Below is a stunning report describing the Saudi slaughter in Yemen and the U.S. culpability in abetting this slaughter. This story is written by Andrew Cockburn, a good friend (caveat emptor: I am biased). Yemen has a population of almost 27 million, making it the seventh largest of the 22 Arab countries, exceeding the population of Syria (23 million). And as Andrew shows in excruciating detal, the slaughter in Yemen is on a par with that in Syria, Iraq, or Libya. Yet this catastrophe remains little known to the average American. Nevertheless, as Andrew also shows, the American government, acting in the name of the American people, is complicit in creating the Yemeni horror — while American arms manufacturers are reaping billions in profits and bureaucrats and generals are landing lucrative post retirement jobs. I urge readers to carefully study Andrew's devastating report. Chuck Spinney
The best answer I got came from Ted Lieu, a Democratic congressman from California who has been one of the few public officials to speak out about the devastation we were enabling far away. “Honestly,” he told me, “I think it’s because Saudi Arabia asked.”
Currently, Saleh v. Bush is on appeal before the Ninth Circuit. Ms. Saleh’s lawsuit in federal court against US government leaders named as Defendants — George W. Bush, Richard Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice and Paul Wolfowitz alleges that they were acting from personally held convictions that the US should invade Iraq, regardless of any legitimate policy reasons.
Relations between Russia and NATO are deteriorating. Kremlin foreign policy advisor Sergey Karaganov speaks with SPIEGEL about the risk of war, NATO's aggressive posturing and the West's inability to understand Russian values.
Senator Richard Black and Janice Kortkamp discuss the shameful situation in Syria, where the US government is actively arming and funding Al Nusra (Al Qaeda) and “conduits” (“moderates”), blending them together, and then using this model to exterminate the Syrian population.
A group of senior MPs is calling for a vote to decide whether Tony Blair is guilty of contempt of Parliament over his decision to invade Iraq in 2003.
Mr Davis said if his motion is accepted by Speaker John Bercow, it could be debated before Parliament breaks up for the summer on 21 July. He said if Mr Blair was found guilty it was unclear what actions would be taken but “the government could choose to strip him of his Privy Councillorship”.