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| Attack on the Tomb of Ali in the Holy City of Najaf, Iraq | Date: 30-08-2003 |
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Iraqi and Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Defenders Condemn the Attack on the Tomb of Ali in the Holy City of Najaf, Iraq Saturday, 30 August 2003, Copenhagen, Denmark Human rights defenders who participated in the conference “The Human Rights Situation in Iraq and the Impact on Human Rights in the EuroMed Region,” condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist bombing of the Tomb of Ali in the holy city of Najaf that occurred on Friday, 29 August 2003. The attack targeted the spiritual leader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic revolution (SCIR), Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim and has resulted in at least 95 deaths and over 200 injured. The death of Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim follows the assassination of the Shia cleric Abdul Majid al-Khoei and the recent assassination attempt against Grand Ayatollah Seyed Mohammaed Seyed al-Hakim. The attack also comes in the context of a series of terrorist attacks including the bombing of the Jordanian Embassy in Baghdad and the recent attack on the United Nations Headquarters, which killed 23 including the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and special representative to Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello. These attacks are exacerbating the already deteriorating security situation in Iraq, creating an environment of fear and uncertainty for the Iraqi people and the serious threat of civil strife in the already unstable country. The attacks are also impeding the international community’s effort to provide humanitarian support to the people of Iraq, as well as restore the infrastructure and basic services. We hope that the search for the perpetrators of this latest crime will not result in further violations of human rights and that the international community will take this opportunity to broaden their efforts in Iraq. In particular we call for a broader role for the United Nations in the future development of Iraq. We would also like to take this opportunity to reaffirm our support for the people in Iraq and their desire to rebuild their society based on democratic principles that all uphold human rights. Finally we recall that the occupying forces should live up to their responsibility to restore safety and security for all and put and end to the violence. ****************************************************************** A number of Iraqi, Arab and European human rights defenders held a conference under the auspices of the Danish Institute for Human Rights, The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network and The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies entitled “The Human Rights Situation in Iraq and the Impact on Human Rights in the EuroMed Region, “ 28-30 august 2003. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Marc Schade-Poulsen, Executive Director Euro Mediterranean Human Rights Network Tel: +45-32 69 89 12 E-mail: info@euromedrights.net Bahey El-Din Hassan Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) Tel: +20 2 795 11 12 or +20 2 794 60 65 E-mail: cihrs@soficom.com.eg Morten Kjærum Danish Institute for Human Rights Tel: +32 89 88 88 E-mail: mk@humanrights.dk |
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