By Ann Flower Seyse
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

LAAYOUNE, Western Sahara – Some citizens of Western Sahara excitedly shared the news of Moroccan Poll results with their friends and relatives in refugee camps in Algeria, while many remained skeptical. Western Sahara’s sovereignty has been under dispute since Spain left the area in 1975 and Morocco annexed it.

Neighboring Algeria backed the Polisario Front, the independence movement in Western Sahara, in their fight for independence. A ceasefire has been in effect since 1991, but thousands of people remain in refugee camps and the resolution process is at a standstill.   No progress towards self-determination for Western Sahara has been made.

Before the elections the leaders of the Polisario had written to the United Nations asking them to put a stop to the illegitimate elections that were held in Western Sahara on June 11. Polisario envoy to Algeria, Brahim Ghali, said on June 12 that the “silence of the UN [would show] implicit complicity unacceptable to international logic.”

The elections were held, and now many Western Saharans, who are known as Saharwis, are hopeful about the results. The recently formed Authenticity and Modernity Party, or “PAM” won the majority of seats in Morocco’s local elections. PAM was formed in June 2008 by Fouad Ali el-Himma, who is a close friend of the Moroccan Monarch King Mohammed VI.

King Mohammed wants to change Morocco’s policies of repression and injustice, and to come to a peaceful compromise between Morocco and the Polisario. He hopes that his moderate message will convince the Saharwis that they do not need to be independent, because Morocco’s policies have changed.

Human rights groups agree that rights have improved since King Mohammed succeeded his father. However, these groups still accuse Moroccan police of beating citizens that speak out for Western Sahara’s independence, and occasionally torturing people in their custody. Pro-Polisario groups boycotted the elections and are skeptical of the PAM message of peace and compromise.

PAM won 6,015 seats, 21.7 per cent of the national vote, giving it a majority over the governing Istiqlal (Independence) party by 2.6 per cent, with 52.4 per cent of the registered voters voting. The elections were held across Morocco and the Western Sahara, as Morocco considers Western Sahara as part of their territory.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera- New Party Wins Morocco Local Polls– 14 June 2009

Magharebia- New Political Party Sweeps Local Elections in Morocco– 14 June 2009

Easy Bourse- Polisario Accuses Morocco of Provocation Over W Sahara Poll– 12 June 2009

Reuters –Morocco party woos Western Saharan Hearts and Minds– 11 June 2009

By Nykoel Dinardo
Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

SANA’A, Yemen – Yemeni officials announced on June 14 that they had arrested the leading financier of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.  Yemeni Security forces arrested Saudi-national Hassan Hussein Bin Alwan in the Marib Province, which is located approximated 190 km north of the Yemeni capital Sana’a.  However, very few details about the arrest itself have been released.

According to a Yemeni Interior Ministry official, Bin Alwan is the biggest and most important financier of al Qaeda’s operations in Yemen and Saudi Arabia.  The Defense Ministry has described him as “one of the most dangerous al Qaeda terrorists.” 

Yemen has intensified its search efforts for al Qaeda members within its region since the terrorist organization announced in January 2009 that it would be merging al Qaeda groups in Saudi Arabia and Yemen to form ‘Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.’  However, political unrest in the region has made it easier for al Qaida to operate unnoticed within the country. 

Militant activity has increased in the past few months, and much of it has been the fault of groups other than al Qaeda.  For instance, on June 13, a group of nine travelling in Yemen was abducted by a Shi’ite militant group in Sadaa.  The group included seven Germans, a Briton, and a South Korean woman; all three of these countries have been communicating with Yemen in attempts to free these hostages and return them to their countries.  This kidnapping followed just one day after a gunman in Amran province abducted twenty-four medical workers.  The group was later released unharmed.  These acts of violence are signs of Yemen’s instability, a characteristic which attracts terrorists. 

Although Yemeni security officials state that their fight against terrorism in the region has had many recent successes, an article published in the New York Times on June 11 claims that al Qaeda members who have been hiding out in Pakistan are relocating to Yemen and Somalia where the social and political turmoil allows for easier operation.  Director of the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Leon Panetta explained in the article that the CIA is focusing on locations like Yemen because they may act like safe havens for terrorists.  Yemeni security officials deny these claims, arguing that Yemen is not suitable to act as a safe haven.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Al-Qaida Financier Arrested in Yemen: Official – 14 June 2009

Associated Press – Yemen Arrests Suspected Al-Qaida Financier – 14 June 2009

News Yemen – Yemeni Security Arrests Lead Financer of al Qaeda – 14 June 2009

Reuters – Yemen Says Arrests Saudi Financer of al Qaeda – 14 June 2009

Thaindian News – Al Qaeda Financier Held in Yemen – 14 June 2009

UPI – Nine Kidnapped in Yemen – 14 June 2009

News Yemen – Yemen Denies al-Qaeda Infiltration from Pakistan – 13 June 2009

New York Times – Some in Qaeda Leave Pakistan for Somalia and Yemen – 11 June 2009

By Meredith Lee-Clark
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria – Amnesty International recently released its annual report on Syria, reporting that the Middle Eastern nation continues to stifle freedom of expression and free association, particularly among its ethnic minorities.

