(2020-12-09). US court orders CIA to explain withholding of Khashoggi report. middleeasteye.net 
US court orders CIA to explain withholding of Khashoggi report | Court ruling follows lawsuit by Open Society Justice Initiative regarding CIA report on Jamal Khashoggi and tape recording of murder | Wed, 12/09/2020 – 16: 54 | The CIA reportedly concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing (AFP/FIle photo) | A US judge has ordered that the CIA and Office of the Director of National…
(2020-12-09). Venezuelan court convicts the CITGO Six. workers.org 
Venezuela's Supreme Court sentenced six top CITGO oil executives to prison for corruption, embezzlement, money laundering and conspiracy on Nov. 26. The former executives went behind the back of the Venezuelan state and signed an agreement with two U.S. based-international financial companies — for which they were detained in Nov. . . . |
(2020-12-09). Shamed Tory ex-minister asked judge to show mercy to 'sexual predator' Charlie Elphicke. thecanary.co 
Disgraced former cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken was among those leaping to the defence of ex-Tory MP Charlie Elphicke after his conviction for sexually assaulting women, court documents show."Sexual predator": Aitken, who was jailed in 1999 after admitting perjury and perverting the course of justice, was among those who sent testimonies on behalf of his friend ahead of Elphicke's sentencing at Southwark Crown Court in September.Aitken also said he offered Elphicke "some advice" about being a prisoner, but pleaded for the court to exercise "mercy".Elphicke, the former MP for Dover, was jailed for two yea…
(2020-12-09). Egypt: World Bank warned funding for Covid-19 is neglecting jailed doctors. middleeasteye.net 
Egypt: World Bank warned funding for Covid-19 is neglecting jailed doctors | Human Rights Watch calls on the World Bank to condemn Egypt's arrest of medical workers who criticised Cairo's Covid-19 response | Wed, 12/09/2020 – 10: 58 | Data collected by the Doctors' Syndicate shows Egypt to have one of the highest numbers of Covid-19 deaths among health workers in the world (AFP) | The World Bank was urge…
(2020-12-09). Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin: A Certain Kind of Diversity. scheerpost.com by Maj. Danny Sjursen, USA (ret.) / Original to ScheerPost America's first black presumptive secretary of defense grew up in the same town — Thomasville, GA — as the first black West Point graduate, Henry O. Flipper. I actually took select cadets from my civil rights history class to visit the southwest Georgia city on an academic trip in the summer of 2016. In fact, I vaguely remember the owner… |
(2020-12-09). Georgia Moves to Shut Down Early Voting Sites Ahead of Senate Runoff. truthout.org Civil rights groups warned on Monday that a decision by election officials in Georgia to shutter numerous early-voting sites ahead of the state's Senate runoff elections would disproportionately impact people of color. | The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the ACLU's Georgia branch and other groups
(2020-12-08). Action for Change Starts in Congress. counterpunch.org 
We know their names! We've given immense power to Five Hundred and Thirty-Five People to do good or bad. One Hundred Senators and Four Hundred and Thirty-Five Representatives. Unfortunately, some 1500 corporations control most Members of Congress. Think about all the dreams for a better world that could come to be realized if our elected officials
(2020-12-08). Venezuela Votes to End Neocolonialism, Create Its Own Path. dissidentvoice.org 
On December 2, the Embassy Protection Collective (EPC) members, who were arrested in May 2019 when the United States illegally invaded the Venezuelan embassy in Washington, DC, completed their probation, ending the risk of the 30 days in prison that was being held over their heads. I am one of the four who were arrested. …
(2020-12-08). Stuck in a Lift with John Pilger: News and How to Use It by Alan Rusbridger. dissidentvoice.org 
Noticing the way journalists seemed unable to resist commenting on our work, even if it was just to slag us off, Glenn Greenwald tweeted us in 2012: 'You are really deeper in the heads of the British establishment-serving commentariat than anyone else — congrats.' ((Greenwald, Twitter, 12 September 2012.)) If that was true then, our relationship …
(2020-12-08). 'Not a Criminal': Top UN Anti-Torture Official Urges Julian Assange's Release. commondreams.org The WikiLeaks founder's "prolonged solitary confinement in a high security prison is neither necessary nor proportionate," said United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/getty-assange_protestors_1.jpg …
(2020-12-08). Independent UN expert calls for Julian Assange's release, cites prison's COVID outbreak. news.un.org Amid a COVID-19 outbreak at London's Belmarsh prison, an independent UN expert appealed to British authorities on Tuesday to release Julian Assange or to place him under guarded house arrest during extradition proceedings to the United States.
