In the beginning was the graffiti

And Saraqib and its walls were one of the most striking surprises for the revolting Syrians and an unprecedented phenomenon that represented the early civil revolutionary movement, actions and discourse. The walls became a source of joy and hope for long months during the peaceful revolution.

Over the years, Saraqib’s graffiti served as a reminder of the revolution’s values, and carried the people’s voices and their messages of life, freedom, longing, anger, love, dreams, hope, resistance… but also of war, tragedies and death, and their struggle against tyranny in all its forms.

Frightened, the Syrian regime prosecuted, detained and murdered civilian graffiti activists. It covered in black the words: “freedom”, “leave” and “Syria belongs to all of its children”, and replaced them with its only and eternal message: “Al-Assad, no one else” and “Al-Assad, or we burn the country”. During the long years of war, the de facto forces followed suit.

This project currently covers over 500 graffiti and murals from Saraqib and other regions in Idlib, all laid out on a vertical timeline that is regularly updated.

The Idlib Walls Timeline is the third project produced by Creative Memory of the Syrian Revolution.

This project was launched on December 6, 2018

> View the Timeline