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

BAGHDAD, Iraq – A series of suicide attacks, shootings, and rocket strikes have claimed dozens of lives this week in Iraq. The sudden rise of violence despite of additional 30,000 troops deployed in critical areas underscore the precarious nature of security in the country.

On early Sunday morning, 13 Iraqi soldiers died when a suicide attacker drove a fuel tanker into an army base in Mosul in northern Iraq. At least 40 people were also injured when the attack caused a massive blast. In other violence:

· Drive-by shooting in a Baghdad market claimed seven lives and injured 16 people

· Rocket strikes in Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone killed at least fifteen people, eight of whom were civilians

· A suicide car bomb killed at least three people near Samara

· A roadside bomb killed five Iraqi soldiers close to the city of Kirkuk

Violence in Iraq had declined since the stationing of extra 30,000 troops last June. But this week’s attacks have shown that any improvements made in security can deteriorate anytime.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press – 42 die in series of attacks across Iraq – 23 March 2008

BBC News – Dozens die in attacks across Iraq – 23 March 2008

AFP – 54 killed in Iraq bloodshed – 23 March 2008

International Herald Tribune – Rockets hit Green Zone in Iraq – 23 March 2008

GAZA CITY, Gaza – On March 20, Hamas accused Egypt of detaining and torturing dozens of Hamas members.  Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhum stated that the organization “has expressed its dissatisfaction over the continuing detentions of dozens of Palestinians in Egyptian prisons and denounces the torture which has been inflicted on them.”

Hamas claims that 39 members are currently detained in Egypt and 90 have been released in recent days.  Most were arrested when they entered Egypt in January, along with hundreds of thousands of Gazans, when the border fence near the Rafah crossing was breached.

The alleged torture occurred during interrogations conducted by Egyptian authorities.  The individuals who have been released stated that they were questioned on topics such as the movements of Hamas leaders, such as former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, the whereabouts of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, and Hamas activities within Gaza.

Said Siam, former interior minister in the Hamas-led government, strongly condemned the Egyptian authorities.  “The Egyptians aren’t asking anything about what’s happening inside Egypt,” he said. Siam added, “These are the type of questions that only Israeli interrogators would ask.”  Barhum agreed, stating that the questions had nothing to do with Egypt’s security.

For more information, please see:
ABC – Hamas Accuses Egypt of Torturing its Members – 22 March 2008

AFP – Hamas Accuses Egypt of Militant “Torture” – 21 March 2008

BBC – Hamas Men “Tortured by Egyptians” – 21 March 2008

Jerusalem Post – Hamas: Egypt is Torturing Hamas Prisoners – 20 March 2008