By Kevin Kim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

THENIA, Algeria – Islamist armed groups in Algeria is increasingly relying on suicide bombers to deliver its strikes.

On Tuesday, a car bomb exploded outside a police station in northern Algeria, killing at least two people and wounding 23 others. Officers opened fire on a vehicle that was speeding toward the local police station in the town of Thenia. The vehicle exploded before it reached the building, leaving a 6-foot-wide crater. The force of the blast stopped a clock on nearby City Hall and damaged surrounding buildings.

Though no one immediately claimed responsibility for Tuesday’s attack, authorities believe the bombing was carried out by an Algerian al-Qaida affiliate who was also behind twin suicide bombings that killed 37 people in December. On December 11, two small trucks loaded with explosive materials struck U.N. offices and a government building, killing at least 37 people, 17 of them U.N. workers.

The Algerian al-Qaida affiliate – emerged from an alliance between Osama bin Laden’s international terrorist network and an Algerian Islamist movement known as the Salafist Group for Call and Combat, or GSPC – has been actively calling for insurgency since January 2007. Before the alliance, the number of rebels fighting to set up purist Islamic rule had been falling dramatically after a decade of violence that began in 1992, when the then army-backed government canceled the country’s first multiparty elections to prevent a radical Islamic party from victory. Armed groups in return sought to overthrow the government, and up to 200,000 people were killed in the ensuing violence.

Violence has fallen since then, but the GSPC’s alliance with al-Qaida last year seems to have rekindled the main armed group’s interest in the revolt and they began to wage larger-scale bombings and target foreigners.

Algerian security forces have recently stated that they have dismantled a rebel gang responsible for the twin bombing of U.N. offices back in December. The forces killed two suspects and arrested another two.

For more information, please see:

The Associated Press – Group behind UN bomb dismantled – 1 February 2008

Reuters – Algeria says smaller rebel cells test terror hunt – 31 January 2008

Boston Herald – Car bomb blast outside Algerian police station kills at least 2 – 29 January 2008

Guardian Unlimited – Car bomb blast in Algeria kills 2 – 29 January 2008

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria – On January 28, five Syrian security agents arrested Riad Seif, a prominent political dissent and a former MP.  This follows his imprisonment from 2001-2005 for his political views.  His arrest is related to his involvement with the “Democracy Declaration,” a political group calling for greater democracy in Syria.  The Democracy Declaration group met at Seif’s home in December 2007 to form a national council.

Since this December meeting, 10 attendees have been arrested.  Earlier on January 28, these detainees were charged with undermining the state; a charge that carries a long sentence.  The charges against Seif include “harming the image of the state”, “stoking ethnic and sectarian division”, “disseminating false information” and “belonging to a secret organization seeking to alter the social and economic base of the state.”  Mohanad al-Hassani, a lawyer representing some of the detained political activist, said “They face vague charges that carry long jail sentences simply for exercising the right of assembly.”

Last year, Syria convicted at least six leading dissents, each with sentences of up to 12 years.  The convictions included that of human rights lawyer Anwar Bunni and writer Michel Kilo.  According to human rights lawyer, Haitham Maleh, there are currently around 3000 political prisoners in Syria.  This figure is up from 2000 political prisoners in 2005.  While some of the political prisoners being held are members of the liberal groups, most of the political prisoners are members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Seif’s arrest is especially criticized because he suffers from prostate cancer.  Syria has banned him from traveling outside the country to receive medical treatment.

For more information, please see:
Guardian – Syria Arrests Leading Political Dissident – 30 January 2008

Reuters – US Accuses Syria of Contempt for Human Rights – 30 January 2008

Washington Post – World in Brief – 30 January 2008

BBC – Syria Arrests Prominent Dissident – 29 January

Financial Times – Syria Arrests Prominent Dissident – 29 January 2008

New York Times – Syria: Dissident Arrested – 29 January 2008

By Vivek Thiagarajan
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

Professor Atilla Yayla was arrested for his insulting remarks about Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.  Yayla is the head of the Association of Liberal Thinking at Gazi University in Ankara.  Yayla remarked in a speech in 2006 that Atatürk was not as progressively minded as official Turkish history portrays.  Instead, Yayla argued that Atatürk’s one party system may have been “regressive in some aspects.”  (Guardian Unlimited- Turkey jails academic for insulting Ataturk)  Yayla was immediately fired concerning the court case about the remark, but was later reinstated by Gazi University.  (Guardian Unlimited- Turkish academic warns of governmental clampdown)

Yayla was given a 15 month sentence for his insulting remarks.  He was prosecuted under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, which prohibits insulting Turkishness.

