Hard News
Death toll from Iraq bombings up to 36:
Iraqi officials say the death toll from a series of bombings late Thursday targeting soccer fans watching a match in cafes in and around Baghdad has risen to 36.
10 Militiamen killed in Ramadi twin blasts:
Two bombs have killed at least 10 people in Ramadi, western Iraq. One bomb went off inside a Sunni militiaman's car, killing him and other officials, and a second device went off minutes later as people gathered around the wreckage.
U.S. judge throws out Abu Ghraib detainees' torture case: -
"Plaintiffs alleged that torture and war crimes occurred during their detention in Abu Ghraib," he wrote. "Plaintiffs' ATS claims do not allege that any violations occurred in the United States or any of its territories. Therefore, on these facts, the court holds that Kiobel's bar against extraterritorial application of the ATS governs.
Syria: Shelling kills eight women:
Intense shelling by Syrian government troops on a village in the country's south killed at least eight women and girls overnight as forces loyal to embattled President Bashar al-Assad pushed ahead with an offensive against opposition forces near the border with Jordan, activists said on Friday.
Suicide bomber kills four in Damascus, arms plans take shape:
A suicide bomber killed at least four people in the heart of the Christian area of the Syrian capital Thursday, as the national army pushed ahead with an offensive to take rebel-held areas in central Homs.
Syrians behead Christians for helping military, as CIA ships in arms:
A priest and another Christian were beheaded before a cheering crowd by Syrian insurgents who say they aided and abetted the enemy, President Bashar Assad's military, foreign media reported.
Horrific video of beheading raises questions of arms supply to Syrian rebels: Video -
Another act of brutal violence reportedly by Syrian rebels has appeared on the web. Unverified video shows the beheading of 3 supposed government supporters. The title of the graphic footage suggests an orthodox Christian bishop was among the victims
Syria: Thousands Flee After Islamic Rebels Execute Priest, Loot, Burn Monastary In Northern Syria:
Syrian Catholic priest François Murad was murdered in the locality of Gassanieh, northern Syria, according to a statement from the Custody of the Holy Land sent to the Fides Agency. Pizzaballa said, adding that, 'with such stances, not a single Christian will remain in the East.'
Rebels in Syria to get arms from US 'within a month':
The United States plans to start supplying arms directly to Syrian rebels within a month, US officials said, as it emerged that the CIA has begun shipping weapons to a secret network of warehouses in neighbouring Jordan.
U.S. starts sending arms for Syrian rebels: media:
The Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA) has started sending weapons to Jordan with a view to arming small groups of vetted Syrian rebels within a month, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
Thomas Massie Introduces Bill Blocking Military Aid Being Sent to Syria:
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and nine of his Republican colleagues introduced a bill that would block unauthorized U.S. military aid from being sent to rebels in Syria.
Syria: Would the U.N. ATT Ban U.S. Aid to the Rebels?:
Proponents of the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) assert that the treaty prevents signatories from supporting not only the Syrian opposition but future rebellions against other totalitarian regimes.
Russia says Saudi arming Syria 'terrorists':
Russia accused Saudi Arabia and some other Gulf states on Thursday of funding "international terrorists and extremists" in the Syria conflict. Moscow's angry statement came in response to accusations by Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Saudi foreign minister, that Russia was responsible for mass killings in Syria because of its military support for the regime.
Angela Merkel warns against arms in Syria: 'Incalculable' risks:
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that arming Syrian rebels is a bad idea, and parliamentary leaders ought to think long and hard before acting. "The risks would be incalculable," she said in an address to Parliament
Russia replaces military with civilians at Syrian base:
Russia has withdrawn all military personnel from its naval base in Syria and replaced them with civilian workers, the Defense Ministry said Thursday.
Netanyahu admits IAF carried out secret operations:
"In the last year, in a number of theaters, we acted, sometimes openly and sometimes secretly, and we achieved our goals," Netanyahu said.
5 Taliban, 5 Afghan cops killed in separate ambushes:
Authorities say Taliban fighters ambushed a national police patrol in western Afghanistan, killing a commander and four of his men. On the other side of the country in Ghazni province, deputy police commander Assadullah Ensafi said police ambushed a group of Taliban fighters and killed five,
Somalia: More deaths7 people killed in latest fighting between armed groups for control of Kismayo:
At least seven people have been killed in renewed fighting between rival Somali warlords battling for control of the southern port city of Kismayo, the AFP news agency reports, quoting witnesses.
Algerian army kill 7 militants on Libyan border:
The Algerian army forces killed seven militants on the border with Libya while still besieging others, local media reported Thursday, APA reports quoting Xinhua.
