Two disillusioned House Republicans unloaded on their vengeful leadership for inadvertently making a hero out of Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar by publicly stripping her of a high-profile committee assignment in what one deemed the "stupidest vote in the world."

The not-so-private condemnation of Speaker Kevin McCarthy's campaign to remove Omar from the House Foreign Affairs panel happened after Republicans clinched the retaliatory strike on a party-line vote of 218-211.

As they rode the elevator away from the House floor, congressional newspaper Roll Call reported that Foreign Affairs Committee GOP member Ken Buck and Republican Rep. Mike Simpson reflected on what had just transpired and decided it was a boneheaded move.

After Buck decreed it the "stupidest" political move, Simpson said the expulsion would probably make the Minnesota Democrat into a "martyr."

After airing their grievances, the pair reportedly asked those around them "not to let leadership know their thoughts."

Buck and Simpson's offices did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The polarizing ouster only fell into place after McCarthy won over a handful of Republicans who had voiced objections to the effort — including Republican Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Victoria Spartz of Indiana — by promising to reform internal punishment procedures moving forward.

Incensed Democrats like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York denounced the entire process as hypocrisy writ large.

"Don't tell me that this is about a condemnation of anti-Semitic remarks, when you have a member of the Republican caucus who has talked about Jewish space lasers, and also elevated her to some of the highest committee assignments in this body," Ocasio-Cortez said on the floor, referring to Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. "This is about targeting women of color in the United States of America."

by Andrew Bernard

The chairman of the Congressional subcommittee responsible for human rights announced on Thursday that he would boycott representatives from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch from testifying before his committee because of their position that Israel is an “apartheid” state.

Speaking at a hearing on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias in the UN, the Palestinian Authority and NGOs, Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s subcommittee on Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations, said he was “disgusted” by the two human rights organizations.

“It used to be that Amnesty International was all about political prisoners, and they had a very sterling reputation,” Smith said. “They have reneged on all of that…Apartheid is an abomination… To sit there and take that type of language and smear Israel with it is appalling and Human Rights Watch is doing the exact same thing…I’ve had representatives of those groups come and testify on other issues. But you know, it just occurred to me, I’m gonna boycott them. Any hearing I have on human rights, Amnesty is not invited, nor is Human Rights Watch, because of their smear, their horrible smear.”

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch did not immediately respond to The Algemeiner’s request for comment.

89 Orgs Condemn Vote to Remove Rep. Ilhan Omar from HFAC

ReThinking Foreign Policy is one of 89 organizations that issued a joint statement in support of Rep. Ilhan Omar and condemning the party line House vote to remove her form the House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC). For some background on what has been a relentless attack on Rep. Omar since she took her place in the House, check this piece out. Also see this one, which includes a lengthy Twitter…

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US Record of Cluster Bombs Rings Alarm Bells for Ukrainians

A cluster Bomb — Sputnik International. © AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari

A bipartisan group of US lawmakers has renewed calls to send cluster munitions to Ukraine, as Kiev struggles to push its much-discussed counteroffensive. What are cluster bombs and what risks is their use fraught with?

US Representatives Joe Wilson (R-SC), Steve Cohen (D-TN), and Victoria Spartz (R-IN) urged President Joe Biden to dispatch dual-purpose improved conventional munitions (DPICM), commonly known as "cluster" shells, to Ukraine on June 25.

"Transferring DPICMs to Ukraine presents an opportunity to provide the Ukrainian Armed Forces with a powerful capability to use against the Russian army and mercenary forces," the lawmakers' letter said.

It's not the first time that US politicians have been discussing equipping the Ukrainian military with cluster munitions.

Last Thursday, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia Laura Cooper told lawmakers on the House Foreign Affairs Committee that DPICMs "would be useful, especially against dug-in Russian positions on the battlefield."

US Should Provide Cluster Bombs to Ukraine – Joe Wilson, US Congressman! April 26, 2023. "I hope every effort will be made to look into providing the cluster bombs that we have two million available," Wilson said during a House Committee on Armed Services hearing.

