Case Western Reserve University School of Law and the Public International Law and Policy Group
R2P Monitor July 2012 Issue 4
Violence in Damascus Proceeds Into Second day
By Ali Al-Bassam
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
DAMASCUS, Syria — Fierce fighting continued in Damascus between Syrian troops and rebels for the second day in a row. According to the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights (SOHR), the clashes that occurred across the country last Sunday left 105 dead including 48 civilians, 16 rebels, and 41 soldiers.
The fighting on Monday briefly closed the highway between the capital and Damascus International Airport, which is located to the city’s south. Troops backed by armored vehicles are said to have advanced through the central neighbourhood of Midan, driving out rebels who had secured a foothold within striking distance of major state installations. The military deployment has been described as the largest one in the capital since the start of the uprising. Monday’s offensive reportedly battered several other neighbourhoods in the capital, including Midan, Tadamon, Kfar Souseh, Nahr Aisha, and Sidi Qadad.
Fighting between government and rebel forces also occurred in the town of Qatana, 20 kilometers away from the capital. Elsewhere, government troops shelled the besieged Homs districts of Khaldiyeh, Jourat al-Shiah, and Qarabees. SOHR also reported that government forces raided the city of Hama, just north of Damascus.
UN observers again visited the central Syrian village of Treimsa, where, according to SOHR, Thursday’s shelling and fighting left more than 150 people dead, including dozens of rebels. The opposition and part of the international community declared it a “massacre.” In a statement made Sunday night, the UN mission said that “more than 50 houses were burned and/or destroyed” in Treimsa, stating the presence of “pools of blood and body parts.”
On Monday, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused the west of “elements of blackmail,” warning that the UN observer mission would not see its mandate extended later this month if Moscow did not agree to UN sanctions. Russia, which has strong ties with Syria and has vetoed several calls for foreign intervention , circulated its own draft resolution calling for the mandate’s extension but without the threat of sanctions. Mr. Lavrov said that it was “not right” to say that pressure should only be brought upon the government of Bashar Al-Assad and not on the opposition.
“We do not support Assad,” he said. “We support what has been agreed on by all sides.”
Mr. Lavrov also said it was unrealistic to expect Russia to persuade Assad to step down.
Kofi Annan, who is acting as the UN and Arab League’s special envoy for Syria, arrived in Moscow on Monday. He will meet with Mr. Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. Mr. Annan is expected to urge Russia to put more pressure on Syria’s leaders to begin a political transition.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon will meet with Chinese leaders in Beijing next week. Like Russia, China has also vetoed several Western-backed UN draft resolutions. Friday is the deadline for the end of the UN observer mission’s mandate will expire.
For further information, please see:
Al Bawaba — Clashes in Damascus as Over 100 Dead Across Syria — 16 July 2012
Al Jazeera — Violence Rages in the Syrian Capital — 16 July 2012
BBC News — Syria Unrest: Second day of Fierce Damascus Clashes — 16 July 2012
The Guardian — Syria: Fierce Fighting in Damascus — 16 July 2012
Human Rights Watch Urges Russian Authorities to Investigate Estemirova’s Murder
By Connie Hong
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
MOSCOW, Russia – Last year, Human Rights Watch joined other rights groups in demanding an investigation into the murder of rights activist Natalia Estemirova. Little has been done in the past year and the group, once again, urged Russian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation, including an inquiry into possible official involvement, of her death.
Estemirova reported on human rights abuses committed by the Chechen government, such as extrajudicial killings, torture, and enforced disappearances. On July 15, 2009, Estemirova was kidnapped outside her home in Grozny. Her body was later discovered in Ingushetia, covered with multiple gunshot wounds.
Although three years have passed since her murder, those responsible for her death have yet to be identified. Russian authorities stated that investigations are still ongoing, but believed that Estemirova’s death was likely caused by Chechen insurgents as a result of her exposing some of their crimes.
Their preliminary conclusion left both leading Russian human rights activists and Human Rights Watch unconvinced. Human Rights Watch criticized the authorities for failing to conduct an in-depth investigation that considered more plausible theories, including one that involved government officials. The group also pointed to the number of discrepancies in the evidence that the authorities have provided in order to bolster their belief that Estemirova was murdered by insurgents.
The group called the authorities to reveal and make public all the steps that were taken to examine the possibility of official involvement in the killing.
