Dark Microbiome in the Atacama Desert Highlights Life Detection Limits on Mars

Red Stone in the Atacama Desert. These rocks are similar to ones found in ancient lake beds and river deltas on Mars. Credit: Armando Azua-Bustos.

The search for life on other planets has long been of interest to humanity. However, we have been limited to what orbiters and their scientific instruments can detect and restricted to the specific locations of landers and rovers. Another approach is to study places on Earth with geologic and climatic resemblances to other planets. One such analog for Mars is the Atacama Desert in Chile. The Atacama is the oldest, driest desert on the planet, but life still thrives there.

Recently, Armando Azua-Bustos, from the Centro de Astrobiología in Madrid, Spain, and his team studied an alluvial fan delta called Red Stone in the Atacama Desert to test the limitations of scientific instruments designed to detect life. A slew of instruments and techniques that are either already on Mars or will be sent there were tested. While the instruments correctly determined sample mineralogy, concentrations of organics were generally near or below the detection limits of the instruments. The team also analyzed some biology. While Red Stone shares similarities to the sedimentary rocks of ancient Mars, it has about 1μg of DNA per gram of soil. Azua-Bustos’s team found that 8.9% of the identified DNA and RNA at Red Stone fell into an “unclassified” category, and another 40.8% could not be identified until looking at their distant relatives higher up the animal kingdom chain. They proposed the term “dark microbiome” to refer to microorganisms that can be detected but whose identity cannot be determined. In the case of Red Stone, this dark microbiome could be a species not found anywhere else on Earth, or it could be a relic of a species (or multiple species) that has died out and has no close relatives in existing databases. This adds to the already complex task of detecting past or present life on Mars and highlights the importance of sample return missions. READ MORE

U of A Students celebrate successful launch of wildfire-monitoring satellite

'The moment it launched there was a pin-drop silence,' says lead manager of the project

VIDEO
How artificial intelligence could change the way we fight wildfires

A student-built satellite from the University of Alberta that will capture images of active wildfires has made it into orbit after a successful launch last week.

The satellite Ex-Alta 2, a miniature satellite about the size of a loaf of bread and weighing about two kilograms, launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre aboard the Falcon 9 SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft on March 14.

SEE ALSO: Wildfire terms Canadians should be familiar with this summer

"The moment it launched there was a pin-drop silence," Thomas Ganley, lead manager on the AlbertaSat's project, told CBC's Edmonton AM.

The atmosphere was celebratory and he and his teammates were there to watch the countless years of their hard work blast off into space as part of a resupply mission to the International Space Station.

"Everyone was in awe and just jaw dropped looking at the amazing marvel happening in front of us."

Students from various degrees at the University of Alberta have been working on the Ex-Alta 2 project for six years now (Submitted by Thomas Ganley and Nikhil Velagapudi)

The satellite, known as a cubesat, is a small, light and affordable device that will burn upon re-entry, meaning it doesn't leave behind space debris. Each mission could take up to a year to complete.

AlbertaSat builds cubesats composed of three units.

Ex-Alta 2 includes a multispectral camera, called an Iris, to take the images they need.

"We're going to be studying active wildfires post-burn, the effect on vegetation to hopefully enable wildfire scientists to make some conclusions that will help us mitigate wildfires in the future," Ganley said.

"It's quite impressive the amount of technology that you can pack into there and the really valuable science that you can still do with such a small size," he said.
Content continues below

Real space mission opportunity for students

Students from various degrees at the university have been working on the Ex-Alta 2 project for six years now. In 2017, they launched Ex-Alta 1.

Ex-Alta 1 was designed to study space weather and carried instruments that measured the electron density of the ionosphere, magnetic signatures and radiation of the spacecraft.

The student-built IRIS camera will photograph wildfires. (Liam Droog/AlbertaSat)

Both satellites are part of the Canadian Space Agency's Canadian CubeSat Project and the Northern Space Program for Innovative Research and Integrated Training (Northern SPIRIT), which aim to give students the opportunity to experience a real space mission.

The project is made up of a collaboration between three post-secondary institutions to create a nanosatellite design.

AlbertaSat worked with Yukon University and Aurora Research Institute in the Northwest Territories to build three cubesats.

"It really sets you up for leadership in the industry," said Nikhil Velagapudi, a third-year chemical engineering student.

"Having that leadership and management skills from an early age in the student group sector really helps us, it sets us up for success in the workforce."

AlbertaSat plans on partnering up with the Canadian Space Agency to develop a satellite that will monitor snow and ice in the country's northern region.

WATCH: What's that in the sky? How to identify that flash of light you just saw

Thumbnail courtesy of Nick Sorensen/AlbertaSat, background Samantha Cristoforetti/NASA.

The story, written by Ishita Verma, was originally published for CBC News.

Published on Mar. 21, 2023

Cyclone Freddy record claim in the eye of the storm

Robin MILLARD
Sun, 26 March 2023 


Cyclone Freddy's extraordinary journey will be reviewed in minute detail to verify whether its deadly track counts as the longest-lasting tropical storm, the world extreme weather records chief told AFP.

