The Syrian Air Force has destroyed two of three jets seized by the Islamic State (IS) group last week, the information minister in Damascus said. Omran al-Zoubi said on television that Syrian aircraft bombed the jets as they were landing at Jarrah airbase in the eastern countryside of Aleppo province. The militants were able to hide a third jet, which the Syrian Air Force is now searching for, AP quoted the minister as saying. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights had reported that IS militants flew three MiG fighter jets over the air base with the help of former Iraqi air force pilots.
Turkey wants US-guaranteed interests in Syria: analyst
Turkey seeks US-guaranteed strategic interests in Syria before it joins the so-called US-led coalition on terrorism, a commentator tells Press TV.
Kavork Elmassian, a political commentator from Beirut, in an interview with Press TV on Wednesday said, “Turkey will not enter this so-called US-led coalition on terrorism and on ISIL before it guarantees its strategic interests in Syria.”
Elmassian went on to say, “It is clear that Turkey is the most brutal player in the Syrian conflict. Its intervention has reached not only the northern part of Syria, but also in the central part of Syria by allowing the multi-national terrorists to infiltrate into the Syrian territories.”
He added that Turkey also wants “the elimination of the Kurdish presence from its southern borders.”
The remarks come following the Syrian deputy foreign minister’s statement that Turkey is responsible for the acts of terror that the ISIL Takfiri militants commit in Iraq and Syria and that the relationship between Turkey and the ISIL terrorists is no longer hidden.
Mounting evidence has surfaced recently to confirm the long held suspicion that Turkey is continuing to back the terrorist group.
Britain’s Sky News has obtained documents showing that the Turkish government has stamped passports of foreign militants seeking to cross the Turkish border into Syria.
In addition, German television station ARD reported that there are more than 2,000 militants joining ISIL who come from Europe, clarifying that they enter Istanbul as tourists and then cross borders into Iraq and Syria.
The ISIL terrorists control parts of Syria’s northern territory and have seized swaths of land in Iraq straddling the border between the two countries.
Islamic state imposes new rules on education in Syria, Iraq
By Ali Mamouri
The Islamic State (IS) project goes beyond making a political change for the region’s map. The organization seeks a comprehensive and fundamental change at all levels, whether culturally, socially, economically or politically. It is a major ideological revolution akin to the communist revolutions in Russia and China. report al-monitor
Commonly, such ideological revolutions introduce radical cultural changes in the educational system, as soon as the groups that have launched them take up the reins of political power. Cultural goals are the main priorities of these groups, which view political power merely as a means to achieve these goals.
This has already happened in Russia, China, Iran and other countries that witnessed ideological revolutions and coups. The nature of the cultural changes differs according to the pattern and nature of these revolutions.
The communist revolutions sought to eliminate the bourgeoisie’s power from educational and cultural systems. The Islamic revolution in Iran, on the other hand, aimed at the Islamization of science and knowledge by eliminating scientific and scholarly theories that are not in line with their religious visions, expelling teachers from schools and universities who do not abide by religious disciplines.
With the beginning of the school year in Iraq and Syria, IS started to circulate general regulations to reform the educational system to be implemented in schools and universities.
The new regulations included a wide array of reforms to impose a radical cultural revolution in the educational system, by eliminating or replacing some of the materials in the curricula. This educational revolution stems from the hard-line Salafist ideology of IS, which makes it much worse than the Iranian model at the beginning of the Islamic revolution in Iran.
The regulations were introduced within an official statement issued by IS titled, “A good omen from the prince of the faithful to eradicate ignorance and disseminate Sharia sciences.” The statement was made in the name of “Diwan of Knowledge,” which is the new label of the ministries of education and higher education.
Al-Monitor contacted by phone a number of teachers, professors and workers in education in the city of Mosul in Iraq and the Syrian city of Raqqa to check whether or not the information in the flyer is accurate.
Al-Monitor has learned that the reforms include general and basic issues. Labels such as the Republic of Iraq and the Syrian Republic were both changed to become the Islamic State. All topics related to the values of citizenship, patriotism and the like have been omitted, in addition to chants and anthems that might be in contradiction with the religious views of the caliphate state, according to IS interpretations.
This is not to mention gender segregation, banning male teachers and cadres from teaching in girls’ schools, and taking all educational and administrative measures according to Sharia. This includes interrupting classes during prayer times, compelling students to wear Islamic garb for men and women alike, in line with the Salafist adherence to Sharia.
