Assad approves death penalty punishment in Syrian terror law

Syrian president Bashar Assad has issued a new law under which anyone found guilty of distributing weapons for “terrorist acts” would be sentenced to death, a state-run news agency has said.

The Syrian government claims armed gangs and terrorists are behind the nine-month uprising against Assad’s rule. Government opponents deny that and say they are protesters seeking more freedoms in one of the most authoritarian regimes in the Middle East.