An ex-sheep farmer who once raised animals for slaughter is speaking out ahead of Easter. He’s urging the public to reconsider eating lamb. This comes as new data highlights how demand continues to drive the killing of young animals.

Animal Justice Project is releasing a new video interview with Devon-based farmer Sivalingam “Kumar” Vasanthakumar. He gave up sheep farming and took his entire flock to sanctuary, before transitioning to a plant-based livelihood.

BBC News previously featured Vasanthakumar when he made the decision to leave farming behind. He now grows vegetables on his land and runs a vegan street food business, Kumar’s Dosa Bar, using largely home-grown produce.

Animal Justice Project is releasing a new film, A Change of Heart: From Sheep Farmer to Vegan, over the Easter weekend. It tells Vasanthakumar’s story. He says in the film that he saw his sheep “as individuals”:

Once you see that, you can’t continue as before.

Data reveals demand-led lamb killing – including around Easter

New analysis of 2025 slaughter figures from the Food Standards Agency shows that 11.5 million lambs were killed last year and of those, 893,336 were killed in April, coinciding with Easter demand. This means almost 8% of annual lamb slaughter, or 1 in 13 lambs killed last year, happened in April for the bank holiday weekend.

While this is lower than peak periods later in the year, it remains higher than surrounding months and reflects the continued cultural association between lamb and Easter.

By comparison, June saw 1,106,894 lambs slaughtered, as early-season lambs reach market weight and demand increases. Even higher peaks occur later in the year, driven by large-scale retail demand.

Animal Justice Project says that while Easter does not produce the largest spike, it remains a key moment where consumer choice directly influences the number of animals killed.

Claire Palmer, founder of Animal Justice Project, said:

Easter is often seen as a time of renewal and compassion, yet it’s still associated with eating lambs: animals who are only a few months old when they’re killed.

The data shows that whenever demand rises, more animals are slaughtered. Easter may not be the biggest spike, but it’s one of the most symbolic, because it’s driven by tradition, even though people have a clear choice not to eat animals.

Central London demonstration on Saturday 4 April

To coincide with the Easter weekend, Animal Justice Project will hold a public demonstration in Leicester Square, London. It’ll take place from 12pm to 3pm on Saturday 4 April.

The demonstration will feature a striking visual installation highlighting the reality behind lamb consumption.

A performer portraying a lamb will lie on a table, dressed in a white costume with lamb ears and realistic prosthetic wounds, including a slit throat and severe leg injury. A figure dressed as a butcher will appear to cut into the body. Meanwhile a pile of severed leg props at the end of the table will represent the scale of animals killed.

Alongside the installation, a volunteer will hold a life-size lamb prop, reinforcing the comparison between animals and humans. Other volunteers will hold signs and distribute leaflets encouraging passers-by to “Skip the Lamb”.

Palmer added:

We want people to stop and think. Behind every Easter meal is an animal who wanted to live.

Animal Justice Project is urging the public to choose plant-based alternatives this Easter. And to reconsider the long-standing link between lamb and the holiday. Palmer concluded:

Traditions can change. And when they involve the lives of young animals, they should.

Featured image via Animal Justice Project

Jeremy Corbyn’s Your Party (YP) and Zack Polanski’s Green Party appear to be making moves towards rehabilitating Zionism. Instead of opposing its colonialist ideology, they seem more inclined to support it.

A recent landmark motion which declared Zionism as a form of racism was railroaded by pro-Israel members at the Green Party’s spring conference. The blatant filibustering on display has devastated the huge proportion of the Green’s membership who rightfully demand an anti-Zionist stance.

However, disappointment for progressives does not end there. Corbyn’s YP appear to have taken heed of the subsequent fallout. Furthermore, an elected member of the Central Executive Committee (CEC) for Wales has suggested the new party entirely abandon its anti-Zionist pledge.

Once again, leaders appear to be choosing to give in to pressure rather than stand firm in recognition of Palestinians inherent and inalienable right to their own sovereign territory. After all, no ideology should afford anyone the right to dispossess, disavow, or displace another. Whether peaceful or violent, Zionism is an existential threat to Palestinians and frankly, anyone who stands in their way.

