CovertAction Bulletin

Tribute to Palestinian Journalist Wafa Al-Udaini

On Monday, September 30th, an Israeli airstrike in Deir al-Balah killed Wafa al-Udaini, her husband and two of her children. Wafa was a founder of the October 16 group, a mentor to young journalists and media professionals in Gaza and especially worked to highlight the voices of women impacted by the Israeli occupation. Wafa was the 174th journalist to be killed by Israel in Gaza since Israel began its bombardment of Gaza just under a year ago.

Romana Rubeo wrote at the Palestine Chronicle, “Wafa’s writing captured the essence of why we do what we do on a daily basis for years: amplifying Palestinian voices, and not any voices, but those that reflect the spirit of the Palestinian people, their defiance of injustice, their quest for freedom, and their courage in word and action.”

Long-time listeners of this show may remember that we had Wafa on twice. First, in April 2023, she joined us to explain how the mass protests happening in Israel against Benjamin Netanyahu were about internal Israeli matters, and not concerned with the liberation of Palestinians. “So for us as Palestinians, we see that the occupation has one face, they are all the same, even if it is a far right government or a left-right government or any, it is occupation at the end.” she told us.

She then came on the show a few months later for our October 11th 2023 episode, immediately after the resistance movement launched Al Aqsa Flood, to give an on-the-ground report on the Israeli bombardment, its use of white phosphorus and how people viewed the resistance.

For today’s episode, we’ll be revisiting our past conversations with Wafa as we discuss the current and rapidly-escalating situation. We dedicate this episode to Wafa al-Udaini and her family.

Israel ignites Middle East as UN General Assembly meets

As the United Nations General Assembly meets this week, world leaders have adopted a Pact for the Future to build towards a multilateral world. But the meeting is happening as regional conflicts could flare up and ignite across many parts of the globe. The US & NATO’s proxy war in Ukraine rages on with few serious efforts being made towards a peaceful resolution. And it comes just days after Israel killed dozens and injured thousands in Lebanon with a long-term coordinated plan to explode pagers and handheld radios, following up with a devastating bombing campaign. The U.S. is now sending more troops, an aircraft carrier, two destroyers and a cruiser to the Middle East. The attacks have caused Lebanese acting Prime Minister Najib Mikati to skip his own scheduled trip to the UN this week.

To help us wade through the various threads of the growing threat of all-out war around the globe, we’re joined today by Ben Norton. Ben is the founder and editor of Geopolitical Economy Report, which you can find at geopoliticaleconomy.com.

Debate shows Harris and Trump are two sides of the same coin

The first and maybe only debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris happened just after we recorded our last show on Tuesday, September 10th. Over nearly two hours, the candidates attempted to talk over and through each other, regurgitating some of the same old talking points of each of their campaigns. It was light on policy and heavy on racism, bigotry and threats of war. Ultimately, what the debate showed us is that this contest is not about actually improving the lives of working-class people, but who will be better for the American empire and police state.

We’re joined today by Jacquie Luqman, host of Darker than Blue, as we take apart some of the key moments from the debate.

The Other 9/11: US Involvement in the 1973 Chile Coup

Fifty-one years ago, a bloody coup in Chile overthrew the democratically-elected president Salvadore Allende, leaving him dead. Sometimes now called “the other 9/11,” it ushered in the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, which lasted for 17 years. Over 3,000 people were killed or disappeared in that period, and nearly 40,000 people were targeted for political repression and tortured because they were leftists or suspected of being leftists.

The US government played a significant role in both creating the destabilizing conditions for the coup and in its support for Pinochet. We’re joined now by Abraham Márquez of Kawsachun News to discuss the legacy of the coup, the CIA’s involvement, and what lessons we can learn today.

Then, Rachel and Chris discuss the disastrous War on Terror that was launched in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, and the rehabilitation of George W Bush, Dick Cheney and others in the current political climate.

CIA Whistleblower John Stockwell Spills the Beans

John Stockwell is a former CIA officer who became a whistleblower and outspoken critic of the Agency, the US intelligence community and the imperialist policies of the US government. He left the CIA in 1976 after serving there for 12 years following service in the US Marine Corps. During that time, he was told to fabricate intelligence reports on the situations in Vietnam and Angola, and eventually exposed a significant amount of information through his books and public talks. He was an early supporter and contributor to what was then Covert Action Information Bulletin, now CovertAction Magazine.

In an interview with the Burton Michigan Voice in 1985, he said “I went into the CIA thinking I was doing the best thing I could with my life, the contradiction being that I was a humanist at heart. But of course, their propaganda line is that you’re serving humanity by struggling to keep the world free from communism. It ook a lot of years making my way up the chain of command until I became convinced just the opposite was true. I saw it in Africa, but in Africa I was working out of embassies. I did not have Phil Agee’s experience from Latin America where there was more bombing and torture and terrorism, and the issues were clearer. The inhumanity was clearer. Then I saw it in Vietnam, there was no doubt.”

CovertAction Magazine has recently republished a three-hour video of Stockwell speaking in 1989 at American University, starting with an hour lecture and then answering student questions for the remainder of the time.

Watch the video on our YouTube channel by clicking here.

Though the names of politicians and places have changed, the things he brings up hit at the heart of issues we are still fighting against, and exposing some 35 years later.

