Latakia used to be famous for its olive, lemon, roadside cafes and the great fish we get in the sea around our coast. In the more peaceful days, we used to go up the mountain to the castle of Saladin on the mountain top.
Our city remains the most secure part of Syria and the civil war which has been raging since February 2011 has not divided the city or caused any fights here, barring a handful of attacks. But we have always known that Latakia is highly vulnerable as news on war is part of our lives. Just 90 km from my home is the Tartus naval base which is owned by Russia. The Turkman mountain range where the Turks shot down the Russian aircraft is also very nearby. We are familiar with the fights between Turkish and Syrian border guards near Latakia.
On the completion of my assignment as a consultant at the Syrian embassy in Delhi in 2013, I returned home and have been spending time with my family. Our lives have not changed much but Latakia is now in the middle of military action. We spend our days watching the Russian fighter jets taking off and landing from the Khmeimim airbase between Latakia and Jableh, a smaller city.
The Khmeimim airbase is barely 14 km from my home and the fighter jets make huge noise while landing and taking off. We know we are well-protected. But we also know that our city will be targeted if a war breaks out.
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We watched on television the news on Russia bringing in new military hardware and S400 missiles to protect Syria. We track international developments everyday; however, our normal lives are undisturbed.
President Bashar Al-Assad visited Latakia before he visited Moscow on October 21. People in Latakia still live in a multi-religious society where the Christians, Muslims, and others live peacefully. We know that Latakia is now world famous but also dangerous because of the war. Earlier, Latakia used to be famous for tourism, but now we don’t have many outsiders but for the Russians. We feel that Russia will respond after the fighter jet was shot down.
Despite the tension, our lives are on track. We go out fishing whenever time permits. We go to the mountainside to fish. Sometimes, we take a boat for fishing.
( as told to Kallol Bhattacherjee via Skype )