Wednesday, July 20, 2022

Iraq snapshot

 Wednesday, July 20, 2022.  Joe Biden continues to persecute Julian Assange, the US media continues to ignore what's being called Iraq's 'Wikileaks,' and much more.


Starting with Julian Assange, someone US President Joe Biden continues to persecute.  Julian's 'crime' reporting the truth.  If he'd reported lies, he'd have a column in THE WASHINGTON POST and be a Friday regular on PBS' THE NEWSHOUR.  But he reported the truth -- War Crimes -- so he must be made an example of.  The US government likes the idea of a free press, it just doesn't like an actual free press.  TELSUR reminds, "The information revealed by WikiLeaks allowed the world to know about crimes committed by the Pentagon and U.S. agencies abroad, among which are the 2007 air attack in Baghdad, human rights violations in the war in Afghanistan, and the 'dark' events of the Iraq war." The whole world is watching.


Iran's PRESS TV, for example, offers:


For Americans, the US invasion of Iraq was set like an elaborate game. US forces were to bravely buckle up and eliminate the enemies of democracy in Iraq. Propaganda was pouring in from all sides about Iraq’s Weapons of Mass destruction and more.

And Americans were encouraged to cheer on the forces as we joined them in spirit, thousands of miles away in nearly everything we did, even in the games we played. Games such as the Iraqi Most-Wanted card game which was promoted back then in 2003. These cards were officially named personality identification playing cards and had on them the pictures of the Iraqi regime officials that the US military was aiming to heroically eliminate.

Of course, as those of us familiar with politics and propaganda could already predict, years later, it was discovered that not only was Iraq void of WMDs but in reality, it was the American forces who were a threat to Iraqis, not the other way around! Then we read on secret American prisons and all kinds of unbelievable torture methods.

And so, as a result of these crimes, a person continues to serve time in prison. Strangely enough, that person is not any of those who initiated the offensive on Iraq. Instead, he’s the man behind exposing American crimes in places like Iraq and Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay: A whistleblower called Julian Assange.


Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the President of Mexico, has raised the issue with Joe Biden.  PRENSA LATINA reports: 

   When he was asked at his morning press briefing at the National Palace if he discussed the issue of the founder of Wikileaks with Biden during their meeting at the White House, Lopez Obrador said that he gave him a letter about it.

He said that in this letter he explained to Biden that the Australian journalist did not commit a serious crime, did not kill anyone, did not violate any human rights, so arresting him is a permanent affront against freedom of speech and of people, and that is Mexico’s perception of the Assange case.


ALJAZEERA adds:


“I left a letter to the president about Assange, explaining that he did not commit any serious crime, did not cause anyone’s death, did not violate any human rights, and that he exercised his freedom, and that arresting him would mean a permanent affront to freedom of expression,” Lopez Obrador said.

“I also said that Mexico is offering protection and asylum to Julian Assange,” he said, adding that he has not yet heard back from Biden.


Joe Biden could end this persecution today.  Shame on any so-called activist who refuses to leave this on Joe's doorstep because that's where it belongs -- not the Justice Department, not some flunky, not some genreic "White House" or "administration," -- Joe Biden.


The US government sees what's happening.  They're nervous.   It's why the US State Dept issued the following earlier today:


Demonstration Alert – U.S. Consulate General, Sydney     

Location: U.S. Consulate General, Sydney, Australia

Event:  A small demonstration in support of Julian Assange is expected to take place today, July 20, 2022 from approximately 10:00 am to 11:00 am (expected duration: 1 hour) in front of the U.S. Consulate General, Sydney.

Actions to Take:

  • Exercise caution when entering or exiting the Consulate.
  • Always exercise caution if unexpectedly in the vicinity of large gatherings or protests.
  • Always monitor local media for updates.
  • Keep a low profile.

Assistance:

  • U.S. Consulate General, Sydney, Australia
    Suite 2
    50 Miller Street, North Sydney, NSW 2060
    Telephone: (02) 8219-2100
    Email: SydneyACS@state.gov
    Website: https://au.usembassy.gov/


Again, the world is watching.  China's THE PEOPLE'S DAILY offers:


  Washington's interference in the domestic affairs of other countries, those in Latin America in particular, was no secret even before the revelations of the diplomatic cables in 2010 by the WikiLeaks website founded by Julian Assange.

But John Bolton, the former security advisor to the previous US president Donald Trump, has given firsthand verification of Washington's black-handed work.

In an interview with CNN last week, Bolton admitted that he helped plot coups abroad.

