Daily Life In Syria

DAMASCUS, SYRIA, MARCH 29: Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus on March 29, 2011 in Syria. The mosque is regarded as the fourth-holiest site in Islam, and is a centre for pilgrimage, with many travelling from Iran. President Bashar al-Assad is facing protests against the rule of his goverment, formed mostly from the minority Alawite sect, across the country in the wake of the Arab Spring movements. Western journalists have been banned from entering the country, and security forces have been supressing demonstrations. Syria is a predominantly Sunni muslim country, with a high unemployment rate and a lack of human rights such as freedom of speech, but many residents see the bloody sectarian conflicts in neighbouring Iraq and Lebanon as the alternative to the current regime.