Syria's Assad blames unrest on saboteurs, pledges reforms

 

  Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Monday "saboteurs" were behind unrest against his rule and that political accommodation could not be reached with gunmen.

In just his third speech since the demonstrations began four months ago, Assad appeared tense as he pledged to pursue a national dialogue on reform and held out the prospect of expanding a recent amnesty.

But he said: "We have to distinguish between (protesters, and others who have legitimate demands) and saboteurs. The saboteurs are a small group that tried to exploit the kind majority of the Syrian people to carry out their many schemes."

No political solution was possible with people carrying weapons, he said.

As Syrian forces swept through the northwestern border region with Turkey, blocking refugees fleeing a military crackdown, Assad called on the 10,000 who have already crossed the frontier to come home.

"There are those who give them the impression that the state will exact revenge, I affirm that is not true. The army is there for security," he said in the speech at Damascus University.

A committee on national dialogue will meet in the next few days and invite more than 100 personalities to discuss the criteria and mechanism for constitutional reform, he said. He set a one-month target date for presenting recommendations.

Syria's military operation along the Turkish border follows the biggest protests in four months of anti-Assad unrest on Friday which a violent clampdown has failed to quash.

Security forces shot dead up to 19 protesters on Friday, rights groups said.

In addition to the more than 10,000 Syrian refugees now in Turkey, a further 10,000 are sheltering close to the border just inside Syria in the olive groves and rich farmland around the town of Jisr al-Shughour, Turkish officials said.

But Syrian human rights campaigner Ammar al-Qurabi said the army was now stopping those still inside Syria from leaving.

"The Syrian army has spread around the border area to prevent frightened residents from fleeing across the border to Turkey," he told.

Qurabi also accused pro-government forces of attacking people trying to aid the refugees as they fled.

The violence so close to its border challenges Turkey's foreign policy of "zero problems with neighbors" that has seen it befriend the Middle East's autocratic rulers while presenting itself as a champion of democracy.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey has pledged to keep his borders open to refugees and has called the Syrian government crackdown "savagery," but beyond words, it is not clear whether Ankara's rapprochement with Damascus has earned Turkey any influence with Assad to halt the violence.

REFUGEES "FEAR GETTING SHOT"

Syrian troops and gunmen loyal to Assad seized the town of Bdama, only 2 km (1.2 miles) from Turkey on Saturday, burning houses and arresting dozens, witnesses said.

"There are roadblocks everywhere in Bdama to prevent people from fleeing but villagers are finding other routes through valleys to escape to the Turkish border," said Omar, a farmer from Bdama who managed to reach the border area.

"We received no bread today. There was one bakery operating in Bdama but it has been forced to shut. The 'shabbiha' (Assad's gunmen) are shooting randomly," one refugee, a carpenter who gave his name as Hammoud, told Reuters by telephone.

"One man in Bdama was injured today and we managed to smuggle him to hospital in Turkey. But many fear getting shot if they attempt to cross the border," the refugee added.

Faced with troops firing live ammunition, Syrian protesters have taken to venting their anger against Assad at night.

Demonstrations erupted overnight in the cities of Hama, Homs, Latakia, Deir al-Zor, the town of Madaya near the Lebanese border, several suburbs of the capital Damascus and in Albu Kamal on the border with Iraq, witnesses and activists said.

Authorities blame the violence on armed groups and Islamists, backed by foreign powers. Syria has barred most international journalists from entering the country, making it difficult to verify accounts from activists and officials.

Syrian rights groups say at least 1,300 civilians have been killed and 10,000 people detained since March.

The Syrian Observatory for human rights has said more than 300 soldiers and police have also been killed. Other rights campaigners said dozens of security personnel had been killed by loyalist troops for refusing to shoot at unarmed civilians.

Even so, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev practically ruled out supporting a UN resolution condemning Syria's crackdown on pro-democracy protesters.

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Forest Europe summit 'to shape' policy

 Forests cover almost one half of Europe's land area.

 

 

 

Forestry ministers from across Europe are attending a summit to shape future policy on how woodlands are managed.


Delegates from 46 nations are expected to decide whether they will go ahead and establish a legally binding agreement on forest management.


Yesterday, the conference is being officially opened by Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, and the State of Europe's Forest 2011 report is set to be published.


Ministers at the three-day gathering in Oslo are also set to adopt resolutions that will help shape European forest policy for the next decade.


