August 18, 2022 The Equatorial Guinean authorities must immediately stop arbitrarily and indiscriminately arresting young men in their fight against gang crime, said Amnesty International today after documenting numerous testimonies related to these arrests. In response to an alleged increase in crime by youth gangs, especially a group known as the “8 Machetes”, Equatorial Guinea’s Vice President, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, launched a national plan to combat these gangs at the beginning of May, which was labelled by the authorities as a “Cleaning Operation”. On 9 May 2022, Vice President Nguema Obiang Mangue said in a video broadcast on national TV that he had decided to launch the operation ‘to clean’ the streets of Equatorial Guinea of criminals and bandits, and to highlight the “right way” to young criminals. "The ‘Cleaning Operation’ in Equatorial Guinea is deeply concerning as it leads to egregious violation of human rights. Under the pretext of fighting criminality, young people are being arbitrarily arrested and detained, with many facing torture or other ill-treatment, losing their lives, or being forcibly disappeared.” - Marta Colomer, Amnesty International’s Senior Campaigner for West and Central Africa. “The Equatorial Guinea authorities must immediately end this campaign, which amounts to little more than a targeted assault on human rights. It is entirely possible to deal with criminal cases while also respecting human rights.” Mass arrests and curfews The government’s plan includes a curfew for young people, as well as sending suspected criminals to high security prisons. In a single week in May, more than 400 young people were arrested, while three months later, thousands of young men were reportedly arrested across the country. Due to a lack of evidence in some cases, some judges decided to grant parole to those arrested. At least two of those arrested, however, died in prison. Amnesty International spoke with relatives of arrested and detained individuals. In many cases, they said their relatives were mistreated by the security forces during their arrest and detention. Rubén, a 21-year-old from Campo-Yaunde, was arrested alongside a group of other young people on 20 May while gathering in the Campo-Yaunde area of Malabo, the capital. The group had been described by the authorities as criminals. On 6 June, he died in prison. The family received his body and a medical report, which indicated that Rubén had suffered from breathing difficulties and anorexia, among other health issues. The family maintains that Rubén had no health problems at the time of his arrest. An older brother of two arrested boys told Amnesty: “The government is reacting to the actions of a criminal gang that was stealing from people, but they are taking people at random. Some are criminals, but others are just innocent men. They don’t investigate. We are not the only ones affected. Many families are also affected all over the country.” ‘He is a gangster, and we are going to put him in jail’ For many other young people arbitrarily arrested by security forces, their whereabouts remains unknown, while their families are often left with little or no news. Lucas, a 24-year-old, was arrested by the Rapid Intervention Force on 8 May while spending time with his girlfriend and other friends. They were taken to the Central Police Station in Malabo. When Lucas’ girlfriend, Anita, tried to visit him, the police said her boyfriend “is a gangster, and we are going to put him in jail”. The family heard from informal sources that Lucas is reportedly being held in Black Beach, a high security prison in Malabo, yet nobody could confirm this information. The lack of official information on his fate or whereabouts may turn his deprivation of liberty into an enforced disappearance – a crime under international law. Anita told Amnesty International: “The only thing they are saying is that none of those arrested are innocent. If at some point it is proven that they are innocent, then they will be released. What happened to Lucas is happening all over the country. It’s not just here in Malabo.” Santiago, a 22-year-old student arrested in the municipality of Bata three months ago, is still being arbitrarily detained by the police. Although the police told his family there was no proof of Santiago’s criminality, they demanded a payment of 100.000 CFA (around US$150) for his release. As the family were unable to pay, Santiago remains in detention in an unknown location. “It’s not just my story. All the police stations are overcrowded with young boys who have been arrested. The other day, when I went there, there were at least more than 400 boys,” said Santiago’s father. According to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, to which Equatorial Guinea is a party, arrested and detained persons have the right to contact and access a family member or other person of their choice. A few days before the launch of the “Cleaning Operation”, the President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo told the people of Equatorial Guinea that the plan does not undermine human rights, and that international human rights organizations who criticize it are trying to destabilize the country. "The Equatorial Guinean authorities must urgently offer transparent information on deaths in detention and torture and other ill-treatment. They must also ensure those suspected of criminality face justice in fair trials before ordinary civilian courts and release all those who have been arbitrarily arrested and detained.” - Marta Colomer © 2023 Amnesty International

©Anadolu Agency / Contributor/ Getty Images A second consecutive night-time attack on Palestinian worshippers at Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa mosque illustrates the sheer brutality of Israel’s apartheid, Amnesty International said today. Israeli security forces stormed the mosque compound at around 10.30 pm last night, shortly after evening prayers. They fired stun grenades and used rifle butts to beat Palestinians who had gathered at the mosque for Ramadan. During the first attack on Tuesday night, Israeli security forces arrested at least 450 Palestinians, about 50 of whom are still in detention. Many of those who were released were barefoot and visibly battered and bruised when they emerged from Atarot Detention Centre on Wednesday. A lawyer at the scene told Amnesty International that many detainees, including children, were interrogated and beaten while in detention. Amnesty International also heard from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society how, during Tuesday night’s attack, Israeli forces had prevented paramedics from accessing wounded people inside the mosque compound by firing rubber bullets at ambulances. “These orchestrated attacks demonstrate just how far Israeli authorities will go to maintain their cruel system of apartheid. Shocking footage from the past two days shows Israeli security forces beating men, women and children, and dragging them out of the mosque where they had gathered to spend the night in peaceful prayer and reflection. Once again, Israeli security forces have shown the world what apartheid looks like,” said Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa. “Israeli