What’s the Story of Aleppo?
The Inquiry
BBC
4.6 • 1.7K Ratings
🗓️ 15 December 2016
⏱️ 23 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
We see and hear about Aleppo almost daily as news stories emerge of the hardship endured by its besieged people. After years of bombardment this once majestic place, the 'jewel' of Syria and one of the world's oldest inhabited cities, has been reduced to rubble. Thousands are dead. The residents who remain in the rebel-held parts of the city suffer from the ever-present threat of barrel bombs, while the international community has repeatedly failed to find a workable solution.
But why is Aleppo such an important part of the story of the war in Syria? The answer lies in Aleppo's historic role as a strategic city for so many people over the centuries, from Silk Road merchants of medieval times to the Assad regime and the forces currently battling for control of the country. Four Syrians, including one current Aleppo resident, tell us what life has been like in the city during its long and turbulent history.
(Photo: The Unesco-listed citadel (C) in the government-controlled side of the divided Syrian city of Aleppo. Credit: Getty Images)
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | There was a moment on the American campaign trail a few weeks ago, and it was one of those times |
| 0:04.9 | when you realise that many of us, particularly journalists, are in a news bubble. |
| 0:09.8 | We get so used to hearing the names of certain cities or people we assume that everyone else knows |
| 0:14.8 | them too. |
| 0:16.7 | So here's what happened. |
| 0:18.7 | Gary Johnson, one of the outsiders in the American presidential campaign, is being interviewed on the news |
| 0:23.9 | network MS NBC and he's asked a simple question. What would you do if you were |
| 0:30.0 | elected about Aleppo lepo. |
| 0:34.0 | a lepo. |
| 0:35.0 | Gary Johnson looks completely baffled. |
| 0:38.0 | And what is a lepo? |
| 0:40.0 | You're kidding? |
| 0:42.0 | No. So what is Aleppo? |
| 0:47.0 | It's actually quite a good question. |
| 0:49.0 | And it got us thinking. |
| 0:50.0 | You may know that it's a city in Syria that's been under siege for months. |
| 0:55.0 | But beyond the airstrikes and the appalling human suffering, |
| 0:58.0 | we realize we didn't know that much more about it. |
| 1:07.5 | I'm Helena Merriman and this is the inquiry and in today's program I'm going to introduce you to four Syrians including one who's trapped in |
| 1:11.5 | Aleppo right now. |
| 1:14.0 | They're going to tell you about Aleppo, |
| 1:16.0 | and it's quite a tale involving great empires, |
... |
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