‘Prepare to face consequences’: Yemen warns UK after attacks on Sanaa
The Cradle | April 30, 2025
The Yemeni government issued a statement on 30 April warning the UK against its continued participation in the US campaign of deadly airstrikes against Yemen that began last month.
“In a display of typical British arrogance, the UK Ministry of Defense announced participation in a joint military operation with the US enemy against our country, targeting areas south of Sanaa … The Government affirms that the British enemy must carefully consider the consequences of its involvement and be prepared to face the repercussions,” the Sanaa government said.
“While we pledge to respond to this unlawful and unjustified aggression, we stress that this attack is part of ongoing Anglo-American efforts to support the Israeli enemy by attempting to block Yemen’s support for Palestine – enabling the Israeli enemy to continue its genocide in Gaza,” it added.
The government statement also said Yemen will stand against the “trio of evil,” referring to the US, UK, and Israel, as well as “those who orbit around them.”
The statement came hours after the UK announced its first joint attack against Yemen with Washington since US President Donald Trump entered office this year.
The UK Defense Ministry claimed the strikes targeted a “cluster of buildings” used by the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) and Ansarallah movement for storing drones, adding that the attack came after “very careful planning” to avoid civilian casualties.
London played a primary role in the initial campaign against Yemen, launched in January 2024 by the former US administration of Joe Biden.
Yemeni forces targeted UK vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden a number of times last year in response.
The UK announcement came after at least six US airstrikes struck the Sanaa governorate on 29 April.
Two days ago, around 70 African migrants were killed in US strikes on a detention center in Saada governorate. Dozens of others were injured.
The Interior Ministry of the Sanaa government said the shelter, located in Saada’s reserve prison, was supervised by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Red Cross.
In response, the YAF said it targeted the USS Harry Truman in the Red Sea with missiles and drones, adding that it forced the aircraft carrier to retreat northward. It also said it targeted a “vital” Israeli site in the city of Ashkelon.
US warplanes have been launching deadly attacks against Yemen every day since 15 March, when Trump intensified the campaign that was started by the former administration last year.
The bombing campaign comes in response to Yemen’s reimposition of a ban on Israeli shipping in the Red Sea and elsewhere, as well as its renewal of drone and missile attacks on Israel after Tel Aviv restarted the war on Gaza last month.
Yemen has repeatedly targeted US aircraft carriers in response to Washington’s campaign, which has cost around $1 billion and has depleted weapons stocks, while failing to significantly impact the YAF and Ansarallah.
Iran: French threat to reimpose sanctions is ‘economic blackmail’
Press TV – April 30, 2025
Iran’s ambassador to the UN has lambasted the French foreign minister’s open threat to reimpose sanctions lifted under a 2015 deal on Tehran’s nuclear program.
“Resorting to threats and economic blackmail is entirely unacceptable and represents a clear breach of the principles enshrined in the UN Charter,” Amir Saeid Iravani wrote in letters to UN chief General Antonio Guterres and Security Council head Jérôme Bonnafont.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Monday that his government along with Germany and Britain “will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions” lifted a decade ago if European security is threatened by Iran’s nuclear activities.
Iravani said France’s threat to trigger the so-called snapback mechanism despite its own failure to honor its commitments contradicts the fundamental principles of international law that preclude a party from claiming rights under an agreement while simultaneously failing to fulfill its obligations.
“Such an action is legally and procedurally flawed, unacceptable, and invalid, and would undermine the credibility of the Security Council,” he added.
The snapback mechanism is triggered simply by the assertion of significant non-compliance on the part of a participating state, a prerogative the West might abuse based on its accusations.
Iravani further reaffirmed Iran’s commitment to diplomacy and constructive engagement, but “genuine diplomacy cannot be conducted under threats or pressure”.
“If France and its partners are truly interested in a diplomatic resolution, they must abandon coercion and respect the sovereign rights of States under international law.”
Iravani said France’s credibility on non-proliferation is fundamentally undermined by its own record as it continues to modernize and expand its nuclear arsenal, remains silent about, and is complicit in the Israeli regime’s undeclared nuclear weapons program.
