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Seventy-seven Democrats in the House of Representatives signed a letter Thursday accusing Israel of violating human rights law, disagreeing with the Biden-Harris administration and potentially triggering an arms embargo on Israel. The signatories to the letter include well-known left-wing Jewish Democrats, such as Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Sara Jacobs (D-CA). The latter is romantically involved with former Democratic congressional candidate and former Obama administration official Ammar Campa-Najjar, who is the grandson of a notorious Palestinian terrorist.

The United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), the major teachers’ union in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), passed a resolution last week backing an arms embargo against Israel proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The resolution, obtained by the Los Angeles Times, calls upon California’s Sens. Alex Padilla and Laphonza Butler, both Democrats, to back Sanders’s resolution in the Senate’s “lame duck” session after the November election. The Times reported: Union materials prepared for a board of directors meeting, which were obtained by The Times, state the rationale for taking such a stand: “the arms named have been used...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticized French President Emmanuel Macron over his call to halt arms deliveries to Israel to use in Gaza. Macron told France Inter radio that "the priority is what we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza."... Netanyahu responded: "Shame on them", referring to Macron and other Western leaders who have called...

VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran, which the United States accuses of secretly pursuing nuclear weapons, has a stake in the world's biggest open-pit uranium mine in the African state of Namibia, the mine's owner told Reuters. Rossing Uranium Limited, which is majority owned by Anglo-Australian firm Rio Tinto, sells its uranium to nuclear power plants in the United States, Japan, South Korea and Sweden. Graham Davidson, the general manager for operations at Rossing, said in a letter to Reuters that the company's board of directors only permits the sale of uranium for use in generating electricity. "The government of Iran has...

Kamala Harris has said she is prepared to meet with activists to discuss an arms embargo on Israel, according to reports. The Uncommitted National Movement – a pro-Palestinian, anti-war organization – said its founders spoke with the vice president and Governor Tim Walz at their campaign rally in Detroit on Wednesday... "The Vice President shared her sympathies and expressed an openness to a meeting with the Uncommitted leaders to discuss an arms embargo," the organization said in a statement.... A Harris campaign spokesman told the New York Times that the conversation was a "brief engagement" and "reaffirmed that her campaign...

US Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris met with two Arab Americans leading the Uncommitted National Movement, who asked her to consider an arms embargo on Israel, at a campaign stop in Michigan, the New York Times reported. Just before her rally, Harris met with Abbas Alawieh and Layla Elabed, who, according to the report, "wanted to support her but... wanted her to consider an arms embargo." In response, Harris indicated she was "open to it" and introduced the two community leaders to her staff. In addition to the arms embargo, the uncommitted organizers also asked for a convention...

Almost unnoticed amid the drama and crisis that hit Latin America every week, in the last days of February the Cuban government asked the United Nations for aid to address a growing food shortage. The unprecedented cry for help from a communist regime that has always prided itself on its social welfare model captures Cuba’s dire economic straits. Hurt by tightened U.S. restrictions, decaying domestic production, a weak post-COVID-19 tourism industry and indifference from its allies, the island is living through its worst economic days since the collapse of the Soviet Union more than three decades ago. A string of...

Roughly traveling through nine states over two and a half days, the “Take Our Border Back” convoy made their way towards Central Texas on Wednesday. The group wants to peacefully protest and call on the U.S. government to secure the border with Mexico. The group made plans to stop in Dripping Spring. Fred Summers, who lives in Leander, posted up on Highway 290 to wave them on and show his support. ”Saw it on Facebook,” Summers said. ”It is a way to say thank you to those guys. This is like fourth of July for me.” While he’s just here...

ransomnote: This video describes a grain supply chain issues with the country's main rail freight hub which have now worsened as a result of Union Pacific's railway embargo.ALL Shipments STOPPED -MAIN Artery for USA - Railways SHUT DOWN - Cars PILING UP | Patrick HumphreyGrain shipments had already been backing up (not delivered) since October (see chart).Now as of December 29, Union Pacific has announced an embargo which will deepen the supply chain problem with grain. Excerpt:The following excerpt sounds like "14 days to flatten the curve.... Here's a map of the Union Pacific hub impacted by the embargo; it...

Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit Saudi Arabia, the oil-rich kingdom’s foreign minister said, days after the leader of the world’s most populous nation secured a third term in office. Prince Faisal bin Farhan hailed the “historical and solid relationship” between the major oil exporter and Beijing after talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. “Our meeting today comes at an important time, as it precedes the expected visit of the Chinese president to the kingdom,” Prince Faisal said in a video statement broadcast on Saudi television. Saudi Arabia is also “finalising arrangements” for summit talks between China...

