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AIPAC blacklists dozens of US lawmakers that backed cutting military aid to Israel

The Cradle | July 18, 2026

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) cut off online donations to more than two dozen House Democrats on 17 July, only days after they voted against a $3.3 billion military aid package to Israel.

AIPAC’s donation portal shows “pro-Israel” incumbents with contribution buttons, which were removed for Democrats who backed the amendment, while links stayed active for those who opposed the vote this week.

“AIPAC members are deeply appreciative of their representatives who stand on principle and are disappointed by those who don’t,” AIPAC spokesperson Deryn Sousa said in a statement.

On 15 July, Republican Representative Thomas Massie introduced the amendment to the National Security and Department of State Appropriations Act (NSDSA) 2027, aiming to cut about $3.3 billion annually in US military aid to Israel.

If approved, the measure would have eliminated Israel’s share of Foreign Military Financing (FMF), the program through which Washington funds foreign governments’ purchases of US weaponry, and would also have prohibited any funds in the fiscal 2027 State Department bill from being used to support Israel.

While the proposed amendment was defeated in a 314-to-104 vote, it marked a significant political shift, with nearly half of House Democrats voting in its favor.

Ties to the pro-Israel lobby have become an ideological litmus test for US voters.

Candidates critical of Israel have seen a sharp rise in support, with progressive challengers in New York defeating pro-Israel incumbents in congressional primaries in late June.

The defeats significantly impacted AIPAC, highlighting campaigns that focus on their opponents’ acceptance of lobby funds and their reluctance to label Israel’s assault on Gaza as genocide.

Accepting AIPAC funds has become “toxic” to a growing number of US voters, who increasingly weigh a candidate’s loyalty to the US against loyalty to a foreign lobby.

The financial pressure campaign runs parallel to broader Israeli efforts to shore up support among US citizens.

A recent investigation by TIME revealed that Israel has been paying President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager around $1.5 million per month to run an influence operation producing pro-Israel content aimed at Gen Z audiences across social media platforms.

The efforts have failed to stop the long-running reputational collapse, as one Pew Research Center poll released in April found 60 percent of US citizens view Israel unfavorably, while an older survey by Gallup showed more US citizens sympathizing with Palestinians than Israelis for the first time in US history.

July 18, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Corruption | , , , | Comments Off on AIPAC blacklists dozens of US lawmakers that backed cutting military aid to Israel

Heather Herbert Charged Over Ann Widdecombe Bluesky Posts

By Cam Wakefield | Reclaim The Net | July 17, 2026

Police Scotland has arrested and charged someone over two posts published online.

Heather Herbert, a 50-year-old web developer at the University of Aberdeen, a transgender activist and a former Labour and Scottish Greens candidate, wrote two vile messages on Bluesky about the death of Ann Widdecombe, a British politician and television personality who was found murdered in her home last week.

“And some good news for once. I hope it was an extremely painful death,” the first one said. The second went further. “And I hope she was handcuffed to the bed as she screamed in agony.”

Wishing an elderly woman a screaming, agonized end is the sort of thing that typically earns you a wide social berth and a lot of quiet unfollowing.

Then the police got involved. And un-involved. And then involved again.

Police Scotland looked at the posts and decided, in its own words, that “no criminality has been established.” Filed away, done. Then a petition gathered around 3,500 signatures in a matter of days, and the force pulled a handbrake turn.

A spokesman confirmed that “following further assessment, additional inquiries are being carried out.” Put plainly, the public shouted and the definition of a crime shuffled over to meet the shouting.

A 50-year-old, Herbert, was then arrested and charged, with a report going to the procurator fiscal. The police have not said which offense was supposedly committed. They made the arrest first and will presumably tell everyone the crime later.

Herbert, for what it is worth, was unrepentant, dismissing the whole row as “overblown” before the Bluesky account went dark and was suspended.

Herbert is clearly not charming company to keep but Britain has a troubling habit of turning vile speech into a police matter.

The death that started all this turned out to be far worse than anyone first assumed. Widdecombe, 78, the former Conservative minister turned Reform UK spokeswoman, was found dead at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor with serious injuries.

A 28-year-old man from South Yorkshire was arrested, then re-arrested under terrorism law. Counter-terror officers now describe a “brutal” and “targeted attack.”

Herbert posted before any of that was known, which spares nothing morally but is legally relevant, because you cannot be prosecuted for gloating over a murder that had not yet been called one.

The University of Aberdeen says it is reviewing the posts “as a matter of priority,” that the comments “are entirely the individual’s own,” and that it does not condone “violence or hateful behaviour in any form.” The principal added his own condemnation on top.

