Europe
Medical evidence shows devastating impact of decade-long state vendetta against Assange
By Thomas Scripps and Laura Tiernan, 24 September 2020
What UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer described in May 2019 as the “public mobbing” and “psychological torture” of Assange has had the desired effect.
Johnson’s bogus agenda for combating the escalating pandemic will cost tens of thousands of lives in UK
By Chris Marsden, 23 September 2020
After Johnson’s health advisers announced there would be 50,000 cases a day by mid-October and 200 deaths a day by November without government action, his measures read like a cruel joke.
Students occupy schools across Greece to protest unsafe return to classrooms
By Robert Stevens, 23 September 2020
Anger is erupting among youth in Greece at being forced back to school amid a raging pandemic of COVID-19.
UK Educators Rank-and-File Committee holds second meeting
By our reporters, 23 September 2020
The aim of meeting was to call on educators, students and parents to join and build rank-and-file committees “in your workplace, college or campus and communities.”
National Education Union letter to Boris Johnson: A total surrender to herd immunity
By Tania Kent, 23 September 2020
From the outset of the pandemic, the NEU has blocked all moves to combat the deadly consequences of the government’s handling of the virus.
Assange faces “very high risk of suicide,” medical expert tells court
By Thomas Scripps and Laura Tiernan, 23 September 2020
Kopelman’s evidence confirms the warnings made since November 2019 by Doctors for Assange that Assange is suffering “psychological torture” and “could die in prison.”
Johnson government says UK COVID-19 infections could hit 50,000 per day as pandemic spins “out of control”
By Robert Stevens, 22 September 2020
Chief Scientific Officer Sir Patrick Vallance, an early advocate of a “herd immunity” strategy, conceded that only an estimated 8 percent of the population had been infected and that the majority of the population remain susceptible.
Whistle-blowers speak out as German authorities cover up coronavirus cases at schools and day-care centres
By Martin Nowak and Gregor Link, 22 September 2020
Despite hundreds of teaching and care facilities being infected, school and health authorities, as well as the federal and state governments, with the support of the trade unions, are doing everything in their power to continue reopening schools.
EU parliament calls for international investigation into alleged poisoning of Navalny
By Clara Weiss, 22 September 2020
The resolution represents a significant escalation of attempts by the European imperialist powers to destabilize the Putin regime and ratchet up tensions with Russia.
COVID-19: French NPA’s Révolution Permanente web site lines up with Macron’s school re-opening
By Anthony Torres, 22 September 2020
Factions of France’s New Anti-capitalist Party linked to Argentina’s Socialist Workers Party (PTS) tacitly back a return to school endangering millions.
Explosive evidence from Trump insider
Assange dragged from embassy “on the orders of the president”
By Laura Tiernan and Thomas Scripps, 22 September 2020
Cassandra Fairbanks testified that Arthur Schwartz, a wealthy Republican Party donor and key Trump ally, had provided her with evidence of plans by the Trump administration to impose the death penalty.
Combustible insulation used on Grenfell Tower was sold at a heavy discount to building company
By Charles Hixson, 21 September 2020
The Celotex RS5000 insulation—found by the Grenfell Inquiry as “more likely than not” to have contributed to the 2017 inferno—was sold to Harley Facades at a 47.5 percent discount.
UK firms awarded billions in NHS/government contracts amid failure of COVID-19 testing system
By Julie Hyland, 21 September 2020
The largest intended privatisation is the £100 billion-plus expansion of the national coronavirus testing programme “Operation Moonshot.”
UK unions use “consultative” strike ballots to suppress class struggle
By Barry Mason and Robert Stevens, 21 September 2020
The consultative ballot never implies action being taken, even if a massive vote in favour is returned.
Lufthansa prepares to double job cuts to nearly 40,000
By Gustav Kemper, 21 September 2020
Lufthansa is considering reducing its current workforce by about 30 percent or almost twice as many as the German airline announced at the end of June.
