After 9 years of war, most Afghans don’t trust U.S.
JIM.LOBE WASHINGTON(IPS/GIN) - On the ninth anniversary of the U.S. military intervention in their country, a new report released in October found Afghans remain deeply distrustful and resentful of the impact and intent of foreign forces there. Based on dozens of interviews and focus group sessions in seven provinces in western, eastern, and southern Afghanistan over the past year, the...
Corpse desecration latest crisis for U.S. military
- Afghanistan - 10 Years of Failure & Oppression WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com) - Even as top U.S. defense officials and leaders of NATO combat forces in Afghanistan have condemned a video posted on YouTube and other Internet sites showing what appears to be American forces in Afghanistan urinating on dead Taliban soldiers as “despicable” some political commentators and...
N. Korean diplomat: UN command on peninsula is U.S. front and needs to be dismantled now
By Saeed Shabazz -Staff Writer- UNITED NATIONS (FinalCall.com) - The last time Ambassador Sin Son-ho of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) held a press conference at the UN was 2010, after South Korea accused Pyongyang of sinking one of its naval ships. So when he appeared June 21 before the UN press corps, the house was packed with scribes, television...
Another year, another UN vote to end U.S. blockade against Cuba
UNITED NATIONS (FinalCall.com) - A majority of the 193-member UN General Assembly voted to demand an end to the U.S.-led Cuba blockade for 23rd consecutive year as the Caribbean nation's foreign minister reported that the embargo has cost the Cuban economy more than $1 trillion. Speaking before the vote, Russian ambassador Vitaly I. Churkin said a swift lifting of the...
In Peru’s Cuzco, pandemic devastates tourism and economy
CUZCO, Peru—Efrain Valles guided world leaders, pop stars and a princess on exclusive tours through the land of the Incas. He now makes ice cream to survive amid the coronavirus pandemic. Mr. Valles, once one of the most sought-after tour guides in Cuzco high in Peru’s Andes, is one of the 1.3 million people nationwide in a tourism industry devastated...
Khalifa Haftar threatens to target Turkish forces in Libya
Libya’s strongman Khalifa Haftar has threatened to target Turkish forces, who have been deployed to Libya to support the UN-recognized government in the face of foreign actors like France, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Mr. Haftar described Turkey as “the colonizing enemy” who has to “leave peacefully or to be driven out by force.” The Turkish parliament recently ratified a motion to extend troop...
Maduro slams ‘terrorist attack’ on Venezuelan oil company’s pipeline
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has condemned a “terrorist attack” on a major gas pipeline at a time when the Latin American country is already reeling from fuel shortages due to illegal U.S. sanctions against Caracas. The incident took place on Jan. 23 and led to a major fire at the facilities in the northeastern state of Anzoategui. Media reports said the fire...
India summons UK envoy over MP’s ‘unwarranted’ comments on farmers’ protests, slams ‘gross interference’ in its politics
The foreign secretary of India has summoned the UK’s ambassador to New Delhi in response to British MPs highlighting alleged human rights abuses during mass farmer protests against Indian agricultural reforms. Harsh Vardhan Shringla expressed his opposition to the “unwarranted and tendentious comments” from British politicians, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said, in a statement March 9 announcing the summons. British...
Defrocked U.S. priest revered in East Timor accused of abuse
It was the same every night. A list of names was posted on the Rev. Richard Daschbach’s bedroom door. The child at the top of the roster knew it was her turn to share the lower bunk with the elderly priest and another elementary school-aged girl. Daschbach was idolized in the remote enclave of East Timor where he lived, largely...
Mali junta leader sworn in as president after 2nd coup
BAMAKO, Mali—Mali coup leader Col. Assimi Goita was sworn in June 7 as president of a transitional government, solidifying his grip on power in the West African nation after carrying out his second coup in nine months. The inauguration ceremony in the capital, Bamako, came as Mali faces increasing isolation from the international community over the junta’s power grab. Already...