2020-02-11: News Headlines

RT (2020-02-11). Hundreds injured in Beirut clashes as new Lebanon govt seeks vote of confidence. rt.com Hundreds were injured in Beirut on Tuesday in clashes between security forces and protesters who rejected the new government as it sought to win a parliamentary vote of confidence. | Riot police fired tear gas at protesters seeking to block MPs from reaching the heavily barricaded parliament, Reuters reports. The Lebanese Red Cross said it treated 373 people for injuries, taking 45 of them to hospital. | Lebanon is facing an unprecedented financial crisis rooted in decades of state waste and corruption which have fuelled public anger. Parliament speaker Nabih Berri was quoted as saying that Lebanon should seek…

RT (2020-02-11). Lebanese protester outwits police water cannon in hilarious cat and mouse game (VIDEO). rt.com Nothing undermines the powerful quite like making them look silly. You'd struggle to find a better example of this maxim than a group of Lebanese protesters splitting their sides laughing during a daft duel with a water cannon. | The amusing incident unfolded Tuesday, as clashes broke out during demonstrations near the parliament building in the capital Beirut. It saw an audacious person, decked out in rain gear and a helmet, taunting riot police into repeatedly blasting water in their direction. | The daring heckler successfully ducked away several times just before the jet of water could soak them. Freelance…

Aaron Maté (2020-02-11). Exclusive: New leaks shatter OPCW's attacks on Douma whistleblowers. thegrayzone.com Facing accusations that it issued a doctored report alleging a chemical attack in Syria, the OPCW has released an inquiry…

Staff (2020-02-11). Headlines for February 11, 2020. democracynow.org New Hampshire Voters Head to Polls for First Primary of 2020, Coronavirus Death Toll Tops 1,000, with Over 42,000 Confirmed Cases, Chuck Schumer Calls for Investigation into Trump's Retaliation-Motivated Firings, DOJ Reviewing Ukraine Info from Giuliani, DOJ Charges 4 Chinese Military Hackers in 2017 Equifax Breach, El Salvador President Bukele and Armed Officers Confront Lawmakers over Military Funding, Fears Mount for 5 Activists Detained in Philippines, Sinn Féin Scores Major Victory in Ireland, Syrian and Turkish Forces Step Up Attacks as 100,000s Face Humanitarian Disaster, Massive Locust Swarms Threaten Cro…

Miri Wood (2020-02-11). Hollywood and Syria: The Uses of Enchantment in Crimes Against Peace. globalresearch.ca Hollywood 's Oscars awards ceremony is nigh. Two anti-Syria propaganda-documentaries are short-listed in this year's competition. We use the occasion to offer a photo tutorial on Hollywood enchantment techniques — choreography, cinematography, SFX, CGI, moulage artisanship, rules of award-winning scripts …

South Front (2020-02-11). Video: The Battle for Idlib is Ongoing. Turkish Forces to the Rescue of "Peaceful Al Qaeda Militants" globalresearch.ca During the last few days, Turkey deployed approximately 1,000 units of military equipment, including self-propelled howitzers, M06T and Leopard 2A4 battle tanks, in the Syrian province of Idlib. According to local sources, the number of Turkish troops and special forces …

teleSUR (2020-02-11). 109 US Troops Suffer Traumatic Brain Injury After Iran Attack. telesurenglish.net United States (U.S.) military revealed Monday the number of service members diagnosed with traumatic brain injury following Iran's Jan. 8 missile attack on the Ain al-Assad and Erbil airbases – where U.S. forces were stationed – climbed to more than 100. | RELATED: | One hundred nine U.S. service members have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury so far, the Pentagon said in a statement, adding tha…

teleSUR (2020-02-11). Syrian Military in Full Control of Northwestern Syria Highway. telesurenglish.net The Syrian government forces established full control over a highway in northwest Syria for the first time since 2012 on Tuesday, as talks ended between Turkey and Russia on stopping clashes that killed 13 Turkish soldiers in a week. | RELATED: | The Syrian military established full control over the main highway linking Damascus and Aleppo, also known as the M-5, after launching a large-scale offensive in the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib at th…

