War Crimes

By Rebecca Gordon | (Informed Comment) | – – Why do Republican candidates for the presidency keep promising to commit war crimes? Donald Trump guarantees he’ll torture terrorists and “take out their families.” Ted Cruz offers to carpet bomb ISIS (and anyone else in their vicinity) to oblivion. Even kindly pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson—when pressed […]

Human Rights Watch

UN must hold Perpetrators accountable for War Crime of Hospital Bombings: HRW

contributors

Human Rights Watch | – – An airstrike on April 27, 2016, that hit al-Quds Hospital and surrounding areas, killed 58 civilians, including medical staff and many patients, according to the Syrian Civil Defense, an opposition search-and-rescue volunteer group. On April 29, another airstrike hit a clinic in the opposition-held al-Marja neighborhood, injuring 10 people, […]

War

Globally, deaths from explosive weapons rise 54%, & 3/4s are Civilians

contributors

TeleSur | – – Civilian casualties from explosive weapons rose by 54 percent in 2015 compared to 2011. More than three-quarters of those harmed by explosive weapons in 2015— bombs, missiles and mortars— were civilians, with 30 of them killed on average every day, according to a new study from Action on Armed Violence or […]

Human Rights

Syria won’t have Peace until there is Accountability for War Crimes

contributors

By Neil Sammonds | (Inter Press Service) | – – GENEVA (IPS) – The negotiations on April 11, 2016 in Geneva and the recent reduction of hostilities in Syria may represent important steps towards a peaceful solution to more than five years of turmoil. Few would not welcome the guns falling silent once and for […]

Displaced and Refugees

Will Western powers Respond to HRW’s demand for arms embargo on Saudi Arabia?

contributors

By Thalif Deen | (Inter Press Service) | – – UNITED NATIONS (IPS) – As hundreds of civilians continue to be killed in the ongoing conflict in Yemen, one of the leading human rights organization is calling for an arms embargo – specifically against Saudi Arabia which is leading a coalition of eight countries battling […]

Saudi Arabia

US-Backed Saudi-Led Airstrikes Kill 40 People in Yemen, Mostly Civilians

contributors

TeleSur Saudi Arabia has been accused of bombing weddings and carrying out other war crimes against Yemeni militants it claims are aligned with Iran. Airstrikes carried out by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition waging war in Yemen struck a market in the capital Sanaa on Saturday, killing 40 people, according to Reuters. At least 30 people […]

Bashar al-Assad

Russia, Syria Daily using Cluster Bombs in Attacks: HRW

contributors

Human Rights Watch | – – (Beirut) – The Syrian-Russian joint military operation in Syria has included the use of internationally banned cluster munitions in at least 14 attacks across five governorates since January 26, 2016. The attacks killed at least 37 civilians, including six women and nine children, and wounded dozens. The International Syria […]

Apartheid

71 UK doctors call on World Medical Association to Expel Israel over Torture

contributors

Ma’an News Agency | – – ‘BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — A group of British doctors is pushing for the World Medical Association (WMA) to expel the Israeli Medical Association (IMA), the IMA’s chairman said on Wednesday during a meeting of the Knesset Science and Technology committee. In a discussion dealing with the academic boycott of Israel, […]

Featured

Syrian Army lets food Aid into Starving Madaya

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – France24 Arabic reports that the Syrian government agreed Thursday to allow humanitarian aid into Madaya and two other besieged towns near the Lebanese border northwest of Damascus. The step was praised by the United Nations. The siege of Madaya, pop 40,000, has been going on for […]