https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/indepth/2016/12/9/mayor-of-rubble-aleppos-exiled-opposition-council-leader-speaks?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=sf
Thilleli Chouikrat
Governing over rubble: Aleppo's exiled opposition council leader speaks
East Aleppo has been left in ruins after intense Russian and regime
bombing [Anadolu]
Date of publication: 9 December, 2016
Syria's second city, Aleppo, is fast being destroyed under Russian and
Syrian regime bombs, while the rebels' enclave is slowly shrinking.
In just under a month, fighting and shelling has seen around 800
Syrians killed as the whole of East Aleppo - home to around 100,000
civilians - becomes a killing field.
Thilleli Chouikrat, of Orient XXI, met with Brita Hagi Hassan,
president of the Local Council of Aleppo City to discuss the ongoing
crisis in the city.
When the Syrian revolution began in 2011, Hassan was a telecoms
engineer who had never been involved in politics.
Soon afterwards he was elected president of the Local Council of
Aleppo due to being known by various neighbourhood councils, where he
worked equipping offices and installing communications systems.
Thilleli Chouikrat: In October you went to France to meet with
Francois Hollande, to request international intervention in Aleppo.
What happened after that?
Brita Hagi Hassan: I couldn't get back into Aleppo. I was targeted by
a sniper when I tried to re-enter the city. Since March, Bashar
al-Assad's regime has been preventing anyone from entering or exiting,
trying to asphyxiate the inhabitants.
The principal access route, Castello, is constantly manned by snipers.
It's littered with burned out and abandoned cars, left behind by those
trying to flee. I returned to France, where I'm hoping I can be a
voice for the 250,000 people who live in the eastern part of my city.
Our 250,000 inhabitants are experiencing systematic bombardment
targeted at civilians and civilian infrastructure: schools, hospitals
and markets.
- Brita Hagi Hassan, Aleppo mayor
This is in your capacity as president of the Local Council of Aleppo.
What does this body consist of?
It came into being after a 2013 jurisdiction covering the eastern side
of the city, a zone controlled by the rebels and defended by the Free
Syrian Army (FSA), commonly referred to as 'the free zone'. The Local
Council has 25 members, elected every year.
We're not directly elected by the population, but are chosen from
lists by members of the assemblies of the sixty three area councils in
the free zone. Representatives of the professional trade unions have a
vote too - lawyers, engineers, teachers. I was elected as part of our
fourth electoral process.
Our role is to administer the area and be responsible for basic
infrastructure requirements, like water and electricity.
Last month, only 30 percent of our electrical grid was operating.
We're also in charge of schools, hospitals and road maintenance. We
meet with all the area councils to find out their needs. We have a
monthly press conference at which we explain what the council is doing
and how much it costs.
The principal access route, Castello, is constantly manned by
snipers. It's littered with burned out and abandoned cars, left behind
by those trying to flee.
- Brita Hagi Hassan, Aleppo mayor
Until recently, we had 600 employees working in the various area
councils, earning monthly salaries of $100 (up to $160 for the
engineers).
Where do these funds come from?
Money from the US has helped fund the salaries, but we're able to
operate mainly because of the determination and generosity of our
employees, who do a lot of work on a voluntary basis. We've had
various revenue sources: we apply for funding from bodies in the US,
the UK, Germany, France.
Our funders might fund specific projects, or salaries, or fuel. Every
contribution helps, but it still comes nowhere near to meeting the
need.
Can you describe the situation in the eastern zones of the city since
the 15 November offensive?
It's difficult to describe. Our 250,000 inhabitants are experiencing
systematic bombardment targeted at civilians and civilian
infrastructure: schools, hospitals and markets in particular. This is
accompanied by the use of weapons forbidden by the Geneva Convention,
such as cluster bombs, phosphorus and napalm.
The attacks are being led by the Russian air force, along with Bashar
al-Assad's army. They've intensified significantly over the last two
weeks. It's now a military offensive, with support from Iran and from
Hizballah in Lebanon.
Since 15 November, according to my local sources, around 1,300 people
have been killed and 2,500 injured, [around] 60 percent of those women
and children. There are no functioning hospitals, so the injured have
practically no access to care.
There are ten ambulances for the whole area, but they're unusable
because there's no fuel. There are 27 doctors left in Aleppo, working
in basements and cellars to avoid the bombardments.
