Op-Ed Articles Blowback In Paris Armed Terrorists Kill 12 People By Tony Cartalucci France, as part of a NATO-led coalition, has been arming, funding, aiding, and otherwise perpetuating Al Qaeda terrorists for years. War With Isis The West is Wrong Again in its Fight Against Terror By Patrick Cockburn Barack Obama flippantly dismissed the militants as minor-league players last January. Is he any better informed now? Why the Arab World Fights By William Pfaff One is constantly told that history must be consulted in order to understand the present, but in practice that rarely is done with an open mind. What Do Chinese and Russians Think of the U.S. Military? By Franz-Stefan Gady The default answer to that question is simple: They view it as a threat. 2015: Grounds for Optimism By Dmitry Orlov The world as a whole (with a few minor exceptions) has become quite lucid on the topic of what the United States, as a global empire, is and stands for. Time To Move Out The Problem with Mahmoud Abbas and His Authority By Ramzy Baroud The move to join the ICC has little to do with the war crimes in Gaza, and much with Abbas' growing unimportance among his allies, but also his own people. Police Now Monitoring and Criminalizing Online Speech By Glenn Greenwald "Around 20,000 people in Britain have been investigated in the past three years for comments made online." Welcome to the Matrix Enslaved by Technology and the Internet of Things By John W. Whitehead Imagine what a SWAT team could do with the ability to access, monitor and control your internet-connected home-locking you in, turning off the lights, activating alarms, etc. EU Showdown: Greece Takes on the Vampire Squid By Ellen Brown Greece can regain its sovereignty by defaulting on its debt, abandoning the ECB and the euro, and issuing its own national currency (the drachma) through its own central bank. |
Hard News At least 38 killed as car bomb rips through crowd in Yemeni capital: A police source said on Wednesday that a dozen others were wounded in the explosion that targeted a centre of Houthi fighters near the police academy officers' club. At least 31 militants killed in Kobani fighting: At least 31 militants died in firefights and ambushes by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) on Tuesday in the eastern part of Kobane, known as Ayn al-Arab in Arabic, the Syrian human rights watchdog tweeted: Whitewashing murder: US-Led Air Strikes on IS May Have Killed Civilians, Says Pentagon; US Central Command, which is overseeing the air campaign, initially looked into 18 cases and concluded 13 were not credible but five merited further review. Report reaffirms Syria chemical weapons use: The 117-page report offers the most detailed findings to date regarding the use of chemical weapons in Syria, but does not say which side used them. Canada will resettle another 10,000 Syrian refugees, minister promises: Another 10,000 Syrian refugees will be resettled in Canada over the next three years, the Conservative government promised Wednesday. 15 soldiers killed in clashes with Islamic State in western Iraq: Some 15 Iraqi soldiers were killed Tuesday in fighting with Islamic State jihadists near the western town of al-Baghdadi, security officials said. Iranian, general saved Baghdad from falling to IS: Iraq MP: An Iraqi Shiite militia leader and lawmaker has credited Tehran and a powerful Iranian general with saving the Baghdad government during last summer's offensive by Islamic State group militants. Female suicide bomber attacks Istanbul's tourist heart: - A female suicide bomber on Tuesday killed herself and a Turkish policeman in a strike on the heart of Istanbul's tourist district, the second attack on police to shake city within a week. Pakistan: 12 alleged militants killed as jets pound North Waziristan: Security forces, backed by helicopter gunships, pounded alleged militant positions in Datta Khel town of North Waziristan, killing a dozen people. Seven vehicles were also destroyed in the shelling, said the statement. US Kills 10 people in Pakistan: The drone fired four missiles and struck two different militant compounds located close to each other in the Lowara Mandi area of Dattakhel Tehsil.According to sources, 10 alleged militants were killed and five others injured in both the missile strikes. 6 killed in N Afghanistan clash: Six people were killed after armed militants attacked two vehicles of a local firm in northern Afghan province of Baghlan on Wednesday morning, police said. More than 50 al-Shabaab members killed in north-eastern Somalia: Fifty-four militants of the al-Qaeda-linked group were killed, while 46 others were injured and several other insurgents were captured, according to Ali. Egypt to expand Gaza buffer zone to up to 2 kilometers: The current zone is being expanded from 500 meters to a kilometer, which means the destruction of some 1,200 homes in Egyptian Rafah Turkey condemns Libyan threat to shoot down any Turkish plane: A statement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that the "irresponsible" statement that is in violation of the international law is "absolutely unacceptable." Shell agrees $84m deal over Niger Delta oil spill: Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to a $84m (£55m) settlement with residents of the Bodo community in the Niger Delta for two oil spills. Lawyers for 15,600 Nigerian fishermen say their clients will receive $3,300 each for losses caused by the spills. Paris on Terror Alert After 12 Killed in Attack on Satirical Magazine: Two people dressed in black and carrying firearms, including AK-47 Kalashnikov rifles, entered the offices of the magazine on rue Nicolas Appert, shooting at random. At least one shouted "Allahu Akbar," or "God is great" in Arabic. Paris shoot-out: Video - Attack against satyrical weekly Grasping for straws? Charlie Hebdo attack: Paris gunman used gesture adopted by radical Islamists: The attackers displayed a degree of skill and calmness that comes only from advanced military training Three soldiers killed as Ukraine marks Orthodox Christmas: One soldier was shot dead by a sniper, while two others died in mortar and small arms attacks near the international airport in the industrial city of Donetsk, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told journalists. HRW Calls on Germany to Pressure Ukraine on Civilian Casualties: Human Rights Watch called on Merkel to press Ukrainian authorities for more thorough investigations of several incidents in which Ukrainian troops allegedly caused civilian casualties in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine Suffers Highest Annual Inflation Rate In 14 Years: Ukraine's annual inflation rate reached nearly 25 percent during 2014, the highest rate seen there in 14 years. Ukraine's State Statistic Service said on January 6 that consumer price inflation soared to 24.9 percent during 2014 compared to 0.5 percent in 2013. http://www.rferl.org/content/ Russia's "Startling" Proposal To Europe: Dump The US, Join The Eurasian Economic Union: Slowly but surely Europe is figuring out that as a result of the western economic and financial blockade of Russian, it is Europe itself that is suffering the most Brent crude oil price dips below $50 a barrel: It fell more than a dollar to $49.92 a barrel in early trading on Wednesday before edging back above the $50 mark. Tony Blair 'could face war crimes charges' over Iraq War: Tony Blair could face war crimes charges as a result of the Iraq war inquiry report, the House of Lords has been told. Headless corpses found in troubled southern Mexico: At least 10 decapitated bodies and 11 heads have been discovered in unmarked graves in violence-plagued Guerrero state in southern Mexico, authorities said. Mexican Army Kills at Least 9 in Clash in Michoacan: At least nine people were killed Tuesday after the Mexican army clashed with a self-defense group in an attempt to regain the Apatzingan municipal headquarters in the violence-plagued southern state of Michoacan. Obama backs beleaguered Mexican president: The September 26 massacre in Guerrero-in which police killed six students and another 43 disappeared in the town of Iguala after Mexican cops handed them over to a brutal drug gang-was not even on the agenda of the hour and a half White House meeting On Day One, the new Congress launches an attack on Social Security: As one of its first orders of business upon convening Tuesday, the Republican House of Representatives approved a rule that will seriously undermine efforts to keep all of Social Security solvent. Most Americans are one paycheck away from the street: Approximately 62% of Americans have no emergency savings for things such as a $1,000 emergency room visit or a $500 car repair, |
