Labour lets slip that Brown’s renationalisation call nothing to do with Starmer

Labour right tries to spin Gordon Brown’s call to renationalise energy to solve the corporate greed crisis as not ‘out of step’ with Starmer’s spineless refusal to call for renationalisation of energy The Labour regime has tried – and failed – to attach itself to former PM Gordon Brown’s widely-praised call for renationalisation of the […]
| Analysis, Breaking, comment

Education Cannot Wait Proud to Participate in Global Citizen Festival 2022: Calling on World Leaders and Donors to Empower Girls and End Extreme Poverty Now

Education Cannot Wait (ECW) – the United Nations global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises – is proud to support and participate in the 2022 Global Citizen Festival. Participants will call on world leaders at the UN General Assembly – and ahead of the G20 and COP27 in November – to step up […]
| Education, Education Cannot Wait. Future of Education is here, Gender

Starmer accepts cash from same Tory-donating health and energy investor funding Streeting

Donor with interests in private healthcare and energy has said he’s still open to returning to the Tories Keir Starmer has accepted a large donation from billionaire hedge-fund owner with huge interests in private healthcare. John Armitage, currently 149th on the UK rich list, founded Egerton Capital – a hedge fund that holds around $800m […]
| Breaking, badenoch, billionaires

ECW Interviews Three Inspiring #Youth4EiE Advocates on International Youth Day

On this International Youth Day, ECW interviewed three inspiring #Youth4EiE Advocates – Nataly Rivas, Angela Abizera, and Jean-Paul Saif. Nataly, Angela, and Jean-Paul are three Global Youth for Education in Emergencies panel members. The (#Youth4EiE) panel brings together youth leaders from across eight countries to work together to put education in emergencies and protracted crises […]
| Education, Education Cannot Wait. Future of Education is here, Featured

Will the Unions Actually Ditch Labour?

The Labour party was founded as the parliamentary expression of the British trade union movement. Its constitution tethers it to the unions, as does its funding model: the unions are by far its most generous benefactors, contributing £6m between them last year. Notionally, unions wield enormous power within the party thanks to block votes at […]
| Articles, Opinion, industrial action

Space Cooperation Between Russia, Iran Raises Western Concerns

Welcome back to The Farda Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that tracks the key issues in Iran and explains why they matter. I’m senior correspondent Golnaz Esfandiari. Here’s what I’ve been following and what I’m watching out for in the days ahead. The Big Issue ( RFE/RL ) – Russia successfully launched an Iranian satellite into […]
| astronomy and outer space, Iran, Russia

End of Israeli War on Gaza: What Are Outcomes?

Islam Times - After three days of deadly confrontation between the Israeli regime and Islamic Jihad Movement (IJM), a ceasefire came into effect with a bilateral green light. Although the war ended with a rapidly brokered truce, its impacts and results are of great importance and long life. On the one hand, it brought about achievements to the Palestinian resistance
| Palestine

Virginia’s bid to be Saudi Arabia of Offshore Wind, Bolstered by Dem IRA, to Save Consumers Billions

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Virginia’s State Corporation Commission on Friday approved America’s largest offshore wind farm project, a 2.6 gigawatt facility to be constructed by Dominion Energy 27 miles out from Virginia Beach. The project could get some help from the Democratic Party Inflation Reduction Act, which the House will likely finalize soon, and […]
| Climate Crisis, Environmentalism, Featured

Russian Foreign Policy Towards the Middle East: New Trends, Old Traditions: A Review

Bonn (Special to Informed Comment) – Review of Nikolay Kozhanov (ed.), Russian Foreign Policy Towards the Middle East: New Trends, Old Traditions (London: Hurst and Co., 2022). “Syria is not witnessing a battle for democracy, but an armed conflict between government and opposition in a multireligious country. There are few champions of democracy in Syria. […]
| Arab World, Middle East, Russia

Netizen Voices: University Warns Against “Universal Values,” “Civil Society,” and “The West’s Idea of Journalism”

