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

Chapter Eleven: "They were true with Allah, so Allah was true with them"

Chapter Eleven: “They were true with Allah, so Allah was true with them”

صدقوا الله فصدقهم

My hijrah-buddy had settled in a house between the main road and the river. I had seen a long dream before my hijrah, which was in parts, the second last part of it being my hijrah-buddy showing me a building and telling me her decree was written there.

At this point, I  did not realize it was the same house I had seen in the dream. But reflecting back, I know it was, and it even looked the same. Another group of friends who were very beloved to me also chose to settle in another house on the main road.

The houses were the aim now; we all knew that. Some groups of people still decided to stay in the houses. It was either out of fear of being in the open, or for the ease of being under a wall,  or for some, it was a matter of truthfulness.

“Truthfulness?

“How is that such,” I asked them.

They told me, “we had been running away for so many years, from Raqqah until now. We promised Allah if He gave us a chance to fight the enemy, we would. Now, we are running from them when they are approaching us.”

I told them, “it is because we cannot fight airstrikes.”

They said, “the matter of airstrikes would be the last option in this case, for now, the enemy was expanding on the main road. So they would not airstrike us if they were physically there.”

They told me, “if we could stop them by being humans shields— protecting the widows and families in the trenches, it would be enough of a duty. It was our time to be true to Allah.”

We had stayed in the house with them for a few days before the matter became more serious. This was when the fires were so severe that we feared burning alive in our trenches. They told us to stay with them to defend whoever was behind us.

But I got the choice to stay in the house or go back to my trench closer to the river. I chose to go to the trench because I feared facing the enemy. The families who stayed in the house were different. They prioritized Allah and His deen over their fear.

On my way back to the trench, I passed by the other house my hijrah-buddy was staying in. I entered to see her, spoke to her about leaving, and she put some thoughts in my mind. This was the last time I would see her.

Then I left.

That night was the most difficult I had experienced. So many thoughts were rushing through my mind. 

A True Dream
Weeks prior, Um H and her companions were seen in a dream. As their bodies are elevated to the sky, the ayah of Surah al Baqarah [2:207] is being recited.
{ وَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَن یَشۡرِی نَفۡسَهُ ٱبۡتِغَاۤءَ مَرۡضَاتِ ٱللَّهِۚ وَٱللَّهُ رَءُوفُۢ بِٱلۡعِبَادِ }
[Surah Al-Baqarah: 207]

“And of the people is he who sells himself, seeking means to the approval of Allah. And Allah is kind to [His] servants.” - Al-Baqarah, Ayah 207

Upon entering the trench at Maghrib time, I could hear the men leading salah and people making dua. Tonight was the night many were making dua, crying, and pleading to Allah. As we supplicate, we hear helicopters, airstrikes, and bullets being fired. It was more intense than ever before. Our trench was deep because we had been digging it over time. So we were safe if the enemy didn’t aim inside it. The top of the trench was also covered with many layers of blankets.

After we had supplicated and cried together, the sister in my trench decided to read Surah Al-Baqarah. We would often do this because it protects the one who reads it. As she read, we were in constant fear.

Then she reads:

“And of the people is he who sells himself, seeking means to the approval of Allah. And Allah is kind to [His] servants.” - Al-Baqarah, Ayah 207

As she reads the ayah, we hear the hit of an airstrike. It was not a normal hit, but an immensely powerful one, as though a massive building near us collapsed. The whole ground around us shook. “They are gone,” she tells me while her tears overflow.

I tell her not to worry. Every night whenever we separate from our loved ones, we think they must have died. But we met them the next day.

“No!” she shouts, “This is a building. It is a massive hit, and it is not any normal hit. This is the building they were in.” I get confused, not knowing whether to cry or to keep up the hope. However, deep inside,  we knew the rest of the crew was gone!

Then we both realized the coincidence of the ayah being recited along with the hit. But how could we confirm? She told me she was going to check, and I told her she was crazy even to stick her head out while all of this was happening.

The whole night we were in a state of fear and despair, then Fajr entered upon us. We prayed Fajr not having slept all night, and we waited for the sun to come up .

The sun did come up, but it did not bring with it good news.

The Only Survivors
After Fajr, the brothers approached the house to check for survivors. Only to find out that the SDF forces had captured it. The brothers decided to recapture it to figure out what had happened to the families. The house was in ruins, but some rooms were still standing.

Clashes took place for some while between the brothers and the SDF soldiers. Eventually, the first brother entered the house. He said it was in absolute ruins, with dead bodies, intestines, body parts, and blood splattered everywhere. They could smell the blood of the women and children mixed with gunpowder and pieces of metal from the missiles.

In one corner of the house, four people were hiding. They were the only survivors. The brothers shout out that it’s safe to come out and that they are not from the Kurds. They were relieved to have found life in that house. The survivors thanked the brothers for coming back. They informed them that the rest of the group had died at night during the airstrikes. Some had fought back but ultimately met their fate. None of the children had survived.

Before they left the house, the brothers looked through the ruins making sure there were no other survivors. One brother spotted a little girl he recognized. "Nur," he shouted. She recognized him.

He rushed to her and saw she was severely injured in several places and most likely had internal bleeding. Her foot was cut off, and the second was dangling. There was no time to process anything. The Kurds had begun their attacks again on the house. They all had to get out. One of the brothers carried Nur out, and they all exited the house and returned to the trenches.

The little girl stayed with us, she didn’t have much longer to live, and there wasn’t much we could do to help her. It was about keeping her comfortable and minimizing her suffering. She was constantly asking for water, but the brothers who were experienced in this field told us not to give her any because since she had internal bleeding, it would increase her pain and suffering. So a sister, out of compassion, had repeatedly wet her lips for her. She died later that day during the massacre.

A Green Bird in Paradise
Many months later, after entering al Hol, the sister who tended to Nur and had repeatedly wet her lips saw a dream. In the dream, there was a little green bird who was being passed around from person to person. First to the father, then to the mother, and then to other family members.

Finally, the little green bird ends up with the sister. She takes it, feeling sorry that it kept being passed around. She notices that the little bird has quenched its thirst and is sleeping peacefully. As she strokes the bird, she sees its legs are injured, similar to Nur’s. She realizes the little green bird was, in fact, Nur.