Host of Palestine Declassified Chris Williamson confronted Polanski’s “catastrophic error” on X:

I’ve been very complimentary about @ZackPolanski‘s stance on the economy, and I still believe an electoral agreement necessary for the next election. But he’s making a catastrophic error in trying to appease Zionists. Jeremy Corbyn made that mistake, yet they still destroyed him.… https://t.co/D2oscA3aAS

— Chris Williamson (@DerbyChrisW) April 2, 2026

Destroying Polanski’s suggestion that this is a ‘nuanced debate’, Williamson wrote:

There is nothing “nuanced” about Zionism, Zack and it’s not “complicated” either. Zionism is a Jewish supremacist ideology. This turbocharged racism normalises apartheid and genocide. It must be confronted and defeated. You cannot dodge this question, Zack. The Zionists are coming for you no matter what you do.

So your only realistic option is to fight them. If you don’t, then you’ve already lost.

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We’ve been here before

The 2019 antisemitism crisis in Corbyn’s Labour left socialists across the country demoralised and politically homeless, as the party purged Jewish anti-Zionist members over the contentious claim that their anti-Zionist beliefs were antisemitic.

Polanski himself has spoken about lessons he learned from his own poor behaviour at the time, in which he unquestioningly jumped on the antisemitism bandwagon pushed by the right-wing, pro-Israel, billionaire-owned media.

Yet when push comes to shove, both leaders seem unable to stand up against Zionism. Polanski, in particular, goes to great lengths to sanitise the ideology. He portrays it as though pro-Palestinian activists object only to its violent methods rather than its core principles.

As already mentioned, he isn’t alone in his apparent wilful ignorance. Corbyn, despite the destructive impact of Zionists within Labour, is now being asked by another elected official in Wales, Maria Donnellan, to abandon YP’s anti-Zionist pledge. Time will tell if Corbyn will resist but history suggests that concessions are his default response.

In protest at what they see as a move toward capitulation, members are reminding their leaders that they must confront Zionism at its roots.

Matthew Walker shared Donnellan’s messages following a leak from the YP WhatsApp group:

Shocking leaked Whatsapp messages show Your Party CEC member Maria Donnellan (@Maria4CEC4Cymru) arguing that YP shouldn’t adopt an anti-zionist policy.

She describes zionism as “Jewish peoples movement for self-determination in their historic homeland.”

This is liberal zionism pic.twitter.com/C500Jji99g

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— Matthew Walker (@matthewjswalker) March 29, 2026

It’s funny how Palestinians never seem to have an inalienable right to their own homeland, as is afforded to Zionists. This comes regardless of the fact that Palestinians have lived on that land—their land—for generations. Ignoring the mass murder, dispossession, terrorism and oppression they have lived under for nearly 80 years, it seems some seek to rehabilitate ‘softer’ versions of this settler-colonialist ideology.

Cambridge YP’s divisive Kika even deplorably sought to argue that CEC members should be ‘exempt from scrutiny’:

More disgusting zionism from the Your Party whatsapp group today in response to the member petition to recall @Maria4CEC4Cymru from the CEC.

In defense of Maria, Kika claims that jewish people have a right to self-determination on stolen Palestinian land because of the holocaust https://t.co/999UJHCr0b pic.twitter.com/eXhSpEM5Qn

— Matthew Walker (@matthewjswalker) March 31, 2026

Doomed to repeat old failures

Of course, no one wants their racist views unearthed. Still, their hurt feelings do not equate to the sustained suffering and murder of Palestinians due to Zionist policy.

On the other hand, YP and Green members are standing firm and refusing to be deterred. They are demanding stronger leadership. In addition, they insist that Palestinians’ suffering under Zionism cannot be ignored — whether it comes from the political left or the right.

Connections co-founder Anwarul Khan did not mince his words as he expressed his disgust at YP’s direction of travel. He posted on X:

Ffs. Did not take long for zionist poison to infiltrate the party. With what happened in Greens yesterday and this. Its really depressing that this racist ideology is allowed to fester anywhere, let alone YP.

Journalist Paul Holden published “The Fraud” last year. He unearthed the scandal that purged so many socialist members and destroyed Labour’s chances in the 2019 general election.

