PROGRAM NOTES 04/26/24-
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This weeks show features stories from NHK JAPAN, FRANCE 24, and RADIO HAVANA CUBA.

From JAPAN- China has been swamped with record breaking rainfall, with extensive flooding and numerous landslides. The chief executive of Tik Tok says that they protect user information and will not sell the application. Satellite photos have revealed tens of thousands of tents Israel has set up in south Gaza to evacuate Palestinian civilians from Rafah before the invasion.

From FRANCE- Global military spending has soared to new heights, almost 2 1/2 trillion dollars, with the US accounting for one trillion dollars or 37% of the total. France 24 broadcast 2 long interviews this week that I struggled with choosing only one. The first was from a program called Scoop speaking with Jeremy Scahill from the Intercept on the NYT telling its journalists to limit the use of terms like "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing" and to avoid using the term "occupied territory" in reporting on the war on Palestine- you will hear a short excerpt from that. The other long interview was with Rasheed Khalidi, American historian, and Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University. The topic was that the West was on the wrong side of history for suppressing students in the US and Europe who are demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. He talks about Columbia University's history of student protests, the moral urgency of stopping the war in Gaza, and the problem with the mainstream media echoing the government line. He points out that a large proportion of the protestors are Jewish as are scores of professors who are also protesting. He points out that the Republican Party under Trump is hypocritical, since Trump proclaimed as good people the neo-fascists who marched in Virginia a few years ago chanting "Jews will not replace us."

From CUBA- Colombian President Petro, under pressure for promoting universal healthcare, free education, and pensions, will be present at rallies for International Workers Day, on MayDay. Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched in Madrid last Sunday to oppose arms sales to Israel. A flotilla of ships carrying food and supplies for Palestine is being prepared in Turkey.

"Terrorism doesn't just blow up buildings; it blasts every other issue off the political map. The spectre of terrorism - real and exaggerated - has become a shield of impunity, protecting governments around the world from scrutiny for their human rights abuses."
--Naomi Klein