#U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken

[minnesotafollower]

U.S. Commemoration of the July 11, 2021 Protests in Cuba  

On July 11, 2024, the U.S. State Department issued the following Press Statement (Commemoration of the July 11, 2021 Protests in Cuba) by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken.[1] “Today we reflect upon the courage and resilience of the Cuban people who, on July 11, 2021 and the days that followed, bravely took to the streets to demand respect for their human rights and fundamental freedoms.  Tens…

[emeriobanque]

Blinken Visit Ivory Coast to Strengthen Diplomatic Ties

U.S. Secretary of State Antony #Blinken landed in #IvoryCoast on Monday, the second stop of his four-nation #African tour.

During his visit, Blinken attended a soccer match at Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara D’Ebimpé. He received a #jersey with his name and said ‘that he was honored to be part of the event’.

He praised Ivory Coast for hosting the tournament and emphasized the role of sports in "forging connections between people."

Blinken said, "While we are engaged in tangible infrastructure development between the United States and Ivory Coast, events like these contribute to building connections between people. #Sports, in particular, excels at achieving this."

The secretary's African tour spans Cape Verde, #Ivory Coast, #Nigeria and #Angola. It's a strategic move by President #Biden's administration to maintain global engagement amid crises in #Ukraine, the #MiddleEast, and the Red Sea region.

Discussions will focus on regional security, conflict prevention, democracy promotion, and #trade. The trip highlights the administration's efforts to boost ties in Africa through sports diplomacy and people-to-people connections.

Read more: https://bit.ly/48M866s

[buddyverse]

Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Gayle King and Charles Barkley of CNN’s King Charles.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken engaged in a comprehensive interview on CNN's King Charles, addressing crucial topics. From relentless efforts to free American hostages to navigating the complexities of the Israel-Gaza conflict and addressing rising.

In a recent interview with Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken on CNN’s King Charles, he addressed critical issues concerning the ongoing conflict related to the breakdown of talks and the resumption of war, particularly the fate of hostages. Secretary Blinken emphasized the Biden administration’s unwavering commitment to ensuring the safe return of every American held captive, highlighting the…

[sayruq]

Behind the scenes: U.S. and Israeli officials said the Biden administration is trying to prevent the Palestinians from getting the nine votes so the U.S. won't have to veto the resolution. A U.S. veto of such a resolution, especially amid the war in Gaza, would bring sharp criticism for Biden internationally and inside his own party, including with some of his supporters.

Over the last two weeks, the Biden administration has been pressing Abbas and his advisers to back off from their request, U.S., Israeli and Palestinian officials say. Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised the issue directly in a phone call with Abbas, and other U.S. officials raised it with their Palestinian counterparts almost every day in the last two weeks, Palestinian and U.S. officials say. The Biden administration made clear to the Palestinians that current U.S. law compels the administration to veto such a resolution or defund the UN, a U.S. official said. According to the officials, Abbas rejected the U.S. pressure and his aides told the Biden administration they are moving forward with the vote. A senior Palestinian official said the Biden administration asked whether Abbas would suspend the bid if he is invited to meet with Biden at the White House. The Palestinian official said Abbas rejected this trade-off and said he agreed to such a U.S. proposal a year ago but never got an invitation. U.S. officials admitted they failed in convincing the Palestinians to suspend their UN bid.

[zvaigzdelasas]

Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke on Friday with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and informed him that he had decided to end the investigation into the Israel Defenses Force's "Netzah Yehuda" battalion for human rights violations in the occupied West Bank and not impose sanctions on the unit, according to two senior U.S. and Israeli officials.

9 Aug 24

[decolonize-the-everything]

If you don't vote for Biden the gays will be rounded up in Project2025! No more abortion! No more anything!

Vote Biden!!

You mean this Biden?

U.S. will never allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon, Biden tells Israel's Lapid

US to launch West Asia Quad with India, Israel and UAE during Biden's visit

.....The same joe Biden that's ALREADY completing goals outlined in Project 2025?

And these are only links and evidence for one page.

Vote 3rd party or don't vote at all, I'm not your dad, do what feels right to you.

But don't vote blue and tell everyone it's a vote against Project2025 or Trump or fascism or that you're saving democracy with your vote. Because you're not. It's literally just gaslighting or at the very least an ignorant and uninformed stance.

You might as well be burning your ballot or voting for Trump.

Quit guilting everyone for not wanting to vote blue when him supporting apartheid & genocide is a good enough reason not to, let alone all of this, too.

And if you're gonna vote for him anyway, get used to being called a white supremacist who supports fascists. Because that's what you would be.

