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Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 22:16:51 GMT

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Friday, January 25, 2013

Jordan

Sources [edit]

BBC News. "Syria conflict: UN says refugee crisis in Jordan 'critical'" — BBC News Online, January 24, 2013
Michael Pearson. "Syrian refugees continue to flood Jordan amid warnings of crisis" — CNN, January 24, 2013
"UN to open new refugee camp in Jordan amid growing influx of displaced Syrians" — UN News Centre, January 25, 2013

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Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 22:44:17 GMT

Wikinews Sports

Sources [edit]

This article is a featured article. It is considered one of the best works of the Wikinews community. See Wikinews:Featured articles for more information.

SAPA - AP. "Tokyo outlines plans to host 2020 Games" — SuperSport, January 8, 2012
Simon Hart. "Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul submit their bids to host 2020 Olympics Games" — The Daily Telegraph, January 7, 2012
Associated Press. "Tokyo, Madrid, Istanbul submit 2020 bid books" — The Japan Times, January 7, 2012
Duncan Mackay. "Tokyo odds-on favourites to win 2020 Olympic race, claim bookmakers" — Inside the Games, January 7, 2012
Duncan Mackay. ""New Turkey, New Bid" declares Arat as Istanbul 2020 deliver Candidature file" — Inside the Games, January 7, 2012
Duncan Mackay. "Hosting the Olympics is "dream for all Spaniards" claims Madrid Mayor" — Inside the Games, January 7, 2012
Duncan Mackay. "Cities bidding for 2020 preparing to hand in Candidature files" — Inside the Games, January 6, 2012

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Syrian opposition report fuel station bombing kills at least nine

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 00:36:46 GMT

Friday, January 4, 2013

Syria

Other stories from Syria

25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
4 January 2013: Syrian opposition report fuel station bombing kills at least nine
19 December 2012: Journalists escape after being kidnapped in Syria
2 December 2012: Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

...More articles here

Location of Syria

To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

Opposition activists in Syria say nine or more people have died as the result of a car bomb explosion at a fuel station in the Barzeh al-Balad district of Damascus, the capital of the country, according to BBC News Online. News agency Reuters has placed the minimum death toll at eleven while also reporting at least forty injuries. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights believes an increase in the number of fatalities recorded is probable.

At the time of the incident, a large number of people were waiting at the station to collect petrol. Activists say Syria is short of petrol because of the ongoing civil war, which started during 2011. BBC News Online says drivers queueing at fuel stations for hours is a frequent occurrence in the country.

An unidentified activist told Reuters the fuel station was "usually packed even when it has no fuel. There are lots of people who sleep there overnight, waiting for early morning fuel consignments". The same person reported witnessing the bodies of burned people being placed onto ambulances, as well as those with wounds and severe burns, and vehicles the blast had destroyed being towed away. The activist, a local resident, said security workers at the station then told him to leave the scene.

The Revolution Leadership Council, which is part of the Syrian opposition, cited "a booby-trapped car" as the source of the explosion. It is unclear at this stage as to who was responsible for the incident, although the local activist who spoke to Reuters said there had been increased conflict between civilians and militia supportive of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at fuel stations recently.

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Sources [edit]

"Syria petrol station hit by deadly car bomb" — BBC News Online, January 3, 2013
Khaled Yacoub Oweis. "Car bomb hits Damascus petrol station, 11 killed" — Reuters, January 3, 2013

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Journalists escape after being kidnapped in Syria

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 07:57:11 GMT

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Syria

Other stories from Syria

25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
4 January 2013: Syrian opposition report fuel station bombing kills at least nine
19 December 2012: Journalists escape after being kidnapped in Syria
2 December 2012: Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

...More articles here

Location of Syria

To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

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Video showing rocket strike near camera from a citizen journalist broadcasting live footage from Homs, Syria on February 9.
Image: Baba-Omer via Bambuser.

At least two journalists were released after being held captive in Syria for approximately five days according to NBC News. Turkish journalist Aziz Akyavaş and US journalist Richard Engel went missing on Thursday. Both work for NBC News and were on assignment in the country.

"After being kidnapped and held for five days inside Syria by an unknown group, NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel and his production crew members have been freed unharmed. We are pleased to report they are safely out of the country," said NBC News in a statement on their website.

Earlier NTV, the Turkish language partner of MSNBC, reported Akyavaş may have been "arrested and detained in Syria"^((tr)), but they also added, "[we] do not have any information yet."^((tr)) The Kuwait News Agency reported Akyavaş may have been kidnapped, but also reported Engel was the one who announced Akyavaş was missing.

The journalists went missing after crossing into Syria from the Turkish border. NBC News says Engel and others were tied up, blindfolded, and put in the back of a truck and driven to possibly near the Syrian town of Ma’arrat Misrin. When they were moved to another location, the kidnappers accidentally approached a Syrian rebel checkpoint and a gunfight broke out. Two unnamed captors were killed in the attack, but Engel and others were able to escape. No one has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping and no one was injured. NBC News never had contact with their captors and a ransom demand was never made.

Little was initially known about the situation. At first, NBC didn't officially acknowledge either of the journalists were missing and according to Gawker, they website was "subject to a news blackout — one to which Gawker agreed until now — for at least the past 24 hours."

Engel is a regular user of the social networking website Twitter and has not posted a 'Tweet' since December 6. His last official report was filed on December 11.

In February, Wikinews reported journalists were apparently targeted in Syrian government attacks, and some of them killed. On February 9, a Syrian citizen journalist named 'Omar' was airing a live feed of the bombardment of Homs when several rockets struck near the camera's position, nearly destroying it. On February 21, a member of the Homs Media Center was killed by a rocket as Syrian forces continued their bombardment of the city for an eighteenth straight day. A day later, Marie Colvin, a Sunday Times journalist, and award winning French photographer Rémi Ochlik, were killed when rockets again hit the media center. At least two others were injured in the attack, French journalist Edith Bouvier and British photographer Paul Conroy.

