U.S. Drone Strike Kills Two Somalians

By Brandon Cottrell
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America 

MOGADISHU, Somalia – A United States military strike in Somalia today has left at least two members of the al-Shabab military group dead.  Of those killed, was the group’s top explosives expert.  It is also believed that an al-Shaba commander linked to past suicide bombings was also killed in the strike.

A U.S. drone strike killed at least two members of the al-Shabab militant group (Photo Courtesy CNN).

According to Abu Mohamed, an al-Shabab member, the drone was fired at a vehicle traveling in Somalia’s Middle Juba region.  While it is not clear how he knew it was a drone strike, he said that he did not see any helicopters in the sky.

Other witnesses also confirmed that a strike had occurred and that at least two Somali men had been killed.  Several witnesses also reported seeing a drone flying away from the scene.  One of those witnesses said that he “came to the scene shortly after [he heard loud bangs] . . . [and] saw two dead bodies.  Then al-Shabab fighters came . . . and took the bodies.”

Another witness also weighed in, saying that “We don’t know who was killed but I can confirm that there was an attack, aircraft sounded over the sky and a few minutes later a heavy explosion followed. No one can dare go to check what happened, the Shebab will kill you.”

A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, further confirmed the strike when he said that there was a US counterterrorism strike against a target in Somalia.  He, however, did not give any further details.

Today’s drone strike comes less than a month after a US Navy SEAL operation in Somali, where they tried to capture or kill Abdulkadir Mohamed Abdulkadir, who is one of the lead planners al-Shabab attacks.  Pentagon Press Secretary George Little, speaking about the Navy SEAL operation, said that, “While the operation did not result in [a] capture, [the operation] demonstrated that the United States can put direct pressure on al Shabab leadership at any time of our choosing.”

Furthermore, todays drone strike  indicates that US remotely piloted attacks are continuing even though President Obama has stated that the use of drone strikes, which has been criticized for causing civilian causalities, could and would be constrained.

For more information, please see:

CBS News – U.S. Drone Strike Kills Two Suspected Al-Shabab Militants In Somalia – 28 October 2013

Global Post – US Drone Strike Against Shebab In Somalia – 28 October 2013 

NBC News – US Kills Two Top Leaders Of Terror Group That Attacked Kenya Mall – 28 October 2013

Washington Times – U.S. Drone Strike Kills Two Al Shabaab Terrorists In Somalia – 28 October 2013

U.S. Ambassador to Spain Meets with Spanish Authorities Amid Latest NSA Spying Allegations

by Tony Iozzo
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

MADRID, Spain – Spanish authorities have called on the United State Ambassador to Spain, James Costos, to discuss alleged spying by the U.S. National Security Administration on Spanish citizens.

U.S. Ambassador to Spain, James Costos, met with Spanish authorities after the El Mundo story came out. (Photo courtesy of Al Jazeera)

The Spanish newspaper, El Mundo, produced a graphic which it claimed to be an NSA document that had recorded information on over 60.5 million phone calls in Spain between December 10, 2012 and January 8 of earlier this year.

The Spanish Foreign Ministry issued a statement after a meeting between Spain’s Secretary of State for the European Union, Inigo Mendez de Vigo, and U.S. ambassador to Spain James Costos.

“Spain has relayed to the United States the importance of preserving a climate of trust and its interest in understanding the full reach of practices that, if true, would be considered inappropriate and unacceptable between allies,” the Spanish foreign ministry stated.

“We will continue to confer with our allies, such as Spain, through our regular diplomatic channels to address the concerns that they have raised,” Costos said in a statement.

Madrid has also asked the United States to provide additional data from the NSA about this alleged surveillance. U.S. President Barack Obama has ordered a review of U.S. surveillance programs after Snowden leaked documents that raised alarm in the U.S. and abroad.

Spain has so far resisted calls from Germany for the European Union’s 28-member states to reach a “no-spy deal”, after reports that the NSA monitored the phone of German chancellor Angela Merkel.

El Mundo has stated it had reached a deal with Glenn Greenwald, the Brazil-based journalist who has worked with other media sources on information provided to him by Snowden, to gain access to these documents about the phone surveillance. El Mundo stated the telephone monitoring did not appear to track the content of calls but recorded information about their duration and location.

Representatives from the European Union are expected to meet with officials in Washington, D.C. to convey their concerns this week. The representatives from the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs are expected to speak with members of the U.S. Congress and security officials to gather more information about the recent allegations of U.S. spying on European leaders and citizens.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Spain Summons US Ambassador Over Spying – 28 October 2013

BBC News – NSA Surveillance: Spain Demands U.S. Explain “Monitoring” – 28 October 2013

The Independent – NSA “Tapped 60m Spanish Phone Calls” as Country Joins France and Germany in Latest Snowden Revelations – 28 October 2013

New York Times – Spain Summons U.S. Ambassador in Spying Scandal – 28 October 2013

 

 

SNHR: Urgent Appeal

More than 3,000 residents of Sadad village (south east Homs) are now trapped in the village after clashes between the the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and other armed groups from one hand, and regime forces from the other.  Both conflicting parties have imposed a curfew, preventing residents from leaving their homes, and food and medical supplies are running low due to the curfew.

Syrian Network for Human Rights calls on the concerning international aid organizations, especially the International Committee of the Red Cross, to respond quickly and evacuate the civilians.

