Gay Life Syria: an Interview wh a Gay 'Refugee' - GlobalGayz

Contents:

• GAY LIFE SYRIA: AN INTERVIEW WH A GAY 'REFUGEE'
• GAY SYRIAN MAN BEHEAD AND MUTILATED TURKEY
• THE SECRET, HYPOCRIL GAY WORLD OF ISISKILLERSISIS MURRED A 15-YEAR-OLD ACCED OF BEG GAY BUT SPARED THE LIFE OF HIS ‘RAPIST,’ A SENR JIHADI MANR. WHAT LI BEHD THE BTAL DOUBLE STANDARD?TIM TEEMANSENR EDOR AND WRERUPDATED JUL. 12, 2017 6:13PM EDT / PUBLISHED JAN. 06, 2016 12:01AM EST PHOTO ILLTRATN BY THE DAILY BEASTTHE MURR OF A 15-YEAR-OLD TEENAGER, THROWN TO HIS ATH BY ISIS FOR BEG GAY, NOT ONLY REVEALS—YET AGA—THE TERROR GROUP’S MURRO HOMOPHOBIA, BUT ALSO THE HYPOCRISY THAT EXISTS ALONGSI .A SENR MANR OF THE SO-LLED ISLAMIC STATE, NAMED REPORTS AS ABU ZAID AL-JAZRAWI, WAS HAVG SOME KD OF RELATNSHIP WH THIS AS-YET-NAMELS 15-YEAR-OLD, BUT THE MORE SENR MAN WAS NOT KILLED.INSTEAD, AL-JAZRAWI WAS REPORTEDLY FLOGGED, AND FORCED TO LEAVE SYRIA AND JO THE FIGHTG ONTS NORTHWTERN IRAQ.THE BOY, KILLED DEIR EZ-ZOR, SYRIA’S SEVENTH-LARGT CY, IS NOT THE FIRST TO BE MURRED SUCH A MANNER: THE IMAG OF MEN, ACCED AND SPECTED OF BEG GAY, BEG THROWN TO THEIR ATHS OM TALL BUILDGS HAS BEE BTALLY FAIAR. ON TUDAY, THE U.K.-BASED SYRIAN OBSERVATORY FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, TOLD THE INPENNT THAT AT LEAST 25 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN KILLED BY ISIS FOR BEG GAY: SIX STONED, THREE SHOT THE HEAD, AND 16 THROWN OM HIGH-RISE BUILDGS.OF THE 15-YEAR-OLD’S KILLG, “THE HORRIFIC EXECUTN TOOK PLACE ONT OF A LARGE CROWD,” A LOL MEDIA ACTIVIST AND AN EYEWNS TOLD SYRIAN NEWS AGENCY ARA NEWS.“THE BOY WAS ACCED OF BEG ENGAGED A HOMOSEXUAL RELATN WH THE PROMENT ISIS OFFICER ABU ZAID AL-JAZRAWI,” MEDIA ACTIVIST SARAI AL-D TOLD THE AGENCY. THE SHARIA COURT DEIR EZ-ZOR REPORTEDLY SAID THAT ABU ZAID SHOULD, LIKE THE BOY, DIE FOR BEG GAY, BUT ISIS MANRS MAND HE BE SENT TO FIGHT IRAQ STEAD.SUBHI NAHAS, A GAY SYRIAN WHO PED THE UNTRY FEARG FOR HIS LIFE, AND WHO A HISTORY-MAKG SPEECH ADDRSED THE UNED NATNS LAST YEAR ABOUT LGBT PERSECUTN SYRIA, TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT THERE WERE POSSIBLE CULTURAL REASONS BEHD THE MURR OF ONE YOUNG MAN AND THE REPRIEVE OF HIS OLR SEXUAL PARTNER, SCRIBED AS THE TEEN’S “RAPIST” SOME REPORTS.