(2025-01-08). Billionaire Round-Up, 2024. counterpunch.org 
At the close of 2024 there were 813 billionaires in the United States with a combined total wealth of $6.72 trillion, according to an analysis of the Forbes wealth data. The total number of billionaires has remained constant since the outlet published its 38th annual World's Billionaire List on April 2, 2024. But the combined
(2025-01-08). Africa in Review 2024: Continental Development and the Imperatives of Unification. globalresearch.ca Over the last several years there has been a reemergence of the African debt crisis which served as a major impediment to the qualitative growth and development of the continent since the 1950s and 1960s. | After spending four centuries under …
(2025-01-08). Debt cancellation in the land of Canaan in the first millennium BC. cadtm.org The year 2025 is considered by Christians to be a jubilee year under the banner of debt cancellation. To mark the occasion, the CADTM is republishing a series of articles on debt cancellation, the struggles for debt cancellation and the role of debt in political, social and geostrategic conflicts throughout history.
| Social justice, in particular in regard to the cancellation of debts that keep the poor enslaved to the rich, is a leitmotif in the history of ancient Israel.
| The Deuteronomic (…) | – | / |
(2025-01-08). Personal endebtment and debt forgivness in the Roman empire. cadtm.org
(2025-01-08). Democracy and Debt: Has the Link been Broken? cadtm.org The year 2025 is considered by Christians to be a jubilee year under the banner of debt cancellation. To mark the occasion, the CADTM is republishing a series of articles on debt cancellation, the struggles for debt cancellation and the role of debt in political, social and geostrategic conflicts throughout history.
| Debt Slavery — Why It Destroyed Rome, Why It Will Destroy Us Unless It's Stopped
| Book V of Aristotle's Politics describes the eternal transition of oligarchies making themselves (…) | – |
(2025-01-08). US bans medical debt from credit reports as Biden nears exit. aljazeera.com Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says change will strike $49bn in medical debt from credit reports.
(2025-01-08). Revising NYT History on Democrats Losing the Working Class. counterpunch.org 
The New York Times had a lengthy piece giving a story on how the Democrats lost the support of working-class voters over the last three decades. The essence of the argument is that working-class voters were angered by Democrats' support of "free trade" and the bailouts of the financial industry in the financial crisis. While
(2025-01-08). Gaza ministry says fuel stock has run out in hospitals. newarab.com 
Gaza's ministry of health announced on Wednesday that fuel stocks have run out in healthcare facilities and warned that in a matter of hours hospital generators will completely stop working, urging for international organisations to take immediate action. | The ministry added the fuel shortage is "directly endangering" the lives of patients, particularly in the Al-Aqsa Hospital, the Gaza European Hospital and the Nasser Medical Complex. | The UN agency UNRWA said Gaza hospitals had become "death traps" and reiterated that the increased attacks coupled with cold weather in Gaza is worsening already dire conditi…
(2025-01-08). "Outrageous": Rep. Jim McGovern Slams Trump's Rhetoric on Taking Panama, Greenland & Canada. democracynow.org 
At a news conference Tuesday, President-elect Donald Trump renewed his threats against Gaza, Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal as he continues to push an agenda of extreme U.S. imperialism. Democratic Congressmember Jim McGovern calls Trump's comments "outrageous," "ridiculous" and, ultimately, a distraction from his planned abandonment of social services. We also discuss social networking behemoth Meta's announcement that it is ending its fact-checking program, in what's being seen as a capitulation to Trump and conservative media disinformation campaigns, and how P…
(2025-01-08). Spanish universities validate intermittent fasting. plenglish.com This conclusion, released today, was reached by the research carried out by the Universities of Granada (UGR) and the Public University of Navarra, together with the Biomedical Research Networking Center (Ciber). | According to sources from the Center of High Studies in Granada, not eating anything from 5 p.m. until 9 a.m. the next day, helps to improve the regulation of glycemia and reduce subcutaneous abdominal fat. | The analysis published in the journal Nature Medicine indicates that in Spain, the prevalence of overweight and obesity reaches 70% in men and 50% in women. | It is associated with multiple metab…
(2025-01-08). UK soldiers tell inquiry of Afghan civilian killings concerns. newarab.com 
