#the united states is the biggest war criminal

[unlovablereject]

Tired of seeing hate and antisemitism so much.

People are showing just how antisemitic our society is. Saw someone comment on Facebook "this is proof that Israel has always been evil." Then thanks the xtian prophet. People believing half assed researched "proof" of Israel being evil and supporting this.

Palistine needs to look inward and see Hamas killed our people in the middle of the night after a HIGH HOLIDAY killing 2000 INOOCENT people in one night and taking hostages. The death toll has taken more Israelis than Palistinians if you do math... Hamas does not care about his people, palistine is land stolen from Israel. Israel helped his citizens because he wouldn't. Giving them asylum. There were several offers of peace that were REFUSED BY HAMAS!!! He wants to destroy Israel and every Jew.

The US has committed more atrocious war crimes than even this. Like nuking Hiroshima and it STILL HAS EFFECTS ON THE PEOPLE TO THIS DAY, because Japan bombed one military base. They also let people die when they could have helped. US let WW2 last as long as it did, it has blood on its hands.

Then I want to remind US citizens that the twin towers had a death toll of about 2000. That was in 2001. They still have military power in the region and have killed over ten times more people.

The US is the biggest war criminal in the world. They can't even govern their own country, stay out of other peoples' affairs until your two party system has two working parties, k? Why are you still killing innocent people in Iraq when no one in the attacks was from Iraq.

Your government blew up their own towers, if you know anything about melting temperatures of steel, jet fuel, physics, and just plain knowledge of how buildings like that are meant to withstand earthquakes, so the planes didn't destroy the entire towers. They aimed so high that it would have taken out the top. The bottom should have been intact as in the beams and structure. Why were the beams all cut on a pretty diagonal line in the same way? It was an excuse to fix Bush Sr.'s bad mistake putting terrorists in charge of the country (Iraq) during his term as president.

Put on a big show and get people on board for a war, it happens every time. Do research before you listen to some random information that has no legitimate sources. It's not okay to spread hate.

Antisemitism isn't a good look on your country atm.

I will pray for Israel until my last breath, I believe in Hashem and His words of Torah.

It's just okay to kill Jews I guess. I see it everywhere.

Police say we are safe. Most of them probably hiding fucking hate tattoos.

I want peace, but the human race is literally not capable of peace. Hate IS humanity.

[abstractpenny]

Okay, so I've been thinking about it and I don't think we're actually all that cooked with Joe Biden dropping out.

If you don't know, Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential election. He is no longer running. BUT Kamala Harris, the current VP, is taking his place as the Democratic candidate for this election.

Looking at this, you may say something like "Oh no, we're done for. We're doomed." But if you think about it, this is actually an unbelievably intelligent and strategic move. In fact, this gives me a lot of hope that I didn't have before.

Obviously, this move is a last resort. They knew if they kept running with Biden they would lose. It means the Democratic party is pulling out a final weapon. But it's honestly a damn good one.

Before this happened, it seemed hopeless. Our two options were two old rich white men, one of which is an awful public speaker and the other is a literal criminal. And, because of that, you got people choosing not to vote or choosing to vote for Trump. Because which of the two evils is more appealing?

Donald Trump is a wonderful public speaker. He is charismatic and charming. He knows how to get people on his side. He's spent his whole life learning how to be a strong public speaker. That's what makes him scary. That's what made it so he won the 2016 election, so he almost won the 2020 election, and why he's still in the conversation today. He knows how to speak in an appealing way.

Joe Biden is honestly an awful public speaker. He struggles with gathering people to be on his side. Whether it's because he has a stutter/speech impediment or because he's dealing with dementia, he's still not good at public speaking. That makes him weak in things like debates and in politics. We saw that with our own eyes during the last debate.

Kamala Harris, while maybe not as strong of a speaker as Donald Trump, is very knowledgeable and self assured. She knows how to debate, she knows how to be a politician. She knows what she's doing. She's strong and confident. She may be our final hope.

A lot of why people aren't going in to vote is because it felt useless to do so, especially to people on the left. Donald Trump is out of the question for a lot of people, but Joe Biden isn't much better to many. They're both old as fuck, about 80 years old. They're both straight white cis men who have higher incomes. They're not aligned at all with what a lot of people on the left view.

Harris is significantly more relatable to a lot of people. She's a woman of colour. A good percentage of the United States population is one of those, either a person of colour or a woman. She's also younger than both Biden and Trump by almost 20 years. Yes, she's still 60 years old, but that's absolutely nothing compared to our other candidates.

Another thing that brings Biden out of favour with the left is how he handled and backed specific foreign wars (Ukraine and Palestine specifically). The Palestine Israel war is a very strong thing on the left, it's very talked about, and a lot of people view Biden as 'om the wrong side' of it. And, although Harris was the VP of the Biden administration, she's not very tied in to the wars from public view.

Harris is a great candidate other than a few minor minor minor things. She's leagues better than our dropped out ex candidate and our currently running candidate. One of the biggest hurdles for her, though, is going to be racism and sexism. It's always there. Oh, and the fact that her opponent had an assassination attempt on him, but that's a whole other can of worms.

Kamala Harris coming into this race may change things completely. We're not as screwed anymore. There's hope.

You. Whoever may read this. Go vote. It's crucial. Vote if you can. If you can't, get people to vote who can. This is the most important election in a long time.

We can win.

[akajustmerry]

I think what’s most dystopian about the genocide of Palestinians is that the United States isn’t just complicit, it’s basically ensuring the genocide continues. More than just the axis powers during World War II, Israel literally could not get away with this without the US.

What do we call it when a powerful country has the power to ignore international criminal law and human rights law and actively fund a genocide, and get away with it ?

The US didn’t need to invade Palestine to destroy it… it just needed to bankroll Israel.

That's literally why the Zionist occupation exists, to enact colonial core interests in the region. Not just the US, but Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France, Most of Europe, and even the Ukraine. To paraphrase Butcher Biden, "If Israel didn't exist, the US would create one to serve their interests." For what it's worth, Zionists acting on US interests isn't new. Their biggest industry is arms dealing and have supplied every force that supports Western interests with weapons since the 60s. The Occupation is currently supplying weapons in Congo, Sudan, Myanmar, Ukraine, and so many other places where the West can't intervene directly. This is why it's so important to support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement because it attacks the Zionist network of supply and financing. Please, support your local BDS chapter.

[silverspectre51]

DP: Dead Inside and Out

Amity Park, May 2008. Casper High graduation.

It had been an uneventful ceremony, made unique only by the school's odd mascot and the people themselves. Suddenly, as it neared a close, the lights went out and the large screens went to static. Just as quickly, the picture settled on three of the graduates, only they weren't wearing robes anymore.

