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Shaam News Network / AFP - Getty Images
Bassel Shahade, 28, a filmmaker and graduate student at Syracuse University, was killed Monday during clashes between regime troops and protesters in the embattled city of Homs.
Just five months ago, Bassel Shahade, a film student at Syracuse University, was explaining to the hosts of Democracy Now! that he had to speak quietly. He had hunkered down in an apartment in Damascus, Syria and worried that soldiers outside could hear him.
“Thousands of detainees are still in the prisons,” Shahade said in a low voice. “Among them are tens of my friends. They are not terrorists. They are filmmakers, journalists, doctors, lawyers. They are very high intellectual people and activists.”
In the studio, host Amy Goodman worried for Shahade’s safety. “We can hear you just fine, Bassel, but we want you to be very careful,” Goodman said. “You can tell us you can’t talk. That is fine.”
Shahade, 28, was killed Monday while filming the aftermath of attacks by government security forces. The United Nations believes that 9,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed during the 14-month uprising against President Bashar Assad.
Video: Shelling in Syria intensifies
Amer Mater, a friend of Shahade, told The Associated Press that Shahade was in Houla to film the aftermath of violence over the weekend that killed 108 people, including at least 32 children.
The bloodied bodies of children, some with their skulls split open, were shown in footage posted to YouTube purporting to show the victims of the shelling in the central town on Friday. The sound of wailing filled the room.
Houla Media Center / EPA
Houla Media Center, a Syrian citizen journalist group, provided this image of image of bodies covered in white shrouds following the massacre in Houla, Syria. Syrian authorities deny responsibility.
Clinton condemns Syria massacre: Assad’s ‘rule by murder’ must end
Shahade was filming a documentary, Mater told the AP, and had trained other activists as videographers to document the attacks.
Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor called Shahade's death a tragedy.
“His death is also a tragedy for the Syrian people, who have suffered many months of tragic violence as they seek greater freedom for their nation,” Cantor said.
Friends took to Facebook to mourn the loss of their friend. A man named Waheeb wrote that he had cried looking at his friend’s photos. He said that Shahade “loved Syria and the people around him.”
“I remember him showing me proudly an article by his uncle ridiculing sectarianism and ideas of religious divisions between Christians and Muslims in Syria,” Waheeb wrote. “He believed that neither sect, ethnicity or religion mattered in relations between people.”
Shahade’s interview with Democracy Now! took place on Dec. 29, 2011, four days after Christmas. He told the hosts that tension was rising and violence increasing. A baby cried in the background.
Despite the discovery of another atrocity following the recent massacre in Houla, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad showed no sign of relinquishing his power. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
“You cannot walk after three-o-clock in the city. You’ll be shot,” Shahade said. “And you don’t know from where it will come—from the army or from the locals. Like, it’s a total chaos there.”
He told of a friend, a doctor, who was shot while trying to cross the border into Turkey.
“He was providing help for protesters,” Shahade said. “And they followed him, and he tried to cross the borders to Turkey, and they shot him on the border.”
More world news from msnbc.com and NBC News:
- US expels Syria diplomat after UN finds Houla victims were 'executed'
- UN agency appoints Mugabe as a 'leader for tourism'
- Teenager allegedly held as slave in Bosnia for years
- Brother of doctor who worked with CIA in bin Laden hunt seeks US protection
Follow us on Twitter: @msnbc_world
Leave a Comment:
Very sad. He should have come home while he had the chance.
Sad, agreed. He could have just as easliy been shot in Chicago over the long weekend filming there with 40 shot and at least 10 dead. In recent years, Chicago is the US center of gang civil war. But in Chicago, the US gov't is not running huge sums of cash and weapons via third party as they are in Syria.
Hello folks, I wish I could post the picture the BBC was caught using to depict the Houla atrocities it is eerily similar to the one in this story. It turns out it was hoax. Enclosed is the story.
BBC Caught In Syria Massacre Propaganda Hoax – MUST READ
News agency uses picture of dead Iraqi children to depict alleged government atrocity
Paul Joseph Watson
Source: Infowars.com
Monday, May 28, 2012
The British media has been caught yet again with its pants down in the effort to sell a NATO-led attack on Syria, with the revelation that BBC News used a years-old photo of dead Iraqi children to depict victims of an alleged government assault on the town of Houla.
Click for enlargement.
In a report issued hours after the massacre, the BBC used a photo that was first published over nine years ago and taken in Al Mussayyib, Iraq. The image shows Iraqi children who have been transported from a mass grave to be identified.
The caption used by the BBC to describe the image stated that the picture was provided by an activist and “believed to show the bodies of children in Houla awaiting burial”. After the “mistake” was exposed, the BBC changed their original article but did not issue a retraction.
The photographer who took the original picture, Marco Di Lauro, posted on his Facebook page, “Somebody is using my images as a propaganda against the Syrian government to prove the massacre.” Di Lauro told the London Telegraph he was “astonished” the BBC had failed to check to authenticity of the image.
