Monthly Archives: May 2020

2020-05-31: News Headlines

Andre Vltchek (2020-05-30). In the West: Propaganda, Hysteria and Truly Foul Breath! dissidentvoice.org If it wasn't so tragic, it would be laughable: the political brigands in North America and Europe are fuming, spitting and rolling their eyes upwards towards the ceiling. They are pointing fingers in all directions, shouting incoherently "China!", "Russia!", "Venezuela and Cuba!", "Iran!"; "You, You, YOU!". China and Russia are quietly building a new world, …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-30). Progressives in Germany denounce racist 'hygiene demos' and anti-lockdown protests. peoplesdispatch.org Progressive groups in Germany have denounced the 'hygiene demos' and anti-lockdown protests organized mainly by the German right-wing across the country. On May 23, Saturday, anti-fascist groups organized counter-mobilizations at the Rosa Luxemburg Platz/Alexanderplatz in Berlin under the slogan "Keep your distance against the right". A large number of people gathered to protest the far-right demonstrations being held in the city on the same date. | Around forty demonstrations — mobilizations by the right-wing and counter-mobilizations from leftists and anti-fascists — were registered within Berlin on S…

WSWS (2020-05-30). Coronavirus cases surpass six million globally. wsws.org New epicenters in Eastern Europe, South America, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent are rapidly causing massive public health crises.

WSWS (2020-05-30). Workers in Germany report on corona virus infection risk in workplaces. wsws.org Workers highlight the lack of safety measures in public transit and factories.

Pratyush Chandra (2020-05-29). Bethune's socialized medicine and the public health crisis today. mronline.org We are at war! The heads of states throughout the globe are posing as chieftains in this quixotic war against an enemy who no one understands.

Philip Giraldi (2020-05-29). Trump the "Peace Candidate": Contemplating War During Pandemic against Two Global Competitors. Nuclear Weapons "Tests" against China and Russia. globalresearch.ca Let us consider why the Donald Trump White House is currently considering

David Schultz (2020-05-29). Trump isn't the Pope and This Ain't the Middle Ages. counterpunch.org President Trump orders governors to open up the churches. Churches defy governors and seek to open. Someone needs to remind both the president and religious institutions that the Middle Ages are over and Modernity won. President Trump and many religious institutions are pushing arguments reminiscent of those found in the Medieval Christian Europe where secular

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-29). 30 migrants in Libya killed after death of human trafficker. peoplesdispatch.org The chaos created by the NATO-led invasion of Libya in 2011 has made the country a breeding ground for human trafficking to Europe, leading to hundreds of deaths each year…

Niko Georgiades (2020-05-29). Minneapolis Police Murder Handcuffed Man with Neck-Kneel. globalresearch.ca "I can't breathe" were some of the last words of the latest victim to police terror. | Memorial Day in Minneapolis saw the echoing of the same words as Eric Garner before he was killed by police six years …

Kester Kenn Klomegah (2020-05-29). Future Perspectives of Russia-Africa Relations. globalresearch.ca While celebrating the Africa Day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed Russia's commitment to offer support and participate in the sustainable development processes in Africa. In a videoconference held May 28 with local and foreign media, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman …

Germán Gorraiz López (2020-05-29). Towards a "Soft Coup" in Spain? globalresearch.ca The Spanish State establishment would be made up of the financial-business, political, military, Catholic hierarchy, university and mass media sub-elites of the Spanish State, natural heirs to the legacy of General Franco who would have engulfed all decision-making spheres (according …

Slomski A. (2020-05-26). Integrated Care Cut Mortality in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation. jamanetwork.com An integrated-care intervention conducted in primary care practices reduced all-cause mortality among elderly patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), a noninferiority trial in the European Heart Journal demonstrated.

Jason Ditz (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."

Jason Ditz (2020-02-17). DOJ Investigating Former CIA Director's Role in Russiagate. theantimedia.com The Justice Department is investigating the role of John Brennan in the assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.

