A few initial comments:

Tawerghans – to be ‘wiped off the face of the planet’
The report supports Human Rights Investigation’s position regarding the crimes committed against the Tawerghans. The report confirms our reporting on the ethnic cleansing (although they do not use the words) of the town of Tawergha:

In the months after Tawergha was emptied of its population, houses and public buildings continue to be looted and destroyed by the Misratan thuwar.

The language reportedly used by the Misratans during the arrests was often of a racist and derogatory nature, for example calling them “slaves”, “blacks”, and “animals”. Some have been told that they cannot ever return.

Worryingly it is clear these crimes are continuing:

The Commission documented a pattern of severe torture perpetrated in particular against Tawerghans by Misratan thuwar, who accuse them of committing rapes and other crimes in Misrata.

Detainees told the Commission that they confessed to serious crimes including rape – that they denied committing – after they could no longer withstand the torture.

and

According to eyewitnesses, as recently as 6 February 2012 Misratan thuwar attacked the Tripoli IDP camp and killed five Tawerghans, including an old man, a woman, and three minors.

and

The Commission received multiple reports that, in the months which followed the capture of Tripoli, there were arbitrary arrests of Tawerghans by Misratan thuwar on the streets of Tripoli. Their whereabouts often remain unknown. Those who have been released report being beaten.

The Commission has documented multiple incidents of Tawerghans held in detention in Misrata being subjected to torture. The Commission has examined corroborating injuries on victims.

In conclusion the report says:

The Misrata thuwar have killed, arbitrarily arrested and tortured Tawerghans across Libya. The destruction of Tawergha has been done to render it uninhabitable.

The torture and killing by Misratan thuwar would also, given the widespread and systematic manner in which they have occurred here, be capable of constituting a crime against humanity and the facts indicate crimes against humanity have taken place.

As was documented at the time, NATO provided air cover for the attack on Tawergha and must have been aware of the genocidal intent of the rebel leaders which was reported, previous to the assault on the town, in the Wall Street Journal.

NATO, and the politicians who gave approval for the attack, should be held to account for complicity in this “crime against humanity.”

Mercenaries – a myth
Interestingly, despite what you will have read and been told almost everywhere else (including repeatedly by Human Rights Watch) the Commission finds no evidence of the use of “mercenaries” by the Libyan government forces. As we said at the time, in time of war the word “mercenary” is a precise legal term and the use of this term in Libya had terrible consequences for guest workers and dark-skinned Libyans.

Indeed, we called the various acccusations of the use of sub-Saharan Africans as mercenaries, made by the likes of disgraced ex-British Defence Minister Liam Fox and Prime Minister David Cameron, incitements to racial violence: it is now clear that these allegations were also without basis in fact.

Those NATO leaders and politicians who whipped up racial violence in Libya through the use of inflammatory language and the spreading of the mercenary myth should be held to account.

The deaths of Muammar and Mutassim Qadhafi
The report says:
In relation to the death of Muammar Qadhafi, the Commission was not provided access to the autopsy report despite numerous requests to the authorities.
It goes on to say that is is unable to ascertain if the death of Colonel Gaddafi was an unlawful killing. The same goes for Mutassim who we showed video footage of captured but alive and who then (mysteriously) turned up dead:

In relation to the death of Mutassim Qadhafi, the Commission has reviewed video footage showing him alive and in the custody of thuwar post-capture, but has been unable to obtain any account of the circumstances of his death. Consequently, the Commission has been unable to confirm the death of Mutassim Qadhafi as an unlawful killing and considers that further investigation is required.

The inability of the Commission to assign any responsibility for the unlawful killing of Muammar and Mutassim indicates that the findings of the Commission, whilst finding both sides responsible for numerous war crimes, are in fact extremely conservative in assigning responsiblity for the crimes committed by the NATO and rebel parties to the conflict.

No evidence of overall policy of sexual violence
The compromised ICC Prosecutor infamously described a policy of mass-rape ordered by Colonel Gaddafi himself and fuelled by viagra. Unsurprisingly, the Commission found evidence of rapes committed by people on both sides of the conflict but:

The Commission did not find evidence to substantiate claims of a widespread or a systematic attack, or any overall policy of sexual violence against a civilian population.

The current ICC Prosecutor should have been sacked years ago, but hopefully this episode marks the end of any shred of credibility the man may have left.

Information provided by NATO inadequate
The report pussy-foots around NATO war crimes saying (as requested by NATO) that NATO “conducted a highly precise campaign with a demonstrable determination to avoid civilian casualties.”

However the authors do say:

On limited occasions, the Commission confirmed civilian casualties and found targets that showed no evidence of military utility. The Commission was unable to draw conclusions in such instances on the basis of the information provided by NATO and recommends further investigations.

It is clear that NATO have on the one hand refused to cooperate fully with the report authors, whilst on the other (as can be seen from the correspondence published) pressurising them to include NATO-speak in their report.

Attack on Sirte ‘clearly indiscriminate.’

The UNHR report includes further information on the destruction of Sirte:

The Commission found that almost every building exhibited damage. The most common damage and weapon debris observed was from Grad rockets, and heavy machine-gun fire from 14.5mm and 23mm weapons.

Although some of the buildings were likely used by the Qadhafi forces and were therefore legitimate targets for attacks, damage was so widespread as to be clearly indiscriminate in nature.

The question, which the Commission appears to dodge in the report, has to be – to what extent did NATO arm, supply, direct and permit this “clearly indiscriminate” attack on the town of Sirte.

The current situation in Libya

The current human rights situation is alluded to in the report – 1,000s of people detained without charge or any legal process and the widespread use of torture and disappearances:

The Commission has received information of attacks, including unlawful killings, torture and arbitrary arrests by thuwar on members of the former government and those perceived to be among its supporters. The Commission is not aware of any thuwar arrested or detained for these crimes…

The Libyan authorities face considerable challenges in dealing with recent and past violations. They are likely to have difficulties in processing the approximately 8,000 detainees currently in custody.

The detainees (many migrant workers falsely accused of being mercenaries) should be released immediately and the people who have committed human rights violations on both sides should be held to account. Unfortunately this is unlikely to happen as authority in Libya now rests largely in the hands of feuding militias who, as the Commission report makes clear, were responsible for many of the worst atrocities of the conflict.

(NB: We’ll provide further analysis after going through the bulk of the report, which is contained in Annex 1 ((A/HRC/19/68) to the International Commission of Inquiry on Libya Report)

In addition, the rebels, described in NATO circles as a ‘proxy army” were allowed by NATO to indiscriminately shell the town with tank fire, heavy mortar fire and artillery. Here is some footage from the ‘Information Office of the Misrata Mujahid Battalion’ to illustrate the point:

And here is more footage, taken in September, showing heavy mortar and rocket fire into the town. It is crystal clear that NATO, who were patrolling the skies above and bombing the town, purportedly to protect civilians, were making no attempt to protect the civilians of Sirte from this indiscriminate use of heavy weaponry:

NATO has declined to comment on why it did nothing to protect the civilians of Sirte and why it has been complicit in these war crimes.

As rebel infantry moved in on the destroyed centre of Sirte, the footage below shows that the civilian infrastructure of Sirte, including its buildings, water and sanitation systems, had been totally destroyed:

And here is more footage of the town showing the extent of the destruction, it appears from this video that every building has been targeted in a systematic attempt to ensure the town is uninhabitable:

Atrocities in Sirte

In what should be the final death-blow to the notion that NATO air power combined with undisciplined and in some cases genocidal mobs supplied with NATO weaponry on the ground can effectively ‘protect’ a civilian population it has become clear that fifty-three people were summarily executed by the rebels in the garden of the Mahari hotel in Sirte.

Ironically the bodies were found by Peter Bouckaert, emergencies director at Human Rights Watch. Some of the bodies had their hands bound behind their backs when they were shot. In addition, some of the bodies had bandages over serious wounds, suggesting they had been treated for other injuries prior to being executed, a stark reminder of the earlier murderous rampage of the rebels through the Abu Saleem hospital in Tripoli.

Sirte residents identified four of the dead as residents of Sirte: Ezzidin al-Hinsheri (a government official), Muftah Dabroun (a military officer), Amar Mahmoud Saleh and Muftah al-Deley (both civilians).

Some of the victims had been in Ibn Sina Hospital in Sirte, after being treated for injuries – the same hospital which was treating the children with the horrific injuries we covered in an earlier report.

On the walls of the hotel were the names of the following Misrata brigades: the “Tiger Brigade” (Al-Nimer), the “Support Brigade” (Al-Isnad), the Jaguar Brigade (Al-Fahad), the Lion Brigade (Al-Asad), and the Citadel Brigade (Al-Qasba). Misrata brigades have already been responsible for the ethnic cleansing of Misrata and genocide of the Tawergha.

Meanwhile, Red Cross officials have said they have found two hundred and sixty-seven dead in Sirte, most of whom they believe were killed late on Thursday – the day of liberation.

Bodies of victims in Sirte

As HRW point out, violence and murder, inflicted during an armed conflict on combatants who have laid down their arms or are in detention, is a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC has jurisdiction in Libya for all crimes within its mandate committed since February 15, 2011. Under the court’s treaty, criminal liability applies to both those who physically commit the crimes and to senior officials, including those who give the orders and those in a position of command who should have been aware of the abuses but failed to prevent them or to report or prosecute those responsible.

As Peter Bouckaert says:

“This latest massacre seems part of a trend of killings, looting, and other abuses committed by armed anti-Gaddafi fighters who consider themselves above the law.”

The ICC prosecutor has not pursued action against pro-NATO forces, in fact he has been involved in spreading propaganda and inciting racial hatred during the conflict. Furthermore, the NTC leadership are deeply implicated in the attacks on the civilian population of Sirte. Mustafa Abdel Jalil visited the brigades laying siege to the town on 11 October and declared that:

 ”You have the support of all the members of the transitional council.”

In addition, Mahmoud Jibril infamously gave the green light to the permanent ethnic cleansing of Tawergha by the Misrata brigades at a meeting in Misrata Town Hall.

Currently what is left of Sirte is being thoroughly looted  – with flat-bed trucks loading up cars and personal possessions to take back to Misrata.

Meanwhile, according to the BBC’s Wyre Davies reporting from Sirte, the town will be the last in Libya to be reconstructed or may not be rebuilt at all “but instead left in its destroyed crumbling state as a memorial to Colonel Gaddafi’s victims.”

The Responsibility to Protect

It is clear that the ‘responsibility to protect’ (R2P) doctrine has been hi-jacked by NATO and its supporters as a justification for its military campaigns and has lost its humanitarian content, becoming little more than a weapon in the propaganda war to draw ill-informed citizens into consent for military action.

A genuine responsibility to protect (GR2P) needs to protect people from the ravages of war, in which the most egregious human rights violations usually occur, and needs to be particularly conscious of R2P as a reincarnation of the “white man’s burden” and as justification for NATO imperialism and military adventurism.

Muammar al-Gaddafi 1942-2011. Photo OAU 1975

Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi was reportedly captured and shot dead 20 October. As the evidence below shows the Libyan leader and his son Mutassim were summarily executed by the rebels, sharing the fate of so many Libyans in this conflict.

NATO involvement

NATO have said that a French jet bombed 2 military vehicles in a convoy leaving the area of Sirte at 8.30 am local time. Other reports from the USA suggest a predator drone was involved.  In addition, “Sky sources” claim that the RAF was involved in seriously injuring Saif al-Islam, also in Sirte. Reports suggest that the convoy which attempted to break out of Sirte consisted of around 75 vehicles and most of the occupants were killed, either in the air strikes, by AA guns fired by the rebels or by summary execution after being captured and in some cases put on display.

