Amy President Biden delivers his state of the union. We will play excerpts. And on this International Womens day, get response from the nation publisher katrina vanden heuvel, israeli peace activist Neta Heiman Mina whose mother was a hostage in gaza, and palestinian egyptian American University of chicago professor Eman Abdelhadi who gave an alternate sotu last night called the state of genocide. Tonights state of the union is a state of the genocide because our leaders have followed a familiar playbook, investing in power, money, and blood at the expense of humanity. Amy all that and more, coming up. Welcome to democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. President biden delivered the state of the Union Thursday as he faces the likely prospect of an election rematch with donald trump in november and amid mounting public anger over his enabling of israels assault on gaza. Biden announced plans to tax the wealthy, valid to restore federal abortion rights, and touted his record on relaxing federal marijuana restrictions and punishments. But he also doubled down on his efforts to pass a hardline border and immigration crackdown and repeated farright congressmember Marjorie Taylor greenes use of the term illegal after she heckled him during the speech over the death of a georgia woman that was allegedly killed by an document immigrant. Biden held up a pen with the killed womans name on it and addressed his age and welcomed sweden as the newest member of nato following its formal entry into the military Alliance Earlier in the day. The swedish Prime MinisterUlf Kristersson sat next to jill biden as one of her guests. President biden also announced plans for a new port to deliver humanitarian aid to gaza. Pres. Biden tonight i am directing the u. S. Military to lead a Mercy Mission to establish a temporary pier on the mediterranean on the coast of gaza that can receive large shipments occurring food, water, medicine, and temporary shelters. Amy as they watched, progressive lawmakers cori bush, summer lee, ilhan omar, and Rashida Tlaib the only palestinianamerican in Congress Held up signs reading lasting ceasefire now and stop sending bombs. They also donned palestinian kafiahs. Many Democratic Women were white in honor of the suffragettes. Today is International Womens day. We will have more on the state of the union after headlines. Ahead of last night state of the union, hundreds of protesters blockaded roads outside the white house and near the capitol, delaying President Bidens speech. This is Ahmad Abuznaid with the u. S. Campaign for palestinian rights speaking on what one of the shut down streets. President biden is talking about getting aid into gaza, but stopped to genocide and palestinians will build our own. Amy activists also delivered their own peoples state of the Union Thursday night. This is sumaya awad from the Adalah Justice project. We are out here representing the majority of americans who have made it clear time and again in the last five months that they demand a ceasefire now. That they demand no more weapons to israel. The majority of the people in this country want taxpayer dollars invested in life not in genocide, not in war. Amy protests took place elsewhere across the country, including chicago, where a coalition of activists held a state of the genocide. Participants observed a 24 hour vigil in Federal Plaza, reading aloud the names of over 30,000 palestinians killed by israel in the last five months. One of the participants in the state of the genocide event will be joining us today after the headlines. In gaza, the Health Ministry says israeli attacks have killed at least 78 people and wounded more than 100 over the past day. In the Southern City of rafah, at least five people were killed in an israeli airstrike. As they deplored the destruction, people at the scene blasted bidens plans for an aid port. Instead of telling us they will build a port to help us, stop biting the weapons they throw at us. American weapons are killing our kids and killing us wherever we go. We dont need aid, we need them to stop the killing, stop the death. Wherever we go, we find death. Amy u. N. Experts are calling for a probe into reports of sexual assault, torture, and killing of palestinian women prisoners by israeli forces. The Palestinian Prisoner Society says an estimated 240 palestinian women have been detained since october 7. Some of the released women have since spoken out on their traumatic experience. This is hadeel aldahdouh, who was rounded up and arrested with a group of men in gaza in december. They put me in the young men in a hole in the ground. The young men were sitting opposite me. One of the soldiers took off my hijab. I was afraid. I asked him if i could have a pack. He started to laugh at me and refused to put it back on. In that instance, i was afraid and anxious. My husband was beaten. A soldier fired twice in the air and told me, i killed your husband. I was trying to get away while i was handcuffed at the tank kept getting closer to us. I started crying, asking the soldiers what he would do to us. He said, i want to bury you alive in the hole and let the dogs beat you. Amy in the occupied west bank, israel is moving ahead with plans to create another 3400 homes in illegal settlements, despite condemnation from the