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US judge dismisses 9/11 case against Saudi Arabia

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Judge throws out case filed by victims’ families, saying Saudi Arabia cannot be sued due to sovereign immunity.

The 9/11 attacks resulted in the deaths of nearly 3,000 people [Reuters]

The 9/11 attacks resulted in the deaths of nearly 3,000 people [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

A US judge has dismissed claims against Saudi Arabia by families of victims of the September 11, 2001, attacks, who accused the country of providing material support to al-Qaeda.

US District Judge George Daniels in Manhattan, New York, said Saudi Arabia had sovereign immunity from damage claims by families of nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks, and from insurers that covered losses suffered by building owners and businesses.

“The allegations in the complaint alone do not provide this court with a basis to assert jurisdiction over defendants,” Daniels wrote.

The victims had sought to supplement their case with new allegations to avoid that result, including based on testimony they secured from Zacarias Moussaoui, a former al-Qaeda operative imprisoned for his role in the attacks, Reuters reported.

Daniels said even if he allowed the plaintiffs to assert those new claims, doing so would be “futile, however, because the additional allegations do not strip defendants of sovereign immunity”.

Classified evidence

Saudi Arabia was dropped as a defendant before as judges said it was protected by sovereign immunity, but a federal appeals court in December 2013 reinstated it, saying a legal exception existed and the circumstances were extraordinary.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs said they would appeal. Sean Carter, one the lawyers, said he believed the ruling was also the consequence of the US government’s decision to keep classified evidence that could be favourable to their cause.

Relatives allege that Saudi agents provided the hijackers who carried out the attack with assistance including helping two of them with accommodation in the US.

Fifteen of the 19 hijackers who carried out the attacks were citizens of Saudi Arabia.

The US government’s 9/11 Commission said in a 2003 report that there was no evidence Saudi Arabia had funded al-Qaeda.

Yemen: Wedding party death toll jumps to 131

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Many women and children among the dead in attack initially reported as a ‘mistake’

Monday's accidental attack on a Yemeni wedding party drew references to the United States' December 2013 drone bombing of another wedding party in Yemen, which resulted in the death of the 15 people. (Photo: AFP)

Monday’s accidental attack on a Yemeni wedding party drew references to the United States’ December 2013 drone bombing of another wedding party in Yemen, which resulted in the death of the 15 people. (Photo: AFP)

by Lauren McCauley, Common Dreams

The death toll from the bombing of a Yemeni wedding party on Monday has jumped to 131 people, “making it one of the deadliest attacks on civilians in Yemen’s war,” Reutersreports.

Initially reported as a “mistaken” air strike by the Saudi-led coalition, the U.S. backed group is now denying its role in the civilian tragedy as a coalition spokesperson “suggested local militias may have been responsible” for targeting the party, which included many women and children.

Earlier:

Saudi Arabia-led airstrikes “mistakenly” struck a wedding party in Yemen early Monday killing at least 38 people, many of which were women and children.

The U.S.-backed coalition was purportedly targeting Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, when it bombed a celebration in al-Wahga, a village near the strategic Strait of Bab al-Mandab. One senior government official declared the two airstrikes a “mistake.”

According to the BBC, “First reports from the village said that 12 women, eight children and seven men had been killed, with dozens more wounded, when the air strike hit two tents during a wedding for a local man linked to the Houthi group.”

And the Associated Press notes that the village in which the strikes took place “lies in the battered Taiz province, where civilians routinely fall victim to daily Saudi airstrikes as well as rebel mortar shells.”

The United Nations estimates that roughly 4,900 people have been killed and more than 25,000 wounded in the six months since the Saudi-led bombing campaign began in March. Further, roughly 21 million of Yemen’s population of 25 million have been impacted by the conflict.

The incident immediately drew references to the United States’ December 2013 drone bombing of another wedding party in Yemen, which resulted in the death of 15 people. Among those who connected the two attacks, blogger Marcy Wheeler wrote on Twitter:

Modi leaves for home after concluding US, Ireland visit

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modi

New York: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for home after concluding his seven-day visit that took him to Ireland and the US.

