By Brandon Kaufman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates– Dubai police chief Dahi Khalfan Tamim said on Monday that people traveling to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) who are suspected of having Israeli citizenship will not be allowed to enter the country regardless of what passport they hold.

Tamim said the country will “deny entry to anyone suspected of having Israeli citizenship.”  Previously, police allowed Israelis who hold dual citizenship to enter the UAE using their other passport, but Tamim’s comments suggested that the police would now deny entry to anyone who has Israeli citizenship.

According to Tamim, the police will have to develop skills to identify a person to be Israeli by physical features and the way he or she speaks.

The ban comes after the killing of a senior Hamas operative in Dubai.  Dubai police have said they are virtually certain that the Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, was behind the assassination.  Al-Mabhouh, a senior commander of Hamas’ military wing, was found dead in his hotel room on January 20.  Tamim said authorities have identified close to thirty suspects that they believe were part of the hit squad that traveled to Dubai on fake identities to carry out the assassination.

Tamim claimed that the Mossad was insulting Dubai.   He told reporters that “the Mossad shouldn’t come to us.  We haven’t done anything to Israel.”

Despite the claim of responsibility, Israel is still refusing to confirm or deny that it was behind the assassination despite the fact that the identities on many of the passports used by the named suspects are of Israeli citizens who hold dual nationality.  All of the Israelis in question have denied Mossad links, instead claiming that their identities were stolen.

An Israeli diplomatic source said that Dubai’s decision to ban Israelis is a serious blow to long-standing efforts at building up strong relations with countries in the Gulf region.

For more information, please see:

Irish Times- Dubai Places Ban on Israelis after Hamas Killing– 2 March 2010

Sydney Morning Herald- Dubai Bans Israelis on Any Passport From Entry– 2 March 2010

Voice of America- Dubai Police Ban Suspected Israelis from UAE– 1 March 2010

By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

VIENNA, Austria – On March 1 the new chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations’s atomic watchdog, accused Iran of failing to cooperate with the the UN’s investigation into their nuclear activity. Yukiya Amano explained the Islamic Republic’s lack of cooperation during the opening address of an IAEA board of governors meeting. The comments come a day after Iran’s Supreme Leader attacked the agency’s independence.Amano told the board of governors that the IAEA “continues to verify the non-diversion of declared nuclear material in Iran, but (they) cannot confirm that all nuclear activities because Iran has not provided the agency with the necessary cooperation.” The IAEA chief explained that “necessary cooperation” includes implementation of the resolutions that the IAEA’s board of governors and the UN Security Council have put forth.

Additionally, the Amano’s comments also meant that the IAEA expects to be able to conduct snap inspections and have Iran notify the agency of any plans to build nuclear plants in advance. The IAEA also expects “clarification of issues related to possible military dimensions to Iran’s nuclear program.  Amano has expressed concern that the Islamic Republic maybe working on a nuclear warhead and confirmed that the county has started enriching uranium to higher levels.

Amano’s criticism of Iran comes a day after the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, accused the IAEA of being influenced by the United States and lacking independence. Khamenei told Iranian diplomats that “the IAEA should not bow to pressure from America and some other countries because such unilateral actions will harm the reputation of the IAEA and the United Nations.”

Iran’s Foreign Minister rejected the IAEA chief’s claims about the country’s nuclear program. Manouchehr Mottak told journalists that the country has “full co-operated with the agency.” Mottak also insisted that the “this co-operation will continue.” The increased pressure from the IAEA suggests possible new sanctions against Iran. Diplomats suggest that Iran’s refusal to sign up to a nuclear deal has frustrated other countries in the UN.

For more information, please see:

AFP – IAEA Chief Accuses Iran of Non-Cooperation – 1 March 2010

BBC – Iran ‘Not Co-Operating’ Says New IAEA Chief – 1 March 2010

Los Angeles Times – Iran Relations With IAEA Turn Contentions – 1 March 2010

Wall Street Journal – New Momentum for Iran Sanctions – 1 March 2010

By Nykoel Dinardo
Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

Geneva, Switzerland – The United Nations (UN) responded to Libya’s Moammer Gadhafi on Friday, February 26, stating that his call for jihad against Switzerland is “truly absurd.”  Colonel Gadhafi announced the day before that the nation of Libya was in a holy war with Switzerland, after the European country passed a law banning minarets, a tower from which the call to prayer is announced from a mosque.  

Although there are only four minarets in all of Switzerland, the minaret-banning law was passed by the Swiss government in December of 2009.  It has been the subject of

controversy since it was brought before the Swiss Parliament.  The Swiss People’s Party (SPP) proposed the law, claiming that minarets were a sign of Islamisation and publicized the law using posters depicting minarets as missiles, which were considered by many to be inflamatory.  Although the Swiss federal government encouraged the people not to vote for the law, stating that it could violate the concepts of freedom of religion and human rights, the law passed by 57.5 percent.  Since its passage, a claim has been brought before the European Court of Human Rights, and there has been increased fear of retaliation by extremists.   

Gadhafi’s jihad is the latest response to the law.  Gadhafi announced the jihad in a speech on February 25, claiming that Switzerland is an “obscene, infidel state.”  He went on, saying that “those who destroy God’s mosques deserve to be attacked through jihad, and if Switzerland was on [Libya’s] borders, [they] would fight it.”  Gadhafi made this announcement on a holiday marking the birth of the Prophet Muhammad.

