The Middle East

BRIEF: Turkish Warplanes Target Rebel Stronghold in Iraq

ANKARA, Turkey– On September 25, at least 10 Turkish warplanes launched an air strike against 16 suspected PKK targets in northern Iraq.  According to the PKK, the strike killed one of its members and wounded two civilians.  The Turkish military has not given any casualty figures for the latest raid.

Yesterday’s bombing campaign targeted the villages of Kutak, Surage and Kozala in the Qandil Mountains in Iraq.  Several homes were destroyed, displacing at least five families.  In addition, PKK claims that a school was also damaged.

According to Brig. Gen. Metin Gurak, spokesman for the Turkish military, the raid was in retaliation to the numerous attacks launched by the PKK against Turkish soldiers during the past month, which had claimed the lives of 17 Turkish soldiers.

In October 2007, the Turkish parliament authorized the military to step up activities against PKK strongholds in northern Iraq.  Over the past year the Turkish military has carried out numerous aerial raids and a week long ground incursion against PKK rebels in Iraq.  Last week the Turkish government stated it will request parliament extend the mandate by one year.  The current mandate is set to expire October 17.  According to the military, the PKK rebels regularly carry out cross-border attacks from their bases in northern Iraq against Turkish targets.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Turkish Jets Hit 16 Rebel Targets in Northern Iraq– 26 September 2008

Al Jazeera –Turkey Bombs PKK Bases in Iraq – 26 September 2008

Associated Press – Turkish Warplanes Hit 16 Rebel Targets in Iraq– 26 September 2008

BBC – Turkey Planes Hit PKK Rebels – 26 September 2008

Jerusalem Post – Turkish Warplanes Hit Kurdish Targets in Iraq – 26 September 2008

Concerns About Lebanon After the Lebanese Transparency Association Releases Results from its Corruption Preceptions Index

By Yasmine S. Hakimian
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BEIRUT, Lebanon – In a news conference on September 23, the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) release the official results of the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for 2008. The conference was held at the Press Federation in Beirut.

The LTA has announced the results of the Corruption Perceptions Index for Lebanon since 2003. Each year their report includes results from other national chapters of Transparency International around the world. This year the LTA reported on 180 states, 20 of which are Arab countries.

The CPI does not measure corruption in and of itself. It records the perception of corruption estimated by public officials and politicians for each country. Transparency International defines corruption as “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain.” As a result, the index is an indication of what how respondents feel about political and administrative corruption in their countries.

The index primarily focuses on corruption in the public sector, such as an abuse of official power for private interests. The CPI is a culmination of 14 different polls and surveys from 14 independent institutions. The data is handled by businesspeople, academics, analysts, and experts. Each country is assigned a score between 1-10, 1 being most corrupt and 10 being least corrupt. Using their score, the index ranks the countries.

Fadi Saab, the LTA board secretary, has emphasized that looking at the ranks of states each year does not accurately portray corruption. Instead, Saab suggests looking at the scores assigned to a country over the last several years and taking note of the country’s regional and international standing.

Of the 180 states included in the 2008 CPI, Denmark is as the least corrupt. Somalia is ranked the most corrupt. Of the Middle East, Qatar is ranked the least corrupt.

The CPI has reported on Lebanon for six years. This year, Lebanon received the same score it did in 2003 and 2007 at 3.0/10. The 2008 score as an improvement from Lebanon’s score of 2.7/10 in 2004. However, Lebanon scored slightly better in 2005 and 2006 at 3.1/10 and 3.6/10, respectively.

According to Saab, it is most concerning that Lebanon scored lower than the international average (4.0), as well as lower than the Arab Region average (3.49).

Lebanon’s score is a result of the country’s continuing political crisis over the past two years. It is also believed that the absence of legal mechanisms in Lebanon has affected its score. 

According to Saab, the CPI results indicate the necessity of serious efforts and urgent actions to help promote political stability in Lebanon. Saab believes a permanent solution needs to take place to re-shape the relationship between citizens and the state. Saab emphasized that cooperation among the different parties will strengthen good government, maintain the well-being of society, and promote the right of access to information.

