Washington Continues to Support Al-Khalifa Regime in Bahrain
29 October, 2013 – FARS

TEHRAN (FNA)- Activists of the opposition in Bahrain contacted the local press, warning that Washington is indeed supporting the al-Khalifa regime, despite a recent statement that it had suspended all aids and military collaboration.

Bahrain which is looking to purchase a large amount of tear gas canisters is believed to have turned to its long term American ally, Islam Times reported Monday.

Activists produced a series of documents to support their claims. Bahrain government wants to purchase 2 million gas bombs and other crowd control weapons.

An international inquiry in November 2011 found that 35 people had died during Bahrain’s uprising, most of whom were protesters but also including five security personnel. The opposition puts the death toll at more than 80.

The US-based Human Rights First (HRF) advocacy group earlier this month urged Washington to speak out against the planned teargas shipment.

According to Bahrain Watch, the leaked document came in the form of a tender issued by the Interior Ministry’s Purchasing Directorate. It invited arms manufacturers to supply the ministry with “teargas cartridges and sound grenades.”

In March 2012, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said the use of teargas had led to a number of deaths of protesters and bystanders in Bahrain.

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), a US-based group that campaigns for medical staff working in crisis zones, said in August 2012 that the Bahraini government used teargas indiscriminately, causing severe injuries to some civilians.

Bahrain has denied that charge. …source

Nasrallah Slams Riyadh for Derailing Syria Peace Talks
29 October, 2013 – FARS

TEHRAN (FNA)- Saudi Arabia is seeking to derail the long-delayed Geneva II peace conference aimed at ending the conflict in Syria and is enraged over the Syrian government’s gains, Hezbollah Secretary General said.

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyed Hassan Nasrallah also slammed Saudi regime’s meddling in the internal affairs of Lebanon and hindering the country’s efforts to form a new government, Al-Alam reported Monday.

“The world has come to an understanding that a military solution (in Syria) is no longer valid and the only acceptable solution is a political one via an unconditional dialogue,” Nasrallah said in a televised speech commemorating the 25th anniversary of the establishment of al-Rassoul al-Azam Hospital.

“But there is one country, … the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and it is still very angry over the prospects of a political solution in Syria,” he added.

Nasrallah said the kingdom had exhausted all available means to force the collapse of President Bashar Assad’s government, such as sending tens of thousands of fighters and spending an estimated $30 billion.

“The fighting side did all it can to target the government and bring it down but failed to reach any results,” he said.

The prospects of a military solution subsided, Nasrallah said, in light of divisions within the Syrian opposition and the rebels, the Syrian army’s recapture of several areas and the collapse of a possible US-led attack on the conflict-ridden country.

“The stubbornness and insistence on (a military solution) will only lead to further fighting, casualties and destruction as well as repercussions on neighboring countries,” Nasrallah said.

He also advised Saudi Arabia not to pass up the opportunity for peace talks in Geneva II, noting that time was not on the opposition’s side.

“Given the current developments, it is best that you go forward with a political solution in Syria,” he said.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. Reports indicate that the western powers and their regional allies — especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey — are supporting the militants operating inside the country.

According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced in the violence.
…source



Nasrallah: Saudi “anger” fueling Syrian war
28 October, 2013 – Al Akhbar

After two and a half years of relentless bloodshed, the whole world with the exception of Saudi Arabia has reached the conclusion that there can be no military solution to the Syrian crisis, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised speech Monday.

He accused the Wahhabi-ruled kingdom of letting its “anger” over failing to topple President Bashar al-Assad cloud its judgement and prevent political dialogue from taking shape.

“There is one regional country that is still very angry …. because it did not achieve its goal. They brought tens of thousands of fighters from all over the world [to Syria], … sent weapons, money,” Nasrallah said.

“[There has been] international pressure, sieges, sanctions and incitement [against the Syrian government]. Everything that could have been done was done, and nothing happened.”

“We cannot continue to have the region ignite in flames just because one country is angry,” he added.

The international community is trying to push the proposed US-Russian “Geneva II” peace conference tentatively scheduled for late-November, but leading factions of both Syria’s political and armed opposition groups have either flatly rejected dialogue, or demanded that conditions be set before coming to the table.

A coalition of 19 rebel groups on Sunday labelled as traitors any opposition faction that engages in peace talks with the Syrian government.

Nasrallah said that despite infighting among Syria’s opposition, they all “drink from the same tap,” in a reference to the Saudi kingdom.

“All of those whose hearts beat for Syria, or those affected by the conflict, must point their fingers at those who are preventing such dialogue and a solution in Syria,” he said.

