Tharwa Foundation

It is possible, when visiting Syria, to see only the beauty of this magnificent and ancient land, the friendly people and lovely markets of the tourism brochures. Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.

A casual eye might see only the familiar problems of a bustling city: traffic blocking the roads and polluting the air.  Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.

A closer look, however, reveals the economic woes that have been sweeping through the nation. Here, a satellite dish sits incongruously beside a roof made of sheets of tin, held in place by whatever means possible. Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.

Step off the beaten path, and the signs of poverty grow stronger, as piles of trash and rubble begin to appear alongside homes. Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.

An even more disheartening sign of the devastating effect of poverty  is the way that the people living alongside piles of garbage have grown accustomed to their presence. To these children, the garbage is not an eyesore, but just another place to play. …

For some children, sadly, the garbage is not a playground. It is a potential source of income, and they are forced to root through the trash in the hopes of finding things that can be sold to support their struggling families. Photo by…

More and more families struggle to survive as unemployment rises and inflation rises with it. They live in homes that are falling apart, like this one, crowded into a small space and with few amenities. Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.

Others must try to survive in makeshift housing, surrounded by mounds of garbage and lacking any support or services from the authorities.  Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.

Invisible from the glittering tourist centers, these Syrians have slipped through the cracks into complete poverty. Lacking even rudimentary sanitation, streams of sewage flow between their shanty huts. They are ignored by the authorities and have no recourse. Photo by Tharwa Citizen Journalist.