Johnson government opposes national lockdown despite exponential rise in UK coronavirus cases
By Robert Stevens, 19 September 2020
It is just 77 days since the Johnson government recklessly reopened the economy on July 1, in the middle of a pandemic. By next Tuesday at least 13 million people will be in lockdown.
Germany: Right-wing extremist network in police pays homage to Hitler and the Nazis
By Jan Ritter, 19 September 2020
A photo montage shared online by police officers shows a grinning SS soldier pressing a button marked “Gas.” In the background, refugees are screaming in fear in a gas chamber.
Neo-Nazis in German police issue new threats
By Gregor Link, 19 September 2020
The extreme-right continues its work because it is being protected by senior authorities in the state apparatus.
Build an independent action committee to defend jobs and wages!
Union suppresses criticism of job cuts at German steel producer ThyssenKrupp
By Dietmar Gaisenkersting, 19 September 2020
Major corporations, banks and hedge funds are using the pandemic to launch attacks on wages and jobs worked out long before the crisis.
Russia’s opposition parties fail to win broad support in regional elections
By Andrea Peters, 19 September 2020
Kremlin-backed candidates held onto governorships and control of local parliamentary bodies in the 83 regions of the country where voting occurred.
Peace negotiations stall as ceasefire begins to fall apart in Ukraine
By Jason Melanovski, 19 September 2020
Ukraine’s far-right continues to oppose any negotiated settlement that could lead to the end of the six-year long civil war that has needlessly killed over 13,000.
Witnesses recall Collateral Murder attack: “Look at those dead bastards,” shooters said
By Thomas Scripps and Laura Tiernan, 19 September 2020
“The publication of that video and those words was the equivalent of the death of George Floyd and his words ‘I can’t breathe’. They had a profound effect on public opinion in the world.”
World Health Organization warns of “alarming” resurgence of COVID-19 in Europe
By Alex Lantier, 18 September 2020
With over 300,000 weekly infections, European authorities are now confirming more COVID-19 cases each week than they did prior to the lockdowns this spring.
Germany: Local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia express growing opposition to official politics
By Peter Schwarz, 18 September 2020
Half of all eligible voters stayed at home. Many saw no point in voting between parties that work together and pursue similar right-wing, anti-working-class policies.
Over one million UK children kept off school in face of government threats and propaganda
By Harvey Thompson and Tania Kent, 18 September 2020
By Thursday evening, 1,118 schools had been hit by coronavirus infections, forcing many to close partially or fully.
Oppose the unsafe reopening of UK schools and universities! Attend Online Educators Rank-and-File Committee meeting
18 September 2020
We urge educators and students in Britain to register and participate in the online forum being held on Saturday, September 19 at 2 p.m.
British government and universities pursue reckless return to higher education under pandemic conditions
By Simon Whelan, 18 September 2020
Students now face a limit on socialising under the government’s arbitrary limiting of gatherings to six, yet can go to work and to campuses.
Former CIA director Leon Panetta: We are prosecuting Assange to intimidate others
By Oscar Grenfell, 18 September 2020
Panetta’s comments confirmed the mafia-character of the US-pursuit of Assange, its politically-motivated nature and flagrant disregard for international laws.
Military research at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
By Gregor Link, 18 September 2020
As Germany again takes up aggressive great power politics, German universities are once more serving the needs of war and dictatorship, just as they did before the First and Second World Wars. A major centre of German weapons research is the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
Retail workers continue protests in Ireland and UK; South African and Nigerian health workers walk out; union sells out Zimbabwe nurses’ strike
Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa
18 September 2020
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
Students return to UK universities: Build campus safety committees!
By Danny Knightley, 17 September 2020
Campus safety committees must ensure safety procedures are put in place to protect the health of students and staff alike, and fight for increased testing on campuses.
Manchester Go North West bus drivers vote overwhelmingly to strike
By Dennis Moore and Robert Stevens, 17 September 2020
Workers in Manchester should emulate the move by London bus drivers at a number of garages, who this week set up the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee.
Former Der Spiegel journalist exposes US government lies that Assange “failed to redact” and “put lives at risk”
By Laura Tiernan, 17 September 2020
Testimony from John Goetz established that the only “harm to life” came from US war crimes which Assange and WikiLeaks were trying to expose.
