(2020-03-13). Bio-war-of-words: US summons Chinese ambassador over 'disinformation campaign' about coronavirus origin. rt.com 
China's ambassador to Washington Cui Tiankai was summoned to the State Department after a spokesman for the foreign ministry in Beijing tweeted that the deadly coronavirus could have been seeded in Wuhan by the US military. | Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell summoned Cui on Friday over what he called a "blatant, global" disinformation campaign about the Covid-19 coronavirus. The ambassador was filmed leaving Foggy Bottom after the meeting, without answering questions shouted by US reporters. | Chinese Ambassador Cui Tiankai leaving State. He was summoned earlier this mornin…
(2020-03-13). Baghdad summons US & British envoys after condemning their strikes on Iraqi targets as 'violation of sovereignty'. rt.com 
Iraq's military has denounced American airstrikes on several targets inside the country that allegedly killed 3 Iraqi soldiers. Baghdad has also summoned US and British envoys to answer for the attacks. | The Iraqi foreign ministry said Friday that it had demanded an audience with the US and British ambassadors over the incident, which Iraq says killed six people and wounded twelve. | Iraq's Joint Operations Command said in a statement issued on the same day that the strikes had been carried out using a "false pretext" and would lead to "escalation" rather than helping to bring stability to the war-torn countr…
(2020-03-13). Turkey, Russia agree on details of Idlib ceasefire, joint patrols to begin on Sunday — Ankara. rt.com 
Turkey and Russia have agreed on the details of a ceasefire in Syria's Idlib region after four days of talks in Ankara, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Friday. Joint patrols along a key highway will begin on Sunday as planned, Reuters quoted Akar as saying. | Ankara and Moscow, which back opposing sides in Syria's war, agreed on March 5 to halt hostilities in the country's northwest. | Under the agreement, Turkish and Russian forces will carry out joint patrols along the M4 highway linking Syria's east and west, and establish a security corridor on either side of it. A Russian delegation arrived in Ankara…
(2020-03-13). Fourth OPCW whistleblower says staff 'frightened into silence' as watchdog brought into 'shameful disrepute' over Douma probe. rt.com 
A fourth whistleblower has come forward to defend two senior OPCW inspectors who revealed the watchdog tried to cover up evidence in the Douma chemical weapons probe, saying that other employees were "frightened into silence." | In a statement to the Grayzone, the latest whistleblower said they were "horrified" but "unsurprised" by recent events within the organization, describing the "mistreatment" of "two highly regarded and accomplished professionals" as "abhorrent." | The employee wrote that he is "one of many who were stunned and frightened into silence by the reality how the organization operates," and t…
(2020-03-13). Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa. wsws.org The Efling union has sold out a three week strike by municipal workers in Iceland while hospital workers in Lebanon protest the government's inept response to the coronavirus pandemic.
(2020-03-13). Iraqi Foreign Minister Summons US, UK Envoys Over Night Airstrikes That Killed Six People. sputniknews.com US forces earlier carried out airstrikes against an Iraqi Shia paramilitary group Kataib Hezbollah and state-sponsored Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in retaliation for attacks on the Camp Taji military base in Iraq that killed at least three soldiers on 11 March. According to some reports, British forces also took part in the raid.
(2020-03-13). Traffickers behind Syrian toddler death get 125 year jail sentence in Turkey. yenisafak.com Three organizers of the human trafficking ring which led to the death of Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi, in a case which made headlines worldwide, were sentenced in Turkey Friday to 125 years in prison each.The 2015 death of 3-year-old Kurdi, and five other refugees who shared a boat on the Aegean with him, shocked the international community and came to symbolize the plight of desperate Syrian refugees.The traffickers, fugitives from justice, had been captured by Turkish security forces this week in the southern province of Adana.The lifeless body of Kurdi ≠— one of 14 Syrian refugees, including eight chil…
(2020-03-13). Turkey says agreed with Russia on details of Idlib ceasefire. yenisafak.com Turkish and Russian officials have agreed on the details of a ceasefire in northwest Syria's Idlib region and joint patrols along the key M4 highway will begin on Sunday, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar was cited as saying on Friday.State-owned Anadolu news agency quoted him as saying there were signs that migration in the region had stopped and returns had begun. He said Turkey and Russia will establish joint coordination centres to monitor implementation of the agreement after the conclusion of talks with Russian officials in Ankara.
(2020-03-12). US confirms bombing Iraq's Shia Kata'eb Hezbollah militia after rocket strike at base near Baghdad killed 2 troops. rt.com 
US aircraft bombed five Shia militia targets in Iraq in retaliation for the earlier deaths of two US service members and a British nurse in a rocket attack on Camp Taji near Baghdad. | "Earlier this evening, the United States conducted defensive precision strikes against Kata'ib Hizbollah (KH) facilities across Iraq. These strikes targeted five weapon storage facilities to significantly degrade their ability to conduct future attacks against Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) coalition forces," the US Department of Defense said in a statement, confirming multiple reports on social media. | Branding the raids "de…
(2020-03-12). Exclusive: New OPCW whistleblower slams 'abhorrent mistreatment' of Douma investigators. thegrayzone.com A fourth OPCW whistleblower has emerged to defend the two veteran inspectors who challenged a cover-up of the chemical weapons…
(2020-03-12). Video: Great Idlib "Rebranding" and Al Qaeda "Turkish Victories" over Russian Air Defense. globalresearch.ca Terrorist groups operating in Idlib are preparing for a new rebranding under Turkish patronage. According to Syrian sources, Hayat Tarir al-Sham (formerly the official Syrian branch of al-Qaeda), the Turkistan Islamic Party (an al-Qaeda-linked group), the National Front for Liberation …
(2020-03-12). Turkey, Russia Reach Consensus on Syria's Idlib. telesurenglish.net Turkish and Russian military delegations who have been discussing the ceasefire in Idlib since Tuesday have reached an agreement "to a large extent," Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Thursday. | RELATED: | "The attacks have halted, and the ceasefire continues at the moment. We are carefully and sensitively following the field," Akar said during a visit to Turkey's defense company ASELSAN. | There is no change…
(2020-03-12). War in Syria: 'Carnage', flouting of rights and international law, must stop: Guterres. news.un.org UN agencies have underscored their commitment to continue supporting civilians affected by the war in Syria, which this month enters its tenth year. The Secretary-General issued a statement on Thursday, declaring that "we cannot allow the tenth year to result in the same carnage, the same flouting of human rights and international humanitarian law."
