Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
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Damascus, SANA – In the span of only four days, dozens of shells fell on Damascus city, causing the death of more than 25 civilians and the injury of more than 100. This was not the first time that the people living in the Syrian capital woke up to the roaring sound of death caused by mortars and rockets fired on the city’s neighborhoods by terrorist organizations which have been killing and terrorizing the Syrian people for more than three years now.
“Ajnad’s rockets” was the name of an operation announced by a terrorist organization calling itself “The Islamic Union of the Ajnad of the Levant.” in a statement posted on the internet, a spokesman of this organization named Wael Alwan promised to shell Damascus with rockets and mortars.
Most of the targeted areas are densely populated, such as Bab Touma, Duwaylaa, Mazzeh 86, Baramkeh, Kafarsouseh, Malki, Muhajireen, and Jaramana, in addition to other, less populated areas.
Marina, a pharmacist living in Bab Touma, told us her neighborhood is among the ones that are targeted the most by mortars. At first, Marina used to panic and stay at home when the area was attacked, she said with a sigh. “We need to live a normal life, life will continue and we will not surrender whatever these terrorist organizations would do.”
Annie, who also lives in Bab Touma, hugged her son who survived a mortar which landed right in their kitchen. With tears in her eyes and a quivering voice, she said “mortars fired randomly by terrorist organizations hit our house a few days ago. My son was lucky; the mortar fell in the kitchen right after he left it and went to the living room. He was lucky to survive.”
The majority of the Syrians living under the threat of the terrorist organizations share the same pain. Inas, an engineer, saw death claiming people right before her eyes. “I was on my way to visit my sister in Mazzeh 86 when I heard a terrifying sound which seemed like the sound of a mortar falling in the next street. Terrified, I rushed to take shelter in the entrance of a nearby building. I knew that when a mortar falls in an area, it’s usually followed by many others.
“I waited in great fear, praying to God to end my suffering and for the mortars to stop. I waited for about half an hour, and during that time two other mortars landed nearby. One of them was too close”. Inas could not continue; she was overwhelmed with tears and could not speak. We learned from her sister that the mortars Inas survived claimed the lives of two people and wounded four others.
Sheikh Abdullah, who is from outside Damascus, had believed that mortars would not target crowded markets. He told us he was in Hamra Street with his son when a mortar landed near their car, causing several injuries to his son. Abdullah said that was when he realized he was wrong because “those mortars fired randomly by terrorist organizations are meant only for killing innocent civilians”.
The Syrian people’s will to live is stronger than terrorism which is spreading death across the country. The people of Damascus refuse to surrender to fear, insisting to go about their lives and daily routines. Even the horrible sounds of terrorists’ mortars didn’t prevent George, a musician, from going to the Opera House every day and give music lessons to his students. He considers himself lucky to survive more than 16 mortars and rockets which landed close to him during the past two years. Trying to remember some of the places he was in when these mortars fell, he said “I witnessed three mortars falling near the Opera House, claiming the lives of two people and wounding five others, in addition to two mortars in Baramkeh, four in Jaramana, three in al-Abbasiyeen, and two in Muhajireen. Thank God I wasn’t hurt by any of them.”
The Syrians’ daily ordeal with mortars prompted some young people to document what is happening on the ground through social networks. One such initiative is a Facebook page called “Diary of a Mortar Shell in Damascus” which has many many followers. Anas, a student in Damascus University and the founder of the page, said to SANA “I started the page with eight of my friends. We document the numbers and post news related to the places and numbers of mortars and rockets falling on the city’s neighborhoods so that people following our page can make sure their loved ones are safe and sound.”
Anas explained that his group has documented the more than 250 rockets and mortar shells fired by terrorist organizations on Damascus neighborhoods and suburbs within 5 days, from Sunday August 3rd to Thursday August 7th. These mortars caused the death of more than 30 people and wounded more than 117 others. He thinks it is important to talk about these mortars which have become something like “a daily meal” for residents of the capital.
Anas also referred to the number of rockets and mortars that his page documented in the past few months “In April, the number of mortars and rockets fired by terrorists on Damascus and its suburbs was 357 mortars. The number decreased in May to 215, while it increased to 426 mortars and rockets in June in conjunction to the presidential elections. Mortars were fired then in an attempt to intimidate citizens and prevent them from participating in these elections. The number in July was 171 mortars and rockets.”
Despite the huge number of mortars and rockets fired indiscriminately on Damascus by the terrorist mercenaries whose sole purpose is to murder and intimidate people, the streets of the city are bustling and people go to their jobs, clinging to life and hope in defiance to terrorism and despair, proving that terrorist organizations are failing to achieve their goal of depriving Syrians from their right to lead a normal life.
Ghinwa Maia / Hazem Sabbagh
