Statement by the Press Secretary on Violence in Southern Kordofan, Sudan

Release Time: 
For Immediate Release

The United States is deeply concerned by ongoing developments in Southern Kordofan, Sudan. Fighting between forces loyal to the Government of Sudan—including its Armed Forces and the Popular Defense Force militia—and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army threatens efforts by the parties to the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement to forge a durable peace for the Sudanese people.  

The United States condemns reported acts of violence in Southern Kordofan that target individuals based on their ethnicity and political affiliation. Accounts of security services and military forces detaining, and summarily executing local authorities, political rivals, medical personnel, and others are reprehensible and could constitute war crimes or crimes against humanity. We call on the UN to fully investigate these incidents, and we demand that the perpetrators immediately halt these actions and be held accountable for their crimes.

The Government of Sudan must prevent further escalation of this crisis by ceasing immediately its pursuit of a military solution to disarm the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Southern Kordofan and to dissolve the Joint Integrated Units established under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. The Government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North must agree immediately to a ceasefire and end restrictions on humanitarian access and UN movements.  Security arrangements for Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile States should be agreed upon through direct, high-level negotiations, not by the use of force. We are encouraged to learn such negotiations at a political level will begin on Sunday.

With less than one month before the end of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the United States calls on the Government of Sudan to consider carefully the consequences of its current actions in Southern Kordofan. Although the United States has demonstrated a commitment to forging closer ties with Sudan, grave violations of international humanitarian law as have been reported to take place in Southern Kordofan will negatively impact this process and put Sudan on a path toward deeper international isolation.  We also call upon the leaders of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in South Kordofan to avoid reprisals and other human rights violations, to agree to a cease fire, to provide full access to the UN and humanitarian agencies and to cooperate in a UN investigation of the reports of such violations.  

Source: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/06/10/statement-press-secretary-violence-southern-kordofan-sudan

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Activists cry foul over FBI probe

CHICAGO ? FBI agents took box after box of address books, family calendars, artwork and personal letters in their 10-hour raid in September of the century-old house shared by Stephanie Weiner and her husband.

The agents seemed keenly interested in Weiner?s home-based business, the Revolutionary Lemonade Stand, which sells silkscreened infant bodysuits and other clothes with socialist slogans, phrases like ?Help Wanted: Revolutionaries.?

The search was part of a mysterious, ongoing nationwide terrorism investigation with an unusual target: prominent peace activists and politically active labor organizers.

Read full article >>

Source: http://feeds.washingtonpost.com/click.phdo?i=4c8e0d3ea9b9a40feb5f5d8dbc31cc0b

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Vice President Biden Visits Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq

Vice President Joe Biden traveled to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq last week. In Afghanistan, the Vice President assessed progress toward the transition to Afghan-led security beginning this year. In Islamabad, he met with leaders to discuss the U.S.-Pakistan bilateral relationship and how the two countries can work together towards peace and stability in the region. Finally, Vice President Biden made his first visit to Iraq since political leaders and the Council of Representatives formed a new, inclusive national partnership government in December. While there, he met with political leaders and visited troops at Camp Victory.

Source: http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/photogallery/vice-president-biden-visits-afghanistan-pakistan-and-iraq

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N.Y. Legislature Looks For Common Ground On Property Taxes

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo appears close to getting one of his top legislative priorities for the year: a cap on property taxes. Cuomo and legislative leaders announced the tentative deal a few weeks ago, to the delight of business leaders in New York. But lawmakers have yet to vote on it. That's given hope to opponents of the cap, who say it will cripple poor school districts without providing meaningful relief to most homeowners.

Source: http://www.npr.org/2011/06/14/137182722/n-y-legislature-looks-for-common-ground-on-property-taxes?ft=1&f=1014

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Senator: Gadhafi's military seriously degraded (AP)

A Libyan man waves a banner made up of various flags of the countries supporting the revolution against Moammar Gadhafi during Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade's visit in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, Libya, Thursday, June 9, 2011. The embattled regime of Moammar Gadhafi on Thursday vehemently denied accusations by a U.N. panel and Western nations that Libyan government forces have committed crimes against humanity and war crimes. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)AP - Constant pounding from NATO warplanes has significantly undermined Moammar Gadhafi's military forces and weakened the Libyan leader's political standing, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said Friday.


Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/usmilitary/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110610/ap_on_go_co/us_libya_congress

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NY gay marriage bill now in hands of GOP Senate (AP)

Actress Cynthia Nixon, left,  New York Rangers' Sean Avery, center, and Brian Ellner from Campaign for New York Marriage, right, talk with reporters after asking lawmakers to pass legislation to legalize same-sex marriage in New York at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y., Tuesday, June 14, 2011.  The New York state Senate's Republican majority is facing an all-out effort by Democrats to legalize gay marriage in the last days of the session and reinvigorate the national movement.   (AP Photo/Hans Pennink)AP - The effort to legalize gay marriage in New York is getting an all-out lobbying effort from Democrats and celebrities, but there's still no sign of wavering among a critical bloc of Senate Republicans who led the defeat of the measure and blunted national momentum two years ago.


Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110614/ap_on_re_us/us_gay_marriage_ny

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Tune In to the Race to the Top Commencement Challenge TV Special

Three weeks ago President Obama traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to deliver the commencement address to the graduating class of Booker T. Washington High School, the winner of this year’s Race to the Top Commencement Challenge.  Booker T. Washington High School beat out over 400 high schools from across the country with their efforts to prepare students for college and career and help meet the President’s goal of having the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020.    

In a new television special premiering this week, viewers will have the chance to follow the experiences of students at Booker T. Washington High School, as they win this year’s competition and the opportunity to host President Obama as their commencement speaker.  The Race to the Top Commencement Challenge Special, produced by Viacom and the Get Schooled Foundation in partnership with the White House, will air on Viacom’s cable networks over the next week. Get a sneak peak in an interview later today on BET’s 106 & Park with Christopher Dean and Cassandra Henderson, the two seniors profiled in the special.   

In the meantime, check out this behind-the-scenes video of President Obama surprising students at Booker T. Washington right before the commencement ceremony.

Source: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/06/08/tune-race-top-commencement-challenge-tv-special

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