Captive on display in a thoroughly destroyed Sirte

NATO issued a statement about the incident saying:

At approximately 08h30 local time (GMT+2) on Thursday 20 October 2011, NATO aircraft struck 11 pro-Qadhafi military vehicles which were part of a larger group of approximately 75 vehicles manoeuvring in the vicinity of Sirte.   These armed vehicles were leaving Sirte at high speed and were attempting to force their way around the outskirts of the city. The vehicles were carrying a substantial amount of weapons and ammunition posing a significant threat to the local civilian population.

The convoy was engaged by a NATO aircraft to reduce the threat. Initially, only one vehicle was destroyed, which disrupted the convoy and resulted in many vehicles dispersing and changing direction.

After the disruption, a group of approximately 20 vehicles continued at great speed to proceed in a southerly direction, due west of Sirte, and continuing to pose a significant threat. NATO engaged these vehicles with another air asset. The post strike assessment revealed that approximately 10 pro-Qadhafi vehicles were destroyed or damaged.

At the time of the strike, NATO did not know that Qadhafi was in the convoy. NATO’s intervention was conducted solely to reduce the threat towards the civilian population, as required to do under our UN mandate. As a matter of policy, NATO does not target individuals.

We later learned from open sources and Allied intelligence that Qadhafi was in the convoy and that the strike likely contributed to his capture.

NATO does not divulge specific information on national assets involved in operations.

Human Rights Watch visited the site where Muammar Gaddafi was captured, and found the remains of at least 95 people who had apparently died that day. The vast majority had apparently died in the fighting and NATO strikes prior to Gaddafi’s capture, but between six and ten of the dead appear to have been executed at the site with gunshot wounds to the head and body.

The death of Muammar Gaddafi

Video evidence shows Muammar Gaddafi was alive, although perhaps injured, when captured and surrounded by a rebel mob:

The last words of Colonel Gaddafi on the video were “This is wrong, this is against Islamic law,” and then he said to his abusers: “Do you know right from wrong?”

More mobile phone footage makes it clear that he has been shot shortly after he was captured. This graphic footage shows him wiping the blood from his eye:

And this footage, taken on another phone, shows a gun being brandished in Muammar Gaddafi’s face:

Now new footage shows the scene of the leader’s last moments and those on the scene more clearly:

Yet more horrific footage:

New video shows a clearer view of the whole scene:

Other footage shown on the International Business Times site indicates that Gaddafi was sodomised with an object shortly after being captured.

Muammar Gaddafi’s body was taken to Misrata. It has become pretty standard practice for the rebels to kill their prisoners, particularly those with darker skin, a trend set in the early days when prisoners were massacred and the crime blamed on loyalist forces to provide propaganda for a NATO intervention. Evidence seems to be emerging about the precise motivations for the killers, including a claim (which hasn’t been verified) by rebel Samad Al Saleh Al Arabi ( (Sanad al-Sadek al-Ureibi?) to have shot Gaddafi after disagreeing with the decision to take him to Misrata.

Rebel eyewitnesses in Sirte claimed to Sky News that they shot Gaddafi in the stomach with a 9mm revolver. The late assertion by the NTC that Gaddafi was killed by a shot to the head during a firefight between the rebels and his supporters after he had been loaded onto a vehicle on the way to hospital is typical of the attitude of the rebels toward the truth.

Mutassim Gaddafi alive after capture

Muammar’s son, Mutassim Gaddafi was captured at the same time as his father and video shows him still alive after capture, drinking water and smoking a cigarette:

and also in this video:

NTC statements regarding Mutassim’s death

On the death of Mutassim the Mahmoud Jibril said:

“As for Mutassim there is a wound in the head and a break in the skull and five bullets in the back and one in the neck.”

Mohamed Leith, an NTC field commander, told AFP:

“We found him dead. We put his body and that of (former defence minister) Abu Bakr Yunis in an ambulance to take them to Misrata,”

Here is graphic video footage showing Mutassim’s body after he was killed, with rebels celebrating. There is a serious wound to his upper chest which was not there in the earlier video:

The abuse of corpses

Muammar Gaddafi’s body was later filmed being dragged through the streets of Misrata and then put on display in a supermarket freezer in Misrata for people to photograph with their mobile phones. This is a familiar scene for those who have watched earlier rebel atrocities, some documented by HRI, such as the lynchings at the rebel HQ in Benghazi. others too appalling to show.

The killing of captives and abuse of corpses are war crimes; ones which have been practiced on a large scale by the Libyan rebels, since the beginning of the rebellion, with the full approval and participation of their leadership as we have seen in numerous videos including this one:

According to a rebel commander, the news of her father’s death was broken to Aisha Gaddafi in the following fashion:

‘Aisha called her father’s satellite phone and one of the revolutionaries who had captured him answered her, he said, “It’s over. Abu Shafshufa died.”‘ (Abu Shafshufa being an insulting term with various translations including old crazy hair, old fuzzhead or old afro hair).

(update 25/10) The bodies of Muammar Gaddafi, Mutassim Gaddafi and Abu Bakr Younis were removed from the market where they had been displayed on Tuesday 25th and reportedly buried at night in a secret, unmarked grave in the desert, much against the laws of Islam – but in accordance with Libyan rebel practice.

The laws of War

Under Rule 47. Attacking persons who are recognized as hors de combat is prohibited.
A person hors de combat is:
(a) anyone who is in the power of an adverse party;
(b) anyone who is defenceless because of unconsciousness, shipwreck, wounds or sickness; or
(c) anyone who clearly expresses an intention to surrender; provided he or she abstains from any hostile act and does not attempt to escape.

Regarding the treatment of dead bodies:

Rule 115. The dead must be disposed of in a respectful manner and their graves respected and properly maintained. [IAC/NIAC]

In the case of Muammar and Mutassim Gaddafi the bodies should be treated with respect, in accordance with Islamic custom.

Reaction of human rights bodies

Amnesty International and the United Nations Human Rights Office have said that it is essential to conduct a full, independent and impartial inquiry to establish the circumstances of Colonel al-Gaddafi’s death but the current international practice, of course, is one law for NATO’s adversaries and no law for NATO and its proxies.

It has been reported that, according to Mahmoud Jibril the International Criminal Court initially asked that one of its forensic investigators be allowed to examine Muammar’s body but then decided to accept the post-mortem report provided by the NTC.

Hillary Clinton the US Secretary of State, in imperious mood, reportedly quipped “We came, we saw, he died.”

Lessons for human rights activists

The barbaric deaths of Muammar and his son at the hands of the NATO-backed rebels are only a surprise to those who have depended on the mainstream media and the NATO propaganda machine for their information on this conflict.

There needs to be a full inquiry by human rights activists into how the media, people across the political spectrum and humanitarian organisations were hijacked into supporting or remaining silent in the face of the NATO bombing campaign, the ethnic cleaning and atrocities committed against black people and the subversion of democratic, civilised discourse which the Libyan conflict marks.

(updated 21,22,23,24,25,27 October)

هيومن رايتس إينفستيخاشيون (HRI) تُتابٍع عن كثب الوضع في منطقة ا”لتورخا”، وهنا نلفتُ معاً المعلومات، ونجِدُ، ، استناداً إلى تقارير الشهود والصحافيين والعاملين في مجال حقوق الإنسان ، بأنّ حالة ا”لتورخا” ليست مُجرد حالة تطهير عُرقي ولكن وفقاً للتعريف القانوني، إِبادة جماعيّة.

  HRI لديها مخاوف خطيرة ، ليس فقط لذوي البشرة الداكنة في ليبيا عموماً ، ولكن أيضاً لمؤيدي القذافي بما في ذلك قبائل ال “قدافى” و “المشاشياس”. نحن، أيضاً  قلقون بوجه خاص للتوارخة في جنوب ليبيا الذين يتمّ اتهامهم بال “مرتزقة” ، وهُم تحت هجوم الحُلف الشمالي الاطلسي و قوات المتمردين.  ولكن القلق الأكبر هو ربما للتورخا.

اتفاقية الإبادة الجماعيّة:

المادة الثانية الصادرة من إتفاقيّة الأُمم المتحدة لمنع و معاقبة جريمة الإبادة الجماعيّة تُفيد:

“أي فعل من الأفعال التالية المرتكبة بقصد التدمير كلياً أو جزئياً ، جماعة قوميّة أو إثنيّة أو عرقيّة أو دينيّة ، على سبيل المِثال:

    قتل أعضاء من جماعة
      إلحاق أذى جسدي أو عقلي جسيم لأعضاء المجموعة
     التسبب عمداً ، لظروف حياتيّة بقصد التدمير المادي الكلي أو الجزئي
      فرض تدابير تستهدف الحؤول دون إنجاب الأطفال داخل الجماعة
 نقل الأطفال قسراً من جماعة إلى جماعة أخرى.”

1. تنص المادة الرابعة  على أن الأشخاص الذين يرتكبون جرائم الإبادة الجماعيّة أو أي من الأفعال الأخرى المذكورة  في المادة 3 يعاقبون ، سواء كانوا حكام دستورين و مسؤولين  اوموظفين عموميين أو أفراد

لقد تمّ تطهيرعرقي لل”تورخا”

البلدة الرئيسية في منطقة التورخا،  تورخا نفسها (الملقبة: تورخا / توورخا ) ، وهي بلدة لشعب يقدر با 31.250 (برنامج الأمم المتحدة للبيئة. (2005; وقد أُفرغت كلها من سكانها: شعبها وُجد اما مقتولآ او فراًّ.وسط عدة تقارير، يجري إزعاج السُكان الباقون في محاولتهم العثور على الماء والغذاء. بلدة مصراته تقع على بعد KM 30-40  جنوب مصراته / مصُراته ، وعلى طول الساحل الغربي لخليج سرت. وبعض مناطق مصراتة التي تحتلها التورخا قد حصل فيها أيضا تطهير عُرقي ، وفقاً لصحيفة وول ستريت جورنال.

