Staff (2019-11-20). GOP-Requested Witness Rejects Trump \'Conspiracy Theories\'. truthdig.com WASHINGTON — Sought by Republicans to testify, the former U.S. special envoy to Ukraine spoke up instead for Democrat Joe Biden in Tuesday\'s impeachment hearings, rejecting \"conspiracy theories\" embraced by President Donald Trump and some of his allies. | Kurt Volker said he has known Biden as an honorable man for more than two decades, rebuffing debunked corruption allegations that Trump is said to have wanted the Ukrainians to investigate in exchange for military aid to hold off Russian aggression. | \"The allegations against Vice President Biden are self-serving and non-credible,\" Volker declared. | R…

Susan Price (2019-11-20). Police storm universities in Hong Kong. greenleft.org.au protest Wlam*Issue 1246 Hong Kong 2019 Hong Kong pro-democracy movementNovember 20, 2019Hong Kong riot police stormed the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), one of the prestigious universities in Hong Kong, on November 12, despite making several promises…

Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers (2019-11-19). Occupied Palestine: From BDS To ODS. dissidentvoice.org We spent the last week in Occupied Palestinian Territory, commonly referred to as Israel, where we traveled around the country to visit communities in Jerusalem, Jaffa, Bethlehem, the West Bank, the Nagab, and more. We call Israel Occupied Palestine because it is not just the West Bank and Gaza that are occupied, but all of …

RT (2019-11-19). \'Shameful\' US withholds food & medicine from Iranians while claiming to support them, FM Zarif says. rt.com Washington\'s self-professed solidarity with Iranians protesting against rising fuel costs cannot be taken seriously since US sanctions have caused so much suffering in the Islamic Republic, Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said. | \"The regime that imposes coercive economic actions and bars delivery of food and drugs to the elderly and patients, can never claim that it\'s supporting the Iranian nation,\" Zarif noted on Tuesday, according to Iran\'s semi-official IRNA news agency. | He added that European nations that fail to challenge Washington\'s regime change posturing against Tehran will be \"responsible for their d…

RT (2019-11-19). Moscow condemns US plans to end sanctions waiver over Iran\'s Fordow nuclear site. rt.com The Russian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday resolutely condemned the statement of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo the previous day that the US is terminating the sanctions waiver related to Iran\'s Fordow nuclear plant. \"There is no legitimate reason for Iran to resume enrichment at this previously clandestine site,\" Pompeo said. | Washington\'s intentions are a blatant violation of international obligations, the Russian ministry said. Taking into account the US statements, a substantial reaction from the Commission on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) will be required, according to the statement. | Mosc…

RT (2019-11-19). Yemen's Houthi rebels seize one Saudi, two S. Korean vessels. rt.com Yemen\'s Houthi rebels seized a Saudi-flagged tug and two South Korean vessels at the weekend, the insurgents and officials in Seoul said on Tuesday. The incident follows a lull in Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia as one Riyadh official said the kingdom had established an \"open channel\" with the rebels in a bid to end the four-year conflict, AFP reported. | The Houthis acknowledged they had seized three ships, including a Saudi one, in the Red Sea a few miles off Uqban island, west of the rebel-held capital Sanaa. The three ships were seized after they entered \"territorial waters without prior notice,\" the rebels…

Max Blumenthal (2019-11-19). Bolivia coup led by Christian fascist paramilitary leader and millionaire—with foreign support. mronline.org Bolivian coup leader Luis Fernando Camacho is a far-right multi-millionaire who arose from fascist movements in the Santa Cruz region, where the US has encouraged separatism. He has courted support from Colombia, Brazil, and the Venezuelan opposition. | Source

Patrick Cockburn (2019-11-19). Erdogan\'s Ethnic Cleansing of the Kurds is Still Happening. counterpunch.org Mass expulsion or the physical extermination of an entire ethnic or religious community — ethnic cleansing — is usually treated by the media in one of two different ways: either it receives maximum publicity as a horror story about which the world should care and do something about, or it is ignored and never reaches More

RT (2019-11-19). Pentagon & war-hawks agree: US troops should stay in Syria – 'because ISIS'. rt.com The withdrawal of American troops from Syria has set the stage for a return of Islamic State, claims a new Pentagon report. The report aligns the Pentagon with war-hungry lawmakers who opposed the withdrawal from the outset. | In a report released on Tuesday, the Defense Department\'s Inspector General warns that without a US presence in northeastern Syria, the terror group will \"likely be able to rebuild and carry out more sophisticated operations.\" | The withdrawal from Syria &#150…

