westernjournal--2019-01-15--Karen Pence teaching art at religious school in Virginia

The Western Journal has not reviewed this Associated Press story prior to publication. Therefore, it may contain editorial bias or may in some other way not meet our normal editorial standards. It is provided to our readers as a service from The Western Journal.  Mrs. Pence began teaching art to elementary students at Immanuel Christian School in Northern Virginia on Tuesday. Mrs. Pence accepted the job in December and was to have rebooted her teaching career on Monday. But classes were canceled after a heavy weekend snowfall across the Washington region.  Her office says she’ll teach twice a week until May.  Mrs. Pence was a teacher for 25 years, including 12 teaching art at Immanuel Christian School, before then-U.S. Rep. Mike Pence was elected Indiana’s governor.  Mrs. Pence’s immediate predecessor, Jill Biden, wife of former Vice President Joe Biden, taught English twice a week at a Northern Virginia community college during his two terms.  The Associated Press contributed to this report.  We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.


aljazeera--2019-01-24--Kenya court overturns ruling on wearing hijab in schools

Kenya's top court has overturned a 2016 Court of Appeal ruling that allowed Muslim students to wear hijab in non-Muslim schools.  In Thursday's ruling on the petition filed by the Methodist Church of Kenya, the Supreme Court said every school has a right to determine its own dress code.  The hijab is a headscarf worn by many Muslim women who feel it is part of their religion.  The 2016 ruling came after a church-run school banned female students from wearing the hijab, saying that it sowed discord.  Kenya has had a long-running dispute over the role of the hijab at Christian schools, with some of them banning the hijab outright in the past.  Around 10 percent of the Kenyan population practices Islam, while 84 percent follows Christianity, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.  Some Kenyans took to social media to criticise the decision, especially as the ruling comes after the country's Ministry of Education allowed turbans in schools for students of different religions which require head coverings, including Rastafarians.  Others believe that by pursuing this, the church was not sticking to its main principles.  "The church that talks about love your neighbours as you love yourself, peace, respect, and tolerance took the Muslims to court to force us not wear hijabs if we want to be part of their school community," Zahra Ubah, a student, told Anadolu news agency.  Mohamed Bamursal, a social activist, criticised the ruling, saying: "Totally out of order! This is against the tenets of our constitution. Freedom of worship, Hijab is an act of Worship. It's a wakeup call! Take your daughters to schools owned by Muslims!"


bbcuk--2019-06-29--Donmar chief Michael Longhurst begins tenure with play about Europe

Michael Longhurst, the new artistic director of London's Donmar Warehouse, explains why he is beginning his tenure with a 25-year-old play.  Michael Longhurst had never encountered Europe by David Greig until he pulled it off a shelf in a New York bookshop. "I sat and read it and it just screamed off the page at me," he remembers.  Written in 1994, the play is set in an unimportant railway station in an unnamed central European country. Few trains call and it's clear the town it serves is in decline.  An engaging double act develops between the station master (played by Ron Cook) and a refugee who camps out on his platform (Kevork Malikyan), while a romance develops between Adele and Katia (Faye Marsay and Natalia Tena).  Otherwise, the play takes a grim view of economic neglect and its consequences.  "The speech about a geographical border being a magic money line made me think about the lack of investment in places outside London," says Longhurst.  "And the bits of the play about what happens to a town when a big factory closes... all that was prophetic in 1994 and it absolutely speaks to us now."  Born in 1981, Longhurst is one of the UK's leading freelance directors and was named as one of the 1,000 most influential Londoners by the Evening Standard in 2015.  His recent shows include the musical Caroline, or Change; Amadeus at the National Theatre; and Florian Zeller's The Son, shortly to transfer to the Duke of York's in London.  Having taken over the 251-seat Donmar, though, he knows he has wider responsibilities. "As a freelancer I was allowed just to care about the production," he explains.  "Now I have to care about the building, the cultural strategy and the position of theatre in the landscape. But that's part of the job of an artistic director."  Longhurst says he did not hesitate to start his time at the Donmar with a play revival.  "What I want to do at the Donmar is make sure we're telling the most important, relevant stories in the most exciting way," he explains. "Having come across David's play it seemed impossible not to put it front and centre.  "Obviously it wasn't written about Brexit, but through the play we can understand more about why feelings are what they are."  Longhurst wants what's on the Donmar's stage to address the big issues. Its next production will be Appropriate by US writer Branden Jacobs-Jenkins.  First staged in New York in 2014, it takes the form of a classic American family drama set in a home on the site of a former slave plantation.  "It's a play about legacy and inherited trauma, but Branden has appropriated the forms of family drama to make us look at where we are now," Longhurst continues.  "What I want the Donmar to do is to choose stories which challenge where we're at now and speak to today's concerns. Some will be new plays and some won't be."  Concerns have been raised at the increasing cost of buying tickets at subsidised theatres, an issue on which Longhurst will now need to have an opinion.  The highest ticket prices at the Donmar don't usually exceed £40. But he says he's aware of the need to keep prices low.  "The Donmar has always worked hard to make seats available at low cost," he tells the BBC. "I know that in some theatres the top ticket prices have been going up, but I think that's to subsidise the bottom prices.  "There have been 26,000 people who've come to see shows at the Donmar totally free and that's an incredible thing. But we must keep doing it.  "We have to share the platform and the privilege we have to make theatre and share it as widely as we can.  "We need to shout loudly about what we're offering and make theatre that people care about."  Just around the corner for Longhurst is a challenge unique in the Donmar's history.  The theatre is scheduled to close in 2021 so that much of the building's structure can be rebuilt and revamped.  Shows will continue either in traditional West End houses or in found spaces. When the Donmar reopens, though, Longhurst says there won't be major changes to the auditorium itself.  "The Donmar house is a precious space," he explains. "There's an intimacy those dimensions create and a connection to the performance. We're not going to change that."  Europe runs at the Donmar Warehouse until 10 August.  Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


cnsnews--2019-01-18--Vice President Pence Attacks on Christian Education Must End

Vice President Pence: ‘Attacks on Christian Education Must End’

(CNSNews.com) -- In a Jan. 17 interview with Family Research Council President Tony Perkins on Perkins’ radio program, “Washington Watch,” U.S. Vice President Mike Pence called out the media for their “attacks on Christian education,” saying these attacks “must end.”  Pence’s wife, Karen Pence, has been facing harsh criticism from the liberal press for her decision to return to teaching at Immanuel Christian School, a private elementary school that promotes Biblical values, and that asks its employees to live a lifestyle free from homosexual activity.  On Tuesday, Jan. 15, Pence announced her intention to resume teaching art at the school, where she previously taught for 12 years.  After her announcement, critics said Pence’s decision promotes discrimination against LGBT people. The Huffington Post, for instance, ran a headline describing the school as a “Discriminatory School.”   The New York Times expressed much concern about what the school teaches about evolution.  In the interview with Perkins, Vice President Pence defended his wife and insisted upon an end to attacks on Christian education.  “Karen and I have been in and around public life for almost two decades, and so, to be honest with you, we’re used to the criticism,” Pence began. “But the attacks on Christian education by the mainstream media have got to stop.”  Pence also emphasized the importance of religious freedom in the United States.  “We cherish the freedom of religion in this country,” he said. “This administration stands foursquare for the freedom of religion of people of all faiths, and to see the mainstream media criticize my wife, because she’s choosing to return to the classroom of an elementary Christian school, is wrong. Again, attacks on Christian education must end.”


cnsnews--2019-03-12--Rev Graham The Gloves Are Off The Radical Left Is Trying To Crush All Who Hold to a Biblica

Rev. Graham: 'The Gloves Are Off ... The Radical Left' Is Trying 'To Crush All Who Hold to a Biblical Worldview'

In a commentary about how the liberal media attacked Karen Pence for teaching at a Christian school, evangelical leader Franklin Graham said the "progressive" left is poisoning the nation and seeking to "harshly punish and completely silence" those who adhere to a "Biblical worldview."  "The hostility, bias, and ridicule of Biblical morality is blatant and obvious," he said. "I promise that I will raise my voice each and every day against such injustice and wicked behavior."  In the piece, We Must Not Remain Silent, published in the March issue of Decision magazine, Rev. Graham explains that Karen Pence, wife of Vice President Mike Pence, used to teach at an evangelical Christian school (for 12 years) and had decided to return to teaching at the institution. However, when the liberal press found out, they excoriated her and the school because it had the temerity to actually teach traditional Christian morality.  The Immanuel Christian School in Virginia affirms "traditional, Biblical marriage between one man and one woman, with clear definitions of sexual identity according to Scripture," said the reverend.  "These are the solid, moral foundations that have undergirded civilizations for millennia."  The Washington Post exclaimed, "Karen Pence, America’s second lady, is teaching at a Virginia Religious School that bans LGBTQ students and employees.” The BBC complained, “Vice President’s wife to teach at anti-LGBT school” and CNN huffed, “Karen Pence to teach at school that bans gay students, teachers."  "The hostility, bias, and ridicule of Biblical morality is blatant and obvious," said Graham. The liberal media focused solely on "the fact that the sexual mores of the school were not aligned with the new immoral mantra of the radical left."  "This is the point to which we have come," said Graham. "The war against Biblical values and those who embrace them is full on. The gloves are off, and the radical left would like to crush all who hold to a Biblical worldview."  Graham, son of famed evangelist Billy Graham (1918-2018), then discussed the recently passed extreme abortion law in New York, which allows abortion up to the moment of birth. He also noted a proposed (but failed) measure in Virginia that would not only allow abortion when a pregnant woman is dilating but also permit a baby that survives an abortion to be left to die on a table.  That is "infanticide," said Graham. "While followers of the Lord Jesus Christ should never resort to violence, we must do all we can to resist evil."  "We can’t stick our heads in the sand and pretend these forces of evil are dormant," he said. "They are not, and if we remain silent, then our children and grandchildren will pay a tremendous price for our inaction."  Rev. Graham continued, "I promise that I will raise my voice each and every day against such injustice and wicked behavior. I cannot and will not stand idly by. By God’s grace and with God’s help, I will 'fight the good fight,' trusting in the sovereign hand of the Lord to work in the hearts and lives of His people to embolden them."  In conclusion, the reverend said, "With God’s help, we will pray, we will stand boldly for God’s truth, and we will never compromise with a godless culture that defies and despises the principles of Scripture."  "We stand," he said, "knowing that in the end, God will judge all those who are opposed to Him, and He will establish His perfect will and Kingdom on earth just as it is in Heaven.  "May that day come soon."


