Feb 16, 2015

ALEPPO, Syria — Twenty-three-year-old Louay was not alone on Valentine’s night, but he wasn’t with his girlfriend, either. He and some fellow enamored friends gathered by candlelight for an intimate evening. Louay arranged candles in the shape of the letter R and told his friends about the last time he saw his girlfriend, Rama. “It was a lovely day, despite the short time we spent together. I can still remember how her eyes were filled with hope. She admitted to her intense fear of being shot by snipers while crossing the Bustan al-Qasr crossing. Still, she rose above this fear to see me. … I miss her. I miss her madness and her gentle voice,” he said.

More than 13 months have passed since Louay and Rama's last meeting. In February 2014, regime forces closed the only crossing that connected the two parts of Aleppo — the eastern side under opposition control, and the western side under the regime. As a result, the city has been divided and families separated.

To move from one side of the city to the other requires a perilous journey across front lines. The journey, which takes more than nine hours in the best conditions, involves passage on “Khanasser Road,” which tranverses regions controlled by the Islamic State (IS).

Rama lives in the regime-held part of the city, while Louay lives in the area under opposition control. Although they are only a few kilometers apart, it is almost impossible for them to meet. Interestingly, it was three years ago, in January 2012, that Louay and Rama met, while organizing protests at Aleppo University to demand the regime's ouster. The same revolution that brought the couple together is now preventing Louay from seeing his beloved, as he is wanted by Syrian security.

Louay can no longer enter the regions under the regime’s control, and Rama’s attempts to trick her family into letting her see Louay have failed. With the closing of the crossing, she cannot visit her boyfriend and return home on the same day. Gazing at the candles Feb. 14, Louay said faintly, “All I wish for is to see her again and for us to live together. But I am not betting on this happening anytime soon.”