor-countries ]:

Wealthy countries have not only failed to provide cash to help poor people adapt to climate change, but much of what they have agreed to give so far has come out of existing aid budgets or in the form of loans that will need to be repaid, new research by two international agencies shows.

The EU and nine countries including the US, Canada and Australia agreed at the Copenhagen climate talks in 2009 to make a downpayment of $30bn by the end of this year on the eventual $100bn that must be raised by 2020.

But separate analysis by Oxfam and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), shows only $23.6bn, or 78%, has been committed and much of that is not “new and additional” to existing aid, as was agreed.

“Just 43% has been given as grants; most of it was in loans that developing countries have to repay at varying levels of interest. In addition only 21% of funds have been earmarked to support adaptation programs to help communities protect themselves from the effects of climate change,” said Oxfam in its The Climate Fiscal Cliff report.

In a separate report, IIED argues rich countries have collectively failed to meet their pledges. The funds, it says, are not transparent; only Japan and Norway have contributed their fair share of money; very little has gone to help countries adapt; funds are not being channeled through the UN as agreed; pledges made have been not been delivered to the poor; and the most vulnerable have not been helped first.

“There is a real danger that climate finance will be scaled down in 2013, at a time when it needs to be scaled up,” said Oxfam climate change policy adviser Tim Gore.

On of Oxfam’s suggestions on ways of raising the funding outside aid budgets is a scheme to reduce shipping emissions or new taxes on financial transactions to generate revenue for the green climate fund.

Gore said: “If leaders come to Doha with no new money, the green climate fund risks being left as an empty shell for the third year in a row.”

China’s contradictory position

From Beijing Jonathan Kaiman reported [The Guardian, “China’s emissions expected to rise until 2030, despite ambitious green policies”, Nov. 26, 2012,http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/nov/26/china-emissions-rise-green-policies]:

China’s position on its rising greenhouse gas emissions may seem contradictory. While the country flaunts ambitious green-tech investments and energy consumption targets, its officials continue to prioritize GDP growth over many environmental concerns.

China “is resolute in reducing emissions”, wrote the state newswire Xinhua last week, yet “it’s unfair and unreasonable to hold China to absolute cuts in emissions at the present stage”.

Analysts say that beneath the apparent contradiction lies a consensus that barring any significant changes in policy, China’s emissions will rise until around 2030 – when the country’s urbanization peaks, and its population growth slows – and then begins to fall. Proposed policy changes could speed up the process.

China is the world’s largest emitter of GHG, responsible for about a quarter of all emissions. The country accounted for over 70% of the world’s energy consumption growth in 2011, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy. Its emissions have risen accordingly.

China’s chief negotiator to the Doha climate change conference, Xie Zhenhua, told Xinhua that the country’s greenhouse gas emissions – which rose 171% between 2000 and 2011, and by just under 10% last year alone – would continue to rise until its per capita GDP had reached $20,000 to $25,000. It currently stands at $5,000.

Deborah Seligsohn, a principal adviser for the World Resources Institute’s climate and energy program in Beijing, said Xie’s announcement suggested China’s current trajectory was unlikely to change any time soon.

Yet Beijing is taking steps to boost the country’s renewable energy industries and decrease its reliance on coal. “Solar and wind energy are increasing a lot more quickly than anybody thought 10 years ago,” she said. The authorities have also set a national coal production cap for 2015, albeit a high one, suggesting that coal may remain China’s primary energy source for decades.

Li Yan, the head of Greenpeace East Asia’s climate and energy campaign, said China’s move away from coal had been hampered by messy internal politics. “There is some discrepancy between the central government’s political will and local governments’ desire for high GDP growth,” she said.

Li said China was now focused on decoupling its GDP growth from its emissions levels. Officials claim the country’s carbon intensity has dropped 19% since 2005, and plan on knocking it down another 17% by 2015.

