ISIL ex-prisoners

Erbil, Iraq - One afternoon last month, Abu Wahid was told he was going to die.

A former member of the Iraqi police, he cried and read the Quran, but was not surprised about his fate. "I already knew they would kill me," he said of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters who had jailed him.

Abu Wahid, 32, who is from the town of Hawija in northern Iraq, was imprisoned by ISIL fighters eight months ago, after they seized the town in the summer of 2014. He was briefly freed and then arrested again in July. ISIL claimed that Abu Wahid passed secrets about the group's movements and positions to Kurdish armed groups that control nearby parts of northern Iraq. 

Hostages freed by US and Peshmerga forces listen to a speech by Massoud Barzani, president of Iraq's Kurdish region, in Erbil last month [Reuters]

The day Abu Wahid was told of his imminent death, the local ISIL judge came to his cell and asked him, "Why have you been giving information about fellow Muslims to the Kurds?" (The vast majority of Kurds in Iraq are indeed Muslim.)

Abu Wahid denied the charge, but he was accused of lying and was kicked. He recalled that the judge told him: "You have to write a will, because tomorrow we will kill you." Two days earlier, four men in Abu Wahid's cell had been removed.

When men were taken out of the jail "they didn't come back", said Abu Wahid, speaking to Al Jazeera from the offices of Kurdish security forces in Erbil. "There was a system, and we were in a queue to be killed."

The men were taken outside to the back of the jail, which had previously been the house of a judge who fled ISIL's advance in 2014. Abu Wahid heard the sound of shovels digging a pit behind the wall of the jail. When the men were taken outside, the remaining prisoners could hear the sounds of guns and screaming. 

"When they killed one man, the next man would start shouting, 'Allahu Akbar!' ['God is great!']," said Ahmed Mahmoud, 31, another prisoner accused by ISIL of passing secrets to the Iraqi army.

ISIL subjected the prisoners to torture. During his incarceration, Abu Wahid said he was tortured eight times by his captors, who applied a charge to electric cables attached to his neck.

"First they brought me to a room, sat me down and put water on me. Next they brought electricity cables and applied a charge to my neck. For the next three days, blood would come from my mouth when I slept," he said. "When I felt dizzy and passed out because I couldn't take any more, they brought the cables to wake me up again."

When I felt dizzy and passed out because I couldn't take any more, they brought the cables to wake me up again. Abu Wahid, former ISIL prisoner

After the fifth session, when they threatened to bring his nephew and kill him, Abu Wahid confessed to informing on the ISIL fighters. "After that I started talking," he said.

After being told of his death sentence, Abu Wahid wrote his will late into the night. "I wrote to [my family] to tell them that tomorrow they will kill me, so take care of your brothers and my sister. When I finished, I rolled up the will ... and put it in my pocket," he said.

Abu Wahid had every reason to worry about the safety of the surviving members of his family. In 2006, armed fighters linked to a predecessor of ISIL beheaded his brother, accusing him of working with the Kurds. A year later, his uncle, a city council member, was murdered, and two of his cousins were on an assassination list. They were accused of working with Sunni tribes opposed to the armed group's tactics.

At 2am, not long after finishing writing his will, Abu Wahid was startled to hear helicopters and soldiers on the roof.

"Some of my friends were sleeping, so I woke them up and said, 'There are US soldiers here!'" He then heard the sound of bombs and of Kurdish soldiers shouting: "Don't be scared - we are here to help!" 

They broke down the door to the cell where the startled prisoners were crammed and asked, "Are there any Peshmerga [Kurdish soldiers] here?" When the answer came back in the negative, the prisoners were told to hurry out. "We told them there are files on us in the other room, so they broke down the door and took the files," Abu Wahid said.

In all, Kurdish and US special forces rescued 69 prisoners, detained six ISIL fighters, and killed 20 more. One US soldier, Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler, died in the operation. The raid was launched to liberate captured Peshmerga who were believed to be in the jail, but who had since been moved, according to Kurdish officials. 

Amazon Deliver a Pair of Shoes via Drone

Amazon has released a new video showcasing its forthcoming drone delivery service, which the online retailer first began teasing almost exactly two years ago.

