UK approved £3.3bn of arms sales to Saudi Arabia in first year of Yemen war

The export of smart bombs and combat aircraft parts was approved in the face of civilian deaths and international condemnation

UK-manufactured cluster bomblets gathered by activists in northern Yemen earlier this year (Amnesty International)

Jamie Merrill-Wednesday 27 July 2016

The UK government licensed arms exports worth £3.3bn to Saudi Arabia during the first 12 months of the Saudi-led conflict in Yemen, a campaign group has revealed.

The Campaign Against Arms Trade's analysis of government figures, released this week, shows the total is at least £500m more than previously thought.

From April 2015, the UK approved exports including so-called smart bombs, components for combat aircraft, armoured vehicles and communications equipment.

The government in Riyadh is the UK arms industry’s biggest customer and the figures show that the Middle East is the UK’s largest overall export market for weapons, including Eurofighter Typhoon jets which have dropped devastating 2,000-lb bombs in urban areas in Yemen.

More than 8,100 people are thought to have been killed in the conflict and earlier this year the UN decried the “carnage” caused by Saudi-led air strikes, saying the alliance was responsible for the vast majority of the civilian deaths in the conflict, although all armed groups have been accused of abuses.

Since the Saudi-led intervention, which includes support from Bahrain and UAE, the UK government has faced intense criticism over its willingness to approve arms exports. 

Andrew Smith, of CAAT, which compiled the figures from official statistics, said: “UK arms have been central to the humanitarian crisis that has been unleashed on Yemen. If the new Prime Minister [Theresa May] wants to help the people of Yemen then she needs to break with the past, stop the arms sales and end the uncritical support for the Saudi regime.”

The new figures also show that the UK licensed £538m of weapons, including military training aircraft for the Royal Saudi Air Force, in the first quarter of 2016 alone despite increasingly vocal international condemnation of the country’s bombing campaign in Yemen.

The deal for additional Hawk jet trainers came after a UN expert panel accused Saudi Arabia of violating international humanitarian law and a January cross-party appeal in parliament for arms sales to the oil-rich kingdom to be suspended.

The European Parliament has also voted to support an EU-wide embargo against Saudi Arabia although the vote is not legally binding.

Smith added: “The UN has accused Saudi Arabian forces of violating international humanitarian law, the European Parliament has calling for an arms embargo, but, as usual when it comes to Saudi Arabia, the UK government has focused on arms sale.”

Last month, CAAT won a legal challenge in the High Court in London to allow it to being a judicial review over arms exports to Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia has denied that its operations cause civilian casualties, and in January announced that it was setting up a panel to investigate the allegations. The UK has a long history of exporting arms to Saudi Arabia, dating back to the 1980s, but the government has always insisted it follows strict rules and monitors the use of the weapons.  

However, this week Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson was left facing growing calls to reverse UK policy after the government issued a correction, saying that it could not prove that international law had not been violated, despite earlier claims that no breaches had taken place.

The reversal followed pressure from opposition politicians and rights groups, who challenged then Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond's ruling on Yemen and forced him to issue a statement retracting four written answers given to MPs and deleting two speeches by ministers in the Commons from the official record.

The new figures come after Middle East Eye revealed that Canadian and UK arms were used to kill an unarmed man in police raids in Saudi Arabia earlier this year. The UK government has refused to investigate whether UK arms are being used for internal repression.

Rights clampdown

Human rights campaigners have been quick to point out that the new figures have emerged as a prominent Bahrain activist faces 12 years in prison for Tweets that criticized the Saudi Arabia-led military campaign in Yemen.

The charges against Nabeel Rajab, the head of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, are a serious violation of his right to freedom of expression, Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday.

Bahrain has been taking part in the Saudi-led strikes, which has included unlawful air attacks on markets, home, hospitals and schools, according to the pressure group.

“Unlawful Saudi-led airstrikes bombed markets and hospitals, killing hundreds of civilians, but the person facing prison time is the one who criticized them,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at the group.

“The US and the UK, which have assisted the coalition, have a particular responsibility to insist that Bahrain drop the unlawful charges against Nabeel Rajab and immediately free him.”

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have documented 69 unlawful airstrikes by the coalition, some of which may amount to war crimes, that had killed more than 900 civilians and hit homes, markets, hospitals, schools, civilian businesses, and mosques. The UN Panel of Experts on Yemen also reported in January that it had “documented 119 coalition sorties relating to violations” of the laws of war.

Rights groups, however, have also accused other armed factions on the ground of committing abuses, including torture, against opponents.

Eastern European arms pipeline

The extent of the UK’s exports to Saudi Arabia come after a year-long investigation by a team of reporters from the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) and the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) found that eastern European countries have approved the sale of more than £840m in weapons in the past four years to Middle Eastern countries that are known to ship arms to Syria.

The arms includes assault rifles, such as AK-47s, mortar shells, rocket launchers, anti-tank weapons and heavy machines, that the Guardian reported had been routed through a new arms pipeline from the Balkans to the Arabian peninsula and countries bordering Syria.

Bodil Valero, the European parliament’s rapporteur on arms, told the Guardian that at least some of the transfers probably breached EU, international and national laws on arms exports.

He told The Guardian: “The evidence points towards systematic diversion of weapons to armed groups accused of committing serious human rights violations. If this is the case, the transfers are illegal under… international law and should cease immediately.”

Safety Standards of Nuclear Assets in Pakistan

by Ali Sukhanver

( July 27, 2016, Island, Sri Lanka Guardian) The whole of Pakistani nation observed 20^thof this July as a Black Day in showing solidarity with the helpless people of the Indian Held Kashmir who have been facing all kind of atrocities at the hands of the cruel Indian army for the last many decades. The history of these cruelties is replete with so many examples of callousness and pitilessness of the Indian authorities against the Kashmiris but whatever the Indian army did in the last two weeks is really heart-rending. So many innocent young Kashmiris were brutally murdered by thrusting bullets directly into their eyes, so many young girls raped in presence of their parents and so many houses burnt to ashes along with their inhabitants; the whole of Kashmir valley was painted with blood, smoke and the cries of the crushed ones but unfortunately the international authorities on peace and human rights are all silent.

They are even avoiding discussion on the fresh wave of atrocities in Indian Occupied Kashmir. Why is everyone silent, everyone dumb; no reaction, no protest at international level. It seems that internationally the Kashmir issue is being taken as some personal problem of Pakistan but fact of the matter is that Kashmir is not a personal problem of Pakistan; it is the problem of countless helpless Kashmiris whose lives have become a hell at the hands of ruthless Indian forces. As far as Pakistan is concerned, it has ever been a strong supporter of all the crushed ones throughout the world; whether they are in India or in Afghanistan or in Palestine. Pakistan has never supported any kind of insurgency or invasion by anyone in any part of the world because Pakistan itself is facing ever-worst consequences of insurgency in Balochistan and in the areas along the Durand Line.

Unfortunately it has become an international hobby to drag Pakistan into every conflicting scenario. Be it the Kashmir Liberation movement, the Khalistan Movement, Mumbai blasts or the Dhaka Bakery firing case; Pakistan is always tried to be found behind the scene. After Modi’s coming into power, this blame game against Pakistan has got a new vigor and force. Some of the elements in US administration have too joined hands with Mr. Modi in this war against Pakistan. Experts are of the opinion that behind all this ‘uneasiness’ there is just one thing; the ever-progressing nuclear program of Pakistan.

According to a recent report in the last two years Mr. Modi and President Obama had seven meetings and every time Pakistan’s nuclear program had been their most favourite topic of discussion. The situation is not simply limited to discussion sessions only; the forces hostile to Pakistan have inducted ‘artistically manufactured’ terrorists whose assignment is to demolish the whole of economic, political and social fiber of Pakistan and ultimately give the world an impression that in Pakistan where everything is in approach of the terrorists, how could be the nuclear assets safe. The Indian and the US authorities have so many times made serious efforts for putting a ban on Pakistan’s nuclear program or at least put it under check but Pakistan has defeated all such notorious efforts very successfully. The forces hostile to Pakistan are well aware of the fact that there could be no threat to Pakistan’s security and existence unless and until Pakistan has a very strong nuclear program. This program is simply a China wall between Pakistan and the forces hostile to its existence.

For the last many years we have been witnessing the aggressive behavior of India along the border and we have recently witnessed the madness of the Afghan army at Torkham boundary line and we have been facing conspiracies of Indian supported insurgency in Balochistan since long; same mischievous behavior could have been observed in other parts of Pakistan also if Pakistan were not a nuclear power. Even the opponents and enemies of Pakistan are well aware of the fact that Pakistan’s nuclear program is for peaceful purposes but at the same time they all know that Pakistan would spare not even a single moment in use of nuclear weapons if anyone tried to attack the sovereignty of Pakistan. Pakistan is a very strong and very safe nuclear country in all respects. Not only are its nuclear installations safe but also its nuclear workers are safe unlike India. When we talk of nuclear safety and security, it does not include the safety and security of nuclear installations only; it includes the safety and security of the nuclear scientists, engineers, technicians and other workers too.

Every country has to be very much concerned about the safety and security of its nuclear staff. Besides providing them physical safety and security, a special vigilance is also put on them because the nuclear scientists are always a very favourite target of the secret agencies belonging to the hostile countries. If a nuclear scientist falls in the hands of hostile secret agencies, the situation becomes very dangerous. In such cases the law enforcement agencies are left with no way but to send such culprit to the land of no-return, sometimes by crushing him to a mash in a road accident or by making him target of unidentified shooters or by compelling him to commit suicide ; India has the worst-ever record in this context. According to a data provided by government of India’s Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), between 2009 and 2013, 11 nuclear scientists had unnatural deaths.

