Posts from — December 2011

Fresh Allegations Emerge in RICO Lawsuit Against Alcoa
By Joe Palazzolo – 29 December, 2011 – WSJ Law Blog

Aluminum maker Alcoa allegedly paid $5 million in bribes to the former chief executive of Bahrain’s state-owned aluminum company and tens of millions of dollars in bribes to a former Bahrain official as part of scheme to land contracts at inflated prices, according to a new court filing in a long-running racketeering lawsuit.

Documents filed late Wednesday in federal court in Pittsburgh also allege that Alcoa allowed shell companies owned by Canadian businessman Victor Dahdaleh to masquerade as Alcoa subsidiaries.

That way Alcoa could sell alumina, an ingredient used to make aluminum, to the shell companies at inflated prices. The shell companies, in turn, sold the overpriced alumina to the state-owned company, Aluminum Bahrain, which was apparently none the wiser, according to the documents.

Alcoa also used the shell companies to funnel bribes to Aluminum Bahrain executives and Bahrain government officials, in return for helping secure the contracts at the inflated prices, including by providing competing bid information to Dahdaleh, the documents allege.

The latest documents are part of a recently revived lawsuit filed in 2008 by Aluminum Bahrain, also known as Alba. They offer the most detailed description to date of the alleged scheme, through which Alcoa reaped $400 million in illegal profits, according to Alba.

In the lawsuit, Alba accuses Alcoa of massively overcharging it for thousands of tons of alumina over a period of about 20 years. Alba, which filed an amended complaint in the case in November, is seeking more than $1 billion in damages from Alcoa.

“We have consistently said that the claims in this case are not supported by the facts and nothing in the RICO statement changes our view,” an Alcoa spokesman said, referring to legal name for the court documents filed Wednesday. He added that the company would be filing a motion to dismiss the lawsuit in January. …source

Aluminium magnate arrested for bribery
By Ed Crooks in New York – 25 October, 2011 – FT

A leading London-based businessman accused of bribery in Bahrain linked to contracts with Alcoa, the US aluminium group, has been arrested by the UK’s Serious Fraud Office.

Victor Dahdaleh, who has British and Canadian nationality, was charged with corruption, conspiracy to corrupt, and acquiring and transferring criminal property in connection with alleged payments of bribes to officials of state-controlled Aluminium Bahrain during 2001-05.

The SFO said some of the alleged payments “were in connection with contracts with a US company, Alcoa”, for supplies of alumina, from which aluminium is extracted.

On his website, Mr Dahdaleh published a statement from his law firm Allen & Overy, saying he “believes the investigation into his affairs was flawed and that he has done absolutely nothing wrong”.

The lawyers added: “He will be vigorously contesting these charges at every stage, confident in clearing his good name.”

Mr Dahdaleh is governor of the London School of Economics, a board trustee of the William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation, a former president of the Canada-UK Chamber of Commerce, and a leading donor to charity. He is also a supporter of Policy Network, the centre-left European think-tank that has Lord Mandelson, the former UK cabinet minister, as its president.

He is owner and chairman of Dadco, an investment, manufacturing and trading group that specialises in producing alumina. He was released on bail until October 31. Alcoa said it had not been contacted by the UK authorities, and could not comment on the charges he faced.

The US Department of Justice said in 2008 that it was investigating Alcoa and others, including Mr Dahdaleh, for possible violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Alcoa on Monday said it was “co-operating fully with US authorities”. …source

‘Saudi protests are growing weekly’

Saudi leaders have been trying to stay untouched by protests for democracy as week-by-week protests gain strength across the nation.

Press TV talks with Ali al-Ahmad, director of the Institute for (Persian) Gulf Affairs (IGA) in Washington about the daring progress of public protests against the ruling regime and the role Crown Prince Nayef is inadvertently playing in speeding up the spreading of protests. What follows is an approximate transcript of the interview.
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Bahrain to host Saudi prince’s news network
By ADAM SCHRECK, 28 December, 2011 – AP Business Writer

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Bahrain has been picked to host the headquarters for Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal’s new international Arabic news network despite months of unrest, according to the tiny Gulf kingdom’s media oversight authority.

Alwaleed’s channel, dubbed Alarab, will be based in the Bahraini capital Manama’s new Media City office complex, Sheik Fawaz bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa, a member of the Bahraini royal family and head of the country’s Information Affairs Authority, said in a statement late Tuesday.

The network is expected to be launched next December with an initial staff of about 300 people, according to the Bahraini statement.

Alwaleed’s office has not itself said where the channel will be based.

Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist hired to lead the network, said by email Wednesday he expects the deal to be finalized later in the day.