The situation for human right defenders in the region continues to worsen after Estemirova’s death. Aside from Estemirova, Maksharip Aushev, Zarema Sadulayeva, Alik Dzhabrailov, Andrei Kulagin, and Stanislav Markelov have also been slain.
In its recent statement, Humans Rights Watch expressed concern regarding the safety of other Russian rights activists and groups. It noted that the Chechen authorities have repeatedly harassed rights groups providing legal aid and assistance to victims of law enforcement abuses in Chechnya.
One rights group being targeted is the Joint Mobile Group, which sends rotating teams of human rights lawyers to Chechnya to provide legal assistance. The group was founded in response to the death of Estemoriva. Igor Kaliapin, one of the co-founders of the Joint Mobile Group, have been threatened with criminal proceedings for allegedly disclosing confidential information in his blog, articles, and interviews about cases of human rights abuses.
Human Rights Watch have called on the authorities to cease all criminal inquiry against Kaliapin, and instead, focus their investigations on the attacks and murders of other activists in the region.
For further information, please see:
Amnesty International — Russia must deliver justice for Natalia Estemirova and other murdered activists — 14 July 2012
Human Rights Watch — Russia: Bring Natalia Estemirova’s Murderers to Justice — 13 July 2012
Jurist — HRW: Russia authorities must investigate rights activist’s murder — 13 July 2012
Syrian Revolution Digest – Sunday 15 July 2012
THE COMMENTARY IN THIS PIECE DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF IMPUNITY WATCH.
*WARNING VIDEOS MAY CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES*
No Mincing Words: It’s Ethnic Cleansing!
It’s a massacre. No, it’s a firefight. They used helicopter gunships. No, they didn’t… But the real story is simple and the patterns are clear: it’s ethnic cleansing and it’s taking place over a wide swath of territory in central Syria. Tanks, heavy artillery and helicopter gunships are being used, while the intended victims have only light weapons and limited munitions at their disposal as they try to resist. But for those who still doubt that it’s all about ethnic cleansing. Perhaps this report and the attached map produced by BBC mapping the major instances of violence since the beginning of the Revolution can help change their perspective. Even the Arab League chief now agrees that ethnic cleansing is taking place in Syria.
Sunday July 15, 2012
Today’s Death toll: 81. The Breakdown: 18 in Damascus, 16 in Homs, 15 in Deir Ezzor, 10 in Aleppo, 7 in Idilb, 5 in Daraa, 3 in Hama, 3 IN Hassakeh, 1 in Suweida and 1 in Quneitrah.
News
New Account of Syria Killings New evidence on last week’s killings in a village in central Syria suggests the bloodshed followed a raid by government forces to arrest male rebels, rather than a deliberate massacre of around 200 civilians as some Syrian opposition leaders and their Western allies first reported.
Syrian townspeople describe government shelling Residents of Treimseh tell U.N. investigators that their town was shelled and suspected rebels were apparently executed, contradicting the official account.
Syria crisis: What happened in Tremseh? • UN: evidence points to battle between fighters and troops • Locals: Troops “shot at anything moving” • Government: No heavy weaponry was used • Red Cross: This is now a civil war
Op-Eds & Special Reports
Comment: If anyone still doubts that ethnic cleansing is taking place in Syria, check out this report by BBC and the map included showing patterns of the major incidents that took place since the beginning of the revolution: Syria: The violence mapped
If people are fighting back to defend themselves, then it’s a firefight not a massacre and the victims will have brought it upon themselves by bringing light weapons to a showdown featuring tanks, heavy artillery and helicopter gunships.
If people fight back, then it’s a civil war. But if they don’t fight back, then they will likely be killed, in which case they can have the world’s sympathy and retain the moral high ground.
I say: the moral high ground be damned! Fight back.
