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The US unemployment rate now stands at 14.7 percent, the worst figure since records began. Nearly 39 million Americans have lost their jobs since the coronavirus reached US shores in late January, and the Congressional Budget Office warned on Tuesday that the US economy won't recover from its current contraction until after next year. Moreover, the federal government's financial relief packages to date have pushed national debt past a record $25 trillion.
You wouldn't think there was anything wrong if you asked Senator Marco Rubio though. The Florida Republican and his colleagues on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee quietly approved a bill on Thursday to guarantee Israel a minimum of $38 billion in military aid over the next ten years, despite the economic shambles at home.
Passed unanimously, the bill now heads to the Senate floor for a full vote.
© REUTERS / Adina Valman/Knesset Spokesperson's Office/Handout
East Jerusalem will see heavy traffic and tightened security later today as the city prepares for the opening of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's trial, who will now become not only the country's longest serving but also the first sitting PM to go before a tribunal.
Citing an unwillingness to breach regulations imposed by Israel's Ministry of Health banning crowds in enclosed spaces, Netanyahu tried to skip his first hearing but the High Court decided his presence was "necessary", ruling that only a few people would be let inside the courtroom.
The trial, previously scheduled for mid-March, was postponed due to the outbreak of the coronavirus and is set to kick off at 13:00 GMT. Netanyahu is expected to arrive at the court accompanied by a retinue of bodyguards and security personnel as well as several of his loyalists, members of his party Likud.
Comment: Quite unsurprisingly Netanyahu is loudly proclaiming his innocence:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has lambasted the charges levelled against him as an "attempt to depose a strong right-wing leader" and topple him "in any way possible", while making a statement in court. He said his opponents were hoping to use this trial as a means to remove "right-wing [political parties]" from the Israeli political landscape for "many years" to come.Israelis are sharpy divided for and against Bibi:
Netanyahu also said that he will be "standing tall, head high" throughout the corruption trial. The prime minister went on to accuse the prosecutors of trying to "tailor" a criminal case against him using "contaminated" and exaggerated evidence.
"These investigations were tainted and stitched-up from the first moment", Netanyahu commented on the case against him.
The prime minister previously blasted the cases against him as an "attempted coup" following Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit's announcement that he would indict Netanyahu on three criminal cases known as case 1000, case 2000, and case 4000.
The rival protests hit the streets on Sunday as Netanyahu appeared before the Jerusalem district court for its first hearing. [...]
Those venting anger at Netanyahu - the first sitting Israeli PM to stand trial in court - unfurled a banner that read "Crime Minister" in a reference to allegations that he engaged in fraud and accepted bribes from wealthy friends.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu's supporters chanted slogans against what they said was an unfair trial against their leader. This group later took to the courthouse and booed Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, who filed the indictments against Netanyahu.
Police have sealed off several streets around the court and the PM's house on Balfour Street, but both demonstrations have so far been peaceful.
© Global Look Press / Imago-images.deUS Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell
The US announced its intention to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty (OST) earlier this week, unnerving its NATO allies in Europe.
Among those calling for the preservation of the 2002 multilateral deal, which allows for surveillance flights over the territories of its signatories, was German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.
Germany's top diplomat sounded the alarm that the looming US withdrawal would "significantly reduce" the scope of the treaty, adding that Berlin would "work intensively" with "like-minded partners" to talk the US out of leaving the treaty in the following six months.
The rhetoric from the European powerhouse did not sit well with the US ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, who has courted controversy in the past over his repeated attempts to lecture Berlin on a range of domestic issues, from its military spending to the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
"Instead of complaining about the US reaction, Heiko Maas should have ramped up pressure on Russia in recent years so that it meets its obligations [under the Open Skies Treaty]," Grenell said in an interview with Rheinische Post on Saturday.
© Reuters / Miraflores PalaceVenezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif shake hands during their meeting in Caracas, Venezuela July 20, 2019.
The first of five Iranian oil tankers reached Venezuelan waters late on Saturday to temporarily ease the South American nation's fuel crunch, despite a warning from the US.
The oil tanker Fortune entered Venezuela's exclusive economic zone at around 7.40 pm local time on Saturday (Sunday 0140 UTC), without facing any immediate signs of obstruction from the US. Government officials celebrated the arrival as the tanker sailed through the Caribbean waters towards the Venezuelan coast.
Comment: Also, RT reports:
Hashtag #GraciasIran [Thank you, Iran] has been launched on Twitter to mark the occasion, with netizens hailing the cooperation between Tehran and Caracas in defiance of the de facto naval blockade by the US.The Fortune had a rough ride into the Venezuelan port:
Fortune is followed by the other four Iranian tankers - the Clavel, the Forest, the Faxon and the Petunia - all en route to Venezuela's shores. The vessels are expected to deliver a total of about 1.5 million barrels of oil to Caracas. Despite boasting the world's largest proven oil reserves, the country has been struggling to cover its domestic supply needs, with its energy industry ravaged by crippling US sanctions.
