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

Iran wants Iraq, Venezuela to join Syria “contact group”
11 September, 2012 – Al Akhbar

Iran on Tuesday hailed Egypt’s aims in putting together a new “contact group” on the Syrian crisis, but said it wanted to expand the initiative to include its allies Iraq and Venezuela.

Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdolahian was quoted on his ministry website after attending the first meeting of the group in Cairo on Monday that Egypt’s offer to host another session at ministerial level “is a positive step.”

He welcomed Egypt’s stated goal of trying to stop Syria’s bloodshed through “consensus” in the group, based on policies to bring about a ceasefire, to maintain Syrian sovereignty and to reject any foreign intervention.

That was “a balanced solution,” Amir Abdolahian said.

The contact group, created by Egypt’s new President Mohammed Mursi, comprises Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Iran.

The first three countries have all publicly called for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down as a first step to quelling an 18-month conflict that is raging in his country.

Iran, though, is Assad’s staunchest ally and has said it will do everything it can to keep him in power.

Egypt said on Monday it planned to bring the foreign ministers of group’s members together in the coming days. A Turkish diplomat told AFP that meeting could happen next week.

In an apparent bid to bolster Iran’s pro-Assad position in the group, Amir Abdolahian called for “Iraq, as the current head of the Arab League, and Venezuela, as part of Non-Aligned Movement troika” to be allowed to join.

Iraq’s government and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez are allied with Iran, which currently holds the presidency of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). …more

Cracks in the Khalifah Regime – America’s Bahrain Migraine
by THOMAS C. MOUNTAIN – Counter Punch – 11 September, 2012

The year and a half long protest movement of the majority Shi’ite people of Bahrain could be forewarning of a crippling migraine headache for the USA if it succeeds in overthrowing the western installed Al Khalifah dictatorship that has ruled Bahrain since “independence”.

The people of Bahrain know all to well that the Khalifah regime’s real godfather is the USA and it is more than likely that the end of the regime will be followed by a demand to close the American naval base located in Bahrain thus threatening US control of the strategically critical Persian Gulf.

Control of the Persian Gulf energy exports and energy reserves is essential for Pax Americana’s continued worldwide hegemony and the US navy spearheaded by the aircraft carrier task force necessary to enforce it’s domination of the Persian Gulf requires a port to operate from. If the USA is kicked out of Bahrain they have only the tiny nation of Djibouti thousands of miles away in the Horn of Africa and its small port as a fall back position.

Ordinarily the USA would give the green light for the Saudi and Emirati funded mercenary police force (hired gun thugs from Jordan, Pakistan and Yemen) occupying Bahrain to drown the potential revolution in blood as has been all to common in the regions past but the situation in Bahrain is complicated by the close historic tribal and family ties between the Shi’ites in Bahrain and the Shi’ites in eastern Saudi where almost all of the Saudi oil is located.

Every time the crackdown on the Bahraini people is intensified there has been an increase in protests by the Shi’ite of Saudi Arabia. A major bloodbath in Bahrain could well ignite an explosion amongst the Saudi Shi’ite who have long suffered from what might best be described as Arab Apartheid by the Wahabi Sunni extremist Al Saud regime that the British installed in power in Saudi Arabia many decades ago.

If the Shi’ite in Saudi Arabia rise up they could easily sabotage Saudi oil production, the worlds largest, damage if not cripple some of the biggest economies in the world and leave the USA scrambling to find a way out of an increasingly dire situation.

For the USA the Bahraini protests could become a major problem that could result in Pax Americana being seen as weak, feeble really, unable to control the Persian Gulf in the face of the growing influence of Iran in the region and calling into question the USA’s very ability to militarily punish its enemies and control one of the worlds most critical choke points, the Straits of Hormuz where the Persian Gulf meets the Indian Ocean.

Today’s headache could quickly turn into tomorrows migraine for the USA as the Bahraini people are faced with the choice of continuing the one sided violence they are suffering or taking up arms in self defense. …more

Very interesting idea. Maybe a ‘push app’ report gas or other attacks on Protesters and villages in Bahrain? How to keep those reporting from becoming targets? Phlipn – hmmm.

Apple shoots down drone strike tracking iPhone app
by Staff Writers – San Francisco (AFP) – 30 August, 2012

The maker of an application that would alert iPhone users to US military drone strikes said Thursday that Apple has repeatedly shot down his efforts to get it into the App Store.

“I just wanted to make a simple app that would send a push notification every time there is a drone strike,” Begley told AFP.

“I was thinking about how hidden the drone war is and about ways to play with what happens in the pockets of smartphone users,” the New York University graduate student continued.

Begley hunkered down and made his first iPhone app, Drones+, which tracks drone strikes by aggregating information from a Bureau of Investigative Journalism database.

Reports of drone strikes prompt iPhone notifications that arrive with pop-up text messages; Google maps showing locations, and the option of more detail.

Begley said that Drones+ was rejected twice by Apple on technical grounds since he first submitted it to the Cupertino, California-based maker of iPhones, iPads, iPods and Macintosh computers in July.

