Real News Video : Mubarak Verdict Sparks Nationwide Protests

Tens of thousands of Egyptians retake Tahrir Square after the surprise verdict of their former President and key regime figures. Activists are calling for the reoccupation of Tahrir in a last push before the contested presidential elections to remove the military junta

Assad's furry friend

Chris Riddell on Russia's embrace of the Syrian despot

guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 June 2012 19.05 EDT

ثورة آذار السورية بين إشكاليتين :إشكالية التاريخ وإشكالية الجغرافيا

                                              ثورة آذار السورية بين إشكاليتين :

                                              إشكالية التاريخ وإشكالية الجغرافيا  

                          د. محمد أحمد الزعبي                                                                                               

1.

بلغت  العناصرالمتعلقة في هذا الموضوع ، خلال إعدادي لمخطط هذه المقالة ، أكثرمن عشرين عنصراً إشكالياً ، موزعين على الجوانب الأساسية  المتعلقة في موضوع مابات معروفاً بثورة 15 آذار 2011 السورية  ، وذلك في كل من : سورية  نفسها ، جامعة الدول العربية  ، دول الجوار الإقليمي غير العربي (ولاسيما : إيران ، تركيا ، إسرائيل ) ، دول الفيتو الخمس ،( ولاسيما روسيا وأمريكا )  . هذا وتدور مجمل هذه العناصر، من الناحيتين النظرية والعملية  ، حول  :

أولاً : خوف  كل من أمريكا والدول الغربية  وروسيا ( والصين إلى حد ما ) ، على إسرائيل من البديل الديموقراطي السوري ، لنظام عائلة الأسد ،( فوبيا الديموقراطية ) ، وذلك لأن إسرائيل إنما أنشأتها هذه الدول الكبرى عام 1948 ، كجسر قار تعبر من خلاله بصورة آمنة نحو مصالحها الاقتصادية  في الوطن العربي، ولاسيما  النفطية منها .

إن  الجغرافيا  التي جعلت من إسرائيل " دولة !" مجاورة لسورية هي من جعل الدول الحريصة على بقاء وحماية إسرائيل ، حريصة على بقاء حكم عائلة الأسد في دمشق ، بعد أن أثبتت هذه العائلة نجاحها في السكوت المطلق على احتلال اسرائيل لهضبة الجولان طوال أربعة عقود ، وأيضاً تخليها  المطلق أيضاً عن قضية العرب الأولى ، القضية الفلسطينية ، كما هو معروف لدى الجميع .

   

ثانياً : خوف الغرب ، وبعض الدول الإقليمية ، وبعض الدول العربية ، على الطابع العلماني الذي طبع الحياة السياسة السورية بعد الإستقلال  1946 ، والذي ارتكز بصورة أساسية على أولوية الفكر القومي العلماني ، ( المقبول من لأقليات) ، على الفكر الديني ، وذلك إذا ماجاءت الديموقراطية السورية  ببديل  إسلامي ( غير علماني )  لنظام عائلة الأسد  المحسوبة  زوراً على العلمانية  ( فوبيا الإسلام ) ،  

2.             

لقد ترتب على هذين الخوفين ، جملة من الإشكالات ، السورية ، والعربية ، والإسلامية ، والدولية ، التي انعكست سلباً على مسيرة ثورة  آذار 2011 ، وزاد ت في خسائرها البشرية والمادية ، وحالت دون وصولها إلى أهدافها ( الحرية والكرامة ) بسرعة و بأقل الخسائر ، أبرز هذه الإشكالات :

      ـــ التناقضى بين القول والفعل ، عند الدول الكبرى المعنية بالوضع السوري ، والتي تم ذكرها أعلاه ، ذلك أنهم لايستطيعون أن يفصحوا عن مواقفهم الحقيقية ، سواء فيما يتعلق بالخوف على إسرائيل من البديل الديموقراطي السوري ، أو بالخوف من خسارتهم لورقة " الأقليات" في سورية ، وفي المنطقة  العربية ككل ، وذلك علي يد البديل الإسلامي ، ولاسيما أن الثورة السورية الراهنة ، لم تطرح كأهداف نهائية لها سوى  " الحرية والكرامة " ، وذلك عبر إسقاط النظام  الديكتاتوري الشمولي الوراثي لعائلة الأسد ، واستبداله بنظام مدني ديموقراطي تعددي وتداولي ، وهو أمر لايستطيع حاكم عاقل في الشرق أو الغرب، أن ينكره أو يتنكر له بصورة مكشوفة ، لأن مثل هذا الموقف إنما يعني الوقوف إلى جانب الديكتاتورية ضد الديموقراطية ، وأيضاً ضد حقوق الإنسان ، وهو مالا تقبله الشعوب والجماهيرالتي يحكمونها ، ناهيك عن الشعب السوري نفسه وهو المعني الأول والأخير بالوصول إلى شاطئ الحرية والديموقراطية والكرامة عبر هذه الثورة الشعبية المباركة .

    ـــ الجمهورية الوراثية : ونرغب أن نستشهد في إطار هذه الفقرة ، بالحكاية التالية ، التي حدثت معنا شخصياً ، ألا وهي : أنني كنت في طريقي من مدينة لايبزغ الألمانية إلى مدينة أخرى لزيارة  أحد الأصدقاء ، عندما رن جرس هاتفي ، لينقل لي أحدهم نبأ وفاة حافظ الأسد في دمشق . لاأنكرأنني قد سررت بهذا الخبر، وتصورت أن النظام الديكتاتوري في سورية قد انتهى مع نهاية صاحبه. وعندما وصلت بيت الصديق الذي كنت في طريقي إليه ، وهو مواطن سوري علماني وديموقراطي وتقدمي أخبرته بوفاة الديكتاتور ، وبوجهة نظري حول إمكانية انتهاء الديكتاتورية في سورية ، ولكني فوجئت بموقف آخر منه مختلف عن موقفي حول هذا الموضوع ، حيث أبلغني بأنه على علم تام بأن "عائلة الأسد" ليست بصدد التخلي عن الحكم ، وأن الأب قد هيّأ لنظامه ( ولأسباب تاريخية ) "وريثاً " سوف يكون  أشد حرصاً منه  على استمرار " العائلة " في الحكم ، ألا وهو ابنه " بشار " ، وبالتالي فإن الشعب السوري سوف ينتقل عمليّاً    " من تحت الدلفة لتحت المزراب " !! ، وأن " الجمهورية العربية السورية " سوف تتحول على 

يد بشار إلى جملكية ( جمهورية وراثية ) تحكمها وتتحكم بها "عائلة الأسد " إلى أجل غير مسمى !! . وهو ماحصل فعلاً بعد وفاة حافظ الأسد ( الأب). إنها إشكالية الماضي التي مازال البعض يعيش على ذكراها التي أكل عليها الدهر وشرب ، ويحاول توظيفها لخدمة مآربه ومخططاته المشبوهة والمكشوفة ، سواء في الحاضر أوفي المستقبل إذا أمكن .

3.

ثورة 15 / 18 آذار 2011  في سورية  ( ربيع دمشق الثاني ) :

نتفق مع لينين على ضرورة عدم اللعب بالثورة وبالانتفاضة المسلّحة ، وعدم استعجالهما ، حيث أنه  لن يختفي نظام إجتماعي ــ سياسي  قبل أن تكون قد نضجت جميع القوى التي يتضمنها ، والتي تؤذن بقرب انتهائه ، كما أننا نتفق معه أيضاً  في استبعاد كل من تصدير أو استيراد الثورة . وفي أن الثورة مستحيلة من دون أزمة وطنية عامة  تلف جميع فئات الشعب ، وتوقع الارتباك واليأس والهلع في صفوف الفئة الحاكمة ،  وتؤذن بدنو النضج الثوري  . ويلخص لينين الأعراض التي تنذر بوجود هذا النضج ، وبالتالي تؤذن بالانفجار الثوري بـ : 

ـــ  الطبقات الدنيا ترفض والطبقات العليا لاتستطيع ،

ـــ  تزايد البؤس والشقاء ،

ـــ  نشاط وغليان خارق للعادة .

