On Friday, Israel killed at least 13 people, including two children, in the Damascus countryside town of Beit Jinn.
The latest air raids came after locals tried to repel an Israeli military incursion into Beit Jinn, leading to clashes.
Recommended Stories
list of 3 itemsend of list
Israel claimed it was going after members of the Jamaa al-Islamiya, Lebanon’s branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.
However, rubbishing the Israeli claim, the group said it was not active outside Lebanon.
Here’s everything you need to know about the attack in Beit Jinn and the context behind it.
What happened?
The Israeli army’s 55th Reserve Brigade raided Beit Jinn in the early hours of Friday morning, ostensibly to take three Syrians who live there, claiming they were members of Jamaa al-Islamiya and that they posed a “danger to Israel”.
However, the incursion did not go to plan. Locals resisted, and six Israeli soldiers were wounded in the resulting clashes, three of them seriously, according to the Israeli army.
Israel then sent in its warplanes.
“We were asleep when we were woken up at three in the morning by gunfire,” Iyad Daher, a wounded resident, told the AFP news agency from al-Mouwasat Hospital in Damascus.
“We went outside to see what was happening and saw the Israeli army in the village, soldiers and tanks,” Daher said. “Then they withdrew, the air force came – and the shells started falling.”
This was the deadliest of Israel’s more than 1,000 strikes on Syria since the fall of the Assad regime
Why were Israeli forces in Syria?
This was not the first time Israel raided Syrian territory.
Israeli officials and government-aligned media say Israel can no longer respect its enemies’ borders or allow “hostile” groups along its borders after the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, and Israel has sought to use force in other countries to create buffer zones around itself, in the Gaza Strip, Syria and Lebanon.
Since the fall of the Assad regime last December, Israel has launched frequent air raids across Syria and ground incursions in its south. It set up numerous checkpoints in Syria and detained and disappeared Syrian citizens from Syrian territory, holding them illegally in Israel.
It invaded the buffer zone that separated the two countries since they signed the 1974 disengagement agreement, setting up outposts around Jabal al-Sheikh (Mount Hermon in English).
The new Syrian government, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, said it would abide by the 1974 agreement.
Israel occupied the Syrian Golan Heights in 1967. A demilitarised zone was later established, but when President Bashar al-Assad was ousted, and his army was in shambles, Israel invaded to take outposts on Syrian-controlled land.
What did the Syrian government say?
That the attack is a war crime.
The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement, condemning “the criminal attack carried out by an Israeli occupation army patrol in Beit Jinn. The occupation forces’ targeting of the town of Beit Jinn with brutal and deliberate shelling, following their failed incursion, constitutes a full-fledged war crime.”
What is Israel claiming?
Israel’s public broadcaster said the operation was an “arrest raid” targeting Jamaa al-Islamiya members.
An Israeli army spokesperson said three people linked to the group were “arrested”.
Israel claims the group is operating in southern Syria to “recruit terrorists” and plays a role in what it calls the “northern front” – Israel’s northern border with Lebanon.
Al Jazeera’s Osama Bin Javaid reported from Syria that Israel has yet to offer any proof of the claim that the people it was after were involved with the group.
What is Jamaa al-Islamiya?
The group is the Lebanese branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.
It was founded in 1956 and has a stable presence in Lebanon, though it has never been as popular as some of its regional counterparts.
It has one member of parliament and was historically aligned with the Future Movement, founded by former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
However, the group moved closer to Iran and Hezbollah politically in recent years. Its armed wing, the Fajr Forces, took part in some operations against Israel in 2023-24.
After Israel’s claims that it was involved in southern Syria, the group released a statement on Friday stating that it was “surprised” Israeli media had involved it in what happened in Beit Jinn.
Denouncing the attack, it said it conducts “no activities outside Lebanon”.
The group added that it has abided by and committed to the ceasefire agreement from November 2024 between Lebanon and Israel.
Has Israel claimed it was attacking this group before?
Yes.
In March 2024, Israel attacked al-Habbariyeh in southern Lebanon, killing seven emergency relief volunteers.
