As Syrian government forces closed in on the last sliver of rebel-held territory in Aleppo on Monday, trapped residents braced for the worst. Some posted final messages online, saying their possible final farewells amid the rumble of intensifying airstrikes and war planes overhead — the sounds of the Bashar al-Assad regime closing in.
“I am waiting to die or be captured by the Assad regime…Pray for me and always remember us,” photographer Ameen al-Halabi wrote on Facebook.
CNN Senior International Correspondent Fred Pleitgen witnessed thousands of civilians walking through the southern front lines, many gaunt with fatigue and malnutrition, as the children among them cried in fear.
In one tweet Monday, Alabed wrote: “Final message – I am very sad no one is helping us in this world, no one is evacuating me & my daughter. Goodbye.”
On The Ground News’s Bilal Abdul Kareem tells MEE: ‘The regime is pushing forward and things are as bad as they can be’.
Another video that went viral shows a young lady from Aleppo calling on the world to save them and expecting her video to be the last one.
My name is Bana, I’m 7 years old. I am talking to the world now live from East #Aleppo. This is my last moment to either live or die. – Bana
— Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) December 13, 2016
Every message now that I’m receiving from east Aleppo is preceded with “this may be my last message”. The heart breaks.
— Kareem Shaheen (@kshaheen) December 12, 2016
Final message – people are dying since last night. I am very surprised I am tweeting right now & still alive. – Fatemah #Aleppo
— Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) December 12, 2016