Africa

US Deploys Troops to Aid in Search for Kidnapped Schoolgirls

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch Managing Editor

ABUJA, Nigeria – The Obama Administration deployed 80 members of the Armed Forces to Chad to aid in the search for more than 200 young girls who were kidnapped from a school in Nigeria by Boko Haram militants the White House said Wednesday. United States President Barack Obama informed the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate of decision. “These personnel will support the operation of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft for missions over northern Nigeria and the surrounding area,” the White House said in a letter, “the force will remain in Chad until its support in resolving the kidnapping situation is no longer required.”

Boko Haram’s leader Abubaker Shekau criticized schoolgirls for being taught “western education.” The group claimed responsibility for the abduction of nearly 300 young girls. (Photo courtesy of Al Jazeera)

The letter was sent to comply with the War Powers Resolution requiring Congressional notification within 48 hours of the deployment of American Armed Forces. The deployment of armed personnel follows manned and unmanned surveillance flights launched by U.S. personnel earlier this month. The move also follows the deployment of a team of U.S. military, law-enforcement and hostage-negotiation advisers to Abuja.

“These are not combat infantry troops that we put into Chad,” Pentagon spokesperson Rear Adm. John Kirby said, “these are folks that are there to support the reconnaissance mission.” He said Chad is an ideal location to deploy troops to aid in the search because of its proximity to Nigeria as well as the United States’ strong relationship with Chad’s government. He said Reconnaissance flights will be searching and area in Nigeria and neighboring countries that is about the size of West Virginia.

The Obama administration had been criticized by some lawmakers in Washington for not more aggressively aiding in the search for the missing girls. “We should devote more of our national capabilities to help our Nigerian partners in locating the girls,” Senator John McCain on said May 16. “And if we get actionable intelligence about where they are being held, we should send U.S. Special Forces to rescue them — with the approval and cooperation of the Nigerian government and security forces if possible, but without them if necessary.”

The announcement form the Obama White House came on the same day Nigeria asked the United Nations to designate Boko Haram as a terrorist organization. If approved by the United Nations this would enable countries to impose arms embargoes, travel bans and asset freezes.

Earlier this month members of the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is sin,” claimed restorability for abducting nearly 300 young schoolgirls in the Nigerian town of Chibok. Since the attack members of the groups have allegedly kidnapped more girls from Nigerian villages including the northeastern Nigerian village of Warabe, prompting international outrage. A Boko Haram leader has threatened to sell the kidnapped children into slavery.

The United Nations spokesperson for Human Rights Rupert Colville told the press in briefing earlier this month in Geneva that the United Nations warns “the perpetrators that there is an absolute prohibition against slavery and sexual slavery in international law. These can under certain circumstances constitute crimes against humanity.”

For more information please see:

CNN International – 80 U.S. Troops in Chad Will Aid Search For Abducted Nigerian Girls – 22 May 2014

Time – U.S. Deploys Troops in Search for Kidnapped Nigerian Girls – 21 May 2014

Al Jazeera – Nigeria: Life for Schoolgirls in The North – 15 May 2014

Al Jazeera – More Schoolgirls Kidnapped In Nigeria – 07 May 2014

The Democratic Alliance Urges South African Delegation to Reject Immunity for Leaders

By: Danielle L. Cowan (Gwozdz)
Impunity Watch News Reporter, Africa

CAPE TOWN, South Africa – The Democratic Alliance (DA) strongly urges the South African delegation to reject the draft proposal to grant immunity to sitting government leaders before Africa’s regional court for crimes against humanity.

Sandy Kalyan, Democratic Alliance Deputy Chief Whip

DA members say granting immunity to sitting government leaders would be “bad news” for human rights.

The African Union (AU) country members’ Justice Ministers and Attorney Generals were scheduled to meet in Ethiopia on May 15th and May 16th to consider a draft proposal to, in part, absolve sitting African leaders form their part in genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.

The DA argues that granting “sitting heads” of state and senior government officials immunity from jurisdiction of African courts would be an exercise in shielding these leaders from accountability and, in effect, permit such leaders to perpetuate these human rights abuses.

If passed, this proposal would serve no other purpose other than bolster the incentive to hold on to power and undermine the fight for human rights on the continent.

