Algemeen Ambtsbericht Syrië 2013-12-11

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Algemeen Ambtsbericht Syrië 2013-12-11 Algemeen ambtsbericht Syrië Datum 11 december 2013 Pagina 1 van 64 Algemeen ambtsbericht Syrië december 2013 Colofon Plaats Den Haag Opgesteld door Directie Consulaire Zaken en Migratiebeleid Afdeling Migratie en Asiel T- 070 - 3485612 Redacteur(en): DCM/MA Inhoudsopgave Pagina 3 van 64 Algemeen ambtsbericht Syrië december 2013 Colofon ......................................................................................................3 Inhoudsopgave ............................................................................................3 1 Veiligheidssituatie.................................................................................... 7 1.1 Politieke context (januari – november 2013).....................................................7 1.2 Veiligheidssituatie ......................................................................................15 2 Mensenrechten........................................................................................26 2.1 Nationale wetgeving ...................................................................................26 2.2 Toezicht ...................................................................................................26 2.2.1 VN Briefings inzake humanitaire en mensenrechtensituatie in Syrië .................... 26 2.3 Naleving en schendingen.............................................................................29 2.3.1 Vrijheid van meningsuiting en persvrijheid .....................................................29 2.3.2 Vrijheid van vereniging en van vergadering ....................................................31 2.3.3 Vrijheid van godsdienst en overtuiging...........................................................31 2.3.4 Documenten en bewegingsvrijheid ................................................................34 2.3.5 Rechtsgang ...............................................................................................38 2.3.6 Arrestaties en detenties ..............................................................................38 2.3.7 Foltering, mishandeling en bedreiging............................................................40 2.3.8 Ontvoeringen ............................................................................................41 2.3.9 Buitengerechtelijke executies en moorden......................................................41 2.3.10 Doodstraf .................................................................................................44 2.4 Positie van specifieke groepen......................................................................44 2.4.1 Etnische minderheden.................................................................................44 2.4.2 Vrouwen...................................................................................................46 2.4.3 Homoseksuelen .........................................................................................47 2.4.4 Minderjarigen ............................................................................................48 2.4.5 Dienstplichtigen .........................................................................................48 3 Migratie ..................................................................................................50 3.1 Ontheemden- en vluchtelingenstroom............................................................50 3.2 Opvang in Syrië .........................................................................................51 3.3 Opvang in de regio .....................................................................................51 3.3.1 Vluchtelingenopvang op Syrisch grondgebied bij Turkse grens ........................... 51 3.3.2 Turkije .....................................................................................................52 3.3.3 Jordanië ...................................................................................................52 3.3.4 Irak .........................................................................................................53 3.3.5 Libanon ....................................................................................................54 3.3.6 Egypte .....................................................................................................55 3.3.7 Libië ........................................................................................................55 3.4 Activiteiten internationale organisaties...........................................................56 3.5 Standpunt UNHCR inzake terugkeer naar Syrië................................................56 4 Literatuur ...............................................................................................57 Pagina 5 van 64 Algemeen ambtsbericht Syrië december 2013 Inleiding In dit algemeen ambtsbericht wordt de situatie in Syrië beschreven voor zover deze van belang is voor de beoordeling van asielverzoeken van personen die afkomstig zijn uit dit land en voor besluitvorming over de terugkeer van afgewezen Syrische asielzoekers. Dit ambtsbericht is een actualisering van eerder verschenen algemeen ambtsberichten over de situatie in Syrië (laatstelijk op 15 januari 2013) en beslaat de periode van januari tot en met november 2013. Het algemeen ambtsbericht is gebaseerd op informatie van openbare en vertrouwelijke bronnen. Bij de opstelling is gebruik gemaakt van informatie van verschillende organisaties van de Verenigde Naties, niet-gouvernementele organisaties, vakliteratuur en berichtgeving in de media. Een overzicht van de geraadpleegde openbare bronnen is opgenomen in de literatuurlijst. In het algemeen ambtsbericht wordt veelvuldig verwezen naar geraadpleegde