By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On September 28, a number of Iraqis died as a result of a number of bombings that took place throughout the country. While the exact number of dead has not been confirmed, estimates range between thirteen and eighteen dead as a result of the first major acts of violence in the country that followed the end of Ramadan. There had been somewhat of a pause in violence in the country since the Muslim holy month ended. Additionally, at least fifty five people were injured as a result of the bombings.

The deadliest bomb went off twenty miles west of the city of Ramadi, capital of the Anbar province.  It killed a number of Iraqi security forces members. The Anbar province and its capital were bases for insurgents after the United States invasion in 2003. A suicide attacker was able to blow up a water tanker that was packed with explosives at the headquarters of a quick response unit located on the highway. The explosion killed seven police officers and wounded ten others. The explosion also damaged a number of nearby buildings.

Another bomb went off in Diwaniyah, a city located one hundred miles south of Baghdad. The bomb went off in a minibus. Three passengers were killed while two others wounded.

Two bombs exploded in western Baghdad. The bombs went off in the Ghazaliyah neighborhood and killed three people. Among those killed was the commander of the army battalion. The first blast was a roadside bomb that did not kill anyone but injured one individual. The second bomb was attached to a parked motorcycle vehicle and accounted for the three deaths. Overall the Baghdad bombings wounded twenty-eight individuals.

A bomb also went off in the city of Mosul. This northern city is an area where it is believed that insurgents have regrouped after being forced out of Baghdad. A roadside bomb targeting a police vehicle exploded and killed two officers.

Despite the drop in violence from 2006 and 2007, roadside bombs and attempted assassinations are frequent occurrences. The primary targets for insurgents are Iraqi security forces, who are expected to take complete control of the country after all United States combat forces leave in August 2010.

For more information, please see:

Washington Post – Bombings Across Iraq Kill 15, Wound Dozens – 29 September 2009

AFP – Eighteen Killed, Dozens Wounded In Iraq Attacks – 28 September 2009

BBC – Iraq Hit By Deadly Bomb Attacks – 28 September 2009

New York Times – Holy Month Ends, And Violence Rises Again In Iraq – 28 September 2009

Reuters – Iraq Bomb Attacks End Ramadan Relative Lull – 28 September 2009

By Ahmad Shihadah

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – As Iran continued missile tests, Saudi officials in a closed door London meeting with British Intelligence chief John Scarlett and his Israeli counterpart Meir, agreed to give logistical support to Israel in the event it decides it decides to attack Iran. During the meeting it was agreed that Saudi Arabian air space would be available for Israeli airplanes to launch a hit-and-run operations against Iran. The Israeli offense and possible Iranian retaliatory strikes could result in the death of as many as 6 million people.

The alleged Iranian nuclear plant is located inside of a mountain near the ancient city of Qom and was discovered by British and Saudi officials. Both Tel Aviv and Riyadh perceive the site as a major threat. British Foreign Secretary David Milliband, acknowledged the danger of a nuclear arms race in the Middle East and did not rule out military action but insisted “we are 100% focused on a diplomatic solution.” Further condemnations came from British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US President Barack Obama urging Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to comply with weapons inspectors or face more sanctions.

Iran insists that the tests were part of Sacred Defense Week’s annual military exercises to commemorate Iran’s with Iraq in the 1980s. They further stress that their nuclear work is for peaceful power generation.

Officials from Iran and the United States are set to meet next Thursday in what are the highest-level talks between the two sides in three decades. Also joining the talks are the members of the UN Security Council including – Britain, France, Russia and China as well as Germany. According to State department spokesmen P.J. Crowley the main question to be answered at the meeting is whether Iran is prepared to seriously address the concerns of the international community.

For More Information Please See:

Arab Monitor – Saudi Arabia said to make available its airspace for Israeli fighter jets – 28 September 2009

Israel News Agency – Israel, Saudi Arabia, US, UK join forces as Iran fires nuclear capable missiles – 28 September 2009

The Daily Express (UK) – Saudis will let Israel bomb Iran nuclear site – 27 September 2009

CNN – Thursday meeting with Iran to test Obama ‘engagement policy’ – 29 September 2009

By Meredith Lee-Clark

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

 

JERUSALEM, Israel/West Bank – On September 27, fighting inside and outside the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem has further heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians, tensions that have already been strained after recent Israeli refusals to halt settlement construction in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

 

After noon prayers on Sunday, September 27, fighting broke out, though the exact chain of events is unclear. Israeli police said that Muslim worshippers began throwing rocks at tourists. Palestinians have claimed that Jews from radical groups attempted to enter the mosque on the eve of the Jewish holy day, Yom Kippur. Regardless of what set off the initial event, Palestinians began loud protests, and Israeli police responded with tear gas and stun grenades. Thirty to forty people were injured and at least five people were arrested.

