And tax corporations. He likes the word of the month of washington is sequestration automatic 85 billion in spending cuts slated to take effect on march 1 unless Congress Reaches a deal. What will that mean . Butt bring war to campus that is the message at university opposing the pentagon funding of the proposed new Research Center on campus to train special Operations Forces in interview techniques. First, we speak to Sharif Abdel Kouddous just back from bahrain, or the u. S. Backed monarchy continues to crack down on pro democracy activists. All of that and more coming up. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. Republican senator Lindsey Graham has revealed he says the death toll in u. S. Drone war overseas. At a speech in South Carolina wednesday night, he said his comments mark the first time a u. S. Official has offered a figure for those killed in nearly a decade of u. S. Drone strikes abroad. The 4700 figure matches the high end of an estimate by the bureau of investigative journalism, which extensively has covered the strikes. The news comes as the Obama Administration continues to stonewall members of congress on fully releasing the Justice Department memos explaining the legal rationale for targeted killings overseas. The white house agreed to a least partially disclose the memos earlier this month after a senate uproar amid the conformation hearings for cia nominee john brennan. But the New York Times reports the administration has adopted a strategy of continuing to deny senators full access while simultaneously negotiating with republicans to reveal more information on the deadly u. S. Consulate in benghazi, libya. The strategy appears focused on ensuring the white house has enough votes for brennanss confirmation what continuing to keep details of its Assassination Program under wraps. The pentagon has notified its 800,000 civilian employees of likely furloughs should automatic spending cuts kick in at the end of the month. The military will lose 46 billion in funding unless president obama and Congressional Republicans can resolve their latest budget standoff by march 1st. In a speech at the university of virginia on wednesday, secretary of state john kerry warned the looming sequester could threaten u. S. Diplomacy overseas. I am particularly aware that in many ways the greatest challenge to americas Foreign Policy today is in the hands not of diplomats, but of policy makers in congress. It is often said that we cannot be strong at home if were not strong in the world. But in these days of a looming budget sequester that everyone actually wants to avoid or most we cannot be strong in the world unless we are strong at home. My credibility as a diplomat working out other countries, create order, is strongest when america at last put its own fiscal house in order, and that has to be now. We will have more on the sequester later in the broadcast. At least 31 people reportedly have been killed in a car bombing in syrias capital of damascus. The attack targeted the headquarters of syrias ruling baath party. It was of the dead were civilians, with many more wounded the nine nations of civilia casualties in afghanistan have declined for the first time in six years. At least 2754 afghan civilians were killed in 2012, a drop of 12 . Director of human rights for United NationsAssistance Mission in afghanistan linked the decline to less attacks by both militants and u. S. Led nato occupation. Round engagements between the party cost eurhere casualties. There was a decline in suicide attacks by antigovernment elements. There was a reduced number of aerial operations by International Military forces, and there was measures taken by both the Afghan Forces and International Forces to reduce harm to civilians. They actually made a change, we think, based on much of our efforts and the efforts of other afghans to work with them to minimize civilian harm. Human rights watch is warning mexico is enduring what it calls the most severe crisis of enforced disappearance and latin america in decades. Around 150 people and maybe hundreds more have disappeared at the hands of mexicos police and military to in the sixyear drug war. At least 60 of the abduction cases raised questions of Police Collusion with the drug cartels theyre purporting to fight. Human rights watch is calling on the Mexican Government to investigate each case and establish a thorough process for documenting deaths and disappearances. According to one government estimate, some 70,000 people have died in mexicos drug war since it was declared in 2006. President obama has reportedly decided on his second term nominee to head the Environment Protection agency and department of energy. Reuters reports obama has tapped air quality expert Gina Mccarthy to replace lisa jackson at the epa. Mccarthy currently serves as assistant administrator for the epa office of air and radiation. The Nuclear Physicist ernest moniz meanwhile is reportedly the pick to head the energy department. A former undersecretary of energy under president clinton, moniz currently heads the Energy Initiative at mit the group food and water watch has started a petition against his potential bid, citing his support to the gas drilling process known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Virginia lawmakers have approved a new measure imposing strict requirements for photo id at the polls. The