A third rejection came this week, according to Begley, with Apple informing him that Drones+ would not be allowed in the App Store because many people were likely to find the content objectionable.

The 27-year-old interactive communications student expressed dismay that an application crafted to aggregate news reports could be deemed objectionable.

“I didn’t really expect anyone to download the app if it was in the App Store,” Begley said. “That was the point; I don’t think people want to know when a drone strikes.”

He is considering going to work on a version of Drones+ for smartphones powered by Google-backed Android software.

“I would like for it to exist somewhere,” Begley said.” …source

US, Mexican Officials Brokering Deals with Drug “Cartels,” WikiLeaks Documents Show.
By Bill Conroy – The Narco News Bulletin – 20 August, 2012

A high-ranking Sinaloa narco-trafficking organization member’s claim that US officials have struck a deal with the leadership of the Mexican “cartel” appears to be corroborated in large part by the statements of a Mexican diplomat in email correspondence made public recently by the nonprofit media group WikiLeaks.

The Mexican diplomat’s assessment of the US and Mexican strategy in the war on drugs, as revealed by the email trail, paints a picture of a “simulated war” in which the Mexican and US governments are willing to show favor to a dominant narco-trafficking organization in order to minimize the violence and business disruption in the major drug plazas, or markets.

A similar quid-pro-quo arrangement is precisely what indicted narco-trafficker Jesus Vicente Zambada Niebla, who is slated to stand trial in Chicago this fall, alleges was agreed to by the US government and the leaders of the Sinaloa “Cartel” — the dominate narco-trafficking organization in Mexico. The US government, however, denies that any such arrangement exists.

Mexican soldiers arrested Zambada Niebla in late March 2009 after he met with DEA agents in a posh Mexico City hotel, a meeting arranged by a US government informant who also is a close confident of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia (Zambada Niebla’s father) and Chapo Guzman — both top leaders of the Sinaloa drug organization. The US informant, Mexican attorney Humberto Loya Castro, by the US government’s own admission in court pleadings in the Zambada Niebla criminal case, served as an intermediary between the Sinaloa Cartel leadership and US government agencies seeking to obtain information on rival narco-trafficking organizations.

According to Zambada Niebla, he and the rest of the Sinaloa leadership, through the US informant Loya Castro, negotiated an immunity deal with the US government in which they were guaranteed protection from prosecution in exchange for providing US law enforcers and intelligence agencies with information that could be used to compromise rival Mexican cartels and their operations.

“The United States government considered the arrangements with the Sinaloa Cartel an acceptable price to pay, because the principal objective was the destruction and dismantling of rival cartels by using the assistance of the Sinaloa Cartel — without regard for the fact that tons of illicit drugs continued to be smuggled into Chicago and other parts of the United States and consumption continued virtually unabated,” Zambada Niebla’s attorneys argue in pleadings in his case. …source

Turkey Ramps Up War Threats Against Syria
Contributed by blackandred – By Chris Marsden; 11 September 2012 – WSWS

Turkey has dramatically escalated its war-rhetoric against Syria, placing itself at the forefront of any military intervention to depose the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

On September 4, at a meeting of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Ankara, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan described Syria as a “terrorist state.”

He complained that the “massacres in Syria” had gained strength “from the international community’s indifference… The regime in Syria has now become a terrorist state. We do not have the luxury to be indifferent to what is happening there.”

Erdogan’s comments target Russia and China, which oppose measures against Syria they correctly understand to be aimed at weakening their influence in the oil-rich region and consolidating US hegemony by isolating Iran. But he has also made clear his frustration with the Obama administration in the United States, which has expressed reluctance to support Turkey’s demand for a “no-fly” or “buffer” zone on the Syrian side of the Turkish border.

Justified as a means of both protecting and stemming the tide of refugees fleeing Syria, such a move would be tantamount to a declaration of war.

Turkey has said that should the number of refugees, now estimated at 80,000, top 100,000, this could be a tipping point for action against Syria. Turkey has also accused both Syria and Iran of allowing border areas to be used as a base for separatist forces allied to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) to attack its troops in the southeast.

Erdogan called the PKK and Syria’s Democratic Union Party (PYD), an affiliated group, a “sub-contractor organization”, “directly supported abroad by enemy countries.”

“In the north, [the Assad regime] has allotted five provinces to the Kurds, to the terrorist organization,” he told a Turkish television station in July.

“It’s known that the PKK works arm in arm with Syria’s intelligence organisation,” said Huseyin Celik, the deputy chairman of the AKP.

Turkish tanks conducted attack-drill exercises along the border with Syria on Wednesday last week. The next day, September 6, Reuters reported that more than 2,000 Turkish soldiers, together with fighter jets and helicopters, attacked PKK positions in both southeast Turkey and northern Iraq.

