Today, mass demonstrations are expected to erupt all over the city after Friday prayers. The first Friday prayers where imams stand on the pulpit giving a sermon to free Syrians in a free Syria, where they are free truly to say what they want - outside of state control.

Today in Syria, for the first time ever, nobody fears live bullets, snipers, tear gas and bombs as we take to reclaim our country. Nobody will be covering their faces out of fear. Nobody will be bargaining with their lives as our people fill up the streets in jubilation, mourning and celebration. Our streets in our Syria.

Protests largely would start after Friday prayers in the mosque, and make their way down to town squares. The Assad regime used to respond with live ammunition, snipers, bombs and tear gas. Tanks would pull up to disperse, kill and obstruct. Many demonstrations would turn into funerals, and many funerals would turn into demonstrations. Repeatedly, the regime would kill mourners in funeral processions. There was no safety from what was to come in those protests despite the safety people felt among each other, and many of those eventually forcibly disappeared were picked up from those demonstrations.

Countless stories exist of families fearing for their loved ones in those Friday demonstrations. Countless stories exist of them fighting over it, of those who stayed at home waiting fearfully for them to come home, and countless stories exist of those who never did return home.

Fridays, aside being the most important day of the week for Muslims, are fundamental to the Syrian revolution as the day where mass demonstrations erupt all over the city simultaneously - demanding the fall of the Assad regime.

Today is the first Assad-free Friday in Syria since March 1971.

Hafez Assad came into power in March 1971. Ever since, Syria had been held hostage to the Assad regime — until 8th December 2024.

Today is the Friday in an Assad-free Syria.

Hi there - typically we don’t respond to bad faith comments but we’ll make the exception here. This is not the definition of whataboutism, if you read the text you’d realise it’s the opposite. We’re answering a question bad faith actors are weaponising to vindicate Netanyahu. Thanks.

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Assad’s Syria hasn’t ratified the ICC. The US isn’t a member either, nor Russia, China, Israel or India. Americans sure are in great company over there.

Ah, of course. Thank you. Please find here the new version: bsky.app/profile/inte...

Through the advocacy and efforts of Syrian civil society, some European countries are taking steps to pursue justice for the war crimes committed by the Assad regime. Landmark cases include Germany’s conviction of Anwar Raslan for crimes against humanity, France’s arrest warrant for Bashar Assad’s chemical attack massacres, and Switzerland’s charges against Rifaat al-Assad for his crimes against humanity in the 1982 Hama massacre.

Through the advocacy and effort of Syrian civil society, some European entities are taking independent strides to bring the Assad regime to justice.

Whilst Israel is not party to the Rome Statute, Palestine is. In 2015, Palestine accepted the ICC's jurisdiction, granting it the authority to investigate alleged crimes committed on its territory, including the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza. The ICC's Pre-Trial Chamber ruled in 2021 that it has jurisdiction over crimes committed in these areas. This applies to individuals regardless of their nationality, meaning Israeli officials can be investigated when their committed crimes are determined within these territories.

How was Netanyahu’s arrest warrant issued when Israel is not party to the ICC?

Syria’s pathway to the ICC was closed due to the veto and its not being a member state. That said, recent historic ICC decisions could re-open the door for Syria’s situation.

In 2018, the ICC ruled it had jurisdiction over the deportation of the Rohingya from Myanmar to Bangladesh, despite Myanmar not being an ICC member. The deportation was classified as a crime against humanity, as part of a broader attack on civilians, which partly occurred in the territory of an ICC member (Bangladesh). This ruling is pivotal for Syria, where similar violence has driven over 630,000 Syrians into Jordan, an ICC member state. Just as Myanmar’s military operations led to Rohingya fleeing, Syria’s brutal tactics—bombings, chemical attacks, and torture—have caused displacement across the border. Jordan’s ratification of the Rome Statute could open a path for the ICC to investigate the crime against humanity of deportation. Ongoing efforts are being pursued on this by Syrian civil society organisations.

What recent historic ICC decisions could re-open the door for Syria’s situation?

The ICC’s jurisdiction over the deportation of the Rohingya from Myanmar to Bangladesh.

Syria has not ratified the Rome Statute The ICC only has jurisdiction over crimes committed in countries that are party to the Rome Statute, which is the ICC's founding treaty, or when a country accepts its jurisdiction. Syria didn’t ratify the Rome Statute, so the ICC does not have automatic jurisdiction over crimes committed there.

Blocked UNSC referral The ICC can gain jurisdiction over non-signatory states if the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) refers the case. However, Russia and China, both permanent members of the UNSC with veto power, have consistently blocked resolutions to refer Syria to the ICC. Russia, in particular, is a close ally of the Assad regime and has a vested interest in protecting it from international prosecution.

Syria has not ratified the Rome Statute and vetoes by Russia and China in the UN Security Council have blocked the possibility of referrals.

Why has Assad not yet been tried by the International Criminal Court?

Why has Assad not yet been tried by the International Criminal Court? We break it down (this time with alt text):

Thanks! Sure - we’re new to this app. Can you explain why adding alt text is better?

Through the advocacy and effort of Syrian civil society, some European entities are taking independent strides to bring the Assad regime to justice.

How was Netanyahu’s arrest warrant issued when Israel is not party to the ICC?

What recent historic ICC decisions could re-open the door for Syria’s situation?

The ICC’s jurisdiction over the deportation of the Rohingya from Myanmar to Bangladesh.

Syria has not ratified the Rome Statue and vetoes by Russia and China in the UN Security Council have blocked the possibility of referrals.

Why has Assad not yet been tried by the International Criminal Court? We break it down:

It's often said that Palestine is the moral litmus test of our time. However, there can be no true moral litmus test that does not account for the Palestinian struggle's many intersections, Syria's fight against Assad's authoritarian rule being among the most crucial of them.

This page does a lot of work on intersectionality and the Syrian revolution. Give them a follow folks.

Thank you, Elia!

Statement of Free Syrians in solidarity with the Palestinian people We, Syrians united in the revolutionary struggle against the Assad regime and its imperialist sponsors, stand firmly and unequivocally with the Palestinian people in Gaza, the West Bank and across …

Last November, over 100 Syrian organisers, writers and students signed our statement of solidarity with the Palestinian people in light of the genocide on Gaza.

The scale of aggression has since escalated, and our statement remains true: intersectionalsyria.com/2023/11/10/s...