Writing in the Canary, Holden wrote:

Broadly, the ‘antisemitism crisis’ wove a series of discrete allegations of anti-Jewish rhetoric or discrimination, levelled against individual Labour members as well as the party’s leadership and institutional practices, into a comprehensive indictment: that Corbyn’s Labour Party was deeply antisemitic, and that this antisemitism flowed from the left-wing ideology Corbyn espoused.

Polanski’s stewardship of the Greens appears set on a similarly troubling trajectory. An open letter sent to the party just yesterday details how actors are levelling allegations of antisemitism against anti-Zionist members.

We wrote about the open letter, in which Hamza Egal—chair of Global Majority Greens and elected SOC member—said:

A serious dimension of this pattern has been the repeated use of accusations of antisemitism — deployed not only against me but against many members of this party who oppose Zionism and its racist ideology and practice. For a Black Muslim man raising concerns about racism, governance, and Palestine solidarity, these accusations have taken on a particularly targeted character.

Another antisemitism crisis appears to be brewing

It is clear that Zionists are hard at work in the Greens and YP after recognising the huge support amongst members for the liberation of our Palestinian brothers and sisters. It has long been clear, amidst over 30 national demonstrations opposing Israel and its genocide, that the British public believe in international law and the importance of doing what is right; not what is easy.

After all, authorities have not made speaking up for Palestine easy, repeatedly using lawfare to shut down advocacy for Palestinians’ fundamental rights whilst working to restrict freedom of speech in the UK.

Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism. In fact, many argue that Zionism in itself is antisemitic.

Andrew Feinstein, son of a holocaust survivor who lost her family to Hitler’s true antisemitism, refuses to sit back and watch the continual dilution of antisemitism:

People like Heidi Bachram do more to render antisemitism meaningless by regarding criticism of Israel as antisemitic. To suggest that all Jews are of one mind about Israel or anything else is deeply offensive. To many such as Stephen Kapos or my survivor mother, the lesson of… https://t.co/WvkDntMNxj

— Andrew Feinstein (@andrewfeinstein) March 31, 2026

Featured image via the Canary

The Telegraph is inciting hatred of disabled kids, again. The right-wing shit rag published a piece suggesting parents are forcing ADHD diagnoses for benefits. Coincidentally, this comes just as the Department of Health and Social Care has published an interim report into their review on whether the condition is overdiagnosed.

Shit rags spreading ADHD hate

The Telegraph ran with the headline:

I’m a GP, and I’m tired of putting children on the ADHD bandwagon

Arguing that:

There are perverse incentives that may be driving some parents towards getting their child a diagnosis

The ‘perverse incentives’ Dr. Katie Musgrave talks about are, of course, SEND support and welfare benefits.

This being the Telegraph, Musgrave thought it was relevant to detail that 276,000 children get Disability Living Allowance for ‘behavioural disorders.’ She then links it to the rising number of people claiming PIP for conditions such as ADHD. This both belittles the condition and vilifies concerned parents.

Instead of highlighting, as a doctor, how dire a state the NHS is in and that this has led to never-ending waiting lists, Musgrave blames this on the number of ADHD referrals. She then accuses parents of going through ‘Right to Choose’ as it’s seen as an easier route to getting a diagnosis.

The good doctor says that, actually, kids just need to get off their iPads and go outside:

Many children in the UK are faced with significant social and developmental challenges, but that does not excuse the current system which classifies an increasing proportion of children as having a disability. Sadly, many of these young people go on to become dependent on state benefits, and face a future of unemployment. The government would be better off investing in sports and social activities for children and young people. All children – but perhaps especially those with additional needs – benefit from getting off screens, becoming more physically active and interacting with others.

She concludes:

Perverse incentives are currently labelling a generation of children as neuro-diverse, while locking many into a dependence on state benefits: which is neither good for the individual, nor the economy. The whole system needs to be made more accessible, pragmatic, and equitable. This is public money we are talking about, after all; and children’s lives.

Just a coincidence, right?

It must be a massive coincidence that the Telegraph has put out this blatant propaganda designed to turn people against disabled people this week. Especially since the Department of Health and Social Care have also released their interim report into the Independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism. 