u. S. And other allies. The settlements are a violation of international law. The wall street journal recently published a video showing the surge in illegal settlement building, with new roads and outposts mushrooming in the west bank since october 7. Palestinian officials have pushed back on the illegal construction, but the vast majority of it has gone unreported or unpunished by the israeli government. In nigeria, at least 275 students are missing after dozens of gunmen attacked their school in the northwestern town of kuriga thursday, kidnapping children between the ages of eight and 15. No group has claimed responsibility. This is the second mass abduction in nigeria in less than a week. How can these gunmen come and carry our children . This is the reason why i am so sad. This is our village. Please, your excellency, help us. Amy a search and rescue team has been deployed. Abductions of students have become more frequent in recent years where armed groups target local residents for large ransoms. Mali, niger, and burkina faso are launching a joint Security Force to combat rising extremist violence in their countries. The three nations had already formed a Security Alliance after severing military ties with their former colonizer, france, and others since military juntas took over following a series of recent coups in the sahel region. This comes days after a Public Prosecutor said at least 170 people were executed in three attacks in the northern yatenga province. Violence carried out by militants linked to alqaeda and the Islamic State has been on the rise, forcing millions in burkina faso to flee their homes. In senegal, president macky sall announced a new president ial election date march 24. Tensions have been mounting in senegal since president sall postponed the election last month, triggering mass protests, mass arrests, and accusations by opposition politicians that sall was orchestrating a constitutional coup. President salls term ends on april 2. Haitis government has extended a state of emergency until april. U. N. Officials warn haitis Health System is nearing collapse due to shortages of staff, equipment, and other resources to treat a growing number of wounded patients as gang unrest continues demanding the resignation of unelected haitian Prime Minister ariel henry. Many have also denounced Police Violence against local residents. This situation in the country is critical. People could no longer go about their business. Our children could no longer go to school. No one can move around the country. Recently, tear gas grenade thrown by the police hit a journalist in the eye. Today there questioning activists. We have a Prime Minister, we dont know if he is dead or alive because he is lost in the wild. Amy henry has still not returned to haiti. He is reportedly in puerto rico after coming back from kenya. Indias Prime MinisterNarendra Modi traveled to the disputed kashmir region thursday since his government stripped the muslimmajority region of its semiautonomous status in 2019. The decision by hailed by hindu nationalists. Modi addressed a crowd in kashmirs largest city srinagar. Theres no article 370 today and that is why the talent is being recognized and respected. Today there are equal rights and opportunities for everyone here. Amy Rights Groups have denounced modis intensifying crackdown on journalists and dissidents in jammu and kashmir. In hong kong, lawmakers published a draft of a new National Security law that further cracks down on dissent and free speech. The law expands the definition of certain offenses and targets treason, insurrection, sabotage, external interference, theft of state secrets, and espionage. The draft law also imposes harsher penalties for these offenses, including life imprisonment in some cases. The bill is expected to pass swiftly as only beijingaligned lawmakers have been permitted to run in hong kong elections since 2021. Back in the United States, a federal Appeals Court has dismissed a child labor case which sought to hold big tech accountable for the abuse of children forced to work in cobalt mines in the democratic republic of the congo. Companies including apple, microsoft, tesla, and google rely on cobalt to make the rechargeable lithium batteries used in their products but have argued they merely have a buyerseller relationship with cobalt suppliers and have no power to stop child labor. The two Companies Named in the lawsuit are u. K. Based glencore and Chinese CompanyZhejiang Huayou cobalt. Circuit judge neomi rao acknowledged the tech giants are aware of the Child Exploitation and that they intentionally use a murky supply chain to obscure the extent to which they rely on forced labor. The Group International right advocates, which brought the lawsuit, says it is considering an appeal. In labor news, google has come under fire after laying off dozens of unionized contract workers in a likely act of retaliation. The workers were made aware of their firing as they spoke last week in front of the Austin City Council in texas, which was preparing to vote on a resolution in support of their efforts to negotiate with google. There are less then 50 of us, two of the largest corporations in the world. To be supported by the city of austin and also our allies in the labor community, it gives us the motivation