March 31 updates from Damascus

Great day of walking yesterday. I had things to do, but also many pleasant encounters, from morning till late afternoon.

Morning encounters included greeting people I’ve gotten to know in this area–some from 2014, others more recently.

Ran into an older friend, Joseph, who was on his pay to buy pickles from a vendor near Bab Touma square so I walked and talked with him. While we walked, I asked if he knew where I could find incense, so he turned around and led me to a hole-in-the-wall spice shop which indeed sold it.

At the cart selling pickled vegetables, Joseph offered one to me but, although I love strong flavours, pickle is not one of them. I declined saying I preferred maqdous (the gorgeous walnut and chili-stuffed mini eggplants). I should have known better: Joseph then told me he’d bring me some home-made maqdous soon. We parted ways and I as I waited for a friend to join me, I watched life go on around me, albeit much quieter than usual.

I was curious about bakeries, whether they were functioning, whether they were producing enough bread—mainly due to the tweet of an Istanbul-based war propagandist recently, who claimed the government isn’t supplying bread and people are forming long lines in desperation.

Well, that is patently not true. You will see lines around government bakeries, but I’ve seen that always here, nothing new: because the government-subsidized bread is so damn cheap (50 Syrian pounds/big bag of bread) that people are willing to stand and wait for their turn.

So with a friend, we headed to one of my many government subsidized bakeries in the area to find no lines: a few days or more ago, the government started a distribution program, to cut down on people lining up in public these days.

This was explained to us by men we met outside a bakery that makes government-subsidized bread.

To prevent crowds, the government has for each neighbourhood someone responsible for distributing bread. The families are registered, including the number of people. For every 3 or 4 people, they receive 8 pieces of bread, etc.

Each bag of 8 pieces is 50 liras. Currently, the blackmarket rate for the Syrian pound is around 1000 liras to the US dollar. So 50 liras is a negligible amount of money, even for the poorest families.

“I bought this fine bread today, no waiting lines And for the value for money, I imagine you and your whole family would fight to secure a position in line if it’s available in your country. ” ~@iadtawil (Twitter) 

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In walking around, I came across a food market (souq al-Thawra) that was full of beautiful produce and life, and where I picked up some healthy looking vegetables, and a hyacinthe plant, one of my favourites.

We went to a mall in Kafr Sousa, curious to see how well stocked the grocery store inside was. It was very well-stocked, ample amounts and varieties of breads, produce, sweets, coffees…

We continued on to the Mouhajereen district where my friend lives, passing full bakeries with short lines of people.

Everywhere I went, I saw bread available, mostly private bakeries, but nonetheless, available. And again, the government subsidized bread is being distributed around districts, as I later saw in videos sent to me and online.

I wanted to go to the exact area in question that the war propagandist had tweeted (from Turkey) about, however there are restrictions on traveling between cities and countryside now, the governments initiative to reduce the possible spread of Corona. So, while I’m not able to go to that district, what I can say is that the photo she tweeted about neither shows a long line, nor depicts her claims.

What it actually shows is people waiting, on a busy main street, to receive the government-subsidized bread, being distributed for 50 Syrian pounds. Again, this is to keep people from crowding at government-subsidized bakeries.

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What struck me later, as I reflected on the mood in the morning, was how nice it was walking, greeting people, hearing Joseph bantering with others from the neighbourhood… it was all just so…normal.

No chaos, no hysteria. Far less people on the streets than normal, of course, but calm and pleasant otherwise.

Also, while I do make sure to get exercise and sun every day, again so important for the health, much of my walking had been utterly alone, except saying sabah al khayr once in a while to a lone person I passed. Days of only this and no meaningful talk was starting to eat away at me, subconsciously, so it was refreshing to chat with Joseph and then with the friend that walked around with me yesterday.

Finally, a treat: footage I’ve taken in walks around Damascus, edited and put to music by “Syria Rebuilding“.

Aleppo’s Beautiful Ancient Markets Being Restored

I had the pleasure of collaborating with the Twitter account “Rebuilding Syria”, who took my raw footage (March 18) and photos from Aleppo’s historic souqs being restored and edited them fantastically.

The clips show the pulse of life that is Syria, the amazing attention to detail and the incredible architecture that existed and is being repaired after liberation of this ancient area from terrorism.

The Syrian people stood with their army (they are the army) and leadership to defeat terrorism that was supported by the most powerful nations on earth.

It is a beautiful thing to see Syria returning to its peaceful glory.

Follow Rebuilding Syria for regular updates on reconstruction or repairing of infrastructure and historic sites.

