NATO force hit by fatal Afghanistan crash

At least five troops dead after helicopter goes down during heavy rainstorm in southern province of Kandahar. Last Modified: 12 Mar 2013 08:55 Tweet inShare1 Email Print Share Feedback

Two US soldiers were killed in an insider attack as Chuck Hagel ended his first official visit to country [Reuters]

Five members of the NATO-led international force in Afghanistan have been killed in a helicopter crash in bad weather in the country's south, according to coalition and provincial authorities. Police in the southern province of Kandahar said the accident occurred on Monday evening during a heavy rainstorm in Daman district. The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) does not release the nationality of casualties, but US, British and Australian soldiers operate in the country's south. "The cause of the crash is under investigation. However, initial reporting indicates there was no enemy activity in the area at the time," ISAF said following the incident. Helicopter crashes are fairly frequent in Afghanistan, where the 100,000-strong international mission relies heavily on air transport. From the perspective of one neighbourhood in Herat "There was bad weather in the area and the helicopter crashed at about 10pm," General Abdul Razeq, the Kandahar provincial police chief, told AFP. "No insurgents were there at the time." Separately on Monday, US troops shot and killed two Afghan civilians as their truck was approaching an American convoy on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghan officials said. Mohammad Alim, a commander for Kabul highways, said "a coalition convoy fired on a truck which was driving beside the convoy, which martyred two people and wounded another one". Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi said the dead were employees of a company that repairs police vehicles. Earlier on Monday, two US soldiers were killed and 10 wounded in a suspected insider attack in the eastern province of Wardak by a man in an Afghan army uniform who also killed several Afghan soldiers. The NATO mission in Afghanistan has been unsettled this week by comments from Afghan President Hamid Karzai accusing the US of colluding with the Taliban to justify the presence of foreign troops in the country. Washington abruptly rejected the allegations, saying the US has "spent enormous blood and treasure" in supporting the Afghan people and did not support any kind of violence involving civilians. Karzai's comments came during the first visit to Kabul by Chuck Hagel, the new US defence secretary who pledged that the US was working to ensure a successful handover as Afghan security forces take on the battle against the Taliban. Combat troops from the NATO mission will leave Afghanistan by the end of next year, and many fear that Afghan soldiers will struggle to contain fighters opposed to Karzai's government.

NATO force hit by fatal Afghanistan crash

At least five troops dead after helicopter goes down during heavy rainstorm in southern province of Kandahar. Last Modified: 12 Mar 2013 08:55 Tweet inShare1 Email Print Share Feedback

Two US soldiers were killed in an insider attack as Chuck Hagel ended his first official visit to country [Reuters]

NATO force hit by fatal Afghanistan crash
Five members of the NATO-led international force in Afghanistan have been killed in a helicopter crash in bad weather
in the country's south, according to coalition and provincial authorities.
Police in the southern province of Kandahar said the accident occurred on Monday evening during a heavy rainstorm in Daman district.
The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) does not release the nationality of casualties, but US, British and Australian soldiers operate in the country's south.
"The cause of the crash is under investigation. However, initial reporting indicates there was no enemy activity in the area at the time," ISAF said following the incident.
Helicopter crashes are fairly frequent in Afghanistan, where the 100,000-strong international mission relies heavily on air transport.

