-Caveat Lector- 13,000 prisoners died under torture in Syria: opposition journalist Agence France Presse BEIRUT, June 26, 2001 More than 13,000 political detainees have "died under torture" in Syrian jails, Syrian opposition journalist Nizar Nayyouf said Tuesday in an open letter to French President Jacques Chirac. Their bodies were buried in mass graves in the desert of Palmyra, in central Syria, location of the most feared prison of the country, said Nayyouf in the letter published by the Lebanese liberal An Nahar newspaper. The letter to Chirac was published as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was on a state visit to Paris, but blamed Syria's "old guard" rather than the 35-year-old Syrian leader who succeeded his father a year ago. "I hope the file of human rights will be a basic item on the agenda of your conversation with President Assad because of the existence of political prisoners in our country and the mass graves in the desert prison of Palmyra which contains 13,000 to 17,000 skeletons of political prisoners who had been killed under torture (Syrians, Lebanese -- around 1500 --, Jordanian, Palestinians etc...)," said the letter. "Be assured that our people set their hopes on this visit, especially in the confrontation with the old guard which exerts huge efforts to block President Assad's project to open up the system," he added. Nayyouf, 40, was freed on May 6, after nine years in prison, during Pope John Paul II's visit to Syria. Almost blind, he said he was "half paralyzed because of torture". "I am still under house arrest and I am banned from leaving the territory to seek treatment in Europe, mainly in France," said Nayyouf. The journalist, one of the few people in Syria who denounce cases of turotures and imprisonment of political prisoners in the country, has claimed that he was kidnapped for 30 hours by intelligence agents last week. The claim was strongly denied by the government as being a media stunt. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
