Blood and the ‘Good Guys’

Watching CNN, I’m often amused by an idea drilled into viewers with obvious stubbornness by announcers and experts: That a moderate and democratic opposition exists in Syria. They say that this opposition, rather than Islamic State, will come to power if President Bashar Assad resigns his post, and will then easily deal with the legions of Islamic State fighters. This fairy-tale opinion is clearly idiotic, but that’s not the point. The West simply doesn’t see — or doesn’t want to see — the methods used by the pro-American Free Syrian Army in its fight with the regime. On the other hand, not that long ago I was lucky enough to see how the “secular opposition” carries out the war.

Two years ago, I was staying in a hotel in a Christian neighborhood of Damascus not far from Bab Tuma, “Thomas’ Gate.” The hotel wasn’t bad; it was cheap, had a generator — there are rolling blackouts — and Internet. However, the desk clerk warned me right away, “Our neighborhood is extremely dangerous. Be careful.” Ten minutes by car from Bab Tuma lay the forces of the Free Syrian Army. They controlled the Damascene suburbs of Ghouta, Duma and Jobar. Mortar attacks were constant. In the morning. At noon. In the evening. And at night. Dozens of shells hit the block every single day with enviable regularity. By the third night, I had completely gotten used to falling asleep to the din of explosions. The locals’ calmness was amazing. When a mortar round hit a church cupola, the people in the café across the street continued calmly munching on their kebabs. Mothers strolled with their children. Old men smoked their hookahs.

“Well, what should we do?” an elderly Christian teacher named Elias said to me. “We live here. There’s no other choice. Either we resign ourselves to staying indoors, or we somehow travel along the street.” The next day a woman and three-year-old child were severely injured by mortar shrapnel. The entire pavement was covered in blood. That evening two schoolgirls were killed on their way home from the bazaar. A day before leaving, I myself got caught in a bombardment. To this day, I remember perfectly the horrible whistle of the shell, the explosion and shredded leaves raining from the trees. I lived that way for just a week. People in Damascus have been living that way for years.

Do you know what the most interesting part is? There weren’t any soldiers in the neighborhood. None at all. There weren’t even any police, not to mention APCs or tanks. There were only two old local Christian militiamen sitting on chairs next to the tower inspecting cars. Nevertheless, Bab Tuma was constantly “saturated.” Endlessly. The Free Syrian Army fired at random into a neighborhood with no military targets whatsoever, with one goal: to kill people. Women, elderly, children — it was all the same to them. They knew for sure that they were killing and injuring innocent civilians, but that didn’t bother the “freedom fighters” one bit. After all, Christians are of a different faith; they’re “kafirs” and “infidels.” They also periodically launch rocket attacks on Latakia, Bashar Assad’s birthplace, specifically aiming for large groups of people. After all, those people are “infidels” too: Alawites, members of a Muslim sect labeled “apostate” by the Islamic State group; the Free Syrian Army hates them for their kinship with the president’s family.

Contrary to Americans’ childishly naive belief, the war in Syria isn’t being carried out along the principle of removing a bloody tyrant and establishing democracy. They’ve been killing people for their religious affiliation for a long time, and the “secular opposition” doesn’t shy away from such practices. The Free Syrian Army takes journalists, engineers, or simply rich people hostage for ransom. Of course, such “honorable” behavior doesn’t trouble Washington.

After all, “The end justifies the means,” according to chief Jesuit Loyola. Those fighting for democracy can spill children’s blood, bombard churches and slash up Christians and humiliate prisoners. After all, this is war. It takes all kinds. As soon as they finish fighting, they’ll turn right into “good guys.” At least, they really believe that fantasy in the U.S.

I openly admit that I don’t like the Syrian government. Two years ago I was detained by the authorities upon my arrival in Damascus for articles deemed “incorrect” by the Syrian Ministry of Information. They only released me two days later, after the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs interfered. However, when I hear that France wants to create a tribunal to “investigate the crimes of Bashar Assad’s regime,” I want to ask, “Shouldn’t there be another tribunal? One for judging those gunning down women and children in Bab Tuma without hesitation, as if at a shooting gallery?” I’m ready to give eyewitness testimony under oath. Only, for some reason no one’s asking me.