By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

BEIRUT, Lebanon – On August 26, Human Rights Watch called on the Lebanese government to address the high rate of unnatural deaths of migrant domestic workers.  Since January 2007, at least 95 migrant workers have died in Lebanon.

Of these 95 deaths, 40 are classified as suicide, while 24 others were caused by workers falling from high buildings, often while trying to escape their employers. By contrast, only 14 domestic workers died because of diseases or health issues.  Key factors pushing these women to kill themselves or risk their lives are forced confinement, excessive work demands, employer abuse, and financial pressures.

A 2006 survey quoted by HRW showed 31% of 600 domestic workers interviewed were not allowed to leave the home they worked in.  “Many domestic workers are literally being driven to jump from balconies to escape their forced confinement,” said Nadim Houry, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch.

“Domestic workers are dying in Lebanon at a rate of more than one per week…All those involved – from the Lebanese authorities, to the workers’ embassies, to the employment agencies, to the employers – need to ask themselves what is driving these women to kill themselves or risk their lives trying to escape from high buildings,” said Houry.

In early 2006, an official steering committee was established to ease the problems of domestic workers. The committee has three main goals.  First, to create standardized employment contracts in Arabic, English, French and the native language of the worker. Second, to publish a booklet detailing the rights and obligations of employers and employees, to be distributed at airports, ministries and recruitment agencies.  Lastly, to formulate a new law for migrant workers.

But according to Houry, “to date” the committee “has failed to deliver any concrete reforms … it’s time for the Lebanese government to show real leadership and actually deliver” these promises, he said.

For more information, please see:

The Daily Star – Domestic Workers Risking Death to Flee Employers – 27 August 2008

BBC – Lebanon Maid Deaths Cause Alarm – 26 August 2008

HRW – Annex: Deaths of Migrant Domestic Workers in Lebanon – 26 August 2008

HRW – Lebanon: Migrant Domestic Workers Dying Every Week – 26 August 2008

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

BEIRUT, Lebanon – On August 26, Human Rights Watch called on the Lebanese government to address the high rate of unnatural deaths of migrant domestic workers.  Since January 2007, at least 95 migrant workers have died in Lebanon.

Of these 95 deaths, 40 are classified as suicide, while 24 others were caused by workers falling from high buildings, often while trying to escape their employers. By contrast, only 14 domestic workers died because of diseases or health issues.  Key factors pushing these women to kill themselves or risk their lives are forced confinement, excessive work demands, employer abuse, and financial pressures.

A 2006 survey quoted by HRW showed 31% of 600 domestic workers interviewed were not allowed to leave the home they worked in.  “Many domestic workers are literally being driven to jump from balconies to escape their forced confinement,” said Nadim Houry, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch.

“Domestic workers are dying in Lebanon at a rate of more than one per week…All those involved – from the Lebanese authorities, to the workers’ embassies, to the employment agencies, to the employers – need to ask themselves what is driving these women to kill themselves or risk their lives trying to escape from high buildings,” said Houry.

In early 2006, an official steering committee was established to ease the problems of domestic workers. The committee has three main goals.  First, to create standardized employment contracts in Arabic, English, French and the native language of the worker. Second, to publish a booklet detailing the rights and obligations of employers and employees, to be distributed at airports, ministries and recruitment agencies.  Lastly, to formulate a new law for migrant workers.

But according to Houry, “to date” the committee “has failed to deliver any concrete reforms … it’s time for the Lebanese government to show real leadership and actually deliver” these promises, he said.

For more information, please see:

The Daily Star – Domestic Workers Risking Death to Flee Employers – 27 August 2008

BBC – Lebanon Maid Deaths Cause Alarm – 26 August 2008

HRW – Annex: Deaths of Migrant Domestic Workers in Lebanon – 26 August 2008

HRW – Lebanon: Migrant Domestic Workers Dying Every Week – 26 August 2008

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

MA’ALEH ADUMIM, West Bank – On August 21, state prosecutor’s office told the High Court that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have decided to “significantly” alter the course of the Separation Barrier.  The barrier will be moved closer to Ma’aleh Adumim, the largest Israeli settlement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.  The shift will result in 4,000 dunams (400 hectares) remaining on the Palestinian side of the Separation Barrier.

The state’s brief to the court came in response to two petitions filed in 2005 and 2006 by residents of Abu Dis and Suahra e-Sharkiya, Palestinian communities located outside the barrier.  The petitioners allege that the proposed route placed 6,000 dunams of their agricultural lands on the Israeli side of the barrier; making it difficult, if not impossible, to cultivate.

Ma’aleh Adumim Mayor Benny Kashriel said that he planned to instruct the city’s attorney to petition the High Court against the state’s decision.  According to Kashriel, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert does not have the authority to make such a fateful decision for the city given that he was likely to be in office for only one more month.

