Archiv: Autoritarismus / Absolutismus / Totalitarismus / Willkürherrschaft / politische Varianten / authoritarianism / absolutism / totalitarianism / arbitrary rule / political variants


17.01.2026 - 07:11 [ theGuardian.com ]

Europe must now tell Trump that enough is enough – and cut all ties with the US

So what can Europe do, as this mad historic fantasy comes closer to reality? How do you maintain a space of democracy and the rule of law in a world that is rapidly reverting to imperialism, oligarchy and the rule of power alone? Only by building a protective moat of federalism around it.

If the US actually attacks Denmark by invading Greenland, and declares war on the EU, a treaty-bound defensive alliance, the hand of history will be forced. Europe would need to both expand and restructure to become a defence and intelligence union that absorbs Nato’s non-EU members.

(…)

And if the US doesn’t attack Denmark, Europe’s best chance of surviving as a free and open continent in an imperial world is still to force the rupture with the US, force the consequences, and force the federalism anyway.

17.01.2026 - 05:53 [ New York Times ]

Judge Restricts Immigration Agents’ Actions Toward Minnesota Protesters

Judge Kate M. Menendez ordered agents not to retaliate against people “engaging in peaceful and unobstructive protest activity,” and not to use pepper spray or other “crowd dispersal tools” in retaliation for protected speech. The judge also said agents could not stop or detain protesters in vehicles who were not “forcibly obstructing or interfering with” agents.

The ruling, which granted a preliminary injunction, stems from a lawsuit brought by activists who said agents had violated their rights. The suit was filed before an immigration agent shot and killed Renee Good in Minneapolis on Jan. 7.

17.01.2026 - 05:43 [ Office of Governor Tim Walz and Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan ]

Governor Walz Statement on Reports of Alleged Department of Justice Investigation

January 17, 2026

[ST. PAUL, MN] – Governor Tim Walz today released the following statement after reports of an alleged investigation by the Department of Justice.

“Two days ago it was Elissa Slotkin. Last week it was Jerome Powell. Before that, Mark Kelly. Weaponizing the justice system and threatening political opponents is a dangerous, authoritarian tactic.

“The only person not being investigated for the shooting of Renee Good is the federal agent who shot her.”

The office of the Governor has not received any notice of the investigation.

The Governor has repeatedly, unequivocally, called for peace and a lowering of the temperature. He has made that appeal directly to the President.

Federal forces have stormed the state, shooting two people and killing Renee Good. The Department of Justice drove six federal prosecutors – including the longtime career prosecutor leading the charge to investigate and eliminate fraud in our state’s programs – to quit their jobs rather than go along with this assault on the United States Constitution. Leaders of the Republican Party have called for impeachment, for the Governor to be put in cuffs, for a day of retribution.

We trust Minnesotans to see past this projection.

17.01.2026 - 03:56 [ NPR.org ]

Justice Department opens investigation into Minnesota governor and Minneapolis mayor

Walz, in a post on X, did not explicitly address the news reports, but said: „Two days ago it was Elissa Slotkin. Last week it was Jerome Powell. Before that, Mark Kelly. Weaponizing the justice system against your opponents is an authoritarian tactic. The only person not being investigated for the shooting of Renee Good is the federal agent who shot her.“

The killing of Renee Macklin Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer last week became a flashpoint for the simmering opposition to federal agents operating within the state.

15.01.2026 - 18:18 [ NewStatesman.com ]

To survive Trump, Starmer must think the unthinkable

Britain can no longer avoid the costs of appeasing America’s predatory president

(…)

The word “crisis” is rooted in the Greek New Testament, referring to a decision, or judgement, in an unstable moment that forces a new clarity into being. While Trump’s exact motives for his aggression in our hemisphere remain opaque, our own predicament is now clearer. It is this: such is the new emerging order around us that we can no longer muddle through, finessing Trump’s instincts, hoping for the best so governments can focus on domestic political problems. Britain must choose.

13.01.2026 - 19:27 [ Barak David / Axios ]

Scoop: Trump‘s envoy secretly met Iran‘s exiled crown prince

White House envoy Steve Witkoff met secretly over the weekend with the exiled former crown prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, to discuss the protests raging in Iran, according to a senior U.S. official.