Bolton said he wouldn't get into the specifics, but he referred to his book in which he had written about the US-backed failed coup attempt against Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro in 2018.

Washington likes to push the notion that the US stands on the side of democracy and freedom around the world, but Bolton's admission pulls the cover from its undemocratic deeds in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East ... and Europe.

One US-backed uprising that did succeed was the one in Ukraine. Washington funneled billions of dollars to the far right opposition which ultimately led to the ousting of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych and the installing of the pro-US regime led by Volodymyr Zelensky.

The consequences of that are visible for all to see, and highlight how hypocritical US politicians are when they point fingers at other countries in the name of human rights and democracy.


Ukraine?  

Jason Melanovski (WSWS) reports:

A recent UN report from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has confirmed that the Ukrainian Army, as it battles Russian forces for control of the eastern Donbass region, is purposefully putting civilians in harm’s way as “human shields.”

In March, the Ukrainian government blamed Russian forces for the deaths of more than 50 elderly and disabled residents of a care home in the village of Stara Krasnyanka in the eastern province of Lugansk. According to Ukrainian officials, a fire broke out in the facility following a supposedly unprovoked attack on the innocents by Russian forces.

In reality—in a case the report found to be “emblematic” of the war—on March 7, days before the attack, Ukrainian forces had taken up positions within the care home “as it had strategic value due to its proximity to an important road.” Previous requests by the facility to local Ukrainian authorities to evacuate residents were denied due to the fact that Kiev had mined the surrounding area and blocked roads, thereby preventing anyone from fleeing.

Two days later on March 9, as Russian forces approached the care home, the two sides exchanged fire. “It remains unclear which side opened fire first,” states the OHCHR.

On March 11, 71 patients with disabilities and 15 staff remained in the facility with no access to electricity or water, despite the continued presence of Ukrainian forces. They apparently made no effort to evacuate them in the face of an impending battle. During the morning, Russian forces, clearly aware by this time of the presence of Ukrainian military within the building, attacked with “heavy weapons,” causing a fire to break out. Some staff and residents were able to flee to a nearby forest  and were later “met by Russian affiliated armed groups, who provided them with assistance,” reports the OHCHR.

The section of the report on the case of Stara Krasnyanka concludes by stating, “According to various accounts, at least 22 patients survived the attack, but the exact number of persons killed remains unknown.”

As the UN document clearly demonstrates in the case of Stara Krasnyanka, it was the Ukrainian forces “who took up positions either in residential areas or near civilian objects, from where they launched military operations without taking measures for the protection of civilians present.” Such tactics are specifically prohibited by Article 28 of Geneva Convention IV and Article 51(7) of additional Protocol I and constitute a war crime.

But despite the role played by Kiev in these situations, civilian deaths in these contexts are described as the product of the “indiscriminate” violence of Russian “orcs.” They are widely publicized in Western corporate news outlets as further examples of an engrained Russian barbarity, which allegedly can only be prevented by sending billions more in weapons and aid to Ukraine’s government. 


A nation's resources are being drained (US tax dollars going into this war) and they are being betrayed by their own government, their media and idiotic celebrities.  


Billions of US tax dollars are going to support the nazi regime in Ukraine.  At INFORMATION CLEARING HOUSE, Alain Gabon explains:


Academic studies, dissident intellectuals and history itself have shown how quickly our information systems can turn into gigantic propaganda machines as soon as states go to war.

Amid the Russia-Ukraine war, Nato and the European Union offer a perfect example of this type of “war communication”. In terms of censorship, disinformation and propaganda, we are witnessing a replay of what happened during the Gulf War and the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Wherever one turns, with rare exceptions, the only voices authorised to speak are those giving the official party line: Nato spokespersons, retired officers converted to the lucrative business of security consulting, “geopolitical experts” (but only those who will stick to the script), Russia’s political opponents, Ukrainian deputies and other allies of President Volodymyr Zelensky, himself the object of a mindless cult of personality.

The veneration and even mythification of Zelensky, which has reached absurdist levels, is partly explained by an understandable detestation of the aggressor, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and by the acting talents of Zelensky, a professional comedian who has shrewdly seized the moment to radically rebrand himself as a symbol of resistance, freedom and democracy - the camp of good against the “absolute evil” embodied by Putin, a sort of cross between Che Guevara and Rambo.