He added that the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation should use their influence to push Syria’s opposition to attend next month’s peace conference without pre-conditions. …more

What a Surprise: U.S.-Based Iran “Experts” Promoting Israeli Policy
by Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann Leverett – 29 October, 2013

As the new round of nuclear diplomacy between the Islamic Republic and the P5+1 unfolds, an informal coalition of forces is coalescing in the West to oppose any prospective deal in which the United States would “accept” safeguarded uranium enrichment in Iran. Of course, Israel and the pro-Israel lobby are at the heart of this coalition. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s remarks about the Iran nuclear talks on NBC’s Meet the Press this past Sunday, see here, are emblematic of the “zero enrichment” camp:

“The question is not of hope; the question is of actual result. The test is the result. The result has to be the full dismantling of Iran’s military nuclear program. If that is achieved, that would be very good. If it’s achieved peacefully, it’s even better…I think the pressure has to be maintained on Iran, even increased on Iran, until it actually stops the nuclear program—that is, dismantles it. I think that any partial deal could end up in dissolving the sanctions. There are a lot of countries waiting for a signal, just waiting for a signal, to get rid of their sanctions regime. And I think that you don’t want to go through halfway measures…

As far as the freezing of assets—as far as I remember, those assets were frozen for three reasons: one, Iran’s terrorist actions; two, its aggressive actions, particularly in the Gulf; and three, its continued refusal to stop the production of weapons of mass destruction. You know, if you get all three done, and they stop doing it—well, then, I suppose you could unfreeze them…Those sanctions weren’t Israeli sanctions. I’ve always advocated them, but the international community adopted very firm resolutions by the Security Council, and here’s what those resolutions say: they said Iran should basically dismantle its centrifuges for enrichment (that’s one path to get a nuclear weapon) and stop work on its plutonium heavy-water reactor (that’s the other path for a nuclear weapon).

It’s very important to stress that it’s for nuclear weapons. Nobody challenges Iran’s or any country’s pursuit of civilian nuclear energy. But seventeen countries in the world, including your neighbors Canada and Mexico, have very robust programs for civilian nuclear energy, and they don’t enrich with centrifuges, and they don’t have heavy water plutonium reactors.

Here comes Iran and says, ‘I want civilian nuclear energy.’ I don’t know why, because they have energy, with gas and oil, coming out of their ears for generations. But suppose you believe them. Then you ask, ‘Why do you insist on maintaining a plutonium heavy water reactor, and on maintaining centrifuges that can only be used for making nuclear weapons?’ And the answer is because they want to have residual capability to make nuclear weapons. And you don’t want that, and UN resolutions don’t want that, Security Council resolutions. And I propose sticking by that.”

U.S. inattention to Libya breeds chaos
By David Ignatius, 25 October, 2013 – Washington Post

For a case study of why America’s influence has receded in the Middle East, consider the example of Libya. Some simple steps over the past two years might have limited the country’s descent toward anarchy. But Libya became so toxic after the Benghazi attack that the United States has been slow to provide help.

When Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan visited Washington in March, he made a straightforward request: He needed U.S. help in training a “general-purpose force” that could protect officials of the democratically elected government and safeguard Libya’s basic services. He explained that, without such protection, government officials couldn’t move safely around the country to do their work.

Helping Libya should be a no-brainer. The United States and its NATO allies spent billions toppling the regime of Col. Moammar Gaddafi in 2011, and they have a big investment in creating a secure state. Instead, Libya has become a nation of lawless militias. Zeidan’s government can’t even hold meetings safely. The United States should have begun training security forces immediately after Gaddafi was toppled. Every day of delay is a mistake.

The Obama administration has approved, in principle, a plan to train 6,000 to 8,000 Libyans outside the country. But the situation in Tripoli is so chaotic that Libyans haven’t yet made a formal request for this assistance. U.S. officials said it won’t start until the spring, at the earliest.

President Obama is said to have decided at a Cabinet meeting this month that “we have not been doing enough” as the chaos grew in Libya and that he wants to “accelerate” assistance, according to a senior administration official. That’s good — better late than never — but it’s an open question whether Congress will let Obama do what’s needed.

Congressional Republicans deserve much of the blame. The GOP has staged more than a year of near-hysterical attacks about alleged failures and coverups involving the Sept. 11, 2012, assault on the U.S. compound in Benghazi that left four Americans dead. The relentless GOP sniping and second-guessing had the inevitable consequence: Nobody wanted to risk another Benghazi; U.S. diplomats hunkered down at the embassy in Tripoli; and Libya policy went in the deep freeze.