On March 21, four top Republican lawmakers on the House and Senate Foreign Affairs and Armed Cervices committees – James Risch, Roger Wicker, Michael McCaul and Mike Rogers – sent a letter to the US president insisting that while not without risks, this could solve the problem of Kiev's artillery ammunition shortage.

"[DPICMs] are highly effective against personnel — both enemy troops in the open and entrenched infantry — and mechanized vehicles," wrote the GOP congressmen. "The United States relied on similar cluster munitions during the Cold War as a means of offsetting Soviet military advantages in manpower, artillery, and armored vehicles."

In December 2022, Kiev itself made a request for cluster munitions to Washington. As per the US press, Kiev planned to launch the weapons from High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 155 mm Howitzers. However, at that time, Joe Biden refused to provide the weapons banned by over 120 countries to the Ukrainian military.

Tail section of a cluster bomb purportedly found in Misrata, Libya. (File) © AP Photo/Human Rights Watch

What are Cluster Munitions?

The DPICM is an artillery or surface-to-surface missile warhead that releases dozens to hundreds of smaller submunitions that can use shaped charges for the anti-armor role and fragmentation for the antipersonnel role. The air-to-surface variety of the shells is known as a "cluster bomb." One munition can destroy multiple targets at once, meaning that fewer missiles are needed.

Some US experts consider that most relevant for Ukraine would be the M483A1 and M864 artillery which could be fired from Ukraine's Western-made 155mm Artillery Systems.

The 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) bans the use, production, transfer, and stockpiling of cluster munitions and requires destruction of stockpiles of the weapons, as well as clearance of areas contaminated by remnants and bomblets and victim assistance.

The weapons were prohibited for a good reason: inaccurate cluster munitions pose an immediate threat to civilians by randomly scattering submunitions over a wide area. In addition, myriads of unexploded remnants continue to endanger civilians long after the conflict.

The US, however, stores plenty of cluster munitions.

Cluster Bombs, ‘Butterfly’ Mines, Phosphorus Munitions: Prohibited Weapons Used by Ukraine August 30, 2022! A man walks past an unexploded tail section of a 300mm rocket which appear to contained cluster bombs launched from a BM-30 Smerch multiple rocket launcher embedded in the ground after shelling in Lisichansk, LPR on April 11, 2022 - Sputnik International, © AFP 2023/Anatolii Stepanov

US Record of Using Cluster Munitions

Cluster bombs were first used during the Second World War. For its part, the US started to extensively use them in the 1960s and the 1970s in Southeast Asia. Citing the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) a March 2022 congressional report says that "in Laos alone, 9 to 27 Million Unexploded Submunitions remained after the conflict, resulting in over 10,000 civilian casualties to date."

During the Gulf War of 1991, the US and its allies dropped around 61,000 Cluster Bombs containing some 20 Million Submunitions. In addition, the coalition also used surface-to-surface DPICMs delivered by artillery and rocket systems. It is believed that 30 million or more DPICM submunitions were used during the conflict.

In 1999, NATO forces dropped 1,765 cluster bombs containing around 295,000 submunitions on Yugoslavia. Despite common belief that these bombs would be used against military installations, it was reported in June 1999 that a NATO airstrike involving cluster bombs on an airfield in Nis on May 7, 1999, went off target and hit a Hospital and Adjoining Civilian Areas. Another report said about five boys were killed and two injured by a cluster bomb submunition that exploded near the village of Doganovic in southern Kosovo.

Nonetheless, the US and NATO allies continued to use the inaccurate munitions. Between 2001 and 2002, the US Air Force bombed Afghanistan with 1,228 Cluster Munitions containing 248,056 submunitions.

The US and British military fired around 13,000 Cluster Munitions containing up to Two Million Submunitions during the first three weeks of the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

US Cluster Bombs. © Sputnik/Mikitenko

As per Human Rights Watch, American and British ground forces widely used cluster munitions in major cities of Iraq which led to hundreds of civilian casualties, including children. Lots of unexploded submunitions were later discovered in residential areas near schools and playgrounds resulting in further injuries and deaths.