Shortly before the passage, Iran issued a stern warning to the US, noting that although Tehran is not interested in another flare-up, it would not hesitate to respond to any provocation.
"We hope the Americans will not make a mistake," Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said.
While the Trump administration has largely refrained from commenting on the impending delivery, which would be in violation of US sanctions on both Venezuela and Iran, Reuters quoted a senior White House official as saying last week that Washington was considering steps it could take in response to the fuel transfer.
Venezuela, for its part, claimed that the tankers were facing "the threat of imminent use of military force" from the US, vowing to accompany the Iranian vessels with military aircraft and ships to protect them from any potential assault.
Chinese State Councillor Wang Yi
Chinese State Councillor Wang Yi said on Sunday that China and the US would benefit more from cooperation and a peaceful co-existence than hostility and confrontation.
At his annual news conference, the Chinese foreign minister urged the US to stop wasting time and start coordination on macro policies for their respective economies as well as the global economy. Wang said that China was prepared to work together with the US in the spirit of mutual respect and interconnectedness.
However, the diplomat also made several jabs at Washington, telling reporters that Trump's administration is tarnishing relations with Beijing with what it calls a smear campaign.
Comment: Washington's neocons (and Trump's worst instincts) have propelled the anti-China rhetoric to new heights in recent weeks:
- Fed up, China targets GOP hawks, US firms and states over lawsuits
- Not enough blame to go around? Anti-China rhetoric kicks up a notch as WH official insists 'We are at war. Make no mistake'
- US is stuck in Cold War thinking; Plan to spend Russia & China 'into oblivion' in arms race will bankrupt only America
- China asks United States to stop 'unreasonable suppression' of Huawei
- Trump is deluded on China: 'We could cut off the whole relationship'
- Blaming Russia, China, Iran - to profit from Covid-19 vaccine
The meeting was attended by members of the WPK Central Military Commission, members of the Executive Committee of the Korean People's Army Committee of the WPK, commanders and commissars of the services and corps of the KPA, commanding officers of the Ministry of State Security, the Ministry of People's Security, the Guard Headquarters and other military organs at all levels and deputy directors of major departments of the WPK Central Committee.
It studied and discussed important military and organizational and political measures for further bolstering up the overall armed forces of the DPRK politically, ideologically and in military technique, so as to firmly defend the political stability and sovereignty of the country and reliably contain the persistent military threats, big or small, of the hostile forces, and dealt with an organizational matter.
Comment: State propaganda to be sure - but also a message to the West that N Korea is not letting its guard down. And a reminder that its leader is still alive and kicking:
Anatomy of a fake news campaign: How the lie Kim Jong-un died was spread from US govt-funded outlet
"His body with a gunshot wound has just been found in the office of an MP Valeriy Davydenko. The circumstances are being investigated," he wrote.
According to the Ukrainian Truth news agency, a weapon was found near the body.
Despite the overwhelming evidence that supports this theory, the United States government has prevented the declassification of critical documents. This includes the identification of the official that is believed to have assisted two of the 9/11 hijackers. Last week, however, the FBI revealed his name, by accident. His name is Mussaed Ahmed al-Jarrah. He worked at the Saudi Embassy from 1999 to 2000.
These allegations have escaped the headlines of the mainstream media. That is, until prime time cable host Tucker Carlson decided to report on it.
In his extraordinary election-advocating op-ed, Hayden, Bush/Cheney's CIA chief, candidly explained the reasons for the CIA's antipathy for Trump: namely, the GOP candidate's stated opposition to allowing CIA regime change efforts in Syria to expand as well as his opposition to arming Ukrainians with lethal weapons to fight Russia (supposedly "pro-Putin" positions which, we are now all supposed to forget, Obama largely shared).
Comment: See also:
- 'My job is to make Syria a quagmire for the Russians' - US envoy to Syria confirms CIA doctrine is official policy
- Intensive CIA spying on Assange targeted his infant child
- Rep. Nunes: What information did the CIA give the FBI in 2016?
- Joe Rogan interviews award-winning investigative journalist Tom O'Neill about his mindblowing book on Charles Manson and the CIA
- Craig Murray: CIA spied on Assange's privileged legal conversations - any normal prosecution would be halted immediately
- US plotting to replace military in Iraq with CIA-trained agents
- The secret history of Fort Detrick, the CIA's base for mind control experiments and biological warfare
- The enemy within: A 70-year war on 'propaganda' built by the CIA
- Ex-CIA official: Syria already won war, US lost more than it realizes
Comment: Every vote was bought and paid for by Netanyahu, et. al., via the congressional chokehold Israel has perpetrated and maintained on clueless American politicians. Love it enough to bankrupt the States? Go live there!