…from beneath the crooked bough, witness 230 years of brutal tyranny by the al Khalifas come to an end

Bahrain Invites Iran to Attend Manama Security Meeting
27 November, 2013 – FARS News Agency

TEHRAN (FNA)- Bahraini Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmad bin Muhammad Al Khalifa has invited his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif to take part in a security summit in Manama next month, media reports said.

Bahrain has invited the Iranian foreign minister to attend the Manama Security Meeting slated for December 6-8, the Manama-based newspaper Al-Wasat reported on Wednesday.

“Tehran has received the invitation and the issue is under study by Iran now…,” Al-Wasat quoted informed sources in Manama as saying.

Bahrain Security Meeting is held every year under the auspices of Bahrain foreign ministry to discuss the security conditions of the Middle-East. Senior officials and experts of different countries partake the meeting.

Earlier this year, the Bahraini foreign minister underlined the need for mending his country’s relations with Iran.

He expressed the hope that Iran and Bahrain would be able to open a new chapter in their relations in the near future.

“Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in a message to Iranian President-elect Hassan Rouhani has called for improvement of relations between Iran and Bahrain,” Sheikh Khaled said.

The Bahraini foreign minister noted that his country is waiting for Iran’s positive response. …source

Waleed Abulkhair is a human rights activist in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Jailed in Saudi Arabia for peaceful activism
By Waleed Abulkhair – 26 November, 2013 – Washington Post

Late last month, a judge in Saudi Arabia sentenced me to three months in prison simply because I stood with victims of Saudi Arabia’s flawed and discriminatory criminal justice system.

My country’s legal system is based on uncodified principles of Islamic law, which leaves judges largely free to decide what actions, in their view, are crimes, as well as the appropriate punishments. I believe that the Interior Ministry actively encourages religious extremism and intolerance among the judiciary, recognizing that judges with these views are far more willing to convict human rights and civil society advocates of vague religious and social offenses.

One of the principal causes of my conviction was my reaction to the unfair trial of 16 men known as the “Jiddah reformers,” nine of whom were trying to set up a human rights organization. Prosecutors castigated them as extremists and terrorists, and a judge sentenced all of them to lengthy jail terms. I signed a statement in 2012 criticizing the convictions and calling for the men’s release. That signature was the basis of my conviction last month.

The Saudi government allows no public dissent. We who have challenged government policies or social taboos know that we will face Saudi “justice” sooner or later.

I am also on trial before Saudi Arabia’s terrorism tribunal, the Specialized Criminal Court, on charges that include “breaking allegiance with the ruler” and “inflaming public opinion against the ruler.” All of the evidence against me stems from my peaceful activism. If convicted, I could be sentenced to years in prison.

As a human rights activist, I have helped many victims of injustice battle for their rights in Saudi courts, including Samar Badawi, whom I worked to help escape years of physical and emotional abuse by her father. Her father had her jailed for “parental disobedience” after she fled to a women’s shelter. I eventually succeeded in getting Samar out of the shelter and to safety, and we later married.

My public stances for justice have also resulted in endless rounds of slander and character assassination in the local media. In early 2012, as I was leaving for a fellowship in the United States, authorities at the Jiddah airport wouldn’t let me board the plane, saying that I had been barred from foreign travel. Prosecutors later told me that I would be facing charges for a variety of vague and spurious offenses, including “insulting the judiciary” and “distorting the reputation of the kingdom.” At no point have prosecutors alleged that I have committed any act an ordinary person would understand to be criminal behavior.

The outcome of my trial before the terrorism tribunal is most likely pre-determined, as outcomes often are in Saudi Arabia. As my trials have progressed, I have watched as dozens of other political and human rights activists, many of them friends, faced an all-out assault by Saudi Arabia’s flawed and arbitrary criminal justice system. Among them are Abdullah al-Hamid and Mohammed al-Qahtani, who are serving 11- and 10-year jail sentences, respectively, merely for peacefully calling for political and human rights reforms.