France has also yet to fulfill its disarmament obligations under Article VI of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), he added.
The ambassador rejected the French foreign minister’s accusations that Iran sought to acquire nuclear weapons,
“Allegations that Iran is ‘on the cusp’ of developing nuclear weapons are entirely unfounded and politically irresponsible. The Islamic Republic of Iran has never pursued nuclear weapons, and its defensive doctrine has not been changed,” Iravani said.
“Iran unequivocally rejects all weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), including nuclear arms,” he said. “As a founding member of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), Iran remains fully committed to its obligations under the treaty.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he said, “continues to monitor and verify the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program. Its reports have consistently verified that there has been no diversion of nuclear material for non-peaceful purposes.”
Barrot’s allegations about Tehran’s peaceful nuclear program reflect either a fundamental misunderstanding or deliberate distortion of Iran’s legal rights under international law, Iravani said.
The claims also demonstrate a selective interpretation of facts and exemplifies a persistent pattern of double standards by a country that bears specific responsibilities as a permanent member of the Security Council, he added.
Mossad agents, warmongers trying to derail Iran-US talks: Trump allies
Press TV – April 30, 2025
US President Donald Trump’s closest media allies and supporters say “Mossad agents” and “warmongers” are pushing the US into a conflict with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Last week, conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson featured a senior Pentagon official who he claimed was ousted because he was seen as an obstacle to hostile US measures against Iran.
Dan Caldwell, a top advisor to Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, was removed earlier this month on charges that he allegedly leaked classified information about Hegseth’s use of a Signal chat, according to several media outlets.
Not so by Carlson’s telling, who has unparalleled access to Trump.
“You did make maybe one career mistake by giving on-the-record interviews describing your foreign policy views… that are out of the mainstream among warmongers in Washington,” Carlson said to Caldwell.
On Sunday, another conservative podcaster, Clayton Morris, a former Fox News anchor, said pro-Israel voices were “working overtime” to destroy the “anti-war team” that Trump has assembled at the Pentagon.
“We’ve learned here at Redacted that former Israeli Mossad agents are working overtime on social media and behind the scenes trying to discredit Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth,” Morris said, referring to his show.
Trump’s administration is reportedly divided between more traditional Republicans like US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security advisor Mike Waltz, and “America First” isolationists like White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Pro-Trump media personalities have singled out Merav Ceren, who was nominated to head Iran and Israel at the White House National Security Council, for criticism.
Ceren was born in Haifa, and worked in the Israeli ministry of military affairs. On his show, Morris said that, “Neo-con Mike Waltz has now hired basically a dual citizen and former IDF (Israeli army) official to work under him.”
According to a Pew Poll published in April, 53 percent of Americans now express an unfavorable opinion of Israel, up from 42 percent in March 2022.
On Iran, Trump’s closest envoys have been left contradicting themselves.
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy who has emerged as his go-to global troubleshooter, suggested earlier this month that Washington would allow Iran to enrich uranium at low levels.
After backlash from pro-Israel voices, he flipped, saying that Tehran “must stop and eliminate” its nuclear enrichment program fully.
This week, Secretary Rubio said the US could re-enter a deal that sees Iran keep a civilian nuclear program – so long as it halts enrichment, and instead ships it in from abroad.
American and Iranian technical teams met in Oman on Saturday for their third round of talks. Trump told reporters on Monday that the talks are going “very well” and that “a deal is going to be made there”.
“We’ll have something without having to start dropping bombs all over the place,” he said.
On Free Speech, Trump’s as Bad as Biden
By Jack Hunter | The Libertarian Institute | April 30, 2025
In September, candidate Donald Trump vowed, “I will bring back free speech in America…I will sign an executive order banning any federal employee from colluding to limit speech, and we will fire every federal bureaucrat who is engaged in domestic censorship under the Harris regime.”
Trump was addressing the clear danger that Democrats posed to the First Amendment.