Yet China’s environmental authorities are notoriously opaque, making the true extent of its carbon emissions – and its progress in mitigating them – difficult to assess. In June, scientists from China, Britain and the US reviewed data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics and found that the country’s total emissions from 1997 to 2010 may be 20% (1.4bn tonnes) higher than reported.

“China will be expected to take even bolder actions in 2015,” said Li, including levying direct taxes on carbon emissions. “To be able to make sure they can make that commitment, they need to make sure that data-gathering is reliable.”

Coal fired power plants will increase

The World Resources Institute found that the global number of coal-fired power plants could increase significantly. [11/20/2012, “Nearly 1,200 Coal-Fired Power Plants Proposed Globally, Report Finds”,http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/20/world-coal-fired-power-plants_n_2166699.html?utm_hp_ref=climate-change]

“Global Coal Risk Assessment: Data Analysis and Market Research,” released on November 20, estimated there are currently 1,199 proposed coal plants in 59 countries. China and India together account for 76 percent of these plants. The US landed seventh, with 36 proposed coal-fired power plants.

WRI’s Ailun Yang noted, “If all of these projects are built, it would add new coal power capacity that is almost four times the current capacity of all coal-fired plants in the United States.”

According to WRI, “Coal-fired power plants are the largest contributor to the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.”

The WRI analysis, conducted in July 2012, comes as environmentalists warn that an estimated 80 percent of the world’s proven oil, coal and natural gas reserves must remain in the ground, unburned, to avoid the release of enough carbon dioxide to warm the planet above the internationally agreed upon limit of two degrees Celsius.

Threatened permafrost land

Permafrost lands, covering almost a quarter of the northern hemisphere across Siberia and Alaska, that contain vast stores of carbon are beginning to thaw, bringing with it the threat of a big increase in global warming by 2100, a UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report said on November 27, 2012. The report was released at Doha climate talks.

Warming permafrost could release the equivalent of between 43 and 135 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2100. That would be up to 39 percent of annual emissions from human sources.

A thaw of the vast areas of permanently frozen ground in Russia, Canada, China and the US also threatens local homes, roads, railways and oil pipelines, said the report.

The study said that a thaw could also undermine infrastructure, from bridges to power lines, and harm animal and plant life in the north, a region of forests and tundra.

An accelerating melt would free vast amounts of carbon dioxide and methane which has been trapped in organic matter in the subsoil, often for thousands of years, the report said.

Permafrost now contains 1,700 billion tonnes of carbon, or twice the amount now in the atmosphere, it said.

A melt of the permafrost meant that UN projections for rising temperatures this century might be too low.

A thaw would create a vicious circle, since the release of more greenhouse gases would trap more heat in the air and in turn accelerate the melting.

“Permafrost is one of the keys to the planet’s future,” Achim Steiner, head of UNEP, said in a statement. “Its potential impact on the climate, ecosystems and infrastructure has been neglected for too long.”

The report pointed to the 1994 failure of a pipeline to the Vozei oilfield in northern Russia, which led to a spill of 160,000 tonnes of oil, the world’s largest terrestrial oil spill.

In the past, land with permafrost experienced thawing on the surface during summertime, but now scientists are witnessing thaws that reach up to 10 feet deep due to warmer temperatures. The softened earth releases gases from decaying plants that have been stuck below frozen ground for millennia.

Sandy, probably not a coincidence

AP reported from Doha [“UN climate scientist: Sandy no coincidence”, Nov 27, 2012, (Updated: Nov 28, 2012),http://www.newson6.com/story/20191981/un-thawing-permafrost-to-cause-increased-warming]:

Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, the vice chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said on November 27, 2012: Though it’s tricky to link a single weather event to climate change, Hurricane Sandy was “probably not a coincidence” but an example of the extreme weather events that are likely to strike the US more often as the world gets warmer.

The UN climate panel’s No. 2 scientist predicted that as stronger and more frequent heat waves and storms become part of life, people will stop asking whether global warming played a role.

