US President Barack Obama will be sending 100 “combat-equipped” troops to Uganda, to help defeat the Lord’s Resistance Army, a group accused of gross human rights violations.

In a letter to John Boehner, the Republican Speaker of the House, Obama wrote,

"These forces will act as advisors to partner forces that have the goal of removing from the battlefield Joseph Kony and other senior leadership of the LRA."

He went on to say that the move was “in the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States”.

Obama also stressed that they would not be there to lead the effort but would not engage in combat unless “necessary for self-defense”.

The LRA leader Joseph Kony is accused of war crimes and wanted by the International Criminal Court, which issued a warrant for his arrest in 2005.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the move was part of a broader effort in "pursuing the LRA and seeking to bring top commanders to justice."

Obama's decision was commended by human rights groups and anti-genocide groups, against the group he once labeled "affront to human dignity".

Paul Ronan, Director of Advocacy at Resolve said,

"By deploying these advisers, President Obama is showing decisive leadership to help regional governments finally bring an end to the LRA's mass atrocities."

US Representative for Nebraska Jeff Fortenberry said the move will "save innocent lives and begin to bring the LRA to justice for the immense human tragedy that has fallen across central Africa at its hands."

In 2008, Washington provided more than $40 million in logistical support to Uganda in anti-LRA operations. They followed this up with a law enacted in 2009 which expressed increased support for the Uganda in eliminating the LRA.

An estimated 30,000 people have died as the LRA fought in northern Uganda for more than 20 years, displacing some two million people.

Malawi's refusal to arrest Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted for war crimes in Darfar, has sparked international condemnation.

Bashir arrived in Malawi for a trade summit on Thursday.

Human rights groups and the European Union have urged Malawi, a signatory to the ICC, to arrest Bashir. An arrest warrant was issued for Bashir, by the International Criminal court, in 2008.

In a statement released on Friday, EU foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said,

"The European Union is a staunch supporter of the ICC and the fight against impunity."

"The Court is a valuable instrument of the international community to ensure that there is no impunity for the most serious crimes of international concern: genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes must not go unpunished and their prosecution must be ensured by measures at both domestic and international level,"

Human Rights Watch's, international justice senior counsel, Elise Keppler, warned Malawi of its responsibility as an ICC signatory,

"Al-Bashir is an international fugitive wanted on charges of genocide and other heinous crimes committed in Darfur. As an International Criminal Court member, Malawi should arrest him, not host him."

However, officials in Malawi have dismissed such criticisms.

Malawi's informations minister, Patricia Kallati, said,

"He's coming for business and we don't have any business to do with the arrest of President Omar. We are very honoured to have these heads of state."

Human Rights Watch has accused the Philippines army of falsely labeling innocent children as members of the rebel New People’s Army and taking them into custody.

In a press release, Elaine Pearson deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said,

“The army is concocting stories of rebel child soldiers that are putting children at risk for propaganda purposes. The government should get the military to stop this despicable practice and investigate the officers involved.”

The New York-based group investigated three cases of alleged child soldiers being captured by the government forces and found “strong evidence”, that all the charges against them were fabricated.

The statement went on to say,

“In each of the cases investigated, the army paraded the children in front of the media, publicly branding them rebels.”

They also noted that international humanitarian law prohibited the exhibition of captured combatants to the public, including to the media.

Looking at the case of one child, 17-year old “Rose” who was displayed to the media as an NPA child soldier, she told the group,

“The many interviews disturbed me. I was scared and confused…. I was not free to go anywhere; a soldier was always following me... "

"The military really made me feel like I was NPA.”

Serbia must re-engage with Kosovo and improve relations in order to become a candidate for joining the European Union said the European Commission in a report released today.

Enlargement commissioner for the EU Stefan Fule said he recommended granting candidate status to Serbia "on the understanding that Serbia re-engages in the dialogue with Kosovo and is moving swiftly to the implementation in good faith of agreements reached to date."