The channel aims to focus “on the important shifts taking place across the Arab world, with an emphasis on freedom of speech and freedom of press,” Alwaleed said in September.

The new channel will compete against older pan-Arab news networks bankrolled by wealthy Gulf backers, including Qatar’s Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya, which is funded by Saudi investors but based in Dubai.

Alwaleed has signed a deal with business news service Bloomberg LP to provide content for Alarab. That could potentially put it in competition with Dubai-based business news channel CNBC Arabiya as well.

The Saudi prince, through the Kingdom Holding Co. investment firm he controls, has a major stakes in Citigroup Inc., Apple Inc. and Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.
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Terror trial slated in Bahrain
29 December, 2011 – UPI

MANAMA, Bahrain, Dec. 29 (UPI) — Eight defendants accused of plotting terror attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Bahrain and other key sites will go on trial next month, prosecutors said.

Nawaf Hamza, Bahrain’s head of public prosecution, said the defendants were part of a terror cell that planned to target the Saudi Embassy, the Interior Ministry building and the King Fahad Causeway, which is the country’s only land link to neighboring Saudi Arabia, Gulf News reported Thursday.

The alleged terrorists were arrested in November by Qatar at its border with Saudi Arabia and turned over to Bahrain authorities. They face espionage and terror charges. The trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 9.

Hamza said documents obtained during a criminal investigation revealed organizational plans and instructions for making bombs, the newspaper said. ..source

US to Sell F-15 Fighters to Saudi Arabia
By Karen Parrish (American Forces Press Service)

WASHINGTON, (MMD Newswire) Dec. 29, 2011 — The United States will sell 84 new F-15 fighter jets and upgrades for 70 existing aircraft to Saudi Arabia under a nearly $29.4 billion agreement, U.S. officials announced today.

During a joint State Department and Defense Department briefing today, James N. Miller, principal deputy under secretary of defense for policy, and Andrew Shapiro, assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, discussed the sale.

“The United States is firmly committed to the security of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as we have been for nearly seven decades, and … more broadly, the United States and Saudi Arabia have a strong mutual interest in the security and stability of the Gulf,” Miller said.

The F-15s Saudi Arabia will receive “will have the latest generation of computing power, radar technology, infrared sensors and electronic warfare systems,” he added.

“This agreement reinforces the strong and enduring relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia,” Shapiro said. “It demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a strong Saudi defense capability as a key component to regional security.”

State and DOD have worked to conclude the agreement since June 2010, Shapiro added.

The White House earlier today released a statement detailing the Foreign Military Sales program agreement, which also will provide munitions, spare parts, training, maintenance and logistics support for the F-15s to the Royal Saudi Air Force.

Source: U.S. Department of Defense

Progress Update on Implementation of BICI Recommendations
28 December, 2011 – BNA

Manama: Dec. 28 — (BNA) The Government of Bahrain is committed to implementing the recommendations of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) Report in their entirety. In the month since the Report was published, significant progress has been made. Action has been taken in relation to every recommendation.

In order to ensure that international best practices are adopted, and that these are institutionalized, assistance has been sought from prominent experts and leading organisations from around the world. Assistance Agreements have already been concluded with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Further agreements are due to be signed imminently with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and other eminent international experts and organizations. A number of UN organisations have already conducted visits in the country in the past month, which has been extensively reported upon by the press.

Key achievements of the Government to date include taking the following important steps:
1. Accountability is an important part of the Government’s commitment. For this reason the world’s leading jurists and political and social scientists have been gathered to formulate an effective independent mechanisms to determine accountability as envisaged in several recommendations of the BICI Report, including the recommendations in paragraphs 1716, 1717, 1718(b) 1722(b). These jurists are already in the country studying the environment to tailor the necessary solutions.

2. A decree will shortly be issued setting out the mechanism for the National Victims Compensation Fund, which represents international best practices of administration of redress mechanisms (recommendation 1722 j and k). This Fund will incorporate the best practices gained from the ICC Fund, and the UN Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to Redress and Reparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights and Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law.

3. Instituting a demonstrable zero tolerance policy towards torture, inhuman treatment and degrading detention practices. This includes:
a. Transferring all pending cases of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment from the Ministry of Interior to the Attorney General’s office. Legislative amendments are being drafted so that all such cases will automatically fall within the jurisdiction of the Attorney General (recommendation in paragraph 1719).

b. Ordering audio visual equipment to ensure that all official interviews with suspects, witnesses or detainees will be recorded (paragraph 1722 g).

c. Instructing the Inspector General to take all necessary steps to ensure the rights of all suspects, including their right to: not be detained incommunicado; be shown a warrant upon arrest; be given prompt access to their lawyers; and allowed family visits in accordance with the Bahrain Code of Criminal Procedure. Many other amendments to the procedures for arrest, detention and training required for security personnel are currently underway (paragraph 1722 d).

d. Instructing the Chief of Public Security to facilitate the following with the aid of international experts and specialists (paragraph 1722 c):
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Police chief shifted to foreign ministry
29 December, 2011 – Khaleej Times

MANAMA – Bahrain’s police chief was on Wednesday shifted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as ambassador.