As far as medicine and equipment goes, there's still some left, but
stocks will run out in a few days. Access to drinking water and
electricity is practically zero.
I'm in constant contact with people there: members of the council,
friends and relatives, journalists. They all tell me the fear of being
hit by a bomb any minute makes it impossible to sleep at night.
Yesterday, three members of the Local Council of Aleppo were killed.
One was a close friend of mine. For those who still have a roof over
their heads, mobility is reduced to the bare minimum. Everyone stays
inside.
The head of the family goes out to look for bread, and everyone knows
he might never come back.
It's a humanitarian catastrophe. I was already reporting a serious
food crisis back in October. The Local Council was encouraging people
to maintain plots of land in the city, but that wasn't enough; they
still need the staple foods.
The reserves we'd built up to deal with the siege were practically
exhausted. Now they're completely exhausted: all we have left is
bread. People are beginning to die of starvation. Babies can't get
milk because their mothers aren't eating. I get thousands of messages
every day, via the internet, from people begging me to help them
escape Aleppo.
The areas of Sakhour, Massaken Hanano, Haydariye and Sheikh Khodr,
situated to the north of the 'free zone', were taken by Bashar
al-Assad's forces on 25 November. We know many civilians have fled.
What can you tell us about the movements of people?
Most people have fled to the west of the rebel zone, to escape the
regime, or gone to the areas controlled by Kurdish forces. But some
have entered western Aleppo, the area controlled by the regime. When
they get there, the men experience systematic arrest, imprisonment and
torture.
I've called on the people in the territories controlled by Bashar
al-Assad to go back to the rebel zones that are still resisting the
offensive. If they stay where they are, they could be arrested and
tortured at any time.
I know they won't surrender. In terms of weaponry, it's an unequal
fight, but that has no effect on their conviction.
- Brita Hagi Hassan, Aleppo mayor
Witness testimonies tell us that all men under 40 coming from the
eastern parts of the city are arrested or killed. We've heard about
many abuses. We received reports recently that two women had been
raped by regime forces.
Are you still in contact with the Local Council representatives in the
zones taken by the regime?
Yes, we talk on the telephone, or use WhatsApp. We've formed a group
on that application that all the Local Council members are part of. We
communicate several times a day to agree decisions.
But the members in those areas are taking a huge risk by communicating
with us. Bashar al-Assad's forces could take over the telephone
network at any point. I know the members are afraid. They're aware it
could cost them their lives.
Is the Local Council still operating?
Yes, but the unstable situation over the last few days has meant we
couldn't exercise all our functions. Our means are also reduced. We're
concentrating on trying to distribute bread and medicine and repairing
the electrical infrastructure.
Is the Local Council of Aleppo the political wing of the FSA?
No, we represent the people. Our work is complementary, but we're not
organically linked to the FSA. You know, most people who decided to
take up arms and join the FSA were civilians - engineers, teachers -
when we had peace. War has been forced on us.
A friend of mine joined the armed struggle after his family were
massacred. It's the same with lots of other FSA combatants. The FSA
organised peaceful demonstrations to express the will of the people,
but the regime responded with bullets. So some people decided to arm
themselves.
The Local Council works directly with the governorate of Aleppo, which
administers the local councils for the whole province, and with the
provisional government. That's the political infrastructure of the
revolution, which is demanding a free and democratic government.
What do you hope to achieve in France?
Aleppo could fall into the hands of the regime in a matter of days.
I've come to ask for a humanitarian corridor to be put in place -
supervised by the UN - to allow civilians to leave the city and to
bring supplies to the areas under siege. The regime is pursuing what
could be called a 'scorched earth' policy. That means in practice that
if people don't submit, it will massacre them by trapping them in the
city.
Three attempts by the UN and humanitarian agencies to petition for the
entry of food and medical equipment have been rejected by the regime
and the Russians. Up to this point, no decision or action has been
taken by any government or international body. It's time for action.
Do you think the FSA is on the point of surrender?
I know they won't surrender. In terms of weaponry, it's an unequal
fight, but that has no effect on their conviction. They might have to
choose between flight and death, but they won't choose surrender.
A version of this article was first published by our partner website,
Orient XXI.
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