Síntesis informativa - 25 de noviembre 2019
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Esper Demands Resignation of Navy Secretary Over SEAL Case
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper demanded the resignation of the Navy’s top civilian leader on Sunday, an abrupt move aimed at ending an extraordinary dispute between President Trump and his own senior military leadership over the fate of a SEAL commando in a war crimes case.
In a statement, Mr. Esper said he had lost trust in the Navy secretary, Richard V. Spencer, because his private statements about the case differed from what he advocated in public. Mr. Esper added that he was “deeply troubled by this conduct.”
A senior Defense Department official and a senior White House official said on Sunday night that Mr. Spencer was trying to cut a side deal with the White House to let the commando remain in the elite unit, even as he pushed both publicly and with Pentagon officials for a disciplinary hearing.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/24/us/politics/navy-secretary-richard-spencer-resign.html
U.S. Resumes Operations Against ISIS in Northern Syria
MANAMA, Bahrain — United States troops have resumed large-scale counterterrorism missions against the Islamic State in northern Syria, military officials say, nearly two months after President Trump’s abrupt order to withdraw American troops opened the way for a bloody Turkish cross-border offensive.
American-backed operations against ISIS fighters in the area effectively ground to a halt for weeks despite warnings from intelligence analysts that Islamic State militants were beginning to make a comeback from Syrian desert redoubts even though their leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, had been killed during an American raid on Oct. 26.
On Friday, American soldiers and hundreds of Syrian Kurdish fighters — the same local allies the Trump administration abandoned to fend for themselves against the Turkish advance last month — reunited to conduct what the Pentagon said was a large-scale mission to kill and capture ISIS fighters in Deir al-Zour province, about 120 miles south of the Turkish border.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/25/us/politics/us-syria-isis.html
Hong Kong Election Results Give Democracy Backers Big Win
HONG KONG — Pro-democracy candidates buoyed by months of street protests in Hong Kong won a stunning victory in local elections on Sunday, as record numbers voted in a vivid expression of the city’s aspirations and its anger with the Chinese government.
It was a pointed rebuke of Beijing and its allies in Hong Kong, and the turnout — seven in 10 eligible voters — suggested that the public continues to back the democracy movement, even as the protests grow increasingly violent. Young Hong Kongers, a major force behind the demonstrations of the past six months, played a leading role in the voting surge.
With three million voters casting ballots, pro-democracy candidates captured 389 of 452 elected seats, up from only 124 and far more than they have ever won. The government’s allies held just 58 seats, a remarkable collapse from 300.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/24/world/asia/hong-kong-election-results.html
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THE GUARDIAN
Climate-heating greenhouse gases hit new high, UN reports
The jumps in the key gases measured in 2018 were all above the average for the last decade, showing action on the climate emergency to date is having no effect in the atmosphere. The WMO said the gap between targets and reality were both “glaring and growing”.
The rise in concentration of greenhouses gases follows inevitably from the continued surge in global emissions, which was described as “brutal news” for 2018. The world’s scientists calculate that emissions must fall by half by 2030 to give a good chance of limiting global heating to 1.5C, beyond which hundreds of millions of people will suffer more heatwaves, droughts, floods and poverty.
Evo Morales: 'I have nothing to regret … this is an age-old fight'
Bolivia’s ousted and exiled president, Evo Morales, says he has ruled out standing in his country’s next elections to stop the existing crisis sliding into a broader civil or ethnic conflict.
He told the Guardian: “This is what I am afraid of and it is what we have to avoid, which is why I am renouncing my candidacy. In the name of peace, sacrifices have to be made and I am sacrificing my candidacy even though I have every right to it.”
The following day rightwing senator Jeanine Áñez swore herself in as interim president. At least 32 people have died since then, most of them reportedly in army crackdowns on pro-Morales protests. There have also been signs of social and racial tension between the mostly poor and indigenous protesters and wealthier onlookers.
Chile security forces' crackdown leaves toll of death and broken bodies
The turmoil has left at least 23 dead and 7,000 detained. Chile’s human rights institute (INDH) reported that more than 2,300 have been injured – more than 1,400 of whom sustained gunshot wounds.
The INDH is compiling 384 legal cases against the police and armed forces, including six cases of homicide.
Meanwhile, more than 200 people have suffered eye injuries from shotgun pellets, teargas canisters and non-lethal ammunition.
'Allow no escapes': leak exposes reality of China's vast prison camp network
The China Cables, a cache of classified government papers, appear to provide the first official glimpse into the structure, daily life and ideological framework behind centres in north-western Xinjiang region that have provoked international condemnation.