bill would force voters to produce governmentissued documents such as a drivers license, passport or a voterid card in order to cast their ballots. Although republican governor Bob Mcdonnell is expected to sign the measure into law, the Justice Department will have to sign off on its adoption. The Voting Rights act mandates federal oversight of voting laws in states with a history of disenfranchising african americans. The fbi has launched a probe of potential Insider Trading in the purchase of the food giant h. J. Heinz. A consortium of the firms 3 g capital and Warren Buffett pause Berkshire Hathaway acquired heinz for 28 billion earlier this week. The fbi says a number of suspicious trades took place one day before the deal was announced. Former democratic congressmember jesse jackson, jr. Has formally pled guilty to spending more than 750,000 in Campaign Funds on personal items. Jackson used donations for purchases including music memorabilia and items for his home. He resigned last year after a several month leave to seek treatment for bipolar disorder. Outside the courtroom, a defense attorney said jacksons condition is improving and expressed hope his record a Public Service will factor into his sentencing. Jesse hass out thats Serious Health issues. Many of you know about them. Were going to talk about the extensively with the courts. Those Health Issues are directly related to his present predicament. That is not an excuse, that is a fact. Jesse has turned the corner there as well, and i think there is reason for optimism here, too. I would say we are hopeful and we expect that there will be fairness in the process for person was contributed so much to his community, though done so much for some of people, would, and should, get credit for it. Jesse jackson jr. Will be sentenced in june. He faces up to five years in prison under his plea deal. The pentagon has launched a probe into recent magazine interview with the navy still reportedly killed osama bin laden. Speaking to us or magazine, the unidentified seal clancy lost medical benefits for himself and his family after recently leaving the navy. The article quotes him saying he goes on to use an expletive to describe the navys attitude toward his wellbeing. Navy commanders have pushed back against the seals claims, saying he knowingly retired years before becoming eligible for additional benefits. Military investigators are looking into whether the interview divulged classified information about the rate of some of the ladens pakistan compound. Oscarnominated palestinian filmmaker has spoken out the day after being detained and questioned at Los Angeles International airport along with his family. Emad burnat arrived in los angeles to attend this Sundays Academy awards, where he is nominated in the best documentary category for five broken cameras. The Film Documents the growth of a Resistance Movement to the israeli separation wall in the west bank village of bilin. Emad burnat and his family were freed after the Filmmaker Michael Moore sent out twitter messages and called lawyers to intervene. Emad burnat and Michael Moore discuss the incident wednesday night at in event. When i got here yesterday, it was different treatment. They were questioning me. They were asking for more documents and more papers. I had the visa and i had the documents and i had the invitation. I had everything, but they were asking for me to give them more documents. I called the head of the academy and the lawyer and that an immigration lawyer, all within five minutes. Then i called a friend that works in the state department and now its probably a half hour or so later, they released him. You can go to democracynow. Org to see the interviews. Those are some of the headlines free of the this is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman with juan gonzalez. Welcome to all our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. We begin todays show looking at the gulf nation of bahrain, a close u. S. Ally and home of the navys fifth fleet. Tensions remain high after a teenager was killed last week on the second anniversary of pro democracy protests. Since february 2011, at least 87 people have died at the hands of u. S. Backed Security Forces. While talks are taking place this week between the bahraini government and Opposition Groups, several of the nations leading human rights defenders remain in prison. Attorney abdulhadi al khawaja, cofounder of the Bahrain Center for human rights, is serving a life sentence. Nabeel rajat, another prominent human rights defender, is serving a threeyear sentence. Sharif Abdel Kouddous has just returned from bahrain. His latest article is, scenes from a bahraini burial. He joins us from his home in cairo, egypt. And welcome to democracy now talk about what you found in bahrain. How difficult was it to get in . I was granted at the last moment a journalist visa for three days. Therefore, the uprising, the anniversary of the uprising on february 14. Really, on that day and the days afterward, bahrain had the feeling of a country under occupation. There were riot police in full armor wielding tear gas, helicopters buzzing overhead conducting surveillance. There were checkpoints set up along the major roads with Security Forces stopping motorists, checking i. E. D. s, sometimes keeping people for hours and harassing them. Inside the villages, clashes