After having stated that Assad is not a real Muslim, Erdogan last weekend provocatively compared what is happening in Syria with the battle of Karbala–which has central significance for Shi’ites, who regard those killed by Caliph Yazid I as martyrs. “What happened in Karbala 1,332 years ago is what happens in Syria today,” Erdogan said at a conference in Istanbul.

It was in this context that Erdogan complained to Christiane Amanpour on CNN September 5 that US reluctance to back a no-fly zone was probably “because of the pre-election situation,” given the deep unpopularity in the US of any open move to war against Syria. …more

Further evidence of western technology being used by Arab regimes to spy on activists. FinFisher, the makers of the spyware, were identified by Owni & WikiLeaks last year as part of the global surveillance arms trade.

Western Spy Tech Linked to Bahrain Regime
by Jean Marc Manach On September 10, 2012

In spring of this year a Bahraini exile in London, a British economist in Bahrain and a naturalised American living in Alabama, all received the same short email, apparently sent by an Al-Jazeera journalist.

The email mentioned a report written by Zainab al-Khawaja, a human rights activist in Bahrain, about the torture of imprisoned fellow activist Nabeel Rajab, followed by this statement.

A few days later the trio received more emails. Some made reference to the arrest of opposition figures in Bahrain, and others to the agenda of the king of Bahrain. Every email was accompanied by a compressed file attachment, raising suspicions that they might contain computer viruses.

The emails were forwarded to Vernon Silver, a Bloomberg journalist who has been closely following instances of western surveillance technology being used by Arab dictatorships. Silver had the emails analysed by two researchers associated with the Citizen Lab, a Canadian research laboratory that specialises in studying political surveillance technology.

Morgan Marquis-Boire, a computer security engineer working at Google, is an expert (pdf) in the type of spyware that was used by Libyan and Syrian thugs to hack cyber-dissidents’ computers. Bill Marczak, a doctoral student in computer science at Berkeley, is a member of Bahrain Watch, a group which promotes transparency in Bahrain. Bahrain Watch documents the protesters and civilians killed by Bahraini authorities, the weapons (buckshot, grenades and tear gas) purchased from western companies, and the western public relations firms employed by the regime at handsome rates.

The two researchers discovered a particularly sophisticated piece of spyware, employing “myriad techniques designed to evade detection and frustrate analysis“. By analysing the spyware’s coding, the researchers uncovered mentions of FinSpy, the British company Gamma International, and the names of several of its directors.

According to this contract proposal found in March 2011 in an Egyptian security service building after the fall of the Mubarak regime, the FinSpy spyware retails at about €300,000. It’s one of the flagship products in the range of “offensive cyber-war” tools marketed by FinFisher, a subsidiary of Gamma, which specialises in surveillance and telecommunications interception systems. Owni reported on this product range last year; we even put together this video montage of promotional clips explaining how the software operates.

As part of the SpyFiles operation, WikiLeaks and Privacy International revealed that FinFisher was one of five digital surveillance arms dealers, specialising in ‘trojans’. This type of spyware presents itself as a legitimate file, before infecting a computer in order to remotely activate microphones and cameras, to record every keyboard stroke (including of course passwords) or Skype conversations, instant messages, emails etc.. Then, in an encrypted and undetectable manner, the spyware sends back the intercepted data via servers located in various countries abroad.

Another computer security researcher has subsequently managed to identify the servers used to control FinSpy, and thus spy on computers in Estonia, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Latvia, Mongolia, Qatar, the Czech Republic, the USA, Australia and Dubai.

In a second post, published in late August, CitizenLab revealed that they had identified two more servers: one in Bahrain, the other controlled by the Ministry of Telecommunications in Turkmenistan, considered one of the most repressive regimes in the world.

The two researchers also detail how FinSpy Mobile operates. The system allows the user to infect iPhones and Android, Symbian, Blackberry and Windows mobile phones, in order to spy on SMS, emails and telecommunications, extract contacts and other data, geolocate the phone, and even remotely activate the phone without the user being aware of the slightest manipulation. …more

Bahrain’s Thorns Stuck In Obama’s Side
10 September, 2012 – The Trench

Two weeks ago Sumaya Rajab, the wife of imprisoned Bahraini activist Nabeel Rajab, posted an open letter to U.S. President Barack Obama. Sentenced to three years in prison for “inciting” and participating in “illegal gatherings,” Nabeel would appear before the court as a beacon of freedom and justice, a man who can beaten physically but not mentally. Sumaya would appeal to Obama with these very virtues: “Victimized people of Bahrain are calling upon the universal values and principles that United States is embracing.”

The response: sit back and watch Rajab’s cruel and unusual punishment.

Despite a continual rise in Bahrain’s hostilities from February 2011’s initial democratic outbreak, both sides of Washington still doubt that they have much to gain from embracing the island’s opposition. Confronting Iran and protecting Israel, shipping routes and oil supplies plays better than supporting a relatively small opposition in a foreign land. The Obama administration has downplayed Bahrain throughout the Arab revolutions, with considerable success at home, but the opposition universally agrees that U.S. policy is negatively affecting their struggle for human rights and political representation. Most GOP presidential candidates, sadly, would offer even less words of support and back them with the consent of force.

