Democracy Under Attack

Groundbreaking Research: Israeli Scientists Can Create Personalized Tissue Implants

Israeli researchers at Tel Aviv University have invented the first fully personalized tissue implant, engineered from a patient’s own materials and cells.

The new technology makes it possible to engineer any kind of tissue implant from one small fatty tissue biopsy.

“We were able to create a personalized hydrogel from the materials of the biopsy, to differentiate fatty tissue cells into different cell types and to engineer cardiac, spinal cord, cortical and other tissue implants to treat different diseases,” says Prof. Tal Dvir of TAU’s Department of Biotechnology, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology and the Sagol Center for Regenerative Biotechnology, who led the research for the new research study.

“Since both the cells and the material used derive from the patient, the implant does not provoke an immune response, ensuring proper regeneration of the defected organ,” Prof. Dvir says.

View More Personalized Tissue Implants Now Available

Illustration by Metamorworks via Shutterstock.com

by Brian Blum for Israel21c.org –

Could cars someday run on water, not oil? Australian-Israeli startup Electriq-Global is giving a wet thumbs-up to a new fuel technology that extracts hydrogen from water and turns that hydrogen into electricity to power the vehicle.

Using hydrogen to power a car’s engine is not unique to Electric-Global; hydrogen fuel cells using compressed hydrogen in gaseous form already compete with lithium-ion battery-powered electric vehicles, like those from Tesla.

Electriq-Global’s difference is that it gets its hydrogen from a fuel comprised of 60 percent water.

View More Cars could be powered by water with new Israeli technology

A Syrian Democratic Forces soldier attends the funeral of a fellow fighter, killed in clashes with Islamic State, in the Kurdish-controlled city of Qamishly in northeastern Syria. (Delil Souleiman/AFP/Getty Images)

Analysts warn that the terrorist group is small but nimble; it can simply elude capture and continue its activities elsewhere

U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have resumed a large ground offensive against a pocket of Islamic State (ISIS) fighters in eastern Syria with the aim of eradicating the terrorist group from the war-torn country. But given the ability of ISIS fighters to quickly relocate to different areas of the vast desert region, analysts warn that the operation could prove futile.

The SDF halted its assault on ISIS in late October when Turkey began shelling Kurdish military posts in northwestern Syria. Ankara considers the SDF a “terrorist” organization as it is composed primarily of Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which is viewed as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. The latter has waged an insurgency against Turkey for decades in hope of achieving an autonomous Kurdish region straddling the borders of Turkey, Iraq and Syria.

Since the offensive ground to a halt, ISIS has carried out a series of counter-attacks on SDF troops, killing or wounding scores.

View More U.S.-Backed Offensive Against ISIS In Syria Resumes

 

Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters via a screen in Nabatiyeh, Lebanon, November 10, 2018. Photo UCI/REUTERS/Aziz Taher

by Lesley Wroughton for Reuters –

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. State Department on Tuesday designated Jawad Nasrallah, son of Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, a terrorist and accused him of carrying out attacks against Israel in the West Bank.

The department also blacklisted Al-Mujahidin Brigades (AMB), which it said had links to Hezbollah and had plotted a number of attacks against Israeli targets from a base in the Palestinian Territories.

“Today’s designations seek to deny Nasrallah and AMB the resources to plan and carry out terrorist attacks,” the State Department said in a statement. It said the actions denied Nasrallah and AMB access to the U.S. financial system.

View More U.S. designates son of Hezbollah leader a terrorist

 

MEXICO CITY – The park here hosting some 7,000 migrants looks like something out of a renaissance fair, with dozens of small tents giving away shoes or offering a host of services, like dental work, medical care, telephones, haircuts, food and, perhaps the most important product – legal advice.

A line began to form Tuesday outside the Institute for Women in Migration before a 10 a.m. seminar. A dozen men formed a circle around U.S. attorney Anna Joseph when she began to speak.

“We are telling them it’s going to be difficult,” she said. ”We’re telling them this administration is not amenable to asylum right now, so even though many have legitimate claims, they’re going to be up against a very tough system at the moment due to orders from above.”

