The Damascus Bureau

Real news and stories from Syria

Syrian Netizens Hail Whistle-Blower

SMN No. 4, June 30, 2010 A group of Syrian netizens have expressed their backing for an employee who was reportedly fired from his position for exposing alleged corruption at a state institution. Around 500 people joined a Facebok group in support of Azad Othman, an engineer at Aleppo airport, who is said to have [...]

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Political Prisoner Held After Jail Term

SMN No. 4, June 29, 2010 Syrian activists have launched online campaigns in support of a political prisoner who was kept in custody by authorities, despite completing a 30-month prison term. Ali al-Abdallah, a Syrian author and journalist and a member of the Damascus Declaration opposition group, completed his sentence on June 17. He was [...]

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Poor Syrians Missing Out in World Cup

SMN No. 4, June 24, 2010 Several Syrian bloggers have criticised the monopoly of one Arab satellite TV station over the broadcast of World Cup matches, saying that Syrians living in dire economic conditions cannot afford the subscription fees. Millions of Syrians have been watching televised World Cup matches at home, in cafes, restaurants and [...]

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A Foreigner in My Own Country

By a Syrian Stateless Kurd It was supposed to be one of the happiest nights of my life. One evening, my wife and I left our hometown in north-eastern Syria heading towards the historical city of Aleppo. It was just three days after our wedding night. We were eager to enjoy our honeymoon in that [...]

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Jokes Pierce Wall of Silence

SMN No. 4, June 19, 2010 Some Syrian netizens have chosen humour as a means of tackling sensitive political issues. A Facebook group called “For those who dare… Political jokes” was launched recently with a series of humorous anecdotes on politics and public issues. The big number of jokes on corruption and repression circulating in [...]

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Twitter Not Popular Among Syrian Cyber-Activists

SMN, No. 3, June 18, 2010 The social networking service Twitter has so far failed to attract large numbers of Syrian Internet users as it did in other Arab countries. In an interview conducted via email, a Syrian blogger and activist said that the Syrian online community has not yet realised Twitter’s potential as a [...]

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Bloggers Reject Virtual Syrian Israeli Dialogue

SMN, No. 3, June 17, 2010 A new website fostering online dialogue between Syrian and Israeli intellectuals was criticised by a large number of Syrian bloggers, who stated that they were against carrying out discussions with their Israeli counterparts.

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Slideshows reflect dark side of daily life

SMN No. 3, June 16, 2010 Several slideshows appeared recently on YouTube showing photos of real scenes from the streets of Syria. The photos are often ironic and focus on odd activities. The person who posted the slideshows described them as “funny photos” that cast light on everyday problems in Syria.

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Arabic Wikipedia Banned by Syrian Authorities

SMN No. 3, June 15, 2010 The Syrian authorities reportedly blocked again the Arabic version of Wikipedia after having lifted the ban on the website for about a year. Wikipedia describes itself as an “online free-content encyclopedia that anyone can edit and contribute to”. The English version of the website is not blocked in Syria.

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Spare me the sermon?

SMN No. 3, June 14, 2010 A heated debate on religious preaching in public places broke out recently on Facebook in Syria. It was sparked by the launch of a group in May, which posed the question, “Can I take a microbus (van) or a taxi without listening to Sheikh Nabulsi?”

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