The crisis in Ukraine became dramatically worse with 42 people killed and 125 injured in a fire and clashes between pro- and anti-Russian groups in Odessa, leading the Ukrainian government to say the unrest has become “a war.”
Read our latest: “Pro-Russian activists and Ukrainian police clash as Ukraine reinstates military conscription” and “Syrian chemical weapons attack allegations to be investigated by UN watchdog”
On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed the West and the interim government in Kiev for the violence in Odessa, including the horrific trade union building fire, NBC News reports.
The trade union in Odessa was set on fire Friday, causing some 40 people to die from choking on smoke, burning or jumping from windows.
“Kiev and its Western sponsors are practically provoking the bloodshed and bear direct responsibility for it,” Putin’s spokesman said to reporters, according to state news agency RIA Novosti. “Those who recognize this junta as legal power becomes an accomplice of this crime.”
Petro Lutsiuk, the local police chief in Odessa, said that 130 people have been detained after the clashes. Charges range from premeditated murder to participating in riots, according to NBC.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian government resumed a military offensive against pro-Russian separatists in the eastern part of the country on Saturday.
This comes immediately after the observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe were released by their pro-Russian captors.
Many insurgents were killed or wounded in the Ukrainian military’s eastern offensive, according to acting president Oleksandr Turchynov.
Two Ukrainian helicopters were reportedly shot down by insurgents near Slovyansk, a rebel stronghold in eastern Ukraine.
Two crew members and seven others died, including three separatist militants, two soldiers and two civilians, according to Fox News.
The Ukrainian military has reportedly blocked off all major roads into Slovyansk, as they did last month.
The Kremlin said that the Ukrainian offensive “destroyed” the agreement to de-escalate the crisis in Ukraine that was signed two weeks ago, according to Haaretz.
Fighting has also broken out in the astern town of Kramatorsk.
“There is gunfire and clashes around Kramatorsk … What we are facing in the Donetsk region and in the eastern regions is not just some kind of short-lived uprising, it is in fact a war,” Vasyl Krutov, the head of the Ukrainian anti-terrorist center said at a news conference, according to The Independent.
Later, Krutov stated that Ukrainian forces retook the security service headquarters from pro-Russian activists in Kramatorsk.
Local Ukrainian television aired pictures of armored personnel carriers moving through Kramatorsk, according to The Independent.
Kramatorsk is just 10 miles away from Slovyansk.
Read more at http://endthelie.com/2014/05/03/dozens-killed-as-ukrainian-government-says-eastern-unrest-has-become-a-war/#xHQjsTHr72TuBriB.99
Medea Benjamin: AIPAC Is Losing its Iron-Clad Grip on Congress
TEHRAN (FNA)- A prominent American peace activist says that although the Israeli lobby has enormous influence over the major political decision-making centers in the United States, it is starting to lose its iron-clad grip on the Congress.
According to Medea Benjamin, more American people are waking up to the atrocities committed by Israel and its inhumane siege of the Gaza Strip, and that is why the Boycott/Divestment/Sanctions movement has gained momentum as a worldwide effort to protest at the racist policies and practices of the Israeli regime.
“I think that the tide is turning. Israel is turning to more and more desperate measures as more people around the world call for justice for Palestinians. The movement for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) is picking up around the world and Israel is attempting to get laws in place that punish people for boycotting Israel. It is absurd because boycotting is a peaceful form of protest. It shows we’re getting under their skin,” said Medea Benjamin in an exclusive interview with Fars News Agency.
Benjamin is the co-founder of Code Pink: Women for Peace NGO. Code Pink describes itself as a “grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end US-funded wars and occupations, to challenge militarism globally, and to redirect our resources into health care, education, green jobs and other life-affirming activities.”
Ms. Benjamin has authored 10 books the latest of which is titled “Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control” released by OR Books in 2012. She is a vocal critic of the US foreign policy, both under President Bush and President Obama, especially for their use of UAVs to purportedly target the Al-Qaeda bases. On May 23, 2013, she interrupted a speech by President Barack Obama several times and was finally taken out of the hall by the security forces. Obama said at the end of his speech that “the voice of that woman is worth paying attention to.”
