The notorious Rukban displacement camp in Syria’s desert, a ominous symbol of the country’s civil war, has ended, with only a few survivors making their way back to their hometowns.
A tragic and sorrowful chapter of displacement stories created by the bygone regime’s war machine comes to an end, according to Syrian Information Minister Hamza al-Mustafa on Saturday on X.
The regime left people in the barren desert to face their agonizing fate, he continued, noting that “Rukban was not just a camp; it was the triangle of death that bore witness to the cruelty of siege and starvation.”
The camp was set up in a deconflict zone that was run by coalition forces led by the United States to fight ISIL (ISIS), in 2014 at the height of the nation’s ruinous civil war.
The camp was used to house those who sought refuge and hope to cross the border into Jordan after being bombarded by the then-President’s government and fighting against ISIL.
However, al-Assad’s regime’s regime rarely permitted aid to enter the camp because neighbors’ nations blocked access, leaving Rukban stranded there for years, putting it under a severe siege.
Around 8, 000 people stayed in mud-brick homes where food and basic items were being smuggled in at high prices.
Families started leaving the camp and going home after al-Assad was toppled in December following a lightning attack led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, the current head of Syria’s interim government.
Following the fall of al-Assad, al-Sharaa has pledged to unite Syria, restore the nation domestically, and join the international community abroad.
Al-Sharaa convened with world leaders last month, including US President Donald Trump, who announced that all sanctions against Syria would be lifted, giving the nation a “chance at greatness.” Sanctions were lifted as well as the European Union stepped up. After nearly 14 years of war and economic devastation, Syria now has a crucial lifeline for economic recovery.
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Yasmine al-Salah, who marked the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha and returned to her home after nine years of displacement in the Rukban camp, told The Associated Press news agency on Friday that her emotions are “uncountable.”
Even though our house has been destroyed, our family has no money, we are hungry, and we have debts, and my husband is ill and unable to work and we have children, al-Salah said. Still, our home is a castle in my eyes.
During the war, her home in the Homs province’s eastern town of al-Qaryatan suffered damage.
Raed al-Saleh, the minister for emergency situations and disasters in Syria, stated on X that the camp’s closure represents “the end of one of the harshest humanitarian tragedies that our displaced people have ever seen.”
We hope that this action will lead to the restoration of the camps’ residents’ dignity and safety, he continued.
Source: Aljazeera
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