Scorched Earth in Syria’s Daraa al-Balad

Women walk amid the destruction in Daraa al-Balad on Saturday. (AFP)
Women walk amid the destruction in Daraa al-Balad on Saturday. (AFP)
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Scorched Earth in Syria’s Daraa al-Balad

Women walk amid the destruction in Daraa al-Balad on Saturday. (AFP)
Women walk amid the destruction in Daraa al-Balad on Saturday. (AFP)

Some people have returned to destroyed houses or scorched earth. Others returned to homes that have been stripped bare of their belongings.

This is the situation in Daraa al-Balad after a Russian-sponsored agreement led to a de-escalation of tensions between the regime and remaining opposition in southern Syria.

Despite the losses, the people have rejoiced at a major accomplishment, which is staying in their city and avoiding displacement. They have gone about removing the rubble and resuming their daily lives amid the destruction and the lingering smell of gunpowder in the air.

“The heavy shelling did not spare a thing,” “Abou Jihad” told Asharq Al-Awsat. “Look around you, houses have been leveled to the ground and entire areas are unrecognizable.”

“Yesterday, we were displaced, fighters and negotiators, today, we are builders. We have started to clean the city and houses that have been destroyed,” he continued.

“We will restore the beaty of the city and rebuild the Omari mosque and what it stands for. We regret what happened. We are a peace-loving people, who want to lead a dignified life away from the grip of the security forces or military,” he stressed.

“We have paid dearly for this in Daraa. A reality has been imposed on us. We don’t know what the coming days have in store for the city given the establishment of nine military posts around the area,” he stated.

Greatest accomplishment
A member of the central committee in Daraa told Asharq Al-Awsat that the locals managed to cling on to their lands. They have thwarted the plot to introduce demographic change in the area.

Their sons persevered against the forces of the Fourth and Sixth Divisions, as well as the Iranian militias, amid constant shelling and daily attempts to capture neighborhoods that were besieged for 73 days, he noted.

The withdrawal of Iranian militias from Daraa al-Balad on Thursday morning after a 78-day siege is the people’s greatest accomplishment, he declared.

“The negotiations carried out and decisions reached in Daraa were locally-made and not affiliated with any agenda, country or opposition,” he stressed

“The people of Daraa are no warmongers, but the conflict and siege were imposed on them,” he went on to say.

“They have managed to thwart all plots that were aimed at dragging them towards escalation and war,” he added, saying 35 people paid with their life in defending their homes.

Stench of death
Activist Raafat Abazeid told Asharq Al-Awsat that Daraa al-Balad is like a “ghost town” of rubble and destruction. “The stench of death is everywhere.”

“The people, however, have shown determination the moment they returned to their city. They rejoiced at remaining on their land and that is priceless,” he stressed.

The moment they returned, they went about cleaning the Omari mosque. They then cleared out houses and have tried their best to make them livable. Some have lost their homes and are staying with their neighbors. Others erected tents over the rubble of their homes. “This shows their attachment to their land in spite of the destruction,” he added.

A resident, “Abou Mohammed”, said life essentials such as water and electricity are non-existent in Daraa al-Balad.

The locals have resorted to transporting drinking water from irrigation wells to large tanks ahead of distributing them to houses at their own expense.

“As for electricity, it is already non-existent in Syria, so what can be expected in Daraa al-Balad, which for years has been punished by the regime?” continued “Abou Mohammed. At best, Daraa al-Balad used to receive no more than hour or two of power per day.

Now, it has no power and the people have resorted to private generators. Fuel for the generators is bought at hefty prices on the black market. Others have turned to solar power, he revealed.