For more information, please see:

The Daily Star – Lebanese Transparency Association Relays Parts of Corruption Study by Parent Organization – 25 September 2008

TerraNet – Lebanon Ranked 102nd Out of 180 Countries on Annual Corruption Scale – 24 September 2008 

Zawya – Lebanon Ranks 102nd Out of 180 Countries on Annual Corruption Scale – 24 September 2008 

Lebanon Support – LTA: Press Conference to Release the 2008 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) – 22 September 2008

HRW Calls for Saudi Arabia to End Religious Discrimination

By Nykoel Dinardo
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

NEW YORK, New York – Human Rights Watch released a report on Monday, September 22, calling for Saudi Arabia to end discrimination against Ismailis, a religious minority.  The report, “The Ismailis of Najran: Second-Class Saudi Citizens,” describes the systematic discrimination that has been implemented by the Saudi government.  It also details discriminatory policies and recommends changes to increase equality. 

The Ismailis are a sub-group within Shia Islam who live primarily in the southwestern region of Saudi Arabia.  The majority of the population follows Wahhabism, a sub-group within Sunni Islam.  Several Sunni religious officials have made statements against the Ismaili faith which HRW has classified as equivalent to hate-speech.

According to the report, the Saudi government has increased policies that treat Ismaili followers as second-class citizens, especially with regard to employment, education and the justice system. It outlines instances where Ismailis have been dismissed from employment positions, have been arrested, and some tortured due to their religious practices. For instance, a man’s marriage was annulled by the government in 2006 because he was Ismaili and his wife was Sunni.  The court reasoned that the marriage was invalid because the man did not have sufficient religious qualifications.

Although there were complaints of religious discrimination before, following Prince Mish’al bin Sa’ud becoming governor of Najran in 1996 there were reports of increased tensions between religious groups in the region.  Specifically, the report details an incident in 2000 when Saudi officials refused to allow entrance into Ismaili mosques on Eid Al-Fitr, an important religious holiday.  The Minister of Interior required guards be placed outside Ismaili mosques and that anyone trying to enter be arrested.

The report also narrates the incidents known as the Holiday Inn Events.  In 2000, an Ismaili sheikh was arrested and accused of ‘sorcery.’  At a student protest responding to the arrest, gunfire and fighting broke out.  There were varying accounts of injuries but no fatalities.  When Ismaili leaders went to the Holiday Inn and requested to meet with the governor, who was staying there, a unit of armed personnel arrived at the scene and fired into the crowd.

The report makes recommendations for the Saudi government to change their policies.  These include an investigation, to be made public, regarding the Holiday Inn Events.  HRW also asks that Saudi Arabia take affirmative steps to ensure that Ismaili citizens are not discriminated against.  These steps include rebutting negative statements against Ismailis and passing legislation that protects Ismaili interests in constructing religious buildings.   

HRW released the report only two months after King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia hosted an interfaith conference with leaders in Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism.  HRW Middle East Director, Joe Stork commented that this report shows Saudi Arabia needs to practice what it preaches within its own borders.

For more information, please see:

Financial Times – Saudi Arabia Urged to End Discrimination – 23 September 2008

The Guardian – Discrimination Against Muslims in Saudi Arabia – 22 September 2008

Human Rights Watch –  The Ismailis of Najran: Second-Class Saudi Citizens – 22 September 2008

Human Rights Watch – Saudi Arabia: Shia Minority Treated as Second-Class Citizens – 22 September 2008

Khaleej Times – Human Rights Group Reports on Saudi Discrimination – 22 September 2008

PA Forces Raid Hamas Office in West Bank

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

HEBRON, West Bank – On September 22, security forces from the Palestinian Authority (PA) raided the Hebron offices of Samira al-Halayka, a legislator from Hamas’s Change and Reform bloc.  According to al-Halayka, computers and documents were confiscated by the PA.  A security official in Hebron stated that the officers confiscated leaflets and other documents that he said incited violence against the Palestinian Authority.  In addition, al-Halayka’s guard was detained, but then later released.

This raid was conducted as part of a larger crack-down against Hamas in the West Bank.  Over the weekend, PA security officers, loyal to Fatah and President Abbas, arrested fifteen members of Hamas.  Hamas also claims that the PA shut down four organizations, which were purely charitable.  Earlier in the month, on September 11, Hamas reported that PA security forces arrested 11 of its members and supporters.