Video Highlights
Rastan, Homs Province: A family is trapped under the rubble of their home, 5 children diehttp://youtu.be/m78zBTkMGCM Meanwhile, another member of the Tlass family, Bashar Tlass, a major from the 4th Division, announces his defectionhttp://youtu.be/nzKavZZoMno But the pounding continues http://youtu.be/jGzieIdYVsE ,http://youtu.be/5zkOH5V1l_8 From the sky http://youtu.be/nWC8Wp3lXV8
Salqeen, Idlib Province: local resistance use a car bomb to blow up a checkpoint from which tanks keep pounding their town http://youtu.be/Cz1RqZrQXw8 Elsewhere in town, the resistance destroy a tank and clash with loyalist militias http://youtu.be/zyGrxrsdC3gThe resistance patrol the streets of the city http://youtu.be/L6bq-1io1Ns Rescuing woundedhttp://youtu.be/KT30YI-9va4 But other parts of town still come until sporadic poundinghttp://youtu.be/uvE1NszSO2o
Tanks laying siege to Treimseh, Hama, as UN monitors pay another visithttp://youtu.be/QMrCFPPDgEc
Old Homs: some snipers are revolutionaries, and their targets are pro-Assad troops patrolling the relics that used to be their neighborhoods http://youtu.be/nI1nnKrmVXI It’s this kind of incidents that make the situation in Syria a civil war, and that calls for launching a major peacekeeping operation.
A video from the battle in Damascus City: Tadamon http://youtu.be/487RhQnasakShortly after, the battle intensifies as the tanks move in an the suburb is poundedhttp://youtu.be/mmzLtSxKOI0 The pounding leaves several buildings on firehttp://youtu.be/walLOGqB9pQ Black smoke could be seen rising above the neighborhood from downtown Damascus http://youtu.be/miCSnMD9PdY , http://youtu.be/7qv9l8oFRKY
People in nearby Daf Al-Shawk come under fire when they rally in support of Tadamonhttp://youtu.be/xezUEzpF-1g Clashes last until the evening http://youtu.be/T_rAqFyMLr0In Qadam, locals clash with pro-Assad militias and burn tires in the streetshttp://youtu.be/zrly3k0ReI0 Locals in nearby Yarmouk Camp close their shops and hurry home in panic that the pounding might touch their neighborhood as wellhttp://youtu.be/vLYX6mTqxjA Tanks patrol the nearby suburb of Saqbahttp://youtu.be/KYFg6_Xd600
In Khalid Bin Al-Walid Street in downtown Damascus, young activists interrupted traffic by burning tires in protest of the poudnding of Tadamonhttp://youtu.be/SpVVyRNXxo4
In Marei, Aleppo, local resistance tests an anti-aircraft battery that they managed to acquire after a raid on a local checkpoint http://youtu.be/alsyJh3iF6s Similar batteries are often used to pound the city. In fact, the city came under such pounding todayhttp://youtu.be/Ev8pUjI8YQM
Elsewhere in Aleppo Province, the local resistance takes control of a loyalist positionhttp://youtu.be/XhjkcGWd-rc The clashes http://youtu.be/NAcCL_ou1M0 Firing at the checkpoint from nearby buildings http://youtu.be/MXy4hWVvPIU ,http://youtu.be/WEOUTmBwpPE
The pounding of Al-Akrad Mountain region in Lattakia Province, continues: Al-Ghanimah http://youtu.be/GkmWc7GCAeg
The pounding of Al-Qusayr, Homs Province, continues http://youtu.be/dguAvzB50a0 The pounding of Talbisseh continues http://youtu.be/gA-pdQDGM78
The pounding of Old Homs continues: Jobar http://youtu.be/ADhflshrtKw Jouret Al-Shayah http://youtu.be/YtnO-cV06Tc
Daraa City continues to come under sporadic pounding http://youtu.be/SJ_gaVKuXLw ,http://youtu.be/GtjkjpAB_zM
Elsewhere in Daraa Province, members of local resistance are training themselveshttp://youtu.be/XhjkcGWd-rc In Al-Jizeh, the local resistance clash with pro-Assad militias http://youtu.be/2dpayXNnAm8
In Deir Ezzor City, the pounding is beginning to resemble what is taking place in Old Homs: Al-Oummal http://youtu.be/6_15BOSEypI , http://youtu.be/MzbYgdTX5os ,http://youtu.be/93pI3dEdlVU Rasafeh http://youtu.be/wXD78oQUxtY Tanks patrol and pound their way into neighborhoods http://youtu.be/1CYfuVbmBvg
In Arba’een Neighborhood, Hama City: pro-Assad militias patrolling the neighborhoodhttp://youtu.be/ut4YG60AwH0 But soon the tanks is targeted by local resistancehttp://youtu.be/MZX0ShmZpOU