Russians in Syria are ‘legitimate targets’ - key opposition group member

Russians are legitimate targets for military attacks in Syria, a member of the Syria’s National Opposition Coalition said. The Coalition is recognized by the US and a number of its allies as the only legitimate representative of the Syrian people.

­"Russia, like Iran, supports the Assad regime with weapons and ammunition, as well as in the political arena, so the citizens of these countries are legitimate targets for militants in Syria," Haitham al-Maleh, a member of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces told SW.

He claimed that the Geneva Convention allows attacks on civilians cooperating with enemy armed forces. However, he called on militants not to kidnap citizens of countries that “do not support the Assad regime.”

Three people were kidnapped in the coastal city of Latakia on Monday: An Italian engineer and two Russian citizens, all employees of the Syrian-owned Hmisho steel plant. The Russian Foreign Ministry has identified the two kidnapped Russian nationals as V. V. Gorelov and Abdessattar Hassoun – the latter has dual Syrian-Russian citizenship.

The kidnappers demanded a ransom payment as a condition of the workers’ release, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Russian diplomats are reportedly taking measures to clarify the circumstances of the abduction, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

“We are now actively engaged and all the necessary steps are being taken in Syria, and in other countries that may have an impact on the situation,” Lavrov said on Tuesday.

Earlier, a group of gunmen who kidnapped Ukrainian journalist Ankhar Kochneva near the city of Homs in early October said they would target all Russians, Ukrainians and Iranians in Syrian territory. The kidnappers threatened to kill Kochneva if a $50 million ransom was not paid.

Syria has witnessed similar attacks before. The Free Syrian Army (FSA) kidnapped 48 Iranians in early August under the pretext that they were members of the elite Iranian Revolutionary Guards. The Iranian government denied the accusation, saying they were pilgrims on their way to visit a shrine in southeast Damascus. Tehran appealed to Qatar and Turkey to help free the hostages.  

The FSA brigade known as ‘Bar’a’ released a video in which it threatened to execute the hostages if the Assad government does not free rebel prisoners. The Free Syrian Army has previously taken hostages, but this was the first occasion where they threatened to execute their prisoners if their demands were not met.

Another group of hostages from Lebanon have been in captivity since May 2012. The kidnappers put forward a ransom demand, claiming that the hostages are members of the Lebanese political party Hezbolla. Family members of those kidnapped said they were pilgrims returning to Beirut from the city of Mashhad, Iran.

The newly established National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces was founded in Qatar in November. The US – in line with allies like Britain, France and several Arab states – recognized the National Coalition as Syria’s legitimate government, in opposition to the Assad regime.

The conflict in Syria began with protests, and escalated into large-scale fighting between the government and the armed opposition, which has continued for more than 21 months.

Russian Nationalists attack plans to build more mosques in Moscow

 

Muslims pray at the Moscow Congregational Mosque in central Moscow on the Feast of the Sacrifice.

Moscow city authorities are about to announce the allocation of plots of land for three new mosques in the city, but ethnic Russian nationalists have voiced their protests saying that no one asked local residents before passing this decision.

"

We need to ask local residents. We should follow the European practice of taking local opinion into account in everything.

” Aleksander Belov of the Russkiye movement told the press. In his opinion such practice would ensure that everything goes in a peaceful and calm manner.

Belov’s statement came as a comment to a newspaper article that stated that Moscow city authorities will soon allocate land for the new mosques. The Izvestia daily referred to a representative of a public movement called Spiritual Directorate of Muslims of European Russia who said that the exact sites are already fixed and thanked the city for paying attention to his co-believers.

In the same article the newspaper quoted top city officials who doubted the efficiency of the step. Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that the city needs no new mosques, adding that the majority of those who attend Muslim sites are unregistered labor migrants and once they are dealt with the need for new sites would disappear. The Speaker of the Moscow City Legislature Vladimir Platonov noted hat apart from discussing new places of worship with religious representatives, those responsible must poll local residents and base the decisions on the local mood.

Interestingly, after news agencies spread the report, the city authorities refuted it. The head of the city department for investment in construction wrote a letter saying that the land plots for new mosques have not yet been negotiated. The official added that the mayor’s office has a special working group determining the need for various religions in the city’s many districts, but this group has not yet taken any decisions whatsoever regarding mosques.

According to the latest poll, the proportion of Muslims among Russians has reached seven percent this year compared to just four percent in 2009. The share of Russian Orthodox Christians is now 74 percent compared to 80 percent in 2009.