Here’s how bad the Libya phobia has become: When the Department of Homeland Security recently began drafting a rule that would allow Libyan students and workers to come to the United States for education and training, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) thundered that “it is shocking that the Obama administration is turning a blind eye to real terrorist threats that exist in Libya today.” And Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) denounced the move as “unbelievable.”

What continued in the Libya vacuum were secret U.S. counterterrorism operations. These culminated in the Oct. 5 raid that snatched al-Qaeda militant Anas al-Libi in Tripoli and brought him to New York for trial on charges stemming from the 1998 attacks on U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. This was a laudable operation, but counterterrorism is not America’s only interest in Libya.

The raid produced an embarrassing backlash: Zeidan, the pro-American prime minister, was kidnapped by angry militiamen from his hotel in Tripoli and held for hours. The gunmen released him partly because they didn’t want to fight other armed gangs for control of the hostage. Zeidan said he hadn’t approved the U.S. mission, but his cover of deniability was frayed when Secretary of State John Kerry insisted the operation was “legal and appropriate,” implying it had Libyan approval. …more

Bahrain: Injured Civilian In A Coma After Being Shot With Tear Gas Canister
27 October, 2013 – Bahrain center for Human Rights

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights expresses its grave concern over the continued use of excessive force against peaceful protesters by the authorities in Bahrain.

Abbas Abdulnabi Marhoon, 19 years-old, is suffering from severe injuries after he was shot with a tear gas canister in the head on the 16th of October 2013. Witnesses reported that Marhoon was shot directly at the head and was taken, unconscious, to a nearby medical center: the Hamad Kanoo health center. Due to the seriousness of his injuries, Marhoon was transferred to the operation room in the Bahrain Defense Force Hospital. He was shot near the brain and eye, which caused him to suffer from fracture in his skull, serious bleeding, and he is currently being closely monitored.

The family stated that Marhoon is still in the Intensive Care Unit and is unconscious; his condition is not stable.

As Marhoon struggling for his life, recently leaked documents from Bahrain Watch show that the authorities in Bahrain have made plans to import a massive shipment of tear gas canisters from Korea. It was one such canister that Marhoon was injured with, and the police have been documented in many videos using these weapons illegally.

The leaked document is a request for a bid to supply Bahrain with 1.6 million tear gas canisters and 90,000 sound grenades. Bahrain Watch launched a campaign to stop this shipment and demands a stop to all tear gas sales to Bahrain. Since the start of Bahrain’s uprising, approximately 39 persons were killed by tear gas, several of them due to injuries caused from directly being shot with tear gas from close range; there are several children among them.

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights calls on the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Nations and all of Bahrain’s closest allies as well as international institutions to pressure the authorities to:

– Launch an immediate investigation into Marhoon’s injury and hold those responsible accountable

– Put pressure on the Government of Bahrain to stop its use of excessive force in response to the continued peaceful protests, and to consider a meaningful solution to resolve the persistent political issues of instability in the country.

…source

Bahrain’s Continued Weaponizing of Tear Gas
by Samirah Majumdar and Hadley Griffin – 25 October, 2013 – PHR

In August 2012, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) reported on the extensive, persistent, and disproportionate use of toxic chemical agents by anti-riot police against civilians in Bahrain. Police weaponized tear gas in order to crush protests, leading to at least 39 confirmed deaths since 2011 and causing long-term deleterious consequences for those repeatedly exposed to the toxic chemicals in enclosed spaces. PHR is once again concerned about an escalation of violence and the use of toxic chemical agents against protesters as latest developments point to continued instability in Bahrain.

Security forces in Bahrain have regularly cracked down on demonstrators since pro-democracy protests began in February 2011. Police continue to use force to disperse protesters, with recent reports in early October indicating that anti-riot police used buckshot, sound grenades, and tear gas against demonstrators following the death of a political detainee. There have been other sources of tension as well – in the past month, scores of activists have been sentenced in unfair trials, with allegations that authorities used torture to extract confessions. On September 29, 50 Shiite activists received sentences of up to 15 years in prison for their involvement in the 14 February Coalition, a youth-led opposition movement. Al-Wefaq, a political opposition party, has accused the government of escalatory security methods and pulled out of a national dialogue in September because of the arrest of one of its leaders. The United States has voiced concerns over both the recent unrest and lack of progress in the national dialogue that was agreed upon following the violent demonstrations in 2011.

A leaked document, released on October 16, 2013 and publicized by Bahrain Watch, has renewed concerns that the Bahraini government is stockpiling tear gas to crackdown on protesters. The document is a Ministry of Interior tender that shows the country’s plans to import 1.6 million tear gas canisters, 90,000 tear gas grenades, and 145,000 sound and flash grenades, totaling more than the entire Bahraini population of 1.3 million people. Given regular protests in the country and the authorities’ sustained inappropriate and excessive use of force against them, there is little doubt that this new purchase order will target protesters. And based on Bahrain’s aforementioned abuse of tear gas, PHR is seriously concerned that Bahraini forces will again use tear gas to punish protesters, inflict suffering, and suppress dissent.