13.01.2026 - 19:23 [ ORF.at ]

„Hilfe ist auf dem Weg“: Trump ruft indirekt zu Umsturz im Iran auf

Trump schrieb in Großbuchstaben auch, dass Hilfe „auf dem Weg“ sei. Was er damit meinte, blieb unbeantwortet. Wegen der schweren Gewalt gegen Demonstrierende hatte Trump der iranischen Führung bereits zuvor mit militärischen Mitteln gedroht. Die USA nähmen die Lage im Iran sehr ernst, so Trump am Sonntag. „Das Militär befasst sich damit, und wir prüfen einige sehr drastische Optionen. Wir werden eine Entscheidung treffen.“

13.01.2026 - 18:53 [ Associated Press ]

Torture still scars Iranians 40 years after revolution

(February 6, 2019)

Torture became widespread, as shown in the museum’s exhibits. Interrogators all wear ties, a nod to their Western connections. Portraits of the shah, Queen Farah and his son, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who now lives in exile in the U.S., hang above one torture scene

(…)

Sheikhi walked with Associated Press journalists through the prison that once held him, built in the 1930s by German engineers. Black-and-white photographs of its 8,500 prisoners from over the years line the walls. They include current Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the late President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.

Sheikhi, then 19, spent about three months in the prison and 11 months in another after being detained for distributing anti-shah statements from Khomeini, then in exile.

…

13.01.2026 - 18:48 [ The Grayzone / Youtube ]

Inside Iran‘s Savak torture museum

May 17, 2025 #TheGrayzone

Caution: This report contains depictions of simulated violence that may upset some viewers.

Max Blumenthal tours one of the most disturbing museums on the planet.

Set in Tehran‘s former Ebrat Prison run by the anti-sabotage unit of Shah Reza Pahlavi‘s Savak intelligence services, the museum is filled with shockingly graphic exhibits featuring lifelike mannequins recreating the hideous torture tactics deployed to repress dissidents rebelling against Iran‘s monarchy.

Many mannequins on display represent notorious torturers who either fled or were executed after the Islamic revolution in 1979, while others are modeled after famous prisoners locked away in Ebrat like the current Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamanei.

13.01.2026 - 18:22 [ Bundeszentrale für Politische Bildung ]

16. Januar 1979: Sturz und Flucht des iranischen Schahs

Noch Anfang der 1950er-Jahre wurde Iran wirtschaftlich von Großbritannien ausgebeutet. Nur ein kleiner Teil der enormen Öleinnahmen verblieb im Land. Teherans Opposition, die in weiten Teilen eine Verstaatlichung der Erdölindustrie forderte, gewann an Zulauf. Die Nationale Front aus verschiedenen linken, islamistischen, aber auch liberalen Gruppen einte damals die Ablehnung des Schahs und ausländischer Einflussnahme. Nach der Ermordung des vom Schah installierten Premierministers Ali Razmara durch Islamisten leitete eine Parlamentskommission im März 1951 die Verstaatlichung der iranischen Ölindustrie ein. Ende April 1951 ernannte der Schah den Führer der Nationalen Front, Mohammed Mossadegh (1882-1967), zum Premierminister.

Unter Mossadegh schritt die Verstaatlichung der Ölindustrie schnell voran. Nachdem die Briten fast 50 Jahre lang quasi ein Monopol auf iranisches Erdöl innehatten, mussten sie es nun aus der Hand geben. London setzte daraufhin einen Boykott Irans durch fast alle internationalen Ölgesellschaften durch. Die Folge war eine schwere Wirtschafts- und Finanzkrise. Dies änderte zunächst nichts an der Unterstützung Mossadeghs innerhalb der Bevölkerung. Mossadegh erhielt Sondervollmachten durch das Parlament. Nach einem gescheiterten Versuch Rezas, Mossadegh seines Amtes zu entheben, und den darauf folgenden Kämpfen zwischen den beiden Lagern floh der Schah ins Ausland.

Im August 1953 wurde Mossadegh von Teilen der iranischen Armee mit Hilfe des US-amerikanischen Geheimdienstes CIA gestürzt. Der Schah kehrte aus dem Exil zurück. Fortan war Iran ein treuer Verbündeter der Vereinigten Staaten. Der Monarch unterdrückte jede Opposition mit Härte. Ab 1954 teilte sich ein Konsortium westlicher Ölkonzerne die Gewinne aus dem Erdölgeschäft mit der National Iranian Oil Company. Von den Öleinnahmen profitierte jedoch nur ein kleiner Teil der Bevölkerung.

