Syria: Primary school teacher at risk of torture
Amnesty UK, Friday, June 27, 2008      
Amnesty International has recently drawn attention to the plight of primary school teacher Mahmoud al-Najjar. Al-Najjar was arrested on June 16 at his house in Aleppo by State Security agents, who also confiscated political publications. The Syrian authorities have given no reason for his arrest. However, Mahmoud al-Najjar was known to have been at a meeting of the pro-democracy umbrella group Damascus Declaration for Democratic National Change on December 1, 2007. Twelve other people who attended the same meeting have also been detained. Eleven are being held in harsh conditions at Adra prison near Damascus. The 12th is being held at a women's prison in Douma. According to Amnesty, the arrest of al-Najjar is yet another example of the tyranny of the Assad regime. The organization further worries that the 48-year-oldal-Najjar is at grave risk of torture. He has a chronic lung infection, joint pain, and a slipped disc. His current whereabouts are unknown.  >>


  SYRIA: Independent journalist sentenced to prison for defamation
Menassat, Wednesday, June 25, 2008      
Reporters Without Borders has condemned a 10-day prison sentence handed down on June 23, 2008 to journalist Mazen Darwish. Darwish -- President of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression -- was sentenced under Article 387 of the criminal code for "defamation and insulting state administrative bodies." He was initially arrested back in January, 2008 for reporting on riots in the Damascus suburb of Adra and publicizing their ferocity. However, because he had no criminal record and was detained for three days after his arrest, Darwish was only sentenced to two days in jail. Furthermore, the military tribunal overseeing the case ordered that the laptop computer owned by Darwish and seized by police in January be returned to the activist. Nevertheless, the same court ordered that Darwish's working notes and photos should remain permanently confiscated.  >>


  Syria in new arrest of dissident
AFP, Monday, June 16, 2008      
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Syrian police arrested dissident Mahmud Najar on Monday, June 16th, 2008. A signer of the Damascus Declaration, Najar was picked up during a search of his home in the northern city of Aleppo. His arrest brings to 14 the number of Damascus Declaration members detained since December, 2007. Of those already arrested, some 12 have been charged, including the former MP Riad Seif. All such crackdowns by the Syrian regime have drawn strong criticism from the United States. In the words of White House spokesman Tony Fratto: "The Syrian regime cannot expect to be treated as a respected member of the international community while it engages in such systematic repression of its own citizens.”  >>


  SYRIA: Trial of blogger Karim Arbaji adjourned
Menassat, Monday, June 16, 2008      
The Higher Court for the Internal Security on June 8 adjourned the trial of Syrian blogger Karim Arbaji. Arbaji, the administrator of the online forum akhawia.net, was arrested on June 7, 2007. Amnesty International has declared him an opinion prisoner held for peacefully expressing his political views. Arbaji had previously been summoned many times before Syrian military intelligence in Damascus because of his connections to the aforementioned forum. On April 20, he appeared before the court under article 286 on the accusation of "spreading lies to weaken the nationalist feeling.” The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has frequently asked Syrian authorities to release Arbaji without conditions.  >>


  Six-month ban in Syria revisited
Menassat, Saturday, June 14, 2008      
On June 14th, 2008, the website Menassat commemorated the 6 month anniversary of its censorship by the Syrian government. Shut down in September, 2007, after its commencement only 2 months prior, Menassat immediately proved to be a nuisance to Syrian authorities. Aside from publicizing the scandal of Syrian internet censorship, Menassat published stories related to Syria's crackdown against free speech and critical of Syrian state repression. More dangerous than ever to the Assad regime, Menassat reported the news through a uniquely Syrian legal framework by using Syrian reporters like Omar Abdelatif, Khaled Al Ekhetyar, Mihyedin Iso, and Bassam el Kadi, who have since become regular site contributors. This specter of Syrians criticizing Syria made it more than likely that Menssat would be among those 150 websites closed down between August and September of 2007. Indeed, Menassat was the first website to be restricted for its coverage of the Syrian war against the internet. It's a badge that Menassat wears with pride.  >>


  Opening up an Internet café in Syria? Good luck
Menassat, Friday, June 13, 2008      
In an intriguing report, Menassat examined the many obstacles the Syrian government places in the way of those who desire to open up internet cafes in the closed and isolated Middle Eastern society. First, a potential café owner has to get a license from the Syrian Telecommunications Institution, which inevitably involves a great deal of paperwork and administrative procedures. Second, he must get a security license granted by the Interior Ministry in which a set of security instructions is issued in a coordinated effort with the Telecommunications Institution. Among the instructions given to potential café owners by this joint communiqué are that each café visitor must provide his name, ID, and the names of his or her mother and father. Third, the café owner must then present to visitors instructions as to which religious and political websites they are banned from using. According to sources in Syria, the cost of obtaining an operating license for a Syrian internet cafe could sometimes reach $6,000. And, of course, if this does not suffice, there is always a nearby prison cell available for recalcitrant café owners.  >>


  Syria: Repression of Activists Continues Unabated
Human Rights Watch, Thursday, June 12, 2008      
According to Human Rights Watch, Western countries looking to increase engagement with Syria should know that Syrian authorities continue to arrest, try, and harass political and human rights activists. In May 2008 alone, Syrian authorities detained a political writer, began the trial of two activists, and restricted the travel of at least seven others. Naturally, this is set against the backdrop of persecution initiated in December, 2007 against members of the Damascus Declaration. Nevertheless, despite the tyranny of the Assad regime, France is currently seeking to expand its ties with Syria and various American policymakers like Senator Chuck Hagel are advocating that the United States engage actively with the Syrian state. However, Human Rights Watch regards such attempts at negotiation without preconditions as hasty and unwise. Sarah Leah Whitson, Human Right Watch’s Middle East and North Africa Director, says that “any engagement with Syria must include an open discussion of human rights concerns, including the fate of political prisoners and other Syrians who suffer abuse.”  >>


  Sarkozy accused of breaking promises after he decides to celebrate 14 July with press freedom predat
Reporters Without Borders, Thursday, June 12, 2008      
Reporters Without Borders has voiced outrage at the announcement that Syrian President Bashar el-Assad will be accompanying President Nicolas Sarkozy on the official podium during the French national holiday celebrations in Paris on July 14th. Many believe that President Sarkozy is cozying up to the Syrian president to entice him into joining the French-sponsored Mediterranean Project. This project aims to reinforce the already existing cooperation between the Mediterranean countries and the European Union. Generally, Syria and Lebanon have treated the project – due to commence on July 13th – with little warmth. Reporters Without Borders also condemned Sarkozy for meeting with Libyan president Qaddafi and Tunisian president Ben Ali (both egregious abusers of human rights) in a similar attempt to woo more nations into the Mediterranean Project’s fold. In the words of one spokesperson: “Nicolas Sarkozy is breaking one commitment after another… He is now going to celebrate 14 July, which is supposed to be in honour of independence and freedom, next to the president of one of the world’s most repressive regimes.”  >>


  Syrian Regime Continue Its Oppression of the Opposition
Free Syria, Wednesday, June 11, 2008      
On the morning of Friday, June 8, 2008, the Syrian regime closed down al-Hurani Hospital in the City of Hama under the pretext that its new director had "incomplete documentation.” However, observers believe that the action against al-Hurani is about more than health concerns. The hospital indeed was founded by dissidents Fida Hurani, M.D. and her husband Ghazi Alyan. Unfortunately, neither of the two founders is around to address their hospital’s needs. The Syrian regime deported Mr. Alyan after a residency of 20 years in Syria and arrested Mrs. Hurani following her election as the head of the "National Council for Democratic Change.” Attempts by family lawyers to re-open al-Hurani have since been unsuccessful. This fact coupled with the well-regarded reputation of the hospital makes its recent closure suspicious. Indeed, al-Hurani Hospital has won several awards for its distinguished services. These include the Best Hospital Award for 2001 from the World Health Organization. According to Free Syria, the al-Hurani closure is thus an example of repression, pure and simple.  >>


  Syria: ‘Arabji and Dekalbab facing unfair trials
Amnesty International, Friday, June 06, 2008      
According to Amnesty International, businessmen Kareem Arabji and Muhammad Dekalbab are due to appear in court in Syria on June 8 and 9, respectively, in trials which could lead to their imprisonment for exercising their right to freedom of expression. Arabji, aged 30, a business consultant, was arrested by Syria's Military Intelligence on June 7, 2007 and charged with "broadcasting false or exaggerated news which would affect the morale of the country." Amnesty International believes the charge is related to his moderating of the Internet youth forum Akhawia. Arabji also posted several comments on the website critical of the Syrian regime. Dekalbab, aged 59, is a member of the unauthorized National Organization for Human Rights. He was arrested initially on March 9, 2008 and charged with "spreading false or exaggerated information... that may undermine the prestige of the state." His arrest stems from an article he wrote criticizing the lack of freedom of expression in Syria. Amnesty International claims that both trials "are part of a broader and ongoing campaign by the Syrian authorities to silence peaceful advocates of reform and others who may express ideas that do not conform to those of the state."  >>