Al Intithar

The Syrian refugee camp Zaatari lies seven kilometres to the south of the Syrian border in the Jordanian desert. The nearest town is 13 kilometres away. There are already 45,000 refugees living here, and still more people arrive: 10,000 additional refugees every week. The capacity of the camp is 70.000 people. Many Syrians would like to go home: living conditions in the camp are by no means easy and they are often far away from their husbands and sons, many of whom have stayed behind to fight. The film’s protagonist is a widow from Homs whose husband was killed in an attack by the Syrian army. Director Mario Rizzi followed this widow’s life at the camp for seven weeks. Life’s rhythms are dictated by the place, and life here is all about waiting.
This film is the first part of a trilogy about the emergence of a new civil consciousness in Malaysia, Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain and Syria which also looks at the social implications of the end of post-colonialism in these countries.