On March 3, 2014, Medea Benjamin was arrested and publicly tortured in the Cairo International Airport while she was heading to the beleaguered Gaza Strip along with a team of peace activists to show solidarity with the women of Gaza on the occasion of March 8, the International Women’s Day.
FNA spoke to Medea Benjamin about the US government’s recent campaign against the whistleblowers Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden, the torturing of the Guantanamo bay detention facility prisoners by the CIA agents, the use of unmanned drones in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen and the disappearance of democratic values in the American society. What follows is the text of the interview.
Q: Ms. Benjamin; what is your viewpoint regarding the US government’s campaign against whistleblowers such as Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, Jeremy Hammond and John Kiriakou? Is the persecution of these people constitutional and lawful? Can the US government silence them by resorting to the argument that they endanger national security and reveal classified information?
A: It is disappointing that the government seeks to punish these heroes for speaking the truth. They have dug up the Espionage Act from 1917, an outdated act from World War I, to justify targeting both Manning and Snowden. Under the Obama administration, more people have been charged using the Espionage Act than under any previous administration.
The US has and will attempt to silence these men because of “national security,” but their bravery in releasing the information anyway shows that whistleblowers will not be silenced.
Q: We know that during the George W. Bush’s administration, different types of torture, including waterboarding and other types of corporal punishment were prescribed for the prisoners arrested on charges of terrorism and kept in such places as the Guantanamo bay detention facility. Has this practice changed under President Obama? Again, is it legal according to the US Constitution to torture the prisoners to get confession from them?
A: President Obama criticized the use of torture under the Bush Administration and said his administration would not sanction the use of torture. But prisoners in Guantanamo are force-fed through tubes stuck up their noses, which is considered torture. Torture is illegal under US law and international law.
Q: Do you think that the US government has been militarizing the American society and the public sphere following the 9/11 attacks? The establishment of the Department of Homeland Security is what many critics of the US government refer to as the White House’s effort to make the United States a police state. What’s your take on that?
A: The US certainly had to push a culture of militarization in order for its citizens to accept and support the actions it has taken following 9/11. Without that, they wouldn’t have been able to get people to give up their rights as easily. But Americans should remember the words of Benjamin Franklin: “Those who are willing to sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither.” We are seeing more and more that the United States is turning into a police state along with profit incentives to keep it moving in that direction. Security is a big industry now, and it wasn’t before 9/11.
Q: You’ve written and spoken out about the US drone attacks against the civilian populations in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen extensively. Do you agree that using unmanned aircrafts to bomb the people of other countries is a violation of international law and many conventions that the United States is a member of? If so, then why don’t the international rights organizations respond to this violation and hold the United States accountable?
A: Using drones to kill people is not acceptable and it is a violation of international law and conventions the US is a part of, specifically the Geneva Conventions. People have the right to surrender under international law and drones take away that right. Many human rights organizations are responding to this violation and are demanding accountability, including CODEPINK. It is clear that the US is not interested in listening. They recently boycotted the UN Human Rights Council meeting at which a resolution was passed that will investigate US drone strikes and their compliance with international law. By boycotting the meeting, the US was sending a clear message they are not interested in international regulations for the use of drones.
Q: I read the whole story of your ordeal in the Cairo airport while trying to travel to the Gaza Strip on the occasion of March 8, the International Women’s Day to show solidarity with the women of Gaza. You were brutally tortured and then deported to Turkey, and even the US Embassy in Cairo failed to provide consular assistance to you, while the Department of State claimed otherwise. Would you please tell our readers in brief what had happened to you? Why do you think they prevented you from traveling to the Gaza Strip and didn’t allow the members of your delegation to arrive there? Do you consider the coup-installed government of Egypt responsible for that cruel maltreatment?
A: When I arrived at the Cairo airport, I was detained in a jail cell and given dirty bread and water. When they finally came to my cell to deport me, they pushed me to the ground and twisted my arms behind my back, dislocating my shoulder. Even though I was in great pain, they forced me to get on a plane to Turkey. I think they likely received outside pressure from Israel, with whom they have a relationship, to not allow us to go to Gaza. The government in Egypt is full of thugs, just like the men who beat me up.
