Recruiting to Kill
It Is Not Just an Israeli War on Gaza

By Ramzy Baroud

The list of participating countries is growing as is the number of those suspected war criminals fighting and killing in the name of Israel. Continue

The Experts’ Verdict
Every Israeli Missile Strike is a War Crime

By Jonathan Cook

Some 95% of the 64 Israelis who have been killed during the current fighting are soldiers; some 75% of the nearly 1,500 Palestinians who have been killed are civilian. Continue

Israel Uses Palestinians As Human Shields But US Lawmakers Condemn Hamas

By Rania Khalek

Israel was condemned by the United Nations as recently as last year for its “continuous use of Palestinian children as human shields and informants.” Continue

Gaza: West's Weasel Words

By John Hilley

The US has 'condemned' Israel's bombing of the UN school. Predictably, their short, strangled words have been matched by precisely no political action against Israel. Continue

American Media's New Pro-Israel Bias

By Chris McGreal

Why does TV news look like a Netanyahu ad? Continue

Gaza, Ukraine and the Fraud of “Human Rights” Imperialism

By Bill Van Auken

Today’s human rights imperialism makes the old “white man’s burden” of colonialism’s heyday seem like a noble cause by comparison. Continue

US, EU Push Russia Toward War

By Finian Cunningham

The latest sanctions attacking Russia are like a gun being pointed at Putin's head. Continue

The Causes of World War III

By Margaret Kimberley

“Malaysian airlines flight MH17 may be the Lusitania of the modern era.” Continue

The West’s Reckless Rush Towards War With Russia

By Paul Craig Roberts

The threat to life on earth has never been as great as it is at this time. Continue

China, America, and a New Cold War in Africa?

By Nick Turse

Is the Conflict in South Sudan the Opening Salvo in the Battle for a Continent? Continue

CIA Admits It Broke Into Senate Computers
Senators Call For Spy Chief’s Ouster

By Jonathan S. Landay and Ali Watkins

“The CIA unconstitutionally spied on Congress by hacking into Senate Intelligence Committee computers. This grave misconduct not only is illegal, but it violates the U.S. Constitution’s requirement of separation of powers. Continue

Argentina Must Not Follow NY Court’s Dictated Path to Bankruptcy

By Peter Koenig

Criminally behaving Vulture funds can buy a judge in New York to rule the unrulable for them. Continue

40 killed in Gaza as truce crumbles: Some two hours after the truce went into effect, Israeli tanks and artillery opened fire in the southern Rafah area, and a local hospital said 40 people were killed.

Gaza fighting resumes despite ceasefire deal: Twenty-five people killed in tank shelling, medics say, hours after 72-hour truce between Hamas and Israel began.

Gaza death toll surpasses that of Cast Lead as count hits 1,437: In the most recent lethal Israeli attack, an airstrike hit the al-Bayoumi family home in al-Nusairat refugee camp, killing at least 11 Palestinians and injuring at least 45.

Three-day ceasefire begins in Gaza Strip: The truce started at 8am local time (05:00 GMT) on Friday, just hours after 14 more Palestinians were reported killed by Israeli tank and air fire in the coastal enclave.

Public relations exercise: White House: Little doubt Israeli fire in Gaza school strike: "The shelling of a UN facility that is housing innocent civilians who are fleeing violence is totally unacceptable and totally indefensible," Earnest said.

IDF Sniper Admits On Instagram To Murdering 13 Gaza Children: An Instagram post by an Israel Defense Forces sniper boasts of murdering 13 Gazan children in one day.

UN says illegal Gaza blockade must be lifted: UN officials condemn Israeli attacks and warn of humanitarian crisis amid 440,000 displaced and lack of basic services

Norman G. Finkelstein: HRW Whitewashes Israel, The Law Supports Hamas: Analysis: Some Reflections on Israel’s Latest Massacre

Dissent is quieted with most Israelis behind Gaza war: A near-consensus in Israel supports the government’s conduct of the attack on the people of Gaza, views Hamas as the aggressor and considers outsiders’ moralizing as hypocritical

Donations to Israeli occupation force troops overflowing : The wave of donations to Israeli soldiers has led the army to clarify procedures: Soldiers are not allowed to request or accept donations to themselves or a military unit.