[determinate-negation]

“As Houthis vow to fight on, U.S. prepares for sustained campaign

[…] Officials say they don’t expect that the operation will stretch on for years like previous U.S. wars in Iraq, Afghanistan or Syria. At the same time they acknowledge they can identify no end date or provide an estimate for when the Yemenis’ military capability will be adequately diminished. As part of the effort, U.S. naval forces also are working to intercept weapons shipments from Iran.

[…] Officials said that ideology, rather than economics, was a chief driver of Biden's decision to mount the current campaign.

While the attacks have so far taken a greater toll on Europe than the United States, which relies on Pacific trade routes more than those in the Middle East, the Houthi campaign is already beginning to reshape the global shipping map. Some firms have chosen to reroute ships around the Cape of Good Hope off southern Africa, while major oil companies including BP and Shell suspended shipments through the area.

The officials said Biden believed the United States had to act as what they described as the world's "indispensable nation," with a powerful military and an ability to organize diverse nations behind a single cause. Nations including Canada, Bahrain, Germany and Japan jointly issued a statement on Jan. 3 decrying the Houthi actions.

[…] While U.S. lawmakers have been broadly supportive of the strikes in Yemen, they said the administration has yet to outline a clear strategy or endgame, and suggested the strikes have not eliminated concerns about an escalating Middle East conflict. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters following a meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken in recent days that the administration's plan for addressing the threat appeared to be "evolving."

Legislators also voiced fears the operation could become costly and prolonged. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, noted that some of the missiles employed to date could cost $2 million apiece. "So you've got this issue that will be emerging of how long can we continue to fire expensive missiles," he said.

[bellamonde]

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As most of you have read by now, Taliban has banned women from university education. These brave Afghan women took the streets protesting the closure. It will start with university and eventually trickle down. Taliban is fearful of educated women.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said late Tuesday that no other country in the world bars women and girls from receiving an education."The Taliban cannot expect to be a legitimate member of the international community until they respect the rights of all in Afghanistan," he warned. "This decision will come with consequences for the Taliban." 

Frankly, US can go f*** itself. They allowed this to happen. Biden allowed this to happen. What the hell did they think was going to happen once Taliban came back to power? Did they think that Taliban was going to allow women to be educated, to be free? Of course they didn’t; of course the US knew this was the end result. They didn’t care because Afghan women are nonhumans in their eyes. So, Blinken can say whatever he wants. His words are empty and the US is partly responsible for what is happening to Afghan women and to Afghanistan. The audacity of US administrations knows no limits. 

It’s up to us to help. To put pressure on western governments to do something, such as, fair refugee laws that would help these women and girls to come to the west and live normal lives. And also, pronouncing Taliban as an illegitimate government. 

Stand with the women of Afghanistan. Be their voice. Show that the world we care.

I will try to put together a link for petitions and letter writing campaigns to help Afghan women. And if you know of any, please message me. 

Source: @shabnamnasimi

[minnesotafollower]

U.S. Again Ranks Cuba in Worst Category for Human Trafficking

On June 24, the U.S. State Department released its 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report on human trafficking, whose “severe forms” are defined in the U.S. Trafficking Victims Proetection Act (TVPA) as: “sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained 18 years of age” or “the recruitment,…

[mariacallous]

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said Azerbaijan may be preparing for military aggression against his country as the term "Western Azerbaijan," has become increasingly popular in public discourse in Azerbaijan.

During a Nov. 18 speech at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Yerevan, Pashinyan claimed Azerbaijan media, schools, and universities had started calling Armenia this way, warning the rhetoric could signal Baku's desire to start an offensive military operation.

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned a select group of lawmakers that Azerbaijan might be planning to invade Armenia in the coming weeks, Politico reported on Oct. 13.

Officials familiar with the discussion told Politico that Blinken spoke about the possibility of an invasion in a conference call on Oct. 3.

The call addressed officials' questions about the U.S. response to Azerbaijan's September offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh.

During the call, Blinken reportedly told lawmakers that the State Department will not renew an established agreement that permits the U.S. to offer Azerbaijan military aid. The agreement has been renewed every year since 2002 but lapsed in June.

In the same conversation, Blinken warned that Azerbaijan may invade southern Armenia.

Of particular concern is the southern region of Syunik, which Azerbaijan calls the Zangezur Corridor and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly referred to as "Western Azerbaijan."

In mid-September, the Azerbaijani military launched a lightning offensive against the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, an unrecognized Armenian state within the territory of Azerbaijan. Local authorities eventually surrendered in a ceasefire mediated by Russia.

A formal decree was later signed, dissolving all official institutions of the breakaway state from Jan. 1, 2024. Following Azerbaijan's victory, around 100,000 people have left Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia.

