Raed Fares (activist)
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Raed Fares ( ''Rāʾid Fāris''; 1972 – 23 November 2018) was a Syrian journalist, activist and civil society leader from
Kafr Nabl Kafr Nabl (, also spelled Kafranbel or Kafr Nabil) is a town administratively belonging to the Idlib Governorate and Ma'arrat al-Numan District in northwestern Syria. It is situated above sea level. In the 2004 census by the Syrian Central Bur ...
,
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
. He was the founder of Radio Fresh FM in 2013, an independent radio station reaching audiences in
Idlib Idlib (, ; also spelt Idleb or Edlib) is a city in northwestern Syria, and is the capital of the Idlib Governorate. It has an elevation of nearly above sea level, and is southwest of Aleppo. It is located near the border with Turkey. History ...
,
Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...
, and
Hamah Hama ( ', ) is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria. It is located north of Damascus and north of Homs. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. With a population of 996,000 (2023 census), Hama is one of ...
provinces. He was assassinated by unknown militants in his hometown.
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham facti ...
(HTS) was blamed for his death.


Activism

At the beginning of the 2011 Syrian uprising, Fares took part in hundreds of demonstrations against President
Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...
's regime and continued to see it as the biggest enemy. Fares used to take pictures of demonstrations and spread them on the internet, which later developed to the idea of creating a media center in his city,
Kafr Nabl Kafr Nabl (, also spelled Kafranbel or Kafr Nabil) is a town administratively belonging to the Idlib Governorate and Ma'arrat al-Numan District in northwestern Syria. It is situated above sea level. In the 2004 census by the Syrian Central Bur ...
. He grabbed the attention of the world's media for his gipping, sometimes sarcastic protests and pro-democracy banners including English language banners which called for peaceful revolution in Syria. Fares was a prominent critic of Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...
as well as militant groups like the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...
(ISIL) and
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham facti ...
(HTS), which was in control of the area of Idlib where Fares was killed. Fares also ran the Kafranbel Media Center, which gained prominence in the Syrian uprising against the Assad regime with their use of English-language protest banners which were shared on social media. Fares has been subject to several assassination attempts because of his work in the revolution. On 28 January 2014, he was shot three times in his chest and was taken to an
emergency room An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the acute care of pat ...
. Fares survived this assassination attempt after a long surgery. He had also been abducted and tortured by
al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...
affiliated militants.


Radio Fresh

Fares set up Radio Fresh FM in 2013, in order to provide "independent news to the Syrian people". The station was setup in Kafranbel, and reaches audiences in
Idlib Idlib (, ; also spelt Idleb or Edlib) is a city in northwestern Syria, and is the capital of the Idlib Governorate. It has an elevation of nearly above sea level, and is southwest of Aleppo. It is located near the border with Turkey. History ...
,
Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...
, and
Hamah Hama ( ', ) is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria. It is located north of Damascus and north of Homs. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. With a population of 996,000 (2023 census), Hama is one of ...
provinces. Radio Fresh broadcasts information critical of both radical Islamist groups like
al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...
and ISIL, as well as the regime of President Assad. The
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham facti ...
(HTS) militant group, which controls the area, had ordered Radio Fresh to stop broadcasting music and to take women off the air. Radio Fresh responded by playing sounds such as tweeting birds and ticking sounds, clucking chickens and bleating goats, and modifying women's voices with computer software, as a sarcastic gesture against these demands. Radio Fresh provided media training for more than 2500 young men and women to allow them to be able to become citizen-journalists and cover the news in Syria. Radio Fresh is partly funded by the
Human Rights Foundation The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is a non-profit organization that focuses on promoting and protecting human rights globally, with an emphasis on authoritarian regimes. HRF organizes the Oslo Freedom Forum. The Human Rights Foundation was founde ...
, which organises the
Oslo Freedom Forum Oslo Freedom Forum (OFF) is a series of global conferences run by the New York–based non-profit Human Rights Foundation under the slogan "Challenging Power". OFF was founded in 2009 as a one-time event and has taken place annually ever since. ...
. Fares spoke at an Oslo Freedom Forum event in 2017.


Assassination

On 23 November 2018, Raed Fares was shot by unknown assailants in his hometown, along with friend and fellow opposition activist Hamoud Jneed. The shooting resulted in both their deaths. Fares's killers have not been identified, but ''The Guardian'' reported that they "waited in a van outside an office the two men shared, followed them through the market, attacked their car then shot them when they tried to escape". Fares's death was met with widespread condemnation and shock, and occasional international tributaries. '' The National'' reported that local opposition activists blamed the
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham facti ...
(HTS) militant group for the attack, though HTS has not claimed responsibility.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fares, Raed 1972 births 2018 deaths People of the Syrian civil war Syrian dissidents Assassinated Syrian journalists Journalists killed while covering the Syrian civil war People from Idlib Governorate 21st-century Syrian writers 21st-century journalists Syrian political journalists