وذكرت مُنظمة العفو الدوليّة  بمزاعم عن فرار بعض أفراد قبيلة” التورخا” عن منازلهم

عشرات الآلاف الذين يعيشون الآن في مناطق مختلفة من ليبياــ غير قادرون على العودة إلى ديارهم والعلاقات بين أهالي مصراته و التورخا متوترة بشكل خاص. سُكان مخيمات ماكشفيت قرب طرابلس ، حيثُ النازحون من التورخا لجأوا ، قالوا لمُنظمة العفو الدوليّة بأنهُم لن يذهبوا إلى الخارج خوفاً من الأعتقال. قالوا كيف تمّ إعتقال أقاربهم وآخرون من قبيلة التورخا عند نقاط التفتيش وحتى في مُستشفيات طرابلس

في 29 آب ، شاهد مندوبو منظمة العفوالدوليّة مريضٌ تورخي، في مستشفى طرابلس المركزي،  يُجرى ” إستجوابه في مصراته”و اخذه ثلاثة رجال ،أحدهُم مُسلح.  لم يكن بِحوزة الرجل أي مذكِرة توقيف . وقيل ايضاً لمنظمة العفو الدوليّة ان ما لا يقل عن رجلين اخرين من التورخا اختفوا بعداخذهم للإستجواب من مستشفيات طرابلس …

حتى في المخيمات،التورخا ليسوا بأمان.  في نهاية الشهر الماضي ، قاد مجموعة من الرجال المسلحين في المخيم ، واعتقلوا نحو  14 رجلا. تحدثت  أمنستي مع بعض أقاربهم ؛ لا أحد يعرف مصير أو مكان هؤلاء الأشخاص . وقالت امرأة أخرى في المخيم بأن زوجها في عداد المفقودين منذ خروجه راكضاً من المخيم ، للتسوق في وسط طرابلس ، منذ حوالي الأسبوع. تخشى ان يكون قد تمّ احتجازه

قد تمّ مطاردة التورخا الذين فروا للجوء في المخيمات، من قِبل جماعة من المتمردين ، الذين اختطافُهم أم أخذوهم بعيداً.  هناك تقارير موثوقة التي تُفيد عن عمليات اغتصاب و اختطاف و قتل للتورخا،.  حتى شوهد عمليّة مطاردة التورخا، للخروج من مستشفيات طرابلس الى أماكن مجهولة الهوية

التهديدات المُبكرة بالإبادة الجماعيّة في تورخا

في مقالة لصحيفة وول ستريت جورنال في 21 يونيو، وصف سام داغر،تورخا بمدينة تسكنها غالبية من الليبيين السود، وهو  يرجع الى القرن، 19 باعتبارها مدينة العبور في تجارة العبيد.  ونقل عن احد المتمردين قادة من لواء مصراتة

ابراهيم الحلبوس ، وهو أحد قياديّ المتمردين ، الذي يقود المعركة في ليبيا، يقول، على جميع المقيمين المتبقين المغادرة فوراً في حال إستيلاء مقاتليه على البلدة. ” عليهم حزم امتعاتهم”، وقال السيد حلبوس “  تورخا، لم يعد لهاوحودٌ ، مصراته فقط

وأفاد زعماء المتمردين الأخرين بالتالي

“يدعون لاجراءات صارمة مثل منع المواطنين التورخا من العمل ، العيش أو إرسال أطفالها إلى المدارس في مصراته”

بالإضافة إلى ذلك ، وفقا لهذه المقالة ، كنتيجة لمعركة لمصراته

ما يقرب عن أربعة أخماس سكان حي “غوشي” في مصراته  وكانوا تورخا. الآن اختفوا أو اختبئوا، خوفًا من هجمات ا لإنتقام  من قبل المتمردين، وسط تقارير عن مِنح للقبِض عليهم

شيطنة التورخا

جزءٌهام من أي إبادة جماعيّة هوالشيّطنة و نزع الانسانيّة عن الضحايا و هذا هو الحال. في تورخا. كجزء من حرب المعلومات الحلف الشمال الاطلسي والمتمردين وصفوا جميع المقاتلين الموالين السود ، والعمال الضيوف من جنوب-  صحراء افريقيا ، وحتى سكان ليبيا ذوي البشرة السوداء با” المُرتزقة”

وقد تمّ اتهام التورخا بالإغتصاب الجماعيّ ، ويجري وصفهم بصورة جماعيّة ،بالمسؤولون عن معارك مصراته و نعتهم بتعابيرعنصريّة.  كما ذكر سام داغر

بعضٌ، من الكراهية والإيحاءات العُنصرية ضد التورخا، كانت كامنة في معظمها قبل إندلاع النزاع الحالي. على الطريق بين مصراتة وتورخا نجد شعارات المتمردين مثل “الفرقة لتطهير العبيد ،الجلد الأسودقد حلّ مكان خربشة مؤيدي القذافي

ومن الجدير بالذكر أن هذا التشويه من للسود أدى إلى فظائع واسعة النطاق بما في ذلك جرائم القتل وقطع الرؤوس التي بتواطؤ أعلى مراتب المجلس الوطني الإنتقالي

تورخا تحت قبضة الثوار

كما ذكرنا في ذلك الوقت ،  اتخذ المتمردين مدينة تورخا في 13 آب،في هجوم مُنسق بشكل وثيق مع الحلف الشمالي الاطلسي واستُخدم القصف الجويّ و أسلحة ثقيلة، ضد البلدة.

تجدون شريط فيديو للمعركة من جانب المتمردين

تقريرعن السقوط من أندرو سيمونز لقناة الجزيرة ، للأسف تفتقر للمواد، ولكن تظهر على الأقل أحد الكُتل السكنيّة الكبيرة في تورخا ، وبعض السجناء داخل حاوية شحن (المتمردين رفضوا تصويره) ، و رجل مُصاب بجروح و بلباس مدني و قوات المتمردين يقومون بطرد إمرأة مصريّة خسرت 9 أطفال تحت سن 12 ، والتي فرّت من منزلها أثناء الهجوم .

في هذه المرحلة، قد أُحيط آخر ما تبقى من المدنيين والمدافعين عن المدينة.

الهجوم في تورخا، قد أقيم تخطيطه في وقتٍ سابق، أورلا غورين من البي بي سي فشٍلت بشكلٍ مخزٍ ،في إعطاء واقع  التطهير العُرقي على رُغم من إجراء مقابلات مع ابراهيم الحلبوس ، القائد الذي هدد في وقتٍ سابق، على محو المدينة عن الخريطة

الحلف الشمال الاطلسي يدعم الهجوم الجوي علىتورخا

يتم تسجيل قصف الحلف الشمال الاطلسي داعيماً للهجوم، في النشرات الصحفية التابعة للناتو، من الأزمنة التالية

 آب 10: في محيط تورخا:  عقد  القيادة والتحكم (2) ، مرافق التخزين العسكرية
آب12 : في محيط مصراته: (1) منشأة عسكرية ، 1 مرفق تخزين الذخيرة
آب  13 : في محيط مصراته : 4 مدافع مضادة للطائرات
آب 13: في محيط تورخا: مركبات عسكرية (1) ، مدافع مضادة للطائرات

الهجوم الفعلي كان من 10-13 آب نستطيع  رؤية دور الناتو المهم في عملية التطهير العرقي في هذه المدينة ، تطهير عرقيّ  التي تمّ تحذيرهم منه، ولكنهم قرروا، مع ذلك ، المشاركة فيه

تشير التقارير إلى أن الناتو أمر المتمردين  طلاء سياراتهم بالون الأحمر و الأصفر قبل عملية  الهجوم

التطهير العرقي في تورخا

فمن المحتمل جدًا، إنتقال عددٌ كبير من اللاجئين السود من مصراته إلى مدينة تورخا. العديد منهم ومن المقيمين الأصليين فروا من المدينة  قبل الهجوم الفعلي ، وخصوصا أنّ ألويّة مصراته كانت تطلق صواريخ غراد على المدينة. من المُرجح أيضًا،  أن  يكون قد هرب بعض المقاتلين الى سبها ، سرت ، أو بني وليد ، حيث يجرون موقفاً ، علماً أن لا يمكنهم البقاء على قيد الحياة كأسر
مع الإشارة الى تقرير ديفيد إندرز، حيث يقدم تقاريرعن تورخا فارغة،  يشير إلى وقوع تطهير عرقي بعد السيطرة الكاملة للمتمردين

في أعقاب آخر التورخيون

نرد كامل الإئتمان ألى ديفيد اندرز،الذي يتابع قصة التورخيون. (17 سبتمبر) في محاولة لتتبع موقعهم الحالي :

تمّ طرد السكان من مخيمات اللاجئين في طرابلس خلال عطلة نهاية الأسبوع الماضية

“المصراتيون ما زالوا يبحثون عن السود” ، قال حسن ، وهو من سُكان تورخا،يعيش حالياً في مخيم ثالث في جنزور، ستة أميال شرقيّ طرابلس. ” جاء أحد الرجال في هذا المخيم و أخبرني عن مقتل شقيقي على أيدي المتمردين الأمس“

الدليل على أن المتمردين ما زالوا  يسعون وراء التوارخه وهذا الوضع لم يننتهي مع انهيار نظام القذافي،التي زالت مرئيّة،  سواء في فراغ هذه المدينة أو في المخيمات التيفرّ منها السُكان

في مجمع صناعي يماكه تركي باسم صلاح الدين في جنوب طرابلس ، رجلٌ  ينهب المعدن في المجمع قائلآً: التورخا ”  ”ذهبوا إلى النيجر ” البلد الذي له حدود مع ليبيا في الجنوب حيث فرّ بعض مؤيدي القذافي ، بما في ذلك نجلآ الديكتاتور المخلوع 

تجدر الإشارة إلى أن الوصول إلى النيجر ، على أي لاجئ القيام برحلة خطرة للوصول الى سبها. من هناك كان رحلة أخرى بالحافلة لأسابيعللوصول  للنيجر ، عبر الصحراء : رحلة أخرى خطيرة لن يحاوله اي لاجيء حتى ولو نجا وحده

ديفيد إندرز يتابع تقريره

لافي محمد ، منزله على طول طريق المجمع ، وقال ان يوم السبت، مجموعة من الثوارالمسلحون من مصراتة ، التي تبعد 120 كيلومتر شرق طرابلس ، آتوا إلى المخيم وطردوا المستأجرين

واضاف “انهم اعتقلوا حوالي 25 رجلآً” ، وقال محمد “كانوا يطلقون النار في الهواء ويضربونهم ببندقيتهم على مؤخرتهم”

“أخذوا النساء والشيوخ والاطفال في شاحنات

قال محمد، انها ليست المرة الأولى التي يأتي فيها الثوار من مصراتة وراء الناس في المخيم

“قبل اسبوع كانوا هنا ، ولكن (الناس في الحي السكني) توسلوا ان يتركهم و شأنهم ، وقال محمد

وأفاد بأن بعض التورخا أخذوا مخيم آخر في مكان قريب، في مجمع يملكه برازيلي . نهار الثلاثاء ، كان هذا المخيم فارغاً وكذلك الأبواب مُغلقة

تم الاتصال هاتفيا في مخيم في جنزوربحسن ، الذي رفض إستعمال اسم عائلته،قال انه هرب من مخيم الشركة البرازيلية يوم السبت ، عندما ، تمّ قصفه.  وقال ان حوالي 1000 توارخا هم الأن في مخيم جنزور

واضاف “انهم اعتقلوا 35 رجلاً ، ولكن اطلقوا سراحي لأنني كنتُ مع عائلتي” ،و حسن يلقي اللوم على المقاتلون من مصراته

في تورخا، قال قائد للمتمردين بأن رجاله لديهم أوامر بعدم السماح لأي من السكان بالعودة . وقال أيضًا بأن  ذخائر غير المنفجرة ظلت في المنطقة ،الا أياًّ كانت واضحة

معظم المنازل والمباني في المنطقة قد تضررت في القتال ، وقد تمّ نهب نصف دزينة.  وقد سد الطريق الرئيسي المؤدي الى القرية . ألإشارة الوحيدة” لتورخا” رسمت عليها عبارة “نيو  مصراته

كُتب على أحد الجدران بالخرافيتيكلمة تشير إلى سُكان البلدة بال”عبيد” ، وهو إهانة للسود

مقابر جماعية كثيرة

منذ انهيار حكومة القذافي في غرب ليبيا في أواخر آب 2011 ، مقابر جماعية تحتوي على جثث لأشخاص قتلوا أثناء الصراع ذُكرت كل أسبوع في طرابلس وغيرها من المناطق ، وفقا للجنة الدولية للصليب الأحمر (ICRC).

