Protests in Syrian coast, US decision to classify Muslim Brotherhood dominate press

Arab newspapers highlighted the protest movements that swept through cities in the Syrian coastal region, coinciding with a new US step aimed at designating some branches of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organizations.

Protest movements in the Syrian coastal cities demand “an end to the killings,” decentralization, and the release of detainees

Beginning with the Syrian file, newspapers shed light on the demonstrations that took place in coastal cities, where hundreds of young men from the Alawite community in Latakia, Tartous, and Hama marched in response to calls issued by religious figures, most notably Ghazal Ghazal, head of the Higher Alawite Islamic Council in Syria and the Diaspora.

Protesters held banners calling for “an end to the killings,” “decentralization,” and “the release of detainees,” amid a deployment of internal security forces to secure gathering sites.

Al-Khaleej newspaper noted that the chants focused on demands to “lift oppression” and “end chaos,” viewing these movements as a reflection of growing anger over the deteriorating economic and security conditions in the Syrian coast.

Classifying the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organizations and regional stability

Saudi newspaper Okaz focused on US President Donald Trump’s decision to begin formal procedures to classify branches of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Lebanon, and Jordan as terrorist organizations.

The paper indicates that the decision carries implications related to restructuring the political landscape in the region after the events in Gaza, especially as Washington, according to its analysis, seeks to prevent the group from influencing reconstruction efforts or the arrangements of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

A-H

ANHA