Kategorie: Humans

Amnesty International is calling on Israeli authorities to quash the conviction of Mohammed al-Halabi, a Palestinian aid worker from Gaza who was yesterday found guilty in a deeply flawed trial of diverting millions of dollars to the Hamas de facto administration. The majority of the evidence used against him remains secret.

Mohammed al-Halabi, who was formerly the head of US-based charity World Vision’s Gaza office, has already spent six years in pre-trial detention. Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said:

“The Israeli authorities’ treatment of Mohammed al-Halabi violates all the basic guarantees on due process which are set out in international human rights law. He was detained for a staggering six years before the verdict, interrogated without legal representation, tried in secret hearings, and convicted on secret evidence and a forced “confession”.

“Israeli authorities have utterly disregarded Mohammed al-Halabi’s allegations that he was tortured and ill-treated in detention. Yesterday’s verdict is unsafe and unjust, and simply serves to highlight how the Israeli justice system is rigged against Palestinians.  

“Mohammed al-Halabi should be retried in proceedings that meet international fair trial standards or released. There must be an investigation into his allegations of ill-treatment, and any unlawfully obtained evidence, includingthrough torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, must be excluded. Mohammed al-Halabi’s case is one of many which illustrates how Israeli authorities, who are perpetrating the crime against humanity of apartheid, use the justice system to dominate and discriminate against Palestinians.”

Background

Mohammed al-Halabi worked for World Vision since 2005, and in 2014 was promoted to manage the charity’s operations in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli Security Agency arrested him on 15 June 2016 at the Erez crossing between Israel and Gaza. He was transferred to a detention centre at Ashkelon, Israel, where he was interrogated before being moved to Nafcha prison in the Negev desert. 

Mohammed al-Halabi was denied access to a lawyer and held incommunicado for the first weeks of detention, facing intensive interrogations without legal representation. According to his lawyer and media reports, he was severely beaten and his ‘confession’ to stealing 7.4 million USD a year was obtained under duress. His allegations of torture have not been investigated. Mohammed al-Halabi was not charged with a crime until 4 August, more than seven weeks after his arrest. 

An investigation by World Vision, including an external audit, found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing by Mohammed al-Halabi or of his membership in Hamas.

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Thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes and many civilians have been killed amid increased fighting between Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS) and Malian armed forces and allied armed groups, as the conflict in northern Mali escalates.

The ISGS and two other armed groups signatories of the 2015 peace agreement, the MSA (Movement for the Salvation of Azawad) and GATIA (Imghad Tuareg Self-Defense Group and Allies), have been fighting in the Menaka Region since March 2022. The ISGS perpetrated attacks against villages, deliberately killing civilians and depriving them of their means of survival – which constitute war crimes. The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the city of Menaka has increased dramatically since then, plunging the region into a dire humanitarian situation.

Thousands in the Menaka Region are fleeing from their homes as ISGS is deliberately targeting civilians, destroying homes and water points, and seizing livestock. The Islamic State must stop committing these war crimes and all parties to the conflict must respect international humanitarian law, including protecting civilians, 

Samira DAOUD, Amnesty International's West and Central Africa Director

Forced to flee

Amnesty International spoke with 15 people based in Menaka, including IDPs, their hosts, civil society activists and humanitarian workers.

“People have been steadily flowing to Menaka since March. Many of my relatives arrived from Anchawadi but more than 70 people from my village have been missing since the attacks by ISGS. They destroyed homes and other properties (homes, sales outlets, etc) to drive us away from Inekar and Emis-Emis. They control the wells and water points and collect the cattle as they like,” said Khalil* an IDP from Anchawadi.

According to eyewitnesses, the villages of Tamalat and Inchinane were targeted during the fighting in March:

“I was in Tamalat when ISGS fighters attacked us in March. It was a Tuesday and they attacked between the Zohr (2pm) and Asr (4pm) prayers. When they arrived, they immediately started firing at people. This continued until dusk. I managed to flee with several villagers but many others are still unaccounted for. We heard that the fighters continued to attack other hamlets and water points near Menaka,” said Adnane*, a community leader from Tamalat.

“More than 703 households from Tamalat came to Menaka in March just after the attacks. All of the city is filled with IDPs these days and there are many civilians still scattered in the wild,” said Ahmad*, a native of Tamalat who is residing in Menaka and helping IDPs.

The ISGS attack on Inchinanane followed a similar pattern:

According to Ibrahim*, a survivor of the attack: “The assailants came in the afternoon and when they started firing, they killed women, children, old people irrespectively. Armed groups [MSA] tried to fight them, but they were overwhelmed since ISGS fighters were more numerous. ISGS fighters took all our livestock and anything they found useful to take; many people fled to Menaka, others to Algeria. After that, we heard that the ISGS fighters were at the water points, denying access to people and taking all the livestock they could take”.

Under international humanitarian law, all parties to an armed conflict must make the distinction between civilians and combatants at all times, and they are prohibited from conducting attacks directed against civilians or against objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population.

