U.N. human rights investigators have gathered testimony from casualties of Syria’s civil war and medical staff indicating that rebel forces have used the nerve agent sarin, one of the lead investigators said on Sunday.
The United Nations independent commission of inquiry on Syria has not yet seen evidence of government forces having used chemical weapons, which are banned under international law, said commission member Carla Del Ponte.
“Our investigators have been in neighbouring countries interviewing victims, doctors and field hospitals and, according to their report of last week which I have seen, there are strong, concrete suspicions but not yet incontrovertible proof of the use of sarin gas, from the way the victims were treated,” Del Ponte said in an interview with Swiss-Italian television.
A total of three possible chemical attacks have been reported thus far, and several U.S. officials apparently still maintain varying levels of certainty that the Assad regime is responsible for at least one attack. That said, it will be interesting to see how the Obama Administration reacts should incontrovertible proof emerge, particularly given previous declarations that such attacks from the Syrian government would cross a “red line.”
North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, has urged frontline troops to be on “maximum alert” for a potential war, state media reported, in its latest rhetorical volley following new UN sanctions. Analysts believe the sabre-rattling is aimed at shoring up domestic support as much as reaching the international community, possibly in part because Kim is a young and relatively new leader.
He told troops stationed near disputed waters where previous clashes with the South have occurred that “war can break out right now”, state media reported. The North has also said it has cancelled the 1953 armistice that ended the Korean war and threatened the US with a pre-emptive nuclear strike.
While it’s widely believed that Kim Jong Un’s recent actions have been the result of a concerted effort to bolster his own image in the region, as opposed to actually scaring South Korea or the United States; however, it’s hard to simply write-off a man who controls a nation’s nuclear arsenal. Despite the North Korean government’s recent antics„ the United States has imposed new sanctions against the country following a UN vote on the matter last week.
On Iconic Imagery: A new report from the United Nations claims that the above photo of BBC reporter Jihad al-Masharawi holding his slain child was actually the result of a wayward Palestinian rocket, and not a bombing by the Israeli Air Force as previously reported. While we suspect the news doesn’t make the loss of child any easier/harder for the young father, it certainly changes the narrative around an image that has become symbolic for last year’s 8-day conflict in Gaza which claimed the lives of 160 Palestinians and six Israelis. (Photo via Associated Press/Majed Hamdan) source
Can you imagine A Day Without News?
One year ago, legendary correspondent Marie Colvin and photojournalist Remi Ochlik were killed in Homs, Syria. Evidence from eye witnesses suggests that the journalists were targeted by the Syrian regime in an attempt to limit exposure of the war’s atrocities. Their deaths struck an industry still reeling from a string of tragic losses, including the deaths of photojournalists Chris Hondros and Tim Hetherington in Misrata, Libya, in April 2011.
Watch the U.N. Secretary General’s message of support
“It is unacceptable that those looking to report objectively from conflict zones around the world are deliberately singled out, targeted and murdered with impunity, with those responsible for their deaths not facing any repercussions. Without these journalists bearing witness, atrocities committed in war would go unremarked and it is an equal cruelty that their deaths go without justice. This is a situation that has to change. We are heading towards a day when it will be too dangerous for journalists to enter into or report from war zones.” - Aidan Sullivan, Vice President, Photo Assignments, Editorial Partnerships and Development for Getty Images and founder of A Day Without News?
A Day Without News?, launching today, will raise awareness of the risks faced by journalists and photojournalists in war zones, and lobby governments and tribunals to pursue and prosecute those who harm members of the news media. Many media professionals find themselves deliberately targeted when attempting to cover conflicts, and, while it is considered a war crime to do so, there has been little to no enforcement of this international humanitarianlaw. Over the past decade, 945 photojournalists and correspondents have been killed while covering conflict zones, 583 of these without any resulting prosecutions as war crimes. Ninety journalists were killed in 2012 alone, the deadliest year on record.
Please visit A Day Without News? to learn more and to add your name in support.
The people who risked life and limb to tell you about the stories you care about. Learn more about them—along with the risks involved.
Syrian leaders should be brought before the International Criminal Court (ICC) to face justice for murder and torture, UN investigators urged on Monday as the EU renewed its blanket arms embargo on both sides in Syria’s bloody conflict.
Britain, however, secured the agreement of its partners to make it easier to supply “non-lethal” equipment and training to maintain security in rebel-held areas, which was not previously possible. But it had not sought agreement to send weapons, Whitehall officials insisted, rejecting claims from Brussels that it had.
Unfortunately, efforts to bring justice to the Syrian leadership loyal to President Bashar al-Assad are unlikely to go anywhere, because they requires the full support of the UN Security Council’s five permanent members. Considering Russia and China’s previous reluctance to support Western intervention in Syria, it’s unlikely that either will suddenly be supportive of charging the Assad regime with war crimes.
After careful analysis of the available data, we are convinced that separating our grassroots website from RonPaul.com would be counterproductive. There are literally hundreds of thousands of inbound links directed to specific articles, videos and blog posts at RonPaul.com that would all be misdirected if you put up a new website at the domain.