His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa issued two royal decrees on Wednesday. The first decree was to appoint Chief of Public Security Major-General Tariq Mubarak bin Daina at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while the second decree was the appointment of Major-General Adel bin Khalifa bin Hamad Al Fadhel as President of National Security with the rank of minister.

The move comes a few months after the release of the report of the Bahrain Independent Commission for Inquiry (BICI) that confirmed ‘excesses’ on detainees during arrest and detention. Following the report that was published in November, several police officers were suspended and all cases related to police torturing detainees being deliberated by police courts were referred to the public prosecution, in order to be trialed at civil courts.

The Ministry of Interior also announced hiring international experts to help in enhancing human rights and police work among its personnel. …source

Zero tolerance for torture: Bahrain to try 5 cops
By ARAB NEWS – 29 December, 2011

MANAMA: The Bahraini authorities announced on Thursday that five police officers would face trial next month over the death by torture of two detainees linked to anti-regime protests earlier this year.

Nawaf Abdullah Hamza the Public Prosecution was quoted by the state news agency BNA that after examining allegations by the Interior Ministry of cases of torture and ill treatment, his office had decided to refer one case to the criminal court.

Five police officers have been implicated in the case, he said, adding that “two are accused of having beaten to death two of the detainees, and the three others are accused of failing to report the case.” He said the trial would start on Jan. 11.

A special commission appointed to probe the crackdown on the month-long anti-government protests that erupted in March published a report last month denouncing the “excessive and unjustified use of force” by the authorities.

Earlier on Wednesday, the government announced a policy of “zero tolerance” toward any abuse of political detainees, in line with the recommendations of the probe.

The rights of suspects would be ensured including “not be detained incommunicado; be shown a warrant upon arrest; be given prompt access to their lawyers; and allowed family visits.” The steps also include “reinstating all public sector employees by Jan. 1, 2012 charged with free speech activity,” said the statement.
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The Bahrain Uprising in Numbers
by Rannie Amiri, 29 December, 2011 – Antiwar Forum

Population of Bahrain: 1.2 million
Number of citizens: 535,000
Percentage of citizens who are Shia Muslim: 70
Percentage of those in government: 13

Number of senior positions they fill in the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, the National Guard, the Supreme Defense Council, and the Royal Court: 0

Percentage in the Ministry of Finance: 10
Percentage in the Ministry of Information: 6
Percentage in the judiciary: 5

Of the 1,000 National Security Apparatus employees, percentage who are non-Bahraini: 64

Percentage who are Shia Bahraini: less than 5

Of the 20,000 paramilitary Special Security Forces, percentage who are non-Bahraini: 90

Percentage who are Shia Bahraini: 0

Number of elected Bahrainis from all sects who sit on the country’s all-powerful Shura Council: 0

Day pro-democracy protests began in Bahrain as part of the Arab Spring: Feb. 14, 2011

People who took to the streets: 300,000

Proportional equivalent if Egyptians had done likewise: 40 million

Evidence that Iran instigated the demonstrations: 0

Day Saudi Arabia invaded to put down the uprising: March 14, 2011

Number of Saudi, UAE, and Qatari troops who arrived in armored vehicles: 1,500

People killed since Feb. 14: 50

Fatalities as a result of tear gas shot into residential homes or birdshot fired at close range: 30

Age of youngest victim: 5 days

Arbitrary arrests: 1,500

Civilians sentenced by military courts: 208

Physicians sentenced for offering medical treatment to demonstrators: 20

Cumulative jail terms levied: 2,500 years

Citizens currently accused of violating freedom of speech or assembly laws: 1,000

Documented cases of torture and ill-treatment since the revolt began: 1,866

Bahraini officials held responsible for killings or the systemic use of torture: 0

Mosques destroyed: 40+

Journalists targeted: 90+

Workers fired for supporting, taking part, or suspicion of having taken part in pro-democracy activities: 2,710

University students expelled for the same reasons: 477

Prisoners of conscience: 500

Bahrain’s rank among countries in political prisoners per capita: 1st

Proposed U.S. arms sales to Bahrain: $53 million

Years the al-Khalifa family has ruled Bahrain: 228

Days left in power: numbered
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Report: Bahrain adopts zero tolerance torture policy
By CNN Wire Staff – 29 December, 2011

(CNN) — Bahrain is adopting a zero tolerance policy toward “torture, inhuman treatment and degrading detention” practices toward political prisoners — one of a number of recommendations made by an independent commission looking into claims of abuse during a crackdown on protesters earlier this year.