Washington unterstützte den Schah in den 1950er-Jahren bei der Modernisierung seiner Streitkräfte und ab 1957 beim Aufbau des gefürchteten Geheimdiensts SAVAK.

12.01.2026 - 19:10 [ Al Jazeera ]

Iran’s FM says protests became ‘bloody’ to give Trump intervention excuse

He said Trump’s warning of military action against Tehran should ‌protests turn ‌violent motivated “terrorists” ⁠to target protesters and security forces ‌to invite foreign intervention. “We are ready for war but also for dialogue,” he added.

Araghchi also said Iran has footage of weapons being distributed to protesters, adding authorities will soon release confessions of detainees.

12.01.2026 - 19:03 [ theHill.com ]

Cuba’s president says no current talks with the US following Trump’s threats

Díaz-Canel wrote that for “relations between the U.S. and Cuba to progress, they must be based on international law rather than hostility, threats, and economic coercion.”

He added: “We have always been willing to hold a serious and responsible dialogue with the various US governments, including the current one, on the basis of sovereign equality, mutual respect, principles of International Law, and mutual benefit without interference in internal affairs and with full respect for our independence.”

12.01.2026 - 18:59 [ CNN ]

Cuban leader says ‘no one dictates what we do’ as Trump tells regime to make a deal

Díaz-Canel was quick to reject external interference in Cuba’s affairs.

“Cuba does not aggress; it is aggressed upon by the United States for 66 years, and it does not threaten; it prepares, ready to defend the Homeland to the last drop of blood,” said Díaz-Canel.

In an apparent reference to Trump, he said those who turn everything into a business, “even human lives,” have no moral authority to point fingers at his country.

12.01.2026 - 18:02 [ Spiegel.de ]

Spying on the Left: Berlin Officials Knew All About British Agent‘s Activities

(January 27, 2011)

Mark Kennedy spent years embedded in the European left-wing scene and infiltrated German activist groups as well — at the behest of German officials, SPIEGEL ONLINE has learned. He is also suspected of having participated in illegal activities in Germany.

12.01.2026 - 17:57 [ theGuardian.com ]

British police spy unlawfully operated in Germany, court finds

(October 11, 2022)

Kennedy, a member of a covert British police unit, spent seven years spying on environmental and leftwing activists until he was unmasked in 2010.

During his deployment he travelled outside Britain and spied on activists in at least 14 countries. After his unmasking, German police were forced to admit that Kennedy had worked for three German states during at least five visits to the country between 2004 and 2009.

11.01.2026 - 23:55 [ Prisoners for Palestine ]

Our prisoners are in critical danger, escalate now!

Heba Muraisi

Kamran Ahmed

11.01.2026 - 22:55 [ Al Jazeera ]

An urgent appeal to save the lives of Palestine Action hunger strikers

The Suffragettes, despite being force-fed and labelled as terrorists, are today celebrated as heroes and freedom fighters. The Long Kesh prisoners, despite the smears they faced, are now seen as a vital part of the peace achieved under the Good Friday Agreement. The Guantánamo Bay prisoners, despite their inhumane treatment and public consent for torture, remained untried and were largely released without conviction.

Just as they were all vindicated, history will too vindicate the Palestine Action prisoners who sought to stop the slaughter of innocent people, against the wishes and interests of the British government.

(…)

Signatories:

Shadi Zayed Saleh Odeh, Palestine

Mahmoud Radwan, Palestine

Othman Bilal, Palestine

Mahmoud Sidqi Suleiman Radwan, Palestine

Loay Odeh, Palestine

Tommy McKearney, Ireland

Laurence McKeown, Ireland

Tom McFeely, Ireland

John Nixon, Ireland

Mansoor Adayfi (GTMO441), Guantanamo

Lakhdar Boumediene, Guantanamo

Samir Naji Moqbel, Guantanamo

Moath Al-Alwi, Guantanamo

Khalid Qassim, Guantanamo

Ahmed Rabbani, Guantanamo

Sharqawi Al-Hajj, Guantanamo

Saeed Sarim, Guantanamo

Mahmoud Al Mujahid, Guantanamo

Hussein Al-Marfadi, Guantanamo

Osama Abu Kabir, Guantanamo

Abdul Halim Siddiqui, Guantanamo

Ahmed Adnan Ahjam, Guantanamo

Abdel Malik Al Rahabi, Guantanamo

Ahmed Elrashidi, Guantanamo

11.01.2026 - 21:36 [ Al Jazeera ]

Palestine Action hunger strikers near death ‘intent’ on continuing protests

(January 8, 2026)

Heba Muraisi and Kamran Ahmed, Palestine Action-linked British activists on the brink of death, are determined to keep up their prison hunger strike until their demands are met, their friends and relatives have told Al Jazeera.