The review will look into the increase in diagnoses and the ‘strain’ that is putting on the NHS. It’s being carried out at the same time as the DWP is changing PIP eligibility. With a spate of hate around the increase in claimants with neurodivergent and mental health conditions, it’s easy to see that this review would give Labour the ammunition to cut benefits.

But as much as the interim report tries to blame things such as TikTok for the increase in the conditions, it has to admit that this is bullshit. Whilst it does try to claim that TikTok is a catalyst, the report then has to contradict itself.

These developments are not solely associated with increased diagnostic demand. Many observers emphasise that online communities, peer networks and advocacy groups have also played an important role in increasing awareness of mental health and neurodevelopmental conditions, reducing stigma and enabling individuals to find explanation and community where their experiences were previously misunderstood or dismissed. For some individuals, such spaces provide validation, a sense of identity, practical advice and a sense of belonging that may not have been available through formal services.

Honestly, the report is just a big example of the review trying to come to its own foregone conclusion, but being headed off at every pass with the facts that ADHD and other conditions aren’t overdiagnosed.

That’s why it’s especially interesting that the press is running with this narrative. Whilst The Telegraph article doesn’t specifically mention the report, the Times reported 

Children and young adults are “incentivised” to get diagnosed with ADHD and autism and there has been a “medicalisation of distress”, a government inquiry has concluded.

Firstly, this is untrue because the review hasn’t ‘concluded,’ it’s an interim report. Secondly the report isn’t being run by experts in this particular area. In fact 32 ADHD experts have already disproved that it’s overdiagnosed.

Labour turning the public against disabled people, again

It’s incredible that the press is still running with stories of overdiagnosis for benefits when the report itself struggles to pin the blame on benefits.

Not to suggest that this is a pre-agreed or planted narrative, but the government does have a previous history when it comes to disabled benefits claimants.

While the report might be an 85-page cluster fuck that ties itself in knots trying to blame benefits fakers despite the evidence says otherwise, one thing is clear.

The government will try as much as possible to convince the public that ADHD and other conditions are overdiagnosed, so there won’t be an uproar when they strip vulnerable people of vital benefits.

The British Medical Association (BMA) is scheduled to begin six days of industrial action on 7 April 2026. The NHS strike was announced after the government attempted to play resident doctors off against their union. This occurred during a strike of their own.

Now, in response to the further strike action, the government has withdrawn part of its offer to resolve its previous dispute with resident doctors. Meanwhile, the NHS will be directly affected by these ongoing negotiations.

Residents without residency

In 2024, the term ‘resident doctors’ replaced the previous designation of ‘junior doctors’. ‘Junior’ was felt to be demeaning and misleading by members of the BMA. For many, including the general public, the term suggested a lack of training or expertise. On the contrary, resident doctors are fully qualified and are either in postgraduate training toward a particular area of specialised expertise. Alternatively, they may be employed in a non-training post within the NHS.

The idea was to choose a new name that better reflected the skills and responsibilities of resident doctors, but as far as the government is concerned, they may as well have kept their old name. Many are left on low pay, without enrollment in training, or without work all together in the NHS system.

The training undertaken by resident doctors is essential as it enables them to further improve the care they are employed to provide. The Canary‘s Alex/Rose Cocker explained:

To be clear, the BMA wants those training positions, but they’re not a bonus or luxury — it’s training for NHS doctors. Starmer is risking jeopardising the NHS for a fucking bargaining chip.

The government had threatened that it would cancel the 1,000 training posts offered to resident doctors unless the BMA cancelled its strike action. It gave the BMA 48 hours to respond. With the BMA unwilling to back down, the government has now made good on its threat.

‘Genuinely disheartening’

Speaking to the BBC, Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the resident doctors committee, said:

It is genuinely disheartening to be at this point after what had been constructive talks up until a few weeks ago when the government moved the goalposts.

It is simply wrong that the development of the doctors of the future is being used as a pawn like this.

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We have consistently maintained that we are willing to postpone industrial action should a genuinely credible offer be provided.

The announcement from the government follows the resolution with separate disputes with pharmaceutical companies and corporations. These groups already have the NHS and its patients over a barrel. The Canary‘s Jack Wright recently highlighted how there is one rule for capital, and another for workers.

pharmaceutical giants have been demanding that the NHS pay them more, or they will withhold investment. Labour agreed to a 25% increase in payments for essential drugs in December 2025.