“A TRADN WHICH ADULT MAL ENGAGED SEXUAL PLEASURE WH PRE-PUBCENT BOYS--GHELMAN--CLUDG HERMAPHRODIC BOYS, HAS EXISTED BEFORE THE CREATN OF ISLAM," NAHAS SAID. "BEE THE ENUNTERS DIDN'T RULT PREGNANCI, THEY BEME MORE MONPLACE AFTER ISLAM HAD TAKEN ROOT."THE SCRIPTNS OF THE 15-YEAR-OLD’S RELATNSHIP WH THE MANR ARE NTRADICTORY: IT HAS BEEN VARLY SCRIBED AS A “SEXUAL RELATN” AND “RAPE.” HOW NSENSUAL OR ERCIVE THE RELATNSHIP WAS IS UNCLEAR, AS IS THE NATURE OF THE RELATNSHIP BETWEEN THE OLR AND YOUNGER MAN. “CULTURALLY, POST THE FORMATN OF ISLAM, PEOPLE RELATED HOMOSEXUALY TO PEDOPHILIA,” SAID NAHAS, NOW AN ACTIVIST WH THE ORGANIZATN FOR REFUGE, ASYLUM & MIGRATN (ORAM). “NO DISTCTN IS DRAWN BETWEEN THE TWO. IF SOMEBODY RAPED A BOY THEY LLED HIM A HOMOSEXUAL, NOT A PEDOPHILE. MAYBE THIS MANR HAD A KD OF WAIVER GIVEN TO HIM BY HIS PEERS. THEY THK, ‘HE DO GREAT THGS FOR PEOPLE. WE NNOT KILL HIM, BUT WE NEED A SPEGOAT, THE BOY.’“THEY DON’T LL THIS RELATNSHIP OR [THE] MEN ‘GAY,’” SAID NAHAS. “IF A MAN HAS SEX WH ANOTHER MAN, THE TWO PARTI ARE THE RECEPTIVE ONE AND THE ‘SERTER.’ IF YOU’RE THE RECEPTIVE PARTY, YOU’RE DOOMED. YOU’RE SEEN AS SODOMIZED, SOMEONE HAS DONE THIS TO YOU, YOU’RE THE ABOMATN. IF YOU’RE THE SERTER, YOU ARE NTROL, YOU’RE FUNCTNAL, YOU N REPRODUCE.”NAHAS SAID THE SE WAS ALSO PUZZLG: HE HAD HEARD THAT WHILE ISIS WAS SPARG EFFEMATE GAY MEN “FOR THE PLEASURE OF OLR MEN,” THE “MASCULE” MEN SPECTED OF BEG GAY WERE BEG KILLED.IN THIS SE, APPEARED TO NAHAS THAT THE ISIS MANR’S SENRY POSSIBLY PROTECTED HIM. “THEY NEED A SPEGOAT, THEY NEED A BOY TO KILL. THERE SHOULD BE ANOTHER PART TO THIS STORY, BUT PEOPLE ARE NOT WILLG YET TO GIVE ANY RMATN BEE ’S VERY SENSIVE.”MICHAEL LUONGO, EDOR OF GAY TRAVELS THE MLIM WORLD, TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT THE MURR OF THE 15-YEAR-OLD SHOWED ISIS’S HYPOCRISY. “IT GO TO THE IA THAT SOME PARTS OF THE MIDDLE EAST AND OTHER CULTUR BEG THE PERATOR IS OK ‎BEE THAT IS NOT UNMANLY.”LUONGO ADD, “IF THE SEX WAS WH A 15-YEAR-OLD BOY I WOULD BE CERTA HE WAS THE ONE WHO WAS PERATED, WHO WAS RAPED. THE HYPOCRISY WOULD ALSO BE ADD TO THAT WOULD BE STARTED BY THE SIR OF THE GUY WHO WAS NOT HARSHLY PUNISHED, BY THE MANR.“WE HAVE SEEN THIS TYPE OF HYPOCRISY OTHER SO-LLED RELIG GROUPS SUCH AS THE TALIBAN. THE HORROR IS ADD TO BY THE SENSE THE 15-YEAR-OLD WAS SENTIALLY RAPED AND THEN MURRED FOR HIS HAVG BEEN RAPED.”NAHAS TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT GAY MEN JOED ISIS TO PROTECT THEMSELV AND THEIR FAI, SOMETIM REPORTG ON FELLOW GAYS TO NCEAL THEMSELV MORE EFFECTIVELY. “SOME NEW RECS REPORT IENDS THEY ED TO HAVE SEX WH, BEE THEY BELIEVE ’S THE RIGHT THG TO DO.”NAHAS SAID THAT ORAM WAS STILL TRYG TO TABLISH THE VERACY OF A WEBSE THAT APPEARED LAST YEAR THAT PURPORTED TO SHOW MEMBERS OF ISIS ENGAGED GAY SEXUAL ACTS AND POS.THE SE, NAHAS SAID, WAS TABLISHED BY AN ASYLUM SEEKER NOW EUROPE, AND WHILE SOME OF THE PHOTOS HAD BEEN PHOTOSHOPPED, OTHER TAILS—MEN WEARG A CERTA KD OF MOUFLAGE AND WH ISIS FLAGS THE BACKGROUND—SUGGTED SOME OF THE PICTUR WERE REAL, “BUT PEOPLE NNOT NFIRM THIS BEE THEY ARE AAID. WE DO KNOW OF REPORTS THAT GAY PEOPLE ARE ISIS, OR HAVG SEX WH MEMBERS OF THE IA.