#syrian war

[tearsofrefugees]

A Syrian family waits for news about Mustafa one year after deadly Channel shipwreck

Three people died and 13 disappeared on October 23, 2024, in one of the worst English Channel boat disasters off the coast of Calais. Mustaf

[jareckiworld]

Bassem Dahdouh — Untitled (oil on canvas, 2021)

[warpweftandwar]

For years I have only even lurked on social media. Reddit, Instagram, Facebook and TickTok. I never had desires beyond watching, though the ADHD rejection sensitivity also came into play. Imagining someone arguing with me, mocking me, or simply recognizing my presence would set off my fight or flight response.

Six months ago I met a Syrian man, Ahmed, who was broadcasting a TikTok live. He lived in a camp for people who had lost their homes during the war and spent his days on TikTok giving out food to the hungry children of the camp, while soliciting donations for future meals.

Initially believing this to be a scam, I took to Google, only to find a BBC article discussing this exact situation: Syrians displaced from the homes during the war, no humanitarian aid, no employment opportunities, but working with a TikTok middle man who gave them phones to broadcast from. TikTok supported this unofficial program because, for every monetary gift the creator received, TikTok kept 70% of the donation, releasing only 30% to the account holder. Great money making deal for TikTok!

Now, I can feel you rolling your eyes in disbelief at my naivety. If I heard someone else telling this story, I’d react the same way. Over time, Ahmed and I became good friends. We speak every day, share our family stories, check in on each other, and learn about the cultural differences in our lives. After 6 months of these conversations, speaking with his family and fact checking their experiences in the war (city, dates of displacement, locating their former home on Google maps) I trust these people completely.

These people have fully accepted me into their life, and I consider them true family. Let me tell you who they are…

Ahmed is 29 years old. He is who I first saw on the broadcast. He has a wife and 2 children. He lives in a large tent, hot in the summer, cold in the winter. They have a small portable gas stove, a wood stove during the winter (which burns hazelnut shells as fuel) and frequently cook their meals outside over open fire, as this is a cheaper alternative to gas for the stove.

He lives next to his younger brother, Bassam, who is also married and expecting a baby boy soon. They all have the same tent setup, each with their own wood stove, but sharing the cooking supplies and other living essentials.

Ahmed and Bassam both live next to their parents, 2 teenage brothers and 1 teenage sister. They also have 3 sisters who have married and live in other camps with their husbands’ family.

This extended family has all lived in this camp for around 8 years now. They fled their home in the midst of a battle between the Syrian regime and rebel militias who each wanted to control the area, integral to the success of either side. They saw nightmarish scenes as they ran; bodies of the dead and injured all around them. They took nothing with them as they ran. Ahmed says, “We escaped with only our souls.”

For 6 months I’ve been sending Ahmed and his family money every 2 weeks, through Western Union, since TikTok takes an excessive amount. Western Union and PayPal don‘t allow direct transfer to anyone in Syria due to the US sanctions, however there is a community of generous people in Turkey who will pickup the transferred money and meet with Ahmed to give him cash. And yes, I have confirmed that he receives the money every time.

Ahmed used to make some relatively decent money on his TikTok videos, however overtime the algorithm changed. It started banning his accounts, or simply hiding them from viewers. Donations dwindled down to nearly nothing and he can no longer feed the children of the camp, or his own family.

The money I send provides breathing room for survival, though not to a level of comfort. Food is meager, usually a breakfast off bread, olive oil and za’atar. Lunch is a larger meal of soup and bread, and dinner is sometimes, often, skipped. Meat of any kind is a rare treat, usually lamb or chicken. Eggplant, tomatoes, bread, fava beans, lentils, rice, pickles, and fresh mild green peppers.

So, welcome to my family! I hope you’ll stick around to hear more about them, their lives, and the challenges they face in a war ravaged country.

[littlestarkling]

So today is the day that victory is being celebrated in Damascus. Assad didn't do so well when his allies were being kept busy elsewhere. Russia was helping them along until they bit off more than they could chew in Ukraine. Those Ukrainians are keeping them busy.

Asad should have left while he could. It's the sense of entitlement of the rich that leads them to cling to things that are not theres. The people have spoken though.

The interconnectedness of what happens in the middle east between Iran and Israel and what happens in the Eastern Europe between Ukraine and Russia and its effects on the Syrian war that has dragged on for many, many years just shows how we are all living on the same planet and if you pull a single string you can see the effect of it everywhere.

[bobmorane]

Syrian War | Bumblebee

[tentacion3099]

Syrian War - Spiked Ammo

[tentacion3099]

[tentacion3099]

Helicopter rocket-pod technical using a converted ambulance