The U.S. imperialists and its military forces are notorious for outright military intervention and violating the territorial sovereignty of countries around the world. Indeed, it is well known that the U.S. military has been freely operating their drones and other aircraft within Philippine airspace to transport war matériel and personnel in their various military bases and facilities, as well as take part in local military operations, including conducting drone surveillance, in the name of “counter-terrorism.”

In the same way that U.S. soldiers played an active role in the bombing of Marawi City in 2017, American military officers are also often sighted in tactical outposts of the AFP in various parts of the country, acting as advisers and directing counterguerrilla operations of Filipino soldiers against Filipino revolutionary fighters.

It is thus not surprising, but nonetheless a condemnable act of outright intervention, that the U.S. military is flying drones and carrying out air strikes in the Philippines against the New People’s Army (NPA). A few weeks ago, a unit of the NPA in Surigao del Sur, reported that a “Hermes”-type drone fired rocket bombs at their position as they engaged members of the 30th IB in a gun battle in the Katarugan mountains, in Barangay Lobo, Cantilan, Surigao del Sur, last May 11, 2023 at around 5:15 p.m. Two Red fighters were killed in the attack. Images of the area taken after the drone strikes show surrounding burned trees and vegetation.

NPA Red fighters are familiar with how the AFP uses its noisy FA-50s, Super Tucano jets or McDonnel Douglas and Agusta Westland helicopters for firing rocket bombs and strafing.

With the AFP not having publicly acknowledged that its drones are being armed with rocket bombs, there is high probability that the May 11 armed drone strike in Surigao del Sur was carried out by the U.S. military itself, either by arming the AFP’s Hermes drones purchased from Israel with its Hellfire missiles, or using its own Reaper drones which from the ground could be mistaken for a Hermes drone.

The U.S. military is known for having carried out tens of thousands of drone strikes operations overseas, especially in Pakistan and Afghanistan, where up to at least a few hundreds of civilians have been killed. On U.S. instigation, drones are now also being increasingly used by the Indian government in its attacks against the people and revolutionary forces.

It is up to the AFP to explain whether it allowed the U.S. to operate armed drones and fire rockets or drop bombs within the Philippines, in violation of Philippine sovereignty. Or whether, the AFP is now itself using armed drones to carry out aerial bombing in its counterinsurgency operations, which puts the lives of civilians in danger, and causes excessive loss of lives, in violation of international humanitarian law.

#Philippines #drones #USImperialism #Asia

Tampa, FL – UPS announced April 27 that the company would begin drone deliveries in early May. The drones would deliver medications from a local CVS pharmacy to the largest retirement community in the U.S. Experimenting with drone delivery is only the latest development in automation at UPS. While good for shareholders, automating deliveries through drones will be disastrous for UPS workers.

Drone deliveries will be limited to The Villages, a retirement community in central Florida. At first, the drones will be shuttling prescription medications from a local CVS pharmacy to a meet point where a package car driver will then deliver the medications. Eventually, however, the drones will be able to deliver the medications directly from CVS to the customer.

The drone will deliver packages to customers by hovering about 20 feet in the air and slowly lowering the medications using a cable and winch system. Previously, drone deliveries were limited to hospital campuses but now are being expanded to residential customers. UPS and CVS partnered in October of last year to explore drone delivery options for medications.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) which represents over 400,000 UPS workers, has not released any statement on this. The concessionary 2018 UPS Teamsters contract, which was passed despite a historic majority ‘No’ vote, has no language protecting Teamster jobs from automation. The contract instead allows the company to automate as long as the company meets with the union to discuss the changes.

Given the sell-out leadership of James Hoffa Jr., this contract provision amounts to nothing more than a blank check for the boss. Teamsters wanting to fight automation should support the O’Brien-Zuckerman Teamsters United slate in the 2021 IBT elections, a slate that is willing to fight against UPS and corporate greed and take back the Teamsters union for the members.

#TampaFL #Healthcare #PeoplesStruggles #Teamsters #drones #UnitedParcelService

Tucson, AZ – Eastside morning traffic was greeted by two dozen anti-war activists at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Oct. 11, with signs reading “Drones kill children” and “Drone attacks create terrorists.”

Speaking about the base’s role in the so-called ‘war on terror,’ event organizer Jack Cohen-Joppa said, “This base contains drone operators who remotely fly the drones that lurk over the skies and bomb the people of the Middle East.” The U.S. military drone program began under President Bush and has escalated under President Obama to over 500 strikes and up to 1000 civilians killed.

“This wanton, indiscriminate killing of Muslim and Arab peoples must stop and we need to build a strong anti-war, anti-imperialist movement to stop it because the corporations who profit from war will not stop it themselves. It is the peoples’ struggle that will stop them,” said Matt Smith, a longtime anti-war activist.

Several participants in the action came from the weekend’s School of the Americas Watch event that took place in the border region to highlight the oppression of migrants and their families. The Oct. 11 action was also joined by CODEPINK founder Medea Benjamin, who is in Tucson for a speaking tour.

The Tucson Anti-War Committee is planning an action to protest the U.S. role in Syria in the coming week.

#TucsonAZ #AntiwarMovement #drones #TucsonAntiWarCommittee

“It is likely that the enemy drone was conducting reconnaissance, like a lot of reconnaissance sorties carried out by the Zionist air force,” stated Al-Manar

Israel regularly violates the airspace of neighboring countries, particularly in Lebanon and Syria.

#Lebanon #Syria #drones #MiddleEast

A statement from the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps noted that the IRGC “preserves the right of response and retaliation for itself.”

Israel often violates its neighbors’ airspace with spy drones. Earlier this week, Lebanon’s military reported sighting Israeli drones over its territory.

In recent years, Iran has captured a number of U.S. spy drones. For example in 2011, Iran captured an unmanned U.S. RQ-170 aircraft.

#WashingtonDC #Iran #drones #MiddleEast

Minneapolis, MN – A highly visible anti-war protest was held in Minneapolis May 17, with over 120 people joining the demonstration.