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Sources [edit]

"Gazeteci Aziz Akyavaş serbest bırakıldı" — TGRT Haber, December 18, 2012 (Turkish)
Mike Brunker. "Richard Engel and NBC News team freed from captors in Syria" — NBC News, December 18, 2012
"Turkish reporter missing inside Syria since past five days" — Kuwait News Agency, December 17, 2012
Danica Bellini. "Richard Engel Missing in Syria: Popular NBC News Foreign Correspondent Whereabouts Unknown, America News Blackout Broken" — Mstar News, December 17, 2012
John Cook. "Richard Engel is Missing in Syria; NBC News Enforces News Blackout" — Gawker, December 17, 2012
"Türk gazeteci Suriye'de kayıp" — NTV (Turkey), December 17, 2012 (Turkish)
"Aziz Akyavaş 4 gündür Suriye’de kayıp" — Hürriyet, December 16, 2012 (Turkish)

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Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

Sun, 02 Dec 2012 16:12:45 GMT

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Syria

Other stories from Syria

25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
4 January 2013: Syrian opposition report fuel station bombing kills at least nine
19 December 2012: Journalists escape after being kidnapped in Syria
2 December 2012: Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

...More articles here

Location of Syria

To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

Emails allegedly hacked from Syrian government accounts, leaked onto the Internet, indicate Iran and Syria are supplying weapons made in Ukraine and Belarus to Hamas in Palestine.

One of the leaked letters from the Syrian Embassy in Tehran, requesting Iranian tourist visas for the Syrian Ambassador's brother and son, who have Romanian citizenship.
Image: Syrian Embassy.

The online activist group known as Anonymous takes responsibility for the leak, which comprises over 2,000 emails and other files totaling around 1 gigabyte. The leak is part of Anonymous' ongoing campaign known as '#OpSyria' or 'Operation Syria' on the social networking website Twitter.

On Monday at 2030 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), 'Par:AnoIA,' one of many Twitter accounts connected to Anonymous, stated that the group would "release a stash of Syrian Government emails in the next 24h, featuring Kofi Annan correspondence, cash & weapon deliveries." Three hours later the same user announced a leak of "1 Gigabyte [of] internal emails from [the] Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs" onto the internet.

The first email leaked was called a "teaser", from the Syrian embassy in Tehran on November 20, to the British embassy in Belarus. In the communique, the embassy confirms the Iranians are supplying helicopters and Ukrainian made weapons to Hamas, which operates mostly from the Gaza Strip in Palestine. "1.2D projectiles of Ukraine origin found in Egypt and Syria" are some of the weapons being sent to Palestine along with "EC725 Helicopters".

"Since 2008 Iran is the main transit point for Palestine armament", says the email. It also goes on to say the weapons are made in Ukraine as part of "2008 arms trade operations sanctioned by The [Ukrainian] Minister of Defense Anatoly Gritsenko.

Although evidence could suggest Iran's willingness to supply arms to Hamas, in a report compiled on November 2, by the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Iran is trying to stop weapons from being sent into Syria for the Free Syrian Army (FSA). The report quotes Iran's Supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who called for the FSA "to lay down their arms to be able to deliver their demands to the Syrian government."^((ar)) In regards to the civil war in Syria, Khamenei went on to say that if outside entities "were to provide the opponents in every country of weapons from outside the country, it is natural that the regime responds to opponents"^((ar)).

This is not the first time Anonymous has hacked into Syrian government email accounts. In February, the group hacked into 78 Syrian government email accounts and leaked the usernames and passwords associated with them. The accounts accessed reportedly belonged to aides of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. One of the leaked emails, allegedly written by a press aide at Syria's mission at the UN in New York named Sheherazad Jaafari, talks about Assad's preparation for a December 2011 television interview with ABC News' Barbara Walters. In it, Jaafari wrote about ways the Syrian president might be able to manipulate the television audience.

"The American audience doesn't really care about reforms. They won't understand it and they are not interested to do so.... American Psyche can be easily manipulated when they hear that there are 'mistakes' done and now we are 'ﬁxing it.' ... Its^[sic] worth mentioning also what is happening now in Wall Street [Occupy Wall Street] and the way the demonstrations are been suppressed by police men, police dogs and beatings," wrote Jaafari.

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Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

tehran@mofa.gov.sy. "Additional Information Requested by HE" — par-anoia.net, November 26, 2012 (Posted)
"Tweet: 1 Gigabyte release" — Twitter, November 26, 2012; 2330 UTC
"Tweet: Syria Teaser" — Twitter, November 26, 2012
"Tweet: Announcing release within next 24 hours" — Twitter, November 26, 2012; 2029 UTC
Dante D'Orazio. "Anonymous hacks into 78 Syrian government email accounts" — The Verge, February 8, 2012
Chloe Albanesius. "Anonymous Hacks Syrian President's Emails" — PC Magazine, February 7, 2012

External links [edit]

"Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (mofa.gov.sy) releases and downloads" — par-anoia.net, November 26, 2012 (Posted)

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World leaders react to Obama win

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 21:41:41 GMT

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Barack Obama
Image: Pete Souza.

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

Leaders from around the world have congratulated re-elected U.S. President Barack Obama on his success at the ballot box.

Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu stated that he "will continue to work with President Obama to preserve the strategic interests of Israel's citizens" and described relations between the U.S. and Israel as "rock solid". Some others within the ruling Likud party were not so optimistic about the relationship, with Knesset member Danny Danon criticising Obama for "ill-advised" policies towards Israel and hoping Obama "resets his course relating to Israel and our region for the next four years".

A statement on behalf of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas expressed hope that Obama "continues his efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East".

The British Prime Minister David Cameron took time from his tour of the Middle East to congratulate Obama and listed as shared priorities a trade deal between the U.S. and the United Kingdom as well as solving the crisis in Syria. Ed Miliband, leader of the opposition Labour Party, stated on Twitter that Obama's success in the election was "based on building fairer economy and optimism about what politics can achieve."

French leader François Hollande said in choosing Obama over Mitt Romney, voters in the United States had voted for "an America of openness and solidarity, fully engaged on the international scene and conscious of the challenges facing our planet: peace, economy and the environment". He listed economic growth, unemployment, and the Middle East as challenges the two politicians would have to face. German leader Angela Merkel stated she "deeply appreciated" meetings and conversations with Obama on issues including "overcoming the global financial and economic crisis".

Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, and Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, issued a joint statement which described the U.S. as "a key strategic partner of the European Union" and hoped to meet Obama "at an early date in order to reconfirm our priorities and provide renewed impetus to our joint action".

Across Africa, Obama received congratulations from South African President Jacob Zuma, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, and Raila Odinga, the Prime Minister of Kenya.

