Memories Undone: Victims of Syria’s War

Memories Undone: Victims of Syria’s War

Annie Sakkab

Memories Undone: Victims of Syria’s War On Nov. 2015, 9-year-old Basil Al Riyabi was struck by a landmine that cost him both his legs, his left hand and left eye.      “I didn’t know it was a mine, so I started playing with it and it exploded.       All my friends died” said Basil, as he sat on his bed at a rehabilitation       centre in Amman, Jordan.”
When I first saw Basil, he was running across the hallway on his amputated legs, talking and playing with his adult friends. He was shy and was hesitant to speak with me. It took me few visits before Basil felt comfortable telling his story. He sat on his bed with his shorts and striped T-shirt next to his friend, Ibrahim, 13, whose leg was damaged after the bunker he was hiding in was struck by a rocket. Soon after, he fled Syria for Jordan. 
What’s so surprising is how much these two young children knew about weapons: Basil could distinguish different types of rockets, bullets and the materials necessary to make barrel bombs. He even knew which ones are Russian made and which ones are not. When he made a mistake, Ibrahim would correct him. I’ve never heard of a barrel bomb before the Syrian civil war. I’m not even sure when it was manufactured. But the idea of compressing explosives, fuel, irregular shaped steel fragments, shrapnel, chemicals and oil into a cylinder and then dropping it from a plane on heavily populated areas just seemed so unimaginable. Civilians have a mere 10 seconds to run or hide. But when you don’t know where it’s coming from, you just have to sit and wait and hope that you don’t die. 

For me, It was truly a moment of shock when I realized to what extent weaponry is designed by manufacturing companies to kill and destroy in the most inhumane and horrific ways. Governments and arms companies make billions of dollars every year out of warfare to sell their inventions to both sides of the conflict to make as much money as possible. I’m left wondering how those individuals, who are creating these incredibly destructive weapons, can sleep at night. 
In the end, what we are left with are collective and individual stories of death, destruction, murder and irreversible damage, with no government, corporation or individual that is made accountable for these tragedies.
Memories Undone is a collection of stories from the children and adults I met at the rehabilitation centre, recollecting the moment they were hit— and the weapon that struck them.