The government announced the policy in a statement released by the state-run Bahrain News Agency on Wednesday evening.

The moves follows last month’s report by an independent commission that found police tortured and used excessive force against civilians arrested during a crackdown on the protests that followed successful uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia.

The oil-rich kingdom, according to the statement, is committed to implementing the recommendations “in their entirety.”

The government plans to reinstate all government employees who were fired after they were charged with “free speech activity,” the statement said.

The government also is ordering that all pending cases of “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment” be transferred to its top judicial office for investigation.

Additionally, Bahrain is ordering the use of audio-video equipment during interviews with suspects, witnesses and detainees, the statement said.

The move follows news over the weekend that Bahrain plans to drop charges related “to speech protected by the right to freedom of expression,” the news agency said. Forty-three cases applying to 343 people will benefit from the announcement, it said.

Demonstrations demanding political reform and greater freedoms in Sunni-ruled, Shiite-majority Bahrain began February 14 before authorities — backed by troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — cracked down in two waves, first in February and later in mid-March.

Thirty civilians and five security officers were killed during that time, the commission said.

Opposition groups say more than 1,000 people — mainly Shiites — have been detained for allegedly taking part in the demonstrations. …source

Bahrain urged to investigate jail abuses
29 December, 2011 – PressTV

A Bahraini human rights group has called on the interior ministry to investigate what it calls human rights violations against anti-regime protesters in prisons.

Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS) has called on Interior Ministry Inspector General Ibrahim Habib al-Ghaith to visit detainees, the group said on its website on Thursday. “I addressed the inspector general to make sure to meet the [UN] Standard Minimum Rules for the treatment of Prisoners, adopted at the First UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders held in Geneva in 1955 and approved by the Economic and Social Council in 1957,” BHRS Deputy Secretary General Issa al-Ghayeb stated.

He said the law requires authorities to provide inmates with health care, sanitary ware, communication with the outside world and exercise. It also demands prison staff to avoid mistreatment of detainees, to provide books and newspapers, and allow freedom of conscience.

The BHRS cited complained from dozens of prisoners abused in jail for taking part in anti-regime demonstrations.

The inmates have filed a lawsuit against the government, saying they were tortured, held in solitary confinement for long hours and denied any contact with the outside world.

Ghayeb expressed hope for the formation of a delegation made up of lawyers, social workers, doctors and members of the BHRS Monitoring Committee to pay unannounced visits to detention centers.

The requests come amid continued regime crackdowns on dissents across Bahrain, more than 10 months into a popular uprising against the ruling Al Khalifa dynasty.

On November 23, an independent inquiry commission mandated to probe the clampdown on ant-government protesters said the regime had used “excessive force” to crush the protests.

The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry urged the Bahraini government to revise verdicts handed down to protesters in military courts, and to set up a compensation fund for victims.

Dozens of demonstrators have been killed by the Saudi-backed regime forces since massive anti-governments erupted in February. …source

Making Repression Our Business
The Pentagon’s Secret Training Missions in the Middle East
By Nick Turse -13 December, 2011 – TomDispatch

As the Arab Spring blossomed and President Obama hesitated about whether to speak out in favor of protesters seeking democratic change in the Greater Middle East, the Pentagon acted decisively. It forged ever deeper ties with some of the most repressive regimes in the region, building up military bases and brokering weapons sales and transfers to despots from Bahrain to Yemen.

As state security forces across the region cracked down on democratic dissent, the Pentagon also repeatedly dispatched American troops on training missions to allied militaries there. During more than 40 such operations with names like Eager Lion and Friendship Two that sometimes lasted for weeks or months at a time, they taught Middle Eastern security forces the finer points of counterinsurgency, small unit tactics, intelligence gathering, and information operations — skills crucial to defeating popular uprisings.

These recurrent joint-training exercises, seldom reported in the media and rarely mentioned outside the military, constitute the core of an elaborate, longstanding system that binds the Pentagon to the militaries of repressive regimes across the Middle East. Although the Pentagon shrouds these exercises in secrecy, refusing to answer basic questions about their scale, scope, or cost, an investigation by TomDispatch reveals the outlines of a region-wide training program whose ambitions are large and wholly at odds with Washington’s professed aims of supporting democratic reforms in the Greater Middle East.

