O.I.L. Media Roundup (7 February)

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Feb 7, 2014 Syria
[Jafra Palestinian youth center at Yarmouk. Image by Tobbe via Wikimedia Commons.] [Jafra Palestinian youth center at Yarmouk. Image by Tobbe via Wikimedia Commons.]

O.I.L. Media Roundup (7 February)

By : O.I.L Editors

 [This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Occupation, Intervention and Law and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the O.I.L. Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each biweekly roundup to OIL@jadaliyya.com by Monday night of every other week.] 


Syria

Syria Ships out Less Than Five Percent of Chemical Arms, Anthony Deutsch
Syria has delivered only 4.1 percent of toxic agents in its possession and is likely to miss an upcoming deadline to give up all chemical weapons for destruction by a joint OPCW-United Nations mission.

Syrian Regime Document Trove Shows Evidence of "Industrial Scale" Killing of Detainees, Ian Black
Evidence smuggled out of Syria shows the Asad government has involved itself in the systematic killing of thousand of detainees, according to three former prosecutors of the criminal tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Sierra Leone.

Why Syria`s Assad Enters Geneva Talks in a Position of Strength, Joshua Landis
Landis, a professor at the University of Oklahoma and webmaster of the Syria Comment blog, writes for Al Jazeera America that Bashar al-Assad enters talks in Geneva between the Syrian government and its opponents at the helm of a stronger army and with more dedicated allies than ever.

Chaos as Food Enters Syria`s Yarmouk Camp, Al Jazeera English
Food aid has reached Palestinian refugees in the Syrian Yarmouk camp by way of the United States. 


Iran

Turkey, Iran Eye Big Trade Boost Despite Strained Ties, AFP
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has arrived in Tehran amidst cold relations between his country and Iran, aiming to boost trade and discuss the Syrian conflict with Iranian leadership.

Are Hillary Clinton`s Presidential Ambitions Clouding Her Morals?, Stephen Kinzer
Writing for The Guardian, Kinzer argues that the silence of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on White House negotiations with Iran speaks volumes of her political ambitions –and the degree to which said ambitions rely on key supporters associated with pro-Netanyahu groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) 

Iran Nuclear Talks to Resume February in New York, AFP
The US State Department has announced its intention to resume talks with Iran and other governments regarding a longer-term nuclear deal.


Egypt

Egypt`s Ousted President Morsi to Trial Judge: "Tell Me Who You Are," Charlene Gubash, Alastair Jamieson
Former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, on trial for breaking out of prison, challenged the legitimacy of his trial during an outburst in court captured on Egyptian television. 

Amnesty International Says Egypt Violence on Unprecedented Scale, BBC News
Amnesty International has released a report accusing Egyptian security forces of vast human rights abuses committed in the name of "countering terrorism." 


National Security

US Intelligence Chief to Snowden: Turn Over All Documents Now, Tom Cohen
US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has called for Edward Snowden to turn over all classified documents in his possession he has yet to reveal, saying terrorists have been "going to school" on documents previously leaked by Snowden.

What Really Happened When a US Drone Hit a Yemeni Wedding Convoy, Iona Craig
Al Jazeera America provides extensive coverage of a drone strike on a wedding convoy in Yemen on 12 December 2013.

State of the Union Remarks on War, Surveillance, and Drones, Benjamin Wittes
Lawfare excerpts the remarks of US President Barack Obama in his recent State of the Union address on armed conflict, National Security Agency surveillance, and drone strikes in Yemen and Pakistan.


Palestine-Israel

Assembly Withdraws Bill to Limit Anti-Israel Boycotts, Ariel Kaminer
The New York Times covers the declining influence of pro-Israeli lobbying groups, such as AIPAC, in New York state politics.

In Israeli Prison, an Elaborate Theater of Interrogation, Emily Harris
NPR covers the experience of Ala`a Miqbel, a Palestinian detained in Israeli prison for nearly a month following an attempt to travel through the Erez crossing checkpoint between the Gaza Strip and Israel.

Understanding the Boycott of Israel`s Universities, Vijay Prashad
Prashad defends the American Studies Association academic boycott of Israel in an op-ed for The Washington Post.
 

Palestine-Israel Negotiations

Tension Builds in Israeli Coalition Over Peace Talks, Jodi Rudoren
The New York Times reports on the descent of the relationship between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition into open hostility over the approach of the Prime Minister to brokering a peace deal with Palestine.