openbare bronnen. Daar waar openbare bronnen zijn vermeld, wordt de tekst in veel gevallen ook ondersteund door informatie die op vertrouwelijke basis is ingewonnen. De in de tekst van het algemeen ambtsbericht opgenomen voorbeelden zijn niet uitputtend. Sinds het uitbreken van het geweld in maart 2011 kunnen feiten, gebeurtenissen of omstandigheden in Syrië onder andere vanwege door de Syrische overheid opgelegde restricties aan de (inter)nationale media, beperkte bewegingsvrijheid, sluiting van de Nederlandse ambassade in Damascus, alsmede de onveilige situatie in het gehele land niet of nauwelijks meer onafhankelijk worden onderzocht en/of geverifieerd. In hoofdstuk één wordt ingegaan op recente ontwikkelingen op politiek en veiligheidsgebied. In hoofdstuk twee wordt de mensenrechtensituatie in Syrië geschetst. Na een beschrijving van wettelijke garanties, komen de mogelijkheden van toezicht op naleving van de mensenrechten aan de orde. Daarna volgt de beschrijving van de naleving dan wel schending van enkele klassieke mensenrechten. Tenslotte wordt de positie van specifieke groepen belicht. In hoofdstuk drie komt de opvang van binnenlandse ontheemden en vluchtelingen aan de orde en wordt informatie verstrekt over de activiteiten van internationale organisaties, waaronder de UNHCR. Pagina 6 van 64 Algemeen ambtsbericht Syrië december 2013 1 Veiligheidssituatie Voor een algemeen overzicht van de binnenlandspolitieke situatie in Syrië in de periode mei tot en met december 2012 zie het algemeen ambtsbericht Syrië van 15 januari 2013 (DCM/MA-506/12/23380).1 1.1 Politieke context (januari – november 2013) In deze paragraaf volgt een chronologisch overzicht van politieke ontwikkelingen binnen het regime en de oppositie. ‘Oppositie’ binnen de regering Naast het onderdrukken van de gewapende opstand door veiligheidsdiensten, strijdkrachten en milities, trachtte het Syrische regime op eigen voorwaarden zich ook open te stellen voor hervorming en dialoog. Zo werden in juni 2012 twee leden van de voormalige door de regering erkende oppositie uit de periode voor maart 2011, Ali Haider en Qadri Jamil, aan de bestaande Syrische regering toegevoegd als Nationale Verzoeningsminister en als plaatsvervangend minister-president voor Economische Zaken.2 Van een dialoog met de oppositie en daadwerkelijke hervormingen was echter geen sprake. Qadri Jamil werd eind oktober 2013 uit het kabinet gezet. Toespraak–interview president Assad Op 6 januari 2013 stelde president Assad in een toespraak dat Syrië in staat van oorlog was en riep zijn landgenoten op hun land te verdedigen tegen buitenlandse agressie en religieus extremisme. Hij sprak over een internationaal complot tegen Syrië, waarbij landen in de regio en het westen samenzweerden met terroristen.3 Tegelijk kondigde hij een eenzijdig hervormingsprogramma aan, waarbij een overgangsperiode zou leiden naar een nieuwe grondwet en parlementsverkiezingen. Hij zou open staan voor dialoog met de oppositie, maar alleen als het buitenland ophield de rebellen te bewapenen. Hij repte met geen woord over een eventueel vertrek. De oppositie verlangt echter dat president Assad opstapt, voordat van enige dialoog sprake kan zijn.4 Assad zette op 8 juli 2013 de volledige zestienkoppige leiding van de Baath-partij aan de kant. Zelf was hij de enige die op zijn post bleef als secretaris-generaal. Onder de ontslagen partijleiders was ook vice-president en voormalig minister van 1 Zie ook de brief van de ministers van Buitenlandse Zaken, van Defensie, en voor Buitenlandse Handel en Ontwikkelingssamenwerking van 6 december 2012 op verzoek van de vaste commissie voor Buitenlandse Zaken met betrekking tot de ontwikkelingen in de Syrië-crisis; Alles suggereert een lange burgeroorlog – scenario’s voor Syrië, De Groene Amsterdammer (26 juni 2013); Brief van de minister van Buitenlandse Zaken aan de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal
Recommended publications
  • An Uncertain Homecoming Views of Syrian Refugees in Jordan on Return, Justice, and Coexistence
    An Uncertain Homecoming Views of Syrian Refugees in Jordan on Return, Justice, and Coexistence INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE An Uncertain Homecoming Views of Syrian Refugees in Jordan on Return, Justice, and Coexistence RESEARCH REPORT Acknowledgments The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) acknowledges the support of the UK Department for International Development, which funded this research and publication. ICTJ and the authors of the report also gratefully acknowledge all of those who generously gave their time to be interviewed for this report and contributed their experiences and insights. About the Authors Cilina Nasser wrote sections V through XII of this report and led the development of the Introduction and Recommendations. Nasser is a Beirut-based independent researcher and expert on human rights who also works on transitional justice issues. She has worked extensively on investigating human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law, primarily in Syria, but also in other countries in the Middle East and North Africa region, such as Yemen, Libya, and Saudi Arabia. She was a researcher at Amnesty International focusing on countries in crisis and conflict from 2009 to 2015 and, before that, a journalist who covered major events in Lebanon. Zeina Jallad Charpentier wrote sections III, XIII, and XIV of this report. Jallad Charpentier is a legal consultant, researcher, and lecturer in law, whose work focuses on the intersection between international law, human rights law, social mobility, access to justice and resilience of disenfranchised populations, refugees, and impact litigation. She has worked in the United States, Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Turkey.
