What began in 2011 as a peaceful uprising against President Bashar al-Assad soon spiraled into a full-scale and brutal civil war, which in the 13 years since has conservatively left some half a million people dead and hundreds of thousands more scarred for life.
As the pro-democracy demonstrations erupted in March of 2011 and quickly spread throughout the entire country, so did the brutal government crackdown. Within months, armed non-state groups formed into powerful opposition militias, and civil war took full hold. These groups, many with foreign backing, sent money, weapons, and militants from overseas. As the chaos deepened, so did the complexity of the warring parties. Extremist jihadist organizations, such as the Islamic State (IS) group and al-Qaeda, splintered the country yet further.
In 2015, when President Assad offered Russia significant ownership of the Syrian Republic's oil and gas reserves in return for military help, the war changed direction. After massive air and missile campaigns against the government's opposition strongholds - which included the vast suburbs of Damascus and Aleppo, the pendulum swung fully back in favor of Assad and his allies, such as the Russians and Iran.
Despite Turkey, Israel, and some Gulf and US support backing various northern Syrian groups, for the most part, the Syrian government has prevailed and restored its rule within much of southern and central Syria today.
After nearly 13 years of bitter and destructive conflict, much of the Syrian population has been scarred for life. On top of all the bloodshed, more than half of Syria's pre-war population of 22 million have fled their homes. Some 500,000 have been killed, and over 6.5 million are internally displaced, with more than two million living in tents with only limited access to essential services.
This series, photographed between June and August of 2023 in both the government & rebel-held areas, offers a glimmer of light on one of the most vulnerable areas of Syrian society today namely those struggling with trauma-related issues after 13 long years of crippling war.