security forces have now subjected Palestinian worshippers to two consecutive nights of horror, and turned one of the holiest sites in Islam into a crime scene. We urge the international community to take immediate action to protect Palestinians from violent oppression, and to hold Israeli authorities accountable for their crimes against international law. Impunity for these shocking attacks against people at prayer will only fuel further violence.” With many Palestinians fearful following Tuesday night’s violence, the number of worshippers at al-Aqsa was much lower yesterday. Once again, Israeli security forces first ordered worshippers to leave, before storming the mosque and firing stun grenades and beating people. Some fifty Palestinians are still detained after the first raid on Tuesday/Wednesday. Those who have been released are prohibited from entering Jerusalem’s Old City, including the al-Aqsa Compound, for one week. Amnesty International spoke to several Palestinians about the violence they had faced at the hands of Israeli security forces. Shadi*, who is 17 years-old, described how Israeli police had beaten him as they dragged him out of the mosque on Wednesday morning: “Twice I tried to raise my head and both times [the police] beat me with the butt of their guns on my head […] you are not allowed to raise your head. I was hurting all over my body from the beatings and the bruises,” Shadi said. He was released later on Wednesday and given an expulsion order banning him from the Old City and al-Aqsa for a week. Shadi also told Amnesty International: “Outside Atarot, I saw others […] what I went through does not even compare to the beatings that others faced.” The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said some of their medical personnel were also attacked during Tuesday night’s raid, and that one of their ambulances was hit by rubber bullets. According to Muhammed Fityani from the organization: “Our staff was prevented from entering the mosque’s courtyards and our work was impeded […] one of our paramedics was directly assaulted and beaten, and two of our ambulances were targeted, one [with] rubber bullets.” Israeli forces regularly raid al-Aqsa during the month of Ramadan. An attack in 2021 left at least 170 Palestinians injured and stirred widespread protests. Following the first raid on al-Aqsa, protests broke out in several Palestinian cities and towns inside Israel. Israeli forces carried out airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on Wednesday and Thursday, in response to missiles fired into Israel. © 2023 Amnesty International

Lebanon: Authorities must halt unlawful deportations of Syrian refugees by Amnesty International © AFP via Getty Images The Lebanese authorities must immediately stop forcibly deporting refugees back to Syria, Amnesty International said today, amid fears that these individuals are at risk of torture or persecution at the hands of the Syrian government upon return. Last week, the Lebanese Armed Forces raided houses occupied by Syrian families in different locations across the country, including Bourj Hammoud in Beirut, and deported to Syria dozens of refugees who had entered the country irregularly or held expired residency cards. Mohammed, the brother of one of the refugees deported by the Lebanese army, told Amnesty International that he managed to contact his brother, who informed him that the Lebanese army drove the refugees directly to the border and handed them over to the Syrian army. He said that many of them are registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). “It is extremely alarming to see the army deciding the fate of refugees, without respecting due process or allowing those facing deportation to challenge their removal in court or seek protection. No refugee should be sent back to a place where their life will be at risk,” said Aya Majzoub, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa. “Lebanon is obligated under the customary international law principle of non-refoulement not to return anyone to a country where they would face a threat of torture or persecution. Instead of living in fear after escaping atrocities in Syria, refugees living in Lebanon should be protected from arbitrary raids and unlawful deportations.” Over 100 refugees, held on the Syrian side of the border since Wednesday, will learn their fate tomorrow according to Mohammed’s brother. Amnesty International and other rights groups have documented how refugees who returned to Syria faced grave human rights violations, including torture and enforced disappearance, at the hands of the Syrian government. Mohammed told Amnesty International that his brother is wanted by the Syrian government for evading military service. The Lebanese army drove him, his wife and his daughter directly from their house in Bourj Hammoud to the Syrian border. Despite being registered with the UNHCR, Mohammed said his brother was not offered the right to challenge his deportation order. Mohammed also said the UNHCR was informed. Mohammed said that the recent wave of deportations has caused him and his family to live in fear and avoid leaving the house. “While there is no excuse for Lebanon violating its legal obligations, the international community should step up its assistance, and particularly its resettlement and alternative pathways programmes, to help Lebanon cope with the presence of an estimated 1.5 million refugees in the country,” said Aya Majzoub. The principle of non-refoulement is a binding customary rule of international law that prohibits states from returning people to a place where they would be at risk of persecution or other serious human rights violations. Anyone at risk of deportation should be given an opportunity to access legal counsel, meet with the UNCHR, and challenge their deportation in court. Background In 2019, Lebanon’s Higher Defence Council, the body responsible for implementing Lebanon’s national defense strategy, instructed security agencies to deport Syrians entering Lebanon through illegal border crossings. In a December 2020 letter to Amnesty International, the Directorate of General Security confirmed that the authorities had deported 6,002 Syrians since May 2019, including 863 in 2020. Deportations were partially halted in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In a September 2021 report, Amnesty International documented a catalogue of horrific violations committed by Syrian intelligence officers against 66 Syrian refugee returnees, including 13 children. The majority of the children had returned from Lebanon, including two who were deported. Syrian intelligence officers subjected women, children and men returning to Syria to unlawful or arbitrary detention, torture and other ill-treatment, including rape and sexual violence, and enforced disappearance. These violations were a direct consequence of their perceived affiliation with Syria’s political opposition, simply because of their refugee status. © 2023 Amnesty International

© AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP The Iraqi government has re-introduced two draft laws to the Parliament which, if passed, would severely curtail the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly of the people of Iraq, Amnesty International and INSM Foundation for Digital Rights in Iraq said today. The reintroduction of these draft laws coincides with a spate of prosecutions targeting people who are critical of government figures, as well as a Ministry of Interior-led campaign to crack down on “indecent content” online. Between January and June this year, the authorities prosecuted at least 20 individuals over the peaceful exercise of their human right to free expression. Six people were sentenced to prison terms but have since been released. “The Iraqi authorities’ latest attempt to repress free expression reveals their blatant disregard for the extraordinary sacrifices made by Iraqis during the 2019 uprising to secure their freedoms. The Iraqi government should immediately withdraw these repressive draft laws and parliament should not pass any laws that would unduly restrict the human rights of Iraqis,” said Bissan Fakih, Amnesty International’s Regional Campaigner for Iraq and Yemen. “The people of Iraq have a right to criticize their leaders and religious figures, and to protest peacefully without fear of imprisonment and heavy fines. These rights are especially important at a time when the Iraqi people are seeking to hold government officials accountable for allegations of systemic corruption and human rights violations.” The proposed draft Law on Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Assembly would give the Iraqi authorities the cover of a democratically adopted law to arbitrarily prosecute anyone who makes public comments that violate “public morals” or “public order”. Under the proposed draft Law on Cybercrimes, meanwhile, those posting online content that is deemed to undermine the vaguely defined “country’s supreme economic, political, military, or security interests” could face a sentence of up to life imprisonment and a fine of up to 50 million Iraqi Dinars (around $38,000 USD). In meetings with Amnesty International in Baghdad in May, human rights defenders and activists expressed alarm that the drafts would empower the authorities to further suppress peaceful dissent. The proposed reforms are causing deep concern due to the recent spate of freedom of expression prosecutions. Journalist Haidar al-Hamdani is being tried pursuant to a criminal defamation complaint filed against him by the governor of Basra, who Al-Hamdani had accused of corruption in a video posted to Facebook where he has more than one million followers. One Iraqi comedian prosecuted by an Iraqi court during the “indecent content” campaign told Amnesty International: “I am no longer able to make fun of a party, or the state, or a public figure … or the state of the roads, water, schools, or bridges. Why? Because it all belongs to the [political] parties”. Curtailing freedom of expression and peaceful assembly On 9 May 2023, Parliament held its second reading of the proposed Law on Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Assembly and Mohammed al-Halbousi, the speaker of Parliament, may call for a general vote on the law at any time. Amendments to both draft laws are being privately discussed by lawmakers, according to individuals who have been involved in discussions and have seen proposed new language in the drafts. Yet these amendments have not been made public, and it is unclear whether the drafts will be shared with members of the public ahead of a possible vote. Hayder Hamzoz, Executive Director of INSM, said: “It is unacceptable that in Iraq today we are suffering from a lack of access to information on draft laws under consideration by parliament. Access to information is an inherent human right and it is one of the keys to the rule of law, to empower citizens and enable them to engage effectively in political life and the fight against corruption.” The draft law prohibits the undermining of “religions, religious beliefs, sects”. Those caught “publicly insulting a ritual or a symbol or a person who constitutes an object of sanctification, worship or reverence to a religious sect” face up to 10 years imprisonment and a fine of up to 10,000,000 Iraqi Dinars ($7,600 USD). As religious figures play a prominent role in Iraq’s major political parties, banning criticism of them would severely limit people’s exercise of their right to freedom of expression. Under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), when a state party imposes restrictions on the exercise of freedom of expression, these may not put in jeopardy the right itself. The relation between right and restriction and between norm and exception must not be reversed. The draft law also allows the authorities to ban public gatherings unless prior permission is obtained from the authorities at least five days in advance. It does not state what criteria the Iraqi authorities would apply in approving or prohibiting protests, in effect giving them the power to ban all protests. In its authoritative interpretation of ICCPR Article 21 on freedom of assembly, the UN Human Rights Committee has stressed in its General Comment no. 37 that “having to apply for permission from the authorities undercuts the idea that peaceful assembly is a basic right” and that “where authorization regimes persist… they must in practice function as a system of notification, with authorization being granted as a matter of course, in the absence of compelling reasons to do otherwise.” Protesters in Iraq already face repression at the hands of security agencies and this risk is heightened anytime the authorities deem a protest to be “unauthorized,” since they regularly resort to the use of force to disperse such protests. Amnesty International has previously documented how, during the 2019 nationwide anti-government protests, at least 600 protesters were killed and thousands more injured after security forces resorted to the use of lethal force. Policing online freedom of expression The government re-introduced the draft Law on Cybercrimes to Parliament in November 2022. Under the vaguely worded proposed law, anyone found guilty of “inflaming sectarian tensions or strife” or “undermining the country’s independence, unity, and safety, or its supreme economic, political, military, or security interests” could face a sentence of up to life imprisonment and a fine of up to 50 million Iraqi Dinars (around $38,000 USD). “In April 2023, the Iraqi government reaffirmed its promise to Amnesty International to guarantee public freedoms, yet their actions in Parliament do not match up,” said Bissan Fakih, Regional Campaigner at Amnesty International. © 2023 Amnesty International

