By Cengiz Gunes | (The Conversation) | – – Islamic State appears to have stepped up its war with the Kurds by bombing a meeting of socialist activists as they gathered in the town of Suruç. The incident is not only a terrible blow to the Kurds, but threatens further unrest in Turkey, where a […]
Is the ISIS War About Oil After All?
By Jack Werner | (Foreign Policy in Focus) | – – The unfolding intervention against the Islamic State shows that oil doesn't just guide U.S. foreign policy. It constrains our ways of thinking about it. Foreign intervention is 100 times more likely if oil reserves are present in a country experiencing civil war. That’s the […]
Can Marijuana heal Broken Bones?
Nik Zecevic and Margaret Howell | (TheLipTV) | – – “Marijuana helps broken bones heal faster, according to a study which also found that bones treated with marijuana were stronger and less likely to fracture again. The study by researchers at Tel Aviv University found that rats with broken bones healed much quicker when given […]
Security Council Defies GOP, AIPAC on Hill by Approving Iran Nuke Deal
By Thalif Deen | (Inter Press Service) | – – UNITED NATIONS (IPS) – When all 15 members of the Security Council raised their collective hands to unanimously vote in favour of the recently-concluded nuclear agreement with Iran, they were also defying a cabal of right-wing conservative U.S. politicians who wanted the United Nations to […]
Israel: Security Forces Abuse Palestinian Children: Chokeholds, Beatings, Coercive Interrogations
Human Rights Watch | – – (Jerusalem) – Israeli security forces have used unnecessary force to arrest or detain Palestinian children as young as 11. Security forces have choked children, thrown stun grenades at them, beaten them in custody, threatened and interrogated them without the presence of parents or lawyers, and failed to let their […]
What can World History teach us about Cooperating against Global Climate Challenge?
By Adrian Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – It is ironic, perhaps, but writing a world history, which involves telling hundreds of stories, makes one realize how few truly significant stories there are in that history. Most significant among these is not the history of Europe, or the history of science, or warfare, or […]
As the Iraqi Army takes on ISIL in al-Anbar: How did we get here?
Brian Glyn Williams | (Informed Comment) | – – Last week the Iraqi government announced that it would be commencing operations to retake Ramadi, the capital of the vast western province of Anbar from ISIL (also called ISIS and Daesh). This represents the Shiite-dominated government’s first attempt to roll back the hybrid terrorist-army in Iraq’s […]
Jaw-dropping: Surfer fights off shark attack live on TV in S. African competition
RT | (Video Report) | – – “Courtesy of World Surf League (WSL): www.worldsurfleague.com Professional Australian surfer Mick Fanning had a huge scare as his board was attacked by a shark during the 2015 World Surf League championship’s, at the Jeffreys Bay Open in South Africa, Sunday.” RT: ” Jaw-dropping: Surfer fights off shark attack […]
Yemen: As Aden Falls to pro-Saudi forces, Focus now on Taiz
Natasha Ghoneim | (Aljazeera English Video report) “Houthi fighters in Yemen have fired artillery shells into the port city of Aden.The latest casualty count in the shelling is more than 40 dead and over 100 injured. The attacks come just two days after Yemen’s government-in-exile declared that Aden had been recaptured from Houthi forces.Much of […]