By Ahmad Shihadah

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SA’NA, Yemen – Much needed aid for refugees northern Yemen has been slow to come due to security concerns and delays at the Saudi border. Intense fighting has continued in Northern Yemen between government forces and Shi’ite al-Huthi rebels. The on-going conflict has killed hundreds, including civilians and displaced tens of thousands more. A large humanitarian crisis looms as aid groups struggle in enter the worn torn region.

The U.N. has called for a truce between the warring parties so that humanitarian groups can have easier access to the area. The U.N. refugee agency announced on October 9 that it would, for the first time, send aid to northern Yemen from Saudi Arabia to help people stranded near the border after fleeing the fighting. But the convoy was held up at nightfall at the small crossing point of the Alb frontier. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesman Andrew Knight confirmed that the blocked aid convoy  entered Yemen late on October 10. The three-truck convoy carried two-hundred tents, blankets and mattresses to the about three-hundred stranded refugees. Knight continued by voicing concerns about the amount of financial aid being received, stating that the UNHCR is “$2.6-million short” of the $5 million it needs to organize management of five refugee camps, including tents and other assistance.

Other aid groups such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Sa’na say that Yemeni Red Crescent has succeeded in delivering some aid to more than 10,000 refugees in the past few days. The ICRC has counted at least 30,000 internally displaced people; some figures such as the U.N. put the number at nearly 150,000.

The United States and Saudi Arabia fear the fighting in northern Yemen could create instability in the impoverished nation making it easier for extremists to orchestrate an attack on Saudi Arabia.

For more information, please see:

The Washington Post – U.N. Aid Convoy Halted at Saudi Border – 11 October 2009

Reuters – U.N. Urges Truce in Yemen Fighting to Deliver Aid – 11 October 2009

VOA News – Humanitarian Agencies Working to Deliver Aid to Yemen Refugees – 11 October 2009

By Brandon Kaufman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria–  With a severe and persistent drought in northeast Syria entering its third year, the United Nations (UN) is gearing up to deliver some much needed assistance. However, the international community has not come up with the necessary funds, due in large part to Syria’s tense diplomatic relations with other countries.

In the three years since the drought has begun, more than 300,000 Syrians have been forced to leave their homes.  In addition to the drought, the arrival of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees in Syria has caused a considerable strain on the Syrian infrastructure.

As a result, many of these families have left behind the close knit communities to which they once belonged.  Crime rates are on the rise and the level of poverty has grown exponentially.  Many of these families have settled in and around Damascus, where they can be seen seeking shelter in makeshift tents, consequently creating new pockets of urban poverty.  Furthermore, the dropout rate of displaced children has skyrocketed in the past year.  Moreover, for those families that remain in the drought stricken area, drinking water is drying up, and unclean water sources heighten the risk for disease, especially as many people’s sustenance is bread and sugared tea.

Despite efforts to aid those affected by the drought, Syria is having significant difficulties.  Syria’s relationship with some western and Arab countries is still burdened by lack of agreement on a number of regional issues.  As a result, relief funds have been largely non-existent.  Last year, when the UN issued an emergency appeal for aid money, they were only able to raise nineteen percent of the funds they sought.  Despite the lack of contribution, the UN is moving full steam ahead.  They are seeking $53 million (US dollars) in emergency funds, but have yet to receive any money.

Many hope these measures taken by the UN can stall future migration.  They further hope that a long term plan can be implemented to encourage displaced persons to return to their lands.  However, such a plan may not be feasible until Syrian relations improve with other countries and aid money is donated.

For more information, please see:

Financial Times- UN Warns of Slow Response to ‘Disaster’ Caused by Syria’s Drought– 9 October 2009

Assyrian International News Agency- UN Warns Over Syria Drought ‘Disaster’– 8 October 2009

BBC News- Villages Struggle in Syria Drought– 7 October 2009

By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On October 7, Iraqi officials released thirty-six Iranian dissidents after they spent four months in jail. The thirty-six dissidents are members of an exiled opposition group called the People’s Mujahedeen of Iran (PMOI). They were originally arrested in July during a raid on Camp Ashraf in which between seven and eleven members of the PMOI were killed. The newly released prisoners claim that they were tortured while they were the Iraqi prison.  They further claim that they are now in ill health.

The PMOI is considered a terrorist organization by both the United States andIran. The organization made its name after the Iranian Revolution of 1979 where it opposed the new regime that took control of the country. PMOI’s opposition of the Islamic Republic was violent and lead to their exile from Iran. They were welcomed into Iraq by former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein where they set up their operation at Camp Ashraf. The group surrendered to U.S. forces after the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The siege of Camp Ashraf came after the U.S. gave up control of the camp to the Iraqi military.  After the dissidents were taken, friends and relatives of the prisoners protested constantly outside of the U.S. embassy in London. They claimed that the U.S. needed to take responsibility for the plight of detained PMOI members.