The Republican presidential nominee was talking about the Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, who had once threatened to sic the Justice Department on social media platforms that “profit off hate.” In 2022, her choice for running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, said that “there’s no guarantee to free speech on misinformation or hate speech.” In 2021, Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that the government needs to figure out how to “rein in the media environment.” The Biden administration had not only proposed a new federal agency that would regulate citizens’ speech, but was revealed to have pressured private social media companies to censor users’ speech, as revealed by the Twitter Files.
All of these anti-First Amendment actions, among many others, were not at all controversial to Democrats. In their blind hatred for Trump, the party had become one that began to see government censorship and regulation of speech as a positive good in their efforts to defeat or at least contain MAGA. As Hillary Clinton put it one month before the 2024 election, allowing free speech on social media was too dangerous because it means “we lost control.”
Luckily free speech mostly prevailed during that time period, but Clinton was right: The free flow of news and ideas coming from populist social media and alternative podcast worlds would end up helping to defeat Democrats in 2024.
Democracy prevailed, despite Democrats being so eager to suppress it.
Now, President Donald Trump is behaving like these Democrats.
The ACLU’s Allegra Harpootlian writes, “On March 25, [Rümeysa Öztürk] was planning to go to an iftar dinner with friends. Instead, while walking near her apartment, she was approached and then grabbed by a hooded man. Other figures soon closed in, including several wearing face coverings and dark clothing. Finally, one officer flashed a badge…”
Öztürk has not been charged with a crime. By all of the available evidence, she is seemingly being held for being a co-author of an op-ed that was critical of the Israeli’s government’s actions in Gaza.
Öztürk is but one of a number of those in the United States on student visas who have been arrested without charge for criticizing Israel’s government. Secretary of State Marco Rubio now brags that he has revoked over 300 student visas. “It might be more than 300 at this point. We do it every day,” Rubio said at a press conference in March.
“Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visa,” he said.
You’re a “lunatic” if you criticize Israel’s government?
Rubio continued, “At some point, I hope we run out because we’ve gotten rid of all of them, but we’re looking every day for these lunatics that are tearing things up.”
They should be charged with vandalism if they are literally tearing this up. But it was not clear that physical destruction or violence is what Rubio meant.
“We gave you a visa to come and study and get a degree, not become a social activist that tears up our university campuses,” he added. “And if we’ve given you a visa and you decide to do that, we’re going to take it away.”
To note, the Supreme Court decided long ago that anyone in the United States has First Amendment protections, citizen or not.
Rubio would add, “We don’t want it in our country. Go back and do it in your country. But you’re not going to do it in our country.”
The Trump administration framing the suppression of free speech as a matter of non-citizens’ rights vs. those of citizens is a cheap way of ignoring the First Amendment, no different than the Biden administration holding up the supposed threats of “misinformation” and “disinformation” in the name of doing the same.
Republicans and Democrats have created spectres supposedly so threatening to convince enough people that the First Amendment no longer applies.
Bullshit.
Many Republicans right now argue that criticizing Israel’s government is inherently anti-semitic, which is about as ridiculous as arguing that every conservative talk host who criticizes the United States government is anti-American.
And if they genuinely were anti-semitic, that’s still protected by the First Amendment.
“Hate speech” is protected speech. Do Trump Republicans now agree with Biden-Harris Democrats like Tim Walz that there are no First Amendment protections for hate speech?
Apparently they do.
With Trump’s speech precedent, it’s not hard to imagine a future President Harris targeting conservative college students who challenge DEI or trans ideology. Leftists could argue—and do—that speech against minorities or LGBTQ members constitutes violence and therefore, somehow, falls outside of First Amendment protections.
So many of the Republicans who defend the arrest and deportation of those who criticize Israel’s government sound pretty much like identity politics-driven lefties. Their subjects are different but the logic is the same. Safe spaces, all around.
There are other examples of where the Trump administration has reneged on his free speech promises, and now just offers mirror images of Joe Biden’s censorship regime. I’m just focusing on one aspect.
One glimmer of hope is that while Democrats appeared to have reached a consensus over the last decades that censorship is a positive good, there is a loud and growing debate on the right over Trump’s affronts to free speech, with some of the most high profile personalities pushing back.
