The trial of police officer Miljan RaiÄević for the murder of ÄorÄ‘e Zarić will begin on Monday in Belgrade’s District Court. RaiÄević, a member of the MUP riot police Belgrade brigade, could face five to 15 years in prison if convicted of premeditated murder.
Posts Tagged ‘riot police’
Honduras standoff at Brazil embassy set for long haul
September 23rd, 2009 |
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Honduran soldiers and riot police surrounded the Brazilian embassy, where ousted President Manuel Zelaya was sheltering on Wednesday. It could turn into a long standoff and deepen the country’s crisis.
Riot police quell London clashes
September 12th, 2009 |
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Riot police arrested 10 people on Friday as they intervened to quell clashes between Muslims and anti-Islamic protestors outside a London mosque on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. About 1,000 mostly Muslim protestors, many with masks over their faces, were involved in running
Russia police detain anti-Kremlin protesters
August 1st, 2009 |
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Russian riot police detained an opposition leader and dozens of anti-Kremlin activists for trying to hold an unsanctioned rally in central Moscow on Friday. Hundreds of police officers surrounded Moscow’s Triumfalnaya Square and forced 20 activists and one journalist into waiting vans, a Reuters witness said. A police spokesman said 47 people were detained in all, some even before the rally began.
Greek police flatten migrant camp
July 13th, 2009 |
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Greek riot police have led an operation to demolish a makeshift camp housing illegal immigrants in the western port city of Patras. The camp was used by migrants hoping to smuggle themselves onto ships bound for Italy and Western Europe.
Greek police flatten migrant camp
July 12th, 2009 |
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By Malcolm Brabant
BBC News, Athens
Greek riot police have led an operation to demolish a makeshift camp housing illegal immigrants in the western port city of Patras.
The camp was used by migrants hoping to smuggle themselves onto ships bound for Italy and Western Europe.
Its closure is more proof of Greece’s tougher stance on illegal immigration.
The camp had been a source of tension with many Greeks who regarded it as a major eyesore for themselves and for tourists arriving from Italy.
‘Terrorising migrants’
About 100 riot police escorted bulldozers into the camp before dawn.
They levelled scores of cardboard and plastic hovels.
Only a makeshift mosque and a tent used by volunteer doctors were left untouched.
The camp in Patras had been in existence in some form or another for 13 years.
A few months ago, it accommodated about 1,800 people, mainly from Afghanistan.
But that number had dwindled to about 100 following large-scale arrests and also because the port authorities had made it nearly impossible to get on board ferries to Italy.
The early morning operation was described by Red Cross officials in Patras as "terrorising" the migrants.
One worker said it was designed to send a message to all illegal immigrants that they had no future in Greece.
‘Migrant threat’
The conservative government in Athens has started taking tougher measures against the so-called "clandestines" in recent weeks, especially since the success of the right-wing nationalist Laos party in the European parliamentary election.
A new law has been passed which makes deportation easier.
Greece has been criticised internationally for its handling of would-be asylum seekers.
But recently the EU Justice Commissioner, Jacques Barrot, acknowledged that the "uncontrollable flow of immigration" posed a major threat to the equilibrium of Greek democracy.
The clampdown in Patras will push some migrants into the hands of traffickers in Athens and Italy who are demanding up to $8,000 (£4,940) for passage out of Greece.
Others have given up trying to catch a boat to Western Europe and have headed for Greece’s land borders with Bulgaria and the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia.</p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Turkey attacks China ‘genocide’
July 10th, 2009 |
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Turkey’s prime minister has described ethnic violence in China’s Xinjiang region as "a kind of genocide".
"There is no other way of commenting on this event," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
He spoke after a night-time curfew was reimposed in Xinjiang’s capital, Urumqi, where Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese clashed last Sunday.
The death toll from the violence there has now risen from 156 to 184, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency reports. More than 1,000 people were injured.
Turkey, a predominantly Muslim country, shares linguistic and religious links with the Uighurs in China’s western-most region.
Quentin Sommerville, BBC News, UrumqiAfter Friday’s prayers, a small group of Uighur Muslims marched along an Urumqi street demanding the release of men detained for their alleged role in last Sunday’s riot.
A large number of riot police surrounded the group, they punched and kicked the protestors – one officer used his baton to beat one of the Uighurs. A number of foreign journalists had their equipment seized, some have been detained.
