Aline Sara
“Our friends had just finished filing their complaint. As soon as they came out of the precinct, a car of thugs—shabiha—pulled up.”

“They pushed one of the activists under the car—literally trying to kill him, and started attacking the others, even the girl. Some gang members were Algerian and Moroccans whom we suspect had been paid [by the Syrian regime],” said Syrian opposition activist Majd Eid.

He wasn’t describing a crackdown on anti-regime protesters in Damascus, or in Beirut, where people demonstrating in solidarity with the opposition in Syria have been attacked. Eid was referring to a peaceful pro-democracy sit-in in Paris’ Place Châtelet, minutes away from the Louvre and the capital’s trendy Les Halles shopping district. The incident served as a reminder of the extensive reach of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Over 3,000 Syrians have been killed, another 3,000 have gone missing and over 15,000 have been detained since the uprising began in Syria six months ago. And while dissidents abroad are bypassing the media blackout at home, using social media to spread the word about the situation in Syria, they cannot escape retribution from the regime.

From Paris to Washington, London to Santiago, activists are being threatened and even attacked by thugs or members of Syria’s official diplomatic corps.

The incident in Paris, which took place late last month, was the first time a pro-democracy gathering was attacked in France. “We have been doing these sit-ins for over a month, with official authorization from the French government,” said Eid, who left his homeland five years ago, in part because he was being harassed by the regime because of his parents’ pro-democracy activism. The goal of the attackers, he said, is to wreak havoc and discourage authorities from allowing future protests.

According to Eid, several perpetrators were able to claim diplomatic immunity, while the people who attacked his friends near the precinct are in prison awaiting trial for attempted murder. In the meantime, the victims are in recovery after being hospitalized.

While French authorities have until now remained quiet about intimidation efforts against Syrian protesters, more action is being taken on the other side of the Atlantic.

In early August, the US State Department said it had received complaints from Syrian dissidents based in the country. “We received reports that Syrian mission personnel under Ambassador [Imad] Mustapha’s authority have been conducting video and photographic surveillance of people participating in peaceful demonstrations in the United States,” read the statement. The State Department condemned any attempts to intimidate US-based individuals “exercising their lawful right to freedom of speech as protected by the US Constitution,” and promised to investigate the claims.

The FBI is reportedly investigating, though it declined to comment on its involvement with the case, as it does not discuss current investigations with the press. But Mohammad al-Abdallah, a Syrian activist in Washington, DC, confirmed the FBI was looking into the claims.

“[Regime supporters] started to send people to film some of our activities like the weekly protest in front of the White House, the protests in front of the Syrian Embassy here in DC,” said Abdallah, who met with US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton alongside other members of the Syrian opposition last month. “The embassy is sending information to security agencies in Syria about the activists, and the government in Syria is harassing their families in Syria,” he added.

Meanwhile, in Latin America, Homs-native Naima Darwish was threatened for organizing an event in front of the Syrian Embassy in Santiago. The 30-year-old designer, who was honored in 2009 by Chilean President Michelle Bachelet for providing work to elderly women, was called into the embassy. After refusing to go in, she received a call from the charge d’affaires, Sami Salameh, who told her it was foolish to risk her youth and success with such “stupidities.”

“He ultimately told me I was a lesbian doing all this to legalize gay marriage [in Syria]” she told NOW Lebanon.

Darwish said that the majority of Syrians in Chile are too scared to protest against the Assad regime, “especially for their families who are still back home. So they pray in silence.”

That is a constant fear for Paris-based activist Sadik Harbat, who told NOW Lebanon he had not heard from his parents back in Syria in the days following the siege of his hometown, Horan, which is in the Daraa district. “I speak up because it’s chaos in my city, so I know it’s harder for [authorities] to directly crack down on my relatives,” he said.

But he has been concerned for his own safety in Paris after receiving Facebook messages telling him to stop his activism and move apartments. “I was told by fellow activists that I was on their radar… They told me to move out, to take all my information, PC, hard disks, just in case.”

Word has also spread that Syrian students abroad have been warned that if they take part in anti-regime demonstrations they could lose their scholarships. But Harbat said many students would be willing to engage in more activism if it was just about their funding. “It’s more a concern about their parents’ safety,” he said.

Both Harbat’s brother and sister in Syria have been warned about his activities. His brother was relayed the message, “We are busy now, but we’re coming for you later.”

When asked whether he had filed an official complaint with the French police about the harassment, Harbat said there was simply no time.

“We have too many other things on our mind. Threats via the parents and the family—that is the real problem, and we really just want our families to be safe.”