For more information, please see:

BBC – Israel ‘to Change Barrier Route’ – 22 August 2008

Ha’aretz – Ma’aleh Adumim Mayor to Appeal new West Bank Fence Route – 22 August 2008

Jerusalem Post – State Agrees to Reroute Security Barrier – 22 August 2008

AFP – Israel to Change Route of West Bank Barrier – 21 August 2008

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ALGIERS, Algeria – A series of deadly attacks have resulted in dozens of deaths and in one of the most violent weeks in Algeria in years.  On August 20, two car bombs exploded in the town of Bouira, southeast of the capital Algiers.  The bombings targeted a military compound and the Hotel Sophie.

The bombing near the hotel exploded as a bus drove by taking workers to a construction site, according to the official Algerian press agency A.P.S.  12 people on the bus were killed and 15 injured.  The bombing near the military compound resulted in extensive damage to the compound and nearby barracks.

In a statement released on August 21, al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility for the attacks.  Until 2006, the group called itself the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat and is the last big extremist group from the Algerian civil war in the 1990s.

The twin bombings follow earlier attacks on August 19 and 17.  On August 19, a suicide bomber drove a car full of explosives into a group of young men waiting to take the entrance exam for the police academy in the town of Issers.  The attack resulted in 43 deaths and several dozen injuries; most of those killed were civilians.

In addition, on August 17, 12 people were killed in an ambush of a military commander and his escort.  No group has claimed responsibility for these attacks.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Al-Qaeda Claims Algeria Attacks – 22 August 2008

Guardian – Bombings Add to Fears Algeria is al-Qaida Hotbed – 20 August 2008

New York Times – Bomber Kills at Least 43 Near Capital of Algeria – 19 August 2008

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DAMASCUS, Syria – On July 30, the trial for 12 Syrian dissidents for signing a declaration calling for democracy in Syria began.  Charges include harming the state and spreading false information.  All 12 will deny all charges when they appeared in a Damascus court, the National Organization for Human Rights in Syria (NOHRS).

Among those being tried are Fidaa Horani, president of the national council of the Damascus Declaration, writer Ali Abdallah, doctor Walid Bunni, writer and secretary of the national council Akram Bunni and former MP Riad Seif.  The accused are linked to a pro-reform body know as the Damascus Declaration group. They were arrested in the months following a group meeting in December.

It is the biggest collective trial of Syrian dissidents since 2001 after the so-called Damascus Spring, the brief period of relative freedom of expression that followed President Bashar al-Assad’s rise to power in 2000.

The trial was adjourned and will resume on August 26.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Syria Hold Mass Trial Over Call for Democracy – 30 July 2008

BBC – Trial of Syrian Dissidents Begins – 30 July 2008

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On August 14, a female bomber detonated her explosives amongst a group of Shiite pilgrims in Iskandariyah, a former Sunni insurgent stronghold 30 miles south of Baghdad.  The explosion followed a government announcement describing new measures to protect worshippers.

There are conflicting reports on the number of casualties.  The U.S. military put the death toll at 17, including one policeman and 16 civilians. A senior provincial security officer said 26 people were killed and 75 wounded.

Earlier on August 14, two smaller bombings in Baghdad killed two and injured 16.  These bombings were thought to target pilgrims as well.  Last month, three women suicide bombers attacked Shiite pilgrims during a festival in Baghdad, killing at least 32 people and wounding more than 100.

No group has claimed responsibility for Thursday’s attack, but given the target, Shiite pilgrims, it is thought that the Sunni extremist group, Al Qaeda in Iraq, is responsible.

For more information, please see:

Xinhua – Female Suicide Bomber Kills 18 Iraqi Pilgrims – 15 August 2008

Associated Press – Bombs Target Shiite Pilgrims in Iraq, Kills 17 – 14 August 2008

BBC – Iraq Suicide Blast Kills Pilgrims – 14 August 2008

Foreign Policy in Focus – Behind the Surge in Iraqi Women Suicide Bombers – 11 August 2008

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TEL AVIV, Israel – The Israel Defense Force has closed its probe into the April death of Fadel Shana, a Reuters cameraman.  The IDF issued a letter to Reuters announcing its decision to close the investigation.  In the letter, Israel’s top military lawyer, Brigadier General Avihai Mendelblit, stated that the tank crew involved in the shooting could not tell whether Shana was holding a camera or a weapon.  The letter continued by claiming that the crew reached the “reasonable conclusion” that Shana was “hostile”.

One reason for the tank crew’s suspicion was that Shana and his soundman were wearing blue flak jackets, which are “common to Palestinian terrorists.”  However, Shana’s jacket was clearly marked with “PRESS” and his vehicle was marked with the words “TV” and “PRESS”.

“I’m extremely disappointed that this report condones a disproportionate use of deadly force in a situation the army itself admitted had not been analyzed clearly,” said David Schlesinger, editor-in-chief of Reuters.