Still, Donald Trump campaigned vowing to protect the First Amendment. He’s not delivering. Quite the opposite.
He should do what he promised, not just be another Joe Biden.
France using the ‘terrorism’ charge to silence criticism of crimes in Gaza: French lawyer
French political scientist Francois Burgat
MEMO | April 29, 2025
French lawyer Rafik Chekkat said today that the charge of “terrorist propaganda” is being used in France to silence those who speak out about crimes committed by Israel in Gaza.
French political scientist Francois Burgat, known for his work on the Arab world, was detained on 9 July 2024, in Aix-en-Provence on charges of “terrorist propaganda.” His arrest followed a complaint by the European Jewish Organisation (OJE) over social media posts he shared in January 2024 about Israel’s attacks on Gaza.
“The two most commonly used charges to silence those who respond to the crimes committed in Gaza are ‘terrorist propaganda’ and ‘incitement to hatred and discrimination,’” said Chekkat, one of Burgat’s lawyers and a member of the Marseille Bar Association.
“Sometimes you are prosecuted under one charge, sometimes the other, and sometimes even both simultaneously,” he added.
Burgat was released the same day he was arrested and appeared before a judge at the Aix-en-Provence Criminal Court last week.
The prosecution has requested an eight-month suspended prison sentence, a €4,000 (about $4,550) fine, and a six-month ban on posting on X.
“Despite being an expert on terrorism-related issues, he is now being prosecuted for ‘terrorist propaganda’,” Chekkat said.
The court is expected to announce the verdict in Burgat’s case on 28 May.
Chekkat argued that Burgat’s case is part of a broader pattern of cracking down on criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The law regarding “terrorist propaganda”, he explained, was originally designed to combat terrorist organisations’ recruitment efforts in online environments but is now “being used to suppress dissenting voices on the issue of Palestine.”
“This is just the visible tip of the oppressive iceberg. That is to say, not only are publicly known figures involved here, but also many lesser-known individuals,” he said.
“Sometimes activists, and sometimes people not affiliated with any group — even ordinary individuals — have been questioned, prosecuted, and some have even been convicted of terrorist propaganda,” he added.
UNRWA details harrowing abuse of Gaza aid workers in Israeli detention
Al Mayadeen | April 29, 2025
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, has accused the Israeli military of abusing over 50 of its staff members detained during the war on Gaza.
According to UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini, the detained individuals, including teachers, doctors, and social workers, were subjected to harsh treatment while in Israeli custody. Lazzarini stated on X that the staff reported being beaten, humiliated, and even used as human shields.
“Since the start of the war in October 2023, over 50 UNRWA staff among them teachers, doctors, social workers, have been detained and abused,” Lazzarini wrote. “They have been treated in the most shocking and inhumane way.”
Testimonies reveal torture, forced confessions
Sharing testimony from one of the released workers, Lazzarini highlighted the severity of the mistreatment.
“I wished for death to end this nightmare I was living through,” the staff member reportedly said. According to the accounts collected by UNRWA, detainees faced sleep deprivation, humiliation, threats against themselves and their families, dog attacks, and forced confessions under duress.
Lazzarini described the testimonies as “harrowing and outrageous,” adding to concerns about the treatment of Palestinian detainees during the ongoing Israeli war.
The reported abuse of humanitarian workers further complicates the already dire situation in Gaza, where aid agencies have been struggling to deliver assistance amid ongoing Israeli bombardments and blockades.
International reactions and ICJ proceedings
The broader humanitarian crisis in Gaza is under increased international scrutiny. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is currently hearing arguments from dozens of nations and organizations regarding “Israel’s” humanitarian obligations to Palestinians.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) began a week-long series of hearings on Monday to examine “Israel’s” humanitarian obligations toward Palestinians, as the Gaza Strip endures over 50 days under a total blockade that has halted the entry of vital aid.
The ICJ hearings on Gaza started with a submission from Palestinian representatives, followed by arguments from 38 countries, including the United States, China, France, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.