    [Show full text]
  • Cash Is King: Financial Sponsorship and Changing Priorities in the Syrian Civil War
    Studies in Conflict & Terrorism ISSN: 1057-610X (Print) 1521-0731 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uter20 Cash is King: Financial Sponsorship and Changing Priorities in the Syrian Civil War Anne Marie Baylouny & Creighton A. Mullins To cite this article: Anne Marie Baylouny & Creighton A. Mullins (2017): Cash is King: Financial Sponsorship and Changing Priorities in the Syrian Civil War, Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, DOI: 10.1080/1057610X.2017.1366621 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1057610X.2017.1366621 Accepted author version posted online: 25 Aug 2017. Published online: 25 Aug 2017. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 129 View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=uter20 Download by: [NPS Dudley Knox Library] Date: 04 October 2017, At: 12:56 STUDIES IN CONFLICT & TERRORISM https://doi.org/10.1080/1057610X.2017.1366621 Cash is King: Financial Sponsorship and Changing Priorities in the Syrian Civil War Anne Marie Baylounya and Creighton A. Mullinsb aNational Security Affairs, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA; bU.S. Air Force ABSTRACT The role of resources in war has been much debated. What happens when foreign patrons provide lavish amounts of cash to rebels, without mechanisms of accountability? This article analyzes three major sources of funding and their micro-level effects on insurgent-groups in the Syrian civil war. Recipients of funding demonstrated opportunism in actions, alliances, and ideologies, directly related to the funding source. Funders thus set the agenda of the war, promoting Islamist ideologies and regional over local issues.
    [Show full text]
  • Sectarianism in the Middle East
    Sectarianism in the Middle East Implications for the United States Heather M. Robinson, Ben Connable, David E. Thaler, Ali G. Scotten C O R P O R A T I O N For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/RR1681 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication. ISBN: 978-0-8330-9699-9 Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. © Copyright 2018 RAND Corporation R® is a registered trademark. Cover: Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims attend prayers during Eid al-Fitr as they mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, at the site of a suicide car bomb attack over the weekend at the shopping area of Karrada, in Baghdad, Iraq, July 6, 2016. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani Limited Print and Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited. Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.
    [Show full text]
  • The Protection Needs of Minorities from Syria and Iraq Acknowledgements Abbreviations
    THE PROTECTION NEEDS OF MINORITIES FROM SYRIA AND IRAQ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ABBREVIATIONS Project coordinator: Arne Sæverås, Senior Peace- This report is the product of a cooperation between 3RP – Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan building Advisor, Norwegian Church Aid / World Council Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and the World Council AI – Amnesty International of Churches. of Churches (WCC), with financial support from the AINA – Assyrian International News Agency Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway. NCA and WCC are CAT – Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment grateful for the expert support provided by International CEDAW – Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC), Yazda-Global CPED – International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance Research coordinator: Javier Fabra-Mata, PhD, Advisor Yazidi Organization, Baghdad Women Association (BWA), CRC – Convention on the Rights of the Child for Methods and Results and Peacebuilding, Norwegian Christian Aid Program (CAPNI), ABAAD - Resource CRPD – Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Church Aid. Centre for Gender and Equality , representatives from UN CRSV – conflict-related sexual violence organizations and local and international humanitarian FGD - focus group discussion organizations working with people affected by the crises GBV – gender-based violence Project team: Peter Prove, Director, Commission of in Iraq and Syria, human rights groups, representatives HRC – Human Rights Commission the Churches on International Affairs, World Council of of religious and ethnic institutions, and members of the HRW - Human Rights Watch Churches; Margrethe Volden, Head of Division for Middle minority and majority communities in the Middle East ICC – International Criminal Court East and Asia, Norwegian Church Aid; Michel Nseir, Region, Norway and Sweden that we have met.
