Trump ordered Assange's seizure by British police and wanted him dead
wsws.org | 2020-03-03
Assange is part-way through a show trial that began last week to decide on his extradition to the US, where he faces 175 years in prison on espionage charges.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/03/assa-m03.html

Kabul asks Taliban to break ties with Pakistan
yenisafak.com | 2020-03-03
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday linked the release of Taliban prisoners with the group first breaking ties with neighboring Pakistan.Addressing a public gathering in the eastern Nangarhar province, Ghani said Afghan Taliban could not justify their insurgency after inking a peace deal with the U.S. "You [Taliban leaders] have made peace with the foreigners so what does your jihad mean now … killing of fellow Afghans is a crime," the Afghan president said, who has expressed reservations over the peace agreement."If Taliban have set release of their prisoners as a condition for intra-Afghan talks, we also…
yenisafak.com/en/world/kabul-asks-taliban-to-break-ties-with-pakistan-3513221

Jeremy Corbyn's Silence During Julian Assange's Extradition Hearing
Chris Marsden | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-02
Last week, Julian Assange was subjected to an extradition hearing brought by the Trump administration to bring the WikiLeaks founder to the United States to face Espionage Act charges carrying a 175-year prison sentence. | Throughout the four-day proceedings in London, …
globalresearch.ca/jeremy-corbyn-criminal-silence-julian-assange-extradition-hearing/5705280

Extradition of Assange Would Set a Dangerous Precedent
Marjorie Cohn | zcomm.org | 2020-03-02
The Trump administration is seeking extradition of WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, to the United States for trial on charges carrying 175 years in prison…
zcomm.org/zmagazine/extradition-of-assange-would-set-a-dangerous-precedent/

Julian Assange Lawyer: What's at Stake in Extradition Case Is Freedom of the Press
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-02
British Judge Vanessa Baraitser has suspended the extradition hearing for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange until mid-May. This comes after four days of intense deliberations last week between Assange's legal team and attorneys representing the United States government. Assange faces 18 charges of attempted hacking and breaches of the Espionage Act for his role in publishing classified documents exposing U.S. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. He could be sentenced to up to 175 years in prison. Assange has been held in London's Belmarsh prison since last April, when he was removed from the embassy by British poli…
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/2/julian_assange_extradition_case_uk

Contra-supporting CNN pundit Ana Navarro lobbied for corrupt right-wing Latin American governments
Ben Norton | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-02
Bernie-bashing "Never Trump conservative" CNN pundit Ana Navarro lobbied for El Salvador's right-wing government, whose president was imprisoned for corruption,…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/01/contras-cnn-ana-navarro-lobbying-corruption/

US Court Blocks Lawsuit Over Mexican Child Killed at Border
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-02
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday prevented the family of a murdered 16-year-old Mexican from filing a civil rights lawsuit against the border patrol agent who shot him dead. | RELATED: | Mexico Halts Migrant Caravan by Closing Border With Guatemala | Agent Lonnie Swartz killed Mexican citizen Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez in 2012, after shooting the teenager from across the border in Arizona. | Swartz, standing on an embankment on U.S. soil, shot through a border fence and struck…
telesurenglish.net/news/us-court-blocks-lawsuit-over-mexican-child-killed-at-border-20200302-0010.html

Can We Trust the Government to Respond to the Coronavirus in a Fair and Effective Manner?
Jay Stanley | aclu.org | 2020-03-02
A group of over 450 public health experts signed a public letter today warning that widespread transmission of the Covid-19 coronavirus within the United States is "inevitable." Their letter urges government decisionmakers to enact policies that will have the best chance of minimizing the effects of the virus: those based strictly on the best available scientific information, and those that are imposed in a fair and equitable fashion. | It is essential that all govern…
aclu.org/news/national-security/can-we-trust-the-government-to-respond-to-the-coronavirus-in-a-fair-and-effective-manner

Klobuchar rally canceled, rally to free Myon Burrell takes center stage
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-03-02
St. Louis Park, MN – Amy Klobuchar supporters couldn't fill the gymnasium, March 1, at Saint Louis Park High School, even with the help of some 250 protesters demanding freedom for Myon Burrell, an innocent Black teen she sent to prison for life when she was the county district attorney. Myon Burrell's family, the Racial Justice Network, Minneapolis NAACP, Black Lives Matter Twin Cities, Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar, Communities United Against Police Brutality, and Black Lives Matter Minnesota called for community members to mobilize to protest at the Klobuchar rally, two days before the primary vo…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/3/2/klobuchar-rally-canceled-rally-free-myon-burrell-takes-center-stage

