Syria bars travel of rights activists
Damascus, , Apr. 20 (UPI) -- A Syrian human rights group said Tuesday the authorities barred its president from going to Lebanon to attend a conference of Arab intellectuals and activists.
The Arab Organization for Human Rights in Syria said the watchdog group "denounces the return to old methods in dealing with human rights activists and demands the Syrian authorities cancel travel restrictions on all citizens without exception unless they are barred from leaving the country by judicial order."
The statement said its president Mohammed Raadoun and other human rights activists were stopped at the border by security agents who asked them to check with the department of immigration and passports in Damascus.
Syria last year lifted restrictions on foreign travel, except for former political prisoners.
The Arab Organization for Human Rights in Syria is a branch of the Cairo-based rights group and is operating without a license along with three other watchdog groups.