From the perspective of one neighbourhood in Herat

"There was bad weather in the area and the helicopter crashed at about 10pm," General Abdul Razeq, the Kandahar provincial police chief, told AFP.
"No insurgents were there at the time."
Separately on Monday, US troops shot and killed two Afghan civilians as their truck was approaching an American convoy on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghan officials said.
Mohammad Alim, a commander for Kabul highways, said "a coalition convoy fired on a truck which was driving beside the convoy, which martyred two people and wounded another one".
Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi said the dead were employees of a company that repairs police vehicles.
Earlier on Monday, two US soldiers were killed and 10 wounded in a suspected insider attack in the eastern province of Wardak by a man in an Afghan army uniform who also killed several Afghan soldiers.
The NATO mission in Afghanistan has been unsettled this week by comments from Afghan President Hamid Karzai accusing the US of colluding with the Taliban to justify the presence of foreign troops in the country.
Washington abruptly rejected the allegations, saying the US has "spent enormous blood and treasure" in supporting the Afghan people and did not support any kind of violence involving civilians.
Karzai's comments came during the first visit to Kabul by Chuck Hagel, the new US defence secretary who pledged that the US was working to ensure a successful handover as Afghan security forces take on the battle against the Taliban.
Combat troops from the NATO mission will leave Afghanistan by the end of next year, and many fear that Afghan soldiers will struggle to contain fighters opposed to Karzai's government.

Iraqi official: 48 Syrians killed in attack in western Iraq

 

Syria violence spills into Iraq

 

Baghdad (CNN) -- Some 48 Syrians, most of them soldiers, and nine Iraqi soldiers were killed Monday in an attack near the western Iraqi town of Ar Rutbah, an official said, raising concerns that Syria's civil war could spill over into Iraq.

The Syrian soldiers' convoy was ambushed by gunmen using roadside bombs and machine guns.

"From the beginning, we have warned that some militant groups want to move the conflict in Syria to Iraq," said Ali al-Mussawi, adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

"Militant groups are very active on the border areas between Iraq and Syria. Some of these groups affiliate with al Qaeda in Iraq," he added.

 

Al-Mussawi said that many of the Syrians killed in the ambush had earlier received medical treatment in Iraq. They were wounded during a battle at the Yaarabiya-Rabia border crossing a few days ago. The point is called Rabia in Iraq; Yaarabiya in Syria.

According to security officials in Ramadi, Iraq, several Syrians were wounded in that battle between the Free Syrian Army and Syrian soldiers.

Dozens of Syrian soldiers and officials took refuge in Iraq by surrendering to that country's army on Friday after rebels took over the Yaarabiya post, the officials said.

They added that the convoy had been headed from Rabia to the al-Waleed border crossing in Iraq's Anbar province when it was attacked.

The United Nations has estimated that about 70,000 people have been killed in Syria's civil war, which began roughly two years ago.

Just on Monday, at least 149 people were killed, according to the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, an opposition group. The deaths include 40 in and around Damascus, 35 in Raqqa province and 25 in Aleppo.

Death sentences over Egypt football riot spark new protests

New clashes after new Port Said verdicts 

 

Cairo (CNN) -- Two people were killed and at least 15 injured Saturday in Cairo, officials said, as Egyptians in two rival cities took to the streets to vent their anger over court verdicts in a controversial case involving deadly riots at a soccer game.

Health Ministry spokesman Ahmed Osman said two protesters had been killed in violence outside the Semiramis Intercontinental hotel in downtown Cairo.

Five others have been injured in the clashes by the hotel, he said.

Another 10 are suffering smoke inhalation after a fire gutted the three-story building housing the Egyptian Football Association in a wealthy Cairo neighborhood, as soccer fans looked on. Next door, an exclusive club for policemen was also ablaze.

Demonstrations, fires in Cairo

In Port Said, the other city with a stake in the court case, small fires burned in the harbor. The military has been deployed in the volatile northeastern city to try to avoid a repeat of past violent protests.

Saturday's disorder erupted after a Cairo court confirmed death sentences previously handed down to 21 defendants in the Port Said soccer riot case and sentenced more than 20 others to prison terms, state media said.

The rampage in February 2012 left 74 people dead and 1,000 injured, after the Port Said home team, al-Masry soccer club, defeated visiting Cairo team al-Ahly.

A majority of the victims in the stadium rampage -- where fans went at each other with rocks, chairs, knives and swords -- were Cairo fans.

Of those sentenced to prison, five people received life sentences and 10 others were given 15 years in prison, the state-run EgyNews agency reported.

