Carol Anne Grayson (Radical Sister) blog

Post via Islamic Emirate

After the soldiers of Islamic Emirate captured Kunduz city and held it for two weeks before withdrawing from it to minimize civilian casualties, the Kabul administration attempted to conceal their failure by setting up an investigation to explain the factors leading to this failure. This investigation was concluded with a 200-page report which explains the government’s failures in the following manner.

The Rapporteur explains in this report that the biggest factor contributing to the collapse of Kunduz city was the shortcomings of the national leadership. The report states that “the biggest issues were within the leadership”.

The Rapporteur further enumerates the meddling of Parliament in administrative affairs; corruption; a weak judiciary; and an inept security force as the other factors contributing to the collapse of Kunduz.

This Report does not mention the bombing of Médecins Sans Frontières hospital by the American forces. Approximately 95 hospital staff, patients and visitors died in that bombing.

This Report explicated that the biggest issue stems for weaknesses in the national leadership. Yet it can be added that the leadership deficit is not limited to Kunduz but expands across the entire state. Any government that is ruled by transitional and unofficial governors and ministers is bound multiply failures in provincial and state level.

How can we expect any good from a regime that is formed to serve foreign interests? Whose foreign and internal policies are formed in the hallways of foreign capitals. Whose budgets are provided by foreign aid. And whose only concern is to fill their personal coffers by killing their own citizens, or imprisoning and torturing them.

Yet the Report threw dust in the face of the truth which was that the Islamic Emirate’s success in Kunduz was mainly due the sympathies and support of the local populace. If it wasn’t for the support of the local population the Islamic Emirate would never be able to continue its campaign against a better-equipped enemy. Or wrest and maintain large swathes of territory including encroaching and capturing provincial capitals.

The Afghans realize that the previous presidential election was nothing more than a campaign to feign social progress and the real winners were decided by Washington. Instead of campaigning on the basis of national interests and progress, the campaigners were all busy cajoling their foreign backers.

The Report concludes that had it not been for American and her allies’ aerial bombardment, the Islamic Emirate would have also captured Kunduz Airport.

This admission clarifies that the Afghan people’s support lies not with the Kabul regime but with the Islamic Emirate. Here we hear from the horse’s mouth that the Kabul regime is hated by its own people and breathes merely because of foreign donations and military support. It is only a matter of time before this rotten building comes crumbling down.

End

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

Post via Islamic Emirate

The enemies of our beloved country have showed their concerns regarding recent victories of the Islamic Emirate and current advancements of Azm Jihadic operations. They thought that they would conceal the invasion and invaders behind the curtain of appealing slogans of democracy and will deceive Afghans by their futile promises but that all has ended in fiasco. Contrarily, western democracy is such unpopular among Afghans that it is now considered as a symbol of injustice and distress.

In the context of these concerns, foreign ministers of NATO alliance are holding a meeting in Brussels on 1 December 2015. As they are facing uncertainty and do not know how to tackle these issues and what to do? How to give confidence to their discouraged troops and stooge allies and how to find a way out for their imminent defeat? But according to media reports, they want to prolong this nefarious war furthermore and sacrifice their people and soldiers for an illegitimate war, a war which is impossible to win and have no outcome except failure and destruction.

On the other hand, the figurehead officials of surrogate Kabul administration which has no popular support seek their survival and surrogate authority in prolongation of the invasion of the beloved country. They always strive to take advantage from every appalling action of the imperialist leaders of west in favor of themselves and dub their every atrocity and illegitimate act as justice. On 21 November, during the meeting between Ashraf Ghani and the ten member delegation of congress of invading America, the key issue encompassed the discussion agenda was also prolongation of war.

To eliminate concerns, the foreign ministers of NATO should find solution in light of justice, insight and peaceful politics instead of implementing military strategies. They should tell the truth to their leaders and people and should study the dimensions of the Afghanistan’s issue. They should respect the views of the overwhelming majority of people and take into account their legitimate demands instead of supporting a few unpopular figures. They should take into consideration the consequences of injustice and their unwise politics in Iraq. The western political leaders should realize that many a times when persecution and harassment of people reaches its climax then it spirals out of control.

The solution of the Afghan issue is only possible when the Islamic and national demands of the Afghans are accepted. Occupation should be ended, independence and sovereignty restored and Islamic system established based on the consensus of the Afghans. In view of balanced and just politics, Islamic Emirate always seeks and will seek sustainable peace in light of the Islamic Shariah and according to the aspirations of the people so that our miserable people would be rescued from the sufferings of the imposed war.

