Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Obama Personally Oversees 'Secret Kill List': NYT

Published on Tuesday, May 29, 2012 by Common Dreams

Obama Personally Oversees 'Secret Kill List': NYT

Official quoted says that Obama called his decision to assassinate American cleric 'An easy one'

- Common Dreams staff

President Obama, who ran for the nation's highest office on a promise to close Guantanamo and end the war in Iraq, has now become a president who personally oversees a covert assassination program that allows a small group of top US officials to monitor, select, and mark for death those it alone deems a threat to national security.

President Obama in the Oval Office with Thomas E. Donilon, left, the national security adviser, and John O. Brennan, his top counterterrorism adviser. (Pete Souza/The White House) A new report in the New York Times, based on interviews with three dozen of his current and former advisers, says that when Obama - often chided as a 'liberal constitutional professor' -- "applies his lawyering skills to counterterrorism, it is usually to enable, not constrain, his ferocious campaign against Al Qaeda — even when it comes to killing an American cleric in Yemen, a decision that Mr. Obama told colleagues was 'an easy one.'"

Obama's enthusiasm for the program, however, has already shown consequences. As the Times notes: "Drones have replaced Guantánamo as the recruiting tool of choice for militants; in his 2010 guilty plea, Faisal Shahzad, who had tried to set off a car bomb in Times Square, justified targeting civilians by telling the judge, 'When the drones hit, they don’t see children.'"

One official quoted in the article also called into question the administration's method for tabulating civilian casualties in drone attacks, saying that the CIA's recent claim that the number of civilians killed in drone strikes in Pakistan was in the "single digits" was unrealistic.

“It bothers me when they say there were seven guys, so they must all be militants,” the official said. “They count the corpses and they’re not really sure who they are.”

And, when the fact that targeted killings are on the rise as the capture of alleged Al-Qaeda militants is now rarely seen, one creeping suspicion lurks for many. Has the Obama administration "avoided the complications of detention by deciding, in effect, to take no prisoners alive?"

“Their policy is to take out high-value targets, versus capturing high-value targets,” said Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, the top Republican on the intelligence committee. “They are not going to advertise that, but that’s what they are doing.”

*  *  *

The New York Times: Secret ‘Kill List’ Proves a Test of Obama’s Principles and Will

Mr. Obama is the liberal law professor who campaigned against the Iraq war and torture, and then insisted on approving every new name on an expanding “kill list,” poring over terrorist suspects’ biographies on what one official calls the macabre “baseball cards” of an unconventional war. When a rare opportunity for a drone strike at a top terrorist arises — but his family is with him — it is the president who has reserved to himself the final moral calculation.

“He is determined that he will make these decisions about how far and wide these operations will go,” said Thomas E. Donilon, his national security adviser. “His view is that he’s responsible for the position of the United States in the world.” He added, “He’s determined to keep the tether pretty short.”

Nothing else in Mr. Obama’s first term has baffled liberal supporters and confounded conservative critics alike as his aggressive counterterrorism record. His actions have often remained inscrutable, obscured by awkward secrecy rules, polarized political commentary and the president’s own deep reserve.

In interviews with The New York Times, three dozen of his current and former advisers described Mr. Obama’s evolution since taking on the role, without precedent in presidential history, of personally overseeing the shadow war with Al Qaeda.

They describe a paradoxical leader who shunned the legislative deal-making required to close the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba, but approves lethal action without hand-wringing. While he was adamant about narrowing the fight and improving relations with the Muslim world, he has followed the metastasizing enemy into new and dangerous lands. When he applies his lawyering skills to counterterrorism, it is usually to enable, not constrain, his ferocious campaign against Al Qaeda — even when it comes to killing an American cleric in Yemen, a decision that Mr. Obama told colleagues was “an easy one.”

#  #  #

Source URL: http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/05/29

 

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218.  Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/

 

"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs

 

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Zimbabwe's women activists face filthy prisons, insults

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/news/zimbabwe/58462/zimbabwes-women-activists-face-filthy.html

 

Zimbabwe's women activists face filthy prisons, insults

For someone who has been arrested 43 times while protesting for social justice in Zimbabwe, the prospect of elections in her homeland evokes a special kind of fear in campaigner Jenni Williams.