It is estimated that forests cover more than half of Europe's land area.
"Forest Europe is a unique process for sharing information and experience between different countries," said host minister Lars Peder Brekk.


"It is a very important conference, and I hope we can get good results," he told.



Brekk explained that there were two main goals for the sixth meeting of ministers.


"One is to consider the goals, targets and actions for Forest Europe for the coming years.


"And for me, as the minister that is leading this work, it is also very important to make progress and launch the proceedings for the legally binding agreement."


He added that launching the process towards such an agreement would be a "huge success" for the sixth ministerial gathering since Forest Europe was established in 1990.


Brekk said: "It is very important for the future - it can be a model for such legislation and work in other parts of the world."

However, he was keen to stress that management of forest resources remained under the sovereignty of individual nations, and any agreement through the Forest Europe process would be more about sharing information and experiences.
 

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Vietnam in live-fire drill amid South China Sea row

Vietnam is holding live-fire drills in the South China Sea amid high tensions with China over disputed waters.
A Vietnamese naval officer said the "routine" drills were being held about 40km (25 miles) off central Quang Nam province, outside the disputed area.


The second stage of the exercise will be held at night; shipping has been warned to stay clear of the area.
Chinese state media denounced the exercises as a military show of force to defy Beijing.
The drills are taking place within days of an escalation in the long-standing maritime border dispute between China and Vietnam.


The South China Sea includes important shipping routes and may contain rich oil and gas deposits.
Vietnam last month accused China of cutting the exploration cables of an oil survey ship. In a similar incident last week it said a Chinese fishing boat had "intentionally rammed" the exploration cables of another of its boats.


China said that its fishing boats were chased away by armed Vietnamese ships in the incident last Thursday.
The fishing net of one of the Chinese boats became tangled with the cables of an Vietnamese oil exploring vessel, which was operating illegally in the area, and was dragged for more than an hour before it was cut free, the Chinese foreign ministry said.


China accused Vietnam of "gravely violating" its sovereignty and warned it to stop "all invasive activities".

'Official sanction'

A Vietnamese naval officer said the "routine annual training" exercises have "nothing to do with the recent incidents involving China".


The first part of the nine-hour drill is being held around the uninhabited island of Hon Ong - well within Vietnamese territorial waters.


A second phase of live firing lasting about six hours will be staged at night, officials said.
China has not commented officially on the naval exercises, but a newspaper controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, the Global Times, said the drills were "a military show of force to defy Beijing".
Demonstrations have been held in Hanoi for the second weekend in a row, calling for China to get out of Vietnam's territorial waters.


Demonstrations are not usually tolerated in Communist Vietnam, but the authorities appear to be allowing protests related to the South China Sea dispute, our correspondent says.

China is engaged in maritime border disputes with several countries.
The Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have rival claims in the area. The US has also expressed concern about China's rising naval ambitions.

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34 killed in Pak suicide bombing

Pakistani security officials examine the site of twin bomb blasts in Peshawar early Sunday.

 At least 34 people were killed and 94 injured after twin explosions rocked a market in the Sadar area of Peshawar, Pakistan.
The first blast, relatively small, went off in the restroom of a restaurant in the crowded Khyber Super Market, according to Shafqat Malik, chief of bomb disposal in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
People gathered at the scene and many were casualties after a suicide bomber on a motorbike arrived at the restaurant minutes later and set off explosives.senior,
Muhammad Ejaz Khan, a senior police official in Peshawar, said about 10 kilograms of explosives were used in the second blast.

The neighborho
od is a residential area popular with single professionals and students. It features hotels and shops.
Saif Ul Islam Saifi, president of the press club in Peshawar, said one journalist was killed and nine others were hurt. A provincial minister said two journalists died. There are several media offices in the area.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Peshawar and the surrounding region have been swamped by a wave of violence in recent months.

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Over 10,000 flee clashes in Sudan border state: UN

 More than 10,000 people displaced by fighting in Sudan's Southern Kordofan were staying near a U.N. compound on Thursday, the country mission spokesman said, after nearly a week of clashes in the tense border state.

Fighting between government forces and armed groups erupted in the state capital of Kadugli and elsewhere after a police station was attacked on Saturday, adding to tensions as the country's south prepares to secede in about a month.

Southern Kordofan, an oil-producing state which lies in northern territory, has long been seen as a flashpoint because it is home to thousands of fighters who fought alongside the south against Khartoum during the last civil war.