The cyclone crossed the entire southern Indian Ocean before wreaking death and destruction on southeastern Africa in February and March.

An international panel of experts will now spend months poring over the data to decide if it constitutes a new record in the Weather and Climate Extremes Archive run by the UN's World Meteorological Organization.

Randall Cerveny, the WMO's gatekeeper for world weather records, said the verdict rests on assessing the times when Freddy dipped below 34 knots -- 63 kilometres (39 miles) per hour -- before picking up speed again.

"The fundamental question will be: do we count the time when it was below tropical storm status?" said Cerveny, a professor of Geographical Sciences at Arizona State University who established the WMO archive in 2007.

The current record holder for the longest-lasting tropical cyclone is Hurricane/Typhoon John, which spent 31 days over the Pacific Ocean in 1994.

Freddie's total lifespan exceeded that -- but it will take months of deliberation to determine whether it constitutes a new record.

"We have to go back and do the hard work -- looking at the precise numbers and values," Cerveny said.

"It will take time but it will be a very comprehensive study."

- Experts can redefine meteorology -

The Geneva-based WMO's extreme weather archive contains a variety of records including temperature, air pressure, rainfall, wind speed, hail and lightning.

For each potential new record, Cerveny assembles a panel of world-leading experts in that field. The groups can vary in size from 10 people to more than 20, and they meet virtually.

For Freddy, scientists from the US National Hurricane Center, experts in monitoring hurricanes through satellite imagery, and national weather service meteorologists from around the Indian Ocean are all being lined up, alongside general climatologists.

"These scientists are the best of the best and so once they make a decision, I think everybody will be able to live with that," Cerveny said.

"These discussions can be really incredible. We've actually in past discussions rewritten some of the fundamental definitions in meteorology," he said, citing how lightning flashes are defined.

"I expect that's going to be the case here, when we make a decision as to whether we will work with the timeframe when Freddy was below tropical storm status."

- Freddy's deadly impact -

Freddy developed off north Australia and became a named storm on February 6.

It made landfall in Madagascar on February 21, crossing the island before reaching Mozambique on February 24, claiming lives in both countries.

Freddy tracked over Mozambique and Zimbabwe, bringing heavy rains and flooding.

It then looped back towards the coast, regained strength and hit Madagascar again before heading back over Mozambique and Malawi, where it caused around 500 deaths, with floods and mudslides sweeping away homes, roads and bridges.

Tropical storms derive their power source from warm water and therefore weaken over land. Freddy dissipated around March 14.

"The thing that saved it and made it such a long duration was continually moving back out over warm water," said Cerveny.

Once he gets the full raw data from the weather monitoring stations around the Indian Ocean, Cerveny will assemble a background report for the panel to kick off their deliberations.

"I have no doubts that we will find the right answer," he said.

- Records help track changes -

The current record holder, John, was determined from aircraft reconnaissance.

"Looking at the track data, it slipped below tropical storm status," said Cerveny.

"I'm talking to the people that made that determination and trying to figure out how did they decide? That is something we'll want to talk about."

Freddy could also be up for other records, such as the furthest-travelling storm.

But why does establishing records matter?

"The most important is climate change. If we want to see how things are changing we need to have a good baseline of what's happening now," said Cerveny.

"The water that's dropping from these tropical cyclones does appear to be increasing over time. We see wetter and wetter tropical cyclones. A lot more flooding."

Weather extremes data is also used for civil engineering planning: for example, the maximum wind speed that a bridge must be able to withstand.

Cerveny added: "Also, people in general like to know extremes."

rjm/apo/ea/lb

Biden finds his limits on Israel


Ohad Zwigenberg/AP Photo

Nahal Toosi
Mon, March 27, 2023 

The political crisis engulfing Israel is exposing the limits of American influence on the country — limits that are, to some degree, self-imposed.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s effort to overhaul Israel’s judiciary is the most direct cause of the recent chaos — prompting huge protests and strikes, with even Israeli military members speaking out in opposition.

Netanyahu’s goal: make changes to Israel’s judicial system that would, among other things, let Israeli lawmakers override court rulings — a move that critics fear will badly damage Israeli democracy.

Over the weekend, Netanyahu fired his defense minister for opposing the overhaul — sparking more protests and exposing cracks in the ruling coalition. On Monday, as more coalition members reportedly threatened to quit, Netanyahu announced he was putting the overhaul on hold and would seek a compromise measure.

Throughout the crisis, whose roots stretch back months, President Joe Biden and his aides tried to strike a balance with Israel: Keeping appeals and criticisms largely private, but going public on occasion with carefully worded statements designed to pressure Netanyahu to back off the overhaul plan. But those U.S. appeals didn’t seem to do the trick. Internal Israeli pressure has clearly been far more powerful.