إن اندلاع الثورة  ، في سوريا ، في النصف الثاني من شهرمارس 2011 هو بحد ذاته البرهان العلمي والعملي على أن الأوضاع السياسية والاجتماعية والاقتصادية قد بلغت أعلى درجات النضج الثوري وأن الشعب السوري بكل فئاته ومكوناته ، بات جاهزاً للدفاع عن حريته وكرامته ، مهما كلفه ذلك من تضحيات  لقد حاول بشار الأسد ، ان يحتوي هذه الثورة من خلال طعم الإصلاح  الكاذب ، ظانّا أنه بضحكته ال.. ، المعروفة ، يستطيع أن يغري هذا الشعب بابتلاع  هذا الطعم ، ولكن الشعب السوري كان أكثر وعياً مما تصوره " سيادته !! " ، ورد عليه بكل جدية ووضوح  إلعب غيرها  ياسيادة الوريث !! .

هذا مع العلم أن هناك فرقاً بين " الإصلاح " كدرجة من درجات النضج الثوري ، والإصلاح كأيديولوجية مكتفية ذاتيّاً ،والإصلاح  كنوع من " الضحك على الذقون "  بحيث يمكن القول بوجود علاقة تكامل بين الإصلاح والثورة في الفهم الأول ، بينما هناك علاقة تعارض وتناقض بينهما في الفهم الثاني والثالث .

وتبين لنا من العودة إلى وعود وخطب بشارالأسد ،المفارقات العجيبة التي سمعناها في تلك " الخطابات "

والتي يمكن تلخيصها وتجسيدها في عبارة " نعم .. ولكن "  ، أو بتعبير آخر، أخذه بالشمال مايعطيه باليمين ، وبالتالي فإن الحصيلة العامة لخطبه ، ولوعوده الإصلاحية  الشكلية الكاذبة ، كانت دائماً " تيتي تيتي مثل مارحتي مثل ماجيتي !! " .اللهم إلاً الاستمرا ر المتواصل ودون هوادة بسفك دماء المتظاهرين السلميين ، ومن بينهم ، بل وفي مقدمتهم  ، الأطفال والنساء والشيوخ ، وبمختلف الطرق والأساليب غير الإنسانية وغير الأخلاقية ، بدءاً من القنص المنظم ، وانتهاءً بالقتل تحت التعذيب النفسي والجسدي ، مروراً بكل مايمكن أن يخطر على بال بشرمن أنواع التنكيل والقتل واغتصاب النساء، والمقابر الجماعية ، ودفن الثوار وهم أحياء تحت التراب ..الخ !!.

يخيل إليّ أن الغالبية الساحقة من شباب ثورة آذار السورية ، بل مئات الألوف الذين تغص بهم صباح مساء شوارع حمص وحماه ودرعا وإدلب وحلب ودمشق ودير الزور ، بل وكافة المدن والقرى السورية ، لم يقرؤوا نصائح لينين التي أوردناها أعلاه ، ولكنهم قد ابتكروا خطة طريقهم بأنفسهم  ولأنفسهم ، وباتوا يستحقون عن جدارة أن يطلق عليهم اسم " قادة الربيع العربي ".

 إن هتافاتهم الوطنية والقومية والديموقراطية لم تتغير ولم تضمر منذ 15آذار 2011 وحتى اليوم  ( سلمية ، سلمية  /  واحد ، واحد ، واحد ، الشعب السوري واحد / الشعب يريد إسقاط النظام  /  سورية بدها حرية  /  الموت ولا المذلّة / الله أكبر  .. الخ . ) ، ولم يكونوا بحاجة  إلى منابر " الأفندية " ( وأنا مع الأسف واحد منهم ) ،  لكي يقولوا لهم ماذا عليهم أن يفعلوا أو لايفعلوا ! .

إن مطلب الحرية والكرامة  كغاية ، والديموقراطية والمواطنة والعدالة الاجتماعية  كوسيلة ، باتت هي الخبز اليومي لشباب سورية وشاباتها ، لرجالها ونسائها ، لأطفالها وشيوخها ، بل ولأبطال الجيش السوري الحر الذي رفض جنوده وضباط صفه وضباطه إطلاق النارعلى إخوتهم وأخواتهم في المظاهرات السلمية والمشروعة ، وقرروا أن ينشقوا عن " كتائب عائلة الأسد " ، وينضموا إلى إخوانهم وأخواتهم في ثورة آذار المجيدة  ، ويقوموا بواجبهم الوطني والقومي والإنساني  في الدفاع عن هؤلاء المتظاهرين السلميين .

إن أحداً ما عاد بإمكانه أن يوقف عجلة هذه الثورة ، قبل وصولها إلى برالأمان ، برّ الحرية  والكرامة والديموقراطية  ، برّ إسقاط نظام عائلة الأسد بكل عناصره ورموزه ، واستبداله بنظام مدني ديموقراطي تعددي وتداولي ، يتجسد في مثلث متساوي الأضلاع ، قاعدته  المواطنة المتساوية لجميع فئات ومكونات الشعب السوري  ، وضلعاه الآخران هما الدستور الموضوع من قبل هيئة منتخبة ، و صندوق الاقتراع  النزيه والشفاف .

Al-Jazeera Video: Demonstrations carry through the night in Egypt

"Tens of thousands congregated in Tahrir Square to celebrate the imprisonment of the country's former leader, Hosni Mubarak.

However, shouting "invalid" "invalid", people still congregating in the square as Sunday morning broke also condemned the court judgment that has failed to find anyone directly responsible for the killings of hundreds of people during the Egyptian uprising.

Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna reports from Cairo."

I saw massacre of children, says defecting Syrian air force officer

As UN envoy warns of all-out war, a major has provided crucial evidence on the Houla killings

Martin Chulov
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 June 2012

"A senior Syrian military officer has described how he defected to opposition forces after witnessing hundreds of pro-regime militiamen carry out the now infamous massacre of more than 100 civilians in the town of Houla one week ago.

The account of Major Jihad Raslan comes as the United Nations' special envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan, yesterday warned of an increasing risk of imminent war in Syria. "The spectre of an all-out war with an alarming sectarian dimension grows by the day," Annan told an Arab League gathering.....

Raslan served until last Saturday in the Syrian Air Force in the strategically vital port city of Tartous. He had been in Houla on leave when the town was shelled just after 1pm last Friday, then invaded by a civilian militia, known as the Shabiha, in the worst single atrocity of the Syrian uprising.

The officer's account to the Observer of what took place is among the most important of the testimonies to have emerged since the massacre, the aftermath of which appears to be causing fresh turmoil inside Syria 16 months after the first stirrings of revolt inspired by the Arab spring.

Raslan said he was in his house, around 300 metres from the site of the first massacre in the village of Taldous, when several hundred men whom he knew to be Shabiha members rode into town in cars and army trucks and on motorbikes.....

"We used to be told that armed groups killed people and the Free Syria Army burned down houses," he said. "They lied to us. Now I saw what they did with my own eyes.".....

"I want to get my two brothers to leave. It is a very sensitive, dangerous situation for my family. Everyone is at risk. From the beginning we knew that they were lying. Everything was a lie. But my family is the most important thing. We need to protect each other."......"

Hosni Mubarak's sentence greeted with initial euphoria, then anger

Egyptians react with dismay as former president is convicted on lesser charge and given sentence 'wide open' to appeal

Jack Shenker and Abdel-Rahman Hussein in Cairo
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 June 2012


"Egypt's stuttering revolution has taken a dramatic new turn after Hosni Mubarak, the country's all-powerful dictator for 30 years, was sentenced to life imprisonment for enabling the massacre of protesters who rose up against his rule.

But initial euphoria at the historic verdict – the first time an Arab leader has ever been deposed, tried and convicted by his own people – quickly gave way to confusion and then fury on the streets as full details of the court judgement emerged......