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Sources [edit]

Joshua Mitnick. "Israel moves quickly to congratulate Obama" — The Christian Science Monitor, November 7, 2012
"Obama's re-election: The world reacts" — BBC News Online, November 7, 2012
"David Cameron congratulates Barack Obama on re-election victory" — BBC News Online, November 7, 2012
Angelique Chrisafis. "France's reaction to Obama's election victory" — The Guardian, November 7, 2012

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Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party

Mon, 05 Nov 2012 11:10:51 GMT

Monday, November 5, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

With the U.S. presidential election looming, former New Mexico governor and current Libertarian Party presidential nominee Gary Johnson spoke with Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn on an assortment of economic, foreign, and social issues. In the interview, Johnson makes his final plea to voters before they cast their ballots on Election Day, November 6.

Gary Johnson.
Image: Gary Johnson.

Though a member of the Libertarian Party in the early 1990s, Johnson was elected and re-elected governor of New Mexico in 1994 and 1998 as a Republican. During his governorship, he vetoed over 750 bills, more than all other then-governors combined, and left the state with a $1 billion budget surplus. He briefly ran for president as a Republican in 2011 before rejoining the Libertarian Party to seek its 2012 presidential nomination.

After winning the nomination this past May, Johnson has campaigned throughout the nation espousing the Fair Tax, spending cuts across the board, a repeal of Obamacare, an audit of the Federal Reserve, a non-interventionist foreign policy, an end to the Drug War, and legalization of same-sex marriage. He and his running mate, Judge Jim Gray of California, have attained ballot access in all U.S. states except Michigan, where he is a write-in candidate, and Oklahoma. Nationally, he has received four percent registered-voter support in the past two CNN/Opinion Research Polls that included him with President Barack Obama, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and Green Party nominee Jill Stein. It is the campaign's goal to reach five percent on Election Day, which will enable the party to receive ballot access and federal funding on par with the two major parties.

With Wikinews, Johnson discusses the federal budget, education, entitlements, the Syrian uprising, Mexican Drug War, same-sex marriage, the Libertarian Party, and his political future.

1 Economic matters
2 Foreign affairs
3 Social issues
4 Libertarian Party and political future
5 Related news
6 Sources

Economic matters [edit]

William S. Saturn:You say that as president, you would propose a balanced budget "not five or ten years down the road" but in 2013. Realistically can that budget pass, especially with a Congress hostile to your proposed spending cuts and tax plan?

Gary Johnson: I would suggest that if I'm elected president promising to submit a balanced budget to Congress in the year 2013, and also promising to veto any legislation where expenses exceed revenue, even though they would override my veto, I'm going to suggest to you that spending will be lower with those two promises kept than any other scenario you could possibly come up with.

WSSYou also propose decreasing federal education spending including decreases in Pell Grants and loans for college students. Is that correct?

Johnson: Well the reason being is that because of guaranteed government student loans that is the reason why college tuition is so high. It's an artificial market. It's not a market made up of supply and demand. And it's a market where kids are going to school because they're guaranteed a government student loan and because of that, the vast institutions of higher learning, colleges and universities are immune from pricing much much dramatically lower than they would have to price themselves at if government student loans did not exist. And of course you wouldn't cut students off that are currently receiving student loans. And that isn't to say that government student loans would go away. It's just that you wouldn't make government the guarantor of those student loans.

WSSSo it wouldn't be an immediate cut?

Johnson: Well it would be immediate...You know it's not really a cut because student loans are student loans. You can't escape a student loan even under bankruptcy. So these loans are going to get paid back but the argument is is that student loans, government-guaranteed student loans are a direct cause of tuition being as high as it is.

WSSOkay. I have a question here about entitlements: During the Tea Party Republican Party Debate on September 12, 2011, one of which you were not invited to, Wolf Blitzer [the debate’s moderator], he provided the following scenario to Ron Paul, this is what he said, he said:

"A healthy thirty-year-old young man has a good job, makes a good living, but decides, you know what? I'm not going to spend $200 or $300 a month for health insurance because I'm healthy, I don't need it. But something terrible happens, all of a sudden he needs it. Who's going to pay if he goes into a coma?"

Now Ron Paul answered that question. If you were at that debate, how would you have responded to that?

Johnson: Well, first of all, I think there are those who are truly in need. So you're talking about a thirty-year-old who doesn't have health insurance; there conceivably could be government step in and it would be state government, not federal government. I really believe that we have to slash Medicare and Medicaid spending; that Medicare is a program that you and I put $30,000 into in our lifetimes and we receive $100,000 plus benefits and by that whatever we contribute in we get back three times, more than three times what we contribute in. So it's not sustainable. Federally funded healthcare is not sustainable. So with that said, I would leave it to the states to draw new lines of eligibility and when it comes to this hypothetical kid that you're talking about that falls into a coma, I'm believing that state governments will come up with a program to address that kind of individual.

Foreign affairs [edit]

William S. SaturnLet's shift to foreign affairs. On your website, you say "America simply cannot afford to be engaged in foreign policy programs that are not clearly protecting U.S. interests." In the case of a humanitarian crisis as in Syria right now, does the U.S. ever have a moral obligation to intervene militarily even if it is not clearly in the U.S. interest?

Gary Johnson: No. To intervene in Syria...Look, we end up supporting a new dictatorship that takes over from the old dictatorship. The results are no better or even worse than the old. So we intervene in the name of humanity, and the result is like I say, more times than not, a situation that is worse, not better.

WSSLet's say it's like Hitler's Germany, would intervention be necessary then?

Johnson: Well yeah. The notion of...Well first of all, let me borrow from a Supreme Court Justice that was asked his definition of pornography. [He said] You know what, I can't give you a definition of pornography but I'd like to think that when I see it I recognize it. And so when you talk about humanitarian, when you talk about atrocities, when you talk about genocide, when you talk about the Holocaust, I don't think any of us want to stand by and watch something like that happen. How do you define that? Well as the commander-in-chief, I'd like to think I'd be the first one that would recognize it if it actually was occurring. And of course, as the leader of the United States, I would have to be articulate in that and make my case for intervention. If we were to intervene, first and foremost would be Congress vetting that and actually approving that, but look, I just think that we militarily intervene as a result of our military intervention, but I think we have hundreds of millions of enemies to this country that look for our military intervention that otherwise would not exist. We kill tens of thousands of innocent civilians in the countries where we militarily intervene. Our men and service women end up dying. Our men and service women come back with their limbs blown off.

