COVID-19 Will Devastate Gaza Unless the Blockade Is Lifted Now
Jewish Voice for Peace | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-20
It's difficult enough to be in the U.S. during the COVID-19 outbreak. And when I think about the conditions in Gaza, I'm absolutely terrified for the Palestinians trapped there. | As of today, Israeli officials have only allowed 200 testing kits …
globalresearch.ca/covid-19-will-devastate-gaza-unless-blockade-lifted-now/5706878

Sanctions: Unilateral Coercive Measures for Regime Change in Venezuela
Nino Pagliccia | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-20
In discussing the issue of "sanctions" there are two main points that need to be made. One is the use of the correct terminology when referring to the government actions that the US, Canada and the EU take in order …
globalresearch.ca/sanctions-unilateral-coercive-measures-regime-change-venezuela/5706847

Expert: US sanctions on Iran, Venezuela during pandemic could be genocidal
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-20
Intensified US sanctions on Iran, Venezuela during the COVID-19 pandemic could amount to genocide, a former UN expert warns. Iran…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/20/expert-us-sanctions-on-iran-venezuela-during-pandemic-could-be-genocidal/

[Editorial] Peace and health in Afghanistan
The Lancet | thelancet.com | 2020-03-20
After years of war and political instability, Afghanistan is at a potentially historic crossroads. On Feb 29, 2020, a peace deal was agreed between the Taliban and the USA. The anticipated resumption of talks between the Afghan Government and the Taliban could signal a new phase, but what this means for the Afghan people is unclear. Weak health systems and disrupted access to health care have left many in poor health for decades, but since the fall of the Taliban some extraordinary gains in health have occurred.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30643-7/fulltext?rss=yes

IMF refuses aid to Venezuela in the midst of the Coronavirus crisis
Vijay Prashad | mronline.org | 2020-03-19
On March 16, 2020, the chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva wrote a blog post on the Fund's website; it represents the kind of generosity necessary in the midst of a global pandemic. "The IMF stands ready to mobilize its $1 trillion lending capacity to help our membership," she wrote. | Source…
mronline.org/2020/03/19/imf-refuses-aid-to-venezuela-in-the-midst-of-the-coronavirus-crisis/

Cargo Arrives in Venezuela With Medical Aid From China
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-19
A special medicine and medical supplies shipment arrived in Venezuela from China on Thursday, March 19th, as the Asian nation continues to provide assistance to the Bolivarian Republic. . | RELATED: | Twitter Restricts Profiles of Venezuelan Officials | Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela, announced that the cargo arrived and assured it would allow thousands to be tested for possible Covid-19 cases and diagnose the positive ones. | The mandatary explained that so f…
telesurenglish.net/news/cargo-arrives-in-venezuela-with-medical-aid-from-china-20200319-0014.html

Colombia: Senators Ask Duque for More Decision to Halt Covid-19
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-19
More than 60 Colombian lawmakers and senators Thursday asked President Ivan Duque to take more forceful measures in the face of the health emergency caused by the Covid-19. | RELATED: | Colombian and Venezuelan Ombudsmen Unite Against COVID-19 | They argued that while reconnecting water to thousands of homes is fine, Colombians need four things that the government is not doing. | Mandatory isolation is the most effective measure. However, for people to stay at home, the government mu…
telesurenglish.net/news/Colombia-Senators-Ask-Duque-for-More-Decision-to-Halt-Covid-19-20200319-0008.html

Economists Demand Trump Immediately Lift Iran, Cuba, Venezuela Sanctions
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-19
A group of economists and policy experts on Wednesday called on President Donald Trump to immediately lift the United States' crippling sanctions against Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, and other countries, warning that the economic warfare

Women plough the way to peace in South Sudan resettlement project
news.un.org | 2020-03-18
Women who had been displaced by fighting in South Sudan are sowing seeds of peace, with support from the UN mission in the country, UNMISS.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/03/1059712

IMF rejects Venezuela coronavirus loan request over U.S. claims Maduro isn't president
Morning Star | peoplesworld.org | 2020-03-18
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has rejected Venezuela's request for a $5 billion emergency support package to help strengthen the country's health system in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak. President Nicolas Maduro wrote to the global financial organization earlier this week asking for support as the country struggles to cope with crippling U.S. economic …
peoplesworld.org/article/imf-rejects-venezuela-coronavirus-loan-request-over-u-s-claims-maduro-isnt-president/

Stop Tightening the Thumb Screws: A Humanitarian Message
Kathy Kelly | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-18
Protester's sign decries sanctions, "a silent war" (Photo Credit: Campaign for Peace and Democracy, 2013) U.S. sanctions against Iran, cruelly strengthened in March of 2018, continue a collective punishment of extremely vulnerable people. Presently, the U.S. "maximum pressure" policy severely undermines Iranian efforts to cope with the ravages of COVID-19, causing hardship and tragedy while …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/stop-tightening-the-thumb-screws-a-humanitarian-message/

US ramps up sanctions devastating Venezuela's health sector as coronavirus spreads
Leonardo Flores | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-17
Promising to "smash" Venezuela's government during a "maximum pressure March," Trump has imposed crushing sanctions that force Venezuela to spend…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/17/us-sanctions-venezuelas-health-sector-coronavirus/

Venezuela: American Teamsters tour printing factory
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-03-17
Maracay, Venezuela

Central African Republic: UN peacekeeper killed; Mission deplores 'heinous act'
news.un.org | 2020-03-16
A United Nations peacekeeper from Burundi was killed on Sunday while attempting to stop an armed militant attack in the Central African Republic (CAR), according to a statement released by the UN Mission in the country, MINUSCA.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/03/1059492

Corporate Media Condone Destruction of Venezuela's Voting Machines
Lucas Koerner | fair.org | 2020-03-15
The vast majority of Venezuela's voting machines were incinerated on March 7 in a fire that engulfed the main warehouse of the National Electoral Council. Corporate outlets followed the familiar script of blaming the victim, repeating the US State Department talking point that the Venezuelan electoral system is "rigged" and floating outlandish conspiracy theories.
fair.org/home/corporate-media-condone-destruction-of-venezuelas-voting-machines/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=corporate-media-condone-destruction-of-venezuelas-voting-machines

Latest U.S. Military Strikes Are as Reckless as they are Cruel
Lilly Dragnev | peaceaction.org | 2020-03-13
Washington, D.C.

No, Venezuela does not have a six child per family policy
Joe Emersberger | zcomm.org | 2020-03-13
I respect UK journalist Andrew Buncombe. As I noted for FAIR last year, he was one of the few corporate journalists who reported on a study linking Trump's financial sanctions on Venezuela to thousands of deaths by the end of 2018. Since 2018, Trump has repeatedly intensified the sanctions and threatened Venezuela with military action, Read…
zcomm.org/zblogs/no-venezuela-does-not-have-a-six-child-per-family-policy/

Congress Sends Bipartisan Bill to Trump Rebuking Iran War
Paul Kawika Martin | peaceaction.org | 2020-03-11
Washington, D.C.

Can the World's Second Superpower Rise From the Ashes of Twenty Years of War?
Medea Benjamin | zcomm.org | 2020-03-02
If there is a lesson for peace-loving Americans in the Obama and Trump presidencies, it is that we cannot just walk out of the voting booth and leave it to a champion in the White House to end our wars and bring us peace. In the final analysis, it really is up to us…
zcomm.org/zmagazine/can-the-worlds-second-superpower-rise-from-the-ashes-of-twenty-years-of-war/