In the video — narrated by sacked U.K. Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson — a family in urgent need of a new pair of soccer cleats uses Amazon Prime Air to order and receive the shoes in the matter of half an hour. It is, Clarkson says, a “miracle of modern technology”: at a warehouse “not too far away,” the parcel is latched to an unmanned aerial vehicle that rises to 400 ft. and zips to the delivery destination.

The clip features what it says is authentic footage of an Amazon drone performing the delivery.

Amazon says on its website that the delivery service will “take some time” to implement, though Reuters reports that the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration expects to finalize operation regulations for commercial drones within the next year.

Tech Billionaires Team Up For Green Energy

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is involved in the project

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg, and Amazon chief Jezz Bezos are among around 20 investors in the Breakthrough Energy Coalition fund.

They are pooling their cash to fund technology that will increase the world's energy output - particularly in developing countries - without contributing to global warming.

They say their financial firepower is required because investing in such technology is risky, because of the "nearly impassable Valley of Death between promising concept and viable product".

Mr Gates, who is worth £52bn, wrote on his blog: "The renewable technologies we have today, like wind and solar, have made a lot of progress and could be one path to a zero-carbon energy future.

"But given the scale of the challenge, we need to be exploring many different paths - and that means we also need to invent new approaches.

"Private companies will ultimately develop these energy breakthroughs, but their work will rely on the kind of basic research that only governments can fund. Both have a role to play."

In a Facebook post Mr Zuckerberg wrote: "Solving the clean energy problem is an essential part of building a better world.

"We won't be able to make meaningful progress on other challenges - like educating or connecting the world - without secure energy and a stable climate.

"Yet progress towards a sustainable energy system is too slow, and the current system doesn't encourage the kind of innovation that will get us there faster."

Other investors include Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, LinkedIn boss Reid Hoffman, and Alibaba executive chairman Jack Ma.

Prince Harry Gives Top Honour To Tutu

The archbishop, who has recently suffered ill health, looked frail but was smiling as the prince visited the offices of the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation in Cape Town.

The prince tried to usher the archbishop into a chair but he waved him away, announcing "I can stand for a long time!" before eventually taking a seat next to the prince.

The archbishop praised the prince for his charity work in Africa.

He said: "I am very touched by your commitment to Lesotho. I taught at the university there and became Bishop of Lesotho.

"It has always had a very soft spot in our hearts ... just wonderful that you and the English are helping, thank you very much."

The prince replied: "You will have to come and visit one of our projects."

The 84-year-old also talked about the Queen's continued support for the Commonwealth.

The prince, on behalf of his grandmother, then presented the archbishop with the Order of the Companions of Honour, a medal given to people for outstanding achievements in arts, culture and religion.

Previous recipients include Sir John Major, Lucian Freud, Sir David Attenborough and Harold Pinter, but several honours are reserved each year for recipients from Commonwealth countries.

Archbishop Tutu, who became known around the world for speaking out against apartheid and was awarded the Nobel Peace prize in 1984, has been in and out of hospital in recent months suffering from infections related to prostate cancer.

Later, Prince Harry will visit a youth centre helping young people to get out of gangs and stay away from crime.

He will attend a seminar focusing on why teenagers are lured into the gang culture before touring the centre's facilities, which include a small farm, and training workshops.

Prince Harry has already looked at the issue of gangs in the UK by launching the Full Effect programme in Nottingham, which aims to divert young people away from gangs.

His four-day tour is at the request of the UK Government.

Last Thursday, he opened the new Mamohato Children's Centre in Lesotho, run by his Sentebale charity to help children living in extreme poverty.

Flooding And Ice Storms Kill 14 Over Thanksgiving

Eight people were killed in flooding in north Texas and another six in Kansas and Oklahoma as a result of accidents during ice storms.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation said roads in the Panhandle remained treacherous after a slow-moving storm dropped ice and freezing rain into Sunday.

More than 71,000 homes and business were without power as a result of the storms.

Forecasters predicted above-freezing temperatures in Texas and Oklahoma, but the weather conditions were expected to affect travelling conditions for people going home after Thanksgiving weekend.

Flood watches and warnings remained in effect on Sunday night in parts of north Texas and Arkansas.