Eric Zuesse (2020-02-11). A Turquia ameaàßa retaliaàßà£o contra a Rússia e contra a Síria se atacarem a Al Qaeda na província de Idlib, na Síria. globalresearch.ca O Presidente turco, Tayyip Erdogan, disse num discurso, em 5 de Fevereiro, ao Partido Islâmico do AKP que, se as tropas sírias ou os aviàµes russos atacarem a Al Qaeda, na província de Idlib, na Síria, a Turquia estará em …

yenisafak (2020-02-11). Peace pacts in Idlib, Syria a top priority: Russia. yenisafak.com Moscow considers the implementation of Russia and Turkey's agreements on Syria a top priority, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.It is always important to suppress any "terrorist attacks" against the Syrian and Russian military in Idlib, northwestern Syria, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow."At the moment, we consider top priorities the implementation of the Sochi agreement and the suppression of any terrorist activity against Syrian forces and Russian military facilities," he said."We consider such attacks from Idlib unacceptable, and this situation worries the Kremlin."The comments come agai…

yenisafak (2020-02-11). Syrian, Russian airstrikes kill 13 civilians in Idlib. yenisafak.com Russian and Syrian regime forces carried out airstrikes in northwestern Syria's Idlib de-escalation zone, killing at least 13 civilians, a Syrian civil defense group announced Tuesday.The White Helmets said 12 people were killed in the attacks targeted areas near Idlib's city center and another was killed in the Idlib's village of Kafr Taal.The Bashar al-Assad regime and its allies have continued intensified air and land attacks on civilian settlements in the de-escalation zone.In September 2018, Turkey and Russia agreed to turn Idlib into a de-escalation zone in which acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.

yenisafak (2020-02-11). Russia, Iran must halt Assad regime's aggression: FM. yenisafak.com Assad regime supporters Russia and Iran must halt the regime's aggression, especially in the embattled cease-fire zone of Idlib, said Turkey's foreign minister on Tuesday."Despite declaring a cease-fire, the regime again stepped up its aggression on January 12, especially with the air support provided by those who support the regime," said Mevlut Cavusoglu, referring to a further cease-fire declared in Idlib, northwestern Syria, last month.His remarks, in a joint press conference with his Montenegrin counterpart Srdjan Darmanovic in the capital Podgorica, came one day after five Turkish troops were martyred and f…

yenisafak (2020-02-11). UN expresses concern over safety of civilians in Idlib. yenisafak.com The United Nations on Tuesday expressed concern over the safety and well-being of civilians in northwestern Syria, especially Idlib, where continuous fighting has led to the displacement of nearly a million people since last December."In just little more than 10 weeks – from December 1 till today — nearly 700,000 people have been forcibly displaced in Idlib and surrounding areas in north-west Syria, most of them women and children," said Jens Laerke, spokesman of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)."This is, from our initial analysis, the largest number of people di…

yenisafak (2020-02-11). Putin to discuss Syria with Turkey's Erdogan amid rising tensions. yenisafak.com Russian President Vladimir Putin will discuss the situation in Syria with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan by phone later on Tuesday amid rising tensions over the Syrian province of Idlib, the TASS news agency cited the Kremlin as saying.Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday the Syrian regime will pay a "very heavy price" for attacking Turkish troops in northwest Syria's Idlib region, where 13 soldiers have been killed in just over a week, prompting a retaliation.The Turkish troops are in Idlib

RT (2020-02-11). New doc & THIRD whistleblower hit OPCW for throwing dirt at leakers claiming Douma account was fabricated — report. rt.com A third whistle-blower has come forward to corroborate the previous complaints that the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) tried to suppress evidence-gathering in the Douma probe, a report says. | The alleged new whistleblower, whose redacted email was shared by the Grayzone Project on Tuesday, backed the complaints made by two former OPCW employees — South African engineer and organization's veteran Ian Henderson, and another whistleblower known as 'Alex.' | OPCW Director-General Fernando Arias had earlier dismissed the pair — dubbed Inspector A and Inspector B in the orga…