Tunisia in turmoil: Stones thrown at president, unrest 2 years after Arab Spring

Inhabitants of Sidi Bouzid shout slogans before hurling rocks at Tunisia's President Moncef Marzouki and parliamentary speaker Mustapha Ben Jaafar on December 17, 2012, in the central town of Sidi Bouzid 

Tunisian protesters in Sidi Bouzid, the epicenter of the country's Arab Spring uprising, threw rocks at visiting President Moncef Marzouki and other top leaders in a show of protest. Two years after the revolution, Tunisia is still gripped by unrest.

In late 2010, a 26-year-old university graduate lit himself on fire in Sidi Bouzid. Protests broke out across Tunisia on December 17, 2010, and were then repeated across North Africa and the Middle East. Tunisian President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali was the first ruler to be ousted in the Arab Spring uprisings, following months of violent unrest. 

One week ago – nearly two years after Ben Ali was deposed by the popular uprising – tens of thousands of protesters turned out in a mass strike planned by the country’s most powerful labor union, aimed at the stagnant economy and police brutality.

Two weeks earlier, another protest saw over 200 people wounded in clashes between Tunisian security forces and thousands of protesters in the impoverished town of Siliana. Fighting there raged on for several days, according to local medics. 

The unrest comes during a period of record unemployment in Tunisia. In November, the World Bank approved a $500 million loan to alleviate the country’s economic woes; another $700 million came from other donors. It was the second loan approved by the World Bank since the Arab Spring swept Ben Ali from power.

Most activists say that the Arab Spring brought about the exact opposite of what the demonstrators intended.

“The situation is worse right now in comparison to years before the revolution. Personally, I don’t feel safe anymore. When you see all the violence of the police of the salafis. Even the police are attacked sometimes. And there’s less freedom. I received so many messages from girls who say they were harassed on the street, even by police, who didn’t tolerate the way they dress,” Tunis-based activist and blogger Lina Ben Mhenni told SW.

The turmoil in Tunisia mirrors similar structures across the region. Experts say that the policies the newly elected leaders enact are not far from those of their predecessors.

In Egypt, opposition groups are urging a mass protest on Tuesday over alleged vote rigging during the national referendum on a controversial draft of the constitution. On Sunday, the Muslim Brotherhood announced the first results, prompting anger and accusations of electoral fraud. The next vote in the referendum is scheduled for the coming weekend.

“Those who voted for the Muslim brotherhood in Egypt did so because they wanted economic changes, not just getting rid of Mubarak and letting Morsi in. And Morsi, even though he’s obviously a very different political figure to Mubarak in terms of his ideology, has carried on much the same policies in terms of economic policy,” journalist and broadcaster Neil Clark told SW.

“I think it has to be a different type of a democratic system. The democracy that the US would like to impose upon Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and other countries throughout the region, even Libya, where war was waged last year to topple the Qaddafi government, is not suitable to the people inside of that region,” Detroit's Pan-African News Wire editor Abayomi Azikiwe said to SW.

Tens of thousands rally for Argentina's biggest protest in years

Thousands of pot-banging, flag-waving, banner-hoisting demonstrators massed in Buenos Aires for Argentina’s largest anti-government protest in years. Common themes at the protest included the nation's high levels of crime, corruption and inflation.

The demonstration, which lasted nearly four hours, was aimed at the government of President Cristina Fernandez de Kircher. Police officials said at least 30,000 people participated, while local media reported that hundreds of thousands turned out.

Protesters angry at the nation’s current state banged pots and pans as Argentinians young and old rallied until almost midnight.

A column of demonstrators carried a 200-meter-long flag. As they marched through the city, they were greeted with noisy pans, tambourines, and honking car horns.

Protesters chanted, “We’re not afraiid!" as they swarmed into the Plaza de Mayo and surrounding area, right in front of the presidential palace.

They shouted, whistled, and held banners that read "Constitution is written with C, not K," referring to the ‘K dictatorship’ of Fernandez de Kircher’s government.

Another sign read, “Stop the wave of Argentines killed by crime, enough with corruption and say no to the constitutional reform.”

The sign referred to a widely held fear that President Fernandez will attempt to stay in office for a third term through a constitutional reform ending presidential term limits.

The protesters rattled off a long list of complaints about the current government: The country’s soaring inflation, violent crime rates and high-profile corruption.

