More than 3,000 residents of Sadad village (south east Homs) are now trapped in the village after clashes between the the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and other armed groups from one hand, and regime forces from the other. Both conflicting parties have imposed a curfew, preventing residents from leaving their homes, and food and medical supplies are running low due to the curfew.
Syrian Network for Human Rights calls on the concerning international aid organizations, especially the International Committee of the Red Cross, to respond quickly and evacuate the civilians.
SNHR also calls on these international bodies to exert real pressure on the conflicting parties to allow civilians to leave or at least admit entrance to those providing humanitarian and medical assistance.
By Kathryn Maureen Ryan Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – More than 60 Saudi women claimed to have answered the call for women across the country to defy the state law forbidding women from driving in Saudi Arabia. This display of civil disobedience took place on Saturday, when activists for women’s rights across Saudi Arabia called on women to get behind the wheel of a car in defiance of the ultra-conservative state’s discriminatory laws.
Saudi women defy driving ban across the country on October 26 (Photo courtesy of Al Jazeera)
The campaign for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, particularly the campaign for the right of women to drive, has gained international attention on social media after numerous Saudi women filmed themselves driving in open defiance of the law and posted the videos to YouTube.
Saudi authorities stopped five women who were spotted driving in Riyadh. Fawaz Al-Meeman, an assistant spokesmen for the Riyadh police, said, “each case was dealt with accordingly.” He explained that the women were not taken to police stations. Instead, they were detained in their vehicles until their male guardians arrived at the scene, at which point they were released into the custody of their guardians.
Mai Al-Swayan posted a video to YouTube showing her driving from her home to a nearby grocery store in defiance of the law. She said, “I drove on the highway and was noticed by a couple of cars but they were fine with it.”
While Riyadh police did not take any women to police stations for breaking the law banning women from driving, that was not the case in other cities. In Jeddah, photographer Samia El-Moslimany said she was taken into custody for having driven a car. She said she was taken to a police station where another woman was being detained for having driven a car.
Saudi Arabia’s spokesman for the Interior Ministry Mansour Al-Turki said Saturday was a “normal day, just like every Saturday,” and said that he was not aware of any violations to the driving law, but regional police spokesmen said that if violations of the ban on women driving did occur, they would be dealt with. “Not just on the 26th. Before and after. At all times.”
The Interior Ministry issued a warning earlier in the week in response to the calls of activists women who openly defy the law. The warning was issued to women caught driving as well as anyone taking part in demonstrations.
Adam Coogle, a Saudi Arabia researcher for Human Rights Watch said the discriminatory driving laws in Saud Arabia are shameful and that the Saudi Interior Ministry is trying to “deflate the momentum” behind the activists campaign through “direct, individual intimidation.”
There is not a specific traffic law that prohibits women from driving in Saudi Arabia, but religious edicts are often interpreted to mean women are not allowed to operate a vehicle.
Sheikh Saleh Al-Loheidan, a prominent religious figure in Saudi Arabia, claimed that driving can have a negative impact on a women’s ovaries. He claimed that “medical studies show that it would automatically affect a woman’s ovaries and that it pushes the pelvis upward.”
by Michael Yoakum
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America
WASHINGTON, D.C., United States – The National Security Agency (NSA) has been listening in on calls made by German Chancellor Angela Merkel for the past ten years according to German Language news service Der Spiegel. Chancellor Merkel, outraged by the news, summoned the US ambassador for the first time in decades.
In response to news of NSA spying, officials from Germany and France have asked the United States to sign a no spying deal by the end of the year. (Photo courtesy of BBC News)
German government spokesman Georg Streiter announced that officials from Germany’s foreign and domestic intelligence agencies will be traveling to the United States to talk with White House and NSA officials sometime in the near future.
“We are seeking a basis for cooperation between our [intelligence] services, which we all need and from which we have all received a great deal of information … that is transparent, that is clear and is in keeping with the character of being partners,” Merkel said.
European Union leaders, angry over allegations of widespread NSA spying, have reluctantly agreed to maintain their partnership with the United States. Analysts suspect France and Germany may be seeking an arrangement similar to the ‘Five Eyes’ intelligence-sharing agreement the United States has had with the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada since just after World War II.
News of Chancellor Merkel’s phone calls being bugged is just one of several reports that surfaced last week detailing widespread NSA spying. Headlines in European newspapers this past week have included allegations that the NSA has been spying on millions of French citizens. Additionally, a British newspaper says it has obtained a confidential memo detailing NSA spying on 35 foreign leaders back in 2006.
A statement released by EU leaders Friday warned that “[a] lack of trust could prejudice the necessary cooperation in the field of intelligence-gathering.”
