US threatens ICC with ‘consequences’ if it acts on war crimes complaint against Israel filed by ‘fake’ Palestinian state

Arguing that Palestine doesn’t “qualify as a sovereign state” and that the International Criminal Court lacks jurisdiction over Israel, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has threatened “consequences” for any “illegitimate” probes.

Following his trip to Israel this week, Pompeo issued a brief statement, denouncing the ongoing efforts by the ICC to investigate allegations of war crimes against Palestinians, including the use of live ammunition against protesters, the demolition and shelling of civilian homes and infrastructure, and forcible relocations as part of Israel’s settlement projects in the occupied territories.

“The United States reiterates its longstanding objection to any illegitimate ICC investigations,” wrote Pompeo, blasting the ICC as “a political body, not a judicial institution,” and arguing that is has no “jurisdiction over Israel, which like the United States, is not a party to the Rome Statute that created the Court.”

We do not believe the Palestinians qualify as a sovereign state, and they therefore are not qualified to obtain full membership, or participate as a state in international organizations, entities, or conferences, including the ICC.

While Palestine has yet to achieve fully recognized statehood, the quasi-governmental Palestinian Authority was accepted into the ICC in 2015. The US signed the Rome Statute in 2000, but it was never formally ratified by the Senate. Israel, too, was an early signer to the statute, but also never finalized its membership in the organization.

If the ICC continues down its current course, we will exact consequences.

Washington repeatedly threatened the ICC with sanctions in the past as the US itself also scrutiny in the investigation of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Afghan government forces, the Taliban, American troops and intelligence operatives.

https://www.rt.com/news/488880-pompeo-israel-icc-war-crimes/

CBS News releases statement on Catherine Herridge's reporting after Dems, media attack her

A Biden campaign spokesperson called Herridge 'a partisan, rightwing hack'

CBS News defended star reporter Catherine Herridge after her fierce reported triggered outrage from Democrats and the media this week.

"Catherine is a deeply sourced reporter who has worked the national security beat for two decades and just last week secured one of the biggest newsmaker interviews with Attorney General William Barr, which was cited by national and international outlets," a CBS News spokesperson said.

"This is the kind of aggressive reporting we applaud at CBS News," the spokesperson added.

Herridge was attacked on social media after she reported on the "unmasking" list related to the Michael Flynn case that acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell gave Congress this week.

Herridge's reporting was not unlike her previous work. As she is known to do, Herridge simply shared the official government documents and provided the necessary journalistic context.

Herridge is one of Washington's most prominent journalists, known for her intrepid work in national security journalism. She is trustworthy and has a long-standing record of breaking significant stories.

But that did not stop a spokesperson for Joe Biden's campaign, Andrew Bates, from attacking Herridge. Bates was responding to the fact that Biden's name was included on the list that Grenell gave Congress.

"SCOOP: Catherine Herridge is a partisan, rightwing hack who is a regular conduit for conservative media manipulation ploys because she agrees to publicize things before contacting the target to ask for comment," Bates wrote on Twitter in a since-deleted tweet.

Bates was similarly denounced himself, including by CNN's Jake Tapper. "Gross. Personal attacks on journalists for sharing facts is obnoxious and indecent. @JoeBiden approves this message?" Tapper said.

Still, despite the fact that Democrats and the media routinely condemn President Donald Trump for his so-called "attacks" on the press, the left-leaning Daily Beast published a story bashing Herridge.

Glenn Greenwald responded by calling out the mainstream media's hypocrisy, explaining on Fox News that the press corps always defends itself from Trump's criticism, but failed to defend Herridge when the Biden campaign attacked her.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/cbs-news-releases-statement-on-catherine-herridges-reporting-after-dems-media-attack-her

Meet Barbara Ferrer, The Social Justice Warrior With No Medical Background Leading LA's COVID Response

At this point, most market participants outside California know LA County Public Health Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer as the public servant whose "miscommunication" Tuesday afternoon about a three-month extension to her county's stay at home order was blamed for reviving anxieties about the economic reopening in the US that helped hammer stocks lower last week. The good doctor - who, as it so happens, isn't a medical doctor, but the owner of a Ph.D in "Social Welfare" (whatever the f**k that means) - would like you to know she is truly sorry for the error, and the ensuing public furor she accidentally unleashed.

As we have been saying since the beginning of this outbreak, many of the public servants revered as virtually infallible by the "stay home, save lives" crowd (overly Democratic in political orientation) actually have few real qualifications. Dr. Ferrer isn't a scientist, or a medical doctor, and people who argue that we should simply stay inside forever because science often have little, or no, understanding of the current state of research concerning the virus. Because if they did, they would understand that not even the scientists have a great grasp of how to handle this. Given the far-reaching ramifications for society, it shouldn't be an extreme opinion to suggest that tackling this requires a multidisciplinary approach, because small oversights can have major consequences.

As for Dr. Ferrer, after apologizing for her "miscommunication" on Wednesday, she went on to reveal that, actually, the order would be expanded (though certain businesses are still being allowed to reopen) offering a seemingly contradictory explanation of the local guidelines and planned path forward that has left the entire county wondering what the hell is going on.

As KABC’s John Phillips shared on his radio show Wednesday, the good doctor's educational resume, according to a bio published at USC, where she was recently a panelist at a "Safe Schools" symposium, reveals she received her Ph.D. in Social Welfare from Brandeis University, a Master of Arts in Public Health from Boston University, a Master of Arts in Education from the University of Massachusetts, and a Bachelor of Arts in Community Studies from UC Santa Cruz.

None of these disciplines are rooted in the sciences - rather, it appears the good doctor's "public health" background doesn't include any specialization in actual medical care, or epidemiology. This woman probably knows about as much as the discipline as the average Californian who has spent the last couple of months on Wikipedia.

However, as the LA Times reports, Ferrer has somehow found her way into a role where she is the top public health officer in a county of 10 million people. Keep in mind, she has no actual medical background, but despite this, she's found herself in the middle of "every tough conversation about which businesses and institutions have to shut down, whether public and private hospitals are equipped and prepared to handle a possible surge" and what precautions individuals can take to protect their health.

Her role for the county is essentially equivalent to that of Dr. Fauci at the White house. Except Dr. Ferrer isn't a doctor, she's a professional social justice warrior.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/meet-barbara-ferrer-social-justice-warrior-no-medical-background-leading-las-covid

>>9205575

she dead already no?