الاتصالات بين  قائد المتمردين من مصراتة و العقيد بني أحمد توحي،  بقبور جماعيّة من “الجنود الموالون للقذافي” الذي “لا ينبغي الحديث عنهم “شهدوا عملية قتل وأختفاء أقاربهم وفي أحد الحالات انتحار امرأة شابة تجنباً من التعرض للإغتصاب

وقد أعربت هيومن رايتس ووتش عن قلقها إزاء المتمردين الذي “يعدمون لرفضهم قتل المتظاهرون”  في محافظة البيضاء قُتلوا وصُور لوسائل الإعلام العالمية، من قبل المتمردين ، والتي رأة النورلأن،  فيديو الهواة للضحايا ظهرت في رعاية  المتمردين

لا نثق بنية سلطات المتمردين بالتحقيق في جرائمهم الخاصة

تواطؤ محمود جبريل في جريمة الإبادة الجماعية

ذكر سام داغر من صحيفة وول ستريت جورنال  في18   سبتمبر بأن محمود جبريل ،وزير المجلس الوطني الإنتقالي ، شكّل مسحٌ لخريطة البلدة في جلسة علنية في قاعة مدينة مصراته

“وفيما يتعلق بتورخا،برأي لا أحد لديه الحق في التدخل في هذه المسألة إلا شعب مصراتة“

“لا يمكن أن ُنعالج هذه المسألة من خلال النظريات والكتب المدرسيّة أمثلة على مثل المصالحة الوطنية في جنوب افريقيا وايرلندا وشرق أوروبا ، “أضاف بينما هتف الحشد مع هتافات “الله أكبر“

وول ستريت جورنال تُكمل التقرير

الآن ، وقد تم إحراق منازل المتمردين في المدينة المهجورة 25 كيلومتر الى الجنوب.  منذ الخميس صحيفة وول ستريت جورنال قد شهادة حرق اكثر من عشرة منازل في المدينة، العقيد القذافي بذرّ المال والإستثمار. على أبواب منازل كثيرة تخريب في المدينة الوحيدة التي تقع على ساحل في البلاد التي تهيمن عليها مذوي البشرة الداكنة ، وعلى ضوء  خربش المتمردين عبارة “العبيد” و “الزنوج”

واضاف “اننا نضرم فيها النيران لمنع أي شخص من اليعيش هنا مرة أخرى “قال مقاتل من المتمردين الموالين والنيران تجتاح عدة منازل

اشخاص للاتصال

هذه ألإبادة الجماعية  السياسية غير ملائمة ، ولذلك منالمهم أن يحاول قراءنا لفت انتباه العالم إلى هذه القضية

وهنا بعض الاقتراحات ، و نرحب بإقتراحات أخرى

تويت  هذه المقالة باستخدام الزر أدناه

المستشار الخاص للامم المتحدة لمنع الإبادة الجماعية

http://www.un.org/en/preventgenocide/adviser/contactform.asp?address=1

المحكمة الجنائية الدولية

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مكتب مفوض الأمم المتحدة السامي لحقوق الإنسان

مكتب مفوض الأمم المتحدة السامي لحقوق الإنسان المفوضية
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نود أن نسأل قرائنا لإبقائنا على علم

الردود على جرائم الإبادة الجماعية ونحن نتعقب أولئك الذين يحاولون النكران ، التقليل أو تبرير هذه الجرائم والذين يعيشون في مواقع السلطة الذين لا يزالون صامتين أو يدعمون معنوياً أو سياسياً الأطراف المذنبة

المزيد من التطورات في موقف التوارخا

وتحركات
محمود جبريل
قادة المتمردين علي أحمد آلشيه، ابراهيم حلبوس، عبد الحسن من لواء الهورّيا
قائد الحلف الشمال الاطلسي الملازم تشارلز بوشار
النصوص ذو صلة مع القوانين الوطنية بتنفيذ اتفاقية  الإبادة الجماعية

وزارة الخارجية الأميركية

منظمات أخرى :منظمة الصليب الأحمر الدوليّة ، ومنظمة العفو الدولية ،الأعضاء التابعة للأمم المتحدة

In 2002, according to Murray, Karimov’s security forces executed prisoners Muzafar Avazov and Khuzniddin Alimov by partially immersing them in boiling

William Hague

water, the exposure of which led to Craig Murray losing his job.

The UK government of David Cameron and William Hague is, of course, friendly to the Karimov regime, as they pretty much see eye-to-eye on human rights issues and Uzbekistan is an important supply route to the troops in Afghanistan.

Craig has asked that the below appeal be reposted to other web sites to try and save Mikel and Nina Malyshev from torture:

Vicious and Uncaring Deportation

Further involvement of the British state in the callous ruining of lives today. Mikel and Nina Malyshev have been taken to Yarlswood Detention Centre and will be deported to probable imprisonment and torture in Uzbekistan on Friday 21 October.

The Home Office continues to insist in asylum cases that there is no human rights problem in Uzbekistan. But no serious authority outside government doubts that Uzbekistan is one of the worst human rights abusers in the world. Unfortunately the lives of Mikel and Nina Malyshev are to be sacrificed to the British government’s agreement with the Karimov regime to provide transit for supplies to the British military in Afghanistan.

It is noticeable that, since the current British government came to power, no government minister or official, nor the British Ambassador to Uzbekistan, has made a single reference to Uzbekistan’s terrible human rights abuses, including over 10,000 political prisoners, absolutely no free media or assembly, banning of all opposition parties, millions of children used as forced slave labour and torture and extra-judicial killing on a massive scale.

In fact such is the British government’s enmity towards the people of Uzbekistan I am afraid that Mikel and Nina will be sacrificed without a thought. They have been living around Swansea for years as valued members of the local community. They have not claimed state benefits and have done much voluntary work. Nina’s daughter is today in labour, brought on early by her mother’s detention. The total number of Uzbek asylum seekers in the UK is in the low dozens, escaping the cruelest regime on earth. I understand and share indignation at fake asylum seekers, but we should be deeply ashamed at our vicious attitude to genuine cases like this.

Please contact your MP, William Hague and Teresa May. You may help save a life.

You may also wish to send a message to their own MP, Hywell Francis, who yesterday refused to help, saying

“Haven’t I done enough already?”

Not just cruel but lazy with it.

Hillary Clinton starts an official visit to Karimov on Sunday to mark the resumption of US arms supplies to Uzbekistan, which were suspended after the massacre of 800 pro-democracy demonstrators in Andijan in 2005.

——————————–

William Hague is on Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/WilliamJHague

Update – Despite the various appeals Nina and Mikel were deported to Uzbekistan on Friday 21st.

Using bombs inside a densely populated urban area is a war crime, although NATO commanders (such as Lieutenant-General Charles Bouchard and Admiral Stavridis) and their friends in the arms industry will claim otherwise.

On Saturday 24th September, according to UK military spokesman Nick Pope, the RAF bombed what it called a “psychological operations centre” which is NATO NewSpeak for an opposition TV or radio station inside Sirte:

Sat Night: RAF aircraft struck a command & control installation, a psychological warfare centre & 3 firing points & staging posts. #Libya—
Maj Gen Nick Pope (@UKMilOps) September 26, 2011

On the following day, Sunday 25th September, ‘a formation’ of RAF Tornado GR4s attacked targets within the city:

Sun pm: A staging post, known from NATO surveillance analysis to be used by mercenary forces, was attacked by a formation of Tornado GR4s.—
Maj Gen Nick Pope (@UKMilOps) September 26, 2011

The horrific video below shows a 1 minute slice of the horror visited upon Sirte, where little children are being mutilated, killed and Libya’s future destroyed in the interests of the war-mongers, the egos of NATO leaders, the profits of arms companies and improved access to Libyan resources.

The footage from Ibn Sina hospital in Sirte is an indictment of the western political class, wedded to militarism and war, funded by arms companies, protected by a war-mongering media and oblivious to the consequences of their policies. Indeed, this video was filmed hot on the heels of Sarkozy and Cameron celebrating the rebel ‘victory’ in Benghazi at the site of the lynchings of black men in that city.

WARNING HORRIFIC VIDEO:

The United Nations reaction to the assault on Sirte shows how dysfunctional this organisation has become. On 7 October 2011, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Special Representative Ian Martin said in a news release:

“Libya’s revolution is based upon the demand for human rights and dignity,”

“I appeal to all to respect the calls made by the National Transitional Council (NTC) that there should be no revenge even against those responsible for war crimes and other grave violations.”

“This will lay the foundation for national reconciliation and the future unity of the people of Libya.”

Of course, the idea that the Libyan revolution is based on demands for ‘human rights and dignity’ whilst the rebels are in reality engaged in widespread racial atrocities, ethnic cleansing and lynchings of black people is simply Orwellian.

The United Nations must be aware of the report issued on 30 September by Human Rights Watch, (since reinforced with a more thorough report from Amnesty International ) which shows clearly, that the rebellion, rather than marking a new era of respect for human rights, has been instituted a reign of terror in Libya with widespread and documented use of illegal detention, electric shocks and other torture.

The consequences of the NATO bombing have included a reported 100,000 deaths, millions of refugees, a country fragmented into fiefdoms, ruled over by groups of undisciplined mobs fighting one another for power, with millions of people robbed of their basic human rights to security, food, drink, medical care and shelter.

Phan Thị Kim Phúc after being napalmed by the South Vietnamese air force during the American War in Vietnam. June 8 1972. Photo by Nick Ut

It is so sad that, nearly 30 years after the iconic photograph was taken of Phan Thị Kim Phúc after her village was bombed, a new generation of Western leaders have learnt absolutely nothing.

It remains to be seen if the mainstream media picks up on these images, as it did 30 years ago, or if it has been entirely neutered, as we fear.

Below is an image from the footage:

Child victim in Sirte. 25 September 2011

The crimes against humanity in Libya have required the participation and complicity of a large number of people. But the chief responsibility lies with the political leaders involved in pushing for war and the use of military force at every stage of this conflict: President Barack Obama, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prime Minister David Cameron.

The video in this post was first uploaded to YouTube on 9 October and is part of a collection of videos from inside Sirte and Sirte hospital. The image above was taken by HRI from this video.

Gandhi - never received the Nobel Peace Prize

Tawakul Karman, from the Yemen, is a worthy choice – she is the Chairwoman of Women Journalists Without Chains, an organization that defends human rights and  freedom of expression, including the freedom to protest and who has herself been jailed by the Yemeni authorities on many occasons.
Leymah Gbowee from Liberia played a very major role in bringing the 2003 civil war to an end, effectively mobilising women to put an end to the conflict. She is the executive director of the Women Peace and Security Network Africa, based in Ghana which acts to build relationships across the West African sub-region in support of women’s capacity to prevent, avert, and end conflicts. She is a founding member and former coordinator of the Women in Peacebuilding Program/West African Network for Peacebuilding (WIPNET/WANEP).

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the Liberian President, is a controversial choice as her background includes requesting Liberia to be used as the headquarters for the United States African Command (AFRICOM) and accepting millions in military aid from the USA, as reported by PANA:

Liberian authorities have requested the United States to make Liberia the headquarters of its new African Command, as Defence officials of both countries signed an agreement to exchange logistical support and military supplies and services here on Wednesday.
Defence Minister Brownie Samukai and the Deputy Commander of the US European Command, General William Ward, signed the agreement at the Defence Ministry in Monrovia Wednesday.
Recently the US government decided to establish an African Command.
Samukai thanked the American government for its security assistance to Liberia, which include the on-going training of soldiers for the new Liberian army by the United States, and support to the country’s security sector reform programme.
The US has said it would commit some US$200 million to reform Liberia’s security sector, including the training and equipping of a 2,000-strong new Armed Forces of Liberia.
US General Ward described the latest agreement with Liberia as a “foundation for future assistance”. 19 April 2007 – PANA

As it turns out, of course, AFRICOM is still located at Kelley Barracks in Stuttgart-Moehringen, Germany and there are no plans to move it to Monrovia. Most African nations do not believe having American troops on their doorstep would be a positive development for peace on the continent. The security assistance programme has however proceeded and has recently been calculated at $285 million.