Assange exposed “a very serious pattern of actual war crimes,” Daniel Ellsberg tells extradition hearing
By Thomas Scripps, 17 September 2020
Ellsberg said that “with the Manning and Assange papers, I found my name being mentioned all the time as a very good person … to use me as a foil against these new revelations which were supposedly very different from mine.”
The Moria catastrophe and the European Union’s war on refugees
By Martin Kreickenbaum, 16 September 2020
The inhumane treatment of the desperate people on Lesbos is the product of deliberate policies being pursued by the European Union and its member states.
Schools at epicentre of UK’s coronavirus explosion
By Robert Stevens, 16 September 2020
The virus is resurgent in workplaces, schools, and communities, with the R (reproduction) value rising above 1 across the UK.
France imposes return to school without protections against COVID-19
By Jacques Valentin, 16 September 2020
With over 1,200 schools and universities affected, France faces a resurgent pandemic provoked by the reopening drive by the highest state authorities.
The political significance of the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee: “Change is coming in the working class”
By our reporters, 16 September 2020
The formation of the committee shows that bus workers are starting to draw a balance sheet from their experiences over the past six months and are ready to fight back.
London bus drivers launch rank-and-file safety committee to fight renewed threat from COVID-19
By the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 16 September 2020
“We are not cattle and will not be sacrificed to protect the profits of the corporations and banks who have made a financial killing during the pandemic,” states the resolution passed by the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee.
London bus drivers resolve to fight for Assange’s freedom
By the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 16 September 2020
The first action of the newly formed London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee was to pass a resolution calling for the defence of imprisoned WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
Assange faces life imprisonment in politically motivated trial, witnesses argue
By Thomas Scripps, 16 September 2020
Both expert witnesses shared the view that the prosecution of Assange is politically motivated—which, if found to be true, would bar his extradition.
Exposure of Trump’s lies on COVID-19 implicates Spain’s Podemos party
By Alejandro López, 15 September 2020
Though it had access to intelligence briefings on the deadly danger posed by the pandemic, Podemos adopted a criminally negligent policy.
Protests continue against Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov
By Markus Salzmann, 15 September 2020
For over two months, thousands of people have been marching in the streets of Bulgaria almost every day in opposition to Prime Minister Boyko Borisov.
Greece buys billions in French arms amid war tensions with Turkey
By Alex Lantier, 14 September 2020
The purchase of a squadron of fighter jets and four warships marks a major escalation in the military standoff between Greece, backed by France, and Turkey.
Three postal workers test positive at UK Royal Mail’s Medway Mail Centre
By Paul Lee, 14 September 2020
The outbreak at the “state-of-the-art” delivery office demonstrates that workers’ health is being imperilled in an ongoing scramble for profit.
UK firms announce hundreds of thousands of redundancies
By Barry Mason, 14 September 2020
There is a fear among some bourgeois commentators and political representatives that a sudden end to the Jobs Furlough scheme could lead to social upheaval.
Stop the dangerous “routine operation” of schools in Germany! Prepare a nationwide general strike!
Set up independent action committees for the safety of teachers, pupils and parents!
By the Action Committees for Safe Education, 14 September 2020
The completely unsafe routine operation of schools threatens the health and lives of millions of educators, parents, children, young people and their families.
German Left Party preparing to enter government and support war
By Johannes Stern, 14 September 2020
In August, the Left Party’s parliamentary leader Dietmar Bartsch backed the German Army’s foreign deployments. Now foreign affairs spokesperson Gregor Gysi is going further.
Revelation of US government conspiracy on COVID-19 exposes EU herd immunity policy
By Alex Lantier, 12 September 2020
Revelations that US officials conspired to lie to the public about the severity of the coronavirus pandemic also expose the politically criminal role of the EU.
Full classes, full buses—German schools are becoming a coronavirus trap
By Marianne Arens, 12 September 2020
With schools re-opening without social distancing and the wearing of masks, new infections are increasing. Throughout Germany, hundreds of facilities have been affected.
