Abd Doumany

Photographer

Peace in the afterlife

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The body of a child is seen at...ian capital on April 23, 2016.

1 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a child is seen at a make-shift morgue after being killed in a reported air strike on the besieged rebel-controlled city of Douma, a flashpoint near the Syrian capital on April 23, 2016.

A picture taken at a morgue sho... Damascus, on August 22, 2016.

2 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

A picture taken at a morgue shows the bodies
of two young sisters who died after their house collapsed following a reported air strike on the rebel-held town of Douma, east of the capital Damascus, on August 22, 2016.

Syrian men wrap theÂ body of a...kirts of the capital Damascus.

3 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

Syrian men wrap theÂ body of a child in shrouds on a table at a morgue on October 5, 2016, following reported air strikes on the rebel-held town of Douma, onÂ the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus.

The bodies of Syrian siblings ...everely injuring their mother.

4 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The bodies of Syrian siblings Hala (L) and Omar lie on a table at a morgue on October 2, 2016, following reported air strikes in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus.
The two siblings, who lost their father months ago in an air strike, were killed when a rocket hit the family house, severely injuring their mother.

The bodies of Syrian siblings ...everely injuring their mother.

5 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The bodies of Syrian siblings Hala (L) and Omar lie on a table at a morgue on October 2, 2016, following reported air strikes in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus.
The two siblings, who lost their father months ago in an air strike, were killed when a rocket hit the family house, severely injuring their mother.

The body of a Syrian child is ... Damascus, on October 5, 2016.

6 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a Syrian child is seen at a makeshift hospital following reported air strikes on the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus, on October 5, 2016.

Â A Syrian man points his torc...scus late on October 11, 2016.

7 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

Â A Syrian man points his torch light at a mortuary in Douma towards the body of an 11-year-old boy, identified as Suleiman, who succumbed to his wounds, after being wounded in an air strike on a residential neighbourhood in the besieged rebel-held town, on the outskirts of Damascus late on October 11, 2016.

The body of a Syrian boy lies ... shelling on October 20, 2016.

8 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a Syrian boy lies at a make-shift hospital in the rebel-held town of Douma, east of the Syrian capital Damascus, following reported cluster bomb shelling on October 20, 2016.

The body of a child is seen at...Damascus, on October 24, 2016.

9 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a child is seen at a make-shift morgue following a cluster bomb attack on the rebel-held town of Douma, east of the Syrian capital Damascus, on October 24, 2016.

The body of a victim lies on t...amascus, on November 10, 2016.

10 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a victim lies on the floor at a make-shift morgue following an airstrike in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus, on November 10, 2016.

The body and shoes of Haya, a ... strikes on December 29, 2016.

11 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body and shoes of Haya, a 3-year-old Syrian girl, lies at a makeshift morgue in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of Damascus, following reported air strikes on December 29, 2016.

The body of a girl is covered ...gime forces, on June 30, 2015.

12 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a girl is covered with a shroud at a make-shift hospital in the rebel-held area of Douma, east of the Syrian capital Damascus, following reported air strikes by regime forces, on June 30, 2015.

The body of a severely wounded...me forces, on August 30, 2015.

13 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a severely wounded girl is seen next to a body covered by a sheet on the floor at a make-shift hospital in the rebel-held area of Douma, east of the capital Damascus, following reported air strikes by regime forces, on August 30, 2015.

The corpse of a Syrian child, ...Damascus, on November 7, 2015.

14 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The corpse of a Syrian child, wrapped in a body bag, lies on the ground for identification following a reported air strike by government forces in the rebel-held area of Douma, east of the capital Damascus, on November 7, 2015.

The body of a Syrian infant li...helling byÂ government forces.

15 of 15 © 2024 Abd Doumany

The body of a Syrian infant lies in a morgue in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, on January 31, 2017 following reported shelling byÂ government forces.

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Thumbnail of The body of a child is seen at _rian capital on April 23, 2016.

Thumbnail of A picture taken at a morgue show_l Damascus, on August 22, 2016.

Thumbnail of Syrian men wrap theÂ body of a _skirts of the capital Damascus.

Thumbnail of The bodies of Syrian siblings H_severely injuring their mother.

Thumbnail of The bodies of Syrian siblings H_severely injuring their mother.

Thumbnail of The body of a Syrian child is s_l Damascus, on October 5, 2016.

Thumbnail of Â A Syrian man points his torch_ascus late on October 11, 2016.

Thumbnail of The body of a Syrian boy lies a_b shelling on October 20, 2016.

Thumbnail of The body of a child is seen at _ Damascus, on October 24, 2016.

Thumbnail of The body of a victim lies on th_Damascus, on November 10, 2016.

Thumbnail of The body and shoes of Haya, a 3_r strikes on December 29, 2016.

Thumbnail of The body of a girl is covered w_egime forces, on June 30, 2015.

Thumbnail of The body of a severely wounded _ime forces, on August 30, 2015.

Thumbnail of The corpse of a Syrian child, w_ Damascus, on November 7, 2015.

Thumbnail of The body of a Syrian infant lie_shelling byÂ government forces.

Public Project

Peace in the afterlife

Copyright Abd Doumany 2024

Date of Work Jan 2015 - Ongoing

Updated Apr 2017

Location Douma

Topics Abuse, Birth, Buddhism, Children, Civil Wars, Crime, Documentary, Genocide, Military, Oppression, Photography, Photojournalism, Politics, Portraiture, Revolution, Sorrow, Spirituality, War, Weapons

Douma is the largest rebel-held town in the eastern Ghouta area, on the eastern outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus. With more than 100,000 residents trapped under a government siege since 2013, life in Douma revolves around the rhythm of bombs. When the bombing starts, Douma's streets lie deserted -- except for the ambulances frantically transporting rescue workers and paramedics to the scene of an air strike. In 2015 the rural town was recorded as suffering from the highest number of fatalities since the start of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad in March 2011, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. This suffering continues as civilians fall victim to the shelling leaving those who survive the cascading rubble the responsibility to practice rushed spiritual rituals to bury their loved ones. Wrapping the body in shrouds for burial is one of the only funeral rites that time and resources can afford in a town where the number of victims is ceaseless. Mourners can only pray that their children will rest in peace far from the horrors of a life of war in which they grew up.
In this project I photograph children for the last time before their bodies are burried, in an attempt to document war crimes committed against children in my hometown, yet at the same time preserve the dignity of these children in hope that they don't become mere numbers in the eyes of the international community.

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