Media Blasts Telegram As Russian Tool As CEO Arrested

The founder and CEO of social media and communications app Telegram, Pavel Durov was arrested in France on August 24th. The country, one of the Nine Eyes intelligence partners along with the US, UK, Australia and others, claims that the social media app is a hotbed for illegal activity, and Western media coverage blasts it as a tool of the Russian government. But the attack on Telegram is actually a testing ground for future attacks on encrypted messaging platforms and alternative news sources.

 

Then later in the show, we discuss the invasion by Ukrainian forces funded with US dollars and using British tanks into the Russian territory of Kursk. The incursion marked the first significant breach of the Russian border by Ukrainian ground forces in the nearly two-and-a-half years since the immediate conflict began and follows a pattern of missile strikes and minor raids into Kursk and neighboring Belgorod since February 2022. Is this the sequel to the Ukrainian counteroffensive of 2023 that was hyped up by Western media and governments but ultimately failed to make a significant difference?  How do these developments figure into the longer history of the conflict, going back to 2014 and even further into history? And what prospects are there for peace rather than further escalation into a global conflict?

 

We’re joined by investigative journalist Kit Klarenberg to talk about all that and more.

Read Kit’s article Britain’s Kursk Invasion Backfires?

Eyewitness DNC: Democracy in the Streets

The Democratic National Convention is taking place in Chicago this week. Amidst the fanfare and extravagance, there’s very little actual democracy inside as big-name politicians and those trying to make a name for themselves attempt to make the case for Kamala Harris to be the next president. Hillary Clinton, AOC, Jill and Joe Biden and Barack Obama have taken the stage among others. But with Joe Biden out of the race, the DNC has made it a foregone conclusion that Kamala Harris will be the next Democratic nominee, preventing a floor fight or nominations.

Meanwhile, mass protests began over the weekend and will continue throughout the week, demanding a ceasefire and arms embargo against Israel, healthcare for all, and much more. As Joe Biden was speaking, activists unrolled a giant banner inside the convention center that said “Stop Arming Israel.” In response to this demand for an end to genocide, the crowd started chanting “We love Joe” and the lights were dimmed. On Tuesday, activists with CODEPINK interrupted Tim Walz, chanting “Stop killing women in Gaza” and they were immediately met with a response of “USA, USA.”

We’re joined by Saja Bilasan, founder of Falasteen Favorites and organizer of Chicago Artists Against Apartheid to discuss what’s happening both inside and outside the United Center in Chicago.

Eyewitness: Venezuela’s Election

Venezuela’s elections took place on July 28th. Nicolás Maudro defeated the right-wing candidate Edmundo González Urrutia by over a million votes. The imperialist machine immediately jumped into action to denounce the elections, condemning Maduro as a dictator and calling the results undemocratic. Over 1,000 international observers from 100 countries were in Venezuela for the election, and with few exceptions of those who are against the Bolivarian Revolution, they’ve stated that the electoral process was fair and free. That hasn’t stopped the US government, its media mouthpieces, regional allies and even Elon Musk from calling for the overthrow of the Maduro government.

Following the election, waves of fascist violence took the streets of Caracas and other cities, but supporters of the Bolivarian Revolution have themselves mobilized in its defense. We’re joined today by Gloria La Riva of the Cuba and Venezuela Solidarity Committee.

ICJ ruling lays out case against Israeli occupation

Hello supporters! We published this episode on July 31, but it didn’t get sent out to some platforms, including Spotify. We’re republishing it again now for you and hope you enjoy it. - Chris

In a ruling on July 19, the International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion that confirmed what Palestinians have been saying for over 7 decades: That the Israeli occupation is illegal, that the way Palestinians are treated by Israel is a form of apartheid, and that the occupation must end.

This ruling includes the Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which have grown especially since the Israeli military withdrew from Gaza in 2005.

As we are approaching 300 days of the genocide in Gaza and over 40,000 deaths at the hands of the US-funded and armed Israeli military, we wanted to talk more about the ICJ and this ruling. An ICJ advisory opinion cannot force a country to act, but can have a real impact on how the rest of the world approaches policy towards Israel.

We’re joined by Laith Aqel, human rights lawyer, a lecturer in the Human Rights Clinic at Yale and an organizer with the CT Palestine Solidarity Coalition.

And later in the show, just days after the ICJ ruling Benjamin Netanyahu spoke in front of the US Congress as over 10,000 people rallied outside the Capitol. We’ll bring you some of the speeches from that rally as well.

Will Kamala Harris Really Save Democracy?

Just over 100 days away from the 2024 election, Joe Biden has dropped out of the race and endorsed Kamala Harris, signaling to the Democratic Party that there should be no debate, no other nominations and certainly no floor fight over delegates at the upcoming Democratic National Convention next month. This of course comes after a period where there were no real primaries for the Democratic Party. That’s not unusual when a sitting President is running for reelection, but questions about Biden’s ability to beat Donald Trump this year have lingered for quite some time.

Today, we want to get into who Kamala Harris is, what interests she represents and what the absolute lack of democracy in the so-called Democratic Party means for social movements and real change through November and beyond.

We’re joined by activist, author and journalist Eugene Puryear, host of The Freedom Side Live on Breakthrough News.