Like many others within the Syrian capital Damascus, scholar Shadi selected to remain residence so he may sustain with the tempo of occasions since rebels launched a shock offensive final week.
“I had no want to exit and everybody selected to remain in to comply with the information surrounded by their family members,” mentioned Shadi, who didn’t want to give his full title.
Because the rebels have taken metropolis after metropolis in fast succession, many Syrians have been wracked by uncertainty, fearing a revival of the worst days of Syria’s grinding civil conflict now in its 14th yr.
“We do not perceive something anymore. In only one week, the twists and turns have been so overwhelming that they’re past all comprehension,” the younger man mentioned.
“The fear is contagious however we’ve to maintain our cool,” he mentioned, by no means as soon as taking his eyes off the alerts on his cell phone.
Syrian rebels, led by Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), launched the shock offensive on November 27, sweeping from their stronghold within the northwest to seize swathes of northern and central Syria together with the key cities of Aleppo and Hama.
Authorities forces have launched a counteroffensive looking for to repel the rebels however at the price of stress-free their grip on different elements of the nation, notably the east the place Kurdish-led forces have taken over.
“At any time when rumours unfold, folks rush to purchase numerous merchandise, bread, rice, sugar and detergents,” mentioned Amine, 56, who runs a grocery retailer within the Sheikh Saad neighbourhood of the capital.
“As we speak, I purchased twice from my wholesaler to maintain up with demand.”
– Exams delayed –
The offensive has already despatched meals costs skyrocketing by 30 % in Damascus, in keeping with residents.
The Syrian pound is buying and selling at an all-time low of 19,000 to the greenback, down from 15,000 earlier than the rebels launched their offensive on Wednesday of final week.
Safety measures — already strict earlier than the offensive — have been beefed up, with further automotive searches, notably on autos coming from exterior the capital, in keeping with residents.
Issues have been additional pushed by the unfold of disinformation and rumours.
The Syrian defence ministry has denounced “fabricated” movies, together with of explosions on the headquarters of the overall workers, calling on residents to not fall prey to “lies” that “goal to sow chaos and panic amongst civilians”.
Within the normally full of life neighbourhood of Bab Sharqi, eating places and cafes are near-deserted within the night, with some even closing up early as a result of absence of consumers.
Damascus College has delayed end-of-term exams and the Syrian soccer federation has postponed matches till additional discover.
State information company SANA reported that at Friday prayers, imams known as on the trustworthy “to not panic… and to face as one behind the Syrian Arab Military to defend the homeland”.
Georgina, 32, mentioned she had “heard lots of rumours”.
“I went to Outdated Damascus and noticed a traditional state of affairs,” she mentioned, including that nonetheless “everybody was maintaining a tally of the information”.
In the meantime, some radio stations have switched from selection programming to continuous information segments.
On state tv, programmes host analysts and witnesses on the bottom, together with these denying “rumours” of recent territorial losses to the advancing rebels.