Meanwhile, resident doctors are asking for real-terms pay restoration to 2008 levels, at 21%. The government is offering a 7.1% increase … However, it isn’t sufficient for a doctor’s pay.

Strike to go ahead as planned

The doctors’ strike is scheduled to go ahead as planned, beginning at 7:00am on 7 April. Patients have been warned that non-emergency appointments and procedures may be disrupted by the industrial action across the NHS.

Featured image via the Canary

The Defence Minister of India – Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) Rajnath Singh – celebrated that Indian defence exports had touched a new all-time high with a record 38,424 crore rupees ($4.4 billion), an 63% annual increase.

The BJP’s defence boast is meant to ease concerns about India’s ballooning current account deficit, particularly as Modi’s western pivot to Trump and Netanyahu faces growing opposition from the public.

Under the inspiring leadership of PM Shri @narendramodi, India is scripting an impressive defence exports success story!

India defence exports have touched a new all time high with a record ₹38,424 crore in FY 2025-26. It marks a robust 62.66% growth over the previous fiscal.… pic.twitter.com/eAAh1PYX7e

— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) April 2, 2026

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According to the BJP, Indian defence exports are now reaching the United States, Israel, the UAE, Australia, and Japan. Indian-made defence electronics are being exported to the US, UK, and France. Bulletproof jackets from India are being supplied to Australia, Japan, Israel, and Brazil. Ammunition is reaching the UAE, Egypt, Indonesia, and Thailand.

A

recent report by KPMG India pushed India to adopt Israel’s approach to defence exports if it wants to sustain the momentum and break into the global top tier. It suggested India should have a similar centralised export agency like Israel’s SIBAT.

Israel, with a much lower annual defence spend compared to India, has emerged as one of the key defence export hubs of the world and as per the SIPRI report of 2019, it ranks 8 in terms of defence exports. A major reason for its emergence as a defence manufacturing and export hub has been the establishment of SIBAT, a dedicated directorate under the Israeli Ministry of Defence (IMoD), that looks after promotion of defence exports and participates in the formulation of Israel’s defence export policy.

India is still mostly importing

India is still the world’s second-largest arms importer, but its imports have dropped slightly by 4 per cent. Russia used to supply 70 per cent of India’s weapons a decade ago. That has now fallen to 40 per cent, according to SIPRI.

Ukraine is the world’s largest arms importer.

India is now buying more from Western countries instead, given Modi’s capitulation to Netanyahu and Trump.

Israel’s Jerusalem Post recently featured a segment on India’s ties with Israel. Dr Lauren Dagan Amos said that “they want to learn lessons from that because what Israel did in Gaza, they want to do in Pakistan. That is the rationale.”

She explained that the relationship started with urgent operational needs and mutual interests. Over time, it moved beyond simple sales into co-development, co-production, and long-term maintenance within India.

She added that the Indian industry is now treated as a full partner, not just a customer.

BJP’s defence boast is to assuage underlying tensions

With oil prices rising due to the Iran war, India’s current account deficit is widening. It could reach 2.5 per cent of GDP in the coming fiscal year, according to Bloomberg.

Despite Modi’s western lurch, there are people in India who are on Iran’s side against “Yankee imperialism and zionist criminality.”

Mani Shankar Aiyar, a former Indian diplomat, said:

I am sure Iran can give a befitting answer to the needless aggression to which they have been subjected by a combination of Yankee imperialism and zionist criminality.

India voices support for Iran amid US-Israeli aggression

Press TV’s @aadilmir21 reports from New Delhi

Follow Press TV on Telegram: https://t.co/LWoNSpkc2J pic.twitter.com/DLwzjcUVJx

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— Press TV 🔻 (@PressTV) April 1, 2026

Modi’s Trump connection is being questioned in South Asia, similar to the blowback being experienced by other right-wing leaders like Starmer and Italy’s Meloni.

VIDEO | Assam: Addressing a public gathering in Jorhat, Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi says, “N.”

(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/n147TvrpG7) pic.twitter.com/nPAgXTmDpU

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 2, 2026

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As Rahul Gandhi recently noted, Narendra Modi’s future is in Trump’s hands.