The Foreign Press Association was also dismayed by the decision to close the investigation. “The IDF’s decision to close its probe without taking any disciplinary action is the latest in a long line of cases clearing its soldiers of deadly negligence,” it said.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Israelis Who Shot Cameraman Cleared – 14 August 2008

Guardian Unlimited – Gaza: Israel Clears Tank Crew over Killing of Reuters Cameraman – 14 August 2008

Washington Post – Israel Clears Troops in Death of Journalist – 13 August 2008

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TRIPOLI, Lebanon – On August 13, a roadside bomb detonated as a bus full of off-duty soldiers passed in northern Lebanon.  According to Reuters, at least 15 people were killed, including nine soldiers.  However, earlier security reports stated that at least 18 people were killed.  In addition, medical sources state that 45 people were injured, four critically.

“It seems that the bomb was detonated wirelessly by remote,” Lebanon’s police chief Ashraf Reefi said.  Following initial investigations, it appears that the bomb was placed at a bus stop where soldiers gathered; deliberately targeting the Lebanese military.

There has been no immediate claim for the attack.  But an army statement described the attack as a “terrorist bombing”; a phrase used in the past by the military when it suspects militant Islamist involvement.

The attack followed a day after the new unity government received a vote of confidence from parliament.

For more information, please see:

The Daily Star – Security Chiefs Probe Tripoli Blast as Army Buries Slain Soldiers– 15 August 2008

BBC – Lebanese City Rocked by Bus Bomb – 13 August 2008

Reuters – Lebanon Bomb Kills 15 in Attack on Army – 13 August 2008

By: Julie Narimatsu

Impunity Watch Managing Editor-Journal

Several members of the Fatah movement, led by Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, have been arrested by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.  Hamas responded that the arrests were part of their investigation into a bombing that killed five of its members and a girl, as well as in retaliation for the detentions of several Hamas members in the West Bank.  They are not disclosing specific numbers on how many Fatah men have been detained, and Fatah is denying any involvement in the bombing.

The bombing caused both sides to make numerous arrests in the past week.  However, on Wednesday, Hamas released over half of the detained Fatah activists.  Similarly, Abbas has reportedly ordered the release of all detained Hamas activists that have been arrested in the past week.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch released a report condemning the unlawful arrests and physical abuse of both sides since Hamas gained control of the Gaza Strip in June of 2007.  They have urged both sides to release those unnecessarily detained and to allow independent human rights monitors access to the detainees.

For more information, please see:

BBC – Top Fatah officials held in Gaza – 1 August 2008

NY Times – Abbas Is Said to Release Supporters of Hamas – 1 August 2008

CNN – Palestinian factions trample rights, watchdog group says – 30 July 2008

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New clashes between two neighborhoods in northern Lebanon have resulted in at least seven dead and more than 30 injured.  Rocket-propelled grenades were used to target apartment buildings and mosques, as well as buildings outside the two specific neighborhoods involved.  The Lebanese army has closed the nearby highway to reduce civilian exposure to the violence.

Since June, there have been fourteen deaths and over 100 injured in this region.  The conflicts stem from a long history of religious, territorial, and political tension going back to the 1970’s.

For more information, please see:

Al Bawaba – Seven dead in Lebanon clashes – 25 July 2008

NOW Lebanon – Raging storm – 26 June 2008

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Last month, the prosecutor for the International Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno-Ocampo, filed several charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and murder against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in relation to his involvement with the conflict in Darfur.  While the ICC has requested an arrest warrant against the leader, Egypt, Sudan’s neighbor to the north, insists that the arrest should be delayed.

Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, discussed the situation with Sudanese Vice President, Ali Osman Taha, who called the charges “baseless and refuted by the facts on the ground.”  According to an Egyptian official, Ahmed Abul Gheit, the charges are “very dangerous and the prosecutor should not have let things go so far.”  He added that the “international community [sh]ould be careful and work for providing stability and look for justice and truth in Sudan.”

Over four million Sudanese refugees live in Egypt.  According to Nora Abdel Khalek, a political activist, Mubarak “does not want to be seen by Egyptians as being responsible for the hardship and troubles that have been going on [in Egypt].”  She adds that the lack of support to the ICC by Egypt and other African leaders is an attempt to “deflect the charges” to maintain their legitimacy.

Other African nations agree with Egypt that an arrest would threaten peace discussions going on in the region.  The African Union has stated that it does not support an immediate plan to arrest al-Bashir.

For more information, please see:

Middle East Times – Bashir Pending Arrest Too Close for Cairo’s Comfort – 1 August 2008

Sudan Tribune – Egypt’s Mubarak reaffirms his support to Sudan’s Bashir vs ICC – 28 July 2008

allAfrica.com – Uganda: Mubarak Here Over Bashir Warrant – 28 July 2008