21stcenturywire--2019-03-29--Lawyers tasked with derailing internal Syrian peace process and the failure of international justic

Lawyers tasked with derailing internal Syrian peace process and the failure of ‘international justice’

Historian John Laughland explains why the International Criminal Court’s attempt to indict President Assad of Syria reveals its dictatorial and warmongering tendencies.  The announcement that “a group of Syrian refugees and their London lawyers” have found “a neat legal trick” to press for an indictment against Syrian President Bashar Assad by the International Criminal Court demonstrates, yet again, the dangerous corruption of international justice, against which I have been warning for over a decade.  The Syrian war is nearly over, thanks to the military successes of the Syrian army and its Russian and Iranian allies. Exhaustion on both sides has probably helped. Diplomatic overtures have started to re-integrate Syria into the international system, starting at the regional level: the United Arab Emirates have re-opened their embassy in Damascus; the Sudanese president, Assad’s near namesake, Omar Al-Bashir, has visited Syria, as have senior Egyptian officials; Syrian officials have attended pan-Arab summits; even Israel is maintaining its dialogue with Russia over Syria. In short, the situation is being slowly normalised as Syria herself embarks on the painful search for internal peace.  The attempt to get Assad prosecuted is an attempt to stamp out these seedlings of peace before they take root. Any prosecution against Assad would scupper, or at least severely damage, this slow acceptance that the Syrian president is part of the solution. When even the British government has accepted that Assad is here to stay, and that peace must be made with him, his implacable enemies fear that their prize is about to slip out of their grasp. They do not want peace, if that means keeping Assad.  We know that the goal is to sabotage any peace process because this kind of indictment is old hat in international criminal law. At the end of the Bosnian Civil War in 1995, indictments were issued against the Bosnian Serb leaders, especially Radovan Karadzic, specifically in order to remove them from the Dayton peace talks. Antonio Cassese, then president of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, said in 1995, just after the indictment was issued against Karadzic, that it had been issued for that reason: “The indictment means that these gentlemen will not be able to participate in peace negotiations” (quoted in the Italian daily L’Unità, 26 July 1995). Incidentally, Cassese had himself encouraged the prosecutor to bring these prosecutions even though he, as a judge and president of the tribunal, was supposed to be neutral.  The “legal trick” is designed to overcome the fact that Syria is not a state party to the Rome statute of the International Criminal Court and therefore not subject to its jurisdiction. Assad’s enemies are seeking to sidestep the fact that Syria is beyond the ICC’s reach by seeking to apply to Syria a principle which, unfortunately, the ICC itself applied to Burma last year. In September, the ICC judges agreed that a case could be brought against Myanmar (Burma), even though that country is not a state party to the Rome statute, because the crimes it had allegedly committed – deportation – had caused people to flee into Bangladesh, which is a state party. By analogy, Syria’s enemies hope that the presence of Syrian refugees in Jordan, a state party to the ICC statute, will enable them to go after Assad. They seem not to care that this is the first time anyone has ever mentioned “deportation” in Syria, although Damascus has been accused of all manner of other crimes.  The ruling on Myanmar and Bangladesh illustrates everything that is wrong with international justice. Not only did the decision to apply jurisdiction to the Burmese authorities break the fundamental principles of international law, as expressed in the “treaty on treaties,” the 1969 Vienna Convention, which says that the principle of free consent is “universally recognized” and whose Article 34 says, “A treaty does not create either obligations or rights for a third state without its consent,” it also broke an even more fundamental principle by specifically claiming the right to define its own powers (referred to, in English texts, with the French and German expressions la compétence de la compétence and Kompetenz-Kompetenz). The Court described this as “a well-established principle of international law according to which any international tribunal has the power to determine the extent of its own jurisdiction.” In reality, it is no such thing.  On the contrary, the powers of all organisations are determined by law. Even sovereign governments are restricted by national laws in their powers. The idea that an international organisation has the legal right to determine its own powers, and to extend its jurisdiction to states that have not accepted it, is about as blatant a violation of the rule of law as one can imagine. In the past, such claims were equivalent to declarations of war, because a claim like this can only be settled by force. For example, on July 23 1914, Austria demanded the right for its police to carry out investigations inside Serbia for the assassination of the Archduke Franz-Ferdinand in Sarajevo on June 29. It sent an ultimatum to Belgrade to this effect, which Serbia refused. The result was the First World War, launched by Vienna in the name of the right to punish the perpetrators of that crime.  The ICC has already discredited itself massively after the Laurent Gbagbo fiasco. Having collaborated in the politically-motivated indictment of the president of Côte d’Ivoire in 2011 – a collaboration which gave legitimacy to the French military operation to oust him, just as it gave legitimacy to the NATO attack on Libya by also indicting Colonel Gaddafi at the same time – the Court was forced to acquit Laurent Gbagbo eight years later, in January of this year.  By seeking to extend its lamentable rule to Syria, and thereby to disrupt a barely embryonic peace there, the ICC risks destroying its reputation even further. For the rules limiting the jurisdiction of international organisations to states which have consented to accept them are not some arcane technicality of international law. Instead, they reflect the most basic principle of politics, which is that those who wield power need to be constitutionally linked to those over whom they wield it. International organisations which are not based on such consent violate that very basic principle flagrantly, and therefore start to resemble the very dictatorships they pretend to combat.


21stcenturywire--2019-05-10--Julian Assange The UK Sweden and the Illusion of Justice

Julian Assange: The UK, Sweden and the ‘Illusion of Justice’

