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  • Mubarak, Army, U.S., Israel vs Egyptian People

    [As government forces have attacked peaceful protesters in Tahrir Square, Emad Mekay from Cairo reports] Mubarak is clearly backed by the Americans. He took some moves after speaking with Obama and a visit by a former U.S. Ambassador to Egypt Frank Wisner. Mubarak, the army, the Americans and the Israelis are clearly on one side.…

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  • Unrest Spreads to Sinai

    A Bedouin youth casually spreads out a piece of cloth before a police headquarters in Sheikh Zwayyed town in Sinai, the vast desert area to the east of Cairo across the Suez. “I will leave when Mubarak leaves,” he says. [Full piece from Inter Press Service]

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  • Chomsky: Strategic and Economic Objectives, Not Anti-Islamization, Drives U.S. Policy

    [While many are claiming that a central goal of U.S. policy is to minimize influence of groups like the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Noam Chomsky contributed this to our blog] It is well-established, including the major scholarly literature, that the U.S. supports democracy if and only if that accords with strategic and economic objectives.  Following…

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  • An Open Letter to President Barack Obama

    ————————————————————————————————————————— [To sign; for recent news releases on Egypt from the Institute for Public Accuracy] Dear President Obama: As political scientists, historians, and researchers in related fields who have studied the Middle East and U.S. foreign policy, we the undersigned believe you have a chance to move beyond rhetoric to support the democratic movement sweeping…

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  • Report from Cairo

    From Alex Ortiz in Cairo: “The army is beginning to come into Cairo … tens of thousands converged in midan al-gala’ coming from three different protest marches. Total communication blackout. Reports of senior police officers ordering their men to stand down and not beat or fire tear gas at protesters in Midan al-gala an hour…

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  • Report on Latest from Cairo

    CAIRO, Egypt [11 p.m. local time] — 1-Some government media figures appear to be joining ranks with the protesters. Mahmoud Saad, a talk show host in the Egyptian state-run TV, has announced that he will no longer appear on TV starting tonight after he came under pressure from top government officials to report “untruths” about…

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  • Police in Cairo Beating up Jounalists

    [From 9:28 a.m. ET]: Police started beating up journalists protesting outside the Press Syndicate in downtown Cairo. They beat up women journalists too who were screaming and crying for help. “Do not club women. Do not club women,” some of the men rushed to the police asking them not to target women. “You’ll make things…

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  • From Alex Ortiz in Cairo

    [The Egyptian government has apparently block Twitter, Facebook (as of Wed. morn U.S. ET) and other internet tools, though apparently some people are able to get around such restrictions. Email from 8:45 a.m. ET:] Downtown Cairo today remains in a state of high alert. There are many security forces and plainsclothed policemen visible on every…

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  • Video from Cairo

    Phone lines are intermittent and Twitter has reportedly been blocked in Egypt. Here is a live video feed: ustream.tv/channel/cairodowntown [update: ustream has been blocked, streaming now intermittently at livestream.com/cairowitness — further update, now at: www.justin.tv/cairowitness] Here is a YouTube video from earlier today:

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  • Ukraine’s Assault on a Free Press

    In Ukraine, where media diversity is often defined by which powerful oligarch controls which TV station, one network, TVi — known for its independent investigative style — is under intense legal pressure, with its owner not part of Ukraine’s power circles. TVi faces a court hearing on Tuesday over a legal claim that the station’s…

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  • Israel’s Slaughter Continues

    On Friday, Trump called for Israel to “immediately stop the bombing of Gaza” and on Saturday said he appreciated “Israel has temporarily stopped the bombing.” Mosab Abu Toha noted then: “President Trump just claimed that Israel has temporarily stopped bombing Gaza. No, Mr. Trump. They haven’t. Please, take a few minutes to check reliable news sources, not just the information…

  • What Does the Public Think of RFK Jr.?

    Polling shows that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s net approval rating declined from -11 percentage points in March 2025 to -21 points in September. CNN’s chief data analyst Harry Enten suggests that Kennedy’s approval rating has dropped because the public does not “like him on vaccines.” 

  • Disruption at Port Elizabeth: “The Nonviolent Way to Stop a Genocide Is to Stop the Shipment of Weapons”

    “This site exports weapons used by Israel to kill Palestinians in Gaza, shipped by Maersk and ZIM. In addition, it is one of the largest weapons exporters on the East coast. Supplying these weapons for Israel’s genocide is a blatant violation of the U.S. War Crimes Act, the Leahy law, The Foreign Assistance Act, Arms…

  • * Israel Illegally Attacks Flotilla * Italy: Mass Strike

    “We now have a verdict. Vox populi vox dei as the ancient Romans used to say (the voice of the people is the voice of God). … Will Italian popular masses start enacting a people’s embargo and drag their political class to institutionalize it? The answer is a resounding yes, at least for the People’s…

  • * Palestinian Push for Colombia Initiative * Pope Asked to Atone for His Stance on Gaza on Yom Kippur

    Palestinian factions largely see Trump’s “peace plan” as a farce. Crafted by Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff, and Benjamin Netanyahu’s aides with no Palestinian input, it ties food and medicine to Hamas’s surrender and hands Gaza to a foreign “viceroy.”

  • It’s not a “Peace Plan” — It’s a Threatening Ultimatum

    “Trump’s ‘peace plan’ for Gaza is not a peace plan but an ultimatum, reminiscent of Nazi Luftwaffe’s Albert Kesselring’s ultimatum to Rotterdam in 1940 — surrender or we obliterate you. A civilized world cannot accept this. The media is complicit in the scam.“

  • U.S. Vets on Flotilla Approaching Gaza

    There are several U.S. veterans on the Sumud Flotilla, which is approaching Gaza with humanitarian aid. See on XandInstagram.  Spain and other countries have dispatched navy vessels to support the Flotilla. The Flotilla just reported: “Turkish navy vessels spotted alongside the Global Sumud Flotilla — the circle of protection is growing.”

  • Trump Administration Continues to Spout Autism Misinformation

    In the past week, the Trump administration spread two pieces of pseudoscience related to autism: first, that acetaminophen use during pregnancy can cause autism, and second, that a prescription supplement called leucovorin (folinic acid) can benefit autistic children.

  • Change in Vaccines for Children

    The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted last week to restrict access to the combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine for low-income children under the age of four. Vaccines for Children, a program that provides low-cost or free vaccines for children who are uninsured or on Medicaid, will no longer provide the MMRV…

  • Colombia Acting at U.N. to Overcome U.S. Veto on Gaza Genocide

    In a sweeping speech, Colombian President Gustavo Petro said at the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday: “First of all, we must stop this genocide in Gaza.” He added that it “cannot be stopped by words alone.” Petro outlined actions including economic sanctions and a protection force using the General Assembly’s Uniting for Peace process to overcome the U.S.…

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