The New Dark Age

Operation Mini Cast Lead
By Gideon Levy
Again, the Israeli propaganda machine has managed to convince only brainwashed Israelis, and once more no one asked the question: What was it for?
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25586.htm

All At Sea
How many remember the hijacking of the Achille Lauro?
By Yvonne Ridley
One cannot attack a ship and then claim self-defence if the people on board resist the unlawful use of violence.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25592.htm

U.S. Blocks Security Council Criticism of Israeli Raid
The Salt Lake Tribune
The Obama administration refused to endorse a statement that singled out Israel, and proposed a broader condemnation of the violence that would include the assault of the Israeli commandos as they landed on the deck of the ship.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25589.htm

Obama’s Timidity and Deaths at Sea
By Ray McGovern
A chief lesson to learn from President Barack Obama’s recent unwillingness to stand up to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Likud Lobby is that such timidity can get people killed.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25595.htm

Western Leaders are too Cowardly to Help Save Lives
It is ordinary people, activists, who now take decisions to change events
By Robert Fisk
You only have to read the gutless White House statement – that the Obama administration was “working to understand the circumstances surrounding the tragedy”. Not a single word of condemnation.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25593.htm

Mossad Chief: Israel Gradually Becoming Burden on U.S.
By JPOST.COM STAFF
Strategic ties between Jerusalem and Washington have been slowly changing since the conclusion of the Cold War, Mossad chief Meir Dagan told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25585.htm

A Special Place in Hell / The Second Gaza War: Israel lost at sea
By Bradley Burston
We are no longer defending Israel. We are now defending the siege, which is itself becoming Israel’s Vietnam.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25590.htm

The Concentration Camp that is Gaza
Only a One-state Palestine is Possible
 
By Christopher King
The future lies in sharing the land equitably with the Palestinians and so living in peace.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25587.htm

American Denial: Living in a Can’t-Do Nation
By Tom Engelhardt
Who can deny that our American world is in trouble?  Or that our troubles, like our wars, have a momentum of their own against which we generally no longer raise our voices in protest; that we have, in a sense, been disarmed as citizens?
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25594.htm

Wall Street’s War
By Matt Taibbi
Congress looked serious about finance reform – until America’s biggest banks unleashed an army of 2,000 paid lobbyists.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25591.htm

Immigration: Slightly Different Take
By Fred Reed
As is so commonly the case in semi-democracies, whatever might work is politically impossible, and whatever is politically possible won’t work.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25588.htm

15 killed in Afghanistan:
A NATO soldier was killed in a roadside bomb blast in southern Afghanistan, while Afghan and NATO forces killed 14 Taliban fighters in the country’s north, officials said on Tuesday.
tinyurl.com/2a9f7qj

Main opposition leader not to participate in Afghan peace jirga:
Afghanistan’s most prominent opposition leader, Abdullah Abdullah, said Tuesday he and his supporters would not participate in an upcoming meeting that hopes to lay the groundwork for reconciliation with the Taliban.
tinyurl.com/2ckkyyw

Taliban term Afghan peace Jirga as phony and vow to continue war:
“They have launched drive for convening this phony Jirga to provide stuff for consumption by the American and world public but at the meantime, along with peaceful slogans of the Jirga,” the statement said.
english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90854/7007816.html

Fact or fiction?
Terror link alleged as Saudi millions flow into Afghanistan war zone:
Millions of dollars of Saudi Arabian money have flowed into Afghanistan over the past four years, the country’s intelligence officials say, with the sponsorship of terrorism its most likely use.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/afghanistan/article7140745.ece

Gunmen open fire at Pak hospital, 12 killed:
Gunmen opened fire at a Pakistan hospital where victims of attacks on Ahmadi mosques were being treated late Monday, killing 12 people in a shootout with security forces, a doctor said.
www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=141039

US kills al-Qaeda ‘number three’:
Al-Qaeda confirmed al-Yazid’s death in a message posted on internet forums on Monday.
english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2010/06/20106143751105245.html

