(2021-10-17). The fascist assault on a union in Italy: Some thoughts. peoplesdispatch.org On October 9, during a demonstration against the government's measures to limit the spread of the pandemic, right-wing nationalist forces attacked the headquarters of the major union CGIL in Rome. What lies behind that assault and how can it be framed?
(2021-10-17). Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: Continuing progress in battle against COVID-19. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org "October is going to be a very exciting month in the U.S., regarding COVID-19 vaccines," says Dr. Gregory Poland, head of Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group. "On Oct. 14 the Federal Drug Administration is going to look at COVID-19 boosters for Moderna. On Oct. 15, (the FDA will review) boosters for Johnson & Johnsons' COVID-19 vaccine. And on Oct. 29, the FDA will look at extending emergency use for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children down to…
(2021-10-17). Minister Plasencia and Michelle Bachelet Meet in Geneva. orinocotribune.com By instructions of the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, and in strict adherence to Venezuela's policy of peace diplomacy, Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia held a meeting with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet. | Minister Plasencia reported this on his Twitter account, adding a photograph of himself with the UN top official. | The minister explained that their conversation in Geneva, Switzerland, served as a space for Venezuela to raise the question of human rights regarding the constant acts of aggression and violence against Venezuelan migrants in othe…
(2021-10-16). US Writes Belarus Into Its Familiar Regime-Change Script. popularresistance.org Minsk, Belarus — Quietly, the U.S. national security state is turning up the heat on Belarus, hoping that the ex-Soviet country of 9 million will be the next casualty of its regime-change agenda. This sentiment was made clear in President Joe Biden's recent speech at the United Nations General Assembly. Biden announced that the U.S. would pursue "relentless diplomacy" finding "new ways of lifting people up around the world, of renewing and defending democracy." The 46th president was explicit in whom he meant by this: "The democratic world is everywhere. It lives in the anti-corruption activists, the human…
(2021-10-16). NATO's Caucasus, Central Asia special representative en route to Azerbaijan. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Special Representative of the NATO Secretary General to visit Azerbaijan NATO Secretary General's new Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia Javier Colomina will visit Azerbaijan, APA [Azeri Press Agency] reports. Mission of the Republic of Azerbaijan to NATO…
(2021-10-16). Widespread global participation in second school strike against COVID threat to children. wsws.org The strike received massive support globally, with the central hashtag for the event, #SchoolStrike2021, tweeted nearly 7,500 times and videos submitted from Britain, the US, Canada, Brazil, Germany, France, Poland, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Australia and New Zealand.
(2021-10-16). Regional authorities around Paris, France, demand police intervene to break Transdev bus drivers strike. wsws.org Pécresse's call for the police to crush the pickets is a frontal attack on the right to strike.
(2021-10-16). France Continues Project For European Army And "Strategic Sovereignty" southfront.org 
Illustrative ImageAchieving European sovereignty is a long but necessary process. | Written by Paul Antonopoulos, independent geopolitical analyst | The conclusion of World War II saw new security structures emerge as the new struggle shifted to one between Capitalism and Communism in the context of the Cold War. Although France and the UK signed the Treaty of Dunkirk with a provision for Alliance and Mutual Assistance in 1947, which expanded in 1948 to include Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, it was quickly supplanted by NATO in 1949, an alliance that at the time also included the U.S., Canada, Portugal,…
(2021-10-16). President Maduro Sends Letter to King of Spain Demanding Respect for Victims of Colonial Occupation. orinocotribune.com On Thursday, October 14, the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, sent a letter to the King of Spain, Felipe de Borbón, demanding respect for the memory of the ancestors of the American peoples, who, 529 years ago, were subjugated under the occupation of the Spanish empire, and suffered centuries of violence, genocide and destruction. Through his Twitter account, the Venezuelan president shared the letter in which he expressed his condemnation of the fact that Spain "intends to minimize and falsify the events that occurred during the so-called Conquest of America in the 15th century." | In this regard, the Ven…
(2021-10-16). Spain's PSOE-Podemos government approves anti-worker 2022 budget. wsws.org The draft budget consists of half-measures and empty promises, which primarily benefit wealthy layers while leaving millions of workers in a desperate situation.
