by Yesim Usluca
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt — The head of a prominent Egyptian human rights organization that works with torture victims reported that its assets have been frozen by Egyptian authorities.

The El Nadeem Center for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture and Violence (“Center”) provides psychological support for victims of torture and violence, and documents complaints of torture in prison.

The Center’s lawyer, Taher Abu al-Nasr, stated that the legal department had received a ruling from the Central Bank freezing its account. He indicated that an employee who was attempting to cash a check was told by the bank’s manager that its account had been suspended until it registered as an NGO with the Social Solidarity Ministry. The head of the Center, Ms. Adly, indicated that the Central Bank linked the asset freeze decision to the Center’s “legal status,” and that the decision coincides with an NGO law dating back to the rule of President Mubarak.

Amnesty International condemned the move and urged Egyptian authorities to revoke the decision against the Center. The regional advocacy director declared that the decision to “arbitrarily” freeze the Center’s bank account is a “cruel blow to human rights in the country” because it prevents the Center from providing crucial care to survivors of violence. He added that the Center is a “lifeline” for hundreds of torture victims, as well as for the families of those who have been a victim of “enforced disappearance.” He further stated that the decision is additional evidence of Egypt’s “chilling contempt of perceived critics.” The organization indicated that it is “inexcusable” to obstruct care for victims of torture. Additionally, it also stated that Egyptian authorities should be focused on implementing safeguards to prevent custodial torture and ending forced disappearances, instead of “lashing out” at the Center.

Egyptian authorities had previously attempted to shut down the Center on two occasions. In February and April 2016, officials had issued orders to close the Center, while the Health Ministry had stated that it was “carrying out activities other than those allowed.” Mr. Al-Nasr, however, stated that the Center is registered as a clinic with the Health Ministry, and does not need to be registered as an NGO.

All NGOs operating in the country are subject to a strict law permitting the government to supervise their activities and finances. International human rights groups have repeatedly accused the Egyptian government of rights violations, including “forced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and illegal detentions.” Egyptian authorities deny allegations that security forces gather and torture individuals in “secret detention centers.”

The Center is still operating despite its frozen assets and has challenged the order in court.

For more information, please see:

Daily Mail—Egypt blocks bank account of torture victims’ center—10 November 2016

Middle East Eye—Egypt freezes assets of anti-torture NGO—10 November 2016

New York Times—Egyptian Rights Group Is Told Its Bank Account Is Blocked, Lawyer Says—10 November 2016

Amnesty International—Egypt: Freeze of torture rehabilitation centre’s financial assets a cruel blow to human rights—10 November 2016

by Yesim Usluca
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraqi investigators are examining a mass grave discovered by Iraqi soldiers advancing on the Islamic State-held city of Mosul.

On Monday, November 7^th, Iraqi troops noticed a pungent smell while approaching the town of Mosul. The mass grave was discovered behind an “earthen embankment” near an agricultural college. Upon bulldozing, the land revealed bones poking out from beneath the surface, along with scraps of clothing, garbage bags, and “human remains swarming with flies.” An Iraqi cabinet official in charge of mass grave inspections stated that investigators are on their way to the grave site to conduct examinations and determine the cause of death.

The first officials at the site noted that the grave likely holds approximately 100 bodies, most of which are decapitated. Although the victims’ identities are currently unclear, authorities believe that the bodies are likely those of Iraqi security forces members and their relatives. There is rising concern, however, that children may be among the deceased due to a child’s stuffed animal that had been pulled from the grave by a soldier.

The U.N. Office of Human Rights indicated that it is investigating into whether the mass grave is connected to reports of police officers being killed in the same area. The spokeswoman for the Office of Human Rights stated that it had received reports of 50 former Iraqi police officers killed in a building outside Mosul. She further noted that the building cited in these reports was the same as the agricultural college near which the mass grave was found.

On Tuesday, November 8^th, authorities discovered two additional mass graves containing 23 bodies, including the remains of women and children. Officials are concerned that these mass graves could be just the “tip of the iceberg.” It appears to be the latest of several mass graves found in territory that has been retaken from the Islamic State, which is known for massacring hundreds of individuals across northern and central Iraq.