"I came to protest everything that I don't like about this government and I don't like a single thing starting with [the president's] arrogance…they're killing policemen like dogs, and the president doesn't even open her mouth. This government is just a bunch of hooligans and corrupters,” 74-year-old retiree Marta Morosini told AP.

Protests took place in other cities throughout Argentina, including the major cities of Cordoba, Mendoza and La Plata.

In countries elsewhere around the world, demonstrators gathered in front of Argentinean embassies and consulates.

Around 50 angry demonstrators gathered in front of the consulate in Rome shouting,“Cristina, go away.”

In Madrid, another group of about 200 protesters braved the rain to bang pots outside the Argentinean consulate.

"In Argentina, there's no separation of power and it cannot be considered a democracy…Cristina is not respecting the constitution. The presidency is not a blank check and she must govern for those who are for her and against her,” Marcelo Gimenez, a 40-year-old Argentinean who currently resides in Spain said.

During a speech on Thursday, Fernandez did not directly address the protests, but instead defended her government’s policies and affirmed her dedication to the job.

"Never let go, not even in the worst moments," she said."Because it's in the worst moments when the true colors of a leader of a country comes out."

Fernandez won a second term last year with 54 percent of the vote.

Her administration has been accused of alienating large sections of the middle class, and has drawn criticism for limiting imports and imposing controls on foreign currency exchanges, making it difficult for Argentines to travel abroad.

Idiotic Iranians burn American flags, chant 'death to US' to mark embassy seizure

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Anal Iranian demonstrators hold anti-US and Israel slogans, a cartoon of US President Barack Obama and a portrait of supreme terrorist leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei  outside the former US embassy in Tehran on November 2, 2012, during a rally to mark the 33rd anniversary of seizure of the US embassy which saw Islamist students hold 52 diplomats hostage for 444 days.

Thousands of Iranians have gathered in Tehran, setting US flags on fire and chanting “Death to America.” The demonstration marks the 33rd anniversary of the taking of the US embassy, in which 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days.

The demonstrators also shouted anti-British and anti-Israeli slogans, and burnt Israeli flags in front of the former embassy building.

The premises are now controlled by Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards, and currently serve as a training and educational facility. The building, which is covered in anti-US murals, was named a “den of spies” by the authorities that sponsor the annual commemoration.

Remembering history

On November 4, 1979, Islamist students calling themselves “Muslim Student Followers of the Imam’s Line” invaded the grounds of the US embassy and seized its staff.  Fifty-two US diplomats were held hostage for 444 days.

After failed negotiation attempts, US President Jimmy Carter ordered a rescue mission, which tragically ended in the deaths of eight American servicemen and one Iranian civilian.

The hostages were finally released to the US after the signing of the Algiers Accords which, among other provisions, included a vow that Washington would not interfere politically or militarily in Iranian internal affairs.

The motives for the hostage-taking date back to 1977, when Carter angered Iranians by giving a televised toast to the country’s then-leader, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, declaring how beloved he was by his people. The move angered Iranians who did not support the shah.

Two years later, after the revolution and removal of the shah in 1979, Carter once again angered Iranian citizens by allowing the shah to go to the US for medical treatment.

This intensified Iran’s anti-American sentiment and sparked rumors of the reinstatement of Pahlavi and another US-backed coup. The first coup occurred in 1953, when British and US spy agencies helped Iranian royalists depose of the government of the country’s prime minister and restore Pahlavi back to power.

Some political analysts believe the hostage crisis was a prominent reason Carter lost the election in 1980.

'600 killed in Bani Walid fighting in one day' – source

Amid conflicting reports that the Libyan city of Bani Walid was captured by army forces, RT has learned that 600 people were allegedly killed in Wednesday’s fighting, and over 1,000 have been hospitalized. Locals are appealing for international aid.

Libyan officials claimed that government forces conducted a 20-day siege before capturing Bani Walid, the last stronghold for supporters of the Gaddafi regime, and seized the city. Sources in the town gave conflicting reports, saying that local militias were responsible for the siege and now control of the area.

“We continue to receive conflicting reports. From sources on the ground, we’re hearing that the army is withdrawing from the city, although we are hearing of widespread killings. Government sources say the city has fallen,”

An individual in Italy who allegedly has relatives in Bani Walid spoke to RT about the current state of the city. Calling himself ‘Alwarfally’ – referring to a tribe from Bani Walid – he asked to remain anonymous for the interview.