Danny Fenton, Sam Manson, and Austin Kavanagh looked far different than they had as meager Freshmen. Of course, four years of bullying, ghost fights, and insufficient sleep will do that to you. Add on the rest of their trauma, and it was jarring to say the least.

Sam was dressed as darkly as she had ever been. Black leather, spikes, piercings, boots somehow even bigger than before. Her hair was longer, her makeup darker, and her expression a constant scowl. Her bass guitar was decked out to match.

Austin Kavanagh, once a genius technogeek, had joined his friends at the bottom of the class. He had always worn a black hoodie and shoes, but now his jeans were black too. Where once he was always seen in a bright yellow, Lion King shirt, he now wore a dull, gray, My Chemical Romance "Welcome to the Black Parade" tee. His dirty blond hair was chin length where it had once been close to a buzz, and a scruffy beard had started to grow. He proudly displayed a new silver ring as he sat behind a black drum set.

Danny was perhaps the biggest change of all. His big, blue eyes had dimmed, his hair was messy and shoulder-length, and he had grown a tidy, black chin beard. Blue jeans and red shoes were now black, as was the spiked, leather jacket he wore. His old NASA shirt now had a red circle with a line through it spray painted on. His nails were painted black, and he wore an even larger ring than his husband.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this will be the last-ever performance of The Rocking Dead!"

Everyone heard Danny's voice, but they were confused to say the least. This was the name of the town's resident superheroes-turned-rock band. Of ghost vigilantes- criminals- that the Guys in White had been pursuing for years. What did this mean?

"This one goes out to Dash and Paulina. Screw you."

The band launched into their newest song, MONSTERS. As the chorus started, they transformed into the aforementioned ghosts. However, these forms, too, had changed.

Phantom's suit was now kingly regalia, and the Drs. Fenton instantly recognized the Crown of Fire and the Ring of Rage. Spectre's (Austin's) similar suit was similarly replaced, only in a more high-tech fashion. Lastly, Nightshade was now decked out in armor befitting her position as the new Fright Knight.

As the song continued, several images flashed on screen, each lasting for a short time. The first was an image of Vlad Masters, the town's mayor, which labeled him as a Froot Loop. The second outed his secret identity as Vlad Plasmius, drawing outrage from the Drs. Fenton. The third was an image of Sam's parents and the message "Ida was a better parent than either of you." The fourth was an image of Austin's parents and the message "Where is your God now?"

The last was a picture of Jazz Fenton winking and the message "World's Best Mom." She and Austin's sisters smiled as they watched safely from Phantom's Keep. The Drs. Fenton screamed hate and profanity, as expected. Finally, the song ended, and Danny spoke in a close-up. His eyes glowed red as he spoke not with anger, but disappointment.

"This message is being broadcast worldwide. I am Phantom, King of the Infinite Realms. Four years ago, the United States Government declared war on the dead. I tried diplomacy, but they insist that we are not sentient. That we are inherently evil."

"They are wrong. It is the living who are evil, consumed by greed, lust, and power. This is your first and final warning: war is coming. There is no hope, no mercy, and no surrender. Only fate."

"Prepare to be destroyed."

[good-old-gossip]

U.S. Government PROUDLY ARMS & SPONSORS TERRORISTS

On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken approved a new batch of arms sales to Israel, totalling over $20bn in military equipment, according to the Pentagon.

In a statement, the Pentagon said, "The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to US national interests to assist Israel in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability. This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives."

The Pentagon confirmed that Blinken approved the potential sale of F-15 jets and related equipment worth nearly $19 billion.

Additionally, he approved the possible sale of tank cartridges valued at approximately $774m and army vehicles worth $583m.

The tank rounds would be almost immediately available for delivery.

This multibillion-dollar package is the latest in a series of arms deals that Israel is set to receive from the US, adding to the $14bn in additional military aid approved earlier this year.

The sale comes amid mounting criticism of the Biden administration for continuing to authorise arms transfers to Israel despite the death toll in Gaza approaching more than 40,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

Since Israel's war on Gaza began last October, Israeli forces have destroyed much of Gaza's civilian infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, mosques, and UN shelters.

Over the past ten months, the Biden administration has transferred hundreds of millions of dollars worth of arms and munitions to Israel.

Weapons sales as ICC warrants loom The weapons sales to Israel come despite the International Criminal Court (ICC) seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on the grounds of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Gallant and Netanyahu face war crimes and crimes against humanity charges over the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare; wilfully causing great suffering; wilful killing; intentional attacks on a civilian population and extermination, alongside several other charges.

Even as the US continues to pump billions worth of weapons to Israel, the country increasingly boasts record sales from its weapons industry internationally. Israel's defence ministry said in June that its arms exports for 2023 hit a record in sales.

The report by the defence ministry said that the total exports of Israeli arms reached $13.1bn in 2022, an increase of $500m from the previous year and double the amount of exports from five years ago.

More than a third of the sales comprised missiles, rockets and air-defence systems, with one of the biggest contracts of 2023 being with Germany, which signed a deal to purchase the Arrow 3 long-range air defence system for around $4bn.

"While our industries are primarily focused on providing the defence establishment with the capabilities to support our troops and defend our citizens, they are also continuing to pursue areas of cooperation and exports to international partners," Israeli Defence Minister Gallant said in a statement.

Roughly half, 48 percent, of all sales, went to the Asia and Pacific region, while Europe accounted for 35 percent of sales, and North America accounted for nine percent.

[mariacallous]

Thousands of people braved intense heat to commemorate the anniversary of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide and attend the mass burial of 14 recently identified victims at the Srebrenica Memorial Centre in eastern Bosnia on Thursday.

They were killed in July 1995 in a series of massacres by Bosnian Serb forces that left more than 8,000 Bosniak boys and men dead. The massacres have been classified as genocide by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, ICTY.

Munira Subasic, president of the Mothers of Srebrenica association, warned that the world “has not learned anything” since World War II.

“Srebrenica is proof of that, and we mothers strive to send a message and warn others so a crime like Srebrenica is never repeated,” Subasic said, speaking in front of foreign and domestic delegations gathered for the memorial event at the Srebrenica Memorial Centre.

She also warned of genocide denial, which remains widespread in Bosnia and Herzegovina and across the former Yugoslav region.

So far, 6,751 genocide victims have been buried at the Srebrenica Memorial Centre. Another 250 victims have been buried at local cemeteries on the decision of surviving family members.