Ramzy Baroud (2019-11-19). How Western Media Bias Allows Israel to Getaway with Murder in Gaza. counterpunch.org An Israeli attack on Gaza was imminent, and not because of any provocations by Palestinian groups in the besieged, impoverished Gaza Strip. The Israeli military escalation was foreseeable because it factors neatly in Israel\'s contentious political scene. The war was not a question of \"if\", but \"when\". The answer came on November 12, when the Israeli military launched a major strike against Gaza, killing an Islamic Jihad Commander, Bahaa Abu al-Ata, along with his wife Asma. More

Staff (2019-11-19). Amnesty Says at Least 106 Killed in Iran Protests. truthdig.com DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Days of protests in Iran over rising fuel prices and a subsequent government crackdown have killed at least 106 people across the Islamic Republic, Amnesty International said Tuesday, citing \"credible reports.\" | Iran\'s government, which has not made nationwide numbers available for the toll of the unrest that began Friday, did not immediately respond to the report. A request for comment to its mission at the United Nations was not immediately acknowledged. | The Amnesty report comes after a U.N. agency earlier said it feared the unrest may have killed \"a significant number of…

RT (2019-11-19). 'P*ssy African!' Paulo Costa steps up ugly war of words with UFC middleweight champ Adesanya. rt.com UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa has reignited his war of words with world champion Israel Adesanya by calling the Nigerian-born New Zealander a \"p*ssy African.\" | Adesanya won his UFC middleweight world title in October with an outstanding second-round knockout of Robert Whittaker. The fight took place in Melbourne, Australia and broke the company\'s previous attendance record with 57,127. | As soon as Adesanya produced the knockout, he got up on the side of the Octagon fence and gestured towards Costa, who was in the crowd, eager to get onto the canvas to exchange words with his 185 pound rival. | It wa…

Tom Anderson (2019-11-19). Resistance against Turkish-Russian patrols grows in northeast Syria as more protesters are injured. thecanary.co The people of northeast Syria [aka Rojava] are fiercely resisting against the patrols by Turkish and Russian occupation forces.They\'re facing the guns and armoured vehicles of two of the world\'s strongest militaries. Here in the UK we can stand in solidarity by demanding the UK stops its arms exports to Turkey.Fierce resistance: This video from Monday 18 November shows women and men throwing molotov cocktails at…

RT (2019-11-19). Israeli warplanes strike Damascus, air defenses destroy \'most\' of hostile missiles (VIDEO). rt.com Syrian air defenses have repelled an Israeli raid, intercepting several \"hostile missiles\" over southern Damascus, and destroying majority of them before the projectiles hit the ground, state news agency SANA reported. | Also on rt.com | | Several blasts heard near Syria\'s Damascus airport — state media | Citing a Syrian military source, SANA reported on Tuesday night that Syrian missile defenses came under \"a heavy attack\" by Israeli warplanes that targeted the Damascus area from the Israeli-controlled part of the occupied Golan Heights a…

Sam Pizzigati (2019-11-19). Inequality and the iron law of decaying public services. peoplesworld.org Fires are raging everywhere in California these days, and firefighters are having enormous trouble keeping up. Chronically understaffed local fire departments simply don\'t have the resources to handle Act #1 of what climate change has in store for us. California\'s wealthy aren\'t particularly worrying about that lack of resources — because they have more than enough …

RT (2019-11-19). Russian bear-wrestling murder convict Maxim \'Mad Max\' Novoselov confirmed for fight return. rt.com He was recently seen wrestling a bear in Siberia but Russian MMA fighter Maxim \'Mad Max\' Novoselov will return to action against human opposition in Moscow at the end of November, it has been confirmed. | Novoselov, 46, will face fellow sambo specialist Alexey Goncharov on the undercard of an event organized by Russia\'s RenTV, and which will be headlined by a boxing contest between Alexander Emelianenko — brother of MMA legend Fedor — and powerlifter Mikhail Koklyaev. | The full details of Novoselov\'s bout are still under wraps, although it will be his first serious action since he defeated Aleksanda…

RT (2019-11-19). Monopoly? What monopoly? Big Tech defends itself from antitrust allegations with denial & doublespeak. rt.com Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple are pushing back against the US government\'s antitrust investigations, downplaying their dominance of the tech sector, playing dumb, and staying quiet where they can\'t obfuscate. | The Big Tech behemoths responded to written questions sent by the House Judiciary Committee – one of several antitrust probes targeting the four companies – with concerted efforts to tone down their monopolistic image – no easy feat for two trillion-dollar companies and two more that are approaching that figure. Answers were shared with reporters on Tuesday, according to Reuters. | Also on rt.com…