The League of Arab States, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the African Union are also expected to present their positions before the 15-judge panel.
These proceedings stem from a December resolution by the UN General Assembly, led by Norway and passed with broad support, calling on the court to urgently issue an advisory opinion on “Israel’s” legal responsibilities under international law.
The United Nations has asked the court to clarify “Israel’s” obligations to facilitate the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, in coordination with UN agencies, international organizations, and third-party states. This comes as the Gaza humanitarian crisis continues to worsen, with growing concerns over famine risk due to the blockade.
It is worth noting that “Israel” maintains strict control over all international aid entering the Gaza Strip, home to 2.4 million Palestinians. Aid deliveries were fully halted on March 2, just before the ceasefire collapsed, ending a temporary reduction in hostilities after 15 months of conflict.
The ongoing Israeli aid blockade has pushed Gaza to the brink of catastrophe, with supplies rapidly depleting and Palestinian civilians facing severe restrictions on access to essential resources.
Screaming soldiers and open revolt: How one video unmasked Israel’s internal power struggle
By Ramzy Baroud | MEMO | April 29, 2025
An apparently strange choice was made by a correspondent from Israel’s Channel 12 when, on 22 April, he decided to release one of the most humiliating videos of a relatively large number of Israeli soldiers coming under attack by a single Palestinian fighter. As soldiers screamed and stumbled down the stairs of a building in Khan Yunis chaos erupted: some fell over each other, others hid behind a concrete wall, and some even fired erratically, endangering their own colleagues.
This begs a serious question: given the Israeli media’s frequent adherence to strict, often unreasonable, military censorship, what prompted the decision to release such a damaging portrayal of its own soldiers?
The answer lies in the open war between the Israeli political institution, represented by the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the one hand, and the rest of the country on the other. The “rest of the country” may seem to be an elusive concept, but it is not. Currently, Netanyahu is at war with the military institution, the internal intelligence agency Shin Bet, the judiciary, much of the media and the majority of Israelis who want the war to end and Israeli captives to be released.
This explains the unprecedented and open criticism by former top Israeli officials who are accusing Netanyahu of being a threat, not only to the Israeli military and Israeli society, but also to the future of Israel itself.
On 21 April, the head of Shin Bet, Ronen Bar, breached every protocol when he presented Israel’s Supreme Court with two documents, one of which was revealed to the public. According to Israeli media, in the unclassified affidavit, Bar stated that he was fired by the prime minister “because of his refusal to meet those expectations of loyalty,” particularly “regarding investigations into the prime minister’s aides” and for “his refusal to help Netanyahu avoid testifying in his criminal trial.”
Bar’s comments represented a fundamental historical shift in how Israel’s power players treat extremely sensitive security matters.
They were also, essentially, a call for the overthrow of Netanyahu.
A former head of Shin Bet, Nadav Argaman, has been equally vocal, although he was the first to speak about Netanyahu’s transgressions, suggesting clear coordination between the various elements of Israel’s notorious and powerful intelligence agencies. “If the prime minister acts unlawfully, I will say everything I know,” he told Channel 12 last month.
The coordination runs deeper, with former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, who, along with Netanyahu, is wanted by the International Criminal Court, going on his own rampage on 23 April. Aside from the direct attacks on Netanyahu, calling his policy a “moral disgrace”, Gallant seems to have disparaged the Israeli military itself by revealing that, last August, Israel faked pictures of an alleged Hamas tunnel in order to block a ceasefire agreement.
The Israeli government used this specific episode as its rationale for maintaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor in southern Gaza, a justification that emerged around the same time as the deeply embarrassing video of Israeli soldiers running in terror from a lone Palestinian combatant. The layers of humiliation continued to accumulate.
While Gallant’s actions may discredit the military and his own leadership, his primary aim appears to be to have an impact on Netanyahu, who many Israelis believe is prolonging the Gaza war for personal political gain.
Israel’s actual war losses are another key point. One of the occupation state’s historically best-kept secrets is its losses in fighting against Arab armies or resistance groups.
