UN Report Finds ISIS Given “Breathing Space” in US-Occupied Areas of Syria

By maintaining an ISIS pocket in the territory it occupies, the U.S. can continue to justify its illegal presence in the country for the long-term, ultimately substituting Iran for ISIS as its new regional boogeyman.

NEW YORK — A recent report from the UN Security Council’s Sanctions Monitoring Team has found that many of the places in Syria where the terror group Daesh (ISIS) continues to operate, recuperate and extract oil for profit are in areas of the country occupied by the United States. Read more.

MintPress

Related,
- 'Islamic State': Up to 30,000 fighters still in Syria and Iraq, UN says (video) - DW
- Islamic State may still have 30,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria, even after setbacks - Washington Post

Syria, UN delegation discuss redeployment of peacekeepers to occupied Golan

A delegation of UN commanders has visited Damascus for talks with Syrian Defense Minister Ali Abdullah Ayyoub on the redeployment of the world body’s peacekeepers to the volatile demilitarized zone along the Israeli-occupied side of Syria’s Golan Heights.

In a meeting in Damascus on Tuesday, the two sides discussed coordination between the Syrian government and the world body’s command on the resumption of the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF)’s mission along the ceasefire line between Syria and Israel based on the 1974 armistice, Syria’s official SANA news agency reported. Read more.

PressTV

Related,
- Defense Minister, UN delegation discuss coordination on redeployment of UNDOF in disengagement zone - SANA

Geo-economics of the Istanbul Canal

BAKU - After being elected into another term in June 2018, President Erdogan of Turkey is getting ready to construct an ambitious new waterway on the European side of Istanbul.

The canal will be the third megaproject in the city after a new continent-crossing bridge was completed in 2016 and the world’s largest airport will be finished by the end of the year.

Yet, the government’s vision for a new canal also carries extensive geo-economic consequences for the Black Sea domain.

Soundtrack: Crypto by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

CaspianReport

Left 2.0: Wagenknecht launches ‘Stand Up’ movement against German establishment

The leader of Germany's Left Party is launching a new political movement called 'Stand Up.' One of the new group's self-proclaimed goals is to defend the interests of those who feel ignored by the current government.

RT

Turkish President Erdoğan vows to boycott US electronic goods, including iPhone

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has vowed Turkey will boycott U.S. electronic goods in retaliation to U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to double tariffs on aluminum and steel on Turkey amid a deepening crisis between the two sides over the continued detention of American pastor Andrew Brunson.

“We will boycott American electronic goods. If they have iPhone, there is Samsung on the other side. We have Vestel Venüs in our country. We will adopt these measures,” Erdoğan said... Read more.

Hürriyet

Related,
- US-Turkey get deeper into tariff spat over American pastor detention (video) - RT

- Trump signs defense spending bill to delay F-35 delivery to Turkey - Hürriyet
- US sanctions hurting its own reputation, Turkish FM says after meeting Russia's Lavrov - Hürriyet

- Turkish Lira rebounds to help global shares regain footing - Hürriyet
- Turkey to continue taking steps within free market rules: Albayrak - Hürriyet

- 'America and Trump are hurting ordinary Turkish people' - Al Jazeera

teleSUR English Removed From Facebook for Second Time

This is the second time the teleSUR English page has been taken down by Facebook moderators.

teleSUR English's page has been removed from Facebook for the second time this year without any specific reason being provided. It should be noted that the first time this occurred back in January 2018, Facebook did NOT provide any explanation in spite of our best efforts to understand their rationale. This is an alarming development in light of the recent shutting down of pages that don't fit a mainstream narrative. Read more.

teleSUR

Related,
- Facebook's anonymous censors take down Latin America's Telesur, and nothing can stop them (video) - RT
- New terms of censorship: Facebook bans news outlets critical of US establishment (video) - RT

- Five examples that show internet censorship is as much a threat to the left as the right - RT

Facebook schakelt ex-woordvoerder van de Navo in om inhoud en accounts te screenen

Facebook besteedt voortaan een deel van haar censuurbeleid uit aan een ex-Navo-woordvoerder. 

Eind juli schrapte Facebook 32 pagina’s en accounts die volgens de sociale mediareus betrokken waren bij ‘coordinated inauthentic behavior’. Wie er achter zat, wist Facebook niet te vertellen. Eén van die pagina’s was die van de Shut it down-coalition. Dat is een collectief dat vorig weekend acties organiseerde tegen een nieuwe bijeenkomst van neonazi’s, één jaar na de mars in Charlottesville die het leven kostte aan één antifascistische tegenbetoogster. Lees meer.