Robert Fisk: The world is starting to turn against Israel: Analysis: There was a time when our politicians and media had one principal fear when covering Middle East wars: that no one should ever call them anti-Semitic.

Bolivia declares Israel a terrorist state: Bolivia on Wednesday renounced a visa exemption agreement with Israel in protest over its offensive in Gaza, and declared it a terrorist state.

Syria Kurdish-jihadist battle kills 49: NGO: A fierce battle between Syrian Kurds and Islamic State jihadists has killed nearly 50 fighters from both sides as the Kurds seized several IS positions

Anti-government militants kill at least 13 government soldiers in Aleppo: Anti-government militants detonated explosives emplaced in two tunnels running near an old police station underneath the city of Aleppo in Syria's Aleppo governorate

28 Iraqis killed, 49 injured in car bombs, petrol station fire: A car bomb went off in a fuel station in Al-Sadr City, killing 20 people and injuring 23, said a source from the Baghdad Operational Command.

Hezbollah man killed on 'jihad duty' in Iraq: A Hezbollah commander has been killed on "jihad duty" in Iraq, the group's TV channel has said, indicating the Lebanese group that is already fighting in Syria's civil war may be involved in a second front in the region.

Iraqi Shi'ite militias use hit lists to pick off foes - police: Iraqi Shi'ite militias have drawn up hit lists of suspected Sunni insurgents to be kidnapped, executed and hung in public, security and police officials said, raising the stakes in a sectarian war tearing the country apart.

22 Killed in Central Africa Fighting: Peacekeepers: At least 22 people were killed in clashes between rival anti-balaka and Seleka militias in the Central African Republic this week, African peacekeepers said on Friday.

Libya descends into 'hurricane': Three years ago, Zintani and Misratan rebel brigades descended simultaneously on Tripoli from east and west to storm the palaces of Muammar Gaddafi. Now, fighters from the two towns are waging open war in the capital.

Filipinos told to leave Libya after beheading: Foreign secretary dispatched to oversee evacuation of 13,000 nationals after man was beheaded and nurse gang-raped

Libya hospitals face collapse if Asian staff flee: Libya has warned of a "total collapse" of its health care system as the chaos plaguing the country threatens to send into flight many of the Filipino and Indian staff on whom its hospitals depend.

Kenyan leader orders seizure of coastal zone: President orders repossession of 2,000 square kilometres of land in Lamu County which he says was acquired "dubiously".

Ukraine Says 20 Serviceman Killed in Rebel Attack: Military officials said a paratrooper unit had come under mortar and tank fire near the town of Shakhtarsk, in the region where a Malaysian airliner was brought down on July 17

Ukraine MH17: Air crash investigators get to work: They arrived in a convoy with Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) monitors and began setting up a base in a farm.

Argentina blames US mediator for debt default: Cabinet Chief Jorge Capitanich said his country was considering opening proceedings at international tribunals in The Hague after it was declared to be in technical default.

US Killed 350 civilians in Pakistan: : The United Kingdom-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism has been able to record the names of more than 700 people reportedly killed by the CIA-operated drones in Pakistan and nearly half of them are stated to be civilians.

40pc of weapons sent to Afghanistan are unaccounted for: Over the past decade, the Pentagon has provided what the report describes as more than 747,000 weapons and auxiliary equipment to the Afghan National Security Forces at a cost of $626 million.

Data stored overseas should be accessible to US government, judge rules: ?A federal judge in New York City sided with the United States government on Thursday and said that Microsoft must comply with a search warrant compelling the corporation to surrender customer data it stores overseas.

State Dept: 'No American is proud' of CIA tactics: The State Department has endorsed, a report that accuses the agency of brutally treating terror suspects and misleading Congress, according to a White House document.

