Syria - The Art of the Prank

From Juan:

“˜Sex jihad” almost certainly a hoax
Raw Story
via Agence France-Presse
October 1, 2013

Sex-jihadis-via-AFP-425

Over the past few weeks, various media outlets have been awash with sensational stories of an alleged “sex jihad” taking place in parts of Syria controlled by the rebels.

Hundreds of Muslim women, notably from Tunisia, are reportedly going to Syria to offer themselves to jihadist fighters as a sign of their devotion to their cause.

While this certainly makes for a good story, it may all be a hoax. Continue reading ““˜Sex Jihad” Hoax Exposed”

Syrian security forces break hands of political cartoonist Ali Ferzat
by Elizabeth Flock
Washington Post
August 25, 2011

Renowned Syrian political cartoonist Ali Ferzat was kidnapped, badly beaten, and left bleeding on the side of the road in an attack Thursday blamed on the security forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Ferzat had once had high hopes for Assad as leader, having been visited long ago by the aspiring opthamologist, who told the cartoonist all his work should be published “” even cartoons banned in the country, the Guardian reports.

But in recent years, Ferzat, now 60 and based in Damascus, had increasingly criticized not only the bureaucracy and corruption in Assad”s regime but also his brutal crackdown on protesters.

Continue reading “Syrian Cartoonist Beaten”