(2024-02-09). Colombia's exports to Venezuela grew 6.5 percent. plenglish.com According to a press release from the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, of the total in value, 95 percent corresponded to non-mining energy goods, or 640.2 million dollars, for a growth of 6.3 percent compared to 2022. | Through all borders, airports and ports, 370,090 tons were dispatched, a growth of 8.4 percent in volume of goods, the statement added. | Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism Germán Umaña emphasized that we are moving forward in a purposeful and positive way in the process of reestablishing our relationship with Venezuela. | "We have the deepening of the Partial Scope Trade Agree…
(2024-02-09). Senate Votes to Deliberate on $95 Billion Foreign Military Aid Bill. news.antiwar.com The Senate on Thursday voted to begin deliberations on a $95 billion foreign military aid bill that stripped out border spending that was in the original $118 billion piece of legislation, which the chamber voted down on Wednesday. The Senate voted 67-32 to take up the new bill, signaling that it will get the 60 …
(2024-02-09). What's Next for Gazans? counterpunch.org 
After four months of IDF bombardment, the uprooted Palestinians now inhabit makeshift tents near the Rafah border. At the same time, the Israeli military has begun to bomb Rafah refugee camps and hospitals, raising a death toll that has already reached more than 27,000 mostly women and children (not including the thousands lying dead under the rubble of bombed-out buildings).
(2024-02-09). Israel bombs Gaza's Rafah, US warns of potential 'disaster'. newarab.com 
Israel conducted fresh strikes on southern Gaza's overcrowded border town of Israeli Prime Minister
(2024-02-09). Saudi Arabia refuses to normalize relations with Israel without an independent Palestinian state. pressenza.com Saudi Arabia told the US that it will not resume diplomatic relations with Israel unless an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders is recognized, the Arab country's foreign ministry said on Wednesday."The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's position has always been firm on the Palestinian issue and the need for the brotherly Palestinian people to obtain their legitimate rights. The Kingdom has conveyed its firm position to the US administration that there will be no diplomatic relations with Israel until the recognition of an independent Palestinian state […] with East Jerusalem as its capital, as well as the…
(2024-02-08). Senate Votes Down $118 Billion Military Aid and Border Bill. news.antiwar.com The Senate on Wednesday voted down the $118 billion military and border bill as Republican leadership came out against the legislation before the vote. The bill needed 60 votes to pass and failed in a vote of 49-50. Only four Republicans voted in favor of the legislation, and only five Democrats voted against it. Senate …
(2024-02-08). Israeli media: Rocket sirens sound in Sderot, Gaza border settlements. english.almanar.com.lb 
(2024-02-08). Hezbollah, Israel Trade Strikes Along Lebanon Border. news.antiwar.com Israel carried out drone strikes in the city of Nabatiyeh in southern Lebanon, reportedly badly wounding a Hezbollah commander and starting a string of tit-for-tat firefights with Hezbollah, which raises concerns of further escalation in the ongoing conflict at Israel's northern border. Hezbollah responded to the strike with a flurry of rocket fire against northern …
(2024-02-08). oPt: Gaza: In four months of war, Palestinian journalism has been decimated with impunity. reliefweb.int Country: occupied Palestinian territory | Source: Reporters sans Frontières | The toll of four months of war in Gaza on journalism is nothing short of horrifying: Palestinian journalists killed, wounded, and prevented from working without any possibility of safe refuge. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) strongly condemns the eradication of journalism and the right to information in Gaza by the Israeli army, and calls on States and international organisations to increase pressure on Israel to immediately cease this carnage. | In 124 days of conflict, at least 84 journalists have been killed in Gaza, including at…
(2024-02-08). Senate Rejects Deal Threatening Protections for Asylum Seekers. aclu.org 
The Senate voted on Wednesday against a bill that would have been the first major overhaul of asylum and immigration law in a generation — and would have been a disastrous retreat from basic principles of fairness. As our elected leaders continue to debate immigration reforms, they must instead advance humane and sensible solutions that help manage the border without compromising our nation's values and the safety of people fleeing danger. | Although branded as a compromise bipartisan "border security" package, this bill would have been a major rewrite of our nation's long-standing asylum laws. To make m…
(2024-02-08). Headlines for February 8, 2024. democracynow.org Truce Talks Continue in Egypt, Humanitarian Catastrophe Continues in Gaza as Netanyahu Rejects Ceasefire Proposal, 6-Year-Old Gazan Girl and 2 Rescue Workers Remain Missing 10 Days After Last Signs of Life, Palestinian American Woman Samaher Esmail Missing After Being Taken by IDF, U.S. Strike in Iraq Kills Senior Figure of Kata'ib Hezbollah, Hundreds Protest Biden in NYC, Arms and Military Sites in Chicago and California, Senate Delays Border Measure After GOP U-Turn; Schumer Calls for Vote on Israel, Ukraine Funding, Biden Officials Meet with Arab American Leaders in Michigan as Group Urges Voters to Reje…
(2024-02-08). Seeking war funding, Biden embraces far-right anti-immigrant policies. wsws.org In remarks at the White House, the Democratic president said he would put the blame on the Republicans for the supposed "crisis" at the US-Mexico border.