So a web developer’s repugnant messages have become a workplace disciplinary matter, a police matter and a political-party matter all at once. Three investigations for two sentences.

Herbert’s posts are horrible, and horrible speech is exactly the speech that tests whether a country believes in the freedom it advertises. Pleasant opinions have never needed protecting. Scotland has spent years assembling the machinery to police the ugly ones, and that machinery does not politely switch itself off when the target happens to be unsympathetic. Today it points at a gloating activist. Tomorrow it points wherever the next petition tells it to.

You are not obliged to like Heather Herbert. You can find the posts repulsive, think a great deal less of the person who wrote them, and still spot the much bigger problem standing behind them. But a police force that works out what is criminal by reading the room is a police force you should never trust with a single one of your own words.

Widdecombe deserved better than those posts. Everyone in Scotland deserves better than a speech code enforced by whoever can shout the loudest.

July 17, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance | , | Comments Off on Heather Herbert Charged Over Ann Widdecombe Bluesky Posts

Judge rules US violated Palestinian American’s rights in phone search

The Cradle | July 17, 2026

A federal judge has ruled that the US government violated the constitutional rights of Palestinian American Osama Abu Irshaid after customs officials seized and searched his cellphone during two separate encounters at a US international airport in 2024.

In a ruling filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, US District Judge Michael Nachmanoff determined that the phone searches violated Irshaid’s Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable government searches and seizures.

CAIR welcomes the court’s decision

Irshaid serves as the executive director of American Muslims for Palestine and is a US citizen of Palestinian descent.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which filed the lawsuit on Irshaid’s behalf two years ago, welcomed the court’s decision on Thursday.

The Muslim civil rights organization said in its lawsuit that the federal government had placed Irshaid on a watch list that was discriminatory and racist.

CBP agents conducted advanced phone searches

According to CAIR, US Customs and Border Protection agents twice seized Irshaid’s cellphone and carried out “advanced” searches when he returned to the United States from international travel in 2024.

At the time, the government denied adding individuals to any such watch list based on race, religion, or protected speech activities.

Rights groups have raised growing concerns in recent years over increased scrutiny of Americans with Middle Eastern, Arab, and Palestinian backgrounds, particularly over their political views, following Israeli genocide in Gaza, which started in October 2023.

July 17, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance, Islamophobia | , , , | Comments Off on Judge rules US violated Palestinian American’s rights in phone search

US blocks SSL security certificates for Iran’s Fars News Agency

The Cradle | July 17, 2026

Washington has blocked the issuance of SSL security certificates for Fars News Agency‘s website, cutting the country’s most visited news outlet off from browser-trusted encryption, the agency revealed on 17 July.

Without valid certificates, visitors to the site face security warnings and restricted access, while the agency’s content has been removed from Google search results.

Technical assessments confirm that all major internationally recognized Certificate Authorities – including Let’s Encrypt, DigiCert, and Sectigo – have rejected certificate requests for the agency’s domains, citing US sanctions pressure.

The measure is the latest in a series of US actions against the outlet. The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control seized the agency’s .com domain in 2020, and in September 2023 added Fars and its CEO to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) sanctions list.

The EU and Canada have since imposed sanctions of their own.

Fars has faced repeated efforts to restrict its reach, including the removal of its Instagram account, which had nearly three million followers.

Iran’s Computer Emergency Response and Coordination Center (MAHER) says the agency has been the primary target of sustained cyberattacks aimed at disrupting the country’s domestic media infrastructure.

The block forms part of a broader western campaign to dominate the media narrative against its geopolitical adversaries by suppressing opposing voices while artificially amplifying its own.

Western governments are simultaneously dismantling online anonymity at home through identity verification laws that, under the pretext of child protection, tie every post to a legal identity – backed by biometric verification requirements, VPN restrictions, and the scanning of private messages.

The measures tighten control over expression both abroad and within their own borders, amid ongoing crackdowns on pro-Palestine and pro-Iran speech.

An investigation by TIME revealed that Israel has been paying $1.5 million per month to Clock Tower X, a firm owned by US President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager Brad Parscale, to run a covert influence campaign targeting young US conservatives through paid influencer networks, coordinated messaging in private group chats, and websites designed to shape how AI chatbots characterize Israel.

US officials now believe the operation turned against Trump himself, as paid influencers attacked the now broken ceasefire with Iran.

In May, Israel allocated roughly $730 million to its 2026 Hasbara propaganda budget,  more than four times the previous year’s allocation, even as polling shows 60 percent of US respondents now view Israel unfavorably, with experts dismissing the spending as unable to offset the impact of its genocide in Gaza.

