Syrian Revolution Digest – Thursday 28 June 2012

THE COMMENTARY IN THIS PIECE DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF IMPUNITY WATCH.  

*WARNING VIDEOS MAY CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES*

The Relics!

When regime propagandists begin describing the majority population in their country as Relics, especially after their president declared war against said majority, chances for the success of a new plan that lacks enforcement mechanisms drop to null, while those for ethnic cleansing on an even larger scale than witnessed so far increase to 100%. But if world leaders expect the relics to go gently into that good night, they are as delusional as Assad and his militias.  

Thursday June 28, 2012

Today’s Death toll: 139. The Breakdown: 59 in Damascus Suburbs (mostly in Douma), 26 in Homs, 17 in Daraa, 15 in Deir Ezzor, 9 in Hama, 9 in Idlib, and 2 in Aleppo.

Lebanese police is reportedly increasing its crackdown against Syrian anti-regime activists living in Lebanon, with new arrests reported. Previously Lebanese authorities surrendered Syrian activists to the Assad regime despite their refugee status. International community should act now to pressure Lebanese authorities into complying with all norms and regulations pertaining to treatment of refugees.

News

Op-Eds & Special Reports

The Massacre of Douma (Damascus Suburbs)

Victims: 38 dead, and 150 wounded. Most died in the continuous shelling of the town, but 14 people were executed when pro-Assad militias stormed their neighborhoods, they belonged to one family: Al-Tomei. The dead included 7 children and a 90-year old grandmother

http://youtu.be/3LQpsWk-qzE The victims http://youtu.be/OH2l_6ma1qE ,http://youtu.be/KyEySQA_0Zc The fridge http://youtu.be/86_YL2gdnDI The pounding sets buildings on fire http://youtu.be/k_tN8xJ_pn8 The invading tanks pound their way into the neighborhood http://youtu.be/P50ZWFyQoTg , http://youtu.be/e0zxDte4WcYHelicopter gunships took part in the pounding http://youtu.be/M9c_2nWuzSk Tank in action http://youtu.be/TLVANdGP9pc Nearby Kafarbatna is also poundedhttp://youtu.be/8X83i9CofDo In Arbeen, helicopter gunships take part in the poundinghttp://youtu.be/Ij2b3tUZ_hA

Unfortunately, what could have been a good point to make on the need for providing structural and constitutional protections to the country’s minorities in the future reads like an exercise in pro-regime propaganda. The authors, self-proclaimed intelligence analysts focusing on Syrian-Lebanese issues, adopted regime line on the expulsion of Christians from Old Homs and the nearby town of Qusayr.

Rather than attributing the exodus of 80,000 Christians to the same reasons that paved the way for the simultaneous exodus from adjacent neighborhoods of over 500,000 Sunni inhabitants, that is:  indiscriminate and well-documented shelling of neighborhoods by pro-regime troops, our “intelligence” analysts claim that Sunni fighters took the time to risk their lives to go on a suicidal house-to-house mission to order Christian families out. The presence of Christians in the middle of areas targeted by pro-regime militias was a major complicating factor for the regime, their departure facilitate the intensification of the bombing campaign. Yet, our intelligence analysts want us to believe that local Sunni fighters made this major miscalculation not once but twice: in Old Homs and Al-Qusayr.

A better take on the threat to Christians in Qusayr can be found here.

To date, experts simply refuse to see the real patterns emerging on the ground, patterns which denote active planning for the creation of a future enclave in the coastal and central parts of Syria where the overwhelming majority population is made up of Alawites and Christians. The only beneficiaries of massive population shifts in the country are Assad and his loyalist militias. In fact, most Christians who left Old Homs went to live in Alawite-majority neighborhoods in Homs City and most those who left the town of Qusayr went to live in towns and villages close to majority Alawite towns and villages, although some escaped to Lebanon, and from there to western countries.

Syria’s Turkish Relics

But the most telling development of late is the declaration of war enunciated by Bashar Al-Assad against his enemies, i.e., the majority of the Syrian people, even as world leaders keep speaking of political solutions and peaceful transfer of power. Assad is not interested in taking part in power-sharing arrangements even if they keep him in power for a while or afford him a face-saving exit to U.K. Whether as President of the country, or a warlord with his own major turf, Assad wants to stay in Syria, and no amount of coaxing, plans or talks can change his mind. His bombs speak louder than all words, and his propagandist are already trying to draw a scenario that can justify further ethnic cleansing in the country, on a more mass scale.

