2020-07-15: News Headlines

Germán Gorraiz López (2020-07-15). Is U.S. Military Action against Venezuela Contemplated? Trump Wants to Extradite Maduro. globalresearch.ca The Sino-Venezuelan agreement by which the Chinese state petrochemical company Sinopec will invest 14,000 million dollars to achieve daily oil production of 200,000 barrels per day of crude in the Orinoco Oil Belt, (considered the most abundant oil field in …

_____ (2020-07-15). Trump Tells Florida Crowd 'Something Will Happen In Venezuela' Soon. popularresistance.org On a trip to COVID-19 riddled Florida this weekend, President Donald Trump not-so-cryptically revealed that he had something big planned for Venezuela during a meeting with leaders of the U.S. military's Southern Command. "Something will happen with Venezuela. That's all I can tell you," he said, before adding that Washington would be "very much involved" in what he was referencing. Biden has also taken a hard line on Venezuela and is attempting to out-hawk Trump on the issue. "It's time for free and fair elections so that the Venezuelan people can turn the page on the corrupt and repressive Maduro regime," he sa…

Cira Pascual Marquina (2020-07-15). Popular protagonism in Venezuela's transition to socialism: A conversation with Michael Lebowitz. mronline.org The Marxist theorist emphasizes that socialism involves people transforming themselves.

Staff (2020-07-15). Corporate Greed Drives COVID-19 Pandemic Inside Peruvian Amazon. therealnews.com Peru's lawmakers are weighing a vote on crucial legislation, which, if passed, will declare large areas of pristine Amazon rainforest off limits to drilling and mining projects—a clear showdown between Big Oil and corporate mining interests and the rights of Indigenous peoples of the Peruvian Amazon. | Peru's Congress was expected to vote on the draft bill Thursday, July 2. But the proposal did not make it into the legislative agenda, prompting questions about whether corporate dollars are pulling the strings behind the scenes. | The proposed amendment has revived bitter decades-old social divisions in the…

Stansfield Smith (2020-07-15). WOLA's David Smilde Advocates a more Efficient Regime Change Strategy against Venezuela. dissidentvoice.org Common Dreams, a liberal-left website, reposted an article by David Smilde of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA): "Joe Biden Should Not Try to Out-Hawk Trump on Venezuela." It starts off well with the subtitle: "The first task for a Biden administration would be to take military intervention off the table." The US has …

news.un (2020-07-15). Venezuela: amputation, extortion and death amidst booming gold mining racket. news.un.org The Human Rights Council on Wednesday heard damning reports of serious exploitation and abuse of children and indigenous communities in Venezuela, where mining for gold and other minerals is booming.

_____ (2020-07-15). NYT Acknowledges Coup In Bolivia While Shirking Blame For Its Supporting Role. popularresistance.org The New York Times (6/7/20) declared that an Organization of American States (OAS) report alleging fraud in the 2019 Bolivian presidential elections—which was used as justification for a bloody, authoritarian coup d'etat in November 2019—was fundamentally flawed. | The Times reported the findings of a new study by independent researchers; the Times brags of contributing to it by sharing data it "obtained from Bolivian electoral authorities," though this data has been publicly available since before the 2019 coup. | The article never uses the word "coup"—it says that President Evo Morales was "pu…

_____ (2020-07-15). Report Warns Of Unprecedented Wave Of Land Privatization. popularresistance.org Amidst a worsening climate crisis, the Oakland Institute's new report, Driving Dispossession: The Global Push to "Unlock the Economic Potential of Land," sounds the alarm on the unprecedented wave of privatization of natural resources that is underway around the world. Through six case studies—Ukraine, Zambia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, and Brazil—the report details the myriad ways by which governments—willingly or under the pressure of financial institutions and Western donor agencies—are putting more land into so-called "productive use" in the name of development. | "The fact…

yenisafak (2020-07-15). Coronavirus claims more lives in Oman, Bahrain. yenisafak.com Local health authorities on Wednesday recorded eight deaths from the novel coronavirus in Oman and another three in Bahrain. In a statement, the Omani Health Ministry said 1,679 additional cases were registered, raising the total count to 61,247, including 281 deaths, and 39,038 recoveries.In Bahrain, three people died from the virus over the past 24 hours, according to the Health Ministry.The Gulf state's tally now stands at 34,078 cases, including 114 deaths, and 29,753 recoveries.Since first appearing in China last December, the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 188 countries and regions. The US, Brazil…

Alan MacLeod (2020-07-14). Trump Tells Florida Crowd "Something Will Happen in Venezuela" Soon. thealtworld.com "Something will happen with Venezuela. That's all I can tell you," Trump said, before not-so-cryptically adding that Washington would be "very much involved." | MPN— On a trip to COVID-19 riddled Florida this weekend, President Donald Trump not-so-cryptically revealed that he had something big planned for Venezuela during a meeting with leaders of the U.S. military's Southern Command. "Something will happen with Venezuela. That's all I can tell you," he

