Links to TWO reports: from the Associated Press and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their initials below. (Scroll down for UKRAINE 2-12-26, and up or down for GAZA and IRAN.) — MCM

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Drone strikes in Ukraine and Russia kill 2 ahead of peace talks, by Samya Kullab and Elise Morton | AP  KYIV — Drone strikes killed one person in Ukraine and another in Russia, officials said today, ahead of fresh talks next week aimed at ending the war. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others. 

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FROM FEB. 13  View from Ukraine. Reported by Karen Zamora, Mary Louise Kelly and Courtney Dorning | NPR  Kelly speaks with Chrystia Freeland, former Canadian deputy prime minister and current economic adviser to Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. Click HERE to listen and read.

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First, a link to an article of commentary from Indian Punchline; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-13-26.  Scroll up for VENEZUELA, GAZA and UKRAINE.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 10  Odds are 8-1 Trump won’t start a Gulf war, by M.K. Bhadrakumar | Indian Punchline  The mutual hostility between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other since the 1978 Islamic Revolution and the establishment of the unique political system known as Vilayat-e Faqih or guardianship of Faqīh (an Islamic jurist) is almost half a century old. READ MORE . . .

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Links to two reports: from West Bank Alerts and Peoples Dispatch; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (Scroll down for WEST BANK 2-9-26 and IRAN, GAZA and MEDIA.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 11  ‘Dignity and desecration,’ by Cara MariAnna | West Bank Alerts  Texts arrived from a West Bank friend on Sunday afternoon. Adnan al–Abayat sent videos and photographs showing Jewish settlers vandalizing a small rural mosque in the governorate of Bethlehem. READ MORE . . .

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Israel approves new measures aimed at expanding its control over the West Bank, by Aseel Saleh | Peoples Dispatch  The Israeli security cabinet endorsed on Feb. 8 a series of measures that would “dramatically” change procedures related to land registration and property acquisition in the West Bank. READ MORE . . .

First, a link to an article of commentary from Common Dreams; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-12-26, and up or down for WEST BANK, GAZA and MEDIA.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 9  Iran’s comprehensive peace proposal to the United States, by Jeffrey D. Sachs and Sybil Fares | Common Dreams  History occasionally presents moments when the truth about a conflict is stated plainly enough that it becomes impossible to ignore. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s Feb. 7 address in Doha, Qatar (transcript here) should prove to be such a moment. READ MORE . . .

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A link to a report from the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (Scroll down for GAZA 2-11-26 and WEST BANK, GAZA and MEDIA.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 12  Palestinians look to salvage Gaza’s history from the ruins of Israel’s military offensive, by Mariam Fam and Wafaa Surafa | AP  GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — The U.N. cultural agency says it has verified damage to at least 150 sites since the start of the war. They are fragments of Gaza’s soul. READ MORE . . .

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A link to an article of commentary via Common Dreams; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (Scroll down for MEDIA 2-10-26.  Scroll up for WEST BANK, IRAN and GAZA.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 10  The empire crumbles: The big picture, by Richard Heinberg* | Common Dreams  Democracies typically value science and unfettered fact-based journalism. Autocracies usually spew propaganda. READ MORE . . .

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* Heinberg is a senior fellow at the Post Carbon Institute and author of 14 books, including the latest, Power: Limits and Prospects for Human Survival (2021). His Museletters and other writings are available for free at PCI or at richardheinberg.com.

Links to SEVEN reports: from the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, Reuters, National Public Radio, the Cradle, Common Dreams, and Drop Site News; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (This is the first CUBA entry. Scroll down for UKRAINE, IRAN and VENEZUELA.) — MCM

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2 Mexican Navy ships laden with humanitarian aid dock in Cuba as U.S. blockade sparks energy crisis, by Andrea Rodríguez | AP  HAVANA — Two Mexican Navy ships laden with humanitarian aid docked in Cuba today — two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on any country selling or providing oil to Cuba. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others. Click HERE and HERE for report from AFP / AFP in English and French. Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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FROM FEB. 10  Cuban fuel shortage: U.S. blockade of oil grounds flights in Cuba. Reported by Eyder Peralta | NPR  Cuba’s fuel shortage hits during peak tourist season, grounding flights as the Trump administration’s pressure tightens the island’s oil supplies.  Click HERE to listen and read.

