Palestinian detainees go on hunger strike

Around 8,000 Palestinian prisoners, held captive in 13 different Israeli military detention facilities, have gone on hunger strike in protest to ongoing cases of torture, abuse and other human rights violations.

According to the Palestinian Information Center, those on strike reported cases of humiliation and abuse during searches of family members conducted before visitations.

They have also pointed out at the denial of family visitations rights for the Gaza detainees under false security allegations.

The Center also lashed out at Israel's decision to prevent access to Arabic news media outlets for the Palestinian detainees, banning books in the detention centers and stripping the Palestinians of the right to take the final high school exams.

The Head of the Census Department at the Palestinian Ministry of Detainees, Abdul-Nasser Farawna, has announced that Israel currently holds 7,300 Palestinians in prison.

Among those detained are 300 children, 33 women, 17 legislators, and two former ministers.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122801§ionid=351020202.

'No US troop survives if Iran is attacked'

Iran's Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Hassan Firouzabadi has warned the US against making any military moves on the Islamic Republic.

Firouzabadi said that if the United States attacks Iran, none of the American troops in the region will go back home alive.

"If the US seriously threatens Iran and takes an action against Iran, none of the US soldiers in the region will return to America alive," Fars news agency quoted him as saying on Thursday.

Firouzabadi made the remarks in reaction to US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who said on Tuesday that Washington was keeping “all options” on the table for dealing with Iran and North Korea.

"If there is a message for Iran and North Korea here, it is that if you're going to play by the rules, if you're going to join the international community, then we will undertake certain obligations to you," AFP quoted Gates as saying.

Firouzabadi also said if the US takes action against Iran, the threats it would face increase exponentially and its economic problems skyrocket.

"If the US seriously threatens Iran and takes an action against Iran, the threats against it will become a thousand times more, its economic problems will increase and it will lose more markets," he said.

Firouzabadi's speech comes a day after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad condemned Washington's latest nuclear policy.

The policy authorizes the use of nuclear arms against nations which violate the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and Obama's mention of Iran is despite the fact that there is no credible evidence indicating Iran is violating the NPT.

In response to the new nuclear strategy, Ahmadinejad lambasted the plan and advised his US counterpart not to repeat the "past mistakes" of the previous US governments.

"I advise Mr Obama to be careful. If he tries to follow in the footsteps of Mr [George W.] Bush, the response of the [Iranian] nation will be the same crushing response they gave to Bush," President Ahmadinejad said in a speech in the northwestern city of Orumiyeh.

The 50-page "Nuclear Posture Review" (NPR) issued by the US administration was released on Tuesday. It purportedly restricts the use of US nuclear arms against some non-nuclear countries.

The new NPR by the Obama Administration restricts the use of US nuclear arms against some non-nuclear countries. Countries that “from the US perspective” do not comply with the NPT will be at risk of a possible nuclear attack.

The US has repeatedly accused Iran of failing to meet its obligations defined in the NPT — an allegation categorically denied by Tehran.

Iran was among the original countries that signed the NPT, a global pact aimed at curbing the spread of nuclear weapons across the globe.

Tehran says its nuclear work is monitored by the UN nuclear watchdog and is conducted in accordance with the NPT.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122800§ionid=351020101.

Iran 'will not plead to avoid sanctions'

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Tehran will not yield to threats and will not give up its rights of a peaceful nuclear program.

Ahmadinejad says Iran will turn threats and sanctions into opportunities.

"We do not welcome threats and sanctions and we will never plead those who are threatening us with sanctions to not impose sanctions, but we will turn sanctions into opportunities," IRNA quoted Ahmadinejad as saying on Thursday.

He made the remarks in response to US President Barack Obama, who had said new tough sanctions against Iran should be adopted within weeks.

The US president repeated his threat of sanctions in a Thursday news conference with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev in the Czech capital, Prague.

“My expectation is that we are going to be able to secure strong, tough sanctions on Iran this spring," Obama said.

Three permanent members of the UN Security Council — Britain, France and the US — plus Germany want sanctions to stop Iran's uranium enrichment plans.

Other members China and Russia say diplomacy must be given a chance.

Iran is a signatory of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) and its nuclear work is being monitored by the UN nuclear watchdog.

Tehran has repeatedly declared that it will not relinquish the legitimate nuclear rights of the Iranian nation under the West's pressure.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122802§ionid=351020101.

Sri Lanka parliamentary polls close

Polling has passed off in Sri Lanka's post war parliamentary elections amid reports of violence, with President Mahinda Rajapaksa's ruling alliance expected to win with a clear majority.

Voters lined up at polling booths as the nationwide parliamentary elections opened today throughout the island. Results are due on Friday.

Police had deployed 60,000 constables and kept another 20,000 military personnel on alert to deal with any major outbreak of violence during the voting period.

