U.S. ends most CIA abuse cases, to probe two deaths
By James Vicini

WASHINGTON | Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:00pm EDT

(Reuters) – A prosecutor will conduct a full criminal investigation into the CIA’s handling of two prisoners who died in U.S. custody, but about 100 other cases of alleged mistreatment by the CIA were closed, Attorney General Eric Holder said on Thursday.

Holder said he accepted the recommendations from Justice Department prosecutor John Durham, who has been conducting an inquiry into harsh CIA interrogation practices of terrorism suspects during George W. Bush’s presidency.

Holder said Durham examined possible CIA prisoner abuses in the interrogation of 101 prisoners in U.S. custody after the September 11, 2001 attacks, and determined that only the two deaths required further criminal investigation.

Holder in his statement did not give details about the two individuals who died in U.S. custody.

But a U.S. official said one case involved the 2003 death of a prisoner, Manadel al-Jamadi, at the Abu Grab prison in Iraq while the other case involved the 2002 death of an Afghan, Gul Rahman, at a secret CIA prison, known as the Salt Pit, north of Kabul in Afghanistan. He froze to death.

The Bush administration came under widespread criticism from human rights groups, lawmakers and some U.S. allies for mistreatment and abuse of prisoners after September 11, including harsh interrogations and waterboarding of terrorism suspects. …more

cb editorial note: …in this ruse I again liken King Hamad to the wife abuser. King Hamad, the al Khalifa regime, have hand picked a committee that might possibly have the courage to tell the al Khalifas they are ill and abusive. Nonetheless the committee will also grant the al Khalifa’s a free pass through their participation in an orchestral charade of blaming the victims. By al Khalifa’s design the committee will reinforce their own phobias and preconceptions of the demons by which they prejudice al Khalifa’s victims. Since this will occur under the guise of “fair and impartial” which grants the committee a “critical voice”, it will appease the international community as it has already received their “blessing”. The committee has no prosecutorial powers and it’s only real accountable seems to be to the al Khalifia’s. The committee has no accountability to an independent judiciary, to the people of Bahrain or to the international community that is to be entertained by the charade. Theirs will be a duplicitous investigation into accusatory sides rendering prejudicial judgement of no means.

Al Khalifa will exploit a “fifty/fifty” blame game with the committee assuming the role of “idiot counselor” that promotes a bogus reconciliation of the select elements that have been purchased by the so called “national dialogue”. This is the systematic equivalent of the “Stepford Wives”, a fiction on social engineering where the wives’ undesirable “elements” have been removed, making it possible for “everyone” to return to a “desired normal”, which in the committee’s case includes a complicit international community that could have effectively checked the brutality of the al Khalifa’s. This is a process of convenience for the leadership in the West that are under pressure to stop the abusive husband. The process will be complete when their polling at home indicates the placation was sufficient so reelection bids and popularity positions can again proceed unchecked by the demand for Human Rights protection and justice for the people of Bahrain.

The notable difference in today’s Bahrain is it’s people have grown through education and sophistication through deployment of technology. The decades old cycle of al Khalifa’s brutal repression, sanctioned by the West, can no longer be hidden and is now put in full view for all the world to see by a well connected and well informed underclass of opposition. Yes indeed, The WHOLE WORLD IS WATCHING and the truth of the evils of al Khalifa can no longer hide and be pushed into the closet. This is a frightful and inconvenient truth for the West. The dreams and desires of Bahrain’s people now exceed the bounds of the al Khalifa table of lies and rhetoric of reform. And it seems the West stuck in it usual structural ineptability will entertain al Khalifa’s folly as the Bahraini people rise up to seize the future denied them with resounding echoes of their long repressed cries for justice and freedom.

Finally, as al Khalifa’s systematic disease is allowed to continue unabated by the West, the hour is fast approaching where all must ponder the consequence of a revolution on scale of impact with 1979 Iran. Surely this possibility looms on a near horizon – it will be the catastrophic abandonment of hope preached by the Western powers, specifically President Obama, as the West continues to ally it’s self with the al Khalifa’s .

Relevant News Story Below

International panel to probe uprising in Bahrain
By Reed Stevenson

MANAMA | Thu Jun 30, 2011 5:37pm EDT

(Reuters) – The international committee investigating violent protests in Bahrain this year will be given access to official files and be able to meet witnesses in secret, the panel’s chair said on Thursday.

The five-member panel of human rights and legal experts, unveiled ahead of a national dialogue set to start on Saturday, is part of Bahrain’s efforts to restore its image after its Sunni rulers cracked down on demonstrations led mostly by the Shi’ite majority in February and March.

“We will ask for files, we will go to the prisons,” said panel chairman Cherif Bassiouni, an Egyptian-American law professor and U.N. war crimes expert who was involved in the formation of the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) and recently headed a U.N. inquiry into events in Libya.

“This is no different from any criminal investigation,” he told reporters in Manama, blocks away from where protesters had taken to the streets. ...more

UN rights chief trusts Bahrain probe to meet standards
(AFP) – 10 hours ago

GENEVA — The UN’s human rights chief welcomed Thursday Bahrain’s move to launch an independent probe of recent unrest and said she was confident it would meet international standards.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay also revealed she had held back an assessment mission to the country at the King of Bahrain’s request, “because I always encourage credible national investigations.”

Bahrain on Thursday appointed a five-man panel to investigate the bloody unrest that erupted during anti-regime protests in February and March.

Pillay noted that two members of the panel — Mahmud Sharif Bassiouni and Philip Kirsch — were also part of the inquiry commission ordered by the Human Rights Council on violations in Libya.

“I would trust those individuals, their knowledge of justice and international law to carry out an investigation, in terms of acceptable international standards,” she said.