A month after Rajab was jailed on July 9th and held at the notorious Jaww prison, Washington could only muster a letter of support signed by two Senators and 17 Representatives – apparently leaving the other 98 and 418 on King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa’s side.

The White House has been equally unhelpful throughout Rajab’s numerous arrests and his campaign to raise awareness in Bahrain. By the time he arranged a series of media appearances to kick off the summer, Rajab had come to accept the immovability of U.S. policy after previously hoping that America’s Fifth Fleet would loosen Washington’s security bond with Manama. The head of Bahrain’s Center For Human Rights (BCHR) had just watched Crown Prince Salman mingle with Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta as he languished in a jail cell. Rajab and his family have also been subjected to abuses at home, including night raids and tear gas assaults. When he was rearrested in July, the State Department waited two days before expressing “concern” – at the prompting of inquiring reporters – and refused to explicitly call for his immediate release.

The State Department then claimed that it had done so “from the beginning” after Rajab’s sentencing, although no follow up can be found in the Department’s own database. No further statements have been issued.

These isolated defenses are designed to float in a sea of silence, maintaining an obligatory level of interest to ward off criticism of inaction. Accordingly, Sumaya observes that the State Department “already expressed ‘Worries’ and ‘Concerns’ about Nabeel’s imprisonment but the government of Bahrain ignored all such ‘Concerns.'” Her letter is almost too reasonable and inviting, given the situation of her family, but Sumaya wisely attempts to relate her cause to Obama and the founding ideals of America. With nowhere left to turn in Washington, she requests “your kind intervention to explicitly call for Nabeel Rajab’s immediate and unconditional ‘release from prison’ because Nabeel is a prisoner of conscience.” However Obama has yet issue any personal reaction to Rajab’s imprisonment or the abuse that Bahrain’s government is subjecting him to, both before and after his sentencing. …more

Hundreds of Saudi Shia protesters demand release of political detainees
ABNA – 11 September, 2012

Activists and the family members of political prisoners in Saudi Arabia have held a protest rally in the capital, Riyadh, to renew their calls for the release of the political detainees in the Arab kingdom.

Hundreds of Saudi Shia protesters demand release of political detainees
(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) – Activists and the family members of political prisoners in Saudi Arabia have held a protest rally in the capital, Riyadh, to renew their calls for the release of the political detainees in the Arab kingdom.

In a gathering outside the Attorney General’s office in the capital on Monday, they also demanded the release of political activists held in Saudi jails without trial.

“My brother told me he was taken to court last year but it was a secret trial and they didn’t let him choose his own lawyer. It’s been over a year and we still don’t have the result of the trial. In my opinion, this trial is nothing but a show,” said a protester.

Saudi Arabia has been under fire for its human rights record especially for the detention of many anti-government protesters since the onset of a popular uprising last year.

Rights activists say hundreds of political prisoners remain locked up in Saudi jails under harsh conditions and without access to a lawyer.

People are randomly arrested by the Saudi police just for looking suspicious, and are held behind bars for years before they are even charged.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the Saudi regime ”routinely represses expression critical of the government.”

The oil-rich Eastern Province has been the focal point of the anti-regime protests in Saudi Arabia. …source

Unadulterated Hypocrisy: ‘UK forces oversee Bahrain repression’
11 September, 2012 – Hardons Blog

British and American military and security advisors are overseeing training to Bahraini forces involved in the crackdown on revolutionaries, a leader of Bahrain’s Amal Movement says.

Hisham al-Sabbagh told Al-Alam news network that the al-Khalifa regime in Bahrain is also receiving military hardware including tanks from a number of western countries and some members of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council.

Al-Sabbagh’s comments come only weeks after Bahraini ruler Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and British Prime Minister David Cameron pledged to step up cooperation during Hamad’s visit to London in late August.

Hamad did point to security cooperation between the two sides after the meeting but disguised it as an attempt to “improve security and combat the spread of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.”

Cameron and Hamad also ironically called for cooperation to boost human rights and democracy while Bahraini forces continue to crush anti-regime protests.

The British government has been repeatedly blasted by human rights, anti-war and anti-arms trade activists for arming repressive regimes including Bahrain despite clear evidence of bloody suppression of pro-democracy demonstrations there.

Over the past months the British MPs have also joined the critics.

The MPs said in their 2012 Scrutiny of Arms Exports that the government’s arms exports decisions have been clearly flawed as known repressive regimes such as Bahrain were armed regardless.

The MPs also said the government paradoxically considers some of the countries on its own list of human right abusers as “priority markets” for arms sales. …source

Bahrain? Never Heard of It
by Kelley B. Vlahos – 11 September, 2012 -AntiWar

News that a civilian appeals court in Bahrain upheld the harsh prison terms —including several life sentences — of 13 “Arab Spring” activists last week, drew rapid fire from the human rights community. Their “crimes” — organizing largely peaceful protests to demand social and economic reforms from the ruling monarchy in 2011 — had branded them convicted traitors and terrorists, the kind of appalling injustice that American patriots had fought against more than 200 years ago.
Bahraini security forces during the 2011 uprising.

