Tuesday,
August 28, 2012. Chaos and violence continue, Iraq War veteran and
conscientious objector Joshua Casteel has passed away, Iraq executes 21
people (with more executions planned for tomorrow), Camp Ashraf
residents are roughed up by Nouri's goons, Nouri's court finds three
members of the Electoral Commission guilty, and more.
Starting with Ehren Watada -- the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq. Last week,
the US military announced they would move to court-martial Watada. The
court-martial is expected to take place early next year. Last night,
Watada appeared on CNN's Paula Zahn Now program. Speaking to Zahn, Watada explained
how, as late as September 2005, he was willing to go to Iraq (and had
volunteered to deploy with any unit) but "then I began findout out
some things about how possibly that our government could have misled,
not only the Congress, but also the public, and the world as to the
reasons why we were going to Iraq, and there were never any weapons of
mass destruction, there were never any ties to al Qaeda or ties to
9/11. And I just -- at that point, I personally felt very betrayed as a
soldier, willing to put my life on the line and willing to order
soldiers to do the same, that we were sent to go and fight a war were
the reasons were falsified."
After Watada's appearance, Zahn had a panel discussion. Joshua Casteel noted
"the Uniform Code of Military Justice tells us two things. One is that
we have an obligation to obey all lawful orders, but we also have an
obligation to disobey all unlawful orders, and -- which includes
disobeying orders that are unlawful, even if they come from the
President of the United States. Article Six, Paragraph Two of the
United States Constitution dictates that treaties that the United States
signs on to are to be considered the laws of the land, including among
them, the Hague Convention on Land Warfare of 1899, the Neruember
Principles, which in 1953, the Department of Defense declared to be
official policy. And Justice Jackson, who's the chief . . ." Zahn
interrupts to ask if Watada's stand is "justified." Castell replies,
"He is one of the few examples of moral courage that we have in the
midst of plenty of individuals who show physical courage to go to Iraq
and sacrifice for their country. But what we need right now are moral
leaders. And Lieutenant Watada is an example of the kind of leadership
that reminds us of our better nature and the aspirations of the United
States Constitution."
Jose
Vasquez points out, "Joshua believed his illness was a result of his
service in Iraq where he was exposed to the toxic fumes from burn pits
and had sumbitted a compensation claim with the Veterans
Administration." Veterans for Peace's Mike Wong notes,
"I remember so well standing behind and to the left of Joshua and
watching him as he spoke at Ricky Clousing's press conference. He spoke
the truth so clearly and without hesitation. He accomplished so much
in his short life and will be sorely missed. Thank you, thank you for
all you have given, Joshua."
Yesterday
Joshua went home to meet his Heavenly father and to embrace again his
earthly father. We miss him with all of our hearts and every ounce of
our beings. We cling to the promise that we will see him again. His
body is healed and for that we rejoice.
When
we finalize plans for his memorial service and celebration of his life
we will post more information. Thank you all -- Rebekah
The
Republican National Convention is underway in Tampa. Today former US
Secretary of State and former National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice
got a little attention today. Mike Schneider (AP) reports CODEPINK's Medea Benjamin and other members announced they were present -- brandishing handcuffs -- to arrest Rice. Tom Pennington (Getty Images) has a photo of CODEPINK with signs here.
Now Tony's off to South Africa and Money Web reports a
protest is planned for Johannesburg and quotes the president of the Al
Jama-ah political party Ganief Hendricks stating, "The democration is
being held to support a warrant of arrest to charge him for crimes
against humanity relating to the invasion of Iraq which led to the
killings of millions of Iraqis." Arrest Blair For Crimes Against Peace notes his scheduled appearance in Johannesburg at the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit on Thursday and the site reminds: [. . .]
As
Tony Blair prepares to speak at the Discovery Leadership Summitt in
Johannesburg Thursday where the War Criminal will be pocketing a large
sum of money for speaking, people prep for a protest and a possible
citizen's arrest. SAPA notes,
"Attempts to arrest him have been made in China outside the Chilcot
Inquiry into the Iraq war and the European Parliament; and in Dublin,
Ireland." Whatever happens on Thursday, War Criminal Blair's impact is
already being felt.