But it is also explained by a logical fault, namely the fallacy that if Putin is the supervillain and he attacks Zelensky, then the latter is necessarily the good and noble hero who deserves our unconditional support. In other words, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

But if Putin is indeed the villain and Ukraine is a country under attack, this does not automatically make his adversary a saint before whom all should bow down.

Demystifying Zelensky

Because who really is Zelensky? In a nutshell, he is a populist demagogue and a manipulator; an autocrat at the head of a regime that can best be described as proto-fascist, without endorsing Putin’s pathetic alibi of a “Nazified” Ukraine.

With his demagogic cry of “the people against the elites”, his rudimentary electoral programme, his false promises to fight corruption that were forgotten as soon as he was elected, and his brutal authoritarian leanings, Zelensky is a perfect example of western populism - light years from his carefully crafted media image. Just last year, the Pandora Papers showed how he and his close circle benefited from a network of offshore companies. Since the Russian invasion, pundits appear to have conveniently “forgotten” these facts.

According to Transparency International’s latest corruption index, Ukraine under Zelensky scored 32 out of 100, on a scale where 0 means highly corrupt and 100 means very clean. It was just a few points ahead of Russia, and on par with countries ravaged by corruption, such as Zambia, Algeria and Egypt. This was the case even before the West began pumping billions into Ukraine.

As for Zelensky’s approval ratings, they were in free-fall just before the war broke out, with 55 percent of Ukrainian voters saying they were against his candidacy for a second term. Zelensky was thus literally saved by Putin’s February invasion, which has proved to be a real miracle for him and his entourage of cronies.

The Kyiv regime also exhibits a growing number of proto-fascistic characteristics: the cult of the personality, which turns the head of state into a venerated and untouchable figure; the militarisation of society; the saturation of media and cultural spaces with war propaganda; the constant staging of a crude warrior machismo, not unlike Putin’s; systemic corruption; and of course, the integration into the regular army of neo-Nazi groups, such as the Azov regiment.

War propaganda

It is deeply ironic that before the war, western media were recognising the reality of that problem - but as soon as the war started, these groups were magically whitewashed as “freedom fighters”, and praised as heroic resistors through typical spin. Anyone who now raises the issue is immediately accused of disseminating Putin’s propaganda or being an agent of the Kremlin. 

Even more shocking, yet typical of war propaganda, has been the systematic censorship by dominant western media of any information that would undermine the Zelensky worship and unconditional support for the Kyiv regime. 


Meanwhile, in the war that American jouranlism forgot, MEHR NEWS AGENCY reports:

The logistics convoy belonging to the US was targeted in Iraq's Saladin province, according to Almaalomah.

No casualties have been reported following the blast. 

No groups or individuals have yet claimed responsibility for the attack.


Over the weekend, recordings were released allegedly of former prime minister and forever thug Nouri al-Maliki.  Chenar Chalak (RUDAW) reports:


The Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council announced on Tuesday that a request has been made to investigate the leaked audio recordings allegedly of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki insulting Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr and the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), stirring a wave of controversy amid political impasse. 

The statement from the council stated that a request has been raised to the Karkh Investigative Court to take legal measures regarding the leaks, adding that fundamental investigation into the authenticity of the audios are being conducted.

A series of audio recordings attributed to Maliki were leaked in recent days, spewing a number of controversial statements, including calling Sadr a “murderer” and the PMF “cowards” while accusing them of being armed by Iran.

The latest episode of the leaks was published in the early hours of Tuesday, in which the voice, suspected to be Maliki, is speaking to a number of men that appear to be members of a militia group.

The men are promising to support and arm Maliki and hand him the government.

Maliki has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying they were “fabricated” and attempting to incite “sedition”.


For those attempting to keep track, it is now nine months since the October 10th elections and Iraq still has no prime minister or president.  Also for those keeping track, the US media still can't find this story.  ASHARQ AL-AWSAT reports:


Iraq has been swept up in the recordings for days.


They were obtained by Iraqi journalist Ali Fadhel, who resides in the United States. In a tweet, he revealed that the recordings are of "an hour-long meeting between Maliki and others." He hasn’t disclosed how he obtained them.


Fadhel has been releasing about a minute of the recordings a day.


The latest, released on Tuesday, have Maliki discussing partnering up with an armed Shiite faction to wage a confrontation with the Sadrist movement.


He is heard having discussions with representatives of a largely unknown Shiite faction, the "Ummet al-Akhyar", whose religious reference is known as "Ayatollah al-Mirza".


One of the members of the group, "Abu Hassan", was heard offering allegiance to Maliki to "shed blood". 


The following sites updated:






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