“Today’s court decision is yet another blow to justice and shows once more that the Bahraini authorities are not on the path of reform but seem rather driven by vindictiveness,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, deputy director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Program.

Bahrain’s Shia population took to the streets in February 2011 amid the wave of social and political uprisings across the Arab World. Unlike Egypt, Tunisia or even Libya, however, the Sunni Al Khalifa royal family — which has ruled the oil rich country (and the Shia majority) for two centuries — has managed to emerge unscathed. Instead, Bahrain has thwarted and suppressed its popular movement without fully engaging in the reforms it’s promised. Making it worse, the major mainstream coverage of the Bahraini story — including the brutal crackdown against protesters, their arrests, alleged torture in prison, the “disappearing” of activists and even doctors who have helped the wounded, the nighttime raids in Shiite neighborhoods — has been sporadic at best to non-existent.

You’ve got to wonder why. This week, a pair of stories by Glenn Greenwald (here and here) have re-engaged a debate about how western financial interests coupled with so-called “smart power” strategy in the region, has left the reform movement in Bahrain far behind. This only reinforces the longstanding accusation of American hypocrisy — preaching the goals of liberty for all humans, but only when it suits.

Feeble American Response

In his acceptance speech before the Democratic National Convention on Thursday, President Obama had very little to say about foreign policy, and even less to say about global human rights. He did make one sweeping nod to the people-driven freedom movements that have marked the last two years of his presidency:

“The historic change sweeping across the Arab World must be defined not by the iron fist of a dictator or the hate of extremists, but by the hopes and aspirations of ordinary people who are reaching for the same rights that we celebrate today.”

It’s no surprise he didn’t say more about the Arab Spring — his administration has not taken a clear approach to any of it. Rather it has offered a patchwork of official responses, ranging from full-on military assistance for anti-government forces in Libya, to a more tolerant, wait-and-see position with others, particularly in Egypt. There, U.S. officials condemned the violence against the protesters in Tahrir Square, and supported reforms in spirit, but were forced to contemplate a future relationship without their reliable dictator-friend, Hosni Mubarak, and with an Islamist party that says it won’t kowtow to U.S. influence. …more

Bahrain: Update – Human rights defender Nabeel Rajab remains in detention as his appeal is adjourned until 27 September
Nabeel RajabNabeel Rajab
10 September, 2012 – Frontline Defenders

On 10 September 2012, the Higher Appeal Court in Manama adjourned prominent human rights defender Mr Nabeel Rajab’s appeal of his three-year prison sentence until 27 September 2012. The human rights defender had a bail application refused during the same hearing.

This comes after his conviction on 16 August 2012 on charges of illegal assembly and disturbing public order by the Bahraini Lower Criminal Court.

Following his wife’s visit on 4 September 2012, which was cut short from one hour to 25 minutes, Sumaya Rajab confirmed that Nabeel Rajab has been subjected to ill-treatment in the form of humiliating personal inspections.

She reported that he had been repeatedly stripped down to his underwear and then forced to stand and sit 40 times. This repeated treatment exacerbated the severe back pain he suffers from due to a herniated disc. Furthermore, he has been beaten on the back on a regular basis and he has been restricted to six litres of water per week, even though he suffers from kidney problems and gallbladder stones. It was also reported that he has been denied the appropriate medical attention.

He continues to be held in solitary confinement.

Nabeel Rajab is President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights and Director of the Gulf Centre for Human Rights. He has campaigned around the world to bring attention to human rights abuses in Bahrain, including the case of Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja.

In light of the reported ill-treatment of Nabeel Rajab, Front Line Defenders expresses serious concern for his physical and psychological integrity. Front Line Defenders reiterates its calls on the Bahraini authorities to quash the conviction of Nabeel Rajab, to drop any outstanding charges against him and to effect his immediate and unconditional release. …more

Ninth prisoner dies at Guantanamo
10 September, 2012 – By Ben Fox – Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico: A prisoner has died at the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the U.S. military said Monday, two days after the man was apparently found unconscious in his cell at the isolated, high-security prison.

The prisoner, whose name and nationality were not released, was found by guards on Saturday and taken to a base hospital, where he was declared dead “after extensive lifesaving measures had been performed,” the U.S. military’s Southern Command said in a brief statement.

He was the ninth prisoner to die at the facility since it was opened in January 2002 to hold men suspected of terrorism or links to al-Qaida and the Taliban. The military has said two of those deaths were by natural causes and six were declared suicides.

The death occurred in Camp 5, a section of the prison used mostly to hold prisoners who have broken detention center rules, said Navy Capt. Robert Durand, a spokesman for the prison.

This prisoner had recently splashed a guard with what military officials call a “cocktail,” typically a mixture of food and bodily fluids, which is why he was on discplinary status, Durand said.