Lions, Marines, and Moroccans — Oh My!

On May 19th, President Obama finally addressed the Arab Spring in earnest. He was unambiguous about standing with the protesters and against repressive governments, asserting that “America’s interests are not hostile to people’s hopes; they’re essential to them.”

Four days earlier, the very demonstrators the president sided with had marched in Temara, Morocco. They were heading for a facility suspected of housing a secret government interrogation facility to press for political reforms. It was then that the kingdom’s security forces attacked.

“I was in a group of about 11 protesters, pursued by police in their cars,” Oussama el-Khlifi, a 23-year-old protester from the capital, Rabat, told Human Rights Watch (HRW). “They forced me to say, ‘Long live the king,’ and they hit me on my shoulder. When I didn’t fall, they clubbed me on the head and I lost consciousness. When I regained consciousness, I found myself at the hospital, with a broken nose and an injured shoulder.”

About a five-hour drive south, another gathering was taking place under far more hospitable circumstances. In the seaside city of Agadir, a ceremony marking a transfer of military command was underway. “We’re here to support… bilateral engagement with one of our most important allies in the region,” said Colonel John Caldwell of the U.S. Marine Corps at a gathering to mark the beginning of the second phase of African Lion, an annual joint-training exercise with Morocco’s armed forces. …more

Obama’s Rogue Agenda
by Stephen Lendman – 28 Decemebr, 2011 – Mostly Water

In 2011, Obama continued the destructive pattern he followed in years one and two. Throughout his tenure, he’s done what supporters thought impossible.

Across the board on domestic and foreign issues, he governed to the right of George Bush. He’s waged multiple imperial wars, plans others, looted the nation’s wealth, wrecked the economy, consigned growing millions to impoverishment without jobs, and institutionalized tyranny to target dissenters challenging political corruption, corporate crooks, or abuse of power lawlessness.

He also promotes regime change in Syria, Iran, Venezuela, Lebanon, and other independent states. In addition, he targets Russia’s military strength and China’s growing economic might. At the same time, he supports ruthless, corrupt tyrants.

Moreover, he authorized indefinitely detaining anyone called a national security threat without charge (including US citizens). He continues Bush’s rendition and torture policies, authorized killing US citizens abroad, (like Anwar Al-Awaki for opposing America’s belligerency), and deployed Special Forces death squads covertly to 120 or more countries.

Notably, he destroyed hard won labor rights, wants education commodified and made another business profit center, and wages war on whistleblowers, dissenters, Muslims, Latino immigrants, and environmental and animal rights activists called terrorists.

Throughout his tenure, he’s governed lawlessly for the monied interests that own him. He hasn’t disappointed at the expense of core constituents and others deserving better.

Year three: Obama’s destructive agenda continued.

Obama’s Anti-Progressive Agenda

In year three, like years one and two, he’s been anti-progressive, hard-right, reactionary, belligerent, and pro-corporate. He’s pursued anti-populist policies favoring wealth and privilege, not social justice when more than ever it’s needed.

In contrast, progressive change demands social reforms benefitting ordinary Americans, citizens having more control over government, establishing comprehensive education and universal healthcare as fundamental rights, curbing excessive corporate power, purging corruption and waste, and ending imperial wars that ravage the world one country at a time or in multiples.

It also advocates supporting organized labor, preventing exploitation of children, workers and minorities, environmental conservation, equity and justice, and other democratic values.

In contrast, Obama supports wealth and power, not populist change. Throughout his tenure, he’s been pro-war, pro-business (with Wall Street atop the pecking order), anti-dissent, anti-democratic, anti-freedom, anti-civil and human rights, anti-environmental sanity, and anti-government of, by and for the people.

After winning the most sweeping non-incumbent victory in over 50 years, he broke every major promise made, imposed austerity when stimulus is needed, escalated imperial wars, and hardened repression to curb popular anger.

James Petras calls him “the perfect incarnation of Melville’s Confidence Man. He catches your eye while he picks your pocket. He gives thanks as he packs you off to war.”

He spurns human need, rule of law principles, other democratic values, and right over wrong. Supporters expecting change in year four or a second term are delusional and misguided. In fact, his worst policies lie ahead. …more

Twitter Ignored Request To Keep Subpoena Under Wraps
December 28 2011 – by: Admin – InfoShop

Twitter appears to have forwarded a subpoena requesting user information to at least one of the owners of the accounts in question, despite a request from the Suffolk Massachusetts District Attorney’s office that the request not be disclosed “to protect the confidentiality and integrity of the ongoing criminal action” regarding the hackitivist group Anonymous and events surrounding the Occupy Boston protest.
Twitter Ignored Request To Keep Subpoena Under Wraps

By Dave Copeland
ReadWriteWeb
December 27, 2011

Twitter appears to have forwarded a subpoena requesting user information to at least one of the owners of the accounts in question, despite a request from the Suffolk Massachusetts District Attorney’s office that the request not be disclosed “to protect the confidentiality and integrity of the ongoing criminal action” regarding the hackitivist group Anonymous and events surrounding the Occupy Boston protest.

