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Civilians residing in Deir Ezzor witnessed all phases of the clashes between Daesh and Assad’s forces that have been raging for more than two year, during which they were vulnerable to indiscriminate airstrikes and arbitrary shelling, and faced an extreme shortage of food and medicines, which led some of them, mainly children, to die of malnutrition. Despite all of this, the trapped civilians refused to leave their homes, no matter what the circumstances were.
However, after Daesh launched the biggest offensive of the year in Deir Ezzor, which triggered heavy clashes that have been ongoing for the seventh day in a row now, the civilians are now forced to leave their homes.
Leaving their homes mean that they will encounter several new issues. First, they are poor and cannot afford the prices of travel. Second, there are no places that will host and provide them with some of their basic needs. Thirdly, if they move to the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, they will not find a shelter, as that area has become full of Daesh families and others who were displaced from Iraq. The unprecedented wave of cold that has hit the province will be also a serious difficulty for the displaced families.
Leaving their homes in the city of Deir Ezzor is comparable to the soul leaving the body.