.I would imagine that many other rural towns would like to join in with these protests.
Rural Syrian town's long-running protests target multiple enemies
By Zuhour Mahmoud, Syria Deeply | June 28, 2016 at 12:34 PM
1 of 3
Residents of Maarat al-Numan in rural Idlib protest the rule of al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra on June 21 in a civil resistance campaign that has lasted more than 100 days. Photo courtesy of Syria Deeply
ISTANBUL, Turkey -- Following the start of the U.S. and Russia-brokered ceasefire in February, civilians across Syria took to the streets en masse to protest against President Bashar al-Assad's government for the first time since the start of the uprising.
Some of the most boisterous demonstrations were in Maarat al-Numan, just south of Idlib on the highway between Aleppo and Hama, which had also been the site of virulent anti-government protests in the summer of 2011.
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Both times, in 2011 and 2016, the protests were violently suppressed.
This time, however, the crackdown was not by the Syrian government, but by al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra and its allied factions. In response, residents launched a "civil resistance campaign" against the group's militant rule that has lasted more than 100 days, making it one of the longest protests of its kind since 2011.
"Civil resistance in Syria is one of the most under-reported parts of the conflict; outsiders have this narrow view of the conflict as just a few armed groups killing each other," Mulham Sameer, a Syrian activist and a co-organizer of the campaign, told Syria Deeply. "But the truth is, there are thousands of Syrians who still strongly believe in peaceful resistance. That is the spirit of our uprising."
Continue reading at:
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...-towns-long-running-protests-target-multiple-
Rural Syrian town's long-running protests target multiple enemies
By Zuhour Mahmoud, Syria Deeply | June 28, 2016 at 12:34 PM
1 of 3
Residents of Maarat al-Numan in rural Idlib protest the rule of al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra on June 21 in a civil resistance campaign that has lasted more than 100 days. Photo courtesy of Syria Deeply
ISTANBUL, Turkey -- Following the start of the U.S. and Russia-brokered ceasefire in February, civilians across Syria took to the streets en masse to protest against President Bashar al-Assad's government for the first time since the start of the uprising.
Some of the most boisterous demonstrations were in Maarat al-Numan, just south of Idlib on the highway between Aleppo and Hama, which had also been the site of virulent anti-government protests in the summer of 2011.
ADVERTISING
Both times, in 2011 and 2016, the protests were violently suppressed.
This time, however, the crackdown was not by the Syrian government, but by al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra and its allied factions. In response, residents launched a "civil resistance campaign" against the group's militant rule that has lasted more than 100 days, making it one of the longest protests of its kind since 2011.
"Civil resistance in Syria is one of the most under-reported parts of the conflict; outsiders have this narrow view of the conflict as just a few armed groups killing each other," Mulham Sameer, a Syrian activist and a co-organizer of the campaign, told Syria Deeply. "But the truth is, there are thousands of Syrians who still strongly believe in peaceful resistance. That is the spirit of our uprising."
Continue reading at:
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-N...-towns-long-running-protests-target-multiple-