Unchecked border movement and poor sewage systems have a new partner in inflicting misery: climate change. A worker carries a bucketful of disinfectant at a cholera treatment center, in Lusaka, Zambia, Friday, January 12, 2024 [AP Photo] By Shola Lawal Published On 20 Feb 2024 A severe cholera outbreak is currently ravaging communities in Southern Africa, spreading across borders in what experts say is the worst such crisis involving the illness that the region has seen in a decade. Thousands of people have died, and thousands of others have been infected with the acute diarrheal disease in at least seven countries. In some of the hardest-hit countries, the outbreak forced millions of students to stay back home in January. Across the region, emergency response centers have sprung up in school fields and stadiums, and are teeming with groaning patients in pain. Fears are mounting that if the outbreak is not tackled soon, healthcare staff could be overwhelmed. In an emergency summoning to address the outbreak earlier this month, leaders of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) said they were working to stop the spread, but a lack of clean water, weak cross-border checks, and a global shortage of vaccines could test that resolve. Here’s a breakdown of what’s causing the spread and how many people have been affected: How widespread is the outbreak? Caused by the vibrio cholerae bacteria, cholera infects the small intestine, producing toxins that the body works hard to expel by secreting large amounts of vomit or watery diarrhea, leading to rapid dehydration. Mild cases can disappear after a few days of oral rehydration treatment, but in severe cases – approximately one in 10 – it could lead to death within a day if left untreated. Since January 2022, at least 188,000 people have been infected with cholera across seven countries in Southern Africa: Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, South Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo. More than 4,100 people have died, according to the UN humanitarian agency, OCHA. The disease has been spreading since 2022. Although badly hit Zambia only reported its first case in October 2023, more than 18,804 people were infected by Thursday, in what authorities say is the country’s worst outbreak ever. At least 658 people have died since October. Malawi, with at least 59,000 cases since early 2022, is also reporting its largest cholera outbreak ever. In Zimbabwe, 21,000 cases since February 2023 make this epidemic the second-worst on record. DRC, which is also a member of the SADC, has the highest number of infections at 71,000, while South Africa has recorded the lowest number of cases, at 1,076 people. Monthly cases across the affected countries hovered around 2,000 infections since January 2023, but then peaked in January 2024 at 3,400 cases, suggesting higher transmission levels going into February. What’s fueling this outbreak? Cholera typically spreads when people ingest water or food that’s contaminated. The disease is common in areas with poor sanitation, or in conflict zones where drinking water sources might be contaminated with fecal matter or wastewater from sewers. Although endemic to Africa and parts of Asia, experts say it’s rare for several countries to experience outbreaks simultaneously, as is the case in southern Africa. The outbreak was likely triggered by a cocktail of issues, rather than a single event. Regular, unchecked cross-border movement, for example, means infections can be transported: One 2023 study found that two sisters who had travelled from South Africa to a cholera hot spot in Malawi infected a third person on their return and that the strain that is currently spreading is originally from South Asia. While it’s rare for people to transfer the infection through casual contact, poor hygiene can lead to fecal matter from an infected person contaminating food meant for others. Poor sewage systems, alongside inadequate clean water sources for drinking, cooking and hygiene are also a persistent problem in the region. More than half of the population in rural communities in Southern African countries — except for South Africa and Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland — have no access to sanitation facilities like toilets (PDF). In South Africa, researchers say 80 percent of wastewater systems need upgrading. Increasingly frequent and more severe flooding linked to climate change has an impact too, experts have said. Anja du Plessis of the University of South Africa (UNISA) told Al Jazeera that cholera occurs more in the rainy season, which the region is currently experiencing. Flooding “results in more run-off containing more pathogens, increasing the risk of contamination,” she said. Cyclone Kenneth tore through Madagascar, Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, in March 2023, and likely worsened cholera transmission. At the moment, cholera vaccines used both preventively and reactively are scarce, forcing the World Health Organization (WHO) to abandon the usual two-dose oral application for a single dose. Some 29 countries reported cholera outbreaks in 2022, an increase from the average of 20 reporting countries annually. That uptick has stretched the estimated 36 million doses available yearly. There’s only one available manufacturer of the dose at the moment – South Korean firm EuBiologics — and it’s already producing at maximum capacity, according to WHO. While two doses of the vaccine can stop cholera for about three years, one dose reduces the immunity period to between six months and two years. How are SADC countries responding? At an emergency summit on February 2, SADC leaders promised to increase funding for water systems and to work on a cross-country response plan to monitor cholera spread, especially after climate change-linked natural disasters. The leaders also aim to start manufacturing cholera vaccines regionally, although they acknowledged they don’t have enough resources to buy medical supplies like test kits. But some are skeptical and say community-based campaigns in the short term might be more effective than SADC’s plans. “The response so far has been poor [and] we will have to see if their words are transformed into action,” du Plessis of UNISA said. “We can however not depend and wait on the governments to take action. Communities should be properly informed on WASH [water and sanitation hygiene] facilities and practices so that the rate of the outbreak can be curbed.” In Zambia, authorities delayed January school resumption for four million students by about a month so they could install handwashing stations. As school opened in February, flyers went up on walls teaching students about the disease and urging them to wash their hands before handling food. Although authorities there announced continuing talks with the WHO to ship in more vaccines in January, those doses have not arrived yet. Meanwhile, the Africa Center for Communicable Diseases (Africa CDC) has pledged a one million dollar intervention fund for Lusaka to train health workers and buy medical supplies. On a list of several worries is the rainy season which will last through February. Forecasts predicted normal to above-normal rainfall this season, meaning there could be an uptick in infections. In early February, UNICEF said severe flooding in the DRC might escalate the outbreak there and could see infections transported to densely populated cities. © 2024 Al Jazeera Media Network

