After nearly seven years of detention, and four years after being cleared for release by the U.S. government, a U.S. judge has ended the global legal limbo of 17 Guantanamo Bay detainees of Chinese Uighur descent, saying they must be released into the United States by Friday.
This new documentary tells the history of U.S.-sponsored terror in Latin America, from the successful 1954 CIA coup against Guatemala's Jacobo Arbenz to U.S. intervention in present day Venezuela, writes editor Pablo Morales.
NEW YORK, Oct 2 (OneWorld) - Peace and disarmament advocacy groups have denounced the U.S.-India nuclear trade deal, saying Wednesday night's Senate vote to approve the agreement posed a serious threat to non-proliferation efforts worldwide.
A new program is facilitating the first ever family visits for individuals held by U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
A collection of essays about life since 9/11 by people from across the country "reflects the immense pride, patriotism and resilience of Americans. But it also suggests that a more shadowy side that is decidedly un-American has emerged," writes a U.S. policy think tank.
Satellite images released by a UN program prove that five ethnic Georgian villages near the South Ossetian capital were intentionally targeted and destroyed, reports a human rights watchdog.
A Guantanamo detainee preparing to stand trial before a U.S. military commission may gain access to evidence indicating he was tortured thanks to a Thursday ruling by a UK court.
Resilient and determined peaceful demonstrations forced the resignation of Pakistani president and former general Pervez Musharraf, says an Asian human rights watchdog, calling the move a victory for democracy over militarism worldwide.
WASHINGTON, Aug 15 (OneWorld) - The fatal ambush of four humanitarian aid workers in Afghanistan Wednesday has provoked a sharp response from the international aid community, including strong condemnation of the Taliban.
UPPER DIR, Pakistan, Aug 14 (IPS) - "We have been staying in this camp for two days. My daughter is still in Loi Sam, which we left due to heavy shelling by the army," says Gul Pari, who fled the fighting in volatile Bajaur Agency, a tribal area on Pakistan’s northern border.
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 8 (OneWorld) - Human rights groups are condemning Wednesday's conviction of Osama bin Laden's former driver, Salim Ahmed Hamdan, calling his military trial at Guantanamo Bay "flawed," "a betrayal of American values," and contrary to international law.
DENVER, Aug 6 (OneWorld) - On the sixty-third anniversary of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima, groups and individuals around the world are calling on the next U.S. president to take seven concrete steps to end the threat of nuclear terrorism and war.
UNITED NATIONS, Aug 5 (OneWorld) - Aid groups are demanding increased protections for civilians in Afghanistan as fighting continues to escalate in the Central Asian country that is regaining its status as a focal point of the U.S.-led "war on terror."
McCain and Obama have both condemned torture and said they want to close down the Guantanamo Bay prison camp, but McCain's position has become somewhat muddled since he became the presumptive Republican nominee, explains policy analyst Josh Rovenger.
The Pakistani government must immediately disclose the whereabouts of over 500 citizens detained under counterterrorism measures and reinstate judges deposed for investigating these state-enforced disappearances, urged an international human rights group yesterday.
Colombians around the world celebrated their country's independence this Sunday by marching for peace and calling on
- After Israel released five Lebanese members of the Shiite militant organization Hezbollah in return for the bodies of two Israeli soldiers, the International Committee of the Red Cross discusses its unique role as a neutral facilitator of the peaceful handover.
- Canadian citizen and Guantanamo detainee Omar Khadr must immediately be repatriated to Canada, said a leading international human rights group following yesterday's release of a video showing the then-16 year old being interrogated at the notorious U.S. detention center.
The rescue of high profile hostage Ingrid Betancourt may mark the beginning of the end for Colombia's FARC guerrilla movement, coming just weeks after the death of the group's leader and a series of defeats at the hands of the military, writes a Latin America research group.
WASHINGTON, Jul 1 (OneWorld) - A $465-million aid package aimed at countering terrorism and crippling the drug trade in Mexico and Central America was signed into law yesterday by U.S President George W. Bush, but critics warn that the "Merida Initiative," also known as "Plan Mexico," will be ineffective and could result in more human rights abuses.
UNITED NATIONS, Jun 30 (IPS) - After a two-week fact-finding tour of U.S. prison and detention facilities, a UN human rights investigator has blasted the administration of President George W. Bush for a rash of shortcomings in the country's flawed justice system and continued violations of the rule of law.
- European governments are dodging the truth about the U.S. practice of kidnapping and illegally sending terrorism suspects for interrogation in countries with a reputation for torture, a leading rights group says in a new report.
- In this upcoming documentary, an Iraqi journalist shares his story of being wrongfully jailed in Abu Ghraib Prison for allegedly planning to kill former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
- Hundreds of children, including 240 orphans, will be affected by the Israeli military's recent decision to shut down schools and orphanages belonging to the Islamic Charitable Society.
- The Ethiopian army is responsible for widespread "executions, torture, and rape" of civilians in the country's eastern Somali region, committed as part of Ethiopia's campaign against rebel insurgents, states a new report from an international human rights watchdog. Human Rights Watch
- The UK's House of Commons voted this Wednesday to extend the period for which terrorist suspects can be jailed without charge from four to six weeks, in what human rights advocates warn is an erosion of civil liberties.
- NEW YORK, May 28 (OneWorld) - Thirty-five anti-torture activists charged with minor crimes after a protest at the U.S. Supreme Court have entered their names before a Washington, DC court as those of Guantanamo Bay detainees.
- A documentary film titled My Daughter the Terrorist chronicles the lives of two female Tamil Tigers, taking a close look at war and its tragic consequences. The film has been acclaimed globally but the Sri Lankan government is upset saying it glorifies the act.
- Sri Lanka’s dismal human rights record has obstructed the country’s bid for a place in the UN Human Rights Council. In a letter to the UN, more than twenty national and international NGOs have criticised the country’s failure to meet the Council’s membership standards.
- NEW YORK, May 9 (OneWorld) - A human rights watchdog has launched a unique nationwide campaign to pressure the Bush administration to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay.
- Sri Lankan government’s decision to ease restrictions on fishing in Eastern Province, a territory hitherto controlled by LTTE rebels, will give much needed fillip to the industry – a major source of revenue for the country’s exchequer and livelihood for people. It will also help people recover from 2004 tsunami disaster.
- There has been a sharp rise in attacks on NGOs by Taliban rebels and criminals in Afghanistan from January to March this year, says a report. This dangerous situation is forcing international aid organisations to recruit locals to change their profile and refrain from visibility.
- Today's move by the UK Government to bring in new counter-terrorism legislation is condemned by a group of 27 civil society organisations as "sinister", "an attack on free speech" and "a violation of the most fundamental principles of justice". From Campaign Against Criminalising Communities + Consensus against 42 days pre-trial detention grows
- At least 40 civilians have fallen prey to aerial bombings by US-led forces in Afghanistan in last two weeks alone. Aid agencies say more than 12,000 people have been killed since 2001. Anger among the people against NATO forces is mounting and they have begun to equate them with the Russians.
- Not poverty but Taliban insurgency is the main reason for driving drug production in Afghanistan, says a UN report. The country produces 93% of the world’s opium, which is also the biggest source of income for the Talibans.
- The Borderless World Foundation, a Pune-based NGO, has a mission to provide shelter for young girls orphaned by violence in the north Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. In these baseras or homes, they find much-needed affection and care, which they have been bereft of.
- NEW YORK, Mar 3 (OneWorld) - A leading international aid organization has released a new study concluding that efforts to bring peace and security to Afghanistan are more likely to succeed if they build on the work of traditional councils and focus on the threats Afghans face in their everyday lives.
- International non-governmental organisations in Pakistan have come under considerable pressure after an attack on a UK-based Plan International office in Mansehra near Islamabad, in which four people had died. In recent years, threats have been directed against NGOs and their staff, particularly women.
- NEW YORK, Feb 19 (IPS) - As the United States moves towards holding death-sentence trials for six Guantanamo Bay detainees alleged to have plotted the Sep. 11 attacks, legal scholars and human rights advocates are questioning not only the six-year-long process and timing of the charges, but also whether the accused could ever receive fair trials.
- Even three hours after polls opened, voter turnout in Pakistan was not very encouraging. Although, President Pervez Musharraf has urged people to come out of the confrontationist approach and get into a conciliatory mood, many refrained from venturing out for fear of attacks.
- In many of the recent suicide attacks in Pakistan, children have been used as suicide bombers or fidayeens. According to a study done by a Lahore-based NGO, seminaries are indoctrinating impressionable minds with fanatical teachings.
- The India’s north-east is a picture of diversity with multiple religions, cultures and tribes. But beneath its charming veneer lies a region simmering with discord and anarchy, says Economics professor Kaushik Basu. The government needs to address law and order issues to control extortions by the insurgents, adds Basu.
- MANILA, Feb 14 (IPS) - Non-government organizations (NGOs) opposed to the presence of United States troops in the country are calling for a suspension of U.S.-Philippine joint military exercises scheduled for Feb. 18.
- KARACHI, Feb 6 (IPS) - Saifullah Paracha, a Pakistani national incarcerated in the United States military prison in Guantanamo, Cuba since September 2004, suffers from a serious heart condition and may not live unless provided special care, says his lawyer.
- SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 4 (OneWorld) - Tuesday's election contests across the United States will offer voters some clear choices on controversial issues like water boarding, secret trials of terrorism suspects, and the future of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, say analysts.
- UN Human Rights High Commissioner seemed to have rubbed some of the Sri Lankan nationalists the wrong way when she remarked in the wake of recent termination of ceasefire that human rights violators could face trial in international courts. People’s Liberation Front and other groups have taken umbrage at her comments and are fuming.
- NEW YORK, Jan 14 (IPS) - As the world marked the sixth anniversary of the arrival of the first orange-jumpsuit-clad prisoners at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, human rights groups are attempting to focus public and congressional scrutiny on what some are calling "the other Gitmo."
- NEW YORK, Jan 11 (OneWorld) - Human rights activists will lead rallies across the United States today to build pressure on the Bush administration and Congress to end the detention of foreign prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay military camp.
- UNITED NATIONS, Dec 31 (OneWorld) - Benazir Bhutto's supporters are wondering if the UN Security Council is helping cover up a conspiracy behind her killing.
Terrorism