While 8 of them died in a blast or by hanging or drowning in the sea, 3 died under mysterious circumstances – two allegedly committed suicide while the other died in a road accident. Apart from these 11, there were 15 more nuclear scientists who lost their lives mysteriously. Another report says that since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, fifty-seven accidents have yet occurred and about 60% of all nuclear-related accidents have occurred in the USA. On the other hand India has also been a very unsafe and insecure country regarding the safety and security of its nuclear program. It has yet faced more than six very fatal kind of nuclear accidents; the loss crossing 910 million US$. God knows better who was behind all this loss; if asked from Mr. Modi he would certainly blame Pakistan. But a very encouraging thing on the Part of India is that in spite of all these horrible facts and figures, India is always a blue-eyed boy of US in all conflicting matters of the South-Asian region. Ignoring the incapability of India’s vigilance agencies and moral weaknesses of the Indian nuclear scientists, the US is trying its best to make India the member of Nuclear Supplier Group. This all is pathetically beyond belief and shamefully amazing.

India orders four maritime spy planes from Boeing, bolsters navy

Real india lives in village

BY SANJEEV MIGLANI-Wed Jul 27, 2016

India signed a contract on Wednesday to buy four maritime spy planes from Boeing Co for about $1 billion, defence and industry sources said, aiming to bolster the navy as it tries to check China's presence in the Indian Ocean.

India has already deployed eight of the long-range P-8I aircraft to track submarine movements in the Indian Ocean and on Wednesday exercised an option for four more, two defence ministry officials and an industry source told Reuters.

"It's a follow-on order, it was signed today," a defence ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity as he is not authorised to make announcements on procurements.

A second defence official confirmed the value of the contract at about $1 billion and said the aircraft were expected to enter service over the next three years.

Amrita Dhindsa, a spokeswoman for Boeing defence, space, and security in India, said she was not in a position to say anything on the contract and referred all questions to the defence ministry.

But she said the P81 was an aircraft used for not only for long-range patrol but was also equipped with Harpoon missiles for anti-submarine warfare.

India has been building up its naval surveillance capabilities since China's navy expanded its reach and sent submarines, including a nuclear-powered boat that docked in Sri Lanka, across the Indian Ocean.

The deal, signed during a visit by the U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition Frank Kendall, marks a further tightening of India's ties with the United States, which has emerged as a top arms supplier in recent years for India's largely Soviet-equipped military.

A U.S. embassy spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

Boeing last year completed the delivery of the last of the aircraft under the previous order worth $2.1 billion, an industry source said.

The Indian navy has deployed some of its P8-I aircraft to the remote Andaman and Nicobar islands near the Malacca Straits and two other routes into the Indian Ocean for military and commercial shipping.

(Editing by Robert Birsel)

Trump urges Russia to hack Clinton’s emails

Republican U.S. presidential nominee Donald Trump says it's 'far-fetched' and 'ridiculous' to say Russia hacked Democratic Party emails to help him become president. (Reuters)

Hillary Clinton will almost certainly be the least popular keynote speaker at her own convention — by far

By Ed O'Keefe, Jose A. DelReal and John Wagner July 27 at 12:53 PM

PHILADELPHIA — Democrats prepared to use their convention Wednesday night to raise fresh doubts about Donald Trump’s fitness to serve as commander-in-chief as the Republican presidential candidate called on Russia to hack into Hillary Clinton’s email server to find “missing” messages and release them to the public.

“Russia, if you’re listening I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press,” Trump said during a news conference at his South Florida resort on Wednesday.

“They probably have them. I’d like to have them released. It gives me no pause, if they have them, they have them,” Trump added later when asked if his comments were inappropriate. “If Russia or China or any other country has those emails, I mean to be honest with you, I’d love to see them.”

[Complete live coverage of the Democratic National Convention]

The Clinton campaign quickly expressed alarm at Trump’s remarks.

Hillary Clinton made a surprise live video appearance at the Democratic National Convention July 26, hours after being officially named as the party's presidential candidate. (Video: The Washington Post/Photo: Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post)

“This has to be the first time that a major presidential candidate has actively encouraged a foreign power to conduct espionage against his political opponent,” Clinton’s senior policy adviser Jake Sullivan said in a statement, adding later: “This has gone from being a matter of curiosity, and a matter of politics, to being a national security issue.”

Trump’s comments earned another rebuke from House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.). His spokesman, Brendan Buck, said in a statement that “Russia is a global menace led by a devious thug. [Russian President Vladimir] Putin should stay out of this election.”