BBC News reports,
"Archbishop Desmond Tutu has pulled out of an event because he refuses
to share a platform with Tony Blair. The veteran peace campaigner said
Mr Blair's support for the Iraq war was 'morally indefensible' and it
would be 'inappropriate' for him to appear alongside him." Caroline Crampton (New Statesman) reports,
"A spokesman for Archbishop Tutu told me that this should not be viewed
as a nsap decision, saying that Tutu is 'a very prayerful man' who will
have 'spent hours on his knees considering this decision'." Free Malaysia Today quotes
from the letter his office sent the ogranizers, "Ultimately, the
archbishop is of the view that Mr Blair's decision to support the United
States' military invasion of Iraq, on the basis of unproven allegations
of the existence in Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, was morally
indefensible." His spokesperson Roger Friedman tells Reuters,
"Morality and leadership are indivisible. In this context, it would be
inappropriate and untenable for the archbishop to share a platform with
Mr Blair."
"Obviously
Tony Blair is sorry that the Archbishop has decided to pull out now
from an event that has been fixed for months and where he and the
Archbishop were never actually sharing a platform.
"As far as Iraq is
concerned they have always disagreed about removing Saddam by force -
such disagreement is part of a healthy democracy.
"As for the
morality of that decision we have recently had both the memorial of the
Halabja massacre where thousands of people were murdered in one day by
Saddam's use of chemical weapons; and that of the Iran-Iraq war where
casualties numbered up to a million including many killed by chemical
weapons.
"So these decisions are never easy morally or politically".
I
don't get into 'moral' discussions. I don't mind discussing ethics but
never with War Criminals. You'll note that Tony Blair's office
steadfastly avoided whether "these decisions" are legal or not. For
obvious reasons.
AP is calling
it a "scuffle," what happened at Camp Ashraf yesterday when 20 Ashraf
residents were left injured. When the US invaded Iraq, approximately
3,400 people were at Camp Ashraf. They were Iranian dissidents who
were given asylum by Saddam Hussein decades ago. The US government
authorized the US military to negotiate with the residents. The US
military was able to get the residents to agree to disarm and they
became protected persons under Geneva and under international law.
Despite
that legal status and the the legal obligation on the part of the US
government to protect the residents, since Barack Obama has been sworn
in as US president, Nouri has ordered not one but two attacks on Camp
Ashraf resulting in multiple deaths. Let's recap. July 28, 2009
Nouri launched an attack (while then-US Secretary of Defense Robert
Gates was on the ground in Iraq). In a report released this summer
entitled " Iraqi government must respect and protect rights of Camp Ashraf residents,"
Amnesty International described this assault, "Barely a month later, on
28-29 July 2009, Iraqi security forces stormed into the camp; at least
nine residents were killed and many more were injured. Thirty-six
residents who were detained were allegedly tortured and beaten. They
were eventually released on 7 October 2009; by then they were in poor
health after going on hunger strike." April 8, 2011,
Nouri again ordered an assault on Camp Ashraf (then-US Secretary of
Defense Robert Gates was again on the ground in Iraq when the assault
took place). Amnesty International described the assault this way,
"Earlier this year, on 8 April, Iraqi troops took up positions within
the camp using excessive, including lethal, force against residents who
tried to resist them. Troops used live ammunition and by the end of the
operation some 36 residents, including eight women, were dead and more
than 300 others had been wounded. Following international and other
protests, the Iraqi government announced that it had appointed a
committee to investigate the attack and the killings; however, as on
other occasions when the government has announced investigations into
allegations of serious human rights violations by its forces, the
authorities have yet to disclose the outcome, prompting questions
whether any investigation was, in fact, carried out." Mohammed Tawfeeq (CNN) observes
that "since 2004, the United States has considered the residents of
Camp Ashraf 'noncombatants' and 'protected persons' under the Geneva
Conventions."
The residents are trapped in a kind of purgatory.
Unable to leave Iraq, they're being moved to former US military base
Camp Liberty. Approximately 2,000 have been moved so far with 400
more scheduled to be moved this week. Why can't they leave Iraq?
During Bill Clinton's administration the MEK was delcared a terrorist
organization. Ignoring a federal court order for over two years to
re-examine that classification, the Obama administration has kept the
MEK labeled "terrorists." As a result of that label, countries are
reluctant to take in the residents.
Matthew Russell Lee (Inner City Press) reported late yesterday:
Earlier
today, after Ashrafis say they were left to wait three hours in
temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, violence broke out. Photos of
beaten Ashrafis, including an older man bleeding from the head, have
been sent to Inner City Press.
Inner
City Press understands that the UN acknowledges that personnel of its
mission, UNAMI, were present on the scene, and that some Ashrafis were
hospitalized. This contradicts the claim by Gorges Bakoos, an adviser to
Iraq's premier, there there was no violence, nor any injuries.
On August 28, Inner City Press went to the UN's noon briefing and asked about the incident.
