Ya Bass

Justice is beginning to be dealt as a court in the Netherlands sentences Dutch arms trader Frans van Anraat to 15 years in prison for his role in the supply of ingredients used to make chemical weapons which were to be used by Saddam Hussein's regime against Kurdish civilians in an attempt at ethnic cleansing. Before van Anraat could be convicted, the judges had to decide whether the 1988 attack on Iraqi Kurds in Halabja amounted to genocide, it's findings stated

The court has no other conclusion than that these attacks were committed with the intent to destroy the Kurdish population of Iraq.

The role of van Anraat in the genocide may have been a small one but nonetheless the decision is important because it recognises acts of genocide against the Kurds in Iraq and as such another small step towards justice for those innocent victims.

Some background to the trial can be read on the blog From Holland to Kurdistan, here and here.

From football being used as a symbol of hope and of peace last week when a joint Israeli/Palestinian team played together against the mighty Barcelona to football administrators in Palestine displaying remarkable small mindedness just a few days later. From Reuters

The Palestinian FA plans to punish players under its jurisdiction for participating alongside Israelis in a "Peace Match" in Barcelona, an official said on Wednesday.

A 'Peace Team' of Israeli and Palestinian players lost 2-1 to Barcelona at the Nou Camp last week in front of 31,820 spectators, including many dignitaries.

"The Palestinian FA will form a committee to investigate the players who participated in the match ... everyone involved will be punished," senior FA official Jamal Zaqout told Reuters.

"We act in accordance with the attitude of our people who are against normalisation (of relations with Israel) before the end of the occupation," Zaqout said, referring to Israel's hold over lands captured in the 1967 Middle East war.

Fifteen Israelis, including many internationals and 12 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank joined up for the match sponsored by Israeli statesman Shimon Peres's Centre for Peace foundation.

Zaqout, who is based in the Gaza Strip, said the five West Bank players who competed, including national team member Khaldon Fahd would be subject to the investigation.

The official Palestinian national team and their Israeli Arab coach Azmi Nassar were participating in a tournament in Qatar at the time, losing to Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

A Peres Centre spokeswoman said the Palestinian FA's reaction was "irresponsible and annoying".

"The Peres Centre together with its Palestinian partner, the Abu Sukar Centre, received the blessing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and (his senior security adviser) Jibril Rajoub for the match," spokeswoman Michal Eldar said.

"The match in Barcelona was an unprecedented event in which we managed to convey to the world the message of peace and cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians," she said.

A spokesman for the Israel FA (IFA) said it had approved the participation of its players.

Israel's FA has been generally supportive of its Palestinian counterpart, which became a full FIFA member in 1998.

The IFA helped Palestinian players receive permits to leave Gaza for overseas matches when Israel controlled the coastal territory before pulling out last September.

Only one word can describe the Palestinian FA's response adequately - Pathetic.

As expected, David Cameron is elected leader of the Conservatives. May I be the first to express a great sense of dismay at this turn of events - the country is obviously in a very disturbing state of moral decay when degenerate hard drug users can be elected to lead one of the main political parties!

While I say that tongue in cheek (being quite a fan of many things considered morally degenerate by those who make such judgements on others activities) when it comes to drug use I can become quite puritan. I don't agree with the Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair on many things but on Cocaine use he was spot on in early 2005 when he stated:

People seem to think the price of a wrap of cocaine is 50 quid, but the cost is misery on estates here and a trail of blood back to Colombia. Someone has died to bring it [cocaine] to a dinner party. People who wouldn'’t dream of having a non-organic vegetable don'’t seem to notice the blood on their fingers.

On a related point there was an interesting juxtaposition of articles on the BBC News front page. Sadly it only lasted a few minutes (I wonder if they got a call from Tory central office?) but thanks to the print screen function here it is.