De Wereld Morgen

Gerelateerd,
- A Four Person NATO-Funded Team Advises Facebook On Flagging "Propaganda" - ZeroHedge
- Banning users & throttling posts: Facebook leans on NATO think tank to ‘sort out the Russian bots’ (video) - RT

Exposing Media Censorship While The Mainstream Cries Wolf!

In this video, Luke Rudkowski of WeAreChange gives you the latest breaking news on the medias attempt to silence certain voices while at the same time saying it is they who are being attacked by the current presidential administration and they are the ones in danger.

Luke exposes this media censorship by the mainstream as they huff, puff, and cry wolf to try and take out independent personalities such as Gavin Mcinnes

WeAreChange

Trump signs $716 bn defence authorization bill

US President Donald Trump on Monday signed the $716 billion National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law.

The bill for the fiscal year 2019 was named after Republican Senator John Mccain, a former Republican presidential nominee and one of Trump's leading critics within the party, Xinhua reported. Read more.

Business Standard

Related,
- Trump signs defense bill but snubs the senator the legislation is named after — John McCain (video) - Washington Post

Google tracks your movements, like it or not

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google wants to know where you go so badly that it records your movements even when you explicitly tell it not to.

An Associated Press investigation found that many Google services on Android devices and iPhones store your location data even if you’ve used a privacy setting that says it will prevent Google from doing so. Read more.

AP

'We won't let Washington dictate to us with whom we can do business' - German economy minister

Washington cannot dictate trade rules to others, Germany’s economy minister said, adding that his country should be more assertive and defy American sanctions – particularly by investing more in Iran. Read more.

RT

Related,
- German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier lashes out at Trump tariffs, sanctions - NBC
- Turkish finance minister says appreciates support over U.S. tariffs - Reuters

- Germany's Anti-Trump Strategy Begins to Take Shape - Spiegel
- Altmaier kritisiert US-Wirtschaftspolitik scharf - Produktion

Wanneer verliest het zwarte goud zijn glans?

Dat de toekomst ongewis is, weten oliebedrijven als geen ander. Leiden kelderende olieprijzen binnen twintig jaar tot financiële malaise? Of verdient bijvoorbeeld Shell nog honderd jaar goed geld met olie?

Wat moet je als oliebedrijf in een wereld die langzaam maar zeker afstapt van fossiele brandstoffen? Dan moet je nieuwe manieren verzinnen om geld te verdienen. Zoals Gerald Schotman, directeur van de NAM, eerder zei tegen de Volkskrant: ‘Olivetti kan ook niet alleen typemachines blijven maken.’ Lees meer.

Volkskrant

Noam Chomsky: Donald Trump is a Distraction

While Donald Trump works to distract the public, his administration is working to dismantle every aspect of government that benefits the people.

Anonymous

Germany cracking down on armed far-right Reichsbürger

Germany's government has said it confiscated firearms from hundreds of members of the Reichsbürger scene. Authorities have identified some 2,000 more people who identify with Germany's most idiosyncratic far-right group.

The head of Germany's domestic security agency on Saturday hailed efforts to disarm members of the far-right Reichsbürger scene and other groups who reject the German state, but warned the group's threat level still remains critically high. Read more.

DW

New US Sanctions on Russia and Iran Raise Tensions, May Backfire

The US has imposed a new round of sanctions on Russia over the Skripal poisoning in Britain, despite the absence to date of evidence. This follows the reimposition of Iran sanctions following Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. The sanctions will further bleed the targeted countries, but could they backfire?

We speak to journalist and best-selling author Max Blumenthal. Read more.

TRNN

US recognition of Israel’s claim over the Golan Heights

BAKU - President Trump handed Prime Minister Netanyahu a significant win when he recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and relocated the US Embassy there. 

Now, Israeli lobbying groups in Washington are pushing Republican lawmakers for the recognition of Israel’s claim over the Golan Heights. Such an act would mark the most significant validation of forcefully acquired land since 1945, and it would have a dramatic impact on the interpretation of international law.

Soundtrack:
Decisions Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

CaspianReport

Explosion at Salisbury military hardware factory kills one

Police said another man is badly injured after incident at Chemring Countermeasures

One person has been killed and another has been left in a critical condition after an explosion at a military hardware factory near Salisbury, police have said. Read more.

