“They are everywhere. There is nowhere safe. Anyone can die at any—”
At that moment, Layla’s internet cut out, leaving a black square in a video-call interview with close family and CTVNews.ca. Her family says they often only get a few seconds with her at a time; an excruciating limitation as they try, desperately, to follow her escape from civil war.
Layla was in Aleppo visiting family – her uncle has heart issues – when rebels stormed the city on Friday. The fighters, from the designated-terrorist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, seized control of the airport, exchanged gunfire and re-ignited a long-stalled battle with the Bashar Assad regime. Dozens of Syrian soldiers were killed, and Russia’s air force carried out strikes on rebel targets.
It is the first time control of the city has shifted since 2016, when government forces, backed by Russia and Iran, defeated the rebels who controlled Aleppo’s …