A photo of a prosthetic limbs center in downtown.
Mohammad Fahd, Age 20, poses for a portrait in the rehabilitation center where he is being treated for the amputation of both of his legs. was hit by a land mine, an explosive device hidden or concealed under or on the ground and it’s designed to destroy or disable. A landmine is detonated automatically by way of pressure when a person or object steps on it or drives over it. Mohammad recalls the moment he was injured. “I was on my way to the bakery to buy bread with my father and sister when I stepped on a land mine. My father and sister were killed instantly. I was 18.” Mahammad paid an equivalent of $20,000 to be smuggled with his mother out of Syria to Jordan. He passed through 13 checkpoints while injured. When asked what are his dreams he said “I want to go anywhere. Europe, Canada. I need to get out of here because one day I would like to have a family.”
Mohammad Fahd (center), 20, waits for a free haircut at the rehabilitation center in downtown Amman where he is being treated for the amputation of both of his legs. Mohammad was hit by a land mine, an explosive device hidden or concealed under or on the ground and it’s designed to destroy or disable. A landmine is detonated automatically by way of pressure when a person or object steps on it or drives over it. Mohammad recalls the moment he was injured. “I was on my way to the bakery to buy bread with my father and sister when I stepped on a land mine. My father and sister were killed instantly. I was 18.” Mahammad paid an equivalent of $20,000 to be smuggled with his mother out of Syria to Jordan. He passed through 13 checkpoints while injured. When asked what are his dreams he said “I want to go anywhere. Europe, Canada. I need to get out of here because one day I would like to have a family.”
Mohammad Azouz (center) ,22, in the common area of the rehabilitation center where he’s being treated for his injured leg. Mohammad was hit by a rocket that landed on the house he was in. He was thrown under the sink and sustained life threatening injures where his pelvis and legs shattered and his spleen exploded from the impact. He was smuggled out of Homs unconscious and bleeding. Eventually, Mohammad was reunited with his parents in Amman after a painful 12-day wait at the Syrian Jordanian border. When asked what he would like to do after rehabilitation Mohammad said “I paid 23 thousand US dollars to be smuggled out of Syria. Now I have nothing to start my life with.”
Mohammad Azouz (center) ,22, in the common area of the rehabilitation center where he’s being treated for his injured leg. Mohammad was hit by a rocket that landed on the house he was in. He was thrown under the sink and sustained life threatening injures where his pelvis and legs shattered and his spleen exploded from the impact. He was smuggled out of Homs unconscious and bleeding. Eventually, Mohammad was reunited with his parents in Amman after a painful 12-day wait at the Syrian Jordanian border. When asked what he would like to do after rehabilitation Mohammad said “I paid 23 thousand US dollars to be smuggled out of Syria. Now I have nothing to start my life with.”
Ibrahim Sarhan, 13, on his bed at the rehabilitation center. Ibrahim was hit by a BM-30 Smerch, a heavy multiple rocket launcher and one of the deadliest artillery rocket system. A full salvo of a single launcher covers an area of up to 67 hectares. Sometimes the Smerch is even referred to as a weapon of mass destruction, as its rockets with cluster anti-personnel submunitions destroy every living creature. Ibrahim recalls what happened to him and his family “The first time I saw a rocket I was 7 and I was watching TV. It was really scary. The day I was hit we were under siege. I was with my family, my sister, my three brothers, my mother and father and all my uncles in an underground bunker. I heard the first rocket, then the second and the third. After the sixth one I heard a whistling sound and then I was unconscious. When I woke up, My father told me that my mother, sisters and two of my brothers and my uncles are all dead. I was 9.” As Ibrahim and his father were making their way to Jordan for medical assistance, they got separated, only to be reunited days later at the border “The most I cried is when I lost my father at the Syrian Jordanian border.” Ibrahim and his father were amongst the 25000 Syrian refugees who were resettled in Canada in 2015.
Basil AL Riyabi (right), 9, and Ibrahim Sarhan, 13, play together on a cellphone at the rehabilitation center.
Basil AL Riyabi, 9, tries his prosthetic legs for the first time at a clinic. Basil lost both of his legs, left hand and right eye to a landmine he played with. All his friends died instantly. Basil recounts his memory of that day ?I felt I was flying from the explosion and suddenly I didn?t see anything. It went completely black. When I woke up in the hospital and I looked I couldn?t see my legs. It was the worst moment of my life. I felt suddenly my heart stopped from the shock.? Basil’s mother was not able to travel with him to Jordan for treatment because she had to stay with his younger siblings back in Syria. ?All I want is to see my mom. I may die before I?m 10 years old.?
Basil AL Riyabi, 9, gets a mould fitting for his prosthetic legs at a clinic in Amman. Basil lost both of his legs, left hand and right eye to a landmine he played with. All his friends died instantly. Basil recounts his memory of that day “I felt I was flying from the explosion and suddenly I didn’t see anything. It went completely black. When I woke up in the hospital and I looked I couldn’t see my legs. It was the worst moment of my life. I felt suddenly my heart stopped from the shock.” Basil’s mother was not able to travel with him to Jordan for treatment because she had to stay with his younger siblings back in Syria. “All I want is to see my mom. I may die before I’m 10 years old.”
Basil AL Riyabi, 9, waits to get a mould fitting for his prosthetic legs at a clinic. Basil lost both of his legs, left hand and right eye to a landmine he played with. All his friends died instantly. Basil recounts his memory of that day “I felt I was flying from the explosion and suddenly I didn’t see anything. It went completely black. When I woke up in the hospital and I looked I couldn’t see my legs. It was the worst moment of my life. I felt suddenly my heart stopped from the shock.” Basil’s mother was not able to travel with him to Jordan for treatment because she had to stay with his younger siblings back in Syria. “All I want is to see my mom. I may die before I’m 10 years old.”
Ala’a Al Shar’a, 15, poses for a portrait at the rehabilitation center. Ala’a was hit by a mortar shell, an indirect fire weapon. A mortar is used to fire the explosive shell at low velocities and short ranges. They are often used by insurgents to terrorize civilians and are launched indiscriminately. Mortar shells killed 17 children and injured approximately 50 people in an attack on an educational complex in Damascus April 29, 2014, according to Human Rights Watch. Ala’a recalls the moment she was injured “I was sitting with my uncle at home, when a mortar shell exploded next to our house. My brother was hit in the leg. My Uncle was hit in the head, chest and legs. Thankfully they didn’t die. I got shrapnels in my face. My mom passed away when a missile hit the mosque we were hiding in after our house was destroyed.” Ala’a and her family were under siege for three years before fleeing their hometown of Tall Sh-hab. They walked for days to reach Lebanon going through land mine areas, and another three days to reach Jordan. “When I saw my uncle come through our font door after three years. I cried. I cried a lot.”