PHR reiterates its call to the government of Bahrain to cease the use of tear gas in the country until the government conducts a full and impartial investigation into tear gas abuse, re-trains security forces in its proper application, and holds perpetrators of excessive or improper use of force accountable. Given the recent history of rampant tear gas abuse in the country, PHR strongly urges a suspension of the shipment of toxic chemical agents to Bahrain until these basic benchmarks are met, after which the government of Bahrain must adhere to United Nations guidelines on the use of force regarding any future use of tear gas or related substances.
…more

Sheikh Issa Qassim: Reforms in Bahrain Inevitable

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) – Prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Issa Qassim warned that there is no substitute for reforms in Bahrain.

The prominent Bahraini cleric said, “The people of Bahrain have made clear they do not wish to be ruled by such amoral and immoral tyrants whose thirst for blood and injustices is legion.”

Sheikh Qassim went on deploring the despicable horrors which the regime has imposed on its people – unlawful arrests, tortures, violations of sacred religious places of worship, murder, oppression, and repression, the Islam Times reported.

“You will reap what you have sowed,” he prophesized, directly addressing al-Khalifa regime.

Dozens upon dozens of Bahrainis have endured humiliation and repression for having dared expressed their desire to be treated fairly by the Sunni-led government.

As a result of their calls for democratic reforms, the regime has been conducting a sectarian-based campaign against political activists, stopping at nothing to ensure that al- Khalifa remains in power. …source

Bahrain: Photographers Detained, Reportedly Tortured in Attack on Freedom of Expression
25 October, 2013 – ABNA

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) – The Bahrain Center for Human Rights is urgently appealing for an intervention in the case of the award-winning photojournalist Hussain Hubail, 21 years-old, who has been denied adequate medical care for approximately two weeks. The authorities in Bahrain are escalating their attack on freedom of expression, by detaining, torturing and ill-treating photographers.

Hubail, who has been held in Dry Docks Prison since August 5th, 2013, has been denied adequate medical care for approximately two weeks. In the early morning on Friday, October 25th, his health deteriorated and he lost consciousness in prison and was transferred to the hospital where he had ECG and was given IV. The security forces failed to proide him with all the medicines that were prescribed by his doctor. He was asked to come back for follow-up visit, but it is unknown whether he will be taken back to the hospital as his doctor requested.

On 31st July 2013, Hussain Hubail, award-winning photojournalist, was arrested from Bahrain International airport while heading to Dubai, UAE. He was subjected to enforced disappearance for over four days, during which his family went to ask about him at the Criminal Investigation Directorate but they denied having him in custody. On 5th August 2013, Hubail was transferred the Dry Dock prison and was allowed his first call to his family. He was not allowed to contact a lawyer until the 7th August, and he was taken to the Public Prosecution on the same day. The BCHR received confirmed information that Hussain was reportedly subjected to torture; he was beaten and kicked in the abdomen and face, kept in an extremely cold room, forced to stand for long periods of time, and deprived of sleep during the time he was at the CID.

According to Hubail’s lawyer, Ali Al-Asfoor, he was interrogated about his work as a photojournalist and his connection to twitter account linked to “Tamarrod – Rebellion” protests that were planned on the 14th August 2013. Hubail’s house was raided during his interrogation with the Public Prosecution and his camera and laptop were confiscated.

Hubail won 1st place in a photography contest run by Alwasat newspaper in May 2013 for a photograph of protesters amid clouds of tear gas. The BCHR has received information that a photo in which Hussain appeared taking photographs at one of the opposition societies rallies, was shown to detainees in the past months at the CID and the interrogators were trying to learn the identity of the photographer in that photo. (Read More: Bahrain: Arrest of Lawyer after Tweeting about Torture of Detained Blogger and RSF: Use Of Arrest And Torture In Bid To Stifle Protests In Bahrain)

Abdulla Salman Al-Jerdabi is another detained photographer. He was arrested on the 13th September 2013 and was reportedly beaten by security forces on the way to the police station. The beating caused him knee injuries and a wound under his lips; marks on his body from this abuse are still visible. It was reported that when the officer realized that he was a photographer, he threatened him with further abuse. He is accused of illegal gathering and the possession of iron bars with the intention to attack the police force. He will be taken to the Public Prosecution on the 28th of October, and the decision will be taken to release him, or detain him further. …more