The Government Knows: While the Political Circus Distracts Us, Flock Builds the Digital Police State

From [HERE] While Americans remain transfixed by the political circus—cheering for their preferred party, jeering at the opposition, obsessing over every manufactured outrage and waiting for the next spectacle—the Surveillance State continues its steady march forward.

The government is watching.

It watches where you go, whom you meet, where you worship, what medical offices you visit, what political rallies you attend, what protests you join, what books you read, what websites you visit and what causes you support.

It watches through your phone, your car, your doorbell, your appliances, your purchases, your social media accounts and the cameras positioned along the roads you travel every day.

This is how freedom dies in the digital police state: not always through dramatic declarations of martial law or soldiers stationed on every street corner, but through the gradual construction of a technological dragnet—an electronic concentration camp—so pervasive that privacy becomes impossible and anonymity becomes suspicious.

Enter Flock Safety, a private surveillance technology company whose automated license plate readers have spread throughout thousands of American communities.

These cameras, which do much more than photograph license plates, represent the next evolution of the government’s public-private surveillance partnership.

They document the time and location of every passing vehicle and record identifying characteristics such as its make, model, color, damage, roof racks, bumper stickers and other distinctive features. That information can then be placed in a searchable database and used to retrace a vehicle’s movements over time.

Yet the real power—and the real danger—of Flock does not come from the cameras alone.

It comes from artificial intelligence.

A camera can photograph a car. Flock’s AI-powered platform can identify and categorize a vehicle, compare an observation with stored records, generate alerts, identify connections and help police reconstruct where that vehicle has been.

AI is what transforms a photograph into the building blocks for a suspect society. [MORE]

Iran Media says the US Government is Lying About the Number of US Soldiers Killed in Iran

A US media report says that the Pentagon has withheld information about dozens of injuries suffered by American troops after Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missile strikes on US military bases in Jordan and other sites across the region last week.

“Those attacks injured dozens of US service members and damaged several helicopters,” The New York Times reported, citing US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The report added that Iran carried out three additional strikes against US forces in Jordan during the same week. However, the Pentagon did not disclose these earlier attacks or the resulting casualties and damage.

A US military official claimed that US Central Command (CENTCOM) is not required to publicly release information about injured service members. Another official argued that doing so could allow Iran to more accurately target US forces in the region with ballistic missiles and drones.

The Pentagon has not held a major briefing on the war since May, leaving the public with little information about US military strategy.

On Friday, CBS News reported that Iranian strikes on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan left two US troops killed and one soldier missing. The two fatalities in Jordan were later identified as 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Texas.

Another US soldier was killed in Iraq.

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) also announced a surprise retaliatory strike on the US special operations command center in Syria’s Al-Tanf region.

US military authorities have officially acknowledged at least 17 American soldiers killed and more than 430 wounded during the aggression against Iran. However, the number of injured has not been updated in recent weeks.

On April 1, The Intercept reported that Washington was engaged in a “casualty cover-up,” noting that nearly 750 US service members had been killed or injured — a figure significantly higher than the official US count. 

Throughout the aggression launched by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against Iran, the Pentagon maintained that “operational security” takes precedence over informing the American public about developments in the conflict, including military casualties.

US officials have also declined to comment on reports that the military is running low on missile interceptors, or to explain how Iran continues to launch ballistic missiles after Trump claimed earlier in the war that Iran’s missile capabilities had been destroyed.

In response to the deaths, President Trump said the troops had died “in service of our country.” He has also claimed that the United States is fighting the war to protect its Persian Gulf allies, although other reports suggest he launched the aggression under pressure from Israel.

Last week, Trump stated that Persian Gulf states should reimburse the United States for protecting them from Iran. He specifically named Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait as countries that should compensate Washington for its security role.

Critics argue, however, that the war launched by Trump and Netanyahu has instead placed Persian Gulf states directly in the line of fire, as US and Israeli forces have used military bases in the region to launch attacks against Iran.

Observers maintain that the Trump administration’s disastrous war on Iran has failed to achieve any of its strategic objectives. Instead, it has harmed the American people, reshaped West Asia in ways detrimental to US interests, and further undermined America’s global standing.

