The Middle East

UN Panel Lists Syrian Officials to Investigate

By Carolyn Abdenour
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria – On Thursday, 23 February, the United Nations (“U.N.”) panel announced it delivered a sealed list naming Syrian officials, including President Bashar Assad, whose actions may merit investigation by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights to Geneva.  The U.N.-appointed Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria found the country “manifestly failed” to protect its citizens.

Homs has sustained its 20th straight day of shelling. (Photo Courtesy Al Jazeera).

The U.N. panel issued a report documenting reliable evidence exists to hold commanding officers and high-level government officials responsible for ordering security forces to commit crimes against humanity and gross human rights violations.  Since protests began in March 2011, security forces have killed approximately 8,000 people.  The U.N. Human Rights Council will meet in Geneva next week to review the panel’s report.

Brazilian professor Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, leader of this panel of experts, added the list includes armed opposition groups that committed gross abuses “not comparable in scale and organization with those carried out by the state.”

The U.N. panel relied on information from human rights activists and Syrian army defectors to compose the list because Syria denied the U.N. panel’s request to enter the country.  The government believed the panel exceeded the UN mandate and ignored official information.

The panel’s report asserts the ruling Baath Party’s National Security Bureau initiated the systematic arrest or killing of citizens by translating government policies into military operations.  The report also notes the country’s intelligence and security agencies “were at the heart of almost all operations.”  Furthermore, it describes how Shabbiha, informal pro-government militias, received funding and arms from businessmen.

Moreover, the report highlights the Syrian army and government ordered security forces to shell residential communities, kill unarmed women and children, and torture wounded protesters receiving hospital care.

The international community has sought avenues to support Syria’s citizens.  U.N. Secretary General recently expressed his desire for his humanitarian chief to negotiate access to Homs in Syria.  The U.N.’s top human rights official previously asked the International Criminal Court to review the situation in Syria.  This week the International Committee of the Red Cross requested a cease-fire in the worst affected areas to aid trapped and wounded victims.

UK Foreign Secretary William Hague noted the European Union could tighten its sanctions against Syria further.  “It is a deeply frustrating situation that people have been dying in [the] thousands…that the Assad regime has continued to act seemingly with impunity – but I think we can agree to a wider set of measures across a large group of nations,” he said.

For further information, please see:

Al Jazeera – UN Report Says Syria Committing War Crimes – 23 Feb 2012

BBC – UN Panel Draws Up Syria Crimes Against Humanity List – 23 Feb 2012

Haaretz – Assad, Top Syria Officials Could Face Crimes Against Humanity Charges, UN Report Says – 23 Feb 2012

San Francisco Chronicle – UN Panel Draws Up List of Syria Leaders To Probe – 23 Feb 2012

 

Yemen Elects Only Candidate on Ballot

By Carolyn Abdenour
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SANAA, Yemen – On Tuesday, 21 February, Yemen elected the U.S.-backed Vice President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi as President of Yemen.  However, Mr. Hadi was the only candidate on the ballot.  Mr. Hadi’s election ends the 33-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh and a year of turmoil after Yemenis ousted Mr. Saleh.

Voters vote for the only candidate on the ballot. (Photo Courtesy of BBC)

Dayfallah al-Shami from the Houthis’ leadership council said, “These are not real elections, it is just formalizing the American-backed [Gulf Cooperation Council] initiative which aimed to control the Yemeni revolution…It is just a reproduction of the same regime.”

Although Mr. Saleh agreed to resign from office with full immunity from prosecution once the country elected a new president, his strong tribal and family connections continue to influence the nation.  His sons and nephews, for example, command the country’s security agencies and military units.

Before the election, Mr. Saleh addressed Yemenis to encourage them to vote.  In his address, Mr. Saleh said, “I will remain with you as a citizen loyal to his country, people and nation…and will continue to serve the country and its just issues.”

After Mr. Hadi voted for himself, he said, “This is a qualitative leap for modern Yemen…There will be big political, economic and social change.”  He added, “Elections are the only exit route for the crisis which has buffeted Yemen for the past year.”

