A Long, Overdue Reporting Trip Through Syria
For more than a decade, I lived in Lebanon as a New York Times correspondent and bureau chief, and much of my work focused on the Syrian civil war, which began in 2011 and tore the country apart for 13 years.
During that time, I visited areas in northern and eastern Syria where the government had lost control. But I had no access to most of the country, including its largest cities and the sites of major battles, because the regime of President Bashar al-Assad refused to let me visit the areas it controlled.
So after rebels toppled Mr. al-Assad in December, effectively ending the war, the whole country suddenly opened up. My colleagues and I could not only enter Syria but drive around, see the locations of events we had covered from afar and meet with Syrians we had previously known only through online chats over Skype and WhatsApp.
The scale of loss — more than half a million people were killed — was hard to comprehend, and nearly everyone we met spoke of loved ones who were dead or missing. The destruction of Syria's cities and villages felt postapocalyptic. Rebuilding is expected to take decades and cost tens of billions of dollars that Syria doesn't have.
To capture Syria's new reality, I set off with the photographer David Guttenfelder and other colleagues in February to drive across the country, interviewing dozens of Syrians along the way about their hopes and fears for the future and documenting their lives. The resulting article was published last month.
Executing the journey required a lot of research and planning, but once we were on the road three things were essential: cash, gas and the right team.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gizmodo
2 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Josh Hawley Wants to Send Out Rebate Checks So Americans Can ‘Benefit' From Trump's Tariffs
President Trump's tariffs have generated around 20 billion dollars in revenue for the U.S. government, although it's worth noting that a vast majority of this wealth has been derived from import duties on American businesses. In other words, Americans are paying the federal government (many critics have noted that tariffs are just taxes by another name) for the pleasure of doing business with foreign exporters. For the fiscally confused, the New York Times recently wrote an explainer on tariffs, breaking down how the money has been flowing from American businesses to the federal government. 'Tariffs are paid by the companies that import the goods,' the newspaper notes. 'The revenue from U.S. tariffs is paid by U.S. importers to the U.S. Treasury Department.' Critics of Trump's policy have also noted that by bilking U.S. corporations for revenue, the administration is just asking for those companies to pass on the costs to consumers, which is almost certain to drive up the cost of laptops, cars, video games, smartphones, graphic cards, and countless other consumer goods for American consumers. To make up for all that (or, as he has put it, to allow Americans to 'benefit' from this weird new system), Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) now wants to send you a (presumably one-time) $600 check in the mail. The congressman introduced legislation on Monday that has been compared to the CARES Act—the large bill passed during Trump's first term that distributed money to Americans during the pandemic. NBC reports: The program would be set up as a refundable tax credit, with the government sending checks this year should the bill advance through Congress and get Trump's signature. The bill would ensure that the amount provided to each adult and dependent child is at least $600. It also allows for a larger rebate per person should tariff revenue exceed projections. 'Like President Trump proposed, my legislation would allow hard-working Americans to benefit from the wealth that Trump's tariffs are returning to this country,' Hawley said, in a statement shared with the media. Hawley's bill appears to be based on something Trump said during a recent press conference. When asked by a journalist about the tariffs, Trump said: 'We have so much money coming in, we're thinking about a little rebate, but the big thing we want to do is pay down debt. But we're thinking about a rebate.' It's unclear how any of this makes sense. If I'm following things correctly, the situation is this: The administration has found a new revenue source in the form of import duties, imposed (mostly) on American businesses to ostensibly 'pay down debt' but, at the very same time, the government is also apparently willing to create a stimulus program for hundreds of millions of Americans (the likes of which will, you know, ostensibly cost a lot of money and, while benefiting Americans, also be paid for by them). It should be remembered that the covid stimulus program (which was also a $600 check in the mail) is remembered as a hugely costly federal program that significantly contributed to the national debt and fanned the flames of inflation. Just doing some back-of-the-napkin math, if every American received a stimulus check for $600, the total cost would come out to roughly $205,000,000. That's just slightly higher than the total estimated revenue from tariffs for the year. I am not an economist, but something about this whole formula seems to defy basic logic. In fact, the only way I can make it make sense is if Hawley's 'rebate' goes the way of Elon Musk's 'DOGE dividend,' and, after some good press, fails to ever materialize.
CNN
3 hours ago
- CNN
Israeli settler kills Palestinian activist who worked on Oscar-winning film
FacebookTweetLink A prominent Palestinian activist who had worked on an Oscar-winning documentary died on Monday after being shot by a Jewish settler in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, according to local journalists and officials. Odeh Hathalin, who was a consultant on 'No Other Land,' a film that documents Israeli settler and military attacks on the West Bank community of Masafer Yatta, was shot in the village of Umm al-Khair, in that same community. Israeli police said its forces arrived at the scene and detained an Israeli civilian, who was later arrested for questioning. Police did not identify the man they arrested. The Israeli military claimed that 'terrorists hurled rocks toward Israeli civilians near Carmel,' an Israeli settlement near Umm al-Khair. Hathalin's shooting was first reported by Yuval Abraham, the Israeli investigative journalist who co-directed 'No Other Land.' Abraham said Hathalin was 'shot in the upper body' and was in critical condition. Later, the Palestinian health ministry said he had died of his injuries. Many settlers are armed, and violence in the West Bank has surged since the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023. At least 964 Palestinians have been killed since then by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, according to the United Nations. Settlers have a strong influence on Israeli politics, and in the rare cases where they are arrested for violent attacks against Palestinians, they are often released without charge. Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank are illegal under international law. Ofer Cassif, a left-wing member of Israel's parliament, has demanded that authorities launch an investigation into Hathalin's death. 'The incident occurred in broad daylight, in front of cameras, with no fear of legal consequences – testament to the paralysis of law enforcement and the complete sense of immunity enjoyed by violent settlers,' Cassif wrote in a letter to Israel's Attorney General. Basel Adra, a Palestinian journalist and a co-director of 'No Other Land,' shared testimony to his 'dear friend' Hathalin. 'He was standing in front of the community settler in his village when a settler fired a bullet that pierced his chest and took his life. This is how Israel erases us – one life at a time,' Adra wrote in a post on Instagram. Last month, Hathalin was detained at San Francisco International Airport upon arrival and deported after immigration officials revoked his visa, local media reported. He had been invited to visit a California synagogue as part of an interfaith speaking tour. CNN reported in March that settlers had also targeted Hamdan Ballal, another co-director of 'No Other Land,' outside his home in the village of Susya, also in Masser Yatta. Ballal, who had recently returned from Los Angeles to accept an Oscar for the film, told CNN he thought the group of settlers would kill him. He was detained by Israeli soldiers, handcuffed, blindfolded and beaten. The film 'No Other Land,' which tracked the destruction of the Masser Yatta community between 2019 and 2023, won Best Documentary Feature Film at the 2024 Oscars. Its final scene shows Adra's cousin, Zakara al-Adra, being shot by an Israeli settler in October 2023. Previous reporting from CNN's Kara Fox, Kareem Khadder and Jeremy Diamond.
