Modern Sinbad

Wednesday, 23 February 2011

Gruesome footage "proves" Libya using heavy arms

Last Update: Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:43 am (KSA) 07:43 am (GMT)

A Palestinian demonstrator holds up a placard during a protest in support of the Libyan people

LONDON/DUBAI/TRIPOLI (AlArabiya, Agencies)

Britain's Times newspaper said Wednesday it had footage of severely wounded and dead protesters in a Libyan hospital which proved that heavy weapons were being used to crush the uprising, as the Libyan interior minister and some army units announced their siding with the Libyan revolt.

Shocking footage of corpses with bodies blasted off and patients with almost completely severed torsos provided "incontrovertible evidence" that heavy artillery was used, Martin Fletcher, the newspaper's associate editor said.

"It's not entirely clear how these men were killed, it could have been by fighter jets, it could have been by helicopter gunships, it could have been by mortar, it could have been by heavy machine guns," Fletcher said.

"One thing is abundantly clear, they were not killed by tear gas or by batons or by methods of suppressing peaceful protests that are generally considered the outer limits of what is acceptable," he added.

The images were taken at a hospital in Benghazi, the eastern Libyan city which was taken over by anti-regime groups on Monday after a bloody battle.

Interior minister joins revolt

Libyan Interior Minister Maj. Gen. Abdul Fattah Yunnes

Libyan Interior Minister, meanwhile, told Al Arabiya that he has joined the popular revolution in his country, underscoring that he was a soldier in Libya's service.

In a phone call with Al Arabiya, Maj. Gen. Abdul Fattah Yunnes said that he had given his orders to his forces not to direct any weapon towards a Libyan. He denied being responsible for the massacres committed against the Libyans in recent days.

Yunnes said that one of Gaddafi's aids had shot at Gaddafi, while he was giving a speech at a rally recently, but he mistakenly injured another person. Yunnes added that the Libyan tribes are supporting the revolt and that protesters were in control of Benghazi. He added that all people have weapons now.

The Libyan official said that Gaddafi's speech was disappointing. He suggested that Gaddafi would not leave the country, but most probably he would commit suicide. "The Gaddafi regime is over," Yunnes told Al Arabiya.

Veteran strongman Moammar Gaddafi Tuesday vowed to crush the revolt and warned he would purge the North African country "house by house" and "inch by inch" if protests continued.

Ibrahim Dabbashi, the Libyan deputy ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters told reporters Tuesday that since Gaddafi's defiant speech, attacks on civilians had started in western Libya.

He named Gharyan, Zuwarah and other cities that he said were under attack by army units loyal to Gaddafi. Dabbashi did not give the source of his information or say what kind of attacks were being staged.

"They are attacking all the people in cities in western Libya," he said.

"Certainly the people have no arms. Now I think genocide started now in Libya," he added before being escorted away by U.N. security guards.

Al-Jabal al-Akhdar military unit

Al-Jabal al-Akhdar military unit joined the revolt

Al-Jabal al-Akhdar Military Unit leaders, meanwhile, announced their siding with the revolt in a statement released on the social network Facebook on Tuesday.

"We (all the officers and soldiers) in al-Jabal al-Akhdar and its suburbs announce that we have joined the popular revolution," the statement said.

The statement added that the military unit will work to preserve security and protect the public and private establishments. It called on all the armed forces to join them.

On Tuesday, the first official figures released by Gaddafi's regime since unrest broke out a week ago put the number of people killed at 300 people -- 189 civilians and 111 soldiers.

The largest number of fatalities were said to have been in second city Benghazi, which is located in the east of the country and is where most of the violence has occurred, an interior ministry spokesman said.

In Benghazi, 104 civilians and 10 soldiers were killed.

Earlier, figures provided at the venue of a press conference that was slated to be given by Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, said 300 people had died, but put the military casualty figure at only 58.

Although government restrictions have complicated the task of compiling a tally, Human Rights Watch has said 233 had been killed in the uprising while the International Federation for Human Rights put the toll at between 300 and 400.

