Syrians growing numb to the pain of war

For some, the only way to make it through the day is to find ways to shut it out. Syrians are still showing their famed hospitality, extending aid to neighbours and strangers. But this war is now putting pressure on almost everyone.

There’s a constant crump from government artillery firing into the suburbs. But now more mortar shells have started landing inside the city centre. The government blames the rebels but no one takes responsibility. In the past week, the fabled Hijaz railway station and the ancient citadel of Damascus both took direct hits. The damage was limited, but the impact cuts much deeper than the stone. War is now reaching the very heart of this city and its precious heritage.

These are suburbs controlled by rebel fighters who accuse the government of trying to starve them into submission. You can even see that slogan – “surrender or starve” – on some army checkpoints. But the government accuses the rebels – “terrorists” they call them – of holding people hostage. It’s civilians who are suffering, badly.

Not only are people weary from the war, they are numb to its shocking toll on life, and property and social structure. They no longer know how to respond when confronted with the ongoing impacts as they try to live everyday.

Lod have mercy! Christ have mercy! Lord have mercy on the people of Syria today. The soul of the nation is being destroyed as people’s responses to war are dulled by the sheer volume and velocity of it. We must stand with this nation in prayer so that evil will not find new ways of embedding itself into this vacuum.

Source of story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-24856453