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Report: Ten Children of Syrian Rebels Killed by Assad Force

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

DAMASCUS, Syria – Syrian Activists say at least 49 people, including 10 children, have been killed by Syrian government troops in the village of Rityan, north of the city of Aleppo. The alleged massacre was reportedly committed by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who have launched an offensive to cut rebel supply lines to the Turkish border, according to the United Kingdom based rights and monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

People rescue children from a building damaged by, what activists said where, explosive barrels dropped by Assad’s forces in the Al-Shaar neighborhoods of Aleppo. (Photo Courtesy of the International Bushiness Times UK)

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the regime forces backed by Hezbollah and non-Syrian fighters entered the town on Tuesday and executed 49 civilians, including 13 rebels and their families, including children. “The troops and militiamen knew exactly where they lived thanks to the informers who accompanied them,” said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman. “There was no resistance except in one house where a rebel opened fire at troops before being executed along with his family.”

The Syrian Army denied alleged involvement in the massacre, which was reportedly carried out during the regime force’s offensive against rebel-held areas in the Aleppo region. “I deny completely such an act that cannot be committed by the Syrian army whose duty is to protect lives and not kill people,” a military source told the press. The military source claimed armed groups kill residents whom they suspect of being loyal or working with the government and then accuse the Syrian Army of committing the acts.

Aleppo is Syria’s second-largest city and has become the forefront of clashes between pro-regime forces and rebel groups. The Syrian regime has targeted civilians in and around the city throughout the course of the four year conflict and has even bombarded residential areas with barrel bombs and shelling.

On Friday the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that it had documented the killings of 103 people, including four women, by Islamist factions since the beginning of 2015. Of these, 72 people were reportedly killed “execution style” for a variety of perceived offences. Also on Friday, United Nations investigators announced that they were considering reversing their policy of withholding the names of alleged war criminals in the Syrian Civil war which has now claimed the lives of at least 220,000 people over the past four years. According to the United, more than 9 million Syrians have been displaced by conflict since the war began.

For more information please see:

Al Arabiya – Syria Forces Execute 10 Children of Alleged Rebels: Monitor – 21 February 2015

International Business Times UK – Syria: President Assad’s Troops ‘Kill Children of Alleged Rebels’ – 21 February 2015

Middle East Monitor – Assad Forces Kill 48 Civilians in Aleppo – 21 February 2015

Reuters UK – Monitor Says Syrian Army and Allies Killed 48 In Aleppo Offensive – 21 February 2015

Bill Browder’s Red Notice Hits the UK Sunday Time’s Best Seller List

February 20, 2015 – ‘Red Notice,’ a non-fiction thriller by justice campaigner Bill Browder, hit ‘The Sunday Times’ best-seller list in the first week since the book’s launch.

‘Red Notice’ is an unputdownable account of the rise and fall in fortune of a Westerner, once the largest international investor in Russia, and a look under the hood of the massive corruption of Vladimir Putin’s regime. The book is told through the story of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who was tortured and killed in Russian police custody after testifying about a $230 million government corruption scam.

The Sunday Times list reflects weekly book sales in the UK. ‘Red Notice’ has gained the No 9 position on this week’s Sunday Times list, which will be published on Sunday, February 22nd. It means that the book has become an instant best-seller in Britain.

“The reason I wrote the book is so that people could see for themselves what has happened to me and to Sergei Magnitsky when we tried to expose Russian government corruption. I wrote it in a style that both those interested in Russia and those who are not would find it easily accessible and interesting. It exceeds my best hopes to get such amazing feedback from my readers,” said Bill Browder.

This success in the UK follows ‘Red Notice’ becoming a best-seller in the US, where it has now been on ‘The New York Times’ best-seller list for the second week since its launch.

‘Red Notice’ has received rave reviews from celebrities and ordinary readers alike.

Playwright Tom Stoppard said: “The story of Sergei Magnitsky’s life and death is?a shocking true-life thriller, and Bill Browder was the man to write it.”

Reviewers on amazon.co.uk said:

“It reads like a legal and political thriller, a historical novel and true crime story all in one and I would recommend to everyone who is old enough to read to buy or download to their kindle and can guarantee you will be hooked before you reach the 3rd chapter.”

“It is the clearest, most fact-dense, heart-breaking and heartfelt account of grotesque, systematic and unrelenting criminality, at the highest levels of the government of a country, Russia, whose leaders brazenly demand the world’s respect while continuing to break the world’s laws.”

