Syria’s Assad approves new law tightening freedom of speech

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad signed into law a bill on Monday that would impose a six-month jail sentence for citizens residing in the country accused of spreading disinformation that undermines the state’s reputation.

The country is deemed to be one of the most restrictive and deadly places for media and journalism, ranking close to the bottom of the Reporters Without Borders global press freedom list.

The United Nations Human Rights Council said in a statement earlier this month that Syrians in the country “lived in fear of being arrested for expressing their opinion, belonging to a dissenting political party, reporting for the media, or defending human rights”.