On several occasions throughout the GOP primary campaign, Ryan disavowed controversial Trump statements and held out his endorsement for a month after the candidate had locked up the necessary delegates. Once he endorsed Trump, Ryan vowed to speak out if he felt that Trump had crossed a line.

Meanwhile, President Obama, Vice President Biden and the man who wants to succeed him, Sen. Timothy M. Kaine (D-Va.), spent Wednesday morning previewing what they plan to say tonight to tout Clinton’s national security experience.

On NBC’s “Today” show, Obama sought to raise fears of a Trump presidency. Responding to a question about Trump’s electoral chances, Obama said “we don’t know” whether the Republican could win the presidency and warned Democrats that “anybody who goes into campaigns not running scared can end up losing.”

Biden delivered a blunter assessment, saying that Trump “knows nothing about foreign policy, nor should he, based upon his background. But the thing that bothers me is, I don’t see any attempt for him to go out and to get people who really know on the Republican side” to advise him, he told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

Trump dismissed the attacks during his news conference, calling Obama “the most ignorant president in our history. His views of the world, as he says, don’t jive, and the world is a mess.”

Obama “will go down as one of the worst presidents in the history of our country. It is a mess. And I believe that Hillary Clinton will be even worse,” Trump added.

His exchange with reporters was free-wheeling and tense. On several occasions Trump interrupted reporters and accused them of bias. In one instance, he told a female reporter to “be quiet.”

The real estate mogul sought to distance himself from allegations that the Russian government hacked into the Democratic National Committee to benefit his campaign, which Clinton’s campaign manager suggested earlier this week.

“It is so farfetched. It’s so ridiculous. Honestly I wish I had that power. I’d love to have that power but Russia has no respect for our country,” Trump said.

Trump said repeatedly that “I have nothing to do with Russia” and distanced himself from previous positive comments he made about Putin: “I have nothing to do with Russia! I said that Putin has much better leadership qualities than Obama, but who doesn’t know that,” he said.

Earlier on Twitter, Trump had called Biden “not very bright.”

In Philadelphia, Kaine spoke Wednesday morning to Virginia Democrats and focused on Trump’s rhetoric and his frequently controversial remarks about women, minorities and temporarily banning Muslims from entering the United States.

“Is it too much to ask to have the first woman president rather than someone who offends women every time he opens his mouth?” he said on Wednesday morning.

Kaine, whose Marine son deployed overseas Monday, also said Trump has fought to avoid paying taxes that pay for the military -- a potent message in veterans-rich Virginia.

“Who’s funding veterans’ programs?” he asked. “Who’s funding veterans’ services? Folks like you and me, but Donald Trump’s too big to have to fund veterans, too big to have to fund our military… too big to have to fund the things that make us a great nation.”

“I guess that’s just for suckers to have to pay for the society we have,” he said, as the audience of friends and supporters cheered.

Kaine is expected to focus on Clinton’s national security and foreign policy plans in his primetime address, according to a campaign official.

The topics are consistent with the theme that Clinton officials have crafted for a third night of the convention as foreign policy and terrorism have risen to the fore in the 2016 election. Trump has seized on those issues, casting himself as the candidate more focused on keeping the country safe.

Kaine’s pick as Clinton’s vice presidential running mate drew praise from many quarters, but the former Virginia governor faces a challenge in convincing some progressive groups that he will champion their issues. Longtime watchers of Virginia politics say the question during much of Kaine’s career there has actually been whether he is too liberal for their state.

But Sen. Christopher Murphy (D-Conn.), who sits alongside Kaine on the foreign relations panel, described the Virginian on Wednesday as “a next-level intellect.”

“There’s nobody better on that committee to distill these complicated issues into easy, digestible ways,” Murphy said in a Washington Post Live interview in Philadelphia. “I think he’s going to bring a readiness and humanity to this role. And all the press he gets about being a nice guy — it’s all true.”

[Winners and losers from the second night of the Democratic convention]

Other speakers on Wednesday will include Leon Panetta, the former defense secretary and CIA director who served alongside Clinton during Obama’s first term, most notably during the military operation that killed terrorist leader Osama bin Laden. Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, a Democrat-turned-Republican-turned-independent, plans to endorse Clinton during Wednesday evening’s proceedings amid concerns about Trump’s fitness for the presidency.

The families of the victims of the recent Orlando nightclub shooting will also appear on Wednesday night, as well as the daughter of the principal of a Connecticut elementary school who was shot dead in a 2012 shooting; and astronaut Mark Kelly and his wife, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the victim of a 2011 assassination attempt. The couple leads a gun safety organization.

The Clinton campaign meanwhile sought to tamp down fresh questions about whether the candidate intends to reverse her opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership if she is elected president.

