Saturday, March 31, 2012
Trayvon Martin lawyers intensify call for arrest amid more evidence leaks
New eyewitness account and police station video further negate George Zimmerman's self-defence claim, family lawyers say
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- Richard Luscombe in Miami
- guardian.co.uk, Friday 30 March 2012 18.38 BST
- Article history
Lawyers from Trayvon Martin's family have stepped up calls for his killer to be arrested after a new eyewitness and leaked CCTV footage from the police station cast doubt on George Zimmerman's claim that he had acted in self-defence.
The new witness claims he saw the neighbourhood watch captain walking away from the fatal altercation with no blood on him, countering Zimmerman's statement that he sustained a broken nose and bloody injuries to the back of his head.
Leaked CCTV footage from the Sanford police department on the night of the shooting, 26 February, also appears to undermine the claim that he had been injured during the altercation.
The new evidence also directly contradicts leaks from police sources that the evidence backed Zimmerman's claim that the teenager had been the aggressor.
Daryl Parks, attorney for the Florida teenager's parents Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, said that the witness's story and the footage were crucial developments.
"I think Mr Zimmerman will be arrested very, very soon," he said.
"It answers a lot of questions for me. It is clear this witness saw what happened and indicated the person that he saw that did the shooting.
"The other part that really strikes me is that he seems to have not seen the apparent injuries from this altercation that Mr Zimmerman claims that he suffered."
Zimmerman, who is in hiding, has insisted he acted in self-defence when he shot Martin, 17, during a confrontation in a gated community in Sanford, near Orlando. He was questioned but released without charge under Florida's controversial stand-your-ground law, which states a killing is justified if a person uses deadly force fearing his own life or safety to be in jeopardy.
The new witness recounted his version of events on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 in a disguised voice.
"I saw two men on the ground, one on top of the other. I felt they were scuffling and I heard gunshots which to me were more like pops," he said. "I don't know if was an echo but it definitely made more than one pop.
"After the larger man got off there was a boy, obviously now dead, on the ground facing down. It was dark. I can't say I watched him get up, but in a couple of seconds or so he was walking towards where I was watching and I could see him a little bit clearer. It was a Hispanic man. He didn't appear hurt or anything else. He just kind of seemed very worried with his hand up to his forehead. I saw no blood."
Officials from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which has been leading the protests demanding justice for the Martin family, told the Guardian that the account was damning.
"It adds credence to what we already knew from the 911 calls and the earlier tapes," said Turner Clayton, president of the group's Sanford chapter. "It punches a lot of holes in the claims of self-defence and Zimmerman's claim that Mr Martin punched his nose and battered his head. None of that is apparent on the video."
Zimmerman's family, meanwhile, have launched a strong defence.
"You return force with force when somebody assaults you," said his brother, Robert Zimmerman Jr, in a CNN interview.
"George was out of breath, he was barely conscious. There would have been George dead if he had not acted decisively and instantaneously in that moment when he was being disarmed."
The new developments came as official comment on the five-week-old case dried up. Sanford police are referring all calls to the office of state attorney Angela Corey and city officials have already announced they would no longer hold daily briefings for the media.
Corey, the special prosecutor appointed by Florida governor Rick Scott eight days ago to take over the investigation, appealed to be left alone. "For the sake of all involved, please allow us to do our jobs within the bounds of Florida law," she said in a statement also announcing that official documents, photos and videos relating to the case were now protected under an exemption to public record laws.
She earlier indicated that she might not wait until a grand jury convened for 10 April before deciding if there was enough evidence to arrest Zimmerman.
Derek Turner, national spokesman for the NAACP, told the Guardian: "All we can ask is that the investigation is thorough.
"With everything swirling, our number one priority has always been for Zimmerman's arrest and to have a trial. We are already getting things accomplished and we will keep demanding justice for Trayvon Martin."
More than 3,000 protestors are expected to attend the latest rally in Sanford Saturday morning at which NAACP president Ben Jealous will speak.
But Clayton believed that more pressure would still be needed. "This is not going to go away and nor are we until Mr Zimmerman has been arrested and justice has been served."
Friday, March 30, 2012
Progression of my MS
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonora_Carrington
A slightly better day at last today; but not so good, not when I have been experiencing so much pain.
The latest nasty thing is the amount of excruciatingly painful tension in my hands, arms, and shoulders.
My arms often tightly folded on my chest, mostly during the night, recently when I sneeze, cough, yawn or laugh my arms are stuck like super glue.
Also an incredible tension and pressure around my torso, as well as it causing my jaws to tightly clamped closed, difficult to unclench again.
Breathing then becomes laboured, luckily up to now; I eventually begin to relax and can breath freely again.
Up to now this had been happening mainly when I wake up, in the morning as well as during the night and whenever I laugh, cough, sneeze or yawn.