I will appeal my verdict, and if the appeals court upholds the ruling I intend to serve the sentence. Maybe I’ll get a pardon, maybe not. …more

The editorial below is from the Turkish daily Today’s Zaman. The columnist points to the defeat of the Syrian Contras which, in her view, spells out a defeat for Turkey who has given them all out support. While adopting the Atlanticist misrepresentation of the facts, she warns her country against a foreseeable exodus of extremist fighters who will not fail to seep into neighboring countries.

Factoid: Estimates of the number of foreign “jihadists” in Syria is between 40 000 and 120 000.

Turkey should prepare itself for mass exodus of fighters from Syria
by Lale Kemal – 25 November, 2013 – Voltaire.net

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime has been making significant advances on the ground against opposition fighters in a civil war of over two-and-a-half years, raising the possibility of the potential risk of a massive exodus of opposition fighters to neighboring countries including Turkey. Reports coming from both NATO as well as Turkish military sources provide important evidence of the Syrian regime’s advances against the opposition, in particular in the past several months.

An Ankara-based Western diplomat told this columnist that surface-to-air Patriot missiles based on Turkish soil have seen Scuds being launched by the Assad regime forces against opposition targets almost every day. Similarly, Patriots are detecting an increased number of long-range artillery rockets being fired at opposition targets as well as seeing helicopters and aircraft belonging to the Syrian Air Forces (SAF) flying very frequently supporting the ground troops in their offensive against the opposition.

According to Turkish military sources who spoke to this columnist, the Syrian Air Forces are able to generate 100 sorties a day with helicopters and aircraft. Fifty percent on average comprise combat sorties and 25 percent general transport aircraft sorties, while the remaining 25 percent constitute training of Syrian army personnel. The usual suspects behind Syria regaining military strength are partly Russia and Iran as they have been giving technical assistance including training for new pilots joining the SAF.

Given that many international observers thought the SAF would soon lose capability to maintain operations, 100 sorties a day on average, which makes 700 sorties a week, is massive, says an Ankara-based Western military official.

“This is a big number. The SAF has become very effective in avoiding the Free Syrian Army [FSA] in opposition air defense, which is composed of mostly small guns, air defense shoulder-launched missiles seized from the Syrian army, as well as medium to low-range missile systems,” says a Turkish military source.

At the start of the conflict in Syria until January of this year, we have been constantly seeing on various TV channels Syrian military helicopters and aircraft being shot down by the opposition. But not anymore. The increased strength of the Syrian Air Forces has also been making it possible for Syrian ground forces to get more support from helicopters and aircraft, hence enabling good coordination between the Syrian artillery and air force. …more

Covering terrorism: from denial to justification
by Wassim Raad – By Ghaleb Kandil – 25 November, 2103 – Voltaire.net

Groups affiliated to Al-Qaeda emerged in Lebanon 25 years ago, under various names. 22 months ago, the Lebanese Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn has launched a warning against the danger of the presence of this organization in Lebanon. He was referring to the cocktail of terrorist groups, which were established in some regions benefiting from local politics coverage by Sheikh Saad Hariri, his party and its allies in the war plan against Syria.

The existence of Al- Qaeda is now indisputable evidence, even for politicians who covered Minister Ghosn with criticism and launched against him a virulent campaign of intimidation, thereby ensuring a coverage for the activities of Takfirists-terrorists groups in their strongholds of North Lebanon, Bekaa valley, other Lebanese regions as well as in the Palestinian camps.

Whatever names they bear -Al-Nosra front, Abdallah Azzam Brigades, Jund al-Sham, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, and other movements evolving under the banner of Free Syrian Army-, these groups have carried their terrorism in Lebanon. In Syria, these movements are facing serious difficulties after the rejection of the population, the advance of the Syrian Arab Army and their internal wars. In Lebanon, these groups have targeted the Lebanese Army more than once and are a danger to all Lebanese without exception. A return on the atrocities they have committed in Syria -beheadings, cannibalism, executions, rapes, abduction of civilians and Muslims and Christians men of religion, killing great scholars like Sheikh Mohammad Said Ramadan al-Bouti- is enough to get an idea of their criminal nature and their thinking, based on the extermination of all those who do not like them.

