A ghost town in Syria
- 12 years ago
A ghost town just north of Aleppo.
Streets lined with damaged buildings are all but deserted.
While there are reports of heavy shelling in the night, during the day rebels patrol the streets,
. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) COMMANDER OF FSA UNIT, SAYING:
"These are the weapons Bashar is using against civilians and children. We got this machine gun from government forces during battle and God willing we will get more from them."
The town once had a population of 33,000. There are now about 20 families left.
Assad's ruling system is dominated by his minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam. His opponents are mostly from Syria's Sunni Muslim majority. The sectarian strife is raising fears that it could inflame Sunni-Shi'ite tensions elsewhere in the Middle East.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters
Streets lined with damaged buildings are all but deserted.
While there are reports of heavy shelling in the night, during the day rebels patrol the streets,
. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) COMMANDER OF FSA UNIT, SAYING:
"These are the weapons Bashar is using against civilians and children. We got this machine gun from government forces during battle and God willing we will get more from them."
The town once had a population of 33,000. There are now about 20 families left.
Assad's ruling system is dominated by his minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam. His opponents are mostly from Syria's Sunni Muslim majority. The sectarian strife is raising fears that it could inflame Sunni-Shi'ite tensions elsewhere in the Middle East.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters