Tag: police state

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Italy urged to revoke migration pact with Libya

LibyaHuman Rights Watch called on Italy to revoke its migration cooperation agreement with Libya, saying the arrangement "has proven to be a framework for violence and suffering, and should be revoked, not renewed." The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the countries, first signed in February 2017, was part of Italy's strategy to tighten border control. Under the agreement, Italy has provided technical, logistical and financial support the Libyan Coast Guard, enabling the force to intercept tens of thousands of people at sea and return them to Libya. However, NGOs have documented how intercepted refugees and asylum seekers are routinely detained in inhumane conditions, where they face torture and other degrading treatment. The MoU is up for renewal next month. (Map: Perry-Castañeda Library)

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Côte d’Ivoire elections in atmosphere of repression

Ivory CoastAmnesty International called on Côte d'Ivoire authorities to end the repression of peaceful protests ahead of the upcoming presidential elections, following the dispersal of a demonstration by security forces in Abidjan and the arrest of 255 individuals. The Ivorian government's ban on peaceful assemblies is part of a broader set of measures announced by the National Security Council ahead of the elections later this month. Protesters have repeatedly attempted to defy the ban after the Electoral Commission barred two opposition candidates from running in the race. (Image: David Peterson/Pixabay)

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‘Swan Lake’ anti-Putin protest in St Petersburg

Swan Lake CooperativeHundreds of young Russians gathered in a square in the center of St. Petersburg to defy censorship by performing a banned song that calls (in barely veiled terms) for the overthrow of Vladimir Putin. The crowd converged on the city's iconic Palace Square to sing "Swan Lake Cooperative" by exiled rapper Noize MC, which was outlawed in May when judicial authorities labeled it "extremist." The song title refers to the practice in Soviet times of suspending all regular TV and radio broadcasts to play Tchaikovsky's ballet "Swan Lake" continuously whenever the old leader died or was deposed and the transition to a new one was underway. The lyrics go: "The old man still clings to his throne… When the czar dies, we'll dance again, 'Swan Lake' on every screen… I want to watch the ballet… Let the old man shake in fear…" (Photo: Kanal13)

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Peru: new government prepares security crackdown

PresidenciaPeru's Congress voted unanimously to remove President Dina Boluarte from office for "moral incapacity," replacing her with congressional leader José Jerí. Once in office, Jerí quickly appointed as head of the Interior Ministry the former commander of the Peruvian National Police (PNP), Vicente Tiburcio Orbezo. Tiburcio has had a long career fighting organized crime and armed insurgents, having been part of the team within the PNP's Special Intelligence Group (GEIN) that carried out the arrest of Shining Path leader Abimael Guzmán in 1992. He subsequently served in campaigns against both the Shining Path and Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA). He was chosen by Jerí with a mission of addressing the crisis of "citizen security" in Peru. (Photo: Wikipedia)

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Tunisia: activist gets death sentence for Facebook post

TunisiaHuman Rights Watch (HRW) released a statement condemning the Tunisian justice system for sentencing a man to death for Facebook posts dissenting from government actions. Saber Ben Chouchane was sentenced for posting pictures of himself at recent protests, and statements calling for citizens to take to the streets to demand the release of political prisoners on the upcoming anniversary of the Tunisian revolution of January 2011. HRW called for the Tunisian government to "stop detaining and prosecuting people solely for exercising their right of expression." (Image: Grunge Love)

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Popular protests turn deadly in Ecuador

CONAIEWidespread protests in Ecuador, sparked by cuts to fuel subsidies, reached a boiling point, as an indigenous land defender was killed by the armed forces, a government aid convoy was reportedly attacked by protesters, and 12 soldiers went missing. Meanwhile, the government continued to advance its plan to rewrite the constitution—an initiative that has further intensified public anger. Undeterred, the powerful Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (CONAIE), which initiated the nationwide strike, announced that it would extend the action. (Photo: CONAIE via Peoples Dispatch)

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Podcast: Better anti than fa, thank you II

