The amazing story of how a school in Syria stays open

Tracey Shelton

 GlobalPost

IDLIB PROVINCE, Syria — Fatima Harmadi doesn’t seem very different from most children.

The 8-year-old with dark curly hair and a sweet smile laughs and jokes with her friends as they begin their walk to school at 7 a.m. in the rain, excited to be returning after two weeks away.

“I love my school,” she says, skipping through her village’s streets. “But when the planes come, it’s scary and we all have to stay at home.”

Fatima lives on the edge of Idlib city, which is controlled by government forces. Their bombs and artillery have bombarded her village for the past fortnight, forcing her to stay home.

It’s a wonder her school, one of only a handful still operating in Idlib province, is open at all.

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