ISRAELI MEN DEMAND RIGHTS TO RAPE PALESTINIANS PRISONERS

Here’s more viral footage of Israelis storming prisons in support of guards accused of raping Palestinian inmates. It was posted @Suppressednews and has got nearly 40 million views in less than two days. The video shows mobs responding to calls by Israeli politicians to protest the fact nine soldiers were detained over the rape of a Palestinian inmate who then needed hospital treatment. Even in the Knesset, a lawmaker claimed soldiers should be allowed to sexually abuse jailed Palestinians.

The incident took place at the notorious Sde Teiman facility. It’s a military base in the Negev desert that also doubles as a detention centre for Palestinians arrested in Gaza. Middle East Eye reported it’s held over 4,000 Gazans since October 2023. Whistleblowers have described conditions of extreme abuse and torture.

Video credits: ynet.co.il

U.S. WANTED TO COLLAPSE
VENEZUELA FOR OIL – TRUMP

Here’s another video of former US President Donald Trump saying the quiet part out loud when it comes to Venezuela. As the West doubles down on casting doubt on president-elect Maduro’s victory, it is timely to remember Washington’s thirst for Venezuelan oil.

During his presidency, Trump imposed sanctions on the country’s oil sector in an attempt to collapse Venezuela’s economy and force Maduro from office. The White House also recognised Juan Guaidó, the leader of Venezuela’s National Assembly, as the country’s interim president and supported his push to seize power. Venezuela has the world’s largest oil fields and they’re largely under state control. As you’ll see in this clip, that does not sit well with the US.

Continued…. This is an old pattern. In 1954 the CIA combined with the US multinational, United Fruit Company, to overthrow Guatemala’s democratically elected leader to secure access to land and labour. The US overthrew Iraq’s Saddam Hussein when he worked to shift the oil trade away from the dollar. In 2011, eyeing Libya’s massive energy reserves, the West armed and funded rebels to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi.

Have a watch and let us know what you think. Trump was speaking at a North Carolina GOP convention last year.

‘LIBERIA IS NOBODY’S STEPCHILD’

Liberia recently celebrated its 177th Independence Day. However, activist Robtel Neajai Pailey, says her country still needs to break free from its ‘special relationship’ with the United States. In this powerful speech on July 26th, she claims the US still has an oversized influence on her country, which should be ‘nobody’s stepchild.’ Her speech upset U.S. officials in attendance who, according to folks who were there, walked out in protest.

The founding of Liberia was not done out of kindness for Africans. The American Colonization Society (ACS) wanted to deal with a growing 'problem' of freed slaves in the U.S. Equality with Whites was out of the question so, beginning in 1820, the ACS sent freed slaves back to West Africa using funds given by President James Madison. With time, the colony grew and declared its independence in 1847. The capital, Monrovia, was named after President James Monroe, who procured more funds for the colony.

Continued….. However, despite its declared ‘freedom’, there was still an exploitative relationship. Firestone, a major U.S. Tyre and Rubber Company, is a good example of that. It operated under a colonialistic 99-year lease agreement, forcing a heavily indebted Liberian government to evict indigenous Bassa communities to make way for rubber plantations. White managers coerced tens of thousands of Liberian children, women, and men to tap rubber for meagre wages. The forced evictions then fuelled future civil wars.

Robtel reckons it’s time to reimagine a new Liberia. Will it happen? Let us know your thoughts.

Video credit: Montserrado Media Inc. @Robtelneajai

NICOLAS MADURO: U.S. INCITING VIOLENCE IN VENEZUELA

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says the US is inciting citizens in his country to rise against the government. In a televised national address, Maduro said the move is being orchestrated by a group which has wielded powerful influence over successive US governments for centuries. He highlighted how this group has killed many leaders around the world and in the US for refusing to bow to its demands.

Venezuela has been rocked by unrest since the 28 July elections that Maduro won with about 51 per cent of the vote, against 44 per cent of his closest challenger, Edmundo Gonzalez.