14-Mars has offered protection to terrorist hideouts in the context of its role in the implementation of the Saudi-American plan, Today, this coalition is trying to shirk its responsibility in the occurrence and development of Al-Qaeda plague, mulling statements on the role of Hezbollah in Syria. However, the presence of terrorism in Lebanon, thanks to the benevolence of the Future, is prior to the participation of Hezbollah in Syria’s war. Hezbollah is fighting against extremist groups that threaten the Lebanese social tissue. The arguments raised by the 14-Mars represent additional coverage to Al-Qaeda, making it more difficult and expensive to fight this terrorist organization.

The speech of “haririsme” in Lebanon is a justification for terrorist acts, even if it is presented as a condemnation of the attacks. Because between the words of denunciation we find an understanding of the motivations of assassins, in order to mobilize part of the Lebanese along sectarian lines and turn them into fertile ground for extremist ideas. The fight against terrorism requires a firm, strict and unambiguous stance to bar the way to the work of recruitment and indoctrination of youth. The fact that one of the suicide bombers against the Iranian Embassy in Beirut is a Lebanese from the city of Saida, and close to the extremist Sheikh Ahmad al- Asir, who was sponsored and politically covered by Hariri, shows the damages that double standard speech of the Future Movement can cause.

Political boycott of the Syrian state by senior Lebanese officials is no less severe than the 14-Mars and the Future Movement speech. This destructive attitude also provides coverage and protection for terrorism. These leaders have fled since the beginning of the crisis in Syria behind the so called “distancing policy”, while ignoring the operating rooms installed by the 14-Mars in Lebanon to coordinate the actions of extremists in Syria, not to mention the involvement of the media of this political camp in the war against the Syrian state. These leaders have ignored the smuggling of weapons to Syria, the seizure of ships packed with huge arsenals, the import of terrorists from around the world to send them, through Lebanon, to destroy Syria and kill its people. …more

Bahrain welcomes deal for sake of banishing mass destruction proliferation spectre
24 November, 2013 – BNA

Manama, Nov 24 (BNA): Bahrain’s relations with the international community are not built on provisional regional alliances and do not place Iran and Israel in the same category, the foreign minister said.
“We have an Arab and historic conflict with Israel as there is a people that have been chased out of its lands and we are endeavouring to establish its Palestinian state, whereas we have diplomatic relations with Iran as a significant neighbour. We do not place the two countries at the same level under any label,” Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Al Khalifa said.

The minister who was speaking at a press conference with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu in the Bahraini capital Manama said that Bahrain was keen on positive relations based on good neighbourliness, mutual respect and non-interference in the domestic affairs of between Bahrain, Iran and the other countries.

“We do not change allies like we are in a market. We look for stability with our neighbours,” he said.

Shaikh Khalid said that Bahrain welcomed Iran’s nuclear agreement with the world powers to keep it in check.

“This is an important agreement that will eventually serve stability and defuse any imminent crisis.”
Shaikh Khalid expressed hope the agreement would help banish the spectre of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and end concerns about the existence of such weapons be they in Iran or any other state in the region.

The minister denied claims that Bahrain had concerns about Iran striking a nuclear deal with the 5+1 world power countries, saying there is a new beginning to restore stability and calm to the region.

Referring to the Bahraini Turkish relations, he said that Manama and Ankara had well-anchored ties that have developed throughout the times and in the political, economic, cultural and tourism areas.

“Turkey is highly significant to us and we look forward to developing our relations in all fields,” Shaikh Khalid said.