Membership talks will commence when further steps are taken to normalise relations with Kosovo, Mr Fule added.

Serbia has handed over the last two war crimes fugitives for trial in The Hague, including former Serb commander General Ratko Mladic, whose arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court was set as a prerequisite to forwarding Serbia’s EU membership bid.

Serbia does not recognise Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence and considers it to be a breakaway region.

Tensions are high in Northern Kosovo, which is dominated by Serbs and considered to be their “sacred heartland”.

The region is still effectively administered by Serbia, but reports in recent months indicate that senior Serb and some Kosovar officials have suggested handing over the region to Serbia and splitting Kosovo, however the EU and the US have ruled this solution out.

The British Foreign Secretary has summoned the Syrian ambassador and warned that Britain will not allow the intimidation of Syrian dissidents in the UK.

William Hague told Parliament on Thursday,

"The Syrian ambassador was summoned to the Foreign Office this morning and told that any harassment or intimidation of Syrians in our country is unacceptable and will not be tolerated."

British police are also launching an investigation into allegations that Syrian diplomats photographed pro-democracy protestors in London and sent them back to Damascus. It is alleged that these photos were then passed onto the families of the demonstrators by the regime.

After the meeting, Minister for the Middle East and North Africa Alistair Burt also said,

"I am deeply concerned by continued reports suggesting harassment and intimidation by Syrian diplomats in the United Kingdom. In summoning the Syrian Ambassador today the United Kingdom made very clear that any such behaviour will not be tolerated and must immediately stop.

We will take appropriate action on evidence that such action is happening and continue to encourage anyone who has experienced harassment or intimidation to report this to the Police. They continue to investigate allegations and we are working with them closely."

The strong statements by the British follow the indicment of a Syrian-born American charged with spying on anti-Assad activists in the United States.

47-year old Mohamad Soueid, has been accused of sending 20 recordings of protests in the US to Syria's spy agency between April and June 2011.

He has also been accused of attempting to "silence, intimidate and potentially harm” the protestors.

See our earlier post: 'Syrian diplomats harrass diaspora protestors' (Oct 2011)

Amnesty International has called on the Canadian government to arrest former US President George W. Bush.

Amnesty opines that enough evidence exists in the public domain to give rise to an obligation for an arrest by Canadian authorities if Bush arrives for a planned visit on the 20th of October.

Former President Bush is accused of having authorised the CIA to conduct a secret detention programme where acts of torture were committed and of publicly stating that he himself authorised the use of waterboarding on individuals whose torture has been confirmed.

As the former Commander-in-Chief for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Amnesty also holds George Bush responsible for the torture and other mistreatment of individuals committed by US military personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq during his tenure.

Amnesty also pointed out that Bush signed an order permitting US officials and US forces to detain and interrogate individuals without requiring the application of “the principles of law and the rules of evidence generally recognised in the trial of criminal cases in the United States district courts”.

"As the US authorities have, so far, failed to bring former president Bush to justice, the international community must step in," said Susan Lee, Amnesty's Americas director, in the statement.

"A failure by Canada to take action during his visit would violate the UN Convention against Torture and demonstrate contempt for fundamental human rights." said Lee.

"Torturers must face justice, and their crimes are so egregious that the responsibility for ensuring justice is shared by all nations," Alex Neve, secretary general of Amnesty International's Canadian branch told a news conference.

"Friend or foe, extraordinary or very ordinary times, most or least powerful nation, faced with concerns about terrorism or any other threat, torture must be stopped."

Bush had previously cancelled a trip to Switzerland, fearing arrest after public calls for his prosecution were made.

Recent developments in Burma have been cautiously welcomed by western diplomats, while NGO’s accuse the Burmese government of war crimes.

Burma has seen a shift in policy since the first elections in 20 years and the release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in November last year.

Talks between the Nobel Peace laureate and the government are thought to be behind positive steps taken by the government to address concerns of the Burmese population.

