اخبار سوريا اليوم – وطن نيوز
سوريا اليوم – اخبار سوريا عاجل
W6nnews.com ==== وطن === تاريخ النشر – 2026-06-16 16:18:00
54 civil society organizations in Syria and around the world issued a statement today, Tuesday, June 16, accompanied by the signatures of 132 individuals, in which they expressed their concern about the judicial process that affected both Yasser Abbas “Abu Waseem,” spokesman for the League to Reject Decree 66, and engineer Ibrahim Sheikh Al-Shabab, representative of the Mezzeh People’s Committees. The organizations indicated in their statement, a copy of which was sent to Enab Baladi, that the arrest of Abbas and Sheikh al-Shabab came against the backdrop of their public activity related to the file of Legislative Decree No. 66 of 2012, and the objections of those affected to the Damascus Governorate’s approach to the file of compensation and reparations. The organizations considered that the release of Abbas and Sheikh al-Shabab on bail on June 9, while the prosecution continues and the next session is scheduled for June 18, does not change the essence of the human rights concerns raised by the case, as the arrest and prosecution were used in the context of responding to legitimate criticism and public demands for their rights and the rights of the affected communities they represent, which may turn the penal process into a pressure tool with a deterrent effect, instead of being a guarantee of fairness and the rule of law. Demands: Damascus Governorate must compensate for the damage fairly. The organizations and individuals who signed the statement presented a number of demands, including: Ensuring that criminal prosecution, arrest, or the threat thereof are not used as a means of managing civil and real estate disputes or to restrict peaceful claims to rights. Review and drop any charges based on exercising the right to freedom of expression or peaceful assembly, including public criticism of the policies of Damascus Governorate, or participation in civil organization related to demanding the rights of those affected by Decree 66, and ensure that these actions do not become a basis for criminal prosecution. Refrain from expanding the interpretation of the provisions of the Cybercrime Law, the Penal Code, and the Protest Law in a way that leads to the criminalization of public criticism or discussion related to the public interest, housing and property rights, and compensation. Work to review these legal texts, in line with international human rights law and the requirements of the transitional period, and to ensure that legal tools associated with the previous era do not continue to be used to restrict public freedoms or silence peaceful demands for rights. Calling on Damascus Governorate, in cooperation with the relevant ministries and the National Authority for Transitional Justice, to adopt an integrated and transparent plan for compensation and reparation in the areas of Decree 66, which is prepared in effective partnership with the affected population groups, and takes into account the right to property, the right to adequate housing, housing alternatives, fair compensation, and restitution where possible. Persecution is “intimidation” for other communities in Syria. The undersigned organizations and individuals confirmed that release on bail does not end the human rights concerns raised by this case, as long as the persecution continues and as long as this precedent can create an intimidating effect on the affected communities in Mezzeh, Jobar, Qaboun, Tishreen and other areas. She stressed that respect for rights and reparation are the basis for any just and sustainable reconstruction, allowing the transformation of “Marota City” and “Basilia City” from a model of exclusion and conflict into a national model for post-conflict reconstruction. She added that the path to just reconstruction does not begin with silencing those affected, but rather with recognizing their rights, ensuring their participation, and establishing a national path for justice and reparation that prevents the repetition of the same injustices using new or inherited legal tools. A prosecution based solely on claiming ownership rights. According to available judicial and security documents, the organizations said that the complaints and allegations against Sheikh al-Shabab and Abbas are based on: Anti-Cybercrime Law No. 20 of 2022. The General Penal Code. Protest Law No. 54 of 2011. The Damascus Governorate and the State Affairs Administration attribute to Abbas and Sheikh al-Shabab acts such as “systematic incitement,” “defamation,” “spreading false news via the network and satellite channels,” “undermining the reputation and prestige of a public administration,” and “incitement to riot demonstrations.” The facts presented in the files are, in essence, according to the organizations, based on media statements, audio recordings, posts on