(2020-03-12). Syria Chemical Attack: Douma Whistleblowers Respond to OPCW's Attempts to Discredit Them. globalresearch.ca Two whistleblowers that have been speaking out about a scandal within the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) have responded to the organization's attempts to discredit them. The OPCW has been doing some serious damage control over its …
(2020-03-12). Lebanon's Political Elite Is Responsible for the Failure to Reform. globalresearch.ca Lebanon's decision to default on the repayment of a $1.2 billion Eurobond was inevitable. Prime Minister Hassan Diab was absolutely right to put d needs of the Lebanese over the timetable for paying the country's debilitating debts to international creditors. …
(2020-03-12). Russia cannot do without Turkey's cooperation in Syria. iranian.com The former Soviet Union was a satiated world power. It didn't have to prove anything. The Great Patriotic War (1941-45) spoke for itself. Thus, triumphalism was never a diplomatic tool in the Soviet inventory. The removal of the US nuclear missiles from Turkey in the downstream of the 1962 Cuban missile crisis was not even …
(2020-03-12). Selected Articles: In a Europe Closed Down by the Coronavirus the EU Opens Its Doors to the US Army. globalresearch.ca 
By Two whistleblowers that have been speaking out about a scandal within the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) have …
(2020-03-11). A Case Study of Corporate Media Disinformation. dissidentvoice.org Some alternative media have exposed the US government and its corporate media fake news reporting on Russian "election interference," on Venezuela, the war on Syria, China's Xinjiang and Hong Kong, Nicaragua, Palestine, among others. One of the longest running media disinformation campaigns has been directed at Cuba, well covered in Keith Bolender's Manufacturing the Enemy: …
(2020-03-10). The Battle for Idlib: Did Erdogan Capitulate to Putin in Moscow? mintpressnews.com 
There was a celebration in Syria when Russia announced a ceasefire agreement with Turkey on March 3 following a six-hour meeting between Presidents Erdogan and Putin in Moscow. Under the agreement, Erdogan agreed to pull back Turkish forces and not to contest territory that Syria had recently reclaimed from terrorist groups in eastern Aleppo and southern Idlib provinces. In fact, Turkey agreed not to intervene against Syrian troops in any of the areas from which it pulled back, in effect allowing Syrian forces to reclaim even more of its territory from terrorists in southern Idlib. | The agreement appeared to be…
(2020-03-10). Afghanistan peace prospects 'slim' without women's participation: Hillary Clinton. news.un.org There can be no sustainable peace in Afghanistan if women are not at the negotiating table, former United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told ambassadors and activists at UN Headquarters on Tuesday.
(2020-03-06). Headlines for March 6, 2020. democracynow.org 3,500 Cruise Ship Passengers Quarantined Off California Coast over Coronavirus Fears, Seattle Area Residents Urged to Work from Home as Coronavirus Spreads Across U.S., World Health Organization's Coronavirus Warning: "This Is Not a Drill", Stocks Tumble as Coronavirus Rattles Global Economy, Sen. Elizabeth Warren Suspends 2020 Presidential Bid, Bernie Sanders Campaign Rally Disrupted by Protester with Nazi Flag, Russia and Turkey Agree to a Ceasefire in Syria's War-Torn Idlib, Israel Accused of Collective Punishment After Demolishing Palestinian Homes, Israeli Opposition Parties Bidding to Unseat Netanyahu After…
(2020-03-05). Syria war update: Turkey's Erdogan invades Idlib, invokes re-establishment of Ottoman Empire. thegrayzone.com Red Lines host Anya Parampil speaks with Mohammad Marandi, a professor at the University of Tehran. He discusses his recent…
(2020-03-05). Exclusive: OPCW whistleblowers confront leadership's attacks, cover-up of Douma deception. thegrayzone.com OPCW leadership tried to discredit two veteran officials who challenged a cover-up of its chemical weapons investigation in Douma, Syria. They…
(2020-03-05). Headlines for March 5, 2020. democracynow.org Coronavirus Cases Near 100,000 Worldwide as U.S. Death Toll Reaches 11, President Trump Contradicts WHO's Warning over Coronavirus Death Rate, Billionaire Mike Bloomberg Ends Presidential Bid, Endorses Joe Biden, Bernie Bashes Biden's Billionaire Backers as Healthcare Stocks Surge Post-Super Tuesday, International Criminal Court to Investigate Taliban, Afghan and U.S. Troops for War Crimes, 15 Civilians Killed in Latest Syrian Airstrikes in Idlib, Turkey Accuses Greece of Killing Migrant as Greek Riot Police Fire Tear Gas at Border, EU Ministers Support Greek Crackdown on Asylum Seekers Despite Protests, Federal…
(2020-03-05). Escalating war in Idlib creates new refugee crisis. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-02-20). Turkey Kills Over 50 Syrian Troops, Russian Warplanes Intervene to Halt Offensive. theantimedia.com Russia called the situation a "worst case scenario."
(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."
(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.