The protest was called to be part of a national round of local anti-war and anti-drone protests during the months of April and May. The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) initiated planning for the event.

The May 17 protest was organized under the call of 'Stop the wars – Ground the drones', with the additional slogans of: Zero troops in Afghanistan; ground all military and surveillance drones; end drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia; for a full employment peace economy, not more war; no new wars – hot or cold; and U.S. hands off Syria, Ukraine, Korea, Venezuela, Palestine and everywhere.

In the final days before the protest, as the crisis in Ukraine reached a new and dangerous level, the International Action Center, United National Antiwar Coalition and other organizations issued a call for local protests May 9 – 26 against U.S. intervention in Ukraine.

MPAC, which in the initial call for the protest included the anti-intervention demand on Ukraine, endorsed the national call for anti-war actions on Ukraine and listed the May 17 event as one of the actions being held around the country to speak out against the danger of yet another war.

Signs and speakers at the protest spoke to the demand against intervention in Ukraine and against a new cold war with Russia.

The Minneapolis protest gathered at the very busy corner of Hiawatha Avenue and Lake Street. After 45 minutes of holding signs and banners, there was a march to Walker Community Church for an indoor rally.

A statement issued by organizers said in part, “Since 2004, over 2500 people have been killed by U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan. In Afghanistan, drone attacks are increasing and the U.S. government plans to keep thousands of troops and drones in Afghanistan for years to come. U.S. drone strikes are commonplace in Yemen and elsewhere.”

The statement goes on to say, “The endless series of U.S. wars and interventions continues, including increasing military aid, expanding U.S. bases around the world and internal meddling in other countries through economic pressures overseen by agencies such as International Monetary Fund and World Bank.”

At the rally a member of MPAC also warned that the U.S. was preparing military intervention in Nigeria in the name of saving kidnapped schoolgirls.

“The U.S. military does not intervene to help people, the U.S. military intervenes in the interests of corporations and profits, not people,” said the MPAC member.

The planning for the May 17 protest was initiated by MPAC and endorsed by a broad range of organizations, including, AFSCME Local 3800, Alliant Action, Anti-War Committee, Coalition for Palestinian Rights, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Mayday Books, Military Families Speak Out (MN chapter), Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Peace and Justice Committee of Sacred Heart Church (St. Paul), Peacemakers of Carondelet Village, PeaceMakers of Macalester Plymouth United Church, St. Joan of Arc Church, Socialist Action, Students for a Democratic Society (UMN), Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Welfare Rights Committee, Women Against Military Madness, Workers International League and others.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Afghanistan #Ukraine #USImperialism #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #drones #AntiImperialismDrones #Nigeria

Chicago, IL – The Boeing Company annual stockholders’ meeting took place at the Field Museum, April 28, and 25 activists protested, both inside and outside. Braving a cold downpour, they first gathered on the steps of the museum for a press conference in opposition to Boeing’s plan to build the next combat drone for the Pentagon. Then several of the protesters that had purchased stock in Boeing for this purpose went to make statements to the board of directors

Before going in Kait McIntyre from the Chicago Anti-War Committee (AWC) explained that she was presenting herself as a candidate for the board, because, “Time and time again AWC has addressed Boeing, in the media, outside their board meetings and at their headquarters. Boeing has either responded with ‘no comment’ or they bring out their guard dogs and call the Chicago police department. This time, we decided to nominate someone for the board in order to address them directly: me.”

She continued, “Boeing has already used a bureaucratic technicality to say I am ineligible but we all know the real reason they find me unqualified: Because I stand up to and defy the masters of war, not take and fill their orders.”

The AWC activists were joined inside by faith-based activists, including Sister Gwen Farry of the 8th Day Center for Justice. Meanwhile, other 8th Day activists, Sisters Dorothy Pagosa and Kathleen Desautels, spoke at the press conference. Speaking to the group on the steps, Pagosa addressed herself to the Boeing stockholders. “Your profits are not sustainable because it’s blood money used to destroy, rather than to build up the human community.”

Also at the press conference were Michael James, a long time peace activist in Chicago, and a veteran of the Vietnam War-era Students for a Democratic Society. Standing alongside James was another SDSer, Bernardine Dohrn. James said, “On the planet, there are few places with as diverse a population as Chicago. What we do rings out.” He added, “We don’t want anyone based in our home bringing destruction on the world.”

Brian Terrell of Voices for Creative Non-Violence, who had spent six months in prison in 2013 for protesting drone war at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, added his voice to the press conference as well. “We have not been simply protesting drones as they are now, horrific as they are. We also protest the next levels of development that logically follow. The Phantom Ray drone that Boeing is bidding to build would be a drone with the speed and killing capacity of a fighter plane and be another large step toward totally autonomous robotic warfare,” said Terrell

Once inside, Newland Smith of AWC rose to tell the meeting, “Drone strikes as conducted by our government, according to the Geneva conventions, are illegal and immoral and inflict terror on civilian populations.” Smith, McIntyre, and Richard Berg all succeeded in making their voices heard at the meeting.

When the delegation returned from speaking to the stockholders, AWC’s Berg told the waiting group, “Our statements caused a stir in there because there were protesters outside.” Berg urged the group to continue its efforts, “We are building the movement against war, and that’s what scares Boeing the most.”

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #AntiwarCommittee #USImperialism #BoeingCorporation #drones #stockholder

Minneapolis, MN – Activists from the MN Anti-War Committee, Students for a Democratic Society at the U of MN, Women Against Military Madness, Veterans for Peace, and the Coalition for Palestinian Rights protested the impact of the U.S. use of drones around the world, Feb.11, at the University of Minnesota Law School. Inside the Law School, Oren Gross, a former senior officer in the Israeli Defense Force's JAG Corps, the legal branch of the Israeli military, gave a presentation titled, “The New Way of War: Is There a Duty to Use Drones?” as a part of the Law School’s spring lecture series.

