Away from the sound of bombs and bullets, in the basement of a crumbling house in the besieged Syrian town of Darayya, is a secret library. It's home to thousands of books rescued from bombed-out buildings by local volunteers, who daily brave snipers and shells to fill its shelves. In a town gripped by hunger and death after three years without food aid, Mike Thomson reveals how this literary sanctuary is proving a lifeline to a community shattered by war. Produced by Michael Gallagher and additional research and translation by Mariam El Khalaf.*Omar, the FSA soldier pictured above who was the last voice heard in this programme has been killed in fighting.*.
Kultur & Gesellschaft
Crossing Continents Folgen
Stories from around the world and the people at the heart of them.
Folgen von Crossing Continents
403 Folgen
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Folge vom 28.07.2016Syria's Secret Library
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Folge vom 21.07.2016Stealing Innocence in MalawiEd Butler explores the secretive and shocking world of Malawi's "hyenas". These are the men hired to sexually initiate or cleanse adolescent and pre-adolescent girls - some said to be 12 years old, or even younger. It's a traditional custom that is endorsed and funded by the communities themselves, even the children's families. We meet some of the victims, the regional chief campaigning to stop the practice, and the hyenas themselves, and ask if enough is being done to stamp out a custom that's not just damaging on a human scale, but is also undermining the country's economic development. Reported and produced by Ed Butler.
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Folge vom 27.05.2016'Islamic State's' Most WantedChloe Hadjimatheou tells the astonishing story of a group of young men from Raqqa in Syria who chose to resist the so-called Islamic State, which occupied their city in 2014 and made it the capital of their "Caliphate". These extraordinary activists have risked everything to oppose IS; several have been killed, or had family members murdered. IS has put a bounty on the resistance leaders' heads. But the group continues its work, under the banner 'Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently'. Chloe meets the group's founders, some of whom are now organising activists in Raqqa from the relative safety of other countries.
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Folge vom 12.05.2016Checkmate Me in St LouisDave Edmonds travels to the mid-western city of St Louis (location for the musical 'Meet Me In St Louis', starring Judy Garland) for the US chess championships. The city has become a world centre for the game of chess. Its status has partly been achieved by funding from a controversial multi-millionaire, whose childhood included time in an orphanage. Rex Sinquefield is well known for his fascination with the game and his enthusiasm is shared by many others. There is a thriving chess centre, elite tournaments which attract some of the top players, a Chess Hall of Fame and chess lessons in local schools.St Louis is one of America's most violent cities and has most recently been in the news for race riots which erupted when an unarmed black man was shot by police. Can the game of chess serve to lessen racial tension and unite its citizens across the board?Producer: Mark Savage.