The town of Kanakir in rural Damascus has seen an upsurge in peaceful anti-regime protests and activities in recent weeks, such as sit-ins and graffiti calling for the overthrow of the Assad regime, the withdrawal of Iranian militias from the region, and the release of detainees.
Local activists said that protestors tore up photos of Bashar al-Assad that were hung on the walls of the municipality building for the first time after regime forces recaptured the town more than two years ago. Anti-regime graffiti was also scrawled on the walls calling for the release of detainees and denouncing the so-called Reconciliation Committee and describing them as “traitors.”
Last week, dozens of people held a sit-in protest calling for the overthrow of the regime, the withdrawal of Iranian-backed militias from Syria, and the release of detainees from the prisons of the Assad regime. Protestors held signs that read ‘the detainees first,’ ‘we will not forget the detainees,’ ‘we prefer death to humiliation,’ ‘Syria is free,’ and ‘Iran out!’
Meanwhile, tension grew in the province of Swaidaa following the scrawling of anti-regime graffiti expressing solidarity with the people of Idlib province. The graffiti included slogans such as ‘save Idlib,’ and ‘down with the Assad regime.’ The Assad regime’s security forces rushed to remove the graffiti.
Many towns and villages in Syria’s southern provinces have seen a flare-up of the anti-regime civil movement, especially through graffiti denouncing the regime and demanding the withdrawal of the Iranian militias. (Source: Syrian National Coalition’s Media Department)