Among those given a 15-year term were the leading policeman on trial, General Essam Samak, former chief of security in Port Said, and a second police official, Mohamed Saad, state media said. Seven other policemen were acquitted.

Other prison sentences were lesser, and the court cleared 28 people in total in the case, EgyNews said.

Lawyers for the 73 defendants, who also included al-Masry club staff, can file an appeal.

There was some initial confusion in Egyptian media over the final verdicts.

The sentences have prompted anger in both cities, with some protesters in Port Said believing they are too harsh and others in Cairo convinced they do not go far enough.

Hardcore fans

A statement on the Ahly club's official website backed the Cairo court but said the fight for justice wasn't over.

"The court's verdict was fair for fans of the Ahly team. We support the prosecutor general's decision to appeal the 28 acquittals and we'll continue supporting the families of the Port Said football victims," it said.

"We will not give up until justice is served to all their sons."

But the lighter punishment for policemen accused of standing by amid the stadium violence angered some.

Eyewitnesses at the Egyptian Football Association headquarters told CNN that Ultra Ahly fans outraged by the verdicts set the building ablaze as they marched towards Tahrir Square, the usual focal point for demonstrations in the capital.

The Ultras are hardcore soccer fans who have also become involved in political protests.

Earlier, around 1,000 Ahly supporters who were at the Cairo soccer club erupted in cheers and set off fireworks to celebrate, as the judges, sitting in the police academy in New Cairo, a suburb of the capital, gave their ruling.

Old resentments

In Port Said, near the Sinai Peninsula, black smoke rose into the sky as tires fixed to docks went up in flames. The tires serve as rubber bumpers to prevent damage to ships knocking against the piers. Without them, anchoring in port is more difficult.

Port Said demonstrators also protested against the nation's government and President Mohamed Morsy. Some complained that justice for Port Said was sacrificed to placate Cairo.

Their anger reflects a deeper resentment of the capital common in the port city. Many Port Said residents believe that too much of the tax money collected from ships passing through the port lands in Cairo, which does not return enough of the funds to their municipal coffers.

Port Said has been shaken by violent protests in recent days as the date for the verdict neared.

Deadly clashes erupted after the 21 death sentences were first handed down in January.

Port Said's tense relationship with Cairo dates back about 60 years.

Many residents of Port Said felt Egyptian security forces didn't adequately defend the city during the series of wars with Israel that began with the Jewish state's creation in 1948 and ended after the 1973 Arab-Israeli War.

Rome summit pledges help to Syrian opposition

Middle East

Rome summit pledges help to Syrian opposition

US announces $60m aid for Syrian opposition as Friends of Syria group condemns countries backing Bashar al-Assad. Last Modified: 28 Feb 2013 23:38 Tweet inShare2 Email Print Share Feedback

