mintpressnews--2020-12-18--Mass Starvation Looms as Yemen’s Currency Nears Historic Freefall

TAIZ , YEMEN- – Both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates seem to be doing everything in their power to prevent an end to the suffering in Yemen .
Even those living in areas under the total control of the wealthy Gulf monarchies are facing levels of devastation that harken back to the total destruction of European cities during World War II .
With no functioning government to provide residents with even basic assistance and facing a collapsed economy amid a famine that could soon beset all of Yemen according to the United Nations , the collapse of Yemen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ areas , is proving to be the coup de grâce that will assure the country faces an apocalyptic level of destruction for years to come .
Her black eyes virtually absent and speaking in a muted voice that is difficult to pick up , Umm Abdu does her best to recount her story to MintPress .
She was hiding a bony face and emaciated body in a voluminous black abaya robe and hijab .
“ I am starving myself to feed my children .
It is very difficult to reach for this piece @ @ @ @ @ @ @ muttered as she held a piece of Roti bread .
Umm Abdu lives in a poor neighborhood in Taiz , a city in western Yemen under the control of some of the richest countries in the world .
After nearly six years of war , Yemen remains home to the world ’ s largest humanitarian crisis .
Millions are hungry and destitute and at least 80 % of the population requires humanitarian assistance or protection .
Some 13.5 million people face severe food shortages and that number could rise to 16.2 million in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The economy has already collapsed for virtually every Yemeni living in the south , except for the few who managed to profit by working with Saudi Arabia or the UAE .
Savings accounts have long been exhausted and by end of November , the rial depreciated to an all-time low of 850 YR to a single U.S. dollar , leaving most of the population unable to afford even the most basic essentials .
Like Umm Abdu , people are reducing portion sizes and skipping meals as a kind of “ coping strategy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ used to measure food insecurity .
Fruit , fish , and meat have become a rare commodity that most can only dream of .
“ Even though there is food in the markets , I can ’ t afford it .
Not because we don ’ t have money , but because of the crazy prices .
So we decide to reduce food to keep our children alive , ” one shopper told MintPress .
However , that strategy may not be enough as food prices are near double where they were in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
According to International organizations , Yemen , particularly areas under the control of Riyadh and Abu Dhabi , will return to alarming levels of food insecurity by mid-2020 , and a catastrophic food security crisis is looming .
They reported that by December 2020 , the population facing high levels of acute food insecurity ( what they termed IPC Phase 3 and above ) would increase from 2 million to 3.2 million people .
An Integrated Food Security Phase Classification ( IPC ) report from October 2020 covering southern Yemen highlighted how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are now the highest ever recorded in some districts .
The analysis reveals a near 10 percent increase in cases of acute malnutrition this year .
The greatest increase is in cases of young children suffering from severe acute malnutrition which has increased by 15.5 percent , leaving at least 98,000 children under age five at high risk of dying without urgent treatment .
A stream of statements from leading aid organization officials reflects how dire the situation has become , including a warning from UN Secretary-General António Guterres that “ Yemen is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ famine the world has seen for decades .
” We ’ ve been warning since July that Yemen is on the brink of a catastrophic food security crisis .
If the war doesn ’ t end now , we are nearing an irreversible situation and risk losing an entire generation of Yemen ’ s young children , ” said Lisa Grande last month , ” the Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen .
“ The data we are releasing today confirms that acute malnutrition among children is hitting the highest levels we have seen since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ( FAO ) raised the alarm about millions of Yemenis risking falling into worsening levels of hunger by mid-2021 .
The United Nations World Food Programme ( WFP ) also described the crisis in Yemen as “ the world ’ s worst.
” The WFP said in a tweet that millions are trapped in a cycle of conflict and hunger .
“ Everyday life in Yemen gets harder for millions as the window to prevent famine narrows .
We must act now.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unlikely in the immediate future , officials in Taiz warned that many areas could soon start to see deaths from famine .
Many children already have signs of severe acute malnutrition , the most dire stage of hunger where legs and feet begin to swell .
“ We all sleep hungry , there is not enough food even for our children , “ Umm Abdu told us .
For Umm Abdu and her husband , 37-year-old Saeed , the rial ’ s collapse has meant skipping meals .
Saeed was educated as an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a tour guide at a local travel agency before the war .
Since he lost his job after the war began , he ’ s been making money selling qat – a mild stimulant that many Yemenis chew in the afternoon .
However , that money is not nearly enough to cover rent , let alone basic needs .
Now , their situation is getting worse as the availability of Qat has decreased dramatically after the weather turned cold three months ago when winter began .
After the recent collapse of the rial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has become nearly impossible .
Umm Abdu and Saeed are now considering extreme options .
Over the past six years , they have seen Yemen ’ s steady dissolution from a nation hoping to transition to democracy post-Arab Spring , to a nation fragmented and a land of warring statelets , mass suffering , and despair .
Many of their neighbors have resorted to stealing , human trafficking , and selling their organs to make ends meet , or even marrying off their daughters because they are unable to feed them .
Officials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Saudi-Coalition power in Yemen , blame the collapse of currency on the fact that foreign reserves have dried up .
According to them , remittances from Yemenis abroad , the largest source of foreign exchange , dropped by up to 70 % as a result of the Covid-induced global downturn .
But to Omer , a former fighter in “ al-Muqawamah ” in Aden who was wounded while fighting with Coalition Forces against the Houthis in 2016 , these arguments are grossly inaccurate .
Omer believes that Saudi Arabia has a plan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to intentionally accelerate famine .
“ Why is there no collapse of the currency in Houthi areas even though they live in conditions worse than us ?
” The exchange rate divergence between Houthi-controlled Sana ’ a and coalition-controlled Aden is indeed stark , with the Yemeni rial worth 35 % less in Aden than it is in Sana ’ a .
Omer was one of the thousands of Yemenis that took the streets in Taiz and other areas this week in a mass protest against the continuing deterioration of the economic situation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demanding they leave the country .
The demonstrators accused coalition countries and ousted Yemeni president Abdul Mansour al-Hadi of practicing a policy of starvation to achieve their personal objectives .
They chanted slogans against Saudi Arabia and UAE with phrases like “ our revolution is a hungry revolution , ” “ take your aid , and leave us our oil , ” “ take your donations , and leave us our ports , ” and “ take your trust fund and leave us our wealth.
” According to local economists who spoke to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Yemen ’ s economy and its currency are many and varied but the expansionary monetary policy that has been taken by Saudi Arabia is one of the key drivers of the Yemeni rial ’ s devaluation .
Local authorities supported by Saudi Arabia have regularly printed new banknotes in order to meet expenses compounded by the purchase of foreign currencies flowing into markets by foreign organizations .
By the end of 2019 , the total rial liquidity in circulation in the country was more than three trillion , according to a source @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the beginning of 2020 , the bank has printed around 300 billion rials in order to address the budget deficit .
The government of ousted president Hadi has largely relied on the central bank ’ s overdraft financing instrument to cover his spending abroad , including rent , travel , and entertainment .
Recently , Saudi ’ s proxies in southern Yemen have been selling large quantities of newly-printed banknotes in order to purchase foreign currency from the market and replenish their own foreign currency holdings .
This has increased downward pressure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helped drive inflation .
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on countries to provide financial assistance to resolve the severe economic crisis in Yemen , saying in a statement issued via his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric on the second anniversary of the Stockholm Agreement , “ I call on all member states to help address the severe economic crisis in the country.
” Umm Abdu has a gloomy future .
She has no faith in the UN or the Saudi proxies in the south , who she described as “ drenched in treason.
” Nonetheless @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in her fellow Yemenis that her country will be freed .
“ Where else on Earth can you find a nation that has gone through what has happened in Yemen , occupied by foreigners , destroyed , with famine and epidemics , and yet somehow , we still managed to survive.
” Ahmed AbdulKareem is a Yemeni journalist .
He covers the war in Yemen for MintPress News as well as local Yemeni media .