Go in a war zone and this is to be expected. I'm sure he knew the risks and chose to go anyway. Gotta give him recognition for that.
TrustVerify, the world mainstream media honed its dishonesty reporting on "atrocities" by Israel, like the Mohammed al Dura case, the fake "dead man on the bier" who got up and ran away when the helicopter flew overhead, and the Jenin "massacre."
But the Arabs won't like the hoaxes when used against them!
TrustVerify: So you are saying that there was no attack? And that the children didn't die brutally at the hands of the government?
Ignore TrustVerify. Its another deny any reality poster, under the guise of critical thinking. Basically tinfoil hats.
Back to topic: This guy is up there in honor and bravery. He, rightfully, tried to get the message of the atrocities out, and show the government of Syria for the liars and murderers they are.
He became a part of the video. Not what he had in mind. I too wish he would have stayed home.
What did he expect, to be given a royal welcome?It is none of our business what goes on in Syria nor is it any of Syrias business what goes on here. We should be concerned about the continued loss of our own freedoms and rights,not another countries.
Political journalism in the midst of an insurgency or a war has risks. The difference is that during a war, you'll have a better idea as to which side is shooting at you. There are safer jobs but few with as much potential to influence others.
Hello Monkey, I'm not saying atrocities weren't committed, I'm saying we can't trust the corporate owned presstitutes to provide an accurate depiction of the events that are taking place. The U.S. and Europe are funding the "rebels" which have turned out to be Al Queda factions and imported mercenaries to overthrow the Assad regime. As part of their illegal intervention they are manipulating the media to promote their incursion.
General Wesley Clark: "America will take out 7 countries in 5 years"
According to Former NATO supreme allied commander, former presidential candidate and 4 star US General Wesley Clark that they had received a memo that America is going to take out 7 countries in the Middle East starting with Iraq, Libya, Syria Lebanon Sudan, Somalia, and finally Iran. It is amazing how these things that were planned years ago and even though it is taking longer than originally planned, are being achieved in front of our eyes.
Least we forget how the US helo gunship killed the reporters in Iraq, I believe it was in Baghdad. Just wonder how many civis and reporters the US has killed with the "War on Terror" Now the US wants to end the regime in Syria or the regime to end. WHat do they expect is going to happen if these succeeds. It will be like Egypt and Libya......Democracy-0 Radical Islamic Sharia Law-2
We are behind the curb again, we have are own esads, khadafii's and bin ladens here in our local and national govt where is our rebel groups willing to fight the lying, stealing and tyrannt cockroaches, none ! instead we rather worry about whether gays and lesbians should be allowed christian weddings as marriage is nothing more than a christian invention.
You know so little about Christianity. You are extremely ignorant.
I hate replying to idiots:
Mark 10:6-9
"But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female.' 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
Young people never think they will die.
he knew the risks. He wanted to do his part to stop the massacre. Those who value nothing more than their own lives do not deserve to live.
I'm not sure how I feel about this but I've learned over the years to ignore how politicians and the media portray situations. Assad's a tyrant... or so they say, I do not know him nor have I had any interactions with him so I can't judge; however, power should be fleeting so I don't really care for long term political leaders. The protesters are all freedom seeking heroes intent on gaining the liberty to conduct themselves as they please while recognizing their neighbor should have the right to conduct themselves in a manner they prefer even if it is not compatible with their beliefs... or not; I assume they want things ran according to their beliefs and for their benefit. Unfortunately, you cannot accommodate everybody's desires so those with agendas have to win the support of the world while demonizing their opponents. I'm not a conspiracy theorist but sometimes there are conspiracies. As far as Syria goes, I don't know what those conspiracies are but generally I'm going to assume they involve garnering support or covering up things that might portray the conspirator in a negative light. How can we be sure that with regards to this specific conflict, one side or another is not involved in this sort of mass deception? We can't, we're not there, so if I may be so bold as to use the most overused word in the English language... we're all ignorant. Hell, even many of those directly involved in the conflict may be ignorant to what some of their co-compatriots are doing a city or a town over. Everything is subjective. My opinions are better than your opinions. I don't believe anyone.
hey fishman, I bet the number isn't up to 3000 yet. If you remember, that's how many we lost Sept 11, 2001? So keep your bleeding heart crap to yourself, we are at war, whether people like you like it or not.
Believe what you want to believe...BUT there IS suppression going on in Syria. AND...they are killing their own people if they disagree with their platform. Now...whether we intervene or not? That's another thing. The bottom line is... who really knows how intricate the web of political debt is? Who owes who favors? Who has their finger on the proverbial red button? What information is REALLY being withheld? There is so much stuff going on that we have no way of understanding the layers and layers of who is in who's back pocket and what other kind of back stabbing, lying, ugliness has gone on for centuries!
Then...you throw in the religion factor! OMG! Yes...then there is God. Can you imagine how God must feel? YIKES! Shakin' his/her head and wondering..."they're down there killin' each other in MY name? . Who gave them permission to do that?... Not me!! Boy are they gonna get it!!!"