However, in Bosnia, a day of mourning for Srebrenica is only officially commemorated in the country’s Bosniak and Croat-dominated Federation entity. Bosnian Serbs have blocked the state-level Council of Ministers from declaring a day of mourning across the whole country.

After the UN General Assembly voted in May to establish July 11 as an International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica, the 29th anniversary is being marked in other countries too. For the first time, it will be commemorated at a high-level event at the United Nations in New York.

In Serbia on Wednesday evening, peace group Women in Black held a silent vigil in the centre of Belgrade, urging Serbia to establish annual an Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day, although the government refuses to classify the massacres by Bosnian Serb forces as genocide.

In Montenegro, President Jakov Milatovic wrote on X that the suffering of “the innocent Srebrenica victims serves as a painful warning to today’s generations that the evil of July 1995 must never be repeated.” The anniversary was also marked by the country’s Bosniak Council in the capital Podgorica on Thursday. Council president Suljo Mustafic said at the event that “Srebrenica is the saddest word in our language, and Potocari [where the bodies of thousands of victims are buried] is the biggest grave in our history”.

The event was attended by some representatives of ruling and opposition parties and by the mayor of Podgorica, Olivera Injac.

In Pristina in Kosovo on Thursday, parliament held a special session in commemoration of Srebrenica genocide victims and approved a statement on the UN resolution. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Albin Kurti joined a commemoration ceremony organised by the Institute of History.

In his speech, Kurti expressed solidarity and support to Bosnian people. “This crime left open wounds for thousands of Bosnian families, just as it left wounds on humanity’s conscience. Therefore, every anniversary renews the pain, not only for the Bosnian people, but also for us, the people of Kosovo, who experienced the horrors of war 25 years ago,” Kurti said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a presidential decree on Wednesday declaring that July 11 will be commemorated as Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day.

“July 11, accepted as the ‘International Day of Reflection and Remembrance of the Srebrenica Genocide,’ will be commemorated in our country to share the pain, condemn genocide and crimes against humanity, and raise global awareness through special remembrance events, educational activities, and public awareness initiatives in honour of the victims of the Srebrenica genocide,” the decree said.

In recent years, opposition parties and Turkish Bosniak NGOs have been calling on the Turkish government to recognise the Srebrenica massacres as genocide and to declare July 11 a genocide remembrance day.

In 2023, however, parties in Erdogan’s alliance rejected an opposition bill to recognise the 1995 massacres as genocide, sparking angry exchanges in the Turkish parliament and disappointment in Bosnia.

People in North Macedonia will also participate in the July 11 commemorations. On Thursday, in the capital Skopje, the Bosniak National Council will organise its annual commemorative March for Srebrenica.

Memorial events are also being held in some Western European cities, including Bradford in England, where a “Remembering Srebrenica” flag is being raised in the City Park.

[workersolidarity]

[ 📹 The moment a Palestinian man in Gaza is found and rescued from under the rubble of his civilian home following the bombardment of the Zionist occupation army using American-made munitions. ]

🇮🇱⚔️🇵🇸 🚀🏘️💥🚑 🚨

ENDLESS BOMBINGS MARK THE 205TH DAY OF ISRAELI OCCUPATION'S GENOCIDE IN THE GAZA STRIP

On the 205th day of "Israel's" ongoing special genocide operation in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) committed a total of 6 new massacres of Palestinian families, resulting in the deaths of no less than 66 Palestinians, mostly women and children, while another 138 others were wounded over the previous 24-hours.

As the Israeli occupation army continues its genocide of Palestinians, major cities across the world saw a massive increase in protests over the last week.

Protest movements in solidarity with Palestinians under siege, blockade and bombardment in the Gaza Strip have spread to Western capitals and Major cities such as Copenhagen, Berlin, London, Helsingborg, Vienna, and Tunis, where protesters demanded an end to the genocide and the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians, while in the United States, student protesters have wreaked havoc for administrators on campuses across the country, demanding their divestment from Israeli interests.

Participants waved Palestinian flags, occupied campus administrative buildings, and condemned the atrocities committed by the Zionist occupation army.

Meanwhile, reading the tea leaves on the future actions of the Israeli entity has become difficult due to contradictory remarks by different ministers in the government.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant continues to vow that the IOF will "eliminate Hamas," and will continue the war for "as long as it takes."

“In Gaza, we are obligated to eliminate Hamas and also to return the hostages, we are working on these two tasks and I am determined to accomplish both things. It will take as long as it takes, but we must do this task,” Gallant is quoted as saying in the Zionist media.

While at the same time, War Cabinet Minister without a Portfolio, Benny Gantz, said that if the government doesn't sign a hostage exchange deal negotiated with Hamas for the return of the Israeli hostages held in Gaza, if it is backed by the entity's security services, than the government would "have no right to continue to exist."

“The return of our hostages, abandoned by the October 7 government, is urgent,” Gantz wrote on his Telegram channel, later quoted in the occupation media.

"If a responsible outline is reached for the return of the hostages with the backing of the entire security establishment — which does not involve ending the war — and the ministers who led the government on October 7 prevent it, the government will have no right to continue to exist and lead the campaign."

It should be noted that both the biggest hardliners and the more "moderate" ministers want to see the war continue, with neither willing to sign deals in which the war would come to an end.

In other news, the Israeli entity's government is also making efforts to thwart warrants expected to be issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

According to the Zionist media, the Israeli occupation's National Security Council, with the assistance of the Foreign Ministry, is leading the campaign to thwart any ICC warrants issued for the arrest of Zionist Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Israeli occupation expects any warrants to reflect allegations that the occupation "deliberately starved Palestinians in Gaza," according to an anonymous Foreign Ministry source speaking with the Times of Israel.

Over the weekend, Israeli analyst Ben Caspit wrote on the Hebrew media site "Walla" that Netanyahu is "under unusual stress" over the prospected arrest warrant for himself and other Zionist ministers by a UN tribunal at The Hague.

According to Caspit, Netanyahu leads a "nonstop push over the telephone" to undermine any prospective warrants, focusing mainly on the Biden administration in the United States.

A Haaretz analyst named Amos Harel similarly wrote that the Israeli occupation continues to work under the assumption that the ICC's headline prosecutor, Karim Khan, is likely to issue arrest warrants this week targeting Prime Minister Netanyahu, along with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IOF Chief of Staff, Herzi Halevi.

Meanwhile, the Zionist army continued bombing and shelling civilian areas of Gaza, targeting the cities of Rafah and Khan Yunis in Gaza's south, as well as Gaza City in the north and various areas of central Gaza.

In central Gaza, Zionist occupation warplanes bombed agricultural lands in Abu Hujair, to the north of the Bureij Refugee Camp, while at the same time, occupation jets hammered areas northeast of the Nuseirat Refugee Camp with repeated airstrikes.

