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Friends of Syria
denounce unjust sanctions which the US is trying to impose
on Syria. Sanctions only hurt the people of the country and
hinder its development and progress. This is a hostile act
against the people of Syria, and Friends of Syria strongly
oppose it.
Israel has illegally
occupied the Syrian Golan Heights since 1967, in
complete defiance of numerous binding UN
Security Council resolutions (beginning with
UNSC Resolution 242)
that demand its complete withdrawal. Israel has even annexed
the Golan Heights in 1981, an action condemned and rejected
by UNSC Resolution 497.
Israel continues to defy the United Nations, to build more
settlements on occupied Syrian land, and to subject Syrians
under occupation to constant abuses of human rights.
We in Syria have been living under martial law
since 1963, when numerous political, economic and legal
restrictions were imposed, bringing decades of stagnation
and deprivation. This has to change, and the regime cannot continue to impose the authoritarianism,
corruption and nepotism that have plagued the country. It must
restore the independent rule of law and freedom of opinion
as the absolute minimum so Syria can play an
effective role in the world.
The Syrian government
continues to illegally detain prisoners of
conscience including
Kamal Labwani,
Anwar al-Bunni, and
many more. Their only
crime was to protest against injustice and defend
their compatriots' rights. Friends of Syria demand
their immediate and unconditional release. |