Public approval for Trump’s decision to launch aggression against Iran now stands at -30% among Americans. [MORE]

Are US Soldiers Missile Proof, like Palestinians? The Vested Interests Use MythMatics to Conceal the Number of US Soldiers Killed in Iran War; Massa Media Says Trump Says 100 Injured but Only 17 Dead

IN THE SPECTACLE THE DEATHS OF US SOLDIERS ARE CONCEALED AND MINIMIZED BY UNCLE BROTHER TO CREATE A CONSENSUS REALITY AMONGST AMERICAN SHEEPLE THAT THE US IS dominating iran. SIMILARLY THE VESTED INTERESTS HAVE SHEEPLE BELIEVING THE ONGOING ISRAEL HOLOCAUST IS A GENOCIDE - BUT A LOW GRADE ONE WITH ONLY 100,00 MURDERED. IN REALITY BARBARIC ISRAELIENS HAVE MURDERED AT LEAST ONE MILLION PEOPLE [MORE] ACCORDING TO FUNKTIONARY:

mythematics – the manipulation of statistics to formulate and reflect the validity a preconceived desired result or position in an academic and/or socio-political context. (See: Statistics)

mythmatic – the creation and manipulation of numbers and dates to support the veracity of a religious myth.

mass media – “Massa’ Media. Massa’s media plus (+) Mass Hypnosis = Mindless Masses. 2) The “Mess” Media. 3) wholesale retale—retelling the whole tale (propaganda) exactly as you’re told, consistently and relentlessly. How can you possibly relate when you are framed by the very debate wherein you are an unwilling spectator? Let’s be perfectly clear on this. There’s no counteroption or outlet to vent when you’re under the controlled thoughtform of mass-think manufactured consent. “Freedom of the press is limited to those who own one.” ~A.J. Liebling. (See: Media, T.V., Mass, Alienation, Spectacle Society, NEWS, ABCTV, Propaganda, Legislation & The New God Economy)

US President Donald Trump has brushed aside Democratic lawmakers’ calls to end the war with Iran after four US service members were killed in a missile strike on a military base in the Middle East. The Republican appeared to downplay the extent of the casualties in the conflict, suggesting that the death tolls suffered by the US military during the Vietnam and Afghanistan wars were far higher.

On Saturday, the US Central Command reported that four American service members had lost their lives after Iranian forces had pounded a military installation in Jordan and Iraq with ballistic missiles and kamikaze drones the previous day.

In a phone interview with the New York Post later on Saturday, Trump said that the recent losses were a “shame,” claiming that the American troops “died because they don’t want to see Iran have a nuclear weapon and they don’t want to see the Middle East blown up.”[MORE] and [MORE]

On Monday, The New York Times reported that the Pentagon has withheld information about dozens of injuries suffered by American troops after Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missile strikes on US military bases in Jordan and other sites across the region last week.

“Those attacks injured dozens of US service members and damaged several helicopters,” the report said, citing US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

It added that Iran carried out three additional strikes against US forces in Jordan during the same week. However, the Pentagon did not disclose these earlier attacks or the resulting casualties and damage.

A US military official claimed that US Central Command (CENTCOM) is not required to publicly release information about injured service members. Another official argued that doing so could allow Iran to more accurately target US forces in the region with ballistic missiles and drones.

The Pentagon has not held a major briefing on the war since May, leaving the public with little information about US military strategy. [MORE]

Several US Troops Killed in Strike on American Military Compound in Jordan: IRGC

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says several US military forces were killed after Iranian forces targeted a compound housing American troops in the al-Rukban area of Jordan.

In its 40th statement issued on Tuesday, the IRGC said Iran’s punitive operation against the American enemy is continuing successfully.

It said that as part of the 24th wave of Operation Nasr 2, the IRGC Aerospace Force struck a compound hosting “terrorist and child-killing” US forces in the al-Rukban region in Jordan, killing a number of them.

The statement added that the US war secretary reported a casualty figure that was far below the actual number.

“Let the enemies know that in the lexicon of no nation are cowardly soldiers who use advanced weapons to kill innocent children considered heroes,” it added.

The statement also noted that freedom-seeking nations around the world will soon bring war criminals to justice. [MORE]

IRGC Strikes US Command Center in Syria, Radars in Oman, Depots in Kuwait. Says "a Large Number of Criminal US Troops were Killed"

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has launched a sweeping wave of retaliatory strikes across West Asia, targeting a US special operations command center in Syria, American radar sites in Oman, and weapons depots and launchers in Kuwait. 