Secretary
General Ban Ki-moon's Associate Spokesman Farhan Haq replied that the
facts were "in dispute" and that the UN needed "further details." Video here, from Minute 14:25.
Inner City Press tweeted this response, juxtaposing it with the photo of the bleeding older man. Subsequently the following UN response arrived by e-mail:
Subject: Answer on Camp Ashraf
From: UN Spokesperson - Do Not Reply [at] un.org
Date: Tue, Aug 28, 2012 at 12:42 PM
To: Matthew.Lee [at] innercitypress.com
UNAMI's
preliminary reports confirmed that yesterday, an incident between
residents and Iraqi Police led to some light injuries on both sides.
However the situation returned to normal. Preparations for the
relocation of the next group of 400 residents to Camp Hurriya are
continuing and we hope the move will soon be completed.
Today the Voice of Russia reports Iraq plans to execute "over 250 people" tomorrow. This comes after a series of executions which took place yesterday. All Iraq News notes that the Ministry of Justice has announced the completion of 21 death sentences with three of those being women. Alsumaria speaks
with a spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice, Haidar al-Saadi, who
explains all the executions were carried out under Article IV of the
Anti-Terrorism Act of 2005 and with the approval of the presidency. Xinua also notes
the Ministry of Justice stating "the death sentences were carried out
after the Iraqi Presidency Council approved the penalty verdicts for all
those 21 convicts."
Presidency Council. Iraqi President Jalal
Talabani refuses to sign off because he's 'opposed' to the death
penalty. So he lets the vice presidents sign off. With Tareq
al-Hashemi now residing in Tukrey, that just leaves Khodair al-Khozaei.
If Talabani were truly opposed, he would prevent the sentences from
being carried out. He can do that. Any member of the presidency
council can veto an action. That's in the Constitution. Tareq
al-Hashemi utilized that power in the fall of 2009 with regard to the
election law when he didn't feel the refugee population was being
properly represented. So Talabani, if he were really against the
executions, could use his veto power and that would be it. Only one
member of the council needs to lodge the objection.
AGI adds,
"The executions were carried out on Monday, raising the death
sentences carried out in Iraq since the beginning of the year to 91,
including the 14 carried out on the 7th of February and the 17 on the
31st of January." Emily Alpert (Los Angeles Times) reminds, "An
earlier rash of executions in January was condemned by U.N. High
Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay as 'truly shocking' in light
of grave concerns about due process and fairness in Iraqi trials."
Martin Kolber is the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Iraq. July 19th, he testfied to the UN Security Council on the status of Iraq and his comments included the following:
Mr.
President, Iraq retains the death penalty for a large number of
crimes. I therefore reiterate the call by the Secretary-General [Ban
Ki-moon] and the High Commissioner of Human Rights for the government of
Iraq to establish a moratorium on all executions with a view to their
abolition. I welcome that the authorities of the Kurdistan Region
continue to implement a moratorium on carrying out executions which has
been in place since 2007.
Alsumaria notes
one thing the MPs supposedly agreed upon today was to amend the
provinical elections law. Provincial elections are supposed to take
place March 2013. Earlier Nouri targeted Faraj al-Haidari and another
member of the Indendent High Electoral Commission, having them
arrested.
It's
not as if Iraq wasn't already in the midst of ongoing political crisis.
Now Nouri al-Maliki's really bringing things to a boiling point. Mohamad Ali Harissi (AFP) reports,
"Key political factions accused the premier of moving towards a
dictatorship with the arrest of Iraq's electoral commission chief, a
charge the prime minister denied on Saturday." As noted in yesterday's snapshot,
Tuesday found the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy Martin Kobler
praising the Independent High Electoral Commission and discussing how
important it was to the upcoming provincial elections next year and then
the parliamentary elections scheduled for the year after. So news
that Nouri's had two members of that commission arrested on Thursday, as reported in real time by Raheem Salman (ioL news), was startling and alarming. The two arrested Karim al-Tamimi and the head of the commission Faraj al-Haidari.
Al Mada reports
that Moqtada al-Sadr declared on Saturday that the arrests were
indications that Nouri al-Maliki might be attempting to delay the
elections or call them off all together. He makes it clear that the the
arrest needs to be based on eveidence and not on some whim of Nouri's
and that it shouldn't be done because Nouri desires to "postpone or call
of the election." Al Rafidayn explains
Nouri al-Maliki released a statement today decrying those who doubted
the arrests were sound. The Baghdad court that Nouri controls made no
attempt to even pretend to be impartial or about justice. This system
is a nightmare and needs to be called out. It's very distressing that
the Western press has refused to do so. The Supreme Judicial Council
announced yesterday that Faraj al-Haidari had used UNHCR money to
purchase plots of land and that he will face a seven year prison term
for those actions.