The minister said that Bahrain was grateful to Turkey for its support in confronting the events that had occurred in the kingdom, adding that Ankara was among the capitals that stressed the sovereignty of the country and rejected any form of interference in its internal affairs. …more

Saudi Arabia welcomes Iran nuclear agreement
25 November, 2013 – Al Jazeera

Saudi Arabia has said an interim deal on Iran’s nuclear programme could be a step towards a comprehensive solution – and hoped it could lead to the removal of WMD from the Middle East.

“The government of the kingdom sees that if there was goodwill, this agreement could represent a preliminary step towards a comprehensive solution to the Iranian nuclear programme,” the cabinet said in a statement.

It said the deal could eventually lead “to the removal of weapons of mass destruction, especially nuclear weapons, from the Middle East and the Arab Gulf region”.

The statement appeared to be a refence to Israel, which is the only country in the region to have a nuclear arsenal, although it has never admitted its existence.

Sunday’s agreement, reached after marathon talks in Geneva, was condemned by Israel as a “historic mistake” that left the production of atomic weapons within Tehran’s reach. Israel said it would not be bound by it.

Strained relations

The kingdom said it hoped that this agreement would be followed by further steps that would guarantee the rights of all states in the region to peaceful nuclear energy.

Several countries in the region have notified the UN they intend to begin their own civilian nuclear energy programmes under the terms of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

The Saudi statement is the first on the Iran agreement, an issue has strained relations between the kingdom and the US in recent months.

Meanwhile, the French foreign minister Laurent Fabius, said that thew EU would begin lifting sanctions by December, as per the interim agreement.

Iran agreed to suspend enrichment work, relinquish its stockpiles of 20 percent enriched uranium, and stop construction of a heavy water reactor which could produce plutonium. In return, world powers will lift a number of sanctions to aid Iran’s crippled economy.

Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said on Monday that he was sending its national security adviser, Yossi Cohen, to Washington for talks on the agreement. …source

Israel condemns Iran nuke deal
25 November, 2013 – Reuters

Israel’s prime minister has harshly condemned the international community’s nuclear deal with Iran while Saudi Arabia has remained conspicuously quiet, reflecting the jitters felt throughout the Middle East over Iran’s acceptance on the global stage.

Elsewhere, many welcomed the agreement as an important first step toward curbing Iran’s suspect nuclear programme.

Israel and Western-allied Gulf countries led by Saudi Arabia have formed an unlikely alliance in their opposition to Sunday’s deal, joined together by shared concerns about a nuclear-armed Iran and the Tehran’s growing regional influence.

While most Gulf countries remained silent in the first hours after the deal was reached in Geneva, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasted little time in criticising it, calling it a “historic mistake” and saying he was not bound by the agreement.

Speaking to his Cabinet, Netanyahu said the world had become a “more dangerous place” as a result of the deal. He reiterated a long-standing threat to use military action against Iran if needed, declaring that Israel “has the right and the duty to defend itself by itself.”

Sunday’s agreement is just the first stage of what is hoped to bring about a final deal ensuring that Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon.

Under the deal, Iran will curb many of its nuclear activities for six months in exchange for limited and gradual relief from painful economic sanctions. The six-month period will give diplomats time to negotiate a more sweeping agreement.

The package includes freezing Iran’s ability to enrich uranium at a maximum 5 percent level, which is well below the threshold for weapons-grade material and is aimed at easing Western concerns that Tehran could one day seek nuclear arms. International monitors will oversee Iran’s compliance. …more

Saudi Arabia, Israel destabilizing Middle East
23 November, 2013 – PressTV

The strategic position of the Middle East and the existence of vast energy reserves in the region have always been the main reasons of instability.

Over the past century, most of world’s economic powers have tried to infiltrate the region in order to expand their dominion over the Middle East. In the first step, they divided the Ottoman Empire and next established other countries by fueling ethnic and tribal conflicts and supporting one tribe against the other.

