Bakhtiyar Hassan* (Qamishli, Syria) - The People’s Court lies in the middle of the city of Qamishli on the road known as Amouda, occupying the ground floor of a three story building that bustles with residents on weekdays.

Hazzaa Adnan al-Hazzaa (Kfar Nabel, Syria) - During the first few days of 2014, several demonstrations took place under the slogan “Bashar and ISIS are one… Down with ISIS and Assad” in areas controlled by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, now known as ISIS.

Ahmad al-Bouleily * (Al-Bouleil, Syria) - Every morning, dozens of people line up in front of a bread distribution centre in the town of Bouleil in Deir al-Zor province. Conversations move from military developments and opposition victories to complaints about how long they have to wait for their rations.

Hazzaa Adnan al-Hazzaa (Kfar Nabel, Syria)—Kfar Nabel resident Hassan al-Ahmad, 27, once a student at Aleppo University’s Faculty of Economics, put his studies on hold and joined the Syrian uprising in its second week, becoming one of its most outspoken activists through his work in the media, and also going on to head the organization “Aish,” which rejuvenates walls and […]

Despite the staggering number of residents who have fled Aleppo in order to escape the terror of the Syrian government’s barrel bombs, there are many who have been unable to leave and are instead hunkered down, trying to survive. On Thursday, March 6, tragedy struck again, this time in Aleppo’s Sakhour neighbourhood, where two women and four children were found […]

Fishing the Euphrates river once provided a living to many inhabitants of the city of Deir al-Zor, but the past three years of warfare have made it almost impossible to continue fishing. The river has become a no-go area since snipers took up positions on its banks, showing no mercy to any target. Shells are also routinely dropped on both […]

Hazzaa Adnan al-Hazzaa (Kfar Nabel, Syria) – In January, diesel merchant Jamal al-Mahmoud, 36, turned to Kfar Nabel’s Sharia court in an effort to dissolve his business partnership following a disagreement with his partner. Mahmoud trusted the court; he believed it fairly imposed both discipline and order. “In court, I felt like the revolution had succeeded, as if I were […]

(Salqeen, Syria) — After the Geneva 2 talks, Damascus Bureau took to the streets of opposition-controlled Salqeen in Idlib province to survey public opinion on the feasibility of the diplomatic process in resolving the crisis in Syria. Strikingly, all those who spoke to the camera expressed their lack of faith in the possibility that negotiations between the opposition and the […]

(Damascus, Syria) — In the regime-controlled areas of Damascus and its suburbs, the Syrian government’s red, black and white flag has been painted on the doors and shutters of commercial establishments. The campaign began with the convening of the first round of the Geneva 2 conference in January of this year. Opposition media reports that some shop owners have been […]

Vyan Mohammad (Qamishli, Syria) - Abdel Majid is an agricultural engineer whose 50 years and grey hair did not prevent him from sitting next to Bayan, his 18-year-old daughter, at a school desk to learn how to read and write in Kurdish. Like many Syrian Kurds, Abdel Majid can speak his mother tongue, but he does not know its grammatical […]