Also interesting is that the Liberia Truth and Reconciliation Commission (for whom Leyman Gbowee served as the commissioner-designate) has called for Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to be banned from office, according to Time magazine:

In its final report, released yesterday,  Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), a body modeled on South  Africa’s historic truth commission, says Johnson Sirleaf should be banned from  government for 30 years for her early support of former Liberian President  Charles Taylor. Taylor, who played a central role in Liberia’s conflict, is on  trial in the Hague for crimes against humanity that stem from his part in the  civil war in neighboring Sierra Leone.

The Commission’s 370-page report collected more than 20,000 statements and  took three years and several million dollars to complete. It investigates the  causes and consequences of Liberia’s conflict, a war that displaced a third of  the people in the small West African country, left a quarter of a million dead,  and countless more raped, disabled, and traumatized. Johnson Sirleaf is among 50  people the Commission recommends should not be allowed to hold public office.

A major thread running through the story of the Libyan conflict has been the information war – propaganda spread by intelligence agencies, military, media and political groups designed to encourage hatred, conflict, war, foreign intervention, death and destruction.

One sad aspect of the propaganda war has been the role played by Amnesty International and – as we will see -the heavily compromised Human Rights Watch (HRW), organisations which used to be highly regarded (and still employ some decent, well-intentioned and brave individuals.)

The daily output of propaganda is difficult to keep up with, let alone dispel. With fabricated stories describing camel bones as mass graves containing 1270 bodies, Moussa Ibrahim reportedly being found in women’s clothing and viagra apparently being distributed as a weapon of mass destruction in order to “rape children as young as EIGHT” the propaganda is beyond parody.

Human Rights Watch – infiltrated

HRW has always been a somewhat dodgy organisation, largely funded by billionaires such as George Soros and the Rausing family whose fortune comes from Tetra Paks, exploiting cheap labor in China and (allegedly) tax dodging on an industrial scale. According to its 2010 financial statements, HRW’s annual spend on fundraising was $8,042,326 and $2,344,370 on management and general costs.

Human Rights Watch is very close to the US foreign policy establishment. Cables recently released by Wikileaks show HRW workers regularly meet with US officials abroad and as 08BANGKOK1522 makes crystal clear, HRW has been infiltrated by US government assets (our emphasis and italics):

2. (C) A long-time and trusted Embassy contact based in Thailand with HRW (STRICTLY PROTECT) revealed to us that the May 14 press release \”Burma: Donor States Must Monitor Aid\”generated a certain amount of internal dissent during its drafting. 

Of particular concern to HRW staff on the ground was reference to a report that the Burmese military appropriated international relief supplies.  The final version released to the media stated \”HRW confirmed an Associated Press (AP) report in which high-protein biscuits supplied by the international community had been seized by the military, and that low-quality, locally produced substitutes were instead delivered to communities in need.\”

3. (C) According to our contact, HRW received the story from a trusted source in Rangoon on May 12.  This Rangoon source stated that a Burmese Ministry official (NFI) had claimed that the Burmese military confiscated a shipment of high-protein biscuits and transferred them to a military warehouse. The Ministry official adamantly believed that the biscuits were replaced with an inferior version before distribution to cyclone victims, though he provided no verification of this claim. The Rangoon source had no first-hand knowledge of the action by the Burmese military and had not been able to follow-up with the Ministry official as to the current whereabouts of the alleged biscuits. HRW Thailand shared this story with their headquarters in New York, but couched it as for internal consumption only.

The Zainab al Hosni affair

The emasculation of Amnesty International is perhaps even more disappointing and it is a major victory for Admiral Stavridis’ information warriors to have neutered this once radical organization. Fresh evidence that Amnesty has been hijacked to a pro-NATO intervention agenda has been revealed by Syrian State TV and Russia Today.

On 23 September (whilst ignoring the genocide of the Tawergha , the NATO bombing of civilians and civilian infrastructure in Libya) Amnesty issued this report about Zainab al Hosni of Homs:

Fresh evidence of the extreme brutality being meted out to Syrian protesters and their families has been revealed today by Amnesty International.

The mutilated body of 18-year-old Zainab al-Hosni of Homs, the first woman known to have died in custody during Syria’s recent unrest, was discovered by her family in horrific circumstances on 13 September.

The family was visiting a morgue to identify the body of Zainab’s activist brother Mohammad, who was also arrested and apparently tortured and killed in detention. Zainab had been decapitated, her arms cut off, and skin removed.

“If it is confirmed that Zainab was in custody when she died, this would be one of the most disturbing cases of a death in detention we have seen so far,” said Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

“We have documented other cases of protesters whose bodies were returned to their families in a mutilated state during recent months, but this is particularly shocking.”

The killings of Zainab and Mohammad bring Amnesty International’s records of reported deaths in custody to 103 cases since mass protests in Syria began in March this year.

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, CNN, Al Jazeera and most other media outlets used the case of Zainab in order to try to justify the sanctions against Syria (see Infanticide masquerading as policy) and intervention in Syrian affairs by the thoroughly discredited International Criminal Court and by the UN Security Council.

In a statement guaranteed to fan the flames in Syria, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, Joe Stork pronounced:

“Syrian security forces either killed and mutilated Zaynab al-Hosni or are turning a blind eye to gangs committing gruesome murders against anti-government activists and their families.

In either case, the government of Bashar al-Assad is perpetuating a climate of terror in Syria and fanning the flames of sectarian mistrust.”

Now, embarrassingly for all concerned, Zainab has turned up alive and well (though complaining about having had to run away from home due to being abused by her brothers) on Syria TV:

An Amnesty International spokesperson told the BBC:

We will endeavor to be a little more cautious and phrase things a bit more nuanced.

Update: Amnesty Internatioanl and Human Rights Watch have issued a joint-statement  which seeks to explain their position on Zainab al-Hosni case and in which they

“regret any inaccuracy in the misidentification of the body as that of Zaynab al-Hosni.”

An intensive propaganda campaign systematically distorted the facts on the ground, including in particular allegations that the Libyan airforce was bombing peaceful protestors and that Libyan soldiers were being massacred for not shooting on unarmed protestors (since proven to have been a false flag operation). This propaganada allowed a mobilisation of the international community and the passing of UN Resolution 1973 which imposed the No-Fly Zone.

It is UN Resolution 1973 which NATO argues provides the legal basis for the coalition operation in Libya as NATO makes clear in their Factsheet on Operation Unified Protector:

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 mandates “all necessary measures” to protect civilians and civilian populated areas under attack or threat of attack. In line with this authorisation, NATO conducts reconnaissance, surveillance and information-gathering operations to identify those forces which present a threat to civilians and civilian-populated areas.

Notwithstanding this NATO supported the rebels as they escalated the level of violence directed against those who opposed them, civilians and guest workers with attacks using Grad rockets, artillery, tanks and mortars - in fact any weapons that could be looted from arms dumps or supplied by NATO, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Here is an early example from Misrata of rebel forces nonchantly firing mortars, in between drinking cups of tea:

With the brutal assault on Sirte, which is facing a bombardment from the air, surpassing Guernica, the indiscriminate assaults on civilian areas are now being taken to a higher level:

As we have seen, NATO’s official justification for their operations includes a requirement “to identify those forces which present a threat to civilians or civilian-populated areas.”

Commander of Allied Air Command Izmir, Lieutenant General Ralph J. Jodice II (U.S. Air Force)

Furthermore the justification includes this:
Targeting depends on the decisions of operational commanders. Targets struck to date have included tanks, armoured personnel carriers, air-defence systems and artillery around and approaching key civilian areas including Misrata, Ajdabiyah and Zintan. [My emphasis]

Yet clearly NATO is supporting the rebel use of tanks and artillery around and approaching the key civilian area of Sirte; indeed NATO and its allies are almost certainly supplying the ammunition for these big guns.

Many journalists are having trouble processing this information, let alone communicating it to their readership, as it does not fit in with the overriding paradigm of an operation “intended to protect civilians.”

#Libya NTC fighters are shelling built up area of Sirte where there are civilians. Perhaps NATO will reread UN Res 1973 'protect civilians'.—
Tim Marshall (@Skytwitius) September 28, 2011

It remains to be seen, which journalists have the intelligence to realise that the old paradigm is dead and the courage to communicate this fact to their readers. A new paradigm is required, a new framework to understand the NATO war on Libya, one which recognises that the mantra of “responsibity to protect civilians” which NATO repeats at every press conference and in every press release is nothing more than:

1) A propaganda device, aimed at the fooling the public into supporting a war of aggression.

2) A legal device whereby the NATO command seeks to escape responsibility for war crimes.

Captive of the rebels in Sabha

HRI has grave concerns, not only for dark-skinned people in Libya generally, but also for pro-Gaddafi tribes including the Gaddafa and al-Meshashyas. We also have particular concern for the Tuareg of southern Libya who are being accused of being ‘mercenaries’ and under attack from NATO and rebel forces. But the greatest concern is perhaps for the Tawergha.

The Genocide Convention

Article 2 of the United Nations issued Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide states:

“any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group as such:

1. Killing members of the group;

2. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

3. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

4. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

5. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”

Article 4 states:

Persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3 shall be punished, whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals.

 The Tawargha have been ethnically cleansed

The main town of the Tawergha region, Tawergha itself (aka Tawargha, Tawurgha. Arabic: تاورغاء), was a town of an estimated 31,250 people (United Nations Environment Program, 2005).  It has been emptied of its entire population: its people having either been killed or fled, amidst reports the remaining population in the area are being picked off as they try to find water and food. The town of Tawergha lies about 30-40 miles south of Misrata/Misurata,  along the western coast of the Gulf of Sirte. Areas of Misrata occupied by the Tawargha have also been ethnically cleansed, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Amnesty has  reported on the allegations ‘that members of the Tawargha tribe’ have fled their homes and:

Tens of thousands are now living in different parts of Libya – unable to return home as relations between the people of Misratah and Tawargha remain particularly tense. Residents of makeshift camps near Tripoli, where displaced people from Tawargha are sheltering, told Amnesty they would not go outside for fear of arrest. They told how relatives and others from the Tawargha tribe had been arrested from checkpoints and even hospitals in Tripoli.

On 29 August, Amnesty delegates saw a Tawargha patient at the Tripoli Central Hospital being taken by three men, one of them armed, for “questioning in Misratah”. The men had no arrest warrant. Amnesty was also told that at least two other Tawargha men had vanished after being taken for questioning from Tripoli hospitals…

Even in the camps, the Tawarghas are not safe. Towards the end of last month, a group of armed men drove into the camp and arrested about 14 men. Amnesty spoke to some of their relatives; none knew of their fate or whereabouts. Another woman at the camp said her husband has been missing since he left the camp to run an errand in central Tripoli, about a week ago. She fears he might be have been detained.

Tawergha who fled to refugee camps have been chased down by rebel groups, taken away and disappeared. There are credible reports of Tawerghans being raped, disappearing and being killed. Tawerghans have even been witnessed being dragged out of hospitals in Tripoli to unknown fates.

The early genocidal threats to Tawergha

In a June 21  article in the Wall Street Journal, Sam Dagher described Tawergha as a  town inhabited mostly by black Libyans, a legacy of its 19th-century origins as a transit town in the slave trade. He quoted one of the rebel commanders from the rebel Misrata brigade:

Ibrahim al-Halbous, a rebel commander leading the fight near Tawergha, says all remaining residents should leave once if his fighters capture the town.  “They should pack up,” Mr. Halbous said. “Tawergha no longer exists, only Misrata.”

Other rebel leaders are reported as:

“calling for drastic measures like banning Tawergha natives from ever working, living or sending their children to schools in Misrata.”

In addition, according to the article, as a result of the battle for Misrata:

nearly four-fifths of residents of Misrata’s Ghoushi neighborhood were Tawergha natives. Now they are gone or in hiding, fearing revenge attacks by Misratans, amid reports of bounties for their capture.

