Guardian UK:
"The Gaza Strip is facing 'inevitable famine' because of the decision by western countries to pause funding for the UN’s agency for Palestinian affairs after Israeli accusations that 12 of the group’s employees took part in the Hamas attack on 7 October last year.

Michael Fakhri, the UN special rapporteur on the right to food, said on Sunday 'famine was imminent' and now 'inevitable', in a comment following the news that the US and nine other countries were suspending additional funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). 'This collectively punishes over 2.2 million Palestinians,' he said. ...

Israel has not publicly shared the details of its allegations against the UNRWA employees, which according to the Axios website were provided by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and internal security service, the Shin Bet."
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/28/famine-in-gaza-is-being-made-inevitable-says-un-rapporteur

-->Israel and the US is willing to starve hundreds of thousand, with no proof yet that the UN agency was involved in the Hamas attack. The racism is staggering. Maybe that is why this story got so little coverage in the US.

=====

The Hill:
"The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) on Sunday condemned Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for linking pro-Palestinian protesters to Russia during a CNN interview in which she also indicated she wants the FBI to investigate any potential financial links.

Pelosi suggested on CNN’s 'State of the Union' that some pro-Palestinian protesters who are calling for a cease-fire in Gaza are spreading a message that is beneficial to Russian President Vladimir Putin. ...

When co-anchor Dana Bash asked Pelosi whether she thought some of the protesters were 'Russian plants,' Pelosi responded: 'I don’t think they’re plants. I think some financing should be investigated. And I want to ask the FBI to investigate that.'
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4434319-pelosi-pro-palestinian-protesters-russia/

-->This story got plenty of coverage in the US media. Very few stores, however, condemned this baseless charge. Or even referred to the huge bribes she has taken from the Israel Lobby for her pro Israel stances ($606,698 in all according to Open Secrets).

=====

The Intercept:
"In a momentous day for the quest to keep Israel and its allies accountable for its brutal war on Gaza, members of leading Palestinian human rights groups, residents of Gaza, and Palestinian Americans argued in a U.S. District Court on Friday that the Biden administration should halt its financial and military support for Israel and uphold its obligations to prevent genocide.

The arguments came in a lawsuit that the Center for Constitutional Rights, or CCR, filed in November against President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, charging them with complicity and failure to prevent the 'unfolding genocide' in the occupied strip. Testifying either in person at the Oakland, California, courthouse or remotely from Palestine, the plaintiffs spoke for nearly three hours about the deliberate devastation wrought by Israel in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas attacks.

The hearing commenced hours after the International Court of Justice in The Hague found that it’s plausible that Israel has committed acts of genocide in Gaza, in a case brought by South Africa. While the United Nations court fell short of ordering an immediate ceasefire, a panel of judges delivered a historic set of rulings and denied Israel’s request to dismiss the case. A final resolution in that case is expected to take years."
https://theintercept.com/2024/01/26/palestinians-biden-genocide-lawsuit-ccr/

-->This is not a popular story in the US. I think it's because the US now fears being linked to the horrendous genocide in Gaza. And our empire couldn't be much more involved. We send the weapons, we send the money, and we protect Israel at the UN. We are in a position to see the worst holocaust of our century. Look in the mirror and you will see the mark of Cain.

Mondoweiss:
"Don’t believe Haaretz and the NYT. Israeli society fully supports the Gaza genocide.

Haaretz and the New York Times are peddling fantasies about how genocidal incitement in Israel is only coming from an extremist fringe. But evidence shows there is near universal support across Israeli society for the genocide in Gaza.

An editorial in Haaretz last week, as well as a piece by the New York Times’s Michelle Goldberg a few days later, told a similar story. Both articles portrayed genocidal statements by Israeli leaders, and both articles explained them as an expression of far-right extremism. Haaretz seems to suggest that the solution (which would protect Israel at the International Court of Justice) would be for Netanyahu to fire his extremist ministers. Goldberg’s article takes it even further, suggesting that Netanyahu is also part of the problem.

However, there’s a story that is not being fully told in these two main liberal outlets. Both ignore the evidence and the polling that show near universal Israeli support for the unfolding genocide in Gaza — both from the Israeli political class and the vast majority of the Israeli population."
https://mondoweiss.net/2024/01/dont-believe-haaretz-and-the-nyt-israeli-society-fully-supports-the-gaza-genocide/

-->I wonder if the German people were wholeheartedly behind Hitler's extermination plans for Jews, Gypsies and gays? Its a topic that must be discussed, and not hidden away in supposedly liberal newspapers. Like the NYT and Haaretz.