During Tuesday’s elections, Yemen’s Election Commission stopped voting in nine of 301 districts due to chaos.  Nine people died from election violence where southern separatists called for an election boycott in southern Yemen.  A bomb threat also moved Mr. Hadi’s polling station at the last minute.  Furthermore, four soldiers and four civilians, including a child, died in clashes between security forces and election opponents throughout the country.

In the Aden province, a series of explosives blasted near the polling place.  Abdel-Aziz Yehiya, the province’s election commission head, also reported that unidentified gunmen captured 44 of the 800 ballot boxes and set them on fire.  Yemeni officials suspect al Qaida members took the ballot boxes.

After Yemenis voted amid the tight security, young men rode in taxis holding their inked thumbs that signified they voted out the taxi’s windows.  Other demonstrators displayed their red-dyed thumbs to protest the elections and remember the uprising’s causalities.

Sanaa voter Bushra al-Baadany reported, “I am voting for Hadi as a new leader instead of Saleh because I want change…If Hadi is like Saleh, we are ready to have another revolution.”

For further information, please see:

Reuters – Saleh’s Deputy Takes Power In Yemen Vote As Sole Candidate – 22 Feb 2012

RT – Yemen Elects New Leader In Walkover Election – 22 Feb 2012

BBC – Yemen Violence Mars Poll To Replace Ali Abdullah Saleh – 21 Feb 2012

San Jose Mercury News – Yemeni Vote Elevates Vice President, Ends Saleh’s 33-Year Rule – 21 Feb 2012

 

Execution of Web Developer in Iran Seems Imminent, Establishing A Dangerous Precedent

By Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, IRAN–According to a human rights group, a computer programmer from Canada sits on Iran’s death row, facing imminent execution for the actions of another person. Actions which he had no control over.

 

Saeed Malekpour and his wife, Fatima Eftekhari, before his arrest.(Photo Courtesy of AFP)

Saeed Malekpour, age 36, is a Toronto resident who wrote a program to upload photos to the Internet. According to Amnesty International, the action of writing the program could cost Malekpour his life. Authorities inside the Islamic Republic of Iran claimed that his program was used by someone else to upload pornography to the Internet. Malekpour was charged with “insulting and desecrating Islam.”

Malekpour, now awaiting execution in Iran’s Evin Prison, was arrested in 2008 while visiting his dying father. A Canadian permanent resident, with the protection under the Charter of Rights, Malekpour was awaiting citizenship and completely uninvolved in Iranian politics. He was convicted in a short trial and was sentenced to death in October 2011. The charges focused on his contract work as a web designer in Canada and expanded to accuse him of running the “biggest anti-religion pornographic Farsi network.”

Malekpour and his family, including his wife Fatima Eftekhari, have denied that he had any knowledge of such network and stated that he only created image-sharing software that could have been used to upload such images without his direct knowledge.

Iran’s Supreme Court confirmed the sentence on 17 January 2012 and Malekpour’s legal team has been unsuccessful in ascertaining the whereabouts of his court files since Tuesday 14 February 2012. According to Amnesty International, they fear that this could be an indicator that an executioner could carry out the sentence soon. A court official suggested to the lawyers that the file has been sent to the Office for the Implementation of Sentences.

Drewery Dyke of Amnesty International released a statement containing the following concerning Malekpour and Iran’s handling of the situation.

“He is alleged to have created ‘pornographic’ Internet sites and is accused of ‘insulting the sanctity of Islam’ for which he was charged with ‘spreading corruption on Earth,’ a vaguely worded charge which attracted the death penalty in Iran. The use of vaguely worded charges is not new in Iran, but the allegation that these were carried out on the Internet is. It is an unwelcome addition to the catalogue of ways in which Iran finds it can execute its own citizens.”

According to Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, Malekpour sent a letter from prison, detailing beatings and other mistreatment at the hands of Iranian prison officials to obtain a confession. Part of the letter displays the following text.

“A large portion of my confession was extracted under pressure, physical and psychological torture, threats to myself and my family, and false promises of immediate release upon giving a false confession to whatever the interrogators dictated.”

Members of Canada’s government and its parliament issued strong protests on Thursday 16 February 2012 when the news broke that Malekpour’s case has been transferred to the Iranian court that schedules executions. Foreign Minister John Baird’s spokesperson Joseph Lavoie offered these words in a statement concerning the situation.