“IN DOG SO, THEY SECURE PROTECTN FOR THEMSELV, AND A SAFE HAVEN FOR THEIR FAI AND—IF THEY HAVE THEM—THEIR CHILDREN. AT THE SAME TIME THEY N HAVE SEX THE BACKGROUND. THEY KNOW THEY ARE PROTECTED. THEY ARE NOT VTIGATED. NOW THE MSAGE OF THIS LATT CINT IS, ‘IF YOU ARE SENR ENOUGH WH AND HAVG GAY SEX, YOU WILL NOT BE EXECUTED.’”SPEAKG FOR ORAM—FOUND 2008 AS “THE ONLY TERNATNAL ANIZATN VOTED SOLELY TO ADVOTG FOR LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, AND TERSEX (LGBTI) REFUGE FLEEG BTALIZATN DUE TO SEXUAL ORIENTATN OR GENR INTY”—NAHAS SAID SYRIA REMAED “VERY DANGERO” FOR GAYS.“WE HEAR OM PEOPLE WH SYRIA LOOKG FOR ANY WAY THEY N GET OUT, OR FD A WAY TO GET RETTLED. THEY ARE TOO AAID TO REPORT WHAT IS GOG ON. LOTS ARE BEG KIDNAPPED, LOTS ARE BEG KILLED. THEY ARE EHER SRED FOR THEIR LIFE, OR HAVE NO IA WHAT TO DO TO PE AND HOW TO DO .”NAHAS EMPHASIZED THAT THE DANGER TO LGBT PEOPLE SYRIA DID NOT JT E OM ISIS, BUT OM THE ERNMENT, AND OTHER GROUPS—EXTREME AND NOT.ANOTHER ANT ISLAMIC GROUP, AHRAR ASH-SHAM, ALSO TARGETED GAYS—AND A THIRD GROUP, WHICH NAHAS LLED THE JUDICIAL COURT ALEPPO, EXECUTED SEVEN PEOPLE ACCED OF BEG GAY AND OF BEG DG ERS, BY SHOOTG THEM THEIR HEADS. THE GROUP ALSO KILLED A 17-YEAR-OLD BOY, ACCED OF BEG GAY.“THE TARGETG OF GAY PEOPLE SYRIA IS LATG, EVEN BY GROUPS WHO SAY THEY ARE SECULAR,” SAID NAHAS. “THEY BELIEVE THAT GAY PEOPLE ARE ONE OF THE MA REASONS THERE IS WAR SYRIA, AND THEY NEED TO BE KILLED SO THE WAR N BE WON.”JT AS THE 15-YEAR-OLD THE MOST RECENT KILLG MIGHT HAVE BEEN A SPEGOAT, SO ARE LGBTS BEG TREATED AS SUCH MORE GENERALLY.NAHAS SAID HE KNEW OF BETWEEN 100 AND 125 LGBT SYRIANS TURKEY, AWAG RETTLEMENT ABROAD, AS HE HIMSELF EVENTUALLY SECURED LAST YEAR AFTER A PERILO AND TERRIFYG PE OM SYRIA.OF WATCHG THE UNFOLDG EVENTS FOR LGBT PEOPLE HIS HOME UNTRY, NAHAS, WHO NOW LIV THE U.S., SAID, “IT’S VASTATG. YOU FEEL PARALYZED. YOU FEEL LIKE YOU NNOT DO ANYTHG. AND YOU FEEL LIKE, ‘HOW AND WHY IS THIS HAPPENG AND WHAT LED TO ?’ YOU NNOT DO ANYTHG ABOUT , AND I NEED TO DO SOMETHG AND WANT TO DO SOMETHG, BUT THERE’S NOTHG I N DO.“I ALWAYS PUT MYSELF THEIR SHO AND ALWAYS THK, ‘THAT ULD BE ME, THAT ULD HAVE BEEN ME AT ANY MOMENT.’ THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH ROURC, AND GAYS ARE AAID AND SRED, AND THEY’RE BEG TARGETED AND KILLED.” NAHAS PSED. “IT’S JT TOO MUCH.” TIM TEEMAN
• MR GAY SYRIA
• HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: GAY MEN HUNTED, RAPED AND KILLED BY SYRIAN ARMY