Featured image via the Canary

Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has officially released a four-page “open letter” to the American people.

To the people of the United States of America pic.twitter.com/3uAL4FZgY7

— Masoud Pezeshkian (@drpezeshkian) April 1, 2026

However, many social media users have pointed out that if the average American were as well educated as the average Iranian, perhaps the US would not have started so many illegal wars.

If Americans could read 4 whole pages of text, we wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place. https://t.co/20RHi4N4JZ

— Siddharth (@DearthOfSid) April 1, 2026

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The letter lays out, in a calm and reasoned manner, why the world is currently in the state it’s in.

Unlike most of Trump’s unhinged rants on Truth Social, which may as well have been transcribed from a toddler’s ramble.

Iran responding to aggression

The letter starts by explaining that Iran has never initiated a war in its modern history – it has only responded to “aggression, expansion, colonialism, or domination”. Even after occupation, invasion, and sustained pressure from global superpowers, and despite having a military that is far superior to many of its neighbours.

It then goes on to say that, unlike what the US wants us to believe, Iran harbours no hatred towards other countries, including the US and Europe. It reads:

The Iranian people harbor no enmity toward other nations, including the people of America, Europe, or neighboring countries. Even in the face of repeated foreign interventions and pressures throughout their proud history, Iranians have consistently drawn a clear distinction between governments and the peoples they govern. This is a deeply rooted principle in Iranian culture and collective consciousness—not a temporary political stance

Which is why portraying Iran as a threat is:

neither consistent with historical reality nor with present-day observable facts.

US manufacturing an enemy

It adds that the perception is purely a product of “political and economic whims” of the powerful. The US needs to “manufacture an enemy” to justify its illegal wars and colonialism, whilst sustaining its arms industry.

If a threat does not exist, it’s invented.

He adds:

What Iran has done and continues to do-is a measured response grounded in legitimate self-defense, and by no means an initiation of war or aggression

The letter also guides readers back to 1953, when the US (and the UK) engineered an illegal coup against Mohammad Mosaddegh, Iran’s democratically elected prime minister.

Why? Because Mossadegh decided to nationalise the operations of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (later British Petroleum) in 1951.

Of course, nationalisation was a threat to both the US and UK’s strategic and economic interests, i.e., they would lose money.

That coup disrupted Iran’s democratic process, reinstated dictatorship, and sowed deep distrust among Iranians toward U.S. policies. This distrust deepened further with America’s support for the Shah’s regime, its backing of Saddam Hussein during the imposed war of 1980s, the imposition of the longest and most comprehensive sanctions in modern history, and ultimately, unprovoked military aggression-twice, in the midst of negotiations— against Iran.

But these pressures have not weakened Iran. Literacy rates have tripled, higher education has rapidly expanded, and modern technology and healthcare have advanced.

Of course, the impact of the destructive and inhumane sanctions from war and aggression cannot be underestimated:

This reflects a fundamental human truth: when war inflicts irreparable harm on lives, homes, cities, and futures, people will not remain indifferent toward those responsible

The letter asks:

Exactly which of the American people’s interests are truly being served by this war? Was there any objective threat from Iran to justify such behavior? Does the massacre of innocent children, the destruction of cancer-treatment pharmaceutical facilities, or boasting about bombing a country “back to the stone ages” serve any purpose other than further damaging the United States’ global standing?

‘Strategic bewilderment’

Pezeshkian writes:

Iran pursued negotiations, reached an agreement, and fulfilled all its commitments. The decision to withdraw from that agreement, escalate toward confrontation, and launch two acts of aggression in the midst of negotiations were destructive choices made by the U.S. government-choices that served the delusions of a foreign aggressor.

He then talks about the US targeting Iran’s energy infrastructure and industrial facilities. Obviously, this directly targets the Iranian people. He adds:

Beyond constituting a war crime, such actions carry consequences that extend far beyond Iran’s borders. They generate instability, increase human and economic costs, and perpetuate cycles of tension, planting seeds of resentment that will endure for years. This is not a demonstration of strength; it is a sign of strategic bewilderment and an inability to achieve a sustainable solution

Finally, he points out that America has entered this illegal war as a proxy for Israel. The Israeli machine has influenced and manipulated it by manufacturing an Iranian ‘threat’.