It claimed the attack targeted a member of the group, calling him a “significant terrorist”.
However, the alleged target was never named, the director of the Lebanese Emergency and Relief Corps’ Ambulance Association told Al Jazeera.
Source link
#Israel #attacks #Syria #happened #Israel #claim
![Russian Memorial human rights NGO labeled ‘extremist’Russia’s Supreme Court announced on Telegram on April 9 that the activities of human rights organization Memorial were now banned throughout the country. This came after a closed-door hearing that was treated as “top secret.” Media representatives and diplomats from Germany, Sweden, the Czech Republic and France were only allowed to attend the announcement of the ruling, which sparked strong reactions internationally.
The Nobel Committee, which awarded the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize to Memorial, condemned the court’s decision. The European Union delegation to Russia described the ruling as a “politically motivated blow to civil society in Russia.” The diplomats pointed out that the Russian state itself had “not only officially recognized Memorial’s merits but also provided direct support, and members of the organization served on the Human Rights Council for many years.”The Supreme Court hearing took place behind closed doorsImage: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Photo/picture alliance
Russian Supreme Court keeps wording deliberately vague
Lawyers for Memorial pointed out that the Supreme Court had classified the “International Public Movement Memorial” as “extremist,” but they pointed out that no organization of this name existed and had not been registered either in Russia or elsewhere.
They told DW that the wording had probably been kept deliberately vague to create a legal basis for potential repression against any Memorial structures, as well as their members and supporters. “The Justice Ministry’s action itself remained secret, and the organization’s representatives were barred from attending the hearing,” Sergei Davidis, the head of Memorial’s political prisoners support program, told DW.
He also stressed that in light of growing public dissatisfaction with the Russian government, the state was attempting to eliminate independent and reputable sources of information that could foster solidarity and networking in Russian society.
Memorial documents Soviet repression and the Gulag system
The international society Memorial was founded in 1987 and went on to become the leading independent organization dedicated to documenting Soviet-era repression in Russia. Its archives contain tens of thousands of documents about the victims of Soviet repression, including thousands of memoirs, hundreds of personal collections, as well as a wealth of material from researchers on the history of the gulags, the system of labor camps that was a major instrument of political repression in the Soviet era, and other human rights violations.
According to the independent online media outlet Mediazona, the authorities could now lay claim to the archive as the “property of an extremist organization.” In 2023, the head of the Perm NGO Center of Historical Memory, Aleksandr Chernyshov, was arrested after allegedly trying to smuggle archival documents from Russia to Germany.
The persecution of the Russian branch of Memorial began in 2014 when it was placed on a list of “foreign agents” by the Russian Justice Ministry. This status was later extended to the organization’s international branch, which required all publications and reports to be labeled accordingly. In case of non-compliance, there were fines and restrictions on Memorial’s activities.
In 2021, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of Memorial International for “repeated” and “gross” violations of Russia’s foreign agent laws. Memorial was also accused of depicting a false image of the Soviet Union.
Pressure continued to mount in March 2023, when the homes and offices of nine Memorial staff members, including Oleg Orlov and Yan Rachinsky, were subjected to searches as part of a targeted campaign against independent human rights organizations. The same year, Orlov was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for “discrediting” the army. He was released with other political prisoners as part of a prisoner exchange in August 2024 and has since been living in Germany.
Memorial will continue its human rights activities
Since this year’s ruling on April 9, Memorial has announced that it will have to suspend all activities in Russia but will continue its activities abroad. It has blocked the sharing and commenting of posts on social media. All supporters in Russia have been urged to follow the safety guidelines published on Memorial’s website.
Although the court has used the term “international social movement” to describe Memorial and this does not actually exist as such, all people, associations and organizations associated with the NGO could now be at risk. Memorial has called on people in Russia to not make any donations, to remove any logos and links on social media, and to delete any compromising content on all digital devices. It warned that people could draw attention from law enforcement agencies even by subscribing to Memorial channels.
