ICC Note:
The scars created by a long civil war are visible throughout all of Damascus, a war which created a number of refugees within Syria’s own boundaries. Although new residences are being built in Damascus, some church leaders fear that Syria’s Christian refugees will never return home. According to reports, the Christian quarter of Damascus, Bab Tuma, has a heavy Shia militia presence which has led some families who remained in the neighborhood to change their way of life. With multiple checkpoints throughout the city and permission needed to even cross certain streets, the situation in Damascus is a discouragement to refugees who would otherwise wish to return home.
09/15/2017 Syria (Hurriyet Daily News) – Locals in Syria’s once vivid capital city of Damascus, which has been torn by a six-year-long civil war, are trying to stick to their daily lives and forget about the violence ongoing across the country.
“One cannot live while constantly thinking about war,” one local told daily Hürriyet in Damascus, where signs of war can still be seen despite efforts by the regime to clean them up.
Passengers crossing the border from Lebanon into Syria amid extraordinary security measures come across a huge poster of Bashar al-Assad.
There are checkpoints on the roads, junctions and entrances to streets in and around the city of Damascus, where middle-aged male soldiers along with young female soldiers are on duty.
Taking photographs is absolutely prohibited at the checkpoints.
From buffets to cafés, Syrian flags and photographs of al-Assad are everywhere.
Flags and sacks with United Nations logos on them also catch our eyes, as they were being used as roofs at checkpoints, curtains in stores and covers for cars.
Posters promoting a fair titled “Reconstruction of Syria” are also seen by the roads.
The war has made Syrians refugees not only in other countries but also within their own boundaries.
New residences for refugees are being built in Damascus, a city severely affected by internal migration.
Except for the speed bumps, however, there are no defects or cracks in roads that would make you slow down.
After passing by posters celebrating the Syrian national football team, which qualified last week for the play-off round for the 2018 World Cup, we wander through the narrow streets of Bab Tuma, an old Christian neighborhood. The streets are crowded.
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