For Sama: A story of hope and horror in the Syrian Civil War

For Sama (إلى سما) is a poignant documentary about the Syrian Civil War, produced and narrated by Waad Al-Khateab and co-directed by Edward Watts. Focusing on the life of Al-Kateab, her husband Dr Hamzah and their daughter, Sama, the film offers an intimate and harrowing perspective of the Syrian Civil War. This 96-minute film is crafted from 500 hours of raw, relentless frontline footage recorded with the amateur camera of citizen journalist and activist Waad Al-Kateab. Filmed across various locations in East Aleppo, the documentary reflects the harsh reality of the Battle of Aleppo from 2012 to 2016, a brutal, four-year stalemate that ultimately culminated in the fall of rebel-held Aleppo to the Bashar Al-Assad regime. It is a firsthand account of the female experience of war, perfectly encapsulating a mixture of horror and hope with powerful storytelling. For Sama notably avoids political and ideological narratives, opting instead for a humanitarian lens to portray the crisis. The documentary narrates the struggle of the resilient people during the Syrian Civil War and is dedicated to Al-Kateab’s baby daughter, Sama, who was born amidst the ruins of war-torn Aleppo. The story of Sama, who became her parents’ beacon of hope for enduring the conflict, is representative of the stories of Syrian children of the war.

At the outset of the film, Waad is a senior economics student at the University of Aleppo in 2011, during the early stages of the Syrian revolution as part of the broader Arab Spring. The word “freedom”, written on the university wall in Arabic, Kurdish and English, actually reflects the reasons why these peaceful protests began and what they aimed to achieve. The protestors took to the streets demanding justice, freedom, dignity and honour. Thus, it is also referred to as the “Syrian Revolution of Dignity”. This “peaceful revolution”, as echoed in the chants of the University of Aleppo students, was a nonviolent uprising against the corruption, injustice and oppression of the Assad regime. As the film progresses, we follow Waad’s journey as she falls in love with Hamzah, marries him and gives birth to their daughter, Sama, while managing motherhood during the intensifying conflict. Her husband, Hamzah, was both a political activist and a doctor, serving as part of the first aid team that aided those injured in the protests at one of the city’s last standing hospitals. Alongside her husband, they confront a harrowing dilemma of fleeing for safety or staying in chaos to help war victims and continue to fight for freedom. Ultimately, the Al-Kateab family makes the courageous choice to stay.

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Horror

The film shifts chronologically back and forth, yet its most consistent and prominent theme is violence and fear, emotions that are most intensely highlighted in the scenes set inside the hospital, particularly evident in the eyes of the kids crying and screaming on the blood-soaked floors. The scenes in the hospital provide an opportunity to observe from the very heart of chaos, where life and death intertwine at every moment. Religion serves as a significant source of resilience and strength, aiding individuals in enduring the conflict through frequent invocations of Allah. The sorrow and trauma experienced by parents and children in the conflict zone was particularly heart-wrenching, exemplified by two young siblings who, in utmost terror, brought their brother’s lifeless body to Hamzah’s makeshift hospital. The moment their mother, in deep anguish, hugged and carried the lifeless body of her child reminded me of the Palestinian father who carried his deceased children in a pocket during the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza.

Hope

The path to freedom has always been fraught with danger, as is painfully evident in the film. This reality is exemplified through the experiences of the Al-Kateab family and other protestors who initially harboured optimistic aspirations of overthrowing the Assad regime to attain freedom. Hope, a central theme in the documentary, endows people with the necessary resilience to endure horrific circumstances. The marriage of Waad and Hamzah, their decision to have a baby and raise her amidst the turmoil, planting trees in their garden, rebuilding the hospital destroyed by a Russian airstrike and, most importantly, continually dreaming of a better future for their daughter Sama, all reflect this enduring hope and optimism. Sama symbolises their hope for survival amidst the conflict and their profound fear of losing her. This sentiment of optimism is further observed in the lives of the Al-Kateab family’s close friends and neighbour, Afraa and her husband Salem, along with their three children, who maintain a positive outlook despite the siege. Furthermore, the willingness of Afraa’s eldest son to stay in Aleppo despite the bombardment, coupled with his dream of becoming an architect to rebuild the city, demonstrates that this hope extends to even the youngest members of the opposition. However, the story, initially marked by hope and resilience, culminates tragically with Aleppo, the last significant rebel stronghold, succumbing to the Assad regime.

One scene in particular stands out for its profound emotional impact: a nine-month pregnant woman, grievously wounded by a piece of shrapnel lodged in her abdomen, undergoes an emergency caesarean section. Initially, it appeared that the newborn had not survived, showing no signs of life. However, through the determined efforts of the medical team employing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the infant miraculously begins to breathe and cry. This moment of sudden transition from despair to joy brought me to tears of happiness, as both the mother and her baby ultimately survived. This episode serves as a powerful testament to the dedication and resilience of Hamzah, along with his thirty-two doctor colleagues who chose to remain in East Aleppo.

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Human rights violations and the brutality of the Assad regime

For Sama stands out as an insightful documentary on the Syrian Civil War, shedding light on the widespread human rights violations, the brutality of the Assad regime and the stark failure of the international community to address the resulting humanitarian crises. The Assad regime, in its desperate bid to maintain control and stay in power, escalated its violence, particularly during the fall of East Aleppo, which marked a turning point in the Syrian Civil War and led to severe human rights abuses aimed at breaking the resilience of the civilian population. The discovery of massacred civilians’ dead bodies in rivers, with forensic examinations revealing clear signs of torture, executions by gunshot to the head and the use of chlorine gas causing children to cough and gasp for air, are evidence of human rights violations documented in the film. Tactics such as indiscriminate aerial strikes, the use of barrel bombs targeting rescue workers and hospitals, the obstruction of humanitarian aid and imposing sieges, along with the forced displacement of millions, large-scale devastation and the use of chemical weapons, all constitute war crimes. Despite these clear violations of human rights and international law, the international community has largely failed to prevent this humanitarian catastrophe. Syria, under the brutal and despotic rule of Al-Assad and his single-party dictatorship, exemplifies the extreme measures such regimes will take to retain power, often at the expense of the safety of their own people.

Failure of the opposition and resistance

Despite initial optimism and public participation, the Syrian resistance ultimately failed to overthrow Assad. The regime’s violent crackdown swiftly crushed the protests, leading to immense tragedy for millions. Moreover, the lack of unity among opposition forces and the emergence of various extremist factions significantly weakened the opposition, reinforcing the conventional wisdom that there can be no victory without unity and solidarity. The diminishing government control created a power vacuum that various terrorist groups filled, leaving civilians caught in the crossfire. Ultimately, Russia’s air support and Iran’s ground support for the Assad regime, particularly through the Shia militias, along with the US shifting its support from moderate opposition groups, including the Free Syrian Army, to the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces, culminated in the failure of the opposition.

For Sama is a heart-wrenching documentary that exposes the ongoing humanitarian crisis of the Syrian Civil War, one of the most significant and enduring conflicts in the Middle East in the 21st century, continuing to this day on a lesser scale. As a resident of Mardin living near the Syrian border who has indirectly observed the devastating effects of the Syrian Civil War, the documentary deeply affected me. Regrettably, we continue to witness similar tragedies unfolding in the Middle East, especially in Gaza, where many others, like Sama, are born into conflict. For Sama has the potential to significantly enhance social awareness about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria, combat the rise of racism towards Syrians in neighbouring countries and provide a compelling explanation for why Syrians had to flee their homeland.

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