Russia considers Ukraine’s Crimea signed, sealed, delivered

March 18, 2014

Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared Crimea reunited with Russia. He and Crimean leaders have signed a treaty of accession, which they consider effective immediately. Putin stressed the peninsula on Ukraine’s Black Sea coast was historically special for Russia. He said Russia does not intend to absorb other parts of Ukraine. He highlighted Crimea’s Tatar historic Muslim minority, saying they had come back to their territory, and said all legislative and political decisions had to be taken to “bring to fruition the rehabilitation of the Tatars of Crimea.” The three-quarter-of-an-hour speech to an audience including members of both houses of parliament was delivered in St. George’s Hall in Moscow’s Grand Kremlin Palace. Framed with patriotic fervor, it doled out praise and rebuke. “Where Ukraine is concerned, our Western partners crossed a red line,” Putin said. “They behaved cruelly, without responsibility, without professionalism.”

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Israeli official: Israel may release Palestinian prisoners to help peace talks

March 18, 2014

Israel would consider releasing a fourth group of Palestinian prisoners to press the Palestinian Authority if the settlement negotiations come to a standstill; Israel’s public radio Kol Israel Reshet Bet reported a senior official saying. The official said: “If the settlement talks with the Palestinians came to a standstill; Israel will reconsider liberating more Palestinian prisoners. The interest of all parties requires extending the negotiations for another year; even without the American framework agreement drafted by US Secretary of State John Kerry.” However he pointed out that “the issue of recognising Israel as a Jewish state is essential. If the US-drafted agreement includes establishing the future Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with land swaps, why not include a clause on recognising Israel’s Jewishness?” Meanwhile, a US source said that Kerry did not give Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas a formal framework document, pointing out that Kerry and his team will continue contacting all relevant parties in the coming days to develop a framework agreement which allows the continuation of the settlement process.

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Jailed Egyptian children moved to ‘torture camp’

March 17, 2014

Egyptian security forces transferred 44 jailed children, out of 165, from Alexandria to a punitive detention centre in Cairo known by inmates as “the torture camp” in Tora. The children, all school students aged between 12-15, have been forcibly deported from the Kom Al-Deka detention centre in Alexandria to the Ekabia (Punitive) center in Tora prison. The punitive centre has been dubbed “the torture camp”, due the prevalence of physical and psychological torture usually suffered by its underage inmates. Police forces attacked the families of children with tear gas and birdshots when they protested in front of the Alexandria detention centre, appealing to prison authorities not to transport their children to the dreadful correctional centre. Police also arrested those who attempted to film the attack.

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Syria Told to Suspend Diplomatic Activities in U.S.

March 18, 2014

WASHINGTON — The United States on Tuesday formally notified the Syrian government that it must suspend operations at its embassy here and at its two consulates in Michigan and Texas, the State Department said. The move stops short of a formal break of relations, but it bars Syria envoys here from carrying out diplomatic and consular duties. “Syrian diplomats at the embassy and Syrian honorary consulates are no longer permitted to perform diplomatic or consular functions and those who are not U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents must depart the United States,” said a statement by Daniel Rubinstein, who was named on Monday as the new American envoy for Syria. The move comes on the third anniversary of the conflict in Syria that has killed an estimated 140,000 people. Mr. Rubinstein said in his statement that the United States would maintain diplomatic relations with Syria.

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