Whistleblower and political prisoner Chelsea Manning has been released from Alexandria Detention Centre in the US state of Virginia.  This follows the appeal made by her lawyers that continued detention would be a violation of law as it would be to punish her and not to ‘purge her contempt’ given her principled conviction in not cooperating.  She was held in contempt in March in relation to a grand jury investigation into the highly dubious, if not fabricated charges against WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange.  She is now facing the prospect of further detention as she has been subpoenaed to a different grand jury next week and by all accounts will continue refusing to cooperate.  At the same time Assange is fighting extradition from the UK to the US where it is likely he will face degrading treatment for the politically-driven charges against him.  The US and the UK, and Sweden in the case of Assange, have abused their legal systems to create a facade of  both ‘rule of law’ and ‘freedom through choice’, behind which Assange and Manning are persecuted.  As an army intelligence analyst,  Manning leaked documents to WikiLeaks which led to the exposure of horrific war crimes by the US,  including the  Collateral Murder cockpit video of the slaughter of unarmed civilians in Iraq in 2007.   For this Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison in 2010, commuted to 7 in 2017.  While outraged by Assange for his role in publishing leaks, the Trump government has also now gone after Manning.  Manning believes this to be about revenge, and the discrediting of truth-tellers and whistleblowers who dare hold governments to account, as she expressed in a statement just prior to release:  “I believe this grand jury seeks to undermine the integrity of public discourse with the aim of punishing those who expose any serious, ongoing, and systemic abuses of power by this government, as well as the rest of the international community. Therefore, participating in this fishing expedition – which potentially exposes other innocent people to the grand jury process – would constitute an unjustifiable and unethical action. Now, after sustaining serious psychological injury from my current confinement, I don’t wish to expose any other person to the trauma and exhaustion of civil contempt or other forms of prison or coercion.”  The personal toll this has taken on Manning is immense:  “Without committing a federal crime, and after exhaustive testimony at a trial several years ago, I am again ripped from my life by a vindictive and politically motivated investigation and prosecution.”  Manning faces continued detention because she won’t surrender.  Assange is probably still alive and fighting because he has not surrendered.  For Assange this meant that while in the Ecuadorian embassy he could only access urgent medical help by risking arrest and extradition to the US, which could have meant the death sentence or a life prison sentence.  Surrender or death.  Death or death.  The illusion of choice hid persecution.  Manning makes this very point:  The illusion Assange had a choice is also essential for the British government  to carry off that he was a criminal fugitive hiding from justice:  “…Assange is in the embassy of his own choice...”   – Alan Duncan, Foreign Office  It is now evident that this was a lie.  Choice was an illusion for the public.  Assange would have risked the death sentence or life in prison by leaving the embassy.  This is what he could now face if extradited following his arrest on 11th April.  The British government lied.  What has now become apparent is that law is the government’s weapon of choice.  On 12th April, the day after Assange was arrested by the British police,  Labour MP Stella Creasey, with backing from over 70 MPs, wrote to the Home Secretary asking for Assange to be extradited to Sweden if its authorities re-opened the investigation into sexual allegations for which Sweden had requested Assange’s extradition in 2010.  This was based on no new claim of evidence, or due process, and could easily be seen as political interference to put pressure on the Swedish authorities.  The case itself has been condemned as trumped-up, a and violation of law.  Meanwhile, the Swedish authorities were not even  aware of the plan to arrest Assange:  “This is news to us too, and we haven’t yet processed the information…We don’t know why he has been arrested.”  – Sweden’s chief prosecutor, Ingrid Isgren  Creasey seemed to think this was about procedural oversight:  “The decision to rescind the political asylum of Mr Assange by the Ecuadorian authorities seems to have been something of which both the UK and US authorities were made aware in advance.”  How remiss of the UK government to forget the sexual allegations made by two Swedish women they seemed to care about for so many years.  Or perhaps the UK and US no longer needed the women:  extradition to the US could now be through the UK.  The sexual allegations, the initial vehicle for getting Assange to the US via Sweden, were presumably viewed as surplus to requirements on 11th April.  After years of hunting Assange on the pretext he was a ‘rapist evading justice,’ the U.K. government, like that of Sweden, a liberal champion of women’s rights, is exposed as fake,  exploiting sexual allegations for political agenda: in this case subservience to Washington’s attack on journalism and freedom of speech.  Millions were thrown at surveillance on Assange, a bounty the Crown Prosecution Service considered priceless, shown in a 2013 email to the Swedish prosecutor:  “I do not consider costs are a relevant factor in this matter.”  The statement made by  Women Against Rape in 2012 should help Creasey and Co. to understand why the British government did not notify the Swedes of Assange’s arrest but invested so much in these sexual allegations:  “Once again women’s fury and frustration at the prevalence of rape and other violence, is being used by politicians to advance their own purposes. The authorities care so little about violence against women that they manipulate rape allegations at will, usually to increase their powers, this time to facilitate Assange’s extradition or even rendition to the US.”  The illusion of ‘unavailability in the Ecuadorian embassy’  And now that Sweden has today announced it will decide next week whether to reopen the case for yet a third time, it is continuing its media circus tactics around Assange,  as previously pointed out by journalist John Pilger:  “For Assange, his only trial has been trial by media. On August 20, 2010, the Swedish police opened a “rape investigation” and immediately – and unlawfully – told the Stockholm tabloids that there was a warrant for Assange’s arrest for the “rape of two women”. This was the news that went round the world.”  Is the Swedish government creating a launching pad for reasserting itself as champion of women?  An opportunity for some face-saving for the calculated use of its prosecution services that took being dragged to the Swedish Supreme Court by Assange’s legal team before it would progress the preliminary investigation, while countless offers by both the Ecuadorian government and Assange’s lawyers for him to be interviewed were not taken up? As pointed out by former Foreign Secretary of Ecuador, Gillaume Long:  “There was no need for the Swedish authorities to delay for over 1,000 days before agreeing to carry out this interview, given that the Swedish authorities regularly question people in Britain and received permission to do so on more than 40 occasions in recent years.”  But should they decide to reopen the case, and have the case internationally scrutinised, an unlikely scenario according to Assange’s Swedish lawyer Per E Samuelson, it would mean all attention would then be on Sweden. This would remove it from the UK – convenient for the UK government to wash its hands of Assange and not be the betrayer of international law and of journalists and whistle blowers everywhere.  Sweden could take that title.  Creasey’s letter embodies the anti-human rights narrative that rejects the decision of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) that Assange has been subjected to arbitrary detention. It is this anti-human rights narrative the British government is using to continue persecuting Assange by keeping him in stark prison conditions after years of confinement, while he now fights extradition.  To justify sentencing him to 12 months inside high-security Belmarsh prison for skipping bail seven years ago,  the court rejected his defense of asylum, despite the risk of persecution to Assange being more obvious than ever, vindicating his asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy.   We have an anti-human rights government in power and some courts are standing in line behind it giving away their independence and integrity to serve the war criminals hunting Assange.  MPs used the withdrawal of his Ecuadorian citizenship and asylum rights, an act recognised as unconstitutional and in violation of international law, as an opportunity to extradite Assange to Sweden from where he would be extradited to the US.  Once there he would face inhumane treatment, as warned by the UN rapporteur on torture.  This was a cowardly act by the MPs.  They have undermined asylum and human rights laws,  Creasey herself being a campaigner for asylum rights in Britain.   What’s more, they exploited the emotive progressive political and feminist outrage to ride rough shod over due process for Assange, while they stayed silent on the government’s use of sexual allegations for political gain, ‘a violation of law.’  Such are the “champions of action.”  The integrity of two individuals, publisher and whistleblower, has rocked the foundations of the most powerful who thought they were untouchable.  Their resilience against the uncivilised US beast and its supine servants puts to shame our liberal ‘progressive’ politicians who daren’t stray from mainstream narratives, no matter how corrupt or fake, through fear of disapproval.  “Whatever one might make of my principles and decisions, I shall continue to make hard choices and sacrifices rather than relinquish my ethical positions in exchange for mere trinkets of personal gain or self-pleasure in the form of being released.” – Chelsea Manning  MPs should demand an investigation into:  Author Nina Cross is an independent writer and researcher, and contributor to 21WIRE. To see more of her work, visit her Nina’s archive.


21stcenturywire--2019-05-26--Assange Indictment US Department of Justice Declares War on Journalism

Assange Indictment: US Department of Justice Declares ‘War on Journalism’

This week, Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, was indicted on 17 new counts of violating the Espionage Act of 1917, for his role in obtaining and publishing classified US military and diplomatic material in 2010. It appears the current Trump Administration has crossed over a Constitutional red line which previous US presidents couldn’t or wouldn’t do, and which now has profound implications regarding the First Amendment.  According to former Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger:  “The Espionage Act was a panic measure enacted by Congress to clamp down on dissent or “sedition” when the US entered the First World War in 1917. In the subsequent 102 years it has never been used to prosecute a media organisation for publishing or disseminating unlawfully disclosed classified information. Nobody prosecuted under the act is permitted to offer a public interest defence.”  Despite the obvious constitutional breach, the United States Department of Justice has declared war on the practice of journalism, and are colluding with their proxies in the UK, Ecuador and Sweden to claim global jurisdiction whereby they will be able to prosecute any person on the planet for publishing documents pertaining to government war crimes and corruption. But there is hope, as media watchdog and rights groups are now pushing back against the new DOJ leveled against Assange. The debate is heating up. Watch:  .   READ MORE ASSANGE NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Assange/Wikileaks Files      SUPPORT 21WIRE – SUBSCRIBE & BECOME A MEMBER @21WIRE.TV


21stcenturywire--2019-07-21--SUNDAY SCREENING MH17 Call for Justice 2019

SUNDAY SCREENING: ‘MH17: Call for Justice’ (2019)

The investigative team from Bonanza media comprises of independent journalists and media professionals, all of who undertook a ground-breaking forensic inquiry into the downing of MH17 in eastern Ukraine. It includes exclusive interviews with political leaders and also one of the suspects of the downing of MH17. They also spoke with the Malaysian prime minister and the colonel who collected black boxes, and much more.  This is an eye opening documentary containing key testimonies from witnesses, and irrefutable evidence from experts. The results will surprise you. Exclusive footage shot in Malaysia, The Netherlands, and at the crash area in Ukraine. This film marks the five year anniversary of this controversial event. Watch:  .   SEE MORE DOCUMENTARY FILMS HERE


21stcenturywire--2019-08-28--Julian Assange Deprivation of Justice and Double Standards in Belmarsh Prison