He had been on a hunger strike in the past but had gone off of it on June 1 and was at 95 percent of his ideal body weight and 14 pounds heavier than when he came to Guantanamo, the spokesman said.

The U.S. still holds nearly 170 prisoners at Guantanamo and they range from men the officials have cleared for release but can’t find a stable country to accept them to a handful who have been charged with war crimes. Durand said the man who died Saturday had not been charged and had not been designated for prosecution.

A medical examiner has been brought to the base to determine the exact cause of death and an investigation will be conducted by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which is standard in the death of detainees at Guantanamo.

Durand said the U.S. government was working to notify the man’s family and his country before releasing further information.

…more

Torture and Rendition to Gaddafi’s Libya
by Human Rights Watch – TRANSCEND Media Service

New Accounts of Waterboarding, Other Water Torture, Abuses in Secret Prisons

The United States government during the Bush administration tortured opponents of Muammar Gaddafi, then transferred them to mistreatment in Libya, according to accounts by former detainees and recently uncovered CIA and UK Secret Service documents, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today [6 Sep 2012]. One former detainee alleged he was waterboarded and another described a similar form of water torture, contradicting claims by Bush administration officials that only three men in US custody had been waterboarded.

The 154-page report, “Delivered into Enemy Hands: US-Led Abuse and Rendition of Opponents to Gaddafi’s Libya,” is based on interviews conducted in Libya with 14 former detainees, most of whom belonged to an armed Islamist group that had worked to overthrow Gaddafi for 20 years. Many members of the group, the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), joined the NATO-backed anti-Gaddafi rebels in the 2011 conflict. Some of those who were rendered and allegedly tortured in US custody now hold key leadership and political positions in the country.

“Not only did the US deliver Gaddafi his enemies on a silver platter but it seems the CIA tortured many of them first,” said Laura Pitter, counterterrorism advisor at Human Rights Watch and author of the report. “The scope of Bush administration abuse appears far broader than previously acknowledged and underscores the importance of opening up a full-scale inquiry into what happened.”

The report is also based on documents – some of which are being made public for the first time – that Human Rights Watch found abandoned, on September 3, 2011, in the offices of former Libyan intelligence chief Musa Kusa after Tripoli fell to rebel forces.

The interviews and documents establish that, following the September 11, 2001 attacks, the US, with aid from the United Kingdom (UK) and countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, arrested and held without charge a number of LIFG members living outside Libya, and eventually rendered them to the Libyan government.

The report also describes serious abuses that five of the former LIFG members said they experienced at two US-run detention facilities in Afghanistan, most likely operated by the CIA. They include new allegations of waterboarding and other water torture. The details are consistent with the few other first-hand accounts about the same US-run facilities. …more

UN rights chief cites problems in Syria, Bahrain
By JOHN HEILPRIN – Associated Press – 10 Septemebr, 2012

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.’s top rights official laid out the world’s most significant human rights issues Monday, criticizing Syria and Bahrain but also mentioning problems in Western countries such as France and Greece.

The assessment by U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay is important because it sets the tone for the U.N.’s 47-nation Human Rights Council, whose month-long session opened Monday.

The U.N. secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, on a visit to commemorate Switzerland joining the world body a decade ago, challenged the council to focus attention on five areas, including discrimination, violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and women’s rights.

“It is an affront to our conscience that millions of people still struggle against poverty, hunger and disease. These conditions violate their fundamental human rights,” he said.

Pillay argued that respect for human rights is key to peace, development and humanitarian efforts, and she began by citing Syria’s civil war as an area of grave concern with devastating consequences for civilians.

Activists say up to 26,000 people have been killed in Syria since an uprising began in March 2011 against President Bashar Assad’s regime.

Next on Pillay’s list was Bahrain for handing down what she called harsh prison sentences against 20 prominent rights activists and opposition figures, including seven who face life in prison. Bahrain’s U.N. Ambassador Yusuf Abdulkarim Bucheeri defended his nation, saying its judiciary held a fair trial attended by diplomats, human rights representatives and news media.

Pillay spoke of human rights problems in Colombia, Ivory Coast and Congo, then mentioned France and Greece. She also noted issues in Kenya, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mexico, Myanmar and many other countries.

“I am also worried by the recent forced closure of Roma camps in France, which have affected hundreds of people, making them even more vulnerable and exposed to a whole range of human rights concerns,” Pillay told the packed chamber.

“I acknowledge a number of steps that have been taken by the government, but further efforts must be made to address this situation” and integrate Roma, or Gypsies, into society, she said.

In August, police raids in Paris and other French cities dismantled camps used by Roma from Eastern Europe and left hundreds without shelter. It echoed a crackdown on the Roma two years ago under conservative then-President Nicolas Sarkozy that drew criticism.

But the French government has since made it easier for Roma, who mostly originate from Romania and Bulgaria, to get jobs and stay in France by expanding the number of sectors where residents of those nations can seek work. The government also abolished a tax paid by employers to hire people from the two countries.

