World Magazine
Sept 7 2013
A letter from Aleppo
Syria | A firsthand account from inside Syria’s humanitarian disaster
Below is a letter out of Aleppo, Syria, that was written in late July
by a physician. A lifelong Aleppo resident of Armenian heritage, this
man has remained in one of the ancient city’s Christian neighborhoods
throughout a 14-month siege by rebel forces. He is a trusted source to
WORLD, not named for security reasons, with a long history of medical
aid work throughout the Middle East and Asia. This letter is reprinted
with permission of Barnabas Aid, which first published it.
Since he wrote, the rebel blockade of Aleppo has now entered its third
month. Water, electricity, and communication are cut off,
infrastructure has collapsed, and residents cannot leave, nor can aid
be brought in. For Aleppo residents, all necessities of life are in
short supply and prices have soared. A bag of lentils that only a year
ago cost 50 Syrian pounds, or about $1, now may cost anywhere from $5
to $10. Because of shortages and the exorbitant cost, churches – one in
Aleppo was providing meals for 35,000 displaced Syrians only a few
months ago – have been forced to halt help for the needy.
Aleppo – Syria’s largest city, with more than 2 million people in the
country’s industrial and agricultural heartland – has a historically
diverse religious and ethnic makeup. The rebels’ success at taking
over much of the city suggests they stand a chance at toppling the
government of Bashar al-Assad. But the humanitarian crisis they have
created will make anyone wonder what kind of government the opposition
forces might deliver were they to successfully replace Assad. The
blockade, meanwhile, has gone uncontested by the United States and its
allies, making many Syrians doubt the U.S. move toward military
strikes is designed to relieve their humanitarian crisis, or address
the many atrocities of this war. – Mindy Belz
Our situation in these hectic, unpredictable days in Aleppo, with no
food or meat or bread at ease, no free movement, no security and no
encouraging good news on the horizon, reminds me of the words of
Habakkuk:
`Though the fig-tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the
vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, YET
I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in GOD my Saviour’
(Habakkuk 3:17-18).
Many sounds heard and continuing to be heard!! Are you still there?
How come you don’t move out? What about your family? How they can do
without you? Many questions such [as] these and no one can find the
proper convincing answers to them.
Is it right to say, `Gone with the wind!’ Of course not. My hope and
trust is in the Lord who is my light and my salvation, who is the
stronghold of my life (Psalm 27:1).
Where are we heading after two and a half years since the beginning of
the war in Syria in mid-March 2011? And now it is more than one year
since the beginning of the war in Aleppo in late June 2012. Everyone
among our friends abroad may be wondering.
At the national level, nothing has changed since then apart from more
suffering and more losses of souls and belongings. The two sides of
the war continue to confront each other with no clear winner or loser
at a cost of: more than 100,000 killed, more than a million and half
refugees in the neighbouring countries, and more than 3.8 million
internally displaced people (IDPs). Hundreds of thousands have
migrated to Europe and the Americas.
The economy is in ruins and no one can predict how long it will remain
like this. Sectarianism and extremism are flourishing and there is no
glimmer of hope for a settlement to such mounting conflict. Following
the retaking of al-Qusayr (a strategic region in the centre of Syria,
southwest of Homs and near the border with Lebanon) by the Syrian army
and the defeat of the rebels there, the leaders of the Western world
declared that the fall of al-Qusayr showed that the balance of power
had shifted to the government side and that it was necessary for them
to arm the rebels in order to re-establish equilibrium! What a way of
thinking!! They simply want to re-establish equilibrium so that both
sides will continue to fight … to the last Syrian? Just imagine the
satanic way of thinking! `But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord,
I wait for God my Saviour; my God will hear me. Do not gloat over me,
my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise (with my nation). Though I
(we) sit in darkness (since no electricity), the Lord will be my (our)
light’ (Micah 7:7-8; italics are mine).