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Syria: Virtual activism sustains global attention

Anti-government protesters have continued to take to the streets despite the crackdown

As international pressure mounts on the Syrian government to end the “bloody repression,” activists are using social media to ensure continued attention on events on the ground.

The UN estimates that more than 3500 people have died since protest started in March and there is a growing fear of civil war with the Free Syrian Army, formed in July, carrying out a number of attacks on government troops including ambushes. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says that the international community hopes for a peaceful resolution and calls on all parties to end violence.

The popular Sham News Network, a grassroots news organizations that emerged during the Syrian revolution to aggregate and publish news footage–started an initiative that asks individuals to submit videos in solidarity with Syrian protesters, reports Global Voices.

A statement taken from one of  the videos posted to the SyrianSitInYouTube account states, “I am in solidarity with the Syrian people. I reject the brutality and killing that the Syrian authorities are committing against the unarmed Syrian people. And because silence is participation in this crime, I declare my participation in the Syrian Sit-in on Youtube.”

So far the initiative has received 275 videos from across the Arab world, as well as from the United States, Germany, Iceland, and Canada.

For instance, Birgitta Jonsdottir, a member of Icelandic Parliament and NATO Parliamentary, contributed a video post, in which she says, “I wish to express my solidarity and my support to the brave Syrian people that have been protesting day after day, month after month, against all odds.”

At a meeting held in the Moroccan capital, Rabat, on Wednesday, the Arab League’s 22 members suspended the Syrian government and gave Bashar al-Asad’s regime three days to end the violent repression. The Arab League has urged Syria to allow an international contingent to monitor the process or face sanctions.

The Syrian government is increasingly isolated as key allies such as France have now withdrawn their ambassadors and neighboring Turkey is calling for immediate action from the international community. According to BBC, France, Britain, Germany and a number of Arab states are to submit a draft resolution calling for a vote in the UN General Assembly condemning the violence.

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