Violence Increases in Gaza After Suicide Attack

Violence Increases in Gaza After Suicide Attack

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BEIT HANOUN, Gaza – Israel intensified it raids against Hamas after the organization confirmed that it was responsible for the suicide attack in Dimona on February 4.  At first there was confusion over which group carried out the attack; initially the the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine groups claimed responsibility.  However, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, released a video of the two suicide bombers, Mohammed al-Hibrawi and Shadee Z’Ghayer, preparing for the attack.  Both men were from the West Bank city of Hebron.  However, there are reports that al-Hibrawi and Z’Ghayer do not fit the description of the men killed in Dimona.

This is the first suicide attack that Hamas has carried out since it abandoned the practice in 2004.  This marks a possibly deadly change in its policy towards Israel.  In the video of the bombers, they stated that the realities in Gaza pushed them to carry out the attack.

Following the attack in Israel on February 4, Israel has carried out several military operations in Gaza, killing at least eight Palestinians on February 5 and at least six on February 6.  On February 5, two Israeli Defense Force (IDF) operations were conducted.  One operation left two members of Hamas dead near the border.  A second operation killed six members of Hamas in police station in Khan Yunis.

On February 6, at least four members of Hamas and a member of the Islamic Jihad were killed in an operation in Beit Hanoun; three were killed by missiles and the others were killed in an exchange of gunfire with Israeli ground forces.  In the strike on February 6, a school teacher was killed as a school was hit.  Three teenaged students were also injured.  Israeli army states that the missile was aimed at a rocket-firing crew nearby.  Israel said that there will be an investigation into the teacher’s death.

As IDF operations increased, there has been an increase in the number of missiles being launched from Gaza into Israel. On February 5, Hamas fired several rockets into the town of Sderot.  One Qassam rocket struck a house causing extensive damage.  A second rocket struck a factory warehouse.  On February 6, a rocket landed in Kibbutz Beeri, a village located about four miles from the border, and injured two sisters, aged 12 and 2, who were playing outside.  IDF operations in Gaza discovered several underground caches of rockets.

In addition to increasing military operations, Israel also began to cut the power it supplies to Gaza.  Shlomo Dror, a spokesperson for Ehud Barak, stated the reduction will be less than 1% of the 124 megawatts of power Israel supplies Gaza.  Matan Vilnai, Israel’s deputy defense minister, stated that Israel is “trying to reduce the Gaza Strip’s dependence on Israel in many fields.”

Also, there has been discussion of alternative or additional methods that Israel could employ to stop the barrage of rockets from Gaza.  One suggestion is a military operation to re-occupy Gaza.  A second suggestion is targeting top political leaders of Hamas.  This was done in 2004 by Ariel Sharon, when Israel assassinated Hamas founder Ahmed Yassin and its top Gaza politician, Abdel Aziz Rantissi.  Since then, Israel has limited its strikes to target armed militants.

This policy is supported by Tzahi Hanegbi, a senior member of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s Kadima party and the chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.  Hanegbi argues since the field commanders and militants carrying out the attacks are acting on the political leaders’ orders that the political leaders of Hamas are legal military targets.  He told Israeli Radio that “there’s no difference between those who wear a suicide suit and a diplomat’s suit.”

For more information, please see:
Al Jazeera – Israel Reduces Gaza Power Supply – 8 February 2008

International Herald Tribune – Rockets Hit Israel After Power Cut – 8 February 2008

Jerusalem Post – Israel May Target Hamas Heads – 8 February 2008

Al Jazeera – Gaza Teach Killed in Israel Raid – 7 February 2008

Associated Press – Gaza Rocket Wounds 2 Israeli Girls – 7 February 2008

BBC – Israel Launches Deadly Gaza Raids – 7 February 2008

Jerusalem Post – Barak: IDF Ops to Grow Even Stronger – 7 February 2008

Washington Post – Israel to Intensify Strikes if Rocket Fire Continues – 7 February 2008

Al Jazeera – Hamas Claims Dimona Raid – 6 February 2008

The Daily Star – Hamas Vows Retaliation After Israeli Attack Kill Nine in Gaza – 6 February 2008

Independent – Hamas Admits Suicide Attacks as Israel Retaliates – 6 February 2008

YouTube – Dimona Bombers’ Families Speak to Al Jazeera – 6 February 2008

Jewish Telegraphic Agency – Hanegbi Wants Hamas Politicos Hit – 5 February 2008

Victims Take Part in Nuon Chea’s Hearing

By Kristy Tridhavee
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Nuon Chea made his first public appearance at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal in a hearing regarding his bail. Nuon Chea’s attorneys requested the tribunal release him on bail pending trial because authorities interrogated him without his attorneys. During the bail hearing, victims from the Khmer Rouge regime also spoke.