Q: You’ve referred to the Gaza Strip as the world’s largest open-air prison. As you know, the citizens of Gaza are denied access to fuel, electricity, foodstuff, medicine and other goods as imports and exports to and from the coastal enclave take place with great difficulty. However, the international community has so far failed to appease the pains of the people of Gaza and help them fulfill their basic human rights. Is it that Israel, by virtue of the US support, has become so lawless that it’s impossible to bring it to justice and compel it to ease the siege of the Gaza and allow a normal situation to rule the region?
A: I think that the tide is turning. Israel is turning to more and more desperate measures as more people around the world call for justice for Palestinians. The movement for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) is picking up around the world and Israel is attempting to get laws in place that punish people for boycotting Israel. It is absurd because boycotting is a peaceful form of protest. It shows we’re getting under their skin. Netanyahu recently threatened to charge Palestinian President Abbas with war crimes, which is ironic and I think it is a desperate move on his part.
Q: One of your recent articles was about the influence of the Israeli lobby and AIPAC on the US government and that AIPAC’s power has begun to decline smoothly, although it still has its sway. Do you think that AIPAC will be able to drag the United States into a new war in the Middle East or undermine the diplomatic opening between Iran and the West and the negotiations underway for a peaceful settlement of the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program?
A: It is obvious that AIPAC is finally starting to lose its iron-clad grip on Congress. The Iran sanctions bill (S. 1881) failed to come up for a vote despite AIPAC’s lobbying attempts to get it passed. We delivered petitions on behalf of over 60 coalitions to senators and many people called in expressing that they did not want the bill to pass because it was an obvious march to war. I think that the American people are tired of war.
The American people are stronger than AIPAC and it is their voices that will win out against any attempt to drag them into another war.
Q: Is it really fair and logical to silence any criticism of Israel by resorting to the pretext of anti-Semitism and accuse the critics of the policies and actions of Tel Aviv as anti-Semites? Many of the firms and companies that have joined the Boycott/Divestment/Sanctions Movement to force Israel end its occupation of the Palestinian territories and illegal settlement constructions are based in European countries, Australia, Canada and the United States, and they can’t be surely anti-Semite. What’s your take on that?
A: I believe calling people “anti-Semitic” when they criticize Israel is just another example of desperation as Israel realizes people are waking up and calling for justice. I am Jewish, yet I criticize Israel. How can I be anti-Semitic? Some people even use the term “self-hating Jew,” which to me just doesn’t even make sense.
Most people realize the difference between being Jewish and the state of Israel. Criticizing Israel based on its actions as a nation, just like criticizing any other country, does not mean you hate the people.
People are joining the BDS movement because they realize Israel as a nation is committing crimes against the Palestinian people.
Q: The image that successive US governments have created of the nation is the image of a superpower that wages wars in an aggressive manner whenever and wherever it deems suitable.. How is it possible for the United States to change this image and become a normal state like every other country that adheres to the international law, abides by its obligations and refrains from taking the lives of innocent, unarmed civilians?
A: I think that it is up to the citizens of the United States to tell their government what they want and control how they want to be viewed by the rest of the world. I think most Americans are peace-loving people. More of us need to stand up together and demand that our interests are represented in diplomacy and more concerted efforts towards peace instead of continuous marches to war.
Foreign policy does not change quickly, but it can change. We must keep pushing for changes in US policy so it reflects the will of the people.
Q: What do you think about the chances of reconciliation and rapprochement between Iran and the United States in the future? Many Americans don’t know too much about Iran, its rich history and culture, its sophisticated civilization and the modern lifestyle of its people. Have you personally studied about Iran and its glorious, ancient past? How do you think it’s possible to acquaint the American people with the realities of Iran in order to give them a clear and realistic view of Iran and improve the chances of a thaw in the Iran-US relations?
A: I think the Iranian people and culture are wonderful, and I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to visit Iran and get a taste of its rich heritage. In terms of reconciliation with the US, it will be a difficult road. Just recently, President Obama denied the visa for the Iranian Ambassador to the UN to come to the US because he was involved in the hostage crisis. But I am hopeful that we can reconcile and move forward with Iran. It will be a long, bumpy process as we can see from AIPAC and Congress having tried to interrupt the nuclear negotiations, but it will happen.
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Blog!
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