The Western-backed opposition claims the elections were rigged but has not provided any evidence to back up the claims so far. They have also called on their supporters to take to the streets in protest.

Continued….. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken quickly latched onto the opposition allegations and said, 'the result announced does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people.'
However, White House spokesperson John Kirby was more cautious, stating Washington will only take a position once it's received more information.

DEMS FORGOT DEMOCRACY BEGINS AT HOME

In the US, there’s been a surge of enthusiasm for Kamala Harris, and not just among dyed-in-the-wool Democrats: the lates polling suggests she’s caught up with Donald Trump in key swing states for a dead heat.

But Afeni - and anti-imperialist TikToker - is not convinced, for three main reasons: Harris will be handed the nomination on a plate (i.e., undemocratically), she’s complicit in the death and destruction being visited on Palestinians, and she ruined Black families’ lives in California as AG. We couldn’t agree more, sister!

Video credit: @factsandfire

US SANCTIONS STRANGLE VENEZUELA ECONOMY

We often hear Venezuela’s economic crisis being blamed on 'corruption and mismanagement.' What we don’t hear is the devastating impact US sanctions have had on the country.

In this clip, former US National Security Advisor, John Bolton, announces measures designed to cost Venezuela billions of dollars. And they're just a few of the steps the West has taken to collapse the economy and force 'regime change'.

The first round of sanctions went into effect under the Barack Obama administration in 2015; Donald Trump added more in 2017 before turning up the dial again in 2019. The measures include an embargo on the oil industry, Venezuela’s most significant source of revenue.

Continued….. Washington has also grabbed Venezuelan national assets such as Citgo, a U.S.-based oil refining, transportation and marketing company valued at $13-billion.

These measures have significantly shrunk the national coffers, making it nearly impossible to provide essential services such as health and food.

According to former UN Special Rapporteur Alfred de Zayas, the sanctions have led to the deaths of more 100,000 people between 2017 and 2020.

US officials claim to support a two-state solution to the 76-year Israeli occupation of Palestine despite continuing to provide diplomatic, financial and military support to the Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The US position remains even as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on 19 July for Israel to 'immediately and unconditionally withdraw' from the Palestinian territories.

So, why such brazen disregard?

Continued…. Well, US officials and the ruling class invest in the business and geopolitical strong-arming of Israeli settler-colonialism. That makes sense, given the US started as a settler colony and expanded its territories beyond the original 13 British colonies to the Pacific Ocean coastline and to island nations throughout the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

Perhaps you've heard of the vibrant kingdom of Hawai'i, a nation that, before US occupation in 1898, had embassies and consulates in 90 countries? The indigenous Hawaiian people's demand for independence mirrors that of Palestinians. Plus, we hear no mention of the Northern Mariana Islands, where @wikileaks founder Julian Assange (@julianassange_ on X) pleaded guilty to an espionage charge in a US court of law, well over 9,000 kilometres from the US mainland.

Continued….. And then there's Puerto Rico, another US colony, where austerity measures have made life miserable, causing an exodus in recent years. Other US 'territories' include the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, the Marshall Islands, Navassa Island, Palau, Samoa, the Virgin Islands, Bajo Nuevo Bank, Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands and Palmyra Atoll.

What do you think of this contradiction between US settler-colonialism and its support for a two-state solution in occupied Palestine? Let us know in the comments.

Image credits: Willis Cola and US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (@NOAA)

MUSK VERSUS MADURO

Elon Musk’s had his fair share of online spats - for example, when he accused South African opposition party the Economic Freedom Fighters of “pushing genocide” for chanting "Kill the Boer, the farmer" (part of an anti-apartheid song) at a rally in Soweto… only to be branded “illiterate” by its leader, Julius Malema.

Well, now it’s Venezuela’s freshly re-elected president Nicolás Maduro who’s felt the need to blast the Tesla boss. Musk had used his social-media platform X to accuse the socialist leader of election fraud. Maduro hit back by alleging the billionaire was seeking to control the world through his companies.