SJAC Weekly Update: Thursday, 31 October 2013
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Reporters Notebook: How to Prosecute Syrian War Criminals
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Fuel Shortages Lead to Power Outages in Gaza
By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – A shortage of fuel has led to blackouts across the Gaza Strip after Palestinian Enclave’s only power plant halted production. The plant supplies one third of Electricity to the Gaza Strip. The plant’s operators claimed that they no longer have enough fuel to keep the plant producing electricity for residents of the Gaza Strip after tunnels connecting Gaza and Egypt were shut down.
Gaza residents have suffered around eight hours of daily blackouts in recent years as a result of fuel shortages. The Gaza Energy Authority said the plant’s closure could mean Palestinians in Gaza will suffer 12 hours of daily blackouts.
Energy Authority deputy chairman, Fathi el-Sheikh Khalil Said “we have completely stopped the operation of [the] power plant this morning at 6:00 a.m. because we don’t have a single liter of fuel.” He said that the plant was shut down because of the fuel shortage and that the “all parts of life in Gaza will be affected.”
Electricity had been cut off across most of the territory on Friday morning. Khalil blamed the power outage on Israel’s destruction of tunnels used for bringing fuel and other supplies into to Gaza. He also argued that the Western-backed government of the Palestinian Authority has been charging Hamas unreasonable prices for fuel. He said “less than 50 percent of the needs of the Gaza Strip are currently covered by electricity from Israel” he said Gaza “can no longer get Egyptian fuel due to the destruction of tunnels from Egypt.”
While many residents of the Gaza Strip depend on the state of Israel for electricity services Khalil said; “less than 50 percent of the needs of the Gaza Strip are currently covered by electricity from Israel [and] we can no longer get Egyptian fuel due to the destruction of tunnels from Egypt. We tried to get fuel from Israel via the Palestinian Authority, but it has imposed prohibitive taxes.”
The Palestinian Authority to deliver fuel to Gaza without the usual taxes last week in order to help address the electricity crisis. It would have allowed the Hamas government to purchase 400,000 liters of fuel a day. However the Palestinian Authority backed away from its offer.
According to Khalil; “the plant will remain shut until fuel supplies resume from Egypt through the tunnels or the Rafah border crossing, or from Israel if the Palestinian Authority agrees not to impose the heavy taxes.”
While in the past Gaza has depended on Egypt for fuel, relations between Gaza and the Egyptian state have deteriorated significantly since President Morsi was removed from power in Egypt in July. The military regime in Cairo has begun to destroy tunnels connecting Egypt’s Sinai region to the Gaza Strip. The military regime has cited security concerns related to its counterterrorism efforts in the Sinai Peninsula as a justification for the destruction of the tunnels. Government Officials in Gaza claim that at least 80 percent of the tunnels have been destroyed since the military regime in Egypt took power in July.
For more information please see:
Agence France-Presse – Power Outage across Gaza as Fuel Runs Out: Hamas – 1 November 2013
Al Jazeera – Gaza Power Plant Shuts Down as Fuel Runs Out – 1 November 2013
The Jerusalem Post – Gaza’s Sole Power Plant Shuts Down Due to Fuel Shortage – 1 November 2013
The Jerusalem Post – Power Stops in Gaza Strip as Fuel Runs Out – 1 November 2013
Times of Israel – Power Outage in Gaza as Sole Plant Halts Electricity Production – 1 November 2013
U.S. Drone Strike Kills Leader of Pakistani Taliban
By Brandon Cottrell
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America
PESHAWAR, Pakistan – A U.S. drone strike killed Hakimullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistani Taliban. Several other militants, including two of Mehsud’s bodyguards, were killed in the strike. Mehsud is believed to have been behind the failed car bombing in New York’s Times Square in 2010, as well as numerous attacks in Pakistan that have killed thousands.
Mehsud, who is “the self-proclaimed emir of the Pakistani Taliban,” is on the FBI’s most-wanted terrorist list. He is also on the CIA’s most wanted list for his role in the December 2009 suicide bombing that killed seven Americans in Afghanistan. He had been indicted on several charges, including conspiracy to murder U.S. citizens abroad and conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction against U.S. citizens abroad.
The drone strike, which took place in the tribal areas of Northern Pakistan, is a dangerous area to be and has been subject to numerous other U.S. drone strikes. As a result, it makes it difficult for journalists to independently confirm information. Such difficulty is reflected in several reports over the past few years that claimed Mehsud had been killed.