Its casualties in the current war on Gaza were also supposed to be a well-kept secret, except that they aren’t.
Although the Israeli army has tried to minimise its death toll since the start of the war on 7 October, 2023, it has faced many leaks, some initiated by the military itself. The aim? To put pressure on Netanyahu to end the war, especially in light of new information that at least half of Israel’s military reserves are refusing to return to the battlefield.
Interestingly, it was Eyal Zamir — Netanyahu’s hand-picked replacement for Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi — who surprised everyone in a speech shortly after his appointment in February. Zamir revealed that 5,942 Israeli families had “joined the list of bereaved families” in 2024. He had already committed 2025 to be “a year of war”, but now seems less inclined to escalate the war beyond Israel’s ability to sustain it.
The war between Israel’s political, military and intelligence elites has never been so ugly, let alone open, as if both sides have reached the conclusion that their survival — and the survival of Israel itself — is dependent on defeating the other camps.
After some reluctance and a relatively careful choice of words, Gallant has now joined the chorus of a powerful group of ex-officials who want to see Netanyahu out of power by any means necessary, including civil disobedience.
This internal conflict among Israel’s elite marks a departure from its long-cultivated image. For decades, Israel has presented itself as a beacon of democracy and civilisation amidst what it portrayed as its less cultured neighbours. However, the Gaza genocide has shattered this false narrative.
Consequently, the current infighting among the architects of this Israeli fantasy now offers an unprecedented opportunity to uncover deeper truths, not only about the ongoing war in Gaza, but also about Israel’s history, from its establishment on the land of historic Palestine to the ongoing genocide, nearly eight decades later.
“The masters of the universe are Jews,” former US Senator declares in Israel
By Wyatt Reed – The Grayzone – April 28, 2025
Ex-GOP Senator and Republican Jewish Coalition chair Norm Coleman proclaimed with a straight face that Jews control the world during a Jerusalem conference featuring a speech by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu.
Former US Senator Norm Coleman has raised eyebrows by declaring that “the masters of the universe are Jews” at a major Zionist lobby event in Jerusalem. In an address to a summit hosted by the Adelson-funded Jewish News Syndicate on April 27, Coleman pointed to various major technology firms founded by Jews, suggesting the shared religion of the companies’ creators should translate into a greater zeal for censoring criticism of Israel.
“And when you think about it, the Masters of the Universe are Jews! We’ve got Altman at OpenAI, we’ve got [Facebook founder Mark] Zuckerberg, we’ve got [Google founder] Sergey Brin, we’ve got a group across the board. Jan Koum, y’know, founded WhatsApp. It’s us.”
The remarks came as Coleman lamented that pro-Israel propagandists are “losing the digital war” in battle for the hearts and minds of younger generations, and called for more stringent censorship of pro-Palestinian speech.
“A majority or Gen Z have an unfavorable impression of Israel. And, my friends, I think the reason for that is that we’re losing the digital war. They’re getting their information from TikTok, and… and we’re losing that war.”
As numerous polls show young Americans are increasingly skeptical of Israel – with a recent survey showing 71% of Democrats and 50% of Republicans under age 49 now hold an unfavorable view of Israel – establishment politicians have consistently blamed TikTok’s algorithm for the decline in enthusiasm for genocide. In February, the top Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee, Mark Warner, revealed that the bill forcing China’s ByteDance to sell TikTok was motivated by the visibility of pro-Palestine content on the app.
For Coleman, though, it appears this wasn’t enough. “We have to figure out a way to win the digital battle,” he told summit attendees. “We’ve got to get our digital sneakers on, so that the truth can prevail over the lies. And when we do that, the future of Israel will be stronger because a majority of all Americans will support Israel. We’ll make that happen, we have to make it happen. Thank you, Baruch hashem.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the stage directly after Coleman’s speech, highlighting Tel Aviv’s interest in the event, which was billed as the “Inaugural JNS Policy Summit to address Israel’s pressing strategic issues.”