    [Show full text]
  • War Crimes Committed Against the People of Syria
    CONTRIBUTORS and SUPPORTERS Adnan Serdaroğlu, Chairman of United Serpil Güvenç, Writer Metalworkers’ Union Sevra Baklacı, Journalist Ahmet Abakay, Journalist Şükran Soner, Journalist Ahmet Aksüt, Lawyer Uluğ İlve Yücesoy, Lawyer Ahmet Meriç Şenyüz, Journalist Yiğit Günay, Journalist Ali Örnek, Journalist Zekeriya Sevimli, Lawyer Ali Rıza Aydın, Retired Reporter of Constitutional Court, Writer Alper Birdal, Journalist, Writer Bahar Kimyongür, Committee Against Intervention in Syria (Belgium), Writer Bahattin Özcan Acar, Lawyer Başar Yaltı, Lawyer Cengiz Çapak, Lawyer, Secretary of Mersin Bar Association Cihan Söylemez, Lawyer Çetin Turan, Lawyer Çetin Yiğenoğlu, Journalist, Writer Gül Atmaca, Journalist Güray Öz, Journalist Hasan Akgöl, MP Hatice Elveren Peköz, Writer, Scenarist Hilmi Yarayıcı, Artist Hüseyin Aygün, MP İlhan Cihaner, MP İzzettin Önder, Retired Academician Kadir Sev, Retired member of the State Supervisory Council Korkut Boratav, Economist Mahmut Alınak, Lawyer, Writer, Former MP Mehmet Ali Ediboğlu, MP Mehmet Oflazoğlu, Photographer Mengücek Gazi Çıtırık, Lawyer, President of Adana Bar Association Merdan Yanardağ, Journalist Mevlüt Dudu, MP Musa Çam, MP Mustafa Kemal Erdemol, Journalist Mümtaz İdil, Journalist Necdet Saraç, Journalist Oğuz Oyan, MP Ömer Ödemiş, Journalist Refik Eryılmaz, MP Semir Aslanyürek, Director Serdar Şahinkaya, Academician T ABLE of CONTENTS PREAMBLE ............................................................................................................................................... 1 §1.
    [Show full text]
  • Russia's Ambitions
    community.apan.org/wg/tradoc-g2/fmso/ Foreign Military Studies Office Volume 8 Issue #4 OEWATCH April 2018 FOREIGN NEWS & PERSPECTIVES OF THE OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT RUSSIA’S AMBITIONS RUSSIA’S AMBITIONS AFRICA 3 Russia Looks to Expand Its Influence in Africa 28 Nigeria’s Environmental Devastation Drives Conflict 49 China Commits to Building Global Satellite Communication 4 Russian Influence in the Levant Basin 29 Boko Haram Repeats Chibok Kidnapping, Now in Dapchi Network by 2023 5 Escalation in Syria? 30 Who are the Anglophone Secessionists in Cameroon? 50 Xi Jinping Promotes Civil-Military Integration, Technological 6 Iran: Supreme Leader Advisor Lauds Russian Strategic Ties 31 Protests Against Foreign Militaries in Niger Innovation 7 The Growth of Russia-Thailand Relations: What’s Next? 32 South Sudan’s President Scapegoats US for Failed Peace 51 Reopened Chinese-Built Railways Link Coastal Angola with the 9 A Chinese Perspective on Pakistan-Russian Cooperation in Talks Interior of Africa Afghanistan 33 South Sudan: Buying Peace Does Not Work 52 Beyond Bitcoin: Could China Embrace Blockchain for Defense 10 Covert Supply Lines 34 Local Debate on AMISOM: Should It Stay or Should It Go? and Security Applications? 11 A Militarized Silicon Valley in Russia? 35 Is China Practicing “Debt-Trap Diplomacy” in Africa? 54 China Seeks Extradition of Detained Uyghurs in Malaysia 13 Russia Forms Two New Divisions in the Southern Military 55 Vietnam’s Military Modernization District LATIN AMERICA 36 Brazil Has a Border Problem CAUCASUS, CENTRAL AND
    [Show full text]
  • Freedom from Hate State of the World’S Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2014 Events of 2013
    Freedom from hate State of the World’s Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2014 Events of 2013 State of theWorld’s Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 20141 Events of 2013 Front cover: Roma gather in Athens, Greece, demanding equal treatment and better living conditions. Spirofoto/Demotix. Inside front cover: A woman from an occupational minority community in Somaliland. Susan Schulman. Inside back cover: Adivasi woman and child, India. Robert Wallis/Panos. Acknowledgements Support our work Minority Rights Group International (MRG) Donate at www.minorityrights.org/donate gratefully acknowledges the support of all MRG relies on the generous support of institutions organizations and individuals who gave financial and individuals to help us secure the rights of and other assistance to this publication, including minorities and indigenous peoples around the CAFOD and the European Union. world. All donations received contribute directly to our projects with minorities and indigenous peoples. © Minority Rights Group International, July 2014. All rights reserved. Subscribe to our publications at www.minorityrights.org/publications Material from this publication may be reproduced Another valuable way to support us is to subscribe for teaching or other non-commercial purposes. to our publications, which offer a compelling No part of it may be reproduced in any form for analysis of minority and indigenous issues and commercial purposes without the prior express original research. We also offer specialist training permission of the copyright holders. materials and guides on international human rights instruments and accessing international bodies. For further information please contact MRG. A CIP catalogue record of this publication if available from Learn more about minority and indigenous the British Library.
