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Chilean police and soldiers responded to recent mass protests in a fundamentally repressive manner, committing serious human rights violations including unlawful killings and torture that should be prosecuted, UN investigators have concluded.

The UN human rights office said in a report on Friday that it had documented an alarmingly high number of 345 people suffering eye injuries after being hit by lead pellets fired from anti-riot shotguns by security forces.

Twenty-six people were killed in the protests that began in October over a rise in metro fares but quickly spiraled out of control.

We have found that the overall management of assemblies by the police was carried out in a fundamentally repressive manner, the UN mission leader, Imma Guerras-Delgado, told a Geneva news briefing.

Human rights violations documented include the excessive or unnecessary use of force that led to unlawful killings and injuries, arbitrary detentions, and torture and ill-treatment including sexual violence, she said.

There was no immediate reaction to the report by the office of the UN rights chief, Michelle Bachelet, a former president of Chile, from the government of President Sebastin Piera, which the UN team said had cooperated with its investigation.

During its 30 October-22 November mission, the UN team documented 113 specific cases of torture and ill-treatment mainly through severe beatings and 24 cases of sexual violence against women, men and adolescents by members of the police and army.

It documented four unlawful deaths involving state agents, including two without there having been any apparent risk to the lives of the military personnel, which could amount to an extrajudicial execution, Guerras-Delgado said.

Some 1,615 people remain in pre-trial detention among 28,000 detained since mid-October, she said.

The UN team also observed numerous attacks against the security forces and their premises as well as looting and destruction of private and public property, she said.

We continue to receive allegations of violations by police forces, Guerras-Delgado said. We recommend the immediate end of the indiscriminate use of anti-riot shotguns to control demonstrations.

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Chile: UN calls for prosecution of police and army over response to protests - The Guardian

CAIRO The prime minister of Libya's U.N.-supported government Friday shrugged off threats by his rival, the commander of a self-styled army waging a months-long offensive to capture the capital Tripoli that the zero hour of the battle has begun.

Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj called on Libyans to rally around him in the defense of the nation.

Sarraj's call came a day after Gen. Khalifa Hifter of the self-styled Libyan National Army declared a final, decisive battle" to take Tripoli from Sarraj's U.N.-supported government. "The zero hour has ticked," Hifter said in a televised speech late Thursday.

Since 2015, war-torn Libya has been divided between two governments, one in the east and the other in the west, based in Tripoli and supported by the United Nations, as well as Italy, Turkey and Qatar.

In April, Hifter's east-based army, which is backed by France, Russia and key Arab countries, including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, launched its push on the capital.

After nearly eight months of fighting, Khalifa's forces have not taken Tripoli but have been held off on the city's southern edges, instead laying siege on the Libyan capital. The stalemated fighting has so far left more than 1,000 people dead, mostly combatants. Tens of thousands of civilians have been displaced.

In a video posted on the Libyan government's Facebook page, Sarraj dismissed Hifter's claim about a new push as lies" and delusions" and said his forces have already taught the invaders a lesson.

"I call upon you to rally around the project of a civil state and to show faith in our right to build a state, based on institutions, the rule of law and liberties, Sarraj said. Libya can only end up as an oasis for freedom and democracy.

Since the fighting erupted, Sarraj has portrayed himself as a democratic leader who strives to thwart his rival's alleged attempts to instate a military dictatorship in Libya. Meanwhile, Hifter has argued that his military operation seeks to purge the capital of radical militias allied with Sarraj's government.

The latest statements from Hifter and Sarraj come amid heightened tension between the two warring sides after Sarraj's government signed a security arrangement and maritime deal with Turkey last month. Earlier this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyeb Erdogan said the agreement gives his country the right to send troops to Libya to fend off Hifter's forces from Tripoli.

The head of the EU's delegation for relations with Maghreb Countries, Andrea Cozzolino, said Friday she was concerned about Hifter's threats and warned that a new offensive would only lead "to more suffering for the Libyan civilian population, who have already paid a high price.

I call on the European Union and the international community as a whole to condemn such threats and take all necessary measures to prevent a bloodbath, she said in a statement posted on the official website of the EU parliament.

See the article here:
Libyan PM Unfazed by Commander's Zero Hour Tripoli Push - The New York Times

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States wants to work with Russia to end the conflict in Libya, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday, but he added that he reminded Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov a day ago of the arms embargo that is in place on the North African country.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reacts to reporter's question after making a statement to the press at the State Department in Washington, U.S., December 11, 2019. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Speaking at a news conference at the U.S. State Department, Pompeo said there could be no military solution to the fighting and that Washington had warned countries against sending weapons to Libya.

