The new reportâtitled US Special Operations Command Contracting: Data-Mining the Public Recordâwritten by researcher Crofton Black and commissioned by the U.K.-based Remote Control Project, shows that „corporations are integrated into some of the most sensitive aspects“ of operations conducted by the U.S. Special Operations Command (or USSOCOM). Those activities, according to the report include: flying drones and overseeing target acquisition, facilitating communications between forward operating locations and central command hubs, interrogating prisoners, translating captured material, and managing the flow of information between regional populations and the US military.
Daily Archives: 9. September 2014
Obama Dines With Man Caught Stealing, Destroying Classified Documents
President Obama hosted „a private dinner with a group of foreign policy experts,“ the White House announced last night. Among them: Sandy Berger, who was caught stealing and destroying classified documents that related to President Clinton‘s record on terrorism issues.
How Washington Helped Create Israel‘s Secret Nuclear Arsenal
Recently declassified documents reveal that consideration of how and when the White House can or should pressure Israel over policies damaging to the United States has been a contentious issue for quite some time. The 107 pages of formerly top secret memos, dating from 1968-9, relate to deliberations over what to do about the Israeli nuclear weapons programme. Prior to that time, the US position had been clear, supporting the principle that nuclear weapons should not be introduced into the Middle East.
Xi‘s Indian visit a milestone: Chinese officials
China and India are both emerging economies and have ancient civilizations, mutually beneficial cooperation between them will not only help stability and development of each country, but also have positive impact on global peace and stability, Wang said.
New UN envoy on debut visit to Syria
The newly-appointed United Nations envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura arrived in the Syrian capital Damascus on Tuesday in his first visit since he was appointed in July to meet with Syrian officials and opposition figures alike, well-informed sources told Xinhua.
U.S. Treasury Secretary calls for long-term infrastructure funding legislation
He said America faces a funding gap of 1 trillion U.S. dollars in transportation, water, and electricity needs between now and 2020. One out of nine bridges in the U.S. is structurally deficient. Roughly two-thirds of the roads are in less than good condition, and many ports are not deep enough to receive the next generation of supertankers.
Werk „Der Fluch der bösen Tat“ erscheint posthum: #Scholl-Latour rechnet mit #Putin-Gegnern,dem #Westen & #Medien ab!
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Israel Steals Gazaâs Offshore Natural Gas: $15 Billion Deal with Jordan
According to the Middle East Monitor, Jordan approved last month a recommendation âcalling for supplying Jordan with natural gas from Palestinian water of the Gaza Marineâ:
Festnahmen im Mordfall VĂctor Jara in Chile 41 Jahre nach Putsch
Die Verbrechen der Putschisten in Chile beschĂ€ftigen bis heute die Politik und Justiz des sĂŒdamerikanischen Landes. In wenigen Tagen jĂ€hrt sich der Staatsstreich gegen die Regierung von Allende. Im Zuge des Putsches und des folgenden Staatsterrors wurden nach Untersuchungen einer Wahrheitskommission bis zu 4.000 Menschen ermordet.
Fight for the Future
Fight for the Future is dedicated to protecting and expanding the Internet‘s transformative power in our lives by creating civic campaigns that are engaging for millions of people. Alongside internet users everywhere we beat back attempts to limit our basic rights and freedoms, and empower people to demand technology (and policy) that serves their interests. Activating the internet for the public good can only lead to a more vibrant and awesome world. More coming soon.
If you hate this symbol, join Netflix and defend #NetNeutrality on Sept. 10th:
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Debt-ridden Spain to spend âŹ1mn on riot gear
The Spanish government intends to spend about 1 million euro on police riot gear, despite the countryâs debt rising by 58 billion euro over the last year. Authorities worry about widespread protests they believe will grip the nation in the autumn.
Kurze Durchsage von Bayer:
The Bayer CEO‘s has been reported as saying that the company did not develop a cancer medicine for Indians, only for western patients who can afford it.
Na das ist ja wohl mehr als klar. Was glauben diese Inder eigentlich, wer sie sind? Am Ende reklamieren die noch Menschenrechte fĂŒr sich!?