Guardian

Related,
- 1 killed in explosion at military factory in Salisbury - RT
- Explosion at Salisbury military hardware factory leaves one dead - BBC

US Senate calls Julian Assange to testify on Russian 'meddling'

The US Senate Intelligence Committee has requested that persecuted WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange testify before committee staff. The committee is investigating alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election. Read more.

RT

Related,
- Senate Intelligence Committee calls on Assange to testify (video) - CNN
- US Senate Calls On Julian Assange To Testify - ZeroHedge

- ‘Amerikaanse senaat wil Assange horen in Ruslandonderzoek’ - NRC

Debunking A Century of War Lies

In the modern age of democracy and volunteer armies, a pretense for war is required to rally the nation around the flag and motivate the public to fight. That is why every major conflict is now accompanied by its own particular bodyguard of lies.

From false flag attacks to dehumanization of the “enemy,” here are all the examples you’ll need to help debunk a century of war lies. Read more.

Corbett Report

AP Investigation: US allies, al-Qaida battle rebels in Yemen

ATAQ, Yemen (AP) — Again and again over the past two years, a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia and backed by the United States has claimed it won decisive victories that drove al-Qaida militants from their strongholds across Yemen and shattered their ability to attack the West.

Here’s what the victors did not disclose: many of their conquests came without firing a shot. Read more + video.

AP

Related,
- Study finds US, Saudi collusion with al-Qaeda in Yemen under US supervision - PressTV
- Saudi Arabia Doesn't Defeat Al-Qaida Terrorists - They Bribe Them to Stop Fighting - Haaretz

- Are U.S. and al-Qaida fighting on the same side in Yemen? (video) - PBS
- Yemen conflict: Al-Qaeda seen at coalition battle for Taiz - BBC

Europe: World must hold end of bargain with Iran

The European Union says the international community has an obligation to maintain economic relations with Iran, despite the United States’ unilateral withdrawal from a multilateral deal with the Islamic Republic that could hamper such relations.

Referring to a 2015 deal between Iran and originally six world powers, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said during a trip to Wellington, New Zealand, on Tuesday that Iran was in compliance with its obligations under the agreement, which warranted reciprocal commitment. Read more.

PressTV

Related,
- Trump warns EU over decision to protect Iran trade - PressTV
- Trump says anyone trading with Iran will not trade with US as sanctions come into force - RT

- Rouhani: US not trustworthy for negotiations after quitting nuclear deal - PressTV
- China’s petro-yuan oil contracts surge as US sanctions hit Iran - RT

Saudi Arabia Expels Canadian Ambassador Over Rights Criticism

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia expelled the Canadian ambassador on Monday and announced a freeze on “all new business” between the two countries in response to Canadian complaints about the arrests of two Saudi rights activists.

In a series of uncharacteristically aggressive statements on its Twitter feed, the Saudi Foreign Ministry declared the Canadian ambassador, Dennis Horak, persona non grata and gave him 24 hours to leave the kingdom. Read more.

NY Times

Related,
- Saudi Arabia expels Canadian ambassador, freezes new trade deals - Al Arabiya
- Saudi suspends scholarships to Canada, transfers thousands to other countries - Al Arabiya

- Saudi Arabia Feud With Canada Explained (video) - RT
- Tensions rising between Saudi Arabia, Canada over human rights - PressTV

- Did Saudis threaten Canada with 9/11-style attack? Some believe they did… - RT

QAnon rukt op in Amerika: complotgekkies of wakkere patriotten?

Een mysterieuze club van Amerikaanse complotdenkers timmert aan de weg en laat zich steeds vaker zien. Wat is QAnon?

Voor de een zijn het volslagen gekkies, voor de ander puzzelaars die doorgronden wat de meesten van ons niet kunnen of willen begrijpen. Feit is dat QAnon, de jongste Amerikaanse beweging van complotdenkers, steeds prominenter in beeld komt. Letterlijk, op de laatste bijeenkomst van Donald Trump, deze week in Florida. Lees meer.

AD

Gerelateerd,
- Q, waar blijft de storm? - Bovendien
- Het mooie verhaal van ‘Q’.. Hoopvol of afleiding? - WantToKnow

The Saudi-US Agenda Behind Destroying Yemen

Part 2

A Saudi-led airstrike has killed dozens in Yemen’s port city of Hodeida amid UN warnings of another catastrophic cholera outbreak. 