A screenshot of a university lecture warning of “seven false tides of thought” within higher education demonstrates the Chinese Communist Party’s continued fear that students do not ascribe to its ideology. The screenshot seems to stem from a Shaanxi University of Science and Technology lecture on “Issues and Challenges Confronting Ideological-Political Work in Higher Education.” […]
| CDT Highlights, Level 2 Article, Politics

Activists stop adoption of IHRA definition of antisemitism by Maryland county

Activists beware -- You may awake tomorrow to find that your local government has signed on to an expanded definition of antisemitism that makes it antisemitic to criticize Israel or Zionism. In late July, Montgomery County, Maryland, narrowly avoided exactly that fate, while neighboring Arlington County did not – and no one knew what was coming.
| Activism, Alexandra Melinchok, American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

‘Cascading’ climate risks in the Middle East and North Africa

By Glada Lahn | – ( China Dialogue) – The next two United Nations climate negotiations will take place in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA). COP27 will be in Egypt this November, followed by COP28 in the United Arab Emirates next year. Climate change has only recently gained mainstream attention in MENA, […]
| Arab World, Climate Crisis, Drought

Voices of June: “Today It’s Us, But Tomorrow It Could Be You!”

“Voices of June” continues CDT’s monthly “Voices of …” collection of viral audio-visual content from pandemic lockdowns in Shanghai and other Chinese cities. Inspired by the original audio-visual compilation “Voices of April,” which was the target of intense government and platform censorship, the series seeks to circumvent censorship by amplifying the voices of Chinese citizens […]
| CDT Highlights, Culture & the Arts, Economy

Algeria policeman commits suicide at work

An Algerian security personnel yesterday shot himself at a police station where he used to work. Local media reported that the 35-year-old deceased was a father of two, noting that his suicide was due to "poor social conditions." The incident took place in front of a police centre in the country's northeastern city of Khenchela. Eyewitnesses described the incident as
| Africa, Algeria, News

Prominent political scientist slams Emirati tourists who visit Israel

Emirati academic and professor of political science, Dr. Abdul Khaliq Abdullah, has criticised Emirati tourists who visit Israel, saying they expose themselves to undignified situations. Commenting on a video which purportedly showed Israeli police attacking and arresting two Emirati tourists following a shooting that took place in Dizengoff Street in central Tel Aviv, Abdullah said: "This week, media outlets reported
| Israel, Middle East, News

Getting rid of the Oslo Accords authority is the first step to Palestinian liberation

It was no surprise that, even while negotiating with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement through Egyptian mediators to defuse the tension in the Gaza Strip following the arrest of the movement's senior figure Bassam Al-Saadi in Jenin last week, Israel launched an aerial bombardment of the besieged territory. Such deception is in its nature, so there is no need to
| Africa, Egypt, Middle East

Jordan Businessmen Association launches campaign for Gaza

The Jordanian Businessmen Association (JBA) yesterday launched a donation campaign to "support the brotherly Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip" through the Jordan Hashemite Charitable Organisation, Quds Press reported. The body called on the business community in Jordan to contribute to the campaign in support of "the great sacrifice made by our brothers in proud Palestine in defending religious sanctities
| Israel, Jordan, Middle East

Coyle, suspended for racist comment, out campaigning with Labour volunteers handing out his leaflets

Suspended MP piggybacking his campaign on Labour logo – and texting members to support his reselection despite not being a Labour MP In February, Neil Coyle was suspended from the Labour party after making a racist comment to a British-Chinese journalist. Under the party’s rules, while suspended he no longer holds the party ‘whip’ and […]
| Analysis, comment, antisemitism

UN envoy backs ceasefire, will follow up issue of Islamic Jihad prisoners

The UN envoy to the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, said yesterday that the world body has been "intensively engaged" in helping Israel and Islamic Jihad agree to a ceasefire. "The United Nations has been intensively engaged and closely working with Egypt on mediating a restoration of calm," Wennesland said in a statement,m. "We underscore our commitment to do
| International Organisations, Israel, Middle East

Gaza Truce Enters into Effect: Islamic Jihad Imposes Its Conditions, Warns of Resuming Fighting if Deal Violated