Israeli air forces additionally bombarded the town of Al-Zawaida, also in the central Gaza Strip.

Similarly, Zionist artillery forces shelled neighborhoods to the east of Rafah City, in the southern Gaza Strip, as well as the outskirts of the town of Khuza'a, east of Khan Yunis.

In Gaza's south, occupation fighter jets were seen bombing the Brazil neighborhood of Rafah City, targeting a residential home, while Zionist artillery detatchments shelled the city of Beit Lahiya, in Gaza's north.

The Israeli occupation army also dropped an American-made bomb on a gathering of civilians in the New Camp area, west of the Nuseirat Refugee Camp, in the central Gaza Strip, murdering at least one civilian, while several others were wounded in the strike.

IOF artillery forces also shelled neighborhoods to the east of the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City, in the north of the enclave, while at the same time, IOF warplanes bombed a residential home belonging to the Balha family on Al-Jalaa Street, adjacent to the Al-Zaharna building in Gaza City.

Previously on Saturday evening, Zionist warplanes bombed a residential building in the al-Nasr neighborhood, northeast of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, massacreing 7 Palestinians and wounding dozens of others.

Occupation air forces also bombarded a house east of the Al-Bureij Refugee Camp, in central Gaza, killing a civilian and wounding a number of others, while yet another airstrike targeted a residential home in the Nuseirat Refugee Camp, killing two more civilians.

As a result of "Israel's" ongoing special genocide operation in the Gaza Strip, the death toll among the local population has risen further still, exceeding 34'454 Palestinians killed, including over 14'690 children and 9'680 women, while another 77'575 others have been wounded since the start of the current round of Zionist aggression, beginning with the events of October 7th, 2023.

April 28th, 2024

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@WorkerSolidarityNews

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Kiran Stacey at The Guardian:

Labour has announced its biggest step yet in overhauling the UK’s approach to the Middle East, dropping its opposition to an international arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu despite pressure from Washington not to do so. Downing Street announced on Friday that the government would not submit a challenge to the jurisdiction of the international criminal court, whose chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, is seeking a warrant against the Israeli prime minister. The move makes it more likely that the ICC will now grant Khan’s request, in what would be a stunning international rebuke for Israel over the way it has conducted the war in Gaza and put Netanyahu at risk of arrest if he travels abroad. It also reverses months of British policy after the previous government was steadfast in its support of Israel and its desire to stick closely to the US position.

Ministers are expected to announce further changes within days, including the results of a review of Israel’s compliance with international law. The foreign secretary, David Lammy, has also signalled that he is considering banning some arms sales to Israel. The prime minister’s deputy official spokesperson said: “On the submission, this was a proposal by the previous government that was not submitted before the election. I can confirm the government will not be pursuing that in line with our longstanding position that this is a matter for the court to decide on. “The government feels very strongly about the rule of law internationally and domestically, and the separation of powers, and I would note the courts have already received a number of submissions on either side and they are well seized of the arguments to make their determination.” She would not be drawn on whether the government had a view on whether a warrant should be issued for Netanyahu’s arrest, saying it was a matter for the courts.

The United Kingdom, under new Labour leadership, is dropping its challenge to the ICC arrest warrants for Israel Apartheid State leaders.

[brexiiton]

Ecuador 'in state of war' against drug cartels' terror campaign

Schools and stores are shuttered, people are staying home as soldiers roam the streets of Ecuador's biggest cities.

Members of Ecuador's armed forces patrol a street during a security operation in the capital, Quito. [AFP]

With city streets largely deserted apart from a massive military deployment, Ecuador found itself in a "state of war" as drug cartels waged a brutal campaign of kidnappings and attacks in response to a government crackdown.

Hundreds of soldiers patrolled the capital, Quito, where residents were gripped by fear over a surge in violence that has also prompted alarm abroad.

The small South American country has been plunged into crisis after years of increasing control by transnational cartels that use its ports to ship cocaine to the United States and Europe.

The latest outburst of violence was sparked by the discovery on sunday of the prison escape of one of the country's most powerful narco bosses, Jose Adolfo Macias, known by the alias "Fito".

On Monday, President Daniel Noboa imposed a state of emergency and nighttime curfew, but the gangs hit back with declaration of "war" - threatening to execute civilians and security forces.

They also instigated numerous prison riots, set off explosions in public places and waged attacks in which at least 14 people have been killed.

More than 100 prison guards and administrative staff have been taken hostage, the prisons authority said.

In the port city of Guayaquil, attackers wearing balaclavas stormed a state-owned TV station on Tuesday, briefly taking several journalists and staff members hostage and firing shots in dramatic scenes broadcast live before police arrived.

Local media reported some of the attackers were as young as 16.

This attack, in particular, spread panic among the general population, many of whom left work and closed shops to return to the safety of their homes.

"Today we are not safe, anything can happen," said Luis Chiligano, a 53-year-old security guard in Quito who explained he was opting to hide rather than confront "the criminals, who are better armed".

Noboa said on Wednesday that the country was now in a "state of war," as he promised not to yield to the gangs.

Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa gave orders on Tuesday to 'neutralise' the criminal gangs after gunmen stormed and opened fire in a TV studio, as bandits threatened random executions. [AFP]

Gangs declared war on the government after Noboa announced a state of emergency following the prison escape pm January 7 of one of Ecuador's most powerful narco bosses. [AFP]

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was 'very much alarmed by the deteriorating situation in the country as well as its disruptive impact on the lives of Ecuadorans,' according to his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric. [AFP]

Peru declared a state of emergency on its border with Ecuador, sending an additional 500 police and soldiers to secure the frontier. [AFP]

China's embassy and consulates in Ecuador suspended services to the public, while France and Russia advised citizens against travel to the country. [AFP]

Brian Nichols, the top US diplomat for Latin America, said Washington was 'extremely concerned,' pledging to provide assistance and 'remain in close contact' with Noboa's team [AFP]

Colombia's army also announced it was bolstering border security. [AFP]

Ecuador's murder rate quadrupled from 2018 to 2022 and last year was the worst yet, with 7,800 murders in a population of about 17 million, and a record 220 tonnes of drugs seized. [AFP]

[blueiscoool]

Massive horde of Celtic gold coins stolen from German museum

Thieves who broke into a southern German museum and stole hundreds of ancient gold coins got in and out in nine minutes without raising the alarm, officials said, in a further sign that the heist was the work of organised criminals.

Police have launched an international hunt for the thieves and their loot, consisting of 483 Celtic coins and a lump of unworked gold that were discovered during an archaeological dig near the present-day town of Manching in 1999.