A 70-year-old woman whose car was swept away in Fort Worth on Friday is still missing.

Authorities were aiming to send divers to search for her, but the rushing water made recovery efforts too dangerous, Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Kyle Clay said.

A family had to be rescued from their home in Seagoville, southeast of Dallas, because of rising water levels.

In Texas, concerns have been raised over the Trinity and Brazos rivers with more rain possible for Monday.

Most airports in the US enjoyed smoother weather conditions as tens of millions of Americans head home from the long holiday weekend.

Airlines For America estimated that more than 25 million passengers would take flights on US airlines during the 12 days around Thanksgiving.

Motoring group AAA estimated that another 47 million Americans would travel at least 50 miles over the weekend - the highest number since 2007.

Shadow Cabinet Stands On Syria Airstrikes

Usually all of them would be expected to support their leader - and the party position.

But Mr Corbyn's decision to release a letter outlining his opposition to airstrikes against Islamic State in Syria has raised the prospect of a revolt over the issue when it comes to be voted on in the Commons.

:: Corbyn Set For Showdown Over Syria Airstrikes

Ahead of a meeting of the shadow cabinet where a collective position is expected to be agreed, Sky News takes a look at where Labour's frontbench stands on the issue.

Sky News understands that at an extraordinary meeting of the shadow cabinet on Thursday, only four members explicitly supported Mr Corbyn's stance.

These were shadow communities secretary Jon Trickett, John Cryer who is the Parliamentary Labour Party chair, shadow chancellor John McDonnell, and shadow international development secretary Diane Abbott.

It is thought that 15 members of the shadow cabinet spoke out against Mr Corbyn's view.

They included: shadow education secretary Lucy Powell, shadow defence secretary Maria Eagle, deputy leader Tom Watson, shadow Northern Ireland secretary Vernon Coaker, shadow culture secretary Michael Dugher and shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn.

Heidi Alexander, shadow secretary of state for health, is another one of those in favour of bombing IS in Syria.

Chris Bryant, shadow leader of the Commons, also holds the opposite view to Mr Corbyn.

Sky sources have indicated shadow transport secretary Lilian Greenwood is leaning towards supporting airstrikes. 

The source said she found the arguments of Mr Benn at the shadow cabinet meeting "persuasive".

Shadow secretary of state for health Ian Murray has told the BBC he opposes airstrikes. 

Opinion is also likely to be split on whether or not the vote should be whipped, which would mean MPs would be expected to back their leader's position.

Mr McDonnell and Mr Watson want there to be a free vote, allowing MPs to vote with their conscience.

Former shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna told Sky News at the weekend he would defy Mr Corbyn if MPs are ordered to oppose military action.

These Are the Companies With the Best Parental Leave Policies

Getty Images (4)

Earlier this week, Amazon announced that it would expand its leave policy for new moms and extend the policy to dads for the first time. It’s just the latest tech company to do so, as Silicon Valley realizes the best way to attract top talent is to offer flexible work schedules and ever-flashier perks. According to the Society for Human Resource Management, 75% of the workforce will be made up of millennials in just a decade, and employers are kowtowing to their work-life preferences; a recent survey by Ernst & Young found that “millennials around the world are more likely than other generations to cite paid parental leave as an important benefit.”

While tech workers can rejoice, generous paid parental leave is far from routine in the rest of the economy. As you may have heard, the U.S. is one of the only countries in the world, along with Suriname and Papua New Guinea, that does not have mandatory paid parental leave. The Family and Medical Leave Act stipulates that “eligible” workers who have been at a company with 50 or more employees for over a year receive up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year.

According to SHRM’s 2015 Employer Benefits Survey, 21% of employers offered some type of paid maternity leave in 2015, while 17% offered paid paternity and/or adoption leave—a notable increase from 2014, when just 12% of employers offered paid maternity, paternity, and adoption leave. But in Silicon Valley, paid parental leaves are becoming the norm rather than the exception. These are the most generous policies:

AdobeNot to be overshadowed by Microsoft or Netflix, Adobe also announced this year that it would expand its paid parental leave to 26 weeks of paid maternity leave and 16 weeks of paid time for primary caregivers (including those who become parents through childbirth, surrogacy, adoption, or foster care).