Anya Parampil (2020-07-14). Blockbuster oil bribery scandal exposes corrupt double-dealing of Guaidó 'attorney general'. thegrayzone.com Jose Ignacio Hernandez has raked in lucrative fees as a legal mercenary for the corporate looters of Venezuela's PDVSA oil…

Patrick Cockburn (2020-07-14). Boris Johnson Should not be Making New Global Enemies When His Country is in a Shambles. counterpunch.org Antagonising China may not be wise, particularly as it's clear that dysfunctional leaders like Boris Johnson, Donald Trump and Brazil's Jair Bolsonaro could not control an outbreak of acne.

_____ (2020-07-14). CoronaShock And Socialism. popularresistance.org CoronaShock is a term that refers to how a virus struck the world with such gripping force; it refers to how the social order in the bourgeois state crumbled, while the social order in the socialist parts of the world appeared more resilient. | This is the third in a multiple-part series of studies on CoronaShock. It is based on research by Ana Maldonado (Frente Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela), Manolo de los Santos (researcher with Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research), Subin Dennis (researcher with Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research), and Vijay Prashad (director of Tricontinental: Institute…

Julián Inzaugarat (2020-07-14). Why should the Argentine government take over Vicentin? peoplesdispatch.org Argentina's elite has waged strong resistance to the possible state takeover of the Vicentin Agroindustrial Group, ignoring how this could contribute towards food sovereignty and help Argentina deal its foreign debt crisis…

news.un (2020-07-14). Colombia: Killing of rights defenders, social leaders, ex-fighters, most serious threat to peace. news.un.org The killing of former combatants, human rights defenders and social leaders of communities devastated by decades of conflict, remains the most serious threat to peace in Colombia since the signing of a landmark peace agreement in 2016, the top UN official in the country told the Security Council on Tuesday, meeting in-person at UN Headquarters in New York, for the first time in four months.

WSWS (2020-07-14). Workers Struggles: The Americas. wsws.org Members of Actors Equity at Disney World in Florida have been locked out over their demand for COVID-19 testing while doctors in Peru are among those protesting inadequate response to the pandemic…

Anya Parampil (2020-07-13). Exclusive: Bill Richardson undertakes private mission after State Dept abandons families of mercenaries detained in Venezuela invasion. thegrayzone.com The brother of Luke Denman, a former Green Beret detained after a failed invasion of Venezuela told The Grayzone ex-US…

Staff (2020-07-13). Headlines for July 13, 2020. democracynow.org U.S. & World Mark Record Number of New COVID-19 Cases, Trump Accuses CDC of Lying & Attacks Dr. Anthony Fauci , COVID-19 Death Toll at San Quentin State Prison Reaches Nine, JBS Meat Processing Workers Stage Wildcat Strike, 300 Workers Infected, 4 Die at Los Angeles Apparel Factory, Mexico's COVID-19 Death Toll Tops 35,000, Surpassing Italy as World's Fourth Highest, India, Hong Kong, Colombia Reimpose Lockdowns Amid New Surges, Trump & DeVos Threaten to Cut Funding If Schools Stay Closed During Pandemic, Trump Commutes Sentence of Friend & Adviser Roger Stone, Washington Rdskns to Change Name; Will the Chiefs Be…

Jamal Rich (2020-07-13). The right to be radical: Uplifting the life of Claudia Jones. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—The Claudia Jones School for Political Education and Black Women Radicals came together virtually on the evening of July 3rd to co-host an event uplifting the life and work of Black Communist Claudia Jones. Over 300 attendees from around the world attended the event, including scholars and activists from Kenya, Toronto, London, Brazil, the Caribbean, …

Staff (2020-07-13). What's Behind Brazil's COVID-19 Disaster? therealnews.com Indigenous, poor, and working-class communities in Brazil are all under threat from COVID-19. One man is largely to blame for the country's pandemic disaster: President Jair Bolsonaro, who has just tested positive for the virus.

