Day: March 21, 2019

Watching the Shadows
anti-semitism

Podcast: Blood Libel in a time of genocide

Calling out the “Blood Libel” rhetoric and imagery in anti-Israel invective would certainly be a lot easier if Israel were not actually killing children, in large numbers, with leading voices openly calling for genocide of the Palestinians. And if pro-Israel (and MAGA) propaganda did not cynically conflate anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism. Yet from Manhattan to Cincinnati to Dallas to Berkeley and Santa Barbara, slogans and graffiti have tarred Jews as Zionists and “baby-killers”—playing into the hands of Israel’s propagandists. Bill Weinberg discusses the dilemma in Episode 218 of the CounterVortex podcast. Listen on SoundCloud or via Patreon.(Image: frgdr.com)

Europe
Kremlin

Russia bans ‘false information’ about mercenaries

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law forbidding the spread of “false information” about “volunteer” forces fighting in service of Russia. The law is clearly meant to prevent public criticism of paramilitary groups and private military organizations, such as the Wagner Group, currently operating in Ukraine. Offenders may be sentenced to up to five years. The previous version of the criminal code already included prohibitions on the spread of “false information” regarding the Russian armed forces. The amendment’s language appears to be an acknowledgement by Moscow that the “private” forces fighting in Ukraine are acting under the direct orders of the Russian military. (Photo: Wikipedia)

Africa
mali-hunger-displacement

Mali: crisis deepens as foreign forces withdraw

France and allied European countries are withdrawing their military forces from Mali after diplomatic relations broke down with the ruling junta that came to power in last year’s coup d’etat. The junta has meanwhile reportedly welcomed in hundreds of mercenaries from the Russian Wagner Group. The diplomatic crisis has overshadowed a worsening humanitarian emergency that has seen severe hunger hit the highest level since 2013, when the seizure of large parts of the country by jihadist rebels prompted the French intervention. Over 350,000 people have now fled violence linked to jihadist groups aligned to al-Qaeda and the so-called Islamic State—a nearly 70% increase from early 2020. (Photo of Mali displaced persons camp: The New Humanitarian)

The Caribbean
Otero Alcántara

Cuba releases artist arrested in censorship protest

Cuba released a dissident artist who had been arrested two weeks earlier for taking part in anti-censorship protests last year and placed in “preventive” detention. Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara was arrested in Havana while on his way to another such event—a “kiss-in” organized by members of the LGBT community to protest the censorship of a gay kiss scene in the 2018 film Love, Simon that was broadcast by the Cuban Institute of Radio & Television. Hundreds of artists and intellectuals signed a petition demanding that the Cuban government release Otero Alcántara. “This attack is not only against Otero Alcántara, but against all of the artistic and intellectual community, and against Cuban civil society in its totality,” reads the petition, started by New York-based artist Coco Fusco and signed by nearly 900 cultural figures, including Cuban artist Tania Bruguera. (Photo via Hyperallergic)

ANTI-TERROR LAW COULD TARGET AID GROUPS

A new US anti-terror law that has forced the majority of American-funded aid operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories to grind to a halt may have even wider humanitarian consequences, leaving nonprofits around the world more vulnerable to litigation. While the 700-word bill appears to have been targeted at the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, experts say the Anti-Terrorism Clarification Act, or ATCA, is poorly crafted and could result in some non-governmental organisations and businesses being reluctant to take US funding or be associated with US-financed programs. Samuel Oakford explores for IRIN.

Continue ReadingANTI-TERROR LAW COULD TARGET AID GROUPS 
Greater Middle East

Russia to establish base in Syrian Kurdistan

The Kurdish YPG militia says it has agreed to establishment of a Russian military base in its territory, although Moscow calls it a "reconciliation center."

Palestine

Al-Aqsa clashes as MKs tour compound

Clashes broke out between Palestinian worshipers and Israeli forces in the al-Aqsa compound following a visit by right-wing Israeli MK Moshe Feiglin.

Palestine

Israeli forces surround new ‘village’

As President Obama arrived in Israel,  security forces surrounded a new tent village erected by Palestinian activists to protest the planned settlement corridor east of Jerusalem.