The Middle East

Palestinian Protest Camp Dismantled by Israeli Security Forces

By Ali Al-Bassam
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

JERUSALEM, Israel — Last Sunday, Israeli security forces dismantled a Palestinian protest camp that was constructed during President Obama’s recent visit to Israel in protest to the expansion of settlements in the controversial site known as E-1, a corridor that connects the West Bank with East Jerusalem.

Around 50 demonstrators were released by Israeli forces in the Palestinian controlled portion of the West Bank, while four others were questioned in an Israeli police station. (Photo Courtesy of Al Jazeera)

Police Spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said that, just before dawn, around 200 Israeli officers removed some 40 demonstrators from the camp.  Police said that no weapons were used, and  that they were deployed to the area after activists refused to leave.  Forces arrested four people, including two women charged with violating military orders and resisting arrest.  Also among the arrested was the event organizer, Palestinian legislator Mustafa Barghouti.  Arrestees were taken to Maale Adumim Police Station and were later released on bail.  Barghouti said that around 50 other protesters were placed on a bus and later released in the Palestinian-controlled portion of the West Bank.

Dubbed “Ahfad Younis,” the camp was pitched last Wednesday on a hill adjacent to another camp site known as Bab al-Shams, which was erected earlier this year before eventually being taken down by security forces on the grounds of “public disorder.”  The camps are an attempt to draw attention to Israeli plans to expand settlements into the controversial E-1 corridor.  Critics of the expansion say that the plan to build 3,500 housing units in E-1 would “cut off the northern part of the West Bank from the south, and would leave Palestinian areas of Jerusalem surrounded by a chain of Jewish ones, threatening the vulnerability of a future Palestinian state.”

Similar encampments have sprouted throughout the region, but were taken down quickly by security forces.

During his visit to Israel, Obama acknowledged that the expansion into E-1 would be “particularly problematic.”  “Israelis must recognize that continued settlement activity is counterproductive to the cause of peace, that an independent Palestine must be viable with real borders that have to be drawn,” said Obama in a speech to students in Jerusalem last Thursday.

The international community itself has urged Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his government to reconsider the expansion.  Early in Obama’s first term, Netanyahu agreed to a ten-month slow down.  Talks then resumed briefly in 2010.  Afterwards, talks went stale as Netanyahu refused to extend the slowdown and construction continued.  Palestinians might increase their efforts for international recognition if Israel continues to construct settlements in the West Bank.  “We have to focus on the steadfastness of our people, and we have 63 international agencies we can join,” said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, referring to the Palestinian plan for international recognition.

For further information, please see:

Al Bawaba — Israel Dismantles Palestinian ‘Bab al-Shams’ Protest Camp — 24 March 2013

Al Jazeera — Israel Dismantles Palestinian Protest Camp — 24 March 2013

Haaretz — Israel Dismantles Palestinian Tent City Built at Start of Obama Visit — 24 March 2013

San Francisco Chronicle — Palestinians Cool to Partial Settlement Freeze — 24 March 2013

Another Tunisian Charged with Criminal Defamation

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TUNIS, Tunisia – Olfa Riahi, a blogger from Tunisia, has been charged with criminal defamation just two weeks after university professor and psychoanalyst Raja Ben Slama was charged with defaming a public official.

Olfa Riahi can face up to two years imprisonment for her posts implicating a public official with misconduct. (Photo Courtesy of Middle East Online)

Olfa Riahi’s charges stem from statements she posted regarding Rafik Abdessalem having misused public funds. The post included hotel receipts indicating that Abdessalem stayed at a posh hotel in Tunis at the public’s expense and that he transferred funds from a foreign government into a foreign ministry account. Rafik Abdessalem was the foreign minister of Tunisia. He abdicated his position shortly after Riahi’s accusations.

If Riahi is convicted, she may face a prison sentence. It boggles the mind that one who publicly exposes potential corruption could be imprisoned for up to two years. An individual convicted for defamation can be sentenced to six months of imprisonment, however, there is a potential two year imprisonment for defaming a public official. Also, there are various fines associated with the specific charges in addition to the imprisonment.

Riahi is officially charged with violations of articles 245 and 128 of the penal code and article 86 of the telecommunications code. Defamation under the telecommunications code occurs as a result, “harming others or disrupting their lives through public communication networks.” Article 245 of the penal code describes defamation as “any allegation or public imputation of a fact that harms the honor or the esteem of a person or official body.”

The international human rights group, Human Rights Watch, has called on Tunisian authorities to revise their stance on criminal defamation. The group requested that Tunisia convert defamation charges from criminal cases to civil cases, in order to “conform to international norms on freedom of expression.”

