Brian Whitaker digests an AJE report on Assad's lifting of the emergency law and comes to an unsurprising conclusion – "it will make little or no difference":
According to a former judge, all 15 branches of the security services will retain their immunity from prosecution, even after the emergency is lifted. Their immunity derives from a decree issued by President Assad in 2008. As an example of how the police state will be unaffected by lifting the emergency, the article points out that dissidents who signed the Damascus Declaration were jailed in 2005 on charges of "weakening national sentiment", "belonging to a secret society" and "spreading false news" – all of which will continue to be crimes under the penal code, regardless of the state of emergency.
Whitaker also analyzes a new decree that "allows the authorities to prevent any demonstration they disapprove of." Meanwhile, today was an especially bloody day in Syria:
At least 20 people have reportedly been killed in Syria, as mass protests are being held across the country. Deaths were reported in the central city of Homs, Douma and the southern city of Azraa. … Thousands of people have taken to the streets for rallies on what activists have dubbed "Great Friday", in what they say could become the biggest protests against the government to date. …
From Beirut, Robert Fisk, a leading correspondant with decades of experience in the region, told Al Jazeera that Assad appeared to be "stepping backwards". "Once you start giving these concessions, the crowds on the streets want more and it'll always end at the same demand: end of the dictator," Fisk said.
AJE updates here. Enduring America has compiled many clips from the day.
The Dish 