A source in the city of Ar-Raqqah has reported that a new wave of arrests have occurred in the city, targeting religious elements due to their following of the Salafi school of thought. The source has revealed the names of some of those who were arrested by the intelligence apparatus. They include:
1) Mohammad al-Matar: A religious Education teacher. He has heart disease and is currently in the Military Hospital due to the severe torture that was inflicted on him
2) Abdullah Abboud: Civil Employer, married and has two daughters
3) Ahmad al-Adhan: An employer in the Petroleum company, and is a graduate of Shariah (Islamic Law)
4) Saif al-Deen al-Hamoud: An employer in the Petroleum company, and a student in the Shariah Faculty
5) AbdulGhani al-Rawi: An employee in the Euphrates River Dam
The Syrian Human Rights Committee (SHRC) calls for the release of the detainees mentioned above, and requests that if someone has committed an illegal act he should be transferred to a normal court as is the usual case. SHRC also calls for an end to arbitrary and oppressive arrests that is conducted on the basis of thought and creed, especially as the Syrian Constitution and the International conventions that Syria was part of guarantee freedom of creed, thought and opinion. SHRC also calls for an end to torture inhumane treatment which is practiced routinely in Syrian detentions, reminding the perpetrators that such acts contradict the Syrian constitution and international conventions.
Syrian Human Rights Committee
26/1/2009