Freedom at last

The rest were members of opposition and human rights groups and Kurdish activists who were jailed without charge or trial. A few of those released belonged to the Muslim Brotherhood group which was crushed by the Syrian army after a rebellion in Hama in the early 1980s.

Since 1995, Syria has been quietly releasing political detainees, indicating a change in the government's attitude towards its opponents. But analysts believe their release is also linked to domestic, regional and international changes.

On the domestic level, observers note that Syria now enjoys more internal stability due to security efforts. The bombings and anti-government attacks of the early 1980s have become almost non-existent due to tighter security. At the time, the government blamed the Muslim Brotherhood and communists for the bombings; thousands of members of both groups were arrested.

On the regional level, Iraq's Baath Party, seen for many years in Syria as a threat to Damascus, has also been severely weakened by the tight economic sanctions against Iraq. Baghdad can no longer afford to finance opponents of the Syrian regime.

Despite strong differences with Baath ideology, radical Islamist groups, such as Hamas and Jihad in Palestine and the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, maintain strong ties with Al-Assad, seen in the region as the champion of resistance against Israeli occupation of Arab territory.

Several meetings took place recently in Damascus between Baath officials and representatives of Islamist groups. The two sides said they were united by the struggle against Israel and agreed to form what could be an alliance between Islamists and Arab nationalists. Baath officials, known for their secular ideology, now state that "Arab nationalism is the core of Islamic action."

On the international level, Syria is looking to improve ties with the outside world, particularly Europe and the United States. Some observers interpreted the release of the prisoners in Syria as a goodwill gesture from Al-Assad before visiting France later this year, his first visit there since coming to power. Syria has been consistently criticised in Europe over its human rights record; the release of the prisoners might be an attempt to improve that record.

Syrian observers also note that many of those released are too old to take part in opposition activities any longer. For example, Al-Turk, the Communist Party leader, is over 70. After spending 18 years behind bars, the only wish he has, according to family sources, is to spend the rest of his days in peace. Al-Turk was jailed after refusing to condemn violent acts committed by Muslim Brotherhood members in 1980 and 1981. His call for allying with the Brotherhood also turned other fellow communists against him. Only a few Syrians can still remember Al-Turk while his Communist Party is today considered an ally, rather than an opponent, of the regime.

As for the release of a few Muslim Brotherhood members, government sources said that it took place "after they admitted the mistakes they did in the past."

The deterioration of the Middle East peace process and the stand taken by Al-Assad to counter the "Israeli threat" have also increased the government's support, depriving Islamist groups of public sympathy. As opposed to other Islamist groups in the Arab world, the Syrian Muslim Bortherhood cannot use the struggle against Israel as a winning card in mustering sympathy for its opposition to Al-Assad's government.

A Baath official told Al-Ahram Weekly that the release of the prisoners aimed at "mobilising the Syrian people in support of their government in order to face the Israeli challenge."