Tyler Durden (2020-02-08). Iraq and Russia Prepare to Boost Military Ties as US Threatens Sanctions. theantimedia.com Iraq and Russia are preparing for deepening military coordination.

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."

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.

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-30). At Least Prince Charles Tried: #PickForBritain Break Down. strategic-culture.org I despise modern European monarchies. Words cannot put to screen just how repulsive this 21st century aristocracy is to me personally. At first, one would think that this opinion comes from the fact that I am American, you know whole

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-30). What's NATO Up to These Days? Provoking Russia, Draining Healthcare Budgets and Protecting Its Own From COVID. strategic-culture.org T.J. COLES | In November 2019, as experts At least 2 percent of n…

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-29). German Official Leaks Report Denouncing Corona as 'A Global False Alarm'. strategic-culture.org Germany's federal government and mainstream media are engaged in damage control after a Some of the report key passages are: | The dangerousness of Covid-19 was overestimated: probably at no point did the danger posed by the new virus go beyond the normal level. | The people who die from Corona are essentially those who would statistically die this year, because they have reached the end of their lives and their weakened bodies can no longe…

imperial.ac.uk (2020-05-29). Imperial PhD student named in community of Europe's best young innovators. imperial.ac.uk Swapnil Jagtap has been named as one of Forbes' 30 Under 30 in Europe for his research on reducing the carbon impact of aviation.

Scott Ritter (2020-05-30). You think US cops need to be better armed? Here's why full-on European-style riot control police would be a DISASTER in America. thealtworld.com The violence that has gripped Minneapolis begs for the kind of effective deployment of riot police seen …

RT (2020-05-30). US 'not relying on Russia anymore' & keeping China on the outside: Trump campaign manager turns SpaceX launch into politics. rt.com Two NASA astronauts had barely taken off from the Kennedy Space Center when the achievement was already being politicized back on Earth. To the Trump campaign, it was an opportunity to blast Joe Biden and the Chinese government. | NASA Astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley successfully launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, en route to the International Space Station in a capsule developed by Elon Musk's SpaceX corporation. | Also on rt.com | | The launch marks…

RT (2020-05-30). WATCH the video that started all the 'CHILD SOLDIERS' rumors. rt.com A full-length video has emerged showing what appear to be teenagers in military surplus gear in Atlanta, Georgia. When snippets of the footage went viral earlier, the internet exploded with rumors of child soldiers. | Published on YouTube but originally broadcast on Instagram, the video shows more than a dozen people of teenage build and stature, standing in a line as if to 'guard' a bridge in Atlanta, Georgia. The mysterious 'troops' carry rifles without magazines, but are clad in matching military-style clothing and gas masks. Behind them, a number of military vehicles are parked, while other people in simil…

_____ (2020-05-30). Media Smeared Ahmaud Arbery After His Lynching. popularresistance.org While it took two and a half months for the authorities to finally make arrests in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, corporate media were much quicker to follow the time-honored practice of besmirching victims of racist violence (FAIR.org, 3/22/17). | First they kill your body. Then they kill your reputation. When white supremacy is the foundation of the US's media, political, legal and corporate system, victims of racist violence are often killed twice in this way. | The Georgia Bureau of Investigation on May 7 arrested former cop Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son Travis McMichael, 34, for the murder of Arbery, an…

2020-05-30: News Headlines

Andre Vltchek (2020-05-30). In the West: Propaganda, Hysteria and Truly Foul Breath! dissidentvoice.org If it wasn't so tragic, it would be laughable: the political brigands in North America and Europe are fuming, spitting and rolling their eyes upwards towards the ceiling. They are pointing fingers in all directions, shouting incoherently "China!", "Russia!", "Venezuela and Cuba!", "Iran!"; "You, You, YOU!". China and Russia are quietly building a new world, …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-30). Progressives in Germany denounce racist 'hygiene demos' and anti-lockdown protests. peoplesdispatch.org Progressive groups in Germany have denounced the 'hygiene demos' and anti-lockdown protests organized mainly by the German right-wing across the country. On May 23, Saturday, anti-fascist groups organized counter-mobilizations at the Rosa Luxemburg Platz/Alexanderplatz in Berlin under the slogan "Keep your distance against the right". A large number of people gathered to protest the far-right demonstrations being held in the city on the same date. | Around forty demonstrations — mobilizations by the right-wing and counter-mobilizations from leftists and anti-fascists — were registered within Berlin on S…