to keep this fight going. They just laid us all off. Oh. Effective immediately. Wow. Im sorry, your time is expired. Amy the workers, who oversee the youtube music platform, voted to join the Alphabet Workers Union last year. Since then, google has refused to bargain with the workers because they are subcontracted through another company. This, despite the National LaborRelations Board ruling google is a coemployer and must bargain with the group. Google claims the unionized workers were let go because their contract had ended, even though it was routinely renewed and google has a track record of firing workers during labor organizing efforts. An autopsy report reveals tissue samples from the brain of an Army Reservist who killed 18 people during a mass shooting in lewiston, maine, last october at a Bowling Alley showed signs of traumatic brain injury. Robert card was found dead of an apparent selfinflicted gunshot two days later. The 40yearold worked at an army hand grenade Training Range and is thought to have been exposed to thousands of lowlevel blasts. The findings came as a Commission Investigating the mass shooting is hearing testimony from several of cards former army colleagues. Leading up to the shooting, maine police had been alerted gunmen was a possible danger after he threatened to shoot up his military base. In election news, President Biden won wednesdays lowturnout primary in hawaii. Uncommitted received its highest percentage of votes yet with roughly 29 of democratic ballots. The food and Drug Administration has issued an advisory for six brands of ground cinnamon due to lead contamination. The brands are la fiesta, marcum, mk, swad, supreme tradition, and eli chilar. The fda said the lead levels in these products are much lower than those found in cinnamon apple sauce pouches that were recalled last fall. Longterm lead exposure can pose Significant Health risks, especially for children. It has been linked to slower development, brain and nervous system damage, behavioral and learning problems, and hearing and speech problems. And today marks International Womens day. Rallies and other actions are planned across the globe. But in a makeshift camp in southern gazas rafah city, displaced palestinian women say they are not celebrating this year as they struggle to survive amid war, hunger, illness, and grief. These are some of their voices. Womens day is outside of palestine. In palestine, we do not have women stay, especially in gaza. Women no longer have an identity here. Before october 7, women had a good quality of life in their homes. They were secure and happy. After october 7, there are no longer any women. Women cannot hold on to their children. Houses have been bombed. This is a war of extermination. These are people. They have all been destroyed. Every generation is killed. Every generation grows up and is killed. Are they not humans . You bring up your child and within minutes he is gone and the house he is in is gone. We suffer from violence, sadness, injustice, humiliation, from the hardest forms of torture at the hands of the occupation. I wish on International Womens day is for this war not to get repeated. Amy and those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. When we come back, President Biden delivers a state of the union. We will play excerpts. On this International Womens day, we will get response from katrina vanden heuvel, Neta Heiman Minas mother was a hostage in gaza, and palestinian egyptian American University of chicago professor Eman Abdelhadi who gave the state of the genocide address yesterday. Back in a minute. [music break] amy jasadik hom, your body of theirs, by dam. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. President biden delivered his state of the Union Address last night, making his case for a second term ahead of this years president ial election. Speaking before a joint session of congress, biden criticized republican frontrunner donald trump without saying his name and strove to highlight policy differences with the former president and republicans on a number of issues, including taxes, immigration, reproductive rights, and Foreign Policy. Biden addressed gaza, which has become a key election issue, with voters in primary states casting their ballots for uncommitted to express their opposition to bidens support for israels five month assault on gaza. Ahead of the speech, hundreds of protesters blockaded roads outside the white house and near the capitol, delaying bidens address. In his speech, biden said the u. S. Would build as tempora seaport of gaza to assist with the delivery of humanitarian aid. As they watched, progressive lawmakers cori bush, summer lee, ilhan omar, and Rashida Tlaib, the only palestinian american in congress, held up signs reading blasting ceasefire now does quote an stop sending bombs. Separately, many Democratic Women were white in honor of the suffragettes. Today is International Womens day. But biden began his state of the unit address on another Foreign Policy issue, the war in ukraine. He made a renewed appeal for the house to pass additional funds free crain in response to russias invasions. These are some of the president s opening remarks. Pres. Biden not since president lincoln and the civil war have freedom and democracy been under assault her