The big question now is how much influence the United States still has with Netanyahu and what level of pressure it’s willing to apply when Netanyahu or his party take future destabilizing actions.
So the crisis is all about the judicial reform?

No. Netanyahu returned to power late last year— after the latest in a series of seemingly endless elections — by aligning himself with extreme right-wing figures, some of whom have racist, misogynist and homophobic views.

This has alarmed more moderate and left-leaning Israelis, whose political power is limited. Many worry that the far-right coalition now in charge of the country — some members of whom have extreme religious views — will undermine secular Israelis’ rights, not to mention those of Israeli Arabs, Palestinians and others.

To top it off, many of his critics suspect that the main reason Netanyahu is pushing the judicial overhaul and other initiatives desired by his far-right partners is so that they will ultimately protect him from prosecution in Israeli courts, where he’s facing corruption charges.
How are Biden and his aides reacting to all this?

Very, very cautiously.

For the most part, Biden administration officials have tried to keep their conversations with the Israelis private, and, even then, they tend to say things in carefully worded ways.

The administration has — often in a coded manner — warned Netanyahu that he needs to protect Israeli democracy. The administration also has stressed its support for LGBTQ rights and Palestinian rights in ways designed to signal to Netanyahu that he should rein in his extremist allies.

Administration officials have said they will hold Netanyahu responsible for his coalition, pointing out that he’s insisted he’s the one in charge. And top administration officials have refused to meet with far-right figures surrounding the Israeli prime minister.

But the Biden administration also insists that its commitment to Israel’s security is ironclad. The president has long said he will not impose conditions on the billions of dollars in security aid the U.S. provides to Israel, and there’s no sign he’s changed his mind about that.

While the administration insists that it does have some leverage over Israel — such as assisting it against attacks at the United Nations or helping it pursue deeper cooperation with some Arab states — the reality is that it has largely stuck to rhetoric as its main weapon.
Is it working?

Not really.

Just days ago, Biden spoke to Netanyahu, and the White House readout of the call emphasized that Biden wanted Israel to find a compromise on the judicial reform issue because it’s critical to safeguarding Israeli democracy.

“Democratic societies are strengthened by genuine checks and balances, and that fundamental changes should be pursued with the broadest possible base of popular support,” the readout said.

It was an unusually frank call, the readout suggested, especially given the usual niceties involved in the relationship. But in the days after, there was no sign that Netanyahu had taken Biden’s warnings to heart.

The Israeli leader proceeded ahead with the judicial reform plans. It wasn’t until Netanyahu’s coalition started to crack amid popular pressure that he began to rethink his stance this past weekend.
What factors must Biden consider when dealing with Israel?

First, there’s the pure national security aspect. Israel is a critical partner to the United States in the Middle East, especially when it comes to intelligence sharing about the various players in the region.

This is especially important in regard to Iran, a longtime U.S. and Israeli adversary with a nuclear program.

Second, there’s just a lot of history. The United States has always been a stalwart partner to Israel ever since it was created as a homeland for the Jewish people fleeing persecution in Europe and beyond.

Biden has been, for decades, a champion of Israel. He genuinely loves the country and the many successes it has achieved in its short existence.

Biden has often touted his friendship with Netanyahu, even when the latter has tested that friendship.

Israel also is a rare democracy in the Middle East. Many U.S. officials also want to keep good ties with Israel in part to resolve the lingering Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has left the Palestinian people in misery for decades.

Third, there’s the question of how things could play out in America’s 2024 presidential campaign.

For many years, there was broad bipartisan support for Israel in the United States, and any president who criticized the country risked being attacked by members of his own party. This is changing, somewhat.

Generally speaking, Democrats are still strong supporters of Israel. But there has been growing worry in recent years among Democrats about Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.

Netanyahu’s wholehearted embrace of former President Donald Trump angered many Democrats. His new government’s make-up also has alarmed even some of his strongest Democratic backers, suggesting Biden could feel pressure from his party to be tougher on Israel going forward.
Is the calculus different for the GOP?

Pro-Israel organizations are strong and politically active, and they command significant support from evangelical Christians in particular — an important Republican base.

In a sign of how strident the GOP support is for Israel, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell recently told Axios that Washington shouldn’t weigh in on the judicial overhaul plan, calling it an Israel internal matter.

Republicans eyeing the White House already are trying to prove their pro-Israel bona fides.

Some, such as former Trump administration Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, won’t say if they support a future state for Palestinians, for instance. Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has touted her many efforts to protect Israel at the world body.

But there are signs that Netanyahu’s overhaul plan goes too far for even some of Israel’s biggest supporters on the American right. Former Trump administration ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, is among those who’ve reportedly voiced concerns.

How much does the U.S. really care about the Middle East right now, given threats from Russia and China?

It still cares a lot.

The United States has military bases in the Middle East, and the region remains a key source of oil and gas for the world — one even more critical given the damage Russia’s war in Ukraine has done to energy markets.