AFP informs
that al-Haidari and two members -- Karim al-Tamimi and Osama al-Ani --
"were found guilty of graft" they each received a "suspended one-year
prison" term.
The news outlet observes, "There is bad blood between Haidari, a Shiite Kurd, and
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law list over the aftermath of 2010
parliamentary elections, in which the premier's list came in second to the
mainly Sunni-backed Iraqiya list of Iyad Allawi." Nouri and his kanagroo court.
Dropping back to yesterday's snapshot:
From equal playing fields to unequal ones, Ayad al-Tamimi (Al Mada) reports
the city of Kadhimiya is moving to prevent any woman from entering the
city unless she is covered by a veil and that a group known as the
morality police are following men and women in the city who were the
hair 'differently' and that they stop women without veils and force them
to put on veils -- they also force women wearing make up to remove it.
Force? At least one woman has been beaten by the 'morality police.' Raman Brosk (AKnews) notes
that despite local press insisting this new law on the veil was passed
by both the local government and the Baghdad Provincial Council, the
provinice is stating, via the head of their legal committee Subbar
al-Saadi, "Baghdad Provincial Council did not issue such a resolution. A
decision was issued to wear a head scarf or abaya inside the holy
courtyard in the religious shrines in Kadhimiya, Najaf, Karbala or
Samurra."
Today, Al Mada reports
that banners have gone up around Kadhimiya praising the annonced
decision that women not wearing veils will not be allowed to enter the
city. The newspaper points out this refutes the claims made by the
Baghdad Provincial Counil that this applied only to the area inside the
courtyard.
As
corporate lobbyists wine and dine the Republican and Democratic
national committees in Tampa and Charlotte, Jill Stein and Cheri Honkala
are beating at their doors.
Right now,
Cheri is in the streets of Tampa with the Poor People's Economic Human
Rights Campaign and the tent city at Romneyville. Next week, Jill will
arrive in Charlotte. And soon, with your help, we'll all be beating the drums of social progress together, as we launch our first major media campaign!
That's
right. We may be coming to a cable channel near you. We've hired one of
the most famous political advertising firms in the country. We've cut
the ads. And the only question is how many millions of voters will see
these ads.
We have until Thursday,
September 6th, to raise at least $80,000. If we succeed in doing that,
our ads will run in college town media markets from the Pacific to the
Mississippi to the Atlantic. If we raise $120,000, we'll have viewership
in medium sized cities of population 500,000 to 2 million. And if you
help us raise $200,000, we'll be on in at least a couple major
metropolitan areas.
The more money we raise, the higher chance that YOUR community will see one of these ads (you can see sneak preview pics from the shooting of these ads at right).
The
timing is vital. The primary season ends on Thursday September
6th. This means that you only have until September 6th to get your
contributions matched, dollar for dollar, up to $250, with federal
matching funds. And this means that you only have until September 6th to
donate the maximum allowable contribution of $2500.
Time
is running short for another reason. We have to buy these ads now, well
ahead of September 6th, so that these ads actually run in the primary
season. Federal law requires that our matching funds monies be used in
the primaries, by September 6th, and this means that we must reserve our
cable and TV ad times right now.
See the
graph below to get a sense of how many college town, medium city, and
major metro media markets we can reach at each level of fundraising. And
please donate right now: http://www.JillStein.org/donate
Ani Esmailian: Roseanne Barr announces she's running for president. Hey, everybody, this is Ani Esmailian for HollyScoop,
Roseanne Barr, the same woman who wore a t-shirt with a giant chicken
on it for nine years during her syndicated sitcom is officially running
for president of the United States, for the Green Party, that is. And
this isn't a joke. She actually registered with the Federal Election
Committee late in January to run for the Green Party. On Twitter,
Roseanne lists some of the issues she plans to tackle forgiving student
loans, kicking out the federal reserve, instituting single-payer health
care, going after financial terrorists, reconfiguring American diets and
fighting for gay rights. Oh, and she also wants to legalize
marijuanna. A lot of you readers just got real political after that
one.
Maybe. But, Ani, Roseann's not running on the Green Party ticket. Jill Stein's running on the Green Party ticket. And, Ani, She's The Sheriff, starring Suzanne Somers,
is an example of a syndicated sitcom -- a sitcom filmed for airing
episodes for the first time in syndication. Roseanne ran for 9 years on
network television -- ABC, in fact -- and, like nearly every sitcom, it
went into syndication with repeats of already aired episodes.
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