One killed as clashes, tear gas and massive protests grip Egypt amid 'growing security crisis':
Security forces used tear gas to break up clashes between rival protesters in Alexandria, according to MENA news agency. Over 70 people were injured there. At least one person was killed by gunfire, a health official told Reuters.
Egyptian activists hope for 'second revolution' a year after Morsi's election:
Opposition plans large-scale demonstrations on Sunday, with some hoping army may step in to facilitate transition of power
U.S. military steps up Africa focus:
Nevertheless, with some 4,000-5,000 personnel on the ground at any given time, the United States now has more troops in Africa than at any point since its Somalia intervention two decades ago. That ended in humiliation and withdrawal after the 1993 "Blackhawk Down" debacle in which 18 U.S. soldiers died.
Why South Africa's 'NO-Bama Coalition' is protesting Obama's visit:
There is a segment of South Africa that is not happy to see Obama visiting their country and are planning several protests, some of which have already begun
Arrest Barack Obama, says Muslim Lawyers Association in South Africa:
The Muslim Lawyers' Association in South Africa has called for the arrest of US President Barack Obama on war crime and genocide charges when he visits the country from Friday.
NATO research team calls Stuxnet attack on Iran an 'act of force':
A group of 20 law and technology experts has unanimously agreed that the Stuxnet worm used against Iran in 2009-2010 was a cyberattack. The US and Israel have long been accused of collaborating on the virus in a bid to damage Iran's nuclear program.
Head of US cyber-attack on Iran probed over leak of details - source:
The four-star general who headed the reported cyber-attack by American and Israeli hackers on an Iranian nuclear site is under a DoJ investigation over leaking the details of the operation to the press, reports NBC News.
C.I.A. Report Finds Concerns With Ties to New York Police:
Four Central Intelligence Agency officers were embedded with the New York Police Department in the decade after Sept. 11, 2001, including one official who helped conduct surveillance operations in the United States, according to a newly disclosed C.I.A. inspector general's report.
WikiLeaks Volunteer Was a Paid Informant for the FBI:
Thordarson's double-life illustrates the lengths to which the government was willing to go in its pursuit of Julian Assange, approaching WikiLeaks with the tactics honed during the FBI's work against organized crime and computer hacking - or, more darkly, the bureau's Hoover-era infiltration of civil rights groups.
Senior IRS manager invokes Fifth Amendment right before House committee:
For the second time in as many months, a senior IRS manager on Wednesday invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination, fueling perceptions of an agency in crisis.
How the NSA is still harvesting your online data:
A review of top-secret NSA documents suggests that the surveillance agency still collects and sifts through large quantities of Americans' online data - despite the Obama administration's insistence that the program that began under Bush ended in 2011.
Edward Snowden's father: My son is not a traitor - Video -
The father of Edward Snowden acknowledged Friday that his son broke U.S. law, but maintained that he is not a traitor for releasing classified information about the government's previously secret surveillance programs.
U.S. Army Blocks Access to The Guardian Over NSA Info:
The Army admitted Thursday to not only restricting access to The Guardian news website at the Presidio of Monterey, as reported in Thursday's Herald, but Armywide. Presidio employees said the site had been blocked since The Guardian broke several stories on data collection by the National Security Agency.
License-plate readers let police collect millions of records on drivers:
The paperback-size device, installed on the outside of police cars, can log thousands of license plates in an eight-hour patrol shift. Katz-Lacabe said it had photographed his two cars on 112 occasions, including one image from 2009 that shows him and his daughters stepping out of his Toyota Prius in their driveway.
Kids used as lab rats:
For nearly a century, doctors in America tested drugs,radiation and psychological techniques on unwitting children
Senior Vatican cleric arrested in money smuggling case:
A senior Catholic cleric with connections to the Vatican bank was arrested on Friday for plotting to help rich friends smuggle tens of millions of euros in cash into Italy from Switzerland, in the latest blow to the Vatican's image.
'Vitoria!' Mass protests force Brazil congress to reject 'bill of discontent':
In what in being seen as a victory for people power, the measure was defeated on Tuesday by Congress by 430 votes to nine; with the Rio Times saying the protests were "largely fueled by social media and citizen journalists."
Canada's the most reputable country in the world and we're not; America is so great, right?
Not according to the Reputation Institute, which doesn't even put the US of A in its top three of the world's most reputable countries - those honors went to Canada, Sweden and Switzerland. The U.S. stumbled into 22nd place out of 50,
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"Let us be peace and joy"
Tom Feeley
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