Dow Plunges 317 Points, Wipes Out 2014 Gains: U.S. stocks sustained heavy losses on Thursday as traders ditched a wide swath of assets, leading the blue-chip average to hit the flat-line for 2014.

‘Americans Are So Broke…’: Did you know that 77 million Americans have unpaid debts that are "in collections" and that Congress is actually thinking about letting post offices offer payday loans?

Severe drought in California spreading at unprecedented rate: The recent study published by the US Drought Monitor noted that 58 percent of California is experiencing “exceptional drought,” which is the most serious category on the agency’s five-level scale.

July 31, 2014

US Complicit In Gaza Slaughter
Supplies Israel With Bombs Amid Gaza Blitz

By Al Jazeera and Agencies

Pentagon says Israel allowed to tap local US arms stockpile in past week to resupply it with grenades and mortar rounds. Continue

Video Documents the Killing of Journalist Ramy Ryan by Israeli/US Missiles

Warning: Graphic Video

A graphic video showing the killing of journalist Ramy Ryan in Gaza and an attack on an ambulance and rescue workers, by Israeli air strikes. Continue

Israel Lobby Galvanises Support for Gaza War

By Mitchell Plitnick

Israel’s enemies are our enemies. As long as I’m Speaker, this will be our cause.” John Boehner. Continue

The Blood of Palestine is on the Hands of the Bribe-Takers

Video

The blood of the thousands of Palestinians who have been killed by the so-called Israel Defence Forces, stains the hands of each and every politician who has taken any kind of bribe to bolster his or her election-campaign coffers. Continue

"A Slaughter of Innocents"
Henry Siegman, Leading Voice of U.S. Jewry, on Gaza

Video and Transcript

"The Zionist dream is based on the repeated slaughter of innocents on a scale that we’re watching these days on television, that is really a profound, profound crisis" Continue

Who's Profiting from Israel's Offensive in Gaza?:

Video

Israel continues to reject Hamas's offer of a ten-year ceasefire because it would undermine Israeli arms sales, which reached $7 billion in 2012. Continue

An Israeli Terrorist Is The Same As A Syrian One

By Robert Fisk

Is the British Government taking as close an interest in those who have been fighting in Israeli uniform in Gaza in the past couple of weeks. Continue

So, What Did The Muslims Do For The Jews?

By David J Wasserstein

Had Islam not come along, Jewry in the west would have declined to disappearance and Jewry in the east would have become just another oriental cult. Continue

Vladimir Putin on US Sanctions and Ukraine

Video – English Subs

Vladimir Putin on US Sanctions and Ukraine, right after his return from the South America Trip. Continue

Are You Ready For Nuclear War?

By David North and Alex Lantier

Anyone who believes that a nuclear war is impossible because modern governments, unlike those that were in power in 1914, would not risk catastrophe, is deluding himself. Continue

Postcard from the End of America: Tri-Cities

By Linh Dinh

Since most Americans won’t bend over and sweat bullets under a hellish sun for such chump change, 78% of our crop workers are foreign-born, with over half of them illegal immigrants. Continue

Peter Schiff and Doug Casey on the REAL State of the Economy

By Doug Casey

Actually the US government is like a predator stalking us on the African plains. Continue

Gaza: 130 were killed and 400 injured on Wednesday: The total death toll had surpassed 1,360 and 7,677 injured. The bodies of 20 Palestinians were recovered from the rubble of destroyed buildings in the northern Gaza Strip on Wednesday evening.

UN Chief: Israeli attack on Gaza school 'unjustifiable': UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned an Israeli strike on a Gaza school that killed 16 people as "unjustifiable" Wednesday, calling for those responsible to be held to account.

UNRWA spokesman breaks down on air: Video - “The rights of Palestinians, even their children, are wholesale denied, and it’s appalling,” Gunness pauses, clears his throat, says “my pleasure,” and proceeds to sob uncontrollably as the camera darts away.