Without question, the Biden administration believes the top threat to America’s long-term global power is China. But China — as well as Russia — is trying to gain influence in the Middle East amid perceptions that the United States is backing away from the region. That means the competition with those two countries will include the arena of the Middle East.

For the Biden administration, one key goal is to push for a more peaceful Middle East, with the idea that a more stable Middle East means the United States can focus more on the grander challenges posed by China and Russia.

Mexico will not prohibit Chinese-owned TikTok app, says president




Mon, March 27, 2023

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The Mexican government will not ban the popular video sharing social media application TikTok, the country's president said on Monday, even as the United States moves closer to a possible prohibition on the Chinese-owned app due to security concerns.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador vowed "complete freedom" when asked about the platform during his regular morning news conference, after TikTok's chief executive faced a grilling by U.S. lawmakers last week.

Some U.S. lawmakers are calling on the government to ban the app, alleging it could be used for sweeping data collection, content censorship and harm to children's mental health.

The Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday the United States has not presented any evidence that TikTok presents a threat to national security.- ADVERTISEMENT -

Meanwhile, Canada announced last month a ban on the app from government-issued devices, also citing risks to privacy and security.

Other countries and entities have also elected to ban TikTok.

(Reporting by Valentine Hilaire; Editing by Isabel Woodford)

Virgin Orbit extends worker furlough, continues funding talks -CEO


Virgin Orbit facility is seen, in Long Beach

Mon, March 27, 2023 at 4:48 PM MDT
By Joey Roulette

(Reuters) - Billionaire Richard Branson's cash-strapped Virgin Orbit Holdings will extend an unpaid furlough for most of its employees as talks seeking new funding continue, the company's chief executive said in an email to employees on Monday.

"Our investment discussions have been very dynamic over the past few days, they are ongoing, and not yet at a stage where we can provide a fulsome update," Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart wrote in the email seen by Reuters.

Virgin Orbit declined further comment.

Reuters reported last week that Texas-based Matthew Brown had been in talks to invest $200 million in the company. Those talks have collapsed, said two people familiar with the discussions who asked not to be identified. Brown declined to comment on Monday.

Virgin Orbit, teetering on bankruptcy after a January rocket failure and struggles to raise funds, furloughed nearly all its 750 employees on March 15 while it sought a financial lifeline that would allow it to focus on upgrading its launch business.

The rocket maker was spun out of Branson's space tourism firm Virgin Galactic in 2017. Branson owns a controlling stake of Virgin Orbit of roughly 75%.

A small group of employees were called back to work last week, while the others were to remain furloughed until at least Monday when Hart had been expected to provide an update in a company-wide virtual meeting.

"In order that we may provide you with meaningful details we have delayed the all-hands scheduled for today," Hart said in the email, which employees received minutes before the expected meeting was to begin. Hart added he expects a new company-wide meeting will take place "no later than Thursday."

Virgin Orbit shares were down 12% in after-hours trading Monday after closing down 26 cents, or 33%, at 54 cents a share.

(Reporting by Joey Roulette, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

A Highland Park mass shooting survivor jumped on the mic as Fox News covered a deadly Nashville school shooting and demanded gun reform: 'How is this still happening?'



Grace Eliza Goodwin
Mon, March 27, 2023 

A shooter killed 6 people at The Covenant School in Nashville on March 27, 2023.John Amis/AP

A woman interrupted Fox News' live coverage of a school shooting to plead for gun reform.

A 28-year-old female shooter killed 3 children and 3 adults at an elementary school in Nashville on Monday.

The woman grabbed the mic and asked reporters on the scene, "How is this still happening?"

A Highland Park shooting survivor interrupted Fox News' TV coverage of a deadly Nashville school shooting, jumping on the live mic to demand lawmakers pass gun control.

Fox News and local news outlets were reporting on the scene when a woman walked up to the mic and gave an impassioned plea for gun reform.

The woman — who was later identified as an activist named Ashbey Beasley, according to USA Today — said she was a survivor of the Highland Park, Illinois, shooting on July 4th, 2022, that left 7 people dead.

"Aren't you guys tired of covering this?" Beasley said. "Aren't you guys tired of being here and having to cover all of these mass shootings?"

Beasley said was visiting the Nashville area on a family vacation with her son to visit her sister-in-law when she heard about the latest deadly shooting — which left 3 children and 3 adults at a Christian school dead.

"I have been lobbying in DC since we survived a mass shooting in July," Beasley said in front of a group of reporters on the scene, which was broadcast on Fox News. "I have met with over 130 lawmakers. How is this still happening? How are our children still dying and why are we still failing them?"

She continued: "These mass shootings will continue to happen until our lawmakers step up and pass gun legislation."

Fox News abruptly cut away from her, with a reporter responding to the woman's speech, saying she "said it quite succinctly: 'Aren't you tired of this?' Yes, we are tired of this."

Though Fox News' broadcast cut Beasley off, The Recount posted video showing more of her remarks.