Yayla commented that the decision would make it difficult for him to practice his profession and engage in serious dialogue regarding Turkish history.  “After this I should maybe talk about birds and trees, but not about political ideologies or freedoms in Turkey or human rights,” he said to EducationGuardian.co.uk.  (Guardian Unlimited- Turkish academic warns of governmental clampdown)

Turkey must encourage serious discussion regarding its founding.  Otherwise, the precedent could be further extended and allow the government to prosecute anyone that criticizes the current government and its abuses.  The disincentive to journalists could prevent serious government abuses from being exposed to the media, which may enable impunity to remain undiscovered.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press- Professor Convicted for Insulting Atatürk- 28 January 2008

Guardian Unlimited- Turkey jails academic for insulting Atatürk– 28 January 2008

Guardian Unlimited- Turkish academic warns of governmental clampdown- 29 January2008

By Kevin Kim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt – Thousands of Egyptians held protests peacefully on Friday in support of Palestinians in Gaza, calling for an end to the Israeli blockade. Many of the protesters were from Egypt’s largest opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, whose members have been detained for staging protests since the ordeal began. Many of the protesters carried banners that read: “Save Gaza” and “Free Despite Siege.”

On Wednesday, Egyptian authorities arrested scores of Brotherhood members in dawn raids for “illegally organizing protests against the Israeli blockade of Gaza.” The authorities rounded up the men in raids on their homes, including the secretary general of the Cairo doctors’ syndicate, Saad Zaghloul, in the northern port city of Alexandria. Others have also been detained in areas where the Brotherhood has a strong popular base including Giza, north of Cairo, and in Gharbia and Kafr al-Sheikh. They were accused of organizing demonstration without a permit and with belonging to a banned organization.

The crisis began when Palestinian militants first breached the wall between Gaza and Egypt on Wednesday, blowing up part of the wall that allowed tens of thousands of Palestinians to enter into Egypt and stock up on food and fuel. A second breach occurred later, when a bulldozer knocked over a new section of the border wall. Though Egypt has remained idle, allowing thousands to cross the border for humanitarian reasons, the Egyptian government plans to reseal the border in the coming days.

The Muslim Brotherhood, a non-violent group deemed illegal in Egypt, said Egypt should unilaterally open the border with Gaza. For this cause, more than 350 Brotherhood members have been arrested for continuously staging protests. Friday was no exception, where some 2,000 Egyptians protested in support of the Gazans outside the Cairo International Book Fair.

Israel had first blockaded its borders with the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip to stop Palestinian militants from firing rockets into southern Israel. The blockade has affected approximately 1.5 million people who live in Gaza Strip.

For more information, please see:

The Jerusalem Post – Protests for Gaza held across Mideast – 25 January 2008

BBC News – Egypt cracks down on Gaza protest – 23 January 2008

Ynetnews – Egypt arrests Muslim Brotherhood members protesting Gaza siege – 23 January 2008

Reuters – Egypt detains 30 Brotherhood men over Gaza protests – 23 January 2008

BEIRUT, Lebanon – Several Shi’a demonstrators were killed when the demonstrators and the Lebanese military clashed on January 27.  The demonstrators were protesting against power shortages in mainly Shi’a neighborhoods in Beirut.  The protestors, mostly Shi’a and supporters of Hezbollah and Amal opposition groups, claim that Shi’a neighborhoods were unfairly targeted in the government’s power rationing.  Violence began when the military intervened as protestors attempted to block a road.  According to a security official, shots were fired by the protestors and the military fired warning shots to disperse the demonstrators.

During this confrontation, Ali Hassan Hamza, an active member of Amal, was killed.  Violence escalated following Hamza’s death as angry opposition supporters took to the streets.  Demonstrators set fire to tires and obstructed streets.  Clashes between the military and the protestors resulted in at least six additional deaths and dozens of injuries.  The rioting led the military to declare Beirut’s first curfew in more than a decade.

The ruling coalition accused the opposition and Syria of manipulating the current economic and social crises to achieve their own political objectives.  Amal officials say that they were not involved in the protests and Hamza was not a party to the demonstration.  Also, Amal has acted to contained the situation by telling their supporters to stop rioting.  Nabih Berri, the leader of Amal and the Parliament Speaker, urged the demonstrators to go home and allow the military to restore order to the city.  Amal MP Ali Hassan Khalil added, “The situation must be contained. We appeal to all the people who are on the streets to go home and leave the matter into the hands of the security forces in order to restore calm to the region.”

The military announced that they plan to investigate Hamza’s death.  While Hamza was shot in the back, the source of the shots remains unclear.

For more information, please see:
AFP – At Least Seven Killed in Beirut Riots – 27 January 2008

Al Bawaba – At Least Four Dead in Lebanon Riots – 27 January 2008

Al Jazeera – Protests in Lebanon End in Deaths – 27 January 2008

Associated Press – Protests in Lebanon Leave 7 Dead – 27 January 2008

BCC – Seven Killed in Beirut Violence – 27 January 2008

Fox News – Shiite Opposition Riots Block Major Roads in Lebanon, 3 Killed – 27 January 2008

Reuters – Eight Shot Dead in Beirut Protests – 27 January 2008

Washington Post – Eight Shot Dead in Beirut Opposition Protests – 27 January 2008