Idlib, Syria
Army on the move: The army continued its brutal crackdown in Syria this week. Having conquered the rebel stronghold of Homs, the Syrian army took over the rebel base in Idlib. Refugees from both cities poured into Turkey and Lebanon, fleeing tanks and rocket fire. Human Rights Watch said the army had begun laying land mines along the border of both countries, and Amnesty International reported systematic use of torture. The army also launched a raid on the southern city of Daraa, symbolically important as the place where the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began a year ago after children who had drawn anti-government graffiti were killed. The international community remained stymied: Former U.N. leader Kofi Annan met with Assad but failed to win an agreement, while Russia blocked action by the U.N. Security Council.
Gaza
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Cross-border clashes: Israel’s killing of a top militant leader touched off the worst fighting between Israel and Gaza in months. In a targeted airstrike, Israeli forces killed the leader of the Popular Resistance Committees, a Palestinian militant group Israel said was planning to infiltrate the country through Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Militants in Gaza then launched some 200 rockets into Israel, and Israeli forces pounded Gaza with airstrikes. At least 26 Palestinians were killed; no Israeli deaths were reported. Hamas, which governs Gaza, was not involved in the fighting, which centered on a rival group, Islamic Jihad. The clashes stopped after Egypt brokered a truce this week. “I don’t know how long it will last,” said Israeli Maj. Gen. Tal Russo. “Those who think there is a switch that turns the rocket fire from Gaza on and off are mistaken.”
Baghdad
‘Emo’ youths murdered: Shiite death squads have killed more than a dozen young Iraqis over the past month for wearing Western-style emo clothes. The Interior Ministry singled out the emo subculture—made up of youths who listen to Western emo music and wear tight jeans and long hair—last month, branding it “devil worshiping” and calling on the “moral police” to stamp it out. Since then, at least 14 emo teenagers have been stoned to death, and at least six others, including two girls, were beaten. Militants in the Shiite neighborhood of Bayaa circulated leaflets naming more youths who would be killed if they didn’t change their style. “We strongly warn you, to all the obscene males and females, if you will not leave this filthy work within four days the punishment of God will descend upon you at the hand of the Mujahideen,” the leaflets said. Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, a revered Shiite sheikh, condemned the killings.
Islamabad, Pakistan
No more drones: Pakistan will no longer allow U.S. drones in its airspace, Pakistani officials told the White House this week. The U.S. military has used unmanned drones both to attack militants and to collect intelligence on al Qaida and the Pakistani Taliban. Many of the attacks, though, have killed civilians, and the drone program is widely hated in Pakistan. Officials said they would only consider allowing drone strikes if the U.S. agreed to share its intelligence and coordinate the strikes ahead of time with the Pakistani military. The U.S. has resisted giving information to Pakistan in advance because of fears—justified by past experience—that some elements in Pakistan’s security forces will warn the targets of impending strikes.
Kiribati
Moving to Fiji: With rising sea levels threatening to swamp this island nation, the government announced plans to move the entire population of 100,000 to Fiji. President Anote Tong said his cabinet had endorsed a plan to buy nearly 6,000 fertile acres on Fiji’s main island, Viti Levu. “This is the last resort, there’s no way out of this one,” Tong said. “Our people will have to move, as the tides have reached our homes and villages.” Some of Kiribati’s 32 flat coral atolls are already under water, and several villages have been abandoned. Kiribati, one of the world’s poorest countries, is dependent on international assistance.
