Media activists opposed to the Syrian government have documented much of the worst of the war in Syria. However, as President Bashar al-Assad regains control of opposition-held territory, these civilian journalists fear they will have no place in Syria’s future. “It’s not like I did not...

Trauma surgeon Shazeer Majeed has worked for Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Yemen, South Sudan and Iraq. He is now working in northern Syria, a region gripped by instability, and shares his day-to-day reality of trying to keep victims of war alive. "We usually think of the...

An ongoing regime siege on the Eastern Ghouta region of Syrian capital Damascus has pushed the local population to the verge of famine, including eight-year-old Rahaf Havva, who weighs only 10 kilograms. A main opposition stronghold on the outskirts of Damascus, Eastern Ghouta has...

Jordanian Hussein al- Sawalme is a technician in a dental laboratory. He loves birds and has kept a number of them over the years. One of them is a parrot whom he trained six years ago to recite verses from the Quran. The parrot has been called the "miracle parrot" and turned...

  (Zaman al-Wasl)- Syiran film maker Jude Saeed did not have to exert a great effort to add a realistic touch to the set locations for the film Rain of Homs as all the buildings and homes abandoned by the city’s people are destroyed and rubble fills the streets and alleys that until...

When the guns fell silent on the Kirkuk-Erbil road, just after noon on Friday, a fresh border had been scythed through the oil-rich soil – and a new line of influence carved across northern Iraq. Their gun barrels still hot, vanquished peshmerga forces began another withdrawal a few...

( Middle Eats Eye )- The battle to take Raqqa, the Syrian capital of the Islamic state (IS) group, is almost over. But one of the main challenges that the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) face after IS is not only the huge destruction but also how to expand their model of women's...

(Eqtsad)- Despite the reconciliation and the 5-month-old ceasefire, Barzeh, the northern neighborhood of Damascus still suffering lack of governmental services and aid. Residents say no ovens or gas stations are operating in the neighborhood. The regime municipality has so far...

When Samer Saem Eldahr finished university, he was ready to spread his wings and start his career. He planned a month away from home to discover and pursue his craft. It’s a similar story to that of many college graduates, with a notable exception. There would be no realistic option to return...

(Zaman Al Wasl)- The only center for forensic evidence in opposition-held areas was founded a year ago by personal efforts and with limited possibilities  in northern Idlib province  to provide the courts and police stations with basic services in the field of detection and...

KOBANI, Syria (Reuters) - Almost three years after Kurdish fighters defeated Islamic State in the Syrian town of Kobani, residents still mourn the dead and feel abandoned by their foreign allies as they struggle to rebuild. Islamic State’s defeat in predominately Kurdish Kobani in early...

(New York Times)— Ali Shehadeh, a seed hunter, opened the folders with the greatest of care. Inside each was a carefully dried and pressed seed pod: a sweet clover from Egypt, a wild wheat found only in northern Syria, an ancient variety of bread wheat. He had thousands of these folders stacked...

(Reuters) - Children returning to school in the northern Syrian city of al-Bab were handed a new textbook this term: “Türkçe Öğreniyorum” - “I am learning Turkish”. Turkish lessons, Turkish signposts, Turkish-trained police and mostrecently a Turkish post office all point to...

(Syria Stories)- It was no easy matter for Abeer, 31, to pursue her ambition to wear the uniform of a Syrian civil defence worker. Not only did she have to learn to handle the stress of dealing with medical trauma, but she also had to defy conservative traditions that deemed it...

(UNHCR)- Nujeen Mustafa conquered more than the usual challenges when she fled the Syrian war two years ago. Born with cerebral palsy, the teenager became famous for making the hazardous journey to Europe in her wheelchair. Her defiance and resilience, recently documented in a memoir, have...

A group of Turkish graffiti artists has created a number of anti-war murals in Bragitte, a small village in northwestern Syria's Azaz. The village, retaken in the Turkey-led Operation Euphrates Shield, saw the artists use war-ravaged buildings as canvases. Speaking to Anadolu...

(Eqtsad)- In a war-torn country, the capital remained the least affected region during the sev en year- war in Syria, making it a haven for local commercial investment. Private education is one of the lucrative business ventures that businessmen are still using to steal money from...

(Eqtsad)-Sorcery business is considered one of the darkest and most secret activities in Syrian society. New investigation and research into this phenomena shows the big indulgence of many Syrians, particularly women, in this disgraceful and infamous activity. Tens of stories about...

Hassan Youssef was 10 years old when a local Syrian composer discovered his talent: a deep powerful voice that was particularly resonant for traditional songs. It wasn’t long, however, before Syria’s grinding civil war nearly shattered Youssef’s hope of polishing his natural gift. He and his...

 In late May, an Iraqi cleric called Akram Kaabi visited militia fighters in a desolate Iraqi town near the Syrian border. Kaabi, who heads a Shi’ite Muslim militia named Harakat Hezbollah al Nujaba, was decked out in a camouflage uniform and led the fighters in prayer on mats laid on the...