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Four years of an Israeli military crackdown on a popular Palestinian uprising, based on closures of towns and villages, have left the economy of the occupied territories in tatters and its people facing soaring poverty, the World Bank said Tuesday. Israeli army sieges of Palestinian towns and villages have severely smothered economic activity and restricted … Continue reading “Israeli Closures Crush Palestinian Economy”

Rich nations’ decision to accept a U.S. request and forgive part of Iraq’s debt will help the occupied country but also saddle it with a burdensome economic program that threatens to take decision-making power from Iraqis and put it in the hands of officials from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), say critics. The Paris Club … Continue reading “Iraq Debt Relief Weighed Down by IMF Burden”

In the Ukraine, tens of thousands of protesters march through the streets demanding that pro-Russian Prime Minister and presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovich give up the reins of power: he stole the election, they claim. The whole thing was "rigged." How do they know this? Well, you see, the exit polls – conducted by Western organizations … Continue reading “‘Democracy’ and Mendacity”

I just checked my campus mail and found a letter in it from Colonel Yigal Carmon, late of Israeli military intelligence, now an official at the Middle East Media Research Organization, or MEMRI. He threatened me with a lawsuit over blog comments I made at Informed Comment. This technique of the SLAPP, or Strategic Lawsuit … Continue reading “Repressive MEMRI”

I just checked my campus mail and found a letter in it from Colonel Yigal Carmon, late of Israeli military intelligence, now an official at the Middle East Media Research Organization, or MEMRI. He threatened me with a lawsuit over blog comments I made at Informed Comment. This technique of the SLAPP, or Strategic Lawsuit … Continue reading “Repressive MEMRI”

It’s well known that Washington was originally built on a pestilential swamp. Right now, the Bush administration is in the process of draining its own “swamp” of potential critics and doubters of any sort and installing “family” members, many from George’s (and Karl’s) old Texas days, others “adoptees” like Condoleezza Rice, ever more firmly in … Continue reading “A Worthless Intelligence Agency”

NEW DELHI – As Iran promised to meet Monday’s deadline for suspending a uranium enrichment process that could be used for making nuclear weapons – a freeze that could spare it UN Security Council sanctions – questions still remain unanswered. Does Iran already possess blueprints for a nuclear bomb and a certain quantity of enriched … Continue reading “Dubious Source for New Iran Charges”

PARIS – Beneath the apparent calm after the last round of clashes, the diplomatic battle in Cote d’Ivoire is getting hotter. This time the clash is building up not between government and rebel leaders but between the government of President Laurent Gbagbo and the French, who had protected and supported Gbagbo until recently. French President … Continue reading “Diplomatic Front Heats Up in Ivory Coast”

"Doctors in Fallujah are reporting there are patients in the hospital there who were forced out by the Americans," says Mehdi Abdulla, a 33-year-old ambulance driver at a hospital in Baghdad. "Some doctors there told me they had a major operation going, but the soldiers took the doctors away and left the patient to die." … Continue reading “‘We Live Like Dogs’”

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has joined the campaign to pressure U.S.-based heavy equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. to stop selling bulldozers to Israel’s military because it uses the machines to violate human rights in the occupied territories. Monday’s appeal by HRW followed an exchange with Caterpillar Chief Executive Officer James Owens, which began three weeks ago … Continue reading “Groups Push Bulldozer Maker to End Sales to Israel”