In a statement on Friday, the IRGC’s Public Relations Department said that during the operation conducted by the Aerospace Force, a radar system and several special operations helicopters were destroyed while a large number of criminal US troops were killed.

It added that the strike came in revenge for the blood of the seven innocent Iranian soldiers who were martyred on Wednesday in the American aerial assault on the Army's 388th Brigade garrison in Bampur, near the southeastern city of Iranshahr.

“Our brave fighters remain in full control of the Strait of Hormuz. As long as the United States persists in its acts of mischief, not a single drop of oil or gas will be permitted to be exported from the region,” it emphasized. [MORE]

US Violations of MOU Prove Trump's Signature is 'Worthless': Iran Leader

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei says the United States’ repeated violations of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) have once again proven that the American president’s signature is “utterly worthless and invalid.”

In a statement on Saturday, the Leader emphasized that US actions have exposed that “bullying, hegemony, and savagery” are inseparable components of American behavior and conduct.

“Today, the Great Satan has once again revealed its true and unmasked face,” Ayatollah Khamenei said. “This dark experience of crime and broken promises serves as yet another solid document of America’s dishonesty, irrationality, untrustworthiness, and vileness.”

Ayatollah Khamenei further asserted that the Iranian nation and the Resistance Front have “unforgettable lessons” in store for the American enemy, citing the courage of Islam’s warriors and the resolve of the brave people in southern Iran as recent examples of this steadfastness.

“Now that the American enemy is seeking to foment war and suffer heavier costs and further humiliation, it should know that the dear nation of Iran and the Resistance Front hold unforgettable lessons for it, lessons of which the valor of the warriors of Islam and the zeal of the brave people of the southern region have demonstrated clear examples in recent days.” [MORE]

TrumpStein: ‘Not Good Enuff. Iran Can’t Require Ships in Its Own Waters to Coordinate with Them! Unlimited Numbers of Ships Must Go Through at Anytime w/o Regard to Safety or Space. My Master Said So’

From [FAIR] We’re joined now by Phyllis Bennis. She’s a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. She’s an international advisor for Jewish Voice for Peace, and author of many books, including, recently, Understanding Palestine and Israel, from Olive Branch Press. She joins us now by phone. Welcome back to CounterSpin, Phyllis Bennis.

Phyllis Bennis: Great to be with you, Janine.

JJ: Let me just stick with today, July 8, for a minute, and ABC News’ rendering for a second. I think it’s not especially bad or good; I think it’s just reflective. So they say:

The 14-point MOU committed the signatories to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz for commercial traffic, with the US lifting its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Iran also committed not to pursue nuclear weapons—a commitment Tehran has previously made—while the US agreed to allow Iranian oil sales and to begin work on a $300 million reconstruction fund for the country.

So there’s numerous things that you might pick up on there, but where would you start? If you were talking to someone about this statement—and again, I’m not saying it’s inaccurate—but if you were to come along with folks reading news media coverage, what would you add or annotate?

PB: Well, there’s a lot, not surprisingly.

The MOU, the Memorandum of Understanding, is very short. It’s like a page and a half long. And it’s one of the reasons, one of many reasons, why there were so many questions about: Can you tell us the difference between this MOU and what was known as the JCPOA (because it was an actual agreement) that was negotiated during the Obama period?

And the first part of answering that question is that that, one, the Obama period JCPOA, was a nuclear deal. The MOU is a memorandum to talk about what we should talk about. It was an agreement about what we should talk about. So you can’t really compare them. It’s not just like apples and oranges; it’s kind of apples and rosebushes, or something. So let’s start with that reality.

Now, there are some things about the MOU that were pretty clear. Ironically enough, from the US vantage point, what was clear was what Iran is supposed to get out of this ‘agreement to go forward.’ One of which was the part you just referred to, Janine, about that they were going to allow free traffic through the strait of Hormuz, without charging anything, for 60 days. After that, the implication was, they could charge fees or service charges or other things; it wasn’t spelled out, but that was the implication. But that they were obligated to arrange for the safe passage.

The US decided that that clearly meant—because they say it with that kind of outrage—that clearly meant that Iran had to simply not do anything, and let any ships go through, without any power. Without acknowledging that part of this was the understanding that Iran has something to say about what ships in what order, at what time, and how many, traverse the Strait, which is both part of international waters and within Iran’s territorial waters. The same is true for Oman on the other side of the Strait, but that seemed to not be part of the MOU.