Guido Limmer, the deputy head of Bavaria's State Criminal Police Office, described how at 1:17 am on Tuesday (local time) cables were cut at a telecoms hub about one kilometre from the Celtic and Roman Museum in Manchning, knocking out communications networks in the region.

Security systems at the museum recorded that a door was pried open at 1:26 am and then how the thieves left again at 1:35 am, Limmer said.

It was in those nine minutes that the culprits must have smashed open a display cabinet and scooped out the treasure.

Limmer said there were “parallels” between the heist in Manching and the theft of priceless jewels in Dresden and a large gold coin in Berlin in recent years. Both have been blamed on a Berlin-based crime family.

“Whether there's a link we can't say,” he added. “Only this much: we are in touch with colleagues to investigate all possible angles.”

Bavaria’s minister of science and arts, Markus Blume, said evidence pointed to the work of professionals.

“It’s clear that you don’t simply march into a museum and take this treasure with you,” he told public broadcaster BR. “It’s highly secured and as such there’s a suspicion that we’re rather dealing with a case of organised crime.”

Officials acknowledged, however, that there was no guard at the museum overnight.

An alarm system was deemed to provide sufficient security, said Rupert Gebhard, who heads the Bavarian State Archaeological Collection in Munich.

Gebhard said the hoard was of great value both for the local community in Manching and for archaeologists across Europe.

The bowl-shaped coins, dating back to about 100 BC, were made from Bohemian river gold and show how the Celtic settlement at Manching had links across Europe, he said.

Gebhard estimated the value of the treasure at about 1.6 million euros (NZ$2.67 million).

“The archaeologists hope that the coins remain in their original state and reappear again at some point," he said, adding that they are well documented and would be hard to sell.

“The worst option, the melting down, would mean a total loss for us,” he said, noting that the material value of the gold itself would only run to about 250,000 euros at current market prices.

Gebhard said the size of the trove suggested it might have been “the war chest of a tribal chief.” It was found inside a sack buried beneath building foundations, and was the biggest such discovery made during regular archaeological excavations in Germany in the 20th century.

Limmer, the deputy police chief, said Interpol and Europol have already been alerted to the coins' theft and a 20-strong special investigations unit, codenamed ‘Oppidum’ after the Latin term for a Celtic settlement, has been established to track down the culprits.

[beardedmrbean]

Haiti is fast descending into anarchy.

Over the weekend, the violence in the capital Port-au-Prince ramped up once again. Heavily armed gangs attacked the National Palace and set part of the Interior Ministry on fire with petrol bombs.

It comes after a sustained attack on the international airport, which remains closed to all flights - including one carrying Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

He tried to fly back to Haiti from the United States last week, but his plane was refused permission to land. He was then turned away from the neighbouring Dominican Republic too.

Mr Henry is now stuck in Puerto Rico, unable to set foot in the nation he ostensibly leads.

Among those who did manage to get into the stricken Caribbean nation, though, was a group of US military personnel.

Following a request from the US State Department, the Pentagon confirmed it had carried out an operation to, as it put it, "augment the security" of the US embassy in Port-au-Prince and airlift all non-essential staff to safety.

Soon after, the EU said it had evacuated all of its diplomats, fleeing a nation mired in violence and facing its biggest humanitarian crisis since the 2010 earthquake.

Millions of Haitians, however, simply don't have that luxury. They're trapped, no matter how bad things get.

The situation is dire at the State University of Haiti Hospital, known as the general hospital, in downtown Port-au-Prince. There is no sign of any medical staff at all.

A dead body, covered by a sheet and swarming with flies, lies in a bed next to patients waiting in vain for treatment.

Despite the overpowering stench, no-one has come to remove the body. It is rapidly decomposing in the Caribbean heat.

"There are no doctors, they all fled last week," said Philippe a patient who didn't want to give his real name.

"We can't go outside. We hear the explosions and gunfire. So, we must have courage and stay here, we can't go anywhere."

With no prime minister and a government in disarray, the gangs' power over the capital is near absolute.

They control more than 80% of Port-au-Prince and the country's most notorious gang leader, Jimmy "Barbecue" Chérizier has again told the prime minister to resign.

"If Ariel Henry doesn't step down and the international community continues to support him," he said last week, "they will lead us directly to a civil war which will end in genocide."

Meanwhile, the police, outnumbered and demoralised, are struggling to keep looters at bay. The Salomon police station in Port-au-Prince was attacked and burnt out, and charred police vehicles lie outside the still-smouldering building.

US evacuates Haiti embassy staff amid gang violence

Haiti's main port closes as gang violence spirals

Haiti gangs demand PM resign after mass jailbreak

Nevertheless, even in the face of the total collapse of law and order, people must still venture out to make a living.

At a nearby market, several street hawkers told the BBC they had no other option but to leave their homes, even with gunmen roaming the streets.

"I have three kids, and I'm all they have - I'm their mother and their father," said Jocelyn, a market trader who also didn't want to give her real name.

"So, I'm obliged to take to the streets. Yesterday gunmen came here and stole all our money. A lot of vendors lost all their money. But there's no way to stay at home when you have three mouths to feed."

"The anxiety is killing me when I'm in the street," echoed an older woman selling fruit. "I keep thinking what if I get shot dead? Who will take care of my children then? I have no family to support me."

To the west, in one of Haiti's nearest neighbours, Jamaica, the dignitaries, diplomats and heads of state of the Caricom regional group are gathering for an emergency summit.

The instability in Haiti is a problem for the entire Caribbean community, and for Washington too. The idea of a nation of some 11 million people being run by gangs is of huge concern, particularly the potential impact on outward migration during an election year in the US.

It's clear Caricom favours seeing Mr Henry resign as soon as possible, from outside of the country if necessary.

The Biden administration in the US has publicly said the unelected prime minister - who had promised to hold an election in February - should return to Haiti, but only in order to stand down and begin a transition to a new government.

Privately, though, US diplomats are increasingly aware that it might now be impossible for him to return, and that even attempting to do so could further destabilise Haiti.

A UN-backed plan for a Kenyan-led rapid reaction force to tackle the gangs is still far from becoming a reality.

To add to the lawlessness, a week ago, around 4,000 inmates escaped after the gangs attacked the main prison in Port-au-Prince.

Those prisoners are now back on the streets and bolstering the ranks of their gangs.

In the aftermath, the cell doors are now wide open, the facility is virtually abandoned and there are blood stains on the ground after gunmen overpowered the guards.

A prime minister unable to return, violent gangs in control of the capital and dead bodies piling up on the streets: Haiti is currently a nation about as close to a failed state as it's possible to be.