“Canada condemns Iran’s reported decision to execute Mr. Malekpour. We hold Iran accountable for his treatment and well-being.”

The House of Commons unianimously backed a motion by Tory MP Costas Menagkis voicing parliament’s “deep concern for the safety of Iranian citizen Saeed Malekpour.” The motion holds Iran accountable and asks it to “reverse its current course, meet its international human rights obligation and release prisoners such as Saeed Malekpour and others who have failed to receive fair and transparent legal treatment.”

In addition, Senator Linda Frum shared these words concerning Malekpour’s predicament.

“I was deeply distressed to learn that the judicial murder of Saeed Malekpour appears to be proceeding. I know I speak for all my colleagues in the Senate of Canada when I say that this is lethal abuse of law has the attention of the government, the citizens of this country, and freedom-loving people everywhere.”

Malekpour’s situation appears to be a test run of sorts for the Iran fledging cyber crimes crackdown on the Internet. Within days of his arrival in Tehran, he was seized on the street, blindfolded, beaten and thrown in Evin Prison on charges that he could scarcely comprehend.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps was ready for Malekpour, the ideal target. He is an expatriate and a computer expert, suspected of spreading sedition from the West to Iran. And even further, suspecting of aiding and abetting young Iranian dissidents. A potential enemy of the state would could become the poster child to fuel fear in a seemingly tranquil public that has lost faith in its government’s resolve.

Hadi Ghaemi of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran shared these words concerning the motivations of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“At its heart, Malekpour’s conviction is an attempt to stroke fear by suppressing user-generated content and Internet applications that allowed Iranians to interact in cyberspace. The guards made it clear he would an example to others.”

And if Malekpour is executed, his death will certainly serve as an example to others that they can be killed for actions on the Internet that occurred outside their direct control and knowledge.

 

For more information, please see: 

The Hamilton Spectator – Saeed Malekpour: A Canadain on Iran’s Death Row – 19 February 2012

CNN – Execution of Web Programmer in Iran May Be Imminent – 18 February 2012

The Toronto Star – Iran Moves Saeed Malekpour’s Death Sentence Ahead, Prompting Canadain Outrage – 17 February 2012

The Globe & Mail – Free Saeed Malekpour: He Has Done No Wrong – 01 February 2012

AFP – Iran Media Confirms Canada Resident’s Death Sentence – 29 January 2012

Amnesty International – Iran Must Halt Execution of Web Programmer – 19 January 2012

The Guardian – Iran Confirms Death Sentence for ‘Porn Site’ Web Programmer – 18 January 2012

 

 

Syrian Officials Fall in Damascus and Physicians Become Targets, As The Protests Continue

By Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria–In the northwest province of Idlib, several gunmen opened fire on a car carrying a senior Syrian state prosecutor and a judge, killing both of them and the driver. State news agency SANA reported that Idlib provincial state prosecutor Nidal Ghazal and Judge Mohammed Ziadeh were killed instantly in the attack. The deaths of these two Syrian officials are merely the latest casualties claimed by the perpetual chaos occurring in the country.

Protesters gather in the Mezze neighborhood of Damascus.(Photo Courtesy of Reuters)

Earlier in the day, SANA reported that gunmen took the life of Jamal al-Bish, a member of the city council of the nearby northern city of Aleppo, which happens to be Syria’s largest. SANA stated that al-Bish was killed outside the city, a center of support for al-Assad that has been relatively quiet since the uprising began.

Syrian activists called for a “day of defiance” in Damascus on Sunday 19 February 2012 after security forces shot and killed a mourner at a funeral that turned into one of the largest anti-regime protests ever conducted in the capital. In a message to Damascus residents on their “Syrian Revolution 2001” FaceBook page, activists said: “The blood of martyrs exhorts you to disobedience,” after approximately 6,000 people have lost their lives since the demonstrations and protests began against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad erupted in March 2011. Deeb Al-Dimashqi, a member of the Syrian Revolution Council based in the capital, claimed that Syrian forces clamped tight security around the city. He shared these words with the AFP.

“We expect huge demonstrations. There is a large security presence.”