Sophia Hansen-Day, of the MN Anti-War Committee, explained, “In Israel, Oren Gross worked to give legal and political cover to human rights violations by the Israel Defense Forces in occupied Palestine. Today, as an advisory board member of the U of M Human Rights program, he is using his prestige to justify the U.S.’s ongoing drone killings abroad. Our action was organized to challenge Dr. Gross's absurd interpretation of international law.”

Before the speech by Gross, protesters held signs and passed out hundreds of flyers on the reality of drone warfare. Doors to the presentation were guarded by campus police, who refused to allow protesters to bring signs inside. Even so, a couple dozen community members joined the hundred or so people there for the lecture.

In a weak attempt to make himself more likeable, Gross opened with a few jokes and cartoons. His winding talk was full of quotes by politicians, largely void of concrete data and lacking in concern for human life. Finally getting to the point, he closed with the claim that drones are an advance in weapons technology, saying, “Drones offer a more accurate and therefore more humane warfare.”

At that point, questions were invited from the audience. Gross ducked many of them, limiting his comments to the use of drones by the U.S. Army in an active combat zone. He refused to answer questions about U.S. war policy, or the use of drones to carry out extrajudicial assassinations, or even domestic surveillance.

Jess Sundin, also of the Anti-War Committee, attended the talk. “It was a revolting attempt to sanitize the reality of war, by drones or any means. Most of the questions challenged him and his point of view – it was clear that Gross did not convince anyone that there is some ethical duty to use these remote control killing machines, on the battlefield or anywhere else. Drones are deadly weapons of war. U.S. wars for empire don’t need ‘more accurate’ weapons. They need to be stopped.”

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #AntiWarCommittee #Israel #USImperialism #drones #OrenGross

Protesters showed up outside the Naval Air Station commercial gate in the late morning on Oct. 26, carrying bullhorns and banners. Some protesters carried signs that read, “Down all drones” and “You can't make peace with bombs.” Others brought signs from last month's protests to stop the war in Syria, noting the proposed use of drones to carry out a strike on the war-torn Middle Eastern country.

The announcement that Jacksonville would host a major command center for surveillance drones came in February 2013 amid growing opposition by the community. According to the Pentagon, the center will cost an estimated $22 million to build.

“7.4% of workers in Jacksonville are unemployed right now because of an economic crisis brought on by a decade of war and occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said Dave Schneider, a protester at the event. “The only class in this country that benefits from this policy is a small collection of banks and corporations at the top, while working people like us pay the price. We stand against drones because they terrorize our sisters and brothers overseas and destroy our future right here at home.”

Event organizers played anti-war protest songs through a megaphone, including the bluesy jams of Watermelon Slim, a strong VVAW supporter and Vietnam veteran. Soon after, the crowd heard from a few speakers who talked about the use of drones in the U.S. imperialist wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and other oppressed nations. They called for an end to drone use by the U.S. military and for immediate withdrawal from Afghanistan.

#JacksonvilleFL #AntiwarMovement #drones #VietnamVeteransAgainstTheWar #OccupyJacksonville

Hollywood, FL – A group of anti-war activists gathered downtown here, to mark 12 years of U.S. war and occupation in Afghanistan. At the busy intersection of Young Circle Park, protesters held signs to remind the public that the U.S. is still waging war on the people of Afghanistan. People’s Opposition to War, Imperialism, and Racism (POWIR), a local anti-war group, organized the event.

The activists braved the rain and winds to demand an end to U.S. occupation, the immediate return of all U.S. troops and an end to wasteful spending on U.S. wars. The organizers stressed that billions of taxpayer dollars are being spent on U.S. wars and occupations abroad, instead of on jobs, healthcare, and education at home.

Signs read, “12 years too long, U.S. out of Afghanistan,” “War is not the answer,” “Fund our schools, not your wars” and “Honk for peace.” As cars and buses drove by, they honked in solidarity and the passersby walking in the park made peace signs in support and engaged in discussion. The protesters sang, “All we are saying is give peace a chance,” as they waved the banner and signs.

Cassia Laham, lead organizer of POWIR, held 12 black balloons to mark the 12 terrible years endured by the Afghan people and for the lives lost in Afghanistan, including U.S. soldiers. She said in her speech, “Afghanistan and all other countries currently being occupied and dominated by the U.S. have the right to self-determination.”

Sandy Davies from Progressive Democrats of America said, “It’s much easier to start a war than to end one. There are still more than 50,000 U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, and the U.S. has increased the number of air strikes and continues to attack the Afghan people.”

Davies continued by stating how in 2013 alone, there have been over 2000 airstrikes in Afghanistan, which averages to about five to ten airstrikes per day.

The Obama White House more than doubled the number of drones in the air and intensified attacks in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, killing hundreds of civilians, with drone attacks on weddings, funerals and family homes.

The southern Florida protest was part of an international day of action opposing the war in Afghanistan.

#HollywoodFL #AntiwarMovement #Afghanistan #USImperialism #drones #POWIR

At the start of this month, the whole world was tense as the U.S. proclaimed it was going to start missile strikes against Syria. It seemed likely that the U.S. wouldn’t stop after a few days of war, but would continue to attack Syria and cause as many deaths as the puppet FSA [Free Syrian Army] had caused in two and a half years.

Then Russia proposed a diplomatic solution to take Syria’s chemical weapons and, to the surprise of all, President Obama accepted it.

But then John Kerry said that the U.S. would only go along with putting Syrian’s weapons under international control if there was the threat of force in a UN resolution. Then this Friday, the U.S. had to back down on that in the United Nations Security Council resolution on eliminating Syrian chemical weapons. They had to drop the threat of force if Syria doesn’t comply.

Stepping back, we can see that for two and a half years, the U.S. has funded and directed forces to intervene, with the Gulf Cooperation Council, NATO and Israel playing roles; on the other hand, the U.S. has refused direct military action [such as]bombing, invasion.

What explains this contradiction? Why couldn’t the U.S., the most powerful military might on earth, carry out war on this small nation?

There other developments about the U.S. intervention in Syria that seem contradictory:

The U.S. has spent two and a half years funding and helping to direct an armed attack on the Syria’s government and the people of Syria. They intervened during the Arab Spring, the moment there was a mass protest movement there against unpopular policies of opening the economy to investment and then the resulting austerity measures.

