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Best of the Web: RT documentary 'Coups R US' examines rationale and impact of US 'humanitarian' interventions and regime changes


RT
Wed, 16 May 2018 10:02 UTC
coups r us
In the new RT documentary Coups R US, prominent American journalist Stephen Kinzer examines the rationale and impact of Washington's interventions, from complacent colonialism in Hawaii to regime change in Libya.

"There are three stages. In the first one, the government that we don't like shows bad faith by bothering an American company. Then we convince ourselves that this country is our geo-political enemy. And we sell the intervention as humanitarian intervention," says Kinzer, who currently lectures at Brown University, in his introduction.

"We only do it to help them. We don't do anything for ourselves; in fact we sacrifice ourselves for the good of others," he adds sarcastically.

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Bad Guys

Is the US playing right into the hands of Israel and its plan for war with Iran?

Jay Syrmopoulos
The Free Thought Project
Mon, 14 May 2018 09:33 UTC
Trump Netanyahu
While last week's announcement that the United States was withdrawing from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action-commonly referred to as the Iran nuclear deal-made global headlines, it is important to understand that the withdrawal is one part of a larger strategy by Israel to use the United States as a form of military backing as they intensify their conflict with Iran.

To more clearly understand the situation, it is important to remember that Iran sent major military assistance to assist their Syrian allies in defeating a regime change operation carried out largely by jihadi groups and supported by western powers. For all intents and purposes, the Assad government has defeated the 7-year-old insurgency and with it brought Iranian forces closer to Israel's border.
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Bulb

Incoming CIA chief Haspel admits to Dems that post-9/11 torture program was mistake


RT
Tue, 15 May 2018 12:48 UTC
haspel nomination protest
© Aaron P. Bernstein / ReutersA demonstrator is ejected prior to CIA Director nominee Gina Haspel testifying at her confirmation hearing May 9, 2018
Gina Haspel, US President Donald Trump's nominee to be the next CIA director, has penned a letter admitting that the spy agency should not have carried out the post-9/11 torture and detention program.

It is a turnaround for Haspel, who refused to take that stance at her public confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee last week.

In the letter, a copy of which was obtained by CNN, Haspel told Virginia Senator Mark Warner - the top Democrat on the committee - that the interrogation and detention program, which involved brutal torture of detainees, "is not one the CIA should have undertaken."

Haspel said she would not condemn the people who made the call to begin the program and said she believed valuable intelligence had been gathered, but acknowledged that the program had "ultimately done damage" to CIA officers and the US's "standing in the world."
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Bad Guys

Jihadi Magoo: Zawahiri called for jihad on eve of US embassy move to Jerusalem


Al-Monitor
Sun, 13 May 2018 09:11 UTC
Ayman al-Zawahiri
© SITE Intelligence Group/AFP/FileAyman al-Zawahiri, pictured here in a handout by the SITE monitoring group in 2013, has urged the Muslim world to carry out jihad over the United States' decision to move its Israel embassy to Jerusalem
Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri on Sunday said America's decision to shift its Israeli embassy to Jerusalem was evidence that negotiations and "appeasement" have failed Palestinians as he urged Muslims carry out jihad against the United States.

In a five-minute video entitled "Tel Aviv is Also a Land of Muslims," the Egyptian doctor who took charge of the global terror group after its founder Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011 referred to the Palestinian Authority as the "sellers of Palestine" while urging followers to take up arms.

US President Donald Trump "was clear and explicit, and he revealed the true face of the modern Crusade, where standing down and appeasement does not work with them, but only resistance through the call and jihad," Zawahiri said, according to a transcript provided by the SITE monitoring agency.

Comment: Trump may have moved the embassy, but it was IDF soldiers that killed dozens of Muslim civilians during the past few days of protests.

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Arrow Up

Spitting in Trump's face: EU and Iran agree to keep nuclear deal in place


RT
Tue, 15 May 2018 10:11 UTC
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini and Britain, France and Germany foreign ministers take part in meeting with Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Brussels
© Yves Herman / ReutersEU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini and Britain, France and Germany foreign ministers take part in meeting with Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Brussels, Belgium, May 15, 2018
Three European Union powers that signed onto the Iran nuclear deal are in talks with Tehran to keep it in place, despite President Donald Trump's announcement withdrawing the US from the arrangement.

EU and Iranian diplomats repeated their commitment to "continued, full and effective implementation" of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was endorsed by the UN Security Council and represents a key element of global nuclear nonproliferation and a "significant diplomatic achievement," EU high representative for foreign policy Federica Mogherini said on Tuesday.

"We are determined to ensure that the JCPOA stays in place," said Mogherini. "We see the same determination from the Iranian side."

Comment: Britain and its European partners remain committed to ensuring the nuclear deal with Iran is upheld and Tehran must continue to meet its obligations under the pact, British Prime Minister Theresa May told the Iranian president on Sunday.
"Both leaders agreed the importance of continued dialogue between the two countries, and looked forward to the meeting of UK, German, French and Iranian foreign ministers in Brussels on Tuesday," according to a readout of the call with President Hassan Rouhani that was issued by May's office.