The foundation of most of these countries is based on totalitarian systems that cater to the ruling class and their Western supporters instead of the people’s interests. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, which has strong ties to the US and the West, was recognized as the formal supporter of Wahhabism in the region.

In the second step the West planted the seed of sedition in the region by establishing the Zionist regime at the heart of the Middle East so that the people of the region could never know peace.

The Israeli regime waged war against Muslims and Arabs by occupying Al-Quds (Jerusalem) and Palestine. Israel is the number one enemy and in other words the public enemy of all people in the region.

But the people of the region have another enemy that considers itself the leader of the Muslim and the Arab world, while it is the biggest foe of the region and on par with the Zionist regime.

The Wahhabi regime of Saudi Arabia has not spared any effort to fuel unrest in the Middle East and strives to achieve its biggest goal, paving the way for the presence of hegemonic powers in the region, through interfering in the affairs of other countries and promoting sectarianism.

Saudi Arabia’s role in fueling the crisis in the Middle East by fanning the flames of unrest in Syria is quite obvious; Riyadh has engulfed Syria in a major crisis by providing financial aid for Takfiris affiliated to al-Qaeda. The Zionist regime, a number of European countries and the US also provide financial and political support for these Takfiri groups.

Remarks made by Sheikh Abdullah Tamimi, a prayer leader from the Syrian city of Homs, reveal the depth of the bond between the Zionist regime and Saudi Arabia against Syria. Tamimi said in an interview with Israel’s Channel 2 that the Syrian opposition has never had any enmity towards Israel, was in the same front as Israel and fights one enemy, i.e the Syrian government. He expressed his deep hatred towards Hezbollah and offers rewards for killing Hezbollah commanders.

Other efforts by Saudi Arabia to destabilize the region concern Iraq. Over the past few months, sectarian conflicts in Iraq have intensified for which the mercenaries affiliated to Saudi Arabia and al-Qaeda are to blame. In fact Saudi Arabia is trying to suppress popular uprising in the country through promoting sectarianism in Iraq. In other words, Saudi officials are trying to justify suppression of Shias in Qatif and other provinces by fueling sectarian conflict in Iraq and other countries.

Saudi Arabia’s public support for groups affiliated to al-Qaeda in Iraq, and former Iraqi deputy premier Tariq al-Hashimi’s escape to Saudi Arabia – who had formed death squads in Iraq – are among other attempts by Riyadh to spread instability and insecurity in the region. …more

Prince Bandar attends anti-Iran meeting in Israel
24 November, 2013 – Shia Post

Saudi Arabia’s intelligence chief, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, has taken part in a meeting in Israel to discuss possible improvement of relations between Iran and the United States with Israeli premier and French president.

According to Lebanese al-Hadath new website, the meeting was held in Tel Aviv last week, attended by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, French President Francois Hollande and Saudi spy chief.

The participants discussed plans on how to counter Iran’s role in the region and also how to deal with possible improvement of ties between Tehran and Washington, the report said.

The three also stressed the need for strengthening Saudi Arabia’s defense system, promoting intelligence cooperation with the kingdom, and planning military maneuvers in Jordan.

This came as a new round of talks between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council — Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States — plus Germany, is being held in the Swiss city of Geneva.

The Israeli regime has been exerting intense pressure on the Western countries to prevent a potential nuclear deal with Iran. Netanyahu has said that any deal between the two sides would be a “historic mistake.”

During the last round of talks in Geneva, a first-step agreement was within reach but the position taken by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius in favor of the Israeli regime and a lack of commitment by US Secretary of State John Kerry spoiled the negotiations.
…source

Deal confirms Iran right to civil N-power: France
24 November, 2013 – Shia Post

The French Foreign Minister says the long-awaited deal over Iran’s nuclear program, confirms Tehran’s right to civil nuclear power.

Laurent Fabius made the remarks on Sunday after Iran and the Sextet – Britain, China, France, Russia and the US plus Germany – reached an interim deal after more than four days of intense negotiations in Geneva.

