Architect of Iranian Missiles Assassinated in Syria

A photo published by pro-Syrian sites on the funeral of Aziz Asbar in the town of Wadi al-Oyoun on Sunday.
A photo published by pro-Syrian sites on the funeral of Aziz Asbar in the town of Wadi al-Oyoun on Sunday.
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Architect of Iranian Missiles Assassinated in Syria

A photo published by pro-Syrian sites on the funeral of Aziz Asbar in the town of Wadi al-Oyoun on Sunday.
A photo published by pro-Syrian sites on the funeral of Aziz Asbar in the town of Wadi al-Oyoun on Sunday.

There have been conflicting reports on the murder of the head of the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center in Masyaf, Aziz Asbar, who is known for being close to Iran.

Syria’s opposition considers Asbar responsible for the development of barrel bombs, which regime forces have dropped on civilians in the past years.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that Asbar had been killed and said it was not yet clear which side "carried out the assassination of one of the figures close to the leaders of Iran, the Lebanese ‘Hezbollah’, and the Syrian regime.”

The Observatory said the Syrian scientist was killed along with his driver in a booby-trapped vehicle blast in Masyaf area in the western countryside of Hama on Saturday night.

While Iranian media outlets accused Israel of orchestrating the attack, Syrian official news agencies did not publish any information about Asbar’s killing.

Syrian pro-government newspaper Al-Watan published a brief report confirming that Asbar "died with is driver after an explosion targeted their car in the Hama countryside."

Israeli news agencies said Asbar was involved in Syria's chemical weapons development as well as in the Iranian Fateh missiles program, and that he worked on the development of medium- and long-range missiles.

Asbar was responsible for the Inter Coordination Committee on the transport of weapons between Syria, Iran and ‘Hezbollah’. He also supervised the production of non-traditional weapons at the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center in Masyaf, including nerve gas.

The official radio in Tel Aviv said the name of Asbar had emerged during the past years on the US sanctions lists for his responsibility in “developing and producing Iranian long-range missiles.”

Meanwhile, ISIS executed a teen kidnapped during the attacks on Suweida and its eastern and northeastern countryside last month.

The Observatory said the terrorist group executed a 19-year-old boy from al-Shabaki village, who was among more than 30 children, teenagers, and women abducted by ISIS during its attacks on the area.

The execution led to fears on the possibility that the terrorist group would kill other hostages in the coming days.



Tunisians Protest Against President as Jailed Politicians Begin Hunger Strike

Figures detained on conspiracy charges in Tunisia - ( Ghazi Chaouachi official social media page)
Figures detained on conspiracy charges in Tunisia - ( Ghazi Chaouachi official social media page)
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Tunisians Protest Against President as Jailed Politicians Begin Hunger Strike

Figures detained on conspiracy charges in Tunisia - ( Ghazi Chaouachi official social media page)
Figures detained on conspiracy charges in Tunisia - ( Ghazi Chaouachi official social media page)

Hundreds of Tunisians staged two protest rallies on Wednesday against what they say is the authoritarian rule of President Kais Saied and demanded the release of political prisoners, while six detained opposition figures held a hunger strike.

Saied seized extra powers in 2021 when he shut down the elected parliament and moved to rule by decree before assuming authority over the judiciary. The opposition described his move as a coup, Reuters reported.

Supporters of the opposition Free Constitutional Party gathered in the capital Tunis to demand the release of their detained leader Abir Moussi. They chanted slogans such as "Saied, dictator, your turn has come," and "Free Abir".

"What is happening is true tyranny, no freedom for the opposition, no freedom for the media. Any word can send you to prison," one protester, Hayat Ayari, told Reuters.

Hundreds of supporters of another opposition party, the Salvation Front, staged a separate rally, also in Tunis, to demand the release of detained politicians, activists and journalists.

Six prominent opposition figures detained on conspiracy charges have begun a hunger strike in prison to protest against their impending trial, their lawyers said on Wednesday.

Abdelhamid Jelassi, Jawhar Ben Mbarek, Khiyam Turki, Ridha Belhaj, Issam Chebbi and Ghazi Chaouachi - all detained in 2023 during a crackdown on the opposition - have refused to participate in what they say is an "unfair trial".

Saied said in 2023 that the detainees were "traitors and terrorists" and that the judges who acquitted them were their accomplices.

The detainees have denied any wrongdoing and have said they were preparing an initiative aimed at uniting Tunisia's fragmented opposition.

Most leaders of political parties are now in prison including two of Saied's most prominent opponents, Moussi and Rached Ghannouchi, the head of the Ennahda party.

The government says there is democracy in Tunisia and Saied says he will not be a dictator, but that what he calls a corrupt elite must be held accountable.