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Syrian Women Learn to Mask Loss of Virginity
Region: Syrian Arab RepublicCheap artificial hymen resolves social stigma in society that frowns on premarital sex. By an IWPR-trained reporter (SB No. 81, 04-Nov-09) Ever since she lost her virginity to a classmate from college, 27-year-old Roula has been anxious about her family finding out. Her worries grew when she got engaged to another man two years ago. She put off fixing a date for the wedding for fear that her husband-to-be would ... more
Views: 286 Rating:
Is Syrian Regime Ready to Talk to Muslim Brotherhood?
Region: Syrian Arab RepublicSigns of dialogue with exiled opposition 27 years after Hamas massacre. By an IWPR-trained reporter (SB No. 75, 09-Sep-09) Syria appears to be planning to open a dialogue with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, MB, to pre-empt the Islamisation of society and the rise of Islamic groups in countries around Syria, local political analysts say. The regime is said to be concerned about growing fundamentalism. &ldquo... more
Views: 318 Rating:
Syria Briefing Syria home Syria-Iraq Ties Cool Over Bomb Charges
Region: Syrian Arab RepublicAmbassadors recalled just as relations were getting better. By an IWPR-trained reporter (SB No. 73, 28-Aug-09) A row over charges by Baghdad that Damascus is harbouring former Iraqi cadres responsible for the latest deadly attacks in Iraq is likely to escalate and hinder cooperation between the two nations, Syrian analysts say. The new tensions abruptly brought back to the surface Syria’s alleged role i... more
Views: 249 Rating:
Syria's Language Move Irks Businesses
Region: Syrian Arab RepublicShop owners say requirement for Arabic signs called costly, unfair and pointless. By an IWPR-trained reporter (SB No. 71, 10-Aug-09) Twelve years after opening an electronics shop in Damascus, Khaled has been forced to change its name. In place of Roussil, a Kurdish word which means sun disc, he was made to pick an Arabic name. Patrols from the capital’s municipality told him that they would close his store if... more
Views: 346 Rating:
Syrian Regime Tightens Grip on Dissenters
Region: Syrian Arab RepublicSyrian civil rights groups say the arrest of a prominent human rights advocate is a worrying sign that the authorities are increasing pressure on civil society. Mohannad al-Hassani, the head of the Syrian Organisation for Human Rights, was arrested by the state security services on July 28 after being summoned for interrogations a third time. Two days later, Hassani, who is one of the most active lawyers re... more
Views: 255 Rating:
Syria Riot Jail Causes Concern
Region: Syrian Arab RepublicA year after riots, questions remain around Sednaya jail and the fate of prisoners. By an IWPR-trained reporter (SB No. 66, 07-July-09) Although his jail term was supposed to end in April, Nizar Rastanawi is still incarcerated in the notorious Sednaya prison close to Damascus. Rastanawi, a prominent member of a Syrian human rights organisation serving four years in jail for the offences of spreading false new... more
Views: 357 Rating:
Calls for Inquiry Into Kurdish Soldiers’ Deaths
Region: Syrian Arab Republic
Rights group want investigation into spate of suicides among soldiers completing national service. By an IWPR-trained reporter (08-May-09) Eighteen ethnic Kurds have died under suspicious circumstances during mandatory military service over the last five years, say human rights lawyers and relatives of the deceased. While no official information has been made public about the circumstances of the soldiers’ ... more
Views: 318 Rating:
Syrian Rappers Find Their Voice
Region: Syrian Arab Republic
By an IWPR-trained reporter (01-Apr-09) With a swift move, he brings the microphone close to his mouth. “Brothers in Gaza, my microphone is your cannon. You kneel down only to God, and no one can force you to surrender,” blares out Hani al-Sawah, as if on stage in front of a huge audience. But Sawah, 20, is performing with friends in his bedroom and makeshift recording studio in the city of Homs. Saw... more
Views: 602 Rating:
Syrians See Apple Harvest as Sign of Peace to Come
Region: Syrian Arab Republic
When Hala al-Safadi bit into the apple, she felt as though she had been instantly transported back to her home town, which she left for good nine years ago. “They must be from our farm there or from a nearby farm. I can smell my childhood in them,” she said. She was referring to a batch of fruit recently imported from the Golan Heights, a disputed stretch of land which has been occupied by Israel si... more
Views: 453 Rating:
Report: US Helicopter targets Syria
Region: Syrian Arab Republic
Reports say that American air force helicopters hit terror targets inside Syria close to the Iraqi border. Media reports from Syria claim eight people were killed and fourteen wounded in the air strikes which took place near the border town of Abu Kamal on Sunday night. A US official in Washington confirmed the raid said the attack targeted elements of a robust foreign fighter logistic network and that due to ... more
Views: 549 Rating:
