The Syrian Tragedy: A Culture Amongst the Ashes
Culture & Heritage Editor Armen Kebabdjian, LVI, warns of the devastating impact of war on the survival of a people’s culture.
Armen Kebabdjian
Culture & Heritage Editor, 2025
Artwork by Naomi Annetts
Senior 11
With the media’s attention on Syria suddenly sparked in late 2024, the feeling of uncertainty and fear that Syrians are experiencing today is one many reading this can’t even begin to think of. The loss of loved ones, a destroyed home and no clear future looms over millions of Syrian people. Rebel groups linked to Al Qaeda, infamous for plotting the 9/11 attacks, and ISIS turned the tables in their favour, as they captured Aleppo in a shock offensive, and then the city of Hama within days. The rumours of terrorist groups advancing into the suburbs of Damascus have created both widescale rejoicing and panic throughout Syria. The toppling of Bashar Al Assad’s regime and his escape seems to be a new page for Syrian history. The story of the country goes far beyond war and its history is one of the world’s most ancient and most diverse.
Syria, a land rich in history, is regarded as a landmark - since it was the homeland of some of the earliest civilisations: the Assyrians, the Phoenicians, and the Arameans, among others. Syria’s past is further enriched by the presence of Palmyra and Ebla as important trade regions, which made remarkable progress in terms of art, literature, and architecture. There are other places in Syria where one can find ancient temples and monuments full of inscriptions, all of which can be traced back to various events that have shaped the country throughout thousands of years. Syria has gone through a lot in the past, including a violent history which still resonates to this day, but one thing that never changed is the spirit and bravery of the people and the remnants of the fallen empires that Syria once had.
The Assyrians are people that belong to the Semitic family and are said to have originated from Mesopotamia and have more than four thousand years of culture as well as civilisation. They once ruled one of the most powerful empires known to man and are believed to have inhabited parts of Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Turkey. The renowned Assyrians advanced many areas of artistry, literature, and architecture. The empire faced innumerable attempts at invasion, but was still able to maintain its identity as well as its culture. As far as Syria is concerned, there have been major friction points when it comes to Assyrians, with their places of worship being at the centre of conflicts. The persecution of Christianity in the Middle East is all too active and largely unheard of, as a sea of Islam engulfs the pain and suffering of middle eastern Christians. Globally, 1 in 7 followers of Christ face daily persecution and violence for their beliefs. Nearby to Syria, 120,000 Christian Armenians recently faced ethnic cleansing and starvation by the Azerbaijani dictatorship in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The Assyrian people endured a similar fate, as a population of 200,000 in Syria was reduced to a mere 1,000 after the civil war.
The destruction of Syria’s cultural landscape is not just a consequence of war; it is an intentional erasure of identity.
Ancient monuments, churches, and sacred sites that have stood for millennia are being reduced to rubble, and the memories of Syria’s rich heritage are at risk of being lost forever. The world watches as ISIS and other extremist groups continue to desecrate these treasures, with sites like Palmyra and the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud among the most notable casualties. For the Assyrian people, these losses are personal - these are not just relics, but the very symbols of their survival through countless hardships. The international community’s response has often been one of helplessness, and despite efforts to preserve what remains, the ongoing violence threatens to erase entire civilisations. The true cost of the war in Syria is not just the human toll, but the near-total destruction of a cultural heritage that shaped the course of history for millennia.
Aleppo, once Syria’s most vibrant and diverse city, has long been a place of fusion between cultures, religions, and ethnicities, including a significant Armenian community of 12,000 people, alongside Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians, and other minorities. This diversity contributed to Aleppo’s rich cultural tapestry, with Armenians playing a central role in the city’s economic, social, and cultural life. The community had deep historical ties, dating back to the Armenian Genocide of the early 20th century, when many Armenians sought refuge in Aleppo after persecution in the Ottoman empire. However, the ongoing conflict has devastated Aleppo, displacing many of its minority communities, putting their cultural contributions at risk. The destruction of churches, schools, and cultural centres not only represents a loss for the city’s residents but for the world’s shared heritage. Aleppo’s transformation under the strain of war highlights the tragic erosion of cultural diversity, making it a poignant symbol of the broader crisis facing the Middle East.
With all the current chaos unfolding, Syria has struggled to find political settlement and peace for numerous decades. It has caused families to be torn apart, cities reduced to shadows of what they once were, and a shattered national spirit that affects us in Europe. The number of Syrians living in the UK alone peaked at 47,000 in 2019, while there are over 600,00 in Germany and three million in Turkey! This colossal figure comes to show that many future generations of Syrians will never experience what they could have due to the devastating conflict. After all, one’s culture and heritage is never at its fullest and most vibrant when away from the homeland.