Western and Arab governments have pledged more political and material support for the civilian Syrian opposition and called for an immediate halt to arms supplies to the Assad government. From our correspondent Anita McNaught: "John Kerry and Moaz al-Khatib turned in an impressive double-act after the Rome Friends of Syria meeting. There’s a new mutual confidence and clearly a new working relationship. In the two-year "safe window" of President Barack Obama's second term, Washington is now prepared to do a lot more for the Syrian opposition. Weapons (via Saudi largesse) behind the scenes, and up-front aid directly to the Syrian Military Councils. Al-Khatib read the mood well, returning repeatedly to the ballistic missile attacks on Aleppo as proof of the regime’s unmatched "brutality". And laying out five commonsense goals – humanitarian corridors, unity of the country, negotiations, a brake on Russia's weapons to the regime and help for refugees." A final statement after a meeting of the Friends of Syria group in Rome added: "The regime must immediately stop the indiscriminate bombardment against populated areas which are crimes against humanity and cannot remain unpunished". "The ministers pledged more political and material support to the (Syrian National) coalition as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people and to get more concrete assistance (into) Syria," it said. They gave no detail of what kind of support would be supplied. The statement also deplored "the unabated arms supply to the regime by third countries". Speaking after talks with the Syrian opposition and mainly European and Arab countries supporting them, John Kerry, the US secretary of state, said his country would provide Syrian opposition with $60m in new aid and work with rebel fighters. The US plans for the first time to provide non-lethal aid, including food rations and medical supplies, to opposition fighters battling the Syrian government and it will more than double aid to the civilian opposition, the US secretary of state said at a joint press conference with Syria Opposition leaders. Bashar al-Assad lost his legitimacy long ago, and has lost his power, Kerry said. The meeting came ahead of an important meeting of the Syrian National Coalition on Saturday in Istanbul, Turkey where the umbrella opposition group is to elect a prime minister and government to run parts of Syria seized from Assad's control. The opposition - which initially pledged a boycott - participated in the 11-nation meeting on Thursday after the US and Britain promised specific offers of help. In Paris, as part of a European tour on Wednesday, Kerry made it clear Washington was ready to step up its support for the opposition. "We are examining and developing ways to accelerate the political transition that the Syrian people seek and deserve, and that is what we will be discussing in Rome," Kerry said. Humanitarian crisisMeanwhile, a senior UN official has told the Security Council that the total number of Syrian refugees is likely to pass one million in less than a month. Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said the UN agency as of Tuesday had registered 936,000 Syrians across the Middle East and North Africa, nearly 30 times as many people as April last year. The UN humanitarian chief has said that the growing number of Syrians fleeing the country's conflict is outstripping the international community's ability to help. Valerie Amos told reporters after briefing the Security Council that "this is a crisis that is completely stretching our capacity". She said she was extremely concerned about the rising cost, noting that the UN had received only $200m of the more than $1.5bn pledged for Syria at a January 30 donor's conference in Kuwait. The $1.5bn was supposed to cover humanitarian needs in Syria for six months but that projection from the end of the year is already out of date, she added.

Palestinian prisoners stage hunger strike

Thousands of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody launched a one-day hunger strike Sunday over the death of a 30-year old inmate in what prison authorities said was cardiac arrest, as security forces clashed with stone-throwing demonstrators.

By News Wires (text)

Palestinians on Sunday called for an international investigation of Israel’s treatment of detained Palestinians, after a 30-year-old Palestinian died in custody and a hunger strike by four other inmates sparked a week of West Bank protests.

The death of Arafat Jaradat on Saturday raised new questions about Israel’s Shin Bet security service, which has been accused by rights groups of mistreating Palestinians during interrogation.

Palestinian officials and the detainee’s family alleged Jaradat was mistreated by the Shin Bet, saying he was healthy at the time of his arrest last week.

Israeli officials said Jaradat died of an apparent heart attack and denied he was beaten or subjected to any treatment that could have led to his death.

Several thousand Palestinian prisoners held by Israel observed a one-day fast Sunday to protest Jaradat’s death, which was bound to spur more Palestinian demonstrations in support of prisoners.

In the West Bank’s largest city, Hebron, dozens of Palestinians on Sunday threw stones at Israeli soldiers who fired tear gas and rubber-coated steel pellets. Stone-throwing protests also erupted near Jaradat’s village of Saeer in the West Bank.

Spotlight ·         ISRAEL Pro-settlement extremists to gain from Israel’s right shift

In all, Israel holds close to 4,600 Palestinians on a range of charges, from throwing stones at Israelis to involvement in deadly shooting and bombing attacks. Of the detainees, 159 are being held without charges or trial in so-called administrative detention.

The fate of prisoners is an emotional issue for Palestinians and Israelis.

Virtually every Palestinian family has seen a member imprisoned since

Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem in 1967, and the prisoners are generally seen as heroes resisting Israeli occupation. Many Israelis tend to view Palestinians involved in politically motivated violence as terrorists.

The Shin Bet said Jaradat was arrested last Monday, after residents in his village of Saeer said he was involved in a rock-throwing attack that injured an Israeli.

Jaradat admitted to the charge, as well as to another West Bank rock-throwing incident last year, the Shin Bet said.

