2020-02-19: News Headlines

Andre Vltchek (2020-02-19). Could the Latest Outburst of Ankara's Temper lead to Escalation in Syria? dissidentvoice.org So far Turkey, militarily the second mightiest NATO country, has been able to get away with virtually anything it has chosen to brew in the Middle East. The reason why is simple: to confront Turkey's bullying and expansionism militarily would be like confronting the United States or Israel; thousands of innocent people would die as …

Tony Cartalucci (2020-02-19). US Middle East "Peace Deal" Designed to Perpetuate Conflict. globalresearch.ca A deal that is entirely unacceptable to one of its principal parties isn't a deal at all. In the case of the US-proposed "Middle East peace plan" — unsurprisingly endorsed by the US and Israel and few others — everything …

Jonathan Cook (2020-02-19). UN List of Firms Aiding Israel's Settlements Was Dead on Arrival. globalresearch.ca After lengthy delays, the United Nations finally published a database last week of businesses that have been profiting from Israel's illegal settlement activity in the West Bank. | The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, announced that 112 …

Whitney Webb (2020-02-19). Netanyahu "Optimistic" Israel Can Use Political Pressure To Shut Down ICC War Crimes Probe. mintpressnews.com Netanyahu's frenzied lobbying efforts to halt the ICC probe suggests that the probe greatly worries him, particularly as he has linked his current reelection bid to illegal acts like his planned annexation of the West Bank.

Alon Ben-Meir (2020-02-19). The Moral Devastation of the Continued Occupation. dissidentvoice.org I have long maintained that Israel's occupation of the West Bank defies the moral principle behind the creation of the state. Contrary to Prime Minister Netanyahu's assertion, the occupation erodes rather than buttresses Israel's national security and cannot be justified on either security or moral grounds. Trump's "deal of the century" is tantamount to perpetuating …

Binoy Kampmark (2020-02-19). Corporate Occupations: The UN Business "Black List" and Israel's Settlements. counterpunch.org Mikhail Bakunin, in that charming anarchist tradition, regarded the state as an evil to be done away with. Such collective formations were criminal, oppressive, eviscerating to the individual. The corporation might be regarded as a similar collective, adopting and aping elements of the state with, in some cases, greater latitude to achieve its object. At

Richard Falk (2020-02-19). Trump's Deal Is a Show Hiding the Real Problem: Ongoing Israeli Apartheid. globalresearch.ca It was always foolish to expect a balanced political compromise from the current American administration. | Since he was elected four years ago, US President Donald Trump has entrusted the Israel/Palestine portfolio to his inexperienced, Zionist son-in-law, Jared Kushner, aided …

Juan Cole (2020-02-19). Palestinians Reject Trump's Mideast Plan en Masse. truthdig.com This piece originally appeared on Some 94% of Palestinians reject the Kushner Plan for Palestine, and two thirds of Palestinians, according to Abbas has cut off diplomatic relations and security cooperation with Israel and the United States. | In fact, 82 percent of Palestinians believe that with the Kushner Pl…

Juan Cole (2020-02-19). Palestinians Reject Trump's Middle East Plan en Masse. truthdig.com This piece originally appeared on Some 94% of Palestinians reject the Kushner Plan for Palestine, and two-thirds of Palestinians, according to Abbas has cut off diplomatic relations and security cooperation with Israel and the United States. | In fact, 82 percent of Palestinians believe that with the Kushner Pl…

Telesur (2020-02-19). EU Nations Push for Bloc's Recognition of State of Palestine. globalresearch.ca A group of European Union (EU) countries led by Luxembourg is planning to present Monday to the EU's foreign affairs ministers, an initiative for the recognition of the state of Palestine by the bloc‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã, Haaretz reported Sunday. | Luxembourg's Foreign Affairs …

Creede Newton (2020-02-19). The Unbreakable Bond of Ireland and Palestine. globalresearch.ca

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| In December, a wave of support for the recognition of a Palestinian state swept over Europe, culminating in the European Parliament's (EP) vote on a motion that expressed support for an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders and |

Morning Star (2020-02-18). Amazon offers free shipping for illegal Israeli settlements, but not Palestinian Territories. peoplesworld.org Amazon has been accused of discrimination by offering free shipment to illegal settlers in the occupied West Bank, but not for Palestinians living there. The practice was discovered by the Financial Times as it entered illegal settlement addresses into the global online retailer's delivery portal. Amazon's website offered free shipping for orders, saying: "If your …

Staff (2020-02-18). Netanyahu Trial Clouds Last Days of Israel Election Campaign. truthdig.com The prime minister is slated to appear in a Jerusalem court as a defendant just two weeks after the March 2 vote.

