A report by human rights groups Child Soldiers International and ForcesWatch have calculated the Ministry of Defense (MOD) spends up to £94 million ($143 million) a year training recruits of 16 and 17 years of age.“The UK is the only member of the European Union and only permanent member of the UN Security Council still recruiting from age 16,” emphasized the document. It noted that younger recruits were far more vulnerable to post-traumatic stress disorder, sexual harassment and bullying. Slamming the practice as “outdated,” the organizations cited a dropout rate of 35.6 percent among 16-year-olds, in comparison to 28.3 percent among adult recruits. Additionally, they signaled figures submitted to the UK parliament in 2011 showing that it costs £88,985 ($134,000) to train and pay underage recruits – more than double the cost for adults. More importantly, recruits – even if they are fully trained – cannot be deployed in combat until they are 18 years old.”Recruiting minors into the army is a practice from a bygone era. It’s not just young recruits who pay the price for outdated MoD policies – taxpayers do too,” said David Gee of ForcesWatch. He stressed that the armed forces also suffer “when it finds itself undermanned on the frontline because so many minors have dropped out of training.” If the practice were discontinued, the report calculated that UK taxpayers would save between £81.5 million and £94 million each year. The UK is currently embroiled in a financial crisis, and as a result the military is having to implement sweeping cuts to reduce costs. Earlier this year, the UK government announced that it would be laying off 5,000 soldiers in a bid to reduce total troop numbers from 102,000 to 82,000 by 2017. The move will save an estimated £38 billion ($60 billion). Doubts have been voiced over the drastic scaling down of the military at a time of “increased threats and new global challenges.”Indifference?The Ministry of Defense refuted the findings of the report and disregarded its calculations, stating there were no plans “to revisit” the policy of recruiting persons younger than 18 years of age.”We do not recognize the figures suggested in this report, which ignores the benefits and opportunities that a military career offers young people,” an MOD spokesperson said in a statement. He added that minors still needed the written consent of their parents or guardians to sign up, which fully complies with United Nations conventions. … Read More
Syria Wants the UN to Acknowledge Jabhat Al Nusra’s Links to Al Qaeda
The Syrian
government has urged the United Nations to classify Jabhat Al
Nusra, a jihadist group fighting against Assad’s regime, as a group
with links to Al Qaeda. The head of
Jabhat Al Nusra recently pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda’s
leader while distancing himself from
reports that the group had merged with Al Qaeda’s branch in
Iraq.
The U.S. labeled Jabhat Al Nusra as a terrorist organisation in
December, a move that was
not welcomed ;by some Syrian rebels. ;
Were the U.N. to recognize Jabhat Al Nusra as a group with links
to Al Qaeda then it could be subject to the sanctions outlined by
the U.N.’s Al Qaeda
Sanctions Committee.
From the BBC:
The Syrian statement refers to the UN resolution that
established the al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee.
Under the UN’s sanctions regime, those with links to al-Qaeda
have their financial assets frozen and face travel bans.
The sanctions also imposed an arms embargo on al-Qaeda.
Yesterday, the
Russian foreign minister said that Al Qaeda could use Syria as
a base for future operations in the region. Russia, one of Assad’s
few allies during the conflict, has been arguing for a political
solution while the
U.K. and France have both supported ending the European Union’s
arms embargo on Syria in order to arm some of Assad’s
opponents. ;
That Assad’s opposition includes jihadist groups weakens the
case for intervention as weapons given to rebels in the Free Syrian
Army could end up in the hands of the extremist elements of the
opposition. Such concerns have not stopped Sen. John McCain
(R-Ariz.) from calling for increased American involvement in
Syria.
While no one doubts that Assad’s regime has been committing
crimes against innocent Syrians there are doubts about what a
post-Assad Syria is going to look like. The diversity of Assad’s
opposition means that whatever transfer of power that occurs once
Assad is gone will not be without complications. ; … Read More
Al Qaeda in Iraq Merges With Jihadist Rebels in Syria Ahead of G8 Foreign Ministers Meeting
British Foreign Secretary
William Hague
has said that Syria will be on the top of the agenda during talks
with G8 foreign ministers that begin today.
Two G8 countries,
France and the
U.K., have both previously called for the European Union’s arms
embargo on Syria to be lifted, and the French foreign minister
has said that the French and British could arm Syrian rebels
despite the embargo. Russia, another G8 member, has warned against
arming Syrian rebels.
Unfortunately for the British and the French recent news from
Syria will undoubtedly raise concerns over who will end up with the
weapons supplied to the Syrian rebels.
Jabhat ;Al Nusra, a jihadist group that has been fighting
Assad’s regime and has been labeled as a terrorist organization by
the American government,
recently merged with Al Qaeda’s wing in Iraq to form The
Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
The
possible use of chemical weapons in Syria last month
intensified calls for intervention in Syria. While no one
doubts that the Assad regime is committing horrific crimes against
innocent Syrians it is important to be wary about the possibility
of weapons finding their way to a newly formed jihadist group that
will only contribute to destabilizing Syria once Assad is gone. … Read More
A divide grows in Ohio over Rob Portman’s gay marriage reversal
Republican Sen. Rob Portman’s reversal on marriage equality was applauded by gay rights advocates and others across the country, but conservatives in his homestate of Ohio have denounced the change and mobilized to block his reelection.As reported The New York Times:No one heckled Senator Rob Portman during his first appearance before thousands of Ohioans since becoming the most prominent elected Republican in the country to endorse same-sex marriage… but for some of the Ohioans who acknowledged Mr. Portman, doubts flickered below the surface. “Senator!” said one spectator, Pete Kidnocker, reaching out to shake Mr. Portman’s hand. But after Mr. Portman passed, Mr. Kidnocker said he would vote for an alternative in a Republican primary and accused the senator of “betraying his principles.” “If you’re a Christian and you believe in those principles, whether your son or daughter is a homosexual, you can’t change your principles,” he said.Continue Reading… … Read More
Beware of the High Cost of ‘Free’ Online Courses
Michael Cusumano, a professor at M.I.T., raises doubts about the ultimate cost to the education field of massive open online courses, or MOOCs. … Read More
New Zealand considers Cyprus-style banking failure solution
New Zealand is facing a similar bank failure to Cyprus, islikely to adopt open bank resolution (OBR), which will see smalldepositors lose part their savings in favour of a big bank bailout,Green Party co-leader Russel Norman said. The country’s FinanceMinister Bill English supports the open bank resolution. ”Bill English is proposing a Cyprus-style solution formanaging bank failure here in New Zealand,” said Norman, addingthat the Reserve Bank is in the “final stages” of implementing anOBR system.New Zealand banks’ depositors will have their savings cut by acertain percentage needed to keep their bank afloat.The Green Party however has major doubts, that OBR tactics isappropriate here. Norman underlined, that few depositors canreasonably evaluate the reliability of their bank. “Not evensophisticated investors like Merrill Lynch saw the global financialcrisis coming,” he added.Norman believes that OBR policy is too radical saying few OECDcountries use it, preferring deposit insurance schemes. ”A deposit insurance scheme is a much simpler, well-testedalternative to open bank resolution. It rewards safe banks withlower premiums and limits the cost to taxpayers of a bank failure…[They] protect people’s deposits up to a maximum ranging from$100,000 to $250,000,” he said.Cyprus announced last week that it plans to impose a 10 per centtax on bank accounts as part of a 10 billion euro bailout by theEuropean Union. The news caused panic across the island as peoplerushed to cash machines to withdraw their savings. The Cypriotparliament will vote on the deposit levy on Tuesday. … Read More