=====

Common Dreams:
"Gaza's children—already reeling from 102 days of U.S.-backed Israeli bombardment that has killed and maimed tens of thousands of them—are now dying of starvation, with adults likely to soon follow, as famine rapidly grips the besieged Palestinian enclave, doctors and United Nations officials said this week.


Hundreds of thousands of Gazans, half of whom are children, are starving as Israel's bombardment and siege have "brought famine with such incredible speed to the front of the lines," United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths said during a Monday interview on CNN.
The Guardian reported Tuesday that doctors in Gaza say that newborn babies there are not lasting more than a few days because their undernourished mothers are unable to feed them. ...

'Not only is Israel killing and causing irreparable harm against Palestinian civilians with its indiscriminate bombardments, it is also knowingly and intentionally imposing a high rate of disease, prolonged malnutrition, dehydration, and starvation by destroying civilian infrastructure,' the experts continued.

Salwa Tibi, an aid worker and mother of four, told CNN her children are 'screaming all day from hunger.' "
https://www.commondreams.org/news/gaza-famine

-->This weekend the NYT had a big story on Israeli women serving in the IDF. Very little on starving children. One day, our newspaper of record will pay for its pro-genocide reporting.

=====

Common Dreams:
"OpenAI Cuts 'Military and Warfare' Ban From Permissible Use Policy

Although the company's new policy stipulates that users should not harm human beings or 'develop or use weapons,' experts said the removal of the 'military and warfare' language leaves open the door for lucrative contracts with U.S. and other militaries. 


'Given the use of AI systems in the targeting of civilians in Gaza, it's a notable moment to make the decision to remove the words 'military and warfare' from OpenAI's permissible use policy,' Sarah Myers West, managing director of the AI Now Institute and a former AI policy analyst at the Federal Trade Commission, told The Intercept."
https://www.commondreams.org/news/openai

-->AI has the brightest of futures, and now it can kill innocent, helpless civilians, without being bothered by military bans. The NYT didn't think this story was worth printing. All the news that the military industrial complex deems fit to print.

The Guardian UK
"Thousands of marchers descended on Washington DC on Saturday to call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and to protest US aid to Israel, more than three months into an Israeli offensive against Hamas that is killing 250 Palestinians per day, according to the Oxfam charity.

The protest, called a march on Washington for Gaza, was promoted as likely to be the largest pro-Palestinian demonstration in the US since the 7 October attack on southern Israel by Hamas fighters ... Oxfam said the Israeli bombardment has displaced 1.8 million of the 2.3 million Palestinians living in Gaza and turned much of the besieged territory bordering Israel, the Mediterranean Sea and Egypt into rubble and dust.

Saturday’s protest, organized by the American Muslim Task Force for Palestine and aligned groups, was organized to draw attention to what it calls Israel’s 'crimes against humanity' and articulates a position that the creation of a fully recognized Palestinian state is in US national interests.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/13/march-on-washington-ceasefire-gaza

-->But the NYT didn't print this story, or any story in fact, about one of the largest pro Palestinian demonstrations ever in this country (at least 400,000). But it is the hubris of the NYT that is on full display here. On Sunday, our "newspaper of record" headlined a story about those troublesome Indian courts, making people wait for years. On Monday, the headline was "how Netflix Reels in Viewers With Its Three-Word Hooks." Nothing about millions rising up against US supported genocide. It's simply the empire's newspaper.

=====

Jacobin:
"Less than a month before a catastrophic aircraft failure prompted the grounding of more than 150 of Boeing’s commercial aircraft, documents were filed in federal court alleging that former employees at the company’s subcontractor repeatedly warned corporate officials about safety problems and were told to falsify records.

One of the employees at Spirit AeroSystems, which reportedly manufactured the door plug that blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight over Portland, Oregon, allegedly told company officials about an 'excessive amount of defects,' according to the federal complaint and corresponding internal corporate documents reviewed by us.
According to the court documents, the employee told a colleague that 'he believed it was just a matter of time until a major defect escaped to a customer.'

The allegations come from a federal securities lawsuit accusing Spirit of deliberately covering up systematic quality-control problems, encouraging workers to undercount defects, and retaliating against those who raised safety concerns. Although the cause of the Boeing airplane’s failure is still unclear, some aviation experts say the allegations against Spirit are emblematic of how brand-name manufacturers’ practice of outsourcing aerospace construction has led to worrisome safety issues."
https://jacobin.com/2024/01/alaska-airlines-boeing-parts-malfunction-workers-spirit-aerosystems

-->Another missing story from the NYT. Along with its love of US militarism, the paper has always protected the empire's weapons makers. All the stories that the empire sees fit to print.