If they were to vote in favor for this draft proposal, the DA states that this would in fact suggest that South Africa sees its own leaders as “above the law,” which is a dangerous precedent. The DA states that this would not reflect the ethics and rule of law enshrined in South Africa’s constitution.

The DA further states that it is critically important for the South African delegation to reject this proposal in its formative stages and to send a message that South Africa is committed to fighting human rights abuses on its own soil and the continent at large. This is especially important because it follows a slew of scandals and abuses of power by its own government.

For more information, please visit:
PoliticsWeb – SA should vote against AU’s immunity proposal – Sandy Kalyan – 14 May 2014
AllAfrica – South Africa: The DA Calls On South African Delegation to Reject Immunity for Leaders – 15 May 2014
DA.org – The DA calls on South African delegation to reject immunity for leaders – 15 May 2014

230 Nigerian Schoolgirls Kidnapped After Boko Haram Raid

By: Danielle L. Gwozdz
Impunity Watch News Reporter, Africa

ABUJA, Nigeria – 230 Nigerian schoolgirls were abducted last week from their school. Forty have managed to escape, but 190 are still missing. Boko Haram, an Islamist group, is suspected to be behind the kidnapping but have not issued a statement.

Damaged classroom of boarding school after abduction (photo courtesy of AFP)

 

The kidnapping occurred after the Boko Haram extremists stormed a remote boarding school in northeast Nigeria.

At the scene of the attack, in Chibok, parents wept begging the kidnappers to “have mercy on our daughters” and for the government to rescue them.

Borno state education Commissioner and the principal of the boarding school stated that students were at the school to take a physics exam when the abduction occurred.

Boko Haram claimed responsibility for a bombing near Nigeria’s capital of Abuja that left dozens of people dead; although this bombing occurred on the same day as the kidnapping, they have not taken responsibility for the kidnapping.

This year alone, Boko Haram is believed to have killed over 1,500 people.

Boko Haram’s name means: “Western education is forbidden.” They are fighting to establish Islamic law in Nigeria and often target educational establishments.

The forty girls that escaped from the group escaped on their own. None were rescued by the military.

“I have not seen my daughter, she is a good girl,” cried Musa Muka, whose 17-year-old Martha was taken away. “We plead with the government to help rescue her and her friends; we pray nothing happens to her.”

Those who have escaped say they jumped out of the back of a truck in the pre-dawn hours of Tuesday. Others ran away and hid in the dense forest.

Although this mass abduction is extraordinary, violence in the area has been on the rise.

The most prevalent area for the danger is in northeastern Nigeria, which have been under a state of emergency since mid-May of last year due to persistent bloodshed that is claimed to be by Boko Haram.

The military believes that the militants took the girls to the Sambisa forest near the Cameroonian border. Parents and vigilante groups have gone there in search of the girls.

This mass abduction is an embarrassment to the military who claimed that they rescued all of the girls except eight. They later retracted the statement.

“The operation is going on and we will continue to deploy more troops,” Major General Olukolade, the Defense Ministry’s spokesman, said. Further, he stated that the air and land patrols are hunting for the students.

For more information, please visit:
BBC News – Chibok abductions in Nigeria: ‘More than 230 seized’ – 21 April 2014
Times Live – 230 schoolgirls still missing after Boko Haram raid – 22 April 2014
CNN – Boko Haram leader claims bombing, stays mum on kidnapped schoolgirls – 19 April 2014
The Frontier Post – More girls \’flee kidnappers\’ – 22 April 2014
The Daily Star – 230 girls abducted in Nigeria still missing – 22 April 2014
The Boston Globe – Parents contest Nigeria kidnap figure – 22 April 2014

 

Gunmen Kill 14 Algerian Soldiers

By: Danielle L. Gwozdz
Impunity Watch News Reporter, Africa

ALGIERS, Algeria – Islamist militants have killed fourteen Algerian soldiers in an ambush on a convoy in the mountains east of the capital, security officials say.

Algerian Security Forces standing guard (photo courtesy of AFP)

 

The attack near the village began Saturday night as an army detachment returned to its base near the mountainous region in Algeria.