The book has also received glowing reviews in the global media:

“An unburdening, a witness statement and a thriller all that the same time … Electrifying … One heck of a read.” – The Times

“[Browder’s] freewheeling, snappy book describes the meteoric rise, and disastrous fall, of a buccaneer capitalist who crossed the wrong people and paid a steep price. . . The high stakes make for a zesty tale” – New York Times

“A sizzling accountof Mr Browder’s rise, fall and metamorphosis from bombastic financier to renowned human-rights activist … Readsmore like a financial thriller than a real-life story” – The Economist

“A tale that makes the dirty dealings of House of Cards look like Snow White.” – Toronto Star

‘Red Notice’ was published by Random House and released in the UK on 5 February 2015.

African Leaders call on International Criminal Court to drop against Omar al-Bashir and William Ruto

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – African leaders have called on the International Criminal Court to  drop or suspend charges against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto until African concerns about the court and proposals to amend the court’s founding treaty are considered. President Bashir is accused of failing to respond to summons to answer to charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, and has evaded arrest the issuance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court. Deputy President Ruto is currently on trial, facing charges of crimes against humanity for post-election violence that occurred in Kenya in 2007-08 in which more than 1,000 people were killed and more than 600,000 were displaced. Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has argued that the case against Ruto is very weak. Kenyatta himself faced charges for crimes against humanity, but the charges were dropped by the court in December of last year. Kenyatta and Ruto were on opposing sides of the postelection violence but ultimately joined forces to lead the country in the March 2013 polls.

Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir arrives for the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) summit, held on the before the African Union summit, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. (Photo courtesy of The Washington Post)

African leaders made the call at the African Union Summit in Ethiopia on Saturday. The theme of this year’s summit is: “2015 Year of women’s Empowerment and Development towards Africa’s Agenda 2063.” African Union Summit brings together all the African States except Morocco which is not a member of the union. The world will be watching to see how the African Union will handle the ICC agenda and continue to respond to cases against African leaders. Some fear that the African Union members could take the drastic move of exiting the Rome Statute regime.

During Jamhuri Day celebrations in Kenya last year, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who has led Uganda since 1986m threatened to introduce a motion during the African Union Simmit co call on African states to move out of the Rome Statute treaty regime en-masse.

The African Union has faced heavily criticism from human rights groups for calling for a halt to ICC cases against African leaders, saying by doing this the African Union encourages impunity. Last year, the AU passed a resolution not to allow a sitting head of state or deputy to be prosecuted at the International Criminal Court. Some African States have been criticized for failing to respect the legitimacy of the International Criminal Court and the Rome Statute by failing to arrest President Bashir who has freely traveled to some African States.

For more information please see:

Jurist – ICC should drop cases against Bashir, Ruto: African leaders – 1 February 2015

The Washington Post – African leaders to court: Drop cases against top Africans – 1 February 2015

United Nations News Centre – In Addis Ababa, senior UN officials pledge ongoing cooperation with Africa on all fronts vital – 30 January 2015

Capital News Kenya – Uhuru heads to Addis for African Union summit – 29 January 2015

 

Hezbollah Attack on Convoy Prompts Israeli Response, U.N Peacekeeper Caught in the Crossfire

By Max Bartels 

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East 

 

Jerusalem, Israel 

Three causalities have been confirmed from an attack on an Israeli military convoy and the resulting retaliation by Israeli forces. Anti-tank missiles were fired at the convoy in the Sheeba farms area, an area where the borders of Israel, Lebanon and Syria meet.. Hezbollah has claimed the attack is retaliation for the Israeli airstrike that killed six of its fighters as well as an Iranian Revolutionary Guards General in the Golan Heights Area. The Israeli military responded with ground and air operations including firing at least 50 artillery shells into Lebanon where they claimed Hezbollah operational positions were along the border.

Israeli artillery strikes open farmland past a village in Southern Lebanon. (Photo Curtesy of Yahoo News)

Two of the causalities were Israeli soldiers in the convoy as well as one U.N Peace Keeper. The U.N did not release the nationality of the peacekeeper however, the Spanish Prime Minister’s Twitter feed expressed sadness at the death of a Spanish Soldier in Lebanon. The Spanish Defense Ministry later confirmed that the peacekeeper was a Spanish soldier. A spokes person for the U.N force in Lebanon urged maximum restraint to prevent an escalation between Israel and Hezbollah. At this point it is unknown whether the Israeli military or Hezbollah killed the Spanish soldier, the IDF is reported to be investigating the incident. Some reports suggest that the peacekeeper was killed by the Israeli retaliatory strikes in Lebanon.