The agreement paves the way for final resolution of the West’s decade-old dispute with Iran over its nuclear energy program.

Addressing reporters later on Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the interim deal was an “important achievement” but a “first step.”

He added that the two sides “need to work together based on … equal footing, mutual respect and common benefits” to resolve the dispute over Tehran’s nuclear work.

According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the deal allows for Iran to continue its activities at Arak, Fordow and Natanz facilities. It also stipulates that no additional sanctions will be imposed on Tehran because of its nuclear energy program.

“After years of blockages, the agreement in Geneva on Iran’s nuclear program is an important step to preserving security and peace,” Fabius added.

This is while during the last round of talks in Geneva in early November when a first-step agreement was within reach, the position taken by Fabius in favor of Israel and a lack of commitment by US Secretary of State John Kerry spoiled the negotiations.

The landmark agreement was reached during Tehran’s third nuclear negotiations with the world powers since Iranian President Hassan Rouhani took office in August. …more

US and Iran held secret talks on nuclear deal for a year
24 November, 2013 – The National

WASHINGTON – The United States and Iran secretly engaged in a series of high-level, face-to-face talks over the past year, in a high-stakes diplomatic gamble that paved the way for the historic deal sealed early yesterday in Geneva aimed at slowing Tehran’s nuclear programme.

The discussions, held in Oman and elsewhere, were kept hidden even from America’s closest friends, including its negotiating partners and Israel, until two months ago. The secret discussions may explain how the nuclear accord appeared to come together so quickly after years of stalemate and fierce hostility between Iran and the West.

But the secrecy of the talks may also explain some of the tensions between the US and France, which earlier this month balked at a proposed deal, and with Israel, which is furious about the agreement.

President Barack Obama personally authorised the talks as part of his effort – promised in his first inaugural address – to reach out to a country the State Department designates as the world’s most active state sponsor of terrorism.

The last four clandestine meetings, held since Iran’s reform-minded President Hassan Rouhani was inaugurated in August, produced much of the agreement later hammered out in negotiations in Geneva among the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany and Iran, said three senior administration officials.

At the president’s direction, the United States began a tentative outreach shortly after Mr Obama’s inauguration in January 2009. Mr Obama and Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, exchanged letters, but the engagement yielded no results.

That outreach was hampered by Iran’s hardline former president, Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, who was re-elected in a disputed vote in June of that year. The next month, relations seemed at another low when Iran detained three American hikers who had strayed across the Iranian border from Iraq.

…more

Thousands protest in Bahrain capital, demand ’torturers be brought to justice’
Bahrain Observer – 24 November, 2013 –

Thousands of Shiite protesters in Bahrain have staged a rally in the capital Manama, protesting against what they called repression against the opposition amid an ongoing crackdown on the largely peaceful demonstrations.

Protesters waved the country’s national flag and chanted slogans on Friday, demanding that the detained opposition activists be freed. In a statement, the opposition denounced “the continuing arrests, political trial and discrimination” against Shiites.

Also, the number of the arrested Shiites has grown in recent months, the opposition said. The march took place in the Shiite area of the capital, Bilad al-Qadim.

In the latest case, on Monday 17 Shiite activists had their appeals against sentences of up to 15 years rejected, after being convicted of attacking the security forces.

In October, the authorities closed an exhibition dedicated to the anti-government uprising and shut down the display, which was organized by the main opposition group Al-Wefaq. The group also staged the latest rally.

In August, the country’s leader, King Hamad, attempted to ban demonstrations in Manama.

During Friday’s march the opposition, led by the Shiite Al-Wefaq movement, claimed the government had not implemented the recommendations of a commission that looked into violence in the spring of 2011.

The investigation was carried out in the autumn of 2011, and concluded that it was mainly Shiite protesters that were targeted during the crackdown.

The report concludes that “force and firearms were used in an excessive manner that was, on many occasions, unnecessary, disproportionate, and indiscriminate.”