TrumpTrump's call at Quantico for the armed forces to use American cities as "training grounds" and fight the "enemy within" was quickly followed by militarized ICE raids in Chicago and mobilization of the National Guard. His National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7), issued four days before the Quantico meeting with Pentagon brass, explicitly identifies "anti-fascism" as a threat that must be targeted with the full power of the state. In Episode 298 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg continues to deconstruct the propaganda and examine the apparatus being employed to impose a fascist order in the United States—and explore the prospects for resistance, and even non-cooperation within the rank-and-file of the federal forces. (Image: APE)

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UN monitors warn of surging executions in Iran

executionsThe Special Procedures of the UN Human Rights Council reported that over 1,000 people have been executed in Iran in 2025, warning that this represents a dramatic escalation that violates international human rights law. The UN experts wrote: "With an average of more than nine hangings per day in recent weeks, Iran appears to be conducting executions at an industrial scale that defies all accepted standards of human rights protection." A 2017 Amendment to Iran's Anti-Narcotics Law abolished the death penalty for low-level drug offenses, and introduced a mechanism to limit capital punishment by commuting many death sentences to life imprisonment. Despite this, executions for drug-related offenses have steadily risen since 2020 and surged in 2024, which saw 503 drug-related executions—more than 50% of all executions in Iran that year. (Photo: ICHRI)

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Podcast: Better anti than fa, thank you

antifaTrump's executive order designating Antifa a "domestic terrorist organization" was quickly followed by a mobilization of federal troops to anarchist hotbed Portland and a highly unusual call for a gathering of military brass from around the world in Quantico—to take place the day before the government will be shut down if a Congressional deal is not reached. These evident preparations for mass repression, or even an auto-golpe and establishment of a Trump dictatorship, were conveniently followed by a sniper attack on an ICE facility in Dallas. In Episode 297 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg argues that Trump's attempted criminalization of anti-fascism portends an imminent consolidation of fascist rule in the United States—and asks what we're going to do about it. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

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Chinese advocate for Tibetan rights arrested for ‘splittism’

TaraHuman Rights Watch urged Chinese authorities to release activist Zhang Yadi (张雅笛), also known as Tara, after she was arrested for creating a digital platform advocating for Tibetan rights in the Chinese language. Zhang, 22, is a member of the activist group Chinese Youth for Tibet, which aims "to foster a deeper understanding of Tibetan culture within Chinese-speaking communities, challenge and deconstruct Han chauvinism, and address ethnic conflicts and prejudice." She maintained the group's website from France, where she was studying, but was arrested in Shangri-La, Yunnan province, after returning to China to visit family. Charged with promoting "splittism," she may face life imprisonment. (Photo: Tibetan Review)

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Trump designates Antifa as ‘domestic terrorist organization’

antifaPresident Donald Trump signed an executive order designating Antifa a "domestic terrorist organization." The order calls Antifa a "militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government." Asserting a pattern of political violence, the order instructs executive agencies to "investigate, disrupt, and dismantle any and all illegal operations" of Antifa and related persons. A fact sheet from the Trump administration describes examples of political violence which it attributes to Antifa, including assaults against Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. (Photo: Antifa confronting far-right rally in Portsmouth, UK. Credit: Tim Sheerman-Chase via Wikimedia Commons)

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Podcast: Charlie Kirk = Calvo Sotelo?

Calvo SoteloSome are drawing an ominous analogy between Charlie Kirk and Horst Wessel, the early martyr of the Nazi cause. In Episode 296 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg offers a more ominous analogy still: to José Calvo Sotelo, the Spanish fascist leader whose assassination in 1936 provided the expedience for Generalissimo Franco's coup d'etat that initiated the Spanish Civil War—and ultimately brought a decades-long dictatorship to Spain. Trump's declaration of antifa as a "terrorist organization" since Kirk's assassination is an open acknowledgement of his fascist intent. Fortunately, anti-fascist protesters are repudiating Kirk, and the wave of racist terror and anti-left reaction now being unleashed coast to coast. (Image mash-up: CounterVortex)