TAIZ, YEMEN- – Both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates seem to be doing everything in their power to prevent an end to the suffering in Yemen. Even those living in areas under the total control of the wealthy Gulf monarchies are facing levels of devastation that harken back to the total destruction of European cities during World War II.
With no functioning government to provide residents with even basic assistance and facing a collapsed economy amid a famine that could soon beset all of Yemen according to the United Nations, the collapse of Yemen’s rial, particularly in Saudi-coalition-controlled areas, is proving to be the coup de grâce that will assure the country faces an apocalyptic level of destruction for years to come.
Her black eyes virtually absent and speaking in a muted voice that is difficult to pick up, Umm Abdu does her best to recount her story to MintPress. She was hiding a bony face and emaciated body in a voluminous black abaya robe and hijab. “I am starving myself to feed my children. It is very difficult to reach for this piece,” the Illiterate mother of six muttered as she held a piece of Roti bread. Umm Abdu lives in a poor neighborhood in Taiz, a city in western Yemen under the control of some of the richest countries in the world.
After nearly six years of war, Yemen remains home to the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Millions are hungry and destitute and at least 80% of the population requires humanitarian assistance or protection. Some 13.5 million people face severe food shortages and that number could rise to 16.2 million in 2021, according to International Relief Bodies.
The economy has already collapsed for virtually every Yemeni living in the south, except for the few who managed to profit by working with Saudi Arabia or the UAE. Savings accounts have long been exhausted and by end of November, the rial depreciated to an all-time low of 850 YR to a single U.S. dollar, leaving most of the population unable to afford even the most basic essentials. Like Umm Abdu, people are reducing portion sizes and skipping meals as a kind of “coping strategy index,” one of many tools used to measure food insecurity. Fruit, fish, and meat have become a rare commodity that most can only dream of.
“Even though there is food in the markets, I can’t afford it. Not because we don’t have money, but because of the crazy prices. So we decide to reduce food to keep our children alive,” one shopper told MintPress. However, that strategy may not be enough as food prices are near double where they were in the wake of the recent currency collapse.
According to International organizations, Yemen, particularly areas under the control of Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, will return to alarming levels of food insecurity by mid-2020, and a catastrophic food security crisis is looming. They reported that by December 2020, the population facing high levels of acute food insecurity (what they termed IPC Phase 3 and above) would increase from 2 million to 3.2 million people.
An Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report from October 2020 covering southern Yemen highlighted how acute malnutrition rates among children under five are now the highest ever recorded in some districts. The analysis reveals a near 10 percent increase in cases of acute malnutrition this year. The greatest increase is in cases of young children suffering from severe acute malnutrition which has increased by 15.5 percent, leaving at least 98,000 children under age five at high risk of dying without urgent treatment.
Source: IPC Acute malnutrition analysis (Oct 2020)
A stream of statements from leading aid organization officials reflects how dire the situation has become, including a warning from UN Secretary-General António Guterres that “Yemen is now in imminent danger of the worst famine the world has seen for decades. ”We’ve been warning since July that Yemen is on the brink of a catastrophic food security crisis. If the war doesn’t end now, we are nearing an irreversible situation and risk losing an entire generation of Yemen’s young children,” said Lisa Grande last month,” the Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen. “The data we are releasing today confirms that acute malnutrition among children is hitting the highest levels we have seen since the war started,” she added.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) raised the alarm about millions of Yemenis risking falling into worsening levels of hunger by mid-2021. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) also described the crisis in Yemen as “the world’s worst.” The WFP said in a tweet that millions are trapped in a cycle of conflict and hunger. “Everyday life in Yemen gets harder for millions as the window to prevent famine narrows. We must act now.”
Although a mass famine event may be unlikely in the immediate future, officials in Taiz warned that many areas could soon start to see deaths from famine. Many children already have signs of severe acute malnutrition, the most dire stage of hunger where legs and feet begin to swell. “We all sleep hungry, there is not enough food even for our children,“ Umm Abdu told us.
For Umm Abdu and her husband, 37-year-old Saeed, the rial’s collapse has meant skipping meals. Saeed was educated as an English teacher and had a job as a tour guide at a local travel agency before the war. Since he lost his job after the war began, he’s been making money selling qat – a mild stimulant that many Yemenis chew in the afternoon. However, that money is not nearly enough to cover rent, let alone basic needs. Now, their situation is getting worse as the availability of Qat has decreased dramatically after the weather turned cold three months ago when winter began. After the recent collapse of the rial, the ability to bring home food has become nearly impossible.
Umm Abdu and Saeed are now considering extreme options. Over the past six years, they have seen Yemen’s steady dissolution from a nation hoping to transition to democracy post-Arab Spring, to a nation fragmented and a land of warring statelets, mass suffering, and despair. Many of their neighbors have resorted to stealing, human trafficking, and selling their organs to make ends meet, or even marrying off their daughters because they are unable to feed them.
A tale of two cities
Officials in Aden, the de facto center of Saudi-Coalition power in Yemen, blame the collapse of currency on the fact that foreign reserves have dried up. According to them, remittances from Yemenis abroad, the largest source of foreign exchange, dropped by up to 70% as a result of the Covid-induced global downturn. But to Omer, a former fighter in “al-Muqawamah” in Aden who was wounded while fighting with Coalition Forces against the Houthis in 2016, these arguments are grossly inaccurate.
Omer believes that Saudi Arabia has a plan to destroy the national currency in order to intentionally accelerate famine. “Why is there no collapse of the currency in Houthi areas even though they live in conditions worse than us?” The exchange rate divergence between Houthi-controlled Sana’a and coalition-controlled Aden is indeed stark, with the Yemeni rial worth 35% less in Aden than it is in Sana’a.
Omer was one of the thousands of Yemenis that took the streets in Taiz and other areas this week in a mass protest against the continuing deterioration of the economic situation, denouncing the Saudi-led coalition states and demanding they leave the country. The demonstrators accused coalition countries and ousted Yemeni president Abdul Mansour al-Hadi of practicing a policy of starvation to achieve their personal objectives. They chanted slogans against Saudi Arabia and UAE with phrases like “our revolution is a hungry revolution,” “take your aid, and leave us our oil,” “take your donations, and leave us our ports,” and “take your trust fund and leave us our wealth.”
A gloomy future
According to local economists who spoke to MintPress, the reasons behind the collapse of Yemen’s economy and its currency are many and varied but the expansionary monetary policy that has been taken by Saudi Arabia is one of the key drivers of the Yemeni rial’s devaluation.
Local authorities supported by Saudi Arabia have regularly printed new banknotes in order to meet expenses compounded by the purchase of foreign currencies flowing into markets by foreign organizations.
By the end of 2019, the total rial liquidity in circulation in the country was more than three trillion, according to a source in the Aden-based central bank. As of the beginning of 2020, the bank has printed around 300 billion rials in order to address the budget deficit. The government of ousted president Hadi has largely relied on the central bank’s overdraft financing instrument to cover his spending abroad, including rent, travel, and entertainment.
Recently, Saudi’s proxies in southern Yemen have been selling large quantities of newly-printed banknotes in order to purchase foreign currency from the market and replenish their own foreign currency holdings. This has increased downward pressure on the rial’s value and helped drive inflation.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on countries to provide financial assistance to resolve the severe economic crisis in Yemen, saying in a statement issued via his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric on the second anniversary of the Stockholm Agreement, “I call on all member states to help address the severe economic crisis in the country.”
Umm Abdu has a gloomy future. She has no faith in the UN or the Saudi proxies in the south, who she described as “drenched in treason.” Nonetheless, she places hope in God and in her fellow Yemenis that her country will be freed. “Where else on Earth can you find a nation that has gone through what has happened in Yemen, occupied by foreigners, destroyed, with famine and epidemics, and yet somehow, we still managed to survive.”
Feature photo | Yemeni women display paper currency after receiving cash support from UNICEF. Hani Mohammed | AP
Ahmed AbdulKareem is a Yemeni journalist. He covers the war in Yemen for MintPress News as well as local Yemeni media.


mintpressnews--2020-12-18--Under Guise of Green Energy, Israel Entrenches Itself in Syria’s Golan Heights

