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Latest news from and about the homeland

Photograph: Screenshot/ BLA video A fresh wave of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances has been documented across Balochistan this month, as Baloch rights groups recorded the recovery of several bodies of men who had earlier been forcibly taken, and appealed once more to international institutions that have largely ignored the province. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC)…

Former Serbian officer arrested for war crimes

Croatian police arrested a former Serbian officer that was previously indicted for war crimes during the Croatian-Serb conflict in Gospic.

India and China confirm bilateral border agreements

India and China signed an agreement on bilateral border defence measures today, during the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh’s, two day visit Beijing.

Noting the significance of the new agreement, Singh said,

“When India and China shake hands, the world notices. Peace at border is our strategic benchmark. The relationship pursued by India and China with other countries must not become a source of concern to each other.”

Kenya seeking to delay ICC trial

Kenya is seeking to delay the International Criminal Court (ICC) trials of its president and deputy president in the aftermath of deadly terror attacks in a Nairobi shopping centre last month.

Opposition within Kenya to the trials for crimes against humanity of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto have reportedly gained traction after the attack, and the government have cited the remaining terrorist threat as reasons for delaying the trial.

Writing to the Security Council, Kenya’s ambassador to the UN, Macharia Kamau said:

Armenian genocide memorial unveiled in Quebec

A momument dedicated to the memory of those killed in the Armenian genocide was unveiled in Quebec on Sunday, the first monument of its kind in Canada, reported Asbarez.

US drone strikes could be war crimes - Amnesty international

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have slammed the use of drones by the CIA to strike at targets.

AI said the drone attacks are responsible for unlawful killings, which could amount to a war crime, and that Obama’s pledge to increase transparency has not been fulfilled.

Prosecutors push for life sentences in Cambodia trial

Prosecutors in Cambodia have called for life sentences to be handed down to the two most senior surviving members of the Khmer Rouge, who are currently standing trial for crimes against humanity.

Nuon Chea, 87, and Khieu Samphan, 82, have both been charged with crimes against humanity for their part in the Khmer Rouge regime, which ruled Cambodia from 1975-1979.

Prosecutor Chea Leang had said in her closing statement,

Mozambique opposition abandons peace accord

The opposition movement in Mozambique , Renamo, announced on Monday that it would be abandoning the 1992 peace accord with the ruling Frelimo party.

Outlining the reasons behind the decision, a spokesperson for Renamo, Fernando Maxango, said,

Kenya lobbying for CHOGM boycott over ICC dispute

Kenya is reported to be lobbying quietly for a boycott of the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka, over the body’s failure to take a stance against the International Criminal Court’s prosecution of its president Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto.

Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia are reported to be supportive of the Kenyan initiative according to media reports.

Assad casts doubt over peace conference

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has cast doubt over a planned upcoming peace conference in Geneva saying "factors were not yet in place" for peace talks.

Speaking to Lebanon's Al-Mayadeen television, AFP quoted Assad as stating,
"No time has been set, and the factors are not yet in place if we want (a US-Russian peace initiative dubbed Geneva 2) to succeed,"

UN calls for immediate ceasefire in Damascus

The United Nations humanitarian chief, Valerie Amos, has called for an “immediate pause in hostilities” in the Damscus suburb of Moadamiyeh, in order to allow safe passage to civilians trapped in rebel-held areas.

In a statement released on today she said,