Recently I noticed with some worry that it’s not restricted to when I have been sleeping or when yawning etc.
It can and does now occur at anytime, often when writing which is unpleasant and frustrating and causes lots of problems.
That and the slow bowel movements are making my life quite uncomfortable right now.
My legs are constantly feeling as if they are burning up or being electrocuted or having pins stuck into them, they are always icy cold and painfully stiff.
Its scary feeling the progression of my MS and knowing that by how it feels that the progression won’t stop anymore, not now.
The paralysis has affected my whole body and stopped any movement apart from involuntary ones, such as slipping down the bed.
My midriff will concertina, due to no functioning muscles, not after spending so long in bed from 2008 to 2010.
Because my muscles are no longer working, so my spinal deformity has got so much more severe, if I could walk I would be bent, twisted.
This together with my MS progression makes my life awfully difficult, sometimes it’s impossible for Richie to position me so I will maintain my posture for anytime at times it means constant adjustments by Richie.
At night I can do nothing, sweating as I can’t move to make myself more comfortable, this increases my spasms, sweating causes thrush infections.
When I got my MS diagnosis in July, 2006 I heard it was Primary Progressive MS, I was sent for second opinion
The neurologist thought it could be Secondary MS, after more MRI’s then 9 months later both neurologists agreed it could be Primary Progressive MS.
Since then my MS progression has carried on, it has never stopped, and I have not had any time off.
I think it is now obvious that I have PP MS, I hoped for more time with my darling Richie, but the way things are going, it maybe not possible.
It may well be nearly last orders, but I intend to enjoy as long as I can, which I will do, I am conscious of being very much in the here and now with my darling Richie, which is good.
Surveillance video shows George Zimmerman on the night he killed Trayvon Martin
The Miami Herald News Miami-Dade
Posted on Wednesday, 03.28.12
Surveillance video shows George Zimmerman on the night he killed Trayvon Martin
Related Content
Watch the surveillance video:
BY FRANCES ROBLES
ABC News has obtained exclusive police surveillance video of George Zimmerman taken the night he shot and killed Miami-Dade teen Trayvon Martin.
The video shows a handcuffed Zimmerman being taken out of a parked police cruiser and inside the Sanford, Fl. police headquarters on the night of Feb. 26 or early the following day.
Zimmerman and the 17-year-old had argued and struggled in a gated community near Orlando where Zimmerman lived and Trayvon was visiting with his father.
Zimmerman, a crime watch captain, said he fatally shot the teen in self-defense after he called 911 to report the teen was acting suspicious.
The killing of the teenager who attended Dr. Michael Krop Senior High in Miami-Dade has sparked national outrage.
The video is significant, the teen’s family said, because it appears to show that the muscular-looking Zimmerman is uninjured. It also offers the first public view of Zimmerman since the shooting.
News reports that cited anonymous police sources said Zimmerman told police that Trayvon decked the neighborhood watch volunteer and slammed his head on the concrete. Zimmerman’s attorney Craig Sonner has told television networks that the neighborhood watch volunteer’s nose was broken and he was left with a gash on the back of his head that would have required stitches had he gone to the doctor in time.
But there are no visible bruises on his face or cuts on the back of his shaved head in the video, and his shirt doesn’t appear to have blood on it in the front or back. There does not appear to be any grass on his jacket, as indicated in the police report.
The video was authenticated by the city of Sanford public information office. Although it’s unclear what time it was taken, it was likely taken after Zimmerman was administered first aid at the shooting scene.
“I think the video speaks for itself,” said the family’s attorney, Benjamin Crump. “You don’t see any broken nose. You don’t see any blood on his head. You don’t see any stuff on the back of his clothes. You have to ask why did this police chief, state attorney and now this acting police chief conspire to protect George Zimmerman for killing this unarmed teenager?
Appearing on CNN Wednesday night, Crump called the video “the smoking gun,” prove that the self-defense allegation is not true.
Crump said he watched the video after getting a frantic call from Trayvon’s mother, Sybrina Fulton who was “in disbelief.”
“If this can’t get him arrested, I don’t know what can,” he said. “We’ve marched, we protested, we filed law suits, we found phone records and connected the dots. What else do we have to do to get George Zimmerman arrested?”
Read more here:
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Feeling Seedy
Zdzisaw Beksiski
Last night I was not feeling too good, I felt dubious I would ever sleep not how my guts were.
For three day I had no bowel movements, no wonder I felt so seedy yesterday as well as most of today.
I actually got incredibly depressed, luckily finally tonight I had a huge one, which made me feel better and I am sure I will sleep well.
Tomorrow I hope will be better day, when I hope to be able write more then now, looking forward to that.
