• Belarus President Lukashenko will, once again, win unfair elections

    Sep 22

    Hardline Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko is expected to retain his leadership despite the opposition’s call for voters to boycott parliamentary elections.

    The two main opposition parties urged voters not to participate in, what they see as, a sham exercise by the Lukashenko leadership to retain power.

    Western monitoring agencies have not judged an election in Lukashenko’s Belarus as ‘free and fair’ for 18 years.

    Lukashenko, labelled as the last dictator of Europe, cracked down on street protests against his re-election in 2010.

    Human rights bodies have noted that the run up to the current poll was marred with arrests and detention of opposition activists.

    Opposition activists complained that they were stopped by police when distributing leaflets.

    Speaking to journalists about the elections, Lukashenko said, “ there is nothing to criticise so far.”

    “They should envy our boring elections. We don’t need any revolutions or upheavels.”

    Braving US and European Union sanctions, Lukashenko’s Belarus has survived on the back of Russia, which has provided £2.7 billion in loans and investment.

  • Pakistani minister offers reward for death of filmmaker

    As protests against an anti-Islam film continue around the world, a Pakistani minister has offered a reward to anyone that kills the maker of ‘Innocence of Muslims’.

    Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmad Bilour told a news conference on Saturday:

    "I announce today that this blasphemer, this sinner who has spoken nonsense about the holy Prophet, anyone who murders him, I will reward him with $100,000.”

    "I invite the Taliban brothers and the al Qaeda brothers to join me in this blessed mission."

    The Pakistani government has disassociated itself from the statement, according to a spokesperson for the Prime Minister.

  • Belarus denies supplying Syrian arms after US sanctions
    Belarus has denied accusations from the United States that they were attempting to supply weapons to Syria, after the US Treasury imposed sanctions on   state-owned Belarusian company earlier this week.

    The state-owned arms company Belvneshpromservice was accused by the US Treasury of supplying fuses for bombs used by the Syrian military via Syria’s Army Supply Bureau and had sanctions placed on it earlier this week.

    Commenting on the decision, David Cohen, Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement,
    "Today's actions seek to disrupt the flow of weapons and communications equipment to the Syrian regime and help prevent their use against the Syrian people".
    However the accusations have been vigorously denied by Belarus, whose Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated,
    "All the accusations of the American side... have no basis and are untrue".
  • Free Syrian Army move HQ to Syria

    The Free Syrian Army moved its main comman centre from Turkey to Syria, the group announced on Saturday.

    In a video entitled, 'Free Syrian Army Communique Number 1 from Inside' the leader Riad al-Assad, said, "The Free Syrian Army command has moved into liberated areas of Syria following arrangements made with battalions and brigades to secure these zones,” and they would "start the plan to liberate Damascus soon, God willing”.

    According to Brigadier General Mustafa al-Sheikh, in charge of the group's military council, the move have actually take place over a week ago, and was intended to unite all the rebel groups. No details have been released on the precise location.

     

  • Benghazi militias expelled by protestors

    Protestors in the Libyan city of Benghazi have stormed the base of a militia suspected to be behind the killing of US Ambassador Christopher Stevens.

    The headquarters of the Ansar al-Sharia group were stormed by police and protestors.

    According to witnesses, armed supporters of the group gathered outside the building and fired shots into the air to disperse the protestors, but fled after the base was flooded with people shouting slogans against the group.

    The main base of the Sahaty Brigade was also targeted and ensuing clashes killed at least nine people.

    The Sahaty Brigade is thought to have official backing from the Libyan ministry of defence.

    Libyan officials said they welcomed the protests against armed militias but added that people should differentiate between rebel brigades and rogue militias.

    Over 30,000 people marched in Benghazi on Friday against the killings of the US officials.

  • M23 rebels set up de facto administration, denies separatism

    The rebellion in Congo’s east, known as the M23, has reinforced its power over the territory it has controlled for over five months, by setting up, what a U.N chief has described as, a parallel government.

    U.N peace keeping chief, Herve Ladsous, denounced what he called a parallel government , warning of the risk of escalating the conflict and stating that “the sovereignty of the Democratic Republic of Congo has to be respected.”