WSWS (2020-05-30). Coronavirus cases surpass six million globally. wsws.org New epicenters in Eastern Europe, South America, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent are rapidly causing massive public health crises.

WSWS (2020-05-30). Workers in Germany report on corona virus infection risk in workplaces. wsws.org Workers highlight the lack of safety measures in public transit and factories.

T.J. Coles (2020-05-29). What's NATO Up to These Days? Provoking Russia, Draining Healthcare Budgets and Protecting Its Own from COVID. counterpunch.org In November 2019, as experts warned that a novel coronavirus was likely to develop in the near-future, NATO boasted that its European Allies, including the UK, as well as Canada, were boosting their military budgets by an average of 4.6 percent, or an additional $130bn since 2016. The implication is that this increase in military spending is at the expense of healthcare, which is being privatized worldwide.

David Schultz (2020-05-29). Trump isn't the Pope and This Ain't the Middle Ages. counterpunch.org President Trump orders governors to open up the churches. Churches defy governors and seek to open. Someone needs to remind both the president and religious institutions that the Middle Ages are over and Modernity won. President Trump and many religious institutions are pushing arguments reminiscent of those found in the Medieval Christian Europe where secular

Pratyush Chandra (2020-05-29). Bethune's socialized medicine and the public health crisis today. mronline.org We are at war! The heads of states throughout the globe are posing as chieftains in this quixotic war against an enemy who no one understands.

Philip Giraldi (2020-05-29). Trump the "Peace Candidate": Contemplating War During Pandemic against Two Global Competitors. Nuclear Weapons "Tests" against China and Russia. globalresearch.ca Let us consider why the Donald Trump White House is currently considering

Peoples Dispatch (2020-05-29). 30 migrants in Libya killed after death of human trafficker. peoplesdispatch.org The chaos created by the NATO-led invasion of Libya in 2011 has made the country a breeding ground for human trafficking to Europe, leading to hundreds of deaths each year…

Niko Georgiades (2020-05-29). Minneapolis Police Murder Handcuffed Man with Neck-Kneel. globalresearch.ca "I can't breathe" were some of the last words of the latest victim to police terror. | Memorial Day in Minneapolis saw the echoing of the same words as Eric Garner before he was killed by police six years …

John Feffer (2020-05-29). Is It Time to Boycott the United States? zcomm.org The G7 kicked Russia out over its invasion of Crimea. Does the U.S. assault on international laws, treaties, and democracy itself warrant the same treatment?>

Kester Kenn Klomegah (2020-05-29). Future Perspectives of Russia-Africa Relations. globalresearch.ca While celebrating the Africa Day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed Russia's commitment to offer support and participate in the sustainable development processes in Africa. In a videoconference held May 28 with local and foreign media, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman …

Germán Gorraiz López (2020-05-29). Towards a "Soft Coup" in Spain? globalresearch.ca The Spanish State establishment would be made up of the financial-business, political, military, Catholic hierarchy, university and mass media sub-elites of the Spanish State, natural heirs to the legacy of General Franco who would have engulfed all decision-making spheres (according …

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-30). At Least Prince Charles Tried: #PickForBritain Break Down. strategic-culture.org I despise modern European monarchies. Words cannot put to screen just how repulsive this 21st century aristocracy is to me personally. At first, one would think that this opinion comes from the fact that I am American, you know whole