11:07am

by www.trust.org
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Bradley Manning in good spirits ahead of court-martial in WikiLeaks case

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/29/bradley-manning-life-in-prison-interview

 

 

Bradley Manning in good spirits ahead of court-martial in WikiLeaks case

In an interview with the Guardian, Manning's aunt describes her nephew's life in jail – and how he's been able to stay optimistic

 

Ed Pilkington in New York

guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 29 May 2012 13.25 EDT

 

Bradley Manning's aunt said he keeps up to date with subscriptions to Scientific American, the New Yorker and the Washington Post. Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

 

Two years into his military confinement for allegedly being the source of the biggest leak of state secrets in US history, Bradley Manning is keeping himself in a relatively positive state of mind, buoyed by trust in his lawyers and the support of close family and backers from around the world.

 

With a full court-martial scheduled for September, which could result in the US soldier spending the rest of his life in military jail, Manning appears to be in surprisingly good humour. His aunt, who visits him frequently in the military brig, told the Guardian that his mood had improved substantially along with his conditions. "He seems to be in good spirits, and quite optimistic about his case – he's not letting anything get him down as far as I can tell," she said.

The intelligence analyst, who was arrested two years ago this week at the Forward Operating Base Hammer outside Baghdad, spends his days reading, exercising or watching television with other military inmates of the brig at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and an institution at an undisclosed location in the Washington area where his aunt visits him.

 

As told by his aunt, who asked not to be named to avoid media attention, Manning comes across as a quiet, bookish individual with interests in the interface between science and philosophy, as well as world affairs. He has subscriptions to Scientific American, the New Yorker and Vanity Fair and has requested a daily copy of the Washington Post.

 

He borrows regularly from the relatively well-stocked library at Fort Leavenworth, supplemented by gifts from his aunt who has given him copies of Immanuel Kant and Isaac Newton. On a more popular note, his father Brian Manning has sent him the best-selling Swedish thriller Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, though it's not clear whether Manning has read it.

 

"He doesn't ask for any popular books," his aunt said.

 

Manning also follows the news avidly, both internationally and domestically. "When I'm talking to him, he'll often mention something political that's going on around the world; he's definitely keeping up with what's going on," said the aunt.

 

At face value Manning's predicament appears serious. He is charged with 22 counts relating to the transfer of some 700,000 secret documents from US secure computers to WikiLeaks.

 

The charges include aiding the enemy, wrongfully causing intelligence to be published on the internet knowing that it is accessible to the enemy, theft of public records and computer fraud.

 

Attempts by his lawyers to have many of the counts dismissed have so far failed and the military prosecutors are pursuing the case against him aggressively.

 

The nadir in his treatment over the past two years came in early 2011 when, over a period of weeks, he was held in isolation at Quantico marine base in Virginia. During that time he was stripped naked at night and forced to stand for hours on end.

 

He protested about the treatment, which was later classified as a form of torture by the UN special rapporteur. Amnesty International recently cited Manning's regime at Quantico in its annual human rights report.

 

Yet the soldier's treatment has improved dramatically and with it his spirits. He was moved to Fort Leavenworth in April 2011, where he is afforded much more contact with other inmates and more privileges, including exercise on the basketball court.

 

"The situation in Fort Leavenworth is night and day compared to Quantico," his aunt said. "He has freedom of movement and access to books and TV."

The other reason for his relatively cheerful state is that he has total faith in his defence team. "Bradley has tremendous confidence in David Coombs," she said, referring to his lead civilian lawyer. "He seems pretty optimistic about how things are going and encouraged that the case is now moving along."

 

Manning and Coombs speak at least once a week, and spend hours together discussing legal strategy when the soldier is brought to the Washington area ahead of pre-trial hearings in Fort Meade, Maryland. The next hearing will be on 6 June.

 

Occasionally, Manning expresses discouragement at what he sees as the lack of co-operation he is getting from the US government. This has become a cause of contention with the defence, which has complained in a series of motions lodged with the military court that the army has failed to meet its constitutional obligations to allow Manning a fair trial.

 

The other explanation for Manning's relatively bouyant mood is the support he receives from his immediate family in America and Wales where his mother and another aunt live, as well as his support network and concerned individuals around the world. Several public figures spoke about Manning on the second anniversary of his military custody.

 

Graham Nash, the songwriter with the band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, said that "this is supposed to be a nation of laws. If so, why are we torturing a man who truly believed that he was doing his duty to his country and to his own soul?"

 

The Labour MP Ann Clwyd, who has been closely involved with the private's Welsh family, said: "It is an outrage that Bradley Manning is still being held two years after he was first arrested. He should not be made the scapegoat for the errors of the US military."