    [Show full text]
  • The Blacklist
    THE BLACKLIST Violations committed by the most prominent Syrian regime figures and how to bring them to justice The Blacklist violations committed by the most prominent Syrian Regime figures and how to bring them to justice The Blacklist, violations committed by the most prominent Syrian Re- gime figures and how to bring them to justice First published in the US 2019 by Pro-Justice 8725 Ginger Snap Lane, San Diego, CA 92129 Email. [email protected] Tel. +18588886410 ISBN: 978-605-7896-11-7 Copyright © Pro-justice All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior permission in writing of Pro-justice Pro-justice is a non-profit that seeks to maintain the principle of accountabil- ity and preclude impunity for major war criminal and human rights violators in societies that suffer from or have just exited civil wars and natural disasters, with special focus on the Middles East and Syria. Visit www.pro-justice.org to read more about pro-justice activities and pub- lications The Blacklist violations committed by the most prominent Syrian Regime figures and how to bring them to justice Foreword More than eight years have passed since Syrians took to the streets as part of a peaceful movement demanding freedom and human dignity. Since then, the Syrian government has continued to resist the laws of inevitable transformation, trying in vain to stop the process of political development and reform through its levers of killing and repression.
    [Show full text]
  • International Crimes in Syria: Options for Accountability and Prosecution
    UNIVERSITY OF MILAN “SCUOLA DI SCIENZE DELLA MEDIAZIONE LINGUISTICA E CULTURALE” Master Degree in Languages and Cultures for International Communication and Cooperation (LM-38) INTERNATIONAL CRIMES IN SYRIA: OPTIONS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY AND PROSECUTION Thesis in International Humanitarian Law Supervisor: Prof. Christian Ponti Co-supervisor: Prof. Giovanni Parigi Master thesis of Samantha Falciatori Student number: 860972 Academic year 2015-2016 To those who have given their lives for a dream of freedom. To those who are still here, but carry grief in their heart. To Saeed, Akram, Mazen, Ahmad. To all my Syrian friends who have brought so much in my life. To those who have shared these painful years with me. ABSTRACT IN ITALIANO Dopo anni di atrocità, solo perseguibilità dei crimini e giustizia potranno ricucire la società siriana, aprendo la strada alla riconciliazione e alla pace. Lo scopo di questa tesi è cercare di capire come ciò sarà possibile, avvalendosi degli strumenti del diritto internazionale umanitario da un lato e del diritto internazionale penale dall’altro. La tesi può infatti essere divisa in due parti: la prima analizza le principali fattispecie criminose dei crimini internazionali commessi in Siria da tutte le parti in conflitto; la seconda esplora criticamente quali sono i possibili meccanismi di repressione di tali crimini. La tesi si articola in sei capitoli: il primo offre una panoramica sulla situazione siriana prima del 2011, sulle radici della rivolta e sulle fasi e gli attori del conflitto; il secondo cerca di
    [Show full text]
  • Most Prominent Massacres Committed by Government Forces Against Civilians in 2013
    Wednesday 1 January 2014 Most Prominent massacres committed by government forces against civilians in 2013 Introduction As well known among human rights activists, there are many definitions of the massacre, but the most common one is the mass murder for more than 5 persons or more unable to defend themselves in specific place and time. If we apply this definition of the daily mass killings committed by government forces, we would count at least 3 to 4 massacres a day, that is mean government forces led by Bashar Al-Assad have committed at least 1300 massacres in 2013, all of them recorded day to day by Syrian Network Human Right’s daily operation in documentation causalities. These massacres led to kill more than 24000 civilian victims of more than 33000 the civilian victims toll in 2013, most of them killed by the 24 hours shelling on different Syrian governorates, using Scud missiles, bar- rel bombs throw from Helicopters, MIG’ missiles, artillery shelling, mortar shelling, chemical weapons, and filed executions usually by shot in head, slaughtering