An Israeli court has ruled that its military are blameless in American activist Rachel Corrie’s death in March 2003. Corrie, at the time 23, was taking part in a demonstration against the Israeli army’s demolition of houses in Rafah, Gaza when she was crushed by an army bulldozer. Her family accused Israel of intentionally and unlawfully killing their daughter and launched a civil case after a military investigation cleared the army of responsibility. Judge Oded Gershon declared the death was a “regrettable accident”, invoking a clause which absolved the army as the incident occurred in a war...
The number of Syrian refugees fleeing the country has dramatically increased this week, sparking fears of a mass movement out of the country. In Jordan alone, 10,200 Syrian refugees arrived this week, more than double the 4,500 the week before. According to Melissa Fleming spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the numbers included an increasing number of unaccompanied children, both orphans and those who had been sent ahead by their parents, some without passports. She told reporters that there were reports the refugees were “being bombed as they were trying to cross" the border, adding , “We believe this could be the start of a much larger influx. Some of those who have crossed in recent days — especially Friday — report being bombed by aircraft. There are also reports of shelling, mortars and other weapons fire. ” “Refugees say many thousands more are waiting to cross amid violence around Dara’a”
Burmese courts have given two United Nations workers prison sentences for involvement in promoting hatred between the ethnic communities and participating in arson attacks. A UN spokesman confirmed that one of those sentenced was an UN refugee agency employee and the other was a member of the UN World Food Programme. A spokesperson for the world body’s refugee agency in Bangkok, Vivian Tan described the Burmese decisions as “very disappointing”. Humanitarian groups have claimed that 12 local staff belonging to international aid groups were detained in June with only 6 being released. Last...
A US military spokesperson has denied making a deal was made with the militant Haqqani network in Afghanistan. A report in the Express Tribune quoted a ‘senior military official’, claiming that the US was prepared to hand over control of three provinces to the militant group if they withdrew their support for the Taliban. "These comments, attributed to 'a senior American military official' are inconsistent with U.S. policy," U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Stephen Twitty said in a statement. "Further, only the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has the authority to take political steps on...
The French president Francoise Hollande has urged the Syrian opposition to form a provisional government and said France would officially recognise it once it was formed. “France asks the Syrian opposition to form a provisional government — inclusive and representative — that can become the legitimate representative of the new Syria,” Mr. Hollande was quoted as saying during a speech to French diplomats. “France will recognise the provisional government of Syria once it is formed.” However the US said that the opposition first needed to coordinate with Syrian citizens and set a democratic path. "So that's the first order of business -- for them to all agree on what a transition ought to look like. Obviously, it's a matter for them to decide if and when they may be prepared to start naming folks," said US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.
Activists have accused the Syrian government of killing over 300 people in Daraya, on the outskirts of Damascus. Government forces have seized control of the area after 5 days of intense battles against opposition fighters but local activists have reported dozens of summary executions. “We are in the process of identifying the bodies and documenting how they died,” Mohammed Hur told the Reuters news agency. “Initial evidence shows that they were mostly shot at close range in the face, neck and head, execution style.” “Female members from at least two families say that soldiers shot their...
The United States and Israel have united in criticising the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s decision to visit Iran for the Non-Aligned Movement summit, amidst efforts to isolate the country. The Secretary-General will be joining officials from 120 countries, despite notable objections, including a direct appeal from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was quoted as telling Ban, “Your visit will grant legitimacy to a regime that is the greatest threat to world peace and security.” Tommy Vietor, spokesman for the US National Security Council, also commented, “We think that Iran is going to try to use the event for propaganda purposes and to try to cover up the extreme isolation Iran is feeling politically and economically.” “That said, if people choose to participate, we believe they should take the opportunity of any meetings that they have with Iran’s leaders to press them to comply with their international obligations without further delay.”
A group of over 30 former Israeli soldiers have disclosed testimonies of the treatment of Palestinian children by the armed forces, pointing towards a trend of abuse. The testimonies, put together by Breaking the Silence, describes beatings, night-time arrests, verbal abuse and intimidation of Palestinian children in the occupied territories by Israeli soldiers. One ex-soldier recalled his experiences in 2010, stating , "You never know their names, you never talk with them, they always cry, shit in their pants … There are those annoying moments when you're on an arrest mission, and there's no room in the police station, so you just take the kid back with you, blindfold him, put him in a room and wait for the police to come and pick him up in the morning. He sits there like a dog …" Yehuda Shaul of Breaking the Silence said, "Sadly enough this is the moral consequence of prolonged occupation of the Palestinian people,"
An Israeli cabinet minister laid a wreath at an Armenian genocide memorial as he visited the country earlier this week, stating that the genocide was “widely recognised in Israel”. Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli-Yoel Edelstein spoke on the experience of the Holocaust telling journalists that, “I think that in Israel, in view of … our common history and some similar elements and moments, you will hardly find people who will deny the genocide, who will say, like we unfortunately hear, that all this is fabrications and lies.” “So I think that unfortunately — I stress, unfortunately — in this area our peoples have quite a lot in common, quite a lot for mutual understanding” . Visiting the genocide museum in the city of Yerevan, Edelstein signed the visitor’s book writing , “Nobody in Israel denies the fact of Armenian Genocide.” His visit comes as reports emerged of a newly issued French secondary-school textbook including details of the 1915 mass killings of ethnic Armenians as a genocide.
The past week has seen China force at least 1000 refugees back into the combat zone in northern Burma, with alleged plans to deport a further 4000 displaced people, warned Human Rights Watch. Human rights watch urged the Chinese government to provide temporary protection for the refugees instead of repatriating them to Burma. It noted that the refugees have been living in make shift camps with no protection or aid provided to them. Although China has provided sanctuary to 7000-1000 refugees, the United Nations and humanitarian groups have not been allowed to visit the refugees.