Looks Like Syria Could Be The Next Domino to Drop

(CNSNews.com) – Online appeals for large-scale demonstrations in Syria this weekend are prompting speculation that President Bashir Assad’s regime could be next target of anti-regime sentiment sweeping the region.

A number of Facebook and Twitter pages have been created, calling for a “day of rage” against the government on February 5, some of them boasting several thousand apparent supporters.

According to translations provided by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), the pages are calling on Syrians to hold non-violent protests across the country and at Syrian diplomatic missions in Arab and European capitals.

It says organizers of planned demonstrations in Damascus and Aleppo, Syria’s second-largest city, have listed demands including an improvement in living standards and respect for human rights and free speech. One of the pages is entitled “Syrian revolution 2011” and some carry doctored, unflattering pictures of the president.

MEMRI also cited a Syrian media report saying that Assad’s security chief had met with provincial governors and police commanders to prepare for possible protests.

The Assad family, members of the minority Alawite sect which is regarded as apostate by the majority Sunni population, has ruled Syria with a firm grip since 1971 when Bashir Assad’s father, Hafez, seized power in a purge of the ruling socialist Baath party.

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