The latest protest in the capital comes at the same time as the press conference dedicated to the anniversary of the investigation.

It was also confirmed by numerous international human rights organizations that the Bahraini government used systematic torture and other forms of physical and psychological abuse on detainees.

Over 80 people have been killed in the crackdown since the protests began almost three years ago, according to the International Federation for Human Rights. …source

The Afghanistan, Loya Jirga, has no legislative power and Afghanistan’s President Karzai, has opted to ask for a vote on what is perhaps the largest National Security question ever posed to Afghanistan’s Parliament. The outcry from the West for a “quick sign” and “free ticket” acceptance of any Security Arrangement without the consent of the Nation is exactly the “pig-headed” belligerence that makes Governments around the world resist the arm-twisting politics of the West. Shame on you President Obama. You and your propaganda machine should give your own Congress the respect on matters of such great importance, but yet in Afghanistan you carry on with the pretense of an offended party. Your coercive tactics unmasks your conduct as a criminal protection racket. The shear hypocrisy, the lack of respect and contempt the US holds for Democracy around the world is sickening.

Phlipn Out

Afghanistan’s Loya Jirga: Q&A
BBC – 24 November, 2103
An assembly of around 2,500 Afghan elders and notables called to discuss a long-awaited bilateral security agreement with the United States wants the deal with the US to be signed this year.

President Hamid Karzai, who summoned the assembly – or Loya Jirga – would rather the deal were signed later, once US forces have brought peace to the country. The US itself sees no reason to delay the agreement.

The Loya Jirga is also focusing on whether to grant immunity from prosecution to US troops after they end formal combat operations in Afghanistan next year.

This is a matter of continuing controversy in Afghanistan, as is the convocation of the jirga itself.

Is the Loya Jirga a law-making body?

No. The Afghan constitution of 2003 does allow for a Loya Jirga, made up of both houses of parliament and elected heads of regional administrations, with the power to amend the constitution, impeach the president and decide matters of national sovereignty.

But the assembly that gathers for four days from 21 November is merely a consultative Loya Jirga, and has the right only to advise.

Can this consultative Loya Jirga veto the bilateral security agreement?

No. Even jirga chairman Sibghatullah Mojadeddi says the president has the right to sign the agreement without consulting it, although its advice will be sent to parliament for consideration.

President Karzai says he called the Loya Jirga because the security agreement is a matter of national importance, and a similar gathering agreed to the strategic partnership accord with the United States back in 2011.

Who is attending?

The jirga organisers say Muslim clerics, as well as representatives of the professions, members of parliament, merchants and nomads, will attend, adding that a quarter of the seats are reserved for women.

Many members of parliament and the entire opposition say they will boycott proceedings. The main armed groups – the Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami – are also opposed, although jirga organisers say some members of Hezb-e-Islami will attend.

Why are these groups boycotting the jirga?

The Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami are opposed to the bilateral security agreement on principle, and the Taliban have threatened to kill jirga delegates who endorse the security agreement.

Some MPs think the jirga is a presidential attempt to undermine the authority of parliament, and opposition critics like Maulana Farid accuse President Karzai of trying to solve 21st-Century problems through a “traditional, archaic and unlawful 19th-Century process”.

How does the jirga work?

After an opening session, the four-day sitting of the jirga broke up into smaller discussion groups. These in turn convened to propose their detailed recommendations to the full jirga, for consideration by the president and parliament.

What must it decide?

One of the main issues to be determined by delegates is whether US troops should be tried in the US or in Afghanistan for crimes committed on Afghan territory. If no deal is reached on jurisdiction the US says it will pull all of its soldiers out after 2014, with massive consequences for security and aid.

There have also been last minute talks between Afghan and US officials on a second outstanding issue – whether to allow US troops forcibly to enter Afghan homes in pursuit of suspects. …source

Bahrain upholds draconian jail terms for 17 activists
19 November, 2013 – Al Akhbar

A Bahrain appeals court has upheld jail terms of up to 15 years for 17 protest activists accused of attacks on police in the unrest-hit country, a judicial source said Tuesday.