"Calm restored"

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi

Calm "has been restored in most of the large cities" in Libya, the president of the country's parliament said on Tuesday night, adding that "security forces and the army have re-established their positions."

Mohamed Zwei, president of the General People's Congress, also told a press conference that a commission of enquiry had been set up to investigate the eight-day revolt against veteran Libyan leader Gaddafi.

At the same time, he said "current conditions do not permit holding a meeting of parliament to discuss the reforms" announced earlier this week by Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam.

Meanwhile, Jebril el-Kadiki, deputy air force chief of staff, said that arms and ammunitions depots had been bombed in Rajma, near the eastern city of al-Baida; in Ajdabia and al-Gueriet in the south and near Zenten and Mezda in the southwest.

Kadiki said all of the facilities were located in desert areas, away from any inhabitation.

On Monday, Saif al-Islam said arms depots had been attacked in remote areas, denying reports that the armed forces had bombed the capital Tripoli and second city Benghazi.

(Compiled and translated by Abeer Tayel)

Asia plans mass rescue of citizens from Libya

23 February 2011 - 09H02

A Libyan protestor rallies against Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Asian nations on Wednesday prepared evacuation plans for more than 100,000 migrant workers trapped in Libya, many of them low-paid labourers toiling on construction sites.

People wait for their flights out Libya in a hotel lobby at the airport in Tripoli. Arrangements to use passenger ships, planes and land routes to Egypt were being considered by governments as they try to secure their citizens' safety despite poor communication links and growing violence.

Foreign workers in Libya gather at the Ras Jdir border post, near the Tunisian city of Ben Guerdane after they fled Libya. The majority of expatriates caught up in the unrest are contract workers, with 60,000 Bangladeshis, 30,000 Filipinos, 23,000 Thais and 18,000 Indians among those living under the tottering regime of Moamer Kadhafi.

Photo taken from a taxi on the way to the airport on February 21, 2011 in Tripoli. China is readying plans to rescue about 30,000 citizens, many of them engineers involved in investment projects in the oil, rail and telecoms sectors, while Hanoi is monitoring conditions for 10,000 Vietnamese.

AFP - Asian nations on Wednesday prepared evacuation plans for more than 100,000 migrant workers trapped in Libya, many of them low-paid labourers toiling on construction sites.

Arrangements to use passenger ships, planes and land routes to Egypt were being considered by governments as they try to secure their citizens' safety despite poor communication links and growing violence.

The majority of expatriates caught up in the unrest are contract workers, with 60,000 Bangladeshis, 30,000 Filipinos, 23,000 Thais and 18,000 Indians among those living under the tottering regime of Moamer Kadhafi.

China is readying plans to rescue about 30,000 citizens, many of them engineers involved in investment projects in the oil, rail and telecoms sectors, while Hanoi is monitoring conditions for 10,000 Vietnamese.

"This is going to be quite a mammoth operation," India's foreign secretary Nirupama Rao told reporters in New Delhi. "We will have to not only put in place arrangements for aircraft or ships, but also obtain permission from Libyan authorities for our aircraft to land there."

Of the 18,000 Indians in Libya, about 3,000 are reported to be in the violence-hit city of Benghazi working in automobile companies and in hospitals.

Rao said an Indian passenger ship that could carry 1,000 people was in the Red Sea and directions had been given for it to stay in the area.

China will send a plane, ships and fishing vessels to Libya to help evacuate its nationals, the government and state media said Wednesday.

An Air China jet was to leave Beijing for Athens, as the Chinese government awaits permission to land in the north African country, where hundreds have been killed in an uprising against Kadhafi.

The State Council, or cabinet, "decided to immediately deploy chartered civil aircraft, COSCO cargo ships in nearby waters, and Chinese fishing vessels carrying needed living and medical supplies", the foreign ministry said.

China will also look to hire "large-scale passenger cruise ships and buses" to help in the evacuation effort, it added.

The official Xinhua news agency reported that 83 Chinese had crossed the border into Egypt late Tuesday.

Bangladesh, an impoverished country that relies on income sent home from workers employed abroad, said it was looking at evacuation options.

