At the beginning of the Syrian conflict, I was optimistic. But now, I'm pessimistic, because it's so complicated. It's much worse than before. The whole world is fighting inside of Syria. It will take years and years to resolve.
Osama AlomarThere's a lot of sympathy, but some people in America don't care. They think Syria is a very faraway place and that it's none of their business.
Osama AlomarDespite everything - despite all this hatred, despite all this misunderstanding between nations and civilizations - I think love is the end. Love is the end.
Osama AlomarSome people think that the Syrian people are from another planet. On the contrary, I think that we all live inside the same boat, on the same planet. And the Syrian war affects everybody now, the whole world. There are Syrian refugees everywhere now. But it looks like nobody cares about civilians in Syria. They are suffering. There are hundreds of victims - innocent women, children, and old men who are hurt or killed every day - and no one cares about them.
Osama AlomarI was afraid that something would happen to me. But at the same time I was lucky, because some writers were tortured and jailed. I always used metaphors that could be interpreted in more than one way. Maybe this style protected me.
Osama AlomarI left most of my stuff there in my apartment in the suburbs of Damascus. My apartment was completely destroyed by a bomb in 2013. I lost everything there. I cried not only for losing my apartment and my belongings, I cried for our whole people. I feel really sorry for the people in Syria. My apartment or my property is a very, very small part of this big disaster. Syria looks like hell today. It's completely hell and chaos.
Osama Alomar