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FROM FEB. 10  Rubio ‘deliberately’ lies about Cuba talks in push for regime change: report. From the Cradle. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has falsely informed President Donald Trump that “high-level” negotiations are taking place between Washington and Havana – despite no such talks existing, Drop Site News reported on Monday. READ MORE . . .

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FROM FEB. 11  What the U.S. blockade is doing to Cubans, by Medea Benjamin | Common Dreams  The only way Cubans are surviving this siege is because they help one another. They trade rice for coffee with neighbors. They improvise—no hay, pero se resuelve (we don’t have much, but we make it work). READ MORE . . .

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FROM FEB. 9  Cuba grapples with hardened U.S. blockade, by José Luis Granados Ceja | Drop Site News  MEXICO CITY — Washington’s effort to forcibly compel other countries to join its internationally condemned blockade threatens to further squeeze a population that is already experiencing enormous strain due to U.S. sanctions. READ MORE . . .

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Links to TWO reports: from the Associated Press and Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for UKRAINE 2-9-26, and up or down for CUBA, IRAN and VENEZUELA.) — MCM

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Russia fires barrage at Ukrainian cities as next round of U.S.-brokered talks is unclear, by Susie Blann and Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — Russia launched a barrage of ballistic missiles and drones at Ukrainian cities in overnight attacks, officials reported today as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow was “hesitating” about another round of U.S.-brokered talks on stopping the fighting. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others. Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Links to a report from the Associated Press and to an interview from People’s Dispatch; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for IRAN 2-11-26, and up or down for CUBA, UKRAINE and VENEZUELA.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 11  What to know as Iran and the U.S. weigh holding a second round of nuclear talks, by Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI — The talks over Tehran’s nuclear program would come after Israel launched a 12-day war on the country in June and the Islamic Republic carried out a bloody crackdown on nationwide protests. U.S. President Donald Trump has moved an aircraft carrier and other military assets to the Persian Gulf. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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FROM FEB. 11  ‘U.S. aggression against Iran is an attack on BRICS and the multipolar world,’ says geopolitical analyst, by Marco Fernandes | Peoples Dispatch  Approaching its 47th anniversary, the Islamic Revolution has always been a thorn in the side of the U.S. and, especially, Israel. Tehran is one of the biggest supporters of the Palestinian cause in the world and, in practice, the biggest obstacle to the Zionist project of “Greater Israel.” READ MORE . . .

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A link to an article of commentary from Peoples Dispatch and to links to FOUR reports: from NBC News, National Public Radio and the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for VENEZUELA 2-2-26. Scroll up for CUBA, UKRAINE and IRAN.) — MCM

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FROM FEB. 11  Amnesty in Venezuela is neither weakness nor oblivion, by Guillermo R Barreto | Peoples Dispatch  It is worth remembering the events of April 2002 when the business sector, private media, and minority sectors of the Armed Forces, supported by the governments of the United States and Spain, conspired to overthrow Hugo Chávez’s government. READ MORE . . .

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Nicolás Maduro is still the ‘legitimate president’ of Venezuela, acting leader Delcy Rodriguez says, by Babak Dehghanpisheh | NBC News  Nicolás Maduro is still the legitimate leader of Venezuela, the country’s acting president said in an exclusive interview with NBC News.  Click HERE to read and for interview excerpt.

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FROM FEB. 10  Venezuelans test limits of new freedoms. Reported by Manuel Rueda | NPR  CARACAS — On a weekday morning in central Caracas last week, a group of university students did something bold. They staged an anti-government protest. They were demanding the liberation of Venezuela’s remaining political prisoners. But something else was also on display. Click HERE to listen and read.

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FROM FEB. 9  Venezuela’s top prosecutor orders the arrest of opposition leader’s ally, hours after his release, by Regina García Cano | AP  CARACAS — Venezuela’s top prosecutor said on Monday that his office had requested the arrest of one of the closest allies of opposition leader María Corina Machado, less than 12 hours after his release from a detention facility as part of a government move to free those facing politically motivated accusations. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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FROM FEB. 5  Venezuela advances amnesty bill that could lead to mass release of political prisoners. From AP.  CARACAS — Venezuela’s legislature on Thursday advanced an amnesty billproposed by acting President Delcy Rodríguez that could lead to the release of hundreds of opposition leaders, journalists and human rights activists detained for political reasons. READ MORE . . .

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