Kenneth Chamberlain Shot Dead By New York Police
http://www.democracynow.org/2012/3/29/unarmed_black_veteran_kenneth_chamberlain_shot
As the Trayvon Martin case draws national attention, we look at another fatal shooting of an unarmed African-American male that has received far less scrutiny. Kenneth Chamberlain, Sr., a 68 year-old African-American Marine veteran, was fatally shot in November by White Plains, NY, police who responded to a false alarm from his medical alert pendant. The officers hurled racial slurs at Chamberlain, broke down his door, tasered him, and then shot him dead. We’re joined by Chamberlain’s son, Kenneth Chamberlain Jr., and two of his attorneys. One of the attorneys, Mayo Bartlett, questions the police response to the shooting, comparing it to the official story that emerged after George Zimmerman shot the unarmed African-American teenager Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida last month. “It’s very similar to Mr. Zimmerman suggesting that he had a bloody nose, and now you look at the video and that doesn’t appear to be the case,” says Bartlett. “That really makes you question what we’re being told sometimes by government with respect to these types of matters.” Kenneth Chamberlain Jr. struggles through tears to recount his father’s final moments, including the way police officers mocked his father’s past as a Marine. “For them to look at my father that way, (with) no regard for his life, every morning I think about it,” he says.
As the Trayvon Martin case draws national attention, we look at another fatal shooting of an unarmed African-American male that has received far less scrutiny. Kenneth Chamberlain, Sr., a 68 year-old African-American Marine veteran, was fatally shot in November by White Plains, NY, police who responded to a false alarm from his medical alert pendant. The officers hurled racial slurs at Chamberlain, broke down his door, tasered him, and then shot him dead. We’re joined by Chamberlain’s son, Kenneth Chamberlain Jr., and two of his attorneys. One of the attorneys, Mayo Bartlett, questions the police response to the shooting, comparing it to the official story that emerged after George Zimmerman shot the unarmed African-American teenager Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida last month. “It’s very similar to Mr. Zimmerman suggesting that he had a bloody nose, and now you look at the video and that doesn’t appear to be the case,” says Bartlett. “That really makes you question what we’re being told sometimes by government with respect to these types of matters.” Kenneth Chamberlain Jr. struggles through tears to recount his father’s final moments, including the way police officers mocked his father’s past as a Marine. “For them to look at my father that way, (with) no regard for his life, every morning I think about it,” he says.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Predictions Worry Me.
Zdzisaw Beksiski
Milou was here, to check on the progress of the wound, whether it was healing well.
Sadly there has not been any noticeable progress, its looking healthy and hopefully next time; there will be good news.
In the meantime, I shall do my best to keep calm and hopeful that this will be healed soon.
The thought of having to stay in bed for months fills me with dread, I am not sure I can cope this time because my MS has progressed.
In 2008, my torso muscles were functioning well, as were my hands, now four years later both can’t function anymore.
Being in bed, in the condition I am now has made my life really quite awful, it’s not easy at all.
Somehow I was not surprised when Milou said that the tear hadn’t healed, not yet.
I guess being told so often during 2008 to 2010 that the wound would be healed within weeks, that meant I have become a touch cynical.
Now I disbelieve predictions and do not even want to hear any, in fact I hate to hear them now, as they worry me greatly.
So I am going to try to stay optimistic, i have to, its my only option right now, to keep myself from getting depressed. .
Asbestos claim families win supreme court competion victory
the guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/law/2012/mar/28/asbestos-claim-supreme-court-compensation
Asbestos claim families win supreme court competion victory
Ruling could lead to thousands of insurance claims by families of people who died after asbestos exposure.
- Press Association
- guardian.co.uk,
- Article history
Len McCluskey, general secrretary of the Unite union, said: 'For callous insurers this means the responsibility holiday is over.’
Relatives of workers who died of an asbestos-related cancer have won a compensation fight at the supreme court.Judges ruled that insurance liability was "triggered" when employees were exposed to asbestos dust – not when symptoms of mesothelioma emerged.
Legal experts say the ruling by the UK's highest court means that employers' insurers will have to pay compensation claims.
Relatives of victims want to make claims on policies from the late 1940s to the late 1990s.
Families started a legal fight for compensation more than five years ago and lawyers say the supreme court ruling could affect thousands of claims.
Relatives won the first round of their battle in 2008, when the high court said firms' insurers at the time workers inhaled fibres were liable.
But two years later the court of appeal said in some cases liability was triggered when symptoms developed – sometimes decades after exposure.
Lawyers said the appeal court ruling had left victims' families facing "confusion and uncertainty".
A panel of five supreme court justices had heard argument about a group of lead cases at a hearing in London in December and delivered judgment on Tuesday.
The supreme court ruled that the disease could be said to have been "sustained" by an employee in the period when it was caused or initiated, even though it only developed or manifested itself later.
