US carries out air strike in Syria

The US carried out an air strike on facilities used by Iranian-backed militia groups in eastern Syria on Thursday night (25 February 2021) in response to three separate rocket attacks against US forces in Iraq, according to a Pentagon spokesperson. The strikes is alleged to have destroyed several facilities at a border control point used by a number of Iran-backed militia groups linked to the attacks against US forces in Iraq, including Kataib Hezbollah and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada,

Airstrikes on Syria show USA never strayed off course

Donald Trump’s defeat in September’s election was celebrated by liberals around the world as a return to normalcy. One month on into Biden’s presidency, gone is the vulgar language, the constant tweeting, and the … Was that all of the important matters heads of state should refrain from? Judging by mainstream media sources, one could be forgiven for thinking that the USA has recently undergone deep change and is set on a new course.

US Covid death toll passes 500,000 in grim milestone

The number of US coronavirus deaths have passed 500,000 as of Monday (22 February 2021) according to data from John Hopkins University. Over 28 million have also tested positive for COVID-19 in the USA. This is higher than any nation in the world. Both statistics are the worst in the world and the pandemic has thrown a harsh spotlight on the country’s ability to cope with such a disaster, especially during the tumultuous tenure of Donald Trump, whose administration botched the government response.

Facebook ban hits Australian news in response to a proposed law

On Thursday (18 February) Facebook started preventing Australian news outlets from sharing their posts, while users (both Australian and international) couldn’t view or share any content from the news sites. However, this didn’t affect news sites alone. Australian government pages were affected too. While the ban only meant to affect Australian news publishers, it also affected many pages run by unions, politicians and community pages.

Arrest of Pablo Hasél leads to clashes in Spain

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Spanish cities, demanding the release of Communist and anti-fascist rapper Pablo Hasél. Yesterday (16 February 2021), Hasél was arrested after having locked himself with another activist inside the University of Lleida. There have been multiple demos in cities around Spain, with Barcelona being the largest.

Mass protests continue in Myanmar amid coup

Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Burma’s cities in anti-coup demonstrations over the weekend (14 February 2021), after a fearful night that saw residents form patrols and the army roll back laws protecting freedoms. The military rulers have shut down the country’s internet as thousands of people joined the largest protests yet against the coup. A near-total internet blackout is in effect with connectivity falling to 16% of ordinary levels, according to the monitoring group NetBlocks Internet Observatory.