Julian Assange: Deprivation of Justice and Double Standards in Belmarsh Prison

A TALE OF TWO PRISONERS: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and right-wing personality Tommy Robinson, are being treated very differently inside HM Belmarsh Prison.      Nina Cross   21st Century Wire  Alfred de Zayas, former UN Rapporteur, has described the actions of the British authorities in pursuit of Assange as “… contrary to the rule of law and contrary to the spirit of the law.”  What we see on the surface is an illusion of British justice, masking a political agenda behind it.  Britain’s notorious Belmarsh Prison is now being presented as beacon of good governance, indicative of a fair and just society which equitable but firm with perpetrators. After carefully reviewing the case of Julian Assange though, there can be little doubt that placing the award-winning journalist in such a facility is nothing but the latest vehicle for his rendition to the US.  So far, Belmarsh has been fulfilling that state agenda.  Belmarsh as the state’s next weapon of choice  Judge Deborah Taylor sent Assange to category A Belmarsh prison for a bail-skipping offense, even though he’d demonstrated that he had good reason to skip bail.  It is difficult not to conclude that the category A assignment was done so that he would be weak and vulnerable.  In essence, Assange was sent to Belmarsh for 50 weeks for failing to turn up at a police station.  There was no ongoing court case; he had no prior offenses; there were no charges; the Swedish investigation had been dropped.  So skipping police bail was all the British government had. It should also be pointed out that Judge Taylor made a series of mistakes during the sentencing on 1st May, referring to rape charges in Sweden, which Assange corrected and which she then acknowledged were wrong.  This indicates that Judge Taylor went into court at least uninformed, set in her mind that Assange had somewhere, somehow been charged with rape. This would seem to explain some of the reasoning behind Judge Taylor’s cruel sentencing, described by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention as ‘disproportionate’ but also as furthering the arbitrary deprivation of Assange’s liberty.  What’s more, it has been pointed out how several thousand people in the UK skip bail each year and are in now way subject to such harsh punishment.  Clearly, Judge Taylor had used narratives provided by the state in order to send Assange to a category A penitentiary, even though these narratives have been thoroughly debunked.  One of the false story lines promulgated by the British state and its mainstream media adjuncts, was that Swedish authorities had dropped its sex allegations case against Assange because it ‘could not progress with it’ while he was holed-up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London.  This piece of disinformation was false, shown by the fact that Swedish authorities had already carried out no less than 44 video link or in-person interviews with persons of interest and thus were more than capable of interviewing Assange too.  As for the case itself, the question has now become: what case?  Opened then shut, then opened again, then shut, then opened, and yet – Sweden’s office of Public Prosecutions still said at the time that, ‘an interview is not on the cards’.  Not surprisingly then, Swedish authorities appear to be leaving the case hanging, as they have for years.  With the Swedish courts having recently thwarted the prosecutor’s attempts to extradite him to Sweden, is the reopened case now simply a crowd control tactic?  Perhaps they have opened it for a third time because closing the books permanently on the increasingly disingenuous ‘rapist’ narrative risks attracting increased support from those members of the public (and the government) who had been previously unsure about whether Assange was entitled to any moral support.  We wait to see when the Swedish prosecutor might decide whether a ‘interview is on the cards’ after hanging the label of rapist over Assange for nearly a decade already.  And so with all the might the British establishment could muster behind a police bail skipping offence, it has Assange trapped inside Belmarsh prison.  On cue, HM Belmarsh Prison’s high security regime has so far proved crippling for Assange’s hopes of mounting a legal defence.  It is now public knowledge that government officials at Belmarsh have imposed restrictions which effectively deny Assange sufficient legal visits, deny him the ability to speak to his US lawyers, deny him access to and possession of legal documents, and deny him the basic means through which to prepare for his legal defence, namely, a laptop computer.  For those readers who may not be versed in legalese, the following points passages will demonstrate how one can measure Belmarsh’s treatment of Assange against recognised protections and guidelines, such as:  Article 6.3 of the European Convention of Human Rights, which is of particular significance for prisoners (Assange clearly qualifies a political prisoner) and states that detainees must:  “… have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of their defence…”  The Council of Europe (CoE) has produced a definition of what this means in a guide on Article 6 of the ECHR:  NOTE: During Assange’s US extradition court hearing in June, Assange himself was adamant that he had not even received the text of the US indictment against him and said that he had to have essential legal documents posted to him. His legal team also reiterated that preparation for his defense was being impeded and that access to their client was being restricted by the British government. It is difficult to argue that this strategy is not intentional.  The CoE human rights guidelines have also set out in its European Prison Rules that:  23.6    Prisoners shall have access to, or be allowed to keep in their possession, documents relating to their legal proceedings.  “A person facing criminal charges must have the time and facilities to prepare a defence. This right exists at all stages of the proceedings and encompasses the right to documents, files, and information as well as a guarantee of confidential communication with counsel.”  In May 2019, Nils Melzer, UN Rapporteur on Torture, reported that Assange had restricted access to legal documents in his cell.  More recently award-winning journalist John Pilger also reported how Assange was not permitted access to documents to prepare his defence:  In regard to Assange’s request for a laptop computer, the UK’s  Access to Justice guidelines shows this is a reasonable request and Assange’s case would seem to encapsulate the exact conditions covered by it:  “The guidance does say that laptops should be given to people who could not prepare for their case properly without it, but should not be given if it would just make things more convenient.”  The CoE’s guide on Article 6.3 also legitimises the request:  Following his assessment of Assange in May inside Belmarsh prison, Nils Melzer issued a statement detailing the conditions of dentention. Melzer was accompanied by two medical experts who specialize in the examination of possible victims of torture as well as the documentation of symptoms, both physical and psychological.  On examining Assange Melzer observed the following:  “Most importantly, in addition to physical ailments, Mr. Assange showed all symptoms typical for prolonged exposure to psychological torture, including extreme stress, chronic anxiety and intense psychological trauma.“  In addition to these concerns, reports also indicate Assange is being medicated.  Melzer has also explained that the piling-up of multiple legal proceedings is adding to Assange’s stress and inability to cope with the demands of preparing for his defence. Watch:  .   It is important to note that Assange’s legal preparations in this case have nothing to do with the spurious bail skipping charges for which Assange was initially apprehended and detained by the British government. Rather, his legal defence involves fighting what could become a defining legal precedent for this generation – an US extradition case where a non-US citizen faces charges under Espionage Act of 1917 for his role (as a journalist) in disclosing war crimes and crimes against humanity by the US government – all published by a non-US media outlet. Therefore, it can be rightly argued that by restricting Assange’s access to a proper legal defence in such a high-profile and historic case, the British government is acting against the public interest, not only domestically, but internationally as well.  Despite all this, Belmarsh appears to have ignored or dismissed concerns about Assange’s inability to access the courts for his defence and is denying him “facilities.”  Belmarsh’s restrictions on Assange’s ability to meet his lawyers, and its refusal to allow him to speak to his US lawyers would seem to undermine the very basis of Article 6, which, according to the CoE guide:  “… guarantees the right of an accused to participate effectively in a criminal trial.”  In recognition of Article 6, the UK government website provides guidance on the right of all prisoners to contact their lawyer:  “Prisoners have rights, including … being able to get in contact with a solicitor.”  Prisoners’ rights are also supported by the UK’s own Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB), which provides an advisory service to all prisoners.  The following summarises prisoners’ rights in the particular areas where Assange has requested access to justice but has been denied or restricted such access by Belmarsh.  These are as follows (emphasis added):  It becomes clear, therefore, that Assange is being denied prisoner rights regarding access to justice.  The result of these restrictions on Assange is that he cannot effectively participate in the legal proceedings against him.  Belmarsh’s current restrictions appear to undermine all of his attempts to access each and every avenue of justice, as well as the means required to participate in his legal defence since the time he entered the prison. Such infringements of rights and denial of access to justice are often blamed on shortages, system problems and inefficiencies, and even justified by security and institutional practice. However, all of the British system’s shortcomings in this case could easily be avoided or corrected by prison officials.  In Assange’s case it means his legal team is forced to waste time and resources attempting to gain legal access to justice, including possibly taking legal action against Belmarsh and the British government. It is easy to imagine why authorities are quite happy for that to happen: it’s eating into the time, is draining his legal team’s resources, and causing more litigation to pile up.  There are only so many battles that can be fought; Assange’s appeal against the Belmarsh bail jumping sentence has already been dropped. And while certain restrictions will be less harsh while Assange is likely to be on remand fighting extradition, common sense tells us that the impact of the restrictions in place before then will be highly detrimental to his defence.  ‘Access to justice’ has been described by the ECHR as:  “Access to justice enables individuals to protect themselves against infringements of their rights, to remedy civil wrongs, to hold executive power accountable and to defend themselves in criminal proceedings.  It is an important element of the rule of law…”  If we believe that barriers to Assange’s ability to defend himself against extradition are justified on the criteria given by a ‘overstretched and underfunded’ high-security prison system, then we are merely consenting to the erosion of law and accepting in its place rules imposed by the administrators of the state’s institutions – at the expense of an individual’s liberty. These justifications for denying Assange his basic legal right to justice are convenient pretexts for Belmarsh which, on cue, has been co-opted by a political agenda which seeks to enable his rendition to the US.  Double Standards: the Belmarsh ‘prison experience’ according to the governor  Belmarsh is also the state’s prison of choice for Tommy Robinson (real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon), the controversial right-wing personality and founder of the English Defence League.  Robinson was convicted for breaching contempt of court laws for streaming the trial of a sex trafficking grooming gang on Facebook Live outside Leeds court in 2018, and was later convicted as a civil prisoner.     IMAGE: Robinson famously entered the prison wearing a T-shirt which reads, “Convicted of journalism.”  Unlike Assange who was placed within the general prison population before being placed in healthcare, Robinson’s special placement appears to fall within the Belmarsh category of prisoner who is “requiring specific management arrangements because of their public and media profile” and thus has been isolated from all other prisoners.  As a result, he is held in the high security unit inside Belmarsh.  Civil prisoners are treated the same as convicted prisoners  with some exceptions, one of these being greater visiting rights.  According to one of his recent visitors, Ezra Levant, head of the Canada-based media outlet The Rebel Media, which Robinson has been employed by, he is receiving visitors three or four times a week. Levant also stated that the prison governor, Rob Davis OBE, visits Robinson daily, noting that,  “.. the governor of the prison, the warden as we call it in North America, actually visits him every day even, just for a moment just to say ‘how’s it going.’ I thought that was very interesting. Not only is the is the warden making himself available to Tommy but he’s inspecting to make sure things are well done. I found that very interesting and relieving.”  Another visitor from The Rebel Media, Jessica Swietoniowski, reported that Robinson is allowed to make unlimited phone calls between 9am and 11am each morning, stating:  “… from 9:00 until 11:00 he can be out of his cell, so his cell opens from 9:00 in the morning until 11:00, 11:00 [he] gets back into the cell. So during that time he can exercise and pretty much make as many phone calls as he wants, which is good news.”  It should be noted here that Robinson’s ability to have unfettered access to phone calls is likely because he is a civil prisoner. However, it does demonstrate the gulf in access to resources from one prisoner to the next, and what relatively little facilities Assange is allowed in comparison while attempting to prepare for his legal defence.  Swietoniowski also said that Belmarsh’s governor had “made it an exception for me” to visit Robinson during a Friday August 15th morning visitation session, and that the prison governor was working with “us” (The Rebel Media) to ensure their visits to Belmarsh as “positive as possible.”   This is explained in The Rebel’s ‘prison reports‘ which document their visits to Belmarsh.  It should also be noted that if the governor has made a decision to make a special exception for a media outlet which has employed Robinson and that can reach Robinson’s followers – it is bound to result in positive public relations for Belmarsh, and any by extension any British government officials involved in the process.  Perhaps it is hoped that Belmarsh’s efforts to be supportive might resonate with his followers and help to appease threats of unrest feared by the government. Likewise, in the eyes of Robinson’s right-wing support base, Belmarsh’s overall positive treatment of Robinson could reflect positively on the new Tory government and cabinet led by Boris Johnson as Parliament heads towards a coming general election. It is reasonable to regard this as a likely outcome of the governor’s publicly supportive treatment of Robinson.  Are we seeing the state, through Belmarsh, attempting to placate the followers of one individual while another is denied access to justice?  Is this the guileful agenda now being played out through a politicised prison system?  The stark contrast between the prison’s treatment of two high-profile figures, Robinson and Assange, is certainly evident. While Robinson is being treated fairly and lawfully, Assange is not.  According to John Pilger, the prison governor had also failed to respond to the letter sent by Assange’s lawyer, Gareth Peirce, on 4th June, roughly three months ago, about restrictions placed on Assange’s legal access entitlements.  All the indications strongly suggest that the British state through Belmarsh, seem to be imposing a lawless regime upon Assange, who finds himself yet again fighting for his basic human rights and due process in Britain.


