Al-QARYATAYN, SYRIA—Saying it would be remiss of him to try to lease them an apartment in the area without mentioning the violations of international law that frequently occur nearby, local real estate agent Joram Terzi warned a Syrian couple Wednesday about the neighborhood’s high war crime rate. “You can get some really great deals here, but full disclosure, this area sees a lot of war crimes, especially recently,” said Terzi, explaining how he couldn’t let them move there in good faith without explaining how the town, despite containing an array of interesting shops and restaurants in close proximity, was nestled right in a disputed territory in Eastern Homs where the U.S., Syrian Government, and Islamic State have all bombed civilians and tortured prisoners, sometimes just up the street or even a block or two over. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great location in an up-and-coming district, but I must warn you there was a small genocide around here last month, and you’re right in the path of some chemical weapons. I checked online and saw there were kidnappings a few houses over just last night, for example.” Terzi assured the couple that while disconcerting at first, they would get used to it in no time, just as many of the locals have.

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