IDLIB, Syria — Thousands of protesters in war-torn
Syria’s rebel enclave of Idlib on
Tuesday marked 11 years since the start of an anti-government uprising, buoyed
by the global outcry over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
اضافة اعلان
Gathered on the main square in the northwestern city
of Idlib, more than 5,000 people took part in one of the largest rallies the
beleaguered region has seen in months.
Many of the demonstrators hoped the war launched by
the Syrian government’s main backer
Russia in Ukraine would rekindle some
interest in their cause.
“What is happening in Ukraine today is similar to
the situation here; the enemy is the same and the goal is the same,” protester
Radwan Atrash told AFP.
Thousands of demonstrators marked the date in other
cities across rebel-held northern Syria.
Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad’s grip on power
held by a thread after a nationwide uprising that erupted on March 15, 2011
escalated into a fully-fledged civil war.
A decision by
Russian president
Vladimir Putin to throw his military might behind the Syrian
government changed the course of the conflict and saved Assad’s hold on power.
The main killers in a war that has left half a
million people dead is by some margin the government and its allies, who
include Russian and Iranian forces, as well as a myriad of militia groups.
Around 4 million people, at least half of them
displaced, now live in a region of northwestern Syria that is the last enclave
fighting Assad’s rule despite years of deadly Russian-backed offensives.
A few Ukrainian flags were visible at the Idlib
protest, as were banners expressing solidarity with the Ukrainian people and
demanding action against Putin.
A medic among the protesters at the city’s main
roundabout had some advice for his counterparts in Ukraine.
“Fortify your hospitals with cement blocks; the
enemy Putin does not distinguish between civilians, wounded people and
fighters,” said Ali Hamoush, who works at an Idlib hospital.
Russia has repeatedly targeted medical facilities in
Syria, according to witnesses, medics and human rights groups.
Syria’s economy has been battered by a decade of
conflict and grueling sanctions.
Last week, the
UN commission for inquiry on Syria
has called for “a review of the implementation and impacts of sanctions
currently imposed on Syria” due to deteriorating living conditions.
“It has been 11 years since the Syrian revolution
started, but today it feels like the first day,” said protester Salwa
Abdelrahman, 49.
“We forgot our
wounds, the displacement, the killing and the arrests. We renewed our pledge to
continue our revolution,” she said.
“My message to the Ukrainian people is ‘Don’t give
up’. Eleven years have passed, but we are undaunted and, God willing, victory
is ours.”
Read more Region and World
.jpg)
.jpg)