AmazonThe most recent tech company to jump on the paid parental leave bandwagon, Amazon offers moms four weeks of paid leave before giving birth and 10 weeks after, plus an additional six weeks that any new parent (mom, dad, biological, or otherwise) can take, for a total of up to 20 weeks (during which their stock shares continue to vest). Fathers and adoptive parents get six weeks.

AppleExpectant mothers can take up to four weeks before giving birth and 14 weeks after. Fathers and other non-birth parents can take six-week paid leaves. Not ready for kids yet? Apple’s benefits also include egg-freezing services.

Change.orgThe petition website offers 18 weeks paid maternity, paternity, and adoption leave. “Our goal was to create a real parental leave program that supports all evolving families without creating financial hardship for them,” change.org President and COO Jennifer Dulski told our sister site Fortune in 2014.

FacebookBefore Netflix changed its policy, Facebook was the reigning paid parental leave king. The social network gives employees four months (16 weeks) of paid maternity, paternity, and adoption leave; in fact, it refers to the time off simply as “parental leave.” And according to many, Facebook fosters an environment that encourages everyone to take their leave, rather than stigmatizing it. (Instagram, owned by Facebook, offers the same policy.) Facebook also gives employees $4,000 in “baby cash,” has designated breast-feeding rooms in its Menlo Park headquarters, and like Apple provides egg-freezing services.

Google (and YouTube)Birth moms receive 18 weeks of paid maternity leave (during which their stock shares continue to vest). Moms who experience complications during childbirth receive an additional four weeks. The primary caregiver (gender neutral, includes adoptive parents and surrogates) is given up to 12 weeks paid “baby-bonding leave.” The non-primary caregiver receives up to seven weeks of paid leave. 

Families also receive $500 in “baby bonding bucks,” Google provides on-campus child care and “mother’s rooms,” and if the employee dies, his or her children will receive $1,000 per month until age 19, or 23 if they’re a full-time student, regardless of how long the employee worked at Google.

Microsoft
The company announced earlier this year that all new mothers and fathers (through birth, adoption, or surrogacy) will receive 12 weeks of paid leave, while birth mothers receive an additional eight weeks of maternity disability paid in full, for a total of 20 weeks.

NetflixThe streaming company made headlines just a few months ago when it announced new moms and dads would receive unlimited paid parental leave for the first year following the birth or adoption of a child. While Netflix received lots of (well-deserved) praise for the program, it is for “salaried streaming employees” only, meaning hourly workers (who work in the DVD division) are out of luck. (And of course, it’s only a good policy as long as people actually take advantage of it.)

PinterestNew mothers receive 12 weeks paid leave, dads get four weeks. According to Mother Jones, the social media site also encourages families to take advantage of Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts, which let employees set aside some of their paycheck tax free to help pay for childcare costs.

Reddit

Reddit gets less fanfare than other tech companies (perhaps because it’s not exactly recognized as the most progressive place to work), but it boasts a 17-week paid parental leave policy, according to a spokesperson, regardless of gender or birthing means.

TwitterTwitter offers one of the most generous paid maternity leaves, at 20 weeks. For dads and other non-birth parents, it offers 10 weeks.

YahooMarissa Mayer instituted a new paid leave policy at Yahoo in 2013, which stipulates 16 weeks of paid maternity leave and eight weeks for fathers and non-birth parents. Families also receive $500 to help with baby costs.

Non-tech companies that offer generous paid parental leave include:

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation — 52 weeks of paid maternity and paternity leave
• Bloomberg — 18 weeks full paid leave for primary caregiver, 4 weeks for non-primary caregiver
• Arnold & Porter LLP — 18 weeks paid leave for for the primary caretaker (including for adoption), 6 weeks paid parental leave for the secondary caretaker
• U.S. Navy — 18 weeks of paid maternity leave
• Johnson & Johnson — 15 weeks paid maternity leave (17 weeks if the mother has a C-section), 8 weeks of paid paternity and adoption leave
• Bank of America — 12 weeks of paid maternity, paternity, and adoption leave
• Patagonia — 8 weeks of paid maternity, paternity, and adoption leave
• Goldman Sachs — 16 weeks full-paid maternity leave, 4 weeks paid paternity leave