Justice for Arafat Jaradat, Samer Issawi and all Palestinian hunger strikers

St. Paul, MN – On March 1, people of conscience gathered here during rush hour at a busy Saint Paul intersection, to show solidarity with hunger striking Palestinian political prisoners and to demand justice for Arafat Jaradat, who died Feb. 23 as a result of being tortured by Israeli security. Many passing cars honked in support of the protest.

Chicago, IL – An Israeli legal theorist and former officer in the Israel Defense Forces spoke Feb. 25 at the University of Chicago. Professor Amos Guiora helped provide the justifications for ‘targeted killing’ programs like the one pursued by the Obama administration. 40 protesters, including ten from the campus’ Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), turned out.

San Diego, CA – Four men from Somalia – Basaaly Saeed Moalin, Mohamed Mohamed Mohamud, Issa Doreh and Ahmed Nasiri Taalil Mohamud – accused of raising money to help the Somali resistance group al Shabaab, were convicted of material support for terrorism-related charges here, Feb. 22. The defendants are facing maximum sentences that range from between 65 to 80 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for May 16.

According to a Feb. 23 report published by Korean Central News Agency, an important leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) military told the commander of U.S. troops occupying south Korea to stop plans for the provocative military exercises that are scheduled for March 1.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following Feb. 10 statement from the Peace Delegation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC-EP). While the translation of the statement is imperfect, we think it will help readers better understand conditions in Colombia. Currently, negotiations between the FARC and the U.S.-backed Colombian government are taking place in Havana, Cuba. Prisons or human dumps?

USAID head Rajiv Shah visited Mogadishu, the capital city of Somalia, Feb. 21. There he met with the Western-backed president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. Despite U.S. claims of victory over the Islamist resistance group al-Shabaab, Shah never left the airport complex due to security concerns.

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah said in a Feb. 16 televised speech that Lebanese resistance forces are well equipped and would not tolerate any Israeli aggression.

In response to President Obama’s Feb. 12 announcement in his State of the Union address that about 34,000 troops will be pulled out of Afghanistan, the Afghan resistance responded on Feb. 13 saying that all foreign troops must leave the country.

According to a Feb. 12 report from the Korean Central News Agency, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) conducted another successful nuclear test.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following Feb. 4 statement from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine condemning Israel’s bombing raid on Syria: PFLP condemns Zionist attack on Syria

U.S. to back Japan in conflict

San José, CA – In the past few days, the Japanese government has accused China provoking Japanese navy ships near the Chinese Diaoyu Islands, which lie about 120 miles northeast of Taiwan. The new nationalist Japanese government is continuing to increase military tensions with China by sending naval forces and military aircraft to the islands, which are occupied by Japan, which calls them the Senkaku Islands. In addition, the U.S. still recognizes the Japanese occupation and says that it will back Japan militarily under the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Workers Party of Belgium (PTB) demands nationalization of steel sector in Liège

Fight Back New Service is circulating the following statement from the Workers Party of Belgium (PTB).

Numerous reports in the western press indicate that Israeli aircraft carried out bombing runs in Syria on the morning of Jan. 30.

New Orleans, LA – Students and community members confronted a pro-Israel rally titled “Declare Your Freedom” at the University of New Orleans (UNO) on Jan. 28. The event featured right-wing Zionist and notoriously anti-Arab speaker Daniel Pipes. About 30 young people were bused to the campus to support the Zionist rally.

Zimbabwe's two major political parties agreed to a new draft constitution Jan. 17. After nearly two years of deliberation, the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), reached an agreement that may replace the country's current constitution and pave the way for a presidential election later this year. This draft proposal will go before the Zimbabwean people for approval in a nationwide referendum later this year.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following January 25, 2013 statement by the Communist Party of the Philippines.

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) condemned the US military for its incursion into the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park in the Sulu Sea causing damage to the corals after the marooning of its naval warship within the wildlife protected area.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. A broad campaign is underway in Lebanon for the release of Georges Ibrahim Abdallah.

Washington, DC – State Department head Hillary Clinton announced Jan. 17 that the U.S. was extending formal recognition to the government of Somalia. The announcement took place during a visit of the Western-backed Somali president, Hassan Sheikh, to Washington D.C.