"Our primary concern is the safety and security of the up to 60,000 Bangladeshi workers who are in Libya," foreign secretary Mijarul Quayes told reporters in Dhaka.

"Evacuation is an option. The Bangladesh government has put this option on the table. We will do everything we can, whatever it takes, to ensure the safety and security of our workers, but the situation is very, very volatile."

"If possible, we will repatriate all of our workers to Bangladesh."

There are more than 23,000 Thai contract workers, mostly construction labourers, in locations including Tripoli, Benghazi, Sirte and Brak, officials said.

The Thai embassy in Tripoli has contacted employers and advised Thais to be ready for evacuation, possibly using other countries' ships to ferry them to Malta, the labour ministry in Bangkok said.

"We plan to use ships to evacuate Thai workers from Libya, but as of now nothing could be done as the situation is extremely dangerous," said ministry spokesman Sutham Nateetong.

Sri Lanka said it had contacted the International Organisation on Migration (IOM) to seek help for at least 1,200 citizens.

"We don't have aircraft to bring them back, so we asked the IOM," Sri Lanka's deputy external affairs minister Neomal Perera said. "We are also talking with ambassadors from friendly countries to get their assistance."

Nepalese officials in Kathmandu said they were looking at overland escape plans for about 3,000 citizens.

"We have requested the Egyptian authorities to allow entry of Nepalese. Our embassy in Cairo is working on it," said foreign ministry spokesman Harish Chandra Ghimire.

Scores of Libyans have stormed four South Korean-run construction sites, officials said Wednesday, the latest in a series of such attacks as civil unrest spreads in the North African nation.

Looters stole heavy machinery and vehicles or damaged property but no one was hurt, officials from the land and foreign ministries said.

South Korea has urged all citizens without urgent business to leave the country. "We are considering arranging emergency flights or ships to evacuate people," one official in charge of the issue told AFP.

Renewed call for 'Jasmine rallies' in China

23 February 2011 - 09H21

Police keep watch in Beijing after protesters gathered on February 20, 2011. An online appeal has urged people in 13 Chinese cities to rally every Sunday to press for government transparency and free expression, following a call last week for Middle East-style protests.

Police keep watch in Beijing after protesters gathered on February 20, 2011. In an apparent attempt to make a statement without falling foul of China's security forces, protesters have been urged not to take any overt action but encouraged to merely show up at what the letter called "strolling" protests.

Police keep watch in Beijing after protesters gathered on February 20. The online appeal appeared to set the stage for a protracted but low-pressure bid to push China's ruling Communist Party for change, using the heavily policed Internet and word-of-mouth to get the message out.

AFP - An online campaign has urged people in 13 Chinese cities to rally every Sunday to press for government transparency and free expression, following a call last week for Middle East-style protests.

The new call, posted this week on the overseas-based website Boxun.com, appeared to be from the same group behind a mysterious web campaign for protests last Sunday echoing those rocking the Arab world.

That earlier call to action sparked a heavy police turnout at designated protest sites in Beijing and other cities. They appeared lightly attended, however, and free of major incident.

"What we need to do now is to put pressure on the Chinese ruling (Communist) party," said the renewed appeal.

"If the party does not conscientiously fight corruption and accept the supervision of the people, then will it please exit the stage of history."

Apparently attempting to make a statement without falling foul of China's security forces, participants were urged not to take any overt action but encouraged to merely show up for the 2:00 pm "strolling" protests.

"We invite every participant to stroll, watch, or even just pretend to pass by. As long as you are present, the authoritarian government will be shaking with fear," it said.

China's government has indicated growing unease over the wave of Middle East unrest, heavily censoring or blocking media reports and online discussion of the upheaval, which has toppled presidents in Tunisia and Egypt.

The call for weekly "Jasmine rallies" -- a reference to Tunisia's "Jasmine revolution" -- was labelled as an "open letter" to China's rubber-stamp parliament.

The National People's Congress opens its annual session March 5.

The online appeal appeared to set the stage for a protracted but low-pressure bid to push China's ruling Communist Party for change, using the heavily policed Internet and word-of-mouth to get the message out.