“The new question should probably progressively become: Is it possible that climate warming has not influenced this particular event?” Van Ypersele (vahn EE-purr-say-luh) told The AP in an interview on the sidelines of UN climate talks.

Van Ypersele said the slow pace of the talks was “frustrating” and that negotiators seem more concerned with protecting national interests than studying the science that prompted the negotiations.

Van Ypersele said the scientific backing for man-made climate change is now so strong that it can be compared to the consensus behind the principles of gravity.

“It’s a very, very broad consensus. There are a few individuals who don’t believe it, but we are talking about science and not beliefs,” Van Ypersele told AP.

Climate change skeptics say IPCC scientists have in the past overestimated the effect of the accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere and underplayed natural cycles of warming and cooling. Others have claimed the authors, who aren’t paid for their work, exaggerated the effects that climate change will have on the environment and on human life.

After years of disagreement, climate scientists and hurricane experts have concluded that as the climate warms, there will be fewer total hurricanes. But those storms that do develop will be stronger and wetter.

It is not correct to say Sandy was caused by global warming, but “the damage caused by Sandy was worse because of sea level rise,” said Princeton University climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer. He said the sea level in New York City is a foot higher than a century ago because of man-made climate change.

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By Craig Aaron

27 November, 2012

@readersupportednews.org

Why Is the Obama FCC Plotting a Massive Giveaway to Rupert Murdoch?

What if I told you the Obama administration’s first major post-election policy move was a big, fat gift for Rupert Murdoch?

You might ask: The same Rupert Murdoch who owns Fox News?

The same Rupert Murdoch who scandalized England with phone-hacking, influence peddling and bribery?

The same Rupert Murdoch who stays up late Saturday nights pondering things on Twitter like what to do about “the Jewish-owned press”?

Crikey.

Murdoch already owns the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, Fox News Channel, Fox movie studios, 27 local TV stations and much, much more.

Word is that Murdoch now covets the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune – the bankrupt-but-still-dominant newspapers (and websites) in the second- and third-largest media markets, where Murdoch already owns TV stations.

Under current media ownership limits, he can’t buy them. It’s illegal … unless the Federal Communications Commission changes the rules.

But according to numerous reports, that’s exactly what FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski plans to do. He’s circulating an order at the FCC to lift the longstanding ban on one company owning both daily newspapers and TV stations in any of the 20 largest media markets.

And he wants to wrap up this massive giveaway just in time for the holidays.

Democracy Diversity Disaster

If these changes go through, Murdoch could own the Los Angeles Times, two TV stations and up to eight radio stations in L.A. alone. And he’s not the only potential beneficiary: These changes could mean more channels for Comcast-NBC, more deals for Disney and more stations for Sinclair.

For anyone who actually cares about media diversity and democracy, the gutting of media ownership limits will be a complete disaster.

These rules are one of the last barriers to local media monopolies. Without them, we will lose competing voices for local news. We will see the mainstream media get even more monotone, monochrome and monotonous.

The FCC’s own data show ownership of broadcast radio and television stations by women and minorities remains at abysmally low levels. Women own less than 7 percent of radio and TV stations; people of color control only 3.6 percent of TV stations and 8 percent of radio stations.

More media consolidation will push out smaller owners – who are disproportionately women and people of color. The more concentrated local media get, the harder it will be for underrepresented groups to compete.

That’s why groups like the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the Center for Media Justice and the National Hispanic Media Coalition have spoken out against any further relaxation of ownership limits.

Déjà Vu All Over Again

Genachowski’s proposal is essentially indistinguishable from the failed Bush administration policies that millions rallied against in 2003 and 2007. Ninety-nine percent of the public comments received by the FCC opposed lifting these rules when the Republicans tried to do it.

Genachowski’s proposal is nearly identical to the one the Senate voted to overturn with a bipartisan “resolution of disapproval” back in 2008. Among the senators who co-sponsored that rebuke to runaway media concentration were Joe Biden and Barack Obama.