Joint US-Israeli missile test over Mediterranean picked up by Russian radar
Israel and the United States have conducted a joint missile test of the Arrow 2 interceptor system. It took place over the Mediterranean, according to Israelâs Defense Ministry, and was detected by military radar in southwest Russia.
âInternet Slowdown protest: Top web companies to join strike for net neutrality
Leading web companies like Mozilla, Foursquare and Reddit will take part in the Internet Slowdown protest next week to urge US authorities to change their view on a proposal that allows the creation of âfast lanesâ on the internet for some companies.
What Would Happen to the Internet Without Net Neutrality?
Simply put, net neutrality is the idea that all Internet traffic is created equal, and all users should be able to access it as quickly as possible. If the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) doesn‘t establish a new set of rules to ensure this, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) would be able to charge customers different prices for different traffic speeds.
ICYMI: Save the Internet, Save the World: The Defining Battle for Net Neutrality
The world needs a hero, and that hero is you.
Our worldwide web is currently dangling above an alligator-filled moat, tied to the train tracks, strapped to a live bomb (tick-tock), and rapidly headed towards gory destruction at the end of a Comcast/Bell/ [insert-your-country‘s-biggest-telco-name-here]-branded conveyor belt. Time of death: 12:00am. Cause of death: Big Telecom, aggressive lobbying, money and power imbalances, and a misguided FCC net neutrality decision that ignores over 1.1 million comments and counting from everyday Internet users like you.
Neue EU-Regel könnte Lavendel-Feldern ein Ende bereiten
Landwirte wehren sich mit Protestschildern
Eine neue EU-Regel, die 2018 in Kraft treten soll, verlangt fĂŒr Lavendelprodukte Warnhinweise wie bei chemischen Giften. Die Lavendelbauern gehen auf die Barrikaden und wehren sich mit Protestschildern. âLavendel ist kein chemisches Produkt!â oder âNein zur REACH-Regelung!â steht auf den roten und mit einem Ausrufezeichen gekennzeichneten Schildern. REACH ist die EuropĂ€ische Chemikalienverordnung und steht fĂŒr Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals, also fĂŒr die Registrierung, Bewertung, Zulassung und BeschrĂ€nkung von Chemikalien. Die REACH-Direktive geht davon aus, dass im Lavendelöl Stoffe enthalten sind, die als gesundheitsgefĂ€hrdende Chemikalien anzusehen sind.
Thousands of Migrants Forced to Leave Israel, Rights Group Says
The New York-based human rights group said in a lengthy report that it had documented seven cases in which citizens of Sudan were detained and interrogated in the capital, Khartoum, on their return.
Gaza official: Israel Navy arrests Gaza fishermen
Nizar Ayyash of the Gaza Fishermenâs Union says the incident occurred on Tuesday off the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya.
Israel recently doubled the maritime area in which Gaza fishermen are permitted to operate from five to nine kilometres (three to six miles).
Indian-American hedge fund manager gets 9 years in jail
An Indian-American portfolio manager has been sentenced in New York to nine years in prison involving $276 million and ordered to forfeit a $9.3 million bonus he earned through it.
âGermany, India strategic partners with excellent economic relationsâ
There are also reports that Germany has offered better terms to India for the MMRCA fighter aircraft deal, in case the deal for the Rafale aircraft is not completed. How hopeful are you that India will rethink the deal?
We believe that the Eurofighter Typhoon consortium has made a good offer, and we support it. At the same time, however, we respect the Indian Governmentâs right to make a sovereign decision in this matter.