"13-year-old Falah Hassan lost his right hand, his left index finger, and soft tissue in his lower limbs when an unexploded submunition, left by a cluster munition attack, detonated in al-Hilla," recalled HRW researcher Bonnie Docherty in her May 2023 report. "His mother, who lay in the next bed when we visited him in hospital in mid-May, suffered injuries to her abdomen, uterus, and large and small intestines from the same explosion."

US Tests ‘Next Generation’ Fragmentation Bomb as ‘Viable Substitute’ for Cluster Munitions! A B1-B bomber drops live bombs at the Nevada Test and Training Range — Sputnik International. © AP Photo/Joe Cavaretta/ March 9, 2020

US Cluster Munition Stockpiles

Despite an indiscriminate use of cluster bombs and shells by the US military that led to extensive casualties and destruction, Washington did not join the international convention prohibiting the deadly weapons. Neither did it destroy its vast stockpiles of cluster munitions. The US original provisions drafted in 2008 and seeking to remove large portions of the weapons from the US stockpiles were later reversed.

Thus, a Department of Defense memo inked on November 30, 2017 indefinitely delayed implementation of a ban on using "unreliable types of cluster munitions" which was expected to take effect on January 1, 2019, in the US. Furthermore, the new policy envisaged the US acquisition of cluster munitions from foreign sources.

The US maintains restrictions on exports of cluster munitions, allowing selling DPICMs that do not result in more than 1% unexploded ordnance. Under US law, the recipient should make a commitment not to use the weapons in civilian areas.

Previously, Kiev failed to meet its commitments not to use Western lethal arms against civilians, civil objects and the Russian territory which makes one wonder whether the Ukrainian military would observe the US obligations if provided by cluster shells.

Moreover, some US scholars suggest that Washington's move could alienate some of its allies given that 23 NATO members are party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

— Ekaterina Blinova, Sputnik International, June 28, 2023

Row House in #lucknow | #house near #shaheedpath | House near #lulumall ...

“Resolved, That the United States shall use its good offices and take appropriate measures to the end that the doors of Palestine shall be opened for free entry of Jews into that country, and that there shall be full opportunity for colonization, so that the Jewish people may ultimately reconstitute Palestine as a free and democratic Jewish commonwealth.”

This document is a record of the 1944 hearings before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on the Jewish national home in Palestine. The quote above is taken from the resolution summary on page one; what follows is over 500 pages of records of the hearings that took place over February 8th, 9th, 15th, and 16th in 1944 (78th Congress, second session). 

Israel, which was formally created as a Jewish nationalist state in May 1947 by the United Nations, is currently an international focal point, with many Palestinian activists and their allies arguing that Israeli Jewish nationalism is a form of apartheid. While many defenders of Israel are quick to resist narratives of Jews as a colonial force in Palestine, this document from 1944 demonstrates that the United States and other imperial Western powers that were large players in the creation of Israel saw its creation as a “colonization” of Palestinian land. 

United States, Congress. (1944). The Jewish National Home in Palestine: Hearings before the Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, Seventy-eighth Congress, second session, February 8, 9, 15, and 16, 1944. United States Government Printing Office. Full text via HathiTrust. 

This item also is accessible in physical format at the University of Washington Libraries. 