As recently as April, the Syrian Supreme State Security Court reaffirmed its nation-wide ban on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a  Kurdish separatist group, and sentenced five members to seven to eight years of imprisonment for plotting to “detach part of Syrian territory,” according to the National Organization for Human Rights in Syria (NOHRS).  The Supreme State Security Court is a special court that operates outside of the criminal justice system, with the purpose of prosecuting those challenging the government.  Syria has been under an official state of emergency since 1963, which has given government security forces broad powers to arrest, detain, and imprison those it views as dangerous dissidents.

Ethnic Kurds make up approximately ten percent of the Syrian population, and suffer restrictions on use of the Kurdish language and culture.  In September 2008, the Syrian government placed restrictions on Kurdish property and housing rights in sensitive border areas.   While confrontations between Arabs and Kurds receive the most media attention, Syria is home to many other ethnic minority groups, including Kurmandji and Aramaeans, all of whom are subject to the same restrictions on their cultural heritage.

The persecution of ethnic minorities may be part of a larger dialogue that has resumed between Syria and the United States, signaled by the meeting on June 12 between President Bashar al-Assad and U.S. envoy, former-Senator George Mitchell.  Relations between the two nations had chilled in 2004, when the U.S. imposed economic sanctions on Syria for accusations that Syria sponsored terrorism.  The sanctions had been extended several times.  Mitchell said he hopes Middle East peace talks will resume shortly.

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Syria welcomes US envoy Mitchell – 13 June 2009

American Chronicle – Amnesty International Report 2009 on Syria – 31 May 2009

Amnesty International – Report 2009—Syria – May 2009

Syria Today – Syrian state security court jails banned PKK members – May 2009

Human Rights Watch – Syria:  Dissolve the State Security Court – 24 February 2009

TSKHINVALI, South Ossetia – Attempts by the Georgian Republic to interfere with South Ossetia’s parliamentary elections on May 31 were thwarted, the South Ossetian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

While the European Union and NATO have dismissed the election as illegitimate, international observers have deemed the election process fair, including an Italian member of the EU, who declared the vote a “model of democracy.”

Moldavian monitors have also called for authorities to recognize the election results, reporting that polling stations were operated according to international standards.  The same monitors added that Moldavia should now recognize South Ossetia as an independent state.

Georgia Times – Moldavian monitors at South Ossetian elections called on the authorities to recognize it – 5 June 2006

Moscow News – The week in review—South Ossetia elections denounced by West – 4 June 2009

INO.com – NATO Rejects South Ossetia Elections Results – 2 June 2009

By Nykoel Dinardo
Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On June 13, Iraq held a state funeral for Sunni Leader Harith al-Obeidi after his assassination on June 12.  Al-Obeidi was the leader of the largest Sunni bloc in the Iraqi Parliament.  He was known for his strong stance on human rights issues.  He argued for the rights of many Sunni detainees in Iraq, a controversial issue between the Sunni minority and the largely-Shi’ite government. 

Al-Obeidi’s assassination took place outside a mosque in Baghdad, where he had just finished giving the sermon at the Friday afternoon services.  A teenaged gunman shot al-Obeidi twice in the head, and then opened fire on al-Obeidi’s guards.   He then ran down the street, and detonated a grenade on his own body, killing himself and several bystanders. 

The Interior Ministry of Iraq released a report stating that they believe that the assassination was orchestrated by al Qaida.  Ministry officials refuse to elaborate, saying that there would not be more information until a more thorough investigation had been completed.  However, there is speculation that al-Obeidi’s assassination was planned to aggravate tensions between Sunni and Shi’ite communities. 

Al-Obeidi was known for his attempts to unify the factions within the Iraqi parliament.  According to Shatha al-Abousi, another Sunni lawmaker, al-Obeidi wanted national unity.  Al-Abousi also explained that al-Obeidi, an avid human rights supporter, disclosed information about the torture and mistreatment that had taken place in Iraqi prisons.  Both Sunni and Shi’ite government officials from all over the country came to show their respect for al-Obeidi at his funeral. 

The assassination comes just one day after Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki warned that there may be an increase in violence in the coming months.  U.S. troops are scheduled to withdraw from urban areas by June 30, and there is concern that violence will increase without the extra military assistance.  Furthermore, elections are scheduled for January of next year, and there is concern that there will be an increase in assassination attempts before the election.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press – Iraq Blames al-Qaida for Sunni Killing – 13 June 2009

Los Angeles Times – Leader of Iraq Parliament’s Arab Bloc Assassinated – 13 June 2009

Reuters – Iraq Holds State Funeral for Murdered Lawmaker – 13 June 2009

Voice of America – Iraqi Leaders Mourn Slain Sunni Lawmaker – 13 June 2009

Associated Press – Iraq: Senior Sunni Lawmaker Killed Outside Mosque – 12 June 2009