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28 February 2018updated 09 Sep 2021 5:21pm

Eastern Ghouta was once a suburb filled with orchard trees. Now it’s hell on earth

Assad is trying to fool the world into believing that these attacks are both necessary and just. 

By Bahia Mardini

I know Ghouta well. My family was lucky to have a home there. A beautiful, quiet suburb just 10km from Damascus, it was common for families to live there and commute into the big city for work. The area was once known for its intense carpet of fruit trees, vegetables and maize.

Today, though, Ghouta is a scene of grey death. No one in my family lives there anymore – it’s too dangerous. Damascenes can hear the planes as they wing their way to drop bombs on the area. And for those still trapped in eastern Ghouta, life is hell on earth.

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