“An extraordinary visit ends, with a relentless focus on the future. PM @narendramodi emplanes for New Delhi,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.

Modi had visited Ireland on September 23 and then left for the US, during which he was in New York and also visited San Jose on the West Coast.

(IANS)

Ashamed of Modi’s behaviour on foreign soil: Congress

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modi-usa

New Delhi: Congress on Monday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his barbs at the party in the US, saying they were “ashamed” of his behaviour on foreign soil.

“Listening to the Prime Minister’s speech I am ashamed. Indian PM after going to California is making fun of his countrymen and is only praising himself,” Congress leader Rashid Alvi said. In a veiled attack on corruption during UPA regime and a barb at the Congress President’s son-in-law Robert Vadra, Modi in his address to the Indian community in California today deprecated the culture of graft in the country.

“In our country it doesn’t take much for allegations to come up against politicians… Someone made 50 crores, someone’s son made 250 crores, (someone’s) daughter made 500 crores, (someone’s) damaad (son-in-law) made 1000 crores…” he said. Countering Modi, Congress leader Manish Tiwari said, “Indians are fed up with the government who helps a ‘baghoda’.

Is there any state government in India like Rajasthan where there are scams after scams. Before taking a dig at others, he should look at his party,” he said. JD(U) leader K C Tyagi also took a dig at Modi, saying, “Questions can also be raised as to why he does not stay with his mother”. He said the Prime Minister should never attack his country’s opposition in the foreign land.

Alvi said he had written to Modi after Lok Sabha polls, saying “You say your mother works even today. Then why are you not caring for your mother. Is your salary less that you cannot take care of your mother?”

Modi had on Sunday got emotional while talking about the sacrifices his mother made as he grew up.

(Agencies)

After 13 Years without charge, Shaker Aamer to be freed from Guantanamo

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‘He has been tortured and abused for more than a decade, and what he wants most is to be left alone with his family to start rebuilding his life.’

Shaker Aamer has been held at Guantánamo Bay without charge or trial since 2002. (Photo: File)

Shaker Aamer has been held at Guantánamo Bay without charge or trial since 2002. (Photo: File)

by Nadia Prupis, Common Dreams

Shaker Aamer, the last remaining UK prisoner in Guantánamo Bay prison, will be released and allowed to return home, a British government spokesperson announced Friday.

Aamer, 46, a Saudi citizen and UK resident, has been held at the U.S. military base in Cuba for 13 years without charge and has twice been cleared to go home. A report last month revealed that the Pentagon had been actively blocking his release, despite participating in one of the federal reviews that found he posed no threat to national security and could be returned home.

Reprieve attorney Clive Stafford Smith, who represents Aamer, said the most likely date for Aamer’s return is October 25, absent “robust intervention” by the UK government.

“This is great news, albeit about 13 years too late,” Smith said. “The UK must demand of President [Barack] Obama that he should be on a plane tomorrow, so that Shaker’s family do not have to endure more of the agony of waiting, uncertain every time a phone rings.”

“British politicians may bombasticate about our ‘robust and effective systems to deal with suspected terrorists’ but Shaker is not and never has been a terrorist, and has been cleared by the Americans themselves for 8 years,” Smith continued. “I hope the authorities will understand that he has been tortured and abused for more than a decade, and what he wants most is to be left alone with his family to start rebuilding his life.”

According to his lawyers, Aamer was abducted by bounty hunters in Afghanistan in 2001 and handed over to U.S. forces, who transferred him to Guantánamo Bay two months later. While there, he organized and participated in hunger strikes and other actions to draw attention to torture and mistreatment of detainees, including himself.

Amnesty International USA executive director Steven W. Hawkins said Friday that Aamer’s case is “a symbol of Guantánamo’s utter failure.”