21stcenturywire--2019-11-17--Episode #302 – ‘American-Style Justice’ with guest George Szamuely, Andre Vltchek and more

Episode #302 of SUNDAY WIRE SHOW resumes on Nov 17, 2019 with host Patrick Henningsen, broadcasting LIVE on the Alternate Current Radio Network (ACR)…  5pm-8pm UK Time | 12pm-3pm ET (US) | 9am-12pm PT (US)      This week the SUNDAY WIRE broadcasts LIVE on ACR with host Patrick Henningsen covering the top stories in the US, Europe and Internationally. This week we’ll look at the concept of “American-style justice” both at home and abroad, as we discuss last week’s US-backed coup in Bolivia, along with two momentous judicial circuses which took place in Washington over the weekend, the #UkraineGate Impeachment Hearings and the Show Trial of Roger Stone – both completely politicized exhibitions that would sure make even Uncle Joe Stalin wince. We’ll also be joined in he first hour by international intrepid correspondent Andre Vltchek who is on the ground in South America to give insight on the historic uprising in Chile, and more. In the second hour, we’ll also be joined by author and international political commentator, George Szamuely, to breakdown Washington’s Impeachment fiasco and why this just may be a real historic low for US politics, media and society in general. Later in the final hour, we’ll talk with SUNDAY WIRE roving correspondent for Culture & Sport, Basil Valentine, to talk about Epstein pal Prince Andrew’s BBC debacle, the increasingly macabre UK Election pantomime and more . All this and much more. Enjoy the show…  *NOTE: THIS EPISODE MAY CONTAIN STRONG LANGUAGE AND MATURE THEMES*


abcnews--2019-01-07--As Supreme Court returns will Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg take her seat

As Supreme Court returns, will Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg take her seat?

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, recovering from surgery to remove two cancerous legions from her left lung, has never missed a day of oral arguments in her 25-year career on the high court bench.  On Monday court-watchers will learn if Ginsburg's record will continue unbroken.  The justices will convene their first public session of the year to hear arguments in two cases. It is not clear whether Ginsburg will take her seat beside the chief justice. Monday's oral arguments come 17 days after surgeons at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City performed a pulmonary lobectomy on Ginsburg, cutting out cancerous tissue in her lung.  The court said last month that doctors found no evidence of any remaining disease and planned no further treatment. Ginsburg spent four days in the hospital following the procedure and spent the remainder of the court’s winter recess recovering at home.  The court’s oldest justice at 85, Ginsburg has shown dogged determination to participate in the court's proceedings over the years, despite three serious bouts of cancer, several other health scares and personal setbacks, including the death of her husband in 2010.  In just the past two months, Ginsburg was hospitalized twice –- first after suffering broken ribs from a fall in her office in November, then the December surgery to remove tumors –- nevertheless participating, uninterrupted, in court business, a spokesperson for the court said.  On Nov. 9, two days after being treated for the broken ribs, Ginsburg was unable to attend the formal investiture ceremony for Justice Brett Kavanaugh but did participate in conference while working from home, a court spokeswoman said at the time.  Doctors contacted by ABC News said Ginsburg's resilience is an example for all Americans facing a cancer diagnosis.  “Lung cancer suffers from pessimism, stigma, nihilism, but here’s a patient where lung cancer was caught early,” said Dr. Geoff Oxnard, a thoracic oncologist at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. “There is room for hope. We can change the story here. Patients need to ask themselves, ‘How can I be like Ruth Bader Ginsburg? How can I catch it early?’”


abcnews--2019-01-07--Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg misses Supreme Court session due to cancer recovery

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, recovering from surgery to remove two cancerous lesions from her left lung, will not attend oral arguments Monday -- the first time she has missed a scheduled public session due to illness in her 25-year career on the high court bench, a court spokeswoman said.  Monday's oral arguments come 17 days after surgeons at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City performed a pulmonary lobectomy on Ginsburg, cutting out cancerous tissue in her lung. She has been working from home as she recovers. Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said Ginsburg still planned to "participate" in the cases by reading the briefs, filings and transcripts from Monday's session. It was not immediately clear whether Ginsburg would return to the bench later this week.  The court said last month that doctors found no evidence of any remaining disease and planned no further treatment. Ginsburg spent four days in the hospital following the procedure and spent the remainder of the court’s winter recess recovering at home.  The court’s oldest justice at 85, Ginsburg has shown dogged determination to participate in the court's proceedings over the years, despite three serious bouts of cancer, several other health scares and personal setbacks, including the death of her husband in 2010.  In just the past two months, Ginsburg was hospitalized twice –- first after suffering broken ribs from a fall in her office in November, then the December surgery to remove tumors –- nevertheless participating, uninterrupted, in court business, a spokesperson for the court said.  On Nov. 9, two days after being treated for the broken ribs, Ginsburg was unable to attend the formal investiture ceremony for Justice Brett Kavanaugh but did participate in conference while working from home, a court spokeswoman said at the time.  Doctors contacted by ABC News said Ginsburg's resilience is an example for all Americans facing a cancer diagnosis.  “Lung cancer suffers from pessimism, stigma, nihilism, but here’s a patient where lung cancer was caught early,” said Dr. Geoff Oxnard, a thoracic oncologist at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. “There is room for hope. We can change the story here. Patients need to ask themselves, ‘How can I be like Ruth Bader Ginsburg? How can I catch it early?’”


abcnews--2019-01-09--Former Guantanamo Bay commander indicted for obstructing justice in 2015 death

The former commander of the Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay has been indicted on federal charges of obstruction of justice related to the January, 2015 death of a base employee who had confronted the officer with allegations that he was having an affair with his wife. Christopher Tur was found drowned in the waters of Guantanamo Bay two days after confronting Captain John Nettleton about the alleged affair.  Nettleton was arraigned Wednesday at the federal courthouse in Jacksonville, Florida exactly four years to the day that Tur disappeared following the confrontation and subsequent fight between the two men.  At the time, Nettleton was the commander of Naval Station Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. Nettleton’s command did not include the detention facility at the base that is overseen by a one-star flag or general officer. Tur was a civilian employee of the commissary on the base.  According to the indictment, on the night of January 9, 2015 Tur confronted and yelled at Nettleton at a party at the Officers’ Club with allegations that the Naval officer had had an affair with his wife, Lara.  A short time later Tur went to Nettleton’s nearby residence and the two men engaged in a physical altercation that left Tur injured.  Investigators found texts from Nettleson's daughter, the only other person in the residence at the time, describing a loud commotion in the house. When she went to investigate she saw an unknown man hovering above her father, who was lying on the floor, attempting to use a cellphone.  The person that Tur phoned told investigators that Tur had told him he was "at the Skipper's house" and "just knocked out the Skipper."  Nettleson's daughter's texts described loud arguing and fighting that lasted for another half hour.  The next day Navy personnel went looking for Tur after he had not returned home.  Tur's body was found on January 11 floating in Guantanamo Bay after an intensive search at the base.  An autopsy determined he had drowned but had suffered fractured ribs and a laceration on his head.  From the moment the search for Nettlson began and throughout the subsequent investigation he did not mention to base personnel, investigators or his superior officer that Tur had last been seen at his home. He falsely claimed that he had last ween Tur at the Officers Club.  He also did not disclose that Tur had accused him of engaging in an affair with his wife, engaged in a physical fight at his home and that Tur had been injured.  Investigators later determined through DNA testing that blood stains found at Nettleson's home belonged to Tur. They also determined that Nettleson and Lara Tur had engaged in an affair in 2014.  Three weeks after Tur's disappearance Nettleson was relieved of command and placed in an administrative job in Jacksonville pending the results of a joint Naval Criminal Investigative Division and Justice Department investigation.  ABC News cited a U.S. official who said information had come to light during the investigation into Tur’s death that led the Navy to relieve Nettleton of command. The official said the investigation found that Nettleton had allegedly been having an affair with Tur’s wife Lara, the director of the Fleet and Family Services Center at the base.


abcnews--2019-01-11--Supreme Court says Justice Ginsburgs recovery is on track

Supreme Court says Justice Ginsburg's recovery is 'on track'

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's recovery from surgery to remove malignant nodules from her left lung is "on track," a Supreme Court spokesperson said Friday, but she will continue to work from home and miss oral arguments at the court next week.  "Her recovery from surgery is on track. Post-surgery evaluation indicates no evidence of remaining disease, and no further treatment is required," said spokesperson Kathy Arberg.  In November, Ginsburg was hospitalized after suffering fractured ribs from a fall in her office at the court. Tests done during that trip to the hospital led to the incidental discovery of the nodules on her lung, which were removed in December.  She was discharged less than a week after the pulmonary lobectomy, which she underwent at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, and was home on Christmas Day.  She didn't attend oral arguments immediately following the surgery, marking the first time she missed a scheduled public session due to illness in her career over a quarter of a decade on the high court bench, a court spokeswoman said.  The update from the court comes amid reports that the White House is looking into potential candidates for President Donald Trump to nominate to the court in the event Ginsburg retires.