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-29). German Official Leaks Report Denouncing Corona as 'A Global False Alarm'. strategic-culture.org Germany's federal government and mainstream media are engaged in damage control after a Some of the report key passages are: | The dangerousness of Covid-19 was overestimated: probably at no point did the danger posed by the new virus go beyond the normal level. | The people who die from Corona are essentially those who would statistically die this year, because they have reached the end of their lives and their weakened bodies can no longe…

imperial.ac.uk (2020-05-29). Imperial PhD student named in community of Europe's best young innovators. imperial.ac.uk Swapnil Jagtap has been named as one of Forbes' 30 Under 30 in Europe for his research on reducing the carbon impact of aviation.

RT (2020-05-30). 'US statements are fake, not Libyan money': Moscow rebuffs accusations of printing counterfeit dinars. rt.com Moscow printed dinars for Libya in accordance with a government contract, so Washington's claims of it being fake money have nothing to do with reality, according to Russia's Foreign Ministry. | The US State Department announced on Friday that $1.1 billion worth of "counterfeit, Russian-printed Libyan currency" was seized in Malta earlier this week. | Moscow confirmed the dinars were indeed printed by Russian state-owned company Goznak, but it was done in accordance with a contract it signed with the Central Bank of Libya in 2015. The order was fully paid for by the Libyan side, it was announced. | Also on rt.

RT (2020-05-30). CNN blames 'RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA' for George Floyd riots because they 'Can't blame China' – Trump. rt.com With riots sweeping America, a CNN guest suggested that Russia may be responsible for stoking anti-police anger in the US. President Trump ridiculed the "sick losers" at the network for their 'Russiagate' obsession. | "Here we go again," Trump tweeted on Saturday. "Fake News @CNN is blaming RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA. They are sick losers with VERY bad ratings! P.S. Can't blame China because they need the cash?" | Here we go again. Fake News

RT (2020-05-30). US 'not relying on Russia anymore' & keeping China on the outside: Trump campaign manager turns SpaceX launch into politics. rt.com Two NASA astronauts had barely taken off from the Kennedy Space Center when the achievement was already being politicized back on Earth. To the Trump campaign, it was an opportunity to blast Joe Biden and the Chinese government. | NASA Astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley successfully launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, en route to the International Space Station in a capsule developed by Elon Musk's SpaceX corporation. | Also on rt.com | | The launch marks…

RT (2020-05-30). WATCH the video that started all the 'CHILD SOLDIERS' rumors. rt.com A full-length video has emerged showing what appear to be teenagers in military surplus gear in Atlanta, Georgia. When snippets of the footage went viral earlier, the internet exploded with rumors of child soldiers. | Published on YouTube but originally broadcast on Instagram, the video shows more than a dozen people of teenage build and stature, standing in a line as if to 'guard' a bridge in Atlanta, Georgia. The mysterious 'troops' carry rifles without magazines, but are clad in matching military-style clothing and gas masks. Behind them, a number of military vehicles are parked, while other people in simil…

RT (2020-05-30). Wait, what… child soldiers? Confusion triggered by bizarre videos allegedly showing KIDS IN RIOT GEAR guarding Atlanta's streets. rt.com Amid nationwide riots over Goerge Floyd's death, a bizarre and unverified video has got the internet abuzz. The baffling footage appears to show children, dressed in camouflage uniforms, guarding areas around Atlanta, Georgia. | In the clip circulating on social media, children are seen decked out in military gear as they stand side-by-side with much older looking, but similarly equipped, individuals. In one clip, a young man in a military uniform is seen holding a riot shield — purportedly part of a group keeping watch over a mall in the city. | "There's literally like a twelve-year-old out here. Thirtee…

en.mehrnews (2020-05-30). Rouhani congratulates Croatia on national day. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 30 (MNA) — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has extended congratulation to his Croatian counterpart, Zoran Milanovic, on the occasion of the country's national day.