Islam Times - Shortly after the Palestinian Islamic Jihad resistance movement announced that an Egyptian-mediated deal has been reached to ceasefire between the Palestinian resistance and the ‘Israeli’ occupation military bombing Gaza, the movement’s Secretary General Ziad al-Nakhala held a press conference during which he greeted the great Palestinian people that faced this ‘Israeli’ aggression.
| Palestine

How AIPAC went from Lobbying for Israel to quashing Progressives and backing Jan. 6 Insurgents

The American-Israel Public Affairs Committee’s (AIPAC) zealous financial backing of many of the 137 House Reps and Senators who voted to overturn the 2020 Election is a bad sign for American democracy. In a better ordered world, these members of Congress would all be expelled for sedition. While AIPAC endorsed the likes of Josh Hawley […]
| Israel, Israel Lobbies, Israel Lobby

‘I really wish it will end’: how mothers in Gaza are handling the latest Israeli escalation

How do parents in Gaza, who are dealing with their own trauma and fear, help their children endure yet another Israeli attack? One parent tells Ziad Ali she attempted to lie to her daughter by saying the explosions were just fireworks, but her child already knows too much. “My daughter did not believe me. I was such a mess. She
| Opinion, Gaza, Operation Breaking Dawn

Merav Michaeli and the besieged Israel

Merav Michaeli, leader of Israel's Labor Party, taunts two million Palestinians who are under siege in Gaza: "No sovereign state would accept a siege on its residents by a terror organization." She is showing that the "change" government in Israel can be as good at "mowing the lawn" -- which means killing civilians who have nowhere to flee in Gaza--
| News, Benjamin Netanyahu, Gaza

The killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri

For some time now, Al-Qaeda had stopped being the primary target of policy and counterterrorist experts. The erstwhile most dangerous terrorist group in the war on terror following its attacks on the United States on 9/11 had largely been inactive, particularly in Afghanistan. No longer responsible for any incident of violence, let alone a major terrorist attack, it had been
| Afghanistan, Article, Asia & Americas

Gaza’s only power plant shuts down as Israeli airstrikes continue

Amid the latest Israeli onslaught, Gaza’s sole power plant shut down after Israel closed its border crossings with the besieged strip and cut off its fuel supply. “The state of electricity in Gaza is already terrible without the continuous bombardment, and with it darkness becomes another kind of war,” Gaza resident Khaled Hassan tells Mondoweiss.
| News, 2022 Gaza attack, Gaza blockade

Middle East Peace Process UN envoy 'deeply concerned' about Gaza escalation

United Nations (UN) Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Tor Wennesland has expressed his "deep concern" over the ongoing escalation in Gaza. "I am deeply concerned by the ongoing escalation between Palestinian militants and Israel, including the targeted killing today of a Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader inside Gaza," he said, condemning the Israeli assassination of Tayseer Al-Jaabari. "I
| International Organisations, Israel, Middle East

Tunisia: Ennahda urges government to announce reality of economy

The Ennahda Movement issued a statement on Friday calling on the Tunisian government to reveal the reality of the economic, financial and social situation and to "stop adopting misleading policies". The movement called on the country's government: "To seriously focus on providing basic materials that have been absent for months, monitor random price increases, retreat from the price increases for
| Africa, Europe & Russia, News

Rights groups condemn Israel's attacks on Gaza

Two rights groups on Friday condemned the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza and the killing of Palestinians, including a woman and child, Anadolu Agency reported. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC)posted on Twitter: "Israel is bombing Gaza again. Gaza has been under illegal siege for fifteen years – creating inhuman conditions for the inhabitants, more than half of whom are children."
| Europe & Russia, Israel, Middle East

Islamic Jihad: Israel disrespects Egypt's mediator

Following the Israeli assassination of its military leader in Gaza, Palestinian Islamic Jihad on Friday accused Israel of disrespecting the Egyptian mediator. Speaking to journalists in Gaza, Islamic Jihad's media chief Daud Shehab shared that his movement had been in contact with Egypt: "Just one hour before the attack on Gaza." Shehab added: "The Egyptian side told us that it
| Egypt, Israel, Middle East

