Freedom of the press. Freedom of religion. Freedom of assembly.

Maybe it's time to add Freedom to the Internet.

www.mohammad-online.com

Facebook, the popular social site often used by political activists to organize members around global causes has been banned in Syria, reportedly over fears of Israeli "infiltration," reports the Associated Press.

The move comes as no surprise to some Web-savvy Syrians whose online reaction has been translated and summarized on Global Voices Online. But as American lives become more and more entrenched in the online world, it can be easy to forget that some governments wield the Internet switch as a political tool, protecting their hegemony by restricting their citizens' participation in the global network.

From the AP article:

Lebanon's daily As-Safir reported that Facebook was blocked on Nov. 18. It said the authorities took the step because Israelis have been entering Syria-based groups.

Human rights groups have regularly criticized Syrian authorities for blocking opposition sites and Internet sites critical of President Bashar Assad's government.

Global Voices online pointed to this tongue-in-cheek entry from a Syrian blogger angry with the ban.

"Just imagine having a site which starts with w and ends with .com and not having it banned in Syria!" the author wrote in Arabic. "We can go back to using carrier pigeons. At the least, they are more guaranteed and faster than the Internet we have."

Facebook's groups feature and philanthropic Causes application lets users announce and promote their political and social beliefs on their profiles and coordinate action with other users. Some causes, like one dedicated to fighting genocide in Darfur, has raised tens of thousands of dollars through the site.

But along with regional activism, regional antagonism has also found a home on Facebook. A group called "Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria have the Right to Defend Themselves," which has more than 2,200 members, encourages members to join its sister group, "Israel: Terrorist State." "LETS SEE HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE AGAINST SYRIA AND IRAN?" has more than 1,000 members. One small group asks Facebook to remove Syria from its list of countries.

So far, 1,800 people have joined the group "Don't Block FACEBOOK In SYRIA !! ..."