WSSYou were the governor of a border state. As president, what would you do to prevent the violence in Mexico from spilling over into the United States?

Johnson: That violence is a prohibition phenomenon. If you legalize marijuana, arguably 75 percent of that border violence with Mexico goes away. These are disputes that are being played out with guns rather than the courts. Forty thousand deaths south of the border over the last four years. These are disputes that are being played out with guns rather than the courts.

WSSBut as president, would you increase border security or would you keep it the same?

Johnson: No. I would not build a fence. I think there would be less of a need for border security if we had a moving line for immigrants that would want to come into this country and work to get a work visa. So my pledge is I'm going to create a moving line for immigrants that want to come into this country and work to get a work visa. That would entail a background check and a Social Security card so that applicable taxes would get paid. I am espousing eliminating income tax, corporate tax, abolishing the IRS and replacing it all with one federal consumption tax: the fair tax. If we adopt the fair tax, taxes will not be an issue. Whether you're illegal, legal, a visitor to the U.S., or a U.S. citizen, nobody is going to avoid paying one federal consumption tax.

Social issues [edit]

William S. SaturnLet's get into social issues now. You criticized President Obama for his stance that same-sex marriage be left to the states. With the Tenth Amendment in mind, why should same-sex marriage be a federal issue and why should the federal government mandate that states allow same sex marriage?

Gary Johnson: Well I think that first and foremost that as president of the United States you take an oath to govern under strict adherence to the U.S. Constitution. I would espouse...I would suggest that marriage equality is a constitutionally guaranteed right of Equal Protection Clause that is on par with Civil Rights of the sixties. It's not a states issue, that it's a federal issue and that the federal government should be involved. If you say it's a state issue where 42 states have said that marriage is between a man and a woman. Effectively what you're saying is that 'I'm not going to do anything when it comes to marriage equality', and I take the position that marriage equality is a constitutionally guaranteed right so goes the federal involvement.

Libertarian Party and political future [edit]

William S. SaturnOkay I'm getting to my final questions here. I want to talk about the Libertarian Party. The first nominee of the Party was John Hospers, who died last year, and he was a supporter of Republican President George W. Bush. The next nominee Roger MacBride also left the party and went to the Republican Party. The 1988 nominee Ron Paul, as we all know, serves in the House of Representatives as a member of the Republican Party, and his son [Rand Paul] serves in the Senate as a member of the Republican Party. Both the 2008 presidential and vice-presidential nominees of the Libertarian Party: Bob Barr and Wayne Allyn Root have recently rejoined the Republican Party and have both endorsed Mitt Romney for president. In fact, until the end of last year, you too were a member of the Republican Party. So why does it seem Libertarians flock to the Republican Party?

Gary Johnson: I'm not so certain...I think that the tie-in is [libertarian] Republicans are fiscally conservative and socially accepting. That's the, I think, the heading under which most Americans are. I will just tell you that last night, although it did not happen, apparently the Democrats were going to come and protest my speaking at the University of Colorado at Boulder. I guess it was all those anti-gay, anti-immigration, pro-Drug War, pro-military interventionists that were going to show up and protest me.

WSSBut you admit that there are some Liberty Republicans and that Republicans make up a large portion of libertarians. Is that correct?

Johnson: Well, I think libertarians are libertarians. I mean, the largest political affiliation in the country right now is Independent and I think if you took the pulse of Independents, I think you'd find that majority of Independents are libertarians. I think libertarian-leaning, if you go to that category, if you include Democrats, Independents, and Republicans, I think the majority of Americans in some way, shape, or form describe themselves as libertarian-leaning.

WSSWell let's say someone is a libertarian-leaning Republican like Rand Paul in the Senate. Should such libertarian Republicans support you and guaranteeing their vote will go to you rather than voting Republican...Let me rephrase this question... Let's say that a Rand Paul Republican was considering who to vote for and they could choose between guaranteeing their vote would not go to the Republican, which they see as the small-government alternative in the duopoly, rather than voting Republican and ensuring their vote will go to someone who they believe is the small government alternative, should they still support you?

Johnson: Well yeah, because really Republicans aren't small government. I mean, if you go back to the [Vice presidential] debate the other night between [Republican vice presidential nominee Paul] Ryan and [Vice president Joe] Biden, Ryan says toward the end of the debate, he goes, hey, look we're going to increase spending by three percent, they're going to increase spending by four and a half percent, what's the big deal? I would echo that. What's the big deal? There's not a big deal between either one of them and if libertarian-leaning Republicans want to send a message to elected Republican leaders then vote for me that's how you're going to send a message. You're not going to send a message by voting in the status quo. The status quo being much to do about nothing.

WSSThis is my final question here. The OC Weekly website reported last week that your running mate, Judge Jim Gray remarked during an appearance at Tulane University that you two plan to run again in 2016. Can you confirm whether that is correct?

Johnson: Well, we've created statewide organizations. There's a tremendous amount of interest. What is that going equates when it comes to votes? You know what, I don't know what that's going to equate to votes on Election Day, but I'll just say from my standpoint, William, there's just a whole lot of enthusiasm and I do think that this is the future of politics so I'm staying around here, I think the last thing anyone wants to hear is that I'm going to run again when, you know, this is an election that hasn't even taken place, and I mean the one on Tuesday. [There's] lots of time to be looking at those kind of options.

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Sources [edit]

This exclusive interview features first-hand journalism by a Wikinews reporter. See the collaboration page for more details.

"A vote for Liberty is not wasted" — Gary Johnson 2012, November 5, 2012 (date of access)
R. Scott Moxley. "Libertarian Presidential Duo of Gary Johnson & Jim Gray Plot 2016 White House Run" — OC Weekly, October 24, 2012
"Presidency2012: Ballot Access" — Politics1.com, October 22, 2012

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On the campaign trail, October 2012

Mon, 05 Nov 2012 07:28:12 GMT

This article mentions the Wikimedia Foundation, one of its projects, or people related to it. Wikinews is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation.

Monday, November 5, 2012

2012 United States Presidential Election

2012 U.S. Presidential Election stories

7 November 2012: World leaders react to Obama win
7 November 2012: United States re-elects Barack Obama
7 November 2012: Australian Broadcasting Corporation plans to call California for Obama before polls close
5 November 2012: Wikinews interviews former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, presidential nominee of the Libertarian Party
5 November 2012: On the campaign trail, October 2012

The following is the twelfth and final edition of a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2012 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after a brief mention of some of the month's biggest stories.