The controversy erupted on Tuesday night when Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe told a reporter for Politico that Clinton, who is a longtime friend and ally, would support a version of the deal, which is supported by Obama.

But Clinton’s campaign chairman, senior aides and prominent supporters quickly corrected the governor saying that Clinton opposes TPP before and after the election.

McAuliffe also clarified his position, blaming a misunderstanding for the gaffe and said that he believed that Clinton would oppose the deal unless her concerns were addressed.

SitRep: Intel Agencies Point to Moscow on DNC Hack; U.S., China, Turn Down Heat

BY PAUL MCLEARY, ADAM RAWNSLEY-JULY 27, 2016

Add ‘em up. Include President Barack Obama on the list of people who think the Kremlin was likely behind the hack of the DNC servers and subsequent leak of 20,000 documents to Wikileaks. In an interview with NBC News on Tuesday, Obama said “anything’s possible,” when it comes to who hacked into the servers. “What the motives were in terms of the leaks, all that — I can’t say directly,” he added. “What I do know is that Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed admiration for Vladimir Putin.”

FP’s Elias Groll writes that cybersecurity researchers at ThreatConnect, an intelligence firm, also revealed additional evidence Tuesday connecting the hacker identifying himself as Guccifer with Russian intelligence services.

Hours after that new assessment, the New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence agencies have told the White House that they had “high confidence” that Russian government hackers were responsible for the hack. That story cited “federal officials who have been briefed on the evidence” but cautioned that the Russian hackers’ motive remains unclear — whether the infiltration was a typical act of espionage or an attempt to swing the outcome of the November’s presidential election.

Steady as she goes. The U.S. Navy’s top sailor told reporters at the Pentagon Tuesday that he and his Chinese counterpart are trying to slow the roll of increasing tensions in the South China Sea. But neither side appears willing to change course, reports FP’s Paul McLeary. Adm. John Richardson, fresh off a five-day trip to China said that talks were productive, but he told his Chinese counterpart, Adm. Wu Shengli, that American ships will continue to sail in the critical waterway, and Washington will look after its “interests in the area and commitments to allies.” Wu, for his part, said recently that China would continue its construction efforts in the critical waterway, and China will “never stop” work on its man-made islands.

Veep nominee wants war bill. Democratic Senator from Virginia and newly-minted nominee for vice president, Tim Kaine, has for months “waged a quixotic campaign to restrict President Barack Obama’s power to wage war against the Islamic State,” report FP’s David Francis, John Hudson and Molly O’Toole. But will that leave him at odds with a Commander in Chief Clinton?

“If past positions hold, it would,” the FP team writes. “Kaine has long argued that Congress needs to pass a new authorization for the use of military force, or AUMF, giving the White House permission to continue battling the Islamic State. In 2014, he drafted a war authorization bill outlining what the United States could and couldn’t do to fight the group — a measure designed to prevent the military campaign from escalating out of control.” So far, he’s been unsuccessful.

But Hillary Clinton sees things differently. Like Obama, she believes she could fight the Islamic State without explicit congressional approval, “while at the same time has said she’s open to a new AUMF about the Islamic State, in part as a public relations gesture to show congressional support for the fight.”

Obama’s war. In a related piece, two law professors — Jack Goldsmith and Matthew Waxman — are out with a new legal analysis of president Obama’s “light footprint” way of waging war that relies primarily on drones and special operations forces. “Obama’s innovations pose a distinctive challenge to U.S. democracy and military strategy because light-footprint warfare does not attract nearly the same level of congressional and especially public scrutiny as do more conventional military means,” the two write in theWashington Quarterly.

Will Dems ignore ISIS? If you’ve been watching the Democratic National Convention, you might have noticed the lack of emphasis on national security. Others have noticed, too. But the Washington Post’s Anne Gearanwrites that the omission is a planned one, and “Clinton’s attempt to offer a sunnier vision of American leadership comes along with a concerted strategy to make the case that she is more knowledgeable and experienced on national security issues. It will be a major theme of her address in accepting the nomination Thursday.”

Good morning and as always, if you have any thoughts, announcements, tips, or national  security-related events to share, please pass them along to SitRep HQ. Best way is to send them to: paul.mcleary@foreignpolicy.com or on Twitter: @paulmcleary or @arawnsley
North Korea

North Korea’s weapon development programs are continuing at a brisk pace as satellite imagery shows Pyongyang is expanding a submarine base off its east coast. IHS Jane’s took a look at imagery of the Mayang-do Naval Base at Sinpo and found that North Korea is building two pens capable of sheltering ballistic missile submarines. The revelations are a sign that the regime may be planning on building more subs. The North has been hard at work on developing a submarine-launched ballistic missile lately, testing the KN-11 missile off the coast of Sinpo that could give its nuclear weapons a second strike capability.