 

Writing in the Guardian, Birgitta Jonsdottir, a member of Iceland's parliament who has been a vocal advocate for WikiLeaks, likened the stance of the US government to China's "oppression, secrecy and fear mongering".

 

Similar sentiments are contained in Manning's bulging mail bag. His aunt said the soldier receives many letters each week from around the world.

He is also very aware how closely the media is watching his case. After his first pre-trial hearing in Fort Meade in December, he remarked: "Gee, I was twiddling with my pen, and the papers wrote about it!"

 

He feels a little self-conscious about being in the spotlight, but hugely thankful none the less. "He feels good that people haven't forgotten him," she said.

 

© 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.

 

This article was published on guardian.co.uk at 13.25 EDT on Tuesday 29 May 2012. It was last modified at 14.03 EDT on Tuesday 29 May 2012.

 

 

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218.  Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/

 

"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs

 

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The war in Syria escalates with the brutal killing of 32 children

Exclusive dispatch: Assad blamed for massacre of the innocents

 

The war in Syria escalates with the brutal killing of 32 children

 

Patrick Cockburn Sunday, 27 May 2012

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/exclusive-dispatch-assad-blamed-for-massacre-of-the-innocents-7791507.html

 

In a massacre of unprecedented savagery that brings

Syria close to civil war, some 32 children and 60

adults have been slaughtered in villages in the Houla

area of central Syria. Anti-government militants blame

pro-regime gunmen for carrying out the butchery in

which children and their parents were hacked and shot to death.

 

The figure for the number of children and adults killed

was confirmed in an interview with The Independent on

Sunday by General Robert Mood, the head of the team of

300 UN observers which is seeking to reduce the level

of violence. "My patrols went into the village," he

said. "I can verify that they counted 32 children under

10 killed. In addition, there were more than 60 adults dead."

 

General Mood would not explain how the villagers died,

but horrific pictures posted on YouTube appear to show

that they were shot or knifed to death, some having

their throats cut. The small bodies of the children

were covered in sheets as they were taken by survivors

screaming in grief and disbelief from the houses where

they had been murdered.

 

The massacre is the worst single incident in Syria's

14-month crisis because it involved the deliberate

murder of children as well as adults. Militants say the

perpetrators were pro-regime gunmen, known as the

shabiya, who had captured Houla. If true, the shabiya

may have been members of the Alawite sect, which is

supportive of the government. Alawites inhabit a string

of villages south of Houla, which is 25km north-west of

Homs. The Syrian leadership is largely drawn from the

Alawite sect.

 

General Mood said that fighting around Houla started on

Friday evening with the use of "tanks, artillery,

rocket-propelled grenades, and heavy machine guns".

This implied an attack by government forces since the

insurgent Free Syrian Army does not have heavy weapons.

This confirms the militants' story that there had been

big anti-government protests on Friday in Houla, where

there have previously been many anti-government demonstrations.

 

The calculated slaughter of Sunni villagers and their

children by Alawites brings a new level of violence to

Syria and propels it towards sectarian civil war.

Yesterday, Damascus was quiet aside from one protest in

an outlying district, but fighting has intensified at

Rastan, north of Homs. Observers from the UN

Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMS) have mediated a

ceasefire there, leaving insurgents in control of the

town. But this straddles the main highway linking

Damascus and Aleppo, so the government is unlikely to

allow the Free Syrian Army to hold the town for long.

 

The Houla massacre could mark a crucial stage in the

war in Syria because it will energise the insurgents

inside and outside the country. It will make it more

difficult for any compromise or new ceasefire to be

arranged between President Bashar Assad and his

opponents. It will increase hatred between Sunni and

Alawites, a heterodox branch of Shia Islam. This has

already been seen in the past week, with 11 Shia

pilgrims kidnapped by insurgents in Syria and 10 people

killed in associated violence in Lebanon. Houla is not

far from the Lebanese border, and the latest atrocity

is similar to what happened in the Lebanese civil war

between 1975 and 1990, when different communities

repeatedly massacred each other.

 

The pictures of the dead children of Houla are likely

to create an international outcry and underline that

the ceasefire arranged by the UN-Arab League envoy Kofi

Annan is foundering. General Mood confirmed yesterday

that there was no real ceasefire in Syria and said that

there could not be an effective one until the

combatants themselves implemented it. He emphasised

that unarmed UN monitors cannot impose a truce, though

in some areas, such as Homs, they have succeeded in

"calming" the situation. He said: "The solution to the

Syria crisis lies in the hands of the Syrian

government, the fragmented opposition, and those

outside fuelling the crisis by supplying arms and explosives."