We want to work with the Russians to get to the negotiating table, have a series of conversations that ultimately lead to a disposition that creates what the UN has been trying to do, Pompeo said.

Foreign Minister Lavrov told me directly yesterday he is prepared to be part of that, to continue it. I reminded him that there is a weapons embargo that is still in place in Libya, and that no nation ought to be providing incremental materiel inside of Libya, he said.

Libya has been divided since 2014 into rival military and political camps based in the capital Tripoli and the east. Fayez al-Serrajs government is in conflict with forces led by Khalifa Haftar based in eastern Libya.

Haftars Libyan National Army (LNA) has been trying since April to take Tripoli. He is backed by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and most recently Russian mercenaries, according to diplomats and Tripoli officials. The LNA denies it has foreign backing.

U.S. President Donald Trump called Haftar in the first weeks of the offensive, in a move that some diplomats took as sign Washington might be backing the former Gaddafi officer. But the United States last month called on the LNA to end its offensive on Tripoli. It also warned against Russias interference.

We have reached out not only to the Russians but to others who are providing weapon systems there and saying its not in the best interest, Pompeo said.

Diplomats say Turkey has supplied drones and trucks to forces allied to Serraj, while the LNA has received support from the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

Two weeks ago Libyas internationally recognized government and Turkey signed an expanded security and military accord, and a memorandum on maritime boundaries, a step that angered Greece, triggering it to expel the Libyan ambassador in response.

Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Lisa Shumaker

Link:
Pompeo says U.S. wants to work with Russia on Libya, reminded Lavrov of arms embargo - Reuters

Russia recently deployed additional military forces to Libya in support of General Khalifa Haftars forces based in the east of the country; a move that could prove problematic for Turkey, which supports the government based in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

While Russian Wagner Group mercenaries have supported Haftar for some time now, Moscow is now deploying regular troops.

Russian regulars are being deployed in significant numbers to support the LNA, said David Schenker the U.S. State Departments assistant secretary for near eastern affairs on Nov. 26, referring to Haftars Libyan National Army (LNA).

In early November, The New York Times reported a significant Russian build-up in Libya.

It has introduced advanced Sukhoi jets, coordinated missile strikes, and precision-guided artillery, as well as the snipers - the same playbook that made Moscow a kingmaker in the Syrian civil war, the New York Times reported.

Turkey meanwhile supports Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli and helped the group repel the LNAs siege on Tripoli last summer. Turkey has also supplied the GNA with Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 armed drones and BMC Kirpi armoured vehicles.

But in recent months, the conflict between the LNA and GNA has been locked in stalemate. Russias intervention, however, could bolster the LNA and enable it to pose a more significant threat to Turkeys GNA ally.

The size and overall strength of Russias military presence in Libya is presently unclear.

There are probably several hundred Russian mercenaries belonging to the Wagner group, but they number less than the thousand that some sources say, said Arnaud Delalande, a freelance defence and security expert who has closely followed the Libyan conflict.

The Russians allowed Haftar's camp to progress slightly on the ground, he said. They are experienced, provide intelligence, support, technical skills.

Yousuf Eltagouri, a Libya analyst and contributor to the Foreign Policy Research Institute, said the Russian deployment of mercenaries and regular troops was quite substantial.

While the effect of Russian ground forces has not translated to swift land grabs by LNA forces, it has significantly bolstered the frontlines, Eltagouri said.

New Russian weapons accompanying ground forces will likely benefit frontline LNA troops and may let up the ongoing stalemate, he said. However, it should be noted that the addition of Russian ground troops has been ongoing for several weeks now, with little impact on the frontlines.

Delalande said that, contrary to the report by the New York Times, no advanced Sukhoi jets had been deployed to Libya.

The LNA Air Force only has old-as-hell Su-22s in its fleet, but they were grounded for months due to intense use on the Tripoli front, he said. It seems that one of them has been overhauled recently and is now flying regularly over Tripoli.

Some Russian pilots and mechanics may have helped the LNA in this task by providing spare parts and support.

Delalande said that while the Russian intervention does constitute a serious threat to the GNA, the progress Haftars troops have made on the ground remains slight and slow.

