2020-12-03: News Headlines

MEE staff (2020-12-03). Egypt releases three human rights advocates after international outcry. middleeasteye.net Egypt releases three human rights advocates after international outcry | Arrests of top advocates at Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights drew rebuke from rights groups and Western governments | Thu, 12/03/2020 – 20: 01 | Rights advocates Gasser Abdelrazek, Karim Ennarah and Mohamed Basheer were released on Thursday (AFP/File photo) | Egypt has released three prominent rights defenders whose detention last…

Staff (2020-12-03). 200K wrongfully purged GA voters fight to be heard in Senate runoffs. therealnews.com Civil rights groups are seeking an injunction against Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to allow those voters to participate in the Jan. 5 runoff senate election, which will determine the balance of power in Congress.

Peoples Dispatch (2020-12-03). Palestinian student activist released from Israeli prison after 15 months. peoplesdispatch.org 23-year-old Mays Abu Ghosh, a student of Birzeit university, was arrested by the Israeli security forces on charges of being a member of the Democratic Progressive Student Pole, a student group affiliated to the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP)…

Pip Hinman (2020-12-03). Right-wing extremist jailed for targeting left, Muslims. greenleft.org.au Far-right figure Phillip Galea, who was just sentenced to jail on terrorism charges, also threatened Socialist Alliance activist and local councillor Sue Bolton after having done reconnaissance in the Resistance Bookshop.

Andrew Emett (2020-12-03). Former police officers sentenced to prison for framing innocent man. nationofchange.org "These officers shattered the victims' lives and dishonored the Honolulu Police Department. This community deserved so much better from these officers."

Glen Ford (2020-12-03). Black Lives Matter (BLM) Chapters Demand "Accountability" from Trio that Cashed in on the Movement. globalresearch.ca Ten chapters of the national Black Lives Matter organization are in open revolt against the individuals that have treated the mass movement as their personal vehicle for upward political, professional and financial advancement. | In 2013 three Black women social activist …

Victoria Law (2020-12-03). The Graying of Mass Incarceration. progressive.org Prisons, ill-suited for providing health care, are facing an explosion of elderly inmates.

Pip Hinman (2020-12-03). Right-wing extremist jailed for targeting left, Muslims. greenleft.org.au Far-right activist Phillip Galea has been jailed on terrorism charges after threatening to commit violence against left-wing activists and Muslims. Sue Bolton discusses what it will take to defeat such extremists.

_____ (2020-12-03). Will This Be The Radicalization Of Black Lives Matter? popularresistance.org On Monday a group of local Black Lives Matter chapters issued a statement to the public calling for more transparency and accountability from the Black Lives Matter Global Network (BLMGN), the umbrella structure for the Black lives matter structures. | In what appears to be an ongoing internal discussion, the chapters claimed that BLMGN not only did not collaborate on political visioning and collective analysis with the chapters but shockingly, with the millions reported in the media that was raised from foundations and corporations, "most chapters have received little to no financial support since the launch in…

Staff (2020-12-03). Under CARES Act, These Moms Should Be Home. They Remain in COVID-Filled Prisons. truthout.org When COVID entered the federal medical prison in Carswell, Texas, it ballooned within weeks — of the Shoulders has severe diabetes, respiratory problems, and, since entering prison in 2015, chronic kidney disease, leaving her at only 30 percent kidney function. All of these make her more vulnera…

Ajamu Baraka (2020-12-02). Will This Be the Radicalization of Black Lives Matter? dissidentvoice.org On Monday a group of local Black Lives Matter chapters issued a statement to the public calling for more transparency and accountability from the Black Lives Matter Global Network (BLMGN), the umbrella structure for the Black Lives Matter structures. In what appears to be an ongoing internal discussion, the chapters claimed that BLMGN not only …

Princess Harmony (2020-12-02). How prisons contribute to opioid crisis. workers.org Prisons, which serve the purposes of the capitalist bourgeoisie, are filled to the brim with people who suffer from addiction and other substance use disorders. Among them are opioid users. The gold-standard treatments for opioid use disorders (opioid addictions) are methadone (Diskets, Methadose) and buprenorphine (Suboxone, Subutex, Sublocade, Zubsolv, Bunavail). . . . |

Ted Kelly (2020-12-02). Palestinian prisoner Maher al-Akhras released after 103-day hunger strike. workers.org Hunger striker Maher al-Akhras Palestinian political prisoner Maher al-Akhras was released from Israeli prison Nov. 26. He had staged a hunger strike for 103 days in protest of his arrest and incarceration. He was held by occupation forces under "administrative detention" and was never charged with a crime. Akhras, who . . . |