Iraq

The fight against the Islamic State has turned around the reputation of Iraq’s elite special operations forces, but now they’re starting to show the strain of being one of the country’s most reliable military units. The Washington Posttakes a look at the Iraqi military’s Golden Division, the 10,000-strong commando unit trained intensively by U.S. forces during the occupation of Iraq. Iraqis initially greeted the Golden Division with suspicion, considering them a Shiite-led political hit squad for then-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. After the fall of Mosul to the Islamic State and the ouster of Maliki, though, the Golden Division has emerged as  a much-used bright spot in Iraq’s armed forces, which mostly melted away as the jihadist group advanced.

Afghanistan

The Islamic State threat in Afghanistan might not be as big as it seems, Afghanistan’s Tolo News reports. Experts say that the group likely numbers between 1,000 – 1,500 troops concentrated in just three districts in the country’s east — a far cry from the nationwide threat posed by the Taliban. The Afghan government says it has killed at least 230 Islamic State members in airstrikes over the past couple months, a little under a third of which are believed to be foreigners from Pakistan and Central Asia. U.S. estimates have put the strength of the Islamic State in Afghanistan at somewhere between 1,000 to 3,000 fighters.

Libya

Libya’s U.N.-backed government summoned the French ambassador on Tuesday to protest the presence of French special forces operating in eastern Libya. The meeting came after Paris confirmed in recent days that three of its commandos died in a helicopter crash near Benghazi.

It’s hardly been a secret that special operators from France, Britain and the U.S. have been on the ground in Libya to fight Islamist militants, and Reutersreports the French have been working alongside forces loyal to eastern commander Khalifa Haftar. “The GNA considered the French presence in Libya’s eastern region as a breach of international norms and sovereignty which it rejects,” a statement from the Government of National Accord (GNA) said.

Turkey

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan appear to be putting some of the late unpleasantness of Turkey shooting down a Russian plane last year behind them. Reuters reports that the two leaders will meet face-to-face in St. Petersburg in early August. Putin’s spokesman says the meeting has no agenda so far but Turkish deputy prime minister Mehmet Simsek, who’s been laying the groundwork for the meeting with Russian counterparts, says he’s hoping to turn the Russo-Turkish relationship around after it soured following Turkey’s downing of a Russian Su-24 which it claimed violated Turkish airspace.

Turkish special operations forces are on a manhunt for a group of 11 rogue commandos accused of participating in the failed coup against the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The Turkish military is flooding the town of Marmaris with 1,000 troops and drones in search of remaining plotters, who are believed to have carried out an attack where Erdoğan was staying. Outside the military, the government continues to widen its purge of political opponents of Erdoğan from Turkish institutions and society, firing 620 people from the religious affairs directorate, and over 60,000 people across the military, government, and academia.

Drone killer

The U.S. military’s drone-killing rifle has already been deployed to Iraq, according to a picture tweeted out by New America military tech guru Peter W. Singer. Singer sent troops at Fire Base Bell in Iraq copies of of his sci-fi military thriller Ghost Fleet. As thanks, they sent him a snap of the Battelle Memorial Institute’s DroneDefender rifle, which jams the communications links of small unmanned aerial vehicles, next to a copy of his book. The Islamic State has been using small drones continually since the fall of Mosul, with a particular fondness for hobbyist models like the Skywalker X7 flying wing.

More money, more planes

The civilian head of the U.S. Air Force has peeked over the fence, and wants what her neighbor has. Deborah Lee James said Tuesday that the Air Forceshould have a special fund — just like the Navy does — to build its nuclear-capable assets. The Navy takes advantage of an extra-budgetary pot of money appropriated by Congress to build its nuclear-capable subs, and James wants to same to build her service’s coming B-21 bomber. “Certainly, I’m in favor if it’s done for one leg of [the nuclear] triad, the submarine force, it ought to be done for the two other legs,” James said.

Photo Credit: Xinhua/Bao Dandan via Getty Images

Tears of Guantánamo: Dear Slahi — On Your Release

( July 27, 2016, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Wonderful, the news were flashes while stating that you are cleared for the release! But the questions arise over and over.  14 years or otherwise 5110 days of your life was behind the bars with no charge in the Guantánamo prison, one of the most deplorable and ruinous places in present days.

Then, they have “cleared” you. Do we need anything else to understand the distorted ruling pattern we lived? There is no exception, the power works on the same pattern though the tone may be different.

Are we human or the subjects? No doubt, we all know the fact. On the one hand, “legitimised” authority is hunting us; on the other hand, armed fundamentalism is after us. We are suffering from the both sides.

You’ve cleared yourself, they say.

Cleared from what; I am confused!

Have you begrimed or disarrayed, so then the authorities helped in cleaning?

