It seemed like yet another curse among many.
After more than a decade of bombing by Bashar al-Assad's regime and its Russian ally, the seizure of much of the area by the jihadist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), as well as economic and humanitarian crises, Syria’s rebel-held northwest was hit yet again — this time by the earthquake at dawn on Feb. 6.
In areas of northwestern Syria controlled by HTS or Ankara-backed rebels, at least 1,347 people have died, according to a provisional death toll. Left to their own devices, the White Helmets, a local civil defense group, are still trying to lift survivors from the rubble. Meanwhile, residents have been held hostage for several years by the Syrian government and Russia’s partial blockade of humanitarian convoys into the area.
This week, L'Orient-Le Jour will give the floor to residents of opposition-held northwestern Syria, where four million people live, most of them internally displaced by 12 years of conflict.
Today, we hear the testimony of Ammar, a nurse working in a health facility in Idlib.
Testimony collected by Noura DOUKHI.
"[Sunday] I woke up to the news that the husband and children of a friend's sister had died. I went to console him and check on him. The scene was so sad, it is indescribable. Since the earthquake, we are overwhelmed by the magnitude of the disaster, the displacement of families and the loss of loved ones.”
“I went to see a patient who lost his brothers and his wife. He had a wound on his thigh and needed surgery. I changed his dressing. He had no pain. I asked him, ‘Does your thigh hurt?’ He replied, ‘My pain is here in my heart. I can't feel anything else.’ I comforted him in his pain.”
“Then I found a family that needed shelter because their house was destroyed. A friend told me he had a house he didn't need. I brought the family there. People who had gathered were hugging each other. It somewhat eased my pain and sadness. When I got home, my children were waiting for me to play with them. My heart ached for [the children] who lost their parents. Who plays with them now? This tragedy is too great to bear.”
“When the earthquake hit, my children were laughing because they didn't understand what was going on. We adults were horrified. That night I woke up to the sound of birds in their cages, desperate to get out. I got up to look and, at that moment, I felt the earth shake under my feet and a strong vibration. My children asked me, ‘Why did you wake us up?’ I told them that there was an earthquake. Then a second tremor hit. I immediately grabbed my cell phone and saw on the news that houses had collapsed on top of people. I went out and walked towards those houses.”
“It was scary. People were outside — getting into their cars, pouring into the streets. Someone was calling for help. Voices were coming from under the rubble. Children's voices.”
“The civil protection teams arrived and everyone who was able to help started digging. An hour later, they asked the medical staff to report to the hospitals. I went to the nearest hospital. The corridors were in chaos. Dead bodies filled the hallways and wounded people filled the beds. Like the day the criminal Bashar al-Assad attacked us with chemical weapons— a day will never forget.”
“Syria has been experiencing an ongoing earthquake for 12 years. An earthquake of explosive barrels, air strikes, chemical weapons, displacement and destruction. I am not talking about an earthquake caused by nature, but rather a criminal act committed by Assad and his allies. There is no limit to the hatred of Russia and Assad."
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.