Syria has banned a number of websites that criticise its regime, intensifying its efforts to stifle access to the internet in the country.

The country has blocked access to certain websites run by leading daily newspapers, including Saudi-owned Asharq Al-Awsat and the Beirut-based Al-Mustaqbal, according to an AFP report on Sunday.

A human rights group in the country said that email provider Hotmail has also been banned in Syria since last July, AFP reported.

Media watchdog group Reporters Sans Frontieres has labelled an ‘internet black hole' and the Middle East's biggest prison for cyber-dissidents.

According to the group:
"The government bans access to Arabic-language opposition sites and sites dealing with Syria's Kurdish minority."
Syria is not the only Middle Eastern country cracking down on access to the web. Last week Yemen faced rising pressure from journalists and human rights groups over its treatment of the media.

The country faced public demonstrations protesting the right to a free press and calling for the release of Abdul-Karim Al-Khaiwani, jailed editor in chief of online newspaper Al-Shoura. Protesters also called on the Yemeni government to stop blocking websites and shutting down newspapers.


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