Jerusalem — On December 9 , Israeli police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at hundreds of Syrians peacefully demonstrating against the development of a wind farm in the occupied Golan Heights .
Ten protesters were injured and eight arrested .
According to Al-Marsad , the sole human rights organization in the occupied Golan , the Golan Association for the Development of Arab Villages ’ medical clinic received 12 cases of protesters with rubber bullet wounds—some on the upper body and face .
Dozens of demonstrators suffered from gas inhalation .
According to the police , officers responded with “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ injured from stones being thrown .
The violent confrontation capped off a week of heavy police presence in the Golan Heights .
Officers were there to escort employees from Israeli company Energix Renewable Energies as they took soil samples using drilling machines for their wind turbine project being built on Syrian land .
Police road closures prevented 1,000 Syrian farmers from accessing their land .
Demonstrators say the excavation work damages agriculture .
Syrian Druze say the wind farm will disrupt their way of life The December 9 protest was part of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against Energix and the police .
But the Syrian struggle against Energix stems as far back as 2018 when Energix was in the final stages of getting its wind turbine project approved .
Now , the wind farm is underway after being approved by Israel ’ s National Committee of Infrastructure ( NIC ) and all government ministries despite strong opposition to it from the local residents .
“ [ This project ] will have bad effects for our land , our environment and for us as farmers and human beings , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ farmer who is organizing against the wind farm , said .
Dubbed the ARAN Wind Project , the plan will install 23 wind turbines on nearly a quarter of Syrian agricultural land .
The original proposal requested 52 wind turbines , but the project was scaled back as it went through the government stages .
Energix denies the project will harm the local economy , environment , and health , arguing , “ it will lead to a significant improvement in the quality of life of the residents ” and “ occupy less @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the agricultural space of the Druze community.
” According to the approved project map , the wind farm will span a little more than 3,500 dunams ( nearly 870 acres ) .
Energix boasts the project will create hundreds of jobs while meeting Israel ’ s renewable energy goals .
Israel entered the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015 and agreed to have 10 percent of its energy produced through renewable sources by 2020 and 17 percent by 2030 .
But according to expert testimonies filed as part of a joint objection to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ harm Syrians ’ health , housing , and livelihoods .
Dr. Hagit Ulanovsky , who provided an expert opinion for the community appeal , explained that because of the region ’ s mountainous topography , residents are going to feel the infrasound from the wind turbines more intensely in their bodies .
And these noise disturbances will ultimately prevent Syrian farmers from cultivating their land .
“ The noise is going to be impossible .
Nobody will be able to stand 200 to 300 meters [ about 650 to 980 feet ] from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the area that ’ s covered , ” Ulanovsky said .
“ And during the construction phase , thousands of trees will be taken out and basically be dead forever.
” “ At least 500 to maybe 5,000 years of Druze people living in the same place and growing the same trees for several generations is going to stop , ” Ulanovsky added .
Israel occupied the Syrian Golan during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war .
Hundreds of thousands of Syrians were forcibly displaced and now roughly 22,000 Syrians remain in the four villages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and Ein Qiniyye .
In 1981 , Israel annexed the Syrian Golan and tried to impose Israeli citizenship on the Jawlani , the Syrian residents of the occupied Golan Heights .
Many Jawlani continue to this day to reject Israeli citizenship , with only 20 % of the population having acquired it .
Dr. Muna Dajani from the London School of Economics , who also provided expert testimony , explained that because of this refusal to take Israeli citizenship , the Jawlani ’ s travel documents state they don ’ t have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government has labeled them as “ undefined.
” “ The Jawlani have started relating more and more to the land as their source of identity and their source of belonging to a community because of that exclusion from being Syrian , and that meant they started valuing the land beyond its physical economic value , ” Dajani said .
“ Constructing these wind turbines in the middle of the land not only undermines the economic viability of their agriculture but also has a detrimental psychological effect on their community well-being , their sense @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Dajani continued .
“ People feel without land they have nowhere , they don ’ t have an identity left.
” Expert opinions also emphasized the wind farm will restrict the expansion of at least three surrounding Syrian villages , thereby exacerbating the housing crisis in these communities .
The collective appeal was submitted by Al-Marsad to the NIC in June 2019 on behalf of Syrian agricultural cooperatives , civil society groups , and thousands of civilians .
By August of that same year , the NIC rejected all objections and approved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to connect the wind farm to the electricity grid by the end of 2022 .
Nizar Ayoub , Al-Marsad ’ s director , told MintPress News that the organization is collaborating with the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and Planners for Planning Rights ( Bimkom ) to utilize every legal tool to stop the wind turbine project .
Al-Marsad alleges the project violates international humanitarian law whereby an occupying power is prohibited from exploiting the natural resources of the occupied territory or using their land for economic benefit .
However , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against them from Energix .
In 2019 , the energy company sued Al-Marsad , claiming the human rights center defamed them and violated Israel ’ s Anti-Boycott Law .
In addition to the lawsuit against Al-Marsad , Energix also filed five cases against activists .
“ There ’ s no basis in their arguments , ” Ayoub said .
“ They ’ re just using this strategy to silence the local communities and Al-Marsad.
” Following this month ’ s confrontation between Israel police and activists , the local committee for planning and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issued a restraining order to Energix to cease all work .
The order was issued after the local village councils filed an appeal to the committee .
Energix is aware of the order but said it will not impact their wind turbine project and has no legal grounds .
For activist and farmer Masood , any attempts by local authorities to stop the project are merely a sham .
“ The municipality doesn ’ t represent Syrian Arab citizens in the Golan because they ’ re appointed by the Israeli authorities , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they didn ’ t invest a lot of effort to stop it .
So , all the effort was from social , public , and private initiatives and dependent on us farmers and citizens of the four villages—not the municipalities.
” The village councils weren ’ t available for comment .
The Syrian activists ’ next steps rely on how Energix proceeds , Masood said , “ if they want to force this project on us , we will react.
” Activists are currently working with an engineer to measure the amount @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to their lawyer in Tel Aviv for court procedures .
“ But in the field , whenever the company will come back , ” Masood said .
“ We will stand and confront it.
” Feature photo | Israeli police block Syrian Druze from accessing their land in the occupied Golan Heights .
Photo | Emil Masood Jessica Buxbaum is a Jerusalem-based journalist covering Palestine , Israel and Syria .
Her work has been featured in Middle East Eye , The New Arab and Gulf News .

Jerusalem — On December 9, Israeli police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at hundreds of Syrians peacefully demonstrating against the development of a wind farm in the occupied Golan Heights.
Ten protesters were injured and eight arrested. According to Al-Marsad, the sole human rights organization in the occupied Golan, the Golan Association for the Development of Arab Villages’ medical clinic received 12 cases of protesters with rubber bullet wounds—some on the upper body and face. Dozens of demonstrators suffered from gas inhalation. According to the police, officers responded with “non-lethal weapons” and four officers were injured from stones being thrown.
The violent confrontation capped off a week of heavy police presence in the Golan Heights. Officers were there to escort employees from Israeli company Energix Renewable Energies as they took soil samples using drilling machines for their wind turbine project being built on Syrian land.
Police road closures prevented 1,000 Syrian farmers from accessing their land. Demonstrators say the excavation work damages agriculture.
Syrian Druze say the wind farm will disrupt their way of life
The December 9 protest was part of a general strike in the Syrian Druze communities against Energix and the police. But the Syrian struggle against Energix stems as far back as 2018 when Energix was in the final stages of getting its wind turbine project approved.
Now, the wind farm is underway after being approved by Israel’s National Committee of Infrastructure (NIC) and all government ministries despite strong opposition to it from the local residents.
“[This project] will have bad effects for our land, our environment and for us as farmers and human beings,” Emil Masood, an activist and cherry farmer who is organizing against the wind farm, said.
Dubbed the ARAN Wind Project, the plan will install 23 wind turbines on nearly a quarter of Syrian agricultural land. The original proposal requested 52 wind turbines, but the project was scaled back as it went through the government stages.
Energix denies the project will harm the local economy, environment, and health, arguing, “it will lead to a significant improvement in the quality of life of the residents” and “occupy less than 2 percent of the margins of the agricultural space of the Druze community.” According to the approved project map, the wind farm will span a little more than 3,500 dunams (nearly 870 acres).
Energix boasts the project will create hundreds of jobs while meeting Israel’s renewable energy goals. Israel entered the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015 and agreed to have 10 percent of its energy produced through renewable sources by 2020 and 17 percent by 2030.
But according to expert testimonies filed as part of a joint objection to the wind farm, the project will significantly harm Syrians’ health, housing, and livelihoods.
Dr. Hagit Ulanovsky, who provided an expert opinion for the community appeal, explained that because of the region’s mountainous topography, residents are going to feel the infrasound from the wind turbines more intensely in their bodies. And these noise disturbances will ultimately prevent Syrian farmers from cultivating their land.
“The noise is going to be impossible. Nobody will be able to stand 200 to 300 meters [about 650 to 980 feet] from each turbine, which is half of the area that’s covered,” Ulanovsky said. “And during the construction phase, thousands of trees will be taken out and basically be dead forever.”
“At least 500 to maybe 5,000 years of Druze people living in the same place and growing the same trees for several generations is going to stop,” Ulanovsky added.
A forgotten occupation
Israel occupied the Syrian Golan during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians were forcibly displaced and now roughly 22,000 Syrians remain in the four villages of Majdal Shams, Masada, Buqata, and Ein Qiniyye. In 1981, Israel annexed the Syrian Golan and tried to impose Israeli citizenship on the Jawlani, the Syrian residents of the occupied Golan Heights. Many Jawlani continue to this day to reject Israeli citizenship, with only 20% of the population having acquired it.
Dr. Muna Dajani from the London School of Economics, who also provided expert testimony, explained that because of this refusal to take Israeli citizenship, the Jawlani’s travel documents state they don’t have a nationality. Instead, the Israeli government has labeled them as “undefined.”
“The Jawlani have started relating more and more to the land as their source of identity and their source of belonging to a community because of that exclusion from being Syrian, and that meant they started valuing the land beyond its physical economic value,” Dajani said.
“Constructing these wind turbines in the middle of the land not only undermines the economic viability of their agriculture but also has a detrimental psychological effect on their community well-being, their sense of purpose and sense of belonging,” Dajani continued. “People feel without land they have nowhere, they don’t have an identity left.”
Expert opinions also emphasized the wind farm will restrict the expansion of at least three surrounding Syrian villages, thereby exacerbating the housing crisis in these communities. The collective appeal was submitted by Al-Marsad to the NIC in June 2019 on behalf of Syrian agricultural cooperatives, civil society groups, and thousands of civilians. By August of that same year, the NIC rejected all objections and approved the project in September.
Energix plans to connect the wind farm to the electricity grid by the end of 2022. Nizar Ayoub, Al-Marsad’s director, told MintPress News that the organization is collaborating with the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and Planners for Planning Rights (Bimkom) to utilize every legal tool to stop the wind turbine project. Al-Marsad alleges the project violates international humanitarian law whereby an occupying power is prohibited from exploiting the natural resources of the occupied territory or using their land for economic benefit.
However, the organization is currently embroiled in a lawsuit against them from Energix. In 2019, the energy company sued Al-Marsad, claiming the human rights center defamed them and violated Israel’s Anti-Boycott Law. In addition to the lawsuit against Al-Marsad, Energix also filed five cases against activists.
“There’s no basis in their arguments,” Ayoub said. “They’re just using this strategy to silence the local communities and Al-Marsad.”
The resistance continues
Following this month’s confrontation between Israel police and activists, the local committee for planning and construction – Ma’ale Hermon – issued a restraining order to Energix to cease all work. The order was issued after the local village councils filed an appeal to the committee. Energix is aware of the order but said it will not impact their wind turbine project and has no legal grounds.
For activist and farmer Masood, any attempts by local authorities to stop the project are merely a sham.
“The municipality doesn’t represent Syrian Arab citizens in the Golan because they’re appointed by the Israeli authorities,” Masood said. “In this conflict, they didn’t invest a lot of effort to stop it. So, all the effort was from social, public, and private initiatives and dependent on us farmers and citizens of the four villages—not the municipalities.” The village councils weren’t available for comment.
The Syrian activists’ next steps rely on how Energix proceeds, Masood said, “if they want to force this project on us, we will react.” Activists are currently working with an engineer to measure the amount of land damage caused and submit it to their lawyer in Tel Aviv for court procedures.
“But in the field, whenever the company will come back,” Masood said. “We will stand and confront it.”
Feature photo | Israeli police block Syrian Druze from accessing their land in the occupied Golan Heights. Photo | Emil Masood
Jessica Buxbaum is a Jerusalem-based journalist covering Palestine, Israel and Syria. Her work has been featured in Middle East Eye, The New Arab and Gulf News.