Walden Bello (2019-11-19). Is China an \"Imperial Power\" in the Image of the West? counterpunch.org Owing to geography and geopolitics, my country the Philippines finds itself in the middle of an escalating conflict between the United States and China. Like the trench lines that stretched from the North Sea through France to Switzerland during the First World War, the front lines of this conflict stretch across both land and sea More

Richard Greeman (2019-11-19). French Yellow Vests Celebrate First Birthday, Converge With Planned Labor Strikes. counterpunch.org This weekend the Yellow Vests celebrated their first birthday, with convivial barbeques on traffic circles (roundabouts) all over France followed by direct actions like liberating tollbooths. Although number of protestors has declined to about 10% of the estimated 400,000 who rose up a year ago on Nov. 17, 2018 — thanks to a year of More

Dave Lindorff (2019-11-19). Student Protesters are Walking a Tightrope in Hong Kong. counterpunch.org It\'s hard to know what to think about the student protests in Hong Kong. | On the one hand, they are incredibly inspiring. The courage, determination, brilliant organizing in the face of corporate blocking of the social media platforms that have been so critical early on to coordinating actions and rallying support, and the links that these masses of students have been able to build with the broader Hong Kong community, have been amazing to witness. So too is the massive support that the city\'s residents — even its staid usually conservative business-minded bankers and shop owners — have given and con…

Dean Baker (2019-11-19). Impeachment is a Kitchen Table Issue. counterpunch.org As the Democrats have pushed ahead with impeachment proceedings, there have been criticisms from both the right and left that impeachment is a needless distraction from the pocketbook issues that people really care about. The argument is that people will see the Democrats as playing political games rather than focusing on health care, jobs, wages, More

RT (2019-11-19). Ukraine interfering in US elections is not a \'Russian narrative\' but a US media one. rt.com Mainstream US media outlets and impeachment witness Lt. Colonel Alexander Vindman have called stories of Ukrainian influence in the 2016 US election a conspiracy theory pushed by Russian president. Evidence shows otherwise. | Testifying before the House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday, Vindman — a National Security Council staffer — argued that any Ukrainian meddling in the 2016 election is \"a Russian narrative promoted by [President Vladimir] Putin,\" rejected by the entire US intelligence community. | Not only is narrative of Ukranian interference in 2016 election false, and rejected by all intell…

RT (2019-11-19). Armata is coming: Russian military to get pilot batch of \'revolutionary\' T-14 tanks. rt.com The Russian armored corps are about to step into the future, with the first trial batch of the fearsome T-14 Armata tanks to be supplied to the military in late 2019 or early 2020, the head of Rostec defense conglomerate said.

RT (2019-11-19). The Guardian\'s journalists are Kremlin and Qatari agents: Russian oligarch trolls newspaper after \'ex-KGB\' smear job. rt.com After a sensational headline in The Guardian dished the dirt on UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson\'s meeting with an \"ex-KGB agent\" in Italy, the Russian businessman involved has hit back, with some trolling accusations of his own. | \"Boris Johnson met an ex-KGB agent during a highly controversial trip to attend a party two days after attending a high-level Nato summit that focused on Russia,\" The Guardian reported on Sunday. No details of the meeting are rev…

Staff (2019-11-19). Police Surround Last Holdouts at Hong Kong Campus Protest. truthdig.com Even as the latest violence winds down, a fundamental divide suggests the protests in the former British colony are far from over.

RT (2019-11-19). UN decries \'extreme violence\' by Hong Kong protesters amid fears of further escalation. rt.com The UN Human Rights Office said it was gravely concerned by increased violence on the part of some \'very angry\' protesters in Hong Kong, urging accountability for both the wrongdoers and police using excessive force in response. | \"The resort to extreme violence, including against the police force, by some engaged in the protests… cannot be condoned,\" spokesman Rupert Colville told a journalist in Geneva. | The statement came after the anti-government protesters, holed up in the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, used Molotov cocktails, arrows and bricks to repel the attempts by police to remove them from the…

Eds. (2019-11-19). De Facto Government issues decree granting impunity to Bolivian Police and Armed Forces. mronline.org After the coup d\'état forged against former president Evo Morales, the self-proclaimed interim president Jeanine Añez returned the favour to the Armed Forces with a decree that allows them to repress regardless of whether that action violates the law. She also made available the entire state apparatus in case it is \"required\". | Source

