“Biden repeatedly failed to follow through on the most likely path to preventing a regional war: pressing for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, particularly by using U.S. leverage to withhold billions of dollars in weapons to Israel. … The road to de-escalation in the Middle East must begin with a cease-fire in Gaza.”

“My research has found that Carter was far more conservative than previously recognized. Evidence from newly opened archives show that Carter initiated the deregulation of U.S. industry and finance, reduced the power of organized labor, lowered taxes on business, and imposed austerity measures that intentionally raised unemployment among working people.”

CommonDreams reports: “Israel Launches Massive Bombing Campaign in Lebanon as ‘U,S, Weapons Continue to Flow.’”  Antiwar.com reports: “Netanyahu Considers Ethnic Cleansing Plan for North Gaza.” See Antiwar news with Dave DeCamp. Jeremy Scahill posted: “Media should stop saying Israel is telling people in southern Lebanon to ‘evacuate.’ Israel is engaged in psychological warfare against civilians as part of its broader military attacks. This is an expulsion order under threat. It is the same tactic used in Gaza.” See IPA news release from Friday: “Israel and a Wider War.” In “Israeli soldiers raid, order closure of Al Jazeera office in Ramallah,” Al…

“One of the Biden administration’s biggest mistakes over the past few months has been to frame the protracted ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel as only focused on Gaza, without recognizing that all of Iran’s allies in the region, especially Hezbollah and the Houthis, have made clear that they too would stand down once the fighting stops in Gaza.”

A new Center for Media and Democracy report found that American Majority, a tax-exempt group, trains Republican candidates and party organizations on how to win elections. But the organization’s tax-exempt status prohibits it from such activities. CMD filed complaints with the Internal Revenue Service and the Minnesota attorney general’s office, requesting a thorough investigation into American Majority’s partisan and electoral activity. 

“Implement the findings of the World Court that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza is entirely unlawful and must be quickly dismantled, Palestinians must be compensated and allowed to return, Israel is practicing apartheid and racial segregation, and all states are obliged to cut off all support and end the occupation.”

The Norwegian Refugee Council and 15 other aid organizations just released a statement: “Israel’s siege now blocks 83 percent of food aid reaching Gaza, new data reveals.” They “demand international pressure for an immediate ceasefire, arms embargo, and end to Israel’s systematic aid obstruction.” The groups stated: “New data has revealed the scale of aid obstruction, and the consequential drastic fall in aid entering Gaza. This is driving a humanitarian disaster, with the entire population of Gaza facing hunger and disease, and almost half a million at risk of starvation.

“UN General Assembly, using Uniting for Peace, with a two-thirds of voting members could suspend Israel from participation in its activities as the General Assembly did to the former criminal apartheid regime in South Africa and to the genocidal Yugoslavia; Set up an International Criminal Tribunal for Israel in order to prosecute its highest level civilian and military officials for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide; Recommend an arms embargo and economic sanctions against Israel; Recommend UN members sever diplomatic relations with Israel. This current resolution doesn’t do those things. It does say that Israel must withdraw from occupied…

They call on members states to “embargo arms, oil and tech on Israel to stop settler terrorism and destruction in the West Bank and Israeli military genocide in Gaza.”

Census data on poverty rates from 2023 were just released. The data shows the consequences of failing to apply lessons from the pandemic’s anti-poverty measures. Poverty rates remain high relative to the progress made in 2021.