The Intricate Fight for Africa: the Legacy of the Soviet Union vs. Western Colonialism

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's recent tour in Africa was meant to be a game changer, not only in terms of Russia's relations with the continent, but in the global power struggle involving the US, Europe, China, India, Turkiye and others. Many media reports and analyses placed Lavrov's visit to Egypt, the Republic of Congo, Uganda and Ethiopia within the
| Africa, Article, Asia & Americas

Globalization, greed and reality

Islam Times- If China wanted to cripple the U.S. it could do so without firing a shot in less than a month. First, it could call in the incredible debt our government has racked up by borrowing from our “competitor.” But if China really wanted to bring this nation to its knees, they’d do what Russia did with it’s natural
| China

Israel Uni postpones hearing against student accused of 'supporting terrorism' for quoting Mahmoud Darwish

Ben-Gurion University has postponed the disciplinary hearing of a Palestinian student, who was accused of "supporting terrorism" after using the term 'martyr' at a memorial event to mark Nakba Day. The student, Watan Madi, used the term while quoting Palestinian poet, Mahmoud Darwish, during a speech that concluded the line: "We will not forget the martyrs who fulfilled the unity
| Israel, Middle East, News

Gaza sole power plant to shut down as Israel tightens siege for third day

Palestinian officials in the besieged Gaza Strip warned Thursday that the enclave's only power plant will have to shut down within 48 hours if Israel's blockade is not lifted, amid rising tension on the border area following the Israeli army arrest of an Islamic Jihad leader, Bassam Al-Saadi, on Monday. The Israeli authorities closed all crossings to Gaza, and prevented
| Israel, Middle East, News

Iraq Popular Mobilisation Forces reject Sadr's call to dissolve Parliament

Iraq's Iran-backed Popular Mobilisation Forces (Hashd Al-Shaabi) rejected, on Thursday, the call of Iraqi Shia cleric and head of the Sadrist movement, Moqtada Al-Sadr, to dissolve Parliament and hold early elections, Anadolu news agency reported. Lead of the Popular Mobilisation Forces, Falih Al-Fayyad, said in a statement to Al Jazeera, that "Al-Sadr proposal to resolve the crisis can be discussed
| Iran, Iraq, Middle East

Followers of Iraq's Sadr pray at Saddam-era parade ground

Tens of thousands of followers of Shia cleric, Moqtada Al-Sadr, prayed on Friday at an iconic Baghdad military parade ground built by the late President Saddam Hussein, in yet another symbolic display of Sadr's sway over much of the Iraqi people, Reuters reports. Sadr has, in the past week, commanded his followers to storm Baghdad's heavily secured Green Zone, occupy
| News

US seeks to turn Yemen truce into political process

The United States yesterday said it hopes that a recent truce in Yemen could develop into a "comprehensive political process." "If the truce in Yemen continues for two months, it could transform into an inclusive political process that includes all," the US envoy to Yemen, Tim Lenderking, told Al-Hurra, adding that Washington was hoping for both warring parties in Yemen "to
| Asia & Americas, Iran, Middle East

Morocco, Israel agree to enhance security cooperation

Israel and Morocco have agreed to enhance bilateral security cooperation, state media said, Anadolu News Agency reports. Israeli Police Commissioner, Kobi Shabtai, met Morocco's Director General of National Security and Territorial Surveillance, Abdellatif El Hammouchi, in the capital, Rabat, on Thursday, and agreed to promote security cooperation to serve mutual interests, Morocco's official MAP news agency reported on Thursday, quoting
| Africa, Israel, Middle East

Pro-Palestine chairman of UK football club slaps down pro-Israel group over 'intimidation'

UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has been slapped down by the Chairman of Forest Green Rovers FC (FGR), Dale Vince OBE, following an attempt by the notorious pro-Israel group to "threaten" and "intimidate" the league one club over its solidarity with the Palestinians. Vince published several tweets over recent months in support of the Palestinian cause and raised the Palestinian
| Europe & Russia, Israel, Middle East