They armed the only forces they found, including forces aligned with the Salafist movement, Al Nusra Front and other Al Qaeda linked groups.

On Sept. 26, we learned that the most significant of the ‘moderate’ armies fighting the Syrian government have quit the U.S. puppet FSA and joined forces with Al Nusra. They have called for an Islamic front, instead.

But in the Sept. 26 issue of Foreign Policy magazine, the most influential publication on the topic in D.C., they put out that they think Assad will go and be replaced by former Defense Minister, Ali Habib. The article reflects thinking in the White House about how to resolve the Syrian conflict, as well as the worries in Washington and Israel that the sectarian, foreign-led and dominated armies aligned with Al Qaeda would come to power if the U.S./Israel succeed in forcing out Assad.

How come the U.S. says that its main mission on earth is to fight Al Qaeda, but then it arms Al Qaeda against countries that have never attacked the U.S. Isn’t this a contradiction, too?

Let’s answer that by looking at some general questions: What is the status of U.S. power in the world today? What factors is the U.S. dealing with? And what determines U.S. policy in a particular country?

U.S. is weaker and there’s a rising trend toward independence from their control

The world has changed since the days after 9/11. The camp of resistance is growing and U.S. influence is in decline.

The economic crisis gets part of the credit for that. Although the capitalists don’t suffer like we do when there’s a crisis, it has weakened the power and prestige of the rich countries and the corporations.

But even before that, Bush’s invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq and the Cheney/Rumsfeld plan to go after “Iraq, then Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Iran, Somalia and Sudan” had all been an effort by the U.S. to turn back the hands of time, to put the U.S. back on top of the world they had ruled in the 1950s and 1960s.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan ended in defeat and stalemate. One clear consequence: the U.S. can’t use the method of massive invasions any more.

And the role of Russia in the struggle over Syria shows that the U.S. has to deal with rising powers, like the BRIC nations. Russia and China made it clear the U.S. wouldn’t get a United Nations Security Council vote for this war.

The people of the U.S., Britain and the other members of the NATO are sick of war and they’re sick of being lied to. When the U.S. upped the ante on Syria, things came to a head. President Obama found himself isolated on the world stage and domestically.

So the sudden changes in U.S. plans around Syria are a result of contradictions: first, the U.S. puppet army is losing to Syria’s army and militia; second, there’s a contradiction between the U.S. and Russia, which is no longer standing aside while the U.S. wages war; and third there’s a contradiction between the U.S. and it’s NATO allied governments and the peoples of those countries.

U.S. objectives remain

Of course, the changes in military form haven’t changed the underlying content of U.S. objectives: this place is an empire. The rulers want cheap labor and control of natural resources in other lands. They are like vampires – they have to have it.

On the one hand, the U.S. is weaker and unable to get what they want; on the other hand, they are compelled to keep trying. Rumsfeld’s vision of invading Syria is gone, at least for now.

But the arming of Al Qaeda armies is not a contradiction. U.S. imperialism will back whoever and whatever serves its interests. In one country, Al Qaeda linked is the worst threat to humanity; in the next country, they are recipients of arms and intelligence to fight a government that the U.S. has determined must go.

New focus on Iran

These losses have made the U.S. focus more on Iran. A new president in Iran doesn’t change that. The U.S. has adopted the stand toward Iran that they won’t accept an independent power in the Middle East. Syria is aligned with Iran, and so the fate of the two countries is tied together in the view of the empire.

The Arab Spring: A threat, then an opportunity

But right now the U.S. can’t handle a war of a similar or greater scale than Iraq. That’s why the U.S. was both anxious and excited by the Arab Spring. They used the dissatisfaction throughout the region, which was aimed squarely at U.S. puppets in Tunisia, Egypt and Bahrain, to go after governments with a history of independence from the U.S.: Libya and Syria. The U.S. maneuvered to take control of the situation and develop contradictions in their favor in Libya. With the success of their operation there, they felt they were in a much better position step up their attempts to topple the government of Syria.

As in Libya, they offered support to the Islamists, even though supporting them in Libya resulted in ‘blowback,’ in the attacks on Western oil installation in Algeria and the U.S. embassy.

Summation

The U.S. seems to be acting in a contradictory way in Syria, but something unites their decisions in every action they take: is it in the interests of U.S. imperialism?

They want to go to war with Syria and Iran, but they don’t have the support or the resources for an invasion.

They want to bomb Syria, but they can’t get support at home or in Britain and more countries are standing up to them.

They are willing to back any force against Assad, even though they worry about Israel, for example,being attacked by the mercenary armies they have created.

New Tactics

Invasions aren’t popular, and the U.S. can’t rely on an Arab Spring to emerge everywhere.

If you can’t invade, how does an empire achieve its objectives of punishing independent people or rebellious populations? The answers: proxy armies, drone warfare and special operations. Proxy armies are being used in Syria and before that Libya. Drone warfare first emerged in use against Pakistan, because the Pashtun people that have been the main base of the national resistance live on both sides of the Afghanistan/Pakistan border. The Obama administration then has taken the technology to Yemen, Somalia, Mali and Iran. We know that they intend to use it even more in the future because one growth area in the Pentagon’s otherwise shrinking budget is the budget for drones.

Conclusion

In our work against U.S. wars, we have to stand against threats to arm puppet armies; to assassinate or back coups; to carry out bombing and missile attacks; and we have to oppose drone warfare, as it is the most popular form of their undeclared wars.

#Chicago #ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #Imperialism #Iran #Syria #drones #JoeIsobaker #ArabSpring #MiddleEast #USA

Chicago, IL – 200 people marched against Boeing Company on Sept 28. Many participants and organizers from that march met for a conference the following day to share skills, experiences and knowledge that will help strengthen the movement against drone warfare.