Fox News
3 hours ago
- Fox News
Ex-Israeli official offers bold 2-pronged strategy as 'the only way' to free hostages from Hamas
A former Israeli official has offered a two-pronged strategy as "the only way" to free the remaining hostages captured by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks. "Today, in my estimation, Israel must declare that it is no longer willing to negotiate as it has been. Then, it must do two things simultaneously," Yossi Amrusi, a former senior Shin Bet official, told Israeli outlet Maariv, a sister publication to The Jerusalem Post. "First, push as much as it can for separating Gazans from Hamas through designated humanitarian zones," he said. "That will also lead to control over humanitarian aid, so that it doesn't reach Hamas. And second, since it is estimated that hostage locations are known – we must conduct local negotiations with those holding the hostages. Offer money and their lives in exchange for the hostages." Amrusi argued that Hamas benefits from the prolonged negotiations and questioned whether anyone remaining in Gaza has the authority to make decisions. "A clever Persian trader once told me in the market: 'You'll win the deal when you're willing to lose it.' And why? For several reasons," he reportedly said. "One, Hamas benefits from dragging things out. It continues to hold the key to its survival, and in the meantime, who knows what could happen? European pressure, a false starvation campaign, Trump might flip on Israel, internal pressure on the government. All of these, and each on its own, are good for them." He also voiced skepticism about Qatar's effectiveness as a negotiating party. "I'm not sure that Qatar, the mediator, even has the ability to decide anything. And it's not even certain they have communication with Hamas's internal leadership for consultations and decision-making," Amrusi said. "It's important to ask: is there anyone in Hamas' Gaza who can make decisions? Who has control over those holding the hostages? Do they even know where they are, and what condition they're in? After all, some of the hostages aren't even in their hands." "I've always said Hamas will release the hostages when we force them to release them," he continued, "but we don't know how to do that. Military pressure isn't being applied to its full extent, and our soldiers' hands are pretty tied. We're bringing in humanitarian aid that gives Hamas life – oxygen, fuel, and money." "Government constraints and fears are holding back the opening of immigration offices and the establishment of humanitarian zones. We simply don't know how to win," Amrusi added. The U.S. and Israel pulled their negotiating teams from Doha, Qatar, on Thursday. U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said Friday that the decision came after Hamas' latest response "clearly shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza." "While the mediators have made a great effort, Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith," Witkoff wrote on X. "We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza. It is a shame that Hamas has acted in this selfish way. We are resolute in seeking an end to this conflict and a permanent peace in Gaza." In a statement released by his office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed Witkoff, saying, "Hamas is the obstacle to a hostage release deal." "Together with our U.S. allies, we are now considering alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas's terror rule, and secure lasting peace for Israel and our region," he said. Egypt and Qatar, which are mediating the talks alongside the United States, said the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume, though they did not say when. Meeting with President Donald Trump at his golf course in Scotland on Monday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer came determined to press the U.S. to take a larger role in helping quell what he called a "desperate situation" amid increasing reports of starvation in Gaza as the Israel-Hamas war rages. Trump at first lamented that the U.S. had not gotten enough credit for previously providing food aid. He shifted his tone when reporters questioned him about images of emaciated children from Gaza. When asked if he agreed with Netanyahu's recent remarks about concerns of mass starvation in Gaza being overstated, he replied, "I don't know. I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry." Starmer added, "I think people in Britain are revolted at seeing what they are seeing on their screens." Trump said Israel "has a lot of responsibility" for what's happening but is hampered by what its actions might mean for the prospects of Israeli hostages Hamas has been holding since it attacked Israel in 2023. "I think Israel can do a lot," Trump said, adding of Netanyahu, "I want him to make sure they get the food." Israel, meanwhile, has maintained that it is doing what it can to get humanitarian aid to Gazans. The country's foreign ministry shared a video on Tuesday of what it says is Hamas "violently looting" aid, keeping it from civilians. The foreign ministry also called out major media outlets for sharing an image of an emaciated Palestinian child, implying that the boy's condition is the result of starvation. Israel identified the boy as Osama al-Raqab, who suffers from cystic fibrosis. The ministry said Israel enabled him to go to Italy for treatment, while the media used his appearance to demonize the Jewish state. "This is what a modern blood libel looks like," the ministry said.
