Dear Deeply Readers,
Welcome to the archives of Syria Deeply. While we paused regular publication of the site on May 15, 2018, and transitioned some of our coverage to Peacebuilding Deeply, we are happy to serve as an ongoing public resource on the Syrian conflict. We hope you’ll enjoy the reporting and analysis that was produced by our dedicated community of editors contributors.
We continue to produce events and special projects while we explore where the on-site journalism goes next. If you’d like to reach us with feedback or ideas for collaboration you can do so at [email protected].
A diplomatic source sent us a draft of the Friends of Syria conclusion, what would be the end result of this meeting in Marrakech. It includes, at least in this version, some very clear wording about “the legitimate need for the Syrian people to defend themselves.”.
Jabhat Al Nusra, long seen as Al Qaeda’s branch in Syria, has been designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. The move was meant to sideline extremist elements in Syria, but opposition leaders say it complicates their work on the ground.
Debate is intensifying over how the United States should respond to Syria’s escalating crisis. In recent days, Washington has formally recognized the Syrian opposition coalition, but thus far has refrained from providing rebel forces with direct military support. CFR’s Max Boot says Washington needs “to get off the sidelines” and build a coalition of allies to enforce a Libya-style no-fly zone. The New American Foundation’s Brian Fishman notes U.S. military intervention is unlikely to produce a stable Syrian government post-conflict, and recommends a patient approach of training and modestly arming rebels. CFR’s Ed Husain says Washington should avoid inserting itself directly in the twenty-one-month old conflict, a move that would jeopardize the credibility of the rebellion. The Washington’s Institute’s Andrew Tabler says the United States should transition from its covert “light footprint” support for armed Syrian opposition to overt outreach to non-extremist groups in the Free Syrian Army, including the provision of arms.
Marrakech, Morocco — Running into Moaz al Khatib on the plane ride to Morocco was kind of a sign, that this would be an interesting reporting trip. And yes, since I touched down in Marrakech it’s been packed with insight on what could happen next in Syria.
Syria Deeply has partnered with Syria Untold, a news aggrigator focused on the peaceful and creative resistance in Syria. Its staff, based in Syria and abroad, collect, filter and curate stories about civil disobedience and the nonviolent aspect of the Syrian revolution.
Millions of Syrians are using social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Skype to disseminate and discuss the conflict. Each week our Mohammed Sergie monitors the online conversation in English and Arabic, pulling out the highlights in a feature called the Social Media Buzz.
On Wednesday the US-led Friends of Syria group meets in Marrakesh, Morocco, in what could be a key diplomatic turning point in the crisis. Here’s a rundown of some things to know going into the week.
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between Syria Deeply and a young professional in Aleppo. He is married with children and works in an insurance company. He describes himself as a liberal member of the middle class who used to spend his evenings smoking waterpipes in local cafes, until violence swept his city four months ago.
The US and its allies have hired contractors to train some Syrian rebel brigades in chemical weapons security, Syria Deeply has exclusively learned from four diplomats, including one US official. The sources asked to remain anonymous, as they deal directly with developments in Syria. The training would mark a higher level of coordination between the US and armed opposition forces, working to secure Syria’s chemical arsenal during a period of political turmoil.
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between News Deeply and a 30-year-old businessman. He is an Armenian from Aleppo who refuses to leave his home, no matter how bad the fighting gets. We asked him to share some of his experiences of what’s happening in the streets of Syria’s largest city.
Less than nine months after Bashar Al Assad’s victory tour of the Baba Amr district in Homs, the Syrian president doesn’t need to travel to inspect his war against rebel forces. The battle has come to Damascus – Assad can practically see the fight from the comfort of his palace.
As thousands of families flee their homes and face the hardship of refugee life, fears are mounting that desperate families will hastily force their daughters into marriage.
Abu Leila is a Syrian journalist from Aleppo who contributes reporting and analysis to Syria Deeply. He has written under that pen name since the start of the conflict. Today he gives us a look at the bread shortage in Aleppo. Subsidized bread, paid for by the government, is a mainstay of many families struggling to put food on the table. Over the past week, subsidized bakeries have shut down, leaving many of those families hungry.
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between Syria Deeply and a Syrian university student. She’s from a conservative Sunni family in Aleppo. She hopes to leave the country, but first had to get a passport from her family’s registered home address in Idleb. She told us her observations about the road between Aleppo and Idleb.
Yassin Al Haj Saleh is a prominent moderate dissident in Damascus. He is an independent writer and journalist from a family of leftist activists, who spent almost two decades in prison for his views against President Bashar al Assad. He agreed to an interview with Syria Deeply via email. It was translated by our team from Arabic. .
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between News Deeply and a Christian in Aleppo, a high school teacher in his fifties. He has lived in Aleppo all his life, his family left the country for their safety. He’s chosen to stay to keep working and watch over their home.