yall ive been studying wiki articles for the past two hours and under the article about hannibal directive it literally says that on dec 5 israeli h0stages who were released met with netanyahus war cabinet and claimed that they were "deliberately attacked by israeli helicopters on their way into gaza and shelled constantly by the israeli military while they were there" and on top of that two female survivors from be'eri said in a tv interview (i saw that on ig a few days ago too) that they witnessed a 12-yr old girl named liel being hit and k!lled by a tank shell. just a few hours ago on dec 18 the IDF admitted i quote "casualties fell as a result of friendly fire on october 7" but added that "beyond the operational investigations of the events, it would not be morally sound to investigate these incidents due to the immense and complex quantity of them that took place in the kibbutzim and southern israeli communities due to the challenging situations the soldiers were in at the time." an israeli police investigation also stated that the first helicopters at the scene of the festival arrived hours after the massacre began and that they were likely responsible for "only a few" friendly fire casualties (still at least they finally admitted to the firing from helicopters but given the amounts of totally destroyed and burnt cars and what the freed h0stages reported on dec 5 im not so sure about that). the numbers of civilian casualities of october 7 has been now named at 695 israeli civilians (of which reportedly 70 were arab israelis) including 36 kids plus 71 foreign nationals, of which the article said that an "unknown but significant number" was caused by friendly fire. i honestly hope this is investigated thoroughly and not swept under the carpet. yes h4mas is guilty of horrifying crimes and has to be held accountable and punished (but THEM, not the entire population of gaza) but also the israeli military and government has to be held accountable for their actions not only in gaza but also on their „own“ territory. many freed h0stages, surviving victims that have not been ab duc ted and their families have been talking how they felt betrayed (one young man said he was sh0t at the festival in his leg and immobilised by that and literally laid in the desert for 7 hours and that he could not understand what took them so long, also being given he was once serving in the army as well) and were made dual victims of h4mas and israel simultaneously. (continued in the hashtags bc this is already long enough) i needed to share this so badly im sorry.

The UK government has received advice from its own lawyers stating that Israel has breached international humanitarian law in Gaza but has refused to make the advice public, a prominent British lawmaker has stated. The Guardian reported on 30 March that Alicia Kearns, the Conservative chair of the House of Commons Select Committee on Foreign Affairs, said, “The Foreign Office has received official legal advice that Israel has broken international humanitarian law, but the government has not announced it.” She added that as a result, the UK must end arms sales to Israel without delay.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez unloaded on Republicans for hypocrisy Thursday while defending her fellow "squad" member, Rep. Ilhan Omar.

Republicans voted to remove Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee because of her controversial comments in the past about Israel. Ocasio-Cortez, in a fiery floor speech, said Republicans have been rewarded for doing worse.

"Don't tell me that this is about a condemnation of anti-Semitic remarks, when you have a member of the Republican caucus who has talked about Jewish space lasers, and also elevated her to some of the highest committee assignments in this body," she said, a reference to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. "This is about targeting women of color in the United States of America."

Greene in 2018 published false and anti-Semitic conspiracies alleging the "Camp Fire" wildfire in California was orchestrated by politicians and wealthy Jewish bankers.

After being stripped of committee assignments last Congress for her rhetoric, she now sits on prestigious committees on oversight and homeland security.

Ocasio-Cortez further called out Republicans for rewarding Rep. Paul Gosar, without mentioning by name, "with one of the most prestigious committee assignments in this Congress" after she said he threatened her life.

The House voted in 2021 to censure Gosar and remove him from his committee assignments when he tweeted an edited anime video that showed him killing Ocasio-Cortes. His committee assignments this Congress include Oversight and Natural Resources.

"I didn't get a single apology when my life was threatened. Thank you," she said, ending her speech by slamming her book on the lectern.

The House voted along party lines to remove Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee, except for Republican Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio, who voted "present."

Ocasio-Cortez, of New York, said a "disgusting legacy" of the September 11 terrorism attacks has been the targeting of and racism against Muslim Americans. She characterized the vote against Omar, who is Muslim, as "an extension of that legacy."

"There is nothing consistent with the Republican Party's continued attack except for the racism and incitement of violence against women of color in this body," she said.

by ANDREW BERNARD

“UNRWA is a horror show that is decades in the making, co-produced by the U.S. taxpayer,” Goldberg testified, during a hearing that ran about three hours and, initially, was disrupted frequently by protesters. “Terrorism support and subsidy, for UNRWA, is a feature not a bug.”