So they “kidnapped” people and locked-up with not telling anything to clean, how sweet!

What exactly they have cleaned; I am confused!

How many more are they going to clear?

How many are yet to be taken away?

The history is all about this clearance! Yes, much earlier the drones, no-man spy, taken our every cell of remaining privacy of humanity, the history is full of forced clearance.

They’ve “cleared” the red Indians to proclaim the sovereignty.

They’ve “cleared” the hundreds thousands of Japanese by wiping out in a moment by using atoms to grab the credit when USSR was winning over Japanese emperor army.

They’ve “cleared” the Afghans when red army sneaking into the Afghan soil to clear by their own way.

They’ve “cleared” the Vietnamese when the red flags were moving in the name of revolution.

They’ve “cleared” the uncounted numbers of bystanders in Laos and Cambodia while crossing the sky towards hunting freedom fighters in Vietnam.

They’ve “cleared” so many grounds in Africa, Latin America and elsewhere, whenever there was a resistance against the corrupted system which manipulating basics rights of the people.

They’ve “cleared” Afghanistan for the second time, right after the mysterious attack on the twin towers and 5-sided polygon shaped pentagon.

They’ve “cleared” Iraq as the second step to find out culprits for the Mysterious attack named as 9/11.

They’ve “cleared”; we suffered; then again they’ve “cleared”; again we suffered. They will continue their “cleaning missions”.

Then they’ve locked up the “suspects” to eliminate “terrorism”, the manufactured concept to conquer anyone who moves.

However, it is indeed nothing to something the news about your release. But many who are still behind the bars merely on suspicion were “insufficient” to be cleared.

Nonetheless, many reports indicate the history where you were taken arms against the USSR to protect your land. It further says you have given up the armed struggle as you came into the conclusion on the meaningless violence.

That was the lesson many those who are counting blood in the name of liberation yet to be learnt. Nothing can be changed in the system when the system itself is revolting against those who opposed violence.

From Abu Ghraib to Guantánamo, from Dallas to the local police station in our villages, a common lesson to be learnt. When the arbitrariness ruled the world, impartiality has to run away from the backdoor!  When the liberty is compromised for a little security, the arbitrariness emerged as the legitimacy. The clutches of “clearance” are prevailing between those lines.

Will your clearance teach a lesson to those who are locking up their own people with no charge in other nations?

Thailand: Niece of soldier beaten to death at army camp arrested for defamation

Naritsarawan Kaewnopparat. Image via Human Rights Watch.

 27th July 2016 

THE niece of an army conscript who was beaten to death by other soldiers was detained by police on Tuesday for allegedly defaming the Thai military.

Naritsarawan Kaewnopparat, 25, was arrested in Bangkok at her place of employment on charges of criminal defamation and violating the Computer Crime Act by publishing false information online.

If convicted, she faces up to five years in prison and a 100,000 baht (US$2,900) fine.

SEE ALSO: Amnesty reports human rights abuses, repression in Thailand

In 2011, Naritsarawan’s uncle Wichian Puaksom was tortured to death by about 10 soldiers in the southern province of Narathiwat while being punished for attempting to escape from a military camp.

Wichian’s mother filed a lawsuit the following year against the Defense Ministry, the army, and the Prime Minister’s Office for the wrongful death of her son.

After conducting its own investigation into the case, the army reported that Wichian had been beaten and dragged across concrete, then had salt rubbed into his wounds before he was wrapped in a sheet and beaten again. Soon after, he died of acute renal failure.

Last year, Naritsarawan won 7 million baht (USD$200,000) in compensation for the malfeasance suit, but the actual perpetrators went unpunished.

She then disclosed the details of her uncle’s death in a TV interview and a post on popular local website Pantip, but said that she did not mention any specific names, reported the Bangkok Post.

Speaking to Khaosod English, attorney Preeda Nakphew said: “Naritsarawan acted as a representative and advocate in the place of her late uncle’s mother.”

“She fought his case in court and was already paid compensation for his death, so it is unclear as to why the police are acting on this arrest warrant now,” he said.

SEE ALSO: Thailand: Cabinet endorsement ‘positive step’ towards criminalizing torture and forced disappearance

According to human rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW), Thai police should drop the “trumped-up” charges.

“The Thai police’s efforts to intimidate and retaliate against the outspoken relative of a victim of rights abuse is no less than an endorsement of torture,” said HRW’s Asia director, Brad Adams.

“The government should immediately direct the police to drop the criminal cases against Naritsarawan and seek the prosecution of those responsible for her uncle’s death,” he added.

Thailand’s military have long faced criticism over allegations of human rights abuses, such as torture and forced disappearances, but in a move cautiously praised by human rights organizations, the government recently endorsed a bill that would punish officials who are found guilty of committing such crimes.

