Thursday, March 6

Types of News: Brief

News briefs are shorter stories about current events. It’s the who-what-when-and-where. “Just the facts, ma’am.” Please see our writers guidelines.

State Department Official Resigns Over Biden’s Middle East Policy
20Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Arms Sales, Military Industry, Human rights, Middle East, Types of News: Brief, UN Security Council

State Department Official Resigns Over Biden’s Middle East Policy

Arms Transfer To Israel Contributes To 'Massive Civilian Casualties' October 20, 2023—Josh Paul isn't the only State Department official who has concerns about the U.S. policy on Israel's military assault on civilians. But he might be the first one to resign. The resignation comes as President Biden asks Congress for a $14 billion military aid package for Israel and $9.15 billion for humanitarian aid for Israel, Ukraine, and Gaza. It also comes as the United States vetoed a resolution in the UN Security Council that would have created safe corridors for humanitarians to assist civilians in Gaza. U.S. diplomatic staff are taking notice. Acknowledging the morale problem, Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote to department staff saying the Middle East crisis "has not only been chal...
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US Vetos UN Resolution On Humanitarian Aid For Gaza
20Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
International Law, Legal Battles, Middle East, Types of News: Brief, UN Security Council

US Vetos UN Resolution On Humanitarian Aid For Gaza

Full Text of Security Council Resolution Offered By Brazil October 20, 2023—The same day President Biden negotiated a plan to allow 20 trucks to deliver humanitarian aid into Gaza, the United States vetoed a resolution in the UN Security Council that would have called for protections for civilians, humanitarians, and UN personnel inside Gaza. The resolution would have created humanitarian corridors for distributing aid and helping civilians escape to safe zones. It also would have called for an immediate release of Israeli and American hostages held by Hamas. Fourth Resolution To Fail It was the fourth resolution related to the Israel-Hamas war to fail this week. It had the strongest chance of passing the Security Council. The veto by the United States, one of the five Permane...
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Aid Deal For Gaza To Allow 20 Trucks In, But Safe Passage Is An Issue
19Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Diplomacy, Human rights, Types of News: Brief

Aid Deal For Gaza To Allow 20 Trucks In, But Safe Passage Is An Issue

October 19, 2023—The Gaza Strip is in crisis. It is a crisis that is spilling over into the rest of the Middle East and the world. Millions are without electricity, water, and food. Aid trucks are waiting along the Egypt-Gaza border. It's been over a week since Israel instituted a total blockade on the enclave after Hamas unleashed a reign of terror on Israeli citizens. Israel cut electricity on October 11. Hamas holds over 200 Israelis and Americans captive. Trucks with aid wait outside Rafah border crossing. Source: United Nations Aid Is Ready And Waiting UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire.” He called on Hamas to release hostages and for Israel to allow "unrestricted access of humanitarian aid" for people in Gaza. “For n...
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Canada And China Spar In The East Asian Skies
17Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Geopolitics, Types of News: Brief, Types of News: Videos

Canada And China Spar In The East Asian Skies

October 17, 2023—Five meters. That was the distance between a Royal Canadian Air Force and a Chinese jet in international airspace. “It was quite frankly dangerous and reckless. And those types of behaviors are not ever acceptable and we will express that to the People’s Republic of China in the most appropriate way,” said Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair. Several news outlets reported the incident, which shows the intensity of geopolitical relations in East Asia. According to Reuters, China's Foreign Ministry responded to the complaint by saying Canada "aircraft illegally intruded into the airspace" of islands claimed by China. Canada's Global News was one of the first to report it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nc7unKkuI04 Disputed Territory The land is uninha...
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Terror Financing: Where Does Hamas Get Its Money
16Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Corruption, Bribes, Illicit Finance & Money Laundering, Foreign Aid, International Development, Types of News: Brief

Terror Financing: Where Does Hamas Get Its Money

October 16, 2023—Since 2007, Israel has imposed an air, land, and sea blockade of the Gaza Strip. But that hasn't stopped the Hamas from getting access to hundreds of millions of dollars. The terrorist organization and governing body of Gaza has access to a global financing network connected with countries, businesses, and charities, according to reporting by Reuters. Now, in the aftermath of the Hamas attack on Israel, those lines of finance will come under greater scrutiny by governments, international organizations, and banks. Crypto, Credit, and Trade Reuters reported that Hamas receives support from Iran and Qatar as well as charities. Furthermore, it exchanges money with cryptocurrencies, credit cards, and trade deals to avoid international restrictions. Earlier this y...
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US And Japan Affirm Security Alliance Amid Heightened Tensions In Asia
5Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Arms Sales, Military Industry, Geopolitics, Types of News: Brief

