'Our destiny ... is death': Teacher in Aleppo loses hope after evacuations halted
CBC Radio | Posted: December 16, 2016 10:33 PM | Last Updated: December 16, 2016
The evacuation of eastern Aleppo was halted Friday as government and rebel forces blamed each for the failed cease fire that has left thousands of civilians still trapped in the war-torn city.
The UN believes there are 2,700 children among the trapped would-be evacuees.
Buses that had been carrying people out of the city were suspended by government forces after reports of gunfire.
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Abdulkafi al-Hamdu, an activist and teacher still living in eastern Aleppo, was one of the many people stopped from fleeing the war-torn city early Friday.
He spoke with As It Happens host Carol Off about what his family experienced and shares his doubts about survival after the already fragile cease fire seems to have crumbled.
Carol Off: Abdulkafi al-Hamdu, you'd been planning on leaving, to get out of eastern Aleppo. Why can't you leave today?
Abdulkafi al-Hamdu: I went there at 6.a.m. I was with my wife, my family ... It was so cold. Some families were there from yesterday at 9 am. Unfortunately, no busses came. And even the Red Crescent, I asked them "What happened? Why aren't there any cars?" And they said "I don't know."
But they let some cars leave. So these cars who were leaving. They let some people off of the cars and they stole all of their money, their mobile phones, their jewelry. And they put men on the wall and they [took] their clothes.
CO: The regime is saying that these green buses will take everybody out but what is happening with those buses?
AA: Yesterday, they sent 20 green buses. And they can transfer only about 1,000 people. We are more than 100,000 people. So how long are they going to evacuate us? For a month, for example?
And just because, after awhile, they will say, "No, we stopped and we are going to kill you" after half of the people went.
So after waiting about four or five hours and no buses came. I just was moving to find some food. Something for my daughter. We didn't expect this. It was freezing. So exactly at 12 p.m. maybe or 1 p.m., I was just looking for something to eat when I saw all the people rushing, rushing down from the corridor. I didn't know first what happened so I ran to help my wife and daughter who were there. When I was running to the corridors where my wife and daughter was, there was many cries from children, from people. They are crying, "They are going to kill us! They are going to kill us!"
I saw some people with bloody faces. I didn't know at first what happened because I was so worried about my daughter and wife.
It was a horrific situation. Just imagine that even my wife forgot my daughter beside the bags and ran away. After a while her mother told her "Where is your daughter?" and she said "I don't know I forgot her then she got back to find her crying. You know, because the situation makes you forget yourself even not only your daughter.
CO: The people who are running away, who said they had their things stolen, even their clothes. They were going to try and get in the cars and buses and then they were attacked. Is that what you're saying?
AA: I will tell you something. After they took all their money and mobile phones and [men's trousers] they told them that "We are going to invade Aleppo today. We are going to kill you." So they said, "No cease fire at all. You are terrorists, all of you are terrorists. Your women and children are terrorists." These words are repeated by the Assad militias and Hezbollah and Iranian militias.
CO: When people are taken away. When they are getting on these buses these few, we understand they're taking them to Idlib. Do you know what happens to them when they get to Idlib?
AA: When they pass the regime areas, they are safe. But this number that could pass is nothing. Maybe it's about three per cent or four per cent maximum. This is the number of people who left Aleppo.
CO: So you don't think you're going to get out safely? You think this is not true, the evacuation that they're saying is just a lie?
AA: Yes. If you are in my place now will you trust Assad? Will you trust these militias? Will you trust Red Crescent and Red Cross? How can I now go out of Aleppo?
How can I make sure that my wife will not be killed in front of my eyes? How can I make sure my daughter will not be slaughtered in front of my eyes because they want to make pain for me … because, you know, I speak out. And this is one of the worst crimes for Assad. I know that this is my crime and I have to be dead for the regime because I speak out. Now we had only two choices: either to die, or to die.
That's it. This is life and this is to the international community's satisfaction. How can such things can happen? No one cares and we are let down. We are kept here in this very small area to face our destiny, which is death.
CO: What are you going to do?
AA: If you don't know, so I don't know. I really don't know. Now the only thing I can do is go to my wife who is crying at home beside my daughter. I'm going to calm her down. I will see both of them are crying, non stop crying. So I might be crying. This is the only thing that I can do, this night at least.
CO: Do you have anything to eat at home? Any way to stay warm at home?
AA: Yeah, I have some wood, I have some rice, I have something to eat but I want the world to know this, okay: When the injured went out of Aleppo, a lot of doctors went out with them to help them because they can't leave them alone. And after this happened, we are besieged, which means we are left without any doctors here. This means that we are going to die.
CO: If you do get out, where will you go?
AA: I'm not sure that I'm going to be out. Believe me. No one. No one thinks that he's going to be out.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For more on this story, listen to our full interview.