The attack on the village of Tremseh by Syrian government forces, which left over 200 people dead, was mainly targeting homes of rebels and activists according to the UN, contrary to initial reports, claiming a massacre of civilians. UN monitors inspected the site and said in a statement , the preliminary findings correspond with government claims that it was attacking rebel hideouts. However residents disputed the claims, saying that armed pro-government militia entered the village after prolonged shelling by the army and massacred innocent civilians. Talking to The Observer , residents said...
The US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her Chinese counterpart have announced on the sidelines of the ASEAN regional forum in Pnomh Penh that the two countries will cooperate on issues concerning Asia. "I am delighted that we are going to be issuing a joint media note,' ''It is an important signal that the United States and China not only can but will work together in Asia." she told the meeting. Mr Yang told reporters on Thursday that China was ready to ' 'enhance'' dialogue and ''expand... common ground'' with the US. "China and US relations have continued to make progress this year...
Critical questions about the UK’s arms export licenses have been raised by a cross-party Parliamentary group. The Commons Committee on Arms Export Controls (CAEC) asked the government whether 600 licenses to Arab countries complied with the UK’s government policy. The CAEC - made up of MPs from the business, defence, foreign affairs and international development committees – urged for sales of arms to be reviewed to ensure that authoritarian regimes did not use equipment to repress citizens. Ministers were also strongly rebuked for equipment such as sniper rifles and armoured fighting...
The United Nations insisted that Kazakhstan allow an international investigation into deadly riots in oil towns, which exposed human rights abuses and growing inequality in Central Asia’s largest economy. U.N high Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay said that the December riots in Zhanaozen, during which police opened fire on protesters, should show Kazakhstan that economic prosperity must not be prioritised above human rights. President Nurlsultan Nazarbayev has habitually put economic growth ahead of democratic freedom in more than two decades of leading Kazakhstan, a former Soviet...
The ban on U.S investment in Burma has been formally lifted, allowing investment by American companies. The act was one of the most substantial steps taken by the US on their path of normalising relations with Burma. These steps come in the midst of calls for caution from human rights groups and Burmese activists. US President Barack Obama said in a statement that the US remained concerned about the Burmese economy. “The United States Government remains deeply concerned about the lack of transparency in Burma’s investment environment and the military’s role in the economy.” Obama also issued...
The US Treasury has announced a further tightening of sanction on Iran, over its controversial nuclear programme. It said it had blacklisted several companies and individuals connected to the programme, including several companies and banks acting as front organisations to help Iran get around existing sanctions. "We will continue to ratchet up the pressure so long as Iran refuses to address the international community's well-founded concerns about its nuclear programme," US Treasury official David Cohen said in a statement released on Thursday. “Today’s actions are our next step on that path...
More than 200 Syrians, mostly civilians have been killed in a village in the rebel dominated region of Hama according to opposition activists. Residents told activist that helicopter gunships and tanks had bombarded Taramseh, before militiamen stormed the village and executed several civilians. The regional opposition group said in a statement: "More than 220 people fell today in Taramseh. They died from bombardment by tanks and helicopters, artillery shelling and summary executions," Syrian state television reported that three security personnel had been killed in fighting in Taramseh, where...
Hundreds of people remembered the 17th anniversary of the genocide of Srebrenica in Sarajevo, on 11th July - Srebrenica Remembrance Day This year, the remains of 520 sets of newly identified victims, were also buried. Hundreds of mourners lined Sarajevo's main street as 520 coffins passed by. In an attempt to hide the evidence, the original mass graves were bulldozed by the perpetrators and the decomposing remains scattered across many sites. DNA testing was employed to identify the 520 sets of remains.
Marking the 10th anniversary of the International Criminal Court (ICC) this week, the British Foreign Secretary William Hague stressed the importance of justice and accountability as fundamental to lasting peace, and eventually unavoidable. In a speech delivered at The Hague on Monday, William Hague said, " If you commit war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide you will not be able to rest easily in your bed: the reach of international justice is long and patient, and once set in train, it is inexorable .” See here for full speech, excerpts reproduced below: “We have learnt from...
The Syrian ambassador to Iraq, Nawah al-Fares, has defected from President Bashar al-Assad’s government, declaring that he has joined “the ranks of the revolution of the Syrian people”. Speaking on a video statement posted on Facebook, Fares is the first senior diplomat to quit the government. There has been no comment from Damascus or Baghdad and the White House was unable to confirm the defection, reported Reuters on Wednesday. A veteran of Assad’s rule, Fares had also held senior positions under the late president Hafez al-Assad. His eastern hometown of Deir al-Zor has been the scene of...