Iran- UN High commissioner for human rights: “my Office has been given no access since 2013.”

 Wednesday, 14 September 2016 17:38

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NCRI - Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in his opening statement at 33rd Session of Human Rights Council,  which was held in Geneva on 13 September 2016, by referring to Iranian regime's behaviour of disregard and disrespect for international law stated:

“Regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran, my Office has been given no access since 2013 – despite several years of good technical cooperation prior to that date. Our offers to begin a technical dialogue on the death penalty have been systematically overlooked, as have all other proposals of engagement. This is particularly regrettable given the reports we continue to receive of fundamental problems with the administration of criminal justice; continued execution of large numbers of people, including juveniles; allegations of discrimination and prosecution of religious and ethnic minorities; harsh restrictions on human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists; and discrimination against women both in law and practice.”

Brazil Photojournalists Protest Police Violence

SAO PAULO – Press photographers and videographers gathered in Sao Paulo on Wednesday to denounce police violence directed at media workers covering protests against the right-wing government of Brazil’s new president, Michel Temer.

Rio de Paz, a human rights NGO, organized the demonstration outside the Sao Paulo Museum of Art, located on the main thoroughfare of Brazil’s largest city.

Several of the participants held up a banner reading: “Free press: No to violence.”

“For being press and being with a camera in hand, one is a target for the police. And for being black one is a double-target,” free-lance photographer Vinicius Gomes told EFE.

“It was not by chance that they picked me from among five photographers who were there, to beat me and throw my camera on the ground,” he said. “They picked me for being a shaggy black guy who would not cause problems if he was beaten.”

Many of those present wore eye patches in tribute to photographer Sergio Silva, who lost his sight due to an injury suffered while covering a protest in 2013.

Police repression has grown worse since then, Gomes said, adding: “I only go to protests with a helmet and protective glasses.”

The media workers at Wednesday’s event demanded investigations of incidents such as a Sept. 4 police assault on a BBC journalist during a protest in Sao Paulo’s Pinheiros neighborhood.

In another case, a rubber bullet fired by police struck an EFE photographer, destroying the PC in his backpack.

Protests have intensified in Brazil since the Aug. 31 Senate vote to oust twice-elected President Dilma Rousseff over alleged budget irregularities, paving the way for erstwhile Vice President Temer to become head of state.

Last week, the office of the national ombudsman announced plans to monitor police conduct during demonstrations in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

Thousands Protest against Gay Marriage in over 100 Cities in Mexico

MEXICO CITY – Thousands of people took to the streets in 120 cities across Mexico this weekend to protest President Enrique Peña Nieto’s plan to amend the constitution to recognize same-sex marriages.

The National Front for the Family organized marches Saturday in 29 states to express opposition to the same-sex marriage proposal unveiled by the president in May and backed by the Supreme Court.

Peña Nieto’s plan, which is opposed by the Catholic Church, awaits debate in Congress.

The governing Institutional Revolutionary Party, however, said a few weeks ago that the measure was not “among the priorities” for the next Congress.

The National Front for the Family plans a march to support traditional marriage on Sept. 24 in Mexico City.

Two Lawyer's killed in Shooting at Prosecutor’s Office in Mexico

GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Two people were killed and three others wounded in this western Mexican metropolis on Wednesday as the result of a shooting inside the Jacinto state Attorney General’s Office, AG Eduardo Almaguer said.

The fatalities include the shooter, 56-year-old Luis Homero Aguila, a lawyer in private practice who came to the building on business, the attorney general told a press conference.

When he was unable to find the person he came to see, Aguila returned to the reception area and began shooting, Almaguer said.

Aguila, a regular visitor to the office, was able to enter the building with two handguns due to guards’ failure to carry out a routine security check, the attorney general said.

The lawyer killed social worker Maria Veronica Garcia Carmona, 58, and wounded two other women as well as an AG Office investigator.

Hearing the shots, several armed agents rushed to the reception area and fatally shot Aguila.

Though the assailant claimed to be an army veteran and was known as “General Aguila,” Mexican defense officials said they could find no record he had ever served in the military.

Aguila had “behavioral problems,” but authorities are still trying to determine whether he suffered from any mental illness, the attorney general said.

Almaguer denied media reports that Aguila had made death threats against AG Office employees on more than one occasion.

The two women wounded in the shooting are in “very serious condition,” according to Marcelo Castillero, the Jacinto delegate of the IMSS health service

Iran – Kurdish young female political prisoner in serious health condition

Monday, 12 September 2016 15:37

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NCRI - The intelligent forces in the city of Mahabad (Iranian Kurdish region) finally announced that “Manijeh Fatehi”, a 22-year-old girl from Bukan, is held in custody in Mahabad’s intelligence office. The announcement was made under pressure from Manijeh’s family six month after she was silently arrested.

According to reports, Manijeh’s family could talk to her on Sunday September 4 for only 20 minutes while being monitored by Mullahs’ intelligence agents. During this short visit, Manijeh couldn’t even explain to her family why she was arrested. Manijeh’s family later said that their daughter has been in serious health conditions.

22-year-old Manijeh Fatehi is daughter of Bahman and comes from Bukan. She was arrested in her house In March 5, 2016 at around 7 pm by three of the regime’s security forces while having no judicial authorization. She was then transferred to an unknown location.

Mahabad’s intelligence office has announced that having relations with Kurdish opposition groups was their excuse for arresting Manijeh Fatehi.

Obama Warns of Serious Consequences after N. Korean Nuclear Test

WASHINGTON, United States - The latest nuclear test by North Korea early in the day will have serious consequences, U.S. President Barack Obama warned Friday.

In a White House statement, Obama called the nuclear test a "provocation" and reiterated that the U.S. was committed to the security of its allies in Asia and throughout the world.

Obama also spoke on the telephone with South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, after National Security Advisor Susan Rice briefed him on the seismic activity detected in North Korea.

At 9.30 am Seoul time on Friday, a 5-magnitude artificial earthquake was detected near the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site in North Korea, which the Kim regime confirmed later as its fifth nuclear test.

Obama will continue holding discussions with U.S. allies and partners over the next few days to address North Korea's provocative actions, the statement added. 

Mexico- Drug dealer's shoot down police helicopter

MORELIA, Mexico – Suspected drug traffickers downed a police helicopter in the western Mexican state of Michoacan, killing the pilot and three officers, Gov. Silvano Aureoles said.

The governor said on Twitter that the attack occurred while the helicopter was providing support to an operation aimed at arresting leaders of criminal cells in an area difficult to access by land.

He added that one other officer was injured.

The attack occurred Tuesday afternoon in La Angostura, a community in the south-central part of Michoacan, while the helicopter was providing support for soldiers and federal and state police during an operation targeting an armed group that was believed to be escorting Ignacio Andrade Renteria, or “El Cenizo.”

Andrade Renteria has been identified as the former chief enforcer of Los Caballeros Templarios (Knights Templar), a drug gang weakened since 2013 by the emergence of vigilante groups in Michoacan.

Andrade Renteria currently is on the Mexican authorities’ list of most-wanted suspects.

Last weekend, soldiers and police seized an arsenal that included two rocket launchers and three anti-tank missiles after two clashes with purported enforcers on the payroll of El Cenizo.

El Cenizo allegedly currently works for the Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel, which operates in Michoacan along with the Nueva Familia Michoacana, Los Caballeros Templarios, Los Viagras and Los H-3 gangs, among others.