Hossam Bahgat, director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, one of the human rights organisations monitoring the case, said the prosecution had been hampered by withheld evidence and a lack of support from state institutions, and predicted that a retrial was likely. "We are glad that Mubarak and his police chief did not walk free but extremely disappointed at the acquittal of six security officials and even more at the reason given for the acquittals, which is the lack of evidence linking them with the killing of protesters," he told the Guardian......"

Al-Jazeera Video: حديث الثورة - إدانة دمشق بسبب مجزرة الحولة

"مستقبل الضغوط الدولية على النظام السوري في ضوء قرار الادانة الصادر من مجلس حقوق الانسان لدمشق بسبب مجزرة الحولة
تقديم : الحبيب الغريبي
تاريخ البث : 2012/06/01
الضيوف: غسان ابراهيم
نور الدين العلوي
آيان بلاك
فيصل عبد الستار
"

Al-Jazeera Video: Egyptians react to Mubarak verdict

"Across Egypt, reaction to the verdict in the trial of former president Hosni Mubarak has been mixed.

Even those who welcomed it were shocked to see Mubarak's former security chiefs walk free.

Many also feel cheated by the acquittal of his sons on corruption charges - although they are still awaiting trial for insider trading.

Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros reports from Cairo."

EGYPT HEADED FOR AN EXPLOSION

Another Use For Ahmed Shafiq, by Carlos Latuff

By Eric Margolis

"The second, decisive round of Egypt’s presidential election will be held 16 and 17 June. If former general and Mubarak regime stalwart Ahmad Shafiq somehow wins, it’s almost certain the vote was manipulated.

A huge popular explosion in Egypt will very likely ensue. Egyptians are already furious their first democratic election of a president was distorted by the state election commission, a tool of the military junta now ruling Egypt. The commission vetoed many popular and capable candidates from the election for spurious reasons, so corrupting the election in advance. The vote was set up to split the votes of Islamists between numerous candidates.

In the end, two candidates, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi and former Maj. General Ahmad Shafiq, were left facing one another in the runoff vote.....

The Islamists were to blame for some of this. They failed to unite, splitting the vote. They failed to convince deeply worried Coptic Christians, who comprise 10% of Egypt’s population, that Islamists would not be a threat to Christianity or enforce draconian Salafist practices. They did not sufficiently emphasize their commitment to democracy or youth issues.

Another key factor that I witnessed across Egypt was the military junta’s ploy of withdrawing police from the streets and actually encouraging a crime wave to develop in a nation that was one of the world’s most crime-free societies in spite of its grinding poverty. Many Egyptians were frightened by the rising crime wave into supporting Shafiq and his military backers who vowed to crush crime with an iron first.

Even so, it strains comprehension that Shafiq is now running neck-a-neck with Islamist Morsi. There is even talk that if Shafiq wins, he will name the hated former intelligence chief Omar Suleiman as prime minister. A Shafiq victory would mean a return to absolute Mubarakism, without Mubarak....."

French warming to armed intervention in Syria : poll

"(Reuters) - A widening majority of French people favor military intervention in Syria and more believe France should participate, according to the first poll on the issue since a recent massacre in the country.

The Ifop poll on Saturday showed backing for military intervention at 58 percent, up from 51 percent in February, and support for French involvement surging to 50 percent from 38 percent.

Ifop said that the increase "is undoubtedly linked to the multiplication of war crimes blamed on Bashar al-Assad's regime and their recent media coverage".

Outrage at last week's mass killings in the Syrian town of Houla has prompted France to join several Western nations in stepping up pressure on Syria by expelling senior diplomats and calling on Russia to allow tougher action by the U.N. Security Council.

France's new President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday that military intervention could not be ruled out as long as it was carried out under the auspices of a U.N. Security Council resolution....."

Women Look for a Place in New Egypt

By Mel Frykberg

"CAIRO, Jun 2, 2012 (IPS) - "It was so frustrating but so exciting at the same time," recalls 15-year-old Mariam Assam, a year-10 student in Cairo. Assam was recalling the days she tried to join protestors during the Egyptian revolution in January 2011 but was intially prevented by her parents who said street protests were no place for a girl to be....

At a mass protest by Egyptian women in Cairo shortly after Mubarak’s overthrow, women were booed, shoved and told to go back home by groups of men. During parliamentary elections earlier in the year, conservative Islamists took a lion’s share of the seats.

Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate Muhammad Mursi opposes women being allowed to serve in the presidency. He has called for implementation of Islamic law and, at campaign rallies, referred to Islam’s holy book, the Quran, as the constitution.
But Egyptian feminists are up against more than Islamist politicians. A large portion of Egypt’s population is politically and socially conservative. That includes many women: 30 percent of women are unable to read or write.

Egyptian feminists have argued that these women were coerced into voting for conservative elements, and were unable to understand the implications of what they were supporting. Against this background was the excellent social services provided by the Muslim Brotherhood for the poor and illiterate, where a good portion of the Brotherhood’s support comes from....."

The World Class Struggle: The Geography of Protest

by Immanuel Wallerstein

Common Dreams

".....When the groups in power repress, they quite often fan the flames of protest. But repression often works. When it doesn’t and groups in power compromise and co-opt, they often are able to pull the plug on the protestors. This is what seems to have happened in Egypt. The recent elections are leading to a second-round runoff between two candidates, neither of whom supported the revolution in Tahrir Square – one the last prime minister of the ousted president Hosni Mubarak, the other a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood whose primary objective is instituting the sharia in Egyptian law and not implementing the demands of the those who were in Tahrir Square. The result is a cruel choice for the about 50% who did not vote in the first round for either of the two with the largest plurality of votes. This unhappy situation resulted from the fact that the pro-Tahrir Square voters split their votes between two candidates of somewhat different backgrounds.

How are we to think of all of this? There seems to be a rapidly and constantly shifting geography of protest. It pops up here and then is either repressed, co-opted, or exhausted. And as soon as that happens, it pops up somewhere else, where it may in turn be either repressed, co-opted, or exhausted. And then it pops up in a third place, as though worldwide it was irrepressible.

It is indeed irrepressible for one simple reason. The world income squeeze is real, and not about to disappear. The structural crisis of the capitalist world-economy is making the standard solutions to economic downturns unworkable, no matter how much our pundits and politicians assure us that a new period of prosperity is on the horizon.

We are living in a chaotic world situation. The fluctuations in everything are large and rapid. This applies as well to social protest. This is what we are seeing as the geography of protest constantly shifts. Tahrir Square in Cairo yesterday, unauthorized massive marches with pots and pans in Montreal today, somewhere else (probably somewhere surprising) tomorrow."

Egypt's elections: join our resistance to the counter-revolution

The Egyptian presidential election is an attempt by the military to gain international legitimacy. Our revolution must continue

Comrades from Cairo
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 June 2012

" From the beginning of the Egyptian revolution, the powers that be have launched a vicious counter-revolution to contain our struggle by drowning the people's voices in a process of meaningless, piecemeal political reforms. This process has been aimed at deflecting the path of revolution and the Egyptian people's demands for "bread, freedom and social justice." Since Mubarak was forced out of power only 18 days into our revolution, the discourse of the political classes and the elites (including both state and private media), continues to privilege discussions of rotating ministers, cabinet reshuffles, referendums, committees, constitutions and most glaringly, parliamentary and now presidential elections.

From the very beginning, our choice was to reject in its entirety the regime's attempts to drag the people's revolution into a farcical dialogue, with the counter-revolution shrouded in the discourse of a "democratic process" that neither promotes the demands of the revolution nor represents any substantial, real democracy. Thus our revolution continues, and must continue.....

If these elections take place and are internationally recognised, the regime will have received the world's stamp of approval to make void everything the revolution stands for. If these elections are to pass while we remain silent, we believe the incoming regime will licence itself to hunt us down, lock us up and torture us in an attempt to quell all forms of resistance.

We continue on our revolutionary path, committed to resisting military rule and putting an end to military tribunals for civilians and the release of all detainees in military prisons. We continue to struggle in the workplace, in schools and universities and with popular committees in our neighbourhoods. We call on you to join us in our struggle against the reinforcements of the counter-revolution. How will you stand in solidarity with us? If we are under attack, you are also under attack – for our battle is a global one against the forces that seek our obedience and suppression.