Then...there are these young people...documenting what is going on. So that others can know the truth. So the naysayers of the world will really understand. They wind up becoming victims themselves. And what happens? They end up being scrutinized too!! I tell ya... It's time we all take a good hard look at ourselves and ask the question: Is this the world we really want to live in? OR... is it time that we all...Christians, Muslims, Jews, Buddahist, Taoists...WHATEVER... finally come together and say: Enough is enough!!! Instead of wasting millions of dollars on weapons... instead of killing millions of people... instead of ravaging cities, towns, peoples homes...raping women ...destroying peoples lives and livlihoods... Why don't we think about doing something POSITIVE? and work together...put a stop to the stupidtiy that seems to be running rampant in our world? JUST SAY NO to this INSANITY! ASK the question...WHAT IS THIS REALLY ALL ABOUT??? Why are we killing each other? Why? Why are we stealing and hurting...and being so vengeful...ALL IN THE NAME OF GOD?? Every religion teaches just the OPPOSITE! And yet everyone is doing it to each other. FOR WHAT?
Look at this handsome young man! Look at the bodies of those beautiful children! Those famiies! Think of all of those that have gone before them! It's almost like the disbelief that swirled around the Nazi death camps. "surely they can't be mass murdering hundreds of thousands of Jews!". Right...it was MILLIONS! So, today... the whisper game has started that there really ISN'T anything going on in Syria? "accurate"? "Inaccurate"? How accurate do you want it? The people are DEAD! They are mowing down innocent women and children...and their fathers, uncles and brothers! Yes!
Am I saying "jump into Syria"? NO... I"m saying EVERYONE in the world say enough is enough... no matter where you are. I'm sick of reading about all this crap...choppin' off heads... murdering people for no reason... it makes absolutely no sense. NO SENSE! We can sit here and chit chat all day long...but until people quit accepting the spoon fed propaganda as to why anyone should go out and murder their neighbor... then...we can almost start counting the days until we start walking on all fours and start scrounging for food...and acting like the real animals we're becoming...
I was very angry when I learned about this massacre! you must be cold blooded, serial killer, heartless, evil, dark minded to kill men, women and children for whatever reason it may be!
if you think you have escaped Justice here, you better start praying... what s coming to you is worse than what anyone can imagine.. I pray God to speed up your death to go pay and suffer for those innocent life you took away
Good looking young man & SEEMED very thoughtful.
What a waste. :-(
This has to be the disgusting freaky Illuminati behind this BS!!.........population control!!! They control the media so we will never know what is really going on. I doubt that these people are killing their own people!!! That is just what the media is telling us!!! There is so much we don't know!! It was total chaos according to what this young man was saying before he was killed. I feel for his family and all the people that are suffering due to this senseless BS!!!
Another liberal media numb nuts killed. I would hope they would make a bigger deal about our fighting men in the mid-east instead of this guy who was short on brains.
@Jimmy the Bleak
theyTo complete what you left out....
"When they were in the house again, the disciples asked Jesus about this. He answered, Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery."
This passage is about staying true to the bonds of marriage.
If this is the case...why isnt there more outrage at those who divorce?
Newt Ginritch for instance....who has been married 3 times.
Who would be more just in the eyes of Jesus (the epitome of love, peace, and forgiveness)?
The homosexual couple that marries once and stays true to each other?
or
The hetrosexual couple that divorces and remarries different people 3 times?
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security
HE DID WHAT HE THOUGHT WAS RIGHT . HE DID WHAT HE COULD . NOT MUCH I CAN SAY FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD.
WITH GRATE POWER COMES GRATE RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTEC THOUS WHO CAN NOT PROTEC THEM SELFS.!!!!!
"WITH GRATE POWER COMES GRATE RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTEC THOUS WHO CAN NOT PROTEC THEM SELFS.!!!!!"
Was this a direct quote from someone else? The English in the rest of your post was good but it imploded in this last sentence.
I dont think English is TFO's first language. That or s/he is just a blowhard and the definition of "verbose."
i will re-post it for him if you two are having trouble understanding what he or she was trying to say.
"With great power comes great responsibility to protect those who can not protect themselves."
"Evil Men don't get up in the morning saying 'I'm going to do evil'. They say: 'I'm going to make the world a better place'.
--Christopher Booker
TFL-killswitch's first paragraph is lifted directly from the Declaration of Independence. Who know where he cut and pasted the second all caps quote?
I love Spiderman
I thought that perhaps TFL is merely a product of public education in America. Look to the spelling, grammar and punctuation in most posts.
Too bad our education system is so bad that most of the comments on here have to be deciphered for intended meaning. Not just TFL, it's most comments. Also too much ridiculously abbreviated 'texting' so nearly anyone under 35 cannot use or write the English language. Let's fix what is broken HERE before worrying about "THEM!!"
speaking of education, and changing the subject, did you know they are removing cursive writing from the school curriculum? here in nw indiana they are anyway...what will the next generation sound/look like?...and i totally agree we should tend our own back yards before worrying about the weeds in someone elses garden.
