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

By Brandon Kaufman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia– Saudi Arabia may soon allow women lawyers to appear in court to argue cases for the first time.

Justice Minister Mohammed al-Essa said the law was part of King Abdullah’s plan to develop the legal system.  As one official suggested, the proposed new law may be issued “in the coming days.”

The proposed new law would allow women to appear in court on family related cases, including divorce and child custody ones.  Currently, female lawyers can only work behind the scenes in government and court offices.  Additionally, if the new legislation passes, Saudi women will be allowed to complete certain legal procedures without the presence of a witness.

Under a system of male guardianship currently in place, Saudi Arabian women are required to be kept separate from men they are not related to.  All women must be veiled to some degree in public.  They are not allowed to drive, and women under the age of 45 must receive permission from a male when they travel.  Opportunities for education and employment are subject to similar restrictions.  Recently however, measures have been taken to ease these and other constraints.

The plan to increase women’s access to courts comes after a Saudi reformer told American media that empowering women in Saudi Arabia is the key to spreading democracy throughout the Arab and Muslim world.

“Democratizing Saudi Arabia is the key to democratizing all Arabs and Muslims,” said Dr. Ali Alyami, the director of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Saudi Arabia.  He added that “the best, easiest, cheapest and quickest way to achieve this formidable undertaking is to empower Saudi women…Empowering Saudi women will resonate through Arab and Muslim societies.”

For more information, please see:

BBC News- Saudi Women to be Allowed to Argue Cases in Court– 21 February 2010

Daily Times- Saudi Arabia to Allow Women Lawyers in Courts Soon– 21 February 2010

The Washington Post- New Saudi Law Would Allow Women Lawyers in Court– 20 February 2010

By Brandon Kaufman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SANAA, Yemen – According to a report issued by UNICEF and the Yemen children’s rights organization SEYAJ, 187 children have been killed in the war in Northern Yemen since August.

Monday’s report placed the blame for the children’s deaths on government-backed militias fighting the Shia Huthis in northern Yemen.  The report also suggested that the Yemeni Shiite rebels and the pro-government militia were using child soldiers in the conflict.

According to the report, of the 187 who have died, seventy-one percent have been killed in the fighting while the remaining casualties resulted from lack of food or medical services.

The most recent conflict in what has been an ongoing six-year battle began on August 11 when the rebel Huthis and government forces began fighting.  At the time, government forces launched an all-out offensive aimed at crushing the uprising.  On November 4, Saudi Arabia joined the fighting after rebel forces were accused of killing a border guard and said to have been occupying two villages inside Saudi territory.

The UNICEF report also noted that there was child soldiers on both sides of the conflict.  Estimates suggest that there were approximately 400 child soldiers fighting alongside the Huthis, while the pro-government militia had just fewer than 300 children fighting on their side.

In addition to the children that have died, the report also stated that over 70,000 children have been displaced in the northern cities of Sadaa and Amran.  Furthermore, it is believed that over ninety percent of children in the conflict zone were unable to receive basic education services due to the fighting. Of the 701 schools in Saada Governorate, seventeen were destroyed in the fighting and another sixteen had been taken over by one or other of the warring parties. Most of the remaining schools are now deserted.

Despite a ceasefire that was reached on February 11, reports of sporadic clashes have been commonplace.

For more information, please see:

Reuters- YEMEN: Children Hit Hardest by Northern Conflict– 23 February 2010

Gulf News- 187 Children Killed in Yemen’s War with Rebels– 22 February 2010

News 24- 187 Children Killed in Yemen– 22 February 2010

By Bobby Rajabi

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – A string of attacks throughout Iraq on February 22 left over twenty people dead, including nine children. The attacks came in a series of bombings, shootings and beheadings. The attacks include rockets exploding in the Green Zone (Baghdad’s heavily fortified neighborhood), car bombings near government buildings, and killings of security officers and government. Iraqi officials have reportedly been able to detect a discernible pattern to the violence.

Among the attacks were the killings of two families in their homes in Baghdad.  With respect to one of the families, gunmen killed entire family, who were reportedly Shi’ite Muslims living in an area outside of the Baghdad that is majority Sunni. Neighbors found the six children and their parents dead in their home in the rural town of Wehda, a town that witnessed some of the first sectarian violence in 2005.

A Baghdad security spokesman confirmed the incident in a statement, saying “unknown gunmen killed eight members of the same family with silencers, and then cut the heads off some of the bodies. The spokesman confirmed that four arrests had been made in connection with the killings. The beheading of civilians has traditionally been associated with Sunni extremists linked to al-Qaeda.

Another attack came where a suicide bomber attacked a government building in Ramadi, the capital of the Anbar province. The attack killed five people. Anbar was previously an insurgent stronghold. The bombing was the latest in a string that have raised fears that Al Qaeda is attempting to regain control of the area.

Among the other attacks on February 22 was a car bombing that exploded outside the Internal Affairs Ministry in Baghad. The bombing killed two Iraqi policemen and three civilians. Another attack came when a sniper shot a policeman who was manning a checkpoint. A street cleaner, university professor, businessman, four policemen and two soldiers were also shot and killed in separate attacks in Baghdad, Mosul and Kirkuk.

There was no immediate suggestion by Iraqi officials that the attacks are related the coming national election. However, the level of violence in the country has escalated as election day nears.

For more information, please see:

Los Angeles Times – 26 People Killed in Brutal Attacks Across Iraq – 23 February 2010

AFP – Eight Family Members Brutally Killed in Iraq – 22 February 2010

BBC – Iraq Gunmen ‘Behead Shia Family in’ Baghdad – 22 February 2010

New York Times – Spike in Iraq Violence as Vote Nears – 22 February 2010