We stand with the ongoing revolution, a revolution that will only be realised by the strength, community and persistence of the people; not through a poisonous referendum for military rule."

Guardian Video: Hosni Mubarak sentence sparks scuffles in court

The former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak is sentenced to life in prison for his complicity in the killing of protesters, but is acquitted, together with his sons Alaa and Gamal, of corruption charges. Scuffles break out when the court session concludes as some people are unhappy with the verdicts and the sentencing
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 June 2012

Satellite pictures back up Houla massacre accounts

US state department says photos taken over Syria show mass graves being dug after regime loyalists killed more than 100

guardian.co.uk, Saturday 2 June 2012

"The US state department has published satellite photos said to show mass graves in Syria after government forces attacked civilian areas.A website operated by the department is displaying the photos, taken by a commercial satellite, of what it says are mass graves dug following a massacre near the town of Houla. They also show apparent artillery impact craters near civilian areas of a town called Atarib.

The US says the pictures line up with images from the ground supplied by Syrian opposition forces that purport to show the people of Houla burying victims.

Included on the web page of humanrights.gov, run by the state department, are other pictures that apparently show artillery on 31 May near near three Syrian towns and attack helicopters near the towns of Shayrat and Homs. The Syrian regime has not issued a response to the photos......."

Houla massacre in Syria: what happened, where and when – interactive

More than 100 people were killed, including many children, when the Houla area was attacked on 25 May. Villages were shelled before loyalist forces and civilian militia closed in. Many of the dead were killed at close range. The UN security council has criticised the Syrian regime over the massacre. Find out what happened below

Martin Chulov and Paddy Allen
guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 June 2012

The Houla massacre: reconstructing the events of 25 May

Interviews with survivors reveal the full story of the bloody horror that left more than 100 Syrians dead

Martin Chulov in Beirut and Mona Mahmood
guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 June 2012

"......The people of Houla have no patience for the regime's version of what took place last weekend. "Look," said Abu Jaffour, "the armed men came under the cover of shellfire from villages completely under regime control. They are Allawite villages, 500 metres to 2km away from us. And they want the world to believe that hundreds from al-Qaida had taken refuge there. They are the terrorists and they will pay for this."

As the sectarian tensions unleashed by what happened in Houla continue to boil, the people of the town resumed their weekly ritual on Friday. With no sound of gunfire, nor militias on the horizon, they took to the streets to demand the end of the regime."

Mubarak trial and troubled elections threaten to further divide Egypt

For many Egyptians, the wait for justice has been gruelling – but fears of an equally repressive successor could reignite protests

Jack Shenker in Cairo
guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 June 2012

"......Barely one in 10 of Egypt's eligible voters cast their ballot for Shafik in the first round, but low turnout, a pro-revolutionary vote that was fatally split between rival candidates, and what some commentators claim were electoral irregularities in Shafik's favour, have elevated to within a whisker of the presidency a man who perfectly embodies the repressive apparatus Egyptians revolted to overthrow.

After Shafik's triumph, Saturday's verdict has crystallised the worst fears of many – the ancién regime is back.

"Mubarak's [ruling] NDP was never a political party in the real sense of the word," argues Hani Shukrallah, veteran journalist and editor-in-chief of Ahram Online
"It was a giant network of state patronage, in which the intermarriage of money and power, businessmen and bureaucrats at the very top was replicated down to the remotest hamlet in the country.

"In the parliamentary elections [which ran from November to January and delivered a strong victory for political Islamists] that network was in total disarray, but now they've been able to organise themselves again.

"Just like old times they are preying on fears of violence and chaos, pushing for confrontation in an effort to ensure the Egyptian people tire of revolution and welcome a return to 'stability'. If Mubarak is found innocent – and I don't believe we will see a conviction, particularly not on the unlawful killing charges – the violence is going to intensify."......."

Real News Video: Obama's and Brennan's "Kill List"

Ray McGovern: It is a moral and legal impossibility to square "kill lists" for extrajudicial killing with traditional legal and moral American values.

Real News Video: Syrian Atrocities and the Fog of War

Ali Hashem: Assad regime has been backed in a corner and will fight to bitter end

Real News Video: Polluting Occupation

The ground water reservoir in the West Bank is one of the main sources of water in the area. However in most of the Israeli and Palestinian settelments the wastewater are treated inadequatley, and the sewer flows to the natural habitat and seeps to underground reservoir. In the palestinian town Salfit near Arial, 8 million Euros were founded by the locals for a wastewater purification device, but the project was halted.

إنتخابات مصر وثورة سوريا في حديث الثورة مع المفكر عزمي بشارة

عــ48ـرب

A GREAT, GREAT INTERVIEW; DON'T MISS IT!

