From the Newsdesk: Syria
On June 9, 2011, NPR’s Melissa Block spoke with Reem Haddad from the Syrian Information Ministry. When asked about the reports of the Syrian government using torture against prisoners, Haddad said that she could not confirm or deny these reports. The government spokeswoman’s reponses were evasive, once again demonstrating torture’s ability to silence honest discourse.
Block pressed Haddad on other important issues such as the nearly 2,000 Syrian refugees who fled the town of Jisr al-Shughur out of the fear of an all-out government assault. Haddad claims that the Syrian army has not even entered the town and that armed groups are behind the troubling events in Jisr al-Shughur.
Less than two weeks later, on June 20, NPR’s Peter Kenyon spoke with one of these Syrian refugees, Abu Ali, who gave a graphic description of the torture he suffered at the hands of the Syrian secret police. After Ali refused to reveal the names of the leading activists in Jisr al-Shughur, he was told to get ready for a "Flying Carpet" Ride. His account directly contradicts the government’s assertion that small groups of "sabateurs" are behind the terror that reigns over the Syrian town.
