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November 4th, 2004
إلى كل محبي نبيل فياض
والمعجبين بشجاعته، نعلن أنه قد تم إطلاق
سراحه بعد أن قضى في السجن ما يزيد عن الشهر
دون أن توجه إليه أية تهمة. صحة نبيل فياض لا
تبعث على الاطمئنان وقد علمنا بأنه قضى آخر
فترة اعتقاله في المستشفى.
To all of those who love
Nabil Fayyad and admire his courage, we
announce that he was released from prison
after being held for more than a month
without any charges. Nabil spent the last
few days in the hospital and the news about
his health is not comforting at all.
Press
Release Dated November 1st, 2004
Damascus,
SYRIA Nov 1/04:
Nabil Fayyad, one of the most courageous and
outspoken intellectuals in Syria,
has been under arrest since September
30, 2004.
Fayyad, a chemist by trade and owner of a
pharmacy in Damascus, is a Sunni Muslim
scholar and linguist who studied theology in
Beirut. He has authored a number of books
and written extensively about the growing
power of Islamic fundamentalism in Syria. He
is also an advocate for liberalism,
tolerance and individual rights and
freedoms. Many of his writings can be found
on the Arabic site
www.annaqed.com.
Under pressure of the Islamic
fundamentalists, the Syrian military
intelligence took Fayyad into custody, and
has since been holding him without any
charges. Bogus charges will likely be
brought against him soon, and as in any
totalitarian government without a real
justice system, he will likely have no
chance at freedom. Suffering from heart
disease and other medical problems, his
health is likely to deteriorate if he is not
released soon. His supporters in Syria and
around the world are desperately asking
human rights organizations to intervene and
secure his release.
Fayyad was planning to visit the United
States in September to give lectures about
the growing influence of Islamic
fundamentalism in Syria but ironically his
request for a visa was denied by the U.S.
Embassy in Damascus. The reason for the
denial of a visa is unknown, but it may have
unfortunately emboldened the Syrian
government in arresting him without fear of
a significant outcry.
A new site in his name,
www.nabilfayyad.com is currently
under construction.
Annaqed.com (“The Critic”), created in 1999,
is a unique website dealing with political,
religious and social issues in the Middle
East. Annaqed.com has a large domestic and
international audience and includes sections
in both Arabic and English. A variety of
writers contribute to this website, which is
edited by its founder Bassam Darwich.
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