GAY LIFE SYRIA: AN INTERVIEW WH A GAY 'REFUGEE'

In this swirlg flow of human events, homosexual dividuals are not sure where they will land, on their feet wh tolerance or further margalized to the g of society. One gay man’s rponse has been to abandon his native Syria and s current upheaval state and live Turkey where he fds support om the LGBT muny but still leav him a man whout a untry.

GlobalGayz terviewed him Istanbul April 2012. Adad is a gay Syrian man, 34 years old, livg Turkey temporarily until June 2012 when his visor perm ns out.

GAY SYRIAN MAN BEHEAD AND MUTILATED TURKEY

He is currently a man whout a untry, forced om Syria by a dangero revolutn, fay disagreements as well as ary threats, not so much for his beg gay but for tryg to make a polil statement of fiance toward the Assad regime that’s currently slghterg thoands of own cizens. Adad’s views beme known through his two psdonymo web blogs which advote for human and gay rights agast the ernment treatment of gays as well as the btaly and rptn of the currently lears. He is tryg to live a life of tth, jtice, social equaly and openns as a gay beg.

As a gay man who seeks sexual and emotnal timacy Turkey n only offer him a limed rponse to his needs. Although Turkey is nsirably more tolerant of LGBT life than most other Middle East untri (along wh Israel and Lebanon) is still a culture steeped homophobic discrimatn. As well, he has the past been taed by the Syrian police on spicn for immoral (gay) behavr but he was not wed by them and mand their nam and inty badge numbers.

Homosexualy is not a crime Syria and Adad was very aware that the police actn toward him was merely harassment so he was not aaid to fend himself. (In his twenti he was studyg medice but gave up as he felt that reer would lim his eedom as an dividual and as a gay man Syria.