mintpressnews--2020-12-18--US Votes Against UN Resolution Condemning Nazis, Labels It “Russian Disinformation”

The United States and Ukraine were the only two nations to vote against a United Nations resolution Wednesday on , “ Combating glorification of Nazism , neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism , racial discrimination , xenophobia and related intolerance.
” The resolution passed 130-2 .
The resolution featured 70 fairly bland statements condemning the crimes of Adolf Hitler , while also expressing concern at the rise of contemporary Neo-Nazi groups .
“ Neo-Nazism is more than just the glorification of a past movement , it is a contemporary phenomenon with strong vested interests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gaining broad support for its false claims of racial superiority , ” the document warned , expressing its alarm that , in many parts of the world , it is on the rise .
“ Even where neo-Nazis or extremists do not formally participate in government , the presence therein of extreme right-wing ideologues can have the effect of injecting into governance and political discourse the same ideologies that make neo-Nazism and extremism so dangerous , ” it added .
This is far from the first time the U.S. has voted against resolutions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year since 2014 , it has done so .
In its justification for doing so , it labeled the resolution nothing more than a “ thinly veiled attempt to legitimize longstanding Russian disinformation narratives smearing neighboring nations under the cynical guise of halting Nazi glorification.
” The resolution does not , however , name any states , only speaking in generalities .
Russia was indeed one of 24 countries sponsoring the document this time around , a move the U.S. sees as an effort to use the U.N. to delegitimize the U.S.-sponsored government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of pro-U.S. , anti-Russia Baltic governments , all of which have ties to the modern far-right .
One of the many dirty secrets from the Second World War is that great numbers of Ukrainians and other ethnic nationalist groups in the USSR rose up to work with Nazi Germany in order to rid themselves of Moscow ’ s rule .
Much of their work included rounding up millions of Jews , gypsies , leftists , homosexuals , and other groups , sending them to concentration camps .
With the fall of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ groups came to the fore again , rewriting their own history to present themselves not as collaborators , but nationalist heroes , struggling under a dual occupation from Germany and Russia , rebranding themselves as respectable conservatives .
Perhaps the most prominent example of Neo-Nazi power is Ukraine , where the U.S. helped engineer an uprising that brought about a pro-Washington government .
In 2015 , that new government banned Soviet iconography , made sympathy for communism illegal , and began officially rehabilitating Neo-Nazi groups who participated in genocide in World War II @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
While this could be seen as another example of Donald Trump refusing to condemn the far-right , it is highly doubtful that the incoming Biden administration would have voted any differently .
Indeed , in 2014 , Biden himself traveled to Ukraine to participate in the revolution , helping to unite the opposition to pro-Russian President Yanukovych , forcing him to flee the country .
Displaying a level of interference in foreign politics even the most strident of Russiagate proponents could only dream of , Biden later boasted that he personally ordered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Biden ’ s son , Hunter , was placed onto the board of a Ukrainian energy company , Burisma , earning $ 50,000 per month , despite having no background in energy , nor any knowledge of the region or its languages .
Since Yanukovych ’ s overthrow , Ukraine ’ s government has been relentlessly pro-European ; one reason , perhaps , why virtually every European nation ( including Germany ) decided to abstain from voting “ yes ” earlier this week .
While in Ukraine , the future President-elect of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ neo-Nazi leader Oleh Tyahnybok , head of the Freedom Party , a man who had previously called for a war on the “ Muscovite-Jewish mafia ” and on the “ Jewish oligarchs who control Ukraine.
” While the Freedom Party holds limited political power , other ultranationalists have been appointed to key positions in the government , and the far-right wields considerable influence over the public discourse inside the country and is able to draw huge crowds to their rallies .
The U.S. government paid for the training of much of the new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Azov Batallion , a Nazi paramilitary group that uses iconography from the Waffen SS .
In 2018 , the FBI found that many of the leaders of the “ Unite the Right ” rally in Charlottesville , VA , had , in turn , been trained by Ukrainian neo-Nazis .
There appears to have been zero coverage of the vote in the mainstream corporate press , with no mention of the resolution in the New York Times , CNN , CNBC , Fox News , or MSNBC , and no relevant results on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s questionable connections to the country , the less news about Ukraine , for him , the better .
Feature photo | Volunteers of the ultra far-right Azov Battalion at a rally marking Fatherland Defender Day in Kiev , Ukraine , Oct. 14 , 2016 .
Efrem Lukatsky | AP Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books : Bad News From Venezuela : Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Accuracy in Reporting , The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

The United States and Ukraine were the only two nations to vote against a United Nations resolution Wednesday on, “Combating glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.” The resolution passed 130-2.
The resolution featured 70 fairly bland statements condemning the crimes of Adolf Hitler, while also expressing concern at the rise of contemporary Neo-Nazi groups.
“Neo-Nazism is more than just the glorification of a past movement, it is a contemporary phenomenon with strong vested interests in racial inequality and an investment in gaining broad support for its false claims of racial superiority,” the document warned, expressing its alarm that, in many parts of the world, it is on the rise. “Even where neo-Nazis or extremists do not formally participate in government, the presence therein of extreme right-wing ideologues can have the effect of injecting into governance and political discourse the same ideologies that make neo-Nazism and extremism so dangerous,” it added.
Just two countries voted against the Russian resolution on “Combating the glorification of Nazism & neo-nazism” at today’s #UNGA75.: Ukraine and the US. Whatever about Ukraine. But America? It now hates Russia so much that it refuses to condemn Nazism just to spite Moscow? pic.twitter.com/HxNHOueYWV — Bryan MacDonald (@27khv) December 16, 2020
This is far from the first time the U.S. has voted against resolutions like this one. Indeed, every year since 2014, it has done so. In its justification for doing so, it labeled the resolution nothing more than a “thinly veiled attempt to legitimize longstanding Russian disinformation narratives smearing neighboring nations under the cynical guise of halting Nazi glorification.” The resolution does not, however, name any states, only speaking in generalities.
Russia was indeed one of 24 countries sponsoring the document this time around, a move the U.S. sees as an effort to use the U.N. to delegitimize the U.S.-sponsored government of Ukraine, as well as a number of pro-U.S., anti-Russia Baltic governments, all of which have ties to the modern far-right.
One of the many dirty secrets from the Second World War is that great numbers of Ukrainians and other ethnic nationalist groups in the USSR rose up to work with Nazi Germany in order to rid themselves of Moscow’s rule. Much of their work included rounding up millions of Jews, gypsies, leftists, homosexuals, and other groups, sending them to concentration camps. With the fall of the USSR in 1991, many of these groups came to the fore again, rewriting their own history to present themselves not as collaborators, but nationalist heroes, struggling under a dual occupation from Germany and Russia, rebranding themselves as respectable conservatives.
Perhaps the most prominent example of Neo-Nazi power is Ukraine, where the U.S. helped engineer an uprising that brought about a pro-Washington government. In 2015, that new government banned Soviet iconography, made sympathy for communism illegal, and began officially rehabilitating Neo-Nazi groups who participated in genocide in World War II, honoring their supposed sacrifice and patriotism.
While this could be seen as another example of Donald Trump refusing to condemn the far-right, it is highly doubtful that the incoming Biden administration would have voted any differently. Indeed, in 2014, Biden himself traveled to Ukraine to participate in the revolution, helping to unite the opposition to pro-Russian President Yanukovych, forcing him to flee the country.
Displaying a level of interference in foreign politics even the most strident of Russiagate proponents could only dream of, Biden later boasted that he personally ordered Yanukovych to resign. Just months later, Biden’s son, Hunter, was placed onto the board of a Ukrainian energy company, Burisma, earning $50,000 per month, despite having no background in energy, nor any knowledge of the region or its languages.
Since Yanukovych’s overthrow, Ukraine’s government has been relentlessly pro-European; one reason, perhaps, why virtually every European nation (including Germany) decided to abstain from voting “yes” earlier this week.
While in Ukraine, the future President-elect of the United States also met publicly with neo-Nazi leader Oleh Tyahnybok, head of the Freedom Party, a man who had previously called for a war on the “Muscovite-Jewish mafia” and on the “Jewish oligarchs who control Ukraine.” While the Freedom Party holds limited political power, other ultranationalists have been appointed to key positions in the government, and the far-right wields considerable influence over the public discourse inside the country and is able to draw huge crowds to their rallies.
The U.S. government paid for the training of much of the new Ukrainian military, including the now semi-official Azov Batallion, a Nazi paramilitary group that uses iconography from the Waffen SS. In 2018, the FBI found that many of the leaders of the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, VA, had, in turn, been trained by Ukrainian neo-Nazis.
There appears to have been zero coverage of the vote in the mainstream corporate press, with no mention of the resolution in the New York Times, CNN, CNBC, Fox News, or MSNBC, and no relevant results on Google News either. Considering Biden’s questionable connections to the country, the less news about Ukraine, for him, the better.
Feature photo | Volunteers of the ultra far-right Azov Battalion at a rally marking Fatherland Defender Day in Kiev, Ukraine, Oct. 14, 2016. Efrem Lukatsky | AP
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.