50 of the protesters came from other states around the Midwest, from groups like the Wisconsin Coalition to Ground the Drones & End the Wars, the Minnesota-based groups Anti-War Committee, Women Against Military Madness and the Brainerd Area Coalition for Peace as well as others from Michigan, Indiana and Missouri. The Anti-War Committee-Chicago (AWC) had called for the march and the groups were joined by the ANSWER Coalition, the Syrian American Forum, U.S. Palestinian Community Network and other Chicago organizations.

The Boeing headquarters was the destination for the marchers. Boeing has been targeted by the AWC because they are vying for a Pentagon contract to build a new combat drone. Boeing is the second largest arms manufacturer in the U.S.

Combat drones have become controversial in the past two years in part because the Obama administration has sent drones to assassinate American citizens in Yemen. According to Medea Benjamin, founder of the anti-war group Code Pink, the majority of drone victims in Pakistan are not 'high level Al Qaeda' leaders but civilians, including many children. Benjamin, who has organized delegations to Pakistan and Yemen, was the keynote speaker at the conference and protest.

Thousands of people watched and dozens took videos as the march, complete with a band, puppets and several banners, went through a park and a shopping district on its way to Boeing headquarters. Upon reaching its destination, the group placed child-sized coffins on Boeing's property. Kait McIntyre, an organizer with Anti-War Committee-Chicago, explained, “The child-sized coffins we placed at Boeing's doorstep represent over 178 children that have been killed as a result of U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan and Yemen and the countless more whose blood will be on Boeing's hands if it wins this military drone contract.”

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #USImperialism #BoeingCorporation #drones #Pakistan #Yemen

Minnesota’s Anti-War Committee and Women Against Military Madness worked together to organize transportation to the protest from the Twin Cities to Chicago. In Chicago, the Minnesota contingent will march under the banner, “We’re not just Minnesota nice, we’re MAD (Minnesotans Against Drones).”

Organizer Meredith Aby-Keirstead, explained, “Drone strikes, especially in Pakistan and Yemen, have killed hundreds of civilians, many of them children. This protest will bring our voices directly to the company that has helped kill so many people. Boeing makes surveillance drones and is competing for a Pentagon contract to make the Phantom Ray, a new combat drone. The Phantom Ray would travel much further and carry more missiles than the Navy’s current combat drone, the Reaper.”

According to Kait McIntyre of the Anti-War Committee – Chicago, “It’s time to end the drone wars, not prepare to build another generation of deadly weapons.”

The protest on Sept. 28 will be followed by an organizing conference on Sept. 29.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #WomenAgainstMilitaryMadness #USImperialism #drones #MidwestActionAgainstDrones

“Boeing is vying for a contract with the Navy for a new combat drone – a contract that they say they must win to stay competitive among arms manufacturers,” said Kait McIntyre of the Anti-War Committee – Chicago (AWC). “It’s time to end the drone wars, not prepare to build another generation of deadly weapons.”

AWC has been campaigning against Boeing’s new drone since 2012. The Navy is accepting bids for a carrier launched combat drone which will be the size of a fighter plane, able to travel much farther than the Reaper, the combat drone currently in use, and carry a larger number of missiles.

AWC has been joined by a number of anti-war groups in Chicago, including U.S. Palestinian Community Network, the Syrian American Forum, ANSWER Coalition and many others. They’ll also be joined by groups that have been protesting outside drone command centers, such as Camp Ripley in Minnesota and Camp Williams in Wisconsin.

Helping to lead the march and headlining a conference being held the following day will be Medea Benjamin, a national spokesperson for the anti-war and anti-drone movements. The world watched as Benjamin and her organization, Code Pink, disrupted both President Obama’s speech justifying drone warfare in May and Secretary of State John Kerry’s saber rattling remarks against Syria in early September.

AWC is against the drone wars being waged in Pakistan and Yemen. “Unbiased sources estimate 800 civilians, including almost 200 children, have been killed by U.S. drone strikes,” explained McIntyre.

According to member Joe Iosbaker, the AWC also opposes Boeing’s new drone for economic justice reasons. “The city of Chicago gave Boeing $63 million in taxpayers’ money to move to Chicago. That was supposed to create jobs, not to be used for building a deadlier killer drone.”

More local groups are starting to take a stand against drone warfare and other new wars, such as in Syria. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 2858, adopted a resolution this month against war on Syria. That statement read in part, “… the enormous financial costs of bombing and war could be better spent on public services such as healthcare, education, jobs, safety for our children or to feed the hungry…”

The Chicago protest will start at 3:00 p.m., on the northwest corner of Monroe Street and Columbus Drive.

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #drones #MidwestActionAgainstDrones #MedeaBenjamin

Minneapolis, MN – Meredith Aby of the Twin Cities-based Anti-War Committee condemned the escalating wave of U.S. drone strikes in Yemen, stating, “There have been eight drone attacks in the past two weeks in Yemen which have killed more than 30 people. The U.S. is waging an undeclared war in Yemen and increasing the anger at the U.S. for its use of drones on civilians. It is particularly insulting to our sisters and brothers in the Muslim world that this escalation of drone strikes has corresponded with the end of Ramadan and the celebration of Eid. The president claims these drone strikes make us safer, when in fact they do the opposite. The people of Yemen see these attacks for what they are – acts of imperialism.”

Joe Iosbaker, of the Anti-War Committee-Chicago, said of the drone strikes, “In May, President Obama told us that the U.S. use of drone warfare would be declining, but clearly that’s not happening. There is no real change in the Obama doctrine of drone war. According to the U.S., we can strike into any country at any time. This is the unlawful behavior of an imperialist country.”

Iosbaker and Aby are helping to organize the Midwest Action Against Drones (MAAD) scheduled for Sept. 29 – 30, under the slogans 'End Drone Warfare Abroad and Spying at Home', 'No Killer Drone for Boeing', 'No New Wars on Iran and Syria', and 'Money for Jobs, Healthcare, and Education – Not for War'.

