Syrian authorities arrest opposition figure
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Syrian rights activists say authorities have arrested a leftist opposition figure at his home during an overnight raid. Mahmoud Issa's arrest in the central city of Homs came a few hours after the government on Tuesday announced an end to nearly 50 years of emergency rule. The reviled legislature gave the regime a free hand to arrest people without any charges.
Despite its repeal, defiant anti-government protesters accuse President Bashar Assad of buying time and clinging to power in one of the most repressive Mideast regimes.Syrian Human Rights League chief, Abdul-Karim Rihawi, said Wednesday that security agents picked up Issa after an interview he gave to Al-Jazeera satellite TV late Tuesday. Rights activist Mazen Darwish says the interview angered locals in Homs. (AP)