“This is a man who was held without trial or charge for more than 13 years, alleges he was tortured repeatedly, was cleared for transfer twice, and the UK government has asked that he be transferred back to the United Kingdom, yet he still languished in detention from February 2002 until today,” Hawkins said.

Expand 4G network in India soon: US media honchos to PM

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi poses for a photo with media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and other media honcos before a round table meeting 'Media, technology and communication - Growth story for India' in New York on Thursday. PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi poses for a photo with media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and other media honcos before a round table meeting ‘Media, technology and communication – Growth story for India’ in New York on Thursday. PTI

New York: Presenting India as a technology-driven society, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday pledged protection to Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) as he met top executives of major media and communication companies here.

“This is a technology-driven era. We are a technology-driven society,” he said at a round table meeting with the top executives of companies like Comcast, Time Warner, Discovery, Sony, ESPN, News Corp, 21st Century Fox, Disney Industries, ABC television group.

The focus of the Prime Minister’s meeting with over dozen media honchos was to understand about the trends in media and communication technologies and the opportunities for India.

“We are committed to protecting IPR which is essential to fostering creativity,” Modi told them at the round table on Media, Tech & Communications.

The CEOs present included Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman News Corp and 21stCentury Fox; James Murdoch, CEO, 21st Century Fox; Robert Thompson, CEO, News Corp; John Skipper, president, ESPN; Uday Shankar, CEO, Star India; David Zaslav, president and CEO, Discovery Communications and Michael Lynton, CEO, Sony Entertainment.

Others present at the round table were Brian L. Roberts, CEO, Comcast; Michael Roth, CEO, Interpublic Group of Companies; Shane Smith, CEO, Vice Media; Martin Sorrell, CEO, WPP; Jeff Bewkes, CEO, Time Warner; Nancy Dubuc, CEO, A&E Networks; Anthony Pratt, chairman, Visy Industries; William Duhamel, Route One Investment Company and Jeff Ubben, CEO, ValueAct Capital.

US media honchos for early rollout of 4G

Describing India as the ‘biggest market’, America’s media honchos have called for speedier digitisation of the Indian system, including early expansion of the 4G network, during a one-of-its kind meeting with PM Narendra Modi.

During the meeting wherein the focus was on the role that the media and entertainment industry can play in development and generation of employment opportunities in the country, CEOs of the top media houses appreciated Modi for ‘energetic and dynamic leadership’ and expressed optimism about the future of India, a statement said.

The CEOs representing 40 per cent of the world’s entertainment industry – were enthusiastic about the digital transformation that is taking place in India through the ‘Digital India’ initiative.

They said that the current strong trajectory of the Indian economy makes it at a unique moment to accelerate growth in this sector.

“All of them said India is the biggest market for them in terms of the phenomenal growth of the entertainment channels, in terms of the youth in India wanting more such content. They asked for speedier digitisation of the Indian systems,” External Affairs Minister spokesperson Vikas Swarup told reporters.

Shane Smith for instance, said that he wanted rolling out of the 4G systems as soon as possible. This is the bandwidth that they need for their program contents to be rolled out and to reach people as fast as possible.

All the CEOs said that India is already a big market for them and they do not have any issues with the existing norms.

“What they wanted was speedier expansion of broad band infrastructure,” he said.

“The Prime Minister and CEOs observed that the changes in technology and media in recent times have led to an enormous democratisation of knowledge. He said that the world is now in a technology- driven era, where growth of digital infrastructure is as important as growth of physical infrastructure,” Swarup said.

(Agencies)

Sikhs, Patels protest against Modi at UN headquarters

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modi

United Nations: A group of Sikhs and the Patidar community supporters have demonstrated outside the UN headquarters here, coinciding with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech on Sustainable Development at a special UN summit.