The Cradle analyst Mohamad Hasan Sweidan previously detailed how Israel operates a “Digital Iron Dome,” a system combining mass reporting campaigns to take down content exposing its crimes in Gaza, algorithmic ad warfare that floods timelines with state propaganda, and hundreds of millions of dollars in influencer contracts and AI-targeted campaigns to manipulate global perceptions.

July 17, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Deception, Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , , , , , | Comments Off on US blocks SSL security certificates for Iran’s Fars News Agency

Armenian PM persecutes dissent as West turns blind eye – rights group

RT | July 15, 2026

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has created “an atmosphere of fear” through the “systematic” persecution of political opponents with the tacit backing of Western nations, a newly formed rights group has claimed, warning that any dissenting voice is now treated as an “enemy.”

Tensions have remained high since last month’s parliamentary election, in which Pashinyan’s pro-EU Civil Contract party won 49.74% of the vote, according to the Central Electoral Commission (CEC). At least seven opposition parties have petitioned the constitutional court to annul the results, alleging widespread electoral misconduct, while hundreds of protesters rallied outside the CEC headquarters.

On Monday, the Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Persons Subjected to Political Persecution – a watchdog established by lawyers, political activists, and several former officials – accused the government of waging a campaign to silence the opposition.

“Everything is being done to foster a climate of fear, isolate political and public figures, and attempt to decapitate the numerous opposition forces,” former MP and lawyer Elinar Vardanyan said. According to the committee, around half a dozen opposition politicians are either in custody or facing criminal prosecution.

“Anyone who holds a different point of view is regarded by the authorities not as an opponent, but as an enemy,” said Armenia’s first ombudswoman, Larisa Alaverdyan, who joined the group. Committee members argued that Pashinyan has been able to pursue the crackdown because he has effectively received a “carte blanche” from his Western backers.

“In pursuit of their own interests, Western institutions are not merely turning a blind eye to Pashinyan’s actions – they are, in effect, encouraging them,” political analyst Yervand Bozoyan said, accusing foreign governments and international organizations of being “silently complicit in the destruction of democracy” in Armenia.

Pashinyan has declared the opposition parties that entered parliament illegitimate and vowed to strip them of their political standing. He has also said his government intends to confiscate the assets of the leaders of the three largest opposition parties, adding that they “should be left hungry.”

Following those remarks, prosecutors opened a criminal case against former President Robert Kocharyan, leader of the Armenia Alliance, the third-largest parliamentary party. Another opposition leader, Samvel Karapetyan, has remained in custody since last year on charges of plotting a coup, which he denies.

About a month before the election, Pashinyan hosted an EU-Armenia summit and a meeting of the European Political Community (EPC), an EU-led forum launched in 2022 after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict. He has also pledged to deepen Armenia’s integration with the EU, despite the country’s continued reliance on trade with Russia and Moscow’s warnings that adopting EU standards could damage the South Caucasus nation’s economy.

July 15, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance | | Comments Off on Armenian PM persecutes dissent as West turns blind eye – rights group

French Donbass Charity Founder’s Show Trial Designed to ‘Neutralize’ Dissent to Hostility to Russia

Sputnik – 15.07.2026

The criminal case against SOS Donbass organizer Anna Novikova is part of France and EU’s broader policy of “intimidating dissenters and neutralizing them to suppress domestic opposition to the official hostility to Russia,” independent French geopolitical analyst Come Carpentier de Gourdon told Sputnik.

“In fact any support of Russia, even by quoting or circulating news reports, opinions or comments from Russian (state) media is considered in France as connivence with the enemy and therefore potentially treasonous,” with Russia deemed “de facto an enemy country,” the observer pointed out.

But the prosecution may face problems, because the law “is far from clear” regarding humanitarian aid, “and any trial can become very controversial as the accused may object the French Government’s position: Ukraine is not an ally of France or a NATO member, France has not declared war on Russia.”

“Therefore objections can be raised to the claim that assistance to the Donbass and denunciation of Ukrainian actions there is tantamount to supporting Russia’s military campaign.”

Nevertheless, “other EU countries” should be “expected to adopt similar measures or laws,” the analyst fears.

Case Flunks Even EU’s Own Fake Rule of Law Standards

Novikova’s case does not even “adhere to the three Orwellian slogans of the EU – democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights,” political analyst Dr. Greg Simons told Sputnik.

The “purely political” crackdown “is a continuation of the larger attempt to shut out any alternative views,” and was preceded by things like bans on Russian foreign-facing media, sanctions and economic warfare against critics. It will inevitably expand over time, Simons expects.

“The Ukraine issue is going to become much more sensitive and toxic politically to Europe for supporting this cause,” and Novikova’s “lawfare” imprisonment and trial are a “test case” for tightening control over the narrative on Ukraine.

