Twelve Nobel Peace Prize laureates have written to President Barack Obama asking the US to close the dark chapter on torture once and for all. Please add your voice in support of their message below. It will be forwarded to the President. And please share widely.

Seit 2002 dürfen US-Polizisten Wohnungen durchsuchen, ohne den Besitzern das zeitnah mitteilen zu müssen. Eigentlich gedacht für den Kampf gegen den Terror, nutzen Behörden das nun tausendfach bei anderen Verdachtsfällen.

At the height of the Cold War in the 1950s, law enforcement and intelligence leaders like J. Edgar Hoover at the F.B.I. and Allen Dulles at the C.I.A. aggressively recruited onetime Nazis of all ranks as secret, anti-Soviet “assets,” declassified records show. They believed the ex-Nazis’ intelligence value against the Russians outweighed what one official called “moral lapses” in their service to the Third Reich.

„Zionism sees Israel as national home for the Jews,“ he said. „But when they call me anti-Zionist, I tell them I have no home in Israel. I was an officer in the army, but I don‘t have a home to protect because it is so expensive.“

So far, thousands of people have signed onto his Facebook page and its appeal to German Chancellor Angela Merkel to issue thousands of work visas for young Israelis.

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People here are treated with respect, crime is negligible, the German economy is a powerhouse and the quality of life far exceeds that of any major American city, including New York.
Add to that an incredible art scene, some of the world’s best museums, a physically beautiful environment, creative, friendly people and a stable country led by a respected lea….

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(5. August 2014) It is a sinister polemic repeated in a growing number of Op-Eds submitted to the Israeli media. Here are just a few examples:

Arutz Sheva‘s op-ed on how to „quiet“ Gaza – permanently – by attacking whoever and wherever without any consideration. The author calls it his „Solution“.
The Times of Israel‘s op-ed on „When genocide is permissible“. The article was deleted soon after it was posted. It has been reprinted by Mondoweiss.
The Jerusalem Post‘s op-ed on „Why Gaza must go“ and where to relocate the „good Arabs“. The idea is, essentially, to annex the Gaza Strip after depopulating it.

A plan to build the first new Arab city in Israel since the establishment of the state will come before the National Planning and Building Council for approval next week.

Abdel Fattah, a well-known secular figure in the 2011 revolt that ended Hosni Mubarak‘s rule, and 24 fellow activists had been freed on bail last month pending a retrial after the presiding judge in their case stepped aside.

Egypt expanded the jurisdiction of military courts on Monday to try civilians accused of attacking state facilities or blocking roads, following some of the worst assaults on security forces since last year‘s ousting of Islamist President Mohammed Mursi.

(8. September 2014) The jihadi group surging through Iraq and Syria is using large captured US-made weapons and has access to anti-tank rockets supplied by Saudi Arabia to a moderate rebel group, according to a report published on Monday.

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.

„c. Commence large scale United States military operations.
3. A „Remember the Maine“ incident could be arranged in several forms:
a. We could blow up a US ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba.
b. We could blow up a drone (unmanned) vessel anywhere in the Cuban waters. We could arrange to cause such incident in the vicinity of Havana or Santiago as a spectacular result of Cuban attack from the air or sea, or both. The presence of Cuban planes or ships merely investigating the intent of the vessel could be fairly compelling evidence that the ship was taken under attack. The nearness to Havana or Santiago would add credibility especially to those people that might have heard the blast or have seen the fire. The US could follow up with an air/sea rescue operation covered by US fighters to „evacuate“ remaining members of the non-existent crew. Casualty lists in US newspapers would cause a helpful wave of national indignation.
4. We could develop a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington.“

(19. November 1997) “We could develop a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington,“ it continued. “The terror campaign could be pointed at Cuban refugees seeking haven in the United States. We could sink a boatload of Cubans enroute to Florida (real or simulated).“

The records show that on March 13, 1962, the Joint Chiefs of Staff endorsed these ideas as “suitable for planning purposes.“ No evidence exists that they were carried out.