abcnews--2019-03-11--2 Department of Justice officials dispute double standard over Mueller documents

2 Department of Justice officials dispute 'double standard' over Mueller documents

Two senior Justice Department officials are privately dismissing claims by House Democrats that refusing to share special counsel Robert Mueller's final report and other investigative materials with Congress would amount to a "double standard."  The circumstances that led the Justice Department to disclose investigative information in other recent, high-profile cases now being cited by Democrats are "just not the same" as the circumstances surrounding the Mueller probe, one senior department official insisted to ABC News, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about it.  That official and another high-ranking Justice Department insider both pointed to what they see as one big difference: former FBI director James Comey.  In past cases, the officials alleged, Comey's public statements undercut the Justice Department's ability to argue that certain investigative materials should remain private. And, they said, the department only shared documents when investigations were finished or couldn't be impacted by the release of those documents.  Long-standing department policy prohibits the disclosure of information that could influence ongoing probes or harm people who haven't been charged.  But powerful Democrats in Congress worry the Trump administration could stretch that policy to execute "a cover up," as the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., recently put it. And two weeks ago, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., accused the Justice Department of a "double standard" for turning over "substantial amounts of investigative material" when Republicans were in control of Congress last year and the year before.  In fact, the Justice Department gave lawmakers access to 880,000 pages of documents related to the FBI investigation of Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server while she served as secretary of State. And the Justice Department offered lawmakers access to a wide array of documents from the FBI's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign, including information related to Americans targeted in the probe.  In a letter to Attorney General Bill Barr three weeks ago, Nadler, Schiff and the Democratic chairs of four other House committees insisted that "precedent" leads them to "expect" access to Mueller's report and other investigative material. On Friday, they introduced a congressional resolution reiterating their stance.  Democrats fear that even if Mueller fails to find evidence of criminal wrongdoing, he could find evidence of misconduct that the public might never see.  "People are entitled to know it, and Congress is entitled to know it," Nadler told ABC News last week. "It's our job to hold the president accountable."  But two weeks ago, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein assailed what he called the "knee-jerk reaction" calling on the government to share its secrets.  "If we aren't prepared to prove our case beyond a reasonable doubt in court, then we have no business making allegations against American citizens," Rosenstein said.  In May 2017, just days before Comey's firing, Rosenstein wrote a letter to Trump blasting Comey for publicly airing criticisms of Clinton a year earlier.  On July 5, 2016, inside FBI headquarters, Comey announced that — even though Clinton and her aides shouldn’t be charged — they were "extremely careless" in handling classified information. For 15 minutes, Comey detailed what his team found and contemplated.  Without those public comments, the Justice Department could have withheld documents on the basis that they reflected internal deliberations. But "from the get-go we had a very, very weak litigating position because" Comey had in effect waived that privilege, one senior Justice Department official said.  In addition, the Clinton email probe was "over and closed" when lawmakers were granted access to materials, the other official noted.  Asked whether the Justice Department would share what Mueller found about allegations of obstruction of justice — since that inquiry would likely be closed when Mueller issues his report — the officials declined to answer.  Nevertheless, in Mueller's case there are ongoing investigations and prosecutions to still protect, the officials said.  "The tentacles of [Mueller's probe] are going to continue being investigated for some unforeseen period of time in the future," according to one official. "[And] we do not give over to the Hill any material that could negatively impact an ongoing investigation."  That didn’t stop the Justice Department, however, from disclosing pivotal materials from the FBI’s Russia probe while Mueller’s investigation was underway.  When Republicans were accusing the FBI of abusing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to target President Donald Trump's associates, dozens of lawmakers were eventually granted access to four top-secret FISA applications, which after being approved by a federal court allowed the FBI to intercept the communications of former Trump adviser Carter Page, who at the time was suspected of being a Russian spy.  Key lawmakers were also able to review thousands of pages of internal emails and other classified materials.  Those accommodations "potentially" provide Democrats with their best argument to gain access to Mueller’s findings, the two Justice Department officials acknowledged to ABC News.  But — once again — the officials blamed Comey for opening the door for Congress, saying his public statements on the Russia probe had "a lot" to do with their decisions.  In early 2017, Comey took the rare step of publicly confirming the FBI launched an investigation into Trump's associates and reviewed the so-called "dossier," which by then had been published online by news outlets and detailed allegations against Page that were ultimately included in the FISA applications.  Then, in coordination with the White House, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., drafted and released a memo citing substantial portions of the FISA applications.  So two months later, based on what had already become public, the Justice Department made what it called the "extraordinary" decision to let the entire House and Senate intelligence committees review the FISA applications.  "[But] we really didn't give them the keys to the kingdom," one of the officials said.  In fact, the Justice Department did refuse to comply with several Russia-related requests. And in a letter to Congress at the time, Rosenstein said the "voluminous" production of documents was done "in a manner that does not harm the integrity of any ongoing investigation."  In Mueller's probe, the department will similarly "protect the integrity of ongoing investigations" and "apply" privileges when appropriate, the two Justice Department officials told ABC News.  "We have to actually pick our battles, which we're going to do," one of them said.  Mueller could send his final report to Barr in the coming days. It is not expected to detail the findings of spin-off investigations that Mueller referred to prosecutors around the country to pursue separately.  Barr has publicly promised lawmakers that he will then send his own "report" on Mueller's probe to Congress. It's unclear how extensive that document will be.  Nadler and Schiff have said they will sue the Trump administration for Mueller’s evidence if necessary.  Spokespeople for Nadler and Schiff did not respond to requests seeking comments for this article.


abcnews--2019-11-30--Officials: Boy, 9, killed by father in hunting accident

Officials say a 9-year-old boy was accidentally killed by his father while hunting in South Carolina on Thanksgiving.  News outlets report Colton Williams was fatally shot Thursday in Springfield in Orangeburg County.  The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources says relatives told investigators that Williams was out rabbit hunting with his dad and a family friend when his father accidentally shot him.  Williams was a fourth-grader who went to Kelly Edwards Elementary School in Williston.  The school district wrote on its Facebook page that counselors will be at the school Monday and will be available throughout the week and longer if needed.

disaster, accident and emergency incident


tass--2019-08-07--Russians injured in accident in Turkish mountain trip

/TASS/, August 7. Six Russian citizens have been injured in an accident that took place in the mountainous region near the Turkish resort town of Alanya on August 6, the official Facebook account of the Russian embassy in Turkey said on Wednesday.  "Six Russian citizens were hospitalized in the province [of Alanya] with injuries of varying severity after the accident. All our citizens are conscious, no one is in critical condition," the embassy said.  The diplomatic mission also pointed out that Russian diplomats are planning to visit the Russians soon.  "Our staff also requested that the law enforcement agencies provided information regarding the incident and its investigation," the embassy added.  Earlier, the Haberturk TV channel reported that seven foreign tourists, including two Russians, had been injured in the accident in Turkey. The incident took place on Tuesday in the mountainous region not far from the town of Alanya. The tourist group was heading for a safari tour in the Sapadere Canyon. The driver lost control of the car, which they were in, and the vehicle flipped over.


tass--2019-07-18--Moldovan president hopes to secure Russian gas discount at meeting with Putin

CHISINAU, July 18. /TASS/. Moldovan President Igor Dodon expects to secure a discount on Russian gas at a meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that may take place in the near future, the president stated upon his return from Moscow, where he had discussed the issue with the top management of Russia’s Gazprom company and Russian Special Presidential Envoy for Trade and Economic Relations with Moldova Dmitry Kozak.  "Today, I sent an official letter to the Russian authorities, asking them to consider the possibility of granting Moldova a gas discount for the period between September 1 and January 1. The final decision will be made soon at a meeting with Putin," Dodon commented following Thursday’s meeting of Moldova’s Supreme Security Council.  The Moldovan president said earlier in an interview with TASS that he was concerned about the possible termination or reduction of Russian gas transit via Ukraine. According to him, it would negatively affect Moldova’s revenue from transit services and could also reduce or even end Russian gas supplies to the country. Dodon pointed out that the Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline, designed as an alternative route for transporting gas from the neighboring Romania and sponsored by the EU, had not been completed yet. At the same time, it was unclear where gas for reverse supplies would come from, Dodon added.  Moldova purchases gas from Gazprom in accordance with a contract that was signed in 2008 and has been extended every year since then. The contract links gas prices for Moldova to the global market price. During his visit to Moscow in February 2019, Dodon asked Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller to give Moldova a 25% gas discount. Following a meeting with Miller on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), the Moldovan leader announced that an agreement had been reached to launch negotiations on new gas supply conditions and gas transit for the period starting on January 1, 2020. Last year, Gazprom supplied 2.9 bln cubic meters of gas to Moldova, which is 8.4% more compared to 2017.


tass--2019-07-18--Seven killed in traffic accident in Tyva

Moscow should ensure that rights of Russians on detained tanker are observed — official  The Stena Bulk company earlier confirmed to TASS that three Russian citizens were on board the Stena Imperio tanker detained by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz


sottnet--2019-09-09--Morocco floods kill 11 in bus accident

Morocco floods kill 11 in bus accident

Half the harm that is done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They don't mean to do harm. But the harm does not interest them. Or they do not see it, or they justify it. Because they are absorbed in the endless struggle to think well of themselves.