However, a senior Pakistani government official said that he “ think[s] it’s quite clear Hakimullah Mehsud has died . . . two of his bodyguards died and reports from the ground suggest he was killed too.” Additionally, a U.S. intelligence official confirmed the drone strike took place and that Mehsud had been killed.
The Taliban also confirmed Mehsud’s death in a statement that said, “We confirm with great sorrow that our esteemed leader was martyred in a drone attack.”
The strike and death, however, comes at a sensitive time as the Pakistani government has been trying to come to a peaceful agreement with the Taliban. To date, the fighting has killed thousands of Pakistani civilians. Mehsud had said he was open to peace talks with Pakistan, as his only targets are “America and its friends,” but that no one had approached him about it.
Drone strikes themselves are controversial in Pakistan, where many view the use of drones as an infringement on sovereignty. Additionally, the strikes often kill innocent civilians, though the number killed is disputed.
Earlier this week the Pakistani government reported that since 2008, only 3% of the causalities from U.S. drone strikes were civilians. The government also reported that 2,227 people had been killed by U.S. drone strikes since 2008. Other independent organizations claim, however, that as many as 13% of the causalities were civilians.
Though Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has asked the U.S. to stop the strikes, it has been reported that the Pakistani government has secretly supported many of the U.S. strikes against Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. The U.S., meanwhile, has given no indication that it will abandon its use of drone strikes, despite reports by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch that argue some of the attacks may have violated international law.
For more information, please see:
Al Jazeera – Pakistan Says Drone Strikes Killed 67 Civilians Since 2008 – 31 October 2013
BBC – Pakistan Taliban Say Chief Mehsud Killed In Drone Strike – 1 November 2013
CBS News – Pakistani Taliban Leader Among Dead In Suspected U.S. Drone Strike, Officials Say – 1 November 2013
CNN – 3 Dead In First U.S. Drone Strike In Pakistan Since Leaders Met – 31 October 2013
European Union Provides Response to Illegal Immigration Emergency in Wake of Fatal Shipwreck
By Ben Kopp
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
BRUSSELS, European Union – European Union officials responded to emergency calls for review of illegal immigration. At the same time, EU critics claim that countries cannot afford providing full benefits to migrants.
An early October 2013 shipwreck caught worldwide attention as over 300 African migrants died off the coast of Italian island, Lampedusa. Nevertheless, migrants have continued to begin journeys from northern Africa in hope of crossing the Mediterranean to hit Europe. As a result, EU leaders began a review of the bloc’s immigration policies.
European Union border agency Frontex estimates that a minimum of 72,000 people illegally migrate to the EU via land and sea, and expects that the actual figure is much higher. Of all illegal residents, Frontex believed that most arrived with plane tickets and valid travel visas only to remain beyond the visa’s expiration date.
EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmstrom issued a statement giving Frontex sufficient resources to operate a wide “search and rescue mission in the Mediterranean, from Cyprus to Spain.”
The EU plans to establish a new border surveillance system and task force; however, observers believe boats will continue their regular flow.
Recently, Frontex released its “Annual Risk Analysis 2013” report, which states that immigrants taking illegal routes often travel through Greece and continue by land or ferry to Italy and the western Balkans. An increasing number has attempted central Mediterranean journeys. In many cases, the migrants have fled violence and poverty in regions like Syria and Libya.
The EU also said it is setting up a new border surveillance system and Mediterranean task force to bolster its efforts and will review its asylum immigration policies next summer.
Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, current holder of the EU presidency, said, “Today, Europe is not ready to accept as many refugees as probably can flow in.” Also, Grybauskaite denied that immigration policies would be business as usual.
National governments within the EU pledged assistance to several “gateway” countries, such as Italy, Malta, and Greece.
Although human rights groups criticize Greece often for its lack of an asylum service, the country has created such.
Not all parts of the bloc are ready to support immigration. For instance, anti-EU commentators in Britain have been pointing to statistics that suggest the UK cannot afford to allow EU migrants access to full benefits.
While immigration has created concerns in nearly every nation throughout history, now, every nation must remember what immigration most often means for the world: progress.
For further information, please see:
BBC News – Greece Immigration: Look inside New Asylum Service – October 31, 2013
CNN International – How Do Illegal Immigrants Get into the European Union? – October 30, 2013
Wall Street Journal – EU: Mulling Security, Defense Operation to Stem Illegal Migration – October 30, 2013
Telegraph – True Scale of European Immigration – October 12, 2013