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-02-18). Israel Destroys Water Access for Palestinian Village. imemc.org Israeli forces today destroyed couplings in pipes providing water to al-Shunah area of al-Jiftlik village, in the Jordan Valley, north of Jericho, according to local activist, Qais al-Sinawi. Al-Sinawi, told WAFA that Israeli forces invaded the village and proceeded to destroy the connectors supplying running water to Palestinian crops. Palestinians …

Jonathan Cook (2020-02-18). Profiting from Loss: How Business in Illegal Israeli Settlements Continues Unchecked. dissidentvoice.org After lengthy delays, the United Nations finally published a database last week of businesses that have been profiting from Israel's illegal annexation and settlement activity in the West Bank. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, announced that 112 major companies had been identified as operating in Israeli settlements in ways that violate …

Philip Giraldi (2020-02-18). Explaining Syria: It's Everyone's Fault Except the U.S. and Israel. globalresearch.ca The first week in February was memorable for the failed impeachment of President Donald Trump, the "re-elect me" State of the Union address and the

Michael Arria (2020-02-18). Bloomberg Defied a Flight Ban to Show Support for Israel, Defended the Country Shelling a School and Killing Sleeping Children. globalresearch.ca In July 2014, Israel launched a series airstrikes on Gaza, kicking off a

IMEMC News (2020-02-18). Israeli Navy Attacks Palestinian Fishing Boats In Gaza. imemc.org Israeli navy ships attacked, Tuesday, several Palestinian fishing boats with live rounds only three nautical miles from the shore in the besieged Gaza Strip. Media sources said the navy ships fired many live rounds at the boats, in Palestinian waters in the northern part of the coastal region. The attack …

Celine Hagbard (2020-02-18). Israeli Forces Recover Body of Palestinian In West Bank. imemc.org Israeli soldiers stationed in the occupied West Bank recovered, Monday, the body of a Palestinian man tangled among bushes in a rural area, who apparently died of his wounds after a shooting attack targeting Israeli soldiers two weeks prior. The corpse was found near Ras Karkar village, west of Ramallah, …

IMEMC News (2020-02-18). Including Children, Soldiers Abduct Twelve Palestinians In West Bank. imemc.org Israeli soldiers abducted, on Tuesday at dawn, twelve Palestinians, including children, after the army stormed and ransacked many homes in several parts of the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Prisoners' Society (PPS) has reported. The PPS said the soldiers invaded and searched homes in Beit Doqqo and Qotna towns, in …

IMEMC News (2020-02-18). Palestinian Forced To Demolish His Home In Jerusalem. imemc.org A Palestinian man from Jabal al-Mokabber town, south of occupied East Jerusalem, had to demolish his own home, on Monday evening, to avoid excessive Israeli fines and fees. Media sources said the Palestinian, Montaser Shqeirat, had to demolish his two-story home after the City Council claimed that he did not …

PCHR (2020-02-18). PCHR Welcomes the Publication of UN Database on Business Enterprises Operating in Israeli Settlements. imemc.org On 12 February 2020, after three years of delay and consistent pressure by Palestinian, regional and international organizations, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) issued a report on business enterprises involved in certain activities related to unlawful Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). This …

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-02-18). Human Rights Expert: Settlement Database, an "Important Initial Step" imemc.org Office of the High Commissioner of the United Nations published a report, on Friday, by Michael Lynk, Special Rapporteur for human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, welcomed the newly released settlement database. Lynk stated that "While the release of the database will not, by itself, bring an end to …

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-02-17). Dozens of Armed Settlers Attack, Injure 5 Palestinian Shephards. imemc.org Armed Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian shepherds in the town of al-Mughayyir, in central occupied West Bank, while grazing their livestock, on Monday, the town`s mayor stated. Marzouq Abu Naim, told WAFA that dozens of illegal armed settlers chased and brutally assaulted several Palestinian civilians, forcing them out of their fields, …

IMEMC News & Agencies (2020-02-17). Entrance to Ramallah Village Resealed. imemc.org Israeli occupation forces, at dawn on Sunday, re-closed the main entrance to Deir Nidham village, to the west of Ramallah City, PNN reports. According to local residents, soldiers returned the cement blocks which they had placed several days ago and which the residents of Deir Nidham removed yesterday. On Saturday, …

