Tag: organised crime

CHAUNCEY DEVEGA – America's political class: They knew, and did nothing / The real crime Gen. Milley exposed: the cowardice of Senate Republicans

NB: The criminalisation of the state in the USA has been fairly obvious for some decades now. But our op-ed fraternity persists in spinning American interventions abroad (for example in this editorial) as attempts to ‘remake other societies in the name of US global leadership.’ Were the 1953 coup in Iran, the prolonged bombing of… Read More CHAUNCEY DEVEGA – America's political class: They knew, and did nothing / The real crime Gen. Milley exposed: the cowardice of Senate Republicans

Dilip

Mundra Port: Nearly three tonnes of heroin seized at Gujarat port

Indian anti-smuggling intelligence officials have seized nearly three tonnes of heroin – reportedly worth around $2.7bn (£1.9bn) – in a major operation at a port in Gujarat state. Forensic testing is still under way to determine the exact value of the seized drugs, officials told the BBC. Two people have been arrested and several others… Read More Mundra Port: Nearly three tonnes of heroin seized at Gujarat port

Dilip

Jonathan Steele: I came to Russia a political correspondent and left a crime reporter // Rafael Behr: 30 years after the Moscow coup, democracy is in a crisis of self-esteem

When Jonathan Steele moved to Moscow for the Guardian in 1988, the story of Mikhail Gorbachev’s reforms was getting “hotter and hotter”. But with all the restrictions on foreign journalists in the Soviet Union, the question was how to report it. The sources were mainly local journalists authorised to speak to foreigners or dissidents. The… Read More Jonathan Steele: I came to Russia a political correspondent and left a crime reporter // Rafael Behr: 30 years after the Moscow coup, democracy is in a crisis of self-esteem

Dilip

Siddhartha Deb: The unravelling of a conspiracy: were the 16 charged with plotting to kill India’s prime minister framed? / Sudhir Chandra: More than a Judicial Murder

In April 2018, a large group of policemen arrived at the Delhi flat of Rona Wilson, a 47-year-old human rights activist. They had travelled from Pune in the western state of Maharashtra, and appeared, accompanied by Delhi police officials, at Wilson’s single-room flat at 6am. For the next eight hours, they scoured the modest premises, searching the… Read More Siddhartha Deb: The unravelling of a conspiracy: were the 16 charged with plotting to kill India’s prime minister framed? / Sudhir Chandra: More than a Judicial Murder

Dilip

CODE RED for Humanity – The IPCC report is clear: nothing short of transforming society will avert catastrophe

NB: In the midst of an unprecedented global catastrophe, political leadership is engaged in ruthless quest for power, destruction of democratic institutions, clampdown on honest journalism, instigating communal and racial hatred, and increasing defence budgets. Whenever society faces mortal danger, we attack the poor, invent enemies and scapegoats on all sides, and engage in verbal… Read More CODE RED for Humanity – The IPCC report is clear: nothing short of transforming society will avert catastrophe

Dilip

Pratap Bhanu Mehta: What the Pegasus scandal means for Indian democracy / Shoaib Daniyal: Spyware attack threatens pillars of India’s electoral democracy

NB: It should be clear by now that the world is overrun by tyrants who worship nothing but power for its own sake. Our own artists of deception have made this obvious over the past seven years. All that we know, believe and love, all knowledge, all ideals of justice, all that constitutes human life,… Read More Pratap Bhanu Mehta: What the Pegasus scandal means for Indian democracy / Shoaib Daniyal: Spyware attack threatens pillars of India’s electoral democracy

Dilip

Pegasus Project: Leak uncovers global abuse of cyber-surveillance weapon / Shoshana Zuboff: The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

Human rights activists, journalists and lawyers across the world have been targeted by authoritarian governments using hacking software sold by the Israeli surveillance company NSO Group, according to an investigation into a massive data leak. The investigation by the Guardian and 16 other media organisations suggests widespread and continuing abuse of NSO’s hacking spyware, Pegasus,… Read More Pegasus Project: Leak uncovers global abuse of cyber-surveillance weapon / Shoshana Zuboff: The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

Dilip

The Modi Government Is a Regime of Low-Intensity Terror. By Ullekh N.P.

Not many academics have studied Hindu nationalism with the intensity of Stanford University anthropologist Thomas Blom Hansen. The 63-year-old’s new book, The Law of Force: The Violent Heart of Indian Politics, argues that anger and brutality have become mainstream in public life and politics in India. The 176-page volume delves into what Hansen calls “the emergence of… Read More The Modi Government Is a Regime of Low-Intensity Terror. By Ullekh N.P.

Dilip

Juan Cole – Biden’s Double Standards: Iranian Civilians under severe US Sanctions but not accused Saudi Murderer Bin Salman

The Biden administration on Friday declassified and released a CIA assessment that Saudi crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman bears responsibility for the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 3, 2018. President Biden will not, however, impose sanctions on Bin Salman. Apparently the only punishment will be that Biden won’t talk to… Read More Juan Cole – Biden’s Double Standards: Iranian Civilians under severe US Sanctions but not accused Saudi Murderer Bin Salman

Dilip

Bethan McKernan: Turkey's mobsters step out of shadows and into public sphere

After decades in hiding, in prison or keeping low profile, players from a bloody period in the country’s history are now seen as ‘folk idols’ by the Turkish right. At first glance, the photograph of two smartly dressed older Turkish men, posing for the camera in an office filled with flags, could be of any… Read More Bethan McKernan: Turkey's mobsters step out of shadows and into public sphere

Dilip