"We all have to call our lawmakers and we all have to make our lawmakers make change now," Beasley continued in the video shared by The Recount on Twitter. "Or this is going to keep happening and it's going to be your kid, and your kid, and your kid next. Cause it's just a matter of time."

Nashville Metro Police say a 28-year-old woman opened fire at The Covenant School 

Monday. The shooter, who has not yet been identified, was shot and killed by police.

 Country Singers Call Out Politicians After Nashville School Shooting: ‘F— the NRA’

Thania Garcia
Mon, March 27, 2023


Following Monday’s news of a shooting at a private Christian elementary school in Tennessee, several celebrities took to Twitter to point their frustrations at politicians and demand the need for stricter gun control laws.

A 28-year-old Nashville woman killed three children and three adult staff members at the Covenant School before she was shot and killed by police, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said. At the time of this article’s publication, the shooter’s identity has not yet been released.

Nashville-based singer-songwriter Margo Price tweeted at Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and questioned his choice to pass the permit-less handgun carry bill — which allows anyone 21 years or older to legally possess a weapon.

“Four dead so far in an elementary school shooting in Nashville this am. Can I ask you, @GovBillLee why you passed permit-less carry in 2021? Our children are dying and being shot in school but you’re more worried about drag queens than smart gun laws?” she tweeted. Price wa s referring to Lee’s ban on gender-affirming health care for minors, along with a bill he signed that limits drag show performances in Tennessee. While the bill doesn’t implicitly use the word “drag,” it forbids drag performances by male or female impersonators who, as the law defines it, provide entertainment that is “harmful to minors.”

Country singer Mickey Guyton joined the conversation writing, “As a mother, I’m pissed the fuck off. Shame on every single politician ok with doing nothing as children are getting assassinated on an everyday basis in a place that is supposed to be their safe haven.”

Nathan Followill of the Kings of Leon revealed that the shooting had happened near his son’s school. He closed his emotional tweet with pointed words against Gov. Bill Lee and the National Rifle Association.

Peter Frampton emphasized that the school was full of children between preschool and 6th grade. “Children, babies!!! It IS the fucking guns!” he tweeted.

Country singer Carly Pearce sent her condolences writing, “Praying for these babies & their families.”

Katie Couric asked “When will it end?” in response to the news that three children, and at the time, two adults, had been pronounced dead.

Actor Morgan Fairchild shared the breaking news on her Twitter and went on to re-tweet several updates and messages from gun control activists.

Director and film producer Alex Gibney took on Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, writing “just don’t pretend you are doing anything about the relentless murder of children by gunfire in this country.”

Read more messages below:

U.S. Senior Citizen Says Her Skull Was Fractured by Israeli Settlers


Mel Frykberg
Mon, March 27, 2023

Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Courtesy Cassandra Auren

An American senior citizen allegedly suffered a potentially fatal attack in the West Bank as part of a surge in violence that has gripped the Israeli-occupied region since Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power at the head of an extreme right-wing coalition.

Local residents told The Daily Beast that Israeli settlers—who are trying to take over Palestinian land—have been emboldened by the radical rhetoric and extremist policies promoted by the new government. Villagers say attacks have become a daily hazard and the Israeli police and military have done little to protect them.

An American mother of two from Wisconsin was caught up in the violence this month. Cassandra Auren, 65, was hospitalized for two days and required six stitches after she suffered a fractured skull and internal bleeding. She told The Daily Beast that she was struck on the head by an Israeli settler with a long wooden stick as she was visiting the village of Tuba in the Massafer Yatta area south of Hebron.

“The attack by the male settler, who had a small child with him, took me totally by surprise as there was no prior confrontation and no provocation on my part. It all happened so fast I had no time to think about whether my life was in danger,” said Auren, a residential carpenter who traveled to the region as a peace activist.

In a video seen by The Daily Beast, another settler armed with a metal pole chased Auren and an Italian woman who was with her.

The doctor’s report said there was a fracture and external bleeding at the site of the trauma. The CT scan showed right subdural hematoma, 3mm in thickness. And the doctor reported decreased hearing in her left ear and said that she continues to suffer from severe headaches. “When I came around my head was painful and I was dizzy.”

A video frame grab shows an Israeli settler chasing Auren.
Cassandra Auren

Although the incident has shaken her badly she has continued to visit the village and remains angry that this behavior often goes unreported.

“I now understand the fear that Palestinians feel all the time, especially the women and children, because at night I also get afraid that the settlers might attack again,” said Auren.

Israel Braces for the ‘Terrifying’ Crisis Bibi Wanted All Along

The ancient Hebron hills—with their winding roads that snake around orchards and agricultural fields—have an unmistakable rugged beauty. Generations of Palestinians living in villages and hamlets that dot the territory have earned their living from the land here for hundreds of years. But the unspoilt views can be deceptive—they are hiding a dark side.

Ali Awad, from the village of Tuba in Massafer Yatta, told The Daily Beast that his family and all the other residents are being threatened with expulsion but their livelihoods would be destroyed and they have nowhere else to go.