At the time, Obama blasted the FCC for having “failed to further the goals of diversity in the media and promote localism,” saying the agency was in “no position to justify allowing for increased consolidation.” Nothing has changed – except which party controls the White House.

The federal courts have repeatedly – and as recently as 2011 – struck down these same rules, noting the FCC’s failure to “consider the effect of its rules on minority and female ownership.” The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the FCC to study the impact of any rule changes before changing the rules. The FCC has done nothing of the kind.

When the Republicans were in power, they held at least seven public hearings on ownership rules in front of the full commission, where near-universal public opposition to these changes was evident.

Yet Genachowski himself has participated in zero public hearings on media ownership. Same goes for the two newest commissioners, Democrat Jessica Rosenworcel and Republican Ajit Pai. The senior Republican, Robert McDowell, did attend hearings … five years ago. Only Democrat Mignon Clyburn has attended a public hearing on media ownership during the Obama administration.

Yet if Genachowski gets his way, according to reports, the FCC will vote on this major overhaul “on circulation” – that is, in secret and behind closed doors – with no public participation or accountability. It’s shameful.

Now You Do Something?

Genachowski’s behavior is inexplicable because the clearest and easiest path on media ownership was to do nothing. After losing in court, he could have punted the issue and waited for the next review in 2014, when the diversity research could have been finished and the industry trends might have been clearer.

“Do nothing” is so ingrained at the FCC it could be the agency’s motto. And yet the one time inaction is called for, Genachowski is making every effort to side with Murdoch against the masses.

We can still stop this terrible plan from moving forward. The other members of the FCC can dissent and send this thing back to the drawing board. The dozens of senators who voted against this very policy less than five years ago can speak up again. The Obama administration can think about cross-examining Rupert Murdoch instead of appeasing him.

None of that will happen unless millions of people make some noise.

We should be breaking up these giant media conglomerates, not bolstering them. But right now we need to kill this policy for good – and remind the FCC that 99 percent of the public opposes media consolidation, no matter who’s in the White House or the FCC chairman’s seat.

By Shamus Cooke

26 November, 2012

@ Countercurrents.org

The last Congo war that ended in 2003 killed 5.4 million people, the worst humanitarian disaster since World War II. The killing was directly enabled by international silence over the issue; the war was ignored and the causes obscured because governments were backing groups involved in the fighting. Now a new Congo war has begun and the silence is, again, deafening.

President Obama seems not to have noticed a new war has broken out in the war-scarred Congo; he appears blind to the refugee crisis and the war crimes committed by the invading M23 militia against the democratically elected government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

But appearances can be deceiving. The U.S. government has their bloody hands all over this conflict, just as they did during the last Congo war when Bill Clinton was President. President Obama’s inaction is a conscious act of encouragement for the invaders, just as Clinton’s was. Instead of Obama denouncing the invasion and the approaching overthrow of a democratically elected government, silence becomes a very powerful action of intentional complicity on the side of the invaders.

Why would Obama do this? The invaders are armed and financed by Rwanda, a “strong ally” and puppet of the United States. The United Nations released a report conclusively proving that the Rwandan government is backing the rebels, but the U.S. government and U.S. media cartoonishly pretend that the issue is debatable.

The last Congo War that killed 5.4 million people was also the result of the U.S.-backed invading armies of Rwanda and Uganda, as explained in the excellently researched book “Africa’s World War,” by French journalist Gerard Prunier.

In fact, many of the same Rwandan war criminals involved in the last Congo War, such as Bosco Ntaganda, are in charge of the M23 militia and wanted for war crimes by the U.N. international criminal court. The current Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, is a “good friend” of the U.S. government and one of the most notorious war criminals on the planet, due to his leading roles in the Rwandan genocide and consequent Congo War.

A group of Congolese and Rwandan activists have been demanding that Kagame be tried for his key role in the Rwandan genocide.

