Posts from — March 2012

Saudi Arabia: Update – Release of Dr Said bin Zair and other human rights defenders
01 March 2012 – Alkarahma

Update: In addition to the releases announced in our press release of last Monday, we further welcome the release of Dr Mubarak bin Zair, son of Dr Said bin Zair. He was arrested on 21 March 2011 and was arbitrarily detained until his release yesterday, 29 February 2012. His release came after the Special Criminal Tribunal, a court of exception mandated to examine terrorist-related cases, decided on 14 February 2012 that it was not competent to consider Dr Mubarak bin Zair’s case and consequently ordered his release.
These positive developments are tainted by the news that Mr Saad bin Zair, brother of Dr Mubarak bin Zair and son of Dr Said bin Zair, remains in prison. Moreover, Alkarama was informed that Mr Saad bin Zair was recently tortured and forced to sign false confessions. We firmly condemn these acts as well as his arbitrary detention, lasting nearly 5 years now, and call for his immediate and unconditional release.

Press release of 27 February 2012
Alkarama welcomes the release of Alkarama Award 2011 laureate, Dr Said bin Zair, along with other long standing human rights defenders and political activists in Saudi Arabia. Among the released are Mr Mokhlif Al Shammari, who had been held in incommunicado detention since July 2011, and Mr Thamer Al Khodr, whose detention was recently found to be arbitrary by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s Opinion No. 42/2011. Alkarama has been closely following their situation over the past years and hopes these releases are the beginning of a real reform process. …more

February 29: A new case of death due to tear gas suffocation
1 March, 2012 – Bahrain Center for Human Rights

Habib Kadhim Almulla, 60 years old, died on morning of Feb 29, 2012 due to teargas suffocation. Last friday, teargas was shot inside his home in Sehla, it broke the window and made him suffocates, and he was moved to to Salmanya hospital. His brother told BCHR that this was not the 1st time that Habib suffocates from the fired gases, but it was the 3rd time.

On different news, Hundreds of dismissed workers protested in front of the Ministry of Labor, demanding their return to jobs without any conditions. Security forces accompanied by armed civilians carried out a campaign of house raids and arrests without any warrants or orders in Bani Jamra, which started in the early hours of morning and continued until afternoon. …more

Syrian opposition forms military council
By Zeina Karam – 1 March, 2012 – The Daily Star – Associated Press

BEIRUT: Syria’s main opposition group formed a military council Thursday to organize and unify all armed resistance to President Bashar Assad’s regime as the conflict veered ever closer to civil war.

The Paris-based leadership of the Syrian National Council said its plan was coordinated with the most potent armed opposition force – the Free Syrian Army – made up mainly of army defectors.

“The revolution started peacefully and kept up its peaceful nature for months, but the reality today is different and the SNC must shoulder its responsibilities in the face of this new reality,” SNC president Burhan Ghalioun told reporters in Paris, saying any weapons flowing into the country should go through the council.

Still he tried to play down the risks of all-out warfare.

“We want to control the use of weapons so that there won’t be a civil war,” he said. “Our aim is to help avoid civil war.”

The SNC has called for arming rebels in the past, but this was the first time it sought to organize the fighters under one umbrella. The plan coincides with a ferocious government offensive on the opposition stronghold of Homs in central Syria that has been going on for nearly a month.

International pressure on the regime has been growing more intense by the day. The U.N.’s top human rights body voted Thursday to condemn Syria for its “widespread and systematic violations” against civilians, and the U.K. and Switzerland closed their embassies in Damascus over worsening security. The U.S. closed its embassy in February.

But the U.S. has not advocated arming the rebels, in part out of fear it would create an even more bloody and prolonged conflict because of Syria’s complex web of allegiances in the region that extend to Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

On Wednesday, the Syrian regime showed a new determination to crush its opponents, vowing to “cleanse” the rebel-held district of Baba Amr in Homs from “gunmen,” as activists reported troops massing outside.

Syrian activists said government forces have cut off communications to Bab Amr, jamming satellite phone signals as they mass for an apparent ground assault. The neighborhood has been under siege for about four weeks and hundreds have died in shelling.

Authorities had previously blocked land and mobile phone lines, but activists were able to communicate with the outside world with satellite phones.
…more