It’s also an “an act of pure intimidation so that people will stop breaking the narrative” amid the growing desperation and political vulnerability of the French government, Simons suggests, pointing to President Macron’s growing vulnerability and questions on his political future, and similar trends regarding the anti-Russia ideology of Euro-Atlanticism in general.

July 15, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance, Russophobia | , | Comments Off on French Donbass Charity Founder’s Show Trial Designed to ‘Neutralize’ Dissent to Hostility to Russia

Judge Revokes Bail for Mother Charged With Murdering Twins Who Died 8 Days After Vaccines

Photo courtesy of Joe Filicetti
By Brenda Baletti, Ph.D. | The Defender | July 14, 2026

A district judge in Payette County, Idaho, today revoked the bond for 23-year-old Andrea Shaw, the Idaho mother charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of her 18-month-old twins.

Bail was initially set at $2 million. But today’s decision means that Shaw will not be eligible for release on any amount of bail.

Shaw was indicted by a grand jury and arrested on June 30 on allegations that she deliberately suffocated her twins, who died on May 1, 2025. Prosecutors allege the children were killed while sharing a bed in their home.

Shaw, who pleaded not guilty, has consistently denied the allegations. She alleges that her twins’ deaths were caused by the vaccines they received at a routine doctor’s appointment just over a week before they died. The toddlers both had documented adverse reactions to the shots.

In a motion filed Monday, defense attorney Joseph Filicetti argued that the $2 million bond is excessive and should be reduced to $100,000 with reasonable release conditions.

Prosecutors opposed any bond reduction, arguing that the evidence supports the murder charges and that Shaw should remain in custody.

Prosecutors said the court had been generous in granting the bond, which, in the state’s opinion, Shaw is not entitled to.

Bond is discretionary in capital cases, the prosecution said, and they suggested that she should not be allowed near her new infant.

Twins diagnosed with ‘post-immunization reaction’

The defense argued that Shaw has no criminal history — not even a parking ticket. She has remained in Idaho throughout the more than year-long investigation, has strong family ties to the Payette area, and recently gave birth by caesarean section to a premature daughter who needs her mother.

Filicetti said Shaw’s postpartum medical needs and her newborn’s dependence on her legally justify release under supervised conditions. He argued that bond is meant to ensure that a defendant will attend court; it’s not to punish them.

The defense also contended that the prosecution’s case is entirely circumstantial. He noted that there is no confession, eyewitness or admission connecting Shaw to the children’s deaths — and that the grand jury was not informed of those shortcomings in the state’s allegations.

Documentation supports Shaw’s statement that on April 24, 2025, the day after the twins received the vaccines, she took them to the emergency room when they were lethargic and their lips turned blue.

The treating physician in the ER diagnosed them with “post-immunization reaction.”

The children remained ill in the days leading up to their deaths eight days after receiving the shots, and Shaw repeatedly sought medical advice, according to court documents.

Supporting affidavits filed with the motion to reduce bail and shared with The Defender included one from Shaw’s mother-in-law who accompanied the family to the vaccination appointment and later to the ER.

She said she questioned the administration of the flu vaccine given a family history of adverse reactions and that the nurse assured the family the twins would be safe. She also described Shaw as a devoted mother who repeatedly sought medical care for the children.

The defense also submitted an affidavit from Angela Wulbrecht, a registered nurse with 26 years of obstetrics experience, who contacted the family after she learned of the infant deaths.

Wulbrecht said she offered to help obtain an independent forensic review and advised the family that if such a review uncovered evidence of abuse, she would report it to law enforcement.

Wulbrecht said the family immediately welcomed an independent examination — a response she said is inconsistent with what one would expect from someone who had intentionally harmed a child.

The defense argued these facts undermine the state’s theory of homicide and said independent experts are being assembled to challenge the prosecution’s conclusions.

Prosecutors filed a motion opposing the bond reduction. In their summary of the evidence, they said that investigators ruled out other possible causes of death — including heat exposure, carbon monoxide poisoning, poisoning and vaccines — during the investigation.

They did acknowledge that the infants had suffered side effects from the vaccine and that at least one of them was still suffering reactions at the time of death.

They argued that the only “conceivable explanation” was that the twins were suffocated and cited one expert who said that autopsy findings, including pulmonary vascular congestion and pulmonary edema in one of the twins, are consistent with suffocation.

The state also alleged Shaw made inconsistent statements during interviews with investigators about the children’s final hours and that the seriousness of the charges, combined with concerns about public safety, justifies maintaining the current bond or denying her bail altogether.

This article was originally published by The Defender — Children’s Health Defense’s News & Views Website under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Please consider subscribing to The Defender or donating to Children’s Health Defense.

July 15, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties | | Comments Off on Judge Revokes Bail for Mother Charged With Murdering Twins Who Died 8 Days After Vaccines

UK moves to ban Iran’s IRGC, cites unfounded national security threats

Al Mayadeen | July 13, 2026

The British government announced Monday that it will designate Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps under new national security powers, deepening already strained relations between London and Tehran, The Guardian reported.

Rather than formally proscribing the IRGC under the “Terrorism Act”, the government will classify the Iranian military body as an organization involved in “foreign power threat activity.” The new mechanism carries consequences comparable to “terrorist proscription” and would criminalize certain forms of support or assistance once approved by Parliament.

The designation marks a significant shift in Britain’s position after previous Conservative governments declined calls to formally ban the IRGC, partly because it is an official component of the Iranian state and armed forces.

Home Office cites alleged threats

Announcing the measure, the Home Office said the decision followed a review of alleged activities connected to the organizations targeted by the new designations.

“Having carefully considered all the evidence, the home secretary has concluded that there is sufficient basis to reasonably believe that each of these bodies is engaged in foreign power threat activity, and that each designation is necessary to protect the safety and interests of the United Kingdom.”

British authorities linked the decision to alleged plots and cyberoperations attributed to Iran.

London has also claimed more than 20 allegedly Iran-linked plots identified by British security agencies over the previous year.

The British government has not publicly presented evidence establishing direct IRGC involvement in every incident cited in support of the measure.

Iranian and Russian bodies targeted

Alongside the IRGC, the government said it would designate the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right, or IMCR, which British authorities blame for several attacks against Jewish institutions and other targets in the country.

The incidents attributed to the group reportedly include arson and vandalism attacks targeting synagogues, emergency vehicles operated by the Jewish volunteer service Hatzola and the offices of an Iranian opposition media organisation.

Russia’s GRU Volunteer Corps, which Britain describes as an overseas operational body connected to Russian military intelligence, will also be listed under the same legal framework.

The measures are expected to make it easier for British authorities to prosecute individuals accused of acting for, assisting, or receiving benefits from designated foreign-linked bodies. The designations must first receive parliamentary approval before entering into force.

Diplomatic fallout expected

The decision is likely to further damage relations between Britain and Iran at a time of heightened regional tensions and ongoing conflict involving Tehran and Washington.

British officials had previously warned that action against the IRGC could prompt retaliatory diplomatic measures, including the possible removal of the UK ambassador from Tehran.

The IRGC was established following Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution and operates as an official branch of the country’s armed forces. It plays a central role in Iran’s defense structure and reports to the country’s supreme leadership.

Britain’s decision follows a similar move by the European Union, which formally added the IRGC to its list of “terrorist organisations” in February 2026.

July 13, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance, Russophobia | , , , , | Comments Off on UK moves to ban Iran’s IRGC, cites unfounded national security threats

US demands Spain extradite pro-Palestine activist on ‘dubious’ money laundering charges

By Kit Klarenberg | The Grayzone | July 13, 2026

Fergie Chambers, a communist philanthropist and heir to the Cox family fortune, has been jailed in Ibiza, Spain, on the orders of the US Department of Justice. According to a sealed indictment seen by The Grayzone, Chambers now awaits extradition to Washington on dubious federal charges of “international money laundering… with the intent to provide material support to and resources to foreign terrorist organizations.” If deported to the US, he faces up to 30 years in prison.

On July 10, six Spanish police vehicles surrounded Chambers’ car while he drove through Ibiza with his family, before detaining him. Since his arrest, he has been denied bail and contact with the outside world. Chambers’ detention marks the first time an individual has faced extradition to the US from Spain for supporting the Palestinian cause.

An heir to the vast Cox family fortune, in 2023 he cut ties with his family and sold his stake in Cox Enterprises, receiving an estimated $250 million. Vowing to use this money to fund social activism and international solidarity work, Chambers has since donated over $1 million to humanitarian projects supporting those impacted by the Gaza genocide, and to support pro-Palestine activist groups and news outlets.

The sealed indictment offers no evidence that Chambers has donated any money to “foreign terrorist organizations.” It merely states “Chambers made numerous transfers of funds from banks in the US to banks in Tunisia,” where he relocated in late 2023.

It appears Chambers used those funds for seemingly legal purposes, including investing in local businesses and sponsoring the Club Africain football team, which in May became champion of the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle. Chambers has bankrolled similar enterprises, along with political and social causes since the early 2000s, including paying the bail and legal fees of imprisoned left-wing activists.