الحلقة الأولى: الإنتخابات المصرية


الحلقة الثانية: الثورة السورية

معادلات 'حزب الله': هل الضرورات تبيح أقصى المحظورات؟

معادلات 'حزب الله': هل الضرورات تبيح أقصى المحظورات؟

صبحي حديدي

"لعلّ تدخّل السيد حسن نصر الله، الأمين العام لـ'حزب الله'، على مستوى شخصي مباشر، في حادثة اختطاف اللبنانيين في سورية، كان الكاشف الأبرز، فضلاً عن أنه الأحدث، لما يعانيه الحزب من معضلات جسيمة في صياغة موقف متماسك، ضمن الحدود الدنيا، إزاء الانتفاضة السورية، والعلاقة مع النظام السوري استطراداً. وكانت الفقرات المسهبة التي خصصها نصر الله للواقعة، أثناء خطابه في مهرجان عيد المقاومة والتحرير، في بنت جبيل يوم 25 أيار (مايو) الماضي، قد كشفت تحوّلاً دراماتيكياً في خطاب 'السيّد'، ليس على المستوى اللفظي وحده، بل كذلك في دلالة القاموس ومغزى المفردة؛ سواء في توصيف/ إعادة تعريف مجريات الانتفاضة، الراهنة، أو 'ضبط' نطاق اصطفاف الحزب خلف النظام السوري.
ورغم أنّ نصر الله ابتدأ لائحة الشكر من بشار الأسد (قبل الرئيس اللبناني ميشيل سليمان، وقبل نبيه برّي ونجيب ميقاتي وسعد الحريري ورجب طيب أردوغان وأحمد داود أوغلو...)، إلا أنه أحجم هذه المرّة عن استخدام تعبير 'سورية الأسد'، سيىء الصيت، الذي كان المفضّل في خطب 'السيّد' السابقة (حيث كان، كذلك، يستطيب تكملة التعبير: 'سورية حافظ الأسد... سورية بشار الأسد'). وكانت هذه التعابير تشكّل غصّة لدى الجمهور السوري، إذْ يأتي مديح نظام الاستبداد والفساد والتوريث من قائد حركة مقاومة شعبية، لا يكفّ عن التشديد على طهرانية التضحية وشرف الفداء، والانحياز إلى صفّ المستضعفين في الأرض. لم تكن أقلّ جرحاً، بالطبع، تلك الصورة الشهيرة التي تُظهر 'السيّد' وهو يقدّم بندقية إسرائيلية من طراز 'عوزي'، غنمها رجال المقاومة اللبنانية، هدية إلى العميد رستم غزالي، قائد الاستخبارات السورية في لبنان آنذاك، وأحد أبغض رموز النظام السوري.
يلفت الانتباه، قبل هذا، أنّ 'السيد' أعاد صياغة موقف 'حزب الله' من المشهد الداخلي السوري كما يلي، في فقرة تتوجه مباشرة إلى الخاطفين: 'إذا كان الغرض هو الضغط على موقفنا السياسي مثل التعابير التي سمعها الزوار من الخاطفين، فهذا لن يقدّم ولن يؤخر. نحن موقفنا السياسي من الأحداث التي تجري في سورية منطلقة من ثوابت ومن رؤية ستراتيجية ومن تقييم للوضع في المنطقة، ومن قراءة دقيقة وهادئة وعاقلة للتهديدات والأحداث والمشاريع. ولذلك نحن في سورية مع الحوار ومع الإصلاح ومع الوحدة الوطنية ومع إنتهاء أي شكل من أشكال المواجهة المسلحة، ومع المعالجة السياسية من أجل سورية، من أجل مستقبلها وموقعها وشعبها وأهلها وسلامتها وقوتها'.
ورغم أنّ نصر الله واصل اعتبار ما يجري في سورية مجرّد 'أحداث'، وليس انتفاضة شعبية، أو حتى 'أزمة' كما في خطاب النظام السوري ذاته مثلاً، فإننا اليوم بعيدون تماماً عن حقبة شهدت إصرار الحزب على اعتبار ما يجري في سورية مؤامرة خارجية، تستهدف 'صمود القيادة السورية'، والنيل من موقفها 'الممانِع' و'المقاوِم'، والابتعاد بها عن خندق قتال إسرائيل والولايات المتحدة... كذلك عفّ خطاب نصر الله الأخير عن إنكار وجود الشعب السوري في صفّ الانتفاضة، إذْ يتذكّر المرء بأسى شديد سؤال 'السيّد'، الأشهر حتى إشعار آخر: 'طيب وين الشعب السوري لنأف (لِنقف) حدّو (إلى جانبه)؟'؛ أو إنكار التدمير والمذابح، كما في السؤال الذي لا يقلّ شهرة: 'شو في بحمص؟ ما في شي بحمص!').
ولا أحد ينكر على الحزب دعوته إلى 'الإصلاح' في سورية، و'الوحدة الوطنية' و'إنتهاء أي شكل من أشكال المواجهة المسلحة'، و'المعالجة السياسية'، وسوى هذه كلها من مطالب. ولكن، ألم يكن النظام ذاته بطل 'الإصلاح' و'الوحدة الوطنية' و'المعالجة السياسية'؛ ولكن، في الان ذاته، بطل استخدام جميع صنوف الأسلحة الثقيلة في حصار المدن وقمع التظاهرات، واعتقال المواطنين وممارسة التعذيب والتصفيات الجسدية؟ وكيف للمواطن السوري أن ينسى، أو يغفر، موقف نصر الله المساند للنظام، على نحو تامّ ومطلق وراسخ وثابت، في خطبته الأولى حول 'الأحداث' في سورية، بعد يوم واحد أعقب افتضاح الجريمة النكراء بحقّ الفتى حمزة الخطيب؟ أو مواقف الأمين العام لـ'حزب الله'، التي تغنّت بالثورات في تونس ومصر وليبيا والبحرين واليمن، ولكنها اعتبرت ما يجري في سورية 'مؤامرة' إسرائيلية ـ أمريكية، تستهدف 'المقاومة اللبنانية' مثلما تستهدف النظام السوري؟
المرء، إلى هذا، على مبعدة ملموسة، في السياسة والمتغيرات الجيو ـ سياسية، من اللقاء الثلاثي الذي شهدته العاصمة السورية في ربيع 2010، وضمّ بشار الأسد، رأس نظام استبدادي وراثي؛ ومحمود أحمدي نجاد، رئيس دولة تعتمد مبدأ 'ولاية الفقيه' غير الديمقراطي وغير العصري؛ وحسن نصر الله، زعيم حركة مقاومة لبنانية، تؤمن بالمبدأ ذاته، ولا تعفّ عن استخدام سلاح المقاومة في تطويع المعادلة السياسية الداخلية. هل كان ممكناً لهذه 'الخلطة' أن تنتج ممانعة من أي نوع؟ وكيف أمكن للمواطن السوري أو الإيراني أو اللبناني أن يباركها، إذا كانت قد انقلبت وتنقلب ضدّ الشارع الشعبي، في دمشق وطهران وبيروت، ساعة تشاء الحسابات السياسية؟
ولم يكن خافياً، إلا على السذّج ودافني الرؤوس في الرمال، أنّ حضور نصر الله على نحو علني صارخ كان، بدوره، رسالة إلى الولايات المتحدة وإسرائيل، يشترك في توجيهها النظام السوري وإيران معاً: كلاهما لكي يحسّن موقعه التفاوضي والدبلوماسي، ويرفع قيمة ما يمتلك من أوراق، أو يكشف عنها ويلوّح بها. ومن جانب طهران، كان في الرسالة بُعد خاصّ يذكّر الحليف السوري بأنّ 'حزب الله' هو ركن التحالف الأكبر والأهمّ، وأنه رقم يتوجب احتسابه في كلّ تقارب للمصالح بين دمشق وطهران، وفي كلّ تنافر لتلك المصالح أيضاً. وإذا كان النظام السوري قد احتسب هذا جيداً، لأنه يدخل في صلب موازناته مع واشنطن والغرب عموماً، فإنّ مبادرة طهران إلى التذكير به بين الحين والآخر كان ينفع دمشق، ولا يضرّ سواها!
واليوم قد لا يختلف عاقلان (وضمن صفوف 'حزب الله' ذاته، حيث يتوفر عقلاء كثر كما يرجح المرء) حول واحد من المعطيات الإقليمية الكثيرة التي أفرزتها الانتفاضة السورية، أي الخسران الكبير الذي تعرّض له 'حزب الله' على الصعيد الشعبي العربي عموماً، والسوري بصفة خاصة وأكيدة، جرّاء مواقف الحزب المؤيدة للنظام السوري، والصامتة عن جرائمه. وهذه فرصة جديدة للتوقف، مجدداً، عند إشكاليات مثال 'حزب الله'، إذْ تبدو الحال بالنسبة إلى النظام السوري ونظام 'ولاية الفقيه' الإيراني أوضح وأبسط، إلا عند عاصبي الأبصار والعقول عن سابق قصد وتصميم.
ذلك لأنّ الحزب صعد، أوّلاً، على خلفية انتصار الثورة الإسلامية الإيرانية، ثم تبلور وجوده العسكري والعقائدي بعدئذ على خلفيات الغزو الإسرائيلي للبنان عام 1982، ومجازر صبرا وشاتيلا، واحتلال الجنوب اللبناني. وكان خطّه العقائدي العام مناهضاً على نحو راديكالي لـ'الإمبريالية والصهيونية وعملائهما المحليين' كما جاء في البيانات الأولى. وهو الخطّ الذي يظلّ ساري المفعول بدرجة عالية، خصوصاً بعد أن اتسع نطاق توصيف الحزب لطبيعة الخصوم المحليين، بما في ذلك حركة 'أمل' ذات حقبة، وتيارات ومنظمات شيعية تقليدية أخرى.
كذلك يتمتّع الحزب بمرونة تحالفية عالية لأنه لا يُلزم المنتسبين إلى صفوفه بأية قواعد تنظيمية، وإنْ كانت تقاليد العمل الداخلية تجعله أقرب إلى مزيج من الميليشيا العسكرية والحوزة الدينية. وهو أقرب إلى تجمّع عقائدي عريض وليس منظمة سياسية واضحة المعالم، الأمر الذي أتاح له يسراً استثنائياً في الانتشار الشاقولي، واحتضان قضايا 'المعذبين' و'المستضعفين' و'الفقراء'. وإذا ضُمّت إلى ذلك عناصر أخرى مثل الحميّة العقائدية الشيعية، وتقاليد إمامة الفقيه، وثقافة السعي إلى الجهاد والاستشهاد، فإن صيغة 'حزب الله' تصبح فريدة في التراث الحزبي العربي الحديث، وتغدو نسيج وحدها ضمن ستراتيجيات التغطية الدينية للحركات التنظيمية.
المسألة الثالثة هي أنّ الحزب بدأ مع الثورة الإسلامية الإيرانية، وكان مجرّد نواة صغيرة في كتلة عريضة امتدّت ظلالها إلى مختلف أرجاء العالم الاسلامي. وإذا كانت صفحة تصدير الثورة عن طريق إيفاد ونشر الحرس الثوري (الإيراني إجمالاً) أو تشكيل فصائل عسكرية ـ عقائدية محلية من نوع 'جند الله' و'الجهاد'، قد طُويت مع التطورات الموضوعية اللاحقة التي شهدتها ساحات الصحوة الاسلامية إجمالاً؛ فإن ذلك كان في مصلحة 'حزب الله' وليس العكس. لقد جرّد الحركة من طابع ارتباطها الصريح بالخارج، وزجّها مباشرة في عمق المعادلة الداخلية كفريق ينبغي أن يكون له برنامجه اللبناني والعربي والإسلامي المستقل.
والمسألة الرابعة، والأهمّ ربما، هي أنه ليس محتوماً على الحركة الشعبية في الجنوب اللبناني أن تظلّ مجيّرة باسم تنظيم سياسي واحد بعينه، وهي استطراداً ليست حكراً على طرف شيعي واحد بصفة امتيازية أو شبه امتيازية. إنها حركة معقدة للغاية، والعوامل التي أسهمت في بناء فرادتها تبدأ من الخصائص الاجتماعية والاقتصادية والثقافية للسكان، ولا تنتهي عند عقود احتكاكهم بالحركات السياسية والدينية (من الحزب الشيوعي اللبناني، إلى المقاومة الفلسطينية، مروراً بزعماء تاريخيين من أمثال معروف سعد والإمام الصدر)، وعقود عيشهم تحت الاحتلال الإسرائيلي، ومقاومتهم له.
لكنّ 'غزوة بيروت' في أيار (مايو) 2008، والفشل في تأمين أغلبية برلمانية بعد انتخابات حزيران (يونيو) 2009، والعجز عن الثأر لاستشهاد عماد مغنية في ما أسماه نصر الله 'الحرب المفتوحة' على إسرائيل، وعدم ترجمة مبادىء ميثاق الحزب الجديد إلى تطبيقات سياسية واجتماعية على الأرض، والصمت عن معارك الإصلاحيين في إيران أو التعاطف الضمني مع السلطة، وحال الارتباك المفتوحة في إدارة مآزق حكومة ميقاتي، وازدواجية المعايير في المواقف من انتفاضات العرب... كلّ هذه كانت عوامل تعيد 'حزب الله' إلى صياغات تأسيسه الأولى، وتضعه في قلب ارتباطات أحلاف الخارج، هذه التي لم يسبق له أن انفكّ عنها تماماً في الواقع.
غير أنّ أبسط حقوق التحرير على 'أبطال التحرير' هو الالتفات إلى البشر على الأرض المحررة، أو استكمال المهمّة عن طريق تحرير الآدمي المقيم على التراب المحرّر، ومنحه فرصة التمتّع بمغانم التحرير، وتلمّس المعنى الإنساني الملموس لفكرة التحرير، والامتناع عن امتداح الاستبداد وتجميل وجوهه القبيحة. هذا حقّ لا يُنازع أيضاً، وهو ثمن طبيعي مقابل التضحيات الجسام التي بذلها معظم اللبنانيين، أينما كانوا وبصرف النظر عن مواقفهم من 'حزب الله'، أو حتى من خيار المقاومة بالمعنى العريض. والمراوحة هكذا في المكان، بعد المتغيّرات النوعية التي شهدتها المنطقة، لا تبخس اللبناني حقوقه فحسب، بل هي تستبدل معنى التحرير النبيل والإنساني، بآخر أقرب إلى الاتجار بالمعادلات.
وفي أزمنة عاصفة مثل هذه التي نشهدها، ولاّدة وحمّالة وثورية وانقلابية، كيف لثوابت 'حزب الله' أن تظلّ راسخة أزلية، لا تتبدّل ولا تتحوّل؟ وكيف للضرورات الكبرى في معادلات الحزب الجيو ـ سياسية، اللبنانية والعربية والإقليمية، أن لا تنقلب رأساً على عقب، فتبيح... أقصى المحظورات؟?"

