Stare

By: Ershad Khan September 2, 2016

Omran, a four-year-old Syrian boy covered in dust and blood, sits in an ambulance after being rescued from the rubble of a building hit by an air strike in the rebel-held Qaterji neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo late on August 17, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / MAHMOUD RSLAN

Stare

By Ershad Khan

I had to freeze When I first saw you there, Taking over the space of my TV screen For prolonged moments I could do nothing.... But let my heart sink in despair!

You shook my whole being With your blank stare, Half-open bloody eyes Ragged clothes and unkempt hair.

Your shell-shocked, beating heart Resonates through Allepo's alleys, Pierced through their lies Beyond Damascus and Becca Valley.

Your tender life of five years Has shed more than its share of tears Yet no end in sight... Will the curtain of curse be moved? Who will take away your plight?

Omran, Aylan, children of war We buried our conscience And moved away too far.

You get bombed, maimed We look on with pathetic stare To stand up for you... We don't dare!