by knifes in many sectarian massacres and ethnic cleans- ing as those in Baniyas of Tartous and Jdidt Alfadl of Damascus countryside. Syrian Network for Human Right’s chairman and founder Fadel Abdulghani said” Security council of United Nations didn’t pay any regard to Articles, on which United Nations was grounded as Article 34 and Article 39, remained hostage by Russian- Chinese veto, and didn’t apply Responsibility to Protect principle that was approved by Assembly General in 2005, if these articles wouldn’t applied in Syria, then when and where ??! “ The report can’t include narratives of 1300 massacres, so we choose overview of the most prominent massacres committed by government forces in 2013.
    [Show full text]
  • Satellite Sectarianisation Or Plain Old Partisanship?
    Middle East Centre SATELLITE SECTARIANISATION OR PLAIN OLD PARTISANSHIP? INCITING VIOLENCE IN THE ARAB MAINSTREAM MEDIA JESSICA WATKINS LSE Middle East Centre Report | April 2019 About the Middle East Centre The Middle East Centre builds on LSE’s long engagement with the Middle East and provides a central hub for the wide range of research on the region carried out at LSE. The Middle East Centre aims to enhance un- derstanding and develop rigorous research on the societies, economies, polities and interna- tional relations of the region. The Centre pro- motes both specialised knowledge and public understanding of this crucial area and has out- standing strengths in interdisciplinary research and in regional expertise. As one of the world’s leading social science institutions, LSE com- prises departments covering all branches of the social sciences. The Middle East Centre harnesses this expertise to promote innovative research and training on the region. Publications Editor Jack McGinn Cover Image Microphones set out for a Tehran press conference with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Commander Mohammad Ali Jafari, 16 September 2012. © Stringer/ EPA/ Shutterstock The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the auth or(s) and do not necessarily represent those of the Lond on School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) or the Middle East Centre. This document is issued on the understanding that if any extract is used, the author(s ) and the LSE Middle East Centre should be credited, with the date of the publication. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the mate- rial in this paper, the author(s) and/or the LSE Middle East Centre will not be liable for any loss or damages incurred through the use of this paper.
    [Show full text]
  • Syria: Extremism and Terrorism
    Syria: Extremism and Terrorism On February 26, 2021, the United States launched airstrikes in Syria against targets linked to Iran-backed militias, reportedly killing at least 22 members of Kata’ib Hezbollah (KH) and Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces. According to the Pentagon, the strikes targeted a weapons shipment from Iraq to Syria and struck facilities belonging to Iranian militias KH and Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada. The Pentagon said the strikes were in retaliation for a February 15 rocket attack on an Iraqi base that killed a civilian contractor and wounded an American service member. KH denied responsibility for recent attacks on U.S. interests in the region. The airstrikes are the first military action taken by the Biden administration, which has expressed interest in returning to a 2015 nuclear pact with Iran, from which the Trump administration withdrew. The U.S. strike followed 48 hours of Russian airstrikes of ISIS positions in response to attacks on Syrian security checkpoints in the Syrian desert that killed at least eight regime-backed militiamen. On February 22, ISIS militants attacked a checkpoint of the IRGC-backed al-Qura Guards militia in al-Asharah city in Deir Ezzor, killing at least four. Also, that day in Wadha village of Allepo’s Maskanah town, unidentified gunmen planted a bomb in a car carrying Iran-backed militiamen, killing four and wounding two. (Sources: Associated Press, Associated Press, Washington Post, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Asharq al-Awsat) The airstrikes followed a series of Israeli airstrikes on January 13 against Iranian-linked targets in Syria near the Iraqi border.
    [Show full text]