The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
April 20, 2011

Syria Ends Emergency Rule amid Violent Crackdown 
-------------------------------------------------



The Syrian government has passed a draft law to end emergency rule after
48 years, but pro-democracy protesters fear the move will do little to
reduce human rights abuses. A new law has already been introduced
requiring Syrians to obtain a permit from the state if they want to hold
demonstrations. On Tuesday, Syrian security forces arrested Mahmoud
Issa, a prominent opposition figure. Protests are continuing across
Syria. In the city of Homs, at least 20 pro-democracy protesters had
been reportedly shot dead by security forces in the past two days.



.