The regulations also stipulated canceling classes in music and art, the courses of philosophy, sociology and psychology, and banning the teaching of history and religious education on religious minorities. IS views some educational practices to be religiously forbidden, as they include ideas and theories that are contradictory to the Islamic vision, according to the organization’s Salafist interpretation.
Regarding religious education, IS imposed religious curricula that are already being taught in Saudi Arabia without making any major changes to them.
IS made copies of these curricula, which were distributed to schools and for all classes and grades under the title, “The official curriculum for religious education.”
The organization also distributed pamphlets and booklets on various topics related to Islamic ideology, Sharia and Islamic history under the title, “Additional sources to entice students to read and expand their religious knowledge according to the Salafist vision.”
The analogy between IS and Saudi Arabia religious curricula demonstrates that they are almost the same in terms of Salafist theological bases. This is reflected in the statements of a Saudi source quoted by British journalist Patrick Cockburn in the Independent newspaper. “It’s normal: All our life we have lived with IS and its thoughts, its schools and its curriculum,” the source said.
IS preserved the same programs for physics, chemistry, mathematics, English and Arabic languages, but removed some sections such as Darwin’s theory, which is contradictory to the religious theory of creation, according to the organization’s views. New labels and titles have been added to science courses, such as “God’s Laws in Creation.”
Al-Monitor also learned from its sources that teachers and administrative cadres in these areas are greatly concerned. They consider what is happening as a major setback that they cannot confront, as IS has been threatening and terrorizing people while circulating the new regulations that are being imposed by force.
Teachers and school staff have been informed that they are to continue their jobs; otherwise they will face final dismissal and other sanctions that could apply to their families as well.
Moreover, all research works in universities have stopped due to the lack of financial resources, which have been previously provided by the Ministry of Education in Syria and Iraq. IS does not have any interest in supporting such projects.
A famous Australian lawyer Geoffrey Robertson presented in Canberra his book on the Armenian Genocide
The famously known for the Defence of Human Rights Australian lawyer, Geoffrey Robertson, who also works at the UN on legal cases has just written a book on the Armenian genocide. Geoffrey Robertson presented his book “An iconvenient genocide” (an inappropriate genocide) subtitled “Who now remembers the Armenians” (who today remembers the Armenians?) At the National Press Club in Canberra (Australia). The author presents compelling evidence of the reality of the Armenian genocide and claims that under international law and knowledge, qualification of “genocide” is irrefutable.
Krikor Amirzayan
No country for human rights: Azerbaijan’s increasingly intolerant regime – NY Times
By Gunay Ismayilova and Samir Kazimli
As human rights defenders, we must report that our own situation in Azerbaijan has been deteriorating fast.
Two years ago, human rights groups across Europe worried that holding theEurovision Song Contest in our country would only prop up Azerbaijan’s increasingly intolerant regime. Now their fears have been confirmed. Just in the past year, we have seen a cascading series of arrests of human rights defenders on trumped-up charges.
So imagine our dismay on hearing about Europe’s latest approach to our country: The Council of Europe itself is holding a conference this Saturday and Sunday in Baku, on how to implement the European Convention on Human Rights. Those attending reportedly will include Judge Dean Spielmann, the president of the European Court of Human Rights, the very institution that is supposed to be the bulwark of our cause in Europe.
It would be humorous were it not so tragic.
There is only one reason for the choice of venue: It’s Azerbaijan’s turn, according to its place in the alphabet, to hold the chairmanship of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers. By all other measures, the decision makes no sense at all.
Many leaders of the already limited number of independent nongovernmental organizations here are now in prison, most of them on sham charges of “illegal entrepreneurship,” abuse of power, state treason and tax evasion.
Our European visitors probably won’t get to see the 58-year-old human rights defender (and founding director of the Peace and Democracy Institute in Baku) Leyla Yunus. She was arrested on July 30 on charges of treason and other counts her lawyers say are fraudulent. Or her husband, Arif Yunus, 59, who was arrested six days later. On Sept. 23, according to the lawyers, Ms. Yunus was beaten by a guard at the Kurdakhany detention center, where she is being held.