A victim who survived the Khmer Rouge regime’s atrocities participated in the hearings to argue against releasing Nuon Chea on bail. Theary Seng, a Cambodian-American who is now a lawyer, told the tribunal of her experiences under the regime as a child. She said, “My brother, who was younger than me, and I were put in prison under Mr. Nuon Chea’s regime. We were not informed of our rights. There was no due process and we were arrested arbitrarily. They treated us inhumanely — for us, the graveyard was our playground. Here Mr. Nuon Chea is afforded all the protection of the best legal principles and ideals (in) both domestic and international law.”

Theary Seng’s testimony marks an important event in international law. Helen Jarvis, a tribunal spokeswoman, referred to the appearance of regime survivors “historic.” She continued, “To actually stand across the room from someone who a victim feels is responsible for their suffering is very important and at the leading edge of international justice.”

Victims have also submitted complaints regarding the regime’s crimes to the tribunal. Since October 2007, the tribunal has received about 500 complaints. Presently, the complaints are being scanned, processed, and analyzed. They also will be sent Co-Investigating Judges for use in their investigations. Co-Prosecutors will determine if the complaints will warrant new investigations. Robert Petit, one of the tribunal prosecutors, said, “Information received from victims is crucial to our success. The Court is lucky that so many people have come forward and submitted complaints, because it gives us a lot of information to work with.”

During the first public hearing Nuon Chea did not react to Theary Seng’s accounts and instead spoke about Cambodia’s present growth and presence in the world community. He said, “My fellow Cambodians, today Cambodia is enjoying peace, solidarity and national reconciliation and its development is improving gradually. But difficulties remain due to the influence of foreign countries that are hindering Cambodia’s growth.” Nuon Chea also praised PrimeMinster Hun Sea, an ex-Khmer Rouge fighter who defected to Vietnam in the late 1970’s. He later returned to Cambodia with the Vietnamese invasion in 1979.

The Khmer Rouge Tribunal is expected to rule on Nuon Chea’s bail request in the next few days. However, it is highly unlikely he will be released because of dangers to his life from surviving victims and the risk he may flee.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Khmer Rouge Victim Confronts Regime Leader in Court – 8 February 2008

Reuters – Pol Pot Number Two Blames Outsiders for Ills – 8 February 2008

UN News Centre – UN-backed Tribunal Processing over 500 Khmer Rouge Victims’ Complaints – 7 February 2008

Woman Detained and Searched for Having Coffee with a Male Colleague

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – On February 4, Yara, an American businesswoman, was detained by members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, also known as Mutaween or Saudi Arabia’s religious police.  Yara moved to Yeddah, Saudi Arabia, eight years ago, with her husband, a prominent businessman.  She traveled to Riyadh on a routine business trip when the building’s electricity went out.  Yara and a male colleague, a Syrian financial analyst, went to a nearby Starbucks to continue the meeting.

Yara and her colleague were sitting in the “family” area of the café, the only area where men and women could sit together, when they were approached by members of the Mutaween.  Yara recalled that the men told her “You need to come with us. This man is not a relative.”  She was then taken to a GMC Suburban, where she had her phone confiscated and was questioned by the Mutaween.

Yara stated that after being forced to sign and fingerprint what she believed to be a confession, she was driven to the Malaz Prison, near Riyadh.  There, she said that she signed and fingerprinted another pre-written confession.  Afterwards, she was stripped searched and put into a cell with other women.  The confessions that Yara signed stated that she was in a state of khulwa, or seclusion with an unrelated man, which is illegal in Saudi Arabia.