Exit Kofi Annan – with Syria still massacring its people and Russia still blocking international action

(Cartoon by Dave Brown)

UN envoy's mission to Damascus ends in failure with Assad as defiant as ever

The Independent
Thursday 31 May 2012

"Kofi Annan flew out of Damascus yesterday amid news of fresh atrocities on the ground and as the Syrian opposition accused Russia of encouraging the regime to commit “savage crimes” against its people after Moscow ruled out supporting any new action at the UN.

Even as Mr Annan's observer mission announced the discovery of the bodies of 13 Syrians who appeared to have been summarily executed, Russian Deputy Foreign Minster Gennady Gatilov said any new measures at the Security Council would be "premature", diminishing hopes that the shocking massacre at Houla could break the deadlock at the Security Council......"

Out of Jail, Bahraini Activists Nabeel Rajab and Zainab Alkhawaja Urge End to U.S.-Backed Crackdown

Democracy Now!

DON'T MISS THIS SEGMENT!


"We go to Bahrain to speak with two recently released political prisoners, Zainab Alkhawaja and Nabeel Rajab, both jailed for protesting the U.S.-backed monarchy. Rajab, the president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, was released on bail after being held for nearly a month. "We always thought that America and Bahrain’s good relations would benefit our fight for freedom and democracy in our region, but it has turned out to be opposite," he says. "They are supporting a dictator here, the oppressive regime... We have to suffer for being a rich region." Alkhawaja, who was jailed in April after protesting the detention of her father, Abdulhadi, vows: "We are going to carry on protesting ... It doesn’t matter if we get arrested five, six, 10 times, it’s not going to stop. In the end, we have sacrificed a lot for democracy and freedom."....."

Palestinian contractors demand UN exclude Israel firms from Gaza tender

Rami Almeghari
The Electronic Intifada
Gaza Strip 30 May 2012

"“It is our patriotic obligation towards our people that we must reject any involvement by Israeli contracting companies in any development project in the occupied Gaza Strip,” said Osama Kahil, the Gaza-based head of the Palestinian Contractors Union, in response to reports that UNICEF has invited Israeli companies to bid for tenders to build a water desalination unit in Gaza.

Over the past week, the union has been in constant contact with UNICEF, the UN agency for children, as well as the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah and local groups in Gaza to oppose the reported invitations to Israeli firms....."

Egyptians Protest Choice Between Right and Right

By Mel Frykberg

"CAIRO, May 31, 2012 (IPS) - Like the delayed after-effects of an earthquake below the ocean before the subsequent tsunami hits adjacent coastlines, Egyptian anger finally exploded this week after several days of stunned silence following the controversial results of Egypt’s first-round of presidential elections.

The headquarters of Ahmed Shafik, the last serving prime minister in the hated regime of former president Hosni Mubarak was set on fire and vandalised by an angry mob Monday night. Vocal marchers headed downtown to Talat Harb square while fights broke out in Tahrir Square where crowds gathered to protest the election results....

However, despite the divisions Egyptians appear united in promising to take to the streets should Shafik win the run-off. Simultaneously, some fear a military coup if their alleged candidate loses and the Brotherhood takes over."

The Moral Challenge of ‘Kill Lists’

by Ray McGovern, May 31, 2012

"In an extraordinary article in Tuesday’s New York Times, “Secret ‘Kill List’ Proves a Test of Obama’s Principles and Will,” authors Jo Becker and Scott Shane throw macabre light on the consigliere-cum-priestly role that counterterrorist adviser John Brennan provides President Barack Obama.

At the outset, Becker and Shane note that, although Obama vowed to “align the fight against al-Qaeda with American values,” he has now ordered the obedient Brennan to prepare a top secret “nominations” list of people whom the president may decide to order killed, without charge or trial, including American citizens...."

War crimes: Charles Taylor now, Bashar al-Assad next

Justice has a momentum, and as Liberia's ex-leader is jailed, he's certain to be followed by other despots

Geoffrey Robertson
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 30 May 2012

".....Nuremberg created a precedent, but it was not until Augusto Pinochet came to London in 1998 to take tea with Mrs Thatcher that the idea of ending the impunity of political and military leaders seemed possible. In those days it was bitterly controversial: the pope, Henry Kissinger, George Bush Snr, and even Fidel Castro wrote to Jack Straw demanding that he be freed. But today there are no such efforts on behalf of Taylor: international justice is here to stay.

