A New Siege: the manufacture of drought in Yarmouk

A New Siege: the manufacture of drought in Yarmouk

by Talal Alyan

Three Palestinian lives have been claimed due to abrupt shelling of the Yarmouk camp by the Syrian regime.

Alaa Nassar, Firas Fantaziyeh and Khaled Ammoura all passed away during the regime’s sudden attack on the camp earlier today. It was described by residents as the heaviest shelling of Yarmouk in months, an aggression against the camp that was largely unprovoked.

The attack comes on the fourth day of water services being cut off to the neighborhood. While the slow trickling of aid into Yarmouk has eased the severity of the imposed famine, there seems to be a new tactic being employed against the estimated 16,000 Palestinians that remain caged in the camp.
The Assad dynasty now appears to be in the process of manufacturing a drought in Yarmouk.
Niraz Saied, a photographer still residing Yarmouk, explained to Beyond Compromise that the camp is on the verge of entering a new era of calamity unless water services are recommenced immediately.
"Most residences have depleted their water reserves. There is still some water left in Yarmouk but it will not last more than a week. There is also the issue of health," Saied continues, "it may cause a huge health crisis. There will be a hygiene crisis that will lead to the spread of disease. And we have no doctors or medicine in Yarmouk."

The Action Group for Palestinian in Syria estimates that 2290 Palestinians have died during the course of this conflict, an estimate many perceive as being modest. On an almost daily basis, more names are joining the ever-expanding list of Palestinian killed under torture in regime prisons. Yarmouk has been shelled, barrel bombed, starved and robbed of its brightest residents. Four days ago, the water valves were tightened.
We already know the "wayne el arab(where are the Arabs)" refrain, learned quickly not to make our voices hoarse by calling, in vain, for their help.
Now, one can’t help but wonder, wayne el falastiniyeh?

Talal Alyan

Talal is a Palestinian-American writer based in Brooklyn. He tweets here.


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