End

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

A man offers prayer on a stone in the fast flowing river Swat

(Image via Nani Bram)

DON’T STOP BELIEVING

This one is for the insomniacs
the ones who sorrow overrides
Pillow drenched in tears
bloodshot, weary eyed.
This one is for
the ones who failed and tried
And then tried
And failed again.
If failing was olympic;
unanimous perfect ten !
My comrades,
You have wandered where
scores have fallen before you,
I wonder how you even stand
Are my eyes deceiving?
Wipe away the tears and

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

A man holds a placard reading “Terrorist is not Muslim” as people take part in a silent walk to support freedom and peace and against barbarism, and misconceptions in Toulouse on November 21, 2015, following Paris’ November 13 terror attacks. More than 10,000 people marched today in the French city of Toulouse for peace and against “barbarity” a week after the devastating attacks in the capital left 130 people dead. The march took place largely in silence. AFP PHOTO / REMY GABALDA / AFP / REMY GABALDA

Post via Islamic Emirate

Following the recent attacks carried out in Paris – attributed by the Parisian Police as the work of a few individuals and subsequently claimed by Daesh (ISIS) – France’s Muslims are faced with the harsh reality of reprisals against their community. Therefore they have asked the French authorities to clearly confine the responsibility of these attacks to those who have taken responsibility for it. These Muslims living in France fear that as a result of these attacks, the French authorities would adopt draconian policies against all Muslims. Accordingly the authorities will view all Muslims with suspicion and will be closely scrutinized by the French Intelligence.

Some have stated that during the previous Friday while Muslims were congregating to fulfill their Friday prayers, the French Police thoroughly searched each and every Muslim attending these prayers. According to these sources such actions betray the deep suspicion French authorities hold against all Muslims. According to a Muslim – named Soraya – who was interviewed by the French media, prior to these attacks, Islamic infrastructure were repeatedly vandalized, the Islamic veil was legally proscribed and Muslims in general were stripped of all religious and political rights. But following these attacks, Soraya feared that the French will adopt even stricter policies against Muslims across the country and ordinary vigilantes might use these attacks as a pretext to vent their anger against Muslim individuals and Islamic institutions.

France’s Muslim population:

Due to France’s historical ties with the Islamic world, France hosts the largest Muslim population in the West. According to statistics Islam is the second largest religion in France after Roman Catholicism. In other words, Muslim make up a larger portion of the population than Jews and Protestants. According to official statistics Protestants number one million; Buddhists number 600,000; Jews number 525,000; and Orthodox number 15,000 in France. Muslims, numbering 6 million form a larger segment of the population than all the other smaller groups combined. The majority of Muslims live in Paris, Marseille, and Lyon.

Of the Muslim population approximately 35% are of Algerian descent; 25% are of Moroccan descent; and 10% are of Tunisian descent. Only about 20,000 Muslims are French by descent.

End

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

Post via Islamic Emirate

Reports received from the Leadership Office say that on the 04th of Safar al Muzzafar 1438 Hijri Lunar, the Leadership Council of Islamic Emirate appointed the respected Sher Muhammad Abbas Stanekzai as the head of the Political Office and Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi as his deputy.

Stanekzai Sahib was appointed as the acting chief of the Political Office after the respected Sayed Muhammad Tayyab Agha resigned.

Stanekzai Sahib has attained higher education, is a strong diplomat and has rendered valuable services in various fields in the Islamic Emirate. And similarly Mr. Hanafi Sahib is a bright scholar of the country, experienced, multilingual and has a good past of service in the political field.

End

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

Dining with Dons? Image posted on Twitter by Muhammad Ali Shah (GEO)

There is a saying “its not what you know but who you know” which is certainly applicable in the case of Reham Khan or is it Nayyer (it gets confusing). Khan certainly used her short time with Imran Khan to good advantage, no doubt acquiring many new contacts and useful connections. Khan is the mistress of “misinformation” and the daughter of double standards and took this to new heights this week as a guest speaker at Oxford University.