THE SECRET, HYPOCRIL GAY WORLD OF ISISKILLERSISIS MURRED A 15-YEAR-OLD ACCED OF BEG GAY BUT SPARED THE LIFE OF HIS ‘RAPIST,’ A SENR JIHADI MANR. WHAT LI BEHD THE BTAL DOUBLE STANDARD?TIM TEEMANSENR EDOR AND WRERUPDATED JUL. 12, 2017 6:13PM EDT / PUBLISHED JAN. 06, 2016 12:01AM EST PHOTO ILLTRATN BY THE DAILY BEASTTHE MURR OF A 15-YEAR-OLD TEENAGER, THROWN TO HIS ATH BY ISIS FOR BEG GAY, NOT ONLY REVEALS—YET AGA—THE TERROR GROUP’S MURRO HOMOPHOBIA, BUT ALSO THE HYPOCRISY THAT EXISTS ALONGSI .A SENR MANR OF THE SO-LLED ISLAMIC STATE, NAMED REPORTS AS ABU ZAID AL-JAZRAWI, WAS HAVG SOME KD OF RELATNSHIP WH THIS AS-YET-NAMELS 15-YEAR-OLD, BUT THE MORE SENR MAN WAS NOT KILLED.INSTEAD, AL-JAZRAWI WAS REPORTEDLY FLOGGED, AND FORCED TO LEAVE SYRIA AND JO THE FIGHTG ONTS NORTHWTERN IRAQ.THE BOY, KILLED DEIR EZ-ZOR, SYRIA’S SEVENTH-LARGT CY, IS NOT THE FIRST TO BE MURRED SUCH A MANNER: THE IMAG OF MEN, ACCED AND SPECTED OF BEG GAY, BEG THROWN TO THEIR ATHS OM TALL BUILDGS HAS BEE BTALLY FAIAR. ON TUDAY, THE U.K.-BASED SYRIAN OBSERVATORY FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, TOLD THE INPENNT THAT AT LEAST 25 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN KILLED BY ISIS FOR BEG GAY: SIX STONED, THREE SHOT THE HEAD, AND 16 THROWN OM HIGH-RISE BUILDGS.OF THE 15-YEAR-OLD’S KILLG, “THE HORRIFIC EXECUTN TOOK PLACE ONT OF A LARGE CROWD,” A LOL MEDIA ACTIVIST AND AN EYEWNS TOLD SYRIAN NEWS AGENCY ARA NEWS.“THE BOY WAS ACCED OF BEG ENGAGED A HOMOSEXUAL RELATN WH THE PROMENT ISIS OFFICER ABU ZAID AL-JAZRAWI,” MEDIA ACTIVIST SARAI AL-D TOLD THE AGENCY. THE SHARIA COURT DEIR EZ-ZOR REPORTEDLY SAID THAT ABU ZAID SHOULD, LIKE THE BOY, DIE FOR BEG GAY, BUT ISIS MANRS MAND HE BE SENT TO FIGHT IRAQ STEAD.SUBHI NAHAS, A GAY SYRIAN WHO PED THE UNTRY FEARG FOR HIS LIFE, AND WHO A HISTORY-MAKG SPEECH ADDRSED THE UNED NATNS LAST YEAR ABOUT LGBT PERSECUTN SYRIA, TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT THERE WERE POSSIBLE CULTURAL REASONS BEHD THE MURR OF ONE YOUNG MAN AND THE REPRIEVE OF HIS OLR SEXUAL PARTNER, SCRIBED AS THE TEEN’S “RAPIST” SOME REPORTS.“A TRADN WHICH ADULT MAL ENGAGED SEXUAL PLEASURE WH PRE-PUBCENT BOYS--GHELMAN--CLUDG HERMAPHRODIC BOYS, HAS EXISTED BEFORE THE CREATN OF ISLAM," NAHAS SAID. "BEE THE ENUNTERS DIDN'T RULT PREGNANCI, THEY BEME MORE MONPLACE AFTER ISLAM HAD TAKEN ROOT."THE SCRIPTNS OF THE 15-YEAR-OLD’S RELATNSHIP WH THE MANR ARE NTRADICTORY: IT HAS BEEN VARLY SCRIBED AS A “SEXUAL RELATN” AND “RAPE.” HOW NSENSUAL OR ERCIVE THE RELATNSHIP WAS IS UNCLEAR, AS IS THE NATURE OF THE RELATNSHIP BETWEEN THE OLR AND YOUNGER MAN. “CULTURALLY, POST THE FORMATN OF ISLAM, PEOPLE RELATED HOMOSEXUALY TO PEDOPHILIA,” SAID NAHAS, NOW AN ACTIVIST WH THE ORGANIZATN FOR REFUGE, ASYLUM & MIGRATN (ORAM). “NO DISTCTN IS DRAWN BETWEEN THE TWO. IF SOMEBODY RAPED A BOY THEY LLED HIM A HOMOSEXUAL, NOT A PEDOPHILE. MAYBE THIS MANR HAD A KD OF WAIVER GIVEN TO HIM BY HIS PEERS. THEY THK, ‘HE DO GREAT THGS FOR PEOPLE. WE NNOT KILL HIM, BUT WE NEED A SPEGOAT, THE BOY.’“THEY DON’T LL THIS RELATNSHIP OR [THE] MEN ‘GAY,’” SAID NAHAS. “IF A MAN HAS SEX WH ANOTHER MAN, THE TWO PARTI ARE THE RECEPTIVE ONE AND THE ‘SERTER.’ IF YOU’RE THE RECEPTIVE PARTY, YOU’RE DOOMED. YOU’RE SEEN AS SODOMIZED, SOMEONE HAS DONE THIS TO YOU, YOU’RE THE ABOMATN. IF YOU’RE THE SERTER, YOU ARE NTROL, YOU’RE FUNCTNAL, YOU N REPRODUCE.”NAHAS SAID THE SE WAS ALSO PUZZLG: HE HAD HEARD THAT WHILE ISIS WAS SPARG EFFEMATE GAY MEN “FOR THE PLEASURE OF OLR MEN,” THE “MASCULE” MEN SPECTED OF BEG GAY WERE BEG KILLED.IN THIS SE, APPEARED TO NAHAS THAT THE ISIS MANR’S SENRY POSSIBLY PROTECTED HIM. “THEY NEED A SPEGOAT, THEY NEED A BOY TO KILL. THERE SHOULD BE ANOTHER PART TO THIS STORY, BUT PEOPLE ARE NOT WILLG YET TO GIVE ANY RMATN BEE ’S VERY SENSIVE.”MICHAEL LUONGO, EDOR OF GAY TRAVELS THE MLIM WORLD, TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT THE MURR OF THE 15-YEAR-OLD SHOWED ISIS’S HYPOCRISY. “IT GO TO THE IA THAT SOME PARTS OF THE MIDDLE EAST AND OTHER CULTUR BEG THE PERATOR IS OK ‎BEE THAT IS NOT UNMANLY.”LUONGO ADD, “IF THE SEX WAS WH A 15-YEAR-OLD BOY I WOULD BE CERTA HE WAS THE ONE WHO WAS PERATED, WHO WAS RAPED. THE HYPOCRISY WOULD ALSO BE ADD TO THAT WOULD BE STARTED BY THE SIR OF THE GUY WHO WAS NOT HARSHLY PUNISHED, BY THE MANR.