Kathianne
01-21-2013, 09:51 PM
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/middleeast/la-fg-syria-mood-20130121,0,2560530,full.story
More young Syrians disillusioned by the revolution
Many educated, middle-class Syrians who had embraced the opposition now feel alienated by its drift toward extremism — and are aligned with neither side.
By Ned Parker and Alaa Hassan, Los Angeles Times
January 20, 2013, 6:19 p.m.
BEIRUT — It was on a bus ride home from college that Ahmed lost his faith in the Syrian revolution.
The trip was long, about 400 miles across the desert from Damascus. As Ahmed swayed in his seat next to another man, the bus slowed and then stopped. Ahmed looked out the window. There were about 50 black-clad militiamen at a checkpoint, rebel fighters whose cause he had passionately supported.
Several entered the bus, gripping their rifles. They told the women on board, some without head coverings, to hide their faces. They told the men to take out their IDs and fold their hands behind their heads.
"We won't joke about this anymore," one warned. "This time, it's not a problem, but next time, women should cover their hair and behave like good Muslims."
Until that moment, Ahmed, a journalism student at Damascus University, had believed in the revolution. But as he watched the rebel soldiers, he saw his dreams of a democratic Syria being hijacked by extremists.
For Ahmed, at least for now, the revolution was over.
...
More young Syrians disillusioned by the revolution
Many educated, middle-class Syrians who had embraced the opposition now feel alienated by its drift toward extremism — and are aligned with neither side.
By Ned Parker and Alaa Hassan, Los Angeles Times
January 20, 2013, 6:19 p.m.
BEIRUT — It was on a bus ride home from college that Ahmed lost his faith in the Syrian revolution.
The trip was long, about 400 miles across the desert from Damascus. As Ahmed swayed in his seat next to another man, the bus slowed and then stopped. Ahmed looked out the window. There were about 50 black-clad militiamen at a checkpoint, rebel fighters whose cause he had passionately supported.
Several entered the bus, gripping their rifles. They told the women on board, some without head coverings, to hide their faces. They told the men to take out their IDs and fold their hands behind their heads.
"We won't joke about this anymore," one warned. "This time, it's not a problem, but next time, women should cover their hair and behave like good Muslims."
Until that moment, Ahmed, a journalism student at Damascus University, had believed in the revolution. But as he watched the rebel soldiers, he saw his dreams of a democratic Syria being hijacked by extremists.
For Ahmed, at least for now, the revolution was over.
...