mintpressnews--2020-12-21--Propaganda Pandemic: The Craziest COVID Claims Of The Year

Twenty-twenty has been the year of the pandemic , not just the COVID-19 virus , but a pandemic of propaganda .
Remember when U.S. media was sneering at China while it scrambled to contain the virus and declaring it as proof of the superiority of liberal democracy .
The Atlantic declared that so-called democracies are better at fighting outbreaks .
The LA Times did it too .
And so did The Hill .
All of this as U.S. officials were downplaying or outright lying to the public about the virus .
Then there ’ s Gordon Chang , the Chinese-American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tell Fox viewers whatever the Republican party wants them to hear , no matter how detached from reality it is .
For example , when he told them that , “ Right now you see panic on the part of Beijing.
” That was on February 3 , when China was building two hospitals specifically for COVID patients .
For CNN , building two hospitals in a week was actually a sign of a bad system with a population of sheep .
As they described it : You saw the whole full force @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in service of a crucial national emergency .
But remember , this is China , where crushing the invading enemy may involve measures that would not fly in a democracy .
They undertook these very draconian methods that Americans would not accept .
The blunt fact is that the authoritarian system , the system of censorship , propaganda , control , and surveillance actually help them deal with the virus because people have this built in sense of surveillance in their lives , they tolerate it.
” The U.S. has more surveillance cameras @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just lie and say the government didn ’ t protect the population from COVID-19 because of democracy .
Even top medical experts were too busy ramping up Yellow Peril hysteria to bother with pressuring the government .
As a guest on MSNBC put it , “ I ’ m more worried about the actions countries are taking than actually the virus because we ’ re seeing very draconian , authoritarian measures being taken in China where people ’ s individual rights are being violated.
” Not like here in the U.S. where the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have wantonly attacked protesters with total impunity .
A counter-revolution or military coup in China , right… Meanwhile , a poll by Harvard University found that more than 95 % of China ’ s population is satisfied with the government .
Despite that , Richard Engel warned MSNBC viewers of , “ Door to door temperature checks.
” and decried that , “ Across China , those who refuse to comply with the new measures faced the full authoritarian response.
” Door to door temperature checks .
Oh , the humanity !
Maybe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the fanatical right-wing settler and former member of the Israeli parliament , Yehudah Glick , who put it in more prophetic terms when he said : Ten months later , China has all but eradicated Coronavirus from its population of 1.4 billion , and life inside Chinese borders has returned to relative normal while Israel is dealing with the worst outbreak in the world per capita .
So Yehuda Glick , is that God ’ s punishment for Israel ’ s ethnic cleansing of Palestinians – for , how did you put it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ divine retribution .
It ’ s the predictable result apartheid system built on a racist ideology that sacrifices human life to steal land .
Dan Cohen is a journalist and filmmaker .
He has produced widely distributed video reports and print dispatches from across Israel-Palestine .
Dan is a correspondent at RT America and tweets at @ DanCohen3000 .

Twenty-twenty has been the year of the pandemic, not just the COVID-19 virus, but a pandemic of propaganda. Remember when U.S. media was sneering at China while it scrambled to contain the virus and declaring it as proof of the superiority of liberal democracy.
The Atlantic declared that so-called democracies are better at fighting outbreaks. The LA Times did it too. And so did The Hill.
All of this as U.S. officials were downplaying or outright lying to the public about the virus.
Then there’s Gordon Chang, the Chinese-American native informant whose job it is to tell Fox viewers whatever the Republican party wants them to hear, no matter how detached from reality it is. For example, when he told them that, “Right now you see panic on the part of Beijing.” That was on February 3, when China was building two hospitals specifically for COVID patients.
For CNN, building two hospitals in a week was actually a sign of a bad system with a population of sheep. As they described it:
You saw the whole full force and power of the Chinese state marshaled in service of a crucial national emergency. But remember, this is China, where crushing the invading enemy may involve measures that would not fly in a democracy. They undertook these very draconian methods that Americans would not accept. The blunt fact is that the authoritarian system, the system of censorship, propaganda, control, and surveillance actually help them deal with the virus because people have this built in sense of surveillance in their lives, they tolerate it.”
The U.S. has more surveillance cameras per person than China, but we just lie and say the government didn’t protect the population from COVID-19 because of democracy. Even top medical experts were too busy ramping up Yellow Peril hysteria to bother with pressuring the government.
As a guest on MSNBC put it, “I’m more worried about the actions countries are taking than actually the virus because we’re seeing very draconian, authoritarian measures being taken in China where people’s individual rights are being violated.”
Not like here in the U.S. where the virus has spread like wildfire and police have wantonly attacked protesters with total impunity.
What kind of pressure is all of this meaning for Xi Jinping. I know he is dictator for life. Or is he? Could the people, would the military turn on him and take him out and take him out as a result of all of this?”
A counter-revolution or military coup in China, right… Meanwhile, a poll by Harvard University found that more than 95% of China’s population is satisfied with the government.
Despite that, Richard Engel warned MSNBC viewers of, “Door to door temperature checks.” and decried that, “Across China, those who refuse to comply with the new measures faced the full authoritarian response.”
Door to door temperature checks. Oh, the humanity!
Maybe the most hilarious is a video from the fanatical right-wing settler and former member of the Israeli parliament, Yehudah Glick, who put it in more prophetic terms when he said:
Here is a warning to the rulers of China: Thus says the Lord God of Israel. Stop persecuting believers in the bible. Stop using forced labor. Stop harvesting organs for transplant from political prisoners… We pray that you will stop bringing God’s wrath on your country.”
Ten months later, China has all but eradicated Coronavirus from its population of 1.4 billion, and life inside Chinese borders has returned to relative normal while Israel is dealing with the worst outbreak in the world per capita.
So Yehuda Glick, is that God’s punishment for Israel’s ethnic cleansing of Palestinians – for, how did you put it?
Stop using forced labor, stop harvesting organs for transplants from political prisoners.”
No, it’s not divine retribution. It’s the predictable result apartheid system built on a racist ideology that sacrifices human life to steal land.
Feature photo | Graphic by Antonio Cabrera for MintPress News
Dan Cohen is a journalist and filmmaker. He has produced widely distributed video reports and print dispatches from across Israel-Palestine. Dan is a correspondent at RT America and tweets at @DanCohen3000.


mintpressnews--2020-12-21--Trump Enacts Sweeping New Sanctions on China, Iran, Venezuela. Biden Promises More To Come

On its way out the door , the Trump administration is ramping up another round of aggressive , punishing sanctions against a host of countries .
On Friday , the State Department announced new sanctions against Iran , the People ’ s Republic of China , and Venezuela .
And today , it tightened the grip of the decades-long blockade on Cuba and increased sanctions on Nicaragua .
In the case of Iran , the measures were aimed at its oil industry and went so far as to sanction Vietnamese companies helping with the international supply of Iranian hydrocarbons .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of our sanctions , Iran is looking to come back to the negotiating table to get relief , ” Trump ’ s Special Representative for Iran and Venezuela , Elliott Abrams , asserted , adding ( falsely ) that the Iranian nuclear program remains focused on weaponry , not civilian usage .
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also announced that 59 Chinese entities that were “ undermining our national security and foreign policy interests ” have been targeted .
In the case of Venezuela , the action came as retaliation after it held @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be fraudulent .
The Trump administration has ramped up the use of sanctions , issuing around 3,800 new ones , compared to 2,350 in President Obama ’ s second term .
Sanctions are an act of war , and , when applied unilaterally , are often seen as illegal .
The UN has formally denounced many of the U.S. sanctions , noting that they “ disproportionately affect the poor and most vulnerable classes , ” and not the leaders of foreign governments as is sometimes argued .
The effect on Iran has been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ untold hardship on its people .
Oil production has sputtered .
The Iranian rial has lost the majority of its worth .
Food and consumer goods have become scarce and far more expensive , and international travel is now much harder .
Throughout 2020 , the U.S. has hindered the import of humanitarian aid and personal protective equipment , adding to the COVID-19 epidemic inside the country .
The National Iranian American Council ( no lovers of the current administration in Tehran ) described U.S. actions as “ heartless and sadistic.
” Seyed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the University of Tehran agreed , telling MintPress in October that , “ The sanctions deliberately target ordinary Iranians , women , and children…They are designed to kill hospital patients and to create poverty .
They have had partial success.
” The effect on Venezuela has been if anything , more acute .
An estimated 100,000 people have been killed by American sanctions ( a fact barely reported in the West ) , as vital medical equipment and lifesaving drugs have been blocked from entering the country .
Alfred de Zayas , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ visited Venezuela , comparing life there to living under a Medieval siege , and declaring the United States as guilty of “ crimes against humanity.
” There appears little hope for a major change in tactics with the incoming administration .
A Biden-linked Washington think-tank recently released a report calling for more “ innovative ” use of what it called “ coercive economic statecraft , ” ( i.e .
sanctions ) .
The Center for a New American Security was founded by Michelle Flournoy , Biden ’ s original pick for Defense Secretary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like Victoria Nuland .
“ The use of economic power , backed up by all of the available legal tools , plays to America ’ s strengths as the dominant global economic power and promises a continued stream of benefits , ” they argue , concluding that , “ Although there are inevitably going to be costs , and possibly increasing ones , associated with the use of coercive economic tools , the benefits are also going to increase over time.
” News agency Reuters also recently released a report based on conversations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vice-president , noting that sanctions will “ remain a central instrument of U.S. power ” under his administration , suggesting that he will likely ramp up sanctions against Russia .
Far from dropping the practice , Biden ’ s major challenge , according to those cited , will be “ to sort out which sanctions to keep , which to undo and which to expand.
” It appears it will continue to be full steam ahead for America ’ s sanctions regime in 2021 .
Feature photo | A cervical cancer patient sits @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hospital in Caracas , Venezuela , Sept 2 , 2020 .
Ariana Cubillos | AP Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books : Bad News From Venezuela : Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent .
He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting , The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