U.S. resupplies Israel with munitions for attack on the people of Gaza : Separately, U.S. lawmakers were working in Congress to provide millions of dollars in additional funding for Israel's "Iron Dome" missile shield.

Video of Assassination of Journalist Ramy Ryan by Israeli forces : Video -

Lord Haw Haw - Video: Mark Regev, deciphered: The video was created by Alex Nunns, who subtitled a BBC interview with Israeli spokesperson Mark Regev.

Israeli military calls up 16,000 more reserve soldiers: Hagel reiterates support for Israel's right to defend itself; U.S. agrees to Israeli request for ammunition

Bravo! Bolivia declares Israel a terrorist state: Bolivia on Wednesday renounced a visa exemption agreement with Israel in protest over its offensive in Gaza, and declared it a terrorist state.

Attack kills 63 in Syria, activists say: At least 63 people, including eleven children and six women, were killed in air and ground operations across Syria on Wednesday by government forces, opposition activists say.

Syria Kurds battle jihadists killing nearly 50: A fierce battle between Syrian Kurds and Islamic State jihadists has killed nearly 50 fighters from both sides as the Kurds seized several IS positions, a monitoring group said Thursday.

4 killed, 5 injured in Aleppo: A mortar shelling targeting residential neighborhoods in the Syrian city of Aleppo killed 4 and injured 5 ethnic Armenians on Wednesday, July 30.

Video shows US suicide bomber burning his passport as he warns Americans: 'You think you're safe where you are, in America or Britain or Indonesia or Jordan or China or Russie or Somalia or Africa?

Shi'ite militia hangs up 15 executed Sunnis in Iraqi square: Iraqi Shi'ite militia forces executed 15 Sunni Muslims and then hung them from electricity poles in a public square in the town of Baquba, northeast of Baghdad, on Wednesday, police said.

75 bodies found in Benghazi: In Libya's second city, Benghazi, at least 75 bodies, mostly soldiers, were found after two days of fighting in which Islamist fighters and allied militiamen overran an army base.

Islamists declare ‘Islamic emirate’ in east Libya: Libya’s Islamist militant group Ansar al-Sharia has said that it seized complete control of Benghazi late on Wednesday, declaring the city an “Islamic emirate,” the group’s representative said.

Libya Is Fast Following Somalia's Road to Ruin : Analysis: With Gaza, Ukraine and Iraq dominating the news, nobody is paying much attention to the violence in Tripoli that is swiftly tipping Libya over the edge.

Somali woman killed for not wearing veil, relatives say : Militant Islamists in Somalia have shot dead a Muslim woman for refusing to wear a veil, her relatives say.

Iraq and Libya were better off under leaders toppled by an arrogant and naive West":The largely untold story of the persecuted Iraqi Christian minority is especially shaming for those avowedly Christian leaders, George W. Bush and Tony Blair, who were responsible for the invasion of Iraq.

Afghan police kill 25 "militants" : Units of Afghan police backed by the army have killed more than two dozen Taliban militants, during series of operations across the country over the past 24 hours, a statement of Ministry of Interior released today.

Three civilians killed, another seven injured in Luhansk over past 24 hours: Three civilians have been killed and another seven have been injured in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, over the past 24 hours as a result of continuing fighting,

Ukraine army closes in on Donetsk: Government forces said in a statement on Wednesday that they had seized control of Avdiyivka, a town of about 40,000 about a dozen kilometres north of Donetsk, as Ukraine tightened its grip around the key rebel bastion.

Some Ukrainian rebels vent frustration with Putin: Squeezed by the Ukrainian army into their last two strongholds, the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, the rebels complain they are outnumbered and outgunned.

Foreign experts reach MH17 jet crash site: International experts have reached the site of the flight MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine after the government halted military operations for a day.

Dem chairman breaks with Obama, endorses lethal aid for Ukraine: The chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday said the U.S. should provide “certain types” of lethal weapons to Ukraine’s military.

