Syria’s Amateur Photographers Tell The Story Of Their Civil War

An American-Canadian group for Syrian expats has launched a project to collect photos from Syrians on the ground. A ground-level view of devastation.

Syrian cat in Aleppo, November 3

The Syrian Expatriate Organization's "Lenses of Freedom" project publishes the work of amateur Syrian photographers documenting that country's turmoil.

The photos range from cell phone snapshots to higher-quality images from those with better equipment, but all were taken at varying degrees of personal risk by Syrians, not journalists or professional photographers. Some of the photos have been exhibited in Toronto. Most are from November or prior.

"They're all young Syrian amateurs (aged between 18-22 years old) who had photography as a hobby and found the revolution as a way to practice this hobby," said Maher Azem, a Syrian expat living in Toronto who organizes the project. "Some of them were actually killed/arrested by the regime."

Press and rebel fighters inspect a destroyed market in Aleppo.

Free Syrian Army fighters in Aleppo, November 15.


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