Brexit crisis intensifies after Johnson government tears up agreement with Brussels
By Robert Stevens, 12 September 2020
Brexit epitomises the malignant growth of inter-imperialist antagonisms that are plunging the world into a brutal trade war and exacerbating the threat of military conflict.
UK Tories use Extinction Rebellion protests to argue for savage political repression
By Richard Tyler, 12 September 2020
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has asked officials to take a “fresh look” at the legal status of Extinction Rebellion and see if it can be classified as an “organised crime group.”
UK government’s “Operation Moonshot”—a trojan horse for herd immunity policy
By Thomas Scripps, 12 September 2020
Under the cover of a non-existent mass testing programme, the government plans to encourage as much intermingling as possible.
Thousands sleeping rough after the burning down of Moria refugee camp on Lesbos
By John Vassilopoulos, 12 September 2020
Shocking footage and pictures show refugees of all ages sleeping on roads and hillsides, surrounded by their meagre possessions.
UK Conservative government votes down Grenfell Tower safety recommendations as inquiry resumes
By Charles Hixson, 12 September 2020
The inquiry’s toothless “suggestions”—that tower block tenants be granted a few minimal safety rights—have been tossed into the bin by the Tories.
Russia holds regional elections amidst growing political crisis
By Andrea Peters, 12 September 2020
Balloting in 83 regions ends Sunday, and Kremlin-backed candidates are facing challengers in a number of areas.
No to a Greek-Turkish war in the eastern Mediterranean!
International Committee of the Fourth International, 12 September 2020
Amid the escalation of threats and naval maneuvers between Turkey and Greece, backed by France, Europe and the Middle East are teetering on the brink of war.
“Practically all children, one way or another, will be infected”
Spanish government demands schools reopen as COVID-19 deaths surge
By Alice Summers, 11 September 2020
The PSOE-Podemos government is deliberately implementing a reckless and criminal policy that will lead to an explosion of cases and many unnecessary deaths.
Assange hearing adjourned as prosecution lawyer is tested for COVID-19
By Thomas Scripps, 11 September 2020
Dr Stephen Frost, founder of Doctors for Assange, told the WSWS, “While the Court today adjourned due to the risk of infection from COVID-19, Julian Assange has been sent back to Belmarsh maximum security prison where the threat of infection from COVID-19 is extremely high—and he is severely immunocompromised.”
National stoppage planned in France over job losses; Nigeria’s doctors resume strike for PPE; South African protests for PPE met with police brutality
Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa
11 September 2020
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
Lesbos refugee-camp blaze leaves 13,000 without shelter
By Robert Stevens, 10 September 2020
A call from a detainee during the blaze asked, “Where is the police, where is the fire brigade, where is anyone? We are burning, our tents are burning. Everything is burning. We came here to burn to death. All is on fire.”
Lies in the Navalny case
By Peter Schwarz, 10 September 2020
The relationship between Germany and Russia has reached its lowest point since Berlin supported the pro-Western coup in Ukraine six years ago and Russia annexed Crimea.
Scottish Crown Office blocks release of documents vital for Craig Murray’s defence
By Steve James, 10 September 2020
The Scottish Crown Office and government are stonewalling all efforts to secure documentation requested by journalist Craig Murray who is facing contempt of court charges.
Austria: No protection for population despite rising coronavirus infections
By Markus Salzmann, 10 September 2020
Austria has played a leading role in Europe’s lifting of protective measures against the coronavirus, with infections rising sharply as a result.
UK government blames young people as COVID-19 surges
By Thomas Scripps, 10 September 2020
The government’s new and tokenistic six-person rule does not apply to workplaces or schools, and groups of six can continue to visit pubs, bars, and restaurants.
Assange targeted for political views in “terrifying threat to First Amendment,” expert witnesses tell hearing
By Laura Tiernan and Thomas Scripps, 10 September 2020
WikiLeaks’ exposure of civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan had played “possibly the most important role” in catalysing public opposition to both wars.
