Today, the German Federal Constitutional Court dismissed the constitutional complaint brought by a Palestinian living in Gaza challenging German arms exports to Israel. With this decision, the Court does not intervene to ensure effective legal protection for people whose lives are endangered by German arms exports.

“The Court acknowledges the duty to protect but only in the abstract and refuses to ensure its practical enforcement. For people whose lives are endangered by the consequences of German arms exports, access to justice remains effectively closed,” says Dr. Alexander Schwarz, Co-Director of the International Crimes and Accountability Program at ECCHR. “Especially when life and death are at stake, the rule of law must allow for judicial oversight. Instead, this decision largely removes state action in this sensitive area from review. This is not persuasive.”

The proceedings concern transmission components for Israeli Merkava and Namer tanks. These tanks are widely deployed by the Israeli armed forces in Gaza and, according to reports, have repeatedly been used in violation of international law. The Israeli ground offensive could not be conducted without these tanks being kept operational through German spare parts. They pose a direct threat to the life and physical integrity of the complainant living in Gaza – as well as many others.

After the US cut off diplomatic relations with Cuba in January 1961, the British embassy in Havana functioned as a proxy for US covert action and intelligence gathering against Castro’s government.

British operations, undertaken by the Foreign Office’s Information Research Department (IRD), were designed to delegitimise Cuba’s promotion of wealth distribution and to support US attempts to overthrow Castro.

The IRD, a cold war propaganda unit, sought to censure key Cuban officials and even plotted to spread homophobic rumours about Fidel’s second in command and brother, Raúl Castro.

Newly-released British files also show that during the 1970s, the IRD produced forged documents in an attempt to attack Cuba’s anti-apartheid campaigns in Africa.

[...]

While the US effort to overthrow Castro is infamous, very little is known about British operations in Cuba.

In August 1962, Leslie Boas, Britain’s regional information officer for Latin America based in Caracas, Venezuela, circulated a report on the leading political personalities in Cuba. “Having read the report”, Boas noted, “it has occurred to me that we could make effective use of some of the information it contains for propaganda purposes”.

He continued: “We could put out, in a completely unattributable fashion, a leaflet entitled ‘Personalities of the Cuban Revolution’ in which the more dubious aspects of the leading figures in the Cuban scene would be highlighted”.

The IRD was asked to “do some research” in order to produce additional “ammunition” on Castro’s aides.

To this end, senior IRD official Rosemary Allott suggested the unit “might include suitable stories circulating in Cuba (I heard one in Havana – since forgotten – on Raul Castro as a homosexual). In fact we might ask Havana for other purposes to send us all counter-revolutionary jokes and stories”.

[...]

In March 1962, shortly after the US initiated Operation Mongoose, a British embassy official in Washington wrote to the Foreign Office in London about a meeting with the US State Department and “our Friends”, a reference to the CIA.

“They would… be very grateful for facts on what is going on in Cuba which they can use in their propaganda and any suggestions the Embassy in Havana may have on useful topics and themes”, the British embassy official noted.

In a document marked Top Secret, Foreign Office official Robert Marrett noted that: “It seems to me to be a sound idea that our Embassy in Cuba should also assist the Americans discreetly by supplying anti-Castro material”.

By June 1962, an operation to send “useful items to the Americans for propaganda purposes” had been “approved by the Foreign Office”.

Today, in a symbolic act, Iranians set fire to the flags of Israel and the United States, as well as an obelisk and a statue of Baal—which they described as a symbol of Satan—in various cities across Iran in response to the release of the Epstein documents.

More than 2,000 Britons served in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) during the Gaza genocide, it can be revealed.

The information was obtained by Declassified via a Freedom of Information request issued to the IDF by lawyer Elad Man from the NGO Hatzlacha.

The data outlines the number of people with dual and multiple nationalities who were IDF service members as of March 2025.

It shows how 1,686 British-Israelis and a further 383 people with British, Israeli, and another nationality served in the IDF amid the annihilation of Gaza.

They were among over 50,000 IDF soldiers with Israeli and at least one other nationality.

The largest cohorts come from the US, Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany.

Prior to this, data was only available on the number of Britons without Israeli citizenship serving in the IDF, so-called lone soldiers, a figure that was as low as 54. The revelation that far more UK passport holders served in the IDF will raise serious legal questions for the British authorities, which have thus far failed to prosecute any citizens returning home after fighting in Gaza.

Paul Heron, a lawyer with the Public Interest Law Centre (PILC), told Declassified: “There must be no impunity where credible evidence links British nationals to grave breaches of international law.

“The UK has clear duties to prevent genocide and avoid assisting unlawful military action.

“Where dual nationals have served in units implicated in atrocities, the authorities must investigate promptly and, where the evidence meets the threshold, pursue arrest and prosecution like any other serious crime”.

Declassified contributor Hamza Yusuf previously exposed how Britons were serving in some of Israel’s “craziest” combat units in Gaza where they viewed Palestinian fighters as “rats” and “animals”. Among the Britons identified by Yusuf was Levi Simon, who was seen “rummaging through the underwear drawers of Palestinian women forced to flee their homes” in Gaza.

Another was master sergeant Sam Sank from London, who filmed himself fighting in Gaza between December 2023 and January 2024. Sank had told The Times that “based on the number of his friends in the IDF, which includes a Scot in his own small unit, [he] believes there are hundreds, if not thousands, more Britons fighting in Israel.” His estimates match with the data Hatzlacha has now obtained from Israeli authorities.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/43020633

by Ryan Grim, Noah Kulwin, and José Luis Granados Ceja
Feb 09, 2026

A crisis is rapidly developing in Cuba, as the Trump administration’s efforts to block fuel from reaching the island have become increasingly effective since an executive order threatened tariffs on any country trading with Cuba. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has buckled under the pressure and halted oil deliveries to Cuba.

Meanwhile, back in Washington, President Trump claims that negotiations are underway to resolve the standoff. That, it turns out, is simply false—a lie being told to him by Secretary of State Marco Rubio as part of his ambitious play to overthrow the Cuban government.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/43029711

Feb. 7, 2026

Cubans have ample experience facing enormous dangers stemming from the US empire. We defeated the Bay of Pigs invasion, we survived the October Crisis, and the Special Period when we lost 85 per cent of our trade overnight following the collapse of the socialist camp.

Furthermore, we have heroically resisted a criminal economic and financial blockade for more than 67 years.

They have applied “maximum pressure,” and here we remain. That phrase, spoken with such arrogance, demolishes the lie that Cuba is a failed state, because they have been forced to admit that the fundamental cause of the country’s economic crisis is linked to that very pressure they classify as “maximum.”

Concerns are mounting for the safety of women and children held in ~~prison~~ concentration camps for detainees suspected of links to the Islamic State group (IS), as Kurdish authorities cede control of the camps to the Syrian government.

Women in al-Roj camp, where many foreign detainees are held and which remains in the hands of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), told Middle East Eye that women and children had suffered mistreatment, including beatings, during nightly raids by security forces.

“Every night I’m in fear for my safety and the kids’ as well,” said one female detainee from a European country.

Women and children were being forced out of their tents, stripped of warm clothing and doused with water in freezing temperatures during the nightly raids, she said.

Some women, she said, have been beaten inside their tents until they lost consciousness.

Canada’s second-largest pension fund said it would halt future deals with Dubai’s DP World following revelations of ties between the logistics company’s chief executive Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

La Caisse, Quebec’s state pension fund, which has invested billions of dollars in port projects around the world with the group, said it was “pausing additional capital deployment alongside the company”.

The fund is the first of DP World’s global partners to halt deals with the logistics group following the publication of messages between Sulayem and Epstein, which were included in the US Department of Justice’s release of documents related to the disgraced financier.

The C$496bn (US$366bn) pension fund said it had “made it clear to the company that we expect it to shed light on the situation and take the necessary actions”, stressing it was “important to distinguish the company, DP World, from the individual, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem”.

The IDF has closed dozens of alleged war-crimes cases arising from the 2023-2024 period of the Israel-Hamas War, The Jerusalem Post can disclose exclusively.

Publication of the details of the case closures was extensively delayed by fears that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) would abuse such information in their politicized anti-Israel agendas.

Many of the cases closed relate to the deaths of allegedly as many as 98 detainees at the IDF’s Sde Teiman detention facility or at other detention facilities earlier in the war.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/42996526

Feb 09, 2026

Cuban officials announced Friday a nationwide and far-reaching energy-saving plan that prioritizes fuel and electricity for essential and life-saving services. The measures also expand solar power deployment, sharply reduces transport services, and cut down operating hours for schools, universities, and workplaces. The aim is to protect health care, food and water supply, and social services amid an acute energy shortage caused by the U.S. blockade.

The country has already notified airlines that they will be unable to refuel international flights for at least a month, further complicating tourism to the island, a vital source of income for Cuba.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7608504

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/26166

Washington has cut off oil and fuel ships to Cuba, claiming the small Caribbean nation poses a 'national security threat' to the US

The US is “strangling” Cuba, Russia warned on 9 February, stressing that the Kremlin is looking for ways to assist the island nation to withstand Washington's intensified blockade.

“The situation in Cuba is indeed critical ... We are aware of this, and we maintain close contact with our Cuban friends through diplomatic and other channels,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.

He added that “the stranglehold imposed by the United States is already causing a lot of difficulties for Cuba,” noting that Moscow and Havana are discussing “possible ways to resolve these problems or at least provide all possible assistance.”

After abducting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and taking control of that country's oil production, US President Donald Trump and his advisors have turned to fomenting regime change in Cuba.

“THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO!” Trump wrote on his social media platform on 11 January, adding, “I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.”

On 30 January, the US imposed sanctions and potential tariffs on countries providing fuel to Cuba, labeling the island a “national security threat” to the US.

From thecradle.co via This RSS Feed.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7611004

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/26322

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel spoke to the press on Thursday, February 5, about the situation facing the island in the wake of the latest measures imposed by Washington.

Following the seizure of Venezuelan tankers bound for Cuba by the United States Military, the Trump administration increased pressure on the island, which has been under an economic and commercial blockade for more than 60 years, by threatening to increase tariffs on any country that sells fuel to Cuba.

The US military campaign against Venezuela, including a naval blockade on oil and the kidnapping of the president and the first lady, cut off one of Cuba’s only alternatives for obtaining oil. 

In his address, the president reported that no fuel has entered Cuba since December. 

The loss of fuel supply severely complicates the electricity supply on which schools, transportation, and vital health infrastructure depend. In view of this, several analysts have called Trump’s latest measure against the Cuban people “genocidal”.

“Cuba is not a threat to the United States”

Díaz-Canel said he is aware of the difficulties and painful hardships that the Cuban people are going through following a decision that Washington justifies based on an alleged threat that Cuba poses to its national security, something that has been widely questioned by various analysts and politicians around the world.

On this subject, a deeply moved Díaz-Canel said during his appearance: “Cuba is not a terrorist country, nor is it a threat to the security of the United States. Cuba has never carried out, nor proposed, nor organized any aggressive action that puts at risk the territorial integrity, the security, or the stability of the government of the United States.”

He added: “We do not protect terrorists, and there are no military forces in Cuba from other nations or from other groups. In Cuba, there is indeed a military base – an illegal military base – and it is an illegal United States military base on Cuban soil, in the province of Guantánamo, against the will of the Cuban people.” 

Cuba proposes dialogue “between equals”

In response, he affirmed that Cuba has always been and remains willing to engage in dialogue with Washington, although he clarified that “dialogue under pressure is not dialogue.” In this regard, he said that Cuba advocates civilized relations between neighbors, but rejects blackmail, threats, and impositions by some countries on others as a method of negotiation. He thus demanded respect for Cuban sovereignty.

Díaz-Canel said that his government is willing to meet with officials from the Trump administration to discuss the situation between the two countries: “Cuba is open to dialogue on any issue that needs to be debated or discussed, as long as there is no pressure or preconditions, in a situation of equality and respect for our sovereignty, independence, and self-determination.”

The theory of collapse

According to Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez, between March 2024 and February 2025 alone, the damage caused by the economic blockade of Cuba amounts to 7.556 billion USD, which represents a 49% increase compared to the previous period, showing that the blockade causes greater damage over time.

For his part, the Cuban president recalled that the US strategy of applying pressure until the country collapses is not new, and that despite all the difficulties Cuba has had to endure, it is not a failed state, as claimed by the White House: “The theory of collapse and the insistence on it is related to a whole set of constructs that the US government has tried to use to characterize the Cuban situation. This theory of collapse is associated with one of the currents in which the US government is determined to overthrow the Cuban revolution.”

Currently, he said, Cuba is enduring not only a series of mechanisms that seek to suffocate the Caribbean country, combined with the constant threat of military aggression, but also a media campaign that combines slander, hatred, and psychological warfare to justify various US attacks.

Read more: For the Cuban people, surrender is not an option

However, the Cuban president also pointed out that, despite the new conditions following the attack on Venezuela on January 3, there are several signs of international solidarity with his government: “Cuba is not alone, and we know that there are countries and companies willing to continue working with the largest of the Antilles.”

The revolutionary government’s decisions: savings and defense

Faced with this difficult situation, Díaz-Canel outlined the decisions his government has taken to tackle this new onslaught: “We have had to make a series of assessments in the Political Bureau, the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers, and the National Defense Council, and we have just had a meeting in the Council of Ministers to update the plan to be implemented based on government directives to address an acute fuel shortage.”

Cuba has implemented fuel rationing to ensure the functioning of essential and basic activities for the Cuban population, although he acknowledged that the difficulty has been enormous, considering that no oil shipments have arrived in Cuba throughout 2026. This will mean a reduction in public transportation and an increase in blackouts on the island, which have already broken records.

In response, the Cuban president raised the possibility of increasing other types of energy sources, such as renewable energies, although this process will take time. Therefore, he said, the government must now demonstrate enormous creativity to overcome this new barrier that the United States, the most powerful country on earth, is unilaterally imposing on a country of just 10 million inhabitants.

In addition, Díaz-Canel stated that following the attack on Venezuela, in which more than 30 Cuban combatants on security missions in the South American country were killed, Cuba has prepared itself to face possible US military aggression: “One of the priorities we established was to deploy a defense preparedness plan.”

According to Díaz-Canel, in the event of military aggression, Fidel Castro’s old military principle of “war by the entire people” will be used against external aggressors. This, however, does not mean that the country is entering a “state of war”, but rather that it is preparing for the moment when that step must be taken, the president said.

In this regard, Foreign Minister Rodríguez said on Telegram: “The US seeks to impose its will on the rights of sovereign states and has been using force and aggression against Cuba for 67 years. On its side is enormous military power and the size of its economy, plus vast experience in aggression and crimes. On our side is reason, international law, and the patriotic spirit of a people.”

He added: “We Cubans are not willing to sell our country or give in to threats and blackmail, nor are we willing to renounce the inalienable prerogative with which we build our own destiny, in peace with the rest of the world. We will defend Cuba. Those who know us know that this is a firm, categorical, and proven commitment.”

The post Cuban government responds to US-manufactured fuel shortage: “We will defend Cuba” appeared first on Peoples Dispatch.

From Peoples Dispatch via This RSS Feed.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7617560

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/26500

The government of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the shipment of 814 tons of milk, meat, beans, rice, and other foodstuffs to Cuba on Sunday, February 8. The move came days after Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel presented a series of emergency measures being adopted by his government to mitigate the impact of the severe fuel shortage facing the island.

Cuba is currently facing a serious crisis, provoked by recent maneuvers from the US government which, emboldened by its massive military build up in the Caribbean and its recent bombing of Caracas, has sought to further tighten the blockade on the island, hoping to finally force the overthrow of the government. On January 29, Trump announced an executive order under which any country that trades hydrocarbons with Havana will see a 10% increase in tariffs on its products exported to the United States. The executive order was said to have targeted Cuba’s main energy suppliers: Venezuela, Mexico, and Russia. 

Venezuela was already effectively forced to halt oil shipments to Cuba due to the naval blockade imposed by the US against Venezuela, which already resulted in the illegal seizure of a Cuba-bound Venezuelan oil tanker.

Russia, a country which, due to heavy sanctions, is the most decoupled from the US economy, has declared that it will continue supplying fuel to Cuba. The government has said that “the situation in Cuba is truly critical” and top government spokesperson Dimitry Peskov, said “We are in close contact with our Cuban friends through diplomatic and other channels.”

Mexico, for its part, announced that it was engaged in negotiations with the US over oil shipments. President Claudia Sheinbaum has openly declared her rejection of the Trump measure: “You can’t suffocate people like that. It is very unfair.”

She also promised that Mexico would continue to help Cuba in any way possible: “We will continue to support Cuba and take all necessary diplomatic action to resume oil shipments.” In recent days, after learning of the Trump administration’s “threat”. Mexico, one of the few countries that sent oil to Cuba, said it would consult with Washington to determine the extent of possible retaliation.

According to Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, not a single drop of oil has entered the island in 2026, posing a serious threat to a country that depends heavily on fuel for its power grid and to keep transportation, health, education, and other key systems functioning. Government officials and political analysts have claimed that the recent measure seeks to annihilate the Cuban people.

Former Colombian President Ernesto Samper shared this opinion in a post: “SOS for Cuba. The genocide of the Cuban people is being prepared by suffocating their vital conditions for survival. A United Nations humanitarian mission could lead a deployment of humanitarian ships loaded with the fuel that the island needs today, like the oxygen we breathe every day to stay alive.”

Mexican solidarity with Cuba

For his part, the Cuban president said, regarding the Mexican shipment that departed in two ships from the port of Veracruz: “Thank you, Mexico. For your solidarity, affection, and always warm embrace of Cuba.”

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez wrote on X: “We thank the Government of Mexico, under the leadership of President Claudia Sheinbaum, for sending more than 800 tons of aid to Cuba, amid the intensification of the blockade following the recent Executive Order by the US government. While some try to suffocate our population, sister nations extend their hand in solidarity.”

The post Mexico sends shipment of humanitarian aid to Cuba appeared first on Peoples Dispatch.

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Last month, a Pokemon card game event that was scheduled at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo for Jan. 31 was canceled after Chinese backlash.

The shrine commemorates the 2.5 million Japanese soldiers who died in war, including 30,304 Taiwanese.

Countries that were targets of Japanese aggression, especially China and the Koreas, see visits to the shrine as a lack of remorse about Japan’s wartime past.

China’s military news agency yesterday warned that Japanese militarism is infiltrating society through series such as Pokemon and Detective Conan, after recent controversies involving events at sensitive sites.

The article referenced recent controversies around the popular anime series Pokemon, Detective Conan and My Hero Academia, saying that “the evil influence of Japanese militarism lives on in sports and culture.”

The Israeli Prison Service has begun preparations to introduce the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners, Israeli media reported on Sunday.

According to Israel's Channel 13, preparations include the creation of a facility dubbed "Israel's Green Mile", where executions will take place

The report added that executions will be carried out by hanging, with three guards pressing the trigger simultaneously.

Specialist teams, composed entirely of volunteers, will be assigned to the task.

The survival of Cuba’s socialist project remains one of the most critical holdouts against hemispheric domination, making its defense a global litmus test for sovereignty.

by Isaac Saney
Feb 7, 2026

The struggle to defend the Cuban Revolution—to preserve Cuba’s independence, sovereignty, and right to self-determination—is not simply the struggle of a small Caribbean nation resisting a powerful neighbour. Nor is it confined to the geographical contours of an island of eleven million people. It is, rather, a struggle with profound and incalculable consequences for Latin America, the Caribbean, and the global fight for justice, human dignity, and the right of peoples to live free from imperialist diktat.

...Cuba asserted the radical proposition that a small, formerly colonized country could chart its own path, control its own resources, and prioritize social justice over foreign capital. That defiance, more than any specific policy or alliance, has been the enduring “crime” of the Cuban Revolution.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/42949956

[from the news collective Belly Of The Beast]

As the U.S. oil blockade of Cuba continues, Cuban civil aviation authorities have warned international airlines that jet fuel on the island has run out. Long-haul flights will now be forced to refuel in nearby third countries or may be cancelled altogether.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/42942813

I look forward to an obituary