He is directly quoting peter parkers uncle. you know? spider man's uncle. yay
The first part of TFO's post is from our (the USA) Declaration of Independence
It is not our fight. We should stay out of it.
sure, its not our fight.... and who will speak for YOU if you ever face injustice?! Typical apathetic American response... guess what?! CHARACTER/VALUES/MORALS actually matter.... hope you figure that out before you die...
deborah,
So you are volunteering to fight in this one?
I get it Debby but i'm running out of cash. I know a 3 square mile area in south central LA that could use $110 billion instead of Syria. And yes, it is like a war zone and people (Americans) die everyday there too.
deborh joyelle
Here is what we are fighting for. You be the judge.
http://dubya dubya dubya dot youtube.com/watch?v=Zstgz5LJX-A&skipcontrinter=1
Deborah..............I will speak for myself I expect nothing from others. I am responsible for my own well being. I am responsible for my own safety it's not the polices job they are to catch people that have broken laws.......BUT don't worry the second amendment and I will speak up for you also!!!!!
Yeah and how long were we in Iraq and Afghanistan and how did that all turn out? No thank you. Enough of our men and women have died for someone else's values. If you want to help them, you go and take your family with you. As far as that being a pathetic American response?!!?!? We just got out of one mess. We can sit this one out. You need to look at how that's going to look. The U.S. going into a sovereign nation.....Again, that went well the last time we did that huh?
deborah - yours is the most pathetic post I've read in a long time. The USA can't continue policing the world. We are spread too thin as it is. Our economy is in shambles, partly due to the billions that we have spent on the wars in Irag and Afghanistan. We don't need to get into yet another war in the Middle East, or anywhere else, for that matter. It's time for us to stop invading sovereign nations. The people of Syria need to work this one out for themselves.
Mind Our own BUSINESS FOR Once~
deborah are you willing to send your son or daughter to fight this one? My sons a soldier and he'll gladly do what he's ordered to do without question. Personally, I'd rather he not go and fight someone elses battles.
"sure, its not our fight.... and who will speak for YOU if you ever face injustice?"..
Fact is, if America ever gets in a position where we need help from others, we'll be speaking to an empty room. We are the only country who is (A) helpful to the helpless and (B) overbearing in our aid. Where the people generously help as the g'ment comes in and takes over.
I understand many of your points, we cannot practically fight every battle and protect every person from injustice on this planet. I am not trying to dictate what people do to help, just to do something and not make thoughtless comments like, "stay out of it." You can still sign petitions, offer aid to refuges who escape the country, send money to non-profits to help. I NEVER SAID WE SHOULD SEND OUR MILITARY IN. But I guess a vague statement like "stay out of it" translates to "keep military out"...
@HarleyCop- we all thank your Son for his sacrifice and understand your sentiment.
@Saul T. Pepper- "We are the only country who is (A) helpful to the helpless" damn straight! and people on here can't understand why i care?! Well maybe I am a product of a country that DOES HELP (not just military but non-profits and aid groups more than any other nation) and I'm proud of it.
I am doing my part in the ways I can, just challenging others to step up and stop complaining if they never even give, sacrifice, or help find solutions to problems in the world around them.
What's really sad is that we wasted alot of money, ammo and American lives on the wrong country - Iraq. Had we not done this, we'd be in a better position to help the people of Syria. The REAL reason to be concerned is the spillover violence that threatens Lebanon, Israel and even Iraq. Now THAT'S ironic!
False Flag Gulf of Tonkin Incident, 40 Years Later. Flawed Intelligence and the Decision for War in Vietnam.
Syria 100 killed many children INSIDE the city Who Killed them???? Rebels consist of Al Quieda....USA mortal enemies.. Egypt, Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan are still under Islamic control who dislike the American way of life..Do you want to enter this potential world wide conflict over 100 killed by WHO??? and we will have hundreds of thousands lives lost with many being our own soldiers..
I believe that the comments I read here condemning "False Flag" wars are the opinion of many Americans.. The winners of war is the Military Industrial Complex who take taxpayer dollars to produce weapons that blow up people..No war No money. The 99% are not stupid or gullable we will vote for sanity....Syria is a civil war ...the USA fought civil wars where hundreds of thousands of Americans were killed fighting over a slavery issue....that unfortunately , is the failure of negotiation...Let Syria fight their own battles.. You are seeing the same game plan unfolding as it did with the False Flag weapons of mass destruction lies that led to the disastrous Iraq war and we know how well that worked out. Iraq and Iran are Shiite controlled countries. Their mortal enemies were the Sunnies and we certainly destroyed their power.
It bothers me when I think of the resources we have poured into Iraq. Ditto for Afganistan. However, imagine the area if we had not? I don't know if we did the right thing, but I can only imagine what would have happened in the middle east had we not been there. (Look at what happened in Iran. Is it a better place? Are they less of a threat to us since me mess when Carter was President?)