Israel places PA's governor in Jerusalem under house arrest

The Israeli Magistrate's Court in West Jerusalem yesterday sentenced the Palestinian governor of the occupied city of Jerusalem, Adnan Ghaith, to house arrest, Anadolu reported citing the governor's media adviser. Marouf Al-Rifai said in a statement that in addition to house arrest, the court imposed a bail of 25,000 shekels ($7,500) on the governor and his family. Israel Police and
| Israel, Middle East, News

Researchers Embrace Artificial Intelligence to Tackle Banana Disease in Burundi

A group of scientists involved in finding solutions to minimize the impact of a devastating banana virus in Burundi have developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool for monitoring the disease. United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) research shows that the Banana Bunchy Top Disease (BBTD), caused by the Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV), is […]
| Africa, Development & Aid, Editors' Choice

Clean Energy Booming, Coal Plants Closing, despite Supreme Court ruling against EPA

By Morgan Fischer | – ( Cronkite News ) – WASHINGTON – When the Supreme Court ruled this summer that the EPA could not force power plants to move away from fossil fuels, advocates worried that the justices had removed the “most effective tool for regulating and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.” They’re still worried. But […]
| Climate Crisis, Coal, Solar Energy

The erosion of Israeli deterrence and its reflection on the West Bank

Israeli Defence Minister, Benny Gantz, summed up the tense scene in the Gaza envelope by saying: Life will not be normal in the Gaza Strip as long as the life routine is not normal in the settlements of the Gaza envelope. The settlers in this area complained about the closures accompanied by a state of terror resulting from the declaration
| Article, Israel, Middle East

The Kleptocrat Who Bankrolled Rudy Guiliani’s Dive for Dirt on Biden

For the past few years, as Rudy Giuliani gallivanted around the world looking for any kind of conspiracy that could help then-President Donald Trump remain in office, one question hung over Giuliani’s rambles: Who actually paid for his travels?  Thanks to a report in this week’s New York Times, we have a better idea. Giuliani’s paymaster wasn’t his client, nor was it any of the other Americans in
| The Soapbox, Politics, Donald Trump

Ukraine disappointed in Lebanon decision to release ship carrying grain stolen by Russia

Ukraine has expressed its disappointment at Lebanon's decision to allow a ship allegedly carrying stolen Ukrainian grain to leave the port of Tripoli, as it unsuccessfully urged Beirut to reverse the move. According to the Reuters news agency, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said in a statement today that it was disappointed at a Lebanese court's approval of the Syrian-flagged vessel, Laodicea's
| Europe & Russia, Lebanon, Middle East

UAE stresses respect for 'One China' principle

The UAE, on Thursday, affirmed its support for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity amid tensions over the US House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, which Beijing considers as its "breakaway province", Anadolu News Agency reports. In a statement, the Foreign Ministry emphasised on the "importance of respecting the 'One China' principle,' while calling for adherence to relevant United Nations
| Asia & Americas, China, Middle East

Patients evacuated as fire breaks out at historic Istanbul hospital

Dozens of patients were evacuated from a Greek hospital in Istanbul after a fire erupted Thursday in the building, Anadolu News Agency reports. Some 80 patients, mostly elderly people, in Balikli Greek Hospital were shifted to nearby health care institutions as the fire broke out and engulfed the roof of the historic building in the Zeytinburnu district. The cause is
| Europe & Russia, News, Turkey

King’s Fund gets a schooling on the facts after claiming NHS privatisation is a ‘myth’

Think-tank claims NHS privatisation has remained ‘broadly stable’ – but facts say otherwise An influential ‘independent’ think-tank that once recommended the cutting back of ‘acute’ health services has published a Twitter thread claiming that the Tories’ privatisation of the NHS is a ‘myth’, because – supposedly – the proportion of NHS spending on provision by […]
| Analysis, Breaking, cronyism

The Tragedy and Triumph of an Organizing Campaign

The labor movement isn’t just the best means for workers to win better wages and benefits; it’s also a generator of genuine heroism in average people. Workers have defied the message that working-class people hear every day in this country: that they should take their meager, stagnant wages and continual on-the-job assaults on their sense of self-respect and be grateful. 
| critical mass, Books, Culture