At the hearing, the Democratic witness, Mara Rudman, a University of Virginia professor and former official in the Obama and Clinton administrations, was asked about reports that as many as 15% of UNRWA employees in Gaza might be members of Hamas and other terror groups. Rudman testified that those figures likely reflect wider Gazan support for terrorism.

“Press reports have indicated that the percentages of UNRWA staff that may be affiliated in some way with Hamas are roughly similar to the percentages in the general population that are thought to be affiliated, so between 10% and 15%,” she said. “If they employ 13,000 people in the population, the single biggest employer, it would not be surprising if the percentages are roughly that of the general population.”

The other witnesses at Tuesday’s hearing, Marcus Sheff, CEO of IMPACT-se, and Hillel Neuer, executive director of U.N. Watch, testified about bias against Israel in UNRWA’s school curricula and in the wider U.N. system respectively.

[Fox News is Private, Pro-GOP US Media]

"I welcome the U.S. and coalition operations against the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists responsible for violently disrupting international commerce in the Red Sea and attacking American vessels," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a statement. "President Biden’s decision to use military force against these Iranian proxies is overdue."

"I am hopeful these operations mark an enduring shift in the Biden Administration’s approach to Iran and its proxies. To restore deterrence and change Iran’s calculus, Iranian leaders themselves must believe that they will pay a meaningful price unless they abandon their worldwide campaign of terror," he added.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Mike McCaul, R-Texas, who said he was meeting with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when the strikes were called, also praised the actions. He also called on Biden to restore the Houthis' terror designation.

"I’m pleased the president, in coordination with our allies, finally took action against the Iran-backed Houthis following weeks of instability in the Red Sea. Tonight, with these strikes, we are beginning to restore deterrence. The administration must acknowledge it was a mistake to rescind the Houthis designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, and re-list them immediately," he said.

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, similarly called the action "overdue" and accused the Biden administration of contributing to the increasingly hostile situation in the Red Sea, but said the strikes were "a good first step toward restoring deterrence in the Red Sea."[...]

["]It is important that we follow this action in close consultation with our Saudi partners to ensure they are with us as the situation develops," Wicker said.[...]

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., an ally of former President Trump's, said he was "very supportive of the Biden Administration’s decision to strike Houthi rebels who have been harassing international shipping and trying to attack Israeli and American interests."[...]

Even rank-and-file Republicans have been issuing cautious and rare praise for the move. Rep. John James, R-Mich., a military combat veteran who served in Iraq, told Fox News Digital, "The Houthis are a terrorist organization. They have been striking at U.S. military personnel since late last year and must be destroyed."[...]

"While I support these targeted, proportional military strikes, I call on the Biden Administration to continue its diplomatic efforts to avoid escalation to a broader regional war and continue to engage Congress on the details of its strategy and legal basis as required by law," Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said.

11 Jan 24

Hillel Neuer Testifies Before U.S. Congress on UNRWA

Testimony by UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer in U.S. Congress Delivered, January 30, 2024, before the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Global Human Rights and International Organizations, U.S. House of Representatives, Hearing on Examining UNRWA’s Mission and Failures.

During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing aimed at questioning and potentially defunding #UNRWA, the primary aid organisation for Palestinians in #Gaza, five activists from @codepinkalert were arrested for disruption.

Slide 2 shows Cheryl Barnes speech as she was being arrested.

The arrests occurred against the backdrop of international calls for #Israel to ensure uninterrupted aid to Gaza, despite allegations against UNRWA staff. Advocates argue that defunding UNRWA threatens the survival of Palestinian civilians amidst ongoing conflict.

Heyo! As a Canadian, are there any particular ways we can help Palestine? Also, who are the companies actively shipping shit to israel?