On its way out the door, the Trump administration is ramping up another round of aggressive, punishing sanctions against a host of countries. On Friday, the State Department announced new sanctions against Iran, the People’s Republic of China, and Venezuela. And today, it tightened the grip of the decades-long blockade on Cuba and increased sanctions on Nicaragua.
In the case of Iran, the measures were aimed at its oil industry and went so far as to sanction Vietnamese companies helping with the international supply of Iranian hydrocarbons. “Today, thanks to the success of our sanctions, Iran is looking to come back to the negotiating table to get relief,” Trump’s Special Representative for Iran and Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, asserted, adding (falsely) that the Iranian nuclear program remains focused on weaponry, not civilian usage.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also announced that 59 Chinese entities that were “undermining our national security and foreign policy interests” have been targeted. In the case of Venezuela, the action came as retaliation after it held an election the United States deemed to be fraudulent.
The Trump administration has ramped up the use of sanctions, issuing around 3,800 new ones, compared to 2,350 in President Obama’s second term. Sanctions are an act of war, and, when applied unilaterally, are often seen as illegal. The UN has formally denounced many of the U.S. sanctions, noting that they “disproportionately affect the poor and most vulnerable classes,” and not the leaders of foreign governments as is sometimes argued.
The effect on Iran has been to essentially tank its economy and cause untold hardship on its people. Oil production has sputtered. The Iranian rial has lost the majority of its worth. Food and consumer goods have become scarce and far more expensive, and international travel is now much harder. Throughout 2020, the U.S. has hindered the import of humanitarian aid and personal protective equipment, adding to the COVID-19 epidemic inside the country. The National Iranian American Council (no lovers of the current administration in Tehran) described U.S. actions as “heartless and sadistic.” Seyed Mohammad Marandi, Professor of English Literature at the University of Tehran agreed, telling MintPress in October that, “The sanctions deliberately target ordinary Iranians, women, and children…They are designed to kill hospital patients and to create poverty. They have had partial success.”
The effect on Venezuela has been if anything, more acute. An estimated 100,000 people have been killed by American sanctions (a fact barely reported in the West), as vital medical equipment and lifesaving drugs have been blocked from entering the country. Alfred de Zayas, an (American) UN Special Rapporteur visited Venezuela, comparing life there to living under a Medieval siege, and declaring the United States as guilty of “crimes against humanity.”
There appears little hope for a major change in tactics with the incoming administration. A Biden-linked Washington think-tank recently released a report calling for more “innovative” use of what it called “coercive economic statecraft,” (i.e. sanctions). The Center for a New American Security was founded by Michelle Flournoy, Biden’s original pick for Defense Secretary, and is full of Obama-era officials like Victoria Nuland. “The use of economic power, backed up by all of the available legal tools, plays to America’s strengths as the dominant global economic power and promises a continued stream of benefits,” they argue, concluding that, “Although there are inevitably going to be costs, and possibly increasing ones, associated with the use of coercive economic tools, the benefits are also going to increase over time.”
News agency Reuters also recently released a report based on conversations with people close to the 78-year-old former vice-president, noting that sanctions will “remain a central instrument of U.S. power” under his administration, suggesting that he will likely ramp up sanctions against Russia. Far from dropping the practice, Biden’s major challenge, according to those cited, will be “to sort out which sanctions to keep, which to undo and which to expand.” It appears it will continue to be full steam ahead for America’s sanctions regime in 2021.
Feature photo | A cervical cancer patient sits on her bed at the Luis Razetti hospital in Caracas, Venezuela, Sept 2, 2020. Ariana Cubillos | AP
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.


mintpressnews--2020-12-21--A “Slap in the Face:” Anger at Pelosi, Democrats Over Paltry $600 Stimulus Check

Lawmakers in Washington agreed to a new $ 900 billion coronavirus stimulus package yesterday .
The bill , like the previous CARES Act , appears to include huge new tax breaks for corporations and the very wealthy .
However , of most note to average Americans is the means-tested check of up to $ 600 plus $ 600 per child that Republicans and Democrats decided on .
Although far less than the $ 1,200 checks mailed out to Americans in the spring , Democratic lawmakers are presenting the deal as a triumph .
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , strong shot in the arm to get things going.
” Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi agreed , although she blamed the GOP for holding the agreement up .
“ What took so long is because we could not get our Republican colleagues to crush the virus…Why would they not want to invest in the science ?
” she said at a press conference on Sunday .
The bill also includes a $ 300 boost to federal unemployment benefits ( half of what it was six months ago ) and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ length of time .
Despite senior Democrats ’ spin , it appeared that the primary public reaction to the deal was one of anger , judging by comments on social media .
“ Congress just decided you get $ 600 .
Add that to the $ 1,200 from March , and it totals $ 6.69 a day since the country shut down in March .
Both parties don ’ t care if we live or die or sleep in a box on a sidewalk in January , ” said Professor Anthony Zenkus of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ This country sucks , ” and “ Congress is laughing at the $ 600 .
They don ’ t give a shit about you , ” were also popular refrains .
Others described the $ 600 as “ a slap in the face ” rather than a shot in the arm .
David Sirota , a former speechwriter and senior advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders , described the bill as a “ victory for an austerity ideology that somehow still reigns supreme in Washington , ” and “ not even the bare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an economic meltdown that has been punctuated by mass starvation and intensifying poverty.
” There was also considerable anger aimed at Speaker Pelosi herself .
“ You are corrupt and despicable , ” wrote Palestinian-American journalist Ali Abunimah , “ You denied people relief before the election as a political ploy and you still lost seats .
Now you give people who are losing jobs and homes $ 600 .
The ice cream in your freezer is worth more than that !
” Abunimah was referencing Pelosi ’ s April appearance on “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” In the middle of a drive to get people to stay home , she was interviewed from her own California mansion , appearing in front of a $ 25,000 refrigerator , revealing her penchant for gourmet ice cream costing $ 12-13 per pint .
If Pelosi had hoped that the stunt would humanize her , she miscalculated , with many suggesting that it made her seem out of touch with every day struggling Americans .
While the $ 600 check will be a lifeline to many , before the presidential election , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , with Republican Senator Tom Cotton suggesting a monthly stipend of $ 1,000- $ 1,400 per American , and Donald Trump arguing for a check of up to $ 2,000 .
And while Democrats are suggesting that , with Biden in the White House , passing comprehensive relief will be easier , history suggests the opposite .
During the Obama administration , Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell used his power to stymie and shutter any legislation the president tried to enact .
There will be every incentive for the Republican Party to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ order to present Biden as every bit as incompetent as Trump at handling the pandemic .
As of Monday , 324,869 Americans — 0.1 % of the population — have died of coronavirus .
The United States currently leads the world in total cases , deaths , and active cases .
No amount of stimulus checks will make up for so many unnecessary deaths caused .
Feature photo | Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif. , meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington , Nov. 13 , 2020 .
J.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books : Bad News From Venezuela : Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent .
He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting , The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