Is Obama Punting on Kerry`s Peace Plan, Philip Weiss
Weiss, writing for Mondoweiss, discusses the notion that Obama has largely given up on the peace process between Israel and Palestine in favor of diverting his energies to preventing war with Iran.

Netanyahu: Israel Not Obligated to Accept Kerry`s Framework in Full, Barak Ravid, Roy Isacowitz
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated in a speech that Israeli is not obligated to agree with the entirety of any deal with the Palestinians brokered by the United States, Haaretz reports.

Indyk: Framework Agreement to Include Compensation for Arab and Jewish Refugees, Palestine News Network
PNN features a piece on the substance of the US-brokered Israel-Palestinian Authority peace talks.
 

Other

Turkey Aims to Scrap Special Courts in Battle Over Judiciary, Humeyra Pamuk
The Turkish government plans to abolish a number of special courts in a move against forces hostile to the government within said courts. 

Iraqi Planes, Artillery Strike Rebel-Held Falluja, Ahmed Rasheed
Seven people were killed on Sunday, 26 January 2014 in intensifying clashes between Iraqi government security forces and groups linked with al-Qaeda.


On Jadaliyya

ارفُض، شعبك يحميك, Ibtisam Azem

Wesleyan University’s Alumni Protest Roth’s Statement Against the American Studies Association, Jadaliyya Reports

Judiciary Draft Laws in Morocco: Undercutting the Young Judges Movement, Anass Saadoun

Women/Pioneers: Challenging the Myth of Zionist Egalitarianism, Shimrit Lee

المحاكمة العسكرية في الأردن والمعارضة الزائفة, Nidal El Khairy

Dialogue in the Service of Power: UC Leadership`s Anti-Divestment Strategy, Rahim Kurwa

Beyond Justice: al-Haq After the Ruling in Adalah (2009-2013), Susan Power

Egyptian Constitutional Drafting: A Comparative Review, Fattouh El Chazli

الرأسمالية الفلسطينية المتمادية, Tariq Dana

The Reality of Legal Assistance in the Occupation’s Military Courts, Randa Wahbe

 

Open Letter to Scarlett Johansson and Oxfam, Jadaliyya Reports
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Jan 31, 2013 Lebanon
Noura Erakat By :
Noura Erakat

Setting New Precedents: Israel Boycotts Human Rights Session

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique mechanism that intends to review the behavior of states without distinction. The UN General Assembly established it in 2006 as part of the functions of the Human Rights Council. It is a state-driven process to comprehensively assess a state`s compliance with human rights law. The Human Rights Council is to hold three two-week sessions each year during which time they review the files of sixteen member states. Accordingly each state will undergo the review every three years. As of 2011, all 193 UN member states had undergone a review.

The Human Rights Council conducted Israel`s UPR in 2009.  In response to the findings, Israel`s ambassador to the UN explained that it took the Review process "very seriously" because it is "an opportunity for genuine introspection, and frank discussion within the Israeli system" 

Israel`s second UPR is scheduled to take place in 2013. A coalition of Palestinian human rights organizations submitted their concise report on Israel`s violations between 2009 and 2012.  This document will not be read, however, because Israel is boycotting the UPR, citing bias.  In May 2012, Israel described the Human Rights Council as “a political tool and convenient platform, cynically used to advance certain political aims, to bash and demonize Israel.”

Israel`s condemnation of the Human Rights Council followed the body`s initiation of a fact-finding mission to investigate the impact of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Today, the Council released its report at a press conference in Geneva. It states that Isreal must cease all of its settlement activity  "without preconditions" and  "must immediately initiate a process of withdrawal of all settlers", or face prosecution before the International Criminal Court. Sources in Geneva tell me that Israel`s threats of boycott aimed to derail the Council`s fact-finding mission`s report. Failing to do that, Israel unilaterally withdrew from its Universal Periodic Review all together.

This is not Israel`s first attack on the UN. It has cited bias in the past in response to the UN`s critique of its human rights violations, specifically after the World Conference Against Racism (2001); the International Court of Justice proceedings on the route of the Separation Barrier (2004); denial of entry to Special Rapporteur to the OPT, Richard Falk (2008); and its refusal to cooperate with the Human Rights Council`s fact-finding delegation to Gaza in the aftermath of Operation Cast Lead (2009). 

Israel is unique for its boycott, which evidences the tenuous nature of the voluntary compliance process. In fact, human rights advocates and governement officials worry that Israel will open the door to non-cooperation by other states. The battle for accountability continues even in the UN. Despite its acceptance of international law & human rights norms, even within the multilateral human rights body, the last word on human rights matters is political.