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Freedom House: Syria, Western Sahara worst in world for political rights

The think tank also downgraded Jordan to "not free" in its 2021 democracy rankings.

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A man walks past trucks near the border in Guerguerat, Western Sahara, on Nov. 26, 2020, after the intervention of the royal Moroccan armed forces in the area. Morocco in early November accused the Polisario Front of blocking the key highway for trade with the rest of Africa, and launched a military operation to reopen it. — FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

Several Middle Eastern and North African states scored badly in Freedom House’s rankings for 2021.

The think tank, which receives the bulk of its funding from the US government, released its findings on the state of democracy around the world Wednesday. Freedom House ranked Syria as the country with the least political rights in the world, followed by Western Sahara.

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