Chances are pretty low it would be a better place if we had never become involved. How it would be different here in the U.S. I can only speculate.
Deborah.....................once again you miss the point you appear to be clueless. Petitions, nonprofits that skim 75% of the funds for "overhead" before helping anyone with the money! Heck yeah let's start a refugee camp get all the innocents in one place make it easier for the bad guys to kill them!
And just one mor thing, it's obvious that you don't have a freakin clue about the military...............It's not a sacrifice to serve it's an HONOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You say Carter made it a mess... Others say Regan was consorting with the enemy, outfitting our enemy with arms and cash.
six of one, 1/2 dozen of the other? Except for the part where those arms were used against American Soldiers.... Thanks Regan, we really needed that.
We obviously learned nothing from Viet Nam (remember they blew up their own babies to get us), Korea is still part communist, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan they do not want us. We need to work on AMERICA the jobless rate is up no matter what the government is trying to tell the sheeple. If you mess with the numbers yes it looks like unemployment is better but that is because people are out of benefits, listen to the news the companies that are laying off help. Obama, congress and the senate need to take care of the people that pay their salaries or get fired themselves!!!!!!! Does Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan pay their salaries???
Same people that cheered in the streets when the towers fell are now looking to the US and asking for help...
Not our problem, it's their fight and we should stay out of it....no weapons, no money, no military support...
You are spot on, Joe. It seems to alwyas be that way, even though the media doesn't show it all, I saw many "citizens" in the Middle East cheering what Al Quaeda did to us, yet now they want our money and help. Give them nothing.
Tony
You must be part neanderthal; firstly you and all other posters are very dense, Deborah not once insisted that we should fight a battle but you all jump in and spout as if that's what she said. As for your comment about Honor, there is absolutely no honor WITHOUT SACRIFICE! If honor doesn't take sacrifice then any cheesy slime-ball week minded neanderthal could do it and there would be no honor to it!
Now you are running down charities?? ALL or just ones you don't like? You have NO idea what Deb is involved with but you still attempt an attack. Sounds like you just trying to diminish anything she says but you have absolutely no intelligence to your statement.
Go read a book and get off the web...
another 28 year old student. Twenty eight~!
Most of us graduated and were well into our occupations by then.
@WarmNFuzzi: At 28 were you risking your life to document the brutalities of a vicious dictatorship? I doubt it. You're fortunate to be born into the privilege of not having a cruel government over you, and a society that kept you safe and provided you with the resources to get an education. You're lucky that at 28 you were able to be "well into [your] occupations" instead of having your skull crushed open by tyrants. Have some empathy for those less fortunate for you and count your blessings that you have the freedom to earn a living. But you're probably one of those Ayn Randian types who thinks you made it all on your own.
Ironically, he was killed filming in a foreign land a civil war now openly funded by his own country- the US.
The United States needs to stay out of these countries and let the heathens kill each other. I know in Syria their is a dictator but we need to take care of our country and the person in the White House destroying our country
DOU44,
Where is your evidence that the U.S. s funding anything in Syria? I think we should, but have not seen any proof.
Now days there are many non traditional students, not everybody starts or is able to start college right out of high school. So please don't put this man down for being a student at 28.
DOU44 - I would also like to know what Obama is paying for in Syria. He sure isn't getting our money's worth.
He was "documenting the atrocities of the regime"... For who? That has been well documented and common knowledge for many years. Like most Muslim countries, there are civil rights violations every night and day. Wow!, that's news. He was playing hero and the bad people didn't appreciate it. Surprise!
DOU44, why do you doubt the people who actually do the research instead of acting as a mouth piece for the military industrial complex. There are many articles that the U.S. is funding the rebels. In your uninformed support for another war you blindly follow what ever the MSM propagates. Enclosed is a snippet of one of many articles on the subject.
United States 'assisting' weapons transfer to Syrian rebels: report
Thursday, 17 May 2012 08:33
The United States is helping "more and better weapons in recent weeks" to Syria's rebels, including anti-tank weaponry, for their fight against President Bashar al-Assad regime, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.
Warm n fuzzi
What??? What does the fact that you may have been in a profession at the age of 28 have to do with this story? The man was filming a documentary.
Maybe the article is not clear enough, so I will reply to the INCREDIBLY STUPID comment of "warmnfuzzi" to shed some light: Bassel was Syrian, so he was actually home. He was a Fulbright scholar studying in Syracuse, and went home a few moments ago when his brother was imprisoned.
he knew the risk, he was probably part of it too, i wouldnt put that out of mind either.
What an idiot. Way to throw your life away.
At least he cared about something bigger than himself- Justice and trying to spread the truth of injustice through film making. What are you doing with your life that is so important?! you can't even show empathy or care to your fellow man on a comment board, seems your throwing your life away just fine....
My thoughts exactly deborah joyelle!!
Rest In Peace, Bassel.
You tried to help advance freedom in your own way, despite the naysayers and the tyrants.