When Yara’s husband, Hatim, learned of her detention, he immediately traveled to Riyadh.  There, he spoke with the authorities and Yara was released.  Yara’s colleague was also detained by the Mutaween and was released on February 5.

For more information, please see:
The Times (London) – Religious Police in Saudi Arabia Arrest Mother for Sitting with Man – 7 February 2008

Arab News – Brewing Support for “Coffee” Victim – 6 February 2008

AFP – Saudi Woman’s Café Plight Highlights Rights Problems – 5 February 2008

Arab News – Coffee with Colleague Lands Woman in Trouble – 5 February 2008

BRIEF: Congo War Crimes Suspect Sent to ICC

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, the former head of the Nationalist and Integrationist Fund (FNI) in the Democratic Republic of Congo and now a colonel in the Congolese army, was handed over to the International Criminal Court by Congo’s government today. 

Ngudjolo is accused of three counts of crimes against humanity – murder, sexual slavery, and inhumane acts.  He is also accused of six war crimes including the use of child soldiers.  He was arrested in Kinshasa yesterday and put on a plane to The Hague.  Ngudjolo allegedly planned a brutal attack on Bongoro village in the Eastern Ituri region in 2003.  200 civilians were killed in the attack and prosecutors allege it was part of a systematic campaign in 2003 directed against Ituri’s ethnic Hema people by the majority Lendu community.

The date of his first hearing should be announced shortly.  Ngudjolo is the third Congolese suspect to be taken into custody by the ICC, the world’s first permanent war crimes court.  In October 2007 Germain Katanga, also known as “Simba”, was transferred to the ICC to face war crimes charges.  In January 2007 the Court also indicted Thomas Lubanga for war crimes, including the use of child soldiers, and he became the first suspect to be taken into ICC custody. 

For more information, please see:

AFP – DR Congo war crimes suspect sent to international court – 7 February 2008

AP – Congo Turns Over War Crimes Suspect – 7 February 2008

BBC News – Congo warlord flown to The Hague – 7 February 2008

AllAfrica.com – Third Ex-Rebel Commander Charged With War Crimes – 7 February 2008

Nepal Issues Exit Permits for Bhutan Refugees

By Kristy Tridhavee
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

DAMAK, Nepal – Nepal has issued the first set of exit permits to Bhutan refugees who have voluntarily chosen resettlement. About 107,000 refugees have been living in Nepal for the last 17 years in refugee camps. The refugees fled Bhutan in 1990’s because of persecution from the royal family.

The first set of exit permits allows refugees to resettle in third countries. TheUnited States has agreed to accept up to 60,000 refugees. Canada has indicated it will accept up to 5,000 refugees. Australia, Denmark, theNetherlands, New Zealand, and Norway have also shown interest in taking refugees.

Voluntary resettlement is a decisive issue among the refugees. Although some have agreed to be moved to third countries, others vow to regain their citizenship in Bhutan. There have been reports of clashes between the two groups. Some refugees have faced intimidations since the plans of resettlement were announced last November. Soon after, US Assistant Secretary of State Population, Refugees and Migration, Ellen Sauerbrey requested more security from Nepalese officials. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) also said, “While resettlement offers a welcome solution for those who voluntarily choose this option after 17 years in the camps, the UN refugee agency will continue to advocate for the option of voluntary return to Bhutan for those refugees who wish to do so.”

However, the UNHCR has welcomed the issuance of exit permits. A UNHCR statement read, “It was an important step towards finding a solution to the 17-year-old refugees’ problem. Thousands of Bhutanese refugees have applied for third country resettlement and the UNHCR has submitted the details of 10,000 refugees for resettlement to different countries.”

Presently, the refugees are in the midst of the resettlement process. Some are undergoing interviews and extensive medical exams while others are taking part in culture orientation programs.

According to estimates, the first refugees will arrive in the United States in March. A larger group will then exit Nepal in July.

For more information, please see:

The Himalayan Times – First Batch of Bhutanese Refugees to Leave for the United States by March – 4 February 2008

The Hindu – Nepal Issues Exit Permits to Bhutanese Refugees – 4 February 2008

Nepal News – Nepal Issues Exit Permits to Bhutanese Refugees for Third Country Resettlement – 4 February 2008