Los Angeles D.A.'s Husband Pulls Gun on Black Lives Matter Protesters
Ilana Novick | truthdig.com | 2020-03-02
"You were supposed to meet with us six months ago," an activist shouted at Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey during a Jan. 29 debate. He wasn't the only one yelling. Multiple protesters came to confront Lacey about the more than 500 police shootings that have taken place during her seven-year tenure. They were angry about Lacey's constantly delayed promises to m…
truthdig.com/articles/los-angeles-d-a-s-husband-pulls-gun-on-black-lives-matter-protesters/

Afghanistan Rejects Releasing Taliban Prisoners Under US Deal
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-02
Just hours after the United States announced that it would end the war in Afghanistan within 14 months, they requested, as part of the ongoing negotiations that the Afghan government, to release up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners. | RELATED: | The United States and the Taliban Sign a Peace Agreement | "It is up to Afghanistan, not the United States, to decide when the Taliban prisoners will be released," Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said recently in Kabul, the country's capital. | "Afgh…
telesurenglish.net/news/afghanistan-rejects-release-taliban-prisoners-under-us-deal–20200302-0004.html

In Case of Deadly Coronavirus Outbreak, New York Plans To Use Prison Labor to Dig Mass Graves
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-02
"The city has plans to send corpses to Hart Island in the Long Island Sound where, in the late 19th century, yellow-fever patients were quarantined. Prisoners from Rikers Island would be ferried over to do the digging."
mintpressnews.com/coronavirus-outbreak-new-york-prison-labor-dig-mass-graves/265427/

Brazil's Lula Receives Honorary Citizenship of Paris
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-02
Brazil's former President Luiz Ignacio Lula Da Silva received Monday Paris' Honorary Citizenship for his commitment to the fight against economic and social inequalities in his country. | RELATED: | Brazil: Bolsonaro's Businessmen Behind Actions Against Congress | In a ceremony at the City Hall of Paris, Mayor Anne Hidalgo awarded the honorary status to the founder of the Worker's Party (PT), who served around 20 months in prison, after a judicial maneuver to neutralize the pos…
telesurenglish.net/news/Lula-Receives-the-Honorary-Citizenship-of-Paris–20200302-0013.html

Afghanistan peace deal begins to unravel as Kabul rejects prisoner swap
wsws.org | 2020-03-02
The signing of the accord is an unmistakable admission by Washington that the nearly 19-year-long war it has waged in Afghanistan has produced a debacle.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/02/afgh-m02.html

Israeli prof: Israel tests weapons on Palestinian kids, tests drugs on prisoners
If Americans Knew | imemc.org | 2020-03-02
Israeli occupation authorities have permitted large pharmaceutical firms to experiment on Palestinian prisoners, and have been testing weapons on Palestinian children, a Hebrew University professor disclosed in a recent lecture series. by Kathryn Shihadah An Israeli professor disclosed in a recent lecture series at Columbia University that Israeli authorities have permitted …
imemc.org/article/israeli-prof-israel-tests-weapons-on-palestinian-kids-tests-drugs-on-prisoners/

Protest March Held in Jenin as Concerns Mount Over Detainees' Conditions
Rami Almeghari | imemc.org | 2020-03-02
In the West Bank city of Jenin on Sunday, dozens of Palestinians gathered for a demonstration in solidarity with Palestinian detainees inside Israeli jails. The demonstration was organized by the local Palestinian popular committee for lobbying the release Palestinian detainees, the Palestinian committee for detainees and freed detainees affairs and the …
imemc.org/article/protest-march-held-in-jenin-as-concerns-mount-over-detainees-conditions/

Refugee rights supporters rally for freedom outside detention hotel
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2020-03-02
Refugees & migrants Chris SleeIssue 1256 Australia detention centre MelbourneMarch 2, 2020Two hundred people joined a protest organised by the Refugee Action Collective outside the Mantra hotel…
greenleft.org.au/content/refugee-rights-supporters-rally-freedom-outside-detention-hotel

Civil Rights Advocates Shut Down Klobuchar Rally, Demanding Justice for Teen She Helped Sentence to Life in Prison
Julia Conley, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2020-03-02
Civil rights organizations shut down Sen. Amy Klobuchar's planned rally outside Minneapolis on Sunday night after occupying the stage for more than an hour, demanding the senator address their concerns over her record as a former prosecutor. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-12045671211.jpg …
commondreams.org/news/2020/03/02/civil-rights-advocates-shut-down-klobuchar-rally-demanding-justice-teen-she-helped?cd-origin=rss

Florida's HIV Criminalization Reform Still Targets Sex Workers
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-02
This story was produced by The Appeal, a nonprofit criminal justice news outlet. | Florida is one of 26 states that have criminal laws that apply only to people living with HIV. In Florida, having consensual sex, donating blood or organs, or engaging in sex work without disclosing one's status is a third-degree felony, subject to up to five years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine. The current laws