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government announces rules to implement the controversial law, weeks before he seeks a rare third term in vote due by May. Protesters hold placards as they demonstrate against India's citizenship law in New Delhi [File: Sajjad Hussain/AFP] India implements ‘anti-Muslim’ 2019 citizenship law weeks before election Al Jazeera The Indian government has announced rules to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), weeks before Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks a rare third term for his Hindu nationalist government. The controversial law passed in 2019 by Modi’s government allowed Indian citizenship for non-Muslim refugees from India’s neighbouring countries. It declared that Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians who fled to Hindu-majority India from mainly Muslim Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan before December 31, 2014, were eligible for citizenship. The law was declared “anti-Muslim” by several rights groups for keeping the community out of its ambit, raising questions over the secular character of the world’s largest democracy. Modi’s government had not drafted the rules for the law following nationwide protests over its passage in December 2019. Violence broke out in the capital, New Delhi, during the protests in which dozens of people, most of them Muslims, were killed and hundreds injured during days of rioting. “The Modi government announces implementation of Citizenship Amendment Act,” a government spokesman said, according to a Reuters news agency report on Monday. “It was an integral part of BJP’s 2019 [election] manifesto. This will pave [the] way for the persecuted to find citizenship in India,” he said, referring to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Muslim groups say the law, combined with a proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC), can discriminate against India’s 200 million Muslims – the world’s third-largest Muslim population. They fear the government might remove the citizenship of Muslims without documents in some border states. The government denies accusations that it is anti-Muslim and has defended the law, saying it is needed to help minorities facing persecution in Muslim-majority nations. It says the law is meant to grant citizenship, not take it away from anyone, and has called the earlier protests politically motivated. Rising Islamophobia Human rights groups have alleged that the mistreatment of Muslims has increased under Modi, who took over as prime minister in 2014. The country, since then, has seen a rising number of attacks against Muslims and their livelihoods, including the demolition of Muslim homes and properties. Cases of mob lynching under the pretext of protecting cows, considered holy by some Hindus, have also increased during Modi’s time in power. Critics believe the often-armed cow vigilantes, which used to operate on the fringes of society, became mainstream after the BJP took over. Reports of hate speech against Muslims have also increased in the country, averaging nearly two anti-Muslim hate speech events per day in 2023. A report revealed that three out of four hate speech incidents occurred in states ruled by the BJP. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during a rally, as his bodyguard looks on at the Bakshi Stadium in Srinagar, March 7, 2024 [Stringer/Reuters] © 2024 Al Jazeera Media Network

Fighters reportedly surround strategic town of Sake, forcing thousands to flee closer to North Kivu’s capital. M23 rebels launched a major new offensive in March 2022, sparking a conflict that has led to military intervention [File: Djaffar Sabiti/Reuters] 7 Feb 2024 Thousands of people are fleeing violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as fighting intensifies between the Congolese army and the M23 armed group. Fighters reportedly surrounded the strategic town of Sake on Wednesday, a crucial step before reaching Goma, the capital of North Kivu. Capturing Sake would deal a logistical blow to Congolese soldiers. The Congolese army and United Nations peacekeepers have been struggling to contain M23’s advance. And as fighting continues, thousands of those who fled Sake have arrived in Bulengo, about 10km (six miles) west of Goma. Thousands are “on the road right now”, trying to escape the violence and get to Goma, Al Jazeera’s Alain Uaykani said, reporting from Bulengo on Wednesday. “They have been fighting for a week right now, but this morning, again, rebels have tried to take over the main city,” he explained. It remains unclear whether the army or the rebels are now controlling the area, Uaykani added. “The situation in Sake is very bad with heavy fighting between soldiers and M23 rebels. They have attacked with heavy guns and bombs fell on the city … this is why we are leaving for Goma,” Justin Musau, a displaced person from Sake, told Al Jazeera. Another displaced person, Henriette Muyume, said, “We are running from the fighting between rebels and soldiers. We don’t know where we can go … but we can’t survive in this situation, it’s too much for us.” ‘Targeting Goma’ In a region already plagued with militia violence, M23 rebels launched a major new offensive in March 2022, sparking a conflict that has led to military intervention and mediation efforts by East African regional leaders. They brokered a ceasefire last year but it has been repeatedly violated. Clashes between the rebels, army forces and self-defence groups that support them have escalated recently, forcing entire communities in Masisi and Rutshuru territories to flee to perceived areas of greater safety on the outskirts of Goma. Meanwhile in Goma on Wednesday, a rocket landed near a university. There were no casualties from the attack, which blasted a crater into an area of open ground in the Lac Vert neighbourhood northwest of Goma, but it underscored the potential threat to the city of approximately two million people. “This shows that M23 is targeting Goma now, they want to kill people in Goma. The government has to do something to stop M23’s progress,” student Sophonie Bayonga, 25, told the Reuters news agency at the scene. The DRC government this week promised that it would not let Goma, situated close to the border with Rwanda, fall into M23 hands. The armed group briefly overran North Kivu province in 2012. On Wednesday, M23 said in a statement that this was not its goal and described its actions as “defensive manoeuvres”. The DRC, Western powers and a UN expert group said the Tutsi-led rebel group is supported by Rwanda. Rwanda has denied all involvement, but the accusations have led to a diplomatic crisis in the region. 42,000 displaced Civilians have borne the brunt of the violence in the restive east, with many killed in bombings and reprisal attacks. About 42,000 people have been displaced from Masisi alone since February 2, the UN’s humanitarian office OCHA said on Tuesday. M23 made major advances in the town of Mweso last month, bringing the conflict even closer to Goma, which is about 100km (62 miles) away. Natalia Torrent, head of a Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF) team in Mweso, said violent clashes broke out two weeks ago as the army and pro-government militia tried to reclaim the town. After a lull, fighting picked up over the weekend and the MSF team received 30 wounded people in recent days, she told Reuters by phone on Tuesday. MSF has had to evacuate some of its own staff after bullets struck a hospital in which thousands of Mweso residents were taking shelter. Most have since deserted the town. The UN peacekeeping mission in DRC deployed troops at the end of January to secure a corridor for people fleeing Mweso. Many have sought safety in Sake. SOURCE: AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES © 2024 Al Jazeera Media Network