Staff (2020-12-02). Update: Forced-hysterectomy victims in ICE detention deported. therealnews.com Eddie Conway talks to Azadeh Shahshahani, Project South Legal and Advocacy Director and lawyer for Dawn Wooten, a nurse at Irwin County Detention Center and the whistleblower who sounded the alarm on ICE abuses, including the case of ICE detainees being forced to have hysterectomies while in custody…

Ted Kelly (2020-12-02). Palestinian prisoner Maher-al-Akhras released after 103-day hunger strike. workers.org Hunger striker Maher al-Akhras Palestinian political prisoner Maher al-Akhras was released from Israeli prison Nov. 26. He had staged a hunger strike for 103 days in protest of his arrest and incarceration. He was held by occupation forces under "administrative detention" and was never charged with a crime. Akhras, who . . . |

Staff (2020-12-02). Update: Forced-hysterectomy victims in ICE detention deported. therealnews.com Eddie Conway talks to Azadeh Shahshahani, Project South Legal and Advocacy Director and lawyer for Dawn Wooten, a nurse at Irwin County Detention Center and the whistleblower who sounded the alarm on ICE abuses, including the case of ICE detainees being forced to have hysterectomies while in custody…

MEE and agencies (2020-12-02). Egypt: Amnesty condemns 'horrifying execution spree'. middleeasteye.net Egypt: Amnesty condemns 'horrifying execution spree' | Dozens of people have been put to death in the past two months according to UK-based rights group | Wed, 12/02/2020 – 08: 14 | Amnesty said the 'execution spree' followed an incident in September at Cairo's Tora prison in which several policemen and death-row prisoners were killed in a botched breakout attempt (AFP) | Amnesty Internati…

The Tricontinental (2020-12-02). Dossier 35: The Legacy of Lekra: Organising revolutionary culture in Indonesia. mronline.org Martin Aleida recalls the moment he was released from prison at the end of 1966. At twenty-two, Martin emerged from nearly a year behind bars to Jakarta, unable to find his friends and comrades.

Keith Lamb (2020-12-02). Australian War Crimes in Afghanistan Go All the Way to the Top. globalresearch.ca The Australian Defense Force's (ADF) recent inquiry into Australian special forces conduct in Afghanistan, between 2005 and 2016, reveals that 39 Afghan prisoners and civilians were killed outside of battle, as part of a culture of "competition killings," where commanders …

Naureen Shah (2020-12-02). Separated Families, Death, and Despair — All at the Hands of CBP. We Need Action, Now. aclu.org Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is at the heart of some of the greatest moral horrors of the last four years, personified in stories that we cannot forget: the

Dana Drugmand (2020-12-02). Here's how big oil wants the Supreme Court to help delay and derail climate lawsuits. nationofchange.org This industry push is a concerted effort to squash climate liability lawsuits.

_____ (2020-12-02). Iran Calls On The International Community To Confront Israel. popularresistance.org Iran is asking the international community to confront the Israeli regime's actions, "a murderer of children" and "a violator of human rights." | In a message sent on Tuesday to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, Iranian President Hasan Rohani has declared Iran's strong support for the Palestinian people to achieve their ideals. | Rohani condemned the recent actions of the Israeli regime against the Palestinians, including the killing of Palestinians in custody and the torture of prisoners, especially women and children…

sputniknews (2020-12-02). US Congress Settles on Final Version of NDAA Without Termination of Section 230 Demanded by Trump. sputniknews.com Earlier on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump announced that he would veto the National Defense Authorisation Act (NDAA) unless the bill it contains guarantees the termination of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) – legislation protecting tech companies from lawsuits over user content.