On Sept. 28, at 3:00 p.m. protesters will gather in Chicago’s Millennium Park for a rally and march to Boeing Headquarters. On Sept. 29, from 9:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., there will be a conference featuring workshops and activists and organizers from across the Midwest region.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #USImperialism #drones #Yemen #MidwestActionAgainstDrones

Fort Lauderdale, FL – Despite a flood advisory and severe weather warnings, over 15 people gathered outside the U.S. Federal Building in downtown on July 13 for a vigil in solidarity with those who have fallen victim to U.S. drone strikes abroad. The vigil served as the conclusion to an Anti-Drone Week of Action organized by the anti-war group People's Opposition to War, Imperialism, and Racism (POWIR).

Dressed in ponchos, activists stood with umbrellas in one hand and signs in the other, as different members of the South Florida anti-war community spoke out against U.S. drone policies. Alex Rosales, an organizer with South Florida Interfaith Worker Justice, spoke in opposition to the placement of drones on the border to be used against immigrants.

“Not only are drones tearing people and families apart in countries throughout the world, drones are also being flown at our borders to target immigrants,” Rosales said. “We must come together to tell Obama that we will not stand for military expansionism abroad or the militarization of our borders.”

After various speeches against drone policies, names of drone victims from Pakistan and Yemen were read off followed by a moment of silence. Activists stood in silence with lit candles that flickered under the constant drizzle.

The vigil came one day after POWIR's Rally in Solidarity with Whistleblowers. On July 12, about 25 people gathered in downtown Fort Lauderdale to show support for Edward Snowden, Bradley Manning and other whistleblowers who have come forward to reveal sinister U.S. policies. Snowden is being targeted by the U.S. government for coming forward and exposing the government's electronic monitoring of all Americans.

Pamela Maldonado, a lead organizer for POWIR, spoke to the group, explaining the importance of standing up for those being criminalized by the U.S. government.

“Today, we stand for all those being repressed by Obama and the government, including anti-war activists and community organizers,” Maldonado said. “There is a reason why whistleblowers and activists are being targeted. And that is because we dare to speak the truth to the public and we dare to challenge their system.”

The crowd shouted chants against the surveillance state and against government repression. They held signs that read: “Support whistleblowers,” “Snowden is a hero,” and “Hey NSA, can you hear me now?” Cars driving along the busy streets honked loudly in support and pedestrians joined the crowd.

The rally ended when Sandy Davies, of Progressive Democrats of America, read Snowden's statement from Moscow to the crowd. “Snowden risked his life and freedom to expose the truth to the American public, so now it's our turn to show our support for him by speaking out,” she said.

POWIR's week of action was co-sponsored by various anti-war groups, including Veterans for Peace, the Green Party, Occupy Miami and Progressive Democrats of America. The week was meant to act as a catalyst to help revive the anti-war movement in Florida.

#FortLauderdaleFL #AntiwarMovement #USImperialism #drones #EdwardSnowden #POWIR

While the speech did offer criticism of how the U.S. had conducted the ‘war on terrorism,’ it did not give any concrete insight into how the U.S. prison in Guantanamo will be closed. Additionally, Obama said he was saddened by the occasional deaths of innocent people by U.S. drone strikes, but then argued for the effectiveness, legality and the moral justification for continuing U.S. drone attacks. Instead of offering a change to U.S. policy, Obama announced the continuation of the status quo.

Medea Benjamin, the founder of Code Pink and author of Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control, was in the audience and could not keep quiet. Benjamin challenged the president’s portrayal of the continuation of Guantanamo as Congress’ fault. She told The Daily Beast, “If he had indeed made significant policy changes, I wasn’t going to say anything. I would have preferred that option, but given that he didn’t make those kind of changes I was looking for, I was glad to be given the opportunity to speak out.”

Many other voices of the anti-war movement were not as fortunate as Benjamin, so Fight Back! interviewed an array of anti-war leaders to add to Benjamin’s reaction:

Alan Dale, an organizer with the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, told Fight Back! that he did not see the speech as a shift in policy. “Obama did not say that the U.S. was going to end its decade long orgy of militarism around the world. The Obama speech attempts to put a humane face on the continuing U.S. wars and interventions. The U.S. is not ending the war in Afghanistan; the U.S. government knows the war is unpopular, so it is adjusting. The U.S. plans to leave thousands of troops and drones behind. The drone strikes and night raids on Afghan villages will continue. The anti-war movement must continue to do everything possible to mobilize and end the wars and interventions.”

Joe Iosbaker, an activist with the Chicago Antiwar Committee, which is leading protests against Boeing’s production of drones, told Fight Back!, “Our protests against drone warfare have helped make it controversial. As a result of all the public pressure, both in the U.S. and abroad, President Obama could not remain silent. He responded by justifying their use and declaring that they will continue to be used. Since the U.S. will continue to carry out targeted killings and assassinations, we will continue to build a movement against U.S. wars and against the Boeing Company, for example, to stop them from making the next killer drone.”

Jess Sundin, an activist with the Minnesota Anti-War Committee who was targeted by the FBI for her activism, reacted to Obama’s attempt to show concern for civil liberties during the war on terror: “At every opportunity, the Obama administration has bolstered the war effort at the expense of civil liberties and civil rights. His terms in office have been a lesson in constitutional law, as his Department of Justice strikes down the Bill of Rights in every case of so-called terrorism. Freedom of speech and assembly, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, the right to due process, including a speedy and public trial with a jury of one's peers, the prohibition of excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishment – these are things for crime novels and TV dramas, but not for real life.

“When the FBI burst through my front door, and a federal prosecutor ordered me to Chicago to testify against anti-war and international solidarity activists, I had my first taste of the political repression that has long besieged freedom fighters in this country and around the world. The CSFR [Committee to Stop FBI Repression] stands with all those who have been targets of this repression – from Arab and Muslim charities to the Occupy movement. By building a united movement, we can make it impossible for the Obama administration, or any other, to silence us and clear the way for their cruel agenda of war and poverty.” Sundin also organizes with the Committee to Stop FBI Repression to demand policy changes from the federal government on civil liberties.