en.mehrnews (2020-05-30). US act to end sanctions waiver against Iran violates NPT: Ulyanov. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 30 (MNA) — Russia's Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov said that the US act to end sanctions waiver against Iran means further violations of UN Charter, UNSC Resolution 2231 and NPT.

sputniknews (2020-05-30). Russian Health Ministry Approves First Domestic Drug for COVID-19. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Russian Health Ministry has approved the first domestic drug, called Avifavir, for treating coronavirus patients, according to a new entry to the national drug registry.

yenisafak (2020-05-30). Turkey rebuts Greece on Quran session in Hagia Sophia. yenisafak.com Turkey on Saturday shot back at an objection from Greece on the reading of passages from the Muslim holy book, the Quran, in the Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia), a landmark mosque-converted-museum in Istanbul.Accusing Athens of making "futile and ineffective statements" on the event, which marked the 567th anniversary of the Ottoman conquest of the former Byzantine capital, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said Greece's displeasure illustrated its "intolerant psychology.""The fact that Greece, the only remaining European country without a mosque in its capital, is disturbed by the recital of the Holy Quran i…

yenisafak (2020-05-30). Don't treat Italy like a leper colony says foreign minister. yenisafak.com European countries are cautiously reopening their borders as the coronavirus contagion subsides around the continent, with Italy set to let tourists back in from June 15.However, some EU states are looking to keep the door shut on visitors from places that have suffered a particularly high number of COVID-19 cases. Greece, for example, said on Friday it would open its frontiers to citizens from just 29 countries, excluding Italians, Spaniards and the British."We do not accept blacklists," Di Maio wrote on Facebook, announcing a forthcoming round of bilateral meetings both in Rome and abroad to press Italy's case.

yenisafak (2020-05-30). Turkey condemns attack on aid workers in Somalia. yenisafak.com Turkey on Saturday denounced an attack on aid workers in Somalia, said the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Saturday.The ministry in a statement on its website expressed the country's condolences over the attack, in which eight aid workers of a health facility in Gololey Village were abducted and executed."We are deeply saddened by the news of the abduction and the brutally execution of eight aid workers working in a health facility in Gololey Village located in the Hirshabelle region by a group of unidentified gunmen."We strongly condemn this heinous terrorist attack. We extend our condolences to the brotherly people…

Fight Back (2020-05-29). Chicanos in Boyle Heights to participate in the National Day of Action May 30. fightbacknews.org Los Angeles, CA – On Saturday, May 30 at 3 p.m. Centro Community Service Organization (CSO) will be participating in the National Day of Protest to demand the mass release of all prisoners due to COVID-19. The action is called by the National Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression and CSO is an affiliated organization with the Alliance. We are protesting the murders of Ahmaud Aubery in Georgia, Breonna Taylor in Louisville, and George Floyd in Minneapolis because they are outraging, and we must demand justice. This lynch-style, racist terrorism must stop and perpetrators must be punished. | The Boyle Heig…

_____ (2020-05-30). Media Smeared Ahmaud Arbery After His Lynching. popularresistance.org While it took two and a half months for the authorities to finally make arrests in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, corporate media were much quicker to follow the time-honored practice of besmirching victims of racist violence (FAIR.org, 3/22/17). | First they kill your body. Then they kill your reputation. When white supremacy is the foundation of the US's media, political, legal and corporate system, victims of racist violence are often killed twice in this way. | The Georgia Bureau of Investigation on May 7 arrested former cop Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son Travis McMichael, 34, for the murder of Arbery, an…

_____ (2020-05-29). Rent Strike: Can't Pay, Won't Pay. popularresistance.org The Covid-19 crisis has triggered an international rent strike. Housing activists hope to build strong networks of solidarity as a financial crisis and mass evictions loom. Across the world, significant amounts of people have stopped paying rent, and in some places mortgage payments, in the wake of Covid-19. Many simply don't have the money and now face homelessness. Rent strikes are taking place in the US, Spain, Canada, France, Britain, South Africa, and elsewhere as activists call for a stop to rent payments and evictions and for everyone to have shelter and space to get through the pandemic. Most of us would…

