Shattered glass and bullet-riddled walls is what a Syrian family’s home turned into after numerous shellings of Old Damascus. The residents gave up on restoring the glass, but are trying to save the traditional décor.
Canadian journalist and rights activist Eva Bartlett visited the family, who showed her around their flat in a traditional Damascus courtyard house they’ve been living in for 80 years. Their home is one of many buildings, hit by strikes that so-called “moderate” rebel groups conduct in the Syrian capital, according to Bartlett, who reported on their extensive shelling in her blog.
“During the 6th of February there was a lot of mortars falling and one of them fell here. Thanks God, no one was home,” a woman says through a translator, pointing at an inner courtyard.
The inside walls are riddled with holes and once glass-fitted windows are now replaced with the plastic. The family, which includes several small children, doesn’t want to replace the expensive glass “because it’s going to be destroyed again” anyway.
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The family took some precautions, however, and put cement over the ancient handcrafted façade of the house to protect it from potential damage. Yet, a decorated archway was partially burned in one of the militant attacks.