Aljumhuriya – Translated by: Murhaf Fares What have I done during your absence, Sammour? As with everything else, I cannot tell you all the details; I leave them until you come back. The new thing, besides writing as you know and expect, is that I have been able to travel to several European countries. I…
Letters to Samira (5)
Aljumhuriya – Translated by: Murhaf Fares Sammour, I tried in the last letter to give you an idea of the humanitarian situation in Syria, which is sometimes described as the worst humanitarian crisis since Rwanda in 1994, and the worst refugee crisis since World War II. However, there are two things that make the situation…
Letters to Samira (4)
Aljumhuriya – Translated by: Murhaf Fares Sammour, the bloodshed hasn’t stopped for a single day during the three years and eight months of your absence. The conflict today, however, is defined by fragmentation, zones of influence and multiple parallel wars. Sammour, we demanded political pluralism, and we got warfare pluralism. Instead of pluralism in our…
Letters to Samira (3)
Aljumhuriya – Translated by: Murhaf Fares In his third letter to his kidnapped wife Samira, Yassin al-Haj Saleh expresses deep dissatisfaction with unfaithful allegedly revolutionary figures who showed little or no interest in the cause of Douma4 Even it were possible for you to imagine our deteriorating situation, you may still be wondering, Sammour, how…
Letters to Samira (2)
Aljumhuriya – Translated by: Murhaf Fares The second letter in a series of letters written by Yassin al-Haj Saleh to his kidnapped wife, reflecting on what has happened since her absence. Sammour, do you happen to think –like I do– about the fatal consequences that befell us? You became wanted by the regime a few…
Letters to Samira (1)
Aljumhuriya – Translated by: Murhaf Fares Note from the translator: In this letter, Yassin says that he is writing to and for Samira, but he adds that other disappeared friends might want to read it to understand what happened in their absence. I think everyone should read Yassin’s letters to Samira, not only because they…
Why Zahran Alloush stands accused
Douma4 (Originally published on Al-Jumhuriya), 31 May 2015 When he was asked about the case in August 2014, Zahran Alloush barely even denied his group’s responsibility for the kidnapping of Samira Al-Khalil, Razan Zaitouneh, Wael Hammadeh and Nazem Hammadi. Rather than a direct and straight forward denial he preferred to give the kind of answer Bashar…
Samira, Razan,Wael, Nazem, and the other absolute others
L’Internationale, 10 February 2015 About fourteen months ago, a group of masked gunmen kidnapped my wife and partner, Samira al Khalil, in Douma, which is a few kilometers to the east of Damascus. Abducted along with her were RazanZeitouneh, Wael Hamadeh, and Nazem Hammadi. Since that time, we - the families of “Douma 4”- have…
Samira Khalil
Douma4 (Originally published on Al-Quds Al-Arabi), 27 May 2014 - Translated by Murhaf Fares After four years of imprisonment (1987–1991), Samira, who comes from the Homs region, chose to live independently in Damascus. She worked in typesetting and formatting books, a job that merely earned her $100 per month at the time. It is not…