Oakland Privacy (2020-12-02). Solano Court Requires Public Approval Process for Cell Site Simulator Usage Policies. indybay.org Oakland Privacy's Lawsuit Against the City of Vallejo Upholds 2015 Legislation…

H. Patricia Hynes (2020-12-02). Book Review of The Inner Level. zcomm.org As this book both documents and generously discusses, rising income inequality leads to a plague of ills: higher rates of people in prison, higher teenage birth rates, higher rates of mental illness, more child neglect and bullying…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-12-02). ACLU Sues to Find Out How and Why Federal Agencies Are Accessing Americans' Cell Phone Location Data. commondreams.org "We're suing to bring some much-needed transparency to these disturbing practices," explained one ACLU staff attorney. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-8817662801.jpg

Haymarket Books (2020-12-02). Wednesday 12/2: #BLM Book Launch: "Black Lives Matter at School: An Uprising for Educational Justice" indybay.org Online Event…

Rep. Ayanna Pressley (2020-12-02). Now Is the Time to Make Good on the Promise of Justice for All. thenation.com Now Is the Time to Make Good on the Promise of Justice for All…

Project Censored (2020-12-01). #24. Silenced in Savannah: Journalist Abby Martin Challenges Georgia's BDS "Gag Law" projectcensored.org Journalist and filmmaker Abby Martin, a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement that aims to end support for Israel's oppression of Palestinians, was scheduled to give a…

Nur Ayoubi (2020-12-01). Egypt: Photographer and model arrested over pyramid photoshoot. middleeasteye.net Egypt: Photographer and model arrested over pyramid photoshoot | Latest instance of detentions by Egyptian forces over images of women deemed too 'provocative' has garnered mixed reactions online | Tue, 12/01/2020 – 13: 52 | Model Salma al-Shimi in one of the images taken at the Saqqara site (Screengrab/Twitter) | Photos of an Egyptian model have sparked intense debate online, after both the photographer an…

MEE correspondent (2020-12-01). Detained Egypt rights lawyer seriously ill and 'at risk' in detention, says family. middleeasteye.net Detained Egypt rights lawyer seriously ill and 'at risk' in detention, says family | Hoda Abdelmoneim's husband and daughter are urging authorities to release her after her pretrial detention period has expired | Tue, 12/01/2020 – 15: 51 | "> | Human rights lawyer Hoda Abdelmoneim's pretrial detention expired on 21 November, but she remains in custody (Suppl…

John Pilger (2020-12-01). "I spoke to impoverished families in 1975 and little has changed since then" dissidentvoice.org A British family from the film Smashing Kids, 1975. Photograph: John Garrett John Pilger interviewed Irene Brunsden in Hackney, east London about only being able to feed her two-year-old a plate of cornflakes in 1975. Now he sees nervous women queueing at foodbanks with their children as it's revealed 600,000 more kids are in poverty …

Johnnie Lewis (2020-12-01). COVID-19 in Oregon: Prison laundry workers at greatest risk. workers.org Portland, Ore. In November, three Oregon prisons — Two Rivers, Salem, and Snake River — reported the state's highest rate of workplace COVID-19 infections. Oregon prison laundry, 2017. By Oregon law, prisons are workplaces. All prisoners are forced to work a 40-hour week. On Nov. 23, Snake River reported 518 . . . |

Nur Ayoubi (2020-12-01). Egypt: Photographer and model released after arrest over pyramid photoshoot. middleeasteye.net Egypt: Photographer and model released after arrest over pyramid photoshoot | Latest instance of detentions by Egyptian forces over images of women deemed too 'provocative' has garnered mixed reactions online | Tue, 12/01/2020 – 13: 52 | Model Salma al-Shimi in one of the images taken at the Saqqara site (Screengrab/Twitter) | Photos of an Egyptian model have sparked intense debate online, after both the ph…

John Pilger (2020-12-01). "I spoke to impoverished families in 1975 and little has changed since then" dissidentvoice.org A British family from the film Smashing Kids, 1975. Photograph: John Garrett John Pilger interviewed Irene Brunsden in Hackney, east London about only being able to feed her two-year-old a plate of cornflakes in 1975. Now he sees nervous women queueing at foodbanks with their children as it's revealed 600,000 more kids are in poverty …

MEE correspondent (2020-12-01). Detained Egypt rights lawyer seriously ill and 'at risk' in detention, says family. middleeasteye.net Detained Egypt rights lawyer seriously ill and 'at risk' in detention, says family | Hoda Abdelmoneim's husband and daughter are urging authorities to release her after her pretrial detention period has expired | Tue, 12/01/2020 – 15: 51 | Human rights lawyer Hoda Abdelmoneim's pretrial detention expired on 21 November, but she remains in custody (Supplied) | The family of detained huma…

Eds. (2020-12-01). COVID explodes inside prisons, but only guards to get first doses of vaccine. mronline.org Over the past week, 14,697 new cases of Coronavirus infection were reported inside of state and federal prisons—the highest level since the pandemic began.