 

Mr Annan is due in Damascus in the next few days to try

to patch up a new ceasefire, but neither the government

nor its opponents have carried through on past

agreements. The government suppression of peaceful

protest with gunfire and mass detentions has continued.

At the same time, the Islamicisation and militarisation

of the opposition is frightening minorities, such as

the Alawites, Christians and Druze. The government is

targeting moderate and secular opposition in order to

present a stark choice to Syrians, and the world,

between itself and Islamic fundamentalists.

 

Last night, the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, said:

"There are credible and horrific reports that a large

number of civilians have been massacred, including

children. Our urgent priority is to ensure those

responsible are held to account. We will be calling for

an urgent session of the UN Security Council in the

coming days. The Assad regime must cease all military operations."

 

The President and his First Lady... and their people

 

He is the President; she is the First Lady; they are

dead children. He governs but doesn't protect; she

shops and doesn't care; they will never grow old. His

father was an autocrat; hers a Harley Street doctor;

theirs are bereaved. He will sleep in his bed tonight;

so will she; they will be in their graves. However you

conjugate the lives of the Syrian leader and his

people, there is something very wrong.

 

Two days ago, they were all alive. He and she in their

gilded residence, looking much as they do in this

photograph - he sharp-suited, she sun-glassed and with

a watch of gold on her wrist. The children were in

their ramshackled homes in Houla, poor but alive. Then

the men of war came. When they left, the children were

as you see them here in this, the most grotesque

picture yet to emerge from this land of the alleged ceasefire.

 

There are still photographs of this scene, and video.

And over the footage that would bear more than enough

testimony to the redundant regime of Assad, the voice

of a man can be heard screaming. "These are all

children!" he cries, shrill with angry despair, "Watch,

you dogs, you Arabs, you animals - look at these

children, watch, just watch!"

 

And one hopes that those on the United Nations Security

Council, when it reconvenes, will look into the staring

eyes of these dead children and remember the hollow

words of Assad's wife when she simpered that she

"comforts the families" of her country's victims.

 

___________________________________________

 

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Baltimore Activist Alert - Part 3

33] Peace Center mailing party – May 29

34] Support Our Sisters – May 29

35] War Is Not the Answer – May 29

36] Charter Schools -- May 29

37] Safe Streets – May 29

38] Alternate Methods – May 29

39] Discuss EAARTH – May 29

40] Humane Society – May 30

41] Charter Schools – May 30

42] Philadelphia peace vigil – May 30

43] Eva Gabrielsson at Pratt – May 30

44] Music for Peace – May 30

45] Green Currency Meeting – May 30

46] Chestnut Hill peace vigil – May 30

47] PFLAG meeting – May 30

--------

33] – On Tues., May 29 from 11 AM to 9 PM at St. Stephen's Church, 1525 Newton St., NW, learn more about the D.C. progressive movement while helping send out letters to raise funds! This mailing get-together will be full of fun people and lively conversations! The mailing party continues on Wed., May 30 from 11 AM to 9 PM (Pizza Party!!) and on Thurs., May 30 from 11 AM to 6 PM.  Email Dany at dany@washingtonpeacecenter.org.

 

34] – On Tues., May 29 from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM, join the Support Our Sisters vigil at Khalil Gibran Memorial Garden, 3201 Massachusetts Ave. NW, WDC, near the Vatican Embassy.  At about 1 PM, after testimonials, speakers and songs, rally participants will process to the Vatican Embassy to deliver a letter to the Papal Nuncio expressing deep disappointment and sadness at the Vatican action in regard to the Leadership Conference for Women Religious (LCWR) and conveying total and complete support for the Catholic sisters. Those planning to participate are encouraged to bring signs with messages of support for the sisters and/or the names of particular sisters who have made a difference in their lives. 

 

35] – There is a vigil to say "War Is Not the Answer" each Tuesday since September 11, 2001 at 4806 York Road. Join this ongoing vigil.  The next vigil is May 29 from 5:30 to 6:30 PM.  Call Max at 410-366-1637.

 

36] – Applicants for converting Baltimore City schools into public charter schools will make presentations of their plans on Tues., May 29 at 5:30 to 7:30 PM in the 1st Floor Board Room.  Following all of the presentations, there will be a public comment period during which citizens can have their say on the merits of the applications. Go to http://www.balt​imorecityschool​s.org/.