Why are 1000s of Americans Being Detained for Dissent?
RT | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-01
Author and civil rights attorney John Whitehead of the Rutherford Institute joins Rick Sanchez to discuss the enduring effects of the PATRIOT Act and erosion of civil liberties in the US. He also explains "Operation Vigilant Eagle," a surveillance program to keep tabs on US veterans and track what they say online.
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/why-are-1000s-of-americans-being-detained-for-dissent/

Yemen's Houthis Seize Strategic Northern City: Officials
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-01
Yemeni fighters of the Houthi rebel group captured Sunday the strategic northern city of al-Hazm, capital of al-Jawf province, according to officials. | RELATED: | Yemen's Warring Sides to Exchange Thousands of Prisoners | The capture, which followed weeks of fighting between the Houthis and forces loyal to the United Nations (U.N.) recognized government, constit…
telesurenglish.net/news/Yemens-Houthis-Seize-Strategic-Northern-City-Officials–20200301-0009.html

Protest demands reversal of decision in Chicago police torture survivor case
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-02-29
Chicago, IL – In an attack on the human rights movement to stop police torture in Chicago, a Cook County judge ordered a torture survivor back to prison for life on February 14. In doing so, Judge Thomas Hennelly ignored irrefutable X-ray evidence of Gerald Reed's torture at the hands of the infamous Jon Burge "midnight crew," flouted the findings of the governor-appointed Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission

Fighting discrimination against women is key to beating AIDS
news.un.org | 2020-02-29
"The struggle to beat AIDS is inseparable from the struggle for women's rights and from the struggle against all forms of discrimination". This is the message from Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS, on Zero Discrimination Day, which falls on Sunday March 1. The theme of this year's Day is the fight against discrimination faced by women and girls, and the organization aims to raise awareness, mobilize action, and promote equality.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/02/1058341

US and OAS lobby for Nicaraguan 'political prisoners' who butcher their pregnant girlfriends
Ben Norton | thegrayzone.com | 2020-02-28
Ben Norton reports from Nicaragua, where the US embassy and OAS successfully lobbied for the release of violent criminals who…
thegrayzone.com/2020/02/28/us-oas-nicaragua-political-prisoners-murder/

Carol Anderson on Voter Suppression
CounterSpin | fair.org | 2020-02-28
Media…
fair.org/home/carol-anderson-on-voter-suppression/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=carol-anderson-on-voter-suppression

Delhi Is On Fire, and My Kashmiri Parents Are in Prison
Ahmed bin Qasim | thenation.com | 2020-02-28
Delhi Is On Fire, and My Kashmiri Parents Are in Prison…
thenation.com/article/world/delhi-kashmir-india/

Connecticut prison warning: Prolonged solitary confinement may 'amount to torture', UN expert warns
news.un.org | 2020-02-28
The "excessive use" of solitary confinement by the prison service in the US state of Connecticut, prompted an independent UN human rights expert to voice alarm on Friday.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/02/1058311

Defending Immigrants' Rights and Reproductive Freedom in the U.S. Supreme Court
Eva Lopez | aclu.org | 2020-02-27
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a number of cases this term that will have a crucial impact on civil rights and civil liberties

Family Separation, Two Years After Ms. L
Leila Rafei | aclu.org | 2020-02-26
When the ACLU filed Ms. L v. ICE exactly two years ago, it was clear what was going on at the border was shocking and unprecedented: A Congolese mother and her six-year-old daughter had been torn apart by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for seemingly no reason at all. ICE sent them to detention sites thousands of miles away from one another, where for four months they had hardly any contact and didn't know whether they'd ever see each other again. It was an act of senseless cruelty

Stopping the Anti-Abortion Ordinances of East Texas
Anjali Salvador | aclu.org | 2020-02-26
Waskom. | Naples. Joaquin. Tenaha. Rusk. Gary. Wells. These names might sound unfamiliar | now, but you'll be hearing more about them soon enough. | They | are seven cities in East Texas that, within the last several months, each | passed so-called "sanctuary city for the unborn" ordinances

As Alabama primary nears, voter suppression is alive and well
splcenter.org | 2020-02-26
All across this country, the right to vote is under attack. But with your support, we're fighting back in Southern courts and state legislatures with a newly formed team of legal, policy, and grassroots advocates.
splcenter.org/news/2020/02/25/alabama-primary-nears-voter-suppression-alive-and-well

Headlines for February 25, 2020
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-02-25
Harvey Weinstein Found Guilty of Rape, 2020 Democratic Candidates Gear Up for Debate as More Damning Comments by Bloomberg Surface, Bernie Sanders Defends Praise for Fidel Castro's Literacy Program, Protests in India Kill At Least 7 as Trump Continues Visit, Former Egyptian Dictator Hosni Mubarak Dies, U.K. Court Opens Deliberations on Julian Assange's Extradition Case, As Coronavirus Spreads Around the Globe, White House Requests Emergency Funding, China Sentences Bookseller Critical of Chinese Government to 10 Years in Prison, Clashes Between Haitian Police and Soldiers Leave One Dead as Anti-Gov't Protests Rag…
www.democracynow.org/2020/2/25/headlines

