A general strike in the city of Suwayda to protest against the living, service and security conditions

A general strike in the city of Suwayda to protest against the living, service and security conditions

Aug 21 2023

ARK News… Since the early morning hours, today, Sunday, the As-Suwayda governorate, in southern Syria, has been witnessing complete paralysis after the declaration of a general strike and civil disobedience, in protest against the deteriorating living, service and security conditions.

Syrian media sources said that since the early morning, they recorded 20 protest points, in which the main roads leading to the city were closed with stones and burning tires, taking into account that students and humanitarian cases were allowed to pass.

Many towns and villages participated in the strike in the western countryside of As-Suwayda, including "Ariqa", "Al-Mazraa", "Al-Thala", "Reema Hazem" and "Majdal".

In the southern countryside, "the road leading to the city of As-Suwayda was closed, and the Secretary-General of the Baath Party in As-Suwayda, Fawzat Shuqair, was prevented from going from his hometown of al-Qurayya to his communal office in the city of As-Suwayda. Roads were also closed in the town of al-Ghariya, the village of Umm al-Rumman, the village of Arman, and the village of al-Munaythira."

In the northern countryside, the protesters closed the main road in the city of Shahba leading to the city of As-Suwayda, and the sources indicated that the number of areas participating in the strike is increasing.

The governorate witnessed the closure of most of the institutions and directorates of the Syrian regime in the countryside and the city, as they were forced to close by the protesters, amid almost non-existent movement in the streets of the city and a strike that included most of the public transportation lines.

Over the past two days, the Suwayda governorate witnessed widespread calls to participate in a general strike, in response to the recent decisions of Bashar al-Assad and his government, which exacerbated the economic crisis in the country.

On Saturday morning, a number of As-Suwayda merchants issued a statement confirming their commitment to the calls for strike and peaceful movement on Sunday, August 20, in the face of the policies that led to the starvation of the Syrian people.

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