The demonization of the Tawergha

An important part of any genocide is the demonisation and dehumanisation of the victims and this continues to be the case for the Tawergha. As part of the information war NATO and the rebels have described all loyalist black fighters, guest workers from sub-Saharan Africa and even black skinned inhabitants of Libya as ‘mercenaries’ [Arabic:  مرتزقة Romanisation:mertezqh or 'murtazaka'].

The Tawerghans have been accused of mass rape, of being collectively responsible for the battle of Misrata and are invariably described in racist terms. As Sam Dagher reported:

Some of the hatred of Tawergha has racist overtones that were mostly latent before the current conflict. On the road between Misrata and Tawergha, rebel slogans like “the brigade for purging slaves, black skin” have supplanted pro-Gadhafi scrawl.

It is worth noting that this demonisation of black people has led to widespread atrocities including lynchings and beheadings in which the highest echelons of the National Transitional Council have been complicit.

Tawergha is captured by the rebels

As we reported at the time, the town of Tawergha was taken by the rebels on 13 August in an assault which was closely coordinated with NATO and featured the use of aerial bombing and of heavy weaponry against the town.

Here is video of the battle from the rebel side:

A report of the fall by Andrew Simmons for Al Jazeera, unfortunately lacking context, shows at least one of the large residential blocks in Tawergha alight, prisoners packed inside a freight container (who the rebels didn’t want filmed), an injured man in civilian clothes and the rebel fighters evicting an Egyptian woman who has lost her 9 children under 12 who ran away during the attack from her home.

At this stage the last remaining civilians and defenders of the town were reportedly surrounded.

The attack on Tawergha was also reported by Orla Guerin of the BBC who also, disgracefully, failed to give the ethnic cleansing context despite actually interviewing Ibrahim al-Halbous, the very commander who had earlier threatened to wipe the town off the map.

NATO air support for the assault on Tawergha

The NATO bombing in support of the attack is recorded in the NATO press releases from the time:

10 August: In the vicinity of Tawurgha: 3 Command and Control Nodes, 2 Military Storage Facilities.
12 August: In the vicinity of Misratha: 1 Military Facility, 1 Ammo Storage Facility.
13 August: In the vicinity of Misratah: 4 Anti-Aircraft Guns.
13 August: In the vicinity of Tawurgah: 2 Military Vehicles, 1 Anti-Aircraft Guns.

The actual assault was from 10-13 August so we can see NATO played an important role in the ethnic cleansing of this town, an ethnic cleansing of which they had been forewarned and in which they decided, nonetheless, to participate.

Reports indicate the rebels were ordered by NATO to paint their vehicles red and yellow just prior to the assault.

The ethnic cleansing of Tawargha

It is highly likely many black refugees from Misrata fled to the town of Tawergha. Many of them and the original residents may have moved on prior to the actual assault, especially as the Misrata brigades were firing Grad rockets at the town. It also seems likely some of the fighters may have escaped to Sabha, Sirte or Bani Walid, where they are currently making a last stand, sure in the knowledge that they are unlikely to survive capture.

However, a report by David Enders, reporting from an empty Tawergha, indicates ethnic cleansing occurred after the rebels took full control:

According to Tawergha residents, rebel soldiers from Misrata forced them from their homes on Aug. 15 when they took control of the town. (Our emphasis)

This would have been 2 days after the fall of the town and after Orla Guerin and Andrew Simmons had left. The fate of the prisoners loaded into the shipping containers, as well as the population as a whole remains unknown.

Following the trail of the last of the Tawerghans

To his great credit David Enders follows up on the story of the Tawerghans, (17th September) trying to trace their current location:

The residents were then apparently driven out of a pair of refugee camps in Tripoli over this past weekend.

“The Misrata people are still looking for black people,” said Hassan, a Tawergha resident who’s now sheltering in a third camp in Janzour, six miles east of Tripoli. “One of the men who came to this camp told me my brother was killed yesterday by the revolutionaries.”

The evidence that the rebels’ pursuit of the Tawerghis did not end with the collapse of the Gadhafi regime is visible, both in the emptiness of this village and that of the camps to which the residents fled.

At one, in a Turkish-owned industrial complex in the Salah al Deen neighborhood of southern Tripoli, a man looting metal from the complex simply said that the Tawerghis had “gone to Niger,” the country that borders Libya on the south where some Gadhafi  supporters, including the deposed dictator’s son Saadi, have fled.

It is worth noting that to get to Niger, any refugees would hav ehad to make an extremely hazardous journey to Sabha first. From there it would have been a further weeks journey by bus into Niger, across the Sahara: another very dangerous journey which it is highly unlikely any of the refugees would have even attempted let alone survived.

David Enders report continues:

Lafy Mohammed, whose house is across the road from the complex, said that on Saturday a group of revolutionary militiamen from Misrata, 120 miles east of Tripoli, had come to the camp and evicted its tenants.

“They arrested about 25 of the men,” Mohammed said. “They were shooting in the air and hitting them with their rifle butts.”

“They took the women, old men and children out in trucks,” he said.

Mohammed said that it was not the first time the revolutionaries from Misrata had come after the people in the camp.

“A week ago they were here, but (the people in the neighborhood) begged them to leave them alone,” Mohammed said.

Mohammed said some of the Tawerghis may have been taken to another nearby camp, in a Brazilian-owned industrial complex. On Tuesday, that camp was empty as well, with the gate locked.

Reached by phone at the camp in Janzour, Hassan, who did not want his last name used, said he had escaped from the Brazilian company camp on Saturday, when it, too, was raided. He said about 1,000 Tawerghis were now at the Janzour camp.

“They arrested 35 men, but they let me go because I was with my family,” Hassan said. He blamed a brigade of fighters from Misrata.

In Tawergha, the rebel commander said his men had orders not to allow any of the residents back in. He also said that unexploded ordnance remained in the area, though none was readily apparent.

Most homes and buildings in the area appeared to have been damaged in the fighting, and a half-dozen appeared to have been ransacked. The main road into the village was blocked with earthen berms. Signs marking the way to the village appeared to have been destroyed.

On the only sign remaining “Tawergha” had been painted over with the words “New Misrata.”

On one wall in Tawergha, graffiti referred to the town’s residents as “abeed,” a slur for blacks.

Mass graves abound

A bulldozer filling a mass grave with bodies

Since the collapse of the Gaddafi government in western Libya in late August 2011, mass graves containing the bodies of people killed during the conflict have been reported on a weekly basis in Tripoli and other areas, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

A communications intercept between a rebel commander from Misrata and Colonel Ahmed Bani suggests the mass graves of “pro-Gaddafi soldiers” which ”are not to be talked about.” Relatives have testified to the murder and dissappearances of their menfolk and in one instance the suicide of a young woman who wished to avoid being raped.

Human Rights Watch have expressed their concern about the rebels interfering with mass graves which will make forensic work to discover the perpetrators of massacres difficult.

According to Amnesty International the Libyan soldiers “executed for refusing to kill protesters” in Al-Baida were in fact murdered and filmed for the world’s media by the rebels, which only came to light because amateur video of the victims whilst in rebel custody surfaced.

So we can have no faith in the rebel authorities investigating their own crimes.

Mahmoud Jibril’s complicity in the crime of genocide

Sam Dagher of the Wall Street Journal reported September 18th that Mahmoud Jibril, the National Transtional Council Prime Minister, rubber-stamped the wiping of the town off the map in a public meeting at the Misrata town hall:

“Regarding Tawergha, my own viewpoint is that nobody has the right to interfere in this matter except the people of Misrata.”

“This matter can’t be tackled through theories and textbook examples of national reconciliation like those in South Africa, Ireland and Eastern Europe,” he added as the crowd cheered with chants of “Allahu Akbar,” or “God is greatest.”

The WSJ goes on to report:

Now, rebels have been torching homes in the abandoned city 25 miles to the south. Since Thursday, The Wall Street Journal has witnessed the burning of more than a dozen homes in the city Col. Gadhafi once lavished with money and investment. On the gates of many vandalized homes in the country’s only coastal city dominated by dark-skinned people, light-skinned rebels scrawled the words “slaves” and “negroes.”

“We are setting it on fire to prevent anyone from living here again,” said one rebel fighter as flames engulfed several loyalist homes.

People to contact

This is of course a highly politically inconvenient genocide, and it is therefore of great importance that our readers attempt to bring the attention of the world to this issue.

Here are some suggestions and we welcome others:

Tweet this article using the button below!

UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide

http://www.un.org/en/preventgenocide/adviser/contactform.asp?address=1

The International Criminal Court

International Criminal Court
Office of the Prosecutor
Communications
Post Office Box 19519
2500 CM The Hague
The Netherlands.

Email to: otp.informationdesk@icc-cpi.int,
Facsimile to: +31 70 515 8555

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Palais des Nations
CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

Telephone: +41 22 917 9220
Email: InfoDesk@ohchr.org

The US Department of State

http://contact-us.state.gov/app/ask

Other organisations: The ICRC, Amnesty International, members of the UN (see the stop bombing email campaign for emails)

We would also ask our readers to keep us informed

1) Of responses to the genocide as we are tracking those who are attempting to deny, justify and minimise these crimes and those in positions of authority who remain silent or give moral and political support to the guilty parties.
2) Further developments in the position of the Tawerghans.
3) The movements of;
a) Mahmoud Jibril,
b) rebel commanders Ali Ahmed al Sheh, Ibrahim al-Halbous, Abdul Hassan of the Al Horia Brigade and
c) NATO commander Lieutenant-General Charles Bouchard.
4) the stipulations of the relevant national laws implementing the Genocide Convention.

There should be no impunity for war criminals.

(PS – It is worth noting that Ibrahim al-Halbous, one of the rebel commanders involved, was paralyzed after being injured during fighting on Sunday 18 September according to a spokesman for the Misurata media committee.)

Jews - orthodox and secular - protest the siege of Gaza - photo by Scottmontreal

Here are some key passages from that profound, deep and moving speech, which gave hope to the people of Palestine that they might soon see a state, allowing them to have human rights, self-determination and an end to living under occupation:

“..it is also undeniable that the Palestinian people – Muslims and Christians – have suffered in pursuit of a homeland. For more than 60 years they have endured the pain of dislocation. Many wait in refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza, and neighbouring lands for a life of peace and security that they have never been able to lead. They endure the daily humiliations – large and small – that come with occupation. So let there be no doubt: the situation for the Palestinian people is intolerable. America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own.

America will align our policies with those who pursue peace, and say in public what we say in private to Israelis and Palestinians and Arabs. We cannot impose peace. But privately, many Muslims recognise that Israel will not go away. Likewise, many Israelis recognise the need for a Palestinian state. It is time for us to act on what everyone knows to be true.

And at the end of his great speech President Obama invoked Holy Scripture:

The Holy Koran tells us: “O mankind! We have created you male and a female; and we have made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another.”

The Talmud tells us: “The whole of the Torah is for the purpose of promoting peace.”

The Holy Bible tells us: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

As the United Nations considers the application of the Palestinians, the world watches to see whether President Obama will act in accordance with his fine words and promises.

As the rebels entered Tripoli bodies littered the streets. These black men had their hands tied behind their backs.

On Saturday 17^th September, as reported by Al Jazeera, Ahmed Bani, the interim government’s military spokesman, said gave army personnel still loyal to Gaddafi a last chance to join the ranks of former rebel fighters:

“The soldiers and officers who will not heed this last call will be accused of high treason.”

The invocation of high treason in civil war (“non-international armed conflict”) situations is a highly disreputable manoevre designed to deny any legal obligations to adversaries due under international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the Additional Protocols of 1977.