It also said that though the risks outside Russia were not as high, people could still be subject to persecution abroad. Nonetheless, it said it would continue its work to protect human rights and preserve historical memory. Politzek — voices that defy the KremlinTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Nobel Committee: ‘Affront to fundamental values of human dignity’
Earlier this week, the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Jorgen Watne Frydnes said that to designate Memorial as “extremist” was “an affront to the fundamental values of human dignity and freedom of expression.”
On his Telegram channel, the Russian political scientist Aleksandr Kynev wrote that the persecution of Memorial marked a new level of repression in Russia. He added that the new status of the organization would allow the authorities to target even ordinary employees.
Davidis pointed out that Memorial did not have a unified, centralized structure, but constituted a broad network of different groups. He said that people continued to be interested in political repression, both in the past and today. He said that the work of human rights activists had to continue despite the more difficult and risky circumstances.
Russian government strategy to suppress memory of Soviet crimes
According to Irina Sherbakova, a co-founding member of Memorial, the latest move against the organization is part of the Russian government’s overall strategy. She explained that it was in keeping with the closure of the Moscow-based Gulag History Museum in 2024, the systematic removal of commemorative plaques installed by the Last Address memorial project, the restrictions on access to official archives and the amendment to the official concept for commemorating victims of political repression, from which the mention of mass repression and later mass rehabilitation has been removed.Irina Sherbakova co-founded Memorial. She now lives in GermanyImage: dts-Agentur/picture alliance
Sherbakova said that these measures were all aimed at controlling the collective memory of Soviet repression and human rights work today: “This is part of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s ideology, which is becoming increasingly ultranationalist.”
Human rights activist Anna Karetnikova agreed, and pointed out that the initiative to persecute Memorial went back to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), which succeeded the Soviet secret service, the KGB, itself preceded by the NKVD. She said that the FSB viewed Memorial’s efforts to preserve the memory of Soviet repression and support of political prisoners today as a thorn in its side. She said that Memorial’s new status would lay the path for more criminal proceedings and increase pressure on civil society.
This article was originally published in Russian.
What’s really behind ‘foreign agent’ laws? To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
#Russian #Memorial #human #rights #NGO #labeled #extremist](https://i1.wp.com/static.dw.com/image/76090686_6.jpg?ssl=1 "Russian Memorial human rights NGO labeled ‘extremist’Russia’s Supreme Court announced on Telegram on April 9 that the activities of human rights organization Memorial were now banned throughout the country. This came after a closed-door hearing that was treated as “top secret.” Media representatives and diplomats from Germany, Sweden, the Czech Republic and France were only allowed to attend the announcement of the ruling, which sparked strong reactions internationally.
The Nobel Committee, which awarded the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize to Memorial, condemned the court’s decision. The European Union delegation to Russia described the ruling as a “politically motivated blow to civil society in Russia.” The diplomats pointed out that the Russian state itself had “not only officially recognized Memorial’s merits but also provided direct support, and members of the organization served on the Human Rights Council for many years.”The Supreme Court hearing took place behind closed doorsImage: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Photo/picture alliance
Russian Supreme Court keeps wording deliberately vague
Lawyers for Memorial pointed out that the Supreme Court had classified the “International Public Movement Memorial” as “extremist,” but they pointed out that no organization of this name existed and had not been registered either in Russia or elsewhere.
They told DW that the wording had probably been kept deliberately vague to create a legal basis for potential repression against any Memorial structures, as well as their members and supporters. “The Justice Ministry’s action itself remained secret, and the organization’s representatives were barred from attending the hearing,” Sergei Davidis, the head of Memorial’s political prisoners support program, told DW.
He also stressed that in light of growing public dissatisfaction with the Russian government, the state was attempting to eliminate independent and reputable sources of information that could foster solidarity and networking in Russian society.
Memorial documents Soviet repression and the Gulag system
The international society Memorial was founded in 1987 and went on to become the leading independent organization dedicated to documenting Soviet-era repression in Russia. Its archives contain tens of thousands of documents about the victims of Soviet repression, including thousands of memoirs, hundreds of personal collections, as well as a wealth of material from researchers on the history of the gulags, the system of labor camps that was a major instrument of political repression in the Soviet era, and other human rights violations.