So the significance of that, it’s not just some technical, legal thing. It’s that the Iranian understanding of what the MOU said was that it had to arrange for ships to traverse safely through the Strait of Hormuz. And their position is, “That’s what we’re doing. We’re telling every ship they have to coordinate with us. If they want to coordinate with somebody else, that’s up to them, but they have to coordinate with us for this 60 days, and we will not charge them anything.”

The US says, “That’s not good enough.” They can’t require ships to coordinate with them. They have to just allow ships to go through, without checking in with anybody, without caring how many, are they going to crash into each other? What kind of naval restrictions are underway? Nothing.

And that’s what has led to this most recent occasion. For Iran, the ability to control the Strait of Hormuz has been the one strategic victory they have won through this horrific war that has been waged. And in that context, the notion that you might expect them to simply stand back and say, “Oh, the Strait of Hormuz? Yeah, we’re going back to what it was before the war. Before you destroyed almost 4,000 lives in our country, before you destroyed 170 school girls on your first day, before you assassinated our leader, before all of that—that’s the position we’ll go back to.” It’s kind of, what planet do they think they’re living on? So there’s those kinds of things in the MOU that the US is claiming should be the interpretation, but clearly is not. [MORE]

Cost of Iran War Secretly Hits $100 Billion: China and Russia Look On While the US Consumes its Munitions Supply and Fiscal Bandwidth for Puppet Trumpstein's War to Enrich His Masters

By June 30, 2026, OMB Director Russel Vought revised the public figure only marginally to roughly USD30 billion (RM114 billion), a number independent institutions now treat as a politically managed floor rather than a comprehensive ceiling.

CSIS calculated a more granular USD34 billion to USD42 billion (RM129 billion to RM160 billion) range for Department of Defense costs, isolating munitions expenditure at approximately USD26.1 billion (RM99 billion), reflecting the extraordinary consumption of Tomahawk cruise missiles during the campaign’s opening days.

Popular Information’s 120-day tracker produced a starkly higher USD103 billion (RM391 billion) total, driven by USD46.7 billion (RM177 billion) in weapons alone, alarming planners already facing backlogs at Lockheed Martin and Raytheon.

Brown University’s tracker calculated USD113.3 billion (RM431 billion) across 108 days once deployment and sustainment costs were incorporated, while Harvard’s Linda Bilmes warned upfront costs alone could reach USD200 billion (RM760 billion), with lifetime costs potentially exceeding USD1 trillion. [MORE]

While White Sheeple Celebrated Their Play Freedumb on July 4th, Over 40 Million Unified Iranians and Iraqis Vowed Revenge for the US Government's Unlawful, Unprovoked War at Martyred Leader's Funeral

The massive funeral processions held for martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei in Iraq demonstrated the depth of ties between Iran and Iraq while sending a political message to the United States and its allies, according to an Iraqi political analyst.

Speaking to the Press TV website, Jumaa al-Atwani, a senior political analyst and director of Iraq's Horizon Center for Political and Strategic Studies, pointed to the messages of historic funeral procession held in Iraq on Wednesday for the martyred Leader. 

"The magnificent funeral of Imam Khamenei in Iraq and the participation of millions of Iraqi citizens not only showed the depth of unity and solidarity between the Iranian and Iraqi peoples, but also served as another missile and blow to the heart of global arrogance, led by the United States," he said.

The funeral ceremonies for the martyred Leader drew massive crowds across Iran and Iraq. Initial Iraqi media reports estimated that over ten million people took part in the processions in the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala, prompting a delay to the final stage of the funeral in the Iranian holy city of Mashhad. [MORE] and [MORE]

Israelien Terrorcrats Use Drones to Murder People Attending a Funeral in Gaza

[the numbers here are reported by massa media - so they are probably fabricated, parroted mythematics obtained from government authorities] Multiple Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip have killed at least 14 Palestinians, more than half of them in a drone strike on a funeral procession.

Nine months into its so-called “ceasefire” with Hamas, Israel continues to violate it on a near-daily basis.

Eight people were killed when an Israeli strike targeted a gathering of civilians in the Al-Balata market area of Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza on Friday, Gaza’s civil defence agency and a hospital said.

