Settlers Vandalize Mosque, Uproot Trees in Palestinian Village

By Meredith Lee-Clark
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

HAWARA, West Bank – More than three hundred olive trees were uprooted during the night between April 13 and April 14 in the West Bank village of Hawara, reportedly by Jewish settlers. Two cars were also set on fire, and Stars of David and racist slogans in Hebrew were sprayed on buildings, including on the walls of a mosque in the village south of Nablus. An Israeli army spokesman told Army Radio that the Israeli military believed settlers were behind the destruction, possibly as part of a response to the Israeli government’s construction freeze on settlements in the West Bank.

Brigadier General Nitzan Alon, the Commander of the Israeli Defense Forces Judea and Samaria division, has reportedly launched an investigation into the incident, condemned the attacks, and has promised that “those responsible should be brought to justice,” according to an official statement. The statement also noted that the Israeli Civil Administration removed the graffiti from the mosque’s walls during the morning after the incident.

Hawara is also near the Jewish settlement of Yitzhar. In December 2009, settlers from Yitzhar were accused of setting fire to a mosque in the Palestinian village of Yusuf. A rabbi from Yitzhar was arrested in connection to the incident, but no charges were filed.

Some hard-line Jewish settlers have called the attacks on Palestinian villages the “price tag” for the construction freeze on Jewish settlements in the West Bank, put in place by the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In response to news of the incidents in Hawara, Itamar Ben-Gvir, a spokesman for the right-wing Jewish National Front, said:

“We are talking about a hostile village that has been the source of a large number of violent attacks against the residents of Yitzhar…The time has come for the Arabs to understand that Jews are not suckers and that Jewish blood will not be shed without consequence.”

For their own part, Palestinian residents of Hawara have promised to re-plant their trees, some of which are hundreds of years old and have been tended for generations. Some grove owners have estimated that the damage to their trees will cost them thousands of dollars. Yet despite frequent disruption by Jewish settlers, the grove owners have said they will re-plant.

“If they uproot five acres of trees, we’ll plant six,” said Abu Hussein, a grove owner. “They won’t break us.”

For more information, please see:

Ma’an News Agency – Israel Army Condemns Mosque Vandalism – 15 April 2010

BBC News – Jewish Settlers Suspected in West Bank Mosque Attack – 14 April 2010

Ha’aretz – Mosque Vandalized as Settlers Attack Palestinian Village – 14 April 2010

Ha’aretz – No-one Saw, No-one Heard: 300 Palestinian Olive Trees Uprooted – 14 April 2010

Charles Taylor Trial Update

By Jonathan Ambaye
Impunity Watch Desk Reporter, Africa Desk

THE HAGUE, Netherlands-“All the atrocities committed by the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) are not the concerns of Mr Taylor. They did happen but it doesn’t concern Mr. Taylor. Mr. Taylor has no hands in it.” This statement was made by a witness for Charles Taylor this past week. The witness claims that the atrocities that were committed by Sierra Leonean rebels during their 11-year civil conflict should not be attributed to Charles Taylor, and that he had no role to play in them.

 The witness, Charles Ngebe, was a Sierra Leonean national, and formerly a part of the Revolutionary United front.  His entire testimony was premised on his insistence that the allegations of Charle’s Taylor’s support for the RUF are not true. He said an exception existed in 1991 when the conflict first began in Sierra Leone, and Taylor provided minimal support to the rebel forces in his neighboring country. Taylor has also admitted to providing support to the RUF in  1991, and he justified it by saying it was necessary because the United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy rebels were attacking his positions in Liberia with support from the government of Sierra Leone.

 Another witness, Fayia Musa, a Sierra Leonean national and former spokesperson for the RUF, also testified on the circumstances surrounding fallout between the RUF and Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia rebel group in 1992. The fallout has been stipulated by prosecutors and Taylor’s attorneys. The disagreement is around the length of the fallout. Taylor contends it was permanent, while prosecutors say it was quite temporary.

 Fore more information please see:

Charles Taylor Trial – Atrocities in Sierra Leone… – 13 April 2010

Charles Taylor Trial – All Atrocities Committed… – 13 April 2010

Charles Taylor Trial – Relationship Between Taylor… – 14 April 2010

Argentine Plaintiffs Seek Judicial Inquiry into Franco Era Crimes

By Sovereign Hager
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina-Human rights activists are supporting a lawsuit filed April 13, 2010 by two Argentine residents seeking a judicial inquiry into the deaths of their Spanish relatives during Spain’s civil war between Francisco Franco and  the republican government from 1936-39. The plaintiffs are hoping to implement the principle of universal justice in genocide and crimes against humanity in the case. Commentators are calling the move a “turning of the tables,” as victims of Argentina’s Dirty War first sought justice through European Courts, which have convicted human rights abusers in absentia.

Argentines are especially incensed by the recent proceedings against Baltasar Garzón for trying to launch a judicial inquiry into Franco’s crimes in Spain.  Garzón is known for his investigations into human rights abuses in Latin America, where he unsuccessfully sought the extradition of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet.  A prominent human rights lawyer told Earth Times that Garzón “did the most to pursue crimes committed by dictatorships. One Argentine plaintiff called the lack of Spanish response to the Franco crimes as “a kind of silence of accomplices.”

The Argentine plaintiffs are receiving support from numerous human rights associations their quest for investigations into whether any of those responsible for the deaths of their family members are still alive. Binusz Smukler, an Argentine human rights lawyer told the Spanish daily El Pais that “the idea is to widen the probe into a general investigation into Franco’s crimes.”