According to the independent online media outlet Mediazona, the authorities could now lay claim to the archive as the “property of an extremist organization.” In 2023, the head of the Perm NGO Center of Historical Memory, Aleksandr Chernyshov, was arrested after allegedly trying to smuggle archival documents from Russia to Germany.
The persecution of the Russian branch of Memorial began in 2014 when it was placed on a list of “foreign agents” by the Russian Justice Ministry. This status was later extended to the organization’s international branch, which required all publications and reports to be labeled accordingly. In case of non-compliance, there were fines and restrictions on Memorial’s activities.
In 2021, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of Memorial International for “repeated” and “gross” violations of Russia’s foreign agent laws. Memorial was also accused of depicting a false image of the Soviet Union.
Pressure continued to mount in March 2023, when the homes and offices of nine Memorial staff members, including Oleg Orlov and Yan Rachinsky, were subjected to searches as part of a targeted campaign against independent human rights organizations. The same year, Orlov was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for “discrediting” the army. He was released with other political prisoners as part of a prisoner exchange in August 2024 and has since been living in Germany.
Memorial will continue its human rights activities
Since this year’s ruling on April 9, Memorial has announced that it will have to suspend all activities in Russia but will continue its activities abroad. It has blocked the sharing and commenting of posts on social media. All supporters in Russia have been urged to follow the safety guidelines published on Memorial’s website.
Although the court has used the term “international social movement” to describe Memorial and this does not actually exist as such, all people, associations and organizations associated with the NGO could now be at risk. Memorial has called on people in Russia to not make any donations, to remove any logos and links on social media, and to delete any compromising content on all digital devices. It warned that people could draw attention from law enforcement agencies even by subscribing to Memorial channels.
It also said that though the risks outside Russia were not as high, people could still be subject to persecution abroad. Nonetheless, it said it would continue its work to protect human rights and preserve historical memory. Politzek — voices that defy the KremlinTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Nobel Committee: ‘Affront to fundamental values of human dignity’
Earlier this week, the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Jorgen Watne Frydnes said that to designate Memorial as “extremist” was “an affront to the fundamental values of human dignity and freedom of expression.”
On his Telegram channel, the Russian political scientist Aleksandr Kynev wrote that the persecution of Memorial marked a new level of repression in Russia. He added that the new status of the organization would allow the authorities to target even ordinary employees.
Davidis pointed out that Memorial did not have a unified, centralized structure, but constituted a broad network of different groups. He said that people continued to be interested in political repression, both in the past and today. He said that the work of human rights activists had to continue despite the more difficult and risky circumstances.
Russian government strategy to suppress memory of Soviet crimes
According to Irina Sherbakova, a co-founding member of Memorial, the latest move against the organization is part of the Russian government’s overall strategy. She explained that it was in keeping with the closure of the Moscow-based Gulag History Museum in 2024, the systematic removal of commemorative plaques installed by the Last Address memorial project, the restrictions on access to official archives and the amendment to the official concept for commemorating victims of political repression, from which the mention of mass repression and later mass rehabilitation has been removed.Irina Sherbakova co-founded Memorial. She now lives in GermanyImage: dts-Agentur/picture alliance
Sherbakova said that these measures were all aimed at controlling the collective memory of Soviet repression and human rights work today: “This is part of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s ideology, which is becoming increasingly ultranationalist.”
Human rights activist Anna Karetnikova agreed, and pointed out that the initiative to persecute Memorial went back to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), which succeeded the Soviet secret service, the KGB, itself preceded by the NKVD. She said that the FSB viewed Memorial’s efforts to preserve the memory of Soviet repression and support of political prisoners today as a thorn in its side. She said that Memorial’s new status would lay the path for more criminal proceedings and increase pressure on civil society.
This article was originally published in Russian.
What’s really behind ‘foreign agent’ laws? To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
#Russian #Memorial #human #rights #NGO #labeled #extremist")
Post Comment