“Haha. Boston PD submitted to Twitter for my information. Lololol? For what? Posting info pulled from public domains? #comeatmebro,” said the owner of the Twitter handle @p0isAn0N last week, in a post that included the subpoena. The subpoena also sought user information, including IP addresses for @OccupBoston, Guido Fawkes (there are more than 30 accounts using the name Guido Fawkes on Twitter) and subscriber information for the hash tage #BostonPD. …source

“Power in defense of freedom is greater than power in behalf of tyranny and oppression.” Malcolm X

Syrian Press Review
by Voltaire – 25 December 2011

Al-Qaeda strikes in Damascus

The international media have given wide coverage to the double attack in Damascus (44 dead, 166 injured). These articles are often redundant; only a few have been included in the attached press review.

The use of suicide bombers for this type of operation is traditionally interpreted as the signature of Al Qaeda. However, the Syrian National Council and regional pro-US leaders accused the Assad government of perpetrating these attacks against its own security services.

The international press, which considers the CNS in general and the Muslim Brotherhood in particular (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights) as the only reliable sources, relayed this version without verifying it.

According to the case, the editorialists aim to:
– primarily negate the deployment in Syria of “Al-Qaeda in Libya” elements;
– or to further aggravate the charges against President al-Assad before the International Criminal Court;
– or, finally, to underscore that the Assad administration can no longer guarantee the security of its citizens.

• While French web sites are widely disseminating our information and analysis, Edith Bouvier of Le Figaro, on one hand, confirms Daniel Iriarte’s ABC report – that Libyans have indeed joined the Free Syrian Army – but, on the other hand, seeks both to underestimate their role and to obscure their responsibilities. Accordingly, Abel Hakim Belhaj, historic leader of Al-Qaeda (of which he was third in command) is described as an “ex-jihadist.”

• Canadian newspapers focus on the remarks by Foreign Minister John Baird, announcing new sanctions against Syria. No media points out that Cham Press TV is on the list of the 81 targeted entities and personalities. The West, which pretends to be the custodian of freedom of expression, is bent on censoring the media of its opponents: Al-Manar in the aftermath of the war between Israel and Lebanon, Libyan TV during the Libyan war and Syrian private channel Ad-Dounia immediately following the outbreak of events.

• Reuters points out that the Russian oil company Tatneft is forced to cease its activities in Syria because of international sanctions.

A Haven for Dissent in Bahrain, Where Lattes and Tear Gas Mix

At Costa Coffee, clashes have shown how Bahrain feels threatened by even the most benign dissent.
By ADAM B. ELLICK – December 28, 2011 – NYT

MANAMA, Bahrain — The police cars were lined up across the street, staking out a hub of subversive activity. Their focus was not some underworld hangout, but a coffee shop, Costa Coffee, in a strip mall.

There was tension in the air when, suddenly, the suspects stood up, six women, and what did they do? They smiled and posed for pictures.

The police fired their weapons, tear gas and sound bombs, and the women rushed inside, frightened, a bit, exhilarated, a bit, and very well rehearsed.

“Thank you. Thank you,” the women and dozens of other customers crowding the patio chanted sarcastically as they rushed inside. The cafe’s security guard promptly sealed the doors with tape. The person making the coffee, who had worn a kaffiyeh scarf to protect against the fumes, offered trays of lemon slices and jugs of milk, which ease the burn of tear gas. Some patrons recorded the episode on video, and posted about the event live on Twitter.

And then it was over, just like that. The doors were opened, and in 20 minutes the patio was once again crowded.

“The cake’s just spicy now,” said Fatima Abbas, as she and her two daughters plugged their noses with napkins and continued sharing a slice of blueberry cheesecake. “We’re used to the flavor.” …more

Saddam’s Fighters Participate in Suppressing the Bahraini Revolution

In the past few days, the Bahraini security authorities stepped up the level of violence used against the peaceful demonstrators who are demanding democracy.
27 December, 2011 – ABNA

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) – Several Bahraini villages and regions were subjected to violent suppression at the hands of the security forces that are backed up by the Saudi occupation forces and the mercenaries that are deliberately drowning entire neighborhoods with tear gas and other gaseous substances that are causing dozens of injuries. The daily confrontations have truly turned into street wars that are moving from an area to another.