“Settlers have become emboldened in the last few months and carry out nearly daily attacks on the villages. And if we complain to the police or army when they arrive, we are arrested and told that the land no longer belongs to us and that we have to leave the land,” Awad said.

Cassandra Auren's head injury.
Cassandra Auren

Last Thursday, he said a Palestinian who confronted a settler on his land was bitten in the face and teargassed while the Israeli army stood by, with residents accusing the settlers of a deliberate policy of intimidation to drive them off their land.

The daily settler attacks have been an ongoing problem for years but with Israel’s new extreme right-wing government their behavior has been given the green light.

As the settlers expropriate more and more land, Palestinian children who used to travel to school in the nearby hamlet of At-Tuwani have been forced to take circuitous routes, accompanied by an Israeli military escort to avoid settlers from the nearby Israeli outpost of Havat Maon attacking them.

“Sometimes the Israeli soldiers show up and sometimes they don’t, it depends on their mood,” said Awad, a local journalist.

A Palestinian shows papers during a protest against settlements in Masafer Yatta near Hebron, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Jan. 20, 2023.

Mussa Qawasma/Reuters

Tuba villagers’ journey to the nearest town in the area, Yatta, used to be just over a mile but to avoid the growing Israeli settlements, outposts and potential attacks from the settlers it is now a seven-mile trip.

Approximately 2,500 Palestinians residing in Massafer Yatta, which comprises about 15 villages and hamlets spanning 7,000 hectares, are facing forced removal following an Israeli Supreme Court ruling last May that the area could continue to be used as a military firing zone.

Their forced removal would be the biggest transfer of Palestinians since 1967 when Israel occupied the West Bank—an occupation that is considered illegal under international law.

“Forcible transfer of protected persons in occupied territory is a war crime,” the Israeli human rights organisation B’Tselem says.

Massafer Yatta falls into Area C of the West Bank which comprises 60 percent of the territory and is under full Israeli control and is mostly reserved for Israeli settlers through the destruction of Palestinian infrastructure and their forced removal.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) reported that in 2022, 953 Palestinian structures were demolished or seized across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the highest number since 2016.

Israeli security forces stand guard near a bulldozer after Israeli police demolished structures in Jabal Al-Mukaber in East Jerusalem, Feb. 13, 2023.
Ammar Awad/Reuters

And it is not only Palestinian activists who are afraid as they fight for justice.

Oriel Eisner, an Israeli-American activist and director of the Center for Jewish Nonviolence, told The Daily Beast that over the last few months the situation had deteriorated, particularly in the south Hebron hills.

“The settlers are going into the Palestinian hills every single day and the army and police, while they never used to do much about it, are even less effective now,” said Eisner, who has been arrested and attacked by settlers several times.

“The army seems to be in lockstep with the settlers.”

“What I fear now is the veneer of privilege and protection I carry and try to leverage as a Jewish-Israeli citizen with the new government doesn’t mean anything because basically the actions they are now willing to take are things that were unthinkable a few months ago,” said Eisner.

His biggest fear, however, is for the Palestinians who will lose their villages and will not be able to fight their displacement.

Firefighters work at a Palestinian house which Palestinians say was attacked by Israeli settlers near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, March 26, 2023.
Mohammed Torokman/Reuters

In the interim the villagers are living with continued shooting and military exercises in the background as helicopters overhead scare their flocks Meanwhile, with most buildings earmarked for demolition, they wait for the next invasion that will drive them off their land.

Twenty percent of the occupied West Bank has been set aside as military firing zones. But recent reports claim this was always part of a bigger plan of land expropriation from the indigenous population.

An Israel Police spokesman told The Daily Beast that a settler had been arrested and his detention extended after he appeared in court.

While Auren received far better treatment than Palestinians who try to make legal complaints, the statistics suggest the alleged attacker is unlikely to ever face justice.

According to Israeli rights group Yesh Din, 93 percent of all investigations into ideologically motivated crime by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank are closed without an indictment.

“Of the 1,531 concluded investigations Yesh Din monitored since 2005, indictments were filed in just 107 cases and only 3 percent of cases led to convictions,” said Yesh Din.

The Wisconsin Network for Peace & Justice reports that Senator Tammy Baldwin has been in touch with the U.S. State Department urging them to push for justice in the case.

Auren says the alleged attack on her on March 7 highlights the brutal way Palestinians are treated. She hopes the U.S. might start to take the issue more seriously.

“My reason for coming here was my interest in the fact that the U.S. gives Israel about $8 million dollars a day in military aid,” she said. “I feel responsible for how those dollars of mine are spent and am shocked that the world allows the abuse of Palestinians to continue, especially the U.S. given our relationship with Israel.”

The Daily Beast.

India's parliament adjourned after protests over Gandhi expulsion

Abhaya SRIVASTAVA
Mon, March 27, 2023 


India's parliament was adjourned twice on Monday after lawmakers held rowdy protests and threw paper at the speaker following the expulsion from the house of top opposition figure Rahul Gandhi.