For more information, please see:

Northwest Herald—Investigators probe mass grave found near Mosul, Iraq—09 November 2016

Wall Street Journal—Remains in Mass Grave Near Mosul Identified—08 November 2016

Fox News—Iraqis investigate decapitated bodies in mass grave near ISIS-held Mosul—08 November 2016

BBC News—Mass graves in Iraq reveal Islamic State horrors—08 November 2016

by Yesim Usluca
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish police have used tear gas, a water cannon, and plastic bullets to disperse a protest against the imprisonment of nine journalists from the secularist opposition newspaper, Cumhuriyet.

The protest took place hours after nine journalists were formally arrested. Approximately 1,000 demonstrators gathered outside a mosque in central Istanbul, shouting slogans denouncing the “fascist” state and vowing not to remain silent. Riot police sprayed freezing water from trucks, fired plastic bullets and used tear gas in an attempt to prevent crowds of protestors from marching to the offices of the Cumhuriyet newspaper.

The nine arrested individuals include some of the most prolific journalists of the Turkish press. They were detained as part of an intensifying crackdown on oppositionists by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Following the arrests, the Turkish courts ordered a media blackout, prohibiting the press from reporting on the detention of Cumhuriyet journalists. The newspaper is known for being one of the few media outlets still critical of President Erdogan. Its reporters are suspected of crimes committed on behalf of Kurdish militants and U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused of organizing the coup attempt.

The arrests come after the shutdown of over 100 media outlets and detention of dozens of journalists following July’s failed coup attempt. Prominent Turkish journalist, Can Dundar, declared his outrage over the current administration by stating “our ‘crime’ is our writing, our headlines, our news. We will write again. We will write even more…” The government has stated that the crackdown is necessary to identify terrorists, whereas critics of President Erdogan state that he is using the coup as an attempt to defeat the opposition. Recently arrested politicians stated that they are victims of a “civilian coup by the government and the palace.” Furthermore, the head of Turkey’s main opposition party outraged “What are you trying to do? Are you trying to create a Turkey where everyone is in jail?”

The recent wave of opposition arrests has sparked concern among Turkey’s allies. The EU’s Foreign Policy Chief stated that she was “extremely worried” over the detentions. The U.S. State Department spokesman noted that there was a “worrisome trend” in Turkey over limiting freedom of speech.

For more information, please see:

The Guardian—Turkish police use water cannon to disperse protest over journalists’ arrests—5 November 2016

Newsweek—Protesters clash with Turkish authorities in continuing crackdown—5 November 2016

The Independent—Turkish police use water cannon and tear gas to disperse protest against arrest of journalists—5 November 2016

BBC News—Turkey coup aftermath: Pro-Kurdish Istanbul protests broken up—5 November 2016

 

 

 

by Yesim Usluca
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

MANAMA, Bahrain — The wife and infant son of a London-based human rights activist were prevented from departing Bahrain, and detained and questioned for several hours.

Bahraini immigration officers prevented Mrs. Duaa Alwadaei and her 19-month-old son from boarding a flight to London. Mrs. Alwadaei’s husband, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, who is the Director of Advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, was arrested hours before her travel ban for protesting a visit by the king of Bahrain in London.

Mr. Alwadaei claimed that his wife was subjected to a seven-hour interrogation, during which a senior official told her that she was being subjected to a “travel ban” because of his work. He alleged that Bahraini police questioned his spouse on his appearance at the protest, his organization, and her life in London. He stated that the officials told his wife they are “coming after my family, asked her about my brothers, sister and parents.” He claimed that his wife’s interrogator threatened to charge her with assaulting a police officer, which carries a prison sentence of three years, if she spoke out about her treatment. He further alleged that his wife was left “terrified” after being dragged across the airport floor, and that she was beaten by two female police officers when she refused to accompany them into custody.

In response, the Bahraini embassy in London released a statement which indicated that Mrs. Alwadaei was “briefly detained for questioning, searched and released.” The embassy further noted that “at no time was she abused or mistreated by authorities.” The Bahrain government noted that Mrs. Alwadaei had been released after her questioning “to make her onward destination.”

