By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

El-ARISH, Egypt – Following a pilgrimage to Mecca, two thousand Palestinians are stranded in Egypt as a result of a dispute on their re-entry into Gaza.  The Egyptian and Israeli governments would like the pilgrims to return to Gaza via the Israeli controlled Aouja crossing, to ensure that weapons or money are not smuggled into Gaza.

However, Palestinians insist that the pilgrims be allowed to re-enter via the Egyptian controlled Rafah crossing.  The Rafah crossing is the only entry into Gaza which is not controlled by Israel.  In mid-December, the Egyptian government permitted the pilgrims to exit Gaza through the Rafah crossing, despite Israeli protests against it.

Some of the Palestinian pilgrims are members (or are related to members) of Hamas or are wanted by the Israeli government.  They fear that if they will be arrested if forced to return through the Israel.  Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum, said that Hamas rejects any other crossing.  Also, Hamas lawmaker, Yehia Moussa, said that Egypt had an obligation to allow the pilgrims to return home.

On December 28, over two thousand Palestinian pilgrims left Jordan to sail to the Red Sea port of Nuweiba, Egypt.  The Egyptian government finally permitted entry into Egypt after the pilgrims were stranded on the ferries for two days.  Then, the Palestinians were bused to several camps in the Sinai until the parties agree on a method of re-entry.  Currently, Egyptian officials are considering several options; including receiving assurances from Israeli authorities that no one will arrested or allowing the pilgrims to re-enter through Rafah, despite Israel’s wishes.

Following the busing of at least one thousand pilgrims to temporary camps near el-Arish, Egypt, many of the pilgrims began protesting.  Many refused to exit the bus, while others broke windows and started fires to protest Egypt’s decision.  Masses of Palestinians gathered on the border between Gaza and Egypt and demanded that the pilgrims be allowed to enter.  However, the demonstration was quickly controlled by the Hamas security forces.

In a similar incident, Palestinians and Israelis clashed at a border crossing.  According to an Israeli Defense Force (IDF) official, IDF soldiers fired warning shots into the air to disperse the on-coming crowds and these warning shots resulted in the death of a Palestinian woman.  However, witnesses claim that following warning shots in the air, IDF soldiers also fired shots into the crowd, killing one woman and wounding three others.

For more information, please see:
Al-Jazeera – Stranded Pilgrims Riot in Egypt – 31 December 2007

BBC – Protest by Stranded Gaza Pilgrims – 31 December 2007

Jerusalem Post – IDF: Pilgrim ‘Apparently’ Shot by Troops – 31 December 2007

London Times – Pilgrims Left in Limbo as Egypt Bars Their Route Home to Gaza– 31 December 2007

Reuters – Stranded Palestinian Haj Pilgrims Protest in Egypt – 31 December 2007

AFP – Palestinian Pilgrims Stuck in Egypt Refuse to be Moved to Camps – 30 December 2007

Associated Press – Pilgrims Stuck in Egypt Taken to Camps – 30 December 2007

BBC – Gaza Pilgrims Stay on Their Buses – 30 December 2007

Reuters – Gunfire Kills One Palestinian Pilgrim, Wounds Four – 30 December 2007

Al-Jazeera – Gaza Pilgrims Stranded off Egypt – 29 December 2007

BBC – Gaza Pilgrims Stranded in Red Sea – 29 December 2008

International Herald Tribune – Close to Two Thousand Palestinian Pilgrims Trapped in Egypt – 29 December 2007

The Kurds have promised to continue fighting Turkey until they are promised equal rights including the right to teach the Kurdish language in public schools.  Suzdar Avista a local Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) leader stated that “We will not surrender, and if Turkey continues its aggression against our bases and kills civilians we will respond, we’ll begin fighting inside Turkey.” (International Herald Tribune)

Some locals have remained in the area despite the constant shelling.  They have condemned the Turkish actions.  They believe that the purpose of the attacks has only to improve the morale of the Turkish people, rather than actually eliminate the PKK rebels.

For more information, please see:

International Herald Tribune (AP)- Kurdish rebels in Iraq vow to carry out more attacks against Turkey if airstrikes continue- 30 December 2007

Bahrain has extended its amnesty deadline for illegal workers to January 31, 2008.  The purpose of the extending the deadline is enable illegal workers to stay in Bahrain or leave the country without having to pay high penalties for violating their contracts.  The amnesty was issued as a response to the reported abuses of migrant workers.

