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US: Syria Must Release Female Blogger

13 February 2011 04:59 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The U.S. State Department has asked Syria to immediately release a young female blogger arrested for spying for the United States, APA reports quoting voanews.com website.
U.S. State Department spokesman P. J. Crowley on Saturday said the charges against Tal al-Mallouhi are â€œbaseless.â€
Mallouhi was a 19-year-old high school student when she was arrested in 2009 and computer was confiscated. Her blog is known for poetry and social commentary that focused on the plight of the Palestinian people.
Syrian authorities have not clearly linked Mallouhi’s arrest to her blog.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has criticized countries for controls they impose on their citizen’s online activities. On Tuesday, Clinton is due to deliver what the State Department is calling a â€œmajor speechâ€ on Internet freedom.
In recent weeks, social media like Facebook and Twitter have been used to fuel popular revolts in Egypt and Tunisia.