Four killed in attacks in Iraq, 25 militants arrested:
A bomb targeting a police patrol in the area of Tahrir, in the northern city of Mosul, killed three policemen and injured one other. Separately, a soldier was killed in clashes with militants in the area of al-Muthana, in eastern Mosul.
tinyurl.com/25coc2v

337 Iraqi civilians killed in May:
275 civilians, 45 police and 17 soldiers – killed as a result of attacks in May, according to data compiled by the health, interior and defence ministries.
news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/337-iraqi-civilians-killed-in-may-20100601-wvhj.html

Iraq headed for wide coalition government:
In theory, the Iraqi Supreme Court’s decision to ratify the results from elections held nearly three months ago should speed up the extremely sluggish pace at which the country’s political process is moving.
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/middle_east/10207211.stm

Israeli Military Kills 5 Palestinians in Gaza Strip Clashes:
Israeli forces killed two Palestinians who tried to infiltrate from the Gaza Strip into Israel and another three who attempted to fire a rocket.
www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aN3SS1QMQHvM

Report: Delayed Irish aid ship sets sail for Gaza:
Despite threats from Israel’s navy, an Irish boat packed with humanitarian aid is reportedly proceeding toward Gaza.
www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=288655

Govt warns Israel to ‘exercise restraint’ on Irish aid ship:
The Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin has discussed the ship’s approach with the Israeli Ambassador to Ireland.
www.eecho.ie/news/index.aspx?c=ireland&jp=eyojsnsnqley

Martin demands return of citizens:
Irish Foreign Affairs minister Michael Martin has demanded that Israel allows Irish humanitarian ship the MV Rachel Corrie through its military blockade of Gaza.
tinyurl.com/262rlak

‘Next time we’ll use more force’:
Israel will use more aggressive force in the future to prevent ships from breaking the sea blockade on the Gaza Strip, a top Navy commander told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=177134

Israel vows to block new aid convoy:
Israel on Tuesday vowed to block all aid ships heading for Gaza as defiant activists said they would launch another bid to smash the Israeli blockade, despite the latest mission ending in tragedy.
tinyurl.com/2eg6fle

Turkish fleet will sail to the eastern Mediterranean – Statements Turkish commander:
Turkey has recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv, and the threat of outside support for the next ship, and threatened to “unprecedented immense reprisals.
tinyurl.com/2alh74r

Israel jails 480 Gaza aid activists:
Israel has jailed 487 international activists captured during its deadly commando strike on a Gaza aid convoy, while 48 others are to be “expelled.”
www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=128593&sectionid=351020202

Statement by the Secretary General of NATO on Israeli attack:
I request the immediate release of the detained civilians and ships held by Israel.
www.isria.com/pages/1_June_2010_250.php

Eye witness accounts of Israeli attack:
Speaking on their return to Germany, Greece and Turkey on Tuesday, the activists said that commandos had administered electric shocks and beaten passengers during the assault.
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/10206802.stm

Former US ambassador on Gaza aid ship seized by Israelis heading home, wife says:
Edward Peck, 80, of Chevy Chase, Md., was among activists in the flotilla trying to get humanitarian aid to Gaza, said his wife, Ann Peck.
tinyurl.com/2g8auwm

No weapons on stormed Turkish ship: Report:
“Allegations that there were weapons aboard the Turkish ship are baseless,” Fevzi Gulcan, the head of customs at the Mediterranean port city of Antalya, told Anatolia.
tinyurl.com/2auhjfr

Egypt orders crossing open ‘immediately’:
Rafah, the sole crossing into Egypt, will be open in both directions to allow the transit of patients, students, and foreign passport holders for three days, the source said.
www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=288814

Gaza aid convoy killings: “Those responsible must be held criminally accountable” – UN expert:
“Israel is guilty of shocking behavior by using deadly weapons against unarmed civilians on ships that were situated in the high seas where freedom of navigation exists, according to the law of the seas,” Mr. Falk said.
www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=10080&LangID=E

Lieberman to UN chief: International community is two-faced for condemning Israel:
UN Security Council requests immediate release of ships and civilians held by Israel.
tinyurl.com/27umc69

