A Second Letter from Aleppo
A Second Letter from Aleppo
The President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama,
I feel obliged to come to you once again on behalf of my people and my home city, Aleppo. I come to you because your response to the letter addressed to you by the 12 Syrian Doctors did not meet the level of your responsibility and position of power.
Hundreds of thousands of civilians in Aleppo stand to die at any minute as a result of your inaction. Millions have already perished. The Doctors voiced to you that they need neither sympathy nor empty promises. What they need is immediate action to be taken by the self-proclaimed most powerful man in the world (as you yourself defined the position of President of the United States of America during this year’s DNC speech).
The Syrian population does not have time for your political tactics. They are at the mercy of the most ferocious regime the world has seen in the last 60 years – a regime that has not only killed its own people, but invited its allies to join in the genocide and destruction of its own nation’s history. Aleppo today has surpassed Stalingrad and Berlin, even Hiroshima and Nagasaki although contrary to the latter two, the people of Aleppo have been and are continuing to suffer slow, torturous and painful deaths. Their reality consists of bombs, missiles, airstrikes, hunger, diseases, thirst and even chemical gas, yet they hear nothing but silence; silence from the world that is witnessing it all and doing nothing but delivering empty threats and condolences.
As Haile Selassie so perfectly puts it: “throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph.” So, Mr President, how do you think your inaction will go down in history?
If you truly want to defeat ISIS, the way to do it is to support the Syrian struggle for freedom, liberty and democracy; the very same values that the United States has been promoting since The Second World War. This cannot happen while the Assad regime is still present, nor can it be done in alliance with Vladimir Putin.
For peace to be achieved, justice needs to be served.
The Syrian people can’t hold out any longer.
They need you to step up and take a stand immediately.
Yours Sincerely,
Fahed Bacha