It is worth noting the irony given that

1. Oran’s Dictionary of the Law (1983) defines treason as “…[a]…citizen’s actions to help a foreign government overthrow, make war against, or seriously injure the [parent nation].”
2. It was allegedly the very prospect of the old government using excessive force in suppressing rebellion which motivated the rebellion in the first place.

The dangers of the path being pursued by Ahmed Bani (and his NATO advisors presumably) is that this course of action (and this is well established in the annals of history), tends to lead to a situation where each side:

“sinks into barbarity and tries to outdo each other in the cruelty of their reprisals.” (Bluntschli, Das moderne Völkerrecht der civilisirten Staaten als Rechtsbuch dargestellt, 1868,288, para.512)

The Geneva Conventions

Common Article 3 to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 sets minimum standard for the use of civil war opponents:

In the case of armed conflict not of an international character occurring in the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each Party to the conflict shall be bound to apply, as a minimum, the following provisions:

1. Persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed ‘’hors de combat” by sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause, shall in all circumstances be treated humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, colour, religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or any other similar criteria.

To this end, the following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons:

(a) violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture;

(b) taking of hostages;

(c) outrages upon personal dignity, in particular humiliating and degrading treatment;

(d) the passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court, affording all the judicial guarantees which are recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.

2. The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for.

Given the situation on the ground in Libya, and the certainty of further atrocities if a ceasefire and negotiated solution is not found, and the real danger of genocide against certain tribes, Human Rights Investigations again appeals strongly for an immediate end to the NATO bombing, (which has unfortunately just been extended) a ceasefire and negotiated end to the conflict.

“Southern trees bear a strange fruit,
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,
Black body swinging in the Southern breeze,
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.
Pastoral scene of the gallant South,
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,
Scent of magnolia sweet and fresh,
And the sudden smell of burning flesh!
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck,
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,
For the sun to rot, for a tree to drop,
Here is a strange and bitter crop.”

For years we have been waiting to see the fruits of Barack Obama’s presidency, hoping this man was the embodiment of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr’s dream, that he would be a peacemaker, that he would show solidarity with the poor and persecuted - yet gradually we have come to see the Obama Tree as barren and useless.

But lately the Obama Tree has burst forth with fruit, a fruit born of political expediency – and it is a strange and bitter crop:

The legal lynching of Troy Davis

Lack of moral courage and political expediency means Obama has kept silent over the execution of Troy Davis

According to the Death Penalty Information Center Troy Davis will be bound to a gurney and a member of the execution team will position several heart monitors on Mr Davis’ skin. Two needles (one is a back-up) will then be inserted in his veins, probably in his arms. Long tubes will connect the needle through a hole in a cement block wall to several intravenous drips.

Then, at the warden’s signal, a curtain will be raised exposing Troy Davis to the witnesses in an adjoining room. Then, Mr Davis will be injected with sodium thiopental – an anesthetic, which will put him to sleep. Next will flow pavulon or pancuronium bromide, which will paralyze Mr Davis’ entire muscle system and stop his breathing. Finally, the flow of potassium chloride will stop his heart. Death will result from anesthetic overdose and respiratory and cardiac arrest while Troy Davis is unconscious.

Medical ethics preclude doctors from participating in executions. However, a doctor will certify Mr Davis is dead. This lack of medical participation can be problematic because often injections may be performed by inexperienced technicians or orderlies. If a member of the execution team injects the drugs into a muscle instead of a vein, or if the needle becomes clogged, extreme pain may result.

Update: Troy Davis’ last appeal was rejected and the lethal injection began at 10.53 pm. He died at 11.08 pm.

The last words of Troy Davis were reported as:

I’d like to address the MacPhail family. Let you know, despite the situation you are in, I’m not the one who personally killed your son, your father, your brother. I am innocent. The incident that happened that night is not my fault. I did not have a gun. All I can ask … is that you look deeper into this case so that you really can finally see the truth. I ask my family and friends to continue to fight this fight. For those about to take my life, God have mercy on your souls. And may God bless your souls

The crimes of Barack Obama

We may never know whether 22 years ago, as a young man, Troy Davis committed a murder, but as for President Obama his responsibility is clear:

He has supported the rebels as they lynched black men in Libya

He has lent his full support to Mahmoud Jibril, the rebel leader, who has approved the commission of genocide against the black Tawergha of Libya.

and

he has pursued a war, based on propaganda, which is killing civilians daily in Libya:

Highly disturbing video

And more:

Highly disturbing video

And babies? And babies – Highly disturbing video

We know what Martin Luther King would say about Obama’s wars and we also know what Martin Luther King, a true moral leader and a worthy winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, said about capital punishment:

“that old law about “an eye for an eye” leaves everybody blind.

On March 28, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Troy Davis’ appeal. – Photo: AP

Troy Davis was convicted of killing a policeman but the chief witness seems to be in the frame, most of the other witnesses have recanted, 50 states have appealed for clemency and Amnesty International and the NAACP are campaigning for him.

He has always maintained his innocence but, perhaps partly as a consequence of an institutionally racist justice system , he is due to be executed in Georgia, USA on Wednesday 21st September.

In Michelle Alexander’s highly recommended book “The New Jim Crow,” (referenced by Brentin Mock) the author calls up the Georgia case McCleskey v Kemp. Like Davis, Warren McCleskey was a black man facing the death penalty after being convicted of killing a white police officer.

In his defense, McClesky teamed with law professor David Baldus to review 2,000 death penalty cases in Georgia. They found defendants charged with killing white people were given the death penalty 11 times more than those charged with killing black people; also, that Georgia prosecutors sought the death penalty in 70% of cases involving black defendants and white victims while seeking it in less than 20% of cases involving white defendants and black victims.

No problem, you might think, US President Barack Obama can surely stop this happening?

Well, so far he has remained silent on the issue.

The Atlanta Post explains the reasoning:

Unfortunately for supporters of Davis, Obama is in his second bid for president, which means that any call for justice for an African American would trigger a racial backlash from some voters, particularly those of the Fox-News, fear-mongering persuasion.

And given the tough and divisive first term he has had, the chances that President Obama will stick his neck out for a fellow minority is close to zero. Like it or not, this is a cold reminder of how little effect a Black man in the White House has had on ending or even addressing the very real applications of systemic racism and injustices, which is manifested on a daily basis in society at large.

So the hopes of Troy Davis lie with the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles. (UPDATE – CLEMENCY DENIED)

One of the many pleas made to the Board which was particularly persuasive was from America’s exonerated death row survivors.

Here is the text of their letter

HRI has added links to the individual stories of each of the survivor signatories below:

Dear Chairperson Donald and Members of the Board:

We, the undersigned, are alive today because some individual or small group of individuals decided that our insistent and persistent proclamations of innocence warranted one more look before we were sent to our death by execution. We are among the 138 individuals who have been legally exonerated and released from death rows in the United States since 1973. We are alive because a few thoughtful persons – attorneys, journalists, judges, jurists, etc. – had lingering doubts about our cases that caused them to say “stop” at a critical moment and halt the march to the execution chamber. When our innocence was ultimately revealed, when our lives were saved, and when our freedom was won, we thanked God and those individuals of conscience who took actions that allowed the truth to eventually come to light.

We are America’s exonerated death row survivors. We are living proof that a system operated by human beings is capable of making an irreversible mistake. And while we have had our wrongful convictions overturned and have been freed from death row, we know that we are extremely fortunate to have been able to establish our innocence. We also know that many innocent people who have been executed or who face execution have not been so fortunate. Not all those with innocence claims have had access to the kinds of physical evidence, like DNA, that our courts accept as most reliable. However, we strongly believe that the examples of our cases are reason enough for those with power over life and death to choose life. We also believe that those in authority have a unique moral consideration when encountering individuals with cases where doubt still lingers about innocence or guilt.

One such case is the case of Troy Anthony Davis, whose 1991 conviction for killing Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail rested almost solely on witness testimony. We know that today, 20 years later, witness evidence is considered much less reliable than it was then. This has meant that, even though most of the witnesses who testified against him have now recanted, Troy Davis has been unable to convince the courts to overturn his conviction, or even his death sentence.

Troy Davis has been able to raise serious doubts about his guilt, however. Several witnesses testified at the evidentiary hearing last summer that they had been coerced by police into making false statements against Troy Davis. This courtroom testimony reinforced previous statements in sworn affidavits. Also at this hearing, one witness testified for the first time that he saw an alternative suspect, and not Troy Davis, commit the crime. We don’t know if Troy Davis is in fact innocent, but, as people who were wrongfully sentenced to death (and in some cases scheduled for execution), we believe it is vitally important that no execution go forward when there are doubts about guilt. It is absolutely essential to ensuring that the innocent are not executed.

When you issued a temporary stay for Troy Davis in 2007, you stated that the Board “will not allow an execution to proceed in this State unless and until its members are convinced that there is no doubt as to the guilt of the accused.” This standard is a welcome development, and we urge you to apply it again now. Doubts persist in the case of Troy Davis, and commuting his sentence will reassure the people of Georgia that you will never permit an innocent person to be put to death in their name.

Freddie Lee Pitts, an exonerated death row survivor who faced execution by the state of Florida for a crime he didn’t commit, once said, “You can release an innocent man from prison, but you can’t release him from the grave.”

Thank you for considering our request.

Respectfully,

Kirk Bloodsworth, Exonerated and freed from death row Maryland

Clarence Brandley, Exonerated and freed from death row in Texas

Dan Bright, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana

Albert Burrell, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana

Perry Cobb, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois

Gary Drinkard, Exonerated and freed from death row in Alabama

Nathson Fields, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois

Gary Gauger, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois

Michael Graham, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana

Shujaa Graham, Exonerated and freed from death row in California

Paul House, Exonerated and freed from death row in Tennessee

Derrick Jamison, Exonerated and freed from death row in Ohio

Dale Johnston, Exonerated and freed from death row in Ohio

Ron Keine, Exonerated and freed from death row in New Mexico

Ron Kitchen, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois

Ray Krone, Exonerated and freed from death row in Arizona

Herman Lindsey, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida

Juan Melendez, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida

Randal Padgett, Exonerated and freed from death row in Alabama

Freddie Lee Pitts, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida

Randy Steidl, Exonerated and freed from death row in Illinois

John Thompson, Exonerated and freed from death row in Louisiana

Delbert Tibbs, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida

David Keaton, Exonerated and freed from death row in Florida

Greg Wilhoit, Exonerated and freed from death row in Oklahoma

Harold Wilson, Exonerated and freed from death row in Pennsylvania

There is a petition to sign at Change.org

Update: The Parole Board has denied clemency and he is scheduled for execution tomorrow. 21/09 7pm Eastern Time

Update 21/09 – At time of writing, nearly three hours after scheduled execution, Troy Davis is in the execution room waiting ….

Update: Troy Davis’ last appeal was rejected and the lethal injection began at 10.53 pm. He died at 11.08 pm.

The last words of Troy Davis were reported as:

I’d like to address the MacPhail family. Let you know, despite the situation you are in, I’m not the one who personally killed your son, your father, your brother. I am innocent. The incident that happened that night is not my fault. I did not have a gun. All I can ask … is that you look deeper into this case so that you really can finally see the truth. I ask my family and friends to continue to fight this fight. For those about to take my life, God have mercy on your souls. And may God bless your souls

Guernica by Picasso

According to NATO’s own figures, Sirte has been bombed with 340 “key hits” from 25th August to 16th September. (we have been tracking the official NATO numbers in War: what is it good for – absolutely nothing.)