Of course, this is purely an effort to divert attention away from Israel’s war crimes against Palestinians.

He ends the letter with:

I invite you to look beyond the machinery of misinformation, an integral part of this aggression, and instead speak with those who have visited Iran. Observe the many accomplished Iranian immigrants educated in Iran-who now teach and conduct research at the world’s most prestigious universities, or contribute to the most advanced technology firms in the West. Do these realities align with the distortions you are being told about Iran and its people?

Featured image via HG

A Microsoft employee has quit over the company’s involvement in Israel’s war crimes and published a video calling on other Microsoft workers to join the movement.

Jenni is part of No Azure for Apartheid, a growing tech movement that is demanding that Microsoft live up to its own purported ethical values – by ending its direct and indirect complicity in Israeli apartheid and genocide.

Their website states:

We will not be cogs in the Israeli genocidal machine: a call for a Worker Intifada

The group has four demands:

1. IOF off Azure – End Microsoft’s complicity in Israeli genocide and apartheid by terminating all Azure contracts and partnerships with the Israeli military and government.
2. Disclose all ties – Make all ties to the Israeli state, military, and tech industry publicly known, including weapons manufacturers and contractors. Conduct a transparent and independent audit of Microsoft’s technology contracts, services, and investments.
3. Call for a ceasefire – Honor the demands of over 1,000 employees who signed a petition calling on Microsoft’s leadership to publicly endorse an immediate and permanent ceasefire.
4. Protect employees – Ensure the safety of Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and allied employees by protecting pro-Palestinian speech, actions, and fundraising initiatives on internal company platforms.

Jenni has been an AI transcription writer at Microsoft for the past three and a half years. She was working on a product for doctors and nurses to take notes.

In an exclusive statement, Jenni told the Canary:

Dual-use technology means that the same Al systems we use to summarize meetings and write emails can be used to surveil the phone calls of Palestinian citizens or flag a children’s school as a military target. This is why as tech workers we have a critical responsibility to reclaim our labor when we see it being repackaged and re-sold as an accessory to crimes against humanity.

I resigned today to make this message clear to Microsoft – that Microsoft workers refuse to be complicit in the company’s war crimes, and that we are not afraid to withhold our labor in order to refuse being exploited to power this Al-assisted genocide.

In the video shared online, Jenni said:

If you work for one of these companies your work could be sold to a hospital one day and then to ICE or detention services the following day or maybe even a foreign government who’s carrying out a genocide. This has already happened.

A year ago, former Microsoft employees Ibtihal Aboussad and Vaniya Agrawal protested Microsoft’s fiftieth anniversary celebration. Ibtihal worked on an AI transcription service for accessibility, which, of course, was very useful and did not involve war crimes. Microsoft fired both of them.

However, it then sold that product to the Israeli military, which used it to spy on and murder innocent Palestinians.

Participating in war crimes

Microsoft has been working with Israel for decades. It insists on continuing their relationship despite international bodies recognising that Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza. Israel has committed a very long list of war crimes, which Microsoft is choosing to ignore.

As the Canary previously reported, leaked documents show that after October 7, Microsoft significantly increased its operations with Israel’s military.

The files showed that Microsoft was supplying the IOF with greater computing and storage services, and:

striking at least $10m in deals to provide thousands of hours of technical support.

Now, the Israeli military continues to bomb, blockade, and starve Gaza whilst claiming to be adhering to the “ceasefire”. Similarly, in Lebanon, Israel is destroying historic buildings and communities, while murdering thousands of civilians.

The Guardian found that the leaked documents:

illustrate how the US tech behemoth supported a range of sensitive activities.

This includes managing the movement of Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Additionally, Microsoft engineers have been providing support to Israel through their analysis of “visual intelligence”. This is likely to be the innumerable drones used by the Israeli military. Essentially, Microsoft’s support is providing the technological infrastructure for genocide.

Forcing their hand

Last summer, Microsoft staff protesters set up the Liberated Zone on the Martyred Palestinian Children’s Plaza and the Mai Ubeid Building. This was to draw attention to the company’s involvement in Israel’s genocide.

It was only then, coupled with journalists proving how much Israel was relying on Microsoft’s technology to commit war crimes, that Microsoft took action.

