De naam Palmyra zegt het al: de oase is beroemd om z’n dadelpalmen. De dadelpalm kan grote hitte en droogte verdragen en kan goed gedijen in grond die verzilt is door eeuwenlange irrigatie. In de oudheid vergeleken de Chaldeeën de dadelpalm met de mens: er zijn mannen, vrouwen en hermafrodieten. Alleen de vrouwelijke palmen dragen vruchten. Die vruchten zijn de zeer voedzame dadels. Voor de Bedoeïen was de dadel vaak het enige voedsel dat ze tijdens hun lange tochten door de woestijn voor handen hadden. Dadels kunnen makkelijk bewaard worden en vormen een ideale bron van essentiële nutriënten. Deze twee heren die gezellig een kopje thee drinken zijn geen Bedoeïen, maar de chauffeurs van de toeristenbussen die Palmyra ‘aandoen’.
If the Syrian government is to be believed, the protests sweeping the country are the work of "foreign conspirators" and amount to an armed insurrection by Salafists, members of a hardline, puritanical Islamic movement. However anger and frustration with the regime in Damascus are fuelling the uprising, rather than religious beliefs or affiliations. The protesters are ordinary people seeking freedom and the protests are not organized. People have grievances, economic and political. Protesters are chanting different slogans because different groups have different demands. But they all agree on the minimum demands, such as more freedom and an end to corruption. Many don't believe toppling the regime is feasible, because of fear of civil unrest and conflict. Some Syrians suspect that protesters have more than reform as the agenda behind the current unrest and predict sectarian strife if the regime collapses. That the protests first erupted in the southern city of Daraa have added to their suspicion. Daraa is not known for being a hotbed for liberal thinking. The Damascus suburbs where have been big protests are also very conservative. These people are not necessarily calling for democracy and freedom. Cyber activists play a role in directing the public's focus. They help establish links between the media and local communities along with listing dead, arrested and disappeared persons. (Bron: Al Jazeera)
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