An archetypal neoconservative, Coleman started off as an anti-war activist who once worked as a roadie for Jethro Tull, and was suspended from Hofstra University for leading a sit-in. “I went to Woodstock, and I inhaled!” he boasted at the JNS summit. After first taking office as a member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, Coleman wound up narrowly losing his Senate seat to Al Franken in 2008 as a Republican.
In addition to serving as the national chairman of the Republican Jewish Coalition and founder of the Congressional Leadership Fund super PAC, Coleman now works as a top lobbyist for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Google DeepMind workers push for unionization over company’s Israeli ties
Press TV – April 27, 2025
Employees at Google DeepMind’s London office have initiated efforts to unionize in response to the tech giant’s decision to provide its artificial intelligence (AI) technology to defense entities and maintain connections with the Israeli regime.
Reports on Saturday indicated that around 300 workers at DeepMind, the AI division of Google in London, have sought membership with the Communication Workers Union in recent weeks.
DeepMind employees’ decision began when Google updated its approach to AI technology and dropped its militarization clause from its ethical pledge (AI Principles).
In its previous version of AI Principles, Google had included a commitment clause to not pursue AI technologies that “cause or are likely to cause overall harm”, especially in weapons and surveillance that violate “internationally accepted norms.”
The revised version of AI Principles, states that the company pursues AI “responsibly” and in line with “widely accepted principles of international law and human rights”, but does not include the previous language about weapons and surveillance.
The tension between DeepMind and its parent company further increased when a whistle-blower revealed that Israel had been using their technology to generate targets for assassinations and attacks in Gaza, where close to 51,500 Palestinians have been killed so far.
After the revelation about the Israeli regime’s use of DeepMind AI in the Gaza war, several employees quit the company.
“We’re putting two and two together and think the technology we’re developing is being used in the [Gaza war],” said one engineer involved in the unionization effort.
“This is basically cutting-edge AI that we’re providing to an ongoing [war]. People don’t want their work used like this,” he added.
The effort to unionize needs to be recognized by the company through a vote among DeepMind employees in the UK. The company has around 2,000 staff in London.
If the unionization effort succeeds, the employees will demand that Google nullify its military contracts.
If Google still decides to sell its technologies for military purposes, then the employees have the right to go on strike.
“What I hope and what people who are active are hoping is that we stay away from any military contracts,” said one of the organizers of the unionization effort.
The Israeli regime already has a $1.2bn cloud computing agreement with Google and Amazon, called Project Nimbus.
‘Israel’ continues war on Palestinian journalism: 343 attacks in 2025
Al Mayadeen | April 27, 2025
The Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate disclosed on Sunday alarming findings on the condition of press freedom in Palestine, documenting widespread violations committed by the Israeli occupation during the first three months of 2025.
The report highlights a brutal and systematic campaign against Palestinian journalists, marked by lethal attacks, arrests, and the destruction of property.
According to data from the syndicate’s Freedom Committee, 15 journalists were martyred in the Gaza Strip as a result of direct targeting by the Israeli occupation forces: Seven in January and Eight in March 2025. Alongside the targeting of media workers, 17 family members and relatives of journalists were also killed. Additionally, 12 journalists’ homes were destroyed in missile and artillery strikes, while 11 journalists sustained severe injuries.
The targeting of journalists did not stop at physical attacks. The report documented 49 incidents in which press crews came under live fire, with death narrowly avoided. These attacks were often carried out under the pretext of issuing warnings or clearing journalists from specific areas, underscoring the deliberate nature of the occupation’s strategy to silence media voices.
The wave of detentions also persisted during the first quarter of 2025, with 15 journalists detained either during home raids or while reporting in the field. While some remain imprisoned, others were released after hours or days in custody. These arrests form part of a broader campaign to stifle media coverage of ongoing events in occupied Palestine.
Repression of journalistic freedoms
The report outlines further forms of repression faced by Palestinian journalists, including systematic obstruction and targeted persecution. Approximately 117 journalists endured various measures designed to prevent them from performing their duties, particularly in al-Quds and Jenin. These included arbitrary detention, intimidation, and physical assaults.
