{"id":97567,"date":"2026-05-04T17:55:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T17:55:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/97567\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T17:55:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T17:55:13","slug":"syria-bids-farewell-to-its-kingdom-of-silence-but-warnings-remain-over-a-trap-in-comparing-press-freedom-with-the-assad-era","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/97567\/","title":{"rendered":"Syria bids farewell to its \u201cKingdom of Silence\u201d \u2014 but warnings remain over a \u201ctrap\u201d in comparing press freedom with the Assad era"},"content":{"rendered":"

Paris \u2014 Syria marked World Press Freedom Day on May 3 with what many observers describe as a historic, if fragile, shift: the country has climbed 36 places in the global press freedom index published by Reporters Without Borders, now ranking 141st out of 180, up from 177.<\/p>\n

For a country long synonymous with repression under Hafez al-Assad and his son Bashar al-Assad, the change is striking. Syria was widely known as the \u201cKingdom of Silence\u201d, where dissent was stifled and journalism tightly controlled.<\/p>\n

\u201cBack then, we knew exactly where we stood and when to stay silent. Personal safety came before everything \u2014 even the work itself,\u201d said independent journalist Simaf Hassan. \u201cAfter the regime fell in December 2024, it felt as though the door opened slightly. I can test the margins now, as a journalist and activist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet that opening, she added, remains tentative. \u201cVoices are louder, and debates are happening that were once impossible. But deep down, we haven\u2019t fully left the Kingdom of Silence. Its form has changed \u2014 sometimes into cautious or selective silence.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

A legacy of violence<\/p>\n

Since the outbreak of the Syrian uprising in March 2011, hundreds of journalists have been killed while covering events across the country. According to the Syrian Journalists Association\u2019s Press Freedoms Centre, 1,546 violations were recorded between 2011 and the end of 2024, including 478 killings. The Assad government was responsible for 327 of those deaths, while 62 were attributed to the so-called Islamic State.<\/p>\n

Officials in the new administration have welcomed the improvement in rankings. Omar Haj Ahmad, director of press affairs and licensing at the Ministry of Information, described it as \u201ca qualitative leap made possible by the combined efforts of independent journalists, media institutions and professional bodies, working alongside the ministry.\u201d<\/p>\n

But rights groups and reporters caution that the gains are fragile.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The \u201ccomparison trap\u201d<\/p>\n

There is broad agreement that media freedoms have expanded compared with the Assad years. Yet many warn against using that period as a benchmark.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must not fall into the trap of comparison,\u201d said Bassam al-Ahmad, director of Syrians for Truth and Justice. \u201cThe former regime is not the standard by which freedoms should be measured.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, he argued, Syria should be judged against international minimum standards of freedom of expression \u2014 standards that are only partially met today, and not universally applied.<\/p>\n

A report by the Syrian Journalists Association documented 11 violations against media workers in the first quarter of 2026 alone, involving multiple actors including government forces and Kurdish-led groups.<\/p>\n

These incidents highlight what analysts describe as a structural gap between an expanded margin of freedom and the absence of robust legal and institutional protections.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

A new media identity<\/p>\n

The transformation is perhaps most visible in the relaunch of the state newspaper Al-Thawra in December 2025. Its new editorial line has broken with decades of rigid state messaging, publishing investigative and critical pieces \u2014 including articles addressing corruption and nepotism within government.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe set out from the beginning to build a national media that bridges the gap between citizens and the state,\u201d said editor-in-chief Nour al-Din al-Ismail. \u201cIt must reflect people\u2019s concerns while also presenting government achievements \u2014 without ignoring its shortcomings.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such changes would have been unthinkable under the previous system, where, as investigative journalist Mohammed Basiki put it, \u201cthere was no media \u2014 only propaganda.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, he said, \u201cthe fall of the regime created a major opportunity. International outlets have entered the country, shedding light on current conditions and ongoing violations.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the Ministry of Information, more than 3,000 foreign journalists have entered Syria since 2024, with over 23,000 press permits issued. More than 30 international outlets have opened offices, while around 470 domestic media organisations have been licensed \u2014 more than were approved during the previous four decades combined.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Persistent red lines<\/p>\n

Despite the changes, concerns remain about the emergence of new \u201cred lines\u201d.<\/p>\n

Major events over the past year \u2014 including sectarian violence on the coast in March 2025 and deadly clashes in southern Syria later that summer \u2014 have tested the limits of permissible coverage.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan you criticise the findings of investigations into these \u0918\u091f\u0928\u0627\u062a as freely as you can complain about electricity shortages?\u201d asked Mr al-Ahmad. \u201cThat is the real question.\u201d<\/p>\n

Journalists report that sensitive topics \u2014 particularly those involving security forces or ongoing abuses \u2014 remain difficult to cover fully. Some cite lingering fear, while others point to pressure and intimidation in the absence of strong legal protections.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is still discomfort, even fear, around personal freedoms,\u201d said Malak al-Shanwani, editor of an independent media platform in Damascus. \u201cIt would be tragic if we gain one freedom only to lose another.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The information barrier<\/p>\n

Another key challenge is access to information. While the new government has expanded its media engagement through press offices and official channels, journalists say the flow of information remains limited and largely one-directional.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is still a barrier between journalists and state institutions,\u201d said Mr Basiki. \u201cInformation is not flowing freely or reciprocally.\u201d<\/p>\n

He and others are calling for a law guaranteeing the right to access information \u2014 similar to legislation adopted in Jordan in 2007 \u2014 which they argue would represent a turning point for Syria\u2019s emerging media landscape.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

A fragile transition<\/p>\n

For now, Syria\u2019s media sector remains in what many describe as a testing phase \u2014 for journalists, society and the authorities alike.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf freedoms remain just an unprotected margin, they can easily be rolled back,\u201d said Ms Hassan. \u201cWhat we need is for rights to be guaranteed, not granted.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is cautious optimism that Syria is not merely dismantling an old system, but beginning to construct a new culture \u2014 one in which the press can operate independently and reflect the diversity of society.<\/p>\n

Whether that promise can be sustained, however, will depend less on comparisons with the past than on the country\u2019s willingness to institutionalise the freedoms it has only just begun to reclaim.<\/p>\n


\n \"Print
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