They have refused food for 67 and 60 days, respectively, as part of a rolling protest that began in November. Five of the eight individuals who have participated overall have ended their hunger strikes over health fears.

11.01.2026 - 19:06 [ CNN ]

Trump weighs potential military intervention in Iran

A number of different agencies have been involved in helping prepare options for the president, officials said. More formal briefings are expected in the coming week, including on Tuesday, when Trump is expected to convene senior national security officials to discuss how to proceed.

Tehran will treat US military and commercial bases as targets for retaliation if Washington intervenes militarily in unrest-hit Iran, its hardline parliamentary speaker has warned.

“If the US takes military action towards Iran or the occupied territories, the US military and shipping centers will be considered legitimate targets,” Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said.

11.01.2026 - 19:06 [ AP News ]

With Cuban ally Maduro ousted, Trump warns Havana to make a ‘deal’ before it’s too late

Trump said on social media that Cuba long lived off Venezuelan oil and money and had offered security in return, “BUT NOT ANYMORE!”

“THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO!” Trump said in the post as he spent the weekend at his home in southern Florida. “I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.” He did not explain what kind of deal.

11.01.2026 - 16:39 [ Politico.com ]

Day after Minneapolis shooting, Noem ordered new restriction on congressional oversight

A day after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem quietly ordered new restrictions on congressional visits to immigration detention facilities.

That order, put into effect Thursday by the Trump administration and revealed in court late Saturday, forces lawmakers to seek a week’s advance notice before conducting oversight visits to ICE facilities. That new policy appears to explain a conflict that unfolded Saturday, when three House Democrats from Minnesota were denied entry to a detention facility in the Whipple federal building in Minneapolis.

11.01.2026 - 16:19 [ SahanJournal.com/ ]

U.S. Reps. Omar, Morrison and Craig denied access to immigration detention facility at Fort Snelling

In the short time they were inside the center, U.S. Reps. Kelly Morrison and Ilhan Omar said they saw 20 people in a facility that has no beds.

(…)

In December 2025 a U.S. District Court judge temporarily blocked Trump administration policies requiring lawmakers to provide seven days’ notice before visiting ICE facilities, saying the requirement likely exceeded DHS’ statutory authority and undermined Congress’ oversight responsibilities.

11.01.2026 - 16:03 [ PBS.org ]

Protests against ICE spread across U.S. after shootings in Minneapolis and Portland

Three congresswomen from Minnesota attempted to tour the ICE facility in the Minneapolis federal building on Saturday morning and were initially allowed to enter but then told they had to leave about 10 minutes later.

U.S, Reps. Ilhan Omar, Kelly Morrison and Angie Craig accused ICE agents of obstructing members of Congress from fulfilling their duty to oversee operations there.

„They do not care that they are violating federal law,“ Craig said after being turned away.

11.01.2026 - 15:06 [ Middle East Eye ]

ICE‘s killing in Minneapolis shows American empire has come home

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency was created in the shadow of the so-called Global War on Terror that followed the attacks of 11 September 2001.

It became a key pillar of the architecture of repressive surveillance and militarised tactics that emerged during the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

ICE itself was specifically designed to pursue „national security threats“ within the United States, granting agents sweeping discretion over who could be deemed to „pose a threat to public safety or national security“.

Since then, it has come to represent a rogue operation, its reputation clouded by harrowing stories of abuse, impunity and a near total lack of oversight.

Its close association with Palantir, a surveillance firm accused of helping generate kill lists for Israel, has also further embedded it within the US military-industrial complex.

Scalawag Magazine described Palantir‘s partnership with ICE as „one of the many links comprising the military-industrial surveillance connections between ICE and Israel Defense Forces“.

These links, it wrote, illustrate the ideological and practical ties between the two bodies, as they work to advance the militarisation of policing through the weaponisation of surveillance technology.

ICE has also participated in several exchanges with the Israeli military, and during the student protests for Gaza, it lifted names from the blacklisting website Canary Mission to identify and arrest protesters.

