The Siege of Haniya [ONC2024] ✔

8. Memories of the Past

CHAPTER EIGHT: MEMORIES OF THE PAST

"All power will come to an end. They might try to stop it, but all they have done is hasten it."

Prof. El-Azizi's words echoed in my mind as Sarah showed me an online article about a protest in Sarai, the capital city of Akkadiyah. The protesters demanded the release of captives taken from Haniya and other cities, as well as other prisoners who were imprisoned unjustly without any concrete evidence of their wrongdoings. The protest had garnered the attention of every press company in the region since it was the first mass protest in the kingdom.

"The protest is led by the students' movement for justice. It's a movement that Prof. El-Azizi founded a couple of decades ago. The people who joined him are mostly his students at the university, schools, and even mosques. After the regime imprisoned him, his close students and colleagues took over his place and continued the movement. The people of Akkadiyah had found out that the regime banished Prof. El-Azizi to the Red Desert, and they are furious about that." 

"Wait, how did they know that? I thought it's a classified execution, and only the upper officials knew about the banishment," I said as I gave her tablet back.

"It seems that the situation has gone out of hand. The situation in the kingdom had been unstable for a while now, ever since the previous heir of the throne was exiled to an unknown place for following Prof. El-Azizi's movement. But what worries us is that his students are going to find him in the desert, and when they can't find him there, there will be a massive uprising in the region."

I heaved a low sigh, crossing my arms against my chest. "Is there any news from the search party?"

Sarah shook her head. "Not yet. They had reached a coastal town yesterday, but there was no trace of Leila and Prof. El-Azizi."

"I don't think they would leave Aman, since we don't have any identification cards with us. They would probably settle in a quiet and rural area, as far as they could from the Akkadiyah border. That's what they told me about what they would do."

"Alright. I'll send the word," said Sarah with a smile before she left with her tablet.

I cupped the half-empty mug of hot coffee that lay untouched since Sarah came in with the news. The balcony overlooked the neighbourhood and the street towards the main area of the city. Daytime in Haniya was always quiet, and the air went quieter during the night, as if life in the city had gone into a slow-motion mode. The playground in the middle of the neighbourhood was almost empty, and during the occasional times I spent at the balcony over the past week, less than five children had used the playground.

Sarah said the siege changed the dynamic in Haniya and sucked out the energy from its soul. The people who surrendered to the regime were mostly influential professionals who criticised the regime for its unjust policy and provocative action against neighbouring states. Many thought the problem would be solved after the people on the list surrendered and the siege was lifted, but for the leaders in Haniya, the real problem was getting started.

Especially when I showed up at one of the checkpoints after surrendering to the regime.

A sigh escaped my lips as I gazed at the blue, cloudy sky of Haniya. I could be a pawn in this game. Did they intend for me to survive the desert so I could come back to Haniya? Or did they just want to get rid of me, and somehow I survived?

I clutched the key hanging from my neck, putting down the mug on the table. This key could hold the answer, and I need to find the answer before the situation in the region worsens. It was already hanging on a thin thread. Made a mistake, and everything crashed down like a fragile bridge.