An hour after the attack on the convoy an Israeli military position on Mount Hermon came under mortar fire and Israeli authorities evacuated a nearby ski resort. Israel reports that none were harmed during the attack. Lebanese officials stated that to their knowledge none were harmed by the Israeli artillery strikes, which reportedly missed populated villages in Southern Lebanon.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu called the attack on the convoy a “criminal terror attack” and further stated that Israel will not hesitate to retaliate on all fronts. Recently Israeli aircraft bombed Syrian Army artillery positions after rockets were fired from Syria into the Israeli occupied Golan Heights region. These recent events have been the most deadly since the 2006 Hezbollah attack on an Israeli convoy that started a month long war in Lebanon. Both U.N and Israeli officials have expressed their hope that events do not escalate further.

For more information, please see:

BBC News — Three Killed as Israel and Hezbollah Clash on Lebanese Border — 28 January 2015

CNN News — 2 Israeli Soldiers, Peacekeeper Reported Killed in Israeli- Hezbollah Fighting — 28 January 2015

Aljazeera — Two Israeli Soldiers Killed in Missile Attack — 28 January 2015

Yahoo News — Lebanese Hezbollah Hits Israeli Convoy, Killing 2 Soldiers — 28 January 2015

 

Indonesia Executes Six on Drug Convictions, Including Five Foreign Nationals

By Max Bartels 

Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania 

 

Jakarta, Indonesia

On Saturday the Indonesian government executed six convicted drug smugglers by firing squad. Only one of the six was an Indonesian citizen, the other five were foreign nationals that had been convicted of drug smuggling in Indonesia. The five foreigners were Malawian,  Nigerian, Vietnamese, Brazilian and Dutch. Indonesian President Joko Widodo rejected the clemency appeals of all six of the convicted criminals as well as rejected pleas from international rights organizations and the national governments of the some of the convicts.

Ambulances transport the bodies of the six individuals executed in Indonesia on drug convictions. (Photo curtesy of The Sydney Morning Herald)

Both the Brazilian and Dutch governments reached out extensively to President Widodo to plea for the lives of their citizens. The Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff made a plea to Widodo saying she respected Indonesian sovereignty but she was pleading as a mother and a head of state for humanitarian reasons. Widodo was understanding of her concern but in the end said there was nothing he could do because the full process of the law had been followed. The Dutch government also reached out to Widodo in the form of Foreign Minister Bert Koenders,  as well as Prime Minister Mark Rutte and King Willem- Alexander. Foreign Minister Koender referred to the executions as a “cruel and inhumane punishment and an unacceptable denial of dignity and integrity.” Both the Brazilian and Dutch ambassadors have been recalled from Indonesia since the executions.

The Brazilian, 53 year old Marco Moreira was arrested in 2003 after police at the Jakarta airport found about 13.4 kilos of cocaine in his hand glider. Dutchman Ang Kiem Soe aged 52 was also arrested in 2003 when police in Jakarta found equipment that they estimated could produce 15,000 ecstasy pills each day for three years. The police also confiscated 8,000 pills and thousands of dollars from Soe. Currently, there is also a second Brazilian national  on death row in Indonesia for drug charges.

President Widodo took office in November and these six executions are the first of his term. The President has declared to take a hard stance on drug smugglers and intends the executions to act as a deterrent to combat Indonesians rising drug problem. The President has also refused to grant clemency for 64 other convicted drug smugglers currently on death row. The President has declared that a second round of executions will take place later this year. Currently one third of the individuals on death row, most for drug offenses are foreign nationals.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press via Aol News — Indonesia Executes 6 Drug Convicts, Including 5 Foreigners — 18 January 2015

BBC News — Indonesia Executions: Brazil and Dutch Envoys Recalled — 18 January 2015 

CNN — Indonesia Executes 6 for Drug Offenses, sets off Diplomatic Storm — 18 January 2015

NY Times — Indonesia’s Execution of Foreigners Prompts Diplomatic Storm — 19 January 2015