However, independent observers said the nine-hours of balloting were marred by a shooting incident and reports of intimidation.

The president cast his ballot in his home village of Medamulana south of the country.

Rajapaksa, 64, is seeking a two-thirds majority in parliament which would allow him to change the constitution.

He remains popular among Sri Lankans after bringing the 26-year conflict with the separatist Tamil Tigers to an end last year.

The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) reported 286 incidents of poll-related violence with most complaints being against Rajapaksa's United People's Freedom Alliance.

With more than 14 million eligible voters, the CMEV estimated the turnout at between 45 and 50 percent, much lower than the 75 percent recorded in the January presidential election.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122796§ionid=351020406.

Obama: Iran sanctions to come this spring

The United States is seeking to bring "tough sanctions" against Iran by "this spring," says President Barack Obama.

The US and its Western allies are working together to secure new sanctions against Iran in the UN Security Council over Tehran's refusal to halt its nuclear program.

"My expectation is that we are going to be able to secure strong, tough sanctions on Iran this spring," Obama said in a news conference with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in the Czech capital, Prague.

The five permanent members of the Security Council — Britain, China, France, Russia and the US — plus Germany are scheduled to hold a meeting in New York on Thursday to discuss the Iranian nuclear issue.

"Discussions about the sanctions on Iran have been moving forward over the last several weeks. We are going to start seeing some ramped up negotiations taking place in New York in the coming weeks," Reuters quoted Obama as saying on Wednesday.

Washington has recently stepped up its efforts to push other key world powers into voting for new sanctions against the Islamic Republic at the Council.

However, China and Russia have repeatedly urged a diplomatic solution to the country's nuclear issue.

Medvedev, speaking at Thursday's news conference, said, “I cannot exclude that the UN Security Council will have to look into this.”

Medvedev, however, noted that Russia would consult with other world powers to find a solution to the impasse.

"Unfortunately Tehran is not reacting to an array of constructive compromise proposals. We cannot close our eyes to this," said Medvedev.

Tehran, as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has repeatedly rejected accusations that its nuclear program is geared towards military applications, describing the allegations as "baseless" and "politically-motivated."

The UN nuclear watchdog has conducted countless unannounced inspections of Iranian nuclear sites and has found no evidence supporting Western claims.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122795§ionid=351020104.

Former Turkish MP in prison for PKK links

A Turkish court has sentenced a former deputy of the dissolved Party for Democracy (DEP) to three years in prison on charges of spreading separatist propaganda.

The Diyarbakir Criminal Court on Thursday ruled that former DEP parliamentarian Leyla Zana had "disseminated the propaganda of a terrorist organization" by delivering speeches about the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its imprisoned leader in two separate events.

The defendant was not present at Thursday's hearing.

Zana delivered a speech in favor of the PKK during a session organized by the Democratic Society Party (DTP) in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir sometime between September 20 and 22, 2008. She also spoke at a sit-in-protest in Ankara's Batikent neighborhood on November 1-3, 2008.

The People's Labor Party (HEP) was founded in 1990 when 10 pro-Kurdish members of the Turkish Parliament broke off from the Social Democrats. In 1993, HEP was outlawed for being pro-Kurdish.

Later on, the former members of HEP founded the Democratic Party (DEP), which was outlawed in 1994 and its members formed the People's Democracy Party (HADEP). Turkey's Constitution Court, however, shut down HADEP in March 2003.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by much of the international community, including Turkey, Iran, the US and the European Union member states.

More than 40,000 people have lost their lives since the militant group launched its armed campaign against Ankara in 1984, as part of a quest to establish an independent Kurdish state in southeastern Turkey.

Turkish fighter jets frequently shell PKK strongholds in northern Iraq, where the militants launch attacks against Turkey.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122794§ionid=351020204.

Somalia: Pirates to Release British Couple in Coming Hours

7 APRIL 2010

Somali pirates are reportedly releasing elderly and frail British couple hostage, who have been held for more than six months in the coming hours.

According to reports that Garowe Online received from sources, the gang holding the couple in Harardhere, a pirate haven in northeastern Somalia is said to have been promised unspecific ransom amount to free the hostages.

The gang has previously demanded a ransom money of about $2 million for the expenses they incurred while holding chandlers. But reports say they have so far received money for the expenses they incurred.

The couple is expected to be flown to Nairobi Kenya in the coming hours by a chartered plane that is currently in Somalia's Adado district, near the area they are held.

Paul Chandler and his wife Rachel, were hijacked on October 23 while vacationing in the Indian Ocean in the middle of the piracy peak season came under pirate attack in the early hours of, Their their 38-foot empty yacht, Lynn Rival was later located in the international waters off Somalia by the British Royal Navy.

Source: allAfrica.
Link: http://allafrica.com/stories/201004071146.html.