COVID-19 outbreaks spread within a week of England and Wales schools reopening
By Tony Robson, 9 September 2020
Virtually no part of the UK has been left unscathed, with teachers and pupils testing positive in both primary and secondary schools.
Heathrow airport ground staff given ultimatum: Accept pay cuts or face redundancy
By Margot Miller, 9 September 2020
Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, these savage ultimatums have become the new normal in industrial relations.
Jan Kuciak murder case: Slovakian court acquits alleged masterminds
By Markus Salzmann, 9 September 2020
The court based the acquittal of millionaire Marián Kočner and co-defendant Alena Zsuzsová on a lack of evidence, despite a key witness providing incriminating testimony.
Assange extradition hearing: WikiLeaks exposed US drone killings, torture and rendition, says Guantanamo Bay lawyer
By Laura Tiernan and Thomas Scripps, 9 September 2020
Clive Stafford Smith likened US torture tactics to those of the Spanish Inquisition.
“It’s not safe for my kids but they are forcing me to send them to school”
UK Educators Rank-and-File Committee holds initial meeting
By our reporter, 9 September 2020
Teachers and parents from Britain and internationally attended the initial meeting of the Educators Rank-and-File Committee.
Unsubmissive France leader Jean-luc Mélenchon boasts of discussion with big business
By Anthony Torres, 8 September 2020
Mélenchon’s boast demonstrates the class orientation of his party Unsubmissive France and the other “left populist” European parties
Open letter in Le Soir: Belgian ruling class calls to spread COVID-19
By Jacques Valentin, 8 September 2020
Calls for a policy of “herd immunity” underline the indifference of the ruling class to the number of deaths caused by its health policy.
In Europe, COVID-19 cases surge and deaths mount following end of lockdowns
By Robert Stevens, 7 September 2020
Andrea Ammon, director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, warned that the virus was starting to infect as many people as in March.
Alarm bells as London bus driver tests positive for COVID-19
By Laura Tiernan, 7 September 2020
Neither Metroline nor Unite has issued any statement to alert more than 500 drivers at Cricklewood about the reappearance of COVID-19.
As British show-trial resumes: The working class must defend Julian Assange!
By Oscar Grenfell, 7 September 2020
The persecution of Assange is an attempt to intimidate mass opposition to imperialist war, social inequality and a turn to authoritarianism, amid a breakdown of global capitalism and an eruption of the class struggle.
Millions reject UK government’s return to work call as COVID-19 cases escalate
By Robert Stevens and Paul Bond, 5 September 2020
The response to the pandemic has been driven from day one by a “herd immunity” policy and indifference to the deaths of tens of thousands.
Germany is reopening all schools despite rising coronavirus infections
By Marianne Arens, 5 September 2020
The lockdown in the spring saved millions of lives throughout Europe, but now schools and day care centres are being reopened, despite the rising spread of infections.
Germany’s trade unions and municipalities prepare to slash wages of public service workers
By Peter Schwarz, 5 September 2020
The same politicians who were gushing in their praise for nurses, teachers, bus drivers and other public service employees who worked through the pandemic are now going to cut their already miserable wages.
The catastrophic fate of Belgium’s elderly in the coronavirus pandemic
By Jacques Valentin, 5 September 2020
Investigations paint a chilling picture of residents in Belgian retirement homes being blatantly denied health treatment.
German imperialism and the strange case of Alexei Navalny
By Peter Schwarz, 5 September 2020
Politicians and media outlets in Western countries, and above all in Germany, have declared that Moscow is responsible for Navalny’s poisoning, and have escalated their calls for a confrontation with Russia.
“We have a right to withdraw our labour, especially when being exposed to disease and death”
UK Morrisons distribution worker speaks on Bridgwater COVID-19 outbreak
By our correspondent, 4 September 2020
The World Socialist Web Site spoke with a worker about the situation at the distribution centre of major supermarket chain Morrisons in Bridgwater, Somerset, which had an outbreak of COVID-19 in March.
Coronavirus assistance for university students in Germany—a calculated fraud
By Lisa Lachlan, 4 September 2020
Since June, angry and indignant posts have been mounting on social media accusing the government of ignorance and inaction, disregarding the needs of roughly a million students in need of assistance.