> Millions of Syrians are using social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Skype to disseminate and discuss the conflict. Each week our Mohammed Sergie monitors the online conversation in English and Arabic, pulling out the highlights in a feature called the Social Media Buzz.
Matthew VanDyke is US citizen who spent the past two months embedded with the Free Syrian Army in Aleppo. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, he describes himself as “a veteran of the Libyan revolution” and an activist filmmaker – he’s currently making a pro-FSA film to raise money for weapons and ammunition. At times he’s been a controversial figure of the Arab Spring, for his direct engagement in the uprisings.
Patrick Hilsman has a light on in Syria’s internet blackout. The 29-year-old New York native landed in Aleppo on Thursday morning to report on the conflict from the rebel-held section of the city, one of the city’s hardest hit neighborhoods. He hopped online and did a Google Hangout with Syria Deeply, describing his journey. .
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between News Deeply and a 24-year-old Syrian architect. She’s from a middle class Sunni family in Aleppo; the situation in her neighborhood got so bad that her father sent her, her mother, and her sisters to stay with friends in the city of Tartous, an Alewite stronghold that hasn’t seen unrest. Her father is still living under siege at home. .
The Syrian revolution has been televised, tweeted and blogged. Millions of Syrians are using social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Skype to disseminate and discuss the conflict. We will highlight a few interesting conversations or videos in a weekly feature called Social Media Buzz.
Farida is married with three children and living in a refugee camp right inside the Syrian border at the Bab al Salam crossing. There are roughly 5,000 people living in the camp. Beidoun’s family fled Aleppo when the fighting intensified there this summer.
Abu Ammar, a former truck driver, is one of dozens of people living in a school in Azaz after fleeing their homes in Menagh, when it came under heavy bombardment. He speaks from a former classroom, which now has clothes stacked on a filing cabinet, some thin cushions on the floor, and blankets stacked in the corner.
There are an estimated 2.5 million displaced people in Syria, victims of the violence, forced from their homes. In a series of conversations, we’re highlighting their voices and stories.
George Sabra is the chairman of the Syrian National Council, a Christian and leftist dissident who has long opposed the Assad regime. He was a signatory to the 2005 Damascus Declaration, a landmark call for democracy from within the country. He spoke to Syria Deeply on the sidelines of opposition talks in Doha.
> The Syrian revolution has been televised, tweeted and blogged. Millions of Syrians are using social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Skype to disseminate and discuss the conflict. Syria Deeply will highlight a few interesting conversations or videos in a weekly feature called Social Media Buzz.
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between News Deeply and a 26-year-old artist in Damascus. He is a progressive Sunni who takes huge pride in the culture of his city. We asked him to share his impressions of what’s happening in Damascus.
For Raed Tawil, an engineering student at Damascus University, going to class had become deadly dangerous.“One day last fall, a student came in with a handgun and opened fire. He killed two people, and wounded others. One of my friends still has a bullet in him,” Tawil recalls.
As part of our effort to highlight civilian stories, below is a conversation between News Deeply and a 26-year-old artist living in Damascus. He’s a progressive Sunni who takes huge pride in the culture of his city. We asked him to share his impressions of what’s happening in Syria’s capital.
After 20 months of bickering, opponents of the Assad regime have agreed to unite under the National Coalition for Opposition Forces and the Syrian Revolution. The opposition named Ahmad Mouaz Al-Khatib Al-Hasani, an Islamic cleric from Damascus, as its leader on November 11th.
The Syrian revolution is televised, and tweeted and blogged. Millions of Syrians are using social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Skype to disseminate and discuss the conflict. Syria Deeply will highlight a few interesting conversations or videos in a weekly feature called Social Media Buzz.
It comes as a surprise, just days after a failed ceasefire over the Muslim holiday weekend. But a political solution in Syria, a formula for an alternative to the Assad regime, could be right around the corner.
Syria’s business elite has long been a pillar of support for the Assad regime, in an odd alliance that linked wealthy capitalists with a socialist military dictatorship.
Syria’s civil war has been one of the most confusing conflicts in our time. As reporters we’ve suffered for the lack of free access on the ground. As readers you’ve rarely had the context and clarity to understand what’s happening. Together, it’s made the Syria story very hard to grasp.
Syria experts are hard to find, but there are some analysts with deep domain knowledge that we turn to for a trusted take. Here are some of our favorite voices
The Kurds are vital to Syria’s power balance. They make up roughly 10% of Syria’s population, or roughly 2 million people, and hold sway over a critical swath of Syria’s northeastern terrain
Salman Shaikh (@Salman_Shaikh1) is the director of the Brookings Doha Center and a fellow at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy. He specializes in mediation and conflict resolution issues throughout the region and gave us the lowdown on the precarious state of Syria’s opposition.
For the past two months, the bloodiest phase of Syria’s civil war, government troops and rebel forces have been fighting for the city of Aleppo. It’s a question of critical turf: Aleppo is Syria’s largest and wealthiest city, the beating heart of the country’s economy and industry, and now it’s up for grabs.
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