(italiano) It was 2006 and I was enrolled in the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Rome. Grappling with the pre-Islamic Jahilliya, the Hegira of Muhammad in 622, the five pillars of Islam, the Shari’a and the Islamic …
(deutsch) We know the pictures of demonstrations and most of all of fighting scenes, of injured and dead people carried in streets full of blood. But besides these horrors, what does it really mean to live in war, being confronted …
(deutsch) [slideshow post_id=“197″] Terrorists? Rebels? Extremists? Freedom fighters? Who are they, what do they want and what are they doing? In the media one can get very different descriptions of the Free Syrian Army, from echos of Assad’s scorn calling …
(deutsch) We have collected here some published insights into Syrian everyday life over almost two years: http://video.repubblica.it/dossier/rivolta-siria/siria-la-distribuzione-del-cibo-ai-bambini/112780/111179 http://youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=QlGV1N2EwBk http://vimeo.com/54798193 (refugees in Roman ruins) http://ninofezzacinereporter.blogspot.de/2012/12/258pm-mon-3-dec-2012-nato-to-send.html http://youtube.com/watch?v=6KbKSLV8Hxo&feature=share (Syrian family lives underground) http://ninofezzacinereporter.blogspot.it/2012/12/siriala-guerra-dei-bambini.html http://notizie.tiscali.it/videonews/149150/Esteri/ (Syria – living in caves to escape the bombs) …
Background situation before revolution When the protests erupted in March 2011 the greatest challenge to nearly five decades of Assad family rule was posed. Since 1963 Syria has been a one-party state. The citizen could only approve the President and …
[slideshow post_id=“192″ rel=“lightbox“] Who are these rebels? Are they all just dangerous extremists and terrorists fighting for a religious state? We say: no. United in the wish to overcome Assad’s regime, the FSA is a fairly free organised bunch of …
(deutsch) This very brief account of the long and eventful history of Syria should serve to clarify and to develop a better understanding of the country’s origins. Ancient Syria was included under the heading „The countries of Syria“ (bilad …
(deutsch) The Syrian population consists of about 88% Muslims and 12% Christians. However, this classification is not as simple as it may sound at first. Syria is characterized by a variety of religious and ethnic groups. The Christian population alone …
(deutsch) [slideshow post_id=“178″ rel=“lightbox“] Damascus Legend has it that the Prophet Muhammad was travelling out of Mecca when he glanced down the mountains to Damascus, and refused to go there because he only wanted to enter Paradise once after his …
(deutsch) Watching the news on TV or reading the latest reports in newspapers about Syria is shocking, and often enough leaves one with a feeling of paralysis. The war seems far away for somebody enjoying life in Europe and, after …
(deutsch) A Syrian friend here in Germany mentioned Mahmoud (name changed) one day some months ago. Living in Damascus, he made incredible efforts to support refugee families coming into his neighbourhood. As the area was closed by checkpoints of the …
(deutsch) I met Bayan in Aleppo. She’s a young and strong woman helping in a hospital every day with the urge to support the revolution and to help people suffering from the brutality of war. Here’s a link to a …
(deutsch) The question “What can I do?” is often best answered with an urge to donate, to give a bit of oneself, be it money or goods. Besides big organisations with complex, efficient structures like the UN refugee agency (http://donate.unhcr.org/) …
(deutsch) Al-Jazeera, English, from 16/11/2011:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=NfTNmYETMLc Al-Jazeera, English, from 10/11/2011:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=wXBQMfl4ZAY ARD (German TV) from 25/10/2011:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=_KhU6O1VQnA ZDF (German TV) from 17/08/2011:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4qbqOAM7HKI
(deutsch) [slideshow post_id=“4″ rel=“lightbox“] Tamer was born in 1977 in a small village near Suwayda, a city in the South-West of Syria. He moved to Damascus to study Arabic literature and journalism at the city’s University. He was a joint …
[slideshow post_id=“130″ rel=“lightbox“] (deutsch) (العربية) Some very touching obituaries were published all over the world after Tamer’s death. You can read and watch some of them here: – in German on ZDF: http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/beitrag/video/1729846/Trauer-um-Tamer-Al-Awam#/beitrag/video/1729846/Trauer-um-Tamer-Al-Awam – in Arabic on Al Arabia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Cog2xK3yo1k …
Claudia Ruff writes about her last days with Tamer Alawam in Syria: We arrived in Aleppo on August 28th, finding the city in a state of war, with bombing and shelling going on 24 hours a day. People were trying …
(italiano) Mariangela Sglavo wrote an article (also published on the Italian website sirialibano.com) about her experience of the death of a dear friend of hers, seen through the cold screen of a laptop. Have you ever been confronted with the …
Producer Jan Heilig writes about his friend: I met Tamer on a demonstration for Syrian freedom at the beginning of 2011 in Berlin. I saw him with a cameraman, and he saw my camera, so we soon came into contact. …
(deutsch) (italiano) The Internet connects up the world in an exemplary manner. It can happen that you encounter people online who are closer to you than you could imagine. Here is an article written by Valentina Perniciaro, an Italian girl …