“There were attacks in which civilians were killed and goods destroyed. Many of the inhabitants came to Menaka city while others are still scattered in the desert or trying to find refuge further north. The humanitarian support to the IDPs has been lacking. It is not enough and it’s the same situation since the first attacks in March. All of the IDPs have not been receiving humanitarian assistance,” said Mubarak* a member of a civil society organization in Menaka city.

Worsening humanitarian situation

People interviewed told the organization that those forced to flee have lost almost everything and are facing a severe lack of humanitarian assistance as humanitarian organizations are overwhelmed.

The flow of displaced persons in Ménaka has heightened food insecurity and many of the new arrivals do not have proper shelter, with several residing in schools and even in open air. According to the UN by June 2020, humanitarian workers have assisted 1,539 displaced households in IDPs camps in the commune of Inekar and 3,079 households in the commune of Menaka with food, non-food items and shelters.

ISGS must stop attacking civilians and destroying their homes. We reiterate the same call to all warring parties. All armed groups, as well as the Malian armed forces and the UN peacekeeping force MINUSMA, must protect civilians. Malian authorities and their partners should also coordinate humanitarian assistance to displaced people in Menaka, and those stranded in Anderamboukane and Inekar, to ensure that the civilian population has adequate access to water, food and shelter” said Samira DAOUD, Amnesty International’s West and Central Africa Director.

Samira DAOUD

Background

An armed conflict has been raging in Mali since 2012 and is still ongoing despite the peace agreement signed in 2015 between Malian government and some armed groups. Attacks against civilians have increased along with ISGS offensives against the MSA and GATIA, two armed groups allied with the government, in the Menaka Region since January 2022. In May 2022, the ISGS renewed its onslaught against MSA main camps, taking over Emis-Emis, Igandou and Anderamboukane along the Niger border.

This comes as French soldiers of Operation Barkhane are withdrawing from Mali. The Barkhane camp in the city of Menaka was handed back to the Malian government on 13 June 2022 as part of their withdrawal from the country. As of June 2022, the Malian authorities were preparing another counter-offensive against the ISGS with support from allied armed groups. An offensive by the Malian army, GATIA and MSA against ISGS in Anderamboukane began on 4 June 2022 and is still ongoing.

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In response to reports that the Brazilian authorities are now treating the search for Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira as a homicide investigation, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International, said:

“The Brazilian authorities must ensure complete transparency in the search for Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira through an exhaustive, impartial and independent investigation and full compliance with due process at all times.”  

“President Bolsonaro’s appalling and unsympathetic comments are examples of the insensitivity of the authorities’ handling of the search for the two men. His callous remarks and the uncertainty fueled by the lack of clear, consistent and credible information from the Brazilian authorities only revictimize Dom and Bruno’s families. Instead of further deepening their suffering, the authorities must do everything in the power to uphold their rights to truth and justice.”

The Brazilian authorities must ensure complete transparency in the search for Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira through an exhaustive, impartial and independent investigation and full compliance with due process at all times

Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International

Amnesty International calls on the Brazilian authorities to provide a comprehensive update on the investigation. From the outset, the authorities have been slow to answer questions about the case, with most of the available information coming from the media.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Duncan Tucker (Amnesty International Americas: duncan.tucker@amnesty.org

Matheus Vieira (Amnesty International Brazil): imprensa@anistia.org.br

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Algerian authorities must immediately release and drop all charges against three defence lawyers arrested and prosecuted for defending their clients and exercising their right to freedom of expression, said Amnesty International today. Abderraouf Arslane’s trial opens on 15 June, more than a year after he was arrested.

Arslane is being tried over charges stemming from his defence of political activists while lawyers Abdelkader Chohra and Yassine Khlifi are being tried for protesting the suspicious death in custody of an activist. All three are currently in pretrial detention pending their trial.

“The authorities’ wrongful arrest and prosecution of these lawyers send the chilling message that defending political prisoners is not tolerated in Algeria,” said Amna Guellali, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

“Algeria is obligated to protect people’s right to a fair trial, which cannot be done without proper legal representation. Lawyers must be permitted to practise their profession and express themselves without fear of arrest and intimidation.”

Abderraouf Arslane was detained on 26 May 2021 in the Court of Tebessa, where he was defending three activists from the Hirak, the mass protest movement that has called for political change in Algeria since 2019. He was held in pre-trial detention amid accusations of ties with the unregistered political movement Rachad and the expression of his opinions online, and charged with “spreading fake news” and terrorist-related offences. His first trial session is scheduled for 15 June 2022, which is more than one year after his arrest.

Abdelkader Chohra was detained by security forces on 14 May 2022 while participating in a peaceful gathering outside Al Kliaa prison in Tipaza to protest the suspicious death of activist Hakim Debbazi, who died while being held in pre-trial detention.

Yacine Khlifi was summoned by the Algiers police force on 31 May 2022. One of his lawyers, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, told Amnesty International that he attended the interrogation at the police which revolved around a video Khlifi had published talking about the suspicious death of Hakim Debbazi. In the video, Khlifi also criticized the Minister of Justice for the inadequate communication around Hakim Debbazi’s death and suggested that two other inmates have died in suspicious circumstances in Chlef prison during the previous two weeks.