[positivelybeastly]

Do you see x-force as a commentary on unchecked power?

"If I possessed truly unchecked power, you'd know."

So, it's meant to be. The ultimate intention of the series is meant to be a commentary/satire on the CIA and its various cruelties inflicted upon the world in the interests in national security. Beast has been forced into the role of Henry Kissinger, who, while never an actual Director of the CIA, certainly had his role to play in the history of the United States and its defence policies over the last 60 years.

"Kissinger is also associated with controversial U.S. policies, including its bombing of Cambodia, involvement in the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, support for Argentina's military junta in its Dirty War, support for Indonesia in its invasion of East Timor, and support for Pakistan during the Bangladesh Liberation War and Bangladesh genocide.

He was accused of war crimes for the civilian death toll of the policies he pursued, his role in facilitating U.S. support for dictatorial regimes, and willful ignorance towards human rights abuses committed by the United States and its allies."

Taken from Kissinger's Wikipedia page.

(Apologies, by the way, that this particular answer will be text heavy, I refuse to cap X-Force because I just. Don't. Want. To read it again.)

The parallels are pretty obvious - Beast's genocide of Terra Verde, his space prison, his wilful manipulation of X-Force to satisfy what he viewed as the interests of Krakoan national security, to the point where he would weaponise Logan just as the Weapon X programme did . . . these are the comic book equivalents of the United States' various criminal acts against a wide variety of smaller, less powerful countries. They are brighter, louder, flashier, more outwardly grotesque, but they fulfil the exact same role.

Now, here's the problem.

And let's try and follow Ben Percy's narrative logic here, yeah?

Beast has always been evil. Beast himself, Logan, and Domino all express this exact sentiment. It was only when he possessed true carte blanche that he revealed this evil, because if he had done so beforehand, then he would have been cast out or killed by his fellow heroic X-Men. That's safe to say, right?

Now.

Hank has, in the past, been given cosmic power by the Black Mirror, and promptly used it to try and find out how to fix the damage that he had done to the space-time continuum by bringing the Original 5 X-Men to the present.

When he realised there was no easy way to fix it, not even with his cosmic power, he ran away SCREAMING that it was all his fault, and when we next see him, he is depressed, he is brought low, his fucking speech bubbles are tiny because he's so shaken and mortified by what he's done.

But let's ignore that. Because Ben Percy did.

When Beast makes his departure from X-Force, Sage takes over, and promises to run X-Force more efficiently, with more oversight, with more transparency. She promises to be what Beast wasn't.

So far, so good, right? That's a pretty clear narrative.

. . . Hey, uhhh, where was X-Force when the Hellfire Gala went down?

Oh, they weren't there?

The intelligence agency, the force designed to combat external threats and shut them down with extreme prejudice, just - straight up completely missed the biggest threat imaginable to their country, and they just. Fucked up, completely?

Hmmm.

They were infiltrated from within, by an observer sent by the Quiet Council, who was meant to provide oversight? An observer that Beast had previously identified as a threat, and didn't want anywhere near a position of power, albeit for xenophobic reasons?

An observer who, when they went into the far off future to navel gaze at Nimrod Beast's evil future, broke the control over him - and didn't tell anyone that he had been being controlled for the past, like, year? Who was acting strangely, and no-one followed up on it?

Hmmm.

Like, here's the thing - I don't think Ben Percy necessarily wants us to think that Beast was a better leader of X-Force than Sage. He's portrayed as a brow beating, emotionally abusive, manipulative, oily voiced, condescending asshole who keeps biting off more than he can chew . . . BUT.

It's only when he's gone that both Krakoa falls, and that X-Force is completely double fucked by a person who wouldn't be there if Beast was still there? Like . . . have I said anything incorrect here?

Ladies, gentlemen, individuals who fall outside or along the gender spectrum in various places . . . this is what's described as bad theming, and inadequate plotting.

By running these two plots in parallel, and having them happen like this, Ben Percy has accidentally implied that the corrupt, evil asshole leader of X-Force was the one actually keeping Krakoa safe, and the good, transparent leader of X-Force managed to fuck things up immediately.

That's not what the story wants you to think! It wants you to view Sage and co. as the heroes of the story, explicitly, they are the good guys. But. Through lack of care, and lack of thought, that's what's been accidentally implied.

Now, maybe that's just me being facetious, and you know what, it probably is. That's a minor quibble, you can't really blame Ben Percy for that, Gerry Duggan and the X-office say that the Hellfire Gala happens this way, and Ben Percy has to say, sure. It's unfortunate timing, but Sage did not cause the Hellfire Gala to happen, that's ridiculous.

However.

I have to remind you all, as I so often do, that the entirety of X-Force knew that Beast had killed Terra Verde, used the bodies of its ambassadors as puppets; had an evil space prison built using siphoned Krakoan funds; had attacked Piotr Rasputin's reputation, publicly humiliated him; they knew that he was not to be trusted, and they knew that he was a bad, bad, bad man.

Yeah? That's established?

. . . Why did they keep working for him?

Why was it that the buck apparently stopped at mind controlling Logan? THAT was the point where you draw the line, huh? The evil Mengele space prison, THAT YOU KNEW ABOUT, that you dragged Beast from in chains, warranted the fucking silent treatment, like you're a bunch of fucking children, but the instant something happens to Logan, suddenly he's got to go?

That's some real moral myopia you guys got going on, there!

That means you were all okay with everything he was doing before! You could have stopped working with X-Force, you could have just killed Beast, over and over and over, you could have protested to the Quiet Council, you could have done anything - but you just kept turning up to work! You kept doing the dirt!

Why?

. . . Oh, sorry, there's, uh, no real answer here. There are no character arcs for people in X-Force. It's just, Beast is evil, Logan is the grizzled hero, and everyone else is here, I guess.

Like, there's some real weak political commentary going on with Logan vs. the Quiet Council, where he's like, BLUUUUH KRAKOA'S A COUNTRY CLUB, BUUUUH I DON'T LIKE HOW YOU DO THINGS, but, like, it's just so without any kind of substance! It's acting like Wolverine wasn't ALSO fine with everything Beast was doing up until it affected him!

You can't have clear cut heroes and villains in a narrative like this. Everyone on X-Force, without exception, is a horrible person willing to do horrible things in the interests of national security, and they have been SHOWN to be FINE with whatever Beast wanted to do, but because they are NOT Beast, they're heroes.

This is what's known as the 'bad cop' narrative. One bad apple spoils the bunch, you know the saying - not all cops are bad, if you could just get rid of the bad ones, it'd be fine!

