Northern Syria -

Urgently, last Monday evening, most of the residents of the "Dar Al-Salama" for the elderly - near the city of Azaz in the countryside of Aleppo - rushed to the street, after the new earthquake that hit southern Turkey and northern Syria, terrifying the hearts of the elderly and people with special needs who live in the house. which has become their last resort.

Although Azaz, Syria, remained untouched by the repercussions of the earthquake that struck Syria and Turkey on February 6, the city was severely shaken by the earthquake that struck the Turkish state of Hatay last Monday evening, February 20, and its residents became in a state of fear and intense anticipation of the possibility of a recurrence. Earthquakes, including the residents of the house who have been stranded since the start of the war in the country in March 2011.

The director of Dar Al-Salamah, Nizar Najjar, says that he and the staff hastily removed the elderly inmates at the moment of the earthquake.

The elderly in "Dar Al-Salamah" receive meals and health care from the administration (Al-Jazeera)

Najjar explains, in his interview with "Al-Jazeera Net", that the building of the house is built in a simple architectural manner, without any foundations and supports, and on its roof are the requirements of the guests of water and heating fuel, warning of the possibility of its collapse due to the impact of any strong earthquake that the region may witness in the future.

He points out that the inmates returned to their beds after the earthquake subsided, and he and the workers calmed the elderly and reassured them of the stability of the situation, while panic and fear remained in control of them.

The denial of the parents

Although about 40 elderly residents of Dar al-Salamah and others with special needs survived the Syrian war and its ongoing scourge for nearly 12 years, the devastating earthquake that struck the north of the country threatens their lives and raises feelings of fear and terror among them.

The home includes former Syrian detainees and children - abandoned by their families - and war-wounded and disabled people, brought together by the Syrian ordeal, while they are always troubled by the denial of their families and relatives, in addition to Arab inmates from the countries of Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq, according to Najjar.

Elderly people in "Dar Al-Salamah" read the Holy Qur'an during one of the religious paragraphs (Al-Jazeera)

severe earthquake hours

After Monday's earthquake, the elderly Syrian, Najm al-Din, tries to calm down by trying to relax and sleep on a bed inside the house, recalling the difficult hours he went through without the ability to move or escape.

The man, who came from the countryside of Aleppo to the home 5 years ago, was quadriplegic. His wife abandoned him and his brothers migrated outside the country as a result of the war and bloody conflict. He became alone, suffering from physical and mental pain.

Najm El-Din told "Al-Jazeera Net" that he sees his new family in the home and its staff after being denied by his close associates after being paralyzed, adding that he is receiving physical therapy sessions in the home, hoping that he will recover one day.

He notes that the management of the home succeeded in reaching his two sons who live in the north-east of the country and bringing them to live near him in one of the children's homes in the countryside of Aleppo, after a long separation due to the separation from his wife.

The elderly and people with special needs found a safe haven in "Dar Al-Salamah" after losing their families and homes (Al-Jazeera)

memory loss

The stories of the inmates of "Dar Al-Salamah" finally summarize the ongoing Syrian tragedy with the earthquake disaster, while the director of the home believes that the most heart-wrenching story is the case of the Syrian young man, Malek Habib Morcos, who was brought to the home by benefactors who lost his memory after his deportation from Turkey to the Syrian lands.

Najjar explains that no one has recognized Morcos since he came to the home, pointing out that he is undergoing psychiatric treatment in a nearby hospital due to his suffering from severe disorders.