The recent dismissal by pro-Assad ideologue on Addounia TV, the network owned by Assad’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, of the Sunni inhabitants of Homs as “Turkish Relics” from Ottoman times comes as the latest attempt at justifying the ethnic cleansing that took place there. The Assad regime has moved from blatant denial into defiant admission and justification of the crimes its militias are perpetrating all over the country. This is both a sign of weakness and strength. Assad and his advisers know that they are losing the country, they also know, however that their plans for the creation of a loyalist enclave on most ethnic lines are progressing nicely. Putin is buying them the time they need for that.

Power Sharing

In this light, plans for unity government proposed by Kofi Annan seem completely unrealistic, especially considering the absence of any enforcement mechanisms. What would make an Assad who just declared war against 80% of his people and whose militias are busy ethnically cleansing huge swathes of lands from native Sunnis, now deemed as Turkish Relics, stop and decide to allow for such unity government to take place and to pave the way for his replacement, absent any serious threats to is very existence?

The War in Videos

In Khan Al-Sibil, Idlib province, where fighters managed to take control of an anti-aircraft battery, they now target the helicopter gunships targeting their communityhttp://youtu.be/UDkLOYVs52o

Basra Al-Harir, Daraa, comes under fire at night http://youtu.be/u7nPZWd84jo Al-Hraak gets pounded at night http://youtu.be/fTNyaS3ZI-w Daraa City (Sadd) comes under fire at night http://youtu.be/DRVjuOLHODQ , http://youtu.be/lWRuLgJdBqQ ,http://youtu.be/8MD1Rhk3DNM

Zamalka, Damascus Suburbs, comes under fire at night http://youtu.be/WLNtD3L6Bg8 ,http://youtu.be/ctFdQtnCwI8

The sounds of war in Deir Ezzor City http://youtu.be/os9DlVXzw68where ,http://youtu.be/TIHCt2PcldI local fighters destroyed three attacking tanks, and mass defections continue to take place on a regular basis. Pro-Assad militias in these parts often draw on members from Sunni Arab tribes in Hassakah and Raqqah which is why defections are quite common. The aftermath of pounding http://youtu.be/dk–JjUQVz8 Helicopter gunships take part in the pounding http://youtu.be/ZHQ_u5wdIrk The tanks taking part in laying siege to the city http://youtu.be/sW8ibkRtu4o

In Homs Province, the pounding of Talbisseh continues http://youtu.be/i7COl3Q4S_c ,http://youtu.be/cii6BMh_Ocs and the pounding of Houla http://youtu.be/XLdeOc_TKngand the pounding of Rastan http://youtu.be/aX0GbRIwLuQ The pounding of Old Homscontinues (Jouret Al-Shayah) http://youtu.be/l08ueytnkOg , http://youtu.be/p_Q-wkZH0qI , http://youtu.be/qHNEdwlaM68

The pounding of Jabal Shahshabo, Hama Province, continueshttp://youtu.be/sJFxdC_TjRI

Lattakia, Jabal Al-Akrad, the pounding continues http://youtu.be/mtQuri00GX4

Still, whenever people have the chance to demonstrate peacefully, they do in droves:

In Damascus: Daraya http://youtu.be/aQ9HzUhifCQ Dafalshawkhttp://youtu.be/g4Kgi4KxGgY Barzeh http://youtu.be/O0_64MvOssQ Qabounhttp://youtu.be/qrgdaT-nhhQ Halbouni http://youtu.be/iucP9OOxZcQ

In Hama: Bab Qibli http://youtu.be/ZWOvTM6vIPQ

In Homs City, Wa’er http://youtu.be/jYLaCSAnVho

In Idlib: Marrat Al-Nouman (funeral) http://youtu.be/SO88LjB-OjY Kafar Ouaidhttp://youtu.be/gYZvRa7QRR8

Israeli Settlers Leave West Bank Settlement

By Mark McMurray
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

JERUSALEM, Israel — On Tuesday, Israeli authorities began enforcing a court order calling for the dismantling of a Jewish settlement in the West Bank.

Residents await evacuation from Ulpana. (Photo Courtesy of the New York Times)

The evacuation comes after Israel’s Supreme Court ruled in September that five of the fourteen buildings in Ulpana, housing thirty families in total, sit on Palestinian land.  Temporary housing has been provided for the families in the larger town of Beit El, of which Ulpana is a suburb.  Hoping to find a way to relocate the buildings instead of destroying them, the government asked the court to delay the removal of the structures, which was scheduled for July 1.  The government’s request was denied, leading to the evacuation this week.

Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the building of additional housing in the disputed territory.  Three hundred homes are to be built in Beit El, with an additional five hundred to be constructed in other parts of the West Bank.  The announcement came as supporters of the settler movement, mainly right-wing critics within Netanyahu’s Likud party, spoke out against the removal of settlers from Ulpana.

Israel Harel, a senior fellow at the Institute for Zionist Strategies, has mixed feelings about the compromise of building new settlements in Beit El to replace the housing abandoned in Ulpana.

“In the general arena, the settlers’ movement made a big victory,” he said.  “But there is a big inner debate about if this compromise should be accepted.”

Tzaly Reshef, a founder of Peace Now–an Israeli group opposing the settlements–believes there will be no two-state solution with the presence of settlements in Beit El.  “While Netanyahu may say from here to eternity that the Israelis will negotiate, the Israelis will compromise, what he does on the ground shows his real intentions,” he said.  Experts believe the settlements in Beit El would become a part of the Palestinian state if the two-state solution moves forward.

Israel captured the land where the settlement is located as a result of the Six-Day War in 1967.  The decision to create new settlements in the area fifteen miles north of Jerusalem has been criticized by the Palestinians and the U.S.  They argue that building new structures within the disputed territory undermines the peace process.  Critics of the East Jerusalem and West Bank settlements, citing the 2003 road map for peace and Israeli law, also claim that the buildings are illegal under both local and international law.

For further information, please see:

BBC News – West Bank Jewish Settlers Leave Ulpana Outpost – 26 June 2012

New York Times – Settlers Begin Evacuation of a West Bank Outpost – 26 June 2012

Times of Israel – No Violence As Fifteen Families Leave Homes at Givat Ulpana Outpost – 26 June 2012

Jewish Journal – Ulpana Residents Agree to Leave Peacefully – 20 June 2012

 

Turning Point for Human Rights in Azerbaijan

By Pearl Rimon
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

BAKU, Azerbaijan –  The legal affairs and human rights committee of the Council of Europe voted on a resolution that calls for Azerbaijani authorities to resolve the cases of more than 80 political prisoners and to ensure that no further arrests on politically motivated charges are made. By the passing of this resolution, the Council of Europe has sent a clear message to the Azerbaijan government to stop using its criminal justice system as a way to deal with political oppositions.

Vivdadi Isganderov, detained human rights defender. (Photo Courtesy of Frontline Defenders)

The adopted resolution comes from a report by Christoph Strässer, who was assigned to follow up on political prisoners in the country. Azerbaijan has denied Strässer’s visa for entry into the country since 2009. Strässer was forced to write his report without meeting with the political prisoners and relied on information provided by consulting Azerbaijani lawyers, and local and international human rights groups. His report listed around 100 political prisoners who are in detention due to trumped up charges.

Azerbaijan was admitted into the Council of Europe in 2001 but on the condition that they would release all political prisoners. Among the political prisoners is Vidadi Isganderov, a human rights defender who was sentenced for three years following a complaint he submitted to authorities alleging vote rigging during his 2010 parliamentary election. Instead of investigating his complain, he was charged and convicted of interfering with the elections.

“ARTICLE 19 welcomes this decision by the Council of Europe as crucial step in recognizing that political prisoners exist in Azerbaijan, something which the authorities in that country have continued to deny,” says Dr. Agnes Callamard, director of ARTICLE 19, a London based human rights organization.

Azerbaijani authorities released nine political activists last week, but a number of journalists, human rights defenders and activists remain in custody. This month alone, three were arrested on false charges in what appears to be retaliatory action for their human rights work.

Hilal Mammadov, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Tolishi Sadoi, was arrested on June 21 on alleged drug possession charges and is in pre-trial custody for three months. Mehman Huseynov, a blogger for Institute for Reports’ Freedoms and Safety is in custody and charged with “hooliganism”. Ilham Amiraslanov, an activist for the country’s 2001 flood victims is currently detained on weapons charges.  sent to pre-trial custody for three months. On June 12, Mehman Huseynov, a blogger and photographer at the Institute for Reporters’ Freedoms and Safety, was arrested and charged with “hooliganism.” And on June 8, police arrested Ilham Amiraslanov, an activist who worked on behalf of victims of a 2010 flood in eastern Azerbaijan, on trumped-up weapons possession charges.