Lord Clarke said: "The negligent exposure of an employee to asbestos during the policy (insurance) period has a sufficient causal link with subsequently arising mesothelioma to trigger the insurer's obligation."
Britain and Ireland's largest trade union, Unite, welcomed Wednesday's "landmark" ruling, which it said will affect "many of the 2,500 people who are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year".
It said it had appealed to the supreme court after insurance companies were partly successful in the earlier appeal to the court of appeal.
Unite's challenge was on behalf of the family of Charles O'Farrell, a retired member who died of mesothelioma in 2003.
Commenting on the supreme court's decision, the Unite general secretary, Len McCluskey, said: "This is a landmark ruling which will affect thousands of victims of asbestos.
"It is a disgrace that insurance companies went to such lengths to shirk their responsibilities. For callous insurers this means the responsibility holiday is over.
"Unite fought this case to the highest court to get justice for Charles, his family and all victims of asbestos.
"Justice for ordinary people and the ability of trade unions to bring these cases won't be possible if the government succeeds in slamming the door to justice with their legal aid bill."
O'Farrell's daughter, Maureen Edwards, said: "All I ever prayed for was the right decision. This is the right decision. I am delighted for all those families who have been awaiting this result.
"My dad worked all his life and was hoping to enjoy retirement before mesothelioma took him away.
"There was never any question about who was to blame - all this long battle was about was insurers wanting to get out of paying.
"It is very difficult for us to understand the insurance industry's attitude to dying people, an attitude that the gvernment is going to make worse."
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
A Visit From Milou
Zdzisaw Beksiski
Tomorrow Milou, the nurse from the Rehabilitation Clinic will be here to see if the tear in the old scar is healing well.
Sadly it has not healed up yet, nor has Richie said it is nearly getting there,
so I have to remain optimistic.
Not an easy thing to do, especially after I had stay in bed for nearly two years with a deep pressure sore.
Really it is not easy for me to stay cheerful and not hang my head and give in to crying.
Luckily for me Richie looks after me so well, he keeps me happy despite all my pain and discomfort.
Canadian mining company rape kill during brutal evictions in Guatemala
Dear friends,
 When security forces of a Canadian mining company brutally evicted Mayan families from their villages in Guatemala, eleven women were raped, a community leader was killed, and a young man paralyzed. Now villagers are standing up and suing HudBay Minerals, but they need our help to match the legal firepower of this huge corporation -- donate now and help end the mining murders for good:  |
When security forces of a Canadian mining company brutally evicted Mayan families from their villages in Guatemala, eleven women were raped, a community leader was killed, and a young man paralyzed. Now villagers are standing up and suing HudBay Minerals for these horrific crimes -- but they need our help to match the corporate legal firepower and win their case!
The victims have filed a lawsuit in Canada, where HudBay’s headquarters are located. But HudBay is asking that the court turn over the lawsuit to Guatemala, where its weak courts are likely to let them go free. Experts say that the ruling could have massive reverberations beyond Canadian borders -- a win for the plaintiffs could force HudBay and other multinationals to clean up their acts abroad.
The court hearing is happening now and the plaintiffs need our help to cover the legal costs -- if we raise enough funds, we can give these villagers the same legal firepower as HudBay’s corporate machine, achieve justice for the victims, and continue campaigning to protect human rights over profits around the world. Click on the link below to chip in. If just 20,000 of us donate today, we could help end these mining murders for good by setting a key legal precedent:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_murder_and_rape_for_profit/?vl
Multinational companies are responsible for some of the most terrible crimes all over the world but shockingly, corporate abuses often go unpunished. In mining alone, corporate giants like Rio Tinto and Barrick Gold are accused of a wide range of atrocities that include environmental destruction, brutal gang rapes, and even thousands of deaths -- from Tanzania to Papua New Guinea. Winning this case could begin to put corporate wrongdoing in check.
Companies like HudBay can often act with impunity because they think their countries' courts won’t police the crimes they commit overseas. Or they set up shell corporations designed to protect their headquarters from liability. If we win this case, it could set a precedent that can help stop rapes, save entire villages, and protect fragile ecosystems -- no matter where these companies operate.
These firms have millions of dollars and will do whatever it takes to win this and similar cases because they know it’s a game changer. Giving just a small amount will help in the fight to bring them to justice. Click here to help:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_murder_and_rape_for_profit/?vl
Courts are supposed to be places where people go to get justice. But all too often, corporate interests have made them the bastions of the rich and powerful. We have taken on deep rooted corruption before and won. Now let's stand with and empower these victims and help create a world where no one is above the law.
