Syria still scarred after 14-year civil war

DW (English)

Many hoped the end of the civil war would bring relief and a measure of prosperity to Syria. Visiting the ruined town of Daraya near Damascus, DW's correspondent found out that rebuilding has barely begun.

Transcript

00:00A year ago, these streets were filled with hope that the fall of the Assad regime would

00:05mark a new beginning.

00:07But almost 12 months later, the Raya still lies in ruins.

00:12This town was home to more than 200,000 people.

00:17Government airstrikes tore it to pieces during the civil war.

00:21And although that government is gone, here the future feels uncertain.

00:28We came here and met Jamal Bayraktar a year ago, just after the government fell.

00:34This is what his home and salt factory looked like then.

00:39Coming back now, nothing has changed.

00:41I cannot rebuild the factory.

00:45I can't repair my house either.

00:48I can't even afford to install a window.

00:50I'm broke.

00:51I have nothing.

00:53Why is there no rebuilding?

00:56No one is helping.

00:57If you have your own money, it's possible to rebuild, but otherwise not.

01:00And I don't have money.

01:03The basement Jamal showed us last year, the site of mass killings during the war, remains

01:08untouched.

01:11The air still feels thick with dust and grief.

01:14The government promised rebuilding and accountability.

01:17But here in Daraya, the past still sits in plain sight.

01:21And the future feels far away.

01:26Jamal's neighbour, Isal Jasim, tells stories of loss and of waiting.

01:31He says the war is over, but peace has not yet arrived.

01:34I've witnessed the massacres here, and I buried two of the victims here on my land, my two

01:41cousins.

01:42I buried them here behind me.

01:45There has still not been any accountability.

01:48We have absolutely no information that the criminals were arrested or brought to justice.

01:59Like most of his neighbours who are still in Daraya, Isal lives in his destroyed, ruthless home.

02:05Across Syria, reconstruction is piecemeal, and has barely begun.

02:11The economy is collapsing.

02:14Inflation is soaring, putting the cost of rebuilding beyond reach for many.

02:20At 64, Jamal works as a gardener to survive.

02:26I am working for my children.

02:28Why would I do it otherwise?

02:30I do all this only for them.

02:32That's it.

02:35One year after the fall of Assad, people in Daraya is still waiting for the bulldozers,

02:41the builders, and a new beginning.

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