“The Department of Justice is politically persecuting Fergie [Chambers] because he is using his wealth to support Palestine, and help people facing genocide in Gaza. His crime is dedicating his life to building a better society, rather than exploiting people, extract wealth and profit from war,” Stella Schnabel, Chambers’ partner, told The Grayzone. “He should be home safe with our family and continuing his important humanitarian and social advocacy, not incarcerated in a foreign jail facing effective life imprisonment back in the US.”

Chambers’ arrest comes amidst bitter tensions between the Trump administration and Spanish government, with Washington lashing out over President Pedro Sánchez’s criticism of Israel’s assaults on Gaza and Iran, and his refusal to allow Washington to use his country to stage attacks on Iran.

Chambers’ arrest occurred the same day the Washington Post reported Secretary of State Marco Rubio invited senior ministers from more than 60 countries to a meeting on tackling the alleged scourge of “transnational far-left terrorism.” Critics, including some US officials themselves, charge that the Trump administration is seeking to abuse powerful counterterrorism tools to crack down on left-wing activists.

In May, Trump’s new counterterrorism czar Sebastian Gorka – a pro-Israel fanatic exposed by The Grayzone in November 2024 as a longstanding British intelligence asset – unveiled a new “counterterrorism plan” which explicitly targets supposed “left-wing extremist groups” at home and abroad. A US counterterror official recently told the Washington Post that targeting left-wing activists with accusations of links to foreign terrorist groups “can unlock certain investigative tools,” including intensive surveillance. The false conflation of Chambers’ support for activism with Hamas financing fits neatly into this vision.

In June, eight anti-ICE protestors were sentenced for a combined 450 years for their roles in a riot outside a Texan immigration detention center. The severity of their punishments in large part hinged on prosecutors successfully arguing their use of Signal to communicate, and attendance at book clubs where left-wing literature was read, demonstrated they were part of a coordinated terrorist conspiracy. Chambers’ sealed indictment indicates the Trump administration’s war on Palestine solidarity is going global.

July 13, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance, Video | , , | Comments Off on US demands Spain extradite pro-Palestine activist on ‘dubious’ money laundering charges

Dressen v. Flaherty: Vaccine Censorship Case Goes to Appeal

By Cindy Harper | Reclaim The Net | July 10, 2026

Federal officials set out to erase the online voices of Americans who said Covid vaccines had hurt them. A new appeal asks the Fifth Circuit to give those Americans their day in court.

The New Civil Liberties Alliance filed its opening brief on July 7, asking the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to revive Dressen v. Flaherty.

We obtained a copy of the brief for you here. 

A federal judge in Texas had thrown the case out before a single document changed hands in discovery. The suit accuses the Biden administration of running a joint government and private censorship operation against people who went online to talk about vaccine injuries.

Brianne Dressen alleges she was injured after she volunteered for an AstraZeneca vaccine trial. Shaun Barcavage, Kristi Dobbs, Nikki Holland, and Suzanna Newell each reportedly suffered serious, debilitating injuries after Covid vaccination. Ernest Ramirez was vaccinated without incident and then lost his healthy 16-year-old son five days after the boy received his first Pfizer dose. The autopsy pointed to an enlarged heart and myocarditis.

They did what people in pain tend to do. They went to social media to trade medical research, look for treatments, share hopeful stories, and find others who understood. For many of them, closed online support groups became a lifeline.

The government treated that lifeline as a threat. The Surgeon General’s Office, the CDC, HHS, DHS, CISA, and the White House leaned on social media companies to flag this speech as “misinformation,” shadow-ban it, or delete it outright.

The operation reached across agencies and into the platforms themselves, coercing and colluding with the companies that decide who gets to be heard.

Stanford supplied the machinery. The now-defunct Stanford Internet Observatory and its “Virality Project” tracked posts and handed the platforms lists of speech to suppress.

The Virality Project targeted Covid-vaccine speech that broke from the administration’s preferred policies, whether or not that speech was accurate. Real accounts of real injuries got flagged because they were inconvenient, not because they were false.

The censors were specific about their targets. Their tracking called out Bri Dressen by name. A woman reportedly injured in a vaccine trial, describing what happened to her own body, became something a federal effort wanted the public not to see.

None of that was enough for the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas, which dismissed the case at the pleading stage. The plaintiffs had laid out a detailed factual account of a nationwide censorship conspiracy, and the court closed the door before discovery could begin.

NCLA’s brief says the district court got the law wrong in several ways. The judge set too narrow and exacting a bar on personal jurisdiction and used it to wave off the Stanford defendants and the individual government officials.