A large security presence was seen all throughout Syria. According to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, security forces shot dead a woman when they stormed the town of Sukhna in the Homs province in an attempt to track down wanted activists. It also reported that a man was shot dead at a checkpoint in the northern province of Aleppo.

Opposition activists also reported that police and armed patrols fanned out in the Syrian capital’s Mezze district to prevent a repeat of protests against al-Assad that have threatened his grip on Damascus. On Sunday 19 February 2012, the body of young protester Samer al-Khatib was buried in Mezze early in the morning. Security forces maintained a heavy presence to try and prevent the funeral from turning into an anti-Assad demonstration, according to opposition activists contacted by Reuters.

Fifteen pick-up trucks carrying security police and armed pro-Assad armed men, known as “shabbiha,” surrounded the funeral as the funeral was quietly conducted. Police cars and militia jeeps patrolled Mezze while secret police agents spread out on foot, stopping civilians at random and checking their identification cards. Activist Moaz al-Shami shared these words with Al-Jazeera about the situation in Mezze.

“Walking in Mezze now carries the risk of arrest. The area is quiet and even the popular food shops in Sheikh Saad are empty.”

In addition to the crackdown on potential demonstrations and protests, opposition activists have offered more disturbing information: at least 295 doctors have been arrested. The activists are calling it a “fierce” campaign to shut down the work of physicians. In many situations, doctors have been overwhelmed with trying to treat the wounded and save lives without the proper medical supplies or equipment. The majority of them work in makeshift trauma clinics covertly, for fear of being shot.

A faction of Syrian doctors were in the United States this week to urge action that will allow critical medical attention to reach those in need of it. They claim that the regime’s interference amounts to a violation of the Geneva Conventions that is meant to protect victims of armed conflict. Dr. Monzer Yazji shared these words with reporters at the National Press Club in Washington.

“We lost last week two people carrying medicine. They killed them. Just carrying medicine inside.”

On the international community front, China has emerged as a leading play in the efforts to end the bloodshed in Syria and is one of al-Assad’s main backers. The Xinhua commentary shared these words with Al-Jazeera.

“China believes, as many others do, there is still hope that Syria crisis can be resolved through peaceful dialogue between the opposition and the government, contrary to some Western countries’ argument that time is running out for talks in Syria.”

Meanwhile, the West has ruled out any type of military intervention in Syria like what happened with Libya. British Foreign Minister William Hague supported this view with BBC on Sunday 19 February 2012.

“We cannot intervene in the way we did in Libya, we will do many other things. I am worried that Syria is going to slide into a civil war and that our powers to do something about it are very constrained because, as everyone has seen, we have not been able to pass a resolution at the UN Security Council because of Russian and Chinese opposition.”

Syria’s main opposition groups have rejected a newly drafted constitution that could end nearly five decades of single-party rule, and have urged voters to boycott a 26 February referendum on the charter. The opposition feels that until the requisite attention is given to its activists and civilians, there will not be a consensus. With doctors being targeted for trying to help wounded demonstrators and protesters, it seems that the chaos will continue until the proper attention is directed in the proper direction.

 

For more information, please see:

Ahram – Syrian Activists Call Mass Protests In Damascus – 19 February 2012

Al-Jazeera – Syrian Officials Killed as Protests Continue – 19 February 2012

CNN – Homs a ‘Bleeding Wound’ As Medical Aid Dire – 19 February 2012

The Guardian – Syrian Security Forces Increase Pressure on Damascus Protesters – 19 February 2012

NYT – Frustrated Protesters Fill The Streets in Syria’s Capital – 19 February 2012

Reuters – Syrian Security Forces Clamp Down on Damascus – 19 February 2012

 

 

Thousands Protest in Gaza and West Bank in Support of Hunger Striker

By Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

GAZA CITY, Gaza–Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank have rallied in support of Khader Adnan, who is in the midst of a 60-plus day hunger strike to protest against his detention by Israel. Adnan, 33, has been refusing to eat since 18 December 2011 following his arrest on 17 December 2011 in the occupied West Bank. He has been held under “administrative detention,” which means that Israel can detain him indefinitely without trial or charge.