Bahrain has faced international criticism over its human rights crackdown which has led to the arrest of opposition figures, the stripping of citizenship, and the dissolution of the main opposition party. The country is now being censured by human rights groups for imposing travel bans and arresting its opponents. A researcher for the Human Rights Watch stated that the Bahraini authorities’ act was a “contemptible and cowardly attempt” to take vengeance against the family of a “prominent U.K.-based Bahraini exile and activist.” A director of the human rights group, Reprieve, stated that the organization is “seriously concerned” about the country’s retaliations against Mr. Alwadaei’s family for his peaceful protest in the U.K. The director further noted that although Bahrain may have banned freedom of expression, the U.K. government could not permit Bahrain to punish individuals who demonstrate in the U.K. against human rights abuses such as torture. She called upon the Bahraini government to allow Mrs. Alwadaei and their son to return to their home in London.

Mr. Alwadaei is a “fierce critic” of the Bahrain government and has addressed dozens of events in the U.K., U.S. and Europe. He protests the government of Bahrain on a regular basis since he was imprisoned and tortured for his role in Bahrain’s 2011 pro-democracy protests. In 2015, he was stripped of his Bahraini citizenship after claiming asylum in the U.K. in 2012.

For more information, please see:

Middle East Eye—Wife and baby of Bahraini rights activist on ‘travel ban’ after London protest—30 October 2016

Reuters—Bahrain blocks exit of activist’s wife: rights group—30 October 2016

The Guardian—Bahrain prevents family of dissident from flying to London to join him—29 October 2016

Daily Mail—Family of activist who jumped on Bahrain king’s car targeted—29 October 2016

 

 

by Yesim Usluca
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The UN stated that ISIS has executed over 200 people near the city of Mosul and has taken thousands of individuals hostage to use as “human shields” against Iraqi forces.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that ISIS carried out the mass execution as revenge against individuals who refused its orders to join them. The UN further noted that it fears the group intends on using those held hostage as “human shields” against the advance of Iraqi forces on Mosul.

High numbers of civilian deaths have been reported over the last week as ISIS attempts to gather people into its last major stronghold in Iraq. Over 7,500 families have reportedly been abducted by ISIS at gunpoint from surrounding Iraqi cities and have been moved to “strategic locations where ISIS fighters are located.” The civilian death toll is expected to grow exponentially once ISIS enters Mosul, which is Iraq’s second largest city.

The use of human shields is banned under international humanitarian law. The UN refugee agency stated that it is considered a violation of the right to not be arbitrarily deprived of life. The Deputy Director for Research at Amnesty International further stated that using a civilian to “shield yourself from attack is a war crime.”

An increasing number of civilians have been fleeing their homes as the fighting around Mosul intensifies. The International Organization for Migration reported that the operation in Mosul has displaced over 16,000 people thus far. UNICEF warned of an impending, “unprecedented humanitarian crisis” due to the millions of civilians that are expected to escape the city in the upcoming days and weeks.

Some civilians who were able to flee indicated that ISIS fighters had deliberately prevented them from escaping conflict areas. One civilian recounted an attack in which ISIS fighters based in a neighbor’s house shot his brother. Due to the ongoing crossfire, they were unable to escape their home for two days, during which his brother lost consciousness from severe blood loss. He was only able to carry his brother to a hospital after an air strike created an opportunity for escape. Another civilian reported that he lost his wife after she was struck by a mortar because ISIS fighters would not let them leave their house. He further stated that the fighters shot at neighbors who tried to escape.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights indicated that ISIS’ “depraved, cowardly strategy” is to use the presence of civilians to render certain areas immune from military operations by effectively using thousands of men, women and children as “human shields.” The Commissioner urged those fighting ISIS to withhold revenge attacks. He further called on the government of Iraq to ensure the application of international humanitarian law.

For more information, please see:

ABC News—ISIS Using Tens of Thousands as ‘Human Shields’ as Iraqi-Led Forces Advance on Mosul—28 October 2016

Daily Mail—ISIS slaughters more than 200 people and abduct nearly 8,000 families to use as human shields as it retreats into the centre of Mosul—28 October 2016

Amnesty International—Iraq: new testimony shows ISIS taking human shields in battle for Mosul—27 October 2016

CNN—ISIS ‘executes’ 232 near Mosul, takes thousands as human shields, UN says—28 October 2016

The Guardian —Islamic State using hostages as human shields in Mosul – UN—28 October 2016