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-28). Australia & the Working of the American Imperial Hand. strategic-culture.org The paradox of Australia: a wealthy country whose complacent, U.S.-indoctrinated political elites are betraying its promise in so many important ways, writes Tony Kevin. | Tony KEVIN | It is hard to explain Australia to foreigners: a complicated former British colonial society that likes to think of itself as simple and honest, and sometimes persuades others that this may be true. The Australia of the "Dustyesky Russian Choir" that recently became a brief sensation on Russia's mainstream Channel One is a reassuring image: one in which some Russians might still sentimentally like to believe. | Yet there is a darke…

The Canary (2020-05-28). 'Test and Trace will fail if workers are pushed into financial hardship'. thecanary.co The Test and Trace system will fail to work effectively if statutory sick pay is not increased, the government has been warned. | Those self-isolating will be eligible for statutory sick pay but there are fears that many workers will not be able to afford to isolate and will be forced to keep working. | NHS Test and Trace — seen as key to easing the coronavirus lockdown restrictions — will be rolled out across England on Thursday, and there are concerns that people could be asked to self-isolate for period of 14 days more than once in the coming weeks. | TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "We…

Brasil de Fato (2020-05-28). Americas are the new epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. peoplesdispatch.org With nearly 2.45 million confirmed cases, the Americas reached the current largest number of COVID-19 cases worldwide, with almost 500,000 cases more than Europe, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). | Two of the region's countries occupy the first and second places in the number of infected people. The United States lead the ranking of COVID-19 cases, with over 1 million 700 thousand cases while Brazil comes in second place, with 391.222 thousand cases. | The world has surpassed, last Wednesday May 21, the mark of 5 million COVID-19 cases, according to the US Johns Hopkins University's real time das…

news.un (2020-05-28). Security Council: Paralysis and 'political infighting' must end, to boost COVID-19 fight: EU foreign affairs chief. news.un.org The global coronavirus pandemic is testing the multilateral system like never before and the Security Council must stop the "infighting", and step up to the challenge, the European Union's foreign policy chief told the 15-member body on Thursday.

Frances Madeson (2020-05-28). Federal Prison 'Should Not Be a Death Sentence'. progressive.org Advocates press for the release of Native inmates due to COVID-19.

Andrey Areshev (2020-05-28). U.S. Empire: Biden and Kerry Gave Orders to Ukraine's President. strategic-culture.org On May 19th, an implicit international political warning was issued, but it wasn't issued between countries; it was issued between allied versus opposed factions within each of two countries: U.S. and Ukraine. In the United States, it's a Republican Party warning to the Democratic Party: a warning by Trump, against Biden and against Obama. It's saying: "We've got the goods on you, and we're not releasing it yet. But here's a sample. So, let's deal." | It's a warning that comes from the current President of Ukraine, Volodmyr Zelenskiy, and that places into an exceptionally bad light his immediate predecessor, Petr…

imperial.ac.uk (2020-05-28). Clean energy is outperforming fossil fuels in America, UK and Europe. imperial.ac.uk Renewable power is outperforming fossil fuels in US and European markets, according to a new report published by Imperial College Business School.

Slomski A. (2020-05-26). Integrated Care Cut Mortality in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation. jamanetwork.com An integrated-care intervention conducted in primary care practices reduced all-cause mortality among elderly patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), a noninferiority trial in the European Heart Journal demonstrated.

Jason Ditz (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."

Jason Ditz (2020-02-17). DOJ Investigating Former CIA Director's Role in Russiagate. theantimedia.com The Justice Department is investigating the role of John Brennan in the assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.

Tyler Durden (2020-02-08). Iraq and Russia Prepare to Boost Military Ties as US Threatens Sanctions. theantimedia.com Iraq and Russia are preparing for deepening military coordination.

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."

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.