CAIRO, Egypt – On March 26, Egyptian tabloid editor Ibrahim Eissa was sentenced to six months in jail for printing rumors about Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s health.  Eissa, the editor-in-chief of the daily Al-Dustour, was charged with spreading “false information . . . damaging the public interest and national stability.”

Judge Sherif Mustafa said “the state has been put at risk” while reading the verdict, adding that Eissa “reported false news about the president’s health which he knew were fabricated.”  The judge said that Eissa’s articles had threatened the economy.  “Investors withdrew their investment from the country and the stock market collapsed, costing the economy some $350 million,” he said.

In August, Eissa printed stories speculating about the President’s failing health of President Mubarak.  One of the articles said that the president had slipped into a coma.  Neither Mubarak nor the state-run Egyptian media commented or denied the rumors for weeks until the president appeared in photos and gave an interview with the state-run media.

Eissa denounced the ruling as being politically motivated.  “Is this a legal or political verdict? Is this a warning to journalists not to touch the President and not to write about anything related to him?”

Amnesty International echoed Eissa’s criticism.  In a statement, Amnesty said, “This prosecution forms part of a wider pattern of the Egyptian authorities using criminal defamation and other charges to chill media expression and reporting on issues considered by the authorities as red lines, but which are, in reality, issues of clear public interest.  It underlines the need for the government to amend the controversial press law and all other provisions in the Penal Code that criminalize legitimate reporting.”

Eissa was released on bond while he appeals his case.

For more information, please see:
Amnesty International – Amnesty International Condemns Editor’s Imprisonment– 27 March 2008

Associated Press – Egypt Editor Gets 6-Month Jail Sentence – 27 March 2008

AFP – Egypt Editor Given Six-Month Sentence for Mubarak Rumors – 26 March 2008

CNN – Journalist Jailed for Mubarak Reports – 26 March 2008

International Herald Tribune – Egyptian Tabloid Editor Receives Six Months Prison for Reporting on President’s Health – 26 March 2008

Reuters – Egypt Editor Sentenced to Six Months, Free on Bond – 26 March 2008

TULKARM, West Bank – On March 26, Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced that it arrested Omar Jabar, the alleged mastermind behind the 2002 Passover suicide bombing in Netanya.  Jabar, thought to be the head of Hamas’ military wing in Tulkarm, was arrested with seven wanted men when Israeli troops raided the house where Jabar’s aide was thought to be living.  Jabar tried to flee but was caught in the raid conducted by the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency).

It is suspected that Jabar recruited the guide who led the attacker to the Park Hotel on March 27, 2002.  It is also suspected that Jabar had a role in planning the attack.  The attack, also known as the Passover Massacre, was the single deadliest suicide bombing during the five year Palestinian uprising.  29 people were killed in the bombing, while nearly 150 others were injured.

Lt.-Col. Nir Bar-On led the raid that led to Jabar’s arrest.  He stated, “Capturing him today, six years after the attack and a day before [its] anniversary, is symbolic and shows how the IDF and the Shin Bet do not rest or stop even for a moment to protect the state of Israel.”

For more information, please see:
AFP – Israel Nabs Hamas Commander Wanted Over 2002 Attack – 26 March 2008

BBC – Israel Passover Bomb Suspect Held – 26 March 2008

CNN – Alleged Passover Massacre Plotter Arrested – 26 March 2008

Ha’aretz – IDF Captures Hamas Man Behind 2002 Passover Bombing at Netanya Hotel – 26 March 2008

Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Terrorist Involved in Passover 2002  Netanya Park Hotel Arrested – 26 March 2008

Jerusalem Post – IDF Nabs Pessah Bombing Mastermind – 26 March 2008

By Ben Turner
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East Desk

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On March 25, heavy fighting broke out across Baghdad and Basra as the US-backed Iraqi military mounted a large operation against Shiite militias.  The operation is an attempt to break the militia’s control over Basra, the largest oil hub in Iraq.  There were also serious clashes in the southern cities of Kut and Hilla.  Overall, at least 50 people were killed.

Among the Iraqi military’s targets were members of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army, further risking the breakdown of the ceasefire imposed by Sadr over the organization last summer.  The ceasefire has been credited as a major source for the decreased violence in Iraq.  Intermittent clashes were reported in Basra beginning early on March 25 in the neighborhoods of Hayania, Jubaila and Jumhuria – known Sadr strongholds.

In response to the violence, Sadr’s followers mounted a civil disobedience campaign across Baghdad, demanding the release of Sadr’s followers from detention centers.  They also demanded an end to Iraqi government raids.

Sadr’s leaders ordered stores to be closed and for taxi and bus drivers to stop working.  Neighborhoods usually bustling with activity became virtual ghost towns, with many streets all but empty.  In a statement, Sadr called upon Iraqis to stage sit-ins and threatened a nationwide “civil revolt” if US and Iraqi forces continue attacking and arresting his followers.

Iraqi officials said the operation was aimed at “all those who point their guns at the state,” but Sadr’s followers say the offensive was politically-motivated and aimed specifically at them for their stances against the US occupation.

The Sadrists said if the operation was an attempt to improve security, they would fully cooperate with the government’s attempt to restore order.  The Sadrists added that while they don’t seek a confrontation with the Iraqi government, the people had the right to defend themselves when they are being attacked.

While Moqtada Sadr renewed the six-month ceasefire last month, he recently told his supporters that they were free to defend themselves against government attacks.