A Swiss sociologist, who has written extensively on Gadhafi, has argued that Gadhafi’s claims should be taken seriously – stating that his choice to announce the jihad on the holiday was intended to incite extremists.   Despite these claims, Swiss lawmaker Oskar Freysinger told the Associated Press that “[he] can imagine this won’t be taken very seriously.”  Switzerland has issued no security alerts or taken any actions of heightened vigilence.  Furthermore, there has been speculation that Gadhafi’s jihad is a personal attack.  Gadhafi is known to hold a grudge against Switzerland since July 2008, when his son Hannibal Ghadafi and his son’s wife were arrested by the Swiss on charges on assaulting their maid.

The UN headquarters in Geneva responded to the announcement by condemning Ghadafi’s actions.  Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the UN Chief in Geneva, explained that “such declarations on the part of a head of state are inadmissible in international relations.” 

For more information, please see:

 TIME – Gaddafi vs. Switzerland: The Leader’s Son on What’s Behind the Feud – 27 February 2010

Swiss Info – Swiss Thank Europe for Solidarity in Libya Row – 27 February 2010

Associated Press – Swiss Face “Holy War” with Gadhafi’s Libya – 26 February 2010

BBC – UN Deplores Gaddafi Call for Anti-Swiss ‘Jihad’ – 26 February 2010

The New York Times – Switzerland Unruffled by Qaddafi’s Call for ‘Jihad’ in Wake of Its Ban on New Minarets – 26 February 2010

BBC – Swiss Minaret Appeal Goes to European Court – 16 December 2009

By Meredith Lee-Clark
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

JERUSALEM, Israel/West Bank – Clashes between Palestinian youths and Israeli forces entered their fourth day as Palestinians protested the naming of two West Bank sites on an Israeli heritage list.

The protests have centered around the West Bank city of Hebron, an ancient city that is home to the Cave of the Patriarchs, a site where both Jews and Muslims believe the prophet Abraham is buried. Palestinians have been particularly enraged by the what the new designation is intended to lead to—part of Israel’s $107 million (US) plan to rehabilitate the sites. Palestinians have characterized the move as reminiscent of a 1994 massacre in the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, when Israeli settler Baruch Goldstein entered the mosque and killed twenty-nine Palestinian worshipers.

“This is playing with dynamite. “The Israelis are perhaps not actually conscious of what they are doing,” said Qaid Abdul-Karim, a member of the PLO Central Committee, an executive committee that strongly influences Palestinian policymaking.

This latest escalation in Israeli-Palestinian tensions began at an Israeli cabinet meeting on February 21, when the cabinet released its latest list of heritage sites. Apparently almost as an afterthought, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added two West Bank sites—the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, and the site known as Rachel’s Tomb in Bethlehem. Since the designations were announced, both Palestinians and international observers have worried that it would trigger a third intifada, or uprising.

“We will not be dragged to violence by the terrorism of the settlers, and the terrorism of the settlement project,” said Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister. “Our objection to this lies in the fact these sites are on Palestinian land that was occupied in 1967, precisely the lands upon which the independent Palestinian state will be established.”

The head of UNESCO also condemned the action, calling it “provocative.” UNESCO Chief Irina Bokova, who is responsible for maintaining international World Heritage sites, released a statement that “expressed her concern,” and maintained that “cultural heritage should serve as a means for dialogue.”

For more information, please see:

 Al Jazeera – Concerns Over Israel Heritage List – 27 February 2010

 The Guardian – Clashes as Israel Puts West Bank Religious Sites on Heritage List – 26 February 2010

Middle East Online – UNESCO Chief Concerned Over West Bank Holy Sites – 26 February 2010

New York Times – More Clashes Over Israeli Claim to Shrine – 25 February 2010

Christian Science Monitor – Tensions Spike After Israel Names Two West Bank Sites to National Heritage List – 24 February 2010

By: Bobby Rajabi

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On February 26 the National Dialogue Front, a prominent Sunni political party backed off previous threats to boycott Iraq’s coming parliamentary elections. The action took place after threats from rival parties to threaten to have the leader of the party charged with terrorism. Additionally, in a surprising move, twenty thousand former soldiers of Saddam Hussein were reinstated by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Saleh al-Mutlak, the party’s leader, claims that will no longer boycott the March 7 election because of the popular support received from their members. He said that “if Iraqiya (the coalition that the National Dialogue Front is a part of) doesn’t succeed, the whole of Iraq will be in chaos.” Mutlak explained that “(the party leadership) don’t want to be seen as the reason behind that chaos.”

Mutlak was the most prominent of hundreds of Sunni and secular candidates who were banned from running in the parliamentary elections. The individuals were banned for allegedly having ties to former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party. This determination was made by a commission composed of Shi’ites who are also participating in the election.

The executive director the commission, named the Justice and Accountability Commission, said that Mutlak will face criminal charges for funding and backing an armed group of former members of the Baath Party. Ali Falial al-Lami explained that the commission was in possession of confessions and they “were documented and endorsed  by members of the Iraqi judiciary, and the suspects who gave the confessions are still in custody”

Mutlak and other members of the National Dialogue Front have long accused the al-Maliki government of harassing and unfairly targeting the party. He claims that some of his bodyguards were arrested and tortured until they made false confessions regarding the party leader.

The Iraqi Prime Minister has also come under fire his decision to reinstate twenty thousand former army officers who served under Saddam Hussein. Mayson al-Damalogi, a spokesman for Iraqiya, explained the coalition’s skepticism. He said that “this is purely a means of trying to gain more votes.” The decision to reinstate the officers was confirmed by Ministry of Defense spokesman Mohammed al-Askari.

For more information, please see:

Washington Post – Sectarian Tensions Rise Before Iraq Elections – 26 February 2010

New York Times – Iraq to Rehire 20,000 Hussein-Era Army Officers – 25 February 2010

Reuters – Prominent Iraqi Sunni Ends Party’s Poll Boycott – 25 February 2010

Voice of America – Key Iraqi Sunni Politician Decides Not to Boycott – 25 February 2010