(12. September 2014) Bereits vor Jahrzehnten entwickelte das Militär der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika den Plan ein eigenes ziviles Passagierflugzeug in der Luft gegen eine unbemannte “Drone” auszutauschen, um es dann selbst zur Explosion zu bringen und einen Abschuss vorzutäuschen. Ebenso wurde der Plan einer “Terrorkampagne” in der eigenen Hauptstadt Washington, sowie die Versenkung eines US-Kriegsschiffes autorisiert. Ziel war es, diese Vorfälle einer feindlichen Macht zu unterstellen, vor der Weltöffentlichkeit das Opfer zu spielen und nachfolgend eine Invasion starten zu können.

Jahr der Entwicklung des Plans: 1962. Zielobjekt: Kuba.

Whereas the Eighth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Serving as Organ of Consultation in Application of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, in its Final Act resolved that the present Government of Cuba is incompatible with the principles and objectives of the Inter-American system; and, in light of the subversive offensive of Sino-Soviet Communism with which the Government of Cuba is publicly aligned, urged the member states to take those steps that they may consider appropriate for their individual and collective self-defense;

The Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917 (40 Stat. 411, enacted 6 October 1917, codified at 12 U.S.C. §§ 95a–95b and 50 U.S.C. App. §§ 1—44), sometimes abbreviated as TWEA, is a United States federal law to restrict trade with countries hostile to the United States. (…)

As of 2008, Cuba is the only country restricted under the act. North Korea is the most recent country to have the restrictions lifted.

Pellicer stated that the blockade is an „is an act of genocide, it violates international law, the U.N. Charter and the rules of international trade.”

Even the right wing journal Forbes says that “the official position is outdated, hypocritical, and counterproductive.”

The Cuban embargo was inaugurated by a Kennedy administration executive order in 1960 as a response to the confiscation of American property in Cuba under the new Fidel Castro government.

The Cuban government will submit a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Oct 28 to end an economic, financial and trade embargo the US has imposed on it. (…)

In the last vote, only the US and Israel voted against the bill which calls for the end of the economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba which the US imposed in 1960.

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(24. Oktober) The Sunday Telegraph on 20th October reported apparent findings of the review which attempted to vilify the Muslim Brotherhood and link it to extremism. Much of the Telegraph’s report have been proven to be inaccurate and misleading. The report notably cited former MI6 Chief Sir Richard Dearlove as an ‘advisor’ to the review and Dr Lorenzo Vidino as have having ‘worked on the review’. It has been confirmed that neither had in fact worked on the review as claimed. This trend of leaks suggests an attempt to manipulate the review’s findings.

The Muslim Brotherhood has engaged fully with Sir John Jenkin’s review and provided access to its members at the highest level possible all over the world. The Muslim Brotherhood reserves the right to reply to any negative allegations made against it from any quarter. To date, the Review Team have not provided the Muslim Brotherhood’s legal team with any allegations that it considers to be of concern.

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(10. Dezember 2013)

(19. Oktober) The source said: “We cannot ban the organisation, but that was never the intention of the review. We can go after single individuals, not for terrorist-related activity, but through the Al Capone method of law-enforcement. We cannot get them for terrorism but I bet you they don’t pay their taxes.“

(2. April) It has been reported that the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom has ordered a review into the Muslim Brotherhood. (…)

It is essential that such an important process is conducted fairly. The Muslim Brotherhood has concerns about the appointment of Britain’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Sir John Jenkins, to lead the review. It is important that the British Government does not bend to pressure from foreign Governments who are concerned about their own people’s quest for democracy. It is hard to see how Sir John Jenkins will be able to conduct an independent internal review of the Muslim Brotherhood and carry his brief as Ambassador to a non-democratic regime that is openly in political opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood.

(23. Oktober) Finally, the Army Headquarters calls on all the troops to abstain from lending their ears to fabricated rumors spread by terrorists through social media and other means to weaken the morale of the troops for their Institution is currently stronger than ever before and stands defiant in the face of all the attempts targeting its tenacity. Bear in mind that the Lebanese people are counting on the Military Institution and its definite role in saving the country and safeguarding its sovereignty and independence.