=====

Common Dreams:
"Members of Congress who expressed more support for Israel during the first six weeks of its war on Gaza received $125,000 on average from pro-Israeli lobby groups and individuals during their last elections, The Guardian reported Wednesday. In contrast, lawmakers who expressed more pro-Palestinian views only received $18,000 on average from these groups.

The Guardian analysis does not prove that legislators changed their views because they received donations; it is also the case that pro-Israel groups are more likely to fund campaigns run by people who express pro-Israel views. However, experts and advocates argue that the lobbying is one reason why around 82% of Congress was more supportive of Israel while only 9% was more supportive of Palestine.


'One of the main reasons most members of Congress don't represent the majority of Americans who want a cease-fire: The Israel lobby gave Congress $58 million last cycle; only 33 members didn't receive donations,' the group Justice Democrats posted in response to the analysis. 'This dark money poisons our democracy.' "
https://www.commondreams.org/news/u-s-lawmakers-money-gaza-war

-->Amazingly, no national media would touch this story. Exposing just how bought and sold our governing system has become, is just not considered good journalism. And most Americans think they have a free press!

The Intercept:
"Whether reporting from the Middle East, the United States, or anywhere else across the globe, every CNN journalist covering Israel and Palestine must submit their work for review by the news organization’s bureau in Jerusalem prior to publication, under a long-standing CNN policy. While CNN says the policy is meant to ensure accuracy in reporting on a polarizing subject, it means that much of the network’s recent coverage of the war in Gaza — and its reverberations around the world — has been shaped by journalists who operate under the shadow of the country’s military censor.
 
Like all foreign news organizations operating in Israel, CNN’s Jerusalem bureau is subject to the rules of the Israel Defense Forces’s censor, which dictates subjects that are off-limits for news organizations to cover, and censors articles it deems unfit or unsafe to print. As The Intercept reported last month, the military censor recently restricted eight subjects, including security cabinet meetings, information about hostages, and reporting on weapons captured by fighters in Gaza. In order to obtain a press pass in Israel, foreign reporters must sign a document agreeing to abide by the dictates of the censor.

CNN’s practice of routing coverage through the Jerusalem bureau does not mean that the military censor directly reviews every story. Still, the policy stands in contrast to other major news outlets, which in the past have run sensitive stories through desks outside of Israel to avoid the pressure of the censor."
https://theintercept.com/2024/01/04/cnn-israel-gaza-idf-reporting/
 
-->I wonder if the NYT sends its stories to this same Jerusalem Bureau? Someone from the NYT decided not to publish this story in our supposed "newspaper of record."

=====

Common Dreams:
"The Israeli government has mounted a pressure campaign urging governments around the world to publicly denounce South Africa's genocide case at the International Court of Justice, which is set to convene hearings on the detailed charges on Thursday.

According to a cable obtained by Axios, the Israeli Foreign Ministry is calling on the country's embassies to pressure host country diplomats and political leaders to swiftly issue an 'immediate and unequivocal statement along the following lines: To publicly and clearly state that YOUR COUNTRY rejects the outrage[ous], absurd, and baseless allegations made against Israel.'

The cable warns that 'a ruling by the court could have significant potential implications that are not only in the legal world but have practical bilateral, multilateral, economic, security ramifications.' Israel is seeking to prevent an injunction ordering the country to suspend its attack on Gaza."
https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-south-africa-genocide

-->No mention of this story in our mainstream media. Must be that miserable Jerusalem Bureau again.

=====

Haaretz:
"But what ordinary people with little control over any aspect of their lives should be forgiven for, powerful heads of state and decision makers shouldn't be. When Israeli President Isaac Herzog signed a mortar shell in a photo op with IDF soldiers on the border last month, he was saying – like Haaretz journalist Netta Ahituv pointed out – that 'revenge' is an official goal of the war.

And when former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence – a representative of a country that has the power to use military and financial support to Israel to change the course of the war – signed a mortar while on a visit to the Lebanese border last week, he was sending a message of gleeful killing and uncritical thinking. Herzog, of course, thanked Pence for his 'unwavering commitment to Israel.' "
https://us18.campaign-archive.com/?e=e668db0354&u=d3bceadb340d6af4daf1de00d&id=f10985eb76

-->So our former vice president is signing Israeli mortars bound for the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza. This action is so shameful that even the NYT refused to print a story about it. Our political elite, be they Republican or Democrat, have blood on their hands. The Israeli genocide is the United States' genocide. And we the people will be held accountable for these war crimes being committed in our name.