15-year-old Ala’a Al Shar’a (left) gives a helping hand to Salam Al Jundi (center) to walk on her prosthetic leg, while Basil watches cartoons. All three children live in a rehabilitation center for refugees injured in the Syrian civil war.
Sulaiman Mohammad, 26, poses for a portrait in the rehabilitation center. Sulaiman is paralyzed from the neck down. He was hit by a sniper rifle. As well as being trained to kill with one shot, snipers are also trained to shoot for the central nervous system to paralyze instantly. The rifle is a high powered precision rifle that is used to destroy humans at an extended ranges with aimed fire, and with as few ammunition as possible. Sulaiman recalls the moment he was shot at “I was fighting with the Free Syrian Army for four years when I was shot. I saw one of my men fall from a hit, so I decided to help him out. I asked one of the five guys with us to cover me. So I ran and I put him on my shoulders. As I was running I was shot with a sniper in my neck. We both fell to the ground. The bullet went straight into my spinal cord. I was lying unable to move for an hour before I was rescued. “Sulaiman was a sports teacher in the army before he defected a year after the war erupted. His reason for joining the Free Syrian Army “I lost three of my brothers to the war. I saw children killed, people shot, and women raped. In one day I saw 200 people die.”
40-year-old Umm Saleh (right) in her bed at the rehabilitation center. Umm Saleh was hit by a Katyusha Rocket launcher. The launcher is meant to deliver a large blow of rockets all at once. Umm Saleh recounts the moment she was hit “I heard a loud noise and a rocket went straight through our house into the bathroom. I was thrown out of my chair and all I could hear are screams. Then I was unconscious. My husband lost 5 sisters and suffered from shrapnels in his stomach. I suffered full paralysis. When I asked her what would you want now to do “All I want is to see my children again and I can’t.”
Salam Al Jundi, 14, on her bed in the rehabilitation center. Salam was hit by a barrel bomb, a cylindrical container or an oil barrel filled with high-powered explosives, fuel and irregular shaped steel fragments, shrapnel, and possibly chemicals or oil, and then dropped from a helicopter or airplane. Their inaccuracy and indiscriminate use in populated civilian areas is devastating. Salam was walking with her brother and cousin to buy food when they were hit. A nearby car exploded and landed on her brother. He survived but suffered a broken pelvis and shrapnels to the head and body. Her cousin was hit by shrapnels that caused her intestines to drop out of her body and died instantly. She was 11. Salam recounts how she felt in that moment “I didn’t feel it when I dropped to the ground.”
Salam Al Jundi, 14, poses for a portrait at the rehabilitation center. Salam was hit by a barrel bomb, a cylindrical container or an oil barrel filled with high-powered explosives, fuel and irregular shaped steel fragments, shrapnel, and possibly chemicals or oil, and then dropped from a helicopter or airplane. Their inaccuracy and indiscriminate use in populated civilian areas is devastating. Salam was walking with her brother and cousin to buy food when they were hit. A nearby car exploded and landed on her brother. He survived but suffered a broken pelvis and shrapnels to the head and body. Her cousin was hit by shrapnels that caused her intestines to drop out of her body and died instantly. She was 11. Salam recounts how she felt in that moment “I didn’t feel it when I dropped to the ground.”
Salam Al Jundi, 14, is comforted by a resident and caretaker who looks after the children at the rehabilitation center. The caretaker is like a mother to all the children at the center. She is a Syrian refugee who suffered loss and dislocation. Her name is concealed for privacy.
Haitham Yousef, 23, poses for a portrait at the rehabilitation center. Haitham was shot by a kalashnikov, a semi-automatic and automatic assault rifle based on the original design of Mikhail Kalashnikov. It’s a dominant weapon amongst armies and individuals due to the simplicity of its’ design. Haitham recounts his life and his memory of the day he was shot “I used to be an accounting student at university and I decided to join the Free Syrian Army when I got out of prison the second time. I was imprisoned in 2013 and 2014. A month after I joined, I was shot in the neck. The bullet went through my spinal cord and out of my chest creating a hole in my lung. I suffered paralysis from the neck down. I started getting better with physiotherapy, but because I was in bed for a long time, I started developing blisters on my legs. And then I got gangrene. I tried to save my legs for eight months but the doctors warned me that the virus could spread to the blood. So I had to amputate.” Haitham explains why he joined the Free Syrian Army “I was constantly beaten up. They just wanted to humiliate and break me because I’m a young man. They didn’t know all that beating created anger. I was no longer afraid to die.”
Mohammad Maleeha, 29, poses for a portrait at the rehabilitation center. Mohammad was shot with an R.I.P Bullet. This Radically Invasive Projectile (RIP) bullet is designed to explode inside the body ravaging tissues in all directions. Mohammad recounts “I was shot by a sniper in the spine with 2 bullets. The first one damaged my spinal cord. The second exploded in my intestines damaging everything inside and causing all my insides to explode out of my body. Before joining the Free Syrian Army I was imprisoned and tortured for a whole year. So I decided to fight after that.” Mohammad worked in construction prior to his imprisonment. When asked why he joined the Free Syrian Army “If I don’t fight for my honor, my family and my neighbors, what good is my life.”
Mohammad Maleeha, 29, rests on his bed at the rehabilitation center. Mohammad was shot with an R.I.P Bullet. This Radically Invasive Projectile (RIP) bullet is designed to explode inside the body ravaging tissues in all directions. Mohammad recounts “I was shot by a sniper in the spine with 2 bullets. The first one damaged my spinal cord. The second exploded in my intestines damaging everything inside and causing all my insides to explode out of my body. Before joining the Free Syrian Army I was imprisoned and tortured for a whole year. So I decided to fight after that.” Mohammad worked in construction prior to his imprisonment. When asked why he joined the Free Syrian Army “If I don’t fight for my honor, my family and my neighbors, what good is my life.”
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