Andrew Korybko (2020-02-10). It's No Big Deal that There Are Some Limits to Russia-Israel "Cooperation" in Syria. globalresearch.ca Russia's condemnation of the "Israeli Air Force's" recklessness in once again hiding behind a civilian aircraft to deter anti-air fire by the Syrian Arab Army during their latest bombing operation against Damascus isn't contradictory to the principles of the unofficial …

RT (2020-02-08). 'Friday night massacre': Sondland follows Vindmans as Trump cleans house of 'traitors/heroes' following failed impeachment. rt.com The recall of US ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland seems to indicate that President Donald Trump is dismissing from service the officials who testified against him in the abortive impeachment proceedings. | "I was advised that the president intends to recall me effective immediately," Sondland said in a statement on Friday evening, adding he was grateful to Trump for the opportunity to head the US mission in Brussels. | Wow — EU Ambassador Gordon Sondland recalled. His attorney sends me this statement on his behalf

Agha Hussain (2020-02-07). Russia and Iran's Clashing Visions for Syria's Future. mintpressnews.com Rivals of the West in their own right, Iran and Russia today are major power players in the Syrian imbroglio. Their convergence of interests in helping eradicate extremist terrorist proxies utilized by an array of rival states against their mutual Syrian ally has allowed them both a significant degree of say in Syrian affairs and how that country's future will pan out | However, their cooperation against the terrorist threat has often been the pivot of inaccurate portrayals of Russia-Iran ties and the extent of their shared interests versus their many highly divergent objectives in Syria, many of which are rooted…

Middle East Eye (2020-02-07). Russia Says Israel Used Civilian Plane as Human Shield During Syria Strikes. theantimedia.com Russia accused Israel of "making a total mockery of the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians."

news.un (2020-02-07). ISIL still at 'centre' of terrorism threat, Security Council hears. news.un.org Despite the loss of its last stronghold in Syria and the death of its leader, ISIL "remains at the centre of the transnational terrorism threat", a senior UN official told the Security Council on Friday.

Middle East Eye (2020-02-06). Turkey Gives Assad Deadline to Pull Back or Face Military Action. theantimedia.com Turkey has given the Syrian government until the end of this month to withdraw from recently seized territory in Idlib province.

news.un (2020-02-06). Syria: 'Massive waves of civilian displacement and loss of life must stop now': UN Special Envoy. news.un.org Air and ground strikes in the region of Idlib, northwest Syria, are causing "massive waves of civilian displacement and major loss of civilian life", causing unacceptable human suffering which must stop now, Geir Pedersen, the UN Special Envoy for Syria, told the Security Council on Thursday.

Susan Price (2020-02-06). Northern Syria's two wars. greenleft.org.au First, is the war in Idlib province between the Bashar al-Assad dictatorship and va…

Ben Norton (2020-02-04). HuffPost UK editor works with gov't censorship program while smearing anti-war scholars as tools of Russia. thegrayzone.com HuffPost UK ran yet another hit piece smearing academic critics of the dirty war on Syria as Russian stooges. The…

Staff (2020-02-04). Headlines for February 4, 2020. democracynow.org Delay in Iowa Democratic Primary Results Causes Confusion, Mixed Messages, Final Arguments Made in Impeachment Trial of President Trump Ahead of SOTU, Hong Kong Medical Workers Demand Border Closure as Coronavirus Claims Life of Hong Kong Man, Leaked Audio Shows Iran Knew It Downed Ukraine Jet Despite Early Denials, Syrian and Turkish Forces Escalate Attacks as Turkey Suffers First Losses from Direct Combat, Massachusetts Prisoners Allege Violent Retaliatory Abuse by Guards, Trial Begins For Ex-CIA Software Engineer Accused of "Vault 7" Leak, Weinstein Rape Accuser Breaks Down During Harsh Questioning, Shooting a…

Medea Benjamin (2020-02-02). Why aren't Americans rising up like the people of Chile and Lebanon? zcomm.org The tinder for a revolutionary movement is everywhere…