Garzón had success in Argentina citing principles of international law such as the inapplicability of the statute of limitations to crimes against humanity; that such crimes cannot be amnestied; and that universal jurisdiction is appropriate where crimes are not tried in the country where they were committed. Garzón’s probe into forced disappearances in Spain was not as successful, as most potential defendants were dead. However he transferred the investigation of mass graves and missing people to regional courts.

The regional courts have not moved forward with the case and Spain’s Supreme Court ruled that the case against Garzón for “overstepping his jurisdiction” could go ahead. Carlos Seploy, the lawyer representing the Argentine plaintiffs told Reuters that the suit intends to force Spain to produce a list of ministers and military leaders from the Franco era who are still alive, in the hopes that they can be put on trial.

Seploy called the suit “very auspicious for an Argentine tribunal in the same way that we applauded the fact that a Spanish tribunal looked into the crimes committed in the Americas.”

For more information, please see:

EarthTimes-Argentinians Want to Investigate Franco’s Crimes-15 April 2010

Reuters-Victims of Spain’s Franco Dictatorship Seek Justice in Argentina-15 April 2010

IPS-Franco Era Crimes Reach Courts in Argentina-14 April 2010

Deadly Blasts Continue to Ravage Kandahar

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – Three soldiers and three foreigners were left dead as the result of further violence in Kandahar.  A suicide bomber drove a vehicle into the populated region of the city and detonated, creating a high-impact blast that scattered debris and blew out the windows of multiple buildings.  The home of the brother of Afghan president Hamid Karzai was also damaged in the attack, though it is unconfirmed whether or not he was the target of this particular attack.

An alleged target of the attack, however, was ascertained moments after the strike occurred.  A provincial leader divulged that the suicide-bomber intended to take out an establishment for a security company.  Though there do not seem to be any published reports on the success of the attack, this instance was the second such attack in the city of Kandahar occurring this afternoon.  The city centre suffered another explosion earlier on as a car-bomb exploded in the proximity of a hotel, wounding multiple people and destroying some shops and vehicles.

The spike in violence in Kandahar seems to have been spurred by the extensive Nato and US offense initiatives which have also been occurring in Afghanistan.  The Nato and US strikes have long been criticized for their moments of insufficient discrimination when identifying targets, resulting in unreasonable numbers of civilian deaths .  The nature of the insurgent attacks, however, is thought to be pre-emptive in nature, perhaps in anticipation of more strikes by the West.

The attacks in Kandahar also follow another strike upon German soldiers in the northern region of Afghanistan.   Opposition fighters in the province of Baghlan let fire off at four German soldiers near their military camp station.  The German Defence Ministry claims that their soldiers came under rocket-fire.

The continuance of these attacks, it seems, will only proliferate the Western presence in Kandahar, which has been identified as a pivotal territory for terrorist activity.  US-led forces have occupied the region since 2001, subsequent to the September 11 attack on US soil.  The blasts in Kandahar today signify only a couple instances in what has become a long strain of attacks which often claim the lives of many civilians.  The violence in Afghanistan, unfortunately, sees no near end if the current trends persist and escalate.

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Many dead in Afghan in blasts – 16 April 2010 (Mecca Time)

BBC – Afghanistan  attacks kill Germans… – 15 April 2010

Sky – No Britons Killed in Kandahar Blast – 15 April 2010

Deadly Blast Rocks Myanmar Festival

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

YANGON, Myanmar- On Thursday three bomb blasts rocked a holiday festival killing nine people in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city.  The attack was the deadliest of its kind in five years in the country.  In addition, the attack injured more than 60 people.

An official said the blasts occurred as festival goers gathered for a New Year water festival in the former capital.  The blast occurred around 3 p.m. near 20 pavilions erected for celebrations at the Kandawgyi Lake.  During this annual four-day festival, the people drench each other with water to usher in the Myanmar New Year on Saturday.  A British Embassy representative in Myanmar told the news agency Al Jazeera that it was not yet known what exactly caused the explosions.

The television station run by the state reported that the explosions were caused by bombs, but did not say who was responsible.  Television images showed pools of blood and scattered sandals left behind by frightened revelers.  The television station described the blasts as the work of “terrorists”.  No group or organization has claimed responsibility for the attacks yet.

While State television stated that the death toll is at eight, a hospital official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity maintained that nine people were killed.

Witnesses say that Yangon General Hospital, where most of the injured were taken, was a scene of chaos.  According to a hospital official none of the casualties included foreigners.

Although rare, bombings are not unknown in cities such as Myanmar, whose military ruler are fighting several insurgencies in remote regions.  This was the worst attack since May 2005 when a series of bombs exploded at two upscale supermarkets and at a convention center in Yangon, killing 19 people and injuring more than 160 others.

The government has previously blamed bomb blasts on exiled anti-government groups and insurgents including ethnic Karen rebels fighting for greater autonomy in eastern Myanmar.

Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.  The country is slated to hold election later this year, but no date has been announced and the generals have been criticised for regulations that prevent Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader, from taking part.

For more information, please see:

Aljazeera.net- Deadly Blasts Hit Myanmar Festival-15 April 2010

CBSnews- Bombs Kill 9 At Myanmar New Year Water Festival– 15 April 2010

Wall Street Journal- Myanmar Festivities Marred By Blasts– 15 April 2010