People of Eastern Ghouta suffer food monopoly by war traders

Reporting by Abu Abdullah Al Hourani; Translation by Yusra Ahmed

(Zaman Al Wasl)- As the seige's severity against the Eastern Ghouta increased, especially after closing al-Wafidin's barrier, combined with products' monopoly by was' traders, prices raised to crazy levels under lack of observation and prices' control.

"Despite the threat of the United Judicial Council for products' monopolisers and official lists of reasonable prices, still no one cares and products kept high, even they increased hourly", activist Ammar al-Dumani told Zaman al-Wasl.

He attributed the traders' state of carelessness toward the Council's decisions to to lack of implementation mechanisms of its decisions, beside the mutual benefits between the armed opposition's leaders and traders, who turn the blind eye to traders' practices.

Abo Mohammed from Eastern Ghouta complained of the living conditions and mad prices, he expressed his pain because he was unable to feed his family. "If situation still like this, I would go to Damascus hoping to have better life"

oping to have better life" Many people in Eastern Ghouta felt the same, they risked their lives when they moved ignoring snipers, and gathered at barriers begging to let them out to go to Damascus. Regime's media seized the chance and used the event to show off that mercifulness of regime and how it was the rescuer for them, when its television broadcasted how its soldiers gave people food and showed convoys moving people from Ghouta to Qudsaya in Damascus. Many activists described the way of helping people and show them as "humiliating to the revolution".

The armed opposition of Eastern Ghouta was helpless toward the situation; all they did was holding the international community responsibility for the seige, accusing them of attempting to defeat the Revolution, according to Islam Alloush, spokesman of the Islamic Front.

Moreover, Alloush threatened traders with monopoly abuses of severe procedures and punishments.

Al-Dumani considered that providing food and other products should be under the responsibility of the armed opposition in al-Ghouta, as they could have found safe humanitarian corridors under their control, instead of leaving the area under regime's control and its changing plans.

Al-Dumani with other activists threatened of demonstrations and sit-in against the armed opposition, if they could not sort out the siege and monopoly.