 

Mosque officials reported that they had asked Israeli police to not open the Moroccan Gate to any tourists on Sunday, in order to prevent any protests from Jewish settlers, but the police refused to do so. Instead, mosque officials said that police opened the gate early in the morning, and protected the settlers as they entered the mosque compound.

 

Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator, accused the Israelis of deliberately stoking tensions.

 

“At a time when [U.S.] President [Barack] Obama is trying to bridge the divide between Palestinians and Israelis, and to get negotiations back on track, Israel is deliberately escalating tensions in Jerusalem,” said Erekat on Sunday evening.

 

Erekat said the situation was reminiscent of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s visit to the site in 2000. Sharon’s visit to Islam’s third-holiest site triggered the start of the Second Palestinian Intifada, or Uprising.

 

Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesperson, called for Palestinians to rise up in response to the incident, calling it a “Zionist crime.”

 

With Israeli government offices closed for Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, there was no official comment immediately following the skirmishes. There was no sign that any fighting at the Dome of the Rock continued the next day, though teens in Bethlehem threw rocks at an Israeli military watchtower, and Israeli military personnel responded by throwing a stun grenade.

 

For more information, please see:

 

Al-Jazeera – Arab Officials Condemn Aqsa Raid – 28 September 2009

 

Ha’aretz – Erekat: Israel Deliberately Escalating Tensions in Jerusalem – 28 September 2009

 

Ma’an News Agency – Bethlehem Teens Hurl Stones at Watchtower After Al-Aqsa Violence – 28 September 2009

 

Reuters – Palestinian “Moderate” Govt Slams Israel on Mosque – 28 September 2009

 

Palestinian News Network – Extremists Have Attempted for Weeks to Storm Al Aqsa – 27 September 2009

 

By Brandon Kaufman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

LONDON, United Kingdom – Baha Mousa, an Iraqi detainee who died in the custody of British soldiers, may have been killed in an act of revenge. The allegation came from Baha Mousa’s father, a police officer in Basra. Daoud Mousa claims that his negative comments and allegations about British soldiers led to his son being treated more poorly than other prisoners and ultimately dying in the hands of British military forces.

Baha Mousa, a father of two children, was arrested in September 2003 during a raid of hotel in Basra by British soldiers. The soldiers were in search of supporters of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Mousa was arrested along with nine other individuals. Guns were found with them and the men were held for possibly being insurgents. . Daoud Mousa arrived in time to see that his son and the other detainees on the ground and the hotel surrounded by military vehicles.

Daoud Mousa believes that what he saw next led to the violent treatment that his son received. After arriving at the hotel, the elder Mousa alleges that he saw a British soldier stuff bank notes in his pocket from the hotel’s safe. He informed the soldier’s superior of this, hoping that this would procure his son’s release. Daoud Mousa pointed out his son to the soldiers, but believes that this action may have led to the soldiers punishing Baha.

Baha Mousa was taken to the detainment center at the Battle Main Group camp. Two days later he was dead. An examination of Baha’s body after his death showed that he suffered asphyxiation and had at minimum ninety three injuries all around his body. Among those injuries were a broken nose and a number of broken ribs. Witnesses have come forth and said that the soldiers took particular joy in abusing civilians. They told of an incident where the soldiers attempted the coordinate the screams of detainees in order to create music.

An official inquiry was ordered by the British government in order to investigate Mousa’s death. The inquiry was told that British soldiers were using techniques that had been banned by the country in 1972. Four soldiers plead guilty to treating civilians inhumanely. Daoud Mousa is not ready to accept an apology, noting that he “will not accept the apology of a criminal.”

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Iraqi ‘Killed in UK Revenge Attack’ – 24 September 2009

Associated Press – Father: Iraqi Perhaps Slain in UK Revenge Attack– 23 September 2009

BBC – Iraq Detainee Death ‘Was Revenge’ – 23 September 2009

Guardian – Baha Mousa Inquiry:  Father Alleges ‘Revenge’ by UK Troops – 23 September 2009

Telegraph – Baha Mousa Inquiry: Iraqi Civilian Died After ‘Revenge Abuse’ in British Military Custody – 23 September 2009