Pillay also noted problems in Greece, where there has been a surge in racist attacks against immigrants with dark skin.

“Equally troubling are violent xenophobic attacks against migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in recent months, for example, in Greece,” Pillay said. “I am also concerned about reports that the police appeared to have been unable to respond effectively to protect victims of xenophobic crimes. ”

Greece launched a campaign in August to try to seal its northeastern border with Turkey in the face of a crippling financial crisis that has caused joblessness to soar. …more

Bahrain court adjourns case of prominent rights activist Nabeel Rajab
10 September, 2012 – BLOTTR

The case of leading rights activist Nabeel Rajab was adjourned until September 27th on Monday, his lawyer Mohammed al-Jishi reported. The head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights was in court this morning to appeal the three-year sentence he received last month for “involvement in illegal practices and calling for unauthorised marches through social networking sites”.

Rajab, arguably the most prominent rights activist in Bahrain, was arrested on July 10 by masked men in balaclavas and plain clothes following his conviction for sending defamatory and libellous tweets. He was later acquitted.

The case of Zainab Al-Kawaja, daughter of opposition activist Abduladi Al-Khawaja, was also adjourned on Monday. She is expected to appear in court on September 11.

Sister and fellow activist Maryam Al-Khawaja said Zainab’s lawyer tried to use excerpts of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) report, but the judge refused to hear the lawyer’s arguments saying that the BICI report was a thing of the past.

The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), established in June 2011 by King Hamad, was tasked with looking into human rights abuses during the period of unrest in Bahrain between February and March 2011.

As pointed out by EA Worldview, Katherine Gallagher, Vice President of FIDH, was present in court to monitor the hearing. She tweeted: “At Nabeel Rajab’s hearing. His family all in court, international observers and US, French and German Embassy [representatives present]. Nabeel looks strong.”

“Nabeel in prison grey clothes. Gave statement. Zainab with AbdulHahi [AlKhawaja]’s pricture on front of shirt and pearl roundabout on back,” she also wrote on the micro-blogging site.

In another development, a Bahraini activist sustained severe injuries on Sunday night after being hit by dozens of birdshot pellets fired by police forces in the village of Sitra during an opposition protest. Reports say he is now in stable condition.
…more

Glenn Greenwald replies to CNN’s attempt to discredit story about compromised Bahrain coverage

By Cory Doctorow – 7 Septemeber, 2012 – boingboing

Yesterday, I blogged Glenn Greenwald’s Guardian story about CNN suppressing its own award-winning documentary on human rights abuses in Bahrain, which Greenwald linked to CNNi’s commercial relationship with the ruling Bahraini regime. I was quickly contacted by two different PR flacks from CNN with a list of small, picky points it disputed about Greenwald’s article, presented as though this constituted a thorough rebuttal. I immediately noticed that CNN’s reps didn’t dispute that the company had threatened to cut off Amber Lyon’s severance payment if she continued to speak out on the issue, so I asked about it.

CNN’s reps both told me they couldn’t comment on “individual employees,” which is awfully convenient. How nice for them that they can prepare and circulate a dossier that disconfirms minor elements of its critics’ stories, but that it has some nebulous confidentiality code that prevents it from confirming the most damning claims made by those critics. Given that Lyon is no longer a CNN employee, and that she has divulged this threat, this feels more like an excuse than a reason. I certainly hope that CNN’s own investigative journalists wouldn’t accept such a pat evasion from the PR flacks that contact them.

Glenn Greenwald has published a thorough rebuttal to CNN’s memo:

In sum, CNNi’s response does not deny, or even acknowledge, the crux of the reporting, and simply ignores the vast bulk of the facts revealed about its coverage of, and relationship with, the regime in Bahrain. Indeed, one searches its response in vain for any explanation to the central question which New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof asked nine months ago:

Glenn Replies to CNNi HERE

Maryam al-Khawaja: “We had expected the verdicts”
8 Septemebr, 2012 – DW

Several members of the opposition in Bahrain have been given long-term prison sentences. Human rights activist Maryam al-Khawaja criticizes the verdicts.

Deutsche Welle: Mrs al-Khawaja, the verdicts passed against the human rights activists are extremely severe. They range from 5-year prison sentences to life imprisonment. The defendants were indicted among other crimes for ‘forming terror groups’. Are you surprised by the sentences?

Maryam al-Khawaja: We had expected them, and so we weren’t shocked. The sentences don’t mirror the state of the legal system in Bahrain because we all know it’s not independent anyway. But what the sentences do mirror is the increasing confidence of the regime. The reason is that the international community remains passive and so there are no consequences regarding human rights violations.

Why do you think there is no international pressure?

Bahrain is a very important country – both geopolitically and economically. In addition, it has very close ties to Saudi Arabia. Both states try to prevent international pressure regarding human rights violations.

Does this concern the entire international community, or are there different positions in different regions?

