It seems that an incredible story is brewing in South Africa over the suspected rendition of Khaled Rashid. As the European Parliament releases their investigation into the American CIA’s practice of “rendition” (i.e. kidnapping), Reuters reports that lawyers for Rashid’s family have claimed that, “Beyond a reasonable doubt this was a case of rendition. Here is a man who was kidnapped, sent to a military base and whisked away to who knows where. This is not the kind of thing that happens in a democracy.”

Continue reading »

Do we think about the inhabitants of Guantanamo Bay? What does the media say about them? They pop up occasionally - a small item on page six. They have been consigned to a no man’s land from which indeed they may never return. At present many are on hunger strike, being force-fed, including British residents. No niceties in these force-feeding procedures. No sedative or anaesthetic. Just a tube stuck up your nose and into your throat. You vomit blood. This is torture. What has the British Foreign Secretary said about this? Nothing. What has the British Prime Minister said about this? Nothing. Why not? Because the United States has said: to criticise our conduct in Guantanamo Bay constitutes an unfriendly act. You’re either with us or against us. So Blair shuts up.
- Harold Pinter, 2005 winner of the Noble Prize for Literature

The prisoners of Guantanamo Bay have popped up again, this time with news that there are 89 inmates on hunger strike at the “gulag of our times” (Amnesty) or the “anomaly” (Tony Blair). A few months ago, it was admitted that several hunger strikers were being force fed in a process that Captain John S Edmondson, commander of the Guantanamo Hospital, admitted resulted in bleeding and nausea. Despite the latest news that dozens of the hunger strikers have given up their attempt, this is just another sordid chapter in the history of Guantanamo’s force feeding.
Continue reading »

More4 (UK) screened a doc on TV the other night entitled “Tank Man”, covering the protestor who stood in front of a line of tanks at Tiannemen Square in 1989. (A homepage for the film can be found at PBS’s Frontline). The most amazing segment (for me, anyway) was when a group of Beijing university students (from one of the capital’s universities that were heavily involved in the protests at the time) were shown the infamous photo of the man against the machines of tyrrany. Not one of the students knew what it represented. China’s mastery over history appears to be complete, bringing George Orwell’s classic statement to life: “He who controls the present, controls the past. He who controls the past, controls the future.” (Of course, China’s by no means unique; western democracies have learnt how to keep things quiet, too, albeit a bit differently).

Continue reading »

The Washington Post recently reported on US war crimes during the Korean War. In 1999, an AP story about refugees being shot by US soldiers at No Gun Ri was investigated by the Pentagon, which concluded it was “an unfortunate tragedy”, and “not a deliberate killing.” But a recently discovered memo from then-US Korean Ambassador John J. Muccio refutes this claim. Addressed to Secretary of State Dean Rusk, it states:

If refugees do appear from north of US lines they will receive warning shots, and if they then persist in advancing they will be shot.

Charming stuff. Wonder if that’ll get into the school history books.

Looks like using computer games to help hack social networks is becoming all the rage these days. Wired is reporting that an Iranian game “designed by schoolchildren belonging to the Union of Islamic Student Societies” is to be released next year:

Rugged veteran Iranian special forces hero “Commander Bahman” will soon be tackling one of his toughest missions, rescuing one of his country’s top atomic scientists captured by U.S. forces in Iraq. […] The Fars news agency said that in the game’s narrative Iranian atomic scientist “Doctor Kousha” goes on a pilgrimage to the Shi’ite Muslim holy city of Kerbala in Iraq where he is seized by U.S. troops.

Continue reading »

There’s no love lost between the US and Venezuela. The country’s leader, Hugo Chavez, was overthrown by a US-backed military coup which quickly backfired when a populist uprising returned him back into power. Chavez recently kicked out the US-based New Tribes Mission accusing them of being involved in “true imperialist infiltration, the CIA, they take away sensitive, strategic information” and “exploiting the Indians”. The US, for their part, have repeatedly warned against Chavez, with Condolezza Rice accusing him of a “Latin brand of populism that has taken countries down the drain”.

But today comes an interesting story from ZDNet, who says that US gaming company Pandemic Studios’ upcoming game Mercenaries 2: World in Flames is being denounced by Venezuelan lawmakers as “a U.S. government-inspired propaganda campaign against Chavez that could even help lay the psychological groundwork for an actual invasion”:

Continue reading »

Perhaps European investigators who are complaining of stonewalling by the US government in their investigation into the secret CIA detention centers and prisoner rendition should give ABC News and the Washington Post a call. Chances are, they know something they’re not telling. Have a look at this very interesting exchange between Brian Ross, Chief Investigative Correspondent for ABC News, and Ed Schultz provides wonderful insight into how the media will often apply self censorship to themselves:

Continue reading »