Thread by @ChloeNCornish

The basement bakery was almost completely dark, lit by some LED lights. Men dipped dough balls into boiling syrup, sugaring the air as they made Syrian sweets called awamay👇 You might miss the slim figure in the shadows. But she's at the heart of one of Syria's biggest stories

We're in a town near Damascus, which was held by rebels before being retaken by pro-regime forces in a massive military campaign last year. It's a good example of how nearly eight years of fighting has shredded the fabric of Syrian society
ft.com/content/14b870…

The lady in the bakery's shadows is a war widow, whose son and husband joined the rebels and were killed fighting. She's one of thousands. Now she's left with three children and no option - for the first time in her life, she must work outside the home. timep.org/wp-content/upl…

Syria's labour force is changing drastically. Why? There's a shortage of men.

"Of the nearly 500,000 people killed during the war, some 80% were men, according to the Syrian Centre for Policy Research, which found male life expectancy fell from 70 years in 2010 to 48 by 2015."

Syrian business owners are consistently telling me they struggle to find skilled male employees like they used to, and that's changing who they hire (although as you'll see in my story, not everyone is woke yet). Female entrepreneurship is rising as well.

This huge social change in Syria isn’t just about work. It’s about love, too. What got me the most was this story people kept telling me about weddings.

"Some women are even having weddings without grooms, said Muhideen Mubaideh, 48, who runs a wedding shop “The groom is in another country so the bride has a small party, she wears a wedding dress . . . It signifies a new beginning for her,” he said." Guys, the groom Skypes in.

If you can tell me more about how eight years death and destruction has changed love and sex in Syria, please please please get in touch, I am desperate to know more and hear more stories ([e-mail])

Back to women working for a sec, I just want to tell you a bit more about lovely Mariam who is 51 & starting a new career as a decorator. Mariam plucked up the courage to do a painting training course at a local church, looking for a trade to help supplement her husband's pension

She has worked on 2 painting jobs since, & taught the skills to her son who has learning disabilities. Now they're decorating together as a team!

Mariam: "I want to stand by my children until their personalities get stronger. Then we can all stand up together as a family"❤️❤️

Life is really flipping hard work for Mariam, who has a lot of mouths to feed & not much money to do it with. But she is full of optimism, & I want to end on her thoughts about job satisfaction: "When you do good stuff you feel happy."

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