Aleppo, Syria – Abu Ahmad flashes his telephone’s torch onto an explosive he discovered within the basement of a constructing that was once a regime navy outpost housing troopers, tanks and ammunition through the Syrian warfare.
Now Abu Ahmad instructions a base for the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, within the constructing.
The volunteers within the White Helmets labored tirelessly all through the warfare and within the aftermath of the 2023 earthquakes to save lots of folks below rubble and get them emergency help.
They moved into the constructing slightly greater than a month after an opposition offensive led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) took Aleppo on November 30 and went on to topple Bashar al-Assad eight days later.
Remnants of the previous regime littered the place, Abu Ahmad stated, with discarded navy uniforms, tank shells and troopers’ private belongings tossed apart as folks fled the outpost.
Professional-regime graffiti stays. One message reads: “With our soul, with our blood, we’ll sacrifice for you, Bashar.”
“Bashar” has been crossed out with a pink X.
The work continues
Within the aftermath of 13 years of warfare, there’s heaps for the White Helmets to do.
They’re clearing rubble, demining buildings and looking for mass graves – traces of a battle that strangled town between 2012 and 2016, led to the regime retaking opposition-held areas of Aleppo and made it one in every of Syria’s cities most devastated by the warfare.
Abu Ahmad, who was among the many first White Helmets volunteers in 2013, has seen all of it.
As Russia pounded Aleppo from the air, the White Helmets pulled folks from the rubble at nice threat to themselves.
Russia used “double faucets” bombing, ready for rescue staff to reach after an preliminary assault after which hanging once more to focus on the primary responders.
“I misplaced 5 folks near me due to this Russian technique,” Abu Ahmad recalled. “However the worst have been the helicopters dropping barrel bombs.”
Earlier than the battles in Aleppo, the constructing had been used as a fireplace station, and the regime had introduced these firefighters again in 2016 after retaking town to share area with the navy.
Now Abu Ahmad desires to combine the fireplace crews into the White Helmets’ work regardless of their previous service to al-Assad.
“We forgive them for what they did,” he stated. “What issues now’s working collectively to rebuild town.”