Merkel and Putin discussed secret deal could end Ukraine crisis: Germany and Russia have been working on a secret plan to broker a peaceful solution to end international tensions over the Ukraine.

Russia fears Kiev trying to destroy implicating MH17 evidence: Kiev authorities may be seeking to “destroy evidence” which implicates their role in the crash of the Malaysian jet, Russia's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin said

Foreign Secretary Warns Russian Sanctions "Will Hit UK Economy": London will likely be hit hardest among the EU powers because of its intimate financial relationship with Moscow and we are already seeing UK home prices fall as oligarch flows slow.

Russia-Ukraine tensions pose credit default risks: IMF: Hit by US and European Union economic sanctions against Moscow, Russian businesses in particular could see financing and revenue dry up, pushing them to fall behind in servicing debts.

Argentina Declared in Default by S&P as Talks Fail: Standard & Poor’s declared Argentina in default after the government missed a deadline for paying interest on $13 billion of restructured bonds.

Studies suggest there will be a worldwide water shortage by 2040: Research suggest there won't be enough water to hydrate the Earth's population while sustaining current energy and power solutions by the time 2040 rolls around, according to Denmark's Aarhaus University.

Stanford biologist warns of early stages of Earth's 6th mass extinction event: An international team of scientists cautions that the loss and decline of animals is contributing to what appears to be the early days of the planet's sixth mass biological extinction event.

The Drug War, the Fourth Amendment, and Anal Cavity Searches in New Mexico : Video - The program tells the story of Timothy Young, a man who was pulled over in Lordsburg, New Mexico, for a traffic violation in October 2012.

July 30, 2014

Barbaric War Crimes
Israel’s Campaign to Send Gaza Back to the Stone Age

By Jesse Rosenfeld

As a doctor rushed from taking shrapnel out of a man’s back over to a 4-year-old boy screaming in pain, the lights flickered. And that was before the power plant was hit. Continue

Is Killing Civilians Part Of Israel’s Plan?

By Jonathan Cook

Keep them preoccupied with the essentials of life rather than demanding, or fighting, for their rights. Continue

Terrorism in the Israeli Attack on Gaza

By Glenn Greenwald

In American media discourse, when Palestinians overwhelmingly kill soldiers (95% of the Israeli death toll), that is “terrorism”; when Israelis use massive, brutal force against a trapped civilian population, with clear intentions to kill civilians (see point 3), that is noble “self-defense.” Continue

U.S. Lawmakers Pressing Obama
Take No Action To Halt Israel's Attack On Gaza

By BRADLEY KLAPPER

While much of the rest of the world watches the Gaza war in horror and scrambles for a cease-fire, U.S. lawmakers are pressing the Obama administration to take no action that puts pressure on Israel to halt its military operations. Continue

Israel Right or Wrong
But What's In It For Americans?

By Philip Giraldi

It is a familiar scenario. Israeli is killing hundreds of civilians, mostly women and children, and the Zionist propaganda machine is working overtime. Continue

On The Wrong Side Of History
Ex-Israeli Soldier Speaks Out…

Video

An Israeli Soldier's Story - Eran Efrati - What he says will change everything you think you know about Israel! Continue

Deconstructing the Zionist View of Gaza’s Horror

By Lawrence Davidson

Hamas and the other Palestinian fighting groups, even at their most bloody, are pale reflections of the armies that have slaughtered millions of Vietnamese, Iraqis, and Afghanis. Continue

The Moral Failure Of The West

By Paul Craig Roberts

One would think that the Great Moral West would be discussing sanctions on Israel and on Washington’s stooge government in Kiev. Continue

Crime (Israel) and Punishment (Russia)

By Pepe Escobar

Israel gets away with unlawful premeditated mass murder of civilians, while Russia gets framed for a (smaller-scale) airborne mass murder of civilians. Continue

On Dominoes, WMDs And Putin’s “Aggression”
Imperial Washington Is Intoxicated By Another Big Lie

By David Stockman

Imperial Washington is truly running amuck in its insensible confrontation with Vladimir Putin. Continue

The Cultivation of Hate
The Lies Grow More Audacious

By Paul Craig Roberts

Why doesn’t China, Brazil, Germany and every other country issue arrest warrants for NSA’s top officials, for Obama, and for the members of the congressional oversight committee?  Continue

Who is blocking MH17 probe? Why?