As Prunier’s book explains, the Rwandan genocide was sparked by Kagame’s invasion of Rwanda — from U.S. ally Uganda. After Kagame took power in post-genocide Rwanda, he then informed the U.S. — during a trip to Washington D.C. — that he would be invading the Congo. Prunier quotes Kagame in Africa’s World War:

“I delivered a veiled warning [to the U.S.]: the failure of the international community to take action [against the Congo] would mean that Rwanda would take action… But their [the Clinton Administration’s] response was really no response at all” (pg 68).

In international diplomacy speak, such a lack of response — to a threat of military invasion — acts as a glaring diplomatic green light.

The same blinding green light is now being offered by Obama to the exact same war criminals as they again invade the Congo.

But why again? The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s current President, Joseph Kabila, helped lead the military invasion during the last Congo war. As a good stooge, he delivered Congo’s immense mining and oil wealth to multi-national corporations. But then his puppet strings started to fray.

Kabila later distanced himself from U.S. puppets Rwanda and Uganda, not to mention the U.S. dominated International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. The IMF, for example, warned Kabila against a strategic infrastructural and development aid package with China, but Kabila shrugged them off. The Economist explains:

“…[The Congo] appears to have gained the upper hand in a row with foreign donors over a mining and infrastructure package worth $9 billion that was agreed a year ago with China. The IMF objected to it, on the ground that it would saddle Congo with a massive new debt, so [the IMF] is delaying forgiveness of most of the $10 billion-plus that Congo already owes.”

This act instantly transformed Kabila from an unreliable friend to an enemy. The U.S. and China have been madly scrambling for Africa’s immense wealth of raw materials, and Kabila’s new alliance with China was too much for the U.S. to bear.

Kabila further inflamed his former allies by demanding that the international corporations exploiting the Congo’s precious metals have their super-profit contracts re-negotiated, so that the country might actually receive some benefit from its riches.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is home to 80 percent of the world’s cobalt, an extremely precious mineral needed to construct many modern technologies, including weaponry, cell phones, and computers. The DRC is possibly the most mineral/resource rich country in the world — overflowing with everything from diamonds to oil — though its people are among the world’s poorest, due to generations of corporate plunder of its wealth.

Now, a new war is underway and the U.N. is literally sitting on their hands. There are 17,500 U.N. peacekeepers in the DRC, not to mention U.S. Special Forces. The invading M23 militia has 3,000 fighters. What was the U.N.’s response to the invasion? The New York Times reports:

“United Nations officials have said that they did not have the numbers to beat back the rebels and that they were worried about collateral damage, but many Congolese have rendered their own verdict. On Wednesday, rioters in Bunia, north of Goma, ransacked the houses of United Nations’ personnel.”

If Obama and/or the U.N. made one public statement about militarily defending the elected Congolese government against invasion, the M23 militia would have never acted.

Human Rights Watch and other groups have correctly labeled the M23’s commanders as responsible for “ethnic massacres, recruitment of children, mass rape, killings, abductions and torture.”

But at the U.N. the Obama administration has been actively protecting this group. The New York Times continues:

“Some human rights groups say that Susan E. Rice, the American ambassador to the United Nations and a leading contender to be President Obama’s next secretary of state, has been far too soft on Rwanda, which is a close American ally and whose president, Paul Kagame, has known Ms. Rice for years. The activists have accused her of watering down language in a Security Council resolution that would have mentioned Rwanda’s links to the [M23] rebels and say she also tried to block the publication of part of a [U.N.] report that detailed Rwanda’s covert support for the M23.”

It’s likely that the Obama administration will jump into action as soon as his M23 allies complete their military objective of regime change, and re-open the Congo’s military wealth to U.S. corporations to profit from. There are currently talks occurring in U.S.-puppet Uganda between the M23 and the Congo government. It is unlikely that these talks will produce much of a result unless Kabila stands down and allows the M23 and its Rwandan backers to take over the country. The M23 knows it’s in an excellent bargaining position, given the silence of the U.N. and the United States government.