Lawmakers in Washington agreed to a new $900 billion coronavirus stimulus package yesterday. The bill, like the previous CARES Act, appears to include huge new tax breaks for corporations and the very wealthy. However, of most note to average Americans is the means-tested check of up to $600 plus $600 per child that Republicans and Democrats decided on.
Although far less than the $1,200 checks mailed out to Americans in the spring, Democratic lawmakers are presenting the deal as a triumph. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York described it as “a strong, strong shot in the arm to get things going.” Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi agreed, although she blamed the GOP for holding the agreement up. “What took so long is because we could not get our Republican colleagues to crush the virus…Why would they not want to invest in the science?” she said at a press conference on Sunday.
The bill also includes a $300 boost to federal unemployment benefits (half of what it was six months ago) and a pause on evictions for an unspecified length of time.
Despite senior Democrats’ spin, it appeared that the primary public reaction to the deal was one of anger, judging by comments on social media. “Congress just decided you get $600. Add that to the $1,200 from March, and it totals $6.69 a day since the country shut down in March. Both parties don’t care if we live or die or sleep in a box on a sidewalk in January,” said Professor Anthony Zenkus of the Columbia School of Social Work. “This country sucks,” and “Congress is laughing at the $600. They don’t give a shit about you,” were also popular refrains. Others described the $600 as “a slap in the face” rather than a shot in the arm.
Congress is laughing at the $600. They don't give a shit about you. — thebradfordfile™ (@thebradfordfile) December 21, 2020
https://twitter.com/IamNurseTrish/status/1340837417096540161
David Sirota, a former speechwriter and senior advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders, described the bill as a “victory for an austerity ideology that somehow still reigns supreme in Washington,” and “not even the bare minimum that should be considered acceptable during an economic meltdown that has been punctuated by mass starvation and intensifying poverty.”
There was also considerable anger aimed at Speaker Pelosi herself. “You are corrupt and despicable,” wrote Palestinian-American journalist Ali Abunimah, “You denied people relief before the election as a political ploy and you still lost seats. Now you give people who are losing jobs and homes $600. The ice cream in your freezer is worth more than that!”
Abunimah was referencing Pelosi’s April appearance on “The Late Late Show with James Corden.” In the middle of a drive to get people to stay home, she was interviewed from her own California mansion, appearing in front of a $25,000 refrigerator, revealing her penchant for gourmet ice cream costing $12-13 per pint. If Pelosi had hoped that the stunt would humanize her, she miscalculated, with many suggesting that it made her seem out of touch with every day struggling Americans.
$1200 was not enough, and #600IsNotEnough. Everyone in Congress should be ashamed of themselves. pic.twitter.com/dXCpfdmyro — CaptainHogan (@HoganCaptain) December 21, 2020
While the $600 check will be a lifeline to many, before the presidential election, both parties were proposing far larger sums, with Republican Senator Tom Cotton suggesting a monthly stipend of $1,000-$1,400 per American, and Donald Trump arguing for a check of up to $2,000. And while Democrats are suggesting that, with Biden in the White House, passing comprehensive relief will be easier, history suggests the opposite.
During the Obama administration, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell used his power to stymie and shutter any legislation the president tried to enact. There will be every incentive for the Republican Party to do the same this time around in order to present Biden as every bit as incompetent as Trump at handling the pandemic.
As of Monday, 324,869 Americans — 0.1% of the population — have died of coronavirus. The United States currently leads the world in total cases, deaths, and active cases. No amount of stimulus checks will make up for so many unnecessary deaths caused.
Feature photo | Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Nov. 13, 2020. J. Scott Applewhite | AP
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.


mintpressnews--2020-12-21--No, Joe, Don’t Roll out the Red Carpet for Torture Enablers

It was painful enough to live through the U.S invasion of Iraq that caused untold devastation and human misery for no justifiable reason .
Now we are again reminded of the grim Bush legacy with President-elect Biden ’ s nomination of Avril Haines for Director of National Intelligence .
Haines , who has an inside-the-beltway reputation for being nice and soft spoken , was a little too nice to CIA agents who hacked the computers of Senate Intelligence Committee investigators looking into the CIA use of torture–waterboarding , sleep deprivation , hypothermia , rectal feeding , whippings , sexual humiliation–at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bush War on Terror .
As Deputy Director of the CIA in the Obama administration , Haines chose not to discipline those CIA hackers who violated the separation of powers , crossing the boundary line and beaching the firewall between the executive and legislative branches .
To add insult to injury , Haines led the team that redacted an exhaustive 5-year , 6,000-page Senate Intelligence Committee Report on Torture until it was reduced to a censored , 500-page summary smeared with black ink to cover up the screaming horrors and shield those responsible @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and their advocates have just released a damning Open Letter urging Senators to vote NO on Haines when her nomination lands in their laps in mid-January or February after the cyber pomp and circumstance of a virtual Presidential inauguration .
The letter , signed by several decade-long detainee/survivors of torture at Guantanamo , also objects to the possible nomination of Mike Morell , a CIA analyst under Bush , for CIA Director .
“ Elevating torture apologists to a leadership position within the Biden administration will damage the USA ’ s standing and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and comfort , ” said .
Djamel Ameziane , a Guantanamo detainee from Algeria who was tortured and held without charge from 2002-2013 , until he was finally released from prison .
Morell ’ s traction may be on the wane with the Biden administration , however , after progressives launched a campaign against Morell , the former Deputy and Acting CIA Director under Obama , and Senator Ron Wyden—a powerful Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee—called him a “ torture apologist ” and said his appointment to head the CIA was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ include his defense of the Agency ’ s “ enhanced interrogation ” practices : mock drownings , “ walling ” — repeatedly slamming prisoners against a wall , whipping detainees with electrical cords , dumping freezing cold water on detainees naked except for diapers .
Morell refused to call these practices torture .
“ I don ’ t like calling it torture for one simple reason : to call it torture says my guys were torturers , ” Morell admitted to Vice reporters in 2015 .
“ I ’ m gon na defend @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” said Morell , who put his CIA buddies above truth , the law and basic decency .
Morell doesn ’ t call it torture , but Guantanamo survivor Moazzam Begg knows exactly what torture is .
Begg , who signed a false confession while tortured , is Outreach Director for CAGE , a UK-based organization serving communities hard hit by the War on Terror .
Begg recollects his days in US custody .
“ They tied me up with my hands behind my back to my legs , kicked me in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , threatened to take me to Egypt to be tortured , to be raped , to be electrocuted .
They had a woman screaming in the next room whom I believed at that time was my wife .
They bought pictures of my children and told me I would never see them again.
” Contrary to the Senate report and the CIA ’ s own internal review , Morell justified the torture by insisting that it was effective in thwarting future plots against Americans .
Senate staffers said Morell got names , dates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was dead wrong on the effectiveness of torture .
Torture Survivor and award-winning writer Mansoor Adayfi , sold to US forces in Afghanistan for bounty money and imprisoned without charge at Guantanamo for 14 years , knows firsthand that torture doesn ’ t work .
“ In Guantanamo , when they put you under very bad circumstances—like 72 hours under very cold air conditioning , and you are tied to the ground and someone comes and pours cold water on you—you are going to tell them whatever they want you to say .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ admit anything !
” In addition to soft-pedaling the use of torture , Morell helped shield the abusers from accountability by defending the CIA ’ s 2005 destruction of nearly 90 videotapes of the brutal interrogation of Abu Zubaydah and other detainees in CIA black sites .
Progressives should know soon whether Morell ’ s cozy relationship with Bush-era CIA agents buries his nomination for good .
Biden is expected to nominate his candidate for CIA director any day now .
For Jeffrey Kaye , author of Cover-Up at Guantanamo and a signatory @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must pass on Morell and the Senate must reject Haines .
“ Morell and Haines have put loyalty to CIA torturers above adherence to US treaties and domestic law , as well as basic morality .
To allow them to serve in government would send a message to all that accountability for torture is passé , and that war crimes will always be dismissed with a wink from those in high office.
” Other signatories to the letter objecting to Morell and Haines include : • Mohamedou Ould Salahi , Guantanamo prisoner held @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , force fed , deprived of sleep ; released in 2016 , author , Guantánamo Diary ; • Major Todd Pierce ( U.S. Army , Retired ) , Judge Advocate General attorney on the defense teams for Guantánamo military commissions defendants ; • Sister Dianna Ortiz , a US missionary , teacher of Mayan children , who was tortured by members of the CIA-funded Guatemalan army ; • Carlos Mauricio , College professor kidnapped and tortured by US-backed right-wing death squads in El Salvador ; Executive Director : Stop Impunity Project ; • @ @ @ @ @ @ @ founded School of the Americas Watch to protest US training Latin American military officers in torture techniques ; • Colonel Larry Wilkerson , Whistleblower and Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell ; • John Kiriakou , former CIA officer imprisoned after exposing classified information about CIA waterboarding ; • Roger Waters , musician formerly with Pink Floyd , whose song “ Each Small Candle ” is a tribute to a torture victim .
Progressives have been lobbying against the inclusion of torture apologists in the Biden administration since the August @ @ @ @ @ @ @ delivered a letter to Biden urging him to hire new foreign policy advisors and reject Haines .
CODEPINK later launched a petition signed by over 4,000 , and organized Capitol Hill calling parties with Muslim Delegates and Allies to leave “ No on Haines , No on Morell , ” messages at the offices of Senate Intelligence Committee members slated to question Haines during confirmation hearings .
For months , Morell was considered the frontrunner for CIA director , but opposition to his disgraceful defense of torture has cast a pall on his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want to make sure his nomination is off the table , and that Biden and the Senate also understand Avril Haines must be rejected for her complicity in suppressing evidence of CIA torture .
Both Morell and Haines supported Trump ’ s nomination of Gina Haspel to CIA Director — a nomination that then-Senator Kamala Harris , other prominent Democrats , and Senator John McCain vigorously opposed .
Haspel supervised a black site prison in Thailand and drafted the memo authorizing the destruction of CIA videotapes documenting torture .
In the words of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bush ’ s Secretary of State Colin Powell , “ Kidnapping , torture and assassination have no place in a democracy and turn the CIA into a secret police … Abuses of the kind documented in the Senate ’ s report could happen again.
” And they could–if Biden and the Senate elevate torture apologists and whitewashers to the White House .
We need intelligence leaders who acknowledge that torture is illegal under international law ; that is inhumane ; that it is ineffective ; that it puts at risk U.S. military personnel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must send a clear message to President-elect Biden that we will not accept torture enablers in his administration .
Feature photo | President-elect Joe Biden ’ s Director of National Intelligence nominee Avril Haines removes her face mask to speak at The Queen Theater , Nov. 24 , 2020 , in Wilmington , Del .
Carolyn Kaster | AP Medea Benjamin is cofounder of CODEPINK for Peace , and author of several books , including Drone Warfare : Killing by Remote Control .
She has participated in anti-torture protests outside the Guantanamo Prison @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and in Congressional hearings .
Marcy Winograd of Progressive Democrats of America served as a 2020 DNC Delegate for Bernie Sanders and co-founded the Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party .
Coordinator of CODEPINKCONGRESS , Marcy spearheads Capitol Hill calling parties to mobilize co-sponsors and votes for peace and foreign policy legislation .