In this month's edition on the campaign trail: a fan of Wikinews asks a critical question at the Second presidential debate; Gary Johnson discusses Syria and foreign intervention with Wikinews, and three candidates give the their final plea to voters ahead of the November 6 election.

1 Summary
2 Wikinews fan sparks controversy at second presidential debate
3 Gary Johnson speaks to Wikinews on Syria and foreign intervention
4 The final pleas...
5 Related news
6 Sources

Summary [edit]

October opened with President Barack Obama comfortably leading Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in most polls. This changed following the first presidential debate, which opinion polls and commentators declared as a Romney victory. Around 67 million Americans watched the Jim Lehrer-moderated debate, which focused on economic matters. CBS News analysis described the debate as possibly the best night of the Romney campaign, finding him in control of the discourse and appearing "reasonable, pragmatic and respectful." On the other hand, the analysis characterized Obama as cautious, lacking energy, and exercising poor body language, particularly in his propensity to look down at his podium while Romney spoke. One memorable exchange occurred when Romney argued that he would cut federal funding to Lehrer's network PBS, prefacing that he actually liked Lehrer, the network, and its Sesame Street character Big Bird, but argued that he would not continue "to borrow money from China to pay for it." Afterwards, Romney experienced a bounce in the national polls, surpassing Obama for the lead in several. Shortly after the debate, September's economic report was released, revealing a fall in unemployment to 7.8 percent, the lowest rate since the beginning of the Obama presidency. However, the Obama campaign hit a potential stumbling block as State Department officials reported details on the September 11 embassy attack in Benghazi, Libya that led to the deaths of four Americans including Ambassador Christopher Stevens. The administration had earlier claimed the attacks resulted from Innocence of Muslims protests, but it emerged the attacks were planned. The report raised questions of what the administration knew and why better protection was not provided to the consulate. The story broke just shy of the one and only Vice Presidential Debate between Vice President Joe Biden and Republican Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan, held in Danville, Kentucky. Though analysts drew contrasting conclusions on who won the debate with many believing Biden had won it on substance, much post-debate discussion focused on Biden's aggression, use of the word "malarkey", incessant smiling and laughing, and interruptions of both Ryan and the moderator Martha Raddatz of ABC News.

Third party candidates Jill Stein, Rocky Anderson, Virgil Goode, and Gary Johnson participate in the 2012 Free and Equal presidential debate.
Image: Connie Ma.

Shortly thereafter, the second presidential debate commenced in Hempstead, New York, moderated by CNN's Candy Crowley. The debate's town hall format allowed the candidates to walk around the stage as they answered pre-selected questions from audience members. In contrast to the first debate, Obama appeared energetic and aggressive, as did Romney. CBS News described the debate as "contentious" with Obama and Romney attacking each other often and appearing to almost "come to blows" on one exchange. One such exchange occurred when Romney and Obama went back-and-forth about oil leases on federal lands. Obama claimed oil production increased during his administration; Romney agreed but countered that the increase was due only to private production, and that oil leases and production on federal lands actually decreased. The Benghazi attack presented another contentious topic at the debate with Obama claiming that he labeled the incident as a terrorist attack on the day after it happened, which Crowley confirmed, though she also noted the administration later claimed the incident was a reaction to the Innocence of Muslims. Before the next debate, the candidates appeared jointly at a less serious event, each taking part in the traditional Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner hosted by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, where they joked about the election, their opponent, and themselves. The final debate held at Florida's Lynn University and hosted by CBS News' Bob Schieffer focused on foreign affairs, which the candidates often appeared to agree on. Notably, Romney avoided criticism of the president for his handling of the September 11 Benghazi attack. One disagreement between the candidates concerned the issue of military strength. Romney accused Obama of proposing budget cuts for the military and criticized him for maintaining a Navy with the fewest battleships since 1917. Obama countered that "we also have fewer horses and bayonets. Because the nature of the military has changed. We have these things called aircraft carriers, where planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines."

The next day, four third party candidates excluded from the national debates for not meeting the Commission on Presidential Debates' polling threshold, but who satisfied the commission's ballot access requirements, took part in a debate of their own sponsored by the Free and Equal Elections Foundation and broadcast on C-SPAN with Larry King as the moderator. Those taking part in the debate included former New Mexico governor and Libertarian Party presidential nominee Gary Johnson, former congressman and Constitution Party nominee Virgil Goode, former Salt Lake City Mayor and Justice Party nominee Rocky Anderson, and physician Jill Stein, presidential nominee of the Green Party. The two candidates that received the highest number of votes following the event, Johnson and Stein, were then invited to a one-on-one-debate scheduled for the next week. The event was postponed due to the Superstorm Hurricane Sandy. Sandy hit the northeast coast on the final week of campaigning, causing damages largely in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The destruction and lack of electricity in certain areas raised questions of how the election could take place on November 6 amid such chaos. Furthermore, analysts questioned whether Obama's response to the crisis would help him win the race. As Election Day neared, Obama secured critical endorsements from former Secretary of State Colin Powell and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Nevertheless, in the RealClearPolitics average for October 31, Romney and Obama remained in a statistical tie. Polling also indicated that the most critical swing states were Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Iowa, Colorado, New Hampshire, Florida, Virginia, Michigan, Nevada, and North Carolina.

Wikinews fan sparks controversy at second presidential debate [edit]

Kerry Ladka, a senior sales associate at Global Telecom Supply and self-professed fan of Wikinews, was one of the individuals picked to address President Barack Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney at the October 16 presidential debate in Hempstead, New York. His question, which involved the September 11 attack on the U.S. embassy in Benghazi, sparked one of the debate's most contentious and controversial moments.

According to Ladka, the Gallup organization randomly selected him to ask a question, which he devised without their assistance. In fact, prior to asking, Ladka explained to viewers that his question arose during a discussion with his friends at work.

Kerry Ladka asks President Obama a question during the second presidential debate.
Image: The New York Times.

Speaking directly to President Obama, Ladka mentioned the reports that the U.S. State Department denied additional security forces to the Libyan embassy before it was breached. He then asked, "Who was it that denied enhanced security and why?"