Professor Isa Blumi of Stockholm University and author of “Destroying Yemen,” discusses the motives and impact of the unrelenting US-backed assault.

TRNN

Related,
- Saudi Coalition Bombs Fish Market & Hospital in Hodeida Killing Scores of Civilians - Mintpress

Medisch onderzoek in de tang van multinationals: ‘Geld gaat boven kwaliteit’

De jacht op onderzoeksgeld maakt artsen wanhopig. Sinds de overheid de geldkraan heeft dichtgedraaid, hebben ze moeite om hun wetenschappelijk onderzoek te bekostigen en zijn ze genoodzaakt hun hand op te houden bij de industrie. Die afhankelijkheid zorgt voor grote frustraties onder artsen. ‘De winst van een behandeling staat voorop, niet de genezing van een patiënt.’

Eindeloos formulieren invullen, onderzoeksvoorstellen van tientallen pagina’s indienen en protocollen schrijven: artsen worden opgeslokt door de administratieve ballast die met een subsidieaanvraag gemoeid gaat. Lees meer.

FTM

Netherlands facing the driest summer ever

If the sun keeps shining in the Netherlands, it'll further test the land of dykes and canals.

It's experiencing its driest summer ever, which is causing problems for a country with a delicate balancing act when it comes to water. Al Jazeera's Fleur Launspach explains.

Al Jazeera

Tens of thousands attend Druze-led protest against Nation-State Law

"The state did not see us as equals," said Sheik Mowafaq Tarif, the spiritual leader of the Druze community in Israel.

We want equality!” chanted tens of thousands of people at an unprecedented demonstration led by the Druze community in protest against the Nation-State Law at Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square on Saturday night. Read more.

JPost

Related,
- Mass protest in Israel over ‘discriminating’ nation-state law (video) - RT
- 'We Need Equality': Tens of Thousands Attend Druze Rally Against Nation-state Law (paywall) - Haaretz

- Druze Rally Against Israel’s Nation-state Law: 'We’re Here to Tell Jews It’s Patriotic to Protest' (paywall) - Haaretz

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro Survives Drone Attack

Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez confirmed the attack late Saturday, shortly after video of the incident began surfacing on social media.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has survived an apparent attack on his life during a military parade celebrating the 81st anniversary of the Bolivarian National Guard in the capital, Caracas. Read more.

teleSUR

Related,
- Venezuelan president Maduro targeted with drone bombs (video) - RT
- Venezuela's Maduro target of drone 'attack,' but unharmed: government - Reuters

- Attempt Against President Of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro Moros (video) - teleSUR
- Video claimed to show mid-air explosion of drone used in attack on Maduro (video) - RT

- US has nothing to do with alleged attack on Maduro – Bolton - RT

- Iran slams assassination attempt against Venezuela's president - PressTV
- Turkey condemns attack targeting Venezuelan President Maduro - Hurriyet

Saudi Arabia planned to invade Qatar last summer - Rex Tillerson's efforts to stop it may have cost him his job

THIRTEEN HOURS BEFORE Secretary of State Rex Tillerson learned from the presidential Twitter feed that he was being fired, he did something that President Donald Trump had been unwilling to do. Following a phone call with his British counterpart, Tillerson condemned a deadly nerve agent attack in the U.K., saying that he had “full confidence in the U.K.’s investigation and its assessment that Russia was likely responsible.”

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders had called the attack “reckless, indiscriminate, and irresponsible,” but stopped short of blaming Russia, leading numerous media outlets to speculate that Tillerson was fired for criticizing Russia. Read more.

Intercept

Related,
- Rex Tillerson stopped Saudi and UAE from 'attacking' Qatar - Al Jazeera

- Defence minister: Saudi, UAE intended to invade Qatar - Al Jazeera
- Trump Warned Saudis Off Military Move on Qatar (video) - Bloomberg

Brazil: Many alarmed over boost to pesticide use in agriculture

A Brazilian government commission has recommended easing restrictions on the use of pesticides to aid the country’s agricultural industry.

Congress will debate the issue shortly. But families in rural areas say the pesticides already in use are contaminating air, food and water, causing death and disease. Already, four of the 10 most commonly used pesticides in Brazil are banned in Europe.

Al Jazeera's Daniel Schweimler reports from the northeastern state of Ceara.

Al Jazeera