Internet restrictions have been lifted and the government allowed UN special rapporteur on Human Rights, Tomas Quintana, to visit after banning him for over a year for proposing a UN commission of inquiry into human rights violations.

Shwe Mann, speaker of Burma’s lower house of parliament is reported to have told Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Espen Baarth Eide on Friday that the regime will release more than 1,200 political prisoners ‘within days’.

Kurt Campbell, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs has cautiously welcomed the positive moves by the regime and promised that concrete steps would be matched by the US. However he made clear that the US would want to see real progress on human rights issues before anything substantial is offered by Washington and its European allies.

Last month the government surprisingly suspended a project on a controversial dam to be built at the source of the Irrawady. The dam was being developed by the state Myanmar Ministry of Electric Power, the privately-owned Asia World Company of Burma and the China Power Investment Corporation.

China has threatened legal action and demanded an explanation, but the concerns of the thousands of ethnic Kachin villagers who have either already been displaced or will be forced to leave their homes, seem to have found sympathy with the regime.

The President said in a letter to parliament, “the government is elected by the people and has to respect the people’s will”.

The developments suggest that recent overtures are as much about gaining the trust of the Burmese population as they are a shift away from China’s stranglehold on the country.

Any hopes of improving the crippled Burmese economy rely on the lifting of sanctions by the West, which have been in place for over 10 years.

Meanwhile however, the Burmese military is continuing its brutal war with Kachin and Shan separatists after a ceasefire broke down in June this year.

Representatives of a Kachin Women’s NGO, based in Thailand have urged the UN to take a stand on the atrocities committed by the Burmese forces.

Kachin Women’s Association of Thailand (Kwat) spokesperson Hkawng Seng Pan told Mizzima that a recent report by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon downplayed the ethnic conflict between Burma and the Kachin Independence Organisation.

“The Myanmar army is committing violent human rights abuses, including rape, murder and forced labour in places where it is fighting against the KIO. Ban Ki-moon and the UN must speak out about what is happening so the killing stops.” she told reporters.

Kwat released their own report on Friday, documenting abuses committed in the three months since the latest outbreak of violence.

Hkawng Seng Pan also noted the recent change in rhetoric by the Burmese regime but said while the government may have changed their tone recently, the actions of the country’s armed forces have not.

She told Mizzima: “You can see clearly how the Burmese government is working; the Army is fighting and killing ethnic people while Thein Sein is speaking about human rights to a Parliament full of generals and former military officers.”

Over 300,000 people are thought to have been killed in ethnic violence since independence in 1948.

“China is highly concerned about the situation in Syria, is against the use of violence, and we hope not to see any more bloodshed and casualties.”

"We believe the Syrian government should move faster to honour its reform pledges and swiftly start to push forward the inclusive political process with the broad participation of all parties in Syria."

 "The Russian veto at the UN Security Council on the Syria draft resolution is no way a carte blanche for the current ruling Syrian regime to do everything they want."

We are indulging neither the regime nor the opposition, no way, it is actually the last bell.

With our veto at the UN Security Council we have used up the whole tool kit which international law offers us. This is the last appeal to the authorities and the opposition to take their places around the table and to start a national dialogue."

Israel and Hamas have come to an agreement to free Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit for over 1,000 Palestinian political prisoners.

The deal, brokered by Egypt was met with jubilation on both sides of the border.

25 year old Gilad Shalit was captured in June 2006 in a cross-border raid by Hamas and has been held captive in Gaza since.

1,027 Palestinian detainees are expected to be released, said Hamas leader Khaled Meshal.

The prisoners will be freed in two phases, with 450 released within one week and another 550 within two months, after the release of Gilad Shalit.

Priority has been given to Palestinians who have served over 20 years in prison; 315 of those to be released are serving life sentences.