That does not mean it should be welcomed uncritically, or that its principal defect should be overlooked – namely it does not in practice apply to the "big five" powers in the security council, or to their close friends (hence Syria's Bashar al-Assad has thus far escaped indictment because Russia supports him). But justice has its own momentum, and this selectivity will change. The importance of the Taylor decision, for example, is that it creates a precedent for prosecuting those who "aid and abet" by sending assistance to brutal factions in a civil war. President Ronald Reagan's conduct in arming the Nicaraguan Contras, if it occurred again, would be seen as comparable to the conduct for which Taylor was convicted......."

Egypt: Parliament’s Chance to End State of Emergency

At Least 188 Still Held and New Cases Before Emergency Courts

May 30, 2012

"(London) – Egypt’s new parliament has an opportunity to close an abusive chapter in Egypt’s history by ending all measures related to the Emergency Law when the current extension of the law expires on May 31, 2012.

The People’s Assembly should not just let the law lapse, but should also pass legislation ending all exceptional measures that would not automatically expire with the law, Human Rights Watch and Alkarama said. It should require the interior minister to release all Emergency Law detainees or refer them to prosecutors to be charged, and ask the public prosecutor to transfer all Emergency State Security Court (ESSC) trials to regular civilian courts.
“The Egyptian parliament should make sure that this state of emergency, a hallmark of Hosni Mubarak’s abusive police state, has no future,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Parliament should also initiate a comprehensive investigation into human rights violations that flourished under the Emergency Law, and the public prosecutor should make sure that the key people responsible for systematic torture and enforced disappearance are prosecuted.”......"

Despatch from Aleppo: Victims of Syria’s brutal crackdown

By Donatella Rovera, Amnesty International’s senior crisis researcher.

"Every protest I observed during three days in Aleppo ended the same way: with the army, security forces and shabiha – the infamous militias who do some of the government’s dirty work – opening fire on non-violent demonstrators who posed no threats to them (or to anybody else).

On Friday 25 May at least seven people were killed, at least two of them were children, and dozens more were injured at demonstrations and funerals in the city.

Among those killed was Amir Barakat, a 13-year old schoolboy, who was fatally shot in the abdomen. Eyewitnesses told me that he was walking near his home as demonstrators were running away from the security forces who were shooting towards them.

Another victim was Mo’az Lababidi, a 16-year-old schoolboy who worked nights in a supermarket to support his mother and sisters.

After his father died three years ago he had become his family’s bread winner.

He was shot in the chest in front of the police station in the Bustan al-Qasr district, just south of the city centre, during the funeral procession for one of four demonstrators shot dead at a protest in the same area earlier that day.

A mourner who was next to him told me he died on the spot.

I observed the funeral procession from the beginning. The crowd was mostly made up of young men, but also included many women and children.

They clapped with their hands raised, as they did in all the demonstrations I watched, to show that they were unarmed, shouting “silmiya, silmiya” (“peaceful, peaceful”), chanting slogans in homage to the victims shot dead a few hours earlier and calling on President Bashar al-Assad to go.

Soldiers and plain-clothes shabiha appeared after about 20 minutes, carrying Kalashnikovs and rifles which fire deadly metal pellets, and started to close in on the demonstrators.

It did not take long before they started to shoot and people had to run for cover. Some were killed or injured; among them Mo’az Lababidi........

I watched some of the soldiers and the shabbeha get back into the bus – an ordinary unmarked bus – and leave.....

Where? Not in the hospitals, because those injured in demonstrations fear getting arrested if they go there. Their fears are justified, as many have been detained directly from their hospital beds.

Instead they have to hide and rely on doctors and nurses providing treatment in clandestine temporary “field hospitals”, located in the apartments of sympathetic people. These doctors and nurses themselves risk imprisonment and torture for providing life-saving treatment to the wounded, as do the owners of the apartments.

I found some of the wounded in one such “field hospital”. As I got there the doctors were crouched down on their knees and were treating a patient who was lying on the floor.....

Once treated, patients have to be evacuated as soon as possible – the more seriously injured are taken out of the city; some out of Syria, to Turkey.

They travel on small agricultural roads to avoid army checkpoints, and leave Syria “illegally”; they would be arrested if they tried to use the official Syrian border crossings .

The fear of being arrested does not apply only to wounded demonstrators......

They went on to say that they will sign a statement to the police that the boy was killed by “armed gangs” in order to avoid troubles with the authorities.

His sister told me: “The army killed my brother. They will punish us if we complain. It is a big risk for other family members, so we have to say that my brother was killed by an armed gang, a terrorist gang, whatever; as long as they leave us alone.”......

The following day I observed another funeral procession that turned into a demonstration.

Exceptionally the demonstration lasted two full hours and the protesters were able to march 2-3 km – from the Seif al-Dawla district, through to the Mashhad district. ......

The young people I met – including those who had been injured – said they have no intention of stopping their protests.

So long as the international community continues to look the other way, doctors and nurses will keep putting themselves at risk in their makeshift mobile field hospitals, urgently trying to save the lives of those wounded by the unwarranted violence of the security forces and their militias. Such gross violations of human rights must not be allowed to continue with impunity......."

Election not living up to revolution, says Arab League chief

Al-Masry Al-Youm

"Although the presidential election is fair, it is not living up to the 25 January revolution that impressed the world early last year, the Arab League secretary general told London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.

“As an Egyptian citizen I am in a state of sadness because I did not expect the great revolution, which the whole world talked about, to end up with two uncomfortable options: either a theocratic state or an improved copy of the former regime,” said Nabil al-Araby, referring to first-round victors Mohamed Morsy and Ahmed Shafiq. Araby was himself once expected to run for president....

“Most people consider the results of the election to be very bad, and the only thing that represents a glimmer of hope is that the hands of the clock cannot go back,” Araby said, referring to a potential return to Mubarak’s rule......"

Al-Jazeera Video: Pessimism in UN as Syria crisis worsens

"United Nations observers have found 13 bound corpses in Syria, many of them apparently shot at close range. The Syrian government blames what it calls "terrorists", but whoever is responsible it's putting more pressure on the crumbling ceasefire."

Kofi Annan's Syrian strategy echoes past failures in Bosnia and Rwanda

UN envoy's tactic of polite diplomacy against a backdrop of mass murder is a familiar story

Julian Borger, diplomatic editor
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 30 May 2012

"This is not the first time Kofi Annan has found himself charged with maintaining the decorum of polite international diplomacy against a background of mass murder.

Annan was the head of UN peacekeeping operations at the time of its two greatest failures, the genocide of Rwanda Tutsis in 1994 and the killing of up to 8,000 Muslim men and boys from the Bosnian town of Srebrenica in July 1995. In both cases, UN troops under Annan's command were on the ground, and in both cases disastrously failed to save the lives of the civilians they were supposed to protect...."

Divided British Court Upholds Extradition of WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange to Sweden

Democracy Now!


"Britain’s Supreme Court has upheld the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to Sweden to face questioning over alleged sex crimes. Assange’s lawyers had argued that the Swedish public prosecutor did not have the legal authority to issue the arrest warrant, but the British justices disagreed in a 5-to-2 decision. Assange’s attorneys will have 14 days to file a new appeal. We get reaction from Salon.com blogger and constitutional law attorney Glenn Greenwald....."

Glenn Greenwald: Obama’s Secret Kill List "The Most Radical Power a Government Can Seize"

Democracy Now!


"The New York Times revealed this week that President Obama personally oversees a "secret kill list" containing the names and photos of individuals targeted for assassination in the U.S. drone war. According to the Times, Obama signs off on every targeted killing in Yemen and Somalia and the more complex or risky strikes in Pakistan. Individuals on the list include U.S. citizens, as well teenage girls as young as 17 years old. "The President of the United States believes he has the power to order people killed — in total secrecy, without any due process, without transparency or oversight of any kind," says Glenn Greenwald, a constitutional law attorney and political and legal blogger for Salon.com. "I really do believe it’s literally the most radical power that a government and president can seize, and yet the Obama administration has seized [it] and exercised it aggressively with little controversy."...."