Gandhi lost his parliamentary seat on Friday after being convicted in a case that critics say shows how the rule of law is under threat in the world's largest democracy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The speaker called off proceedings less than a minute after opposition MPs wearing black erupted in shouting, some of them throwing bits of paper at him.

"I want to run the House with dignity," Speaker Om Birla said.

The session resumed several hours later only to be abandoned again after about 10 minutes as opposition MPs chanted anti-Modi slogans and waved "Democracy in danger" placards.

It was the latest in a string of stoppages in recent weeks in India's often raucous parliament among lawmakers representing India's 1.4 billion people.

Opposition MPs have been demanding a probe into potential links between Modi and the business empire of tycoon Gautam Adani, which has been hit by allegations of accounting fraud.

Debates have also descended into shouting matches over comments made by Gandhi in Britain in early March that Indian democracy is "under attack".

Opposition lawmakers from different parties also staged protests in New Delhi on Monday, the latest in a series of recent demonstrations.

Piyush Goyal, trade minister and a member of Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on Monday accused the opposition of "cheap politics" and "trying to mislead people".

Gandhi "has no right to consider himself above the law of the country", Goyal told reporters.

- Muted international reaction -

Despite facing criticism from human rights groups, Modi has largely been courted by Western governments which see India, this year's host of the Group of 20 economies, as a bulwark against China and potential player on the Ukraine war.

"Respect for the rule of law and judicial independence is a cornerstone of any democracy, and we're watching Mr Gandhi's case in Indian courts," US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said, steering clear of condemning the opposition leader's expulsion.

"We engage with the government of India on our shared commitment to democratic values, including, of course, freedom of expression," Patel told reporters in Washington.

Gandhi, 52, is the leading face of the opposition Congress party, once the dominant force of Indian politics, and is the scion of India's most famous political dynasty.

But Congress has for years been repeatedly crushed in elections by Modi's BJP and its nationalist appeals to India's Hindu majority.

The lower house of parliament ruled Gandhi ineligible to sit as an MP on Friday, a day after he was sentenced to two years for defamation. He is appealing.

The conviction stemmed from a remark made during the 2019 election campaign when Gandhi had asked why "all thieves have Modi as (their) common surname".

His comments were portrayed as a slur against the prime minister and against all those with the same surname, which is associated with the lower rungs of India's caste hierarchy.

A BJP spokesman said Thursday the court acted with "due judicial process" in arriving at its ruling in the case, one of several Gandhi is facing.

Legal action has been widely deployed against opposition party figures and institutions seen as critical of the Modi government during its nine years in power.

Domestic and international media have also come under growing pressure. Last month, tax inspectors raided the local offices of Britain's BBC.

The Editors Guild of India said the raids demonstrated a "trend of using government agencies to intimidate or harass press organisations that are critical of government policies".

On Saturday, Gandhi, who recently completed a walk across India that was hailed as a success by commentators, said he would "do whatever I have to do to defend the democratic nature of this country".

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Police fire tear gas as fresh protests erupt in Kenya despite ban

Hillary ORINDE
Mon, March 27, 2023 


Kenyan police fired tear gas and water cannon at protesters and opposition leader Raila Odinga's convoy on Monday as he pressed ahead with an anti-government rally despite a ban.

The protesters defied a warning by the Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome that the demonstrations in Nairobi and the western city of Kisumu, an Odinga stronghold, were "illegal".

The opposition stalwart has called for protests every Monday and Thursday against the government of President William Ruto, who he claims stole last year's election, and is failing to address the high cost of living.

Security was tight with riot police deployed in strategic points around Nairobi after last week's demonstrations turned violent in some neighbourhoods.

Tear gas and water cannon were deployed as Odinga's convoy moved through a congested slum of the capital, sending people scattering, with police also firing canisters at cars carrying journalists.

"How many support the demonstrations? How many here are saying the price of basic commodities should go down, maize flour should go down, cooking oil, school fees and other commodities must come down?" Odinga told the crowds thronging his vehicle

Police also clashed with stone-throwing demonstrators in the city's largest slum Kibera, where protesters set tyres ablaze while gangs attacked journalists.

And in Kisumu, where a university student was killed in the protests last week, police used tear gas to disperse the crowds.

31 officers were injured in last week's running battles between riot police and demonstrators, and more than 200 people were arrested, including several senior opposition politicians.

Odinga's convoy was also hit in last week's protests.

The interior ministry warned on Sunday that law enforcement agencies "shall not tolerate the reported plans to repeat the violent, chaotic and economically disruptive protests".

- 'Mother of all demonstrations' -

The demonstrations are the first major outbreak of political unrest since Ruto took office more than six months ago after defeating Odinga in an election his rival claims was "stolen".

Despite the police ban, Odinga called Sunday on Kenyans to join what he has described as "the mother of all demonstrations".