Khan, a chameleon-like character, managed to temporarily ditch the dupatta (head covering) to moan about Pakistan’s elitist politics to one of the most elitist institutions in the UK. She also talked of the need for “revolutionary changes” in Pakistan (careful Khan, isn’t that a treasonable offence?) In a so called Islamic country Lal Masjid cleric is hauled over the coals for calling for Shariah

http://arynews.tv/en/lal-masjid-clefulfil-demands/

Her specialist subject is lecturing Imran on the benefits of deodorant, shampoo and creams. She is also claims expertise on moth-ridden clothes as well as being the new darling of democracy (an ideology that seems to bomb people into submission). Not sure if this speaking engagement was “free or fee” (a fierce debate ensued on social media after an alleged publicist demanded £35,000 for a recent article) but the description on her CV will probably morph into “lecturer at Oxford” as opposed to “gave a talk once at Oxford”.

The “gender” activist (who failed to get her marriage registered in Pakistan) seems to rely on a plethora of male followers to promote her causes, more interested in a little mild flirtation than whether she has anything of value to say to society. “If you want I am ready to marry you” said Muhammad Irfan on Twitter. “I am single waiting for Reham Khan” declared Shakeel Ahmad. Marriage is clearly a sensitive topic with Ary reporting that first ex husband Dr Ijaz Rehman is suing for counter-defamation of character see following link,

http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-2-352186-First-ex-husband-launches-counter-defamation-case-against-Reham

Khan alleged on TV she was a victim of domestic abuse through Dr Rehman produced a background clearance to work document showing no criminal convictions. A well-known Pakistan journalist is also considering legal action. Khan may wish to consider studying law to defend herself in case of more cases to come?

So what has Khan actually achieved in Pakistan? She did host a chat show interviewing the great and good (or not so good) of Pakistan. Khan was Ambassador for Street Children in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where a first shelter complex for street children has just opened. Has she funded it herself, built it or will she be caring for the children there? She was likely able to achieve this on the back of Imran’s name, regional supporters and someone else’s money and resources such as coaching cricket to streets kids. In other words although she may have come up with the idea she was fortunate to be surrounded by others who could actually make it happen for her in practical terms. Nice job if you can get it, though most people couldn’t as her role as Ambassador appeared to be a “one horse race” open only to the elite. Bye-bye meritocracy…

No doubt she will continue to pop up again in the media with more kiss and tell titbits. Khan tweeted,

Returning to the job I love the most to the loyal crew who are like family to the land I love the most. #Pakistan #TV #Newschannels

Somewhat surprising statement given Dr Rehman’s claim she wasn’t too keen being in hot climes in case her skin got darker and had a rather condescending attitude to Pakistanis. It seems the woman who complained she didn’t like women “whining” seems set to whine on to the rest of us for some time to come!

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

Still of dead bodies, Shorabak attack from Al Emarah Studio video

Islamic Emirate (Afghan Taliban) has released a video from Al Emarah Studio which claims to support an alleged incident of human rights abuses said to have occurred on 8th August 2015 where 13 members of one family were killed and another two detained during an attack on the Saman Karez village in Sarlat area, Shorabak district of Afghanistan.

The Long War Journal  which states it is “dedicated to providing original and accurate reporting and analysis of the Long War (also known as the Global War on Terror)” portrayed the incident with the heading, “US military strikes Al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan”. The publication cited a US military statement from Brigadier General Wilson Shoffner, a US military spokesman, who said the US and its ally had carried out “one of the largest joint ground-assault operations we have ever conducted in Afghanistan” with Long War Journal writing that “two camps were hit with 63 airstrikes, which provided cover for ground forces.”

Abdulqahar Balkhi a spokesperson affiliated with Islamic Emirate, protested the reporting from Long War Journal calling the attack “a crime”. He has long accused international human rights organizations of being selective in what they report and threw out a challenge to UNAMA (United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan) and Amnesty Online via Twitter, saying, “let’s see you have the courage to condemn this open crime…” posting the following comments on Twitter.