At least 20 others were injured, the Al-Awda Hospital added.

Witnesses said the drone targeted Palestinian mourners gathered outside the Ahmad Yassin Mosque as they waited to begin a funeral procession for a Palestinian killed in a separate attack earlier in the day in the same area. [MORE]

Barbaric West Bank "Settlers" Threatened Rep. Ro Khanna's Life by Pointing Guns at Him at the Site of a School Destroyed by IsrAeliens. Massa Media Downplays Incident

US Representative Ro Khanna (D – CA) reports that he was held at gunpoint for more than an hour earlier this week during his visit to the occupied West Bank when Israeli settlers confronted his entourage as he toured a destroyed Palestinian village.

“We were at a village that Israeli settlers had destroyed, they had destroyed the school, they had destroyed that village, and we were just looking at it,” Khanna said. “And these hoodlums come in with machine guns – M4, an American-made machine gun – and they detain us. They block off the road.”

The incident took place at the destroyed village of Khirbet Zanuta, a village near Hebron that was reported “ethnically cleansed” by settlers in 2023. Khanna reported that the settler group summoned the IDF and that the IDF sided with the settlers over the Americans. [MORE]

If You Believe Statements Made by Israeli and US Authorities then You're a Plaything in the Hands of Massa Media; Activists launch the “They Lied to You” Campaign b/c Israel's Genocide Never Stopped

Activists have launched a digital campaign under the hashtag “They Lied to You” to draw renewed global attention to the ongoing suffering in the Gaza Strip, Anadolu reported.

The organizers stressed that reduced international media coverage of events in Gaza does not indicate that the war has ended or that the suffering of Palestinians in the territory has stopped.

Launched in Arabic and English on July 16, the campaign brought together journalists, humanitarian workers, children from Gaza, and Arab and international supporters.

Through videos and written messages, participants sought to highlight the continued Israeli killing of Palestinians and the humanitarian consequences of starvation, forcible displacement, and disease.

The campaign aimed to challenge the widespread perception that the ceasefire agreement that has been in place since Oct. 10, 2025, brought an end to the genocide and the humanitarian crisis. [MORE]

'No obligation to provide Water': Barbaric Israelis are Withholding water from Jordan

Israel has refused to renew its water agreement with Jordan in violation of the peace treaty between the two countries, Israel's public broadcaster, Kan 11 reported on Monday.

According to the report, Israel has not yet signed on the renewal of the extended water supply agreement with Jordan, with pressure building on the Hashemite Kingdom due to its dependency on Israeli water.

"The issue of water is very important to us, and it is also part of the peace agreement," a Jordanian official told Kan 11, indicating his country may respond to the Israeli delay.

Amman, the report said, is afraid that Israel is using the water supply agreement as a bargaining chip in its relations with the kingdom.

In March, Kan 11 reported that Jordan's King Abdullah II conditioned a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on solving issues relating to water supply and the Palestinians. [MORE]

Amnesty Calls for War Crimes Probe After Israel ‘Obliterated Entire Families’ in Lebanon

Amnesty International on Thursday demanded a war crimes investigation into Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon, which the human rights watchdog described as “wiping out families.”

The strikes in question took place in March and killed hundreds of civilians, including many children, in neighborhoods in the cities of Tyre, Saida, and Nabatieh.

Amnesty said it has gathered enough evidence to reasonably conclude that Israeli forces violated international law by failing to distinguish between civilian and military targets when conducting the campaign.

The human rights group said it reached these conclusions after conducting more than a dozen on-the-ground interviews with survivors, relatives of victims, and paramedics who were called to the scene after the strikes. Additionally, the group analyzed satellite photos along with videos of the strikes posted on social media. [MORE]

Barbaric Israel Authorities Advance Plan to Use Crocodiles to Stop Palestinian "Prisoners" [slaves] from Escaping "Detention Compound" [dungeon/gender annihilation center]

The Israeli government has stripped Nile crocodiles of their protected status, paving the way for a proposal to build a detention facility for Palestinians surrounded by the reptiles, Israeli media reported on Thursday.

Environment Minister Idit Silman signed a decree on Wednesday reclassifying Nile crocodiles as a "specially managed wild animal" - a new legal category that allows the state to keep the animals for security purposes, according to Israeli news site Ynet.