In statements carried by the state news agency SUNA, Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said north Sudan's armed forces were in control of Southern Kordofan on Thursday and were combing it for "remnants of the rebellion."

Southern Kordofan is important to the north because it has the most productive oil fields that will remain under Khartoum's control after the split. The south could take as much as 75 percent of Sudan's 500,000 barrels per day of oil output.

It also borders the disputed Abyei territory and Darfur, a western region that is the scene of a separate insurgency.

Analysts have predicted fighting could break out in Southern Kordofan ahead of the split, especially after an official of the ruling northern party was named the winner in a gubernatorial election last month.

The south said the vote was rigged, which Khartoum denied.

Southern Sudan voted to secede in a January referendum, the culmination of a 2005 peace deal that ended decades of civil war between the north and south. The split is scheduled for July 9.

CLASHES CONTINUE

The number of people staying near the local U.N. Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) compound after fleeing the state capital of Kadugli and nearby villages had risen to an estimated 10,000 by Thursday, UNMIS spokesman Kouider Zerrouk said.

Clashes took place in Kadugli and other areas into Thursday, he added.

Bashir's ruling National Congress Party had earlier accused southern-aligned armed groups in Southern Kordofan of fighting with the support of "foreign powers" and some domestic opposition.

"The armed forces will carry out their national duty and deal with all rebel forces," the statement cited presidential assistant Nafie Ali Nafie as saying.

Officials with the south's dominant party, the Sudan Peoples' Liberation Movement, have said the clashes started when the north tried to disarm armed groups in the area.

The northern army has blamed the southern-aligned groups for starting the fighting.

The militias are still referred to as members of the Southern Peoples' Liberation Army -- the southern military -- although Juba says they are no longer part of their army and cannot ask them to withdraw south because they are northern.

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Healing the Wounds: Libya

s: Libya

Latest news:  Libya
Field Blog: CIVIC From the Field: Libya

The Conflict

In February 2011, following a spate of protests in countries around the region, protests broke out in several areas of Libya challenging Col. Muammar Qaddafi's 42-year rule. In late February, as the government's response to these protests turned increasingly violent, the UN Security Council responded by passing Resolution 1970 to impose sanctions on Qaddafi and refer the situation in Libya to the International Criminal Court (ICC). In early March, the UN General Assembly suspended Libya's membership to the Human Rights Council.
On March 17th, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1973 calling for a no-fly zone to deter the bombardment of civilian targets by government forces. Resolution 1973 marks the first time the Security Council passed a resolution to authorize the use of force with an explicit reference to the responsibility to protect.
An ad hoc coalition composed of the US, France, and the UK began implementing the no-fly zone immediately after the adoption of Resolution 1973. On March 27th, NATO assumed command of the military operation in Libya. NATO follows Resolution 1973 in banning all flights in Libyan airspace, except those for humanitarian and aid purposes, to make sure that civilians and civilian populated areas cannot be subjected to air attack by Qaddafi forces.
The Libyan rebels and pro-Qaddafi forces have both gained and lost territory as NATO's airstrike campaign continues. While pro-Qaddafi forces, armed with better weapons, were initially able to force the Libyan rebels back, increased coordination between the rebels and NATO have led to more effective NATO airstrikes and territorial gains. Britain, France, and Italy have sent military liaison officers to help the rebels organize their nascent forces. The fighting continues, often intensely, in several parts of the country.
Qaddafi's forces have reportedly used cluster munitions and landmines, and have targeted civilian areas and medical facilities. These allegations are documented by both the UN High Commissioner for ,civis,public,Human Rights as well as independent human rights organizations.

CIVIC's Work

CIVIC consistently calls on all parties to the conflict to avoid civilians, including pro-Qaddafi forces, the rebels, militias and NATO.
In the absence of any means by which to evaluate the effectiveness of actions taken in accordance with either Resolution 1973 or 1970, CIVIC calls for the immediate and comprehensive recording of all civilian casualties, followed-up by full investigations as soon as feasible. NATO should develop a civilian casualty tracking, analysis and response mechanism with personnel in both Naples and in Benghazi. In addition to cataloguing all available known data, the cell would also recognize and investigate all allegations of civilian casualties, in anticipation of future development of an amends system. The mechanisms employed should be transparent and open to public scrutiny.
CIVIC traveled to Eastern Libya in April 2011 to work on practical ways the Libyan opposition and NATO can track and investigate civilian harm, and make amends when appropriate. Access to many parts of the country, including Tripoli, is not possible at this time. This work is ongoing.

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