Tensions between Hamas and Fatah remain high following the Hamas takeover of Gaza in summer 2007.  In addition to violent confrontations, this tension has resulted in politically-motivated arrests against each others members.  Politically-motivated arrests are such an issue of contention that the two sides agreed to form a national committee aimed at ending the practice.

The heightened tension between the two factions has led to rumors of a Palestinian civil war.  Last week, ten Palestinian West Bank security chiefs met in Beit El with Israeli military and police officers.  Fatah officers openly called for “joint action with Israel against the common enemy – Hamas,” and expressed their “willingness to take care of the Hamas mosques and institutions using information provided by Israel.”

In addition, Hamas leaders, including former Interior Minister, Said Siam, stated that following January 9, 2009, Abbas will not be the legal Palestinian President.  Following the January 2005 presidential elections, which Hamas boycotted, the basic law was amended so that the next presidential and parliamentary elections will be held in the same year.  However, Hamas argues that following the January 2006 parliamentary election, it annulled this part of the law.

“There is nothing in the Palestinian constitution saying that the president has the right to extend his presidential term for an extra year. According to the constitution, the presidential term is four years only,” said Siam.

For more information, please see:
Ha’aretz – PA Security Forces Raid West Bank Office of Hamas Legislator – 22 September 2008

International Middle East Media Center – P.A. Forces Arrest Five Hamas Member in the West Bank – 22 September 2008

Reuters – Palestinian Authority Raids Hamas West Bank Office – 22 September 2008

Xinhua – Hamas Official: Abbas not to be Legal President After Jan. 9 – 22 September 2008

Yedioth – Palestinians Headed to Civil War – 22 September 2008

Xinhua – Pro-Abbas Forces Arrest 11 Hamas Members in West Bank – 11 September 2008

Turkey: New Wave of Detentions in Ergenekon Investigation

By Lauren Mellinger
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

 ISTANBUL, Turkey – On September 18, a Turkish court ordered the arrest of six people in connection with the controversial Ergenekon investigation.  On Sunday, four members of Ergenekon were released from custody.  However, alleged members of the organization remain in Turkish military prison.

The Ergenekon organization was formed in the 1990s in order to combat what they considered to be the potential erosion of Turkish sovereignty, in light of Turkey’s growing ties to the European Union, and to combat the threat that they considered the ruling AKP party posed to secularism.  The AKP party has a pro-Islamist platform and considers the hard-line secularist Ergenekon organization to be the main obstacle in their hopes of reforming secular Turkish society. 

The Ergenekon investigation began in June 2007 after Turkish authorities discovered grenades in a house in the Umraniye district of Istanbul.  According to Turkish authorities, the purpose of the alleged crackdown on Ergenekon is to prevent a possible military coup from overthrowing the ruling AKP government.  Over 100 people, including Turkish politicians, journalists, intellectuals, actors and retired generals, suspected of being members of Ergenekon have been detained by Turkish authorities in connection with the ongoing investigation.

Reports are circulating alleging that the Ergenekon investigation is a farce, with the primary goal of implicating as many hard-line secularists as possible, limiting the threat to AKP.  Each wave of arrests and detentions have coincided with a domestic news cycle that was damaging to the AKP.  In addition, unsubstantiated reports have linked the Ergenekon to numerous terrorists attacks that were carried out in Turkey over the past 15 years.

The detainees have been charged with multiple counts including “forming an armed terrorist organization, being a member of a terrorist organization, and aiding the organization.”  The 2,455 page Ergenekon indictment, filed in Istanbul’s 13th Serious Crimes Court on July 25, allegedly contains a mixture of fact, rumor, speculation and misinformation.  47 individuals named in the indictment continue to be held in Turkish prisons.

For more information, please see:

Bianet – One of the Ergenekon Generals Released, Eleven New Arrests – 23 September 2008

Hot News Turkey – 5 Army Members Arrested, Ret. Gen. Freed in Turkey’s Ergenekon Probe – 23 September 2008

Hot News Turkey – Turkish Court Arrests 6 in Ergenekon Investigation – 22 September 2008

Eurasian Daily Monitor – Fact, Fantasy, and Farce As More Are Detained in Ergenekon Probe – 22 September 2008