I was invited into Syria by the FSA, they wanted someone to document the plight of the local population under the onslaught of Syrian army attacks and the calamitous living conditions the population endured due to the provision and basic service cuts. Four years have past since the FSA led me around Aleppo and the Idlib countryside to witness the horrors endured by civilians and the efforts made by the FSA to keep some social cohesion through the horrors of war. Since then, things have only gotten worse and the courageous attempt of a people to forge a unifying national force against brutality and oppression is almost completely dissolved, with the advent of the Islamic State and the constant onslaught of Al Assad’s military forces. The same scenario I encountered years ago has only gotten worst. The population still suffer the threat of indiscriminate bombings carried out by Syrian army planes and now Russian as well, they still struggle to find the most basic provisions, health care is scarce if available at all, and all basic services like water, electricity and waste management are still cut, the only difference is that the country is even more isolated with the advent of the Islamic State.
© Daniel Botelho