View More Lawyers for migrant caravan members give them stark advice 'It's going to be difficult'

 

Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said he would do “everything humanly possible” to secure Bibi’s safety in his country. (photo ANDREAS SOLARO – AFP/Getty Images)

Italy is ready to offer sanctuary to a Pakistani Christian woman and her family following her acquittal on a charge that she blasphemed against Islam.

The proposal makes Italy the first Western country to publicly lend support to Asia Bibi, an illiterate mother of five, imprisoned for eight years after being sentenced to death for allegedly insulting an Islamic prophet.

The U.K. and Canada were also approached but have maintained an offical silence.

Bibi’s acquittal on the blasphemy charge by Pakistan’s Supreme Court last week sparked fury in the Muslim-majority country and led to public calls for her immediate execution.

View More Italy Steps up to Offer Refuge to Pakistani Christian Woman Acquitted of Blasphemy

Pompeo says progress made on North Korea trip. The last-minute termination of a high-level meeting between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his North Korean counterpart could signal a significant roadblock in the delicate denuclearization talks with Pyongyang, which has ramped up rhetoric in recent weeks by threatening to expand the Hermit Kingdom's nuke arsenal due to “arrogant” U.S. actions.

The meeting between Pompeo and Kim Yong Chol, a North Korean senior ruling party official and former intelligence chief, was set to take place in New York on Thursday. But early Wednesday morning that plan was scrapped, and any summit “will now take place at a later date,” State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement.

“We will reconvene when our respective schedules permit,” Nauert said of the indefinite postponement. “Ongoing conversations continue to take place. The United States remains focused on fulfilling the commitments agreed to by President Trump and Chairman Kim at the Singapore Summit in June.”

View More Pompeo's meeting with N Korean official delayed amid denuclearization deadlock

GENEVA (Reuters) – More Iranians are using social media to vent anger at what they see as the corruption and extravagance of a privileged few, while the majority struggles to get by in an economy facing tighter U.S. sanctions.

Mohammad Naqi Lotfi, former Friday prayer cleric for the town of Ilam in western Iran who was accused of corruption in Ilam, Iran, in this undated handout photo by Tasnim News Agency /Handout via REUTERS

The country has been hit by a wave of protests during the last year, some of them violent, but as economic pressures rise, people are increasingly pointing fingers at the rich and powerful, including clerics, diplomats, officials and their families.

One person channeling that resentment is Seyed Mahdi Sadrossadati, a relatively obscure cleric who has amassed 256,000 followers on his Instagram account with a series of scathing posts aimed at children of the elite.

In one recent post, he blasted the “luxury life” of a Revolutionary Guards commander and his son, who posted a selfie online in front of a tiger lying on the balcony of a mansion.

View More Facing new sanctions, Iranians vent anger at rich and powerful

President Trump never looks a gift horse in the mouth (forget about what the heck a “gift horse” is or why anyone would look it in the mouth).

The Republicans lost control of the House on Election Day, not in a “blue wave” but in a solid defeat, nonetheless. So with Democrats set to take the reins in January 2019, Trump wants to give them a hand in governing.

Trump wrote on Twitter as a crisp sunny day broke in Washington, D.C. –

In all fairness, Nancy Pelosi deserves to be chosen Speaker of the House by the Democrats. If they give her a hard time, perhaps we will add some Republican votes. She has earned this great honor!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 7, 2018

View More Trump Backs Rep. Nancy Pelosi For House Speaker!

Ben & Jerry’s released a new flavor supporting groups fighting President Trump, including one with ties to Louis Farrakhan.

The Washington Free Beacon reported Tuesday that Vermont-based ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s released a new flavor to show its support for groups fighting President Donald Trump’s agenda, including the Women’s March, a group whose leaders enjoy ties to Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.

“Today we launch Pecan Resist! This flavor supports groups creating a more just and equitable nation for us all, and who are fighting President Trump’s regressive agenda,” Ben & Jerry’s tweeted.

According to Ben & Jerry’s website, “Women’s March is committed to harnessing the political power of diverse women and their communities to create transformative social change.”

View More Ben & Jerry's partners with group tied to Anti-Semite Farrakhan