Under the banner of Sikhs for Justice, over 200 Sikhs, alleging human rights violations in Punjab, demanded referendum in 2020 for a separate Khalistan. The protesters, raising anti-India and anti-Modi slogans, urged the world body to take steps to meet their demand. “There is massive violations against minorities, in particular against Christians, Sikhs and Muslims,” SFJ leader Bakhshish Singh Sandhu claimed yesterday.

Side by side in a separate enclosure were a few dozen members of the Patidar community from Gujarat who are living in different parts of the country. “We want justice from police brutalities. As many as 4,000 youths are still in police custody. There has been police brutality against innocent people. So far no action has been taken against the police officials responsible for this,” one Anil Patel claimed.

The protesters were sporting caps of Sardar Patel Group from Gujarat, which is leading the movement for reservations for the Patel community in the State. Meanwhile, a few enclosures later at the UN headquarters, another group of Patels under the banner of Indian Diamond and Gemstone Industry of New York held a welcome rally for Modi.

(Agencies)

Activists, groups launch anti-Modi campaign in US

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Modifail

New York: A group of activists, organisations and some members of the Patel community have launched a campaign in the US against Prime Minister Narendra Modi who arrived here today.

The campaign in various shape and form primarily includes multiple levels of protests in both New York and San Jose where the Prime Minister would be travelling.

It also includes a massive campaign on social media and even a big bill board from the new “Modifail” campaign launched by Alliance for Justice and Accountability (AJA).

Describing itself as a coalition of progressive groups in the US, the AJA has put up a huge billboard on a freeways in Silicon Valley. The saffron-colored billboard has a huge mugshot of the Prime Minister addressing a rally.

“We stand against Modi’s regressive agenda,” the bill board in Milpitas says.

In a statement, AJA hoped that this series of billboards in the Bay Area will inform the American people that Modi’s upcoming “Silicon Valley PR tour is being used as an excuse to whitewash his dismal record” as Prime Minister.

AJA plans protests outside the SAP Center in San Jose on September 27, where Modi is scheduled to address to some 18,500 Indian-Americans.

New York-based Sikh for Justice has said it will hold similar protests before the United Nations here and also in front of the SAP Center in San Jose on September 27.

It has also announced a reward of USD 10,000 to any one who asks questions to Modi and Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg during their upcoming Townhall meeting at Facebook HQ.

A section of the Patel community, who are agitated against police action in Gujarat, has said they would raise “black flags” against Modi in both New York and San Jose.

US-based Human Rights Watch urged CEOs of American technology companies to tell the Indian leader that they will oppose any steps that erode free expression or privacy rights.

“While India presents significant business opportunities, CEOs should tell Modi that they will oppose any steps that erode free expression or privacy rights,” Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

During his stay in the US – primarily in New York and Silicon Valley — Modi will meet the CEOs of top technology firms such as Google, Apple, Microsoft, Adobe and Facebook.

The Patels-dominated Asian American Hotel Owners Association or AAHOA has welcomed the US visit of the Prime Minister, describing him as a leader who has a distinguished record of fostering economic development and innovation.

(Agencies)

Muslim boy arrested over clock withdraws from US school

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Ahmed Mohamed and his siblings have yet to decide which school to enrol in after father withdraws them.

Ahmed Mohamed's father wants to take his son on a pilgrimage to the Muslim holy city of Mecca [AP]

Ahmed Mohamed’s father wants to take his son on a pilgrimage to the Muslim holy city of Mecca [AP]

by Al Jazeera

A 14-year-old Muslim boy has withdrawn from the Dallas high school that got him arrested for a homemade clock mistaken for a possible bomb.

Mohamed El-Hassan Mohamed, Ahmed Mohamed’s father, said on Monday that he pulled all of his children from schools in the Irving Independent School District.

“Ahmed said, ‘I don’t want to go to MacArthur,'” Ahmed’s father told The Dallas Morning News. “These kids aren’t going to be happy there.”

Mohamed said the family was still deciding where to send the children to school.

Numerous schools have offered to enrol Ahmed, his father said. But Mohamed said he wants to give his son a breather before making a decision.