German court sentences members of leftist Turkish party to prison
By Justus Leicht, 4 September 2020
The verdict sends the message that anyone who is left-wing and/or opposes a regime allied with Germany can be imprisoned for years.
For a general strike against the reopening of schools!
By the Political Committee of the Parti de l’égalité socialiste (France), 4 September 2020
The Parti de l’égalité socialiste calls on teachers, youth and workers in France and internationally to oppose the reopening of schools.
French President Macron lays down the law in Lebanon
By Jean Shaoul, 3 September 2020
Macron’s aim was to create the conditions for the return to power of a French puppet, billionaire Sa’ad Hariri, and to eliminate the power of Hezbollah.
Germany’s IG Metall union organizes job cuts at Thyssenkrupp-Stahl
By Dietmar Gaisenkersting, 3 September 2020
The IG Metall trade union is pushing ahead with the break-up of the company under an agreement reached with Thyssenkrupp AG management at the end of May.
The case of Alexei Navalny and the imperialist intervention in Russian politics
By Clara Weiss, 3 September 2020
While the circumstances of Navalny’s illness are still under investigation, his case has become a focal point for the intervention of the imperialist powers in Russian politics.
Oppose NUJ censorship of journalist Craig Murray!
By Laura Tiernan, 3 September 2020
The National Union of Journalist’s actions are an attack on press freedom and the public’s right to access information independently of the state-controlled and corporate media outlets.
Greek-Turkish standoff escalates war danger in eastern Mediterranean
By Alex Lantier, 2 September 2020
Top officials of NATO member states are openly discussing going to war with one another, in conflicts that could set the Mediterranean and the world ablaze.
European governments end furlough schemes amid jobs massacre
By Richard Tyler, 2 September 2020
A study by the McKinsey Global Institute estimates that 59 million workers in Europe, over a quarter of the entire workforce, are in jobs that are seriously at risk.
Johnson government’s “hostile environment” for immigrants and asylum seekers wins fascist allies
By Robert Stevens and Barry Mason, 2 September 2020
This week, the Ministry of Defence confirmed that an Army Watchkeeper drone—previously used in Afghanistan war zones—is to fly over the English Channel to monitor migrant boats.
Riots spread across working class districts in the Netherlands
By Harm Zonderland and Parwini Zora, 2 September 2020
Rioting started in the Schilderswijk district of The Hague, which is devastated by rising social misery, shunned by the media and subjected to continual police harassment.
Mass protests in Belarus continue as conflict between Russia and NATO intensifies
By Clara Weiss, 1 September 2020
The Kremlin has responded to the growing intervention by the imperialist powers in Belarus by stepping up its support for the Lukashenko regime.
Profiteering leaves UK care homes vulnerable
By Thomas Scripps, 1 September 2020
Investors’ pursuit of short-term profits has seen vast resources looted from the care sector and providers laden with unsustainable debts.
The far right’s storming of the German parliament
By Christoph Vandreier, 1 September 2020
Some 30,000 right-wing extremists, anti-Semites and their supporters protested in the German capital on Saturday against any effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
Greek government continues evictions of over 11,000 asylum seekers
By John Vassilopoulos, 31 August 2020
The ND government's actions are particularly brutal amid a resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, with hundreds of new infections being announced each day.
EU imposes sanctions on Lukashenko as strikes continue in Belarus
By Alex Lantier, 29 August 2020
The imposition of sanctions is a clumsy and hypocritical attempt to maximize the EU’s influence in Belarus amid growing working-class anger against the Belarusian ruling elite.
Students, teachers, parents and nursery staff in Germany oppose school reopenings
By Gregor Link, 29 August 2020
As the country’s various state governments rush ahead with the policy of opening schools, growing numbers are expressing their opposition to the move.
German federal and state governments protect profits instead of lives
By Christoph Vandreier, 29 August 2020
Chancellor Merkel and the German state premiers to continue their dangerous policies, despite increasing COVID-19 infection rates.
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