Also, we have many email addresses, social media accounts, t-shirt designs etc. linked to the domain (in particular the popular Facebook page “RonPaul.com”) that we would have to change or abandon. In short, such an abrupt change would lead to chaos on the Internet and - at least temporarily - disrupt the message of liberty.
To avoid these complications we’d like to offer you an alternative domain name, RonPaul.org, for your new website at no cost whatsoever. Please don’t use a monstrosity such as “RonPaulsHomePage.com” as is being speculated on the forums. RonPaul.org is an attractive, high quality alternative, and it won’t cost you anything. (Other than the annual renewal fee; all domains have to be renewed each year and that costs about $10 per year.)
If you do insist on obtaining RonPaul.com (it is the best Ron Paul related domain name), we could relocate our grassroots site elsewhere and sell you the domain name at its current market price of $250,000. That would include a copy of our 170,000 strong RonPaul.com email list; these supporters proactively signed up for our email updates, they expect and welcome frequent communications, and they are completely “untapped” in terms of donations. This means that you (and/or Campaign for Liberty) could easily make back the purchase price in a matter of days. Only you can put this list to its best possible use, which is why we’d include it as a free bonus with RonPaul.com.
It’s worth noting that Paul hadn’t registered the domains in 2008, which is why the fans who built the current site bought them instead. Considering that they would’ve arguably been more valuable when he was running for president, it’s strange that he wants them now. What’s crazier about this situation — that his supporters are trying to charge him $250,000 to ensure some T-shirts don’t have broken links or that Paul, who generally is anti-government-intervention, is trying to get the UN involved?
More than 60,000 people have died in the Syrian uprising and civil war, the United Nations said on Wednesday, dramatically raising the death toll in a struggle that shows no sign of ending.
Dozens were killed in a Damascus suburb when a government air strike turned a petrol station into an inferno, incinerating drivers who had rushed there for a rare chance to fill their tanks, activists said.
“I counted at least 30 bodies. They were either burnt or dismembered,” said Abu Saeed, an activist who arrived at the area an hour after the raid occurred at 1:00 PM (1100 GMT) in Muleiha, a suburb on the eastern edge of the capital.
U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay said in Geneva that researchers cross-referencing seven sources over five months of analysis had listed 59,648 people killed in Syria between March 15, 2011 and November 30, 2012.
“The number of casualties is much higher than we expected and is truly shocking,” she said. “Given that there has been no let-up in the conflict since the end of November, we can assume that more than 60,000 people have been killed by the beginning of 2013.”
That’s 60,000 people killed since March 15th, 2011. A truly horrific figure, and one which U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights Navi Pillay admitted “shames us all.”
Palestine appeals to UN General Assembly: The Palestinian Authority is expected to make major headway at the United Nations today, where a majority of the General Assembly is expected to vote in favor of granting the Authority “non-member state” status. The United States continues to oppose such a change, preferring instead to see a two-state solution arise from peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. source
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
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Not to go to the UN would be suicidal for the Palestinian Authority. All these people [in Gaza] took the brunt of the attack and now we should chicken out because they [the US and Israel] will cut off some money? What we’re doing is not violent; it’s not military; it’s not illegal. The world should see that if they keep maintaining the status quo, it will get you nothing but more bloodshed. That’s the lesson from Gaza.Senior Palestinian official Nabil Shaath - Assuring the Guardian’s Chris McGreal that Palestinians’ resolve to seek recognition of statehood from the United Nations would be broken by monetary threats. Several countries, most notably the US and UK, have been pressuring the Palestinian Authority to make various concessions ahead of its next attempt to gain international recognition on November 29. Much of the concern allegedly stems from the Israeli’s government’s fear that it will be dragged before the International Criminal Court on war crimes charges related to the Gaza offensive that took place four years ago. source
It must have come as a surprise to the Egyptian teenagers who washed American teargas out of their eyes (during the Arab Spring) to hear that the U.S. supported change in the Middle East. It’s time for President Obama to keep his word … and for the U.S. to cease its persecution of WikiLeaks.Julian Assange • In a video feed, aired at the United Nations on Wednesday, mocking Obama’s UN speech, which encouraged free speech in the Middle East. His point? Wikileaks certainly didn’t get a free-speech pass from the U.S. government; in fact, he says Obama has “done more to criminalize free speech than any other U.S. president.” Ouch.
God willing, a new order will come together and we’ll do away with everything that distances us. Now even elementary school kids throughout the world have understood that the United States government is following an international policy of bullying. They command from behind the microphone. They command and impose their wills on how things should be done. I do believe the system of empires has reached the end of the road. The world can no longer see an emperor commanding it. Bullying must come to an end. Occupation must come to an end.Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad • Describing the United States as a “bully” in a recent interview with the Associated Press. Ahmadinejad was in New York for the UN General Assembly. His final term as Iranian president ends next year.
Copyright 2009-2013 Ernie Smith • Ask us stuff! • E-mail us • Follow us on Twitter • Follow us on Facebook
![gifhound:
O_O
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is going viral with his diagram of Iran’s nuclear progress today at the UN General Assembly.
[Source: BuzzFeed]
Sorry, boring. Can someone tell us the gist of this using a powerpoint?](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mb0zmbjGFC1rtxen9o1_500.gif)