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In Scarred Syria City, a Vision of a Life Free from Dictators
(New York Times) Anthony Shadid - The revolt against President Bashar al-Assad has begun to help Syrians imagine life after dictatorship as they forge new leaders and organize their own defense. In Hama, Syria's fourth largest city, dozens of barricades of trash bins, street lamps, bulldozers and sandbags, defended in various states of vigilance, block the feared return of the security forces that surprisingly withdrew last month. Protests begin past midnight, drawing raucous crowds of youths celebrating the simple fact that they can protest. "Hama is free," the protesters chant, "and it will remain free." In 1982, under the orders of Hafez al-Assad, the Syrian Army brutally quelled a revolt in Hama. During three weeks of fighting, planes bombed Hama's historic quarter, and tanks plowed through narrow streets. Mass executions were routine, as was torture visited on survivors.