The government stated that the amnesty has been successful and that 80% of the illegal workers have benefited from the amnesty.  Around 12,000 workers have already left the country and 22,000 workers legalized their stay.  However, the government is committed to helping the remaining 20%  of illegal workers through amnesty and has promised to launch an “inspection campaign next week to ensure that no one is working in Bahrain illegally.”

For more information, please see:

Gulf Daily News- New deadline for amnesty seekers- 31 December 2007

By Kevin Kim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RABAT, Morocco – Human Rights Watch on Friday urged the Moroccan Ministry of Justice to investigate the police beating and intimidation of two human rights activists in Western Sahara. More importantly, the New York-based rights organization expressed “concern that the action is part of a broader attack on human rights monitoring by the authorities in the Western Sahara region.”

Police allegedly detained Dahha Rahmouni and Brahim Alansari, members of two nongovernmental human rights organizations in El-Ayoun, on December 14 and beat them while in custody. Two days later, the authorities released both without charge, but threatened to use statements they were compelled to sign if they continued their activities. Rahmouni is a member of unrecognized organization based in El-Ayoun called the Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations. Alansari is a member of the legally recognized Moroccan Association of Human Rights.

Rahmouni and Alansari are known as sympathizers of the independence movement Polisario Front in Western Sahara. In 1976, Morocco annexed the northwest African territory of 260,000 people after Spain withdrew from what is known as “Spanish Sahara.” Although the Moroccan government has offered it autonomy, Polisario Front movement is calling for full independence.

Currently, talks between the two sides are at stalemate. Two rounds of talks to resolve the 32-year-old dispute were held in June and August this year, but each side had stuck to “rigid position.” January 7 negotiation is impending, but many believe the outcome is not hopeful based on past history.

Human Rights Watch said “the Moroccan authorities tightly restrict independent human rights activities in the contested Western Sahara region on the pretext that several rights organizations there violate Moroccan law by espousing independence for Western Sahara,” and added that “authorities frequently keep activists in these organizations under police surveillance and subject them to various forms of harassment.”

The Morrocan government denies all allegations of mistreating independence activists.

For more information, please see:

The Washington Times – Endless conflict in West Sahara – 30 December 2007

Reuters – Morocco urged to probe beating of rights activists – 29 December 2007

Human Rights Watch – Investigate police beating of rights activists in Western Sahara – 28 December 2007

By Kevin Kim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran – A prominent human rights activist jailed since October was rushed to a hospital after collapsing in a prison shower.

Emadeddin Baghi, 45, suffered a “double heart attack” in the notorious Evin prison in Tehran, where he has been held for the past 74 days. He was taken to a private hospital when a prison official found him unconscious in the shower. He had collapsed twice in his cell earlier in the morning due to high nervous pressure.

Baghi, a reformist journalist who is in jail for the second time, has reported been held in solitary confinement ever since he was first taken to Evin, and his health deteriorated steadily during the past two months. His lawyer believes his poor health was mainly due to appalling prison conditions and harassment he has been subjected to during interrogations.

Baghi was arrested in October on charges of violating national security. Iranian authorities said that due to his ongoing activities, he had to serve the remaining year of an earlier prison sentence he had received back in 2003. In 2003, he was sentenced to three years in prison on similar charges of threatening national security, but he only served two years of the term. Authorities have accused Baghi, who campaigns for the humane treatment of prisoners and against the death penalty, of using his activism as a guise to cover anti-regime efforts.

In 2005 Baghi was awarded a top human rights prize by the French government for his work campaigning against the death penalty. Since his jailing, Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the US State Department have both called for his release.

In Iran, capital offences that results a death penalty include murder, rape, armed robbery, serious drug trafficking, and adultery. Iran is reportedly the second most prolific applier of the death penalty worldwide after China.

For more information, please see:

International Herald Tribune – Media advocacy group RSF worried about health of jailed Iranian activist – 28 December 2007

AFP – Jailed Iranian rights activist hospitalized – 27 December 2007

The New York Times – Human rights activist, jailed in Iran, is transferred to hospital – 27 December 2007

Associated Press – Jailed Iran rights activist in hospital – 27 December 2007