    Describing the situation to reporters in New York, Ladsous said

    “They are already establishing a sort of de facto administration controlling population, taking ‘taxes’ from people who pass through, and that of course is hardly acceptable.”

    Defending the rebel actions, the military leader of the M23, Col.Sultani Makenga said,

    “We did not set up a parallel administration. When you wage war, when you occupy territory, you have to administrate it, control it, and secure it,”

    Denying that the administration is the first step to creating a separate country, Makenga outlined the temporary nature of the arrangement stating, “If the government can resolve the problems we’ve raised, we will end our movement.”

    The rebellion started in April after a group of senior regular army commanders , who were once members of the Rwanda backed National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP), defected from the army.

    Following 3 months of fighting against their former comrades, the rebel M23 group took control of the Rutshuru territory, which borders Rwanda and Uganda.

  • Serbia sentences 11 Albanians for war crimes

    A Serbian court sentenced 11 ethnic Albanians to a total of 116 years in prison on Wednesday, after finding them guilty of committing war crimes.

    The men were found guilty of illegally detaining and torturing at least 147 people, according to the verdict, during the war in Kosovo. Of the 17 charged with the offences, 6 were acquitted.

    Prosecutors said that the Albanian men were part of the Kosovo Liberation Army’s 138th brigade, dubbed the "Gnjilane Group".

    Ethnic Albanians make up over 90% of Kosovo, which split off from Serbia in 2008. The country was granted “full sovereignty” by the International Steering Group (ISG) earlier this month, but Serbia has refused to recognise the nation.

  • Iranian opposition group to be removed from US terror list

    Senior officials in the White House have said that the State Department is going to remove the Iranian dissident organisation, Mujahadin-e-Khalq (MeK) from the US list of terrorist organisations.

    The officials said the decision would be announced formally next week.

    The group has renounced violence, while still calling for regime change, and is thought to have provided the US with intelligence on Iran's nuclear programme.

    US Iranians spent millions of dollars to enlist a wide range of US politicians to support the deproscription of the organisation, but only three years ago the US arrested several pro-MeK activists for raising funds for a banned terrorist organisation.

    Now members of congress 'openly praise' the organisation.

    The MeK used to fight against the rule of the US-backed Shah of Iran in the 1970's, carrying out a bombing campaign, including on US targets which killed several Americans.

    Later they fought against the clerical rulers of Iran, aligning themselves with Saddam Hussain during the Iran-Iraq war and even took part in attacks on Iraqi Kurds, crushing their rebellion against Hussain.

    MeK have claimed in the past to have killed thousands of Iranians who they described as agents of the regime.

    The US banned the group in 1997 and after the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the MeK surrendered its weapons to US troops.

    The MeK had sheltered in Camp Ashraf near the Iranian border but tensions with the Iraqi government resulted in several clashes since 2009, killing at least 45 of their members.

    The organisation has now agreed to leave Camp Ashraf after mediation by the US.

    The deproscription makes it easier for members of the group to be resettled abroad.

  • Libyans protest ambassador killing

    The killing of US Ambassador Chris Stevens in Libya has caused a public backlash against Islamist militias, reports the Associated Press.

    Tens of thousands of Libyans are reported to have marched in protest against the killing, demanding the disbanding of Ansar al-Shariah, one of the strongest armed Islamic extremist groups in the country.

    According to officials and witnesses, the September 11 attack on the Benghazi consulate is believed to have been led by fighters from Ansar al-Shariah.

    Read the full report on Washington Post here.

  • Palestine to request ‘observer state’ position at UN
    Palestine is set to push for the status of “observer state” at the UN allowing them to pursue cases against Israel at the International criminal Court, commented a senior Palestinian official.

    The move would grant Palestine the same ranking as states such as the Vatican, and would require a majority backing in the 193-member UN General Assembly. Palestine’s earlier attempt to achieve “full statehood” through the UN Security Council last year failed in the face of fierce lobbying from Israel and their long time ally, the United States.

    Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat indicated that the move would be significant, commenting,
    "The day after (we get) non-member statehood, life will not be the same… Yes, the occupation will continue, the settlements will continue, the crimes of the settlers may continue, but there will be consequences."
    "After the U.N. vote ... Palestine will become a country under occupation. Israel will not be able to say that this is a disputed area… The terms of reference for any negotiations will be about withdrawal, not over what the Israelis say is legal or not legal."
    Crucially it would also allow Palestine to join various other agencies, in particular the International Criminal Court. allowing them to pursue cases against Israel.

    Erekat went on to tell reporters,
    "Those who don't want to appear before the international tribunals must stop their crimes and it is time for them to become accountable”.
    See the report from Reuters here.
  • US lifts sanctions on Burma 
    The US lifted sanctions on Burma, as the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned, that yet more needed to be done.  “Political prisoners remain in detention", she said. Ongoing ethnic and sectarian violence continues to undermine progress toward national reconciliation, stability and lasting peace. And further reforms are required to strengthen the rule of law, increase transparency and address constitutional challenges.”
  • Wen calls for end of EU arms embargo

    Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has urged the EU to lift an arms embargo, in place since the 1989 Tiananmen Square killings.

    "The solution has been elusive over the past 10 years. I deeply regret this" said Wen, speaking in Brussels after meeting senior EU officials.

    Ahead of the talks, EU sources said that they will not be lifting the embargo and both sides have "agreed to disagree" on this issue.

    China and the EU however did agree on a deal to strengthen cooperation, aimed at "restoring market confidence and fostering financial stability".

    "The EU reaffirmed its support for China's peaceful development and its respect for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and expressed its confidence in China's efforts to maintain sustainable, steady and rapid economic growth," said a joint statement released on Thursday.

  • Syria ‘bombs fuel queue’ in Raqqa

    A Syrian air force plane is thought to have attacked a petrol station near the north-eastern town of Raqqa, killing over 30 people according to rebels.

    The opposition group said people were queuing for petrol when they were attacked.

    Rebels recently captured the nearby border post of Tal al-Abyad, and pictures showed the rebel flag flying next to the Turkish flag at the crossing.

    The Syrian army has been attempting to recapture the border town, with reports of severe clashes emerging.

  • Syria was planning to use chemical weapons says army defector

    In an interview with The Times, Major-General Adnan Sillu. the head of the Assad regime's chemical weapons division who defected three months ago, has confirmed the regime had plans of using chemical weapons against its own citizens in Aleppo.

    Speaking to The Times, in his first interview (see here) since he defected, he said:

    “We were in a serious discussion about the use of chemical weapons, including how we would use them and in what areas. We discussed this as a last resort — such as if the regime lost control of an important area such as Aleppo.”

    According to General Sillu, the Syrian regime were advised extensively by Iran's Revolutionary Guard, and also had plans of transferring supplies to Hezbollah.

    “They [Iran's Revolutionary Guard] were always coming to visit and to advise. They were always sending us scientists and bringing our scientists to them,”

    “They were also involved on the political side of how to use the chemical weapons.”

    The German magazine Der Spiegel reported yesterday that the they were also present at the testing of a chemical weapons delivery system near Aleppo last month.

  • Rohingya's mosques bulldozed by Burmese authorities

    Burmese authorities have embarked on a 'secret programme of ethnic cleansing', by bulldozing the Rohingya Muslims mosques and communities, reports The Times.

    With tens of thousands of Rohingya muslims having fled from home fearing further persecution by Buddhist Rakhinis, authorities are demolishing muslim homes, shops and mosques, many of which have considerable historic significance.

    Following a visit to Sittwe, The Times reports that five mosques in the region had been bulldozed a fortnight after the violence started, included one that dates from the 19th century, Musa Dewan Mosque.

    Speaking to The Times, a Rohingya muslim who know works for Médecins Sans Frontières, Kyaw Hla Aung, said, “This is a case of genocide, going on now. Their plan is to move all the Rohingya out.”

    Meanwhile, Hla Thein, the attorney-general of the Rakhine State government told The Times, “as far as I know, there was no demolition of mosques. Foreigners twist the truth.”

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