(2021-10-16). Next sale to Britain, then Turkish combat drones "flying in European skies" antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Turkey presents options to UK for armed drone purchase: Minister Turkey has presented options to the U.K. for the sale of armed drones, the Turkish industry and technology minister said on Oct. 15. "The U.K. is very interested in Turkish armed drones. Now, they have to decide. We presented them with the options. Right now, …
(2021-10-16). Protest works! Turkish political prisoner is freed on bail but still faces trial with over 100 other leaders and activists of the left-wing HDP. mronline.org 
PETER TATCHELL and ERIC LEE shine a light on the case of Cihan Erdal, a trade union, peace and LGBTI+ campaigner, who faces trumped-up charges in one of Turkey's biggest mass trials.
(2021-10-16). Turkey's Losses In Syria Mounts With New Greater Idlib Attack That Left Seven Casualties (Photos). southfront.org 
Turkish forces are seen near Mount Barsaya, northeast of Afrin, Syria January 23, 2018. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi | Late on October 15, a convoy of the Turkish military came under attack as it was leaving the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib where Ankara maintains a large force. | A heavy improvised explosive device struck the convoy as it was moving towards the Turkish border on the Bab al-Hawa highway in the eastern Idlib countryside. A Turkish BMC Kirpi MRAP [Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected] vehicle was…
(2021-10-16). NATO's eastern powerhouses Poland, Turkey strengthen military ties. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Poland keen to deepen military ties with Turkey: defence minister "We have agreed to conduct more joint exercises between Polish and Turkish soldiers, and we expect that training relations between Polish and Turkish troops will intensify," [Polish Defence Minister Mariusz] B≈Çaszczak said [after meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Hulusi Akar]. He added that Poland was …
(2021-10-16). Turkish Military Dropped Leaflets Over Syria's Tell Rifaat Warning Locals Of Near Attack. southfront.org 
Turkish army tanks and military personal are stationed in Karkamis on the Turkish-Syrian border in the southeastern Gaziantep province, Turkey, August 25, 2016. © Umit Bektas / Reuters | Late on October 15, Turkish drones dropped leaflets over the Syrian town of Tell Rifaat in the northern countryside of Aleppo warning the locals of an upcoming military operation by the Turkish military and its proxies. | ÿ£ŸÑŸÇŸâ ŸÖÿ≥ŸÑŸÄ.Ÿ&Au…
(2021-10-16). CNE Meets European Union Chargé d'Affairs in Caracas (Borrell's Interventionist Comments). orinocotribune.com On Friday, October 15, the president of the National Electoral Council (CNE) of Venezuela, Pedro Calzadilla, met with the charge d'affaires of the European Union mission in Caracas, Rafael Dochao. Dochao was summoned by the Venezuelan national electoral body as part of the efforts to breach the impasse caused by the interventionist statements made by the EU High Representative for External Relations, Josep Borrell, on October 8. | As the CNE informed through a press release, during the meeting, Calzadilla ratified the CNE's efforts to maintain the EU electoral observation mission, which had been formally agreed o…
(2021-10-16). 27,247 Deaths and 2,563,768 Injuries Following COVID Shots in European Database — Taiwan Records More Deaths from Vaccine than Virus. globalresearch.ca
(2021-10-16). U.S., EU continue to condemn Russia over Crimea. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com The United States plus the European Union equals NATO. United States condemns population census in occupied Crimea "The United States condemns Russia's census in occupied Crimea as yet another attempt to undermine Ukraine's independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity." *** The European Union also condemned Russia's decision to conduct a census in the temporarily occupied Autonomous …
(2021-10-16). Austin visit: U.S. think tank calls for massive NATO buildup in Black Sea region. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com From the Heritage Foundation. Excerpts. Time for Action: The U.S. and NATO Cannot Afford to Ignore the Black Sea Region The Black Sea sits at an important crossroads between Europe, Asia, and the Caucasus. For the U.S., the Black Sea's strategic importance is primarily derived from two issues. The first is America's treaty obligations under …
(2021-10-16). Voice of America: confront Russian invasions and occupations in Black Sea. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com US Defense Secretary Heads to Eastern Europe, NATO Next Week U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin heads to Europe next week for talks with allies concerned about Russia and what the NATO military alliance will focus on now that the withdrawal from Afghanistan is complete. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb reports. Video…
(2021-10-16). Polish Constitutional Court ruling deepens EU crisis. wsws.org The Polish Constitutional Court ruled that the European Court of Justice has no right to make decisions about the Polish judiciary.
