Dear friend,

We are living in extraordinary times.

Uprisings all over the Middle East, the death of the world’s most wanted terrorist and the international community on high alert. But this is the Middle East protest movement you probably aren’t hearing about.

On Monday, Syrian security forces killed 10 people and arrested 499 others in house-to-house raids -- the latest in a series of brutal, bitter clashes that have left over 500 dead and thousands behind bars. Yet brave protestors in Syria continue their call for freedom by marching against the repressive rule of President Bashar al-Assad.

Send your message demanding an end to the bloodshed in Syria, and we’ll hand deliver it to the Syrian embassy in Canberra.

With everyone watching Gaddafi in Libya, the repressive regime of Bashar al-Assad continues to rule with an iron fist. Troops have routinely opened fire on protestors since unrest began in March. Military tanks began shelling residential areas. And now security forces are arresting activists, lawyers and citizens across the country – holding them incommunicado and at serious risk of torture.

We may not have the power to stop the atrocities ourselves, but that doesn’t mean we have to stand idly by: sign our petition and be part of a truly global effort, with signatures to be delivered directly to Syrian embassies around the world.

In these times of ordinary people driving extraordinary events, Amnesty is here: defending the human rights of freedom of expression, assembly and association. And when 3 million of us work together, we are the difference between silence and action -- between what happens when a dictator knows the world is watching, and what happens when he thinks he can get away with brutal repression, unnoticed.

Let’s raise our voices right now, and let President Bashar al-Assad know we’re here – and we will hold him accountable.

In hope,

Hannah Harborow
Campaigns Manager
Amnesty International Australia