Except that it's not a case of good cops and bad cops, is it? It's a case of a cop culture that breeds corruptive power. It's a case of good cops being punished for calling out corruption, being put in mental institutions, left to die in combat situations. And it's the same with black ops teams. It's the same with intelligence agencies. There are no heroes on these teams, because it's not POSSIBLE to be a hero on these teams.

But Ben Percy seems to think that there can be. That X-Force would have been fine if Beast wasn't on the team from the start, that black ops teams full of murderers are completely fine so long as they're guided by the right person.

The instant he started prattling on about good and evil in this narrative, if it was ever meant to be a commentary on unchecked power, it lost all of its potency. Power and its relation to Beast becomes almost pointless if he's just evil - he just becomes a villain waiting for his chance, and it makes all the heroes look like morons for continuing to give him power and not take any of it away.

The only way this narrative works is if Beast was a good person to start with, and he had to start making moral compromises, he had to start cutting out his soul to save Krakoa, he had to - except, that's not how Ben Percy believes Beast is. He has told us so, repeatedly, both in and out of narrative.

What's the actual moral of the story in X-Force?

Is it that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely? Well, Beast was apparently always corrupt, and Sage apparently is a hero despite letting him do whatever the fuck he wanted, sooo. No?

Is it that intelligence agencies are intrinsically cruel and horrible apparatuses that allow states to harm innocents in the interests of national security? Well, this intelligence agency is full of heroes who pretty much never do anything morally bankrupt, who constantly push back against their evil overseer but don't really challenge him, so, I guess intelligence agencies are fine, actually, so long as the people are good.

Is it that nation building is a bloody process that requires moral sacrifice, and that everyone involved in the founding of a nation has some degree of blood on their hands? Maybe? Iunno.

How often do the Quiet Council actually appear in X-Force and Wolverine? Maybe two, three times? Are they to blame for what happens? I guess, since they give Beast carte blanche, but X-Force sure don't do a lot to push back against that, do they? For a character that allegedly is protecting Beast from these consequences, we never see Xavier interact with Beast, do we?

X-Force is a political commentary with messy, lazy politics, that believes that black ops teams are fine so long as the people running them are good people.

X-Force is a story of good and evil with very little actual moral nuance, and not much to actually, truly say about Krakoa, other than, it can be bad sometimes and Logan doesn't like it.

X-Force is an intelligence agency without any actual intelligence. Every character in it is unobservant, wilfully ignorant, lazy, short-sighted, easily manipulated despite being outwardly cynical, and have not once, in nearly 50 issues, executed a plan that I looked at and thought, you know what, I would never have thought of that, that was really smart.

X-Force is a group of morons who can't kill a fat blue man who bounces a lot, because he's just too smart and capable for them, even though he's also evil and arrogant and stupid and constantly overplays his hand.

X-Force is so stupid that they brought back a clone of their previous Director to fight the current version of him, left said clone in a room that he had the access codes to open with a guard that was talked to sleep with embarrassing ease, and then left their control centre unguarded, despite it having been broken into that very same day by this very same man, so that he could look through their files and leave.

X-Force is fucking dumb.

If it's a commentary on anything, it's that Ben Percy can't write smart narratives to save his goddamn fucking life.

He should stick to short Wolverine stories and body horror, because politics, spy thrillers, satisfying character narratives, theming?

These fucking escape him.

I have no professional respect for the man.

He's probably a nice enough guy if you talk to him in real life.

But, you wanna know a secret? I've never paid a penny for a single issue of X-Force, it's all pirated. All these caps I used? Pirate sources.

I'd walk up to his face and tell him so.

Because I find his work to be a complete waste of time, energy, good art, paper, downloaded megabits, and space. It's a complete wash.

Unless Hank gay kisses Wonder Man in the next two issues.

That'd make it worthwhile, I s'pose.

[newpartnerincrime]

voting for biden is absolutely better than trump oh my god. do you know what trump did regarding israel/palestine when he was president? no matter who is in office israel will remain an ally of the united states, but i'd rather have an ally who is talking about establishing a two state solution/pathway to palestinian statehood than one who moved the embassy to jerusalem and was so buddy buddy with netanyahu that he has an illegal west bank settlement named after him. if you think biden is bad for sending weapons to israel then what do you think trump is going to do? send fewer weapons? hell fucking no. and that's not even considering the drastic differences in a trump or biden presidency for undocumented immigrants, unhoused people, trans people, and anyone who might need an abortion.

voting as a be all, end all does nothing. voting for not a man who is publicly talking about his plans to create concentration camps is literally bare fucking minimum. you don't get morality points for abstaining from an election because all us presidents are war criminals who fund egregious human rights violations. all you get is a higher possibility of the harm you claim to want to prevent.

biden is not just sending weapons to israel. biden is actively participating in and enabling the genocide. biden could fart in the right direction and end this but he won’t. biden’s goal is not statehood for israel and palestine his goal is to keep killing palestinians. the solution is not statehood for israel the solution is liberation for palestinians and an end to the occupation. BIDEN IS ALREADY CREATING A CONCENTRATION CAMP. IN GAZA.

obviously trump is also complicit in the israeli occupation. so was obama. they all fucking suck. that is my point. you are not helping this country or anybody by voting for biden. like you can vote for him but stop pretending you’re doing anybody a favor.

the country is not better for anybody because biden has been president. take the amount of anti-trans and anti-gay legislation in the past year alone. take the fact that he could have initiated student loan forgiveness and didn’t.

and like i’m sorry but the genocide is the number one biggest issue in this election. if your point is that trump is just as complicit then guess what: we agree. your vote is fucking moot. you are not helping a single person in gaza or the united states or anywhere by voting for biden. does that mean i’m helping anybody by not voting for him? not really. it’s not a moral high horse thing i just literally cannot stomach the thought of voting for that man because, what? trump is more overt about how awful he is? where’s that post that’s like should i vote for the candidate that hates black people or the candidate that hates black people? should i vote for the one that indiscriminately bombs the middle east or the one that indiscriminately bombs the middle east?

fuck off like well and truly fuck off

[xtruss]

The Five War Criminal Bastards (🇺🇸, 🇬🇧, 🇩🇪, 🇫🇷 and 🇮🇹) Who Supplies Lethal Weapons To Their Terrorist Illegal Child, The Zionist 🐖 🐷 🐖 Cunt, Isra-hell

“The War Criminal United States’ Senate” Approved a $14B Military Support Bill to “Illegal Regime of Zionist 🐖 🐷 🐖 Cunts, Terrorist and Apartheid Isra-hell” this Week as Civilians Casualties Continue to Mount in Palestine’s 🇵🇸 Gaza. Here are the “War Criminal Genocidal Complicit Countries” that Continue to Provide Arms to “War Criminal Terrorist Zionist 🐖 🐷 🐖 Cunts, Illegal, and Apartheid Regime Isra-hell” amid Its Deadliest Gaza Assault. Which Countries Are Tel Aviv’s Biggest Arms Supplier.