Still Think Israel Doesn’t Run the United States?:
From the website of the U.S. Department of Commerce (Bureau of Industry and Security)
www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/58854.html

In case you missed it:
Dead in the Water: BBC video report:
During the Six-Day War, Israel attacked and nearly sank the USS Liberty belonging to its closest ally, the USA. Thirty-four American servicemen were killed in the two-hour assault by Israeli warplanes and torpedo boats.
www.informationclearinghouse.info/article5073.htm

NPT Signatories Call on Israel to Open Nuclear Sites:
Israel is the only Middle East state not to have signed the NPT. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the measure, calling it biased for excluding Iran.
tinyurl.com/2fxbgxc

Manufacturing Consent For Attack On Iran
U.N. Says Iran Has Fuel for 2 Nuclear Weapons:
International nuclear inspectors declared Monday that Iran has now produced a stockpile of nuclear fuel that experts say would be enough, with further enrichment, to make two nuclear weapons.
www.nytimes.com/2010/06/01/world/middleeast/01nuke.html?ref=global-home

Tropical Storm Agatha floods kill 150, cause giant sinkhole in Guatemala City:
Flooding and landslides from Tropical Storm Agatha have killed more than 150 people throughout Central America in the past few days, and apparently caused a giant Guatemala City sinkhole.
tinyurl.com/24pyf36

Ex-defence chief wins Colombia vote:
Uribe’s anointed successor wins first round of presidential polls but fails to avoid runoff.
english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/05/201053023828556716.html

Silence Right Must Be Invoked Explicitly, Court Says:
Criminal suspects must explicitly invoke their right to remain silent to force police to stop questioning, a divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled.
tinyurl.com/22ubsvg

America’s ‘casualty gap’ Poor areas lose more of their young to wars:
We found that citizens informed about the existence of a casualty gap were significantly more likely to oppose ongoing military operations and less willing to support future ones than were their peers who were not informed about casualty inequalities.
tinyurl.com/2dbdq3k

Poll: Personal Debt Stressing Out Americans:
About 46 percent of those surveyed say they’re suffering from debt-related stress, and half of that group described their stress as “great deal” or “quite a bit.” On the other hand, about 53 percent say they feel little or no stress at all.
tinyurl.com/2bnybx8

Fury and despair as BP admits oil could leak for months:
Obama administration warns that the most environmentally disastrous spill in US history may continue until August
www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/30/bp-oil-spill-deepwater-horizon

BP shares plunge on oil spill fears:
The company’s shares fell close to 17 per cent in trading in London, wiping $23bn off BP’s market value after weekend news that its latest attempt to plug its blown-out seabed had failed.
english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/06/201061133422618517.html

BP hit by avalanche of compensation claims over US oil spill:
The suits include claims for loss of earnings, loss of enjoyment or property, or for bereavement suffered by families of the 11 workers killed when BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig caught fire and sank on 30 April.
tinyurl.com/2a59vkb

Eurozone unemployment rate rises:
The unemployment rate in the countries that share the euro has hit its highest level in almost 12 years, statistics have shown.
english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2010/06/20106114345894408.html

Princess Diana ‘was killed for planning to expose senior Brits involved in the land mine trade’:
Michael Mansfield QC, who represented Mohamed al-Fayed in the inquest into the death of his son Dodi and the former royal, said Diana claimed she had an ‘exposure diary’ in which she was going to unmask the people most closely involved with the British manufacturing of land mines.
tinyurl.com/2uapmt2

Number Of Iraqis Slaughtered Since The U.S. Invaded Iraq “1,366,350"
www.justforeignpolicy.org/iraq/iraqdeaths.html

Number of U.S. Military Personnel Sacrificed (Officially acknowledged) In America’s War On Iraq:  4,718
icasualties.org/oif/
 
Number Of  International Occupation Force Troops Slaughtered In Afghanistan : 1,791

Cost of War in Iraq & Afghanistan
$1,000,793,825,021
www.costofwar.com/

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