Obama responded that upon hearing of the breach, he gave three instructions to his national security advisers: (1) increase security at the Libyan embassy and other U.S. embassies throughout the region; (2) investigate the matter; and (3) find and prosecute the culprits of the attack. He then criticized Romney's reaction to the event as "trying to make political points." Romney responded that it took the administration too long to label the break-in as a terrorist act while casting blame on a YouTube trailer. Obama countered that he actually did refer to the attack as a terrorist act at the Rose Garden on the subsequent day and expressed outrage that Romney would suggest "anybody on my team would play politics or mislead when we’ve lost four of our own". This remark led to a war of words between Romney, Obama, and moderator Candy Crowley.

Romney repeatedly asked Obama whether he actually said the attack was a terrorist act and not a "spontaneous demonstration." Obama twice responded, "please proceed" before citing the transcript of his remarks from the Rose Garden. After the moderator confirmed the president's statement, Obama asked her to do so "a little louder". With Crowley doing so, Romney then argued that the administration instead had maintained the act was a reaction against a video, which Crowley also confirmed. Romney next attempted to question why the Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice "went on the Sunday television shows and spoke about how this was a spontaneous reaction", but Crowley decided to move on to other questions.

Ladka told The Washington Post he did not believe Obama adequately answered the question during the debate, but noted that afterwards, Obama approached him and explained that he had wanted, in the days following the attack, to ensure the intelligence he received on the matter was correct, and that to avoid endangerment he did not want to explicitly name any individual in the State Department responsible for denying security.

To the Post, Ladka remained undecided on whom he would give his vote. But now after time for further deliberation, he tells Wikinews he has come to a decision. Though he felt Romney was "very impressive" at the debate, he believes President Obama was the winner and has decided to cast his ballot for the President on Election Day.

Gary Johnson speaks to Wikinews on Syria and foreign intervention [edit]

Though the fallout from the break-in at Benghazi was the main foreign policy focus in October, there was also some discussion, especially during the final two-party debate, about the unrest in Syria and actions of the Bashar al-Assad government, which led to the killings of roughly 30,000 people and displacement of 300,000.

Gary Johnson.
Image: Gary Johnson.

During the third and final debate between Obama and Romney, both seemed to agree that the United States should help the anti-government forces in Syria. Gary Johnson, in contrast, has a completely different viewpoint on both Syria and the question of foreign intervention.

In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, Johnson asserts that assistance for the Syrian rebels for humanitarian purposes may simply lead to the rise of a faction worse than the regime in power. Broadly speaking, he finds that "we intervene in the name of humanity, and the result is...more times than not, a situation that is worse, not better."

Nevertheless, Johnson does not hold an absolutist view against foreign intervention. When questioned about the need to intervene in the case of a genocide, he responded "I don’t think any of us want to stand by and watch that happen." However, for any kind of military intervention, Johnson favors congressional approval.

But for what actually constitutes a genocide requiring intervention, Johnson holds, "let me borrow from a Supreme Court justice that was asked his definition of pornography. [He said] You know, I can’t give you a definition of pornography but I’d like to think that when I see it I recognize it."

The complete interview with Governor Johnson on these and other issues can be read here.

The final pleas... [edit]

With Gary Johnson and Jill Stein making their case to voters at the final Free and Equal debate, Wikinews provided the opportunity to the three other third party presidential candidates with enough ballot access and write-in certification to theoretically win the election.

Those making their final pleas include: former congressman Virgil Goode, nominee of the Constitution Party; America's Party nominee Tom Hoefling; and former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, nominee of the Justice Party.

Ballot access maps for each of the three candidates appear below their respective statements.

Virgil Goode: Virgil Goode is the only candidate who will stop illegal immigration and block automatic citizenship for children born in the US of illegal aliens. He is also the only candidate who will protect jobs for US citizens by stopping so many green card holders from entering the United States. Lastly, he will work to stop the domination by Big Money PACs of federal elections. Save America and Vote for Virgil Goode.


Goode answers questions after the first Free and Equal debate. Image: Connie Ma.		Ballot access (violet), write-in certification (light violet), no access (gray) Image: Ariostos.

Tom Hoefling: Without faith there can be no justice. The two things are inextricably linked.

What is justice? To put it most simply, it is right-doing. In terms of the law and self-government, it is doing right to all persons equally and equitably.

But how can we possibly perfect justice in this country, as the framers of our Constitution purposed to do, if we pay no mind to the laws of nature and of nature's God? It is not possible.

Is there a desire in your heart to help save this country and restore America's greatness? Then trust God, seek His will, and do right. Join together with your fellow citizens who are of the same mind and heart, and retake the reins of your own self-government. If enough Americans will do this, without compromise, and do it in time, there is hope for this country and for our posterity. We can, if we choose to follow God and do right, once again be a shining city on a hill.

But if we refuse, and choose instead to be faithless and unjust by continuing to kill the babies and destroy God's institution of marriage and the natural family, our children and grandchildren, those who survive our brutal savagery, will curse us. They will rightfully convict us of squandering their precious heritage, one that was dearly bought with blood, sweat, and tears by our just and faithful forebears.

Our generation is a link in the chain between the past and the future. Please, my fellow Americans, I beg you, don't let it be broken. Strengthen the things that remain, before it is too late.


Tom Hoefling. Image: Tom Hoefling.		Ballot access (cyan), write-in certification (light cyan), no access (gray) Image: Ariostos.

Rocky Anderson: I propose an alternative to the corrupt two-party system that has created a militarist and corporatist government for sale to the highest bidders. My Justice Party campaign calls for people to demand a government that is genuinely of, by, and for the people.

Peace and prosperity require: (1) aggressive action on climate change; (2) creating a vibrant economy with living wage jobs through a WPA-like initiative, and returning outsourced jobs to the U.S.; (3) a significant reduction in military spending; (4) equal rights, regardless of race, religion, and sexual orientation; (5) a Medicare-for-all system providing better outcomes with lower costs; (6) prosecution of financial crimes, enforcement of financial regulations, including reinstatement of Glass-Steagall; (7) a restorative criminal justice system and an end to the disastrous “war on drugs”; (8) tax fairness; (9) Social Security and Medicare not be plundered; and (10) dismantlement of the imperial presidency and restoration of the U.S. Constitution.

My foreign policy will promote peace and respect for human rights, not the empire-building wars of aggression supported by both major parties. I will promote long-term U.S. security and build better relationships with other nations by ending the immoral drone killings that have already killed hundreds of innocent civilians and created more hatred and hostility toward the U.S.


