Bricks and rubble from the remains of buildings lay across the ground. The streets are empty yet filled with cries and screams from a distance, while the debris and the color red are all that paint the town. Then, all of a sudden, the ground begins to rumble and shake and the cries are drowned out by the sound of missiles hitting the ground. This is the life of people in Aleppo, Syria.
Tragedy in Aleppo
Imagine if this was your reality, waking up every day not knowing whether or not you’d still be alive when you laid your head to rest the night before. Aleppo once served as Syria’s largest city with a rich history dating back to the 10th century. This city is now stuck in the middle of a war as different rebel groups and the government fight for control over the city. With a population of 2.5 million people back in 2005, it has significantly dropped as many have fled to neighboring countries or have lost their lives.
The civil war in Syria has been happening since 2012, but only recently has the war started gaining attention due to ISIS and the massive population of refugees. As the news circulation of the Syrian refugees have slowly died down since the summer, Aleppo should not be forgotten in the midst of this.
Those affected by the war
Recently, an image of a 5-year-old boy named Omar Daqneesh covered in dust and blood, sitting in an ambulance, went viral. This began to open the eyes of people to see how truly the devastating attacks in Aleppo affect Syrians both old and young. If you personally want to view the pictures and videos of what occurs in Syria every day, they all contain a warning on how graphic and disturbing the images may be for some. This should expose how important it is for us to follow the news in Syria and keep our thoughts and prayers with them. Watching the videos of babies being found in knee-deep rubble, bodies of families crushed and a toddler sitting in an ambulance unaware of his own injuries brings tears to my eyes and I know I am not the only one.
Here we are complaining that our coffees are too cold, the new iPhone has no headphone jack, even how bad our presidential candidates are, but none of this matches up to what people are facing in Aleppo. Out there, there is a girl my age who is scared for her life when she walks home from school. Terror and anxiety runs through her family realizing they are stuck in a city of violence. I sit down, take a moment, and pray for these people. I pray God keeps them safe and brings peace to this war-torn city, country, and region.
We shouldn’t become ignorant to what happens in the world. Millennials are looked down upon when it comes to being educated with national and international news. There are Syrians across the world who are under the same moon as us, yet they live a completely different lifestyle. Keeping our eyes, ears and hearts open makes us aware of our blessings. Aleppo is under great distress, the people are pleading for help and we need to listen.
