Former Refugees Flock to Aleppo as the City Stabilizes
A man in one of Aleppo’s mosques, taken in 2009 prior to the civil war Source
By: Nathan Matsko
Bellefonte — After nearly a decade of civil war, the city of Aleppo in Syria has recently begun to see a slow return to normal life. Last week, the Syrian government reopened the Aleppo airport to civilian flights for the first time in more than eight years.
Northern Syria, which is made up of the Aleppo and Idlib Governorates, experienced intense fighting between government forces and rebel factions over the years. Idlib Governorate, in particular, has seen considerable advances by government forces and their allies in the past few weeks.
Opponents of President Bashar Al-Assad and his government have been quick to point out the destruction left in the wake of airstrikes and ground forces. Some Syrians have taken to social media, posting footage of airstrikes in rural areas of the Aleppo and Idlib Governorates.
Yet others are sharing more celebratory material. Hady Nasrallah, a Lebanese reporter on the ground in Syria, shared a series of videos and images showing signs left behind by radical Islamist group Al-Nusra and others amongst the rebel factions, who were at one point controlling the region.
Several more show civilians dancing and cheering in well-lit, clean streets, celebrating their liberation from the Islamist rebels.
While it is certainly the case that Aleppo—and most other major cities and villages in Syria— have been extensively damaged by the conflict, there are efforts to rebuild some of the hardest-hit areas. A Twitter account by the name of Rebuilding Syria shared a compilation of sites barely more than rubble in 2016, then showcasing their current state after reconstruction. The results are striking.
These images are in stark contrast to the pictures that circulated the media in 2016. It is easy to forget that the city was the epicenter of carnage and violence during the height of the conflict. Human Rights Watch reported war crimes allegedly committed by the Syrian Government and vital ally Russia. Many amongst the rebel factions were members of radical Islamist groups that have a history of subjugating citizens that fall under their rule.
This normalcy may already be in danger, however. Recent skirmishes between Turkish forces and Syrian Government forces in Northern Syria have called into question what the future holds for the region. While it seemed that victory was all but assured for the Syrian Government, the fighting may not be done just yet.
For now, many Syrians are working to pick up in Aleppo where they left off. Affiliations aside, thousands of Syrians are working tirelessly to restore one of the longest inhabited cities in the world. In a city that has known so much pain, death and struggle, there is a glimmer of hope for a better future.