The Last Front: Baghuz ~ My narration of the events leading up to the fall.

Chapter Four: The Fall of Hajin

Chapter Four: The Fall of Hajin

After the recapture of Baghuz, things went calm again. There were six months when things seemed normal, and there wasn't much movement on the ground. However, this was the calm before the storm, and Allah allowed us to enjoy the sweetness of sisterhood, family, and honour. There were small battles between the enemy and the brothers, but nothing significant. Helicopters would fly above us in Hajin and release rockets on the city's outskirts and onto civilian homes. Food was running out, and our options decreased as the months progressed. Flour was no longer available. However, we were fortunate enough to get a hold of some barely, which we would turn into flour. Our neighbour sold us a sack of dried sweetcorn, which was also turned into flour. The most readily available food was the brown [barely] bread that we called nakhaal. This particular bread would make the stomach churn and was very hard to chew unless mixed with brown or white flour. Nonetheless, this was a nimah from Allah, and we would eat it anyway.

There weren't many items sold in the market; however, when we came across anything, we would try to stock up, which was next to impossible. There was either a shortage of money, a shortage of the item, or simply missing out because of not being aware it was sold. We would mostly cook on wood; occasionally, we would buy expensive cooking oil and cook on a stove that required gas. Daily life wasn't easy, and many people began to feel the burden. This resulted in many people leaving. The option of leaving was always open. This was done by walking out of the State's territory, walking towards the enemy frontline, and handing yourself in. The women and civilian men were taken to the camps, while the men involved in the military were taken to prison.

December 2018
By now, we had been living in Hajin for eight months. And we began hearing whispers that the enemy was preparing to attack the city. As they were preparing, so were we. I was overwhelmed and didn’t know how to pack. I already had the emergency bag I had prepared many months prior, which had gone dusty and nearly forgotten. But it was finally time to put it to use. I also packed another bag with all the food in the house, it wasn’t much, but it was my whole life put into two bags.

Many people had already moved out of Hajin, but I and a few others stayed behind, hoping the situation would improve. However, that wasn’t the case. One morning, we woke up to the sound of rockets attacking the village; it was a constant flow. We knew we had no other option but to leave and join the rest of the group that had preceded us. That same morning, we carried all our belongings and went to the main road looking for someone to transport us. Our next stop was Keshma, where we stayed for three weeks. We arrived at houses that we would share with many families. We were all on the run, it was a very intense period, and everyone was on edge. Daily life became complicated. We would constantly misplace items or have to leave stuff behind because of the difficulty of transporting them and hope we would find them at our next destination. At this point, the storm had begun, and it was intensifying.

Umm Haajar  تقبلها ﷲ

Umm Haajar was one of the sisters who accompanied us along the journey as we escaped Hajin. She was nine months pregnant and could give birth anytime. She didn’t want to leave, but her husband wanted to keep her and their unborn child safe. So he moved her out, brought her to safety, and spent one last night with her. He did not want to turn his back on the Ummah by staying with his family, and he wanted to defend the honour of the Muslims, and he did. Abu Haajar returned to Hajin the following day, but he would never return this time. She was waiting patiently to hear any news. On the fourth day, she was told that her husband most likely died because Hajin was entirely gone and captured by the enemy. None of his companions from that battle came back, and everyone had lost all forms of contact. She gave birth the very same night to a beautiful baby girl, which she named Haajar. Therefore, she finished her Iddah that same day. She told us, later on, she chose to name her daughter Haajar because she knew her daughter would be left in the siege without her father, such as Haajar, the wife of Ibrahim alayhi salam was left.

Umm Haajar would never complain, but she had lost her bag filled with her daughter's belongings. One day we saw her in the market looking for clothes for her daughter, and her eyes were filled with tears. Eventually, Allah provided her with clothes from other sisters, Alhamdulillah. She was a very strong woman, and we ask Allah to accept her.