RT (2019-11-19). \'We should thank & cherish CIA,\' says star of \'Jack Ryan\' — just maybe not for torture, coups & mind control. rt.com Americans should be thankful for the services the CIA provides, \'Jack Ryan\' actor John Krasinski says. After all, without the agency, who would prop up foreign dictators, stage coups and \'play\' with mind-control drugs? | In three decades between the publication of \'The Hunt for Red October\' in 1984 and his death in 2013, Tom Clancy pumped out more than 20 books, giving lots of material for spy agency fanboys. | At long last though, there\'s someone out there who gets even more tumescent at the thought of clandestine criminality than Clancy himself. Actor John Krasinski — star of \'The Office\' and now \'Tom C…

Robert Mackey (2019-11-19). Republicans Urge Americans to Follow Them Through the Fox News Looking Glass on Ukraine. theintercept.com To defend Donald Trump, Republicans in the House are trying to discredit Sergii Leshchenko, who helped expose Paul Manafort\'s corruption in Ukraine.

RT (2019-11-19). \'We have our own problems\': Ukrainian president says country is \'sick\' of US impeachment drama. rt.com As impeachment mania grips the US, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed a question from CNN about whether he would open an investigation into the Biden family, saying people in Ukraine are \"so tired\" of the scandal. | Zelensky, who has found himself at the center of the seemingly never-ending political saga, was visibly annoyed when asked by a CNN reporter if he would launch an investigation over claims that former US Vice President Joe Biden had pressured a Ukrainian prosecutor to drop a corruption probe into the Burisma natural gas company where his son Hunter sat on the board. | \"I think everybo…

Jane Green (2019-11-19). Iran erupts in protest; over 100 killed in security crackdown. peoplesworld.org The recent order by Iranian \"Supreme Leader\" Ali Khamenei directing the security forces \"to implement their tasks\" sent out a stark and ominous signal to the people of Iran. Protests erupted in cities across Iran on Friday following the government\'s announcement of a hike in the cost of gasoline by at least 50%, signaling further …

RT (2019-11-19). UN torture envoy demands \'full accountability & compensation\' after Sweden drops rape probe against Assange. rt.com The UN\'s Special Rapporteur on torture has called for a \"full investigation\" into the role Sweden played in driving WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange into asylum and eventual custody, after the rape case against him was dropped. | Swedish prosecutors announced on Tuesday that they would drop a dubious rape inquiry against Assange, as oral testimony against the publisher had \"weakened,\" and corroborating evidence was not strong enough to pursue a case. A Swedish arrest warrant was issued against assange in 2010, and a British court upheld a decision to extradite him in 2012. Threatened with what many saw as a po…

Kim Petersen (2019-11-19). Saving Julian Assange is Saving Ourselves. dissidentvoice.org The United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner issued a statement based on special-rapporteur-on-torture Nils Melzer\'s fact-finding mission into the incarceration of WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange. The facts were a scathing indictment of those nations behind the targeting of Assange. \'The evidence is overwhelming and clear,\' the expert said. \'Mr. Assange …

Thanassis Cambanis (2019-11-19). A Deadly Game of Chicken in Iraq and Lebanon. thenation.com Popular revolts in the Middle East are pitting people against regimes.

commondreams (2019-11-19). 350 Action Endorses Ed Markey, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) and Ilhan Omar (MN-05) for Congress. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Fight Back (2019-11-19). Texas students say, \"Defend DACA\" fightbacknews.org Arlington, TX — The University of Texas at Arlington\'s Progressive Student Union (PSU) held a rally for DACA recipients, November 14. The group, led by PSU President Mark Napieralski, delivered a list of ten demands to the administration, marching across the campus chanting, \"No protection, no peace,\" \"Stand up, fight back,\" \"Black and brown immigrants matter,\" and \"Defend DACA.\" | PSU delivered their demands to President Karbhari\'s office, though he was available to receive them personally. Regardless, the office received the demands and promised to deliver them to Karbhari. | PSU\'s demands included more r…

teleSUR (2019-11-19). 94 Refugees, Migrants Rescued Off Libya\'s Coast. telesurenglish.net The Ocean Viking charity vessel, operated jointly by SOS Mediterranee and Doctors Without Borders, carried out a mission Tuesday rescuing 94 refugees and migrants off the coast of Libya. | RELATED: | Migrants Released Amid Fighting in Libya Seek Refuge With UN | \"We were copied on an email sent to the Libyan coastguard by AlarmPhone this morning. As a result, we altered our course towards the potential boat in distress and arrived in the area 90 minutes later,\" Search and Rescue…