For further information, please see:

Public Service Europe – Enough is Enough Azerbaijan Must Act On Human Rights 28 June 2012

Azeri Report – Council of Europe Adopts Resolution on Azerbaijan’s Political Prisoners 26 June 2012

New Europe Online – Amnesty International Welcomes Release Azerbaijani Activists 26 June 2012

Notes From India: Anemic Women and Prenatal Care

By Emily Schneider
Special Contributor, Blog Entry #3

We’re visiting our third health center in Bihar, India and I am hot, dirty, and exhausted.  We arrived in Patna at 5:00 a.m., after a twelve hour train ride from Delhi, and have been visiting health centers ever since.  Right now, we’re at a Primary Health Center (PHC) in Patna.  Primary Health Centers are larger than the Sub-Health Centers (SHC) but are spread farther apart throughout the districts.  They should be open 24 hours and have doctors and nurses on hand at all times.  Our guide informed us that this particular PHC served as the model for all others in the state of Bihar.

The "model" PHC.

We are trying to see as many health centers, covering all economic levels, in as many different districts throughout the state as possible.  Our job is to question the doctors and nurses about the care they’re providing and the supplies they have available.  We are also supposed to thoroughly document everything we see with pictures.  We’re trying to find out if the health centers in Bihar are complying with the established national guidelines.  Previously, they were in violation of almost every regulation.  For example, Bihar didn’t have enough health centers and the health centers they had established didn’t have enough medical equipment or supplies.  Additionally, they weren’t open the requisite 24hours a day, and they were not clean and sanitary.

All of these problems leads to India’s alarmingly high maternal mortality rate.  Human Rights Law Network even filed a public interest lawsuit to bring the substandard level of care to the attention of the Indian government and the public.  The courts ordered a reform of the Bihar health centers a year ago.  Now my team has been sent to see if there was any change following the court order or if the conditions remain the same.

The inside of the PHC.

One of the most prevalent problems that directly contributes to maternal mortality rates is anemia.  Many studies note there is a prevalence of anemia throughout India and that it contributes to death during childbirth.  It also helps to explain the very high maternal death rate in comparison to other countries.  The percentage of maternal deaths caused by hemorrhage is also greater in India than the rest of the world.   This can also be attributed to the high rate of anemia.

Anemic women are increasingly susceptible to communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis and malaria; both of which are associated with complications during and after pregnancy.  According to the most recent National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3), in India, it is estimated that 55% of women are anemic; some studies place the number of pregnant women who are anemic as high as 85%.  The NFHS-3 survey also stated that in 2004, approximately 22,000 maternal deaths were directly related to anemia.  However, the most troubling aspect of the survey is that the number of women suffering from anemia in India has steadily increased over the past ten years.

According to the new government guidelines, women should be provided with dietary supplements during the requisite four ante-natal care appointments.  The implementation of this simple practice would be a big step forward in helping to reduce the occurrence of anemia in pregnant women.  That is, if it actually ever happened.  The problem is that ensuring that this practice does manage to be implemented is dependent on a number of things.  First, all pregnant women should be officially registered in their district; second, they should be provided free ante-natal appointments that involve physical checkups, tests for anemia, vaccinations, and dietary supplements; and third, the facility must actually have the proper dietary supplements to provide them to the women.

The reality is that many women never register.  Those who do register usually don’t receive any ante-natal care visits.  Those few who do go for ante-natal care visits do not get proper physical exams and are hardly ever tested for anemia.  Almost none of the women are actually given the dietary supplements to help them stay healthy and strong during pregnancy.

This woman had given birth an hour before this and was preparing to leave the hospital. Government standards require women to stay for 48 hours, but none of them do because of overcrowding and fear of maternal mortality rates. Most hospitals kick women out who are dying because they don’t want them to die in their facility.

We asked the chief medical officer at the “model” health center to estimate how many mothers he sees with anemia.  He told us he hardly ever treats pregnant anemic women and that anemia is a very rare condition in India.  Hopefully, in our next few visits we will be able to uncover more information to determine who is correct.  The doctor or the statistics from the NFHS-3 survey.

 

Emily Schneider is a third-year law student at Syracuse University College of Law.  She will be contributing to Impunity Watch by blogging about her experiences in India, where she is spending her summer working as an intern.  

Syrian Revolution Digest – Wednesday 27 June 2012

THE COMMENTARY IN THIS PIECE DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF IMPUNITY WATCH.  

*WARNING VIDEOS MAY CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES*

All-Out War All Across Syria!