The court also misread the Supreme Court’s decision in Murthy v. Missouri, which weighed whether a different set of NCLA clients had shown enough to win a preliminary injunction. No injunction is being sought here, so that higher standard does not govern this case.

The brief argues, the court made a further error on the civil-rights conspiracy claim. It tossed the plaintiffs’ claim under 42 U.S. Code Section 1985(3) on the theory that they had not alleged racial discrimination. The statute never mentions race. It protects “any person or class of persons” stripped of their rights through an invidiously discriminatory conspiracy, and the Supreme Court has said the provision can reach non-racial classes.

“To call what happened to our clients ‘troubling’ is a massive understatement. After suffering devastating medical injuries following Covid vaccination, they turned to social media as a lifeline for support and connection with others who understood. Rather than compassion or aid, the Government responded with relentless censorship, maligning them as liars and conspiracy theorists and cutting off the lifelines that they depended on.

“Their only offense was that their lived experiences, pain, and even private conversations in online support groups contradicted the Administration’s preferred Covid-vaccine narrative. The cruelty and injustice are difficult to overstate,” said Casey Norman, Litigation Counsel at NCLA.

The appeal also presses a point the district court skipped over. Censorship harms more than the person silenced.

“We are confident the Fifth Circuit will correct the District Court’s numerous errors in dismissing the complaint, which included taking an inappropriately narrow view of personal jurisdiction and ignoring that not just speakers, but also potential listeners, suffer harm resulting from unlawful government censorship,” said Caitlin Moyna, Senior Litigation Counsel at NCLA.

The stakes reach past these six plaintiffs. If courts keep reading Murthy as a wall against every censorship suit, the government gains a template for silencing people with almost no risk of accountability.

“Lower courts are misapplying the Supreme Court’s Murthy v. Missouri decision, and the ruling below here is a prime example. The Murthy decision set a high bar for standing in the context of a preliminary injunction to stop future censorship. But no PI was sought here, so the Murthy standard is not applicable. If Bri Dressen cannot satisfy standing—when the defendants called her out by name in their censorship tracking—then no one will,” said Mark Chenoweth, President and Chief Legal Officer of NCLA.

According to NCLA, the campaign still burdens its clients’ ability to speak, to associate privately, and to exchange information with others in closed support groups.

The question in front of the Fifth Circuit is whether Americans silenced by their own government can even make their case to a jury, or whether the courthouse door stays shut before anyone looks at the evidence.

July 11, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , | Comments Off on Dressen v. Flaherty: Vaccine Censorship Case Goes to Appeal

Denmark wants NATO to protect it from US

By Lucas Leiroz | July 10, 2026

Tensions between the US and Denmark over Greenland continue to rise. US President Donald Trump refuses to change his stance regarding the alleged “need” for the US to control Greenland, while the Danish government emphasizes that it will defend its territory by all possible means – even using military force, if necessary. The major issue, however, is that both countries are members of the same military alliance. Denmark believes it would be supported by its partners in a potential conflict with the US, ignoring the fact that NATO is historically led by Washington.

The issue of Greenland was one of the topics discussed at the recent NATO summit in Ankara. During a joint press conference with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Trump confirmed that he remains interested in acquiring control of the region. He argued that Greenland should not remain associated to Denmark, as the two entities provide no mutual benefit and are, in practice, supposedly already de facto separate. He therefore believes there should be a definitive transition to American control, given that the US has greater interests and a better capacity to “help Greenland” than Denmark does.

“That should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark (…) Greenland does not help Denmark. Denmark does not really spend money to help Greenland,” he said.

His statement was immediately responded by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who also attended the meeting in Ankara. She not only affirmed Denmark’s readiness to defend its territory – including through military means – but also stated that NATO would defend Denmark in such a scenario. According to her, NATO’s collective defense clause applies to any instance of military aggression against a member state, regardless of the aggressor state. Consequently, if the US were to attack Danish territory to annex Greenland, the entire alliance would be expected to stand with Denmark against the US.

“[The US is] an erstwhile friend (…)  We are ready to defend any inch of NATO, including our own territory (…) [And] the same goes for the US,” she said.

In theory, the Danish Prime Minister is correct. NATO should protect its members, even in the event of a war against another member of the alliance. However, in practice, that is not what would happen. The US is the leading nation within NATO. The organization was established during the Cold War as a collective defense bloc for Western nations, all of which are under the American nuclear umbrella. Although NATO member states formally retain sovereignty, in practice, the alliance is nothing more than an “international army” at the service of Washington [and ultimately Israel]. Therefore, it is entirely illogical to expect NATO to go to war against the US to protect a European country.

