Longing for Zabadani
I can still visualize it in all its cruelty and horror as if it were yesterday. The day I left Zabadani. The memories still...
The News of Death Never Stops
As a newsreader at a local radio station inside Syria, I am constantly updated about the latest national and international developments. News related to...
Fleeing the Islamic State
The night the Islamic State (IS) decided to invade the city of Hassakah to “cleanse it of infidels” had started out like any other....
A Long and Dangerous Journey Home
On the final day of my university exams in July 2014, I packed my bags and bid my friends goodbye. It was time to...
Saving My Memories
The day my mother, my sister, and I fled our city of Al-Qusair will remain forever ingrained in my memory. It happened towards the...
Dominated by the Colour Red
I woke up on Tuesday April 19, 2016 feeling happy, optimistic and full of energy. I had a cup of coffee with my mother,...
Waiting to Die
The terrifying sound of an explosion woke us up on July 21, 2012. It was the first day of Ramadan. Our flat shook as...
A Story of Grief, Poverty and Pain
Huda stares at the three photographs hanging on her living-room wall. “The loss has torn my heart apart,” she says to me. Huda’s husband...
Memories of a Dark Night
Night had fallen, but silence peace did not accompany it. The rumbling of tanks was growing louder, and flashes of light punctuated the darkness...
No Escape From the Bombs
Almost four years have passed since the day my family and I fled our home, but the memories are still fresh in my mind....
A Wound that Will Never Heal
With anguish in her eyes and sighing deeply, Asma al-Aahi recalls the first few years of the war in her city of Maarat al-Numan....
The Longing for Home
During the early days of the Syrian revolution, my father refused to allow any of his children to participate in protests or funeral ceremonies....
A Day of Terror and Loss
Night was almost over, and I was counting the minutes until daybreak. I hadn’t slept due to unbearable stomach pain and wanted to see...
Separated by War
My husband, my two young sons and I had fled Syria to take refuge in Lebanon. In Beirut, my husband found a job in...
A Devastating Loss
Abdalla and Sahar had been married for ten years when they found out they were expecting twins. The couple felt that their prayers had...
A Futile War
My family and I had just finished lunch, and my husband and I were enjoying a pleasant evening together, sipping coffee and discussing the...