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Eagle

Putin: Russia's new nuclear and other deterrence ensures strategic balance for decades to come


RT
Wed, 16 May 2018 09:51 UTC
MiG-31 jet with the Kinzhal hypersonic missile
© Iliya Pitalev / SputnikMiG-31 jet with the Kinzhal hypersonic missile
New weapon systems being developed and put into service would ensure the balance of power in the world for decades, President Vladimir Putin told top generals, outlining the priorities of Russia's deterrent modernization.

In March, the president unveiled a set of brand new weapon systems which are designed to render any capabilities aimed at undermining the Russian nuclear deterrent obsolete. Noting that latest Russian developments currently have "no world analogues," Putin stressed on Tuesday that Russia was forced to develop new weapons in order to ensure a "strategic balance in the world for the next decades."

Besides the RS-28 Sarmat, the newest liquid-propelled intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) introduced in March, and laser air-defense technology, the world also discovered that Moscow is now in possession of an intercontinental nuclear-powered cruise missile, an intercontinental underwater drone, and a maneuverable hypersonic glide vehicle.

Comment: See also: 'Improving anti-precision warfare means': Putin calls to prepare S-500 missile system for mass production

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Star of David

The UK's wall of silence gives Israel impunity for its barbaric treatment of Palestinians

Peter Oborne
Middle East Eye
Tue, 15 May 2018 21:35 UTC
netanyahu theresa may
© Agence France-PresseBritish Prime Minister Theresa May shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting on February 6, 2017
Those who shout loudest about Labour Party anti-Semitism have nothing to say about Israel maiming and killing unarmed protesters in Gaza

For the past three months, Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party has been convulsed by accusations that his party is not just a critic of Israel and a harbourer of anti-Semites, but actually hostile to British Jews. The most damaging charge electorally is that British Jews no longer feel at home in Corbyn's party.

Many of those voices are not people who normally have any worthwhile or informed opinion on the Middle East.

Today I asked some of those voices if they would condemn Israel's use of live ammunition to maim and kill unarmed protesters in the Gaza Strip.

Comment: Mr. Oborne should not hold his breath. Israel, through its pernicious Lobby has the government of the UK as much under its thumb as it does the US. The 'will of the people' is a sad joke.

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Heart - Black

Haley shills for Israel at UN: Blames Hamas for Gaza violence, walks out during speech by Palestine's UN envoy


Sputnik
Tue, 15 May 2018 20:24 UTC
nikki haley
© Reuters / Joshua RobertsU.S. Ambassador to the United Nations NIkki Haley speaks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2017
The US ambassador left the Security Council chamber Tuesday at the start of a speech by Palestinian ambassador Riyad Mansour, who sharply criticized Washington's decision to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in defiance of the international body's resolutions.

Haley defended Israeli troops' actions and blamed Hamas and its Iranian backers for the violence on Gaza's border with Israel. "Let's remember that the Hamas terrorist organization* has been inciting violence for years, long before the United States decided to move our embassy," she said.

"Make no mistake, Hamas is pleased with the results from yesterday," the ambassador added.

Comment: Lies, hypocrisy and outright propaganda. Here's Haley's UN speech, if you can stomach it:


And here's the antidote: Killing Gaza - a documentary

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Star of David

SOTT Focus: Fifteen Thoughts About Israel

Caitlin Johnstone
Medium.com
Tue, 15 May 2018 20:16 UTC
Gaza protests deaths
1. I hate writing about Israel. The accusations of anti-semitism which necessarily go along with literally any criticism of that nation are gross enough, but even worse are the assholes who take my criticisms of the Israeli government as an invitation to actually be anti-semitic. They really do hate Jews, they really do think that every problem in the world is because of Jews and they post Jewish caricature memes and calls for genocide in the comments section on social media and it's incredibly gross and I hate it. But the Israeli government keeps committing war provocations and massacring Palestinians, so it's something I've got to talk about.
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Dollars

Flashback Trump's fight with Pakistan is a pattern that began decades ago

Zeeshan Aleem
Vox
Mon, 08 Jan 2018 02:40 UTC
trump
© usaHotAirPresident Donald Trump
Trump's Twitter attack has escalated into severing aid - and it could backfire.

President Donald Trump's first tweet of 2018 wasn't about his crowd sizes, Hillary Clinton, or the Russia investigation. It was, instead, about an issue that he's paid scant attention to in public for his first year in office: the US relationship with Pakistan.
"The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit," Trump tweeted on January 1. "They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!"
It quickly became clear that Trump's tweet was more than an idle threat. On Thursday the State Department announced that the US was freezing most military aid to Pakistan. The administration has declined to specify the exact amount of funds it will cut off, but the suspension could freeze up to $1.3 billion in aid.

Comment: Double dealing, double gaming - these habits appear to be entrenched in Pakistan's methodology for solving its problems. These traits do not make it an ideal partner, but maybe a necessary one.

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