The turmoil surrounding Ahmed’s case has had a harmful effect on the teen, Mohamed said, adding that his son has lost his appetite and is not sleeping well.

“It’s torn the family and makes us very confused,” Mohamed said.

On Wednesday, his entire family plans to fly to New York, Mohamed said, where United Nations dignitaries were due to meet his son.

Then Mohamed wants to take his son on a pilgrimage to the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia if the appropriate visas can be obtained.

“I ask Allah to bless this time. After that, we’ll see,” Mohamed said.

When they return, a visit to the White House and a meeting with President Barack Obama is being planned, he said.

Ahmed has said he brought the clock he made to MacArthur High School in Irving last week to show a teacher.

Officials say he was arrested after another teacher saw it and became concerned. Ahmed wasn’t charged, but he was suspended from school for three days.

As crisis intensifies, Kerry says US will take 100,000 refugees in 2017

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Many, though not all, of the additional refugees would be Syrian, US officials have said

Migrants wait at the Austria-Hungaria border in Nickelsdorf, Austria, on September 20, 2015. (Photo: Reuters/David W. Cerny)

Migrants wait at the Austria-Hungaria border in Nickelsdorf, Austria, on September 20, 2015. (Photo: Reuters/David W. Cerny)

by Deirdre Fulton, Common Dreams

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry announced Sunday that the U.S. will accept 85,000 refugees from around the world next year—up from 70,000—and the number will rise to 100,000 in 2017.

Many, though not all, of the additional refugees would be Syrian, American officials have said. The United States has taken in just 1,500 refugees since the start of the Syrian war in 2011, and President Barack Obama last week committed to accepting 10,000 more over the coming year.

The New York Times reports:

Still, the steps that Mr. Kerry announced are much less than that some former American officials and refugee experts have recommended.

Last Thursday, more than 20 former senior officials, including some who served in the State Department and Pentagon during the Obama administration, urged the White House to accept 100,000 Syrian refugees.

“We urge that you announce support for a refugees admissions goal of 100,000 Syrian refugees on an extraordinary basis, over and above the current worldwide refugee ceiling of 70,000,” they wrote in a letter to President Obama and congressional leaders. “With some four million Syrian refugees in neighboring countries and hundreds of thousands of Syrian asylum seekers in Europe, this would be a responsible exercise in burden sharing.”

That letter also called on the U.S. to put in place special rules to speed the resettlement process.

As NBC News explains:

U.S. officials have recognized the process for admitting Syrian refugees can take up to 18 months, largely because of vetting to make sure they do not pose a security threat.

Refugee applications referred to the United States by the U.N. refugee agency undergo multiple security checks by several federal agencies.

“[W]e can make a home for many, many refugees in the United States. I’m convinced of it,” Anne Richard, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for population, refugees, and migration, told NPR on Saturday. “But the tricky part is running a process that scrutinizes the backgrounds of the refugees before they come here to make sure we’re bringing people who are legitimate refugees and who do not pose any kind of security threat to the United States.”

A separate letter sent Friday from a coalition of U.S. faith-based and civil society groups to President Obama called for increasing the refugee resettlement cap to 200,000 for the upcoming fiscal year, including 100,000 Syrians.

According to ABC News, “Kerry did not address why the U.S. proposal is well short of what the former officials advocated, but in London on Saturday, he said the migrant crisis must be solved by ending Syria’s civil war and replacing President Bashar Assad.”

Meanwhile, the refugee crisis only worsens, creating a devastating new reality marked for too many by terror, violence, and injustice.

The Guardian reported Sunday on one group of refugees, numbering in the hundreds, who “fear they are to be deported back to Syria after their boat was intercepted by the Turkish coastguard.”

One female among the crowd, detained at a refugee center and not identified for her protection, said she feared being killed if this happened. “They are threatening us that Syrians will be deported to Syria, Iraqis to Iraq,” she said. “If they send us back to Syria we will die.”

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