Vol. 8 Issue 7 - Public International Law & Policy Group

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Small bomb hits UN office in Nepal Agence France Presse, 2/13/09 A small bomb was thrown at a United Nations human rights office in southwest Nepal late Friday, but the minor explosion caused no casualties, police said. "Some unidentified people hurled the bomb at the regional office of the OHCHR but the blast caused no damage," senior police officer Sudhir Raj Shahi told AFP from Nepalgunj town, 400 kilometers (250 miles) from Kathmandu. "We don't know who is behind this blast" at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the police official said, adding that search operations had been intensified in the area. Nepal's south has been the scene of sporadic violence since a peace deal was reached between former rebel Maoists and the government in late 2006. Large numbers of armed gangs have emerged in the south, cashing in on the instability since a wave of ethnic unrest started three years ago. Learn about PILPG’s work in Nepal Return to Table of Contents Philippines 2 Filipinos charged with aiding top terrorists Jim Gomez, Associated Press, 2/12/09 Philippine troops have captured two local militants accused of helping top al-Qaida-linked foreign terrorists gain a foothold in Muslim rebel strongholds in the country's volatile south and plan deadly bomb attacks, officials said Thursday. Authorities say Omar Venancio helped a member of the militant group Jemaah Islamiyah buy explosives intended for a suicide bombing at a Roman Catholic cathedral in southern Davao city and other attacks in nearby beach resorts, said Eduardo Ermita, who heads the government's Anti-Terrorism Council. Army troops and intelligence agents separately arrested Mokasid Dilna, who allegedly headed the Al-Khobar group blamed for bombing passenger buses and business establishments since 2007 for rejecting his extortion demands, Ermita said. The arrests were significant because they could sever some of the crucial links between foreign terrorists and at least two local Muslim groups the violent Abu Sayyaf and the larger
Moro Islamic Liberation Front which could provide sanctuary and training grounds in southern Mindanao region. "It's very significant," Ermita said, "The U.S. counterparts were very happy." Venancio and Dilna, their arms cuffed and restrained by military escorts, looked confused when paraded by anti-terrorism officials during a news conference in Manila. Both had earplugs on, apparently to prevent them from reacting to journalists' questions. Venancio, a Moro Islamic Liberation Front member, was arrested last month in southern Cotabato City with receipts for the explosives. He described the plans for a suicide bombing in Davao and other attacks during interrogation, Ermita said. None of the attacks took place. He was described in an anti-terrorism council statement as Jemaah Islamiyah militants' "most trusted local" since 2005 in Mindanao, the southern region where a Muslim separatist rebellion has raged for decades Venancio allegedly helped move funds for top Jemaah Islamiyah figure Umar Patek and also acquire guns and explosives for the Indonesian group's militants hiding with Abu Sayyaf on Jolo Island, Ermita said. Patek, an Indonesian, is wanted along with another Indonesian named Dulmatin in the 2002 nightclub bombings in Bali, Indonesia, that killed 202 people in Southeast Asia's worst terrorist attack. The pair allegedly fled to Mindanao in 2003. They have reportedly provided bomb-making and religious training to the Abu Sayyaf, which has been included in a U.S. terrorist blacklist for its links to al-Qaida and involvement in several bombings, kidnappings for ransom and beheadings. Dilna, who uses the nom de guerre Abu Badrin, was trained in explosives and unspecified types of weapons in Afghanistan and Pakistan at about the same time as Patek in the early 1990s. When he returned home, he passed on the skills to Filipino and foreign militants, Ermita said. He has also given refuge to Dulmatin, Patek and other Jemaah Islamiyah militants, he said. Philippines calls on MILF to return to peace table Agence France Presse, 2/17/09 The Philippines on Tuesday called on Muslim separatist rebels to return to the negotiating table to end six months of large-scale hostilities. Avelino Razon, the country's chief peace negotiator, said the government will work towards putting "confidence-building measures" on the ground, including reactivating a joint task force that goes after criminals and terrorists.
Page 1 and 2: PEACE NEGOTIATIONS WATCH Thursday,
Page 3 and 4: Kosovo marks 1 year of independence
Page 5 and 6: Whitman said he could not discuss p
Page 7 and 8: "Now that we have realized this is
Page 9 and 10: "However, the aforesaid statements
Page 11 and 12: The court has linked the former Bos
Page 13 and 14: The military regime has promised to
Page 15 and 16: Former US President George W. Bush'
Page 17 and 18: "How can we go on without the main
Page 19 and 20: "I don't want to be on the side of
Page 21 and 22: EU enlargement commissioner Olli Re
Page 23 and 24: "Have I said that Bosco Ntaganda ha
Page 25 and 26: The first victim of the operation h
Page 27 and 28: The five-day war and Russia's subse
Page 29 and 30: Tengku Syamsuddin, a spokesman for
Page 31 and 32: India and Pakistan have fought thre
Page 33 and 34: New Delhi has noted with strong app
Page 35 and 36: Serbs consider Kosovo to be the hea
Page 37 and 38: "The key to our success is in unity
Page 39 and 40: Macedonia EU mulls economic support
Page 41 and 42: "As for the content of the document
Page 43: The UN Security Council has called
Page 47 and 48: Somalia Overcrowding at Kenya refug
Page 49 and 50: "We are happy with that," he said,
Page 51 and 52: "With a growing number of children
Page 53 and 54: Dr. Thurairaja Varatharaja, the top
Page 55 and 56: Without a borehole, water was colle
Page 57 and 58: The New York Times reported on Wedn
Page 59 and 60: The talks mediated by Doha are the
Page 61 and 62: Aid workers and human rights activi
Page 63 and 64: "They have no way out of these swam

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