However, it only cut a few services to Israel’s Unit 8200 — just one of the IOF’s elite military intelligence units. Obviously, this is nowhere near enough.

Since then, Israel’s war crimes have only intensified, alongside its reliance on big tech, AI, and companies such as Microsoft.

Only last month, the US military double-tapped a girls’ primary school in Minab, Iran. Reports suggest that AI identified the school as a target. Big Tech is aiding and abetting war crimes all over the world.

Jenni ended the video by saying:

This and more is why I am leaving Microsoft. I am very lucky that I am able to do so. I’m very lucky that I get to speak out in this way. If you work at Microsoft, please join No Azure for Apartheid. Sign their pledge

We’ve got thousands of people who are now saying that we don’t want our work to be used for war crimes.
You can stay anonymous. You can stay risk-free. Everyone is welcome. For everyone else – Do what you can. Keep all eyes on Gaza. Free Palestine

Feature image via No Azure for Apartheid

According to the National, someone has called the police on ex-MSP Tommy Sheridan and the reason is because Sheridan called the US and Israel “evil”.

Which they objectively are.

Because of all the evil shit they keep doing.

NEW: Police have received a complaint against former MSP Tommy Sheridan over a speech he gave in which he called Israel and the USA ‘evil’ https://t.co/5Xnluj4C0H

— The National (@ScotNational) April 1, 2026

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Israel ARE evil

Sheridan is running in this year’s Holyrood elections for the Alliance to Liberate Scotland. He’s previously been a member of Alba, and was the leader of the Scottish Socialist Party.

In the offending video, Sheridan addressed a hall full of people, saying:

Brothers and sisters, we were on the side of the IRA because they were doing the resistance.

We’re on the side of Hamas in Palestine because they’re doing the resistance.

We’re on the side of Hezbollah in Lebanon because they’re doing the resistance.

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And we’re on the side today of the Iranians and Yemen because they’re standing up against the twin pillars of evil in our society today, the United States of America and Israel.

They epitomise evil in our planet.

Increasingly, it isn’t an uncommon opinion to support whoever the Yanks are invading.

During the Invasion of Iraq, there was considerable support in the West despite the obvious criminality of the war. Now, most people recognise that America and its attack dog Israel are the aggressors.

People also recognise their lives keep getting worse because our governments have pissed money up the wall on immoral wars of aggression.

Sheridan also said:

If somebody says to me, Tommy, whose side are you on?

I say I am not on the side of those that murder children, that torture children, that steal their land that belongs to the Palestinians.

I’m on the side of those who resist repression and if that means you don’t vote for me, then tough fucking titty.

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And as reported by the National, Sheridan branded:

the USA and Israel “evil” and [said] he is not on the side of “those who murder children”.

Sheridan has since provided the following quote from Trump to backup his argument:

Yet I’m reported to the police for calling out these evil bastards 🤦😡🇮🇱🤮🇺🇸🤮 https://t.co/jLwy7duomP pic.twitter.com/pgQgMr5YPW

— Tommy Sheridan (@citizentommy) April 2, 2026

In terms of Israel, doctors provided evidence that Israeli snipers were “systematically targeting Gaza’s children” – the very definition of evil by anyone’s standards.

Responding to the police report, Sheridan said:

This is obviously someone with a lot of time on their hands.

There is zero criminality in the comments. I was merely expressing the side of the fence I am on in relation to these resistance fighters.

Any suggestion of criminality is mythical. I think the police have more to do than deal with this.

Differences

As you’d expect given his links to Alba, Sheridan has transphobic views:

👏👏👏♀️
Women are born not certificated. That statement of fact is not bigotry or discriminatory it is a biological fact. It is truth no matter how many transactivists shout loud or scream transphobia. Transgender people deserve kindness & consideration but not false recognition https://t.co/B9DAGIFWhr

— Tommy Sheridan (@citizentommy) April 24, 2025

In case you don’t follow, Sheridan is saying that he’s willing to be polite to trans people but won’t recognise them by their identified gender.

We certainly don’t agree with this, but we’re not calling the police on Sheridan because he said something we don’t like.

The fact that the US and Israel’s defenders can’t say the same shows what snowflakes they are.

Featured image via Raw Pixel