In a different context, the head of Bahraini Teachers Association, Mahdi Abo Dib, has been suffering from a very weak medical condition in condition after he was prevented access to his diabetes medication after he ran out of it.

The Bahrainis are facing the multinational security forces that have been given American and British expertise. The regime’s forces had closed roads and used helicopters to prevent pro-democracy demonstrators from marching in the name of the martyr Al-Qassab.

The regime is using mercenaries to suppress the demonstrators, and one of the leaders of the Bahraini opposition confirmed that there are more than 15 thousand Saddam Fighters (Members of the Saddam Ba’ath Party in Bahrain) and that the Bahraini authorities have given them places to live in. He also confirmed that the Bahraini authorities have nationalized these groups and recruited them in the army, the police, and the general security forces and gave them active roles in the suppression of the Bahraini people. …source

Saudi Arabia’s Press: The New McCarthyism
By: Mariam Abdallah – 27 Decemebr, 2011 – Al-Akhbar

From cartoons depicting remotely controlled protesters to claims that traditional herb chewing “induces” homosexuality, coverage of dissent in the Saudi Kingdom is becoming increasingly untenable.

An opinion poll on the website of the Saudi foreign ministry reveals that 75 percent of Saudis do not trust the Kingdom’s media. Instead, many resort to the international press to find out the truth about events in their country.

Lately, calls have been issued to boycott some newspapers because of their biased coverage of certain local issues. One of these calls came from residents of Qatif, an area in eastern Saudi Arabia, after al-Yaum newspaper published a cartoon last month by Mahmoud al-Hamthani in which he called peaceful protesters “subversives associated with foreign agendas.”

The cartoon which angered Qatif residents depicted a protester with a transmitter on his head controlled from a distance through a remote control. It clearly accuses protesters in Qatif of sabotage and of being used by foreign actors to implement a foreign agenda.

The provocative drawing came on the heels of the alleged murder of four young men who participated in a peaceful protest in Qatif at the hands of security forces.

As soon as the cartoon was published Qatif residents raised calls for a boycott of the newspaper. They also called for new media to represent their view of events.

As such, social networking sites have become a more effective platform for Saudi citizens because they are uncensored. “That is why online activists have become faster in transmitting the truth and interacting with it than local newspapers that reflect their owners’ views,” tweeted lawyer Walid Abu al-Khair.

Malik Fatil, a journalist working for al-Yaum, resigned in protest after the cartoon was published. “It did not only insult specific individuals, it targeted Qatif in general. The name of the region was clearly mentioned under the cartoon,” he said. “The people expected an apology from the newspaper’s management. When that did not happen, sales in the area dropped after the boycott call.” …more

After Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry: Situation at the Central prison is turning from worse to worst
22 December, 2011 – BCHR

Bahrain Center for Human Rights continues to receive appalling information about the prisoners’ condition at Bahrain Central Prison (Jaw), and infringing the standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners by the United Nations. The following Statement is by a prisoner who has been released recently, these information are added on the previous recent BCHR reports (Report of November 2011) and (Report of August 2011), which indicates the urgent need to open the prison’s doors for the independent commissions to come up with binding recommendations to the Government of Bahrain to halt the deterioration situation of the prisoners. According to BCHR information, the harassment has increased after launching the Independent Commission of Inquiry Report, and despite the announcement of the Red Cross intention to visit the prisons.

The Prisoner’s Statement:

“Reforming and Rehabilitation Department (Jaw prison) is the central prison in Bahrain, where prisoners (criminal and politicians alike) suffer from the most extreme conditions. They are neglected and tortured as revenge especially the prisoners from the Shia Sect. The prisoners have no one to turn to and raise their complaints or grievances, due to the officers’ domination on everything. Moreover, telling their relatives does not make any difference because the situation in the country cannot be resorted to the newspapers or anyone that could bring the offenders to justice.

Bahrain’s weather consists of two main seasons, summer which is flaming hot and a cold winter. In the flaming hot summer, the prisoners feel as if they were standing under the sun without shadows. There are air conditioners in prison, but because these air conditioners are outdated and not repaired, “also as a punishment” the prisoners sleep in hot weather, so hot that they sweat in their clothes and sleeping mattresses until clothes become wet with water. The impact of this is very bad on their health. Water in the baths is very hot and many of them do have any ventilation window, making the bathroom like a sauna. When prisoner enters to path and to clean himself he comes out sweating with no benefit. In addition, lack of movement in a hot closed place cause psychological state of suffocation because of the heat.