IMEMC News & Agencies (2020-02-17). East Jerusalem Organization Raided, Director Summoned. imemc.org Members of the Israeli security service, today, raided Volunteer for Hope, an organization located in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina, under the pretext of holding "prohibited activities," and gave its director, Silvia Abu Laban, a summons to appear before Israeli intelligence for interrogation. Local sources told WAFA …

RT (2020-02-15). With Sanders surging in the polls, Israel lobby spends big bucks to sink his chances in Nevada. rt.com After emerging as the Democratic frontrunner in wake of Iowa and New Hampshire primaries, Bernie Sanders heads to Nevada leading in polls but facing new opposition: the Israel lobby and its vast cash reserves. | Despite being pipped at…

Staff (2020-02-14). Rep. Rashida Tlaib: Trump's "Racist" Plan Would Legalize the Theft of Palestinian Land. democracynow.org We continue our conversation with Congressmember Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, the first Palestinian-American woman elected to Congress. She responds to President Trump's Middle East plan, under which Israel would gain sovereignty over large areas of the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem would be under total Israeli control, and all Jewish settlers in the occupied territory would be allowed to remain in their homes. Tlaib says the plan was formulated with a "racist lens" that ignores Palestinian lives and aspirations. Tlaib says she wants people "to know what the human impact is of taking people's land, taking people's…

Whitney Webb (2020-02-14). NYC Taxpayers Spending Millions on Cyber Center with Controversial Ties to Israeli Intelligence. mintpressnews.com New York City taxpayers are on the hook for a multi-million dollar cyber center in the heart of Manhattan with deep ties to Israel's high-tech intelligence apparatus.

Staff (2020-02-13). Headlines for February 13, 2020. democracynow.org Attorney General William Barr to Testify Before House Judiciary Committee, Confirmed Cases of Coronavirus Skyrocket in Hubei, China, Bloomberg Would Pay Billions Less Under His Tax Plan Than Sanders', U.N. Releases List of 100 Companies Linked to Israeli-Occupied West Bank Settlements, Mexico: Outrage over Murder of 25-Year-Old Ingrid Escamilla, Former Guatemalan Presidential Candidate Sentenced to 15 Years by U.S. Court, 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill May Have Been 30% Bigger Than Thought, New York Has Highest Number of Premature Deaths from Out-of-State Air Pollution, El Paso Walmart Shooter Pleads Not Guilty…

Staff (2020-02-12). Headlines for February 12, 2020. democracynow.org Bernie Sanders Wins New Hampshire Primary, Andrew Yang and Michael Bennet Drop Out of Presidential Race, Federal Prosecutors Quit Roger Stone Case Amid Fight with DOJ Officials, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Rejects Trump's Middle East Plan in U.N. Speech, Trump Conditionally Approves Peace Deal with the Taliban, WHO Warns Coronavirus Poses "Grave Threat" to World, Opposition Leader Juan Guaidó Heckled and Protested Upon Return to Venezuela, Report: 40% of Guatemalan, Honduran & Salvadoran Migrants Fled After Relatives Killed, WSJ: ICE & CPB Use Cellphone Location Data from Games, Apps to Arrest Immigrants,…

Whitney Webb (2020-02-12). Gruesome Details Emerge of Israel's Torture of Palestinian Prisoners. mintpressnews.com One prisoner was hospitalized for kidney failure and 11 broken ribs. Another had his genitals bitten by a security dog while a third man was left wheelchair-bound and unrecognizable.

Middle East Eye (2020-02-07). Russia Says Israel Used Civilian Plane as Human Shield During Syria Strikes. theantimedia.com Russia accused Israel of "making a total mockery of the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians."

Ramzy Baroud (2020-02-02). On the Road to Gaza: The Freedom Flotilla Will Sail Again. zcomm.org True solidarity should aim at forcing Israel to end the protracted occupation and siege on the Palestinian people…

CounterSpin (2020-01-31). Omar Baddar on Israel/Palestine 'Peace' Plan, Rainey Reitman on Greenwald Persecution. fair.org MP3 Link This week on CounterSpin: It is strange to think that you could create a plan to shape the relationship between two entities, in consultation with one but not the other, and then not just declare it, yourself, a "win-win," but also say to the unconsulted party, "You better take it, or else." Yet …