A Critique of Energy Alternatives by George Caffentzis The discussion of energy politics in the US is now dominated by two competing paradigms. One is promoted by the Bush Administration and its corporate allies; the other by a wide assortment… Read morePEAK OIL AND NATIONAL SECURITY:
Continue ReadingPEAK OIL AND NATIONAL SECURITY:by David Bacon BASRA, Iraq – The cracking towers and gas flares of the Al-Daura oil refinery rise above the neighborhood on Baghdad’s outskirts that bears its name. On February 18, Ali Hassan Abd (Abu Fahad), a leader of the… Read moreIRAQI UNIONS DEFY ASSASSINATION AND OCCUPATION
Continue ReadingIRAQI UNIONS DEFY ASSASSINATION AND OCCUPATIONby Jacob Mundy “We preferred that occupation,” Salim says, pointing to the Spanish news channel on his television, “to this one,” he says gesturing toward Moroccan settlers walking past his West Saharan shop window. Western Sahara is a disputed territory… Read moreMIXING OCCUPATION AND OIL IN WESTERN SAHARA
Continue ReadingMIXING OCCUPATION AND OIL IN WESTERN SAHARAThe Janjaweed Spin Out of Control by Rene Wadlow The on-going conflicts in the provinces of Darfur in western Sudan are a textbook example of how programmed escalation of violence can go out of control. It is increasingly difficult for… Read moreDARFUR: THE OVERKILL
Continue ReadingDARFUR: THE OVERKILL
A lot of attention is paid to the possible impacts of the climate crisis on international migration—particularly the potential movement of people from the Global South to the Global North. Now, a new report from the World Bank says that climate change could force 216 million people to migrate within their countries by 2050. People living in under-developed regions, including much of Africa, are the most likely to be forced to move. The report is a reminder of what gets overlooked in the focus on South-North migration: There are currently 48 million internally displaced people compared to 20.7 million refugees. Of those refugees, 80% live in countries neighboring their country of origin, and only 16% live in countries in the Global North. (Photo of displaced families in Somalia: UN Photo/Tobin Jones via Flickr)
Close to 80,000 people have been displaced in South Sudan's Western Equatoria, as a result of fighting between government forces and the opposition SPLA-IO–even though both sides are supposed to be forming a new unified army. A delay to security sector reform continues to set back implementation of a 2018 peace agreement. Faction fighting within SPLA-IO has added to the insecurity. Meanwhile, the World Food Programme is suspending aid to more than 100,000 displaced people—part of a "prioritization exercise" driven by a finance crunch. The fall in funding is despite the country experiencing the highest rate of food insecurity since independence in 2011, with more than 60% of South Sudanese going hungry. Months of flooding has added to that toll. (Photo: Phillip Mbugo/UNMISS via ReliefWeb)
The Taliban are steadily "dismantling the human rights gains of the last 20 years," said Amnesty International in a new briefing issued jointly with the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), documenting the militant group's wide-ranging crackdown since their seizure of Kabul little more than five weeks ago. Contrary to the Taliban’s repeated claims that they will respect the rights of Afghans, the briefing, entitled "Afghanistan's Fall Into the Hands of the Taliban," details a litany of human rights abuses including targeted killings of civilians and surrendered soldiers, and the blockading of humanitarian supplies into the Panjshir Valley, which constitute crimes under international law. Restrictions have also been re-imposed on women, freedom of expression and civil society. (Photo: Khaama)
The Republic of Armenia instituted proceedings against the Republic of Azerbaijan at the International Court of Justice, the United Nations' top judicial organ, over alleged violations of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) by Azerbaijani authorities. In its application, Armenia contended that "for decades, Azerbaijan has subjected Armenians to racial discrimination," including mass killings, torture and other abuses. The complaint charged that "Armenian cultural heritage has also been systematically destroyed, erased and falsified." Armenia has requested the Court to take provisional measures "as a matter of extreme urgency" in order to "protect and preserve Armenia's rights and the rights of Armenians from further harm." (Map: Wikipedia)
The latest report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic stated that Syria is "not fit for safe and dignified returns of refugees." The report found that between July 2020 and June 2021, armed conflict increased in the country. The report documented 243 civilian deaths, but estimated that the total number of fatalities is actually far greater. The report also stressed the humanitarian crisis and ongoing human rights abuses in the country. Conditions were also found to be precarious for the 6.7 million displaced persons within the country. The report estimated that 40,000 children are being detained in camps for suspected ISIS collaborators in the Kurdish-controlled east of the country. Paulo Pinheiro, chair of the Commission of Inquiry, said that these conditions indicate that the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is being "completely forgotten." (Photo: UNHCR)
UN Troops Chase Down Child Soldiers in Congo’s Forgotten War; Hutu Militias as Pawn in Great Game for Central Africa’s Mineral Wealth by keith harmon snow NINDJA, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) — For some hill-tribe peasants in the remote… Read moreOPERATION IRON FIST
Continue ReadingOPERATION IRON FISTWorkers Defend “Recovered Factories” by Yeidy Rosa When Luis Zanon decided to abandon the ceramic factory in Argentina’s southern province of Neuquen, over which his family had held legal ownership since 1984, the factory’s debt was more than $170 million…. Read moreTHE NEW RESISTANCE IN ARGENTINA
Continue ReadingTHE NEW RESISTANCE IN ARGENTINAfrom Weekly News Update on the Americas DR-CAFTA SHOWDOWN NEARS On June 30 the US Senate voted 54-45 to approve the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA), a pact largely eliminating tariffs on about $32 billion in annual trade… Read moreCENTRAL AMERICA: CAFTA ENDGAME LOOMS
Continue ReadingCENTRAL AMERICA: CAFTA ENDGAME LOOMS
