Syria launches first official print newspaper since fall of Assad

DAMASCUS: Syria published the first print issue of the official Al Thawra Al Souriya newspaper Monday, the latest government-owned media outlet to launch since the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.

The move brings print media back for the first time in five years. Assad’s government stopped printing dailies during the Covid-19 pandemic, citing rising printing costs and distribution challenges.

Al Thawra Al Souriya, meaning “the Syrian revolution” in Arabic, will replace Al Thawra, which was an Assad-era state newspaper.

Information Minister Hamza Mustafa said at the launch ceremony that he wanted the newspaper to be “a mirror to people’s pain, their daily lives and their hopes in a space of free discussion”.

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Under Assad, media freedoms were heavily restricted, with strong security control over content and regular harassment of journalists.

State media would repeat the government narrative and only a handful of privately-owned outlets, aligned with the government, were allowed to operate under tight control.

Syria’s new authorities took over and relaunched pre-existing outlets, including state media such as news agency SANA, and private publications have been allowed to operate.