With hope and determination,
Emma, Jamie, Pascal, Ari, Ricken, Maria Paz, Diego and the whole Avaaz team
Sources
Widow files $12M suit against mining company (CBC)
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2010/12/02/mining-lawsuit002.html
Guatemalan lawsuits to continue against HudBay, says lawyer (Mining Weekly)
http://www.miningweekly.com/article/lawsuits-against-hudbay-over-guatemalan-project-to-continue-says-lawyer-2011-08-10
Lawsuits against Canadian company HudBay Minerals Inc. over human rights abuse in Guatemala (Klippensteins)
http://www.chocversushudbay.com/
Award Winning Mining Company Being Sued for Violent Death of Community Leader: Industry Out of Step with Canadian Values and Expectations (Mining Watch Canada)
http://www.miningwatch.ca/fr/node/6609
U.S. court revives human rights case against Rio Tinto (Financial Post)
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/10/25/u-s-court-revives-human-rights-case-against-rio-tinto/
Claims of sexual abuses in Tanzania blow to Barrick Gold (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/africa-mideast/claims-of-sexual-abuses-in-tanzania-blow-to-barrick-gold/article2040735/
The victims have filed a lawsuit in Canada, where HudBay’s headquarters are located. But HudBay is asking that the court turn over the lawsuit to Guatemala, where its weak courts are likely to let them go free. Experts say that the ruling could have massive reverberations beyond Canadian borders -- a win for the plaintiffs could force HudBay and other multinationals to clean up their acts abroad.
The court hearing is happening now and the plaintiffs need our help to cover the legal costs -- if we raise enough funds, we can give these villagers the same legal firepower as HudBay’s corporate machine, achieve justice for the victims, and continue campaigning to protect human rights over profits around the world. Click on the link below to chip in. If just 20,000 of us donate today, we could help end these mining murders for good by setting a key legal precedent:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_murder_and_rape_for_profit/?vl
Multinational companies are responsible for some of the most terrible crimes all over the world but shockingly, corporate abuses often go unpunished. In mining alone, corporate giants like Rio Tinto and Barrick Gold are accused of a wide range of atrocities that include environmental destruction, brutal gang rapes, and even thousands of deaths -- from Tanzania to Papua New Guinea. Winning this case could begin to put corporate wrongdoing in check.
Companies like HudBay can often act with impunity because they think their countries' courts won’t police the crimes they commit overseas. Or they set up shell corporations designed to protect their headquarters from liability. If we win this case, it could set a precedent that can help stop rapes, save entire villages, and protect fragile ecosystems -- no matter where these companies operate.
These firms have millions of dollars and will do whatever it takes to win this and similar cases because they know it’s a game changer. Giving just a small amount will help in the fight to bring them to justice. Click here to help:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_murder_and_rape_for_profit/?vl
Courts are supposed to be places where people go to get justice. But all too often, corporate interests have made them the bastions of the rich and powerful. We have taken on deep rooted corruption before and won. Now let's stand with and empower these victims and help create a world where no one is above the law.
With hope and determination,
Emma, Jamie, Pascal, Ari, Ricken, Maria Paz, Diego and the whole Avaaz team
Sources
Widow files $12M suit against mining company (CBC)
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2010/12/02/mining-lawsuit002.html
Guatemalan lawsuits to continue against HudBay, says lawyer (Mining Weekly)
http://www.miningweekly.com/article/lawsuits-against-hudbay-over-guatemalan-project-to-continue-says-lawyer-2011-08-10
Lawsuits against Canadian company HudBay Minerals Inc. over human rights abuse in Guatemala (Klippensteins)
http://www.chocversushudbay.com/
Award Winning Mining Company Being Sued for Violent Death of Community Leader: Industry Out of Step with Canadian Values and Expectations (Mining Watch Canada)
http://www.miningwatch.ca/fr/node/6609
U.S. court revives human rights case against Rio Tinto (Financial Post)
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/10/25/u-s-court-revives-human-rights-case-against-rio-tinto/
Claims of sexual abuses in Tanzania blow to Barrick Gold (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/africa-mideast/claims-of-sexual-abuses-in-tanzania-blow-to-barrick-gold/article2040735/
Avaaz.org is a 13-million-person global campaign network that works to ensure that the views and values of the world's people shape global decision-making. ("Avaaz" means "voice" or "song" in many languages.) Avaaz members live in every nation of the world; our team is spread across 13 countries on 4 continents and operates in 14 languages. Learn about some of Avaaz's biggest campaigns here, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.
To contact Avaaz, please do not reply to this email. Instead, write to us at www.avaaz.org/en/contact or call us at +1-888-922-8229 (US).
Monday, March 26, 2012
Not My Favourite Day.
Yesterday was the day for my catheter change, not my favourite day, but its good to have it done.
For another 6 weeks, I don’t need to think about it, and I won’t not until a month has passed then I need to order a catheter.
I was relieved it was over so quickly and painlessly Richie does it so well, every time it gets easier.