Mark Curtis (2019-11-19). Conflict of Interest: Julian Assange\'s Judge and Her Husband\'s Links to the British Military Establishment Exposed by WikiLeaks. globalresearch.ca It can also be revealed that Lady Arbuthnot has received gifts and hospitality in relation to her husband, including from a military and cybersecurity company exposed by WikiLeaks. These activities indicate that the chief magistrate\'s activities cannot be considered as …

teleSUR (2019-11-19). Sweden Drops Decade-Long Case Against Julian Assange. telesurenglish.net A Swedish prosecutor dropped an investigation into an allegation of rape against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, ending the near decade-old case that had sent the anti-secrecy campaigner into hiding in London\'s Ecuadorian embassy to avoid extradition. | RELATED: | UK Judge Denies Request to Delay Assange\'s Extradition Trial | Although the prosecutor\'s…

WSWS (2019-11-19). Sweden drops investigation into bogus sexual misconduct allegations against Julian Assange. wsws.org The action confirms that the incessant media claims of \"rape\" and \"sexual assault\" by the WikiLeaks founder are a politically motivated fraud.

WSWS (2019-11-19). Julian Assange appears in court via video link: Legal rights denied by judge. wsws.org The British ruling class has no intention of providing even the appearance of a fair trial of Assange, after which they intend to railroad him to his persecutors in the United States.

WSWS (2019-11-19). United States has the highest child detention rate in the world. wsws.org A UN report released Monday finds that the United States leads the world in depriving children of liberty, particularly through immigration detention.

Kevin Zeese (2019-11-19). Occupied Palestine: From BDS to ODS. The Project of a One Democratic State (ODS). globalresearch.ca We spent the last week in Occupied Palestinian Territory, commonly referred to as Israel, where we traveled around the country to visit communities in Jerusalem, Jaffa, Bethlehem, the West Bank, the Nagab, and more. | We call Israel Occupied Palestine because …

Common Dreams staff (2019-11-19). Rep. Ilhan Omar Asks Judge to \'Show Compassion\' for Hateful Man Who Threatened to Put Bullet in Her Head. commondreams.org In response to a man accused of threatening her life pleading guilty to the crime in a U.S. District Court a day prior, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) on Tuesday released publicly a letter she wrote to the federal judge presiding over the case asking that he \"show compassion\" in his sentencing. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/omar_apology_1.jpg …

DSA San Francisco (2019-11-19). Dreamforce Rally – No Salesforce Tech for Concentration Camps. indybay.org Howard St between 3rd & 4th St – Just outside Dreamforce Entrance…

The Grayzone (2019-11-19). Top Bolivian coup plotters trained by US military\'s SOA. indybay.org Commanders of Bolivia\'s military and police helped plot the coup and guaranteed its success. They were previously educated for insurrection in the US government\'s notorious School of the Americas and FBI training programs.

Staff (2019-11-19). Activists Occupy Pelosi\'s Office, Launch Global Hunger Strike for Climate Action. truthout.org The global grassroots movement Extinction Rebellion is targeting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with a hunger strike and demanding that the Democratic leader embrace bold climate action as have progressive lawmakers around the country. | The group told Pelosi a week ago that members would begin a hunger strike Monday unless the California Democrat agreed to a one-hour, on-camera meeting to discuss Extinction Rebellion\'s demands for concrete climate action. | On Twitter, the group announced that…

United Nations (2019-11-19). Reconciliation helps \'repair fractures\', enable lasting peace, Security Council hears. un.org The UN Security Council this Tuesday has been debating what one activist labeled \"the toughest and arguably most important part of the peace-building cycle\": reconciliation.

Moon Of Alabama (2019-11-19). There Are Riots In Iran And The Usual Suspect Are On It. thelastamericanvagabond.com There are a few riots in Iran and Amnesty International is on it: Amnesty International @amnesty — 15: 50 UTC ∑ Nov 19, 2019At least 106 protesters in 21 cities have been killed in #Iran, according to reports we have received. Verified video footage, eyewitness testimony & information gathered from activists outside Iran reveal a harrowing pattern …

Nauman Sadiq (2019-11-19). Release of Western Hostages and Prospects of Peace in Afghanistan. globalresearch.ca Three Taliban commanders have been released today, on Tuesday, by the Afghan government as part of a prisoner swap involving two Western hostages. Reportedly, the militant leaders, including senior Taliban leader Anas Haqqani, had landed in Qatar, which hosts the …