Soldiers who were part of British special forces working in Afghanistan have told a public inquiry of their concerns that Afghans who posed no threat had been murdered in raids against suspected Taliban insurgents, including some aged under 16. | The independent inquiry was ordered by Britain's defence ministry (MoD) after a BBC TV documentary reported that soldiers from the elite Special Air Service (SAS) had killed 54 people in suspicious circumstances during the war in Afghanistan more than a decade ago. | The investigation is examining a number of night-time raids called deliberate detention operations car…
(2025-01-08). Italian journalist Sala freed from Iran prison and flying home. newarab.com 
Italian journalist Sala, 29, had been working under a regular journalistic visa but was detained in Tehran on Dec. 19 and held in solitary confinement in the Iranian capital's notorious Evin prison. | Sala was seized three days after Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini was arrested in Mi…
(2025-01-08). Wall Street v. Main Street: the single family home takeover. cpusa.org 
Soaring rents and home prices across the country are fueling the housing instability that forces working families into the streets. Wall Street's increasing penetration into the single-family home market is at the core of the upheaval. | It all began in 2007, when a large number of "adjustable-rate mortgages" (or "ARMs"), also known as subprime mortgages, reached the date at which their loan rates were due to be reset. These "ARMS" had previously allowed millions of families to buy homes. But when they hit the reset date, the interest rates greatly increased, and a large swath of the population was suddenly un…
(2025-01-08). 11 Men Freed After 20+ Years of "Extreme Deprivation." Will Biden Close Guantánamo for Good? democracynow.org 
Eleven Yemeni men imprisoned without charge or trial at the Guantánamo Bay detention center for more than two decades have just been released to Oman to restart their lives. This latest transfer brings the total number of men detained at Guantánamo down to 15. Civil rights lawyers Ramzi Kassem and Pardiss Kebriaei, who have each represented many Guantánamo detainees, including some of the men just released, say closing the notorious detention center "has always been a question of political will," and that the Biden administration must take action to free the remaining prisoners and "end of the s…
(2025-01-08). Mother of jailed UK-Egyptian activist reaches 100th day of hunger strike. newarab.com 
The mother of British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah reached the 100th day of her hunger strike protesting her son's continued imprisonment on Tuesday, according to her family. | Laila Soueif, a 68-year-old mathematics professor, has called on the UK government to do more to secure the release of her son, a longtime dissident who has spent much of the last decade behind bars. | "Unfortunately the government seems to be waiting for me to be hospitalised before they act decisively to secure my son's freedom," she said in a statement. | Her family said Soueif has survived on "nothing but black coffee, herbal…
(2025-01-08). CAADP Kampala Summit to rethink hunger response, refugee feeding. independent.co.ug 
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Kampala Summit, scheduled for January 9—11, 2025, will focus on sustainable solutions to the challenge of refugee feeding and the ongoing hunger issues across the continent. The summit will address these pressing concerns through agricultural transformation strategies outlined in the Kampala Declaration, which …
(2025-01-07). DWP staff bonuses topped £11 MILLION — just as it plunged countless people into poverty. thecanary.co The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has come under fire once again. This time, it's around it giving civil servants bonuses of up to £14,000. However, the right-wing corporate media framing of the story isn't quite right — because it was disabled people who suffered at the expense of civil servants. It wasn't a […] | By
(2025-01-07). Cubanos marchan contra el bloqueo estadounidense y la guerra híbrida. peoplesworld.org 
Cientos de miles de cubanos marcharon el 20 de diciembre por el emblemático Malecón de La Habana frente al Estrecho de la Florida. (Vea fotos y video aquí.) El presidente Miguel Díaz-Canel y el expresidente Raúl Castro encabezaron una protesta masiva contra los crecientes esfuerzos de Estados Unidos para empobrecer a los cubanos y derrocar …
(2025-01-07). Debt cancellation in the land of Canaan in the first millennium BC. cadtm.org The year 2025 is considered by Christians to be a jubilee year under the banner of debt cancellation. To mark the occasion, the CADTM is republishing a series of articles on debt cancellation, the struggles for debt cancellation and the role of debt in political, social and geostrategic conflicts throughout history.