Veteran Mideast Journalist Charles Glass on Syria’s Violence & the Prospect of Military Intervention

Democracy Now!


"The United States and 11 other countries have formally expelled Syrian diplomats following a massacre of more than 100 people in the village of Houla. U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan now says Syria has reached a "tipping point" after more than a year of conflict. We’re joined by Charles Glass, an award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster specializing in the Middle East. Glass reported from Syria last month for the New York Review of Books..."

Al-Jazeera Video: Massacre sparks diplomatic action against Syria

"Eleven countries have expelled Syrian ambassadors and diplomats following last week's massacre in Houla of 108 people, including 49 children.

The move was coordinated; the United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany all took part. But Russia, which is Syria's most powerful backer, didn't.

Al Jazeera's Rosiland Jordan and Tim Friend report on the latest development inside Syria and the global diplomatic action against the Bashar al-Assad government."

Al-Jazeera Video: Inside Story - Is Egypt's revolution under threat?

"Two men. One post. An unhappy nation. Protests have followed the first round of Egypt's presidential election. The race is now down to two men -- Ahmad Shafiq and Mohammed Morsi.
It appears that Egyptians have a stark choice between a former military man with links to a regime they fought so hard to remove and a candidate whose message appeals to the devout, but who makes some of the country's 82 million people uneasy. So what does this mean for the Egyptian revolution? Guests: Ahmed Naguib, Saad Eddin Ibrahim, Rami Khouri."

Egyptian Elections, by Khalil Bendib

(Click on cartoon to enlarge)

Obama campaign releases blatantly anti-Arab video ad

By Ali Abunimah

"US President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign has just released a blatantly anti-Arab video ad on its official YouTube channel....

But The Hill fails to note the blatant anti-Arab racism in the ad. It features a clip of an 11 October 2008 exchange at a Minnesota town-hall style campaign event between McCain and a woman in the audience. The exchange can be seen starting 15 seconds into the ad:

WOMAN: “I have heard about him [Obama]. He’s an Arab.”

MCCAIN: “No ma’am, no ma’am, he’s a decent family man, citizen, whom I just happen to have disagreements with.”

If the bigotry contained in the exchange is not obvious, try replacing the word “Arab” with “Jew” and then imagine what the response would have been to how McCain handled it then, and to Obama using it now......."

Brotherhood Marches On Towards Presidency

Analysis by Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani

"CAIRO, May 30, 2012 (IPS) - Results of the first post-Mubarak presidential election last week have left most Egyptians stunned, with Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohamed Morsi coming in first and Ahmed Shafiq - ousted president Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister - coming in a close second. The two are now slated to face off in a hotly-contested runoff vote next month...."

Got war if you want it

By Pepe Escobar
Asia Times

"Ready, set ... and waiting for US President Barack Obama to fire the starter's gun to attack Iran. That's how Pentagon head Leon Panetta describes the mood in Washington, straight from the neo-con play book. Lack of a smokin' nuclear gun in Tehran or anything else illegal be damned, even though Obama could easily decide to sue for a nuclear deal to bag a foreign policy victory for his own re-election race....."

فواز طرابلسي: هذه هي الديموقراطية .. أيضاً

ليست الديموقراطية مجرد انتخابات.
لكن الانتخابات في الديموقراطية هي الممارسة التي تجسّد المبدأ الاساس: ممارسة الشعب حقه في اختيار حكامه ومحاسبتهم وتغييرهم. يأتي بعد ذلك الباقي والمكمّل: المساواة السياسية والقانونية بين افراد الشعب، الحريات والحقوق الاساسية المضمونة في القانون والمؤسسات، فصل السلطات، انبثاق السلطة التنفيذية عن السلطة التشريعية، تداول السلطة بين حكم ومعارضة... الخ.
لم تحقق الثورات العربية قسما كبيرا من هذه الاهداف ولا انشأت ما تحتاج اليه من المؤسسات بعد، مع انها تقف امام تحدياتها في مراحل انتقالية تأسيسية، لا يفترض بها ان تتجاوز العام او العامين، تجري خلالها صياغة الدساتير وتشريع الأنظمة الانتخابية الاساسية وانشاء المؤسسات المواكبة.
لكن ما حققته الثورات العربية انها فرضت المبدأ الانتخابي. مصر مثالا.
من اطرف تعريفات الديموقراطية انها تقوم على مبدأ «حق الاكثرية في الخطأ». لنقل ببساطة: خير ان تخطئ الاكثرية وان تكون لها آليات ومؤسسات ومهل دستورية لتصحيح اخطائها، من عصمة الفرد الحاكم الى الابد، او السلالة، جمهورية او ملكية،
او عصمة العقيدة، دينية كانت ام مدنية. فكيف نسائل او نحاسب او نعاقب او نغّير هؤلاء المعصومين؟ ان مشاهد واحداثا وتطورات، ودماء ودمارا ومجازر، طوال فترة العام ونصف العام المنصرمة، هي الجواب.
ما اكثر مثالب الديموقراطية ونظامها الانتخابي.

The Houla massacre shows how killing can become normal

We are so shocked when confronted by atrocities that we invest them with a sense of moral purpose often absent from the act

Peter Beaumont
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 29 May 2012

"......In these kind of conflicts, those who display the fiercest loyalty to their own group and fiercest hatred of the "other" have a special usefulness – providing not only the most ruthless killers because they are challenged the least by the morality of what they are doing, but often also acting as examples of what the new culture of conflict "requires" of all members of the group.

For in the end, this is what war does – and not only in authoritarian regimes like that of Assad. The same processes occur whenever men are asked to kill others. It is why each generation throws up its horrors, and why we should not be surprised even as we are horrified by each new My Lai, each new Sabra and Shatila, or each new Srebrenica."

America's murderous drone campaign is fuelling terror

Hi-tech drone death squads are creating a dangerous global precedent, which will do nothing for US security

Seumas Milne
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 29 May 2012

"More than a decade after George W Bush launched it, the "war on terror" was supposed to be winding down. US military occupation of Iraq has ended and Nato is looking for a way out of Afghanistan, even as the carnage continues. But another war – the undeclared drone war that has already killed thousands – is now being relentlessly escalated.

From Pakistan to Somalia, CIA-controlled pilotless aircraft rain down Hellfire missiles on an ever-expanding hit list of terrorist suspects – they have already killed hundreds, perhaps thousands, of civilians in the process.

At least 15 drone strikes have been launched in Yemen this month, as many as in the whole of the past decade, killing dozens; while in Pakistan, a string of US attacks has been launched against supposed "militant" targets in the past week, incinerating up to 35 people and hitting a mosque and a bakery......

A decade ago, critics warned that the "war on terror" would spread terrorism rather than stamp it out. That is exactly what happened. Obama has now renamed the campaign "overseas contingency operations" and is switching the emphasis from boots on the ground to robots.

But, as the destabilisation of Pakistan and growth of al-Qaida in Yemen shows, the impact remains the same. The drone war is a predatory war on the Muslim world, which is feeding hatred of the US – and fuelling terror, not fighting it."

Houla massacre: US accuses Iran of 'bragging' about its military aid to Syria

As nations expel Syrian diplomats, US state department says the militia accused of Houla killings is modelled on Iranian Basij

Chris McGreal in Washington
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 29 May 2012

"....."The Iranians have clearly supplied support and training and advice to the Syrian army, but this Shabiha thug force mirrors the same force that the Iranians use. The Basij and the Shabiha are the same type of thing and clearly reflects the tactics and the techniques that the Iranians use for their own suppression of civil rights," she said.

"It was Assad and his regime that created this Shabiha force to begin with. It very much models the Iranian Basij model where they hire young guys to indiscriminately wreak vengeance and do this kind of hand-to-hand violence."

Nuland further implicated Iran by drawing attention to the timing of a claim by the deputy head of its Quds force, Esmail Ghani, that it has played a "physical and non-physical" role in Syria, and that if it were not present "the killing of citizens would be greater".

"We find it interesting that it was on this very weekend that the deputy head of the Quds force decided to take credit for the advice they're giving to Syria," she said....."