Please make sure that Muheddin Sheikh Ali is released!

SOCIETY FOR THREATENED PEOPLES INTERNATIONAL

His Excellency President Bashar al-Assad

President of the Republic

Presidential Palace

Abu Rummaneh

Al Rashid Street

Damaskus

SYRIEN

Telefax: (00 963) 11 332 3410

Göttingen, 21st December 2006

Your Excellency,

Last Wednesday the Party Secretary of the Kurdish Democratic Party in Syria (YEKITI), Muheddin Sheikh Ali was arrested near the Baghdad Station in the city of Aleppo by a patrol of the Al-Muhabarat al-Askariye military security service. Since his abduction his family has received no information as to his whereabouts. Information on the arrest of this Kurdish politician was confirmed by telephone to the Society for Threatened Peoples International by witnesses, relatives and the President of the YEKITI party, Mr Ismali Arno, who lives in Aleppo. Muheddin Sheikh Ali is 53 years old and was born in the Syrian-Kurdish district town of Afrin. He has a son aged six months.

Your Excellency, the GfbV International begs you to release immediately this Syrian-Kurdish politician. We beg you urgently to check if Mr Sheikh Ali has been tortured and maltreated. Through your intervention such severe violations of human rights can be prevented.

Please inform us immediately on your action for the release of Mr Muheddin Sheikh Ali. Your active involvement in this case can only improve the reputation of the Syrian state.

Yours Truly,

Tilman Zülch

Society for Threatened Peoples International

P.S. We take it that we have your agreement that our letter be sent to the German and international media.

Information for media and institutions: The number of Kurds in Syria is estimated at two million. They make up the second largest ethnic group in the country after the Arabs. About 200,000 Kurds have for decades been refused Syrian citizenship. Kurdish newspapers and other media are forbidden in Syria. The Kurdish language is not allowed at school. Since the middle of 1963 the country has been under the sole rule of the Panarabic-nationalist Baath party. A state of emergency obtains throughout the whole of Syria.

We have a request to human rights organisations and human rights experts: Please write also to the President of Syria and beg him to free Muheddin Sheikh Ali.