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Victims of deadly building fire in Johannesburg died behind locked gates

After one of the worst residential fires in South Africa’s history, little remains of the overcrowded building in Johannesburg that sheltered some 200 Africans. Some called it a death trap and a disaster waiting to happen. The fire that began shortly after 1 a.m. on Aug. 31, trapped residents in the darkness, unable to pry open the locked security gates...

‘Racist lie’ must end, UN chief warns on Remembrance Day for enslaved people

Although the Trans-Atlantic slave trade ended more than two centuries ago, “the ideas of White supremacy that underpinned it remain alive,” the UN chief said on the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. “We must end the legacy of this racist lie,” Secretary-General António Guterres said at a commemorative meeting of the...

Africa: In the line of U.S. fire?

ASKIAMand Saeed Shabazz Is Africa next war on terror target?Bush dismisses Black America as he targets West African OilU.S. covets Africa's black goldSouth Africa wants proof of Africa-Iraq nuclear connection Attacks on Kenya could herald new terror power plays in AfricaWASHINGTON (FinalCall.com)–As Kenya’s President Daniel Arap Moi and Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Meles Zenawi rushed here for security talks with President George...

Turkey: 19 migrants now found dead at border with Greece

ISTANBUL—Turkish authorities on Feb. 3 found seven more dead bodies near Turkey’s border with Greece, raising to 19 the number of migrants who have frozen to death at the frontier. Turkey has blamed Greece for the deaths, accusing Greek border guards of illegally pushing the migrants back over the frontier. Greece has strongly rejected the accusation. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan...

Japan’s lower house of parliament elects Yoshihide Suga as prime minister

The lower house of Japan’s parliament has elected Yoshihide Suga as prime minister, following the resignation of former PM Shinzo Abe over health issues. Lawmakers voted to elect Mr. Suga by a majority of 314 votes in the 462-seat lower house of the Japanese parliament on Sept. 15. The 242-seat upper house is expected to also elect Mr. Suga because of a ruling bloc majority. Mr....

Israel occupation of Palestine amounts to apartheid: Academics

Hundreds of academics and public figures from across occupied Palestine and other nations have signed on to an open letter equating the Israeli regime’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories with apartheid. Titled “The Elephant in the Room,” the letter complained that American Jews have paid insufficient attention to “Israel’s long-standing occupation that … has yielded a regime of apartheid.” It also called on the Jewish leaders in the...

20 years later, Abu Ghraib torture victims get their day in court

by Brett Wilkins, CommonDreams.org Two decades after they were tortured by U.S. military contractors at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad, three Iraqi victims are finally getting their day in court as a federal court in Virginia takes up a case they brought during the George W. Bush administration. The case being heard in the U.S. District Court in Alexandria,...

Sudan progresses toward peace

WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com)--The government of Sudan and the rebel group that has fought a 20-year-old civil war are set to sign a peace treaty by the end of this month, which could possibly end Africa’s longest and bloodiest civil war. With help from an unlikely source–the Bush administration–the long-hoped-for end of hostilities could be the gateway for an unprecedented period...

A former Mossad chief says Israel is enforcing an apartheid system in the West Bank

HERZLIYA, Israel—A former head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency told The Associated Press on Sept. 6 that Israel is enforcing an apartheid system in the West Bank, joining a tiny but growing list of retired officials to endorse an idea that remains largely on the fringes of Israeli discourse and international diplomacy. Tamir Pardo becomes the latest former senior official...

Russia: Conflict with Europe ‘inevitable’ if NATO deploys troops in Ukraine

Russia has warned NATO’s European member states of a potential conflict if the West realizes a debated plan of deploying troops to Ukraine. The Kremlin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Feb. 27 that both Europe and the United States should “assess” their support to Ukraine. “In this case, we need to talk not about the likelihood, but about the inevitability of...