Release no. 55 by Al Emarah Studio HQ https://archive.org/download/GhorakHDFinal2/Ghorak%20HD%20Final-2.mp4 … Mobile Phone MP4 https://archive.org/download/Ghorak-mobileMp4/Formatfactoryghorak-mobileMp4.mp4 …

Includes documented footage of Shorabak crime >> http://shahamat-english.com/statement-by-commission-for-military-affairs-department-for-prevention-for-civilian-casualties-regarding-use-of-chemical-weapons-and-indiscriminate-civilian-casualties-caused-by-enemy-in-shorabak/ … <<

A crime dubbed by US & @LongWarJournal as huge op. against Al Qaeda base http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2015/10/us-military-strikes-large-al-qaeda-training-camps-in-southern-afghanistan.php …

@UNAMA @amnestyonline let’s see you have the courage to condemn this open crime…

Al Emarah Studio. part of the Multimedia Branch of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s Cultural Commission presents its video release no. 55 (38 minutes long) and claims to show “documented proof of the massacre carried out a few weeks ago by American invading forces during a joint large-scale raid on Shorabak district.” This appears in section one of the video. Section two “shows footage of martyrdom seekers who carried out an operation on Quick Reaction Force base in Boldak district of Kandahar in revenge for the Shorabak massacre.” Section three is a seperate operation.

Here is the earlier statement from Islamic Emirate condemning the incident in Shorabak

“On the 8th of August of the ongoing year (2015) US forces accompanied by Commander Abdul Razziq, the head of border police forces and the current police chief of Kandahar, carried out a raid on Saman Karez village in Sarlat area of Shorabak district.

The American invading forces brutally targeted the home of Haji Abdul Ali Aka with the initiation of the operation, martyring 13 family members on the spot while injuring 2 women and 5 children before detaining and taking them to an undisclosed location.

The villagers, hearing about the raid and attack of the American invaders and militias of General Razziq, began fleeing their homes towards the nearby mountains. The civilians most of whom were women, children and the elderly and in spite of the fact that the savage enemy saw that most were women and children, they brutally targeted them with helicopters and martyred 21. The names and details of the innocent civilians are as follow:

Hafizullah with 5 family members: Hafizullah himself, his two sons (Nasibullah and Attaullah), his wife, daughter-in-law and brother-in-law.

3 family members of Haji Muhammad Gul Aka : His wife, daughter and son, Bashir.

Din Muhammad with 5 family members: Din Muhammad himself, his 2 sons, daughter-in-law and 2 grand children while another grand child was injured.

Muhammad Naeem.

The son of Abdul Ghani who is currently serving jail term in Kandahar.

The son of Naimatullah.

The son of Dost Muhammad.

The daughter of Sahib Khan.

Muhammad Tahir along with his son.

On top of the above mentioned human losses, the locals also sustained heavy material losses as well; their vehicles were burnt, their money was stolen while 3 other innocent civilians were also detained.

On this same day the enemy forces used a chemical gas during their operation in Sarlat region’s Rod area and also poured acid on the bodies of some martyrs.

The Islamic Emirate strongly condemns this act of the cowardly enemy and considers it a clear sign of their weakness due to their inability of facing the Mujahideen and targeting defenseless civilians to avenge their defeat.

We call upon all independent human right organizations and its active members to raise their voice and condemn this huge violation by the Americans and their internal support forces so that all human right conventions and charters are applied uniformly.”

End of statement

——————————–

There are two extremely diverse accounts of what happened in Shorabak and to date there does not appear to have been any independent investigation to check out what was the reality on the ground. Imagery on the video shows the dead bodies of men women and children and interviews locals. Even if there was an Al Qaeda training camp at some point, was it being used as a military facility in the present day? What checks were made to ensure that there were no civilian in the area of the attack? Alongside claims of the killing of non-combatant adults and children are further allegations referring to the use of helicopters to target locals and destroy property, theft, use of a “chemical gas” detaining women and children and defacing bodies using “acid”.

This incident must be independently investigated by human rights organizations. The allegations a are of a serious nature and may amount to war crimes. If such disputed incidents are not investigated then it is a licence for US and allies to behave how they please knowing there will be no checks or accountability for their actions.

Since this incident, there has been an attack on a Médecins Sans Frontières hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan on October 3 where it is confirmed that civilians were targeted during an aerial attack by US forces. MSF reported at “least thirty people were killed in the airstrikes, including 13 staff members, 10 patients and 7 unrecognizable bodies yet to be identified.” MSF has called for a transparent and independent inquiry into this attack. See following link for further information,

“Kunduz hospital attack. MSF Factsheet”

http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/article/kunduz-hospital-attack-msf-factsheet

The Kunduz attack has received much publicity in international press while Shorabak has received little in comparison. Shorabak must be investigated also so that the truth can be ascertained and in the event of any proven attack on civilians, justice has to be the end goal.