The Europeans probably won’t visit Intigam Aliyev, either; he is a lawyer and human rights defender who was detained and charged on Aug. 8. There are serious concerns about the health of both Ms. Yunus and Mr. Aliyev, and indications that neither is receiving the medical attention they require.
Nor will the Europeans meet Rasul Jafarov, a young pro-democracy activist arrested on Aug. 2. He was about to kick off a “Sports for Rights” campaign protesting plans to hold the first-ever European Games in Baku in 2015, an event that has support from the international corporations BP, P&G, Tissot and others.
Journalists have also been systematically targeted. Last month, a criminal case was opened against the investigative journalist and corruption fighter Khadija Ismayilova (no relationship to the co-author of this article), after she spoke in Strasbourg, France, at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. She is now at risk of joining almost a dozen other journalists and bloggers who are already in prison.
Then there is Anar Mammadli, the recipient of the Council of Europe’s Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize. Sadly, our friend, who was honored just last month for his work on monitoring elections and other democratic rights, is currently serving a five-and-a-half-year prison sentence, handed down in May.
All in all, Azerbaijan seems a particularly strange place to discuss the business of how better to implement human rights.
A string of recent European Court judgments has taken Azerbaijan to task for a long list of serious rights abuses, including police torture and brutality, detention of political opponents, imprisonment of journalists, interference in elections and refusal to register legitimate civil society groups.
Rather than uphold the principles of the European Convention on Human Rights, Azerbaijan has continued to use the law as a political club to silence critics. As in many countries whose economies run on oil revenues, Azerbaijan’s corrupt ruling elite has no interest in implementing the rule of law, which would lead to its inevitable fall from power.
In our view, it is a travesty that the Council of Europe is sponsoring a conference about human rights in Azerbaijan. The event will only be used cynically by the state-controlled media to add legitimacy to the current government, which tramples the rights that the Council of Europe seeks to defend.
ISIS forces launch multiple attacks on Kurdish territory in Iraq
ISIS militants launched about 15 near-simultaneous attacks on Kurdish forces in northern Iraq on Monday in what Kurdish government officials and the news agency Rudaw said was a fierce and renewed push for territory, CNN reported.
ISIS also launched attacks against Mosul Dam, a strategic prize, and also renewed its offensive on the Sinjar mountain range in northern Iraq.
An ISIS-commandeered military truck loaded with explosives targeted a Peshmerga checkpoint along the security belt circling the dam, killing six security force members and injuring seven others critically, according to Peshmerga spokesman Said Mamazeen.
At almost the same time, ISIS militants launched an attack on the Nineveh Valley near the dam, which was repelled by Peshmerga forces using European and American weapons, the spokesman said.
Another Kurdish military official, who asked not to be named for protocol and security reasons, said that despite the attacks, it would be difficult for ISIS to gain control of the dam because of the large numbers of Peshmerga forces in the area.
Why the UN Rejected Turkey’s Bid for a Security Council Seat
BY HARUT SASSOUNIAN
The Turkish government got a big slap in the face last week when the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted to turn down its application for a Security Council seat. In effect, the international community was rejecting Turkey’s hostile policies both at home and abroad.
Turkey’s new Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu had arrogantly predicted securing the prestigious seat for their country. The night before the vote, Cavusoglu had hosted a posh party for UN Ambassadors at the world famous Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.
After spending several days in New York to lobby personally the UN delegates, Foreign Minister Cavusoglu optimistically told the media: “We think all our nice efforts will, with the grace of God, be reflected onto the ballot tomorrow. Of course, this is a vote and all kinds of results may come out. But, we believe, God permitting, that we will get the result of the work we put in.”
Prime Minister Davutoglu was equally optimistic that Turkey would score a “historic victory.” Just two days before the UN vote, he proudly announced: “If we are elected, and we believe it’s a great possibility, we will be the first country in the world to be elected for a second time, after a five-year break. This shows Turkey’s importance.”
Unfortunately for the Turkish leaders, their expectations did not come true. Despite Cavusoglu’s intensive lobbying efforts and earnest wish for divine intervention, only 60 out of 193 UN General Assembly member states voted for Turkey, while its rival, Spain, received 132 votes, winning a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the Security Council.
Why did Turkey lose in 2014 more than half the 151 votes it received in its successful bid for a Security Council seat in 2008? Here are the key reasons for Turkey’s failure to get elected this time around:
– The vigorous campaign by a large number of countries against Turkey’s membership: Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Syria, and Saudi Arabia, among others.