“They are highly respected individuals and I would prefer then to see the outcomes of the investigations” before sending in her own assessment team, she added.

Kirsch is a Canadian lawyer and former president of the International Criminal Court.

Bassiouni, who is leading the Bahrain probe, chaired the UN Security Council’s commission to investigate war crimes in the former Yugoslavia in 1992 to 1994. …more

Bahrain riot police fire tear gas at protesters
BARBARA SURK, Associated Press
Updated 12:32 p.m., Thursday, June 30, 2011

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Riot police in Bahrain fired tear gas and stun grenades Thursday to disperse thousands of opposition supporters gathered near the square that was the epicenter of the nation’s Shiite-led demonstrations earlier this year, an activist said.

The violence is a setback to efforts by the tiny island’s Sunni rulers trying to open reconciliation talks with the Shiite opposition in the Gulf kingdom.

Activist Nabeel Rajab said the protesters at Manama’s Pearl Square chanted: “Down, down Hamad” — a reference to the Bahraini monarch. They also demanded that all demonstrators, opposition leaders and activists, detained during the deadly crackdown on the Shiite-led campaign for political freedom and greater rights, be released.

No injuries were immediately reported during Thursday’s demonstration.

The violence came a day after Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa announced the creation of an independent commission that will investigate allegations that protesters’ rights were violated during the anti-government demonstrations that erupted in February.

The announcement was an apparent effort by the Sunni monarch to draw opposition groups into the government-sponsored talks, set to begin on Saturday.

Washington has encouraged dialogue in the island nation, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, and had urged the monarchy to meet some of the opposition’s demands. …more

Ongoing Abuses in Bahrain Delegitimize Upcoming National Dialogue
Washington June 28, 2011

With Bahrain’s national dialogue fast approaching, Freedom House expresses its deep concern about the ongoing arrests, intimidation, and in some cases torture of political activists speaking out in favor of democracy. These incidents constitute a pattern of repression that belies any promises of reform and honest political discourse by the government or the ruling family.
“By continuing to proceed with hasty prosecutions in military courts of leading opposition political figures and pro-democracy activists, the Bahraini government is in effect removing its political competition,” said Charles Dunne, Freedom House’s senior program manager for the Middle East and North Africa. “These actions strongly suggest that the National Dialogue will not be an opportunity to advance political freedom in Bahrain, but rather a ploy to prevent criticism of its human rights record.”

Bahrain’s National Dialogue is scheduled to begin on July 1 in Manama. However, hundreds of Shi’ite political leaders are currently languishing in prison and the largest opposition bloc, led by political party Wefaq, has not confirmed its participation.
On June 22, a military court convicted eight Shi’ite activists for plotting to overthrow the monarchy and sentenced them to life in prison. Thirteen other activists were also convicted of the same charges and received harsh sentences ranging from five to 15 years in prison. Many of those sentenced were prominent political and human rights figures, including Hassan Mushaima, leader of the opposition Haq Movement, human rights activist Abdul Jalil al-Singace, and Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, co-founder and former president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights. Ibrahim Sharif, leader of the National Democratic Action Society (Wa’ad) was the only Sunni convicted. He received a sentence of five years. …more

Twitter round up at 5:30PM

-The protest planned for 5pm today in Jidhafs is titled “March for Self-Determination”

– Large number of participants coming near to the place

– Being attacked with tear gas and sound bombs now

Please listen to us Mr. President
June 29th, 2011
Dear Mr. Obama,

Amal Society would like to express gratitude to all the efforts the U.S. is trying to push the process of a serious dialogue in Bahrain. Amal has always been one of the first to call for dialogues with the Bahraini government for the last ten years, and we have been calling for constant reforms that help maintain national security and stability in Bahrain. We want to help and encourage a serious national dialogue for a better Bahrain for all Bahrainis, where the constitution and the law are above all. The American constitution is one of our most important resources that we rely on in our dialogue, and we opt to create a great Bill of Rights which guarantees dignity and freedom for all Bahrain, regardless to ethnicity, sex, religion, and race.

However, more than 50 members, including the Chairman, of Amal have been arrested after several night raids to their families’ houses. Amal would like to express deep concern over the health and safety of the members, especially the Chairman, Sheikh Mohammed Ali Almahfoodh. Almahfoodh has been put in a private cell for 46 days, and he has been severely tortured. Therefore, his safety and health are a huge responsibility for the U.S. since the U.S. is spreading peace and democracy in the Middle East.

Amal members and the Chairman are facing false charges because Bahrain’s constitution believes in the freedom of speech and opinion. However they are facing charges that might lead to life sentence or 15 years in prison. These charges are purely political flavored like most charges other politicians faced.

Amal is the second Shiite society in Bahrain, and it is one of the most important parties in the national dialogue taking place recently. How can we participate in such a dialogue if our Chairman and more than half of our Chairman’s office and executive committee are behind the bars? We wonder how this stand could be understood in relation to your speech, Mr. President, on May 19th. What Amal understands, is that throughout the last ten years, we have been peaceful in all our moves. Amal is registered officially under the law of societies in Bahrain, and hence it represents a party of the legitimate opposition mentioned in the famous speech. Amal society was an important player in the meetings concerning the dialogue led by the Crown Prince, and we had our own vision about it. We still support a serious meaningful dialogue that achieves stability and security in the country; and our opinions and stands did not change, but how can we participate without our chairman and decision makers of the society?

Dear Mr. President,

Amal Society writes this letter and we are full of confidence that your administration encourages the participation of all the legitimate opposition and societies, and our society is not an exception. We are full of hope that your administration cannot be passive or silent when a whole society is tortured and put on military trials for no just reason. We are looking forward to participate on one table to save the country and help pass it on to a safe environment, full of love, peace and prosperity.

Sincerely,
Office of Amal Society Chairman
Bahrain