President Obama ordered a review of U.S. surveillance programs after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden leaked documents detailing widespread spying operations that outraged US citizens.
By Darrin Simmons Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
TEHRAN, Iran-In retaliation for the deaths of at least 14 border patrol guards, Iran has hanged 16 rebels who were “linked to groups hostile to the regime,” stated the attorney general of Sistan-Baluchistan province.
Iranian border guards monitor the hostile south-eastern border with Pakistan (photo courtesy of BBC)
“These individuals were executed this Saturday morning in response to the terrorist action of last evening at Saravan and the martyrdom of the border guards,” said an Iranian prosecutor.
No details of the trial proceedings were given, with reporters speculating that the 16 rebels were already tried and convicted with their executions being brought forward after the ambush.
Details on the total number of border guards killed in the ambush were also unclear with some reports totaling the number at 20 while others reported the number to be closer to 17.
Iran’s Deputy Interior Minister Al Abdollahi stated, “Three soldiers have been taken hostage and taken to the other side of the border in Pakistan,” announcing measures would be taken to secure their release. “We warned the rebel groups that any attack targeting civilians or members of the security forces would not go unanswered,” he further stated.
The attack occurred in a mountainous region outside of Saravan near the south-eastern border with Pakistan. Saravan’s Member of Parliament, Hedayatollah Mirmoradzehi, blamed the attack on “anti-revolution guerrillas.” However, unconfirmed reports have claimed that a rebel group called Jaish al-Adl was responsible for the attack.
Soraya Lennie, a reporter for Al Jazeera, said that Jaish al-Adl is a relatively new group that is vehemently anti-Shia and the Iranian government has put pressure on the Pakistani government to crack down on the group’s activities.
A historical unrest of mainly the Sunni Muslim population complaining of discrimination by Iran’s Shia Muslim authorities has been a catalyst for increasing deaths and tension along the Iran-Pakistan border.
The south-eastern border region is common to attacks with officials claiming that more than 4,000 police officers and soldiers have been killed in the area during three decades of fighting with drug traffickers.
A parliamentary committee on national security is meeting with relevant officials to look into the recent attack and address the long standing issue of deaths along the border.
This is not the first time that Iran has hanged captured rebels in retaliation. Iranian authorities hanged 11 suspected rebel members who were held in Zahedan prison in December 2010 in response to a deadly bombing that occurred at the Shia mourning procession in Shabahar.
PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Following an inconclusive election, political parties in the Czech Republic will soon hold negotiations to form a new coalition government to replace the coalition taken down by corruption last June.
A close win for Social Democrats enabled the party to help determine who will form the new coalition administration in the Czech Republic. (Photo courtesy of BBC News)
In June 2013, allegations of corruption, espionage, and abuse of power broke down the governing Czech coalition, led by Prime Minister Petr Necas. At that time, Necas had an affair with a close aide, who authorities arrested on suspicion of bribery and ordering an intelligence agency to follow Necas’ wife.
Without a proper administration in the coalition’s place, in July 2013, Czech President Milos Zeman angered parties when he created a caretaker cabinet of technocrats to govern the country.
The 25-26 October 2013 election placed the Social Democrats on top. But with only 20% of the vote, the Social Democrats are not powerful enough to form a government on their own. Although the election was meant to resolve months of uncertainty, analysts say the failure to produce a clear winner could lead to another unstable coalition.
Since the 1989 “Velvet Revolution” marked the fall of Communism, Czechs have used the ballot against established parties stained by corruption. The recent election sought a way to reverse the previous administration’s austerity policies, which fueled the longest recession in the country’s history.
Prague resident Petr Janecek said he voted for the new party ANO “because I think that the Czech political scene needs some changes.”
The Czech people join a list of European countries that have toppled established political parties due to austerity measures in recent years.
The centre-right parties removed from power in June suffered a massive defeat.
Social Democrat leader Bohuslay Sobotka stated that he was ready to begin negotiations with all parties, even though the election results were “not what we expected.” On 27 October, Sobotka put sights on new centrist party ANO, which mustered votes on their anti-corruption platform, and the Christian Democrats, a traditional small centrist party.
In the 200-member lower house, the Social Democrats won 50 seats, ANO 47 seats, and the Christian Democrats 14 seats.
If talks last several months, the country will likely begin 2014 with a provisional budget, which limits spending to 2013 levels.
President Zeman holds the right to appoint prime ministers, and will play a critical role in negotiations. While parliament convenes on 25 November 2013, Zemen expected the establishment of a new government to take between two and three months.
To prevent long-term damage, the Czech Republic will need a firm government that lifts the people’s trust and brightens investors’ projections.