Please give Dickey Chappelle a hug for us when you see her.
That's what happens when you fool around with something bigger than your self... you get stepped on, usually by accident but in this case Me thinks he pulled the tigers tail one time too many. There is a lot of things he could be doing in this country as important and not get shot. What a waste...
There are thousands of reporters in foreign countries each and every day bringing us the news, filming documentaries, etc.
Wow he died over there and you are judging him? And you said he wasted is life? What do you think you are doing by degrading other people?
Dooly-bird.
idiot??? you dont see what he was tryign to do . hew was tryign to bring the truth to the world. get around the lies. and show the truth to the world what was going on . just like in sirbba . how long are we goning to sit on are fen hands and let the would stand blind and look the other way when some a hole starts whiping out people.
how many other massacurs will people just look they other way from. one of the main reson for the un was to keep this sort of @!$%# form happing. its broke. get rid of contry vitos . and just go with majorady fen vont and go bom the hall out of this sob and butter he didnt threw his likfe a way he had a cause. an objectve somethign he was fighting for . what can you say you have evere fought for . i dont know you but form your coment nuthing . you have no idea what is is to fight for somethign that is right to do
TFO...son what language do you speak normally? If you are Chinese or Finnish...you are doing a great job of translating your thoughts into English. I can almost make out what you are getting at. A person who tries to use the language of another country is respectable in every way.
If English is your mother tongue....you really need to finish middle school and try to get into the 9th grade. Or, stop sniffing glue while you are trying to type. Either way.
Serbia . i see histry repeting its self
Serbia! Well in that case, you are doing a great job in English! Your intensity and occasional sarcasm comes across. There are a surprising amount of Americans that understand what it is like to fight for what is right. When the politicians and the idle class don't get the point of their sacrifice, that is sad.
Yes, history repeats itself...over and over. Because people don't learn the lessons of the past. All of a sudden communism is "cool" and capitalism is a horrid monster.
Your English is getting better. Way to go! The reason many on here including myself don't think the young man who was killed was very smart was that he put himself in an obviously dangerous situation with no preparation, quite a bit of self delusion and without being invited. There are reasons to go and fight in another region. He did not fit any of them. He was probably an irritant to both sides. Now he's dead...for what? You will admit that Islamic countries have an earned reputation for violence, repression and disrespect of other cultures. He didn't get that.
tfo---history repeating
I think any person that is trying to speak a foreign language, no matter how faulty, is to be admired. Having said that, I have always grappled with the pros and cons of the US getting involved in other countries fights, disputes, civil wars, etc. We are the most powerful nation on earth, therefore is it our morale obligation to step in when atrocities occur, as in WW II, Serbia, Ruanda, etc. At the same time we should not get involved in internal affairs. It's their fight. What IS the right thing to do?
Truly death by misadventure. Perhaps this was his destiny. He obviously had no fear by being there to begin with.
Hey Larry. No fear sometimes has a hearty helping of no sense. If one is able to read, it quickly becomes apparent that every extra person stirring things up in a tense war zone is another factor making it worse.
Sorry, He was an idiot. He had "tens of friends" and "they weren't terrorists." No, nobody is ever a terrorist in Syria. They are all innocent. He was "Trying to bring the truth" to the inbred. Sure, his truth. His truth doesn't apply to them. As he found out. His life experience and his intelligence (of which he seems to have been lacking in both) were not sufficient to warn him. Too bad. I'm sure next week it was off for a quiet weekend of hiking in Iran.
gorge washington was terrorist to england.history is written by the victor.
First of all, GW was fighting a real war, with uniforms and integrity. Terrorists do not.
Second, "gorge"? You are a terrorist to the English language. History is written by people who can write. Go away.
In the first place he was not a "U.S." student. He was a Syrian student attending university in the U.S. The whole headline is completely misleading... Which in turn is completely warping peoples notions and posts on here in defending or condeming his coice to be there. He was from Damascus,was a native Syrian and was there of his choosing as a syrian trying to expose the reality of the uprisng in his own country. This is something he would have likely been doing anyway had he been attending university in his home country. This is the main point here...it's not as if he were native to America...it's not as if he chose to leave his native land to document actions on foriegn soil. He was going home! Should he have? well thats a question few of us can answer since there has been no internal bloody uprisings since the 1800's for anyone of us to come back to. They need to change that headline!
I noticed that he appeared to be Middle Eastern, also confirmed by his last name - but commenting - based on those assumptions would have been premature., as well as not relevent to his actions or his death.
After all Names and nationalities, based on appearance are not relevent ... Americans can originate from most any nation, nationality, race or religion. Time to work within the frame work of our laws rather then pre - judge based on appearances.
Its funny, that an acquintence of mine... family is Asian, but has been in this country since the late 1890's and citizens since 1930's. Is profiled way more often - asked where he is from constantly... more than a neighbor who is still taking ESL classes... but he is French.