In al-Quds and Jenin, 14 journalists were subjected to violent attacks involving gunstock blows and kicking. The destruction and seizure of equipment were also widespread, with 16 cases recorded. Moreover, 31 journalists suffered from respiratory trauma after exposure to poisonous tear gas, forcing some to seek emergency medical care.
Legal harassment and administrative restrictions also increased. Around 13 journalists in al-Quds were summoned for interrogation and subsequently banned from reporting in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Old City. These measures are part of a broader effort by the occupation to control narratives and suppress the Palestinian media, according to the Syndicate.
In total, the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate documented approximately 343 violations, which included verbal abuse, threats, incitement, deletion of footage, legal prosecutions, and financial penalties. Given the scale and intensity of these violations, the syndicate has urged field teams to exercise extreme vigilance and adhere to strict safety protocols.
The syndicate concluded by reaffirming its commitment to documenting these crimes and presenting them to international institutions. It emphasized the importance of exposing the Israeli occupation’s actions and pursuing accountability to put an end to the aggression against Palestinian journalists and media freedom.
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From the Archives
Alarmist climate science as a textbook example of groupthink
By Paul MacRae | May 1, 2012
A while ago, I received an email from a friend who asked:
How can many, many respected, competitive, independent science folks be so wrong about [global warming] (if your [skeptical] premise is correct). I don’t think it could be a conspiracy, or incompetence. … Has there ever been another case when so many ‘leading’ scientific minds got it so wrong?
The answer to the second part of my friend’s question—“Has there ever been another case where so many ‘leading’ scientific minds got it so wrong?”—is easy. Yes, there are many such cases, both within and outside climate science. In fact, the graveyard of science is littered with the bones of theories that were once thought “certain” (e.g., that the continents can’t “drift,” that Newton’s laws were immutable, and hundreds if not thousands of others).
Science progresses by the overturning of theories once thought “certain.” … continue
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- US blockade crumbles as Iran turns to overland routes
- Hidden costs of US Iran war push total far beyond $25bn Pentagon claim
- Iran Will Respond With Long-Term Strikes to US Attack, Even If It Is Short-Term – IRGC
- If Americans Knew
- Former Tik Tok official describes massive pressure from Israel lobby
- Amid ceasefire violations and genocide, Israel commits piracy – Daily Update
- Five Laws and Standards That Require the US Cut Off Weapons to Israel
- Israel’s diabolical killing machine and how it targets journalists.
- The Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza — A cry at sea to the world’s dormant conscience
- Politico’s powerful parent company tells Politico they must support Israeli narrative
- How Tony Dokoupil Became the Face of ‘Zionist Fanatic’ Bari Weiss’s CBS
- Far Right Israeli Settler Movement Enters Syria in a Push for “Greater Israel”
- ‘People Have the Right to Be Buried’: In Gaza, Thousands of Palestinians Remain Trapped Under Rubble
- Born during Israel’s genocide: Gaza’s child survivors bear the scars of war
- No Tricks Zone
- Oversupply Of Volatile Solar Energy Leads To Record NEGATIVE Prices!
- New Study: Extreme Heat Records, Heatwaves, Extreme Cold Records Declining Across US Since 1899
- It’s The Cold, Stupid! Cold 20 Times More Lethal Than Heat, Multiple Studies Show
- European Institute For Climate And Energy: “Climate Debate is Seldom About Science”
- New Study: The Climate May Be 5 Times More Sensitive To Solar Forcing Than Commonly Assumed
- EV Industry Reached $70 Billion In Losses In 2024 Due To Delusional Green Ideologies
- Reality Check: Maldives Have Actually Grown In Size Or Remained Stable Over Recent Decades
- Abrupt Climate Change Also Occurred NATURALLY In The Past …25 Times During Last Ice Age
- Cave Discovery Reveals Today’s Desert Climates Were Recently Far Warmer, Wetter, Teeming With Life
- German Expert: Heat Dome Led To Record Temps In Western USA…Warmer In 1934, 1936
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