Facebook, WhatsApp groups, public criticism of the Damascus Governorate’s statement on Decree 66, and calls to organize those affected and demand their rights. It does not appear from the content of the documents, as stated therein, that the essence of the prosecution is based on a violent act or a direct and imminent call to violence, but rather on civil and digital activity linked to demands for housing and property rights and compensation. Freedom of expression is guaranteed by Syria’s international obligations. The organizations said that the seriousness of the case does not stem only from a previous arrest or the continuation of a criminal case, but rather from the message that can be sent to those affected by Decree 66 in Mezzeh and other areas, which is that objecting to public policies, criticizing the governorate’s approach, or organizing people to demand their rights, may turn into a penal file based on vague texts. In general, as the sequence of events indicates, the organizations add: Starting with the Damascus Governorate’s decision to treat the Decree 66 file as an organizational and administrative issue, not as a file related to redress and reparation. By depriving those affected of an effective and transparent path to claim their rights. Ending with arrests and prosecutions related to peaceful assembly and public expression, and reaching a disturbing pattern of restrictions on basic rights. These facts raise serious concerns that the arrest and detention of representatives of those affected will be described as “arbitrary detention,” given that their deprivation of liberty appears directly linked to their exercise of their rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and demanding redress, which are rights guaranteed under the Constitutional Declaration and Syria’s international obligations, especially the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Moreover, relying on broad penal texts, which the organizations confirm, especially the Cybercrime Law and the Protest Law, to criminalize public criticism, civil organization, and demands for housing and property rights and compensation, raises a serious problem regarding the extent of the existence of a valid and legitimate legal basis for arrest, and regarding the compatibility and application of these texts with international standards related to the prohibition of arbitrary detention. Reusing the regime’s laws against communities. Concern is increasing, the organizations stress, because the path of reparations is inseparable from the broader framework of transitional justice. The transitional phase requires reviewing the laws and practices that harmed Syrians, not reusing them against the affected communities and their representatives. The exposure of victims of violations or their representatives to the risk of arrest or procedures may cause them to refrain from demanding their legitimate rights, and raises serious concerns about the chances of building just, comprehensive, and victim-centered transitional justice in Syria. The organizations warned that the use of laws issued in the previous era, especially the Cybercrimes Law, to prosecute public discourse related to housing, property, and compensation rights, reflects a worrying continuation of the use of legal tools previously associated with restricting public freedoms, at a time when any real political transition is supposed to put an end to the use of the previous repressive legal structure against those affected by it, and open a clear path to justice and reparation. The signatory organizations and individuals also confirmed that the objection of the residents affected by Decree 66 is not related to neutral organizational or administrative details, but rather to a legal and urban model produced by the previous regime in the context of widespread violations of human rights, and which reshaped property and urban space in a way that threatens the rights of housing, property, return, and redress. Decree 66 is part of the legacy of displacement. Decree 66 cannot be treated as a mere urban planning tool, as it is sometimes promoted, the organizations explain, as its implementation has been linked from its beginnings to areas that were severely damaged during the conflict and were viewed by the previous regime as social incubators of opposition, which makes its residential and property effects part of a broader legacy of displacement and exclusion, and not merely the result of neutral planning procedures. The organizations said that Decree 66 established the “Marota City and Basilia City” projects in Damascus, including areas of Mezzeh, Kafr Sousa, Al-Qadam, Nahr Aisha, and Al-Asali within the scope of the regulation. Then, Law No. 10 of 2018 expanded this model at the national level, opening the door to converting individual properties into shares within redevelopment projects that may lead, in the absence of