Human Rights Watch’s deputy director on the Middle East and North Africa, Eric Goldstein, stated that “criminal defamation laws have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and work against the public interest by deterring people from speaking out about corruption or other misconduct by public officials.”

The aforementioned statement directly applies to the post Riahi made concerning Rafik Abdessalem alleged corruption. Furthermore, Abdessalem’s decision to step down could be viewed as an admission to the alleged corruption, making Riahi’s assertion seem more like a fact than defamation. The ability to make such statements is necessary to maintain the international human right of freedom of expression and to a practical effect, to keep a government honest.

For further information, please see:

Tunisia Live – Human Rights Watch Condemns Defamation Laws in Tunisia – 21 March 2013

Guardian – Tunisian Blogger Faces Prison – 20 March 2013

Human Rights Watch – Tunisia: Repeal Criminal Defamation Law – 20 March 2013

Middle East Online – Human Rights Watch: Tunisia’s Defamation law Threatens Free Speech – 20 March 2013

Sultan Qaboos Pardons Protesters in Oman

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

MUSCAT, Oman – While the Arab spring led to protests throughout the Middle East, those in Oman have felt it necessary to join in over the past year. As a result of expressing their displeasure with the government and the Sultan, numerous individuals have been detained and imprisoned for their roles and statements made in protests and cyber campaigns.

Approximately fifty individuals detained for defaming the Sultan and unlawfully assembling will be released today on a pardon by the Sultan. (Photo Courtesy of the Guardian)

Many of those detained, were jailed specifically for defaming the sultan. The seventy-two year old Sultan Qaboos bin Said, who has ruled over Oman for the last forty-two years, does not hold too big of a grudge though. The Oman News Agency announced that, “Sultan Qaboos  has issued a royal pardon for those convicted of defamation, information technology crimes and unauthorised rallies.” At least fifty individuals who were sentenced from six to eighteen month jail terms are expected to be released today.

This decision to free all the activists was not completely unprovoked. The sultans pardon came shortly after the negative publicity that arises when approximately thirty detained individuals partake in a two week long hunger strike. The hunger strike began when eleven to seventeen cyber activists chose to protest the delays and denials of receiving appeals. These cyber activists were charged with “unlawful assembly and violating the cyber law.” Eventually, another thirteen imprisoned activists joined their hunger strike.

After fifteen days of not eating, the initial cyber activist hunger strikers were told by the Supreme Court that their appeals would in fact be heard. Just a week later, Sultan Qaboos bin Said announced his royal pardons.

Besides for calling for the release of these protesters, the Sultan is also attempting to respond to many of their concerns. One move the government has taken was to announce a plan to restrict the number of foreign workers in the country in order to decrease domestic employment. Additionally, plans are in the works to greatly increase the minimum wage.

While these improvements sound good on paper, the protesters will not be truly happy until they see they see actual actions taken. There has long been a pledge to increase public specter jobs which has never really come to fruition as the country focuses on its oil export role on the Strait of Hormuz. Until actual change comes, expect more to be detained for defamation against sultan, and eventually more pardons as well.

For further information, please see:

Guardian – Oman’s Sultan Pardons Dissidents who Were Jailed for Defaming him – 22 March 2013

Gulf News – Oman’s Qaboos Pardons Activists – 21 March 2013

Middle East Online – Top Court in Oman Orders Retrial for Jailed Activists – 4 March 2013

Daily News Egypt – 30 Jailed Omani Activists end Hunger Strike: Lawyer – 25 February 2013

Lynch Mob Kills Two in Egypt

By Dylan Takores
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt – Yesterday, residents of Gharbiya captured and lynched two Egyptian men accused of kidnapping and theft.

The bodies suspended from bus station rafters. (Photo Courtesy of Sky News)

 

Enraged villagers chased the men through the town after allegedly catching the men attempt to steal a rickshaw and kidnap a girl inside the vehicle.  The citizens stripped and brutally beat the men with sticks and clubs before hanging the men from the rafters in a bus station.  Some attempted to help the individuals, but were pushed back by the mob.

Ahram reported that individuals parked their cars on major roads to protest rising gas prices.  The roadblocks prevented police from reaching the scene in time to stop the killing.

Approximately 3,000 locals observed the event.  A photographer at the scene said many in the crowd chanted “kill them!” during the execution.  After, residents dumped the lifeless bodies on the steps of a police station.