It was painful enough to live through the U.S invasion of Iraq that caused untold devastation and human misery for no justifiable reason.
Now we are again reminded of the grim Bush legacy with President-elect Biden’s nomination of Avril Haines for Director of National Intelligence. Haines, who has an inside-the-beltway reputation for being nice and soft spoken, was a little too nice to CIA agents who hacked the computers of Senate Intelligence Committee investigators looking into the CIA use of torture–waterboarding, sleep deprivation, hypothermia, rectal feeding, whippings, sexual humiliation–at prisons in Guatanamo and Afghanistan during the Bush War on Terror.
As Deputy Director of the CIA in the Obama administration, Haines chose not to discipline those CIA hackers who violated the separation of powers, crossing the boundary line and beaching the firewall between the executive and legislative branches. To add insult to injury, Haines led the team that redacted an exhaustive 5-year, 6,000-page Senate Intelligence Committee Report on Torture until it was reduced to a censored, 500-page summary smeared with black ink to cover up the screaming horrors and shield those responsible.
That’s why torture survivors and their advocates have just released a damning Open Letter urging Senators to vote NO on Haines when her nomination lands in their laps in mid-January or February after the cyber pomp and circumstance of a virtual Presidential inauguration. The letter, signed by several decade-long detainee/survivors of torture at Guantanamo, also objects to the possible nomination of Mike Morell, a CIA analyst under Bush, for CIA Director.
“Elevating torture apologists to a leadership position within the Biden administration will damage the USA’s standing and give the world’s dictators succor and comfort,” said.
Djamel Ameziane, a Guantanamo detainee from Algeria who was tortured and held without charge from 2002-2013, until he was finally released from prison.
Morell’s traction may be on the wane with the Biden administration, however, after progressives launched a campaign against Morell, the former Deputy and Acting CIA Director under Obama, and Senator Ron Wyden—a powerful Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee—called him a “torture apologist” and said his appointment to head the CIA was a “non starter.”
Objections to Morell include his defense of the Agency’s “enhanced interrogation” practices: mock drownings, “walling” — repeatedly slamming prisoners against a wall, whipping detainees with electrical cords, dumping freezing cold water on detainees naked except for diapers.
Morell refused to call these practices torture. “I don’t like calling it torture for one simple reason: to call it torture says my guys were torturers,” Morell admitted to Vice reporters in 2015. “I’m gonna defend my guys till my last breath,” said Morell, who put his CIA buddies above truth, the law and basic decency.
Morell doesn’t call it torture, but Guantanamo survivor Moazzam Begg knows exactly what torture is. Begg, who signed a false confession while tortured, is Outreach Director for CAGE, a UK-based organization serving communities hard hit by the War on Terror. Begg recollects his days in US custody. “They tied me up with my hands behind my back to my legs, kicked me in the head, kicked me in the back, threatened to take me to Egypt to be tortured, to be raped, to be electrocuted. They had a woman screaming in the next room whom I believed at that time was my wife. They bought pictures of my children and told me I would never see them again.”
Contrary to the Senate report and the CIA’s own internal review, Morell justified the torture by insisting that it was effective in thwarting future plots against Americans. Senate staffers said Morell got names, dates and facts all mixed up, and was dead wrong on the effectiveness of torture.
Torture Survivor and award-winning writer Mansoor Adayfi, sold to US forces in Afghanistan for bounty money and imprisoned without charge at Guantanamo for 14 years, knows firsthand that torture doesn’t work. “In Guantanamo, when they put you under very bad circumstances—like 72 hours under very cold air conditioning, and you are tied to the ground and someone comes and pours cold water on you—you are going to tell them whatever they want you to say. I will sign anything, I will admit anything!”
In addition to soft-pedaling the use of torture, Morell helped shield the abusers from accountability by defending the CIA’s 2005 destruction of nearly 90 videotapes of the brutal interrogation of Abu Zubaydah and other detainees in CIA black sites.
Progressives should know soon whether Morell’s cozy relationship with Bush-era CIA agents buries his nomination for good.
Biden is expected to nominate his candidate for CIA director any day now. For Jeffrey Kaye, author of Cover-Up at Guantanamo and a signatory to the Open Letter, the President-Elect must pass on Morell and the Senate must reject Haines. “Morell and Haines have put loyalty to CIA torturers above adherence to US treaties and domestic law, as well as basic morality. To allow them to serve in government would send a message to all that accountability for torture is passé, and that war crimes will always be dismissed with a wink from those in high office.”
Other signatories to the letter objecting to Morell and Haines include:
Mohamedou Ould Salahi, Guantanamo prisoner held without charge for 14 years; beaten, force fed, deprived of sleep; released in 2016, author, Guantánamo Diary;
Major Todd Pierce (U.S. Army, Retired), Judge Advocate General attorney on the defense teams for Guantánamo military commissions defendants;
Sister Dianna Ortiz, a US missionary, teacher of Mayan children, who was tortured by members of the CIA-funded Guatemalan army;
Carlos Mauricio, College professor kidnapped and tortured by US-backed right-wing death squads in El Salvador; Executive Director: Stop Impunity Project;
Roy Bourgeois, Roman Catholic priest who founded School of the Americas Watch to protest US training Latin American military officers in torture techniques;
Colonel Larry Wilkerson, Whistleblower and Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell;
John Kiriakou, former CIA officer imprisoned after exposing classified information about CIA waterboarding;
Roger Waters, musician formerly with Pink Floyd, whose song “Each Small Candle” is a tribute to a torture victim.
Progressives have been lobbying against the inclusion of torture apologists in the Biden administration since the August Democratic National Convention, when 450 delegates delivered a letter to Biden urging him to hire new foreign policy advisors and reject Haines. CODEPINK later launched a petition signed by over 4,000, and organized Capitol Hill calling parties with Muslim Delegates and Allies to leave “No on Haines, No on Morell,” messages at the offices of Senate Intelligence Committee members slated to question Haines during confirmation hearings.
For months, Morell was considered the frontrunner for CIA director, but opposition to his disgraceful defense of torture has cast a pall on his nomination. Now anti-war activists say they want to make sure his nomination is off the table, and that Biden and the Senate also understand Avril Haines must be rejected for her complicity in suppressing evidence of CIA torture.
There’s more, too.
Both Morell and Haines supported Trump’s nomination of Gina Haspel to CIA Director — a nomination that then-Senator Kamala Harris, other prominent Democrats, and Senator John McCain vigorously opposed. Haspel supervised a black site prison in Thailand and drafted the memo authorizing the destruction of CIA videotapes documenting torture.
In the words of Colonel Wilkerson, Chief of Staff for Bush’s Secretary of State Colin Powell , “Kidnapping, torture and assassination have no place in a democracy and turn the CIA into a secret police … Abuses of the kind documented in the Senate’s report could happen again.”
And they could–if Biden and the Senate elevate torture apologists and whitewashers to the White House.
We need intelligence leaders who acknowledge that torture is illegal under international law; that is inhumane; that it is ineffective; that it puts at risk U.S. military personnel captured by adversaries. The American people must send a clear message to President-elect Biden that we will not accept torture enablers in his administration.
Feature photo | President-elect Joe Biden’s Director of National Intelligence nominee Avril Haines removes her face mask to speak at The Queen Theater, Nov. 24, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. Carolyn Kaster | AP
Medea Benjamin is cofounder of CODEPINK for Peace, and author of several books, including Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control. She has participated in anti-torture protests outside the Guantanamo Prison in Cuba, at the White House and in Congressional hearings.
Marcy Winograd of Progressive Democrats of America served as a 2020 DNC Delegate for Bernie Sanders and co-founded the Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party. Coordinator of CODEPINKCONGRESS, Marcy spearheads Capitol Hill calling parties to mobilize co-sponsors and votes for peace and foreign policy legislation.