Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) is an outlet run by Ossama Suleiman (pseudonym Rami Abdulrahman) and his secretary out of Coventry, UK. They do, however, receive constant informational updates from a variety of activists in Syria, from rebel fighters to people willing to report the crimes of rebels. The SOHR displays the overall bias referring to the Syrian government as a "regime," giving credibility to reports that murky crimes were the work of the regime, instead of unclear, and only calling out rebels when the evidence of wrongdoing is bleedin' obvious. But they do it then, and sometimes quite well. They are (as of 2013) by far the most widely-cited opposition activist group, and are frequently cited and often criticized here as well.

The unusual level of relative balance they get from their variety of sources finds visual expression in the unusual mixing of iconography, using anti-government French colonial colors in some places (like their main website syriahr.org and Arabic Facebook page) while maintaining the national colors elsewhere (like on the Youtube channel and English Facebook page - see inset).

Links

 * Official Website (Arabic - English)
 * Facebook page (English, more regular updates)

2015

 * Who is behind Syrian Observatory for Human Rights? RT finds Western media's key source on Syria
 * Как агент британских спецслужб сочинял басни «о российских преступлениях в Сирии», — расследование «Русской Весны» (ФОТО, ВИДЕО), translation: "How an agent of British special services fabricated  stories  about Russian crimes in Syria"  - an investigation by "Russian Spring" (PHOTOS, VIDEO), Jan 12, 2016. Briefly, the article alleges lack of objectivity, bias, unknown/unreliable/possibly fake  sources. Unreliable or falsified information produced as a result is later used by mainstream sources as facts. Acknowledged financial backing by the 'EU and one European country' is described as corroborating evidence. Recent article by BBC alleging that 60 people were killed in Russian airstrikes near  the city of  Maaret En Nuuman in the western  Idlib province is used as an illustration of the 'method'.

2018

 * On Sources And Information - The Syrian Observatory - Moon of Alabama, May 25, 2018

Syrian Network for Human Rights

 * Behind the Syrian Network for Human Rights: How an opposition front group became Western media’s go-to monitor - Max Blumenthal, The Grayzone , June 14, 2019