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2020-12-01). Israel Releases Mays Abu Ghosh, Palestinian Student Jailed for Membership in Leftist Campus Group. commondreams.org Abu Ghosh—imprisoned for 15 months after joining a banned college organization that opposes Israel's illegal occupation—described torture by her jailers. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/mays.jpg

Tiffani Burgess (2020-12-01). Race-Conscious Policies—Including Affirmative Action—Are Necessary For Addressing Racial Inequity. aclu.org Affirmative action recently survived yet another legal attack: Last month, the First Circuit Court of Appeals

Jesse Hagopian (2020-12-01). Making Black Lives Matter at School. progressive.org The national movement has four key demands to eliminate racism in education.

repost (2020-12-01). Kamala Harris' Prosecutors Sent This Innocent Man to Prison for Murder. Now He's Talking. indybay.org In a New York Times op-ed published in January, University of San Francisco law professor Lara Bazelon described various instances when Harris, either as district attorney or state attorney general, vigorously defended cases in which prosecutors were accused of fabricating testimony or withholding potentially exculpatory evidence—stacking the deck against the accused. | "My issue with [Harris] is the way she characterizes herself and her record. If she were just straightforward, it wouldn't be a problem."—Lara Bazelon…

Jasmine Norden (2020-12-01). 'High-risk settings' in our jails means prisoners must get priority for coronavirus vaccines. thecanary.co Researchers have recommended prisoners be prioritised for the coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine, after finding it's difficult to manage outbreaks. | Academics from the University of Oxford conducted a The researchers concluded that vaccinating prisoners early would help to so…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-12-01). 'I Guess He's the Next One to Be Fired': Even William Barr Says No Evidence of Widespread Voter Fraud. commondreams.org The Trump-appointee's comments came as the president's reelection campaign filed yet another lawsuit challenging the election outcome. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1229565183.png

Tiffani Burgess (2020-12-01). Race-Conscious Policies — Including Affirmative Action — Are Necessary For Addressing Racial Inequity. aclu.org Affirmative action recently survived yet another legal attack: Last month, the First Circuit Court of Appeals

Project Censored (2020-12-01). #25. Studies Document Links between Education, Incarceration, and Recidivism. projectcensored.org Two research studies document links between education, incarceration, and recidivism, as covered in articles published by ColorLines, Usable Knowledge, and Citizen Truth. In September 2019, ColorLines reported that attending a…

WSWS (2020-12-01). Eight protesting inmates demanding COVID-19 protection shot dead in Sri Lankan prison. wsws.org The brutal Mahara Prison killings are not an aberration but are in line with the increasingly repressive methods being employed to suppress opposition to the government's COVID-19 response.

MEE and agencies (2020-11-30). Egyptian man returns to Australia after 10 month imprisonment in Egypt over Facebook post. middleeasteye.net Egyptian man returns to Australia after 10 month imprisonment in Egypt over Facebook post | Waled Youssef was accused of belonging to a banned political group and imprisoned in the notorious Tora prison in Cairo

| Mon, 11/30/2020 – 07: 35 | Youssef's return home comes as Egypt continues to three rights activists from the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights after meeting with E…

Staff (2020-11-30). Firing Squads, Poison Gas, Electric Chair: Trump Moves to Expand Ways to Kill Prisoners. 18.224.45.15 Sister Helen Prejean, one of the world's best known anti-death-penalty activists, says the spate of federal executions carried out by the Trump administration reflect a "fundamental flaw" in the law, which does not set limits on use of the death penalty. "When you give absolute power over life and death to government officials, they can really do what they want," she says.

MEE and agencies (2020-11-30). Egyptian man returns to Australia after jailing in Egypt over Facebook post. middleeasteye.net Egyptian man returns to Australia after jailing in Egypt over Facebook post | Waled Youssef was accused of belonging to a banned political group and imprisoned in the notorious Tora prison in Cairo

| Mon, 11/30/2020 – 07: 35 | Youssef's return home comes as Egypt continues to imprison rights activists from the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights after meeting with European dip…

MEE and agencies (2020-11-30). Egyptian man returns to Australia after jailing in Egypt over Facebook post. middleeasteye.net Egyptian man returns to Australia after jailing in Egypt over Facebook post | Waled Youssef was accused of belonging to a banned political group and imprisoned in the notorious Tora prison in Cairo

| Mon, 11/30/2020 – 07: 35 | Youssef's return home comes as Egypt continues to imprison rights activists from the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights after meeting with European dip…