exile
An Uneasy Homecoming
As she prepared to return to Idlib province after several years in exile, the author was hopeful that the Islamist rule over her hometown might have been relaxed — but what she found made her question if she would return again.
A People Revived
The streets, the buildings, even the smells were as I had left them. But the people — they were entirely different. In markets, on public transportation and in the souks, the change was palpable. Smiles adorned people's faces. There was a lightness in their movements and a joy in their interactions.