A man walks past a banner of Bashar al-Assad in Douma, East Ghouta, which surrendered to pro-Assad forces in April 2018 (Marco Djurica/Reuters)


Almost a year after the Assad regime’s takeover of East Ghouta, near Syria’s capital Damascus, residents are reportedly living in fear of detention and forced conscription.

Syria Direct speaks to residents of the area — seized last April by pro-Assad forces after months of conventional and chemical attacks that killed more than 1,700 people and displaced more than 50,000 — and with those who departed to opposition-held northwest Syria.

Samer al-Hassan chose to stay in East Ghouta despite the threats. He initially avoided forced conscription with the help of a well-connected friend. But he went into hiding after a second call for him to report to security forces.

“I can’t go to any government office, which means I can’t even get a passport,” he says. “Where am I supposed to go in this world?”

Syria Daily, January 25: Disappearances and Fear in “Liberated” East Ghouta

Darkness As Residents Go Quiet

In Idlib Province in northwest Syria, Muhammad al-Hassan speaks of the difficulty of getting any news from his hometown Saqba with people refusing to talk and going dark on social media:

I can only get news from the papers now. All of my friends and acquaintances are afraid to be in contact with me.

Every person has chosen a path, and now they must follow [it].

The Assad regime, enabled by the Russian military, declared “reconciliation agreements” after the surrender of East Ghouta. However, residents were soon forced to sign agreements not to criticize the regime and faced difficulties in getting essential documents to guarantee their property and satisfy security forces.

Much of East Ghouta is still in ruins, with regular power cuts and lack of water. Urban areas are still marked by avenues of rubble, with up to 70% of infrastructure destroyed or damaged.

“We Are ‘Terrorists’ to Them”

Nour al-Din al-Shami, now a teacher in al-Bab in northern Aleppo Province, explains, “I chose to leave, fearing that I would fall into the hands of the regime. They weren’t able to reassure me, regardless of their promises that there would be no prosecutions.”

Samar Abd al-Hamid decided to leave after the regime’s chlorine attack on Douma on April 7, 2018, departing with her husband and four children after enduring bombardment for months.

I know one person related to my husband, around 50 years old, who returned three months ago…and [was] arrested.

We are “terrorists” [to them]. We can’t go back.

Muhammad al-Hassan says from Idlib, “My decision is not to return. I’ll remain here, moving from one liberated area to another, rather than return to the regime-held areas.”