– President Erdogan’s ongoing acrimonious feud with powerful Turkish Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, resulting in loss of General Assembly votes for Turkey from several African countries, where Gulen’s followers have an extensive presence. This is a major shift from 2008, when Gulen supporters had secured a large number of votes for Turkey.
– Turkish leaders’ poor judgment of deciding to reapply so soon after getting elected to the Security Council in 2009-2010. Turkey’s reelection would have deprived other countries from serving in that august UN body.
– Davutoglu’s self-aggrandizing neo-Ottoman yearnings had antagonized most Middle Eastern countries, turning his policy of “zero problems with neighbors” into zero neighbors without problems! Pew Research Center’s survey confirms that Turkey’s dismal standing throughout the Middle East has sunk to an all-time low.
– Erdogan’s autocratic rule at home, including the bloody quelling of protests at the Gezi Park, jailing journalists, and blocking Twitter and facebook. His dismissive words, “I don’t care what the international community will say,” had alienated countless people around the world. The vote against Turkey was UN members’ rebuke of Erdogan. Most delegates walked out of the hall during Pres. Erdogan’s pompous speech at the UN General Assembly in September.
– Tense relations with the United States and Western Europe over Turkey’s refusal to support the war against ISIS, and not defending Kurdish civilians who are being massacred by foreign Jihadists at a stone’s throw from the Turkish border. As a result, influential commentators called for Turkey’s expulsion from NATO and rejection of its application for membership in the European Union.
– Displeased with Turkey’s antagonistic stand, Pres. Obama sent a lowly charge d’affaires of the US Embassy in Ankara to attend Erdogan’s presidential inauguration on August 28.
By ignoring all these legitimate reasons for Turkey’s failure to win the Security Council seat, Foreign Minister Cavusoglu falsely attributed his country’s defeat to its reluctance to abandon “its values for the sake of getting more votes.” This ridiculous statement is made by the Foreign Minister of a country that has been pouring millions of dollars into the coffers of tiny island states around the world and poor African countries to buy their UN General Assembly votes.
Finally, the failure to gain a Security Council seat limits Turkey’s ability to exploit the powerful UN body to undermine the worldwide commemorative events next year on the Armenian Genocide Centennial.
Rouhani Invited to Commemorate Genocide Centennial in Yerevan
TEHRAN—Armenia’s Prime Minister Hovik Abrhamian had a meeting with Iranian President Hasan Rouhani on Monday in Tehran, where he presented Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian’s invitation to President Rouhani to join him in commemorating the centennial of the Armenian Genocide in Yerevan in April 2015. report asbarez
“We appreciate the close, good-neighborly relations with Iran rooted in the basis of centuries-old friendship between our peoples. Armenian-Iranian relations are on a high level and continue to develop in an atmosphere of mutual understanding,” Abrahamian said during the meeting.
President Rouhani noted, in turn that the Armenian prime Minister’s visit would contribute to the further deepening of friendly relations in different spheres. He said “Iran is willing to support the initiatives of the Armenian side and the implementation of joint programs.”
Abrahamian noted that Armenia’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union provides an opportunity to assume the role of a bridge between the members of the Eurasian Economic Union and foreign trading partners. He added that favorable conditions have been created in Armenia for making investments.
The Iranian President also hailed the role of the Iranian-Armenian community in the development of the country.
The parties referred to the Karabakh conflict and other regional issues. Abrahamian noted that Armenia is committed to the settlement of the Karabakh issue exceptionally in a peaceful way within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. The parties emphasized the importance of resolution of regional conflicts and stressed the need to ensure peace and stability in the region.
Video: Armenian people & history by Sabah Al Dar
People in Sinjar struggling to survive winter conditions
At least ten thousand Yezidis, who did not want to abandon their homes, are struggling to survive as winter sets in on Mount Sinjar.
There are many young children who are in danger if urgent aid does not reach them soon. They are trying to resist the cold in summer clothes and wander barefoot. report by Firat
Families who are living together in thin tents say they have survived thanks to aid that has reached them from Rojava, but complain they have not received any airdrops of aid. With the aid corridor having closed they are concerned where aid will come from.
Families add that everyday their children are falling ill, saying they are worried they will not be able to survive the winter in the present conditions.