By Finian Cunningham

Putin is not bowing down to its dictate, not kowtowing to its bullying for hegemony. Continue

Obama Should Release Ukraine Evidence

By U.S. Intelligence Veterans

U.S. intelligence veterans urge President Obama to release what evidence he has about the tragedy and silence the hyperbole. Continue

U.S. Holds the World Record of Killings of Innocent Civilians

By Prof. John McMurtry and Kourosh Ziabari

The U.S. government is a gigantic mass-murdering machine which earns profit through waging wars, and is never held accountable over its unspeakable war crimes and crimes against humanity. Continue

Death toll soars to over 1,200 amid talk of truce: Over 120 Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes on Tuesday. A top PLO official, said that Palestinian factions in Gaza had agreed to a day-long humanitarian truce.

Official: Israeli Shells kill 20 at Gaza U.N. school: A Palestinian health official says 13 people were killed after tank shells hit a U.N. school in Gaza where hundreds of Palestinians had taken refuge from Israeli attacks.

I strongly condemn today's Israeli shelling of UNRWA school in Jabalia Gaza. : Commissioner-General UNRWA : No words to adequately express my anger and indignation.

13 members of extended family killed in Gaza strikes: Thirteen family members of the al-Agha family were killed early in the day in Israeli airstrikes targeting three houses in Khan Younis belonging to the al-Agha family.

Qassam fighters 'infiltrate Israel, kill Israeli soldier': Video - A video aired on the Hamas-affiliated al-Aqsa TV station late Tuesday purports to show fighters from its military wing infiltrating Israel and killing a soldier.

Israel has completely destroyed 5,000 Gaza homes, damaged 26,000: Ministry spokesman in Gaza Ashraf al-Qidra said that a total of 4,987 homes have been completely destroyed by Israeli shelling and airstrikes in the last 22 days.

U.S. lawmakers falling over themselves to throw full support behind Israel : "At times like this, people try to isolate Israel," House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Monday. "We are here to stand with Israel, not just as a broker or observer but as a strong partner and a trusted ally.

Israeli Official To Obama: ‘Leave Us Alone’: “Leave us alone,” Ariel told Army Radio, directing his words at Obama. “Go focus on Syria.”

Video: If you voted for Hamas, Israel has a right to kill you, says president of NY Board of Rabbis: The president of the NY Board of Rabbis, suggested that Palestinians who voted for Hamas are combatants who deserve to be targeted by Israel. He said:

Turkey's Erdogan returning Jewish American peace award: Jewish American group asks for the prize back, labels Turkey's prime minister as 'arguably the most virulent anti-Israel leader in the world.'

Norman Finkelstein arrested in New York: The well-known American anti-Zionist intellectual and activist, Norman Finkelstein was arrested today in NY, during pro-Palestine rally.

Man from Newfoundland wants Prime Minister Charged for Advocating Genocide against The Palestinians! Makes one proud to be a Canadian!!

The Islamic State Killing Fields: Terror group releases horrifying video: The film shows hundreds of men with their hands bound, waiting to be shot or lying dead

Shock and terror: Islamic State boasts mass executions in Iraq (GRAPHIC): As part of their psychological war to create a medieval-style caliphate, the Islamic State has released a new shocking video showing scenes of mass executions

U.S. Approves More Hellfire Missiles for Iraq: The U.S. government has approved plans to send an additional 5,000 Hellfire missiles to Iraq to help the embattled Baghdad government

Syrian rebels detonate tunnels, kill 13: Rebels detonated bomb-packed tunnels under buildings in the contested northern city of Aleppo on Tuesday, killing at least 13 pro-government troops, opposition activists said.

