Warzone webcam sparks Syria dash

28 Oct 2012, 9:14 am   -   Source: Patrick Abboud, SBS
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As the Syrian conflict enters its nineteenth month, one Sydney woman decided to dash into the heart of the warzone in an attempt to rescue her elderly mother, who refuses to leave her beloved homeland.

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By SBS video-journalist Patrick Abboud

You’re sitting comfortably on the couch, glued to your online life, connecting with friends and family far and wide. It's a daily routine for many.

But the activity streaming into one Sydney lounge room was anything but social – it was a window into a warzone that became a matter of life and death.

Sonia* is 42.

She lives in the western Sydney suburb of Bankstown.

Her mother is 73.

She lives in Bab Touma – a region in the old city of Damascus, Syria.

Sonia has been watching over her mother for the past six months via a live camera feed to her iPad and iPhone.

There’s a camera installed at the street entrance to her mother's home. There’s one in the lounge room and another in the courtyard.

The cameras were installed by Sonia’s mother who lives in this house alone.

Sonia keeps a close eye on locals who patrol the area, visitors coming to the door, and what goes on inside.

“I’m watching her because of the situation in Syria at the moment - the war that’s going on."

One of the camera feeds has gone down after a car bomb detonated just metres away from Sonia's mother's home - killing ten and wounding fifteen.

"I’m concerned for her safety and I know that I need to be with her,” says Sonia.

More than 30,000 people, mostly civilians have died in Syria since the conflict between rebel groups and government forces began 19 months ago.

A further 2.5 million Syrians urgently need humanitarian aid, according to the UN.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says at least 1,000 people have been killed in the past five days alone.

While watching the remaining live camera feeds over the past week another tragedy struck in Bab Touma - this time "too close to home" for Sonia and her family.

“We called Mum and she was barely able to speak. Her breathing sounded heavy so we quickly called friends to go and check on her. We could see it all on camera when they arrived and they quickly took her to hospital and she’s still in hospital in a critical condition. They’re still running tests and we still really don’t know what her problem is at the moment."

Sonia lived with her mother in Syria for 6 years.

She and her Syrian husband Izzat* left for Australia seven months into the conflict.

Although Sonia’s mother holds Australian residency, she refuses to leave - clinging to her homeland with pride.

Sonia and Izzat have spent the past days making a tough decision – should Sonia return to Damascus and try to bring her mother back to Sydney?

Well aware she’s entering a warzone Sonia says it’s her duty as a daughter to get to Syria as soon as she can.

“No, I don’t have a choice. It’s my responsibility. I have to go and try to get her out."

Izzat says the stress of the situation has taken it’s toll on his mother-in-law.

“It wasn’t an easy decision at all. I’ve been asking myself a lot of questions about the safety - about the situation there - about her Mum. I think the right thing to do at the moment is to go there and take care of her Mum and I believe she can do it.”

Just over a week after the night Sonia’s mother disappeared from the camera's view, she’s about to board a plane to fly into Damascus.

Izzat, Sonia and her family here in Sydney are well aware that she may not return safely.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have advised Australians not to travel to Syria under any circumstances.

It's a warning not to be taken lightly.

Since Sonia left intense fighting has engulfed Syria.

Today marks the beginning of Muslim Eid - what is normally a 4 day holiday in the region.

The United Nations Envoy to Syria says the Assad government and rebel chiefs have agreed in principle to a ceasefire during Eid.

For Sonia’s family the future is unknown - they must wait, 14,000 kilometres distant to discover whether or not she will succeed in bringing her mother back to Sydney safely.

One thing is certain – Sonia knows it will be difficult to convince her mother to leave her beloved Syrian homeland.

We will endeavour to stay in touch with Sonia and follow her story.

*Surnames cannot be disclosed for personal safety.

Patrick Abboud SBS , Syria

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