US-Iran: 5 Points of Concord Over 40 Years of Confrontation
unitedEditor | uwidata.com | 2019-08-29
The U.S. and Iran are locked in a tough confrontation for forty years. They do not have direct diplomatic relations and are engaged in a major ideological war, playing an important role on the geopolitical map of the world at the same time. Nonetheless, although Tehran and Washington have turned into two hostile camps over …
uwidata.com/5142-us-iran-5-points-of-concord-over-40-years-of-confrontation/
US Travel Industry Feels Chill as Chinese Tourists Stay Away
Xinhua | telesurenglish.net | 2019-08-29
For tourists going to Washington, the historic White House is a centerpiece attraction. But the rhetoric coming out of the building is turning Chinese visitors away. | RELATED: | China Boycotts Saudi Shrimp, Will Buy From Iran Instead | Statistics confirmed that fear on Tuesday: the number of Chinese tourists to the U.S. capital city has seen a precipitous fall. | According to a report by Destination DC, a local tourism promotion organization, about 226,000 Chinese tourists descended…
telesurenglish.net/news/US-Travel-Industry-Feels-Chill-as-Chinese-Tourists-Stay-Away-20190829-0008.html
Satellite Photos Show Burning Iran Space Center Launch Pad
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-08-29
A rocket at an Iranian space center that was to conduct a satellite launch criticized by the U.S. apparently exploded on Thursday.
truthdig.com/articles/satellite-photos-show-burning-iran-space-center-launch-pad/
"Israel" Will Never Let Iran Build a Pipeline to Syria Unless Russia Is Involved
Andrew Korybko | globalresearch.ca | 2019-08-29
It's impossible to imagine any realistic scenario where "Israel" would sit back and let its number one enemy strengthen its influence in the region unless Russia was involved as a stakeholder for keeping Iran in check. | *** | Iran is reportedly…
globalresearch.ca/israel-will-never-let-iran-build-a-pipeline-to-syria-unless-russia-is-involved/5687544
The Saudi Axis and Israel's Drone War on the Shiite Crescent
Juan Cole | commondreams.org | 2019-08-29
Netanyahu leads the most militarily powerful state in the Middle East, but is dedicated to further settler colonialism in the Palestinian West Bank, and needs the bogey man of Iran to wag the dog of international diplomacy in favor of Israel. (Photo: Ronen Zvulun/Reuters) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/netanyahu_west_bank.jpeg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/08/29/saudi-axis-and-israels-drone-war-shiite-crescent?cd-origin=rss
'Ground Zero': Report from the former Semipalatinsk Test Site in Kazakhstan
United Nations | un.org | 2019-08-29
Every year on August 29, at the initiative of Kazakhstan, the UN and its Member States mark the International Day against Nuclear Tests. This year, the Day coincides with the 70th anniversary of the first atomic bomb test at the Semipalatinsk test site in Kazakhstan. UN News travelled to the remote, eerily beautiful region, for this report.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/08/1045221
Bringing nuclear test ban treaty into force a 'central pillar' of global disarmament push, says UN chief
United Nations | un.org | 2019-08-29
The legacy of nuclear testing is "nothing but destruction," and in a world of rising tensions, "our collective security depends" on bringing a global treaty into force that bans nuclear explosions, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has said.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/08/1045141
Remembering Legendary Peace Activist Frances Crowe, Who Died at 100 After Decades of Resisting War
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-29
The legendary peace activist Frances Crowe died this week at the age of 100 in Northampton, Massachusetts. Over the past seven decades, Frances had been arrested countless times while protesting war, nuclear weapons, nuclear power and the construction of new pipelines. She is survived by her two sons, a daughter and an international community of peace activists. We revisit a 2005 interview of Francis Crowe by Amy Goodman, and recognize her lifetime of advocacy.