“WE HAVE SEEN THIS TYPE OF HYPOCRISY OTHER SO-LLED RELIG GROUPS SUCH AS THE TALIBAN. THE HORROR IS ADD TO BY THE SENSE THE 15-YEAR-OLD WAS SENTIALLY RAPED AND THEN MURRED FOR HIS HAVG BEEN RAPED.”NAHAS TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT GAY MEN JOED ISIS TO PROTECT THEMSELV AND THEIR FAI, SOMETIM REPORTG ON FELLOW GAYS TO NCEAL THEMSELV MORE EFFECTIVELY. “SOME NEW RECS REPORT IENDS THEY ED TO HAVE SEX WH, BEE THEY BELIEVE ’S THE RIGHT THG TO DO.”NAHAS SAID THAT ORAM WAS STILL TRYG TO TABLISH THE VERACY OF A WEBSE THAT APPEARED LAST YEAR THAT PURPORTED TO SHOW MEMBERS OF ISIS ENGAGED GAY SEXUAL ACTS AND POS.THE SE, NAHAS SAID, WAS TABLISHED BY AN ASYLUM SEEKER NOW EUROPE, AND WHILE SOME OF THE PHOTOS HAD BEEN PHOTOSHOPPED, OTHER TAILS—MEN WEARG A CERTA KD OF MOUFLAGE AND WH ISIS FLAGS THE BACKGROUND—SUGGTED SOME OF THE PICTUR WERE REAL, “BUT PEOPLE NNOT NFIRM THIS BEE THEY ARE AAID. WE DO KNOW OF REPORTS THAT GAY PEOPLE ARE ISIS, OR HAVG SEX WH MEMBERS OF THE IA.“IN DOG SO, THEY SECURE PROTECTN FOR THEMSELV, AND A SAFE HAVEN FOR THEIR FAI AND—IF THEY HAVE THEM—THEIR CHILDREN. AT THE SAME TIME THEY N HAVE SEX THE BACKGROUND. THEY KNOW THEY ARE PROTECTED. THEY ARE NOT VTIGATED. NOW THE MSAGE OF THIS LATT CINT IS, ‘IF YOU ARE SENR ENOUGH WH AND HAVG GAY SEX, YOU WILL NOT BE EXECUTED.’”SPEAKG FOR ORAM—FOUND 2008 AS “THE ONLY TERNATNAL ANIZATN VOTED SOLELY TO ADVOTG FOR LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENR, AND TERSEX (LGBTI) REFUGE FLEEG BTALIZATN DUE TO SEXUAL ORIENTATN OR GENR INTY”—NAHAS SAID SYRIA REMAED “VERY DANGERO” FOR GAYS.“WE HEAR OM PEOPLE WH SYRIA LOOKG FOR ANY WAY THEY N GET OUT, OR FD A WAY TO GET RETTLED. THEY ARE TOO AAID TO REPORT WHAT IS GOG ON. LOTS ARE BEG KIDNAPPED, LOTS ARE BEG KILLED. THEY ARE EHER SRED FOR THEIR LIFE, OR HAVE NO IA WHAT TO DO TO PE AND HOW TO DO .”NAHAS EMPHASIZED THAT THE DANGER TO LGBT PEOPLE SYRIA DID NOT JT E OM ISIS, BUT OM THE ERNMENT, AND OTHER GROUPS—EXTREME AND NOT.ANOTHER ANT ISLAMIC GROUP, AHRAR ASH-SHAM, ALSO TARGETED GAYS—AND A THIRD GROUP, WHICH NAHAS LLED THE JUDICIAL COURT ALEPPO, EXECUTED SEVEN PEOPLE ACCED OF BEG GAY AND OF BEG DG ERS, BY SHOOTG THEM THEIR HEADS. THE GROUP ALSO KILLED A 17-YEAR-OLD BOY, ACCED OF BEG GAY.“THE TARGETG OF GAY PEOPLE SYRIA IS LATG, EVEN BY GROUPS WHO SAY THEY ARE SECULAR,” SAID NAHAS. “THEY BELIEVE THAT GAY PEOPLE ARE ONE OF THE MA REASONS THERE IS WAR SYRIA, AND THEY NEED TO BE KILLED SO THE WAR N BE WON.”JT AS THE 15-YEAR-OLD THE MOST RECENT KILLG MIGHT HAVE BEEN A SPEGOAT, SO ARE LGBTS BEG TREATED AS SUCH MORE GENERALLY.NAHAS SAID HE KNEW OF BETWEEN 100 AND 125 LGBT SYRIANS TURKEY, AWAG RETTLEMENT ABROAD, AS HE HIMSELF EVENTUALLY SECURED LAST YEAR AFTER A PERILO AND TERRIFYG PE OM SYRIA.OF WATCHG THE UNFOLDG EVENTS FOR LGBT PEOPLE HIS HOME UNTRY, NAHAS, WHO NOW LIV THE U.S., SAID, “IT’S VASTATG. YOU FEEL PARALYZED. YOU FEEL LIKE YOU NNOT DO ANYTHG. AND YOU FEEL LIKE, ‘HOW AND WHY IS THIS HAPPENG AND WHAT LED TO ?’ YOU NNOT DO ANYTHG ABOUT , AND I NEED TO DO SOMETHG AND WANT TO DO SOMETHG, BUT THERE’S NOTHG I N DO.“I ALWAYS PUT MYSELF THEIR SHO AND ALWAYS THK, ‘THAT ULD BE ME, THAT ULD HAVE BEEN ME AT ANY MOMENT.’ THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH ROURC, AND GAYS ARE AAID AND SRED, AND THEY’RE BEG TARGETED AND KILLED.” NAHAS PSED. “IT’S JT TOO MUCH.” TIM TEEMAN

