Original version

BBC World Service South Asia

Migrated podcast image for: Outlook

Outlook

Factual: Life Stories

True stories of ordinary people and the extraordinary events that have shaped their lives.

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

BBC World Service East Asia

Outlook: Running an underground newspaper during the Syrian uprising

Magazines & Reviews

Kholoud Helmi speaking

16/03/2022 GMT

Running an underground newspaper during the Syrian uprising

BBC World Service - Outlook, Running an underground newspaper during the Syrian uprising

Kholoud Helmi paid a high price to start one of Syria's only independent newspapers

Kholoud Helmi risked her and her family's life to start one of Syria's only independent newspapers.

After pro-democracy protests broke out in 2011, Kholoud Helmi was determined to cover the human rights violations carried out by the Syrian government, as a reporter on the ground. So with the help of her friends and brother, she founded Enab Baladi, one of the only surviving independent media outlets founded in Syria. Kholoud paid a high price for this, risking her life, and the lives of her family, to report on atrocities happening in locations inaccessible to foreign reporters. The paper had to be printed in secret - and its copies would be distributed covertly in rubbish bins. The team did their best to avoid the military checkpoints scattered throughout the city, but they couldn't stay out of trouble forever. Kholoud's brother was arrested, and subsequently disappeared. 10 years later, Kholoud and her family still don't know whether he's dead or alive. After losing her home, brother, and friends to the civil war that has torn the country apart for over a decade, she continues to carry a dream of a free Syria with her. Jo Fidgen talks to her from Turkey, where she is currently living in exile. 

Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com

Presenter: Jo Fidgen
Producer: Gaia Caramazza

(Photo: Kholoud Helmi speaking on the war in Syria. Credit: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for HBO)

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Outlook

Running an underground newspaper during the Syrian uprising

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service South Asia

About BBC World Service