| Social justice, in particular in regard to the cancellation of debts that keep the poor enslaved to the rich, is a leitmotif in the history of ancient Israel.
| The Deuteronomic (…) | – | / |
(2025-01-07). Personal endebtment and debt forgivness in the Roman empire. cadtm.org
(2025-01-07). Luwero stuck with sh740 million debt for road works after Ramathan Ggoobi declines to pay. independent.co.ug 
Luwero, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Authorities in Luwero District are grappling with a sh740 million debt related to road works after the Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development rejected their request to settle the amount. The debt dates back to 2014, when the district contracted Busenvi Enterprises Limited for sh522 million to construct …
(2025-01-07). Western Cape invites youth to apply for YearBeyond Programme. sanews.gov.za Western Cape invites youth to apply for YearBeyond Programme | The Western Cape Cultural Affairs and Sport Department has invited unemployed youth to apply for the YearBeyond Programme to gain valuable working experience while also giving back to their communities. | YearBeyond is a youth in service partnership between government, the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), donors and non-governmental organisations. | Initiated in the Western Cape, the national programme provides unemployed youth, aged 18 to 25, with meaningful work experience and a pathway to further studies or work, while at the same time en…
(2025-01-07). McDonald's boss in meltdown as 1 in 2 outlets face legal action. leftfootforward.org The CEO of McDonald's, Alistair Macrow, was forced to face the music as MPs grilled him on harassment allegations brought forward by over 700 workers at the fast food chain. | Liam Byrne MP, the chair of the select committee, asked Macrow: "Has McDonald's basically become a predator's paradise?". | Macrow said the fast-food giant's new approach to harassment is 'working', despite 700 workers filing legal claims over abuse at work. | According to Macrow, the company has strengthened its standards and adopted a "robust and industry-leading" approach to tackling harassment. In addition, he described McDonald's as…
(2025-01-07). Police Recovers 31 Stolen Vehicle Number Plates. plusnews.ug 
At least 31 motor vehicle number plates have been recovered in various parts of Kampala after the arrest of a suspected serial thief. The Directorate of Crime Intelligence (DCI) working with police in Kajjansi arrested Brian Mumbere following several complaints from drivers and car owners. Mumbere led police to areas of Zana, Bunamwaya, and Ngobe, …
(2025-01-07). The US is Manufacturing Doubt about Gaza's Famine. libya360.wordpress.com Bryce Greene Palestinians struggling with hunger wait in line to receive meals distributed by charities in Khan Younis, on January 1 , 2025. (Photo: Abdullah Abu Al-Khair/APA Images) On December 23rd, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWSN), a project funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) released a report warning of a "famine scenario"…
(2025-01-07). Sudan War: Prioritize Ending Conflict in New Year. plusnews.ug 
Sudan's war, by dint of sheer numbers displaced and hungry, is the world's most devastating. Some 12 million Sudanese — more than a third of the pre-war population — have fled their homes. More than half face acute food shortages, with parts of the Darfur region suffering famine. UN officials describe rates of sexual violence …
(2025-01-07). US accuses Russia of funding both sides of Sudan's war. newarab.com 
The United States accused Russia at the United Nations on Monday of funding the two warring parties in Sudan, an apparent step up from Washington's previous assertion that Moscow was playing both sides of the conflict to advance its political objectives. | The war erupted in April 2023 amid a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule, triggering the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis. | In November Russia vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution that called on the warring parties to immediatel…