Lamenting the Hanging Bridge of Dare Al-Zore
The Hanging Bridge of Dare Al-Zore (city in north-east Syria) was considered one of the spectacular monuments in Syria. It was built back in the twenties of the last century on The Euphrates River during the French mandate and was considered at that time a rare monument, not only in Syria, but also around the world. The gangs of The Assad Regime blew it up with explosives on May 2, 2013 as revenge from the city for its role in the Revolution.
Lamenting the Hanging Bridge of Dare Al-Zore
When monuments join the martyrs’ caravan
By Tarif Youssef Agha
The mandate passed by our country once
It occupied us, but it also left us monuments
Local tripe came after that and forced us to drink bitterness
So we wished the mandate never left
The mandate built on The Euphrates River
A Bridge that had nothing similar
It was a hanging bridge, and it was unique at that time
For the people of Dare Al-Zore, it was their soul and flower
But then, the Assad tripe came
And it brought with it the thugs to power
They said “Either Assad or we burn the homeland”
And then they translated that into iron and fire
They pulled us centuries back,
After they stopped the time from running
They filled the palaces with all kinds of monkeys
And to keep law and order, they employed rats and bulls
They claimed they belonged to the people
But every one knew that was a lie
They corrupted the brain and heart, but also the soul
They assassinated the life, so the homeland turned into graveyards
The only thing that makes them satisfied is destroying our monuments
And also slaughtering the children, which they considered a holy sacrifice
Even the bridge did not escape their hatred
As a tall and proud palm tree, it fell, causing us pain and tears
They blew it up, along with the heritage of a nation
The one who destroys the heritage is called a traitor
Naive is the one who still claims that
Those who did all that are our homeland brothers
***
A Poem translation
Tarif Youssef-Agha
An Expatriate Arab Syrian Writer & Poet
Member of the ‘Syrian Revolutionary Writers Assembly’
Friday May 10, 2013
Eight days after the gangs of The Assad Regime blew up the Bridge
Houston, Texas
http://sites.google.com/site/tarifspoetry