10.01.2026 - 18:10 [ CBS News ]

2 people shot by Border Patrol agents in Portland, Oregon, DHS says

(January 9, 2026)

DHS said after the agents identified themselves, the driver „weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents.“

„Fearing for his life and safety, an agent fired a defensive shot,“ DHS said. The department said the man drove off with his passenger.

The shooting occurred at around 2:18 p.m. local time in the Hazelwood neighborhood in East Portland. Portland police officers responded to a 911 call and „confirmed federal agents were involved in a shooting,“ Day said.

About six minutes later, Day said, officers responded to a separate location about three miles away for a 911 call, where they found a man and woman with gunshot wounds.

10.01.2026 - 15:31 [ Nordisch.info ]

Experte warnt: „USA könnten Grönland an einem Nachmittag übernehmen“

Besonders beunruhigend sei aus Sicht Grönlands und Dänemarks die Bereitschaft der Trump-Regierung, offen zu handeln, ohne sich erkennbar auf internationales Recht zu berufen. Die Aktion in Venezuela habe zudem die außergewöhnlichen Fähigkeiten der USA demonstriert, einschließlich erheblicher Geheimdienst- und Militärmacht.

Das Verhältnis zwischen den USA und Dänemark gleiche derzeit einer Katze, die mit einer Maus spiele, so Bertelsen. Die Machtverhältnisse seien extrem unausgeglichen. Die Vereinigten Staaten könnten Dänemark und Europa nach Belieben bedrohen und demütigen.

10.01.2026 - 15:17 [ Tagesschau.de ]

US-Griff nach Grönland: Die Scheu der Europäer vor einer starken Antwort

Der NATO-Chef ist bekannt dafür, im Umgang mit Trump auf eine Umarmungsstrategie zu setzen. Kritische Worte Richtung Washington werden von ihm nicht zu hören sein.

(…)

Während Dänemark und Spanien die Übernahmefantasien des US-Präsidenten verurteilen und der spanische Regierungschef Pedro Sanchez sogar von einem „Verbrechen“ sprach, schlägt Kommissionspräsidentin Ursula von der Leyen bei der Übergabe der Ratspräsidentschaft diese Woche an Zypern leisere Töne an.

(…)

Es sei keinesfalls so, dass die Europäer keine Hebel hätten, um den USA deutlich zu machen: „Damit ist jetzt Schluss.“

Doch von solchen Maßnahmen gegen die USA ist in Brüssel nichts zu hören.

10.01.2026 - 15:16 [ CNN ]

US will take Greenland the ‘hard way’ if it can’t do it the ‘easy way,’ Trump says

Trump said that if he is unable to make a deal to acquire the territory “the easy way,” then he will have to “do it the hard way.”

“We are going to do something in Greenland, whether they like it or not, because if we don’t do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

08.01.2026 - 19:23 [ Common Dreams ]

Hours After US Citizen Shot Dead by ICE, JD Vance Says ‘Door-to-Door’ Operations Are Coming

“This is starting to look disturbingly like Germany in the 1930s.”

Just hours after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed an unarmed US citizen in Minneapolis on Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance said the agency would soon be going “door to door” across the country to escalate the Trump administration’s mass deportation crusade in the coming year.

08.01.2026 - 19:14 [ MPRNews.org ]

Minneapolis schools cancel classes after Border Patrol clash disrupts dismissal at Roosevelt

Minneapolis Public Schools on Wednesday canceled classes district-wide for the remainder of the week “due to safety concerns,” following the killing of a woman Wednesday by an ICE agent. The district said it was acting “out of an abundance of caution.”

The move came after officials at Roosevelt High School said armed U.S. Border Patrol officers came on school property during dismissal Wednesday and began tackling people, handcuffed two staff members and released chemical weapons on bystanders.

08.01.2026 - 18:58 [ Common Dreams ]

More Shocking Footage Shows Federal Agents Raiding Minneapolis High School, Handcuffing Staff

The school official also told MPR News that the agents handcuffed two staff members at the school, and they described getting into a physical confrontation with an agent as they were trying to tell them to leave school property.

“The guy, I’m telling him like, ‘Please step off the school grounds,’ and this dude comes up and bumps into me and then tells me that I pushed him, and he’s trying to push me, and he knocked me down,” the official said. “They don’t care. They’re just animals. I’ve never seen people behave like this.”

(…)

The reasons for the raid on the high school were unclear, and the US Department of Homeland Security did not respond to KSTP Eyewitness 5 News’ or MPR News’ requests for comment.