Aleppo Man Imprisoned & Tortured by West’s “Rebels” in Terrorist-Occupied Hospital Complex

Long, productive, rewarding, and also sad, day in Aleppo. The sad–tragic–part was meeting a man, Abdel Aziz, who was held in the terrorists’ underground prison in the Eye/Children’s Hospital complex, occupied by terrorist factions until liberation of eastern Aleppo areas in late 2016.

Held for over a year, he said, in solitary confinement most of that time, he said.

In mid 2017, I saw an underground prison in that terrorist-occupied hospital complex, and saw the cells he would have been held in:

Guilty until proven innocent (again): UN report on alleged Russian ‘war crimes’ in Syria is based on ‘We Say So’ & unnamed sources

March 7, 2020, RT.com

-Eva Bartlett

A UN-mandated report, which accuses Russia of war crimes in Syria, heavily relies on anonymous sources and lacks evidence, but also smacks of deliberate disinformation that is halting the eradication of terrorism in Idlib.

Earlier this week, the The Independent International Commission of Inquiry into the Syrian Arab Republic released a report largely lambasting Syria and Russia in their fight against terrorism in Syria. Corporate media were quick to echo allegations of Russian “war crimes” in Syria, all while diminishing the crimes of terrorist groups against Syrian civilians and soldiers.

The report does passingly acknowledge that Syria, Russia and allies are fighting “armed opposition groups, including Hay’at Tahrir” (al-Qaeda); the rest of the document reads mainly as a litany of accusations against Syria and Russia. 

In the “mandate and methodology” section, the report notes that its information is based on “233 interviews conducted in the region and from Geneva” as well as from governments, NGOs, and UN reports.

So a report based on testimonies taken in Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon or by phone, is again negating the masses of Syrians in Syria who would like their truths to be heard, the terrorism they have endured to be known. 

I scoured the 24 pages of the report, but even in the annexes I could find no transparent and credible sources, only the following vague terms repeatedly referred-to: Witnesses, civilians, NGO, rescuers, medical teams, first responders, flight spotters, and early warning observers.

Interview on George Galloway’s The Mother Of All Talkshows

In London for a new round of Imperialism On Trial (February 25, info here), I was on George Galloway’s The Mother Of All Talkshows Sunday night to discuss Syria.

George gives an excellent introduction on the nature of systematic, paid-for, organized, deliberate, war propaganda on Syria, to deceive people and whitewash the nature of the heinous, criminal, actions of the terrorists dubbed by the west as “rebels” who have beheaded children, among other crimes.

He kindly points out that I and others who have been telling the truth on Syria are being vindicated on a daily basis.

During the interview, I noted the media portrayal of what is happening in Syria (incessant demonization of Syria and Russia), and that Syria has a legal right to fight terrorism, and an obligation to the Syrian people to do so. 

Aleppo City’s Countryside Fully Secured, Syrians in Aleppo Celebrate The End of Terrorism

In December 2016, the Syrian Arab Army, Russia & allies liberated the northern Syrian city of Aleppo of the al-Qaeda and equally-heinous terrorists who had occupied and terrorized civilians in the city since 2012.

In the years subsequent, Aleppo to a large degree returned to peace, with rebuilding occurring in the hard-hit Old City, with displaced Syrians returning (contrary to the lies of UK Channel 4, among other war propagandizing media).

So-called “rebels” (terrorists) tortured & point-blank executed Syrian civilians, all over Syria

Not for the first time I write about this sordid reality. 

From the very beginning of the war on Syria, from early 2011, terrorists (then dubbed “unarmed protesters”) have slaughtered Syrian civilians, military and government employees (including famously throwing the bodies of slain postal workers from a post office rooftop). 

In a 2015 article, I detailed some of the many early atrocities and massacres carried out by so-called protesters.

And now this latest sad revelation, of a mass grave found in eastern Ghouta, containing around 70 bodies. 

SANA reports:

“…a mass grave was discovered in the area of al-Eib Farms, southeast of Douma City in the Eastern Ghouta that contains corpses of civilians and army personnel including a woman, as they were handcuffed and they had been executed by terrorist groups after kidnapping and abusing them and most of them were buried in the same hole.

Mansour indicated that the approximate number of bodies that have been recovered is about 70 martyrs, and their death goes back to between the beginning of 2012 until 2014

Dr. Ayman Khallou, a forensic doctor at Tishreen Military Hospital, pointed out that most of the remains recovered today were handcuffed and two of them were identified.

Khallou added that the Initial forensics indicated that most of the martyrs were executed by gunshots in the head, and some were executed with cables…”