(2024-02-08). Guyana Is Being Used As A "Pawn" Against Venezuela. covertactionmagazine.com The current border impasse between Guyana and Venezuela is yet another example of United States imperialism's design to expand and usurp countries' natural resources around the world and reinforce its geopolitical agenda. The hegemonic stranglehold of the United States and its multinationals are challenged by China and Russia mainly, with Saudi Arabia following as "runner …
(2024-02-08). Federal and State Police Raid Three Homes in Atlanta Leading to One Arrest Amid 'Cop City' Investigation. unicornriot.ninja 
(2024-02-08). The Senate's foreign aid bill is a scandal. stephensemler.substack.com 
Subscribe now Share The highest court in the world just ruled that it's plausible Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, but Senate leadership is now forcing a vote on a $95 billion bill that contains $17 billion to sustain Israel's war on Gaza. The bill used to have an immigration component, but after failing a …
(2024-02-09). Naufraga Biden en el Senado. radiohc.cu El presidente de Estados Unidos, Joseph Biden, recibió un duro revés cuando el Senado rechazó un acuerdo negociado durante meses por demócratas y republicanos destinado a endurecer las condiciones de los migrantes en la frontera sur, como nunca se había visto antes.
(2024-02-09). Arranca el celebre carnaval de El Callao en Venezuela. telesurtv.net Los carnavales de El Callao cuentan con características propias, debido a la mezcla de los migrantes que han llegado a la región por la explotación de oro.
(2024-02-08). Democracy Now! 2024-02-08 Thursday. democracynow.org Headlines for February 08, 2024; Ex-UNRWA Official: Funding Cuts Make Donor Countries Complicit in Starvation of Gaza; Senegal's "Unraveling": President's Delay of Election Is Latest in String of Anti-Democratic Actions; "Io Capitano": Oscar-Nominated Film Dramatizes Perilous Migrant Journey from West Africa to Europe | Headlines for February 08, 2024; Ex-UNRWA Official: Funding Cuts Make Donor Countries Complicit in Starvation of Gaza; Senegal's "Unraveling": President's Delay of Election Is Latest in String of Anti-Democratic Actions; "Io Capitano&…
(2024-02-08). What They Were Hiding: Increased Solitary Confinement in Immigrant Detention Facilities. scheerpost.com 
(2024-02-08). "Io Capitano": Oscar-Nominated Film Dramatizes Perilous Migrant Journey from West Africa to Europe. democracynow.org 
The new Oscar-nominated film Io Capitano follows young Senegalese migrants on their journey from West Africa to Europe. "We wanted to … give visual form to a part of the journey that we don't see," says director Matteo Garrone. We are also joined by Mamadou Kouassi, whose journey from the Ivory Coast to Italy inspired the movie. Nearly 200,000 migrants traveled to Europe via the Mediterranean Sea last year. Thousands have died or gone missing during the perilous journey. "We wanted to try to humanize this number," says Garrone. For migrants like Kouassi, who face increasingly xenop…