The letter echoed a number of the Arab grievances, including anger over government corruption, a lack of transparency and official accountability, and the stifling of freedom of expression.

"If the government is not sincere about solving the problems, but only wants to censor the Internet and block information to suppress the protests, the protests will only get stronger," it said.

Police turned out in force at the gathering site in central Beijing on Sunday, but there were no overt demonstrations.

At least two people were seen being taken away by police, one for cursing at authorities and another who shouted: "I want food to eat!"

No mention of the new protest call could immediately be seen circulating on China-based websites or blogs.

Other cities covered under the new call range from Harbin in the far northeast to Guangzhou in the south.

Chinese authorities have so far detained two people for spreading the earlier protest appeal on the Internet, while another was in custody after making public statements at a demonstration site in Harbin, the Hong Kong-based Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy said.

Human rights campaigners say police have taken away at least 100 activists or rights lawyers amid official unease after the Middle East problems and as authorities tighten security for the parliament session.

US-based Human Rights Watch on Tuesday criticised the crackdown and in particular the disappearance of three noted Beijing-based rights lawyers -- Teng Biao, Tang Jitian, and Jiang Tianyong.

"The authorities have failed to give any reason or formal notification to their relatives, and all three are believed to be at risk of ill-treatment and torture," it said in a statement.

Mass rally against inflation in Indian capital

23 February 2011 - 08H46

A stall owner prepares vegetables for sale at a market in New Delhi. Tens of thousands of people have gathered in the Indian capital to protest against inflation, complaining that rising prices are increasing hardship for the country's many poor.

An Indian woman carries vegetables to a market in Hyderabad. The country's Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, has described inflation as a "serious" threat to India's growth.

AFP - Tens of thousands of people gathered in the Indian capital on Wednesday to protest against inflation, complaining that rising prices were increasing hardship for the country's many poor.

The mostly working-class demonstrators, many carrying Communist flags and shouting slogans against inflation and corruption, converged on the centre of New Delhi for the rally, with surrounding roads closed to traffic.

The rally was organised by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), which joined forces with other unions to pressure the government over inflation before the unveiling of a new annual budget on Monday.

"Workers from 19 states, thousands of women among them, are reaching Delhi and will march to parliament to seek their rightful share in the country's so-called 'robust growth story'," said a CITU statement.

The CITU said it expected 800,000 to one million people, though this figure could not be independently verified. Police were unable to estimate the number of demonstrators.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described inflation as a "serious" threat to India's growth, and the government has been racing to boost vegetable and other supplies to bring down soaring food prices.

The most recent data show annual food inflation at 11.05 percent, down from its highs of nearly 20 percent, while headline inflation as measured by the wholesale price index is at 8.23 percent.

Police spokesman Rajan Bhagat told AFP that nearly 2,000 policemen had been deployed in central Delhi to keep order during the demonstration.

"We have instructed the police to ensure that the crowd does not vandalise government buildings or monuments in central Delhi," he said.

One protester, Jagdeesh Thakur, president of a secondary school teachers' association in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, said the left-leaning government was "on the wrong path".

"We need to control inflation. Stop unemployment and stop privatisations," he told AFP. "The government is on the wrong path. It has forgotten the poor. It is only interested in helping the rich."

Rishi Pal, a 52-year-old member of a farmers' union from the northwestern state of Punjab, said: "We need the government to control prices. Poor people can't feed their families."

As well as surging inflation, a host of corruption scandals ranging from the Delhi Commonwealth Games last October to the sale of telecom licences has sapped the energy of Singh's administration and led to months of bad publicity.

On Tuesday, Singh agreed to set up a cross-party investigation into the licence sales in 2008 that has led to a police investigation and the arrest of his former telecom minister, A. Raja.

Opposition parties wrecked the last session of parliament in 2010 by holding protests every day demanding an inquiry into the cut-price sales, which could have cost the country up to $40 billion in lost revenue.

The government, a coalition led by Singh's Congress party, is expected to pass its budget for the next fiscal year on Monday next week.