Both Chohra and Khlifi are detained under charges of “spreading fake news” and “incitement to unarmed gathering.”

“Algerian authorities have over the past year jailed at least two additional lawyers for their work in attempting to uncover the truth around suspicious deaths in prisons, which shows how rampant repression has become in Algeria,” said Amna Guellali.

Background 

Legal representation is fundamental to the right to a fair trial, which is enshrined in numerous treaties binding on Algeria, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on human and peoples’ rights. According to the United Nation’s Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, governments should ensure lawyers “are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference” and they should also “not be identified with their clients or their clients’ causes as a result of discharging their functions”.

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AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL INDIA

PRESS RELEASE

Indian authorities must immediately put an end to the excessive use of force in response to large scale protests in the country that has resulted in the death of at least two people, including a child, and in many others suffering injuries since last Friday, Amnesty International India said today. The organization also called for the immediate and unconditional release of those arbitrarily arrested solely for peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

In the last few days, thousands of people took to the streets in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir and Telangana calling for the arrest of Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal, the former spokespersons for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), India’s ruling political party, for making statements deemed insulting of Prophet Mohammed in a prime-time TV news debate.

“The Government of India is selectively and viciously cracking down on Muslims who dare to speak up and peacefully express their dissent against the discrimination faced by them. Cracking down on protesters with excessive use of force, arbitrary detention and punitive house demolitions by Indian authorities is in complete violation of India’s commitments under international human rights law and standards,” said Aakar Patel, chair of Amnesty International India Board.

The Government of India is selectively and viciously cracking down on Muslims who dare to speak up and peacefully express their dissent against the discrimination faced by them.

Aakar Patel, Chair of Amnesty International India Board

On 10 June, media reported an incident where, police personnel can be seen striking batons, pelting stones and shooting bystanders during protests in Ranchi, Jharkhand. Another bystander was shot six times by the police while returning from the market. Two protesters including a 15-year-old child was fatally shot in the head by the police. Under the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, police may only use force for a legitimate law enforcement purpose and may not use more force than needed to achieve this objective. Moreover, police may use firearms only as a last resort and when strictly necessary to protect themselves or others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury; the intentional lethal use of firearms is only permissible if strictly unavoidable in order to protect life.

In another video reported by multiple media outlets and shared by many on Twitter including the former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, a police officer is repeatedly hitting detained male protesters with batons in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh while they cry in fear and pain and one protester complains of a fractured arm. Instead of criticizing the use of force, it was celebrated by former police officers and BJP politicians on social media. Baton strikes while a subject is under control are unnecessary and disproportionate, and amount to using batons punitively – which amounts to torture or other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, a violation of international law. 

“Presenting and treating all protesters, including peaceful ones, as a threat for public order is deeply worrying and is part of an alarming escalation of the states’ measures targeting Muslims. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister and various state chief ministers have done little to show that they disapprove of any statement portraying Muslims as a risk for public order or embedding other stereotypes and prejudices that may contribute to justifying discrimination and violence against Muslims. They should publicly show their opposition for any such statement” said Aakar Patel.

Presenting and treating all protesters, including peaceful ones, as a threat for public order is deeply worrying and is part of an alarming escalation of the states’ measures targeting Muslims

Aakar Patel

Instead, in a continuing blow to human rights, the authorities carried out the unlawful and arbitrary demolition of houses belonging to Muslims suspected of being “key conspirators” of the violence that erupted during the protests in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. On 10 June, activist Javed Mohammed, his wife and younger daughter were detained along with many others by the police. On 11 June, a backdated notice was pasted on the wall of the family’s house at 11pm in the night before the planned demolition. Javed Mohammed and his elder daughter Afreen Fatima, a student activist, have been vocal in their criticism of the government specially against the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act. While the authorities cited illegal construction as the reason for demolition, the notice was issued in the name of Javed Mohammed who did not even own the demolished property. On 12 June, the authorities demolished the two-storey house amounting to a punitive measure and a violation of the right to adequate housing. Houses of many other protesters were similarly demolished in Uttar Pradesh.

It is evident that in the absence of any genuine consultation and a complete departure from due process of law, these demolitions stand in absolute violation of the right to adequate housing as enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, to which India is a state party and has been done to inflict punishment on the community for raising their voices against injustice.

“The State’s response to current protests is not only deplorable but also marks the latest escalation in the suppression of dissent. The Indian authorities must carry out a prompt, thorough, effective, impartial and independent investigation into all the human rights violations allegedly committed by law enforcement officials and other public officials against protesters and human rights defenders. Law enforcement officials who used the force excessively should be charged, whenever there is enough evidence. Victims should also have access to reparations including compensation,” said Aakar Patel.

Cracking down on protesters with excessive use of force, arbitrary detention and punitive house demolitions by Indian authorities is in complete violation of India’s commitments under international human rights law and standards

Aakar Patel

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