Adad observed that before the Syrian revolutn started March 2011 Syrian people were generally tolerant of homosexualy even while beg homophobic. If you md your own bs and did not turn gay issu to polil issu and did not make a public nuisance people tend to leave you alone, he said.

” A gay fay member was ually upsettg at first but life had more important thgs that mattered–food, secury, safety, earng e, children’s school lsons and not drawg attentn to yourself or your fay. Vlent hate crim were virtually unheard of Syria; an honor killg of a gay fay member has never happened Adad’s awarens. Disverg someone’s (other than a fay member) sexual secret more often led to actual or attempted blackmail, which was a greater crime than beg homosexual.

From time to time at the whim a a police chief, there might be a police raid on a gay club or party or the on the one gay bar (“Mlims don’t drk!

MR GAY SYRIA

Adad said that generally recent years the police have left the gay muny alone.

But then a new police chief felt the need to prove his effectivens, not agast wispread rptn the ernment or the civil service, but agast the meager gay muny for imaged immoral behavr agast the natural orr.

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: GAY MEN HUNTED, RAPED AND KILLED BY SYRIAN ARMY

However, that fervent actn only lasted for a few months late 2010 when thgs went back to normal “tolerance wh reason” and gay iends ntued to meet and greet each other certa f and private small parti. When Adad was taed by the police a send time the officer charge, probably tryg to timidate him, displayed a large rmatn book wh nam and photos taken om onle social work webs of allegedly gay people Syria (and elsewhere) along wh their profil and iends.

Dpe his succsful fiance he unrstood om this police actn that was a stern warng to stick to gay life and away om polil issu. “My blog is about real life gay stori of Syrians who only want to live peace, cludg my own.

My send blog is a gay gui to Syria that lists gay iendly plac. When asked if he has had any trouble om namg gay venu on his webse he said “no, as long as there is not trouble stirrg we are mostly ee to go about our own affairs but they still try to sre and warn agast any big parti or public showgs. His (legal) move to Turkey was a step toward eedom, a sort of halfway hoe away om a totalarian society, spe Turkey’s own versn of homophobia.