Common Dreams:
"As a self-proclaimed observant, practicing Catholic, [Joe Biden], you have not only failed to heed Pope Francis' figurative encyclical regarding Gaza but are shipping billions of dollars of weapons into the arsenal of the Israeli government.

We and many other organizations and peaceful protesters in our country have worked in vain to persuade President Joe Biden to use his influence to have the Israeli regime agree to a ceasefire that would allow hundreds of humanitarian aid trucks daily into the devastated graveyard that is now the Gaza Strip. Biden regularly begs Israel to let in more trucks, paid for by the U.S. At the same time the Biden administration exercises veto power on the U.N. Security Council blocking a cease-fire, truce, or negotiations toward a permanent two-state resolution. A cease-fire would at least allow aid to reach the besieged.

According to Professor Devi Sridhar, chair of global public health at the University of Edinburgh, '[U]nless something changes, the world faces the prospect of almost a quarter of Gaza’s 2 million population—close to half a million human beings' can die within a year. (See, The Guardian, December 29, 2023)."
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/biden-genocide-gaza

-->This article written by Ralph Nader and Bruce Fein goes well beyond our mainstream media in predicting a genocide in Gaza. Millions of people around the world fear this outcome. Why doesn't our media want to look ahead and predict what constant bombing, starvation, and loss of shelter will do to millions of displaced Palestinians. Is it because our media doesn't want to be responsible? And isn't that as hypocritical as Joe Biden talking about peace while sending Israel more bombs?  

=====

Financial Times:
"The order books of the world’s biggest defence companies are near record highs after growing by more than 10 per cent in just two years because of rising geopolitical tension, including the conflict in Ukraine. An analysis by the Financial Times of 15 defence groups, including the largest US contractors, Britain’s BAE Systems and South Korea’s Hanwha Aerospace, found that at the end of 2022 — the latest for which full-year data is available — their combined order backlogs were $777.6bn, up from $701.2bn two years earlier.

The trend’s momentum continued into 2023. In the first six months of this year — the latest comprehensive quarterly data available — combined backlogs at these companies stood at $764bn, swelling their future pipeline of work as governments kept placing orders. The sustained spending has spurred investors’ interest in the sector. MSCI’s global benchmark for the industry’s stocks is up 25 per cent over the past 12 months. Europe’s Stoxx aerospace and defence stocks index has risen by more than 50 per cent over the same period."
https://www.ft.com/content/001d2e1c-8e59-444b-a07b-9a62be620431

-->Let the good times roll, when it comes to weapons makers! Western factories can't even pump out enough bombs and bullets for the hearts of Palestinians in Gaza. In fact, this article never gets around to mentioning Gaza at all. It's like US weapons manufacturers have played no part in the extermination of the Palestinians.

The NYT has run similar stories, but it is always about Ukraine, rather than Gaza. Readers can tell how sensitive these weapons makers must be about being linked to a genocide. And our media can't bring itself to mention the connection.

=====

Jacobin:
"Earlier this month, the Biden administration joined governments around the world in marking the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 9, 1948. At the very same time, US government officials were trying to fend off a legal action accusing them of complicity with Israel’s 'unfolding genocide' of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Now the South African government has filed a case with the International Court of Justice, invoking the Genocide Convention and accusing Israel of 'genocidal acts.'

Some commentators have contemptuously dismissed the idea that Israel’s war on Gaza should be considered genocidal as an absurdity. But academic experts have presented the question in a very different light and insisted on the need for urgent, morally serious debate.

The dismissive attitude to the charge of genocide betrays two forms of ignorance. The first concerns the definition of genocide in the convention itself. Although that definition was greatly influenced by the crimes of Nazism, its understanding of genocide also applies to a wider set of cases. The second form of ignorance concerns the deliberately murderous nature of the Israeli onslaught on the people of Gaza, and the overtly genocidal rhetoric that government officials have used to justify it."
https://jacobin.com/2023/12/biden-administration-israel-gaza-war-ethnic-cleansing-genocide-convention

-->This story was picked up by Code Pink, Vox and Israel's newspaper Haaretz. Why no mainstream media coverage? Perhaps this story will be like the tale of the emperor who had no clothes. Once a country points out that the US and Israel are involved in the worst genocide of the 21st Century, why everyone will finally realize the terrible truth.