Protests over economic crisis intensify in Syria

People protesting in the southern Syrian city of Sweida. Pic/AP

Angry protesters raided the local offices of the ruling Baath party in a southern Syrian province Wednesday, as protests intensified against the country's government during a severe economic and financial crisis battering the war-torn country. Opposition activists said protesters also partially blocked a highway that links the Druze-majority Sweida province to the capital Damascus in anti-government rallies that broke out on Tuesday night.

The demonstrations were sparked by worsening living conditions and inflation that surged after President Bashar Assad's decision last week to double public sector wages and pensions. The protests, so far, have not spread to government strongholds along the Mediterranean coast, the capital Damascus and also the largest Syrian cities, including Aleppo and Homs.

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