I agree with you Beowolf...but a great many posts on here are in the realm of "why did he go and do that"? "Americans should be more concerned with America","stupid liberal film maker gets what they deserved for sticking their nose in where it doesn't belong out of greed" and.... the always entertaining he was an "idiot" for being there in the first place... along with the always expected and never to be dissapointed... "Syria and Syrians need to take care of themselves" .
It seems to me that armed with the simple information that he was in fact a "Syrian" and not an American it would pretty much make most of those type comments moot points and would in fact open up the option of discussing what any of us would do should the shoe be on the other foot and one of us was an American film maker attending University in Syria at the outbreak of another American civil war?
Which i would think would be pretty interesting to contemplate since there is no doubt in my own mind that with the level of underlying hostility in this country anymore... i personally don't think you'd be one bit safer walking down a street as an American citizen during the height of such conflict in this country as he was being a native Syrian in Syria's present condition.
TFO~ Save it, Sugar. If they can't feel it, you can't make them feel it. There's always going to be a percentage of any population which will stand up for right and there's will always be a larger percentage that will lay down for just about anything, as long as their TVs and cell phones work. It's been a long, long time since the civilian population of the US stood for anything real or meaningful or high. Most of us are just trying to get by, keep the kids fed, the mortgage paid and enough gas in the car to get us back to the job week to week. All this while politicians lie, manipulate and cheat and the naive, the easily led keep voting the party line. The rest of us just gave up.
By-the-bye TFO...I realize you are deeply and sincerely moved by this, but, Dude...: Spell Check. You're getting a bit unintelligible.
The Forsaken Ones
He's from Serbia. Seems pretty good considering English isn't his first language.
You might want to spell-check too OldThang..... we don't say "By-the-bye", we say "by the way"... (in the Queen's English!).
Darwin got him.
Actually, I would consider voting for Obama if the President Kicked Bashar between the legs and Michelle dug her fingernails a good 3/4 inch into and across Asma's face. Violent, yes but they deserve it! The Assad's have been raping the Syrian People for 42 years now... It is well past time for those vampires to go.
That seems like a great idea..lets take the secular vampires out and put extremist Islamist vampires in...Bashar Assad is a genuine scumbag and piece of @!$%#, but I will take him over any Islamist anyday.
poeple say we are free. jokes on them. we work to pay are gov. it wont be long befor they take all the money we make. we taxs food land homes cars when you buy them and yearly. just for them to tell us how we should live. they dont care what happening to use as long as they getting payed.
You are free to do a spell check and go back to grammar school.
I wish I was payed two. LOL.
*A WARNING TO ALL THE INTELLIGENT FOLKS WHO SPEAK AND SPELL PROPERLY AND EXPECT THE SAME FROM OTHERS* I was admonished, hand slapped, and collapsed recently for pointing out horrible use of grammar and spelling. Big Brother (or should I say Big Sister?) is watching.
"*A WARNING TO ALL THE INTELLIGENT FOLKS WHO SPEAK AND SPELL PROPERLY AND EXPECT THE SAME FROM OTHERS*"
I don't expect perfect grammar. I'm aware that this is the World Wide Web and that there are some people in other places don't learn English as their first language.
Generally you can tell the difference between bad grammar and someone who's first language is not English. This one is clearly by a person who doesn't speak English so hounding his grammar isn't really accomplishing anything but making you look petty. People make misktakes.
As a father , my heart is in the cofffin with Shahade . I believe i can imagine, the pain of his parents .I would take comfort in the thought he was a young man , who thought that he could tackle injustice . He thought he could give a voice to persons who needed a voice . Others may well choose , to start families at his age and start their assured climb up the corporate ladder , i say hurray to them . But i celebrate an activist , i person who thought change , and made efforts to effect that change . His parents , friends and relatives ought to be proud tonight , His kind are few and far between , but an unjust world yearns for his breed. The civil rights movement in this country was happily blessed by having persons of his ilk in their midst. Sleep on .
Thank God. I am so discouraged reading these comments. People who think it's okay to trash a human being, especially one who just died. Let's show some decency, even if you don't agree with all of his life decisions! I am grateful to you for a thoughtful comment.
I agree with you 100%. Thank you for your thoughtful comment. Glad to know there are kind-hardhearted, empathetic people like YOU. These comment boards can be so depressing, you just get so tired of the multitude of people who give into hate, apathy, and self-righteousness in America.... and then call themselves good, according to some pathetic standard like "well im no terrorist" or " i've never killed anyone"... really, does that alone make you good, if you still have HATE IN YOUR HEART?! i seriously doubt it... sinners to the core, thinking they are saints...the sad state of too many Americans.....
peter clarke, I thank you also for your post. As a Mom it breaks my heart to hear that a young man full of passion and motivated by a desire to do something that would truly make a difference in the World has lost his life. That is the bottom line really, and I hope that his family and friends will be comforted by that.
