Nick Harley :: Leave No Trace
43 minutes ago
Monday 31 January 2011
Julian Assange: 'How do you attack an organisation? You attack its leadership'
The American diplomats writing the cables leaked to Assange report many of the reasons for the Egyptian uprising: torture of political dissidents, even common criminals, to obtain confessions; widespread repression and fear; and – of special interest to anyone who follows WikiLeaks – the increasingly important role of internet activism, opposition blogging and communication with democratic movements within and without the country over the web.
As ever with the diplomatic memorandums published by WikiLeaks – an act of dissemination for which Assange has become public enemy number one in the US – the cables are, ironically, testimony to the professionalism and straight- talking of the US State Department. Assange concedes that the cables contain "a relative honesty and directness, and quite a lot of wannabe Hemingway".
This is exactly what WikiLeaks considers itself established to do, exactly the kind of moment in history that Assange's organisation feels it can illuminate for the world – and to which it may even have contributed, he claims, "by creating an attitude towards freedom of expression", and by being read by Egyptians themselves. This should be one of the great days in the history of his organisation: Assange and a group of his colleagues huddled over a thicket of laptop computers, downloading, following events, sharing news and occasionally whooping at it. It is one hell of an hour in WikiLand, but a weird one, too, for other things are also on Assange's mind.
Tomorrow a book he considers to be an attack on him will be published by journalists with whom he once closely collaborated at the Guardian, sister newspaper to the Observer. Neither the Guardian nor Assange now speaks of one another with affection. The front page of the International Herald Tribune on the kitchen table next door carries an article of record length by the executive editor of the New York Times, Bill Keller, charting what Keller sees as an odyssey through the dealings with a difficult man, after which a "period of intense collaboration and regular contact with our source" came to a close – and an acrimonious one at that. Keller's article appears reasoned, I say to Assange, who retorts that he finds it "grotesque".
Moreover, in eight days' time Assange must face an extradition hearing instigated by authorities in Sweden, wishing to question him over alleged sex offences, a subject that his lawyers had advised him not to speak about in this interview. The hearings in London are due for 7-8 February – and on the first night, "right in the middle of the hearings", says Assange, "BBC Panorama will broadcast a sleazy piece" about Wiki-Leaks. "It's a mad scramble to get books out that self-justify their roles in all this," claims Assange, "instead of getting on with the job of writing about the information and the cables themselves." It was not, he concedes, always this way...
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EFF Uncovers Widespread FBI Intelligence Violations
EFF has uncovered widespread violations stemming from FBI intelligence investigations from 2001 - 2008. In a report released today, EFF documents alarming trends in the Bureau’s intelligence investigation practices, suggesting that FBI intelligence investigations have compromised the civil liberties of American citizens far more frequently, and to a greater extent, than was previously assumed.
Using documents obtained through EFF's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation, the report finds:
• Evidence of delays of 2.5 years, on average, between the occurrence of a violation and its eventual reporting to the Intelligence Oversight Board
• Reports of serious misconduct by FBI agents including lying in declarations to courts, using improper evidence to obtain grand jury subpoenas, and accessing password-protected files without a warrant
• Indications that the FBI may have committed upwards of 40,000 possible intelligence violations in the 9 years since 9/11
EFF's report stems from analysis of nearly 2,500 pages of FBI documents, consisting of reports of FBI intelligence violations made to the Intelligence Oversight Board — an independent, civilian intelligence-monitoring board that reports to the President on the legality of foreign and domestic intelligence operations. The documents constitute the most complete picture of post-9/11 FBI intelligence abuses available to the public. Our earlier analysis of the documents showed the FBI's arbitrary disclosure practices.
EFF's report underscores the need for greater transparency and oversight in the intelligence community. As part of our ongoing effort to inform the public and elected officials about abusive intelligence investigations, we are distributing copies of the report to members of Congress.
A pdf copy of the report can be downloaded here.
