AP PHOTOS: In northern Syria, displaced owners return to houses with no roofs

MARAAT AL-NUMAN, Syria (AP) — After a decade of war and displacement, many Syrians are returning to their homes, only to find them looted and roofless.

In towns like Maarat al-Numan and Kfar Nabl in northern Syria, residents who fled years ago have returned since the fall of former President Bashad Assad but are now confronting the harsh reality of widespread theft and destruction.

Strategically located on the route between the cities of Aleppo and Damascus, Maarat al-Numan became a touchpoint in the Syrian civil war.

Assad’s forces seized the area back from rebel control in 2020. After that, groups affiliated with Assad looted houses and demolished some of them to extract valuable materials and furniture, human rights groups said. Steel and wires were taken out of rooftops to be sold.

An aerial video of the area shows rows of houses that are still standing but with their roofs missing.

Anmar Zaatour, a resident who left in 2019, said he came back in 2025 to find his home destroyed.

“There was nowhere to put our children,” he said. “This destruction isn’t from the bombing, it was the military. And it’s not just mine, it’s my neighbors, and friends.”

Zakaria al-Awwad burst into tears of mixed joy and sorrow upon his return to Maarat al-Numan. His house was destroyed, “one of the first ones to get hit,” he said.

“There is no place like home,” he said. “Even if I have to put on a sheet of cloth, it is better than anything else. We have freedom now, and that is priceless.”

Others were more circumspect about the future.

“The problem is, it’s impossible to resume a life without a roof,” said returning resident Hassan Barbesh. “Maarat al-Numan is an impoverished town. It’s a very difficult task to start from scratch.”

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Ghaith AlSayed in Kfar Nabl, Syria, and Omar Albam in Maarat al-Numan, Syria, contributed to this report.