Though two years have passed since the revolution that overthrew former President Mubarak, many areas of Egypt have yet to reestablish permanent and effective law enforcement.  Frustrated with the lack of police presence, locals are beginning to take the law into their own hands.

The event took place one week after the Attorney General’s Office announced that citizens should arrest criminals and turn them over to the police.  Following that advice, citizens in several cities and villages formed independent groups known as “popular committees” dedicated to maintaining public security.  Many of the groups carry clubs and knives.

Since the Office’s announcement, incidences of vigilantism have risen dramatically throughout Egypt.  However, Gharbiya has seen the most extreme examples.  A similar public execution took place in the province on Saturday.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s Gharbiya spokesman Mamdouh al-Muneer explained to the Associated Press that the lynching followed a series of kidnappings and rapes in the area.  “Unfortunately, the police are completely out of the picture in Gharbiya,” he added.

Opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei condemned the acts and blamed President Morsi’s administration for the violent outbreak.  ElBaradei tweeted on Monday, “Public display of vigilante lynching & killing: are we losing our humanity in a lawless society?”

Justice Minister Ahmed Mekki spoke out against the rise in vigilantism as well.  In a statement to a Turkish news agency, he indicated that the violence is a signal of the “death of the state.”  He explained, a “government that allows this to happen is an unjust government, because it does not afford citizens with adequate protection.”

 

For further information, please see:

Sky News – Egypt Vigilantes Kill Two Men as Crowd Watches – 19 March 2013

Ahram – Angry mobs attempt 3rd public lynching in Egypt’s Gharbiya – 18 March 2013

Ahram – Public lynchings indicate ‘death of state’: Egypt justice minister – 18 March 2013

BBC News – Egyptian villagers lynch two men – 18 March 2013

UN Commission, Amnesty International: Syrian War Crimes Must be Determined by ICC

By Ali Al-Bassam
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria — Last Monday, United Nations (U.N.) Commission of Inquiry pleaded to the U.N. Security Council to refer cases involving war crimes committed in Syria, by both the government and rebel fighters, to the International Criminal Court (I.C.C.).

A U.N. Commission of Inquiry, and Amnesty International says that cases regarding war crimes committed by those fighting for government and rebel forces should be referred to the I.C.C. (Photo Courtesy of The Guardian)

Carla del Ponte, former Chief Prosecutor for the International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, who is now working on a rolling U.N. inquiry into Syria, said that high-level perpetrators have been identified and should be brought in front of the I.C.C.  “Now really it’s time… We have a permanent court, the I.C.C., who would be ready to take this case,” said del Ponte.

The commission plans to submit a confidential list of names of suspected war criminals to the U.N. Human Rights Office, and has repeatedly urged the U.N. Security Council to refer the cases to the I.C.C.  The Security Council has been deadlocked in doing so.  “We are in very close dialogue with all five permanent members of the Security Council, but we don’t have the key that will open the path to cooperation inside the Security Council,” said Paulo Pinheiro, Head of the Commission of Inquiry.

Since Syria is not party to the Rome Statute, which created the I.C.C., the only way the court can investigate cases arising from the country is if it receives a referral from the Security Council.

Russia, a member of the Security Council, and ally to President Bashar Al-Assad, has blocked three U.N. Security Council resolutions that would increase pressure on the Syrian government.  Moscow is hesitant to refer these cases to the I.C.C, a move which Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov called “untimely and unconstructive.”

Human rights watchdog Amnesty International also called on the U.N. to refer war crimes committed in Syria by both parties to the I.C.C.  “While the vast majority of war crimes and other gross violations continue to be committed by government forces, our research points to an escalation in abuses by armed opposition groups,” said Ann Harrison, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

Amnesty International documented regime forces’ use of “internationally banned weapons against civilians,” and “the torture and summary killing of soldiers, pro-government militias and civilians, captured or abducted by rebel fighters.”  It also found evidence of the army’s use of ballistic missiles on the northern city and province of Aleppo.  It provided the testimony of civilians who survived such attacks.  One such testimony came from Sabah, a 31 year old mother who lost three daughters, her husband, mother, sister, and three nephews in one missile attack.  “They were killed; what is left for me in this life?”

For further information, please see:

Alert Net — ICC War Crime Requests for Syria “Untimely” – Russian Official — 19 March 2013

Daily Nation — UN Must Refer Syria War Crimes to ICC: Amnesty — 19 March 2013

The Guardian — Syrian Leaders Should Face Justice at ICC, UN Says — 18 March 2013

Naharnet — U.N. Syria Investigators Seek to Refer Report to ICC — 11 March 2013