On February 23, more than 500 Barí indigenous people mobilized against coal mining operations in their territory on the southern edge of the Perijá mountains in the western Venezuelan state of Zulia, near the Colombian border.

Below is a letter written by an Iraqi living in
"liberated" Iraq to U.S. President George Bush. Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar is a 60 year-old engineer, a 1967 graduate of Marquette University, living in Baghdad, who had criticized Saddam Hussein in his time as a "ruthless dictator" and has no intention of holding his tongue now. He has previously been interviewed from Baghdad by Amy Goodman's Democracy Now! and wrote "I am (an) independent person and never joined any political party and I will never join a party." And when asked about whether he wanted his name used or withheld, he added: "If, after everything we have gone through over the last 22 months makes me scared, then I have news for them, NOW NO ONE CAN STOP ME FROM TALKING. I AM FREE." His letter to George Bush from outside the American bubble follows.

"(The National Hockey League's) road to (armageddon) began thirteen years ago when they hired a slick (basketball) marketing whiz named Gary Bettman to be their commissioner. Bettman stated proudly that he had never set foot in an NHL arena, but knew how to 'grow' the sport....Bettman took one look at this blue-collar league built on the backs of hardscrabble French Canadians, toothless grins, and rabid fans, and recoiled....As sportswriter Dan Wetzel put it, 'There is no denying that under (Bettman's) stewardship the NHL has been run into the grave. The league has been mismanaged, misplaced, overexpanded and overpriced, all because Bettman turned his back on the core fans - believing there was a pot of television and corporate (fool's) gold at the end of the small market rainbow.'"

On May 2, 2000, members of the St'at'imc nation and their allies
established a permanent camp near Melvin Creek, located off Highway 99
between Mt. Currie/Pemberton and Lillooet, in the southern Interior region
of BC.

Known as Sutikalh, the St'at'imc winter spirit of the area, the camp was
set up to stop government and corporate plans to build a $500 million
all-season ski and recreation resort in an untouched Alpine mountain area.

"Chaos greeted the World Trade Organisation (WTO) mini-ministerial conference yesterday as lobby groups tried to invade the venue in Mombasa's South Coast.

Reports indicated that a total of 41 protesters were placed into custody and are due to be charged this morning.

Another group of about 100 protesters were also blocked enroute to Ukunda airstrip where the delegates were due to land by plane from a trip to Maasai Mara Game Reserve."

"Indeed, there was a period of calm between January 15, when the president of the Palestinians assumed office, and February 25, the day of the bombing that killed 4 Israeli civilians. During this period, no Israelis were killed by Palestinians. And in fact, this so-called period of calm started as far back as November 1st, 2004. But at the same time, there was no such period of calm for the Palestinians during those months, since their people continued to be violently attacked by the Israelis."

"The broader implications of the February 14 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who was seen by many as the embodiment of the Lebanese people's efforts to rebuild their country in the aftermath of its 15-year civil war, are yet to unfold. A Sunni Muslim, Hariri reached out to all of Lebanon's ethnic and religious communities in an effort to unite the country after decades of violence waged by heavily-armed militias and foreign invaders."

"Ten members of the Food and Drug Administration advisory panel who voted that a group of powerful pain killers should continue to be sold had ties to the drug makers, a new analysis shows."

January 22, 1996 is a day not to be forgotten
amongst days when Swaziland made headlines around the world. There was a mass action led by the leading trade unions, political parties-movement. Many people who took part/witnessed, their blood get cold when they hear anything associated with similar activities. The violent way of whipping, baton-beating, torturing, tear-gassing, water-cannoning and shooting by the police and army left many people crippled, disfigured subsequently dying and missing. The open shooting of Noxolo Mdluli, a 16 year old girl by the army on this day proved to everyone on which side the police and army stood. The fear of these
forces is visible all over their surroundings. You have to always look over your shoulders when talking and disseminating.

(Coast Salish Territory/Vancouver, February 25, 2005) "The Province of British Columbia has all but admitted that it will lose in court if it proceeds next week with two cases regarding Aboriginal title - one with the Okanagan Band and the other with the Spallumcheen, Adams Lake and Neskonlith Bands."

"By shamelessly weaselling out of the court proceedings and attempting to run away, the Province is deliberately obstructing First Nations in their efforts to achieve the outcome of the Supreme Court of Canada's Haida decision in terms of reconciliation, consultation and accommodation." - Chief Phillip

"Communities of creatures living in Arctic lakes are undergoing dramatic changes in response to global warming, according to Canadian experts.

Groups of aquatic organisms in the Arctic show patterns of change over the last 150 years that are consistent with man-made climate warming, they claim."

The US military is funding development of a weapon that delivers a bout of excruciating pain from up to 2 kilometres away. Intended for use against rioters, it is meant to leave victims unharmed. But pain researchers are furious that work aimed at controlling pain has been used to develop a weapon. And they fear that the technology will be used for torture.

"...[S]ome Democratic lawmakers are concerned that profiteering may have achieved stratospheric dimensions in the case of the $9 billion that is missing from the sale of Iraqi oil. This money was to have been used for humanitarian aid and reconstruction for Iraq.

It seems no one is watching the store. The fund was transferred to Iraqi government ministries, which lacked the proper financial controls, security and staff to keep close tabs on the money flow."

"The inauguration on Tuesday of Uruguay's new president, Tabar

ASHLEY SMITH reports on Washington's crimes during the first year of its occupation of Haiti.

GEORGE W. BUSH promised that the U.S. would bring democracy, stability and respect for human rights. Instead, one year of a U.S. and United Nations (UN) occupation of Haiti has brought a new reign of terror.