By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

BEIRUT, Lebanon – On May 10, Lebanon’s army overturned two government measures in an attempt to diffuse escalating tensions between Hezbollah opposition and the Lebanese government.  Following two key decisions on May 5, Hezbollah and other Shia opposition groups called for general strikes, which quickly resulted in armed confrontations between the opposition and pro-government supporters.

On May 5, the Lebanese government, led by Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and Sunni majority leader Saad Hariri, issued two decisions sparked the opposition’s anger.  First, the cabinet removed Beirut’s airport security chief for alleged ties to the militants.  Second, the cabinet also determined that Hezbollah’s communication network, including its own telephone system, was illegal and threatened Lebanese sovereignty.

Following the government’s decision Hezbollah’s secretary general, Hassan Nasrallah, called for general strikes in protest.  Shia opposition members set up road block on all major roads leading to Beirut’s airport and well as major roads within and around Beirut.

On May 8, Nasrallah stated that the government’s decisions were a declaration of war against Hezbollah.  Following this public statement, street violence between armed members of the Shia opposition group and pro-government supporters broke out in Beirut.  As of May 10, the violence has resulted in at least 25 deaths and dozens of injuries.

Most recently, on the morning of May 10, two people were killed when gunmen targeted a funeral procession for a Sunni, pro-government supporter.  Also, according to Reuters, five gunmen and two soldiers died in clashes in northern Lebanon.

On May 9, Shia opposition fighters launched a rocket-propelled grenade at the outer perimeter of Hariri’s home in west Beirut.  While Hariri was at home, he was not harmed.  Also on May 9, opposition gunmen forced Future News TV, owned by Hariri, off air.  Following a warning from the gunmen, security forces evacuated station employees.

Opposition forces also took over the offices of Hariri’s Al-Mustaqbal newspaper.  According to the paper’s managing editor, gunmen fired on the office with guns and rocket-propelled grenades, and later set fire to one of the floors.

Prime Minister Siniora responded to the recent violence in a public statement on May 10.  He accused Hezbollah of carrying out an “armed coup.”  In addressing the army, Siniora said, “I call on it once again to impose security on all, in all areas, deter the gunmen and immediately remove them from the street … to restore normal life.”

Rula Amin, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Beirut, said that Siniora had described Beirut as being “occupied” and “besieged;” an attempt to appeal to Lebanese inside and outside the country, as well as the mostly Sunni population in the Arab world.

Pro-government supporters accuse Iran and Syria of supporting Hezbollah and of approving their take over of Beirut.  Iran accuses US and Israeli interference in creating tensions that led to current crisis.  Syria and Israel both state that the crisis is an “internal affair.”

The violence has led Saudi Arabia and Egypt to call for an emergency meeting of the Arab League to discuss the political crisis.  This meeting is scheduled for May 11.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Lebanon PM Calls for Action by Army – 10 May 2008

Al Jazeera – Who’s Who in Lebanese Politics – 10 May 2008

Associate Press – Lebanese Prime Minister Accuses Hezbollah of ‘Armed Coup’ – 10 May 2008

BBC – Lebanon Army Moves to End Crisis – 10 May 2008

Herald Sun – Militants Attack a Top MP – 10 May 2008

International Herald Tribune – Lebanese Chief Calls on Army to Restore Order – 10 May 2008

Reuters – Hezbollah Fights Start Withdrawing from Beirut – 10 May 2008

Al Jazeera – Timeline: Crisis in Lebanon – 9 May 2008

BBC – Cabinet Condemns Hezbollah ‘Coup’ – 9 May 2008

By: Julie Narimatsu
Impunity Watch Managing Editor – Journal

BEIRUT, Lebanon – Violence was rekindled Thursday when Hezbollah supporters and Lebanese government supporters exchanged rifle fire and rocket-propelled grenades.  The violence was sparked after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah accused the Lebanese government of declaring “open war” when it tried to shut down Hezbollah’s telecommunications network.  In a televised speech, Nasrallah stated that “we will cut the hand that will reach out to the weapons of the resistance no matter if it comes from the inside or the outside.”  He further defended Hezbollah’s use of the telecommunications network, avering that it is a right of any militia during war.  He referenced the Taif Agreement, which marked the end of the Lebanese civil war in 1989.  The agreement demilitarized all militias except Hezbollah because of its efforts against the Israeli occupation.

