'They broke my hands to stop me from drawing'

Ali Farzat, a renowned Syrian cartoonist and founder of the satirical weekly Ad-Domari, was detained in August 2011 by members of President Bashar al-Assad's security forces. They broke both his hands to stop him from creating drawings that were critical of the regime. Farzat was awarded the 2011 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament.

This video is the first episode of "Cartoonists Capture the Arab Revolutions", a five-part series about cartoonists in the Arab world. It was first aired in French on FRANCE 24 on June 21.

The series is produced by SAMAR MEDIA, a multimedia company devoted to coverage of the Arab world. A member of the Stand Alone Media network, SAMAR MEDIA addresses informative and inspiring topics through interviews in French, Arabic and English.