The agency said that during interrogation, he was examined several times by a doctor who detected no health problems. On Saturday, he was in his cell and felt unwell after lunch, the agency said. “Rescue services and a doctor were alerted and treated him, they didn’t succeed in saving his life,” the statement said.

A Shin Bet spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with protocol, said Jaradat was not beaten during his interrogation, nor was he subjected to any treatment that could have affected his health.

Jaradat was not on a hunger strike and died of an apparent heart attack, said Sivan Weizman of the Israel Prisons Service.

Israel’s main forensics institute was to perform an autopsy, with a Palestinian physician in attendance.

Jaradat, a father of a 4-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son, worked as a gas station attendant and his wife, Dalal, is pregnant, relatives said.

His family and Palestinian officials said he was healthy at the time of his arrest, and alleged he was mistreated during interrogation.

Issa Karake, a Palestinian official who handles prisoner issues, said he holds Israel responsible for Jaradat’s death, alleging ill-treatment and medical negligence. Karake called for an independent international investigation of Israel’s treatment of Palestinian detainees.

The Israeli human rights group B’Tselem also demanded an investigation, including how Jaradat was questioned.

The agency routinely holds detainees in isolation for extended periods during interrogation, keeping them in cells that are lit around the clock and denying them access to lawyers, said Sarit Michaeli, a spokeswoman for the group.

She said that physical mistreatment of detainees has dropped sharply in recent years, but has not disappeared, according to affidavits by released prisoners. She also said detainees have filed some 700 complaints about mistreatment by Shin Bet agents over the past decade, but that none has led to a criminal investigation.

Jaradat’s death comes at a time of daily Palestinian demonstrations in support of prisoners, especially four hunger strikers.

The health of one of the hunger strikers has deteriorated.

In recent days, protests often turned into violent clashes with soldiers.

Defense officials said Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz convened top military officials Saturday night to discuss escalating tensions in the West Bank.

Iran nuclear talks end without breakthrough

Six world powers conclude talks on Tehran's nuclear programme in Almaty, but agree to meet in Istanbul next month. Last Modified: 27 Feb 2013 23:31

World powers and Iran have ended their two-day meeting on the country's nuclear programme in the Kazakh city of Almaty without breakthrough, according to a Western official. Saeed Jalili, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, said on Wednesday all sides agreed to meet in the same city on April 5-6 after first gathering their nuclear experts for consultations in Istanbul, Turkey, in March. The six powers - France, Germany, the US, China Russia and Britain - offered at the talks to lift some sanctions if Iran scaled back nuclear activity that the West fears could be used to build a bomb. Iran, which denies seeking nuclear weapons, did not agree to do so and the sides did not appear any closer to an agreement to resolve a decade-old dispute that could lead to another war in the Middle East if diplomacy fails. In his first remarks on the issue, Binyamin Netanyahu, Israeli prime minister, called for "military sanctions" on the Islamic Republic. "I believe it is incumbent upon the international community to intensify the sanctions and clarify that if Iran continues its programme, there will be military sanctions,"  he said on Wednesday. "I don't think there are any other means that will make Iran heed the international community's demands." 'Closer to our viewpoint' Iran said the talks in Almaty were a positive step in which the six powers tried to "get closer to our viewpoint". The proposals had been discussed in various forms at three previous meetings in the past year. "What we witnessed during the past eight months, they studied and reviewed what we offered and tabled in Moscow," Jalili told Al Jazeera. "While we listened, their response was more realistic to what we had before, and it was closer to the expectation of the Islamic Republic of Iran. "Therefore, to it's own entity we considered it a positive step." Jalili said it was agreed to convene an expert level meeting in Istanbul on March 18, which would be followed by the 5+1 meeting with Iran on April 5-6 in Almaty. The talks have brought together Iran and five permanent members of the UN Security Council as well as Germany - known as P5+1. The first day of gruelling negotiations in a luxury Almaty hotel concluded on Tuesday. Catherine Ashton, European Union foreign policy chief who led the talks on behalf of the six powers, said: "I hope the Iranian side is looking positively on the proposal we put forward." "We have to see what happens next." Production plant 'activated' As the talks were under way in Almaty, Iran reportedly activated a heavy water production plant in Arak. Heavy water is needed to operate a nuclear reactor that can produce plutonium, which could then be used to make a bomb. On the table is an offer for the five Security Council members and Germany to ease sanctions on Iran's gold and precious metals trade while simultaneously lifting some restrictions on the Islamic republic's banking operations. The measures are meant to introduce goodwill in Tehran while encouraging it to stop enriching uranium to 20 percent - a level seen as being within striking distance of military capabilities. The powers also want Iran to shut the Fordo plant where such high-grade material is produced and to ship out the existing stock it does not need for established medical purposes. Iran counters that its rights to enrich uranium - entrusted to every nation but stripped from Iran due to its failure to co-operate with nuclear inspectors - must be respected before negotiations can proceed any further. Tehran has also stipulated that it would only consider giving up enrichment to 20 per cent if all forms of sanctions against it were lifted - a condition Washington rejects. John Kerry, the US secretary of state, countered on a visit to Berlin on Tuesday that he hoped "Iran itself will make its choice to move down the path of a diplomatic solution".