The leaders of the PMOI called for a hunger strike in support of the members being held in an Iraqi prison. The dissidents were released from prison after a seventy-two day strike. The prisoners were returned by the Camp Ashraf which remains under the control of Iraqi officials. Upon arrival to the camp, the released prisoners were taken to the medical facility for treatment.

The political wing of the PMOI in Iran is the National Council Resistance of Iran. The political group claimed that a number of orders were made by Iraqi courts requiring that the thirty-six dissidents be released. They claim that Iraqi officials refused to honor these court orders. The officials reportedly justified their behavior by claiming that the PMOI members had entered Iraq illegally.

For more information, please see:

Al Arabiya – Iraq Frees 36 Iranians Captured In Deadly Raid – 7 October 2009

BBC – Iraq Release Iranian Dissidents – 7 October 2009

Times-Series – Hunger Strikers End Fast, Claiming ‘Huge Victory For Humanity’– 7 October 2009

UPI – Iraq Releases Iranian Dissidents – 7 October 2009

By Meredith Lee-Clark

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

 

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – The Israeli Defense Forces are concerned that Hamas is constructing temporary housing along the Israel-Gaza border, effectively creating a human shield. The buildings will reportedly house Gazans displaced during the fighting last winter between Israeli military forces and Palestinian fighters in Gaza. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) believe that Hamas is planning to place thousands of Gazans along the border.

 

IDF officials said that placing the homes along the border is a cover for tunnels moving from Gaza into Israel, allowing Hamas fighters to bypass Israeli security and carry out attacks inside Gaza. IDF also believes the homes would serve as obstacles if Israel decided to launch a ground assault on Gaza.

 

“This is part of Hamas’s overall strategy to use build-up areas to hide in and launch attacks,” said a senior IDF official. “This basically means that Hamas will want to use the people it places there as human shields against Israel.”

 

Both Israel and Gaza have escalated tensions along the Israel-Gaza border in recent weeks. Gaza has launched several Kassam rockets into southern Israel, as part of a strategy that Israeli media reported was approved by Hamas’s allies, Iran and Syria. On October 4, the Israeli military increased its response to such rocket attacks, bombing a suspected arms factory in Gaza. For several weeks, IDF has also targeted rocket launchers and groups Israel has deemed terrorist cells. One IDF source said that the increase in military actions was IDF’s attempt to prevent any further escalation by Hamas.

 

“We believe that we must restore the deterrence that existed after Operation Cast Lead [Israel operation in Gaza],” the source said.

 

Hamas has made efforts to prevent terrorist attacks from Gaza. On October 6, the Saudi-owned newspaper As-Sharq Al Awsat reported that Hamas had arrested Palestinians suspected of planning terrorist attacks. The newspaper reported that the arrests had been ordered by Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh as part of a territory-wide crackdown on terrorist activity.

 

For more information, please see:

 

Examiner – Hamas Will Put Arabs as Human Shields at Gaza Border – 7 October 2009

 

World Tribune – Israel Sees Escalation of Violence from Hamas – 7 October 2009

 

Arutz Sheva – Hamas May Build Homes for “Human Shields” – 5 October 2009

 

Jerusalem Post – “Hamas May Put Gazans on Border to Prevent Ground Attacks” – 5 October 2009

 

By[VAC1] Ahmad Shihadah

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East Desk

ADEN, Yemen – Thousands have taken the streets in southern Yemen to demand the restoration of the region’s independence. Witnesses said more than 10,000 demonstrators marched in the city of Dhaleh while thousands more turned out in the Lahej and Abyan provinces. The protestors carried the flag of the former independent state while chanting anti-government slogans demanding the separation of the south of Yemen from the north.

Following the unification of Yemen in 1990, the people of the south claim that they [VAC2] have not received equal treatment from those in the north.  Abdullah al-Faqih, a professor of political science at Sa’na university stated “the southerners were turned unto second class citizens; they were marginalized politically, socially and economically.” Yemen is the Middle East’s poorest country and southerners complain they have fared even worse than their northern neighbors since the unification.

The demonstrations coincided with talks held in the Yemeni capital Sa’na between Arab League Chief Amir Mussa and Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh[VAC3] . The main thrust of the talks was Yemen’s security and stability. Mussa continued by saying, “the president has expressed openness in engaging in dialogue with the different political sides inside Yemen and abroad, no matter what the differences are, and he expressed his readiness to hold talks with them.

Yemen is currently facing considerable unrest as its army is currently waging a bloody campaign against Shi’ite rebels in the north. The conflicts have raised concern of the strategically located country’s stability and possible unrest spilling over to other nations.

For more information please see:

Al-Jazeera – South Yemenis rally for self-rule – 6 October 2009

APF – Thousands demonstrate for independent south Yemen – 6 October 2009

Gulf Times – Thousands demonstrate in S Yemen for independence – 6 October 2009

USA Today – Thousands protest in Yemen’s south – 6 October 2009