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Many In The Syrian Town Of Homs Feel As If The Civil War Has Ended

Many In The Syrian Town Of Homs Feel As If The Civil War Has Ended

By Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times

HOMS, Syria — On the long-militarized edges of Syria’s Old City of Homs, volunteers Monday took down walls of cinder block and brick that had long served as shields against snipers hidden in the ruins of the rebel-held ancient quarter.

“For us, the war is over,” said Firas Alabdallah, an engineer helping to collect material for use in a cemetery for pro-government “martyrs.”

The Syrian war is certainly not over. Broad swaths of the country remain contested or under opposition control. But to many in Homs, once dubbed the “capital” of the Syrian uprising, it does feel like the end.

The fact that the core of Syria’s third largest city is back in government control is a major triumph for President Bashar Assad and the latest setback for rebels fighting to oust him. In a deal with Syrian authorities, some 2,000 insurgents agreed to leave the Old City last week and were given safe passage out.

An almost two-year military siege succeeded in wearing down a rebel force lacking food, medical supplies and other essentials.

Residents were thrilled to take strolls again in recent days, despite the dystopia of hollowed-out buildings and rubble-strewn streets. Many shed tears of joy.

Months of bombardment and gun battles turned the once-venerable Old City and several adjacent districts into something like an outsized set for a Hollywood disaster blockbuster. Thin rays of light beamed into the previously dark confines of the old covered souk from multitudes of shrapnel punctures in the metal roof.

Landmarks, streets, cafes and houses of worship that had long been integral threads in the town’s fabric of life were not cut off anymore in a deadly no-go zone.

People walked about in wonderment as though viewing ancient historical ruins.

The war has left profound scars. People don’t like to talk about it much, but Homs’ combustible sectarian mix was a major reason the war took on such a punishing character locally.

“It is easy to repair physical destruction,” said Father Tamer Awil, a Syriac Orthodox priest in the Old City, speaking inside the heavily damaged Church Our Lady of the Belt, named after a relic said to be from a belt associated with the mother of Jesus. “But the people of Homs have been damaged in their hearts and souls. Repairing that damage is much more difficult.”

Many residents, especially among the Sunni Muslim majority, remain embittered about the government, though few if any feel safe talking about such matters publicly.

Three years ago, the Old City hosted vociferous anti-government protests that reached a global audience on the Internet. Many of the rebels were sons of Homs. Now soldiers with AK-47 rifles man those same streets, taking breaks with mate tea sipped through metal straws, a South American custom brought back by Syrian expatriates.

“I don’t care that my house was destroyed,” said one distraught Sunni woman in a headdress and black cloak who spoke Monday while exiting the Old City with a small shopping bag of items salvaged from her home. “I want the president to get my son and the others out of prison.”

The woman, who identified herself by the nickname Um Asaad, broke into tears as she spoke about her missing son, one of thousands in government jails and prisons. “I haven’t seen him in two years,” she sobbed, before heading off without further elaboration.

A few minutes later, a group of Christian women headed into the Old City to view the remains of their family home. The Christian minority is generally effusive about the “liberation” of an area central to their ancient identity.

“The Army has swept away all of the bad people from our city,” said Hannan Ragap, 45, a mother of two who sported spike heels and jeans as she walked toward the Old City.

In the adjacent Zahra district, people were savoring a victory against what many view as an existential threat from a radical Islamist force. The neighborhood is home to many Alawites, the Muslim sect whose members include President Assad.

“They wanted to force us out, but we refused to leave,” said Alabdallah, the engineer who is in charge of the neighborhood “martyr’s” cemetery, with more than 2,000 graves, and is helping take down the sniper barriers, some as high as 30 feet.

Once the Old City opened up, some from Zahra went searching for traces of missing relatives kidnapped during the war, presumably by the rebels. Officials say hundreds remain missing.

“We found my brother’s car burned, but no trace of him,” said Mustafa Ahmad Alabood, a municipal official who explained that his brother, Amer, a taxi driver, was among the many kidnapped and presumably killed.

In general, though, many people seemed inclined to put such dark thoughts aside as they sought to reclaim Homs. The longing for a pre-conflict sense of normality and order was evident among residents of all sects and creeds who headed to the remains of the Old City.

“People here are tired of the war, they’ve had enough,” said Jamal Moazen, 52 a metal worker who was hauling blankets and other scavenged items onto a pickup. “We want our city back.”

©afp.com / Joseph Eid

Jobless Demand End To Pay-Per-View Town Hall Meetings

Several Republican members of Congress, fed-up with being grilled on their plans to privatize Medicare and other controversial Tea Party measures, are exclusively holding pay-per-view town halls, where attendance will cost you. The response from their constituents has only been to increase the volume.

Paul Ryan, architect of the Republican plan to to shift Medicare to a voucher system that has hurt the GOP in some special election races since it passed the House this spring, is among those sick of regular old free democracy:

Ryan will appear at a late August event where voters can pay $15 to have lunch with the congressman. Those who register in advance, providing their names and background information and writing their checks, might even get to ask their congressman a question.

That’s fine for the pay-to-play crowd.

But the folks on fixed incomes who are most threatened by Ryan’s proposed assaults on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security will have to decide whether they can afford to be citizens. Some of them decided Thursday that Ryan’s price was too high. A group of unemployed workers staged a sit-in at his Kenosha office, while others protested outside, chanting “Ryan is a no-show, bring jobs to Kenosha.” The message from one of the largest cities in the district was blunt: “After being denied a meeting with Ryan after multiple requests over the last few weeks, the unemployed men and women have decided to sit down and wait for Congressman Ryan.”

Emulating Ryan’s avoidance of critics are Reps. Ben Quayle (R-AZ), Chip Cravaack (R-MN), Lou Barletta (R-PA) and Renee Elmers (R-NC). All seem intent on making it as difficult as possible to register protest to a Tea Party agenda that is failing to catch on with the electorate.

“These pay-per-view town halls make it perfectly clear who GOP members of Congress think they’re working for. If you’re a major donor or a big corporate supporter, the Republicans in Congress are willing to bend over backwards to make sure you get your way. If you’re an ordinary citizen who wants to have your voice heard, tough luck,” Michael B. Keegan, president of People for the American Way, told The National Memo Friday. His group has been active in corralling support for traditional town halls that are, you know, free.

“The right to petition your representatives isn’t accidental to system of government—it’s spelled out in black and white in the First Amendment. It’s a tremendously important part of democracy. The worst possible outcome would be for this to become the norm, so we’re making sure that our activists hear about this trend and that members of Congress hear from activists.

“Congressman Paul Ryan is charging people to attend town halls to hear what he has to say and have a chance to ask a question. Congressmen Ben Quayle and Chip Cravaack aren’t even hosting town halls themselves — they’re attending events hosted for them by friendly organizations with a fee for attendance. This amounts to nothing less than pay-per-view government as the Republicans try to privatize democracy.”