Syria iPhone Ban Reportedly In Effect As Protests Continue

The iPhone has been banned in Steve Jobs' ancestral home of Syria.

As the country enters its ninth month of violent protests, the Syrian government has reportedly outlawed iPhones in a move to crack down on activists who were allegedly using the device to expose government abuse.

On Friday, Times Live reported that, according to the the Lebanese website Al Nashara, the iPhone ban had been issued by the Customs Department of the Syrian Finance Ministry. The Department's statement read in part, "The authorities warn anyone against using the iPhone in Syria."

Said an activist quoted in Times Live, "It is enough for any tourist or guest visiting Syria to own an iPhone to be a spy suspect."

Jobs' biological father, Abdulfattah John Jandali, a native Syrian who did not have a relationship with his famous son, has come out on the side of the protesters in a YouTube video, stating,

"I am in solidarity with the Syrian people. I reject the brutality and killing that the Syrian authorities are committing against the unarmed Syrian people. And because silence is participation in this crime, I declare my participation in the Syrian sit-in on YouTube."

According to The New York Times, more than 4,000 civilians have been killed since protests began in March.

The same day that the iPhone ban was reportedly issued, Navi Pillay, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, called for a U.N. intervention to protect Syrian civilians.

On Friday, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that government forces had killed six protesters who were calling for foreign intervention to stop government violence against demonstrators.

In June, the Syrian government shut down the internet and 3G mobile networks to in apparent effort to hamper communications among protesters. President Bashar al-Assad has also banned most foreign journalists from the country.

Comments

[Yank in France]

02:22 PM on 12/20/2011

At last, one govt comes out in defense of the Android phones!!

Apple haters rejoice! Long live the Android king, Hafez al-Assad!!

[frank day]

12:05 PM on 12/04/2011

Expect the Senate to pass a similar law here next week.

[marind]

02:06 PM on 12/05/2011

The plutocrats are already trying to. They are trying to pass laws in the US making it illegal to film cops without their permission. Apparently a motorcyclist back east is being prosecuting for filming a cop NOT IN UNIFORM when the cop brandished a gun at him. It's on YouTube - IF the American KGB hasn't deleted it yet.

[Absurde]

09:23 AM on 12/04/2011

Oh yeah iPhone is the only phone with camera... Nice thinking...

[Scott Moguns]

07:46 PM on 12/03/2011

Ah Duh, I guess only the IPhone can be use to expose govt corruption?
what happen to all the other phones, like Droid?

[aaldrew]

07:33 PM on 12/03/2011

Yup..This is not freedom as we know it.

[Greg Gorelick]

11:54 PM on 12/03/2011

Where you can also be arrested for videotaping police, and can be imprisoned indefinitely? Patriot Act?

[aaldrew]

12:52 AM on 12/04/2011

I do remember something of that incident.. Shameful.

[Mahi Joe]

08:12 AM on 12/04/2011

I can get arrested right where I live in Chicago if I get caught videotaping police.

[Greg Gorelick]

06:11 PM on 12/03/2011

"It is enough for any tourist or guest visiting Syria to own an iPhone to be a spy suspect."

Yikes. Guess I'll be going on the "Haiti Cruise" this year instead.

[Nitin Kapoor]

06:02 PM on 12/03/2011

Currently we are aka world is going thru war.. yes Cold-war, as in the past few years Russia and China was Busy Taking over contract of OIL in Middle east and African countries and china was specially involved in Mining African countries for GOLD and Resources, and this was the reason we say War in Libya, mess in Egypt, and now Syria and almost IRAN... and Look at why America is Busy increasing its influence in South Asian Countries ?, like Myanmar and building strong ties with INDIA, and not to forget AUSTRALIA.... all this is to counter the play of CHINA and Russia..

[Nitin Kapoor]

05:56 PM on 12/03/2011

If i would be on His place, I would have done the same, but I hate this man for killing innocent people.... Its just simply sad to see it, but still i doubt the today's News reports are most of the media reports are paid news... So its very hard to judge who is right or wrong. :)

And ya one more thing its not hidden from any one that, New generation mobile devices are, can easily be used to track location and are able to track information information thru. nearby media devices.... Its a rock hard truth which we should accept on first place ;)

[Rahan]

06:03 PM on 12/03/2011

In Syria, the people are right and the Bashar regime is wrong :)
Nothing too mysterious and nothing hard to judge there.