Anderson poses with a supporter after the first Free and Equal debate. Image: Connie Ma.		Ballot access (blue), write-in certification (light blue), no access (gray) Image: Ariostos.

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Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

"2012 Electoral Map" — RealClearPolitics, November 4, 2012 (date of access)
"General Election: Romney vs. Obama" — RealClearPolitics, November 4, 2012 (date of access)
"Presidency2012: Ballot Access" — Politics1.com, November 4, 2012 (date of access)
Michael Cooper. "Disruption From Storm May Be Felt at the Polls" — The New York Times, November 2, 2012
Associated Press. "NYC Mayor Bloomberg backs Obama for re-election, citing climate change" — Fox News, November 1, 2011
"The politics of Hurricane Sandy" — The Economist, October 29, 2012
Richard Winger. "Gary Johnson-Jill Stein Debate, Set for October 30, Likely to be Postponed Due to Storm" — Ballot Access News, October 27, 2012
"Colin Powell endorses Barack Obama for president" — CBS News, October 25, 2012
Chris Good. "Minor-Party ‘Don Quixotes’ Beat Up on Republicans, Democrats in Debate" — ABC News, October 24, 2012
Ryan Grim and Joshua Hersh. "Presidential Debate: Obama, Romney Agree On Foreign Policy" — The Huffington Post, October 23, 2012
"Transcript of the Third Presidential Debate" — The New York Times, October 22, 2012
Jilian Fama. "Best Jokes from the Obama vs. Romney Stand-Up Comedy Duel" — ABC News, October 19, 2012
Daniel Fisher. "Did Obama Really Take Away Those Oil Leases?" — Forbes, October 17, 2012
Eric Wemple. "Presidential debate: Libya questioner says Obama didn’t answer" — The Washington Post, October 17, 2012
Brian Montopoli. "Analysis: Tougher Obama rebounds in second debate" — CBS News, October 16, 2012
"Full Transcript of the Second Presidential Debate" — The New York Times, October 16, 2012
Peter Hamby, Mark Preston and Paul Steinhauser. "Five things we learned from Thursday's vice presidential debate" — CNN, October 13, 2012
Bradley Klapper (AP). "State Dept reveals new details of Benghazi attack" — Yahoo! News, October 10, 2012
Michael A. Fletcher and Neil Irwin. "Unemployment rate falls to 7.8% in September" — The Washington Post, October 5, 2012
Emily Swanson and Ariel Edwards-Levy. "Presidential Debate Instant Polls Show Romney Wins" — The Huffington Post, October 4, 2012
Brian Montopoli. "Debate analysis: Romney lands blows against cautious Obama" — CBS News, October 3, 2012

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Rockets, mortars fired from Syria land in Israel

Wed, 26 Sep 2012 23:41:58 GMT

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Syria

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In the past two days, at least two rockets fired from Syria have landed in northern Israel, according to the Israeli military. Both rockets landed in the Golan Heights neighborhood of Israel, which shares its border with Syria. At least two mortar shells also hit the same area yesterday.

No damage to buildings was reported and no one was injured in any of the incidents. Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) believe that the rockets and mortars were strays intended for "villages inside Syria and are part of the ongoing internal conflict."

An official of the Syrian government denies knowledge of fighting with rebels so close to the Israeli border and says "the Syrian army does not fire rockets against the rebels."

Earlier this year, Wikinews reported the Syrian army fired several rockets or mortar shells at residences, near the position of a citizen journalist in Homs, Syria. The attack injured or killed an unknown number of civilians and badly damaged several homes.

The IDF has filed a formal complaint about the incidents of the past two days with the United Nations.

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Sources [edit]

"Syrian Rocket Hits Golan Heights in 2nd Attack" — Arutz Sheva, September 26, 2012
Aaron Klein. "Yom Kippur roar: Syrian rocket hits Israel" — WorldNetDaily, September 26, 2012
AFP. "Rocket from Syria hits Golan, Israeli military says" — Now Lebanon, September 26, 2012

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Al Jazeera website restored after Al-Rashedon hack

Thu, 06 Sep 2012 10:03:00 GMT

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Internet

Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

"Al-Jazeera website defaced by pro-Syrian hackers" — BBC News Online, September 5, 2012

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Internet hackers attack Al-Jazeera website, condemn news service's Syrian civil war coverage

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 02:04:47 GMT

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Syria

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25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
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To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

Screenshot of Al Jazeera homepage on Tuesday
Image: Ryan Peteranna.

The website of international news service Al Jazeera was hacked Tuesday by a group idenitified only as Al-Rashedon. The type of group and its exact purposes are unclear at this stage, although it appears to be supportive of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

	We have hacked you because your lack of support of Syrian government and militant groups backed by that government. Al Jazeera has been spreading lies.
—Al-Rashedon statement

A screenshot of the hacked page contains the current Syrian flag displayed on the top left and a screenshot of a regular Al Jazeera homepage, overlaid by a graphic resembling a rubber stamp with the word "HACK" written on it and a silhouette of two men sitting at a desk.

As well as identifying the group which hacked the website in English and Arabic, the bottom left of the image also contains an Arabic language statement from the group criticising Al Jazeera for its coverage of the Syrian civil war. When roughly translated, the message means: "We have hacked you because your lack of support of Syrian government and militant groups backed by that government. Al Jazeera has been spreading lies. We're compelled to do so on behalf of the Syrian people."

According to technological weblog Gizmodo, reports have emerged of the .net and not the .com version of the website being hacked. The site reports that some users have not been able to access the website.

Wikinews contacted Al Jazeera English about the incident and as of 8:31pm UTC, had received no response.

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This story has updates

See Al Jazeera website restored after Al-Rashedon hack, September 6, 2012

Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

Rania El Gamal and Erika Soloman. "Qatar's Al Jazeera website hacked by Syria's Assad loyalists" — Reuters, September 4, 2012
Sam Biddle. "Al-Jazeera Gets the Crap Hacked Out of It (Updated)" — Gizmodo, September 4, 2012

External links [edit]

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Egyptian President Morsi backs Syrian rebels in speech

Fri, 31 Aug 2012 13:04:04 GMT

Egypt

Sources [edit]

Yeganeh Torbati and Khaled Yacoub Oweis. "Egypt says Syria's "oppressive regime" must go" — Reuters, August 30, 2012
Richard Spencer. "Morsi tells Iran that Syria's Assad must go" — The Telegraph, August 30, 2012

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Turkey strengthens air defence at Syrian border following shootdown

Sat, 30 Jun 2012 18:32:58 GMT

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Syria

Other stories from Syria

25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
4 January 2013: Syrian opposition report fuel station bombing kills at least nine
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2 December 2012: Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

...More articles here

Location of Syria

To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

Turkey has deployed short-range anti-aircraft missile batteries at the Syrian border. The deployment comes amid tensions following the shootdown of a Turkish military jet one week ago by Syrian forces.