take place with police with young men and boys throwing molotov cocktails and stones at police, usually been attacked with shotguns and suffocating them out with tear gas. You see many of these young men going toward the sides of the pearl roundabout, the roundabout destroyed by the government in the early months of the uprising in 2011. This is a combat recurrence symbolic action. This was the scene on the ground in bahrain. As you mentioned, a 16yearold boy was shot and killed by Police Officer as eyewitnesses told me he was not more than three or 4 yards away from the Police Officer when he was killed. This was only fueled the unrest. His funeral two days later was attended by thousands of People Holding up pictures of him, smiling picture of him, chanting things like down with the king nexthrain and im the martyr. Police cordoned off the entire area of that Morning Police had put roadblocks on all the major roads leading to a major area to these two villages were the funeral march would take place. There was an unforgettable scene as the march reached the graveyard and the boys body was being lowered into the grave, protesters continued moving forward toward the pearl roundabout were dozens of Security Forces were waiting for them. There was tear gas being fired and people were holding tissues and gas masks over their hands and out as this body was being lowered into the ground this was the kind of scene that is in bahrain and many people lament from the Opposition Movement that they have been forsaken by the International Community and forgotten by the worlds media for this uprising that does not get a lot of attention in the media. Sharif Abdel Kouddous, you mention the tear gas fired read in your article you talk about the lethal use of tear gas throughout this democracy uprising by the Government Forces in bahrain. Could you expand on that . It must be mentioned large ranks of the police are recruits from other countries like pakistan, yemen, and jordan. There referred to by protesters and oppositionists as mercenaries. The Security Forces the government have been heavily criticized for the use of tear gas in bahrain. People speak of it as an unavoidable hazard of everyday life. Physicians for human rights, u. S. Based group, released a study last to that found the governments use of tear gas was unprecedented in the world. People speak about how it is shot into apartments, into cars. Pregnant women have had miscarriages because of this. People speak of different types of colored gas, yellow, blue, and black. This is the kind of repression and crackdown we are seeing. On the eve of the uprising, a woman by the name 36yearold cashier at the country mall, died of lung infection after a monthlong stint in the hospital. She would go home every day to her village and have to be exposed to a lot of gas with a clashes around her village. She would often faint on the way home. People documented her case, told me she would often of vomit. She had stomach problems and eventually developed a lung infection. She had a preexisting medical condition which complicated the case, but her family points to the government and blame them directly for the killing. Hundreds turned out for her funeral. They also lay the blame and call her a martyr said she died at the hands of the governments use of lethal use of tear gas. Can you talk about the announcement by the king to begin talks with political opposition, their significance, the monarchy a close ally of the u. S. Government . Right, the king called for National Dialogue to be held and the first session was held february 5. This is the first attempt of toxins dialogue broke down at since the summer 2011. This is the first attempt at talks since dialogue broke down in the summer of 2011. The largest political Opposition Group is calling for a constitutional monarchies, major reforms including an elected Prime Minister to replace the kings uncle who has been in power as Prime Minister for an astounding 42 years. Theres a lot of skepticism i spoke to people on the ground of the outcome of the talks that speaks to a deep mistrust of the government, given the crackdown that we have seen on protesters, on human rights workers over these last two years they say the end of the recommendations put forward in a government commissions inquiry that was released in november 2011 has been implemented. They say none of the key ones have been implemented, rather. The same goes for a u. N. Report released in september that had a host of recommendations. They say none of those have been implemented. Theres a lot of skepticism and distrust of the government. We will have to see where these talks go. The increased unrest we have seen in the last week threatens to derail them. Sharif Abdel Kouddous, democracy now correspondent, fellow at the Nation Institute read his latest piece is, scenes from a bahraini burial. We will have a link to it on democracynow. Org. Back in a moment. [music break] this is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman with juan gonzalez. We turn now to a controversy brewing at Yale University over a proposed center that would use immigrants from the surrounding community to train special Operations Forces in interview techniques. The center would be funded by a 1. 8 million grant from the department of defense, and could open as early as april. It would be housed at the yale schoo