sottnet--2019-09-19--30 civilians killed in accidental airstrike in Afghanistan 20 killed in Taliban car bombing - 140

30 civilians killed in 'accidental' airstrike in Afghanistan, 20 killed in Taliban car bombing - 140 wounded overall

At least 50 people have been killed in an air strike and a car bombing in Afghanistan, as U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad prepares to brief U.S. lawmakers on his peace talks with the Taliban.The September 19 incidents come after the collapse of negotiations between Washington and the militants and just days ahead of a presidential election.Officials said, in eastern Afghanistan, whilein the war-wracked country's south.The air strike was aimed at destroying a hideout used by Islamic State militants, but itnear a field, three government officials said.Sohrab Qaderi, a provincial council member in eastern Nangarhar Province, said a drone strike killed 30 workers in a pine-nut field and at least 40 others were injured.Attullah Khogyani, a spokesman for Nangarhar's governor, told RFE/RL the air strike occurred in the Khogyani district. "There are fears civilians are among the dead, and we are carrying out an investigation to identify the bodies," he said.The Afghan Defense Ministry confirmed the strike, but refused to share casualty details immediately. U.S. forces were not immediately available for comment.Meanwhile, officials said a Taliban car-bomb attack in Zabul Province killed at least 20 people and wounded 97 on September 19., Rahmatullah Yarmal, the provincial governor, told RFE/RL.Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Taliban, said his group was responsible for the attack.Officials told Tolo News that "ambulances have also been called from Kandahar city to transfer the wounded to hospitals in Kandahar Province. Most of the victims have been taken to private hospitals."Two recent attacks claimed by the militants killed at least 48 people in Afghanistan, although Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban's chief negotiator, told the BBC on September 18 that the "doors are open" to a resumption of talks to end the 18-year war.Taliban negotiators have refused to talk directly with the government in Kabul, labeling them as "puppets" of the West.Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan, is due to brief a House of Representatives committee on peace negotiations.The House Foreign Affairs Committee said that Khalilzad will hold a classified briefing for the entire panel early on September 19.


sputnik--2019-01-06--6 Killed 50 Injured in Tour Bus Accident in Central Thailand PHOTOS

6 Killed, 50 Injured in Tour Bus Accident in Central Thailand (PHOTOS)

Those injured have been sent to a local hospital but police are still looking for a driver who could be among those admitted to a hospital, the newspaper Bangkok Post reported.  The eyewitnesses told the Bangkok Post that the driver suddenly hit the brakes to avoid hitting a car in front of the bus, causing the vehicle to overturn.


sputnik--2019-08-21--Oops Landing Accident on US Aircraft Carrier Damages Four Super Hornet Jets

Oops! Landing Accident on US Aircraft Carrier Damages Four Super Hornet Jets

When an E-2D Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft was attempting to land on the Lincoln on August 9, it missed the arresting wire used to stop the plane on the flight deck in a situation known in naval parlance as a “bolter,” the Navy Times reported. Forced to blast off the front of the ship and come around for another landing attempt, the Hawkeye struck several other airplanes on the deck along the way.  The plane, known for its turboprop engines and big radome on top, only “made slight contact” with two Hornets sitting on the deck, US 5th Fleet spokesman Cmdr. Joshua Frey said in a statement, but debris from the impact damaged two others sitting nearby.  "The landing aircraft was diverted and arrived safely at the divert location. No personnel were injured," he said. “All aircraft involved are currently being repaired in order to return the aircraft to mission readiness.”  However, the incident was classified as a Class A mishap, which involves either multiple fatalities, damage totaling $2 million or more, or the complete loss of an aircraft, Military.com noted. The Navy Times noted this was the eighth Class A mishap the Navy had suffered since October 1.  Just days later, two more Super Hornets were damaged when the Navy’s Blue Angels flight demonstration team was rehearsing for an air show in Chicago. The two jets made momentary mid-air contact on August 14 while performing the complex “Diamond 360” maneuver, during which four aircraft fly in a tight diamond formation just inches from each other. No one was injured in the incident, but one Hornet left a big scratch on the other’s canopy.  A more serious incident in 2016 saw another E-2 attempting to land on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower nearly plunge into the sea after the arresting cable snapped. Eight sailors were injured and required medical evacuations, the Navy Times reported.  According to 2017 US Department of Defense data, an F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet costs $70.5 million.


sputnik--2019-08-31--Pilot Killed Child Injured in Airplane Accident Near Moscow - Emergency Services

Pilot Killed, Child Injured in Airplane Accident Near Moscow - Emergency Services

"A light airplane made a hard landing near the Minino village in the Klinsk city district. A pilot and a 12-year-old child were on board. The pilot was killed and the child is being examined by medics," a representative from the agency said.  The girl was then taken to a local hospital, where medics fear she may have a spinal fracture due to the accident.  Russia's Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case to determine whether the pilot was adhering to safety regulations during his operation of the aircraft.  According to the emergency services, the airplane has been totalled from the hard landing and cannot be restored.


sputnik--2019-09-29--Nearly 20 People Killed 17 Injured in Road Accident in Bolivia Photos

Nearly 20 People Killed, 17 Injured in Road Accident in Bolivia – Photos

At least 18 people died and 17 more were injured as a result of a road accident in southern Bolivia, national media reported.  Those injured were reportedly sent to nearby hospitals. According to preliminary data, the incident was caused by the high speed of the truck.


21stcenturywire--2019-04-12--Crash and Burn Israels Moon Shot Ends in Disaster

Crash and Burn: Israel’s Moon Shot Ends in Disaster.

With the settler state more divided than ever, and tensions between the native Palestinians as high as ever, this event was meant to be Israel’s “unifying moment” that would bring all Israelis (but not its Arab residents) and globally Jewry together with a shared purpose for one glorious moment.  The attempted moon landing by the Israeli spacecraft Beresheet was broadcast live last night, on the side of the spacecraft read the slogan, “Small country, big dreams.”  However, the Jewish state’s lunar dream crashed and burned, in spectacular fashion, as one of the craft’s main engines blew up on its final descent, crashing into the Moon.  The explosion is said to have marked the end of Israel’s fledgling satellite industry, effectively denying the Jewish state a seat in the elite global club of countries who’ve executed successful lunar landings.  The timing of this grand process – culminating at the exact moment when the Israeli election results were announced – was perhaps too much a coincidence for even the most ardent non-skeptic. Somewhat poetically, Israel’s shallow 2019 election campaign ended as it deserved: A farce.  Noa Landau from Haaretz summed the irony up as follows:  “This is why the loss of communications with the spacecraft, just a moment before the anticipated landing, and just a moment before the announcement of the final election vote results, which at the very last moment went awry – exactly like the landing – felt like one big metaphor. Like the country that could have been, but we have missed out on. In the high-tech superpower filled with traffic jams and embarassing trains, where it’s impossible to receive a package in the mail, and votes can’t be correctly counted, everything is so close, but not quite.”  Beresheet’s engine stopped working around 10 kilometers from the surface, with the vehicle crashing into the Moon at a speed of over 130 meters per second.  The blunder occurred on a live feed in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara, who arrived at the control center for the occasion.  However, the space explorers didn’t seem shaken by the setback as they all chanted a solemn song to show that getting so close to the goal was an achievement in itself.  Netanyahu has already promised that an Israeli spacecraft will be back to the Moon in the next two or three years.  Beresheet, which is Hebrew for the biblical phrase “in the beginning,” could have also become the first private spacecraft to land on the Moon. It was constructed by Israeli nonprofit space venture SpaceIL and state-owned defense contractor Israel Aerospace Industries. The $100 million needed for the ambitious project came from private investors.  Only Russia, the US, and China have so far managed to perform controlled “soft” landings on the lunar surface.


21stcenturywire--2019-04-18--Rouhani US Should Suspend Sanctions Because of Iran Flooding Disaster

Rouhani: US Should Suspend Sanctions Because of Iran Flooding Disaster

Undoubtedly, this latest flooding crisis in Iran reveals the highly vicious nature of the current U.S. Administration with regards to the application of collective punishment of a target nation.  Iranian president Hassan Rouhani has lashed out at the US sanctions regime, stating how punitive economic sanctions have hampered the international flood relief effort meant to bolster humanitarian relief operations in his country.  Speaking on Iranian state TV on Wednesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the US ought to have suspended sanctions against Iran for a year because of the humanitarian crisis that severe flooding has caused in the country.  Rouhani said it was “inhumane and filthy” for the US to block cash support to the Iranian Red Crescent. US sanctions are reported to have prevented considerable international aid to save flood victims.  Estimates are that around 80 people have been killed by the flooding, which hit the majority of Iranian provinces. The estimate is also that it did around $2.5 billion in property damage across the country.  It is highly unlikely that the US will make any changes to the sanctions. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo previously denied that the sanctions would impact humanitarian aid. US sanctions are intended not to cover such remittances, but the US is so aggressive and arbitrary with enforcement that anything remotely Iran related scares banks off from financing it.


abcnews--2019-01-11--House GOP urges Trump not to redirect disaster relief money to fund border wall