Turkish television networks reported that a convoy of twelve military trucks moved towards the Syrian boarder. Late Wednesday, some 30 military vehicles, including heavy armor had moved and dispersed to bases along the 565-mile (900-kilometer) Turkish-Syrian border, said Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency.

Turkey has given the rebel Free Syria Army (FSA) bases, and set up refugee camps for some 34,000 Syrians. Turkish TV broadcast an address by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday in the eastern city of Erzurum: "We will not hesitate to teach a lesson to those who aim heavy weapons at their own people and at neighboring countries."

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Related news [edit]

"EU condemns Syria for shootdown, urges Turkish restraint" — Wikinews, June 25, 2012

Sources [edit]

Stephanie Nebehay and Tom Miles. "As Syria writhes, divided powers meet in Geneva" — Reuters, June 29, 2012
Nour Malas, Ayla Albayrak and Joe Parkinson. "Turkey Sends Troops to Syria Border" — The Wall Street Journal, June 28, 2012

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EU condemns Syria for shootdown, urges Turkish restraint

Mon, 25 Jun 2012 14:37:07 GMT

Monday, June 25, 2012

Syria

Other stories from Syria

25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
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2 December 2012: Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

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To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

A regular conference of European Union foreign ministers in Luxembourg today issued condemnation of Syria's recent shootdown of a Turkish fighter jet, but also sought restraint from Turkey in its response.

A Turkish F-4 Phantom jet, from file.

Catherine Ashton, head of EU foreign policy, said the bloc is "very concerned" by the situation "and very concerned for the family of the two pilots who are missing". She speaks ahead of a NATO meeting called by Turkey under provisions allowing members to seek urgent talks if they perceive themselves under threat. Turkey is a NATO member, and an EU membership candidate.

The disputed incident saw a Turkish F-4 Phantom jet destroyed on Friday, with Syria claiming they were unaware of the aircraft's origin and merely defending themselves. The Turks claim the jet mistakenly entered Syrian airspace, but had left again after a warning and was in international airspace when it was attacked.

The EU has today announced fresh sanctions against Syria: Another person and six organisations were added to the EU's sanctions list, which now imposes asset freezes on 43 groups and over 100 people; the individuals also face travel bans. The growing list is in response to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's violent suppression of an uprising against his rule. China and Russia consistently use their vetoes as permanent UN Security Council members to prevent calls for al-Assad to step down.

The UN puts deaths at the hands of Syrian government forces at 10,000; Syria attributes 2,600 government and security forces deaths to "terrorists" with foreign assistance. Turkey and the West are uncertain if removing al-Assad would simply make Syria even more fractured and volatile.

	This plane was not carrying arms and was on a routine flight
—Laurent Fabius

Giulio Terzi, foreign minister of Italy, said the shootdown highlighted the need for an end to violence in the region and "illustrates how the Syrian crisis is escalating". His UK counterpart, William Hague, said "I don't think it illustrates a different phase" but agreed it was "important that we increase the pressure with additional sanctions". He predicts some nations "will be very active in arguing for a new resolution from the Security Council." Their French colleague, Laurent Fabius, said the destruction with "no prior warning" of an aircraft that "was not carrying arms and was on a routine flight" is "completely unacceptable."

A Turkish cabinet meeting is due today to examine the shootdown, with Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Selcuk Unal telling al-Jazeera the attack was "a hostile act". Prime Minster Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been more measured in his response, and has avoided calling for military intervention.

"Military intervention in Syria is out of the question," according to Uri Rosenthal, foreign minster of the Netherlands, for either "the Dutch government... [or] in the... context of NATO." NATO's North Atlantic Council meets tomorrow to discuss Turkey's concerns, with any action needing unanimous approval from ambassadors representing all 28 member states.

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Sources [edit]

Sebastian Moffett and Justyna Pawlak. "EU ministers urge restraint from Turkey over Syria incident" — Reuters, June 25, 2012
AP. "EU condemns Syria for downing Turkish jet but will not intervene" — The Guardian, June 25, 2012
"EU ministers urge restraint from Turkey" — al-Jazeera, June 25, 2012

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Explosion reported in Damascus, Syria

Sun, 10 Jun 2012 05:26:07 GMT

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Syria

Other stories from Syria

25 January 2013: Syrian refugees continue to enter Jordan as situation becomes 'critical'
8 January 2013: Three cities submit bids for 2020 Summer Olympics
4 January 2013: Syrian opposition report fuel station bombing kills at least nine
19 December 2012: Journalists escape after being kidnapped in Syria
2 December 2012: Leaked Syrian government emails indicate weapons supplied to Hamas

...More articles here

Location of Syria

To write, edit, start or view other articles on Syria, see the Syria Portal

The districts of al-Kaboun in the north and al-Mydan in the south were identified as the areas of Damascus under attack.
Image: REMcrazy.

According to eye witness reports on Twitter, confirmed by the Arabic news network Al Arabiya, "a huge explosion rock[ed] [a] neighborhood in Damascus," Syria as rebel troops fought with the Syrian army. Forces on both sides battled in neighborhoods around Damascus for nearly twelve hours on Saturday night.

The explosion reported occurred just before 2:00 a.m. local time in the Mydan neighborhood of Damascus. A video posted to the video sharing website YouTube allegedly shows a large explosion, followed by a loud boom, then smoke rising from its location. No injuries or fatalities were reported. The cause is not known, but rebel fighters launched rocket propelled grenades into a power facility causing severe damage to it and surrounding buildings.

In battles elsewhere on Saturday night, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports at least 20 civilians were killed in the city of Daraa by Syrian army tank shells.

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Sources [edit]

This article features first-hand journalism by Wikinews members. See the collaboration page for more details.

Associated Press. "Rebels battle in Assad stronghold of Damascus" — Arab Times online, June 10, 2012
Al Arabiya. "Al Arabiya Twitter message" — Twitter, June 9, 2012
'Benno'. "Benno Twitter message" — Twitter, June 9, 2012

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