For more information, please see:
New York Times – Iraqi Crackdown on Shiite Forces Sets Off Fighting – 26 March 2008

Al Jazeera – Iraq Battles Spread Beyond Basra – 25 March 2008

CNN – Peaceful Iraq Protests Spark Clashes; 50 Reported Dead – 25 March 2008

Middle East Times – Basra Battles Rage and Spread in Iraq – 25 March 2008

U.S. News and World Report – Clashes in Iraq’s No. 2 City May Trigger Violence Elsewhere – 25 March 2008

Washington Post – Iraqi Forces Battle Gunmen in Basra – 25 March 2008

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

SIDON, Lebanon – On March 20, clashes broke out between Fatah security and militant factions in Ein al-Hilweh refugee camp in southern Lebanon.  Tensions rose when members of Fatah arrested Samir Maarouf, a commander in Jund al-Sham, and handed him over to the Lebanese army.  Maarouf is wanted by Lebanon for crimes relating to violence and terrorism, including charges of planting a bomb in a Fatah official’s house in the camp.

Members of Jund al-Sham opened fired on Fatah offices located inside the camp immediately following Maarouf’s arrest.  The two sides launched rocket-propelled grenades and exchanged gunfire.  Fighting continued late into the evening.  Fighting resumed on March 21, when a grenade was thrown into the house of a senior Fatah official.  While there were no causalities, the building suffered severe damage.

Fatah reports that one of its members was killed and four wounded during the two day clash.  The violence caused hundreds of civilians to flee and seek shelter in the nearby city of Sidon.  While a ceasefire was declared on March 22, many feared that the violence has not ended and did not immediately return to the camp.

According to Fatah officials, a ceasefire was brokered after Osbat al-Ansar, another Islamic group, intervened and acted as a mediator.  The terms of the ceasefire require that members of Jund al-Sham leave the camp.  Fatah and Lebanese officials feared that these clashes would escalate and result in a conflict similar to that of the Nahr al-Bared camp, which involved three months of fighting between the Lebanese Army and Fatah al-Islam militants.

Like many of the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, Ein al-Hilweh is under Palestinian jurisdiction and the Lebanese army and law enforcement officers are prohibited from entering.  Jund al-Sham denounced Maarouf’s arrest as improper and being “an arrangement involving non-Palestinians.”

Mounir al-Maqdah, the commander of Fatah’s armed wing, countered by stating that “Maarouf’s  activities went beyond the camp’s limits and he is wanted by the Lebanese authorities for his involvement in several security files as well as planning to plant a bomb in the  home of a senior Fatah official.”  Maqdah added that “any security matter within the camp is the business of the Lebanese-Palestinian Follow-up Committee and the joint Palestinian Armed Forces.”

Jund al-Sham is a radical militant organization comprising of about 50 members.  It is a splinter group from another Palestinian extremist group, Asbat al-Ansar, based in Ein el-Hilweh.  The group has claimed responsibility for several bombings and violent gun battles throughout Lebanon and Syria.  The group fought against the Lebanese army during its conflict with militants in the Nahr al-Bared camp.

For more information, please see:
Al Arabiya News Channel – Heavy Fighting Erupts in Lebanon Refugee Camp – 22 March 2008

The Daily Star – Hundreds Flee as Ain al-Hilweh Factions Clash – 22 March 2008

Naharnet – Fatah-Jund al-Sham Fight it Out in Ein al-Hilweh, Casualties – 22 March 2008

Ya Libnan – Ceasefire Ends Clash in Southern Lebanon Camp – 22 March 2008

BBC – Factions Fight in Lebanese Camp – 21 March 2008

International Herald Tribune – Islamic Militants Clash with Fatah Guerrillas in Refugee Camp in Southern Lebanon – 21 March 2008

ISTANBUL, Turkey – On March 24, hundreds of Kurdish protesters threw stones at Turkish police in southeastern Turkey; marking the fifth day of confrontation between the two sides.  Two protestors were killed as a result of the confrontations in cities across the country and dozens more were injured.  Over 130 people were arrested.

In early March, the Turkish military launched an eight-day campaign in northern Iraq, targeting PKK camps.  The continuation of Turkish military operations against Kurdistan’s Working Party (PKK) has caused heightened tensions in Turkey’s mostly-Kurdish southeast.

Police used batons, tear gas and water cannon on protesters in the city of Van.  Thousands of protesters took part in the Van demonstrations, with many of them hurling rocks and chanted slogans in support of the PKK Kurdish rebel group.  Protestors set up barricades and lit fires in the streets.

Clashes took place across the country, with arrests and injuries reported in Hakkari and Siirt.  In Viransehir, protestors threw Molotov cocktails at police.  Unrest was also reported among Kurdish communities in western Turkey, including in Mersin and Izmir.

These recent clashes coincide with the celebration of the Newroz spring festival, also known as the Kurdish New Year.  The holiday is associated with Turkey’s large Kurdish population and often sparks conflict between clashes between the Turkish military and the PKK.

The PKK took up arms in 1984 to make a Kurdish ethnic homeland in southeastern Turkey.  Since 1984, approximately 40,000people have died in violence between the PKK and the Turkish military.

For more information, please see:
Jerusalem Post – Kurds Clash with Turkish Police for 5th Day; 2 Dead – 24 March 2008

Al Jazeera – Kurds Killed in Turkish Protests – 23 March 2008

Reuters – Kurdish Man Dies in Clash with Turkish Police – 23 March 2008

BBC – Turkish Police Clash with Kurds – 22 March 2008