From Russia, with Love and Bombs: Russian rapper releases song in solidarity with Syria’s Idlib

The track by rapper Mari Marisol, who comes from St. Petersburg, is entitled “From Russia, with Love and Bombs” and is a response to a song by Syrian Idlib-based rapper Amir Al-Maarawi called “On All Fronts”.

"Mr President, was it you who bathed the people there in their own tears?", the Russian rapper asks, in an apparent reference to Vladimir Putin. "

Why was I born into a land run down by man-eaters making bombs from dawn to deadly sundown?", the rapper continues. 

The striking lyrics are accompanied by a music video showing scenes of destruction in Idlib, as well as Syrian children devastated by airstrikes.

Amir Al-Maarawi’s earlier song “On All Fronts” also took aim at Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose forces have killed hundreds of thousands of Syrians since 2011, as well as militants from Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - the formerly Al-Qaeda-linked Islamist militant group that controls much of Idlib province.

Read also: Maarat Al-Numan evacuation brings new dangers for Syrians

Between December 15 and December 26, Russia and the regime intensified their bombing of Idlib province, killing over 160 people according to the Syrian Civil Defence.

Some 235,000 people have fled their homes, according to the United Nations and there are fears of a humanitarian catastrophe amid harsh winter conditions for refugees. The city of Maaret al-Numan, once home to 110,000 people has been effectively destroyed and emptied of its inhabitants.

On Saturday, thousands of Syrian refugees in Turkey demonstrated against Russia and the regime’s continued assault on Idlib province. Protests were organised at the Russian consulate in Istanbul and in the Turkish capital Ankara, as well as in Bursa, Gaziantep, and Adana.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people took to the streets to stand in solidarity with Idlib at the Brandenburg Gate in the German capital Berlin and outside the Russian embassy in London.

The rebel-held province has been relatively quiet over the past three days, with a lull in aerial bombing, but there is no formal ceasefire and violence can resume at any time.

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