In the decree, Silman said Israel's security forces could now keep crocodiles under specific conditions.

According to Ynet, the move went against the advice of the Environment Ministry's legal adviser and environmental groups.

The decision follows months of pressure from National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who in December proposed building a prison encircled by crocodiles. [MORE]

Mamdani Fake Claims He May Arrest Wanted Terrorcrat Benjamin Netanyahu in NYC [in reality NYPD are Too Preoccupied with Destroying the Freedoms of Law Abiding Black People to Arrest Real Criminals]

NYPD officers too often stop Black and Hispanic drivers without justification, a lawsuit filed by the nyclu. The NYCLU stated that while Blacks and Hispanics make up 22% and 23% of the driving population in the city, they were stopped at a higher rate, with Blacks making up 32% of stops and Hispanics 30%. White drivers were behind the wheel in 23% of the stops, despite making up 38% of drivers.

When enforcement action was taken — such as a summons issued or an arrest made — the racial disparities were even starker, the NYCLU says. Blacks and Hispanics made up 90% of the arrests, with Blacks 10 times more likely to be searched than whites, and Hispanics six times more likely than whites to be searched. [MORE]

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has said he is exploring the legal possibility of arresting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he travels to the city for the UN General Assembly in September.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in November 2024 over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, including “starvation as a method of warfare” and “other inhumane acts.”

Mamdani, who has characterized Israel’s military campaign in Gaza as genocide, vowed during his mayoral campaign last year to arrest Netanyahu if he visited New York City. During an episode of The New York Times’ The Interview podcast that aired on Saturday, the mayor was asked whether he still intended to fulfill that pledge.

“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” he responded, referring to the seat of the ICC, where those accused of major international crimes are tried. “He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court, and what you will find is that is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years.”

Accredited representatives of member states are generally granted diplomatic immunity while on official UN visits, but Mamdani said he was in “an active conversation” with the city’s Law Department about potential legal options. [MORE]

Trumpstein's Golden Retriever, Marco Rubio, Announces the US Government's Intention to Dismantle the International Criminal Court

The US will launch a diplomatic campaign aimed at dismantling the International Criminal Court, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Monday.

In an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal, Rubio wrote that the US would work alongside allied governments to take the Court apart “brick by brick, if necessary,” using all tools at the government’s disposal. He said the campaign’s message to other governments would be a choice of “sovereign states over globalism,” and pledged that the administration would protect US service members from ICC jurisdiction.

Because the Court is a treaty body that only its member states can dissolve, the US lacks the authority to “dismantle” it. The op-ed does not detail specific measures, but a State Department official told Reuters that options under consideration include travel bans, visa revocations, expanded sanctions against the Court and affiliated entities, and diplomatic pressure on member states to withdraw. The official said countries that rely on US security assistance and decline to reject the Court’s authority over Americans are likely to face increased scrutiny. [MORE]

Head of Palestinian-American non-profit Wins Lawsuit Against Federal Customs Cops Who Kept Seizing His Phone for No Valid Reason at BWI Airport

A US federal judge this week ruled in favour of a prominent Palestinian-American academic and activist in a decision that deemed the search and seizure of his phones by customs officers to be illegal.

Osama Abu Irshaid, the executive director of American Muslims for Palestine (AMP), had his phones taken from him and searched at Washington Dulles International Airport on two occasions in 2024, upon his return from trips to the Middle East. 

On Wednesday, the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia determined that Abu Irshaid was indeed entitled to his Fourth Amendment claim, because "the evidence marshaled by Defendants... does not rise to the level of reasonable suspicion" of ongoing criminal activity, the decision read. 

The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures and requires that warrants be issued by a judge based on probable cause.

"Not only is this a victory for Dr Abu Irshaid, but a victory for the pro-Palestine movement overall. For decades, allies who support Palestinian human rights have been systematically targeted by the US government for daring to speak out against Apartheid Israel," AMP said in a statement following the ruling.

The defendants - in this case, the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers under the Department of Homeland Security - said they believed there was reason to search Abu Irshaid's devices, owing to a public letter sent to him by the Republican-led House Oversight Committee in May 2024. 

The committee accused AMP of "pro-Hamas propaganda" and "material support to terrorist organizations" and said it was opening an investigation into the group. [MORE]