At least 30 killed as Libyan militants overrun Benghazi special forces base: Militant fighters overran a Libyan special forces base in the eastern city of Benghazi on Tuesday after a battle involving rockets and warplanes that killed at least 30 people.

French, British nationals evacuated from Libya: - The French government says it has evacuated French and British nationals from Libya, as battles rage between government forces and militias, BBC News reported.

Libya ex-deputy PM kidnapped in Tripoli: An armed group abducted a former Libyan deputy prime minister and newly-elected MP, Mustapha Abu Shagur, in the capital Tripoli on Tuesday, his nephew said.

Egypt military kills 7 militants in volatile Sinai: The troops killed three militants in an exchange of fire while four others died when a group tried to attack a house of in the border town of Rafah

Deaths reported in Egypt bomb blast: Three people have been killed in a car-bomb blast in Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, according to Egyptian state media.

Suicide bombers kill at least six in Nigeria mosques: Suicide bombers have attacked two mosques in northeast Nigeria's Yobe state killing at least six people and injuring several others, witnesses told AFP blaming the Boko Haram Islamists.

20 dead, dozens missing in shipwreck off Libya : "A navy patrol on Monday rescued 22 clandestine migrants who were clinging to debris from their boat," spokesman Colonel Ayoub Kassem told AFP yesterday, adding that more than 20 bodies were plucked from the water.

House panel condemns Obama for prisoner swap: A bitterly divided House panel on Tuesday voted to condemn President Barack Obama for the swap of five "Taliban leaders" for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was held prisoner in Afghanistan for five years.
 

19 killed in E. Ukraine region: Officials in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine say 19 people have died in fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists.

Ukraine army employs short-range ballistic missiles against rebels in E Ukraine: The USA has data indicating the Ukrainian security forces have employed short-range ballistic missiles against the rebels over the past 48 hours.

Russia Grants Refugee Status to 233,000 Ukrainians – Russian Ombudsman: 66 regions of the Russian Federation are receiving refugees from Ukraine. The number of officially registered refugees now stands at 233,114 people, including 34,503 children

EU and US impose new round of sanctions on Russia over Ukraine: Establish an export ban for dual use goods for military end users and curtail Russian access to sensitive technologies particularly in the field of the oil sector.”

Australia Rules out New Sanctions Against Russia: Abbott said he was not considering following the United States and European Union by increasing sanctions aimed at pressuring Putin into ending his country's support for the separatists.

'Compelling' signs Kosovo leaders trafficked organs, prosecutor says: A special European Union prosecutor said Tuesday that up to ten captives were killed to have their organs harvested for illegal trafficking and black market sale during the 1998-99 Kosovo war.

War criminal: Last surviving Hiroshima bomber dies in US: Van Kirk navigated the flight that dropped "Little Boy" on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The bomb instantly killed about 78,000 people. By the end of 1945, the number of dead had reached about 140,000

NSA Surveillance Chilling Effects: HRW and ACLU Gather More Evidence: The HRW and ACLU report documents the increasing treatment of journalists and lawyers as legitimate surveillance targets and surveys how they are responding.

The NSA's Cyber-King Goes Corporate: Here's why Keith Alexander thinks he's worth a million dollars a month.

US Tech Companies Reel as NSA's Spying Tarnishes Reputations: U.S. technology companies are in danger of losing more business to foreign competitors if the National Security Agency’s power to spy on customers isn’t curbed

Australia bans reporting of multi-nation corruption case involving Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam: The supression order forbids any discloures, by publication or otherwise, of any information relating to the court case by anyone, including the Australian media

Private militias patrolling US-Mexico border raise concerns: There are more than 10 independently operated private militia groups patrolling the border between Texas and Mexico, ignoring calls from Customs and Border Patrol to back off and inviting criticism from local lawmakers.