‘After 9 years of Disasters in Syria, I fear the arrival of Coronavirus'
I’m Nabil. I currently live in the northern countryside of Aleppo and I have been working in the medical cases department in Molham Volunteering Team since 2017.
Now we are watching the spread of Coronavirus around the world. The area I live in is in huge danger if the virus reaches it, because there are a lot of camps where it is so hard for people to isolate themselves. There is also a lack of knowledge in regards to how dangerous Coronavirus is. Despite this danger, I’m still working. I have to. I visit the medical cases both in houses and tents and I’m following the basic safety guidelines - I’m wearing medical masks and gloves, disinfecting, preventing crowding during patient visiting time, and raising awareness about the Covid-19 and the danger of its spread.
I’m currently working with Dr.Hatem, who used to be in Al-Quds hospital before with us. Now he is the head of Al-Amal hospital (“Al-Amal” means hope in Arabic) - a hospital which specialises in children and women’s health. In the hospital it is hard to avoid direct contact with patients, but we always use basic protection and we continually disinfect the whole hospital. There is also a group of the staff who work solely on raising patients’ awareness and organising the space to make sure there is no crowding.
The danger of the Coronavirus is threatening the whole world. I feel sad about this. I fear the arrival of the Coronavirus to the northern parts of Syria. We’ve already lived through 9 years of disasters: the regime’s crimes, killings and forced displacement. I’m afraid of the spread of Coronavirus because there are many people living in tents, and the difficult economic situation of some families doesn’t allow them to stay in during the pandemic - they have to work to feed their children.
I fear for the repetition of what we went through in Aleppo. The cruelty of all the death we saw there still chases us. The crimes committed against children, women, the elderly. The blood and the massacres. I’m afraid that the same horrible things will come back in different ways, and I fear standing helplessly in front of them.
But I’m still here, with my friends and my family. I will always be prepared to give medical assistance, even when it becomes a danger to our lives. That is our job - our mission.
Finally, I wish for everyone to stand with the families inside of Syria so they could stay in their homes or tents. So they don’t leave and become a danger to themselves and others.
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