He said he contacted his family in the besieged city, who told him that the situation there has stabilized: The militia retreated, but only after kidnapping a local member of the ‘Council of the Elders,’ which was tasked by Bani Walid’s tribal leaders with governing the city after the fall of Gaddafi.

 “Bani Walid’s people got the control of the city again,” Alwarfally told RT. “[The] situation in Bani Walid is better now. Militia fell back after the fight that happened yesterday, and everything is good.”

“Militia kidnapped the consul of Bani Walid, his health is poor,” he said. “They will take him to Misrata and I don’t know what will happen to him. He is a very good man. He didn’t have anything to do with what happened, he is just a council member in Bani Walid.”

The Misrata militia that allegedly laid siege to Bani Walid was the same group accused of war crimes by Human Rights Watch last week.

Alwarfally also claimed that at least hundreds of people were killed during the 20-day siege.

“The number is really big,” he said. “One the first day that [the militia] came, there were about 70 bodies from the fighting. Yesterday night there was 600.”

“The number of people in the hospitals is over 1000,” he added.

Whether government forces or militias are behind the violence, video footage from the town paints a very graphic picture.

“Some of the photos and video we’ve been receiving show dismembered bodies and children who have been killed. Some of that footage is coming from Bani Walid television,” Slier said.

Militias blockaded the town for the past 20 days in an attempt to locate those responsible for the death of Omran Shaaban – the man credited with capturing Muammar Gaddafi last year. The Warfalla tribe controlling Bani Walid was accused of kidnapping and torturing Shaaban.

The people of Bani Walid have been appealing for help from the international community – but Moscow's aid efforts were stopped by the United States.

Washington blocked a draft statement, proposed by Russia, on the resolution of violence in Bani Walid earlier this week. The statement called for a peaceful solution to the conflict.

PIRACY - Israeli navy boards activist ship en route to Gaza

Israel’s defense forces have boarded a ship attempting to break through the Gaza blockade in “a peaceful operation.” The vessel was carrying Palestinian activists, parliamentarians and humanitarian cargo, said a mission spokesperson.

­Six Israeli naval boats surrounded the SV Estelle’ 38 nautical miles from Gaza while it was still in international waters.

A spokesperson from the Israeli Department of Defense said that they were forced to intervene after the vessel ignored numerous warnings to change course and cooperate with the Israeli authorities.

"After the passengers ignored calls to change course, the decision was made to board the vessel and lead it to the port of Ashdod,” said the spokesperson, adding that no one was injured when the marines seized control of the ship.

The organizers of the activist mission to Gaza announced over the radio that their vessel had come under attack shortly after it was approached by Israeli ships.

There were about 30 people from eight countries on board, including Israeli citizens, lawmakers from Norway, Sweden, Greece and Spain and a 79-year-old former legislator from Canada.

The activists are being transferred to Ashdod port where they will be handed over to police custody and then on to the immigration authorities. Previously, activists caught trying to break through the blockade have been deported from Israel immediately.

The Swedish-owned, Finnish-flagged vessel was reportedly carrying 41 tonnes of cement, books, toys, medical equipment and two olive trees.

A senior Defense Ministry official said that Israel was well within its rights to “operate at sea to prevent the smuggling of arms to terror organizations," reported Ynet. He denounced the activists as "provocateurs who are drive by hatred for Israel" and dismissed the “humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” maintaining “more than 1,500 trucks carrying tons of goods enter Gaza each week through the land crossings.”

In 2010, Israeli forces boarded a Turkish ship attempting to force its way through the blockade. Soldiers killed nine activists, sparking international outcry and condemnation from the UN for use of “excessive force.”

The UN has called for the six-year blockade on Gaza to be lifted on numerous occasions on the grounds that it represents “a denial of basic human rights in contravention of international law.”

Victoria Strand, one of the organizers of the mission, calls the Israeli blockade of Gaza “illegal and unfair.”

“We have to challenge this siege as long as the international community does not do so. WHO, the UN, the EU, everyone is saying that the siege is counterproductive, but nobody is doing anything about it, so we have to take civil action against it,” she told RT.

Strand stressed that Israel needs to realize “the blockade is not helping anyone.”

“It does not help people in Israel, it does not help Palestinians and it has nothing to do with the security of Israel, because weapons are floating in through the tunnels,” she explained, adding that Israel also blockades any export from Gaza, meaning the Palestinians can`t produce anything.