(2021-10-16). [Perspectives] How imperialism, slavery, and war shaped epidemiology. thelancet.com In recent decades, historians have become increasingly attuned to the ways in which empire and imperialism transformed modern conceptions of disease, medicine, and the body. Such scholarship argues that European medical theories were not simply disseminated in imperial territories and that science and medicine should not only be seen as scientific and cultural projects that consolidated imperialism. Instead, the thrust has been to understand how the development of modern ideas of hygiene, sanitation, public health, and disease were themselves produced out of an encounter with empire and subjugated populations.
(2021-10-16). UK-European Union conflict over Northern Ireland Protocol amid spiralling national tensions. wsws.org Preparations are already being made in Europe for a trade war should Britain reject the EU's proposals and trigger Article 16.
(2021-10-16). German Parties After The Elections: Greens. southfront.org 
Click to see full-size image | You can read this article in German: The Greens in Germany appear almost exclusively under this name today and they are usually also called by that name. You can even read a lot about Green on the homepage of their website, whereas the actual name of the party can only be discovered after long scrolling, ashamedly hidden as a graphic in the footer. | The party's real name, however, is Alliance 90/The Greens, a name that was chosen when the predominantly West German Greens united with the East Germ…
(2021-10-16). From the Congo to Greece: Profile of a Refugee and his Journey. globalresearch.ca
(2021-10-16). Greece-US Agreement on Military Bases Must be Cancelled! orinocotribune.com 
By Nikos Mottas — Oct 14, 2021 | On Thursday, October 14, The right-wing New Democracy government, continuing the "Strategic Dialogue" with the United States which was initiated b…
(2021-10-16). Ireland has robbed poor working people of tens of trillions of dollars. zcomm.org Interview on the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the morality of Ireland's tax regime and whether the human race can avoid the twin catastrophes of global warming and nuclear war…
(2021-10-16). Damned if you do: Russia has nothing to gain by cutting off ties with Ukraine. But, sadly, talking to Kiev doesn't help either. rt.com 
There's no point talking to Ukraine, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev says, arguing Russia should wait for a friendlier government in Kiev. The only problem is there's almost no chance of that happening any time soon. | 'Nedogovorosposobnyi' is a Russian word with no English equivalent, describing somebody or something that is incapable of reaching agreements. There can be many reasons why a person or an organization is like this but, whatever the cause, talking to them is a waste of time. It's never going to get anywhere. | Ukraine's political leaders are nedogovorosposobnye, says Medvedev, who was pr…
(2021-10-16). Afghanistan: Russia Draws Redlines for U.S. Moscow Will Not Accept U.S. Military Presence in Central Asia. globalresearch.ca
(2021-10-16). Russia's Kamchatka Region will choose environment over profit — governor. rt.com 
The Kamchatka Region in Russia's Far East will reject potentially profitable projects if they are deemed to pose a danger to the environment, its Governor Vladimir Solodov announced this week. | "We turned down the project to build a hydroelectric power station on the Zhupanova River, abandoned plans to build a fish-breeding channel for Lake Kronotskoye and a number of other projects. We consider it important to explicitly discard them if the environmental harm from [the projects] is greater than the profits," Solodov said at a plenary session of the conference on Sustainable Development and ESG Transformation…
(2021-10-16). The U.S. Might Finally Be Ready to Back Down, to Avoid WW III. southfront.org 
Illustrative Image | Written by Eric Zuesse | Recently, tensions have been rising between, on the one hand, America, and on the other, both Russia and China. A nuclear war that includes the United States would destroy the entire world, because it would be not only nuclear, but major-power nuclear, which would entail so many nuclear explosions (perhaps all within less than an hour), so that nuclear winter would extend over not only all of the northern hemisphere, but probably also over all of the southern hemisphere (though more slowly there). Unfortunately, no scientific study has been published analyzing what th…
(2021-10-16). Syrian Army, Russian Aerospace Forces Killed 14 ISIS Terrorists In Southern Raqqa — Report. southfront.org 
Russian Su-25 attack aircraft take off from the Khmeimim airbase in Syria © Dmitriy Vinogradov / Sputnik | At least 14 terrorists of ISIS were killed while taking part in the terrorist group's recent According to the London-based monitoring group, the t…
(2021-10-16). Pentagon chief to meet president, defense minister in Ukraine, pledge support for "liberation of occupied territories" antibellum679354512.wordpress.com U.S. Defense Secretary to meet with Zelensky and Taran in Kyiv "In Ukraine, the Secretary will meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Minister of Defense Andrii Taran to reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The visit will also serve as an opportunity to discuss Ukraine's progress with the implementation of defense …