If the war drags on, expect more international silence. Expect more massacres and ethnic cleansing too, and expect the still-recovering people of the Congo to be re-tossed into massive refugee camps where they can again expect militia-sponsored killings, rape, starvation, and the various barbarisms that have accompanied this especially brutal war, a brutality that grows most viciously in environments of silence.

Shamus Cooke is a social service worker, trade unionist, and writer for Workers Action (www.workerscompass.org) He can be reached at shamuscooke@gmail.com

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/08/17/opposition-

groups-want-rwandan-president-paul-kagame-investigated-for-war-crimes/

http://www.economist.com/node/13496903?zid=

309ah=80dcf288b8561b012f603b9fd9577f0e

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/22/world/africa/

congo-rebels-in-goma-vow-to-take-kinshasha.html

We have news of Samer Issawi, a Palestinian activist on a hunger strike is hospital, protesting against his detention by the Israeli authorities which illegally occupy the Palestinian Territories.

His story is no different than many others coming out of occupied Palestine.

Just a little bit different: For a starter, his name, Issawi, comes from his village name ISSAWIYYEH – unlike all Israeli/Jewish names which have no connection to the land. We say this to make a point: Belonging is not achieved by simply conquering a land or buying it on the open market. The Palestinians and their soil are one.

Samer, who was captured by the military authorities near Ramallah back in 2002 during the second Intifada, on charges of possessing weapons, was sentenced to 30 years in prison by the Israeli regime. Last year (10 years of Samer’s youthful life has gone down the drain), he was part of the prisoner exchange deal which set him ‘free’ along with 476 Palestinians, some of whom were deported outright or sent back to another large prison called Gaza. That deal, between Hamas and Israel, was brokered by Egypt.

As Issawiyeh sits near Mount Scopus – Jerusalem, all Jerusalem prisoners released in that exchange, were required by Israel to sign a pledge not to venture outside the city boundaries. If they do, they would be arrested and sent back to serve a new prison sentence PLUS the remaining years left before they were set ‘free’ as part of last year’s exchange. According to Samer’s father, the Egyptian Ambassador in Tel-Aviv had assured the families of these prisoners that these ‘restrictions’ (in the pledge they had to sign) are merely formalities and there will be no restrictions on anyone’s movements. The pledge was signed. Samer was arrested last July for venturing outside what Israel considers to be its Jerusalem borders.

Demonstrations took place infront of the Egyptian Representative Offices in Ramallah whose Head promised to look into the matter. A promise by the Egyptian Ambassador that a decision will be made after the Eid al-Fitr (last August) went by the by. Nothing. The Embassy claims now that it only mediated the prisoner deal and are not party to it.

A long story short, Samer is under arrest and on hunger strike in hospital. He will be tried by an Israeli military court since the West Bank military commander signed the prisoner swap deal, and not by a Jerusalem court which may look lightly at Samer’s offence of exercising his liberty in his homeland. According to Haaretz, the conviction rate in the West Bank is 99.74%. Thank you. Even if Samer was to be tried in a Jerusalem civilian court, it would indict him and send him back to the Military Court whose orders Samer had allegedly ‘disobeyed’!

Now, if you are thinking what we are thinking, you will, at this point, be guessing where the hell are the boundaries of Jerusalem as of the day Samer crossed them. Since its illegal establishment in 1948, Israel’s borders have been shifting like the desert sand dunes. It does not matter where the boundaries are according to International Law. It only matters where Israel believes its boundaries are.

As of this writing, Samer is on the 115th day of his hunger strike. That’s nearly 4 months. God knows what happens to a normal human body at this point.Try and Google the medical websites on this question.The International Committee of the Red Cross was prevented from visiting him and reporting on his condition.

