LATEST INDEPENDENT WORLD NEWS 
Patrick Cockburn on Missing Billions in Iraq and Soaring Cancer & Infant Mortality Rates in Fallujah
In Iraq, an official audit by the US Special Investigator for Iraq Reconstruction found that the Pentagon cannot account for almost $9 billion taken from Iraqi oil revenues between 2004 and 2007 for use in reconstruction. Meanwhile, a new medical study has found dramatic increases in infant mortality, cancer and leukemia in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, which was bombarded by US Marines in 2004. We speak with Patrick Cockburn, Middle East correspondent for the London Independent. [includes rush transcript]
On Eve of Major Protests, Federal Judge Blocks Key Provisions of Arizona Anti-Immigrant Law
A federal judge in Phoenix blocked key provisions of Arizona's notorious anti-immigrant law on Wednesday, hours before it was scheduled to take effect. US District Judge Susan Bolton ruled a partial injunction would apply to the portion of the law that requires police officers to stop and interrogate anyone they suspect is an undocumented immigrant. The law sparked mass protests across the country and a boycott of Arizona. We speak with Isabel Garcia, co-chair of the Tucson-based Coalition for Human Rights. [includes rush transcript]
In Historic Vote, UN DeclaresWater a Fundamental Human Right
The United Nations General Assembly has declared for the first time that access to clean water and sanitation is a fundamental human right. In a historic vote Wednesday, 122 countries supported the resolution, and over forty countries abstained from voting, including the United States, Canada and several European and other industrialized countries. There were no votes against the resolution. We speak with longtime water justice activist, Maude Barlow. [includes rush transcript]
Headlines for July 29, 2010
Federal Judge Blocks Part of Arizona Immigration Law, US Seeks Access to More Internet Data Without Court Order, House Reduction of Drug Sentencing Disparity, EPA Blasted over Handling of Michigan Oil Spill, Coast Guard's Role in Fighting BP Oil Rig Fire Scrutinized, Texas Launches Probe of Toxic Release of BP Refinery in Texas City, Local Afghan Media Outlets Paid to Run US Propaganda, Pakistan Declares Day of Mourning After Plane Crash, 2000-2009 Marked Warmest Decade on Record, Israel Refuses to Pay Medical Bills for Emily Henochowicz, Peace Activist Art Gish, 70, Dies, Israel Demolishes Bedouin Village in Negev Desert
WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange: "Transparent Government Tends to Produce Just Government"
We spend the hour with Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, talking about the biggest leak in US history: the release of more than 91,000 classified military records on the war in Afghanistan. As the Pentagon announces it is launching a criminal probe into who leaked the documents, Assange asks what about investigating the "war crimes" revealed in the leaked military records? He also talks about the media, why he isn't coming to the US anytime soon, and what gives him hope. "What keeps us going is our sources. These are the people, presumably, who are inside these organizations, who want change," Assange says. "They are both heroic figures taking much greater risks than I ever do, and they are pushing and showing that they want change in, in fact, an extremely effective way." [includes rush transcript]
Headlines for July 28, 2010
House Votes to Fund Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Audit: Pentagon Can't Account for 95% of $9B of Iraq Reconstruction Funds, BP Seeks $10 Billion Tax Break to Cover Spill Expenses, 800,000 Gallons of Oil Spill in Michigan, Major Protests Planned in Arizona over Anti-Immigrant Bill, Nebraska City Suspends Anti-Immigrant Housing Bill, NYC to Pay $7M Settlement in Sean Bell Shooting Case, British PM: Gaza Is a "Prison Camp", US Backs More AU Troops in Somalia, Hans Blix: US Refused to Accept Findings of UN Inspectors in Iraq, Colombia Journalist to Be Allowed Entry into US, Four Mexican Journalists Kidnapped, Republicans Block Campaign Finance Law, Massachusetts Legislature OKs Plan to Bypass Electoral College, Groups: FBI Surveillance Program Invites Racial Profiling
"WikiLeaks Is Not One Person...We Are All the Threat" - Hacker Magazine Editor Says WikiLeaks Is Bigger Than Julian Assange
We speak to Emmanuel Goldstein, a well-known figure in the hacker community and the editor of the magazine 2600: The Hacker Quarterly. He is also the organizer of the HOPE conference. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange had been slated to be the keynote speaker at the most recent conference. Federal agents were there waiting for him, but Assange didn't show. [includes rush transcript]
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