Middle East

Rome summit pledges help to Syrian opposition

US announces $60m aid for Syrian opposition as Friends of Syria group condemns countries backing Bashar al-Assad.

Last Modified: 28 Feb 2013 23:38

Western and Arab governments have pledged more political and material support for the civilian Syrian opposition and called for an immediate halt to arms supplies to the Assad government.

A final statement after a meeting of the Friends of Syria group in Rome added: "The regime must immediately stop the indiscriminate bombardment against populated areas which are crimes against humanity and cannot remain unpunished".

"The ministers pledged more political and material support to the (Syrian National) coalition as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people and to get more concrete assistance (into) Syria," it said.

They gave no detail of what kind of support would be supplied.

The statement also deplored "the unabated arms supply to the regime by third countries".

Speaking after talks with the Syrian opposition and mainly European and Arab countries supporting them, John Kerry, the US secretary of state, said his country would provide Syrian opposition with $60m in new aid and work with rebel fighters.

The US plans for the first time to provide non-lethal aid, including food rations and medical supplies, to opposition fighters battling the Syrian government and it will more than double aid to the civilian opposition, the US secretary of state said at a joint press conference with Syria Opposition leaders.

Bashar al-Assad lost his legitimacy long ago, and has lost his power, Kerry said.

The meeting came ahead of an important meeting of the Syrian National Coalition on Saturday in Istanbul, Turkey where the umbrella opposition group is to elect a prime minister and government to run parts of Syria seized from Assad's control.

The opposition - which initially pledged a boycott - participated in the 11-nation meeting on Thursday after the US and Britain promised specific offers of help.

In Paris, as part of a European tour on Wednesday, Kerry made it clear Washington was ready to step up its support for the opposition.

"We are examining and developing ways to accelerate the political transition that the Syrian people seek and deserve, and that is what we will be discussing in Rome," Kerry said.

Humanitarian crisis
Meanwhile, a senior UN official has told the Security Council that the total number of Syrian refugees is likely to pass one million in less than a month.

Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said the UN agency as of Tuesday had registered 936,000 Syrians across the Middle East and North Africa, nearly 30 times as many people as April last year.

The UN humanitarian chief has said that the growing number of Syrians fleeing the country's conflict is outstripping the international community's ability to help.

Valerie Amos told reporters after briefing the Security Council that "this is a crisis that is completely stretching our capacity".

She said she was extremely concerned about the rising cost, noting that the UN had received only $200m of the more than $1.5bn pledged for Syria at a January 30 donor's conference in Kuwait.

The $1.5bn was supposed to cover humanitarian needs in Syria for six months but that projection from the end of the year is already out of date, she added.