Guest Post: A Visit from Qalb Lawze to Aleppo

Return after absence

For at least some people living in northwest Syria, the insurgents’ capture of Aleppo city has finally provided them the opportunity to visit the city after a long absence, given that they could not travel there while it remained under Syrian government control. Today’s guest post is from my friend ‘Odoacer’ of the originally Druze village of Qalb Lawze in north Idlib countryside. In this post, he describes what he saw and the sentiments he observed in the city. I believe this post provides important nuance amid partisan commentary and portrayals on both the insurgent and government sides.

Photo by ‘Odoacer’


My visit to Aleppo after a decade and a half of war
3 December 2024

Last week, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, within the ‘Deterring the Aggression’ operation, seized the entirety of Aleppo city. In the morning I entered this city that is dear to me heart, where I spent my best days with many female and male friends whom I never forget.