Today I am happy it’s done, glad it’s all over and today is the best day, it’s the day after my 6 weekly catheter change
A very happy day thanks to Richie changing the catheter so sensitively, thanks to my darling Richie for his love and care.
Russia says Annan initiative could be last chance for peace in Syria
The Guardian
Syria and Middle East - live updates
• Russia says Annan initiative could be last chance for peace
• Government 'travel ban on Syrian men'
• Jordan arrests 10 'Syrian government spies'
• Bahrain: Report alleges extrajudicical killings, torture
• Government 'travel ban on Syrian men'
• Jordan arrests 10 'Syrian government spies'
• Bahrain: Report alleges extrajudicical killings, torture
Amateur footage from social media websites purports to show the continued shelling of the city of Homs on Sunday.
1.53pm: The campaign group Avaaz says a Syrian activist who helped injured journalists flee Babr Amr, in Homs, after Sunday Times correspondent Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik were killed, has been arrested by government forces..
Avaaz says Jassim Khaled Diab, 35, was ambushed on Saturday outside the village of Nazariya bordering Lebanon near the city of Qusair in Homs.
It describes Diab as "instrumental in securing the delivery of life-saving humanitarian aid to besieged cities and towns across Syria". He is also credited by the group with saving the lives of a number of people by evacuating the injured across the border into Lebanon so that they could receive appropriate medical care. Avaaz says he was trying to help one such person across the border when he was arrested. His companions managed to escape and transfer the injured person to a safe area.
Avaaz campaigner, Wissam Tarif, said:
Jassim embodies the courage shown by the Syrian people who are locked in a bitter and bloody struggle against a murderous barbaric regime. Jassim has saved dozens of lives by evacuating patients across the border so that they could receive medical treatment and by delivering humanitarian aid to besieged cities. He was fighting for a brighter future.
"Avaaz believes that the bloody Syrian regime will not hesitate to take revenge on Jassim because of the role he played in the Syrian Rrevolution. At this time the brave activist is facing the worst kind of torture regularly employed in the regime's prisons and detention centres. This torture could result in his death. We hold the Syrian regime fully responsible for his safety and demand his immediate release together with that of all activists and protesters arrested during the year.
12.50pm: Here is a summary of the main developments so far today:
Syria
• Turkey has suspended its embassy in Damascus, the Turkish foreign ministry said. Last week, the ministry called on all Turkish citizens in neighbouring Syria to return to Turkey as soon as possible, saying it planned to close the consular section of its Damascus embassy.
• Syria's divided opposition groups are due to meet in Istanbul today to try to draw up an agreement for "peaceful political transition" after an invitation from the Turkish and Qatari foreign ministries.
• Syrian activists say troops are shelling rebel-held neighbourhoods in the central city of Homs. They say a number of people have been injured.
• Jordanian authorities have confirmed the arrest of 10 Syrian army defectors on suspicion of spying for the Syrian regime, the Jordan Times reports. A security source told the paper there is increasing concern over attempts to inflitrate the Syrian refugee community.
• Reports suggest Syrian men aged under 42 are being barred from leaving the country if they have not obtained permission from the military recruitment authorities. Some reports suggested the ban was more wide-ranging and was being applied to all people over 42.
Bahrain
• There have been 31 extrajudicial killings in Bahrain since a state-sponsored report on human rights violations in the kingdom was published in November, the Bahrain Centre of Human Rights claims in a new report. The BCHR also accuses the regime of torture, kidnapping and arbitrary arrests. It calls for an immediate end to violations, as well as reparations for victims and punishment of offenders. The BCHR also says the international community should end arms deals with Bahrain.
12.47pm: A letter from the Turkish and Qatari ministries of foreign affairs invites "all major opposition groups and figures committed to a peaceful transition in Syria" to a conference in Istanbul today. It says:
At this critical juncture, Syria needs your help, support and active involvement more than ever.
This conference will enable the participatns to express and share their visions for a free and democratic Syria with a view to agreeing upon a unified vision around the Syrian National Council on a set of shared principles for a peaceful political transition in Syria which is indispensable for the empowerment of the Syrian regime.
11.49am: On the reported travel ban on Syrian citizens (see 11.25am), a Syrian activist based outside the country tweets that it is actually more wide-ranging than described:
2 separate sources in #Syria told me it's not just guys 42 years+under. Their sisters were prevented from traveling, & both fathers over 42
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11.25am: There are unconfirmed reports that Syrian men aged between 18 and 42 have been barred from travelling overseas unless they have permission from the military recruitment authorities.
Aliqtisadi, a Damascus-based Arabic-language news magazine carries a report on the ban, citing "informed sources".