"I want to tell Mr Ruto and the IG Koome that we are not going to be intimidated," he said. "We are not going to fear tear gas and police."

Nairobi residents were wary after the previous violence.

"I may have to close too because I have seen most of my neighbours are closed," said Mercy Wangare, an Mpesa (mobile money) kiosk attendant at an electronics shop.

"I am just weighing the situation before I decide because the sight of these policemen patrolling around is a sign that it may not end up well."

Ruto, who is currently on a four-day trip to Germany and Belgium, has urged his rival to halt the action.

"I am telling Raila Odinga that if he has a problem with me, he should face me and stop terrorising the country," he said Thursday.

"Stop paralysing the businesses of mama mboga, matatu and other Kenyans," he said, referring to women stallholders and private minibus operators.

- 'Sleep hungry' -

Many Kenyans are struggling to put food on the table, battling high prices for basic goods as well as a plunging local currency and a record drought that has left millions hungry.

"If the leaders don't talk, it is us who are affected. They are rich people, it is us who will sleep hungry," motorcycle taxi driver Collins Kibe told AFP.

During the election campaign, Ruto portrayed himself as champion of the downtrodden and vowed to improve the lot of ordinary Kenyans.

But critics say he has broken several campaign promises and has removed subsidies for fuel and maize flour -- a dietary staple.

Kenya's energy regulatory body has also announced a hike in electricity prices from April, despite Ruto insisting in January there would be no such increase.

Last week's protests proved costly, with Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua saying the economy had lost at least $15 million.

Anti-government protests in Kenya hit Nairobi for 2nd week''

 

EVELYNE MUSAMBI
Mon, March 27, 2023 

Nairobi, Kenya (AP) — Thousands of anti-government protesters marched on the streets of Kenya's capital, Nairobi, on Monday despite the government's declaration that the protests are illegal.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga joined protesters on the western side of the capital where his convoy attracted thousands of supporters and he addressed them at various stops calling for electoral justice and reduced prices for food items.

Police used a water cannon and teargas to disperse supporters. Police chief Japheth Koome insists that the protests are illegal but Odinga says Kenyans have a right to demonstrate.

Odinga and his party, Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition, are leading the protests against the rising cost of living and calling for President William Ruto's resignation saying he wasn't validly elected in last year's election.


The protests occurred last week and Odinga has urged his followers to take to the streets twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays.

More than a dozen civil society groups have in a joint statement expressed concern over police declaring Monday's protests illegal and urged authorities to uphold people's constitutional right to peaceful demonstrations.

Ruto over the weekend urged Odinga to face him directly and “stop terrorizing the country.”

Odinga’s plan in last week’s protests was to march to the president’s offices at State House but police erected barriers to prevent public access and motorists were directed to alternative routes.

Ruto is currently out of the country visiting Germany.

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua shared photos of himself at his office early Monday morning and urged Kenyans to report to work.

Nairobi's central business district remained calm but most businesses were closed on Monday morning due to the uncertainty over demonstrations and if there would be violence.

There were reports of some violence directed at Odinga and his supporters. Some people raided a farm in the outskirts of the capital owned by the family of the former president Uhuru Kenyatta, cutting trees and taking away sheep, according to local media reports. The former president supported Odinga in 2022 elections.

Odinga's gas cylinder manufacturing business near the central business district was pelted with stones.

There was a heavy police presence within the capital and surrounding neighborhoods on Monday. Police have dispersed crowds that gathered in Kibera and Mathare, poor areas of Nairobi.

A resident on Kibera, Emily Atieno, told the Associated Press she would continue to protest until the “price of cooking flour is reduced”. Another protester Mario Omari said protests would continue until Ruto resigns from office.

Local media have been warned against broadcasting Monday’s protests. The Communication Authority of Kenya said the airing of last week’s demonstrations caused panic, incited the public and threatened peace.

The High Court, however, ruled that the authority’s notice was unconstitutional and upheld media freedom in response to a petition filed by a civil society group, a journalists’ union and the Law Society.

In 2018, Kenya's main television stations were taken off air for one week by the regulator after airing Odinga’s “mock” swearing in ceremony where he claimed to be the people’s president.” Odinga had rejected the 2017 election results and organized anti-government protests.

Police last week threatened to take action against those pictured hurling stones at officers.

They released photos of people who they said were wanted for crimes committed during the protests but were called out by local media outlets for using old photos and others that were taken during protests in Burundi.

Kenya Opposition Protests

A protester caught in tear-gas during a mass rally called by the opposition leader Raila Odinga over the high cost of living in Kibera Slums, Nairobi Monday, March 27, 2023. Police in Kenya are on high alert ahead of the second round of anti-government protests organized by the opposition that has been termed as illegal by the government. Police chief Japheth Koome insists that Monday's protests are illegal but the opposition leader Raila Odinga says Kenyans have a right to demonstrate.

(AP Photo/Brian Inganga)