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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Syrian regime courts favor with Islamists |
| 2006-06-01 |
| The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has found religion. Green and yellow banners fluttered at every turn in this capital's ancient stone bazaar a month after they marked the Prophet Muhammad's birthday April 10. For the first time in years, Muslims were allowed to openly observe that day. Other government bans on religious life also have diminished in recent weeks: Mosques are open between prayers. Religious weddings, once deemed to be risky public assembly, no longer need state security clearance. Mosques are urging women to join study groups that champion their role in Islam. The state military academy has invited religious authorities to speak for the first time in decades. In the street, Syrians of every faith are adjusting to a strange political spring. The oft-brutal regime, while cracking down anew on secular reform advocates, is courting favor with Islamists to keep at bay some publicly defined devils: dissidents and the Bush administration. |
| Posted by:ryuge |