Tensions between the US and Europe have been rising since Trump took office. The US president demands greater defense investment and combat readiness from Europeans to assist the US (especially in the Middle East). Europeans are failing to meet the alliance’s financial targets and refuse to participate in the conflict in the Middle East. On the other hand, they remain engaged in an irrational war campaign against Russia and are promoting a plan for continental militarization, attempting to gain greater defense “autonomy”.

If European militarization plans succeed, Denmark might secure some international support in the event of a conflict with the US. However, it is entirely irrational to expect US-led NATO to fight against the US itself. In a scenario involving military engagement between the US and Denmark (or any other alliance member), NATO countries would face only two options: support the US or remain neutral.

However, it is questionable whether Frederiksen truly believes her own words. She may be promoting such rhetoric just to encourage European militarization or to appease Danish public opinion, thereby attempting to project an image of political strength that she has failed to cultivate until now. In any case, Trump is serious about annexing Greenland, as control over this territory is vital to his plans for American expansion into the Arctic. Trump considers European nations unable to assist with his Arctic strategy and therefore wants the US to control key territories in the region.

As the crisis deepens, both Denmark and the US seem to ignore the will of the local Greenlandic people. The region is inhabited by an indigenous Inuit majority. The local population was historically persecuted by the Danes, who carried out campaigns of apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and forced population reduction. Now, the US – which also has a history of severe persecution against indigenous peoples – seeks to annex the region without even consulting the local population.

The international community – especially international law and human rights organizations – should intervene directly in this matter, emphasizing the need to prioritize the Greenlandic people’s right to self-determination.

Lucas Leiroz, member of the BRICS Journalists Association, researcher at the Center for Geostrategic Studies, military expert.

You can follow Lucas on X (formerly Twitter) and Telegram.

July 10, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Militarism | , , , , | Comments Off on Denmark wants NATO to protect it from US

OSCE head promises to help oust Armenian chief bishop

RT | July 9, 2026

OSCE Secretary-General Feridun Sinirlioglu offered to help oust the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC), in a phone call with Russian pranksters posing as Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

In recent years, Pashinyan has cracked down on the Orthodox clergy, with several senior bishops placed in custody on corruption and political interference charges. The feud between the Western-leaning prime minister and the AAC intensified after the clergy expressed support for the opposition.

In a phone call earlier this week, Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus told Sinirlioglu, a Turkish national, that the Armenian government wants the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to help oust the AAC head, Catholicos Karekin II.

The pranksters told the OSCE secretary general that the organization’s “assistance would be the trump card and help oust the Armenian patriarch as well as change the religion” in the country, as quoted by Russian media.

Vovan and Lexus, posing as Pashinyan, specifically asked for the OSCE’s backing in case there was a backlash from the opposition.

“Alright, I will do all I can,” Sinirlioglu reportedly said in response.

Created at the height of the Cold War in 1975, the OSCE comprises 57 member states, including Russia, the US, Canada, and most European and Central Asian nations. While the organization professes to promote security and cooperation, Moscow has in recent years accused it of being hijacked by its NATO and EU members to advance Western agendas.

Last October, the Armenian authorities detained Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan, head of the Diocese of Aragatsotn and the nephew of Catholicos Karekin II. Five other clergymen were apprehended along with him.

The Armenian Investigative Committee stated at the time that the arrests had been made as part of an investigation into alleged abuse of power. Weeks earlier, Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan was sentenced to two years in prison on charges of coup incitement – a case the AAC cleric characterized as politically motivated.

Last month, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) alleged that the EU was pressuring the Armenian government to expel the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) from the country as a prerequisite to potential EU integration.

Russia and Armenia have historically maintained close political, economic and cultural ties. However, under Pashinyan, the country has increasingly adopted a pro-Western stance. Yerevan has accused Moscow of failing to stop its neighbor Azerbaijan from reclaiming the Nagorno-Karabakh region through military force in September 2023.

Russian officials have, in turn, noted that it was Pashinyan himself who had recognized Baku’s sovereignty over the disputed territory. The Kremlin has also warned that by severing ties with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union in favor of hypothetical EU integration, Armenia would have to forgo the “concrete dividends” afforded by the single market.

The Armenian opposition has, in turn, pointed the finger squarely at Pashinyan over the defeat in the conflict with Azerbaijan.

Pashinyan’s government has responded by prosecuting a number of opposition figures and members of the clergy.

Last month, Pashinyan’s pro-EU ruling party, Civil Contract, came out on top in hotly contested parliamentary elections, securing over 49% of the vote. The opposition has petitioned the constitutional court to annul the results of the June 7 elections, citing alleged violations.

July 9, 2026 Posted by | Civil Liberties | , , , | Comments Off on OSCE head promises to help oust Armenian chief bishop

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