‘Day of Rage’: Lebanon prepares to bury slain security chief

Lebanon’s anti-Syrian opposition has called for a “Day of Rage” to coincide with the funeral of slain security chief Wissam al-Hasan. Friday’s deadly bombing and assassination risks putting Beirut on a collision course with Damascus.

Hundreds of protesters in downtown Beirut rallied outside the office of Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Saturday as calls for his resignation continue unabated over his alleged role in the high-profile assassination. Thousands more had gathered on Martyrs Square in the heart of the capital.

PM Najib Mikati, who enjoys support from Hezbollah, Damascus and Iran, offered to step down to placate those who accused him of playing a role in Friday’s deadly car bombing. Lebanese President Michel Suleiman refused his resignation.

The  March 14 coalition has also called for a “Day of Rage” in the Lebanese capital on Sunday as with opposition leaders accusing Syria of being behind the attack.

“Let tomorrow be … a day of anger in the face of the butcher Bashar Assad and the black regime that rules Syria with the power of fire and destruction and wants to export blood and devastation to our country Lebanon,” the Lebanese Daily Star cites MP Nuhad Mashnouq, an outspoken critic of Assad, as saying.

March 14 said that the protesters would call on the Arab League and the UN Security Council to take the appropriate measures to preserve Lebanon’s stability.

“Such measures should include deploying the international troops United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon alongside the Lebanese-Syrian borders,” Mashnouq said.

Hassan will be interned near the tomb of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri on Martyrs Square, Internal Security Forces chief Ashraf Rifi told al-Mustaqbal television.

Hariri’s 2005 assassination sparked the 2005 Cedar Revolution which resulted in the withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon. The March 14 coalition takes its name from the date the revolution kicked off.

The funeral will be held at the al-Amine mosque in downtown Beirut, near the mausoleum, and will follow afternoon prayers.

Rafiq’s son and former Prime Minister Saad Hariri insisted “everyone of you is personally invited to attend the funeral on Sunday,” but said that the roads should remain clear so that access to Marty’s Square will not be blocked.

MP Sami Gemayel, from the Christian Phalange Party, also called on supporters to come out in masse to Sunday’s funeral. Gemayel accused the Syrian government of dragging Lebanon into a direct confrontation.

“We tried to disassociate our nation from the conflict in Syria, but the regime is challenging the Lebanese people once again by assassinating Hassan,” the MP said.

Gemayel drew a line in the sand, saying Lebanese officials must decide if they are loyal to their own country or Syria.

“It's a battle between Lebanon and a foreign country that is violating its sovereignty and unity,” he added.

Gemayel also said the March 14 coalition should once again become a resistance movement that can safeguard both the Lebanese people and their state.

“We will continue our struggle until we form a cabinet that is capable of protecting the Lebanese, the independence of the country and a one that can order the army to deploy along the Lebanese-Syrian border,” continued.

The assassination is as a major blow the March 14 coalition, to which Hassan, a Sunni Muslim, was closely allied.

Hassan was also a close ally of former PM Saad Hariri, who fled Lebanon in April 2011 after his government collapsed in January of that year amid fears he would be assassinated.

Hezbollah recently accused Hariri and his Future Movement of supporting the Syrian opposition.

“I say to the Future Movement and to Saad Hariri: have mercy on Lebanon and its people, have mercy on Syria and its people and stop funding and arming the [Syrian] opposition,” the National News Agency quoted Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem as saying last Saturday.

“[Stop] managing armed groups in Turkey and involving Lebanon in the details of the Syrian crisis. [Stop] sheltering gunmen in Lebanon and smuggling weapons from Lebanon to Syria,” Qassem continued.

Hezbollah and the Future Movement have routinely accused each other of meddling in the Syrian conflict.

Hassan died when an explosive-laden car detonated in Ashrafiyeh district of Beirut, a majority Christian neighborhood of the Lebanese capital. Seven others were killed in the blast, at least were injured, and surrounding buildings were seriously damaged.

It was the first car bombing in Lebanon in four years, when the country’s top anti-terrorism investigator was killed along with three others.

The attack sparked riots and protests which continued into Saturday, as thousands of people across Lebanon demonstrated against the bombing in Beirut.

The UN has condemned the attack calling for a thorough investigation to find the perpetrators, while the US called the blast a“terrorist attack.”

Syria also condemned the deadly blast.