Eltagouri said the deployment of Russian regulars on the ground might be an indication that Moscow is becoming more involved in fixing the outcome of the war in Haftars favour, especially if Russian air power were added.

Anton Mardasov, a non-resident military affairs expert at the Russian International Affairs Council, said that while Russia previously allowed a public inclination toward Haftar, in 2017-2018 it corrected the situation and began to demonstrate a multidirectional position publicly.

During this period, Russia cautiously supported Haftar from Egypt and provided political strategists and military personnel who repaired the equipment, Mardasov said.

However, this year the situation has changed a bit, he said. According to my information, Moscow has increased its military contingent in Libya both in terms of the number of troops and Wagner mercenaries subordinate to them.

But they do not participate in active battles, and those few videos that allegedly prove their participation are of rather dubious quality and origin.

While Russias intervention may be significant, Eltagouri pointed out that it has not and will not go unnoticed.

Washington is playing close attention to the new role Russia has decided to play, he said. If international actors resist such a move, as already seen between high-level meetings with the LNA and U.S. officials, then the increased role of Russia in the war may be counterbalanced.

However, other than diplomatic negotiations, this is highly unlikely.

Both Delalande and Eltagouri anticipate Turkey sending more military hardware to the GNA.

The Turks will continue to provide the GNA with drones and vehicles, Delalande said. But Turkey will not deploy more technology, especially as drone jamming systems are already installed around Misrata Airport, which is held by Haftars forces.

Eltagouri said in the more likely situation where the increased role of Russian support on behalf of the LNA continues without any international intervention, Turkey would step up its support of the GNA in the absence of the role that Western powers would normally play.

He said he did not expect international reaction if Turkey were to increase its support for the GNA.

Kerim Has, a Moscow-based Russian and Turkish affairs analyst, anticipates that Moscows support for Haftar will likely continue and broaden.

The deepening struggle in possessing and sharing newly found energy reserves, security concerns in the region and the devastating Syrian experience all push Russia to play and strongly keep holding on in Libya, Has said.

That will definitely affect Turkish-Russian relations as the Erdoan government is at odds with not only leading actors in the region including Syria, Egypt, Israel and Greece but also with Haftar, Russias most important partner in Libya, he said.

Turkey seems to highly risk its interests in Libya and the eastern Mediterranean region as it did in Syria before.

A November deal between Turkey and the GNA that said the two countries were maritime neighbours has been disputed by Greece and Cyprus, which say it ignores their territorial waters.

Has said the agreement had also triggered tensions in Turkey-Russia relations.

Even though Russia has huge security, energy and trade interests in cooperation with Turkey, the Libyan issue emerges as a new possible spoiler in Moscow-Ankara relations, he said

It is not just a possibility but turning into a reality that Turkey and Russia again appear on the opposite sides of a civil conflict in Libya unless they can manage the tensions.

And, during an interview with state-run TRT on Monday, Erdoan compared Russia's support for Syria with its support for Libya. ''I hope Russians would not let Haftar become another Syria, Erdoan said.

That said, Has noted that the Libyan case is primarily not a source of irritation in Turkish-Russian relations as there are many other actors included in the eastern Mediterranean equilibrium, namely NATO-members, NATO adversaries, non-NATO partners, non-NATO countries in the region.

Also, Libya has huge energy reserves, which can transform it into a brutal arena for a more devastating battle than Syria.

Ahval English

The views expressed in this column are the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of Ahval.

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What Russias military intervention in Libya means for Turkey - Ahval

For almost seven years, Bill Weld carried the flag for Massachusetts Republicans in the governor's office, starting a 16-year reign of GOP chief executives on Beacon Hill that lasted until 2007.

The Canton Republican still holds the state's gubernatorial record for largest margin of victory in his 1994 landslide re-election, losing just five towns. And he was the MassGOP's nominee for U.S. Senate in 1996 when he mounted a serious campaign to unseat U.S. Sen. John Kerry.

Now, Weld will appear on the March 3 presidential Republican primary ballot in his home state, despite the efforts of the political party he once led.

He has Secretary of State William Galvin, a Democrat, to thank, instead.

Galvin has given all four political parties in Massachusetts - including the Democratic, Republican, Green-Rainbow and Libertarian parties until Friday to submit a list of candidates they want to appear on their Super Tuesday primary ballots. The Massachusetts Democratic Party submitted 15 names, including U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warrern and former Gov. Deval Patrick, on Thursday.