SNHR also calls on these international bodies to exert real pressure on the conflicting parties to allow civilians to leave or at least admit entrance to those providing humanitarian and medical assistance.

Saudi Women Defy Driving Ban

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – More than 60 Saudi women claimed to have answered the call for women across the country to defy the state law forbidding women from driving in Saudi Arabia. This display of civil disobedience took place on Saturday, when activists for women’s rights across Saudi Arabia called on women to get behind the wheel of a car in defiance of the ultra-conservative state’s discriminatory laws.

Saudi women defy driving ban across the country on October 26 (Photo courtesy of Al Jazeera)

The campaign for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, particularly the campaign for the right of women to drive, has gained international attention on social media after numerous Saudi women filmed themselves driving in open defiance of the law and posted the videos to YouTube.

Saudi authorities stopped five women who were spotted driving in Riyadh. Fawaz Al-Meeman, an assistant spokesmen for the Riyadh police, said, “each case was dealt with accordingly.” He explained that the women were not taken to police stations. Instead, they were detained in their vehicles until their male guardians arrived at the scene, at which point they were released into the custody of their guardians.

Mai Al-Swayan posted a video to YouTube showing her driving from her home to a nearby grocery store in defiance of the law. She said, “I drove on the highway and was noticed by a couple of cars but they were fine with it.”

While Riyadh police did not take any women to police stations for breaking the law banning women from driving, that was not the case in other cities. In Jeddah, photographer Samia El-Moslimany said she was taken into custody for having driven a car. She said she was taken to a police station where another woman was being detained for having driven a car.

Saudi Arabia’s spokesman for the Interior Ministry Mansour Al-Turki said Saturday was a “normal day, just like every Saturday,” and said that he was not aware of any violations to the driving law, but regional police spokesmen said that if violations of the ban on women driving did occur, they would be dealt with. “Not just on the 26th. Before and after. At all times.”

The Interior Ministry issued a warning earlier in the week in response to the calls of activists women who openly defy the law. The warning was issued to women caught driving as well as anyone taking part in demonstrations.

Adam Coogle, a Saudi Arabia researcher for Human Rights Watch said the discriminatory driving laws in Saud Arabia are shameful and that the Saudi Interior Ministry is trying to “deflate the momentum” behind the activists campaign through “direct, individual intimidation.”

There is not a specific traffic law that prohibits women from driving in Saudi Arabia, but religious edicts are often interpreted to mean women are not allowed to operate a vehicle.

Sheikh Saleh Al-Loheidan, a prominent religious figure in Saudi Arabia, claimed that driving can have a negative impact on a women’s ovaries. He claimed that “medical studies show that it would automatically affect a woman’s ovaries and that it pushes the pelvis upward.”

For more information please see:

Al Jazeera – Saudi Women Defy Driving Ban across Country – 27 October 2013

CNN – Saudi Arabia Women Defy Authorities Over Female Driving Ban – 26 October 2013

CNN – Why Saudi Arabia Can’t Ban Women from Driving Forever – 25 October 2013

CNN – Saudi Cleric Warns Driving Could Damage Women’s Ovaries – 30 September 2013

 

German Intelligence Delegates Will Visit White House to Discuss Spying

by Michael Yoakum
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States –  The National Security Agency (NSA) has been listening in on calls made by German Chancellor Angela Merkel for the past ten years according to German Language news service Der Spiegel. Chancellor Merkel, outraged by the news, summoned the US ambassador for the first time in decades.

In response to news of NSA spying, officials from Germany and France have asked the United States to sign a no spying deal by the end of the year. (Photo courtesy of BBC News)

German government spokesman Georg Streiter announced that officials from Germany’s foreign and domestic intelligence agencies will be traveling to the United States to talk with White House and NSA officials sometime in the near future.

“We are seeking a basis for cooperation between our [intelligence] services, which we all need and from which we have all received a great deal of information … that is transparent, that is clear and is in keeping with the character of being partners,” Merkel said.

European Union leaders, angry over allegations of widespread NSA spying, have reluctantly agreed to maintain their partnership with the United States.  Analysts suspect France and Germany may be seeking an arrangement similar to the ‘Five Eyes’ intelligence-sharing agreement the United States has had with the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada since just after World War II.

News of Chancellor Merkel’s phone calls being bugged is just one of several reports that surfaced last week detailing widespread NSA spying.  Headlines in European newspapers this past week have included allegations that the NSA has been spying on millions of French citizens. Additionally, a British newspaper says it has obtained a confidential memo detailing NSA spying on 35 foreign leaders back in 2006.

A statement released by EU leaders Friday warned that “[a] lack of trust could prejudice the necessary cooperation in the field of intelligence-gathering.”

President Obama ordered a review of U.S. surveillance programs after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden leaked documents detailing widespread spying operations that outraged US citizens.

For more information, please see:

NBC News – US spied on German leader Merkel’s phone since 2002: report – 26 October 2013

Times of India – German spy chiefs to head to US for talks – 26 October 2013

ABC News – Germany, France Want US to Agree to Curb Spying – 25 October 2013

BBC News – Top German spy chiefs to go to Washington for talks – 25 October 2013

TIME – Germans Coming to U.S. On Heels of Snooping Reports – 25 October 2013