July 14, 2024 1:28 PM By Agence France-Presse MOSUL, IRAQ — Iraqi authorities have removed the remains of 139 people from a large pit believed to contain victims of the Islamic State group (IS), an official said Sunday. The Alo Antar hole — a natural desert feature allegedly turned into a mass grave by IS jihadis — is in Tal Afar, some 70 kilometers (40 miles) west of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is not known how many bodies were dumped in the pit, but search efforts for other victims are ongoing. "We have removed the remains of 139 persons and also human body parts," said Dia Karim, director of the mass graves department at the Foundation of Martyrs — a government institution tasked with finding mass graves and identifying remains. "They include women and men," Karim said, adding that "according to testimonies, the victims date back to IS rule" or before when al Qaeda was present in the area. Testimonies also suggest, according to Karim, that "the victims are Yazidis, Shiite Turkmen and security forces personnel from Mosul," the de facto capital of IS's self-declared "caliphate." At its peak, the group ruled over swathes of Syria and Iraq, while its fighters committed beheadings, torture and enslavement, turning life into a living hell and leaving behind many mass graves. In northern Iraq, they committed some of their worst atrocities against the Yazidis — an ethnic and religious minority — including mass executions and sexual slavery. Ahmed al-Assadi from the Foundation of Martyrs said the victims "were not buried but dumped in the hole," whose full depth ranges between 42 and 12 meters (138 to 39 feet). "Some of the victims had been shot and others were found with their throats cut," and several bodies were found in body bags. Assadi added that some of the clothing found on them indicated that they might have been Yazidis or Turkmen, adding that other bodies were found in orange jumpsuits of the kind typically worn by IS hostages. The bodies recovered from Alo Antar were taken to forensic departments to be identified using DNA testing. The mass grave was discovered after Iraqi forces retook control of the area in 2017, but the work to recover the bodies only started in May of this year. Iraqi authorities frequently announce the discovery of mass graves of IS victims, as well as those containing IS jihadis themselves and others dating to the rule of dictator Saddam Hussein, but the identification process is slow, costly and complicated. The United Nations estimates the jihadis left behind more than 200 mass graves which might contain as many as 12,000 bodies. A similar but much larger sinkhole known as al-Khasfa in northern Iraq is also thought to contain the bodies of many IS victims. In northern Syria, a 50-meter-deep gorge has been used as a dumping site for dead bodies during and after IS rule, according to a 2020 Human Rights Watch report. © Voice of America

Twelve years since independence, the people of South Sudan continue to face huge challenges, exacerbated now by the war in neighbouring Sudan, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday. © UNICEF/Ahmed Mohamdeen Elfatih. Children collect clean water from a pipe connected to their household. 15 July 2024 | Humanitarian Aid The UN health agency insisted that the humanitarian, economic, social and political crises that began with brutal civil conflict in 2013 have been worsened by the recent influx of refugees from Sudan following the war between rival militaries there - with over 650,000 new arrivals since April 2023. Right now, approaching six million people - or 46 per cent of the population – face crisis levels of food insecurity – a number that’s expected to rise to around 7.1 million during the current lean season. El Niño and flooding The WHO report also highlighted that the 2023-24 El Niño weather phenomenon - one of the strongest on record - brought dry conditions, erratic rainfall and significantly impacted harvests. It also resulted in year-round flooding, which occurred in new previously unaffected areas. Severe flooding, recurrent violence, weak governance, poverty and lack of infrastructure have created a complex humanitarian crisis which is hindering South Sudan’s development, the UN health agency warned. A staggering 8.9 million people mostly in flood and conflict-affected areas have been affected, with women, children, the elderly and people with disabilities at higher risk. UNHCR´s first-ever Forced Displacement Survey (FDS) A pilot household survey by The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) on Monday, further underscores the dire conditions, revealing alarming levels of suffering among both refugee and host communities. The Forced Displacement Survey (FDS) was conducted between April and December 2023 and covered around 3,100 households in South Sudan. It found that all communities face many challenges including limited services, high unemployment, no education, poor infrastructure and overcrowded shelters. 74 per cent of households going hungry Food is a major issue with 74 per cent of both refugee and host community households experiencing hunger in the past month. And over 40 per cent of both groups had less income than the previous year. Refugees from the Sudan crisis have added to the already volatile areas and overstretched services. The conflict has also affected South Sudan’s economy by closing the main oil pipeline. Marie-Helene Verney, UNHCR Representative in South Sudan, said that “we need to link humanitarian assistance to stabilization and development programmes to the extent possible…Substantive long-term investments are crucial to improving the wellbeing of refugees and the communities hosting them.” South Sudan has over 460,000 refugees from Sudan, DRC and Ethiopia. With the conflict in Sudan, South Sudan is receiving 1,600 people daily including refugees and returnees. The FDS provides comprehensive socioeconomic data on refugees and host communities to inform programming and policy. This data is key to targeting assistance where it matters most and bridging the humanitarian-development gap. © United Nations

