Riad Darar
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Riad Hammoud Darar ( ar, رياض حمود دارار, born 1954) is a Syrian opposition political and social activist and author from
Deir ez-Zor , population_urban = , population_density_urban_km2 = , population_density_urban_sq_mi = , population_blank1_title = Ethnicities , population_blank1 = , population_blank2_title = Religions , population_blank2 = ...
. He was a proponent of
human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...
for
Kurds in Syria The Kurdish population of Syria ( ar, كرد سورية) is the country's largest ethnic minority, usually estimated at around 10% of the Syrian population Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Syria, constituting around 10 per cent of th ...
since 2000. During his activism, he was
imprisoned Imprisonment is the restraint of a person's liberty, for any cause whatsoever, whether by authority of the government, or by a person acting without such authority. In the latter case it is "false imprisonment". Imprisonment does not necessari ...
by the Syrian government for 5 years and was released in 2010. On 25 February 2017, he was elected as the co-leader of the
Syrian Democratic Council The Syrian Democratic Council ( ku, Meclîsa Sûriya Demokratîk, MSD; ar, مجلس سوريا الديمقراطية; syc, ܡܘܬܒܐ ܕܣܘܪܝܐ ܕܝܡܩܪܛܝܬܐ, translit=Mawtbo d'Suriya Demoqraṭoyto) is the political wing of the Syri ...
.


Early life

Riad Darar was born in
Deir ez-Zor , population_urban = , population_density_urban_km2 = , population_density_urban_sq_mi = , population_blank1_title = Ethnicities , population_blank1 = , population_blank2_title = Religions , population_blank2 = ...
in 1954. He received a
bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
on
Arabic language Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...
some time later, and became a
preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as ...
and an imam at a mosque in Deir ez-Zor.


Political career

Since 2000, Riad Darar became a political activist and began to work with various
non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...
s. After an
uprising Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...
by
Kurds in Syria The Kurdish population of Syria ( ar, كرد سورية) is the country's largest ethnic minority, usually estimated at around 10% of the Syrian population Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Syria, constituting around 10 per cent of th ...
in 2004, Sheikh Muhammad Ma’shouq al-Khaznawi, a Kurdish Sufi religious leader, was arrested and assassinated by the
Syrian military intelligence The Military Intelligence Directorate ( ar, شعبة المخابرات العسكرية, translit=Shu'bat al-Mukhabarat al-'Askariyya), is the military intelligence service of Syria. Although its roots go back to the French mandate period (192 ...
in May 2005. Riad Darar was among those who were present at al-Khaznawi's funeral, and gave a speech. The next month, Darar was arrested. On 2 April 2006, he was sentenced to 5 years in prison by the Supreme State Security Court. On 10 June 2010, Riad Darar was released from prison. In June 2011, during the early phase of the Syrian uprising, he became a founding member of the
National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change The National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change (NCC), or National Coordination Body for Democratic Change (NCB) ( ar, هيئة التنسيق الوطنية لقوى التغيير الديمقراطي ), is a Syrian bloc chaired by ...
, a Syrian opposition bloc. Riad Darar became one of the major figures in the Syrian opposition. In August 2014, he resigned from the NCC due to the lack of unity. On 25 February 2017, during the second conference of the
Syrian Democratic Council The Syrian Democratic Council ( ku, Meclîsa Sûriya Demokratîk, MSD; ar, مجلس سوريا الديمقراطية; syc, ܡܘܬܒܐ ܕܣܘܪܝܐ ܕܝܡܩܪܛܝܬܐ, translit=Mawtbo d'Suriya Demoqraṭoyto) is the political wing of the Syri ...
in al-Malikiyah, Riad Darar was elected as the co-leader of the SDC, replacing Haytham Manna, another former NCC member who resigned from the SDC. Riad Darar then announced his support for federalism and
democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which people, the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choo ...
in Syria, including in Deir ez-Zor.


See also

* Michel Kilo


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darar, Riad Syrian democracy activists Rojava politicians Living people Syrian Muslims 1954 births People from Deir ez-Zor Anti-government politicians of the Syrian civil war