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Yahya Abu al-Darda was killed 2 days ago fighting Syrian regime forces in southern Idlib. He was 17. He joined the ranks of the armed opposition at the age of 14.
Yahya was raised by his father since the age of 9, when his mother divorced his father & left to the UAE.
Yahya was raised by his father since the age of 9, when his mother divorced his father & left to the UAE.
When Yahya was 11, the population of his town, Ariha, was displaced during fierce clashes between the regime & opposition factions. In early 2015, when Yahya was 13, he saw his 5-year-old brother being killed by a regime sniper stationed at the a-Tel checkpoint southwest of Ariha
Yahya was with his father, sister and aunt when the sniper killed his young brother.
Yahya also lost an uncle who was killed in a mortar strike on the market in Ariha 7 years ago. The uncle was 17-years-old.
Yahya also lost an uncle who was killed in a mortar strike on the market in Ariha 7 years ago. The uncle was 17-years-old.
Yahya dropped out of school at 14 & after a religious course joined the Turkestan Islamic Party. After being injured in battle once, he re-joined the fight in the ranks of Ansar al-Tawhid, another jihadist faction.
Yahya was injured once more when fighting for Ansar al-Tawhid, but returned to the battlefield. His friends say he was a dedicated fighter who always had a smile on his face. His father reports that Yahya fought for 3 weeks & had only 3 days of furlough.
So many of those killed on all sides of the Syrian war are teenagers. These boys are deeply traumatized, vengeful and don't have any skills other than fighting.
Previous stories I've documented:
Previous stories I've documented:
