An Underground Hospital For Syrian Fighters
The Turkish town of Kilis is so close to Syria, you can hear the sounds of the fighting rumbling from across the border. In the suburbs of this small city, photographer Petr Shelomovskiy gained exclusive access to a secretive rehabilitation “hospital.” Free Syrian Army fighters recover there after emergency treatment. The men inside, who asked to have their identities hidden, spoke to Shelomovskiy about the Syrian government bullets and Russian bombs that changed their lives. [WARNING, GRAPHIC CONTENT]
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Abu Hamza, from Aleppo, has been in the hospital for three months with serious leg injuries. The 21-year old says he was the victim of a Russian air strike. Many of the patients spoke of bombs that broke "into 10 smaller bombs" as they fell.
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An empty room in the makeshift hospital after wounded Free Syrian Army fighters left for treatment in a Turkish government medical facility. Photographer Petr Shelomovskiy says that, while not officially acknowledging the makeshift facility, the Turkish authorities are aware of its existence.
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Abu Alwaled Altefy from Aleppo. The 23-year old says he was badly wounded 18 months ago while fighting Syrian government forces. The metal rods are due to be removed from his leg soon, but he will never walk normally again.
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Abu Hamza leaving the makeshift facility for treatment at a Turkish government hospital in Kilis.
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Abu Bashir from Aleppo. The 38-year old says he was distributing bread outside a bakery when Russian bombs hit. "After five years of war, I can tell whose plane it is. When the Russians fly, there is only the sound. You don't see them, and there are several jets at once... If they are men, let them come and fight us. Why are they dropping bombs?"
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A wounded fighter prays while sitting on a plastic chair. His leg injury prevents him from kneeling.
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Muhammed, 23, says he was wounded in Aleppo five months ago by a Syrian army bullet. A doctor working in the hospital said there has been little change in the type of nonlethal injuries he's seen since the Russians entered the war. He says that is only because "when the Russian bombs fall, they kill" rather than wound people.