By Eric C. Sigmund
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

Just days after the official withdrawal of American troops from Iraq, the United Nation’s High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has called on European countries to halt the return of Iraqi refugees to the country.   UNHCR’s appeal came in response to the forced return of 61 Iraqi refugees from four countries last week.   The Commissioner expressed concern about continuing violence within Iraq.  UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told journalists that the Commissioner “strongly urge[s] European governments to provide Iraqis with protection until the situation in their areas of origin in Iraq allows for safe and voluntary returns.”

The latest round of forced deportations is the third in a series of efforts to send Iraqi refugees back to the war torn nation.  UNHCR issued guidelines to European governments hosting refugees recommending that they not be sent home until violence subsides.  The Commissioner reiterated that European nations ought to facilitate development efforts within Iraq.  Although 50,000 U.S. troops remain in Iraq to train and support Iraq’s army and police forces, President Obama announced that all U.S. troops will leave the country by the end of 2011.

According to UNHCR, five provinces, including Baghdad, are sites of continued violence and human rights violations.  The Commissioner has encouraged European nations to offer Iraqi asylum seekers protective status as per the 1951 Refugee Convention.  UNHCR noted that the forced return of refugees may send a message to Middle Eastern countries harboring Iraqi refugees that protection of refugees is no longer necessary.  Currently 1.6 million Iraqi refugees reside in Jordan and Syria and another 50,000 in Lebanon.  

Although President Obama reported that “security incidents have been near the lowest on record since the war began,” UNHCR fears that refugees returning to Iraq will become victims of instability and violence.  Car bombings, kidnappings, and mortar attacks remain a daily occurrence within Iraq.  The Commissioner explained that all nations hosting refugees have a continuing obligation to protect those who have sought asylum until conditions within Iraq improve.

For more information, please see;

Agence France Presse – UNHCR Urges Halt to Unsafe Iraqi Refugee Returns – 3 Sept. 2010

Reuters Africa – U.N. Refugee Agency Blasts Europe for Deporting Iraqis – 3 Sept. 2010

New York Times – Iraq: U.N. Asks Europe to Halt Deportations – 3 Sept. 2010

Washington Times – Deportation of Iraqis from Europe Worries U.N. Agency – 3 Sept. 2010

By Alyxandra Stanczak
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East 

DAMASCUS, Syria – Student and blogger Tal Bint Dawser al-Ballouhi was summoned on 27 December 2009 by Syria’s intelligence apparatus, the Syrian Intelligence Services. The goal of the summoning was to interrogate al-Ballouhi about articles and poetry she wrote about her home country, Palestine, as well as Syrian and Arab affairs in general. After her interrogation, she was arrested and detained, and her family has not seen or heard from her since her disappearance.

Syrian authorities seized al-Mallouhi’s computer from her Damasucus home after her detainment. Al-Mallouhi specifically criticized the Partnership for the Mediterranean (an EU initiative to reach out economically to certain Arab countries), a French diplomatic initiative bringing together Arab and European countries, as well as Israel. The Syrian authorities have not commented on her arrest, which is common in the arrest of political activists.

Al-Mallouhi’s situation is not unique, as many Syrian bloggers have been arrested and sentenced to long prison terms. Syrians have turned to the internet as an outlet of news and information since print media in the country is largly regulated and censored by the government. Blogging has allowed citizens to express their opinions and obtain news to which they would otherwise not have access.

Al-Mallouhi’s Mother has appealed to Syrian president Bashar Assad and has attempted to make compelling pleas to the government for her daughter’s release. She has even gone so far as to talk to specific Syrian security branches and obtained a promise from one security branch that her daughter would be released before Eid ul-Fitr, or the end of Ramadan, which this year occurs on 10 September 2010. Al-Mallouhi’s mother does not believe this security branch will honor their deadline and is petitioning President Assad to intervene, citing that her daughter, who is a high-school student, did not know the political implications of her writings.

For more information, please see:

Arab News – Mother of young Syrian blogger appeals for her release – 3 September 2010

The Peninsula – Arrested blogger’s mom writes to Assad – 3 September 2010

Syrian Human Rights Committee – Humanitarian campaign for the release of prisoners of conscience – 2 July 2010