Syria Street
The country of Lebanon lays claim to being the most religiously diverse society within the entire Middle East, housing 17 different religious denominations all held together in fragile harmony.
As Lebanon’s second largest city, Tripoli has long been the scene of recurrent outbursts of armed violence between the marginalized neighbourhoods of Bab el-Tebbaneh and Jabal Mohsen.
Over the past ten years, more than 20 rounds of violent clashes between the Sunni Muslim residents of Bab el-Tebbaneh and the Alawite Muslim residents of Jabal Mohsen have left over 200 people dead.
As Syria’s civil war rages just 40 minutes away, these two adjacent communities remain divided among political lines in their conflicting opposition or support of the Syrian government.
The physical partition that both separates and connects these two neighborhoods is the city’s main thoroughfare, bearing the uncanny name of Syria Street.
As Lebanon’s second largest city, Tripoli has long been the scene of recurrent outbursts of armed violence between the marginalized neighborhoods of Bab el-Tebbaneh and Jabal Mohsen.
The physical partition that both separates and connects these two neighborhoods is the city’s main thoroughfare, bearing the name of Syria Street.
These are the accounts of those living along both sides of this street...
Syria Street has the potential to shine again, but we are all suffering from the same circumstances: no electricity, dirty water, poor sanitation. I hope that when my children run this shop they can live here in an atmosphere of tolerance.
{ Bab al-Tabbaneh }
Abbas, Shopkeeper
What happens in Syria has always impacted the politics of Lebanon.
My bedroom is pink, but bullets have come through my wall so now I’m afraid to sleep in it. I don’t even know why people here are fighting here.
The terrible economic conditions here force people like me to carry weapons for money and fight in the streets. It’s a political and economic conflict, not sectarian as some people like to label it.
{ Bab al-Tabbaneh }
Rami
We are trying to coexist and live together in peace. It makes me sad that we’re all muslims and yet we fight each other.
Lebanon is my home, although I am Syrian. Before selling vegetables, I used to sell coffee by the mosque in Bab al-Tabbaneh. That was when people didn’t care about my background. Now I must sell goods on this side of Syria Street.
{ Jabal Mohsen }
Ahmad Ibrahim Ali
My family has to flee during the clashes but we return when it’s safe. Even though it’s quiet right now this is not real peace as anything can erupt the clashes. It’s as if we’re living inside a time bomb. However this is my home and I am proud.
{ Bab al-Tabbaneh }
Hana Awad
Jobs are rare because of the war and life is difficult. However when I go outside I am optimistic.
For my girls, I want to make up for all the things I was deprived of in my childhood – to give them a future in peace.
{ Bab al-Tabbaneh }
Nisrine
Since I was 12 years old when the clashes started, I’ve never known peace between Jabal and Tabbaneh. However, when I go outside I am optimistic. I feel that Syria Street is getting better, slowly coming back to life.
{ Bab al-Tabbaneh }
Alaa Mohanna
Credits
This project is a former commission from the International Committee of the Red Cross and has been preserved by the Starling Lab for Data Integrity. The original website was migrated to Github Pages and copies of the site are available on web3 platforms, as well as archived on Filecoin. View the Github repo to learn more.
Cinematographer - Keenan Newman
Producer - Malak M Jaafar
Executive Producers - Ariel Rubin & Cameron Woodward
Production Company - Sprinkle Lab
Color Grade - Marshall Plante & Ntropic
This project is a former commission from the International Committee of the Red Cross and has been preserved by the Starling Lab for Data Integrity. The original website was migrated to Github Pages and copies of the site are available on web3 platforms, as well as archived on Filecoin. View the Github repo to learn more.
Cinematographer - Keenan Newman
Producer - Malak M Jaafar
Executive Producers - Ariel Rubin & Cameron Woodward
Production Company - Sprinkle Lab
Color Grade - Marshall Plante & Ntropic