[Nitin Kapoor]

03:36 PM on 12/04/2011

Ya i know Bashar Regime is wrong, but look at Libya, people were living way better when Qaddafi was ruling and now living like living in 3rd world... whole country is Bomb'd, and i am worried that same will happen to Syria :(

But one thing is for sure is Russia and China were playing behind to change economic pole's and these small countries are paying price.....

[Yank in France]

02:26 PM on 12/20/2011

No, Rahan, the regime has millions of supporters too, and they are afraid of the consequences of a Sunni Islamist revolution. Among those worried are Syria ONE MILLION CHRISTIANS.

I know this is hard to fathom, but the US media does not always present reality in all its complexity.

However, to be fair, they are only appealing to their audience's level!

[PDaddy2]

03:21 PM on 12/03/2011

Down here in Mexico it's called a YoPhone.

[wonderYrednow]

10:12 PM on 12/03/2011

Very 'heady' now go to your room, Max.

[peoplepersons]

02:59 PM on 12/03/2011

Why would I make an educated comment on Huffpost where they moderate. Moderation is for FEMA camp supporters.

[jetscan]

06:00 PM on 12/04/2011

True. There are a few power hungry mods here who delete comments according to their personal view. It happened many times to many of us. Some of us called Lance Armstrong a fraud because he defeated everyone who was using steroids at the time and our comments were deleted. Only the comments 'kissing his behind' were posted. Last week someone posted a comment about the abuse of marihuana in the Western World when in fact in India and China this and opium were/are used for medicinal purposes. His comment vanished into thin air.....

[OliverTwist]

02:52 PM on 12/03/2011

It is difficult to credit news reports that have few sources and yet claim knowledge of the intent and/or thoughts of people or even groups.

[BlifCar]

02:16 PM on 12/03/2011

If only iPhones were illegal here in the USA, Apple could sell three times as many.

[Nitin Kapoor]

06:03 PM on 12/03/2011

LOL

[karen lyons kalmenson]

01:12 PM on 12/03/2011

i guess jobs brainchild is not the apple of the syrian dictatorship's eye

[froggyanearl]

02:49 PM on 12/03/2011

Witty.

[karen lyons kalmenson]

03:22 PM on 12/03/2011

thank you:-D

[masseyuni01]

12:54 PM on 12/03/2011

WHAT A PITY！ They don't have the GREAT FIRE WALL as we have in China!

[gerorem]

12:28 PM on 12/03/2011

In the good ol' USA: Do you think any laptops or phones make it through the demonstration arrests? Have you seen journalists beaten and arrested? Have you seen any candidates barring the press in public places? Have you seen anyone arrested for registering voters? Have you seen anyone put in concentration camps in our history?

[greenmonk]

03:03 PM on 12/03/2011

maybe on point 1. yes on point 2. yes on point 3. intimidation tactics on point 4. And on 5, no "concentration camps" but Guantanamo torture center, rendition to torture states, and new laws to hold any person, US citizen or not, indefinitely, We now train cops to use military tactics against protesters.

The USA is not Syria, but its moving that direction.

what was YOUR point?

[Greg Gorelick]

06:12 PM on 12/03/2011

Well said. There are many parallels.

[gerorem]

10:09 AM on 12/04/2011

The point is we are not as freedom loving as we claim to be. In fact, we have supported countless dictators world wide for as long as I remember.

[Markrsm]

10:27 PM on 12/03/2011

Dear Gerorem,

You make your points out of content, people get arrested when they register people to vote more than once. Journalist that break the laws should be arrested. When you are arrested they take all your stuff. We have put many people in consentration camps, I am part Native American.

But the point is not what the US does, the point is as many issues as we have, we are still the best place in the world to live.

The main reason why, is more people move to the US than anyplace, and that means we must be the best place to live.

[Greg Gorelick]

11:57 PM on 12/03/2011

Canada seems nice too.

[MagicAnt]

03:43 AM on 12/04/2011

The U.S. is far from the best place in the world to live. It's just where people from poorer countries can make more money. That doesn't mean it's great to live there any more than a high-paying job is necessarily the "best" job.

The U.S. is not even in the top 10 in most surveys of happiness or best places in the world to live.