Mark Rumold @'EFF'
Using documents obtained through EFF's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation, the report finds:
• Evidence of delays of 2.5 years, on average, between the occurrence of a violation and its eventual reporting to the Intelligence Oversight Board
• Reports of serious misconduct by FBI agents including lying in declarations to courts, using improper evidence to obtain grand jury subpoenas, and accessing password-protected files without a warrant
• Indications that the FBI may have committed upwards of 40,000 possible intelligence violations in the 9 years since 9/11
EFF's report stems from analysis of nearly 2,500 pages of FBI documents, consisting of reports of FBI intelligence violations made to the Intelligence Oversight Board — an independent, civilian intelligence-monitoring board that reports to the President on the legality of foreign and domestic intelligence operations. The documents constitute the most complete picture of post-9/11 FBI intelligence abuses available to the public. Our earlier analysis of the documents showed the FBI's arbitrary disclosure practices.
EFF's report underscores the need for greater transparency and oversight in the intelligence community. As part of our ongoing effort to inform the public and elected officials about abusive intelligence investigations, we are distributing copies of the report to members of Congress.
A pdf copy of the report can be downloaded here.
Mark Rumold @'EFF'
Oh-Oh
wikileaks WikiLeaks
Guardian names Manning as source. Sarah Tisdall mark 2. The slimiest media organization in the UK. http://is.gd/GT0tzF
jeremyscahill jeremy scahill
All you right wingers who called Al Jazeera "terrorist" TV look pretty stupid right about now as you RT Al Jazeera
zunguzungu Aaron Bady
"Egypt was the first Arab country to buy F-16s, widely viewed as a symbol of political and security ties with US" http://tinyurl.com/47bfl3j
This is crazy #jan25 #egypt
Fighter jets crossing over Cairo...loudly. A show of force from the Army, with no POLICE in place #Jan25
Sunday 30 January 2011
This will be...interesting
This is going to be a weird one.
Firstly the temp is going to hit 40 today and I am heading off to Melbourne's Big Day Out and as long as I manage to avoid Tool and Rammstein I should be fine. Looking forward to Primal Scream, Stooges, Grinderman etc. The only problem is that I had my appendix removed on Wednesday and to say that I am still fairly sore would be a little bit of an understatement!
But hey...you gotta do what you gotta do!
Later/
XX
X
ioerror Jacob Appelbaum
blakehounshell Blake Hounshell
Huh? Stephen Hadley says a putsch by the Muslim Brotherhood is one of two likely options if Egypt defends into chaos washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content…
♪♫ Mutamassik - Take The Hit
Mutamassik (meaning “stronghold” and “tenacity” in Arabic) is the nom de tune of Giulia Lolli, a half-Italian/half-Egyptian composer and DJ with a background that’s reflected in her splintered internationalist musical style. Born in Italy and raised in the American Rustbelt, Lolli went to New York City in time to swoop quickly in and out of the illbient scene of the mid-‘90s before heading out to Cairo, and finally landing up in what she terms a “CAVEmen-style” existence with her husband, Brooklyn guitarist Morgan Craft, and child in Tuscany. Lolli has described her music as “Sa’aidi Hardcore & Baladi Breakbeats: Egyptian & Afro-Asiatic Roots mixed with the head-nod of hip-hop & the bass and syncopation of hardstep.” (The term “Sa’aidi” can refer to people of Upper [central-eastern] Egypt, and can also be interpreted as “ascending”; “Baladi” refers to traditional, oft-rural Arabic folk music.)
More and FREE album download
@'Dangerous Minds'
parissummer madison
Reply from friend on Hyves "I'm not pro-hanging, but isn't drug-smuggling wrong?" in regard to-> http://bbc.in/fLlt2j #fuckinghell #clueless
Zahra Bahrami RIP
Iranian Ambassador Gharib Abadi was informed of the sanctions after he confirmed reports that Zahra Bahrami, 45, was executed. She had participated in protests against Iran's disputed presidential election in 2009.
Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal was "shocked, shattered by this act by a barbaric regime," said spokesman Bengt van Loosdrecht, especially since Abadi had assured the Dutch minister on Friday that Bahrami's legal avenues had not yet been exhausted.
Iran Hangs Dutch Woman Arrested after Protests
Reuters | Jan 29
An Iranian-Dutch woman, arrested after taking part in anti-government protests in Iran in 2009, has been hanged for drug smuggling, the semi-official Mehr news agency said on Saturday.
"A woman smuggler named Zahra Bahrami, daughter of Ali, has been hanged today for the possession and selling of narcotics," Mehr reported, quoting the court.
The 45-year-old woman's daughter was quoted by the rights group International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran as saying the drug charges were fabricated after Bahrami was arrested for taking part in protests in December 2009.
Iran Hangs Iranian-Dutch Woman for Drug Smuggling
AFP (via Vancouver Sun) | Jan 28
The prosecutor's office confirmed on Saturday that she had been arrested for "security crimes."
But elaborating on her alleged drug smuggling, the office said Bahrami had used her Dutch connections to smuggle narcotics into Iran.
"The convict, a member of an international drug gang, smuggled cocaine to Iran using her Dutch connections and had twice shipped and distributed cocaine inside the country," it said.
During a search of her house, authorities found 450 grams of cocaine and 420 grams of opium, the office said, adding that investigations revealed she had sold 150 grams of cocaine in Iran.
Lawyer in Shock over Dutch-Iranian Client's Execution: 'Her Investigation Was Not Yet Complete'
ICHRI | Jan 29
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran was able to contact Bahrami's lawyer, Jinoos Sharif Razi in Tehran. [She] was not aware of the execution. "I am shocked. I was absolutely not informed about this. They should have informed her lawyer of the execution, but I had no idea. I don't know what to say. Just that I am shocked," she said.
An informed source told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that during Zahra Bahrami's detention, her interrogation team was the Iranian Intelligence Ministry's Anti-Espionage Team. Therefore the possibility that her initial charges were drug-related is nil. According to the said source, during her first few weeks of detention in prison, Zahra Bahrami was physically and psychologically tortured to provide televised confessions according to a pre-written scenario.
Jinoos Sharif told the Campaign that the Iranian Judiciary has not yet reviewed the security charges waged against her client. "I am bewildered as to how my client's death sentence was issued while her security charges had not yet been reviewed."
"My mother always says that the confessions extracted from her and her participation in a television interview were all done under duress, and that she was forced to do it, as they had promised to help her. Unfortunately, she was not helped at all," Zahra Bahrami's daughter told the Campaign last week. Asked whether her mother transported drugs during her visits to Iran, her daughter said: "As her daughter, I do not accept any of these accusations. My mother said in court that because she was under pressure during the interrogations, she was made to say those things. My mother is not interested in such things at all. She doesn't even smoke cigarettes, let alone possessing drugs. How could someone who participates in [post-] election gatherings and endangers her life, engage in such actions against her country?"
See also: Report of execution in Farsi (Human Rights Activists News Agency) | "Daughter of Ashura Death Row Prisoner: Mom's False Confessions Based on Promise of Release" (Rah-e Sabz [Jaras] via Persian2English) | "Zahra Bahrami's Upcoming Trial and Possible Death Sentence" (Human Rights and Democracy Activists in Iran via Persian2English)
@'Tehran Bureau'
(GB2011)
billybragg Billy Bragg
Important lesson from the London demo today: no kettle = no violence. Coalition, Mayor & Met Police please take note #solidarity
The best view of Heaven is from Hell
@'Dazed Digital'
wikileaks WikiLeaks
Yes, we may have helped Tunisia, Egypt. But let us not forget the elephant in the room: Al Jazeera + sat dishes
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