clear human rights guarantees, to: unfair expropriation. Insufficient compensation. Excluding displaced people, refugees and residents who do not have full official property documents or live in informal housing situations. The danger of this approach does not stop at Mezzeh, Kafr Sousa, Al-Qadam, Nahr Aisha, and Al-Assali, but rather extends to the future of reconstruction in Syria, the organizations say, including neighborhoods such as Jobar, Qaboun, Tishreen, and other destroyed areas, where the same legal and regulatory approaches could turn into a precedent for reproducing exclusion instead of reparing harm. She concluded that any legitimate reconstruction must be based on: the priority of reparation and restoration of rights. Ensuring fair compensation and adequate housing. Transparency and effective participation of affected populations. What organizations signed the statement? Each of the following organizations signed the statement: 1. The Syrian Legal Development Program (SLDP)2. Next Day (TDA)3. Association to drop Decree 66 and restore rights4. Mezze Committee 5. Riad Seif Foundation for Human Rights6. Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM)7. Guardians of Truth Organization8. Women Now for Development9. My State10. Citizens for Syria11. Our Bedaya Association – Syria for All12. Syrians for Truth and Justice (STJ)13. Local Development and Small Project Support Office (LDSPS)14. Justice for Life (JFL)15. Alternatives16. Sin for civil peace17. Bell – Civil Waves18. League of Families for Freedom19. Caesar Families Association20. Coordination of the city of Al-Bab and its suburbs21. Checkmate22. Action for Sama23. Syria Prison Museum24. Campaign for Syria25. Center for Civil Society and Democracy26. My justice27. Commutative paths28. Syrian Women Journalists Network Foundation29. Laws 30. Lilon Association for Victims31. Recovery Initiative32. Families for Justice and Truth33. Amal Center for Advocacy and Recovery34. Workshop team35. Nophotozone36. Human rights protectors37. MDP- MADAD for Development and Peacebuilding38. Yekpar Association for Culture, Art and Development39. Dozana40. Syrian Foundation for Research and Sustainable Development41. Our House42. Independent Humanitarian Message Organization43. Organization for feminism44. Syrian Missing Families Networking45. Justice Center for Human Rights46. Women of Tomorrow47. Foundation for Humanitarian and Development Cooperation48. Center for Equal Citizenship49. Volunteer team to build 50. Damma Women’s Association51. Syrian Committee for Male and Female Detainees (SCD)52. Syrian Women’s Political Movement53. Kurdish Journalists Network in Syria 54. Rose Organization for Support and Empowerment, and the number of individual signatures reached 132. The arrest of Abbas and Sheikh al-Shabab was invalid. A source close to Engineer Ibrahim Sheikh al-Shabab, representative of the Mezzeh neighborhood committees on the subject of Decree “66,” which has been suspended since June 2, revealed to (Enab Baladi), on June 8, that the allegation against Sheikh al-Shabab was brought by someone other than the party with an interest in the claim, meaning that the one who filed the complaint against him is “the director of legal affairs in the governorate.” Damascus,” and not the Governor of Damascus, Maher Marwan al-Idlibi, in his personal and legal capacity. The source, who requested to remain anonymous, confirmed to Enab Baladi today, Monday, June 8, that the arrest of Engineer Ibrahim in this case is “absolutely invalid and connected to public order, and not just a procedure tainted with invalidity that can be corrected,” noting that the arrest of the Sheikh of Youth is considered “arbitrary arrest,” indicating that the court examining the case did not care about the argument of the Sheikh of Youth’s lawyer that the arrest was invalid. Article One of the Code of Criminal Procedure, No. 112 of 1950, states that only the Public Prosecution and the personal plaintiff (the aggrieved party) have the right to claim against the defendant, and according to Article Five, a personal right lawsuit may be filed in accordance with a public right lawsuit before the judicial authority before which this lawsuit is filed. There is no official comment or clarification regarding the case, its legal basis, and the proceedings of the trial, until now. What concerns Sheikh Al-Shabab and Abbas? The source revealed that the charges against both Sheikh Al-Shabab and Abbas are as follows: slandering and defaming the Governor of Damascus, Maher Marwan Al-Idlibi, via social media. Incitement to riot and demonstration. Disclosing the secrets of what happened at the meeting of the General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic dedicated to discussing the demands of the people of Mezzeh regarding the “Marota” and “Basilia City” projects, before the Mezzeh neighborhood committees. Related