37] – On Tues., May 29 from 5:45 to 7:30 PM at the  Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library,  901 G St. NW, women in DC & Kabul Speak Out Against Street Harassment.  Hear from the co-founders of two organizations working to end street harassment: Chai Shenoy of Collective Action for Safe Spaces (DC) and Noorjahan Akbar of Young Women for Change (Kabul).  There will be art work on display from both countries and FREE FOOD.  Consider making a $10 donation. Collective Action for Safe Spaces hopes to build a coalition of like-minded individuals, organizations, and businesses that are invested in making the public spaces of the DC metro area safe for women and LGBTQ individuals.  Learn about Chai Shenoy at http://www.linkedin.com/in/chaishenoy; see the biography for Noorjahan Akbar: http://afghanistan101.blogspot.com/2012/03/young-women-for-change-noorja...

38] – On Tues., May 29 from 7 to 9 PM, catch "Alternative Methods"– a reading of a play by Pat Davis and directed by Stevie Zimmerman. It is about torture and interrogation in Iraq, and the reading will take place at Busboys and Poets, 5331 Baltimore Ave., Hyattsville, MD 20781. Audience members are invited to participate in a post-show discussion, featuring Luisa Saffiota, President of Psychologists for Social Responsibility. The suggested donation will be $10.00. Contact Thembi Duncan at thembiduncan@gmail.com or go to www.alternativemethodstheplay.com.

 

39] – Come discuss an important environmental call to arms: Bill McKibben's latest book "Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet" (2010) on Tues., May 29 at 7:30 PM at the at the Baltimore Ethical Society, 306 W. Franklin St., Suite 102, Baltimore, MD 21201-4661.  If you need to purchase your copy, please visit the BES Bookstore.  Dessert will be provided. RSVP to leader@bmorethical.org.

 

40] – Baltimore Humane Society Book Drive continues on Wednesdays at 1601 Nicodemus Road.  A significant portion of each book's sale price will be donated to the no-kill animal shelter, no matter when the book is sold during the year.  Call 410-833-8848.  Go to http://baltimorehumane.org

41] – Diverse Charter Schools is a forum sponsored by The Century Foundation and The Poverty & Race Research Action Council, and it takes place on Wed., May 30 from noon to 2 PM at the Century Foundation/Center for American Progress, 1333 H St.NW, WDC, 10th Floor. Lunch will be available at 11:30 AM. Panelists will discuss the merits of those efforts and other ideas outlined in a new report from The Century Foundation and The Poverty & Race Research Action Council, "Diverse Charter Schools: Can Racial and Socioeconomic Integration Promote Better Outcomes for Students?" by Richard D. Kahlenberg and Halley Potter. They will also address the question: should foundations and policymakers offer more support for charter schools that educate high-needs students in racially and economically diverse settings? RSVP to events@tcf.org with "Charter" in the subject line.

42] – Each Wednesday from 4:30 - 5:30 PM, the House of Grace Catholic Worker holds a weekly vigil for peace in Iraq outside the Phila. Federal Building, 6th & Market Sts. The next vigil is May 30. Call 215-426-0364.

43] – Eva Gabrielsson, Stieg Larsson's partner, will read from her book "There Are Things I Want You to Know About Stieg Larsson and Me" at 6:30 PM at Enoch Pratt Free Library, Central Library, 400 Cathedral St.  Call 410-396-5430.  Go to www.prattlibrary.org/locations/central.

44] – Music for Peace takes place on the last Wednesday of the month, and it is an opportunity to discover music as a means to communicate and connect across cultures. Listen, play, or learn. The event will feature an open mic forum, guitar lessons, and the chance to meet people to HI Baltimore Hostel, 17 W. Mulberry St.  Call 410-576-8880 or visit http://www.baltimorehostel.org.

 

45] – The Baltimore Green Currency Association meets every Wednesday at 7 PM at Breathe Books, 810 W 36th St. # A, Baltimore, MD 21211-2554.  Call 410-235-7323.

 

46] – Each Wednesday, the Northwest Greens hold a peace vigil from 7 to 8 PM outside the Borders Book Store, Germantown Ave. at Bethlehem Pike in Chestnut Hill, PA. The next vigil is May 30. Call 215-843-4256 or email nwgreens@yahoo.com.

47] – A MD PFLAG State Chapter Meeting is happening on Wed., May 30 at 7 PM at Owen Brown Interfaith Center, 7246 Cradlerock Way, Columbia,  MD 21045.  RSVP to david@mdfme.org.

To be continued.

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD 21218.  Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/

 

"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs

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