US And Japan Affirm Security Alliance Amid Heightened Tensions In Asia

Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin affirmed the U.S.-Japan security alliance on Oct. 4, 2023. October 5, 2023—Defense ministers from the United States and Japan strengthened their two countries' security alliance on Wednesday amid heightened tensions in Asia. Japan is expediting a planned purchase of Tomahawk cruise missiles, moving the date up one year. The United States, meanwhile, reaffirmed its promise to defend Japan's mainland and territories in what U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called an "ironclad commitment." U.S.-Japan Alliance "This is a time of historic momentum in the U.S.-Japan alliance," Austin said on Wednesday. "We support your government's bold decisions to invest in advanced capabilities including counterstrike...
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Biden Takes The Bullhorn, Walks The Picket Line
26Sep By Patti MohrNo Comments
Domestic Politics, Types of News: Brief, United States

Biden Takes The Bullhorn, Walks The Picket Line

President Biden joins striking workers in Michigan September 26, 2023. September 26, 2023—The power of the U.S. presidency is the bully pulpit, and today President Joe Biden put it to use. As the national autoworkers' strike grew in numbers and gained more news media attention, politicians are taking close notice. The issue is not only that the expanding strike has consequences for workers, consumers, business and the larger U.S. economy, it is also a political one. It is not cynical to say that both parties want to win the loyalties of blue-collar workers, especially in a swing state like Michigan. It's simply a practical matter in U.S. politics. Biden Comments On Workers' Pay Today, Biden wooed striking workers in person. He arrived on the scene one day in advance of a vis...
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U.S. Government Sues Amazon.com In Massive Lawsuit
26Sep By Patti MohrNo Comments
Big Tech, Digital Economy, Types of News: Brief

U.S. Government Sues Amazon.com In Massive Lawsuit

FTC Says Firm Uses 'Illegal Monopoly' Practices To Inflate Prices, Cheapen Products And Stifle Innovation Amazon.com corporate headquarters in Seattle, Washington. September 26, 2023—The U.S. government came out swinging hard today against one of the world's largest tech companies. In a lawsuit filed today, the Federal Trade Commission and 17 state attorney generals accuse Amazon.com ofusing illegal strategies to "inflate prices, degrade quality, and stifle innovation for consumers and businesses." Massive Lawsuit It's an extensive lawsuit in its scope of accusations of monopolistic power. "With its amassed power across both the online superstore market and online marketplace services market, Amazon extracts enormous monopoly rents from everyone within its reach," the FTC s...
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Oil Prices Jump As Saudi Arabia And Russia Make Output Deal
19Sep By Patti MohrNo Comments
Energy Policy, Oil & Gas, Geopolitics, Types of News: Brief

Oil Prices Jump As Saudi Arabia And Russia Make Output Deal

Photo by Johannes Havn on Pexels.com The Decision Indirectly Impacts Inflation, Interest Rates, And Russia's Brutal Assault On Ukraine September 19, 2023—As oil prices prop up inflation and the Russian war economy, policy decisions impacting oil are significant. So it matters when two of the world's largest oil-producing countries make a deal to restrict output to push up prices. The two countries are Saudi Arabia and Russia. As oil prices continue to rise so does the scrutiny of Saudi Arabia's decision to side with Russia. The Price of Oil This story starts with a look at the cost. The price of oil rose in August and again in September to $92 a barrel WTI (U.S.) and $95 a barrel Brent (British). On average, oil output from OPEC countries also jumped month-on-month by 6 perc...
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Watchdog Warns About Global Economy Ahead Of G20
5Sep By Patti MohrNo Comments
Finance, Investing, Global Economics, Types of News: Brief

Watchdog Warns About Global Economy Ahead Of G20

Historically High Debt Beginning To Feel Credit Crunch From Higher Interest Rates September 5, 2023—As world leaders travel to New Delhi, India for the G20 Summit, the head of an international body monitoring global finance issued a stark warning about debt and stability. In short, interest rate hikes since March 2022 are beginning to impact markets, according to Klaas Knot, a Dutch economist and chair of the Financial Stability Board. 'Historically High Debt' Writing on behalf of the board, Knot warned that a combination of factors could "impair the capacity of borrowers to service the historically high stock of outstanding global debt." Those factors include high global debt, interest rate hikes, persistent inflation, tighter financial markets, and a slowing economy, acc...
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