Loss, Worry, Relief and Prayers for Better Days as Ramadan Begins in Gaza amid a Fragile Ceasefire

 Palestinians sit at a large table surrounded by the rubble of destroyed homes and buildings as they gather for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, March 1, 2025 (AP)
Palestinians sit at a large table surrounded by the rubble of destroyed homes and buildings as they gather for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, March 1, 2025 (AP)
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Loss, Worry, Relief and Prayers for Better Days as Ramadan Begins in Gaza amid a Fragile Ceasefire

 Palestinians sit at a large table surrounded by the rubble of destroyed homes and buildings as they gather for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, March 1, 2025 (AP)
Palestinians sit at a large table surrounded by the rubble of destroyed homes and buildings as they gather for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, March 1, 2025 (AP)

Before the war, the Muslim holy month of Ramadan was a festive time of increased worship, social gatherings and cheer for Fatima Al-Absi. Together with her husband, the resident of Jabaliya in Gaza said she used to do Ramadan shopping, visit relatives and head to the mosque for prayers.

But the Israel-Hamas war has shredded many of the familiar and cherished threads of Ramadan as Al-Absi once knew it: her husband and a son-in-law have been killed, her home was damaged and burnt and the mosque she attended during Ramadan destroyed, she said.

"Everything has changed," she said on Saturday as her family observed the first day of Ramadan. "There’s no husband, no home, no proper food and no proper life."

For Al-Absi and other Gaza residents, Ramadan started this year under a fragile ceasefire agreement that paused more than 15 months of a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and devastated the Gaza Strip. Compared to last Ramadan, many found relief in the truce — but there's also worry and fear about what’s next and grief over the personal and collective losses, the raw wounds and the numerous scars left behind.

"I’ve lost a lot," said the 57-year-old grandmother, who’s been reduced to eking out an existence amid the wreckage. "Life is difficult. May God grant us patience and strength," she added.

Israel’s government said early Sunday it supports a proposal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza through Ramadan and Passover even as Hamas has insisted earlier on negotiating the truce’s second phase. The statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office came minutes after the first phase ended, and as talks have begun on starting the second phase.

The statement gave new details on what Israel described as a US proposal, which it said was made after US envoy Steve Witkoff got "the impression that at this stage there was no possibility of bridging the positions of the parties to end the war, and that more time was needed for talks on a permanent ceasefire."

"We’re scared because there's no stability," Al-Absi said and added that she’s praying for the war to end and that she can’t bear any more losses. She spoke before Israel’s statement.

Though Ramadan is still far from normal, some in the Gaza Strip said that, in some ways, it feels better than last year’s.

"We can’t predict what will happen next," Amal Abu Sariyah, in Gaza City, said before the month’s start. "Yes, the country is destroyed and the situation is very bad, but the feeling that the shelling and the killing ... have stopped, makes you (feel) that this year is better than the last one."

Overshadowed by war and displacement, last Ramadan, was "very bad," for the Palestinian people, she said. The 2024 Ramadan in Gaza began with ceasefire talks then at a standstill, hunger worsening across the strip and no end in sight to the war.

The war was sparked by the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel in which Hamas-led fighters killed some 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages. Israel’s military offensive has killed over 48,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. Vast areas of Gaza have been destroyed.

Under the ceasefire, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians flooded back into northern Gaza. After initial relief and joy at returning to their homes — even if damaged or destroyed — they’ve been grappling with living amid the wreckage.

As Palestinians in the Gaza Strip prepared for Ramadan, shopping for essential household goods and food, some lamented harsh living conditions and economic hardships, but also said they rely on their faith in God to provide for them.

"I used to help people. ... Today, I can’t help myself," said Nasser Shoueikh. "My situation, thank God, used to be better and I wasn’t in need for anything. ... We ask God to stand by us."

For observant Muslims the world over, Ramadan is a time for fasting daily from dawn to sunset, increased worship, religious reflection, charity and good deeds. Socially, it often brings families and friends together in festive gatherings around meals to break their fast.

Elsewhere in the Gaza Strip, Fatima Barbakh, from the southern city of Khan Younis, said her Ramadan shopping was limited to the essentials.

"We can’t buy lanterns or decorations like we do every Ramadan," she said.

Back in Jabaliya, Al-Absi bitterly recalled how she used to break her fast with her husband, how much she misses him and how she remembers him when she prays.

"We don't want war," she said. "We want peace and safety."