[soon-palestine]

Israel’s assault on Gaza had killed at least 172 dependents of United Nations staff by the end of June, according to a confidential UN report obtained by Drop Site, in addition to 195 staff members.

The previously unreported data reflects the extraordinary toll not just for employees of the United Nations but for their families, and emerges as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to address a joint session of Congress Wednesday.

Netanyahu, the subject of a potential arrest warrant from the U.N.’s International Criminal Court, will meet while in the United States with outgoing President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump, and presidential hopeful/Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris, while meeting with Netanyahu privately, has declined to appear behind him during his address. At least 21 lawmakers, including some establishment figures such as Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., will be boycotting Netanyahu’s address.

The data put together by the U.N.’s Crisis Coordination Centre also includes a breakdown by agency, finding five U.N. Development Program dependents, four UNICEF dependents, three World Food Program family members, and two World Health Organization dependents have been killed. 158 dependents of staff for UNRWA, or the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, have been killed.

In May, the U.N. reported that 188 staff members of UNRWA had been killed by then, but has not previously disclosed the extent of the familial casualties.

Among staff, the killings are similarly concentrated among UNRWA employees. The report was circulated internally July 1, before the U.N.’s International Court of Justice announced its landmark finding that Israel’s occupation of Gaza and the West Bank is illegal and must be ended. The UN did not respond to a request for comment.

Israeli attacks on U.N. staff have continued since. This weekend, a U.N. spokesperson said that a U.N. convoy was fired on by Israeli forces despite tight coordination ahead of time. State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said Monday the U.S. had requested information from Israel about its latest strike on the convoy, adding that he appreciated the “enormous sacrifice and enormous risk humanitarian workers put themselves under.” Miller said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had met Monday with a top U.N. official and discussed the issue. Asked if the U.S. was prepared to dole out consequences if Israel continued killing aid workers, he said, “I don’t have anything to read out on that at this time.”

The UN report is the latest in a series of alarming findings regarding Israel’s actions in Gaza. Most recently, the UN Special Rapporteur reported "reasonable grounds to believe" that Israel’s actions in Gaza may constitute genocide, a finding echoing International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ruled in January that “the Court considers that the plausible rights in question in these proceedings, namely the right of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to be protected from acts of genocide and related prohibited acts identified in Article III of the Genocide Convention and the right of South Africa to seek Israel’s compliance with the latter’s obligations under the Convention, are of such a nature that prejudice to them is capable of causing irreparable harm.”

However, Israel’s massacre in Gaza continues unabated. On July 22, Israel killed 89 people and injured at least 250 in a new assault on Khan Younis after ordering 400,000 people to leave their homes and refugee camps in the rapidly shrinking “safe zones” of Gaza, 83 percent of which is now a “no-go zone.” Bombings in the no-go zone have also not stopped; in the past 12 hours, dozens have been killed in Al Sabra, Jabalia, and Gaza City neighborhoods.

On Tuesday, Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud said in an interview with Breaking Points that Michigan voters supportive of Palestinian rights, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, were holding out hope that a Harris administration would be less ideologically rigid in its support for Israel’s war. “The door is open,” he said, adding that representatives of the Harris team had already begun reaching out to local Muslim leaders to set up meetings.

Republican candidate Trump, meanwhile, has left little hope there would be a significant departure from Biden’s policy were he to be elected. Basem Naim, a member of the political bureau of Hamas in Gaza, told Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill that Trump’s recent belligerence was a reminder that there is little difference between the two parties on the question of Israel and Palestine.

“Sad to hear such statements, because it reflects that the complicit American policies towards the conflict here is a non-partisan issue and regardless who will win the election the blind and disgraceful support of USA to Israel will continue,” Naim said in a comment issued following Trump’s speech at the Republican National Convention, before Biden dropped out. “But we can very confident[ly] reassure Mr. Trump, that the Democrats have already done the maximum to help their puppet in the region and they both have failed to achieve any of their goals, therefore use your time to put a new strategy to rescue your puppet from its ominous demise, a new strategy based on justice and genuine rights of all people to freedom, dignity, and self determination.”

Robust protests inside the Cannon House Office Building were held on Tuesday by Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow, with more planned for Wednesday to coincide with Netanyahu’s speech.

[kp777]

By Olivia Rosane

Common Dreams

Aug. 13, 2024

"You supported sending more U.S.-made bombs being used to commit war crimes... How can you say you are for respecting international human rights laws?" Tlaib asked.

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib had harsh words for Secretary of State Antony Blinken as he attempted to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions while enabling what many experts consider to be Israel's genocide in Gaza.

"The United States reaffirms our steadfast commitment to respecting international humanitarian law and mitigating suffering in armed conflict," Blinken wrote on social media Monday. "We call on others to do the same."

