For the second consecutive Friday, mass demonstrations swept across towns and villages of Idlib province as well as rural Aleppo, Hama and Lattakia. Held under the title “there is no alternative to overthrowing the Assad regime,” protestors reasserted the demands of the Syrian revolution and that it will continue until the people regain freedom and dignity for which they have risen up since March 2011.
Local media outlets said that tens of thousands of people poured to the streets following Friday prayers to demonstrate against the Assad regime and condemn the aerial bombing campaign being launched by the Assad regime and Russian air forces against the province on the pretext of targeting al-Qaeda-linked militants. Protestors raised the flag of the Syrian revolution and held signs that read “Idlib is green, not black.”
Demonstrators reasserted their solidarity with Idlib in the face of threats by the Assad regime and Russia to assault the region and displace its residents. They also chanted slogans reaffirming commitment to resistance and carrying on with the revolution.
President of the Syrian Coalition Aburrahman Mustafa said that “the majestic scene of demonstrations and chants of the Syrian revolution we saw today emphasized the the fact that the people have risen up to demand freedom and dignity and that they would not give up until their rights are fully regained.”
Demonstrators sent messages to the international community urging serious action to protect civilians and punish Assad for the war crimes he has committed since the start of the revolution against unarmed civilians.
Activists said that today’s demonstrations saw more participants and included new areas in Idlib and Hama provinces. They stressed that the mass demonstrations refuted allegations by the Assad regime and Russia that the region is under the control of hardline militants. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
