The Syrian pound dropped to an unprecedented low on Monday, June 17, when the dollar was traded, for the first time, at around 200 Syrian pounds. A correspondent of The Damascus Bureau who lives in a government-controlled district of Aleppo reported that jewelers and owners of electrical appliances stores are now only accepting payments in dollar. Reuters also reported that […]

Note: The editorial team has changed the names of the speakers and withheld the identity of the author for their own safety. Since the start of the revolutionary movement in Syria, President Bashar al-Assad has issued several general amnesty decrees in an attempt to contain the instability and preserve the regime. In the past, regime supporters have accepted and justified these […]

Youssef Shaikho With the withdrawal of some Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) fighters to their rear bases in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, the peace agreement between the party and the Government of Turkey has entered the implementation phase. The Turkish press reports that five armed groups withdrew from the Turkish provinces of Van, Şırnak and Hakkari, noting that each group […]

Mariam Abdullah * Editor’s Note: The editorial team has changed the names of some of the speakers for their own safety. (Damascus, Syria) — A 40-year old woman who calls herself Zainab, 40, prepares to light the burner in her ghazleh cart, where she makes a sweet snack similar to cotton candy. She is parked outside a school that shelters […]

By Razan Zaitouneh EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second in a series of articles on the new institutions in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in the liberated Eastern Ghouta area outside Damascus. These reports are designed to highlight the efforts of activists and local residents to fill the void created by the absence of state institutions. (Erbeen, Syria) — […]

Lina al-Hakim* (Aleppo, Syria) — Despite the constant thud of rockets and deteriorating living conditions, including the destruction of basic institutions and infrastructure, Syrians continue to fight for their lives in the midst of death. In Aleppo, most schools in active combat zones and front line areas have closed. Some have been turned into military bases or rubble. But some […]

Mohammad Qattaa, a 15-year-old who sold coffee on the street in the opposition-controlled Al-Shaar neighbourhood in Aleppo, was asked on Saturday, June 8 if he could give someone coffee on credit. According to reports, he replied, saying: “Even if [the Prophet] Mohammad descended on Earth, I wouldn’t sell on credit.” Militiamen abducted the young man and brought him back the […]

By Razan Zeitouneh EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a series of articles on the new institutions in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in the liberated Eastern Ghouta area outside Damascus. These reports are designed to highlight the efforts of activists and local residents to fill the void created by the absence of state institutions. (Douma, Syria)- The […]

Lina al-Hakim* (Aleppo, Syria) - With basic services stopped in most areas of rebel-controlled Aleppo, a local City Council was elected in early March 2013 in an effort to find practical solutions to the problems facing the residents of the city. The Council’s goal was to collaborate with Aleppo’s “Neighbourhood Assemblies,” local opposition bodies that represent residential areas no longer […]

This video was published on Qusair Media Centre’s channel on YouTube on Sunday, June 2, two days before the city was seized by government forces. Rockets fall near the cameraman as he films. Two weeks after the battle began, fighting in Qusair came to an end on the morning of Wednesday, June 5, when the Syrian government declared that its […]