Newscast for Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Senate hears plans to reduce gun violence: background checks, weapons bans, increasing firearms

The US Senate held its first hearing since the Newtown school shooting on proposals to stem gun violence. Lawmakers debated stricter background checks, bans on certain kinds of weapons and ammunition, and plans to arm more citizens. This week, shootings on a school bus in Alabama and near a school in Chicago claimed more lives, and another shooting in Arizona injured more during the Senate hearing. Yet the lawmakers on the Judiciary Committee and the expert witnesses failed to agree today on a path forward. One key Democrat plans to hold her own hearings in the coming weeks. On Capitol Hill, FSRN’s Alice Ollstein has more.

Parents, students demand nationwide moratorium on public schools closings

Public school parents and students from 18 cities across the country gathered in Washington, DC this week to demand a nationwide moratorium on school closings. They argue that schools are often closed without public input and that harms students and disrupts entire communities. Critics most school closings target communities of color, which makes them a violation of their civil rights. FSRN's Jaisal Noor reports.

Blackout at Guantanamo hearing draws attention to restrictions at military commissions

This week, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and four other defendants accused of planning the September 11 terrorist attacks are facing a pre-trial hearing at the Guantanamo Bay military commissions. At issue are a number of motions, including access to evidence and classified information and whether the torture of defendants while in US custody at CIA black sites can be part of the trial. The proceedings were interrupted at one point this week when the audio and video feed was suddenly blacked out after one of the defense attorneys began discussing the CIA black sites.

Reporter Jason Leopold was there and he joins us on the line from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba where he’s been monitoring the hearing this week for Truthout.

You can follow Jason Leopold’s reporting from Guantanamo at truth-out.org.

Myanmar steps up attacks on Kachin rebels amid humanitarian concerns

Myanmar’s armed forces have intensified attacks against the ethnic Kachin rebels near the border with China. The military for the country, also known as Burma, stepped up attacks just miles from the headquartered township of Laiza despite calls for a ceasefire. As FSRN’s Ron Corben reports, the escalation in the fighting has raised fears by humanitarian organizations about the welfare of thousands of internally displaced people as the government pushes to end the Kachin armed resistance.