"It's a Beginning": Rosanna Arquette on Weinstein Rape Conviction & How He Assaulted, Spied on Her
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-02-25
A jury has found Harvey Weinstein guilty of rape and sexual assault, following a seven-week trial in Manhattan. The jurors convicted the disgraced Hollywood producer Monday of raping then-aspiring actress Jessica Mann in a hotel room in 2013 and of sexually assaulting production assistant Miriam Haley at his apartment in 2006 by forcibly performing oral sex on her. Weinstein was convicted of first-degree commission of a criminal sexual act and third-degree rape. But he was acquitted of two more serious charges of predatory sexual assault and first-degree rape. He faces a total sentence of up to 29 years in prison…
www.democracynow.org/2020/2/25/harvey_weinstein_tarana_burke_rosanna_arquette

From Being Tortured in Sri Lanka to the U.S. Supreme Court
Ashoka Mukpo | aclu.org | 2020-02-24
On a frigid day in early February, Vijayakumar Thuraissigiam | stands under an awning on a street corner in lower Manhattan along with one of | his attorneys, Celso Perez of the ACLU. Both are bundled in heavy winter | jackets. Perez is holding his phone up and squinting as he concentrates on the | tinny voice of a translator emanating from its speaker. | "I want them to be aware that you're traveling," Perez says | into the phone. | The voice on the other line translates what Perez said into | Tamil, the native language of Sri Lanka's largest ethnic minority. Thuraissigiam, | heavyset in his late 40s with a…
aclu.org/news/immigrants-rights/from-being-tortured-in-sri-lanka-to-the-u-s-supreme-court

Honoring Black History Month Means Respecting the Foundation That it Stands On
Jeffery Robinson | aclu.org | 2020-02-24
Black History Month is meant to be a | celebration of the achievements of Black Americans, in spite of our country's | history of blatant, intentional racism. Despite that intention, the American | narrative surrounding the enslaving of Black Americans has always attempted to | rewrite our past, generating a kinder, gentler image of slavery. | President Trump and his appointees are | the embodiment of that attempt to rewrite Black history. Recently, President | Trump and his appointee, Philadelphia U. S. Attorney William McSwain, mocked | the history that serves as the foundation for Black History Month. Whil…
aclu.org/news/racial-justice/honoring-black-history-month-means-respecting-the-foundation-that-it-stands-on

Weekend Read: SPLC files civil rights complaints as asylum seekers wage hunger strikes
splcenter.org | 2020-02-21
splcenter.org/news/2020/02/22/weekend-read-splc-files-civil-rights-complaints-asylum-seekers-wage-hunger-strikes

Racist Drug Laws Lead to Racist Enforcement in Cities Across the Country
Ezekiel Edwards | aclu.org | 2020-02-21
The way which America enforces its drug laws has been racist since its inception. | Across racial and ethnic groups, Americans use and sell drugs at comparable | rates, but law enforcement has selectively | targeted Black and brown people for stops, arrests, prosecution, and | imprisonment at wildly disproportionate rates. | This race-…
aclu.org/news/criminal-law-reform/racist-drug-laws-lead-to-racist-enforcement-in-cities-across-the-country

Weekend Read: Department of Justice may force Mississippi to fix deadly prison system
splcenter.org | 2020-02-14
splcenter.org/news/2020/02/14/weekend-read-department-justice-may-force-mississippi-fix-deadly-prison-system

Desperate asylum seekers 'starving for justice' in immigrant prison hunger strikes across Louisiana
splcenter.org | 2020-02-11
Guards shackled Sai Mahad to a chair, placed a mask over his mouth and snaked a long tube through one of his nostrils.
splcenter.org/news/2020/02/12/desperate-asylum-seekers-starving-justice-immigrant-prison-hunger-strikes-across-louisiana

Biden Threatens Lawsuit to Halt Release of Real Iowa Caucus Results
Tyler Durden | theantimedia.com | 2020-02-04
American democracy–ain't it grand?>…
theantimedia.com/biden-threatens-lawsuit-to-halt-release-of-real-iowa-caucus-results/

SPLC and the SPLC Action Fund Hire Internationally Renowned Human and Civil Rights Leader as New President and CEO
splcenter.org | 2020-02-02
Margaret Huang brings 25 years of experience advocating against discrimination and oppression around the world.
splcenter.org/news/2020/02/03/splc-and-splc-action-fund-hire-internationally-renowned-human-and-civil-rights-leader-new