The Syrian revolution began in Daraa al-Balad on March 18, 2011, when Daraa children wrote on the school wall in February, “the people want the fall of the regime”.
Hamza al-Hourani – August 1, 2021
The Political Security Branch in Daraa, which was headed by Brigadier General Atef Najeeb, Bashar al-Assad’s cousin, arrested the children, tortured them, and pulled out their nails with sharp tools inside the Political Security Detention Centre. Brigadier General Atef Naguib himself supervised their torture.
Notables and representatives of Daraa governorate demanded the release of children aged between 6 to 16 years. They demanded that they be released from prison and handed over to their families, but their request was rejected, as Atef Najib rebuked them and told them to forget these children, he said if you cannot have others, send me Your wives and I will make them pregnant.
As a result of this speech, the Syrian revolution broke out in the province of Daraa, and spread to all parts of Syria, as not a single street in Syria was devoid of revolutionary activities.
When the regime was besieged and was about to fall, it began to bring in its Iranian allies and sectarian terrorist battalions from around the world, and used internationally prohibited weapons, as it used chemical weapons (sarin gas against civilians in 2013) and killed around ten thousand people (in half an hour), mostly children and women, and is still using it from time to time until now. Finally, the Russians were brought in with their full weapon.
When Russia intervened with its army, it turned the scales on the ground and the regime was able to regain control of 60% of the Syrian land. Russia, with the participation of the Syrian regime, Iran, and sectarian militias, practiced a scorched-earth policy, destroying approximately 80% of Syria. More than two thirds of the people became refugees. Nearly a million civilians were killed by this criminal gang. There are currently about 2 million political prisoners in prisons, whose fate is unknown.
In 2018, Daraa governorate was forced to conclude an agreement with Russia and behind it was the Assad regime and Iran. This agreement stipulates:
- the cessation of hostilities in Daraa governorate
- the cancellation of the army’s deployment and its return to its military barracks
- the release of political detainees.
- Russian guarantee that the Assad regime does not object to opponents in Daraa governorate,
- no displacement of the people of the governorate to northern Syria
- Daraa governorate remains governed by its people until a political agreement is reached to change the regime in Syria in accordance with the text of International Resolution No. (2254) issued by the Security Council.
- In return for handing over the heavy and medium weapons in Daraa, and the people keeping an individual weapon to defend themselves.
All the required weapons have already been delivered, but neither the Syrian regime nor the Russian guarantor, during the three years of the complex truce in 2018, did not commit to implementing any of the terms of the agreement.
People began demonstrating and peaceful sit-ins to pressure Russia to implement its promises or answer their demands. In May 2021, the criminal regime in Syria performed an electoral drama, and remained in power. The people of Daraa did not accept this farce, and they raised their voices loudly in the face of Russia and the Syrian regime, and they demonstrated by a thousands in rejection of this farce.
From that time on, the regime began threatening the people of Daraa, mobilizing armies on its borders, and threatening to take revenge on this steadfast province.
Daraa al-Balad was besieged about a month ago and the city was cut off, where about 50,000 people, mostly women and children, now live under a suffocating siege by the regime’s army and Iranian militias. These forces tried to storm Daraa al-Balad at the end of July 2021, but the response with their light weapons was enough to defeat these forces. The regime brought in huge new reinforcements and is now threatening to commit mass massacres against the people of Daraa that had not been seen before.
This attack has so far left nearly 20 dead and more than 200 wounded, most of them children and women. There are no medical centres to look after their condition, no medicine, no electricity, and no water. They are dead because of the great international failure to support these vulnerable people. We do not know where things will go there. We demand that the voice of the besieged innocents be conveyed to every decision-maker in this world to pressure Russia to stop this barbaric attack carried out by its allies from the Syrian and Iranian regime against this people who are struggling against injustice and the dictator.