Anuak refugees following December 13, 2003 massacre in Gambella, Ethiopia Credit: Cultural Survival Genocide Watch: Anuak in Gambella, Ethiopia and Kenyan and South Sudanese Refugee Camps July 18, 2024 An ethnic conflict has erupted in two adjoining UNHCR refugee camps in northwestern Kenya, Kakuma Camp and Kalobeyei Camp. It began on June 20, 2024, when hundreds of members of a neighboring ethnic group, the Nuer, without provocation, attacked some of the Anuak in the camps, killing two Anuak and wounding 22. They were surprise attacks with machetes, pangas and knives in the middle of the night. Despite the efforts of camp leaders to bring the two groups together for peace talks on three occasions, Nuer thugs later attacked again as Anuak people slept. Thousands of Anuak from the Gambella region of Ethiopia have lived in refugee camps since the Anuak genocide began on December 13, 2003, with an Ethiopian government-led massacre of 424 Anuak in Gambella city. The government has seized the Gambella region’s oil and agricultural resources and leased them to Chinese state corporations. The Nuer have also long coveted the Anuak land in Gambella, with attacks escalating over the past year. The numbers killed and wounded are not yet large, but the attacks were unexpected, violent and gruesome. The attackers maimed their victims. Anuak trauma, shock, and fear, along with lack of security in the camps, led to a mass exodus of Anuak from both camps. Within a week, 4000 Anuak refugees took public buses to flee from both camps to Nairobi. The Anuak sought temporary shelter in the Nairobi suburb of Ruiru, crowding into the one Anuak church and compound and in the homes of relatives living there. As numbers increased, most were without any shelter during this rainy season. The Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières became involved, but the need for food, water, shelter and medical care was overwhelming. Anuak leaders met with officials from UNHCR, the Kenya Department of Refugee Services (DRS) and local authorities. Just a week after the refugees fled the Nuer attacks, Kenyan authorities forcibly sent them back to the Kenyan UNHCR camps, without agreement from the Anuak. Police surrounded the church, blocked roads, and beat many Anuak who resisted. Anuak have arrived back at the camps to find their homes looted and damaged. They have no clean water, little food, no electricity, and the metal enclosures and seats of latrines are gone. While camp authorities have fully relocated each group, putting Anuak refugees in Kalobeyei Camp and Nuer refugees in Kakuma Camp, there is still potential for further ethnic violence. Added security has done little to stem fears of new attacks. The most troubling aspect of these attacks is that they may be part of a larger Nuer plan to terrorize the Anuak out of the camps and the entire Gambella region of Ethiopia. A clandestine Nuer organization, the Naath Movement, allegedly has a plan to take over Anuak land in South Sudan and Gambella, Ethiopia. The Naath Movement’s goal is to establish an independent Naath Nation that would include Gambella, Ethiopia as well as Nuer areas in eastern South Sudan. Independence movements are proven early warnings of the genocides that governments use to crush such movements. The deadly consequence of this alleged plan is that Nuer thugs may have begun to murder Anuak to terrorize them into leaving the camps and Gambella, Ethiopia. That constitutes forced displacement, a crime against humanity. If the killing reaches a larger scale, it could even become a plan to commit genocide. To achieve this, the plan evidently may now include targeting Anuak wherever Anuak live, including the Kakuma and Kalobeyei Refugee Camps in Kenya. Genocide Watch considers this situation to be evidence of Stage 7: Preparation in the stages of genocide. Genocide Watch recommends: Kenyan Police must investigate the murders of two Anuak and wounding of 22 on June 22, 2024. UNHCR should work with Kenyan authorities to secure 24/7 security in the Kalobeyei Refugee Camp. UNHCR and Kenyan authorities should continue to seek peace between Nuer and Anuak. Churches with Anuak and Nuer members should actively participate in peacemaking efforts. The governments of Kenya, South Sudan, and Ethiopia should be alerted about the danger of ethnic conflict created by the Nuer Naath independence movement.

More than 3,000 minors, many with ‘no apparent connection to gangs’, have been arbitrarily arrested, Human Rights Watch says. The entrance to a prison near Tecoluca, 74km southeast of San Salvador [El Salvador's Presidency Press Office via AFP] 16 Jul 2024 Thousands of children have been arrested in a mass antigang campaign in El Salvador since 2022 with many suffering abuse while in custody, said Human Rights Watch (HRW). The arrest campaign, beginning in March 2022 as part of El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s pledge to root out gangs from the once crime-ridden country, has created “severe human rights violations against children”, said the group in a new report on Tuesday documenting the abuses. Police rounded up 3,319 minors in “countless indiscriminate raids” often targeting those in “low-income neighbourhoods” known to be hotbeds of crime, said the HRW report. Many of those arrested have “no apparent connection to gangs’ abusive activity”, and were apparently targeted based on their physical appearance or socioeconomic background, it said. At least 60 children suffered abuse in custody, the report alleged, including beatings and torture. Some were deprived of adequate food, healthcare, and contact with their families or coerced into making false confessions. Others were left to be preyed on by adult detainees, with authorities taking few steps to stop beatings or sexual assault, according to the report. “Many children have been doubly victimised by gang members who abused them and then by security forces who detained and mistreated them with possible lifelong consequences,” said HRW. Their prison sentences, doled out with dubious evidence and lack of due process, can span up to 12 years for broadly defined crimes, it added. El Salvador’s gang crackdown, under a state-declared state of emergency, has nearly wiped out its once soaring homicide rate, putting more than 80,000 alleged gangsters behind bars. Today, El Salvador ranks among the safest countries in the Americas, earning President Bukele strong popular support in spite of his draconian tactics. ‘Don’t complain about what happens’ Bukele, who was re-elected in February with 85 percent of the vote, has threatened to use the same ironfisted approach against alleged price gougers, warning them to drop their prices or face the same fate as convicted gang members. “I am going to issue a call, like we did to the gangs at the start of 2019,” Bukele said in a speech earlier this month. “We told them either stop killing people or don’t complain about what happens afterward.” HRW’s Americas director, Juanita Goebertus, said El Salvador’s government should cease abusive practices in its anticrime campaign. “The government should end its abusive approach and prioritise a rights-respecting and effective policy that dismantles criminal gangs, addresses child recruitment, and provides children with protection and opportunities,” said Goebertus. © 2024 Al Jazeera Media Network

