An old Damascene saying goes, “Half of 1000 is 500.” It is usually reserved for sarcastically stating the obvious or bringing someone back to reality. This isn’t always easy in government-controlled Syria, as reality can be distorted, but it has become clear that problems are emerging that can no longer be justified by the excuse of war.
More than 80 percent of people in Syria today live below the poverty line. The country has an unemployment rate of at least 55 percent, and jobs are increasingly hard to find. The conflict has taken a heavy socio-economic toll on the population, and that is now the catalyst for growing discontent in loyalist ranks. As the military begins a slow-but-steady demobilization process, reintegrating soldiers into civilian life and creating jobs is proving difficult for the government.
One fighter, who only agreed to be identified as “Salem,” belonged to army reservist group 201, which was released over three months ago after seven years of continuous service. Salem complained, “We had been promised jobs by the government, but we are still waiting. Even if we get jobs as promised, the salary is too low for us to live well.”