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/29/remembering_legendary_peace_activist_frances_crowe
G7 Summit: Critical Outcomes
unitedEditor | uwidata.com | 2019-08-28
In the French city of Biarritz, a three-day summit featuring the heads of state from 7 of the world's largest economies (Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Canada, the USA, France and Japan) has come to a close. The hottest topics of discussion were trade relations, a nuclear deal with Iran, the protests in Hong Kong, the …
uwidata.com/5103-g7-summit-critical-outcomes/
Airstrikes in Lebanon, Syria & Iraq Mark Dangerous Escalation in Decades-Long Israeli Aggression
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-28
Tensions are mounting across the Middle East following a series of Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq. Lebanese President Michel Aoun likened the recent Israeli attacks to a "declaration of war." Israeli drones bombed targets in Lebanon on both Monday and Tuesday. Meanwhile, some Iraqi lawmakers are calling on the United States to fully withdraw its troops following a series of Israeli air raids conducted by Israel. Israel has only claimed responsibility for an attack on Syria Saturday, which they said targeted an Iranian-operated base that was preparing to launch a drone assault on Israel. We speak wi…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/28/israel_airstrikes_lebanon_syria_iraq
Tuesday's Daily Brief: UN envoy on Middle East peace process, child labour in Nepal, latest deadly Mediterranean shipwreck, DRC's Goma 21-days free of Ebola transmission, UN chief urges ban on nuclear testing
United Nations | un.org | 2019-08-27
A recap of Tuesday's stories: UN envoy says tangible steps 'can, and must be taken' to reverse the 'negative trajectory' of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; child labour case in Nepal highlights 'widespread and systematic' abuse; some 40 people drowned off the coast of Libya in Mediterranean shipwreck; DR Congo's Goma passes key 21-day period free of Ebola transmission; and UN chief calls for global support in putting an end to nuclear weapons testing.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/08/1045031
Israeli attacks provoke Iran, Hezbollah — and could help jihadists
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2019-08-27
With its bombings of Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon, is Israel trying to stop an attack from Iran and its allies,…
thegrayzone.com/2019/08/27/israeli-attacks-provoke-iran-hezbollah-and-could-help-jihadists/
The End of the Greater Middle East Project: The Case of Kurdistan
unitedEditor | uwidata.com | 2019-08-26
Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 presidential elections has had dire implications for the American "Greater Middle East" project which has guided US foreign policy in the Middle East since it was first put forward in 2003. Trump's reorientation toward internal US problems (migration, economy, protectionism), the emergence of new geopolitical rivals (China and Iran) …
uwidata.com/5067-the-end-of-the-greater-middle-east-project-the-case-of-kurdistan/
Mysterious Russian Nuclear Missile Accident Sparks Fears of Cover-Up & "Chernobyl Redux"
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-26
Questions are swirling over a mysterious nuclear accident in northern Russia on August 8. Seven people, including five nuclear scientists, died in an explosion, which caused a radiation spike in the surrounding area — and possibly as far as Scandinavia. U.S. experts suspect the explosion was caused during a test of a nuclear-powered cruise missile. Russia initially denied a radiation leak, but earlier today its state weather agency confirmed radioactive isotopes have been found in test samples in the city of Severodvinsk near the military test range. Norway's nuclear test ban monitor now believes two explos…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/26/aug_8_russia_nuclear_accident
Unreported Deaths, Child Cancer & Radioactive Meat: The Untold Story of Chernobyl
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-26
Following a mysterious nuclear accident in Russia that left seven dead, we look back at the 1986 nuclear disaster in Chernobyl. It sent a cloud of radioactive fallout into Russia, Belarus and over a large portion of Europe, but the death toll from Chernobyl remains unknown. Chernobyl is considered the worst nuclear accident in history, but Kate Brown, an MIT professor of science, technology and society, says much of what we understand about the disaster is inaccurate. Her new book, "Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future," chronicles the devastating and underreported impact of radiation on tens of t…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/26/kate_brown_chernobyl_manual_for_survival
Israel bombs Iraq, escalating violence targeting Iran
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2019-08-24
An Israeli bombing of a weapons depot allegedly used by Iran is the first Israeli strike on Iraq in nearly…
thegrayzone.com/2019/08/24/israel-bombs-iraq-escalating-violence-targeting-iran/
No Australian military to Strait of Hormuz
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-23
Australian imperialism Kerrie SmithIssue 1234 Australia Iran Strait of Hormuz Coalition of the WillingAugust 23, 2019The federa…
greenleft.org.au/content/no-australian-military-strait-hormuz
Sen. Merkley on the Dangers of a New Nuclear Arms Race & Why He Backs the Green New Deal
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-23
Fallout from the Trump administration's decision to pull out of the landmark 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is mounting. Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his military to prepare for what he called a "symmetrical response" after the U.S. tested what it said was a nonnuclear cruise missile earlier this week. The U.S. launch was the first test of its kind since the Trump administration withdrew from the INF. We speak to Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon about U.S. nuclear policy, as well as the Green New Deal, President Trump's wish to buy Greenland and…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/23/amazon_fires_brazil_andrew_miller
"Our House Is On Fire": Brazil Faces Global Outrage as Massive Fires Spread in Amazon Rainforest
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-23
The United Nations is calling for the protection of the Amazon amid fears that thousands of fires raging across Brazil and some parts of Bolivia are rapidly destroying the world's largest rainforest and paving the way for a climate catastrophe. The fires have spread a vast plume of smoke across South America and the Atlantic Ocean that's visible from space. They're unprecedented in recorded history, and environmentalists say most of the fires were deliberately set by illegal miners and cattle ranchers. Indigenous people in Brazil have accused far-right President Jair Bolsonaro of encouraging the destruction. Bols…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/23/jeff_merkley_us_nuclear_policy_green
Arms race accelerates as US tests cruise missile
susan_p | greenleft.org.au | 2019-08-22
arms race Jessica CorbettIssue 1234 United States US missile testAugust 22, 2019Nuclear experts and disarmament advocates are warning that the world is witnessing a new arms race after the United States tested a new missile on August 18. | The test would have vio…
greenleft.org.au/content/arms-race-accelerates-us-tests-cruise-missile