W. T. Whitney (2020-07-13). Oil Comes First in Peru, Not Coronavirus Danger, Not Indigenous Rights. counterpunch.org As of July 7, 10,772 people had died of COVID 19 infection in Peru, which is the 8th most severely affected country in the world. The actual toll is probably far greater, especially in Peru's Amazonian region. Indigenous inhabitants there, isolated from medical care, suffer from the pandemic and from an environment poisoned by oil extraction. Canadian oil company Frontera

Peoples Dispatch (2020-07-13). Why has coronavirus exploded in Brazil and seems controlled in Argentina? peoplesdispatch.org While in Bolsonaro's Brazil, the death toll is counted in the thousands, in Argentina Fernández's administration took drastic, timely measures and seems to have controlled the cases. Prioritizing economy or health, two political approaches that lead to very different outcomes.

teleSUR (2020-07-13). COVID-19: Global Cases Reach 13 Million. telesurenglish.net Global COVID-19 cases reached 13 million on Monday according to data registered by the John Hopkins University. | RELATED: | As worldwide death toll ascended to 570,776 fatalities, United States; Brazil; India; Russia, and Peru are among the hardest-hit countries. | Today Tedros Adhanom, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), remarked during a press briefing that "too many countries are headed in the wrong direction." | The officia…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Mapuche Leader Calls to Keep Fighting for the Indigenous Rights. telesurenglish.net Mapuche's people spiritual advisor (Machi) Celestino Cordova Saturday called for not stopping the fight for Indigenous rights in Chile, even if he does not survive his hunger strike. | RELATED: | "If I die, don't let your guard down. Keep fighting until our ancestral Mapuche territory is returned to us," said Cordova after over 70 days of hunger strike. | After a two-months strike, he has lost over 20 kilograms of weight and suffers from bradycardia and permanent hypo…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Chile: Miners To Strike On July 15. telesurenglish.net Chile Antofagasta's Miners Union N ∞1 Friday announced a general strike on July 15, after rejecting Zaldivar Mining Company's contractual offer in a negotiation process. | RELATED: | "If the company does not recognize our contribution and sacrifice, it will face an extensive strike that will completely halt production," the union stated in a communiqué. | Over 95 percent of miners rejected Zaldivar Mining…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Colombia: Capital Enters Quarantine After COVID-19 Cases Rise. telesurenglish.net Starting on Monday, Bogotá enters a phased quarantine until August 23 due to an accelerated rise in COVID-19 cases. | RELATED: | Mayor Claudia Lopez said to the press that the government had evidence that "practically one out of three tests in any neighborhood today is positive" so "the speed at which the pandemic | is spreading in Bogota is alarming", the official added. | Local authorities issued an Orange Alert,…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Colombia: Another Two Former Combatants Killed, Tally at 218. telesurenglish.net Colombia's Alternative Revolutionary Force of the Common (FARC) political party Monday denounced the murder of another two former combatants. | RELATED: | "Almost every day there is a murder, in addition to the 15 forced disappearances. We denounce the extermination plan against our party and we raise our voice of anger and impotence against the State for not stopping these events," FARC tweeted. | One of the vict…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Ecuador: New Arrests in COVID-19 Supplies Corruption Case. telesurenglish.net An Ecuadorean judge Monday ordered the preventive detention of five people to investigate the alleged sale of drugs that were donated to Guayaquil city during the pandemic. | RELATED: | The State Attorney General's Office tweeted that Judge Marco Guerra ordered preventive prison for "Abraham and Moises M., and Alvaro P., Victor Ch. and Erick P. for the alleged organized crime to commercialize COVID-19 medicines," which were…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Peruvian Amazon Indigenous People Threatened By COVID-19. telesurenglish.net Peru's Interethnic Association for the Development of the Forest (Aidesep) Monday confirmed five COVID-19 positive cases among the Indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon. | RELATED: | "First it (the virus) was installed in the communities, and now it has also reached the villages in initial contact in Ucayali and is threatening those living in voluntary isolation," Aidesep tweeted. | Local health authoriti…

Michael Lebowitz (2020-07-13). Popular protagonism in Venezuela's transition to socialism. zcomm.org Capitalism, which destroys human beings and nature, must be ended, but you can not build socialism without the protagonism by which people change themselves…

Leonardo Flores (2020-07-13). VenezolanosConBiden and MAGAzuela: Two sides of the same coin. mronline.org The Biden campaign recently held an event outlining the presidential hopeful's "vision for Venezuela." Spoiler alert: it barely differs from President Trump's.

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Venezuela Updates its Electoral Roll Amidst Health Protocols. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) Monday kicked off a voters register's update process to set up the elections whereby 277 lawmakers will be elected on Dec. 6. | RELATED: | CNE president Indira Alfonzo detailed that to this end were established 551 active locations in each Regional Electoral Offices (REO). | The electoral body deployed 1,232 agents in each REO to ensure compliance with the h…

Paul Dobson (2020-07-13). Venezuela Begins Election Preparations as More Parties Confirm Participation. venezuelanalysis.com Hard-right Popular Will Party has announced it will run, while the Communist Party has unveiled an alternative revolutionary alliance.

yenisafak (2020-07-13). What you need to know about the coronavirus right now. yenisafak.com Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now: Fourth in the world for most new casesFlorida reported a record increase of more than 15,000 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours on Sunday, as the Trump administration renewed its push for schools to reopen and anti-mask protests were planned in Michigan and Missouri.If Florida were a country, it would rank fourth worldwide for the most new daily cases, after the United States, Brazil and India, according to a Reuters analysis.Health officials have pleaded with the public to wear masks to limit the virus spread, but the issue has become politically divisi…