Additional reporting by Associated Press

Failed asylum seeker blows himself up in Germany

A Syrian denied asylum in Germany kills himself and injures 12 others in a suicide bombing - the fourth violent attack in the country in less than a week.

MONDAY 25 JULY 2016

The 27-year-old man set off his device outside a music festival in Ansbach, Bavaria on Sunday after being refused entry. Three people were seriously injured, with 2,500 others evacuated from the festival after the bombing.

Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said he believed the attack was an Islamist suicide bombing.

The attacker arrived in Germany two years ago, was refused asylum in 2015 and was due to be deported to Bulgaria rather than Syria, because of the civil war raging in his homeland.

He had been receiving treatment after trying to kill himself and had been in trouble with the police for drug taking and other offences.

The fact he was an asylum seeker will fuel further debate about Germany's open-door refugee policy.

Earlier this month, Mrs Merkel said terrorists had managed to enter Europe during the migrant crisis, which saw more than a million migrants and refugees, many of them Syrians and Iraqis, arrive in Germany in 2015.

'Security concerns'

Mr Herrmann said: "It's a further, horrific attack that will increase the already growing security concerns of our citizens. We must do everything possible to prevent the spread of such violence in our country by people who came here to ask for asylum."

He said the bomb was packed with "many metal parts that could have killed and injured many more people".

Germany has been rocked by violent attacks in the last week. On Sunday, a 21-year-old Syrian asylum seeker was arrested in Reutlingen, Baden-Wuerttemberg after allegedly killing a pregnant Polish woman with a machete. Police said it was probably a "crime of passion".

Two days earlier, a German teenager of Iranian descent shot dead nine people, seven of them teenagers, at a shopping centre in Munich. David Ali Sonboly had a history of mental illness and there is no evidence of political motivation.

This followed another attack in which a 17-year-old asylum seeker armed with an axe injured five people on a train in Bavaria. He was shot dead after the attack, which was claimed by the so-called Islamic State group.

Police said neither Sunday's machete attack nor Friday's shootings in Munich had any connections to Islamic State or other militant groups.

How New Options And Research Are Leaving Breast Cancer Out To Dry

SOCIAL AWARENESS In 1986, a group of determined women and men came together to change the face of breast cancer in Canada. 

hey had seen too many mothers, sisters, daughters, and friends dying of the disease.  Breast cancer was not openly discussed; women often hid their diagnosis and experienced the disease in profound isolation.  There were no organized breast screening programs, so women were often diagnosed at advanced stages.  Treatments were often invasive and debilitating, and fewer women survived.  Moreover, there was no dedicated funding for breast cancer research.  No longer willing to accept the current landscape when it came to breast cancer, this group of volunteers established the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation with the vision of reducing the stigma of the disease and directing funds to breast cancer research, health promotion, and advocacy.

True to that vision, today the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation is the largest charitable funder of breast cancer research in Canada.  Since 1986, the Foundation has funded over $360 million in breast cancer research and scientific grants, and has become a leader in a community dedicated to creating a future without breast cancer. This work would not have been possible without the support and passion of committed volunteers, donors and partners. The Foundation has made great strides in terms of impacting the lives of people affected by breast cancer across the country.

The research funded by the Foundation has played a significant role in all aspects of the disease, including promoting a better understanding of how to prevent breast cancer and reduce risk; improving screening and diagnoses so that breast cancer can be detected earlier and diagnosed more accurately; understanding and improving treatment options; and leading the way with research into the social, psychological, and emotional aspects of cancer to improve quality of life during and after breast cancer treatment.

Breast cancer mortality has been reduced by 44 percent since its peak in the mid-1980s and survival rates have increased to 88 percent five years after a diagnosis.  This improvement is largely due to organized breast screening and advances in treatment.

Presently, the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation has begun another bold new chapter in its story thanks to its recent merger with Willow Breast & Hereditary Cancer Support. The new, combined organization will touch on the full spectrum of breast cancer — from the laboratory and clinic where the latest innovations are developed, to direct patient peer support.

Since 1994, Willow has provided free-of-cost support, insight, and information to anyone affected by breast cancer or at increased genetic risk of developing the disease; the organization has long been a valued partner of CBCF.  As of March 31, their support services, information, and education programs have merged under the CBCF brand.

The joining of the two organizations means CBCF will be a leader at every stage of the breast cancer continuum, with the capacity to address a range of needs related to breast health concerns, risk management, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, as well as the specific needs of those living with metastatic breast cancer.

Individuals can now call the new CBCF toll-free helpline at 1.888.778.3100 and speak with a Support and Information Team member — a woman who has personally had a breast cancer or high-risk diagnosis and is specially trained to provide practical information as well as compassion and understanding.
For more information on the Canadian Breast

Cancer Foundation and its research and support services, please visit www.cbcf.org.