11.02am: Back to Syria. The large funeral in the Kurdish neighbourhood of Derbassiye, livestreamed his morning (see 9.55am), appears to have been that of the activist Khalaf Mohammed al-Shab.
The British-based Observatory of Human Rights says Shab, a nephew of the late Kurdish leader Mashaal Tammo, who was assassinated in October, was found on Sunday night, hours after being abducted near Derbassiye.
The Observatory also reports army raids and arrests on Monday in the north-eastern city of Deir Ezzor, on the road to Iraq, and the suburbs of Deraa, which lies close to the border with Jordan.
10.31am: In Bahrain, the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights has published its post-BICI (Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry) report.
It is intended to document human rights violations since the BICI report, which was commissioned by the King and published in November. It accused the kingdom of using torture against opposition protesters.
The BCHR claims there have been 31 "extrajudicial killings" since publication of the BICI report. Most of the deaths were from teargas exhalation, including three in the last week alone and three were as a result of torture, it says.
It also reports arbitrary arrests, torture, kidnappings, sackings, student dismissals and suspension of scholarships and harrassment of the media and witnesses.
It estimates that 4,000 people have been arrested since the start of protests against the regime in February 2011.
The reports contains this disturbing account of an alleged kidnapping:
Ali al-Singace, 16, was kidnapped and found later unconscious in a garage in Sanabis, half naked with his hands tied behind his back. This is the fifth time Ali has been subjected to kidnapping. He claims that they continue to target him due to him refusing to work as an informant.
Ali was picked up in a black Tida Nissan by a group of civilian clothed, non-
Bahraini CID agents. He told the BCHR that they stripped him naked, and sexually assaulted him using a black hose. They also used a knife to cut him, beating him in the process. Ali was then dumped in Sanabis unconscious, his hands still tied behind his back with a cable tie. His trousers were down to his knees, and he had no underwear on.
Bahraini CID agents. He told the BCHR that they stripped him naked, and sexually assaulted him using a black hose. They also used a knife to cut him, beating him in the process. Ali was then dumped in Sanabis unconscious, his hands still tied behind his back with a cable tie. His trousers were down to his knees, and he had no underwear on.
Ali attempted to file a complaint at the police station. As reported to the BCHR, the officer in charge of the Exhibition Road police station told Ali that if he files a complaint he will indict him of burning a police jeep linked to his former arrest. He also reportedly told Ali that there is no law in the country and he could do as he pleases. He then showed Ali a picture of a known activist from Sanabis, and told Ali to identify him in the public prosecution as the one who kidnapped and sexually assaulted him.
The officer then reportedly told Ali that if he does what he is told he will be released with no charges. At the public prosecution, Ali presented his case
despite the earlier threats, and was interrogated for four hours. Minister of Justice Khalid bin Ali al-Khalifa, who also made false claims about the medics last year, then wrote on Twitter that public prosecution had found that Ali had self inflicted his injuries, and made a false claim. Lawyer Faten Haddad said the medical examiner himself said that there were injuries on the boy which were impossible to self inflict. Ali may now face charges
and court for "making false claims".
despite the earlier threats, and was interrogated for four hours. Minister of Justice Khalid bin Ali al-Khalifa, who also made false claims about the medics last year, then wrote on Twitter that public prosecution had found that Ali had self inflicted his injuries, and made a false claim. Lawyer Faten Haddad said the medical examiner himself said that there were injuries on the boy which were impossible to self inflict. Ali may now face charges
and court for "making false claims".
The BCHR make a number of recommendations to the Bahrain government, including:
• Immediately end ongoing human rights violations
• Bring offenders to account and end the culture of impunity
• Provide redress and reparation for victims
• Create a new independent justice system
The group also calls on the EU and US to end arms deals with the Bahraini regime.
10.02am: There is also a livestream from Homs on Bambuser. (Thanks to RobotNick in the comments section below the line for the link).
The sound of shelling and gunfire can be heard.
9.55am: A funeral in Derbassiye, a Kurdish neighbourhood near Qamashli in north-east Syria, is being livestreamed on Bambuser.
9.51am: Syrian activists say troops are shelling rebel-held neighbourhoods in the central city of Homs with at least five people seriously wounded, AP reports.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday's shelling in the central neighborhood of Warsheh seriously wounded five civilians.
9.35am: Jordanian authorities have confirmed the arrest of several Syrian army defectors on suspicion of spying for the Syrian regime, the Jordan Times reports.
According to the Public Security Department (PSD), police forces in Mafraq arrested last week 10 alleged army defectors who entered the Kingdom earlier this month suspecting that they concealed their true identity ...
According to a second security source who requested anonymity, the arrest comes amidst rising concern among security forces of attempts by Syrian "agents" to infiltrate the Syrian refugee community and report on the movements of activists and defectors.
