In a wave of coordinated demonstrations against the use of the army in northern Mexico's crackdown on the warring drug cartels, hundreds of protesters on Feb. 17 blocked the international bridges over the Rio Grande at Ciudad Juárez, Reynosa and Nuevo Laredo, as well as blocking streets and government buildings in in the northern industrial city of Monterrey and roads in the Gulf state of Veracruz. The cities were paralyzed for hours, and riot police used water cannons to disperse the protesters in Monterrey, where streets were blocked for a sixth day running by marchers chanting "Soldiers, get out!" Protesters accused the army of arbitrary arrests and human rights abuses. But Nuevo León Gov. Natividad González Parás (PRI) charged that protesters were recruited and paid by the Gulf Cartel. (AP, El Universal, Feb. 17)

A panel of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit Feb. 18 reversed an October district court order that called for the release of 17 Uighur detainees from Guantánamo Bay into the US. Lawyers for the detainees argued that the Uighurs' continued detention was improper, but the DC Circuit agreed with the government's position that admission of aliens into the US was a decision for either the executive or legislative branch, and that the detainees were not denied a statutory or constitutional right by being excluded.

From the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), Feb. 12:

Rights Groups Release Documents Obtained in FOIA Case Relating to
Secret Detention, Extraordinary Rendition, and Torture Program
New York and Washington — Documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit confirm Department of Defense involvement in the CIA's ghost detention program, revealed three prominent human rights groups today. The groups—Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), and the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice (CHRGJ)—today released documents obtained from the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and U.S. Department of State (DOS), resulting from their lawsuit seeking the disclosure of government documents that relate to secret detention, extraordinary rendition, and torture. At a public press conference, the groups revealed that these documents confirm the existence of secret prisons at Bagram and in Iraq; affirm the DOD’s cooperation with the CIA's ghost detention program; and show one case where the DOD sought to delay the release of Guantánamo prisoners who were scheduled to be sent home by a month and a half in order to avoid bad press.

A Feb. 18 National Public Radio story on the crackdown on human rights activists in Iran makes the point that the US "regime change" campaign has prompted Tehran to turn up the heat on internal dissent—and makes it easier to tar activists as American agents. Iran's foremost rights activist Shirin Ebadi is quoted saying the recent closure of her office by the authorities came in response to "a resolution passed against Iran in the United Nations."

Saying the war against the Taliban is "still winnable," President Barack Obama ordered 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan to tackle an intensifying insurgency, the White House announced Feb. 17. This will bring US troop levels in Afghanistan to around 55,000. US troops in Afghanistan have already risen from around 30,000 at the beginning of this year to 38,000 now under orders signed by the Bush administration. The new forces will include a Marine expeditionary brigade of some 8,000 troops and an Army brigade of 4,000 soldiers equipped with Stryker armored vehicles, the Pentagon said.

Chinese police in Lithang County, Sichuan province, detained 15 Tibetans who marched peacefully in support of the Dalai Lama Feb. 16. Five more local Tibetans who are believed to have participated in the march were detained the next day. Citing reports from witnesses on the ground, the India-based Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) said the town of Lithang has been effectively shut down since the protest, with shops closed and traffic brought to a halt by police checkpoints.

From the New York state chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW), Feb. 16:

ALBANY, NY — On February 12, 2009, in Orchard Park, Buffalo, NY, forty-four year-old Muzzamil Hassan, a prominent Muslim businessman, was arrested for having allegedly beheaded his wife, thirty-seven year-old Aasiya Z. Hassan. What was Aasiya's crime? Why, Aasiya was having Muzzamil served with divorce papers. And apparently, on February 6, Aasiya obtained an order of protection which had forced her violent husband out of their home.

Another US drone struck Pakistan's Tribal Areas Feb. 16, again killing some 30. Like the drone strike that killed similar numbers in South Waziristan Feb. 14, the raid targeted militants loyal to Baitullah Mehsud. But this time the missiles struck the Kurram tribal region—which had not been targeted before, signaling a broadening of the drone-strike campaign. The US has now targeted Pakistan four times since President Barack Obama took office last month.