On the weekend before the Republican National Convention, law enforcement agencies in the Twin Cities temporarily detained dozens of people and issued a series of search warrants aimed at groups organizing protests. Attorneys for the National Lawyers Guild said those… Read morePre-emptive sweeps in Twin Cities
Buried in a White House proposal for hearing legal appeals from detainees at Guantánamo Bay, is a provision that calls on Congress to “acknowledge again and explicitly that this nation remains engaged in an armed conflict with Al Qaeda, the… Read moreBush calls on Congress to “institutionalize” GWOT
Iraq has signed its first major oil deal with a foreign company since the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime—a 20-year, $3 billion contract with the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) to develop fields in southern Wasit province. The deal marks… Read more“Liberated” Iraq signs first foreign oil deal —with China!
Thousands of Iraqis loyal to the Sadr movement protested in Kufa Aug. 29 to denounce the pending Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which they called a plan for the long-term US occupation of the country. Militant cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called… Read moreIraqis rally against “Status of Forces” agreement
With the choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is not backing down from oil drilling. Palin is a champion for drilling, the Bush-Cheney approach to energy policy that brought us $4-per-gallon gasoline… Read moreSarah Palin: champion for Big Oil
A federal jury Aug. 28 acquitted former US Marine Sgt. Jose Luis Nazario Jr. of voluntary manslaughter and other charges in the first civilian trial for crimes allegedly committed by a member of the US military in Iraq. After six… Read moreUS civilian jury acquits ex-Marine of Fallujah killings
On the morning of Aug. 27, UC Berkeley campus police raided the Long Haul Infoshop on Shattuck Ave. in South Berkeley, breaking down the door and confiscating all computers on the premises. Computers taken included those used by East Bay… Read morePolice raid Berkeley anarchist infoshop
A new report by the Israeli group Peace Now said Israel has nearly doubled construction in its West Bank settlements this year—violating commitments under the US-backed “road map” peace plan even as it pursued revived talks with the Palestinians. Secretary… Read moreIsraeli settlement accelerates on West Bank —despite “road map”
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported that an investigation by its human rights team found that some 90 civilians were killed, including 60 children, during operations carried out by international and Afghan military forces on Aug. 21 in… Read moreUN: air-strike in Afghanistan killed 90 civilians
Jumma man Ladu Moni Chakma was hacked to death Aug. 26 by a group of Bengali settlers at his home in the Sajek area of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh. His wife, Shanti Bala Chakma, who was also attacked, was… Read moreBangladesh: tribal peoples face deadly reprisals for defending land
India’s Border Security Force has launched a new initiative to combat “illegal” infiltration of peasants from Bangladesh into Assam and other northeastern states. The Assam Assembly witnessed noisy scenes last month after the state government announced that Bangladesh and neighboring… Read moreIndia: Bangladesh “encroaching” on Assam; harbinger of climate disaster?
Food riots erupted Aug. 27 in eastern India, where more than 2 million people have been forced from their homes and about 250,000 houses destroyed in the worst flooding in 50 years. One person was killed in Madhepura district when… Read moreIndia: flooding, food riots in east strain ties with Nepal
