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Shaker Aamer waves to the camera in 2012 (Photo via Reprieve)

Outspoken Guantanamo Detainee Finally Walks Free, Years After Being Cleared Of Any Wrondoing

Archives for October 2015

American Claims Asylum In Canada Saying ‘Police Will Kill Me Because I’m Black’

Kyle Canty applies for refugee status claiming he risks brutality in the United States.

Telegraph
By Telegraph
Kyle Lydell Canty. Photo: CBS News

A black American man has applied for refugee status in Canada claiming he risks being killed by police in his home country because of his race. Kyle Lydell Canty, 30, filed a claim for asylum and told a hearing of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board that black people in America were "being exterminated at an alarming rate". To

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Israeli Police Repeatedly Raid East Jerusalem Hospital, Seeking Shot Teen

Hospital director accuses Israel of applying pressure to hand over medical files of youth involved in clashes.

Jason Ditz
By Jason Ditz
Police outside East Jerusalem's Makassed Hospital, October 29, 2015.Olivier Fitoussi

Israeli police have carried out multiple raids against a hospital in occupied East Jerusalem over the past two days, seeking the location of a 15-year-old Palestinian protester who they’d shot, and who they accuse the hospital of “unlawfully” hiding. The hospital denies the boy was ever there for treatment to begin with, but says that the police

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Report: Flood Of Western Weapons Fueling Unrest, Extremism Across Middle East

Transparency International warns: “Corruption has fueled political unrest, extremism, and formed a narrative for violent extremist groups.”

Sarah Lazare
By Sarah Lazare
ISIS fighters parade in a commandeered American Humvee taken from Iraqi security forces down a main road at the northern city of Mosul, Iraq (AP Photo)

Western nations—led by the United States—are selling large quantities of weapons to governments in the Middle East and North Africa, providing little oversight for how these arms are used, and thereby fueling corruption and conflict in countries from Saudi Arabia to Egypt, a new report (pdf) from the watchdog organization Transparency International

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EU Parliament Votes For Dropped Charges, Asylum Protection For Snowden

Resolution passed by European Parliament Thursday calls on member states to prevent whistleblower’s extradition, rendition.

Andrea Germanos
By Andrea Germanos
A sticker calling for asylum for Edward Snowden seen in Berlin. (Photo: Tony Webster/flickr/cc)

The European Parliament passed a resolution Thursday urging its nations to afford NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden protection. Passed by a 285 to 281 vote, the resolution calls on EU member states to "drop any criminal charges against Edward Snowden, grant him protection and consequently prevent extradition or rendition by third parties, in

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UPDATE: Federal Judge Grants Immunity To Texas Cop In ‘Accidental’ Shooting Death Of Larry Jackson

“This is a legal technicality that will allow a killer to walk free … It is one of the most horrendous moments in the history of civil rights in this country.”

Kit O'Connell
By Kit O'Connell
Larry Jackson Jr (left) was caught and shot by Charles Kleinert (right) after seeing him flee a bank. Photograph: Family photo; booking photo

Update October 30, 2015: Yesterday, a federal judge granted a form of prosecutorial immunity to Charles Kleinert, the police detective that shot and killed Larry Jackson, Jr, an unarmed black man, in Austin, Texas in 2013. U.S. District Court Judge Lee Yeakel ruled that because Kleinert was acting within his duties as a member of a FBI joint

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FBI Continues To Operate Spy-planes Without Warrants Despite Federal Rule Change

FBI Director Comey has brazenly admitted to Congress that his Bureau is actively subverting the Fourth Amendment as well as the Department of Justice when fielding these powerful surveillance tools.

Sam Richards | North Star Post
By Sam Richards | North Star Post
This FBI surveillance plane flew over the Twin Cities several times. Surveillance equipment and its power cord can be seen on the fuselage. Photo: John Zimmerman/Star Tribune

Updated on October 29th following revelations on surveillance technology capabilities. Follow Sam on Twitter. In a press release from September 3, the Department of Justice (DoJ) announced new "department-wide" rules for the operation of cell-site simulators such as the infamous Stingray device. These devices are commonplace during FBI

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