Samer’s sister Shireen, eloquently declares: “Samer is striking in order to come home”.

We all have the freedom to exercise the right to protest. We urge all of you, no matter where you are, to write to your local, regional or government representative NOW to force Israel to release Samer so that he can go home alive and not in a coffin. Harsh request?

To do so, you may cut and paste this letter, send it to your officials in your country, and to all those you know who believe is fairness and justice.

Antoine Raffoul

Coordinator

Source: 1948 – Lest we forget

http://www.1948.org.uk/

By Jim Wallis, Reader Supported News

24 November 12

@ readersupportednews.org

A lot of ink, pixels, and air have been used on the potential effects of the so-called “fiscal cliff.” While many experts say that “cliff” is a misnomer (it’s more of long slope in the wrong direction), there is at least broad agreement that it’s not the right direction for the country’s long-term health.

We’ve heard a lot about the potential effects on Wall Street, our nation’s credit rating, and even the military. But little has been said about the devastating consequences for our nation and the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people – or for the charities and non-profits that serve them.

This week, the Circle of Protection, released an open letter to the president and Congress with a simple message: during the holidays, please “advance policies that protect the poor – not ones that make them poorer.”

America, by many standards, is a generous nation. We give about 2 percent of our GDP to charity. While that doesn’t sound like much, it’s nearly double what Great Britain, the next most generous nation, gives.

This season is when many in our country give of their time and money to help those in need. These programs are important. But according to Bread for the World, all the food provided by churches and charities amounts to only 6 percent of what the federal government spends. And, unfortunately, a recent poll commissioned by World Vision, shows that while Americans plan to spend more this year on gifts, they are planning on giving less to charity.

After this election, the nation is hungry for some common ground. And the best way to find common ground is by moving to higher ground. There is a clear voice within the Christian community: the higher ground that should unite us is concern for vulnerable people and hardworking families and individuals still struggling to make ends meet.

The holiday letter, released by the Circle of Protection, and many other Christian leaders and heads of charitable organizations including the Salvation Army and Catholic Charities, outlines some common ground:

We see effective programs that meet the needs of the poor and vulnerable and help keep others from slipping into poverty: those programs and tax credits – such as Medicaid, SNAP (formerly food stamps) and the Earned Income Tax Credit – should be maintained. As our nation approaches a “fiscal showdown,” there are difficult decisions to be made, but we believe this can be done without putting the burdens on those who can least afford it.

During Thanksgiving and the Christmas season, there will be two kinds of holiday baskets sent by the faith community: baskets of food for the poor and baskets of letters to their elected officials with our message repeated over and over:

Don’t make the poor poorer – and our work harder – by the fiscal decisions and choices you will be making.

Yes, reducing large deficits is a moral issue; but how we do it is also a vital moral choice. The 65 national churches and faith-based organizations represent by the Circle of Protection believe we can address the challenges without putting the burden on those who need our help the most.

There are people of faith on both sides of the political aisle. Republicans and Democrats in Washington, D.C., share common faiths. Why not bring this faith factor, a commitment to protecting those who need it, to bear in our fiscal decision-making? This “fiscal cliff” and how we approach it is truly a debate about our fiscal soul as a nation. What kind of people and what kind of country do we want to be?

Sacrifices will have to be made to put us on a path to fiscal responsibility and sustainability. But making those who are most vulnerable to sacrifice the most is morally and religiously unacceptable. We need a bipartisan commitment to protect the poor and vulnerable in the fiscal decisions the nation is about to make.

The mutual decision to protect the poor and vulnerable, motivated by the faith on both sides of the political aisle, would provide the higher ground bipartisan commitment to finding common ground for the common good. And that principle would need to be tested by real policy choices that protect the sufficiency of a real safety net in tough economic times, help lift low-income families and children out of poverty, and save lives through effective international assistance around the world.

That kind of common cause and common commitment would be a positive and important sign for the health of our nation’s political and moral future.