| This week, we published the first part in a series that explores how Syrians have been touched by revolution, repression and the hope for rebirth. The piece features photography from Alice Martins, a regular contributor to The Washington Post. She visited Raqqa in March, six months after the Syrian city was liberated from Islamic State militants, witnessing entire neighborhoods "reduced to shattered concrete and twisted reinforced steel," as her colleague Tamer El-Ghobashy wrote. Here, Martins tells us what she witnessed: "On this latest visit to the city, several months after the end of the military operation, it was possible to have a clear picture of the devastation brought upon the city and its people. Some compare it to what happened in Kobane in 2014, when U.S.-led coalition airstrikes destroyed much of the city in order to oust the Islamic State militants who had invaded it. Though the material destruction is comparable, there is one crucial difference: in Kobane, the civilian population had a chance to flee the city before the bombs were dropped; in Raqqa, they were still stuck in their homes when it all happened. "What we witnessed was devastating. The city is still strewn with unexploded ordnance and improvised explosive devices, and the stench of decomposing bodies is all around. An underequipped and understaffed civil defense unit struggles to retrieve bodies from the rubble, unable to identity many of the remains and burying them in mass graves. Civilians who were displaced during the military operation remain in camps in the countryside, some making day trips to the city to begin rebuilding their homes, but most simply cannot afford. Many are maimed or killed as they enter buildings that haven't been cleared of explosives to try and collect any valuables they may find. Several people we spoke to question the way the operation was conducted: Was there any concern for civilian lives? Were the bombs used to take out a single sniper that often also caused the death of several civilians an acceptable choice? "When I'm working in a situation like this, I try to show not only the scale of the material destruction, but also its effect on people's lives. At times something that may appear mundane under normal circumstances, when seen against the backdrop of unimaginable destruction, can help put life and death in perspective, so we can begin to comprehend the horror of war." |
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