What we’re seeing is that the EU has a relatively high potential to influence the situation in Bahrain, whereas the United States has clear-cut interests in the country. Many Bahraini human rights activists are comparing the US position to Bahrain with that of Russia regarding Syria. We’re seeing that US interests are standing in the way of pressure against the government of Bahrain. And so, if you are expecting countries to exert pressure, you’d have to look at countries like Denmark, Norway, Switzerland – or South Africa.

The appeal process which just ended was not held before a military tribunal but before a civil court. What’s your assessment?

The proceedings provide a vivid example for the fact that the regime uses the judiciary as an instrument to prosecute its citizens. That’s why it doesn’t matter whether it was a civil court or a military tribunal. The decisions will always be made by the same people.

There have been accusations that the use of torture is widespread in Bahrain’s prisons. What do you know about that?

Several defendants have reported that they have been abused physically, psychologically and sexually. Individual reports may differ. But many of the accused have read out statements in the court rooms in which they describe the torture they were subject to in the prisons. Unfortunately, this has not led to any further investigation.

How does the opposition movement in Bahrain assess the verdict? Has it helped intimidate them?

I can’t speak for the opposition movement because I’m not a member myself. But initially, the Bahraini opposition movements didn’t demand the release of political prisoners. At the beginning, they only demanded that human rights be respected, that they be institutionalized and that the government appoint a human rights ombudsman. The verdicts that have just been passed don’t stop the opposition. They are now calling for political prisoners to be released. But even if all the sentenced people were released there would still be demonstrations and protests.

The government of Bahrain claims it has already started reforms in the area of politics and human rights. How do you explain this statement?

The regime has indeed taken a few steps, in compliance with the Bassiouni report that was published in November last year. But we’ve observed that most of the human dignity violations that are mentioned in the report are still being committed. You can say that the recommendations have only been implemented superficially. The main result of the implementation would have been to stop human rights violations altogether. But as long as they happen on a daily basis we can only speak of superficial changes.

Maryam al-Khawaja is Vice President of the “Bahrain Center for Human Rights”. …source

Saudi campaigner Mohammad al-Qahtani goes on trial
BBC – 8 September, 2012

Prominent human rights activist Mohammad al-Qahtani has gone on trial in Saudi Arabia.

Mr Qahtani, an economics professor, faces nine charges, including setting up an unlicensed organisation and breaking allegiance to the king.

Another rights campaigner, Abdullah al-Hamid, also appeared in court.

Human rights groups say political activists are regularly jailed for their work in Saudi Arabia, some without access to lawyers.

Mr Qahtani, a co-founder of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA), is one of several Saudi human rights activists who are being tried on similar charges.

If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison.

Mr Hamid, who is also on trial, is another founder of ACPRA.

The BBC’s Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says supporters and relatives of Mr Qahtani and Mr Hamed were allowed into the courtroom but were later ordered to leave by the judge.

During the hearing, they were using Twitter to report on proceedings, giving the opening of the trial a measure of transparency that is unusual in Saudi Arabia, he says.

Mr Qahtani said he was told by the court to issue a new written response to his charges by Monday.

Speaking afterwards to the BBC, he said: “We have been doing our work for several years. The authorities kept quiet for a long time, but now they are coming after us hard. We are not going to be silent. We will continue to do our work.”

Amnesty International says Mr Qahtani faces other charges which include inciting public opinion by accusing authorities of human rights abuses, and turning international organisations against the country.

In April, rights activist Mohammed al-Bajadi received a four-year jail sentence, in what Amnesty said demonstrated “a blatant disregard for his fundamental rights”.

Saudi Arabia’s interior ministry has said there are no political prisoners in the kingdom. …more

Bahrainis Demand Downfall of Al-Khalifa Regime

FARS- 8 September, 2012

TEHRAN (FNA)- Bahraini protestors on Friday continued rallies in the capital and other cities across the island, demanding the overthrow of the Saudi-backed Al Khalifa dictatorial regime.

The Bahraini protesters chanted slogans like “al-Salmiyah(peacefulness)” to show the peaceful nature of their rallies but the al-Khalifa forces attacked demonstrators and arrested a number of them.

Other cities, including Sanabis and Karzakan, also witnessed huge rallies against the al-Khalifa regime.

Anti-government protesters have been holding peaceful demonstrations across Bahrain since mid-February 2011, calling for an end to the Al Khalifa dynasty’s over-40-year rule.

Violence against the defenseless people escalated after a Saudi-led conglomerate of police, security and military forces from the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) member states – Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar – were dispatched to the tiny Persian Gulf kingdom on March 13, 2011, to help Manama crack down on peaceful protestors.

So far, tens of people have been killed, hundreds have gone missing and thousands of others have been injured.

Police clampdown on protesters continues daily. Authorities have tried to stop organized protests by opposition parties over the past month by refusing to license them and using tear gas on those who turn up.

The opposition coalition wants full powers for the elected parliament and a cabinet fully answerable to parliament.

…Photo and Video Coverage of Protest Courtesy FARS HERE