Links

“Kunduz hospital had complained of threats from Afghan Special Forces in July, a full and independent investigation into bombing is essential”

https://activist1.wordpress.com/2015/10/04/kunduz-hospital-had-complained-of-threats-from-afghan-special-forces-in-july-a-full-and-independent-investigation-into-bombing-is-essential/

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

(Post via Islamic Emirate)

The head of Kabul’s Unity Government, Ashraf Ghani, said yesterday during a trip to Kazakhstan that the Taliban are a threat of Southern Asia.  The Intellect’s regime consistently purports to identify Taliban as a global threat, especially where it thinks that such claims will result in a larger pool of donations from such states.

Previously, in a trip to Tajikistan, the Ghani regime’s national security advisor, Hanif Atmar, had made a similarly absurd claim stating that Daesh (ISIS) was spreading throughout northern Afghanistan and the group’s establishment there would pose a threat to the entire Central Asia including threatening the borders of China and Russia.

By making such exaggerations the Unity Government hopes to gather further contributions from states so that they can finance their regime’s demoralized forces and prevent its imminent collapse. While the Thinker claimed during his trip that he was willing to hand over the government to the Islamic Emirate, in reality he is willing accept any kind of foreign servitude to ensure his political survival. To this end he signed the Bilateral Security Agreement with the United States which is a legal instrument cementing the regime’s servitude to foreign interests.

The Kabul regime’s such contradictory and childish claims betray the naivety of the foreigner’s ‘Intellectual’ and his partners. He feigns to believe that other statesmen might be so gullible to believe every absurdity he utters while the truth is that no matter how underdeveloped Central Asia might be, it nonetheless has far superior grasp of the diplomatic realities than Ghani and his team. They, for example, realize that Daesh (ISIS) has no presence in northern Afghanistan.

The Islamic Emirate is a military and political force that has proven to the international and regional states that while is adheres to the principle of non-interference in other’s affairs, it is equally ready to defend itself against foreign intervention.

Due to the Intellect’s unintelligible policies, Afghanistan is in a perpetual state of instability, economic recession and political and social retardation. Given the Intellect’s deference of Afghanistan’s national interests to those of the United States, one can only wonder how many more failings this failed government will endure.

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.

One of several schoolgirls suffering from teargas inhalation (Image via Younes Arar)

The teargassed schoolgirls

“Palestinian school girls suffering tear gas suffocation as their school was shot today morning with 10s of tear gas canisters and grenades by Zionist occupation forces in Hebron city, 19 November 2015.” Younas Arar

(Images via Younes Arar)

Death of protester from a rubber bullet injury

Mahmoud Elayyan with his mother (Image via Younes Arar)

“The 20 years old Palestinian Mahmoud Elayyan. She visited every doctor in occupied Palestine, in Jordan and even Brazil trying to find a proper cure to become pregnant, she planted once and twice and finally she succeeded, he was growing slowly inside her, she felt every breath, heartbeat and kick of him, until finally after 9 months he was born, it was like heaven for her and his dad, they called him Mahmoud, the father died later as Mahmoud was still a child and his mother become all his family and he was his mother’s heart, soul, life, she was watching him growing in front of her eyes, every moment of his life was unforgettable one, it was like magic, she tried the maximum she can to provide him the best of everything, and he grown up to become the son she always wanted, decent young man, loving, caring, full of life, love his people and land and eager for freedom. When this Intifada broke out he participated in every protest, he was always there, until the Zionist occupation forces decided to put an end to his life, shot him a bullet, they call it rubber bullets, but actually they are rubber coated metal bullets, he was shot in the head 10 days ago during a protest near Ramallah, he went in coma, Thursday night he died of his injury and yesterday he was buried, and his heart broken MOTHER was left behind, embracing his clothes, smelling and kissing them, sleeping on his bed, embracing his pillow, trying the best she can to be in touch with him through everything belongs to him, 21 November 2015.”

Mahmoud Elayyan in life and death (Images, Younes Arar)

The trashed radio station, Hebron by Younes Arar

Damage to radio station allegedly by “Zionist occupation forces”

(image by Younes Arar)

No matter what they do, the truth will be heard,
Al Khalil Radio Station in Hebron city (Al Khalil city) which was stormed today morning by Zionist occupation forces, destroyed its contents, stole transmission equipment and stopped it from working for six months, its the second station to be stopped in Hebron after Al Huriyya Radio Station, 21 November 2015.

(Images Younes Arar)

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.