Kooperationen gegen China
Mit einem Besuch in Indien hat sich AuĂenminister Frank-Walter Steinmeier um die StĂ€rkung der deutschen Beziehungen zu einem potenziellen Rivalen Chinas bemĂŒht. Steinmeier hielt sich seit Samstag in New Delhi auf, um die ökonomische und die politische Kooperation zu intensivieren. Ăkonomisch geht es vor allem darum, mit Blick auf die anhaltende Eurokrise und die EinbrĂŒche im Russland-GeschĂ€ft alternative Absatzchancen fĂŒr deutsche Unternehmen zu schaffen. DarĂŒber hinaus zielt Berlin auf eine enge Zusammenarbeit im Bereich der AuĂen- und MilitĂ€rpolitik, die die Einbindung Indiens in das westliche BĂŒndnissystem stĂŒtzen wĂŒrde. Der neue indische MinisterprĂ€sident Narendra Modi, der wegen antimuslimischer AusfĂ€lle seiner Partei und wegen seiner Rolle bei Pogromen im Jahr 2002 scharf kritisiert wurde, verstĂ€rkt gegenwĂ€rtig die auĂen- und militĂ€rpolitische Kooperation mit Japan und Australien, die wiederum als zentrale VerbĂŒndete des Westens im Pazifikgebiet gelten. Australien nĂ€hert sich der NATO an, Japan verschĂ€rft seinen Konflikt mit der Volksrepublik China.
Sushma Swaraj to visit Afghanistan tomorrow
As Afghanistan eagerly waits result of the presidential polls, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj will visit the strategically important ally on Wednesday to further enhance ties and review key projects being implemented by India in the trouble-torn country.
Russia denies military jets approached Canadian frigate near Ukraine
Russian news agency Itar-Tass quoted General-Major Igor Konashenkov, a senior Russian Defence Ministry official, as saying two Russian military aircraft – an SU-24 fighter jet and an AN-26 transport plane – had flown through the area on a routine flight but denied any provocative behaviour.
âHagel ânot awareâ of secret deal to supply Kiev with lethal weapons
However, Hagel later denied the report Sunday, saying that Washington has not made an offer of „lethal assistance“ to Ukraine.
Shortly afterward, Norway, Italy, and Poland also denied the report.
Seeing No Neo-Nazi Militias in Ukraine
On Monday, Amnesty International issued a report condemning abuses committed by Kievâs Aidar militia against civilians north of the rebel-held city of Luhansk.
Preliminary report points towards external cause of MH17 crash
Flight MH17 with a Boeing 777-200 operated by Malaysia Airlines broke up in the air probably as the result of structural damage caused by a large number of high-energy objects that penetrated the aircraft from outside. This is mentioned in the preliminary report on the investigation into the crash of MH17 that has been published today by the Dutch Safety Board. There are no indications that the MH17 crash was caused by a technical fault or by actions of the crew.
wĂŒnscht allen einen schönen Dienstag ;-)
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Stegner Âhinterfragt Waffenexporte
»Deutschland darf keine Waffen in Spannungsgebiete liefern und nicht an Diktatoren«, sagte Stegner der Welt am Sonntag. »Was ist mit Saudi-Arabien? Was ist mit Katar? Ich frage auch: Was ist mit Israel?«
Top German officials question arms deals to Israel
Ralf Stegner, the vice president of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, wants Germany to rethink its arms sales to Israel.
The comments came as a fourth German-made submarine was making its way to Israel, and after the head of his faction â vice chancellor of Germany Sigmar Gabriel â recommended Germany cut back on arms exports.
U.S. courts skeptical Arab allies in Islamic State fight
After threatening to destroy and degrade Islamic State militants, the United States will court skeptical Gulf Arab allies this week and consider expanding training and arming of moderate Syrian rebels to lead the fight against the jihadists.
Islamic State Weapons in Iraq and Syria
M79 90 mm anti-tank rockets captured from IS forces in Syria are identical to M79 rockets transferred by Saudi Arabia to forces operating under the âFree Syrian Armyâ umbrella in 2013.
Islamic State forces have captured significant quantities of US-manufactured small arms and have employed them on the battlefield.
Isis jihadis using captured arms and troop carriers from US and Saudis
The study by the London-based Conflict Armament Research consultancy found that Islamic State (Isis) militants had access to large numbers of US weapons, which they were shifting to key battlefields.
The report drew no conclusions about how the weapons were sourced.
Pro-Legitimacy National Alliance Calls Workers to Join Poor‘s Protests
In this statement, issued Sunday, Egypt‘s pro-democracy broad-based coalition urges the country‘s workers to join the huge peaceful protests planned for September 9, 2014.