Graffiti has been more powerful than the bullets of the Syrian security forces during the protests sweeping the country He moves only at night, fearing arrest, and he writes anti-regime slogans on the walls of buildings in Syrian towns and cities, becoming a source of perpetual nuisance for the country's intelligence and security forces. "Graffiti man" has become famous for his work and on social networking sites across Syria, but no one knows his true identity. He does not carry arms, and his only weapon is a can of spray paint, used to write anti-government graffiti demanding the overthrow of the regime. But graffiti man is also plural, since many young Syrians have been responsible for his writings, among them Mohamed Rateb Al-Nimr, whose funeral took place on 14 July together with those of 10 other young activists after he was shot dead by security forces in Homs. Since Al-Nimr's death, the security forces have been stepping up their repression, and a Damascus-based graffiti man also disappeared earlier this month after having been last seen pursued by knife-wielding thugs, according to a Facebook page created by his friends. Ahmed Al-Khanji, the Damascus graffiti man, is a 30-year- old architect from an affluent district of Damascus, and he mysteriously disappeared from the Bab Sharqi district on 7 July, after being chased by thugs with knives. The thugs had spotted him spraying the words "the people demand the overthrow of the regime" on the city's Toma Gate. Rami Asheq, a musician arrested on 13 July during a demonstration in Midan in central Syria, said after his release that he had met Al-Khanji in prison. "I couldn't distinguish his features," Asheq said. "His eyes were swollen, his body frail, and there was blood smeared all over his body." The protests in Syria were triggered more than four months ago by the "graffiti children," a group of boys between six and 10 years old who had sprayed anti-regime graffiti on the walls of their school after being influenced by the Arab revolutions. The slogans included "the people demand the overthrow of the regime" and "your turn has come, doctor," a message to Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad, who has medical training. The children were arrested and tortured, and their mistreatment was the spark that led to the protests that followed, launching ongoing demonstrations that have led to the deaths of more than 2,000 people, with a further 15,000 arrested and 1,000 fleeing the country. Meanwhile, the Syrian security forces have banned shops from selling spray cans and shop owners have to ask to see the IDs of anyone buying paint, steps ridiculed by the public. Every time the security forces arrest a graffiti artist, others will appear to continue spraying, protesters say, adding that they will continue to do so until they have said farewell to the Al-Assad regime.