Ahead of a potential announcement by President Donald Trump to declare a national emergency and reallocate billions of dollars to pay for a border wall, House Republicans representing congressional districts that are still recovering from hurricanes say they’re opposed to the plan.  “Our district is still recovering from Hurricane Harvey,” Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, told ABC News. “I hope that they can get those [funds] from somewhere else.”  Rep. Buddy Carter said that there’s “no question” Georgians are still recovering from Hurricane Michael, and urged the president not to redirect any disaster relief money from the Peach State to cover the border wall.  “As a result of Hurricane Michael, in southwest Georgia in particular, we’ve had devastating impact on our crops and in order for the farmers to recover and to start planning for the next cycle, then they need that disaster relief as soon as possible,” Carter, R-Georgia, said. “There’s a need for disaster relief. No question about it.”  Another Texas Republican, Rep. Roger Williams, defended the House’s constitutional power of the purse and urged congressional leaders to negotiate an agreement with the president.  “I’m not for that idea right now. I’m for getting back to negotiations,” Williams said. “I think Congress should have a hand in it. I represent Fort Hood, the largest military base in the country, and we’re doing a lot of great things down there with our motor pools, with our runways, with our barracks that sorely need to be done to, you know, create an environment for our soldiers. So I don’t want any money taken from there. We’ve got a lot of momentum going there, so I would hope that we could negotiate this thing.”  Rep. John Rutherford, R-Florida, said it “remains to be seen” whether Trump has the authority to fund the wall without congressional approval, but he is also “very supportive of getting that wall built.”  Carter also agreed there is “some question” as to whether Trump has the power to reprogram disaster relief to pay for the border wall.  “I hope it doesn’t come to that,” Carter said. “I hope that we can get this worked out and that we can fulfill our obligation and that is to secure our borders.”  While he’d like Trump to pursue alternate funding options, Babin – who is refusing his congressional salary until the government reopens – stressed that the president is “doing the right thing” by refusing to reopen government over his $5.7 billion demand.  “I’ll tell you, we need to have border security. That is something else that is pressing hard on the state of Texas right now,” he said. “It is a crisis beyond most people’s imaginations and we’ve got to have some relief there.”  Williams, who served as secretary of state of Texas prior to his election to Congress, said that border patrol has told him that they need a physical barrier at the border to control illegal immigration.  “We have a real, real problem, okay?” Williams said. “They need some sort of barrier to improve what’s going on.”  “I’m total[ly] for border security. It’s a real thing. If you live in Texas, you get it. We want people to realize the American dream, but they need to do it legally,” Williams continued. “A lot of things can happen there, but I totally support the president on border security.”  Carter said he’s visited the southern border and believes a solution will require additional border security measures beyond a physical barrier.  “It’s going to take more than just the wall, more than just a fence,” Carter said. “A fence works perfect in some areas, such as San Diego, but in other areas like Arizona, you need boots on the ground, you need technology. You need blimps, drones. All those types of things.”  The money for the wall could possibly be drawn from the Army Corps of Engineer's Long Term Disaster Recovery Investment Plan Construction Account, which totals about $13.9 billion and is comprised from more than 50 projects – mainly from Puerto Rico, as well as Texas, Florida, California – and to a lesser degree projects in Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Mexico, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia.  The White House has specifically asked the Army Corps of Engineers to examine what funds could be redirected to the border wall from an emergency supplemental that passed in February 2018.  One U.S. official said the money could be used to build as much as 315 miles of border wall under the direction of the Army Corps of Engineers.


abcnews--2019-11-12--Officials: Death of San Diego State student was accidental

The death of a college freshman in California who was hospitalized after attending a fraternity party was accidental, a medical examiner ruled Tuesday.  Dylan Hernandez, 19, suffered injuries to his head when he fell from his bunk bed in the dorm at San Diego State University, authorities said. A toxicology report is pending.  Hernandez's roommate helped put him back into his bunk after the fall early Thursday but later that morning found him unresponsive and called 911, according to the report by the San Diego County Medical Examiner's office.  School officials said Hernandez had gone to the party Wednesday night. University police were investigating the circumstances.  The Daily Aztec reported that Hernandez was pledging to the Phi Gamma fraternity.  It was among 14 fraternities suspended indefinitely following his hospitalization. The university said the decision was made "given the severity of this incident, and as the safety and wellbeing of students is a primary concern of the university."  University president Adela de la Torre noted that all but three of the 14 Interfraternity Council-affiliated organizations were already under suspension or investigation before Hernandez died.  Evidence for a suspension can include discrimination, disorderly behavior, alcohol being served at sponsored events, drug use, lack of insurance at a major event, and other violations of the student code. The university said de la Torre factored that information into her decision.  In an email to students, faculty and staff, de la Torre said the university was forming two task forces to review fraternity and sorority life and the use of alcohol and drugs on campus.  The task forces will include students, faculty and others and present findings before the end of next summer.  "This is part of a larger issue facing college and university campuses nationwide and we want to ensure SDSU is leading the conversation regarding student safety and well-being," she wrote. "To do that, we are launching this process to identify and adopt best practices for the benefit of all of us."


aljazeera--2019-01-30--Brazil dam disaster Dead or alive we just want to know

Brazil dam disaster: 'Dead or alive, we just want to know'

Brumadinho, Brazil - Rose Silva sat patiently in a crowded makeshift rescue centre in Brumadinho, Minas Gerais. She was waiting for news about her cousin Wesley. He was one of the 272 people still missing after a dam collapsed in this northeastern Brazilian town last week. At least 84 people are dead.  "He was having lunch right at the bottom at the dam when it collapsed, so were hundreds of others," Silva told Al Jazeera.  She had been here for days, sitting in a plastic lawn chair, hoping to find her cousin every time a new list came out as more bodies were found and identified.  "Dead or alive, we just want to know. I just want to know if he's well. If he's already in God's hands," she said without any emotion.  The Brumadinho dam was serving the Corrego do Feijao mine, run by mining giant Vale.  When it collapsed on Friday, it unleashed 12 million cubic metres of mud and debris engulfing houses, cars, buses and hundreds of workers, including Wesley, who was eating in the cafeteria at the time.  "This is a revenge from nature, you know. We messed with her, now she messes with us," Silva said.  Leticia Lucimeri was also waiting at the shelter for news about her boyfriend, 29-year-old Cleyton Silva.  Lucimeri is among many who blame Vale for the accident, saying that working conditions were "inhumane" and that "they knew this would happen".  "Just a few weeks ago they did some repairs on the dam and they did a drill on the event of a dam collapse," she told Al Jazeera, adding that no one from the company had spoken to the victims' families directly.  In an emailed statement, Vale said it was "collaborating fully with the authorities. It will continue to help with investigations to find out the facts, along with its unconditional support to the affected families."  The Brazilian Ministry for the Environment ordered Vale to pay a $58m fine, and the state government of Minas Gerais is suing the company for $25m. The government also froze around $1.3bn of the company's assets.  On Monday, Vale promised to pay $25,000 to each family affected. A day later, it said it was closing 19 dams in the area and temporarily suspending all operations in Minas Gerais. Its offices were raided by Brazilian officials and five engineers were arrested, according to local media sources.  Meanwhile, family members and residents have been left to cope with the devastation left behind by the mudslide.  The road linking the centre of Brumadinho to Corrego do Feijao used to be a short one, crossing a lush green valley. Now it has disappeared under a sea of red clay and debris.  From Celso Gomes's porch in Brumadinhdo, a few metres from the area, there was a constant flow of police cars and firefighters drenched in mud, with helicopters hovering overhead.  "My cousin is missing, our neighbour's daughter is missing - she was a nurse at Vale - and that lady's husband is also missing," said Gomes, pointing to the people sitting in his living room. "There's people with five, seven, family members missing."  Although he was employed by another company, Gomes also worked in Vale's mine, cleaning the wagons. "I was supposed to be there that day," he told Al Jazeera.  "Luckily they changed my shift for an overnight one. But I was still going there to fill out some papers, right at that time. My cousin convinced me to stay here and go swim in the river. That's saved me," he said. "That was God's hands for sure."  None of Gomes' family or friends has been contacted by Vale yet. His father shook his head: "Nothing, nothing from Vale."  The 20 year-old said it was hard to feel grateful about having escaped.  "When I think about my luck, I also think about all those men who are still under there, including my cousin," he said. "I believe he is still alive somewhere. If God's willing, he's still alive."  As the days passed, Pedro Aihara, spokesman for the local fire department said it was hard to keep the morale of the rescue teams up as the chances of finding survivors were grim.  "The mud fills every little space and then hardens," he told Al Jazeera.  "Textbook rule says is virtually impossible to find survivors of a mudslide after 48 hours and we are now 72 hours in. That would be a speck outside the lines," he said earlier this week. "We are at least trying to find the bodies so the families can bury them with dignity. But on [during] the next few days we'll start using machinery to remove the mud."  For many such as Silva, that would mean that the possibility of finding survivors would be slimmer. "I know they will find him, I know," she said more in hope than actual belief.  For others, like Lucimeri, it would be the beginning of a battle for justice.  "We are such a small town, everyone knows each other and everyone knew what was happening with the dam," she said. "No one reported it because they were afraid of losing their jobs, we are going through a crisis, we have to work."  Vale has yet to address the causes of the Bento Rodrigues dam collapse in 2015, which was co-owned with BHP at that time. The collapse, which spilt more than 60 million cubic metres of mining waste onto the nearby city of Mariana is considered Brazil's biggest environmental disaster. Three years after it happened, several Vale executives were charged with murder but never arrested, and the company was ordered to pay millions of dollars in damages. According to local reports, however, less than four percent has been paid out.  The minister of environment estimates that there are some 4,000 dams, owned by companies across Brazil, that are considered to have a "high risk" of collapsing or have "high damage potential". According to CNN, the one which collapsed on Friday was recently deemed "low risk" by the country's National Mining Agency, raising questions about Brazil's assessment process.  Pointing to the 2015 collapse and the one last week, Leticia said she feared the pattern of devastation might repeat itself.  "There are people who are still alive, still working on these mines and they need more care and safety," she said. "How many times will this happen again?"