Syrian Blogger Offers An Intimate, Haunting View Of Life In A War Zone

Marcell Shehwaro's work was recognized with a major award at the Online News Association's annual conference last weekend.
In this April 11, 2015 file photo, released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrians gather between damaged buildings in the predominantly Christian and Armenian neighborhood of Suleimaniyeh, Aleppo, Syria.
In this April 11, 2015 file photo, released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syrians gather between damaged buildings in the predominantly Christian and Armenian neighborhood of Suleimaniyeh, Aleppo, Syria.
Credit: SANA via AP, File

Amid the dozens of stories about the refugee crisis in Europe, it can be easy to forget its tragic cause: the war in Syria, which began more than four years ago.

But one blogger’s work is serving as a powerful reminder of the conflict fueling the international migrant crisis. At its annual conference last weekend, the Online News Association recognized Syrian blogger and Christian activist Marcell Shehwaro with an award in the category of Online Commentary for her 12-part series, “Dispatches From Syria.” The judges praised Shehwaro for writing about the conflict with depth and nuance, examining “the gray areas in a war usually told from polar extremes.”

The series was published by Global Voices, a non-profit outlet focused on citizen media. It is accessible to a wide, international audience, having been translated from Arabic into English by Amira Al Hussaini and Lara Al Malakeh and translated by volunteers into another six languages.

In one post in the series, titled “In Syria We Have All Become Killers,” Shehwaro recounts how she learned via a Facebook post about the bombing of a regime security checkpoint, where her mother was killed in 2012. That Facebook post prompted complicated, conflicting thoughts:

"I don't know what my feelings are, exactly, but at this moment I fully understand the cry of all the victims who are calling for revenge. And I understand how everything loses value when you deal with death on a daily basis. I know how learning to adapt gives you greater reverence for death than for life. In our days, which have all become similar to each other, death has become the norm and life the exception."

In another post published this month, she writes openly about her struggles with depression, grief and guilt over the course of the year since she left Syria and how “the shadow of death accompanied [her].”

Shehwaro’s series is part of Global Voices’ “The Bridge” platform, which aims to inform coverage of news events with local communities' perspectives.

MORE:

The What’s Working Honor Roll highlights some of the best reporting and analysis, from a range of media outlets, on all the ways people are working toward solutions to some of our greatest challenges. If you know a story you think should be on our Honor Roll, please send an email to editor Joseph Erbentraut at joseph.erbentraut@huffingtonpost.com with the subject line "WHAT'S WORKING."

For more solutions-focused coverage, follow What's Working on Facebook and Twitter.

Also on HuffPost:

War In Syria

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot