The occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic holiday marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, is no longer an opportunity for Syrian children to enjoy eating sweets, playing on swings or visiting funfairs, gardens and zoos.
Regime shelling of Homs did not cease despite the religious holiday, as Eid al-Fitr ended with country-wide death toll of 140 in three days, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights.
Parents complained to Zaman al-Wasl of their children’s interest in pistols and rifles, with children constructing weapons from wood and plastic to play killing and war games.
Collecting empty bullet casings and rocket fragments, while studying their names and types has become a favorite pastime for children, parents say.
Children are always the main loser in wars, a psychologist told Zaman al-Wasl, adding: “All psychologists of the world would not be enough treat the effects of the war and killing on the Syrian children during the ongoing four-year war.
The psychologist retold a story of a boy who could not find any child to play with on the first day of Eid because of the regime’s heavy shelling of the area. Instead, the child was forced to hide in the shed where he squatted and cried in anguish.
