Hundreds of Syrians protested in Sweida on Friday, with women taking on an increasingly prominent role in the continuing anti-government demonstrations triggered by President Assad’s recent elimination of fuel subsidies.
Hundreds of Syrians protested Friday in the southern city of Sweida, as women play a growing role in the anti-government demonstrations that have rocked the province for over a month, activists said.
Peaceful protests have swept Sweida province, the heartland of the country’s Druze minority since President Bashar al-Assad’s government ended fuel subsidies last month.
The move dealt a heavy blow to Syrians reeling from more than a decade of war and economic woes.
Women from Sweida have been present at rallies since the conflict broke out, but the difference today is that women are not only demonstrating, they are planning and organizing the movement.
This includes coordinating chants, making banners, and communicating with those holding protests in nearby towns.
Civil war erupted in Syria after Assad’s government crushed peaceful protests in 2011.
The war has killed more than 500,000 people and displaced millions.
Katrine Dige Houmøller, with AFP