What I don't understand and yes, this is over-simplified because I'm not a political scholar, is why are we continuing to beat our heads against the wall of these situations in the Middle East? I believe it was just yesterday I was hearing a report about protests in Egypt because of the two highest vote getters. Something about both of them being too close to type of government that was overthrown during the uprising there. What strikes me over and over when I listen to reports about these uprisings and wars (Iraq and Afghanistan) and the motivations are there to "help and improve" the lives of those being suppressed but at the end of it...the very same people haven't changed nor have their situations and in some cases or so it seem to me...might even be worse. Deborah wants to spout off at people not having a heart or compassion but honestly...that isn't it. It's not being able to understand and comprehend all nuances of these situations...it can be overwhelming to a lay person such as myself. There are massive injustices around the world, can we really be expected to "fix" them all when we cannot even address or fix those in our own Country? I'm more than willing to hear what you all have to say, even those that will criticize me for my ignorance, because I'm truly trying to understand...but deborah...I will not listen to what you have to say if all you can do is insult people presuming to know how I or they feel about something!
@MsLoco- your right. I did "insult people (by) presuming to know how I or they feel about something!"
I need to calm down and be more humble, thank you for your comment, it reminded me why i never comment and never should. I get to worked up, sad and stressed out by the state of things. I feels like we as humans cannot reach perfection, yet we suffer and then die and their is nothing... were is the hope? Think I should become a nihilist.... but i do care about others being hurt and want/try to help as i can...
what is the point of all this?
Deborah are you on meds if so please take them!!! An anti-christian nation like Serbia and Afghanistan do not care if you pray for them night and day unless it is to allah!!! Please do not insult those of us that do not cram our religious beliefs down others throats and most people are not insulting the young man that died they just feel we need to take care of our own first.
Go to a war zone, take your risk. Be on the side of a bunch of potentially al Qaeda mercenaries, and the risk goes way up. I am sorry to see someone so young die, but it is a risk he chose to take. I am sorry to see this happen in Syria, it was a beautiful place. And yes, sometimes, due to the culture of the place, a dictatorship is a good way of governing. Without it, the place will be another Islamic disaster.
Muslims call themselves a religion of peace so why is there SOOOOOOO much bloodshed and mass murders in these peaceful countries at the hands of their own peaceful religious leaders. And why is America sending money and our people to die and be wasted in these so called peaceful countries??????
militant/extremist muslims are a special breed all on their own. any form of extremism is bad. all religions preach peace and this is definitely not the first time blood has been shed in god's name. lunatics are lunatics.
God Bless him...and Thank God everyday for God blesses us in the USA. God Bless our soldiers that we are free to walk in the streets.
Well maybe he was a Idiot! Or prehaps he was standing up for the little guy! But in any case an aspiring filmmaker that was in the middle of a civil war is still cold in a box.
He knowingly went into a war zone to make films hoping to make money and was killed.
You pays yo money and you takes yo chances.
.
To start with, I hate it so bad for his family but, Americans have no business traveling to these stupid, ignorant countries that hate us to start with. All these countries know is to blow themselves and inocent people with them. Just stay the Hell out of those countries and you'll not have to put your families through disasters like this!
He was not American; he was a Fulbright scholar FROM SYRIA who was studying in US. He chose to go home a few months ago when his brother was detained.
What would Mohammed say about Syria? The Islamic world needs to speak up with a loud voice.
Jamie Alvarez The Islamic world is speaking up with a loud voice or should say a loud bomb, what they seem to know best is how to blow up bombs!!!! Peaceful religion I think they are proving otherwise they are coming across as a very violent, hateful religion. God save the world from the Islamic violence.
Hello Jamie, the Islam's book "Quran" says: "whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land - it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely". Prophet Mohammed would have definitely condemn these Massacres made by the Syrian government, and work for freedom and justice for the people. Unfortunately, there will always be people causing harm in the name of religion like Breivik in Norway in the name of Christianity or Bnladen in the name of Islam, but those individuals or groups do not represent the true beliefs of these religions. Personally, i think that Shahadi's death is sad and painful for his loved ones but the consolation is that he died for a fair cause. In Islam we call him a Martyr.
what the heck is wrong with this kid why on earth do you go to a country where there is no law or safety for people. I am not saying that he deserved to die. but if he wants to put his life on the line like that he should have joined the military
because he believed in something greater than himself he lived in the states and knew what life could be how great it could be im not the smartest guy in the world but it doesnt take a genius to realise that but was the risk worth the squeeze he thought so it was pride in his country that got him killed not stupidity
Where the war is, there are casulties. He accomplished his mission on Earth, and he is Home now.
...all we are is dust in the corn.
the civilians should know better than to go to a country where there are conflicts going on. i am sad that he was killed, but he shouldn't have been there
I like 8 pounds of boobies stuffed into a 6 pound bikini top.
way to inject a little levity into the situation there pickled pepper.
Another wanna be who strayed into a war zone without knowing what he was getting into. May be a graduate student but lacked common sense I don't feel sorry for him he took a risk that was stupid.
Stupid and uneducated fool sounding like you what a pitty