With all the tragedies in Syria, not to mention the world generally, it’s surprising how
one particular story can reach out and really wrench your feelings. Sad..and angry.
_____________________
Joe Matazzoni
Product Manager, Collaboration
Wikimedia Foundation, San Francisco
mobile 202.744.7910
jmatazzoni(a)wikimedia.org
"Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all
knowledge."
On Aug 1, 2017, at 4:00 PM, Katherine Maher
<kmaher(a)wikimedia.org> wrote:
Dear all,
I am very deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of our fellow community member
Bassel Khartabil, also known to some as Bassel Safadi.
Bassel was detained on March 15, 2012 amid arrests on the one-year anniversary of the
Syrian uprising. He had been missing since October 2015, when he was removed from the
Syrian prison where he was being held. His wife, Noura, confirmed earlier today in a
statement on Facebook that he was executed by the Syrian government shortly after his
disappearance.
Bassel was a leader, advocate, and member of so many open culture communities it is
difficult to do them all justice. In addition to his contributions to Wikimedia, he was
project lead and public affiliate for Creative Commons Syria, a member of the Global
Voices community, a free software advocate and contributor to Mozilla, and much more. The
European Parliament statement on his detention credited him with “opening up the Internet
in Syria and vastly extending online access and knowledge to the Syrian people."[1]
He was known for his boundless enthusiasm and passion, always encouraging others to share,
create, and connect with a better world around them.
Many of you cared deeply about Bassel, working to raise awareness of his detention and
disappearance. Please know that his friends and family knew of and appreciated these
efforts, both as a voice on his behalf and a reminder of the values of the communities to
which he devoted his time and attention. I personally am grappling with profound anger and
sorrow that someone so brilliant, humane, and generous should be taken in this way. For
those who did not know Bassel, you can learn more about his life and work at his article
[2], and at
https://freebassel.org <https://freebassel.org/>.
The Wikimedia Foundation will publish a statement soon, and ask for your support in
helping us translate that message to share more broadly. We will also work to find a way
to celebrate Bassel’s life and honor his contributions at Wikimania next week.
Yours, sadly,
Katherine
[1]
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+WQ+E-2013-…
<http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+WQ+E-2013-014046+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN>
[2] (en)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bassel_Khartabil
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bassel_Khartabil>; (ar)
https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%84_%D8%AE%D8%B1%D8%B7%D…
<https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%84_%D8%AE%D8%B1%D8%B7%D8%A8%D9%8A%D9%84>
--
Katherine Maher
Wikimedia Foundation
149 New Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
+1 (415) 839-6885 ext. 6635
+1 (415) 712 4873
kmaher(a)wikimedia.org <mailto:kmaher@wikimedia.org>
https://annual.wikimedia.org <https://annual.wikimedia.org/>
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