Winning Hearts & Minds

Court orders UK to hold inquiries into illegal civilian deaths during Iraq War

"A series of public inquests should be held into the deaths of civilians who are alleged to have been killed unlawfully by the British military following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the high court has ruled. In a ground-breaking judgment that could have an impact on how the British military is able to conduct operations among civilians in the future, the court ruled on Friday that up to 161 deaths should be the subject of hearings modelled upon coroners’ inquests. In practice, a series of hearings – possibly amounting to more than 100 – are likely to be held as a result of the judgment, which follows a three-year legal battle on behalf of the Iraqis’ families." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCourt orders UK to hold inquiries into illegal civilian deaths during Iraq War

Honduran victims of US drug war still await justice

"In the increasingly militarised drug war, suspects are sometimes killed in the field; suspicion of involvement in drug trafficking warrants a death sentence. Government drug warriors on the scene play the role of judge, jury and executioner. This May 11 marked one year since the tragic killing of four indigenous villagers in Ahuas, in Honduras' Moskitia region. The victims, who included a pregnant woman and a 14-year-old boy, were killed in a joint US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)/Honduran police counter-narcotics operation. Three other villagers were shot and wounded." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHonduran victims of US drug war still await justice

Cops Go Undercover at High School to Bust Special-Needs Kid for Pot

"Californians Doug and Catherine Snodgrass are suing their son’s high school for allowing undercover police officers to set up the 17-year-old special-needs student for a drug arrest. They were 'thrilled' when their son -- who has Asperger's and other disabilities and struggled to make friends -- appeared to have instantly made a friend named Daniel. 'Daniel,' however, was an undercover cop with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department who 'hounded' the teenager to sell him his prescription medication. When he refused, the undercover cop gave him $20 to buy him weed, and he complied -- not realizing the guy he wanted to befriend wanted him behind bars." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCops Go Undercover at High School to Bust Special-Needs Kid for Pot

84-year-old woman with oxygen tank arrested for drugs

"An 84-year-old woman in Albuquerque has been arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit drug trafficking, tampering with evidence and possession of drugs. Court documents showed that Lillie Smith, who uses a oxygen tank, was not arrested in 2011 when her son was busted for dealing drugs. As Blount County Sheriff’s Office deputies were serving a warrant on her son, Nathan Jones, officers said that they observed Smith trying to stash marijuana and cocaine. Neighbors insisted that Smith had only allowed her son to deal drugs out of the apartment where they both lived because she needed someone to take care of her." Continue reading →

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The Dark Side of Liberation: Rape By American Soldiers In WWII France

"The soldiers who landed in Normandy on D-Day were greeted as liberators, but by the time American G.I.’s were headed back home in late 1945, many French citizens viewed them in a very different light. In the port city of Le Havre, the mayor was bombarded with letters from angry residents complaining about drunkenness, jeep accidents, sexual assault — 'a regime of terror,' as one put it, 'imposed by bandits in uniform.' Ms. Roberts also found a desperate letter from the mayor in August 1945 urging American commanders to set up brothels outside the city, to halt the 'scenes contrary to decency' that overran the streets, day and night." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Dark Side of Liberation: Rape By American Soldiers In WWII France

‘The Rendition Project’ sheds new light on U.S. global kidnap and secret detention program

"A groundbreaking research project has mapped the US government’s global kidnap and secret detention programme, shedding unprecedented light on one of the most controversial secret operations of recent years. The interactive online project – by two British universities and a legal charity – has uncovered new details of the way in which the so-called extraordinary rendition programme operated for years in the wake of the September 11 attacks, and the techniques used by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to avoid detection in the face of growing public concern." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘The Rendition Project’ sheds new light on U.S. global kidnap and secret detention program

West Point sergeant accused of filming naked female cadets without their consent

"A West Point sergeant in charge of teaching cadets has been accused of videotaping a dozen female officers without their consent, including times when they were in the shower, according to military officials. The Army confirmed reports Wednesday it had filed charges against Sgt. 1st Class Michael McClendon under four articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for cruelty and maltreatment, indecent acts, dereliction in the performance of duty and actions prejudicial to good order and discipline. The charges, filed May 14, come at a time when the U.S. military has come under intense scrutiny for the way it handles sexual harassment and abuse cases." Continue reading →

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Watch As City Changes Parking Signs Then Issues Tickets To Cars That Had Been Parked Legally

"Once you find a spot and check all the signs, you should be good, right? Not if the city comes by and changes the signs on you. CBS 2 in New York has security camera footage of this exact thing happening outside of a Manhattan building recently. Cars parked along one side of the street shown in the video are parked legally when the video begins. But as you can see on the video, a city employee comes in and installs a new No Standing Anytime sign. And within 25 minutes of that sign going up, a parking enforcement officer is swooping in to issue tickets — $115 each — to cars that had been legally parked before the sign was changed." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWatch As City Changes Parking Signs Then Issues Tickets To Cars That Had Been Parked Legally

German Anti-Euro Party a Growing Challenge for Merkel

"Though the German left is splintered among three, or even four, parties, the right is a monolith. There is the CDU, its Bavarian wing known as the Christian Social Union, and its favorite coalition partner, the Free Democrats (FDP). But this election year is different. With the birth of the anti-euro party Alternative for Germany (AfD), Merkel is facing competition from within her own clientele. Furthermore, though her preferred strategy has been that of maintaining complete silence about the AfD so as not to lend it credibility, there are many in Merkel's party who disagree with that approach. And they are increasingly giving voice to their displeasure." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGerman Anti-Euro Party a Growing Challenge for Merkel

Europeans Rapidly Losing Faith in EU Project

"Europe's ongoing economic crisis and lasting currency woes are beginning to rapidly erode faith among Europeans in the EU project. That is the result of a new survey undertaken by the renowned Pew Research Center in Washington D.C. and released on Monday evening. In just one year, the share of Europeans who view the European Union project favorably plummeted from 60 percent in 2012 to just 45 percent this year. Furthermore, only in Germany does a majority continue to support granting more power to Brussels in an effort to combat the ongoing crisis." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEuropeans Rapidly Losing Faith in EU Project