When reports surfaced of mass internments without trial, authorities in Beijing initially denied the existence of the detention centres, whose inmates are mostly Uighurs and other ethnic minorities.
After satellite photos and a flood of testimony from former detainees and relatives became impossible to ignore, the party insisted they were for voluntary “vocational training”.
The cables provide apparent confirmation from within China’s bureaucracy that the camps were envisaged from the start as brainwashing detention centres, to be constructed on a massive scale, with inmates confined by multiple layers of security.
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XINHUA
U.S. defense secretary fires Navy secretary over handling of SEAL controversy
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Sunday asked Navy Secretary Richard Spencer to resign over his handling of a case involving a Navy SEAL's controversial conduct in Iraq, a spokesman for the Pentagon said.Gallagher was convicted in July of posing with the corpse of a captive in Iraq during his deployment there in 2017. He was demoted from chief petty officer to a first class petty officer.
"Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper has asked for the resignation of Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer after losing trust and confidence in him regarding his lack of candor over conversations with the White House involving the handling of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher," Jonathan Hoffman, the spokesman, said in a statement.
The request for Spencer to resign came as Esper learned the Navy secretary, without informing him, had privately proposed to the White House that Gallagher's rank in the prestigious unit be restored and that the troubled officer be allowed to retire as a Navy SEAL.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-11/25/c_138581609.htm
Former NYC mayor Bloomberg launches presidential campaign
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- Former mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg launched a video ad Sunday to formally announce his campaign for president in the 2020 U.S. election. The minute-long campaign ad portrayed the 77-year-old media mogul as "jobs creator, leader, problem solver."
The announcer said in the ad that Bloomberg, who runs as a Democrat, will let the wealthy pay more in taxes, the middle class get their fair share and everyone be able to get health insurance. The ad also highlighted the billionaire's efforts to restore New York after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, as well as his resolve to tackle climate change.
Citing advertising analyses, U.S. media reported that the former three-term New York City mayor has spent over 30 million U.S. dollars so far in buying airtime reservations for TV commercials promoting his political agenda across the country, an amount that overshadows the campaign advertising budgets of other Democratic contenders.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-11/25/c_138580418.htm
Palestinians to launch protests against U.S. declaration over Israeli settlements
RAMALLAH, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian officials on Sunday declared launch of protests against the latest remarks by United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on the legality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Officials of various factions and parties said that the protests will kick off with a "Day of Rage" on Tuesday, a day of protests to take place at military checkpoints throughout the West Bank. The coordinator of National and Islamic faction in Ramallah city, Issam Baker, told Xinhua that the factions have held meetings with civil society organizations to decide on popular steps rejecting the latest declaration by Washington.
Last Week, Pompeo said that the United States considers "the establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank is not, per se, inconsistent with international law," and that the United States was not weighing in on the legality of any individual settlement, leaving that to Israeli courts.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-11/25/c_138580459.htm
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AL JAZEERA
Australia probes 'deeply disturbing' claims of China interference
Australia's spy agency says taking seriously allegations China tried to bankroll businessman's bid for Parliament seat.
Australia's domestic spy agency is investigating whether China tried to install an agent in its federal parliament in what Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Monday called "deeply disturbing" allegations.
The reports said a suspected Chinese espionage ring had offered "a seven-figure sum" to pay for a Melbourne luxury car dealer, Bo "Nick" Zhao, to run for a seat in the national Parliament.
China is Australia's most important trading partner, but ties have deteriorated in recent years amid accusations that Beijing is meddling in domestic affairs.
The government has set up a counter-foreign interference coordinator and given the intelligence and security agencies additional resources to protect Australians and the nation's institutions, a government spokesman said.
Lebanon protesters and Hezbollah, Amal supporters clash in Beirut
Hezbollah and Amal were represented in the government of Prime Minister Saad Hariri who quit last month.
Lebanon has faced five weeks of anti-government protests, fuelled by anger at corruption among the sectarian politicians who have governed the country for decades. Demonstrators want all of them gone from power.
The attacks occurred after protesters blocked a major intersection known as the Ring Road that links eastern neighbourhoods of the capital with western parts. Protesters simultaneously closed roads in areas north of Beirut and in the eastern Bekaa Valley.
Hezbollah supporters have attacked the main protest camp in central Beirut on at least two occasions, destroying tents set up by protesters.
Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has said the nationwide protests have been exploited by foreign powers and are no longer spontaneous. He has warned they could drag Lebanon towards civil war and says protesters must stop blocking roads and paralysing the country.
Hong Kong shares lead gains in Asia as democrats sweep election
Positive news on US-China trade also lifts investor sentiment, although changes in Hong Kong are being closely watched.
Shares in Hong Kong led gains across Asia's financial markets on Monday, after key elections brought more pro-democracy councillors to power and China announced a tightening of intellectual property regulations that could ease trade talks with the United States.
On Sunday, the Chinese government said it would consider lowering the thresholds for criminal punishments against those who steal intellectual property, reduce frequent IP violations by 2022 and plans to make it easier for victims to receive compensation.
Hong Kong pro-democracy parties took nearly 90 percent of district council seats following a record-high voter turnout of 71 percent for the elections, according to data from the Hong Kong Electoral Affairs Commission.
While US and Chinese officials remain hopeful that the first phase of a trade deal can be signed by the end of the year, China's response to protests in Hong Kong will also be closely watched.
Secret papers reveal workings of China's Xinjiang detention camps
Documents detail use of technology and artificial intelligence to target people and regulate life inside the camps.
The inner workings of a network of centres where at least one million mostly Muslim ethnic Uighurs are thought to be detained have been revealed in a cache of secret documents that show how China's government selects people for detention and how they are then controlled once inside.
The papers lay out the Chinese government's strategy to lock up minorities, most of whom are Muslims, to rewire their thoughts and even the language they speak.
The documents stipulate watch towers, double-locked doors and video surveillance "to prevent escapes" and describe an elaborate scoring system that grades detainees on how well they speak the dominant Mandarin language, memorise ideology, and adhere to strict rules on everything, down to bathing and using the toilet.
The documents show how data and artificial intelligence are being used for social control.
With the help of mass surveillance technology, computers were able to issue the names of tens of thousands of people for interrogation or detention in just one week, including university students and party officials.
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AL MAYADEEN
Violentas manifestaciones en varias zonas de Irak
Los manifestantes iraquíes cerraron en esta jornada el puente de al-Zaitoun en la provincia de Dhi Qar, al sur del país, mientras quemaron el nuevo edificio del gobierno local en al-Nasiriya, informó el corresponsal de Al Mayadeen.
El portavoz del comandante en jefe de las fuerzas armadas iraquíes dijo que las pandillas estaban utilizando las protestas para tratar de destruir las instituciones estatales.
Por su parte, el parlamentario iraquí de la alianza "Al Fatah", Abdul Amir Taiban, señaló que todo hace indicar que una parte hostil está tratando de infiltrase entre los manifestantes y las fuerzas de seguridad.
A su vez, Ahmed al-Jarba, subdirector del Bloque de "Proyecto Árabe", instó al primer ministro a comprometerse ante los manifestantes a cumplir con las reformas en un corto período de tiempo.
Libaneses protestan contra injerencia de EE.UU. frente a embajada en Beirut
Según reportó Al Mayadeen hubo una fuerte presencia de fuerzas de seguridad en Awkar, en el norte de la capital, donde se encuentra la legación diplomática.
El exembajador estadounidense en El Líbano Jeffrey Feltman trató de incitar al pueblo libanés y al ejército contra Hizbullah en un intento de chantaje pues pretendió vincular tanto el apoyo de su país como el internacional a la economía nacional con el aislamiento de Hizbullah y al rechazo a sus políticas dentro del gobierno, especialmente repecto a la opción de resistencia.
Yemen: Consejo de Transición del Sur acusa al gobierno de Hadi de intentar frustrar el acuerdo de Riad
Durante una reunión celebrada el domingo, el Consejo señaló que evitar la escalada se ha vuelto imposible dado el deterioro de las condiciones financieras.
El Consejo de Transición del Sur, respaldado por Emiratos Árabes Unidos, acusó al gobierno del presidente Abed Rabbu Mansour Hadi de intentar frustrar la implementación del acuerdo de Riad mediante el retraso del pago de los salarios a las unidades militares del sur.
A su vez, indicó que el gobierno de Hadi eludía su deber de proporcionar servicios de electricidad y agua a los ciudadanos, pues continúa evadiendo pagar los fondos requeridos para la compra de combustible utilizado en las estaciones generadoras, además de detener deliberadamente –por tercer mes consecutivo– los créditos del sector del agua con el objetivo de frustrar los intentos de normalizar la vida en el sur.