In response, government officials attributed this “new round of horror” solely to Nasrallah, asserting that Nasrallah’s speech was a “direct threat of assassinating” them and claiming that the network was being used to oversee Hezbollah’s enemies in the western-backed government.

So far, it is being reported that six people have been killed and fifteen wounded.  While it had been previously limited to Shiite and Sunni neighborhoods in downtown Beirut, it appears that the violence has expanded to include its surrounding neighborhoods.  Further, Hezbollah supporters have blocked the roads to the airport, resulting in the cancellation of flights, a disabling move given Lebanon’s strategic location between Syria and Israel.  The United Nations Security Council called on all parties to begin dialogue again.  The U.S. government is urging Hezbollah to “start playing a constructive role and stop their disruptive activities.”

Saad Hariri, the leader of Lebanon’s parliamentary majority has urged fighters to disarm and “to save Lebanon from hell,” while also calling for a meeting with Nasrallah to discuss the “misunderstanding” over the telecommunications network.  Nasrallah stated that the government must “withdraw their decisions, and there would be no war.”  It is unclear where this stand-off will lead, but the violence does not appear to be subsiding.

For more information, please see:

CNN.com – Gunbattles break out in Beirut – 8 May 2008

MSNBC – Violence rekindles fears of Lebanese civil war – 8 May 2008

Reuters – Fighting rocks Beirut, Hezbollah defiant – 8 May 2008

BBC News – Fierce clashes resume in Beirut – 8 May 2008

Al Jazeera – Beirut wracked by street battles – 8 May 2008

By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

NEW YORK CITY, United States – Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that Moroccan authorities closed its investigation into police abuse allegations made by two human rights activists.  On May 5, the two activists were informed by police that the prosecutor at the El-Ayoun Court of Appeals had closed the investigation into their complaints for “lack of evidence.”

In January 2008, Dahha Rahmouni and Brahim al-Ansari, two Sahrawi human rights activists, filedcomplaints to the office of the prosecutor at the El-Ayoun Court of Appeals.  The complaints alleged that on December 14, 2007, police in the city of El-Ayoun, in the Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara, arbitrarily arrested them.  While in custody, the men claim that they were beaten and forced to sign a statement that they were not permitted to read.  Rahmouni and Ansari were released without charges on December 16.

“A real, impartial investigation would have included testimony from both the police officers accused of abuse and the rights advocates making the allegations…Instead, Moroccan authorities chose to hear only one side, showing they’re not impartial,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch.

Whitson said that HRW welcomed dialogue with authorities on human rights issues, “but in this case, we received a cynical string of falsehoods, a response that indicates that the government will back up police abuses.”

Ansari is a member of the El-Ayoun chapter of the legally recognized Moroccan Association of Human Rights. Rahmouni is a member of the Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations (ASVDH), an unrecognized organization based in El-Ayoun.  However, ASVDH, has followed the proper procedures for obtaining legal status.

Morocco effectively annexed the Western Sahara following the withdrawal of Spanish troops in 1976 and Mauritania withdrew from the remainder in 1979.  Since the withdrawal of Spanish troops in 1976, the Moroccan government engaged in a guerrilla war with the Polisario Front, a Western Saharan nationalist group.  The UN brokered a cease-fire between the two parties in 1991.

Recently, on April 30, 2008, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1813, which calls on Morocco and the Polisario Front to continue negotiations for a “mutually acceptable” self-determination solution in the disputed Western Sahara.

The resolution was highly disputed.  The US and France, both strong backers of the Moroccan government, supported statements permitting Saharwi autonomy.  South Africa, Costa Rica and Panama voted for the resolution but ultimately favored a resolution recognizing Saharwi’s right to independence.

For more information, please see:

Human Rights Watch – Morocco: Sham Inquiry Highlights Impunity for Police Abuse – 8 May 2008

Middle East Online – Security Council Urges More Talks On W Sahara – 1 May 2008

International Herald Tribune – Security Council Calls for Realism and Compromise  on Western Sahara – 30 April 2008

Human Rights Watch – Letter to Moroccan Minister of Justice Abdelwahed Radi on Mistreatment of Human Rights Activists – 28 December 2008

Human Rights Watch – Morocco: Investigate Police Beating of Rights Activists in Western Sahara – 28 December 2008