Khader Adnan's daughter, Maali, takes part in a protest for her father. (Photo Courtesy of AFP)

Adnan is accused of being the spokesman of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad, a right group that advocates the destruction of the state of Israel. It has not been confirmed that he was involved at all in any attacks but his family stated that he remains a member. He owns a bakery and a fruit and vegetable shop in his West Bank village of Arabeh. Adnan is married with two children and his wife, Randa, is expecting a third child.

On Saturday 18 February 2012, Adnan’s lawyers appealed to Israel’s Supreme Court, demanding to be released. To support his case, Adnan is fighting the “administrative detention” policy. Adnan’s doctors have warned him numerous times that the 33-year-old might die soon due to lack of nourishment. One of Adnan’s lawyers, Mahmoud Hassan, shared these words with Ahram concerning the situation.

“We are hoping that the Supreme Court hears this case urgently. He could die before the court hear happens.”

The court has not yet set a date for the hearing. Hassan has said that in previous cases, the high court at times reduced the sentence of administrative detainees on appeal, but rarely ordered the detainees freed outright. The hunger strike has turned Adnan into a Palestinian hero, while he is being kept held under guard in a northern Israeli hospital and Israeli officials are monitoring his condition. According to the Israeli branch of Physicians for Human Rights on Wednesday 15 February 2012, he is taking liquid fusions of salts, glucose, and minerals and a team of doctors is overseeing his medical care. Although his care is being carefully monitored, the Physicians for Human Rights believe that even ending the strike could be detrimental for Adnan’s health.

“Mr. Khader Adnan is in immediate danger of death. There is a risk to his health even if he starts eating now because his system has got used to not having any food at all.”

According to B’tselem, an Israeli human rights group, Israel had 307 Palestinians under administrative detention at the end of 2011. The group stated that this was a 40% increase in the number of detentions from 2010. According to The Physician for Human Rights, since the beginning of the hunger strike, Adnan has lost some 60 pounds, his hair has begun to fall out, and his muscles have atrophied.

Adnan is currently serving four months in administrative detention. Israeli military judges have the authority to imprison defendants for up to six months at a time, with the possibility of renewing the detention order repeatedly. Defendants and their lawyers are not shown the alleged evidence against them. An Israeli military judge rejected an earlier appeal by Adnan last week, stating that he reviewed the evidence and found the sentence to be fair.

While Adnan sits in detention, thousands gathered in the Gaza Strip to support him. Activists from main political factions joined forces in a rare display of Palestinian unity.

“We are all Khader Adnan,” the crowds chanted to let their fellow Palestinian know that he is not alone. According to the Palestinian Authority, at least 5,000 people took to the streets of Gaza, waving a mix of black Jihad flags, green flags to support Hamas, and yellow flags to support the Fatah movement of Mahmoud Abbas. Witnesses have stated that hundreds also gathered in the northern West Bank city of Jenin.

Palestinian officials stated that many other prisoners in Israeli jails had begun hunger strikes to support Adnan. Hassan Salama was among those participating, a senior armed commander of Hamas who is serving life terms for organizing and implementing suicide bombings against Israelis. Hunger strikes is nothing new for Palestinians, who have been using them before to try and fester attention of the treatment in the region and to denounce the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.

But the protests and group hunger strikes have never lasted this long as they have for Adnan. The amount of attention from Adnan’s hunger strike has already become a rallying cry for Palestinians, as protesters have also launched a social media campaign to shed light on Israel’s administrative detentions. According to CNN, Palestinian legislator and human rights activist Mustafa Barghouti shared these words in a recent West Bank rally.

“This is a violation of every aspect of human rights. What Khader Adnan is doing today is to show the will of freedom even if it means the loss of life.”

 

 

For more information, please see: 

Ahram – Lawyer of Palestinian Hunger Strike Files Appeal – 18 February 2012

Al-Jazeera – Thousands Rally For West Bank Hunger Striker – 18 February 2012

CNN – Palestinian’s Hunger Strike Puts Spotlight on Israeli Detentions – 18 February 2012

NYT – Palestinian’s Trial Shines Light on Military Justice – 18 February 2012

BBC – Palestinians Rally in Support of Hunger Strike Prisoner – 17 February 2012

The Guardian – Palestinian Hunger Striker Khader Adnan ‘Near Death’ In Israel – 16 February 2012