‘A big hate in the country’
On Friday, 40 people died in protests calling for the imposition of a no-fly zone in Syria. Over half of those killed died in the troubled city of Homs, according to the Local Coordination Committees, a group that organizes and monitors protests.
The result of the bloodshed is a country increasingly polarized by sect, class and political conviction.
“The government is winning, but not in a big way,” said a Damascene journalist who asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the subject. “We’re standing still, and the problem is, there’s a big hate in the country now.”
Though the majority has not decided where its loyalties lie, “I don’t call it a silent majority. It’s a fearful majority,” the journalist said. “They are afraid of everything, afraid of now and afraid for the future they don’t know.
“The protests are smaller now, because the army is there, but what happens when you remove the army?”
And protests erupt on a regular basis, even in Damascus. On a government-escorted visit to the working-class and deeply conservative Midan neighborhood, the calm of one recent afternoon was suddenly shattered by the sound of merchants pulling down their shutters as a roar began to swell. A “martyr” to the cause of the opposition — a soldier who had defected in Homs — was being buried, and his funeral procession was accompanied by a noisy anti-government demonstration.
“God is great!” shouted those in the crowd of several hundred young men, as they marched up the narrow street toward a cemetery. And then, with greater force, arose the chant of what has become the chief rallying cry of the protest movement around the country: “The people want the execution of the president!”
The rage, energy and determination were palpable, suggesting that these young men, who have been taking to the streets on a regular basis since March, will not soon tire of their efforts to topple the regime.
A short distance and a world away, a group of students from privileged families debated politics over lattes and cigarettes in a cafe at the glitzy Cham City mall. Four of them supported the government to varying degrees. A fifth, who gave his name as Bassam, remained silent until asked for his views.
“I support the protesters, and I want total change. Including the president,” he said, adding that he had taken part in protests.
The tone of the discussion shifted abruptly.
“My president is untouchable, and I will kill people for him, just as they are killing against him,” screamed one of the students, Mariam, as she kicked Bassam under the table.
Bassam responded quietly that he was prepared to die for the sake of change. “My life is not more precious than the lives of those who have gone before,” he said.
The friends checked their watches and said it was time to go. Taking their farewells, they headed into the darkening streets and went their separate ways.
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