9.09am: In case you missed it, the Independent ran a very interesting analysis by Patrick Cockburn on Sunday, in which he concluded that the attempt to unseat Assad had failed for now.
He identified one of the problems for the opposition as the reluctance of the international community to get involved despite their rhetoric.
In the second half of last year, Assad appeared to be facing an all-powerful international coalition. It included Saudi Arabia and Qatar, the US, EU and Turkey. It emerged, however, that everybody was in favour of somebody doing something to bring him down – so long as that somebody was somebody else. There was talk of "safe havens" being established on the Jordanian or Turkish borders, but neither Jordan nor Turkey showed any enthusiasm for an act that would lead immediately to armed conflict with Syria.
Cockburn also writes that Syria is very different to Libya:
The Syrian protesters did everything they could to give the impression that what happened in Libya could be repeated in Syria. They are now being criticised for their divisions and lack of leadership, but probably they felt they had no choice.
The uprising had begun among the underclass of Syrians, but by last summer had spread to the middle class. But the use of snipers and death squads by the regime made street protests highly dangerous and they have got smaller in recent months (one of the benefits of the Arab League monitoring team was that it opened the door again to street demonstrations).
Protesters now seldom wave olive branches and chant "Peaceful, Peaceful". Militarisation of the protest movement and the increased sectarianism played to the strengths of the regime. Sectarianism not only weakens the opposition inside Syria, it helps divide the coalition facing it abroad. In a presidential election year, US voters do not care much who rules Syria, but they care a lot about al-Qaida.
9.01am: Syria's divided opposition groups are due to meet in Turkey to try to draw up a "national pact" on how to unseat President Bashar al-Assad's government, the BBC reports.
The main opposition coalition, the Syrian National Council (SNC), says all other anti-Assad groups have been invited to the gathering in Istanbul ...
The SNC says it wants to hammer out a pact of shared objectives with all opposition groups – including those that have recently broken away from the council – during the two-day meeting in Istanbul.
8.59am: The Revolutionary Leadership Council of Damascus has sent through video it says is of activists blocking off "one of the most important streets of the capital" with a fire blockade as an act of protest. Friday's protests in Syria were called "Damascus, we are coming" by opposition activists.
It says the street in question is al-Jisr al-Abyad street, one of the busiest streets in a shopping area at the heart of Damascus. The video was purportedly filmed last night.
8.46am: Good morning. Welcome to Middle East Live. Clashes are continuing in Syria as Russia has warned that Kofi Annan's initiative to bring peace must succeed if the country is to avoid all-out civil war.
Here is a round-up of the latest developments:
• Russia's outgoing president, Dmitry Medvedev, has warned Syria may be facing its last chance for peace. In a meeting with the UN and Arab League envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan, in Moscow, Medvedev said:
This may be the last chance for Syria to avoid a protracted, bloody civil war. Therefore we will provide any assistance at any level.
Russia, along with China, vetoed two UN security coucil resolutions condemning the Assad regime but has recently shown signs of impatience with the Syrian government.
• Turkey and the United States plan to provide "nonlethal" assistance, like communications equipment and medical supplies, directly to opposition groups inside Syria, the White House deputy national security adviser said. The New York Times reports:
An administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that the US had already begun to supply some aid, including communications gear, to the rebel Free Syrian Army. The agreement with Turkey would formalise and increase that aid, though officials insist that no weaponry would be sent.
The two countries also agreed to set up a framework for further humanitarian and technical aid at the Friends of Syria meeting to be held Sunday in Istanbul, according to the deputy security adviser, Benjamin Rhodes.
• Human Rights Watch has accused Syrian government forces of using local residents as human shields during recent operations in Idlib, northern Syria.
Witnesses from the towns of al-Janoudyah, Kafr Nabl, Kafr Rouma, and Ayn Larouz in the Idlib governorate in northern Syria told Human Rights Watch that they saw the army and pro-government armed men, referred to locally as shabeeha, force people to march in front of the advancing army during the March 2012 offensive to retake control of areas that had fallen into the hands of the opposition. From the circumstances of these incidents, it was clear to the witnesses that the purpose of this was to protect the army from attack.
• Syrian forces have attacked flashpoint areas, carrying out raids and clashing with rebels, AP reports. Syrian activists reported clashes Sunday in Deraa, the southern province where the uprising began last March. A spokesman for the rebel Free Syrian Army, Muneef al-Zaeem, said government troops invaded the town of Nawa, in Deraa governate, with a population of 100,000.
Amateur footage posted on the internet purports to show continued shelling of the restive city of Homs on Sunday.
• Turkey has suspended all activities at its embassy in Damascus, the Turkish foreign ministry said. Last week, the ministry called on all Turkish citizens in neighbouring Syria to return to Turkey as soon as possible, saying it planned to close the consular section of its Damascus embassy.
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