Yanis Iqbal (2020-07-12). The Ravages of Lithium Extraction in Chile. dissidentvoice.org In Chile, the Covid-19 pandemic is raging with an unprecedented speed. There are more than 300,000 confirmed cases with one of the highest per capita infection rates of 13,000 cases for every 1 million people. The economy is severely experiencing the repercussions of Coronavirus-caused restrictions and the historically high national unemployment rate of 11.2% is …

RT (2020-07-12). In biggest daily increase among ALL states since start of Covid-19 epidemic, Florida confirms over 15,000 new infections. rt.com The US state of Florida reported a record spike in coronavirus cases since the outbreak of the pandemic, officials announced on Sunday, as the World Health Organization (WHO) confirms a record rise in global cases as well. | The US reported a massive 66,500 new cases in 24 hours, and, in Florida, 15,299 new cases of Covid-19 were confirmed on Sunday. | Florida's record figure, the highest among all states reported since the start of the epidemic, would rank it fourth in the world after the US, Brazil and India, if it were a country. | The state's daily new cases have also passed the highest recorded daily rate…

RT (2020-07-12). WHO reports over 230,000 new infections of Covid-19, marking a new record daily rise. rt.com The World Health Organization has registered a record increase in coronavirus cases worldwide. The confirmed-cases number has jumped by nearly a quarter million over the past 24 hours. | The record increase of 230,370 was registered by the global health watchdog on Sunday, with the largest number of new cases coming from the US, Brazil, India, and South Africa. It is the highest daily spike since the outbreak of the pandemic last year. | The first three countries, which contributed most to the spike, amount to nearly half of all the cases registered worldwide. The US remains by far the worst-hit nation, with m…

teleSUR (2020-07-12). Petition to UN on Afro-Bolivian Union Leader Elena Flores. telesurenglish.net A recent petition to the United Nations has called for attention to the political imprisonment and human rights abuses against Afro-Bolivian union leader Elena Flores. | RELATED: | Flores is the President of the Departmental Association of Coca Producers (Adepcoca) union of coca growers in her home territory of Yungas, where she's been a labour organizer since her youth. | The leader has been held as a political p…

Brasil de Fato (2020-07-12). Victims of reopening in Brazil: Stories of those who contracted COVID-19 going back to work. peoplesdispatch.org "It makes me cry to talk about this, we were so careful, took so much care and the person comes back to work and gets COVID-19 the first week." 37 year old Vânia da Silva Feitoza, vents about how her husband spent a week in the ICU being treated for the disease he contracted upon returning to work, amid the Alberto da Silva Feitoza, is a 38-year-old steel worker and was under social isolation for three…

Nathalia Santos Ocasio (2020-07-12). Chilean Arpilleras Sustain Political Momentum During Lockdown. zcomm.org As Covid-19 interrupts months of mass mobilizations in Chile, women continue creating political tapestries to resist state violence and systemic inequalities.

teleSUR (2020-07-12). Colombia: Another FARC ex-Combatant Killed in Meta. telesurenglish.net Colombia's Revolutionary Alternative Force of the Common (FARC) political party Saturday announced the murder of another ex-combatant in the municipality of La Uribe, department of Meta. | RELATED: | "We denounce another murder. Fredy Fajardo Avila was killed in La Uribe, Meta. With this comrade, 217 peace signatories have been murdered in the last years," the political party announced on its Twitter account. | FARC deman…

_____ (2020-07-12). Bolivia's Struggle To Restore Democracy After OAS Instigated Coup. popularresistance.org Today, Bolivia stands at a crossroads. In June 2020, popular calls were mounting for new elections and the restoration of democracy, despite the ongoing repression. In response to this pressure, on June 22, àÅñez signed off on legislation to hold new elections in September. Former president Carlos Mesa (2003-2005) of the right-wing Citizens Community Party would face off against the MAS candidate, former Minister of Finance (2006-2019), Luis Arce. àÅñez's decision drew the ire of Minister of Government, Arturo Murillo, who characterizes the most popular political party in the country as narco-terroris…

_____ (2020-07-12). How The FBI 'Toppled Presidents' In Brazil. popularresistance.org Natalia Viana, editor from the respected Brazilian investigative journalism site Agência Pública, recently published a 5 part series based on information shared from leaked Telegram conversations revealed by Intercept Brasil as part of the Vaza Jato scandal. | In the series, she shows how Lava Jato task force director, public prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, received financial compensation through an asset sharing scheme based on kickbacks from fines that the US Government collected from Brazilian companies and individuals. According to Viana, during a meeting in which they negotiated the asset sharing deal, Deltan r…