"We were very keen for this deal to include prisoners from across different categories, from different age groups and from the West Bank and Gaza, from Jerusalem and the Golan [Heights]." Meshal said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked "the Egyptian government and its security forces for their role in mediation and concluding the deal" in a post on Twitter, while Khaled Meshaal thanked Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, Syria and Germany for their involvement in the negotiations.

However, Yoram Cohen, head of Israeli intelligence service Shin Bet, has denied reports that popular Fatah leader Marwan Baghouti will be released as part of the deal.

The UN Decolonisation Committee reaffirmed its belief that self-determination and independence are the inalienable right of all people on Monday with particular reference to the people of Western Sahara, currently living under Moroccan rule.

South Africa's representative condemned the UN's inaction over the issue, describing the UN as "paralysed". Highlighting the thirty year delay in the referendum, originally mandated by the UN Security Council, he called for a renewed affort to hold such a referendum.

Timor-Leste's representative, comparing Western Sahara's struggle for self-determinatnion with Timor-Leste's own struggle for independence, stated that the status quo was 'unacceptable' and it brought 'serious risks to stability'.

The view was echoed by Algeria, Angola and Congo.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Western Sahara, Mr. Mohamed Salem Ould Salek, asserted that the resolution adopted by the UN Fourth Committee on Western Sahara was “an encouraging step towards the acceleration of the decolonization in Western Sahara, despite the obstacles set by Morocco.”

“We reaffirmed determination of our people to continue their struggle until recovering their firm right of self-determination and independence.” added Ould Salek.

See here for reports of massacres of Saharawi people by Morrocan forces.

A German judge has resigned from his role working in an UN-backed war crimes tribunal in Cambodia, citing interference from the Government of Cambodia.

The judge, Siegfried Blunk, described "repeated statements which will be perceived as attempted interference by government officials".

Whilst stating that he would not by swayed by such opposition, he said his "ability to withstand such pressure by government officials and to perform his duties independently could always be called in doubt."

Pressure has been placed on the tribunal to halt proceedings by current Cambodian Prime Minister and former Khmer Rouge commander Hun Sen, who left the movement before its collapse. He allegedly said further trials, beyond what was currently taking place “was not allowed”.

Blunk also quoted the Cambodian information minister, who he claimed said that judges who wanted to pursue further cases should “pack their bags and leave.”

The move comes a week after criticism from Human Rights Watch for failing "to conduct genuine, impartial and effective investigations" into what are known as Case 003 and 004.

The group went on to call for the resignation of both Blunk and his Cambodian counterpart.

Brad Adams, the Asia director at Human Rights Watch said,

“The investigating judges concluded their investigation into Case 003 without notifying the suspects, interviewing key witnesses or conducting crime site investigations.

This would be shocking for an ordinary crime, but it’s unbelievable when it involves some of the 20th century’s worst atrocities.”

“The United Nations has constantly emphasized that the ECCC (Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia) must be permitted to proceed with its work without interference from any entity, including the ... government of Cambodia, donor states or civil society.”

Afghan intelligence services and national police are accused of “a compelling pattern and practice of systematic torture and ill-treatment”  of detainees in an UN report released on Monday.

The report detailed the “use of interrogation methods, including suspension, beatings, electric shock, stress positions and threatened sexual assault", highlighted that such practices are "unacceptable by any standard of international human rights law.”

Acting on a draft of the report earlier this year, NATO forces stopped the transfer of suspected insurgents to security sites that had been identified in the UN report, however, concerns have been raised that such abuses occurred despite American-led forces closely overseeing the Afghan agencies. 

Responding to the report's allegations, the Afghan deputy national security adviser, Shaida M. Abdali, said,

“We take this report very seriously.”

“Our government, especially the president, has taken a very strong stand on the protection of everyone’s human rights, their humanity, everywhere and especially in prisons and in detention.”

The UN director for human rights in Afghanistan highlighted the importance of accountability and prosecution of those responsible, in order to “prevent and end such acts in the future.”

The NATO commander, General John Allen, is believed to have initiated an investigation into the facilities where such abuses are alleged to have taken place.