Earlier the group said they feared for their safety. There’s no word from the authorities as to what happened to them.
In pictures: Closed mosques New media openness Q&A: China and the Uighurs
"The event taking place in China is a kind of genocide," Mr Erdogan told reporters in Turkey’s capital, Ankara.
"There are atrocities there, hundreds of people have been killed and 1,000 hurt. We have difficulty understanding how China’s leadership can remain a spectator in the face of these events."
The Turkish premier also urged Beijing to "address the question of human rights and do what is necessary to prosecute the guilty".
Mr Erdogan’s comments came a day after Turkish Trade and Industry Minister Nihat Ergun urged Turks to boycott Chinese goods.
Beijing has so far not publicly commented on Mr Erdogan’s criticism.
But it said that of the 184 people who died, 137 were Han Chinese.
Uighurs defiant
Earlier on Friday, the Chinese authorities reimposed a night-time curfew in Urumqi.
The curfew had been suspended for two days after officials said they had the city under control.
Mosques in the city were ordered to remain closed on Friday and notices were posted instructing people to stay at home to worship.
XINJIANG: ETHNIC UNREST- Main ethnic division: 45% Uighur, 40% Han Chinese
- 26 June: Mass factory brawl after dispute between Han Chinese and Uighurs in Guangdong, southern China, leaves two Uighurs dead
- 5 July: Uighur protest in Urumqi over the dispute turns violent, leaving 156 dead – most of them thought to be Han – and more than 1,000 hurt
- 7 July: Uighur women protest at arrests of menfolk. Han Chinese make armed counter-march
- 8 July: President Hu Jintao returns from G8 summit to tackle crisis
But at least two opened after crowds of Uighurs gathered outside and demanded to be allowed in to pray on the holiest day of the week in Islam.
"We decided to open the mosque because so many people had gathered. We did not want an incident," a policeman outside the White Mosque in a Uighur neighbourhood told the AP news agency.
After the prayers, riot police punched and kicked a small group of Uighurs protesters, who demanded the release of men detained after last Sunday’s violence, the BBC’s Quentin Sommerville says.
Meanwhile, the city’s main bus station was reported to be crowded with people trying to escape the unrest.
Extra bus services had been laid on and touts were charging up to five times the normal face price for tickets, AFP news agency said.
"It is just too risky to stay here. We are scared of the violence," a 23-year-old construction worker from central China said.
The violence began on Sunday when a Uighur rally to protest against a deadly brawl between Uighurs and Han Chinese several weeks ago in a toy factory in southern Guangdong province turned violent.
Tensions have been growing in Xinjiang for many years, as Han migrants have poured into the region, where the Uighur minority is concentrated.
Many Uighurs feel economic growth has bypassed them and complain of discrimination and diminished opportunities.
Are you leaving Urumqi What has been your experience of the unrest in the city in recent days Please send us your comments using the form below:
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
New autopsy after French unrest
July 10th, 2009 |
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A second autopsy has been ordered on the body of a young man whose death in police custody has caused three nights of rioting in a southern French town.
Police say Mohamed Benmouna, a 21-year-old of Algerian origin, died after trying to hang himself in a cell earlier this week.
Youths have set shops and cars on fire and battled riot police in the town of Firminy in reaction to the death.
Prosecutor Jacques Pin said he wanted to "remove all doubt" in the case.
A first examination of Mr Benmouna’s body on Thursday showed that he had died from "cardiac arrest by suffocation", he said.
Mr Benmouna had been arrested on suspicion of extortion.
The unrest in Firminy began on Tuesday, when youths burnt cars and threw stones at security forces.
On Thursday, in a third night of violence, several shops were destroyed by fire and police cars were damaged. Police responded with tear gas and said six people had been arrested.
The youths have challenged the official version of Mr Benmouna’s death – that he hung himself with cords from a mattress.
His family have called for calm, but have also filed a complaint to ask for a full investigation.
Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux repeated on Friday that the death had been a suicide.
"He was put in detention, and during his detention, he wanted to commit suicide and unfortunately, he did so," he told French radio.
In 2005, night-time rioting spread across France after two teenagers died in a Paris suburb. Residents said they had trying to escape from police.
The violence mainly affected areas that are home to immigrant communities, many of North African origin.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.