Hello! Thank you so much for the question. I'd first like to take the opportunity to state that the federal government in Canada right now -the Trudeau Government -has been terribly consistent with supporting the IOF. For DECADES -since the creation of the settler state (which should not be a surprise to anyone, of course), Canada has a LONG 'diplomatic' history of being pro-Isnotreal. For folks who don't know/aren't aware, since we often hear about/talk about the US's imperialistic policies and actions against many communities around the world (which, again is understandable given the billions in military aid they give to Isnotreal and the sheer amount of militaristic aggression and violence the US unleashes daily to people they deem a 'threat' to their empire) -but I always remind folks to not forget that Canada is equally awful and problematic.

The Trudeau government, like many MP's across party lines, have supported the IOF and the Trudeau government has denied genocide 'allegations' against Isnotreal at the ICJ. Trudeau is also the one who advocated for a "humanitarian pause," after stumbling on his words a few months ago, and has, from time to time, 'condemned,' the IOF military for going 'overboard' when he trickles in his little empathetic 'we are so concerned for the people in Gaza,' while in the same breath saying the IOF didn't strike hospitals... (side eyes).

These are some recent examples (the first in June, and December of 2023, respectively) -which shows proof that Canada exports weapons to the IOF (but often through the US -the article below addresses this). Since you asked about about which companies are shipping to Isnotreal, the only one I can reference is CN Rail [Canadian National Railway] (which is where some protests have happened), but there aren't any other particular companies I can reference because shipments are done relatively in secret, so there's not a strong/direct paper trail, so to speak. this is an except from the first article below:

"Canada doesn’t normally release many details on defence exports to Israel or other countries. Since 2015, however, the largest annual categories of shipments fall into three categories: bombs, torpedoes, missiles and other explosive devices; aircraft, drones, aero engines, aircraft equipment for military use and electronic equipment; spacecraft and components." "A 2020-2021 study by the House of Commons foreign affairs committee obtained records that shed some light on the goods Canadian firms were seeking permission to export to Israel, including transport vehicles, circuit boards for Israel’s fleet of F-15 and V-22 aircraft and components for radios." "The Canadian-made components that go into each F-35 don’t show up in Ottawa’s records of military goods exports because they are shipped to the United States, where the aircraft’s manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, is based, and Global Affairs Canada does not publish the full value of annual military exports to the U.S."

It is very concerning how the Canadian government operates this way, and we should all be demanding more transparency about arms transfers to the US. Project Ploughshares, the research committee that they spoke about in the first article, is a resource I would look into if you want to learn more about this. They focus on "disarmament efforts and international security specifically related to the arms trade..." I've attached their website below. You can also access previous webinars, reports, and commentary on their page on these topics.

There were 2 successful direct action protests in Canada, one in Winnipeg and the other in Montreal, in November and December of last year, respectively. Both of whom were blocking railways in an effort to raise awareness about Canada supporting and sending arms to Isnotreal.

This also happened recently:

Now, what can be done on our ends? Plenty -sharing and creating posts about what is happening -and telling the world we won't remain silent on the genocide happening in Gaza.

This is the most updated BDS movement list for you to boycott companies and brands that either profit off of or indirectly support the genocide of Palestinian people:

Oxfam also created this small article about what we can do to help which I find is a great start:

Some of the actions include emailing the Prime Minister (they have a template for you to work with), and I wanted to also include emailing your MP's (Members of Parliament), to demand a ceasefire.

There is also a current petition in parliament right now you can sign -it's a demand to a ceasefire, and also demands an investigation into Canadian arms deals/sells in Isnotreal -and for more transparency into this, generally speaking (you can read everything the MP outlines below). This is open until February 19th, 2024. I may also make a separate post about this too:

There are some petitions on change.org I know people have set up, so you can take a look there of course. There is also a source that Oxfam links -they have a section of current events/resources where you can take action. The most recent national march for Gaza was in December 2023 (it took place in Ottawa, on unceded and un-surrendered Algonquin territory -Parliament Hill), and I am sure more will be planned for those able to attend/what is accessible to you.

I know this was quite long, but I hope this offers some direction and clarity, if not encourages more people to look into some of these topics and issues more deeply. Thank you once again for sharing this today. I will also be updating my page soon.

As always, free Palestine!