Tlaib responded early Tuesday, "Is this a joke?"

"You supported sending more U.S.-made bombs being used to commit war crimes," Tlaib continued. "The government of Israel bombed hospitals, schools, and tents full of displaced Palestinians. How can you say you are for respecting international human rights laws?"

Tlaib also shared a link to an Amnesty International USA report from April finding that U.S. weapons sent to Israel had been used in violation of both international and U.S. law and calling for an "immediate suspension" of weapons transfers to the country.

The U.S. is Israel's leading arms supplier, providing it with 69% of its weapons imports between 2019 and 2023. This has continued in the wake of Israel's war on Gaza, which began on October 7, 2023 in response to Hamas' deadly attack on southern Israel.

The Geneva Conventions of 1949 enshrine protections for vulnerable populations during armed conflict, including wounded soldiers and first responders, prisoners of war, and civilians. They include prohibitions on torture and the targeting of hospitals, and mandate that occupying powers provide food and medical supplies to civilian populations. Despite this, Israel has made it so difficult to get supplies into Gaza that famine has spread across the territory. Reports emerged last week that Palestinians in Israeli custody were subjected to systematic abuse, including rape. And Israel has routinely used U.S. weapons to target civilian areas and infrastructure in Gaza.

"The rest of the world has spent the last 10 months defending international humanitarian law from us."

Days before Blinken's remarks commemorating the conventions, the Biden administration approved $3.5 billion in new military funds to Israel, as well as new weapons shipments. Hours later, Israel reportedly used U.S.-made weapons to target the al-Tabin school in Gaza, killing around 100 people, including at least 11 children.

"Few people have done more to make the Geneva Conventions a dead letter," author Hari Kunzru wrote in response to Blinken's 75th anniversary commemoration message.

Beyond Gaza, the U.S. under President Joe Biden has also refused to state whether or not the Fourth Geneva Convention protecting civilians in armed conflict and occupied territories applies to Israeli treatment of Palestinians in the West Bank. In particular, it has not acknowledged that the convention would prohibit Israeli settlements in the territory altogether.

Tlaib and Kunzru were not the only people to criticize Blinken for his statement.

"Irony is dead," wrote human rights lawyer Mai El-Sadany. "If the U.S. cared anything for the Geneva Conventions, it would not be choosing active complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity every day for the last 10 months."

Rutgers Law professor Adil Haque observed, "The rest of the world has spent the last 10 months defending international humanitarian law from us."

Qasim Rashid, also a human rights lawyer, said, "An actual commitment to respecting international humanitarian law would mean you stop funding [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu as he commits genocide of Palestinians."

Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project policy director Josh Ruebner responded to a separate message that Blinken had posted on the State Department website.

"Nope, Secretary Blinken," Ruebner wrote on social media. "You don't get to praise the Geneva Conventions when you're rushing weapons to Israel to enable it to violate almost every single clause in the convention as it continues to inflict genocidal violence against Palestinians in Gaza."

[sayruq]

A special State Department panel recommended months ago that Secretary of State Antony Blinken disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid after reviewing allegations that they committed serious human rights abuses. But Blinken has failed to act on the proposal in the face of growing international criticism of the Israeli military’s conduct in Gaza, according to current and former State Department officials. The incidents under review mostly took place in the West Bank and occurred before Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. They include reports of extrajudicial killings by the Israeli Border Police; an incident in which a battalion gagged, handcuffed and left an elderly Palestinian American man for dead; and an allegation that interrogators tortured and raped a teenager who had been accused of throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails. Recommendations for action against Israeli units were sent to Blinken in December, according to one person familiar with the memo. “They’ve been sitting in his briefcase since then,” another official said.

[zvaigzdelasas]

Turkish police used tear gas and water cannon as hundreds of people at a pro-Palestinian rally on Sunday tried to storm an air base that houses U.S. troops, hours before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due in Ankara for talks on Gaza.

5 Nov 23

[tieflingkisser]

“I Have Lost Everything”: In Federal Court, Palestinians Accuse Biden of Complicity in Genocide

Bolstered by a momentous ICJ ruling, Palestinians, including Americans, gave three hours of testimony against the Biden administration.

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 lawsuitOpens in a new tab 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. Lawyers involved with the lawsuit playing out in federal court said that the ICJ ruling bolsters their case. Their lawsuit argues that Biden, Blinken, and Austin are liable under U.S. lawOpens in a new tab for failing to uphold their obligation to prevent genocide in Gaza. In Oakland, dozens of people lined up outside the courthouse hours before the hearing on Friday, according to organizers on the ground, while the Zoom stream reached its capacity of 1,000 people tuning in.