As long as the All-Out War waged by Assad continues to meet with an all-out grappling by international leaders to the illusion of political solution, Syrians will continue to die and Syria will continue to disintegrate.

Wednesday June 27, 2012

Today’s Death toll: 104. The Breakdown: 42 in Idilb, 15 in Damascus Suburbs, 14 in Deir Ezzor, 10 in Daraa, 10 in Homs, 8 in Qamislo, 3 in Hama, 1 in Hassakah and 1 in Aleppo. The toll includes 20 children.

Major battles took place throughout Syria today, but the main story remains the indiscriminate shelling by pro-Assad militias of communities where local resistance groups have managed to wrest control of their communities. As these words are being written, Damascus City and Suburbs are witnessing major clashes with explosions heard throughout many key neighborhoods.

Live-streaming the pounding of Douma Suburb, Damascushttp://bambuser.com/v/2786416

News

The headquarters of a privately-owned, pro-government TV station were attacked and employees were kidnapped and killed. The government blames ‘terrorists’. Rebel forces deny that they target the media.

Islamist group says it is launching investigation to discover who is behind ‘despicable crime.’ Al-Mayadeen: Kamal Ranaja served as aide to top Hamas man killed in Dubai in 2010

Hamas leader believes Mossad behind killing, says Kamel Ranaja was former deputy of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, who was assassinated in Dubai over two years ago.

Expert says Turkish was not aware Syrian forces capable of intercepting enemy planes flying under radar. US officials: Damascus beefed up missile defense after Israel bombed reactor

Op-Eds & Special Reports

HOW DOCTORS OPERATE IN WARTIME In Syria and beyond, doctors risk their lives to save others. Here’s what it takes to do this dangerous work.

“There has been a definite pushback from Obama’s administration,” said Ammar Abdulhamid, a Syrian activist and author who coordinated the delegation’s trip. Mr. Abdulhamid described the current White House administration as a “black box” of secrecy. Mr. Abdulhamid said he sent an email to the White House to request a meeting but never heard back. He blamed that on a technical glitch rather than purposeful negligence, but also noted the administration’s policy of noninterference in Syria.

Video Highlights

Two of twenty children who died today: they died when the town of Hayyan, Aleppo Province, came under heavy shelling http://youtu.be/VJxBiF2L87g The poundinghttp://youtu.be/ZBIuZQRmGF8 , http://youtu.be/s1tteWeVXMI

Two more children fell in the town of Habeet, Idlib Province http://youtu.be/dn6APXIZ174, http://youtu.be/IKJwSTNu-54

More scenes from the massacre of Al-Hameh, Damascus Suburbs (June 26)http://youtu.be/yMz1N5Cl9wM Pro-Assad militias invaded the town and executed locals en masse http://youtu.be/NovthUOfE08

Nighttime protesters in Ruknaddine Neighborhood, Damascus City, come under firehttp://youtu.be/lU-NoOGHkCo

The pounding of Houla, Homs Province, continues http://youtu.be/mZJCzG1nUAo ,http://youtu.be/8ig4-W5x1Qo The nearby town of Talbisseh is also poundedhttp://youtu.be/p85h6dJwJ7c , http://youtu.be/bzWo2EkGs-o Helicopter gunships take part http://youtu.be/fJAghXn5VBk The town of Rastan gets pounded as wellhttp://youtu.be/MTKNCM_ayag Meanwhile, the indiscriminate pounding of old neighborhoods in Homs City continues (Jouret Al-Shayah)http://youtu.be/x5CzS3KoDWk (Qoussour) http://youtu.be/_Zye6tsZ5DU

The pounding of the town of Da’el, Daraa, left many dead http://youtu.be/Y2mm_kUCSho

The pounding of Sanamein, Daraa http://youtu.be/H2DMfMvePmY

The town of Maarabah, Daraa, gets pounded by Helicopters http://youtu.be/raeEjYPFR2g

The pounding of Karnaz, Hama Province http://youtu.be/9q64sZ_cZck

The pounding of Ma’arrat Al-Nouman, Idlib http://youtu.be/d_Q47FT_IOU ,http://youtu.be/Y1f-PbnE-Yo

The pounding of Khan Al-Sibil, Idlib http://youtu.be/LgvYtyLX_cM A house catches firehttp://youtu.be/EmLqhk-toLM

Local in the town of Albou Kamal along the borders with Iraq come under firehttp://youtu.be/MR3IiQUkDeo