On the cold season, where detainees cannot escape from its chilliness, they are not allowed to get warm clothes from their families and the cells are not warm enough to protect them.
Also, personal hygiene items are not allowed. However, room toiletries were allowed to get to the prisoners recently, yet it depends on the guards’ mood to allow it or not.

Furthermore, prisoners are prevented from getting anything related to their religious believes like (Turba Husseiniya “the soil used in the Shiite prayer”) and books; there is a rule that states two books for each prisoner. Yet, the prisoner does not get his books until it gets approved. Even worse, they barred the call to prayer and arranging for Jumaa prayer. And whoever opposed gets beaten or detains in a solitary. …more

Just how dangerous are ‘non-lethal’ weapons?
Fears that tear gas and rubber bullets, widely used in crackdown against protesters, could be cause of deaths in Egypt.
by Mujib Mashal – 23 November, 2011 – AlJazeera

From Egypt, to Athens, to Oakland, police have employed “non-lethal weapons” to break down recent protests and disperse protesters. As crowds have swelled to express discontent, variations of tear gas, rubber bullets, water cannons, and stun grenades have been fired back at them.

The US defence department describes non-lethal weapons as “primarily employed to immediately incapacitate targeted personnel or materiel, while minimising fatalities, permanent injury to personnel … in the target area or environment. “Non-lethal weapons are intended to have reversible effects on personnel and material.”

Despite this, activists have reported grave injuries as a result of tear gas canisters fired at protesters from close range. Moreover, the non-lethality of the gas is also in doubt, as serious questions are being raised about the causes of recent deaths during this week’s protests in Cairo’s Tahrir square.

Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna, reporting from the Egyptian capital, said: “There have been repeated rounds of tear gas fired here. It is a particularly virulent form, stinging the face to an immense extent. “Many of those who have been killed are said to have died of asphyxiation.

“Medical workers say the conditions of those brought in is serious, many with symptoms they have not seen before from tear gas inhalation.” Speaking to Al Jazeera, Khalid Hamdi, staffing a make-shift clinic in Tahrir square, said: “We’ve seen many faintings and we’d never seen that before.

“About 70 per cent of the injuries are fainting. People are coming in with asthma, convulsions sometimes – this wasn’t often before.”

Amnesty international has also expressed concern about the use of tear gas in the square.

“We have received reports from medical sources saying that some of those who died did so as as a result of suffocation after inhaling tear gas,” Said Haddadi, a spokesman for the rights group, told Al Jazeera.

‘Pain and discomfort’

US government agencies, the departments of state and commmerce in particular, regulate the export of tear gas and other non-lethal weapons by granting export licenses allowing US manufacturers to sell tear gas to foreign buyers.

Two US companies have been identified as major exporters of the devices: Combined Systems Inc and NonLethal Technologies Inc, both based in Pennsylvania.

Peter Felstead, editor of Jane’s Defence Weekly, said countries buying weapons from the UK, at least, are closely vetted and their contracts constantly reviewed.

“If something happens in Saudi Arabia, or Bahrain for example, withdrawing contracts in response to those kind of events would present something of a dilemma. The US and UK strategic alliances with Saudi Arabia in particular are very strong. If there is unrest in Saudi, the question is will the support be withdrawn?”

He said buyers are expected to obtain training packages along with their purchase to make sure the weapons are employed properly. A lack of proper training could be the cause of any fatalities that might result.

“There are times when employing crowd control is absolutely necessary. But if the non-lethal weapons are not employed properly, they could make things worse.

“For example, if you end up forcing a crowd away from security forces to stampede through a narrow gap, you could kill people in the process.”

What exactly is being fired at protesters in Tahrir is unclear. Two forms of tear gas are most commonly used: Chlorobenzylidene malononitrile (also referred to as CS) and Chloroacetophenone (often known as CN). Both gases are irritants that affect the eyes, nose, mouth and lungs, and cause tearing, sneezing and coughing. “The primary effect is shortness of breath, pain, and discomfort,” reads the catalogue of Combined Systems Inc.

Dr Ziad Kazzi, from Grady Health System and assistant director of Georgia Poison Center, said large doses of the gas could be fatal to healthy individuals as well.

“Those with already existing conditions, such as asthma or lung disease, are at higher risk. However, if large doses are inhaled, particularly in enclosed space, it could damage lungs and lead to death, even for healthy people. But it depends on the dosage.”

“Dose determines the poison,” he said, adding that several factors such as concentration, potency of the gas, the amount that is being delivered, the environment that it is being released in, and the personal characteristics of the people receiving it all play a part. He said small doses have not been proven to have lasting effects.
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