[silversiren1101]

I love the current state of the Hellknight Orders because they are all just one bad Council of Lictors meeting from tearing each other’s throats out. Yeah they’re all technically Hellknights but some of the Orders have such adversarial goals that it’s only a matter of time before they just start eating each other like feral beasts.

The Pyre is dedicated to exterminating harmful cults and working against the aims of demon lords and religions that are a threat of ‘orderly society’ but their Lictor is a staunch atheist that believes ALL religions need to be eliminated because fervent belief in individual gods breeds chaotic tribalism, even that of lawful gods!

The Godclaw is the Crusader arm of the Hellknights but is all about the Godclaw pantheon and advancing lawfulness under the united front of those gods but UH OH the current Lictor thinks there’s a sixth god that should be added and it’s fucking ZON-KUTHON?! He hasn’t told anyone yet and just has this secret shrine to Zonny boy in his Citadel and privately worships him in his “six pronged claw” and it’s a huge secret but MAN wait when that shit drops?!

The Pyre and Godclaw are going to take everyone else out in their war, but that’s not even getting into the beef the other Orders will find with each other?! 

The Scourge is actively investigating House Thrune and is firm about its independence from Thrune and Egorian’s dottari... and then you get The Rack which are basically Thrune lapdogs that happily round up all the old history books with “wrong” history and dissenters and purge them on behalf of the Infernal Majestrix. Abrogail II literally has a hit out on the Scourge with the Red Mantis Assassins (holy shit) which Jakalyn publicly announced and so THE SCOURGE KNOWS?! Like they KNOW House Thrune has a hit on their knights in Egorian!

When is THIS shit going to go down?! It’s pretty much the Rack’s fault why Hellknights have such a bad reputation as being Thrune lackeys because they love to lick those dottari and Thrune boots! Meanwhile the Scourge is being hunted down in Egorian’s streets by former Gray Maidens (lmao!) for daring to investigate the crimes of Egorian’s elite and House Thrune!

What will the Nail do? They’re the largest of the orders and there’s so much disagreement in their own ranks on what they believe is savagery and what really needs their attention! Maybe we should stop brutally colonizing the Shoanti? There’s like, actual banditry out there and actual monsters to slay? Maybe their Lictor can have his wasting curse mysteriously fully progress and their lawful good centaur Master of Blades can become Lictor instead, yeah?

Meanwhile the Chain just got the biggest PR boost from Cheliax rolling out their “I can’t believe it’s not slavery!” in the Firebrands book but are they even going to agree that this new infernal-backed indentured servitude is lawful? They care more about real criminals than runaways (and more often than not imprisoned abusive ‘Masters’ for breaking their side of the ‘contract’ too). I guess it’ll come down to how profitable it is, huh Lictor Adom? His pockets need to be frisked. He needs a full audit.

Anyway I think they should fight. I think it’d be really fun to see what comes out of it. I think it’d be awesome if the Rack just stop existing because they are undoubtedly the worst.

[girlactionfigure]

Young Nuremberg Prosecutor: Benjamin Ferencz

His slogan was “law not war.”

Benjamin Ferencz was an investigator of Nazi war crimes who served as chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials and later dedicated his life to fostering world peace.

Born in Hungary in 1920, Ben immigrated to the U.S. with his family as an infant to escape anti-Jewish persecution. They settled in the lower east side of New York. Ben attended City College of NY, where he studied criminal law. He was an exceptional student and had such a high score on the final exam that he won a full scholarship to Harvard Law School. He graduated in 1943 and joined the US Army, where he served in an anti-aircraft artillery unit.

After the war ended in 1945, Ben was transferred to General Patton’s headquarters and assigned to a team investigating war crimes. He visited concentration camps immediately after they were liberated, and wrote: “Indelibly seared into my memory are the scenes I witnessed while liberating these centers of death and destruction. Camps like Buchenwald, Mauthausen and Dachau are vividly imprinted in my mind’s eye. Even today, when I close my eyes, I witness a deadly vision I can never forget – the crematoria aglow with the fire of burning flesh, the mounds of emaciated corpses stacked like cordwood waiting to be burned… I had peered into Hell.”

Later that year, he was honorably discharged with rank of sergeant. He went back to NY to start his law career, but was soon recruited to prosecute top Nazis for war crimes in the famous Nuremberg trials. Ben traveled to Germany and started interviewing Jewish survivors in Displaced Persons Camps. He told the Washington Post about the strange and disturbing post-war atmosphere, “Someone who was not there could never really grasp how unreal the situation was… I once saw DPs beat an SS man and then strap him to the steel gurney of a crematorium. They slid him in the oven, turned on the heat and took him back out. Beat him again, and put him back in until he was burnt alive. I did nothing to stop it. I suppose I could have brandished my weapon or shot in the air, but I was not inclined to do so. Does that make me an accomplice to murder?” He continued, “You know how I got witness statements? I’d go into a village where, say, an American pilot had parachuted and been beaten to death and line everyone up against the wall. Then I’d say, ‘Anyone who lies will be shot on the spot.’ It never occurred to me that statements taken under duress would be invalid.”

Ben had a lot to learn; the Nuremberg prosecution was his first criminal case! He went to Berlin with fifty researchers tasked with searching through every German office and archive. They uncovered a vast trove of evidence against the Nazis. Perhaps the most shocking was the revelation that many members of the German elite were integrally involved in Nazi atrocities. Doctors, lawyers, judges, professors, and business moguls were active participants in the genocide of the Jews.

At 27 years old, Ben Ferencz became Chief Prosecutor for the United States in the Einsatzgruppen Case, which the Associated Press called “the biggest murder trial in history.” Twenty-two men were on trial for murdering one million people.

All of the defendants were convicted and thirteen received the death penalty. Afterwards, Ben said, “Nuremberg taught me that creating a world of tolerance and compassion would be a long and arduous task. And I also learned that if we did not devote ourselves to developing effective world law, the same cruel mentality that made the Holocaust possible might one day destroy the entire human race.”

Ben devoted his life to the cause of world peace and wrote several books about how to achieve it. He was essential in the establishment of the International Criminal Court to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity. Ben’s slogan is “law not war.” After a long and full life, Ben died at age 103 in April 2023.

.