But trade and business groups said the new legislation's vague wording threatens to put the bulk of China's $500 billion in annual shipments bound for the U.S. at risk. "The way the law is written could be interpreted as applying to other kinds of goods from other parts of China that allegedly involved forced labor at some point along the supply chain," Doug Barry, a senior director at the U.S.-China Business Council, told Nikkei Asia in an email. There are reports of detainees being moved out of Xinjiang to work in other parts of the country, while components produced in...

This week the European Union is expected to announce a complete import ban on Russian oil. Hungary, in its first real act of defiance, is threatening to veto this; Germany, after some hemming and hawing, has finally decided it can survive such a ban. Assuming Hungary’s objections are eventually overcome, at first blush this looks like yet another energy “own goal” by the people obsessed with soccer. The U.S. has already issued this ban. Because European industry is heavily dependent on Russian oil and gas, the conventional wisdom is that the EU Commission is just petulant and incompetent. Are they...

Ukraine has limited exports of sunflower oil, wheat, oats and cattle in an attempt to protect its war-torn economy. Russia has banned sales of fertilizer, sugar and grains to other nations. Indonesia, which produces more than half the world’s palm oil, has halted outgoing shipments. Turkey has stopped exports of butter, beef, lamb, goats, maize and vegetable oils. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has unleashed a new wave of protectionism as governments, desperate to secure food and other commodities for their citizens amid shortages and rising prices, erect new barriers to stop exports at their borders. Sign up for The Morning...

Despite the clear intentions of western government to cripple Russian energy production, loadings of Russian oil have so far been surprisingly resilient, so much so that Russia’s current account balance is at all time highs. According to JPMorgan, shipments in the seven days to April 16 hit 7.3 mbd, only 330 kbd below the 7.58 mbd averaged in February before the start of the war. Remarkably, JPM calculates that Russian crude exports are averaging 360 kbd above pre-invasion volumes, while exports of oil products like fuel oil, naphtha, and VGO have declined by 700 kbd (full report available to pro...

Since Putin's devastating invasion of Ukraine began, 300 companies have announced their withdrawal from Russia in protest.Nevertheless, some western companies have continued to operate in Russia undeterred; we identify several dozen companies with particularly significant exposure to Russian markets. In the days since we initially published our list, many of the "remain" companies have responded to public backlash and decided to withdraw, and we are continuously revising our list to reflect these decisions as they are made. The full, current list of companies that have curtailed operations in Russia as well as those that remain, as of March 8, can...

Gasoline prices are pushing even farther above $4 a gallon, the highest price that American motorists have faced since July 2008, as calls grow to ban imports of Russian oil. Prices at the pump were rising long before Russia invaded Ukraine and have spiraled faster since the start of the war. The U.S. national average for a gallon of gasoline has soared 45 cents a gallon in the past week and topped $4.06 on Monday, according to auto club AAA. “I am looking at the possibility of walking to work,” said Asiya Joseph, who had just paid $4.29 a gallon...

With the US reportedly said to vote as soon as Tuesday on a proposal to ditch trade relations with Russia and Belarus, including suspending oil imports despite repeated objections from Germany which has stated that a collapse in supply threatens “social cohesion”, Russian Deputy PM Novak said that a ban on Russian oil would result in catastrophic consequences for global market according to Interfax, warning that Europe is pushing Russia towards an embargo on gas deliveries through Nord Stream 1, which is currently filled to maximum capacity, although Moscow has not taken this decision yet. Warning that “no one would...

The self-imposed embargo of Russian oil is spreading to Kazakhstan crude, with three shipments canceled in the past 24 hours. The Wonder Vega, Free Spirit and Stealth Haralambos, all Marshall Islands-flagged vessels, were Black Sea-bound for the Port of Novorossiysk. S&P Global informed clients of the three canceled loadings, citing the war risk premium associated with the grade of oil. These latest cancellations led the Chevron-led consortium at Tengiz — Kazakhstan’s highest-producing oil field — to issue a statement that it was “monitoring developments.” Production is continuing, according to the consortium. ... “CPC Pipeline (Caspian Pipeline Consortium led by Chevron),...

What Six Years of ‘Reset’ with Russia Have Wrought by CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER August 27, 2015 On September 5, 2014, Russian agents crossed into Estonia and kidnapped an Estonian security official. Last week, after a closed trial, Russia sentenced him to 15 years. The reaction? The State Department issued a statement. The NATO secretary-general issued a tweet. Neither did anything. The European Union (reports the Wall Street Journal) said it was too early to discuss any possible action. The timing of this brazen violation of NATO territory — two days after President Obama visited Estonia to symbolize America’s commitment to its...

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