There was no immediate claim to the attack. Suspicion, however, falls on al-Qaeda, whose fighters are holed up in the mountainous region in Algeria, some 60 miles away from the capital.

A local official said a large group of insurgents hid on both sides of the road and opened fire with automatic weapons as the military bus drove by.

The troops killed were from a unit that had been deployed as part of a security operation during Thursday’s vote and were heading back to barracks when they were ambushed.

President Bouteflika, 77, was re-elected for a fourth term following a campaign that stressed security as a key policy.

“Such criminal action only serves to reinforce the army’s determination to eliminate diehard terrorist groups,” the ministry said.

It also said a search operation for the assailants were underway in a cluster of about ten villages and that “so far three terrorists were eliminated and two . . . assault rifles seized.”

This has been one of the deadliest attacks on the Algerian military in many years.

Since the end of the 1990 war, attacks in Algeria have been rare. But Algerian officials are concerns with spillover from the turmoil in neighboring Libya, where fighters linked to al-Qaeda take refuge in the southern deserts.

“On their way back from securing the presidential election, the unit came under attack,” the defense ministry said in a statement posted by APS. Three militants were also killed.

For more information, please visit:
BBC News – Algeria: AQIM militants kill 14 soldiers in mountains – 20 April 2014
Miami Herald – Insurgents kill at least 11 Algerian soldiers – 20 April 2014
Yahoo! News – Gunmen kill 11 Algerian soldiers in ambush – 20 April 2014
The Guardian – Algeria: AQIM militants ‘kill 11 soldiers’ in mountains – 20 April 2014
Reuters – UPDATE 3-Al Qaeda kills 14 Algerian soldiers in ambush – 20 April 2014

Rwandans Begin Week of Mourning Over 1994 Genocide

By: Danielle L. Gwozdz
Impunity Watch News Reporter, Africa

KIGALIA, Rwanda –Rwanda is beginning a week of mourning to mark the 20th anniversary of the country’s genocide. The United Nations (UN) chief, Ban Ki-moon, stated that the UN is still ashamed over its failure to prevent the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Tributes were paid to those who were killed (photo courtesy of Getty Images)

 

President Paul Kagame is to light a torch that will burn for 100 days, which is the length of time the genocide lasted.

Ki-moon addressed thousands of people at the capital of Kigali in Rwanda, as Rwanda began its week of mourning.

Many people were overcome with emotions during the ceremony, where some people suffered fits.

The country is remembering the 800,000 people – mostly ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus – who died at the hands of Hutu extremists.

The killings ended in July 1994 when the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), a Tutsi-led rebel movement, marched into Kigali and seized control of the country.

Most of the victims of the genocide were attacked with machetes during the 100 days of slaughter that began on April 6, shortly after Hutu President Juvenal Habyarimana was killed when his plane was shot down over the Rwandan capital.

The week of mourning begins with a wreath-laying ceremony at the national genocide memorial followed by the lighting of a flame at the Amahoro Stadium in the capital.

The torch has been carried across the country for the past three months, visiting 30 districts and passing from village to village.

Thousands of people packed the stadium, having waited for hours in line.

Traditional mourning songs were broadcast over the sound systems.

There was also a dramatization of Rwanda’s recent history, which BBC correspondents say was a clear depiction of the government’s interpretation of the events.

President Kagame said at the ceremony that Rwanda was “completely broken” after the genocide, but it had managed to unite itself.

The genocide “simply should never have happened,” Kagame stated.

On Sunday, hundreds of people attended a Mass at Saint-Famille Catholic church in Kigali to remember those who died in the church and elsewhere.

International leaders, including former British PM Tony Blair, South African President Thabo Mbeki, and UN Secretary General Ki-moon are due to attend the ceremony.

For more information, please visit:
BBC News – Rwanda genocide: UN ashamed, says Ban Ki-moon – 7 April 2014
Red Pepper – Genocide Commemorations: Rwanda Begins Week Of Mourning – 7 April 2014
Punch – Rwanda begins mourning week for genocide anniversary – 7 April 2014
Capitalfm – Rwandans begins week of mourning – 7 April 2014
PanARMENIAN.Net – Rwanda begins week-long mourning to mark 20th anniv. of genocide – 7 April 2014