According to the NATO operational update for 16th and 17th September:

Key Hits 16 SEPTEMBER: In the vicinity of Sirte: 5 Command and Controle Nodes, 3 Radar Systems, 4 Armed Vehicles, 8 Air Missile Systems.

Key Hits 17 SEPTEMBER:
 In the vicinity of Sirte: 2 Command and Control Nodes, 4 Multiple Rocket Launchers, 1 Armed Vehicle, 4 Surface to Air Missile Systems.

Moussa Ibrahim, in a call from a satellite phone to Reuters office in Tunis on Saturday 17th September, said:

“NATO attacked the city of Sirte last night with more than 30 rockets directed at the city’s main hotel and the Tamin building, which consists of more than 90 residential flats.

“The result is more than 354 dead and 89 still missing and almost 700 injured in one night.”

“In the last 17 days more than 2,000 residents of the city of Sirte were killed in NATO air strikes.”

Injured child in hospital (from video below)

Spokesman Colonel Roland Lavoie’s gave NATO’s official response:

We are aware of these allegations, it is not the first time such allegations have been made. Most often, they are revealed to be unfounded or inconclusive.”

It has not been released how many tons of bombs the NATO bombers have dropped in the vicinity of Sirte during this conflict, but it probably exceeds the 40 tons dropped by the Condor Legion on Guernica.

The League of Nations was entirely ineffective in defending civilian areas from being bombed during the Spanish Civil War and it remains to be seen if the United Nations will prove any better in this conflict.

Evidence of damage to civilian buildings in Sirte:

And more…

Reported bombing of SIRT local radio station 17/09/2011:

And civilian casualties, including women and children, in hospital:

DISTURBING VIDEO:

To try and influence the Security Council members we ask our readers to participate in the Stop Bombing email campaign.

A Black Star News report follows the remarks made by NTC Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril, giving the seal of approval to the ethnic cleansing.

Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr, who served as a national co-chairman of the 2008 Obama election campaign and who is a civil rights activist and stated on Wednesday:

“Racism in the form of ethnic cleansing, killing and genocide is wrong anytime, anyplace and against anybody in the world. And it appears as though the rebel leader, Mahmoud Jibril, is using the American idea that the South used to protect the institution of slavery – the 10th Amendment in our Constitution – to say, in essence, ‘it’s a states’ right and local control issue.’”

“Well, it’s not a local issue and it’s a moral outrage,”  he added.

“As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.’ As a senior member of the Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee, I intend to raise this issue with my colleagues and condition any financial support for the reconstruction of Libya and its transition to a democratic society.”

“I think it is absolutely necessary that the United Nations and the International Criminal Court in the Hague investigate what I consider to be crimes against humanity,” Rep. Jackson said.

As the SFBayView states:

The White House has yet to issue a single statement condemning this ethnic cleansing of Black people. Hillary Clinton’s Department of State remains mute. The leaders of organizations that profess to protect the rights of Black people, such as the NAACP’s Ben Jealous and the National Urban League’s Marc Morial, have yet to make statements. Surely, someone must read The Wall Street Journal.

As the SFBayView also states:

Other major corporate media, such as The New York Times, CNN and BBC, all of which to varying degrees surrendered pretense at “objectivity” and openly supported the NATO bombardments, are now in a bind. They have yet to report major stories on the ethnic cleansing in Misrata and Tawergha. Rather than concede that the side they supported in the civil war is carrying out war crimes, they would rather suppress the story.

The reaction of the United Nations

As yet there has been little direct response from the United Nations to the Black Star News:

Even the United Nations was unable to respond today to the ethnic cleansing reports when contacted by The Black Star News and after the Journal’s reports were forwarded. A spokesman for Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon was asked whether the targeted actions qualified as ethnic cleansing, whether they qualified as war crimes and whether the United Nations is demanding an investigation.

The spokesman, Eduardo del Buey, ignored the specific questions and responded with a statement from U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, which states in part  “In situations of transition or unrest, restraint must be observed.” The spokesman explained:

“We are not commenting on media reports. the high commissioner speaks to the issue of human rights, and this is what she has said to date in Libya,”

Navi Pillay recently stated that “expectations that the UN will play its part are high and we must not disappoint them” – our expectation is that she will take some urgent action to protect civilians in Libya by working to bring an end to the NATO bombing and also make a firm statement, not just about the fate of migrant workers in Libya, but also about the ethnic cleansing of Tawergha and the abuses being committed against dark-skinned Libyans.

UN Resolution 2009 (2011)

This resolution, passed on Friday, makes some important provisions including:

“Strongly condemning all violations of applicable human rights and international humanitarian law, including violations that involve unlawful killings, other uses of violence against civilians, or arbitrary arrests and detentions, in particular of African migrants and members of minority communities’

South Africa’s representative, however, expressed disappointment that the resolution did not call specifically for the protection of the human rights of African migrants.  Alongside the Russian Federation’s representative and other speakers, he also called for the early lifting of the no-fly zone. South Africa’s representative, however, expressed disappointment that the resolution did not call specifically for the protection of the human rights of African migrants.  Alongside the Russian Federation’s representative and other speakers, he also called for the early lifting of the no-fly zone.

When Cameron and President Sarkozy went to Benghazi  yesterday to express their support for Libyan rebels, they went straight to the site at which the rebels publicly beheaded an alleged pro-Gaddafi “mercenary” only weeks  before.

Here is a still from the video of the visit:

Still - Sarkozy and Cameron at the lynching site

Here is the actual footage of the visit:

Here is the building Nicolas Sarkozy and David Cameron were visiting in a picture (courtesy of Al Jazeera creative commons license):

Benghazi rebel headquarters

And here is footage of the rebel lynching which took place a few weeks ago as Human Rights Investigations reported, at the same location. The video shows a man being strung up and beheaded. As you can see the location is the same.

WARNING VERY GRAPHIC VIDEO

Here is the still from 00:9

Still from above video to show location of lynching

In a short press conference earlier in the day David Cameron focused on Gadaffi’s alleged mercenaries saying

“The mercenaries should go home.”

Amnesty International crisis researcher, Donatella Rovera spent the period from 27 February to 29th May in Misrata, Benghazi, Ajdabiya and Ras Lanouf. In July she had this to say on the subject:

“We examined this issue in depth and found no evidence. The rebels spread these rumours everywhere, which had terrible consequences for African guest workers: there was a systematic hunt for migrants, some were lynched and many arrested. Since then, even the rebels have admitted there were no mercenaries, almost all have been released and have returned to their countries of origin, as the investigations into them revealed nothing.”

It seems likely that some of those rebels cheering the two leaders to the rafters would have been amongst those showing similar enthusiasm at the lynchings.

Just to give some context to these events – the Libyan conflict is far from over, hundreds, perhaps thousands of African migrant workers are currently in detention in Tripoli or fearing for their lives in refugee camps. The town of Tawergha has been ethnically cleansed with the consent of the NTC leadership, and those who survived have fled and the south of Libya, which is to a large extent occupied by dark-skinned Libyans, is now under attack by NATO bombers and the “brigade to purge black skin, slaves,” as some of the Misratan rebels describe themselves.

The two held a press conference with Chairman Mustapha Abdel Jalil and Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril as the two western leaders pledged to carry on bombing Libya as long as it takes. There was, of course, no mention of the recent seal of approval Mahmoud Jibril gave to the ethnic cleansing of Tawergha and no mention of the ongoing reign of terror directed against pro-Gaddafi supporters and black-skinned Libyans.

The unfortunate fact is that these leaders are not interested in finding a peaceful political accommodation between the people of Libya, but are committed to the unconditional surrender and to the brutal suppression by military force of all forces who do not share their vision of Libya’s future. This will include the taking by force of Sabha. As Chairman Jalil said:

“There will be fierce battles in Sabha with equipment that we do not yet have, and we ask for more equipment to retake these places”

As usual, the BBC faithfully relayed the messages being sent out by the British government (all the Libyan people are so grateful etc.) so we have to look to Russia Today for any kind of objective reporting of the facts on the ground:

A particularly worrying feature of Sarkozy’s recent pronouncements have been his references to Syria and the fact he obviously sees Libya as a prelude to what he wishes to achieve in that country. The preparations for an attack on Syria are already being laid (itself a prelude to attacking Iran), both in the media, by supplying arns to violent elements of the opposition and imposing economic sanctions designed to destabilise the country further.

In this context, it is fortunate that the position of Russia, reiterated by Vitaly Churkin, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations is sensibly:

“If you want to protect civilians the last thing you do is start a civil war”

Mahmoud Jibril

The final chapter is now being written for Tawargha, as reported by Sam Dagher of the Wall Street Journal

Mahmoud Jibril, the NTC prime minister, rubber-stamped the wiping of the town off the map at the Misrata town hall:

“Regarding Tawergha, my own viewpoint is that nobody has the right to interfere in this matter except the people of Misrata.”

“This matter can’t be tackled through theories and textbook examples of national reconciliation like those in South Africa, Ireland and Eastern Europe,” he added as the crowd cheered with chants of “Allahu Akbar,” or “God is greatest.”

The WSJ goes on to report:

Now, rebels have been torching homes in the abandoned city 25 miles to the south. Since Thursday, The Wall Street Journal has witnessed the burning of more than a dozen homes in the city Col. Gadhafi once lavished with money and investment. On the gates of many vandalized homes in the country’s only coastal city dominated by dark-skinned people, light-skinned rebels scrawled the words “slaves” and “negroes.”

“We are setting it on fire to prevent anyone from living here again,” said one rebel fighter as flames engulfed several loyalist homes.

For the former residents this is still not the end of the story, as reported recently by human rights workers in Tripoli, male inhabitants of the town who fled are being tracked down and rounded up in Tripoli and sent to Misrata to face the tender mercies of the mob there.

Please click here for a comprehensive update on the Tawergha

Take just a few easy steps to send e-mails to non-belligerent members on the UN Security Council, calling on them to take a stand against the military intervention and to support and promote a negotiated resolution/peace.

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Please pass this on to your friends, family and contacts around the world! For Italian, French and Spanish versions of the appeal (with email in English) please go to: www.interculture.it/libia

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Please paste the following addresses into the recipient box of your “Stop the War in Libya” e-mail:

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In the e-mail’s subject box:
PLEASE PUT A STOP TO NATO WAR IN LIBYA – APPEAL TO NON-BELLIGERENT UNSC MEMBERS

Body text:

“PLEASE PUT A STOP TO THE NATO WAR ON LIBYA!”
WE APPEAL TO NON-BELLIGERENT MEMBERS OF THE U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL
•to put an end to the misuse of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 to influence the internal affairs of Libya through warfare, by revoking it, and
•to press for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Libya.

We thank those countries that have tried, and are still trying, to work towards peace.

Our appeal is based on the following:
•the military intervention in Libya undertaken by some NATO members has now gone far beyond the provisions of Security Council Resolution 1973, and is based on hyped-up accounts of defenseless citizens being massacred by their government, while the truth is that, in Libya, there is an on-going and intense internal armed conflict;
•we are aware of the economic and geo-strategic interests that lie behind the war in Libya and, in particular, behind NATO support of one of the two armed factions;
•NATO military intervention in Libya has killed (and is continuing to kill) countless civilians, as well as harming and endangering the civilian population, including migrants and refugees, in various other ways;
•the belief, at this stage, that only non-belligerent countries – and particularly those with U.N. Security Council voting rights – can successfully bring a peaceful end to the conflict through negotiations and by implementing the opening paragraph of UNSC Resolution 1973, which calls for an immediate ceasefire.

Respectfully yours,

Name (or association)
Address (optional)

Promoted by Rete No War and U.S. Citizens for Peace & Justice – Rome