(2020-12-08). Assange Is Exposed To a High COVID-19 Risk in Belmarsh Prison. telesurenglish.net The UN rapporteur against torture Nils Melzer on Tuesday called on the British authorities for the immediate release of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, following a serious COVID-19 outbreak in the prison where he is located. | RELATED: | The rapporteur noted that 65 of the 160 inmates at London's Belmarsh Prison, where Assange has been held since May 2019, have tested positive for COVID-19. | "Assange is not convicted or threatens anyone. Therefore, his pro…
(2020-12-08). Chileans demand release of political prisoners arrested during October 2019 uprising. peoplesdispatch.org For the past two weeks, Chileans have been mobilizing in the capital to demand the release of young political prisoners and the national police force has been repressing them, on occasions with water mixed with chemicals…
(2020-12-08). 'Refusing to Serve in the Army is My Small Act of Making Change'. zcomm.org Hallel Rabin spent 56 days in an Israeli military prison for refusing to serve in the Israel Defense Force. Rabin, 19, talks about her time behind bars, conversations with her fellow inmates, and talking to young Israelis about the occupation…
(2020-12-07). Russian man wanted by Moscow, Paris & Washington handed five year sentence by French court for laundering bitcoin on behalf of mob. rt.com 
A Russian cryptocurrency entrepreneur has been sentenced by a French court to five years in prison and handed a hefty fine after it found him guilty of money laundering. Alexander Vinnik is also wanted by Washington and Moscow. | The Russian citizen was arrested in Greece in 2017 on a request from the US, which sought his extradition over money laundering and fraud charges. While in custody, Russia and France filed their own requests to have him handed over on different charges, but Paris' bid to try him carried more weight with its fellow EU member. | On Monday, a French court sentenced Vinnik to a five-year…
(2020-12-07). Arabic press review: Family of Egypt's Mubarak to sue EU over 'illegal sanctions'. middleeasteye.net 
Arabic press review: Family of Egypt's Mubarak to sue EU over 'illegal sanctions' | Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia prepares for reconciliation with Qatar, Bashir's health deteriorates in jail, and video of Egyptian man throwing cash from balcony goes viral | Mon, 12/07/2020 – 16: 38 | Gamal Mubarak (seen to right of his late father Hosni) said he will sue the Council of the European Union after winning…
(2020-12-07). As Sisi meets Macron, Egypt renews detention of human rights activist. middleeasteye.net 
As Sisi meets Macron, Egypt renews detention of human rights activist | A number of detained members of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights were released last week, but Zaki remains in custody pending similar charges | Mon, 12/07/2020 – 10: 39 | Patrick George Zaki has been in custody since 7 February upon his return from Italy, where he had been living and studying (Twitter) | A l…
(2020-12-07). Stuck In A Lift With John Pilger — 'News And How To Use It' by Alan Rusbridger. zcomm.org Pilger tells the unfiltered, uncompromised truth about the foundations of power. His focus is on speaking up for the victims of power, not on serving power…
(2020-12-07). We've Had Enough Death in 2020. Why Add More? aclu.org I was in the middle of reciting Ya Seen, the 36th chapter of the Quran, when the executioner signaled to me that was enough. It was time to kill Orlando Hall. Across a strip of tape dividing us, Orlando received a shot of lethal injection before I could finish the verse's final, essential line. "So glory be to Him in whose hand is the dominion of everything, and to Him you will be returned.", , Orlando lost consciousness while reciting the Shahada, as I, his spiritual advisor, had instructed him., , The execution of Orlando Hall on Nov. 19 was the first I had ever witnessed. As a business professor at Indiana…
(2020-12-07). One-quarter of Macomb County Jail inmates test positive for coronavirus. wsws.org The county as a whole has had more than 39,000 cases throughout the year, equal to nearly 4.5 percent of the entire population.
(2020-12-07). Trump Plan to Revive the Gallows, Electric Chair, Gas Chamber and Firing Squad Recalls a Troubled History. globalresearch.ca The way the federal government can kill death row prisoners will soon be expanded to ghoulish methods that include hanging, the electric chair, gas chamber and the firing squad. | Set to take effect on Christmas Eve, the new regulations
(2020-12-07). We'll Pull Laughter From the Skies. sputniknews.com On today's episode of The Backstory, host Lee Stranahan discussed current events, including Sidney Powell's lawsuit rejection.
(2020-12-07). Labor needs to change policy on refugees. greenleft.org.au Polls show a majority of Australians are fed up with the waste of money and needless cruelty of immigration detention, argues Niko Leka.
(2020-12-07). The First Amendment Fight Against the WeChat Ban. aclu.org Imagine waking up one day, unlocking your phone, and realizing that you could no longer send or receive messages through your favorite app. Or make or receive calls. Or scroll through your social media feed. Imagine that all of these functions were rolled into one essential app that you and your friends, family, and co-workers depended on, and that the U.S. government had decided to ban it., , That's exactly what the Trump administration is attempting to do with WeChat, a communications app that millions of people in the United States depend on to connect with friends, family, and business contacts across the…