Lucia Wilkes-Smith is a board member of Women Against Military Madness and her reaction to Obama’s speech was, “Sometimes I agreed with Obama's general statements, and then I am outraged by his seemingly logical inferences. For example, he said, ‘Force alone cannot make us safe. We cannot use force everywhere...a perpetual war – through drones or Special Forces or troop deployments – will prove self-defeating, and alter our country in troubling ways.’ But, then I realize that his alternative to force and perpetual war is economic manipulation of other nations and peoples, to bring them into compliance with supposed U.S. interests and goals. Obama calls it ‘patiently supporting transitions to democracy.’ When Obama states, ‘For the record, I do not believe it would be constitutional for the government to target and kill any U.S. citizen – with a drone, or with a shotgun – without due process’, he continues to separate the elites from the others (non-U.S. citizens) who are assassinated or mowed down as ‘collateral damage.’ That's disgusting.”

Pete Shell, with the United National Antiwar Coalition and the Merton Center Anti-War Committee gave his reaction to Fight Back!, “Despite Obama's attempt to put progressive dressing on U.S. foreign policy, the fact remains that drone warfare and targeted assassination and the continuing torture of Guantanamo Bay detainees violate international law and create hatred against the U.S. In Pittsburgh, the Thomas Merton Center-AWC and Code Pink have recently started a coalition against drone warfare, together with representatives of Veterans for Peace, WILPF [Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom], the Green Party and AFSC [American Friends Service Committee]. CMU [Carnegie Mellon University] and Pitt [University of Pittsburgh] get millions of dollars a year in military funding, much of it for drone and robotic warfare research and development. It's time to transform this military-oriented economy into a true peace-time economy.”

Coleen Rowley, who left the FBI as a whistleblower and is an activist with Tackling Torture at the Top with WAMM, gave her reaction: “I agree with what Ray McGovern wrote in Doubting Obama’s Resolve to Do Right, ‘In his counterterrorism speech, President Obama ruminated about the moral and legal dilemma of balancing the safety of the American people against the use of targeted killings abroad.’ Those who want the war killing under a deluded notion of Pax Americana to continue, like the Chicago Tribune editors who assess nothing will change, will see an endorsement of the ‘long war’ status quo. If only a certain portion of the people, however, would seize the moment and emulate Medea – instead of criticizing her rudeness in telling some truth about their political leader to whom they have lazily abdicated their responsibility and morals – we could actually see the tide turn.”

In conclusion, President Obama’s message to the anti-war movement was not that their work was done, but rather that anti-war leaders and activists across the country need to continue to develop a movement for peace and justice. Anti-war activists will continue to organize to ground the drones, close Guantanamo, and to say no to U.S. warfare and militarism!

#UnitedStates #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #USImperialism #drones #FBIRepression #CodePink

Washington, DC – On May 23, U.S. President Barack Obama delivered a speech at the National Defense University, supposedly outlining changes to the ‘counter-terrorism’ policy of the U.S. While the U.S. media hailed the speech as a significant change from the War on Terror policies of the Bush administration that carried into Obama’s first term, the president’s speech mostly doubled-down on the drone strikes and military actions that have brought death and destruction to people in the Middle East.

The Boston Marathon bombing last month, along with the Congressional Republicans’ probe into the U.S. Embassy attack in Benghazi, Libya last year, almost certainly motivated the president’s speech. More pressing was the May 22 admission by Attorney General Eric Holder that drone strikes killed four U.S. citizens, including three civilians, since Obama took office in 2009.

Putting Obama’s speech in this context is important because it reveals an administration desperate to justify its violent military actions to the U.S. people, who overwhelmingly oppose the government’s policy of perpetual war and occupation. Despite saber-rattling against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Syrian Arab Republic, a New York Times/CBS poll found nearly 77% of people in the U.S. oppose U.S. military action against the DPRK and about 62% feel the U.S. should not intervene in Syria.

The Obama Doctrine

Obama’s speech included a full-throated defense of drone strikes. Disturbingly, the speech all but wrote off the hundreds – if not thousands – of civilians who died from U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and other nations. Obama claimed that as president, he “must weigh these heartbreaking tragedies [civilian causalities from drone strikes] against the alternatives.” He followed this assertion with the equally bizarre justification, “Let us remember that the terrorists we are after target civilians.” This is the Barack Doctrine: To save the civilians who would die in terrorist attacks, we need to kill them before the terrorists do.

Although the U.S. media already clamors over the very minor changes to the president’s drone program – the Los Angeles Times called it “throttling back on drones” – these changes will do little to nothing in reducing civilian casualties. The president calls for tougher standards when deciding to launch drone strikes. This requires “a near certainty that no civilians will be killed or injured,” according to White House staff.

However, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) classifies all military-age male casualties of drone strikes as ‘militants’ unless they find evidence to the contrary after their death, according to a 2012 report by the Stanford International Human Rights & Conflict Resolution Clinic called Living With Drones. The Brookings Institution estimated in a 2009 report that drone strikes killed nearly ten civilians for every one militant, but the CIA’s deceptive method of reporting deaths masks the real horrors committed on everyday people in countries like Pakistan. By not acknowledging the full scope of civilian death or the bad reporting methods on drone casualties, Obama implies no reason to expect an end to the slaughter of innocent people.

For his part, Obama suggested a return to the pre-9/11 counter-terrorism policies that marked Bill Clinton’s administration. This should provide scant comfort for anyone who opposes the U.S. policy of war and occupation. President Clinton’s foreign policy was marked with the death of nearly a million Iraqi children as a result of the brutal sanctions infamously defended by then-Secretary of State Madeline Albright. Under Clinton, the U.S. launched military strikes in Sudan and Afghanistan and sent U.S. troops into Somalia. Clinton’s administration oversaw the dismemberment of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, culminating in the 1999 NATO bombing of Bosnia with civilian deaths mounting to 5700, according to Human Rights Watch. Clinton worked with the brutal monarchy in Saudi Arabia to place more military bases in the Persian Gulf and tighten the U.S. grip on the Middle East’s oil. Despite tactical differences, the Clinton and Bush presidencies oversaw the deaths of nearly a million Iraqis each.

