How do Syrian refugees live in New York

There was a direct clash between Russian and American troops in Syria. Donald Trump admitted this fact, following the media and former CIA Director Mike Pompeo. The incident occurred in February. As the US President said, many people died. It's very sad, Trump said. Apparently, the owner of the White House is talking about the Wagner PMC group - soldiers of a private military company. According to the same Western media, the Russians tried to attack American troops and died as a result of a retaliatory operation. Russia denied this for a long time, the Foreign Ministry was very reluctant to admit the death of only a few people. And now the US President announced an actual clash between Russian and American soldiers.

But on the evening of Friday the 13th, when the coalition struck targets related to chemical weapons in Syria, fortunately, there was no clash. This is how we avoided World War III, some say. But Damascus did not flinch. According to journalists, the Syrian government was even less afraid than a year ago. There was no serious, or even frivolous, change in the situation. The war is not over. Damascus continues to advance. And now in the city, which was a symbol of the opposition, Aleppo held a holiday - Syria Day - and decorated everything that remained of the center with portraits of Assad. Syrian refugees in the United States are watching with horror the developments in their distant homeland. Denis Cheredov journalist RTVI - New York, interviewed those who managed to escape.

Kutaiba Bakir Agha habitually walks through a quiet area of ​​​​New York. He fled to the United States from Damascus five years ago - he used a student visa and asked for asylum. In Syria he was an ardent oppositionist. But he quickly despaired of fighting the dictator, as he calls President Assad. And he was right, Kutaiba himself believes, because the regime has not gone away to this day.

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“You see, Russia views Syria as its new colony - it has many agreements with the Syrian government. Long term! The Syrian people are paying for this." Russia defends the version that the chemical attack in Duma is a fake. There are a lot of inconsistencies. Either they say it’s fake, then they blame the opposition and even blame British intelligence for all this,” says Kutaiba Bakir Agha. In 2011 he was an active participant arab spring in Syria - and together with like-minded people he created an organization that fought for civil rights in the Middle East. But in the end, he himself had to fight for his life!

“I was arrested and tortured for 10 days... they wanted to know what I had done. But I didn’t tell them anything, despite the terrible torture. A week after this, Syrian intelligence officers learned that international journalists were already talking and writing about my arrest,” the refugee recalls.

Upon his release, the now Columbia University student recalls, he decided to leave his homeland. He fled with only a backpack - without documents or money.

“The authorities made it clear to me that I can no longer be in this country, and that’s it!” says Kutaiba.

Millions of civilians would dream of not being in this country. But not everyone is lucky. In early April, the White Helmets organization reported the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Duma; the attack killed, according to various sources, from 46 to 70 people. The US, France and the UK blamed the attack on Syrian President Assad, citing Russia, which supports the regime. Two weeks later, Donald Trump and US allies announce targeted missile strikes on the Arab republic. The blows are rapid - the whole operation takes an hour. There are no casualties. And then - employees of the OPCW - the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons - arrive in the Duma.

Inspectors must conduct their own investigation. But the process is dragging on - specialists, according to Western media, are not allowed into the city. The government army and Russian representatives are blocking access. At the same time, Moscow calls the chemical attack “a staged and media provocation.” And the State Department says that Syria and Russia are trying to “clean up” the crime scene—that is, to hide traces and evidence of the use of prohibited substances.

Mariam Jalabi promises to give a letter of wishes for peace and love to children - those who live in war. Mariam is the director of the Syrian Coalition at the United Nations. Its mission in the United States is to convey information about events in Syria to the West.

“We know for sure that there was a chemical attack, even if Russia was not involved in it, and the Syrian regime denies it. This happened immediately after the plane flew over - and the bomb was dropped. The symptoms are obvious. It was nerve agent chlorine gas. That is, chemical weapons that only the government could have,” says Jalabi.

Jalabi herself prefers New York to Damascus; she has lived here all her life, and for many years now. And hardly anyone can check how reliable the human rights activist’s information is.

Over the past two years, more than 3 thousands of people have fled from Syria to the United States, Jalabi said. This is before the tramp ban on entry. Now citizens of the Arab Republic in the United States do not wait. Quite a different attitude to the Syrians 100 years ago.

The first refugees from Syria began arriving in New York in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In lower Manhattan, settlers created their own neighborhood, the so-called “Little Syria,” which stretched from Battery Park to Rector Street. At first, like all immigrants, life was hard for the Syrians, but after a while tobacco shops, shops, and restaurants began to appear here. They fled from the Ottoman Empire due to poverty and persecution of religious fanatics.

Over time, the inhabitants of “Little Syria” began to be displaced by refugees from other countries. But in New York at that time there was enough room for all immigrants. And today one of the largest Syrian communities has settled in Brooklyn. There's even a Damascus store here on Atlantic Avenue. And on almost every corner there is Arabic - for example, Malko Karkani's shop. Its owner, a native of Syria, sells spices.

“I don’t like to talk about politics, because I have a business! If I support someone, it will reflect on me! But you know what I mean…” says Malko Karkani.

Malko admits that a year ago he already gave interviews to journalists - then he defended Assad’s policies and hoped for Russian military assistance in Syria. After the publication of the article, the number of clients in his shop significantly decreased - here in the USA, Assad is either bad or nothing.

“No matter what I say, no matter what you say, no matter what they say, it won’t change anything. People who have power have already decided everything and do what they want. So all this is useless,” says Malko Karkani.

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Next door to Malik is a cafe serving traditional Syrian cuisine. Over lunch, young people discuss the latest news. Ali Atia names the specific culprits of the Syrian troubles: Assad, Putin, Trump. Americans who care take to the streets with the slogans “No to war” and “Hands off Syria.” Anti-war protests - in Washington, California, New York. And if protesters outside the White House are choosing words for their chants, then in liberal New York, having abandoned political correctness, activists say everything!

“In the name of all humanity, we refuse to accept fascist America,” says protest participant Amy Clark.

Donald Trump hasn’t heard anything like that in his address, supporters of the 45th president will say. So in this military-political battle, it seems that no one is going to retreat. World leaders have their own interests. Some people need territories, some people need money, some people need influence. Only the population - the miraculously surviving people - is the last thing that worries politicians.

“People are afraid, people are in fear. And hundreds of thousands of people fled from eastern Ghouta to other parts of Syria. Fear continues to grow among the people, and this is exactly what the regime wants,” says Mariam Jalabi, director of the Syrian Coalition at the UN.

Those who settled, for example, in New York's Harlem are afraid to even think about returning. KutaIba Bakir Agha, once ready to climb any barricades, at the end of our conversation admits: he does not believe in the bright future of his country. Many thousands of other Syrians who have found a new home and given up on the fight for civil rights do not believe either. Kutaib misses Syria. But when asked if anyone in his homeland misses him, there is no answer.

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