If any of us - who are safe in our homes - were to walk among the martyred children of Ghouta, we would think they were the siblings of our own children whose warm rooms we check at night to make sure they are fine. The facial expressions of this child resemble that of your eldest son when he sleeps, and the hair of that other one is similar to your niece's long straight hair. As for this newborn, it is as though he were the twin of your friend's son, the same friend you visited a few days ago to congratulate him on the birth of his child. The familiarity of the victims' faces and identification with them, place the viewer in the position of witness to the crime, while the horrific nature of the act silences all voices and renders condemnation and anger meaningless, amid total astonishment and helplessness. On the other hand, the questions surrounding the reality of the scene exceeds its explanation by far. How can all this killing take place so close to us, while benefitting from our silence, collaboration, and indifference? How did we, as humans, stoop to such bestiality, to the point where we can see these corpses laid down on the cold floor, turn our faces, and proceed with our wretched futile lives? Those among us with live consciences lit a candle, some might have even shed a tear, but then they all resumed their normal activities the following morning in search for their livelihood. The question surrounding the killer, the criminal, and the responsible party is no longer of any use. Everyone knows the killer's name, who committed the massacre, who planned it and used it to serve its political goals, and who justified it with words, positions, congratulations and gloating. The murderers and criminals have become so ordinary and banal that one can refer to their names, ranks, positions and homes without any mistake or confusion, at a time when their affiliates and followers are also known with their cheap media outlets, hypocritical smiles, dead faces, and filthy "it's war" leitmotif. There is no point in asking about the tyrant or he who resides amidst intelligence apparatuses, under the pretext of rejectionism, resistance and the deterrence of heinous Western conspiracies. Indeed, we see the latter every day, with their pettiness and servility, glorifying the criminal, urging him to kill more innocent people, and uttering meaningless words about strategy, capitals, and states. However, the question that requires a quick answer is the one related to us, who are proclaiming our bias in favor of the victim, saying that we do not accept the death of the innocent, refusing that the Palestinian cause be linked to the torture cellars carrying its name and perceiving life as being an abstract value rising above necessity and the beloved leader. The question should tackle the ways to exit the state of the powerless victim caught between the fangs of internal and external parties, in order to become active and influential, and capable of determining our fate and of deterring pointless killing and the murderers' pandemic. The latter, who grew accustomed to the taste of blood and became reassured about the world's impotence, empty warnings and red lines tainted with irresponsibility, will not stop offering their advice and sermons. This does not imply the incitement of reactions to the massacre with similar massacres or to counter violence with violence, considering that this has already been put in motion after the killers themselves inaugurated the infernal cycle of violence, killing and retaliation. We are merely saying that the lines of a new chapter should be drawn between the people of this country, i.e. between those whose realism pushed them join the sectarian mass and those insisting on maintaining whatever humanity is left in them, regardless of the cost. The battle is not with the Damascus butcher alone, or with those justifying the daily killings in Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere. It is a battle to prevent our countries from remaining killing arenas and hunting grounds for the criminal and its entourage to have fun in, while those with good intentions desperately await the arrival of a savior. It is a battle to prevent the ongoing display of the corpses of our children, lined up and piled up before camera lenses, surrounded by ice.