Obama’s speech included support for the French invasion and occupation of Mali, but it made no mention of the U.S.-orchestrated NATO bombing of Libya in 2011. Facing continued investigation by the House Republicans for the U.S. Embassy attack in Benghazi, the president wants to avoid touting his full-fledged support for the so-called Libyan ‘rebellion,’ which was led largely by al-Qaeda affiliates who later carried out the embassy attack.

With the stroke of a speechwriter’s pen, the President revised history on national television with his claim, “unrest in the Arab World has also allowed extremists to gain a foothold in countries like Libya and Syria.” Of course, he avoids mentioning the most damning fact of all: the U.S. funded and armed this ‘unrest’ in Libya and continues supporting the ‘rebels’ in Syria, in alliance with the Israeli government and the Saudi monarchy.

Code Pink interrupts Obama’s speech

Near the end of his speech, the president attempted to blame Congress for his broken campaign promise to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay. At this point, Medea Benjamin, the co-founder of the anti-war organization Code Pink, interrupted President Obama and pointed out his broken campaign promise to close Guantanamo Bay. Benjamin also criticized his administration’s use of drone strikes. The U.S. media lashed out at Benjamin for interrupting Obama and ignored the fact that her points were correct.

While Congress has blocked the president’s ability to transfer prisoners to the U.S. – a move that Obama supported by signing the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – Obama has the ability to release the 86 prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay, which effectively closes the facility. Of course, prior to the NDAA, Obama could have closed Guantanamo Bay like he pledged to do early in his first term. As Benjamin pointed out during her pointed exchange with the president, Obama has shown a willingness and enthusiasm for the indefinite detention policies of the Bush administration – the same policies he decried during his run for the White House in 2008.

After the speech, Benjamin said this in an interview with Common Dreams: “While I have received a deluge of support, there are others, including journalists, who have called me ‘rude.’ But terrorizing villages with Hellfire missiles that vaporize innocent people is rude.” She continued, “Violating the sovereignty of nations like Pakistan is rude. Keeping 86 prisoners in Guantanamo long after they have been cleared for release is rude. Shoving feeding tubes down prisoners' throats instead of giving them justice is certainly rude.” The latter is a reference to the Obama administration’s forced end to a hunger strike launched by Guantanamo Bay prisoners.

Plenty of commentators in the U.S. corporate media praised Obama’s speech and blasted Benjamin’s courageous stand against drone strikes. However, all of the president’s rhetoric does not change the fundamentally violent nature of the U.S. imperialist system. Well into his second term, Obama has no excuses remaining to explain his full-embrace of the Bush era policies, and the anti-war movement is beckoning for answers.

#WashingtonDC #AntiwarMovement #GuantanamoBay #WarOnTerrorism #drones #CodePink

Grand Rapids, MI – 20 people met at the Yankee Clipper Library here to hear two leading “No Drones” activists from Chicago. On May 4, Kait McIntyre and Joe Iosbaker of the Anti-war Committee of Chicago spoke about the deadly use of drones by the U.S. military in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia. They showed a short film detailing how the U.S. government has killed 4700 people, including 178 children in Pakistan and Yemen, and 849 Pakistanis.

Kait McIntyre said, “The U.S. government is murdering thousands of poor rural people on the other side of the world using drones. So we are targeting one manufacturer, the Boeing Company, and their new killer drone called “the Phantom”, with our No Drones campaign.”

McIntyre continued, “People are hearing our No Drones and anti-war message because we link it their concerns. People in the U.S. want jobs, education and healthcare, not tax breaks for Boeing to profit from making more drones and killing innocents.”

Joe Iosbaker, one of the leaders of the 15,000 person anti-NATO march last May in Chicago, said, “We oppose all U.S. wars. There are no ‘good’ ones. Using drones does not make U.S. wars any more ‘just.’ We want to invite activists from around the Midwest to a No Drones conference in July, so we can plan for a big mass action against Boeing.”

Members of the audience asked question for over an hour. Mike Kowalski of Grand Rapids commented, “While Michigan schools and cities scramble for funding, the ten-year Pentagon budget for drones is $250 billion. We need to end the dominance of the big military corporations over our country.”

Joe Iosbaker updated the audience on the FBI raids and U.S. government political repression of 23 anti-war and international solidarity activists, including in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The Institute for Global Education (IGE), the Grand Rapids Left Forum and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom sponsored the event.

#GrandRapidsMI #AntiwarMovement #JoeIosbaker #drones

Newland Smith, stockholder and anti-war activist, cited Senator Lindsey Graham of the Armed Services Committee, on the number of casualties from killer drones. Graham recently stated, “We've killed 4700.” According to Smith, “This is the estimated number of casualties in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen, but including drone strikes in Afghanistan and Iraq would result in a much higher number.”

Smith and Sarah Simmons, also a stockholder, said that the Anti-War Committee will be at the Boeing meeting to expose the loss of life resulting from drones. “What the Obama administration says isn’t true; most of the drone strikes aren’t against proven, high level Al Qaeda leaders,” explained Simmons. “In Pakistan as many as 881 were civilians, including 176 children. Almost all the rest are ‘alleged combatants.’”

Boeing is competing with the other top arms manufacturers for the growing budget for unmanned aircraft for the military. This year, the Navy is asking for designs for a new combat drone. Boeing is expected to propose its “Phantom Ray.”

AWC has taken a number of measures to oppose the drone wars, including submitting a statement to an April 23 hearing held by Senator Richard Durbin on the topic.

In addition to the deaths caused by their products, Boeing received over $60 million in tax breaks to move to Chicago. Simmons, the mother of Chicago Public School children, spoke from her experience. “Our schools are crumbling, and we’re giving tax breaks to a company with $25 billion in defense contracts.” Smith added, “With their record profits last year, McNerny was given a 20% raise, to $27.5 million. Clearly war is profitable for Boeing.”

Smith put it plainly. “It’s time to end the drone wars, not prepare to build another generation of more deadly weapons.”

#ChicagoIL #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #USImperialism #BoeingCorporation #drones