The Manama court, which delivered the verdicts on Monday, also reduced by seven years sentences for three other defendants in the same case, the source said.

The group of activists were tried on charges of attempting to murder police, carrying out arson attacks on their vehicles, causing public disturbance and possessing Molotov cocktails.

Bahrain’s regime-affiliated courts have handed draconian sentences to dozens of protest activists in recent weeks on terrorism-related charges, with authorities using torture to force confessions, according to rights groups.

Since September 29, a total of 138 activists and protest leaders have been sentenced to prison terms of up to life, after dictator Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in August ordered that dissidents face stiffer penalties.

At least 89 people have been killed at the hands of police since a mostly-peaceful anti-government rebellion began in February 2011, according to the International Federation for Human Rights.

But the deadly crackdown has failed to quell the almost daily demonstrations in villages across the US-backed kingdom.

…source

This crap belongs on in the Tabloids. Oh wait it was a Reuters release, no wonder.

Bahrain “terror” suspects were former Guantanamo prisoners
By Reuters – 25 November 2013

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said it has arrested two Gulf citizens suspected of plotting “terror” attacks against the kingdom.

The two Gulf nationals tried to enter Bahrain with forged passports through King Fahd Causeway, which joins Bahrain to Saudi Arabia, and were “carrying a large amount of money”, the ministry said.

“The initial investigation revealed that the arrestees are former detainees of the Guantanamo detention centre. They are suspected of plotting a terror act to jeopardise the security and safety of Bahrain,” the ministry said in a statement.

The statement did not elaborate on the nature of the planned attacks or the identities of the two people arrested.

Bahrain has been hit by political unrest since protests led by opposition groups erupted in 2011.
…source

Report: Impunity in Bahrain with the Force of law
25 November, 2013 – Bahrain youth Society for Human Rights

The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) releases this report that addresses the impunity granted to the security officials in Bahrain. The report monitors the extrajudicial killings that took place from February 2011 until February 2013, as well as monitoring the legal status of these cases and the manner that the Bahraini Authorities (and especially the Judicial Authority) deal with extrajudicial killings.

The BYSHR gathered the information from various media outlets (especially the Bahraini Al-Wasat newspaper), in addition to several lawyers who contributed in providing further information on some of the cases.

Summary of the report:

First: The cases documented by the BICI Report

•The number of cases documented by the BICI Report: 30 cases

1-Referral to court: 8 Cases
2-Not referred to court: 22 Cases

•Sentences issued in the cases referred to court:

The court issued a decision to acquit the defendants in (4) cases and reduce the convictions in (4) cases.

•Type of cases:

1. 3 cases of death inside prison (2 cases of conviction and then reducing the sentences) (1 case of acquittal)
2. 5 cases of death in protests (2 cases of conviction and then reducing the sentences) (3 cases of acquittal)

Second: Cases that took place after the BICI Report

•Number of documented cases: 14 cases

1-Referral to court: 1 Cases
2-Not referred to court: 13 Cases

•Sentences issued in cases that were referred to court:

The court issued a decision to acquit the defendants in one case related to the death of a protestor as a result of using shotgun pellets.

Remarks:

1-Two foreign workers were killed by the security forces and until now no investigation into their deaths was made.

2-Death in separate incidents: 11 cases were recorded by the BICI, however they were outside the specified timeframe, and they were not referred to court.

The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) assures that the report did not include death cases that were caused by the intense use of teargas in closed areas which led to the death of at least 30 people (some of them were participating in protests and the others were randomly targeted in their homes.) (refer to the statement of the BYSHR : HERE )

The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) confirms that the Bahraini Authorities protects the human rights violators and practices the policy of “impunity” which leads to the increase of extrajudicial killings.

REPORT HERE

…source