The lists are one of three ways a candidate can qualify for the presidential ballot in Massachusetts, and the MassGOP on Thursdaysubmitted only the nameof incumbent President Donald Trump.

"Having a sitting President as the only name on the potential candidate list is not unprecedented, and is in fact, an established procedure," MassGOP Chair Jim Lyons wrote.

Galvin on Thursday said he will add Weld's name to the ballot.

"I said to Mr. Lyons I would probaby add [Weld] if Mr. Lyons chose not to. He did not, so I will," Galvin said.

Weld thanked Galvin for his stance.

"When I was Governor, Republicans and Democrats in the Commonwealth respected one another and actually worked together," he said. "It is gratifying that such respect remains and that Secretary of State Galvin is ready to defend the rights of all Massachusetts voters."

Weld, who briefly left the Republican Party in 2016 to run as the vice presidential nominee on the Libertarian ticket, is mounting a long-shot primary challenge to President Trump, hoping to damage the incumbent in the process.

The former governor has predicted dire consequences for the Republican Party if Trump is not impeached and removed from office, a message that runs counter to Lyons's support for the president.

State law allows the secretary of state to unilaterally put a candidate on the primary ballot if they have determined the candidate to be "generally advocated or recognized in national news media throughout the United States."

The latest WBUR poll of New Hampshire Republicans had the former Massachusetts governor trailing the president with 9% of the vote. Trump led Weld 82% to 18% in an Emerson College poll of Massachusetts Republicans from April.

"I've already had a conversation with Mr. Lyons about this, and I told him that we had done our review and we thought Mr. Weld, as well as a former Congressman from Illinois, were national candidates," Galvin told the News Service on Thursday.

In addition to Weld, the secretary was referring to former Republican Congressman Joe Walsh. There's a fourth potential candidate Roque de la Fuente who Galvin said he does not consider to be a nationally recognized candidate who will likely have to turn in 2,500 signatures if he wants to qualify for the GOP primary. De la Fuentes ran as a Democrat in 2016 when he also took the signature route to the ballot.

Lyons said that during an incumbent presidency neither political party has submitted names other than that of the sitting president seeking re-election.

"We will follow set protocol and do the same, as has been done before in 2012 under Democratic President Barack Obama and in 2004 under Republican President George W. Bush," Lyons wrote.

Both Obama and Bush ran virtually unopposed in their re-election bids by any nationally known figures with the stature of someone like Weld.

But in 1992, MassGOP Chairman Leon Lombardi only put forward the name of President George H.W. Bush for the ballot, despite the incumbent being challenged by conservative commentator Pat Buchanan. Buchanan did end up getting onto the Massachusetts primary ballot that year, and won almost 75,000 votes, or 28%.

The parties, by law, have until Jan. 3 to submit their lists, but Galvin said he's following the same timeline he used during the last cycle in order to prepare ballots ahead of the Jan. 18 deadline to make them available to military and overseas voters.

Galvin plans to hold a drawing to determine the order of name placement on the ballots on Dec. 20, and candidates have until Jan. 10 to withdraw and have their names removed.

Tom Mountain, a Trump campaign spokesman in Massachusetts and New Hampshire and a member of the MassGOP state committee, has previously said that Weld should give up on his campaign.

"If he has any dignity he should ride off into the sunset," Mountain told the News Service last month after Weld held an event to call for Trump's impeachment. "No one is taking Bill Weld seriously except Bill Weld."

Gov. Charlie Baker suggested recently that he thought the Republican primary in Massachusetts would be a low-turnout affair with or without Weld on the ballot.

When discussing whether to schedule a special election for a state Senate seat on the same day as the primaries, Baker said, "I think having a general election for a state Senate seat on the same day as a presidential primary when you have numerous candidates running on one side, and for all intents and purposes, one and maybe two depending upon how the secretary of state puts the ballot together, on the other doesn't really give voters an opportunity to tune in on the state Senate race, which is what I would like to see them do in that race."

Baker has described Weld as a political mentor, but so far has declined to endorse his former boss over Trump, who he didn't vote for in 2016 and has frequently disagreed with.

Democratic Party Chairman Gus Bickford asked Galvin to include Warren, Patrick, former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Michael Bennet, Sen. Cory Booker, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Michael Bloomberg, Julian Castro, former Congressman John Delaney, U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Tom Steyer, Marianne Williamson and Andrew Yang.

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Bill Weld Will Be On Mass. Primary Ballots Despite The State GOP's Effort To Block Him - WBUR