Eurasia Review June 11, 2024 By Sanchita Bhattacharya The Taliban instructed the Hazara residents of Nowabad, located in the 6th Security District of Ghazni city, the provincial capital of Ghazni, to submit their land ownership documents to Taliban authorities. The Taliban issued eviction orders, claiming the area had been “usurped” by the residents, who had lived in Ghazni for hundreds of years. On March 6, 2023, the Taliban forced the Hazara residents of Pusht-e Asmidan village in Al Badr District, Sar-e Pul Province, to leave their homes and evacuate the village. They also imposed a fine of AFN 36 million (US $500,000) on the residents of this village, as most of them are from the Hazara community. The Taliban established a “Commission for Prevention of Usurpation and Recovery of Government Lands” in 2023. This Commission, in various provinces, registers government lands under the name of “Emirate Lands”. In October 2021, the Taliban forcibly expelled hundreds of Hazara families from the provinces of Helmand, Balkh, Daikundi, Uruzgan, and Kandahar. [Genocide Watch comment: Forced Displacement is a Crime Against Humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.] In addition to forced evictions, Hazaras have been targets of violent attacks. According to partial data collated by Institute for Conflict Management, at least 113 Hazaras have been killed and 25 injured, in 11 incidents since August 15, 2021 (data till June 16, 2024). Some of the recent incidents include: On April 29, 2024, a gunman stormed the Shia-Hazara Imam Zaman Mosque in the Guzara District of Herat Province and opened fire on worshippers killing six, including a child. On April 21, 2024, IS-KP claimed responsibility for a magnetic IED attack targeting a bus carrying mostly Hazara civilians near a security checkpoint in Kabul, killing one and injuring 10. On January 11, 2024, two people were killed and 12 wounded in a grenade explosion outside a commercial center in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighbourhood, a Hazara enclave in Kabul city. On 6 January, 2024, a minibus with civilians was attacked by the IS-KP in the Dasht-e-Barchi areas of Kabul, killing five people and injuring 15. According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) report, Human Rights Situation in Afghanistan, released on January 22, 2024, targeted attacks against Hazaras persist in various parts of Afghanistan. In the months of October and November 2023, at least 5 separate attacks against Hazaras were planned and carried out. UNAMA’s Annual Report, 2023, however, is silent on the wider persecution of Hazaras in Afghanistan. In addition to physical violence leading to death and severe injuries, Hazaras are also subjected to multiple forms of discrimination and restrictions, affecting a broad-spectrum of human rights. According to Freedom House’s Country Report on Afghanistan, dated June 5, 2024: “The emirate authorities imposed multiple restrictions on the 2023 commemoration of the month of mourning, Muharram. Mourners were told to avoid public displays of religious symbols and rituals, and mourning ceremonies were only to be held in select places of worship designated by the Taliban. Shias widely defied these restrictions, resulting in clashes with the authorities.” After their return to power in August 2021, the Taliban soon resumed their anti-Hazara campaign. On August 18, 2021, the Taliban blew up the statue of Hazara leader Abdul Ali Mazari in Bamiyan province. Mazari had been killed by the Taliban in 1995, during the first Taliban regime. In December 2022, the United Nations called on the de facto Taliban authorities to respect the rights of minorities, specifically mentioning places of worship and education facilities, and singling out the Hazaras as a community ‘facing heightened risk’. There are no official estimates of how large the Hazara population is, as a national census of the Afghan population has never been undertaken. Estimates suggest that the Hazara community has diminished significantly due to oppression, torture, and emigration. Hazaras are estimated to comprise between 4 per cent and 10 per cent of the Afghan population. Hazaras speak a dialect of Dari (Farsi) called Hazaragi and the vast majority follow the Shia sect (Twelver Imami) of Islam. A significant number are also followers of the Ismaili sect. A large number of Hazaras live in Hazarajat (or Hazarestan), the ‘land of the Hazara’, situated in the rugged central mountainous core of Afghanistan, in the Bamiyan province and in cities such as Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif. Small concentrations are also found in the Badakhshan, Jowzjan and Badghis provinces. Ismaili Hazaras, a smaller religiously differentiated group of Hazaras, live in the Hindu Kush Mountain region. Hazara women suffer from the selective Taliban policy of identifying ‘bad hijab‘. On January 11, 2023, the UNAMA expressed concern about the “arbitrary arrests and detentions of women and girls” over hijab. UNAMA documented the arrest of women in Kabul and Daikundi provinces and was “looking into allegations of ill-treatment and incommunicado detention. Religious and ethnic minority communities appear to be disproportionately impacted by the enforcement operations.” The release process of these women reportedly required a mahram (male guardian) to sign a letter guaranteeing future compliance or else face punishment. The Taliban’s restrictions have far-reaching implications, especially on the mental health of Hazara women who are already dealing with the trauma of long-term conflict and targeted attacks. The Ministry of Higher Education under the Taliban also published a decree in 2023, ordering the removal of all books belonging to the Shia sect or written by Shias, Salafis and the political opponents of the Taliban, deemed different from Hanafi jurisprudence. The group also banned marriages between Shias and Sunnis. The formation of the provincial Ulema Councils in various provinces also had no Shia or female members. There have been many attacks on Hazara schools. For instance, on 30 September 2022, an attack at the Kaaj Education Centre in Dasht-e-Barchi killed more than 60 Hazara students and injured over 100, mostly female. In repeated acts of desperation, Hazaras have migrated to the neighbouring countries of Pakistan and Iran over the years. They have also migrated to countries such as Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom in search of a peaceful, secure and better life. A May 18, 2024, report indicates that, since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan in August 2021, Hazaras have fled their home country to seek asylum in Indonesia as well. As of February, 2023 there were some 12,710 registered refugees with the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) in Indonesia, more than half from Afghanistan, and most of these, Hazaras. The Hazaras have started a refugee learning centre – Cisarua Refugee Learning Centre (CRLC) – at Cisarua, Bogor Regency, south of Jakarta. There are at least seven such refugee-led learning centres in Bogor, which serve some 1,800 children, as well as three in Jakarta and one in the Thai capital, Bangkok. The Hazara people are experiencing persecution and violence in Afghanistan at the hands of the Taliban as well as from the terrorist organization, the Islamic State, Khorasan Province. The Freedom House Country Report 2024 noted, for instance, “ISKP has continued its campaign of violence against the Hazara community." Mass casualty attacks against Hazaras included improvised explosive devices (IEDs) at a Shia mosque in Pol-e-Khomri in October 2023, at a west Kabul sports club the same month, and a commuter bus in west Kabul in November. The Hazaras are not only a religious, but also an ethnic minority in a country currently controlled by the Sunni-Pashtun Taliban. With the regressive and militant religious-ideological Taliban in power in the country, they have been viciously persecuted, with little, if any, recourse for justice. As the Taliban hardens its purported ‘Islamic regulations’, which see the Hazaras as a deviant group, such persecution can only worsen. Copyright 2024 Eurasia Review